Fall is Here!

Late

I realized I was two days late writing. What's sad is that I even had Friday off of work. Friday ended up bein rather busy, though. So I never wrote. It was the good kind of busy though. I actually felt like a Mamma, going to the grocery store mid-day without Jay and a Charlie in tow. Charlie was a really good boy for me, though. I am excited to spend my other days off with him this year and make them special days with my (soon to be) boy(s). 

Charlie

I guess this is a good place to just make a Charlie section. 

So on Friday I got to spend all day with him and I really really enjoyed it. I started out stressed, but know we started running errands we got to talk, just us two, and I just loved it. At the end, we went to Chic fil et, which is his favorite right now because of the chicken/slide combination. He's gotten so brave. He'll go slide all by himself now! We're going to take him to the lagoon next week because now we know he's brave enough to ride the rides. :) I can't wait!

He's so excited for his little brother. I can't wait to see how he does and to let him hold and kiss Roland. That's what I'm most excited to see. I can't wait for Charlie to meet his brother. It probably won't be the perfect moment I envision, but I know Charlie will be a good big brother.

Oktoberfest

I convinced Jay to take us up the canyon to Oktoberfest this last weekend to see the leaves. We don't drink beer, but we enjoy the food and we enjoy the mountain. We decided to invite my Mom this time and I'm glad we did. We took a very refreshing walk around Snowbird. It misted on us most of the walk. Combine that with the smells of Autumn and the leaves beginning to change and you have the perfect afternoon that only a canyon can offer. I was grateful we went. Jay and I decided that we're going to go on a drive up to the Uintah's in a few weeks to see more pretty leaves. It sounds like Jay needs to observe a rock for his Geology class while we're there, too. I remember that assignment... It was fun! Yay outdoors!

Shower

So my sweet Mother, my awesome cousin Misty, and my always caring Grandma hosted a baby shower for me and little Roland yesterday.

I'll admit, at first I felt that maybe I didn't need a shower, since this is my second boy, but I am VERY grateful that they gave me one anyway. It runs out that there is so much that I do need that we don't have. I also needed some support this week. I'm starting to get to nervous about having another kid, but now I know I have a large number of people that I can call on for love and guidance and support. I appreciate everyone who came and helped me spoil this new little guy. Thanks so much guys.

School

I think school is going a little better. My honors and core classes are doing a little bit better. My AP classes seem like they really want to try harder. So I'm hopeful, but pessimistic. We'll see how they do. :)

We had parent teacher conferences this week, which was exhausting. I had a few good talks. I talked with some of the parents from my AP classes, but not really the ones I needed to. There were two that I wanted to talk to and we talked about whether or not AP was a good choice. Interestingly enough, both students decided they wanted to stay in AP, that it was something they wanted to pursue. I still don't quite understand, but I'm willing to make the effort if they are.

I had my first evaluation this week, too. Doin good, doin good.

Anxious Feelings

It's getting awfully close to baby time, and I'll admit that I'm getting a bit stressed out about the whole thing. I'm trying to figure out what all needs to be cleaned and everything, but it's tough when you come home absolutely exhausted all of the time. Since it's dark week this week, I am planning on doing a room a night and really getting it cleaned well. We also need to get a crib ready and find all of the bottles and such found. I need to get some clothes ready, clean my jeep (OH MY I need to clean my jeep!). We should set some kind of baby station up in our room. I'd also feel a whole lot more comfortable if I had a plan once I do go into labor. Sounds like a good week to get started! :D

Then, there's the whole, "Can I handle two children question?" But, that's really in the back of my mind. Charlie's still alive, so I count myself as a successful mother. ;)

Roland Name and All

Well, if you haven't heard, the new baby's name is going to be Roland Dean Funk. Yes, this baby is named after a  few characters in Stephen King's Dark Tower Series. No, I really do not wish that Roland is anything like any of the characters in the book. yes, I mostly admire Roland in the books but I am also disgusted with him at times. So, no, really Roland isn't named "after" the Roland in the books. I really like the name Roland and that's pretty much all there is to it. Because, who would really want their child to have the same fate as Roland Deschain of Gilead? Jay and I have both read the Dark Tower series and we both like the name and we both think it sounds right. So don't give me any crap about naming my child after a Stephen King novel. Some people just look horrified when I tell them where I got the name. Oh Utah. :D There, that is all the defending of Roland's name that I am going to do because I honestly don't think I should have to defend it in the first place.

