In just two hours

Saturday Camille took the kids to the park, and they ended up being there for about two hours. It was amazing what I was able to accomplish in those two hours. It felt awesome. I got both dining room and kitchen swept and mopped. Completely cleaned off and wiped down our dining room table (our computer is often on the table so things can get piled up), filled and started the dishwasher, cleaned off the counters in the kitchen, picked up and vacuumed the living room and then Matt took the vacuum from me and did the entry way (with the hose) and the small rug in the entry way. Normally, that would take me a few days to do because of kids and things that I need to do for and with them. Now all I need is to find a way to do that once a week. Trying to see if there is someone out there that I could trade off with. Haven't figured out who yet. Or even some eleven year olds that could come over to the house and play with them in the other room while I got something done somewhere else. Because if I could have those two hours every week, who knows how much I could get accomplished!!! I am so excited at the possibilities.:)

And tomorrow I am hoping to download something that will maybe help me with my computers inability to upload pictures on my blog. We'll see how that ends up.

Hello. My name is Terina

And I'm a shopaholic. I love it. I love a good deal. And I have a hard time passing one up.

On our way home on Wednesday, we stopped at Potomac Mills. An outlet mall which had my favorite store in it. H&M. I fell in love with this store when we lived in Germany. They have the greatest kids clothes, and they are so well made. And I usually can find stuff on sale for the kids. The last trip was last September when I was in California. I drove all the way to the Beverly Center in Beverly Hills (will try to avoid doing that again because traffic was HORRIBLE) and found some awesome stuff. This time, I found some awesome stuff for Andrew's school clothes. I found darling dresses and skirts for Lucy. I also found me a few cute shirts. The best part of all this, is that there won't be anyone else down here wearing those clothes. Camille also found some really cute stuff.

They also had a Lindt Chocolate OUTLET!!!! They had these bags of imperfections. Well, it all tastes the same to me. I got some yummy yummy chocolate for much cheaper than I otherwise would have. I think that if I ever get back to Potomac Mills, I better save up for a few months before we get there.

On Friday, Camille wanted to go to the PX. So we did. On walking in there was a sign that said "50% off all clearance prices on clothes and shoes." Wow, did we pick a good day or what!! Camille found some really cute tops. And I found a ton more clothes for the kids. I only bought myself one shirt that was $4. Which was pretty good for me. They also had some polish pottery mini tea sets!! And they had one in my pattern. So, of course I bought it. I also bought one for Matt's little sisters for Christmas. I'm trying to think ahead as I always seem to be moving at that time of year. So, I don't have to buy clothes for the kids for months. Which is awesome. I might have to buy them each a few pairs of pants, but that's it. I'm set on shirts and short for the both of them. I love it.:) And I don't need anything when it comes to clothes or shoes. I have enough to last me until I lose or gain some weight.

And speaking of Christmas, I've already got half of it done. I made made them last week, with the help of Camille. I love it when I manage to think ahead and actually follow through with it! Sad part of the weekend is that Camille leaves soon. It's amazing how time flies when you have someone visiting (or sometimes not with some visitors) and other weeks drag by. Oh well. We have been invited to a friends house for the Fourth of July which will give me something to look forward to this week. (thanks nicole!)

But because of all that I've spent this week, (and it was a lot) I cannot go to PX for a month. I can't. Because then it will be too tempting. So unless I absolutely MUST go there to get something I will not. Not Walmart, (which I try not to go to anyway) Target, or Kohls. No where. And not only that, I can't go to ebay, etsy, the Gap or anywhere else online. Hopefully I'll be able to stick to this. I really need to. Because I'm a shopaholic. Anyone want to start a Shopaholics Anonymous group?

Reverence and Respect

On our first day in DC, we spent a lot of our time going to the war memorials. At the World War II Memorial, the fountains were very loud and drowned out any sounds people were making. Which allowed you to look around, sit with your feet cooling off in the fountain, and think about WWII, those that died, and what we can do today to prevent that sort of thing from happening again.

But in the other memorials, there weren't such big, large, and loud fountains. In the Lincoln Monument, people were incredibly loud, even though there were several signs asking for quiet in respect. And I knew that Martin Luther King Jr. had stood on the steps and had given his "I have a dream" speech there. Come to find out, they have it marked on the steps. But there were so many people sitting on them, it would have been impossible to find. At the Korean War memorial, people were not quiet either. As I was walking through it, I was thinking about my grandpa, and wondered why he made it through when so many others didn't. And how grateful I was that he did make it. At the Vietnam War memorial, there was finally some reverence and respect. And even though I didn't know anyone personally that died in that war, it was still an emotional walk though it.

