Last Week of Summer 2010, Part 1--Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

Monday
We went to a splash pad for about an hour. Apparently Amelia the Daredevil has moved beyond splash pads and was not very impressed. She kept asking, "Where's the slide?" I guess that's the danger of taking your kid to a water park when she is two. A slide is apparently now a requirement.

Anyway, after the splash pad, we had lunch on the road (kudos to Zaxby's for their awesome 1/2 grilled cheese kids' meal--it's the perfect size), and came home and began efforts to take a nap.

That's when our day took a nosedive for the worse.

Amelia has pretty much given up napping on her own, and now Darryl seems to be the only one who can lie down with her and get her to take a nap. After over an hour of trying to get her to lie down with me to nap, we were both cranky and frustrated. So to cheer us up, we decorated some cupcakes I had baked earlier that morning.
By the end of Monday, Amelia and I had butted heads about 483 times, and we were both exhausted at bedtime. Unfortunately for Darryl and me, she wandered into our room at 1:30 and slept in our bed the rest of the night because we couldn't get her to stay in her bed...and we were both too tired to care.

Tuesday
I had to go to school early that morning for a writing workshop, so Amelia spent about five hours at the sitter's house. (Am I a bad mother if confess that we both might have enjoyed that break a little?)

Afterward, I picked up Amelia and took her to get a haircut, where the stylist asked Amelia if she was going to be starting kindergarten. When I told her that Amelia was only two, her eyes bugged out of her head.

Amelia napped on the way home, and I made the unfortunate decision to try to get a sleeping Amelia out of the car when we got home. The only thing more ornery than an Amelia who hasn't napped at all is an Amelia who has been awakened mid-nap...so our afternoon after that point was pretty grim. (Should I stop here and clarify that I really DO love my daughter more than words can express? I'm just not sugarcoating the Terrible 2s, I guess.)

That evening, Darryl spent some daddy-daughter time with Amelia, and I went to my first kids' consignment sale with my friend Sabrina. It was fascinating! People were there with big laundry baskets for their loot. I bought just three things for Amelia; I was afraid to invest too much because I can never predict her growth pattern. Anyway, here's a photo from my phone:
I know you can't tell much, but that was the line--about 30 people long. Craziness.

Wednesday
Wednesday was a MUCH better day.

Amelia and I went to the aquarium. I liked it because it is easy to access and easy to find parking. It doesn't require a ton of walking, and it is also indoors. Amen.

I went to the aquarium with Darryl once the year it opened, but it was much more fun going with Amelia. (Sorry, Darryl.) She enjoyed it all. Here are a few pics. I don't think they really require any commentary.




Then, as if the aquarium weren't fun enough, we went to the mall and rode the carousel. Three times. Amelia was on a quest to ride the frog. She was much more excited about it than this photo suggests:
Then we went to The Disney Store (which Amelia calls "Mouseketools"...and that would make sense if you've ever watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse) where we purchased some Tinkerbell figurines to entertain Amelia so I could walk around in peace because Amelia has really gotten into Tinkerbell lately. (You'll be happy to know they get along quite well with all of our Disney princesses.)

As I was walking around, I saw this:
Hello, Lover.

I have not really been much into purses since Amelia came along and I didn't like carrying a purse AND a diaper bag and went the way of the wristlet, but...BUT...I LOVED this purse. I'm not sure what it was about it...the color (deep plum)? The ruffle? Its total and complete combination of cute and sophisticated?

And then I saw the price, and our love affair ended rather abruptly.

But I'm still thinking about that bag. Obviously.

When I got home, we went to dinner (I was too exhausted to cook) and went shopping for Amelia's Big Girl Bed.

And now...
My goal is to do FREE stuff today and tomorrow. All this fun--not too mention all that comes with the Big Girl Bed effort--comes with a heavy pricetag.

The Weekend: Tennis, Spas...and Walmart

This past weekend was a really good one...the kind you don't want to end.

Friday night, Darryl and I actually had somewhat of a date night. Our next-door neighbors kept Amelia so we could watch Andy Roddick play at an ATP tournament here in Atlanta. Here he is:



After he won the match, I stalked him walked over to the ESPN2 tent and watched his post-game interview:

If you know me at all, and you are thinking, "Amy, I didn't know you were a big tennis fan"...the truth is, I'm really not. Darryl has gotten into watching it over the past year, but I do like some Roddick. He's hilarious on Twitter.

