Little Bits.

Things I have recently learned :

• When teenagers are mad at you, they won't come downstairs to watch T.V. with you. That means you get to choose your own shows and keep total control of the remote. They stay in their rooms. Horray!
• They also won't ask you for money or to take them anywhere. So it is a money saving week! A win-win for all!
• When your fourteen year old son calls his teacher gay, he gets detention. If you laugh when he tells you the story, there is no punishment for detention.
• When your fourteen year old son has entered high school and still doesn't have to study and doesn't even carry a backpack, but still has straight A's, there may be some modifications needed in his education.
• When your fourteen year old son studies in detention, it is OK to get excited everytime he gets detention. Maybe he will make perfect 100's and get a scholarship in three years and you won't even have to pay for college. See, detention could be a good thing.
• In fifteen months, my fourteen year old son will be eligible for a drivers license.
• The sounds at the drive thru at DQ can be heard throughout the entire restaurant. So when you go thru the drive thru at 8 p.m. at night for blizzards, and you have a five year old that hasn't napped and is whining and pitching a fit so bad that you loose it and scream at him to be quiet, the people in the DQ will look at you ugly when you get to the window to get the blizzards.
• When you agree to do community service for a speeding ticket, and you don't have time to do it, it is OK to secretly hope to get pulled over and get arrested so that you can have a mini-vacay and a nap with a warm, clean blanket and food delivered to you.
• When you do get pulled over with five fighting kids in the van, and the cops realize that your husband is on the city counsel, they will let you go. Even if you admit you were going 25 miles over the speed limit just to get home and get the kids outta the van so you can lock yourself in the bathroom for quiet time.
• It is sad when you have a few minutes of self pity and decide to call your mother - the same mother that is not very nice and doesn't really speak to you - and the conversation goes like this:

Her: Hello.

Me: Hey. What ya doing?

Her: Um, nothing. Why?

Me: Um, I just was wondering... I was calling to say Hi.

Her: Are you sure you have the right number?

Me: I don't think I do. (and I hung up)

November.

Well, it looks like another year has come and gone. It has been a busy year - probably the busiest of my life. I have been in school since January with only four days off. Yep, four. I have about four weeks to go in this semester then I get a four week vacation.

I can't wait.

We also have the addition of our new daughters in May. Annie is 14 and Michelle is 17. It has been a fairly smooth transition - now, with five kids, Dave and I run around like crazy. Our days are spent texting as to who is where, who needs to go where and who needs what. Five kids at three different schools - every day by 7:30. Laundry from Hell. But, it is awesome. The house is filled with lots of laughter, tears and emotion. We have good days, and bad days, and lazy days. The lazy days are the best.

Christmas is coming up. The kids are all excited. Tripp doesn't know what to ask for. Emma doesn't either - in fact, her Santa list is the same as last year - Eli wants an IPod, Michelle wants an IPod and car and a boyfriend :) and Annie wants a camera.

As always, I am stressed beyond stressed. I was awake at 3 a.m. going over lesson plans in my head. I was trying to memorize standards, and figure new goals and objectives. I hate, hate, hate the end of the semester. I am cranky. I am so cranky. But I bet if I look back at every blog post from the last two years, I am cranky at the end there, too.

Happy. Sad.

Wow. What a long, tiring week. There were lots of things that happened, so I want to give a daily rundown.

Last Sunday - I ran away from home. I went to study at Tech in the afternoon. There is a Mac Lab in Bartoo Hall in the basement that is open from four to nine p.m. When I got there, the student worker informed me that he was "happy" from the moment I walked in the door. He then showed me his PowerPoint presentation on "Gays In History". I asked this young, happy guy when he will graduate. He told me "twenty thirteen". He is doing a presentation for the "Happy" group on campus. So, I tried ignoring him. I got tired of his happiness. So I left.

Monday - I ran away from home. *fall break for the kids* I couldn't get anything done around here so I went to Tech like four hours early. And I studied. And I wasn't happy. This was the busiest week I have had this semester. Everything was due at once.

Tuesday - I had class. all day. I still wasn't happy. I was just tired.

When I got home, Dave called and told me that Jacob had passed away. The night was somber. I was sad. While I am the mother of two boys, and I sympathise with his mom, I was really thinking about his wife. Jacob was just thirty five. He and his wife had one young son. Jacob was diagnosed with cancer less than a year ago. I spent all night thinking about what his wife and his family must be feeling. Then, I figured out that I take my husband for granted. While I have the opportunity to touch feet with Dave every night, I do not. Lots of times, I don't even speak. Five kids is kicking my butt. School is kicking my butt. I have put "us" on the back burner. And one day, it will all be gone.

Wednesday - I got up at the crack of night to drive to Knoxville to take my Praxis Content test. I thought I would be smarter than average and I -
a. booked it during the kids spring break so I wouldn't have to deal
b. book it in East TN where there is an hours time difference and I could make it back to my 2:30 p.m. class.

Well... that kinda backfired. I stayed up late the night before, stressed, and trying to study. Then, I figured out that when it said 8 a.m. for a test, it was 7 a.m. my time . That means I left at 5'ish. Boy, was I tired. But, I still got a trip to Target. And drive time by myself to think.

And I passed! Yeah! One Praxis test left - November 13th - PLT.

Thursday - another day of school. long. long. Funeral home visitation. and a sleepover for Emma and three friends. We had a good time -we made cupcakes, drinks, pizza bites, popcorn, crafts (we decorated bracelets and did colored sand bottles). Finally, everyone got to sleep at a little after 12. Then, at 2:30, one of the little girls came down. She had thrown up - everywhere. Hair, pillow, clothes - everywhere. So, Dave and I got up. He cleaned the mess while I bathed her. We made her a pallet in the floor in the living room. She threw up in the trashcan beside her. Finally, she went to sleep about 5 a.m.

Friday - Girls went home. Went to the funeral with Dave. I have to say, it was the most emotional service I have ever been to. It lasted close to two hours. People talked and told stories. I think I cried through the whole thing.

So, I guess that the week ended with me knowing that I need to work harder on my family. I get caught up in school. I get caught up in laundry. I need to focus. Because then it could all be gone.