Happy Birthday Auntie!!

Today is Auntie's Birthday!! Happy Birthday to YOU!! I hope you have had a good day.

These wonderful pussywillows are from Auntie's yard.....yes, THIS YEAR!! Arent' they the greatest!!

I planted a branch of them last year but haven't looked to see how it is doing in my yard yet this year. Obviously not even CLOSE to being this good yet. Maybe in a few years. Down the road. The wind continues to blow and today we had some rain. All signs of spring. Or maybe just spring sports. Colder than heck outside for practices.

I made it to the 2nd chair in the jury box before I was booted off as a potential juror. Maybe it was because I know Rick Kent. Maybe it is because I believe that eratic driving can be a sign of being under the influence. Maybe it is because I know that glassy eyes are a sign of being under the influence of marijuana, and not just an allergy. Go figure. Last time to call in for me this time is tomorrow night. Not thinking it is a huge possibility that I will have to report Wednesday. I could be wrong.

Paxton made it to the doctor's office today to get her earache checked out. Instead of having an infection, she had a balls of wax stuck in both of her ears. After the doctor took them out her reaction: I can hear now. Nice. They are sore and irritated and $125 later, she gets some drops to put in and cure the ache. Nice. Did I already say that?

I bought some shrink bags to use on the trip today and also money/passport pouches to be worn around the waste for both Pax and I, and an electric voltage converter for 220 to 110. My tip money is ready for Mr. Daggett and tomorrow I will go to the bank and order international money. The trip is becoming more and more expensive--and we haven't even left yet!

Sunset, Fishing And A New Trailer

Ran for my camera last night when I walked by the window and saw this outside:

I hope I did it justice!!

Kyle and his partner, Will, were in 2nd place after the first day of the fishing tournament Yesterday. The wind was CRAZY and it was COLD but the tournament went on! After today, Kyle and Will finished the tournament in 4th Place and also won Big Fish of the Day (for yesterday). All translates into fun times, cold times, $25 gift certificates for both, and $150 each for prize money. (That translates into $75 for Kyle and $75 for Jennifer!)

A couple of days ago I got a call at school: "There's a really good deal on a cargo trailer and I'm going to buy it." Right on. We are now the proud owners of this:

Plenty of room in the back to put some shelves on the walls and it can store all kinds of other tools and fun stuff. He's so excited!!

I worked on my Blog Book all day today, except when I was getting lunch, dinner, and cutting Nick's hair. I also did a load of laundry when Kyle got home. Tomorrow I get to go into the Court House and do my civic duty of Jury Duty. There is a nasty accident on Sagemoor Road tonight. It has involved a 15 year old and a 16 year old. Two ambulances have been called out and also two ALS ambulances. Not something you want to have happen.

Tomorrow is the start of Spring Sports at school. It is going to be a wild day...and I won't be there! Hopefully the wind will go away by tomorrow so the kids don't have such a cold afternoon of practice. We have track, softball, baseball and boys soccer all ready to go.

Lazy Saturday

Finally didn't have to wake up to an alarm today. Guess it hasn't been THAT long since I haven't had to but it sure feels like it. Did get up earlier than what I thought though....7:15. I was thinking more along the lines of 9:00 or 9:30 but hey, I got what I got. Went to bed early last night so maybe that had something to do with it!

Kyle was up and out EARLY this morning. He is fishing a tournament in Richland this weekend. He texted earlier and said he had 2 fish for more than 20 lbs. Let's hope he can add to that total and come away with some c*a*s*h!! I hope he gets something for being out in the freezing weather.....but I guess that's what he likes so he's all good with it.

I, on the other hand, have been doing a bunch of not-a-lot. I did get the bills paid this morning and the checkbooks updated. Also got a load of dishes done and the kitchen floor swept. I have been looking around on my computer, watching Sarah Richardson this afternoon, got a letter to Briar ready to be mailed, and I have dinner in the oven. Can you say LAZY?

I found this picture on a blog this morning and find it so darn cool, so I am posting it. Thanks Ali and Kelly!

What A Friday!

I want to give an overview of our day at work. I am NOT using any names because I don't want to give out any identities; just want to describe the day.

Before 8:10 am:
Call comes in excusing Student A from school today. Student A is home sick.
Call comes in excusing Student B from school today. Student B is going to the doctor.

