Semi-Wordless Wednesday

**Is that pic not the cutest???? I don't know him - just a pic I snapped at Autumn's horse show.

***AND ~ I made an A in my master's class!!!! YIPPEE!!!!

Borderline....

Well...I got my final back today, and I made a 92% (which in my Masters program is a B+...a 93% and up is an A). So....that means, I have a borderline grade! It all hinges on the last assignment I turned in that he hasn't graded yet. It is 10% of my grade, but if I make an A, then I have an A average for the class. If I make a B, my average will be a 92% B. BORDERLINE!!! That is worse than having a solid B b/c I almost made it! Cross those fingers and toes people!! LOL!

Awww...I got a sweet award!

Thanks to LaskiGal over at From the Cheap Seats , I have a new award to post in my sidebar! You know I love these (at least Kevin does b/c I giggle with excitement while he rolls his eyes at me! hee-hee)

Of course, I have to pass it on to some super supportive and awesome ladies who I definitely count as friends!

Check them out if you haven't already....drumroll....

In no certain order...

Lindsey over at So Much To Do... (who just became a Mrs. this weekend)

Tasha over at A Day in the Life... (who is expecting her first baby boy and he needs a name!)

And Tee over at Double Duty (who is obsessed with David Cassidy!!)

Love ya ladies! :-)

Yee-haw weekend!

This is my Aunt Debbie, me and my Mom at the concert on Saturday. We had a blast! We started the day with a little shopping. My Mom and I admit we are not big shoppers, but my Aunt Debbie could put anybody to shame. She loves to shop as much as I love to scrapbook! ha! Then, we stopped and had a nice dinner and stopped at Kohl's (where I got a cute pair of flip-flop's!) Then, it was time to head to the concert!!!! Yay!!!! Our seats were great!
You can tell from the angle of my pics that we were right beside the stage. To the right of us was all the sound techs and where they walked out from back stage, so we got to see A LOT. I was practically hyperventilating at one point when I saw Jennifer Nettles watching Little Big Town perform! They performed first and only for about 45 minutes...I could've watched them for longer! They were really good and the crowd went wild when they played Down in the Boondocks!
Sugarland put on an awesome show with tons of energy!!! Jennifer Nettles seemed to just have blast the entire time, and I wish I had half her energy level! At one point, both groups were on the stage singing together and looked like they were having so much fun...then both of the Sugarland members got in these bubbles full of air and crawled out over the crowd with the crowd holding them up!!! Needless to say, I was like a little kid! ha!

We got home about midnight and then had to feed all the animals at Mom's....Mom, you can tell me if I get this right...that includes about 6 barn cats, 8 dogs, and 7 horses!! So, we were up late!

This is my parent's place - they just finished putting their tin roof on last weekend. I love it! Next, they are going to paint the shutters and front door. It will look awesome! It's like the line in the Boondocks song "give me tin roof, a front porch and a gravel road, feels like home to me".

I'll leave you with this funny (or at least it cracked me up). Dolly, the senior horse of the group makes quite a mess as she's eating, and the cats have apparently figured this out. So the entire time she eats, they surround the food bowl and as the food falls out of her mouth, they are happy to clean up after her! Ha!

Updates, Rewards & Happenings

Work Updates:

First, the kids are hyper!!! Hello! It is definitely spring & close to summer, but I still love 'em. Also, I have to share that we have just finished an awesome book. Have you heard of A Dog Called Kitty by Bill Wallace? They were hooked!! It was our read-aloud book for the past two weeks, and it is a great feeling when you pick a book that everytime you stop reading, they beg you to read just a little bit more. Well, today we finished it, and I was so into the book myself that I cried a little at the end and had a few kids cry too. It was THAT good! Plus, they ALL passed their Accelerated Reader test on it. It is technically a 4th grade book if you are interested. Ok - enough of that....

Here are my work BFF's...