Saturday, Darryl and Amelia hung out for a while, and I used my Mother's Day spa gift certificate and had a massage. I got wild and crazy and added a 15-minute scalp massage. Let me tell you: It did NOT disappoint. I felt like a greasy pork chop afterward, but it was worth it.

Today, Darryl and Amelia went to the pool and I went to Walmart. It was the first time I had been there in months because I hate going to this Walmart. And in all seriousness, it isn't because I'm a snob and think I'm too good to shop there; it's the fact that when I do shop there, I have to go to all four corners of the store to get what I need, and then when I'm done, two lanes are open for checkout. But TODAY...today, my friends, the customer service was awesome. This Walmart is apparently undergoing a remodeling effort, and there were about 20 employees available just to answer questions about locations of items. And...AND there was only one person in front of me at the checkout. And to top all that off, I bought 55 composition books for 15 cents each! Score!

This afternoon, Amelia and I went to the mall. PTL she has warmed up to sitting in her stroller again! We picked up her "big girl bed" bedding (more on that later), went to the Disney store to purchase The Princess and the Frog figurines (Girlfriend likes some princess figurines), rode the carousel, and had frozen yogurt. And she was good. I praised her like all get out in hopes it would encourage some goodness this week.

And we finished the evening with a little mother-daughter movie/popcorn night, where we watched Sleeping Beauty, better known in this household as Princess Asleep. (This was right after she stripped down to a diaper. Given our pitiful potty training efforts this week, there is NO way she is sitting naked on our furniture.)

Potty Training and Everything Else

I'm not going to lie: this week has been a tough one in the motherhood department.

Potty Training
I have put some effort (admittedly, probably not enough) into trying to potty train Amelia. Oy.

I don't think she is quite ready. I don't know if that is the truth or something I'm telling myself as an excuse to put it off a little longer.

We tried "naked time"--a tried and true method of many of my friends--but she wasn't a fan of it after about 30 minutes.

So then we bought some princess underwear, and she was super excited about it.

Then she spent about 40 minutes deciding which character she wanted to wear--Princess Belle? No. Princess Water (Ariel)? No. Wait, maybe Princess Belle...

She wore panties for about 20 minutes, and then we had to leave to go somewhere, so the diaper went back on.

The next day, she sat on her potty for about 30 minutes with nothing to show for it.

She has yet to produce anything in the potty. (Can I also add that I absolutely detest the word "potty," and having to say it about 500 times a day is like nails down a chalkboard for me?)

Everything Else
Amelia has also spent a lot of time in "time out" this week.


She also has swimmer's ear, which means we haven't been able to go to the pool...which was pretty much what I was hoping to do this week. It's too hot to do anything else outside. And when we stay inside...we both get cranky.

Amelia has also lost interest in napping. I don't think I need to elaborate on why this isn't good.

Yesterday, I did go up to the school to start setting up my classroom. I took care of one task I hate: recovering my bulletin board with paper. If I were an elementary school teacher, I would stink. I cover my board once, and that is it. No change of the seasons for me!!

Afterward, I had lunch with my friends Max and Tim. I ate so much that I had to stop and buy Tums on the way home. I was soooo miserable, but the food was awesome and I enjoyed catching up and having some adult conversation.

Last night, even though it was 93 degrees at 7:00, we took Amelia to the playground. She loves to play outside.
But For the Record...
As trying as this week has been, I want to add that in between all the less-than-stellar times, my girl does gives some awesome hugs and kisses, and the more she talks, the funnier she is. One of my favorite moments this week occurred when she walked up to a mirror and said, "I need to see me." Ha!

Next week, though, the plan is to get out of the house as much as possible. That might not help much with the potty training effort, but it will definitely help out with our sanity!

Week at the Beach

Last week, our family was back together again and we spent a week at the beach. We had SUCH a great time.

First of all, here was the view from our condo. Pretty awesome, huh?



