Last time I'll bug ya'll..........The dress I bought for the cruise.......
BTW Robyn: The luggage I bought is expandable.........Hop in.....
Lesson plans to do........

Evening All:
Welcome to Melody and Zelma!! Hope you find all a lot of wonderful support from our little teacher/bus driver group. I know that I sure have.
I have had a rough weekend. My twin sds' spent the night with their cousin on Friday night. When my dh went to get them yesterday morning, he brought the cousin home with them. He is a wild little boy. He was at our house until 3:45 p.m. yesterday afternoon. Then I took the boys and my sdd to my friend's little girl's birthday party at the skating rink. It was a two hour party. We went right to the party and came home. We waited for my dh to come home and go out to dinner with us. Well the kids were hungry and after 45 minutes waiting on their dad, I took them to the local pizza pub. I was a nice wife I thought and left a note for him. Well when we came home he was ranting and raving because he just found the note by the phone. So he hollared at me about where to place notes for him from now on. Plus he hollared at his dd and one ds. Then was sweet as can be to the other ds. It hurt my sdd's feeling and mine feelings at his little temper tantrum. So I took his kids and left. I went to my mil's house since two of the kids were spending the night with her to go to church this morning with her. So I visited with her for about and hour before I brought my one sds home with me. My dh never came home until 11 p.m. So I was in charge of the kids for most of the afternoon and evening. My nerves were shot and it is that time of the month for me. I started yesterday afternoon right before going to the birthday party. He had the nerve to ask me why I was mad at him? Hello you acted like a little child screaming about how you missed out on dinner with us. I can't help it he left the house and didn't leave a note telling us where he was or how long he was going to be gone. So I thought things were better. Went to bed got up this morning, did 30 minutes on the gazelle. got ready for church went to church. Only to come home to mean dh again. He told me that he wasn't going to fix anything for the kids to eat. If I wanted them to eat then I had to fix them something to eat. Then he lit into his dd about how he hurt her feelings. She tried to explain to him that he was hollaring at us last night except for her one db but he swears up and down that he wasn't hollaring. After giving him the cold shoulder, he finally realized that he was a meany and started acting nice again. The twin boys asked us if we were going to get a divorce since we had a disagreement last night. I think they are really worried that we are going to split up! How can I reassure them that we are not and that we just had a disagreement? Hopefully this coming week will be better for everyone! My left arm is killing me. I don't know if I strained or pulled a muscle in it. I keep rubbing MYoflex on it. The pain comes and goes. I guess if it is not better by tomorrow, I will calling my doctor to have him check it out. Enough babbling from me for now!
Sounds like everyone has had a busy weekend! We cleaned house today. I also did some laundry. Hopefully I can keep on top of it this coming week. It slowly crept up on me this week.
Zelma and Pam, love your pictures. What an insipration you both are! Keep up the great work! Just the motivation that I need to stick with my diet and excerise to take off my weight and get fit in 2006.
Well I better close for now and get my stuff ready for school tomorrow. Like packing my lunch and dinner. Have a long day tomorrow. Work the afterschool program until 6. Stop at home and then take my sdd to Curves with me to workout.
Talk to you all tomorrow!
Kerry

Hi all,
thought I'd drop in and say hello. I'm an English teacher in a small town in Maine. I've been battling my weight my whole life, but I gained a lot when I got married and started working full time. I'm glad I'm not the only one who gets stressed out during school time! It's hard to teach a full day, then come home to laundry, cleaning, dinner to make, etc. I don't even have my own kids to look after. I have great respect for all you moms! I have about 30 more pounds to lose. I've taken off about 15 and am holding steady so far.

Have a great week! Don't let the kiddos get you too stressed out!

Thank you SO much for the welcomes and encouragement everyone! I just KNEW that this would be a great group to join.

I really enjoy reading about your days in general and about your school days. I love checking out any similarities and differences between here and across the seas. It is always great to hear that teachers face the same problems all around the world, it is not just happening to me in my little classroom.

