Bleck

This was my first week back at work, other than the couple of days last week putting my room together. I'm pooped! And guess what I'm tired from? Sitting in meetings all day. That are B O R I N G. It's hard work forcing myself to stay awake in meetings that do NOTHING for me. I absolutely hate these meetings. And it's the same thing every year. The same stuff, the same material, nothing changes. Ugh. That's why these days just drag on and on. It's like there's no end to them! And then I'll see an open spot in the schedule when I think I can get something done in my classroom, and OH WAIT! They have another meeting to add to the schedule. NO FREE TIME! Whatever. I'm just not feeling it this year. I know I will be very happy to meet my new students (and the 8 returning ones) next Tuesday, and when that moment finally gets here, I'll be back into the swing of things. But I'm just not there yet. Part of the reason is because my teaching partner in crime, N, isn't teaching there anymore. She's more than a coworker, she is one of my best friends and we have known each other since kindergarten. She only taught one year at my school, but we carpooled every single day and it was awesome having her there, and now, driving to work along just stinks. And knowing that she's not down the hallway, she's not there to eat lunch with, and not there in the car on the way home to swap stories of the day's events anymore just sucks. I feel like we got a divorce! (kidding!) In all seriousness, I think that's why I'm so unenthused about school right now. Every teacher probably goes through the "I don't want to go back" a little bit every year. We're lucky to have the time off, but I will say it's mighty hard to get back into the swing of things when the fall rolls around. And this year just seems to be the toughest time I've had with it. But, like I said earlier, once the kiddos are there next week, all will be well.

Wal-Fart

Yesterday was such an awesome day. I slept in (for the LAST time), and then worked out (with my tennies!!). I came home and because we had one heck of a storm here, the lawn needed to be cut, so I mowed the front and the back yards, and then weeded and hedged. I enjoy this kind of work, and it was BEAUTIFUL outside, not that steamy, humid, yuckiness that Michigan endured last week. And then I did something that I wanted to do all summer....I laid in our hammock! For an hour! It was so relaxing! Then I had to come in and get cleaned up because I was taking a friend to the airport.

On the way home from the airport, I decided to stop at Walmart, the new SUPER Walmart, to get a few things on the cheap. Here's where the day got....shall we say interesting? I don't mind Walmart at all (up until now), but truth be told, I'm more of a Target person. However, the store was new, so I just decided to go. Good reason, eh? The parking lot was hell. There were people and carts everywhere, NOT MOVING OUT OF THE WAY ON PURPOSE (the people, not the carts). I swear they were looking at the cars waiting for them and took their time because of it. That should have been my first clue to get the hell out of there. I walked into the store and it all went downhill fast. There were too many people to begin with, no place to push a cart, people cutting people off with a cart, messy isles, and did I mention rude people?? Then I got my measly 3 items, and notice that there are like 6 checkout lanes open, and the lines are OUT TO THERE. Are you kidding me?? It was all I could do to stand in line FOR 25 MINUTES not to leave my precious items (conditioner, face wash, and envelopes) behind. And when I actually got to the cashier, I didn't even get a hello. She immediatly started scanning my stuff without even looking me in the face. SO STINKING RUDE!!! I have worked retail and as a cashier....hello manners!! So when this happens, I ALWAYS say hello so that I can at least be acknowledged. I think it killed her to say hi, but that's all I got. That and the bill. I just couldn't wait to get out of there. The whole experience was awful. It's like everyone in that store was in slow, cranky motion. From now on, no matter how cheap Walmart may be, I'm giving my money to Target.

I didn't let this ruin my day. When I got home I went right back to relaxing, but I can tell you, Wal-fart officially sucks. And I WON'T be back.

