Yay me!

So, I know I said I was going to be better about keeping my blog updated. Yeah, I know, not so much. I just don't seem to get downstairs to the computer except for a few minutes each day. So much to do. Remodeling the house, never ending laundry, work for 3.4 hours a day (I know, hehehe), random Mom/wife stuff, etc etc etc.

But today I got completely caught up on Elder Gary's mission posters! Yay! Take a look, it's amazing to see how much of a difference there has been. We are so EXCITED!!! And I also got the Halloween blog done. I know. Nice. Only 6 days later on that one. So much of an improvement over how I've been for about the last year, huh?

Now I need to catch up on birthdays, last years Prom, this years Homecoming, (since Sadie Hawkins is just around the corner....literally), some Color Guard, and just every day life. I'm not promising anything.....just saying I'm going to 'strive to be better'. How's that for non-committal?

Hope your November is going awesome so far!

I know, I know!

OK. So I promised FOREVER ago that I was going to go back and update my blog. Clear back to October when we took our trip to Vegas. Apparently it hasn't been done. I have varying excuses and reasons, some legit, some just to make me feel better for not doing it.

So this week I have been altering the dress I bought Morgan Saturday for the Sweethearts dance this Saturday. It fit like a glove, except the shoulders. I have been working on it since Monday. I only had 2nd grade today, so I planned on taking the day off to make sure the dress was done before the last second. So yesterday I informed my 2nd graders that they would have Miss Drew for a sub today. They were really excited about that. They love her. So when I actually finished it last night, I decided I couldn't disappoint the kiddos and actually show up to work, so I still took the day off.

Now the decision was, what of the meriad of things I have on my to do list should I do today? I actually even contemplated doing none of it and just spend the day reading a book, which I haven't done FOREVER! But no, I saw my camera sitting there and decided to download all the pictures to the computer. Done. Since I'm on the computer I may as well start the updates to the blog.....but I checked Facebook first. Where my mom caught me!

So now I have updated the background and written my blog for today. I have every intention of getting the missionary poster and birthday blogs caught up today. Then we'll see what time it is and how close it is to the kids getting home from school. And every intention of keeping up-to-date with this again while catching up at the same time. Gotta eat that elephant one bite at a time, right?

And we all know what road is paved with good intentions!

Good To Go For Another Year?

I had my annual doctors appointment today. I have had enough female/health problems that I don't go to the doctor. Literally. Wynn has always had to make my appointments for me, and then take me to them to get me to go. Seriously. I kid you not. And then in November of 2007 we found my current GYN and his PA. Can I just say.....Hallelujah!!!

They have never treated me like a stupid female. Two years ago the PA listened to my problems and told me it wasn't all in my head, it wasn't normal, everybody does not go through this, etc, etc......I had never said what the other doctors had been telling me, but this is exactly what I had heard my whole life. I literally started crying in the office. The PA put her arm around me and gave me a hug and told me they were going to help me. She wished she had met me 20 years ago because there were so many things she could have done for me. But at that point, there was really only one option open to me....to have a hysterectomy. I was fine with that. So the very next week I was in to see the GYN, the did some tests, I followed up the next week and was scheduled for surgery for one month from my first visit to them.

It has been a long road since then. My weight was up, ugh, which caused my blood pressure to be up, double ugh, and I was severely anemic. I was put on BP meds (1/2 pill once a day) for 3 months until I lost about 5 pounds and my BP went down. Then I was taken off of them, knowing that I needed to get more weight off and if my weight went up at all I would be going back on the meds. So started the long process of getting the weight off. I exercised, counted calories, watched as I did Weight Watchers with Wynn and he lost 25 pounds and I lost 2. It was hard. But the weight has started to come off. It's just such a slow process. When you basically eat healthy to begin with, no chips, sweets, pop, junk etc, there's not a lot to cut out to lose weight. It can be very frustrating.

So a few months ago I made my appointment for today. Yes, I made the appointment all_by_myself and today I went there all_by_myself. I was nervous about going because my weight is not to the goal we made. And although I take my blood pressure regularly just to make sure it is staying down, I was having Doctor visit anxiety. So on to today.....

