Finding Krissi

An entire summer has come and gone. Tomorrow I return to work, and the rush of a new school year will fully engage. It has been an interesting summer. The lack of responsibility is not good for me. It has made me lazy. My long to-do list is still to long. I have nothing to blame it on except laziness. Apparently, if I do not have an immediate deadline I am pretty useless. The three older kiddos had an eventful summer; TREK, Girls Camp, High Adventure, EFY, swim lessons, working, and more tumbled on top of each other. H. had a summer of running, playing, and video games. I did manage one session of swim lessons. I think that he sometimes gets lost in the chaos of the older kids. I suppose it is one of the down falls to being the youngest. I need to do better! The best thing about this summer has been the time. We have spent time together as a family. We went to a concert, we sat at the dinner talking past dinner, we cooked a smore or two, and we ha...

Once upon a time there was a woman who had a blog. She loved her little blog and dutifully logged on and posted insightful, wonderfully written, post (hmm mmm this is my story quit giggling). Then her life started to get insanely busy. Then her life got even busier. Then her life was just completely out of control and her little blog died. It didn't die but the heart rate of the blog slowed so that only a random beep here and there could be found. Today she finds her life has slowed down and she has time to write on her little blog. However, where does one start? How do you bring a little blog back to full speed? She does not know. If you figured out that the she is actually me and the blog is actually this blog you win the prize. Although, I'm not quite sure what you have won. :) My admiration! My goal... (oh boy writing your goal means you actually have a plan. I do not have a plan so maybe I should just skip the whole, "My goal..." thing)... ...

I have one final week of summer. However, most of the week will be taken up making final preparations for the school year to begin. At times I am giddy with excitement as I think about teaching. At other times I feel sheer panic. I’m sure the year will be full of both excitement and pure panic! This summer has been full of fun and amazing experiences. The kids have been busy attending summer camps, band camps, orchestra, EFY, and youth conference. One of these days I will actually get the time to unload the pictures from the camera. Today my Young Women spoke in sacrament. They are awesome, amazing, and totally the best! It was  announced that next year the youth will be participating in Trek. Oh Boy! A week of living like a pioneer. Anyone got a bonnet I can borrow? It is amazing how the months have passed in a heartbeat. Now football has started and the school year is moments away. This year is going to be an exciting one. The kids are a...

You know what happens when you don't write. Writing becomes hard. Trying to put words in the right place and create sentences that make some kind of sense becomes hard. For almost 3 years I wrote a paper each and every week. Now my brain has turned to mush and writing is hard. Why does that happen?  I have all kinds of thoughts running through my head and trying to type them out is not working. I don't have writers block I have writers mushy brain. I'm a little frustrated! So here is what is going on... I'm preparing to start work.. I'm way excited... way scared... way nervous... and way happy. It is going to be strange working full time. I wonder how it will all work with my family. I'm a little nervous about H. switching schools and coming with me. What if I totally bite at being a teacher. Like seriously what if I suck? (I said "like" valley girl slang awesome!) My teenagers are getting big. I'm going to have a kid ...

The day you bring home your first bundle of joy you have figured out one or two facts. For me the first fact I figured out was I was in trouble. I really had only a very small clue what I was suppose to do with this wonderful little package. However, she was mine and sink or swim I had to figure it out. Fumbling here and there I began figure it out. As the other little ones came along I figured out more and more. I had a groove and a basic understanding of what made all these little people tick. I was comfortable in the life that had become my life.  After a little while I moved from comfortable to content. I believed that I had figured out this whole mother business and was going to make it through without any major fails. I was foolish in my belief that life was going to continue status quo. I was foolish in my belief that I had figured everything out. This morning my 13-year-old son and I were having a heart to heart. Well, more like I was yelling, once again and givin...

Alright.. get ready... I am about to complain about something I never complain about... are you ready? I have WAY too much time!!! I mean WAY!!! I need something to do, or all this waiting around is going to drive me crazy. What did I use to do with my time? Before school, before work, what did I do? Don't get me wrong I have things to do. Lots of things that can be attended to. However, my brain is in sedentary mode the pressure of, "too little time" is not all around me. The more time I have the less I seem to accomplish. The way less!!! I feel a little like lump... I need a schedule a routine. A reason to climb out of bed in the morning besides taking the kids to school.... Really what I need to do is limit my use of... it is a little annoying... Maybe, I need to find something for real to complain about. Happy Thursday everyone,

Do you ever have moments where you slap your forehead and think, "DUH!"? Those moments when you think, "I have been here, I have done this, and I know this does not turn out good." Followed by the thought, "WHAT THE HECK AM I DOING?" I have those moments frequently. In fact the frequency of them is a little scary. I often wonder if at some point in my life I'm going to finally understand how to avoid those moments. Recently, I have become a little obsessed with the TV show, "The Big Bang Theory." Have you seen it? I think it is slightly awesome and have a secret desire to be Sheldon. One of my favorite phrases used in the show is, "The human experience." Sheldon is often confused by the human experience. I laugh at how he doesn't get it and how he struggles. Poor Sheldon. However, I often have my own forehead slapping duh moments and I can totally relate to Sheldon. Life is full of lessons. We as humans are never don...

Yesterday I met with the person taking over my old job. I think he is going to do an awesome job. He seems like a very nice person and more than qualified for the job. My kids, (his kids :( ) are in excellent hands. That all being said I am trying to understand why I am so sad. I am thriving in my student teaching experience. Everything is going great. I am happy to be making this forward step. It is all very good! Yet, I feel sad. I'm not quite sure where to put my emotions. I'm thinking they need to be filed under, "pointless to feel this way."  Maybe, it is just normal to feel sad walking away from what you know. It is a little like how I felt when I realized I no longer had little people in my house. For a long time my heart felt sad and I just wanted my life with little people back. It was a little insulting that they all dared to grow up and become big. This post is kind of turning into a pour me post. I guess every now and then we have picked on mo...

Tomorrow is my first day of student teaching. A whole day in a classroom. I was able to do a few hours of observations last week so my nerves are calm. Now it is just a matter of becoming a full time working mom, minus the pay, for the next ten weeks. That has me a tiny bit nervous and worried how it will all work out. However, last week while I was in the class I was relaxed and ready for this adventure. I'm sure that I have some challenging days ahead, but I'm in the naive stage and I believe that everything is going to be perfect.  

We have been in vacation mode around here. Which basically means staying up late and sleeping in. Sleep in is such a wonderful thing. I really wouldn't mind a few more days/weeks of vacation. Oh well, like they say all good things must come to an end. Vacations have to eventually end, and in order to thrive we must be productive. If it sounds like I'm trying to talk myself into being happy about our winter break coming to an end you would be correct. The normal crazy business of our lives returns in full force today. I get to go and meet my future students today and I am nervous. Belly ache I don't wanna go do I really have to do this nervous. Sometimes I kind of wish I could crawl under my covers and not come out. I guess that isn't really an option. If you too are joining back with the real world today have a wonderful vacation is over we can do this day.

Today marked the first day of our first annual summer purge. Pretty much everyday this month, give or take a birthday, holiday, and Sunday day, I'm going to purge an area of my home. Why? Well you may have heard me mention a time or two or a million that my kids are getting big. Big enough that I have a playroom full of toys, a garage full of bikes, and drawers full of clothes with zero purpose. Other than to take up needed space. Today we attacked the bookcase. I say start where it hurts than the rest will be easy. I hope. So with the my mind set to cut back, I dusted, moved, and purged books. All in all I think I purged about 50 books. I thought it would be hard but I soon realized that many of the reference books we have are no longer needed. Between Youtube, Google, SweetSearch4me, Online Data bases, and Online Libraries reference books are eating up valuable space. As I was tossing reference books, into the GoodWill pile, I was stunned that I was turning away fro...

I have been sitting in this chair since one this afternoon. Okay, well I did get up and run a kid there and another one there and then back to get them again. But!! Other than that I have been here ALL DAY!! With my nose buried in a book, my fingers typing away, and my head processing information. School is hard...and there is lots to accomplish and time keeps speeding up. I swear what was 24 hours a year ago is more like 22 now. I don't know how that happened but it has happened.  Do you know how it happened? So I'm still sitting here in this chair. Except for now I'm stepping away from the book. The book that talks about Onomatopoeias, Similes, Metaphors, Alliteration, and Personification, also the structures of an atom and did you know.... Never mind I don't even think I want to know.. Tomorrow is the last night of one more class and my graduation date is now officially under a year. WOO HOO BABY! All I have to do is survive less than 10 classes ...

I know, I know... I have basically disappeared from the blogging world. I think about blogging, I have whole list of ideas for post but no motivation. Writers block? Blog Burnout? I'm pretty sure it is a combination of the above, and the hustle and bustle of life. The kids are getting bigger the days of being at home and watching WAY to many episodes of Winnie the Pooh are gone. I know that you have heard me grumble, complain, and whimper about this subject far too many times. Which I think is another reason to add to the reasons why,  I am not blogging. To much complaining! Once again I need to stress the point I HAVE NOTHING TO WHINE ABOUT! Which leads to the question, "What the heck is my problem?" Well the list is plentiful but in the long run it has come down to priorities. This little blog has just not been a priority. Instead I spend my limited free time engrossed in a challenging game of Suduko. Yes, friends I have abandoned my blog for Suduko. ...

Today is December 17th? How in the world is it DECEMBER 17th?! Someone must be messing with my calendars because there is no way it is December 17th. What? No one is messing with me? It is actually December 17th! Well then that means I'm running behind. WAY behind. Look at my to do list. Kid's Dentist Al School Choir Performance Al City Choir Performance Al Basketball Al Piano A. Court of Honor A. First Radio Appearance S. Swim H. Class Performance H. Student of the Week Reflections Assembly School Work Teacher Gifts Hey, wait a minute all of that stuff is done. Today was the last day of school/work. I'm done! birthday treats check, school gifts check, and all of the above check. Believe me I have the hour and half of video to prove it. Want to watch? So with all that stuff done that means I get to kick back and relax. Except! There is only 8 days left until Christmas. Two days until number one's 14th Birthday (Holy COW!) 3 days until num...

