Just F.Y.I.

Dear Parents,

When you move away to a foreign country such as Mexico, please don't send your NON-Spanish speaking child to school without having someone with him/her all day to translate. That way, when your child has a COMPLETE meltdown, at least somebody will know what they hell they are talking about. That is also especially helpful when they are supposed to ride a bus and they can't tell you which one they ride.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Smith

Damn, I'm a good cook!

I just wanted to toot my horn tonight. For those of you who have ABSOLUTELY no idea who I am and what I like to do let me tell you...yah, yah, yah, I'm a teacher but when I come home I LOVE to cook! I've been "selling" (and I use that term loosly)Pampered Chef for the last, well it will be 5 years in April. Whew! Time has sure flown by. So anyway, I love to cook! I don't get to do it very often, but this week I've cooked 3 nights in a row. Sunday I made chicken marsala, Monday I made white bean tuscan soup, and tonight I made artichoke chicken with roasted potatoes. All three meals have been SUUUUUUUUUPER!

Tomorrow I go to the dietitician and she better not put stars on anything! I've been really pretty good this week with the exception of Friday. The scale says I've been good, so I'll let you know. So far I've lost about 10 lbs. Not enough, but not too bad...

Oh yeah, my school is selling Smart Cards, so you better buy one or I'll have to hunt you down and kick your ass! :-)

Happy Tuesday!

I am EXHAUSTED!

Well folks, here I am. Two days into school and I am sooooooo freaking tired. I could sleep forever and it wouldn't be enough! I have been so incredibly busy that I've not had time to do ANYTHING! I got all my students and I'll let you know the demographics:
4 ESL students (two of wich don't speak English AT ALL)
4 resource students
3 CDC students
a student with Asperger's
a student with Diabetes who has to be constantly monitored
a student who has seizures on a daily basis
and a total of THIRTY students all together

I am VERY overwhelmed! Hopefully we'll be getting another 4th grade teacher soon because we (all 5 of us) are sitting at around 27-28 students.

My students seem to be pretty good so far and I hope they stay that way. I don't want to say too much more about my class because you know how sue happy people get now a days and I'm not interested in being on the recieving end of that!

Other than that, NOTHING has been going on in my life, which is why I haven't blogged. I don't like the beginning of school because my whole life is upside down and I'm frazzled! I will be in a better place come October...I'm pooped now...

Alyson!

Today I went to lunch with my good friend Alyson in Franklin. I have not seen her in over a year since she moved back home to Memphis. We used to teach together at Waldron, but she left me all alone :-(

That's OK, though...I forgave her!

We had lunch at Calypso Cafe and it was DELISH, however I don't think she enjoyed it! Oh well, she'll live. Her mother joined us, too...she's a hoot. Alyson is JUST like her!! We were supposed to meet at 11:30, but if you know her, you know that she is notoriously late, but that's ok, I still love her ;-)

I went with Corey, his parents, his brother and sister-in-law, and baby Sarah to Ming's Buffet, which is a Chinese restaurant. I do not in any way shape or form eat Chinese food! I would rather suck on a turd than put that stuff in my mouth! Ugh...AND I DO NOT eat at buffets. It is absolutely disgusting to even fathom eating off of the same spoon as everyone else! GROSS!!! Anyway, I watched them eat the nastiness while I waited on Alyson to arrive and when they were finished, I went across the street to TJ Maxx. Just as I was leaving she called me and said they were getting off the interstate, so I headed back across the street.

We had a great time catching up and I even got to look at her gorgeous wedding pictures! She is planning a return visit in October, so hopefully our visits won't be so few and far between.

After lunch, I went and picked Corey up at his parents' house and we went to the Dollar Tree. SHOCKING, I know. And, as usual I forgot it was Tax Free day, so the parking lot was swarming with people-buzzards looking for parking spots. Fortuately I ran over some blue-haired granny to get one up front...I kid, I kid, ....it wasn't up front...

I got some SUPER cute "Fall Festival" stuff at the Dollar Tree and we looked for some shoes for Corey. His collection is beginning to rival mine. Well, not really, but for him it's a LOT of shoes. FOUR pairs!! lol

We ended up coming back to the 'Boro to go to Shoe Carnival, which I hate because it is always full of red-necks and their red-neck babies wearing dirty diapers and the aisles are WAY too small!...but we were only there for a minute. The guy who wears the clown nose in that place gives me the creeps...