Nice Matters

I got another award!! This one is from Bella, and it's for being "a good blogger friend, and for inspiring good feelings and inspiration." I'm blushing! I'm going to pass it on to: Tasha, Lindsay, Lori, Tee, Steff, MaryKathryn, and Mary (I know you already were awarded this, but I just had to do it again!) I really truly feel that these AMAZING ladies have an impact on my life. They all inspire me to do and think differently and "better." A couple of years ago, if someone had told me that I was going to have a blog and that I was going to meet people through that blog that had an impact on my life, I would have thought they were crazy. Funny how things work. I think about my blogging friends on a daily basis! Love you ladies!!

On a different note, I started putting my classroom back together today. Thursday is my official day back to work in my room, but, as usual, I had to go back a day early. Lori and Steff, you know what I mean! I worked for almost 7 hours and feel so much better now. I will be able to finish it up tomorrow and then Friday I'm going to ORGANIZE my files, which have not been organized for 3 YEARS. Did you read that??? 3 YEARS. That's one hell of a stack (or 2 filing cabinets FILLED) of papers to file. Ugh. What a nightmare. But I'm bound and determined to do it. IT WILL HAPPEN. I just have to keep telling myself that!

On another different note, let's talk about the weather. It sucks. Today it was 90% humidity. Nasty! It rained for 2 days straight, which folks here in Michigan desperatly needed, and then it was 50 degrees out, which I'm not complaining about! And all of a sudden today, BHAM it's so humid that if you are standing still outside, not moving even an inch, you are sweating. Through your clothes! And where I work, there is NO AIR CONDITIONING. Can you say gross??? I hope the humidity dies down soon, cause it's just so unpleasant. I am so looking forward to fall weather. It's cooler, it's beautiful, and it means apple orchards and pumpkins. That's my favorite season!

The Routine

This is what happens when Kenny & I get ready to go someplace. ANYplace. Let's say, just for the sake of this post, that we have to leave at 2pm. I get in the shower at noon, and am dressed (in this case it was a dressy occasion) and completely ready to go at 1:30pm. With a half hour to spare. Why? Because of what usually happens between 1:30 and 2:30pm. Around 1:30, maybe even 1:45 Kenny gets in the shower. After he's done, he realizes that he doesn't have any clean clothes, which I had asked him the night before/hours earlier if he had what he needed to wear. His reply is ALWAYS yes/who cares. So, at this point, he asks me to HELP him find something to wear, which translates to him standing there and me looking around for something that isn't too wrinkly. Hmmm. Can you see where this is going? After throwing a small fit, he (I) finds suitable clothing, probably something that needed to be ironed, again, by me, and then we move on to the issue of the socks. I think I even posted about this not too long ago. He can't keep a match of socks to save his life. This ordeal starts, where he gets mad at me because somehow, I have sabotaged his socks. As if! After we both scamble around for socks, he probably will end up with a mismatched pair, but no one sees them anyway, so who cares, right? By now it's 2:30, and we are clearly going to be late for whatever we are going to. You think we're ready to leave now? Oh no. There's still the issue of his wallet, keys, and sunglasses. And he can't find them. EVER!! This will FOR SURE take another 10 minutes, making us even more late! I'm going to stop there, because he will probably read this and get mad at me. He has nothing to worry about, because I'm always here when he gets ready and I always help him find his shit. I guess that's why I am ready to go early to make up for his tardiness and disorganization. I should get HUGE kudos for this. HUGE!!

Scavenger Hunt

This Week's Theme: TWO

Marie

Lori and MaryKathryn tagged me so I guess I better get my butt in gear!

Here are the rules:
1. You have to post these rules before you give the facts.
2. Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of their middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.
3. At the end of your blog-post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag.

M is for MAKING THINGS because, duh, I do.
A is for ALWAYS CLEANING....just like Lori, and I am a neat freak and love cleanliness.
R is for RIGHT because I like to be right all of the time, but really, I'm not:)
I is for IN CHARGE...I just am!
E is for ENERGETIC because I just never stop....I keep right on going!

I'm not tagging anyone specific, but try it if you want to!!

