I just want to thank everyone for their kind words, prayers, and positive thoughts. Today was by far one of the worst days of my life. I didn't understand, when I awoke this morning, how really hard this day would be for John and I...and all of those who have supported us in our journey. We are so lucky to be surrounded by such incredible people. It is somehow so incredibly comforting knowing that our tears were not the only ones shed today. It is nice to be loved unconditionally, and that we are.

Thank you.


*********And on a lighter note....they got rid of my study hall! :-) Such things to make me happy, I know! :-) Instead, 8th period I will have writing lab duty...I sit in the writing lab, a little room, and wait for a student or students to come in from class or study hall for English help. SOOOOO much better than a large study hall! Thank you Mark and Di for getting me out of that hell hole we call study hall!

I feel like I need to eat a final meal and do something over the top. School starts tomorrow. Don't get me wrong...I love my job (most days), but this summer just went by way too quickly.

While I am looking forward to getting back into a routine, I am not looking forward to getting up EARLY again, waiting in line to use the bathroom, or having lunch at 10:30 A.M.

I definitely have an interesting class schedule this first semester. 1st period is my conference period. 2nd and 3rd periods I have English 10. 2nd period has 17 students enrolled, 3rd period...7. Yep, 7 students. It doesn't make sense. 4th period is my lunch...nothing like lunch at 10:30 in the morning until 11:15 A.M. Yum. Then I have Popular Literature 5th and 6th periods. 5th period I have 27 students enrolled. 6th period...14. Again, wierd. 7th period is English 11 with 24 total enrolled student, eight of whom are students I hand picked from my two sophomore classes last year. And I get to end my day with 65 students in a study hall in the cafeteria 8th period. I think I must have pissed the assistant principal off to get that duty the last period of the day. Kids don't want to sit in a stuffy cafeteria counting the minutes to the end of the school day, so they don't come to class, which is a paper-keeping nightmare for me. Should be...fun?

I won't actually meet my students until Thursday. I'll be sure to update how my first two days go before our Labor Day weekend! :-)

Do I have to? Really? Please tell me I don't!!!!

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Where did summer go????

T-minus 7 days until I am back at GLHS for my 11th year of teaching.

Wish me luck!

I know, I know, two posts in one day....but what else is a person to do when she is patiently waiting for the phone to ring????

A fellow t-ttc and blogging friend and I often talk about bringing on AF (Aunt Flo=period!). It seems that in the IF world, when one wants her she is no where to be found, and when one doesn't want to see her ugly face, she shows up out of nowhere.

Well...I do an AF jig. I'm happy to dance for other people to get their cycles to start. Me, I'd rather AF stayed far, far, FAR away. Anyhow...Amy made this avatar today, saying this is how she'd picture me doing the jig for her. I think it is HILARIOUS!!!!

I'd say it is pretty accurate!

We went to look at Lori's house on Sunday. It is a very nice house. Rather small, but we knew that going in. We were thinking it would be okay until we got to the basement, and smelled the bleach, and saw the MOLD.

Yep, she is dealing with mold in the basement. Talk about a deal breaker. I was a little bummed. But after I got to thinking about it later yesterday...I wasn't sure I could see us in the house after all, mold or no mold. It is a cute house, but it is tiny, and we want something that is comparable to the square footage of the condo, not something that is smaller.

We came home and told our realtor about Lori's prediciment. He says he thinks he can help her buy our place and get rid of her house. I called her to let her know, and of course she is already working with a realtor. She told me she was going to call her people today.

I've heard THAT one before.

So we are back to the drawing table.

How long have we tried to sell our condo? Let's see....it has been on the market since February this time, it was on for six months in 2006, then it was on for two months in 2004. It is craziness!

And what is even CRAZIER is that I think I FOUND A BUYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Back in May I ran into an old friend at JoAnn's. Lori and I knew each other when I was at Kent...her cousin (Carrie) and I were good friends, so naturally I became friends with Lori. Time had passed and since I don't speak to Carrie anymore, I lost touch with Lori. Well, we bumped into each other at JoAnn's. Making small talk I found out that she lived down the road from me and I told her how we were house hunting and whatnot. We exchanged phone numbers and parted ways.

Fast forward to today....

I get a text message asking if the condo is still on the market. I reply enthusiastically YES! Long story short...she has a house that she can no longer afford. She is looking to sell her house, and either rent or buy a condo. I come to find out that her house is literally five minutes from our condo and in an area we had already looked into buying. Her house has three bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, a fenced in yard, a deck, a fireplace, and a full basement, among other things. Cha ching!

Soooo.....

She came over to see the condo this afternoon. She fell in love with it (who wouldn't, right???). Says it would be absolutely perfect for her and her two daughters (same school district, near the old schools, nice and roomy, etc.). John and I drive past her house and like what we see.

So during our open house on Sunday, we are going to go to Lori's to look at her place. If it is something we like, we might pursue this. It would be a great starter home. Definitely not the exact home of our dreams, but it has what we are looking for and it is a great home for us to start our family in. And the price could not be any better for us.

I'll keep you updated...and I'll keep dreaming!!!!!!