Around 10:00 am:
Call comes in from mom of Student A wanting to speak with student.
Student A NOT at school.
Look at attendance sheet with another employee and find out that Student B did get dropped off at school with father; employee SAW this take place.
Call home of Student B.
Mom thinks Student B is at school.
Inform mom that Student B is not.
Find out from brother of Student B that Student B is in Tri-Cities with friends.
Call homes of friends.
All parents believe that Students are at school.

This scenario played out not one, but TWO different, separate times within the school day. By this I mean, 2 other groups of kids, unrelated to the above scenario, with the same "not at school today" problem. CRAZY Friday! We felt like detectives instead of secretaries. It's pretty comical now, but it was not at all, going through it.

Ready for the weekend ahead. Yeah!!

EF Backpacks

Here's the first look at the "EF Tour" official backpack! Who gets one you ask? Why those of us COOL people going on the Greece/Turkey Art Trip in April of course! How special are we? Yes, even me, a chaperone, got one! I however, did not feel the need to wear it to school.....Kate and Ali did though!

And so did Kellie and Evelyn!

Can't believe how quickly this trip is coming up now. Before (like last spring) it was a LONG time to have to wait so it was easy not to really think about it. Well, that is no longer the case and it is just a few weeks off! It's crazy how fast it is sneaking up....lots of things to pick up and think about. Order money, get clothes bags, electric converter, money bag, a good pair of shoes. better get busy.

I went to a parent meeting about softball tonight. Andy asked me last Tuesday, "we are planning to have a parent meeting this Thursday for softball".....OF COURSE you are! It's the only night this week that I don't have something going on!!! So, I went. And it was good. Excited for this year.

Watching Grey's Anatomy right now. Great show! Kyle is working late at Boise Cascade tonight. Big things going on!!!!

Marvelous Darling

Paxton FINALLY got her glasses today!! Isn't she cute! I think secretly she was excited to get them. I haven't seen her in person with them yet but if this picture is any indication then she looks marvelous darling. The kid can wear anything and look super.

The weather did everything today.....rain, hail, snow, wind, sun, clouds, clear; you name it, it happened [well except for 60+ degrees].

School was pretty fast today. I worked on a couple of days' worth of deposits and also worked on trying to get some earned credits to show on some transcripts. You wouldn't think that was a hard thing....lordy be, it's killing us!! Still haven't figured out how to accomplish the goal but with some help from the ESD it will all come together I'm sure. Either that or we will have to do something out of the ordinary and figure out a way to 'make' it happen.

Eric, Shayla, Kaylee and Remington were here tonight when I got home from my Wednesday group. Kyle fixed dinner for them. Kaylee was standing at the door waiting for me when I drove up. She smiled at me when I got to the door but wouldn't have too much to do with me for the first few minutes. We spent a good amount of time drawing her hand on a piece of paper. She loves the way it feels when the pen traces around each of her fingers. I will have to put her hands in a frame. She will get a kick out of that. She loved her pink polka-dot boots that we got her. She wore them around and then out the door when it was time to go home.

I got a few loose ends picked up tonight after being gone this weekend and not doing some bookwork prior to going away for the weekend. There were a couple of due dates coming up quickly so I was glad that I got them done before time ran out.

Congratulations And The Weekend

Congratulations to the Connell wrestlers! The Eagles were represented by 9 boys and 1 girl at the State Tournament this last weekend in Tacoma. There were 3 alternates (unfortunately none of them got to participate but they were there to help cheer on their teammates!) and 7 that got to wrestle for state placement......they came home with 4 wrestlers earning titles!! Congratulations to ALL of them, especially the placers:

Jacob - 2nd place

Misael - 3rd place

Tyson - 5th place

Ryan - 8th place

It was a long weekend I'm sure. There is a lot of "hurry up and wait" time but it is also a great opportunity to see a lot of good wrestling. We are proud of all of the wrestlers.

My 3 day weekend involved driving to see Briar. It was a LONG trip over because I left after school. It is a 8 1/2 hour drive and doing it after putting in an 8 hour workday takes a toll on a person. Needless to say I was glad to sink into the motel bed Friday night (actually it was Saturday morning!). Saturday morning I made it to Briar's apartment and got to see where he is living. He shares with 5 other guys and between the 6 of them, 1 is a little on the "slobby" side, more than a little acutally. Guess who shares a room with him?? You guessed it! Briar. For anyone who knows Briar, he feels there is a place for everything and puts his things in that spot. I am sure he has held his breath more than a couple of times when he walks into his room. He showed me the desk of one of the other guys who is a little more compatible with the 'organization' that Briar is more use to: "look at the drawers, mom, even in here, everything is in its place." Cracked me up. [Briar's drawers look the same way!] Anyways, the first thing I saw when I looked at Briar's side of the room was a picture of his sister on his desk...the desk he uses every day. So hang in there parents! Your children really will turn out to love each other, just takes a little longer than we would like!

