Decorating at mom's...

On Saturday night, Bobby and I went to my mom's to spend some time with her, and Bobby had to put a new faucet on mom's kitchen sink. She was SOOO excited about the faucet!

I decided that I would help mom clean, maybe put up her Christmas tree and help her decorate the rest of the house. I did put up our decorations at home last week, and it helped me get into the Christmas Spirit a litte bit.

Well, I dusted the living and dining rooms, took some plants upstairs, and helped mom take things down off the walls. Well, Bobby and Ben went upstairs and got the tree out of the attic and stood it up for us. Mom and I fluffed the branches and then went to get out all the ornaments and other decorations...aka snowmen! Mom has somewhere near 200 different snowmen. NONE of them are the same, and they vary in size from small 1/2 inch ornaments, to a guy that's over 5 feet tall that used to scare the crap out of my dad when he walked in the living room. It's like someone's standing there waiting to jump you!!

I decorated the WHOLE tree by myself, and it turned out lovely, if I do say so myself (I also decorated our tree at home by myself...Bobby put 1 ornament on the tree here). Things were going well while decorating...I got a little choked up while putting the ornaments on when I came across the ones that represented my dad...snowmen dressed like a fisherman, fireman, and golfer, and a golfball that I had bought him somewhere around 10 years ago.

I didn't cry though...until we got out the tote that had the stockings in it. There was dad's stocking, right on top. That did it. I lost it. Of course, mom did, too. We cried for a long time, and then we had to decide what to do. Put it up or don't put it up? It didn't seem right to just leave it in the tote. But how could we leave that empty stocking hang there???? Well, we did hang it up. We decided that we are going to put something in it...a cigar from the humidor we bought him for Father's Day. Did we make the right decision? I'm still not sure. I feel bad that my mom has to look at it every day...I just don't know. Even now, just thinking about that empty stocking, I'm getting teary eyed. I miss him so much.

Tonight, I'm going to finish decorating. I still have to put out the Nativity and decide what I'm going to do for a center piece on my dining room table! I also need to make the finishing touches on the ornaments I made for my ornament exchange.

I'll be taking pictures of the decorations the next few days to share with you! Have a great evening!

Thanksgiving Recap

So it's been 2 weeks since I've updated. Sorry about that. I thought maybe I'd share with you how our Thanksgiving went, since it was only a little over a week ago, and there hasn't been too much else going on in our lives!

For Thanksgiving this year, we did something out of the ordinary. We went to my Aunt Becky's house (my mom's sister), which is near Harrisburg, instead of staying at home. It was a nice change of scenery. Bobby and I left at 2 on Wednesday and hit rush hour in Hbg and got to my aunt's at 6:30 (after checking into the hotel). We had pizza, hung out with Aunt B, Uncle Scott, and my cousins, Ashlee and Kelsey, until about Midnight. My mom and Ben got there somewhere around 11pm, because they both had to work!

Thursday was the day I was dreading, so much. I really thought it was going to be extremely difficult, just like I thought daddy's birthday was going to be super difficult, too. It wasn't though...for me, mom, or Ben. We got through it with no tears at all. We had a nice meal and visited with my mom's family and had a great day. After all the kids made stockings (that included me) Bobby and I went to Hershey Park with Kelsey and her boyfriend to go see the park lights and watch a cool show that was synchronized with music. It was pretty cool, and I got some neat pictures!

Friday, I went Black Friday shopping with the girls and Aunt B and had a great time. :) I got some good deals and even got myself a new purse! Bobby went to Cabela's in Hanover and he got us some new chairs for bonfires this coming summer! They recline and everything! So excited!

We left Aunt B's and went over to my Uncle Brian's (mom's brother) around 1:00 and stayed until about 3:30...which was MUCH later than we had planned to stay! When we got home, we had a bunch of friends come over, watched some football, talked, and played some games until about 1 am.

Saturday I got up early and went out to Bobby's cousin Jill's and made candy for Christmas with most of the women on his mom's side of the family. When we finished, I had to come home so we could go to Penn Hills for another Thanksgiving dinner at my Aunt Karen's!

Dinner at Aunt Karen's went better than I had expected for everyone there, too. I was surprised by how very UN-emotional everyone was. I said to my mom it didn't seem like anyone was having too hard of a time because dad ALWAYS had to work on holiday's...so it was just like any other year. My mom and grandma seemed to agree with me, too. We stayed there until about 12:30, because we watched the Green Mile....one of my absolute FAVORITE movies, EVER :) oh yeah, and Nova, my GORGEOUS 9 year old cousin, fell asleep in my lap. It was great. She's such a sweetie pie!!

Sunday we hung out at home and watched the Steelers LOSE with JohnAllen. Even tho they lost, we had a fun evening and went to bed early...The boys had to get up and hunt super early.

Well, that's about all that happened Thanksgiving weekend. I'll post more again later. I've got lots of stuff to do this evening!

Thankful day 13...I guess

I'm behind on my thankful posting. Sorry. I've just been a little lazy lately, and really tired! I have fallen asleep with my laptop in my lap for the past 6 nights...hoping not to do it again tonight!!

Today I am thankful for my momma.

My momma is amazing. She's been through A LOT since last September when she lost her job for a VERY stuuuuuuupid reason. That's a long story and I'm sure she wouldn't really want me to tell you about it, either. She went back to work in December and has had 4 different jobs since then. She is now the assistant manager on the retail side at Cunningham Meats.

She has always encouraged me to do the things that I want to do, and even if we don't always see eye-to-eye, she'll back me up in whatever decisions I make for my life. Whenever someone asks me when I'm going to have a baby and she's around, she jumps in and replies for me, because she knows it's hard for me to talk about. She says that the babies will come when the time is right and she has never been pushy about it. She knows what's going on with my body and doesn't let anyone upset me when the talk of a baby comes up.

Mom has been so strong since we lost daddy. She hasn't given up. She gets out of bed every morning, goes to work, and continues on with her life. I know that there are days that she and I (and I'm sure that my brother and the rest of my dad's family probably feel this way too) would rather give up and just stay in bed and forget about life for a while...just let the grief win and cry forever...feeling so sorry for ourselves. But she won't do that, and because I know she is so strong and won't give up on her life, I can't either.