Jay and Class

I hate it when Jay goes to school. I hate it. I miss him and even when he is home he's constantly working on homework. Still, I support his decision to better himself through higher education and will continue to do so until he is done, whenever that may be. Proud of you sweety. I just miss you. Summer will come again!

Home

 Home is home is home. I enjoy having Carrie and Jayde staying with us. I hope they are more than ready for a newborn. Im gunna need a lot of help.

Well, I think I'm done for now. Maybe the next blog post there will be a baby? Let's hope not, he'd still be early.

Feeling Better

Hi everyone, I am sorry about the last few negative posts. I believe that this pregnancy has been kind of hard on me. Working and being pregnant is really much much harder than going to school and being pregnant. At least for me anyway.
Anyhow, I actually am feeling pretty positive today. I've had quite a few good interactions today, it helps when you have a good day at school. So, YAY, expect a mostly positive blog post today.

School

So, school is still pretty stressful. You know how at most jobs people actually get 10 minute breaks here and there? Well, I don't. Except for lunch, when I actually do go socialize with some friends, I am constantly working. It's exhausting. On the bright side, I don't do very much work at home. I make it a rule to only grade one assignment at home per night. I need to hang out with my little boy too much to work any more. Eventually I'm going to run out of stuff that I planned for my AP classes over the summer, though. Then I will probably have to work from home bit to make sure I actually have lessons for them. But, I am trying to get SOME stuff planned for AP.

Speaking of my AP classes, I still can't seem to get them to do their work. They took their first test today and I have already graded the multiple choice sections. The scores have so far reflected their performance on their homework. I'm planning on having a heart to heart with them about doing homework and learning from their homework when I see them next. I'm also planning on making a deal with them that will hopefully encourage them to stop playing catch-up on what they haven't handed in and focus on the homework that we are currently doing. I'm tired of them being behind and I want them to kind of start fresh with this new unit. I'm hoping this test score will give them a big enough slap in the face that they'll listen to me! I did have 3 students come in and get some help after school, so that's encouraging. Sadly, they weren't the kids that were failing. 

So yesterday during 1st period I was getting class started and I noticed that the principal was sitting in the back of the room with this lady. I was surprised, so of course my heart started racing. But, I mean, we get observed so much that it really wasn't a big deal. It was a pretty good lesson, too, and the students were mostly engaged. It was odd, though, because they stayed through about half of the class. Usually my observations have been 15-20 minutes max. Also, the principal and this lady were being rather loud. Just as they were leaving, the lady comes up to me and thanks me. Apparently they were "training the boss," as she put it. But, she thought my class was great. I was confused, but pretty much went back to teaching without thinking much about it again. Later, I got two emails, one from her and one from him. They both looked like some online form that had been filled out and forwarded to me. There really wasn't any explanation. All both of them said was, "Good proximity." As near as I can tell, she was training the principal to fill out this form during observations. Why they did that in my class, I had no idea. Personally, I was a little bit peeved that they spent that long in my class without giving me more feedback than, "Good proximity."

Well, today, I was walking out the doors on my way to get some crickets when I was stopped by the principal. He said that he was very impressed with what he saw and he wanted to just count that as my formal evaluation for this semester (as a provisional teacher I have to have 2 formal evaluations per year). I couldn't help it, I cheered right in front of him. Those are so stressful because if I do poorly on those my job is on the line. I'm very happy that I now have one less evaluation to worry about! I even did a little happy dance after I turned the corner. Teachers do happy dances, too.

