Wow. One month. I had no clue that it had been one month since my last entry. I mean, I knew time had passed, but one month? Wow. Needless to say, it has been a busy month. A short recap:

We are loving the house. Absolutely loving it. It is slowly getting decorated for Christmas and feeling more and more like our place each day. It's so nice to have a place I can't wait to get home to at night. The condo was nice, but this is really OUR home.

Work is work. I'm super busy with grading. Once I get out of a hole I put myself right back in. I'm hoping to go to break in two days with no grading. We'll see if I'm successful.

I became an aunt on December 2. It's rather bittersweet as John's sister isn't speaking to us nor are we speaking to her. So I have a niece I could possibly never meet, if things continue they way they're going. Rebecca is super cute. Thankfully John's step-mom keeps me in the loop, as the rest of his family fails to tell John or I anything that is happening. Meet Rebecca:

Speech and debate season is in full swing. Students are SUPPOSED to be practicing daily after school, but few have and their scores at tournaments are showing that. But I can't force them to practice. We've been doing o.k. at tournaments, but we could be SO MUCH BETTER.

Ah Break! How I am counting the days!!!!!!!

So until next time, a few pictures of the house decorated. It's a start. Next year we want to do so much more, but on our budget right now, I'd say this is a pretty good start! :-)

Yes, we have finally moved in. Completely moved in. Well, I guess we were moved in a week ago Monday, but today we finally got our phones on and our internet set up, so today feels more official.

I love the house. Absolutely love it. It is open, spacious, pretty, quiet, warm, new, and OURS.

I will post pictures of the inside once we find which box the camera is in! :-)

Oh, and to add to the house buying excitement, John got a new job! He applied for a position at a different bank here in Columbus. The position is in risk mitigation, the job he lost at H when they down-sized. He applied on Monday, got the call Tuesday for an interview, went in for the interview on Thursday (same day that our loan was approved), was told they'd call him in a week or two, and three hours later got the call offering him the job. Of course he accepted and starts there on November 9!

So, needless to say, it was quite a day for us! We will NEVER forget Thursday, October 22, 2009!!!!

Yes, it is approaching the seventh week of school, and I definitely have a countdown going. This year is just so different. I wish I could pin-point the exact reason why, but I can't. I'm more overwhelmed than I've been in MANY years. The Ohio Dept. of Educ., in conjunction with my school district, is putting more and more pressure on teachers to make sure students pass the OGT (Ohio Grad Test) although the test will be non-existent in about four years. And then many (including my own administration) seem to forget that while they are dumping crap upon crap upon crap on us, we're supposed to be Rigorous, Relevant, and building Relationships. Ugh.

But enough about the yuckiness in my life...Things otherwise are going well.

The Adoption Academy is about to enter it's third week. There was no "class" last Monday because of the Jewish holiday. John did a great job taking notes the week before when I was unable to be with him. The class was all about the financial aspects of adoption as well as the emotional issues which could come up with a child who is adopted. This week's class I'm excited about...the ins and outs of home studies. This is something I've heard about, but it will be nice to hear some concrete facts about home studies. Then the week after next is the last week of the "core" classes, and that is a question and answer session with birth moms and adoptive parents. That I'm REALLY looking forward to.

Other than the Adoption Academy and work, life is chugging along. I'll update again soon, when there is something to update about!!! :-)

Between work and home, I feel like there are not enough hours in the day to get all that I need and want to get done. And that includes updating this blog!

School is fine. I can't complain too terribly much. My class sizes are hovering around 25 to 28 students. Large, but not unmanageable by any means. The personalities of my students are finally really starting to show. My sophomores are really sweet. Not the brightest kids I've had, but I can work with that since they are so nice and willing to try on things. My juniors are a bit cocky right now. Don't know why, but they are getting on my nerves and are rather annoying. Must be the age. My seniors are nice but a little rough around the edges. Seeing as they they haven't caused me any trouble (yet!) I'll take them any day over some of the classes I've had in the past (as well as some of the juniors I currently have).

John and I had a nice anniversary. It was an eventful evening, as we ended up going out with friends for drinks. Seeing as how it was our first full week of work, quite a few of my friends REALLY enjoyed their cocktails, which lead to MANY laughs. We ended up eating at the restaurant we had drinks at as my good friend Tammy was our server. She pampered us and we had a great meal.

And now for what many of you are checking for this blog for...Monday's Adoption Academy. John and I arrived for our two-hour class and found about ten other couples in attendance, in addition to a friend of mine and her husband. By the end of the two hours I could barely see straight, but this wasn't necessarily a bad thing! The speaker for the night was a lawyer who teaches law at Capital University here in Columbus. Her goal was to give us an unbiased look into the types of adoptions, and that she certainly did. She gave us the pros and cons of public adoption (ex: foster-to-adopt; adopting a child from children's social services) to public adoption (both using an attorney or agency) to international adoptions. After we walked out John and I both commented that we learned a lot. We were told statistics, average costs, average time it takes to adopt, websites full of information for any sort of adoption we're thinking of doing, and SO much more. I could probably blog for about an hour, but like my title says...I need more than 24 hours in one day. Unfortunately next week I can't go as I have "meet the teacher" night at school, so John will be flying solo on this one. Next weeks' topic is the financial aspect of it all as well as the emotional aspect (for both adoptive parents and adoptees). I've already asked my friend to share her notes with me in case John zones out! ;-)

Thanks again for all your support. We have a L O N G road ahead of us, but people like Wendy, whose daughter was born today via a birth mother, give me hope that our adoption process will be successful and something we are excited to start.

