Oh Yeah....I'm a LOSER

and this I'll say loud and proud!

I've been going to Weight Watchers for a while and I've been really happy with the fact that I can eat whatever I choose and it's a slow and steady loss. Tonight I hit my 10% goal. That's the first biggest milestone at WW. Although I weighed in tonight, I'll celebrate with my meeting on Monday night.

Most people don't usually hit a 25 pound milestone and their 10% at the same time but I did so I'll get a few little rewards. I'll get a 10% keychain, a charm for losing 25 pounds and I'll get a magnet to keep me encouraged to keep going.

I kind of feel like doing a happy dance around my house, that is if I didn't feel quite so bad.

I went to work today and this afternoon I started feeling like a 2 year old who gets the gunky eyes. For some reason my eye is pooping out yellow globs. I know I need to eat and throw in a load of laundry then sit and relax with a warm compress on my eyes. Maybe I'll manage to make it to see Project Runway. I hope it's a new episode tonight.

Also I talked with my dad tonight. He's got 2 more days until he retires! Wow he's always been a work-aholic, that is where I get it from I know, but yikes retire! If I retire at the same age my dad is, then I'll need to teach another 24 years. I can't imagine how different kids and education will be in 24 years. It's almost scary to think about it. What is even more scary is that I rememeber in 1st and 2nd grade having teachers who were older than dirt back then, I mean I thought they were 70ish then, and yikes what's it going to be like when I'm teaching and in my 60's???

Well that's a lonnnnnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggg time away so I think I'd better worry about making it through this week, next week's big state tests, and then the last few days before spring break. Ahhhhhhh if I can make it through this week, there are only 13 days left until break! Unfortunately we have such an early Easter this year, it's going to be a longgggggggg time between when we get back and the end of the year.

I'll have to ask my girlfriend, who is retiring this year, how many more days are there until the last day of school.

Until then, I just need to feel better to make it back to school tomorrow. I don't need to worry how many days until break or until the end of the year, or until my own retirement. It's a lot. What's helping me muttle throug until June is this wonderful vacation with my mom. Ohhhhhh I can't wait!!

still stick

and in desperate need of a header update.

Today I'm starting to feel better although I was freezing all night and probably had a fever again most of the night.

I really don't have much to say that needs updated but I can report we have another 4.5 inches of snow. Snow, I'm so sick of snow! Go away snow! I've also heard there is probably more on the way later this week. I think we've had over 50" of snow so far this winter.

I am also giving a shout out to some friends to UPDATE YOUR BLOGS!

Ughhhhhhhhhhh I'm sick

and feel horrible. I felt this coming on last Wednesday and thought it was just going to be a sinus infection. By Friday at school I was feeling horrible with a sore throat and occasionally it would feel like my lungs were burning.

I cough occassionally but I thought the sinus infection was getting better. I thought for sure with a low key weekend and really doing nothing I would be ok to go to school today. Nope, around 9:00 last night I started getting the chills and had a fever. I called in and then again today I thought I'd be fine for school tomorrow. Well after almost a whole day without a fever, I got one again. Granted just a low grade fever but I must really be fighting something.

I decided earlier today that I would take another sick day. I just want to feel better. It also wasn't too hard to decide when they are predicting 3-7 inches of wet, heavy snow. I won't feel like shoveling at all and I probably won't.

I just want to feel better so I can have a bit of energy back and sleep better. I'm up almost every hour looking at the clock or blowing my nose. I'm so congested that I'm sleeping horribly.

I hope to be feeling better tomorrow.

There is one thing I'm being productive at...my knitting. No energy and sitting with the tv on means I can knit.

Are you willing??

to show your support for those 5 innocent students who were violently gunned down at Northern Illinois University?

I proudly display this ribbon. My son was there on that horrific day.
If you are willing, then I hope you would put this support ribbon on your blog.
I know all the students, faculty and alumni would be appreciative.
Please consider showing your support.

Great News!

Did you see this?? I'm a new Chirpi Girl!

Victoria Greenlees is an amazing new designer who had a creative team call. I applied on a whim and was selected. Her designs mesh with my style perfectally.
I'm so excited to start working with her great designs.

YIPEE!!

Pray for Northern Illinois University

the students who survived, the students who have to return, the families and friends of those who died, and for the shooter's family. Everyone connected to this needs prayers. You know the game 7 degrees of separation? Well Northern Illinois University is one of those universities in which I'm sure you know someone, through someone else, through someone else who goes there.

Well if you know me, then you are closer than 7 degrees. My son attends there. My son was actually with a friend of his who ditched her class today. Her class was the class where the shooting occured. How did God choose who to spare? This girl is unbelieveably lucky.

I had 2 meetings, then door duty outside, then my Tuesday/Thursday after school reading group. I didn't hear the news, I didn't hear my cell phone ring. I had 5 missed calls and a text message. I learned of the shooting and of course your mind thinks the worst. After all Doug went through last semester I just knew in my heart that God would not let anything happen to him again. Don let me know that a friend of Doug's called to let us know he talked to Doug online and he can't call out but he was ok. Then all the other phone calls started. My brother, sister, mother, father, friends, co-workers all were calling and by then we only knew he was locked in his dorm. Locked down in a dorm, who would have thought that was the best place to be?

