Teri Parris Ford's Blog

Mid May Moving

I got sick again last week. This is the 3rd time I've been sick this school year, more than any other year I have taught in 25 years. I'm not sure if it is because I'm older or if there is just so much more out there. I kicked off the school year with a bout of Covid and have gotten an aggressive cold (RSV?). I do not wear a mask and I should. Between the cold, age and it being the end of the year, I am weary and ready for a summer break. I'm starting to feel like I may be ready for retirement soon (next year or two?).

On Sunday Monika got us tickets to go see Lion King. I was able to invite my friends; Joe brought his family, Grace and Patty both brought their husbands. It was a very fun evening. I sat next to Joe's wife who also had a cold, so I did not feel bad not wearing a mask since both of us were blowing our noses.

At school, I am working on finishing up. The newspaper is working on a senior issue and the yearbook is fixing up a small mistake. We got our books delivered a week early which gave us plenty of time to fix a broken QR code. We used a free website to make the code and it expired. I made a new one with Adobe and purchased stickers. After printing 1000 off, the kids started working on sticking them all in. It is a very minor mistake. There are a few spelling mistakes, but so far, the book looks so good. The kids want me to tell them it is the best and I hate telling them I have to wait until it gets out there. I have to wait until I get complaints. That's the thing, I only hear the complaints. It's part my feeling a bit low at this time year-- I am afraid of those potential complaints. I haven't gotten them, but I know how horrible that feeling is when a mom emails complaining about how we left their kid or spelled their kid's name wrong. Mom's tend to think other kids did it on purpose and want heads to roll. Only once I got an email from a mom who thanked me for all the work but wanted to inform me of a minor mistake regarding her kid. I was so impressed with how sensitive this woman was with me. I wish everyone could be that kind, but they aren't.  I shared with my students, that no one ever contacts me to tell me how great the book is, so they needed to listen to what kids are saying and remember to share a few good comments my way. I could use a few nice words every so often.

Prom and Spring is here!

Prom used to be Mother's Day weekend but this year it came the week before. The weather warmed up just in time for a wonderful weekend. I still have photo duty-- which just means setting up lights and cameras, getting student volunteers and supervising them. It makes for an easy in and easy out, without much clean up. One camera ran out of batteries and another ran out of disc space, so it was a great excuse to leave early. I can barely stay up after 10pm these days. It's a fun evening, seeing all the kids dressed up and acting their best. 

With the yearbook done, my May is pretty open. I'm working on a lot of projects, but nothing pressing. I have the June issue of the newspaper which needs to be printed for graduation. I'm working on a highlight reel of animations featuring student work for film fest. I need to organize yearbook distribution with a viewing party featuring pies, a BBQ, a luncheon with cake and senior gifts. Plenty to keep me busy, but not too stressful. I'd like to paint my kitchen white when there's time at home when I have energy. I started but it's going pretty slowly since I'm in no hurry.

It's May!!

I took my Animation classes to see Super Mario Bros on Friday and boy, what an amazing day it was. We had to walk to the theater (28 min walk according to Google) to save on transportation costs and we had perfect weather to make for a perfect field trip. Monika met me there and I invited a couple of parents as well so we were well supervised.

Today is the first day of May but it doesn't feel like it quite yet. After several warm days in April, we are back to cool weather, which really dampens the mood. Everyone had the "Monday's" at school. By 7th hour, more than half of my students were absent. I got home early and walked on my treadmill to get some milage in. Monika is gone to a concert in Milwaukee tonight so I am home alone, enjoying a very low key evening without a lot to do. I ate leftovers, after some news, will go to bed early. 

The yearbook is done!

My students finished the yearbook today and suddenly it feels like school is almost done! There are 44 days left until school is out; or 31 school days. Yes, I am now counting down! Prom tickets go on sale next week and an administrator told me once (when I was the Prom adviser) that once prom is over so are the students. Since the pandemic absences are kind of crazy, add spring weather, senioritis, AP exams, and field trips and it's just going to be nuts. 

I have to be honest, this year the stress of making the yearbook weighed a bit heavier than last. The older I get, the harder it is for me to jungle all the things I do at school. The kids always procrastinate but a few really left it until way last minute, like down to the very last minutes of class today. Spring sports are always difficult and as always, Baseball was the last page done along with Girls Soccer and some senior collage pages. But I walked out of school this evening at 5:29 pm (see picture) and took Monika out to dinner to celebrate. I'll bring in big treats tomorrow (I'm thinking some Dairy Queen Blizzards). On Friday I am taking a bunch of my students to see the Super Mario Bros on a field trip.

