Happy New Year to You!

It's a balmy 20 degrees with not a cloud to be seen. I love this kind of weather. The world is frozen and all is peaceful. Even the dogs are quiet on days like this.

I'm not sure why I was in such a melancholy mood yesterday but I'm in better spirits today. Thanks Kate and Jayleigh for reminding me of the good things that have happened these past few months. :o)

Michael and I don't have any plans for bringing in the new year. We'll probably go over to his parents house and count down with them. We're not into partying and drinking like some of our aquaintences are.

I don't mind, though. I love spending time with family.

While sorting through our living room closet, we came across some old video tapes from our first couple years of marriage. Not much footage of ourselves, but tons of our nieces and nephews as babies. They were sooo cute! I miss them being so small. I can't wait for the chance to show them and embarass them all! haha

I have some pictures I've been wanting to share but haven't made the time. I'll do that tomorrow or Sunday, I promise.

Happy New Year to You and Yours!!

Where Did the Year Go?

I'm trying to remember the biggest events of this past year. I can't think of anything good or happy. I lost my aunt, Michael lost a brother, my sister broke her hip...

Why is it that the bad things always stick in our minds? I'm sure there were plenty of happy events this past year but they've all escaped my mind at the moment.

I'm Back

Oops! I guess I spaced out my blog for a few days. I’d apologize, but it was a nice break.

Christmas was hectic, but fun. We spent most of both Christmas Eve and Christmas day at my in-laws. I had expected it, though, because this is the first Christmas since Michael’s older brother died and his mother is very emotional. It’s been 6 months and although he was a Jehovah’s Witness when he died, he hadn’t been one all his life so the holidays brought back a rush of memories of him and the holidays they shared with him.

Michael’s family is quite large. The house was full and loud but it was nice to be together. I really enjoyed all of the kids. Lucione showed off her new trumpet and Lindsey was delighted with the knowledge that she was the only one to master her new grabber game.

I gave Michael a new George Foreman grill for Christmas. We got one as a gift a couple years ago and he wore the non-stick coating off of the grill plates he uses it so often. This new one has a temperature control, timer, and removable grill plates. He was so happy with it. I also gave him some movies and a hair clipper set. I was nuts to do that, though, because he’s been wanting me to cut his hair and I don’t trust myself. Why did I buy the clippers?!?

He gave me a popcorn machine. It looks like the large machines you see in theaters, but it’s only about 19 inches high. It pops ¼ cup of seeds at a time. Just right for a snack. He also gave me a Snow White quilt and a Mickey Mouse phone. The phone is shaped like Mickey’s head and plays the Mickey Mouse Club theme when a call comes in.

The weather is pretty chilly…in the 20’s for the past 3 days. I love the cold, but being this cold meant a dry Christmas. I so wanted it to snow. It’s warming up now, but with my luck, it will warm quickly and rain instead of snow.

I’m going to relax for a bit…I’ll write again some other time.

Holiday Baking

I was so bad yesterday. I had planned on getting 3 out of 4 cookies done while Michael was helping his friend in town and I only did 2. Now we're playing catch-up. Yesterday I made the banana nut cookies (minus the nuts, I guess I should call them banana chocolate chip cookies) and the apple cream pennies (which aren't apple cream pennies yet because I still have to make the filling). I had planned on making the marmalade cookies but when Lindsey showed up, I got lazy. We just sat around watching cartoons until Michael came home.

Once we get these cookies done, then I can make some fudge and tomorrow we'll fry up some rosettes. On Christmas Eve, I'll be busy bagging up the bread, plating the cookies, and baking a ham for the "luncheon" my mother-in-law puts on every year. She says this is her last year, but she's been saying that every year since Michael and I met 14 Christmases ago. Christmas day I'll have to make a fruit salad for Christmas dinner. This is new...we've never had Christmas dinner as a family in all the years Michael and I have been together.

Lindsey is getting so excited for Christmas. Last night she asked, "Is tomorrow Christmas Eve?"

"No, tomorrow is Christmas Eve Eve."

She laughed for about 10 minutes when I said that. It doesn't take much to get her laughing, apparently.

I thought having Michael help this morning would make the baking go quicker and more smoothly. It's been a little quicker, but not so smooth. He cleans and bakes at the same time. Seems like a silly thing to complain about, but I had just poured myself a tall glass of iced tea. I didn't put any ice in it because I had planned on drinking it right away and didn't see the point. When I wasn't paying attention, Michael dumped it and washed the glass. I went to take a sip and it was gone. I asked where he put it.

"That was iced tea? I thought it was old Coke so I dumped it out."

