Here

(HAH in her car seat on the lllooonnnggggggg drive back home... after poop #2, but before poop #3,496.)









Here.
Tired.
Glad Friday is just a night's sleep away.
New Orleasn was Fab-u-lous!
Still hunting for things in and around the house.
Ready to plant.
Yard not complete.
HAH is so funny.
She laughs at almost anything.
It makes me smile.
TCAP and End of course tests this week and the following two.
Then I can actually have fun w/ my lessons.
Pictures are on camera... wires are... uh, somewhere.
Will post pics when wires are retrieved (the pic above is from phone ~ ohh at my technological genius).
Til then ~ Tah tah.

We've moved!!!

Finally... blog access, internet at home, and television... all the comforts of home! We've been in the house since 4/1. Just got internet today (via our friends the satelite people from Mars) and are getting into a nice routine again. I have pictures of things in their "furniture is arranged but I can't put holes in those oh-so-pretty-walls yet, so nothing is hanging up" state. We love it, it feels like home, and has a good bit of room for our family to grow.

We now live on the road named May Anne. I love living in a small town and knowing so many people! We're on "the old May farm" and originally it was going to be called May Lane ~ which I thought was really cute. Then someone at 911 was having a crotchety day and decided it couldn't be that b/c some road in town had a similar name. So it was going to be Earl May Road. (Can you hear the disgust in my typing???) I told my realtor that was horrid ~ I'm proud to be a Tennessean, but seriously, EARL MAY??? Hello, it sounds like we don't have shoes, teeth, or houses with permenant foundations!!! She asked what it should be, but that the word "May" had to be included, so my step mother said, "Why not May Anne?" Thus I live on my own lane. :)

More cattle live near and around us then humans. Our nearest neighbors have 7 children who are all home schooled. Last week they shot a rabid possum and brought us cookies. Interesting to say the least!

Summer is just around the corner. Only 31 1/2 days and 1 hour of school left. During that time I'll be busy trying to find another position. I WILL NOT do behavior mod again!!!! Give me a regular ed classroom where I can plan a regular day and be involved in regular activities ~ I'll be a very happy woman! {During Spring Break only 4 of my 11 students were in lock up ~ I'm so proud.}

Thrusday we leave for the Big Easy. Can't wait for the time away ~ our first trip since HAH was born... I'm sure it'll be fantastic. Happy Easter all!

My heart is breaking... as I am sorting, organizing and packing for the big move (ONLY 2 MORE DAYS!!!) and looking over HAH's clothes as I pack them to go in the attic. It's killing me. She'll never wear these items again. It feels like just yesterday that I was going from shower to shower opening these precious items, getting excited about washing and putting them away, wondering what this little girl would look like, what her personality traits would be... And now here I sit w/ tears on my face putting them in a box that will collect dust until another little soul is ready to wear them. It hurts... Just thought I'd let you know.

Found me, huh?

I'm glad you're here... as long as you are NOT one of my students!!! One of my little jr. high guys googled me today and asked if I had a webiste. I did what every self-respecting teacher would do... I lied and made him get off of the computer ~ and then headed home to change what I could to get my name off of google. I hope this works!

Must get ready for the last day before my busiest spring break ever! We're closing on the house next Firday morning and the movers are coming Friday afternoon. Lord willing everything will work well and the timing will be perfect. If not, then I guess I'll be doing more lifting than originally planned.

Toodles.

Still Kickin'

Just a note to say hi and that I'm still here. We're supposed to close on the house on the 31st. Thankfully Spring Break is from the 27th until April 9 so I'll have some extra time to pack, unpack and decorate a bit before heading back for the last six weeks before summer break.

Things are so hectic and busy right now. I'm tutoring in the afternoons for some extra decorating $$$ and not getting home until after 5:00. By the time we sit down to eat, talk a bit and bathe HAH it's 9:00 and time to hit the sack. No wonder moms are so tired!

We'll be spending Easter weekend in New Orleans with my college family for Kaleb's third birthday ~ I think we've spent all but 2 Easter's in N.O. since B and I have been married. It's a great tradition! We're going to have a crawfish boil, train party and eat at some mega cool place for Easter dinner. What a great way to spend q time w/ some of my dearest friends!!