They all raved about how good and well I look and how much weight I have lost. Then I went into 'the room'. Of course they wanted to get my weight and blood pressure. I_was_EXTREMELY_nervous for this. Drum roll please........My blood pressure was a good number. Yeah! My weight was down 12 pounds! Yeah! But even better was the fact that I had gained 4 more pounds after that appointment that they, of course, didn't have recorded. So I have lost 16 pounds. Hooray for me!!! Of course I still have to get to the goal weight I have set with the PA, but she was very impressed and very happy with my progress. I just know I can't slack off knowing I won't have another appointment for a year. Next year I know I can be at my goal weight if I just keep at it. It's not going to be easy, but I already feel so much better I can't wait. Plus I'll HAVE to get a new wardrobe. There's the best plus! Now we just have to wait for the blood tests to come back because she doesn't think I'm anemic anymore. Gosh. Once I finish getting the weight off, I'm gonna be a whole new me!

Kill It? or Let It Die a Natural Death?

We have been having problems with our computer since June. First it messed up my whole log-in, losing all my pictures that were saved on the computer and my favorites that were saved for the internet. I found them all eventually and got them copied back where they belonged. It copied some of them several times and Lexie and I laboriously made sure we had pictures then deleted the rest....back and forth, back and forth...

Then it got a virus. We could work around it for the most part, while Wynn worked on it every day after work trying to remove it. Then it got ANOTHER virus, and we had to take it to the computer doctor. It took them no time at all and it came back feeling better. Not like new, but better than it had in a long time.

NOW it refuses to get on the internet...AT ALL!!! We are all having to use Drew's laptop for now. Are you kidding me? It says that there is a connection problem, but Drew's laptop connects just fine. GRRRRR. So now we will have to take it back to the doctor. This time I think we will add whatever it is that makes it go faster too. Might as well just get it all done now.

So that is why I am behind on my blogs again. Can't get on the computer for long and all my pictures I was going to use are on our computer and I don't feel like searching the cd's for the ones I wanted. So once we get it running, I hope I have time to catch up!

The Agony

I woke up this morning with a migraine. I got up, took numerous Advil, and put a heating pad on my feet. Yes. It works. It draws the blood from your head.

I have had migraines as far back as I can remember. I think writing before that I remember having one on my 6th or 8th birthday even. They aren't new to me. I lived and functioned with the pain for my whole life. After I had my hysterectomy 1 1/2 years ago, I didn't have one for 7 months!!! Seriously, 7 of the most glorious months of my life. Then I got one. I couldn't bear the pain. I couldn't function and couldn't figure how I had lived with that level of pain almost every single day of my entire life.

We went to church, I taught my lesson, went to Relief Society with Elaine, came home, ate dinner, layed down, slept. I'm sure I'm really good company for Dean and Elaine today.

I'm going back to bed.

Has It Been a Week Already???

I can't believe it is Thursday already. My last post was last Friday!!! What happened to this week? I guess I have so much to do and so little time to do it in. I don't seem to get much exercising in lately, and I was doing sooooo good before. But life hits in spurts, and when it hits there is no room for anything else it seems. Here is my today....

Note to self--Used to get up at 4:30-5:00 to exercise...need to start doing that again
6:00 Got up, got Tanner up, made sure the girls were up, finish waking up Tanner
6:30-6:45-ish making sure everybody is getting ready
Tanner finish waking up
Make Tanner breakfast
Girls leave for school
7:00 Make sure Tanner is eating
Get on computer to check messages on email and facebook (give myself a
time limit so I don't run late)
Answer messages
Check on Tanner
Throw a batch of laundry in
7:30 Make sure Tanner is done
Tell him to get brushed and flossed and clothes ready before 8:00...do this for
the next 1/2 hour
Put laundry in dryer, new batch in washer
8:00 Get in shower
8:15-8:50 check on Tanner
Eat my breakfast while getting dressed, make-up, hair etc
Check on Tanner
Take care of laundry
Hurry Tanner along
8:50 Leave for the school, (Tanners school and my work), 15 minutes later than I
wanted to be
9:00 Get to the school
1:00 realize Morgan has an ortho appt to add to everything else that is this
afternoon
1:30 leave the school
1:40 make lunch
1:50 Get on computer
Check and answer messages
Write on blog

What I still have left for today:

