Crazy Medicine

It's 3:41 am... I'm awake. I'm at the hospital with my mom and she's been miserable. The nurse, as a last ditch effort to make my mom feel better, just brought her in crazy medicine. I don't know what it's called, but let me tell you about our conversations. First of all, when the nurse was just in here, drawing blood, my mom's hand was moving- the nurse turned to me and said, "She's doing something with her hand." (my mom was asleep) Then, my mom said, "Oh sorry, I thought I'd stir the spaghetti." I laughed so hard I snorted. Then, I was telling the nurse about how the doctor assured my mom she would lose all of her hair (and she HASN'T!), and my mom interrupted, "How did the designs work out?" "What designs, Mom?" "Oh, never mind." Then, her machine started beeping, so I went out and got the nurse again, and as she fiddled with the machine, my mom said, "Well, when you get the buildings all done, you can fill them up with children." What buildings, mom? Whose children? Sounds catastrophic.  

Oh, she just said (as I was typing this), "Darren, did they all get in that van?" "Mom, it's me, Andrea." "Oh, I have nothing to say to you." Well fine. I have nothing to say to you, either. 

Round Three

This is the big day... my mom started her third round of chemo today. We are hoping and praying that it is working. They will do a pet scan in two weeks, to determine if it is. We will find out in three weeks what the results are. How nerve wracking. 

Quirkity Quirk Quirk...

Tagged!

Here are the rules:

1. Link the person who tagged you.

2. Mention the rules on you blog.

3. Tell about 6 quirks of yours.

4. Tag 6 fellow bloggers to do the same.

5. Leave a comment to let them know.

Heather (Smith) tagged me.

Quirk #1: I speak to my alarm clock. Well, oftentimes, it's more of a yell. I also sometimes speak to myself as I'm going to bed.

Quirk #2: I record Judge Judy every day, and watch it just before I go to sleep. My favorite Judge Judy moment (so far) is when a woman was explaining that a deer had hit her car, and Judge Judy asked what she had done with the deer, and in her white trashiest, southern-est accent she said, "I ate it!!" Quality television right there, people. (I also record and watch the Ellen show before going to bed).

Quirk #3: This is super gross... super, super gross... I like to watch zits pop. I know!!!! Disgusting!!!! But, it fascinates me.  I was a bit jealous when a friend got a job at a dermatologist's office, and all she does all day long is pop zits. I could live that kind of life. People I know often come to me for help popping stubborn zits. I have a gift.

Quirk #4: I will NOT, absolutely will NOT go to bed without flossing and brushing my teeth. In fact, I bet it has been more than ten years since I've skipped a night. I do not take my flossing duties lightly... I can't, for I have two bridges, which require extra tools. I also have a Sonicare toothbrush, that has a timer, so it turns itself off after two minutes. I'm a very precise oral caretaker. Maybe I should have been a dental hygienist. (By the way, I just checked, and I have seven containers of dental floss in my vanity right now.)

Quirk #5: I love pickles. Whenever I go to Subway, I ask for lots of pickles. After piling them on, they will ask me if that is enough, to which I respond, "No!" There is no such thing as enough pickles. 

Quirk #6: My favorite restaurant has been determined by the croutons they have at their salad bar. Ruby Tuesday... the closest one is in Draper, but my favorite one is in West Valley City. 

For the record... I could have written 50 more.

Do you want another one? Ok...

Quirk #7 (kind of like an encore): I still make funny faces at myself in the mirror. 

I tag: Disneyland Em, Heather (Manwaring), Tracy, Lisa/Aaron, and anyone else who wants to do it! 

Mr. Mosquito, RIP

Dear Mr. Mosquito,

Thank you for not biting me as we shared a bed last night. I'm sorry for yelling at you this morning... but you took my by surprise. I thought I had spent the night alone. I'm also sorry for killing you. I just need that space to be "my space." It's nothing personal, really. 

Yours truly,

me

Fingers Crossed

My mom goes in for another round of chemo tomorrow. I'm hoping that this round doesn't knock her out the way her first round did. She has been extremely sick for the last three weeks. Amazingly, however, she still has hair! (not much, though) We've decided that the reason why is because she had enough hair on her head to cover three heads. So, she did lose a normal amount of hair for chemo- and for most people, that would have been every hair on their head, but not for my mom. I'm sure this second round will take care of the rest of it. She has to have additional medicines, because unfortunately, the cancer has spread to her bones. They are hoping that they can control it for at least a while longer, but they have told us there would be no cure for it. So, that is discouraging. But, miracles happen... and that's what we're praying for. 

