Musings of the Moment

Winter?

2012-02-07T09:42:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that I'm not a huge fan of winter. Seriously, if you really know me, you already knew that! I hate being cold, I hate having to drive in crappy, snowy conditions where I'm praying the other moron drivers out there don't crash into me. However, I do love when I'm able to stay home on a snow day, making myself cozy by my fireplace or drinking a cup of hot chocolate. I've been a bit surprised this year at the lack of snow. I'm not totally complaining, but it would be nice to see a LITTLE snow now and then. Christmas came and went and it was just ugly out there! I'm not a fan of skiing, snowboarding, or many winter type sports. I do like snowmobiling (though I haven't been in a few years) and ice skating, but other than that I usually find myself hibernating during most of the winter.

I love my sweaters, boots, jackets, hoodies, etc., but haven't found it cold enough, or snowy enough to wear a lot of my fun things. I keep waiting for the snow to come crashing down and making up for lost time. I'm dreading if winter decides to come late and stay through spring, but seriously lets just get it over with and start getting some Utah snow!

Playtime

2012-01-24T09:21:00.001-07:00

Last night I was over at my parents house after a very long day of teaching and then a 3 hour sewing class. I needed to relax. I needed to unwind. I needed a very long massage (hmm...maybe soon). Lucky for me my cute little niece, Lexi, was upstairs and ready to play. I was chased by the "tickle monster", told to "run for my life", and spent some time in the "teepee tent" with pillows and blankets. I love that I'm called "Menanie", given random hugs, and get to have silly play time with my favorite 2 year old. It was a much needed end to my day.

I love being an aunt! Since I don't have any children of my own, and probably won't anytime soon. Or ever for that matter.....lets be realistic, I'm over 30, here in Utah I'm past my "expiration date", chances of birth defects and complications become greater every day, not to mention doctors have hinted at my limited amount of time. In the meantime, I live vicariously through others that have children. Being a teacher I get to see lots of cute kiddos every day. And thanks to my brother and sister, I have lots of opportunities to spend time with my nephew and nieces. :)

New Projects

2012-01-09T12:59:00.001-07:00

I start my sewing class tonight and I'm super excited! I've made a few sewing projects in the past and recently finished my Christmas quilt. However, I'm not a sewing pro like my mom or sister. I need a lot of help and encouragement along the way. I found out that since I bought my sister's Bernina, and she previously bought it from Nuttalls way back when, I'm able to take the introductory classes for free. Bonus for me!

A few months ago my mom received a new Bernina and she will be taking the class with me. Yay for not having to go by myself! I'm excited to learn all about my machine and how to do more things. It'll be nice to have my mom with me in case I feel like a moron and need some extra help. Side note.....I'm REALLY hoping that some of the other people in the class will be stupider than me, cause ya know, it's never fun to be the dumbest one in the class. To make myself feel better I looked through the workbook with all of the different lessons I'll be learning. I found quite a few things that I already know how to do.

The part I'm not looking forward to is the class is 3 hours! Yes, 3 hours! I have to sit in a chair and somewhat pay attention for 3 freaking hours! Did I mention I have severe ADD (I diagnosed myself...hehe). The class will be for the next 4 Mondays....3 hours each....making a total of 12 hours. That sounds like a lot of hours and a LOT of sitting! Wish me luck. :)

Cozy!

2011-11-21T15:00:00.000-07:00

I remember back in the day when my sister slept in our downstairs and she had a heating blanket on her bed. One day I was down there with her and it started smoking. Scariest thing ever! Lately I've been craving a heating blanket (I like mine non smoking....in case you wondered). How nice would it be to curl up on the couch with some hot chocolate, the fireplace on, and my super cozy heating blanket? I have some fabulous booties that you heat up in the microwave and it keeps your toes toasty warm while sitting on the couch or in bed. Love them! I'm thinking a heating blanket would be even that much better!

I found this little buddy on Amazon. I'm thinking he might be my new best friend. What do you think?

Sewing

2011-11-16T08:58:00.000-07:00

Who would've guessed that I would kind of enjoy sewing (most parts of it anyway). I like feeling the accomplishment of finishing something and being able to display it so I can see all of my hard work. :)

In the past few years I've made a Halloween quilt and am almost finished with a smaller Christmas quilt. I worked on said quilts at my mom's house, using her machine, with some help since I really had no idea what I was doing to begin with. I found that my favorite part is the actual quilting. The little elf's hand on my Christmas quilt might've taken me forever, but I was very proud it turned out as well as it did. I also later found out that the foot I used was a lot more difficult than if I had used the free flowing one. I have since bought my sister's old machine, and I'm looking forward to learning how to do a lot more.

Gianormous Spiders

2011-10-31T10:22:00.000-06:00

I have a huge phobia of spiders! I mean I'm deathly afraid of them! My biggest con to living alone is having to deal with creepy spiders on my own. I can't just yell for someone to come and kill them for me. Occasionally I do call my dad, begging him to come and "visit".

Last night I decided to do some dusting/cleaning, trying to get rid of the never ending amount of dust caused by my bathroom remodel. As I was cleaning the table I looked up on the wall and the Godzilla of all spiders was crawling around up on the wall, by the ceiling. Most of the time I can climb on a chair and get out my fantastic "spider vacuum" and suck him to his death. This time the sneaky thing must've known this and was by the ceiling above my stairs....therefore not within any reaching distance. I called my dad in hysterics! He suggested hitting it with a broom or throwing something at it to make it fall down. I knew this was a bad idea because then said spider would be loose on the carpet, without my being able to find him, and without a doubt he would attack and kill me!

By this point in the conversation I burst into tears. This wasn't just an ordinary house spider (is there such a thing?), this was an abnormally large, black, with many other colors mixed in.....monster! For the next 10 minutes I sat on a chair sobbing uncontrollably while the creepy spider crawled around the walls. He ended up coming around the wall where I could actually reach him. I climbed up on a chair (in amongst my sobs of course) and tried to suck him up in the vacuum. The blasted spider was so big that it took me much moving and twisting until I could dislodge him off of the wall into the vacuum. Sheesh! I ran to the bathroom and flushed him multiple times, making sure that yes, he was forever gone.

Fall Break

2011-10-24T15:13:00.001-06:00

I was really looking forward to Fall Break. A 4 day weekend, hooray! It started out great, other than a stiff neck (or so I thought). By Thursday night I was in a lot of pain. Another muscle spasm in my back, a lot like in the spring. I was able to find muscle relaxants, and it didn't get as severe as it did last time. I still wasn't able to hold a book to read, or find any way to sit or lay down comfortably. By Saturday I was starting to feel some relief and was finally getting some sleep.

My parents have been out of town and I thought I would be a nice daughter and check their mailbox and bring it in their house for them. I looked like a stiff board, since I still couldn't move around a lot, but heck, I could walk to the mailbox and walk back right? On my way back from the mailbox I stepped in a hole in the grass, rolled my ankle and sprawled on the sidewalk (mail going everywhere). Now not only did I have back pain (feeling a lot worse from my fall), but my knee was bruised and scraped and I could barely walk on my ankle. After my meltdown, complete with hysterical sobbing, I decided I had done enough damage for one weekend and spent the rest of my weekend in my pajamas trying to recover.

And did I mention that I had the tile guy over at my house working on my bathroom floor all weekend? I didn't get a lot of relaxing done, but I did catch up on some DVR while camping out on my couch.

Showers

2011-09-27T09:55:00.000-06:00

For those of you that remember I redid my shower in the master bathroom about 2 years ago. Overall, I loved it. I hated the guy that did it because he took freakin' forever and he was sloppy and didn't have things to perfection like I wanted. But it was definitely an improvement to what I had before.

I few months ago, or so, I noticed some of the tiles in my bathroom popping up from the floor. I started getting even more worried when I noticed the grout on the step into my shower was cracked and shifted. My cousin's brother in law does tile (too bad I didn't know him before) and I had him come out to look at it. He popped off the tile by the shower that was almost completely lifted. MOLD!! The stupid shower has probably been leaking from when it was first put in 2 years ago because the moron did a crappy job. We have to rip out at least half of the walls and floor in the shower, and fix who knows how much damage. Oh, and who knows how much damage the neighbors garage ceiling below me has as well. Then we have to change all of the tile on the bathroom floor since that has all popped up, since it wasn't put down correctly in the first place. It might be until the first part of December before the guy can come and work on it since he's booked up until then. Luckily I have another shower to use in the guest bathroom in the meantime. :(

Enemies and Such

2011-08-31T10:29:00.000-06:00

All of you know how much I detest spiders. If you don't, well, then you just don't know me as much as you thought you did. I pretty much have a huge phobia of spiders, insects, and anything creepy, crawly and much smaller then me. I have a trusty vacuum to dispose of those creepy things, dead or alive. I always make sure my house is protected with bug spray and let me tell you, I use said bug spray quite often just to make sure I have as much protection as possible. I have also designated a closet at the bottom of my stairs as "The Spider Closet" due to the vast amounts of spiders that end up dying in there.

The other night I came home late after spending the evening at my parents. I pull into my garage, shut the door, get out of my car and precede to the back to retrieve my recent purchases out of the trunk. Upon getting to the back of my car I notice a ginormous moth (I'm talking the Godzilla of all moths) flapping his bat wings around my garage light. I scream in terror and lock myself safely back in the car. It does require locking, because who knows what talons or claws that thing has to open unlocked doors. I decide the best option is to open the garage door and yell at the moth to "Get Out!" I lose sight of the moth, and know that he is waiting for me to try running for my freedom before attacking me with his vampire fangs. I find scary moth on my back passenger door window looking at me hungrily and again I yell "Go away creepy, mutated bat/moth. Pick on someone your own size!" I tap on the window until he disappears yet again. Keep in mind that I had to crawl from the front seat into the back to tap on the window. I decided I would have to make a run for it. I closed the garage door, for the 2nd time, prepared myself and made a mad dash for the back door, which might have involved more screaming, and flapping arms. I made it unscathed! I'm sure my neighbors wonder at times who the crazy, screaming lady is that lives next door.

Life's Lessons

2011-08-22T09:28:00.002-06:00

It's been a few month since I last blogged. I've been wanting to blog about a few things, but haven't been able to bring myself to do it until now. I recently was in a relationship which ended quite suddenly and without much explanation. I realize that things happen for a reason whether you want them to or not. I've been on dates since my divorce, but I've always compared everything to my ex and seemed to be shutting myself off from everyone. I thought it was a lot easier to sabotage any relationship from the beginning rather than waiting for someone else to hurt me. Screwed up, right? This time I was finally letting myself be happy.

