WOW! Really?!

6 months since I blogged? What in the world have I been doing with me time instead of blogging? Just living. Being a Mom of 3 actively, healthy girls. A teacher. A Wife. A Jazzercise instructor. I think that's mainly all. Maybe I can resolve to blog more for the New Year. Well, at least while home on break? lol

Revelation

All humans interactions seem to have rules or guidelines - some written, some not. If you know the rules you will be successful. Think about it.....

Consistent much?

Back from my "vacation". Trying to unpack now....well, not RIGHT now. Right now I am procrastinating about unpacking hence my entry. lol

I am a true believer that everything happens for a reason. My vacation part of this trip (rafting & ATVing in WVa)was nixed as the Mister obtained a herniated disk in his back on the 4th of July. This means the main reason for our trip was canceled but we went to visit people anyway. The "to-be" part is I don't think my Mom could have handled my girls while we were in the backwoods for 2 to 3 days. While around my old stomping ground, I tried to escape for a couple hour increments for little mini-mental vacations and she would call me complaining about them for various reasons such as not eating dinner. Well, when you oblige each of them with 2 McDonald's milkshakes and endless popsicles I don't expect them to eat dinner especially the 2 year old. Nor would I expect them not to be bouncing off the walls. Why ask me to discipline them when you will get mad at me for making them unhappy. In a restuarante this trip she actually told me not to stifle the toddler squeals and screams that could easily shatter a wine glass as they were "happy noises". Seriously???? Where was THIS lady when I was growing up?

Daily Stuff

I can't even complete my own challenge. *sigh*

This week my Mom is down visiting and at the end of the week we are driving up to Ohio to visit. Maybeeeeeeeeeeee.....I can update on daily happenings.

Yesterday we shopped. Mamaw is of the mind set that when you visit some one you bring a gift. She brought each of the girls a little doll, about 3 inches, in size but had promised to take them shopping once she got here. We bought yarn stuff for the oldest. She is being taught about to crochet. (I have no CLUE how to do it so she better soak in all the direction she gets! lol) The Middie got her Zoobles - girl Bakugon. (Yeah, don't ask me either b/c I don't really understand it but it seems to be the "new" Pokemon type things.) The toddler "needed" a new crown and wand since the Middie accidentally stepped on hers. She has been sporting those and the butterfly earrings that came with them ever since. We also have 48 more Silly Bands.

Today we are doing the pool here instead of the beach. My meds have me avoiding the sun like the plague. I get scabby not burned. It is GROSS! BTW, you think they want to make sure I know to NOT get pregnant. No worries on that Mr. Medicine. A tubal helps me out.
At least I will get to sport my new bikini top (if you can call it that). SPF 50 of the rashguard shirt and SPF 90 lotion AND sitting in the shade. Hopefully that will save me.

Between that am Mamaw not walking too well (doesn't want to trek through the sand or fight the ocean waves she says), we'll hang here. The oldest has her allergy appointment this afternoon then gymnastics and I teach a Jazzercise this evening. My 3 new routines yesterday were decent. I hope to make them better today. :)

Let's see if I can update like this for a few days.....

8

I BOUGHT SIZE 8 JEANS AND JEAN CAPRIS!!!!!! I have never been a single digit size in all my adult life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YEA!!!!!!!!!

Today

Already Jazzercised for today. Taught the 5:45am class. Yeah, I am good like that. I will be metabolizing efficient all day today. :)

Beach today!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Sunday!

Church - good. Big Breakfast (which DH helped me cook) - good (although cost me 11 WW points...guess I am only going to eat 2 meals today....well, depends on if I Jazzercise this afternoon or not....). Going to go shopping with the SIL w/o the kids - excellent.

Need to fill out the WW paperwork so I can get some money from them. I need to hit lifetime weight before I will officially be hired and if the scales keep going up, they are not going to want me. :( Again....two meals today.

Update.....

trying to follow my own challenge here.....

Waiting on DH to get back to make the vacuum arm thingie spin so I can vacuum. Kitchen, living room, toddler's room and bathroom clean. Yea! Need to put my clothes up though.....that is next.

Failing at my own challenge....

Ok, so I have been in front of the 'puter more than this but.....hey, I AM posting now! :)

Did Boot Camp at Jazzercise today. It wasn't as difficult as the one I did when I was training to become an instructor. So either I am getting stronger or the two ladies who lead it were softer. Not sure how to decide the answer.

Straightening the apartment for the arrival of the sister-in-law and her hubs. Hope they don't want to eat anything while here b/c it is slim pickins'.

Coordinating with the girls our Eclipse date. YEA!!!!

Needing to look at some of these textbooks I have to evaluate (UGH) and fill out my Weight Watchers paperwork to be an employee. If I keep gaining weight they will not want me. On that note bought 3 new pairs of shorts today. From the juniors section. :)

More randomness later. Must sort papers now.

