Midterm and I'm pooped

I just looked at the blog and realized I haven't written anything since Week 3 of the semester. Well, here it is the start of Week 8, and I'm thinking, "Crap, where do I even start?" How about school? I've already lost several students to the imaginary plague this semester so my classes are down to about 12 in each of my Writing I classes and 18 or so in my Writing II classes. That hasn't seemed to make my work load any lighter though. The papers keep coming and piling up. I'm so far behind I don't know where to start.

For the past 3 weeks, I've had to travel to Des Moines for conferences. I also made an impromptu trip to South Bend, IN to see my friend Megan. (She lives in Cleveland, but we split the drive.) We had a great girls' weekend, shopping, hanging out with Max the dog, and checking out the Notre Dame campus. I had no idea how beautiful that place is! It was also cool to get to see Touchdown Jesus in person!

The house is coming along, but thank goodness we didn't have to do a lot when we moved in. It's a daily struggle to get things together for the week let alone get caught up on house projects. We don't dare start anything new! For a while there, Ken was at home and so took care of a lot of household things, laundry, etc. But he's back to work now, so that means we have to find a good balance of trying to get everything done. I seriously don't know how people with kids do it.

Well, I want to get some pictures posted on here of my trip to South Bend, but I have to finally get to some grading tonight. I'll try to get those on soon. Right now I'm just looking forward to a 4-day week!

Week 3 already?!

Now that Labor Day weekend is officially over, it really seems like the school year is in full swing. I am starting to collect early drafts of students' papers so the real work is under way. Pretty soon the "honeymoon" period will be over. I'm also starting to see a few students (but not too many) starting to show up to class less frequently or perhaps not at all. Now that the teachers have had to turn in the attendance numbers for students during the first 2 weeks, the students aren't as concerned about coming as they were before. I know once the financial aid checks are disbursed, the numbers in class will really drop. I can't say as I'm too sad about that as that will mean less grading for me, and as of now with 120 students, having a few less to grade would suit me just fine.

I've had a few student issues, but nothing too serious yet. I had to "get real" with one guy who decided to cop an attitude with me last Friday. He was confused about an assignment, and after I went over it 3 or 4 times in class, he was still confused and claimed that I never discussed it. That's right! I never discussed it! Hmpf! As I was helping him individually, he actually had the nerve to say to me, "Well, you never said that!" I said, "Yes I did. It's not my fault if you weren't listening." What a tool. We'll see how long that one lasts.

We spent the weekend mostly at home with a quick trip to Williamsburg and the Amanas on Saturday. Then dinner and game night with Kelly and Jeff (awesome stuffed shells there Kelly!). Sunday found us doing house projects at home. We were really happy to see friend Melissa and her husband Terry in from Solon. It was so great to catch up! Thanks for the wine you two! And thanks to Linda and family for the housewarming gift. That will work wonderfully for us to maintain our wood floors throughout the house. We are so lucky to have such wonderful friends and family!

Monday meant school work for me and more house projects for Ken, but we did manage to sneak out and do a little furniture shopping. We found a queen-size wooden bed headboard/footboard/rails at Slumberland at an amazing price, so we bought that to go into our guest bedroom. Now we just need to get the mattress and box spring set. The piece we bought won't be delivered for two weeks, but I'm just happy because I can start to visualize that room now. It's currently pink (I'm not a fan of pink) and I'm ready to pursue other color opportunities. The only problem is that the attached bath has pink and lavender tiles so whatever I pick needs to work into that color scheme. Any ideas anyone?

Okay, I'm beat having worked on school stuff since 6:30 this morning. It's now almost 8:45 p.m. and I think it's time to call it quits. Later, all.

First Day of Classes Fall 2010

The first day of classes has come and gone. I've officially entered my 3rd year as a full-time teacher. Get this year over with, and I'll officially be off my probationary period as new faculty. This semester finds me teaching 6 classes (seems to be typical for my Fall semesters now) and serving as a faculty mentor for a new instructor in the drafting and design program. That's pretty cool I think. I'm surprised (and flattered of course) that the Teaching & Learning Center considers me worthy of being someone's mentor as I've only just completed the process of being mentored myself. It's a two-year commitment, so I guess I'm in it for the long haul.

I had 4 Writing I classes today, and I'm happy to say that none of them seems to be "the one" that every teacher dreads. Of course, it was only the first day, so we'll see what happens on Wednesday when the real work actually begins. The afternoon classes each had 4-6 students absent. Can you believe that they would miss the first day? Oh well, I'm sure several will show up on Wednesday and act surprised that classes started on Monday. My favorite was today when a student told me she wouldn't be able to attend on Wednesday (the second day of classes!) because she had to work. Imagine that! Already missing! Gee whiz. I wonder how she'll make it the rest of the semester. Oh well, not my problem I guess. Just not a very good start to the semester, I'd say.

