Crabby Patty

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. I always wondered what that meant... Now I know.

Well, technically I didn't wake up on the wrong side of the bed. I woke up too early and then couldn't go back to sleep. Ian came in to my room about 3:00 a.m. and said he had a bad dream. He asked if he could get in bed with me. ARGH! I told him to go back to bed and try to go back to sleep. 30 minutes later, he's back. So I let him in... After that, no sleep.

He woke up about 5:30 and made himself breakfast. Too noisy--couldn't sleep.

I'm grouchy today because I didn't get enough sleep. It happens...

Why is it that I managed to go to school and be nice and polite to my students and other teachers, but then when I get with my family I turn into a grouch? Why do we take it out on the ones we love the most? This has always puzzled me. We should be the most Christlike and loving to those we live with, right? Yet, I'm a crabby mom to them when I'm tired.

I was informed this week that I have 30 minutes for music time this week, instead of my normal 15. I'm frantically looking for ideas and came across some great ones. I put a button on my blog page to one of the sites. Very cute ideas--not only for Primary but for other church organizations as well. I also found an about.com website that had a TON of ideas. I think I might use the Candyland game board to have them sing songs different ways (red=hum, purple=sing "la", etc.) We've learned five songs for the program thus far and this way we could review them without getting bored. Just a thought...

Ian has a wrestling tournament tomorrow. He's pretty excited. Hopefully more kids will be at it this time. Last tournament there were only three in his weight class. He took 2nd. :) Hey, a medal is a medal, right?

Gordon is having his Elder's Quorum presidency and their families over for dinner tomorrow night so I guess I should clean the house. It gets kind of messy during the week when we're all so busy. That's why Saturday is a special day!

Love to all...

Just so tired!

Why? Why?

Since spring break, and for that matter, during spring break, I just feel excessively tired. I can't seem to get enough sleep. It started the Sunday before spring break. I woke up feeling exhausted, went to church and while I was leading the music in Sacrament Meeting, I just felt completely spent. I couldn't keep my eyes open and just felt limp... Gordon covered for me in Primary and I went home.

I just never seem to feel good. Maybe I have a brain cloud. (Someone I know has one!) :)

I started going to the gym and hour a day on Monday. (Yeah, I know, its only been 2 days...the point is, I'm back.) I thought that would lift my spirits and give me more energy--it has in the past. Nada so far.

Por que, Maria?

Spring Break and BlackBerries

This week was my spring break for me and my kiddies. Not much happened, which is just the way I like it. I felt kind of lousy for the first few days, so spent lazy days around the house. Ian and Courtnie had friends over, so all was good.

Sunday Ian passed the sacrament in our ward for the first time. He was all set to go, ready to pass the sacrament to the bishop first, when our stake president showed up. Ian wasn't prepared for that, and got all nervous and flustered. He did a great job--was so reverent and serious. I was a VERY proud mama! :)

Monday I had an MRI (follow-up) to make sure all is still good from my surgery last December. I went to the hospital to have this done, as I've sworn off going to the other "imaging" center in Prescott. (The radiologist there told me that my veins "suck," and also botched up my biopsy.)

So...I get to the hospital after drinking over 32 ounces of water to get my veins all pumped up, as I knew I'd need an IV. After calling in five separate people--from the ER nurse to the ICU nurse to find a vein, they finally found one on the 6th try. Not too shabby! By this time, however I my bladders issues were pressing, but I didn't want to disrupt the procedure, so I waited.

By the time they were about 3/4 of the way done, I was in so much pain from over-extending my bladder! I pressed the button and called for a "potty break." They all laughed and said they were wondering when I'd need to go--they'd been watching my bladder on the screen and said it looked VERY full. Nice of them to ask, huh? ;oP

Tuesday Ian and I had a shopping day at Costco. Is it just me, or do they send out those coupon books to lure you in and get you to buy things you wouldn't normally buy? Hmmm...

Wednesday=lazy movie day. Nice, nice, nice.

Thursday I went into school. Finished my lame 301 binder that was due at Christmas time and started working with my pit kids on the music for "Guys and Dolls." Can't WAIT to do this--one of my favorite musicals of all time, and the music is so great to play. I love doing musicals, as I get to work with my favorite kids for longer periods of time. We have a great time...

Today is my reading day. Gordon is taking the kids to see "Race to Witch Mountain" (or whatever "Witch Mountain" movie it is...) I'm really into my book right now and would rather stay home and read. Does that make me anti-social? (I'm reading "Helen of Troy," by the way...)

Last Friday I got my new phone--a BlackBerry Pearl. I've been wanting a smartphone for a while now, and bought one off of ebay. I love it, even though it frustrates me from time to time. Why do I keep getting random text messages that say n:m=1=1? Why? Luckily there are several "CrackBerry" forums that answer my questions.

I've already downloaded the Standard Works and Hymns to it, and have had fun saving new ringtones and typing in my calendar. I'm a geek, I know it...but I'm having fun.

Blah-Blah-Blah-Blogging

So, I've basically decided that there are many different kinds of bloggers and blog entries.

Some write as if writing in a journal. They share their thoughts and feelings, not thinking of the outcome that those thoughts and feelings might have on those who may read them. (Or maybe they are, and want a reaction--I'm not sure.) Its funny to me how often people who write these kinds of blogs are shocked and surprised when they get a reaction--be it good, bad, indifferent, or just downright ugly. When you post something for the public to read, you need to expect that some members of the public will read it.

There are others who write fun stuff for families and friends to share as a sort of "online scrapbook." They share pictures of their families and funny/cute anecdotes about them. My sisters do this well. It's fun to read about the lives of their kids--especially when I live so far away.