I'm Baaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

Summer is in full swing and I am not living up to my promised bloggy standards. So I am challenging myself that every time I sit down to the computer to FB or log WW points or whatever, I am going to post something in my blog. It may be...ok, probably will be, totally random but it will be SOMETHING. Hang on for a bumpy ride folks. This could get interesting!

This summer I have been more busy than during the school year. I am not quite sure how I let this happen but it has. I am teaching Jazzercise about 4 times a week and still attend my weekly WW meetings (up a little and not quit at goal yet but....sooooo close). I have traveled with most of my little family for a 5 day over nighter to correspond with the oldest's gymnastics camp where we did everything that city had to offer. I have been to Hollywood Studios at Disney. We have been to 2 different beaches and visited several pools for wet madness. I was trained in how to evaluate science textbook for the state department of education and this week alone have collected the 39 boxes of materials I am to evaluate before our September meeting. And you remember I am a mother of 2, right? Yeah, no time for foolishness here. We are working hard and using every nanosecond of summer! Stay tuned for more action.

On a side note Eclipse...opening night = midnight Tuesday --> Can't wait!!!!

Oh yeah, I got one.....

PSA for Today

This goes out to all the parents who have obviously never attended a gymnastics meet before. Only one person will compete on each apparatus at a time so please MOVE when it is NOT your child.

For the record this was not my child or his child either. This dude is in the video of my child that I recorded. Why did he need to stand there? It wasn't his kid. At least kneel down or something. You make a better door than you do a window.

Yeah, yeah, yeah

I am still alive. I am fighting the good fight until school is out. I have a ton of "journaling" here I need to do and will, you'll see. Just keep waiting patiently on me. :)

The big 3-0

As of this morning I am down 30 pounds!!!! (since August)



At least 6 more to go before I am with in the medically approved healthy BMI.

Mad cooking Skillz...I gots 'em!

I continue to impress myself with each and every recipe. I was never really taught how to cook. I was the baby of the family. My youngest brother is 13 years my elder so I was the baby BABY. I was always seen as more of a nuisance. I was shooed out of the kitchen. As a teen that continued so I never really learned how to cook anything from scratch. I survived college on canned items, frozen pizza rolls, shells and cheese (the kind with the Velveeta in the pouch - yum) and of course Ramen noodles. (Obviously I packed on the freshmen 15...all those carbs, little to no exercise and massive amounts of alcohol consumption - NO WONDER!)

But now...I think I am a miracle worker in the kitchen. I have gotten really good at putting together a meal from nothing. I never thought I would be able to construct all the stuff I make. And I am still learning! I especially LOVE using the crock pot. That thing it great. I try to teach my girls a little culinary skills at a time. I can see why I was shooed away. It sure is a lot easier when there are not little people all around who could potentially get hurt but they will never learn anything not being in there with me. I want them to learn how to eat and cook healthy so that when they are young adults a meal comprised totally of carbs is not an option. I make myself proud in this respect and hope that my domestic goddess grandmother who was the epitome of a homemaker is smiling down on my and my mad skills. :)

L8R

I hate being late. I mean I detest it with a passion. Why is it on Easter Sunday when the Pastor even said last week that parking will be tough we are still going to be late. After being at a friends' house late last night I got up extra early so that I could get the turkey breast cooking, shower, shave my leg, and usher 3 little girls through getting ready with minimal stress or grouchiness. I am ready to walk out the door with time to park and still get to worship with some great music but what am I doing???? Blogging. Gee, I wonder why that is. Grrrrr! I HATE being late but it most certainly does not start my Sunday mornings off the way I want them to be started - in a state of reverence.

Why do I blog?

Thinking back to when I started my blog, it all began because I was lonely. We had moved to a new state (1000+miles away from where I was before) and I needed an outlet for my loneliness. I am less lonely now but continue to blog. Unlike many of the blogs I follow, I don't really have a set theme other than 'me'. Bloggy friends I have vary from Moms blogging about couponing to nerdy science sites (I say nerd with the up most respect b/c I am one). I post what I am thinking or feeling or things that I see/hear that I like. I am glad to have the teeny tiny following I do. I appreciate knowing you read about my ramblings and thoughts. That is little peek into my world. Thanks for letting me share.

Blogging...

I am in a workshop watching a video about blogging and I am blogging at the same time. tee hee hee

More Muppet love

reposting since my other one got sucked down the drain...

Tee hee hee

I'm still alive....