My friend that lives in DC had suggested that when we don't have our kids, to go to the Holocaust museum they have there. She thinks it is the best museum in DC. But one time that she went, there were these kids there on a field trip. They were laughing and giggling and making "funny" comments about "how skinny" the people had been and some other comments that were completely inappropriate. She was incredibly angry that these kids hadn't been taught about what it was about and were told how you behave in such a place.

That is kind of how I felt going through the memorials. I was a little ticked off. And even though I much prefer to do those kind of things in the summer because I love to be warm, I almost would rather be there in the winter when there aren't as many people and you have an opportunity to really think about things, read a little bit of what they have on the walls, and take some time to remember those that gave their lives.

I will be teaching my children, to the best of my ability, the proper respect and reverence to give to these sorts of things. They are little now, but if I start now, it might get through to them. And perhaps being in the military, and knowing so many people that have been and will be deployed might help them to understand how much people gave in those wars. And not just war memorials, but cemeteries, cathedrals, and those kind of places where respect and reverence should be expected.

Family Reunions: good, bad, and the ugly

So, this past weekend was a Jex Family Reunion. Which I haven't been to in years because I've lived far away. Out of my parents six kids, only two were there. One is on a mission, Camille flew out to see me last Saturday, and my other brother couldn't afford to drive to CA twice in one month and as they have Wicked tickets for this weekend, the decided to come down the following weekend. And of course, I'm out in podunk Fayetteville.

I talked to the one sister that went, and she said that it was just drama after drama. Grandma was cranky the whole time and yelling at people for no reason other than that most of us aren't her favorites. And then some people that aren't able to come for whatever reason, others get upset about because they don't come. Sigh. Kind of glad I wasn't there.

My cousin LeeElle took a video of her two younger brothers doing some funny stuff on the beach though. You should check it out.:)

Camille and I are having a great time. We had many adventures in DC and today we went swimming to cool off because it was stinkin hot here. So, we'll see if I will get to any Jex reunions. I might always live too far away. Or I might not. Just make the stinkyness go away, and I think we'll all be good with each other.

Back

In one piece. It was so hot and humid there on Monday, that instead of using the potty, we just sweat like crazy. It was pretty rough out there that day. It rained that evening, and then Tuesday was so nice out. It was still hot, but like half the humidity of the day before. We got to do most of what we wanted. I think the kids had a good time. I guess we'll find out tomorrow what they think. Today they were just excited to be able to sleep in their own beds. Both of them have discovered burping many times in a row. I SWEAR I did not teach them that. I was an avid burper in my younger years, but have since repented of my ways and rarely burp unless having a really good and carbonated root beer. Lucy is a champion burper. She thinks she's funny. Anyway, back to our trip......it was nice, and I've got a ton to do now that I'm home. Tomorrow I will try and post a more detailed account of our adventures. Of getting lost, eating pizza with a salad on top of it, and having lunch on the grass around the Capitol.

My sister is here

And we're off to DC!!! Haven't been there for over three years, and she's never been. Pray that I won't get lost, that nothing scary will happen, and that I will still like my kids after we get back.:) Thank you Friend (you know who you are, but you can remain nameless since I didn't ask to post your name) for letting us stay at your house even though you won't be there. And if someone's husband decides to come over to play Guitar Hero with my husband, please check out my computer and see why I still can't load pictures. PLEASE!!!!! thanks. Later everyone.

This is just dumb

I saw this on fox news, and i read through it quickly. My first thought is why does it even matter? I bet if anyone asked a bishop or anyone else that knew what was in the book (which i doubt is secret) that they could share most of the information. And I feel that there is much information that we don't know, but will know about on a need to know basis. When I became Relief Society President I didn't know a lot about how things were done, but because I had that responsibility, I knew it. But there really isn't a reason to know it otherwise. I don't know much about the Scientologists issues. Sometimes I think that the media thinks that we (the public) need to know everything about everything. But that just isn't true. Leaked information in criminal cases can jeopardize things. Too much information can be bad. And some things just need to stay secret. I haven't checked out the information myself, but I think I'll already know much of it just from experience. So, I doubt it's "secret". What do you think?

