Last Week of February

Last Saturday I realized at 1:00 that it was baseball tryout day, and it ended at 3:00. So I was rushing around getting Tanner ready, couldn't find a glove, drove to the sports store to buy one, etc etc. While in the sports store looking at way overpriced gloves Tanner told me he didn't think he wanted to play this year anyway. I was surprised, but we've certainly learned our lesson about forcing them to participate in something they don't want to do. So I took him back out to the car and we had a long talk in the parking lot. I made him weigh the pros and cons of playing or not playing baseball. Made him list his reasons he likes it and reasons he doesn't like it. So on and so forth. I probably made a much more scientific evaluation of the situation than absolutely neccessary. But in the end, the only thing he said he likes about playing baseball is running the bases, and everything else he is tired of. And he really does not want to play now that he's reached the age that the kids will be pitching. (That's when Tyler started hating it too). So I let him decide not to play this year. I asked him to try to think of something he'd rather do instead, and taekwondo came back up. So we may be getting back into that real soon.

Rusty spent most of Saturday helping his dad again with the Windows Vista/Lexmark printer problem. They ended up exchanging the printer for a different kind that promised compatibility. Sunday, Rusty's stepsister asked for some help with her computer, it was doing weird things. We went there, but ended up bringing it home where I discovered it had a virus. So I spent several days salvaging her photos and then formatting the hard drive and restoring it to new as best as I could.

Sunday Blake called needing a computer for a report, and mom was out of town. So he came by and printed some stuff off the computer and I visited briefly with Squeekie and Kyle. Was glad to get to see the guys, I have not seen them since Christmas. They change every time I see them. Also Sunday, me and the kids went to the funeral for Micheal's dad. It was a nice ceremony, as funerals go. They had a lot of old pictures out, I always love looking at old pictures. Micheal seemed to be doing alright but I know it was tough on her.

MOnday I had to work but nobody else in the house did. I was in meetings all day. While in my first meeting, I mentioned to another music teacher that I was considering moving up to high school band if i got the opportunity. She said that she heard that WC would be needing someone for color guard next year. I got excited, but then I realized - there's no way I can work at WC. I would have to miss every one of Tyler's Friday night football games and that is just NOT happening. But, still, the band director thing stayed on my mind all morning. My afternoon meeting was at Tyler's high school so I thought maybe I"ll just drop by the band room while I'm there and mention to the guy that i'm interested if anything ever comes up. But then I thought.......nah, not today, they're probably busy, etc. Half way through my meeting, another group of people started coming in to the other side of the library for some other meeting. It was none other than all the football coaches and all the band directors lol. So I figured that must be a sign that I am SUPPOSED to talk to this guy today. So I did. Turns out, he knows me and I know him. He wanted to know some things about my background in case something should come up, or if someone he knew was looking for a director. We discovered that we were both in Lions Band together back in the day. And he was glad to hear I am a former student of Gary Cook also. Mr. Cook remains legendary lol. It did not sound like anything would be open at VHS soon, but I believe I at least have my foot in the door for when it does. And I've realized there's just no denying it anymore, I need a change! lol

Tuesday, pretty crappy day at work. And I finally took the couple of days off that I have needed so badly. I stayed home Wednesday and Thursday. Basically, I was sick. Mental illness more like it lol. (But I did have a migraine Thursday.) I just needed to stop the world for minute so I could catch up to it. Wednesday I slept til 1:30pm, then took a nap from 4:30-6:30, and was in bed by 10:30 that night. Thursday I slept til 12:00, and that was all I needed I guess. I hope to be recharged now.

Monday night we had band practice - went well, better all the time. But we finally decided on a band name. We had a 3 page list of possibilities then wrote some more in too. We narrowed it down to 2 names and decided to just combine them both and be done with it. So, we are now the "SMASH ALLEY WAREHOUSE" band. Kinda has a ring to it lol. We were all satisfied. Here is a sneak pic I took.

I went in Tanner's room to install his printer and discovered he's been jotting down notes off the computer for his video games. However, he did not take the time to find a piece of paper to write on. So. Yeah. He's in big trouble. He wrote down cheat codes for his video game on the WALL.

