Christmas Update

We're on vacation! vacation! So happy!!! Last two days have been semester tests for the students and so it's been pretty easy and consequently I've been on vacation since Thursday. I have still been knitting like a crazy person and think I will have my projects completed in time for Christmas!!!

Got some good news Thursday too. We've been trying to relocate to Sulphur to cut down on some expenses and with Jason's financial situation we weren't sure if we were going to rent or buy. It turns out we will be in a position to buy (at least that's what the bank told us). So we are officially excited and looking forward to finding something that will suit us!!!!

The video you see below is from Friday. We had a Christmas assembly where songs were sung and skits were acted out. My hubby was asked to play a part that only he could play...Buddy the Elf...see for yourself...it was awesome!!!!! the kids loved it!

Bloggin' Once a Month...

I guess that's what I'll be doing...a once a month blogger. This past month has been extremely busy... of course there was Thanksgiving and Christmas is around the corner, so we've been running around like crazy people here. I guess I blogged about Jason's birthday and that I baked an awesome apple pie and a cherry one. What else...I've still been knitting away. For Thanksgiving we went to Jason's parent's house and I baked a blackberry pie...that didn't last long.

It was nice just to hang out. They live outside of McAlester, OK and in their backyard on Thanksgiving day there were about 20 turkeys feeding. It was awesome. We helped put the Christmas tree up and hung the lights and played with TC, our nephew. Then the day after Thanksgiving we went to Fayetteville, AR to be with my family. That was fun too, except the day that Emma, our niece, tumbled into the rock ledge and busted her lip pretty good. Ick. Yummy turkey and we had a very good time playing Trival Pursuit 80s version. Except the guys won. Nah.... Drew, Mandy and I went and saw Four Christmases. It was pretty funny. The entire audience was laughing and that is always a good sign. We also watched Pat play video games on his XBox 360. Cool. That Saturday night we went over to Dad's and watched the OU game (which we won) yeah!!! and had catfish. yummy.

We finally had to come home :( and get ready for three more weeks of school!!! Yippeee!!! We are all counting the days. I'm actually home today because I'm not feeling so good. Coughing up a lot of gunk...more than you wanted to know, no doubt. Anywho...school is gearing up for semester tests. In the middle of it all, my PEO chapter met last Tuesday for our annual Christmas shindig. This time we made something for a silent auction to raise money for the chapter's projects. I made my first fondant covered cake. It was a practice run before I made Alex's birthday cake after Christmas. For my first time...I think I did a pretty ok job!!! It took me the longest to color the fondant. Wow what a job!! My triceps hurt. You have to knead it like dough but it's a little tougher than dough. I also wanted to make the bow on top just like it was on the box, but that didn't work. See the before and after picture.

I also have decorated for Christmas. The tree is up and the theme is red. I don't have all that many ornaments but that's ok. I'm sort of a minimialist. I did need a centerpiece for the table though. So I bought one of those do it yourself gingerbread house kits at Wal-Mart. The house was already put together, thank goodness, and then I just deocrated it. It turned out pretty cute and perfect for the table.

Last weekend on the 6th, Jason and I went to OKC to the train convention. It was pretty cool. If you are a train enthusiast, this is the place for you!!!! We spent almost four hours there and were starving by the time we got out. We went to eat and bypassed the horse show that was next to the train show :( We ate at 3pm at the Rib Crib, yummy, and then went to see the James Bond movie. It was pretty good!!!!!! Would recommend it!!! Afterwards we went to the Sooner Mall and shopped a little bit. Got some clothes for me and Jason's Christmas present. Then we went to Bed Bath and Beyond for some addtional items. We drove home in anticipation of the OU vs Missouri game. Jason was a bit tense, but I knew we would pull it off. We did. Now we are number one and Sam Bradford is the Heisman Trophy winner and we have to play Florida. That will be a game, fo sho!!!!

This past weekend I went to Ruth, the sister-in-law's house for a girls night out and some Bunco!!! It was fun! I almost forgot how to play! We also had an ornament exchange and I got a pretty wooden cross for the tree AND a light up Santa. Pauline and Archie (parents-in-law) came over late that night to Ruth's and we all played with TC. I slept on the bottom bunk of the boys room (they weren't there). I slept pretty good, actually!! We went and got breakfast and shopping a little bit and found something for Dad. I hope he likes it!!!! Now I just have to find something for Drew...I have NO IDEA what he would like. It's a conundrum. I'll probably ask Mandy for some help.

I am furiously knitting and think I will have everything done. I hope so....

That's about it except for counting down the days until break. Yeah!!!!! Happy Christmas and don't forget the meaning of this season... Jesus.

Hugs and Love,
Jessica

One of those days....

Well it was not a typical day today. Woke up at the normal time and tried to take a shower but there was no hot water!! UGH!!! Yikes! What to do! What to do!!! Brushed my hair, washed my face and put my clothes on. About halfway through the day, I figured out that I'm pretty sure I forgot to put deodorant on. My routine was messed up!!! Give me break!! There is a certain order to what I do in the morning and it just didn't work out!! So I'm dressed and had my lunch ready to go and was going to leave slightly early because I had to fill my tank with gas, which is unusual because normally Jason and I ride together. Not today... Jason had an appointment in Tulsa to go see Metallica in concert and he was leaving right after school. Ok, so I tried to start my car this morning to go get the gas needed and the car was totally dead. I wasn't actually surprised by this because it had happened about a week ago but I was able to turn it over. Jason and I were able to jump it and I drove straight to Wal-Mart to get a new battery. By this time it's about 7:07am. The automotive center is open at this time but not raring to go. I found the correct battery and brought it to the counter and it was like they started moving in slow motion (with Chariots of Fire music playing in the background). Of course time dragged on sooooo slowly and the pit of my stomach and my tear ducts started acting up. I did mention to them I was a teacher and had to drive to Sulphur, which is 30 minutes away...there was finally some progress. I got to school just before 8:45am. Whew!!! The great thing is my planning period is 1st hour so I didn't have any students waiting for me. And thank God for giving me the gift of organization, otherwise I would have been babbling in front of my kids. I was prepared for classes and everything went pretty smoothly.

It started out as one of those days but actually ended up pretty darn good. I received my second ever bonus check. It was a chunk of money too. I am sooooo thankful for it. What I need seems to come when I need it. Go figure!!! Thank you, God! Jason came and checked on me during 4th hour (his planning period) and he was so sweet and knew I was stressed. It's really the little things that count and I realize you can love someone more and more as time goes by. It's pretty amazing!!!

So all I have done tonight is eat fat free pudding, watched TV (including the movie Aladdin) and knitted until my fingers are permanently curved!!! Not really, but close. I have been a knitting crazy person...ask Jason there are needles and yarn everywhere!!!! It's all good, though. People like getting homemade stuff for Christmas, right? They know it's all from the heart, right? Don't worry, those of you who fear you might get knitted socks...I have refrained, however I did think about it! There is a pattern for legwarmers...muwahahahahahahaaaaaaa...

To copy from my sister's blog...this blog really is about thanks...yes, it was one of those days today, but everything was taken care of. I am taken care of and I am grateful. Grateful for God who has laid out my life up to this point, to this hour and has taken care of me this far. Even when I have screwed up. Grateful to God who has given me a husband who worries about me when he doesn't have to and also takes care of me. Thank you, Lord! Thanks for all the family and friends you have laid in my path and thank you for the things that make my life comfortable. We are the luckiest people on earth, here in America and we should be grateful for all of it. There are so many people in the world who don't have anything. We shouldn't complain when our lives get "cramped" due to an unstable economy. At least we have food on the table.

OHHH!!!! AND I got gas today for $20 dollars. NEVER in my life did I think I would be able to fill up my gas tank again for that much. Thank you, Lord!!!

Hugs and Kisses to family and friends...
-J

Politics and a Relaxing Weekend

Well, it's finally over!!! The presidential election is history so to speak and what history it's made!! Because I'm teaching government to 15 year olds, I've had to pay attention this year. Actually, since I've been teaching it, I've become more interested in politics. I still HATE the commercials and watching the debates. I think they are senseless because all they do is throw muck at each other and people will base their decisions on the ads. *sigh* This year I assigned my students a political party and had them research the platforms of those parties on specific issues. It was interesting and then we had a debate!!! One can definitely tell which students share their parents' politics and who has their own ideas and then those who don't give a flip. We also had a mock election using the actual ballot that was used in the election. McCain won by 5 votes. We also explored propaganda techniques that campaigners use on television to persuade you to vote one way or the other. I had groups create commercials based on those propaganda techniques and filmed them. You can see some of them on my YouTube site (I had their parent's permission, of course).

