A New Norm?

Well, I was reminded around 5:30, by Maggie, that I had once again, forgotten to post! Even after all my well-intended intentions! Can you believe it? I think I can. I mean, I already forgot that it was Wednesday! That didn't take long.

So here's the gist of what I did today:

• Woke up around 6:30 and hung out with my pups...for as long as the first 15 minutes of the Today show was over. 
• Took the dogs for a walk, which ended up being a MAJOR teaching moment with my not-used-to-seeing-wildlife pups! Ugh!
• Saw a squirrel...no big deal...although Scout acted like he hadn't seen one EVER even though he watches them from the bedroom window CONSTANTLY and whines and acts like he wants to jump through the window to climb trees with them EVERY FREAKING DAY!!!
• Then saw a bunny rabbit...immediately after seeing the squirrel which, as you can imagine, excited Scout to no end (not sure he's actually really ever seen a rabbit) and he started whining in a high pitched whine which woke the WHOLE neighborhood and caused Boo to start barking (at something he hadn't seen).
• THEN! If you can believe it, prompted by the squirrel, rabbit and crazy dogs, a deer burst through the trees and ran across the street about 6 feet in front of where we were walking. I would imagine that you can now imagine what I was dealing with. This was an episode straight out of Candid Camera for sure. I had two pups - one barking uncontrollably (Boo) and one whining at a such a high-pitched sound that windows were probably breaking around us - both straining on their leashes, wrapping themselves around my legs with me trying to remain calm. And then I looked up...and saw the deer...giving me the stinkeye! Seriously, I thought at any moment, I was about to be charged. And so I announced loudly, "LADY! I have enough to deal with without you attacking me! MOVE ALONG!"
• And then! If you can imagine, just as we get past the deer soap opera, we encounter the neighbors shiz tzu, tied up in the front yard on her hind legs wanting so badly (and cutely) to play with Boo and Scout. It was total mayhem! 
• We continued our walk, regardless of how much I wanted to turn tail and run back home and I turned the "wildlife walk" (as I like to call it) into a teaching moment of how we do not need to bark and whine at every little thing that moves in front of us on a walk! (We'll work on this again tomorrow! I'm determined!)
• As you can imagine, after my walk, I needed a bit of yoga and so I did one of my fave routines, followed by some core workout. 
•  Bath
• TV
• Reading - loving my book
• Dinner - I did fish in a foil packet on the grill and IT. WAS. DELICIOUS!!! I will definitely be doing that again! A little cod, onion slices, red bell pepper, butter, and fresh thyme! So easy!

So a Jim update: No fever still but his appetite hasn't been making me happy. He hasn't been eating nearly what I think he needs to in order to keep his strength up. However, he's eating his protein at dinner so that's something. Additionally, he had a slight "sore throat" last night and this morning. He said he thinks this had to do with the coldness of the place he's working but I'll still make note of it.

And that's all I've got. I'll head to Costco tomorrow (dog food needed) but other than that, I'll do my normal routine. The boys are getting used to this new summer schedule and are totally chill during the day. I think they're starting to get they're adult personalities. Nice!

Happy Wednesday! LATER!

My 47 Year-Old Brain

I had every intention of posting this morning! I kept reminding myself and then I got caught up in all my routines! First I drank my coffee then I decided to walk the pups, which they loved and they even saw two of the big neighbor dogs and didn't freak out! From there I took a nice bike ride, then came home, showered, changed the sheets on the bed, ran some laundry and then headed out to Walmart for a quick shop. I usually don't like to go to Walmart but they have the tank tops I like so there you go. It wasn't too bad there and in fact, they had the cereal that Jim likes which Kroger doesn't sell as an off brand.  When I got home, I ran more laundry and then had lunch.

After all this running around, you'd think I'd remember to finally post but alas, my cuddly pups were calling my name and so I hunkered down with a blanket and my book (I'm reading John Grisham's Camino Island...it's really good) and read.

After they got up from their nap I decided to clean out some of my drawers and the linen closet...something I've been putting off forever! And then it was time to make the black bean burgers for dinner! Well, then it was time to feed the pups and then Jim got home! Finally as I sat on the couch, I realized, "Huh! I'm a dummy!" So here we are!

BTW - my bike ride was lovely this morning because at the end, as I was sweating my ass off, it started to rain...just a nice light sprinkle. It was so refreshing! I'm so happy to be back on my bike again! My butt is finally getting used to the pain and I'll soon be ready for the bike trail. (That takes some buildup!)

The dogs are LOVING me being home all the time! All they want to do is cuddle and hang out! These babies are so much fun! I'm so happy I've got them in my life!

