Happy Halloween

I love Halloween. Costumes, candy, hay rides...what could be better? I'm fairly confident that my students wouldn't disagree. Today was their day. They have become the stars of the school and the other teachers and students have been great with them. Today, we went trick-or-treating around campus to the office and several high school classrooms. My kids loved it and came away with more candy than they will be able to eat before next Halloween. I'm sure their parents are going to love us! Then after lunch, my mom and dad brought a trailer filled with hay to take our class on a hayride around the block. We stopped at several homes on the way that had agreed to have treats for my students. It was so much fun. And though our students at my school always leave early on Wednesday the teachers usually still have to stay to atleast 3 but today our principals let us leave early too so it was a great ending to a busy, busy day. Tonight, I was at mama's so that I could see my sweet nephews in their costumes. She had made them pirate outfits and they were SO precious. Of course, neither of them would let me get a good picture. Braden was way too excited and ready to go on to the next house and Cooper just didn't want to cooperate. But hopefully you can see how super cute these little guys are.

After they went to a few of the houses on their street, they were going to see my Mamaw at the nursing home. They were supposed to have trick-or-treating there tonight also and on Monday I took Mamaw a witch's hat and cape to wear. I hope she didn't lose it or forget to wear it tonight. Since I wasn't going to be able to see her tonight, I took her picture with the hat Monday. Isn't she a cute witch?

P.S. I tried to post this yesterday but my internet has been messing up all week and it wouldn't cooperate last night.

Monday Musings

My Mondays don't usually have any blog-worthy moments but today proved to be an exception (either that or I'm just trying to make up for my extended blogging absence). Just like a Monday morning, some of the events were about as fun as hearing the alarm go off bright and early. First of all, it has rained tons today which meant we had to reschedule our pumpkin patch visit for later this week. Then right after returning from breakfast this morning, one of my students ran toward me like he wanted a hug. I usually am very open to giving my students any amount of hugs they want, but this one was a little different. He approached me with more than just his arms open. Once I realized that he was trying to kiss me, I threw my arms up and got him to stop. I then told him that we only blow kisses to each other in our room. He then looked at me so innocently and said "That's not how Billy does it." Billy is his 21-year-old brother! I'm quite scared of what he has witnessed Billy doing and am hoping that he doesn't try to re-enact any more scenes in class. So after the other teachers in our class were able to control their laughter we were able to move on and have a pretty good day. After school was out, I was able to visit one of my best friends from high school, Haley, and her precious new baby, Grayson. Haley and Grayson live in Madison but are visiting her mom for a couple of days and I jumped at the chance to meet this sweet new addition. He is an absolute doll and was awake the whole time I was there. I was able to feed him a bottle and just love on him for about 45 minutes. It was great. I can't wait to see him again. I, unfortunately, didn't have my camera with me so I have no pics of this precious little man. But he and Haley definitely made my Monday much better. That is, until I decided to visit Goody's. When I left Haley, I went to Goody's to look for some pants for school. Goody's is moving into a brand new store so they are getting rid of all of their inventory from the old store and this is the last week they will be open so everything is ridiculously cheap. Anyway, I was there for a while and found some excellent bargains. I actually got 3 pairs of pants and a shirt for less than $20. Totally ridiculous! So, anyway, I'm feeling good, happy about my bargains, and head for the check-out line where I am in between 2 ladies who are talking back and forth about all the clothes they have found and are comparing what each other has. The lady in front of me is likely in her early to mid 60s and has like 15 or more shirts and she is talking loudly the whole time, trying to tell the lady behind me where all the size large shirts are, since apparently she has canvassed the entire store in search of all shirts this size. While the checkout lady is steadily scanning her items, she looks at what I have and notices my shirt laid on the counter. She comments that she likes it and asks what size it is. When I tell her a medium, she looks me over with a look like "There's no way you wear a medium." She then decides that she needs to see how we compare in size and actually steps behind me and places her hands on the side of my hips in order to see how much space is between them. Apparently she can't grasp the idea that I might could wear a medium when she wears a large. At this point, I am turning red and feel forced to say something like "It's to wear under something." Even the checkout lady has that look of sympathy for me. The lady then says to the woman behind me "I guess I should go back and look for mediums." Who did this old lady think she was? I am by no means a little girl but who gave her the right to question what I wear and how my clothes might fit. I was so irritated. I mean, I know I've gained a good bit of weight over the past year but I'm trying to get things under control and it doesn't help to have perfect strangers point out the width of my body. Lady, believe me, I am perfectly aware of every inch of this body. So even, though, I left the store with great bargains, my less-than-stellar body image took a blow. Oh well, tomorrow is another day and one step closer to the weekend.