Terri's cell phone she was gonna give us did not work out because it's not a Cingular phone. And Cingular could not give me a decent price for a replacement cell phone. They even suggested to me that I look on ebay lmao. So that's what I did. Got him another one exactly like the one Mamaw Gin gave him for $58. I told the teacher just to cover half and I would cover the other half, since he should not have had it out in her class. But she sent me the full amount. Heck, I guess I'll just take it. Since I had to buy an additional $25 SIM card to make it work.

I took a picture of my latest "set up". I have everything I could possibly need right there. I sit in that chair, and I'm surrounded by all the things I love to do, and I even have a nice view out the window too lol. I'm getting like Mom lol.

It's been everything from 25 degrees to 85 degrees this week. Somehow the other day, my boys ended up dressed alike lol. So I made them let me take their pictures.

I got to make the KFC cole slaw for people this week. THey had a fish fry where Rusty works. And yes, they thought it was awesome too! I've stayed with the Dr. Gott diet most of the week. I like it. I've lost maybe 2 pounds since last Friday, and that's about as good as I do on Atkins. And I've enjoyed the heck out of some apples, bananas, oatmeal, and soups. I'm gonna stick with this for awhile, if for no other reason but to load up on some vitamins and stuff. As long as I'm not GAINING weight, then I'm doing as good as I've been doing eating meat. But I still don't have the guts to eat potatoes or rice. And I still can't eat bread or sugar on either diet. I was cleaning out some stuff at work last week and found some old pictures of me teaching. Makes me feel better to look back and remind myself that I've lost weight. It's been so long now that I often forget and get discouraged sometimes. So here I am. I swear I don't remember myself as being that big. Thought I was a little plump was all. Here is me in about 1999 and about 2002.

This afternoon about 4:30, Uncle Ronnie was driving the fork truck across 61 South and somebody ran smack into him in a small car. From what I hear, he is basically ok, has bruises and scratches - it knocked him off the fork truck. The person driving the car was HOLDING a 19 month old baby. The baby was sent to Jackson, don't know anything on the driver. It sounds like a big mess and we're very lucky Uncle Ronnie is a tough old fart! Guess we'll hear more later.

This weekend is a birthday party for Dustin. And Tyler has another "acting party" at church. The dinner party where everyone has to be a certain character, kind of a whodunit thing. Hard to believe it's about to be March already. Spring Break is coming......just not fast enough.

Valentines' Week

With Girl Scout cookies and Valentines' Day happening all in one week .... well, I've once again tested my willpower that I pride myself for having - and lost yet again. But to make up for it I ordered Dr. Gott's No Sugar No Flour diet book and I started that diet today. It's basically Atkins + fruit + more veggies + a calorie restriction. Time will tell.

One of my rules for my blog I made for myself when I started was that I would not whine and complain because nobody likes to read that stuff, only the good stuff is mildly interesting. So writing about this week is going to be difficult to do! lol.

We had band practice both Monday and Tuesday nights. It was a lot of fun but darned difficult, I was worn out by Wednesday and had dishes and laundry piled up to the ceiling. Monday night our drummer couldnt make it so we got Ken to fill in, which meant him having to drag out his whole drum set, etc. Man did we appreciate him doing that! And, bless his heart, he didn't know any of the music beforehand, he just had to show up and kinda play along. He's braver than me, no way I'd have done that lol. And he actually really did a good job too. Because band was cancelled (then un-cancelled at the last minute) I had made Tyler a haircut appointment with a hairdresser that's hard to get in to see. But it's the only guy that's ever done a good job on his hair as far as Tyler is concerned. So I could not cancel it, I grabbed mom in the final moments and asked if she would take him. Of course, she said she would. So she took him for the haircut, then took both of them to McDonald's, and was the hero of their night. So much so that on Tuesday night they wanted to go back to her house again and they did. This time she was armed with an arsenal of sausage corndogs, pizza rolls, and cookies. Can't beat grandma lol.

When teaching school, a phrase often comes to mind for me: "Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug". 4 out of 5 days this week I was the bug and they got to be the windshield. Enough said on that. Grrrrr. But I will say I got maybe the 5th best "cussing" from a 6th grade kid I ever received. I had had enough of her and sent her to the office. As she was leaving she turned to me and said "Yo Mama!!!!!!"...........I laughed and said "What???? Did you REALLY just say to me 'Yo mama'????" It struck me as funny lol. She said "Yeah you need to shut up with yo' ol' ugly self!!!!" So I just said......."Honestly, is that the best you got????? That's what EVERYBODY says, I figured you'd at least get creative for me!!!!" But that was all she could say. It was aggravating, but I can rest with the fact that I did NOT get called fat and I did NOT get called "nappy-headed" (both of which I've been called in my past years). At least I have that much to be happy about lol.