My Mom's Haircut

This post is mostly for Tracy, because I know she's going to want to see Mom's new haircut. Oct. 19 will be the day that my mom loses her hair. So, to prepare for the big event, my mom got her haircut! I think it looks great. Both pictures are a little blurry. Sorry. The first picture was taken just a day or two ago. I caught my mom  mid-sentence, but it kind of looks like she's mid-swearword. Awesome. 

Before:

After:

Update on My Mom

Many of you have been asking about my mom. For those of you who don't know, we found out that my mom has cancer. On August 8, she had a scan of her abdomen that showed a tumor in her uterus. She had a biopsy on it the following day, and our fears were confirmed. We just didn't know exactly what kind of cancer it was, or how widespread it was. On Aug. 20, she had a total hysterectomy, and we were devastated by the news that it had affected several of her lymph nodes, and possibly other organs (including her lungs). They told us there would be no cure, and that her prognosis was very, very bad. It is an extremely rare cancer, called MMMT (Malignant Mixed Mullerian Tumor)... or Mixed Mullerian Sarcoma. Because it is so rare, there aren't a lot of chemo treatments that have been tried and tested on it. In fact, the surgeon told my dad and me the day of her surgery that putting chemo in her would be like putting water in her veins. He actually hinted at the suggestion that no treatment would give her quality of life, and that maybe that was our best option. She had a horrible recovery from the surgery, where she suffered from Refeeding Syndrome and dysmotility, where her stomach had forgotten how to process food. She spent an entire week in the hospital (where I spent four of the nights with her... if you'd like to read about that experience, read my sister, Tracy's, blog HERE.) She finally came home, after they put a feeding tube into her, that bypassed her stomach, straight into her intestine, so that her body could get the nutrients it needed. So, she had a home health nurse visit her every day, take her blood, check the food pump, etc. My aunt, Kristene, has also been here (from St. George) a lot, helping with my mom's care. We love having Kristene here. She seems to brighten up the place. Luckily, my mom has slowly retrained herself on how to eat and process food- so she had the feeding tube taken out. She doesn't enjoy eating, however... especially every morning when I make her a healthy smoothie, and force it down her. She does it, though, without complaining... much. We met with a Medical Oncologist last week in Salt Lake, who didn't give us any false hope, but did suggest that we meet with a doctor in Provo, so that she could begin chemo down here, rather than up in Salt Lake. Today was my mom's appointment with Dr. Tudor down in Provo, who gave us the best news we have heard since August 8. He told us that there has been a study of people who have been diagnosed with the same kind of cancer that my mom has, and after five years of receiving the treatments that she's going to receive, 75% of them were still alive!!!! Those are GREAT odds, especially compared to the statistics we have heard since day one about this awful cancer.  So, anyway, we are feeling much better about things today than we have felt in a long time. She starts chemo on Oct. 2. It will last a few months, then she will go through radiation. It will be a long road, but hopefully it will end in a happy place--- but, not in heaven :) . 

Will he ever stop being funny? I hope not.

"Bob": Miss Green, I got a little bad news.

Miss Green: Oh no! What happened?

"Bob": Well, you see, Miss Green, I got a pain in my neck. It hurts like there's no tomorrow. I look up, it hurts. I look down, it hurts. I look this way, it hurts. I look that way, it hurts. See, what I'm getting at is, I'm afraid I won't be able to do my work today.

Another funny moment

Miss Green: Ok, "Bob", don't show anyone what you brought in the Sharing Bucket until everyone is sitting quietly and listening respectfully. 

("Bob" very matter-of-factly folds his arm, clearly waiting for something.)

"Bob" (whispering loudly enough for the whole class to hear): Actually, Miss Green, I'm waiting for that girl who's picking her nose to stop.

**Please keep in mind that "Bob" is VERY serious. He has no idea that he's saying absolutely hilarious things... which makes them even funnier to hear. 

2nd Graders are Awesome.