Okay well, I think I'll settle in and watch some Nicolle Wallace! Happy...Tuesday! I'll try not to forget to blog tomorrow! Later!

Oh - and Jimmy update: No fever yet. He's feeling good and powering through (knock on wood!). Later!

The Weekend Ahead

Yesterday was just lovely! I got up after Jim had left for work and hung out with the pups. I think they're a bit confused as to why I'm home but they certainly aren't complaining. We watched a little news together, had breakfast and then I got ready for my ride. When I was putting on my shoes the boys got very excited so I felt compelled to walk them. They were so good and enjoyed it thoroughly. I then took my bike ride (8 miles...and my ass felt it!) came home, cleaned and laid in the sun. I got a little red but it's tan now and I've got a good start.

Mom and Richard got here around 4:00. We hung out until it was time to go to dinner. We went to the Rusty Bucket and then Jim and dropped them off at Max's graduation. Side note here: Eight o'clock is WAY too late for a graduation! I know I'm a loser but 8:00!? On a weekday!? Ridiculous! This meant that Mom and Richard were dropped off here at home around 10 pm and went straight to bed.

Today's plans: I think we'll hang here for the most part. We will, however, venture out for lunch - Skyline. Other than that we're home bound. I was going to take a bike ride but my butt pleaded with me to spare it so I'll cut the grass instead. That's a feat in itself. I also need to figure out what to do about dinner and probably head to the grocery.

Lets see...what else? Nothing. It's still beautiful here but the humidity is supposed to ramp up over the next 24 hours.

Okay - well, it's Friday right? I probably won't post again until Monday so enjoy your holiday weekend! Later!

A Whole Summer Ahead!

Day one of summer vacay has started and I couldn't be happier! My plans this summer are to relax, got to Columbus and PIB, relax, hang with my pups, relax, work on my tan and...relax!

Yesterday was fine. Although I was a little sickened at the staff breakfast when a certain teacher who should have lost her job but didn't, showed her stupid face. Long story short, this is a teacher who has continually done questionable things to students (multi-handicapped students who can't speak out for themselves) and was finally forced to answer for her actions. Unfortunately, she managed to lie her way out of any consequences and so is returning to her job. The thing that drives me crazy is that I know of at least 8 people who had to testify about what they had seen her do and yet her one denial of anything was enough for the district to back down. She's a disgusting human being and I don't know how the people in our district, in our building can look at her and smile knowing what she's done. It's so hypocritical. People have no backbone and no morals I guess. All I can say is that our district is setting themselves up for a major shit storm because this is one big old stupid tiger that will never change her stripes. I seriously think she has a mental illness and the effects of it are affecting those poor kids in her classroom. Shame on those who know and support her!

This weekend will be a somewhat busy one with Mom and Richard coming in today for Max's graduation (I'm not going but they are). Saturday will be the family celebration at Hyde Park Country Club and then Mom and Richard will head back to TN on Sunday.

Jim's appointment with the doc yesterday was uneventful...what I expected. He's on the lowest does of Mekinist and Tafinlar and it will be up to Jim and I to monitor his regiment. If, for example, he takes it for a week and then develops a fever, he'll stop the meds until the fever and other symptoms go away. When he starts back up, he'll take the meds for 6 days and hope the fever doesn't recur. He'll then stop for the time it took the fever to go away previously and so on and so forth. I'll have to track how things go and the timeline so that we can easily report progress.

So my plans today: Originally I had planned to do a big Costco shop but I was able to knock that out yesterday. So today I'll go for a bike ride (around the neighborhood I think), come home and clean and then relax until Mom and Richard arrive. I'm not sure what the plans are for tonight...since we aren't going to the graduation, I'll just have to find out plans from mom.

And that's all I've got. Best get a move on and get my ride on. Hopefully most of the school buses are through and I won't be too bothered by traffic.

Happy Thursday! Happy summer break! Later!

Hard To Believe

Hard to believe it's the LAST day of school (though it's not really a "school day").

Hard to believe Jim's going BACK on meds (probably tomorrow). Ugh! I dread this. These meds and their side effects make me nuts...can't even imagine how Jim's feeling going into all this.

Hard to believe my friend Joe (I went to his father's visitation last night) has a 12 year old daughter! It seems like just a few years ago I went to his wedding reception. BTW - he also has a 9 year old boy who looks and acts exactly like him.

Joe is now managing the brewery that another acquaintance opened last fall. I will certainly be frequenting there more often.

