What the games are all about!

So, I couldn't stay up last night to watch the best moment of the Olympics (so far), but thanks to our DVR, I was able to watch it today, over and over again. If you are feeling clueless, I'm talking about the men's 4x100 freestyle relay finals. You should really check this out. Watching it this morning, I already knew the outcome, but I was still on the edge of my seat (figuratively, of course).

Anyway, this moment is why I watch the Olympics. It's just so exciting to watch these athletes see all of their hard work pay off. Plus, it's just a bonus to see/hear another country (the French) totally trash talk us and then have to eat a large helping of humble pie!

Olympics Begin Tonight!

It's that time again! Once every two years, the world pauses and watches as thousands of athletes compete for those coveted gold medals. I must admit that the Summer Olympics are my favorite. I enjoy the winter games, but the summer ones, in my opinion, are just more fun to watch.

I do find it strange that I enjoy the Olympics so much, being that I'm really not a big sports fan. I can't explain it, maybe it's that we always watched the Olympics when I was a kid. Maybe it's all of the media hype. I don't really know. All I do know is that my DVR is going to get quite the workout in the next couple of weeks as I settle in to watch my favorite events. These would include swimming (go Michael Phelps!), gymnastics (how in the world can they be that flexible??), track & field (no one should be able to run that fast), and soccer (that's really more for Jeremy than me).

I also know that I'm ready to welcome Bob Costas back into my home so he can tell me the personal and "behind-the-scenes" stories of all of the athletes. How is it that he is such an iconic figure of NBC, yet we really only see him every two years at the Olympics??

I look forward to more memories being created. I'll never forget watching Kerri Strug being carried out by Bela Karolyi during the 1996 games in Atlanta, along with their memorable routine to "Macarena." Watching the "Dream Team" win the gold in Barcelona is another favorite memory.

So for those of you who are going to watch, what are your favorite events or favorite Olympic memories?

Summer Reading - Children's Literature Edition

This summer I have had the chance to finally spend some time reading. I love reading and during the busy school year hardly find the time to get it done. But, this summer, I was determined and boy did I meet my goal!

One of my favorite genres would be children's literature. Being that I'm a 4th grade teacher, that shouldn't seem real strange. It's one of the first things I check out when I'm a bookstore or library.

Thankfully, for the sake of our family budget, most of my "kid lit" books are purchased at a reduced price, thanks to my monthly Scholastic book orders. I'm also a frequent shopper of the semi-annual Scholastic warehouse sale in my area. I think Jeremy cringes deeply when that time of year rolls around. For those of you interested in "kid lit," I encourage you to check out the Scholastic warehouse sale site. They usually have 1-2 locations in each state and it's truly a wonderful thing. I also pick up used books at garage sales and thrift stores. How can you say no to finding a Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle book for a quarter?

This summer I have discovered a new fantasy series that I was surprised to actually enjoy. After last summer and the release of the final Harry Potter book, I was sure that I would never read fantasy literature again. I've never actually cared for the fantasy genre, but like the majority of the world, I found myself longing to know more of this magical world where Harry Potter and his friends lived and was sad when it all ended last summer.

I was a little leery of this new series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, written by Rick Riordan. It is about a boy, Percy, who finds out that he is the son of a Greek god. I have never been interested in Greek mythology and find it all to be a little confusing, but decided to persevere and finished the first book of the series, The Lightning Thief. It was such a good book that I immediately told Jeremy that he needed to read it, since he really does enjoy Greek mythology. He couldn't put it down and right away wanted to know when we could get the 2nd book in the series. Thankfully, by the time we discovered this series, the first four books had already been released. We're currently waiting, somewhat impatiently, for the fifth and final book of the series to come out.

This isn't a series that I can put in my classroom, as the content is a little too mature for my 4th graders. However, for my nephew, who is going into 6th grade, I think this series is ideal. It's very entertaining, while managing to hold you in suspense. Overall, it's just a really well-written book.

The end is in sight

There have been decreasing flea sightings, leading us to believe that the end is in sight! Much google research has been done and many "home remedies" tried. We seem to have won this battle!!

Much Annoyance!

It all started last Thursday. We received a phone call, from our landlord, letting us know that our neighbor (we live in a duplex) had found fleas in her house, from a dog she had been dog-sitting. She was calling the bug spraying people and we needed to keep an eye out, in case the fleas had found their way into our side of the duplex.



We weren't too worried. We keep our dog treated with flea stuff and routinely vacuum and clean, so no worries, right? Wrong! Thursday evening, Jeremy decided that he would comb through Molly's fur and just make sure. Well, that was our downfall, sure enough, there were a few fleas. A quick call to the vet and we knew that Molly would be okay, since she receives monthly flea treatments. The fleas might hop a ride on her, but would die due to the flea treatment.

We called our landlord and him know that we too seemed to have a flea problem. Our theory was that Molly had picked them up outside when she went out that evening to do her business. No way were they in our house. We decided that it would be a good idea to have the bug spraying people come to our house, as a preventative measure. We scheduled a time for them to come on Tuesday, since they couldn't come any earlier.

