The Winter

I noticed that I am doing a whole lot less of blogging these days. Sorry for that. Please know that my life isn't very exciting and therefore there is a lack of things to write about.

I have been doing a whole lot of working out these days. In fact, it seems that is the priority(which is awesome) each day after work and then I go home and crash on my couch. Today, SATURDAY(Yipee!!!), I am trying to get up the motivation to do a little tiddying of the homefront and grading but all I have gotten myself to do is: 1. Get out of bed 2. Make breakfast 3. Watch TV. I am still in front of the TV and feeling tired. I slept awesome last night. Of course, I had my three hours on the couch before wandering to bed at 3a.m.

I bought some new running shoes and that is exciting. I am probably going to write about them on my other blog, so remember to read it.

I am now off to figure out how to find motivation to do something today.

Is it Friday yet?

Sometimes when I am going to bed, I think about having to wake up in the morning. Sometimes it is depressing. I guess it shouldn't be because it is another day I get to live. Tonight I basically thought: I only have to wake up early two more times this week. That is a good thing. It isn't that I am not loving my life it is just winter!!!

I went up to Sandy tonight and enjoyed celebrating Caleb's 19th birthday. Good food, good conversation and great company!

Well. Off to sleep. Here's to only two early wake ups!

The Weekend of Fun with the Family.

I had a blast with my second family, The Bills, this weekend. The gathering was prompted by the baptism of Jordynn, Sarah's daughter. (If you don't know the story of my two families, see the sidebar, which tells the story of "My Two Families")

We always have a blast when we get together because we are pretty much hilarious. The baptism was awesome. I was reminded of my own baptism that was almost 15 years ago. It is still interesting to me how much being Mormon is now normal, even though it was such a major life change for me. Honestly, it is the best decision I have EVER made in my life. I have been blessed so much in so many ways because I discovered truth and light. I think the knowledge of a Heavenly Father who loves me and guides me is pretty much the awesomest blessing. I love Him and know He lives. I am always worried I may come off as too preachy or something because I fear that people may not want to hear about my feelings of conviction but really those feelings are the core of my existence and I don't understand why sometimes I try to hide them! I guess Sunday is the best day to have a post with that included! :)

Have I ever mentioned that I LOVE kids? Well, I do. It was fun to have all the rug rats around this weekend. Although children often seem like little beavers that we let into the house and who make huge messes and often smell, they are awesome and each moment I get to have with the wee ones is precious. I always love to hold baby Oliver and get him to smile. He is so dang cute! I also love being a human jungle gym with all the other little rascals. They also have the funniest things to say. Here is an example from Henry as we were driving to the baptism yesterday:

Henry: Alice, do you have any kids?
Alice: Henry, have you met my kids?
Henry: No!
Alice: That is because I don't have any kids yet.
Henry: Why don't you have any kids?
Alice: Because I don't have a husband yet.
Henry: Why don't you have a husband?
Alice:(thinking to myself: hmmm...good question and too complicated for a 4 yr-old mind) I just haven't found a good enough guy to marry yet. Do you think you could help me find one?
Henry:(looking out the window as if to be searching) Yes, I will try.
Alice: You could also pray that I would find one. Remember he will be your uncle.
Henry: LONG PAUSE and then in a worried voice: I don't know where to find uncles.

I thought that was very funny. Henry is already Mr. Literal!

Well, I better get ready for church and go through my Relief Society lesson one last time. I am not nervous but that makes me nervous! :)

.....insert clever title here.

Happy almost Friday. I love short weeks. I am very glad it is almost the weekend. I am also excited for some time with The Bills Family. It will be a blast as always.

The highlight of the day was watching The Office. They did a flashback for most of the show and it was hilarious. I sure do love that show. I was also able to watch 24 with my friend Janette. I haven't been doing much hanging around with her and it was nice.

I think that is all I have today.

Apples to Apples is hilarious with nine-yr-olds

Happy Midweek to each and every one of you. This week has been going so much better than last week. We started a new semester at school, which means I have two classes of new students and a few other new students in my other classes. I have enjoyed my new Health classes so far and I have been impressed by a few of the students who have newly come to PE class. The classes are funny and the new PE students seem willing to take risks and participate, which any PE teacher would love.

I went on a great walk today with my good friend, Shule. We walked along the Provo River Trail and it was gorgeous today. The sun was shining, there were many ducks to look at and there was great conversation, which there always is with Shule. Being outside felt great.

I was also able to play Apples to Apples with my 7th hour. There are only two kids in the class right now and because it is the beginning of the term, they don't have much work to do during this "study hour." We played Apples to Apples today and Cassie, the tracker for that class, had her son there today. He was so funny to play with because he was very literal when he was judging our answers. He was also very truthful when he thought our ideas were silly. It made me laugh hard! IT was definitely a highlight.

I am looking forward to this weekend because many of the Bills family will be in Salt Lake City. It will be a party.

Well. I am off to bed a little earlier than usual. I think that will be good. Night!

Thank You Very Much, Dr. King!

Happy Civil Rights day. I don't know how many people actually have the day off and actually sit back and ponder on what the day is truly about. I know I am guilty of this. I am grateful for all the people who sacrificed so much to make equal rights a possibility. Truly, equality is a God given right. We are all children of God and should be treat with respect! I do feel a little guilty when I just love having the day off and don't really think much about why.

Last night was a blast. I went up to SLC and hung with The Bills. Have I mentioned that I am so lucky to have two families? I really am blessed to be loved by two families. I really am well taken care of! We had a veg in front of the TV night and it was fabulous. I enjoyed watching the season premiere of 24 with them. It was entertaining as well because Dad Bills would sing opera-style during the commercials for our listening pleasure. Love it! Thanks for it Utah Dad!