So who did you vote for? This is a very sensitive subject. I respect both candidates very much. John McCain for the huge sacrifices he has made for our country. His concession speech was gracious and eloquent. I hope he is able to come back from his loss and still be able to serve his country like he said he wanted to. When I listened to Barack Obama's acceptance speech, I was in awe. His message was so inspiring (kudos to his speech writers). He also cautioned us that while change is what he wants, it can't happen over night. It is incredible to watch the course of history take place while I'm alive. I believe it will be a good thing. I don't agree with everything Obama leans towards, specifically abortion and stem cell research, BUT I do believe he is sincere when he says he wants change and that he wants to bring the parties together to create that change for America. I also loved watching the election inspire so many people, especially young people to be involved in this process. Electing our first black president is monumental, people!! I thought I would never see this happen in my lifetime. Unfortunately, I hear to many cynics talk about hoping he makes it to January 20th. A tiny piece of my brain fears that some idiot will try to assassinate Obama but I honestly think he'll be OK. I remember when there were rumors of Colin Powell possibly running for president, I thought it was a great idea but I thought he would be assassinated too.

No matter what happens, Obama has inherited a big mess. I hope he can help bring us out of the mire. Remember, he is just the president. He can't do anything he wants. There is Congress - the branch who makes the laws (yes, I know the Democrats have control in both the Senate and House). I voted for Barack Obama after years of voting Republican. I'm not a die hard Democrat either. I vote according to my conscience, not according to party.

Different Subject: This weekend

Last Saturday was Jason's birthday. His parents came down and we hung out by watching tons of football and eating good food. Jason got an email for a complimentary meal with a purchased meal at Texas de Brazil. Yummy. We went there after we got married and it was fabulous. We decided that we would go to Dallas on Friday to eat at the restaurant, spend the night and cruise around town for the day. Angie and I started txting and we decided that the hubbys and wives would get together for dim sum at Kirin Court in Richardson. Yummy. Dim sum is southern style food from China. They bring the food around in little carts and ask you if you want any. Fast food so to speak. HAH!!! But really good food too. It was Jason's first time for that style of cooking. He's warming up to it!! After dim sum we all went to Central Market. This is the mecca for all food connoisseurs. It has hundreds of different cheeses and tons of olives and balsamic vinegar for $200. I know, it's ridiculous but so much fun!!!! Chris (Angie's hubby) is a gourmet cook in his spare time and bought some things for their supper that night. Sounded good. Jason and I bought a couple of items, too. We mainly just followed Chris around tasting cheeses. Yummy. We split up from Central Market (waaahhhh!!!). Chris and Angie went home and Jason and I went to Huffines Hyundai dealership. There has been talk of trading my car in sooner or later for a Hyuandi Veracruz. LOVE IT!!! It's really all about timing and where we'll be in January and, oh yeah, the money. We'll see. We were treated very nicely by the salesman. He wasn't pushy and didn't talk a lot. I didn't get that creepy feeling like I did the time I went to Greg May Honda in Waco. We were just really relaxed and enjoyed the day. After talking with the guy and thanking him for being cool, we headed over to Fry's Electronics with one goal in mind. The new Harry Connick, Jr. Christmas album. When I couldn't find it, I asked an associate and they looked at me like I had something sprouting out of my head. WHO'S HARRY CONNICK, JR.????? The guy really needs to get out of his mom's basement and stop playing video games!!!! He had no clue who it was. That's OK, he couldn't find it either, so we went down the road to Best Buy and found it there. Done and done. We hopped in the car and headed home...and listened to Harry. It is a good CD. Very jazzy and with some traditional songs in there too as well as several Harry wrote himself. (We are on a first name basis).

This weekend has been really relaxing. We had a plan and were doing lots of things but it was on our time schedule and had plenty of time to sleep in and get ready, etc... it was great. Good times with friends and good food. Good times, good times....

PS: Two weeks until our Thanksgiving break starts!!! Yippeee!!!

Lack of Motivation...

...is the reason I haven't written any blogs. I just don't seem to want to or don't think I have anything interesting to say. I guess I can update you on what's been going on though.

September has come and gone. I feel rather pathetic because I can't remember anything. I remember Jason and I gave blood together and going to home football games.

October.

I've been knitting a lot and some of the things I've been making have turned out very nice. They are all Christmas presents and so I can't say what they are so they will be surprise. A friend of mine FINALLY got married and we went to it in Waco. We met Mary Beth, David and Jennifer at Teryaki Park for some really good Asian food. Jason seemed to like the sushi. We went over to MB's house to change and met Jennie and Ben there. I gave Ben a blue crocheted cap for winter. It fit, thank goodness, and he was pretty cute.

The wedding was nice. We BARELY made it. We thought we knew where it was but the Mapquest map was wrong. It was about 2 miles south of where it really was. We walked in, all the seats were pretty much filled up with Latinos. Jason and I sat on the second row. There weren't enough seats for all of us together. The ceremony took place at the Jehovah's Witnesses Kingdom Hall Church and the ceremony was in Spanish. There was a lot of reading from the Bible and I could pick out the books and chapters and sometimes verses. I heard the word "pantalones" and laughing, so I assumed it was about Sammy wearing the pants in the family. Afterwards we went to the reception and waited forever. Jason and I had plans to go to the restuarant Edelweiss in Ft. Worth. It was getting later and later and finally we just told MB and the gang to say hello to Sammy and Roxanna for us. There was some discussion of even going to the restuarant because of some disagreements about behavior during the excursion but ended up going. All I have to say about that is you should never use your gender as an excuse for behavior you can control...

Oh, the day before the wedding, Jason and I went to the home game and we won $50 because the program I bought had a sticker in it. The only one apparently. This is the second time we've won. Last year Jason won $100. It was great!! The money paid for our German food at Edelweiss.

After the wedding, we started counting down the days until our Fall Break which was last week. We had two days off. Thursday and Friday. It was a pretty hectic week because we were trying to get our grades in for the end of the first nine weeks. They have gone by pretty fast and will probably go faster until after Christmas. Then it will "slow" down. Looking forward to Thanksgiving already!!!

We first went to Arkansas to see family. I hadn't seen them since July. It was nice and cool and we slept pretty good. We went up Wednesday after school. Thursday we went fishing and I caught some decent fish and watched my two brothers in the boat almost tip over. It was pretty hilarious. When they get together it's like the three stooges but with just two people. They also "claimed" they saw a mountain lion. They may have but I was on the far side of the pond and didn't see it. That would have been cool. We also practiced shooting a little bit. I shot Pat's .45 handgun. Jason and I headed back early from fishing to pick up Aunt Paula from the airport. She was staying for a week because mom was having a minor procedure that next Monday. So I showered and then picked up Aunt Paula. Jason was having a time with his allergies too. Sniffiling and coughing a lot. Later that night we all went over to Drew and Mandy's house to eat hamburgers and have surprise birthday cake for Mom whose B-Day is on Halloween. It was fun playing with the girls.

That Saturday Jason and I went over to Dad's for breakfast and then trekked on over to McAlester to stay the night at Jason's parents. His mom was by herself while his dad went hunting. He should have stayed home because there were deer in their backyard the night we got there and then Sunday morning. It was pretty cool. Came home and took a nap and unpacked and tried to get ready for the week.

I'm frantically trying to get all my knitting done, so I've been sitting on the couch A LOT!!! I do nothing physical so I feel like a fat slob. I did, however, clean the ceiling fans in our bedroom and living room with this handy dandy cleaning too that is washable microfiber. I love it and there is no embarassing dust pileup on the fans or anywhere else for that matter.

Last Friday was our HUGE rivalry football game agains the Davis Wolves. We were 7-0, hoping to go undefeated. No such luck. The game was a literal nail biter. It really came down to the last play. We just couldn't make it over the goal line. It ended up being 8-14, Davis.