I blog for a reaction. I get a kick out of knowing that people are reading my thoughts and care about what I have to say. I have always enjoyed the written word--one might say reading and writing are two of my greatest joys. I love sharing my day-to-day joys and sorrows, my kid's accomplishments and feats. I don't post as often as I should, but that's because life gets in the way too often.

I also have a journal that I keep. In there I write things for me only. Someday my kids and grandkids might enjoy reading what I've written, but for right now, I like to keep those thoughts to myself. Those are thoughts that are deeply personal to me, and I don't want a "reaction" from them.

Someone recently said that I have an unhappy life. Quite the contrary is true. (How could this person know these things when I've spent less than 2 hours with them in the last 10 years?) My dad and grandparents were just here and told me that I looked happier than I've ever been. People I know only casually stop me to tell me how good, happy and content I look. This is the true statement. I am so fulfilled in my life--I have an amazing husband who is my best friend and #1 fan. I have two great kids who are as different as night and day, but who both bring so much joy to my life. Being a mother to them has meant more to me than anything. I relish the time we share together. If my son is a "brat," it is something we are working on, and something YOU would know nothing about. Funny, yet again, how things are misconstrued.

I have THE most amazing job in the world. I get to help students succeed, not only musically, but as people. Through music, they learn discipline and that hard work yields great rewards. I can't imagine doing anything else with my life.

Mostly, I have a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that He is my Savior and my Older Brother. I know that I can turn to Him in times of sorrow and confusion--such as what I'm feeling right now. I know that things will work out and that--in then end--answers will come to light. For now, I have to trust in Him and trust in myself. That's all I can do.

I love my family. Funny how this kind of garbage can bring us all closer together. Sorry that we have to go through all of this to get there sometimes. Just know that we'll always have each other. Lean on that.

State Wrestling Tournament

So, here is Ian wrestling in his last "winning" match of the tournament. Here's how it ran down:

1st round: Lost to the returning state champion. (He got pinned in the first period.)

2nd round: Moved to "losers" bracket--best he could hope for would be 3rd place. He won this round by pinning his opponent in the first period.

3rd round: Pinned his opponent in 28 seconds. (I missed it...was out getting lunch.) :(

4th round: This is the one you'll see above. He pinned his opponent again.

5th round: Lost by points after three periods. A tough match!

He has had the time of his life this year in wrestling and has truly fallen in love with the sport. He wants to make wrestling his main sport from now on and is looking for opportunities to keep wrestling year-round. His goal is to be a state champion...I'm sure he can do it. He has a lot of natural talent for it--Gordon is always saying that he has the head of a wrestler and has come up with his own moves that seem to work very well for him. I'm just so excited that he's found something he loves and is good at.

I'm also SO jealous of him, as the phrase "can't chew gum and walk at the same time" applies to my abilities in any kind of sport. I always wanted to be good at sports and PE, but I was always the one to be picked last or to fail my physical fitness test. I'm just always in awe of Ian and his abilites.

He gets the priesthood in one month. I can't believe it! Where does the time go?

We Are the Champions

Ian took 3rd place in his 2nd wrestling tournament ever. We were so proud!

He won his first match in triple overtime--it was a TOUGH match! The second match he lost, which put him in the bottom bracket and the best he could hope for was 3rd place. He had a bye the 3rd round, and then wrestled for 3rd place in his next match. He wrestled the SAME kid he won in the first round and pinned him in about 30 seconds! It was awesome.

Ian continually amazes me with his athletic ability. As someone who has struggled with even chewing gum and walking at the same time, I am envious of Ian. Things seem to come so easy for him in that area. I'm so proud of him and the fact that he's having such a great time doing this.

Almost better that him winning 3rd place is the fact that we FINALLY got him to get his hair cut. You can see his eyes now! :)

80 Degrees of Separation

We got the "bug" to come to Chandler this weekend. It's been a long time since we've visited Gordon's family and we figured it was about time! The ride down was tough for me--I wasn't comfortable AT ALL!! But, it's good to visit with family.

Josh is taking the opportunity with us gone to camp out in our back yard. How funny. I wouldn't want to camp out anywhere that it gets to 20 degrees at night, but whatever...20 bucks says they end up in my living room by 10:00. :) He and Kassie got a HUGE dog--now, when I say HUGE, I mean HUGE!! It's a Great Dane/Mastiff mix and it's bigger than Ian. He brought it over on Thursday and it was fun to watch Molly and our little Polly play together. We thought for sure it would be a disaster, but they got along very well.

I went to see Dr. Funk on Tuesday. He gave me a copy of the pathology report and told me about follow-up we'd need to do for the next few years. The pathology report said it was "renal cell carcinoma" (cancer.) I'll have MRIs in 3 months, 6 months and then every 6 months for the next four years. I'll also need blood tests and a chest x-ray every time, as the cancer (if it spreads) will most likely manifest itself in my lungs or blood. I'm sure I'll be fine.

He said that he has had one other case like mine. A young man was being treated for testicular cancer with radiation and years later developed cancerous tumors in the lower part of his kidneys that were exposed to the radiation. Interesting--it's good to know that we may have an answer to where this came from. Dr. Funk didn't know if I'd get more tumors or if this is it--time will tell, I guess.

I was thinking on the way to Chandler that it's been a rough two years for me. It all started about two years ago with my gallbladder pain. What a blessing it is to have modern medicine that allows us to "find" these things that would otherwise go un-noticed until it might have been too late. Kidney cancer doesn't usually manifest itself on its own, so I feel fortunate that it was found early.

Bought new garments today--woo hoo! There's nothing like new garments! I even bought a size smaller...see--there's always something worth celebrating!

Happy New Year!