I was always so afraid that I would never be able to love someone again, that I would forever be a hot mess. It was such a relief being able to know that there are people out there like me. That I'm not alone in what I'm feeling or what I'm going through. That I was able to have a great time with someone who wasn't my ex. That someone thought I was amazing, and treated me the way I have always deserved to be treated. It was so nice to see a glimpse of what could be. It was another constant reminder that my life is going in the right direction. I've left behind things I no longer want to be a part of my life. Even though I still make a ton of mistakes I know what I want and don't want. I'm such a better and stronger person for my trials and though I don't ever want to go through them again, I am happy with the person I am today.

Spring?

2011-05-02T12:52:00.000-06:00

I didn't blog at all last month. Wow, I'm such a big slacker! I've been sick for the last 3 weeks. Seriously, 3 weeks! I got a sinus infection, went to the doctor and he gave me antibiotics. The first ones didn't work and he had to prescribe another kind. That one finally started to help, but by the time I took my last pill I wasn't completely better and then started feeling worse and worse. I went again to the doctor, and he prescribed MORE antibiotics. He said my sinuses didn't look any better and hopefully being on meds even longer will give it a chance to clear up. It better hurry...I'm sick of being sick!

Last week my mom and I went to the BYU Women's Conference. We had a blast! We've made this into a tradition and I totally love it. We went down Thursday morning, went to a few speakers (had lunch of course), went to a couple more (with shopping in between), then finished up with a fun dinner at a mexican restaurant. Great times! Lucky for us we picked Thursday, a warm, perfect day. Friday it ended up snowing, raining, and all kinds of craziness.

Tomorrow my class and one other class in 3rd grade are going on a field trip to Red Butte Gardens. We went there a few years ago and it's tons of fun. I'm excited and looking forward to it hopefully being good weather for us.

What a Pain in the Neck!

2011-03-23T11:11:00.001-06:00

I subbed a few days my first week or so off track. It's a great way to earn some extra money, and it seems a whole lot easier than dealing with my own class. :) My 2nd week off track I was planning on heading to St. George and Las Vegas with my parents.

Tuesday afternoon as I was subbing my neck was sort of stiff, almost as if I'd slept on it wrong. No big deal, right? Tuesday night it got MUCH worse and I was unable to sleep. I couldn't sit, stand, or lay down in any position to get some relief. I called my doctor Wednesday morning and he gave me some muscle relaxants. I had a muscle spasm going down my neck and through my right shoulder blade. Sadly, I couldn't go to St. George as planned. I spent the next week doing a lot of sleeping thanks to the muscle relaxants, watching a lot of movies, and reading (when I was finally able to hold the book up). I couldn't do much of anything, not to mention move much at all. I couldn't turn my head, couldn't even turn my body without being in excruciating pain! I couldn't bend over, couldn't drive my car, couldn't lift anything with my right arm, and was very frustrated that I was unable to make dinner or get anything done in my house.

My last week off track I was able to finally start feeling some relief in my neck and was able to slowly feel like I was getting back to normal. My off track didn't go exactly as I'd planned, but at least I was able to stay home and get better rather than worrying about going to school.

February

2011-02-24T08:53:00.001-07:00

I decided I better post about something before February is over, since I haven't been very good at blogging lately. The last time was the first part of January......either I really suck at blogging, or my life is pretty boring. Or maybe some of both! I'm going off track tomorrow and I'm super excited to be getting a break and also to do a little subbing to get some extra money.

The past couple months I've been extremely nervous about our school going traditional, since it seemed inevitable. I look forward to my off track time, I love being off during different times of the year, having it spaced out, getting breaks from my students and coming back refreshed, going on vacation when everyone else is in school, being off in December to get my Christmas shopping done and not as exposed to the flu. I don't want to have a 3 month chunk of time in the summer off....I don't want to get a second job, I'd much rather sub sporadically during the year when I feel the need. I don't want to start in August and go clear until June with only small holidays to look forward to. Basically I was seriously looking into switching school to one that would be staying year round. Last week we found out my school is staying year round next year and would then be re-evaluated in the fall for the following year. I'm sure my school will be changing to traditional, it's only a matter of when. In the meantime, I'm thrilled beyond words to at least have one more year to savor my off tracks, make some extra money and figure out how to make do with getting no pay check the first August we switch over....but I won't think about that now, I'll relish in the good news for a while first.

I did my taxes early this year and to reward myself a bit I bought myself a Nook. Hooray! I'm so in love with it and don't regret my decision in going with the Nook vs. the Kindle. I really do think it has a lot to do with personal preference. I've already downloaded quite a few books, and find it so satisfying to know I have a wide variety to pick from in one hand held device. There are so many books that I've already put on my wish list, and I'm looking forward to enjoying my off track with some Nook time.

The NOOK

2011-01-03T13:59:00.000-07:00

I've been looking at the original Nook (Barnes and Noble) and the Kindle (Amazon) since they first came out a year or so ago. I've been liking the Nook a little better so far since it seems to have a bit more to it. You're able to "lend" books to friends that also have a Nook, and there's a wider variety of ebooks to purchase. I'm a huge fan of reading, and I wasn't sure at first if I would like not being able to touch my pages and actually feel the books. Also, would the screen strain my eyes? I was worried that once my memory space was filled up with books I would have to start deleting them to order more. Ack! What an awful thought that would be!

I've since found out you can have unlimited amount of books saved in an archive and I've heard the screen looks a lot like a book and doesn't strain your eyes like on a computer. I've also found out that you can check out ebooks from the library. The Nook has a dictionary to look up words while you're reading and a bookmark function, etc. I have a bunch of gift cards to Barnes and Noble that are burning a hole in my pocket to be used, so that would be a good down payment to my Nook, don't ya think? So, everyone who has a Nook or Kindle, what do you think? Or if you don't have one, what have you heard? Pros? Cons?

When You Think Things Are Bad......

2010-12-23T12:53:00.000-07:00

.....trust me, it can always get worse! For my next hair appointment (in like 2 more months) someone PLEASE stop me from wanting to cut it. I need it to grow, and I need it to grow like now. I hated it last time and I triple dog hate it this time. I'm going to go cry now. KBye

Yay for Off Track Time!!

2010-12-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

It's time again to go off track. Hooray! December is my favorite time to have off of school. I get 4 weeks, which is longer than my usual 3. I have time to get my Christmas shopping done, run errands and overall just enjoy the holiday season. I haven't been a huge fan of Christmas for the past couple years, but I'm working on not being such a scrooge and enjoying just the simple things. I put up my decorations the weekend of Thanksgiving which is always quite the ordeal. I have a million boxes of Christmas decorations it seems. I think I might have enough to decorate a much larger house than mine, but I have to admit all the cute stuff around my home does make me happy.

My dad came last night to help me put the star on my tree since it wasn't cooperating. Thanks Dad! :) He also was able to help me string some lights on my balcony and set up my light up snowman. Hooray! I'm feeling very festive this year.

Snow

2010-12-02T10:58:00.000-07:00

I've never been a huge fan of winter or snow in particular. I don't like being cold, and I don't like driving in snowy conditions. Ick! One of the things I do like about winter would be snowmobiling. However, that topic would be for a different post. :) All day Sunday into Monday morning we had quite the storm. Monday morning my snow shoveler people never came. Oh fabulous! All I have to say about that is I get quite frustrated when I'm paying my HOA dues and the snow shoveler people don't show or do a crappy job. I suck at shoveling my own driveway and it'll take me forever with my trusty little shovel. I got stuck in the stupid street and was late to school. Definitely not a great Monday!

When I got home that afternoon still no shoveling people. Everyone had shoveled their own driveways and the sidewalks were a mess! They showed up around 5:00 and did a pretty crappy job. Maybe only about half of the sidewalks or half of some driveways were finished. And I somehow ended up with more snow at the end of my driveway then was there before I shoveled. Maybe you shouldn't be blocking my driveway with snow. Just a thought. They came back again on Tuesday to try and plow the rest of our streets. Maybe if they'd done it all on Monday things wouldn't have turned so icy and it wouldn't have been such a pain to shovel.

Stupid Internet!

2010-12-01T11:01:00.007-07:00

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving my modem died. I called the internet company that evening and of course they want me to try all these things that I've already tried before I even called them. Yup, it died, which I already knew. I ordered a new modem which they said would be expedited to me and I would receive it by Friday afternoon. Friday comes, no modem. I call again and they said there was never a note about expediting, so it was never shipped. They would ship it out Monday morning and I would receive it by Tuesday. Tuesday comes, I get a Fedex package with an installation CD, no modem. I call once again. There is no record of a modem being ordered. I talked to many people and asked where my modem was.....and they couldn't have mentioned that there was no modem? I was pretty upset by this point since my modem that was suppose to be ordered last Wednesday now would not get to me until Friday.

They transferred me to Loyalty where I talked to a complete jerk that was in Logan, Utah. I explained my long, annoying story and told him that I was completely frustrated with their service and needed some sort of compensation for my inconvenience. He told me he would refund me $7 on my bill for the unused internet time, and that was all. Really?! A bunch of idiots work for your company and can't even order a modem, or bother to tell me that there was no modem ordered and you won't give me anything else besides 7 pathetic dollars? I became very irate since someone who was suppose to be in customer service and helping me was a complete a$$! I told him he was no help and a very rude and disrespectful person! I would be contacting Comcast to receive better service and with someone that actually cares about their customers.

I was transferred to another department where I cancelled my stupid modem, cause why the heck would I want one of those now? Calling again on Wednesday (yup, I pretty much called every single day) they wanted to transfer me to Loyalty after I told them their customer service is horrible...heck no! Rude people work there! I actually got a nice guy this time who refunded me $100 on my bill for my inconvenience and checked to make sure that the modem was actually cancelled. Who can trust them after everything that has happened?

Friday morning, my cancelled modem arrived. Really? Maybe I should've cancelled it to begin with and it actually would have come. I don't want your stupid modem and you better not charge me for the dumb thing! Ugh! What a pain in my behind this whole thing has been!

Hair Drama

2010-11-06T13:31:00.004-06:00

Have you ever had a haircut where you never really get attached to it, but it's "alright", and you figure maybe it'll grow on you (literally)? Then you go to get your hair done again and it's shorter and worse than you thought it was to begin with? Not a fan of my hair, hating it worse now since I just got it cut on Monday. I don't like it stacked in back, I don't like the layers all over, I hate it. If I had my way I'd wear a hat for the next couple months until everything grows out. Unfortunately I have to deal with it and hopefully not cry every day trying to make it work. The picture posted here is the new 'do that I want. I like the bob, it's easy to manage AND it's all one length. The back is not going to be stacked, I hate my "stackedness". I love the Aline, where it's longer in front and goes shorter in back, but keeping it all one length.....none of this layers, stacked, stupid short hairs that don't cooperate anywhere.

So, in a few months, or more, I'm hoping my hair will be looking more like this picture. I'll get back to you on that.....and in the meantime wish me luck and send me good hair day vibes!

