Short Week

It almost seems pointless at this point to even go to school until after the new year. Truly, every year when we hit Thanksgiving break, all I can see and focus on is what I'm going to be doing for the second semester. I have to remind myself over and over that I still have 2 1/2 weeks until exams start and still need to do some teaching. UGH!

My weekend was good. Saturday, Jim and I spent the morning at the vets. Just the annual checkup for these two boys (nearly $500 later). They squeezed us in so we ended up there for about 2 hours, which was fine. We had to dope them up the starting Friday night and by Saturday morning, once they'd had their second pill, Boo was so high, he could barely stand up. Scout, however, seems to metabolize drugs very quickly or he's got a drug problem I didn't know about and his tolerance is sky high. Regardless all went well but Scout started screaming with worry when Boo was being examined. He did NOT like to see his brother poked and prodded...it was kind of sweet. Or it would have been if I hadn't been holding the screaming and flailing little turkey. Realistically, the only thing I really wanted out of this visit (other than a clean bill of health) was to have their nails clipped and thankfully that got done. They were like razors and I didn't want to have people coming to my house getting gouged. Oh, and we also got them the year-long heart worm shot so that's something we won't have to think about! It was about $70 cheaper getting the shot rather than the pills. Who wouldn't do that?

After the vet, Jim and I went to Shooters for lunch then it was home to put up minimal Christmas decorations. We have the tree up and some lights but since I'll be taking things down the day after Christmas, I didn't want to go crazy. I never do though. The rest of the day was spent just hanging out, watching Harry Potter, sitting in front of the fire and loving on the boys. I made a delicious Roasted Garlic and Cauliflower soup for dinner.

Sunday Jim worked. He said he would be about 4 hours but we all know how that goes...with Jim. He ended up working 8 hours. But that's all overtime so I can't complain especially since he's off Thursday and Friday. And...I managed to get all my French cakes made so there you go. I also did yoga, abs and walked BOTH boys (separately)! I missed Jim and was sad he had to work but it's fine.

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Jeans all week (two days)! Woot! I like not having to think too hard about what I'm wearing. Not that I ever do . Anyway - happy Monday! Later!

Christmas Weekend Plans

The first batch of French cakes has been made. I managed to finish the last night while waiting for Jim to get home. I'll attempt to make a second batch this weekend. Probably Sunday since Jim's working. I've finally figured out how NOT to waste the first 2 or 3 batches(figured out what to set the stove top on) and I've thus, wasted very little batter. This does not make Scout and Boo happy though because my mistakes end up their treats. I've yet to meet a dog that doesn't lost their minds over French cakes.

Other than that, the weekend will focus on getting Christmas up in the Hanke household. I actually don't plan on doing too terribly much because we'll have to take everything down the day after (since we're leaving for the Dominican on the 27th) and the less the better. I also want Jim to get the outdoor lights up but really only the tree he does on the house.

Oh, Saturday we're also taking the boys to the vet to have their annual appointment but more importantly, to get their nails clipped. They are crazy sharp right now and with all the people coming to my house over the next month, it's much needed. We'll have to drug them up tonight and in the morning, which I hate, but they'll be happier (and so will my backside!).

It's raining. Yuck.

School news: Oh, so get this. An email went out yesterday from my principal about our upcoming workday. Seems it is scheduled on January 3rd (I had no idea!). In a "liaison committee" meeting recently, the request was made to allow the teachers to decide if they wanted to come in on December 20th (Friday after exams complete and is technically the first day of break) or on January 3rd. A) It's a good thing this email went out because I never would have known about the 3rd and I wouldn't have shown up! B) Looks like I'll be coming in on December 20th since I'm scheduled to fly in on the 1/2/2020 LATE! Really we're scheduled to land at around midnight on the 3rd so going into school wouldn't work for me. It's cool though. I have plenty to do on the 20th. I'll have three IEPs scheduled right when we get back from winter break so I'll be able to crank those out on that day and get stuff ready for my classes in the new year. With two weeks off...I can't really complain!

Okay well, that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Friday! Later!

4-7-8

I know I've talked about this before but recently, with some of the stress I've been feeling regarding Jim's health (all is fine) I've been waking up in the middle of the night and then can't get back to sleep. I'll lay there thinking things and as it always happens at night, I let my mind go to bad places and I start freaking out. So, I reinstated my 4-7-8 breathing and it's helped tremendously. If you've never used this method, I find it really settles the mind, slows the heart rate and lulls the body in to a calmness that allows sleep to take over. (Through your nose, you take in a big breath, counting for 4 seconds. Then you hold it for 7 and slowly let it out for 8 seconds.) I usually do it about 4 times before falling asleep...I think. I usually notice at about round 3 that I'm losing count and falling asleep. Try it if you've got the night time racing mind syndrome.

My IEP meeting went well yesterday. I was done with the meeting before school started so that's good.

No new news or symptoms that Jim's complaining about. He came home from work yesterday in fine spirits and NOT falling asleep on his feet so that's good.

Got another couple dozen French cakes made last night. So hard NOT to eat those while making them.

What is Joe Scarborough wearing on Morning Joe? He looks like he's in a track suit. Now I have no problem with this but he's usually in a suit suit...Looks like he just came in from a run and didn't have time to change. Hmm...unusual.

Well, that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Thursday. Later!

The One Side Effect I Wish Jim Didn't Know About

One of the side effects that these meds cause is fatigue and I wish I could keep that out of Jim's mind. The mere mention of it I think makes Jim tired. However, I think that the fatigue he felt yesterday is real. He came home yesterday and just looked drained. By 7:00 he was snoring in the recliner and by 7:15 he was upstairs snuggling in bed. He slept solidly through the night as well and then woke up fresh as a daisy but with "stiff feet". That's actually another side effect that I wish I could have kept from him: Joint pain. These are top complaints of Jim's so he'd feel these things, (probably) without the meds. 

Maybe I should tell him that a side effect is general excitement and limberness! Sometimes Muwee just doesn't THINK! Just kidding...I understand the importance of Jim understanding and paying attention to how he feels.

Speaking of which, he's not had another bloody nose so that's good. I think I'll buy a humidifier for the bedroom to try and combat the dry winter weather. Can't hurt and it will help me too. 

I have an early IEP meeting this morning (7:15) so need to be quick here. Should be easy...senior who's been on my caseload since his freshman year and the mother likes me. 

What else? I did a meal in the instant pot last night that was basically a "wing it" meal. It was a recipe I had for mustard pork chops on the stove top but I turned it into a quicker meal (so I could start on my French cakes). They were DELICIOUS! Oh, and my French cakes are more than delicious. My goal is to get two batches made by the end of the weekend so I can give some away. I'm trying hard not to eat many but I did have two with my evening tea last night. God I love those things. 

Saturday will be a packed day. Christmas decorations, cleaning and the dogs have their annual appointments at the vet (and a nail clip!). Sunday Jim has to work...sad! 

Okay - time to move on. Happy Wednesday (ooh, half way through). Later!

Side Effects Already?

Not sure what this is but Jim woke up this morning, blew his nose and had a paper towel full of blood. This isn't something that usually happens to him and since the very first side effect listed on his med literature is "easy bleeding and bruising" I'm thinking it's the meds. He'll text the nurse practitioner this morning. I'm guessing she'll say As long as it has stopped don't worry about it  but my plan with these meds is to be overly vigilant and aware.

My room at school is stupid freezing. I wore my winter coat most of the day yesterday because it was so bad. And believe me, I've put in a maintenance report (two) but have gotten no fix. I'll put one in every day until they fix this shit. Literally my hands were purple yesterday.

School was good yesterday. I actually got a lot done and even got an IEP written and the draft sent to parents 2 weeks ahead of time! YAY!

Tonight when I finish all my after school stuff (exercise and dinner prep...feeding the dogs) I'll be making French cake batter. Yum!

Speaking of exercise, I finally got to use my elliptical since fixing it and (knock on wood) it's as good as new!

And that's all I have for today. We're supposed to have a fire drill this morning but I'm hoping it gets cancelled since there's rain in the forecast.

Happy Tuesday! Later!

Feeling These Nearly 49 Years

It was a TOUGH weekend with everything Jim and I did. As you can see from the picture, we finally managed to get all the wood that had been dumped in our front yard, split. The uncovered wood is what we split plus one section you can't see that's under the tarp. We didn't split the "small" pieces and will probably leave those to season and split next spring. Obviously, we're not in need of wood and probably won't be for 2 seasons.

For the most part, Jim and I did all the work (Doug came over and helped for about an hour on Saturday): I split and Jim stacked. My injuries are pretty minimal: Lots of bruises and a couple of cuts plus I'm very sore...especially my upper chest and armpits (being in a low seated positions for hours and lifting huge pieces of wood). I did think I broke my arm on the first day (pretty much in the 1st hour of working). My left forearm got caught between two pieces. It's still really sore but I think it's just a deep tissue bruise. Ibuprofen helps so that's good. Glad that's done! Needless to say, I was in bed and zonked out before 8:00 last night!

