Dear Friday....

Do you know how much I love you? Do you, really? I love you so much! I long for you. All week long I can't wait for youto arrive. Thursday is such a tease and Monday is such a downer, but you, Friday, you are simply wonderful and I adore you.

Love,
me

That's what I would say to Friday. You know, if it were something tangible that could appreciate my deep love and affection.

Today was a nice Friday in spite of the fact that I had to stay at work two hours longer than I normally do. Fortunately, it is the last time this school year that I will have to stay THAT much longer. The weather was beautiful today and, after work, I went out for dinner with a friend of mine from work. Good food, good conversation....doesn't get any better than that. (Although, I ate way too much...as usual.)

I am so thankful it is the weekend. I am still waiting for an answer to my really big decision, although I got a very encouraging e-mail from another friend of mine (thanks!! :) ), but I am determined to enjoy the weekend and not let worrying about the situation ruin the nice weather and my (hopefully ) restful weekend.

Enjoy yours, too! :)

Decisions, decisions....

Wouldn't it be nice if, when you had a huge, life-changing decision to make, that you heard the voice of God speaking to you? I imagine it would be something like this:

Me: I wish I knew what to do. Should I buy this house, that house, or the one over there? I like all of them for different reasons: size, location (location, location), price, cool stuff inside, etc. I just don't know which one to buy. If any of them.

God: (with a long arrow or finger pointing) That one. The one right there. That is the one I have for you. Buy that one. It will work out.

Me: Thanks! :)

By no means am I trying to be irreverent or disrespectful. I truly wish this would happen for me, though. I am TERRIFIED to make such a huge purchase. I am TERRIFIED of making a mistake. All of the signs seem to be pointing to buying something, though, because of the "issues" that I am going through here. It is a long and drawn out story full of needless and ridiculous drama. I have worked very, very hard to not be bitter about what has happened and, honestly, I don't think I am. I feel sorry for the person that caused this drama because she is going through her own set of issues. I don't mean that condescendingly, either. I really, really do feel badly for her. However, I don't like being lied to and , how can I put this nicely, um....well, I better not say anything else for right now.

Anyway. I am scared of making a huge mistake. I hate making mistakes. I want everything I do to be the right thing, especially with something like this. Buying my truck was a no-brainer. I love that truck. Even the color didn't take much thought. Cowboy blue, baby! :) A house, though? That is a huge deal. A GROWN-UP purchase.

You nine followers (I know it says 11. It really isn't, right Freddie? ;) ), I need some advice. Can you help me out? Above all, I need some prayer, big-time! I have to have some kind of decision by Monday. That is only a few days away.

Decisions, decisions......

wordless wednesday....

Ten Things Tuesday...

Hmmmm....had to think about this one for a while......how about Ten Movies I REALLY like!

1. Cinderella (yes, the cartoon. Don't hate.)
2. Harvey (I love James Stewart!)
3. My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding (If-and that's a mighty BIG if-I ever get married, it will be like the scene from this movie where they all tell Tula "We never thought it would happen for you. Never.")
4. You've Got Mail
5. Never Been Kissed
6. Sleepless in Seattle
7. Ever After
8. 13 Going On 30
9. The Emperor's New Groove (uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh)
10. Return To Me

How about you? What's your favorite movie?? :)

Not me Monday!

Ashamed because you had less than charitable thoughts about the person who cut you off when you, too were in a hurry? Not proud of the fact that you have eaten pretty much everything in your house that isn't nailed down? Well, then, Not Me! Monday was created just for you! Not for me, because I would never do anything like that! Here are some other things that I haven't done:

It wasn't me who, after finding out that I won some super cool placemats from a blog contest, grinned stupidly for an hour. I am way to cool to be excited about something like placemats. With birds on them. That I won in a blog contest.

It also isn't me who is scarfing down strawberries while they are still in season. Fruit is fruit and strawberries are in season every year. No need to scarf them down like they'll never be around again.