Time to go fill up another cookie sheet.

Yummers

When Lucione was small, if she took a taste of something she liked, she'd say "Mmmm, yummers!" Now when I say that to her she looks at me sideways. haha

I just tasted my first batch of cookies and if she were here, I'd have said that to her. Who am I kidding? I said it even thought she isn't here. Nobody's here. Just me and my cookie dough. Banana cookies, mmmmmmmm! Taste just like banana bread but easier to make, in my opinion.

This post is making absolutely no sense. Back to the kitchen I go.

Tuesday Already?

I didn’t have time to post yesterday. Michael and I baked bread. 54 loaves. 54. Most of which will be given away as presents within the next couple days. Funny thing is, even when he’s just baking for personal use, he’s never made less than 20 loaves at a time. It’s just not in him to make a small batch.

We started at 8AM and were baking until about 5PM. Our big commercial mixer was not working so the mixing and kneading had to be done by hand. Our oven holds 5 loaves at a time so even though the dough was ready early on in the day, it took forever to bake it.

We would never have even thought about not doing it, though. Too many people look forward to it. Michael makes the best bread. Nothing fancy, just plain white bread, but it’s the best. Some years we make raisin bread as well, but not this year. Michael has to help his friend get some gifts back from town tomorrow so had to give up a baking day.

By the time we took our last loaf out of the oven, it was time to go and watch Lindsey play basketball. She’s on the Bulls. Her team ended up winning by 4 after going back and forth the whole 2nd half of the game.

I got lonesome for my mom yesterday, so I downloaded one of my favorite Christmas albums from my childhood and burned a CD. We listened to it in the truck last night after Lindsey’s game. I must say it was a comforting feeling to hear the music and retell stories of my childhood Christmases.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention my paycheck. My sister-in-law (supt. Secretary) went into the office at 8AM yesterday even though she’s on vacation to get the ball rolling on my payroll check. She had sent an e-mail to the business manager who was already in Washington state by that time and called the chairperson of the school board. At about 10:20, my phone rang.

“Hi Kerri, this is Yvonne. I just hung up with the bank. I’ve cleared it so you can cash your payroll check. If you get there before Noon and speak with Lynn that would work the best.”

“Thank you so much, Yvonne! I’ll go right now. Thank you! Thank you!” I don’t know how many times I actually said thank you, but I truly was thankful. So much so, that Yvonne is getting a plate of Rosettes from me for Christmas this year. They happen to be her favorite treat. I normally cook up a few to add to my cookie plates and she always raves about them.

Now that it’s almost lunch time, I’m off to have a sandwich and then shop for cookie and fruit salad ingredients. I’ll be baking all day tomorrow while Michael is off in town helping his friend.

One Thing After Another

I should have taken the fact that I had to leave work early on Thursday as a sign.

I guess as a whole, I’ve had a pretty good weekend. But I had a whole bunch of little things go wrong, or at least not like I had hoped, so if I forget to focus on the whole entire weekend as a whole, it seemed pretty awful.

Friday morning I woke up around 5AM. I was stressing about making the ferry because I knew it would be packed. It didn’t leave until 9:00, but when we parked our car in line at 6:30AM, we were already 4th. We ended up leaving the car there and coming back home until 8:00 to sit and wait. I was hoping to be able to pick up my payroll check before I left so that I could cash it in town and not have to worry about how much I was spending but they delivered them late so my principal’s secretary - my sister-in-law (the space cadet) assured me she would bring it with her when she took the later ferry at 1:30PM.

When they finally loaded, there were well over 20 cars on a ferry built to hold 18. The seats inside were full and people were sprawled out on the floor so a lot of us had to sit in our cars. I didn’t mind, though. We had our DVD player and watched Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on the way to town.

We got to the hotel and experienced our first set back. The cleaning crew was not on duty yet so our room was not ready. Without my payroll check, we hesitated to start shopping. It’s too hard to be frugal when I’m shopping for gifts. I never pay attention to what something costs. Gifts have never been about money to me. I choose gifts because they were made for whoever the recipient is, not because they are on sale. Besides, Alaska sale prices are way higher than anywhere else anyway, so why bother?

We walked around Safeway wasting an hour because the hotel clerk assured us that our room would be the first one to be cleaned since we were the first ones to try and check in. After the hour, he said they needed another 30 minutes so we went and had lunch at Subway.

When we finally got our room key, we had a couple hours to wait for the ferry and my paycheck so we hung out at the hotel and watched Christmas programs. When my sister-in-law finally arrived, she was supposed to come right to our hotel but she went to my other sister-in-law’s house instead. We waited and waited and finally called her.

She said, “I’ll be down to your room in a little bit.”

We offered to go up to where she was but she said no, she would come to us and be there in a few minutes.

We waited almost an hour and called back. My niece Bryn said that she went to the bank and then would come to our room.

She arrived and her first words were, “You’re going to want to hang me.”

“Why?” I asked.

“I had your check in my hands…I put it in the visor of my car and left it there.” Michael asked her why she didn’t bring it up to the room and she said, “You don’t understand. I put it in MY visor. But I brought DAD’S truck. The check is still at home but my husband said he’ll send it over on tomorrow morning’s ferry.”

She was right. I wanted to hang her. I kept my mouth shut because the things I was thinking were too terrible to say. She hadn’t even started her shopping yet. She had tons to buy for her 3 daughters and whoever else was on her list. She wanted to give me $500.00 to carry me through till the next day when I could cash my own check and pay her back. I refused to take her money. I told her I’d just pinch my pennies and wait till the next morning to do some whirlwind shopping before we had to take the ferry home. We had already decided at that point that we would only stay one night because I was still not feeling well.

So she left with her money and I was left with no paycheck. I had money, but like I said, I don’t like having to worry about what I’m spending. I feel terrible when I see something I know someone will love but have to opt for something else because it’s cheaper. I hate that.

So anyway, we do our shopping and take care of the most important people: Space Cadet’s oldest daughter, Michael’s parents, and my dad and step-mother. I have friends who won’t be getting gifts from me this year because I don’t want to go back over and didn’t have the money to shop for them this weekend. I hate that, too.

We were going to go to a movie that evening. We had a choice between Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events (how fitting…sounded a lot like how my weekend was going) and Ocean’s Twelve. We decided, however, it would be better to show our support for our high school girls’ basketball team. We went and watched them get slaughtered by 28 points against the school who has been our school’s biggest rival since the beginning of time.

Saturday morning we got up early, as we usually do, and headed out to breakfast. We wasted time till about 9:30 when the ferry arrived. We picked up my check and I was shocked at what I saw.

It was covered with White-Out. Apparently, the business office had a printing problem and my check didn’t print correctly. Rather than shredding it and issuing a new one, our genius of a business manager chose to cover it with White-Out and re-type the information that was incorrect. Problem was everything was incorrect. The only part of the check that was not covered was my address. My name, the numeral amount, the worded amount, the check number, the date…everything…covered in White-Out.

I commented to Michael that I didn’t think the bank would accept it. He said to try anyway.

So I did. I was right. The teller took one look at it, said she would be right back, and took off towards the back of the bank. When she returned she said she wouldn’t cash it because it was altered. I assured her that it was in that condition when I received it. Showed her my district ID, my state ID, and the check stub hoping that she would see that the amount was correct and that I was who I claimed to be since my photo and address are on both ID’s and my address happened to be the only part of the check that wasn’t covered up.

She went back and got her supervisor because I was pleading with her to cash my check. The supervisor came up front and said she would not negotiate. I had to get a new check issued before she would cash it.

I tried to explain that our business office was closed. I work for a school district made up of out-of-towners who don’t ever stick around for Christmas. I told her I couldn’t get a new check issued until school resumed in January.

“I’m sorry. I will not negotiate. I will not cash this check because it’s been altered and there are no initials.”

“But there are initials right here. The initials of one of the school board members who signed my check.” I’m trying so hard not to cry because I’m so frustrated. I can hear my voice cracking.

“There should be initials for each mistake. Only one is initialed and the inks don’t match. I’m through negotiating. I will not allow you to cash this check.”

I turned and walked out without another word. I had to spend what I had in my checking account on our shopping and wasn’t able to buy the ham for our Christmas Eve gathering at Michael’s parents house.

My oldest sister-in-law is the superintendent’s secretary. When I told her what happened, she said she’d help me out. She called the chairman of the school board and told her about the trouble I’m having with the check. She (the school board chairman) is going to call the bank tomorrow and tell them to let me cash my check; that the error was mechanical and that the alterations were made by the business manager and he is out of town for the next 2 weeks. I really hope it works. I really want need my money.

As if all that wasn’t bad enough, I bought Michael’s last Christmas gift over there and had to give it to him early. It was a new coat and the one he had on was thin and worn out. The lining was starting to tear and it was raining so hard, his shirt was getting wet. I gave him his new coat. So now he got an early present and I have to wait 5 more days to open mine. *pout*

The ferry was packed on the way home so we were stuck in the car again. The wind was gusting at least 50 so the ride was extremely rough. I was so glad to get home even though the wind shakes my house. The wind didn't calm down until after Midnight.