Yesterday, 3 of us hosted a baby shower for the preggo one...can you guess which one? I noticed that I probably shouldn't have worn that shirt. It's not me - it's the one in the red dress - promise! :-) She had a good turn out, and we had a great time. We had it on the patio of a restaurant after school instead of at the school - much more relaxing!

Masters Update:

I just finished my final ~ woo-hoo!!!! And, I feel really good about it. My grade could go either way ~ an A or a B. I have a low A without the final and my last assignment, so we will see! Fingers crossed, but either way, I am happy b/c I really did my best.

And, the best part is that it is reward time ~ yee-haw!

I will be seeing Sugarland and Little Big Town in concert on Saturday night!!! Kevin update:

How 'bout a picture of us when we were 16 to make you smile? hee-hee Look at that hair!

He is back on track. Thank you for all your thoughts, prayers, and emails. I cannot express to you how much it means to me (and him) that people are supportive and don't give up on him. As long as he is trying, then it isn't failure!!! He gets mad at me when I post anything about it (especially a slip), but then he reads all your comments, so I feel like even though he may not like it, he gets something positive from it. Because let's face it, I am not going to shut-up about it ~ I have to get things out there to feel better about it and get to a good place so I can help him!

Anyway - we love ya! Have a great weekend and remember ~ I'll be at the Sugarland concert! hee-hee!

Wordless Wednesday ~ old & tired

Curve balls...

...isn't life full of them! Seriously, you just never know what the day will bring. I am so pissed right now that I want to hit something! This disease of alcoholism is no walk in the park and can throw some of the best curve balls I've seen! He's gonna be mad that I am talking about this, but I don't really care right now. Sometimes, you just gotta talk. Besides, maybe, just maybe, someone reading this will wake up and stop drinking! As I'm sure you have figured out, Kevin slipped today. Here is the irony - as I am on the computer completing one of those millions of questionnaires that us girls send out and answering the question "what is your biggest fear?" and I put "relapses"....see the irony? It was probably occurring at that very moment!

The most frustrating part of this disease is that you never can truly see it coming. Things can be going fine. We were having a great day ~ great dinner planned, yada, yada. The need to drink creeps in out of nowhere...their urges are often uncontrollable. Something us non-alcoholics don't get - I want to just scream, "mind over matter!" or "be strong!" or "damn it why do you do this?" But, I have read enough on alcoholism to know that first of all yelling doesn't work, secondly mind over matter doesn't work, and it's not Kevin doing this - it's the disease. I know he is going to overcome this b/c he has the desire and is trying to get better. That is the difference between an actively drinking alcoholic and a recovering alcoholic. I know tomorrow is a new day - but I am so pissed about today!!! I am venting here because I can't vent to him YET. There is no need when he has been drinking ... I just sometimes DON'T get it!

If you knew what a kind hearted, wonderful, loving person that Kevin is - you would be frustrated for him too. I guess he has really been thrown the biggest curve ball of life by having to battle this disease for his whole life. It's not going anywhere...we just need you to pray for us - me, I need the strength to deal with it and be here to lean on & for him - the strength the resist the urges of his disease and to find a meeting that he can attend regularly. Those are my prayers and wishes...

Thanks for listening/reading!

Autumn Riding Barrels ~ Go Cowgirl!

Weekend was mucho better than last week!

You know I relax with piddling in the yard & that is just what last week required! First off, Saturday morning was gorgeous weather - finally! A weekend of sunshine and NO RAIN or tornado's or thunderstorms - just nice weather! That in itself = a trip to Lowe's. Right? How else could I make this ugly, weathered lounger go from this:

to this:

Awww...comfort! I've already used it to lay on & study for my final. :-)

I also spent some time weeding the new area of the flowerbed. You can definitely tell where the extension starts based on the size of the plants, but look at how good they are doing already! I love it! Oh, and the lizards are out in full force. So far, Simba's lizard count is only at two! Kevin said he brought one in the other day, played with it, and took it back outside...why can't he do that every time? ha! Yesterday, when I got home from Lowe's, there was one chillin' in the dining room....yep, it is spring around here in the land of the cat! :-)

And, get ready, it is horse show season! Saturday, Autumn and Tayhlor (my niece's) were both in the horse show in my old hometown. Don't you worry - I got plenty of pics and you will probably get sick of horse pics this week! ha!