The past five days have been wonderful. No school, no work, no commitments. Just lots of family time and doing what I want to do. Including, decorating the house for Christmas, shopping, and cleaning. I never thought there would ever be a time in my life where I wanted to clean but after months of chore neglect my home was in need of some TLC. It feels great to get so much done. I'm thinking of asking for a clone for Christmas. One of us could stay home and be the housewife and the other one could do the work, school, and mom thing. Any clue on where I could get a clone? The weather has turned and we are already enjoying (enduring) several inches of snow. It looks like we are going to get lots of sledding time this year. I have made a commitment to myself to enjoy the holiday season this year. Making sure to enjoy traditions and try a few new activities. This weekend I realized just how much the inertia of daily life has taken over. I definitely need to shake thing...

We survived pictures, unmedicated! :) I'm even fairly confident there is going to be a few great pictures. All of that work and NOT yelling at my kids totally paid off. We are at home now enjoying hot chocolate seeing as they just spent an hour outside, in 35 degree weather, taking pictures. As I watched the pictures being taken I just had to laugh at the fake smiles, and the stiff back bones, and the not so subtle eye rolls. I know a few years ago all of that would have driven me crazy. I wanted picture that showed just how perfect my kids are. Now I love that stuff because it is reality. Sometimes we smile when we don't want to. Stand taller than we would like and roll our eyes when we don't agree.  It is life. Life, is pretty dang awesome! Have a good Saturday everyone I have a messy house waiting for my attention. Krissi

I'm taking a break... I am currently trying to get four kids ready for pictures. The oldest is on her own and doing great.  The second one: Me: You need to brush your teeth Him: What? Why? I brushed my teeth last night Me: Brush them again.  Him: But I did it last night Me: (Grinding my teeth) DO... IT.... AGAIN.... Him: Geessse The third one: Me: (Helping to do her hair, which by the way no single person has more hair than this girl.) Do you want your hair like this or like this Her: Shrug Me: That isn't an answer like this or like this Her: Sure Me: Which way, this way or this way? Her: Shrug Me: (Deep Breaths! I will not yell! I will not yell! I will not yell!) It is not my hair I want to do it the way you want me to do it. Which way! Her: (Eyes Rolling) Like this is fine! Me: (GRRRRRR!!!) Okay The Mom, has spent a great deal of time and money to prepare for these pictures. Numerous trips putting together the right outfits. Arranging the time....

Yesterday was a, “Kick a puppy kind of day. I just felt mean, spiteful, and a tiny bit nasty. Just for the record, I DID NOT kick a puppy. I would have just been tempted had I came across a puppy. Instead I kicked at my family. I didn’t literally kick at my family. I just kind of barked, snapped, and growled. Sometimes I am rather amazed at what they put up with. I went to bed mad, sad, and a bunch of other ad’s. Then I just kind of stared at the dark ceiling thinking… not sleeping…. And thinking.. I started thinking about how there is some part of our brain that knows I am acting like a two year old. There is that tiny little voice, “Really, really, you are really doing this? What the heck is wrong with you? You know better than this.” Then there is that other voice the one that says, “Niener, neiner, boo, boo.” I keep thinking that the older I get the more mature part of me is going to take charge. Yah, that part not really stepping up to the plate. However, the “...

It is COLD! It is freezing cold! Reminding me how much I HATE winter. The current temp is 32 degrees. YUCK! I came home from work today freezing. So I put on my favorite pair of thermals. Then I ran A. to scouts and came home shivering. So I put on my favorite hoodie. I was still freezing and whining about how cold I was. H. helped me out by getting me a beanie. It is one of those cool beanies with the ear flaps and the pom pom on top. I was still whining so Al. tracked down a pair of Brent's railroad insulated gloves. Then I hunkered down under my electric blanket and tried to quit shivering. THEN I had to go and get A. from scouts. I pulled into the parking lot dreading the run from the car to church. Right before I could get out A. came shooting out of the building. YAY!! I thought I don't have to get out of the car. Then as he got into the car he started laughing. Laughing very hard. Mixed in with all the laughing I heard him say, "I knew it, I just...

For those of you who think I have been writing less, you would be incorrect. For those of you who think I have been blogging less, you would be correct. I actually write all the time. At least weekly I have a cited paper due. However, I do not post them on this blog because I don't think you would be all that interested in classroom management or teacher ethics. While, I may find the subject interesting it certainly is not light reading. I do find myself missing the freedom of writing what I want to write. I also miss the reflection time that blogging creates. Which makes me want to promise to blog more but I am not going to make promises I don't know how to keep. I know that if something is important you are suppose to make the time and do it. My current problem is that I have too many things that are important and that have deadlines. Since no one is giving me a blogging deadline it gets shuffled to the back. The way back! School is going great and after every class ...