Traffic was HORRIBLE and backed up all the way from the interstate down past the mall, so we went home the back way to avoid all that nonsense. Now we're home and I'm about to watch my new Sunday nite favorites, "Rock of Love," which is a white-trash treasure trove and "The Two Coreys," which is fun to watch because they look for people who will even THINK about giving them a second chance at acting in anything legit. After that, I'm headed to bed to prepare for a wonderfully exciting week of INSERVICE...yay...

Until next time...

Lunch and Shopping!

Hola! Today was a super fun day!! It started when my friends Jennifer, Clare, Clarissa, Katie, Erin, and I went to Chili's in Smyrna to have lunch. It was so great to see Katie and Erin because we haven't seen them much this summer and won't see them much next year since they'll be at a different school. We had a lot of fun catching up with them and chit-chatting about what "fun" the new school year will bring! We stayed for about an hour and a half, gave hugs and then Clarissa and I were off to Lebanon to shop at the outlet mall!

I had completely forgotten that it was tax free weekend - because usually I huddle myself up in a little ball and stay far, far away from anything that resembles a place that sells something during that time! There are WAY too many people out and about and I'd rather have to pay the tax than bitch slap some lady for my parking place! Anyway, it wasn't that bad. A little busy, but not unbearable.

Clarissa and I visited LOTS of stores such as the Coach Outlet (where I hoped to find a bargain, but I didn't), Eddie Bauer, Carter's, Ann Taylor, Gap, and Ralph Lauren. Boy did we load up! I got a cute sweater at Eddie Bauer and some great stuff at the Gap. Clarissa ended up hitting sale after sale, too! Miss Caraline (Clarissa's daughter) is going to be the talk of the sandbox with her new clothes! Too cute! - but they still don't make me long for changing a poop-filled diaper. By the way, I have a story about a poop-filled diaper, a cheating ex-boyfriend, and a VERY hot car...remind me to tell it someday. You know it will be good, cause you all KNOW what I'm capable of...

After my disappointing shopping experience at the Coach Outlet, I decided to just go to Dillard's (instead of driving all the way to Green Hills Mall to the Coach store there) and buy the purse I have REALLY been coveting for about 6 months now. I know many of you are thinking, "Why in the HELL would you buy something so expensive?!" but I'll tell you, once you get one, you can't go back! It really is an addiction!! I have ALWAYS had a thing for purses, shoes, clothes, and Barbies (just ask my mom!) but I quit the Barbie thing a long time ago. And hey, why did I spend 5 years in college to get a job that pays a real salary? So I could spend the rest of my life shopping for purses at Wal-Mart? I think not, dammit! I've paid my dues to the college society (I'm still paying them in monthly installments) and I deserve the best because I'm AWESOME and I rock!

As usual I have taken the liberty of assembling a slide show of my wares for your viewing pleasure:

Back to work!

Hello all (three of you)! I'm sure you were wondering like crazy where I've been for the past few days. Well, I'll tell you...school. Well, really only the physical school today, but the past 2 days I spent sleeping at a school-related conference! Hahaha...just kidding. My body was there was there.

Today we had a meeting, which gave us an additional 5 hours of inservice credit. So, BEFORE we even have to start school, I already have 31 hours for the year. We only have to have 12! Ugh...I get talked into too much stuff!

We have new people at school. It's always strange to get to know them, but I have to remember I was one of "them" once. There is one new one, though. COCKY! That's all I'm sayin'. Lord help ya, buddy. I hope I didn't come out of the gate that way!

Anyway - since I really have nothing to blog about, I decided to go in search of a Thursday Meme. (Named for talking about ME) Here goes:

1. Are you a Chief or an Indian when it comes to work, working on projects, etc? Why/how so?

Hmmm, I tend to be a Chief. My dad always said if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. So TRUE! And, I am a tad bit of a control freak, so if I'm in charge, then it will always go my way! :-)

2. Are you able to be both a Chief and an Indian when the situation calls for it? Why/why not?

Yes, I am a big team player, but I prefer to be the Chief. I can be an Indian - as long as I like the Chief! If not, I'm tempted to switch tribes and open a casino!