Yep, May is just going to fly by!

Change in Weather

Weather in Wisconsin in April is crazy. We had 80's all week and now snow is back in the forecast. We got one last great day yesterday (Saturday) and rain all day today which is supposed to change to snow later this evening. Erika, Monika and I had a BBQ yesterday-- veggie burgers. It was a very pleasant day with our first visit to the Farmer's Market in the sunshine and time to plant veggies and herbs in our garden. 

Sunday started out warm and got colder and wetter as the day unfolded. My Sunday rituals have become pretty regular when I am in Madison. I go grocery shopping as early as possible (usually around 6am) and then spend the morning watching the news and working on the week-- planning my week both at school and personally. The goal is always to wake up on Monday knowing what I am doing or at least what needs to happen. 

Around noon we got a FaceTime from Jessi who is currently in Greece working on repairs on her ship (not her personally). Monika and I got to chat with her for almost an hour. She's on a small ship -- a Littoral combat ship called the USS Indianapolis LCS17. The type of ship that the Daily featured on in February, called the Navy's Very Expensive Mistake, and the New York Time's wrote about. She's currently getting extra time in Greece to make repairs because the both her helicopter (which is one o the oldest ones in the Navy) and her ship (not made for long distance trips) is need of repairs. While in Greece she has phone service, so we've been able to get little bits of communication lately. She is headed to Bahrain and then should be home by August. I'm hoping I have a bit of time to visit her before schools starts, if not, I'll have to wait until Thanksgiving to her next.

 

Holiday Weekend?

At what point did Easter become meaningless in our household? Monika asked yesterday. Jim came down for the weekend so we could celebrate his birthday. We went out to eat to a Jordanian restaurant for an early dinner with Erika & Mon, missing Jess ($120 for just the four of us). The food was amazing but the conversation and joy of being together was the best. I almost forgot it was easter and yes, it is completely meaningless in our household. 

I am just about finished with the fireplace. I hung the mantel on Friday. I need to finish cleaning the grout, add the trim and add a black finishing caulk around the box. I should probable by a fire retardant for under the mantel as I have a bad history of fires running amok. It all looks so nice, I am kind of afraid to have any fires at this point! Here's my Google photo album of before and after images.

I took Jim for a tour of the new art space yesterday and he was very impressed with our spaces. They are currently working on gutting the old space (room 508) which used to be an open studio and creating 3 separate classrooms; a drawing room, computer lab and photo lab, along with an office space and gallery. The days of an open shared studio is over. I am hoping to make the painting room as much my classroom as I can (see below) BUT shared spaces are not complete over. Josh is currently teaching drawing in the painting room since the drawing room is not complete, so he has a strong presence still. In the future, Grace will teach fashion design in that space as well, but I think I will eventually be the primary teacher using the space until I retire-- which I keep vacillating over-- next year or the year after? We shall see how things go next year before making that decision. Right now I am excited to be working and doing all the things I'm doing and I finally feel like I am in command. I have begun to add things to the walls of the painting room I want. I am still looking for a good Star Trek flag to add to the mix!

Working Spring Break

There is just too much to do to take the week off plus, I'm not going anywhere or have much to do at home other than any work I create for myself. I did decide to paint a wall and redo my fireplace. I also hoping to clean out my garage once it warms up late in the week. To kick off spring break, we got over a foot of snow! It was very pretty but I had to shovel early in order to get to work. I ended up having to pick up my editor in chief as well because her mom could not get her car out of their driveway. It made me so glad I had a big truck. I've been trying to decide what car to buy next and have considered a smaller something but not after yesterday. When I have somewhere to get, I want to be able to get there. Between Wisconsin and Minnesota, I want to be prepared for lots of snow anytime. After spending all Saturday at work, Monika and went out for a show. Now that Monika works at the Overture, we have been going to lots of shows. We went to Chicago on Sunday (see photo).

I kicked off my Spring Break Monday going into work and finishing off moving out of the old studio. I've been kind of emotional about this move, but I have to admit the new studio is amazing. Here are lots of photos of the whole build up. I feel like I got a lot of organizing done today. I helped some with the computers being set up and made sure everything was working so when I come in on Monday after spring break there are no surprises. 