Pizza

This summer has really flown by. I know I've said that many times, and other people have said that too, but gosh it was just yesterday I was looking at the calendar thinking I had a whole summer in front of me. Not anymore! I still have this week and part of next week to not be at work. But in a few short days that too will be gone. My list of things to do for the summer has about half of the items crossed off. Not bad! Usually, I do one or two things and abandon the whole thing. I was good this summer. The main thing we didn't get done were the updates on our kitchen, but that's not something that can be done quickly, so I'm not sweatin' it. This weekend, even though I was still suffering from a stuffy head/chest, I cleaned out half of the garage and unpacked the VERY LAST of the boxes from moving in. THAT felt great! The other half of the garage will have to wait until Kenny and I can work on it together. It's mostly his stuff, and he's not sure what to do with it yet, so we'll wait until he's ready. That could be FOREVER! As long as one side is cleaned out and I can put my car and the lawn mower in there, it's all good. Oh yeah, the snowblower too, cause we'll be needing one of those this winter! All these little projects that I work on make me feel good that I can get things cleaned out and the junk thrown away. Does anyone else feel like that when they clean an area out?? It's almost theraputic. Almost. Today I'm going to attack the trunk of my car. Now that we have a house everyone (EVERYONE!!) feels the need to give us more shit. Like we need anymore! We have enough. But, seriously, I've aquired so much lately. Back in March there were quite a few deaths in my family, so when relatives were going through the unoccupied houses, they were thinking,"Lindsey needs this, Lindsey needs that, and maybe this, this, and this too!!" And I know that they are all trying to be helpful, but much of it is still in my trunk, unused, and waiting to be pitched. The stuff that's NOT getting thrown out is the teaching stuff. That's the stuff I like to have pile up in the trunk, it means less I have to purchase!

I can hear Kenny calling my name from the driveway, which means he lost something and needs me to help him find it....or he just doesn't want to look for it. Anyone know what that's like??

But I'll leave you with this:

I never said I didn't KNOW how to cook, just that I DON'T cook often.

But when I do, hmmmm hmmm. Watch out Betty and Rachael!

This Week's Theme: ROWS

To read more about the photo hunt, go here!

Feeling muuuuuch better

I am soooooooo much better now! Thanks for the well-wishes! I think they worked. That, and of course, sleep, plus antibiotics. Thank GOD for them!

Today is my Dad's birthday! My stepmother is having a huge birthday bash for him tomorrow at their home. I am really looking forward to it because much of my family lives out of state and they will be here for this milestone birthday.

But until then, I just have to say

Happy Birthday Dad!

I love you!!

Blah

I've emerged from the couch briefly, only to use the bathroom, drug up (the legal ones), and update my blog. I have a sinus infection again. Who gets that in the summer?? I can't even believe I just typed that. A sinus infection. I get them, usually twice a year, but NOT in the summer time! It has stopped me dead in my tracks this week. I got home from the gym yesterday, and my throat was scratchy, I thought maybe it was because I increased my speed on the treadmill and worked out harder. Two hours later my throat was sandpaper and I went to the doctor for confirmation this morning that it was indeed the dreaded sinus infection. Kenny blames it on the weather change, getting so humid recently and then the rain the last couple of days. Whatever the case, it sucks. My extended family is in town this week and wanting to come see our new house, and since NO ONE has showed any interest in it except for my parents, I was excited to have them over. Not happening now! Maybe the end of the week. I am going back to my make-shift bed on the couch where Kenny keeps an eye on me and tells me how cute I am when I'm sick. I'll be back soon.

Another ME Meme!

Me and My Hubby (boyfriend) Meme

(in my case, my MAN-I hate saying boyfriend, it sounds so 7th grade)

La Bellina Mammina tagged me to write 8 things about Kenny & I.

1. I knew about Kenny before I met him. My friend Danielle was talking about her new boyfriend and how they went camping with his friends, and there was this crazy guy named Kenny who drove a big red truck and tipped over their canoes. And also, he was very loud and funny.

