Tour de Houston

Saturday we put many miles on our new truck. We left our house around 9:30 to drive to Rosharon to see Mom, Justin, and Kate skydive. We waited and waited but had to leave before they actually jumped to make it to our next stop. Here's Mom "flying" through the air. We next drove to Humble so Neal could drop me off at Leslie's bridal shower. Everything turned out nice for the shower. Less than a month to go till the wedding! My chauffeur, I mean Neal, picked me up from the shower after hanging out at Lifetime for a couple of hours. Then we drove back to Dickinson to Kate's house to meet them for dinner at Opus Bistro in Kemah for Justin's birthday. Failed to get a picture. The restaurant was cute, food was good, but the noise level was so loud that we couldn't really visit with everyone. Kate's family joined us too. They were going out for Justin's birthday so instead of being the old fuddy-duddy married couple, we joined them for a couple of drinks and then made the drive back home to our house. August 27 was a busy day for events. We were also invited to a quincenera but there was no way we could fit that in too. I wish we could have gone because I've never been to one. I think it took me about 13 seconds to fall asleep once we got home from our Tour de Houston as Jen coined my day.

Craig's List

A while back, I came across an old digital camera of mine that I haven't used in years. It had pictures of Coleson when he was a baby (he's almost 3) and pictures of me and Terry from River Pines (haven't worked there in 3 years). It took a while but we got a bite on it. This man named Cesar was interested. After asking me "how it work" and "where I stay", tonight was the night that we agreed to meet him to make the transaction. We arrived at the Shell station and were waiting for our guy to show up. We were on one side of the station and saw this truck sitting on the other side for a few minutes. It's an awful picture but we took it from across the parking lot through the glass. We drove around and asked if he was here to buy a camera. Nope, wrong guy, but with all the stuff in his truck, I was surprised that he didn't ask to buy it. Our guy showed up and we exchanged this.... for this. Now if we can get rid of the ugly TV in our living room. I've dropped the price on Craig's List so here's hoping!

Clean House=Happy House

Clean your room, clean your room, clean your room
Get a mop, get a pail, get a broom

When I was a child in the early 80s there was a series of books called Sweet Pickles. Each character was based on a letter of the alphabet and taught us many life lessons.

http://www.sweetpickles.com/The_Books.html

The song from above I believe was from the Goose character. Thanks Mom for instilling the love of reading in me early on. I loved reading so much the Bookmobile lady used accuse me of lying because she said I couldn't possibly read that many books in a week. Oh yes I could! For anyone wondering what the heck a Bookmobile is, its a big motor home looking thing that is a mobile library. Since we lived 20-30 minutes away from "town", the books came to us.

So here begins what this post was supposed to be about. You see from above how my brain works sometimes. I start thinking one thing and then it evolves into something else. I think it just happened again. :)

It's no secret that house cleaning is something I've struggled with. I've been all over the place from doing it all in a weekend, splitting up rooms during the week, hiring a housekeeper. As much as I would love to have a full time housekeeper, it gets hard to justify the expense for something that I'm physically capable of doing. Neal laughs because I pick up all of our clutter before she would come to clean. I don't see her as a maid to pick up after us but someone to help clean our house.

So here's the most current plan of action. We had Fabiola come last week to do one big, good cleaning. After all, it is easier to keep up a house that is already clean. I've made this new schedule where there's a task for everyday (except Friday) that can be accomplished in 30 minutes or less. I was able to clean the bathrooms so fast yesterday because they weren't really that dirty. I think this plan might be the "one." Time will tell but I think I've found something doable and doesn't take up my whole weekend. You know you have a good man when he helps you complete a task!

#29

Today marked my 29th first day of school. There hasn't been a year since kindergarten that I haven't experienced this day. Elementary to middle school to high school to college to grad school to a long year in Center, TX to Humble to Spring Branch. All my supplies were ready to go. Sadly, Neal had boot camp at the gym this morning and wasn't home to take my traditional first day of school picture. This is my poor attempt at getting a picture of me this morning. Photography is not one of my mad skills. I spent most of my day in kindergarten with a new friend of mine. This kid is COOL and he did great today with all the changes. Kids like him are why I do what I do. It was really neat to see all the kids come into our shiny, new building this morning. The parents are just as excited as the kids. Even the one who walked in this morning and screamed "Holy Hell! This is a Big Ass School!"

I Could Sing of Your Love Forever

I knew it was going to be a good day at church when we walked in and the band was starting to sing I Could Sing of Your Love Forever. I should rephrase that. Every day is a good day at this church and we leave feeling like we can take on the world. They did a cute Blessing of the Backpacks today too. The kids (and a few adults) went to the front with their backpacks and we all prayed together for a great school year.

Back to my original thought. In November 1998, Leslie and I were driving to Lufkin to go shopping in my red Pontiac Grand Am. It was raining and I was getting a little freaked out. We were almost to our exit and then my world changed forever. I hit a puddle of water and lost control of my car. The car started spinning and I could see the world going by in slow motion. I know I saw the "light." The car stopped when we hit a guard rail and rolled over it several times. My car landed on its side with Leslie hanging over me, held in by her seat belt.

Here's how I know God was riding with us that day. While we were spinning, there were no other cars were in our path. We hit a metal guard rail which was only about 10-15 feet away from the concrete barrier. The metal gave while my car rolled, the concrete would not have been so gracious. Leslie and I were able to crawl out the back window of my car. Most of the windows were broken and glass was everywhere. We didnt' have a scratch on us, just very shaken up. My car was toast however. Another blessing was that it was just the two of us and no one was in the back seat where seat belts were optional. I know these things weren't due to luck. God decided to keep us safe and that it wasn't our time to go.

The cops were not very nice to 2 college girls who almost died. We had called my mom and she was on her way, but 2 hours away. Well I tried to call my mom but couldn't talk so Leslie told her what happened. Lufkin is about 20 miles from Nacogdoches and they refused to drive us back to town. There we were stranded in Lufkin. After giving me a nice ticket for failure to control speed and joking with us about the roller coaster ride we just endured, they were kind enough to drive us to the police station in the back of the cruiser. We waited in the Lufkin police station until we could get a hold of our friend Connie to come pick us up.

That Sunday we went to church. They played I Could Sing of Your Love Forever and for whatever reason it got to both of us. I rememember crying in church and just remembering how God protected us during this accident.

So that is the story of how this became one of my favorite songs.

Over the mountains and the sea,
Your river runs with love for me,
and I will open up my heart
and let the Healer set me free.
I'm happy to be in the truth,
and I will daily lift my hands:
for I will always sing of when
Your love came down. [Yeah!]

I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever. [Repeat]

Oh, I feel like dancing -
it's foolishness I know;
but, when the world has seen the light,
they will dance with joy,
like we're dancing now.

Written by Martin Smith ©1994

New Wheels

I think something must be in the water. My mom was car shopping this week. My dad's car saw its last days and he was in need of a car too. Life is really crazy sometimes. My dad ended up buying my mom's old Explorer from the dealer where she traded it in. Still kind of weird to me but for the time being, they both have reliable vehicles. We've been thinking about trading Neal's truck in for something smaller. We've put quite a bit of money into it this summer for repairs. We decided if we could get a new truck for a magic number, we'd do it. After hours at the dealership, this is what Neal came home with.


We're saving a little money now and have a warranty. The truck only has 6 miles on it and is a much smoother ride than the 250. I guess he got tired of hearing me complain about how bumpy the ride was!

Girls on the Run

I spent my Saturday morning at a training for a non-profit group called Girls on the Run. It's an afterschool program geared towards 3rd to 5th grade girls to promote healthy body images and physical fitness. It's a 12 week curriculum that is designed to have the girls ready to walk or run a 5K with the group by the end. I'm really excited about getting this started at my school. I already have some little ladies in mind. Unfortunately we can't start the program until January because we didn't register in time to get the materials for this go round. We tried to see if we could weasel our way into this round, but the council members were firm which I understand for the integrity of the program. So our plan is to get our group of girls formed this fall, volunteer with them in the November 5K, and then be ready to go come January. One of the cool benefits of the programs for the girls (besides the life lessons learned) is that each participant gets a pair of New Balance tennis shoes. I can see this being a life changing experience for both myself and our girls.