Here is Autumn riding Sergio in the keyhole event:

Cheesin' it up for the camera ~ Tayhlor, Autumn, and my Bubby:

And, finally, here it is in print (so that will help make it a reality) ~ Kevin and I are going to start eating more healthy. We both need to lose weight....and hey, as long as he keeps cooking, I don't care if I have to eat healthy! hee-hee! Here's what he has going now:

What a yucky week...

...I am so ready for the weekend!! It's been a yuck week! I guess it could be worse, but seriously, I just want the weekend!

First, a girl got her feelings hurt because she wanted to help us host a baby shower for our co-worker (an oversight b/c one person - and it's not me! - has kind of just taken charge of the whole thing). Then, all of us 3rd grade teachers got yelled at by the Principal this week. It was our turn (ha). We kept the kids out for extra recess after the benchmark. (ours were out 15 min. and 4th grade was out for an hour, but we got busted b/c one of the kids needed to check-out early). It happens....then we got a lecture the next day on same topic. Did I mention also that it is benchmark week? There's that in itself is yucky! Plus, Kevin has been sick all week when I get home. He went to the doctor today. He has strep throat and kidney stones - talk about a bad week! Oh, and then this morning, I got an email that the taxes we e-filed at the last minute this week were rejected by the IRS. I was literally sick to my stomach worried about it all day. But, I came straight home and think I fixed it and sent them back in. AND, the school district decided that even though the whole district wasn't out the day of the tornado, those schools that were would make up the day. So, we are in school until June 6th! Boo-hoo! Is this week over YET?

Just Desserts...

I have the best grade level team that I think I have ever worked with in my 10 years of teaching! Today we didn't have a great day...just normal job b.s., and we were all a little 'put out' after work...so we decided to go to Chili's and vent over dessert....I mean, chocolate just seems to melt your stress right away! ha! It was great & let me say that Chili's has a new dessert with white chocolate, and I highly recommend it. We got both the white chocolate AND the regular chocolate and shared!! YUM!

And, in honor of Wordless Wednesday that I haven't been wordless for in awhile...here is Simba and Kevin....that cat LOVES him some Kevin and will pile up on him the minute he gets home and sits down! Ha!

It's only Tuesday???

This week is dragging....could it have anything to do with BENCHMARK TESTING! I want my classroom back to normal, and I have two days to go! It's soooo boring - just walking in circles all morning and not being able to interact with the kids. I do get to be a cheerleader for "show what you know" during the breaks though. Oh, and I had one pee on herself yesterday in the middle of the test!!!! I FELT so bad for her, and even though this little girl can be a bit of a bully sometimes my kids were really sweet to her about it! I was so proud of them!!

Besides the benchmark test, it is also tax week. I usually don't even realize when this week rolls around b/c my taxes are done in February, so I can get my refund and spend!! Kevin, however, rolls a whole other way...we are so opposite in so many ways! ha! So, last night his procrastination became OUR emergency....and we got them finished! Whew...I was not a happy camper, but he bought me dinner at a nice restaurant...so I forgive him! LOL! (plus next year, I am just doing them when I do mine...the organizer/planner in me has already made him a file -it's sickening isn't it? hee-hee!)

Not much else going on here - I just turned in my LAST assignment for my Master's class. We meet this Thursday to study for the final and then that's it! yipee! I am planning a baby shower for a co-worker/friend that is having a little boy and doing the nursery in sock monkeys...remember those? Oh, and my niece, Tayhlor and I went to Petsmart today and got some fish for the backyard pond...other than that...it's testing, testing, testing...urgh!

