facebook has taken my life!

Well.....since I have been on facebook I haven't been here....it's even taken the place of email.....since i see most of my friends on facebook i forget that not everyone is on there and that some are still reading the blog. My apologies to you....

Let's see....since i last wrote school is over as are my training classes. I learned a lot and they got me all geared for the fall. I am enjoying my summer too. I have been playing board games with my girls....we normally have game nights and they are always fun....Dave isn't into games...he watches tv and we are normally laughing up a storm. I like making memories.....

I have been saddened by the loses we have shared this past month. Ed McMahon, Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Karl Malden all have left the earth. They were people who were part of my growing years. As I write this I am listening to VH1's tribute to Michael Jackson. I felt as if I lost a peer.... i remember growing up with his listening to his music and watching him grow too and change. My only thoughts are with the families of these people and that their hearts are soon healed. No matter what your thoughts are of these people they have changed the face of the earth and no one can replace any of them!

My 31st class reunion is on the horizon and i can't put into words how excited I am to be going to this event. I have been helping the committee and its been great fun seeing friends from a long time ago and renew old and make new friendships...

I will try to write more often.....hope you have a great summer in case i don't get back here!!!

Happiness,

Marie

Where Have I Been?

Well, to make a long story short I had a virus on my laptop! It was in the shop for about a week and when I got it back it only had the basic stuff on it. Outlook Express and Internet Explorer! I can do email and browse the net but there isn't anything else on the puter!

I have to start all over again. Right now I need to get things on here so that the girls and I can use this for school when we start again in the fall. Oh Joy!!!

Right now though school is out for the kids. I have training next week for two days and more training the following week. I get paid for it so that is good. I also have lots of sewing to do this summer so that is even better. I would like to sell a quilt or two but not sure if that will happen or not.

I also have some work to do over the summer to get ready for the kids in the fall. I brought lots of stuff home to work on this summer....i just hope i get to work on it....right now everything is just dumped in the studio. I will work on organizing it all this weekend.....

Talk to you soon!

Marie

Prom Dress pictures

Hi! Ok I finally finished the prom dress. I posted some pictures on my facebook account but I know not everyone is on facebook. SO I am posting them here too. Desirae looks so beautiful and the dress came out really nice. I can't wait to hear how it all went tonight and find out what her friends thought of her dress. What do you think?

A Week in the Life...

WOW! What a week. Monday started out normal and was a good day! This was the week the kindergarten to second grade kids were tested on the things they have learned this year. It was mostly about Reading. The kids did a great job and I am so proud of them.

Tuesday night after school I volunteered to help out at the concession stand at the baseball stadium. It was a college baseball game with Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU the college I graduated from) and University of Florida (UF GO GATORS!) It was a long game and we sold lots of beer. The kids from JROTC run the stand, they cook the food, run the registers but the adults have to pour the beer. It was the 3 instructors and myself. I didn't find out about it until the day before. So I was on the run after work to get home, change clothes and get to the stand by 5:30pm!! I didn't get home until about 11pm and I was beat. We did have fun and it was a lot of fun and I think they made a lot of money too!

On Wednesday, our students watched a play rehearsal of a typical day at our school. Our 5th graders wrote the play and they did a great job! The students and teachers really enjoyed watching the production. Wednesday night I helped after school to grade the science fair projects. Our students turned in 132 projects. That is the most we have ever had and our science teacher was overwhelmed! It was lots of fun. Desirae even came to help out. We left school at 8pm when the custodians were closing up. We had to go to Joanns and Borders for a few items and then headed home. I got home at 9pm and did two loads of wash.

Thursday (today) should have been an easy day! It was the last day of our testing and we were lucky enough to have a child's author come to our school and give a presentation to our K-2 kids. It was a lot of fun and a nice way to end our last day of testing. I had a training class to attend tonight and we had a showcase of talent at my school. That is when we have the art projects on display for our parents to see. We also had teachers presenting the interactive white boards and how we use them during the day in our lessons with their children. I was going to do one of those but was scheduled to attend a training class. Then Desirae came to my school after she got out and told me I needed to attend the county JROTC awards. I was planning to attend to watch her get an award but she told me I was presenting an award to her school. I had no idea! Needless to say I had to leave the training class early and drive to her school. When I got to her high school I had to report in to the head honcho and he told me I was presenting 2 awards! It was fun but I would have liked an email to let me know more info in advance.