I may have to come back here LOTS in a few weeks time, looking for some shoulders to cry on. I know it sounds silly, but I really have NOT got my head around having grade 2 this coming school year. I just don't want that grade level again after having them for so many years earlier. Oh well... I know that I will love the kids, I just got bored with the content. I'll have to make sure I motivate myself huh?

Oh Pam, glad you worked out how to post pics. You can post more than one at a time, you just upload as many as you want at one time. Well... there may be a limit to how many you can post, but you know what I mean. My favourite pic of you is the one in black, so I just KNOW you will look great in that dress!

Thank you all again. I hope to be 'chatting' with you often.

Zelma

GOOOOOOODDDD Morning people! For the record, I am NOT bright eyed nor bushy tailed...but I thought I'd say hello anyway!

Beware! Get your business in order! This afternoon, I may PERSONALLY cause the earth to end! Yep, that's right.... Today is my first after school exercise class with my coworkers! Yep, that's right.... H E double hockey sticks is going to freeze over! I will be "out in public", with limited clothing, moving my BigFatFanny! Don't you worry.... the limited clothing will be MORE than most will be wearing all day today.... so at least the end of the earth won't be totally whiteflabBLINDING!

Off to put on my daily duct tape on my mouth and find my bookbag.... at least I know it isn't in the living room.... it is too clean! As they say on the morning announcments at my school. Make it a great day or not! The choice is yours! (sigh) (The sigh was my own!) Oh, btw, anyone know WHICH clothes in my January/Winter closet I should wear on a 65degree day?! The weekend wasn't THAT warm! What to wear, what to wear!

take care,
meeeee (Oh, I'm Robyn for the newteacherchickies!)
Gin, I'm sooooooooo sorry ...re:baseball all year! We get Dec and January OFF from the fun!

Zelma, Melody, & English Teacha!!!

English: What part of Maine are you from? I vacationed in York Beach last August with friends who have a summer home there. It was my first trip to Maine. You must LOVE all the great outlets you have!

Rob: Thanks for continually writing entertaining posts! 65 degrees?! Yeesh! I don't know what you will wear today, but DD just left for school in her DOWN SKI JACKET!!!

Gin: Year round baseball...hmmm...is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Mouse: I am so inspired by the miles you swim. You are fabulous!

Kerry: Men can be such pr*cks!!! When my DH is an unreasonable a**hole, I reassure DD that all couples argue. What is not normal is when it becomes physical.

Pam: I haven't gone all the way back in the posts since I've been sick. Where and when are you travelling? I will have the excitement of buying a formal dress for my nephew's wedding next October, hence my increased desire to drop huge amounts of weight!!!

Fran & Michele: I guess you ladies joined our group while I was away. Michele - you've got a great 'tude! Fran - I'm also a preschool teacher. I teach regular ed four year olds in the inner city. I LOVE IT!!! I got my program accredited by NAEYC in 2003.

If I missed anybody, I'm sorry. I've been busy all weekend with much unpleasantness! My friends, poor DD vomited every 15 minutes from the moment she got home from school on Thursday until 2:30am, Friday. Just to make things more exciting, she had diarrhea coming out simultaneously. I haven't pulled an "all-nighter" with a sick child in a long time. Just as I would begin to drift off to sleep, she would get sick again. Up and down, up and down with a miserable child (who took it a lot better than she ever has before) for nine hours!!! She continued getting sick all day Friday and into Saturday. 36 hours after DD began vomiting, I woke up vomiting and have been sick ever since. I took a sick day today because I'm still not better. This weekend has been the WORST I've had in longer than I can remember. It is frustrating enough not having gotten anything done (My Christmas decorations are still up! My bedroom is a mess. My car still needs an oil change. I still need to get to the post office. The spare room still looks like a bomb hit it. I have laundry up the wahzoo!!!), but on top of it all, for DD and I to get sooo sick has been horrible. I have to say, she took it much better than I did. I kept saying, "I'm so sorry your sick baby..." And she'd say, "It's okay mommy." Meanwhile, when I couldn't stop dry heaving, I was screaming to God to make it stop!!! Lovely.