Miss Green: It looks like Luke is absent. Cameron, please put an Absent Student Folder on Luke's desk.

"Bob": Uh, Miss Green, please don't count your chickens before they hatch. Luke could still show up. It's only 9:oo.

Miss Green (pointing to the word "Stamina" on the board): Boys and girls, does anyone know what this word means? It says, "Stamina." (long pause).... Anyone?.... Does anyone want to take a guess???.... (another long pause)

"Bob": Well, it sounds like it could mean "Constipated Pig."

"Bob" (waving his hand in front of his face, motioning that he has smelled something stinky): Miss Green... someone has cut the cheese.... (pause)... literally... I smell cheddar.  

Mom vs. Maurice

I have to tell a funny story about my mom... to keep from going crazy. Many of you know, she's just had a serious surgery, and I've been at the hospital for four days, straight, with her (sharing a single cot with my sister, Tracy, during the nights). Last night, her IV got puffy and yucky, and they had to re-do the IV in the other hand. Well, the first nurse couldn't find a vein, so she called in back-up. He couldn't find one either, so another person was called in. This was a large man, with large needles, poking and prodding my sick, incoherent, weak mom, and somehow, Tracy and Maurice (the large nurse) started talking about politics. Maurice is extremely left-winged liberal, and my mom is quite the opposite. Well, my mom overheard the conversation, and decided to pipe in-- her first real conversation since her surgery. She started getting so mad at what Maurice was saying. She began yelling at him (well, yelling as well as she could). We were all trying to calm her down, because after all, Maurice was the one with the large needles, poking her. He couldn't find a vein, and as he was leaving the room to call in MORE backup, my mom yelled at him, "So you think it's okay to kill babies??" Luckily, he just left the room, and didn't try to egg her on anymore. But, we all got a good laugh about it. She, on the other hand, didn't think it was funny. In fact, we're pretty sure it was that conversation that gave her a fever, and high blood pressure, causing them to wake us all up in the middle of the night, to take her down to get all sorts of x-rays, blood, and urine samples. They thought she might have an infection... but, I just think she was mad at Maurice. 

"After" Pictures

My newest addition to my classroom (my sister gave this to me). I'll provide the quarters, it's not part of a money-making plan :)

What a Mess!

Bear Lake 2008

Bear Lake was a blast! Those who went: Marty and Nancy and their kids (Shalyn-14, Brandon-10, Amber-6, Ryan-3), Tracy and Daryl (Wesley-11, Anna-8, Brooklyn- 8), Allison and Cam (Erica-8, Emma-6, Chase-3, Leah-1), Deanna and Erik (Kris-8, Dallin-6), Travis, his girlfriend, Tiffany, and her son, Dawson (4), Ronnie, and me. I don't have the pictures we took on the boat, because they are on Deanna's camera. Oh well. If you want to see the montage, you might need to press pause on my playlist, so you don't have two songs going at once. I'm new to the One True Media, and didn't take off the music, and it's much too much work to go and redo it. Sorry.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Funny Emma

I will post more later about my trip to Bear Lake... which we all survived. But, I just had tell a funny story about my niece, Emma. A few years ago, Emma fell and bumped her mouth, turning one of her front teeth brown. Well, at Bear Lake, Emma's brown tooth fell out (yahoo!) But, sadly, she lost the tooth. So, when she got home, she typed a letter to the tooth fairy, explaining why the tooth wasn't under her pillow. I was at their house when Emma woke up this morning, and was there when she read the letter that the tooth fairy typed her, in return. The tooth fairy explained that she would get $5 in one week, if she goes that long without sucking her thumb. Emma was ecstatic about the letter. She said, "I'm touching something that the tooth fairy touched! I love the tooth fairy! But, I love Jesus more. Everyone should love Jesus more than the tooth fairy." I couldn't agree more. 

A series of unfortunate events...

