01.28.07
Cold and warm
It is bitterly cold outside tonight, with wind gusts slapping your face and making you shudder inside your biggest coat.
But our apartment is warm, and it smells of freshly-baked bread.
01.25.07
Happy Haggis Day!
I was cruising around this site where I discovered that it is Haggis Day. I thought you should know.
P.S. I heart Matt and Jeni and Nessie!
For those who have wondered…
…we are alive. It was touch and go for a while when my report cards attempted to consume my very existence, but I’m okay now. Report cards are done. Many of my students are receiving rather dismal reports. I feel bad about that, but by sixth grade they really should know to turn in homework even if their teacher doesn’t put up a list of missing work each week, and they should further be able to write a sentence with capitals and periods. Now I just need to convince their parents of this fact.
On tonight’s agenda: housework, Grey’s Anatomy, knitting. No schoolwork. At all.
01.06.07
I love me some Chai tea!
Well, I do!
I thought of all kinds of thinks I wanted to post about that I forgot in my last post.
Thing #1: Adventures with tote bags.
While in Yakima to see Rob and Jodi (yes, we went to see them, not just their house. We also went to beat Jodi at cards, but that’s a different story altogether), I saw Jodi’s super cute not-too-teachery tote bag. I said to myself, “Self, you should use some of your Christmas money to purchase one for yourself! What a great idea!” Upon returning to Chicago, I ordered such an item. It came 3 days later. I was amazed and excited! I opened the box to discover two things. 1) The large size is for people who want their German shepards to be purse dogs and 2) The green was nearly florescent. Not quite the cute apple-green I was looking for. Luckily they will take back things with monograms. Now I get to go through the fun of choosing a new color and such… monogrammed? Name or initials? My initial (ha! pun unintentional but fun none the less!) thought is to go with the monogram so when I take it to school my kids won’t call me Becky trying to be clever. Thoughts? Go here and pick a color for me, would ya? 
Thing #2: I’ve been nesting.
After being in so many homes in Washington, I decided it was high time to make our apartment more homey. So I finished the blanket, which coordinates with both of our couches, to try to make our furniture look like it was on purpose. I also bought some baskets for our games and picture albums and DVDs, so our made-to-go-in-a-garage entertainment center looks a little less so. Then I got a collage frame and put cute pictures of Jamie and me in it, along with our wedding vows (awww…), so our guests will be, well, rather nauseated upon entering our home. Next projects on the list: fill one more frame for our bedroom, perhaps find a few more for shelves and such, put pictures in the albums sitting in the cute basket, rehang pictures of Paris so people can actually see them, finish the quilt for our bed so we won’t be sleeping with the fishes (really, our current bedspread was made by an elementary school class and is covered in appliqued fish. Parents accidentally bought it at an auction), paint if we decide not to move… wow, if I didn’t have a job, I’d still be really busy!
Thing #3: Speaking of jobs…
Going back to work has a strange effect on me. I question whether or not I should be a teacher because I so dread going back to work. I’m hoping it’s just the leisure time I love, not that my job is not my calling and I really should be working at Starbucks or something. Hm.
Thing #4: I love my husband!
He made me dinner tonight, and cleaned up. When I said “Well, you cooked, so I should do the dishes, eh?” He replied, “No, I’ll do the dishes to make up for all the times when you cook and help with the dishes.” That probably doesn’t sound romantic to anyone else, but it was to me!
Thing #5: I think I want to take Jamie to the bookstore now.
We returned some gifts and I got a knitting pattern a day calendar (yay!), and he needs to spend his part of the gift card. I really like book stores and kind of want to go. We’ll see.
The post that will make people with “grown up” jobs hate me.
It’s Christmas break. I love that I have a Christmas break. I wish it wasn’t over on Monday. Sigh. I’m becoming a glutton for vacation.
Jamie informs me that I do have a grown up job. That’s true, but it still has a kid-style schedule. That’s what I mean.
Anyway, I’ve had a delightful break. Here’s what I’ve done so far:
- Slept a lot.
- Knit a lot–3.5 scarves, 1 hat, 1 blanket, working on scarf #5 (#4 on hold until I get more yarn)
- In related news, we received the entirety of Friends for Christmas, so I’m about halfway through season 2 now.
- Cooked a lot–turkey sausage lasagna, vegetable pasties, turkey roast, turkey curry vegetable soup with wild rice, cinnamon rolls.
- In related news, I’ve gone to the gym each day we’ve been in Chicago.
- Had a delightful trip to Washington, where we celebrated Christmas with both families, made 6 batches of fudge, went to Yakima to see Rob and Jodi’s new house, played lots of games, celebrated New Year’s Eve with Raina, hung out with the fams. Whee!
- Cuddled with the kitties–after leaving them at the petstore while we were gone, they seem to be a lot more affectionate. Elphie in particular wants us to pick her up and cuddle her all the time. Not that I’m complaining.
We had some other adventures as well. Upon our return, we discovered strange orangish marks on our kitchen blinds and window sill. We found out that the sink upstairs was leaking, so it was rusty-water marks. Jamie’s putting in the order for new blinds pdq. I spent one morning knitting with fellow teachers at Starbucks. So much fun to spend time with grown-ups!
Now I think I’ll drink some Chai, read or knit, and relish the last bit of vacation (ha, papers! You can’t make me grade you!)
