I know I've forgotten something...

I know that I have forgotten something....but for the life of me I can't think what it would be. I will probably figure it out somewhere around Georgia...too late to turn around then. I figure that if it is something that we can't live without I know where Walmart is in Leesburg. I was really hoping to go back and edit the 100th blog yesterday...but as you can see it didn't happen. I was lucky to make it to bed by 11:15 (really, really late for me on a school night)

Well, we have just about everything in the truck and plan to pull out of dodge around 5 ish. Chloe can't go to the kennel until 4:30 so I know we will be hard pressed to hit the road by 5. First stop will be Louisville Kentucky sometime around 11. I already have a room so we won't be hunting one down like we did last year. Tomorrow morning we plan on hitting the road at6 and driving until we are there... probably around 7 PM. We figure tomorrow night will be hot tub and fuzzy navels for us and basketball pick up games for the boys. They love going to the court and finding boys from many different states to play ball against. Probably their highlight of the trip.

Well, got to get moving. One more day of work....and it looks like it will be nice enough to get out of the gym some today. Thank God! I can't tell you how blah gym has been this month. The kids are itching to get OUT!

My 100th post....

This is my 100th post and I want to do it up right....I will have to wait until I have more time to edit it. I just didn't want Kevin to visit this morning and not have anything new to read....Have a great DAY KEVIN!!

Plastic Bubbles....

This is the over 60 water volleyball game from last year that was such a blast...watch out seniors, I'm in for next Thursday!

This is one of those times in life where I wish we could live in a plastic bubble. It just hit me yesterday at school, when kids were yacking everywhere, that what if one of us gets sick before we leave and then we can't leave.....what a scary thought. To top off all of my fears, Kirk and Kraig both came home from school with sore throats. (think it is sinus drainage though) Now this isn't a problem for Konnor or I because we have soooo much Amoxicillon in our systems right now, I don't think we have even the good stuff growing in our bodies at this point. I told the boys to stay far away from everyone....keep your hands out of your mouth and away from you face....wash your hands every chance you get....and by all means DON'T GET SICK!! I hope that scare tactic will work for us. 3 days to go....really hope it works!

We leave in 4 DAYS....YIKES!!

Can't wait to see Big Al again this year!

I always wondered how does such an overly organized person (like myself) let things get out of hand. Do you realize that in 4 days I need to have everything ready to go and it didn't happen much this weekend. I went shopping of Friday night with Kayla for prom dresses. Very neat experience...and to have a body of a 17 year old that hasn't been abused by motherhood...was rather depressing. We found many nice dresses and I don't think we found any that didn't look good. Saturday I went to a Tea at Jen's house to meet her sisters from Ohio. First of all, let me rephrase, Tea doesn't always mean hot brown drink...in this case it stood for Te-quila. Jen had all of the fancy china, table clothes, candles, and plenty of Tea. It was a hoot listening to those sisters talk. I really think that there is some special bond between sisters (not that I don't totally LOVE my brother!) Their mannerisms were the same, their parenting was similiar, it was just a belly splitting time. Still trying to get over strep...those to activities just about did me in....Kirk and I watched a movie with Konnor (Chicken Little) and then went to bed. Sunday, I picked up, did laundry (surprise there I know), did the shopping, and then came home to organize and started pulling a few things together. Soooo....tonight it is hurry up and PACK!!

Got some SERIOUS packing to do!

Yikes, time flies when your having....life! I can't believe that in 5 days we will be rolling out of Hillsdale for what I hope will be a fun packed week of R&R. I just checked the weather and it looks like we should be basking in the sun most of the week with temperatures in the high 80's. I sure know I'm ready for warmer temps. and blue skies.

What on earth was that white crap falling from the sky yesterday? The flakes were so big, I thought they looked like snowballs falling from the skies. Enough is enough!

I think I will try to get somethings packed today. I am always packing too much and I hate it. Thank God mom and dad have a washer and dryer, so laundry isn't an issue. I can at least wash and have the boys rewear their shorts and t-shirts. Well, better get a move on. Hope you all had a safe and relaxing weekend.

It's Friday and I'm ready for work!

Shirley and I tooling around in Dad's new ride...I could seriously drive this golf cart around Pennbroke all day! I wonder if there is a tour guide position open?

Hmm...wouldn't you know it...I finally feel like I can tackle this work thing and it's Friday. Oh well, better luck next week. I did work Monday and Tuesday, so I guess it wasn't a total wash. I sure hope my kids are good today. Still a little tender when I swallow or talk, but not achy, temp., and whatever else I was feeling. I am hoping to play on their sympathy a little today. It will probably work with my older classes, but the younger one's won't give a rip. (even though they're the ones that I'm always coddling when they get a "tiny" boo-boo)

Well, tonight I get to go prom dress shopping. I am really looking forward to it. (No little Kirk is not cross -dressing these days) Kayla has asked me to go with her to Lansing to look at dresses. I figured it might be the last time I ever get asked to do something like this, so I should probably take advantage of it. If nothing else it will be fun to just hang out with "just" her for a bit. Well, I'd better get moving for work. Have a great day! K:)

I would rather be ...