I wasn't yelled at by a parent this morning because her, um, lessthatperfect child had to have a chaperone on the field trip because he can't be trusted to behave himself. It wasn't me who wanted to tell her that she had no business being mad at me because her darling waited until this weekend to give her the permission slip that CLEARLY stated she had to attend the trip. All of the children that I work with are always super responsible and well behaved.

It isn't me who is a little scared to call the bank to find out whether or not I can get a loan to buy my own house. I am adult who always handles her responsiblities in a timely fashion and is never scared about things like this. Ever.

I am not the person who will sit and watch You've Got Mail....again. For the billionth time. And not be tired of it. I can't pretty much quote the whole movie word for word. I have much too much to do to sit around watching a movie that I have already seen. Many, many times.

And finally, it wasn't me who tricked Catzilla into kitty jail this morning. I love playing with the cat and would never, ever stoop to trickery to get her to do what I wanted.

Some random Sunday musings....

I wasn't going to blog today. I am trying to work through some things right now and I hate that so many of my posts have been sad, morose, drama-filled, or, you fill in the blank with the appropriate depressing adjective.

I am sitting on my couch watching a chick-flick and trying not to feel over-looked, left behind, lonely, sad....I was playing a game on Face Book and trying not to cry. Lame, I know.

I woke up this morning and had a panic attack. In my mind and in my heart I know that things are going to work out for me in the home situation, (An interesting aside, though, I discovered another *ahem* untruth yesterday concerning something that my roommate and I were told in regards to where we are living now. Every time something comes to light I just have to shake my head and wonder about people. Just tell the truth already.) but this morning I was really freaking out. We are in a time-sensitive situation now and the shorter the time gets, the more freaked out I get.

As I am sitting here, playing a game, trying not to think about where I am in life as opposed to where I thought I would be by this time in my life (you know, married, a couple of kids, a mini-van, etc.), and trying not to cry, oh, and trying (and failing) to not eat EVERYTHING in the house, I hear a very sweet (sweet to me) sound.

miss raven is snuggled under some blankets next to me and be next to me I mean RIGHTNEXTTOME. She is snoring and it is like music to my ears. Every once in a while she will wake up, sit up, and look at me with sleepy face. If you have a dog, you know what sleep face looks like. When I hear that, when I see that, I know everything is going to be ok. At least, I am pretty sure it is. She depends on me for everything and, at this childless stage in my life,(yes, the clock is ticking. LOUDLY.) she is everything to me and I will take care of her.

On another happy note...I actually WON something in a giveaway on another blog! I am SO excited! I have a few blogs that I follow, mostly because they are funny and make me laugh, like Taylor, or I can semi-identify with them, like E, on whose blog I won birdie placemats. I so NEVER win ANYthing, so I am so stupidly excited that I won these! I can't wait to get them!

I will try to write some happier posts in the future. I promise.

I can't seem to see the light....

....although I know it is supposed to be there. You know, the one at the end of the tunnel. It seems to be missing...either that, or this is one looooonnnnnggggg tunnel. In so many areas. *sigh*

Work is hectic as usual this time of year. Graduations, picnics, finals, clean-up....all of these things and more contribute to the craziness that comes with the end of April/beginning of May.

The housing situation is still up in the air. I have two good possibilities, but I am still in a kind of limbo concerning them. I hate having to wait.

Remember this: Now not working properly. I. am. devestated. :(

Still lonely.

Where's that light?

*sigh*

Ten Things Tuesday...

Ten Things I am Afraid Of:

1. The doctor.

2. Being alone for the rest of my life and having little neighborhood kids refer to me as the "Crazy dog lady."

3. Heights

4. Judge Judy

5. Anything with a stinger.

6. Scary movies

7. Snakes

8. A classroom full of kindergartners.

9. Running out of coffee.

10. See #1.

Not me (or my dog) Monday!

Ready to hear about some things that I haven't done? Good. Keep reading.

