Chicken and Friend Rice Dream

Last night I dreamed that Mrs Reynolds ate a whole roasted chicken and then was throwing up everywhere and when I went to ask Nate to help me clean it up, he was eating fried rice IN OUR BED.  It was a very upsetting dream.

No Vasovagal Response!

Thanks to planning on my part (drank lots of water, brought an ice pack for my neck, and asked to do my blood draw while laying down) and a good nurse who only stuck me once with no digging, I had NO queasiness, dizziness, etc during my annual exam today!  Also, my doctor asked for my steel cut oats recipe and was impressed by my use of melatonin to get off my reflux meds, so it was a pretty good visit. 

Now to use the PT referral she gave me to get my hip issue sorted. 

Walk with a Neighbor

A neighbor who moved in over the summer (and only met once at the pool) put a note on our door last week to ask if I wanted to exchange contact information. I, of course, went a step further and asked her to go on a walk with me. Despite the cool and dreary weather, we had a nice time walking and getting know each other and I hope we get to do it again soon. 

Climbing Competition and Horseback Riding

Korra had her first climbing competition yesterday. Her coach said she did really well and has been improving a lot this year. 

Nate took her to that while my mom and I went to my book club. Only my two closest friends were able to come so it was actually perfect for Mom to get to know them a bit. 

In the afternoon, Korra went horseback riding with her Girl Scout troop. Korra said her favorite part were the barn cats. 

Grandparents and Special Friends Day

Today we hosted 400+ adults at the school for Grandparents and Special Friends Day.  The chorus sings, the kids show off projects in the classroom, and I chat with visitors and collect book dedication plate donations.  It's a fun, but busy morning.  I also got the opportunity to be a "special friend" for one of my favorite 5th graders who didn't have someone coming to visit her today.  We did a cool activity together, she showed me her work, and then her teachers let her come help me in the library for half an hour.  It was a really good morning.

Today is EXTRA special because my mommy is on the way!  She's going to come to my school first so I can show her around where I work.  Yay!

8th grade expenses

8th grade is turning out to be a very expensive year.  

$110 to register with the USA Climbing Competition league.  

$60 per climbing competition.  

$50 to register for All State Band try-outs.  

$790 for her Orlando band trip.  

$150 for end of year 8th grade celebrations (including a dance and a 6 Flags trip).  

$70 for a yearbook.  

And it's only October...

Kids' Quotes

"I'm smarter than you so I don't have to do what you say."

"I'm going to engage in some rebellion now."

"The way you say 'bye' is so cringe."

Biking Weather

With absolutely no in-between, I went from having to bring a change of clothes to school because I get all sweaty on my bike ride to school to having to wear an extra layer because it's too cold on my ride to school (it was 47 degrees yesterday and today!).  I would have liked just one day that was neither sweaty or cold.

Gnats

I could not figure out why there have been so many gnats in our kitchen since we got back from Disney and then I discovered a bag of rotting potatoes in a cabinet... ewww.

Korra’s Kitty Care

Korra's neighborhood cat sitting business is booming lately. She's got 2 jobs this weekend for new clients and has another new job next weekend. 

AND her science fair project is about how cats react to native and nonnative birds, so she's also spending time with 2 other neighbors' cats in order to do her experiments. 

No Kings

Korra and I went to another No Kings protest today. It started less than a block from our house and went the mile and a half to the capitol.

Resting and Recovering

I had to go to school for a few hours yesterday (teacher work day) and Korra had some make-up work to complete but otherwise, yesterday was a day to relax, watch TV, and fold laundry. 

Universal

 We spent the last 2 days at Universal Studios. The Harry Potter areas were really cool and the while the wand a student gave me 9 years ago didn’t work anymore, they let me exchange it at Olivander’s for free. 

Nate also really loved the Simpsons, Jurassic Park, and Nintendo worlds. Nate and Korra stayed from opening until closing, but I went back to the hotel in the afternoon because my cold was making me feel really awful. We had so much fun but I’m exhausted, sick, and very ready to be home. 

Epcot

 The adults really enjoyed eating and drinking our way around the world today. The kids were really, really tired and were therefore struggling with waiting for the adults toto try all the foods.  The Guardians ride was a favorite for everyone.