I am writing this as I rally from a serious case of the stomach flu. Ick. Let me back up... last Saturday, I was woken up by my cell phone ringing. It was my dad (my parents are out of town) asking me to turn the sprinklers on in the back. Surprisingly, I've never turned the sprinklers on or off... I finally figured out how to turn them on. A little while later, I went out to turn them off. You'd think that they'd turn off oppositely of how they turned on. Well, I'll spare you the details... after several minutes, I had them off- but, without a dry spot on my body. Shortly after coming inside, Deanna (who was here) got a phone call from Allison, wondering if I could come up to her house in Cedar Hills to babysit her kids while she takes Cam to the Emergency Room, because he had had a bad fall mountain biking. Well, I also had Tracy's kids here that I was baby-sitting (Deanna, Allison, and Tracy are my sisters). After some decision-making, I agreed to meet Allison at the Orem hospital, trade her cars, and bring her kids back here to the house. Deanna abandoned me. I had 7 kids here, and one of them (Erica) had the stomach flu. The day was completely chaotic. As it neared lunch time, the kids started complaining that they were hungry. I began making grilled cheese sandwiches (ew, the thought of any kind of food right now is seriously messing with me). I put Anna (age 8) in charge of Leah (age 11 months)... with the charge to not let her fall down any stairs, or put anything in her mouth. Leah climbed over to one of the stools, so Anna put her on it, but was still holding on to her. I don't know exactly how it happened, but Leah toppled off the stool, and started screaming. Anna felt badly about letting it happen, and as I'm trying to console the two of them, all 6 of the grilled cheese sandwiches got burned. During the whole debacle, the older kids were playing Rock Band at full volume (in the family area of the kitchen), and someone was screaming at Chase (age 3) at full volume. Meanwhile, I have Emma (age 5) telling me all the things I'm doing wrong. And on cue... Erica throws up in the living room. 

Allison and Cam got home in the evening, with the lovely news that Cam has SERIOUSLY messed up his shoulder... something that will take multiple surgeries and months to fully recover from (if it does, in fact, fully recover).  Our family has a big vacation planned to go camping at Bear Lake, and Al and Cam bought a new, fancy, camping trailer to take up there... and now, Cam can't drive it up there, so Allison, who weighs probably 100 pounds, will have to be in charge of this HUGE camper, if they go. And, to add insult to injury... Cam is also recovering from the stomach flu. Luckily, Tracy and Daryl are in town, now... and last night we had Anna and Brooklyn (the twins), Emma and Erica (Al's girls), and Amber (Marty's daughter) all sleeping here. 

Last night, I got in bed, feeling fine-- but, just a few minutes later, felt really sick to my stomach. I emptied ALL contents of my body between 3 and 7:30 this morning, and fell asleep for about an hour. Now, I have alternated from sleeping, and making an emergency trip to the bathroom all day. I ate 2 popsicles earlier, that quite promptly came back up, but about an hour ago, I ate 2 more, and so far, so good. So, I hope I'm pulling out of this. Oh, and just a little while ago, Emma was walking through the living room, turned her head, and threw up all over my mom's leather chair. Tracy sprung into action, cleaned it up, but cleaned it a little too well... the cleanser she used on it changed the color of the chair... so, it's pretty much ruined. Maybe, when I'm feeling well enough, I'll go take a picture of it, because it's pretty bad. 

Also, a few days ago, Ronnie decided to give Petie (our dog) a haircut... with scissors. It was embarrassing to be in the same room with the poor dog... so, Tracy went and bought clippers last night. I held him down, and Daryl tried to fix the haircut. Petie was NOT happy about that, at all. He's not above snapping at people, so it was a little scary holding him down. It was also scary, because the poor dog's epileptic, so I was worried we were going to put him into a seizure. I was covered in dog hair, and still feel like I have it down my throat. I'm sure I don't, because I was throwing up so violently, that I was afraid of throwing up the little hanger-down in the back of my throat (uvula??)... sorry. Too much information, huh?

Oh, and Travis is bringing his girlfriend home from Colorado, whom I've never met. They'll be here in just a couple of hours. And do you think I've washed my hair in like four days? No. I'm a mess. 

I hope my parents had a good time on their vacation. 

Where, oh where, has my little June gone?

