Dreams & Disappointments

Last night I had dreams that both my dogs died. It was horrible, and it seemed so real that I still have a sad feeling in the pit of my stomach. I guess it's because so many things are changing for me right now...I'm generally feeling somewhat sad and rough around the edges. I was so relieved when I could give both my fur babies big hugs this morning.

So far this summer all my attempts at enjoyment have been somewhat disappointing. The family and I tried to go to the Howell hot air balloon festival this past Saturday night, but by the time we got there and spent way too much money on parking and unmentionable fair food, we heard that both the balloon launch and the dusk balloon glow/fireworks show were canceled due to high winds and threatening thunderstorms. We tried to make the best of the situation, but overall it was a big let down. Then last night I had a big party scheduled for the fireworks in my neighborhood and it poured down rain on my parade. Again no fireworks! We did make the best of that one and people came over to play games instead, but still...I feel a general sense of blah at all this.

I don't know if it's just because I'm getting older, and therefore busier, or what exactly...but it just seems like a big rip off when you put so much time and energy into an activity and you don't get the same amount of enjoyment back out. Gah!!

Because I am a NERD!

Click here to get your own nerdy certificate of you helped!

The Tale of the Table

Okay so I've been trying to decide whether or not to blog about this, but I think it's too good not to! My relatives from Tennessee were in town this weekend for a visit. We hadn't seen them since 2004 so it was really great to get together. On Saturday we had a girls day out in honor of mother's day. My two sisters and I took my mom, my aunt, and my cousin to Zingerman's in downtown Ann Arbor for some of the world's best sandwiches. The place was extremely busy, as usual, but we waited in line and all seemed to be going well.

Since it was so busy we decided someone should go scout out a table. That someone was me. I found a nice picnic table in the covered tent outside, but after standing there for a minute I realized the tent was really muggy. At about that time my mom came out and together we decided to move to the picnic table on the far end, where there was a gap in the tent and a better breeze. As we got situated at the new table the rest of the family started to come out. My family consists of some big people, myself included, but still, I was absolutely shocked at the next thing that happened. My sister and mom were on one side of the table, while my cousin and I were on the other side. My sister started to slide down to make room for my aunt to sit down and out of nowhere the whole freaking table collapsed! This huge, wooden table with metal legs went down to the ground in a matter of seconds, taking us with it. Luckily no one was hurt, though for a minute I was worried about my mom's legs since she was on the end where the table ended up. The next several minutes seemed to go by in slow motion, almost like a dream...a really bad dream. We all managed the challenging task of getting out from under the table, amidst the stares of fellow diners and shock/alarm of the employees in the tent. I just wanted to get the hell out of that tent, and actually the entire restaurant...I was so mortified!! Once we were clear of the tent and certain no one was hurt, we managed to find two smaller tables outside. The entire time people were running up to us asking us if we were okay. I seriously just wanted to be left alone, but that was not to be the case.

My older sister and I went in to get drinks for everyone, and as we were standing in the line, yet another employee came up to us and (laughing) said she had heard what happened. She asked if we wanted anything and I told her no (at this point I REALLY just wanted people to leave us alone!) My sister had other ideas, and she told the girl she wanted 3 blondie brownies Zingerman's makes. The girl said that was fine and scurried off to get them. We had just finished filling our cups when none other than the store owner showed up. He was very concerned about us and wanted to make sure we were all okay. Despite the hilarity of the situation, he had the good grace not to laugh. After holding the door for me he came over to our table and asked my sister for her receipt. None of us knew what was going on until he came back about five minutes later with the $55 we had paid for our sandwiches. He said there was no way we were leaving there and paying for our lunch after what happened. I'm sure he was concerned about liability too, but thankfully nothing was hurt other than our pride. I wonder if I will ever be able to go back to Zingerman's without feeling at least a little bit embarrassed? I know I won't be sitting on one of their picnic tables again any time soon!

Bloglist

Blogger has recently released a new page element called "Blog List" and so far it's a feature I love! This handy little element keeps a real time account of blogs as they are updated and even shows a snippet of the most recent posts if you set up that feature. It's a pretty cool way to stay current on the blogs I read regularly.

In other news, it's a lovely day here today, sunny and about 80ish. I just finished mowing the grass and now the yard looks like green velvet carpet. I'm still losing horribly in my battle against the weeds, but I try to ignore them as much as possible. As I type I can hear the birds chirping happily as they spill the food we recently gave them all over the porch. I have math homework to do and a big test for which I need to study, but other than that, the rest of my day is yet unclaimed...

I'm currently reading Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert for a new book club one of my friends has organized. At first the book wasn't doing a whole lot for me, but now it's gotten much better. I'm almost finished with it, a full week in advance of our first book club meeting. What a nerd!

I'll Play Along

This is silly...but why not?!

Garden Growth Spurt

We've had lots of strong thunder storms here over the past several weeks and the garden is just bursting to life! I finally had some time to get myself outside to shoot a few pictures today. I can't seem to get that one perfect shot of the whole garden because the angles are always a little odd, but hopefully the individual shots will give at least an idea. The weeds are currently winning the war I've waged upon them. This time of year it's almost impossible to keep up with them, especially because I'm really trying to avoid chemical warfare.

