Christmas... List Style

Because I absolutely love lists... ok well, it may be more of an obsession, but that doesn't matter... I am going to tell about our Christmas in the form of a *list*. Our Christmas went something like this ~ {and, no, I am not using proper caps in my list... surprised? based on all my previous posts, i didn't think so}

* we had Christmas at our house first, and it was O.K... the munchkin got the most excited about a box. however, she asked for a box, so i guess she had the right to be excited about getting one. the excitement level was rather disappointing, though, for mommy and daddio
* she finally got that Christmas is Jesus' birthday, but she likes to throw in that He was also born in feb. just like her
* she got a horse... no, it wasn't a real horse, but if it was up to my dad, it totally would have been real.
* every time she got clothes, she threw them behind her head kind of like ralphie and randy in the movie A Christmas Story. for being two {ok, she's almost three, but i don't have to admit that yet, because she's not three for another two months} it was pretty funny
* her favorite favorite gift was a "white sing (thing)"... that white sing was, in fact, a white box that housed the clothes she tossed after she opened them... yes, i am serious. the white sing got the biggest reaction. she's nuts.
* my husband said (out loud) when he saw a deer on the side of the road while driving that it was a huge giraffe. no, he wasn't drinking. and no, i have no clue what in the heck is wrong with him. yes, he really did this.
* i am always so happy to get back to my own bed after sleeping at my parents house. they have a queen size bed, but their mattress is like 90 years old and it kills.my.back.
* we have decided that we are keeping the house 100% clean... coming home to a semi-messy house sucked
* this was the best Christmas so far because our girl had fun, she semi gets the whole reason for Christmas, she loved the lights, and it was just a pretty rockin time.


the end.

PS ~ you can thank me for finally doing another post :o)

*Itch*

I've got the *itch* so badly.... I want to smell another newborn head, snuggle tight with a teeny baby, hear newborn squeaks, and all the glorious things that come with having a newborn. Sigh... the itch is gonna have to wait another couple years.

Power Paint Sprayer When Prunes Attack

We went to the peds. last night amidst a nice snow storm because our munchkin had a pretty high fever (101.5... and we found out she has strep). While we were there getting all of that figured out, we also talked to the doc. about some issues with going potty. We've been using Activia, but it still just hadn't been doing the trick, and it was getting to the point that she wasn't going because she knew it would hurt. So, the ped. suggested giving her either a couple prunes, some dates, prune juice, or even baby food prunes. Daddy went to the store today in the blizzard, and got some cherry flavored dates. We told the munch that they were "big raisins" because she wasn't sure about them at first. After she tried them she LOVED them. She had a couple, and then we had to take them off of her because we knew having too much would cause a total explosion. So...... a little while later, she had to hurry and go tinkle, she bent over to pull her pants/panties down, ripped one, and sprayed the wall in the bathroom brown. literally. I guess the prunes worked! :o)

different

this is such a joyous time of year~ Jesus' birth and concentrating on Him, family, traditions, the carols, the lights, the trees, the presents, and yes, even Ho Ho....this time also brings thoughts of what the new year will bring, and all of the resolutions that will be made. i always give my "resolutions" a lot of thought, and try to think of some "really good" things to accomplish throughout the new year. my intentions are always there.... in the beginning. i always have the intention to lose weight, to get healthy, to do more housework, to put more of myself in to every roll i play.... Christian, wife, mother, daughter, granddaughter, sister, friend, etc. however, my intentions seem to lose steam pretty quickly, and i end up accomplishing very little of my "i need to" list. this year, i'm doing things a little different. i have one thing i am focusing on. it's not a resolution. it's not a goal. it's a must, a want, and a desire. and with this being my only focus, the rest of the other stuff will fall in to place naturally. this year i am solely concentrating on putting God number one in my life. don't get me wrong, that is always what i want, but i get a little lost along the way sometimes. i get caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life, my job, my family, my second job, being lazy, our financial situation, trying to get healthy. all of that would fall in to place and be where it needs to be if only i would concentrate on Him. this year, i am making it my absolute priority to focus on God... to talk to Him more, to love Him more, to seek Him more, to hear Him more, to follow Him more, to feel Him more, to see Him more, and to need Him more. the rest of the stuff is just that... it's stuff (well, besides my family, obviously)... and all that stuff needs to be pushed back, and concentrated on a little less. yes, i do my devotions, i pray, and i tell my girl about her awesome Heavenly Father... but i want more. so there you have it.... my wonderful, amazing, stupendous journey for 2010. a little more God wouldn't hurt any of us.

fish stick

have i mentioned before that my princess is indeed a princess? she is so girly and absolutely adores everything that goes with being a girl... sparkly clothes and nails, babydolls, dresses, pretties in her hair, make up... so lately she has a new obsession, and we had a little conversation about it. it went something like this:

M- hey, mama, my lips are so.dry. i sink i need to find my fish stick
Me - you need what?
M - ugh.. mama, my fish stick i have (dramatic hand motions inserted here) very very very dry lips
Me- oh! you mean your purple fish stick... didn't you leave it on the couch last night when you went to bed?
M - oh, yes, i sink i did. let me go check, k? yup, i found my purple fish stick. dank you for helping me finda my fish stick.

- she proceeds to put a layer on, take a lick, put another layer on, take a lick -

M - hey, mama, i sink you need some fish stick, too. you lips are (dramatic hand motions inserted here, too) very very very very dry. just like mines. yup. we da same.
Me - oh, honey, mommy's lips are fine. i don't think i need any fish stick right now, but thank you so much for asking me if i would like some. it was very kind of you to offer to share with me.
M- no, mama, you need some fish stick. i sayed you lips are very very very dry. don't say me no, you need some.
Me - ok, i guess you can give mommy some fish stick, too

- she proceeds to pile slimy, disgusting fish stick all over my lips and surrounding areas on my face-

M - dere you go, mama. dat's better. now you no have dry lips any more. you say dank you now to me.
Me - thank you so much, baby. my lips feel much.better. now that i have fish stick on them.
M - yeah, sure, you welcome. okay, i need more fish stick now. my lips are all dry again

- she proceeds to pile on a layer, take a lick, pile on a layer, take a lick, pile on a layer, take a nice big bite -

she's too cute

good guy

i have been blessed with an absolutely amazing husband. there are so many women in the world that unfortunately cannot say they have a husband who loves them for who and what they are, and who tries his absolute hardest every day to take care of them and do as much as he can for them. my husband puts in 150% effort every day to take care of me, and our little munchkin. he cooks, cleans, does laundry, and watches our munch on the weekends when i work my second job(s). he lets me sleep in each morning and packs my lunch for me, and does little things all the time to show that he loves taking care of his girls. yes, there are bad times (sometimes way more than i like to admit), we fight, get on each other's nerves, and aren't always the nicest we can possibly be to each other. but, at the end of the day, i fall more in love with him and i thank God for blessing me by giving him to me forever. i have a good guy, and i'm so thankful for him! <3

Say What, Say What?

The munchkin was telling me something on the way to her doctor's appointment yesterday morning. I'll tell you what she said, and you try and guess to see if you can get it right ~

"Hey, mama, police ma-mi-mad" It took me forever to figure it out, but I got it eventually.

The Things You Learn {from a DoOdLeBuG}

amidst the hectic craziness of my life recently, there are some things i've missed that are going on around our house. thank goodness i have my little doodlebug to fill me in on the happenings my brain has not figured out. tonight i found out ~


* our house has a rainforest. it must be amongst the clutter somewhere; which means i'll probably never find it. but it sounds pretty rad.