Off Track Time

2010-09-28T08:37:00.002-06:00

I didn't post at all why I was off track so now it seems I have a lot to catch up on. I went on the trip with my parents. The places we visited were great! I loved seeing Carlsbad Cavern. It was huge inside, much bigger than Timpanogos, which is all I had to compare it to. Definitely a fun experience, though I must say the city of Carlsbad was not my favorite, more of a dumpy little town really. I considered sleeping in the car. :) We went through El Paso, which was fun to see, though strange that I could see Mexico just across the freeway. We stayed a few nights in Phoenix, a much needed break from all of our driving. Round trip it was a total of 38 hours. Next time I vote for taking a plane.

A part of me is glad to be back on track. I must say I did miss a lot of these kiddos, I've got some cuties this year. The other part of me is wishing I could still be sleeping in and doing anything I want all day. It's nice to be back into a schedule, even though I'm not much of a morning person.

Happy Dance Time

2010-09-03T12:38:00.002-06:00

I'm going off track today. Hooray! Don't get me wrong, I love Most of my kids. However, there are a few I could definitely do without seeing for 3 weeks, or more. I'm super excited for this weekend. My favorite (and only) nephew, Garrett, is getting baptized tomorrow. I can't believe he is already 8 years old and in 3rd grade. I love him!

My parents have invited me to go on vacation with them for a week to Carlsbad, New Mexico. Perfect timing while I'm off track, right? Has anyone been to the cavern there before? Any other suggestions on what to do while we're in the area? I'm excited to get some "me time" with my parents and also have a chance to get away from life for a bit. I have always loved traveling (though not necessarily long, boring road trips) and wish I could do more if my budget would allow. :)

Eminem - Love The Way You Lie

2010-08-31T22:12:00.000-06:00

This song really spoke to me. I seem to have a lot of those lately. It's made me cry a few times, reminding me of my past. Other times it makes me feel good. Maybe because I've survived things I can't even imagine going through again, let alone the pain it causes me to remember. I blare this song on my radio anytime I hear it in my car. It's my favorite of the moment.

Thankful....I think

2010-08-19T09:49:00.004-06:00

When unpleasant or terrible things happen to you it sure is hard to see the positive of it all. It's hard to see the pain ever ending, or life taking a turn for the better. Sometimes things happen for a reason but it sure seems unfair at the time for life dealing you such a crappy hand. I always hated when people would say, "I'm so blessed to have these trials". Maybe after it is all over and done with you can look back and say, "Wow, I survived. Look at how much stronger I am. Look at how much I have learned and grown." But when you're going through a trial are you really thankful and happy about it? I know I for one have a pity party every so often and think "Why me?!" Having a good cry sure does make you feel better!

I know looking back on the past few years of my life I think of all the mistakes I have made, all the stupid decisions or wrong choices I chose. I also remember the good things I have done, and the right decisions I made. Life is never easy and it's up to us the direction our life will take. Sure I have regrets. I still have crappy, miserable days where I'd rather lie in bed all day and not have to deal with other people, where talking to anyone about anything makes me want to cry. But I also have those days when I'm the happiest I've ever been, where I'm so grateful and optimistic about where my life is taking me and I'm looking forward to all the new and exciting things life has in store for me.

I've been through Hell and back (possibly a few times) and I know the happiness you can miss out on, the total despair and physical ache you can experience. I'm not happy having the memories of a sad life, remembering the pain and sorrow I felt and still do at times, but I can at least look forward to making and choosing a better life for myself. I know I will still make mistakes and fall down quite a bit, but I know I can get back up, dust myself off, and I'll be that much stronger and more determined.

Autumn

2010-08-10T09:44:00.003-06:00

One of my favorite seasons is just around the corner. I love fall because of the cooler temperatures and the pretty fall leaves in the mountains. It also means my birthday is coming up. :) It seems a lot of the time we don't get much of a fall or spring, my two favorite seasons, and skip right into the next season. Here's to hoping this year we get a beautiful fall with fabulous weather!

The Muppets: Pöpcørn

2010-08-04T23:29:00.001-06:00

Hehe! This is so dang funny! I'm getting quite a kick out of The Muppets on YouTube. I promise this'll be my last one.....maybe. Enjoy! :)

The Muppets: Stand By Me

2010-08-04T09:00:00.001-06:00

I thought this was the funniest thing ever! I laugh hysterically every time I watch it. Maybe being around kids all day has me laughing at random things, but I sure enjoyed this one.

New Class

2010-08-04T08:45:00.002-06:00

I'm loving these new kiddos! Yes, they're slow workers, and don't seem to catch on as quickly. Yes, some of them are super low and struggle without extra help. At first I was worried about them, but I've already been growing attachments to these darlings. I'm hoping it'll be a great year, and I'll love them even more as we go along. Here's to a fresh new year!!

Jar of Hearts

2010-07-27T20:24:00.001-06:00

How sad is this song? It might've made me cry the first time I heard it. It definitely touched me with good and bad memories. Thanks Hayley for posting it so I could also share. I'm now looking forward to her album.

What a Week!

2010-07-19T11:42:00.002-06:00

Last week they began breaking out the concrete on my driveway on Monday. They finished the driveway and broke out part of the sidewalk. Tuesday evening they carried away the broken up concrete and did nothing else. The concrete guy talked to me and said they would finish breaking up the rest of the sidewalk Wednesday and would be pouring on Thursday. Wednesday came and went and nothing was done. Wednesday night I received a message on my phone from the HOA lady. She proceeded to tell me that I should've received a notice on my door about the concrete replacement going on this week. The concrete company has tried to reach me and they are unable to gain access to my driveway. If I do not return her call tonight or first thing in the morning they will stop work on my driveway and do someone else and I will be held responsible to complete my own concrete. I was livid! I called her that evening and she must've already left her office. I woke up bright and early Thursday morning (as I have been every other morning in order to open the garage door for their "access").

I talked to beast lady and tried to stay calm as I told her that the concrete company tore out my driveway on Monday and have done nothing since. I have been without a car since Sunday night and they have had complete "access" to my driveway. I talked to said concrete man Tuesday night myself. She immediately started apologizing, "I'm so sorry. Well the concrete man called me saying they couldn't get to your driveway." Well maybe they got the wrong house lady! I don't appreciate being told off on my answering machine when I've done nothing wrong. Nothing is being completed at my house and I'm not happy about it! "I'll call them right now and tell to come over and finish." Yeah, right, once again nothing happened all day. Bite me stupid lady!

Friday they finished breaking out the rest of my sidewalk. Saturday they came and poured my driveway and some of the sidewalk. They ran out of concrete and would have to finish the rest on Monday. They still have not returned as of yet. Shocking! All I can say, is if they decide to replace the rest of my driveway next year that was not done this year, I'm going to have quite the tantrum. I'm not going through this again!

New Concrete

2010-07-12T12:19:00.002-06:00

This week my townhome and many others around me are getting our concrete redone. Great idea, right? Every year some of the concrete, paint, etc. gets fixed. Last year part of my driveway was redone, so I couldn't park in my driveway for a few days. This year the part under my garage door in being done along with a bunch of the sidewalk up to my front door. Yes, I feel like I'm stuck in my house.

So once again, I can't park in my garage. Ugh! I was hoping and praying that my house would be done today and not tomorrow. I had to open my garage door halfway early this morning in order for them to have access (in hopes they were coming). Hooray! They are right now working on mine! That means tonight and tomorrow I can at least park in my driveway. The concrete will begin on Wednesday until Friday. Let's hope mine is done on Wednesday. It'll sure be great when it's all complete. But it's a definite pain in my behind in the meantime. :)

Ceiling Fan

2010-06-28T09:14:00.005-06:00

The last little while I've been thinking about getting a fan in my family room. Friday after school I went with my parents to Lowe's and then Home Depot looking for what I wanted. Saturday evening the electrician came to install it and it was done in about 2 hours. I had to vacuum and dust some from when he cut the hole in the ceiling, and some of the mess from the attic trailed all over my house. But of course it was not nearly such a disaster as when I had my bathroom redone.

I love my new fan! This is a picture of the fan I chose, but you can also find it here. In the store it was on sale, so I think I got it for a pretty good price. I love that it keeps me much cooler in there. And I love that it has a light attached. I've only ever had a small lamp on my table (thanks Laura for letting me borrow yours while you don't need it) and it's kind of dark if I ever wanted to read or such. Now it's super bright, and I can stay super cool while I enjoy my book.

If I Were a Boy

2010-06-24T23:43:00.000-06:00

Mmmm.... Massage

2010-06-24T12:40:00.003-06:00

Today at school we had a company here doing free 5 minute massages during our lunch time. Am I totally weird that I've never had a massage before? It was the most fantastic 5 minutes ever! I'm thinking I've become quite the fan.

The girl that gave me my massage told me afterwards, that my spine is a little off center and wanted to know if I ever have back pain. Ummm, yeah, but doesn't everyone? I really never thought anything of it and blamed it on getting old and decrepit. Ha! The lady in charge said there is a 1 hour consultation if I'm interested and also gave me a coupon for a $39 massage. So fellow bloggers, or random people that read my blog, what do you think? Have you ever had a massage?

Just Keep Swimming, Just Keep Swimming....

2010-06-23T10:31:00.005-06:00

It's that time of year when I break out my swimsuit and start regretting that I've only got bikini's to wear. Yeah, I'm not quite as in shape as I once was. I'm not going to disgust everyone by wearing my itty bitty bikini to layout or swim in the pool. I love my bikini tops that I've had for a few years, and am now wondering if I could get away with pairing them with different bottoms that might offer a bit more coverage. What do you think about this bad boy? The skirt design is sorta fun I thought. It's a basic black, so it should go with my pink heart and black bikini tops don't ya think?

Stick a Fork in Me, I'm Done!

2010-06-22T14:31:00.002-06:00

I need this year to be over. School year, calendar year, whatever. Am I going to miss (most) of my kids? Might I get a little teary on the last day of school as my students leave for good? Yes, and yes. I've fallen in love with these little kiddos (mostly), and it's always hard to see them go. However, on the flip side, I'm ready for my summer to begin. I'm ready to start taking care of a few little projects at my house that have begun forming in my brain. Painting? Craft room closet organizing? I'm kind of excited to start. Yes, I can be kind of an organizing/neat freak at times. I like things the way I like them and boy does it feel good when everything has it's own little place.

My kids are so ready to be done, I'm so ready to be done. This on track time is the hardest to come back for. 3 weeks? Really? To do what? End of year testing is over, major curriculum is over, traditional school and A track students are all done.

Sometimes I'm ready to be done with this year in general. Another year over, another year hopefully dealing with less pain. Another year past my divorce. Looking ahead to better and happier years. Now if I could just live in my own little bubble world and not have others around to remind me of such painful memories and things that might never be, life would be that much easier to deal with. But then again, what would life be without the bad to make the good feel that much better.

Vacation?

2010-06-09T17:12:00.005-06:00

Last Tuesday I thought I would head to St. George to meet up with my parents and stay for a few days for a little vacation while I was off track. When I got to St. George that evening my mom called me to let me know her and Dad were at the hospital and Dad was in the ER.