Headed back earlier today to let the kids swim a bit and get to bed earlier tonight. 

Hollywood Studios

 The Star Wars part of today’s park was really neat, especially for Nate.

Waiting in Lines

It's really busy at the Magic Kingdom today. Almost every line has been over 45 minutes. 

Animal Kingdom

After a bit of confusion about which park we were going to (went to Magic Kingdom first but there was an issue with park hoppers), we started the day with Expedition Everest (twice for most of our group, but Nate and I opted for a second cup of coffee instead). I powered through until about 3:30 but when I saw the next wait was 50+ minutes AND I didn't even really care about the ride, I opted to go back to the hotel alone. I laid in bed eating goldfish crackers and reading for 2 hours and it was exactly what I needed. Korra has so much fun with her cousins including a drawing class and a quick swim before bed. 

Delays

Delays were inevitable. We sat in until plane at the gate for 45 minutes because we didn't have a pilot, then we waited for 30 minutes when we landed because we didn't have a gate. Arrived at the hotel at 11:30. I'm dreading waking Korra and Nate up in a minute but we have to catch the shuttle at 7 with the rest of the family. 

Orlando Bound

We made it through a long security line (which was especially frustrating since our TSA pre-check wouldn't show up on our boarding passes) and are on the plane.

Preemptively Tired

I didn't sleep well last night and even though I'm not tired now, I keep thinking about how tired I will be when our flight doesn't land in Orlando until almost 10:00- and that's if there are no delays.  

Tuesday Book Clubs

Tuesday mornings are the best.  I have 3 back-to-back book clubs with a small group of kindergarteners, then first graders, then second graders.  Sitting on the floor in a circle, reading, and talking with kids who love to read- it's a really great way to spend an hour and a half.

No AC

There is no AC in the library.  It's currently 81 degrees in here and has been since I walked in at 7:20.  They're working on it but it's not looking hopeful.  I've got the back door propped open and while that helps it feel a little cooler, it's also making it super humid in here. 

Weekend Update

Friday evening we stayed at home, which is exactly what I wanted and needed after a busy week. 

On Saturday morning Korra and I went to buy her new shorts (she's outgrown all but 2 pairs and we're about to spend a week in Orlando). Thankfully Old Navy's summer clearance section had exactly what we needed. We met the Sniders at Wild Heaven around lunchtime to catch up and play some games (we haven't seen them since July) and then had some downtime at home. We walked to MARTA and took the train to Decatur, which turned out to be the best possible plan because we forgot about the Decatur Book Festival that was all over their downtown square. We picked up an order from Little Shop of Stories (for my school) and then had dinner at Brick Store. Unfortunately, the Book Festival was packing up when we left, though I wasn't too sad about it- even the idea of trying to convince Korra and Nate not to spend money is exhausting. The weather was lovely, so all the time outside and walking was perfect. 

On Sunday I went to the Quaker meeting in the morning and in the afternoon Nate and I went to see One Battle After Another.  I wasn't expecting much, but it was honestly an absolutely fantastic movie.  I highly recommend it.  We had homemade lasagna and freshly baked bread for dinner which I followed with a long bubble bath before being in bed by 9:00.  It was a pretty perfect weekend.

The B stands for Books

This morning I had a first grader yell, "Good morning, Ms Books!"

Overwhelmed by Disney

A week from today we'll be flying to Orlando to spend 4 days at Disney World (followed by 2 days at Universal Studios).  Today I started to feel really overwhelmed by it.  I'm tired and in need of this break from school.  I'm looking forward to time with Nate's family.  And also... Disney feels really overwhelming.  There are so many "tricks" and extras and strategies. I started to feel like my plan to go with the flow and see how we feel was "wrong" and that I was about to ruin the whole vacation before it even started (what if I SHOULD have bought the lightning lane passes and magic bands???) and all of Korra's childhood will be ruined and I'll have deathbed regrets and also that I'll be so tired I won't enjoy any of it at all.  

At the end of the day, I decided to stick with take it easy plan. I know my little family and I think that will be the best for us.