* we eat sockies, hankies, shoes, and pants for dinner.... all served up on a cardboard plate. yummy.

* she has now become the boss. not mommy or daddy, the doodlebug is the boss.

* tissues are for snotty noses and kleenex are for when you use the potty. how stupid of me not to know the difference. for real.

* she has a big esnorbus spider living in her bedroom. so glad her daddy didn't see the esnorbus spider cuz he would have fainted.

those are some pretty big things i missed. especially the rainforest. i'm ready to see a macaw or monkey swoop down at me at some point. i'll let you know as soon as that happens. :o) and, the sockies, shoes, and hankies for dinner will help me get this extra pound-age off really quickly, too. which totally rocks.

husband disgusting-ness <3 {love}

Every man has his own unique way of showing his girlfriend/fiancee/wife that he loves her. Some of his tactics may include sending flowers, writing notes, giving gifts. My husband, however, thinks that a hug followed by "I love you so much, babe" a massive belch does the trick. Seriously.... where did I find him? Yahoo-chat... that's right. Can I un-chat him to make him go away? Unfortunately, I don't think that will work. Eh, I guess I'll keep him and his disgusting habits around for a little while longer. He does happen to be a pretty great dad, and a mean dish washer. :o)

kicking my butt

i am feeling so unsettled lately. we have had some big issues within our small family, and they have spilled over to cause issues in our bigger family. trying to find a common understanding between everyone, and get everything taken care of has caused so much stress, frustration, anger, and even some hurt. school has also been so stressful. we're constantly having to explain why our scores aren't as good as they should be on tests, explain, explain explain, cover our hineys, we are being over-run with meetings during and after school. all of this has just sucked the life out of me, and it is totally kicking my butt. i just want to mope around, sit in my big brown chair, snuggle up under a blanket, and hide. i'm hoping it all simmers down. i'm not good at handling stress and problems. especially not when it negatively affects myself and my family. this shouldn't be a time of worry and frustration. i want to concentrate on my family, and why this time of year is so special to us. i'm ready to partake in my baby's first Christmas that she actually understands, and teach her about Jesus' birth when we put out our nativity. i'm ready to have her decorate our tree, and snuggle while we watch the pretty lights twinkle. but, the only thing i can do right now to get the situation taken care of is pray and trust. and i'm doing those two things whole-heartedly. join me in praying that God helps us to get this all taken care of in a way we can all say was the right way, and also pray that i will trust in Him to guide us, our actions, and decisions. also pray that our attitudes stay positive because we want to have a Godly attitude and get this taken care of with the utmost respect and be a Godly example.


* on a positive note, uber cute pics of the kid decorating the tree at my parent's house this weekend will be up tonight! :o)

prayer

things are steadily crumbling around me. i don't even know where to start or what to do. please say a prayer, or twenty, for me. i'm an emotional, stressed out mess. i just want everything to go away.

ALL I wAnT fOr ChRiStMaS ~

my munchkin is totally "besidick" about christmas this year... and "besidick" is a major understatement. she tells us almost daily now that ho ho is bringing her toys and presents. we're trying to put the "let's give to others" and "it's Jesus' birthday" spin on it, too... but that isn't working so well. she's two-and-a-half.. at least she understands something. we have a lot of fun new traditions planned, and it is making me giddy like a kid.

so the other day, we had a conversation. she started it, and it went something like this ~

M ~ hey, mama, let's talk!
Me ~ ok, honey, what do you want to talk about?
M ~ ho ho is coming to my house
Me ~ yes, baby, ho ho is coming to your house. are you excited?
M ~ uh huh... i very besidick. ho ho is bringing me presents
Me ~ i know ho ho will bring you presents. do you know what you would like for ho ho to get you?
M ~ yup... i want a horsey, a bear, lots and lots of books, and a box
Me ~ and that is all you want ho ho to bring you?
M ~ uh huh
Daddy ~ hey, m, since you want ho ho to bring you presents, would you like to go get presents for another little girl? because there are other little girls and boys that don't have everything you do.
M ~ nope! ho ho has to bring me presents first
Me ~ but, honey, ho ho will bring you presents still, and we can get something nice for another little girl
M ~ no, mama, ho ho has to bring me presents.... i telled you dat already (exhasperated sigh inserted here)
Me ~ did you know that Christmas is also when baby Jesus was born?
M ~ nope. Christmas is for ho ho cuz he gives me presents
Me ~ yes, ho ho does give you presents, but that isn't what Christmas is really about. Christmas is when baby Jesus was born, and Jesus loves us, and He died on the cross for us
M ~ no, Jesus lives at Papa's church. dat's all. (another exhasperated sigh here) i sink i gonna go play wiss my blocks now. you can play wiss me too, if you want! sure!


obviously she has one thing on her mind for this Christmas... hopefully when we put the nativity out and get her books "The Real Story of Christmas" from her scholastic book order that opinion may change a little. she knows about Jesus, that He loves her and us, and that He expects her to be nice and respectful to people.... but i guess His birth just doesn't stand a chance over ho ho in her little brain right now.

crazy, that's what they sayyy...

is this any indication of how wonderful totally insane my week has been? my desk is equivalent to the zoo-like children, stressed-out teachers, and just plain insanity. and it is my bet that the next week and two days won't be any better; because these kids (and teachers) need a break. desperately.

don't fit

does it bother you when you are invited somewhere by a "friend", you walk in to the group meeting/activity you are invited to, and you're totally ignored by every person there that doesn't know you? it bothers me a lot. i was invited to a group meeting of women from around town. they are a community organization that helps local people in many different ways. i've been trying to get more involved lately so i am not just sitting around home all the time. well, now i know why i sit around the house all the time; because i'd rather be with my husband and daughter instead of snotty, i'm-better-than-you women. when i arrived at the meeting tonight, i walked in and nobody said a word to me for 15 minutes. they all just looked at me like i was some sort of freak invading their meeting. not a single "hello, my name is ________. it's nice to meet you". nope. they just let me stand there looking like a stinking idiot all by myself without saying a single word to me. you would think that they would want to give people a more positive point of view about them because of how involved and "concerned" they are for the community members. but, no, they just let me stand there, totally out of place, all by myself. it was fun. and i was invited to their "holiday progressive dinner". sign me up. let me be the first on the list, please. i think i'll pass, thank you. it's obvious when you don't fit in, and that was pointed out to me really quickly tonight. so, i'll just be staying home with my three loves and enjoying more family time. at least i know i am loved and wanted here :o) and in the end, that is all that matters.

a.ti.tude.

little miss thang has been getting her attitude on lately. where she gets some of the words that fly out of her little two-year-old mouth really gets me. because she doesn't hear it at home. it is funny to see her facial expressions while rolling her eyes like an adult and heaving a huge sigh of frustration, but it's getting old. rather quickly, i might add. her new favorite thing is to fold her hands across her chest and say in a mightily ticked-off voice, "i so mad at chew right now. don't even talk 'a me cuz i mad at chew". she told me today that if i didn't "stop looking at her like that" (like what, i don't have a clue, but like that) then she would have to smack me.