OKAY, ENOUGH COMPLAINING!

Happy Monday....One down, four to go....I'm just excited because we have a three day work week with the kids next week. We're off Monday, and then have a required workday on Tuesday.


Pretty uneventful day today. I like them like that. This whole week is gonna be slam packed full of meetings. Yuck....

Robyn: How'd your excercise class go?....We are too having those lovely temps down here. I'm getting ready to do round two with the total gym. I can finally move my arms and walk again.. Ha! My hubby said I sounded like an old woman whining yesterday.

Omigod......Robyn: The make it a great day or not, the choice is yours....My formal principal said that every single morning for two years....Then she would add I love you.....Ha...Brought back chills......She was a little over the top....Love the phrase though.

Summer: You poor thing.....I'm so sorry you are sick. I hate having stomach stuff. It absolutely sucks. Hope you feel better soon. Sending you hugs.... We are going on a cruise the first of March. Hubby's brother is getting married and paying for our cruise....So, we are going to the Keys and Cazamel...(sp)

Zelma: Thanks for the compliments! I know you could upload more than one, but it kept saying my file was too big and I got sick of trying to reduce them to attach them, so I did it seperately.

Kerry: I certainly don't see myself as inspiration. But, thank you anyway. I have found this time of day to be the worst, as I just came in and ate a chicken wing....Oops.....

Teacha: Welcome! Glad you found your way....I love these CRAZY women, and you know who you are...............

Mouse: Hope your week is a big improvement over the events of last...

Ginny: Have you painted those red stitches yet?

Anyone I've missed???????HEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, wish me luck, off to do battle with the total gym......

Pam

Evening, all!
You guys were sure busy while I was off at work! :grin:
Welcome Zelma, and Teacha! I hit Melody last time she was here.
Summer: Hope you are feeling better. It was 65 here today, too. But its okay, because I still went to school in a fleece, with turtleneck and my thick fleece Eeyore hoodie that my mommy gave me for Hanukkah. Of course, my mom was amazed that I'd wear that in the classroom!
Kerry: Thanks. I had to call my endocrinologist today, and tried twice on my cell phone, but they couldn't hear me. My phone SUCKS near my school, so I gave it up and came home. Of course, I called her an hour ago, and so now I'm being rewarded for returning her call by not having her call me back. Her office closed at 5. Sometimes she'll call me later, but not always. Unless I manage to get my rear out of the building before the buses tomorrow (which is like 3:55 and 5 minutes before I am allowed to leave!), I won't be going swimming at all for the rest of the week. I have a Council for Exceptional Children board/membership meeting with National Headquarters at 6:00. I don't think I can get to the gym and get home for the phone meeting by 6:00 since I don't get off till 4. Wednesday I have PT, and Thursday is the rescheduled winter concert. It was cancelled due to a snow/ice day, and then we were having renovations done to our auditorium and they couldn't fit it in before break. The Severe Disabilities teacher typically has the kids come back for activities once or twice a year and we have dinner as a group and go to the concert. So, I said I'd do it with her... The kids are coming back at 6:30. And Friday I have what is hopefully my last PT appointment for awhile! I can swim Saturday, Sunday and Monday, though!
Robyn: :shudder: My insane prinicpal in my inner city school used to say that! ALL THE TIME! Oh, oh.... I'm having chills! Have you noticed that most principals tend to be insane?
Pam: I love the pictures and the dress is awesome. I'm dreading prom: I have 1 senior and 2 juniors, so I'll be a prom chaperone, which means I need a formal dress. Oh, and my senior's mother is already planning this huge bang-up party for her son... and is inviting ALL his teachers! I've never been invited to a student's party before. I do hope its not on a Saturday... how will I explain that I'm not in town????