And now Jim and I can focus next weekend on Christmas! Can't wait!

Oh, Jim's appointment from Friday. Well, first, we were there for 2 1/2 hours. I wonder if the new doc will be the same? Anyway - Jim we got all the scoop about Jim's new meds and his most recent scans. No movement of the cancer from his lungs (brain is clear...that's my worst fear). His colon is still showing a wonky diverticulum but it's NOT diverticulits as Jim has no symptoms or issues so that's good. In terms of his meds: He started yesterday. The biggest issues with these meds are fatigue, rashes (we have to keep an eagle eye out for sudden skin changes) and minimal joint pain (which Jim already has). Jill, our nurse practitioner stated that these meds really haven't been as problematic for other patients when it comes to side effects. Jim is on a half dose now (which is 6 pills a day) and will, over the next 6 weeks increase to a full dose as long as he tolerates. In two weeks we should be scheduled to meet with the new doc. I'll keep you all updated.

The week at school should be pretty low key. I have an IEP meeting on Wednesday but that's it. I'm showing the movie Ten Little Indians in LA. Then, next week (I can't believe it!) is only 2 days long! Woot! I'm so excited.

Oh! And you'll be happy to know that my elliptical is fixed! The parts came on Saturday and after splitting, I replaced the left leg of the machine. (I ordered a right and left with the thought that eventually the right will wear out too but I didn't replace it yet.) I look forward to getting back on after school today!

And that's all I've got! Jim is already out (had to be downtown at 6:00) but will be home, hopefully around 2:30 today. Which means, I need to get the pups settled in and kenneled up...so I'd best mosey. Happy Monday! Later!

Holiday Beer!!!

I went to the store after school yesterday and on my list was Great Lakes Christmas Ale (one of my faves). Well, when I got to the beer department, they had a whole refrigerator display of Christmas/holiday beers! I mean...what was I going to do but buy a little of each!? So, I ended up with my GL Christmas Ale, some Shiner Holiday Cheer, Sierra Nevada's Celebration and then a new one - Taft's Santa's Bribe Christmas Cookie Ale!  I mean, could I be any happier!? It took everything in me NOT to have one of each last night. I did have a Taft's and it's my new favorite. It's flavored with cinnamon, ginger and vanilla and it is to DIE for! I feel like having one right now! But I won't! I can't wait to have one later and I'm going to have to stock up! And I'm going to have to head down to the actual brewery and try it on draft. So yummy.

Guess what!? My elliptical parts have shipped! They are scheduled to be delivered tomorrow! Awesome! Now I just have to hope that the parts I ordered actually work for my machine. They should though.

So today while I wait around for Jim's appointment I'll clean, do some yoga and make my menu for the week. If there's time, I'll also grocery shop. I need to get all this done so that tomorrow we can focus SOLELY on splitting wood. I'd like to get all that done tomorrow so we don't have to do anything but stack on Sunday. We'll see...sometimes my best laid plans get waylaid.


I made a delicious dinner last night (thanks to Anne and Maggie). It's was WW baked buffalo chicken tenders. I made my own skinny blue cheese sauce and it was so yummy. Plus I have leftovers for lunch today. Tonight we'll go out to dinner because I expect that we'll be at the doctor late. We're talking about going to Fireside Grill which is in Deerfield (his doc appointment is in Mason today). If it's too crowded there, we may just end up at Rusty Bucket...one of my faves. We'll see.

Okay well, time to do some yoga and then clean. Happy Friday! I'll update you all on Jim's health news. Later!

Late Evening Phone Calls From The Oncologist...

Last night I was heading to bed, getting my teeth brushed, wrangling the boys, setting the alarm and the phone rings. It's around 7:45 and I think Well, this is no one that knows me because they wouldn't call this "late"! So I ignore it. And then it rings again and I look at the phone number and it's a 608 area code and I think, "Freaking spam calls!" So I pick up the ringing phone and answer and right away hang up. The phone rings AGAIN! So I let the answering machine get it and realize...SHIT! It's Jim's oncologist. He left a message asking for Jim to call the office in the AM. Remember, Jim just got his PET scan yesterday. Oh, and by the way, Jim was working late last night so he wasn't home. I called him, told him what was going on and said, "Call Dr. Leming! Otherwise this girl isn't going to sleep!" So I hang up with Jim and I wait and I wait and I wait and I get nothing so I text him and say "Well?" and I get no response. So I wait and I wait and FINALLY! Jim calls me back. Apparently his scan showed something wonky on his colon. Now, Jim's had a weird colon for a while and he's had a colonoscopy to determine what was up and things were fine. There were a couple precancerous polyps that were removed but the doc said everything looked okay. And Dr. Leming, having been reminded of that, and knowing that Jim wasn't feverish and didn't have any symptoms was fine with just seeing us on Friday. But let me tell you even knowing that? A 7:45 phone call from your husband’s oncologist as you’re trying to go to bed does not make for a rest full night of sleep! UGH!

Thank the baby Jesus I'm off tomorrow.

Bad news: I wore my elliptical machine out. As I was ellipticalling yesterday, the "ride" suddenly got very wonky and bumpy so I jumped off and realized that the hard rubber "wheels" that the machine glides on were deteriorating...well, they had deteriorated! Ugh! Thankfully, I was at the end of my workout! Anyway, I went online and found a place that sells parts and I ordered a right and left leg for my machine. I'm hoping this will work and I won't have to go buy a new machine. I use the thing 4 times a week so it will be missed until I can get it fixed or replaced right away. It's always something!

The dogs ate another shoe of mine. Found that when I got home yesterday. Needless to say I haven't talked to them in about 12 hours. I chased them around the house with my shoe yelling at them so I'm pretty sure they get it (until the next shoe falls in their path). Boo didn't even sleep with me last night. I'll love on them before I leave today to let them know I forgive them but those boys! They better mind their P's and Q's because if one more shoe (that's the second one this week) gets eaten, their days are numbered! (Which is a joke! It's so hard to be mad at them!)

My IEP went well yesterday. I made a lot of changes (because the junior high is stupid) but they were all good changes (no behavior goal, no longer being alternately assessed, got rid of OT services) and afterward my administrator came to me and said, "Who the hell wrote that last IEP!? What were they thinking?!" Parents are happy though and the kid is doing so much better so that's all that counts.

Okay - time to get a move on. Jim's got his MRI this morning but shouldn't have to work late and then tomorrow is our doc appointment. I'm not looking forward to that. The future right now with Jim's health care is just so fucked up and it's causing me so much stress! I wake up every morning thinking about it (at 3:45!). Of course Jim's seems completely clueless but that's probably a good thing. I'd rather do all the worrying so his brain isn't preoccupied with it and can focus on healthy, healing thoughts!

K - happy Thursday (my Friday). Later!

Plans Foiled

Well I was going to be a total asshole today but then I found out it's World Kindness day so there you go! Guess I'll have to wait to be an asshole until tomorrow! Prepare yourselves. (And I can hear all of your thoughts right now! Things like, "What do you mean wait?" Rude!)

In other news, I probably had one of the funniest conversations yesterday in history class. Here's what went down: We were talking about WWI and the build up that started the war. When one of the facts in the PowerPoint stated that various countries throughout Europe were focused on building a strong army, one of my kids - let's call him Billy (who is autistic and hilarious), said, "Army...what's the opposite? Leggy? Leggy is the opposite of army right?!" All while pointing to his arm and the his leg. And then he just kept saying it over and over (like autistic kids do, which cracked me up and kept me from being able to move on: "Leggy, the opposite of army. A-R-M-Y the opposite of L-E-G-Y." (At this point, of course, I had to correct him and say, "Actually, it'd be L-E-G-G-Y but that's not a word (at least in the sense he meant) and it's not the opposite of ARMY and you need to stop now!" Literally, my history class is a comedy hour/episode of candid camera. I keep looking for the camera but haven't found it yet. Ridiculous.

I have a 7:15 IEP meeting today. It's for a 9th grader but I've had his brother, who's a 12th grader, on my caseload for 3 years so I know the parents well. These are the ones who are divorced and hate each other. The kid is fine but a tough bird because he has issues dealing with his emotions which of course are all over the place being A) a teenager and B) on the spectrum. Shouldn't be too bad though...I hope.

I'll head to Costco after school today. Jim has his PET scan at 9:15 so doesn't need to leave home until 8:30ish. He'll thus work late. Tomorrow he gets his MRI. 

And that's all I've got. I need to dry my hair since it's so cold out. Happy Wednesday! Later!
 

Break Needed!

Kids are driving me nuts! The worst of it is that I have a high number of sophomores this year and nearly all of them are taking Geometry. The problem with that is the Geometry classes are A) being taught mostly via a computer program which is SO bad for these kids and B) most of my kids are in a class that is a combo of two classes so there are about 50 kids in there. The kids hate it; the parents hate it; I hate it. These kids are getting lost in the shuffle and so I'm left CONSTANTLY trying to teach these kids. It takes nearly ALL of my time (and theirs). These kids are having to spend hours on their math homework each week and it just sucks.