this past weekend my in-laws were here from PA. my step-father-in-law picks on the kid like there's no tomorrow. i have to admit, there are times when i want to look at him and tell him to please just shut up. but, i refrain. the princess had other plans besides refraining from telling her pap off, though. when we were walking back from trunk-or-treating, he was picking on her something fierce. don't you know, that little stinker stops, rolls her eyes, puts her hands on her hips, and exasperated-ly says, "James, (her pap's name) i really wish you would stop talkin 'a me like dat. it is not nice, so stop it now, misser".

while for some if it, i don't blame her, it still bothers me that my cute little princess has had such a nasty, mean spirited attitude lately. needless to say, her tiny, cute, little booty has worn a spot in the carpet where she's been sitting in time out.

love, opinions, and thoughts

love~
so you know that i am getting myself on the right path to lose weight. i found a couple things that i love to help me in this endeavor. those things would be:

*www.settingcaptivesfree.com. a christian website that focuses on making God your priority to get your life straight in many areas. even losing weight. awesome. *thanks erica!
*www.nutritiondata.com. you can go on there and enter any food imaginable and the serving size and it'll give you all the nutrition info. you need on that food.
*calorie king book. good stuff. it just backs up nutrition data.com

opinions~
i am trying to decide on whether to follow weight watchers online or just strictly count calories. what do you think is the best route to go?

are there any other excercises you can suggest besides walking on a treadmill to get this weight off? i tried the ellipticals at the YMCA and i hate them. with a passion. i need to do something to mix it up, and am too embarassed right now to go to an aerobics class or something like that.

thoughts~
i'm on a good track. i hope i stay there. i can do it!

provide

my husband and i are very richly blessed. we are blessed beyond comprehension. when we first got married, we had a grand time going out and spending money racking up our credit cards buying stuff we didn't need, going out to dinner, and all kinds of other nonsense. then when we bought our house, we "needed" to buy things for the house to make it ours, and spent even more money we didn't have. it took a couple of years, but we got slammed. really hard, too. we are still paying for our stupid mistakes, and have learned a huge lesson. along with our stupid-ness, my husband and daughter haven't been the healthiest people, either. AT has had ER visit after ER visit, kidney stone surgery after kidney stone surgery, and other doctor's visits dealing with the like. our munchkin has had ear infection, ear infection, ear infection, hospital stay, ER visit, ER visit, ER visit, bronchitis, asthma, tubes, fever after fever, you get the drift. i got braces put on, and have had some other issues dealing with the medical side of things, too. so, all of this combined led to us being seriously, dangerously in debt. we didn't realize how many medical bills we had and how much money we owed everyone until the bills started flowing in. and we couldn't pay them because of our credit card debt. so we broke down, did credit counseling, and our cards will be taken care of in the next 2 1/2 years. now we are working on getting all of the medical bills paid off. so many of them have been sent to collections it's not even funny (stace, i know you feel me on the medical side.... in a more major way than we have dealt with, too). then our bathroom decided to grow mold and mildew, and we need that redone because it can't be safe for any of us.... especially our little princess who has severe allergies (we've been bleaching down the mold, so it has been staying away, but the mildew is still there). did i mention that our roof blew off in last february, our heat pump quit working two years ago and we needed a new one, and our one dog who we no longer have destroyed the carpet and most of the doors in the house... so we had to have new carpet put in, too? a little overwhelming, huh? it seems like we have been hit. hard. really really hard. when i think about it all, i get choked up because it seems like one bad thing after another happens. we were going to use our income tax check last year to get the bathroom done. then we ended up having to spend almost half of that to get the sewer lines cleaned out because they were spewing raw sewage in to our yard this past summer. now we have to wait until this IRS check to get the bathroom done. we also need a new fridge because ours is as old as the hills and it leaks some kind of light green goo.

amidst all of this crap, we have never failed to see how God's hand provides for His children. my husband's mom and step dad have given us a lot of money (new heat pump, money for the kid, dance class for the kid). and, my parents have been helping us in a major way, too. they are helping send our precious girl to her new school because they knew how badly we wanted to get her out of her last babysitters. they also just called today and said that our christmas and birthday presents would consist of a new fridge. i am excited beyond belief. and so thankful. God has also provided me with two extra jobs to help make ends meet, and my husband also got put on a team this year that will make him $200 extra/month. we are trying our to get ourselves out of our hole.... and it's slowly happening. and we are slowly seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. but, in our most desperate, frustrating times, we have never failed to see His hand.... guiding, protecting, and providing for us. He is amazing.

you know.....

..... you're the mother of a toddler when you receive an email with the subject being "diapers, poop, and rashes".


and i wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. ever.

home.sick.

it was a hard weekend. my parents and brother came down from PA on thursday for a visit. they left today. i'm very, very close with my mom, and we like to do a lot of things together. every once in a while when they come here and leave, or we go there and leave, i get extremely emotional. it is so stinking hard having them so far away. a 5-6 hour drive doesn't seem like it would be so bad, it is hard to do it on a regular weekend. we usually even end up getting up to PA almost every single month, but it doesn't seem like enough. i also really love, love, love the town where my parents live, and would love ot live there. i have some other circumstances here that make the distance even more difficult. the circumstances down here that make me even more homesick are the fact that i can't find a church to really settle in to, i can't really stand any of the girls that i work with because they all stab people in the back so badly, i am not too fond of the town and how it is set up and that is is SO FAR away from everything, and i don't have any real friends down here. soo.... now it is obvious as to why i really struggle with living here, and with my parents being so far away.

when we moved down here, it was basically an agreement between us that we were not planning on staying here for the rest of our lives. however, we haven't had the money to move, and we made some silly decisions by moving out of our apartment and in to a crazy woman's house, which in turn encouraged us to buy a house. so now we are basically stuck until we can sell our house. so i am hoping that we will eventually get to move closer to our families.

one thing that really encouraged me today was talking to one of my friends, becky, from college. she knows that i am having a rough time, and gave me a new, amazing perspective of our situation. she told me that God really knows my heart, and knows that i will not be happy living this far away from our families for the rest of my life. she also agrees that given my circumstances that i mentioned above that it would basically be impossible to be happy and content living here. she also said that maybe it is God's purpose to not let me get too attached to anyone or anything down here because when we do move, then it won't be difficult for me to pick our things up and just go. which is soooo true. it won't affect me in the least to pick up, and get the heck out of here. i could find out tomorrow that we are moving, and i wouldn't shed a tear. this point of view has really comforted me, and has really made me think about our situation. i can see that as being a totally legit explanation because i have never been totally 100% truly happy here. i'm the type of person that needs my family around, and needs to be around people that love and care for me. that isn't the situation here, and it's very trying. so now i have a new focus, and i am trusting the Lord to lead us in the direction He wants us to go in within the next couple of years. the possibilities are exciting, and it will be fun to see what road He decides to lead us down. keeping a positive attitude during the holidays is going to be hard because that is my most favorite time to be where my parents live, but i know something better is in store for us down the road. i just have to be patient, and trust Him.

"Our Father....