Family Time

This weekend was all about the family. On Friday night, my dad's side of the family met at my Aunt Sherry's house for a fall kick-off. The Luke family needs no real reason to get together and eat, so beginning of fall seemed like just as good a reason as any other to have an eating-meeting. We made a fire, had chili and hot dogs, and roasted marshmallows for smores. What better way to celebrate the start of a new season. You never know what activities might be a part of a Luke family function and this night was no exception. Jump roping and telling ghost stories were the events of choice on Friday night. It was quite entertaining to see the over 12 crowd trying to jump rope. In my family, one of the thrills of the adults has always been finding ways to scare the kids. When we were younger, the aunts and uncles would challenge us to walk around the house on Thanksgiving night saying "Raw heads and bloody bones come get me." And then of course, when we thought we had gathered up the courage and almost made it around the house untouched, one of them would jump out from behind a bush or start making terrible noises that would send us running into the house screaming. Well, I guess Friday night offered them the chance to repeat the performances with the new generation of young kids. Braden loves ghost stories and thought it was fabulous when Uncle Larry came out from the barn wearing a sheet and running toward them. Cooper, on the other hand, was a different story. He was very scared and kept saying "I want go home" He finally settled down and the night continued without any other incidents. Saturday continued the family weekend with my mom's mother's family reunion at Clarko State Park. It was very beautiful weather and even though I didn't know a whole lot of people there it was nice to see those that I did and haven't seen in a while. My grandmother and her older brother are the only children still living out of a family of 12 and they were each presented with a plaque of appreciation for their contributions to the family. I was glad I got to be there for her. Sunday brought about another opportunity for family. My dad's mom's family reunion was that afternoon in Collinsville. Neither my mamaw nor any of her siblings are still living but we still have a good crowd every year. Even though I see most of my family on frequent basis, it is still fun to spend time with them. I love both sides of my family and am so thankful that I am blessed to be a part of large families. (Sorry I don't have any pics of any of these events!)

So Sorry

Ok, so I realize that it's been two weeks since my last post and that there probably isn't anybody out there actually checking my blog anymore but I have finally found a little motivation to get back in the blogging scene so here goes my attempt at trying to catch you up on my not-so-exciting life these last couple of weeks. Last weekend, me, my mom, and Robbie set off for the beauty and serenity of the mountains. We left Friday after I got off work and I took off Monday so we actually had the whole weekend in God's country. Even though the leaves hadn't turned very much yet, it was still beautiful up there and the weather was absolutely perfect. We didn't get to Aunt Kay and Uncle Ronnie's until late Friday night so we slept in Saturday morning and then Robbie and I went and played around at several of the shops nearby before we headed out to Dollywood that afternoon. We love Dollywood and have never been during this time of year so I was excited to see all the fall decorations. Plus I got to ride the new roller coaster which was so scary but fun. Of course, I couldn't convince my mom or Robbie to ride with me. I guess I looked pitiful standing in line by myself because it wasn't long before two 13-year-old girls adopted me and decided that they would tell me all about this ride and let me ride with them. I hope I get to actually ride this coaster again since I think I only had my eyes open for about the first 15 seconds. That night Robbie and I got in the hot tub and just relaxed and talked. It was fabulous. I would be able to be much less stressed if I had one of those on my porch to get into every night! On Sunday we went to church with my Aunt Kay, Uncle Ronnie, and Brian. We have been with them lots of times to their church and always enjoy it but it is an adventure going to Sunday School with Brian. Since I've been going up there I have been to atleast 4 different Sunday School classes. But the one he is in now I think he is set in. Anyway, Robbie and I were in class with him waiting for it to start, and I was asking Brian what the day's lesson was about. He looked in his book and the title of the lesson was "Be Patient with Others". Then he turned to me and said, "I hope my dad is listening. He needs this big time." I thought I was gonna die. I'm glad class hadn't actually started because I was laughing really hard. Brian is hilarious! He always comes up with funny things to say. Unfortunately, we had to come home Monday and I had to return to work Tuesday but it was nice having a four day week. Of course I think my kids were trying to make sure it felt like I had been there with them all week because they were really stressful Tuesday and Wednesday. But Thursday was Special Olympics so we got to take them bowling. It was so much fun. They were so cute bowling even though I sometimes wasn't sure if that floor was going to hold up to all those balls just being thrown down really hard. All of my kids got ribbons and had a blast. We then took them to the mall and ate at the food court. So Thursday was a fun day and this Monday we are going to the pumpkin patch if it doesn't rain so I'm pumped. I love field trips! So that about covers anything halfway interesting that happened the past 2 weeks. I lead a pretty uneventful life but I do usually try to make it seem like I have a more interesting life than actually is but these past couple of weeks I've just been too tired. I will try to do better in the future.

P.S. I tried to post this earlier but the photo uploading function wasn't working and I didn't really think you would care very much about my post if there weren't any pictures so I decided to wait.