It was a great night and I love being with these kids. I am hoping that tomorrow will be a nice normal day. I am totally exhausted and plan on going to bed. Now you know why I have this name for my blog and the reason I don't post every day. I am not always here. Right now I am waiting for another load of laundry to be put in the dryer so I have clothes to wear to school tomorrow! I love my life and wouldn't change it for the world. This running around keeps me young and my mind sharp! (At least I keep saying that! LOL)

Have a good rest of the week.

Tiredly,

Marie

The new WASHER!

Yesterday we bought a new clothes washer. We got it from Sam's Club and it's wonderful. It only has 7 wash cycles and there are 2 knobs on it. I guess you could call it an old fashioned washer. No computer to go bad from a power surge (which we have lots of here in the summer time with the crazy storms), 3 water temps to choose from and a smaller basket then I had before but that is fine with me.

I have done 2 loads of wash so far and I love it. And when the knob breaks I can still wash clothes using a pair of pliers!!! LOL.....

Today I did some customers quilts, 3 of them. They were really pretty and it was fun working on them. I also did one load of laundry and then folded and put away another load from last weekend. I still have one more to do but I will save that for tomorrow.

We went back to Barnes and Noble today and returned a book because Carol bought a book that she already had. Then went to the library and a quick stop at the grocery store for a loaf of bread.

After I worked on the quilts I played gamecube for a while. I am hooked on Animal Crossing and played for about an hour. It was very relaxing. Then I cooked dinner, put clean sheets on the bed and now I am ready to watch Dancing with the Stars while I do some sewing.

This was my first day on Spring Break and I am sure I will be really busy for the rest of the week too!

What are you doing this week?

Marie

Wonderful kids!

My girls are the best! We have a washing machine that has been on its last legs for a while now and it finally died this past weekend! So my amazing girls went to the laundromat for me and did 9 loads of wash! Then they brought it home and I spent the rest of the day drying those 9 loads.

They could have done many things but helped me out. I was upstairs working on quilts for my customers. Thanks to them I was able to get a lot done that day.

Carol my youngest comes to my elementary school every day after her high school gets out. Today she helped me put up my bulletin board in the hallway. She is a great help to me and when I am not in school she comes and helps out the substitute teacher that may be in my class. Desirae use to come to my class to last year before she got her job so now she only comes in once in a while. I like it when she comes in because then all my filing gets done! Carol helps the kids pack up at the end of the day, she records their behavior in their agendas (whether they were good or bad during the day)...and helps them with Reading or sometimes Math. Now in the high schools here the kids needs a certain amount of volunteer hours before they can graduate so this will help both of them in that area.

Carol also does my art work for my bulletin board. I will take some pictures of the one that is up now. She has made me a duck (that you will see in one of the next posts) and the gingerbread house that I had up at Christmas time. She is very talented. She also created the lady bug drawing that the kids colored and glued spots on for the bulletin board this month. I wouldn't know what to do without her.

I know there are lots of people who have problems with their kids but I am proud to say that my girls haven't really given me any trouble. They aren't perfect but we always talk and when something is bothering them we do talk. I like when they come home and we sit in my studio and talk about their days. It reminds me of when I use to do the same thing with my mom. Of course it makes me miss my mom too. She would love to sit in on these chats and be a part of their lives. I really miss my mom alot.

Well that is all for now. I have two more days of school and then it's spring break. I can't wait. This week I have been tutoring kids afterschool getting them ready for the Stanford 10 test. This is a state test to see how well the kindergarten thru 2 grade are learning the skills they need in each grade. We have one more session tomorrow after school and then two more after we get back from spring break.

Tomorrow we are having an Easter Egg hunt at school for the kinder kids and that should be fun. I was worried that I wouldn't have enough for my class so I bought some plastic eggs at the store and some candy and filled about 30 eggs tonight. I hope more kids are bringing stuff in tomorrow. I will let you know how we make out.

Later,

Marie

A good Day!!

Today was a good day.I finally got some quilting done. I did 4 quilts for customers and it was nice making some extra cash. I also didn't have to wash any clothes today and that was great too!! While I was quilting I was able to listen to my iPod and some great oldies....

At lunchtime my daughter bought me a chicken sandwich and that was cool too. Dave then told me some great news. He was able to find the leak in the roof on the motor home. That is really good news and we are going to get them fixed, we just have to save the money for that. And I thought we were going to need a new water heater for the RV too but he said it was just the knob that needed to be replaced. So that was a good thing to hear as well.

My boss called me this week and she has more sewing for me to do over spring break and that is good news too. I have been busy this week sewing for her and I need more money so it's good to be hearing this from her.

I just got back from the grocery store (ALONE!) and was able to get some things we needed and save some money since I didn't have any teenagers or husband with me. LOL...Why do we spend so much more at the store when one or all of them are with us I will never know.

So what wonderful things have you been up to? I still have to finish this baby quilt for my friend in Canada. She had her wonderful son and I want to get it to her before he outgrows it.

Later folks,

Marie

We have returned!

We just came back from another successful camping trip with JROTC from the Lee County schools. What a great time! It brought back lots of memories and we had a blast. The kids had time to chill for a while and then the fun started. On Saturday we got up early, 6am and raised the flag and had revely. Then breakfast and LET THE GAMES BEGIN! We had a volleyball competition, tug of war, relay race that consisted of the barrel race, canoeing and sprinting between all the schools. The end of the day brought a dinner catered by the County and it was great. I got to help serve ice cream to all the cadets and cadre! I loved it and got to see lots of my new friends and friends kids who are now going thru the program. Then it was back to our campsite for a night of movies! The CSM (Command Sergeant Major) of our school (South Ft. Myers High) brings out a generator, movie screen and sound system and we watch movies. The kids bring out their camping chairs and sleeping bags and we all sit and watch. It's fun and the kids love it. We have fire watch because we are in the dry season now and can't have fires so we watch to be sure there aren't any. I am adding some pictures here of the amphitheater in the front of the campground and also of the bus ramp. Tomorrow I am going to add pictures from when WE were there and you can see parts of that place haven't changed much in 30 something years. Tell me what you think.

Marie (ROTC ROCKS!)

Fun Day!

Today was a fun day for me. I got to spend most of the day with the JROTC kids from South Ft. Myers HS. We were at the Red Sox and Twins game running a consession stand. The kids cook and prep the food and run the cash registers. The adults pour the beer. We have the best time and the kids earn tips toward their program at school and also a portion of the sales go to the JROTC unit.

I can only help out on weekends and I have another game in April I can go to. It's a blast and we have fun doing it to. The kids are awesome and do a great job.

This coming weekend is the state competition for these same kids in Lakeland Florida. We leave on Friday ( I asked for the day off so I can go) and the competition is Saturday. We have a great time on the bus as well as at the competition. It's a busy weekend and we have late and early hours but another fun time. We leave around 10 am on Friday and get there a little after lunch. We settle into our rooms and the kids start practicing in the parking lot. After practice we wash up for dinner and head to the local mall for some shopping and dinner. Then back to the hotel for some swimming, (the kids not the adults!) and then to bed after we make sure the kids have everything ready for the next day's competition. Sometimes I help the kids iron their shirts and make sure their boots are shined and the uniforms look good.

We get up early (430am) on Saturday and make sure the kids are dressed and all packed up. We board the buses and head to George Jenkins High School for the day. After the competition we board the buses and drive for a while then stop for dinner then continue home. The kids will be dead tired by then but it's great. There will be one instructor going and 3 chaperones. We have lots of fun and I can't wait. It's like a mini vacation for me.

I will post again next week after the competition and let you know how we made out. Most of this week I have to get my lesson plans ready for Friday and also next week.

Talk to you soon!

Marie

Time is the enemy!

Well I have found facebook.....I kinda went into it kicking and screaming because I was having trouble with my computer and the virus....now its all fixed....so facebook is working again....I am having lots of fun meeting up with my friends from ELEMENTARY school......what a blast.....I am loving it and also meeting up with friends from high school.

We are also in the middle of planning our 31st high school reunion....it was for last october but the timing was off so now we are shooting for this summer....I am on the committee to help out and I am looking forward to it......We have a conference call next week to talk over some of the details...

I have been very busy at work and even brought stuff home this weekend to get done. Tomorrow is a busy day...we are going to a meeting to see how to finance college for my two girls and then we have the big Edison Pagent of Light parade tomorrow night. I use to march in that parade when I was in ROTC in high school and now my daughter does it and I am a chaperone. I love doing this. So we have to be at the high school at 2:30pm tomorrow and the parade is at 7:30pm at night. I will tell you all about it tomorrow or Sunday.

