YIKES!

I know Halloween is over, but I had quiet a scare yesterday morning...
I was in Anna's bathroom calling for her to come in and have her hair done, and what do I see out of the corner of my eye?????? A MOUSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I screamed - very loudly, and ran out of the bathroom, still screaming. Anna had this "what the hell" look on her face. She obviously didn't see the little varmint come out of her linen closet and come after me.

So, my hero (aka Bryan) set 3 traps - the snap kind with peanut butter, not cheese. Country boys know everything. But here's the even worse part - he went out of town for work later that day, so I had to come back to the mouse house with just Anna. I'm not gonna lie - I was mostly scared and grossed out (I actually felt my chest tightening during the school day when I thought about it). So anyway, I did a quick peak at the traps and two of the traps had dead little mice. Good: dead mice. Bad: more than one, means still more. I moved the empty trap to Anna's bathroom and stuffed the bottoms of the doors with towels, and no, I did not remove the dead mice. I left those there for Bryan's return, because like I said, mice are gross. I actually went to sleep because Bryan assured me that mice like food and water, neither of which I had in my bed or Anna's bed. I still dreamed about those little rodents, but I'm pretty sure they left Anna and me alone. Aren't you proud of me for sleeping in my mouse house without Bryan to protect me? I sure am, but that doesn't mean I want to do it again. Anyway, he did his good husbandly duties today and cleaned everything up when he got home (including the 3rd dead mouse in the trap I moved), and reset the traps in case there are still some hiding out.

The reasons why I hate mice:

1. they are uninvited guests
2. they pee and poop on your stuff
3. they eat anything and ruin your stuff
4. they might touch you
5. they can smush their bodies and fit through small spaces
6. I see no real purpose other than grossing people out
7. they have tails (I have a tail issue. Maybe someday I'll tell you about the panic attack I had when I was in the education room at the Louisville Zoo, and the zoo person wanted me to look at and touch an opossum. OMG it still makes me ill.)
8. they are like little thieves - getting in your house and ruining your stuff. I know I already said that in #1 and #3, but I really hate mice.

Today I am thankful for:

• Carol offering for Anna and me to sleep at her house
• Bryan coming home and cleaning up dead mice and their droppings (see #2)
• not being a single mom that has to deal with mice all by myself
• funny students

PS: I know I was supposed to post Halloween pictures, but the blog doesn't like to upload my pictures. I might try again later.

PPS: Have you seen Annie's Eats? That nut is at it again - her Thanksgiving plans. No one even likes brussel sprouts.

The end is near.

We have 8 days of school left -yes! It's been a good year. I've had some interesting issues to deal with but, all in all, it's been a good one.
We had our parent program today. The students write letters to their parent(s) about what they learned in first grade and what they enjoyed about first grade (recess). The letters are very sweet. They read the letters aloud to their parents, and did an awesome job.
Last year I made muffins and punch, this year I made some easy favorites:

• banana nut mini-muffins - I used the Martha Stewart recipe for banana bread that I always use, but made mini muffins (350 for 12 minutes). The strange thing is the muffins don't taste near as delicious as the bread.
• French Breakfast Puffs - also minis - from PW
• Hello Dollies -see recipe below. I probably put it up before, but I don't feel like looking.
• I bought the orange juice.

I had a lot of parents say "thanks" and they "enjoyed the program", but I had just as many not say anything. How do you not say "thanks"???? I spent 3 hours of my time baking those delicious goodies. I could have given them nothing and not done a program, because obviously it's easier. I'm also annoyed that parents don't follow my directions: Parents get the treats first. When I say it's ok, students may have 1 treat. Why do they feel it's necessary to give their child more treats???? I will never understand. I will still do a parent program again next year - for the parents that enjoy it and use their manners.

Hello Dollies

• 1 pack of graham crackers - smashed into crumbs
• 1 stick of butter melted - mix with the crumbs and make a thin layer in a 13 x 9 pan
• 1 cup butterscotch chips
• 1 cup white chocolate or bittersweet chips
• 1 cup coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk over the top of the layers above
• bake at 30 minutes at 350
• I like them in the refrigerator.

I am thankful for:

• getting to watch Anna squeal with joy while looking at the animals at Pet's Mart
• a strawberry milkshake from Steak N Shake
• people that use their manners

not sleeping

So I went to bed, then thought of something, and so now here I am typing to get things out of my head so I can go to sleep and wake up at the ridiculous hour of 5:30 am.