Weekend Recap

Even though this weekend wasn't quite as exciting as last weekend, I still ended up being pretty busy. Homecoming was Friday and all we did in my class was have fun all day. My kids loved the pep rally. We were even presented a certificate for showing so much school spirit during the week. Here's a pic of our door decorated:

Braden got to come to the high school pep rally because he was on the Homecoming court and he was so intimidated by all those screaming high schoolers. The only time he even halfway smiled was when the drum line took center court. But by Friday night he was ready to go. He absolutely loved his tux. Before he left for the game, he told my mom, "Grammy, I look good don't I? I look like a preacher!" I've never really seen too many preachers wearing tuxedos on a regular basis but whatever. He really does want a pair of tuxedo shoes and socks now for Christmas. When I went over after the game Friday, he was already in his bed watching tv but he got up and all he had on were his boxer shorts and those black tux socks. He slept in them all night! I'm not sure April is gonna be able to return the tux without resistance from Braden. He was so very cute on the field and I promise he had more screams and yells than anybody on the actual court. He had a big fan base. My mom and I were sitting with several other members of our family and Braden's teacher and we all yelled for him and my younger cousin Tiffany got most of the sophomore class to scream for him. So he was well loved. Here a few pics of
the day (even though Braden refused to let me get a good one of him in his tux):

On Saturday, my sweet little cousin Payton had her Princess birthday party. Her actual birthday was a couple of weeks ago but she just had her party yesterday. Even though it was really hot, it was fun watching her in her crown jumping in her blowup castle and opening all her baby doll stuff. She is such a prissy girl. Here's a pic of her with her BFF Mallanye:

Finally today Robbie and I went to see the Sound of Music at the Meridian Little Theater. It was fabulous. I can't quit singing "the hills are alive..." I am such a sucker for musicals and jump at the chance to see a good one. This season the MLT is showing 3 musicals so I'm pumped about having season tickets. Today was the opener and it didn't disappoint. These are a few of my favorite things!

A Fairy Tale Day

This week is Homecoming week at West Lauderdale. Oh the memories that have come flooding back seeing the campus decorated, houses rolled, and students dressed in crazy outfits everyday. I loved Homecoming when I was in high school so I was super pumped about being back at my alma mater during this week. I think every place of employment should have a week where you get choose a theme, decorate, and dress up everyday. It really makes it more fun to go to work. Anyway, today was Costume Day and because we weren't sure that all of our kids would actually wear a costume to school, we decided to have the class all dress up together and we would make their costumes. It was decided that we would be Snow White and the 7 dwarfs (even though we actually had 10 dwarfs with the assistants dressed up also). Because we only have 2 girls in our class and weren't real confident that either one would actually keep a costume on, it was voted that I would be Snow White and all the students would be my dwarfs. So for almost a week we have worked on their costumes preparing for today. And since I couldn't find a Snow White costume in Meridian for anyone over the age of 6, my fabulous mother whipped me up a perfect costume yesterday afternoon. She really is amazing. I called her on my way to school yesterday morning and told her I didn't have a costume and if there was any way that she could make me one. And of course, she did. And of course, it looked great. So this morning when my kids got off the bus, I greeted them in grand fairy tale fashion and we dressed them in their cute hats and signs and paraded all around campus. My kids loved the attention and were a big hit with all the other students and teachers. Thought you might like to see some pics of our day.

One more note about Homecoming: Braden is going to be the crown bearer at the Homecoming game Friday night. The oldest teacher's child in PreK or Kindergarten gets to be the crown bearer and flower girl during halftime to crown the Queen. So hopefully he will behave. It could be interesting. Atleast maybe he won't fall asleep like he did when he was supposed to be the ring bearer at Heather's wedding!

Georgia On My Mind

This weekend I went to visit my best friend Myndi and her husband Brian (and her dog/child Scarlett) in Athens, GA. Myndi moved to Athens last year after she got married because Brian got a job as a professor at the University of Georgia. Athens is a cool little college town and anytime I can make a road trip I'm ready. But to get to visit Myndi makes a trip even better. So Friday afternoon her brother Jared and I made the trip east for the weekend. Other than getting stuck in traffic outside of Atlanta for about 45 minutes and then getting there to find nobody at home, Jared and I made the trip just fine. Once Myndi and Brian finally realized we were just chilling in their living room while they were playing at the neighbors our weekend fun began. Saturday morning Brian found out that he could get 4 tickets to the Georgia/Ole Miss game instead of just 2 like he had originally thought. So Myndi and I were able to join the boys at the game which was really exciting. We had incredible seats 22 rows up in the end zone. I have never been that close at a college football game. And it was even better that Georgia won (Sorry Courtney and Clay!) Of course we were in the sun the whole game and left with crazy sunburns of only half of our faces and necks but it was worth it. I LOVE COLLEGE FOOTBALL! And Saturday night we went back downtown and ate and watched the Auburn/Florida game. Also a very great game. And one of the coolest things about Athens is that there is no indoor smoking so I could actually come out of the bar without smelling like a smoke stack. Go Athens! I wish Meridian would take a lesson. Then Sunday rolled around and unfortunately we had to leave. Of course, a trip to visit Myndi would not be complete without going to Target so we made sure that we went before I had to leave. And what a productive trip. The dollar spot at Target was on fire yesterday. I got so much stuff to use in my classroom for Halloween and Thanksgiving. And I got 2 really cute shirts for less than $20. Unfortunately, I had to come back to work and Jared had to go to school so we had to leave yesterday afternoon. I already miss Myndi and can't wait to get back soon. We don't get to spend nearly enough time together anymore. Growing up stinks! Here are some pics from the weekend: