A Homespun Thanksgiving

Since we don't live in Minnesota any longer, we have to do this holiday, Thanksgiving, in our own way.

The year we lived in Las Vegas, Ryan and I traveled to San Diego for a few days. We ate at the restaurant that was in the basement of our hotel. It was $30 for ONE person to eat, and it didn't seem like there was much to eat, if I remember. Also, the mashed potatoes were fake, and you know how I feel about mashed potatoes. Other than the craptastic Thanksgiving dinner, I think we had lots of fun. We went to the San Diego Zoo and spent some time on the beach. And then Ryan's window got stuck in the down position so we were stuck at the Chevy dealership for a few hours...

Since we've lived in Wyoming, we've done a few different things. The year we lived in Rawlins, we went to Denver for a day trip. We ate Thanksgiving dinner at home (Ryan brined a turkey...it was REALLY good!), and then on Friday, we went to Denver. We stayed in a really nice hotel, did a little bit of Christmas shopping, and went to the Denver Zoo. When we went home through the mountains, and got to see lots of God's beauty.

Since we've lived here, I don't know that we've actually had Thanksgiving on Thanksgiving Day. This year, we had it on Saturday, and last year I think we had it on Friday. Ryan's job requires him to drive on Thanksgiving Day. I went with him last year and this year as well. This year we ate Thanksgiving dinner at a truckstop, slept there, ate breakfast there, and then went to another truckstop to shower (because it was free!). We then ventured around Ogden to get Ryan some pants (he was in desperate need), and came home. Today, we got ourselves in gear around 3ish. Ryan prepared the turkey and gravy, and I made the rolls, potatoes, corn, and stuffing. And I chose the pie from the store. It was yummy, even though it wasn't a homemade pie.

Tomorrow I plan on finishing cleaning up this nasty living room and vacuuming the stairs, and also a load or two of laundry. Sounds like a blast, and I know you want to join me, right?

Looking forward to the holidays. I leave for Minnesota on December 18th and return on the 2nd. It will be nice to see family and friends. Six months is a long time...

Its Been Awhile...

So I know it's been a while...and now its time for an update and some words of wisdom from your local matron.

On September 19th some friends and I went to Salt Lake City to see Brad Paisley, Dierks Bentley, and Jimmy Wayne at the USANA Amphitheater. We had a GREAT time. I think its been about 7 years since I'd seen Brad last, and he was MUCH better this time (not that he was bad last time). I think he's really grown as a musician, and it helps that he's totally cute. Above are some pictures from our trip.

School has been keeping me busy this year, too. Which is good. I've been trying to do a better job being organized this year and keeping up with my grading. It's going 50/50. I think I'm doing much better being prepared. And organized. Any flat surface is in jeopardy of being covered, and quickly, however. Grading? Not so much. I think I just need to spend some time after school on the nights when Ryan is going to be late doing my grading. And if I really just spent like 15 minutes or half an hour a day getting it done, it wouldn't seem like such a huge task.

On top of that, I think I need to brag on my kidlets. I have an AWESOME class this year. They are bright and hard working. They care about one another. I just...I really like them. I was really worried at first that we weren't going to click. I was just telling my next door neighbor (at school) and really good friend, Kandi, that I remember being totally scared of this group of kids when they were in Kindergarten. They were crazy! But they've really hunkered down, and they really turn out good work. I'm so proud of them. On top of that, my students have really great families. Next week we're going on a field trip. We are going to the local community college to see "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." I think the kiddos will REALLY enjoy it. It's been almost a decade since I saw it last, and I still know some of the songs. So good!

My surgery in September went well. It was pretty quick, and the worst part was the waiting before hand. I was back at work the next day, even though I probably just should have waited. My biopsy results came back benign, so that's good. Unfortunately, I've been waiting over a month and a half for my post op appointment. My doctor/surgeon apparently went to Egypt (he's from there) right after my surgery. Someone blew up a train while he was there, and his re-entry into the United States has been denied since then. Hopefully he'll be back for my thrice rescheduled appointment on November 17. And hopefully, after that, we'll get to be back on the baby-making train. Woot.

Please pray for my Uncle Weenis. He has surgery tomorrow. Please pray for a good biopsy and quick and easy recovery.

And that's it. For now.

Jon and Kate

I have to admit...I used to be a little obsessed with this show.

I mean, who could NOT love those children? They're adorable!

So in June, when the Gosselins announced they were "separating," I was kind of sad about it. Don't get me wrong, but the little jabs that Kate made at Jon about his weight and his never doing anything right REALLY bothered me. Part of me didn't blame him. One can only stand being criticized 24/7 for so long. I get that.

But they went from being okay, to Jon being a total ho in about a week. And then Kate acts like a victim. She kind of brought it on herself.

I guess what makes me upset the most is the old episodes they just seemed happy. And like they actually enjoyed spending time together. I don't understand why they had to lose that.

I never want to lose that with my husband. Ever. And I'm going to work really hard not to do that...

I'm Here!

I'm still here, and I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. I know you've missed me.

I returned from my Minnesota trip on August 1st. I left my mom's house bright and early, and got back to Rock Springs around midnight. My friend Marty's demolition derby was the night before, and I was so wound up I had a hard time sleeping, so some naps were needed along the way. No major mishaps, just one near-death experience, and I was home.

I had a BLAST in Minnesota. Tuesday nights my friend Sarah, the aforementioned Marty, and the occasional collection of parents and siblings and other friends would attend trivia night at Zorbaz. Lots of the questions were actually fairly difficult for us. The questions were written from the perspective of a middle-aged man, and since we're not quite middle aged yet, it was a stretch for us at times. Of course, when my second mother, Mary Lou, came along, there was no stopping us. With her help, we won some t-shirts and a pitcher of beer, and when we wandered to Vergas for trivia at Billy's Corner Bar, we even got third (which meant a $10 gift card!).

I also had the pleasure to go to the Cities to see my Soul Sisters and spend some time with them. I call my friends from Concordia that because I love them like they are my family. Meghan, Sarah, Robin, and Amber are the ones I get to see the most often. I would also include Stacy, Jenn, and Amberleigh in that little group as well. Anyway, Sarah got to listen to me snore while she drove to St. Paul so we could stay with Amber and Robin. Friday night we went to this bar in NE Minneapolis called Psycho Suzie's. It was a really interesting place--It was kind of tiki-themed, but they had really interesting food. The special that night was the "Archie Bunker" which consisted of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and a rice krispie treat. We also indulged in deviled eggs and tator tots. I had some sort of caramel rum custard dessert. It was atrociously delicious--and I even got a little buzzed from it. lol :)

Over the course of the weekend, we went to two Twins games (versus the Chicago White Sox. Booooooo to Asshat Jerk Pierzynski!), Amber and I went on a 5 mile hike on the banks of the Mississippi River, and went to our favorite neighborhood pub, the Chatterbox (if you're ever in St Paul...you totally need to go!). I feel like I'm forgetting lots of things that we did. All I know is that I had a great time with my friends. Robin and Amber are off to graduate school this month: Robin will be going to the U of MI for social work, and Amber is off to SCSU for speech therapy. I am so excited for both of my friends and former roommates. They are amazing young women who will do great good for humanity. Speaking of great good for humanity--Sarah is working hard in DL as a social worker, and Meghan is beginning her new job working for a co-op as a school psychologist. I am so excited for all of my sisters as they begin these new chapters in their lives.

Another thing I did was go to the fair. I've loved the fair since I was little and my grandfather spent weeks and hours there being in charge of the livestock barn. With the loss of so many family farms, the fair isn't what it used to be. There are hardly any pigs, cows and goats any longer. My friend Marty, his brother David, and his dad Jon participated in the demolition derby at the fair. I had the pleasure of helping them to paint their cars and video tape the actual contest. I had an absolute blast.