Who Art in Heaven Howard be Thy Name"


This is how one of my children said the Lord's Prayer today... and I had to really work hard to hold back my chuckle. Like, hard hard hard.

dabble-r

i am a dabble-r. i am very good at sticking the tips-of-my-toes in, but not fully immersing myself. this goes for about every single aspect of my life. i am a dabble-r in my marriage. i'm too selfish to completely give my whole self to my husband. i have an agenda, too, ya know. i have needs and wants and desires, too. not just him. i do too, darnit. so why totally give him my whole self when i need to take care of me, too? he hasn't given his whole self to fully take care of me, so i have to look out for myself in some way. right? i also dabble in my health situation. i so badly want to lose weight (i sound like a flipping broken record.. i think that is the gazillionth and one time i've said that in the last 5 years and it still hasn't happened), and be totally happy again. i don't want my daughter to have the self-image issues that i do, and don't want her to struggle the way i have. i get going really good with working out, drinking water, eating fruits and veggies, taking vitamins, and being really conscious about what goes in my mouth and how well i do in all areas regarding getting healthy. i lose a few pounds, feel super great, and then the dabbling rears its nasty head. i've skimmed enough, i've lost some weight, now it's time to hog-out and gain it all back. healthy, huh? yeah pretty much NOT. then i self-loathe and get all depressed because my dabbling didn't do me any good. why can't i just commit, get started, stay focused, and get this done? cuz i'm a dabble-r, that's why. it would take guts and courage to actually stay motivated, hit the gym every-single-day, not eat anything unhealthy, and attain my goals. being a mother is also where i dabble. not as much as everywhere else, but there are days when i say "ah, heck, i've dealt with the temper tantrums, poopy pants, screaming, crying, and everything-else-that-is-connected-with-being-the-mom-of-a-two-year-old... let her dad take care of her today". see... more dabbling. more often than not, though, my mommy role is a role that sees the least amount of dabbling. i take my job of raising my girl seriously. but i still dabble. my christian walk is another area that i dabble in, too. i get going with devotions, pray many times throughout the day, see changes that God is making in my life. yup, you guessed it. then it stops. why would i want to get too engrossed in all of that religious stuff, and actually feel great about my walk with my Father? why would i want to continue to receive his everlasting love and help in my marriage, my health issues, and my role as a mommy? my dabbling lifestyle comes back in to play, and the devotions stop, i pray when i go to bed, and everything else crumbles in to a pile around me. the fighting with my husband ensues, the weight comes back on and i can't stand myself for the millionth time in the last six months, and i feel like my daughter isn't as close to me as she is to her daddy. when will i ever learn to stop dabbling, stop skimming the surface, stop giving just part of myself, stop being so scared and so uncommitted? when will i fully immerse myself in every aspect, and just let God take over? that would answer all of my problems. when i don't dabble my marriage is usually great, i am successful with my health goals, and my girl and i get tons of snuggle-love time. but, when the dabble-r comes out again.... all the good stuff goes away, and i'm left asking myself "why did you do this to yourself again?!?!?" i'm ready to be a non-dabbler. but i just don't know how to not be one.

score

i am so excited. i have been looking for a bookshelf for my munchkin's room for such a long time. her daddy wanted to build her one, but mommy vetoed that idea (if you would have ever experienced him putting something together that had all the pieces cut so he just had to add nails/screws and witnessing that catastrophe, you would have totally vetoed the whole building from-scratch thing, too. trust me). i wanted something pretty and nice, and that would also fit the ten million books the child has. she also has little collectible things that i have wanted to sit out, too. everywhere seemed so expensive, and a small hand-made shelf would have been $60. and the pre-fab things are kinda cruddy. i went to this cute little crafty/antique store today, and scored. big.time. i found two bookshelves, and they are pretty. the shelves are big enough for her books, her little collectible things will look really nice on them, and there are doors at the bottom with shelves underneath for storage (and her shoes). they didn't have a price on them, so i asked the lady if they were for sale. at first, she said they weren't, but they were actually her own and she was thinking of selling them. i asked the price, and waited with baited breath while she was deciding how much she would charge me for one/both of them. when she told me the price, my jaw hit the floor. she told me they would be $70 a piece. two gorgeous bookshelves for $140 is not bad at all. i'm already contemplating and planning how i'm going to decorate them, and where her little knick knacks will be placed. i'll also put a pic up of them as soon as i get home. yay!

Good Morning, Knuckle Head!

my big love and little love were teasing each other this morning. their conversation went something like this ~

a ~ "good morning, knuckle head. how are you?"

m ~ "i not a knuckle head, i'm a big girl"

a ~ "nope, you're a knuckle head"

m ~"daddy, i not a knuckle head. you no call me dat name. it's not nice. you no call names. it is a no no. you will go to time out, misser"

a ~ "i still think you're a knuckle head"

m ~ "daddy, you get a spanking. you no call names"

so, she proceeded to give him a spanking, and told him to go sit in time out because he was not being a very nice boy.

LiTtLe SwEeT tHaNg <3

my princess has had to come in to the bathroom while i am in the shower the last two mornings to give me a kiss, say good morning, and tell me she "wuvs" me.... how sweet. i love that kid more and more each day it's unbelievable. she rocks.

she does other sweet stuff every day, too. she loves to give hugs, kisses, snuggles, and "i wuv you"'s out like they're going out of style... melt. my. heart.

The Itchy B@*$*!y 'Pider

my last post talked about what silly things come out of my munchkin's mouth. i love hearing her talk because she has such a cute, little munchkin voice, and she says things that are sooo funny. well... i was in the computer room the other day being a bad mom on facebook instead of tending to my child (i don't have to admit that, right?), and she was walking around the house singing. she loves to sing, which that is even an understatement. she will even sing what she is having for dinner. so, back to the other day walking around the house... she's singing, and all of a sudden my husband comes to the door and goes, "stop what you're doing and listen to her... just be really quiet and hear what she is saying". so i quit what i was doing, perked my ears up really well, and listened. the next thing i hear out of her mouth is "da itchy bitchy 'pider goed up da wawer 'pout... down camed da rain and wassed a 'pider out... out camed da sun and dried up aww da rain and da itchy bitchy 'pider goed up da pout again.... yaaaayyy!" so i know it looks like she hears swearing at home. she doesn't... i promise. usually she sings it the "issy bissy 'pider", but i guess it was itchy and bitchy the other day. any way, it was hysterical and i think we both laughed until we cried.



another thing she says that makes it sound like we swear around her is she calls ice cream "ass cream".... we live in VA, and the kiddo is picking up on some of the southern accent. i'm trying to get her to not do that, but when she looks at you and says, "can i have some ass cream palease?" it makes you want to dig out the preparation h and say "here's the ass cream, honey, have fun". my dad has told her that he didn't have any at home, but when he got some at the store, he'd share with her.



i swear i love love love love love love love love lover her.

Two-Year-Old-Blurbs

my child says things on a daily basis that crack me up and make me smile. here are two she said today that made both myself and my husband laugh




she told us she had to poop on the potty.... after she got the job done she looks in the toilet and goes

"oh, that poop is AMAZING!"

ok, kid... i didn't know that, but at least you're excited aboug going on the potty!


a little while later she was helping her daddy look for turkey burger in the freezer to make some spaghetti. her dad said that he couldn't find the turkey burger so she goes

"i sink (think) the turkey burger is flying way hup in the sky"

did you know that turkey burger flies way hup in the sky? yeah, neither did i.