Tanners turn to take treats for soccer game, I still need to buy them
Take Lexie shopping for new capris if we can find some inexpensive enough, need them tomorrow.
4:00 Morgan ortho appt in Smithfield
4:45 Lexie soccer pictures in Hyde Park
5:00 Lexie warm up for soccer game-Hyde Park
5:30 Lexie soccer game in Hyde Park
Tanner soccer game in North Logan
before 8:00 need to sign kids up for swimming lessons in Smithfield before all
the sessions I need are filled up

And did I mention I need to balance the checkbook, write out lunch checks (and other checks), get ready for a food drive for AmeriCorps week at the school next week (Thank you Colleen for doing the collection box by yourself!!!! I SOOOOOO owe you) and not to mention....
Get ready to leave for SLC tomorrow morning to spend 2 days
---moving Drew to Kaysville
taking family pictures
Gary's missionary family dinner and day
Saturday, nephews wedding---all day

Better get off the computer. Lexie is here 3 minutes early and remember, we need to go to the stores.

Are you sure I'm still among the living?

Well, I guess I do feel kinda undead. I was feeling better-ish yesterday, so I went to work, even though it was April fools day and I wasn't sure what kind of pranks would be played. None were, thank goodness.

I started not feeling well about time to come home, but not too bad, so I went with Gary to buy him a new watch. While we were shopping my head started to hurt, but not too bad. I mean really, I've had throw up migraines for as far back as I can remember. I even remember having one on my 7th or 8th birthday. I remember having it, I just don't remember what birthday. I only remember being in Luna for it and getting my Dawn doll. Oh well, none of that really matters. What I was getting at was I know what a real headache feels like, so this was just more of an annoyance than what I call a headache. Since my surgery 15 months ago, I get very few migraines. When I do get one, I can not understand how I kept functioning with such pain, other than I didn't know any different. I would get 4-5 a week, for as long as I can remember.

Anyway, Gary and I came home and I really started not feeling well. We went downstairs and I again curled up in a blanket with a heating pad. We watched The Fast and the Furious (the first one) and I loved it. But by the time it was over, I was really sick. I was freezing and wanted to pound a nail in my head to let the pressure out. If you've ever had a migraine, you'll understand what I mean, if not...well, you're lucky! I fell asleep in the chair for a while. When I woke up I dragged myself upstairs to bed after taking pain med. I woke up this morning feeling quite well.

I took Morgan in for her minor surgery at the periodontist. It went well. She is downstairs heavily medicated for pain. We stopped and picked up her prescriptions. We got home and I got a couple of things done. Gary and I watched The Rock. (Loved this one too) And I am now not feeling so well, and am wondering why I told the kids I would take them to the rec center!? I felt I needed to get on the treadmill and eliptical and really felt like going. But now my head is starting to hurt. I'm starting to sweat even though I am cold.....repeat of the last 3 days. My sister, Sandra, knows how I'm feeling. She's feeling it too.

Maybe I'll just go lie down. I'll let you know.

In like a lion, out like a

well......LION!!! What happened to the lamb part? Well, I think it was counted in a few random days of warm spring weather we had dispersed throughout the month. There were actual times that I left the house in tee shirt and jeans, perfectly comfortable. Today it is snowing, blizzard looking at times even. It is cold.

Working as a reading aide at Tanners' elementary school, I work with 2nd graders and kindergartners. The second graders come to us in the reading room where they are grouped with others at the same level. I do that with 2 different groups for 1/2 hour each. It is nice and toasty warm in that room. Almost too warm for the way we are dressed for the day, where, even though there are windows, you can forget the blizzard and cold outside while focusing on the kids. Then I work with the kindergartners for an hour, which means we go to their rooms. It is cold there. We wear sweaters or jackets and are too warm in the reading room for this very reason. Then we go back to the warm reading room for a 45 minute break, then kindergarten for another hour. I think this has contributed to our, the reading aides, colds throughout the year.

Today I was fine, until that last hour of kindergarten. In the first 1/2 hour I started getting really cold. I looked outside and noticed it was darker and really snowing. I figured that was why I was getting really cold. We moved rooms and were in the last 1/2 hour of the day. I was teaching the lesson when all of a sudden I felt very sick. I thought I was going to have to run for the bathroom. I told the kids I wasn't feeling well and needed them to really pay attention and focus. They were so good about it and I made it the last 10 minutes okay. I went to the reading room, got the kindergarten stuff switched for the next day (it takes only 2 minutes because I have it pulled a week in advance) and left for home. Though I'm not feeling quite as nauseous, I decided maybe I just needed to eat lunch, I am still freezing. My bones feel like ice. I am starting to get queasy again and I think I am going to go downstairs, curl up in a nice warm blanket or quilt with a heating pad, and watch something mindless on tv or the dvr. I really don't feel well.