I need to get the grades up in my other classes. I'm planning on taking some time to work on standards with my biology classes next week. It's been hard, though, because the other teachers in my department have been pushing a pretty tight schedule. 

Anyway, grades are still low, but I am trying to optimistic that I can the students to get their act together.

Charlie and the Fair

Aunt Hastings treated us with a trip to the fair this last weekend. It was quite fun. The last few times we've been to the fair we have completely ignored the rides and carnival stuff. It's just too expensive. This year Grandma Overby bought Charlie a wrist band and we got to watch him ride on some rides. I was pretty certain she wouldn't get him to ride most things and definitely wouldn't be able to get him to ride on any rides by himself. I was surprised on both accounts. My little guy must have grown some bravery over the last year because he went on a lot of rides and many of them were by himself. He looked unsure at times, but he braved it out and ended each ride with a smile. :)

We're still working on potty training. In fact, I'm pretty sure we've lost some ground. Speaking of... I'm gunna go make a little guy go upstairs really quick.

Charlie is really excited to have a little brother. This morning, the first thing he said to me was, "Is the baby coming today?" It's so cute. Little he knows... little he knows.

Baby

Baby seems to be doing about the same. Last night I had a latte and a coke AND my caffeine-filled headache pill. By bedtime that little boy was rolling around so much I thought I'd never get to sleep. Silly little guy. 

I'm starting to get excited to meet the little fella. One thing is for sure, I hope he either comes early or on time and not more than two days later. Then I get to spend UEA weekend with him and can save a few days off! ;) It would be perfect! Cross your fingers for me! And I'll make sure I have a trampoline ready. (Kidding)

Brooke

Brooke is okay. Like I said, I'm feeling better and optimistic. Things are going to work out. Everyone at school seems to be impressed with me as a teacher, so I know my job will still be there when I get back and I'm not jeopardizing anything by leaving for a while. I'm still really worried about my how my AP classes are going to work. But, I think at this point I have to wait to see what happens. There's only so much I can do to prepare, and I've about finished with that. OH! PLEASE SOMEONE MAKE ME FAX MY FMLA PAPERWORK TO THE DISTRICT ON MONDAY! PLEASE!!!!!

Anyway, have a good week everyone and I will try and stay as positive as I feel today. Jay promised to take me to Black Bear Diner tomorrow and I can't wait!

5 weeks Until My World Flips Again

Yup, another two week break from writing. Oh well. I've been busy, to say the least. Honestly, I don't feel all that much like writing right now, anyway. I'm kind of under the impression that no one really reads this anyway; that it's purely for me. That's ok, I guess, but if I'm doing something purely for my own enjoyment than really is rather play video games or read a book... Or you know, hang out with my child a bit. So, hey, if you do read, maybe you could let me know?