Part of what made this vacation so fun was that we were close enough to some friends and family that we were able to have some visitors throughout the week.

Amelia got to spend a lot of time with her cousin Mary Katherine, and we finally got to meet Mary Katherine's baby sister, Lauren:


We went to a nearby shopping area one evening with all three girls, and the pic of them riding in this stroller cracked me up!


We also were able to hang out with our nieces and nephews and had a blast with them. Can I tell you how difficult it is to get five kids all looking in the same direction for a photo?
My friend/colleague Rebecca and her family were also vacationing in the area, and Amelia was super-excited to see her friend Tanner!
My parents also came over one night and were able to watch Amelia swim in the pool and eat dinner with us. We enjoyed seeing them, too! (And we're still very grateful they kept Amelia for us the week before. One day this week, I'll have to post all we accomplished at the house while she was gone.)

Here's a rare family pic of the three of us. It isn't the greatest photo in the world, but these photos are so few and far between that I have to post it.
We also enjoyed some good seafood while we were there. Here is Darryl with some chargrilled oysters from ACME Oyster House. (Note: I am not an oyster person and enjoyed some delicious fried catfish instead.)

One evening, we took some obligatory beach photos. I love this photo of Amelia at the edge of the waves. (For my parents...Darryl was close enough to grab her if we needed to.)

Our schedule every day was pretty much get up, swim at the pool, eat lunch, take a nap, play, then go out to dinner. I could definitely get used to that!

Working on the To-Do List

Amelia is spending the week with the grandparents so I can chisel away at my ever-growing to-do list.

Our house, which has been in a state of chaos since the whole "house-sale" started mid-April, desperately needs to get back in order. Not only was it just messy and yuck, but it was also affecting my mood. I busted out with a big Oprah-type revelation a couple of weeks ago and told Darryl that I felt the chaos of our house was a physical representation of the chaos I was feeling inside. (Deep, huh?)

So this week, I've been working on getting things back in order. Almost all the boxes are unpacked and things are put away. We bought a new kitchen table, and I made room for a small desk.

I've also managed to get my hair cut and my eyebrows waxed. Priorities!!

Today, though, I'm having some fun and am meeting up with a friend to do a little scrapbooking. I'm looking forward to it.

So I'm very grateful to my parents for keeping Amelia this week so I could get this stuff done. I think they are having fun, but I also think Amelia might be giving them a run for their money!

The Best Thing I Ever Ate: Sandwiches

I don't know if you've ever seen the Food Network's show The Best Thing I Ever Ate, but if you haven't, or even if you have...basically it works like this: For each show, there is a "theme," like breakfast foods, or steak, or something like that. Various food-industry celebs then describe the best whatever they had ever eaten.

Anyway, the point is this: Sunday, I had the best sandwich I have ever eaten in my life. My friend Casi and I had lunch at a restaurant called West Egg Cafe. I had the Fried Green Tomato BLT, which consisted of fried green tomatoes (obviously), crisp bacon, field greens, and--to kick it up a notch--a spread of pimiento cheese on each slice of perfectly buttered and toasted challah bread.

Good grief.

Each bite was a little piece of heaven. I'm not exaggerating in the least.

It was that good. So good it deserved to be commemorated on my blog.

Fairy Princesses

Saturday, we went to Amelia's friend Tanner's house for Tanner's fairy princess birthday party. Amelia talks about Tanner A LOT, and she was very excited about this party.

First, look at this cake table. Tanner's mom (a fellow English teacher and friend) is an insanely talented baker/cake decorator. Don't you just want to pull up to this counter with a fork and dive in?


I wish I had gotten a better pic so you could see all the details, but I didn't want to be obnoxious and hold up the good eatin' so I could get food photos.

Amelia was obsessed with Tanner's play microwave oven, so much so that she had to take it to the table with her while she had cake and cheese puffs.
I took this cute pic of Tanner and Amelia playing with this baby stroller. How sweet.
But then, of course, in typical todder fashion...things got a little hairy when they BOTH wanted to push the stroller.
It ended well. They're still friends. :-)

It was a really cute party...and Amelia even received fairy wings that she put on as soon as we got home.