We watched scary movies Wednesday and Thursday night. And both nights we ended up with every person in the house piled up in one bed to sleep. (Don't tell the kids I told...)

I was craving cole slaw so I bought some chopped cabbage and coleslaw mix and made the nastiest slaw I ever tasted. Then I took out the church cookbook and found (of course) Mamaw Gin's KFC coleslaw recipe and made that and OH! I've hit the big time now - it really does taste like KFC. I can't wait to make it for some get together some time and I'm not sharing the recipe.

Got to work Tuesday and we had no power (30 degrees outside). And they said we had to have school anyway, and the power would be back on in a few HOURS. But I said I wasn't gonna go on about being the "bug" this week....

Last weekend Tyler washed both cars. He backed them out and into the yard and stuff. It's so strange to see him in a vehicle DRIVING. I don't like how fast things are moving these days. Here he is, in case you're having trouble getting a mental picture of him DRIVING.

I did a Valentines' Day program Wednesday with my 2nd graders (adding to me being the "bug" this week...). We were videotaped to be put on the local cable access channel, but I have not seen us on there yet. Because I was directing the program I forgot about pictures til the whole thing was over, so all I got was this picture of them at the end.

Tyler got caught texting in class Monday and the teacher took up his cell phone. Customarily the parent has to go down to the school to get it. I told him to ask her to PLEASE just give it back because I didn't know when I could get there. When he asked her, she was gonna do it but it was GONE. Someone stole it out of her desk. So we are without a cell phone AGAIN. She called me to explain and says she will pay for him a new one. I don't know if I have the heart to make her pay for one, knowing how much a NEW one will cost. SHe is one of the only teachers Tyler has ever liked and I just feel guilty lol. I think Terri has one she will be able to donate to our cause but we will just have to buy a new card thingy. Hopefully that will work out for us.

I bought the kids a video game they wanted for Valentines' Day. Trying to steer away from so much junk food and stuff. Tanner wanted this $20 three pound chocolate heart at WalMart but I talked him out of it. BUt I did at least buy them a candy bar. Took Tyler to buy shoes that mom's been gonna buy him, but he didn't find any shoes in town he wanted. So we went to converse.com and he created his own style shoe and we ordered it. Was kinda neat.

One great thing did happen this week - I found my long lost friend from Gulfport, or she found me. We were roommates in college and we've kept up with each other through the years. But when the hurricane happened, I could not find her. I posted stuff on websites looking for her, and someone she knew emailed me and told me that she was alive and ok and all that. But that was the last I heard about her til this week. She found me on Myspace lol. I'm starting to like that myspace thing. ANyway, we've been catching up and talking about visiting together soon.

My friend Micheal (Michelle) emailed me Thursday and her father had died. He used to live down the street from us for years. So this weekend we will be going to the funeral most likely.

We're supposed to have band practice on Monday and TUesday night again this week. MOnday is a day off for kids but a work day for teachers. ANd I'm considering trying to find a sub for at least one day this week if I can, to try to regain some sanity. And I missed American Idol both nights last week. Rusty says I should be proud of that. Men.....

First Week February

Short week, since I posted last Sunday lol. And no pics this week either, been living too fast I guess.

*Tyler got another cell phone. My grandparents had an extra one thank goodness, and gave it to us. He really loves it too, thinks he's all THAT now because he has a flip phone and we don't lol.

*Tyler stayed home sick Tuesday. I had to be at work early every morning to take my turn at tutoring the early morning kids. Since I was tutoring I was not at the busses to unload them. My boss called my house looking for me lmao. He forgot that he had me tutoring. Tyler told him....uh, she's at work, she had tutoring this morning. So my boss felt silly and told Tyler to tell me that some crazy man called looking for me.

*I finally went wireless this week. I wanted to move my computer into my living room next to my piano and near my keyboard workstation. So I did, and it's terrific. Freed up some room in my bedroom also.

*Signed papers on our house Wednesday afternoon. They sent a notary to our house to do it all. It was like buying a house all over again, sorta.