Friday morning comes and I receive a phone call from our landlord's wife. She thinks (and I agreed) that waiting until Tuesday wasn't a good idea. That we needed to have the bug spraying people come out right away. She scheduled for them to come Friday afternoon and urged me to call my doctor to see what precautions a 7-months along pregnant woman should take. I quickly called my doctor and was told that while things would probably be okay, I shouldn't take any chances and should vacate the area for 24 hours. 24 hours? That's a long time. But I would feel terrible if something went wrong, so I agreed.

We thought about staying with my in-laws, but they live about an hour away and Jeremy needed to be near our house the next morning for a 5K race. We decided to just bite the bullet and checked into a hotel that would allow pets.

Saturday afternoon we returned to our house. Not a flea in sight, so we breathed a sigh of relief. We were in the clear....

What were we thinking? One day and all of our problems would be solved? Of course not! Sunday rolled around which meant Jeremy would be at work for most of the day. Throughout the day, I killed a few fleas that I spotted on Molly. She of course did not appreciate me coming at her with the tweezers, but it had to be done. By the time Jeremy was home and we were getting ready for bed, we had probably killed a dozen more. They weren't gone, they were simply coming out of hiding!

So, last night at 9pm, we were throwing all of the rugs and linens into the wash, vacuuming the carpets and the stairs, and making the decision that until further notice, Molly would have to stay in her crate, in the basement. We made another call to our landlord to let him know that sadly, our optimism had been in vain. He vowed to call the bug spraying people as soon as they opened to see what the deal was. Would we just have to spend a few days killing fleas? Would they eventually die? Would we ever be able to sleep in peace again?

Needless to say, much annoyance fills my soul. Fleas are gross and getting rid of them is consuming my time. What a pain!

21 Questions

I don't have a lot on my mind today, so I "borrowed" a meme from my friend Jen.

21 Questions to Break the Silence

1. I've come to realize the last person who held my hand...
was my husband, yesterday, as we wandered through Kohl's looking at really cute baby clothes.

2. I am listening to...
the radio, B-93, our local country station. I also can hear the guys down the hallway (I'm at school) who are replacing the carpet in the classrooms. And, if I listen real closely, I can hear the song that has been stuck in my head since Saturday. I won't tell you what it is, as I'm trying to get the song "un-stuck."

3. I talk...
when I have something to say, when the phone rings, or when I accidentally talk to myself. Truly, I probably talk to myself more than I should, but I tend to think out loud, which is fine when you're by yourself. When other people are around, apparently it can really annoy them.

4. I am dating...
my philosophy of writing paper, my multi-genre project, and the quilt I'm making for our little girl. I guess you could say I'm also dating the baby's room. All of those things are consuming all of my time.

5. My best friend(s)...
have been around a long time. They tend to have a similar sense of humor and care about me, no matter what.

6. My car...
is a messy, white Hyundai Elantra. This thing could really use a good cleaning, in AND out. It also takes about $30 more to fill it now, then when I bought it. Oh, the good old days of getting a full tank for around $10. I miss those days.

7. I hate it when people ask...
why we haven't bought a house yet. It really isn't any of their business in my opinion. We'll buy a house when we're good and ready. For now, our duplex is working out just fine. I also hate it when my students ask if whatever assignment I have given them is going to be graded. Does it really matter? You should always do your best, no matter what.

8. Love is...
the answer to all of the problems. Our former pastor put it best when he said that the answer to everything is simple, "love wins." If you're willing to love, things will be okay. You have to make the choice to do it.

9. Marriage is...
what keeps me going when I feel like I can't. Knowing I have someone to walk alongside me forever makes life so much easier.

10. Somewhere, someone is thinking...
about Abraham Lincoln.

11. I'm always...
moving my toes.

12. I have a secret crush on...
no one. My husband knows that I love him more than anyone else. Besides, my crush on Tim McGraw is hardly a secret at this point. :)

13. My cell phone...
keeps me entertained during my boring graduate class.

14. When I wake up in the morning...
I usually hit the snooze button and go back to sleep. Other times I am able to wake right up and start watching the news. Most of the time, I wake up to the dog reminding me that I should probably take her out or wake Jeremy up and have him take her out.

15. Before I go to bed at night...
I set two alarm clocks, just in case I sleep through one of them. I also try and read a little bit of whatever book happens to be on the floor next to my bed. Usually I fall asleep during this time and wake-up when Jeremy is taking my glasses off and turning off my lamp.

16. Right now I am thinking about...
The fact that I'm supposed to be working on the two projects that are due next week for my graduate class. At least I'm thinking about doing them, right?

17. Babies are...
about to enter my life. Well, one baby, but still. I'm sure our life will be turned upside down and a period of adjustment will definitely happen, but we're still really excited to become parents in October.

18. Today I...
will work in the school office until 11am, then go to class until 3pm (eating lunch in the car on my way to class), then tutor a student until 5pm. After that I'll finally go home and think about what we should have for dinner.

19. Tonight I will...
probably work on these two projects for class and watch last night's, "The Next Food Network Star."

20. Tomorrow I will...
work in the school office until noon, tutor two students, and then go home and work on stuff for class.

21. I really want...
the temperature outside to become more comfortable, the next couple of months to go well, for this stupid class to be done, and to be a good mom.