--I did not wake up this morning cursing Eve for eating the stupid fruit. If you are a woman, you understand why I am saying this. If you are a man.....

--I am currently not trying to shake the feeling that I have been forgotten. I do not, on a semi-regular basis, look up and say "Um, hello? Remember me? Kind of lonely down here. You know, in case you were wondering." Sigh.

--I did not have the school nurse take my blood pressure twice today. I am not currently obsessing about my blood pressure.

--If I would have had the nurse take my blood pressure twice today and both times have it come out in the normal range, I most certainly would not have been tempted to cancel my upcoming appointment with doom. You know, my doctor's appointment. I am not terrified of the doctor.

--I did not come home tonight and attempt to mow the grass. If I had, I would not not ever have been tempted to curse at the lawn mower for stopping FIVE HUNDRED MILLION TIMES.

--I also did not mow said grass with said crappy lawn mower in flip-flops. That is ridiculously and dangerously stupid and I am way too smart to do that. I would never mow in flip-flops just because the only tennis shoes I had at home were white and I didn't want to mess them up. Personal safety ALWAYS comes before fashion sense in my household.

--miss raven did not make me sit down beside her so she could eat her supper tonight. She always scarfs down her supper the moment her bowl touches the floor. She is in no way high maintenance.

How about you? Anything you would like to "confess"? No? What a shame!

Just your basic random post...

Ready for some randomness? Good. Read on.

--yesterday was beautiful. It was warm but with a nice breeze blowing. I can't wait until all days are like that.

--today was not as nice as yesterday.

--in case you don't remember, I love Eastern Market. Even on days like today when I don't really find anything that jumps out at me, I love Eastern Market. Sorry, BFF. I forgot my camera. :(

--I also love walking around DC. If I could live there, I would.

--I still may have to move. I don't want to but I may have to. All of this uncertainty worries me and leaves me feeling uneasy. Especially since there are other things contributing to my uncertainty about moving.

--I made an appointment to see a doctor on Wednesday. No, hell hath not frozen over, nor did the earth just tilt on its axis. I have been having a few, um, issues lately, with the pumping thing in my chest cavity. Seeing as how heart disease abounds on all sides of my family, I was scared enough by what I have been experiencing to arrange a little chat with an MD. All of it could be stress related because of my job and because of what is going on with the housing situation, but I am concerned enough to, you know, go.

--I. AM. TERRIFIED. of the doctor. TERRIFIED. Irrational? Probably. Logical? Hardly. Real? VERY. Seriously. I am going to have to tell them to take my blood pressure AFTER seeing the doctor because I know it will be sky high before due to my panic. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are going to want blood out of me and just thinking about that freaks me out. COMPLETELY.

we will pause for just a moment so that i may start another load of laundry. don't go away. i'll be right back. i promise.

--I'm back. Did you miss me?

--I love Target way more than Wal-Mart. Especially when they have coffee for this: on sale. Whoo-hoo! Target rocks!

--people who shop in Wal-Mart REALLY should look at themselves in a mirror BEFORE leaving the house. You know you agree with me. Today at Wal-Mart I saw, and this is no lie, a rather large woman who was leaving Wal-Mart. She was wearing a light blue cami-type top that I am pretty sure was about two sizes too small for her, booty shorts, and CONSTRUCTION BOOTS. Ew. That is all I have to say. Ew.

--have you ever watched a really stupid movie that you knew was stupid but you kept watching it anyway because there was nothing better on? Yeah, me too.

--miss raven is wonderful and says hello to all my faithful readers who were wondering how she is. she also wants everyone to know how much she hates me right now because i cut her nails today.

--not really.

--i did cut her nails but she doesn't hate me.

--at least, she doesn't since i gave her a cookie that said "princess" on it after she ate her dinner.

--I bought something to send to my niece and nephew for Easter. The package is still sitting on my dining room table. Sigh.

--it's time for me to make miss raven and I some popcorn.