I'd rather be soaking up the sun in a hot tub in Florida, than where I am today. Yuck! Day 2 of staying home with strep. I probably could have forced myself to go because I don't feel as bad as I did yesterday. It only hurts to swallow and talk....oh yeah, you have to be able to do both of those things to teach 175 kids gym in one day. MY BAD?! I found out this morning, when I dropped off my lesson plans, that the aides covered my classes yesterday by showing them movies in the Music room. Boy, doesn't that make you feel important. If another person tells me that what I do is important...I'm gonna scream! (maybe only whisper today) If that doesn't shout "Glorified Babysitter" ...I don't know what does. As long as the teachers get their 40 minute prep, who cares what they are doing. Just GREAT! Hopefully there will be a sub for me today....

I wouldn't do that if I were you.....

Sharing a straw with me would be a horrible idea today. I never went to sleep last night (until 5:00 AM) and woke up with really bad case of strep. The doctor said there was so much strep on the swab it ran across the counter by itself. Gross visual I know. Konnor had been complaining of an ear ache...so I took advantage of not feeling well myself and took the day to take us both to the doctor. Konnor has a cold and an ear infection. He didn't want to go to school after our appointment so his dad said he had to take care of me. Actually....he could have just left me to rot on the couch and I would have been happy. We are on movie #3 and not enjoying it much. He definitely doesn't know how to sit. He did however make me Chicken noodle soup by himself for my lunch. Pretty cute?! Well, I have just used all my energy typing this little blog and need to go lay back down.

Florida bound....

I know it was only a few short weeks ago that I was starting the last count down to Florida, but here it goes again. 10 days and counting....I just about can't stand it! Every morning Konnor says I wish we were leaving for Florida today....I know the feeling. This time I'm going to sit by the pool in the warm sunshine instead of huddling around the hot tub just to stay warm. Everytime I talk to Dad he says he is sitting in shorts and a tank top. One day they actually had the nerve to say it was a little too warm. Bring your tan bodies back to freezing Michigan and I bet you won't say that. 2nd day of springs forecast calling for snow flurries.....YUCK!! Have a great day and keep thinking Happy Spring thoughts.

PS Beth the plants are poking through down here too. We actually put up an electric fench around our landscaping to keep Chloe from eating any more bushes. We are hoping it is a temporary fix.

Weekend Update...

It is pretty sad when you have to go back to work just to get a break....what a weekend?! Kraig finished his basketball tournament up on Saturday. It was definitely ugly. I think this picture about sums up the last game....please don't score AGAIN and please let this end SOON! They played two very good teams that play all year together. That is the problem with a "tournament" team. You don't play enough together to really know what everybody is capable of doing. Kirk came home from Festival extremely pumped. This was the first time that Mr. Boswell has had an eighth grade choir get all 1's. He is even thinking about taking them to State Festival this year. I am sorry we didn't go now. They only sing for 5 minutes to the crowd....we went last year but decided not to this year. Konnor spent the entire weekend riding dirt bikes with his buddy Drew and helping the neighbors in their barns. He NEVER stops!! Thank God we have such patient neighbors because, quite frankly, Kirk and I need a break every now and then. Most of Sunday was spent doing HOMEWORK. The end of the marking period is Friday, so the crunch is on. Well, better get a move on....have a great day!

PS Thanks Kevin and Shirley for going to grandma's saturday. I finally remembered to call her last night when it wasn't Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune time. She sounded happy to have "good" hair. Now I just need to tend to the pedicure. My BAD!

Puppy Love?!

I needed to post something warm and fuzzy this morning because my mood is anything but that. Konnor and Chloe watching TV the other night. Not posed, but how cute. We went from Kraig's basketball tournament at 6:10 (they won) to Kraig's talent show at 7 (got 3rd place) to home by 9. Now we are up, had breakfast, 2 teenagers showered and dressed for their concert (now doing homework), 1 grumpy 7 year old in the tub, and a 11 year old MIA- (but I think he is still eating). We are off to Kraig's tournament games in Reading and the teens are on their way to Okemos for Choir Festival. We need to get to Sam's sometime today and the laundry is a mile high (mostly clean in baskets). So...needless to say...I'm not in the best mood! Hopefully I will feel better once everyone is at their destination and I can soak up a little sunshine. Hope your day is HAPPY!

Now I know why I was a cheerleader....