This weekend we laid low and did nothing which was fine, but it needs to be colder. I sleep better when it's colder and I was too hot.

Jason and I watched Ironman finally. It was really good and funny. Robert Downy, Jr. pulled it off very well.

Well that's it and we are going to start a new week. I'm dressing up for Halloween as a pirate and then I think I will retire the costume. I've got pirate music to play that day too. The kids will think it's great.

OH!!! I could tell you what my government class has been up to. I'm pretty proud of it too. Because the elections are so close, we held mock elections for the presidential candidates. I assigned everybody a political party to research the issues (they didn't have to vote for that party). First I made them register to vote using the official forms. If they didn't fill it out right, they didn't get a voter identification card. So they had to research the issues for two days and then we held debates based on their notes, and then the next day they voted using a sample ballot the county is actually using. It went rather well. I could definitely tell which students had their parents' political views, who had their own views and who didn't care. All in all it was pretty cool. The final outcome was McCain with 17 and Obama with 12. The last question I asked the kids was this: What if Obama was an Arab American or Musilim? Would it matter?

This past week we talked about how misleading polls can be and what types of propaganda the mass media uses to try to influence you. I had them create commercials based on an assigned propaganda technique and then I filmed them. Some were really great. I will put them on YouTube when I get parent's permission. I'll let you know when they are up!

One more thing...(I'm starting to remember other stuff...). Every five years some of our family goes on a trip for about two weeks. 2010 is the next trip and it will be to Germany and Austria and guess who's in charge? ME!!! I've already started the planning and if anyone is interested in going, let me know!!! IT'S GOING TO BE AWESOME!!!! Think about it!

That's about it...gonna go make some supper and watch Iron Chef America!!!

Mission: 4 weeks of school; Status: Complete

Well I have survived four weeks at a new school and it seems to have gone pretty well. Since last blog entry Jason and I were gearing up for the new school year and trying to survive being broke. I'm happy to announce that we are still together and we got paid on Friday. YAY!!!!

Man, I need to blog more frequently because I forget things!!! Well here I go and try to reconstruct the last couple of weeks. The first week of August we had pre-school professional development days and working on our class rooms. That was some work, I can tell you. I'm still not satisfied with my room. I need some curtains and plants to make it look homier (is that a word?) The professional days were ok. Some were boring some were good info. The next week started school. Yeah, August 11th. Holy Mackerel. It seems like it's getting earlier and earlier!!! The first couple of days were fine just because we weren't doing "school work." We were just getting to know each other. THEN we started school work on Wednesday. It's nice to be in a bigger school and have other social studies teachers available to sort of compare how you do things and where you should be in the curriculum at a certain time, etc... I'm also in the West Wing of the building where it's really quiet and where junior and senior lockers are located. It's not as chaotic there. I've got some great teacher neighbors and they have been a tremendous help and super nice!!!!

Ok, back to school. My schedule goes like this: 1st hour - planning period. This has some advantages and disadvantages. 2nd - 4th is Government, 5th is US History, Lunch, 6th - Gov. and 7th Psychology. It's interesting that there are 5 classes before lunch but I like it. That means there's only two classes after and they go by really quick!!

The only snag I hit in the first week was that I had no Psychology books. They were in the school somewhere but the principal was gone and he was the only one who knew where they were!!! The next week I got them and there weren't enough!!! AAAHHH!!! It's been only this past week that the additional books came in that were ordered. YAY!!! That first week, I had to wing it. Ugh! OHHHH!!!! and my feet hurt SO BAD the first week of school. Now they are fine...I guess they just had to get used to it...poor feet.

The students in my classes for the most part are excellent. We have some interesting conversations about music and the journal entries I have them write at the beginning of class. The last one being the top 12 worst movies of all time. I picked 2001: Space Odyssey. I will never get back those two and a half hours of my life. There are a few students who keep me on my toes and test my patience. But I think for the most part, most of the kids know I mean business. Sometimes they will say, "but Mr. McMullen doesn't do it that way." And I always reply, "but I'm not Mr. McMullen, am I!" I think they think that we are a novelty because we are married and they are having fun with it. I do enjoy working at the same place as Jason. We drive together and sometimes eat together. But it's not like we are spending all day together. And we understand why we are tired and commiserate together about certain idiosyncrasies of the school and students. It's nice.

My concern about my teaching, and I think I will always have this concern, is how to make what I'm teaching about relevant and fun. I know I can't always make the Civil War fun because that period really wasn't fun but it is relevant. Friday we were taking notes in US History class but before we started, I told them that other things were happening during this time, not just the Civil War, so I started listing off stuff happening around the world during 1861. I saved the best for last. The first flush toilet was patented by Mr. Thomas.....Crapper. No joke. They thought it was hilarious. I do too. But now they know where the term "crap" came from. They learned history!!!! Yay for me!!! I hope they will remember SOMETHING about my class (not necessarily crap ;)

I now have a new friend...I will call him Mr. Bo Jangles. He is a mouse. A mouse came and visited my Psychology class last Thursday. He ran in to my storage closet and I thought I had him trapped there but Friday while I was grading papers after school he ran from the closet, behind me and behind my desk. Every once in awhile he would poke his little head out and say hi but if I moved he would scamper around the corner out of sight. *Sigh* I hope he doesn't make a permanent home there. Hmmmmmm, I hope it's not a she.

In other news:

Labor Day weekend was semi-restful. Jason's parents came over for the weekend and we just laid around. It was great! We did nothing!!! Monday we met Jason's sister and her boys for breakfast at IHOP and then played at the apartment for the day. I made cookies, we played Scategories, the kids played in the pool. It was fun. But Jason and I were tired after everybody left. I think we went to bed at 8:30. No joke.

This Friday Jason and I were scheduled to work in the concession stand at the first home game of the season. We actually had a lot of fun. We got to interact with the people of Sulphur and with some of our students and parents who helped us. We were soooooo tired after though. We got home about 10:30. The next morning we got up to go to Waurika, OK to watch Devon (nephew) play in his first football game of the season. Then we went to Comanche and chilled a bit before Bryce (other nephew) had his eighth birthday party at their church. It was Kung Fu Panda themed. We had a good time and ate birthday cake and ice cream. I think I have decided to have small birthday parties at home for my kids. It was a pretty major event. Bryce raked in the money and presents. He got a Stormtrooper helmet that talks. It was cool. Jason and I left that evening because we have so much to do today, including buying much needed groceries, doing laundry and creating my lesson plans for this week. I thought I would throw in a blog too.

OH! We have received our Wedding DVD and it's pretty cool. We are waiting anxiously for the actual pictures. Hopefully we will get them soon.

ALSO: You can check out my school website, to see what kind of cool teacher I am.

Gettin' Ready for School...

I love getting ready for school!!! You get to get supplies (I love supplies) and you get to arrange your classroom the way you want it. You also get to clean, which I don't mind doing because it makes your room look awesome. Call me a dork, I don't care. There are other people out there who like this aspect too and you know who you are!!!

Today was the first day in a very long time that we have set the alarm. It was torture. Actually it wasn't tooooo bad, but I still didn't like it. Jason thought we should start getting back into the routine. Ok, whatever... We took most of our classroom stuff to school and found out that Jason couldn't do anything in his room because they were about to wax the hallway in his wing. So we got to work in my room, which, honestly, did need the most work. I like my room, I just have two issues. I need a projector (with projector screen) and a whiteboard with markers. I was a little spoiled at Thackerville and had both. Eventually I will get both but it will just take a little while. Meanwhile I have to contend with a chalk board!!!! Yikes!!! I will have to be super dooper creative. I can totally do it. I do have a ton of cork board that I can put posters and stuff on it. I think I will steal from Facebook the application "Pieces of Flair" and have part of the cork board available for my students' flair, ie, good papers, etc... All in all I'm excited to go back tomorrow and make my room look awesomer!!! OOOOooooohhhhh!!! Forgot to tell you the school has a vault of supplies and I'm planning on looking tomorrow and see if there is anything I need. Mmmwwwahhhahhhhahhhhaaa!!!

Other news: I scratched my cornea Thursday morning around 4:30am. I have NO IDEA how I did it either. I just remember sitting straight up with my hand over my eye and having feel like it was on fire or someone had literally scratched my eyeball with their fingernails. Relax, it wasn't Jason. I go to the bathroom and look and I can barely open the lids. I did remove my contact in the left eye. ( I have contacts I sleep in). I thought the right contact had come out, but when I looked closer it was still there so I removed it. Dang, it hurt!!! I couldn't tell by just looking in the mirror if I had scratched it somewhere and I thought maybe Visine would help. Wowsers!!! It did not. I finally just got a washcloth and soaked it in cold water and placed over my eye and tried to go back to sleep. The eye doctor didn't open until 8:30. I have no idea how I went back to sleep but I did. I woke Jason about 8:00 and let him know what was going on. I took a shower and called the eye doctor and told them I was coming in right away, it was any emergency. I got there with Jason driving me and I had tears pouring from my eye and they asked me for my insurance. Aaaahh! I had it but I had to dig for it. While they were dealing with that, they took me back to the exam room and asked a couple of questions and then put a miracle drug in my eye to numb the pain. I then could actually open my eye. I was thinking, "I have GOT to get me some of THAT!!!" The receptionist came to the room and said that my insurance was terminated as of today. July 31. OKKKKKK! Thank goodness it happened today and not Friday!!! I was still covered. The doctor came in and checked and said that there was a scratch on my cornea in a perfect circle. OK. Still can't figure out how that happened. He dilated my eye, so I looked spooky. Jason wondered if the doctor was going to give me an eye patch, arggh! I got my antibiotics and pain killers. Went to Wal-mart to fill the prescription, and then came home to sleep. I was really tired from the ordeal.

The next day we went back for a check up and my eye was perfectly healed!!!! Yay!!! The doctor said the cornea was one of the fastest healing organs in the body. Thank goodness. I don't EVER want to go through that again. That was some of the worst pain I've been through. He did say however, there was a slight chance for reoccurence in the next 2-3 months. Great. He suggested I get some artificial tears and use them before I go to sleep. That should help. What an adventure. It's rarely boring around here!!!

After the check up, Jason and I headed to OKC for some shopping. His parents gave us some clothes money for school and the weekend was a tax free holiday for clothes. Yippee!!! We had a good time together.

So, tomorrow brings more exciting adventures for Jason and Jessica, as tomorrow always does. And the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day....

So until then, Arividerchi!!!!

Summer break is nearing its end....

I thought I would write a real blog instead of stealing someone else's. Hee hee. Ok. I thought I would write about the last couple of weeks and looking forward to the next couple of weeks. Married life as a newlywed is great. We are spending a lot of time together and mostly because we don't go out because we are broke!!! LOL!! The first major hump of being married. Bills have been paid and I think we have enough money for food ;-) but the rest...well there is no rest. Remember we are teachers and the pay schedule can be different from school to school. Sulphur and Thackerville have different pay schedules. I will not be getting a check in August when I start at Sulphur, like I did at Thackerville, because Sulphur already gave out their August pay checks. Thackerville gave out their August paychecks at the beginning of the school year. Therefore the effect is we are eating less and being creative with the Ramen noodles. :D LOL!! It's not that bad, but we do have Ramen noodles. We did have to break down and eat out at our favorite Mexican restaraunt last week. I think we were going into withdrawals. And I did go see The Dark Knight in the afternoon. Pretty good movie!! What else. Not much else. We've pretty much kept to ourselves and have been reading, playing games on the computer, watching TV and swimming/floating in the apartment pool. And because I'm a dork, I will tell you what game we have been addicted to. It's called Peggle and it's on www.popcap.com I will say no more.

Yes...we've even had tournaments.

Yesterday was my birthday and got a LOT of birthday wishes and calls and e-cards that were really cute! It was a lot of fun! I got a flower and two awesome cards from Jason and the deluxe version of Peggle. One of the cards was a talking card from The Office. It was AWWWWESOME!!! The other was really cute with bears on it. We also went to Turner Falls just up the road about 20 miles from here. It's a park with beautiful falls and trails and caves. We took a picnic and I climbed what I'm going to refer to as a mountain. In my definition it really was. I am so proud of myself. I actually physically got my fat butt up the side and literally had to climb up the dang rocks. At first I didn't think I could go all the way but I kept on saying "just a little more," and eventually I was at the top!!! The terrain is sooooo rocky there were plenty of footholds and handholds. But the side was really steep so I had to rest a little bit. The rock formations are pretty dang awesome. It's a lot of limestone and very craggy and has a lot of caves. I took some pictures so of course I will show you. I had to sit on my butt going all the way down and I had no problem with that. I didn't kill myself and that is an accomplishment ladies and gentlemen. Halfway down, on my butt, I hear, "If you like Pina Coladas, And getting caught in the rain, If you're not into yoga..." OH!! my phone!!! It was Ruth (Jason's sister) and her boys and they sang Happy Birthday to me. It was cool and I got a good rest so I could get down the mountain. Jason didn't climb because his toe has been bothering him, so we met up and had our picnic. Yum. Then we drove around the park and saw some cool camping sites that would be cool during the fall. Anybody interested? Then we saw a gorgeous view of southern Oklahoma. The pic doesn't do it justice.

I really don't know what this plant life is called, except gross!

Today my arms are very sore. The legs are fine but the arms...ouch. It was so worth it though. It really was exhilarating to get to the top. It reminded me of all the times our family would go to the Buffalo River and camp out and all the times we went to Devil's Den and hiked the trail and explored Devil's Den cave. Ah, the good times...and we'll have to do it again!

All in all I really did have a good birthday and now the real adventure begins next Monday with us going back to school. I will be introduced as Mrs. McMullen to the Sulphur High School and begin my orientation. I've already had dreams of my first day and they have been interesting. I will be teaching Geography, US History and Psychology. Whoo hoo!! NO cheerleading duties, NO junior class duties. I'm sooooo excited about it. This is a bigger school and therefore a little more organized, hopefully :D I love structure and perform well in such an environment. I think that's about it and I'm sure I will be posting what happens after my first day with the kiddos. I'm super excited now there is less subjects to teach and I can really focus on the classes and being interactive with the kids.

Until next time!! Syanora!!!

PS: Has anybody been watching "I Survived a Japanese Game Show?" I LOVE IT!!!

Misadventures of J & J...

Ok, it's time I told you about our honeymoon...and here we go...

Saturday 7/5: We headed up to OKC to Jason's bud Dawg's 4th of July cookout. We had a great time hanging out with old friends, catching up on times, missing friends out loud, and poking fun at each other from time to time. Good food, good times. After that, it was off to NW Arkansas to stay the night at my mom's place. We ended up driving through a downburst halfway between Fort Smith and Fayetteville...FUN. Made it safely, watched the lightning show, and called it a night.

Leaving Saturday 7/5

Sunday 7/6: Got up, went to church, ate a good lunch, took a nap, and then headed to the airport. As soon as we arrived, US Airways told us that our flight to Charlotte was delayed because our jet was still in Charlotte stuck on the ground. Evidently, a line of thunderstorms was going through at the time and the airport closed down till the weather moved through. When it finally got up in the air to head towards us, it was late enough that we'd end up missing our connection flight for Ft. Lauderdale. Soooo, they rescheduled us for a flight the next morning from NW Ark. to Chicago O'Hare to Fort Lauderdale. We called mom back to tell her to come pick us up so we can try again tomorrow. Good thing we had an extra day built in before our boat left for the Bahamas!

Monday 7/7: Got up waaaay early, got to the airport early, only to find out that this time, our plane WAS there at the airport, but was having maintenance issues! So, American decided to get us there by going from NW Arkansas to Dallas-Fort Worth (yeah, we're closer to DFW...sheesh) to Fort Lauderdale. Take off, land smoothly at DFW on a very short flight. FIVE HOUR LAYOVER....crap. Then, a 3 hour flight to Fort Lauderdale..... However, we started running into thunderstorms near Panama City and especially around Tampa/St. Petersburg, so we had to alter our flight plan a little, run down the west coast of Florida to avoid the weather, find a 'gap' in the storms, and then descend for the airport. A little bumpy, but made it with no problems. Got to the airport and waited for our hotel shuttle to arrive from just 2 miles away. Took the guy an HOUR to pick us up. Made it to the hotel, checked in, ate at Kelly's Landing (good New England food), then came back and crashed for the night. It stormed pretty heavy around 10-11 that night, but we were so out of it, we just opened an eyelid, mumbled about it, and went right back to sleep.