I heard from Jessi this week, who is on her way to the Mediterranean. I wish I could fly to meet her out there!! She is on a small ship so suffering from sea sickness for the first time ever. She is not having as much fun as she did on her last deployment, but I do hope this one is shorter. Hopefully once they get across the Atlantic the pace will pick up. I do miss her!

Still Sick

This respiratory illness that has gripped me is still hanging on with a lot sneezing and coughing. I have used my neti-pot religiously and am constantly using cold meds to keep me working. I have moments of feeling better and then I'm back to being miserable occasionally. I think the big department move has lots of dust and stress in the air. We are packing all of our supplies onto wooden carts but still teaching students. It's chaotic but it's a group effort and constantly in flux; meaning dates move, plans change and nothings for sure. In someways it's better that way. We are just winging it. But the stress is taking its toll. 

It's not just work, though. I have surgery scheduled for the summer, and I won't lie, I'm anxious. Jim is way too busy between his job and his army duties and his stress has a way of adding to my stress. Erika was surplussed at Memorial, which means she is looking for a teaching position for next year which makes me so sad but it does make it easier to retire next year if she's not there. She'll probably end up at a middle school as there are plenty of job postings at that level. It'll be good for her to have various teaching experiences, but that doesn't make it easy. 

Sick again

I went years without using a sick day for being sick and this school year I've been sick three times. On Tuesday, we spent the day working moving stuff around, kicking up dust and I came into work on Wednesday feeling sinus stuffiness and muscles aching but from what I thought was moving repercussions. By Thursday I knew it was actually a cold. I took a Covid test Thursday morning before coming into work and it was negative. Luckily on Friday, I had parent-teacher conferences at home via zoom. I started feeling better and thought I'd be able to enjoy the weekend. Saturday, after getting dressed to go out on errands, I felt so horrible, I ended up back in bed by late afternoon. I took another Covid test this morning-- negative, but I'm now wondering if I should take tomorrow off. There is so much to do this week, being sick complicates it a bit, but it certainly makes me step back and take things easier. 

Life with Perks

It was a very exciting week in Madison. On Tuesday Monika got a couple of tickets to see Jesus Christ Superstar. She is occasionally offered tickets at the very last minute for shows. Tuesday was the second time I was able to see a show downtown and I admit loving the perks Monika enjoys. On Wednesday and Thursday school was cancelled due to weather. Friday had been a teacher only day with professional development for art teachers downtown at Madison Modern Museum. I was able to walk over to the Overture to see Monika at work, taking photos at a luncheon with the actors of the JC Superstar show. I eagerly asked to get a photo in as well. 

Although I had never seen the Broadway musical or movie, I ended up having a very surreal experience watching the show. I got a flood of memories listening to my parent's album in my living room in Santa Fe Springs (LA) singing and playing out the musical. I realized I was not only familiar with the music but I actually knew it deeply. I have been humming along to Everything's Alright it all week. It's been a good one.

3 Weeks later...

Time flies when you're having fun. I have been trying to post weekly but sometimes the weeks go by and I just don't even think about. Last weekend I went to Minnesota to spend time with Jim, clean bathrooms, and work on taxes. We've had 2 snow days, a tour of our new art wing (see photos here), lots of projects in the works and some clean up. I've been busy as department chair and yearbook advisor. While I feel like I have a lot going on, I'm usually free once I get home. I spend time watching the CBS nightly news almost evey night at 5:30pm (I try to leave work in time not to miss it) and I'm almost always watching a different tv show. I just finished Andor and started Picard season 3. I'm finishing up the Bad Batch (Star Wars) and trying to get thru all the Oscar nominated movies. This past weekend, Monika went to stay with Jim while had stayed home to supervise the Winter Dance Saturday night. I painted a shelf and cleaned off our collection of DVD's and Blurays. I decided to start digitizing my movies and putting them all on a Plex account. It will take me a while but the sooner I start, the sooner I get thru my collection! I want it all ready to go out on Plex by the time we fiber installed!

Cleaning Up

Yesterday I came home to homemade minestrone soup. Monika made a spectacular vegan soup with old green beans from Stater Brothers which came from my mother's house. It made me think about the fact there are quite a few items I have not had to buy since my mom passed-- mainly cleaning supplies and plastic bags. Apparently there are quite a few can goods we are still working thru, like green beans. I do miss my mom and think about her often but I do not think she's watching over me or anything like that. I know she'd be very pleased that I've been able to forgo buying plastic sandwich bags and dish soap for so long.

