Downtime

We chose to stay home this past weekend.

Staycation, you ask?

Umm... not really. Little too heavy on work, little too light on fun for that.

Yes, work. We worked on cleaning the house (you can't tell now, though). We worked on stocking up the freezer and getting meat divided up into packs that are appropriate for our family. We got a replacement patio table (to replace the one that smashed last year-- we must remember to put down the umbrella from now on) and set it up.

We were able to relax a little bit. There was a trip to the neighborhood pool. There was a dousing of the two-year-old with the sprinkler. There was a trip for frozen custard.

This three-day weekend thing is pretty cool.

Umm... Can I blame it on my busy-ness?

Okay, I've been away for a while.

Why, do you ask?

Well, I'm not sure that anyone is reading this, and it was becoming a bit of a rant blog.

And my husband traveled for a month straight.

I'm out here, trying to keep my head above water.

Barely Keeping Myself Together...

Well, schoolwide state testing is over. Thank goodness.

My child was sick, then was well, and then was kind of sick, but then was okay. It's crazy. Good weather needs to be here. Now.

Report cards are done. And most of the papers are graded.

My husband needs to stop going on travel and my child needs to stop throwing temper tantrums.

A Power Outage... That Works Out in the End

The power went out... for our friends tonight. The group get-together that was supposed to happen at the home of friends (soon to be married! Yay!) was moved here. While it was one of those-- ooh, don't show up for a little while as I run around like a madwoman to clean, please-- it all worked out.

The pizza was good, the dessert buffet was lovely, and seeing everyone was great.

The kids are growing quickly. I wish we did this more often.

A Little Spontaneity

Monday night, we got a phone call from Mark's Oma (that's grandma, in Deutsch-- aka DH's mom). She was in the large city that closest to us and wanted us to head up on Wednesday night. We decided that it would be too much to drive up on a weeknight and comprimised on Saturday. So on Saturday, we went up to meet her at the airport.

Little did we know that we would have to drive through a parade to get there. And then we had to wait for 45 minutes for her to arrive (God bless the DVD player in the van).

We ended up up eating at a restaurant in the airport. Mark flirted with the wait staff (who responded with lots of grapes and attention). I had multiple glasses of wine.

Actually, it was the best visit that I've had with her for a long time. (Was it the wine?)

Yak

I've been looking forward to this weekend for a very long time. President's Day weekend is awesome, because it's during skiing season and my DH and I both get Monday off.

Before we had a child. It all started last week when we had a day off of school. One would think that I'd be happy. Except that my son was a grumpy mess. So it was an awful day.

He came in and snuggled between us that night. We woke up the next morning and handed him his sippy cup. He took a big swig of water-- and yakked it all up after a coughing fit. (Sheets and duvet cover in the wash.) He was okay that day-- but clearly not himself.

Saturday was the day of yak here. Once first thing in the morning, once in the afternoon, and then twice in a half hour that night. Lots of coughing, still. Low-grade fever.

Yesterday, he was miserable but was easily calmed by movies. Until his fever rose to 104.

Today it was off to the pediatrician. Diagnosis was strep (greaaaat-- he's been sleeping between us, I mean breathing in our faces, for the past four nights) and perhaps pneumonia. He goes back tomorrow to see if the antibiotic will smack down the lung crackling or not.

So much for an idyllic weekend on the slopes.

Hello parenthood.

New Blog!

I realize that this blog has become messy. I'm posting about politics, parenting, family gripes, and car purchases. In the interest of being a bit more organized and focused, I've started a new blog. It's called A Snail's Garden. Check it out!

Notes on the Super Bowl

Our family ran out for a few items tonight... about an hour before the Super Bowl kickoff. Man, that is the time to hit the stores. It was remarkably easy to find what we needed, because we were virtually alone.

Tivo kept the game ready for us. The first quarter was fun, the second and third quarters were blah, and the fourth quarter was great. I'd been thinking that the Pats would win, but hoped the Giants would win (I do love myself an underdog). I cannot believe that I am saying this, but yay Giants!

My moment of disbelief came when Bill Belichick walked onto the field BEFORE THE GAME WAS OVER. What is up with that, Bill? Mike Carey (my favorite, favorite head referee) came up to Belichick and obviously told him to get off of the field and back to the sideline. Belichick's response? To IGNORE Carey and walk around him to talk to Coughlin. I so hope that the NFL fines his arrogant behind.

Anyway, my boy is now two. Which is hard to believe. Just seems like yesterday that I was dealing with the belly bump that kept kicking me.

A Cycle of Events...

I'm seeing a pattern develop over my time as an educator, and I'm not sure how long I'll last. I've seen several teachers from my Master's cohort leave the profession, and I'm not sure how much longer I'll hold out. It's a cycle, year after year-- and I'm at a 'good' school. I just don't know.

I know that there are those that appreciate me. If I was left alone to teach, I'd be happy as a clam. There are so many outside pressures that are just pure nastiness, though. Not going to get into them here-- no way. The pressures are mounting and I am just not sure where to go.

