Mucus.....

Ya know what you shouldn't do.....use mucinex, nasal spray, and alka seltzer night time cold medicine all at once.....today is detox day.....yikes......
Now four days have gone by.....the only room we have tackled is the downstairs family room.....who knows if it's still habitable since I am not really managing the household right now....
Tomorrow....I have to recover.....Ortho and baseball practice.....I'm charging the kindle cuz that's a lot of time quarantined to the car.....that's the secret to being a baseball mom......practice is for cleaning out your purse, wallet, glove compartment, console, trunk, and back seat.  There's knitting too....but that's when there is a warm indoor place to sit......that reminds me.....I haven't rhinestoned my new team hat or my chair with Jackson's number......it won't be as fun when I  can't smell the E6000 glue

Breaking of the Spring

.....finally....a real day off......I'm relocated to the couch so I can squeak orders to my son......I can't call the furnace guy until he picks up the basement.....and I have no voice....he feels the need to entertain while he does it.....or perhaps he's stalling....when he was younger it made me help him.....I'm over that...
We're trying to sort through old DVDs......oy .....I didn't like the Pippi Longstocking movie when it was age appropriate.....and now they're clinging to it like it's Oscar worthy.....really?!?.....it can go.....so can TMNT....and Thomas......
Now I needed to figure out how to squeak into the phone to call the furnace guy....that should be fun....

.....wow....a Saturday...

This is new....a Saturday post.....mobile blogger.....
I'm not gonna lie.....I'm bedridden....I could probably get up and do simple tasks.....but I don't wanna....I took mucinex all day yesterday to stop chest congestion.....it worked...but I don't handle that drug well

And now I'm officially my mother....talking about illness.....

I wish I liked TV......it's pretty boring to lay around all day.....Diogi agrees
...she does her best to get me up every two hours.....

Needless to say.....the great declutter hasn't begun.....I watched HGTV for a bit....does that count?

I'm calling this an energy conservation day.....tomorrow will be better because of it.....

.....Spring Break Eve....

...you know you're tired when even the floor under your desk starts to look comfy........I am so ready for this break...........baseball has been cancelled on both weekends so I have no excuse.....I need to be productive.......and make/encourage my kids to be the same..........I'm more tired thinking about that now.....maybe I'll take the Wii in to get fixed.......that would be fun to have working when we have cleared out the family room............a week from now it should be clear with an air hockey table added..........and Just Dance 4 on the Wii.........par tay....

...it's also time for caffeine weaning......I bought Diet Rite soda for my transition drink........I'm also good with Fresca........anybody remember Tab cola.........that was some nasty stuff.......pretty sure it was battery acid in a glass bottle...........we had it in the house for my diabetic brother and weight watchers mother......I bet if I had that in the house no one would steal my soda.....

I love the name Enzo......I think if we ever get a puppy that I'll be naming him Enzo.........and that in no way, shape, or form means we're getting a puppy......no cute little puppies......

...mobile....test test....

Taking it on the road......truth be told that means I'm on my phone in bed with Abby blasting her lungs to a episode of Glee....

I'm getting sick.....a chest cold...how perfect of me to wait until spring break.....I'm an ideal employee...

I guess that explains why I'm  almost asleep.....

I added some gadgets....can you spot the differences?

......appliances.......

.......I hate maintenance for appliances............really......the furnace is dying and I realize that........I'm keeping it comfortable for now but it's not doing the same for us........if it would only make it to Spring Break.........I don't want to take a day off to have it checked and/or replaced.......nice of Spring to send bitter cold weather for this weekend......I guess we'll see what we're made of.....it's also annoying that my year-old refrigerator has forgotten that I like it to make ice consistently..........do you supposed the furnace guy can fix that also.........and if he could wall mount the new TV....that would be awesome.........make him beautiful..............frosting....

...today is the day that our teachers find out what grade they are teaching next year.....or if they still have a job at all......I wisely went out to Subway for lunch so that I could miss the PTSD going on......while at Subway I remembered that I like eating sandwiches with mega produce......and that will be back on my shopping list......it's also soon to be Jimmy John's season.....best sammy to take to baseball tournaments......

 How fun to hear everyone's Spring Break plans..........we're supposed to go to smelly ol' Greeley for a tourney.......smells like dead meat I'm told.........butchering, packing, blood boiling factories there.........mmmmm...mmmmmmm....weather predicted is 28 degrees and snow....that, my friends, is not baseball weather.............the rest of the break I plan to Feng Shui my happy a** off......and we all know that means declutter for me...........woot.......goodbye junk......

....mermaids.....

