Spring Break is near!!

Only 4 more school days and Spring Break will be here!!!! Yahooooooooooo! I can hardly wait this year. I know all I'm planning to do is work on school work, clean, and get some of my to do list accomplished, but I am so ready for this break from the kids. It seems like they have been ready for the break for weeks.

Last week we reached a milestone. We completed the TAKS writing test for this year. Yea!! I can cut back on the amount of writing we do each week in class and not feel like I am beating a dead horse with some of the students. Now only 2 tests remain- reading and math. At least this means I will only be tutoring before and after school one day a week for math. It is killing me to be there from before 7 a.m. until after 4:30 more than once a week so I decided to cut back and only tutor math once a week. Hopefully my kids will do well. If not I'm sure I'll hear about it at the end of the year.

In my school news, my professor says we are over half finished with the class by turning in draft 2 of our paper. I don't know how he can feel that way unless I truely screwed the paper up when I turned it in. I should get my feedback and grade Wednesday or Thursday. I shall just have to wait and see the results. Next draft is due at the end of the month so I guess it's time to start planning and get my rear in gear.

Our campus biggest loser contest ends tomorrow. I don't think I have a chance at the $230 but who can tell. Maybe everyone will gain 5 pounds this week. :) No, I doubt it will happen but I know I could have done better. I have to stop stress eating. Gee I can't imagine what stress I have had this year!!

In other news I got George Strait tickets to give to my mom for her birthday but I can't tell her yet (birthday is at the end of May and concert is June 6th). She really wanted this for her birthday and I wouldn't mind seeing this concert for myself. I hope it is worth the almost $250 it cost for the two tickets (that doesn't include parking). Ticketmaster said they were out of parking passes that cost $38 a piece so we will either have someone drop us off and pick us up or park way out in the boonies and hike in to the concert. I tried winning Kenny Chesney tickets today and was sooo close. I think I was caller 11 or 12 and they wanted caller 10. Oh well, I'll just have to keep trying.

Sorry if I seem to be rambling a little (or a lot) but it has been a while since I updated my blog so there was a lot of information to fill in.

Sucky Sunday

This has not been a good couple of weeks for me. I have been sick and had to miss another day of school. I also woke up this morning to find out that someone had egged my car. I have been parking it in a neighbors driveway since they moved out and want it to look like the house is still lived in. So far everything had gone smoothly until some pucks last night thought it would be funny to go out egging and toilet papering. I have never understood the thrill of throwing toilet paper in a tree especially when it is a complete strangers home. The egging just goes into plain destruction of property. Luckily we found it soon enough and I was able to get it all washed off. Earlier this week I had taken my car and washed it to get all of the road grime off after the ice storms. That cost me $7 along with the two washes I did today which were $31.99. So just this week I have spent almost $40 washing my car. Now don't get me wrong I want my car to look nice and stay looking new for awhile, but $40 is just a little too steep for me. I am starting to finally feel better but I just want to quit feeling bad every time the weather changes.

Jury Duty

I did my civic duty and went downtown for jury duty today. The day started off bad!! As I was leaving the house I noticed that one of my neighbors had a window knocked out of their vehicle. I went to let them know and found out the nurse that helps the child at their house had left her purse in the car when she got there this morning and it was gone. I felt bad for her but you should know not to leave valuables in plain sight. After talking to her for a few minutes and thawing out my car, I hit the road to head downtown. One quick stop at Starbucks for my favorite Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate and I was officially on my way. The minute I got on the highway the traffic stopped. People were still freaked out that their were tiny patches of ice (mostly on the shoulder or under bridges) and were crawling all the way!!! I left at 7:30 from Starbucks and needed to be in the courthouse at 8:30. That means one hour!!!! At 8:20 I was finally at the exit and still needed to park. So much for the free parking and shuttle. I found a parking garage and ended up paying $10 just for parking. I went in sat down and started grading papers until the Bailiff came in to swear us in and explain our duties for the day. Then they called the first group to go up to a courtroom and of course I was called in the group. We get upstairs and spend one hour waiting in the hall outside of the courtroom only to be told we are being moved down the hall to another room. They then bring us in and have us go through voire dair. This takes another hour then they send us out in the hall to make the jury selection. Once again more standing around and waiting. They call us in and dismiss all but 6. I am not one that was picked and am relieved since I haven't been at school in a week due to class, the ice storm, and jury duty. I go down pick up my check of $6!! Woo Hoo I can party it up with that money!! and head for the house. At least it gave me time this afternoon to get my first assignment done for class and turned in more than 24 hours ahead of schedule. Tomorrow I return to school and all of the fun that entails.