UPDATED
Here is the actual link to what it is talking about on the dumb wiki whatever it's called. They also had a link to a Mormon Female Beauty Manual. For some reason I couldn't get it to work, but I'm going to try again. Seriously, a mormon female beauty manual???? Maybe they should come to church with us sometime. Especially when we have church at 9 and have small children to feed and get dressed, on top of taking care of ourselves, and remembering to bring everything that we need for our calling.

UPDATED AGAIN
Ok, here is the link to the female beauty manual. Which I can't seem to see for some reason, every time I try. This is killing me. I'm dying to read it!!!! Wouldn't FMH totally rip this thing to shreds???

Waxing a bit philosophical.....

I had an interesting experience today. Without going into too much detail of the who and the when, I was reminded how different all of us are. And how even though someone might be able to keep their house spotless, or is organized, or can dress well or can make amazing dinners, they always have something that they aren't good at. I know, it seems unbelievable. I find that my weaknesses are easy to see: I suck at housekeeping, I'm impatient, unorganized and find it difficult to focus on things and finish them. The things I am good at are: social situations (no social anxiety here), keeping up friendships (even though most of my friends live more than a hundred miles from me, some thousands of miles), and a few other things.

I'm always worried that when people come to my house they will pass judgments on me. Because I'm cluttery. My floors aren't always vacuumed. My table is frequently covered with stuff other than dishes. Sometimes I don't sweep my floors. My counters get cleaned frequently but are covered with "stuff". Sometimes there are shoes strewn on the floor. Or sometimes it's toys. I have no skills as a home decorator. The reason I'm worried is because most of my friends seem to be these compulsive neat freaks that rarely have a thing out of place in their house. And I'm serious. I can start with my friends from way back when. I do still have friends that are not those compulsive types. And I'm not so worried when they come over.

There seems to be a give and take. Some might be organized but might feel uncomfortable in social situations. Some might make great dinners but struggle with keeping up with the dishes. What I love about it is that we can learn so much from each other!! In fact I would love nothing more than to have a friend come over and have her help me with getting myself more organized. Not sure what I could give to her, but I'm sure we could think of something. :)

Does this post have a point? Not really. Just kind of thinking or typing out loud.

So cool

I have entered at least 100 different giveaways on so many different blogs. Lots of times, there are hundreds of people trying to get the same thing. But I enter anyway, cause you never know and it takes about one minute to write a comment and post it. I checked my email this afternoon (it's only 1pm) and saw an email from a An Ordinary Mom informing me that I had won this giveaway!!! Granted, it's mostly for my kids, but that's OK. I'm just excited to have won something!!! Thank you An Ordinary Mom and Begin Smart Books!!!

Weather Anxiety

There is a HUGE thunderstorm right now going on outside. HUGE!!! As I'm laying down with Matt I have to get up to check the weather. It said we'll get an inch of rain in half an hour. Also cloud to ground lightning. Fabulous. The bright side to all of this is that my kids never (or rarely) wake up when there is thunder going on outside. So no worries on that end. But I wouldn't mind it if they did wake up because holding them sometimes makes me feel better. My anxiety doesn't go away completely, but it does help it. It says that it should be done by 10:30, and according to my computer clock, it is 10:17. Thirteen more minutes. I think I can survive. I'll help the time pass by watching Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Harrison Ford can help to make me forget about the madness going on outside.

You know, I wasn't always this bundle of nerves.

OK, just checked again, and it looks like I won't be going to bed for a bit. This time it said until 11pm. And that means 38 minutes left of feeling like this. Dang. Don't know if Harrison and Sean will be able to keep me focused for that long......and the electricity just flickered. I think I'll find me a flashlight. Later.

What do you do???

Back in December, most of my in-laws came for Matt's graduation. They also helped us move. Anyway, right before they left, both of his parents told me that I can call them "mom" and "dad" respectively. I was speechless. Not out of happiness. I don't consider them anywhere near my parents. My parents are my parents. I don't even call my best friends parents mom and dad. And I've known them almost 20 years longer. The last time I talked to his dad, he said it again. I'm so not comfortable with calling them that. But I don't know how to not call them that, but not to have to keep dealing with them saying it. I know I could say that I'm just not comfortable with it. And I kind of said that last December, but I don't think they get it. And I don't think they'll get it no matter how plainly I put it. That is just them. Sigh. Any advice? Anyone else have to deal with this??