I started the new semester at school with painting 1 and animation, both classes I've taught many times. I purchased a new lumen device which I'm hoping will revolutionize my diet. I'm surprised how much time and energy in my life is just about taking care of myself. As I watch Balt age at a quicker pace, I see him struggle with stairs and incontinence, I realize he's just showing me what's to come in my own life. My vet told me I needed to look into putting him down and I'm struggling with that process. I know losing him will be a hard transition and I'm not ready for that, but I have to start wrapping my head around it.

New Semester, New Projects

The first day of the 2nd semester is Monday. The school year is half way done and the second half always goes faster. I have a great schedule to look forward to but a move in the middle of the semester due to construction. I'm not sure how it will all play out, but I'm ready for the change. Everything changes and life feels so different sometimes. 

I spent this morning painting a wall white in the living room.  I have big plans for re-tiling the fireplace which I hope to do this spring as well as finish painting the ceiling and trim. I'm chipping away at re-doing everything. There are so many projects to choose from every week to work on, but there also seems to be plenty of time for tv too! It's hard to make sure things stay in balance.

Mid January 2023

When I see 2023 written down, it seems so futurist. I realized that several movies have depicted 2023 in the past and the majority of them take place in dystopian, war-torn societies. Luckily that's not my experience. So far 2023 has started off with a bang, enjoying a wonderful vacation with Jim in Germany and having all three girls settled in jobs they love. While dramas play out in our world, I haven't got much in my life. Balt is dealing with some discomfort, but is on pain meds to make his life easier. I have to make a big decision soon on when or whether to let him go. I know my mom would be eager to put him down (she actually told me to put him down back when she was alive), but for the past 11 years he's been such a big part of my life and that change will be difficult. Although the idea of not having to pick up poop constantly is very appealing. 

Last weekend I was able to upload my 1 Second a Day video for 2022. I had to speed it up to fit under 5 minutes so it's actually more like 1 Second for 2 Days and I picked one of my top 5 songs for the year to accompany. It's a pretty accurate depiction of my year-- nothing too exciting, lots of driving and a bit of fun here and there. I can only hop 2023 is just as exciting. 

I'm on vacation

Vacation this year is a little weird. Our 16th week of school only had 2 days with vacation starting on a Wednesday. I had so much work to do, I actually went into work anyway to finish up a bunch of things mostly with the yearbook. I also took Balt to the vet to discuss incontinence issues he's having. We ended up talking about end of life options instead of treatment options as I had hoped. It's not an easy decision but I can hear my mom telling me to put him down. We decided on doubling up his pain medication to see if that helps-- 2 types, twice a day. 

Thursday ended up bringing a winter storm with frigid temperatures and blustery winds and was a snow day for many school districts still in school. I spent the whole day in comfy clothes and never left home. For me, it was my first day feeling like I was on vacation. Monika and I made vegan tamales with poblano chilies, soy chorizo, vegan cheese and homemade pinto refried beans. I let them steam all day while I did some organizing of files and bit of cleaning. I'm trying to get the garage cleared out enough so when Jim comes he can park in there. It won't be easy. Because of the weather he delayed coming to Madison until Xmas eve which just gives us both more time to get things done before being able to really enjoy vacation. He's grading papers which I'm happy to have him stay in Rochester to finish so he won't bring it here. 

Happy Holidays!

The back of the card says, "2022 kept everyone healthy & safe. Teri & Erika continued their work at Vel Phillips Memorial High School. Jessi was sent out to see on the USS Kearsarge, visiting many countries on the Baltic Sea. Monika finished her programming certification and got a job in Madison. Jim continues to work at the University of Minnesota Rochester. Love & peace for all for a happy 2023. 

I ordered very few printed cards this year knowing I would post an electronic version for friends on line. I also wanted to fill in a bit more information for the year. Erika and I were offered the opportunity to team teach an art class for students with disabilities. It has been an amazing experience for me to see Erika upclose professionally. She is a really great teacher. Jessika spent most of the year abroad visiting a lot of wonderful places on the Baltic Sea and although she is back home, she is still at sea flying a helicopter on the USS Kearsarge on the Atlantic. Monika spent the year living with me cooking a lot of amazing vegan food which was wonderful. I felt like I had my own personal chef most days. After finishing her programming program, she spent a lot of time putting together a showcase resume which helped her land a great job here in Madison. She is a Digital Marketing Coordinator for the Overture Center and I'm so excited about the prospect of getting more opportunities to get out to the theater. Jim is still doing the history professor thing in Minnesota as well as being a Major in the Army (serving at Fort Snelling) and a homeowner so he's too busy. We are both really looking forward to retirement in a few years which will give us more time to ourselves. Yes, I'm on countdown. Balt was left out of this year's card but I included him here for you. He's losing a lot of mobility but still a happy part of our family!