Weather news: We got about 2 inches over the last 12 hours but most of it is just on the grassy areas and decks. Roads didn't really get anything worth a delay or closing but the temps are now falling so quickly that the worry is re-freezing. I'll leave as late as I can to allow traffic to take care of the roads for me. The cold, however, is the big story now. Literally we were in the 50s yesterday afternoon and now we're going to get down to 13 with wind chills in the single digits. I love me some winter and snow but this is a little early for me.

My dentist appointment went well yesterday. No teeth rotting out of my head and my doc told me once again that my oral hygiene is awesome! One less worry!

So I took off Friday for Jim's doc appointment and was sure I wouldn't get a sub but alas, I did! However, I might as well NOT have one because the woman who took it is pretty worthless. She can barely move and is a total slug. I know that's mean but seriously, she's nothing more (maybe less) that a warm body. I'll be sure to have movie day in all my classes so that the kids have less of a chance of getting in trouble.

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Tuesday! Later!

Change of Plans

As I mentioned last week, we got a massive delivery of wood from the guy who takes our trees down. The original plan was to stack it and then split it next spring. However, considering the amount that we have, we decided instead to split as much as we can and stack the rest. Which means, next weekend will be a splitting and stacking shit show. The one good thing about this, however, is that we won't have to deal with getting the splitter and returning it on time because our tree guy will rent his to us ($50) and pick up and deliver it. BONUS! So with all that, Jim and I had to make some room in the side yard. First we transferred the wood we had in one section of our stacks and then stacked all the small stuff that we'll save for next year. It was actually an easy job. Jim will also most likely build another rack for the wood we'll split next weekend. Wish me luck.

Other than that, the weekend was spent doing leaves, walking the pups, playing cards and yesterday we went to see Last Christmas (good by the way).

Friday I'll most likely have to take off because Jim's doc appointment was moved...I just don't know what time the appointment is yet. That will suck because I'm sure I won't get a sub but what can I do?

What else? Not much happening at work. I have an IEP Wednesday. We'll be finishing up the book in LA and then I'll test the kids and then we get to watch the movie! Woot! Starting WWI in history.

Okay - well, time to get a move on. I have a dentist's appointment after school today and Jim has to work late tonight. Snow is on the way...not sure how much we'll get but of course it will mostly stick overnight and the fear of slick roads will be foremost in my mind. Hate that!

Anyway - happy Monday! Later!

Oh My Aching Back

I don't know if I slept funny or if the yoga I did yesterday tweaked my back but YOWZA! It's a little tweaked. I'll pop some Advil here in a minute and hope it goes away.

I always check my emails in the morning and this morning I got one from the parent of one of my kids who has a meltdown every other day it seems. Yesterday, he had to do test corrections (to get a better grade on his shitty test...your welcome) and the paper he turned in was nearly illegible with no correct answers on it. So, I handed it back to him and told him (nicely) that he needed to rewrite it and make sure to get the answers correct so he could get the credit. I even showed him how to write it out. As he left me 6th period I asked if he had the materials he needed to do it and he assured me he did. Then his mom emailed me to say he didn't bring his binder so she just had him re-write the questions (legibly) and then he could get his answers done in GI this morning (which won't be possible because he has a test to complete). He told her if I made him re-write it again, he was going to have a meltdown. Should be a fun morning for me! TGIFF!

Jimmy has to work tomorrow. 😥 He told me it was either that or he work late tonight. I said, "Get as much done as you can today, before the carpet layers get there, so you'll have a shorter time tomorrow." Which means he'll probably have to work late today. Ugh! But...it's overtime and he's now on journeyman pay so YAY! He says it should only take a couple hours but last time he said that, it was 8 hours. Jim's bad at estimating time vs. job. Anyway, we had planned going to a movie tomorrow (Last Christmas) but that may get pushed to Sunday. We'll see. (Who wants to watch the Bengals, anyway?)

And that's all I've got. Time to finish my toilette. Oh, and BOO! We have advisory today. So stupid! The kids hate it, I hate it; I know other teachers hate it as well. Dumb. I mean every other Friday is way too often for this shite!

K - enough complaining...happy Friday. Later!

He Did It!

Because I know you're dying to know if Jim managed to get to Aldi in time for the advent calendars: Yes, he did! He got 2 wine, 1 beer (because there was a 1 per customer limit) and 2 cheese. They haven't gotten the dog treat one but that's okay. I'm just so excited! Alcohol makes me so happy! HAHA!

I have an IEP today at 12:15. I hate when I have IEPs that aren't in the morning. But it shouldn't be too much a pain in my ass. I don't know this parent but from our contact so far, she's happy with her sons progress and that's all that counts.

First snow of the season is coming today but it won't stick. Well, it won't stick on the streets. The temps are going to drop significantly today too and by the time I get home, we're supposed to have below freezing temps. Brrrr! Monday into Tuesday, they're saying we might get our first accumulating snow overnight. It's rare to have a snow day (dare I say it) in November...we'll see.

Oh, so yesterday I got home from work and was doing my exercise when Jim came home.  He said hello and I keep doing my thing. As I continued, the dogs started going ballistic...I called for Jim but he wasn't anywhere to be found. Seems our tree guys were over at our neighbors taking down a massive tree and saw Jim so came to talk. They had a massive amount of wood which he said he could dump in our yard to replace the wood they took when they took our last tree down. So now we have our wood replaced and a shit ton of work to do this weekend to find a place to stack it and then stack it. That's okay though...no complaints from this girl. It's enough wood for probably 2 year! Oh, and the tree guy also said that when we need to split it, he'll let us use his splitter for $50 (about $50 cheaper than what we normally get) and he'll deliver the splitter to us for the weekend! BAM! That's a man who knows how to treat a good customer! Plus we give him a lot of business with recommendations too.

Okay well, I gotta mosey. Happy Thursday! Later!

Wine Advent Calendar! What!?

I don't know if I can go to work today! I mean, to leave  the responsibility of running one of the most important errands of the YEAR to Jim is frightening. I'm going to be so worried! Why, you ask? What the eff am I talking about you ask? Well, I was clued in to wine advent calendars. Kroger's came out last week (and immediately sold out) and today is the day when the Aldi's Advent calendars come out. They have wine, beer, Barbie, dog treats and more. I mean WTF!? I'm pretty sure there's a limit (2 per) so I've told Jim to get two of the wine, beer and dog treats if he can (or more if that's possible). See, he's working right up by the closest Aldi to us so it's like kismet! You know I'll be tracking him all morning to make sure he made it because they apparently go like hotcakes. I think he should maybe camp out starting around 7:30 just to make sure. I've also instructed him to make sure he has a quarter in his pocket so he can get a cart lickity split and take out any mother effers that try to get in his way! This is IMPORTANT!!!

In election news: Kentucky!? You've made me proud! I'm so happy that the teacher-hating governor has gone DOWN! A ruby red state has blue (for the governors seat at least). What makes me especially happy about this is it's an embarrassment to trump and McConnell (who should be a little worried). The Loveland levy went down IN FLAMES! 78% voted against the levy as well they should have. Unfortunately, my school's levy also didn't succeed, although it only lost by a few hundred votes. I just think tax payers are sick of all these levies and so am I and how we fund schools should be fixed but there's just too much talk and not action. We'll see what happens next for Kings.

Today at school we're running on an hour-delay schedule because we're showing a movie to all the kids in school regarding anxiety (called Angst). Should be interesting. I hope it's good. I have a TON of kids with anxiety issues so I hope it's worthwhile for them.

Yesterday was a doozie of a day for me. I just felt like I was forever running around and getting nothing done. And pissing off kids. And snapping at them. I think I was just feeling the stress of Monday's appointment (the breakout on my face is sure a sign that I've internalized it) and I took it out on those around me. Oh well...today's a new day. And WINE ADVENT CALENDARS COME OUT TODAY!

Made a delicious instant pot meal last night: Red beans and rice. Jim had two big bowls (which I don't usually let him do but it wasn't unhealthy so what the hell).

Okay - time to move on. Happy Wednesday...we're getting our first snow tomorrow (no accumulation though). And even better Christmas commercials are in full swing! It makes me so happy!

K - I'm out. Later!

Medical Upheaval

The word to describe Jim's appointment yesterday is UGH! So first, in terms of his health, Jim is still doing pretty well. He's had that one lesion which has continually increased over the last 4 scans. And though the increase is minimal, the doctor does want to switch things up. So, Jim will be switching his meds from the current b-raf inhibitors to another pharmaceuticals b-rafs. This is, of course, causing me anxiety but more on that in a bit.

The biggest UGH of the appointment, however, is that Jim is going to have to switch doctors. His current doc (Leming) is leaving Christ and because he has a non-compete in his contract (even though he's given 35 years to them) he can't practice/be associated with another hospital for a year. His original plan was to join St. E's (that freaks me out enough as it is - more on that in a minute) and a Dr. Flora who is putting together a melanoma unit. Because that can't happen for a year, Leming will, in the meantime, work for the Cincinnati Cancer Institute or Center (?) as a consult or something. Oh, and his nurse practitioner is leaving with him.

So we were given three choices in what to do:

1. Stay where we are and see one of the other doctors in the office with Christ, none of whom are focused or experts in melanoma.
2. Go to trihealth and melanoma doctor there. The bad thing with this is he won't be as "willing" to consult with Jill and Leming when caring for Jim.
3. Go to Dr. Flora and St. E's with the understanding that Leming will be joining in a year and they are trying to build something special and innovative for melanoma patients. 

Obviously we are choosing #3 and we were assured by Jill that she is still just a phone call away (we have her personal cell number). Prior to heading out of Leming's care, Jim will have another set of scans (MRI) and another appointment. This will happen in the next two weeks so it's going to be a whirlwind. And though it sounds selfish because the most important thing is Jim's health, I did voice my worry about him on new meds with us going to Punta Cana. Jill assured us that he will start at the lowest dose and work from there. Yeah, I've heard that song and dance before but I guess the only thing we can do is see what happens. 

And that's the latest. I mean, other than losing Jimmy, I can't imagine what could be worse than losing your doctor in the middle of treatment when it's not your choice. But at least we won't be left totally on our own. Fingers crossed! 

Okay well, I've got to mosey. I'm going to try and vote before school so I need to hurry. Happy Tuesday! Later!

Good Thing

It's a good thing that I took today off for Jim's appointment because they called on Friday and left a message that our appointment was moved to 1:40. I mean...who just  moves an appointment without confirmation or an okay?! Stupid. But thankfully, it isn't a big deal. Oh, and now his appointment is with Jill (the nurse practitioner) rather than the doc. I like Jill, she's fine but with the last scan showing continued growth...I really wanted to see the doc. Oh well...we'll see what happens. Hopefully we'll find out as well what will happen with their move from Christ. Dreading that potential nightmare.

In weekend news - it was a good one. Friday I went to a friends house and hung out with about 5 ladies, drank wine, talked, drank wine, talked some more, drank more wine. Thankfully Jimmy was kind enough to be my driver and he picked me up at around 10:00. Saturday we did our normal stuff - cleaned, walked and then went to Little Miami with Doug and Lauren. I finally got to try their Pumpkin Maple Cookie beer and it didn't disappoint! So yummy! Afterward, we came back and played some cards but I could tell Jim was tired so we made it an early night.

Sunday was more walking and then Jim and I did some yard clean up out front. Unfortunately I busted the lawn mower (bent the blade when I accidentally went over a root) so now I have to go to Home Depot to try and replace it so I can hopefully get the mower working again so I can get the leaves in the backyard up before the rain hits tonight. Ugh! It wasn't a good day for me in the yard yesterday! With breaking the lawn mower and cutting myself several times I was a disaster.

New show on my list to watch, which I started this morning on the elliptical: Modern Love on Prime. Half hour shows with a different story each episode and I think they'll all tie together by the end...that's the gist I got reading about it. Really cute and good!

Okay that's all I've got. I'm going to go shower so I can go to the store and HD and then hopefully get home and do a bit of work in the yard before I head to Jim's doc appointment. Happy Monday! Later!

Early Morning Panic

There's been a piece of mail on the kitchen counter for the last few days, addressed to Jim, that he hadn't opened. So, this morning, I finally opened it and found it was the letter informing us that Jim's doctor is leaving Christ. UGH! We've known this day was coming but now that it's here (Nov. 22) panic is setting in a bit. We're going to see him on Monday and hopefully we'll find out where he's headed and we can follow him but what if we can't!? I'm sure the other oncologists in his group are fine but it's scary. I'll keep you updated.

Last night was painless in terms of Halloween and trick-or-treaters. We had the group in our circle come around 6:15 and that was it. I was in bed at my usual time.

Made a delicious beef and barley soup in the instant post last night. Jim loved it. And I got to have a couple glasses of wine last night. Yum! I had been waiting all week and it was well worth the wait.

I lost 3 pounds this week. I worked out really hard this week so I'm happy with that! I'm trying to stay around 140 and right now I'm at 141.

Today is my in-service. I'll be at my desk all day tweaking my Biology lessons. Since I don't have to be at school until 8:00 I got up and exercised...watched most of my show (GBBO) but still don't know who won...I'll watch when I get to work. I know it sounds weird but I'm trying to make it last since this will be the last show for 10 months.

Tonight I'm going out (I know! On a Friday!) to hang with some ladies (friends I met through Terri). Jim's sweet and driving me. We'll go to dinner before hand (The Pub) but I plan on being home relatively early. I told Jim to leave the house at 9:30 for a 10 o'clock pick up. I just don't want to be out late and I don't want to drink too much.

And that's all I've got. I'm going to hit it here in a few. Happy Friday! Later!

I'm About To Be Sad!

Tomorrow. Tomorrow around 6 AM I'm going to be so sad! You see, tomorrow is the finale of GBBO. How is it that episode 10 has come so quickly!? I'll get up in the morning  and watch while ellipticalling because I don't need to be at school until 8:00 and I'll be crying the whole way. A whole year! I'll have to wait a WHOLE YEAR before I get to see the NEXT season! Why can't they do two seasons in a year...like Survivor!? I'm going to call my friends Noel, Prue, Sandy and Paul and see what they can do for me! Because I might just DIE if I have to wait!

Speaking of which, I'm not onto the latest season of Handmaid's Tale (season 3). That's going to suck too when I finish because I watch that on the elliptical as well. Ugh! Hopefully Killing Eve will be coming back soon.

Jim just yelled out from the recliner, "I don't have any dogs in my lap! What the FUCK!?" See, how it works: I get up in the morning, go downstairs, get the boys breakfast while I get my coffee and do breakfast prep. I then go upstairs with the boys in tow and make the bed (my side because Jim's still on his side) while Scout rubs his face all over my pillow and Boo sticks the duck he has in his mouth in Jim's face while standing on top of him. I turn on the TV and head to the shower. Then, while I'm showering, Jim gets up, goes downstairs, gets the coffee I've brewed for him and sits in the recliner watching the news. When I come down from my shower to get breakfast, Jim is in his spot with at least 1 dog in his lap (usually Scout), sometimes both. Once I'm down, if Boo hasn't gotten his turn in Jimmy's lap, he will sit at Jim's feet and bark until Scout skedaddles and Boo takes his place. When breakfast is being eaten, they boys always head upstairs to camp out in bed. Every morning this is what we do. So I don't know why - since breakfast has been eaten - Jim is wondering where the boys are.

And that's about all I've got. Easy day today...hope yours is too. Happy Thursday! Later!

I Do! You Know Why?

So here's a phrase that's overused: "Know what I'm saying?" Jim loves (sarcasm) this phrase so much that if/when I say it, he answers with, "I do! You know why!? Cause you're speaking ENGLISH!" I try not to say it...if I can help it.

A word that I overuse is "Okay?" I was teaching one day and realized I was saying it every other word and I pointed it out to the kids and from that point on, we got NOTHING done because every time I said it (which was then every other OTHER word) we all hooted and howled and that's all anyone heard until the bell rang.

What phrase or word do you annoyingly say all the time. "I know"? "Like"? "Um"? "My bad"? (One of my kids says that every other sentence and I always answer with, "Well, it's not MY bad, that's for sure.") "No offense"? (I say that all the time but only after I call someone something rude, like - "Ya dummy! No offense!") That's another one I use a lot which I'm trying to eliminate "dummy". That's not a nice word and I got into the habit of calling Jimmy that (in a joking way...not seriously) but it got to be such a thing for me that one of these days, you know I'm going to say that to a kid.

Anyway (that's another one)...back to the present. Yesterday was productive. Aside from school/work, I came home yesterday and got some shit DONE! I did a lovely power yoga for strength (lots of holds...lots of planks) and then went out to the backyard to do leaves. Got that done and then came in and made a yummy dinner, which I've made before and find it's turning into a fave: Apricot Chicken in the IP. Spicy, slightly sweet (not overly) and delicious! And lite! From there I finally got to relax and then it was time for bed! The days go by so quickly this time of year with the leaves. Next week will be worse once the time changes and I only have a small window of daylight to work.

Today should be relatively easy. I have the transition chick from Warren County coming in to teach my LA classes and then nothing to do after school except for exercise. Dinner will be black bean/lentil soup...yummy!

I made the mistake of having Jim pick up candy for trick-or-treaters last night. Dummy! (Me, not Jim...well, okay Jim too.) We usually have a total of 16 kids (from our circle) who come by because our street is so far back and often dark. We legit (another annoying word) only need one bag but what did Jim come home with? A giant bag of lollipops (mainly for the kid  - the ONE kid - across the way who can't eat chocolate) and then one of those GIGANTIC bags of Hershey candy (that costs about $15!). Geez Jim! Who's going to eat that!? Cause we're not giving all that to the 16 kids! I'll hide it in the freezer and portion it out to Jim for his sweet treat at night. (Jim's a sugar addict and sugar is his enemy so don't give me shit for hiding it from him!)

Okay - time to get a move on. Happy, ooh! Wednesday! Two days of kids left before my in-service Friday and my long weekend. Later!

Halfway There...Until Thursday

I came home yesterday with lots to do: dinner prep before exercise, elliptical, feeding the dogs and then mowing/mulching the front yard leaves. All was well until Jim got home. He tried to wreck my plan by blowing leaves into piles. I had to yell at him twice to stop (well, once but that was after I sternly told him a first time to stop since I was MULCHING the leaves with the mower). He does this every year. I take care of the leaves. I have a system. My system is most efficient but every year he comes in and tries to do it his way...the wrong way. And I'm not just being a control freak here. We've done it his way before (let all the leaves fall and deal with them then or start to finish, can and dump) but we've found in the last 5-6 years that the best way of dealing is to mulch as much as possible and then when they get too thick, can and dump. Why can't he just let me be and do another job that's been on his list (for months) and leave me to do the leaves?!

In the end, I managed to get the front yard DONE (2 1/2 miles later) and today will be spent in the back yard. The leaves are a little thicker back there but I'm hoping that an extra day to dry out a little will make it easy mowing. Wednesday/Thursday will drop most of the rest of the leaves with the rain, storms and wind we're supposed to get. That's fine with me...hopefully we can take care of them this weekend.

In school news - I have a 7:30 IEP (just now remembered) but other than that - easy going for the day. Yesterday was rough! I was so tired. I nearly fell asleep at my desk which is unusual. Of course I went to bed early and then woke up at 4:30 ready to go. Oh well.

And that's all I've got. Time to get to work...happy Tuesday! Later!

The Recap

The weekend was good. Jim and I went to dinner on Friday with the neighbors (Pacific Kitchen)...we were home by 8:00 and Jim was in bed soon after since he had to work on Saturday at 6AM. Saturday was rainy so the boys didn't get a walk. Instead, I did some yoga, cleaned and then just waited around for Jim to get home. That happened around 1:30, we met for a late lunch at Shooters and then came home and just hung out. Sunday Scouty finally got his walk (I managed 5 miles but got a blister as a result)...it was a lovely morning...a little cloudy and windy but a perfect fall day. Jim and I headed downtown to Pins Mechanical for a little duck pin bowling then lunch at Yard House. When we got home, we blew the leaves off the deck and driveway and then played some cards with the neighbors until it was time to make dinner.

Jim proceeded to drink a LOT last night and I woke up this morning to find he hadn't closed up the house as he should have (left the door into the kitchen open all night long). Jerk.

The week should be pretty easy. I have a 4-day week with an in-service on Friday and then I took off next Monday for Jim's appointment. I have an IEP meeting tomorrow but the parent isn't coming which is fine (I've never met her in four years) and since the student is 18 she can sign for herself. Other than that, routine stuff.

I'll do my best this week to get leaves done. Today I'll work on the front yard, with the hope that the back will dry out a little. With the rain and wind Saturday, a lot of our leaves came down but we still have about half left. Thursday is supposed to have wind gusts of 40 mph so I would imagine a lot will happen then as well. It'll be a busy few weeks as we complete all the clean up.

And that's about all I have. Time to get a move on. Happy Monday...Later!

Full Weeks Suck!

The week didn't go slowly, really but working a full 5-day work week just isn't my fave. Next week, though I'll work 5 days, I'll have a kid-free Friday since we'll have an inservice that I'm hoping I get to spend at my desk working. Then, I've taken Monday the 4th off for Jim's next appointment so WOOT! 

Yesterday I went to Aldi and stocked up on most of my favorite things there: 1/2 and 1/2 (it's fat free and about $2 cheaper than anywhere else), sprouted bread, beans (lots of beans! - funny story about that in a minute), ground turkey, frozen shrimp and so on. I loves me some Aldi and their prices! 

So yeah, we've been "studying" about biomolecules in Biology (carbs, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids). I say "studying" because I'm pretty sure most of my kids aren't learning anything. Anyway - we were going over examples of where we get these biomolecules. You know, carbs = breads, pastas, potatoes and proteins = meats and beans. So I tell the kids I eat beans pretty much every morning (they're in my breakfast concoction) and one of my kids says, "That's gross." It took me a minute to figure out why he thought that was gross. Apparently in this kids mind, beans = farts. So then I had to say, "Mmm...beans..." and then, "Beans beans they're good for your heart the more you eat the more you fart. The more you fart the better you feel so eat beans for every meal!" I think he was mortified to think of me, his teacher as farting. He doesn't know me very well! 

Thankfully, today will end my suffering teaching about biomolecules. The kids will take they're test (open note because come on...there's no way they would score near passing without their notes) and I'll finally get a break from trying to drill this stupid shit into their brains. Why, you ask am I teaching them this? Because I have to...it's part of the curriculum. What're you going to do?

Tonight Jim and I will go to dinner with Doug and Lauren. We're going to Pacific Kitchen...an Asian restaurant. I say Asian because it serves dishes from 12 different countries in Asia. I try to have a different dish every time I go there. Last time I had a ramen dish. I haven't had their Pad Thai so I'm thinking that for tonight but we'll see. The menu is about 10 pages long. They also feature a lot of dishes with Spam. Jim had their Pad Thai with Spam last time...it was actually really delicious. A little salty for my taste but still yummy. After dinner tonight we'll most likely come home and hit the sack because Jim has to be at work at 6AM. 

I'm sad. I'm 2 or 3 shows away from the end of this season of Great British Bake Off. I'll have to wait a year! Life just isn't fair! 

Okay well, I'd best get a move on. Happy Friday! Later!

Sweet Mountain Christmas!

I was perusing the Internet (NO! Not perusing porn as Maggie would say) and up popped an ad for a movie that is premiering tonight on Lifetime! Sweet Mountain Christmas (with Megan Hilty who I like)! I mean...does someone  know me or what?! (Big Brother is watching) I can't wait for Christmas! And not just because two days after I'm headed to Punta Cana! I just love the holidays! Of course I'm freaking out a bit that I haven't started my shopping but then again, Jim and I are going on a trip so really that's our present to each other. But of course I'll have to get him something to open on Xmas morning.

I was reading the latest just a few minutes ago and there was a story about a speech tRUMP gave yesterday/last night talking about his big beautiful wall being build on Colorado's border. I mean...who but tRUMP would not know the geography of his own country...the country he's president of (HA!)? So of course Twitter went nuts...my fave was the pic on the left.

I came home yesterday and Jimmy was home so I got to take a lovely bike ride and then I came home and took a nice walk with Scouty. He was so happy!

Speaking of my dogs, they are filthy! They both need a bath which I won't be able to give them until Saturday. Maybe I'll try to give them one today or tomorrow though...with Jim's help.

Jim has to work on Saturday. It was either that or go in at 10PM this week tonight. He has to be there at 6AM which I'm fine with because A) I'll still be sleeping and B) He'll be home before noon. Plus it's going to be a nasty day on Saturday so we don't have any real plans. Maybe a quick trip to Little Miami (still need to try their pumpkin beer)...who knows?

And that's all I've got. Today will be a stupid day at work because we're on an Advisory schedule...I hate advisory as I've mentioned before. The activities tend to be stupid and today is no exception. Oh well...this too shall pass and then tomorrow is FRIDAY! (And we're going out to Pacific Kitchen for dinner tomorrow...yum!)

K - I'm out. Happy Thursday! (There's another weird sounding animal outside.) Later!

I Don't Know Why Jim Talks To Me

Jim says stupid shit...thems just the facts. So there's this Thrifty commercial that's been on lately and Kenan Thompson from SNL is the new "face". So Jim says to me, "What's that guys name who is on that Thrifty commercial?" And I said, "I don't know...I can't remember...something Thompson maybe?" And then Jim says, "Oh yeah, Kenan Thompson." Then he adds this: "Did you know he's had the longest run on SNL and I don't even know his name? And I think that's the norm with a lot of people!" (Apparently he's had a lot of conversations about Kenan Thompson and done some polls on if people know who he is or not.) "And then he said, "Why do you think people don't know who he is?" And I said, "Well, maybe you weren't sure who he was because you don't watch SNL. I knew his last name was 'Thompson' and when I said that you immediately came back with his first name. So I'm thinking this """theory""" of yours is bullshit?"

Like I said, Jim says stupid shit sometimes.

My ass and arms hurt. I did some pretty rigorous yoga yesterday with a lot of chaturangas and some splits (that I can't do but tried) and boy am I feeling it this morning. It's a good hurt though.

There is some kind of crazy animal outside that my dogs are interested in. I don't know what it is but it's out there sort of screaming. It almost sounds like a dog but I don't think it is. So weird. Boo just came running in - obviously wigged out a bit but of course Scout is still out there thinking he can wrangle the damn thing given the chance.

My behavior kid has been absent for the last week - bronchitis and then pink eye - and is coming back today...dread. He's such a lying pain in the ass. And his lying is partially his skewed sense of reality. We had this long conversation about him coming to me a couple days a week during his 1st period so I can help him and then I get an email from his gma saying he didn't know he could do this...he thought it was a one time thing. I'll set them straight when I get to work. He's just so exhausting. Oh well...such is my job.

Okay - well, I best mosey...get to work and drink another 10 cups of delicious coffee. Happy Wednesday...half way through. Later!

I Need To Get A Cheetah!

Specifically, I need to go steal Kris, the Cincinnati Zoo's cheetah and her companion dog Remus. Although, I don't think Scout and Boo would appreciate the new additions. I mean, how cool would it be if you were a dog and you said, "My best friend is a cheetah!" (Or if you were a cheetah and could say, "My best friend is a dog!") So sweet!

Today should be an easy day (knock on wood). My LA classes are required to go to a vaping/juul lecture which means, I'll have 3rd, 4th, and 5th bells basically free. Woot! I'm hoping to crank out a couple IEPs during that time. I also have a parent requesting to have a chat. Her daughter just transferred into Kings this year and is struggling in Geometry. All these kids are struggling in this class because they basically teach using a computer program and they've combined two classes so there are approximately 40 kids. The struggling learners are getting lost. Stupid.

What else is happening? Can't think...nothing. It's nice and chilly out. We got some rain yesterday. Um...not much else. I'm so boring lately. Not that I'm complaining but it certainly doesn't make for an exciting read, does it?

OH!!! It's Diane's birthday today! I totally forgot! Damn! Happy birthday Diane! You won't read this but I'll see you 2nd bell. Boo and Scout say "Rappy Rirthday Romma Ree!" (That's happy birthday Momma D!)

Okay well, on that note...I'm out. Happy Tuesday! Later!

Back To The Grind

Another Monday...the weekend went way too fast. I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't remember what day it was. For a minute I got excited thinking I wouldn't have to work when I got up. And then I remembered and my heart sunk a little. Oh well...another day another dollar.

The weekend was good. Jim and I had quite the adventure going to the Party Source. We headed to the Banks and all the roads were closed for some marathon. Once we finally found a place to park and got to the Yard House, we were enjoying a beer, had just ordered food and the electricity went out. In the end we had to leave because we weren't going to get lunch there (they had no clue when the power would come back on) and ended up at Hofbrauhaus. Yummy.

The Party Source was a bit of a dud in that they didn't have any kegs we wanted. They did have some yummy beer, however and I'm excited! Death by Coconut and a couple other coffee infused beers.

The week should be relatively easy. No meetings this week...no late nights. I should be able to get caught up on a couple things so that's good.

Storms will come in this afternoon. We need the rain for sure.

Our giant tree is down in the backyard...what a relief. Of course the dumb asses took all the wood which pissed me off. They'll be replacing it when we need it.

Got my passport on Saturday! And our airline confirmation. Woot!

Okay - gotta mosey...I have to get gas on the way to school. Happy Monday Later!

One Down...

...three to go. Late nights, that is, at work. Last night was fine. I got hardly anything done, however, because my meetings were so spread out. 3:45, 3:55-4:40; by the time I finished my dinner at that point, my 5:40 showed up. Then I had a 5:53 appointment and a 6:06 appointment and then it was time to go. All the meetings went well...I have happy parents.

Today should be pretty easy. Test in US history, reading to my LA kids (we're about half way through our Agatha Christie book) and in science we're going to slow down and make a word wall...cause these kids just don't understand Carbon-based Molecules. Not sure their teacher does either. Just kidding!

My plans for the weekend are pretty exciting: A whole lot of hanging at home and loving on my pups. I've been away these last two weekends so I'm excited to have no commitments. Our neighbors are headed to Louisville tonight and we'll take care of their Great Dane, bearded dragon, fish and cat but that's no big deal. Jim and I do have plans - finally - to go to the Party Source to replenish our kegs and then eat lunch at Yard House but that's fun stuff!

The tree is mostly down in back. They got all the branches off and most of the brush has been hauled away. My neighbor kept me informed on the goings-on yesterday via text so I didn't have to worry so much. Phew! Tree guys will return today to drop the trunk which should come down easily and without incident (knock on wood). It's amazing to look out there and not see that tree. It was such a behemoth and took up so much sky space...it's like we put a sky light in! Oh, I guess we do have that chore to do this weekend now: stack the pieces to season for splitting next year.

And that's about all I've got. It's Friday and considering I had a late night last night - the week really did fly by. Happy weekend people! Later!

Look Who's 53!!!

Happy birthday to TRIPPY!!! I hope you have a marvelous day! Here are the things that make me thankful every day to have you as my brother:

• I love how much you love JJ and I love the father you are to him! He is your life's work and it touches my heart every time I see you two together!
• My love of sports (especially baseball) can be chalked up to you and I know who to call whenever I have a question about one of our teams! 
• I love your wife! I know that's about her but I'm so glad you were smart enough to snatch her up and bring her into this family! 
• I love to play euchre with you because I know you don't take it too seriously and won't annoy me (like Jim does) when we play. BTW - we need to get together and play soon!
• I love that you're pretty much up for anything! PIB is so much more fun when you're there!
• You're generous and and funny and the best big brother out there! I hope you have an amazing day! Love you

In other news, I've been APPROVED!!! In other words, my passport is on its way! It was a pain in the ass to get this damn thing but I can only blame myself (for not knowing better) and the damn post office dude who didn't send in the correct paperwork. In the end, it took just about 6 weeks, which is the allotted time they give for normal processing and that's even with an eff up in my paperwork. 

In scary news: The tree guys are taking the giant tree down in the backyard today. I'm so nervous! I'm so worried they're going to hit the house or the fence. The good thing about this is that I won't be home when it's going on and so won't have to watch on tender hooks! Being at work will allow me to be preoccupied and not think about what's going on but I'll still worry. Mostly about the dogs. I know they'll be wrecks while in their cages and hearing everything happening but what else can I do? Fingers crossed it all goes as planned and nothing bad happens. 

In sad news: Elijah Cummings died. Ugh! He was only 68! I know he was ill lately and had heart issues but it just makes me sad. 

Today is my LONG day at school. I'll be there for 12 hours and though I will be able to get work done that needs doing, I have 5 parents to meet with which doesn't make me happy. I mean seriously?! You need to meet with me when we email back and forth about 3 times a week already? Why must they waste my time? Add to all that - I'll be extra tired today because I got up at 4:00 to exercise but it's worth it! Now I won't feel guilty when I'm sitting for so long tonight at my computer and I can forgive myself for the 2 glasses of wine I had last night. 

Okay - time to get a move on...happy Thursday! Later

Guess Who's 51?!

Happy Birthday Maggie! So glad we got to celebrate this past weekend! You make 51 (and any age really) look amazing!!!

Here's what I celebrate about you, not just today but everyday:

• You are my best friend.
• You are the voice of reason for me when the voice inside my head is screaming and can't be heard. 
• You are the mamma to one of my fave peeps in the whole world! 
• You are generous!
• You were my support in the last year while we went on the WW journey to finally get those pounds off. 
• You motivate me to keep going in my health journey (especially when all I want to do is chug a bottle of wine!)
• You have been such a support to Jimmy and me through his whole health crisis. 
• You make me laugh everyday! 
• You are supportive and you cheer me on and know when I need a kick in the pants
• You are my sounding board!
• Basically, you get me and I hope you have a great day! Talk to you later!

Guess what? It's raining...like cats and dogs. However, it should end here in about 2 hours or so and from that point, the temps will plummet! Brr!!! Of course, that won't last and by the weekend, we'll be back in the 70s again. I have NO idea when I'm going to finally get a fire in my fireplace! Ugh! 

One good thing from yesterday: I managed to get home exercise and then get the front yard mowed. It needed it, especially because I needed to mulch up the leaves that had fallen. We have a long way to go before that job will finally be done but at least I got that done before the rain. 

Jim got our new outdoor lights mounted. They're awesome too because they have a sensor and just pop on and off when the light gets dim enough! And they look good! I had been looking for a while and hadn't found anything I liked but Jim went to Costco and found exactly what I was looking for. Good boy Jimmy!

And that's about all I've got. I have a 7:30 meeting today so need to get a move on to make sure things are set to go. Hopefully it will be an easy, quick meeting. Should be. 

Happy Wednesday. Later!

Snuggles

Boo has recently switched his sleeping habits and is now into spooning with me, under the covers, while laying his head in my arm pit. This makes me happy. This is what I've missed since my sweet boys Bubba and Zeke got too old to get on the bed. Last night he got there, I tucked him in, and aside from switching positions, he didn't move all night long until the alarm went off. He just keeps getting sweeter and sweeter!