Book Thoughts: The Glass Castle

This past year, one of my AP students read this book for a non-fiction independent reading assignment. After she presented on it--and after claiming it was one of the best books she had ever read--I really wanted to read it.

It's the childhood/early adulthood memoir of author/news contributor Jeannette Walls. Her parents, though intelligent, were basically delusional, broke, and negligent, yet Walls and her siblings somehow persevered among the chaos and nomadic lifestyle they were forced to endure.

Although I really liked it and found it inspiring (I don't use that word lightly), I found it really disturbing at times. (One night I actually had bad dreams based on a scene from this book.)

This book has actually been assigned as a summer reading book choice for 9th grade (I think?), and I hope that if any kids read it, they see how they can still rise above their circumstances and become "something."

Impromptu Mini-Vacation

Last week, Darryl and I decided we needed a family getaway...as soon as possible. We decided to take Amelia to Dollywood and Dollywood's Splash Country so that our girl could have a blast.

We drove to Gatlinburg on Friday, checked in to our hotel, and strolled the tourist-packed streets. I had to make a stop at this place:

When I was a wee youngster and my family went to Gatlinburg, we always stopped here for fudge and divinity. Theirs is the best. Anyway, I picked up some peanut butter fudge and some milk chocolate fudge; I like to mix them together. :-)

Okay, enough about fudge.

So then we went to Bubba Gump's for dinner. We weren't really dying to go there, but it was close and didn't have much of a wait. I wasn't very impressed with Bubba Gump's.

Then we went back to the hotel and swam in the pool, and Amelia enjoyed sliding down the waterslide with Daddy:
Saturday we went to Dollywood. I know this might come as a shock to you, but it was HOT. (Later, it rained and cooled everything off just a bit.) I was very surprised by how uncrowded it was. We didn't really have to wait in any lines. Of course, we hung out in the kids' section most of the time, but we didn't have any waits in the restaurants or anywhere else. Here are just a few shots of the fun:




One thing that Amelia really enjoyed--that I couldn't take a photo of--was the children's theater productions. Because of the heat, and later the rain, we enjoyed the air-conditioning while we watched the stories The Little Engine that Could and Llama Llama Red Pajama come to life on stage. Amelia didn't really react very much, but her eyes were GLUED to the stage. On the way back to the hotel, she kept saying, "Wanna see Blue Engine TV again." (There was a TV over the stage the featured little guest appearances by Dolly herself. Seriously...can you look at Dolly Parton and not smile? It's impossible.)

Before I move on, let me also say that Dollywood really is a wonderful theme park. It is extremely clean and well-kept, and it is probably the only theme park I've been to where the food is really delicious. A good bit of it is country cooking, and it doesn't disappoint.

On Sunday--Father's Day--we went to Splash Country. Then we realized why Dollywood wasn't crowded...apparently everybody was at Splash Country. It was packed. PACKED. And after spending a day at Splash Country, I must pose this question:

Are Darryl and I the only two adults on this earth who do not have tattoos?

Anyway, Amelia loved this park as well because she loves anything that has to do with water. We again enjoyed seeing her have fun, but there were just too many people there.

(I didn't take any pics at Splash Country because I didn't want to risk damaging my camera.)

That evening, we went to dinner at a place called The Apple Barn in Pigeon Forge. We had eaten there three years ago and really liked it. We had a good dinner, then strolled around a bit outside. Here's a sweet daddy-daughter pic:
It was a good weekend, and the time away was just what we needed.

A Glee Clip for Your Viewing and Listening Pleasure

I just discovered it is NPH's birthday (and can I just add that I'm also happy to report that he is just a mite bit older than I am--that's happening less and less these days), so I'm sharing this clip to bring you some NPH joy. I've loved him since he was Doogie. Anyway...this is from one of my favorite episodes of the season for several reasons, this being one of them. I equate it to a vocal fistfight as they compete for the role of Jean Valjean (or, as one of Tim's students wrote once, "John Val John") in a community theatre production of Les Mis.

The last week...and an update

In my last post, I mentioned that Amelia and I went to Florida for a few days. Darryl found out rather last minute that he needed to go to London (and yes, I contemplated going with him, but the plane tickets were outrageous!), so rather than sit around amidst packed boxes at the house, Amelia and I went to Florida to visit family.

I must say that Amelia did VERY well in the car for the trip there and back. Thank goodness. We went down there on Saturday and came back on Wednesday.

Our plan Sunday morning was to go to the beach because goodness knows when we would get to enjoy it again. Even though it looked kind of cloudy, we went ahead with our plans because we could think of many times in the past that we had canceled beach trips because it looked rainy, and then it would brighten up again, making us wish we had gone anyway. So we packed up all the gear--an umbrella, beach chairs, beach toys, an icebox, the whole shebang. Once we were loaded in the car, I turned my key, and...NOTHING. My battery was dead. And then it started POURING rain. I love this pic--my dad laughing at the ridiculousness of it all and an unfazed Amelia eating raisins in the backseat:


On Tuesday, however, the weather was beautiful, so my mom, Amelia, and I went. This is more like it:

Nothing like eating Cheetos at the beach!

Anyway, while we were there, boats started patrolling in the distance, looking for evidence of oil. Official-looking people were also walking along the shore, examining the seaweed. It was kind of eerie:
That evening (Tuesday), my mom, Amelia, and I met my Aunt Winifred for dinner. My dad and his brothers (one of whom is Aunt Winifred's husband) had gone on a fishing trip, so we had a girls' night out. It was good to see her again!

And somewhere in there (Monday?), we visited some with Darryl's family. Amelia enjoyed playing with her cousins! (And forgetful me forgot the camera.)

When we returned Wednesday, Amelia and I went to a birthday party for my cousin Larson. We have some wacky age differences on my mom's side of the family; Larson is my first cousin, but he is only a year older than Amelia. Anyway, I forgot my real camera and had to resort to my iPhone one. Here's a pic of the birthday boy blowing out the candles:



Wednesday was indeed a long day and we both just collapsed when we got home.

Darryl finally returned on Friday and we were glad to have him back!

Saturday, we found out that our house wasn't going to sell after all. It was ultimately decided that the mortgage company has to go by the current FEMA flood map, and unfortunately that has us in a Grade A Flood Zone. Even though poor Darryl had fought it by getting an engineer and a surveyor out here to determine that we are 3.5 feet ABOVE the 100-year Flood Plain, it wasn't enough. (By the way, that was what we were instructed to do...we can only hope it will help us in avoiding having to pay an exorbitant price for flood insurance.) It stinks, and we're bummed, but we also realize that, as they say, "this too shall pass." And we are fortunate. We have jobs; we have a home. There are many people out there right now who can't say the same.

In an effort to have a little "me time" and get away from the packed boxes in the house, I went to the Princess Diana exhibit at the Atlanta Civic Center yesterday.
I was very impressed with it. I was able to see her wedding gown (with the 25 ft. train!) and some of her dresses. There were some other things there--drafts of speeches she made, childhood memorabilia, etc.--but my favorite was the dresses. I'm not sure why that is...I mean, I'm not really a fashionista myself...but I love the dresses. (When we went to the Smithsonian about 10 years ago, my favorite part was the Inauguration Ball gowns of the first ladies.) Anyway, I was very glad I went.

So...that was last week. On a side note, I currently am watching (while I blog, so is that really watching?) an old Grey's Anatomy episode on Lifetime. It has made me realize how much better this show used to be than it is now. :-(

The Summer Thus Far--List Version

1. We're still in limbo with the house. Sigh.
2. Darryl had an impromptu business trip, so Amelia and I are in Florida visiting the fam.
3. Last week, I caught up on Glee. While I have some issues with storyline continuity at times (what happened to make Jesse switch back to Vocal Adrenaline and smash an egg in Rachel's face?), the show still makes me smile. And that episode that had both Neil Patrick Harris and Idina Menzel? Awesomeness.
4. I have seen Beauty and the Beast more times than I care to mention in the past week.
5. You know how you can go and go and go and go, and then when you slow down, you feel like you've hit a wall? I think I've hit that wall.

Limbo

We've been living in limbo for the past few weeks with our house situation, and it stinks. Do we continue to pack? Do we stop packing? Do we remain optimistic? Do we prepare ourselves for the fact that we might not be moving after all?

First we had the appraisal issue. We braced ourselves for the fact that we very likely were not moving. Then, miracle of all miracles, a second appraisal was done that was in line with what we were asking for the house. Hooray! Jubilation! We were going to be moving into our house after all!

Now we have another issue regarding the flood zone, so we're trying to get that worked out. We're somewhat optimistic it will be worked out, but at the same time, we're trying to brace ourselves for the worst.

It's getting old, this living in limbo thing. I don't like feeling unsettled, and I feel very unsettled. Our house is in disarray because we're kind of halfway packed. I sometimes catch myself thinking about things I want to do with the "new" house, but then I have to remind myself that there might not be a new house.

Very frustrating, to say the least.

Cross your fingers for us!

Always on the go

I haven't posted any Amelia pics lately, so I figure it is about time...

I was trying to take some pictures of her in this dress that I love one Sunday afternoon, but she was really in no mood to be still...

Best Class EVER

This past year I had the chance to teach AP Language for the first time.

Because I taught 10th grade honors the year before, and AP Lang is an 11th grade class at our school, I taught these students for two years in a row.

I told Darryl that if I had a class like this every period of the day, I would practically skip into work whistling a happy tune. While it is easy to get frustrated by the students who don't care and are impossible to motivate, classes like this one instill my hope that the future of our country is very bright indeed.

I'm pretty confident that in the picture below, you see a glimpse of future doctors, teachers, lawyers, humanitarians, journalists, engineers, and actors. And even better? They are decent, good-hearted people. And they are HILARIOUS! (Look, sometimes some funny students can make a bad day instantly better.)

The past few weeks of school were a bit bittersweet for me because I will truly miss seeing this class every day next year. They are moving on to Tim's AP Lit class, and I know he will enjoy teaching them every bit as much as they will enjoy having him as their teacher.

Does anyone read this anymore??

I miss my blog.

I haven't been blogging much lately because I've been so incredibly busy. But now it is summer and things have (kind of) calmed down. I'd like to revive my blog!

Blogging isn't the same it used to be. I think most people are on Facebook and keep in touch that way. When I first started blogging (and for several years after that), several of my friends had blogs and we all enjoyed reading one another's blogs and commenting.

Maybe if I get the ball rolling, they will as well??? (Wishful thinking?)

I have lots to talk about...so expect more soon!

And oh, yeah...does anyone read this anymore, or has everyone given up on the chance that I'll blog anything of substance again?

Still here

I'm still here.

Things have been the typical end-of-the-year wild.

I'll have a full update this weekend...for the three people who check this blog. :-)

Rough week

The blog posts have been scarce, I know. I have been so busy with putting together this awards program that I have barely had time for anything else. Oh, and then there's the grading, too. And it seems like every day this week has brought some bad news in some form or another.

The worst, though, is that Wednesday we found out that our house might not sell after all. We got a ridiculous appraisal on our house way below what we are asking. We cannot sell our house for that amount. Another appraisal has been ordered, but things aren't looking good.

We're bummed, to say the least. This also means that we'll probably be in our house a few more years.

The "common sense" side of me realizes that this isn't the end of the world and that many people--and I'm thinking of people in the Nashville area and people who would just be happy to have a house at all--would scoff that I'm so disappointed by this. But I am human, and I'm just really, really sad.

I'm hoping this week is better.

What's going on this week

Work--I absolutely hate teaching this time of year. The kids are done. I'm ready to be done. The number of days left in the year both excites and terrifies me...I have so much to do in these last few weeks. My buddy Tim introduced me to the "Revv" k-cup, which packs twice the wallop of a normal cup of coffee. I think I might have found the key to survival for the next month!!

Home--Adding to the stress (but also very, very exciting!!!) is the fact that it looks as though we have really, truly sold our house. Contracts have been signed and a home inspection has been done. Even better, we have found and signed a contract on a house we LOVE. Seriously...Darryl and I found this house last Friday, and we were in it for about two minutes when we both declared that it felt like the house for us. The home inspection for it was done this past week, and it's in great shape. There are so many things that I like about the house, but here are the things I'm most excited about: a screened-in back porch, a bigger kitchen with an island, and the openness of the kitchen and living area. We're very excited, but we're also scheduled to close a few days before school is out. Whew!