Wow. I can't believe that it is already July 5. What happened to June??? This is only my second REAL summer as a teacher, because before last year, I taught at a year-round school in South Jordan- so I never had a "summer break." I guess I pictured myself spending my summer doing nothing... and loving it. But, alas... 'tis not so. June has been crazy. In fact, I had to set my alarm EVERY single night for the entire month... I did not get to sleep in ONE SINGLE DAY! That was rough. So, what has kept me so busy, you ask? Well, first of all, I taught for our Summer Reading Program at the school, so that had me up and at 'em by 8 a.m. (see cartoon above)...  I did have a few days off of that, but only to attend other early morning meetings, classes, or conferences. I went to the Core Academy in St. George, I took a class on iWeb in the classroom at the District Office for a couple of days (which, by the way, I created my own classroom website. I can't wait to get it up and running once I get my new laptop from the school), I took a Beginning Spanish for Teachers class this past Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (Buenas Dias!)... for the final project, I had to write a one page paper in Spanish! So, those are the things that have kept my weeks busy... so, what about my Saturdays? Well, one of my Saturdays, I spent the entire day in my ESL (English as a Second Language) class because I'm getting my ESL endorsement (I'll be finished in December, yay!) and we are getting one of the courses finished in three marathon days during the summer. Also, my Uncle Gerry died (my mom's brother), and so we spent last Saturday with family for the funeral in Paradise, Utah. It was a sad day, because his death was completely unexpected, but it was nice to see all the cousins and other extended family again. He served in the Vietnam War, so his burial was done with Military Honors, which was neat to see. I can't remember how I spent my other Saturdays... I've sat here, thinking, and thinking-- but I'm gettin' nothin'. I think one of the mornings I had to wake up early to help clean the church... Anyway... this past week, I spent a few nights in Park City at a time share my parents had scheduled. I went down the Alpine Slide for the first time, which was a lot of fun. I went with Deanna and Erik. Next time I go to Park City, I'm going to do the mountain roller coaster they have up there- maybe I'll get brave and dare to do the zip-line. We have also been busy this past week because my sister's kids are here from Colorado. Last summer, I went and spent several weeks with them out there, but this summer, she sent them here, instead. They will be here until their parents come and pick them up when they come out for our family vacation to Bear Lake in a couple of weeks. Hopefully, we can keep them entertained until then! 

Well, now, it's July... and my schedule looks like it will be slowing down a little, but not much. My classroom is in complete and utter chaos. I'll take a picture of it before I clean it up, just so you know. Who ever said that teachers get three months off during the year? Hmph. 

Andrea's Adventures...

I have had a lot of fun with Heather and Ryan this week. I wish they didn't live so far away. Oh well. On Wednesday night, Heather & Ryan (and Ben), Kate & Ryan (Webb), and I went to the Mayan for Ryan Smith's birthday (I know WAY too many Ryans.) It was fun, and worth the wait! Here's a picture of their little cliff-diving act. If you haven't been there, you have to go. The food isn't the best food in the world- but it's not too expensive, and the atmosphere is a lot of fun.  

We had our waiter take a picture... can you say, "Fifth wheel?" :) 

On Thursday night (last night), we went to dinner at the Happy Sumo (only my favorite place in the world... if you haven't had their Mt. Fuji chocolate cake, you haven't lived, my friends)... I should have taken a picture of the cake. It's too good. To quote Heather: "It makes my taste buds very happy." Ryan (Andersen) and I went with Heather & Ryan and Heather's brother and his family. It was delicious. Afterwards, we went up to Sundance for a full-moon lift ride. We weren't too sure about taking a baby- but Ben was a champ. It was so much fun... and relaxing. Here are some pictures we took on the lift: 

The Smiths:

Ryan and me:

We're hot:  (ok, so actually... we were kind of chilly)

On our way down the mountain, we saw a man on the ground, with a flashlight, looking for something. When we asked him what he was looking for, he said, "Keys." Ah man... I hope his night turned out ok and that he found them-- but I really doubt he did. If you have never done the full-moon lift ride, you gotta.  The drive back down to Orem was quite possibly the most tiring drive of my life- simply because we were all laughing so hard. I was worn out! Anyway, I've had such a fun week, and I'm sad to see Heather go!! (cha cha no!) 

The Sealing

Heather, Ryan, and Ben Smith were sealed on Tuesday at the Timpanogos Temple. Monday night, just before going to bed, I had the thought, "You'd better just make sure your temple recommend is still in your wallet." This thought made me nervous, because why wouldn't it be? I opened my wallet, and sighed a sigh of relief. My relief soon turned to horror when I noticed the date on it... April 2006!!! WHAT?! I just got this recommend? There must be a mistake! How could I let this happen? Heather's gonna kill me! I frantically called my bishop, who pointed out where my confusion happened... I felt like I had just gotten a recommend when I got the new recommend with the barcode on it a few months ago. BUT, that didn't renew it. My kind, loving, accommodating bishop then agreed to meet me at the church the next evening at 5:30 (he would have to leave work early), so I could make it over to the Stake President right at 6 (which is when the stake normally does temple recommend interviews). The sealing was at 7, and I needed to be there at 6:30... in American Fork. My bishop also told me that with the new recommends, it normally takes a day or two to get the barcodes activated, so he wasn't sure they would let me in the temple with the new recommend or not. I figured I'd better take my chances. Tuesday morning, I called the temple, and told them the situation. The man on the phone told me that if I could get it renewed, they would just do a visual check, if the barcode had not yet been activated. So, with the help of Bishop Pearson, and with Heather having to push the time back a half hour to 7:30 because a brother's car had broken down, and he wouldn't make it until then, I was able to go to the sealing. It was a really neat experience. I have been to many sealings between a bride and groom- but I had never been to a sealing of a couple already married... and with a baby. Everybody in the sealing room held it together until they brought in that baby-- all dressed in white. It was priceless. It made the sealing ordinance a little more tangible in my mind, when the sealer sealed that baby to Heather and Ryan. I was glad I could be there for it. Ryan was baptized about a week before he married Heather. I went to Georgia to be her bridesmaid, and I'm so glad they were able to come to Utah to get sealed! Here are a few pictures I took outside of the temple.

The happy family.

Everyone who stuck around for a picture (L to R): Ryan and Kate, my mom, Heather's dad, Ryan, Heather, and Ben, Heather's mom, Claudia and John, me, Deb

Deb and I were SO happy to be there!!

You know who...

I had to include this picture because of how cute Ben looked. 

Well, Orem Days have come and gone (I don't know what the official title of the Orem festivities are, so let's stick with Orem Days). I went with my sister and her family to the carnival. Here's a picture of Leah, showing her excitement about the carnival.

Here's one of Erica, Chase, and Emma taking a ride on the motorcycles. Chase loved it.

Last night, I spent some time with Heather, Ryan, and Ben. I am so glad they are in town. I can't wait to see them sealed! Isn't Ben adorable? Can you tell that I cut my hair? Well, I did. This is the shortest haircut I think I've ever had. I'm still adjusting. 

Random Happenings

My first random happening to report: I finished the book The Host. I enjoyed it immensely. There were a few descriptions of different "planets" I could have lived without... but overall, a highly enjoyable book. I don't normally enjoy sci-fi, but this was an exception. 

Second random happening: I am helping with my school's Summer Reading Program for the month of June. I'm actually quite enjoying it because I'm getting to know many of the students I will have in my class next year. The only not-so-good part about it is that I'm still having to wake up early. I guess I'll look on the bright side: at least I'm not sleeping my summer vacation away. 

Third: My friend, Spanky, is going to be on the show Deal or No Deal on Wednesday, and I'm excited to watch it-- with his luck, he'll probably win the million. 

Fourth: Next week I am going to St. George for the Core Academy (teacher stuff). I am driving down with four other teachers from my school on Monday and will be coming home Thursday evening. While we are down there, we will be going to two shows at the Tuacahn. We are seeing The Sound of Music and Les Miserables. How excited am I about seeing the shows? Very. I've never seen The Sound of Music on stage. I've seen Les Mis about a googilian times, but am more than thrilled to see it again. 

Fifth: My bestest friend, Heather, and her husband, Ryan, and their new baby, Ben, are coming to Utah in a week! It's a very exciting trip because a) I haven't seen Heather since November b) I've never seen Ben, and most importantly c) they are all getting sealed in the Timp temple while they are here. I'm very excited for them. 

Sixth: I got sad news (but exciting news at the same time) that another bestest friend, Marin, will be moving to Washington state next week. She got a job up there! I'm happy for her, but sad for those she's leaving behind (especially me... she's going the way all my friends seem to go... away!) Good luck, Marin!

Seventh: I just made a hair appointment for next Saturday-- Yay! 