Well, I can't believe it is Friday already! Yet another week of my summer has passed! Oye vey! :-)

I spent a BUNCH of time in my classroom this week. I am happy to say that my classroom is 98% done and I'm ready to start planning. I even have papers copied for the first two days in all three of my classes, so I'm set there too. I really am looking forward to getting back into a routine and back to work. Summer is great, but I miss seeing my friends and students. I was thinking yesterday while I was there that I need to bring my camera in next time and take some pictures and post them here. What do you think???? Would anyone care to see my classroom???? Really, no feelings would be hurt if the answer was no! ;-)

Tomorrow I get to clean the condo as we have an open house on Sunday from 12 - 2. I must admit, I'm not hopeful. It will probably be the last open house we have for a while, as we will be taking the condo off the market at the end of August/beginning of September. I can't justify keeping it on the market as we have had no showings EVER besides people coming in for an open house. It has also been on the market since February. Six months is long enough with no movement. Also, our realtor has done NOTHING for about the past three months, so that is discouraging too. We'll take it off for a few months, then re-list in February or March. Ugh...I hate this! Oh, and the house we loved and would have purchased in a heartbeat is gone...purchased, off the market, etc. Boo!

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. The weather is to be beautiful here (in the 70s), so I'll be sure to be outside some this weekend too, when I'm not cleaning the condo or watching the Olympics! Have a good one!

I've been tagged by the beautiful Allison, and her blog is Bouncing Buckeye Baby.

Here are the tag rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you (i.e. me)
2. Post the rules on your blog
3. Write 6 random things about yourself
4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them
5. Let each person you have tagged know by leaving a comment on their blog
6. Let the tagger (me) know when your entry is posted.

So, my challenge is to share six random things about myself. I am kind of an open book, so we'll see...

1) I absolutely LOVE to do counted cross-stitch. I started it when I was a young girl, and find it rather relaxing and cathartic. I haven't cross-stitched in a long time. I guess the reason is that I started a baby announcement pattern about three years ago...thinking I'd finish it once I got pregnant. Unfortunately it is collecting dust at the top of the guest closet, waiting for me to get pregnant so I can finish it. Maybe, when I DO get pregnant, I will treat myself to a new pattern and do that for nine months while I await the arrival of our little one!!!

2) I do all of my reading of novels during the summer and winter break. I know, I know, as a teacher I should read during the school year, but I just don't have time. With having three preps in one year, the amount of paperwork is just too great. I have colleagues who read vociferously, but I just don't. During the summer I can kick out about ten novels or more, but that numbers goes to zero until December. I wish I had the endurance to read each night before I go to bed, but I have a horrible habit...

3) My horrible habit when I read is that I need to finish the chapter. I ABSOLUTELY cannot leave a book with a chapter unread. I don't know when this started, but it is a must with me. I don't care if the house were burning down while I was reading...I'd have to finish the chapter! This is part of the reason why, when my students do independent reading in class, I won't read a novel. I would hate it if the bell rang and I was in the middle of a chapter. Goofy, I know! :-)

4) I am a night owl. It doesn't matter if I have to be up early, my mind and body are not ready for bed until around 11 or 12 PM. I have always been a night owl...ask my parents or my college roommates! John, thankfully, sleeps like a baby, so he doesn't mind if the light is on or if the TV is going until I fall asleep. (((thanks honey!!!)))

5) I am a reality show junkie. I could watch reality shows morning, noon, or night. I LOVE them. Thankfully I have no desire to ever be on a reality show, but I love all of the interactions (whether real or not, staged or not) and I love the drama.

6) I wonder some days if I should have stayed with my first major...nursing. I love being a teacher, don't get me wrong, but when I'm in a setting with nurses around...be it a doctor's office or the hospital, I get this little twinge that I should have stuck with my first major. I know I'd be a great nurse, as many people have told me that I have "the people skill", I just don't know if I could do the blood and guts. I wouldn't have to take any work home. Sometimes when teaching isn't going well, I look online to find information about night schools for nursing...and there are a few around me!

So now it's time for me to tag some people:
1) I tag Christi, a wonderful, beautiful friend who knows what I'm going through...and still sticks by my side!...of Our Journey
2) I tag Carolyn, my incredibly supportive cousin...of Brooke Lauren
3) I tag Amy, a strong friend, even when life throws a million lemons her way...of Make It Grand
4) I tag Jill, a new friend who is just starting her own blog...Maybe Baby Momma
5) I tag Teri, one of the first people I ever met on the Nest...she is an incredible person who is full of hope and desire, just like me...of The Infertility Chronicles
6) I tag Ariel, someone who has become one of my biggest cheerleaders. She is full of spunk and energy...of Wishing for My Miracle

It is not often that John and I have such a fun-filled weekend with something planned for each day, and it was nice for a change! :-)

Friday night we went out on a "date night". We went first to dinner at Texas Roadhouse and then we went to see "Step Brothers". I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. The movie is VERY raunchy, but I was in a mood for something funny, and that it was.

Saturday night we got together with Danielle and her boyfriend Brad. We first went and played putt putt and then headed to Cheeseburger in Paradise. It was a fun night.

Sunday afternoon John and I headed to Zoombezi Bay, a new waterpark next to the Columbus zoo. It was a gorgeous day and we thought it would probably be the last chance we'd have to do something like this, so we went. It was super crowded, but the lines moved pretty quickly. We were there from about 1:30 until 7:45. We had a ton of fun. I told John that the tides are changing...he came home sunburned, and I came home tanned (I guess that is what happens when someone, ah hem, wears SPF 50 and someone else, ah hem, doesn't!).

Needless to say, we both slept really well last night. It was such a fun weekend...made us forget about all the things going on in our lives for a few hours each day...and that is always a welcomed thing!!!

A literary MEME, because the National Endowment for the Arts apparently believes that the average American has only read 6 books from the list below.

Here's how it works:
1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Underline (or mark in a different color) the books you LOVE - mine are in purple
3) Mark in another color books you want to read - mine are in red
4) Reprint this list in your blog so we can try and track down these people who’ve read 6 and force books upon them ;-)

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare -- ALL of them??? SOME of them
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo