That really bites, Robyn. Geez. What an honor.
I'm bummed about the election, also, but I read Kerry's platform for education, and trust me: it wasn't any better! His big ideas were this education trust fund that would supply grant money (how is that any different from a block grant?), and tougher teacher certification standards. NOWHERE in his plans were accountability for parents and students or adminsitrators. Just teachers.
There is the old saying that an unknown is worse than a known, and that might be the case in this area. I don't know.
My classes are growing, and growing and growing. My smallest class is 6. My biggest is 12. Which may sound small, but remember, these are ids with multiple disabilities who freak out when somebody LOOKS at them. And kids who may be okay in their regular self-contained class don't always mix well with the kids I have... my 3rd period group is a mix of our 2nd most restrictive (though, honestly, in my mind, it is really more restrictive than the most restrictive program) program, and one certificate class. From the restrictive program, I have both diploma track and certificate track students. Several of the students read at a pre-primer/1st grade level. And refuse to do any kind of adapted or easier work if it looks different. I have a whole class of students (that group) that didn't know how to write their signature. And they come to my class right after GYM.
And today, I left early (used some of the huge amount of comp time I have), and helped my mom do a mega-shopping at the commissary. No gym today, but I hefted soda and canned goods. That should count.

Robyn- gee you did such a great job of jury duty before......the feds caught up with you!! What a major bummer..........sorry to hear the bad news. Get any mail???
Mouse- glad you used some of that comp time......I am sure it felt good to have a bit extra time even if just for errands.
Kerry- congrats on the scale going down!!!
Summer- how you doing?????
Gee, can't wait for the weekend to begin......you mean it passed already???????Tomorrow is MONDAY!!!!!!!! aw crum.......too darned busy.....no time to relax.........this stinks. I am battle weary.....Dm has to go back in for more surgery for the same basal cell......seems the Dr did not get it all......
Gotta go, see ya tomorrow! After I take the stupid cat to the Dr for her checkup.
Take good care out there.
Ginny

HOWWWW can the weekend be over already?!
Once again...it is 1 a.m. and I'm waiting for the laundry to finish so that I can go to bed.

ONCE again... I'm exhausted......... maybe it is STILL...

This old cat is getting really really ODD with her bathrooming...

I went to see Alfie with a friend...the 10pm show on Saturday night...after we got the kids settled in... Don't waste your time! We behaved. We didn't even get a drink! Of course we were the only people in our theater....and it was FREEZING... We talked throughout the whole thing... about how STUPID it was..and how cute Jude Law is!
What a disappointment! AND it was depressing!

I did sleep until nearly 10 today! THAT felt yummy!

nope...no mail yet! Should I be worried?

hope everyone is doing well!

Mouse, I'm sort of with you about fearing the unknown! Guess we will see, huh?!
Gin, argghh...for your dm and that basal cell stuff.... hang in there!
Summer? Kerry? I don't remember reading a post from you lately?! You doing ok?

gonna try to sleep!
take care
meeee

Hi!
Just a quick hello as today is kooky.......this is new?????

Robyn- well at least one of us is getting some rest!!! I am jealous of the sleep till 10 yesterday, but you so deserve it and are up way later in the evening than I am. BTW, the mail should be there in a day or so.....I forget when I mailed it to you (sorry for being so late). Let me know if you have any questions about the stuff.

Kids were pretty good this am........so far so is my eating. I am out of here to go for a walk......need it for my sanity, which is holding on by a thread. Hope everyone is doing ok! See ya later.
ginny

Well, this weekend was quite a whirlwind! I cleaned until midnight Saturday and was up at 6am on Sunday only to continue with the cleaning and decorating. As of 11am when the doorbell rang signalling the first guests to arrive, I was putting on the finishing touches of my make-up. I didn't have time to style my hair, so I let it hang straight. Oh well! The kid party was fun, draining, cute, exhausting, and quite entertaining. We had three centers set up. Face painting and tatoos were done by my best friend in the kitchen. I was giving manicures, applying stick-on jewelry, and attaching neon hair extensions in the living room. My DH was overseeing karaoke on the other end of the living room. The kids each got a blow-up plastic guitar to "play" at the party and take home later. We had eight kids, and luckily all the parents stayed. I definitely needed "back-up!" (It is very different hosting eight kids at a house party than it is to teach 18 in a classroom!) The biggest issue was with DD's two closest friends who just happen to have the same name. Friend #1 and DD met days after birth. They have been "best friends" for seven years. Friend #2 is DD's best friend at school and in the neighborhood. They have a much shorter history. So, when the competition began between the two, #1 kept on "winning" DD's attention. #2 pouted a lot and required my repeated intervention to avoid hurt feelings. #2 is high maintenance already because of severely low self-esteem, and meeting #1 was more than she could handle. When they ate lunch, #1 & #2 sat on either side of DD. All the other kids including DD's "boyfriend" didn't even have a chance of getting near DD. #2 complained that DD was sitting closer to #1 than her. Then opening presents caused problems because my friend spent a lot on DD (We are after all practically family.) which made #2 feel inadequate about her gift which was a "Friendship Care Bear." #2 made sure DD and #1 knew that the bear was "FRIENDSHIP CARE BEAR!" And, #2 is DD's FRIEND. This poor girl was really upset. Anyway, the rest of the kids had fun...I think. At least they got to watch one heck of a performance from #1 & #2. Thirty minutes later, as I blended my first margarita, all of the kids were gone except for #1 and her little brother, and my family began to arrive. I couldn't stop yawning. It was enjoyable, but phew...that kid party really wiped me out. After dinner, we did karaoke and had a lot of fun. After cake, everyone left. Waking up this morning was not easy.

I will catch up on postings tomorrow night. Now I just want to crash!

Summer, glad to hear that you are still alive.......sounds as though the party was a great success, even with the friend issues. Home parties are so much fun ( I usually do one for my kids) but a well done party (like yours) is a ton of work!!!! And yup, I hear ya- so much easier to handle a crowd in a classroom (neutral location) than in your home. I'll be in your shoes next week- we are having Dd's bday party then (a month early, but with a birthday one week before Christmas, your options are limited!)
Anyway......ever wonder why you cleaned before a kids party?????? (we all do it, just seems so insane to do so!). I hope for you that this week is quiet.....somewhat sane (whatever that is) and you can regroup a bit.

As for me, I am pooped..the rest of this week will be hectic too, until Thursday (we are off, thank goodness and Ds gets his cast off then). Yup, I did get the walk in......it felt so good too, crisp fall air......bright sun.......I actually felt human for a few minutes.
Better go.......hope everyone is doing fine. Iwill most likely be MIA tomorrow.....stuff to do from sun up to sun down. Have a great evening!!!!!!
(miss you Mouse, Kerry and Robyn)
Ginny

Hi Summer,Robyn, Ginny and Mouse,
What a busy weekend I had! Friday night afterschool, I had to set up the reading room for our Fall Festival. Go shopping for a raffle gift and then went home to chill out for a little while. Saturday morning got up went to the gym and then done laundry. That afternoon I went to lunch with my dh and nephew. It was a nice relaxing time. Then that evening was the Fall Festival. I am never going to do Game redemption again. The way the kids and parents fought over who was going to be next in line for a bunch of cheat toys was hystercial but draining. I quickly slipped away from that postion when my shift was over. Yesterday I went to church out to lunch with my dh and then went grocery shopping. Only to come home and have a nasty aurgrument over what I was eating for dinner last night. I got a steak hogie and a sweet tea at the store on the way home from the grocery store. It is that TOM and I was craving something sweet and steak. My dh doesn't get it what it feels like to be a female and go through that TOM crap. So I had a crappy ending to my busy weekend. He felt bad that I didn't finish my tea and eat my dinner last night after our disagreement. But I threw away my food and tea after I lost my appiete. Then he wanted to get me something to eat and drink about 9 o'clock because he felt bad about our aurgurement. So needless to say, he is kissing up royally today.
Thank God this week is a three day work week with my kids. I have Thursday off for Vetran's Day and Parent/Teacher confernces(doing my on Wednesday evening) and then on Friday an inservice at school. I am hoping to be able to enjoy my day off on Thursday. I guess we are going to go van shopping that day. Enough about me.
I am glad to hear that your dd's birthday parties were a smashing success. I could understand how pooped you felt afterwards though. That is how I feel after my dh's family leaves our house after a family get together. I hope your day was great at school today.
Sorry to hear that your mom has to have more surgery. Glad to hear that you got your walk in and was able to enjoy the crisp fall air. I love taking walks in the fall. Hope you enjoy your day tomorrow. Don't be too busy that you don't get some needed Ginny time in.
Robyn, hope you finally got some sleep last night. I don't see how you can run on so little sleep. I get grouchy and not able to function properly on less than 6 to 7 hours of sleep. Hope your week is off to a good start!
Mouse, hope you enjoyed your comp time on Friday. How was your weekend?
Well I best be off to get ready for bed. Have a busy day tomorrow. Have a great day!
Kerry

Think I am going to scream......just left a post that did not take.......Kerry it was great to hear from you. I'll keep this short in case I cannot leave a post. See ya tomorrow!
Ginny

Good morning!!!!!! Seems as though I am chatting with myself today....something I am very good at anyway. Hope everyone has a great day. I got off to a good start, could not sleep (snoring Dh) so I got up early and did my workout tape. Guess those endorphins are a hummin' so I am a wee bit charged up.
See ya later!
Ginny

Morning Ladies,
Just a quick note to say hi and to see how you are all doing. My week has been off to a busy start. Got observed by my boss yesterday. I think it went well, but one of my students had to be a challenge the whole time my boss was in there. Last night I went to TOPS. I only gained 3/4 of a pound, so I was pleased with that since it is that TOM. Looking forward to having tomorrow off since today I have to be at work until 8 p.m. for Parent/Teacher Confernences. Well I best be off to go to work. Talk to you all later. Have a great Wednesday.
Take care,
Kerry

Kerry- congrats on the low gain......sounds more like a loss to me once TOM and the usual pound or two gain is over. Maybe the observation went well.....sounds as though it might have, and your boss saw you shine even with a somewhat persnickity student. Have you been able to get any workouts in?

My am is done.....and now I am off until 3. One school had an early dismissal, so I took them home and at least can catch my breath for a while. Oh, am I ever looking foward to tomorrow off, even though I have some errands to run and Ds's cast comes off in the am.
Better go get something done......see ya later and hope everyone is faring well today.
Ginny

I am SOOOOOOO jealous! I'm not off tomorrow! And not only am I not off, I can't be in my classroom. Remember I was allergic to the TB test serum? They remembered that I needed to have that chest x-ray and scheduled me for tomorrow late morning. Another teacher is picking me up and taking me to school, I'm taking the shuttle to the main hospital, but I can't get back to the school because there is no shuttle back till 12:30 or 1:00. Its 30 minute sback. I have no kids by the time I get back, so I told my supervisor Iw as going home! Actually, I'm going to take the subway home so I can get my car... if I have time, I'll go back to work.
And then Friday I have the surgeon's appointment, Monday I have my endocrinologist's appointment... Tuesday we have the 1st quarter awards ceremony, and then next Friday is a off-campus behavior reinforcer... they're oging to the movies.
WHAT A WEEK!

Mouse- sure sounds as though you have an awful week.....Doctor city! I feel for you, and hope you are blessed with lots and lots of patience dealing with all this. You must get sick of waiting rooms and Dr offices......... BTW, the veteran in my house (Dh) has to work tomorrow......which he is none too happy about. Hang in there, and let us know how everything turns out!
Ginny

Its not awful, just not the usual go with the flow... and my afternoon classes are going to fall so far behind because of next week. And my TA is less than thrilled with me for being out of the classroom so much.
I don't know why: I didn't complain when I was by myself for 2 weeks in April when she had surgery or when she went to Florida for a week last year. I am trying my best to arrange my times so that I'm out of the classroom as minimally as possible. I shouldn't let her make me feel guilty, since its an administrative issue with her salary and title... but I *DO* feel guilty!

Mouse- don't let her make you feel guilty! You know that you are doing your best to minimize out of class time, and gosh, you have to resolve these medical issues for your sanity!!!!! You are doing the best you can with the circumstances before you- keep your chin up!

Well, Ds got his cast off today.......that was traumatic enough, as it took forever to cut thru. It seems as though they took one look at him....he is a big active looking individual, and figured that no normal cast would do, so effectively he had on a double cast. Took the nurse in the Dr office forever to remove it.....noone could believe how much cast material was on his hand. But it is off, and at least for now, he is happy.
Got some errands done, and got to WW. No loss, same weight (now how did I pull that one off?) And got out for a nice long walk today. And enjoyed the day with NO SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Do I really have to face the masses tomorrow???? Kids have a half a day tomorrow, but for many reasons, I half expect to be driving some extra tomorrow, so i think I will shower tonite. Could be driving an early HS run......and Ds is home tomorrow, so Dd can stay home with him. Oh well, it should all be over by 2:30 in the afternoon tomorrow no matter what. Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday.
Guess I'd better go clean up from dinner.
Kerry, Summer and Robyn, how are you doing???? See ya tomorrow!
Ginny