Happy Fourth

It is the 4th of July. Here in Brevard, we have quite a celebration. There are 5K and 10K races, a festival downtown with booths of all sorts, and a good fireworks display after dark. It's always hot, fun, and worth the time. Not bad for a small town in NC.

I just booked airline tickdts for Boston for the end of the month. I can't wait to go see my sister in Rutland, MA. She works there on a Heifer International Educational Farm as the livestock manager. We will be staying on the farm for a week. We will volunteer and help her get her chores done each day, so I'm packing my good ol' Muck Boots. We will also go into Boston and other places around there. I know that we are going into Vermont to the Morgan Horse Association headquarters. I haven't been to Vermont before and hear that it is beautiful. Good thing it is summer. This southern girl would be a popsicle.

Enjoy your day. I am feeling great, and can't wait to get out there and see friends, hear music, and celebrate being an American!

Spurts

I wish I could make myself be consistent about blogging. I do it in spurts. I don't know why. I have had a few things that have taken precedence. I found out that I have cancer back in February. I have been a bit preoccupied with that. I am taking chemo treatments every three weeks and will end those on the 30th of this month. The kind of cancer I have is unknown. It had already metasticised to my lymph nodes, my liver and my lung. The prognosis wasn't good, but I am responding to treatments very well, and I believe I am going to beat this thing. I believe in God and one of his names is Great Physician. I know that many, many people are praying for me, and my last CT scan showed good progress in the decrease of disease.

Here are some of the things that suck about cancer:

1. chemo for 6 hours at a time

2. my skin is a weird color

3. I get tired sometimes

4. I used to throw up alot

5. NO HAIR

Here are some of the good things that have happened because of me having cancer:

1. I don't have to shave

2. I get to take naps any time I want

3. I have started exercising and my body is getting stronger

4. I have a great hat collection

5. I have seen the truly good side of people - true compassion

6. I have a wonderful family

7. My faith has grown by leaps

I plan to fight and beat this thing no matter how long it takes. I feel great. God has blessed me.

The picture is one of me after I lost my hair. I am holding a lovely little baby who is the child of my friend Erin. She took the picture.

The stink is better.

I have gotten over my pity party and things are fine now. The air is fresh and clean and smells of citris.

It stinks!

When you have something in your mind that someone told you they were going to do and they don't follow through, it really stinks. That is the reason I am sitting here on my computer rather than doing what I thought I would be doing. It really stinks. I feel let down. I feel unimportant. I feel lonely. It really stinks! I hope that the person who let me down will know that it really stinks and do something to try to make it up. That is, if they really care.

Cold

It is 12 degrees right now. No wonder I am procrastonating going to school for a workday.

Snow?

Apparently someone in Transylvania County got snow, but I want to know who. I have been to work, to feed the horse, and through town and I don't see any. However, school is out tomorrow because someone has snow on their road. Go figure...

Quick Trip

This evening, we are taking off for Raleigh. There is an exhibit at the NC Museum of History that I want to see before it closes on Jan. 13. There are paintings by John White that were done when the first colonists came to NC. Dan, Claire, Campbell, and I are going, and it should be fun. There is also an interesting place near Statesville that I want to check out if we have time. I found it on the site for Our State Magazine. It is called Love Valley. I would like to take Claire and her friends there sometime. It looks like a blast.

Some Images from our Christmas

Santa has been in Brevard, NC

Santa just stopped by our house. I had to be very quiet so he would think I was sleeping. It must have worked. There are gifts for the kids under the tree :)

Wow! Isn't it amazing how your kids change in a year. This was taken last Christmas. Now this is what they look like.

Hustle Bustle

Even though today is the shortest day of the year, there is a ton going on. Everything is busy but cheerful, and it feels like Christmas.

I am waiting on Sears to deliver a new dryer. My parents bought it for our Christmas gift. My old one still works, but it takes a load about a 3 hours to get done. That is not very good when you have 3 people in a house. The laundry becomes a problem.

Downstairs, Claire and Campbell's grandfather Frady, called "Poppi" is busy working on her gift. There is a room there that has been on the to do list for the last 12 years. It was partly finished before I bought the house. Claire has been wanting to make it her room and Ninny and Poppi are doing it for her birthday and Christmas gift. It looks great. It even has its own bathroom. I hope I see her again once she moves down there :) I will have to make regular visits. Since I have to go right through there to get to the pottery studio I am working on putting together, I will see her.

Here is the dryer...

They are installing it now. I will be doing laundry in just a few minutes. We will see how fast it goes.

Later, I will take Claire and Dad shopping. Dad has had some health issues and the doctors have told him not to drive. It is making him bonkers. He has always run around doing secret little things right before Christmas. This setback is getting in the way of his Santa Spirit.

Back to the hustle and bustle that I do enjoy, but only for a day or two.

Merry Christmas!!!!!!

Campbell

Campbell says hi! Don't you just love how digital cameras and camera phones encourage people to snap shots of themselves making funny faces. My kids do it all the time. I love to pick up their phones and have a peek.

Let the festivities begin...

School got out at 11:30 today. After riding a bus route for a little over an hour, I was free to start my Christmas vacation. It feels great.

At 6:00 the kids and I are supposed to be at John and Margaret's for the "Barn Christmas Party". No, it's not a barn theme, but all the families who board horses at their barn are invited to their house for a party. I have been making preparations.

