Summer Ends!

Summer is coming to a close! I am so sad yet utterly excited to get back into some sort of routine again. I really enjoyed myself this summer. I hung out with friends new and old, read a couple of books, organized my new house, went shopping (more than I should have), and got to sleep in whenever I wanted! Man, being a teacher sure has its perks! As I look forward to the school year beginning I think this school year will be a good year for me. I am not as stressed as I was last year. I know what to expect in a way this year. I am ready for what comes my way. Kara, Sheila and I will all be teaching this year and it is going to be good to have support around you when you get stressed. At least they will know first hand how it goes!

Fun Fourth

What a great Fourth of July week/weekend! I hung out with Melanie and celebrated the end of summer school with some wine, and by some I mean a lot. I also went to a BBQ held by some of the teachers that I work with. It was great to hang out with some of the teachers and be normal for a change. You get so caught up with being professional that we forget that we are normal people that do fun things. We had great food and drinks and had fun in the pool, well I had fun watching people in the pool. Mel and I then played an intense game of shuffle board, which reminded me of time of Club Schmitz! Good times...Good times... On the fourth, my family came over to the house and we continued our tradition of making a flag cake. It was sooooo yummy. The little ones had a good time licking their fingers in between putting the fruit on. Good thing only family was going to eat it. After a cake filled afternoon, Melanie, Teresa and I started out for the Rangers game. We did a little tail gateing and then enjoy the most American thing you can do. We grabbed a cold beer, a hot dog, fries and headed to watch the Rangers beat the Rays and stand alone in first place. Then watched as fireworks illuminated the sky. Then on my way home I get an unexpected call from Sheila and we got to catch up. On top of all of that, Kara came home from her trip to Mexico. She had a great time even thought she wished she could have more time with the kids. I am happy that I am surrounded by great memories and am excited to gain more memories in the next years!

Gaawww!

Well today was interesting. I checked my banking account this morning and there was a large debit from my account that I obviously didn't make. I called the eye glasses shop where I get my contacts, which I purchased yesterday, to see if they had made a mistake. Well to make a long story short, a man had come in literally as I was leaving and attempted to buy a pair of rather expensive sunglasses, like 850 dollars worth on one pair! He used one card first and was declined, then the sales guy said that he used another number from over the phone. He said that he was talking to his "girlfriend" who's name just so happens to be Brooke too! He gave him my card number with the pin number on the back and also gave him my zip code where I lived. The sales guy accepted it and the man went on his way with a very expensive piece of eye wear! I have since canceled my card and the surveillance tape from the store has been sent to the Dallas Police. What a great way to start the day!
On top of that, I had to go down to Irving to take care of the speeding ticket that I got at the beginning of June. I had to show proof of insurance and the people told me that I had to get a declaration letter for my insurance. So I got that and then I go up there today and they told me its not the right paper. So I had to go all the way to Farmers Branch to get the right paper, drive back to Irving and finally get it taken care of.

The rest of day has calmed down a bit and I am just keeping in mind that I have an early 4th of July party on Friday and a Rangers game on Saturday!

Wow! I can't believe it has been over a month since I last posted anything! i have been keeping myself busy to say the least. I have been going between decorating the new house and teaching an enrichment program at Lively. I have had a lot of fun doing both. The theme for the enrichement program was Medival Knights and Castles. My class talked about chivalry, which I am determined is NOT dead! They painted thier own shields and came up with a code of honor and made swords. The best part was making a big castle out of boxes brought in by the kids. The teachers jokingly called it the "Dumpster Castle." The kids really enjoyed building onto what the previous class had done. The castle even had a working drawbridge. We had other activities like poetry groups every morning and the kids got to share their favorite poems on Thursdays. All in all I really liked working with the kids and there wasn't stress in teaching them, which I wish it was like that all year round.
I have had lots of fun decorating my house with Kara. Kara is starting to learn not to leave me for to long because I will become bored and head for the stores. There is not much to do besides read and write when you don't have internet or a T.V. I go to the library about once a week to check mail and facebook. We are almost finished with decorating the house. Hopefully we will have a housewarming party in the middle of July. Keep your fingers crossed!
I have had fun going out and hanging out with friends though. I have had some interesting nights. You learn a lot about people when you are hanging out throwing a few cold beers back. It's great though when you go into a night thinking one way and come out thinking quite another. I can't wait for more get togethers...
I am excited to see what the rest of the summer has in store. Hopefully I will keep myself busy and not spend to much money....awwww who am I kidding? Maybe some traveling to San Antonio to visit the new addition to the Danze family, or maybe a road trip anywhere. I would like to go to a few Ranger games. I also need to call a few friends I rarely get to talk to. Hopefully I can get some of this stuff done, we will see. If you have any ideas to beat the boredom, let me know with a commnet.