Bet you didn't know.....

that I don't like feet. As far as I'm concerned, no one on this planet has pretty feet. Perhaps I feel this way because I have big ones. In fact, Matt and I are only half a shoe size apart. He has actually put on my shoes on accident because we each have a pair that are similar. He only realized that they were mine when they were a bit tight in the toes. Yeah, I have big feet. I won't touch his feet and I won't touch any other adults feet. I am comfortable with Matt touching mine (I have feet issues, so he rubs/tickles/massages my feet almost every night) but I am not that comfortable with any one else touching them other than maybe a doctor.

Back at Christmas time, Matt gave me a gift certificate to go and get a pedicure. I meant to do it so many times. But getting away just isn't easy. Especially when we were living in the hotel, then moving in, and then not even sure how to get to that place where he got the gift certificate. Well, today it happened. And very unexpectedly. I went with Rachel, who gets pedicures way more often than I do. My last one was when I got married. Almost seven years ago. Rachel was very impressed with how my feet looked going so long in between pedicures. (I just take care of my feet. if they look decent, less attention is on them.) And I am digging my pedicure. I had her do those little flower things on the big toe and mine look pretty awesome. If somehow I could upload pictures I would show you. I'm kind of excited to wear my sandals now. And since I enjoyed it so much today, I just might do it again soon. We'll see if that actually happens though. Who wants to come with me next time???

Cleaning time is fun time!!!!

I got my order today from Mrs. Meyers Clean Day. I love this stuff. Since I struggle with cleaning I am willing to do anything to help me get more motivated. I am trying their shower cleaner, dryer sheets (which are biodegradable!!!), toilet cleaner, window spray, and room freshener. I already have their all purpose cleaner, surface scrub and counter spray. Right now, they have free shipping, but only for a few more days. And with this order, I got a code for free ground shipping for my next order!! Which is totally worth it. So, if you love yummy smelling things for cleaning you will love this. My favorite scent is geranium. I bought the rhubarb set and I am trying their stain remover which is baby blossom. I wish you could smell it through the computer!!! In fact I make every one smell it when they come over. :)

I am also waiting for my order from lobotoME. They are an awesome company that makes products to help you be more organized. Mom planners, notepads that have specific things on them like, feedME, saveME, and helpME. Everything is made from recycled materials, which I love. You can even buy a tree to plant to off set the carbon used for shipping your order (which I did). Since I need all kinds of help to be organized, I love this stuff. I love having a place to write down our meal plans (which I don't always do, but it helps and it has space for your shopping list) and a place to write down my chore list for each day. Cause I need all the help I can get!! I'm buying the listME (which has a place to make your list and to doodle!!), the sitME for your babysitter to have all the information she/he needs, and fitME which is a way for you to plan out your exercise and fitness goals for the week. Cannot wait for them to come!!!!!!

What is going on??

My friend wrote this very thought provoking post. I have yet to know anyone with this experience. I do know of a situation where the soldier was wounded, and she took off with his car, son, and dog and most of his money while he was recovering from a surgery. I have several friends whose husbands come home and they really struggle with living with them because of PTSD. And things get really bad. Matt has yet to be deployed. I talk about it regularly because I'm trying to get myself used to it, trying to just expect that will happen in the future. I can't believe that this would happen to me. But as my friend says, you never know.

I have had it

So, last night as I was getting ready to go off to my bed, I saw that damn cockroach again. I was determined that it would not get away again. It was on my wall, and it also flies, so I wasn't going to take any chances while it was on the wall. I got out my handy oxyclean carpet spray to help as well as my pretty broom and one of my shoes. I was not going to go to bed until I had killed it. It seemed to like walking on my walls, so I was literally praying that it would get down on the ground so that I could just beat the crap out of it. I finally got it a little before 2am. The process was long. Lots of waiting for it to come out of its hiding place. Now, I learned this morning that the big ones don't mean that we are dirty (thank goodness because I don't think we're dirty, but I'm not the greatest housekeeper around) but if we get a lot of the little ones, then we're dirty. So. Even though I have only killed two small ones (one of which was last night and I watched it walk through the cracks in our back door) there is going to be some major cleaning today. I've bribed my kids that if they can be good helpers then I'll take them swimming later. Since we've only been to the pool once since they opened, I'm really hoping that this will help them help me. We'll see how well it works out.