Some other highlights of my trip were going to ceramics with my mom, spending time with my mom and sister, aunts, uncles, and cousins, going bowling, and just enjoying the greenery and mild temperatures of HOME. This trip kind of confirmed it for me--Minnesota is where we belong. We'll be back one day.

Anyway, since I've been back I've been working on getting my classroom in order and cleaning house. My mother-in-law just visited for a few days...but that's another blog.

I'll share some pictures in the next post. :)

Home Is Where *HE* Is

I've been in Minnesota for a week and a half now.

And what I have to say is this: My husband could pack up and move to the Himalayas and shack up with a sherpa, and HOME would still be where he is. It's hard to be away. And it gets harder every time I go somewhere he isn't. I miss my family here like no one's business. That's for certain.

But Ry...yeah. He's the one that makes wherever I am, home. I miss him like I would miss my left eye, if it were gone. You know? :)

I've been to Maplewood State Park with my soul sisters. I've been to Fargo and helped my aunt spend $1000 on explosives. I've celebrated Independence Day and my dad's 10th anniversary with Jesus. I'm looking forward to doing more trivia at Zorbaz with friends, watching the Yankees/Twins game with my grandma, going to the Twins/White Sox games and maybe the Minnesota zoo with my soul sisters. I'm looking forward to getting together with my friends from high school--a golf reunion of sorts. I'm looking forward to having a bonfire with family and friends. I would like to say I'm looking forward to my 29th birthday, but in reality, I'm not. I am hoping I get to see my friend Marty do at least one demo derby.

But mostly, I'm looking forward to seeing my husband. For any amount of time. Because home is where he is.

Father's Day

We spent this Father's Day looking forward instead of looking back.

I knew I would get up before Ry (because the poor thing has that horrid route now, plus he got himself stuck in the mud) on Sunday, so I planned to make breakfast for him for Father's Day. I went to WalMart and got some cinnamon rolls. So, on Sunday I got up, popped the cinnamon rolls in the oven, made the fruit salad, and scrambled and cooked the eggs. I made two plates and went upstairs to wake him up, and serve him. I don't think he was thrilled about my waking him up. I hope he liked it. I like to do kind things for him on occasion. :) Even though he's not a dad yet...we're looking forward.

Father's Day can't pass without me thinking about my own Dad. On the 4th of July, we will celebrate Dad's ten-year anniversary with Jesus. When dad died, it seemed like we'd never get to this point--ten years out. I couldn't imagine all that would take place between then and now. I couldn't imagine that car accident that would knock me out of commission for 5 months. I couldn't imagine going to college and meeting amazing young women would become my good friends for life. Losing Grandpa, John, and Bill. Graduating from college, several moves, meeting and marrying my husband. Surgeries. Tears. Hurts. Laughter. Faith. Hope. And above all, love. These are the waves I've ridden for the last decade. I won't say that it's been a piece of cake. There were days, months, and years, where I thought I couldn't continue. Praise be to God, He wrapped his ever-loving arms around me, picked me up and carried me through.

My dad was larger than life. Looking back, he was my hero. I loved spending time with him. We went fishing, went on vacations, camping, and spend time at Grandma and Grandpa's. He taught me so much through his life, his illness, and his death. I miss him, but I know where he is, and I am assured through God's Word that I will see him again. I can't wait to praise Jesus with my dad. I hold his memory close in my heart, and I hope I can be half the parent he was. The was a believer in the fact that quantity time = quality time, when it comes to family. And I couldn't agree more.

My father's passing gave me the opportunity to become closer to other men in my life. My uncles, whether it was a conscious decision for them or not, stepped in to fill the void that was left. They came to my college graduation, gave me hugs, told me they loved me, joked with me, and gave me away at my wedding. I am so grateful for them, and their tender hearts, caring hearts.

So, I got my copy of "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" in the mail today. Maybe we can make Ryan a daddy by next June. We'll have to see.

Happy (belated) Father's Day, all you dads out there.

A Huge Whine

Okay, so I've been exercising my hiney off. That's not what makes me whiney, though. What makes me whiney is people's reactions, and what other people do when they exercise. They don't even make me whiney as much as ANGRY.

So tonight, for instance, I went to the new city park that's just up the road from our apartment. I drove, because I was lazy. At this new park, they have a half-mile long trail. So I walked it. It's intermingled with a disc golf course, but there were only two guys playing. So I did that twice, and then got sick of getting in the golfers' way. I treked out of the park, leaving my car, and took to the city streets. I walked through a residential area, and then out onto a more busy "thoroughfare," if you could call it that in this little town. I was turning onto another fairly busy street when a car full of dumbassed teenage boys pulled up beside me and proceeded to shriek and howl at me. Unfortunately, I stooped to their level and whipped out my flicker fingers at them. I really shouldn't do that because I'm a smalltown teacher. It just irks me off. This is our 2nd full summer here, and it never fails that when I go out walking somewhere, this crap happens.

Now, I know that they're teenagers, and that hormones cloud their judgement, and thoughts of busty women in French bikinis completely mask any semblance of manners, but this is ridiculous. I also know that I resemble a very, very hefty, yet very, very stout linebacker. I know that I have a huge ass, and that apparently is mildly amusing. But what I don't know is why its fun to hoot and howl at an Eva Braun look-alike who could clearly break you in half. Anyone have any ideas? I just don't get it.

Fast forward a few minutes to the gym. I've been going since what...February now? I have to tell you a few things that kind of crack me up or irk me off.

1. Men who tan. It reeks of weeniness.
2. Men who cannot lift a weight unless they are staring in a mirror at themselves.
3. Men who, as they walk back and forth to the water fountain, feel the need to check themselves out in the mirror on a continuous basis.
4. These women who feel the need to get into their best clothes to workout. And then their workout consists of five minutes walking on a treadmill, lifting a weight five times, and then talking for half an hour.
5. Any type of cell phone usage. I don't care which of your friends got jiggy with Mr. Roboto at Killpecker's last night. I really don't.

Okay. Now I'm done. And I'm tired. And Ryan's home...YAY!

And, just a little FYI, my pedometer readouts for today are:

11230 total steps
7769 aerobic steps
70 minues of aerobic exercise
728 calories burned
5.67 miles traveled

Take that, you stupid hoser teenagers!

I Lied!

I lied. I *did* have a broken bone in my class this year. And I have another! One of my students broke her arm on Friday. It's not too serious, as I saw her running around town today. lol :)

I went to some of my students' last baseball game tonight. They're so fun to watch. What I like the most though, is the good sportsmanship that's emphasized. I'm not a parent, but honestly, I couldn't care less who wins or loses, I want the kids to have fun, learn the basics, and learn how to win and lose gracefully. I think the parents that were at the game did a really good job cheering ALL the players on, on either team. It was awesome.

Right now, I'm watching the Emeril episode of "Jon and Kate Plus Eight." I think that Kate is really mean and disrespectful to Jon. I don't have 8 children and a house to manage with cameras in my face, either, however. I have to wonder if things might be different without the cameras. I hope that they can work out their problems, I really do. Their marriage is worth it, and its important to have both mommy and daddy. I'm an idealist when it comes to families, though.

I'm doing writing training for a few days this week. I really like to write, obviously. I *KNOW* I didn't get enough writing in with my kiddos this year. And that was UBER stupid of me, because they LOVE it. Most of them, anyway. And when you think about how kids develop literacy, they usually pick up crayons or something before they start flipping pages in a book. I'm excited to work with my team next year to create writing activities for the kiddos. I can hardly wait at ALL.

Okay, I have another day of writing ahead of me, and I'm hoping to get up early tomorrow to go to the gym. And I'm totally whipped tonight. Imagine that. Take care, dear friends. :)

School's Out For the Summer!