That's about it...but isn't that enough??

Why not another list?

1. This week at school has been very difficult. I've gotten very frustrated with my students, who apparently think they are already done with school. Maybe I used my "angry teacher voice" too many times this week.
2. We think we have actually sold our house this time. We have signed contracts and have talked closing dates. I know things can fall through at any time, but this is the farthest we've gotten in the process.
3. House hunting with a two-year-old is...interesting. And exhausting.
4. I'm behind on TV again. A student this week asked me if I watched Glee this week, and I told her I may very well not get to watch it until July.
5. Darryl was playfully hitting Amelia on the head with a balloon a few minutes ago, and now Amelia keeps saying, "Daddy hit me! Daddy hit me!" I hope she stops saying that by the time I take her to daycare Monday. :-)
6. Amelia seems to enjoy watching The Princess and the Frog, which is a welcome break from Elmo's Christmas Countdown.

The List for Today

1. I-tunes and boredom are not a good combination.
2. Neither is You-Tube and boredom.
3. I like my new iPhone cover. It is robin-egg blue and makes me feel springy.
4. I have felt extremely isolated this week and am craving adult conversation and a good belly laugh.
5. Darryl does provide some adult conversation, but we have exhausted our conversation topics this week.
6. The theme for this Spring Break has been k-cups, TV, and Amelia.
7. I have had some really weird dreams this week, including one where I was having an affair with Hulk Hogan. I was thoroughly repulsed when I awoke from that one.
8. I watched the movie P.S. I Love You and absolutely hated it.
9. I have had some pressing anxiety this week about all the things I have to accomplish during the remainder of the school year, including pulling off an academic awards program pretty much single-handedly.
10. I am enjoying this season of Dancing with the Stars more than I thought I would. Of course, I'm pulling for my figure-skating boyfriend Evan Lysacek, but who knew I would actually like Pamela Anderson?

The zoo

Sometimes I bite off more than I can chew.

Yesterday might have been one of those times.

After much thought, careful consideration, and discussion with my other mom friends, I decided to take Amelia to the zoo. I was tired of hanging around the house and thought that Amelia was old enough to "get it."

And I think she did. She loved pointing to all the animals and naming them. Her favorite exhibit was the flamingos. She also loved the giraffes and the monkeys, but the flamingos were definitely the big hit.

The trip went south in a hurry, though, as we left the zoo. I'm not sure how I managed to do this, but somehow I did not walk in the correct direction through Grant Park to get to my car. It's hard to tell because it all looks the same. (This is something I did NOT know at time, however.) I was hot and tired, and Amelia was hot and tired, and we walked and walked in what I thought was the right direction. Then I noticed a street sign and realized we were not even on the right street. I seriously wanted to cry I was so tired.

Because Amelia was tired, too, I tried to carry her as much as I could. And periodically we'd have conversations like these:

ME: Amelia, can you walk for a little bit?

AMELIA: No.

ME: Please.

AMELIA: No.

ME: Amelia, please, because you love your Mommy and she feels like she is about to pass out, could you please please please for the love of God walk for a little bit?

Seriously, we probably walked two miles. I know that isn't the longest distance in the world, but when you are hot, thirsty, tired, and have already walked a lot at the zoo, it feels like a marathon.

And then, THEN...on the way home I realized I no longer had a cell phone.

That's right. I lost my phone. I'll fast forward to the end of that story...someone gave it to a cop. I already have new phone and goodness knows if I'll ever see my old one again, but at least the phone (complete with my email and text messages) isn't in the hands of a lunatic. At least I hope not.

As I was driving home, I was wondering if going to the zoo had been a wise decision, if it had been worth all the trouble in the end. And then I looked in the rearview mirror and saw Amelia marching her little panda bear figurine up and down her arm, and I decided it definitely was. I just may never go again without Darryl. :-)

Here are a few pics:

I know I should have cropped out this kid on the left, but I'm feeling lazy.



On the choo-choo train--Amelia was getting tired at this point, but she was very excited and wide-eyed the whole time. Girlfriend loves a train.