Tonight, Momma took me to Kittanning with her to have dinner with some of her friends that she used to work with at the Wal*Mart there. We went to The Villa...I'd never been there before, but it was a nice place! They have a cookie exchange every year (That reminds me...we're having a cookie exchange at the office in December...I'm making Peanut Butter Munchies. I'll share the recipe when I make the cookies..and post pictures) and have dinner together. Well, they didn't bake cookies this year, just exchanged recipes, talked, laughed, and ate. We had a nice time and the food was really good.

Thank you for being so strong for me, Momma. I love you forever and ever.

Thankful days 10, 11, and 12

Whooops! I'm a little behind, sorry about that! This is for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Today (and everyday) I am thankful for our military.

Wednesday was Veteran's Day, and I cannot tell you how thankful I am that I can live my life in freedom because of the great men and women who so freely serve our country. My dad was in the Navy, one uncle was in the Air Force, and one was in the Army. Bobby's grandfathers served in the Army and the Air Force, and a TON of his cousins have served in various branches of the military. We've both had many friends that have served our country, as well. I can't put into words how much I appreciate what our soldiers do for us every day.

This is something one of my friends posted as his status on facebook the other day. I really liked it. And it's so true, because our military fights to keep us free from the oppression of other countries and help to destroy terrorism!

The Veteran
It is the veteran, not the preacher, who has given us freedom of religion. It is the veteran, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the veteran, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the veteran, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to assemble. It is the veteran, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial. It is the veteran, not the politician, who has given us the right to vote. It is the veteran, who salutes the flag, who serves under the flag.

Soooo...that catches me up through today, and I'll do today's shortly!

Thankful day 9

How about those Steelers, eh?? Did you watch the game? It was fantastic! The only bad part about it was that I stayed up TOOOOO late watching the game and then the news afterward, that I didn't get enough sleep!

My butt was really dragging at school today. I don't know if it was because I was tired, but the kids were REALLY crazy. By lunch time I was so tense and I thought I might start shaking and pull my hair out by the end of the day! I struggled through the afternoon and got to recess. I was able to talk to another adult and find that I wasn't the only one who was having a problem with the kids being crazy. We assumed it was because they don't have school tomorrow and it was "Friday" to them. OHHH well, I made it through the day and I'm still alive and have ALL of my hair :)

After a day like that it's really hard to be thankful! And I was pondering on my drive home about what I might have to be thankful about. Just then, a turkey ran out into the road! I slowed down, knowing that the turkey would make it to the other side, if I went slow enough. Then...ANOTHER turkey jumped in front of my car. I had to slam on my breaks. It was then that I discovered what I it is that I'm thankful for today.

Today, I am thankful for a running vehicle!

I haven't had the best of luck with my car...it's spent a lot of time in the shop. But...lately, it's been running pretty well! *knock on wood* When I had to slam on my breaks today so I wouldn't kill the turkey, I was glad that they work that well! Yes, I know I could have just killed the stupid turkey, but I would have cried the rest of the way home. So...that turkey flew out of the way, and I looked to my right and saw 4 more turkey on the other side of the road. As I drove away, the rest of the turkey walked across the road to their destination. I smiled and continued on my way home, thankful that I didn't kill any turkey today!

So with that, I must get going. We have very little food in the house and I have to figure out what to make for dinner. Hopefully I can pull something out of my rear-end. I think we have some meatballs in the freezer and some noodles. Guess I just figured out what I'm making for dinner tonight!

Thankful day 8

Today I am thankful for children.

I still haven't found out what's going on with my body. And...I can't go to the doctor to find out because we don't have health insurance right now...that's another story for another day. Anyway, that means that we can't have kids of our own right now, but I can enjoy being around other people's children! Children are great. They can make you smile and laugh even on the darkest of days. They think simply, act kindly (most of the time), and try to please you in whatever they do. I think that's one of the reasons I love being at the elementary school so much. Most of those kids don't come in the mindset that they aren't going to do anything that you ask them because it doesn't matter. They're eager to learn and they actually want to do it!

My 4th graders were crazy today. They were excited to have me for class and they listened pretty well, but they were being a little more goofy than they would be if their teacher was actually there. It was alright tho, I love when they can make me laugh and smile.

*~*

Well...it's a Black and Gold Monday Night! The Steelers are playing the Broncos tonight at 8:30! I'm sooooo glad there's finally a game on. It's been over 2 weeks since they played because of the bye week. Last Sunday and yesterday were so strange without the game being on! That's alright tho! I'll take what I can get...even if I'll probably fall asleep and miss the end because I'm so tired!

Here we go Steelers, Here we go!!!

Thankful day 7

Today I am thankful for lazy Sundays.

Today Bobby and I spent the day at home. While I really wanted to go to the zoo today, it was great to just stay at home and be alone with each other. We did a little rearranging in the living room to prepare for Christmas. We spent an hour and a half moving every piece of furniture around...and in the end, the only things that we really had to move were the couch and the TV. We basically just switched where the two things were and it made the room sooooo much bigger! Pictures later!

This week, I teach every day except Wednesday. Monday and Tuesday I will be teaching 4th grade and I'm really looking forward to it! For the most part, the kids are fantastic and I hope that they'll be good for me! Wednesday is Veteran's Day and the school is CLOSED! Thursday, I think I'm teaching art...which may change between now and then, which is fine! Friday I'll be in 1st grade! Yay!
On Wednesday, I'll be taking a Mental Health Day and relaxing. I don't get the chance to be home alone too much and I really need some alone time this week.

I've had such an emotional weekend. I still have this painful sad feeling in the pit of my stomach that won't go away...like the same empty feeling I did the week of the funeral. It's like he was here with me this week and left me again. It's so strange...whenever I have a bad, emotional day, my mom and brother do, too. And my mom says that my dad's sister, Karen feels the same way when we feel that way. Is that weird? Is it a coincidence? I really don't know, but I guess it's good to know that someone is feeling the same way I do when I feel so empty.

Well, it's time for bed! Gotta get up early!! Nighty night!

Thankful day 6

Today, I am thankful for changing weather.

Yesterday was SOOOOOOO cold! It could have snowed had their been any nasty clouds in the sky. Today it's above 60 degrees and we have the front door open. All the cold makes me appreciate the warm weather, especially when it's unexpected!