Blonde Moments

I have my blonde moments - more than I care to admit & I'm not even a natural blonde! LOL! Here's my two biggies for the weekend:

1) Kevin - "Let's go to Lowe's and get a fryer/broiler."
Me - "Ok - we can use it camping."
We get in the car to head to Lowe's...as I turn to get on the interstate rather than go straight to Lowe's...
Kevin - "Where are you going?"
me - "Lowe's...crap! Why did I turn here? Now I can't turn around. Why didn't you say something?"
Kevin - "I thought maybe you were going to Starbucks first or something."
Me - "No, but that is a good idea. Wanna go to Starbucks now?"

Oh, this one is even better than accidently heading to the neighboring town instead of Lowe's!
2) We pull into the drive thru at Starbucks. We are talking and waiting in the line. We must have been having a good conversation. As we are the 3rd car in line to the window where you pick up your order, I turn to Kevin and say, "I never ordered!" Yep - I drove PAST the drive thru order thing and never rolled my window down...just kept going through the line. There is now a few cars behind me and in front of me! So I sit out the drive thru and literally drive on through -ha - as Kevin jumps out and goes inside to get our order. (shaking his head the whole way)

Needless to say, when we finally made it to Lowe's (it took 45 minutes to get there instead of the 10 it should have), I gave Kevin the keys. Hee-hee!

Woo-hoo!

• First of all, the storms are gone! And, it didn't get as bad as they originally thought. Last week was MUCH worse. Let's just say today, we are in the middle of a lesson stressing the differences in reference materials (they ALWAYS miss those questions on the benchmark!), and a student yells, "THAT'S THE TORNADO SIREN!" I calmly say, "Don't worry. If there was anything to worry about, we would head into the hallway." (We had already gotten our emergency weather email from the principal about what to do and to stay calm no matter what!) So, no sooner are these words out of my mouth than the classroom across the hallway is filing out into the hall in tornado position. Well, great! hee-hee! I shouldn't of said only worry THEN! Really, they did great - only one cried! But, I would have hated to be a kindergarten or 1st grade teacher today. We were in the hall for 30 minutes, and they were scared and crying! Gotta love the babies...by the way, I could never teach kindergarten and think they deserve higher pay or yearly bonuses! ha!
• In other news today, I got my grade back for my research paper......96% A!!!!!! Did you hear me scream? I am so happy! I have one small assignment and a final left - only two weeks left!!! Thank you so much for encouraging me to stick with it! I am almost finished, and I have learned more from this class than any other Master's class I have taken!

Round 2?

They are saying that tomorrow we are going to have another round of storms like last Thursday -only worse this time. I am hoping that the weather people are wrong...seriously, they are wrong A LOT (seems to always be about snow though!). Send some good thoughts to Arkansas tomorrow to keep the tornado's and flooding away! I am usually not a scaredy cat of storms, but after last week, I am a little nervous about what tomorrow holds.
Everyone stay safe and try to stay dry...I hope the good kind of spring weather is just around the corner!

The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren

**Book #3 for my New Year's Resolution to read more during the school year.**

From the Book Jacket: The Purpose Driven Life will help you understand why you are alive and reveal God's amazing plan for you - both here and now, and for eternity. Rick Warren will guide you through a personal 40-day spiritual journey that will transform your answer to life's most important question: What on earth am I here for? Knowing God's purpose for creating you will reduce your stress, focus your energy, simplify your decisions, give meaning to your life, and most important, prepare you for eternity.

What I thought: First, let me admit that it took more than 40 days to read. The goal is to read a chapter a day for 40 days. Well, Kevin and I started this book as a book to read together. We started on January 20th...so we took longer than 40 days! ha! We got off track for a bit and then picked it back up. No matter how long it takes you to read it, it is worth the read. It brings a peace into your daily life while you are reading it. I highlighted alot so that when I get stressed, I can go back and hit the high points.

Bliss...

When I got out of my BORING after school meeting today about testing, I had a voicemail from Kevin saying he was home working in the garden. I was giddy trying to get home to work in the yard with him (and jealous that he had a head start! ha!). The weather was gorgeous today!