I love hearing from my friends, seeing posts on social media, texts, messages and especially xmas cards. From our family, wishing love and peace to you all and a very happy 2023!

Holidays are here.

Last weekend I wanted to set up a xmas tree but Jim reminded me that all of our holiday stuff was in Rochester. Oh well. On Saturday I went into school to help set up for the sale and clean up some stuff in the back of the old gallery. I found an small plastic tree that had been used for display. I brought it home and set it up. Even Monika liked it as it was fake and only had lights- no ornaments. I also made chocolate covered pretzels for the sale but it is a holiday tradition for me now. 

The fridge went out again, so I got myself a new one for christmas. It doesn't get delivered until Thursday so in the meantime we have our frozen food out in the garden box outside. I need to transfer the fridge stuff into the garage soon since it's losing cold more. I've been feeling kind of blue lately and am guessing I just need a break. I'm on countdown for the semester with my students-- 15 days-- but only 6 days until vacation.

It's December!

We found out this week that our department will be moving out of our classroom spaces and into our new space this February. We had planned not to have to move for another year and suddenly that plan has changed. It will certainly make for a very interesting 2nd semester.  It also means I will have a couple years in the new spaces before retiring now which I have mixed feelings about. I have always loved the unique space I work in -- an open concept classroom which was popular in the early 70's. The idea that all classrooms are connected and open seemed cool at one time but is pretty unpractical. It means you have to really like the people you work with because they are often passing thru your room and you can hear the music they are listening to. It always drove me crazy when Geof listened to old 70's stuff (Neil Young was the worst). Now I am usually stuck listening to Grace's music which isn't too bad but every so often, I'm hating it. I think that will be the one thing I am most looking forward to -- being able to play my own music without feeling like I'm imposing that music on other teachers. 

Over thanksgiving my heater started having issues so I had to call in someone to fix it. I was asked to clear out the space around the heater which made a huge mess in my basement. I spent today finally cleaning it all up. I vacuumed piles of dust and cobwebs as well. I got my treadmill going again. Also, Monika and I got up early to get to the Hoofer's sale. She wanted snowboard boots and I wanted cross country skiis. I got my skis but she did not find any boots. I am looking forward to a big snow fall hopefully soon to test out my new skis!

Happy Thanksgiving

The year Jim and I got married (1988) we started celebrating Thanksgiving a part from extended family. As educators, November is just a busy time and we always needed the break to catch up and traveling made it complicated. Every year circumstances change but staying home is always the most relaxing way to do Thanksgiving. Erika had a lot of homework as she's working on her masters and was glad we were not traveling this year. As much as I love visiting Jessi, she prefered to make the trip to Madison this year.

Jim and I were talking about the days from our youth, and how that seemed like a different life. It does seem so weird to think about going to my grandma's house for holidays and thinking that memories I have of my grandma are of her being about my age now. I'm not sure I'll ever get to be a grandma, but I know that will change life again big time. There are clear stages that I can see now in hindsight; childhood, young adulthood, parenthood with young children, parenthood with teens and young adults. This "empty nest" stage I'm in now is complicated with having two homes, in two states, so there is a lot of back and forth for Jim and I, but in general it a very simplified life, compared to past stages. There is a lot of freedom. I shared with a friend getting close to 50, I definitely have felt that the 50's have been the best times of my life. 

We went around the thanksgiving table to share what each of us were thankful for. It was a funny practice for us because we used to force the girls to do this in the past and now they were leading it. Good health,life, homes, and jobs were all mentioned. We are quite the blessed bunch.

Failure

I set out to write every day in the month of November but I failed after 2 weeks. Life got busy and felt too mundane to write about and then I got sick with a cold (not COVID). November always gets busy at school as basketball season starts, kids move all activities indoors, parent teacher conferences hit, and yearbook deadlines loom. I was a bit surprised how adding department chair duties added to the stress with extra meetings and the need to keep things organized. I have prioritized swimming at lunch on Tuesdays and Thursday but got really lax on exercise for the rest of the week. I've given up hot yoga to save funds and Balt no longer will walk in the morning or afterschool with me.