Tuesday 7/8: Woke up again way too early in the morning...went to Port Everglades and started checking in our stuff for the cruise over there. Waited an hour or so on the boat for departure, then finally got underway. The boat ride lasted about 5 hours or so....they fed us breakfast and lunch buffets, which were pretty tasty. Jason and I won some trivia game contest and took home a brand new water bottle! LOL Cheapskates! We were traveling against the sea current, so the boat ride was a bit choppy at times.....choppy enough to make Jason nauseous, but not completely sick. It took an hour and a half to disembark from the boat and get through government customs, then a taxi took us to our hotel....which was a van stuffed with about 9-10 of us, plus baggage, with no air conditioning.....FUN. The hotel we stayed at, Island Palms, was in downtown Freeport...right next to the Hospital and Police Department. However, if we wanted to go to the shopping, most restaurants, and the beach....we were going to have to take a taxi. Taxis run $6 per person one-way. Guess what we spent most of our money on??? The hotel was alright, but part of the deal was trying to get you to show up to some presentation on buying a timeshare at their sister resort. We told them we would try to go to the presentation tomorrow *wink wink*. We settled in, ate dinner at a nearby Wendy's, walked back to the hotel, and crashed out.

Wednesday 7/9: We decided to avoid the timeshare presentation and went shopping. First, we went to the Port Lucaya Marketplace and browsed around the shops there. They had little boutiques that reminded me of state fair-type vendors and some nice jewelry stores and things. Jason's favorite find was the Harley Davidson store! :-) We had a nice breakfast at Cally's, got our drinks on at a corner bar, and scoped out the marina. We then headed out to the International Bazaar, which was another large marketplace. However, this place was nearly a ghost town. Two nearby hotels were fenced up and boarded up and the marketplace itself was over half-abandoned itself...only a handful of shops open. It was nearly creepy how quiet and sparse that place was. There was one Asian shop open that did make the trip worthwhile...stocked up on our Bruce Lee memorabilia. :-) We then decided that we were close enough to our hotel, so we decided to walk the nearly 1-2 miles back to the hotel. High 80s...high humidity....mmmhmmm....that was a workout. Made it back, swam a little, then went out to a Mediterranean restaurant to sample some good seafood and try out a local delicacy called fried conch. Pretty good. Walked over to the Isle of Capri casino and wasted 5 bucks or so, then headed back to the hotel and crashed out.

At Port Lucaya Marketplace after our
Bahama Mama and Peach Daiquiri

Thursday 7/10 (Bahamian Independence Day): Most places were closed, but a good handful of shops were still open. Tried to go snorkeling, but found out a bit later after our arranged time that not enough people signed on to make the trip. Our guide felt bad, so he picked up us, and took us to our hotel's sister resort on the beach for free. He told us he would get us set up for tomorrow before we had to go back to Florida. Kewlio. The beach was nice.....it was cool to look out there and see nothing but ocean in the horizon, with a cargo ship thrown in here and there, and walk in a grit-free sand. The water was as warm as I thought it would be, but in all honesty, a lot of it reminded me of my trips as a kid to the lake. However, Mr. Numbnuts himself...(Jason called himself this), didn't but any sunblock on his pasty white legs. Yep, he paid for that mistake and it took over a week for it to go away. We took a shuttle back to the hotel, swam in the pool a little bit, then decided to save some money by walking to KFC for dinner, then crashed out for the night.

The beach at our sister hotel.

Friday 7/11: Got up, packed up, and checked out. Waited on our guide, called, found out that this snorkeling trip didn't make either. CRAP. Ate breakfast at the hotel, sat around, read by the pool, played ping-pong.....killed time basically. Took a taxi to the port, went through customs, and waited awhile till we finally left. The trip back was much smoother since we were traveling with the currents and the cloud cover made for a great sunset. Dinner was good and we enjoyed this cruise more than the first. Played 4 bucks on the slot machines in the boat's casino and came out with 40 bucks. That would come in handy for our flight tomorrow. Made it to the port, waited an hour before we could disembark, then FLEW through customs, waited 20 minutes for our hotel shuttle, then finally made it to bed by 1 am. That was good because......

About to get on the boat to head back to Ft. Lauderdale


Sunset from our boat.

Saturday 7/12: Got up at 4:30, left at 5, got to the airport 10 minutes later. We walk in and there is a HUGE LINE at the US Airways counter. This can't be good. Find out that all the computer terminals are down and they're having to write boarding and luggage passes by hand. (wait for it....) She sees that we are flying from Ft. Lauderdale to Charlotte to NW Arkansas in Fayetteville....she notices the Fayetteville on the paper and writes FAY on the luggage and our passes. We do make our flight to Charlotte with no problems and by the way, their airport is super nice. Rocking chairs all over the place, a NASCAR store, heck, even a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory! We notice as we are walking to our flight all the way on the other side of the airport that US Airways also flies to Fayetteville, NC. Hmmmmm.... After a short layover, we fly out to NW Arkansas and make it back safely with no problems. Boy, are we glad to be home! My dad comes to pick us up and all we need now is our luggage. Bet you can't guess what happened?!?!? Yep. We're in Fayetteville, AR (XNA). Our luggage is in Fayetteville, NC (FAY). They tell us that they will send the luggage tomorrow on the next available flight over. So, we stay at my mom, go visit dad and have a cookout for his birthday, dodge some rough weather, then go back to mom's place and crash.

Sunday 7/13: Slept in.....we needed it. Snuck in some breakfast and had a good lunch as well. Called, called, called, got the runaround....found out they didn't send our luggage yet. Why in the heck not?!?!?! They tell us that they'll try again tomorrow and hopefully we'll get it. Grrr.....they're about to get something from me.

Monday 7/14: Slept in again...trying to find out information....find out nothing. Get a call from US Airways around noon. They tell us that the luggage should be in Charlotte for the last flight to XNA and that it'll take two hours to deliver it to us so we should have our baggage back by midnight. We decide to chill out and catch a matinee: Hellboy II. Decent movie. Go to Backyard Burgers for dinner. Get a call from US Air. The peeps at Fayetteville, NC got our baggage to Charlotte faster than they expected, got it on an earlier flight to XNA and it was there at the airport waiting to be delivered to us! FINALLY!!! CLEAN CLOTHES!!! That dood delivered it to us at 8:30ish that night, dropped them off, and hightailed it right out of there. Guess he knew better than to stick around and try to answer our questions. Finally unstressed and finally get a decent night's sleep.

Tuesday 7/15: Leave Fayetteville, AR and make it to McAlester to eat lunch with my parents. Spent a good hour with them, got back on the road, and finally made it back to Ardmore by 4.

Summary: I don't think we will be using US Airways again. I'm more of an American Airlines girl, just because I've used them so much. They were pretty decent to us....the US Airways people at XNA were top-notch despite the other junk. Timeshares and people that try to sell them stink. Grand Bahama Island was nice and relaxing, but the aftereffects of previous hurricanes are taking a long time to heal. The taxi drivers were the nicest and friendliest people we met there on the island, but they got expensive really quick. When we go back, we'll probably go to Nassau instead. This was the first time I've ever had my baggage lost, and I pray to God that it will be the last.

All in all, it was eventful. It was stressful. It was aggravating. It was relaxing. It was comical. It was a blur. It was a good time. Thanks to our family for making this vacation happen for us!

*This is an edited piece that actually Jason wrote but I edited to make it sound like it was coming from me. :)

Live in the Moment

Sometimes I feel like I'm living for the next thing that happens...something that will be happening in the future. I should live in the present, don't you think? I'm happening now...not 10 minutes from now. Anyway...a lot of things will be happening in my future, and I feel like I'm just laying around waiting for them to happen. Don't worry out there in blog land...I have a list of things to do, like always but, not too too motivated to do them right now. PLUS I felt just awful yesterday and didn't do diddly squat. Tuesday night, I felt really sore and achy, almost like flu symptoms...well when I woke up yesterday...more flu symptoms so I just laid there for a good while. Lunch helped a lot, especially when your husband brings it to you!!! :D Then I dragged myself into the shower and felt a little better too. Guess what...I'm good to go today!!! Weird, huh!?