For the previous 2 week my dad had been having headaches. That day he stumbled a few times while walking and then his right arm went numb. They went to Instacare and were sent immediately to the ER. They began doing many tests; MRI's, CT Scans, MRV's, etc. They found numerous blood clots in his brain, behind his eyes, etc. Miraculously his veins had been compensating by rerouting around the blood clots, and expanding to let more blood through. He was in the middle of stroking when he arrived at the hospital. They were able to stop it before it climaxed. He was put on blood thinner to stop any more clots continuing. The doctors were very surprised he had not had a massive stroke, and said if he had come in 6 hours later he would've been a lot worse off. He still has headaches (due to the blood clots), and is walking much better. To begin with he was favoring his right side and was a little unbalanced. But other than that, he is doing quite well!

He has been discharged from the hospital, but has to remain in St. George for a couple more weeks until the Dr. gives him the okay to head home to Salt Lake. He is not allowed to bend over, making his head below his heart, in fear of dislodging a clot. He can not drive a car for so many months, or lift anything heavier than 10 pounds. Needless to say my few day "vacation" has turned into one a lot longer. My mom was so glad I came down when I did and was able to help out with things, and so she is not all by herself. We are all so thankful he is doing so well! A lot like my sister's stroke almost 2 1/2 years ago, what a miracle!

LOST.....I will miss you!

2010-05-24T08:52:00.007-06:00

Disclaimer: Don't read this if you haven't watched the finale yet. I love, love, love LOST. I did not watch the original season from the beginning. I became addicted through renting the first few seasons before getting all caught up. I have to admit, it's much better watching them chunks at a time rather than waiting, anxiously, week to week, hoping they'll start answering the many questions being posed.

I have never been this addicted to a tv series! I became very attached to the characters and their lives. I might've cried many times, starting with Charlie....and Sun and Jin, you made me cry too. I wasn't quite sure what to expect for the series finale. I was excited to watch it, yet sad to see it all end. Definitely bitter sweet! Thank you Natalee for watching it with me! It's much more fun to share it with someone. I was surprised at many parts (What, Jack and Juliet were married, divorced, and had a child?). I might've exclaimed out loud, "I knew it!" when Hurley became in charge of the island. I cheered for Jack to push John off the cliff.....I yelled for Jack to run so he wouldn't die in the cave. I also might have cried when Sawyer and Juliet found each other at the candy machine. I'm still not sure if I quite understand the ending. Did they all die? How did they die? Was the "alternate universe" not real? What was real? Don't you worry, I have preordered the last season on dvd through Amazon, coming out August 24th. I think beginning all over again on Season 1 could possibly be in store. :)

Pajama Party

2010-05-19T10:27:00.002-06:00

This past weekend my niece, Ashlie, had a sleepover with me. We started out with grilled cheese sandwiches and watched Princess and the Frog in our pj's while cuddling on the couch. She was then determined that we put on some music and dance around the house. Of course we did it. We read stories before bed and for the next hour or 2 Ashlie had a million questions. Can I have a drink? I'm thirsty. I'm hungry. When is it morning? Can we read more stories? Can we watch Veggie Tales?..... She proceeded to tell me, "I can't sleep....I have too many questions." Haha! She fell asleep around 11pm and I headed off to bed.

I was hoping she'd sleep in until 8 or so, since she's usually the one that sleeps in longer since she takes so long to fall asleep. However, around 6:30 I hear little feet running on my tile. I wake up to Ashlie standing in my doorway staring at me. She climbed in bed with me for a while and we tickled and giggled. During breakfast she told me, "This was a great sleepover!" We watched some more movies, played some games and had a great time.

As I was taking her home this was the conversation we had. "Melanie, I'm sorry I missed your birthday party." "Ashlie, you were there. Remember, it was at Grandma's house?" "Oh yeah. I forgot. I'm going to invite you to my family party AND my friend party. Cuz you're my friend! Only friends and brothers are allowed to come to friend parties." What a cutie she is! And what a fun sleepover/pajama party we had!

New Hobby

2010-05-12T09:25:00.003-06:00

My mom and I signed up to take a few golf lessons in June. My mom has taken lessons previously and has her own golf clubs. I've never golfed in my life, unless you count miniature golfing or going to the driving range. I thought it would be a fun new hobby to try out, and we'll see if I like it. I'm kind of excited to try something new. My dad, brother, and mom are all golfers. Wish me luck!

Field Trip

2010-05-10T09:23:00.002-06:00

The 3rd grade is going to Mt. Timpanogos Cave next month for our field trip. I have never been to said cave, but have been excited to go! The park service ranger explained that it will take us approx. 1 1/2 hours to walk up to the cave, just under 1 hour in the cave, and 45 minutes to hike down. That's a heck of a lot of hiking! I'm not quite the outdoorsy, hiker type of gal, and I'm getting sort of worried that I'm going to DIE. Hehe. We will need water bottles to carry up the trail, and I heard to bring a jacket for inside the cave, being that it's cold. Has anyone else been to the cave? Any suggestions?

Things that Make Me Smile.....

2010-04-30T10:57:00.005-06:00

New car smell.
Smell of rain on a spring day. (NOT every day of course!)
Audi TT. Convertible of course.
Hawaii
Little toddlers and babies feet. As an adult feet are just disgusting!
Mountain Dew
My house when it's newly cleaned and organized.
Smell of a new book.
Bubble baths.
Painted toenails.
Puppies
Saturdays
Pink
Peanut M&Ms
Getting a phone call from a friend I haven't talked to in a long time.
Kisses and Hugs.
Daisies
New shoes.
Baking cookies.
Cuddling during a movie.
Getting my hair done at the salon.
Disneyland
My students that appreciate all I do for them!
Adorable parents that are appreciative and come in to volunteer.
Sleeping in on the weekends.
Accomplishing everything on my To Do List.
Finding the perfect gift for someone.
My nephew and nieces.
Opening my windows in the spring and summertime.
The feel of my carpet after it's vacuumed.
Emails and texts from people I love.

I Hate.....

2010-04-28T12:53:00.003-06:00

Men that are crappy husbands.
Crappy fathers.
Men that think they're a great father, but really they were only the sperm donor.
Helicopter moms.
Kids that do NOT follow directions.
People that are fat and blame it on being pregnant.
When you exchange an item to the store for the exact same item because the first one was defective and they want you to pay more for it because there is no longer a sale.
Annoying little dogs that yip all the time. (I'm a big dog kinda gal)
Cats. Not only am I allergic to them, but I find them very annoying and moody!
Having a zit on my face when it's picture day, or something else equally important.
Pants that don't fit because they're too short. I'm tall, but seriously, is it that difficult to find long pants that I love?
When I miss a show and realize my DVR didn't record it.
Denzel (the previous owner of my telephone number). Dude, you have crappy credit and I'm sick of telling all the creditors that call that this is no longer your number. Oh, and I think it might be important to tell your own mother another way she can contact you if you no longer have this number!
Solicitors that apparently can't read the "No Soliciting" sign on my door.
Finding a piece of lint on the floor and thinking it's a spider.
Hard water.
Going to the grocery store and finding they are out of what you went there for in the first place.
Finding the perfect shirt and then realizing they're out of your size.
Veins in chicken.

Flat Irons

2010-04-22T08:50:00.004-06:00

I've been researching a ton about flat irons. I used to have the delusion that they were only for really long, curly hair that you wanted to straighten. I have since found out about using them with short and straight hair. I learned how to use them to straighten, bend, curl, flip, etc. So many uses for such a fun hair tool. Look here to see the Chi I like for such a great price. With the new hair style I'm wanting I think it'd be fun and different to try not only using a round brush when I dry it, but also making it smooth with a little bend using a flat iron. I am loving the folica.com website. They have so many products on great sales, with free shipping, free pouches, etc. The reviews by customers can be quite addicting to read and find out more about what people think and the hair tools they love and hate. Thanks to all the great friends that have helped me in sharing what they use, what they love, and how everything works.

Sale! Sale! Sale!

2010-04-17T18:36:00.003-06:00

I love Bath and Body Works and I love when they have their fabulous sales. Right now they have a buy 3 get 3 free sale, where you can find some great scents! Some of my current favorites that I had to stock up on were Japanese Cherry Blossom, White Citrus, and the all time classic Warm Vanilla Sugar. Not to forget my all time favorite foot lotion, the Heel of Approval. Once I started using this I've never tried anything else. It keeps my feet super soft during the winter and summer. Love it! If you haven't tried it you better get some. It's 2 for $20 right now. There you have it. My spiel for the day! My mom and I had a great day spending and saving a bundle.

Netflix

2010-04-14T09:50:00.002-06:00

Is anyone else a huge fan of Netflix like I am? I've been a member for maybe a year now and I'm completely addicted. I love that I can catch up on my favorite tv shows and try out some new ones as well. I love that I can get new movies and old movies. I love that when I mail it in I get my next one in about 2 days from the day I mail it.

I recently found out that they now have unlimited access through the Wii. Woot! Woot! My dad and brother have the Xbox360 and have been watching movies on it, which I think is great. I heard a while ago that they were going to make that available for the Wii sometime soon, and now it is. I'm anxiously awaiting the free disc arriving today so I can hopefully get it all set up tonight. I'll be a movie watching freak! Hehe :) Anyone want to have a movie night?

A New 'Do?

2010-04-12T10:07:00.003-06:00

I'm thinking it's time for a change and I want a new haircut. I love having shorter hair, and I have totally loved my flippy 'do, but I want to try something different. I want something fast and easy to do every morning, definitely low maintenance, and something fun and flirty. I love my golden/blond hair color and will probably keep that about the same, but have been looking at short haircuts. The picture posted here is one that I found recently and I'm thinking I really love it! I don't have my next haircut until the end of May, but who knows, maybe I could try curling it under in the meantime and seeing what happens. :) What do you think? Should I try it?

Fresh and New

2010-04-08T11:04:00.006-06:00

Are there any of you that love Stampin' Up as much as I do? Have you heard that they're retiring some of their colors and bringing back some old in-colors and adding brand new ones for permanent colors in their new catalog in July? I'm excited for some of my favorites to be coming back, such as Wild Wasabi, Pink Pirouette, and Riding Hood Red. However, I'm a little sad to see a ton of some great ones leaving.

If you're anything like me, you better stock up on your favorites now, before they're gone for good. :)

Happy Spring!

2010-03-29T21:45:00.003-06:00

I have been slacking lately in my posting. Once the entire month of March? Sheesh! I had a fabulous time off track. It sure went by quickly, like it usually does. On the bright side, I don't have to set up my classroom until Wednesday, and then we have Spring Break until the following Tuesday, so I really do have some more time to relax. I spent all of last week in St. George, and didn't want to come back home. I got my tax return (yay!) and after paying off some bills I have to admit I did a little splurging. I got some new Cricut cartridges (on a fabulous sale of course), an Ipod docking station (thanks Greg!), and had a few other shopping excursions with my mom in St. George and Vegas. I have to say I enjoyed myself while I was off.