I did do the mother thing and cleaned the kitchen. The counters were a little on the grose side, dried food on them. Nasty! Anyways, I did the dishes and washed down the countertops. I can't help myself. Like I said: it's a mother thing.

Saturday afternoon I did another mom thing and took him grocery shopping. It was a new experience going grocery shopping with him this time: he actually picked things out because of their lower price or because the things would actually get used! "Don't spend your money on that, mom. I probably won't use it" or "this one is cheaper!" OK, who are YOU and where is MY son?? It was more proof that he really has grown. It's one of the reasons for the trail of tears that cascaded down my cheeks when it was time to leave. This is what we raised them to be isn't it?? After grocery shopping we went to see "Unknown" at the movie theatre. It was awesome! I recommend it if you like suspense/drama/twists. I don't go to movies much at all, but this was a good one.

Sunday we didn't do anything but eat dinner and hang out. We watched tv and just spent time together. It was nice and relaxing. Monday morning it was up and on the road early. I had to spend a good half-hour or so getting all the snow off of my car before I could get going. There was a good 5 inches or so, and some nice ice under all of the snow. I lost the last bit of snow off of the car just before I got to Baker City, Oregon! It is only February so I shouldn't have been so surprised. I do love the snow but didn't want to have to battle it on the roads coming home. The drive home seemed a lot easier/shorter than the drive down. I got home about 7:30. Boy was my butt ready to not have to be sitting in a car's seat!

It was hard to leave....I am not use to not seeing him every week. He gets done with school on April 9th. That doesn't seem like that long of a time so that's good. He is working hard. He showed me all his class books and notes that he takes and complained about all the studying that he has to do. I think he doesn't mind it all, makes it seem like he is getting something for his money. Welcome to the real world my son! I love you!!

Tonight was our Europe meeting, the next-to-the-last one before we get international! We leave on April 3rd and get back on April 13th. We are going to Turkey and Greece. Tonight we talked about getting Euros and Turkish Lira, packing, hotel assignments, chaperone assignments, tips for not getting pick-pocketed, and plane departures/returns. We have known about this trip for over a year now....finally it is starting to feel like it is coming and quickly! We now have just a few weeks left. And lots of details to get tied up! Starting to get a tad-bit excited!!

I am going to end this post with a super fantastic picture of my very best friend in the whole wide world and two of her favorite boys.....pretty high up on my list of favorites too! I stole it off of her blog because I think it is great! I love you LeeLee!!

Hi Matt and Lucas!! Say hi to your dad too!

Almost Friday....

The wrestlers that go to state left this morning around 10:30 after a send-off assembly. This is what Ryan's locker looked like....



I hope he wins, oh yeah, and has fun! Paxton is going over with Sheryl and Brent. I'm afraid it is going to be a LONG couple of days!!!



I went with Paxton to see my grandparents a few weeks ago, actually right after they moved. I took these pictures of them that day. They were both so fascinated with the fact that you could see the picture right after it was taken [on the digital camera]. They are so darn cute!! I love them. What an important part of my life they have been.

This is what the sky looked like at 7:00 this morning:

This is what it looked like at 7:00 this evening:

The days are staying lighter a little longer, and getting lighter a little earlier! Spring is on the way.

This week has been LONG at school! There isn't a bunch going on right now for me, so therefore, the day drags on. Maybe it is feeling like that because of the anticipatio of a 3 day weekend?? I am going to go see Briar. Don't know what the plan is once I get there, but just being able to see him will be worth it!!

Meet Bear (The 3rd?)

The boys got Auntie and Uncle Greg Bear for Christmas. They have been wanting to get a new dog for some time now and I guess their boys figured this was the time. He is so cute....and quickly getting out of the "puppy" stage and into the "toddler puppy" stage! He is too big to be a puppy, but cute enough to be one! I was out there last Wednesday and took him outside to take a couple of pictures of him. It wasn't the best lighting ever...not even CLOSE actually, but I did take a few anyway. How cute is he!!

Those paws are big!

I had to put him in the kennel after awhile because the ladies were starting to come and he is a big friendly. He is asking me what I think I am doing here.

Load Off My Mind

I finished my taxes tonight....both business and personal. It feels good! I can relax and not have that hanging over my head; for another year anyway. Now it is a matter of getting the information transferred to the kids' FAFSA accounts and hopefully they will be able to get help for school next year. That would definitely be a bonus!