I definitely know why my HS career was spent as a cheerleader. I can't play basketball to save my soul. The only thing I can do on the court with any kind of success is play defense. I didn't even end up on my back last night...which is a plus. I did, however, dive out of bounds after a ball and took a 5th grader with me. Oh yeah, then there was the time that I almost crushed another 5th grader by sitting(falling) on him. Thanks to Mrs. Flynn, I was saved that embarrassment. I could see the Daily News headlines...."Gier PE teacher sends one to the hospital after crushing him under her fall". Of course they would probably put a picture of Godzilla in the article too. The teachers came out victorous in the end. We always wait to see how they act and then decide if they will win or loose. They had started talking smack early yesterday morning, so they were pretty much going to loose all along. Sometimes you have to take those extra precautions to make sure they learn a lesson in sportsmanship.

No WAY!

The minute Anne's camera flashed I knew that this one would take a lot of explaining. I just happened to be up stretching when "Hung" here walked by. First of all, who in their right mind would call your son Hung and secondly why would he have to walk through at that moment. I really couldn't sit any longer and I was trying to keep myself occupied until dinner was served. I met this nice little server....I think his name was Woody...not really but he was made of wood. They said that was the only new person I met the whole trip. Yeah, really FUNNY! NOT!!!

And the race begins....

It wasn't until 2 PM that Shirley and I just happened to be strolling by this sign and noticed that our flight to DTW was cancelled...not delayed...but CANCELLED! It reminded me a lot of a track event....runners take your mark....get set....panic! Shirley and I had the pleasure of hauling our very "happy" friends from the Sports Center Bar to the ticket counter where they informed us that it would be Thursday before we would be leaving. Of course this didn't go over very well. What were they thinking?! We had jobs, families, etc. waiting eagerly for our return. The second picture of me in my "Florida Kristin" pose was after I had accepted the fact that I was going to be there whether I liked it or not. At this point, all I could think of is get me out of this blessed terminal and into the sun already! The girls now tease me about my "Florida Kristin" personality. I guess they don't get to see that relaxed state very often, if ever. Shriley on the other hand was trying to nicely tell a day full of clients that she wouldn't be at work Tuesday and their bad hair would just have to wait. Glad it was her and not me. All I had to do was call the Sub lady and ask for another day of coverage....how hard is that?!

Finally....

I finally got the rest of the pictures to save to the computer....now I can start the recap of all the events of the Florida trip. As Kirk2 calls it "Florida girls gone wild"....don't really agree with the wild part but whatever?! I think it should be more like Michigan girls finally get to relax, or Mommies Madness finally takes a break...I'm sure there are a lot of other catchy slogans I will think of along the way. Anyways this is just a pic of Gloria and I (Donna is in the background) in the Hot tub after spending a gruling day at the airport (yeah, the one where they told us we weren't going home!) It sure did feel good to get out of the building and into the hot water. Ahhhh, relax...unwind...heaven.

It's beginning to look a lot like SPRING!

The title of this post can also be sung to the popular tune..."it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas"...for anyone feeling extra joyous this morning. What an absolutely beautiful day! Konnor spent the entire day riding dirt bikes with Drew. They play so well together because their interests are so similiar and neither one of them ever sits down. Konnor usually gets frustrated with his buddies when they come over and only want to play video games or watch TV (both activities that Konnor RARELY does).

The big boys took a few breaks from homework to shoot hoops. I think they actually took more breaks than they studied, but how could you blame them (with snow in the forecast for Tuesday they didn't get a lot of guff from us) .We were trying to get ahead on homework this weekend because we are planning on going to watch HHS at their Regional game at the Kellogg Center on Tuesday.

Kirk and I spent the afternoon working on any project we could find outside. He spent most of his time trying to find out why my trailblazer smells like burnt toast (gross smell). He discovered that I have a little unwanted "passenger" who is carrying dog food into the engine compartment. Hopefully he got enough of it blown out that it won't stink anymore. I, on the other hand, gave the dogs a bath. Chloe was sooo dirty her water was running black. Did you know she is a light golden? I had forgotten that little fact until she was clean again.

What a COOL day!

Yesterday was very busy, yet very enjoyable. Kraig was in a basketball tournament in Camden-Frontier. He had a game at 8, 12, and 4. They played very well in all the games and only ended up loosing to Reading A in the final round. Of course, this meant that they got second place instead of first. All in all, I think they had fun. He has another tournament next weekend also.

Konnor got to go rabbit hunting and setting up a turkey blind with Drew and Darrin again yesterday. They went last weekend and shot 6 rabbits. Boy was he excited and told everyone he came across how they had to rip their heads off and squeeze the guts out. I know that sounds disgusting, but to a 7 year old, it was totally exciting! He also got to spend the night at Drew's house which is always a big deal.