I survived! And my kidlets survived, too. No broken bones this year, just some tonsils extracted and the very rare set of rabies shots (seriously...so not joking). So I sent my group off to third grade, and I met most of my new group. I thought I had met ALL of them, but on Monday, my administrator dropped the bomb that we were going back down to three sections of second grade instead of four, pushing each class's numbers back up into the twenties. That's a LOT of little kids (and when they first come into 2nd grade, they're still babies) in a teeny, tiny, misshapen space. I'm really disappointed that this happened, mainly for our students' sakes. I feel like my grade level has a huge *KICK ME* sign on its back.

So...what's new?

We are making plans to go see Brad Paisley in Salt Lake City on September 19. We're talking like 10-15 people. You know how much I love Brad, and it's been years since I've seen him. We're getting GOOD seats, and we're going to stay overnight. That many women hosing over a hot, talented man. It's bound to be a good time. SO excited. Tickets go on sale on Saturday. Karen better be online at 10 to purchase them. LOL.:)

Next week on Monday and Tuesday I go to writing training. Everyone in my grade level is going, and I'm really excited to implement the strategies we learn about with students. I think my team and I might use what we learn to write our professional growth plans for next year.

After that, it's our 3 year anniversary. Ry and I got married on June 24, 2006 on a rainy, cool, June afternoon. It was one of the best days of my life. Ry's job changed this week. Instead of just running over to Utah each nay, now he's got to go up into Idaho and back down. As if that weren't enough, now he has to be with another driver for the entire route. He gets paid a little bit more, but I don't know that its worth his sanity. I feel bad for him...the guy he drives with now is temporary until the permanent guy moves his family up here. But if you know anything about my husband, he is 100% completely ADD. He cannot sit still, and for the last part of his route, he has to be back in the sleeper. We're thinking about buying a Nintendo DS and a Wii for at home so he can get some exercise quickly when he gets home, which has been between 10 and 11 pm this week. He has to get up when they call him, and that's been between 4 and 5 am this week. So poor honey doesn't get much time at home, and I miss him. We've got to plan what we want to do for our anniversary. Something simple--I just want to spend some time together.

After our anniversary I'm planning on heading to Minnesota. I'll be driving by myself, but it's not a big deal. As long as the radio and the AC work, I'm good. I'm planning on spending lots of time with family. The 4th of July is the 10th anniversary of my Dad's arrival in Heaven, so I would like to do something special to mark that occasion. At the time, you never think you're going to make it this far. We have. And I'm happy, like I think my dad would want me to be. I miss him EVERY day. But he wouldn't want me to dwell on it. I know he is safe in the arms of our Savior, and that when its my time to go Home, he'll be there, wondering what took me so long.

Anyway, during my trip to Minnesota, I'm looking forward to doing some baseball games, both in the Cities and in Fargo, meeting family and friends' new babies, spending time with my mom and my sister, visiting lakes, and seeing old friends. It's been a while.

So, a friend from college had me read this book called "Taking Charge of Your Fertility," and it was really interesting, and helpful. So hopefully sometime soon, we'll have an announcement for you! And for us. Yay!

I suppose that's it for now. It might be another two months before I write again, who knows? I hope this finds all of you well and healthy. Take care!

Off to the Races--Random Thoughts

The end of the school year is drawing near. I have to try to remember that it is a marathon, and not a 50 yard dash. I feel like we're trying to pack tons of stuff in the last few weeks before our spring testing. We're going to be doing groups some more starting next week, but we're not going to be doing our reading groups. We're going to be doing skills-based groups regarding language usage. I'm working on sentence construction and parts with my groups. Another teacher will be working on nouns, one verbs, and the last will be working on pronouns. Seriously, we have students who still refuse to put a capital letter or an end mark on their sentences. At the end of second grade. How do you fix that? I don't know that I have an answer.

I am kind of excited for the end of the year. I'm fried. Really, truly, fried. I've decided not to even attempt to teach summer school this year, even though if I did get a position, the money is good and would be very beneficial for us. I just don't think its the right thing. My students for next year deserve a fresh and renewed teacher, and my students this year did not get that.

I'm wondering...does anyone really give a rat's behind about the Obama's new dog? All I know is that dog's going to be big. I'm happy to know that my tax dollars will be paying for a professional dog-walker. Maybe they should have adopted a chihuaua to build relations with Mexico.

Speaking of Mexico...I have an issue with the topic of illegal aliens. Over the course of my very short career in education, I have had the pleasure of teaching several students who are in the country illegally. And I do mean "pleasure." These students and their families are honestly some of the hardest working and most appreciative people. They know how good we have it here, and they risk life and limb to come.

I had a parent talk to me during conferences. This parent told me about their trip through the desert, and how they came in the dark of night. The parent was afraid because they're going to have to return to Mexico. This parent sat in my room and wept at the thought of returning there, because she knows that her children will not have the same opportunities in Mexico that they have here.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not condoning coming into this country illegally by any means. But I think that the general American people sees illegal immigrants as drug dealers and users, people who come here and suck our system dry, and to be honest with you, I haven't seen that with the kids and families I've interacted with. They work hard, they support their families, and even extended families. I think that they truly realize what a good thing we have going on here. If they didn't, they wouldn't do what they have to do to get here.

I'm babbling. And I'm tired. And I'm going to look through this catalog to see what I want to order for my classroom next year. Wooties.

No Shame

So I'm sitting here in my living room watching the Academy of Country Music Awards on CBS, and I see that there's just no shame. Sometimes I just don't understand how people can show their faces.

I see LeeAnn Rimes, who just in the past few weeks was accused of cheating on her husband. I don't know how you can show up without him with a big smile pasted all over your face and pretend like nothing's wrong, or that no one said anything about it.

I guess there's several choices in a situation like that, though. You can hide away, or you can go live your life with some humility or pretend there's nothing wrong. Everyone makes mistakes. I need to remind myself of that. I think I overestimate my moral fortitude sometimes...

Shame on ME.

My Grandpa

March 12 was my Grandpa Matson's birthday. I have it written on my calendar. We had his viewing on his 80th birthday. We even had birthday cake for him.

The point isn't his death, though. The point is his life, and all the wonderful memories I have of him. It seems like I see him everywhere I go, now. I see these cute, little, old rotund men who have "farmer" written all over them, with their tanned, weather-worn skin, and still-calloused hands. I miss my Grandpa.

One of my favorite pictures with him is when I was very young. I had on my farmer overalls, and we were in the barn, and he is leaned over me helping me stir milk replacer for the calves. I remember picking rocks with Grandpa (one of the chores all of us grandkids hated), and going fishing with him and my dad. I remember going on vacation with him and my grandma up north. They would sit together on the porch of their cabin or on the beach and watch the rest of the family play.

At their own house, it seemed like people would wander in and out all day. When my mom started working and I started going to school I would have to go over to Grandma and Grandpa's and ride the bus from their house. My dad would come in before work and have a cup of coffee and yak with them before he went off to work. In the summer after work dad and grandpa would head out to the fields to cut hay or plow, or just piddle around the farm yard "fixing." Grandpa was busy all day except when he came back home for his noon meal and nap. That man could suck the roof in with his snoring...

I remember when Grandpa's truck rolled down the hill because he forgot to put the brake on because he had to go to the bathroom. It hit a tree at the bottom but not before it killed some of his ducks. Grandpa had an amazing sense of humor. He was always teasing, and he had nicknames for all of his children and grandchildren--I'm Skeeter, by the way. Nice to meet you.

I just...I feel so blessed. I don't remember much of my mom's parents--I didn't spend that much time with them, and I was fairly young when they passed. But my dad's parents--man alive. I practically grew up in their home. And it was a home filled with laughter, and love, and fun. How many kids have what I did? Not very many kids these days, and THOSE days had that. So, my grandpa, he's got a special piece of my heart. I loved that man, and I still do, and I miss him daily.

A Little Bit of Randomness

I've been a little lackluster with blogging. I feel so boring, like nothing ever happens. My life feels very mundane. I'm mostly okay with that, but it feels like all I do is work, eat, and sleep. I mean, just last night I came home, made supper, had a little sore throat, finished a book, and promptly passed out at about 8 pm. I mean, come on, I'm not even 30 years old. Ugh. Anyway, here are some updates.