Sad Mommy List Style

this past weekend we went to pennsylvania to visit both of our families. my mom and i also went shopping for clothes and shoes for my munchkin. i LOVE to shop there because my parents have outlets near them (can you say carters, childrens place, and gymboree stuff for CHEAP?!), and there's no sales tax. woo hoo. but, over the course of our shopping excursion, i went from being an excited, happy mommy to a sad, depressed mommy. here is why that progression went the way it did:


*my baby's foot grew a size and a half in a matter of 4 months... she started out the summer in a 6 1/2 and we bought a size 8 saturday! yikes!!
* i'm no longer able to shop for clothes with the word months after the number size, it now has to be a T after the number size. boo
* the toddler section of carters doesn't have an entire matching outfit on one hanger. you have to buy individual pieces then match them together. on the little kid side, a cute shirt and pants or leggings that match come on one hanger. plus, the younger kids outfits are so.much.cuter.
* unfortunately, it really hit me that my baby isn't so much a baby anymore... she's progressing in to a little girl right before my eyes. i want it to stop, but i can't make that happen...
* all in all this weekend basically made me want to bawl my eyes out.

Buckwheat Otay Pillow

I have been having problems with my shoulders and neck for a while because of how I sleep. I've tried numerous pillows, and none of them seem to relieve the pain that I feel from sleeping incorrectly. I also toss and turn all night long, which leaves me exhausted in the morning.

My wonderful husband told me to try a buckwheat pillow. I went online, and about passed out at the prices of them. But, I did some research and saw that they were supposed to be wonderful. I got one, and it came yesterday. It sounds weird, but I can already tell a difference. My shoulders don't hurt as much, and I didn't toss and turn all night long. I think I rolled over like 3 times.






My pillow is filled with these little hulls from the buckwheat flower. The smell of them alone is wonderful! They conform to your neck, head, and shoulders, and give you such good support! Everything from the hulls to the muslin pillowcase is 100% organic. The pillow is also supposed to last 10 years!! You can add and remove the hulls (you just store them in a ziploc back until you want to add more to your pillow) to fit your comfort level. I took out 2 gallon ziploc bags, and it worked well. I may end up taking out another one, but I'll have to wait and see. Another plus is that it's like a natural insulator, which means in the summer it keeps you cool and in the winter it keeps you warm. Supposedly air circulates around the little hulls which prevents them from compacting together like fiber filled pilllows. It's seriously totally different.

And, to top it off, I got a free lavender sachet to put in my pillow. I woke up smelling like lavender, and it was divine. The store I got mine from also has chamomile, but I found one at another store that has mint and other herbs that help your nasal passages open up when you have a cold; so I think I'll eventually get some of them, too.

Can't Wait

Last night was the first time in a while that we got to sleep with our AC off, windows wide open, and the fans going. It was freezing in our bedroom, and it was GLORIOUS! Oh, I love and cherish this time of year! This fall I am excited because our little one is finally old enough to understand about things that happen outside (she'll love the changing of the leaves, and will giggle with delight over the big harvest moon b/c we already have to go outside each night before she goes down for bed to see if the moon is a circle or a crescent; so the huge harvest moon will totally make her day), she will flip when we go on a hayride and choose a pumpkin to carve and visit the petting zoo, and will love going trick-or-treating. Seriously.. this is the best season EVER. I could have it be fall all year and would never get sick of it.

Break out the coats, long sleeved shirts, pants, cinnamon scented everything, throws to keep warm, fall decorations, fall colors, cool, crisp air, apple cider, pumpkins, witches, goblins, and ghosts, huge moons... oohhhh I cannot wait!!

Responsibility

when the other two classes i am teaching this year came in without their homework, i heard every excuse in the book. then i got the question, "well, if we do our homework at lunch, can't we just skip owing you recess and go outside to play?" my answer: no way. what did they do? they went to their homeroom teacher, said that they didn't do their homework and asked her if they could do it at lunch then go to recess. her answer: yes. ughhh! then i got to play the bad guy and make them stay in for recess after she vetoed me. i think they need to learn responsibility, and that they cannot get off scott-free when they don't do their homework. in my opinion that is unacceptable, and it is only teaching them bad habits. i did the right thing, right? back me up here!! :o)

note

i will start off by admitting that i am a very, very spoiled person. my husband cooks, cleans, does dishes, does the bathrooms because i think it is totally gross. another thing he does every single morning is pack my lunch because he knows how much i adore my bed, and sacrifices so i can sleep in a little longer (amazing, i know). i've been very blessed with a good husband and daddy to our girl. i've also been blessed because my husband does little things to try and make me feel and know how much he loves me. it's these simple little things that mean so much. i don't need expensive gifts to know how much he loves me. so today i find this:


"have a great day. i love you so much. i will miss you today and think about you all day long. you are an amazing wife and mommy and i can't think of anyone i'd rather be with forever. i love you"

that note was in my lunchbox, and it completely melted my heart

Substandard

it's funny how toddlers grow, learn, and progress. i love watching my little one learn new things, and see the lightbulb go off in her little head when she gets something. i received an email today from babycenter.com telling me that my 30 month old should be able put her own shirt on, draw a circle, and draw a vertical line. it also said that she should know one color, recognize one friend, pay attention to one word directions, and be saying two to three word sentences. it cracks me up because the first part makes me feel like a bad parent. she can't put her own shirt on. she scribbles, but only once has it ever resembled a circle (but she did tell me it was a circle), and she definitely doesn't draw a vertical line (well, she doesn't know what a "line" is). on the other hand she knows all of her colors, all of her shapes, recognizes all of the letters in her name and about half of the alphabet (it said she should know her whole alphabet... bad parenting coming in to play once again), and she's starting to recognize most of the numbers, too. she knows most of her friends at her new school, and knew every single kid by name at her old babysitter's house. saying three to four word sentences? she was doing that when she was a little over one year old.... my munchkin says 8-12 word sentences half of the time. but, it just drives me crazy because it's like they have this perception that a child should be at a certain stage by a certain age or they aren't "good" enough or "smart" enough. why can't it be that they learn things in their own time.... and if they get to kindergarten and there are some major holes, then maybe be concerned. but she's two-and-a-half for cryin out loud. i think she knows a lot for being that young.... and the "experts" make me feel like i am a substandard parent because my child doesn't know everything they say she should... ugh. vent over.

Did I Get that Memo?

Organization is not my thing. at.all. I think I am one of the most disorganized, disheveled human beings I've ever met. I misplace papers, miss meetings because I lose the memo telling me the date the meeting is taking place, lose clothes, have a cluttered, unkempt house, do everything last minute in a hurried frenzy. But, that is who I am, and although it's frustrating on many days, I've come to accept my fault and have tried to find ways to work around it. Notice I said work around it... not fix it, not get rid of it, just work around it. I don't think there is any getting rid of or fixing to be had. I just have to figure out ways to side-step some of my disorganization to help me move a little more swiftly through my life. If you look at my house, it looks like an unorganized, cluttered person lives there.... and they do. And we have a double whammy because my husband is the exact same way.

One of the side-steps I've been doing is to get myself ready for school a week in advance *gasp*! Lesson plans being done for the next week the week before, and not the morning the new week beings?! That has literally never happened in my six years of teaching. Not even once. I have noticed that it helps to have at least something done and prepared because everything else is so unfunctional it's not even funny.

My husband and I are trying to work on our insanely unorganized life.... when you wake up in the morning, and can't find anything to wear until the second before you must walk out the door, it pretty much means that you need to find more side-steps to take to get yourself more together. Overflowing dishes, overflowing laundry, lost bills, lost shoes, lost silverware, a lost toddler.... it's all a part of our normal lives. We aren't dirty, we're just extremely, overly unorganized.