We got all of the patio furniture put away for the year and put all of the other outdoor things put in the garage, too. Feels good to have everything taken care of. We won't have to do it when it's super cold, now! They are predicting a high of 66 tomorrow. I'm hoping that my dear husband will take me to the Pittsburgh Zoo tomorrow so we can use our tickets that we bought this summer and didn't have time to use. I'll let you know how that goes!

Oh and last night, we went to the movies to the A Christmas Carol in 3D...you know, the one that Jim Carrey played like 6 or 7 of the characters? It was good. The same old story, but the 3D made it a little more interesting. It made me really sad, tho...thinking about Christmas without my dad. I cried through most of the movie, unbeknownst to my in-laws...but poor Bobby knew I was crying the whole night. Ugh...sorry I'm so depressing...it's just so hard.

Well...the Penn State game should be starting here shortly. Have a good day!

Thankful day 5

Today I am thankful for memories of my dad.

I have been very, very sad today. I keep thinking of my dad and then the crying starts. I have so many good memories of him and keep seeing his face and hearing his voice.
I can't tell you how hard it is.
There are a few pictures of he and I together on our bookshelf and it's comforting to see his face everyday. But at the same time, knowing that's the only time I'll see him makes me so sad. I was daddy's little girl...and proud of it.

Thankful, day 4

Today, I am thankful for life-long friends.

I met my best friend, Sara, when I was 5 years old. She lived down the street from me while I was growing up and we would play in the neighborhood. She went to a private school during elementary school, and we didn't meet up again until 7th grade in Junior high. We have been friends since. There aren't many people I know who have had their best friend nearly their entire life. Tonight, Bobby and I went to dinner with Sara and her husband, Tyson. We had a great night, and probably could have sat and talked all night. She's the best :)
*~*
Also, please pray for our soldiers at Fort Hood, in Texas after one of their own turned 2 hand guns on them, killing 12 and injuring 31 others. These men and women live their lives to protect us from foreign threats, they shouldn't have to protect themselves from their own brother. Bobby's cousin was stationed at Fort Hood for 4 years, this hits a little too close to home.

I'll be at school again tomorrow...aaaaannnnd everyday next week. I guess I better get to bed.

Being thankful, day 3

I read this quote from Oprah on another blog...can't remember which one it was, as it isn't one that I read every day.

"Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have you will never, ever have enough."-Oprah

Today, I am thankful for inspiring teachers.

I work with some AMAZING teachers! Some of them show up to school before the sun's up and stay past dark every day (which is earlier now, I know, but still). Some of them even come in on weekends and work. It's inspiring to me to see that they are so dedicated to educating the young people in this world. It makes me want to be a better teacher, too. Yes, I know, I'm only a sub right now, but if I would get a job in the future, I would know how to improve on the things that need to be fixed. Obviously, I didn't just wake up one morning and say, "ok, I'm going to be a teacher." Somewhere along the way, I had to stumble upon some of these teachers while I was going to school. I've been very lucky to have some of the best teachers as I was growing up...Mrs. Brunetta, Mrs. Clark, Mrs. Bennett, Mrs. Paterson, Mrs. Kovalcick, Mrs. Orchard, Mrs. Grafton, Mrs. Warner, Mrs. Sasala, Dr. Kealey, Mrs. Grafton, Mr. Salser, Mr. Saylor, Sra. Miller, Ms. Nibert, Mrs. Lansberry, Mrs. Novels...these are just a handful of teachers who inspired me to make the choice that I did to go into education. A huge THANK YOU to all of them.

*~*

One other thing today...I don't know how many of you watch WTAE news (channel 4) but today, I saw the most heart wrenching, tear jerking, inspiring story about 2 boys with a disease called Batten Disease. Of the estimated 4.2 million children born in America this year, only about 100 will be diagnosed with Batten disease. It's extremely rare and there is no cure for it. Both of these boys were diagnosed with the disease and their parents know that their children won't live much longer. How heartbreaking. Here is a link to the article. There is a video on the page about the boys, as well. I'll be adding them to my prayer list tonight. I hope you'll say an extra prayer for them, too.

I'm off to make dinner and get some housework done. Hoping that I can tackle the mess on my dining room table! Hope you all have a wonderful evening!

Thankful post day 2

So I skipped yesterday, because I was too tired, but I'm going to back track and do two thankful posts.

I am thankful for both of my jobs.

With the current state of the economy, a lot of people are getting pay cuts, being laid off, or losing their jobs completely. I feel very fortunate that I am able to have two jobs to pay my bills. I know that I complain about my office job, A LOT, but my bosses are both fantastic! Just the simple fact that they are so flexible and allow me to sub and work there when I need to makes my life so much easier. I would hate to give up that job until I absolutely need to. It's great knowing that I can go to AmbCoach if I don't teach a couple days a week. I also know I have somewhere to work for the summer so I can keep a steady income!

Okay...that's it for day #2. Time to do today's post!

What are you thankful for?

So as I mentioned a while ago, I read several blogs every day. Today I was catching up on my Google reader and read Katie's post at My Life as a Wallace about being thankful. She said that her pastor's wife challenged her friends to post everyday about what they are thankful for. I think that this is something I might be able to accomplish.

I am thankful for the gift of laughter.

After a rough day at school, then going to the office and feeling pretty crappy about my current employment situation, I felt like no one liked me! I sometimes feel used and that my abilities are under appreciated. Well, after voicing my pitiful opinion of myself on facebook, my friends made me laugh! Sometimes I guess I just feel bad for myself and get paranoid that others think the same of me. It takes a little bit of reassurance from my friends and being able to laugh at myself to make me feel better. So thanks to my friends for making me laugh (at you and myself)!!

~*~

Let's see...a recap of yesterday....well, we sat around the house for a little while, I got in the shower at 12:30, and we went to Bob and Fran's to weigh in. I gained a pound. Booooo! So that's 9 lbs total that I've lost. Bobby lost another 2.2 lbs, so he's at 14 lbs in 9 weeks! I'm so proud of him, because he wasn't going to do this at all and now he's the one that's lost the most weight!

Last night we had dinner at Bob and Fran's to celebrate Jason's (that's Janelle's husband) birthday. We had delicious stuffed peppers and mashed potatoes. YUM! We also had yellow cake with cool whip/pudding icing, and chunked pineapple on top! DELICIOUSNESS! Aaaaannnndddd...that's about how exciting the day was! Haha.