One more day with students before Spring Break. YEA!!! I have been doing a lot of Jazzercising  in order to prepare for Workshop next week. I have not been tracking (I'm a bad girl, I know....). A friend has offered to let me in on her 'email' tracking ring that her and some of her friend do to keep each other honest as well as promote actually tracking. That would mean actually being able to track (not being disturbed by one of 3 children or 2 dogs or a husband) on a daily basis. I know I HAVE to track over Spring Break or I will really blow it. I MUST make out my menu and portion out things otherwise I will over eat. Granted I have plenty of things that MUST be done that week (cleaning out my closet since nothing fits, shifting the girls clothes around to the next child it fits, various doctor and dentist appointment and Workshop). Saturday a friend from high school is dropping by on their way to Sea World and I am trying to keep tabs on Margie, my bloggy friend, so I can make plans to meet with her as they pass through on their way to see the Mouse. 

My time is up. I am being beckoned...until next time.....

I fell off....

the WW tracking wagon and what happened? Up 3 pounds this week. YIKES!!!! I am sure the adult beverage and the "ultimate" burger/onion rings I had last night at Friday afternoon teacher "choir practice" I had didn't help the situtation much. 

Lesson learned: No, I do not know everything about the points I am eating. I cannot just assume. I must track. Off to the WW site now.  

Oh my!

I hear that at my upcoming instructor training this weekend that I will be skipping until everyone skips the proper way. ARGH! 

Eating Healthy

Last night DH who it the same bean pole weight since high school while eating whatever whenever he wants, makes a proclamation. "This eating healthy stuff is hard. Last night I wanted something and could not figure out what it was and there was not ice cream, cake, cookies, or chips to help me figure it out." So, I am definitely setting the stage for healthy eating. Now to get him to realize that the tuna noodle casserole he and the girls ate had the regular cheese, egg noodles and about half to three quarters lesser veggies than the one I made for me and then maybe we can talk more about eating healthy. lol He also complimented me that mine was WAY better than the one my Mom made while visiting. :)

On a side note I now have replicated my Grandma's/Mom's bean soup recipe. I am the only one who eats it but it is good and decent on the WW points scale. This morning I took some Gas-X as a precautionary measure for school teacher survival. Beans, beans the magical fruit.....

An Update....Where to start???

This could be a LONG post so grab something to drink, get comfy and settle in. I am alone in my apartment for the moment. DH is dropping the oldest off at a friend's (in celebration of becoming ungrounded for hiding a bad progress update from us for about 6 weeks) and has the other two with him. I think I will break this up into topics so skip the parts you don't want to know about. (Updating to add that this took 3 different sittings as the family came home soon after the post started.) 

School - Same ol' snit, different day. I have been dealing with a large amount of cheating which I detest as I feel like it is lying and I cannot stand to be lied to.  So that has been very emotionally draining. Especially when a student whom I felt I had a really strong connection to cheated on a quiz and I caught him but apparently something was going on at home - Mom has something to do with the military - and that served as a wake up call to her that she needed to be home more.  That ended well. 

Church - Loving the new church! The upcoming sermon series is titled "One Month to Live". I think this will provoke me to blog to get some of my thoughts out. When I start to ponder that I idea I think about spending as much time with family and friends as possible but am very confused as to how to live my life that way when there are bills to be paid. Then I think about my Mom and what will happen when she passes. Then I get really sad and have to stop thinking about it b/c I cannot even fathom it happening.

Jazzercise - I have taken the plunge and am working to become certified to teach it. So much hard work but it is fun and really helping me lose more weight. I go to Workshop April 8 so keep sending me positive vibes. What a way to end my Spring Break, huh? I got duped into take a 'Power Hour' class that was similar to personal training and even though I thought my arms were going to give out from my upper body weight and I would fall flat on my face, I made it through. The next week I was sore in random places but it hurt so good! 

Weight Watchers - I am less than 10 pounds away from my 'goal weight'. That is down about 27 pounds since joining in August. It is the upper end of the official BMI for my height. It is what my driver's license said in High School but I think I even weighed more then. My clothes are all hanging on me and I feel like I am a child playing dress up when I go to put on something I haven't worn in awhile. One morning I went through 2 pairs of pants and three shirts before I found something that I could deal with wearing - I didn't look great but....I hope to get a new wardrobe but am waiting until I am finished losing weight b/c some of the stuff I bought 2 months ago is now too big. It is frustrating but a good frustrating... except for the fact I don't have money to replace my entire wardrobe every 2 months. Another thing it that I have to try everything on. I don't like a lot of the current "styles". I have become a very 'vanilla' dresser. Give me a khaki pair of dockers and a black t-shirt and I am a happy camper. I honestly thought I would never make it this far on my weight loss journey. If I would have thought I could do it before, I would have done it before.  I mean I tried all the over the counter drugs and many of the prescription numbers too (Phen- phen anyone??? I did.) and this program has been the easiest and most successful. I am smaller that I was when I took Meridia a few years back. I would have never believed me if you told me Weight Watchers would work for me. 