I think I am going to blame it on the disappointment of March leaving like a lion instead of a lamb. I was really looking forward to the lamb. I guess I'll be grateful for the water this summer. But for now, I'm going downstairs.

The Trials of Aging

My mother-in-law, Elaine Jenkins, hasn't been feeling well for quite awhile. Wynn's sisters would take her to the doctor and mostly be told that since she was in her 80's it was mostly because she was getting older. Then they found out that, where most people, like me, need to avoid salt, Elaine needs to take a salt pill! That helped a little. Then a couple of week ago, Dean (my father-in-law) told them they needed to take Elaine to the doctor because she just hadn't been feeling well at all and was getting worse. The day they took her, she said she didn't know why she had to go to the doctor because she was feeling pretty good that day.

The doctor checked her out and ran some tests, then he scheduled for her to go to a bunch of specialists last Tuesday, March 17th, her birthday! Here is an email from Wynn's sister Maridene sent Wednesday March 18th. It can explain what they found out that day much better than I could.

Hi,
I didn't know if Sirena called or emailed either of you about mom's doctor appointments yesterday so I wanted to update you on the latest.We took mom to doctors all day yesterday and this is what we found out:
First of all, she is getting a pacemaker on Tuesday. Her heart rate was as low as 36 bpm during part of her test. She will stay in the hospital overnight but it doesn't seem like a big deal. She will be awake during the procedure.
Next, they are sending us to a dermatologist to remove cancer cells from her neck where she had a 'fingernail' growing out of it. Only 10 percent are cancerous and she was one of the lucky ones.
She has polymyalgia rheumatica which is a muscle disease. It is treated with prednisone which has a number of side affects. She will have to be on it for about a year and a half. They will do blood work often to keep an eye on everything that is going on. I am just glad they found out what has been causing her so much pain for so long. I wonder how long she has really had it.
The kidney specialist gave us a paper that says she has 'chronic kidney disease, stage 1V' (severe). He said her kidneys are only functioning at 25 percent. She is having an ultra-sound on Friday and also blood work.We will try to keep you informed on what is happening.
We will try to keep you informed on everything that we find out. She seems to be doing much better since they started her on the medication.I am just glad they found out what has been causing her so much pain for so long. I just wonder how long she has had it. I wish Trudy could be so lucky.
Maridene

So Elaine gets a pacemaker today. We pray for all to go well.

I'm trying to remember that 'This too shall pass'

I commented on this on facebook, but now realize I didn't blog about it! Sunday was one of those 'It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye' (or breaks an arm) kind of night.

In our house, if you get a chance to really scare someone, you take it. Lexie and Morgans rooms are next to each other, and when Lexie was leaving her room she heard Morgan leaving hers, so she waited and scared the daylights out of Morgan. Well, Morgan was not in the mood for it, so she pushed Lexie. Of course Lexie fell and hurt her wrist. (at least it was her left wrist) Needless to say, Morgan feels HORRIBLE about it and never meant for her to fall. She has been doing all of Lexie's chores for her without being told, all week. She isn't like that, so she is devastated!

It was still hurting Monday morning, so I got a sub and took Lexie to see Dr Isaacson. Naturally we were sent for xrays, just as I knew we would. Naturally the radioligist didn' t see anything on them, just as I figured he wouldn't. We have been wrapping it since then and she is taking ibuprofen and icing it. The pain is getting worse instead of better. Drew went in to see him yesterday for a sore throat and told him this for me. He had us call him at home. So we went and got a splint for it today. Naturally if it is still hurting come Monday, we get to go in for more xrays, just as I knew he would say. I have been through this enough times with my kids, none of this surprises me. (the broken part, not the pushing part)I'm pretty sure we'll be back in for more xrays come Monday. In fact I'll be surprised if we're not. We have been to the doctor more since Christmas than we have in the last 3-4 years or more!

And of course soccer starts in a matter of just a few weeks! This too shall pass, right?