Eighth: I have completely avoided preparing my Relief Society lesson for tomorrow by posting this... I better get busy. I also have to go to the church to practice the organ- tomorrow is a very demanding day for me. 

Happy Birthday, Marin!

I love a good surprise- both receiving one, and planning one. The past few weeks, a few friends and I have been planning a birthday surprise for our friend, Marin's, 30th birthday. We knew it had to be something good. So, we planned a special get away this weekend with her, and we pulled it off without a glitch, and had a really fun time together. Friday afternoon (after I got out of school for the year!!!), I went up to my brother's vacation home by the Homestead in Midway (literally, right next to the Homestead) and decorated their house birthday-ish with 30 presents that Lisa had bought and wrapped (beautifully) and other cheesy birthday decor. Lisa, Deb, and Melissa went to Marin's to pick her up to "take her to dinner" and told Marin that she had five minutes to get an overnight bag ready. So, without telling her where they were headed, they came up and met me in Midway. That's when the fun began. First, we went over to the Homestead for dinner (yum!), where Monica met us, then went back to the house for a night of rest and relaxation (and lots of craziness). Oh, might I add... the place we ate was situated beautifully. We sat outside, next to a small pond, equipped with fish, ducks, geese, etc. The landscaping was perfect, and the scenery was absolutely charming.

The only strange thing that happened at dinner was when we felt like we were eating dinner with royalty because several people came up to Monica and Melissa, because they were twins, and asked for their autographs... weird :) After dinner, we went back to the house, and before Monica and Melissa broke out their pedicure kits (they are serious about their pedicures), Marin opened all 30 gifts (which ranged from fake, ugly teeth, to a coconut shell bra, to a poker kit-- all things that she will never need, or use!) Her real gift was a card with money in it for a shopping spree in Park City, scheduled for Saturday (today). Here are a few pictures of her opening her gifts:

 

Then, the pedicure extravaganza began. First, we had to take a "before" picture

  

Then, we sat around the bathtub and let our feet soak. Then, the pedicure madness began. My favorite part was watching Marin squirm, as she has unusually ticklish feet. All our little tootsies looked absolutely fabulous when the Dixons were finished with us (until Lisa screwed up her big toe... way to go, Lisa). But, don't worry, Monica saved the day, and fixed it. Here is the "after" picture.

After pedicures and birthday brownies, we indulged in facial masks. Deb partied too hard, and zonked out on the couch. We made her wake up to take a picture of us, which explains our odd placement for posing. This picture is a result of me saying, "Everybody give a pirate eye!" Arrrrrrrgh!

To conclude the night's festivities, we watched the movie Hairspray. I didn't quite get through it before giving in to the call of the bed... which was extremely comfortable. This morning, we got up and made breakfast (which I would have taken pictures of, but Marin strongly objected to me getting out the camera first thing in the morning (well, ok- it was close to 11, but still... too early for picture-taking)). Then, we spent the day shopping in Park City. It was a lot of fun, but I spent a lot more money than I was planning to... that's ok... as I always say, "When in Park City... do as the Park Cityans." We concluded our day with dinner from Bajio's and a quick trip to the World Market (which, if you have never been there, I would HIGHLY recommend going... especially if you're in the mood for European chocolate). We had such a fun time, and I hope that Marin has a fabulous birthday (which isn't really until June 3rd). We missed you Christina, but thanks for your contributions! 

I DID IT!!

I got through today! Hooray! It was exhausting. We did three stories: Chicken Licken, Stone Soup, and The Enormous Turnip. We did our performance three times this morning. First, for my dad to record it. Secondly, for our "6th Grade Buddies," and finally-- the BIG production for our parents. We had a good turnout- maybe about 40 people. The kids did really well. But, it's always a little nerve-wracking having all the parents of my students in the same room at the same time, looking to me to be in charge, or something. I had one little girl who didn't have anyone show up to see her, and it broke my heart. She was even one of the main stars. After the performance, I invited the parents to either take their child to lunch, or eat lunch with them in the cafeteria at school. Every single parent that came did end up eating with their child, and this poor little girl was just sitting in my room with me, trying not to cry (it was 20 minutes before we were supposed to go to lunch). So, I dropped her off with Mrs. Gonzalez's class, and ran to Wendy's and got us both a kid's meal. So, she and I had a lunch date in my room. It seemed to perk her up. I had tried calling her mom, but she didn't answer, so I don't know what happened. Anyway, this afternoon, we celebrated (and also because it was "Student Appreciation" week) by having banana splits. And, I let the kids play this Hullabaloo game that's kind of like Cranium, only it's on DVD, and it's a movement game. They had a blast. But, needless to say- my room was complete CHAOS! Holy cow. Then, we went and watched the 1st Grade program which was absolutely adorable. Those kids (especially the ones that are Leavitts and Sullivans) are adorable.  I am tired, and very glad that it's a long weekend!