Amelia picked out the elephant herself. :-)
The last hour aside, we had a great time. And we spent all day today recovering from our adventure.

Easter

We had a pretty good Easter. My parents have been visiting for the weekend and have been enjoying Amelia. I'm feeling a little under the weather with sinus issues, but it's been a good weekend nonetheless.

Here are a couple of pics. I can't believe how fast Amelia is growing up.



Nothing like the neighbors' garbage can for a photo backdrop, huh?



The Easter Bunny brought her some Micky Mouse Clubhouse figurines and she has played with them ALL day long.

Amelia also really enjoyed hunting Easter eggs, a venture that took all of about 30 seconds. She yelled, "I find Easter eggs! I find Easter eggs!" over and over the entire time.



Love our lush green grass?

On another note...we have someone interested in our house again. Apparently this person has narrowed the search to three (including ours), and we should know something in the next day or two. Cross your fingers and toes for us. In addition to this being pretty good timing (some Spring Break time to pack, the summer to get moved and everything in place), we have found several houses that we are interested in. The last time someone was interested and it fell through, we really didn't see much that we liked on the market, and the timing was terrible. We're trying not to get our hopes up, but we are so ready to sell our house. We have loved living here and have lots of wonderful memories here, but we need some serious space.

Anyway, aside from that, I'm super thrilled Spring Break is this week. I thought this week would never get here. I'm looking forward to some good times with my girl and sleeping later than 4:30 a.m. :-)

I like to call this one...

I like to call this photo "Stubborn Vs. More Stubborn." Want to guess who's who?

I stink

I'm a horrible blogger.

The first step is admitting you have a problem.

I just need to fix it somehow.

I'll try to post more this weekend (with some Amelia pics), but here's a rundown of what has been going on.

1. School is keeping me busy, busy, busy.
2. Spring Break cannot get here quickly enough.
3. Lost was awesome last night...I would definitely put it in my Top 5 episodes. Maybe Top 3.
4. I've lost 9 pounds!!!!!
5. I've started jogging, for heaven's sake. And I'm enjoying it!
6. While I'm pining away for Spring Break, I am teaching Hemingway, Faulkner, and Fitzgerald at school, so at least I'm really liking what I'm teaching.
7. Amelia bit a kid at school today. When I asked her about it, she said, "I bite Bella. I get time out." Awesome.
8. I wish essays could magically grade themselves.
9. I need about five more hours in my day.
10. One of my students thought a sonnet was an article of clothing the other day. (Was he thinking of a bonnet?)

This interview made me laugh and laugh

I'm about to make two embarrassing admissions:

1. I have a school-girl crush on figure skater Evan Lysacek.
2. I love, love, love Bonnie Hunt (always have) and want to be her BFF.

This interview shows why I love them both. If you have the time, watch it to the end. At the 4 minute mark, it starts getting pretty funny.

Morning Blogger

I've decided to start blogging in the mornings before I get ready because that is the only way I'll consistently get a post up on this blog. And I miss blogging. I'm so grateful that I have "records" of days past; once in a while it is fun to see what was going on during various points of my life.

I realize it has been almost 2 weeks since the Winter Olympics ended, but I started a Top 5 Moments post that I am going to put up because dang it, I still miss the Olympics. And it's my blog. And if I want to put up a Top 5 List, no matter how pathetic it makes me look (especially two weeks after the event is over), then by George, I'm going to do it. I should have it up over the weekend. (I know the suspense is killing you.)

It has been a busy couple of weeks indeed. I've also made a conscious effort the past few nights--except last night because I had some extra things I needed to do around the house because someone is looking at it today--to get to bed by 10:00. Class prep, grading (as always), having fun with Amelia...I'm so ready for Spring Break to get here.

I better go for now. I'm judging an essay competition today. I know. You want my life. :-)

For Nana

Those Winter Olympics...

Now that the Winter Olympics are over, maybe I can return to my blog. :-)

I hope to have a new post soon, and don't be surprised if it contains my Top 5 Olympic Moments from the past two weeks.

Because I'm a bit of a fanatic...and maybe slightly traumatized that it's over.

My mother also wants me to post a cute video of Amelia, and I'm trying to figure out how to do that.

So...more posts soon!