I also had a few days of subbing, and caught up on my house cleaning and got my doctor's appointments out of the way. I'm think I'm almost ready to head back to school and get back into the routine of things. And last but definitely not least, I'm almost finished with the final Fablehaven and enjoying every minute of it. I want to thank everyone who gave me some book suggestions, I've put a few on my list at the library. :)

Welcome March

2010-03-02T10:35:00.002-07:00

I go off track on Friday. Hooray! I'm definitely ready for a vacation. I'm also so ready for spring to come I can hardly stand it. I'm dying to wear my spring clothes, break out my flip flops, and start enjoying the sun. While off track I'm catching up on doctor's appointments (luckily getting those over with my first few days), hopefully going to St. George for a bit, and subbing for some extra money.

Has anyone read the Percy Jackson books? I'm thinking I need to get on it and start reading those. I've heard the movie was great, but want to have read the book before I go see it. Any other suggestions on books that are a must read while I'm off track (besides the new Fablehaven of course)?

Mary Kay Consultant

2010-02-24T13:41:00.005-07:00

I am such a HUGE fan of Mary Kay! I have been using most of their products for a few years now. If you saw my makeup collection you would probably laugh....trust me, most people do. I've tried just about everything they have to offer, and I love, love, love it! After talking with some family and friends I decided it would be worth my time and effort to start selling it, considering I use so much.

I'm not going to be the pushy, pressure type of consultant, I hate people like that. I'm probably not going to have parties or do anything of that kind at the time, but if any of my fellow bloggers are interested in getting some products or have questions of any sort I'd be happy to help. So please, contact me if you're ever interested. I would never sell anything that I don't absolutely love myself!

Fablehaven Book 5

2010-02-22T09:57:00.003-07:00

I'm SO excited for the final Fablehaven, Keys to the Demon Prison to come out on March 23rd. You can bet I will be pre-ordering this one. I have all of the previous Fablehavens and am in love with them all! I hope the new one doesn't disappoint. I am a little sad the series will be ending, but I guess all good things must come to an end eventually. So if you haven't read them, you better get on that!

I'm Done!

2010-02-19T09:14:00.003-07:00

Parent teacher conferences are over. Yay! This week was so crazy! It was definitely nice having Monday off for the holiday, but then it seemed there was so much to do on Tuesday to get ready for conferences. I only had one no show appointment on Wednesday (I sort of expected that one). Thursday was my shorter night, I was out of here by 6:00. That was the best feeling ever! I do still miss when conferences were on Thursday and Friday, which would mean no school the next day. Lucky traditional teachers get the Friday after conferences off....yeah, NOT us! I woke up this morning and somehow dragged myself out of bed. I'm trying my best to stay awake and might be tempted to have a Dr. Pepper with my lunch today. :) Wish me luck.

Todays Musings

2010-02-14T23:53:00.003-07:00

Have you ever thought about why it seems some people have the perfect life? I did say, "seems", since who knows what really goes on behind closed doors. Some people were shocked upon hearing of my divorce, some were fantastic and loyal friends sticking by my side through it all. I have truly appreciated all of the love and support I have received before, during, and after my marriage.

To say I got a divorce, or my marriage didn't work out is a huge understatement. I said this before and I'll say it again, I never truly understood divorce until I experienced it first hand. Everyone who has been through a divorce can relate in many ways, yet everyone has their own diverse, and painful experience. I can't believe I have been divorced for a year and half. Sure I have lonely, crappy, pathetic moments where I just want to disappear, but being able to focus on my happiness and my personal worth has been greater than I could ever have imagined.

My life was a living Hell from the week following our marriage throughout the rest of our 3 years together. Every day seemed to be the worst it could possibly be, yet the following day would always top it. Who was this man that I married? Sure, we had our good days....maybe a few times a week to start, which dwindled and became farther apart. I'd never felt so worthless, put down and emotionally abused. Of course I was led to believe something was wrong with me, and everything that happened was always my fault. I admit I was starting to question if something WAS wrong with me.....if you hear something enough times, don't you start to believe it?

I didn't know what was normal or unacceptable behavior anymore.....I felt like I had been flipped upside down so many times I didn't know which way was up. Looking back on things I have such a different perspective on it all, yet when you're living it, it's so hard to see things the way you would as an outsider. I had become so emotionally beaten down and discouraged I was living in survival mode. I wasn't me, I didn't really exist. I went through the motions of life, but I wasn't living. Luckily for me, I had great family and friends that would assure me that I was worth something, and deserved the best in every aspect of my life.

I hate that I don't trust men in general, and I'm sorry for those of you that receive my doubting questions or random rants. I hate that I don't want to get close enough or love someone enough to let them hurt me.....and if you do ever hurt me I will physically beat you! I hate that I feel I have a huge scar on my heart that will never completely heal. I hate that I don't feel normal, but what is normal anyway?

I didn't really know how this post was going to turn out until I started writing it. My blog is sort of like a journal to me (since I'm horrible about writing in one) and it seems you lucky readers get to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly. :)

Free Giveaway!

2010-02-13T22:22:00.001-07:00

Free giveaway.....Cutie Pie apron and vinyl lettering "Kiss the Cook" plate. Click here to enter.

Already?

2010-02-11T12:54:00.004-07:00

I definitely don't blog as often as I should. But then again, I don't really have that exciting of a life to have enough things to blog about. I can't believe it's already the middle of February. I can't believe tomorrow is our Valentine's party at school. I'm SO thankful for a fabulous room mom, that has planned everything and coordinated all the volunteers so I have nothing to worry about. I haven't had a room mom in years, and have sort of been used to doing everything and anything myself. What a nice change it is to have a few less things to worry about. Sometimes it's the little things that seem to make a huge difference, right?

Have I mentioned that my shower is officially finished (I hope)? As of last week the glass door is now installed, and all of the annoying mistakes have been fixed (I think). Yay! I'm so sick of workmen coming in and out of my house and never feeling settled. It's so great to have a huge shower and enjoy a little relaxation every now and then.

Ouch!

2010-01-27T10:29:00.003-07:00

Yesterday after school I got to watch my little nephew, Garrett, for a few hours until his piano lesson at 6:00. He was thrilled to get to come to my house! We had a blast playing Super Mario Bros. on my wii, coloring, playing the board game Sorry, and he even shared his Kit Kat and Froot Loop snacks with me.

As I was cleaning up the game and putting it back on the shelf in the closet with all the other games, I knocked a bunch of the board games over.....including a dominoes set. It's in one of those metal, heavy, boxes and of course was completely full of those porcelain looking dominoes. It smacked me in the face, above my eyebrow and dumped dominoes all over the floor and down the stairs. Can I say pain?! Cute Garrett was very sympathetic and had to feel the large bump on my head and helped me pick up all the dominoes. Needless to say I had a splitting headache the rest of the night! Luckily, today it's not throbbing anymore, though it's definitely tender. It's not as red as it was last night so it's not as obvious to everyone else I hope, and I'm really hoping it doesn't bruise or something stupid like that.

Bearpaw Boots

2010-01-25T12:38:00.004-07:00

I've been wanting some boots like these ever since I saw the Uggs version. Knowing that I could never, nor would I want to ever, spend that kind of money. It seems everyone has a pair of some brand or another. I've been searching lately for my very own pair and ran across these babies. I'm a fan of Zappos.com since they have free shipping and free returns. That way if the shoes don't fit, or I don't end up liking them after all, it's easy enough to get a full refund. Yes, I did order up a pair of these today and my rationalization is......I can always return them. So what do you think? Does anyone else have boots like these? And in case you were wondering, yes, I was a good girl this year, and I do deserve a new pair of boots! :)

Pioneer Woman

2010-01-20T08:53:00.004-07:00

I've recently ran across this fun blog. I love that the recipes make me want to try them out. I love that she shows pictures with each step so you can actually see what it's going to look like. I love that she adds some fun humor along the way. She also has a cookbook out called The Pioneer Woman Cooks that I'm considering looking into. Has anyone else heard of her? Or her cookbook?

Lost Season 6

2010-01-12T12:51:00.003-07:00

I'm a HUGE Lost fan! I bought myself Lost Season 5 after Christmas and have been refreshing my memory since it was last on TV. I've also got my parents hooked on it. :) For those of you that don't know yet, the new, and final season starts February 2nd. Hooray! I'm mighty curious how they're going to wrap all the loose ends up. I'll be so sad when it's all over, what will I be addicted to then?

Christmas Recap

2010-01-04T10:23:00.003-07:00

I never did blog about my Christmas, so here goes. Christmas Eve I spent at my parents house, sleeping over through Christmas. We watched some of my favorite fabulous Christmas movies such as Christmas Vacation and Christmas Story. I was spoiled this year and received lots of great gifts from my family. I got a bunch of shirts, a gift card to Game Stop (to some day buy the New Super Mario Bros. whenever it comes back in stock), a necklace, dvds, and a Cocoa-Latte hot chocolate maker (YUM).

Christmas day was spent relaxing, visiting my sister and her family and having our traditional family Christmas dinner. Mike and Natalee and baby Lexi surprised us with a visit Christmas night. We had previously thought they were not coming for Christmas, but they decided Christmas Eve to come after all. They left Idaho Christmas morning and spent some time with Natalee's family and then our family later that day. It was so great to finally see my adorable new niece! They were able to stay until Sunday morning.

Sunday afternoon I left with my parents for a trip to St George. We stayed until New Years Eve and enjoyed a lot of shopping, relaxing, eating out and movie watching (New Moon, and Blind Side). It wasn't too warm being only in the 30's, but it was at least a bit warmer than Salt Lake. It's fun to just get away. :) I had a great off track and Christmas vacation, even though it does seem to go by way too fast!

New Year, New Start

2010-01-02T17:48:00.005-07:00

I haven't really fallen off the face of the earth....well, maybe just a few times. I kept thinking about blogging while I was off track, but couldn't seem to start. I've had many things to blog about, good and bad, but never took the time to do it. So, here I am, it's a new year, and I figured I'd start it out with a new post.

I found a great quote in a book I've been reading, The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans. "There are times, it seems, that God throws a cosmic switch that moves the track beneath us, hurling our lives headlong in a new and uncertain direction. Of these times just two things are certain: It's best we don't know what's ahead. We can never go back." How true that is!

Some days as I look in the mirror I wonder who that person is staring back at me. I've seen it through the good and bad times. I seem to fight the emotion I see on that face, as tears fall uncontrollably. I've been through self destruction, thinking "screw the world", not seeming to care much about anything. Been in denial, not wanting to deal with what I've been dealt. It's so much easier to lessen the pain, if only temporarily. Life is still moving, whether I want it to or not, I can't move it back, no matter how hard I try. I don't feel like the same person I was 5 years ago......so much has happened since then. I've had my share of trials and tribulations, not always enjoying the scenery along the way. I fight change, and sometimes want to crawl into a little hole and wait it out. How much easier it would be....

