Snow!

Ok I'm not gonna lie. I LOVE SNOW! I love that it gives me an excuse to be lazy and stay inside in front of the tv all day. (Do I really need an excuse though?) I think that it is beautiful - before people mess it up with their cars and walking through it. I love to watch people out having snowball fights and building snowmen.

I also enjoy the occasional Snow Day off from school. But for some reason right now I am not thrilled to be out of school. My students have a project that they are working on and some can't really get it done at home without resources we have at school. Also as I am a control freak I don't like to have to rearrange my lesson plans and schedules to accommodate interruptions. I mean, I have my plans set through March and into April already - that's how controlling I am.

But alas, I have today and most likely tomorrow off due to this winter storm. Can I be productive during this time? If so, what do I do?

Christmas Surprises

Ok so I love trying to figure out what gifts are before I open them - or someone else opens them (depending on who said gift belongs to). I mean some are really easy, especially when no trickery is involved. When you wrap a book or DVD on it's own the most guessing that comes into play is down to specifics. But when I got home and saw this gigantic thing (the blue one) - with no name tag on it - naturally my mind got to working and I secretly hoped it was mine.


It didn't take much cajoling - "Hey Mom...who's is that?" - to figure out who it would soon belong to - "Oh, that big one? Yours." - Yippee! Now the guessing begins. Not out loud, just to myself so my pride won't be hurt when I don't get it right. Some kind of put-it-together-yourself furniture? I do need a new/bigger dresser or bookcase (I think I always need a new one of those. Some sort of DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) esq. game for the Wii? Some kind of wall art to make my room decor a bit more mature? The last option ended up being the closet to the truth. And look how excited I am when I finally opened it up and found out!


FINALLY!!! My diploma frame that I was supposed to get last year - when my mom "forgot". Because it really is every year that one of your children graduate from the best university in the world. NOT! Anyway, I was really excited I mean look at that face. Now I just have to put it on the wall, which may be a while because Christina has had her frame since right after graduation and she still hasn't put her diploma in it, let alone hung it on the wall. Besides, I don't want to put any more holes in the wall.

Christmas Movie Weekend Extravaganza!!!

OH yeah...it happened!!

Laura and I planned this long weekend where we would eat junk food and watch cheeeeeezzzzyy Christmas movies. You can find out more of the planning here but let me just tell you it was a success!

I'm am pretty sure we didn't get through even half of the movies that we wanted but there was A LOT of junk food consumed and 3 full days of movies. We had a blast and I'm thinking that we should make this an annual weekend so anyone that wants to join us next year, claim your seat today!

Food that was eaten:
cookies from students
sausage,cheese, and crackers from one of those Christmas package thingys
hot apple cider
sparkling cider
cinnamon rolls
chips and french onion dip
lentil stew - that was all Laura; I chose not to be adventurous
leftovers

Be jealous!

What were some lessons learned from this weekend?
- Fun romantic things happen around Christmas time.
- Crazy supernatural things happen that bring joy to the world around Christmas.
- All I need to classify a movie as a Christmas movie is for it to be set on or around Christmas whether the time of the year has anything to do with the story or not (ie Sleepless in Seattle).
- I love Christmas!!! (I didn't just learn this now but reaffirmed it.)

I will admit that we did have to take a short but much needed break from the cheezyness. I hope Laura kept track of the movies we watched so we don't repeat.

What an awesome way to start off my two weeks of vacation!

NYC Adventure

OK so I think craziness is the best way to describe this past weekend adventure.

I would like to preface this story with...it was a once-in-a-lifetime adventure - as in never again will I do that!

Not really sure how it happened but I got talked into taking a quick trip to NYC. When I say quick I mean I was in the city for a short period of time. Travel time...not so quick.

At 10 pm on Friday I boarded a charter bus in the Franklinton Baptist parking lot with about 20 other people from Funkytown - many I haven't seen in a long while, others I had never met (and still don't know). 15ish minutes later we pulled into the Roses parking lot in Henderson where we acquired about 30 more people. Now comes the good part...I sat in a bus seat for 8ish hours. On a bus. A freezing cold bus. After I taught all day. My legs were cramped, I was cold, I was sitting up. I got about 2 hours of sleep in 15-20 min intervals and needless to say I WAS NOT a happy camper throughout the day on Saturday.

We got into the city at about 8am and got dumped in front of Macy's and told to be back at 6pm to leave. First stop - the bathroom. Second stop - the subway to go to Chinatown. We spent 4 HOURS in Chinatown/Little Italy making our ways into little backrooms, up creepy stairwells, etc in search of 'the it' handbag or other item that you just gotta have. Mine you, I don't know anything AT. ALL. about 'the it' anything let alone handbag so I just look to see if I find something I might possibly feel comfortable carrying. I did find a super cute "Coach" bag that I couldn't decide - at the time - whether or not I would keep for myself or give as a Christmas gift. I kept it for myself FYI. Did a bit more shopping/wandering around/following creepy people to sketchy places and then decided to go to our next destination.

Keep in mind that I am with two people that have never been to New York and are small town people used to strolling along - not in any kind of hurry. Subways are new to them and Joanna would prefer to NEVER EVER ride one again. The getting on and off of them was a bit of a task - making sure they were behind me and I didn't lose them. This includes the walking through large crowds. Every five seconds turning around to see that they are there.

If you know me at all and remember I DID NOT SLEEP and know that when I do not sleep I am a cranky pants. This day was not my cup of tea and not one of my shining moments. I made sure to not freak out on anyone but I am sure they knew I was not in a good mood and I am sure they felt a bit of my crankiness however unintentional toward them it was.

Anyway - back to my story - now we are in Times Square kinda like a been there, done that feeling. Walked to Central Park - again been there, done that. Not sure if it was my mood, the cold, or really that I am unimpressed not that I have been there a few times before.

By 4 we were back at Macy's wasting time and exhausted. The bus came at 6 and I was exhausted but not excited for another long bus ride. Not 30 minutes into our ride, in New Jersey, we feel a thump thump thump. You guessed it - blown tire. Apparently since it was a back double tire its all good - to the men on the trip anyway. Not only am I going on lack of sleep and uncomfortable in my tiny space but now I have to worry about a blown tire. Can this get any more ridiculous?

Oh but it can!

We stopped for dinner at Cracker Barrel - one of my all-time fav places - but I am really tired and not very hungry. I decided on breakfast and ordered a milk. Our waiter - fairly cute guy - says "I have a surprise for you when I bring your milk." REALLY?!?! What kind of surprise can you bring me with my milk? Yikes...a bit scared. Jody and Joanna are getting this scheming look on their faces and I just put my head down. Oh no! He brings my milk and it is in a frosted mug. He says "I like my milk really cold and wouldn't serve it to you any other way. No extra charge." OH MY GOODNESS. I look a hot mess - not a good thing - and this guy is trying to hit on me over milk. He comes back later - very attentive - but I am tired and so not cute plus we are in Jersey nothing gonna come from it not wasting what little energy I have - but it was pretty funny.

Back on the road. Jackie - a girl from work - texts me from her husband's office party with "I have a surprise 4 u..."
Response: "Oh goodness."
"I'll send a pic in a min..."
Response: "Oh goodness."
Its a guy that works with her husband - really cute.
"Need a pic of you."
(Remember hot mess here.)
Response: "Heck no. I'm a mess" blah blah blah self deprecating and ridiculousness to not send a pic.
"Don't u have a pic on ur phone."
Response: "NO. I don't make it a habit to take pics of myself on phone."
"He's offended." blah blah blah etc etc etc
REALLY 2 guys one night look a mess both trying to hit on me - not really - but still.

What do I do? Pray to God for guidance and clarity and sleep. Shaking my head!

Made it home - safely - sometime after 3 before 4 - fall into bed - not changing clothes or anything.

Adventure? I think yes!

Christmas Quilt

That is the title of this new Christmasy background. I wanted something Christmas-like that didn't also JUMP out and scare you! One day I really want a fun quilt like this that looks hand sewn and traditional. I guess that style is sometimes classified as "country" or "old-fashioned" but I think that is kind of how you would describe my overall style as well.

I am in the process of prepping my apartment for Christmas but with 13 school days left until break and 25 days until Christmas, I find myself wanting to prepare my heart & mind for Christmas. As I get older, and now have my own job, I really don't make a Christmas list of things that I want - fun things like movies and toys. Now, I ask for help paying a bill or clothes that I can wear for work - you know, boring things.

Thanksgiving is generally like a trial run for how Christmas is going to go in my family. With 2 separate parts of my family to juggle, I find that the planning for the holidays is stressful. I don't want to let anyone down and I don't want to leave anyone out and I don't ever end up with a completely "fair" division of my time. Like the quilt in the background, I want to stitch together my holidays and my families to make a beautiful experience but unfortunately it doesn't always go as planned.

Back to Thanksgiving though... It went really well. I generally struggle to have a civilized conversation for any length of time with my older brother but this trip was so much easier! My mom even made a comment "You two were out there in the living room for hours, having conversations, watching TV, and I didn't hear any yelling or fighting." I KNOW!!! It is like a miracle. I am hoping that this is going to last. As far as juggling my time, I think I did a good job although I did have to weasel out of a few 'commitments' but I just need to stop overbooking myself.

Well, I am sorry for the long post and I am not sure I made a point - except that my dysfunctional family is finding a way (slowly but surely) to coexist and enjoy it. I love quilts - real quilts and would one day love bunches of them for each season to put on my bed! Christmas cards will be sent out by the weekend. That is all...

Things that I am thankful for...

This is in no way meant to be an extensive list but I think its a good start!

1) Books - lots and lots of them. Basically how I spend a lot of my free, quiet time. I like all kinds of books but mainly ficiton - rom/coms. One day I hope to have a "study" or full-on library. Future-husband...be prepared!

2) Fairy tales - book and movie versions. These give me hope that "one day my prince will come" (Snow White) and that friendships can sometimes grow into something more "there's something there that wasn't there before" (Beauty & the Beast) and that some times you just need to relax "Hakunna Matata" - "it means no worries" (Lion King). I think there is a little truth to all of them and I like to think that my life will include some bit of a fairy tale and one of its happily ever afters!

3) Traveling - whether it is a road trip or a trip across an ocean I LOVE IT! As I was growing up my family took cross-country vacations to visit relatives and see the wonderful things America has to offer. I got a bit older and had a great opportunity to fly over the pond to tour the British Isles for a few weeks. I just submitted an application to hopefully travel to Russia - not only as an opportunity to gain more knowledge for the classroom but to also put a few more stamps on my passport and take awesome pictures and do something that no one in my family has done before and expand my travels of the world and because it would be REALLY fun!

4) My Job - although I complain about it a lot I am happy to have a job. I am thankful for the paycheck - however small it is. I am thankful for the 5 AWESOME minutes out of a dreaded 7 hr Monday. I am thankful for many of my coworkers that keep me sane and for those that irritate the mess out of me so I have snother thing to complain about. I am thankful for all of my students even though I don't act like it all the time.

5) My friends - those near and far. I have two close friends here in town that are basically all I have most of the time. They are here when I need them and away when I need alone time. We go to movies, or stay home and watch movies, go to hockey or baseball games, go on spontaneous (and sometimes planned) trips, etc etc. My far away friends - I am still thankful for you even though I don't see your wonderful faces very often, I stay up with your lives via Facebook or Twitter or your blog (when you decide to update it), little things that happen throughout the day remind me of you and brighten my day.

6) My family - even though we don't talk often or at all really. I have lots of family - by blood and by marriage - and although sometimes it is tough to get along or even acknowledge that we are any kind of relation, I am SUPER thankful to have you around - every once in a while :)

7) My God - because He has provided me with all of the above and sooooooo much more! I don't even really know how to elaborate on this one - it just is what it is - and that is something to be truly grateful for!

I think this list is in the opposite direction of importance but I think that is just a build up to make it great! There are lots more things that I am thankful and grateful for but I don't really know that you care.

I hope to always remember the things that I have and always be grateful for them - even when I don't feel like it. Maybe you will be inspired to make a list of your own!

Ooooooooo

Check out my updated blog on my vacation below. I taught myself how to include pictures in a post. My hunting pic...AWESOME!

Oh Addison

Well...this isn't a new story but something made me think about it today and make me smile so I thought I'd share.

My niece is 2 and does all kinds of little kid "tricks." One trick is making animal sounds. My dad will say "what sound does a ... make?" And she answers with the sound. Here is what a "conversation" like this sounds like.

D: Addison, what sound does a dog make?
A: rooof rooof
D: What sound does a horse make?
A: naaaaaay naaaaaay
D: What sound does a duck make?
A: Aflac Aflac

NO JOKE!!! That is what she thinks a duck sounds like!!!

HAHAHAHA! I saw an Aflac sign and it made me think of that. Enjoy!

I love the Crock-Pot!

I spend 5 minutes throwing stuff into a pot at 6 in the morning, come home at 5 and presto! Dinner! Such a great invention! I will be eating vegetable soup all week but I think this fall/winter/"we don't really know what season we are in" season is a great time to eat soup!

I would love to claim this recipe but I got it from Betty Crocker. Can't wait to try some more of her great Crock Pot ideas this chilly season.

I'll let you know how it goes!