9908 Dresden Dr!

Well the time has come for me to move out! Some of you thought that day would never come, but I knew it would one day when the time was right. Kara Lockridge and I have signed the lease on a very cute house in Dallas. It is a two bedroom one bath house that has an added room in the back, effectionatly called "The Lounge". (Kara, the name is only temporary til we discover another name for that room)We are excited to be moving in on the first of June and finally having a place to call our own. Pictures to come!

Weekend Wrap-up

I am sooooo behind on working out. I hit these really big highs of wanting to work out and then I hit these lows where I am so tired of working out. You work all day and then I am supposed to go happily to the gym...um yeah right! I am trying to eat more healthy, but even that I am failing to do all of the time. I am hoping that God will send me a swift kick to remind me to get my butt in the gym.

Anyways this weekend I went to Texas Bar and Grill over in Las Colinas. I am not going to put any names down, last time that got me into trouble. Steve, no I dont hate you! Elizabeth, dont forget to put the batteries in the swiffer and Luis can lead any girl in salsa dancing. Brittney has the funniest family and Justin, well Justin isn't going to take anymore of Elizabeth's crap. That is the wrap-up of the night.

I went over to Christina's this weekend and had sushi! Sheila would be horrified that I got another sushi partner. Its all good with me. We ended up renting a movie "Rachel getting Married". WARNING : THAT MOVIE HAS NO PLOT AND SHOULD NEVER BE RENTED. There is got it out.

Anthony moved into his new apartment and he is surprising in tune with the decorating. He was using a tape measure to make sure everything was all set up and even. It was fun helping him hang things and enjoy the new apartment, then sit on the balcony and enjoy the humming of the George Bush traffic. It is actually really relaxing and you can't hear it in the apartment.

oh and there is only 4 more mondays left in school! wooohooo!

A little of this, A little of that

(This is a picture of me at Science Night. I was Suzy Star. I made a constellation room that in my opinion was good. The things I do for my job...I wouldn't trade it for anything.)
Anyways.... This is going to be sort of a list blog. There is lots to say and I really don't want to bore you with my hum-drum life.

There have been days that I didn't leave school til about 8 or 8:30. One week we had a faculty meeting, grades, Science Night and planning. I know it doesn't sound like much but when you are a procrastinator like me, things start to pile up.

I am getting adjusted to my hair. I am still not 100% happy with it, but it will do.

I enjoyed some Turkey time ...yes again...with Elizabeth, Luis, Brittney and her hubby Justin and a friend of Elizabeth's (Steve).

I am excited to start the search for an apartment or house or something for me and my future roomies, which I am excited to say are Kara and Sheila! I can't wait. Kara and I spent last Saturday hanging out at the Tipperary Inn on the patio drinking and talking about all sorts of things. I am so happy that they are coming back and we are all going to live together. The thought of hanging out and having a glass of wine with the girls is leaving me with a happy heart.We also got a bunch of free glasses that the bar was giving out. We have a brand new set for our new place.

I also went out to McKinney to hang out on Saturday night. Melanie ( a wonderful friend from work) wanted to have a "swanky" birthday celebration. She ended up picking a swanky bar called the Lotus. I dragged Anthony along so that I didn't have to drive up there and stand in line by myself. Thankful he came and said he had a great time and he would go to the bar again.

All in all I have had some stress and I have also been having fun.

I am trying to find a healthy balance of play and work... Is there such a thing?

The Turkey, Hair Mishaps, and 15 minute converstions

I haven't updated in about a week, so here goes.
Monday was blah....enough said.
Tuesday was blah, but got better. Kara Lockridge had been in the Big D for about a month and we had been playing phone tag for about two weeks. We finally got a hold of each other and in holding with tradition said we were going to go to another bar, but ended up at the Turkey. We had a great conversation. Kara met some the Turkey locals, and two men asked if they could go home with us. All in all I would say it was a good night! Anyways, it was really good to see her and there is only more of those to come since she is living in the Big D now! Yaaaayyy!
By Wednesday I was feeling pretty good. I had worked out three times in a row by this point and looking forward to Thursday because we didn't have school on Good Friday.
On Thursday I was feeling excited to go and get a new hair cut and color. I got to the salon about 6:30 and told him what I wanted. I even showed him a color picture. Well lets just say I came out hating the color red and orange. I had spent two and a half hours in the salon to get something that was too light and did not take to my hair.
So on Friday, I went to have my hair redone, spending another three hours in the salon. After I was done fixing the madness, I got to see Maddy Brink! Wooohooo! She had called the day before and said that she would be in Dallas for about three hours. She had a connecting flight to Austin to see her sister. I felt so bad because I only got to see her for about 15 minutes due to this hair mishap! uggg! But the 15 minutes I did get to see here was great! We had a recap of three years of life after graduation in 15 mintues. You can imagine the speed at which we were talking. She looks great and is going to be in St. Louis in the fall for grad school! Good for her! There is still so much more to catch up on, but she said she might make a visit during her first break as a grad student. I can't wait...
Phewwww what a week!