It'd be such a great world if things would just go my way. If I could be who I wanted to be. If I could do the things I wanted to do. If I could have the things that I most desired. But then, life wouldn't be life, would it? I wouldn't grow as much as I do every day. I wouldn't be the person that I am today if I hadn't fought my way to be where I am. It might be a long and tiresome journey, but I'm amazed at what I can do and who I can become. Who knows what this year has in store for me. Dare I say....Bring it on!

Ideas for Neighbor Gifts

2009-11-30T13:51:00.002-07:00

I admit I'm not very creative when it comes to giving Christmas treats to neighbors. Last year I made Orange Almond Bread (my favorite!) and wrapped it up in saran wrap and tied it with ribbon. Yup, that's pretty much the extent of my neighbor gifts. I know that my next door neighbor, Rich, was most appreciative since he lives on his own and gave me a gift in return (not that I expect that of course).

Over the weekend I was looking in a packet my mom has of ideas and sayings for gift giving. My favorite was as follows:

Attached is a brownie, cookie or cake mix.
"Roses are red. Christmas is sweet. I'm too busy! Make your own darn treat!"

I laughed hysterically the first 5 times I read that. Okay, maybe I'm still laughing hysterically every time I read it. So don't be surprised if you get this gift from me one day. I just hope you'll get as much enjoyment out of it as I do. Haha!

To Be or Not to Be.......

2009-11-30T09:02:00.004-07:00

....that is the question. Christmas used to be my favorite time of year. I loved the holiday festivities, the decorations, the hustle and bustle, the shopping for perfect gifts, the family parties, the excitement of Christmas morning. Don't get me wrong, I still love parts of the Christmas holiday. It's lost a lot of it's sparkle since my divorce a year and a half ago. I hate to say it, but sometimes I feel like a scrooge. I dread the holidays....and as it nears closer, I dread it even more. Last year I didn't put up a tree or any decorations, I pretended it didn't exist (at least in my house it didn't). Bah Humbug! If I had my choice, I would've gone into hibernation and skipped Christmas altogether. I hate holidays in general...they're not a pleasant time for me, but Christmas is THE hardest.

I'm trying to have a better attitude this year....though I fall short most days. I'm trying to get into the mood and excitement of the season. Maybe pretending and putting on a happy face shows some sort of effort? This past weekend I put away my Thanksgiving decorations and have started getting out Christmas. I figure maybe if I do a small amount each day....I might be able to get it all accomplished without having a complete breakdown. I might even have my parents over later this week to help with the tree. Sometimes the thought of it all is too overwhelming. I'm hoping to get through most of the season without too many tears. Maybe somehow I'll make it a merry Christmas this year after all.

Time for Celebration

2009-11-23T10:24:00.003-07:00

My shower is finished....except for my shower door, which will hopefully be installed once we can find a cheap one at Home Depot or Lowe's. Any other suggestions on where to look for a cheap shower door?

All of the tile and grout were finished Friday night and they came back again early Saturday morning to seal it. Hooray! I was able to get my house back. I spent most of Saturday cleaning the bathroom and vacuuming everywhere. Ugh, what a mess everything was! I'm happy to say things are almost back to normal, and I have a clean house once again.

We put the shower curtain back up so at least I'm able to use the shower until I can get a door. It's such a nice luxury having a fancy tile shower that will actually clean up well. I love that it's spacious and has shelves and a corner bench for shaving. :) I also absolutely love my trim...slate, glass and other such fun small tiles. Okay, so maybe I'm in love with just about everything. I will have to post some pictures soon.

Almost done?

2009-11-19T10:41:00.003-07:00

Remember my remodeling that I started a week ago Monday? Well, it's still not finished. There have been many problems along the way, and luckily they were solvable. The day he started laying the tile we find out the wrong trim has been ordered. We had to take it back to the store and ended up picking out something entirely different since what we had originally ordered was back ordered and we didn't want to have to wait. Then we find out the also gave us the wrong floor. We had picked out a brown tile...but later switched it to a cheaper one. They gave us the one we really wanted, but that we had not ordered....so they also discounted that price. Yay for mistakes that turn out better in the end.

When my shower was started I was told it would take about 5 days. Are you kidding me?! It's been about double that! They are finishing up the tile today (I think) and will hopefully grout tomorrow. My dad will then seal it Saturday. We then have to order a shower door and have that installed sometime next week.

I'm so tired of my house being a complete disaster, and really really hope they are finished and done soon. I'm tired of people and mess and crap etc. etc. in my house! I'm also not looking forward to deep cleaning and getting rid of all of that dust and other such mess when they are finished. I just have to keep telling myself how great it will be and how much I will enjoy it when everything is back to normal.

My Five

2009-11-16T21:37:00.002-07:00

Five things I don't leave the house without:

Cell phone
Lip gloss
Gum
Keys
Jewelry (earrings, necklace, watch, rings...)

Five cartoons I watched when I was younger:

Jem and the Hollagrams
The Smurfs
Gummi Bears
Strawberry Shortcake
Fat Albert

Five things that terrify me:

Scary movies
Loud noises
SPIDERS
Anything creepy and crawly
The dark

Five things I dislike that everyone else seems to like:

Onions
Peppers
Spaghetti
Broccoli
Scary movies

Five things I want to do before I die:

Be a mommy
Be totally debt free (car, house, everything...sorry Heather I copied)
Go to Paris with my honey
Have a secure and happy marriage
Germany, Italy, England, Australia, need I say more.....

Five people I tag:

Liz
April
Jan
Arianne
Lisa

Demolition Day

2009-11-09T10:48:00.002-07:00

My shower remodeling is beginning today. Hooray.....I think. It's taken a lot longer than I thought to get everything figured out and ordered (not to mention the frustrations and annoyances along the way), but the day has finally arrived. I've covered my floors in sheets and removed all items from my counters in the bathroom. Oh geez, it feels like it did when I first moved in. My fabulous dad is playing "overseer" while I'm work all of this week. Love you Dad! What would I do without you? Today would probably be the demolishing day, ripping out the old shower/tub combination and hopefully the more exciting tiling parts will be starting soon. It's suppose to take 5 days....cross my fingers. I would love to have the mess over with by this weekend so I can put my bathroom back together again. I will have to take pictures and post them.

Conferences

2009-11-04T11:09:00.003-07:00

Tonight is Parent/Teacher Conferences. Definitely not my favorite time of year. I hate being at work for 12 hours today....and another 12 hours tomorrow...and still having to come into work on Friday. I'm quite jealous of those traditional teachers that get Friday off. I do look forward to see those cute kiddos in my class that have been trying so hard and have progressed since the first of the year. I love seeing their grades going up, and their smiling faces. :) Some things do make me proud. However, I will be glad when these two days are over and I can catch up on my sleep this weekend. Wish me luck!

Life is.....

2009-10-27T09:02:00.003-06:00

Have you ever wondered why life turns out the way that it does? Why sometimes no matter what we want and what we feel is best for us, it doesn't always go that way? Why it can't just be easier? Sometimes it seems like life is going great, everything is going our way, everything is going smoothly, when BAM....it takes us in a completely unexpected direction. This new path just might be the best way after all, make us happiest in the end. But of course we fight it, we don't like change, we don't want it, it's too painful, it's too frightening, it's too lonely and unknown....whatever. It's so hard to see the end result of any of our choices and decisions in this life.

I like immediate gratification. I want what I want now, today, this moment. I have a hard time waiting, knowing my happiness or wants will come sometime in the future. It seems unfair that some people seem to have everything that I want, yet take it for granted or don't seem grateful. I don't feel like I'm that horrible of a person not to deserve such things. I know I've made plenty of mistakes and wrong choices in my life, but know that I'm at least trying or working towards correcting and righting some of these wrongs.

It is hard to see the end of my path....since it's so far away. I do get discouraged and frustrated when it seems like I'm trying and yet keep falling and feel like I have to start all over again. I'm grateful for Sundays and being able to go to church and get that added boost and optimism to help me through the rest of my week.

I am grateful for the family and friends in my life that have helped me get where I am today. Even through all of my good and bad moments, I have such wonderful friends who have not left my side in my moments of need. In times of greatest trial there are always things and people that I am blessed with.

Monday....Ugh!

2009-10-26T08:54:00.002-06:00

I always find Sunday nights to be depressing. Why, you may ask? Because the next day is Monday, the start of a new, long week. Awful things always seem to happen to me Sunday nights. I might have an emotional meltdown, I might have horrible, terrible nightmares, I might not be tired and go to bed way to late, I might wake up in the middle of the night and be unable to go back to sleep, I might have many or all of these things happen. No matter what I do to prepare myself for a Monday, the night before is always awful! I rarely get enough sleep Sunday night. I rarely wake up having enough rest (and pay for it the rest of the week). What do you say to skipping Mondays, and starting the week out with Tuesday?

Halloween

2009-10-22T12:35:00.003-06:00

Halloween is a week away and I have No idea what I'm going to dress up as. Being a teacher, I have to dress up every year and participate in the Halloween parade at school (not my favorite). Last year I was a biker chick, the year before I think I was an army girl. So, what should I be this year? I need something easy and quick. I could be a biker chick again....but is that boring? I could be a farmer, or a baby....or something really simple. What do you think? I need your help!

Remodeling

2009-10-19T09:52:00.003-06:00

I'm redoing my shower in the master bathroom and I'm SO excited! I've done a few changes since moving into my town home and I'm loving it! I changed the carpet, painted the floorboards and touched up paint here and there (thanks to help from my dad), got a new sink in my kitchen, door knobs and pulls on the kitchen and bathroom cabinets.

I have 2 bathrooms, the guest bathroom and the one off of my master bedroom of course. Both bathrooms have the tub/shower combination, which is great when it comes to wanting a bath (though I do wish it was a bit deeper so I could actually fit into it). Both showers are made out of that fake, plastic, hollowy stuff that feels like it's going to break if I'm not careful and it's crap to clean, since it won't ever really come clean. I've decided to rip it all out and put in a tiled shower (since I still will have the guest bathroom to use as a bath). I picked out the tile with my mom and got it ordered last week. Hooray! It's going to be so great when it's finished. I will have to post pictures. The work will probably begin the first part of November. I'm not exactly looking forward to the mess and the pain of waiting for it to be finished. In the meantime, I will be using the shower in the guest bathroom (hooray for 2 bathrooms) However, I know it'll look great when completed! Yay!