New Adventures

I took a trip down south to Georgia this past weekend and it was A-MA-ZING! Laura and I spent about 24 hrs in Savannah and then drove a little further south to meet up with some of her family who have adopted me - which makes me super excited! Get ready people!

Savannah...



Got in mid-afternoon on Thursday and had a late lunch. We were both really tired and really full from lunch so we checked into the hotel - a Hilton - and took a little rest. No sleeping just relaxing - tv, internet, books, etc. Then at 8:30 we decided to go to dinner. The place we picked was closed - Veteran's Day I guess - so we went wandering. The wandering led us to River Street in the car. And now the interesting part comes...

As I was about to turn left on a side street, a car pulled up - IN MY LANE GOING THE WRONG WAY - so I had to do an evasive maneuver and ended up crossing two lanes of wrong way traffic, onto rail road tracks, and into the correct direction. At the time I really thought I had lost my mind but then drove past that road again and saw that the other person really was an idiot and so I felt justified in the breaking of traffic laws. Out-of-state tags probably wouldn't've been much help with a police encounter but luckily it didn't come to that so...moving on.

Get to River Street, walk around and NONE of the restaurants are open for dinner. "Kitchen just closed down. Sorry." Ok, let's just try and get drinks - we think. Oh look sketchy bar #482 on this road. OK...slight exaggeration but the point is, it is 9ish on a Thursday night in Savannah and there is no where to get dinner and all of the bars are empty or have those creepy people that look like regulars who started at 5.

Friday - yeah for taking a day off from school - we pack up, head out to cute cafe for quiche breakfast, and mosey around town for the day. Stop and buy ridiculous amounts of candy at the giant candy store and get a palmetto flower from a local. Head out about 3 and onto the next portion of the trip!

Hortense/Nahunta...

Oh, yeah...doesn't it already sound exciting? You bet! I get to see my adopted family...the Andersons! Friday we stayed with Elizabeth and Layton with Emma and baby Brooks. By the next morning, Emma was thinking we had moved in and were going to stay forever. I wish Emma! We stayed up until 1am talking with Layton and Elizabeth about everything and nothing and it was AWESOME!

Ok I tell you we stayed up until 1ish to then tell you we woke up at 4:45...to go HUNTING!! This was my first hunting trip ever in my life and I was dragging at the early morning hour until Layton arrived at the door with our camouflage clothing and then I got SUPER-AMPED and ready.to.go!

Jimmy, Layton's dad, came over to take us out hunting and Laura and I got our own guide and teacher of all things hunting! Jimmy was my guide and he told me all kinds of great information to help out and build my hunting skills - unfortunately I was sleep-deprived and really cold most of the time so my brain was malfunctioning and forgot those riveting tidbits :)

When my feet began to get numb, we decided to go on a "hunt"/trek through the forest to find us a deer. I am not sure how long we were hiking but it was A-WHILE. No deer were sighted but it was fun and I got more of those great tidbits. We decided to call it a morning and went back to the house. As we were sitting down to eat our second breakfast I looked out the window and saw two deer running through the side yard. Of course, when we come in the deer come out. I really wanted to shoot that shotgun...real bad!



Hunting round 2: squirrels are my target with a 22 caliber rifle in hand. I am feeling lucky about this hunt because I remember seeing lots of squirrels out on my first trip out so I knew I would get something. Guess what I got? Another hour trek through the woods, this time looking for squirrels. Seeing a couple but not getting any! Lame-o! Even though I didn't kill anything, I got to go hunting, and experience I don't know will be repeated anytime in the near future so it was a great time!

Dinner time...We go to eat dinner and I am EXHAUSTED...if I wasn't concerned about what people would think of me, I would have fallen face first into my plate asleep! But I held out for a few more hours until I finally go to bed - this night at Jimmy and Charlene's. Laura says that she is going to set her alarm for 9:30 in the morning and I am like, "really, why so early?" Her response is "well that's 12 hours from now so I think we'll be ok." I didn't know it was that early but I definitely took advantage of that 12 hours! It was great!

Sunday, we wake up, have a breakfast of toast and deer sausage, and then go out to see how a tree stand works-just to wrap up our first lesson in all-things hunting. Its a fairly ingenious apparatus but looks a little scary, not for me on this trip.

It was sad, as always, to say "adios" to the Anderson clan but we made sure to make "in the future" plans to go fishing! I guess I can count on them to help my outdoorsy skills!

Anyway...this a a very short (even if you doubt it) nutshell look at my weekend vacay. More info can be found on Laura's blog . Sorry no super long conclusion to make an extremely intelligent point but it is what it is!

HAPPY HUNTING!