*Tyler has been specially invited by the youth pastor and youth leadership to attend some kind of leadership seminar in Chicago in March. It's gonna cost me a little, but I think it will be a great thing for him. So I'm gonna try to see to it that he gets to go. This traveling to different places is such a PRICELESS education, I want him to go as many places as we can send him. He wants to go to the summer mission to China, but I've told him he'll have to wait til his senior year because my heart can't handle him being in a foreign communist country. He also came home wanting a TATOO this week and Rusty told him he could get one! We had a bit of an uproar over that. His 19 year old church buddy has a scripture tattooed on his back in Hebrew and Tyler thinks it's awesome. I told him I'm willing to consider it but ONLY if it is something small and religion oriented. Because anything else he may regret one day. And also, it has to be in a place that can be covered up while wearing a business suit. lol. And oh, he has to pay for it himself. Which I figure will put him getting one maybe in his senior year because he has a hard time saving his money due to McDonalds.

*We did not have band practice this week. But we're supposed to have it 2 times next week.

*Mom is redoing the lakehouse and we've enjoyed looking at the pictures, especially Tanner. He can't believe his eyes lol. He is ready to get out there and try out the new stuff in the kitchen and bathroom. He likes new stuff. I bought a new purse this week and he was DYING to help me put my stuff in it lol. I told him no, that females totally love putting their stuff into a new purse and I had to do that by myself to enjoy it.

*Today we got our income tax money. Paying off some bills and getting me some new tires before I blow one out. So it's not gonna be all that exciting getting the money really.

*This weekend/week I'm going to have to clean house. I quit doing it a few weeks ago because I don't have time. And I still don't have time. But it's gotta get done. So not looking forward to the weekend much. Trying to decide on how to make kids do it and not me. lol. We are supposed to go see the play this weekend that we were supposed to see last weekend. And I think Terri and kids are gonna come visit tonight.

Short, dull week.....

Post Game Update

Didn't get around to posting on Friday this week.



I spent a good bit of time on Monday filing taxes online. Also Monday band practice got cancelled, but we still got together with Lisa and learned 2 more instrumental songs to toy with. I went to bonko on Tuesday night, nothing spectacular or out of the ordinary there. AFter bonko I worked with Tanner to do a rush job on a science fair project due Wednesday. I went to see about replacing Tyler's cell phone that got washed in the washing machine and it was going to cost me $140. Thank goodness I was able to locate a freebie from my grandparents to replace it with instead! Wednesday was payday so it was time to take Tyler to get his much anticipated IPOD. But no one in town had one. So we drove to Clinton to buy one, which he greatly appreciated. The ipod's really are cool. I didn't think they could be so much better that they were worth that much money - but they really are neat. We had our once a month restaurant night at Billy's Italian restaurant and had a really good time and good food. On Thursday I had a pleasant surprise at work. I knew some high school boys were coming to observe at our school - it was some kind of class project on studying professions traditionally performed by women. But I didn't expect any students to come in my room. But I got one! It was Ronnie, the son of my friend Michelle. He had requested to come to my room lol. I had a real nice visit with him and GEEZ he is 17 years old now and talks with the confidence and mannerisms of a grown man. He got to stay in my room for 2 classes while we sang and danced. He probably left with a headache and a strong desire to never be a teacher lmao. But I think he at least had some fun maybe. Also Thursday we found out that Tanner won 1st place in chemistry in the science fair lol. Rusty's dad bought a brand new computer and was having some trouble getting it going right so he brought it over to us Thursday evening. I got to get a good look at Windows Vista. Pretty neat looking, not a lot worth mentioning either way that I could tell. But it was a lot of fun to look at and mess around with. Saturday Drew's dad got married in his parents yard down the street so Tanner and I went to the wedding - Drew was the ring bearer. It was a real nice outdoor wedding but cold as HECK. We had band practice most of Saturday afternoon where I also froze my tail off in the warehouse. Been COLD this week. Today was the Superbowl. We expected several folks to show up but not many did. No one was much excited about watching the Bears or the Colts. But we did root for the Colts because of Peyton. Keith and Jenifer came over, and Rusty's parents came for a short time. Tyler went to a Superbowl party at the church. We are supposed to have a full band rehearsal on Tuesday this week.

I guess in all, everything is good at the Gardner household, just as it should be! A few pics of the week are below.