As I sit here and type this, I realize that I have missed another memo about a meeting that is taking place.... ok, I lied.... but it will happen this year!

happy

isn't it a totally wonderful feeling when your heart is totally, blissfully happy? i have a great life.... i have a great husband, a beautful, intelligent, hilarious daughter, a cuddly, soft, fluffy dog, and so much love radiates from them every single day. with the exception of a couple minor things dealing with myself and money (with this economy, who isn't feeling a crunch?) things are amazing.... and i'm enjoying waking up every morning and going to bed every night with a heart full of love, laughter, and happiness. <3

Crack and Sniff

we were sitting in the hallway... well, the kids were, i was standing... waiting patiently like a room full of banshees for the second wave of buses to pull up so the banditos could be on their way home. as they were sitting there, this one different extremely odd child was putting his finger through the crack of his shoe then sniffing it to see if his feet smelled.... quite gross, if you ask me. he did it a few times, and i was really crossing my fingers that he didn't think of another crack to put his finger down to then pull out and take a nice-big-whiff. thank goodness the bell rang cuz with his quriky-weirdness i'm pretty sure the light would have gone off in his little head, and those fingers would have made a pretty disgusting trip down south.

Let It Go

i've realized a lot in the last couple of days. i realized that i need to concentrate on what's happening in my life now, and what's going to happen in my future. things that happened in my past are out of my control, they happened for a reason, and i've got to let it go. dwelling on the past is getting me nowhere. having my mind filled with the what if's won't help me to progress in any way. i need to concentrate on all of the blessings i've been given, and rejoice in the Lord for the many wonderful ways He has provided for me. i have an amazing husband, a gorgeous little girl, a cute little doggy, and a not-too-shabby family (well, i guess they're above par, actually). i have a roof over my head, and a good job. i need to concentrate on these things because i've been blessed with them for a reason.... not on things that could have been because they never evolved, so why should they matter?.... i've just got to let it go. and i'm okay with that.

I will

run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer run a 5k next summer. don't believe me? watch me prove.you.wrong.

Ready or Not

my last two posts have expressed my feelings about the upcoming school year, and all of the changes that have been made that threw me for a loop. what i want to do is to ask you (all like 5 of you, ha) for prayer. i'm extremely nervous about teaching special education. i know i can do it, but i have had no training (and i'm supposed to), and i am a nervous wreck. it's not because of the kids, it's because i feel like i am doing a disservice to them because i haven't been properly trained. they deserve a fully equipped teacher who has been trained on how to meet their individual needs. i'm going to try my butt off to do what i can do for them, and to make sure they learn as much as they can from me this year. i just wish i could go in to this situation with more confidence, and with a feeling of being ready to provide these kids with everything they need this year. and right now, that is not how i feel at all.... so, ready or not, here it comes full throttle, and i'm just along for the ride. i guess we'll see what direction this takes in the next couple of months!

randomness shmandomness

i so love the smell of good coffee in the morning. i could smell it all day long. we are asking for a keurig coffee maker for christmas this year because we're tired of giving mcdonalds and starbucks all of our money for coffee. i could just sit here at my desk all day long and smell my coffee. it would be like yesterday, and i'd get no work done. but it would be worth it to me. maybe not really. but the thought is nice. just a nice little totally random thought to throw in there that got my mind off of its racing for a mili-second. :)

have you ever been at the point with something that you just don't really know what to do? i'm having major brain block, and it's driving me nuts. i was all ready to teach math, and then i found out (through the mail, no less) that i'm not teaching math this year. i was totally geared up and ready to go. then *poof* it was gone just like that. i've taught reading before, so i don't know why i'm having such a huge brain block right now as far as what i am doing with my room and how i am going to teach, but it still seems so different. i'm also freaking out about having to teach two extra classes, and not having my own kids all day long. if you can't tell, i'm not a person who is big on change. once i find a groove that works for me, i like it to stay that way. messing with that groove really knocks me for a loop. i get side-swiped and discombobulated (is that how you spell the word... my husband uses it, and it was appropriate here, but i don't know how to spell it; or if it's even a real word) then have a total freak out, melt down. that part hasn't come yet... i'm in the "where do i go from here" stage right now. hopefully the freak out won't come. my guess is that it will because it always seems to follow when my mind races like this. i also can't seem to put a finger on my exact feeling, either. i don't know if i'm frustrated, mad, worried, exhasperated.... mostly a combination of everything really, but i don't know what feeling is prevalent among the others.

ok i need to get my mind off of this before i do go totally insane. i'll get a cute little thought out about my munchkin before i have to go to my morning meeting.... last night i was working with my girl on recognizing her numbers. especially since she'll be working on that at her new school this year. we were sitting, playing, laughing, and having a good time while using her new number puzzle to count and recognize the numbers. she caught on pretty quick, and recognized 5 of them in a matter of 30 minutes. but, it was cute when we went back a little later to see if she remembered them, and i picked up the 0 and asked her what number it was... her little face lit up and she goes, "that's the number ZREBO, mommy!" zrebo... how stinkin cute! she was also really sleepy, and whined when i didn't cheer properly over the fact that she knew the numbers and guessed her way through the others. oh i love my girl so much. that's a positive thought to get me through the day! well... guess i better get off to my meeting.

Hello. Again.

it's been a while, again. does anybody still read this thing? probably not (besides you, Erica, that is...*AND BECKY :o)* ) i know i used to have a lot of little dots on my clustrmap and now i have maybe 20? probably not even that. oh well. the "popularity" was fun while it lasted, i guess!

so. i began a new school year today. summer went wayyy too fast. entirely too fast. like a bolt of lightning that snapped out of the sky, hit the ground, and retreated back to the sky fast. yup, that's how fast it seemed to go. we had an incredibly fun summer. the munchkin is almost potty trained (yess), she baked cookies for the first time with my grandma, did sparklers on the fourth of july, went to the aquarium in inner harbor, visited the beach for the first time and splashed like a wild chick-a-dee in the crashing waves ran for her life away from the water. i guess it wasn't that bad of a reaction, but still... it wasn't so great. she felt much safer with her cute little baby bum perched on a heap of beach towels with her pigs chilling out in the sand. she also started a new preschool and got signed up for dance class. yes, it was an amazing summer for us.

i think this year is going to prove to be an interesting one to say the least. i'm dealing with two extra groups of kids, teaching a subject i didn't sign up to teach, and am dealing with special education. see, i told you it was going to be interesting, didn't i? i also just found out from my husband that there is an opening for a volleyball coach at the middle school. volleyball is the one sport i LOVE. i love football (especially steeler football), swimming, and hockey... but volleyball is totally amazing to me. i played from the time i was in seventh grade clear until i was out of college. it wasn't always necessarily for school because i couldn't stand the coach at my high school, so i played intramural for years. but i was still involved in playing on some kind of team. with this opportunity comes two dilemmas. one of them is that i already have a part-time job (well, technically two of them) on the weekends. i work with troubled girls, and the one has told me that if i stop working with her, she will be very upset. so, if i choose to coach, then that would mean more work time for me, and less family time. we are trying to get a lot of our debt, etc. taken care of so that would be beneficial because i'm pretty sure there is a stipend for coaching, but i'm just not sure that more time away from my husband and girl is worth it. the second thing is that i'm far from being in the same shape now that i was in when i played volleyball. sigh. well, i guess i'll pray about it, and see what answer i'm given.

well, that's it for now. i know i'll have more interesting posts to create as the year starts with the kids, and with dance class.