When we get back from LA it TCAP testing for two weeks. So much pressure is put on us to teach to this stinkin' test... I'm ready for it to be over and done with! Then it's end of course testing for my freshmen... tests that must be passed in order to go on to the 10th grade ~ even more pressure.. and sometime in there I'm supposed to take my kids on a field trip to see a brain disection (and probably to the Spaghetti Factory just to be cruel and super gross!), laser tag and to Joe's Crab Shack. Yeah, summer couldn't come quickly enough.

B, HAH and I are planning a summer vacation to Santa Rosa, FL ~ one of our favorite spots to relax, and possibly a fall trip to Arizona to visit one of my best friends and her husband before they head off to China for a year... and THEN an Alaskan cruise for just the two of us in the summer of '07.

Plans, plans, plans... where would we be without them?

This may be my last post for a while. Busy packing, closing and moving... our new house is WAAAYY out in the c ountry where no cable, nor dsl lines exist so dial up it will be for a good while. Maybe I'll see you around. Til next time...

The pictures are in...

Hadlee Anne ~ 6 months old

Sorry that the pictures are so grainy. {For some unknow reason, the photographer puts them on a paper to make it difficult to get high quality reprints.} :)

Couldn't you just suck her little face off???

Ya heard???

I heard that the local school board members' perception of my class is that I have parties all the time and take my students on weekly field trips for pizza. In actuality, we've had one party (Christmas) and taken 4 field trips (which I don't consider to be many since we have a classroom van for such purposes!), two of which have been to our local retirement home (and Manchester's tallest building, coming in at a whopping 5 stories tall). I asked the person who told me this information why the board members just didn't call and ask ~ his reply was, "Mae Anne, that's not how things are done." (I could hear him adding "Rookie." to the end of that sentence in his head.) I just don't understand. I'm a very detail oriented person. I enjoy having the facts of a specific situation. While I love the small town atmosphere ~ I DETEST the small town politics!!!

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We should have HAH's six month pictures by early next week. I'll post them for you to oohh and ahhh over.

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One of my students got upset today. We went on a walk to help calm down. (And also had to go over the fact that all 7th graders are temporary idiots who learn by example, not by being told.) On our way back into the classroom I told him he had to make his classmates think that I'd just paddled him and that it hurt like the dickens... he pulled it off. They weren't too happy with me. Yep, just like it should be! I think he deserves at least a few points of extra credit on his third quarter science final, how 'bout you?

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13 days 'til our TWO WEEK spring break...

Attempted, but failed...

I have tried on more than one occasion to turn off word recognition. It didn't work. If you know how to do so let me know and sometime in the next 10 years when I have a spare moment I'll do my best to turn it off.

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Lights are up, walls are painted, cabinets are installed.... but things are in all the wrong places. Crap.

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This week and next week I'll be getting more students. At most 8 more... made up of eighth and ninth graders. I'll be teaching every subject in the entire school, including Spanish. Among the legal things I know is how to say, "Where is the bathroom?" Again, crap.

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B's heading out of town for a few days. HAH and I will be living it up while he's gone. We may do more than one load of laundry, even put it away and pack a box or two for the upcoming move. Yeah, I know ~ you wish you were here.

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Buffett's summer tour is coming as close as Hotlanta. The concert will take place on my 5th wedding anniversary. I'll have to take 1/2 day off of work in order to get tickets. You better believe I'll do it!

Can you read what my pj's say? Just for you Ms. Terri!!!


Throwing what is known as a "McCullough Fit." {I'm just not quite sure where in the world her lil' temper comes from.}


In my bouncey chair w/ my favorite doll ~ we call her "Squeaky Baby".



Spending time at home on Mommy's day off.