So I have an IEP tomorrow and I realized last night when I woke up around 3:00 AM that I don't think I ever finished the IEP. Oops. This also means I didn't send a draft home. Oops. Well, at least it's a kid who I've had for 4 years and I can crank out a goal before school starts. Woot.

I mentioned in a previous post that parent/teacher conferences are on Thursday and I got my sign-up sheet of parents after school yesterday. I have 4 meetings...which annoys me a little. One is with a parent who always comes. Another is for a parent who was bummed she didn't get to meet me at Open house and the other two, well, the one showed up last year and isn't a big deal. The final one is for the new Down Syndrome girl who is completely misplaced in nearly every class. She takes my class (Language Arts) but is also in a "college prep" English class. She is completely unengaged and basically stares off into space with her fingers in her mouth whenever anything is going on in class. She has practically NO communication skills and though the parents assured the "team" she was well-versed in her iPad communication app, she's not. They also said she's on a 4th grade reading level which is another joke. Maybe pre-primer! I understand wanting your child to be a part of the school with as much normalcy as possible but it's such a disservice to not teach her any life skills. They have the idea that she'll be going to college and living on her own someday but she can't even walk to class by herself. She got stuck in a bathroom stall a couple weeks ago and couldn't figure out how to get out. But she's going to live on her own!? Right! God forbid we celebrate her differences; her uniqueness and try to capitalize on that rather than make her something she's not. We can shoot for the stars and make lofty goals while still teaching her some sort of independence. And they're such hypocrites! On one hand, they want her completely included in every way at school and yet they demand to hamper her progress and have an aide who is supposed to do everything for her, every minute of the day. Right now, her day consists of sitting in classes without learning anything! But of course I won't be saying any of that to the parents.  So annoying.

And that's all I've got. I need to get moving so I can finish that IEP. Oh, I made a delicious soup last night: Skinny Chicken Fajita Soup. It didn't call for it to be made in the instant pot but I did anyway and it was yummy with lots of leftovers that I froze.

Okay - time to finish my toilette! Ooh, it's National Cheese Curd day! And National Cake Decorating day! And Global Hand washing Day! And a day for me too: National Grouch Day! I will try to celebrate all of those today. Happy Tuesday! Later!

A Full 5-Day Week

It's been a while since I've actually had to work a full week but here we are. And this next run (until Thanksgiving) is going to be a tough one. Although, Nov. 1st is an in-service so that is something. Oh, and I will be taking a 1/2 day (or whole) to go to Jim's follow up appointment for the scan he has today (I'm a little worried about this one) so that's something. I can do it!!! I just have to keep my eye on the "prize" which is Thanksgiving break and then Christmas! AND THEN PUNTA CANA!!!

The weekend was lovely by the way. It was very relaxing and fun and we had beautiful weather. Saturday was quite breezy and chilly in the Oktoberfest tent but a bit of beer and brats kept us warm. Basically we ate, drank, played cards, drank some more, walked, shopped...and that's about it. It's always nice to go there in the fall (for all the obvious reasons) but everything is on sale as well, which means I made out like a bandit in terms of replenishing my sweatshirts and even got a cute little ornament.

We got the 9:30 ferry (which wasn't on the Miller schedule) so Jim and I got home (after stopping for lunch at Panera) before 2:00. It was a rough ride home but as Maggie said, it didn't even make the top 10 of rough rides we've experienced.

This week at school will be a bit of a pain since I have an IEP Wednesday (it will be easy) but then Thursday is Parent/Teacher Conferences so I'll have to be at school until 7:00. I don't know yet if I have any meetings but I usually only have one or two. We'll see. I have a feeling that since I missed Open House, a couple teachers may want to come in to meet me. Here's hoping I'm wrong.

Okay well, I'd best get moving...happy Monday! Later!

Jobs That No Longer Exist

I wish one of the bullet points on that list (based on the title of this post) were Donald Trump's job as president but alas, that fucking clown is still in the White House. I shouldn't call him a clown though because there are some people who think clowns are funny and the shit that DT is pulling now just isn't funny. It's scary. The best word for him at this point with what's now happening in Syria is murderer. I think what's going to maybe tickle his regret button is when he starts hearing those serving in the military saying they are ashamed of DT and what he's doing to America. How does he still have supporters? And if your answer is that we (America) can't be the only ones helping to fight terrorism, you may want to keep in mind that we can stop fighting terrorists but they aren't going to stop fighting us.

So now to my list of jobs that no longer exist. I saw this online and was interested and will share with my kids at school since we're currently studying the about labor unions in the late 1800s. Here are just a few good ones:

• Soil Collector - I mean, that would suck! This was a person who would go around and collect buckets of waste from homes at night. What a stinky job that would be.
• Rat Catcher  - no explanation needed. I think the worst part of this job was the mound of rodents they had in the picture. Gross...gives me the willies!
• Used Teeth Salesman - This was something they had in UK and Ireland where people couldn't afford dental upkeep/cleanings and then after they lost all their teeth, they couldn't afford new false teeth so they would have to use USED teeth. Gross! I would you NOT gag putting those in your mouth? 
• Projectionist - I only put this up here because it hasn't been that long that we've had projectionists at movie theaters. In fact, I know Trip used to run the projectors at the movie theater when he worked there and though I never ran them, they had them at Kenwood Towne Centre theaters when I worked there in 1990. 
• Knocker-Upper - Nope, not someone that went around impregnating people...this was the person who went around and knocked on people's doors to wake them up in the mornings because alarm clocks were too expensive. Mostly this was a common job in UK and Ireland in factory towns. 

So today is my Friday and I have a SHIT ton of stuff to do after work. I need to exercise, clean, pack, love on the boys and figure out dinner (we'll probably go out). I'll send Jim to the store after work.

I plan on getting tomorrow at 4AM so I can do my elliptical and then I hope to hit the road by 6AM. I figure, if I don't exercise in the morning, I won't do it once at PIB. Plus, I need to burn as many calories as possible since I'll be drinking a fair amount of beer.  Which means, I won't be posting tomorrow...sorry! I'll post on Instagram and FB though so settle your jets!

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Thursday! See you Monday! Later!

P.S. Spell check isn't working so please excuse my misspellings!

20 Mintues! BAM!

That's how long my IEP meeting was. I love it when I can fly through a meeting and get everyone in and out in a reasonable amount of time. It helps that it was an easy kid (pretty much all my kids are easy this year...knock on wood) and the parents were on time. I have another one today with a parent I haven't met but hopefully it won't take too terribly long...especially because it eats into my lunch.

How did I not know that there was a Netflix movie on Breaking Bad!? I keep forgetting to tell Jim too. I'll have to watch the final episode to remind myself exactly what happened and then watch it.

Sure is chilly out there. And that's not a complaint!

Yesterday I came home and finally decided to tackle the backyard lawn. It needed cutting but it's still so dry out there. I might tackle the front yard today...we'll see but I don't feel like a got a great workout yesterday so I need to elliptical it today.

What else? Jim's still in bed. These last two days, he's worked late. Monday he was out until 10:00 and then last night he didn't get home until 8:30ish. He told his boss that he was going in late today as a result. I don't blame him. However, he asked me to still make his breakfast and now it's cold. Oh well, he'll still eat it.

Got a call from Eva yesterday. She had her first appointment to get her grill "fixed". Apparently she has "too many teeth" and a cross bite. She got spacers put in yesterday and then will go back next week for something else. Eventually they'll put a palette expander in. She told me that she wasn't really nervous and that it didn't really hurt...maybe one tooth that got a spacer was a little uncomfortable. What a champ!

Okay well, I'll go see if Jim wants to get up and at 'em and I'll get myself ready for the day. Happy Wednesday (ooh, tomorrow is my "Friday"). Later!

Pumpkin Pie Hummus!?

Yep, you read that right! Pumpkin Pie Hummus and it's delicious! I was turned onto this by Anne so while I was Krogering yesterday I remembered, bought it and tried it with a lovely Honeycrisp apple and I'm telling you what! I could have eaten the whole container! So yummy! For a while I was off the pumpkin-flavored everything because I burnt myself out with pumpkin beer and pumpkin bagels etc. But enough time has now passed that I'm back ON! Everything in moderation!

I had one of my recurring dreams again last night: Moving out of an apartment. The part of this dream that I woke up thinking about was that one of the rooms I was cleaning out had a bunch of aquariums in it with baby frogs (hundreds of them all clustered together...it was creepy), roaches (gross) and snakes in it. When I called to Jim to get the F&%K in there and take care of it, he acted like he knew it was in there all the time. Disgusting.

I have a 7:30 IEP meeting this morning...so I need to get a move on because I need to make a few copies, read the thing over and get gas.

Oh, my tomato soup in the Instant pot was delicious last night and bonus! It made enough to freeze some!