My Life in Fast Forward

The last two weeks have been crazy to say the least... here's kind of how they went ~

* school ended ~ yay!
* i created the benchmark tests and curriculum for next year (extra money... not complaining)
* had a couple days off
* our computer crashed with two viruses... boooo!
* went to amish country to visit family
* went to my dad's churches picnic
* took the munchkin to inner harbor to the national aquarium with my parents... a blast
* play date with some little girls at my dad's church
* visiting with the other set of grand-parentals
* long drive home
* found out today that our insane psycho freak superintendent resigned and is now going to be gracing some poor school in new york with her presence... good riddance to her and good luck to them
* found out the whole april rose thing was a scam... such a sad thing to hear, but feel worse for the girl who thought she needed to do that to get attention
* no more "eff you's" from the kiddo... whew, and yay!
* and i deff need to get back on board with the whole workout thing... eating like crap the last two weeks has done me not an ounce of good
* the hubster set up a make-shift computer using odds and ends parts from the 3 old computers we had sitting around... it's slow, but it works for now until we can get our new one fixed
* potty training officially starts monday ~ wish us luck!
* hopefully the bathroom reno. will begin soon-ish!

now i'll be able to update more often *hopefully*!

from the mouth of babes my husband

our munchkin knows how to turn her CD player on, and wayyyyyy loud. as i was checking fb this morning, i heard my husband say this to our munchkin as she turned "God is so good" up as loud as she could ~

"yes, honey, God is so good, but just not that loud"

Flabbergasted and Heartbroken

This morning while I was putting my two-year-old angel in the car, she looked at me and said, "Eff you, Mommy!" (the real word, not "eff" either, and yes, it was plain.as.day.) I wasn't sure if that was actually what she had said (or, I didn't want to believe that was the phrase my baby had just used), but she piped up again when I buckled her in "Eff you, Mommy". My heart was broken. I wanted to cry right then, but knew that it would only encourage her to repeat those disgusting words again, which is NOT what I wanted to happen. My child most certainly did not hear those words at home. I was seriously shell-shocked to hear such strong, hateful, disgusting language come from her little, cute, beautiful mouth. I am hoping that she doesn't say that phrase anymore, but I am not sure of my "plan of action" in case she does. I called my mom this morning, and bawled my eyes out to her about the fact that those words were uttered out of my sweet girl's mouth. Can you tell that it makes me sick? My mom said to put soap in her mouth if she continues to say that, but I shouldn't have to be to the point that I put soap in my baby's mouth for swearing at me.... like, the queen mother of all swear words. I cannot even begin to grasp the fact that she's even heard those words, let alone knows how to use them appropriately. All I can say is Praise God for the fact that today is the last day she will ever step foot in that babysitter's house. I am so thankful that He provided a way for her to go to a good school next year. And, yes, I realize that my child is going to be exposed to nasty language. I get that. But, at two-years-old? I was thinking more like two plus twelve years or something... not just two. Then, it makes me even more sick that parents think it is appropriate and ok to speak to their children like that. All of the children that go to the babysitters are four and under, and that's where my kid is learning that kind of language? What are these parents thinking, seriously?

I Can See Clearly Now The Rain is Gone

you know what? i love God... i love how He provides for us, and makes sure to take care of every little detail in our lives. nothing is too big or too little to go to Him with, and He makes sure to take care of his lambs. sometimes we don't always get the outcome or answer we were hoping/expecting to get. but, that is because it was our plan, not His. His plan is what's right, and what works best.... because, ya know, He's only had our lives planned since before we were even born. how cool, huh?

in my own little mind, i had a big plan. i had things planned out for what how our girl's educational road was going to look like in the next couple years. it was all mapped out, and i was ready! she's two now, and i know that she'll be in school sooner than we know it. for being two, she knows a lot (yes, you've heard that before because i kind of like to brag on my kiddo every now and then all.the.time. but i'm allowed cuz i'm her mommy). so, in my world, it was time to start getting her ready to start school not next year, but the next. my plan was for her to go to preschool this year at her new school, then actual pre-k here at our school when she was 3 1/2, and start kindergarten when she was 4 1/2. that was my plan. today, however, i've been given a different plan, and i'm ok with that. i've been so worried about pushing my munchkin along, and making sure that she gets in to school early because she's so smart already. we werre so afraid she'd be bored when she went to school if she didn't start early. then, God made a situation occur and He showed me that my plan wasn't the best plan for our girl. His plan is better. i just happened to stay outside a little extra today with my kids.... you know, by my own will and everything, it was totally not God waiting for me to have the opportunity to get some good information, and the answers to my prayers... no, that wasn't it at all. while i was outside, the kindergarten teachers came out for recess a little earlier than normal (see, not God's hand working... i stayed late, they came early... definitely not Him). we all got to talking, and i mentioned that it was my plan to get my ever-so-intelligent baby in to kindergarten when she was a mere 4 1/2 years old. because i'm the mommy, and i soooo know what is best for her. while we were having our little discussion, they both told me that they also started all of their girls, who had birthdays that fell in the middle of the year which made them older to start school, when they were 5 1/2. they confirmed that it wasn't disastrous, but it was actually very beneficial. the girls were always at the head of their class, they caught on to things a lot quicker, and were mature enough socially to handle being in school and the requirements that come along with being a good student. i tried to reason with them, and explain that my kid is very, very smart.... and hoped that they would agree with me that she indeed should start kindergarten a little earlier. but, that wasn't the case. they shut me down, and i lost.... case closed. i was also told that with them being actual kindergarten teachers, they feel that the kids who start early, even though they are smart, struggle greatly both academically and socially because they aren't old enough to handle the work or atmosphere. sooo, i guess this means that i have my answers to all of my worries about what to do with our girl and school. i want her to be successful, and don't want her to be an outcast because she isn't old enough to handle the work load or the social load. God wins... i lose (surprised? yeah, me either). all in all, i know this is the best choice for our princess. even though it wasn't what i originally planned, it's what needs to happen, and i am at peace knowing that He made the right decision for our girl... because He loves her..... just a little.

F.Y.I.

you can thank me now so you don't have to find out the hard way, like me, later ~


all dog lovers out there who also happen to be lovers of asparagus..... dogs.do.not.digest.asparagus. it will only come back out in the exact.same.form. it went in.


thought you'd like to know that... ya know, just in case. cuz i sure do wish someone would have taught me that!

drop dead

every single year i have a kid in my room who stands out from the rest. sometimes it is that they are a better helper, whinier, a little different, and some other qualities mixed in there that just make them stand out. this year, i have a kid who is just down right hateful, obnoxious, and rude. he has made the atmosphere in my classroom not-so-great on many occasions, and the last two months have been no exception. he has been the rudest, most disrespectful, hateful child i think i've honestly ever seen. he always has to have the last.word. doesn't care that adults should be shown respect... respect... what is that? seriously? i've been patient, impatient, understanding, kind, not-so-kind, probably every adjective you could use to describe how someone interacts with another human being, i've played that role throughout the last 10 months. well, this week, mr. smarty-pants got a taste of his own medicine. as i said, he has been ten times worse the last two months than he has been the whole school year combined. it's horrible, and i am so ready to get him out of my class. yesterday, he asked me to call his mom while i was in the middle of a lesson. i said no, and that he could go during recess. he didn't like that answer, so he decided to throw a huge, whopping, i'm-acting-like-a-two-year-old (actually, less than two because my own two year old rarely acts like that) fit. he conveniently "forgot" to call during recess (why would he want to take play time away), and asked to go instead of eating lunch. the kids know they aren't allowed to do that, so he was told no again. once again, mr. lovely didn't like this answer. he took the fit throwing to another level, and decided to call me some really nasty, hateful names and also said that he wished i would drop dead. oh really now? so.... playing the impatient, i'm totally done.with.you. role, i acted about as nice as him!