One of my students has lost his mind. Cletus has been continually emailing me (I got 5 emails yesterday from him) professing his love and trying to "connect" on messenger with me. UGH! I guess I'm just so irresistible and such a great teacher, he's now obsessed with me. He'll get over it. He's moving too so won't be in my class next year. Poor guy! It's sweet though.

The boys find it hard to believe that they're going to have the whole summer to hang out with me. I'm very excited! I'm going to start walking them more in the mornings...get them used to walking together. Now that their new harnesses are here it should be much easier.

And now I need to get a move on. I slept a little later today since I don't need to be to school as early but I do need to stop at the grocery and get my contribution to the staff breakfast this morning. Cereal...which no one will eat, I'm sure.

I really don't have anything to do at school. I'll probably eat, do the final cleaning in our room, pack up my Kuerig and head out. Jim's appointment is at 1:00ish. I want to come home before that to let the dogs out so...we'll see.

And that's all I've got. Time to wrangle these boys and head out. Happy Wednesday...I'll be losing track of days soon. Woot! Later!

Today Is The Day!!!

I can't believe the last day of school is here! (I don't count tomorrow since there aren't kids and I don't plan on being there the whole day.) This year hasn't been remarkable - nothing great happened; nothing terrible happened but with everything that was going on with Jimmy, it was a difficult one for me because of the amount of time I had to take out of the classroom. That being said, it puts me one more year closer to retirement so I've got not complaints.

Last night Jim and I went to dinner with Fritz, Emily and John (Emily's husband). It was quite enjoyable but I was up way too late. I didn't want to come home and put the boys right back in their cage so I stayed up until 10:30. But again, it's the last day of school so I think I can get through.

Ooh, the church up the street from school is feeding us today!  I believe it's Chick-fil-a.

I did a bit of cleaning in my room yesterday (put away some books, cleaned my desk out, put away DVDs) so really today I'll have nothing to do...except give my kids their final exam. And watch Field of Dreams. Kids will be out of there by noon which means I'll have 2 hours to sit around, staring at the wall. But again, no complaints!

And that's all I've got. Best get a move on! Happy Tuesday to all of you and happy last day of school to me! The boys are REALLY excited! Later!

Whirlwind

It was truly a whirlwind weekend. Seemed like one moment I was on the scariest ferry ride of my life and the next I headed the opposite way on a serene and calm lake. So crazy what the difference of one day can make.

We had a good time but it wasn't what I had planned. Maggie and Charlie didn't make it over to the island until around 5:00 PM on Friday because the Miller shut down and they had to wait for the Jet to start running again. We enjoyed a nice dinner at Mossbacks (thanks Dad) and had an early morning Saturday to watch the royal wedding (didn't disappoint). Saturday included breakfast at Frosty's, a couple trips to the park, a cocktail at Topsy Turvey and then dinner at the Goat. I was having a major allergy attack at this point and just wanted to go home and sleep. Which I did. We were up early on Sunday and I managed to drive directly onto the ferry at 9:00 AM. I'll look forward to our trip in July when we have time to sit back and relax and enjoy the easiness of the island.

For those Mercy alums, Ed Stamm (father to Joe and Eddie) died over the weekend. He was 83 and had been suffering from dimentia for the last several years. I got a text from Terri about that last night. Her text originally said, "Did you hear me. Stamm died". This freaked me out because at first I thought it was Joe but then I riddled it out and looked up the obituary. (BTW - the text was supposed to say, "Did you hear? Mr. Stamm died".) I'll go to the visitation on Tuesday but won't be able to make the mass since it's on my last day (Wednesday) and then I also have Jim's appointment after. Sad. I know he suffered, as did the family, with the dimentia. What a terrible thing!

And that's all I've got. My science exam period is today but my kids did a powerpoint so they'll just present their projects and then we'll watch a movie.

Dinner tonight with Fritz and Emily. I think we're going to Stonecreek which is where Max works. Not sure if he's working tonight or not.

K - happy Monday and happy last three days of the school year to me! Hip hip...HURRAY!!! Later!

Preparing

If you will recall, I mentioned that I sent a message to Miller Ferry the other day asking about the winds that are expected on Friday. At the time, I got a message back saying that winds looked fine but they would update if things turned. Well, last night I got another message from Miller saying that their wind reports were showing increases and there may be delays and/or cancellations. Of course this doesn't make me happy and certainly makes me a bit nervous but that's the nature of the beast so we'll drive up as usual and hope for the best. I trust the people at Miller to make the best call and I'd rather be better safe than sorry!