I got home yesterday and Scout was acting so weirdly. He kept following me around and jumping up to me and needing hugs and love and when I would bend down to love on him, he'd start shaking like a leaf. I don't know what was up with him. I guess he just needed his momma.

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Tuesday! Later!

Another Short Week

As I will be headed north on Friday for our final PIB visit of the year, I will have a short week...WOOT! However, I have two IEPs but they should be relatively easy (one tomorrow and one...Wednesday?). Other than that - a normal week.

The weekend was lovely. Headed to Columbus where we shopped, went to Pins, watched football and relaxed. I was home yesterday by 11:00 and Jim and I went to Shooters for a quick bite. I walked Scout (Jim walked Boo), bathed the boys (they were ragamuffins!) and then put my aero pilates machine together and did a little arm and cardio on it. I forgot how good of a workout that thing gives.

Jim had lots of jobs this weekend and he did okay in getting them done. His main job was to start cleaning the basement, which he did. There was a lot of shifting of stuff from all over the place to the left side of the basement but he did manage to purge some things. It's a start. He also brought up the pilates machine and though vacuuming was on the list he didn't get that done until I made him do it yesterday afternoon.

The weather is finally cool and fall-like. We currently have rain but won't get near enough of it. Not that I'm complaining...too much. A drier fall makes for easier leaf clean up. We've had about 1 inch of rain since September 1st. That's crazy!

Dinner tonight will be homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese. I've never been a tomato soup girl but over the weekend I had a cup at Cap City Diner and it was amazing. Made me realize that I like tomato soup and because I know Jim will love soup and grilled cheese for dinner, I decided to treat him. I have a recipe that's a stove top one but I'll make it in the Instant Pot instead. Kind of a combo of a couple recipes...need to cut some of the fat as well.

Oh! Booked our Punta Cana trip! Well, I booked the hotel, I'll do the flight this morning! So excited! I also got the letter from the State Department so I can finally get my passport rolling and hopefully have it within the next couple weeks.

And that's all I've got. Need to pay a couple bills and then head out to work. Happy Monday! Later!

Finally!!!

You're probably saying that because I'm so late in posting but that's because I took today off for appointments and then decided to head to Columbus. The real reason I say, "Finally" however, is that I got the email I was waiting for to complete my passport application process. I need to make a copy of my birth certificate and then send it off in the mail, which I'll do on Monday. Phew...I'll be glad to get that off my plate.

And now with all of that nearly complete, I'll make my reservations for my trip on Sunday. I found a good deal for a nice place in Punta Cana through Costco and then I'll do all my flight stuff through my credit card company so I can redeem my points, which will basically allow for a free upgrade to first class. I'm excited too because the cost of my trip is going to be about $1000 less than I had budgeted for...woot! Can't wait!

Like I said, I'm headed to Columbus in a bit because I haven't been there in forever. No real plans except that its the Fall Festival at Eva's school so we'll do that when we pick her up. Maggie needs to get jeans (because she's so skinny now, none of her old ones fit) so we'll do a bit of shopping as well. Other than that, no plans.

It's going to be a GORGEOUS and cool weekend. I'm so happy the heat has finally broken. It was getting a bit stifling.

My dogs are running around like nuts...which is good since they'll be getting in their cages in a bit. I sure am going to miss them this weekend. And next weekend when we go to PIB. And then I think about being away from them in December and I get sad. But I know they'll be fine! I just need to settle down.

Okay well, I need to get my shit together because I still haven't finished packing. Although I've exercised already and showered and eaten breakfast so packing is all I need to do.

Happy Friday! Happy weekend! Later!

Here's Why...

I'm happy! Here's why: By this evening, we'll be on our way toward temps that are 20 degrees cooler than they've been for the last, almost week!

I'm well rested regardless of Boo. Here's why: Boo, who usually sleeps up on my pillows, decided he needed his mama a little closer last night. He moved down to the crook of my belly and we spooned all night long. Usually when this happens, I have a hard time sleeping because I'm very aware of my pup and don't want to disturb him and leave me so I don't move when I need/want to. Last night though, I slept well and moved when I needed to and still Boo stayed. He's my little snuggler! (Usually it's Scout.)

I'm feeling bad for Trip and Susan. Here's why: After buying their "forever" home, while getting it ready for move in, they found they had termites, which the inspectors didn't catch (can't see that they didn't know they were there from everything I'm hearing). Because of that, they've been on hold with moving in and moving on, waiting for a remedy. As of now, the termites have been treated but they have to wait on the insurance adjuster to find out what kind of money they'll get for the damage before they can get moving on the repairs. Ugh! They are in good spirits (after going through all the other stages of "grief" with this fiasco) and are just looking forward to putting this behind them. In the meantime, they will move onto fixing up the parts of the house that they can - painting walls...doing landscaping etc.

I'm feeling excited! Here's why: Trip called me last night to tell me about the plans for PIB. Things are really starting to roll with the rehab and it looks like the following may happen: They will close off the bathroom that opens into the kitchen to make it open only into the bedroom there. They will put in a 1/2 bath downstairs. They will extend the kitchen out toward the road by 15 feet. They will enclose the side porch and take down the chimney along with a wall to open up the downstairs. Upstairs, they'll put in another full bath and bedroom and connect the loft to the house. I'm so excited if all this happens! Updates are much needed and to finally have this ball rolling...WOOT!

Okay well, now I'm feeling sad! Here's why: I'm done with my post which means I need to head to work! However, today is my Friday so that's a good thing! And...I get to have a glass of wine tonight! And I'm having Cincinnati Chicken Chili for dinner! And...can't think of anything else. So, happy Thursday! Later!

This Heat...This Lack Of Rain

I mean, I can't believe the grass hasn't just self-combusted and caused a major brush fire...everywhere. It's so freakin' dry out there. I walk on the grass and it just crunches. The heat hasn't really bothered me much since I'm inside all day. But it does piss me off that I've had to have the AC on in October, which pisses me off but other than that...I'm just happy there's an end in sight. Last week at this time, there was no 10-day forecast with anything but 80s and 90s. Friday should be lovely!

I had a dream last night that I was back working at the deli but for some reason I was working naked. And it didn't seem to be a big deal...that's just what I chose to "wear" that day. Of course mid-way through my shift I said to my fellow workers, "I'm going to go out to my car and see if I have anything clean to put on." So I go out and find something (in a randomly placed suitcase in my back seat) but I can't put my clothes on because I can't find anywhere private to do it. Isn't that funny!? Muwee be all cray cray!

Jim didn't get home until 8:20 last night! Poor guy! Well, hopefully that just means overtime! Or it'll be make-up hours for Friday.

I made one of the most delicious meals I've ever had in my Instant Pot last night and Jimmy wasn't home to enjoy it at the dinner table. Although, he got to eat it when he did get home and he said it was FREAKIN' DELICIOUS! It was a Tuscan Chicken dish. It's pinned under my Instant Pot board. Note: I cut the heavy cream and put in lite coconut milk instead. I also put the sun-dried tomatoes in while the chicken cooked. It was so freakin' flavorful! Can't wait for leftovers today!

Today will be a good day because not only am I giving a test in 2nd bell but 3rd and 5th bell will be taught by someone else! Woot!

Okay - that's all I've got. Time to get a move on! Happy Wednesday! (I originally started typing Tuesday and then realized...YAY!!! It's Wednesday!) K - Later!

Too...Many...Passwords...To...Remember

I hate that my life is controlled by whether I can remember my user name and password or not! Ugh! For the most part, I rely on one go to (I know that's bad) and most of my password/user names are saved on my devices but if I'm home and I need to check a website that's primarily used at school, and something has changed, I can never remember the damn things. Drives me nuts! I need a place where I keep all my stuff with access from anywhere. Maybe I'll take care of that this week.

I hate moths! Moths are mother effers! They, for some reason, think it's hilarrrrrious to come in through the open slider in the kitchen and beam me in the face and scare the shit out of me and make me scream like I'm being attacked by Freddie...or Jason...or Michael! Or all three at the same time!

The end of this heat wave is in sight. If I can just get through Thursday, I should wake up on Friday to lovely fall weather. Can't wait! Oh, and rain too...we haven't had rain in about a month so that will be nice. A nice squirrel piss cleansing of the backyard will make everything right again in the Hanke household. Those boys just really like whatever that smell is! They will be getting baths soon!

Jimmy got his new glasses yesterday and as predicted, he feels like they aren't right. I think it's just he hasn't had new glasses with the correct prescription in years so it's taking some getting used to (this happened with his last pairs). I told him to give it at least two days and see what happens. He looks so cute in his glasses though!

And that's about all I have to talk about. Nothing much happening here in my life. The political upheaval happening right now is crazy...addictive to watch at times. I find I have to just turn this shit off to settle my brain and get some relief. It's so depressing but I'm hoping there's a light at the end of this horrible tunnel.

K - I'm out. Happy Tuesday! Later!