Do I stay and continue to take the pressures that directly influence me and my family life? Do I leave and find another job? Do I take the plunge and enter a doctoral program (I keep coming back to this, again and again). If I go for my doctorate, will it really be worth the investment?

I am not sure which direction I'm going in. I can't imagine another 22 to 23 years of this, though.

Gifts

It is always interesting to see what gifts arrive at Christmastime. Among the more interesting include the golf ball wine bottle stoppers and a Project Linus blanket for my son. (The wine bottle stoppers were a very obvious regift, especially because my cousin's husband is a golf freak and we don't golf. The blanket? I can't even fathom why, beyond rummage sale crap coming our way.)

However, I got some things I wanted. My folks gave me mad money for Best Buy, which I was excited to drop on Photoshop. Once I was at Best Buy, though, I decided to go for the Photoshop/Premiere combo. To clear my mind today, I decided to take it for a test drive. I can only liken it to a being teenager behind the wheel-- I was excited by the possibilities and I dove right in. I put together a slide show put to music. I haven't added the transitions yet, but I have gained a whole new appreciation for those who edit movies. There was a whole lot of effort that went in to 3 minutes and 34 minutes. Wow.

Nostalgia, served with a side of camp

It all started with Jon Krakauer. I enjoyed Krakauer's book 'Into Thin Air' and then I discovered his book 'Into the Wild.' I was really blown away by the book. Quite honestly, I think that I would have done something similar had I been born male out here on the East Coast (as McCandless was). However, I was fortunate enough to be born in Deadwood, South Dakota to an outdoorsy father. I had my scrapes with wildness-- due to a considerable amount of town spent on the South Dakota/Wyoming border on my grandparent's acreage. Had I not been exposed to that and had grown up in suburban hell, I think that I would have plunged myself more into nature. I understand that I have inborn granola tendencies, and I accept them.

So tonight I was looking on imdb looking at information regarding Into the Wild. I knew that part of the movie was filmed in eastern South Dakota, but on the site I discovered that part of the filming took place south of the Black Hills. As I looked for more information, I linked into a page that showed all movies filmed in South Dakota. One was a skiing movie. And as I looked for more information about that movie, I discovered that it was filmed in my hometown. It's listed incorrectly on the imdb site, because the town listed (Deadwood) does not have a ski area, only my hometown (Lead) does.

When I discovered that another B-movie was shot in 'Deadwood.' (We'll see about that-- I'll give you an update once I've watched it thanks to Netflix.) It's called 'Beast from Haunted Cave.' Which then brought back vivid memories of a time when I was involved in the shooting of a no-budget horror film during high school. How was I involved? It was my crappy Chevy Citation that enabled some of the shots to be filmed. What happened to the movie? I have no idea, although I know someone who probably does.

Snuggly baby

While there are nights that my son really upsets me, tonight was the opposite-- a really fun night. Perhaps I'm becoming a bit more acclimated to the motherhood thing. Coffee dumped on the family pictures? Oh, well-- let's mop it up. Dumping his chicken spaghetti in his milk cup and then using that concoction to gel his hair? Dig out the baby wipes.

The best part of the night was Mark running through the first floor and giving our legs a full body hug. As I picked him up, he giggled uncontrollably. That toddler tummy is perfect for zerbitts.

We put him to bed and he was like Olivia, negotiating for more books. He wedges his head between the pillows on his bed. We ask him if he wants us to start his lullaby CD and we hear the little voice say, "Uh-huh."

Tonight, it's good to be Mark's mommy.

Traveler IQ Challenge

Fun game!

I got to level 8 with a score of 273,000 on my first try. Enjoy!

Traveler IQ Challenge

Thanks for the heads up, ZeFrank!

Ahh... First Day Back From Vacation!

There are some days at school when I look at the clock and wonder how I can make it move quickly through the next five and a half hours. (At that point, I've usually had to ask a kid to pick up their pencil five times and then have picked up the pencil myself, because I would probably do the Fred Flintstone-fall if I didn't.)

Today's happiness is that the day went very smoothly. It always does, though. The kids always come back pretty calm from their holiday vacation. Oddly enough, it is the fourth Thursday in May that makes me want to pull my hair out.

And to segue...

I took tons of homemade cookies, candy, etc. to Minnesota with us. I was really happy to share the sweets (I might as well tape them to my rear instead of eat them, because that's where they are going to go).

So I went back today to... more chocolate on my desk. More truffles, peanut butter cups, chocolate-dipped pretzels, and so on. Wow-- I'm going to pay for this! (Probably on a treadmill...)