Congratulations Steve and Wendy!!!

I can't believe I am leaving in the next few minutes for our first Adoption Academy class. It seems like forever ago that we signed up for the 8-week course, but the time is finally here.

I'm picking John up from work so that we can try to grab a quick bite to eat and make our way down to Children's Hospital for the two hour class.

I'll be sure to update how it goes later!!!!

:-)

But I think this is very true ~

I have been REALLY REALLY REALLY struggling lately with the situation going on between John and his sister. It has been almost a year (this coming Saturday 9/12) that they last spoke. My heart aches for so many different reasons, and after I got the phrase above in an e-mail it all seemed to make sense to me. I need to stop worrying. I need to stop trying to mend the pieces back together, as the pieces don't belong together...at least not now and not by my hands. I need to lean on my family and friends for support and listen to their wisdom and guiding words, and not care about what his family might say about me.

Right now she is not a part of my future and I need to realize that this is okay. I am not a bad person for keeping her in my past. Heck, if anything, it makes me a stronger person.

Right?

and I always will.
xoxoxoxo

Only four days have passed (with only 176 remaining...but who's counting, right?) and I feel like I'm running in a million and one directions already.

Until I can formally update, this will have to suffice...

• My classes are B. I. G. (last year I had a total of 95 students per semester...this year I have 135 students)!
• I'm getting used to collaborative teaching with two of my English 10 classes and one English 11 class. It is an adjustment having another educator in the room the entire class period. What used to be mine to do 100% is now expected to be divided in half. This isn't a bad thing, but I do miss teaching "alone". I'll explain more later.
• My grading load is up now 40 papers compared to last year. I feel swamped, and like I said, it is only the four day of school.
• As of Wednesday, September 2, 2009, all five of my classes will have turned in a writing sample to me. That is 135 papers to grade...Oy Vey!!!! After 11 years of teaching you'd think SOMEONE would remind me to not schedule papers from five classes to be due on or around the same days.

Now the good things, as I am trying to remain positive this year, even when things get me stressed out:

• I like my English 10 students (so far). They are classes of students with great sense of humor and decent work ethic. Ask me how they are in another month! ;-)
• My 8th period English 11 is wonderful. I have seven former students in the class of 28, and what a difference that makes. Aside from my seven former students, I have four students who took an Honor's English class last year and for whatever reason opted out of the honor's program this year. It is so nice to have such talented writers and readers sprinkled into a class like English 11.
• The Adoption Academy starts in just one week (September 14). A friend from my local internet chat board and her husband will also be taking part in the Academy, so it'll be so nice to have a friendly face in the classes with us!
• John and I will be celebrating our 5th Anniversary on Friday! :-)

Okay...now I must take Cider out and head to bed. That alarm at 5:30 is just brutal after a summer of waking up around 9:00 each morning!

John and I drove in with mom and dad on Thursday. We went to Arlington Cemetery, the Holocaust Museum, and Mount Vernon with them. When Colleen and Tom joined us we went to the Smithsonian Museums: American History, National History, Air and Space, and American Indian. We also went to the National Archives building, The Bureau of Printing and Engraving, the Spy Museum, a National's baseball game, and had a personal tour of the Capitol. We also toured D.C. on a Duck Tour and Segway. It was QUITE the trip. John and I had such a wonderful time.

George Washington's home at Mt. Vernon

Outside the White House.

Mom and Dad with their quacker's.

Inside the Capital's Rotunda...a beautiful building! Tom learning his Segway, with the help of our guide, Megan. Colleen getting a few pointers. John getting a hang of things.

Looking up at the east side of the Capitol. What a fun way to tour D.C.!

But not tonight.

I'm tired.

Tomorrow...maybe! :-)

I promise all of my blogging posts won't be about our newest endeavour, but since people have been asking me all sorts of questions, I thought I'd address them here. :-) Just trying to be resourceful and killing a few birds with one stone!

I guess with my last blog post it seemed as if we had called adoption agencies and are ready to dive in feet first. Unfortunately, that is not quite the case! We are still very much in the "figuring-it-all-out" stage. There is just so much to take in and process.

Sitting downstairs on my coffee table are five books about adoption...ranging from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Adoption to Adopting in America: How to Adopt Within One Year to Adoption: The Essential Guide to Adopting Quickly and Safely. Now, I haven't opened the books just yet (I only got them today) but I'm sure there's enough info in them to overwhelm anyone.

I happened to post a question on the Columbus online forum I'm a member of about adoption...I wanted to know if anyone has done adoption or knows of people who have adopted. I got some great responses, and quite a few girls suggested I look toward attending "The Adoption Academy". Basically the academy "helps take the mystery out of the adoption process." John and I will be taking two of their three tracks: The Core Track and The Domestic Track. The Core Track is the overview of adoption, affording adoption, info about the homestudy, and ends with a panel made up of parents and adoptees. The Domestic Track is the step-by-step process of finding the adoptive child, preparing for the child's arrival, open adoptions & cultural considerations, and adoption of children with special needs & another panel made up of parents and adoptees. The classes start in mid-September and go weekly into November (one night a week for two hours).

After we attend the Adoption Academy, John and I will take our official first step and call an agency. Until then, I plan on learning as much as I can about this process before it gets started!

Sorry I haven't blogged lately. Guess I'm enjoying summer a bit too much. I'm currently in Cleveland (again) and can't believe that summer is 1/2 over already!

I've been enjoying my days off with friends, laughter, and adult beverages. :-) It has been relaxing. Life is just life...I keep chugging along and continue to hold my head up and keep a smile on my face.

John and I have made a final decision. I'm happy we are at this point that we can safely say that we are NOT going to do donor eggs or embryo adoption. We are ready to start the adoption application process. It is a daunting task, and I'm feeling VERY overwhelmed, but I know that friends who have done it before me will lend their expertise and knowledge and that will make the process easier for us. First John and I will need to find an agency. Once that starts, we'll apply and get our homestudy done. I don't know when this will all take place, but we're anxious and excited and extremely nervous.

Other than that...just two weeks until we leave for VEGAS!!!!!!! My incredible parents got me two tickets to see "Blue Man Group" for my birthday...and John and I are in the front row!!!! :-) Other than that we have a trip to Hoover Dam planned and a lot of sitting by the pool at the Flamingo on our agenda. Sure we'll gamble and go to all the casino's and take in the sights, but just time for the two of us is what we are so excited about.

Until next time.........

3. Speaking of RAAM, I'm leaving tomorrow morning with my sister to drive into Annapolis. :-) Just the two of us. I CANNOT WAIT!!!!! My mom will be flying in later on, and the three of us will be at the finish line when Team Type One finishes Friday EARLY (midnight or 1:00 AM). Then on Sunday mom and I will fly home while Tom and Colleen drive back to Ohio. It'll be a fun time...I will never forget seeing Tom finish is 1st and 2nd Ironman, and I look forward to seeing Tom finish this race!

4. I had my "WTF" appointment with Dr. M on Monday. I was rather nervous and was hoping that the appointment would offer some closure on this whole trying to conceive business. Nope. Instead of shutting doors, Dr. M opened quite a few more doors. For one, he now believes (as I've believed for some time) that I just have bad eggs. Really bad eggs. They fertilize, grow, and then die out just when they are supposed to be implanting. I wasn't a mess when he told me this, as I was rather expecting it. Who would have known that four years ago I would be diagnosed as having CRAPPY eggs? He also now believes that my uterus is not a problem. It wouldn't matter where my eggs/embryo's were put...they would not grow. Yes, I still suffer from gene deficiencies, but it doesn't mean I can't carry a healthy pregnancy. I feel some relief knowing this now. Some, not a lot. So, where do we go from here? Dr. M suggested two things: finding an egg donor or possibly adopting embryos. As for the egg donor, he believes that if we turned to a donor then I could carry a child that is 50% genetically related to us. He told me of a patient who over three IVF's had over 90 eggs retrieved and fertilized. After numerous attempts (and MANY frozen transfers) the woman was never pregnant. She has since done three different donor egg cycles and has three beautiful children. So Dr. M believes this could be the case with me too. Another option for us is to adopt embryos. Many times couples have frozen embryo's they are not going to use (they have their completed families) and rather than having the remaining embryo's destroyed, they adopt them out. With this, I'd go through a FET protocol (estrogen and PIO) and then we'd put embryo's inside me. So, the embryo(s) would not be genetically related, and rather than adopting them at birth, they'd be "with me" since implantation. The benefit to this is that it isn't as expensive as donor eggs or "regular" adoption.

So, like I said...many new doors open. A bit confusing, but leaves me a little hopeful in some ways too. Needless to say, John and I have a LOT to talk about!!!!

5. I'm here in Cleveland. Last night I went to see New Kids On The Block for the third time in seven months. I might be becoming a groupie, but I doubt it. John's cousin Molly asked me to go with her. We had a GREAT time. It was so nice to spend time with her. And the show was different from the other two I saw, so that was nice. And who doesn't love looking at Donnie, Danny, Jon (hubba hubba), Jordan, and Joe?

So there you have it! A nice, long update. Thanks for reading this far, if you made it!!!!!

I can't believe summer is FINALLY here.

Thankfully the end of the school year went smoothly. I had a few failures here and there, a couple of which really bothered me, but that is just part of the job unfortunately! My classroom is packed up, all papers are graded, and I'm DONE!

Vacation, however, won't really start for me until June 20 because tomorrow (June 13) I head to Birmingham, AL with six boys from the speech and debate team. It is finally time for the National Speech and Debate Tournament. I'm rather excited. We've never taken this many students before, and I know that it is going to be a fun trip, despite the fact that I'm the only female going! Thankfully there will be female coaches from Ohio who I know rather well, and I'll hang out with them once we get to Birmingham.

I'm rather geeked out about going to Birmingham, and it is not because of the tournament. I do a Human Rights Unit in English 10, and one of the pieces I do in the unit is to show a documentary from Spike Lee called "Four Little Girls" about the four girls who were killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing on September 15, 1963. Our hotel is just blocks from this landmark church. I am also making it a point to go to the Civil Rights Museum, and hope I'll have great materials and pictures to take back to my students.

So there you have it. I'm headed out to dinner tonight with John and my parents, then getting to the airport at 6 AM tomorrow for our flight. I'll be sure to update about my trip and how my students did at the tournament when I return!

It has been busy...between dealing with a plethora of family issues and our own issues, to dealing with the end of the school year (graduation, exams, graduation parties), I am pooped! But I'm so happy that by this time on Thursday I will be a free woman for just over two months.

I will update as the week draws to an end. I just wanted to share, quickly, how excited I am that the end is in sight!

:-)

I'm so excited I can't stand it!!!!!!!!!

Just when it seemed like we were ready to get off the roller coaster I know as Infertility (IF) and move onto a steadier, more stable ride, we got thrown back into another loop.

I'm sorry I haven't been blogging. Honestly, I just haven't felt up to it since last week. For those of you who follow my blog but don't know, John and I suffered another loss in the IF boxing ring. IF beat us with a one-two sucker punch...our round using a gestational surrogate (my incredible cousin) with two beautiful embryo's failed.

So I've been staying away from the Internet and away from the blogging world. I haven't commented on blogs much lately either. But as time always moves forward, I will soon take some baby steps and I do promise to get this blog back up and running. And I promise I will resume my weekly fly-by's of the blogs I so enjoy reading.

Is it possible to have graduated 15 years ago from high school, and 11 years ago from college and STILL suffer from senioritis? I think it just might be.

I can't believe it, but I have just three weeks left with my seniors (only 14 school days) and four and a half weeks left with my sophomores and juniors (only 21 days). I'm not quite sure where this school year went, but I'm kind of glad it is almost over because I have some SERIOUS senioritis going on. I have no motivation to grade a single thing. My poor sophomores have been bugging the dickens out of me to get their research projects back (they had the opportunity to revise them). I've had them for a week now and have no desire to look at them. My juniors turned in their journals a week ago and haven't touched them, but need to as they have another round of journals left to submit in three weeks.

I should be thrilled to grade, knowing that I'm hitting little milestones, ie: last research papers for this school year, last essays submitted by my seniors, last test before their exam, etc.

If anyone has a good cure for my senioritis, I'd love to hear what you have to say!

I have a wonderful student who comes into the writing lab to sit with me from time to time. Unfortunately I don't get too many visitors during the time I'm supposed to be in there, so I enjoy my visits with Grace. I had her as a sophomore two years ago and now she has just weeks before she graduates. She is one of those students who has kept in touch through the two years and her presence makes me smile. She has an infectious laugh and shares the best stories.

Well, Grace also gives the best shoulder massages (this is widely known by all of her teachers). While she rubs the horrid knots out of my neck and shoulder she yells at me for being so tense. She makes me laugh.

Yesterday, however, Grace started a hunt for gray hair. I don't know what possessed her, but she was bound and determined to check my hair for little strands of stress and old age.

She found a handful of gray hair! WHAT? She even plucked one out to show me. I about D I E D!

Thankfully I have an appointment coming up to highlight my hair. Gotta hide those suckers! ;-)

We are not getting the couch on Saturday. I/We are so bummed out. Turns out the salesman told us wrong and called today (John was off) to apologize. We will get a call in two weeks to set up when the couch will be ready for delivery.

Boo.

~*~*~*Stay tuned, as I'm sure the couch saga isn't over!~*~*~*

Well, we found out that our new couch is going to be delivered this Saturday!!!!!!

Yes, I used an entire post just for that announcement.

As we weren't expecting it until the end of May, this is exciting stuff in our lives!

You know that my life must be dull when I've decided to post about a new couch, but John and I are really excited about this!!!

We are in the market for a new couch. Down in our basement, where our largest T.V. is located, we have John's bachelor pad futon. Talk about U N C O M F O R T A B L E!!!! Yuck. We've been talking for some time about getting something new down there, and we found something that was on sale and just too good to pass up. Also helps that our refund came in from the State, so that'll be used to pay for the new couch.
And here it is:The center console does not fold down in the one we hope to get, but the two ends do recline out. We couldn't pass up the deal as the couch is 50% off.

Thanks Uncle Sam!

In the hustle and bustle of life, we so often get wrapped up in the hectic ebb and flow of life that we forget about each other. It isn't that we don't communicate, but so many times I'm in bed before John or vice versa, or I'm so consumed with grading that we don't get to spend quality time during the week together. This week was different, though. We had a really good week, taking time for each other and enjoying our lives.

I love it when John spoils me. This week he came home with a bouquet of roses on Wednesday night. I don't need flowers or gifts to make me happy, but I had had a rough weekend (I won't lie...Easter Sunday was not a happy day for me) and I had been suffering from a string of headaches, so his pink roses really put a smile upon my face.

Then last night (Friday night) we went out for dinner and then went to Gam.eWo.rks to act like kids again. We had a great time. I think my dad would be proud of me for my driving ability, as I beat John at every driving game we played. We also played some air hockey (it was pretty tied), basketball (he DEFINITELY beat me at basketball), and a fun ride that moves up and down trying to pop an opponent's balloon (I won that one, too). Best of all, over all my wins, was the sheer laughter and smile we both had on our faces. I guess a little friendly competition isn't harmful in a marriage, and in all reality, it was a lot of fun.

I originally started this blog over 100 posts ago to follow my journey in losing weight. Somewhere along the way I fell off the wagon. I seem to do that a LOT. I'm not proud of that fact AT ALL, but it is the truth. My poor family has been so supportive throughout all my times of getting on the wagon and falling back off. I contemplated not even making mention of my new goals and stint on the wagon, for fear that those around me would think "here she goes A G A I N" (make sure to say this with a COMPLETELY sarcastic tone and slow down when you say the word again). But, I feel the need to blog about it. Thankfully I have found my way back to the wagon that I got off of too many months ago, and I feel as if this time I *might* be back on for good.

This all started compliments of last weekend. I went to see New Kids on the Block with my girlfriends. I had a great time getting my hair done up all big with high bangs and wings, as well as sporting some FABULOUS blue eyeshadow (NOT). We then made t-shirts with iron-on pictures of our favorite New Kid. Well, I thought I looked good. Wow, was I WRONG. I'm ashamed that my friends have put pictures of me on their Facebook pages. I cry anytime I see my picture. That was kind of the last straw. That made me say for once and for all, enough is enough.

So, I'm thinking of re-joining Weight Watchers. I know the program works and I know about the program. I wouldn't attend meetings, as I enjoy them but also find them not 100% helpful all the time, so I'm kicking around the idea of trying out the online program. (If you've done this, let me know your thoughts of the matter.) I feel like I need the accountability. While I know the program and HATE the idea of spending money to check in online, I feel like it will help me stay a little more on track than what I'm doing right now.

I've also headed back into the gym. John and I just got into such a funk and the gym wasn't anything we wanted to be a part of. But I've returned. Today I even ran for five minutes. Whoop dee do, five minutes, right? Well, of the fifty five minutes I was on the treadmill doing interval training, I forced myself to do five one-minute runs. I'm NOT a runner by any shape, build, or make-up, but I know what running can do for the heart and body, so I'm trying little sprints. I wouldn't say I LOVE it, but it isn't horrible.

So there you have it. I'm out of the closet. I hope that this time, I'm back on the wagon FOR GOOD.

Do I really have to go back to work? I could seriously get used to this schedule...go to bed early, sleep in late, make myself breakfast and my "coffee", lunch with friends, out for drinks with friends in the evening...not too shabby!

Break started out great. Saturday was the the National Qualifying tournament for Student Congress (the event Evan, GLHS's State Champion, competes in). After hours of debating, Evan was awarded 2nd place, which means he too is going to Birmingham, Alabama. This brings our grand total of students attending Nationals to SIX ~ a new school record. Immediately after the tournament John and I headed to Cleveland for the annual Caribbean Party, thrown by his mom and aunt. Sunday we got up and headed to the Cavs game. I had never before been to an NBA game, so we had fun.

Monday was a busy day, but I still got to sleep in, which was nice.

Tuesday I treated myself to an eyebrow wax (I actually find that semi-relaxing) then went and got a one hour massage. Now THAT was heavenly and finally the knots in my back from grading are gone. Then at five I went to happy hour with co-workers.

Today John is home from work, as he has to work Saturday. We took it easy this morning and now are working on various projects around the condo. Tonight we are heading to a co-worker's house for a cookout.

So...I guess I haven't really been relaxing THAT much. But a break from work is fabulous no matter how I spend it.

So much can happen in less than 48 hours. All I know and really care about is that in 48 hours I will be on spring break.

I don't care if the weather is crappy, if the sun rarely shines...I'm just so thankful to be getting some time to take care of myself (I'm planning on trying some new classes at my gym and treating myself to a massage), tackle some little jobs around the condo, and read a few books which seem to constantly be put to the side so I can grade homework and essays.

Most importantly I plan on relaxing, enjoying the company of family and friends, and enjoying the fact that for a whole week I do not have to be a teacher!

That's MY kind of spring break!!!!!

:-)

I don't know why. It is a BEAUTIFUL day outside. Mid 70s. Sun is shining through the haze of approaching storms & rain. I do not have any grading to do (the ONE good thing about administering the Ohio Grad.uation Test this week is the 2.5 hours of uninterrupted time which can be used to grade!). My students have been fairly good this week.

But I just feel blah.

Just thought I'd let you know...

This video was sent to me by a co-worker, and I've played it every day since it arrived. It doesn't matter what I'm doing or what kind of mood I'm in, it gets me laughing so hard.

(Disclaimer to all of my trying-to-conceive friends...babies are in the video!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqsclH7jVaE

Hope you enjoy it as much as I have over the past few days!!!!!

Wow, what a post to deliver, as this is post #100! Thanks to everyone who is still reading. I'd love to see how many of you there are, so leave me a little note, if you don't mind.

Now on to more exciting stuff.

I got home at 1:00 AM this morning. Make that nearly 2:00 AM as we "sprung forward". Yuck.

As some of you know, Lyle, the head coach, had emergency surgery on Tuesday. He was attempting to be a trooper and came into work on Thursday morning to prepare for the day and our 6 PM departure. Well, he lasted about 30 minutes before going home. If you know Lyle at all, he does not get ill often and certainly does not enjoy being away from his students at any time. We left it that he would see how he was feeling later in the day. When I got the call at 3 PM, I knew there was no way he was going to the tournament. Of course, he told me he'd get up Friday morning and see how he was feeling. Friday morning he was no better, if not worse. So I was flying maverick.

We left at 6:00 PM Thursday night. Thursday and Friday were pretty uneventful. Friday night I did have a great time shooting the breeze with about eight of the boys. Down in the hotel breakfast nook, the boys, Emily (a friend and co-worker who was along to judge), some parent chaperones, and myself sat around with some of the boys. We laughed so hard and shared so many stories.

Saturday was a LONG day. 6:00 AM came around early. But the boys were on the bus and ready to leave at 7:30 AM. By 11:00 AM, 10 of the boys were already out of the competition. Then at 2:00, three of the boys who had made it into the quarter final rounds found out they had not advanced to the semi-final rounds. Then at 4:30 we found out one of the two boys left from our team did not advance from the semi-final round to the final round.

That left Evan. A senior, Evan is one of the co-captains and such a nice young man. He competes in a category called Student Congress. Basically, these high school men and women bring legislation to the tournaments and participate in two and three hour Congress sessions. They give speeches in affirmation and negation of a bill or resolution, and then also take the opportunity to ask questions of the speaker. Eventually the chamber votes whether to pass or fail the legislation. Also during these sessions one student acts as the presiding officer, in charge of time keeping, recognizing students who wish to speak or ask questions, and basically make sure the chamber runs smoothly.

At 8:00 PM we found out that Evan was in the top six of the entire event (149 students competed in all).

At the awards ceremony, Evan went on stage with his five competitors. First it was announced that Evan was selected by his fellow competitors to be the "Best Presiding Officer". Then one-by-one names were read, from 6th place to 1st place. One-by-one students exited the stage as Evan remained. Finally, 2nd place was announced, and a young girl exited the stage.

GLHS had another State Champion. Evan had cooly and calmly beat 148 other students, the best from the state. He was number one in Student Congress.

I quickly made my way to the stage, as both competitor and coach get a plaque recognizing success in the event. That was the GREATEST feeling, being on the stage in front of over 700 high school students from around the state of Ohio, as well as their coaches, assistant coaches, parents, and other judges. We exited the stage where Evan was overcome with emotion. And then he proudly picked up the phone to call Lyle, who was lying in bed watching the results live via computer.

It was truly an incredible experience, something as a teacher and coach I will surely NEVER forget. And I'm so glad that Evan wanted me, the assistant coach, there with him on stage. Because in that moment, I wasn't an assistant coach, I was just a coach.

For some reason, I am in the black hole of grading. I can't remember the last time I felt this incredibly overwhelmed by all of the grading I have to do. I know, I know, I'm the one who assigned the work, but how else am I to assess if my students are "getting it"? And have you ever heard of a good English teacher who did not assign homework and essays? It seems as if the more I accomplish in grading, the more gets turned in to me. My seniors have another paper due to me in about a week. My juniors are turning one in next Monday. My sophomores are starting their research project tomorrow, so grading for them will be light until around spring break time. Once I get what I currently have in my bag graded, then what my juniors are turning in to me next Monday, I *should* have about a week of no serious, time consuming grading. And I cannot wait!

In other news...there is not much news (grading has consumed pretty much all of my time...just ask poor John). John's job is just that ~ a job. He hates it. But it is better than nothing or better than sitting at home during the day without working. But try telling that to him! ;-)

This Friday and Saturday is the state tournament for Speech and Debate. We head out Thursday afternoon and won't return until midnight Saturday. The head coach had to have emergency surgery today, so I've stayed at school yesterday and today until after six both nights, and tomorrow probably won't be much different. I'm not sure how we'll do...our district tends to get our butts kicked at States, and I haven't seen many of my boys for practice (just the debate boys have been working). Should be an interesting weekend.

I saw "Slumdog Millionaire" last Sunday with my best friend. What a movie! I definitely recommend it. If you haven't seen it, spend the $9.00. Definitely worth it!

Lastly, John heard from his sister last night. Kelli and John haven't talked since mid-September. We were both kind of shocked that she called, but not 100% (we had been told that she's been a bit lonely and we figured she might reach out to us). They talked for about 30 minutes. She didn't ask about us...how I'm doing, how we are doing, how his job is, what's been new over the last six months, but I guess that will take time. I just hope the two of them can mend their relationship. Now, as for his relationship with Colleen...that is another story for another blogging day.

Well, guess what?? I have to get back to grading. ;-(

Thanks everyone for you wishes and good thoughts. On Friday afternoon, we found out that John did get back into the call center.

Thank goodness for small little miracles!

He has to go in at 10 AM on Monday to sign paperwork and what not. When he was let go on Thursday, he didn't get to get his belongings at his other desk. (They told him they were going to be terminating another person on Friday, and didn't want people to know he had been terminated until she was terminated...he had Friday off, that's why he was told on Thursday.) So he'll go in, get his papers signed, get his stuff, and then we don't know if he'll work or come home and start on Tuesday.

Nice thing is that when he had worked at the call center before he worked 8-5 Tuesday through Saturday. This time he'll work 9-6 Monday through Friday, with a flex Saturday once a month. As far as he knows, he'll be back with his former boss, on her team again, so that is great too.

John lost his job today. Terminated. Finished.

We knew it was probably coming. He had been told in a meeting about two weeks ago that layoff were coming and to be prepared. He was the "low man on the totem pole" as he had been in his new position for just shy of three months.

Thankfully two weeks ago, when he was told this might happen, John went to his former boss in the call center and told her of his situation. John left the call center on really good terms. She told him if he lost his job to call her. So he did. They are going to try to get him back into the call center ASAP.

We'll know Friday if John will have a job on Monday.

Please say a little prayer for us!!!!

Often times when I tell some people that I am the assistant coach for the forensics team, they look at me with shock in their eyes. I can read what they are saying...

You have a team of high school students who study dead bodies?

I quickly clarify that it is the Speech and Debate team at the high school, a member of the National Forensics League. I have been the assistant coach for nine years now. I happened to have opened my big mouth one summer nine years ago, when the former assistant coach had resigned to move back to her home state with her husband. I remember it like it were yesterday...Maureen and I were in the parking lot after a Saturday of shopping and having lunch, as she was moving soon, and we happened to run into Lyle and the school receptionist, who had also been out for the afternoon and used the high school parking lot as the meeting place. I casually told him that I'd be happy to help him out.

I had NO clue what I was getting myself into.

It has been nine years of:
~getting onto the big yellow taxi (school bus) at anywhere from 5 AM to 7 AM Saturday mornings during the winter to head all across Ohio.
~spending countless hours during and after school preparing students for various tournaments.
~sitting in rounds watching high school students perform their pieces, or give their speeches.
~having mental struggles during rounds, trying to decide who should get the "one" and who needs to come in second.
~getting home on Saturday nights around 11 PM or midnight.
~working with some of the most incredible educators from across the state...ESPECIALLY the Western Ohio coaches!!!!!!
~getting to hug my first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth place finishers at each tournament.
~getting to hug my state qualifiers.
~getting to hug my national qualifiers.

This year, on Valentine's Day to be specific, I got to hug FIVE national qualifiers. FIVE! It is the ultimate test of our work as coaches, and the ultimate test of our students. The most students we've brought to a national tournament is four. And to think...we still have one more tournament in April which could potentially add two students to our group.

All five qualifiers are seniors. All male. And all wonderful students:

Dennis is going in United States Extemporaneous Speaking (he gets 30 minutes to prepare a seven minute speech on a topic he picks at random at the start of the round). This is his second trip to Nationals.

Joe and Brian are going in Public Forum Debate (they debate both the pro and con side to a given topic. This months' topic was: Resolved: That, on balance, the rise of Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC) has had a positive impact on the United States. Next month, at the state tournament, they will debate this topic: Resolved: That, on balance, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has improved academic achievement in the United States.) This is their first trip to Nationals.

Dan and Garet are going in Duo Interpretation (they perform a ten-minute cutting from "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". The hard part about their piece that the only time they are allowed to look at each other and touch each other is during the introduction and transitions. The rest of the piece must be done in synchronization but without looking at each other.) This is their first trip to Nationals.

So from June 14 to June 19, we'll be in Birmingham, Alabama for the National Tournament.

EDITED: I should also add that yesterday, when the tournament was held at our high school, we were awarded with the team Sweepstake Award, meaning we had the most points from the two day tournament. That was a pleasant shock for us too!

Yes, I'm here. Wow, I can't believe so much time has passed since my last post!

I'm over the flu, thankfully, but now I'm trying desperately to get rid of my cough and lack of a voice. John also caught my bug, which he didn't let me live down! I certainly want to be better this week, as there is a HUGE tournament at GLHS this Friday and Saturday, and then Mom and I are headed to PA to see my Grandparents, Uncle & Aunt, and Cousins (and their families) for three days.

Tuesday night I went to see Spring Awakening. WOW. That is really all I can say about the show. WOW. I didn't know much about it before attending. Thankfully some people did warn me about how...graphic...it was, and had they not, I think I might have felt differently about the show afterward. I LOVED the music and I can't wait for the Broadway recorded soundtrack to get here (I finally ordered it...thanks Ed & Rozann for the gift card which helped me get it!). I think if the show comes to town again, I will probably go.

Friday and Saturday I was in NW Ohio for Little tournament for Speech and Debate. This tournament is the qualifying event for the state tournament in March. At this tournament eight boys qualified to attend the state tournament. There are also two other boys who have already qualified. So, it is Lyle, 10 boys, and ME going to state's! We don't have many girls on the team, and unfortunately none of them made it. :-(

Otherwise, not much is going on. I had a nice Thursday, being able to spend time with Colleen, Tom, Mom, and Dad. John wasn't able to join us for Colleen's birthday dinner, so I went anyway and still had a nice time.

This week is going to be BUSY. Monday is parent/teacher conferences. Thursday will be busy preparing for the tournament. Friday I have a sub but will be in and out of the building all day, preparing for the tournament which starts that day at 4 P.M. Then Sunday Mom and I are off to PA.

Lastly, as this is MY blog, I'd like to make a comment about the Octuplet mom. First, I must admit that the media is driving me NUTS with their incorrect terminology. Every time I hear a news report I find myself yelling at the reporters. DOCTOR'S CANNOT IMPLANT EMBRYOS!!!!!! If that were the case, then the success rate for IVF would be something like 95 to 98%. The correct terminology is TRANSFERRING EMBRYOS. Now, as for the ethics of it...I don't think it is right for the mother to have been allowed to put back six embryos, considering her age and the amount of children already in her home. The woman is a selfish person. I want children too, but you don't see me asking my doctor to put back six embryo's just to try to get a girl! Give me a break! Her doctor needs to be punished, even if he DID advise her of the risks. He should NOT have put her into that position! I unfortunately also think that this is going to damage the public's view of IVF even more. I don't know why, exactly, but I feel as if now, because of this woman and doctor, insurance companies are going to cover less infertility treatments than they already do. Any hope I had to get my IVF covered in the near future is now going further down the drain because of this bimbo. Thanks a lot Nadya Suleman!

Yes, I am down and out for the count. Despite me having gotten the flu shot, I think I have the flu pretty bad! On Monday night I started to get a tickle in my throat and knew I was coming down with something. Thankfully with the help of some OTC drugs I slept through the night but woke up to my throat feeling like it was on fire. I decided to be a trooper and go to school, because as most teachers can attest to, it is harder to not be a school than it is to suck it up and be there. That was probably a bad idea, now that I look back on things. I got home around 4:30 on Tuesday (after stopping at the store for lemons, honey, and more OTC drugs) and went to bed. I slept pretty soundly Tuesday night. Wednesday. Yuck. Thankfully school was called due to bad weather. I threw up three times, ran a temperature of 100.8 to 102 all day, had the chills, slept on and off all day, and had no energy to even walk to the guest bedroom. I basically looked like death warmed over. Here it is Thursday. I was about to drive John to work (wiper blades aren't working on his truck, so he needs my car) then take myself to school to do sub plans when I got the call that our 2 hour delay was changed to another day off from school. I'm going to take my butt back to bed and hope to get this crap out of my system. I haven't felt this horrible in YEARS. Thank God for snow/ice days!!!!

Today John and I met with Dr. Mooney. John finally got to meet the new RE! It was a happy day, but a sad one too.

Let me start by saying that I am SO grateful to the two women who suggested I speak with Dr. Mooney at RG. THANK YOU. Because of these two women, I feel I am in better hands than I unfortunately ever was at ORM, and I've only met this doctor twice now.

The results of my blood work came back. Some of the things made me happy...my fsh and tsh levels are great. Even my fasting insulin was very good. But then we got to the Recurrent Pregnancy Loss panel that was run on my blood. First I found out that my body does not harbour any antibodies of the immune system, so that was good. Then Dr. M started to talk about the tests they ran to determine if any of my genes were normal or abnormal. Two tests came out normal, and three came back abnormal.

The three which came back abnormal are the MTHFR 677, PAI 1, and the Factor XIII. Basically, these are heterozygous status which means I got the "bad" gene from either my mother or my father. With these genes missing, and from what I understand, I am at a higher risk for: early miscarriage (possibly why nothing has implanted so far), preeclampsia, IUGR (Intrauterine growth restriction is a term used to describe a condition in which the fetus is smaller than expected for the number of weeks of pregnancy), and pre-term delivery. We can deal with these issues by giving me baby aspirin and heparin after an egg transfer, but the reality is that this isn't something that is easily fixed. Likewise, just because I get an embryo to stick doesn't mean that I won't have serious complications later on in a pregnancy.

I left the Dr. M's office feeling three things: sadness for the new found diagnosis, anger that Dr. S at ORM never thought to test me for these things (and when I did ask for additional blood work he told me they weren't needed) and lastly, a bit of relief that we FINALLY have an answer. No, it isn't the answer we want but it is AN answer. Now I don't have to ask "what if". What if we tried another IVF and the embryo's would be transferred into me? What if we used baby aspirin and heparin?

Now I can begin to ask...when do I get to take the next step on the road less traveled?

As we can't sell the condo, we have decided that we are staying where we are for quite a while. While it isn't our "ideal" home, it is still a nice place. This March I will have owned this unit for 8 years! The only room in the entire condo that wasn't painted was the downstairs bathroom. Well, that is not the case any longer. I unfortunately do not have any before pictures. Just picture an all white room. Here is the "new" bathroom:

Just another view of the wall from floor to ceiling.

Our next project is probably to replace the vanity in our spare bathroom, which happens to be the bathroom we use everyday as it is larger than the one attached to our master bedroom.

I have so much to be doing, but I am really enjoying my day home! Speech and Debate was scheduled to be in SE Ohio today, but due to the threat of bad weather, the school district decided yesterday that we were not allowed to travel today. While it was icy this morning, the 3 to 5 inches of snow predicted is just rain, and there isn't much rain right now. However, it is 4 P.M. and I am still in my pajamas. John and I have been working on the basement bathroom. It is almost done (we've painted, got a new light fixture, and now he is putting up a chair rail - - - don't ask, his idea, not mine). I have school work to do, but just don't feel like it right now. Hopefully tomorrow I'll gain some motivation to do the school work! Until then, I'm enjoying my unexpected day off! :-)

I hate to put such a shadow on my blog, but I have to write about Amanda. I had Amanda when she was a very rambunctious sophomore back in 1998, which was just my first year of teaching. She was a loud mouthed girl who definitely made an impression in my mind. Shortly after I passed her on to the next grade level she left the high school and moved to a nearby school for various reasons. Yet, in those next few years, when I least expected it, Amanda would appear in my classroom to say hello on one of her days off.

Tonight, via the Internet website Facebook, one of her good friends wrote me a personal message that Amanda had passed away unexpectedly this morning. She had just turned 26 and had so much of her life left to live. Her friend (also named Amanda) sent me the message and told me "I just know how much she respected you and thought she would like me to tell you." I just can't stop crying. I never got the chance to talk to her again. I never got the opportunity to tell Amanda how much I remember about her and how she helped to mold me into the teacher I am today.

An event like this makes me take a step back to look at my life. Time is so short. I think to Amanda and her parents and her brother, who I had the pleasure of having in class just last year. Then I look to my own family. And I am sad for my family. I have family members not speaking to those I love, and even not speaking to me. We just do not know when God is going to decide to take us from this earth as he needs us more with him than we need to be down here. What will happen if God decides to take one of MY loved ones away before I get the chance to say I'm sorry or I love you? What will happen if God decides to take one of MY loved ones away before they get the chance to tell me that they are sorry or that they love me?

Time is just so short.

In one week from today (Tuesday), I will say goodbye to 13 of my seniors. These students have maintained an "A" average for the first two nine weeks, therefore they do not have to take my final exam. On Wednesday I will say goodbye to 15 more seniors (those who have to take my exam) and on Thursday I will say goodbye to the 12 remaining seniors from my other section of Popular Literature. These 18 weeks have just flown by. I have truly enjoyed my second year of teaching this class. What is my class? In my class, students are given a variety of novels (high interest, low level reading) and the time to read. Each and every day they know that they will have 47 uninterrupted minutes to read the novel they've chosen. Sometimes, and this is sad to admit, they will not have read a complete book until they get into my class. And by then end of the 18 weeks they have read eight novels. The students I work with tend to be the "tougher" students in the high school, and for some reason, we get along rather beautifully. They are funny, witty, hard-working, and always keep me on my toes. But there is just something so rewarding to hear numerous students tell me "Mrs. J, I wish your class was year long".

I too wish my class was a year long!

Not too much else is new. Just hanging out, waiting for the semester to end, and for my appointment with Dr. Mooney.

I just thought I should do my first post of 2009.

May you all have a happy and healthy year!!!!!!