Dancing with Isaac

What a happy day that was for me! I got to dance with my son for pretty much the first time. He didn't quite make it to the dancing part of the night when Joe and Carrie got married. He was asked to fill in as the Ring Bearer for Andrew and Melissa's wedding a couple of days before. It was not a big deal since we were bringing him anyway. I just wish he had made it down the aisle! Everyone was still very nice and included him in the pictures with the bridal party (well, the ones he would sit in!).

He was very good during dinner, getting down from the table but staying close to us. He didn't eat much but that seems to be a normal thing at dinner these days. Once the music started, he became the life of the party for a little while. He danced with Peter and I for one slow song. When the second one came on, he pushed the Daddy away and wanted me all to himself. We danced the whole song together and then the party really started! The next song came on and Isaac wanted down so that he could boogie! I had so much fun dancing with him that I am still in awe of how great that felt. I guess every mom thinks about what their son's wedding day will be like. I could only think that I will absolutely love dancing with my son at his wedding. I will probably cry. I have a long way to go since he is only 2 but those 2 years have gone so fast already that I know it will be here before I know it or am ready for it.

Thanks to Carrie Kupfer for this picture! I will treasure this moment in my memory forever!

Top 10 Reason's I Like Being a Teacher

10. I love writing with mechanical pencils.
9. I actually like planning and having a structured day.
8. I get to be creative every day.
7. I learn new things every day.
6. Kids' minds work in wondrous ways and figuring them out each day is a rewarding challenge.
5. I enjoy being in a school, the colors, the constant learning, the smell of paper and crayons
4. I love to read and get to do this at work!
3. I get to have 20 people look up to me everyday.
2. I am tired but satisfied at the end of the day.
1. I have one of the most important jobs in the world.

A new school year has started and I ended my week extremely stressed and feeling like I was being buried under the amount of work I had to do. I got some of it done and the haze of stress lifted. When I came out of that haze, I remembered all of these things and it made me appreciate my job a little more.

Operation De-Clutter

I have never watched the show Hoarders but I'm pretty sure that my house is on its way to being a prime candidate for that show. I have been so stressed out with the state of my house that I have avoided all rooms that are becoming a major problem. We clean the bathroom, living room, and kitchen pretty often. The bedroom gets very cluttered. The office is just a scary place. Isaac's room stays relatively clean. We are getting ready to move Isaac into the office to give him a little more space and so we only have to redecorate one room completely. I have lots of ideas for his room but we there is so much work to be done!

I read an article called "Basket Case" by Mary Mohler in Ladies' Home Journal. It was all about people who clutter up their houses and don't realize it until it is too late. That is me! I related to this article so much that I actually stopped reading it on the second page and went to start working on our bedroom. Mohler says to start small and do just one room at a time. The experts actually say that you should start in the bedroom because it "sets the emotional tone and drives the energy for the whole house." It's so true. I hate to go into my bedroom because I'm tripping over stuff that I just don't have space for and my dresser is covered with crap that I just don't know what to do with. I feel like I have gotten to the point where I can just throw stuff away and not care. So that's what I started doing.

I got rid of earrings that didn't have a match, hung all my necklaces on my jewelry pedestal, and through away anything that was ruined or broken. I went through my clothes and got rid of anything that I don't wear or didn't fit. I cleaned out the closet and the dresser drawers. The room isn't completely done but I feel like it is so much better and it's on its way to being a clutter free zone!

The office will be next since it is going to be Isaac's room, hopefully, before the end of the summer!

Testing from my phone.

I now have a Motorolla Droid that I absolutely love. I can download apps and not worry that I will take up too much space. I downloaded the Blogger-Droid app and am trying it out now. When I first got the phone I played with the camera (5 megapixels) and found a Twitter app that I liked. I found a couple of games and messed around with the GPS. I kid you not, I had the thing for half the day before I even remembered that made phone calls.

Now I'm used to it and can't imagine what I was missing out on before a cell phone could do all this stuff. I am amazed that I can push a button and tell my phone (verbally) to navigate to a place and it knows what I said and what to do within seconds. I can't even imagine what more it could possibly do!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.4.3

Having the time of my life . . .