3. Is there a particular situation as of late where you have had to be one or the other? What was it?

Ahhh yes, school. My dear friend Jennifer was elected team leader, which I think was a PERFECT choice! However, there are other school things, such as BTS, where I am the Chief. However, I'm always the Chief at home!

Ok, kiddos. That's it for now, but let me just leave you with this picture to honor Nick from Big Brother 8 since he was voted out tonight:

Brace yourselves...

That's right folks, brace yourselves! Breathe deeply as you read these next few words... Stephanie Smith actually went OUTDOORS to play a SPORT!!! I realize some of you may have just had a bowel movement in your pants, but it is actually true!

Corey and I went to Barfield Crescent Park yesterday to play Disc Golf. We played 18 holes and it just about killed me, but by god I made it! Thanks to Tim and Clare, (well Tim really, but Clare plays too) Corey has developed a new obsession and claims to be a "natural" at this game, so he had to show me the ropes. I lost my disk in the woods several times and even went IN the deep forest to get it! I did not see any snakes, but I did see a giant lizard, which scared the holy crap out of me and I screamed like any girly girl would! Of course I cheated a bunch and told myself that I either pared or birdied each hole just to make myself feel better. I really sucked!

We also smelled some interesting scents while we were out there. At first, we thought we were going to encounter a skunk, but we soon discovered that is was just two Bevis and Butt-Head look alikes smoking pot at one of the holes in the woods. What losers! I swear to you, they sounded just like them...laughing and all!

Anyway, I did really well playing the first 9 holes because they were actually in civilization, but once we got to the back 9 I began to realize this was more "outdoor-y" than I had planned for. There was one hole where you had to trek down what seemed like a mountain and then on the hole directly after it you had to haul your ass back up to the top. I thought I was going to die right there and all the maggots and wood critters would have had a lovely dinner! However, I made it. I survived.

I'm not real sure when I will be back to play again. You know how much I LOVE to sweat and all...It's only the most disgusting thing in the world...

For you viewing pleasure, I have compiled a slideshow. Make sure you pay special attention to the captions so that you get the "true" feel for my day. Sorry ladies, there are no pictures of Corey...only ME

A Trip Home

Last Thursday, I left Murfreesboro to head to Crossville. I hadn't been in a while and it was a good chance to get back before school starts. Sometimes it's just nice to go home, ya know? Anyway, I always have my favorite places to stop when I go home, so I was looking forward to my shopping excursion. When I got there, I met my mom at the house and we had to stay there for a little while because there were men working on the garage since it didn't work anymore. My dad called and wanted us to meet him for lunch before he had to head to the store. (Here's my dad in his favorite chair looking oh so handsome:)
After the worker men left, we went to meet him at the Cracker Barrel. I was really good and ordered a grilled chicken salad and I even left most of my croutons! We all had a good lunch, but it had to be quick so dad could get back and open the store.

After lunch, mom and I began our tour of my usual places to hit when I go home. We went to the Dollar Tree, which as you all know is my most FAVORITE store on the planet! I needed something that was metal for my students to be able to use their Magnetic Poetry centers on. They just happened to have some colorful square metal sheets to be used as a memo board in their Back to School section. I picked up six of them! I also got some really cool, clear frog and human models in their toy section. You can take them apart and "disect" them without getting all goopy! I got a couple of them for my friend, Clarissa, too! We also hit up the Cato store, but didn't find anything there. So we moved on to the used book store.
The Book Cellar is also one of Corey's favorite places to visit, but he looks for scary books! I go to look for books to use in my classroom. I will usually buy 2-3 copies of the same book if I can find it so that I can use them for book circles! I did end up finding a few books, and even one on tape, so it turned out to be a pretty good find!

After shopping all day we met my dad for dinner at Dickey's Barbeque. That happens to be my and Corey's "special" place (lol) but that's another story. I had a baked potato with pulled pork bbq and it was mighty tasty!! They also have these big-ass pickles you can get out of a jar! It was a very tasty dinner!

My mom goes to a water aerobics class on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. She wanted me to go with her in the morning, but I needed a bathing suit, so we went out to the outlet mall to find a new swim suit for me and some new tennis shoes for dad. I got a chocolate brown suit with rouching to hide all my fat rolls! It's really cute! So anyway, the next day we got up and went to her water aerobics class. I SWEAR to you my mom and I were the youngest people there! And...the class was lead by this old German lady. Let me tell you, that German lady was FIERCE! She had everybody's asses up moving around! It lasted about an hour, but it was fun and I am thinking about going to the YMCA here since they offer water aerobic classes, too!
Here is a picture of the pool:


The rest of the day was great, too! We met Marilyn, a family friend, to go see "Hairspray" at the movies and it was really cute! It was SUPER hard not to get popcorn, but mom and I snuck in some 100 calorie packs of snacks and we were fine! Here's my mom and Marilyn at the movie theater:

My dad's band, the City Lights, was playing out at the Fairfield country club that night and mom and I wanted to go see them, so we went shopping to find something to wear, naturally! We searched all over the place, but I finally found a really cute black and white polka-dot dress at Goody's. When we tried to call and make reservations, they were all booked up, so we didn't end up going after all. :-(
Instead, we called Marilyn and asked her to eat at Gondola's with us. It was really good and nice to spend more time with her!

The next day, I slept late! It was nice since I hadn't been sleeping well. I watched my mom kill a poke weed in front of her house. This is what people use to make "poke salit" and no, that's not spelled wrong. People used to eat this stuff! Here's a little slide show of it's removal by my mother:

We went to lunch with my grandpa at Shoney's and it was good to see him. Below are pictures of him with my mom and with his fishin' hat on:


It was also good to see the animals.

Spooky, the dalmation, Orange, the cat, and a random frog in the driveway! lol I also saw a black snake wriggling across the road as I was leaving! Ewww... I had a fun time and I'll be back again on Sept. 1st for my 10 year High School reunion!

I am Big Bird

Your Score: Big Bird

You scored 83% Organization, 46% abstract, and 81% extroverted!

This test measured 3 variables.

First, this test measured how organized you are. Some muppets like Cookie Monster make big messes, while others like Bert are quite anal about things being clean.

Second, this test measured if you prefer a concrete or an abstract viewpoint. For the purposes of this test, concrete people are considered to gravitate more to mathematical and logical approaches, whereas abstract people are more the dreamers and artistic type.

Third, this test measured if you are more of an introvert or an extrovert. By definition, an introvert concentrates more on herself and an extrovert focuses more on others. In this test an introvert was somebody that either tends to spend more time alone or thinks more about herself.

You are very organized, both concrete and abstract, and more extroverted.

Here is why are you Big Bird.

You are both very organized. You almost always know where your belongings are and you prefer things neat. You may even enjoy cleaning and find it therapeutic. Big Bird is never sloppy and always under control... pretty good for a 6 year old bird living without a family.

You both are sometimes concrete and sometimes abstract thinkers. Big Bird can be quite dreamy at times and has no problem using his imagination. At the same time he is also practical and can be methodical in his search for answers to questions. You have a good balance in your life. You know when to be logical at times, but you also aren't afraid to explore your dreams and desires... within limits of course.

You are both extroverts. Big Bird gets along with everyone. He makes friends easily and always has a positive attitude. You definitely enjoy the company of others, and you don't have problems meeting new people... in fact you probably look forward to it. You are willing to take charge when necessary or work as part of a team.

The other possible characters are
Oscar the Grouch
Bert
Snuffleupagus
Ernie
Elmo
Kermit the Frog
Grover
Cookie Monster
Guy Smiley
The Count

Hey, don't be a grouch! If you liked the test, let others know by rating it below. Feel free to vote for your favorite character too.

Link: The Your SESAME STREET Persona Test written by greencowsgomoo on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Rain...

This is what was going on at my house today!

Birthday Celebration #2

Well, yesterday was Corey's birthday and we had a fantastic time! It all started as we got up around 7:00 to get ready to go to the zoo. We got up there around 9:30 and began our day. We really enjoyed seeing the animals, but especially the giraffes and elephants! I got to see Hadari, the elephant that painted the picture in my livingroom! She had a notch in her ear and the shortest tail, so that's how we were able to distinguish her from the other 2 elephants. She is the one on the far left in the picture below. I ran into my friend Alison at the aquarium part of the zoo. She was there with her family and her friend. You can read all about her trip to the zoo HERE

After we left the zoo, we went over to the Hickory Hollow mall (ONLY because it was still daylight!) and had lunch in the food court. Corey had a gyro from Pyramids and I had a turkey sandwich from Subway. After lunch we cruised the mall and ended up at a store called "Steve & Barry's." This is where Sarah Jessica Parker has her new BITTEN clothing line. I had never been there before, but let me tell you - it is WAAAAAAY cheaper than Old Navy ever dreamed of being! Corey and I got 2 graphic tees there. His says "Dungeons & Dragons" on it because he is a geek and mine is pink with a turtle on it and says "It's all about me, get used to it" which is SO appropriate!

