SP Day 87

Well I completed an entire day of work today! Yes that's noteworthy because it's only the 2nd time this week. I must say, I was very spoiled to being lazy by this point in the week so I was VERY tired by the end of the day. So, this bum of a mom, picked up pizza and went to my folks house. Mom whipped up a salad. We all had salad, pizza, and soda. Then Ben went to work and William and I headed home.

My son was apparently very sympathetic to the exhaustion caused by a full 8 hours of work. He conked off on the way home and is in bed, asleep an hour and a half early so I've got a nice amount of time to myself this evening. It also means I'll probably be greeted with an early "Momma. D up momma. Momma whe ah you?" And hey, that's all good. I like him much better in his early morning sweetness than his no-nap, evening crankiness.

A good day. I really like those.

SP Day 87

Whew! What a week we've had. Monday was just your average day. Nothing exciting to report. Tuesday the ice started falling, we were released from school at 12:30. I went and picked up William and came home. We had a good afternoon and a great evening. Ben was off work so the three of us had some soup and sandwiches and snuggled up to keep warm.

About 10pm I got a phone call, NO SCHOOL ON WEDNESDAY! I was literally dancing around the house. I was all excited about sleeping in, having a pj day, making breakfast for my family, spending the day with William. I could not conceal my excitement.

The next morning my excitement was very dampened when I woke up at 8 am to find we had no power. At 9am we still had no power. Around 10 it came on, then went off. It was getting COLD in this house and having no power and too much ice to go anywhere that there was power was really irritating me. So at 10:30 I gave up and called the electric company again. The lady on the other end of the line was very pleased to tell me that power had been restored to my area. I told her it might have been restored to my area but not to my house. So, she started a new work order and told me my estimated time of restored service was 1pm. I wanted to scream!

Finally, when the house had just about gotten too cold to bear and the darkness was driving me crazy, at 11:30 the power came back on and stayed on. Halleluja!

So, the rest of Wednesday passed with out note. The sun came out, the ice melted and dried up. I got out of the house at about 5pm because I was going stir crazy. I went and did a little clothes shopping, picked up some chicken and came home.

Today, life should have resumed some normalcy. I got up and got ready. I was fortunate to have Ben home this morning so he got William up and they played and spent some time together before William and I hit the road. I dropped him off at Mom's and went to work. About the time my last class of the morning was over my cell phone said I had a text message. Mom was texting me telling me she didn't feel well. So, I found a sub, quickly left some stuff to do and went and got William.

He and I spent the rest of the afternoon here at the house and visited with Ben before he had to go to work. Then, because we needed a few necessities like TP and milk, William and I went to Wal-Mart and did our usual Saturday grocery shopping on Thursday.

Like I said, it's been a crazy week. I hope tomorrow goes smoothly. I am really craving a normal day at this point!!! The good news is William and I were home when Ben got up on both of his days off this week so we got to spend some good family time and I got to spend tons of time with my little guy this week. He might have made me want to scream a time or two but I'll definitely call that a fair trade.

SP Day 86

Do you ever wonder if little people understand a whole lot more than we give them credit for?

For example: Yesterday, my child, my sweet angel, was a holy terror! He drove me past the edge of my patience by ignoring me all day and doing what he darn well pleased. He got his rear end spanked more times than I can count by both myself and his daddy. I sadly admit that I completely lost my temper and found myself yelling at him. (Which wound up with me sitting on the couch in tears but that's beside the point right now.) I mean he really just pushed it and pushed it all day yesterday.

Today, though, I feel like crap. I mean I'm pretty darn sick with a head cold and I haven't felt like moving all day because every time I do the pressure in my head threatens to drive my to my knees in pain. The same child that just about put me in an institution yesterday was a perfect angel today. He was all "pleases" and "thank yous", all "yes mam's" and "no mam's". I didn't quite know what to think. He did as he was asked all day including eating at every meal. There were no fits or temper tantrums in this house today. I mean, I took this kid's baseball bat away because he kept hitting it on the coffee table and when I took it from his hands and put it on top of the book case he said "thank you momma".

So, the only conclusion that I can draw is that he loves me and he knew I felt bad and he did his best to make my day easy. That or he's just a two year old boy.

SP Day 85

I had a very productive day today. Mom came around 11am and picked up William so I could get some stuff done. I left here and spent an HOUR at the bank. (That was some kind of crazy mess!) Then I went and got my hair cut. Just a little trim. I didn't want it as short as it was last time. I'm really happy with the length it is now so I'm keeping it. From there I went to Best Buy and got Ben and I both new cell phones.

I love my new phone. I got an LG Vu and I'm really stoked about it. It's completely touch screen and does tons more stuff than I could ever possibly need. Ben got a blackberry curve and I don't think he's real thrilled with it. So, he might be headed to trade his in.

Then I went and picked up William from mom and dads. We came home and had dinner with Ben then left and went grocery shopping. By the time we got home at 7:30 kiddo was out cold so I put him straight to bed. I got groceries put away and was chilling out by 8pm. So, I got a lot done today and I'm still going to bed early. YEA!!!

On a side note: I've got a head cold and haven't slept much in a couple of nights because of the congestion. And Wild Bill got into fire ants last night for the 2nd time this week ( this time I figured out where they're at and they're now choking on some poison). He has about 10 really bad bites on his left hand. His little hand is all swollen and red. I've been giving him Benadryl a few times a day and putting hydrocortisone cream on it but they're still really nasty looking. I think I'm going to have to let the pus out of them tomorrow and I'm really not looking forward to that. I'm just hoping I can get both of us feeling better soon.

SP Day 84

Caught being good!

Yup. I (really I swear) was caught being good at work. We have a little bucket in the teacher's lounge and any time you catch one of your co-workers going above and beyond or doing something you think is awesome you write a little note on a slip of paper and put it in the bucket. Every once in a while the admin draws out a few teachers names and those teachers are rewarded with a free half day off.

My name got drawn this time around! I had 4 slips put in the bucket about me. Getting to read the slips and see that others appreciate the things you do really is an awesome reward all in itself.

I think I'm going to spend my half day clothes shopping before I go to San Antonio next month for a music educator's convention.

SP Day 83

William and I were so happy to have visitors today. My good friend Jackie and her little girl Rachel came over and spent the day with William and I. We had so much fun. It was great to see Jackie and the kids had a ball playing together. Here are some pictures.

William and Rachel having some "poot naks" (AKA fruit snacks).

Playing in the driveway with sidewalk chalk. Rachel is so good at sharing. She needs to teach William some of those sharing skills.

Coloring. So much fun.

Hug goodbye!

He didn't want her to go. I mean he REALLY didn't want her to go!

SP Day 82

Any of you who know me very well know that I am a true fan of the "Harry Potter" books. I have read all 7 of them at least twice. Some of them more than that. The series is so well written that it truly takes you into another world. After reading all of those, I've had a hard time finding good books that really keep my attention.
(I know. My reading selections are to literature what Paula Abdul is to American Idol. Entertaining but insignificant.)

So, several of the women I work with are reading the "Twilight" books. A series of 4 "vampire" books the first of which was recently made into a movie. I had no interest in these books because I just don't read vampire books or watch vampire movies or really give a crap about vampires in general.

All the girls were talking in the lounge one day about the "Twilight" books and I said I wasn't interested in reading them because I really had no interest in a vampire book. (I'm sure my tone was rather condescending.) This led to a discussion about the Harry Potter books and I told everyone that Ben had made fun of me for reading them and so I told him to read the first book and if he didn't like it, he could make fun of me all he wanted. Ben has read all 7 books and loves them ALMOST as much as I do. Well, I opened my mouth.

The next morning one of the women who is reading the "Twilight" books brings me the first book and says "Read the first book and if you don't like it you can make fun of vampire books all you want."

I read the book in 3 days. OMG! What an awesomely written book. I finished it on my lunch hour today. I went by Wal-Mart after work today and picked up the second book. I can't even begin to explain how well the author pulls you in to the story. I HAD to have the second book to read when I go to bed tonight.

Speaking of which, I'm off to read another "stupid vampire book" and probably enjoy every minute of it.

SP Day 81

REAL SOCIAL OUTING! This is not something that happens very often and when it does, it's usually with my family. Not that there's anything wrong with hanging out with my family. We have a great time when my big ol' crazy family gets together. But, we often wonder what it would be like if we actually had friends that we went and did things with.

Well tonight, we met an old friend of Ben's and her husband for dinner. It was a great dinner. The 4 of us have lots in common and we had a great time! It was wonderful to get out and be with other people and talk and laugh and have fun. I think we're going to do it again very soon.

William was even very well behaved and actually ate his dinner.

All of this took place in Cleburne where we went to get Ben new insulated bib overalls for work. We got him those, plus a new work jacket. Then we went and got him some parts and supplies for work. After leaving there we went and got him some new boots for work. So, when he goes back to work tomorrow night he'll be all fitted out in new stuff and hopefully stay warm. Of course, I couldn't have him spending all that money and not spend any on me so I got a new coat too. My winter coat is off white colored so it stays dirty. I picked a brown one to wear every day and I'll save my off white one for church and stuff like that. I thought brown was very appropriate since I couldn't keep the other one clean.

Unfortunately, Ben has to go back to work tomorrow night. Bummer. I'm hoping he'll get some good rest tomorrow. With all of the time we've spent together the last couple of days I know he hasn't gotten much sleep. I think I'll knock him upside the head with a hammer as I walk out the door tomorrow so I know he'll sleep well.

SP Day 80

Sunday was a good day. William and I got up and went to church. (I know, I know, nobody fall down with shock now please!) He was pretty well behaved all during church. I don't think anyone around me heard the sermon. They were all too busy watching my son go from the end of one pew to the end of the next cleaning them with a wipee. I never let him get more than two pews away from me but it was quite funny.

When we got home, I fed him lunch and laid him down for a nap. He slept for 3.5 hours!!! I couldn't believe it. He is consistently a 2 hour napper when he's at home. I guess he must have needed it though because he sure was in a good mood when he woke up. By the time he got up, Ben was up and we had a great evening together.

After William went to bed Ben got out my boxes and I boxed up all the Christmas decorations. That's always a little sad. But, it was nice to get the tree out of the way. In this tiny house, it's just one more thing for us to trip over.

All in all, Sunday was a great family day. I really enjoyed it.

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I know we did.

SP Day 79

"Wa-mee do!"

This has become a frequently repeated declarative statement in our home. He really wants to do so many things for himself. He wants to tie his own shoes, zip his own coat, and feed himself. These things are totally expected. It's the things he wants to do that I don't expect that just make me laugh.

Today he wanted to clean some spilled coffee in the kitchen floor. I handed him the rag and said okay. He put the rag on the floor and instead of using his hands, did what he's no doubt seen us do. He used his foot to push the towel around on the floor. I just about cracked up.

He saw me sending a text message tonight. The next thing I know he's pulling my phone and I hear the familiar "Wa-mee do." He wants to lock the doors, feed the dogs, push the basket, dust the furniture, brush the cats, and just about every other thing he's seen us do.

I mentioned in my last post that he's making connections. This has been so much fun. Tonight he pulled two plastic fish out of his toy box that he hasn't played with since he was less than a year old. He pulls them out and tells me "Clown fish." Surely enough, they are clown fish. He's seen "Finding Nemo" like twice and I've never pointed out that those are "clown fish" but he made that connection.

I found him in the kitchen last night squatted down next to his tricycle. I asked him what he was doing. "Put gas in car." He knows that you've got to put gas in your car to go somewhere and he wanted to go somewhere on his tricycle so he needed gas.

Recently, I find my self asking him frequently, "Where did you learn that?" He just grins and goes on doing his thing. I just love watching him become smarter and smarter and beginning to use his imagination in his play.

What a great little guy.

SP Day 78

Friday was an unexpected day. I didn't feel well Thursday night. I had lots of abdominal pain and cramping and I just kept waiting for the nausea and vomiting to hit. Thankfully it never did but I didn't sleep well and I was still in pain on Friday morning. So, I debated and debated about calling in to work. I finally decided to just suck it up and go. I mean, it's Friday after all; it can't be that bad.

So, I took William to mom's to find that she'd been debating and debating about calling me. She'd been up all night with stomach issues too and she wasn't feeling well either. But she decided if I could tough it out so could she.

So, I went to work and still felt a little ooky but not terrible. I called mom about 9am to check on her. She sounded worse, so I just made the call that I didn't feel good, mom didn't feel good, and William still wasn't 100% after having a little cold last week so, I left work and went and got him and we came home.

It was a good choice. He and I both slept from 10am until noon. Then we had a great day. Every minute I spend with him lately is so much fun. (Not to say that there aren't still some very challenging times.) But he's learning so quickly and talking so much and making connections. I love the unexpected things that he comes up with.

We, despite no one really feeling well, had a great Friday.

SP Day 78

Back to school.

After two weeks off I was back at work this week. It's been a really great week. I've had lots of fun with my students. I've laughed and they've left every day saying "That was fun." Can't ask for better than that.

So, my new year is off to a great start.

How's yours?

SP Day 77

Okay, so I'm not doing so great about posting every single day. I am doing much better than I did on my previous blog though so I'm still calling this a success so far.

Things have been pretty status quo around here the last few days which is a blessing in and of itself. So, to keep you entertained and to satisfy my MIL's craving for WB pictures, here are the many outfits of Wild Bill.

Yes that's his vest, coat and shoes from his wedding tuxedo with his puppy dog pajamas. Only my child.

He insisted that I let him tie his own shoes. He worked at it for a good 10 minutes.

Truck pajamas, plaid shirt, green converse tennis shoes and his cowboy hat. Believe me, I had NOTHING to do with this choice. He about had a COW when I made him change to go to town. He kept saying, "No, momma. Wa-mee wear dis." "Wa-Mee" is how he says his own name.

Green flannel pajama top, no bottoms, cammo socks and his toboggan. Oh, and don't forget the "cheese".

SP Day 76

Happy New Year!

Well it's a new year and I had my black-eyed peas today. So, everything must be right with the world.

Haven't heard anything from the newlyweds, which is, I suppose, as it should be.

I'm already dreading going back to work on Monday. I have SO enjoyed my break.

However, I'm headed to the Texas Music Educators Association convention in mid-February with some of the girls I met at my Orff class this summer. I'm getting very excited about that. My Mother-In-Law has very kindly agreed not only to keep my child during this time but she volunteered to come here to stay with him to make things easier for him. I think they're going to have a great time and I'm looking forward to spending my money I made at my cake auction on great stuff for my classroom and having some grown up time.