Mom and I made bread basket liners with horses on them. They turned out great. I am also using my great-aunt's peanut brittle recipe to make a treat to go with the bread basket liner. I am also making dvd's as Christmas cards. It is pretty much the same one as I posted here.

Now I am waiting for Claire to get home. She drove to the store to do some shopping and I sent her to get a few things I need to finish up. She needs to hurry! I will start to feel panicked.

She's back, so I can breath and go make some more peanut brittle. I burned the heck out of my finger though.

waiting

left my trunk open last night...now I'm waiting on a ride to school...bummer

44

4 x 11





fourty-four





50 - 6





greater than 30





less than 65





half of 88





That's how old I am today! Yikes!

I just thought this was funny. I guess it's even better when you work in a public elementary school.

A Video Christmas Card

Merry Christmas! This is Claire, and her friends, riding their horses in the Brevard Christmas Parade.

Just Winding Down

It's Friday. Another teacher is on my roof cleaning out my gutters. Seems sad that he has to do that to make enough money to support his family, but I am glad he is available. I will be going back to school to get ready for Monday. It will take several hours. I would rather do it tonight than have to go on Sunday afternoon. I get blue enough when I have nothing to do but enjoy the day and the thought of Monday creeps in.

Tomorrow I am taking my first horseback riding lesson. I have posted some pictures of my daughter on her horse. She is great. I have been on one, but never enought to get the hang of how to make the monsters do what I want. I just kind of hang on, bounce around, and laugh at my lack of control. I got new paddock boots for the occasion. Any occasion to buy a new pair of footwear is good. If I had lots of cash, I would have a closet full of shoes. Some of the other moms of the girls at the barn are going to take lessons too. The rule is that the girls can't watch. It will be humiliating enough without the giggles and comments from them.

I am also teaching a pottery lesson tomorrow. Maybe I will actually have a chance to make some things this weekend. I did hear back from the folks who have the kick wheel. I haven't been able to reach them yet, but I am hoping it will work out to bring the thing home this weekend. I made enough money selling some pieces that it will be almost paid for. I got my kiln hooked up, and want to have something make to fire. I want to try it out.

Claire is working on painting the basement. She is moving downstairs. The chosen color is just awful, but I can live with it for a few years. It looks like a (I can't think of a darn thing to compare it too)... It is this "berry pink". It's pretty dark. When she got it, I though it would look okay if she painted one wall and used a neutral color to dull it a bit. No! The whole room glows. Isn't pink supposed to be calming?

I'm off to start my weekend. I guess it will start with a trip back to school. The good part is I can cut a movie, or ballgame, on and get my work done while I watch. It should be fine.

Mom and Dad are at Donna's. Dad called and said they were having a great time, even though it's raining.

It's all good!

Claire at the last show of the season. We were taking a lunch break.

I do need to have some fun!

I do love my job! At least the part where I get to actually teach kids. The thing that gets me down is that every day when I leave, the whole time I am away, I am thinking about how much I should be doing to be ready for the next day. If it isn't that, it is the mountain of papers that I need to grade, or the "homework" I have to do from one of my staff development activities. There are also the sad stories I know are the actual lives of kids. You can't just leave that at school. I don't really want to, but I can't help them and it makes me so damned depressed. I waffle back and forth on whether I should find something else. Each time I think I just can't do it any longer, I wonder what else I could actually do. I wish there were a place, a website, a counseling service, something, for teachers who need to make a change. A friend once told me that one of her friends took a day off to go out job hunting. Her discovery was that there was nothing that she was qualified to do but teach. Dear God! If that is the case, I am in deep doo-doo! I can see myself sticking it out for another 4 1/2 years, until Campbell gets done, but then something has got to give.

Erin is right. I need some grown up entertainment. I do need to talk Ol' Dan into taking me up to the home of the World Series Bound Cleveland Indians! (please, please...) I need to meet his college friend and chill. I need to be Beth for a little while, not Ms. Aspray!

If anyone out there has any ideas, I am open to suggestions. What can a middle aged, mother of 2, who needs benefits, do to make a good living. Anyone been where I am right now and found a good solution?

Seems too depressing - so here is something not so dismal. The weekend is coming and I can't wait. I don't have any plans yet, but the weather is supposed to be beautiful. It is fall, and I can't think of a more wonderul time of year. There is something about being outside and feeling nice and cool, but the sun shining on your hair until it feels hot. The smell of the pine straw and leaves makes me feel like my spirit is just outside of myself enough to be part of the crisp air. There is no other time as wonderful. My favorite day of the year is the day that it changes from daylight savings to standard time. I love that extra hour, and no matter how tired I am, I stay up for another hour, just because... It is best when shared with someone you love.

I called someone about an add for a potter's kick wheel. maybe they will call me back and I can work on my setting up my studio this weekend. That would be sweet!

Now I can go to sleep, dreaming of what I will be when I "grow up", and wake up tomorrow, one day closer to the weekend. Anticipation can be a good thing.

Let's see...

My life lately:

• school
• pets
• school
• driving children around
• school
• meetings at school
• school
• meetings about children about school
• school
• trainings for school
• school

The First Day of School

Today was the first day of school. It was a good day!