....a song popped into my head today...........and it's stuck.......but at least it's cheery.........."If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life"........."somethin' somethin' somethin' something some thing"....from Mermaids...........I love when they are bopping around the kitchen having a great time with Cher mommy............that scene is exactly why Santa brought me an under cabinet CD/Radio stereo..........good times ...and a must for someone who doesn't love any kitchen duties.........

still mad at baseball........hoping for changes after a meeting with the coach tonight.......be warned......I'm a vicious mama bear........I could give Leigh Anne Tuohy (Blind Side) chills.....

It's cool to be a pilot....right?.......I'm a total Pile-it...........horizontal surfaces are not safe around me.....I knew a coffee table would be risky..........fortunately? I have a cat who will pee on any clothing that is lying on it...........we learned quickly to keep it clear.......

that is probably the only cat I've ever had that I don't really like.......it's Abby's...it's warped......he sasses her which is uber funny.........I think he hates her.......he also hates the sound effects with Ruzzle.......a game on my phone which is basically boggle...........and you should know that I totally rock at it.... if you're name is Pappy you don't think I'm all that great at it......but I have beat her several times............and that's next to impossible..........I am Sparticus.....

.....whoa

...my bouncing baby boy is 12 today.........he asks for so little.........he isn't really the party type so we got out of that.........we went out to Elephant Bar last night.......his homeland........he has always referred to Africa as his homeland.....he was more than disappointed to see his birth certificate that states our city as his place of birth.........sorry, Charlie......America it is........he chose a new hat  for his gift.........St. Louis Cardinals flat bill.....the new Diamond Series batting practice hat.......35 smackers......seems ridiculous for a hat........especially when it's not his only hat........boys are weird

baseball was a downer yesterday.........that's all I had better say about that......

I went one whole day without caffeine....not really on purpose......I paid dearly for that mistake.....huge headache by 6.....asleep by 8.........on the upside, that was a lot of sleep in one night for me.........I should have pushed through it today and I'd be almost to the point of not needing it........this morning I had to make 3 trips to get us all to school with everything we needed....all while the car was in desparate need of gas.....I made it....no idea how.........the dash said I had 0 miles left for at least two miles.......and it filled with exactly 11.0 gallons of gas.....there must have been just a squirt left in the hose for me to have made it........that really is a risky little game to play....allow me to refer to last night's headache........I couldn't make myself stop for gas........

Jackson has gotten some birthday cash and will be getting some gift cards............oy........he's going to be badgering me to take him places..........

.....Beware the Ides of March.....

...I love Shakespeare........it's not rubbing off on my children at all..........the town near our cabin has a great outdoor theatre that does Shakespeare each  summer.......they won't go......they also won't stay in the cabin alone....brats......

During undergrad, I enrolled in the Theatre in London program...........a group from the Univ of Minnesota went to London for 12 weeks.....I was paying out of state tuition anyway so this was not more expensive...........basically......we had a few hours of class each week and were tourists the rest of the time.......I learned quickly that it's dirt cheap with a student ID to get a ticket to any show at the last minute.....they sell the tickets that no one picks up at will call right before the curtain lifts.......usually front row center......FANTASTIC......I saw Evita three times in one week..........Cats.....Blood Brothers.....something with Rex Harrison.....hog heaven, people.....that was the life......I loved riding the Tube....loved walking to the theatre district......and I got straight A's I'm sure....weekend trips to Scotland, Ireland, and the Southern Coast of England.....I slept in castles..I also added a month to the trip and Eurail Passed my way around Europe......Paris (ick), Nice, Venice, Heidelberg, Auschwitz, Switzerland.............and the land of Von Trapps.......woot.....Austria rocks.....

Abby does love musicals so maybe she can learn to love Shakespeare.....Jack liked Wicked but says he's done.....done with stages..........

.......warning.....

I am not feeling cheery today...........I'm pretty sick of people who think they are entitled to everything their heart desires......ask a superstar or a millionaire.......that is not true happiness........I believe in living simply so that all can simply live..............

yes, I wear the same clothes all the time......I wash them ....and then I wear them again.....until they wear out........none of them say Limited or Aeropostale or Ann Taylor.....my shoes are high quality because you get what you pay for in footwear.......I know children who have 42 Hollister shirts............want Coach purses.......a selection of Uggs.......really?!?!?!?

I challenge you all to find complete joy in something simple.......my friend who has been struggling is caught up on utility bills........she gets it......she knows true joy in the moment......

I had a beanie baby obsession....before I had kids...........yes, I had a twelve-year-old's collection when I was 30.........I kept a checklist.....I wanted them all...........now....I give them to my speech students for working hard.......the one I give them is probably the only one they'll ever have ....and they love it to pieces.......and they'll probably remember me for that.........not for any speech goals they met......

