Darryl, Amelia, and I have been in Florida since Wednesday evening and are here indefinitely, waiting for "the inevitable" to occur with Darryl's dad. Thus, no exciting blog posts this week. Here are a few other things going on.
--We flew down here and rented a Honda Odyssey to drive in case there is a need to transport lots of people (which is highly likely if lots of family members come in). I feel like a soccer mom driving that thing, but I'm going to make a confession...I kind of like it. So spacious! So easy to get Amelia in and out of! (What has happened to me??)
--I've had lots of "blasts from the past" this week. I've seen several of my elementary school teachers, and I saw my fourth-grade "crush" in a local restaurant. He's apparently a preacher now. This was quite shocking to me as he was quite not-so-preacherly in high school. (In fourth grade, though, he was a perfect gentlemen.)
--I finally watched the LOST finale last night. Maybe I was just tired or distracted from everything else going on, but I was a little disappointed. I might have to watch it again when I get home.
--I'm probably going to put on 10 pounds this week with all the food people are bringing over. I had the best chicken pot pie I've ever had in my life for BREAKFAST this morning.
--Anyone watch the spelling bee last night? What's up with that 12-year-old boy with the mustache? (Tim, he reminded me of a young Juan A./Hamburglar.)
Thanks for all the good thoughts you are sending our way.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Memorial Day Weekend
I haven't blogged much lately because things have been super-crazy lately.
School ended for students on Friday, and that night I had to attend graduation. This year was kind of weird for me...this was the first year I didn't teach seniors, and because of when I made the switch to juniors and sophomores, I did not teach this graduating class. I just felt sort of removed from it all.
Early Saturday morning, we headed to the airport to fly to Florida. Darryl was just tired of making that (boring, seemingly endless) drive, so he opted to use some of his miles so we could fly down. It also gave us an opportunity to see how Amelia would fare on a plane. She was great. If only we didn't have to lug a car seat, a stroller, our suitcases. Oh, and I love how I had to declare and show my baby formula because it was more than 3 ounces. Sure, stories surface all the time of people who have made it through the security check with razor blades and such, but watch out for the baby formula!!
This weekend was rough. It was good to see family, but Darryl's dad wasn't doing very well at all. In fact, Saturday was really his worst up to this point...and it was really, really bad. He was a little better Sunday. If you are a praying person, please keep Darryl's dad and his family in your prayers.
On a more positive note, I was able to see my new niece, Avery. She's a doll.
And I'll leave with a cute picture. Amelia's Nana and Papa bought her a swing, and she LOVES it. She can't stop smiling when she's in it:
School ended for students on Friday, and that night I had to attend graduation. This year was kind of weird for me...this was the first year I didn't teach seniors, and because of when I made the switch to juniors and sophomores, I did not teach this graduating class. I just felt sort of removed from it all.
Early Saturday morning, we headed to the airport to fly to Florida. Darryl was just tired of making that (boring, seemingly endless) drive, so he opted to use some of his miles so we could fly down. It also gave us an opportunity to see how Amelia would fare on a plane. She was great. If only we didn't have to lug a car seat, a stroller, our suitcases. Oh, and I love how I had to declare and show my baby formula because it was more than 3 ounces. Sure, stories surface all the time of people who have made it through the security check with razor blades and such, but watch out for the baby formula!!
This weekend was rough. It was good to see family, but Darryl's dad wasn't doing very well at all. In fact, Saturday was really his worst up to this point...and it was really, really bad. He was a little better Sunday. If you are a praying person, please keep Darryl's dad and his family in your prayers.
On a more positive note, I was able to see my new niece, Avery. She's a doll.
And I'll leave with a cute picture. Amelia's Nana and Papa bought her a swing, and she LOVES it. She can't stop smiling when she's in it:
Friday, May 23, 2008
Last Day of School!
Last day of school!
Last day of school!
Last day of school!
And I couldn't be happier. Of course, teachers have to go back for two days next week, but today the students are OUTTA HERE!!!!!
:)
Last day of school!
Last day of school!
And I couldn't be happier. Of course, teachers have to go back for two days next week, but today the students are OUTTA HERE!!!!!
:)
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Whew, what a week!!
Some parts of this post are long overdue (like Mother's Day), but this week has really seemed like three because this week has been insanely busy. Here are some Amelia-related highlights:
Last Sunday was my first Mother's Day. Darryl had to go out of town unexpectedly a few days before to help with some things with his dad, and he wasn't able to get a flight back until that afternoon...but maybe it is most appropriate that I spend Mother's Day with my daughter, anyway. Amelia and I went to church, hung out, shopped a little...and then when Darryl came in, we went to dinner. Anyway, here's a pic of Amelia and me on Mother's Day:
Both our families came up this weekend because we were participating in a Baby Dedication Service at our church today. (Before I go any further, please don't be offended that I didn't mention this earlier. This is a bit different from a christening or a baptism, and I really wanted to keep the attendance small, nor did I want people to wonder if they needed to come, so I just kept it quiet.) I'll get more into the dedication service in a minute...
