Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Can't Think of One

You know, I have a lot of things rolling around in my head right now that I want to post on here, but there just never seems to be enough time to sit down, gather those things into one coherent story, and post it. If I could only quit my job, there would be so much more free time. Yeah, right. I've got a while until Darren gets home, and besides, who wants to do laundry anyway?

Let's see, I promised to post about my MS 150 training and fundraising. So far, I am doing all right with training. I am taking an hour-long class on Tuesday and Thursday evenings to help with speed. It's at a health club, and we take our bikes and trainers. It's a lot of fun to ride with other people, and since it has been cold and rainy for almost a month now, it's nice to be warm and dry indoors. I've also ridden some on Saturday mornings, and need to add longer rides, along with Sundays. I would like to do some core strengthening exercises, because that would really help me out. So much to do, so little time! I joined The Woodlands Cycling Club, and it's nice to have a new group of friends. We ride together in the class and on the weekends, and Darren and I hung out with them for the Saints-Bears game. About that game, don't go there. it would have been wonderful to see them in the Superbowl, but it wasn't meant to be. I do not care about the Superbowl now; we are going to go to the Houston Auto Show on Sunday. I just want the Bears to lose. I'm not a Colts fan, though.

My fundraiser is going well, so far. I think I have raised almost $200. We are required to raise $400, and I still plan to put up an envelope at school for my co-workers to hopefully donate. My students have started to give me their spare change, so I hope I make it! If anyone is actually reading this, and wants to contribute to my cause, there is a link in the sidebar. Even $5 would help!

About the job thing, I have decided that fifth grade is no longer the place for me, and will try very hard to make the move to elementary next year. I want to only have one class of kids, and get to know them better. The attitudes this year are hard to deal with, and I just need a change. I looked into buying a Kumon franchise, but after looking at their financial information, i don't understand how you can possibly make money with it. I would have to take off so many days this spring to go to Chicago for training, and there were just too many hoops to jump through in their process. The idea of owning my own business again was very appealing, but it seemed like there would be long hours for very little (if any) profit.

Zach is thriving in his new class. He seems to be getting in trouble a whole lot less, and comes home so much more enthusiastic about school. There sure is a lot more homework, though.

We went to Dallas this past weekend for my cousin's wedding. My parents left Friday morning, and we drove up Friday night after work. The three-hour drive up I-45 sure is boring! Our hotel room was really nice, and we got up Saturday morning, ate lunch in the hotel restaurant, and set off for some sight-seeing. We went to Dealey Plaza and explored that area, then toured the Sixth Floor exhibit, all about JFK's assassination. That is one of my dad's favorite mysteries, and Darren enjoyed himself, as well. Zach was most excited about all the trains that ran behind the parking lot. Why can't Houston get on the ball with a commuter rail system?

After the museum, we drove to Fort Worth and walked around Sundance Square for a bit. Being the responsible parents that we are, we took Zachary to a pub called the Flying Saucer for a beer (he opted for a vanilla shake from Starbucks). The wedding was at 3:30, so we headed back to the hotel to get ready after that.

The wedding was at a cathedral in downtown Dallas, and since it was a Saturday afternoon, there was a full Mass. The priest went to high school with my cousin, so that was a nice touch. It turns out that the bride used to work with me at Bombay in Baton Rouge in 1999/2000. Small world. The reception was at a catering hall that was nice, but dark. The DJ came in from the big city of Eunice, Louisiana for the occasion, and it was fun. What was odd was that the wedding party didn't dance or mingle much. They just sat at the tables while the older people danced. We enjoyed getting to catch up with my cousins, and Zach had a blast running circles around the dance floor.

After the reception, we went back to the hotel, and tried to decide what to do for the evening. We thought about walking around the West End area, but it was cold and windy. My cousin called, and we went and met a few people at their hotel bar. It was nice getting to catch up with Colette and Michelle. I used to visit them every summer during high school, and we'd see each other from time to time in college. I think the last time I saw them was at Colette's wedding in 1999. No one has died or gotten married since then, so there has been no reason to get together. They are so nice, and I miss talking to them. Our other cousin, Robin, was MIA that evening.

Sunday, we ate breakfast, packed up the car, and drove to Bedford to see my friend Jenny from high school. She and I were inseparable in high school, then parted ways during college. We were in each other's weddings, but she moved to Dallas in 1997, and we've only seen each other a couple of times since then. She has a son named Brice, and he and Zach hit it off immediately. What's so funny is that she e-mailed me Saturday to say they were sick and couldn't get together with us, but i didn't get the e-mail. Jenny was a gracious host, though, and if she didn't want us there, she hid it well. I can't wait to spend more time with Jenny and Brice in a couple of weeks, when we both head to Lafayette for Mardi Gras.