I left work this evening connecting with Joe and feeling so thankful for friendships I have. I feel supported and connected. I love team teaching with Erika. Knowing I can leave at the end of the year if I want without any negative repercussion offers a lot of freedom. I headed out for my thanksgiving holiday feeling so thankful for the special people in my life, my healthy children, and my comfortable homes.

Winter is Coming...

We had significant temperature drops this weekend. Jim and I walked to Starbucks for coffee and boy, was it cold (27). I pulled out my fleece crazy quilt for my bed which is a lot more cozy to sleep with. We made big fires in the morning and in the late afternoon/evening-- it's fire season. Balt still likes to go out in the cold but the cats not as much. Lewy always seems kind of upset, like he wants to go out in nice weather but that's not what I'm giving him. I spent some time cleaning, some time prepping stuff for a holiday sale and a bunch of time watching House of the Dragon on HBO. Monika made soup for dinner and we had a grand evening.

More Celebrations

I have taught my children to celebrate themselves, not for one day but always more! I'm always happy to see my girls taking several days to celebrate their birthdays. I try to take a week to a month to celebrate my birthday now. Jim came down for the weekend to take Erika out for Mexican. We went to a place we had not been for at least 5 years. We had a great meal together. Jim and I went home to enjoy some tv and treats. Monika got home from work and we made a big fire and watched 2 episodes of the new Emily Blunt show (The English). It is always fun having Jim visit but it is a bit more comfortable at his place. 

Erika's Day

We both had to work and she had a bunch of meetings but we still managed to make time to go out to lunch. We popped into the AT&T store first to have them switch over her phone. I got the new 14 pro for my birthday so I gave her my 12 to replace her old 10. I get a new phone about every other year and then pass on my old phone to one of the kids or Jim typically. Monika and Jessika have given up waiting for me and now just get the phones they want when they want them. I recall giving my original iPhone to Monika when she was in middle school. It was her first phone and her friends were all pretty impressed she had an iphone even if it was kind of old at the time. 

Monika had to work, and Erika had errands to run after work so we waited a until after 6pm to meet up at Nitty Gritty for a birthday celebration dinner. Erika's boyfriend paid and it was lots of fun. I have to admit, I so very much enjoy spending time with Erika even after working with her during the day. Monika often has to tell us to stop talking about work though. While at dinner Monika read us an email offering her a job. She has been on the job market since summer but very picky about applying, wanting a specific field and culture. We are hoping her new adventure will be a good one.

Warm Weather Ends Today

It was so warm today-- over 70, I was sweating at work. Our classroom had the heat on but because it was so warm outside, it just felt like a sauna. This evening a cold front is coming in and we should drop to 30 degrees tomorrow. I think our mild weather might be done for the year but with global warming, who knows? Last winter was not so snowy or all that cold, so perhaps that is how it will be from now on? We had a fire drill during 3rd hour and it was glorious outside. Joe had the garage door open and sent his kids out to take photos. I left for lunch after a swim, to get a burrito and enjoyed the mild weather-- humid, breezy and so comfortable.  I love swimming at lunch on Tuesdays and Thursday. I always think about Jessi when I swim. I miss the days of waiting for her practice to be done or watching her compete in the pool. 

 

Jessi's Day

Jessi turned 28 today. I called her but she didn't pick up. She mentioned being busy on her birthday with a flight and Navy duties. I am really looking forward to hopefully seeing her on Thanksgiving. Plans are still up in the air. We originally planned to see her in Virginia but she said she preferred coming to us after all. Plans may change again, we'll see.

I'm half way thru a busy week. I left work after 5pm and the weather was just amazing. It made me wish I had more time to spend outside. I've worked thru lunch today in order to chip away at the long list of things I need to do. I had an afterschool meeting and then chipped away at more work. I've been getting into work early as well. Just so I can get to a place where I feel like I've got it all under control within the work day without a lot of extra time. It's funny how the load ebbs and flows. 

On the bright side, other than great weather, that big red wave that was supposed to happen yesterday did not materialize and the bad news I was dredging this morning was not so bad afterall. Beto lost in Texas and Barnes lost here in Wisconsin-- those were my biggest disappointments

Birthday week ahead!