I am not ashamed to admit that today when I got home, I felt completely happy and content to be working in the backyard with Kevin. I have found my soul mate and am truly happy. We piddled around all afternoon with no phones or anything (sorry to both our Mom's who tried to call us! ha!) It really is the little moments that count!

Oh, and turns out, Mr. Toad is a MRS. Toad ~ see the baby toad beside her:

Weekend Stuff

Well, Friday started off with the worry of how to get to work - only for work to be cancelled b/c of the power outage from the tornado's the night before. (see post below) So, I spent the day trying to straighten up the house for my scrappers to come over and scrapbook. Scrapbooking is cancelled for NOTHING! ha! I am super pumped because I got all my 2007 photos finished this weekend! woo-hoo! Saturday, Peggy came back over and we scrapped all afternoon and night. I was a scrappin' fool! :-) I scrapped 20 pages in two days! And, of course got in some excellent girl time, giggling, and eating of some yummy food! I thought it couldn't get any better, but then my man (who was out of town camping on a boys weekend) called late in the night, and we talked until 2 in the morning. I do love my man! I mean, we actually missed each other and he had only been gone since that morning! He's on his way home now...I can't wait to give him a big 'ole bear hug!

I have some pics I lifted from the news station of the storm for you...I ventured out today to go to Target, but forgot my camera. It is really spooky to see just how close a tornado came to our house! I can't imagine what these families are feeling...

This is a neighborhood not far from my house.
And this is close to the school...see why school was cancelled? yikes!

Stormy Weather! (of the scary kind)

It was an interesting night around here! Tornado's everywhere and WAY too near! Jax, the cats and I retreated to the closet when they started calling off streets that were way too familiar and close. Kevin kept one eye on the news and one eye on the closet door! It missed us, but others weren't so lucky. It hit down the road pretty bad - overturned cars, roofs missing, gas leak fires, trees and power lines down. I haven't ventured out yet - have only seen the photo's on the news. It took Kevin 2 1/2 hours to get to work this morning. It is normally a 30 minute drive. Streets (including our garage) were flooded everywhere around here (even the main interstate!). I was up until 1 o'clock watching the storm tracker and dealing with the garage & this morning wondering how I was going to get to work. All the streets around the school seemed to closed, and they were telling us in this area to stay put b/c of all the flooding and trees down. Eventually (and luckily before I left the house), they cancelled school at my school. We didn't have any electricity. CRAZY WEATHER!!!!! Bring on some spring sunshine please!!

Facials, Feet and Field Trips...

Yesterday I went for my reward time to get my facial and pedicure. It was my first facial and hopefully not my last! Wow! So relaxing....it really is a facial massage with creams and masks and the relaxing music. She massages your head too, and I think when she massaged my ears was my favorite...I thought I was in heaven! I recommend everyone do this at least once!! It lasted about 45 minutes and I was so relaxed I was half asleep! Then, I got my pedicure...If I ever have lots of money, I will get a pedicure on a regular basis! That is a promise! Here are my toes with Jax as my backdrop! LOL! And, then today was our field trip to Delta Rivers Center in Pine Bluff. It was fun!! The kids loved it and were so good.

The Eagles were absolutely gorgeous. They only keep animals here that cannot survive in the wild for one reason or another. The Eagles both had a bad wing and couldn't fly.
This is how I felt at the end of the day too....maybe I should've saved that spa treatment for one more day! Ha!

Wordless Wednesday: Sharing

Reward Time Again!!!

I did it! I turned in my big research assignment ~ which means, I get to reward myself! Tomorrow, I am going after school to get my very first facial (which I hear is an awesome experience) and a pedicure (love 'em). That will definitely make all my work worth it! I do love the reward system, and boyfriends who give great Valentine presents....thanks for the spa treatment Kevin!

Oh, and my buddy, Tan over at Double Duty made me some Jax boxer bling for my blog. See him over there in the sidebar? Isn't he cute? He's excited to be famous now! hee-hee! THANKS Tan!