Road Trip, Past Tense

We just returned from a monster road trip out to see the Minnesota family. It took us two days of driving (each way) to get to Southeastern Minnesota. Here were some of the highlights:

• There wasn't as much traffic as we were expecting, which was a very pleasant surprise.
• We enjoyed having some time alone as we drove. It was just the three of us, and we could be as serious or as silly as we wanted to be. Pretty nice to have some family bonding time.
• The whims of the airlines were not controlling our travel destiny. I did not have to be worried if I had enough water/sippy cups/diapers. I had no b*tchy TSA employees to deal with. If we had to go to the bathroom, we stopped. If I wanted quiet, I popped in a DVD. After many recent unpleasant flying experiences lately, it was a treat.
• I got to go to Seed Savers in Decorah, Iowa. I visited where the biodiversity-preserving magic happens. (And, according to the employee I talked to, I was their first on-site customer since the Visitor Center closed.)
• We got to sit quietly in the farmhouse (where privacy does not exist) until 2 PM every day while my MIL slept after working her graveyard shift. With a toddler. And on Christmas, too.
• My son, who as my friend aptly described, sounded like a 'barking seal', got better. Gotta love the humidifier!!!

We enjoyed our trip. Do we have to go back to work?

Oh, yeah

Happy New Year!

As the ball drops...

It is time for some resolutions.

• I resolve to b*tch less. And to shut up when I need to be quiet.
• I resolve to eat less polyunsatu-not-real-food. I resolve to keep canning, freezing, growing, and farmers-market-ing food.
• I resolve to keep eating when I'm hungry, tasting when I'm curious, and focusing on my life instead of dieting.
• I resolve to keep running after my toddler. Which will make me skinny. (As skinny as I get, that is. Darn Luxembourger/Welsh genes.)
• I resolve to be happy. And do more yoga. And hug my toddler. And not get caught up in crap.

I think that these are some resolutions that I can live with.

Holiday time is here, and I feel...

provoked.

It all started when I was expecting Mark. I got a snarky note from my grandmother regarding my parents, and I responded with firm snarkiness. (Snark deserves snark, IMHO.) Well, I didn't realize that I was supposed to read the initial snark and like it, too-- so my grandmother didn't talk to my father for a few months. And she wrote me an icy note about how we would never again exchange Christmas gifts. (Oh, if I could only be so lucky. This is the woman who-- three years ago!-- gave me Holly Hobby potholders with the 25-cent rummage sale tags still attached.)

I knew that if I didn't give gifts last year, I'd start another international incident. So, I sent gifts with Mark's name attached. And-- as I expected, we recieved gifts.

Then tonight rolls around. I got a message from my aunt. Saying that my grandmother, on her fixed income, spent nearly $200 on shipping for gifts.

Why is this my problem? Am I supposed to feel... grateful? Guilty?

Umm... I feel irritated. These are the folks who, when I paid for plane tickets, a rental car, and gas for the rental car out to the Midwest, then expected me to drive hours out of my way to pick up their Christmas gifts for them. (You heard it right! I dropped over a grand on my travel expenses and then am supposed to alter my plans to save them $100 in shipping fees.) And then were incensed enough to make up a huge story about how I refused to take my grandmother out for the holiday after she asked me to. (Not the question I was asked.)

I think they are looking for some drama. And I nearly bit. I decided to let it fly here, though.

I feel better now. Doggone, this is cheap therapy.

Wiped

Everyone in our house is tired, tired, tired. We have truly been on the run since we bought the minivan. (Pretty pathetic that we've put 3200 miles on it already.)

We went to Maine to the Sudbury Inn to watch my sister's wedding. We had a great time. There was a fun pub in the basement, a nice restaurant on the first floor, and our rooms were great. The best thing was the patience that the staff showed with the two toddlers. I was totally excited that we had a two-room suite that had a king bedroom for DH and me and a double twin room for Mark. Ha. As if he'd sleep peacefully in a strange room. What was I thinking?

Also from the what was I thinking column-- I let Mark play outside up in Maine. He had an absolutely fantastic time until his cough came back with a vengeance. It was a LONG drive back to Maryland.

Pneumonia was the worry of the pediatrician, but it turned out that it was viral. (Viral in that it lasted for a month and he still has a cough today.)

We went outlet shopping and I was good-- I only bought for gifts. Except for a few things I bought for Thanksgiving.

We were busy right up through our Thanksgiving company arriving. It was a whirlwind, really. I kept Mark here while they went to D.C. We all went to Williamsburg (and got the inspiration for my porch Christmas garland). Very, very busy.

And finally, I think that I could finally say that I could make Ms. Fosheim, my high school English Comp teacher, proud. My writing was quoted by The Washington Post. In their newspaper? Nope. But they give out Principal's Awards every year, and my letter was quoted during the ceremony. That counts, right?

Last but not least, Go Navy, Beat Army!

Since I Last Posted...

• My sister eloped (with the three of us witnessing)...
• I finished report cards...
• Painted the downstairs bathroom...
• Remembered that there's a reason I highly dislike field trips...
• Thought my son had pneumonia...
• DH went on travel, again...
• Had the little man puke on me...
• Worked logistics for the guests arriving in five days...

I'll post more later. For now, I just want to catch my breath!