*My school has conferences tomorrow and Friday. I hate conferences. Parents intimidate me. I know that's silly, because really, I see us as a team in which all parties want the child involved to succeed. But I really think I need some tranquilizers. Blech. I like fall conferences much better. They seem much more positive.

*I haven't been doing well working out this past week. But the thing is that I lose weight when I DON'T workout. Maybe I've built muscle so that when I'm resting, I burn more calories or something? I have no idea.

*I'm very thankful that my mom is safe. She lives about 50 miles away from all the major flooding in the Fargo-Moorhead area, and on top of that, she's on the top of a hill kind of, so the water flows away from the house. There's no guarantee that the basement won't get wet, but at least she's not going to have to throw on the life vest and make a swim for it.

*I love American Idol this season! Everyone is SOOOO good! Danny is awesome! And I like Adam, too. Oooooh...and Matt Giraud. Totally. Lovin' the Motown.

*It can stop snowing ANY time now.

*I'm going to get ready to head to the gym. We'll make it light tonight. I have to get up at the butt-crack tomorrow because I'm sure the roads are going to be crappy.

Take care, dear friends.

I So Buff!

So about a month ago, we got a little email in our inboxes at school about memberships at Anytime Fitness. We get like a $4/month discount, and we didn't have to pay for the registration fee, either. If someone else signs up with me, its even cheaper (so I've got to get on that).

Anyway, so I've been going on a fairly regular basis. Well, in between the sinus infections anyway. When I go, I usually do the treadmill or the recumbent bike for at least half an hour. Today, for instance, I went on the treadmill for 45 minutes. I was at about a 2.5-3.0 miles per hour pace, and I set the treadmill at a 4-5% grade. At the end of the 45 minutes, the treadmill said that I burned about 460 calories. After that, I worked on arms. That's about all I ever really do, because I figure that hauling my huge butt on the treadmill at that grade for that amount of time does the business of a leg workout. So I do arms most days.

I can tell a difference. I really haven't lost much weight, but when I went to the doctor last week my resting pulse was 78, which is pretty good for someone as tubby as I am. My pants are getting loose again, in all areas. My thighs aren't as tight, and my dress pants are getting loose in the waist area.

I'm going to keep with it. I'm trying to change my eating habits, little by little, but that's the hardest part. I'm also trying to get my blood sugars under control. That reminds me, I need to go take my meds. I don't know that my body is used to the change in medications yet, because I'm still running pretty high. No headaches though, so that's good.

I think I'm on the right track. It's going to take time. It sure didn't take me a month to put all this weight on, and its not going to take me a month to take it off. I'm trying to be as healthy as I can, and I guess that's the main point of all of this.

Craziness

Sorry it's been so long. Life, you know?

Two weeks ago I was sick again...I had another stupid sinus infection and had to be away from work for two days. It's so much more work to be gone than to actually go to work, but unfortunately there was just no way I could tolerate it. My kids couldn't hear me, and there was no way I could talk for that many hours.

I had a two doctor's appointments this week. The first was with the ob/gyn. I had a follow up to that Lupron-Depot hormone shot I had in January. The whole purpose of the shot was to determine if I had endometreosis or not. I'd been having tons of pain, and there really was no explaination for it. So we tried the shot. Pain gone. Diagnosis of PROBABLE endometreosis. So then we had to decide what to do. The shot is close to $1000 for three months of treatment. We've been married for almost three years, and Ryan's been very handy with the finances, so, instead of continuing with the treatment of the endometreosis, we've decided that we can try for a baby. The doctor wanted me to take these pills to reverse the hormones in the shot, but we're just going to wait for the shot to wear off and let nature take its course. We'll keep you updated, obviously.

The other appointment was with my new family doctor. We went over my blood work and adjusted my meds. And I'm hoping that the alternate meds will do two things: save us nearly $100 a month, and get the bloodwork a little more under control (its not HORRIBLE, it just could be better).

Oh. And the adoring public will be happy to know that I get to go to the dentist on Monday. You know that I love doing that (he's cute!).

Over the next few weeks I need to get my Master's degree done. I need to redo two things, and I should be done. That will do two things: allow me to get bumped up on the pay scale, and renew my Minnesota teaching license. It's on the list. I'm also taking a math class through my district for graduate credit. Go Marce!

I suppose I should go to sleep. I went with Ryan today to Utah on his route and I'm whipped. And he's in bed, too. And I'm totally roasting. Blech.

Take care, all!

Just One Word

This week I was reminded how much the words that we utter really do affect those around us.

It takes one ten-second conversation to ruin or damage a relationship. And that's it. I guess this situation I was in last week really made me think about the things I say to people. How many times a day do I go chipping away at the relationships I've built with my co-workers and students, not to mention my family, with my sarcasm, anger, or unwillingness to just have a simple conversation? Probably hundreds.

I need to stop and think about what I say before I say it. Shutting up is one of the best things I can do. I think at work, I just need to shut up and stay in my room. I'm excited for tomorrow, though. We are having our town's K-9 officer come in to visit our kids. It will be so fun!

A Little Bit of Lovin'...

I have to love on some of my favorite folks right now...my students.

My students are amazing people. I absolutely adore my class. They work SO hard. They're so "tight." They yell and fight and are mean to each other at times, but they make sure everyone is included, and everyone is taken care of. And they're between 7 and 9 years old. They can read people like nobody's business. They know if someone is okay, or if they're flaky. They're flexible, and they're willing to say "I'm sorry," or "I forgive you," and move on with life. They're just GOOD kids, GOOD people, so full of potential. They can do SO many things. I can tell I'm going to have some good parents out of this group, some artists, some scientists, some accountants, and some roughnecks. With kids like my students, I don't worry too much about the future.

So, my little ones, if you ever read this, know how very much I love you, and I believe in you! You can do ANYTHING--you've shown me this SO much already. I'm excited to see where you go and what you do in life. Go forth and succeed, my kidlets!

Look! I'm Blogging!

Two blogs in one week? Who would've thunk it?

I guess I'll take this opportunity to introduce myself to blogland out there.

I'm originally a Minnesotan, but my husband, Ryan and I moved "West" almost three years ago. This year marks my fifth year teaching (eek!) This is my second year teaching second grade. I think I've met my educational match. I love that the little darlings still love you, but are independent enough to do many things on their own. They're not afraid of making mistakes. I have an absolutely AMAZING class this year, and I would love to loop with them. I think its something I'm going to have to talk to my principal about it. I can't really see myself teaching third grade for any amount of time, although now that I've had this taste of older kidlets, I can't imagine teaching the babies again.

So, I married my husband almost three years ago. We don't have any kids yet, but we consider our kitties our babies for right now. I have lots of medical issues that may impede babies, so we'll have to see how things progress here. My husband and I have TONS of fun together. He can always make me laugh, and he's willing to try about anything with me. He really is my best friend. I can't wait to travel more with him.

As far as politics go, I guess I tend to lean more to the right, but I tend to agree with anything that's logical and makes sense. This stimulus package, does NOT make sense. Going into debt NEVER makes sense, (unless you get a REALLY great rate on a mortgage). I'm speaking from experience. Thank heavens my husband is on top of that. He is helping us pay off our debt little by little. When we're done, the only reason we'll go into debt again is to purchase a home. It will be a 15 year fixed rate mortgage with a large down payment. Watch us go. I think my husband should be president. I doubt the country would worship him as their personal "Jesus" like they do Barack Obama. It's SCARY how people worship the man.

I don't know...I'm babbling. I'm not going to write anymore because I'm ROASTING, and tired, and thirsty. Thanks for stopping by. Stay classy, San Diego! (You earn two gold stars if you know what movie that's from!)

The First!

Hi everyone:

Yes, yet again, I've begun another blog. Hopefully this is one that I can actually keep up. No guarantees, however. Keep watching for more updates. :)