School

Obviously school is what has been keeping me the busiest. I feel pretty good about myself as a teacher most of the time. And I get told quite often that I'm doing a great job. In fact, the superintendent came in and told me I was a superstar teacher... Never met the man before, though. ;) Today, however, my confidence isn't as high as normal due to a variety of things.
1. Grades are low: this group of kids just doesn't turn in their stuff! And I just had them do the first standard, so more than half of certain classes are failing because of that. So, I'm just feeling low. I expected it because no one believes that I make them get a certain score in order to get any points at all... I'm hoping that they'll realize that they should take these seriously soon. And maybe do a make-up day sometime soon for my non-honors classes, because they don't tend to come after school even if I ask them to.
Also, I've made it so that my honors students get 1/2 credit with any late work. I was just so frustrated with them last year and how much late work I got. It was ridiculous and I didn't want to deal with that again. Plus, honors kids shouldn't be turning things in late so often. So, it's been hurting their grades. I'm hoping they'll figure it out soon. But I am also hoping that it's not too harsh of penalty.
2. Related, maybe. I had my first parent of the year come in and ask why her daughter was failing. This girl is in my honors class, but she's one of those who really probably doesn't belong there. So far she's turned in every assignment in late and incomplete. She also did poorly on her test, did not hand in her unit paper, and did not pass her standard. Well, it's obvious to me. The student did make up her standard during lunch today, before her mom came after school. So, that brought her up to a D+.
Her mom didn't seem very happy about me requiring 100% on standards, but since her daughter had made it up she didn't really push that subject. What made me really upset was her obvious discontentment at the sight of my pregnant belly. She even asked about how long I was planning on being gone and her tone with each reply blatantly implied that she didn't approve of me leaving to have a baby. 1. I have gotten a capable sub, so your daughter should be in capable hands. 2. You don't have the right to judge me for having a family, since you have one. I have every right to have a child. Sorry mine didn't come at a convenient time for you. 3. Your child should be responsible for her own learning on an honors class and I shouldn't have to be there to her hand every step of the way. 4. She seemed upset that she might not be able to come in and get in my face (yes, that is her phrasing... She said she liked to get into her child's teacher's faces). You have a disclosure with my email right at the top. Oh, you also signed it. Which means you can't be upset about the standard thing either because if you had read it you would know about the standards already. 5. We ended that conversation with her saying, "Okay..." With the tone that implied she didn't quite believe that I was able to go on maternity leave and that her daughter would still be able to learn. Look, if you don't trust me or like this circumstance then please, by all means, transfer your darling into a different class. Grrrr
3. My AP students have very low grades and do not get their homework done on time either. I'm wondering if I am assigning too much. I mean, about half of them aren't doing what they need to do. I'm not sure what to do. We're so behind already if I want to get through all of the units. Some students have even said my homework isn't bad compared to other AP classes they've had. So, should I tell these students who are struggling to maybe start where we are and work backwards to get caught up when they can? Just unsure of how to proceed here.

Charlie

Charlie is getting bigger. He's going backwards at the moment with the whole potty training thing, though. He refuses to poop in the potty and he's stopped telling me when he needs to pee. I think he's scared of failure. Silly child. He is so excited to have a little brother, but he has no idea of what all is going to change.

Baby

Baby is only 5 weeks away. Needless to say, I'm getting nervous.  Is it too late to say I'm not sure if I want any more kids? :) In excited, though.
Baby had another ultrasound last week and the results show that he's not too tiny. 34th percentile for a tiny mommy isn't a bad thing.

Well, I'm done. I just got done with a birthday party for my doggy-niece Avery and I'm pooped out and grumpy.

The Last Two Weeks: Let the Fun Begin!!!

First, let me explain that I writing this phone, so you'll have to forgive a few typos and autocorrect errors. Sorry, I'm on my way up to one of my favorite places and I didn't have time to stop and write in my blog. ;) Now I'm riding in the jeep, so I have some time to type.

It Starts

I realize I didn't get to post last week. I think I have a really good excuse. With school starting I've had a lot on my mind. 

Let's start with last week. There wasn't actually any school last week, but the district hosted a while week full if meetings and professional development to attend. Why would they want us working in our classrooms the week before school starts, right? That really is one of the more frustrating things. We were promised 3 days for teacher planning. Well, we got half a day for 3 days. Gee, thanks a bunch for the 9 hours to get ready. The other annoying thing about last week was the fact that it was the BIGGEST waste of time that I have had to endure my entire 2 years teaching. It honestly felt like they were just trying to fill the time, my time. I could have spent this time much more productively working on my own.

The Weekend

The weekend was really great because it got to spend a lot of time with my boys. It was a much needed weekend, too.

To start, Friday was Charlie's birthday (the little guy turned 3!) and I couldn't help but throw him a birthday bash. It was a lot of fun, and Charlie had a blast, but it was dang exhausting. It was definitely worth it though, Charlie was so excited to have a night devoted purely to himself.

On Saturday we had a family reunion to go to. It was fun, but the best part was just being able to have another day to hang out with my boys because we didn't go to Hale. It was very nice. 

