I'm going to go ahead and pretend that it hasn't been 5 months since I last blogged.....

So it's time to close the pool, well, that's easy to say isn't it? but i was told that you can't just take all the water out of the pump and throw a cover over it and call it 'winterized'. NO! you have to kill all the algae that's been growing for the past month or so...yeah. Well, 10 gallons of bleach later the pool water is now blue (not clear but blue). Now comes phase 2, baking soda. By the way, there seems to be a limit to the amount of baking soda that you can buy before you get weird looks.....I think that it's about 60 lbs but I'm not quite sure. (?) I told Chris that we were going to go swimming one more time before we closed the pool. It's been about 78* during the day so it is possible.

Tonight is our little elementary school's homecoming. :) My little Melia is a cheerleader and seems to have a little admirer from the football team. awww. I find all of this very fascinating, the whole cheerleader/football player thing. I was in the marching band so I got to see such things. It's high school all over again! LOL. Anyway, tonight is the dance and tomorrow is the big game! I love our home games! Go team!

Some Ranting and Raving

It's that time of year again....end of course tests! These tests are pretty much a reflection of how well the teacher is teaching and then how well the student grasps the material. With that said, THERE IS WAY TO MUCH PRESSURE PUT ON OUR LITTLE 3RD, 4TH, AND 5TH GRADERS!!!! Every year Sydney becomes a stressed out mess! This year is no different. She took her Science EOG (end of grade test) and scored a fantastic 99%! She's an A/B honor roll student and has no serious problems until this time of year. Well, today I get a phone call from the guidance department at the school. They said that Sydney had a melt down in class because, Sydney's words, "she made a stupid mistake". She was excused to the bathroom to collect herself but when a teacher found her she was on the floor rocking back and forth and saying that she hated herself! (poor kid!) I know that Sydney goes through this every year but the school seems to get really concerned and we go through all the bullshit of talk about counseling and talk of home life and any major changes....yeah, that's it...every year at this time our home life falls apart but all the rest of the year we're just fine......hhhhhhhhh!!!! I'm just so tired of this run around crap! I know my kid and she's just stressed out about the testing, but there seems to be a team of people that don't trust me or her. I keep telling them to just let it go, let her work through it in her own way but all they want to do it keep talking about it which bothers her/embarrasses her and makes her even more upset and then they think she has more of a problem! I'm all for the help if there were a serious problem but this is just what happens every year when the teachers put the pressure on about the EOGs. Did I mention that the test scores help the teachers keep their jobs? Yeah, it's real cut throat for everyone...nice.

Butt Drugs!

For all my health needs I turn to Butt Drugs!

I got pranked!!

Last night Mr. Cat went outside for his usual pounce-on-bugs-in-the-yard excursion and was nowhere to be seen when I put Melia to bed (he sleeps with her). Well, it came time for me to hit the hay and still no cat. I was not in the mood to stand outside calling, "kitty, kitty, kitty, kitty!" in that higher tone of voice in which you call a cat, nor did I wish to sound like a crazy person for all the valley to hear, so I just went to bed. I figured it was a warm night and he could just camp out somewhere. I got the girls up and off to school, did my normal morning things, and still no Mr. Cat to be seen. I asked the dogs to go find the cat but they just looked at me like I was ridiculous and were no help whatsoever. I got a little worried that Mr. Cat had gone off somewhere and was in trouble! So I did the whole, "Kitty, kitty, kitty!" in the higher tone of voice in which you call a cat....still no cat! hummm...this is not good. I went into Melia's room to turn off her fan, went up a few steps of her bunk bed (so I could reach the switch on top of the fan that is sitting on her dresser) and Mr. Cat jumps up from the bed and I was like, "Holy Moses!!" and I nearly fell to the floor!! He then starts purring and pacing back and forth obviously very proud of himself for pulling off this funny April fools day prank! After I got over the initial shock and rush of adrenaline I had myself a good little chuckle! Oh, Mr. Cat!!

Need A Laugh?

I was just 'cleaning up' some of my bookmarks and came upon this. Thought I'd share it with you! Seems to cheer me up when I'm having a tough day. I hope it does the same for you...

Turns out I'm a Baboon

I took a personality test that my sister Marsha took (she was a sheep) and it turns out I'm a baboon. Go figure! :)

http://animalinyou.com/results.php

The Baboon

Aah, the lighter side of the animal kingdom. It takes brains to be quick witted and amusing and the baboon has plenty of them. But, these are also affectionate creatures, and if you were to watch a family of baboons at play, you'd be struck by the relaxed attitude and the constant touching that goes on between them. There is also a very clear hierarchy in the baboon family. Parents rule the roost, ever ready to teach and chastise misbehaving youngsters, and the husband assumes his role as dominant male. But the ideal of all work and no play makes the baboon's skin crawl, so games and lighthearted fun remain the primary focus of its genteel life.
Baboon personalities come in all shapes and sizes, but are usually powerfully built smaller individuals with bright appealing eyes. Intelligent and shrewd, they are highly adaptable individuals, and as students of the lighter side of life there is nothing they enjoy more than indulging in complicated practical jokes or impromptu comedic performances.
Arguably, they are neither handsome nor plain, and their robust personalities are engaging and charming. Little value is placed on physical exertion and they have a tendency to gain weight in later life. Their most noticeable physical characteristic is an elastic and expressive face, and with their animated communication style they delight in being the center of attention.
Intensely social animals, they work hard to maintain their large, well-run families and insist on order in their households -- brooking no disagreement from their mates or children. They'll never back down from a physical confrontation, although they are rarely aggressive towards members of their own family. When threatened, they are formidable fighters and even larger animal personalities think twice before initiating conflict.
Disdain for physical work leaves them dissatisfied with manual labor unless it contains a strong creative component. In fact, the Kung people of Southern Africa believe that baboons are able to talk but are careful not to let people hear them, lest they be made to work. However, their curious nature makes them perfect for investigative work or journalism. Ultimately however, they only find true happiness when performing as comedians or actors. They function best during the daylight hours, preferring to spend nights quietly in the company of their family.