--goodnight. ;)

Happy Friday-Eve!!!!

Whoo-hoo! I love me some Friday, especially when it is going to be EIGHTY DEGREES!!! (yes, I know it isn't Friday yet, but almost!)

I am soooooo tired right now so this isn't going to be a long one. I had a hard time getting to sleep last night (this morning). I felt like a walking zombie all day at work. But.....

it is FRIDAY EVE!!!!!!!

Hope your Friday is FANTABULOUS!! :)

wordless wednesday....

Go away!

Oh, I was talking to the rain. Not you!!!! I don't want you to go away. As a matter of fact, I would like to have more of you. :) The rain...not so much.

Day 2 of backtoschoolafterspringbreak was not too bad. Busy again, but again expected. I got some kind-of good news about something (sorry for the vagueness. as soon as i can, i will be more specific) that made me not as stressed out as I have been.

Chapel today was amazing. It was something that we have needed for a long time. It still continues to amaze me how one person's actions and attitudes (our previous admin.) can have such a long-lasting effect on the actions/attitudes of the students. God is good, though, and faithful, and I think that the many prayers that have been lifted up are now being answered in a positive way. Many of us are very happy about that. We still have a long way to go but we are seeing a slight shift in the attitudes of some. For the good. :)

Because of the rain miss raven and I couldn't go for a walk again today. She was most unhappy about that however, she did enjoy a good romp with catzilla. My roommate has a cat. A large cat. A large six-toed cat. Catzilla. The good thing about catzilla is that she actually plays with miss raven. That THRILLS my girlie! She has finally figured out how to get the cat to chase her and miss raven LOVES to run. :) It's kind of funny to watch them but what is even funnier is that, when miss raven sees me watching them, she stops and acts like they weren't doing anything.

Tomorrow is Wednesday and that means that my week is halfway over. Yea! I can't wait for the weekend. :)

Oh really?

Don't you just love when someone decides to not take the blame for something that they have done and chooses, instead, to lay the blame at your feet?

"If you had only done _______ then I wouldn't be in this mess."

That very phrase (with the blank filled in, of course) has been said to me and about me recently. Funny thing, though. The problem is NOT of my making and is not my fault. It's funny, kind of, that the blame is being laid on me, though.

Oh really? How about bucking up and owning up to what you have done to get yourself into the mess that you are in. You know, kind of like a grown-up?

Anywho.

First day back at school after a semi-long vacation wasn't too bad. Make no mistake, it was SUPER busy, but wasn't anything more than what I expected. I was seriously busy all day long but the good part about that is that it made my day go by much, much faster. One down, four to go, and don't forget, I get to go off campus for lunch on Friday! SUH-weet! :)

I have tentative plans to go to Eastern Market on Saturday. Don't hate, BFF, it isn't nice. Hopefully it won't rain so that I can go. If it rains I'll have to come up with something else, but I am really wanting to get my Eastern Market fix. It's been a while since I've been there and I am missing it.

As you can already see, this isn't a Not Me! Monday. I wasn't creative enough to come up with things I didn't do, although last week I'm sure I didn't do alot. Yeah, that confused even me! :)

miss raven is doing well. She went for a teeny-tiny walk today. Not nearly long enough as far as she was concerned. I needed to get back and fix dinner, though. (Tacos, baby! And they were yummy!) During our walk, she managed to bark ferociously at the scary sirens that might attack me. A girl can never be too careful, you know. She is such a good protector, what can I say? ;)

Hope your Monday was wonderful and your Tuesday is even better!

In which you hear everything you wanted to know about Spring Break (maybe)...

Can I even begin to tell you how much I needed some time off from work? I think, if you have read my last several posts, you will know the answer to that.

I officially began SPRING BREAK 2010 earlier that I had planned. I found out that a good friend of mine had been rushed to the hospital a few days before Spring Break had officially begun. I asked to be able to leave a few hours early on Thursday so that I could visit her in the hospital. She ended up being there for over a week but has been able to go home. She is still not well and I am worried about her but at least she is home for now.