Already Gone

2009-10-16T20:46:00.001-06:00

Why is it that I can relate to songs like this? It's such a sad/pretty song and I cry my eyes out every time I hear it. I love it, but it makes me sad at the same time. It's strange sometimes how some pain in life never completely goes way. Time may heal me physically, and sometimes I may have a pretty believable happy face but emotionally it feels like I've got a huge scar that will always be there. Don't want to have a whine fest, just wanted to share this song.

I'm an Aunt!

2009-10-16T08:59:00.003-06:00

My brother, Mike, and his wife, Natalee, had a little baby girl this morning at about 3am. They named her Lexi Michaela Secrist. Very cute! In the meantime I hope Natalee is getting some much needed rest (okay, you too Mike) Love you guys!

My Birthday

2009-10-14T08:47:00.003-06:00

This past Saturday was my birthday. Another year older, too bad we don't get younger. :) I had a fabulous day! It all started out with sleeping in....woo hoo, one of my favorite things to do. I went to lunch with a great friend to Applebees (again woo hoo) and we caught up on all of our news. We then headed over to a boutique where another friend of mine (shout out to Nicole) had a booth. I bought myself a much needed birthday present. Love my new necklace! That evening I saw Harry Potter for the 2nd time (love, love, love that movie) and ate Subway sandwiches.

I want to thank everyone for making my birthday a special one! Thanks for all of the birthday calls, texts, etc. I feel very blessed to have such great family and friends. Love you all!

Disneyland

2009-10-12T09:50:00.014-06:00

I've been slacking on my blog lately, and haven't updated it for a while. We went to Disneyland September 4th for a week, while I was off track, and we all had a great time. Well, other than my getting a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad sunburn! Ugh! My 2nd day there we went to the beach and I burned my legs pretty bad. To the point where I couldn't stand, or walk without crying and being in excruciating pain! But, besides that fabulous experience, the rest of the trip went pretty well. I was able to spend 2 days (maybe more like 1 and 1/2 considering I moved so slow with my sunburn and swollen feet) in Disneyland and had some great seafood (yum!) and character dining in the park. I think I'm ready to go back again, anyone wanna go with me? :)

Cole's Creations

2009-09-25T17:14:00.003-06:00

A friend of mine, Nicole, recently started a new blog. She's very crafty and creative and has great jewelry and such for sale posted on her blog. I have a watch band and earrings that she made, and I'm hoping to get a necklace and lots more soon. Head on over to her blog here, and check out all of her fabulous creations. Make sure you give her a shout out, and welcome her to the blogging world.

The picture I have posted here is one of her necklaces she has shown on her blog. So cute!!

Sunscreen Anyone?

2009-09-02T10:08:00.003-06:00

I just realized this morning that I don't have any sunscreen to take with me on my vacation this weekend. Considering we'll be going to the beach sometimes I'm thinking I should pick some up. Does anyone have any favorite sunscreens I could try? I don't want anything too greasy since I really hate the feeling of them as it is. I want one that's a good quality, and something I wouldn't mind keeping and using again. I only have 2 more days to purchase said sunscreen, so all the help I could get would be great.

Welcome Autumn

2009-09-01T12:39:00.002-06:00

Fall isn't really for another 3 weeks, but it's close enough I think. I can't believe it's here already. Really, where did the summer go? I do like autumn, in small doses, don't get me wrong. Most years we don't really have much of an autumn and go straight to winter, that I'm NOT a fan of.

I love that fall introduces us to cooler weather, yet it shouldn't be too cold. I love that my birthday is just around the corner (Oct. 10th). Mark it on your calendars! :) I have missed wearing some of my warmer clothes, long sleeves, pants, etc. etc. I will miss my flip flops, short sleeves and capris though. I am not ready to have huge snowstorms or bundling up in coats, gloves, hats, and boots to trudge out through the freezing cold weather and snow. Yuck! So here's to a happy autumn, but maybe postponing winter for a while longer.

Off Track

2009-08-31T09:16:00.003-06:00

This is my last week on track. Hooray for off track times during the year! Have I mentioned that I love year round? I love having my breaks spread out through the year. I love having almost all of December off. I love that I get 3-4 weeks off every time I go off track. I love that being off track gives me a much needed rest and I come back to school ready to teach again, rather than feeling burned out.

After school on Friday I leave for 10 fun filled days at Disneyland. I love Disneyland and haven't been in quite some time, so I am excited, not to mention spending time with my cute niece and nephew. I love them to pieces!! Sadly, my credit card balance isn't quite down as much as I would've liked. I know I'll be charging a bit more while there, and will have to work at paying it off in the next few months before Christmas...eek! Can you believe Christmas is in like 4 months? Seriously, didn't we just celebrate that?! I used to love, love, love Christmas and all of the holiday cheer and crap, but not so much anymore. Needless to say, I'm not exactly looking forward to that time of year, but that's for another time and another angry post. :) In the meantime, HOORAY for going off track!

What a Pain

2009-08-27T09:32:00.002-06:00

Last year I got a back spasm, or whatever the heck it was. I was in constant pain and could not do anything normal. The worst was getting out of bed in the morning, where I didn't sleep the night before since every time I moved I woke up in horrible pain. When my alarm would go off to get me up for work I couldn't get out of bed without crying and wishing I didn't have to move ever again. Definitely not fun times! Yesterday at work I again hurt my back. The annoying part is I really don't know what I did to it. It doesn't seem as bad as it was last time, and I'm hoping it doesn't continue to get worse. :( I can function a little better, in that I hurt but am still able to sort of do things for myself. I didn't sleep much last night and am not thrilled to be at work today since it hurts to sit and to stand. I can't decide which gives me more relief. Blasted thing!

Bitterness

2009-08-24T10:12:00.005-06:00

Warning: this post will be pathetic and negative. Feel free to skip this one. Have I mentioned that I have a bad attitude and I pretty much just don't care? I have no desire to date or do much of anything lately. I know that I'm bitter and it's my own fault. I seem to pull away from most everyone, causing more loneliness for myself. I don't want to go out with friends most days, I don't want to meet new people, I don't want to start over with the whole dating crapola. I feel like I've given up in many respects (like I said, I KNOW I have a bad attitude) and I'm not trying at all. The couple dates I have gone on were alright, but I wasn't putting forth much of an effort, and I didn't care to try. The guys figured out I wasn't interested and once again I didn't seem to care. Seriously, what is wrong with me?

Before I go on, I want to recognize my fabulous friends (you know who you are) that have been with me through every step of the way. They have been there through my good times and bad. Thanks for being my shoulder to cry on, and my rock when I need that extra strength. Thanks for cheering me up and laughing with me during happier times, and being understanding and supportive during the tougher ones.

While I'm on my soap box, can I talk about people getting special treatment?Why is it that other people with "issues" get treated special and we all have to be extra nice, or extra understanding, yet my "issues" don't seem to matter? Everyone has their own issues or problems, but mine are non existent I guess. I'm not expecting everyone to treat me "special", but be a little understanding, please. I do have feelings, and I do still hurt most of the time. My life isn't all sunny just because my divorce is over. I still have a lot of pain and a lot of damage I'm dealing with everyday. Some days it's a lot harder to pretend than it is other days. So please, give me some slack and don't expect me to be happy all the time.

I Need it! I Want it?

2009-08-19T09:38:00.005-06:00

I've been wanting this CD since I've been hearing all their great songs on the radio. Green Day has forever been one of my favorites! I went to their concert a couple years ago, and wish I could go to more. I've been telling everyone I want it for my birthday. Now I'm starting to think I might need it before our Disneyland trip (post below)? It would be great to have it on my ipod on that long drive to enjoy, right? Hmm....now the question is, do I need it now? Or can I be patient and wait for my birthday? Decisions, decisions, I've never been very good at those.

Mickey Mouse Here We Come

2009-08-19T08:39:00.004-06:00

In 3 weeks my entire family is going to Disneyland. Hooray! I haven't been to Disneyland since I went with a friend of mine in college ("I'm not falling for that one. I'm not getting on the freeway. Hey! We're on the freeway." That was for you Kim.). I love Disneyland and am looking forward to going. We'll be gone Sept. 4 (leaving as soon as I get out of school. I'll be off track!) until Sept. 12. I'm looking forward to experiencing some Disney again, it's been way too long!

We'll be staying in a Marriott condo about 30 minutes away from the park. I'm thinking about 3 to 4 days at Disneyland, maybe some at the beach, and some for relaxation of course. Since it's been about 10 or more years since I've been, is there anything I NEED to do or see while I'm there? Any fabulous eating places? Great shopping spots I can't miss? Help me out and let me know the things you love doing.

P.S. Did I mention I'm not the happiest road tripper? I'm planning on bringing plenty of snacks, books, and of course my new ipod, but all of you be forewarned I'm not always the greatest when it comes to LONG car rides. I want to get there and be done! It's Disneyland (I am a kid afterall) and I want the fun to begin, not the long, endless hours of boredom in getting there. On a better note, I did make it all the way to Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota and I survived (with no impatience I might add). I actually didn't mind the driving too much, except for the dead scenery I enjoyed it. There is hope. Some day when I'm rich and famous, I'll own my own plane and be able to travel wherever and whenever I want. :)

Happy Birthday Garrett

2009-08-17T08:47:00.003-06:00

This past Saturday was my darling nephew, Garrett's birthday. He turned 7 years old. I can't believe he's already in 2nd grade this year. How fast they grow up! My sister had a little family party on Sunday and his friend party was on Saturday. Happy Birthday Garrett! I love this picture of Garrett and Ashlie, not exactly sure when it was taken though.

Selfish People Suck

2009-08-14T10:11:00.001-06:00

The world does not revolve around you. Enough said......

All by Myself

2009-08-13T11:10:00.002-06:00

My parents have officially moved out into their new home. They are 10-15 minutes away from my house, and even closer to my sister, in South Jordan. I love their new home, and think it's got many of the things they were looking forward (minus the formal dining room). I like that they're much closer and I won't have to be taking the freeway during awful winter weather.
It's nice to have my craft room put back together again, and begin to work on my cards for next week's card club. I like having my space back and getting back into the routine of things. I'll have to post some pictures later of my parents living quarters while at my house. Haha!
It's been kind of quiet and lonely since they're gone. No one to eat meals with, no one to watch tv or movies with. I think I started getting used to the company. Good thing I can visit them whenever I want since they're so close now.

Why?

2009-08-10T09:23:00.002-06:00

Why is it that Sunday night I don't sleep well? Why can't it be Friday or Saturday night where I have the option of sleeping in the next morning? Why is it that my mind picks Sunday night to run wild and think of everything possible? Why does it have to be Monday today? Why do I have to be SO tired today? Why did I only get about 4 hours of sleep last night?

I'm exhausted today and struggling to be here. I couldn't fall asleep forever last night. Then when I did, I kept waking up every hour or more. I had the most bizarre dreams....scary in fact. My mind kept going and going, not letting me get any rest. Ugh! I hate that I pick Sunday night to have a terrible night sleep, when the rest of the weekend was fabulous and I slept great. Seriously, why is it the night you need sleep to function the next day you can't seem to get enough?