No School

Wooo Hoooo! We had no school today due to the weather. It sucks that it was ice and not snow, but I was able to catch up on some much needed rest. This last weekend really wiped me out. After finding out we would not have school, I went to breakfast with my sister. We headed to IHOP (so not on the diet) and enjoyed getting out. Then we ran by her work to see if she needed to come to her meeting. She didn't need to show up so we headed home after a quick trip to Sonic for a Diet DP with vanilla (another addiction of mine). After we got home I thought I would read for just a few minutes then get to work on grading papers and working on my classwork. Oh was I wrong, the minute I laid down I was out. I slept for another 4 hours!!! I could not believe it when I woke up and it was after 2 in the afternoon. I had waisted yet another day. I did get a little done after waking up but I just wish I hadn't waisted the day. It looks like we will have a delay of start tomorrow (not official yet) but with the bad weather still hitting our area it should happen. So maybe tomorrow I will get more done.

Long Weekend

This weekend was long in a bad way. Sitting in class for 4 days and listening to lectures is not my idea of a lot of fun. There were moments that were enjoyable and I did meet new people that are in the class. Today is the last day and we have agreed to work through lunch so that we can leave today at 2 instead of 3. Tomorrow I return to school and my lovely students. Then I need to get everything ready since I have jury duty on Thursday. I plan to get everything ready just in case I have to return on Friday for another day of jury duty.

Last night was fun. I went to my cousins house and spent time with her and her family. The dogs were what made the night the most interesting. First Spike wanted to jump all over me. Then the outside dogs broke a hole in the fence and escaped. After we rounded up Stitch and Sugar and locked them in the garage we let my cousins son drive us to pick up the pizzas for dinner. That was a scary experience. Letting a kid in drivers ed drive at night is definitely not my idea of fun. We had a few scary moments like when he almost hit my new car pulling out from in front of the house. But overall, he did an okay job of getting us there and back. After eating I went back to the hotel and crashed yet again. Falling asleep with the TV and lights on seems to be the new thing for me. Hopefully my sleep schedule will return to normal since I am returning to my own bed tonight.

Webinstitute

Well, we are half way through day 2 of the 4 days of class. My professor has moments that he is very funny and interesting and then there are moments when he is sooooo boring. Like now (he is lecturing while I type this).

I did get good news from my substitute that my class was good yesterday and all went home with smiles in their folders (YEA!!!). Hopefully Monday will go as well.

I have definitely enjoyed staying at the hotel (other than smelling cigarette smoke last night and this morning in a 100% smoke free hotel). Thursday night I got in and crashed! I didn't realize how tired I was. Last night, I got in read my homework, went to dinner, watched some TV, and then fell asleep reading a book (yes it was a nice change to read something of my choosing). Either tonight or tomorrow night the family is getting together to celebrate my cousins birthday. It has become a tradition over the last few years for our families to get together for almost everyone's birthdays. I am so glad to get this little bit of peace and quiet while trying to get so much work done each night. I just wish it could stay this way.

Family Frustration

Before I start let me say I do love my family. With that said they are driving me insane!!! I really do want to move out and be on my own, but with paying tuition for grad school my only choice is to stay at home for a little more than one more year. Hopefully I will make it without loosing my mind. This weekend has really proven the point with me. It seems that we are all biting each others heads off at every turn. I also have heard more comments about living at home at my age than I ever care to hear in my whole life. Yes, I know most 29 year old people don't live at home (or even want to), but in order to purchase a home like I want I need to be here to save up the money while paying off debts. I have done a pretty good job I think. In the last 2 1/2 years I have paid off over half of my credit card debt (it was over $15,000). It has taken a lot of diligence and sacrificing some of the things I use to love to do (shopping for clothes/shoes, dining out, just being able to purchase things when I want them).

The one good thing that is happening for me is I am keeping up with grading papers. If only I can get everything else done that needs to be done I will have it made. My classes start again on the 20th so I will be working hard this next week to get everything I need done.