Balt's birthday really kicks of the birthday week; Balt's on the 5th (along with my nephew), Jessi's on the 9th, Erika's on the 11th (Veterans Day) and then Joe's on the 12th. Back when the girls were in school, working and/or doing sports, busy with friends, it all made for a crazy week. I was thinking about how much I used to accomplish back then (10 years ago) in any given day, with all the picking up and errands on top of school work and general clean up. Now I can't seem to get anything other than work done on most days and just that is exhausting most days. My work day seems to go so quickly and I never get enough done. Birthday week is when life starts to get busier for the holidays and with work as well BUT now things are so different. The girls are all on their own, pretty much. I certainly don't do any picking up or dropping off anymore. Balt no longer needs walks in the morning or afternoons, although I still should be walking. Life is so much easier and yet I seem to have less energy?

Breakfast with Monika

Monika has been living with me for well over a year now. I enjoy having her home. She's a great cook but not so great at cleaning up. I see it as my payment for having a personal vegan chef and it's not a bad set up. She cooks, I clean and I don't mind. We rarely go out to eat but this morning we went downtown to a hot pancake place with a long line. It was good but not that much better than Hyvee's breakfast in Rochester with Jim... but Hyvee doesn't offer a vegan option and this hot spot does. 

For the past few years, I have enjoyed living with Erika and then Monika at different times, allowing each of them time to save money, go to school, work without bills. Monika is on the job market and looking for something locally, hoping to spend her first year working and living at home to save up for her first home. It's a great plan and I'm eager to see how it pans out.

Erika spent the night last week and Monika said that if she moved back home, we'd go crazy. Luckily there's no need to have more than one kid home at a time. I think back to the times when all three of them lived at home as teenagers and it's amazing we all survived.

Living for the Weekend

The work weeks are busy but go by quickly. Friday is everyone's favorite day at school, although Mondays aren't bad only because they are always short. But the reality is I love Saturdays and Sundays best. I'm so eager for the weekend with "nothing to do", especially after a couple of busy travel weekends. I had nothing but cleaning to do this weekend; change bedding, vacuum, laundry, clean out the fridge, pick up veggies, and grocery shop. I wanted to clean the basement and garage, but I just didn't have it in me. I did a little bit of this and that but not the overhaul I planned. I ended up making more soap, a sugar scrub and body oil. I'm hoping to sell some at the art sale as well as give some away for xmas. I made a big fire, watched the news and a movie, made roasted roots for dinner and just enjoyed a relaxing Saturday. Every since we stopped going to church, Sundays became wonderful. They are a day that is totally stress free now, a total gift.

Halloween Fun

The month of October was an amazing month of grand weather and good times for me. Jim and the girls have had bits of drama in their lives for various reasons, that I have tried to stay out of for the most part. No one wants a bud-in-ski, just someone who listens. I made several trips to Rochester to visit Jim this month, more than usual but with the weather as amazing as it's been, often better up north than in Madison, it's been worth every trip. This past weekend I made my way up to escort Jim to a halloween work party that is an annual event. I got to remeet quite a few of his colleagues, which was nice. On Halloween, Monday, I pulled out the Frida Kahlo outfit I made ages ago. It will be my last time wearing it at school most likely, since I try not to wear it more than every 4 years. Monika had a work party, Jessi is home partying with her friends and Erika went to a party but I didn't get a photo!

Pearl Gala and a Hot Cider Hustle

Monika and I made our way up to Rochester Friday morning to spend the weekend with JIm. He had a big fundraiser gala to attend and bought tickets for us all to go. Monika had to go to work early but was able to leave by mid morning. I'm used to the 3 hour drive and it was absolutely stunning with fall colors. The gala was a very nice event and I think Monika got to learn a bit about one of the organizations Jim is involved in. Saturday morning we woke up early to get to the Hot Cider Hustle. Jim and Monika ran a 10K while I circled the parking lot waiting for them. I got a couple of miles in at a much more leisure pace without paying a fee. After quick showers, we drove up to Minneapolis to visit the REI store there so Monika could check it out. We went to Jim's favorite Mexican restaurant and enjoyed a gorgeous autumn day drive to and from the city. I passed out early while Jim and Monika stayed up late watching a movie.

I'm getting used to the drive up to Jim's for the weekend and am glad gas is a little more reasonable. As much as I love my Yukon, I am thinking if I'm going to be doing this drive for a few more years, I should probably buy something with better gas mileage, but a new car is a lot more expensive than bad gas mileage.