Blood....ick!

2009-08-04T09:26:00.002-06:00

For the past however many months I've been getting excruciatingly painful charlie horses in my calves and toes many times each month. Sometimes it will wake me up from a deep sleep (oh so much fun!) and other times I'll be walking and end up clutching my foot in pain. The more I started thinking about it I realized that the stomach medicine I take for my acid reflux can cause calcium deficiency (my doctor had previously told me this). I called the doctor's office and told them about my frequent charlie horses. They wanted me to come in to get some blood work done to find out if it's calcium or potassium deficiency. Each day during the week the blood work people go home at about 4:00....which makes it pretty impossible to get there anytime but Friday.

After school on Friday I left a little early, and made me way across town to the doctor's office. I arrived there shortly after 3:00, making sure I had plenty of time. The receptionist ladies proceeded to tell me that the lady that does blood leaves at 3:00 on Friday. Now why in $#&! would the stupid nurse lady tell me there'd be there later if they weren't going to be!! I was frustrated to say the least. I wasn't thrilled to have my blood taken, but wanted to get the blasted thing over with. What a waste of a trip.

Stupid Punks!

2009-07-28T14:38:00.003-06:00

My parents are still living at my house, possibly for another 2 weeks. They have since found a house (in South Jordan) and are waiting for carpet, etc. etc. to be finished before they move in. My house has a one car garage and usually my parents have been parking one car behind mine in the driveway. Recently they have been leaving my mom's car in the garage at their soon to be house. Every morning my dad pulls his car out so I can leave for school.

Last night he decided to park his car over one street at the guest parking by our clubhouse. This morning he walked to his car, and came back a minute later. Someone had broken into his car! What? Scary! They had broken his back window to get in and used a knife to pull off the trimming or whatever it is on the steering wheel and the electrical stuff, trying to steal it (blasted punk!). He has a Civic, and the car won't start without the key, so the moron wasn't able to steal it afterall (Yay for that!). He must've been in a hurry or something, because he left his knife and some blood behind and didn't steal anything out of it (luckily).

The police didn't want anything to do with it, and said to let my HOA know. He took the car into the Honda shop and it will be $500 or less to fix everything. What a pain! Things like that aren't suppose to happen in my neighborhood. Scary to think all 3 of our cars were over in that exact spot just a few weeks ago while my concrete was being redone. Now I'll be all sorts of paranoid. Eek!

Where did the time go?

2009-07-25T23:39:00.002-06:00

My summer break is coming to an end. It seems like it just began, and I was heading to Mt. Rushmore, which was a ton of fun by the way. This 2 week break in the summer goes by way too fast sometimes. I'm looking forward to getting to know a new set of kids, but I also will really miss my class from last year! I have 19 boys and 6 girls this year. Eeek! I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. Noisy....yet no drama. I haven't decided which would be worse.

Fall is just around the corner, and that is crazy in itself. It does mean my birthday...hip hip...but not so thrilled about being another year older. I haven't accomplished many of the things I though I would when I was little....heck, I would probably have thought I was an old lady by now....haha. Funny the way you perceive things as a child and how different things are when you get there.

Road Trip

2009-07-12T12:40:00.003-06:00

Tuesday I'm heading on a road trip with my parents. We're going to South Dakota, visiting Mt. Rushmore. I've heard it's a 10 hour trip without stops, that's one heck of a drive. I'm excited though, since I haven't been on many vacations and I'm a huge fan of trips! I've updated my ipod and got a bunch of books to bring along, besides my camera of coures, so I think I'm prepared.

None of us know much about Mt. Rushmore other than it's cool and everyone who's been thinks it's a great trip. And since it's a National Park, it's gotta be great, right? So, if any of you have been or heard anything about it could you let me know? Or let me know what else there is to do or see around there?

Seriously.....enough!

2009-07-05T14:52:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, while visiting a friend, I decided I needed some attention. I was calmly walking down her lawn when I ran into a slight depression part and lost my balance. My right foot rolled under one way, then trying to catch myself it rolled back the other way. Luckily, I was almost to my car and was able to sit down for a bit and catch my breath. Ya know when there's so much pain and you feel like you're going to vomit? Not fun. I then had to drive myself home (good thing it wasn't any further).

And did I mention that I still have to keep off my driveway for about another day while the cement is curing? Not great timing with that! I parked a street away, gathered up all the courage I had left and hobbled my way over to my house. I iced it most of last night and have it wrapped up today since I'm still in pain. I haven't had any sprains or torn ligaments since my ballet dancing days, so maybe it was overdue. I sure hope this'll be my quota for quite a long time now though.

Ouch!

2009-06-30T12:59:00.002-06:00

This morning while taking a shower I knocked over the shaving lotion which caused a dominoes effect....shampoo, conditioner, shower gel all came cascading onto the top of my right foot. Ouch! It's going to have a big ol' bruise, I just know it. It hurts like crap today and of course the top of my sandal doesn't help. After getting out of the shower I found that my hair dryer wasn't working. Blast it all! I was not having the best morning. Then as I was grabbing my stuff to leave I remembered where my car was......on the next street over. What a fun trek.

This afternoon we're having a water day at the end of the day. My students are thrilled, and I'm somewhat excited myself. I'm sure it'll be crazy hot out there, but maybe it'll be a great way to finish off my day. Anything is better then the way it started, right?

No Parking

2009-06-29T08:52:00.002-06:00

Starting today my HOA is having some of our concrete replaced in my neighborhood. My house is one of the lucky participants. They will be tearing out the existing concrete in my driveway and pouring new sometime this week. As I was leaving this morning they started working on the house next to me, which is good news. I'd much rather get it over with early and hopefully it can start setting (or whatever it is concrete does). In the meantime I get to park on the street one over from me and make the trek to my car every day. It'll be nice when everything is finished and looks fabulous and new, but until then it's sort of a pain to plan an extra 5 or so minutes to make it to my car. How spoiled have I been with a garage this past year and a half!

Bed and Breakfast

2009-06-24T13:13:00.002-06:00

In 2 more days my house will be turned into a bed and breakfast. My brother, Mike, is coming this weekend to help my parents move and will be staying with me from Friday until Sunday. Are you excited Mike to sleep in my pink bed in my craft room? Haha! My parents will then be moving in for an undetermined amount of time (until they find a house) starting Sunday. It'll be an adjustment having people to share my space with. I've become accustomed to doing things my way and on my time schedule. Heck, I haven't lived with someone now for a year and a half.....how crazy is that? However, it will be nice to have company and maybe not be lonely quite as often and it'll give me a good excuse to cook dinner for myself sometimes since I'll have someone to share it with.

Wish us luck. I hope everything goes well for the big moving days! Did I mention I hate moving? Ugh!

Time for Updates

2009-06-16T10:04:00.003-06:00

I'm back on track today. Yesterday was actually my set up day, which was kind of nice, considering the other teacher had finished school on Friday so I had to the room to myself. It sure went a lot faster in moving everything and getting things ready. I love my kids this year! Have I mentioned that before? The majority of them are such sweethearts and I will really miss them when school is over. 3 more weeks, that's all that's left. How crazy! Next year I have a class of mostly boys (a change from my class of mostly girls this year). I love boys, and I won't be having all the drama I had this year, but I know it will be a lot noisier, since boys don't seem to get the whole "quiet" thing. Haha!

The past couple weeks were fun filled, but also full of emotional roller coasters. Seriously, I don't know what my deal is lately. It's so frustrating that I can be having a fabulous day, or even week, and next thing you know it's turned into the crappiest, worst day ever. Some days I feel so discouraged with things, and have a hard time finding much to be happy about. I hate being lonely, and I hate that I hate being lonely. I hate that sometimes I can't control my tears, and they always seem to come at the most inopportune times.

Before I forget to mention, my parents sold their house! Crazy that it's seemed to happen so quickly, but still a good thing overall. They have to be moved out in 2 weeks. AH! They are in the process of looking for another house in the South Jordan area and will use what is left over after everything to buy it. They have found one house that I think is perfect, and they seem to be leaning towards that one as well, so we'll see what they decide. In the meantime they will probably have to live in St. George and come and visit often until all the work is complete on the house (carpets, counters, etc. etc.). The good thing is South Jordan will be much closer to my sister and I than where they have been, so it's all about thinking positive, right?

Wii Are Happy

2009-06-10T19:10:00.004-06:00

After many months of deliberation I finally came to a decision. I bought myself a Wii the other night. Hooray! I decided it was time for Christmas in June. I also might've picked up a few games to go with it. I need to have some variety in my game playing right? I had to have the Wii fit, and I needed another controller so I got the Wii Play. It already came with the Wii Sports, and last but not least I got Mariokart. So there you have it, my new toy!

I've spent a few nights up much later than I should, but I'm off track, so I've justified it. Besides, it's sort of an active form of gaming, right? Next on my list is the EA Sports Active, looks like a fun workout type of game, and definitely high on my list is Guitar Hero World Tour. But these and other fun games will probably need to wait until the real Christmas time. I think I have far exceeded my budget for a while.

Trip to Idaho

2009-06-03T13:48:00.004-06:00

This past weekend I went to Meridian, Idaho to visit my brother and sister-in-law. I drove up Friday and came back on Monday. It was a very fun getaway. We played some tennis, which I haven't done in over 10 years, I kinda sucked. Went shopping at Natalee's Seagull Book that she just started working at. Love that store! I got to see my cousin, Trisha, and her kids (that I don't see very often since they live in Idaho). Started getting hooked on Heroes, and have since signed up for Netflix.

My favorite part was making a mess all over their kitchen....okay, so maybe that wasn't my favorite part. I went to get a drink of water, knocked over the bottle of milk in the fridge, but lucky for me the lid was on and nothing happened. I think maybe I should've just stopped there. After taking the filter pitcher thing out of the fridge I start pouring it into my glass and the top comes off and water dumps all over the counter and starts running onto the floor. Mike had just filled it up I guess, but how was I suppose to know that? I'm sure they were thrilled to have me leave afterall....no more messes. :) Hehe. Thanks Mike and Natalee for having me up. I'll try not to be so messy next time.

One More Day

2009-05-21T10:35:00.002-06:00

I have one more day until I go off track. Hooray!! I'm looking forward to Friday being my last day, and having my nephew, Garrett, come over and have a sleepover. Our night will be full of fun movies, games and maybe a trip to the Arctic Circle. Of course after Garrett sleeps over, Ashlie will want her turn. I love my niece and nephew! And I love being off track.

Today my parents are leaving for their trip to Europe. Yup, I decided not to go. :( Sad story isn't it? It was definitely a hard decision, but the cons seemed to outweigh the pros. I get to pick them up from the airport on Sunday, June 7th. Holy crap, that seems like forever away, my off track will almost be over by then. I hope they have a fun time, and everything goes as planned, even though I won't be there.