Today was a good day, though. The sun was shining so we went for a long afternoon drive. My niece Bryn and her brothers are here for Christmas (their mom and, hopefully, dad will be here by Thursday). She came over for a visit. After dinner, Michael and I went to a choir concert because 2 of his sisters (space cadet and superintendent's secreteary) are in the choir. It was a really nice concert.

Now I'm exhausted and must get some sleep. It's almost 11:30PM. I'm on vacation, but not used to staying up late. By the time I am, it will be time to go back to an early bedtime. hehe

Oh. My. God.

I am so relieved to be home! This is one trip I hope to forget sooner rather than later. The wind is blowing a steady 40 and gusting over 50 right now so I'm not going to type much. If I don't wake up in the Land of Oz, I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.

Concert Photos!

My holiday break has begun! A bit sooner than I anticipated because I had to come home at lunch time and go to bed. My head felt like a medicine ball. It took all the energy I had (which wasn’t a lot) to keep myself upright. The principal was nice enough to let me sneak home at lunch. I ate what Michael had prepared for me and went to bed. I was out like a light until 2:40. Perfect timing since school is dismissed at 2:45 and I had told Lindsey and James they could come do their homework here after school because I wouldn’t be there to help them as usual.

James is so silly. He walked in all drenched at 3:00.

He said, “I’m really wet because I took the long way.”

I asked, “Why’d you take the long way on such a rainy day?”

“I didn’t mean to. I forgot which street to walk down and when I finally remembered, I was already wet.”

I ended up with James, Lindsey, Lucione, Alexys, and Jasmine here today. I’m so glad I got some rest. I would have been a wreck if I hadn’t.

The concert last night was a huge success. I think Lindsey actually had fun! She’s terribly shy so performing is always so much of a chore for her. The pictures I got of her were great because you can see a hint of a smile in almost every one. That’s huge for her.

Lindsey's in the back row dressed in lavender.

James, too, did great. He’s normally a statue and you can barely see his mouth move. This time, though, he got into the movements and thoroughly enjoyed himself.

James is in the middle row...the taller blonde with the red shirt and three stripes close together.

Craig was so adorable. He usually hams it up when he knows there’s an audience. This time, though, he was a real trooper. He sang and did sign language and behaved himself.

Here's Craig lookin' all handsome in the front row. They're signing and singing The First Noel.

The name of the concert was “A New World Christmas”. The kids performed songs about Christmas in other places, and even in other languages. One in Hawaiian, one in latin, and one in sign language. It was great.

Each student from 3rd through 6th grades was asked to create a tree to decorate the walls in the gymnasium. Most students chose the family theme for their trees. Lindsey was one of them. She put my photo on her tree.

When she told me, I said, “Awww, man!”

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“I didn’t want to be on your tree.”

“Why not?”

“Because everyone will see me!”

She rolled her eyes and said, “That’s the whole point, Aunty Kerri!”

Lindsey's "family tree".


Here they are all together after the concert.

It’s getting late and I better finish packing for our little trip to Town. I hope that you all have a nice weekend. I’ll be back by Sunday at the latest.

I Hate....

HaloScan...or my computer...whatever it is that is keeping me from commenting on the blogs of friends. I've tried 3 different blogs today and they all use HaloScan and are all giving me the same error.

Open proxy detected. Comment posting disabled. If you think you have received this message in error, please contact the webmaster.

Does anyone know what that means? I have a feeling it's not HaloScan or how would others be able to comment? I knew I should have asked Santa for a new computer!

Quickie Post

I handed out my little goodie bags today at work. I delivered them personally and included everyone from the principal to the custodian. I still don’t know who distributed the candy canes, but I feel good knowing that I included them. I even included the new lady who is going to replace one of our 1st grade teachers after the holiday break. I don’t even know her name but she got fudge from me!

Lindsey’s Christmas concert is tonight. Lucione is in charge of the sound system. It’s her job to control all the knobs and sliding levers on the sound board. I heard a lot of comments about the way she handled it during rehearsal today. People are still talking about her trumpet solo from her recital last week. So much so, that the pastor has asked her to play it in church this Sunday.

I’ve got to eat dinner and get Lucione home so she can get ready for the concert. I’ll write about it later.

I Feel Special

Yeah, I know...I'm a dork. But I checked my mail today and guess what I found waiting for me in the mailbox? C'mon...guess!

Okay, okay...I found a card. But not just any card. A Christmas card...with teddy bears...and snow! A card with two of my favorite things from one of my favorite bloggers!

