new hair...new clothes...new books

I went to Valdosta today. I needed to get my hair done before school started. I got it cut, colored, and highlighted. Plus, I got my eyebrows waxed *ouch*! When I got done, I headed over to Belk's. They were having a mega sale! I got two skirts, a dress, two tank tops, and a very nice bra for less than $60.00. Score. I have tons of stuff that will match the skirts and the dress will be SO cute under a black cardigan.

Mark and I are supposed to go shopping in Jacksonville on Monday, but I really just don't know if I want to go or not. I know I should want to go, but really, I just want to veg out on my last few days. I picked up so much stuff already for school, and I really don't need many more clothes (or any) for school.

I did pick up the Pretty Little Liars series of books today. I know. I know. I love that show though so I thought I'd read the books, too. In fact, I'm going to read book one now.

She waved a magic wand...

Okay, it wasn't a magic wand, but I did win Courtney's Give-Away! YEAH!

It arrived today. I may or may not have done a little dance at the mailbox. What? Don't judge! :)



The colors are SO pretty and I think they will work perfectly with my coloring. Yippee!


Thank you SO much!

Waiting...

I'm waiting for my cousin and his wife to get here. They drove over from Texas to visit his mom in Florida. Now, they're driving to Georgia to see our grandmother. I hate waiting. This is not my favorite cousin. Um. I guess I don't have any favorite cousins...well, maybe some of Mark's! My cousin and I are not close. He just seems like a jerk so much of time and I have NOTHING at all in common with him. He is, I'm sure, a nice enough person, but *eh*

Thankfully, Kerry is going to be here so he will be able to go with me.

I'm getting pretty bummed about summer being almost over. I have to go back to work next Thursday. One week and one day. Bummmmmmmmmmer! I am excited about my schedule. I have mostly college prep American and British Lit. This is a change for me. I usually have inclusion students for almost all of my classes. I have one inclusion class the first semester in American Lit. I'm hoping that I get to work with Matt again. He is an awesome co-teacher!

I still need to go shopping for back to school "stuff". I hope I can get Mark to help me put together the two new bookcases I need. I guess I should get crackin' on some more lesson plans too.

The Best Thing About Going Back to School...

is shopping! I'm making a list. I have stuff that I MUST have for my classroom like pencils, pens, and a new bookcase. I went to Teacher Harvest in July and got some stuff. I always need more for my classroom though. I know that I need markers as well. The bookcase is a must have. Last year one of my bookcases got broken by the custodial staff, and I went through the year without it. Bad idea. Every time I needed something that SHOULD have been on the bookcase, I had to go looking for it. Since we're getting new textbooks this year, I know that I will have new materials and new units that I will need to use. So, new bookcase or bookcases it is.

I need some new make-up as well. I probably want to add some new shoes and a couple of dresses or skirts for next school year. Of course, I'll need some new Hello Kitty notebooks as well. I also do atendance and record keeping in a Hello Kitty notebook. It is an easy way for a sub to find it (yeah, that's the excuse I'll use)!

Mark has gone to work again. Bah! It will be a LONG afternoon. Ho hum. At least he has tomorrow and Tuesday off.

Bored...bored..bored...

I know that I shouldn't be bored. Goodness knows I have enough to do around here without being bored...but oh my gosh, I am SO bored.

Mark working for hours at night stinks. I miss my husband. I missing hanging out with him. He'll be home again about 12M, but STILL. Ugh! I've done some laundry today, vacuumed the floors, swept the kitchen, and loaded and unloaded the dishwasher. I've won some searches on SwagBucks.

I am totally stoked that I won the giveaway on Courtney's blog--Loving the Reflection! Her style is so darn adorable, and I get such good ideas from her pictures. She and her hubs are cutie-pies!

The worst part about Mark's schedule (yes, I'm harping on that again) is the fact that the way he's scheduled doesn't really allow us to do anything in the AM either. By the time we wake up, it is well in to the morning, and he has to leave at 1:15 or so to be there at 2:30.

This year is the first year I haven't had school since 2004. I went right from a master's classes to doctorate classes. I have been so mentally lazy this summer. I have read, read, and read, but I have to admit--I miss being a student.