Did I mention that I decided to do a project with my science kids for their final exam rather than an actual test? I think I did. Well, anyway - I always regret these things because it ends up being more trouble than it's worth.  The kids don't know what they're doing and never follow the rubric and I end up having to show them 15 times how to do something when it should be pretty independent work. Well, all I have to say with this project is, "Slap my ass and call me Judy!" These kids managed to follow all my directs and put together quality PowerPoints! I have one kid who still needs to turn his project in but the others all got A's and B's! Legit good grades! YAY!

So today will be a wacky day at school with classes being about 35 minutes long and then 7th bell exam at the end - my government class. I expect to have to curve my exam grades pretty extensively because I know these kids aren't going to study. I tried to make it as easy as possible but we all know about good intentions!

After school, I'll run to the bank and then come home to start packing. Jim's going to the grocery after work and we'll get take out for dinner so it should be an easy night.

And that's all I've got. I won't be blogging tomorrow because I'll be getting up at 4:00 to hit the road around 5:00...this time tomorrow we should be driving through Dayton. Fingers crossed we make it to the island!

Happy Thursday! Later!

Bad Dream News

I had a dream last night that I was headed back to school...at Mercy Montessori...at the Little Red School House! So weird. (For those who don't know, this was my grade school...which only goes to 6th grade and the LRSH is for 4th-6th; which means that I was headed back to either 4th, 5th, or 6th grade.) So when I got there, I was looking for my class and I run into my godmother - Aunt Anne (not my real aunt but that's what we called her). And we're catching up and I ask how Uncle Allen is and she tells me that they got divorced and she's remarried to some other guy! I was so upset!

Lets see...it's Wednesday and I have today and tomorrow left with my 1st period class! I can't believe that! We finished the HP DH 2 movie yesterday and today the kids will do their exam review, we'll go over it tomorrow and then they're exam is Friday (though I won't be there). Best of all though, today is the last real day with my 7th period Government class. This is my most annoying class (because of one particular punk) so I'll be happy that they are first done during exams.

Jim will come home late tonight in order to spend some time with Fritz after work. He should be home by 8:00 but I won't cook...just have leftovers or whatever. I'll do some cleaning after school to get ready for our trip north and start my list...laundry.

Oh, last night Scout got ANOTHER bath because he rolled in something nasty again. He's a stinker! Literally! Well, not anymore but I wouldn't put it past him to do it again tonight. I'm starting to think he likes baths.

Jim just came down in a florescent shirt that actually hurt my eyes. Really! I have no idea where this shirt came from! It's hideous though...a work shirt apparently. Maybe he'll slop paint all over it today and it won't look so bright.

Okay - well, I best get a move on. Happy Wednesday! Oh! It's our last early release day! (We won't have them next year...exciting!) K - later!

Joke Of The Day!

What do you a hippie's wife?
Mississippi!

That's awesome!

I'm nervous! I don't know where the dogs are (outside or upstairs) and they've been way too quiet over the last 10 minutes or so.There they are! Good boys were outside. And they just came in and both saw a moth and started leaping around like jackrabbits trying to catch it.

So I got home yesterday and did my regular yoga/core routine (I think my gut just keeps getting bigger and bigger! This core shit isn't working!) and forgot that we were going to dinner with Jim's brother Fritz. So I got ready to go out and I was sitting there on the couch, watching Nicolle (Wallace) and Boo jumped up on me, gave me a quick kiss on the face and headed back out to play. And as I sat there, I realized there was a foul smell...under my nose...from where Boo kissed me. I mean, I had to go wash my face because the stink was lingering and holy shit what do those boys find to roll in? So, after we returned from dinner, Jim and I had to bathe both pups. They are clean as a whistle now. I think this is going to be something we will have to do much more often than we ever did for the other dogs. I do have to say they are both getting better and better about getting a bath. Scout just stands there and enjoys the rubbing. So does Boo but he's a little more squirmier. Love these little boys.

What else? Oh, I was looking at the weather f0r the Bay and saw that winds are supposed to get a little wiggity on Friday which worries me because you never know if they'll have to stop the ferries. So I messaged Miller Boats and asked what they thought. They replied right away and said that things looked fine as of now but they will make sure to update of FB if anything looks dicey. That certainly eases my mind.

And that's all I've got. Time to finish getting ready. I'm running a tad behind because I actually slept until the alarm went off today...that's not the norm of late. K - happy Tuesday! Later!

Pros & Cons Of A Countdown

I've found that although having a countdown to the end of school is lovely (because we're so close to the end) it seems to make the time left creep by slowly! However, I've got 7 days of kids left and even if that time creeps by, it's still close enough that I can handle the slowness. (And in reality, I have 6 days of kids since I'm taking Friday off for my annual PIB May trip!)

The weekend was quite lovely. It started with Jim and I going to J.J.'s baseball game on Friday night and then dinner afterward with Trip and Susan (and J.J.). It's so fun to watch these boys play! J.J. had 2 RBIs!!! Love that boy! He's so sweet!

Saturday Jim and I got all our flowers and plants and I got everything planted before 2:00! And bonus, Kroger finally put out their hibiscus trees and they were priced for $9.99! Normally they're $19.99! YAY!

Sunday Jim and I went on our first bike ride of the season. I made it 7 miles and Jim managed to make it through half that. His hip has been bothering him, not to mention he's still getting his strength back from his winter illness so making it halfway was quite an accomplishment. After the bike ride, I made breakfast then mowed the back yard (Jim had done the front on Saturday) and finally got to lay in the sun for a bit (though I'm still way too pale for my liking).

Originally Jim and I were going to go out to dinner with Fritz last night but I didn't think it a good idea since it was Mother's Day. We'll try and do that sometime this week. Instead, I did a Mexican chicken in the Instant Pot which was delicious!

So this week is going to be a short one for me. I'll be finishing up Harry Potter with the kids and then exams start Thursday. I'll be absent Friday and will be getting ready for travels north. Can't wait to get up there. This winter definitely crept by slowly (a theme) and it seems longer than 7 months since I've been up there.

Okay - time to finish my toilette. Boys are getting their energy out this morning but playing quietly. They were so good this weekend. Chasing each other and having fun...wearing themselves out. I'm sure going to miss them this weekend.

K - Happy Monday! Later!

Trying To Kill Me

So I don't know if you know or not but I'm not a "gym" girl. I don't go to the gym to workout because I'm much more motivated at home when it comes to exercising. I have an elliptical, a treadmill, a recumbent bike and really prefer to bike outdoors when the weather's nice. Lately, I've been doing yoga and I usually find a person on Youtube that I like and subscribe to them. Yesterday I did a routine and when I finished I felt like I needed more...something to really work my core so I searched for a "core workout". I found a 10 minute little ditty and figured I could handle that. Ten minutes later, I was ready to file attempted murder charges! Chick tried to kill me. However, it was a routine that moved quickly, didn't last too long on a specific exercise and the positions were simple (but effective). No stupid burpees, no mountain climbers so I will return to this little routine and try to get through it. I managed to do almost all of it. However, there was one - a variation of a plank - that, after yoga and about 17 other planks, was impossible for me to do. So I just stayed in a regular plank while the crazy person on the TV did his thang! I'm determined to get this gut of mine reduced in size.

A week from today, I'll be in the car headed north! I'm so excited but sad to leave the pups. However, I know they'll have a good time with their Papa Max! I just hope they don't drive him crazy, they don't chew anything of his, and he better not feed my babies people food!  I mean, I've given them a couple little bites of bacon before but it's a once in a while thing and they don't expect it. I'm nervous he'll feed them crap and they'll barf everywhere. UGH!

So this evening, Jim and I are going to J.J.'s baseball game which is just up the street in Milford. Can't wait to see him play. Depending on how late the game goes, we may go out for a bite to eat with Trip and Susan afterward. Just depends on the lateness. The dogs should be good...I'll come home today and let them run around for a couple hours and feed them plus the neighbor should be coming to play with them for a bit today. They'll be fine! 

I put together my rubric for the science exam project. Kids should be fine with it. I'll coach them a bit in constructing a PowerPoint but I always regret when I do these types of things with them. More work for me than is worth it.

In terms of history, I had the kids brainstorm yesterday about the things we did this past semester and they chose what they would be tested on. Smart, huh? Make them do the work.

K - well, best mosey...get this Friday started and finished. PTO is feeding us today. Ooh, and I left a donut in my desk drawer at school. Yum! Later!

Making Plans

I sat at my desk yesterday listening to my kids talk about how many days are left of school and I thought, "Huh...I haven't even THOUGHT about what I'm going to do for my science and history exams. I'd better get on that." So, I decided NOT to test my science kids and instead, they'll be required to put together a presentation of the planets for the current research they're going on the solar system. History, I'll do an exam but it will consist of some finance and then a smattering of questions from the two chapters we covered this quarter. You see, I think exams are stupid. I think kids who have a hard time passing a chapter test are only being set up to fail when you expect them to cram a semesters worth of information into one giant test. So I'm going to cut my kids a break and lets face, myself as well.

Lots of shit going down at school. I'm a little sick of my district and especially the high school being in the news. Thankfully there are only 2 weeks left.

My dental appointment went well yesterday. No cavities and my teeth look great, according to my hygienist and dentist. I was home in record time as well because there is never very much cleaning or scraping needed to be done. My dentist and I were talking and we realized that I've been going to him as long as Jim and I have been together! That's 18 years! Dang!

Boo got sick last night...threw up more than I could have imagined he could even hold in his little body. Poor baby. Not sure what got him sick but I'm sure he was STARVED by the time breakfast rolled around this morning. I don't think he's got a weak or sensitive stomach but these fools eat all kinds of crap out in the yard (clumps of grass from the mower, sticks, black walnuts, probably squirrel poop)! Who wouldn't barf!

Okay well, time to get a move on. Happy Thursday! Ooh, tomorrow's Friday! K - I'm out...later!

Back To Treatment

So Jim had his appointment with the doc yesterday to discuss his PET scan and decide the next path to take. I can't say I was surprised about him going back on meds but Jim has sort of been living in lala land for the past month (since going off all meds) so it was a bit more of a shocker to him. He was hoping he could just stay off anything until there was growth with his lesions. I, however, had read his scans and seen that there had been some growth (pretty minimal) so I knew we couldn't just sit back and do nothing. The interesting thing is that his SUV uptake values have reduced which is a sign that the immunotherapy had done some good but the numbers are still higher than he's ever seen in someone before. (UGH!)

With all that in mind, Jim can't go back on immunotherapy because of the toxicity he experienced. That leaves us with trying the Braf inhibitors again. You know, the drugs that caused Jim to get the high fevers, chills and joint pain. In the doctors own opinion, it's a matter of taking the pills and dealing with the fever or Jim dying. Hmm...I think...I'll go with...the pills! So the drugs have been ordered but they take about a week to get here so we'll meet with the doc in 2 weeks and at that time, he and Jill (NP) will decide the best dosage for Jim. It'll be like playing hide-and-go-seek with Jim hiding from the fever. Jim will take the pills for a few days then stop for a few days then take the pills and so on, all in an attempt to keep the fever from settling in.

Of course I'm crazy nervous about this because this fever and the chills especially is debilitating. But again, the alternative is...Jim dies. I know that's an in-your-face, come-to-Jesus way of putting it but these are the facts that we're living with...no sense pussy-footing around it.

In good news, the doc said Jim can have a beer or cocktail here and there! He was so happy to hear this and after the appointment we went to Shooters and Jimmy had his first beer in nearly 5 months! Additionally he had a small Bailey's on the rocks before bed. He was so happy!

Jim's weight is down again - 228. I've never known him to be this "skinny" I don't think. I'm pretty sure most of the loss came from his butt. Dude had no butt to begin with but now it's just a flat expanse with skin covering. I don't know how he's going to be able to ride a bike! (My plan for this weekend). Double padded shorts I guess.

Jim's blood pressure was also up yesterday. He says every time I go with him to the doctor's office, that happens. Hmm...I call bullshit on that!

Okay well, time to get to work. Happy Wednesday! Two weeks from today I'll be headed in for my work day and wrapping up my 18th year of teaching! WOW! Later!

Busy Day

It's not that it's going to be busy but I won't get to sit down in my own home and hang until well after, say, 6:00. That's because after school, I have to race home, let the dogs out, feed them, let them run around for a bit, jump in the car, race down to Red Bank for Jim's 4:00 appointment and most likely sit there until 5:00 when we'll get to see the doctor. All this means I won't be cooking tonight and I won't get my yoga in. And I won't get to do yoga tomorrow either because I have a dentist appointment after school. Ah well, at least I have only 2 weeks left of school!

So Jim's appointment of course has me anxious. I've read the scan and I'm curious what the doctor will want to do. I'm worried he'll want to put Jim back on treatment for obvious reasons but we'll see. It seems like Jim's only been back to normal for a short while and I'm not thrilled to think about him back in the place he was. BUT!!! I want him to be okay too. It's definitely like being stuck in the middle of 4 brick walls. We'll see. I'll update you tomorrow.

We have a professional development meeting all day today for the sped team at school. Not looking forward to that (I sound like a broken record). We'll be going over new forms for IEPs which is BORING and of course the sub I had canceled last night and of course being the time of year it is, no one else picked it up. Oh well, not my problem. But you know the kids are going to act like assholes...like they always do.

My dogs need new collars. Aside from the fact that they're old, they're starting to not keep their length. Because they both constantly grab the others and tug and pull, they are more like necklaces than collars. Scout loses his all the time...put that on the list.

Okay well, time to get a move on. The PD day is in our own building so I'll just head to work like normal.  Happy Tuesday...later!

Ruckus!

Those boys are making a LOT of ruckus upstairs! Well at least they're getting their energy out before we both have to leave for work.

2 1/2 weeks until this is over! Woot! Three weeks from now, I'll hopefully be sleeping!

The weekend was uneventful. Saturday was a cleaning day and Anne and Max came over to see the boys. We talked a bit about the weekend of the 18th when Max will be house/dog sitting. As Anne said, he took care of the boys when they were a LOT harder to take care of so all should be well. I'll leave him notes for stuff anyway so it shouldn't be an issue.

Sunday I went and got a pedicure with Lauren and then we stopped by Loveland Elementary where they were having a garden sale (from the elementary school kid's garden). I bought some begonias for the front porch and planted them when I got home. I did a little deck work as well: put up my umbrella, hosed off the crap, and then I remembered the blower that I got for Christmas and after jumping up and down with excitement, I unboxed it and went to town. While the dogs enjoy the hose (they like to drink water from it), they did NOT like the blower. Well, it does sound like a turbine engine so I get it. I also laid in the sun for about a 1/2 hour and soaked up some vitamin D. I'm so pale, by the way. It's embarrassing.

We played some cards with the neighbors around 4:00 and then the storms rolled in and Jim and I went in to chill. He was sore from mulching and doing front yard work. The storms weren't blowy or bad but there was a TON of rain and hail. I had planned to come home today and mow the back yard but I don't know if that will be possible with the downpour we got. We'll see.

Okay well, it should be a relatively easy week. Harry Potter, a (stupid) professional development day tomorrow and then I'll be gearing up for exams which start next Thursday! HOLY SHIT!!!

K - happy Monday. Later!

Queasy and Guilty

I ate about half of my breakfast this morning and then felt all nauseous and couldn't get the rest down. This seems to happen when I make egg McMuffins. I don't know why. So weird. I get the same way when I eat Bang Bang shrimp (used to love it) and ranch dressing. Bizarre.

These boys - mainly Scout - are being VERY barky this morning. I think the wind blowing is making them jumpy. Little goofballs!

So if you didn't see Facebook yesterday, you didn't get to see the flowers and chocolate that Desi brought me as an apology for the day before. You'll recall that Desi is one of the autistic kids in my classes (not on my caseload) and though he is crazy sweet and funny, he can be a test of one's patience at times. Well, Wednesday was one of those days. See Desi obsesses about things. For a while it was Harry Potter and before that it was art and certain artists. Well recently his mind is focused on the #metoo movement and most especially those individuals who have been accused of abuse (Stan Lee, Johnny Depp). Well, it had gotten to the point where I had to ban him from discussing or even bringing the subject up at school because he would become unreasonable, inappropriate, loud and didn't have the ability to stop. I explained that the only place he could talk about it was at home with his father. And then on Wednesday, twice, he yelled out, "BUT STAN LEE IS A RAPIST!!!" The first time he did it, I got on him and told him that I was emailing his father and warned him with a trip to Mr. VP's office. When it happened again, I followed through (I'm not one to make empty threats) and sent him out of the room. Now, understand, I didn't expect or want the VP to do anything but put the fear of Jesus into Desi and I called/emailed to let him know that. The VP returned a very ashamed and sorry Desi to class and we moved on.

Then yesterday came and when Desi came to school he had the flowers and chocolate and I had a dose of guilt. Additionally, he wrote me a note, here's what it said:

Dear Mrs. Hanke,
I'm deeply and truly sorry about my actions yesterday in class, my offence of repeatedly saying, "Stan Lee is a rapist," which I deeply regret. Throughout my life I have trouble controling my OCD which leads me to have repeative thoughts and Stan Lee happen to be one. My conversation was extremly disruptive and inappropriate; This is something I will control in the future and I shall never do again to pravent myself to be disruptive in the future. I also wish to apologize for acting disrespectful to you by not following your words. I would like to note, that you are a wonderful teacher and human that inspires me every day. I do hope that you will forgive me and my faults. I hope to continue to be your lawful devout pupil. 

Sincerely, 
Desi

P.S. I hope the flowers and chocolates bring you comfort. 

I mean, really! I love that he used the word "shall" and "devout pupil".

In the end, I sat Desi down yesterday to make sure he understood how much I care about him and enjoy having him in class and just want to make sure he's ready for life...which is why I'm tough on him. He sat listening to me with this silly grin on his face while his eyes did this open really wide thing. (I think he was making sure to look me in the eye while I talked to him.) You just can't make this shit up!

Okay well, hopefully today is going to go well. We got through the first half of HP a little early so we'll start watching Part 1 today. YAY! Should be an easy day! Movie in LA, test in science, movie in history.

Happy Friday! Later!

Heat & Yoga

I don't know how people do hot yoga! It's so uncomfortable! I came home yesterday and did yoga and you know, it was 80 degrees here yesterday and I don't have my A/C on (not putting it on in May!). After about 15 minutes I was sliding ALL over the place. Sweating profusely and a yoga mat don't go well together. In the future, I will haul out the big fan and use that while I'm doing my thang!

So I'm at the point at school where the end is quite near and I've pretty much done all I can do to prepare for my science class next year and I'm nearly checked out. Not that I'm not giving my "all" but I've definitely started counting days. I did put my LA exam together yesterday so that's something. But I still need to figure out my exams for history and science. Guess I should get on that.

Additionally, I can't believe I've still not taken my May trip to PIB. That will happen on the weekend of the 18th! I can't wait to be up there with Maggie and Charlie and Eva...us just doing our thing and enjoying the hopefully awesome weather. It's crazy too because we get out of school so early, I'm actually going during exams.

Speaking of going to PIB, I need to get with Max to talk about the dogs because he'll be taking care of them while we're away. Hope he's ready for the kooks!

Can't think of anything else to talk about. Guess I'd better mosey...so happy it's Thursday! Can't believe tomorrow's Friday already! YAY! Jim will be happy because he's really sore. K - I'm out...later!

Very Barky

These babies are very barky this morning. Well, lets clarify that: Scout is very barky. Boo just wants to carry his chicken around. Oh boy, they just ran in with a huge stick! Jim's running around trying to get it. This isn't going to end well. Jim just doesn't understand how to speak softly to them to get them NOT to run the second you've almost got them. They make me laugh so much!

Yesterday, I wasn't laughing, however, when Boo and I cracked our skulls together. I have a huge knot on my forehead. He hit my head so hard that I literally saw stars and it hurt so bad that I teared up a bit. Boo didn't mean to do it, he was just jumping up as I was bending down and BAM! Connection.

Jim had his scan yesterday and suffered a bit from it. I guess the time he had to fast and then the injection made him a bit sick to his stomach and gave him a raging headache. He ended up having to come home and sleep (after throwing up and what not). Poor guy. He's all better now and was better by the time I got home yesterday. Now is the wait for results which we should have next week at Jim's appointment. I'll have to go to that one, for sure.

It's going to be a beautiful day today. Wish I didn't have to spend it at school but we're only 3 weeks from my last day. Three weeks from today, I'll be typing that it's my work day and I hope to be home relatively early! WOOT! I can't believe it!

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

Boodini!

I was sleeping this morning and woke up to Jim snoring so I shoved him a bit to get him to stop (this was around 4:30). Next thing I knew, I had a Boo licking my face and trying to get under the covers. I thought, "Okay - I guess Jim's getting up." And then I hear Jim's voice right next to me and he says, "Uh, Muir...how did he get out out (of his cage)?" Huh! We've got a little magician in our family. And Scout wasn't happy about it either because Boo didn't throw him a solid and let him out!

And by the way - all this means I got out of bed way too early! Boo's a stinker!

Managed to mow the lawn yesterday when I got home (back yard). The boys are a real pain in the ass when I mow and I ended up having to shut them in the house. I didn't want to because they had been in their cages all day but they act like maniacs, running around me trying to mow, barking at the mower and then doing the same to each other. I'm afraid they're going to get in the way of the mower and get hurt. Not willing to do that so I mowed as fast as I could. I'm sure anyone who could have seen me (they didn't because I was behind the fence) would have thought I looked crazy jogging and mowing.

I ordered new cushions for my lounge chairs in the back and they should be here today. They are a pretty marine blue and I can't wait for the pop of color they will give the deck. (I typed "dick" first...hee hee).

So I've come to the conclusion that I'm not going to have the chance to finish reading Harry Potter with the kids. I will get through the first half of the book this week and I think after that, I'll start the 1st movie. After that, we will continue to read until I get to a point where I need to stop to watch the second movie and they I'll just test them using a mixture of questions from the books and movies. It's the only way to go because I definitely want them to see the movies. I'm sure some of them will be thrilled but some will be disappointed. I dread telling Desi...he's going to be a pain in the ass about this. UGH! Teacher fail!

Okay well, I best get a move on. Jim's still upstairs laying in bed. I'm sure he's avoiding getting up because he has to fast until after his scan and doesn't want to be jonesin for that coffee and breakfast.

Happy Tuesday! Later!