More Grandparents!

Korra and I spent the morning and early afternoon with my parents (they left a little before 3) and then Nate's parents arrived for dinner and bedtime.  Korra sure loves her MoMo, Grandad, GG, and PopPop!

Grandparents

My parents arrived shortly after we returned from DragonCon. We went swimming together, went out for pizza, and then she played with her new birthday gifts until a hour past when she should have been asleep. I think Korra had a fun day!

Korra as Korra

Parade!

Taking Korra to the DragonCon parade this morning and then meeting up with some friends for lunch. Photos of Korra's Korra costume to follow!

Crowns and Bubbles

Friday Before Labor Day

On the Friday before Labor Day, two years ago, I came home from work with plans to eat popcorn and ice cream for dinner and play hours of Plants vs Zombies. Nate would be at DragonCon all weekend and I was enormously pregnant. My neighbor convinced me to take a 39 Weeks Pregnant photo even though I could barely stand the thought of one more minute on my swollen feet.

Girls' Day!

Nate went off to DragonCon this morning so I took a half day.  I was really excited to spend a day with the girls and also to see a bit of what Nate's day looks like.  I picked up LN from preschool, made lunch, begged the girls to eat said lunch, and then put them down for naps.  Fingers crossed those last for about an hour and a half.  In the afternoon, we're going to make crowns and play with soapy water (with whisks and straws!)  It's a great start to my 3.5 day weekend!

Too Much

Twelve 8th grade classes is too many for one day. 

Take a Picture!

Korra put her baby on her dinosaur and then demanded to use my phone to take a picture. So here it is:

Impromptu Hang-Out

Went over to the neighbor's house for just a minute and ended up being joined by other neighbors, staying for 2 hours chatting and watching our kids play. It was wonderful. 

Ant Bites

Korra is covered in ant bites. On her feet, legs, butt, hand, fingers, and even her lip!  Poor baby doesn't seem to be in much pain (and they weren't fire ants) but she looks so pitiful!

Good Morning

Korra didn't cry when I left this morning.  (She just said, "Mommy going to work?  Mommy come home?"  When I said yes to both, she was fine.)  

4 students returned lost books.  

Nate sent me an adorable video of Korra playing on the playground. 

I found a couple things I have in common with my new Tues/Thurs assistant (even if it is only that we both had colicky babies and a fondness for dill pickles).

Ice Bucket Challenge

I do not exaggerate when I say that 85% of my Facebook feed is now Ice Bucket Challenges.

Blue Shoes

I'm wearing my adorable blue flats that perfectly match my adorable blue dress with the Peter Pan collar.  I get so many compliments whenever I wear this outfit, which is why I continue to wear it even though it feels like these shoes are eating my feet.

New Board Game

Played a new board game with Nate and our friend Chuck tonight. Any time I play a new game with Nate it feels impossibly complicated when he explains it, but then is often much more fun and less convoluted than I originally thought. I will definitely play Takenoko again! (Especially since I won!)

Sprinklers and Braids

Played in our new TMNT sprinkler and then my first attempt at French braids!

Jammas

Korra tried to dress the cat in her pajamas. I wish I had been able to get a better photo!

Jeans and Pizza

Got to wear jeans to work (since we had Open House yesterday) AND we're getting Mellow Mushroom pizza for dinner!  None of the rest of my day even matters.

Just One

Finished my To Do list before 8:30!  Granted, it was only one item long, but still...

Open House

We had Open House at school tonight. I usually dislike this annual event- it's time away from my family, it's during dinner, no one ever comes to visit me. But tonight wasn't so bad. I remembered to bring a book, a few people came by, and I was even able to be thankful for the simple pleasure of being comfortable when I remembered that at Open House 2 years ago I was so miserably hot and pregnant that my swollen feet wouldn't even fit in my Crocs. It's the little things.

Fast Talker

I talk fast.  I talk even faster when I've said the same thing 8 times a day.  My library orientation has almost hit lightning speed and I still have 36 more to go.

Crazy Lord

This is what Korra has been singing lately: Allelu, allelu, allelu, alleluia! Crazy Lord! (instead of "praise ye the Lord). This girl loves to sing and her versions of songs are awesome!

Laura and Clark!

Got to spend a few hours with my sister and nephew this morning (they were down in Atlanta for a wedding this weekend). Wonderful even if brief. 

No NyQuil!

First night in almost a week that I don't have to take NyQuil!

Good Book, Bad Movie

Read a really, really fantastic book.  Wool by Hugh Howey.  I highly recommend this futuristic dystopia-type novel.  It's miles above most of the books I've read in this genre lately.

Then I watched a terrible movie based on a mediocre book in this same genre.  Divergent.  I read it with our middle school book club a few years back.  The book was ok.  The movie was terrible.  I do not recommend it.

Moving Day!

The roommate has officially moved out!

Fireworks!

Thanks to an episode of Magic School Bus on Korra's iPod, we made it through the last 2 innings and got to see the fireworks!  Korra enjoyed them (they were her first!) though she was pretty sleepy at that point.  During the car ride home she was so over-tired that she repeatedly asked Nate and I if we were going to sleep and then would sing a round of "This Little Light of Mine" in Spanish.  On loop.  For almost an hour.  Needless to say, it's almost 9 and she's still sleeping.  

Baseball Game!

Completed all 8 back-to-back library orientations and my reward (besides a sore throat) is a Braves' game tonight!  Fingers crossed we make it through the whole game and get to see the fireworks after!

She's Funny

Korra cracks me up. When she's whining or having a little tantrum, she'll stop and tell you, "I'm crying" or "I frowin' a fit."  Last night she was putting a pair of pajamas on her toy dinosaur. When she was done she said, "Good job, Dinosaur!  High five!"  Then proceeded to try to figure out how to give the dinosaur a high five. She's so funny!

Last Quiet Day

This is my last quiet day.  I'm cataloging books and cleaning out a cabinet while listening to music. It's rather relaxing.  Tomorrow begins my 8 library-orientations-a-day schedule for the next week and a half.  Just thinking about it makes me tired.

Refrigerator Oatmeal!

Finally perfected my overnight refrigerator oatmeal recipe. My father in law was right, this stuff is amazing. 

1/4 c oats

1/3 c milk

1/2 container of Greek yogurt (I like mixed berry fruit on bottom best)

1 tsp chia seeds

A sprinkle of cinnamon

A squirt of honey

Stir or shake and refrigerate overnight. In the morning I love it with a little chopped toasted pecans on top!

Full Day

Got tired really easily but made it through the whole day of school and even had enough energy to cook dinner.  I think I'm on the mend. 

Half-Day

Left school right after lunch. Felt terrible and there wasn't much to do that was pressing. Took a 2 hour nap, filled up a cart at CVS with tissues, drugs, and candy and still feel terrible. Nate's in the same boat. Korra seems oblivious to both her runny nose and her parents' desire to move as little as possible. 

HP Audiobook

This is how I end up listening to the entire Harry Potter audio book collection every 2 years.  I get sick and the only thing I want to do is lay in bed and listen to Jim Dale read me Harry Potter.  Then I just keep listening.  Just finished book 7 in June.  Starting Sorcerer's Stone tonight.

Back-to-School Crud

Korra and Nate have runny noses, too. Looks like we all have a nice little back-to-school cold. Yuck. 

Soup

Thankful I already had everything on hand to make chicken noodle soup and that I had the foresight to buy a rotisserie chicken, chop it up, and freeze it. Less than 15 minutes of work and that soup felt so good on my sore throat. 

Sore Throat

Sore throat on the second day of school.  Praying this passes quickly!

Playground

Visited some friends today and went to a really cool playground. Korra loved it. So did Nate.

A Little Encouragement

In the grocery store Korra says to me, "Good job, Mommy. You're a good girl."

Perfect End

Ice cream for my afternoon snack, pizza for dinner with a bunch if our neighbors. Still managed to be in my pjs by 8:30. 

Daddy Daycare

Nate started his new gig- watching 2 toddlers!  I came home to find the girls taking turns pushing each other in the wagon and Nate ready to take a nap!  

Squeak, Squeak

Korra discovered that one of her pairs of hand-me-down shoes have squeakers in the heels.  We may never have another quiet moment in our home.

97

I've printed out 97 schedules this morning.  And I have 22 kids without schedules anxiously waiting in the library.  Yep, typical first day of school.

Ben & Jerry's

Publix must have planned their weekly ad with teachers in mind- pints of Ben and Jerry's are BOGO.  Knowing this:

 is waiting at home will make the first day of school much easier.

Genius!

Figured out how to transform these old TV/desktop carts (of which I have a lot and no one wants) into digital projector/laptop carts (of which I needed to purchase 4)!  Just saved myself $200 per cart, meaning we can buy 2 more projectors!  Feeling pretty dang smart.

Meeeeeeeeelk

We might have to move out of the south immediately.  Korra just made "milk" into a 3 syllable word.

Registration Day

Working from 8am until after 6 tonight for registration.  Longest day ever.  At least I get a boring job at a computer so I can update the website and my email groups.  And look up bulletin board ideas on Pintrest.

New Teachers

I'm a mentor to 2 new teachers this year. Our school has 8 brand new teachers and 10 more new-to-our-school teachers. I spent a large part if my day showing new teachers around, answering questions, and in one case trying to keep a new teacher from crying (it can be so overwhelming!). I hope I can be as helpful and encouraging to these new teachers as others were to me 8 years ago. 

HP Watch

My watch is broken and will apparently cost more than it's worth to fix. 

I've decided if I have to buy a watch, I'd like one of the sweet Harry Potter watches I found. Guess I have to get over how much I dislike eBay. 

Yellow Jackets

Good news: no carpenter ants!

Bad news: yellow jacket nest in our wall

It Wasn't That Bad

As much as I dreaded going back to school today, it wasn't that bad. 

Noooooooo!

Back to school tomorrow morning. Trying hard to be positive but the beginning of the year is a frustrating time that often reminds me of all I hate in public education. And that's not even including how much I'm going to miss Korra. It'll be better in a few weeks once I'm seeing the kids but until then...  God give me strength and joy. 

My Sister Makes Me Funny

I love texting with my sister. We crack ourselves up. 

Best Way to Wake Up

I get woken up from my afternoon nap by noise through the baby monitor- Korra is standing in her crib singing Frozen songs to herself. 

They're in the Walls!

I heard a crinkling sound in the wall near our front door. After a little Google search, I am 90% sure we have carpenter ants in our walls. We have a termite bond that covers ants too, but when I called the exterminator, the lady tried to convince me it was probably a rat in our walls (she swears carpenter ants don't make noise even though several reputable sites say they do and I even found a YouTube video of the sound).  After I insisted, she said they'd check it out but there's nothing they can do about rats.  It is not a rat.  Ugh. Not a great day to be a homeowner.

Shaky Wrists

The sun returned so I took on a second round of hedge trimming. My wrists are now aching and shaky but at least my azaela bushes don't look janky.

Half Trimmed Bushes

Got about halfway through trimming the bushes this morning before it started raining. It wouldn't look so bad if I hadn't stopped halfway through trimming the large gardenia right out front. Guess it's going to stay like that for a while because I just checked the weather (maybe I should have done that before embarking on this particular task) and it's supposed to rain all weekend. And school starts Monday.