Hi. I hope you all had a good day. I write a weight loss blog at http://2006weightlossfix.blogspot.com/ You can go there to read about my day.

Melody

Me I am one confused bear here.........so many posts to keep up with....and I am burned out bus driver after all......where is the dumb chocolate anyway???
(actually, that is why I am here.....had to extract myself from the stuff.....today is still salvagable......still within points range).

Welcome Teacha! Congrats on the 15# loss!!!! You must be doing something right. It will be fun getting to know you better.

Mouse- in my book an Eeyore hoodie is high fashion.......I'd wear one if I had one. Too bad about missing the endocrinologist and swimming for the rest of the week.....You figure out how to get around this prom thing? (gosh, it seems to early to be talking about proms)

Pam- LOVE the pictures....and I agree, the one with the black sweater is stunning. You have much to be proud of......have come such a long way....Proud of you, girl! BTW, no, I did not get my red hand prints done yet, but my darned orange trees have that crummy canker.......want to go for lunch in Ptown? And BTW, the more I think about the book, the more I get annoyed.....

Summer- you poor lady.......I hope you feel better soon. Gosh, if you have been that sick, you might be too weak to work tomorrow too. Please proceed slowly.....take care of yourself and get better. My stupid line (but it is true) is that housework is very patient, it always waits for you.....get better soon!

Robyn- well, you know where might just freeze over tonight, but I for one think that an exercise class with you in it would be a hoot!!! Good for you.....I know that that has been the one part of WW that you have not been able to really get into yet. Proud of you!!!! Hope you had fun.

Fran- congrats on the weight loss!!!! Hopefully the exercise fairy will visit you too.....it can be so hard to stay motivated.

Michele- sorry about all the meetings and nonsense.....hand in there...keep your focus.

Kerry- sorry that your arm is hurt.....getting any better?? Too bad about your weekend. Gee, it is tough looking foward to a day or two off and then having family stuff that does not work out for you. Hugs.....

Zelma- well, I guess dealing with students is just that.....dealing with students no matter where we live. And the stress that goes with it does not change either. Glad you joined us!

Well, lets see...kiddies were sort of ok......Dd injured her back (came home in tears last night) so had to get her set up with the chiropractor today. Snuck in a dentist appt this am......now am trying to detox a wee bit. Atilla is fighting his tendency to be crabby, so at the moment I am sort of staying out of his way (and the way of the chocolate). All in all not a bad day- tomorrow should go better as Dd has social plans for most of the day and I should be able to get some housework done between my am and pm. Aw crumb, can't they walk to school???????

Ok, so you can all tell that I am losing it here......I am about to do something dumb on Wednesday. I am going to buy a pair of size 10 jeans (my 12's are starting to be awfully worn). No, I can't fit in the 10's yet, but I have to shake some more weight off......gonna hang the 10's up on the front of my closet as an incentive......must be insane....you knew that anyway.
Better go load the dishes. See ya!
Ginny

Gin, there were moments today that I had serious questions about school tomorrow. I combed through all the mats in my hair...they haven't been this bad since I gave birth to DD...and took a long shower. I still felt really weak. But, I had to go to the pharmacy and pick DD up from school, so sooner or later I had to get my act together. So, I dragged myself upstairs and threw some clothes on around 3:45. Driving was an experience. I was totally lightheaded...I felt drugged up. But after having chicken and rice for dinner, I feel a bit stronger. I think I've got my "sea legs" back. We will see how I do in the morning. Thanks for your concern. How did your DD get hurt? Good luck with the size 10's. That was my thin size back in the day.

Mouse, one other teacher and I wear our Disneywear proudly to school. I used to get funny looks, but no more.

Pam, your cruise sounds FABULOUS!!! How exciting to combine a vacation along with a wedding, and having it paid for as well...it can't get better than that! Do you get a week in March off school instead of February and April? My sister's school used to, but they went back to Feb. & April.

Oh
miiiiiii
GAWWWWD!