Chomping at the bit

Gary turned 18 a mere 5 days before high school graduation last May. He is pretty much the youngest of his friends. They have mostly all been gone for a while, though there are still a couple yet to leave, as well as him. One of his best friends has been gone for 6 months already and Gary figures he won't leave until Jordan has been out for 1 year. When Jordan left, they figured they were saying good-bye for 3 years.

Gary decided to not go to college until after his mission, just work for the year before he left. He worked all summer for a landscaping company & loved it, which afforded him to by a motorcycle. But as fall approached, he knew that he would have little to nothing to do all winter if he stayed there. So he got a job at JM Mechanical where Andy works (& worked before his mission). They build heating and cooling ducts and install them. The big commercial ones for the church, Walmarts, Lowes, etc as well as installing some residential. Gary builds it as well as delivers, clear up into Montana and down in Southern Utah or into Colorado sometimes. But still, he's chomping at the bit.

He has been filling out his mission papers, getting the Bishop to put him online as soon as it was legal to do so. He filled them all out and came and hovered over Wynn and I until we filled out our part. We were getting ready to leave for the rec center one night and he asked me not to go yet. He had just gotten home from work and I was informed he was getting in the shower, then putting on his suit so I could take his missionary picture for his papers. He made his own appointments to the doctor and dentist and took himself there. Then he made his appointment for his wisdom teeth and told me when it was so I could take him. He sent his papers to the Bishop & made his appointment with him. The Bishop sent them to the Stake President and Gary made his appointment to meet with him. Today is 3 months before his 19th birthday and he could send his papers in today....only 1 catch. He couldn't meet with the Stake President until tomorrow night!!! He has been chomping at the bit and this one more day is killing him. This is also killing his sister, Drew, since she is going out of the country for spring break. Since that is right when his call should come, she is afraid she won't be able to be here when he opens it. Guess we'll see.

After much weeping and wailing and nashing of teeth

I finished my online CERT course today!!!

Colleen and I have been printing off the lessons, 2 to 3 at a time, and taking them home to read and highlight them. Then we would go back to school the next day and answer the questions from the lessons we highlighted. Then we would do it again for the next couple of lessons. Yesterday we printed off the last 3 lessons...and the test. We have been working on this since January. We highlighted 2 of the lessons at school, so we only had 1 lesson to highlight and the test, 40 questions, to answer, and since it was 'open book' it would be no big deal. Then we could just go through and mark the answers on the computer.

I went to get my hair cut, help Lexie shop for a couple of things she needed, got home and had forgotten about Morgan and Lexie's basketball game. We were going to be late so decided not to go. Then Drew got off work and texted that she was just going to meet us there, so we decided to go. I figured I could just read and highlight while they played. Started highlighting and then my friend got there so we visited instead. Got home and still needed to get dinner, Tanners' homework done, and my CERT stuff done.

I got it all highlighted and started on the test. It wasn't too hard but not everything was phrased the same on the test as they were in the lessons. One question in particular could have had 2 answers because of the phrasing and I just couldn't figure it out. I searched and searched, and worked on it and worked on it and just couldn't find which was the right answer. Since I was tired and frustrated, and just tired of CERT, I started to cry and worry (weeping wailing and nashing of teeth) about what was I thinking. How could I go back to school if I was too stupid to do this test? Wynn talked me through it, told me I wasn't stupid and I would figure it out. I watched some Burn Notice (always cheers me up) and I eventually finished the rest of the test, late last night.

I only had to teach for one hour today so we spent the rest of the time answering the lesson questions then took the test. That question was still bothering me & she wasn't sure either. She answered one way & I answered the other. It still bothered me. She got them all right, 100%. I had gone back and changed my answer, so I got a 100% as well!!!

So now I know that I was so frustrated because in my subconscience I knew the other answer was right. If I will just listen to my gut, still small voice, or what ever you want to call it, I will do fine in school. There will still be frustration & feelings of being overwhelmed, but I will be fine.

And did I mention.... I GOT A 100%!!!!!

Shame on me and this is what I do

It's been a week-OK, and a day- since my last blog. Shame on me, I was doing so well! And I realized I've had a few blogs that I said, "I'll explain later" or "expound later" or something along those lines, and I never have. Shame on me again. I admit last week was crazy, I have had some long, late, grueling days at work lately, which with my job, I shouldn't be having. But with AmeriCorps, we're the 2 that get to do the extras. Which brings me to........