There were a few students who looked completely clueless. I couldn't tell if they were half asleep, fully asleep, high on something, or if that was their natural appearance (I'm sorry for them if it's the latter). I do have to say that there were several who seemed good natured, smiled, spoke up in class, and seemed normal. Alas, I'm sure everyone left the class thinking that I'm weird and perhaps even a little crazy. So I try to make English fun and lively. Is that so wrong? :-)

Nap Anyone?

Today I had high hopes of accomplishing those few extra things that I really wanted to get done before returning to work the week before classes. For example, I was going to write out my first 2 weeks of lesson plans and upload all course material on the Angel site. What did I get done, you ask? Well, I went to church with Ken this morning, came home and quickly picked up the house so that my Aunt Beryl in from Chicago could see the new place, then sat down in the screened porch to read the Sunday paper but fell asleep.

Yes, fell asleep. It was lovely to doze in the fresh air. I'd cleaned the room heavily last week as it hadn't been touched since before we moved in. It was pretty dusty and had its share of dead bugs on the floor. But now it's all clean and spiffy -- a great place to take a nap. The cats were roaming around inside with me enjoying the sights and sounds of birds, so they were happy too.

When I woke up -- about 30 minutes later -- Ken was on his way to Illinois where he was going to help his sister Lisa move into her new house this week. It certainly is the summer of moving! I'll be helping out later as I have to go back to work this week. Yes, I know, poor me.

We discovered one bad thing about the house today. I should say that we actually figured this out just today. It appears that one of our air conditioning units in the house is kaput. We wondered why part of the house was so much warmer than the other part. See, our house has 2 furnaces/central air units: the one that goes to the older part of the house and the one that goes with the addition that was put on in the 50's. They are both relatively new furnaces, but the Home Inspector said that this one wasn't putting out as much cold air as the other. We gave it some time as we were settling in the house. But today, we realized that it was only blowing air, and it wasn't cold air. Ugh. Of course, this would happen right before Ken leaves. I hate this stuff, but I guess one of my jobs this week will be to call the heating/air people and get them to come out and take a look. Thank goodness this week is supposed to be much cooler than the past few.

So that's what's new here. I'm trying to be a lot better about posting. Gotta get myself back into a routine, you know. :-)

The New House

We have officially arrived in our new house. It's wonderful! It was a busy couple of days moving all the stuff out of the duplex and into the house, but thanks to many friends and family, it all came together. I don't have my pictures together yet to show it all, but am planning to do that soon as we get more of the boxes put away.

We're mostly settled in, but there are still some pesky boxes and things lying around that I have no idea what to do with. Don't you hate those things? Keep them or get rid of them? Most of the items are ending up in the basement again to be used at a future date. However, we are proud of ourselves for having gone through much of our things and given them to Ken's sister Maria so that they can try to be sold at her garage sale, the proceeds of which will go toward a new snowblower this year (keep fingers crossed we at least make a little).

It's been such a busy summer that I can hardly understand where the time went. I feel bad not keeping in better touch with friends and family, but I feel as though I've hardly been home. Once Ken came back, we bought our house within 1 week, the next day I left for the AP English Reading in Louisville, KY and was gone for 10 days, then I returned home only to start packing and then leave a few days later for our honeymoon trip to Hawaii. Again, we were gone for 22 days, and once we returned home, we had to get down to business and seriously pack up the house for the big move. I just hope we can get most of the things we need settled before I return to work in a week and a half. The craziness of the semester will set in quickly enough (especially with the 6 classes I'm teaching and my new faculty mentor role I've been asked to take on). Thank goodness Ken will be around home through October when he'll eventually have to go back to work!

More updates and pictures to come later!

Summer 2010 Adventures

Greetings All! I know it's been a long time since I posted, but a lot has happened and there is a lot to report. First and foremost, Ken arrived safely back to Iowa on Memorial Day 2010. It was a wonderful way to celebrate such a holiday. Many family and friends gathered at the Reserve Center to welcome them home. The two buses were led in by the Freedom Riders, a motorcycle group that escorts returning soldiers in to Iowa through their destination. Very cool!

Since he's been home, he's caught up on some much needed sleep and enjoyed visits with friends and family. About a week after he returned home, I had to leave for my annual AP English Language Exam reading in Louisville, KY. While there, I had a great time catching up with friends, Jan, Devon, and Suzie, Rachel and Jackie. Oh yeah, and we did actually do some work in there too. But the cool thing was getting to be someplace new, someplace I've never been to before. I went to the Muhammad Ali Center, the Louisville Slugger Museum/Factory, and Churchill Downs to watch the races. Also, one night, some friends, including Susan K. whom I went to graduate school at UNI with, drove down to the Waverly Hills Sanitorium for a night-time ghost tour! This was so cool! The old building is huge and it was cool to be someplace that the Ghosthunters team had investigated. I highlly recommend such a toor if you're ever in the area.