And on top of all this nasty bug business, my hairdryer died. It wouldn't work Sunday morning. At all. So, my hair was quite not the normal Sunday hair. Must buy another one today. That hairdryer is older than Andrew. And I think I spent $11 on it when I bought it. The only other hairdryer I have is the one I bought on my mission, which of course doesn't plug into our plugs here. So, my purchases today will be Raid and a new hairdryer. Because my hair non blow dried is just kind of kinky mess. I have a very slight wave in my hair, emphasized right now because of all the layers, and it doesn't look terribly good. Yay for ponytails. I will report back on how much I got done. (I'm hoping it will be a record breaking housekeeping day for me) and I will no longer be without Raid. Cause carpet cleaner spray really just doesn't do it.

To do list for Monday

~do laundry
~vacuum (instead I swept and mopped the dining room)
~BUY RAID!!!!!
~watch Army Wives (this one is Rachels fault it wasn't done.heehee)
~go to bed earlier than the night before (still working on this one)
~get my brothers package ready to mail
~buy A LOT of raid

AHHHHHHH!!!!

So, there I was, sitting calmly at the computer, talking to my sister when I see something move out of the corner of my eye. Normally, I see things moving that aren't there, so I was shocked to see that what I thought was moving was actually moving. And what was it?? A COCKROACH!!!!! ON MY CEILING!!!! AND IT FLIES!!!!!!! So, I'm freaking out on the phone to my sister, rummaging through all of my products to find anything aerosol with which to kill the nasty thing. Oh, by the way, it was over an inch long. Unfortunately for me, I haven't bought anything aerosol for a really long time. In fact, not since we've been in this house. Which means I have nothing other than the really expensive hairspray that I have. Well, that cockroach isn't getting my nice hairspray. I'm looking for something else. Shout spray gel perhaps?? Oxyclean spray for carpets?? My choices here are slim. I'm walking around the perimeter of my kitchen with my broom and a shoe. Terrified to try and knock it down just in case it flies and it flies at me. Wishing for the only time in my life that I were taller so that I could just squish it by reaching up to the ceiling. Wishing that Matt were awake so that he could do this. (I almost woke him up too. He would have been upset, and I kind of like him not being upset....) So, I gather my courage (I know, I'm a baby. I just hate killing these dumb things) and spray the oxyclean at it. It flies and lands on the door of my pantry. I start to feel sick thinking that nasty roach could get into our food. I am brave and spray it again. It goes to the very top of my cupboard where we only have a few boxes of things. And I don't remember the last time we ate anything out of them. I start knocking around the boxes with the broom hoping to scare it out so that I can spray it again, and then smoosh the life out of it. In pushing the boxes, I see it do a sort of back flip thing. I try and knock more boxes off trying to take away its hidey places. Nothing. No movement. I think I have succeeded at killing it. I hope. I'll let Matt know in the morning, and he'll have to take care of it. All I hope is that when he is deployed that I'll live somewhere where the roaches are few and small. None of this wing thing or being as long as my big toe. Yuck. The joys of living in the south and having 90% humidity.

Anxiety!!!!!!

So, I admit it. I've got it. In varying degree's depending on the situation. When I fly (or someone I know is flying) I start to get physically sick. If I'm flying, it gets really bad. I'm always going to the bathroom, I can't eat or sleep. I try to read, and I can't focus. When we've gotten tornado warnings, I start doing the same things. My heart starts to race, too. In a car (those of you who have had me as your passenger can attest to this) I really struggle. I start telling the driver to put on the brake. I start to grab onto anything I can, and I start to see pictures in my head of twisted metal, dead bodies in the road. I really feel as if I'm about to die.

When it comes to more every day things, cleaning and organizing are huge triggers. The other night, I had just come home from grocery shopping. I had gone to 3 different stores. And I needed to make dinner. It was so overwhelming to me. I could barely start it. My dinner ended up taking much longer than planned, and we had to have leftovers. My kitchen didn't even get cleaned up until the next day. Cleaning a bathroom is also a source of anxiety. I think mostly because as a kid, I never could do it right (according to someone else) and I am just grossed out by cleaning bathrooms in general, and so the fact that I can even do it now is a huge step. But it is still really hard. Cleaning out my car, doing almost anything from start to finish is difficult. I literally shut down.

Before, I just thought I was lazy, or cluttery, or messy. Mostly, my anxiety comes from things that I've had a bad experience (in 5 car accidents and never the driver, or flying through a snow storm and it felt like an earthquake for an hour) and then after that I have a hard time doing it.