So that is what all that has been keeping me busy. One day I hope to be able to blog on the regular but I really feel like I am surviving from day to day putting out the fires that need put out the most and letting the others smolder until another time.  

Love it! More Science meets rap

My week...the highlights....

Tuesday - Former student who is now in the chemistry class next door has a seizure and his new teacher did not know of his history.   Another student whose Mother is also a teacher at the school I am at chews me out b/c she wants her son moved from honors to standard level chemistry.

Wednesday - Faculty meeting where I am recognized for my National Board achievement. Coincidentally the superintendent and the head of high schools for the county is there. Get an email from my head principal about 10pm that the earlier mentioned teacher/mother wants a conference the following afternoon.

Thursday - No alarms went off. Woke up at 6:02am. I am usually awake by 4:45am and at school by 6. Receive several emails in response to gradesheets I sent home earlier in the week. Have conference with teacher/mother after school. She was late to the conference but did apologize for snapping at me earlier in the week. The world's greatest administrator was there with me and lead us through a very successful conference. I felt very relieved.

Oh, and I am working on learning my Jazzercise workshop set for becoming an instructor. My head continues to spin. I wonder what tomorrow will bring for me. 

Ugh....

Fat free cheese....you taste gross....that is all.

Favorite Christmas Gifts this year...

Of course I picked these out myself (not one for surprises unless EXTREMELY well hidden).

My new purse - not an over the top brand name. I love it! Less than $20. :)

For you gentlemen this is probably TMI but I am elated that I can fit into Victoria Secret bras again and replenished my bra stash. Not overly sexy or exciting colors but I love them! <3

Trying not to blame myself....

Maybe it is just my nature. Or maybe somewhere in some education class somewhere I was told it is my responsibility.....

It is exam time here. My students have a nine week exam and a semester exam w/i a week of each other. Today was the nine week exam. I am partially finished grading them but to combat the verbal comments of "It wasn't that bad" the grades are THAT BAD! I cannot figure out what else I could have done to help. I have seriously been teaching my little heart out. I have been "leaving it all in the classroom" (as opposed to the pep talk of leaving it all on the field...). I even gave them study guide material (which I said I wasn't b/c I felt the test study guides along with the tests which I went over in addition to all the papers I look for in the notebook collection wad plenty to study from. But I did it any way. Around the room I posted sample questions which mimic the exam questions. I may use a sodium instead of a calcium or other things like that but essentially I gave them the exam questions AND when they lift up the poster, the answer with the work! What else could I have done?  Sooooooo depressed.......

Seriously? It has come to this?

Last night I woke up from a vivid dream where I was continually trying to explain to my students how a single replacement(displacement) reaction works while balancing an equation. Ugh! Now I am teaching in my sleep? 

The Joys of Toddlerhood

The tow year old has discovered the yummy goodness of graham crackers dipped in cold milk. I may never have to cook for her again. I swear she ate an entire package today. I made breakfast for dinner (pancakes w/ syrup and sausage). She still chose the graham crackers. Oh well. I tried.

Starting anew.... where am I now?

These were my NYR (New Year's Resolutions) for last year. Let me see if I have kept up.

Drop some pounds/firm up - get on an exercise/diet regimen - I joined WW and Jazzercise in August, love both and am about 20 lbs lighter than I was then. Plan to continue both. Even thinking about becoming a Jazzericse instructor although the start of fee scares me! 

Successfully finish NBC - YES! Finally. Praise God! Thinking about becoming an assessor myself now for a little bit of extra money or maybe revenge? Just kidding well, kind of....I am assuming if I assess then the renewal in 8 years should be cake, right? I wonder if NBCT will still get a little stipend then. 

Make some more "me time" - Well, with the Jazzercise and WW I think that is where the me time has come in but I would sure like some more.....

Organize stuff - anything - well, everything. - baby steps on this one...We now have all our belongings in the same state (I guess that would be step one). Since I am down 2ish sizes in clothes I recently cleaned out all the too big stuff. Yea for being smaller. Boo for losing clothes that I really like and not having the money to replace. Trying to look on the brighter side of "I am not finished losing weight so I don't want to buy new clothes yet" but I was a bad eater this holiday season. :( So, I do keep organizing and finding a better way to store/keep 100 lbs of stuff in a 50 lb sack.

Get rid of my acne (Accutane???) - I haven't gotten new medication but I things in this department are mostly better until my monthly bill comes due. 

Grow my hair out...maybe... - Since August, been growing but the 'swooping bangs' that HAD to be cut due to coloring/straight iron damage is the part I am the most impatient with. I hate not being able to tuck them behind my ear. So I guess I am working on this one too. I didn't even remember I posted this one or that this time last year I was thinking about it. I like the posh cut/bob I seem to hover between these days.

So, what is different for this year.....that is a whole 'nother post!