What else have I done this weekend? I have slept in three days in a row. YIPEE! I finished my grading for the term. YIPEE again! Saturday I went shopping and to lunch with my friend, MOO, and her mother and brother. That was fun. I have been addicted to the clearance at Old Navy. It is 50% off the clearance prices. I have a few new shirts. I have to remember that I must now go through my other clothes and get rid of stuff. I also have to realize that I shouldn't buy lots and lots of clothes because I may...wait...I WILL get a little smaller and these clothes may not look good in six months.

Well, I am off to go to a movie with friends. Be sure to check out the movie blog later. I should be writing about it there! Later.

Hell Week Continues...

So, you know....Monday pretty much was a sucky day at work. Making a kid cry isn't always the best professional choice, but you know.

Well, the saga of Alice not using her interpersonal skills continued again on Tuesday. I still was a little frustrated by the situation with the student of Monday drama and wasn't feeling it. Anyway...I was just chatting with my 4th hour kids because sometimes you just can't force them to do anything. I went to talk with a student in the back of the classroom and when I got back to the front of the classroom, one of the boys I was chatting with took over my chair. I was not okay with this and asked him to move. Apparently, he did not hear me and I then snapped my finger and said "Hey, Jessie...move it!" I think the snapping of the finger is what triggered some rage in this boy and he got up and said something under his breath and then called me a bitch. For those of you who may or may not know me, I HATE the word bitch. Luckily, I did not speak my mind(I guess I still have some self control this week) and instead said: "Thanks Jessie, that made me feel so good!"

On a good note, I am down 4.2 pounds from my weigh in last Tuesday. Go me. I am really liking this Weight Watchers stuff. The leaders are awesome and inspiring and the program is awesome because I really can eat "whatever the hell I want,' as I told a co-worker earlier this week when he tried to "save" me from the chocolate chip cookie that was in the teacher lounge.

Let's hope that today is better or at least these horrible experiences with crazy students only comes in three. I think I could take one more before the break happens!

Cheers!

Angst

Today was one hell of a day. Just wanted to let you know.

Here are the things that sucked about today:
1. Made a student cry.
2. Told a co-worker that the cookies he baked: "They don't even look good!"
3. Mispelled many things on the Health test I wrote.
4. Missed Chuck, House, and The Bachelor thanks to my DVR not working.

I am way tired. I am going to bed at nine thirty. Crazy. Hope your day was a little better than mine!

The week in review.

This week flew by. I think tracking all I am eating makes for the days to go faster. Or maybe it is because I am so focused on it that time just slips away.

Work has been great. The kids really are good to me. I will miss my two Health classes in a little over a week. They will be done with Health and move on with their lives. I worry that I will have scary classes but who knows...it usually works out.

What else? I really don't have much. The boys basketball team at our school finally won a game last night. After the game, I went and played with my friend Kerri. She and I worked on some crafty stuff. Before the game I ate some Gandolfo's and I love that stuff. YUM. That is another one of the great things about Weight Watchers is that I do not have to limit my diet...I can eat whatever I want. (I really feel like I am a commercial for them; it is weird) I just have to budget my points and that is a good thing for me. It does take a bit of planning but it is worth it. I am getting excited to actually get weighed in on Tuesday to see what the results will be!

That is all I have for now. Cheers.

For those who were wondering...

I kinda made resolutions this New Year. I have dubbed this year the Year of Decrapifying my life. Basically, this means, I am going to work each day to get a little of the crap out of my life. Here are some examples. My house is a disaster. I am so unorganized. Each day, since I have been back from Wisconsin, I have done some decrapifying of my house. Yesterday, Operation Decrapifying involved cleaning out my cupboards and fridge. I threw out a lot of things that were outdated and gross. (See pics of the pile of crap from my kitchen and the new fridge look!) It felt good. I also did some washing of dishes. I always have a crap load of dishes. Not so much in 2010. I also have this bit of goo all over my body. It is crappy. I joined Weight Watchers to get rid of that crappiness. My first weigh in was today and I am majorly excited about the program. My social life has spots of crappiness. I am going to be better at dating. I am also going to spend less time worrying about relationships in general. I want to be surrounded by positive people, so if you are not positive....you know.

So there you have it: Operation Decrapify has commenced.

If you want to follow my new weight loss blog "Less of Alice" click on the link! I will add it to the sidebar too. It isn't going to be very exciting but it is there.

Better get to bed!

A few more pics from home.

Pictures from my trip to Green Bay. My parents and I headed there on New Year's Eve. It was fun to stay with my Aunt Linda and Uncle Tom. They are always good to us. I spent New Year's Eve with my Grandma. We had a big Huven side get together on New Year's Day. It was awesome to be surrounded by family!
Grandma making my new scarf. I was so lucky to bring in the new year with my 84 year old Grandma!
My mom and my Cousin's baby. So cute!
The whole family got together for burgers at Kroll's. Larry(in stripes) is an uncle who I haven't seen in about eight years.
My sister in her t-shirt that I gave her for Christmas.
Lambeau Field. It was awesome to be close to "Mecca" again!

Resolutions...a work in progress

So, people make and break hundreds, if not thousands, of resolutions in their lifetimes. I, for one, usually forget about my resolutions by the second week of the new year. Maybe my first resolution should be to remember my resolutions. I have a horrible memory. It my gift; my curse. (That is from Spiderman). Anyway....I am going to think about my resolutions and then I am going to keep them completely to myself so that you are unable to judge me for breaking 99% of them.

And here you thought I would just come right out and let you know that my number one resolution is to....

Nope...I am very strong-willed and you will not get out of me that I am going to try and.....

Hey. Stop with that mind control, would you? That is just mean.

Happy New Year, everybody. May this year be full of excitement, love, laughter, smiles and a nearly illegal amount of fun!