After making and answering phone calls all the way home I thought I'd just try Doug's cell. Unbelievably the call went through and he answered. The joy of hearing my son's voice! The peace of knowing my son was safe. The tears still well up in my eyes each time I realize how blessed we were today. Then my heart immediately turns to those families who have dead children or injured children. Why not us and why them? Those are the questions you ask of God but then you know that you still must hope and believe his will and power is the almight authority and you'll never get those answers.

In that wonderful phone call I got the best news, Doug was coming home tonight! He was coming home Saturday anyway to celebrate my sister's birthday, but just hearing him say today, soon, was the best news I'd heard all day. So each time we heard a car on the street we'd give a glance to see if it was pulling in. Finally he was home and I don't know how big of a sigh I must have let out, but it was probably big. I was glad just to see him walk through that door. The best sight I'd seen all day. My Valentine's Day brought one of my loves home. Now I've got all three home with me if for just a little while. I've got my family together and all safe for tonight and I have to continue to give thanks to God for that.

This is the best thing I've seen all day!

It's still winter

oh how I know it. Today, another batch of snow. It's nothing fun like a batch of warm yummy cookies coming out of the oven, it's horrible because it means another long commute home and more shoveling.

Today it was about an hour and half home; double the usual and customary. Luckily there was dinner in the crock pot. I sat and watched Biggest Loser, knitted and tried to stay warm. I went out and shoveled since the snow finally ended.

I need to work on a new Bible study I'm involved in. I was supposed to have the first week done for last Wednesday but it was snowed out so I actually had an extra week and still didn't get it done. I'm horrible, and get the most done right before deadlines are due.

I know I'm a poor, poor blogger. I've been super busy and unfortunately my "My busy life slows down" blog has been left silent lately. I've kinda dropped reading my gratitude book. I need to get on a schedule to read and work on the bible study each day. In addition to getting to the gym. I've broke the 20 pound mark so I'm excited to meet my 10% goal. I tell you if I knew Weight watchers was the way for me I would have done this years ago!

Well I have to hop off here and get in a chat with my dh and son about some homework project he has due at college.

Toodles and hope you're not shoveling too much!

That knitting I thought was hard...

isn't as hard now as I thought. I finished that scarf that I started in the first knitting class. Then I was a glutton for punishment because I signed up for the next class 201 where I learned to purl, increase, and decrease. In that class we worked on a ribbon shawl. I am almost totally finished with that except that I'm out of ribbon and can't get more. I bought the last one. I'm going to have to tear over half of it out so I can have enough ribbon to finish. Grrrrrrrrrrrr that is going to be a serious PITA because we weighed the ribbon to determine where half was. I just don't think there is any other way to fix it without ripping it out.

So because I knew I would be finished with the shawl soon I decided to use the gift certificate my bro and sil gave me and finally bought some coveted alpaca yarn. This is the softest yarn. I bought baby alpaca yarn and I swear I can't wait to wear this scarf. To me I'd love to be floating on a cloud of alpaca yarn. It's soft, the colors are beautiful and it makes me happy. So happy in fact that I made the whole scarf in one day! Oh it is a yummy scarf, no pictures yet, and it matches the sweater I'm wearing tomorrow perfectally. I'm wondering if I should save the new scarf and sweater outfit for parent teacher conferences on Tuesday. Can't decide, we'll see what kind of mood I wake up with in the morning. My mom is going to love the color and I know she's really going to want one. I think that my knitting practice is going to get a work out because I see a lot of my family will probably be getting new scarves for Christmas next year. Heck if the snow keeps up they'll need them this year.

Speaking of snow, it snowed all day Thursday and most of Thursday night. We got at least 8 inches. Everyone around my house was cancelled on a snowday, but wouldn't ya just know that my district didn't close. We only close if Chicago Public Schools close and that rarely ever happens. Well this afternoon we got hit with another winter weather advisory. It's been snowing for hours and we've got another 4inches of snow, easily. Some places nearby even had thunder snow.

I actually have a couple of fun pictures of the snow we have.

Busy week this week. Haircut, weight watchers, work, and passport pictures probably tomorrow. That and an early morning to get ahead of the traffic with the snowy weather. Tuesday is conferences, Wednesday is meeting day and I just stared a women's Bible study. thursday will be reading group after school, and Friday is Friday. In two weeks that 3-day weekend is over-booked. Friday night is girls' night out, Saturday is scrapbook day with friends, Saturday night is Vegas night at the church in which we will go with friends, Sunday is when we'll probably celebrate my sister's birthday and Monday, President's Day, is the day of my spa day. By that Monday, I'll need an ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh day.

I know I've run on and on and on in this blog post. Rarely am I ever this chatty on my blog. I'll upload my winter pictures and then I was going to eat an orange, but I think bed is calling me much more loudly than the orange.

Oh...forgot to mention...I finally took down my Christmas decorations today. Realize it took me 25 minutes and a lot of them were "winter" snowman and snowflakes, but the tree is down too. Now realize my tree was half covered in red hearts so technically I could have considered it a "Valentines' Day tree." But anyhow it is finally down.

Ok now the pictures I promised.