• I wrote a message to my friend's status, then thought "is that mean? I didn't mean for it to be mean. I thought it might be funny, but I can see how that might be mean." So I got up and let her know that I didn't mean to be mean. Am I spelling mean wrong??? BTW she didn't say anything about it being mean, it's just how I over think. I have foot-in-mouth disease from time to time.
• I don't know why Anna bites kids in her class for no good reason. I've been getting the bite reports again this week. Do her teeth hurt? Is she feeling sick again? Is it fun to bite other kids and watch them cry? Why would my sweet baby be such a stinker?
• I love when Anna's in a good mood. Tonight we watched Glee, and she would dance. She loves to dance. I think it's so fun she dances to real music not just kid stuff, so I dance with her, and she laughs. She's great and so fun.
• I'm still waiting patiently for Anna to say actual real words. I keep telling myself all kids do things at their own pace and timing, but that little part of me still wonders if she's OK. She seems to understand and comprehend what we say to her. I know I should not compare her, but the doctor said kids should be saying around 6 words by the time they are 18 months. That means she needs to speak 6 words in one month. I know I'm overreacting; it's not a big deal - Anna is Anna.

I'm just a person, who tries to make kind choices, but I don't label it with religion.

So today was the first REALLY nice day we've had in several months. I think the sun, blue sky, and 75 degree temps were a one day thing for a while, but I'll take it! Bryan, Anna, Shelby, and I took a walk to the little playground in our neighborhood. It was her first time at a park, and she of course enjoyed herself on the swings, slides, and rocking things on springs. Well, while we were enjoying our time at the park, 2 girls in long skirts get out of their car and distribute religious material to the other park-goers. Bryan and I roll our eyes.

I grew up in a very Catholic part of Cincinnati. I was raised Catholic, went to Catholic schools for 12 years, and had/have Catholic friends and family. I didn't give much thought to my Catholicism until I went to college and met a boy involved in a Christian youth organization. I thought...I like participating in retreats, thanking God, and meeting new people. Well, let me tell you! I never felt like such an outcast in my whole life. I didn't have Christian youth groups at my all-girls-Catholic-high school; I was new to all their lingo and things they did centered around the bible - and I drank...beer (ahh, the horror). Anyway, I continued going to the meetings (idk how often they were) until around this time my freshman year (more on that at another time). I felt so judged and looked down on; I just didn't fit in and didn't feel welcome from a group of people calling themselves Christians, followers of Christ, right? I also had a roommate who was in a different Christian youth group that was a "Christian" (bible study, no drinking, crushing and kissing only) until she went home to hang out with her friends and did the opposite of all of the above. From then on, I kind of cringe when someone says "I'm a Christian" in the way that makes them think they are better than you, and if you're not a Christian then you have major problems and are complete weirdo not to be associated with.

Well in the 10 or so years since my freshman year, I've been exploring my beliefs. It got a little sketchy when I moved down in the Bible Belt and was bombarded with the various ways I am a sinner, and most likely to burn in hell, like the park girl's pamphlet said I would if I didn't go to her church or find God or whatever. I do believe in God/higher power. I do believe in treating others with kindness (I don't always succeed, but I try). I do believe in some kind of afterlife/heaven. I do believe I will enjoy myself in this afterlife even though I don't go to church and participate in organized religion. I do believe that my dead Grandma, Mimi, watches over me, Bryan, and Anna (Anna used to stare and smile at places on the ceiling when she was a newborn. I think she was smiling at her angels. She still does it every once in a while). I do believe that other people of various religions have the right to believe what they want (without hurting, killing, or abusing any other set of people). I do like and am friends with people that value church and religion highly in their lives (they just don't tell me to my face that I should go to church with them). I don't believe that if there is a God/higher power that he/she/it would not let someone into the afterlife because they didn't follow some strange set of rules set forth by a bunch of dead old men who had never had sex and de-emphazied the role of women in society (I'm speaking of Catholicism here as I don't know how all the other religions got their rules, but probably in a similar way).

You may not agree with me, you may even think I'm going to burn in hell, and that's ok because you can believe what you want to believe and I will believe what I want to believe. You can even pray for me "to find Jesus", just please don't ask me if I'm a "Christian" or give me literature on how I need to go to your church.

Also...a big thank you to you church-goers that still want to be my friend even though I'm a heathen.