Friday morning I slept in (whoo-hoo!). When I got up I got ready, got miss raven ready, and set out for O-H-I-O!! Yea!! Time with my bestie! It was great! We had a lot of fun. She even made me a birthday apple pie--isn't she wonderful?!?! :) Would you like to see it? Ok!

We had a great time while I was there. Easter Sunday dinner was at her grandma's house. Mmmmmmmm......turkey, ham, and a bunch of other stuff. I have to say though, it was hard to get past the ham and turkey. Oh--the strawberry/cranberry jello salad thing. Yummmmm!

The girls "hunted" eggs. We thought last year was the final Easter egg hunt, but somehow, it happened again this year. It is now more a formality than anything else, because the girls are almost16 and 10. Really, there aren't too many "hiding" places that can be found anymore. Here is a picture of me and my BFF on Easter Sunday. I know, we look amazingly fabulous!On Monday Miss H and I went to Columbus to have a Girl's Day.

My bestie had to work (boo law firm, boo) so Miss H and I went to Old Navy, Barnes and Noble, Bath and Body, and Victoria's Secret. We ate lunch at Max & Erma's, which was actually pretty good. We went to see the Percy Jackson movie, which she was DYING to see. The look on her face as the movie started was beyond priceless and one I won't soon forget. This is why she is my favorite 10 year old. Oh, and this, too:

funny (and true) story: BFF and Miss H drive to TH for breakfast on Saturday morning before going to school (yes, school. ON SATURDAY!). BFF pulls up to the drive through box-talking thing and orders the regular: Everything bagel, toasted with LIGHT cream cheese and chocolate milk for Miss H, medium iced capp. for her. After placing the order, BFF pulls up towards the window and waits for the vehicles in front of her to finish. Miss H looks at her mother and with all seriousness says something to the effect of "Can we ever order DARK cream cheese?" BFF bursts out laughing (as would I). Miss H bursts out laughing. Once BFF caught her breath she asked Miss H if she knew why she was laughing. Miss H, still giggling, replies "No!" BFF procedes to explain that LIGHT cream cheese is light because there are fewer fat and calories, NOT because of the color!

I spent some time on the beach during my vacation. See:

Please look past the awful (I could have said windblown!) hair to the fact that I am smiling because I am ON THE BEACH!!!I can't even begin to tell you how much I love the beach. I LOVE the beach. The seagulls are for my favorite aunt. She loves them. They make me think of Nemo.

I came back home to find out that this may not be my home for much longer. In the interest of keeping this blog nice and clean I won't say what I actually think about the situation and what has happened to my roommate and I. I will say that this SUCKS and that I won't trust a "friend" to be my landlord again. Being screwed by a stranger is one thing, being screwed by someone who was supposed to be your friend is entirely another. Needless to say, being the emotional person that I am, I was pretty upset last night and even somewhat this morning. I am seeing things a little more clearly now, and, even though I still don't know what is going to happen with my housing situation in the next few months, I am not quite as worried about it as I was. I have a possibility in the works, kind of, at the moment. I would like for it to work out as it would be nice for me and for her:

You didn't think we would get through a whole post without a picture of my girl, did you?

I have to go back to work tomorrow. It feels like such a long time since I have been there and I can't truthfully say I am excited about going back. My schedule is packed beyond belief this week but I do have something to look forward to on Friday. My roommate and I are taking the Seniors off campus for lunch. We were able to do that earlier in the year and they had a good time. They are a good group of kids and I can honestly say that I am going to be sorry to see them leave.

The next couple of months will go by quickly and that is good and bad. I am looking forward to summer but not as much as I would be if I didn't have this housing mess hanging over my head. And not as much as I would be if I didn't have my supervisor hanging over my head.

Since I don't want to think about that right now, I am going to think about this:

Feel free to think about it too, if you'd like. :)