I'm working hard to purge my house of nonsense I don't need........Goodwill drop off is my friend.......then maybe I can truly tackle taking control of my food intake and exercise output......there's not really a reason for me to wait but the thought of doing both overwhelms me.......Spring Break is coming..........I have big plans...........an empty, clean house.........a farmer's market schedule so we always have healthy and fun food choices.........it will happen.....join me, won't you!

.....mornin'

...trying to squeeze a blurb in before school......staff meeting this morning........I had better not say a word.......I am not a fan of meetings of any sort.........

the weather continues to ruin baseball's life around here.....snow on the fields in Denver so we might have another tournament cancelled this weekend...........now....if I used my unexpected time wisely I might not be so put out with it...........

today is a paperwork day.....I'm going to put my zombie eye to the test.......I'm sure eye strain played a part in the explosion......it's also yearbook day.....which means more computer time.........but at least that is fun stuff......it's like scrapbooking......but I get paid.......

so....after spring break.....I'm thinking of stopping the caffeine.......I usually wait until summer but it's such a waste of money.........and if I stop at 7-11......you know the Swedish Fish start making a ruckus until I buy them.....oy.....

....what time is it?????

....if only we weren't governed by timepieces.......I have a love/hate relationship with the time change today........I love the evenings with sunlight.........I hate the alarm going off in pitch black.......I wasn't hungry at lunch time.......I'm tired now that school is out.........I will struggle to stay awake until bedtime tonight...........BUT.........I'm alive, healthy, and so close to summer vacation........I still have a bloody eye.........I told my kids it must be from yelling at them......they were surprisingly well behaved after that news.......I don't really know what happened.........so creepy.....

My fabulous St. Louis Cardinals were on ESPN at lunchtime today..........I live in a city with AAA Rockies baseball and the Cards AAA is here every other year.......Lots of the AAA babies have made it to the big time and are starters this year..........Jackson has autographs from lots of them......not many people are sitting on the Cardinals/Redbirds side of the stadium and even fewer are hanging over the fence for autographs.......so Jackson has a pretty cool souvenir........I really really hope we know where it is.......

Jackson's birthday is coming up.......my baby will be 12........he doesn't know what he wants for his birthday..........we all know what that means.........spoiled thing has everything he can think of.......I guess we've reached the gift card years..........he needs longer pants and bigger shoes but that doesn't seem like something to wrap.....maybe he can keep sagging until it's shorts season.......I wonder if he wants some flip flops?............

...eyeball....

so....I'm early for the Teaching Learning Cycle workshop....I don't know why I always get excited for these days when there are no students.......usually mega-uber-boring training for me.....

I've got a freaking bloody eye......why on earth do those happen?....very disturbing to look at ....and it's a little sore ...but only when I blink.....so....no biggie......

We have a blizzard warning.........and an outdoor baseball tournament......I honestly would pray harder for a snow cancellation for this than for a school snowday......my son is not meant for cold weather......I can't imagine him trying to have any skills while the snow whips by......

dangit......the training is starting ...and it hurts to roll my eyes......how is this going to work?
 Since I was early....one of the trainers asked me to see if youtube worked at this site......I am officially the old lady that pulled up my daughter's solo from when she was 10 and made him watch it.....it's still a favorite.....if you want to see all of her solos......search RockyMtnJane .....on youtube.....

.....poking the past.....

....while working with a group today........the topic of kite flying came up.........not one of them had ever flown kite.........I wanted to feel sad for them but then a bit of my childhood flashed before my eyes......I assebmbled a diamond-shaped kite....( hate that they teach that as rhombus now).....two flimsy sticks and a sheet of thin plastic.........it was a piece of junk but it was mine and I built it.......Illinois gets windy.......I was instantly afraid of my kite hitting the ground and shattering, the kite string unraveling all the way off the roll,  the string burning my fingers as it whizzed through my hand, crossing my kite string with my brother's, and worst of all........my string breaking......kite flying is STRESSFUL.....maybe those kids are lucky they haven't had to do it.........

Spring Break is almost here........many people are packing up and flying out..............we'll be mounting new TVs, hooking up blu-ray players, setting up air hockey...........all Christmas gifts that are sitting in boxes.......people........this is why I have proclaimed next year is vacation year........no gifts........or maybe it's new furnace year.........for now the noisy furnace is chugging away keeping us warm enough....fingers crossed that we make it to the off-season to have it worked on or replaced....

* I'm wearing capris and sandals today.......instant mood elevator............let's not discuss the Winter Storm Watch for this weekend during the USSSA March Madness Baseball Tournament in Denver.......eek!