So what's been going on since the wedding? Well...I got a new job. I've been hired on at Sulphur High School to teach Government/Geography (one semester each), a US History course and Psychology...better get ready kids...the psycho is back!!! (and better than ever!) I've cut down on my preps (THANK YOU!!!) and don't have to do cheerleading or Junior class sponsor! Sounds like a dream job, but wait!! it gets better! Jason teaches at Sulphur too!!! *woo wooo* He's gonna let me ride with him!!! *woo wooo* We will save on gas!!! *woo wooo* We are both super excited. Eventually we will probably move up there and that will save on even more gas. Let us do one thing at a time, people!!!!

I got my ring back. It makes such a difference!!! It's weird, but it is awesome to wear the ring your husband gave you. I went and bought stuff from Bed Bath and Beyond with all the gift cards we got. That was fun!!! Didn't have to spend a dime and I still have a little left on the card! Yippee!! I HAVE to write my thank you cards...Its a monumental task and I just am dreading it but I want to have most of it done before we go to the Bahamas....which we leave on Saturday for. Eeeeek!!!

Yes, we are definitely ready for the Bahamas, whether the Bahamas are ready for us or not!!!! So instead of blogging about all the stuff I haven't been doing in the now...why don't I go do it...now!!!

Love ya,
Jessica

PS: Wedding pictures are in so if you want to take a gander, click here.

...Cause I'm a Dork Fish....!!!

You are asking your self....why would she call herself a dorkfish? Yeah, well here's the reason...I decided to go lay by the pool for a little while to get some sun before Jason and I go to the Bahamas. You'd think that after years of burning myself I would know better but apparently not. I thought I wouldn't be out there too long so I wouldn't put any sunscreen on except my nose and knees. 50spf. I'm a cooked lobster. My arms, upper chest and legs (except the knees)!!! OH!! and half my face....the lower half. I wore sunglasses and a hat and sunscreen on my nose...don't forget that. So right now I'm in a little bit of pain. I've aloed up and tried not to wear anything on the legs and other burnt parts of my body. I'm a dorkfish!!! and there is NO WAY I'm going to shave my legs for a few days. Sorry, Jason!!!

Speaking of Jason...he's my husband now... :D Cool to say!! I'm a wife!!! Yippeee!!! I do feel a little different. Except my ring is being soldered together so I have a temporary one on my finger. :( Hopefully it will be done by this Saturday. Here's what our rings look like:

We are also waiting on our wedding photos and they should be online very soon. We will let you know so you can look!!! Here's a group shot of our wedding party!!! FUN!!!!

We did have a blast and it was a little bit of a blur and not enough time with family and friends!!! But here's how the whole shindig went down:

Tuesday, June 10th:
Mom arrives and we hang out and have pot roast.

Wednesday, June 11th:
Mom and I go crazy shopping. Got some goooood stuff including shoes, capris, dress, sunglasses, purse and shirts...
Jason, Mom and I went to El Tapitios for some good Mexican food. We also rent some movies: Charlie Wilson's War and Juno; both were good.
While watching movies, Mom and I tied little ribbons on the bubbles and made a list of things to do on Thursday before we left for Arlington.

Thursday, June 12th:
Mom and I leave for Arlington after doing all the things on our list. I'm having a little bit of anxiety over the "rehersal" dinner. I wanted to get everyone's order in before we got there so we wouldn't have to wait so long!! People also started to arrive, which was fun. Mandy and the girls got there and we all went swimming. Pat and Alex got there soon after. So much fun!!! Pat got a portable internet device and played with it A LOT!!!! We decided we needed to go to Wal-Mart and so he found one but it actually took us a lot longer than we expected. It turns out there was a Wal-Mart about 5 minutes in the opposite direction that we could have gone to. Oh well...it was an adventure and I got to hang with my brother and Alex!!!!

Friday, June 13th:
Actually didn't do much in the morning....I laid there texting Jason every five minutes asking him to bring stuff :D I didn't mean to forget some clothes and contacts...honest!!! He arrived around noon and Jason and Drew (who arrived Thursday night) went to go pick up my Aunt Paula and Uncle John. Angie and Chris arrived and then Angie, Mom and I went to go get nails done...Mandy came a little later! That was fun but I still had some anxiety about this dinner thing!!! I still needed to come up with some orders. I actually got everyone's order except, get this, JASON's!!!!! I felt really bad!! How could I forget him??? I honestly don't know. But by the time we got to the restuarant and I got to direct the waiters at who had what, everything was fine! It turned out extremely well and so much fun!!! It was great to have so much family there! After the dinner there was a girly get together in my room. We had a blast and laughed a lot!!! I got some really nice things and just had a special special time. THANK YOU, ANGIE!!!!

I didn't have too much trouble getting to sleep, the only thing I regret was not washing my hair that night because my hair was not all that great the next day for up-dos. Oh well, it's over and can't do it again!!

Saturday, June 14th:
The big day!!! Got up and went downstairs to get some breakfast and Jason was there, so I sat with him. My cousins were there too so I got to visit with them for a bit. After breakfast the girls getting their hair done all piled in the car and went to the salon. That was fun (except my crappy hair thing). Then we went straight to the chapel where we stood around and then rehearsed (girls first, then guys), got dressed and got married!!! The reception was fun and beautiful. It went by very fast!! We walked out under bubbles...very fun...and got into a car with several sayings on it... such as GO HOGS and HONK!!!, JUST MARRIED and BRIDE AND GROOM. So much fun!!!!! We dropped off the tuxes and headed for our hotel near Six Flags. Wish we had the Garmin thingy cause we could see our hotel, we just couldn't get to it. We finally did and literally crashed into bed. We were so tired!!! We did get up to Jason's stomach alarm clock...we did plan on going to a German restuarnt in Ft. Worth, called Edelweiss. It was good and had good atmosphere, I just wish Jason was willing to go out on the dance floor and do the chicken dance with me!!! ;) Oh well....we still have the Bahamas...

Sunday, June 15th:
We got up, did breakfast and waited for Pat and Alex cause they were going to go to Six Flags with us! That was very very fun. We lathered up on the 50SPF and I missed a spot but didn't fry too bad. It was freaking HOT!!! That was a lot of fun... Jason and I had reservations for Texas de Brazil in Ft. Worth that night so we got cleaned up and dressed up and ate up, cause it was GOOOOOOD!!!!! Yum!!!!

Monday, June 16th:
We packed up all our stuff and headed home to recoup before Jason had to go back to summer school on Tuesday (he was teaching...). We did open all our presents and that was fun.

Now it's on to married life...and what that will bring...I'm excited about it! However, I have come to realize that having nothing to do at home while your husband is at work is very boring and I've had some depression about it. I'm not sure what to do. I need things to do and NOT housework. I do go swimming so that is good (but not since the sunburn...ouch!). I definitely think I will do some volunteering/working part time next summer. I need to get back into some hobbies that do not require TV or computer, something outside the house...

Anyway...I know this was a long blog, but it was really for me to remember everything so I wouldn't forget!!! I'm super excited about the Bahamas for our real honeymoon!!! You can bet there will be blog about THAT!!!

For those of you who were at the wedding and in the wedding....THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. It was sooo very special that you were there and I couldn't have done it without you! You all looked fabulous!!! Love you!!!

She posted another blog...

I know, I know....it's like I have more time or something!!! Well this week was interesting!!! I'll have to tell you about Monday a little later...I'll keep you posted...!!!

Tuesday I started a teacher institute called Great Expectations, which I loved!!!! Great Expectations is a professional development program that provides teachers and administrators with the skills needed to create harmony and excitement within the school atmosphere, elements that are basic for inspiring students to pursue academic excellence. With a focus on the human quality of teaching and learning, Great Expectations provides renewal and inspiration for teachers who may have lost their way and forgotten why they became teachers in the beginning. (I didn't write that, the website did.)