I was also on a mission to find some nice red heels to go with my two new black and white outfits that I purchased last week. I looked all over the mall but couldn't find any. After we had been at home and rested for about an hour, we went back out and I stopped at Payless and bought what my friend Sandy referred to as "red hooker heels." They are actually pretty comfortable. You should click on the link to see them; they're cute!

After finding my heels, we went to Hastings because Corey was on a mission to find the 20th anniversary edition of "The Monster Squad." If you are a loser and didn't see this movie back in the 80s, I HIGHLY recommend that you watch it! It's awesome! Ryan Lambert is in it and as we all know, he was on Kids Incorporated with Fergie. He's second from the left and Fergie is the cute little blonde girl on the bottom. Boy, did she get fugly! Anyway, we got the movie and saved the day. Then we went to Publix, which I lovingly refer to as "Pubix" for birthday cake and ice cream.

We came home and got ready to meet our friends at Fuji and yes, I wore my red hooker heels. We had an awesome dinner, but our chef didn't like the fact that I ordered my filet mignon medium well, so he gave me shit about it all night. I told him that was ok, but at the end of the meal, I was the one leaving the tip. He seemed to shut up after that comment. Other than that, our dinner was quite pleasant. There were 8 of us: Corey and Myself, Clare and Tim, Aaron and Jenny, Sandy, and Shad. All but Shad came over for cake and ice cream after it was over. We cracked open the bottle of icewine that Corey's parents brought us back from Canada and sipped on it out of my cute little cordial glasses. The girls and I went and enjoyed a conversation about America and politics on the front porch while it came a monsoon storm and the boys were sissies and sat in the kitchen - probably talking about recipes and how to knit themselves new man-panties.

We hit the hay around 11:30 and I conked right out! It was a long-ass day, but we had a great time! Oh, I got Corey a DVD/VCR combo for his birthday. He was excited!! We spent WAY too much money, but it was worth it. Birthdays are fun! Now, mine is December 6th and y'all better believe we'll be celebrating!!! Just wait...

No stars!

Just an FYI...

I went to weigh in today and I've lost another 3.4lbs. AND...here's the biggest part - she didn't put stars next to ANYTHING! That means that everything that I ate this week was acceptable! Yay! So, the bitch isn't a bitch this week. I'll let her be "the chick" until further notice, but by god if she puts a star on my shit next week, she'll be back to bitch status!

Corey's Birthday Celebration #1

This afternoon, we went to Franklin. Tuesday is Corey's birthday, so we went to celebrate with his parents today. Our reservations at Saffire were for 5:00, which by the way if you haven't been, you should TOTALLY go - it's in the Factory. Anyway, we got down there around 2:00, so we had some time to kill. After hanging out with his parents we decided to head over to Academy sports to look for a Disc Golf set.

See, Clare and Tim came over the other day (when we had our mani/pedis) and while the girls were out Tim took Corey to play disc golf over at Barfiled Park. Apparently this is now his newest obsession!! So, off we went to the sporting goods store to buy TWO sets. One for him and one for guess who...ME. Have I ever played this before? No. It will be very interesting to see how that goes. I HATE to sweat, so if that happens we'll have to persue other options. Maybe I can take a portable fan with me...do they have those? Back to my story - Academy SUCKS! That place is huge and the isles are literally 4 feet wide and I have an intense feeling of claustrophobia every time I go in there. We finally found the disc golf stuff with the CAMPING equipment. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to do that!? Who said, "It makes COMPLETE sense to put disc golf over with the portable toilets and waterproof toilet paper!" We didn't like the deal they had there and I hated the store, so we left and went to Dick's.

Dick's was MUCH more open and less crowded and we were able to find what we wanted quickly, so we were in and out. Those little discs are expensive. For a pack of three - a driver, iron, and putter - it cost $24! DAYUM! We purchased two sets so that MOI could play.