Out With the Old

At long last this ancient washing machine that's been in our basement for probably 32ish years will be going to the place washing machines go after they die. It's had a good run - I think it probably is original to the house, which was built in 1975. We've lived here since 2001, and up until this past September we couldn't complain.



But nine months is a LONG time to live without a washing machine! We've been carting clothes to the laundry mat or a family members house all this time and I am just ready to be done with that whole fiasco. After Michael and I did some shopping around this past week, I went to Home Depot this morning and made the coveted purchase of a new washing machine. The one I got is nothing super fancy, but it will do the trick, which is all that matters! I must say, I now have a whole new respect for people who live their lives between visits to the laundry mat!

Just a little fun

I found this on Tracey's blog and I thought it was cute...I'm killing time until Michael gets home so what the heck!!

i am: loving the sound of the rain
i think: chocolate chip cookies are yummy
i know: the rest of this summer is going to fly by
i want: to grow a family
i have: two of the sweetest dogs on the planet
i wish: toilets cleaned themselves.
i hate: bills
i miss: Mum
i fear: losing the ones I love
i feel: like I'm about to die of heat exhaustion
i hear: there's that rain again
i smell: cookies in the oven
i crave: see above answer
i search: for the answers to all the big questions...what's it all about?
i wonder: what we will name our baby
i regret: nothing...the mistakes have shaped who I am and led me to here
i love: my dear, sweet husband
i care: about our environment
i always: brush my teeth in the morning
i am not: mean
i believe: there must be some reason
i dance: like a dork
i sing: whenever I have the opportunity
i cry: rarely in front of others
i don’t always: tell people how I really feel
i write: passionately
i lose: my temper...but only on occasion
i never: intentionally hurt animals
i listen: to awesome music
i can usually be found: near my computer
i am scared: of a failed adoption
i need: to feel valued and appreciated
i am happy about: beginning the next chapter of our lives

Stress Relief X 2

I guess anyone who is walking through the mall with three children (two of whom are in a double stroller) automatically looks pretty stressed. Still...I had to giggle yesterday when I was at the mall with Owen, Ava, and Becca, and two different sales people from the same booth went out of their way to provide me with a free sample of "stress relief vanilla lotion" as I walked by. These are the kiosks all down the center of the mall, where people generally try to throw sales pitches at you as you walk by. These two gentlemen didn't even TRY to sell to me...they simply wanted to give me a little relief from the (apparently obvious) stress I was under. I didn't complain!

The last couple days around here have been rainy and muggy...the kind of weather that makes mosquitoes very happy. It's supposed to be in the 90's for the next several days and we're going to try to make it through without the A.C. We'll see how it goes, I have my doubts.

Registration Frustration

I've been trying to get myself registered for fall classes since Friday night. The task is finally complete, but not without a significant amount of frustration on my part. I even had a full blown temper tantrum at one point, and I shoved a huge stack of books onto the floor. Luckily no one other than our dogs was here to witness my childish outburst.

It's been one thing after another. First I couldn't get connected and then when I finally did I discovered that ALL of the sections for the two early childhood education classes I need are CLOSED. And this is a full three months before classes start...it's not like I'm procrastinating! So...fine...I decided to change my schedule to M/W instead of the T/Th set up I've had for the past several years. I was annoyed but I got over it. Still there was no way to make it work. I finally called the department of teacher ed and they said they were opening up some additional classes so I should be OK. Fine, so immediately when I got home after that phone call I jumped online to register. NOPE! The only classes they added were a direct conflict to the one remaining time frame of the co-requisite class I need. So...still no luck. I did everything, I even emailed the instructor and very nicely asked her for an override, which was promptly denied.

So...to make a long story short...I switched back to my T/Th preferred days and re-arranged my entire schedule. I decided to change my fall 2008 classes for my winter 2009 classes. This is not at all what I was expecting, but at least it does work. I shouldn't have nearly as many issues registering for winter classes when that time comes because I'm already in the college of ed and I'm an independent senior so I can register first. This is all just so annoying! How can they possibly think it's OK to only offer two sections of a given class when there are hundreds of people who need to take it each semester?

This coming semester is going to be HECTIC! I've got 16 credit hours, which includes a field experience class that will require me to visit schools on a regular basis. That plus caring for Ava the other three days of the week...my head hurts just thinking about it! But...I have to do what I have to do, and at some point I WILL finish all of these requirements and be able to move on with my life. Someday!

Here's my schedule for fall:

• Field Experience II for Elementary - Online with field experience
• Early Literacy Reading - T/R 11:00 am to 12:15 pm
• Curriculum & Methods for Elementary - T/R 2:00 to 3:15
• American Government - T/R 3:30 pm to 4:45
• Schools for a Diverse/Democratic Society - T 5:30 to 8:0 p.m.
• Educating Students w/ Exceptionalities - R 5:30 to 9:00 p.m.