I did it. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't what I'd call fun. ...but I did it!
Even my fingers are throbbing tonight! I can barely type! (You think I'm joking, right?! Well...I'm not!) When the weather changes to extremes, I always have aches and pains....Just call me Granny... So today's 65degree weather would have caused aches and pains alone... but then add to it my 45 minutes of huffing / puffing ...I mean exercise class... I'm feeling rather icky tonight. I've taken an extra dose of Alleve and I'm heading off to the shower! I am sorry that I have no energy to get personal with everyone! Please forgive GrannyExerciser!

(((hugs))) Make it a great day or not. The choice is yours! (Pam, I love you! hehehheee!) See, even with no energy I can still be MEEEE!

take care folks!
meeee

This is in honor of our very own Robyn... As composed by one of my students during English class last week...
"Oh Mr. Pig... :knock: :knock: Hey, PIG! I know you're in there!"
"I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll knock your classroom door down."
"Don't make me do it! I will, I swear!!!!"
"Awwwww, come on, Mr. Pig. I really just want to be friends! Please let me in? I got some of the good stuff with me... I'll share!"
"Awright! That's it! I'm COMING IN AND YOU CAN'T STOP ME!!! :WHOOOSH!:"
My kids are rewriting picture books, and then we're going to either put them in our talking word-processor/Powerpoint thingy, Powerpoint or Windows Movie Maker.
(I took at all the spelling errors so you'd understand it!)
I spent my evening making 2 weather activities in our IntelliTools software... One is a worksheet that the kids have to answer questions, the other is graphing the weather. I did see other activities that were similar, but not exactly like mine. The graphing activity doesn't have the days of the week or anything in it.
And, I'm fighting with my washing machine again. You may remember the washing machine died on New Years Eve... I reported it last week, and got a note saying it was fixed. I'm not sure what the guy thinks he fixed, but it still doesn't work! I usually put the laundry up before I leave for work and sort it out when I come home. I was greeted tonight by a washing machine full of COLD water! Now, mind you, I'm already freezing to death... putting my hands in that water to wring out the clothes was torture. The dryer wasn't happy about it either: I don't usually put my school clothes in the dryer, but I don't have a choice at the moment. The stuff is too drippy to hang.
Ginny: I'm not going to get out of the prom. I'll be going. The problem will be finding a DRESS! It needs to be long enough to hide my shoes, because I can't wear heels or dressy shoes. They just don't make dressy flats that fit my orthotics, and they don't make dressy boots that are flat either. So I have to wear either my sandles, my sneakers or I have one pair of ankle boots that are semi-dressy.
Last note: did any of you happen to see on your news this evening about a house fire in New Mexico? Apparently,the homeowner caught a mouse in his kitchen, and instead of killing the poor creature outright or letting it go, he added it to a pile of trash he was burning in his yard. The mouse caught fire, and ran back into the house while the mouse was burning. Poor thing! I mean, I don't want mice in my house necessarily, but to light it on fire while it was alive? That's just flat out cruel! And of course, this mouse felt very sorry for that poor little thing.

Howdeeee,
Just sitting here eating my oatmeal and trying to decide what to wear again today. Today, my bushy tail is sorta perky and my eyes I know are bright as I am thrilled to report that I woke up without my BigFatFanny screaming at me from my time in the school gym this morning! AND I also noticed another change (small but it moved!) on that darn scale today! Gee, who'd have thunk it.... Eat better, drink water, and exercise and viola! You'll shrink! Eureka, huh?!

I'm off to make sure all my i's are dotted and my t's are crossed. We have a huge Eligibility Meeting this afternoon.... I'm sorta ill over the thought of it! This is not going to be easy. I am a SpEd mother as well as a teacher....but this mom is a bit nuts, IMHO!

Gotta run....
don't want to forget my duct tape either!

take care,
meeee

HatterasMermaid,

Good luck with your meeting. I am a special education teacher, too, and I know about nutty parents.