Sunday was pretty much a normal Sunday. After dinner we went to the Great Salt Lake to collect brine shrimp for my classes. It was actually quite fun. Jayde came with us and I was so proud of Charlie for walking the whole way out there and back. He HATED the mud though. It was pretty funny, who'd of thunk he was such a prissy boy.

School

I'm just going to mention that I am frustrated now because I had finished my post and then somehow deleted everything.

Anyway. The first day of school came and went. Classes on the first day went by without any major hiccups and all of the students were very polite. It was a pretty good day. I, however, was unable to enjoy my successes. I was just too overwhelmed. I just couldn't see doing this 179 more days and have a baby in the middle of it. I'm still quote worried about it, to be honest. After school I hurried off to Hale while Jay went to the first of his classes. Joy.

The second day of school felt much better. It really wasn't any different than the day before. But I felt better. I think i just needed to get back into the swing of things.

The rest of the week passed by rather uneventfully, but indefinitely came home practically dead every day. It's an exhausting thing, teaching.

I had a rather unhappy encounter with a patron last night. It upset me quite a bit, but I right now it's really not even bothering me anymore. I'm just more irritated that it happened than anything else.

Charlie

Charlie has been a champ about Mommy going back to work. I'm so proud of him. My favorite thing right now is when he holds my hand and whispers, "Mommy, you're my best friend." It makes my heart swell every time.

Charlie had his 3 year appointment yesterday. Everything seemed to be normal, but I was flabbergasted when I heard that the doctor told us to watch his weight. Here I was thinking he looked rather skinny every time I see his ribs. Shows what I know.

Baby Red

I had an appointment yesterday as well. Yeah yesterday was a fun day.

Red is still measuring small, so I get to go have another extra ultrasound next week to check on him. It's during school, so yeah, I get to figure that out. I think I've somehow worked it out.

The Joke of the Day

I just have to tell you today's story.

This morning was extremely frustrating. Seriously, Mrs. Funk should have had a giant FAIL stamped onto her forehead.

I was planning on doing a lab with those brine shrimp I talked about earlier. Well, I got to school and all the brine shrimp were dead. Yes, all of them. So, I had to think quickly and decide what to do during first period. 

The lab was meant to sit up a rather long PowerPoint and break things up a bit. I decided that I would go ahead and do the whole PowerPoint and if there was time I was going to do the first half of the lab, the part without the brine shrimp. It turns out I only had time to finish the PowerPoint and those poor students had to sit there and listen to me and take notes for a whole hour. I felt so bad for them, how boring! Needless to say, I was really flustered and unorganized the whole class period trying to figure out how to make things a little bit more upbeat. 

The last few minutes of class I was asking the students some review questions when the principal walked in to observe my class. Great, perfect. He could have come all week, but he decides to come when I can barely think straight. Oy. Well, class ends and I got to go on to 2nd period.

I had another lab planned for 2nd period, but for some reason I panicked and decided that there wasn't enough time to do the lab with the assembly schedule. So, I spent another hour extremely flustered, trying to figure out what I was doing. I just wasn't working like I normally do. I'm usually very composed and organized.

Well, lunch freed me from my hell and I was rather disgusted with myself. I needed the break, though. I managed to find some of my confidence for 3rd period, since if be doing the same thing that I ended up doing 2nd period. So, that class was going a lot better. 

During 3rd, I took a few students down to the main office to help me carry some boxes back to my room. On our way there, the principal saw me and beckoned me over to talk to him. I thought, great, he's going to ask what was going on this morning when he observed my class. Here is what he said. Try and picture my face.

"Brooke, that was the most awesome teaching I have seen all week. It was great. I'd like to have the production team come in and take a video of your class sometime next week. I want to show it to everyone at the next faculty meeting. " He then went on to explain how that would work. My expression must have been pretty clueless because he seemed to be thinking I wasn't understanding him. It probably would have been even better had I kept my mouth shut, but I had to explain the very confused expression on my face. So, I explained to him how my morning really went. He went on to say how he was happy to have a teacher who can teach so well even on the "bomb days."

I walked back to class, laughing the whole way . I nearly forgot my students at the office. 

Oy.

Last Week

Well, this was it, the last week of summer. It's been a pretty good week, I guess. Very relaxed, I think. I'm going to do this a little bit differently to continue the "week" theme and write about each day.

Monday

Not much happened on Monday. I took my brother's dog to and from the vet. That was the plan for the day, anyway.
I also decided that Charlie needed a trip to the park and a slurpee, so we did that. Other than that, it was a pretty boring kind of day. It's dark week, so we didn't even have Hale. It was a good, relaxing, Masterchef kind of night. 

Tuesday

On Tuesday I went to school and made copies of my 1st unit of AP Bio. I thought it was going to take me all afternoon, but I had the copier all to myself and it only jammed once, so I got all of the copying done in about an hour. Then I went to my classroom and started unpacking my room. I had everything all put away because I didn't want it out for the summer school students to destroy.
I also talked to the secretary about subs. This has been a subject that has been scarring me all summer long. I have to find a sub that is willing to kind of clear their schedule for when Red comes. I've been putting it off a bit. More on this later.
Then I went home and I finally, after two years of wanting to do it, vacuumed out Charlie's playhouse. I've known it was dirty and I've never really felt comfortable letting him play in there. I feel much better about it now, especially since Jay sprayed it for spiders.
I thought it was going to be a lame, watch tv all night kind of night again, but Jay convinced me to take a walk. As soon as we got outside it started pouring rain. It was lovely. We were all drenched and I LOVED it. More walk in the rain, please.

Wednesday

I went back into school on Wednesday to finish putting my classroom back together. Way too much crawling and climbing around for a pregnant woman. Needless to say I was EXHAUSTED when I got home.
We still managed to go for a walk that evening, though.

Thursday

Yesterday I stayed home with the kid all day. I love him, but he really can drive me up the wall sometimes.
I decided to sleep in as long as I possibly could and was woken from a fairly fitful sleep with the door slamming open and "HI MOM!" :) It made me smile. The best part? It was 9:00, a pretty good time to sleep in to.
I went out and played in a certain playhouse for far too long and was kind of grumpy and restless most of the morning, though. I wanted to go shopping for Charlie's birthday and for his playhouse so badly. But, we're kind of poor at the moment, so I had to restrain myself, which made me a little grumpy.
When I got the kid down for a nap (ha ha as if he was actually sleeping) I finally got up the nerve to start calling substitutes for October (ish). Well, lucky me, the first person I called was a gold mine. She has a teaching license for California and has a biology background. WIN! She's also pretty darn flexible, emails and texts. TRIPLE WIN! She seems very willing to work with me. So, yay, job done. Kind of. We can only have a sub for a maximum of 4 days a week, so I need to figure out a Monday sub. But, honestly, I'm thinking of just calling in a random sub for Mondays and giving them a very simple lesson. I don't know, but now that I found a main sub I need to talk to the secretary and ask how to report it. That'll be where I start anyway. Then I can think about Mondays. Yes, I'm proud of myself.
I had a doctor appointment yesterday afternoon. Things are looking ok... there's some extra fluid on Red's kidneys and we've done an extra ultrasound scan to keep an eye on it. Things have pretty much stayed the same, there wasn't an increase in fluids, but not really a decrease either. There isn't enough fluid there that the doctor is super worried, he's just made a note to tell the pediatrician when the baby is born, and they might do an ultrasound on him when he's born. So, I'm a little bit worried, but, at this point there's not much to do about it.
The doctor also isn't too happy about my weight gain. Yeah, I gained one pound in two weeks. So, I'm a little small. I'm a little worried about that, too. I just wish I had more of an appetite. Oh well, I might start gaining once school starts and I'm less stressed (I know that statement might not have made sense to most of you. Just go with it). Charlie was measuring small for a little bit of my last pregnancy, too, so it might be nothing to worry about it.
Last night I got to go hang out with my friends. I got to see Setar! I haven't seen Setar for a very long time. She's been in California (darn California). I was so happy to see her again. She better not be away so long again.
Then, Jay was really craving Olive Garden, so we went there after hanging out with my buddies. We were out really late and pretty much went straight to bed when we got home.

Friday

Today is a lazy day. I got the stuffed bell peppers in the crock pot and haven't done anything but watch Frozen with my cutie-pie and write in this blog.
I don't know that we have any plans for later, either. I know we need to watch Big Brother (he he), but there's not much else. I think I'm going to make us go shopping for Charlie and maybe clean up the porch as well.
  

Saturday?

No real plans for tomorrow. I was thinking we could go to Antelope Island or something (YAY Darkweek) because I need to collect some brine shrimp for school anyway. It'll depend on how late we sleep in.

Sunday?

Probably church... that is all.

Well, that's it. I didn't really like the format of this post, so it probably won't happen like this again. I'll talk at you next week. ;) Hopefully I'll have more to say after school and district meetings.

Summer, Summer, where have you gone?

The end of the summer is drawing nearer. In fact, two days this week I had school meetings. I have pretty much all of ext week that is uninterrupted (except I'm probably going to go in and make some copies of all of the stuff for the first few weeks of school) break time. Then, it's gone, over. My time with Charlie will be shrunk to whatever we can manage to squeeze in between school and Hale.
Okay, okay, so it's not all that bad. I do end up getting a few nights a week with Charlie. I just always get that "bad-mom" feeling creeping back in when I think about it. (I know, I know, don't give me the whole providing for your family is not a bad-mom move lecture... I know I'm not being a bad mom, but it still feels like it)
And I am excited to get back to teaching. I can't wait to get going, really. I have the hardest time being home all summer. Not because of Charlie, definitely not because of Charlie, but because of the lack of things to do that doesn't involve house-work or spending lots of money. I hate the idea of spending my entire break cleaning the house, so I don't do it (even though... ugh my house). I also can't go to the zoo or to Lagoon or the aquarium because of a lack of funding. Well, funding and I know that Jay would want to come do something like that with us, so I don't want to go without him (though, I don't know when we'd all be able to go together, either. I want to take Charlie to lagoon again, but I wouldn't be able to ride with him, so who knows if he would ride anything by himself... Oh, and who wants to pay that much to sit and watch? Maybe October, depending on a baby.
Anyway, that was a long rant session. Shall I tell you what's been going on?

Charlie

My little Charlie... he's just perfect. I love him, I love him, I love him.

That said, he's stopped taking naps and I want to bang my head against the wall. Need I say more? :) I think he'll get back to naps when I'm waking him up at 6 in the morning again. Coming soon!

School

Like I said before, I am excited to get started. If I could just get going and stop worrying about what's going to happen I would feel about a billion times better. 

I've got my 1st two AP units planned. I'm hoping to start working on the third unit as soon as next week, but I need to get things copied off and my other classes planned out a little bit better before I can start that again. I also need to get lab supplies ordered. That's kind of the next scariest part. I'm too afraid to even start.

My PLC team seems to be starting out okay. We're a little rocky, it's hard to change, you know? But, I think if we can manage to stay positive and get through the first cycle of teach, assess, and intervention that we'll be okay. Fingers crossed because I don't want this to fall apart.

I am still not certain what's going to happen when the baby is born. It's hard to figure out these details. I guess step one is finding a sub that can manage to follow directions. Someone make me do this next week? I can start by asking the day in charge of all of the subs at Granger. Surely she knows a few good longish term ones. I'm still thinking 1 to 2 weeks is all I'm going to take off, though (Don't judge! I have my reasons, and you won't understand unless you really know me and I don't feel that I have to defend myself on my own blog right now (yes, I'm defensive about it. But if you want to talk about my reasons, feel free to talk to me in person)).