......teachers' lounge.......

....there is no other place quite like a teachers' lounge.....today was trivia Wednesday because the local paper has a quiz........two support staff we're amazing us with correct answers until we noticed they had their own copy open to the answers........now here's the thing........I was answering a physiology question without the benefit of free answers...........and THEY ARGUED WITH ME.......you know I googled to prove my answer was right..........haven't we already established that I like to be right........and I usually am..........well, lesson learned for those two............

still testing around the joint today.......we must walk on tiptoes and shush ourselves......quite a trick for the PE and Music teachers..........they are business as usual...........which means noise......

it's also stay after school and work on the yearbook Wednesday.......I am gleeful that there are only 10sih weeks for school left..........I am panicked that the yearbook has to be finished, printed, and handed out in less than 10ish weeks.........I feel some all nighters coming on........it would be weird to put my kids' pictures in it when they don't go to school here....right???

Attention weather forecasters......I am not impressed.......your happy sunny days are not showing up and you think I want to see snow in my baseball weekend prediction.........not cool.....

.....cheerless......

...my daughter is quitting cheerleading.......she had an "aha" moment when she couldn't perform her vocal solo this weekend up to her capability......and it was because she lost her voice cheerleading.....again......my kid is not a quitter and knew that was going to be an issue for us......I'm taking the hit and her choir director kindly said she'd share the blame......the coach will be told we forced her to make a choice........vocal music or obnoxious shreaky cheer..........no bias noted.....

it would seem that Flanigans are better people when there is no homework........my kids were happy kids last night......Abby danced while cooking in the kitchen ( I highly recommend an under the cabinet kitchen stereo).....Jackson didn't growl at anyone........I went out for dinner with a friend and no one whined about me leaving.......there is a school district in town that does not send any homework....I wonder if that whole part of town is happier than the rest......the are also known for witchcraft.....so that's weird.......and probably skews any research on the topic.....

Tomorrow we're going to have sandals weather........that, my friends, is a happy day!

.....TCAP.....

It's TCAP time in Colorado.........I'm not supposed to talk about it so now I probably have to kill anyone who just read that.........for once, no one took my room from me for testing........maybe because I'm next to the music room which is louder than loud........the counselor is sharing my space because she lost her office........I can't decide if I'm more productive because someone sees what I'm doing......or less....because we keep talking.........either way......it's a nice change of pace....

I guess I took the weekend off from blogging again.......we had a baseball scrimmage tournament.......who are we kidding.......we kept score and everything ...it was for real.....I do love our team....we're going to rock this year......I forgot to give Jackson his medicine....oops........once again, I learned that he does indeed NEED the medicine......when he's delightful in the morning, I forget.......and he loves baseball, so he's excited and delightful when he's getting ready to go.......I guess I'll just have to tape it to his forehead the night before........

yesterday........we did nothing........and I mean nothing.......I got up and took a shower and then was back in bed.........imagine my hair drying on the pillow..........the pizza guy got a real treat when I opened the door with my up-do going on..........so yes...nothing included not cooking.......Jack slept until 4pm..........ridiculous.........really .......he still went to bed at 9 (as far as I know).......

So...no homework during TCAP........best two weeks of our school year coming up..........woot!

...TGIF.....

Friday....delicious Friday...........my craziest day of the week since we have to zip to Falcon after school for baseball conditioning.........okay, so my job is basically sitting and being able to tell time....but still....trust me..it's crazy.......

It's been a while....but some swedish fish made it into my world today.....I cannot figure out the attraction....I don't really like gummi stuff otherwise....maybe it's the red dye I love......it's certainly not the fishy shape.....I hate seafood...........HATE IT...........I leave the lounge if someone is having tuna for lunch .....of couse my mom loves a big sloppy tuna sub from Subway....hoooooork.......I would rather eat cheese with mold on it......I think.....once my cousin, Colleen, and I had a sleepover at our grandma's......she had a cookie jar and we were pigging out on the chocolate cookies with white icing.......we discovered mold on the bottom ones......grandma said "oh, a little penicillin never hurt anyone"......really?!?!??

Abby sings at Solo and Ensemble Contest tomorrow....of course she cheered herself hoarse last night at the game..... maybe just maybe she'll figure out that the two are contra-indicated......doubtful....but hopeful......

So.....baseball and Fa La La this weekend......currently, the schedules will never work for me to get to both.......crossing my fingers that something changes.....baseball has changed 3 times in 3 days so I'm not even going to work on getting him a ride until that is finalized.....I could use another licensed driver in the house this weekend..........remind me I said that in 20 months when I really have one.....