This morning, my alarm went off at 6:30, just in case the school called. Well, as soon as my alarm went off (which is on my phone) my phone rang. It was Penns Manor. They needed me at the elementary school in the third grade. It wasn't a bad day...at first...but as the day went on, the kids got more crazy. I wound up being so upset with them at the end of the day that I was actually GLAD that the I was going to my other job. Haha. What a joke that was!
So yes, I did go to the Coach after school. I have to say, that most of the ladies there are fantastic. I do really love them, and they have become great friends over the past 3 years...BUT..some of them have such a lousy disposition on their lives. They're so miserable that they drag everyone else down! GRRRRR!!!!

TOMORROW WILL BE A BETTER DAY!!!!
That is going to be my motto for the week...no matter how bad the day is, the next day can't be any worse, can it? At least I hope not!

Let's see...what else to share...ummmm...We are going to Hershey/Harrisburg for Thanksgiving. My mom, brother, Bobby, and I are going to go stay near my mom's brother and sister to spend a few days with them. I know my grandparents are going, too, but I'm not sure if my mom's other brother, his wife and kids will go, though. This is going to be our first major holiday without dad. It's going to be rough, and I think the best way to deal with it is by being surrounded by family. I hope it works.
For those of you who have lost a loved one, is it better to be alone on holidays or with family? I would really like to hear what you have to say. Please tell me!

That's about it! It's 10 pm and I'm ready for bed. We'll see if the phone rings in the morning!

Creative solutions!

First of all, Happy Halloween! We don't really do much of anything for Halloween...without kids, we don't have anyone to dress up! Neither one of us really cares to dress up, and we don't go to parties, so we just stayed in this evening!

I have a TON of jewelry...it's accumulated over the years and I'm running out of room to store it all. My mom is having the same problem, and her birthday was on the 18th. I needed a gift for her and she needed somewhere to put her jewelry! So, I came up with a simple solution. I put some serious thinking into what I wanted to do.

I remembered being at May Mart this year and someone who was selling jewelry and had an old frame that she had painted and had covered plywood or something similar in fabric. Well...I thought that might be pretty easy, but didn't know where to find an old frame that would be big enough for my project. My friend, Julianne, said she's just using a simple bulletin board and pushpins to hang her jewelry on.

So, I combined the two ideas and created this:

I took the center out of the bulletin board, covered it in simple patterned fabric, bought clear push pins and put little bronze stickers on the ends of them for decoration.

Here's a close up of the top.And the bottom of the board.Now, when mom gets dressed, she'll be able to see all of her jewelry and be able to pick something quickly to go with her outfit! I'll have to make one for myself, now, because I like it so much!

Today, we watched the Penn State/Northwestern game this afternoon. Penn State won 34-13! And then Penguins game came on right after that...they lost to the Minnesota Wild 2-1. Tomorrow there isn't a Steelers game. I heard on DVE yesterday on my way home from school that a bar in Pittsburgh is having a Bye-week blues fest since there won't be a game. Guess we'll have to find something else to do, as well!

We're watching the Ghost Hunters Marathon on Syfy...they're showing the 5 scariest episodes and counting down until they do a live investigation at 1:00 am.

That's about it...pretty boring day! It's nice to stay at home together once in a while. We didn't have any visitors for trick-or-treat since we don't live in town. Hope you all had some visitors!

Bad Wife?

Do you ever feel like you're a bad wife? Or maybe that you aren't appreciated for what you do?

All week I taught and I went to my other job a few days as well. After spending the day with 500+ kids and having to constantly be on my toes I'm exhausted. I have to make sure that they aren't talking when they aren't supposed to, that they're keeping their hands to themselves, understanding what they're supposed to be doing, reading, doing independent work, spelling, math...singing, playing an instrument...which includes checking fingerings, the embouchure, how they're holding the instrument, if they know the name of the note, how long it needs to be played, are they resting...ugh! It's crazy! I love what I do, honestly, but my brain is engaged from the minute I walk in the door of the school until I walk back out to my car.

So when I get home, I'm drained. I am not ready to cook and clean when I get home. That housewife switch doesn't turn on. I feel like I'm letting my husband down because I don't cook dinner for him every night. I wait until the weekend to do laundry and some of my other housework. Does it make me a bad wife because I don't care if I do my wifey jobs everyday??

How do those of you who work balance all of those things? Does your husband help you? Mine doesn't very much. It makes it even harder to get things done when I do it all on my own! Suggestions? Help?! Please?!!??!

...If you try some times, you might find, you get what you need!

So the other day I wished to get some more days at school for the week. Well, at the end of the day yesterday, I was asked to sub for the entire week for the band teacher. I went from having 2 days to 5 for the week! I guess sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for, because they really happen!

We're off to have dinner with Noelle and Derek! We're picking up pizza and heading to their place! Maybe I'll post something a little longer tonight! Bye!

Speedy Update!

Okay, I'm going to make this really, really quick because I need to go to bed!

So today we weighed in. I lost 4 lbs this week! Well, technically, I gained 2 last week, so I lost those 2 and then 2 this week...so far, I have lost 10 lbs! I'm so excited! Bobby lost a little more than 2 lbs this week, putting him at 12 lbs total! Not sure where everyone else stands, but we have all lost somewhere between 5 and 10 lbs! Yay!

So far, I am teaching Monday and Tuesday and in the office the rest of the week. I hope that they can find me one or two more days so I don't have to go to the Coach as much.

Oh yeah, and I got all my house work done between yesterday and today. I even ironed ALL my work clothes for the week and two sets of sheets because my husband threw them onto the bed in the spare bedroom when he took them out of the dryer, instead of folding them! So glad it's all done. Hopefully I can take it easy this week on house work! Just daily stuff! No big piles of laundry, I hope!!

Well, I told you I'd be quick! I'm off to bed! Nighty night!

I love sleeping in on Saturdays...

Last night we went to Pittsburgh Mills with Noelle and Derek to go to Red Robin for dinner, then we went to see Paranormal Activity. HOLY SHIT was that movie SCARY! They tell you at the beginning that it's based on a true story, which I suppose each thing that happened could have been based on another story...but it isn't all true. Usually I'm alright with scary things, they don't bother me or weigh on my mind the rest of the night or the next day...but thing really got to me. If you like scary movies I would recommend it. For fair warning, I almost cried.

So we didn't get home until about 1:00 am, and pretty much went straight to bed. I had been up since 6:30 and I was really tired when we got home. I slept until 1:00 this afternoon! That's 12 hours of sleep. I must have really needed it, because I NEVER do that!


Oh, and Yesterday, Noelle was in the ER. She had really bad pains in her lower back, and what she said were really bad menstrual cramps, too. They made her take a pregnancy test, which came back negative, so they sent her for a CT. They did the CT to see if she has kidney stones. They saw NOTHING in the CT, so the doctor wanted to send her home. Well, she's had ovarian cysts before and said the pain was similar to when she had them last time. The doctor wouldn't give her a pelvic exam and told her to go see her doctor. He had no idea what was wrong with her and was going to send her home without anything for pain. We talked to the nurse and she told the doctor that if he wasn't going to to do the pelvic exam that he MUST give her something for the pain. I was, and still am very mad at that doctor! He should have done so much more for her...especially since he has no idea what's wrong with her. He told her to come back if the pain got worse. Of course she was in a lot of pain while we were at the movie last night, so we made her take a pain pill while we were at the movie. At least it was so scary that everyone was screaming, or she would have fallen asleep.

It is a dark and dreary day here in Indiana and I'm home alone while Bobby's at a gun bash. I've got some sheets in the drier, towels in the washer, and I really should be doing some other cleaning, but I just don't feel like it! I would looooove to stay on the couch and watch TV all day, but I guess I should take advantage of the fact that I don't have to work today and get some things done! Not to mention that it's 5:15 and I should probably get in the shower.

I have to finish my mom's birthday present today or tomorrow, too! I am making her a jewelry board for all of her necklaces and bracelets. I'll have to post a picture of it once it's all finished. If it turns out nicely, I might make one for myself!

I think I'm also going to work on some jewelry today. I have been asked to make a few things for Christmas gifts and for some friends to wear to up coming events. I hope that I can create something that will make my friends happy :)

Well, I guess I should go get some stuff done! Have a wonderful evening!

Happy Birthday Momma!!!!

Today is my Momma's Birthday! She's at the Steelers game today with her friends. 5 of her friends went together and bought her a ticket to take her. How nice is that?! They all paid for their own tickets, and then split the cost of hers!! They surprised her with it earlier this week. I wish I could have gotten tickets to take her, but they're a little too expensive for us! At least someone could take her. I'm planning to make her dinner this week and a homemade carrot cake.

This is my mom, Uncle Jeff, and my daddy on my wedding day. I love this picture of them!

We've had a really fun and busy weekend. Friday night we went to dinner with Bobby's cousin Jill, her husband Mike, and our friends Amy and Anthony. Also, Jill and Mike have an exchange student from Mexico living with them until June. Her name is Ale. I think it's Alejandra, but I'm not sure...everyone calls her Ale (like Ali). She came with us, too, and so did another exchange student, Michelle, who's from Switzerland. We went to Ironwood and had some delicious food and a great time with everyone.....until we started talking about Christmas...my mood totally changes when I think about the upcoming holidays. I usually cry a little when we talk about Christmas. Everyone changed the subject really quickly so I would stop crying. It worked...but I was still not as happy as I was at first.

Yesterday, Bobby and I went to a wedding near Uniontown, PA. We went with his parents, Janelle and Jason, Jill and Mike, and his Uncle Dave and Aunt Donna. The wedding was for our friend's daughter. We didn't go to the ceremony, just the reception. It was a very nice place. I think it was called Anthony's Lakeside Party Center. We were in McClelandtown, or Uniontown...not sure. It was a beautiful place. We had a really nice time and stayed the night. We got back just before the Steelers game came on.

I have been forgetting to update on my weight loss progress. Last week I lost 4 lbs! That took me to a total loss of 8 lbs in 6 weeks. I'm pretty happy with my progress so far. Although...I got on the scale today to weigh-in and I gained 2 lbs. But, I'm okay with that because we had the wedding and there were cookies and alcohol.....and well...who can resist that at a wedding?!

After the game is over, I think I'm going to do some cleaning. The house is kind of a mess right now and I've got another busy week of subbing coming up and I know I'm not going to feel like doing it after school and going to AmbCoach.

Have a good evening! 4th quarter's about to start. Let's hope our defense can keep playing through the end of the game! Here we go!!!

Ooops!

Wow...I can't believe it's been nearly a month since I've posted anything. Sorry about that.

I have been at Penns Manor Elementary all week subbing for the band teacher, who's really sick. It's been a fun week of lessons and rehearsals. I've gotten to spend some time practicing some instruments that I don't often get to play. I can never remember slide positions on the trombone, so the kids have been teaching me! It's great practice for them, because then they really have to think about what they're playing to show me how to do it!

Did you see my new camera? I put a picture of it on facebook last week. Bobby got me a Nikon D60 for a late anniversary/early christmas present. It's faaaaaaantastic! I have been taking it everywhere with me and snapping lots of photos!

Last time I posted, I had mentioned the annual Penns Manor craft show. I thought I was going to be able to make some jewelry and sell it there. Well...it's on November 14th and I CAN'T DO IT!!!! That day we are going DRESS SHOPPING for Noelle's wedding dress and to find dresses for the bridesmaids!!!! I am excited to go dress shopping, but I was really wanting to do the craft show. SOOOOOOO...instead, I'm going to ask if you know anyone that might like some pretty things for Christmas or who might need gifts for their bridesmaids for an upcoming wedding to point them in my direction. I'm looking to try out some new things...

Like these: (all photos from artbeads.com)

pretty every day earrings

something fun and summery!

This one's cute right??? I like the little birds in the center!

See something you like??? Let me know! How?? EMAIL ME, find me on FACEBOOK, or leave me a comment on one of my posts! There are so many great sample designs on artbeads.com! I also have some magazines at home or I can do something original. Remember, Christmas is coming and it's never to early to shop! I do have a couple orders from some friends that I'll be working on this coming week to get them finished. I'll post pictures as soon as I finish them!

Jewelry!

You may or may not remember this from previous posts, but I learned to make jewelry when we went to Tucson, Arizona this past Thanksgiving. I have been practicing and making some jewelry for friends and family as gifts. I have been toying around with the idea to sell some of my stuff and to tell people about it.

Soooo...today I made my first jewelry sale. Thanks to Teri :)
She wanted orange juice with lemons and limes and that's what she got! See!!She really liked it and I'm so glad she did!

I made one similar to it last week for Gail at work. She loved hers too!

To see some of the other stuff that I've made, go here. I'm planning to try some new things over the weekend and hopefully someone will like it and buy it, too!!!

Also, in November, Penns Manor's FBLA club is having their annual craft show. I think that I'm going to get a table and sell some stuff there. If I do get a table, I'll let you all know so you can come check out more of my jewelry! Noelle might make some jewelry and split the cost of the table with me....if she has time, what with the wedding coming up and everything!

If you're interested in some jewelry, you can drop me an email or just leave me a comment on this post.

That's it for me tonight. I'm teaching tomorrow and I need to get to bed. Grey's is on at 9 tomorrow...I can't wait :)

getting better

Well, it's only been 2.5 weeks since my last update. Pretty good for me I'd say!

Did I tell you that our family is doing a biggest loser challenge? Well...we are. We started August 30th and it's ending the week of Thanksgiving. So far, I've lost 4 lbs!!! I stayed the same for week 1, lost 1 lb during week 2, and lost 3 (yes 3) lbs this past week...week 3. I was pretty excited to get on the scale on Sunday!

Also, I've been sleeping much better lately. I've been getting tired at a decent hour and going to bed around midnight...which is really good for me :)

I have been getting really good about controlling the urge to breakdown and bawl my eyes out when I miss my dad. But, Friday night I couldn't control myself. I totally lost it and cried...more like heavily sobbed...myself to sleep. I don't know what it was that caused my major meltdown...but I really lost it! It was baaaaad!

Saturday night I played bar bingo at the Legion with my mom and when we left and I hugged her, I lost it again. What a mess I am! I can't control it anymore. I didn't even lose it that bad on the 12th, which was his 54th birthday!

Yesterday instead of working at the Coach or subbing, I got to babysit because Noelle was sick! Taryne has bronchitis and an ear infection, so we had to keep the kids seperated, so I had a 4 month old and a nearly 3 year old. Noelle kept Taryne for the day. It was such a nice change of pace/scenery. And holding that little baby boy all day was absolutely wonderful! He's such a little cutie pie! I took Maverick with me and he followed me where ever I went, as long as I had the baby with me. Fran says it's because he wants a baby...and I agreed...saying his mommy would like one, too!

While on that subject...it has been 1 year and 1 day since I went off birth control... And I am still not anywhere near pregnant...but it's okay...God will give me my babies when he's ready to, and I'm willing to wait a while...as long as it's not 5 years from now :)

Well...I best get back to work. Have a great day, everyone!

I'm Back!!!

Did you miss me??

Sorry I've been gone so long, we've been busy! I wish I had blogged while we were at the beach and our many other fun things. Buuuutttttttt....I didn't! Sorry!

The beach was a blast. It was warm and sunny all week except our last day there, when it stormed all day. For those of you who saw the picture on Facebook, I'm sure you'll agree with me that the storm was creeeeeeeepy looking!! We went to Medieval Times for our anniversary. It was fun...but our Knight lost, poor guy! There are pictures on my Facebook, and I should probably put them on Photobuket soon so you can see them.

We've been running around doing things, visiting friends, going to different things, but nothing too memorable...sad, I know. We went to Deep Creek Lake, MD for a weekend with Bobby's family. They stayed for the entire week, but we went down Saturday and left Sunday, then went back for the day on Wednesday.

Bobby turned 27 last week (Aug. 25th) and his mom cooked dinner for all of us and we had a nice time.

This week is the big Indiana County Fair. Bobby lives for this week every year. He eats lunch and dinner there everyday...today was the only day we haven't gone for dinner. He's going to the tractor pull with his dad tomorrow night. Whew! I am so glad I don't have to go. The smell of Diesel fuel makes me sick to my stomach! Gross!!! While he's there, I'm going to make my dad's famous chili. I have been promising it to the 911 guys for the past 2 months, so I'm taking advantage of the fact that I'll be home alone and I'm going to finally make it. It's deliciousness in a bowl! It won't ever be exactly the same, but it'll be close.

I'm looking forward to the 3 day weekend! We're having a big ol' party on Monday...We've invited like 100 people (I MUST BE CRAZY) and they're pretty much all coming. Soooo...if you read this on a regular basis (although, it has been nearly 2 months since I've posted, so there's nothing regular about that) you can come join in the fun!!! We're starting at 2 and asking everyone to bring a covered dish and a chair. If there's something special you like to drink, you may want to bring that, too! We're providing hot dogs and some beer and other beverages for all! We'll have a fire in the evening and we can find some games to play outside, too!
Just let me know if you're coming, and if you need directions! I'm in the mood for a good party! So please come over, it won't be as much fun without you!

And on that note, I must say good night! I've been having some problems sleeping, as most of you probably know...and staying up this late won't be good for me come tomorrow morning. So off to bed I shall go! Nighty night!

Quick update

Just wanted to let everyone know I'm doing alright. Every day is different and has to be dealt with differently.

I miss dad everyday, but there's nothing I can do to bring him back. So I get up every morning, go to work and deal with my sorrow as it comes. Fortunately, I have a lot of wonderful people in my life who support me and that includes the ladies at work (some more than others...and they know who they are).

This past weekend we were in Hershey, Coatesville, and Lancaster celebrating my uncle Brian's 40th birthday (hershey) and Diana's 24th (c-ville/lancaster).
We had a great time and it was a much needed distraction for us!

We are working all this week and then headed to North Myrtle Beach on Saturday for our 1st Anniversary! I can't believe how fast this year has gone! Wow! More on that next time!

I'm trying to get some stuff done around the house so it's done before we leave! I better get going!

Much love to you all!

Taryne Lee

Today is my beautiful niece Taryne's birthday. It's hard to believe that just 2 years ago we got to meet her!

She is such a ray of sunshine. She lights up the room when she walks in...unless she's sleepy or grumpy, of course. I love my sweet little peanut and am so glad that when the days are bad I have her to brighten my day. Being an aunt is amazing...and I love watching her grow. It's just hard to believe that she's getting so big.

It's hard to believe that just a year ago, she was so small and had so little hair! Look at her! This is from our wedding:

(photo courtesy Teri Enciso-Albarano)

Now here she is this week...so different, so grown up, playing in the hot tub.

Isn't she just the cutest thing you've ever seen?? Tho, I guess I'm a little biased.

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY T-BIRD!!!!!
Aunt Sarah Loves you sooooooooo much more than you'll ever know. Can't wait to have your party on Friday at Grammy's house!

Therapy...

Every Tuesday and Thursday...with a few exceptions, I walk with a group of friends from my church. It's a nice time with friends and it's great to be out of the house getting some exercise!

Well, this week my nice walk with friends got a totally new meaning for me. Tuesday was nice, but I was still very emotional because it was my first day back to work after Dad's funeral. Today was good though, because mom came with me. Even though mom and I are still hurting so bad, it was a wonderful way for the two of us to talk and enjoy ourselves a little bit.

Tho, it doesn't seem right that we have a good time. We don't know what we're supposed to do...are we allowed to smile, laugh, and enjoy ourselves?! I feel like I should be in this constant cloud of sadness. Most of the time, I am...but sometimes I feel a smile come to my face and it feels so good. We watched a movie tonight and I laughed really hard...now I feel so guilty for doing it.

I just miss my dad so much. We didn't talk everyday, but I won't ever get to talk to him again. Now I'll never feel his prickly mustache-y kisses and I'll never hear him call me Sassy again. I'll never get to give him the granddaughter he wanted so badly to spoil. I do know that my daughter will be given the name he wanted me to have, which is Hannah.

I can't help but sit here and cry tonight. I just want so badly to see my dad again.

Bobby keeps asking why I'm crying tonight...did he do something, he says. Of course not dear, I'm just crying for my dad. There's just so much pain inside my heart and this is the only way that it can spill out...through my eyeballs.

When I started this little blog I wasn't sure that I would keep up with it...now I feel like I have to so that my dad can hear me. I want him to continue to be proud of me and know what's going on in my life...even though I know he's watching over me every day seeing all I do, but now he can hear my thoughts, too.

Now I'll go to bed with a heavy heart and a cloudy mind. I won't be able to sleep very well, because my mind will be running with memories of my dad. I hope none of you ever have to feel this pain, it's just too much.

God bless you all.

Every song on the radio reminds me of dad today. My heart hurts so much.

We'll meet again...some sunny day.

H. Alan Houck
September 12, 1955 - June 30, 2009

Daddy,

It's so hard to believe you're gone. Just last week we were all hanging out in the pool and in the rain. There's so much I want to say to you and I feel that this is going to be the best way to do it.

I know that God took you from us because you wouldn't have wanted to live hooked up to those machines. I wish that the doctors would have tried harder, I wish that you would have at least been alive long enough for us to say goodbye to you.

If there's one thing that I've learned through all of this, it's that the people in our lives are all amazing. The support that all of our friends and family have given to us has been unbelievable. Who would have known that somewhere near 700 people would have come to say goodbye to you.

I'm sure that you know how Ben and I felt about you as kids. You were scary and mean. And we both always wished you would have left us. The relationship that you and mom had when we were growing up was terrible. There were times when it was good for all of us, but we had a lot of bad times.

When you left and Ben and I were adults, we were glad but at the same time, my heart was broken. How could you have left me without saying goodbye? I was so angry with you and it took a long time for that hurt to go away. But we fixed things you and me. I was daddy's girl again.

I'm so glad that you and Ben fixed things. He was so angry with you too, because you hurt mom. But finally, on father's day this year, you guys really fixed things. You have no idea, or maybe you do, how much it means to him to have heard you say you're proud of him. Those are the words that he's going to cling to when he misses you. And he will.

I know that you loved mom, even though you had a hard time showing it. She is lost without you already. But I promise, I'll take care of her. We'll get everything straightened out and make sure that she has the support she needs. David, Denny & Donna, Tim & Anita, Tom & Carol, and Craig and Jan will take care of her. But so will her brothers and sister, and your family will, too.

I hope that you're looking down and enjoying the party that we've been having for you. Don't be mad because we cry, we're hurting and that's the only way to let out our grief. I know you and Pappy Harry are watching over us and protecting us.

The happiest memory of you that I'll have is that you walked me down the aisle at my wedding. I know that you loved Bobby as much as I do and you were proud of the choice that I made. Bobby is going to miss you, too. He loves you too.


I don't know what else to say now. I still believe that someone had to pull out in front of you because you could have driven home with your eyes closed. You wouldn't have wrecked unless someone caused you to. Only you will know what happened but I wish you could tell me. Hopefully you'll visit me in my dreams so that I can see your smile again.

I really wanted to give you grandchildren to spoil. I promise that when we do have kids that they will know what an amazing grandfather they had. They would have loved to swim and play with you.

I love you, Daddy. My life won't be the same without you.
I'll always be your little girl. Love you always,
Sassy

It's only a broken heart...and a little bit of anger

*****Warning this post is quite long*****

I know I say this all the time, but it's true. I've been busy. Teaching and working at AmbCoach eat up most of my time these days. I really do love subbing. AmbCoach is really sucking lately. Some of my co-workers are being big babies and causing too much drama in my life. I hate being there.

About 2 weeks ago, one of my coworkers broke into my desk and told the owner that I was lying on my time sheet, which was a big pile of horse poop! I was soooooo angry when I found out. I decided to leave a note on the inside of my desk for whomever it was...because I knew they would do it again. Well, my note wasn't nice, and I was hoping that person would understand how I felt without having to confront them. I knew who did it and the thing that makes me mad is that I helped her move when she left her abusive husband and have offered her help whenever she needs it. So that's how she decided to repay me.

Anyway...someone (not the person who broke into my desk) was helping me by doing some of my work because I was subbing all week saw the note and told the B*#$@ that broke into my desk that it was there. Well, then she told my boss who I had a talk with this week. My boss said there is no prblem with me and she is not worried about me lying on my time sheet and that she knows the problem lies with the person who broke into my desk.

On another note...I'm not pregnant...again.
If you remember, back in March, I had bloodwork done to see if I was pregnant...which I wasn't then either. If you don't remember, read here first...and this was the follow-up to that post.

I had MORE bloodwork done on the 11th...remember I HATE NEEDLES...I told the girl at the lab to just stick me with the needle and take the blood and not to tell me when she was going to stab my arm, I wouldn't move. Well...she did it...and no blood came out. So then another girl had to come over and re do it. She said "a little pinch" then stabbed the hell out of my arm. She rolled the darn needle around and I still have a freakin bruise from it. Dumb girl!

The reason I had the bloodwork done is because I haven't had a period in 2 months and he had told me to monitor my cycles...well, clearly there hasn't been anything to monitor. So...I called Dr. Stever's office and talked to Chris, the receptionist, who faxed paper work over to the lab for me to have bloodwork done because they wanted to make sure I wasn't pregnant before they put me on any meds.

Well, after the bloodwork, I waited to hear from Dr. Stever again. He called me while I was teaching last Friday and said No, no baby, again. And yet again, my heart broke into a thousand tiny little pieces...even though I was pretty sure that I wasn't pregnant this time. So he wrote me a prescription for Provera to take for 10 days so that I can have a period...though it won't make me ovulate. Hopefully it'll get my body back into the swing of things and I won't have to go on fertility drugs. *Fingers Crossed*

While on the subject of fertility drugs...Bobby's cousin Kendi, who was having the same sorts of problems was on fertility drugs and now she's pregnant with TWINS...possibly TRIPLETS! Could you imagine? It would be totally awesome to just have all your kids at once and not have to go through another pregnancy...but at the same time, the house would be chaotic with 3 kids of the same age getting into everything all the time. I don't know how she's going to do it...but I know she's going to be an awesome mom.

----- END SARAH'S PITTY PARTY-----

Last night we had a bonfire in our back yard. It was a perfectly beautiful night filled with family and friends. We had about 20 people here and had a great time. I don't think we came in until about 2 am. I slept until 11:45 this morning...which I NEVER do.

This afternoon, Ben, Erika, and Cooper came to visit us at our new house for the first time! We haven't seen them since New Years' at their new house. Cooper has grown up so much, it's unbelievable! He'll be 2 this August and he's a walking, talking wonder! He even asked me to pick him up so he could look at our fish and I carried him around the house for a little while. He is so funny and totally awesome. We don't see them enough. Erika is due in a month and a half with their second little one. She's having a girl this time and I'm so excited for them!

Well, I think I don't think there's much else to share and it's about time to put another load of laundry in. Enjoy the rest of your long weekend everyone.

Don't forget to remember those who fight for our country and lose their lives to protect our freedom on Monday.

Nighty Night.

Happy Mother's Day!!

To all you mom's out there...Happy Mother's Day!
You all deserve a day to relax and be with your families.

I am so thankful to have so many "moms" in my life. I have 3 grandmas, plus my husband's 2 grandmas, my mother and my mother-in-law, and my sister-in-law who is an AMAZING mother. Not to mention my aunts and his aunts.

There are also the women who have been "moms" to me. I have called my best friend's mom "mom" since JR. High, and JohnAllen's mom is a mom to us as well. All of our friends' mothers are amazing women who do so much for all of them. I can't ever thank any of them enough for all they've done for us as we grew up and while we are starting our lives together. They've all supported everything we've done and back us up 100% (most of the time).

I hope that some day soon I can join the ranks of motherhood and share the good things they have shared with me with my children.

Also, a friend of mine shared this video with me today...it's Love Story by Taylor Swift and Viva La Vida by Coldplay on the Piano and Cello. It's beautiful. Hope you enjoy it!

This might be a long one!

I know I say this all the time, but I have been so busy lately.
It's been a long time since I've written on here because I've been subbing and working so much.

The 20th was my 25th birthday. It was a wonderful day. I baked 4 dozen cupcakes for the 5th graders I was teaching that week and they were delicious! They were cookies and cream cupcakes! They had oreos in the batter, and half had chocolate icing, and the other half had vanilla icing. I put a quarter of an oreo on top of them. The kids loved them and so did we! I will for sure make them again!
Bobby got me all 4 of the Twilight books...I haven't started reading them yet because I'm finishing "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. It's very good. But I really, really, really want to read my Twilight books!!
I got some other stuff from my mom, Noelle and Fran. My mom got me a swag to hang in the living room and some plates for a plate rack I got from my Home Interior Party. Noelle got me the movie Bed Time Stories. I watched it with the kids at school. It's so funny, I loved it! Fran got me a gift card for Old Navy so I can get some new clothes for school/work!

The whole week of my birthday I subbed at Penns Manor for a 5th grade teacher while she was out having surgery. What a blast those kids were! I love 5th grade because you can make fun of them and they make fun of you right back. They're so funny. I really didn't want to leave them at the end of last week!

Last Saturday we had a fire in the backyard with our friends. Diana was here visiting from Kentucky so we had to do something while she was here. We had way too much to drink that night and I had a hangover on Sunday morning! We were being so goofy that night, but we had a great time with our friends!
Last Sunday, the 26th, we had Janelle's birthday dinner. Her birthday is the 27th, but we had dinner a day earlier like we did for mine. We had a nice dinner outside and then we took Taryne down to the pond to feed the fish. We spent almost 2 hours by the pond and I got some really nice pictures. She was also blowing out the candles on Janelle's birthday cake 100 times because she loves to sing "happy birthday" and blow candles out. It's so cute! She was also trying to blow bubbles...we all ended up doing it for her and she would pop them.

We went to my boss's son's wedding last night. I was not looking forward to it at all! I thought it was going to be soooo boring and we would be home by 7. We ended up getting pretty buzzed because the bartender - Sparky - was mixing the drinks half and half. They were so strong that we were all just about drunk on 2 drinks before dinner! It was pretty funny. We had a ton of fun with my co-workers and their spouses/significant others. We all stayed until the end of the reception (9:30) and I think it would be fun to have them over to our house this summer for a big party. Of course, I forgot my camera last night...but my battery was completely dead and I neglected to charge it. Oh well...Fran had her camera.

Today, we had Bobby's grandma's birthday party at Fran's house. We didn't have the nicest weather, but it was nice to spend the day with family. No pictures from day...I used Fran's camera for her all day because she was so busy being hostest with the mostest!

And finally...Yesterday, Jenni FINALLY had her baby. Christopher Grant Bush was born at 10:29 on Saturday morning. He was 9lb 5 oz, 20 1/2 inches. He is a biiiiiiiggggg baby! But absolutely adorable. We haven't been to the hospital to see them yet, but should be going tomorrow night.Well...that's it! Hopefully I'll be updating sooner than later next time! The school year is almost over...1 month to go! Take care!