We went back to his parents house and piled in the van to go down the street to Saffire. I'm telling you - YOU HAVE TO GO! It is expensive, but very tasty!! They have these cheese grits, made with mascarpone cheese and cream that are to DIE for!! So, Judy, Corey and I had the fish and grits. It was wonderful, but I couldn't eat it all; I was stuffed! I wonder if any of the chefs there work at Viking, too? I need to take another class there and maybe they can teach me how to cook the fish that way. I made the grits at home once, but they weren't nearly as good as Saffire's.

After dinner, we went back to his parent's house to have ice cream cake. Mmmmmm....I was sooooo bad today! However, I have eaten about 100 less calories each day in anticipation of today. We will also be going to Fuji Japanese Steakhouse on Tuesday, so I'll have to make up for that later in the week. I weigh in tomorrow and hopefully HER scale will show as much progress as MY scale does...

We got home around 8 and tried to watch Big Brother, but our stupid-ass TiVo wouldn't play it, so after Corey spent 30 minutes on the phone with a rep. from DirecTV's customer service, we finally got to watch it after I found it on the computer on a spoiler site. Ahhh, sweet drama. I freakin' LOVE Big Brother! It is the apitomy of summer to me. Love it!! Ok, it's time to shut up now.

Oh, the Kava's place wasn't all that but they did have some damn good iced tea!

Haircuts and toenails

Hello all! I'm sure there are like, three of you reading this... Anyway, I just thought I'd update you on the past 2 days of my life because I KNOW you can't live without an update!

Thursday my friends Clare and Clarissa and I went to the hair-do school to get our manis and pedis. Now, you may be thinking, "Why in the world would they go to the hair-do school to get their toes done?!," but I will tell you they are cheap ($20 for a spa mani/pedi) and they do a pretty good job. There is no way in HELL I would ever let them touch my hair, but they can touch my feet all they want because I am not gonna do it! We had a nice time and it was good to get out with the girls. Girl days are fun!!

After that, we went on a scavenger hunt for a pair of shoes that I so desperately needed (yeah right!) and Clarissa had. They were just too cute, so I decided I needed them also! We went to several shoe stores, but they were just nowhere to be found. I did end up finding them on the internet last night and ordered them. Whoo hoo! New shoes! Nothing makes a girl feel better than a new pair of shoes...I have literally more than 50 pairs. It's an addiction...shoes and handbags. I can't help myself!!

Yesterday I went to get a cute, sassy haircut. I don't know about you, but I absolutely HATE it when the girl fixes my hair. It always ends up looking like shit! I left there looking like a cotton ball head because my hair was sooooooo poofy! I knew I liked the cut, but I went directly to my straightener when I got home and fixed that mess right up! She CURLED my hair after I specifically mentioned that I wanted it straight. I don't even need a curling iron because my hair is naturally curly, so why would I want to do that to myself?! Oh well, I fixed it and it looks really cute today!

Today I went to a baby shower for another teacher friend at school. She is having a girl. This is literally about the 15th baby shower I have been to this year. EVERYBODY had a baby this year - but me. I don't even want a dog right now! Maybe when I'm 40 it will be time. I am way too selfish for that business. I have to save all my money for my shoes and handbags! lol

Anyway, the shower was nice and it was good to see some teachers that I hadn't seen all summer. We all got caught up on school news and talked it over and played games and ate cupcakes. Yes, I had a freakin' cupcake and if that bitch dietitician says ONE damn word about it or puts a star next to it on my paper I might just have to politely lean over the table and smack the shit outta her. I've been really good this week!!!! I don't want to hear about a damn cupcake! Shut up!!

Corey and I are getting ready to go out to eat with some friends who are about to move away. Hmmm, wonder what we did?! lol We are going to Kava's. It is supposed to be Carribbean food maybe? Anyway, I'm sure there's nothing there that I will put in my mouth. As you know, I do NOT eat ethnic food unless it's Mexican. Maybe they'll have some beans or fruit...I know they do have roasted chicken, and I might eat that as long as they haven't rubbed it with spices from the underbelly of a wild pig. I'll have to get back to you about that one...

My classroom

Alright folks. Here it is!

Ok, so it's been a while...