Holy Week

As we enter Holy Week there are a few reflections that I have of this past Palm Sunday. As Father Michael began his homily he made the comment that he had about three or four DVDs that he watches over and over. He said that what makes a good drama is that we learn something new every time that we watch it even though we know how it is going to end. He made the analogy to the Passion of Christ. As we enter into Holy Week every year we enter knowing how it is going to end. The difference is that every time we enter Holy Week we should prepare ourselves to learn something or to notice something that we had not before.
Father continued with his homily making the point that Jesus was human and did experience the ups and downs. I am in way saying that we are comparable to Jesus, but what I am saying is that we can look to him with the certainty that we will rise again and be able to get through our hardships. Jesus was welcomed with waving palms and praises and not but days later was crucified. We look to Jesus as guidance in our hard times because he truly knows how to be faithful and accept the end result however tragic or taxing it may be. So as we continue through Holy Week, I remind you to think about the true gift we recieve through Jesus and to continue to half faith that if He brings you to, He will bring you through it!

Solutions to all Talkative Kids

Today was not especially thrilling. My kiddos are already getting spring fever! They are such chatter boxes and their behavior is thru the roof! I am sure all teachers about this time are questioning the logic in going to college to get a degree to stress over kids!

Anyways, I asked one of my kids today what I should do with the kids that keep talking. She replied in the most sincere and innocent way " We could get duck tape and put it over their mouths!" Thinking she was finished with the conversation and about to run to play, she continued with " and you know that closet in our room, we can put them in there...oh and get some rope!" At this point I was laughing so hard, that she was laughing at me laughing at her! In my mind I was thinking "Don't tempt me!" Thankful she is a good kid and would never have to see the inside of a closet nor have to have duck tape put over her mouth. I thought that was a funny way to end my not so fun day! Hopefully I can stay consistant with my kids long enough to last to the end of the year! 48 days and counting!!!!!!

“Friends are like bras: close to your heart and there for support.”

I am feeling very nostalgic these days. I am missing a lot of my friends from college. I really miss having an apartment, inviting friends over, drinking wine, laughing, drinking bud light, saying BEER ME! talking for hours with no worries of work the next day, laughing and crying (yes even those crying moments left good lasting memories) and so many more memories. As a child I had a fear of getting older. I would lie in my moms bed and cry for hours and spill that I was terrified of getting older. Seriously. As an adult I realized that I just fear change and the uncertain, but on the upside I am excited to see what is going to happen in the future!

On a fun note, last night I got to hang out with some friends from high school. Natalie Scott texted me and said they were at Logan's in Addison and I jumped at the chance to get out of the house after not doing much socially in three weeks. I am really glad I went out. Natalie, David Rios and Lauren Leahy were there and it was nice to catch up with them. Hopefully they will put up some pics on facebook!

Spring Break from Hell!

Needless to say, I am alive! I have spent everyday since Friday when I got off of work in my house, either in bed or on the couch complaining. It all started with the horrible pain from working out, but you can read the previous blog about that. Then on top of the muscle aches I got a severe sinus infection! Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, I woke up on Monday morning with wonderul pink eye! This has not been the Spring Break that I had hoped for at all. I am sorry to those that I have not called or been able to visit (KATE!!!). I literally shut the world out. I just wanted to write to tell you all that I am alive, but I am just waiting to see what the rest of the spring break brings in sickness!
box of Kleenex 2.49
Tylenol Severe Sinus 8.99
Icy Hot Muscle Rub 5.49
Finding pink eye medicine already in your cabinet: priceless...

My Birthday

Well for my birthday I stayed at school allllll day! We had Open House and I was at school getting ready all day. The Open House didn't even start til 6:30. It was great when my mom showed up and brought cupcakes for my kids to eat during Open House. She also made a poster for me and decorated my room. She is totally awesome! The kids enjoyed it and I got a lot of well wishes. Elizabeth also came to Open House and sat in the back making fun of me with my mom! Good times! Then after OH, Elizabeth and Christina ( another great first grade teacher) and I went to the Turkey with me to have a few drinks. What? I had to celebrate on the day of my birth. Overall I enjoyed the suprises that the day brought. I am excited to see what the next year brings!