2. When I met him at a party (summer 2000) at my friend's place a few weeks later, I knew who he was the second I saw him based on my friend's description. He had on a Hawaiin shirt, some kind of pants/shorts, and cowboy boots. In the summer time. I know he's going to read this and deny those boots, but dammit, I know I'm right. That's just NOT the kind of thing you forget!

3. The first thing Kenny said to me was that because of our names (I'm not printing our last names on this blog but those of you who know us KNOW what I'm talking about) we were going to get married. And then he turned around and introduced me to the party (I already knew everyone because they were MY friends) as Lindsey ________ and that we were getting married. I was disgusted with forwardness and being so loud. Can you imagine?

4. We finally hooked up in the fall of 2002 when I moved over to this side of the state for my teaching job and the rest is history.

5. I used to be quiet, even tempered, and Kenny was the opposite. Now we both are loud and quick-tempered. Kenny gets over things MUCH faster than I do. I like to sulk and pout when I'm mad. He just gets mad and then gets over it. At least our disagreements are quick!

6. We both love camping and being at the lake. He loves to play hockey and I love to play softball, and we like watching the other one play their sport. We also just recently discovered that our decorating interests are much the same. Except for the bear rug. But we agree on the same colors, pictures, and decor, and I love that!! It has made painting and updating our home easy!

7. We both have the same kind of demanding job. When we go to work, we're ON all the time. There's always a need for us to be there, and we run the day from start to finish. There's little down time (except I get the summer off, but then I work with him) and no break time, and even when there is we are still "on call." That's why we savor our time at the lake, where the cell phones don't work and there is NO computer!

8. Kenny is generally messy and I am generally a neat freak, but I have to give him so much credit.....he has shaped up! He now picks up after himself and knows that things have their own place.

I tag anyone who wants to do this meme!

Scroll down and read about my lunch with Tasha!

Relaxed Weekend

This was a very laid back weekend. And it was just what the doctor ordered. Today was the best, though, because I got to have lunch again with Tasha and her daughter!

(photo taken by Hannah!)

And we even got in a little shopping too. I plan on relaxing on the couch for the rest of the evening with Kenny. To him, that means tickling me until I yell at him and then I get so irritated with him for picking on me that I have to leave the room. So, I am going to be prepared before I get all comfy...I have my squirt gun fully loaded and hiding under the coffee table. He has no clue. It's going to be quite a night!

Week Review!

This has been a busy week....but it's the kind of week that I love to have in the summer. I finally wrapped up summer tutoring! Yay! Now I have about 3 weeks left until school starts. And I'm not ready to think about that just yet so...on with the details of the week.

Tuesday was my softball team's last league game. It's been a long season....4 months. It's been lots of fun, but just about every game since June has been super hot, so I think all of us were glad it's almost over. We do play again this Tuesday, but it's the playoffs, and we will play 1, 2, or 3 games all in one night, and then be done. I'm glad we'll be done, but also a little sad because I love playing and my co-workers are a fun group to be around. Here's our team last week, minus a couple of people:

On Wednesday, my mom and my aunt and I went to Indiana to the Amish country where there is this great little town to shop in. It has lots of dry good good stores, crafts, and a flea market, which is my favorite spot there!! We used to go every summer when I was younger, and I just LOVED looking through the endless aisles of "stuff" to buy. This flea market includes antiques and TONS of new stuff, as well as veges and fruit and plants. I love to stock up on cheap but cute t-shirts and this year I got 400 count sheets for $22!!!! Can't beat that! Here's a pic of my mom and my aunt looking at some floral arrangements and then my mom and I in the middle of an herb garden.

The "in" thing with the t-shirts at the flea market this year was John Deere, so I got one for Kenny. I wasn't sure if he would like it, but it was cheap and if he didn't like it, I thought I would just keep it for myself. Here he is, wearing the t-shirt.

He already wore it all day yesterday and then washed it last night so he could wear it again today. Guess he liked it!! Good thing I got one for me too...a pink one!