I have to get back in the swing of things soon. I can't believe that I have 13 days until I have to be back at school. I start the 5th and the kids start the 11th. Mark and I are going "Back to School" shopping on the 1st or the 2nd. I need to get my hair cut, colored, and highlighted on the 30th or 31st. I'm getting "rooty." Mark will tag along on this shopping trip, but I'm sure he won't be thrilled about it. I wonder if he wants to go to Jacksonville, Gainsville, Tallahassee, or Macon. Guess I will have to ask.

Scheduling Issues...

Mark has to work until 11PM every night for the next month. I think he has Mondays and Tuesdays off. Bah! He's here in the mornings/early afternoon until 1:30 and then, I don't see him again for almost 12 hours. I hate his 45+ minute commute. I can admit it...I miss my husband when he's gone.

I haven't done a whole lot today. I did some laundry. I talked to my mom on the phone. Apparently, things are not going well for my youngest brother and his wife. I've only heard the story second-hand from my mom, but seriously, my brother better get his act together. He's got a kid, and well, it is time to grow up. Mark and I recently paid part of his tuition last semester. He lied to his wife about that. He lied to my parents about that. Good grief!

My husband is a saint...well, a very bad saint, but a saint nonetheless. He moved here from SLC where he had a great job with the air force. He moved here to be with me because I lived with my grandmother, at the time. She has Parkinson's Disease, and I've been living with her/taking care of her since I was 18. He let my middle brother move in with us and he puts up with my crazy dog (that I _HAD_ to have) when he only wanted one dog. I need to give him a big hug when he comes home.

Boris and Lucy have crashed out on the floor. I need to feed them soon so that they will be fed and walked before Mark gets home. It would be much to late to feed them at 12. Lucy has been kind of a heifer for the past two days. She is barking like crazy sometimes. I have NO idea why. Brat! Boris just looks at her as if to say..."shhhhhut uuuuuup!"

YEAH! :)

I'm excited! I just figured out (through a tutorial) how to create my banner for this blog. YEAH!

Mark is cleaning out what has become our "storage room" (read: junk room). There is so much junk in there. We've just shoved stuff in there whenever we didn't know where to put something. Now, it is a disaster area. So, Mark is cleaning it out while I do laundry and clean the kitchen. We whoop it up around here I tell ya'!

Lesson Plans...

I'm working on lesson plans for the coming school year. I know that I have so much to do and such a short time to get it accomplished. I need to make a list! This is what I would like to do before I go back to school on August 5th.

*Finish cleaning bedroom
*Straighten sunroom and living room
*Get watch batteries changed
*Deep clean kitchen (pantry and fridge)
*Complete two or three more bracelets for back to school wear
*Complete first two units of lesson plans for American Lit and British Lit

I guess I should go get started... :)

Joy Luck Club bracelet

JLC bracelet, originally uploaded by danaelayne.

This is the bracelet that I made. I need somewhere to take better pictures. I probably need to charge up the batteries on my regular camera.

This bracelet has Orient Express charms from Michael's. I added some other beads and some silvertone dragon charms.

I can't wait to wear this when we read the book :)

Crafty...

I feel crafty today. I think it is time to break out the beads and make some bracelets for Fall/School. I have a couple of ideas that were rolling around in my head last night. I hope I have all the beads (who am I kidding) that I need to make them.

I know that one of the bracelets I make today will be my "Joy Luck Club" bracelet. I make my college prep juniors read that book each year. I got a couple of dragon charms and other Oriental charms to put on there. I am excited about that one. When I'm building the beads for a bracelet, I put all of the beads I think that I will need in a snack size ziploc bag. I can't keep them together otherwise. I do need some more storage for my beads. Heck, I need more storage for all of my hobbies!

I'm going to go get my craft on :)

Silly....

I woke up feeling perfectly fine today. YEAH! No headache. Mark brought home some Excedrin migraine yesterday afternoon. It helped. It is always the last ditch effort before my major migraine medicine. I hate taking the migraine medicine though...I always feel so loopy.

This morning I've done dishes, filled Max's tank (Max is our red-eared slider turtle), and not a whole lot else. I need to get a move on. I can't believe how quickly summer is slipping away. Of course, I am not getting any sympathy from Mark or Kerry. Boo hiss to them. ;)

My silly dogs have been running and playing for about 30 minutes now. Up and down the rooms, rolling all over the floors, tugging at toys. Now, they are crashed out in the sunroom under the ceiling fan. Bums! :) I'm going to totally miss these lazy days when school starts back.

Grrrrr

I'd say I'm fighting a headache, but really it is kicking my butt. Hard.

Mark is on his way home from work, and he is bringing me some Excedrin. Alleve hasn't helped. A huge diet Coke hasn't helped. I attempted to take a nap, but thunder started rolling in and the dogs went insane. Silly doggies!

I woke up with this same stupid headache. I am so over it already. I was supposed to take Kerry to work today, but I just let him talk my car. I know Mark won't be thrilled with that, but oh well. I could barely handle opening my left eye in the sunlight much less driving him to Valdosta AND going to pick him up again around 11PM. No way.

I put ice in the puppies water bowl. I can hear Lucy bobbing for ice. She pulls it out and 'chases' it around the living room. Ha!

I'm going to go watch Law and Order in a dark room and see if it helps.

Spring Cleaning...a little late

Better late than never.

Our bedroom is a disaster. I kid you not. It is seriously a disaster. I am finally getting a handle on my closet (yes, my closet). I have most of my Vera's put away in the closet cubbies. I have a lot of the clothes hung up already. I have filled two more garbage bags full of clothes for Goodwill. It is insane.

I'm attempting to do ALL the laundry that needs to be done so that I can get everything (well almost everything) hung up and/or put away. I would like to see the top of my dresser before the school year starts.

I'm starting to get bummed that summer vacation is almost over. I'm in the 20s. Soon I will be in the 10s. UGH! Where did my summer go? I have been lucky. This is the first summer that I haven't been working on grad school in forever. Since I finished my doctorate last summer, I have been graduate work free. (I kind of miss it!)

I finally got my Crocsband flats that I wanted. I was super excited. They run big so I had to go down a size. They were SO cute with dark wash denim capris and a red shirt!

China Glaze: For Audrey

I have never used China Glaze colors before. I will be buying more of these. It is a good thing I got the Sally Beauty card!

Today I'm wearing China Glaze "For Audrey" which is a perfect Tiffany's Blue! It is a creme with no sparkles or glitter. No shimmer. It makes it the perfect color to wear with jeans (or khaki shorts) and a cute top!



I can't wait to go back to Sally's to find more "perfect colors!"

Review: Orly Pink Slip

It is no surprise that I love nail polish, especially pink nail polish. I am, afterall, a girly girl. I typically use OPI nail polishes, but after seeing a couple of reveiws for Orly nail polishes, I hightailed it over to Sally Beauty Supply to get some polish.

I got a few colors: Pink Slip, Royal Navy, and Dazzle. I can't wait to go back for more. Pink Slip is a pale, pale pink color. It doesn't have shimmer or glitter. It would be a perfect interview color--just enough to look put together and well groomed, but not over the top.



I liked the polish. It went on smoothly. I used three coats. It is almost opaque, but not totally which gives it an almost French manicure look. I've been wearing it about a week, and I haven't had any chips. I will be wearing Orly products again!

OUCH!

We spent a better part of the evening on Friday night in the emergency room. Mark came home from work and didn't feel too hot. Around 6PM, he was in terrible pain. By 7PM, he was in the bathroom in pain and throwing up. Off to the ER we go. Mark never complains about pain, so I knew it was bad.

After 5 hours in the emergency room and a CT Scan, Mark found out he has a kidney stone. OUCH! It is a smaller one, but still. As the doctor said, it is like putting a sandbur in a straw. *shudder* We didn't get in until 1:30AM. Suprisingly, the puppies let us sleep until 10AM. I guess they were tired too. Kerry (my brother who lives with us) had come home, woken them up, fed and walked them after 11:30PM.

I've been working on my closet, yes, still! I have almost finished it. Almost. It is such a chore, but I know that once I get everything cleaned out and organized I will be so much happier. I know that it will be worth it when school starts. I have, at least, two more garbage bags full of clothes for Goodwill. I swear our local Goodwill will now have a plus size section...ha!

I'm off to finish (who am I kidding) some laundry and unload the dishwasher. Side note: We live in my grandmother's house. She installed the dishwashwer when I was 1 or 2 years old. We are using a 37 or 38 year old dishwasher. Wild!

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