AmeriCorps. I said I would say what keeps me so busy, and at times, so stressed. So... What is it and what do they do? Think of the Peace Corp, only for literacy. Volunteer for 1-2 years (Aug-July) and get a living stipend for 10 months each year. You can do AmeriCorps for only 2 years in your life. At the end of each year, they give you an educational stipend. You can use it to pay off student loans or to go to school. At the end of 2 years I will have enough in the stipend I get for 1 year at USU. That is depending on what tuition is at that point! I'm in the middle of my 1st year. There are requirements, some are the same year to year, others are different. This year:

• 900 hours for part time (me)--split between training, community service and direct service
• Week of training in Ogden, which coincided with the first week of school here for my kids, so I drove back and forth
• training--study groups once a month (sept, oct, nov, feb, mar, apr) about an assigned book. First book was a simple yet redundant skinny book about teaching phonics. Quick, easy read. This time it is a book with 300 some pages called Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber. First 10 chapters for Feb study group. Not bad but they also give us a book of questions to have answered, go to her website, visit her blog, sign up for her contests, and then start a scrapbook about our own wishes. I don't scrapbook. We also have to have CERT training. We had the choice to do the 20 hours on line and not be fully certified to be called out for disasters, or take the actual 7 week course and be certified to be called out. I opted for the online course! Plus we have individual 1 hour training with our leader 3 times a year, plus another week long training.
• 50 hours of community service--25 that can fall in an 'easy circle' (I drove the girls for color guard practice and competitions) and 25 that have to fall in a hard circle. I did the kits and toys for CAPSA plus volunteered at a care center. We also had a MLK day 6-8 hour project with our study group that didn't count toward the 50 hours. We tied quilts for DI (the Humanitarian project) And we have a week long project in May for AmeriCorps week that we have to come up with. Doesn't count toward the 50.
• List any service we do on a Presidential website. I have a lot of hours listed here. I was actually quite surprised. Of course everything you do counts here, including Church callings, taking dinner to a neighbor, etc.
• Homeland security project and a literacy night project.
• Direct service is what I do every day--I teach 2nd grade and kindergarten reading groups--5 hours every day. Being in AmeriCorps, we have the most at risk groups. It is sad to see them so far behind, but so great to see how far they come. Sad for those who don't really progress because of non-attendance or no help at home.
• Report all dibels scores 3 times a year. Listed by child.
• Any time anything extra needs done at school, we get to do it because we aren't on a time clock. And there is always something extra. I'm supposed to work from 8:30-1:30. There are times I don't get off anywhere from 3:30-6:00.

I had a wedding in November in the middle of all this as well. By Christmas I had wedding done, my 50 hours service done, Homeland Security done, Literacy night done, Presidential site up to date, had helped Colleen get most of hers done (she's going to college right now!). We are 1/2 through with our CERT course now. And yes, I'm planning on doing my 2nd year next year. #1-It pretty much guarantees me a job at this point. #2- the educational stipend.

Now I'm tired just listing it all. Think I'm going to go watch some NCIS until it's time to go to the rec center. Oops, maybe not. I have to take Morgan to her orthodontist appointment. And numerous other 'mom' things.

And I fell on the sidewalk this morning on the newly fallen snow, and think I broke my thumb.

It's only the future of our country/world after all, so what's the big deal?

I am talking about the budget that is spent on the education of our children. It is pathetic, to begin with, and now it is going to be cut even further. I don't know where the rest of the country gets its money, or how they divvy it up, but I do know a little bit about Utah.

We just found out last week that the Trust Land money will be cut by about 25% next year. This is where our district gets money (not sure if they get some from somewhere else as well) for the Paraprofessionals (reading aides) & I think it is pretty much the same for others. The reason for this is that they don't spend the principle, only the interest on their investments. Of course, they have had the same losses as the rest of us in investments, so they can already see where this is going to be. This is after the Para budget was cut for this year. So they really had to tweak the schedules to keep everybody.

This morning we had a meeting that we didn't know we were going to have. We all know that the Legislature is in session in February. We all know that the Govenor & the Legislature will have proposals that they each want to get through by the end of the session, so the end of February. They each have a proposal to cut the education budget.....by MILLIONS of dollars! So this is even more than we were cut this year.The Govenor wants to leave this year alone & his cuts start next year. The Legislature disagrees & wants their cuts to start immediately this year. They want a certain percentage cut this year & then an even bigger percentage cut next year, & the cuts they want are bigger than what the Govenor wants. I'm not very good at remembering numbers, hence being a reading aide & not a math aide, but I'm sure the figures could be easily looked up. So, if one of these goes through, what does this mean for our schools/children? The future of the country/world? Not good things, that's for sure....

• Possibility that:
• Teachers will be cut, meaning even less one on one for the kids because of bigger classes
• Administration will be cut, meaning less people to cover all the kids at the school AND district levels (can you imagine schools with no principals?)
• Possibly cutting programs and/or teachers (or aides) from all schools, meaning at risk in learning kids might not be able to get the help they need in the subjects they need it in or have too many kids per group so the ones needing it the most get left behind
• Or that the 'gifted' or excellerated kids won't have the instruction they need to move on to the levels they are at, therefore becoming bored with school & acting up to pass the time, etc
• And so on, and so on...

These are just some possibilities that are lurking in the very near future. But hey, we'll have some pretty roads to drive on at the expense of education, so the lack of education in the state won't matter. I mean the quality of the roads IS the more important thing. Right?

The furnace update

We never could get the furnace to click on the other night. So we left it, made sure the kids had plenty of blankets & went to bed figuring Wynn would call Friday to have John (the landlord) come fix it. Gary would be home all day so he could be here to deal with it. Then, we got up Friday morning to a nice toasty warm house, so the kids had too many blankets. AND it's worked ever since. Fickle furnace. It's kind of hard for them to see what the furnace is doing if it's not doing it when they come! Not too many more months of having to use it I guess, THEN we'll be plenty warm since we don't have central air in this house. Plus it's supposed to be a warmer week this week, which means inversion. A whole other set of problems with that...me, Lexie & Tanner being allergic to it, it messing with Lexie's asthma so she has to stay inside...at least she doesn't have recess anymore that she has to stay in from.

Anyway, it could be worse than this for sure. Believe me, I've been there & will take what we have now hands down. So we'll just take what we've got & everything will be great.

Did I mention I'm ready for NEW!

I never told how the furnace/frozen water turned out. Tuesday morning we woke up to a warm house & the water was unfrozen before Morgan & Lexie went to school (after I turned up the heat for the day). It has actually been a nice, warm 3 days, warm being a relative term. It was actually in the 40's today, everything was melting, beautiful blue sky. And the furnace has continued working......until now.

I went to the rec center tonight to get on the treadmill instead of going this morning because Morgan wanted to go with me. (We saw my brother there lifting weights.) She hadn't gone before but is in good shape from color guard & now winter guard, so she did over 3 miles in 1 hour. I was proud of her. I did more than that, but I've been working on it for a while. But that is all beside the point. When we headed home it had started to rain in Smithfield. By the time we got to Hyde Park, it was 1/2 rain 1/2 snow. When we got to North Logan, it was snow, that slushy slimy slick kind. Yuck. If it gets cold tonight, it will be slick in the morning. Because of the weather, the satellite had lost the signal & needed brushed off. Because of this, the football game I had recording for Wynn & Gary had a big chunk that hadn't gotten recorded. They're easy going, they will be OK with it. Lexie & Tanner were here while I was gone, but even with a broom Lexie doesn't come anywhere close to reaching the satellite to brush it off. So I got to trudge through the snow to do it. I came inside & realized it was cold so I turned the heat up. After a while I realized it wasn't getting any warmer. That's when I found out the furnace is acting up AGAIN! I haven't been able to get it to click on yet, but Wynn is home now, that usually helps, even though I used to be the only one that could get it working. At least it isn't both furnaces at the same time like happened last winter. At least we do have one room we can go to & be toasty. I don't need a cold house & frozen water again. I'm ready for a brand new house that noone else has ever lived in. New appliances that actually work, new fixtures, new bathrooms, new walls, new windows, new doors, new, new, new..........

and the printer started giving a 'cartridge error' Sunday that for some reason only Drew can fix, & she doesn't live here anymore! She fixed it Tuesday & now it is doing it again. We do what she did (& did the same thing before she ever did it) & nothing. Frustration to no end. And yet, I'm still in a decent mood. Go figure.