Preggy Brooke

Ummm, I'm an emotional mess right now. Ups and downs and ups and downs. There are various reasons things that get me upset, but I think my inability to control my emotions stems from hormones, lack of sleep due to pregnancy discomforts, and just plain feeling useless. 

I'm serious about the sleep thing. I think Ive gotten about 6 hours of sleep over the past 5 days. I won't even mention the weekend... blug. 

I want to go on walks, but by the time Jay gets home and it's cool enough to take a walk, I'm too tired. I know what this means, it means I need to get off of my lazy butt and take a walk. It's just hard, you know. I can't take one every day, due to Hale, and that's what's tough. I'm not able to get into the habit of doing it. But, I need it. I'm an active person, normally, and I can't be happy unless I get out of the house and exercise. Jay, take me on walks, please! Force me! Kicking and screaming. We can even drink a slurpee while we walk.

I just realized how negative this post has been. I'm sorry. It's the sleep thing. I'm really not all that unhappy. Please don't stop reading my blog because all I do is complain!

Raspberry Dayzz

We had a really fun weekend with my Aunt and Uncle up at Bear Lake.We went to Raspberry Dayzz. Really the only way we actually participated in the festival was going to the craft fair. We spent the rest of the weekend up at Hidden Haven, my Aunt and Uncle's property. We had a lot of fun up there. It was mostly just sitting around kind of fun, but it WAS fun. Charlie loves camping and he got very spoiled with time with Aunt Pam. He also got to sleep in a trailer, which was incredibly exciting to him. He's so cute. We rode 4 -wheelers, and Jay even took Charlie a few times. I am sure that was the most exciting experience that child has ever had, at least from the child's perspective. :) (No lectures on children on 4-wheelers, I have complete trust in my husband's driving ability and caution when he is driving with his precious little boy)

I also learned a fun new card game while we were camping. I am dying to play it again, if anyone wants to. I get really excited about card games. 

Anyway, not much else to tell, really. I will try to be more positive next time, but I'm not going to rewrite my entire blog post just to sound happier. Here's some pictures from the week.

This Week in July

I don't know what was up with this week, but it was tough. Really tough. But, let's talk and stay mainly positive, shall we?

Charlie

Charlie just keeps on growing. He makes me so proud and so happy. I really need to focus more on him, but he has so much more energy than I have. Next week we shall go to the park and the splash pad and play in the pool. He's much too cute to ignore all summer long.
There's been a step made in potty training, even if it was small it was a step. I got a call at Hale Monday night from a very excited little boy telling me all about going poo in the potty and now Grandma is going to take me to get a truck. :) It was cute. He hasn't gone since, but he has tried quite a few times. Like I said, it was a step.
Charlie and cousin Jayde seem to be constantly fighting, lately. I'm hoping it'll calm down after cousin Jayde gets settled into her own routine, because that's one of the things that's been adding to the stress of the week. Though, I really can't say much because I remember teasing a Jayde just as much as she teases Charlie.

School

I've had some fun lately planning out my AP Bio curriculum. I have a lot of work ahead, but it feels good to actually be doing something. This is one of the things that's been taking my mind away from Charlie, so I put a limit on myself today and will probably have to continue to do so until the end of the summer.

Apricots

Today I hate apricots. All week I have hated apricots. I've spent way too much of my time picking rotten apricots off of the ground. No, I do not feel like eating any apricots, either. Picking apricots off of the ground every day makes me very tired most of the time. Well, it probably adds to the trouble, anyway.

Stress Management

Yeah, I've been pretty stressed out this week. Things I'm working on:

Focus more on playing with Charlie.

Find a regular old book to read.

Work on the puzzle.

Take walks in the evening with my hubby instead of just laying on the couch all night. I may be tired, but I'm 95% sure that if it's not mostly in my head that walking would probably help anyway.

Well, I'm tired (yeah, probably in my head) and don't feel like typing too much more. So, I'm off.