Big Butt

So, this morning, we invited the 4th grade class to come see our Readers' Theater. I was concerned about not having made enough room for the 4th graders to sit on the floor. I said, "I forgot that 4th grade bottoms are a little bigger than 2nd grade bottoms." Later today, the other two 2nd grade classes came in to see our production, and both classes fit into the same area that the 4th grade class barely fit into. I commented to Mrs. Gonzalez, "We could only fit ONE 4th grade class, because their bottoms are bigger." To this, Mrs. Gonzalez replied, "Man, I'm glad I don't have a big 4th grader butt!" Hana, one of my most responsive students quickly came back with, "Mrs. Gonzalez, your butt is WAY bigger than a fourth grader's." Here's to you, Big-Bottom! 

End of the year...

I know, for most of you there are still more than seven months until the end of the year. But, for me, there are officially seven days left in the year. Can I get a Hallelujah? Now, don't get me wrong... I do like my job, and I don't ever dread going to work (like with jobs past), and I do love my little second graders-- but, WHOA! I am ready for this year to be over! I'm trying to hang in there with my patience, but the kids are just as done as I am. We are getting ready for our little Readers Theater production this Friday. Last year, when I did this, I had a TON of parents and other family members come. It went really well. I almost didn't do it this year, but I decided at the last minute to do it, and now I'm not sure if I made the right decision. We're still kind of in shambles. I'm just hoping we can pull it together! I'll be very relieved when Friday is over. I'll be even more relieved when next Friday is over! 

I've surrendered

Well, here it is folks... my first attempt at going global. So many of my friends have blogs, and I am a religious blog-looker, but I've maintained that I have nothing exciting to share with the world, so I haven't ever gone global. But, I'm bored. Is that a good enough reason to start blogging? Friends have been trying to convince me to start a blog for a long time, but I'm a really boring person. That makes you want to check my blog every day, huh? I haven't figured out all the whistles and bells-- but, that can't be hard, can it? I'm wishing that I had my camera with me yesterday, but I didn't. I'll try to get into the habit of carrying it around with me. I went hiking with my sister Deanna and her husband, Erik (and their kids, Kris and Dallin) and another sister, Allison and her husband, Cam (and their kids, Erica, Emma, Chase, and Leah). We hiked to a little waterfall in Pleasant Grove. We had a good time, and I was especially impressed with Chase's little legs carrying him up that trail (mostly... part of the way I had the pleasure of carrying him on my back). The kids had a good time throwing rocks in the little river. When we got back down the trail, we ate lunch at some picnic tables at the bottom of the trail. Then, we headed out to Utah Lake on Erik's boat. Chase (who just turned 3) is all talk. He is all boy-- loves trains, cars, boats, airplanes... anything that "goes." But, he was terrified to get on that boat. He was convinced that he was going to fall in. Leah (9 months) was dang mad when we put on her life jacket. She was not going to have it... until we got going on the boat. After that, she was perfectly happy with the life jacket. She was completely mesmerized by the waves and sounds. She didn't even get upset when we got splashed with COLD water. Chase, on the other hand, did NOT have a good time. He wouldn't even let Cam hold him with just one arm. Both arms had to be securely around Chase. The water was freezing, and the crazy older kids jumped in the lake! I was mighty impressed with their sense of adventure. They had a good time splashing around. We warned them that they better not get too far from the boat- because none of us were going in after them. We got some grub at Bajio's and took it back to Allison and Cam's to eat. When I got home, I ended up going to the golfing range with some friends, which was a lot of fun, but now my right elbow pit is sore. And, my knee pits are sore from that hike. I spent a lot of time outdoors and it made me more and more excited for summer!