I'm having one of those times in my life where it feels like everything is going exactly how I want it to. I had a rough week 2 weeks ago when my stress levels were so high that I felt like I was going to burn out and crash any day. I did some things to try and relax, including getting a blood test to make sure that my blood sugar, cholesterol, and all that good stuff was ok. I'm totally fine and finding that out made me focus on the mental part of my stress. I spent a little time each day trying to organize my life a bit more. Cleaned up my classroom, wrote my plans for the next week a little early and had some wonderful parent helpers make the copies that I would need through Valentine's Day and the 100th Day of School (February 8th). At home, Peter helped by doing a great job cleaning up the counters in the kitchen and straightening up in the living room. I scrubbed down the bathroom and we did some laundry. It's amazing how quickly you can get behind on things.

I'm feeling much better this week and have really enjoyed spending some time with my family and friends. I'm trying a little harder to let some things go if they really aren't that big of a deal. I am enjoying the time that I get to spend with Isaac and looking forward to Peter's schedule slowing down a little bit. This time of year is the best time for me. Spring is on the horizon, weddings are being planned, I get to start thinking about Isaac's 2nd (can you believe it?) Birthday in just 3 short months. I'm excited because I think we are going to take him to the Treehouse or Monkey Joe's on his actual birthday and then have a party that weekend for family and friends.

We are hoping to make the party a little smaller this year so that we can have it at our house. People will have to dress warm so that we can go out on the porch as much as possible. I know that it is still a bit chilly at the end of April but hopefully it won't be too bad. I also figure that since it is his second birthday, and not as big a deal as the first, we can just invite local family and friends without hurting anyone's feelings. Anyone have any thoughts on that?

We went to the Treehouse today and climbed around with Isaac. He has so much fun and it gives him some exercise after sitting at home and not being able to go outside much! He's starting to really try and jump up and down. I think we might take him to Monkey Joe's with a friend or two for his birthday. Not really for a party but just to go and jump around. It's a little cheaper to get in there as well. I am hoping to invite Amelia and maybe Anna and Will to come and just jump around and eat pizza and cake or something.

I can't wait until all my friends start having babies! Get movin' people, would ya?!

:)

The Lost Symbol

I just finished reading The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. I got it for Christmas. I had seen it in the stores and had a passing thought of interest. I had enjoyed reading The DaVinci Code and Angels & Demons so when I got this one, I thought, "Oh good!"

In the beginning of the story, Robert Langdon is summoned by an old friend, (or so he thinks) to Washington D.C. to give a presentation about the symbolism in the capitol. To be honest, I was disappointed that I did not get to read about symbolism in the capitol through Langdon's speech. It might have been more interesting than the start of this book. Perhaps my expectations were high based on the last two novels with Langdon as the main character. I was expecting a bit more action. This story seemed a bit formulaic. Langdon is challenged, lines between good guys and bad guys are drawn and then get fuzzy. Langdon cracks some codes using his knowledge of symbols and of course, there is a police chase. None of it is anywhere near as suspenseful or exciting (or should I say controversal?) as The DaVinci Code.

I think the author is losing his love for Langdon, if he had it in the first place. In the first two books, Robert Langdon is made out to be a genius. He figures things out faster than everyone around him and only needs a little bit of help, mostly to get him safely in and out of certain places. In The Lost Symbol, I personally think Langdon is pretty slow. Maybe because he does not have a strong belief in the hunt he is on. He thinks the kidnapper is a madman and delusional and that the treasure of The Lost Word is make believe. The whole time I was reading, I had a feeling that the word was not what it seemed. You'll have to read to find out what it is but it really is simple. Everyone I know would figure this out relatively quickly. However, the overall theme of this book seems to be that the answers are right there in front of us but we are too blind to see. At then end of the book I thought, "well yeah, of course" whereas at the end of Angels & Demons and The DaVinci Code I thought, "Woah! That's so cool!"

However, I still had a hard time putting this book down. I'd like to go to the places in this book and see some of the things that are mentioned within the story. I'd like to know more about Noetic Science and really find out how much is fact and how much is fiction. There is a part of me that wants to believe the message in this book and find out more about it. Our history has always interested me. There is another part of me that says, "No way, but wouldn't it be cool?" This probably doesn't make much sense if you haven't read The Lost Symbol. Dan Brown has a great talent for making you believe what you are reading. It is so matter of fact and realistic sounding that even the craziest parts of the plot are believeable. It's fun for awhile to escape reality and believe in a story.

I would definitely tell people to read The Lost Symbol. I enjoyed it. I feel like there should be more to say but I can't think of anything. Let me know what you think of the book if you read it!

Thoughts and Memories

I am currently working on Isaac's second year scrapbook. I spent some time tonight making a page about his first birthday and how we celebrated. I got to thinking about the past 17 months and it is just so hard to believe that he is so big. At this time last year, he was only 5 months old. He was not crawling. He was barely sitting up and still didn't sleep through the night. He didn't have any teeth and he didn't talk (at least not in words). At his first birthday, I couldn't believe that we had made it through his first year. It was hard but we loved it. Even when we hated it. Even when we were so exhausted and sleep deprived that we didn't know how we were going to get through a day let alone a year. Once I figured out this whole Mommy thing, it got way easier. I was better able to juggle my time at work and my time with Isaac. I had a rough year that first year. Peter coaches (which most of you know) football and bowling. Two seasons in a row and they both happened to be at the beginning of Isaac's life. I resented the sports for a long time. I hated the fact that he wasn't here to help me. However, (and Peter you are not allowed to use this against me in any way) at times, it seems like the times when I had to be alone and parenting on my own allowed me to form a very special bond with my son. Peter has his thing with Isaac too, don't get me wrong. I just feel like being alone with him really forced me to figure everything out and make decisions. Most of you know, or if you haven't realized it yet, you will, that I have a hard time making decisions. I don't want to make a mistake. I want to do the right thing and I worry that I won't. Every decision I had to make on my own with Isaac was agonizing. Sometimes it still is but I'm learning that I'm pretty good at this Mommy thing. I have a VERY happy, healthy little boy. He is so special and bright. I have so much fun with him whenever we are together. I'll even admit that I don't mind when he is whiny and just wants to be held. I don't mind making dinner with one hand. It's hard and a major pain in the butt but it's so worth it.

Well, I was thinking about all of this and trying to figure out why I have these bittersweet emotions when I realized that I miss my tiny baby sometimes. I don't know how my parents have gotten through the 28, almost 29 years of my life without breaking down and crying. Maybe they have and just haven't let me know about it. It makes me think of when I went away to college. I was focused on how great it was going to be and I was so excited. My parents and Lisa drove me up there and helped me move all my stuff in. Once everything was in my dorm room we went out for lunch. Everything was great. I wasn't nervous or worried at all. I did not think that I would be homesick. I thought it was going to be great. I was right. It was great. The one thing I didn't take into consideration, was my parents and the things they were feeling. After we ate lunch, they drove me back to the dorms. It was so crowded with people that we had to say goodbye in the car. My mom was sitting in the back with me. She gave me a hug and started crying. I had the hardest time getting out of that car. I didn't want her to be sad. I knew that it would be okay but this feeling landed in the pit of my stomach. I was suddenly scared. It was suddenly real. I was going to get out of that car, my parents were going to drive off and I would be alone. For the first time in my life, I was going to be in charge of my life without anyone there to tell me if I was doing the right thing. I had to get out of the car. Other people were waiting for my parents to move. So, I got out and waved goodbye. My mom and my sister were crying. I was close to tears. I went back into my dorm room and I just sat there. Then I started to unpack. After awhile, Peter called me and kept me busy for the rest of the day. He made it easier. Eventually, I got used to being on my own. I wonder if my parents got used to me being on my own or if they look at me now with my own baby and just get that bittersweet feeling in the pit of their stomachs. My son is only 17 months. This feeling just gets stronger every time he does something new. Every milestone and every accomplishment sends a feeling of pride and a little bit of loss through me. Don't get me wrong, I don't want him to stop growing up. I just feel a little tug of losing my baby. I know he's still a baby and will always be my baby but he's growing up and it's going too fast. How do you handle it?

I think that handling him growing up is two sided. On one hand, I'm losing the little being that depended on me for every single need. On the other hand, I'm gaining this little person who is so much like me and his father it is scary. He becomes more independent every day and I know that I'm raising a smart, self reliant little person. I'm proud of that but I miss the days when he wouldn't stop crying unless I was holding him in the rocking chair. I didn't know that I should enjoy that as much as possible. People tell you to but you are so wrapped up in everything else that is going on or that needs to get done and isn't that you end up not enjoying it as much as you should. It doesn't take long and it's gone.

Well, I have purged enough emotions for one night. I should get some sleep so that I am not sleep deprived this weekend. I'm sure Peter would like it if I was actually interested in leaving our house for a little while!

Thanks for listening!