FYI

Subject: Harvard University

Harvard University announced over the weekend that from now onundergraduate students from low-income families will pay no tuition. In making the announcement, Harvard's president Lawrence H. Summers said,"When only 10 percent of the students in Elite higher education comefrom families in lower half of the income distribution, we are not doing enough. We are not doing enough in bringing elite higher education tothe lower half of the income distribution." If you know of a family earning less than $40,000 a year with an honorstudent graduating from high school soon, Harvard University wants topay the tuition. The prestigious university recently announced that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families can go to Harvard for free...no tuition and no student loans! To find out more about Harvard offering free tuition for families making less than $40,000 ayear visit Harvard's financial aid website at:http://adm-is.fas.harvard.edu/FAO/index.htm or call the school's financial aid office at (617) 495-1581.

Dream crushing...

Your Career Type: Social

You are helpful, friendly, and trustworthy.Your talents lie in teaching, nursing, giving information, and solving social problems. You would make an excellent: Counselor - Dental Hygienist - LibrarianNurse - Parole Officer - Personal TrainerPhysical Therapist - Social Worker - Teacher The worst career options for your are realistic careers, like truck driver or farmer.

What's" Your Ideal Career?

{Dang it... I always secretly wanted to be a truck driver.}

You're a true Tennessean if...

1. You can properly pronounce Ooltewah, La Vergne, Etowah and Maryville.
2. You think people who complain about the heat in their states are sissies.
3. A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel.
4. You know that the true value of a parking space is not determined by the distance to the door, but by the availability of shade.
5. Stores don't have bags or shopping carts, they have sacks and buggys.
6. You've seen people wear bib overalls at weddings and funerals.
7. You think everyone from a bigger city has an accent.
8. You measure distance in minutes.
9. You go to the lake because you think it is like going to the ocean.
10. You listen to the weather forecast before picking out an outfit.
11. You know cowpies are not made of beef.
12. Someone you know has used a football schedule to plan their wedding date.
13. You know someone who has a belt buckle bigger than your fist.
14. You aren't surprised to find movie rental, ammunition, beer, and bait all in the same store.
15. A Mercedes Benz isn't a status symbol. A Chevy Silverado Extended Bed Crew Cab is.
16. You know everything goes better with Ranch.
17. You learned how to shoot a gun before you learned how to multiply.
18. You actually get these jokes and are "fixin'" to send them to your friends.
And finally: 19. You are 100% Tennessean if you have ever had this conversation: "You wanna coke?" "Yeah." "What kind?" "Dr Pepper."

Need to lose a few minutes of your life that you'll never regain?

Then take this quiz...

You are a Social Liberal (60% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (21% permissive) You are best described as a: Democrat Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

Living at work.
Stressed out.
Missing time w/ HAH and B.
Stressed out.
Ready for spring break.
Stressed out.
Papers due for school.
Stressed out.
Slow progress on the house.
Stressed out.
Constant tension headaches.
Stressed out.
Glad that the teaching calendar is only 180 days.
Stressed out.
Needing to head to the beach.
Stressed out.
Wish I had a drink w/ salt on the rim...
Stressed out.
... And a cute pink umbrella.

How well do you know these lyrics???

Where's the church, who took the steeple
Religion's in the hands of some crazy a$$ people
Television preachers with bad hair and dimples
The God's honest truth is it's not that simple

It's the Buddhist in you, it's the pagan in me
It's the Muslim in him, she's Catholic ain't she?
It's that born again look, it's the wasp and the Jew
Tell me what's goin on, I ain't got a clue


...Tell me who wrote 'em, the title and album and I'll promise not to send you the funk that sent me home from work at 8:30 this morning.

Tidbits...

HAH is officially sitting up and rolling from her tummy to her back.

I am now "highly qualified" to teach LANGUAGE ARTS grades 7 - 12... isn't it ironic, don't ya think?

Question from one of my students (who may have violated a zero tolerance policy), "Mrs. Mae Anne, do you do drugs?" I'm not sure that he was worried about my health...

After he completed my summative report for my evaluations, my principal gave me a hug and said, "Welcome to the family." ~ He likes me! He really, really likes me!

My Christmas tree is still up... and decorated.

I have yet to begin a research paper which is due by 11:55 p.m. tonight.

