Countdown

The countdown is on. Why do we count our days away? I can't wait until summer vacation, so I am counting down the days. It seems like we are always counting our days away.

Weather

Today was a gorgeous day in central Ohio. Sunny, clear skies, trees in bloom, but where did the 70 degree days go? To me, I want to have days that are in the 70's. Not just one or two days in the 70's, I want a few weeks. Today was in the 80's and I'm not quite ready for that yet.

Sunrise

Why can't I live in a place where I can see this every morning? I love the beach and ocean. I love visiting the beach. It is my favorite place to vacation. Would I get use to it and not appreciate it as much if I could look at it every morning rather that every once in a while? My mother asked a lady that question when she was on one of her vacations in Hawaii. The lady was originally from the mainland and she told my mom that she never tires of the sunrise or sunset. Would I be like that? I wonder. I sure would like to give it a try. Maybe upon my retirement, I will see if I get tired of it.

Spring

Spring is here........finally. It seems like we have been waiting forever for it to arrive. There is nothing better than a beautiful spring day. The sun is out, the spring flowers have bloomed, the trees are blooming and the grass is getting green. I am getting out my short sleeves, capris, and sandals. Some days, these can be worn, but on others, it is still a little too cool. Why is it that spring goes by so quickly?

Bella

I'm not peeking!

Toes

Last night was pedicure night. Julie, Amanda, Shelly and I went to Zenity to get our pedicures. I really needed this for a few reasons. First, I am headed to the beach next week and you need pretty toes for the beach. Secondly, I needed some time with the girls. We always have a good time when we are together. Lastly, I needed to relax. Putting your feet into that hot water then getting a foot massage, wonderful. Now my toes are Hot, Hot, Hot pink and ready for the beach.

Supermodel

I am watching Make me a Supermodel and thinking...What are these designers thinking when they create these designs? These dresses are UGLY...and a man walking around in silver pants. Not where I live! I know I live in the midwest, but do people walk around in stuff like this? I think not!

A New Liver

This week was the first anniversary for my friend Jen. No, it wasn't a wedding anniversary, but the first anniversary of her adopting a new liver. One year ago, on February 11th, Jen was given a new chance at life with a donated liver. How wonderful. Her life has changed this past year. She has more energy and can do many of the things that she couldn't do last year. We celebrated with her today by having lunch together. Last year, the night before she got the call, Amanda, Jen and I had gone to dinner at the Hunan House, so that is where we all went today.

If you are not an organ donor, please sign up to be one. I have seen first hand the miracle of donation. You can give someone a new lease on life just by saying yes.

Snow Day

As a teacher one of the things you live for is a snow day. When you are about out of days to use, the next best thing is an early release day. Today, Ohio is getting a ton of snow. We knew it was coming, but we had school. Around 11:00, the rumors started flying..."We are getting out early!" Then, the phone call came from another teacher that teachers were getting calls that we were going home early. Fifth graders are pretty smart and they can tell when it is getting deep out. My kids did pretty well. They kept asking if we were getting to go home and I kept telling them, "I don't know," and they believed it. At lunch, they got the news and were ready to go. Amazingly, they did great. They were happy to go home, but they listened, and focused on what we were doing. So, at 1:45, they got to go home....and so did we! Yippee! I got to come home and enjoy an afternoon. I was tired before, but now am wide awake and I want to do something! It's like I am a kid again. As a kid, my mom was a school bus driver and I loved that call at 5:00 am. Of course I could never go back to sleep and I would just stay up and watch the snow. That is how I am feeling now. The flakes are beautiful...as long as I watch them from my warm chair covered with my fuzzy blanket! Happy snow day to all!

India

Well, I have spoken to people in India twice since Tuesday. Maybe I need to go and visit my new friends over there. I talked to the first guy when I was trying to get my wireless up. Of course, I couldn't figure out one part of it so I have to make my first call to India. I could hardly understand the man, but if I listened carefully, I could, and he solved my problem. Yippee...I was up and running. Then today, after a week of listening to an annoying whirring sound that my brand new computer was making, I did an online chat with Sirkat from Dell, then he had to call me....second chat with India. He was much easier to understand...maybe I am getting used to the accent...and he is sending out a tech to my house to replace a fan. So, then I had to speak with his supervisor. Guess what his name was...Joseph! Do you think it was his God goven name, or did he just give himself that name to sound more American? He checked everything out and let me go. All there very nice and helpful men. Maybe I need to go to India to say thanks!

Christmas is Over

Am I the only one who is happy that Christmas is over? Sometimes I think I am. I use to love Christmas but now, not so much. It is very stressful and there is so much to do. I use to put a tree up in every room, now I am lucky to get one up. Plus, it's no fun doing all of the Christmas stuff alone. How much more fun it would be with a husband and large family. Though, I know having a large family isn't always fun either! This year, no Christmas cards were sent. I am going to try to send New Years cards. We will see if I get that done. I did get a new laptop for Christmas. That was nice so now maybe I will keep up with my blog. We will see!

5 Random Things About Me

1. I am a reality TV junkie. Yes, I watch most of the reality shows. I can't help it! Now, Big Brother I have never gotten in to and Survivor I am bored with anymore, but Project Runway, I Love Money, Design Star, Rock of Love, Flipping Out, Intervention, Shear Genius, etc, I watch over and over again!

2. I enjoy mowing my yard. I know no one believes that one, but I do, I really do! It gives me about 45 minutes of uninterrupted time to think!

3. I use to be such a tomboy. You could always find me in a pool doing weird dives and jumps off of the high dive or up in a tree. I also loved playing any kind of sport in the side yard.

4. I want to buy a motorcycle or a good scooter. I think that would be so much fun. I am so not the type though and I think it wold surprise everyone if one day I showed up on a motorcycle or a scooter!

5. I feel as if I am at some kind of crossroad in my life. I have no idea what is to come, but I think there is something out there that will happen soon. I'm not thinking gloom and doom, just change.

Holiday Time

I am amazed that it is time for the holidays. Turkey, trees, bulbs, decorating, shopping, wrapping, baking, on and on and on. Where did fall go? It seems like just yesterday it was summer and I was waiting for school to start. Now we are half way through the second nine weeks and it is time for Christmas! Black Friday? Not for me. I did buy my first gift today...a gift card. Boy that was hard! No it is time to think about what to get everyone and who to actually buy for. I plan on not spending too much so we will see.

Back from Camp Oty'Okwa

Well, I am back from 5th grade camp. Each year we take the kids to camp in the Hocking Hills. This year...I wasn't sure we were going. On Sunday night, we had a horrible wind storm...remnants of Hurricane Ike...and power was out all over Ohio. I thought for sure it would also be out at camp especially if it was out here, but no, they had power so we were on our way. We left on Tuesday morning even though we didn't have school in the district. What fun we had, The weather was beautiful, the kids were great, the counselors were awesome, and we had no major accidents. Here are some of my favorite camp moments this year:

• Tommy always walking around in the dining hall with a fork full of meat.
• Getting peed on in the face by "Centi".
• Listening to Hunter sing..."Apple bottom jeans with the boots with the fur...".
• Getting my annual hug from Bob.
• Listening to Jonah talk about the "Silver Beaver".
• Laughing until I cried.
• Holding a 40 pound snake. ( Mom would have hated that one!)
• Finding out that little baby ring-neck snakes play dead until you try to pick them up! Right Tracy?
• Seeing kids that might not be good in the regular school environment excel at camp!

Leaving camp was hard this year. Deb and Bob are retiring and won't be with us next year. Tom is also retiring and Jonah is leaving for dental school. It will be different next year. I guess the torch has been passed.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Oh...school has started and I both hate it and love it at the same time. I love getting back into some type of a schedule. I also love seeing my friends on a daily basis. I love the kids. My class is pretty good, talky, but sweet. Also, big, I have 28 kids in a tiny little room. UGH! I hate getting up in the morning even though it hasn't been too bad so far. I also hate the drama! There is so much drama at school that I can't hardly stand it anymore. I am choosing to stay in my room and avoid certain areas and people. That is really hard considering I use to love my school. Things need to change and there is nothing I can do about it. We use to be a family, but not anymore. It is so sad. What a loss.

Life Goes On

Well, I found my first caterpillar. I've looked and looked through my milkweed and haven't been able to find any Monarch caterpillars. I was starting to believe that they left me this year, but I kept hoping. Day after day, I would check the milkweed to no avail, until Thursday. I saw her, a huge caterpillar who is about ready to make her chrysalis. Since then, I have found seven more, so I know there are a lot more out there. I am so happy. Mom loves the caterpillars. She was amazed at how they were caterpillars, then a chrysalis, then emerge a beautiful Monarch butterfly. She loved to watch them emerging them waiting as their wings dried. It is an amazing site. This all brings me closer to Mom. I miss her so, think about her daily, and wish she was here to watch our Monarchs emerge.

10 Things to Be Happy About Right Now

1. There are a few weeks left of summer vacation!

2. There is a fair somewhere going on right now where you can go and eat fair food to your heart's content!

3. Sleeping in until whenever...even during the week!

4. Fresh fruit and vegetables at a roadside stand.

5. Friends that stick by you even when it is tough.

6. A good chick lit book...The Saving Graces for one!

7. Air conditioning!

8. My hosta that are about ready to bloom so my yard will smell wonderful!

9. Bella greeting me at the door with a "meow."

10.Gas prices that are a little lower than the beginning of the summer.

Stop and Notice

People are always rushing around saying they don't have enough time. I am one of those people lately. I feel as if I am on the go constantly. These last few weeks before school starts up again, I want to slow down. That is hard for me to do at times. I went out in the yard to water today and I stopped to take a close look at my Passion flowers. They attract June bugs...uck!...but also fabulous bees. Huge ones at that. So I ran in and got my camera. I love taking pictures of my flowers and even have quite a few up on my walls. I wanted to capture these beautiful bees at work. It amazes me that they know exactly what to do. And if it were not for them, there are so many beautiful things on oour Earth that would no longer grow. Stop, take a breath, and take a look at your surroundings. What little thing is at work there that you have never noticed before?

Rainy Day

I love a rainy day. It lets me be lazy without the guilt. It's best when it rains all day, but a few hours will also do. I love getting out a book and reading while the rain hits the living room windows. I also love being curled up on the couch with a blanket covering me and a cat on my hip watching a good chick flick. A rainy day also gives my flowers and plants a much needed drink...and I don't have to do the watering! A slow steady rain during the night is the ultimate! Listening to the rain patting the roof lulls me to sleep and if I awake during the night, it is so soothing. We need a few more rainy days in the near future!

Time Alone

I treasure my time alone. You would think that as a single person, I would have a lot of time alone. Not so! I feel like I run, run, then run some more and I am never spending time in my house alone. I love to be alone, with a book, magazine, movie, or with just the cats. I hate feeling like all I do is sleep here, and that is how I have been feeling lately. Tomorrow should be a day for time alone. Let's hope!