Taking A Breather

I've been debating back and forth on whether or not to even make this a post, but after two emails from caring readers (y'all are the best for sensing something was off and asking about me!) I've decided to not just disappear without some sort of an explanation. I need to take a breather from blogging. Hopefully, it will just be a short break. I have many things on my plate and many more things on my mind these days. When I get home, trying to string two sentences together, let alone an entire post, seems like a daunting task. Plus, some of the things I have going on are things that I don't feel I can share yet. I need some self-reflection time before I just blurt it out into cyber space. So, for a while this blog may stay very much unchanged. I enjoy the blogging community so much so I hope you guys hang with me while I breathe! And, I will still be lurking in your comments...reading is the easiest part of the whole blogging experience! Thanks for understanding!

Wiped Out

Well, this week has been a good one, but it has kicked my butt too! School started back this Wednesday. I missed my kids! I didn't realize it until they came rushing up to me with hugs. I worried that we'd back track in our progress of learning and sticking to our routines, but they were great! They were a little rowdy today (or maybe I was just a little tired) but overall it was very nice to be back into my routine.

The only part of my routine that I'm not crazy about is the getting up at 5:30am part. I was looking forward to Saturday morning and sleeping as late as I wanted, but I've got this meeting thing tomorrow morning. See, I'm the Relay For Life co-captain for out school's team and there is a meeting tomorrow. It starts at 9am. Sometimes being a leader totally sucks. Bad attitude I know, but I'm wiped out.

So, after that I hope to get home and just relax. There is the required laundry and general cleaning that needs to be done too. Also, I need to get caught up with my blog buddies! I've been a total slacker in making the rounds. Lame excuse I know. So, watch out...I'll be out and about tomorrow!

Now, if you'll excuse me. I'm off to be a complete old fart by going to bed at 9pm and letting sleep claim me!

Have You Laughed Today?!

It is back to work tomorrow and while I am ready to get back into my routine I'm not ready, as in prepared, to go back. Monday was a scheduled workday, but little work got done. It wasn't my fault though (so my story and I'm so stickin' to it)! I had to catch up with everyone for the first hour. Then I needed to whip out some lesson plans for a team meeting after lunch. Then I got invited to go out to lunch (with people I hadn't caught up with during the first hour) so I went. Then we had a team meeting...which lasted entirely too long...grrr. So, I finally got back to my room about 3:15. At 3:20 the assistant principal announces that the building will be closing with the alarm set at 4:00. Everyone was very surprised, but what can you do? So this afternoon I worked like crazy and managed to just get my desk cleaned off. Tomorrow will start early and probably end late!

Today was the required staff development in-service day. Normally this seems like a big waste of time. Seriously, that is just how it is. Well, today we had some pretty funny presenters and the material actually was very useful and relevant to me. There were a few "when is this over again?" moments, but mostly I was engaged.

The funniest part of the whole day was when someone would volunteer to answer a question the facilitators would share a cheer and then we'd all do it. You know teachers are easily amused so we all had fun. My favorite was one called the truck driver. You pretend that you're driving a truck and then you pump your arm in the air and pull the air horn. Then you pretend you've got a CB radio in your hand and say, "Good job little buddy...ten four!" For some reason, that completely cracked up the teachers at my table. We all wanted to have cool CB radio names. Any suggestions?!

Well, the teachers on my team have decided to teach these cheers to our kids so when someone needs some celebrating everyone can cheer them. But first, we're just going to do the cheer randomly...like when someone gets an answer right or does something cheer worthy. We're pretty sure our kids will look at us like we're nuts, and maybe we are, but you've got to find your laughs where you can!

And if you need some cheering let me know...I've got some good ones! (Hey, my kids can look at me like I'm nuts...y'all have to just love me as is!)

Clean Sweep

I feel like I've overhauled my house today! I returned home early from my parents on the premise that I needed some time to get my Christmas taken down and have just a few days to relax before school started back. Well, I spent the first two days at home slowly bringing the Christmas stuff to central location, but mostly sitting on my couch watching movies and diving into a new book. So, today was do or die basically...I had to get that Christmas stuff taken down!

Now, I love Christmas and I love getting all the decorations out and having my home be full of Christmas spirit. I also like the way my home feels after all the Christmas decorations are put back in their boxes and my normal stuff is once again in place. I've sat and just stared at the end table and lamp that are back in their rightful place. All I can think is...ahhh. I guess it all boils down to being ready to face the new year officially. I do still have a little pile of Christmas things stacked in the spare bedroom, but it will have to sit that way until I can get to Walmart and buy another one of those huge plastic boxes. Last year, I had room to grow in the decoration department, but this year I guess I got too much new stuff! Anyway, things are so close to being back to normal that I feel safe in saying that Christmas is down for another year.

Today I also sat down and got all of my thank-you cards written. Warning...soap box rant fixing to begin! From the time I was old enough to write, my mom made me write thank-yous for every birthday, Christmas, or any other gift getting occasion. Thank-yous are also appropriate after any act of unexpected kindness. It has just been ingrained in my personality that thank-yous are a must...especially after Christmas. Now, if you're not a thank you writer please don't feel like I'm judging you or anything like that. I'm not. I'm just saying that for me personally I'd feel awful letting a gesture of kindness go unthanked. Okay, maybe there was a smidge of guilt thrown in there! There were many to write, but they are finished and ready to be mailed out on Monday.

There isn't much of my weekend left, but I intend to enjoy every last minute of it. I might scrounge around in the DVD cabinet or dive into my new "grown-up" read, Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult. I think it was made into a movie and I've seen the movie. I've had to force myself not to skip to the back (I'm notorious for reading the back of the book first!) and see if I'm right. So far it isn't bad, but unfortunately familiar. We'll see how it goes.

By the way...I've updated my photo spot on my sidebar with some new pictures. A couple are even from this Christmas! I'm sort of critical about the pictures and usually crop the heck out of them but I figured I'd just go with it. So, go check them out!

I Heart Fat Kitty

I feel like I'm being a complete slacker, but I downloaded a bunch of pictures from my camera from the holidays and had to put up one of my favorites! Plus, I got a bunch of snuggle time with Dex while I was home (he loved to sleep curled up next to my legs at night) and I'm having withdrawals. Isn't he the cutest?! He enjoyed Christmas present time as much as we did. He loves wrapping paper and boxes.



I lovingly call him fat kitty because he has this wobbly bit from his getting fixed surgery. The size of this bit is directly related to the number of treats he gets. Anyway, you can't see it in this picture, but believe me it is there! Also, he worked himself in and among the paper. There was no staging for this picture! For you guys that don't go crazy over pets, I'm sure I'll be back to regular posting soon!

Ringing In The New

The other day I posted a few of my thinks about the new year and my love/hate relationship with resolutions. I want to make some because I think they are constructive, but sometimes resolutions are a pain. So, I took (and with that I mean I borrowed, stole, and twisted) some advice from friends and fellow bloggers to help create the list below. Yes, it is in list form because I love making lists and I plan on printing this out so that today and next January 1 aren't the only times I look at it.

Now, for the part I stole. I found this quote over on my friend Bethany's blog and loved it! Mostly because more often than not most of my resolutions go by the way of the latter part of this quote.

"Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual." ~ Mark Twain

While I do think making a commitment to self-improvement is a good thing, I know realistically that I can't take this too seriously or I'll feel overwhelmed before I even begin. So, this year, instead of making resolutions I'm going to try setting goals that I'd like to accomplish or make significant progress on during the coming year. (I twisted the thoughts of Fin, Jacquie, and Tee to come up with this whole goal verses resolution thing...so thanks y'all for commenting!) Resolutions always strike me as things that you have to do and then not always because you want to do them. Goals sounds more maker-friendly. Plus, a goal is a positive thing to work toward. I also like the idea that a goal can be long or short term. Sometimes goals change, but as long as I continue to move in a forward direction I think achieving these goals will be a much easier task than trying to keep a resolution. Well, at least that is what I'm telling myself!

So, without further rambling...my 2008 goals:

1. Strive for the healthiest mind, body, and spirit possible! Yes, this is the realm of stretching my mind, weight-loss, exercise, and all things spiritual. I listed this as number one because it won't be an overnight change. Habits are often hard to change, but are usually worth the effort. I know this will be the one that will require the most dedication and I'm honest enough to realize that this one will also present me with the most temptations to give it up. I don't want to limit myself or set myself up for failure by placing a certain number of things, pounds, days at the gym, or daily quiet times on myself. I need for this goal to fit me...not the other way around!

2. Complete at least one scrapbook layout a month! For some this might seem silly, but I love to scrapbook. While I couldn't prove it from scrapbooks, I do love this hobby. It is important for me to get the big and small stuff that happens in my life down on paper. At one time I would have said this was one of my passions, and I hate to think that I let it go so easily. I'm going to inch back into this hobby and hopefully the thrill of a blank 12x12 will find me again!

3. Make one positive comment each week to the three people that irritate me to no end and make my work life pretty stressful. Okay, they don't do it all on their own. If I were a little more quick to forgive and forget and not so quick to get my feathers ruffled things might float along pretty peacefully. But, I know myself and those two things aren't likely to happen right away. I'm hoping that by finding a way to honestly (did you get that self...honestly and not facetiously)compliment or speak to them will help me in the long run relieve some of that tension and stress. I think there might be something to the killing them with kindness thing!

4. Encourage more. I'm going to encourage myself more this year. I find myself doubting my abilities in some areas and not reaching for dreams out of fear of failure. It is great to get support and strength from others, but I need to trust that inner voice that is cheering me on! Also, I'm going to encourage others. A handful of people that need encouragement have been laid on my heart. I love to send cheerful cards and little reminders that I'm here and I care about them. I'm just going to be much more diligent in doing it. It always amazes me when someone says just the right thing at just the right time and it totally makes my day. I want to give some of that amazement back!

As suggested, I'm keeping this list short. These four goals represent the areas of my life that I know would benefit the most from my efforts. Maybe every few months I'll dig this list out and re-evaluate and see how I'm doing. Baby steps...

And lastly, I want to start this year out by looking back and honestly seeing just how far I came last year (I'm completely borrowing this from Rae). Last year wasn't a perfect year for me and it had it's share of highs and lows. But, I made it through them all and even learned a thing or two along the way...which isn't that what it is all about!

I won't like everyone and not everyone will like me. But, I can find common and respectful ground to stand on with those people. I keep thinking about a song that says something to the fact that you've got to bend or you'll break. Breaking isn't fun and bending allows some new flexibility into my life.

I traveled to Mexico and solidified my desire to travel and roam! One of the highlights this year was my cruise. I loved it. I learned that having to plan and save for something you really want is worth it. I discovered that just maybe I'll be fine traveling alone. And I'm dreaming bigger about where I want to go next!

I stretched some of my personal envelopes. I've tried a few things I thought I'd never be able to do and found that I actually like that pushing. I'm taking those few baby steps I made last year in this area of my life and I'm going to keep stepping forward.

So, I've looked back and reflected. I've looked forward and set some goals. Now...bring on the year!