Long story short: I NEED HELP!! And the best part is that I've started the process. I don't necessarily want to be on medication. But if that helps me, I'm willing. I hate that feeling of feeling like I'm going to die. I hate that almost choking feeling I get when I try and organize and clean up. (not every time, just the really big ones) I've made progress, but I need to find something, someway to do this better. I'm sure I'll post about any progress I make. But I feel better just knowing that I'll get help soon. I doubt that I'll ever be anxiety free (although wouldn't that be awesome!!!) but I could sure use less of it in my life.

So hot

Yesterday I wore this dress. And I love that dress. It has been almost 100 degrees here, with a really high percentage of humidity. So I have resorted to casual skirts and dresses because I need that circulation!! Someone even complimented me on my dress. I wish they made it more than one color.

My new favorite book

I've been listening to a book on CD called Without Offense. This is my new favorite book. I already love his other book How to Hug a Porcupine.

I've been listening to one CD about five times in a row. And they are just amazing. In Without Offense, Dr. Lund uses the teachings of Christ, the Book of Mormon and the Bible. In the Porcupine book, there are no such references. As I listen to the CD's, though, I am shocked. I think, why wasn't I ever taught this? Or maybe I was, and was just young and didn't get it. And I'm also shocked that so much is in the scriptures. And that I'm so clueless that I can't get all of this information by just reading them. I also think, do my parents really understand these things? Because some of these things were never taught at home. Of course, you'd have to read the book to understand what I'm talking about. But some of the things he talks about are mighty prayer, and what is needed to have a mighty prayer. Things like waiting for the spirit to prompt you before criticising someone. Things like taking your frustration to God, and your love to the person. These things I had no clue about. I've done so so many things wrong, and my bad habits are 30 years old. Change is stinking hard. But I've come a long way. Still working on not criticising someone until the spirit prompts me to, but I keep my mouth shut much better than I used to.

I don't want my kids to feel like I do at this age. I want them to know all of this and more. I want to practice it in my daily life so that not only am I teaching it, but I'm actually doing it. I wish I had found these books sooner. But at least my kids are small. And hopefully they won't remember the dumb things I did when they were little. Just the smart things I do when they are older......:)

Going Places

This months topic at the Write Away contest hosted by Scribbit. I might actually enter something this time. I've been meaning to for months.

What gives me a high

I don't get a high off of exercising. There are few things that I get those "feel good" endorphins from. This morning though, I was a little high.

I figured out what to do for Andrews' teacher and the aide. And I took pictures, but still working on what the problem is with uploading pics. I was so abnormally creative for me. And I was so excited about it, it lasted for hours!!!

As I was looking for the things I needed this morning, I saw my scrapbooks and my scrapbook supplies. I haven't done my books for at least 18 months. Kind of sad. This has been because last year while Matt was in school, there was just no way that it was possible. Our house in San Antonio was small, and my kids were with me all the time. This year is better, but after last year, I still am not ready to start doing it again. So, maybe after our next move we'll be in a better place for me to scrap....or maybe blogging is just taking up my time instead.:)

Dumb Electricity

So, I had great plans for today. I was going to be productive. I was going to exercise, read my scriptures, declutter at least two areas, do laundry, and figure out something to give to Andrews teachers tomorrow. Then, my electricity went out. Which means in the very humid heat we had no A/C. Not knowing how long it would be out, I didn't dare open our freezer or fridge so that any cold air would stay put. I couldn't vacuum, and the load that I had started not ten minutes before the electricity went out, would just have to sit there until it came back on. I ended up going to a friends house (whose house is normally like a walk in freezer) to hang until mine came back. It came back on right before Andrew got out of school. And at that point, all I had accomplished was exercising and putting a load of wash in for it to just sit there. Sigh. This is the second time it has gone out here. I did manage to make a new recipe for dinner tonight. Which every one ate except for Lucy. (I thought it was pretty good)

So, tomorrow is Andrew's last day of school. Am I a bad parent if I don't get the teacher and the aide anything? I really don't know what to get them. I hardly know them, and I've kind of had a stinky attitude the whole time about it. I mean, we're going to move again in six months, so why get involved with a school that I'm not going to be at for at least three years? I think I would feel differently if we were going to be here for much longer. So, I don't know. We thought of making them cookies, but that didn't happen today, and I don't know if it will happen tomorrow. I kind of feel like a really lame parent for doing nothing. I guess this is our first experience with "school" so maybe I'll get better at this next year.