Saturday, Darryl, Darryl's brother Dayton, his two kids (Savannah and Cameron), and I went to the Braves game. We took MARTA, and on the way there, I saw this sign and it made me laugh. (You'll have to look closely to see what amused me, but my fellow English teachers will be proud.)
Someone circled the colon that needs to be removed before the list. Then that person circled the ing on carrying and wrote "WRONG." That made my day! Grammarians, unite!!
Here's a pic of Dayton and the kids at the game. (I'm not sure what face that is that Dayton is making.)
That lady in the corner cracks me up, too. Anyway, Darryl found some awesome seats. We were seven rows up on the 3rd base line. Here's our view:
It was also an evening of culinary delight for me because I had a footlong hotdog with a side of nachos. Man, I love stadium food...maybe more than I love fair/festival food.
And that brings us to today. This afternoon, as I said earlier, we participated with Amelia in a Baby Dedication Service at our church. It was small, intimate service (separate from the church service), and just in case you are curious about what went on...
The atmosphere was casual, but elegant. (That sounds cheesy, but I can't think of any better description.) The lights were dim, and there was a slideshow of pictures of each family participating (30 families total). Each family had a table in the church for our guests. Darryl's family ended up going home last night after the game because Darryl's dad wasn't feeling well, so it was just my parents, Darryl and me, and a few friends from church. Basically, we shared with just our table the values we wanted to instill in Amelia and what kind of qualities we wanted to exhibit as parents. At the end, everyone at our table prayed for Amelia. It was really a nice event...not a "parade" across a stage, but just an intimate gathering of family and a few friends who came in support of our effort to be good parents. I'll end with a pic of the three of us at our table:
Last Sunday was my first Mother's Day. Darryl had to go out of town unexpectedly a few days before to help with some things with his dad, and he wasn't able to get a flight back until that afternoon...but maybe it is most appropriate that I spend Mother's Day with my daughter, anyway. Amelia and I went to church, hung out, shopped a little...and then when Darryl came in, we went to dinner. Anyway, here's a pic of Amelia and me on Mother's Day:
Both our families came up this weekend because we were participating in a Baby Dedication Service at our church today. (Before I go any further, please don't be offended that I didn't mention this earlier. This is a bit different from a christening or a baptism, and I really wanted to keep the attendance small, nor did I want people to wonder if they needed to come, so I just kept it quiet.) I'll get more into the dedication service in a minute...
Saturday, Darryl, Darryl's brother Dayton, his two kids (Savannah and Cameron), and I went to the Braves game. We took MARTA, and on the way there, I saw this sign and it made me laugh. (You'll have to look closely to see what amused me, but my fellow English teachers will be proud.)
Someone circled the colon that needs to be removed before the list. Then that person circled the ing on carrying and wrote "WRONG." That made my day! Grammarians, unite!!
Here's a pic of Dayton and the kids at the game. (I'm not sure what face that is that Dayton is making.)
That lady in the corner cracks me up, too. Anyway, Darryl found some awesome seats. We were seven rows up on the 3rd base line. Here's our view:
It was also an evening of culinary delight for me because I had a footlong hotdog with a side of nachos. Man, I love stadium food...maybe more than I love fair/festival food.And that brings us to today. This afternoon, as I said earlier, we participated with Amelia in a Baby Dedication Service at our church. It was small, intimate service (separate from the church service), and just in case you are curious about what went on...
The atmosphere was casual, but elegant. (That sounds cheesy, but I can't think of any better description.) The lights were dim, and there was a slideshow of pictures of each family participating (30 families total). Each family had a table in the church for our guests. Darryl's family ended up going home last night after the game because Darryl's dad wasn't feeling well, so it was just my parents, Darryl and me, and a few friends from church. Basically, we shared with just our table the values we wanted to instill in Amelia and what kind of qualities we wanted to exhibit as parents. At the end, everyone at our table prayed for Amelia. It was really a nice event...not a "parade" across a stage, but just an intimate gathering of family and a few friends who came in support of our effort to be good parents. I'll end with a pic of the three of us at our table:
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Murphy's Law
So...the academic awards program I'm partly in charge of was tonight, and in my opinion, it was a disaster.
Not many parents showed up. Not many students showed up. Teachers griped about having to be there. Large groups of certificates and were shuffled so badly by some of the presenters that it was just mass chaos.
And then, in the middle of the program, our caterer comes over to tell us that "there is a problem." The other person in charge, Elaine, went to check on "the problem."
Our caterer's restaurant (where Tim and I ate dinner, by the way) was shut down by the health department for food safety violations and they could not legally serve food to the public. Yep, shut down during our program. We had to make an announcement at the end that the reception was canceled. And now desserts for 500 people are in a dumpster behind the school cafeteria.
It's not like we booked some dive to cater our reception; they did it last year, and it's a little locally owned deli where I've eaten numerous times. I'm hoping in the end the restaurant is proven innocent (their inspection score is always in the high 90s), but I'm sure some permanent damage has been done to their reputation.