Anyway, in a nut shell, GE taught me how to be humane to younger humans!!! It's weird but that's essentially it. AND also how to teach any subject matter using different methods. It was awesome since I was a first timer, I had to go to the methodology class to get the foundation down before I can take elective classes which focus on very specific subjects. Anyway, the methodology classes usually have 30-40 people and we only had 4 which was AWESOME!!! We really got to know everyone on a personal basis and heard some great stories. It's also a small world because our instructor, Tim, is from McAlester, OK where Jason is from. I mentioned Tim's name to Jason and he started laughing. It turns out Jason's sister is very good friends with Tim's sister. It was a cool connection. It was also an emotional experience. Tim found out his mother has breast cancer this week. Keep him and his mother in your prayers. That aside, I'm really excited about starting the new school year!!!!

So that took up some time this week. It was all day from 8-4, Tuesday through Friday. Today we got to sleep in and rest. I had a lot of things I wanted to do, including swim but that didn't work out. I did get to run some major errands. I was going to get my dress to the cleaners but I got there too late so I decided to make an appointment to get my hair trimmed and highlighted. She couldn't fit me in until next Thursday but that was pushing it. I got in my car and stopped and went inside again and said if she had an opening today and she said yes!!! Whooppie!!! So I got my hair did. We were the only ones in the salon and I think she talked more than me!! No big surprise, though. I told her I was getting married and she said she was too. We both met our future husbands on eHarmony... and so that was a big talking point!!!

Speaking of hair. The thing that was a realization was what my hair dresser said. She had already been married twice. The first divorce being her mistake and the second, the husband was apparently just awful. What she said about the first divorce being her mistake was this. She believed that the husband was there to take care of her and that's the way she acted. She was the one who left him. She learned that she had to chip in too. But she realized that way too late and has actually apologized to her kids dad. I thought that took guts. I may not have agreed with her on everything she said but I understood that expectation. While watching Return to Me tonight, I realized I too want to be taken care of. This is not a bad thing. But if you don't reciprocate, then there's a problem. I can't be waited on hand and foot. I wouldn't actually want that either. I want to be able to do things independently too. However, one of the greatest things that Jason does for me is carry in the groceries. I can totally do this. I brought in my own groceries for over five years up the stairs in Waco!! But it is great to have someone else do this for me! Thank you, Jason!!!

But wait!!! Hold the press!!! Before I even got out of the apartment with my dress to go to the cleaners, something else exciting happened. I open the door holding my dress above my head and for some reason I look down to my left and I see a tail wiggling. I'm thinking to my self, that's one big lizard! It had faint orange markings like diamonds on it. I step out a little more and realize it is a GIANORMOUS snake. I calmly step back inside the apartment and freak out. That's what Jason would call it. I put down the dress and told him. He said he couldn't see it. I was trying to call emergency maintenance. He still couldn't see it. I cautiously opened the door and it wasn't where I left it...it had moved down a little further and this time I could see its head and THEN Jason saw it. Maintenance calls back and I tell him about the problem and he says he will call animal control. I told him it looked like a two footer. The snake proceeds to crawl further out into the open and it is not two feet long...it's more like three to three and a half feet long. HOLY MOLY!!!! I still wanted to get to the cleaners (before I found out it was already closed) and it was far enough out for me to walk in the opposite direction and that's what I did. I let Jason deal with Animal Control. Whew!!! That was exciting!!! Drew, my brother would have freaked more than I did!!! Animal control came while I was getting my hair done but they never found it.

I know what I'll be dreaming about tonight!!! AND I'll be alone. Jason is in OKC having a bachelor party. That's why I'm writing this at 12:45am, plus I drank some caffeine today. I'm probably going to play a round of Age of Empires III after I post this too. So I think that's it for now. I'm really excited for the festivities to begin!!! It will start with my mom coming Tuesday night, and then shopping on Wednesday and then to Arlington on Thursday! Yay!!!!! What else...I dont' know...I'm getting a little nervous I think. It might be the snake and it might be the fact I watched Silence of the Lambs tonight and then Return to Me while flipping to My Big Fat Greek Wedding. I'll keep you posted whether or not I dreamed about anything...

Toodles!!
Jessica

The Weekend...

Well hidyho!!! Can you believe it? I'm writing ANOTHER blog!!! Friday was a big day for us. We traveled to Arlington for a couple of things: the marriage license!!!!! That took no time at all, Jason getting his hairs cut, and me looking for a place to get our manis and pedis taken care of the day before the wedding!!! There were some interesting conversations throughout the trip and I think Jason forgot about looking for a nail place and that frustrated him a tad bit.

We then headed down to Waco for two events. The first being one at the Dr Pepper Museum. Jason and I didn't go to the night event because 1) we were too tired, 2) it cost $200 per plate, 3) we wanted to go eat with Angie and Chris. So that's what we did! We met Angie and Chris at Carino's (not Johnny's anymore, apparently he left the company). Good food, great conversation!! Afterwards we went to Starbucks to get something and not a second later after we sat down with our drinks did we hear a screeeeech, BANG! I was in the position to see most of the terrible car wreck. After the bang I see a white van flip over and land on it's side, only stopped by an SUV who was waiting at the stoplight. I caught a glimpse of a green car careen over the curb and almost crash into the Jack in the Box fast food place. OMG!!!!! This took place in a matter of three seconds. I stood up and said "Oh my gosh! Someone call 911!" This was a huge intersection and and there were a lot of people outside who already had their phones out. Hopefully they were calling 911 instead of their friends. The police, firefighters and ambulances all came within in a matter of minutes and we rubbernecked for the next 15 minutes while drinking our mint frappachinos.

So after that Jason and I went back to Mary Beth's place to crash because the next morning was the main event. Ribbon cutting of the new exhibit that I helped begin. Breakfast and tours. I talked about future exhibits in the new building. Keep in mind there were past presidents of the Dr Pepper Company and multi-millionaires peppered about the place. This was a BIG shindig!!! Not only was it a ribbon cutting but also a fundraising opportunity. The Friday night gala we didn't go to had Lee Greenwood there for entertainment. God Bless America!

Anywhooo, it was awesome to be there and see all my friends from work and talk, talk, talk talk... :D The other part of the weekend was to go to a wedding that afternoon. It was for a PEO sister and therefore I got to see all my PEO sisters and that was a lot of fun!!!! Some of them are coming to our wedding only 13 days away!!! AAAAHHHHH!!!! So after that, we came home and talked furniture, as in we need a new bed kind of thing.

The End!!! The weekend is not over yet, so I may update this later on...if anything exciting happens!! Don't get your hopes up!

Later taters,
J

17 Days and Counting...!!!

Ok...it seems like a lifetime from now but there are only seventeen days till the wedding... EEEKKK!!! There are a couple of things I still need to do, but I've pretty much wrapped up the major parts. I'm hoping the cake looks nice and the bouquets turn out nice too. There's really not much I can do about it now!!!! As you may know, I am a list person and I've created lists out the wazoo. I now need to mail them to the parties who need them. I'm also listening to the reception music and I'm smiling...it's going to be a lot of 80s music, but also a mixture of all genres.

So what else has been happening....well, SCHOOL'S OUT!!!!!! YAYAAY!!! Don't get me wrong, I loved teaching but, dang, you've got to have a break from all those whiny, impatient kids sometimes. The last week seemed like it draaaaaged along. We made it through, though! All in all the students I taught were very good. There are some I worry about though. That's what happens when you invest in their lives. Sometimes you can't help but say, "I can't wait until they are in the real world because THEN is when their education starts." Some just don't have a clue. But then again...I was probably a little bit like that too. Ok, so school is semi out of the way...there are a couple of things I still have to do such as cheerleading stuff and a week long seminar called Great Expectations to help my interactive component of teaching.

What else...I FINALLY joined the YMCA so I can start swimming again. I miss it and my body misses it too but my body has decided to revolt for a little bit. I went swimming last Thursday and Friday and I think I pulled my neck muscle. I have to admit I did not stretch very well on Thursday and I think that's what did it. So I've been an "invalid" taking ibuprofen and sleeping with a heating pad. It's been pretty painful...it's getting better, I hope!!!