when he came in today, he needed to use the bathroom. "umm, i really need to pee, can i go to the bathroom?" no answer "i really really really really need to pee." no answer "i need to call my mom again today to find out what bus i am riding." no answer "did you know that some ten year old kid beat up his brother, how crazy is that?" no answer.... get my point? i did this all.day.long. it totally drove him insane, and then he finally exploded and said "i really wish you'd stop ignoring me." so, i politely replied, "oh, well, you wanted me to drop dead, so i figured i would just be dead to you. that is fine with me. you don't have to go to the bathroom, or call your mom, and i can just forget to call you to go to lunch and out to recess since you wish i were dead, right?" i think it really made him think. on top of having this happen, the rest of my class was absolutely irate with him for making such a mean comment. they kept telling him he was the meanest kid on the face of the earth, and how could he wish i would die when i need to be a mother to my little girl and a wife to my husband. he was fed a little bit of humble pie, and i think he got a pretty big piece, actually. however humble he was today, it still doesn't change the fact that he isn't participating in our movie day, kickball tournament, and picnic. what.a.cryin.shame.


the end.

Let Go

Ever since I knew I was going to have a little girl, I have quite often dreamed of finding a lot of the same toys I used to play with for her to also have while growing up. While looking online for the same toys I had (Strawberry Shortcake, Rainbow Brite, Care Bears, Sylvanian Families, etc.) and for the same Tooth Fairy pillow I had, I realized something. I need to let go, and let my daughter create her own memories with her own toys and things she cherishes. She will love all of her things the same way I loved mine, and they don't have to be the exact same thing. Just because they aren't the same things I had doesn't mean that she won't have a wonderful, amazing childhood full of so many great memories how I did. We just have to create those chances for her to make her own memories that she will cherish for a lifetime. I'm already excited about Christmas because we are going to do new traditions with her that weren't done in our families. I already found a new Tooth Fairy pillow that I love for her (and yes, to make sure I get the one I want for when she starts losing teeth, I will probably get it now even though she just turned 2... I'm crazy like that). So, I am letting go... with the knowledge that yes, she will have an amazing childhood... the same toys wouldn't make an amazing childhood for her.... it's the memories and times we have together that will allow for her to have that.

When Aliens Attack You Realize You Have Become Stupid

It looks like I got gobbled up by a bright yellow thing from outer space. Sadly, this is the work of a genius, amazing, talented, wonderful educator who was sabotaged by her students, and had them splatter paint all over her forgot to make sure the lid of the gallon of paint was tightly secured before she shook the crap out of it so the kids could make a banner for our parade next week. And, to top it off, the paint soaked through my shirt, and it is all over my arm, chest, and under garments.... nice!!

Rain

Welcome, rain, stay as long as you like!!! :o)

Women of the Bible

I have started a new devontional... it is called Women of the Bible. It focuses on 52 well known and not-so-well known women in the Bible. Each week concentrates on one specific woman, has Bible verses that pertain to her, tells her story, tells of her trials and tribulations, tells about her relationship with Christ, and also her prayers... I just started it, and I already love it... I cannot wait for the next 52 weeks!!

Not Me! Monday ~

These are some things that did not happen during my week ~

* upon seeing the 74 question science benchmark, i did not smile internally about the fact that i'd have at least 2 hours of no talking while my students took the ginormous test... i felt bad, really i did!

* my 2 year old did not get constipated, only to poop a massive log on to our kitchen floor... she also didn't tell every body that, "i poop-ed (she says the ending separately, because she's cute like that) on the kitchen floor" for three days afterwards, either.

* i did not about jump for joy when i realized we have 3 1/2 weeks of school left... rock on!

* the words "that sucks" did not come out of my mouth while in my classroom... much to the chagrin of my students... "oooohhhhhs and ahhhhhhhsss" did not follow either.

* our trip to raleigh to see lord of the dance did not get us there 15 minutes late, and totally irritated with each other to the point that we were about ready to freak out... because we are both adults, and handle every situation in an adult-like manner... fo sho!

* after we got our new carpet, my genius husband did not cut off a good end because it was too long.... to then notice the huge grease mark at the other end.... remember, i said genius.

* one of my students didn't decide that he was going to spit on every single person that walked by him today because he didn't want anyone near him.... and upon getting scolded, he did not tell me that if i want him to stop spitting on people, then i need to tell people to stay away from him. he didn't then hear from me that i would go ahead and just take him down to the pre-kindergarten class because i was pretty sure that's where he has belonged for the last 2 months

that's enough confessing for today.... :o) head over to MckMama's blog to see a list of other people who didn't do things this week, either.

James 1:12

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

Bring the Rain

I can count a million times
People asking me how I
Can praise You with all that I've gone through
The question just amazes me
Can circumstances possibly
Change who I forever am in You
Maybe since my life was changed
Long before these rainy days
It's never really ever crossed my mind
To turn my back on you, oh Lord
My only shelter from the storm
But instead I draw closer through these times
So I pray

Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that brings You glory
And I know there'll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that's what it takes to praise You
Jesus, bring the rain

I am Yours regardless of
The dark clouds that may loom above
Because You are much greater than my pain
You who made a way for me
By suffering Your destiny
So tell me what's a little rain
So I pray
Holy, holy, holy
Is the Lord God Almighty



He will see me through.... I will praise Him forever and ever... Amen

Calling all Blog-dom

OK blog readers, I need help! When I was little, I had a tooth fairy pillow that I LOVED, and I want it for my girl. It is an Amtoy Peanut Butter and Jelly tooth fairy pillow... there are ads for it on ebay, but I have not been successful in my search.... if you know of any suggestion as to where to try to find this, please let me know. I wish she could have every toy I had, but this is something I really, really want her to have! Thanks

The Great Protector

this week, i got a taste of what it feels like to want to protect my family. my husband has been having a time and a half with his assitant principal. she is in his room about 3 times a week (or more sometimes), can never find a thing that he does right, and has even stooped to the level of hiding outside his window (yes outdoors) to spy on him. my husband is not a patient man. i think he has a milli-iota of patience in him, and that goes away very quickly. needless to say this stalking, harrassing that has been going on has made him a very not-so-pleasant hubster to be around. it's not his fault because he has just felt so overwhelmed, but it can only go on for so long without starting to negatively affect the home front. after being put down again on monday, and a meeting was demanded for the next day, good old wifey stepped up, called the acting principal, and asked her to please help. to please help a man i don't want to see in the hospital due to having a heart attack. to please help the father of an adorable two year old who needs to have her good, awesome daddy around to play with her, love her, and snuggle her. i didn't know where else to turn to in the physical presence. i prayed. a.lot. i was seriously worried.... very worried about what the possible outcome could be. but, God answered my prayers, and He took care of the situation. thankfully the asst. principal heard directly from my husband's mouth that he, and his colleagues, felt that she was harrassing him, and she has seen that she needs to seriously back off. my boy is back to his cute self, and hasn't been grumpy, jittery, twitchy, or just irritable since tuesday.... yay! it seems kind of funny that i was the one who did the sticking-up for him because he's 6'6" and i'm a whole whopping 5'2", but it worked :o) even us little guys can take care of business... ha!