This was really just the grand finale to a day that has stunk all the way around. (I'm sure an even worse day for the restaurant, though. How humiliating.)
I'm going to bed now, people. (Or, Tim, as our beloved Spanish teacher Ms. C would say, "GOOD people.")
Not many parents showed up. Not many students showed up. Teachers griped about having to be there. Large groups of certificates and were shuffled so badly by some of the presenters that it was just mass chaos.
And then, in the middle of the program, our caterer comes over to tell us that "there is a problem." The other person in charge, Elaine, went to check on "the problem."
Our caterer's restaurant (where Tim and I ate dinner, by the way) was shut down by the health department for food safety violations and they could not legally serve food to the public. Yep, shut down during our program. We had to make an announcement at the end that the reception was canceled. And now desserts for 500 people are in a dumpster behind the school cafeteria.
It's not like we booked some dive to cater our reception; they did it last year, and it's a little locally owned deli where I've eaten numerous times. I'm hoping in the end the restaurant is proven innocent (their inspection score is always in the high 90s), but I'm sure some permanent damage has been done to their reputation.
This was really just the grand finale to a day that has stunk all the way around. (I'm sure an even worse day for the restaurant, though. How humiliating.)
I'm going to bed now, people. (Or, Tim, as our beloved Spanish teacher Ms. C would say, "GOOD people.")
Monday, May 12, 2008
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Lost, Shopping, Summer Reading, Food TV
Forgive my very disjointed post...
I'm lost on Lost. I finally was able to catch up with the last two episodes, and I'm more confused than ever...but still intrigued. I just hope at some point this will all come together and it won't be disappointing.
I think I'm going to take my girl and go shopping today. I really knocked myself out with grading last weekend so I wouldn't have as much to do this weekend (my first Mother's Day!) and next weekend (family coming to town!). I still have some gift cards from Christmas (I was waiting to lose my baby weight before I invested in lots of clothes), so I'm excited about finding some new duds.
For you teachers out there--or former students who can remember assignments teachers gave you--I'm looking for a third book for 10th grade honor students to read for summer reading. I'd prefer something non-fiction, and I want it to produce a good writing topic for them. Last year I tapered off the summer reading and had them read two books (and one of them was really short--Of Mice and Men), but I think that was a mistake. I'm looking to rev it up again this year to "set the tone" for the rest of the year.
My love for the Food Network has been renewed. I really hadn't watched much since Amelia was born, but lately, that is what I watch (meaning "have on in the background") in the early evenings while I do things around the house and tend to Amelia. Lately I've become obsessed with desserts and cake decorating shows. Not sure why. In my fantasy world, I would be a teacher at a school where students want to learn four days a week and be a pastry chef on Fridays. :) Sound good?
I'm lost on Lost. I finally was able to catch up with the last two episodes, and I'm more confused than ever...but still intrigued. I just hope at some point this will all come together and it won't be disappointing.
I think I'm going to take my girl and go shopping today. I really knocked myself out with grading last weekend so I wouldn't have as much to do this weekend (my first Mother's Day!) and next weekend (family coming to town!). I still have some gift cards from Christmas (I was waiting to lose my baby weight before I invested in lots of clothes), so I'm excited about finding some new duds.
For you teachers out there--or former students who can remember assignments teachers gave you--I'm looking for a third book for 10th grade honor students to read for summer reading. I'd prefer something non-fiction, and I want it to produce a good writing topic for them. Last year I tapered off the summer reading and had them read two books (and one of them was really short--Of Mice and Men), but I think that was a mistake. I'm looking to rev it up again this year to "set the tone" for the rest of the year.
My love for the Food Network has been renewed. I really hadn't watched much since Amelia was born, but lately, that is what I watch (meaning "have on in the background") in the early evenings while I do things around the house and tend to Amelia. Lately I've become obsessed with desserts and cake decorating shows. Not sure why. In my fantasy world, I would be a teacher at a school where students want to learn four days a week and be a pastry chef on Fridays. :) Sound good?
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
It's only Wednesday???
I haven't blogged much because I've been super-busy. Between grading student work (I graded like a fiend this weekend, people!) and trying to plan our yearly academic banquet (it's this Tuesday) and trying to get reluctant students to do anything, I'm just wiped out. Wiped out. And flustered. And snippy. And frustrated. Oh, and did I mention snippy? Darryl would probably want me to list that one twice. :)
I would like to say a big "welcome to the world" to my new niece, Avery Ann, who was born on Cinco de Mayo. She was a whopping nine pounds and one ounce! I can't wait to see her Memorial Day weekend.
I'm too tired to think of anything else...
I would like to say a big "welcome to the world" to my new niece, Avery Ann, who was born on Cinco de Mayo. She was a whopping nine pounds and one ounce! I can't wait to see her Memorial Day weekend.
I'm too tired to think of anything else...
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Quotes from Today
"America, is you ready for a change?"--a student's concluding sentence for her essay on her favorite presidential candidate
"Your dad and I are going to a Guitar Hero tournament tonight."--my mom
"Your dad and I are going to a Guitar Hero tournament tonight."--my mom
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