It's Here!

The best thing about a new school year is getting a planner. I'm a nerd like that. I had actually already bought one. Doesn't excite me, just ok. But then I learned about these planners from Erin Condren. Bubble bursted again when I found out they were $50. Too much to pay for a planner, especially since I had already bought one. Well then I came across a deal on Plum District (thanks to some sleuthing by my sister) and found that I could get one for about $20 with the deal and a coupon codes. That I can justify paying. So here it is. It's so pretty and gets me all excited.
It has these cheery sayings throughout it. The thing I like is that it has a montly view and weekly pages today. I like to have personal stuff on the big calendar and school stuff on the weeklies.
It has these pockets in the back and a zippered pouch too. It came with cute gift tags and stickers too. I've always been a nerd and have always liked school supplies. The best part is that this planner goes all the way through December 2012. I'll definetely get my monies worth. Now to go write in it!

New School Year Tired

It's official. I'm tired. Mentally and physically. This is why God gave me a career with the the option of having a couple of months off in the summer. To get re-energized. I have been thinking a lot and taking in a lot of new information the past 2 days. There's all these ideas swimming around in my head. Now is the perfect time to implement a lot of this since I'm mentally pumped for a new year. It doesn't hurt that our new school is beautiful! Makes a difference if you have a nice place physically to work. This morning we learned more about where Spring Branch is going in next 5-6 years. Even with all the budgets cuts and our legislators not making education a priority, Spring Branch is making lemononade out of lemons and going with it. This district runs circles around where I've been in the past.

Here's a few things that stuck with me today while we were talking about this new generation of kids and how they learn differently then we did with all the technology available now.

*Education isn't about how well the kid does in school. It's about how well he does when he gets out of school.
* It's ok to embrace failure.
*There is usually more than one right answer and problem solving is one of the best skills you can teach a kid.

No Help

Over the summer, I read the book The Help. I didn't realize it was such a popular story. Karen had it at her house and so I borrowed it. The book was one of the best I've read in a long time and f-u-n-n-y! I knew the movie was coming out and it's no secret that I love reading a good book and then seeing the story on the big screen. Fast forward to today. Jen and I made a "date" to go see the movie this afternoon at the Greenway Plaza movie theater. The movie was starting at 3:50 so we were meeting at 3:30 because I hate being late to a movie. I won't go if I have to walk in late. The traffic around the theater was awful. No parking on the street and I didn't have cash for the "cash only" garage. Which left me to valet. $9=highway robbery but you do what you have to do. I pulled up to the valet and told them I would pay when I left in hopes there was an ATM inside. When I went to the window to buy the tickets, all the shows were sold out with the exception of the really late ones. I went back out to get my car and explained that I had only been there 5 minutes and my movie was sold out. My car was still sitting in the same place but they wouldn't give me the keys until I paid. Seriously? I argued with them for a few minutes and then went back in to find the ATM. Nine dollars later I got back in my car. I'm calling to complain to the company for sure. We decided that maybe we could go to another theater to see the movie. Same situation at the Silber theater. Sold out! I gave up and decided it wasn't meant for us to see the movie today. Maybe in a few weeks, I'll get to see it once the hype goes down.

On a separate note, my fortune cookie from lunch said "You will get exciting news on Saturday." Hmmmmm.....

Not So Great Groupon

This afternoon we were trying to decide where to go eat. Neal came across a Groupon deal that had to be used today for a place called The Cattleguard. We're always up for trying new restaurants and their menu looked decent so we decided to give a try. We should have known something was up when there was only one other car in the parking lot. We got a kick out of the size of Neal's Chicken Fried Steak. He did a major workout this morning so the calories were justified. No, he wasn't able to finish the whole thing. I went with the seafood pasta. My best way to describe it is mediocre and overpriced. So our deal didn't turn out to be that great after all, but at least our tummies are satisfied!

Seeing Progress

Here's what my office at school looks like after another day of work. My table is HUGE and takes up a lot of space but I'm going to try to make it work. Friday I had some time to start looking at my caseload. Some of them can definetely be little turds at times, but I really am looking forward to seeing all of them. I spent 4 hours of my Saturday today helping unload all of our textbooks. It's all coming together slowly!

Here We Go Again

Today was our first day back for our new school year. It's always bittersweet to go back but I was a little excited this year because we have a brand new shiny building. The construction crews are still working on little details but the big things are completed. It's like moving into a new house, a very large new house. This is what my little room looked like this morning. I forgot to take an "after" picture but I'll take one in the morning and post it.
Since the construction crews are still "living" with us, the taco truck showed up around lunch time. No, I didn't get anything but it was funny to see it right outside my window. Yes, I said window. A true luxury!

I came home so excited about this year. I actually can't wait to go back tomorrow. My office is across the hall from our new counselor and she is so nice. I think we're going to work together well. Now that my room is put together for the most part, tomorrow is a "thinking" day. Yes, I plan to spend the majority of the day thinking about what I'm going to do with my kids. I'm totally pumped!

On a side note, Terry's wedding invitation came in the mail today and it is the most adorable thing I've ever seen. The stamps have their pictures on them. Why didn't I think of that when we were doing our invitations. Oh yea, I didn't care! Wedding season is starting again. We have 4 weddings to go to this fall.

Hmmmph....Take that Gexa Energy

No surprise but our electric bill has been high because its summertime. Well I don't think Mack likes the thought of a $250 electric bill. Not sure when, but at some point he got a hold of the electric bill and told Gexa what he thought of it. I think it's funny because the things I can recall him eating are his puppy school homework, my Weight Watchers food tracker, and now the electric bill. Who says dogs aren't smart?

Bachelorette Beach Weekend

This weekend was Leslie's bachelorette party in Galveston. Friday we met at the Haak Winery in Santa Fe for a little wine tasting. We then migrated to Kemah for dinner at Cadillac Bar. After dinner we drove to Galveston to check into the condo. The condo was a-w-e-s-o-m-e! Saturday we spent most of the day at the pool. It even had a lazy river. We stayed in and cooked at the condo Saturday. It was so much fun just stay in and laugh all night. Gosh, we're old if this is what our bachelorette parties have come to. I don't care, it was very relaxing. Everyone pooped out by midnight but Leslie and I stayed up until 4 am talking on the balcony. Fun times and I'm so happy for my friend!

Champion of the World

Today I had to go observe a kiddo at one of the church day schools. This is a little guy that's coming to kindergarten with us this school year. He was really cute and I think we can really make his transition easy by knowing a few tricks. Anyway, as I was watching him, I witnessed a really cool conversation amongst the 5 year olds.

Super Cute Kid: I'm going to be a champion.
Teacher: Oh how cool. I'll bet you're going to be the champion of the world!
Super Cute Kid: No Mrs. M******, God is the champion of the world. I think I'll be the champion of the gymnastics.

Right on kid, right on!

Tuesday Tidbits

I weighed in today and lost 2.8 lbs this past week for a grand total of 8 lbs in 3 weeks. I feel so much better when I'm exercising and eating right. I did however skip my run this morning because I wanted to sleep instead which is rare for me.

I cleaned out my closet and then did a little shopping for school clothes. Somehow my car managed to drive to Hobby Lobby. Don't know how that happened!

Psuedo-Paradise

So we have this random palm tree in our yard. Why someone would plant a palm tree in a yard full of pine trees is beyond me. Houston is actually pretty far from the coast but I've noticed that they are all over town. Another thing I've noticed is half the palms on any given tree are dead. We had our yard guys trim our tree because it was becoming quite the eye sore. Here's what it looked like after they got done with it. Maybe we should get a little pool and crack open a Corona. Just like the beach! Or not. Here's the pile of deadness that was left behind. Thank goodness heavy trash pickup is this Friday.

August 1

And so my love-hate relationship with August is revisited today. August 1st is here.

Yea for August 1st:
*Anticipation of a new school year coming
*We're getting a brand new shiny school
*I get to see my "kids" soon
*Baby making is officially underway
*I love getting into a regular routine
*Little sister is turning another year closer to 30! (see if she reads this)

Boo for August 1st:
*It's still 100 degrees outside everyday
*Time to go back to work and say good-bye to summer
*No more mid-morning workouts and reading tons of books
*That's about it

Bring it!