Paid Time Off

This week I am taking off work, granted it's only 20 hours, but there's a big to-do list. Mostly it's in my head of what needs to be done and the first thing on the list was washing the basement closet because, well, a tiny bit of mold had grown in it from the result of the flooding of the basement incident that took place last year. Having washed it down with a bleach/water solution, I can tell it smells better. I think the water main in the closet was not helping the situation. A little too much moisture. All seems to be well now.

I have read a chapter of my sociology book and am on the second chapter of my history book. I finished the first assignment for sociology, although I have no idea if the professor even knows I'm a student. I keep signing in and it brings me to the first page all the time. I sign in at my folks and it brings me to where I left off.

I'm definitely learning a lot already. It's just if it sticks or not.

Handsome had his routine ultra-sound for his hydronephrosis yesterday. He was a champ! It was non-invasive, but he was just calm and relaxed and it went really well. I have to pick up the disk with the report and schedule an appointment with his pediatric urologist, so I hope to get that done today. He's diagnosed as mild to moderate, at the lower end of the spectrum I guess.

I also hope to set up a chiropractic appointment (I'm a firm believer) as I missed the one I was supposed to go to after Christmas and haven't rescheduled as of yet. I think that my stress definitely flows into my neck......the more stress I have, the more pain I get.

I'm writing this as both kids are down in the basement with me. Sometimes they say the funniest things I've ever heard. Handsome is just like Uncle Du, always trying to make you laugh. I'm finally breaking Sweet Pea out of the 'no teasing' phase. Ever so slowly, but she's coming along.

Saturday we had the unfortunate experience of replacing our furnace. Ugghhhh. The people were nice, it was replaced within 12 hours of making the call....it's just that the money that was spent we had better plans for. Husband wanted a driveway and I wanted a new sliding glass door. He told me that he was sorry I wasn't going to get a new door. I told him he's sorry he must be mistaken. I insist on looking outside and seeing my backyard instead of seeing the 'fog' between the glass created by a broken seal. I am adamant about getting that thing replaced. It's embarrassing and only adds the white trash look.

Have I mentioned that I need someone to come in and help me decorate this house?! I've got a million plans, worth a million dollars, on a nickel and dime budget. I'll have to send my woes to all the decorating shows to see if anyone will bite. So I will appease my decorating angst by painting the basement closet. One item will be off my list......

I love being off with the kids, yesterday was a holiday and today, Sweet Pea doesn't have school. Four days in a row of no school, this is heaven. Speaking of school, once again, I've been told I don't want to be a teacher, by a teacher. How is it that teachers turn so crabby?! I don't have sympathy for them at all. They've got it good. Having probably not worked elsewhere, they don't get that it's always (almost always) something at work places: management, co-workers, owners, customers. It's how you view it and what you do about it......

Yep, I'm trying again.

So, the jogging thing worked really great, until the cold weather set in. I'm not happy about it, nor is the dog. I got to week 8 or 9 of 11 and definitely plan to start again, I'm looking at March 1st. Guess I'll have to figure out some other kind of working out regime until then, cause sitting on my butt is unacceptable. I'm still 9 pounds down, but have 5 to go. Sometimes it's 7, sometimes 5, it fluctuates. Being a girl is so......progesteronated....if I may create a word.

This past November I applied to a school to receive my Master of Arts in Teaching and to obtain a Secondary Education Teaching Certificate. It is a mouthful, isn't it?

My transcripts were reviewed and I am down two courses; History and Sociology. In order to buck up my historical chats with Husband, I decided to take History 221, which is US History from 1776 to present time. I figured I've lived the last, almost 40 years, so it'd be 'easy'. Well, nothing is ever easy, but I'm hopeful. I'm a horrible test taker. The second class Sociology I hope to learn a few things about myself and the world around me. I'm a pretty open individual, but I'm just wondering if that will count against me as I'll be taking these two courses at a heavily based Christian College. I could be wrong, we'll see what they think of this city, o'kay Chicago suburbanite, has to say.

I'm nervous about the whole process really, I've got a Miller Analogies test this Sat, a Basic Skills Test on Feb. 13th, and need to start my two on-line courses as soon as I receive the text books which should be arriving this Thurs. or Friday. The sooner the better. Although the worst part will be figuing out how to set up exams at local colleges. I'm throwing some pessimism into that, so again, I hope I'm wrong. Let me repeat, I'm a terrible test taker.....I get pretty bad stress headaches after taking tests, no matter the type of test.

So if all goes well, and I dont' know why I'm so skeptical, probably from living with Husband so long, I should start the program on April 5th. Then it's 10 weeks, two nights a week in the Spring, summer break, 10 weeks, two nights a week in the fall and six weeks of student teaching in the Winter of 2011. Of couse, lets ont forget there's some student teaching I'll be doing during both 10 week sessions.

My folks suggested this, that they are here for me if I wanted to try this. So, here I am. Excited and apprehensive at the same time.