Thursday I finished up summer tutoring and visited with my grandparents....no pictures, I forgot my camera. But my grandma said the funniest thing. She's 89, and starting to lose her memory, and we were talking about race tracks and racing horses. I asked my grandpa (91) if he had ever been to a race track and watched a race and he said, "Oh, yes," like OF COURSE he had. Then he and my grandma looked at each other and he said to her, "You've been to one too." My grandma said, "Well, just because you have doesn't mean I have. I really feel like I should argue with you about that, but since I can't remember right now whether I have or not, I won't. But I think I should argue with you about it." And then we laughed. It makes me sad that she's having such a rough time with her memory, but she is in good spirits about it. What else can you be?

Today I had a lay-in-the-sun date with Niki but it was too blasted hot outside so we went shopping instead. I got some AWESOME deals as always. We started at a resale shop that someone had recommended to us. I'm not much of a resale shopper, but I thought we'd go and check it out. It was a huge store (I think it was formerly KMART so you can imagine how large it was!) and organized by color, which made it easy to look at the clothes. I was looking at the pants and capris and I needed to try some on so I asked the sales lady where the room was. She said that she wished they had a try-on room, but no suck luck. She said that people just do what they need to do.....I asked her what that meant, and she said that sometimes they will push the clothes back on the racks and scrunch down in between the clothes and then pull their shopping cart in front of them so they are covered and then try on the clothes like that. I'm thinking, hmmmm, can I pull that off?? Why the hell not! So I did it. Yes, I took my pants OFF completely while my ass was buried in between the rows of pants. Here's the proof!

You'll notice that my pants ARE IN MY HANDS! and not on my body. Nice eh?? At least Niki did slide the cart right in front of me so that I was a LITTLE covered. And I do mean A LITTLE! I guess there's a first for everything!

After our all-day shopping excursion, we stopped at another friend's house to visit with her and her new baby.

He's just so darn cute so I'll give you with one more picture of him!

Now I'm home and Kenny will soon be complaining that I "neglected" him today. He started whining about that last night, in fact. Here's the conversation:

KENNY: You are neglecting me. I get no "Lindsey" time.

ME: You get plenty of "Lindsey" time. When you're home, I'm home.

KENNY: You are always out playing.

ME: (rolling my eyes) Yes, during the day, though! And what are you doing during the day Kenny? Working! So you can't accuse me of neglecting you when you are working!!

KENNY: Oh yeah.

I guess he forgot that he works during the day. This is typical for us. Whenever I'm home on summer vacation he gets like this. I secretly think he's praying for the next 3 weeks to fly by so I can be back at work like him!!

8 Things

I was tagged by MaryKathryn and I am supposed to give 8 random facts about myself and then send this little game on to eight blogger buddies. I think I've done this before, so I'm going to have to come up with eight NEW facts! That could be hard!

Rules: 1. We have to post these rules before we give you the facts. 2. Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves. 3. People who are tagged write their own blog post about their eight things and include these rules. 4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged and that they should read your blog.

1. I am a neat freak....except for basements and closets. But everything that I see all the time that's out in the open is C L E A N and organized. I am thinking that when we have kids that will all change, right Mommas?

2. My favorite color is now green. It has been for a couple of years now. When I was younger it was purple, and then I think I just grew out of it. It's still a close second, but my heart is all GREEN!!

3. Not quite sure I should admit this one, but I enjoy watching episodes of Gene Simmons Family Jewels. But I assure you I don't think he's cute. I promise!!

4. If I'm not upstairs in my house, you can find me in the basement.....sewing or scrapbooking any spare moment I have. Big surprise, right?

5. I ALWAYS wear my seat belt, even to the gas station or just around the block. It's ALWAYS on!

6. I blowdry my hair every single day, even when it's hot out.

7. I snore louder than Kenny does. Anyone who stays here comments on it....I used to be embarrased, now I could care less! I can't help it!

8. I LOVE the DETROIT TIGERS!!!

I'm only passing this onto 6 ladies....

A Day In The Life Of
My Splatter Painted Life
Double Duty
Life, The Universe, And Everything
An Inside Look
As The World Turns

Have fun!