Thank you very much, Tara! You totally made my day...my week, even! :o)

My Fudge is Ready to Be Delivered!

These are the bags I made...24 in all. I hope I remembered everyone! 


Lucione helped me stuff the bags. The fudge has a miniature ornament hanging from it and we also included a miniature candy cane. 

MMMMmmmmmmmm, Fudge!

I'm going to make fudge tonight. I made little paper bags to put it in with a little candy cane and miniature ornament. I'll bring them to school to share with my co-workers.

Someone handed out candy canes today...I didn't get one. The only reason I know they were handed out was because whoever did it, didn't actually hand them out, they just put one in the mail boxes in the work room. I don't know who did it, or why I didn't get one but I didn't raise a fuss. I figured there was no point. It's just a piece of candy and if whoever handed them out excluded me on purpose, they'll feel like a heel when I hand them their little bag of fudge on Wednesday!

I left work about 30 minutes sooner than I usually do. I'm feeling strange today. At one point, I actually got dizzy but was fortunate to be standing next to a table I could lean on to keep from falling. It was before lunch, but I had breakfast so it wasn't from hunger. I feel a little better now, but the weird light-headedness comes and goes.

I better get started on the fudge, I think I'll be wanting to get to bed early tonight.

13 Days Till Christmas!

This weekend was the best. No, we didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. Didn’t travel to an exotic destination. We didn’t even travel to Town. Haha (That’s our plan for next weekend.) But it was still the best.

No stress, no illness, nothing negative whatsoever. Just the two of us, hanging out, enjoying each others company. We haven’t really done that in ages. We spend a lot of time together, but this weekend we reconnected. Had a couple heart to heart chats which lead to me feeling even more loved and secure than I ever thought possible.

We haven’t really been having problems. We were just sorta going through the motions of being married. We found ourselves in a rut. I think we’re ready to make a fresh start now and I feel like we’re moving in the right direction.

I had a wonderful talk with my mom and sister yesterday. They’re both doing great but are a little homesick. My sister hasn’t had a Christmas here at home since she left (back around ’88) and my mom has only had one Christmas at home since she left and that was about 3 years ago. They were feeling bad because my gifts for them have already arrived and they haven’t had the money or time to shop for me.

I hate how Christmas has become about gifts. I don’t like people feeling like they “have” to give me a gift. I never believed in things like drawing names, or gift exchanges. The past two Christmases, Michael’s family has had a name drawing night. They claim it’s to take the financial burden off of us and to guarantee we each get at least one gift. I buy gifts because I want to. Each gift chosen specifically for each person given as a sign of my love and appreciation for them. When they draw names, I always end up with a distant relative who doesn’t live here and whom I barely know. The first name I drew wasn’t even a relative. He was the boyfriend of one of my nieces. Not a husband, not a father to any of her children, just a boyfriend…who lived in a whole different state than my niece at the time. I bought him a coat because I didn’t know him well enough to really find the “perfect” gift for him. A couple months ago, my niece was at my mother-in-law’s house for a family dinner. She was wearing the coat I bought her boyfriend. Her mother commented on the coat.

“Oh, I like your jacket.”

“Thanks, but it’s not mine. It’s Marks. He got it for Christmas one year but can’t remember who gave it to him. He leaves it in the closet in case it was from his mom.”

I wanted so much to tell her it was from me and that he could do whatever he wanted to do with it since it was obvious he didn’t want to wear it. It still looked new almost 2 years later.

This year I drew the name of a nephew I don’t know. He lives in another state and I never see him. The last time he was home, he didn’t acknowledge me in any way, not even if I tried to initiate it. I got him a coffee mug with his clan on it. I don’t even know if he drinks coffee but it’s a cool looking mug.

It’s time for dinner now. Michael cooked us steaks and baked potatoes. I’m drooling just thinking about it. I hope everyone had a good weekend!

Holiday Eating Tips

I just received these tips from my sister-in-law, who lives in Town. I don't normally pass on forwarded e-mails, but thought someone might get a giggle out of this.

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1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. Like fine single-malt scotch, it's rare. In fact, it's even rarer than single-malt scotch. You can't find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.

10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention.

Reread tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner.

Remember this motto to live by:

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, "martini" in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!"

Mini-Post

I didn't have a lot of computer time today because my niece Alexys planted herself in front of my computer and sat here for over an hour. It was nice to have her visit, though. She hadn't stopped by since well before Thanksgiving.

After she left, Michael and I went for a drive. Just when I thought we were going to get rain it started to snow. We got another light dusting...less than an inch. But now it really does feel warmer. The snow isn't as light as it was the other day so I think this time it will become slushy and melt away.

Next week is the last week of the semester. I can't believe the year is half over already. Time has flown by. Friday is a half-day so Michael is taking me to Town. I still have to get my Holiday bears from Wal-Mart.

Once school is dismissed at noon on Friday, we won't resume until January 3rd. I'm so looking forward to the time off. Sure, I'll be busy baking the first week, but that's always so much fun. Speaking of which, I think on Monday I'll bring some fudge to work for everyone.

I'm going to go watch My Baby's Daddy before I go to bed. I hope you all have a nice weekend.

The 31st Annual People's Choice Awards

The 31st Annual People's Choice Awards will be chosen by online voters this year. Have you ever participated in the voting before? How is it usually done?

Little Bits

I saw the mother at school today. She averted her eyes as soon as I looked at her. I'm hoping it's because she feels guilty about the way she treated her son the other day.

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Our church is having their bazaar today. I helped set it up lastnight so, thankfully, don't have to work a table today. I took cold medicine and it's zapped all my energy.

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The snow has quit falling and it feels warmer out. I think we're going to get some rain.

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Time to brag about Lindsey....the 5th and 6th grade classes have a challenge in science lab this week. They have to build a "Humdinger". It's a little contraption that hums when you pull a string and dings when you let go. The example is inside a paper bag that's taped shut so they don't know what it looks like, just what sounds it makes. Anyway, each group was given a bag of materials. The only rules were that they had to have a string and when you pulled it, you got a humming sound and when you let go, you heard a ding. Materials included a battery, a small motor, paper clips, small dowels, copper wire, masking tape, clothes pins, and rubber bands. Out of all 3 class rooms and a total of 10 groups, Lindseys group was the only group to figure out how to do it and they did it in about 30 minutes. Everyone else tried for an hour without success. I was so proud of how her group worked together and figured it out so quickly.

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I have a head cold. I can't stop sneezing. I took cold medicine this morning and have been dragging ever since. I can breathe...but all I want to do is sleep. I can't miss work because I'm testing again and don't trust a substitute to remember how to do it. I'm sure anybody could do it, it's just me wanting to make sure it's done perfectly. If I can just make it through tomorrow, I should be okay.

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My mom made me cry this morning. Not intentionally, and she doesn't know I cried because she did it via e-mail.

A few years ago, she was depressed and called me and cried on the phone for over an hour saying how she didn't feel successful, her marriage was going through a rocky time, my sister was stressing her out, etc. I couldn't console her on the phone. When we hung up, I sat down and wrote her a long letter. I told her how I'm always getting complimented on things. I've been told I have a good work ethic, a nice singing voice, the patience of a saint, etc. I told Mom that she is the reason I am who I am. I learned by her example. Well, it was a really long, mushy letter but it was sincere and it made her feel better.

Last week I asked both my mom and sister to create wish lists on Amazon.com because I was stumped. Theirs were the last gifts I had to purchase and could not think of anything they'd want or need. I figured I'd play Santa. Let them make a list and go from there. The items my mom initially chose were unavailable so I had to ask her to update her list. Twice. The last time I asked, I told her I was sorry that it was turning into such a chore, that I had hoped this would make things easier not harder.

Well this morning I got an e-mail from her. I think I've mentioned before that it's been extremely difficult to stay in contact with her. We've basically played phone tag for months. So I get her e-mail thinking it's going to be something about her wish list.

She said, "Hey Bear (my nicknames Care Bear), don't stress. I don't care if I get a gift from you. I miss you. Remember that letter you wrote me telling me how you feel about me? I still have it. I keep it on the shelf of my headboard and when I get lonesome or sad I read it and it always makes me feel better. I just want to do better at staying in touch. That could be my gift. I promise to be home every Monday at 5:00 so we could talk. That's what I wish for. That's all I want for Chrismas."

So yeah, I cried. I was touched that she kept the letter, sad to realize that she had to read it so often, guilty for not trying harder to get ahold of her....

I'm thinkin I won't even wait till Monday. If I have to try a hundred times between now and then I will talk to her before the weekends over.

Therapy, Anyone?

Yesterday during study hall I witnessed an exchange between a son and father that made my heart melt. Then in the blink of an eye, I wanted to scream and cry all at the same time. Here's what happened.

A little first grade boy was in the library waiting for his mother to pick him up. His mother and father were never married and separated when the boy was 2 years old. For a while following the separation, the parents were civil to each other and the father even had custody for the better part of a year. Both the mother and father have different significant others now, though neither of them is married.

So the son is in the library and his father walks in. He's there to pick up the daughter of his current girlfriend who happens to be playing with his son. His son shows off his toys and asks to go with his dad.

Dad says, "I'm sorry, Son. I'm not going home. I need to bring her to her mom. Maybe next time."

He and the girl turn to leave and the boy calls out, "Love you!"

"Love you, too, Son."

Just as the boy was calling out, his mother walked in. She stomped over to her son, put her hands on her hips and screamed, "What was that all about?!"

The boys eyes grew as big as saucers and he was speechless.

"What did I tell you about him? You know better. You KNOW BETTER!! What did I tell you?"

"You said ignore him."

"Right! Just ignore him and walk away. You are not supposed to be talking to him!"

This was in the library. There were people there. Not just kids, but some parents, too. This is a small town. Small enough that everyone knows she and the boys father separated because she walked out on him. She moved in with a recently divorced guy and left her son behind for almost a year. What's happened since then, I don't know but she's obviously holding a grudge and I don't think it's fair for her to involve her son. He's in the first grade. He loves his dad. How can you deny him his own father? This poor child is going to need years of therapy to undo the damage his mother is doing. I sincerely hope, for the boys sake, she sees the error of her ways soon and changes her mind.

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

Well, it's about time, Mother Nature! I was beginning to doubt I still lived in Alaska! Here it is 18 days till Christmas and we finally get our first taste of snow. It'll probably change to rain in the next day or two, but this will be fun while it lasts. It's the fine, powdery snow that blows around in the wind. I love watching it swirl around. Too bad I'm so sleepy, or I'd sit up and watch it all night.

Lucione's recital last night was great. She played Good King Wenceslas and I must say, she had the best solo of the night and I'm not just being biased. I've heard her practicing here at my house, but to see her perform up there on stage, in a spotlight all by herself, without skipping a beat or missing a note made me extremely proud. She was totally in tune and kept a steady beat all the way through. There were high school students who did not do as well. You'd never know this was only her 2nd year playing. She is so going to love the trumpet I bought her for Christmas!

Now it's bedtime. I'll have a hard time falling asleep thinking about the snow out there. Not to mention the Beatles song that is now stuck in my head (Thanks a lot, Aimee!). :o)

Musical Monday

I like my chin; it’s right below my nose.
I like my knees, my elbows and my toes.
My mouth can make a whistle when it blows.
I like, I like, like myself!

The computer lab is right next to the guidance counselor's office. The lyrics above are part of what I've been hearing for the past 20 minutes. It always takes a while for the Kindergarteners to learn a new song and I always end up learning it with them.

The 2nd quarter of school ends next week so I'm testing again. I told the principal this morning so he wouldn't get all shook up like last quarter. He looked sort of shocked. He either did not expect me to remember or the semester's end snuck up on him. Either way, the look on his face was priceless.

Our temps have been in the low 30's since late Friday night. I love this kind of weather. I'm hoping its cold for Christmas. I'm ready to give up on snow. It’s been teasing me for a month now. It works its way down the mountain and then disappears. It almost makes me wish I didn't live in this maritime climate at sea level.

Lucione's Christmas recital is tonight. She is extremely excited. I must say I am very proud of her. She chose the trumpet and stuck with it even when her classmates tried to tell her it was a "boy" instrument. She's pretty good at it, too. Last week she said her band teacher told her she should look into private lessons because she's so far advanced her classmates are holding her back. I told her she should be very proud of herself and she said, "I am! I'm good like you!"

I had the same problem when I was her age. I play the clarinet. I was in the Talented and Gifted program all through school. In 4th grade I got tired of doing science projects so switched to music. I chose the clarinet and picked up on it so quick my grandmother bought me a clarinet of my own. I still have it and play it occasionally. When I got in to junior high, I was further along than my classmates so went to high school band class instead. I participated in the junior high concerts, but I was sight reading. I didn’t rehearse with them.

Enough about me, though. Tonight is Lucione’s night. She even has a solo. She wouldn’t tell me what she’s playing…just that she had a solo. I’ll be taking both the digital and video cameras. Her grandparents are out of town so they’ll watch it when they get back on Thursday.

I better get going if I’m going to get the “good seats”.

For Ahka

Today is my friend Ahka’s birthday! She’s the one who leaves anonymous comments here on my blog. :o)

She is a very dear friend of mine and I thank God everyday for allowing me to know her. She has the greatest sense of humor, the best attitude about life, and a big, generous heart. I wish I could be with her today to show her how much she means to me but she’s too far away.

I figured this was a good way to let her know I’m thinking about her today, as I do everyday, since she reads my blog once in a while.

Ahka, I hope that you have a wonderful day with the family that surrounds you. I hope that you are able to look at your past year with peace and contentment knowing it has been a good year full of God’s blessings. I hope that God continues to bless you throughout the coming year with love, health, and happiness.

Happy Birthday!

Chat

Yay! I just had a short chat on MSN with Jayleigh! I think that is so cool! :o) Timing is everything. I signed on and said hello as she was getting ready to call it a night (a very late night for her, btw). She's the first blogger I've chatted with outside of comments. I'm so tickled. haha Okay, my turn to call it a night.

What is This?

My nephew, Craig, is just too adorable sometimes!


This was taken at his Christmas program last year. He's "searching" for someone he knows in the audience. 

I went to visit my sister-in-law in her office this morning. My principal is really cool. He knows I wouldn't be in there if I had something more important to do so he doesn't fuss too much when I pop into the office every now and then.

If my sister is busy doing a project, he'll say something like, "She's busy, don't distract her too long."

Anyway, I was in there visiting this morning and Craig walked in. He had been playing on the playground, slipped, and landed in mud. His left leg was covered. Because of this, he was quite upset. When he is that upset, it is nearly impossible to brighten his mood.

My sister and I were trying to talk to him and cheer him up. When it became obvious to us that we were not successful, she did the only thing she could think of. She pulled out a gummi worm and handed it to him (it's okay, they were sugarless ;o) ).

"What is this?" he asked.

"It's a gummi worm, try it," his other aunt told him.

He looked it over and said, "Oh, thank you."

It seemed to me that he had never had a gummi worm before. He had no idea what to do with it.

"Oh, look! I made an L," he exclaimed.

We were glad that he was in a happier mood, but he really had no clue what he had in his hands.

"I can twist it. See? It bends. I can stretch it, too."

After about 5 mintues of his playing with it, my sister finally took another one out. When she was sure he was looking, she put one end of it in her teeth and stretched it out till it broke and chewed it up.

"You can eat it?!"

"Yes, you can. Take a bite, I think you'll like it."

He took a little nibble off the end and chewed it slowly. Then this huge grin came across his face and he took another bite. By the time his mother showed up, he was in better spirits. He walked to the restroom to change his pants and my sister and I cracked up. We could not stop laughing. We were laughing so hard, the prinicpal poked his head out of his office to see if we were okay.

Sweet little Craig made my entire day. :o)

I Wouldn't Go THAT Far

Every so often, when I'm bored at work, I read Dear Prudence on MSN's Slate. This weeks issue has me shaking my head.

The Elephant in the Room - Can angry Democrats get along with Bush supporters?

I don't discuss politics. I don't always agree with people about how they vote. But would I be willing to totally cut them out of my life because of it? That's a little extreme, if you ask me.

Stormy Weather

It has been raining so hard here all day. Kinda matches my mood. I'm not really depressed, but not happy about anything in particular, either. I'm just going through the motions today.

Work went by pretty fast considering how tired I am today. I got somewhere around 4 hours of sleep last night, not consecutively. I'm so ready for bed right now but it's not even 8:30 yet. If I go to bed now, I will wake up too early tomorrow and be in the same boat.

It's supposed to rain like this again tomorrow and then we're in for about 4 days of snow. That would be nice, but I highly doubt it. We've had a strange fall season this year. We normally have days and days of rain but this year we've hardly had any. Our summer was hot and dry so people were saying we'd have a cold winter. I don't know how true that is, but one can always hope. :o)

People here can't stop talking about the girl who solicited help in the murder of her own mother. It makes me sick to think about it. She was just here in October for volleyball. She seemed like a nice girl. I guess looks really are deceiving.

I'm sorry, I'm just not into this tonight. I'm going to find a book to read or something.

ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I am so not awake today. I couldn't get to sleep last night until after Midnight. Then I woke up at 2:30 to find Michael was not in bed yet. I panicked and ran down the hall. He heard me coming and immediately got up to come to bed. It took me a while to calm back down and fall asleep. Then at 4:30AM I got a cramp in my leg. I've been awake ever since. So, yeah, I'm totally dragging today. I can't call in because we're already out of subs for both today and tomorrow. Well, I could call in if I didn't feel sorry for my sister-in-law, who is in charge of getting subs.

I'll try to ignore the burning in my eyes, the fact that my feet feel like a couple of anvils when I try to walk, and the aching muscle in my leg that is causing me to limp. Hopefully, I'll be successful because if the kids know you're tired, they're relentless.

Man, I wish I was a coffee drinker.