Ok, my life I feel is really not that interesting, but I'm bored right now and need something to do. Anyway...let's get on with it:

I started the Rutherford County program called, "Action with Balance," which is a weight loss management program. I had to pay $50 for the 12 week course, but when I successfully complete it, I get my money back, so it really is a win/win situation. I met with my dietitician (after I tried to quit because she never would call me back) and I must say, I hate her. Let me tell you why. She's blonde, skinny, perfect teeth, and looks like she's never eaten a french fry in all of her 24 years (and yeah, she's 24...I looked her up on myspace). I HATE HER! Well, not hate, hate, but you know what I mean. I would probably feel MUCH more comfortable with her if she had a picture of herself on her desk from when she weighed 350lbs, but I'm almost positive that's not gonna happen. How am I possibly supposed to take advice, much less find inspiration in someone who's NEVER struggled with eating a cheeseburger!? Bitch even fussed at me for getting a NON-fat latte at Starbucks, but I flat out told her I wasn't even going to apologize about it because I knew it wasn't a big deal. She simply said, "OK" and she moved off it. Yeah, I really don't think she knew what she was getting with me.

The first time we met she asked me what I would and would not eat. I don't think there's enough paper in the world to list all of my eating "quirks," but my two absolutely-not-going-in my-mouth-foods were milk and tomatoes. YUCK! However, I really need to have a meal in front of me before I know what I will and will not eat. Take lettuce for instance; if it is too green or has too many ribs or hard vein-y parts in it, it's not going into my mouth! No way!

Anyway, on my second visit I did lose over 2lbs, but I'm trying to stick more with the Weight Watchers Core plan than what she tells me about calories. I hate to count, which is why I did the Core plan in the first place. However, I do use this cool website (www.thedailyplate.com) to track my calories, goals (if I set them) and exercise. It's nice because it literally lists EVERYTHING in the world on there; even fast food restaurants and national brands of food. So, if you're looking for a good tracker, use that one.

I go back to her this coming Monday, so I'm sure I'll have more lovely things to say. By then I should be used to my eight teen hundred freakin' calories a day diet. Shit. Maybe that's the stomach growls that are talking...

Oh yeah, my classroom is finished and hopefully I will have pictures up soon...we'll see how that goes. :-)

All Dressed Up...

Well, here we are! Corey's parents, Judy and Wayne, myself, and Corey. We were all dressed up to go to Corey's cousin's wedding back in May. We don't tend to get too dressed up very often. In fact, this photo is QUITE the opposite of what I'm wearing today! I haven't even showered yet! But, I've not been a slacker either; I have already unloaded/loaded the dishwasher, made a banana cake, and finished the laundry. I am also planning to dust and vacuum the living room and bedrooms. So, why get all dressed up just to get dirty again?!

Tonight I have to get dressed up to go to some sort of fundraiser with my friend Jennifer. She is supporting a woman who is running for Judge in our area, so we are going. She bought the tickets in hope that her hubby would be going with her, but he is on duty (Highway Patrolman) and won't be able to make it. Sooooo, I'm second on the list. I hope there will be free alcohol and lots of good food, otherwise I don't know how the hell I'm going to get through a bunch of political nonsense and jibber-jabber!

It will be nice to get out of the house, though. Since school's been out, I have found myself INCREDIBLY bored and wishing I could be in my classroom getting stuff done for next year. However, I've made a deal with myself that I wouldn't go for at least a month after school got out. Well, that month will be up tomorrow! So I'm thinking next week, maybe Wednesday, I'll be headed to school!! Yay!

This weekend, Jennifer and I are going to Tunica to gamble!! I have been to LasVegas and it was fabulous, so I'm hoping this adventure will at least be a closer and less expensive alternative to lose all my money! The room and all meals are free because we will be staying with a "high roller," that will be nice!! Maybe I'll come back as a "thousandaire!!!" Wish me luck!

Time to go watch Days of Our Lives now! Ta Ta!

Painting

So, today we painted the chest of drawers and dresser that I've had since I was a baby. They were beat up and looked like total crap, so we decided to go for a change. With some nice paint and new hardware, they went from looking like old 70s memorobilia to an updated 2006 look! Yay!

And of course it all stems from our wedding picture which is very large and silver and black, so we had to get new lamps and the whole nine!! Maybe next I'll decide to get new sheets and accent pillows. Baby steps, I know...