I'm still buried under a mountain of paperwork... being in the SPED dept. will do that to a gal. After Feb. 17 a majority of it will be over and done with and (hopefully) I'll be able to relax a bit.

I'm going to be an "Aunt Mave" again!!! Congrats to my New Orleans sister and family for baby #2 ~ she'll be with us in September!!!!

There is nothing like talking out life's problems with a dear friend over the comfort of Cracker Barrel food... & looking around at the fullets (female mullets) and thanking God that our problems really aren't as bad as they seem.

It's bed time... Nighty nite.

All at once...

I guess it's just that time of year... when absolutely everything is up for renewal. At work I am preping for my evaluations (paper work out the bootwha), the grant monitoring and renewal (more paper work out the bootwha), my studnets' IEPs (yet even more paper work), court dates, probation violations, recommendations for high school, ACT prep, the list goes on and on.

At school I'm still working on papers.

At home we're still filling out paperwork for taxes and house stuff.

And not to be left out, Hadlee ~ well, she's not really all that into paper. She IS into sitting up, rolling over, reaching for people and standing ~ IT'S SO GREAT!!!

B and I are going this weekend to pick out paint colors and light fixtures, hitting the Gymboree clearance sale, and hopefully finding time to rest in there as well.

It's finally FRIDAY!!!

Humor me, would ya?

Simply b/c I have no other blogable thoughts in my head... I ask you to tell me who you are, where you are and how you found me. Due to statcounter, I know where many of you are located, just not exactly what you are reading or looking for.

Have a great weekend. I'm planning on working late tomorrow, doing a paper on Freud (yes, we must always begin w/ Siggy), and very much looking forward to B's homecoming.

SNOW DAY!!!!

I can not even begin to tell you all how wonderful this treat is to me!!! My school district doesn't have a busing system (except for the CDC students) so it is incredibly rare for us to have a snow day. Hadlee and I plan on enjoying it to the fullest! The only thing that could make our day better is having B here. Hope you are off too!

Going where I've never gone before...

I guess I knew the time would come, I just didn't really prepare myself for it ~ this week I'm single moming it. Brandon is in Cancun for the yearly world gathering of patting each other on the back and doing whatever the heck it is that these guys do ~ steaks, sun and golfing usually, with a little business thrown in for good measure. Thankfully it's a short week at work with lots to keep me busy... and there's always the cutest child in the world to keep me company!

My Christmas tree is still sitting in the living room, though the lights have been unplugged for a week or so. It's just kind of become a fixture in it's own little corner next to Artie, Jr. (our rubber treee that just refuses to die).

Once again classes have begun. I've got a 4 page paper due by midnight of each Saturday night throughout the semester... Mrs. Procrastination may have to turn and find another occupant! I took this class at FHU, but b/c I'm in a graduate program they only transferred 9 of the umpteen million hours I had. I've got notes on theorists coming out of my wazoo. I don't think 4 pages a week will take too much of my brain power to produce... I just need to make sure that I can find the notes from a year and a half ago!

I have the latest pictures of the house on my cell phone, I just don't have the know-how to get them from the cell to here. I may go by and take pictures w/ one of the other cameras so I can post them here. It's so exciting to see the progress... and frightening to know that mortgage payment is right around the corner!

Earlier today B, HAH and I were in Target. I was paroozing the Baby Einstien section b/c apparently I'm the world's worst mother who is taking away from my daughter's intelligence by not showing here these videos on a daily basis. What the heck??!?!?! I was so overwhelmed by the fact that she could be Einstien, Van Gough, Motzart, and Rimbaldi that I didn't get her any of them ~ help a sista out here! (I'm sure that I totally butchered the above names, obviously it's b/c my mother didn't show me the videos as an infant too. Oh well.)

I just finished reading Jennifer Weiner's latest book, Goodnight Nobody. It's her fourth novel and a great, fast paced read. She's one of my favorite authors, though the content is a bit racey at times. It's a nice escape from reality for a few minutes at a time!

Sleep is calling ~ have a great week. B is under strict orders to find exquisit gifts for his girls ~ I'll let you know the results when he returns Saturday. Til then, toodles.