No Pain No Gain!!!!

OOOOOOHHHHHH MMMYYYYYY GGGGGOOOOOSSSSSHHHHH!!!!! I am in pain! I hate this feeling. My first testing out the trainer was on Wednesday and today is now Friday and I am the most pain I have physically felt in a very very very long time. My trainer had asked me "On a scale from one to 10, how determined are you to lose the weight?" I said a 9. He asked me why and I told him that I was still wanting to be lazy! Right now I want to be home and not dealing with kids. I had to have a kid help me take off my jacket and another put my lanyard on my neck. This is a sad situation. I can't even go out to celebrate my birthday because I feel so miserable. Oh well! I am going to go home take a long hot bath and go to sleep!

A New Chapter

FINALLY! I have something to write about! Yesterday I embarked on a new chapter in my life. A chapter that is going to be filled with pain, agony, and wishing I had never started. I found myself a personal trainer. After years of being unhappy with myself, I bit the bullet and pinched the wallet and got me one of those horrid things! I will be joining my wonderful trainer twice a week for the next year to get to my goal of ...wait for it ...wait for it...15 % body fat! Yeah you dont even want to know what it is now. I am excited, yet terrified to start this journey. I know that this is something that I have been wanting to do for a very long and never had the courage to actually take the step in the gym. By the way, that was the worst part of this whole thing, going into that gym and thinking to myself, "everyone in this gym is thinking that I am the biggest person here and there is not wonder I am there". I know...I know... that is not the way to think, but I couldn't help it. All my life I have been super worried about what people thought! Hopefully, a year from now, I will be thinking the same thing, only in a healthier manner.

In honor of my papa!

Some of you may already know, but this past December my grandfather passed away. There are very few words that truly depict the grandeur of my papa! First I want to say how blessed I am to have friends that truly care about me no matter where they are in the world, whether it be close to home, moving, or an ocean apart from me. I want to thank those that were there to share thoughts and frustrations, fear and calmness, moments of insanity and hopelessness. I know why God has sent you to me and I thank him everyday.
Just a little background for those of you that I did not get to share the news, my grandpa had been in the hospital since the week before Thanksgiving due to a fall he had that previous week. We decided to take him to his primary care physician because he had lost all mobility in his legs and the arm that he had fallen on. It had scared my mom and I because before this my grandpa, although slow, was able to move on his own. That was nonexistent now. We chose to take him to the emergency room so that the doctors could x-ray his hip, which his PCP thought was broken. After a day in CDU (clinical diagnostic unit), the doctors and nurses were concerned with his blood. After a week of testing, the doctors found that my grandpa had a blood infection due to a meta port that was in his chest from when he received chemo during his stomach cancer, which he had been in remission for 3 years. The doctors decided that they would have to do surgery to clean out his left shoulder and left knee. His left had been replaced 20 years ago and was quote "bionic" according to the docs. He would have to have it replaced again and in the mean time while they cleaned the plates, he would have to have a rod and cement block in his knee.
The surgery occurred on Monday December 8th. I went to school on the 9th ready to put this to the side for the day, but I received a call at 7:30 in the morning from my mom saying that my grandpa went into cardiac arrest. I arrived to see my grandpa laying heavily sedated in the ICU. Unfortunately my grandpa never came out of the coma and we had to make the decision no one should have to make. The doctor told us that due to the short amount of time that my grandpa was in cardiac arrest there was swelling on the area of the brain that causes responses. My grandpa made it very clear years earlier that if he was to be a vegetable he would want the opposite at whatever cost. So as a family, we made the choice to let my grandpa go home to his mom and dad and family in heaven. It was the hardest thing for my family to say goodbye to a man that has influenced us immensely.
On December 19th at 1:15 my grandpa went home. We pray everyday together and we know that he is looking down and smiling. I only wish that I could see him again and hear his jokes and hear is laugh and see his smile. He had the most infectious smile. I just had to see him smile and I melted. I was blessed to have lived with my grandpa my whole life. I was blessed to learn that you live life the best you can and never regret anything you do. He told me that when I interviewed him for a education class at UD. He never regretted anything nor would he have change it!
I will leave you with the last thing I heard him say. As I was leaving him on the last night before the dark clouds hovered, I said "Bye papa, I love you, see you tomorrow." He turned and smiled at me and said "I love you too, I will be here!" I know that he always will be there!