I have been fighting a migraine tonight and not winning. I took some aspirins at school before I left but I still have a pounding head. I am going to get more to take a little later and then head to bed.

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Marie

SICKES!!! ALL SICKES!!!!

I am so sick of being sick AGAIN!!!! Desirae missed school all last week because she had the flu....like I had a few weeks back....Carol got it yesterday and is running a temp of 101.2, so no school for her tomorrow....right now Dave is also coughing.....and I have a temp of 100. Now I have to go to school tomorrow so I am going to be heading to bed pretty soon with a dose of nyquil....i just need to get thru the day and get home fast at the end of the day....

Of course all the kids at school are sick, 2 teachers on my team are sick and with the stupid temps being from 31 to 50 here in COLD SOUTHWEST FLORIDA! It's no wonder we are sick....I can't wait for the summer....I would rather be warm than this cold....We have had more fires in the fireplace this winter then all the years we have lived here which are 8 years.

Desirae went to the docs on friday and got some meds so she is doing good. If Carol doesn't get better tomorrow I will have Dave take her in also.

Keep us in your thoughts and prayers.....we need to get over this once and for all!!

Pass the tissues!!

Marie

Where am I?

I have a confession to make.....I am addicted to gamecube!!! My daughters have Animal Crossing and I was bored a few weeks ago and got hooked on this game......I come home from work and just play until bedtime.....and I do take time out for dinner but that is it.....

I haven't been reading email either....or playing and finding stuff on the computer....I think its because work is getting stressful. I have 15 students who don't speak English as their first language...most of them are doing well but I got a new student today who only speaks Spanish. Its a good time for me to practice my Spanish. Plus the kids are just wearing me out....LOL....but I am enjoying working with them.

So other then that nothing much has been happening......I have been working on some quilts but nothing serious.....I will get better at the blogging again...

This Saturday is the JROTC countywide competition and I will be there to help out. I get to help the girls uniforms to make sure they are ok and all the same....then I get to cheer on my high school kids....I love hanging out with them....they are the ones that keep me young....I will tell you how they made out....

Hugs

Marie

Out with the Old and In with the New!

Well today was cleaning day....I started right after breakfast. I didn't do much but I did get lots of junk thrown out. I cleaned out two shelves on a bookcase. Now you may say that isn't much but we can pack a lot of garbage in 2 shelves. I had almost all of my college papers still there in the binders. So out all the papers went in the recycling bin and I am taking the binders to school for my kids to use when theirs break or fall apart. I have 18 binders to bring to school. Once I was done with that I put the other items from another bookcase into those two shelves and cleaned out the other bookcase so I can sell it. I never did like it much but I needed it and it was free. It served us well and now it's time for it to move on.

I still need to do more in the dining room but this was a great start. I also took down the quilts and washed them and rehun them so the are all clean now too. I dusted the living room and rehung those newly washed quilts for that room too. I don't know how to paint but I quilt up a storm so I hang my quilts in my home. I love how they look. Then I moved into the kitchen and cleaned that. Then I quit for the day because I was pooped!! LOL

I played on game cube for a while and the computer, cooked dinner, took a shower and played gamecube again. It was a good day.

Tomorrow we all go back to school so I wanted to rest up. I still haven't done any scrapbooking like I wanted to. I might tonight yet. It's too early to go to bed.

I hope you all had a great weekend. Talk to you later.

Marie

How I spent the day!

A few years ago Santa brought us Nintendo gamecube.....and the girls stil play on it and they have been playing a game called Animal Crossing. They have done this for years......and I am always too busy to play...but this Christmas break I didn't bring anything home so I have had lots of time on my hands.....so I learned how to play the game and its a lot of fun.

We asked Santa for a Wii but he couldn't find any in time for Christmas so we are still waiting....LOL.....I am going to get one but I also have to wait until the stores stock back up with them here in town because they sold out for Christmas. There is also an Animal Crossing game for the Wii so I thought I should learn the easy one first. LOL....well now they have me hooked on it...I played all day today and didn't do anything else. It was great.

Tonight though I think I am going to scrapbook for a little while....and then I might go play again.....LOL...

What wonderful things have you all done in the first 2 days of the new year?

Marie