Last Friday started Memorial Day weekend for us and we trekked on up to McAlester, OK to have a huge family reunion on Jason's Dad's side. Both his brothers came in from Texas and California and their families too. All in all there were about 31 people at my parents-in-law's house. Fortunately they didn't all spend the night...that would have been interesting!!! We had a lot of fun just sitting outside under the trees in the countryside talking to cousins and aunts and uncles. The bad part was, of course, bugs. Honestly they weren't bad. I didn't really spray the last day and that's when I got most of my chigger bites and one tick which I didn't find until Tuesday!!!!! I'm sure I didn't look very appealing with my hair up because it was hot and humid and the bug bites on my FACE!!!! Ugh!!! They're still there, too. They better disappear soon or I'm gonna get REAL depressed!! Anyway!!! We had great food, played washers with nephews, fished in the pond they have, and ate...did I mention that already? There was also a joint birthday party for Jason's mom and Uncle Ricky who are both turning 60 this year. That was fun. There were a lot of gag gifts I was even embarrassed about!! Anywhooo we had a blast and it was great to see family together.

The next few things on my agenda...and there is an agenda/list is mostly wedding stuff. I like taking a break from school but I need things to do...there just isn't that much on TV that is enticing and I'm starting to feel like a slob. I'm going swimming again this morning so pray that my neck will work itself out!!

LAST BUT NOT LEAST!!!! Pat is in the good ole' US of A!!!! He landed at Ft. Dix early this morning from Kuwait via Hungary and Iceland...praise the Lord and Hallelujah!!! :D

Here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks:

At the Sulphur Prom

T.C. the center of attention.
His shirt says, "Yes, girls. I'm single"
He won't be single for long...he's so cute!!!!


Here's TC and his momma, Ruth!


Watch out TC, you got some competition!!!?!!!


What a loving uncle, ya'll have!!


All the kiddos that were there!


The three brothers and sister!!
Ricky, Brenda, Archie and Don

Ticked and ticking down the days...

First of all I'm ticking off the days until school is over and then the weeks and days until the wedding... I'm very excited. I went to bed early tonight but woke up about an hour later and couldn't get back to sleep so I decided to listen to some music and look at my bridal portrait pictures. I've decided that I am pretty and sometimes even beautiful!! Thanks to Jennifer who took my pictures. You will have to either email me to get the link or wait until after the wedding because I don't want Jason to see me in the dress!!! :D

Anyway, the reason I'm ticked or I guess offended or bothered by the fact I had a student call me hateful. Not to my face mind you, but rather I heard it from her mom this afternoon. Great way to start off the weekend. Without going into too much detail I will just say that I had a student who, in my point of view, did not make the effort to find out when cheerleading tryouts were and came to me this afternoon and asked if she could tryout. Today was the day of tryouts!! I told her no. I didn't see any effort or responsibility on her part to find out the information. Especially when I had given her all the information the day after the announced informational meeting which she missed due to another school activity. It's not a problem if someone is going to miss something for another school related activity but one should make arrangements ahead of time and not the day after. Then she tells me this afternoon that she didn't have time to read the information (in the two week period she had it). So that took all of 60 seconds to tell her no and for her to storm out of my classroom. It was another thing to have her mother come (in the middle of tryouts) and have very strong words to say to me in front of all the other candidates and accuse me of intentionally trying to keep her daughter from trying to tryout... Ok, so I went into more detail than I said, but I could write more, but I won't. I ended up "solving the problem" by putting it back into the hands of the student. If she wants to tryout, she's going to have to come to me and ask. We'll see what happens next week.

In my other life....Mary Beth called me from Denver on Thursday to tell me a funny incident that occurred at the annual American Association of Museums conference. This is a national conference , by the way, that thousands of people go to. Ok, so she tells me she attends a session about technology and museums. This is what both of us did while I was at the Dr Pepper Museum. Remember the video blogs? Ok, now the people who chaired and presented at this session were some major players in the museum field. One from the Cleveland Museum of Art, a lady from the Weatherhead Experience Design Group, Inc., Seattle, WA and a gentleman who is the Head of Administration from the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, CA. Yes, well to make a long story short, we made it into the session. Yes, they showed our first ever video blog we created for the museum and the blooper reel from the movie we made for the 10-2-4 Dr Pepper Collectors Convention. Oh...my...goodness.... I laughed so hard, Jason came rushing in the office because he thought something was wrong. Yes, folks Mary Beth and I have made it to the big time. We are ready to sign autographs and any acting contracts that I know will come our way. Yeah, right.....LOL!!! Mary Beth thought she should say something so she stood up and introduced herself and everybody loved it. She said the chairperson saw Mary Beth walk in to the session and almost fell out of her seat. She had no idea MB would be there. I would have given money to have been there!!!! Oh My! THAT made my Thursday.

So this weekend will be wonderful, if I can get to sleep that is...I don't have to be anywhere or go do anything. All I need to do is rest and grade some papers. Yup. That's it. And that's all I'm going to do. Well, let's try working on this sleep thing. I will talk with you later!!!

Later Taters,
Jessi

PS: Don't be hatin' because you haven't been the star of a museum conference session... ;)

A Different World...

...from where you come from!!

Remember that TV show? It was a spin off of The Cosby Show when Denyse went to college. I thought it was pretty cool. However, the different world I'm thinking of is something entirely different. This weekend Jason and I went around Oklahoma City, doing things we haven't done. We went to Pops a convenient store that has over 500 sodas in it and a great diner. Yummy.

I also wanted to see a movie so we went to the theater. There wasn't a whole lot of choices at the time we went except Street Kings with Keanu Reeves and Forest Whitaker. I heard it was intense and good so we went to see it. I knew it was going to be intense and violent. After all it was about dirty cops and seeking "justice." While I was coming out of the theater I said, "I'm glad I don't live in that kind of world." It's odd, though, I actually like seeing those kind of movies. Not because I think they are cool but just because they are out there. I've seen Hustle and Flow which is a rough movie and others like 8 Mile, Crash, etc... again not because they are cool but because it's a dose of reality. I know they are movies but they are based on experience. If someone thought it up, then someone has seen it or heard about it. This evening, for instance, I watched Law & Order: Special Victims Unit where there were people selling children from Africa as slaves to the United States. How can someone think about doing this? It boggles the mind, or at least my mind.

I think my point is that sometimes I can't believe the things people do to people and how blessed I am personally to not be in or even touch some of those situations. I'm talking poverty that can lead to prostitution, drugs, violence, etc... I thank God everyday for the home I grew up in and the influences of my parents and grandparents and friends. Granted not all my experiences have been great but not so terrible I couldn't ever recover. I don't know if I'm making sense to anyone, but it makes sense to me. I can't be naive about what's going on out there but I can't let the world burden me either. We live in a chaotic, crazy world. I'm glad I know someone who has already taken care of my life for me and the lives of others and that would be Jesus Christ. I am an empathetic person and I cry every time I watch Extreme Makeover: Home Edition because I can feel for those people who deserve a new home. I do NOT, however, know how Jesus can stand just watching us do the things we do and not banish us all. He is the most empathetic and experienced one out there who has had all the world's hurts on him. WOW! I can't even fathom that.

That leads me to the next thing we went to see which was the Oklahoma Memorial. I have never been there and I wanted to see it. It was one of the most peaceful places I have ever been, especially in a city. The event happened 13 years ago yet still impacts people today. The monument is beautiful but what I really liked (if you can like that sort of thing) is the the statue outside of the memorial. It is of Jesus weeping.

Again, how does someone think up something to do like blow up a government building and kill 186 people including children. It is something that should make us all weep. Look how far we've gotten in the quest for humanity!!! But all that to say once again. I am at peace (most of the time ;) because of what Jesus said to his disciples (us included):

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

Look folks!!! He says he's already overcome the world. He said that 2000 years ago in the past tense. He's already taken care of all the bad stuff. What hope and peace that brings me. Yes, there is still suffering out there and there is a reason but I won't reiterate about why we need to suffer. You can read a previous blog for that here.

We just need to believe and be reminded of that daily because we are reminded daily of how awful life can be. Don't worry, I know life can be awesome too. I just need to look at Jason and my nieces to be reminded of that too.

Peace in Christ to you and yours.

Love,
Jessica

An interior view of the exterior walls.


Can you see Jason? He's that short dude in front.


Close up of the bottle.


The happy couple!