Well, I need to go heat up dinner and work on laundry. Until next time.

Monday, January 15, 2007

New Post Goes Here

I've been meaning to post for a few days, but haven't had time to sit down and compose what I have been thinking of. I promise to write something very soon, and tell all about how my training is going for the MS 150, and how my fundraising is getting off to a good start. Feel free to donate using the link at the right; it would be greatly appreciated!

I will also write about what I have decided on the job front, and how well Zach is doing in his new kindergarten class. Maybe I'll also include the fact that we just brewed a batch of beer, and that I am very excited about going to Dallas for my cousin's wedding in a couple of weeks, and getting to see an old friend from high school.

In addition to that, I am thrilled that the Saints have gotten so far, and equally thrilled that we get to take Zach to experience Mardi Gras for the first time in Lafayette.

But for now, I have people coming over tomorrow to scrapbook. I have a lot of work to do to set up for that, and I also need to sleep so that I am not a walking zombie tomorrow/later today.

Good night.

Monday, January 08, 2007

It's National De-Lurking Week


This is the annual week where you are supposed to come out of hiding and leave a comment. I stole the image from papernapkin. See the sidebar on the right to check out her site...

If you are someone beside my sister who is actually reading this mess, please let me know who you are and how you found me. Also, any post requests will be honored. My life isn't that exciting, but who knows, I might have infinite wisdom on a particular topic you are interested in learning about...

Settling in to the new year

Well, the year is a week old now, and things are settling back down into the less frenetic pace that I tend to live after the holidays. Work is going fairly well, which is always a nice thing. Everyone on my team seems to have some sort of sickness, so we're taking turns taking off. The students have been behaving, and report cards went home without incident, so I guess I can't complain. Zach loves his new teacher, and has come home happy every day. His old teacher was good as well, but I think there are less difficult students in his new class.

I have been feeling alternately lazy and wanting to do something wildly productive. I finished cleaning out the office, and now have a really nice space to scrapbook. I am just waiting for the four months' worth of pictures that I ordered from Snapfish last week to arrive. I am having a crop at my house next Monday, since I am off work, and I am hoping to sell enough product to make my quota for this quarter. I have three confirmed guests so far, and I hope to have two to three more.

I took my test Friday, and I don't know yet how I did. The math part was hard, and I studied for two weeks. I am not sure that making this career move is the right choice right now; I still haven't gotten to experience teaching elementary, which is what I've always wanted to do. I ended up in fifth grade 6 years ago, and it's hard to make that change. I have leads on two different elementary jobs for next school year, and would really like to try that out before I close the door on teaching altogether. I also don't want to take any more time off work until I fully understand the financial aspect of what I'd be getting into. If I decide to do this, there would be four days of training in Chicago in March, and four in May. I only have one and a half days of paid leave left, so it would cost me upward of $200 per day to take off. I have a lot to think about!

I am really enjoying the new friends that Zach is making in our neighborhood. There are three boys who he has played with a couple of times in the past week, and another boy who lives two streets away. We've made friends with his family, and have been to a party at their house, but they are not good about returning phone calls. It's just so nice to have friends Zach's age who live nearby, and their moms are really nice, as well. I was hoping this would happen when Zach started school! There are four other boys fairly close to his age who live nearby, but one is always out of town, one is not too nice to Zach (makes fun of him about his glasses), one takes naps late in the afternoon, and one is being treated for cancer and can't play too much. Zach is so lonely at times, he needs other kids to play with. I guess he could use a younger sibling, but that is another issue altogether...

We lazed around most of the weekend, but did manage to get all of the Christmas decorations put away yesterday. The house seems so bare without the tree, but it is nice that I won't have to worry about the dog eating my 20+ years old Hallmark ornaments anymore. I will miss the lights on the front of the house, because our yard is so dark.

We have a couple of free weekends ahead of us, and Zach decided to quit gymnastics. I will enjoy having less commitments to worry about, and not having to rush around to go places. I am sure we'll find ways to fill the time, though. We have a wedding in Dallas on the 27th to go to, then are planning to go to Lafayette for Mardi Gras weekend. My child asked me what Mardi Gras was the other day, and I thought my heart would break! It's time for him to experience the fun of catching cheap plastic beads!