One other pretty major thing happened the day before I left for Louisville: Ken and I bought a house! Yes, I did say a house! Once he returned, we knew that the time was finally right to do such a thing. The interest rates are incredibly and historically low, we could still take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit (extended for 1 year for soldiers overseas for the past year), and it was a good time to plan a move as it is summer and we could do it before school starts up for me in August and Ken returns to work at Deere sometime in the fall.

In my opinion, we found the perfect house! It's in a really good neighborhood in Waterloo, relatively close to both of our jobs, and it has all the features we wanted in a home (and then some!). It is an older home that has a lot of charm and character, built in 1940. It has 3 bedrooms, an office (with built-in bookshelves!), a formal living room with a fireplace, a screened in porch that someday we hope to turn into a 4-seasons room, a totally remodeled kitchen, a big family room, double garage, and already-landscaped and fenced-in yard. Perhaps one of the best things about it is that we don't have to do any work once we move in (aside from some painting of rooms here and there). We are not exactly the fixer-upper type, having no skills in that area. We can totally see ourselves living there for many years. Oh, and it has 2.5 bathrooms! OMG! I am so excited about that! One of them is even attached to what will become our guest room, so please come visit and stya with us really soon! I can't wait to entertain and welcome friends/family as soon as we get settled.

Now Ken and I are in Iowa City with his dad and Evelyn. His dad needed to have a procedure done to check his heart and did have to have a stent put in, so we stayed overnight. Once Ken and I arrive back in the 'Loo, we're off to look at some furniture this afternoon, then we will be enjoying time with family at the Sturgis Falls days celebration in Cedar Falls this weekend. The next few days will find us continuing to pack up the house for the move next month, and then we're off for our official honeymoon in California and Hawaii. Once we arrive home, we'll close on the house and begin the move out/move in process.

So I think it is safe to say that the summer of 2010 has proven to be a busy one, but one that will be forever memorable. As my friend Lynsey says, "Our life will be all downhill after this summer" what with all these events, trips, and projects going on. I hope she's right! I'm ready to settle down and relax.

Come visit us at the new home place soon!

Reflections on the End: 1 Day to Go

So many of the things on my last blog entry that I said I had yet to do are done. School is done and so I'm settling into my summer routine of sleeping, cleaning, sewing, playing, gardening, and taking full advantage of the Cable I'm paying through the nose for. Tonight: 48 Hours Mystery, The OCD Project, etc. Flipping channels around mostly while I decide if I'm actually tired enough to go to bed after taking my cat nap this afternoon. Yes, the insanity of the school year is fully compensated for in May, June, and July!

Last week, my friend Lynn and I headed to Nebraska to do some work on the new house she bought out there. It was a busy week: we painted, we tore up carpet, we hauled stuff away. I never knew we could accomplish so much in 2 days! We also found time to have fun and hung out with her daughter, the grandkids, and drove into Lincoln to hit some sewing stores and score some good deals!

Since I arrived home, I've been keeping in touch with Ken about his impending arrival home in about 1 more day (Monday). He's in Indiana now taking care of final briefings and such. I'm so ready for him to be home, I can hardly stand the waiting anymore. Just to think about being able to talk to him whenever I want makes me giddy with the thought that I can actually be "married" now. A whole year of so little conversation with him has really been strange and very hard. Such an experience really puts the ole relationship thing to a test. The trust, patience, and love really get tested when you can't just pick up the phone to call each other (well, at least I couldn't) or get an immediate response to a question or issue that's going on.

As this deployment comes to an end, I absolutely must send out millions of heartfelt thanks to all my friends and family who supported me through this situation. Thank you for checking on me, making me laugh, listening to my fears/stresses, for dragging me out of the house when all I wanted to do was hide from the world, and for sending little notes/gifts of support throughout the whole time. Most of all, thank you for being there for me and understanding this situation in the best way you can. Many of you expressed your lack of familiarity with what it means to live with a spouse gone for so long and in such a scary place where the future is uncertain, and while you shared that you didn't know what I was feeling, you also did the best thing possible for me: you were always there when I needed you and more importantly, when I didn't know I needed you. You are all wonderful, and I'm a blessed person to have you in my life. I only hope that I can be as good of a friend to you as you have been to me.

For the first time in a long time, I feel good about things to come. While in Nebraska, I got a call from Ken that said he was back in the States. It took a full day for that to sink in. He was almost home. He was safe. He was on the same continent! I could actually call him on his cell phone. The next day as I was tearing up carpet and tack strips at Lynn's house, I suddenly stopped and said quietly to myself, "It's almost over. It's almost over." After a year of worrying and feeling sad, overwhelmed, worried, lonely, guilty for being here while he isn't, I finally let myself release some of those feelings. I'm hopeful that this next stage in our lives is all that we dreamed it would be.

Welcome Home Kenny!