Kirk3 had baseball practice at 1 and then met us at the 3rd round of the HHS district championship games. Hillsdale was behind for all but the last 2 minutes of the game. Not only did Marshall have talent, but they had some REALLY big boys. Needless to say, it was a very exciting game. Kirk 3 ended up on the front page of Friday's paper from Thursday night's game. Wouldn't his orthodontist be proud of the mouth?!

Well, I am off to go find a job outside to do. It is way too nice out to be inside (even if this means we're picking up dog poop or changing a rabbit hutch) Not great jobs, but at least we will be outside.

Eye Candy

This has got to be a speed post, but I thought I would share just some of the things you see as you pull into mom and dad's gated community. It is soooo beautiful down there. I am completely intrigued by the moss that is hanging from most of the trees. It makes it look almost "fairtale ish" (I know this isn't a real word but I couldn't think of a better one). One more day of lifting BIG WEAK students up the rope. Next week I think I will cut myself some slack and do something easy....like yoga....or naptime. My back is killing me!!

Whew! I'm back!!

No, I wasn't in Florida again, however it would definitely top the weather we are having today! There is one really bad thing about rainy days....inside recess! That translates into "kids out of their minds because they can't go out to play" for all of you non-teaching friends and family.

So where have I been then....well, let's see.....Monday and Tuesday I decided that my PE classes needed a little jazzing up (the winter is getting long, and the walls in the gym are closing in), so me and my brilliant mind decided that maybe Tae Bo was what we needed. 3rd-5th graders love to kick and punch, right?! So why not put that to use. Needless to say that after 12 hours of Tae Bo in 2 days I was not able to do anything but crawl home, sit in the sauna at the college, and veg at night infront of the TV (doesn't mean I was taking a break from laundry though). Yesterday started the 2nd rotation of the week (I have the kids 2xs a week) so I thought why not do gymnastic stations.....only I forgot what hard work it was to get EVERY child up the rope (no matter how big or how strong, and I've got some really BIG and WEAK ones this year). I was exhausted last night and now I've added some really sore back muscles to boot! Today and tomorrow are more gymnastic stations and then I think I need to plan something "low key" for next week. Need to give this old body a break!!

So that's the long and the short of it....didn't go back to Florida...didn't run off to join the Circus....just way to pooped to pop!!

PS Thanks for checking on me Kevin! I love that you look forward to reading my blogs on your 10:15 break every morning. And NO your not pathetic....we all do the same thing every morning! Thanks for the phone call little brother.

Time flies...

This is the clan of coaches wives/athletic trainers/sister-in-law. Thank god this lady took our picture from a distance. I would have hated to break the camera on such a pretty day. I can't believe that it has already been 1 week since we were in Florida. How come it always seems to take forever to get to a vacation and then it blows by without even barely noticing it?! We did have a great time and have already started brainstorming on next years trip. Who knows where we will end up. This was such a short weekend for having an extra day in there because of conferences...Friday we went to St. Johns to have our taxes done and then to dinner with Putnam's...Saturday cleaned the house and some laundry...went to dinner because we ended up with no boys home (WOW)...Today has been shopping, homework, and more laundry. Now I'm off to make something for dinner. I think I need a cook...wouldn't have to give it another thought. We have been going for walks everyday in order to get in shape. Will be on the beach again in another month...got to get rid of that middle. Talk later.

WHEW! That was a tough week...NOT!

I am the luckiest teacher alive this week. I only had to teach 1 day. We ended up have an ice day for students (1/2 day anyways) and then we had to report at 12 for conferences. Let me tell you a little bit about elementary PE conferences.....there aren't any. I do miss the social aspect of DMS conferences. It usually was a good time with great food in the lounge. I get to set here in my office for 7 hours today. Yes, 7 hours and no conferences. I'm doing a little spring cleaning, pre-planning some lessons, working on Gier Staff vs. 5th grade boys basketball night, track and field day (May) and I am still imputing scores from Presidents Physical Fitness testing in the fall. I just can't seem to get it done. Hmmmm...better get it done before the spring testing begins.

What happens in Florida stays in Florida....

Pictures? Didn't take any of my own, but I am waiting for my friend to snapfish the ones she took. I guess I didn't want to be strapped to camera for the few days of vacation. I am already looking forward to next years vacation. Pretty sad, huh?

Reason for cancelling....

So once we were at the hotel and had stripped down to bathing suits, we headed to the pool. It wasn't until then that we had the opportunity to find out why our flight was cancelled. It seems that the plane we were supposed to be on had some mechanical difficulties. Like in the doors kept opening and the cabin was depressurizing....NOT a good thing! Once we heard stories from the passengers on that flight, we decided that staying one more night wasn't such a bad idea. Can you imagine how terrifying that would be?! We know have free roundtrip tickets for our trip next year. We are also going to try to get reimbursement for the time we missed at work. They said it was their responsibility to take care of those items. Well, not getting around for work this way, so I'll close for now.