Work has been on the slow side this week. I don't like that. I would much rather be too busy than not busy enough. We are starting to gather the information needed to get working on student schedules for next year. People may think it shouldn't be that hard, just give kids classes, pick class times, pick teachers; easy, no? NOT! If it were that easy anyone could do it. There is a lot of time that goes into making a schedule, and a lot of trial and errors. We will open next years calendar the beginning of March and off we'll go!

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Today

Give Thanks

Speak carefully

Look at your potential

Forgive soeone

Live in the moment

Give your best

Laugh

Don't judge

Be strong

Be a good friend

Give you little ones an extra hug

Put the phone down

Tell someone you love them

Get rid of bitterness

Show compassion

Be humble - not arrogant

Don't take each other for granted

Appreciate the little things

Turn the TV off

Don't hate

Don't let words knock you down

Say your sorry

Celebrate

Smile

Talk to God

This is a GREAT list for EVERY DAY, not just a single one. Go ahead....do it!

Regional Wrestling Tournament

Yesterday I spent the whole day at the school helping with the Regional Wrestling Tournament. Who knows how many thousands (not really thousands) of kids were there! It started with weigh in at 8 and finally got home around 9:45 last night. I am glad that it is over. We have a few going to the tournament next weekend in Tacoma. That's exciting.
Here's warmups. I just noticed: this was the least amount of people in the stands all day.

We had to run the computers to get the bout sheets, keep track of the bout sheets and scores, place kids on mats, and call kids for their matches.

Here's Ryan.

Here's Tyson.

When the consilation matches were completed one of the mats was rolled up and moved out of the way for the winners podium to be moved in. The Ki-Be kids took over the rolling of the mat. Here's Ryan winning for 3rd Place.

The 171 pound placers. Yeah Ryan!!

Got to take a nape after breakfast this morning. Oh did it ever feel good! Made Kyle eggs, bacon and a heart shaped scone this morning as an early Valentine. Won't be getting up early enough tomorrow before work so today had to do.

Detour Home

The other day on the way home from school we took a "detour". We stopped at this little bunk house that use to sit on the Pepiot Ranch (where my mother and aunt and uncles grew up) and now is going to be put somewhere in town to be restored. Well, right now sadly, the locals are taking beating it up. Why people do this is just BEYOND me....where is their respect for property? Especially that property that doesn't belong to them??? Unbelievable to me. It brings back a lot of childhood memories, they "played their hearts out" in this building. It was even used as the residence for the local school teacher. Anyways, Auntie wanted to get a picture of it. So, we did. Here she is:

And here is Whitney.....with her 'fabulous hair day'. I think she looks adorable!

Tonight Kyle is getting ready for his fishing day tomorrow, making things to use to hopefully catch fish. I get to go to school and work the day at the the Regional Wrestling Tournament. He gets to go fishing.

He wears these safety glasses because they are bi-focal...and Kyle can't see. Or so he says. I think he thinks he looks sexy in them. Oh yeah!

Got a letter from Briar in the mail today. It might just be the first letter he has ever written and had to mail. Maybe not, but just maybe! It was awesome. I miss him so much!

Tax Time

I have been working on our taxes since after school today. It has been a LONG night. The IRS hasn't released their last update for business taxes yet....not until February 12th. Great. Everything else gets put on hold until then. Guess I won't have to pay any money until then. Or maybe I will wait until April 18th. Yes, I will be waiting.

It's GLASSES Time!

When she was in the 1st grade she had to wear glasses all the time to correct a lazy eye. After a year the eye corrected itself and she no longer needed them. Now she is going to back to wearing them....but only for reading and computer work. She is SO excited....not! She picked out a bunch and then narrowed them down to a few:

And finally, down to two:

She ended up with the first ones!

Awesome!

Reception and The Bridge

The reception for Erika and Cory was really nice. They had good food and everyone had fun.

Erika and Kathy

The cutting of the cake

Sydney did not want to let her momma too far out of her sight. She was a little confused about all the attention being on her mom instead of on her. A little confused and a little put-out! But adorable all the same!

Here's what I saw when I got into my car to come home. You can really appreciate the beauty in the Cable Bridge at night, when it's all lit up!

Not quite ready for work tomorrow but it's coming anyway. Going to spend the rest of the evening just relaxing. Haven't even turned on the SuperBowl.....not too interested in having a winner out of the 2 choices; however, the Packers get my vote.