Run Run Rudolph

Lately... lately has been crazy.

You know that scene in Home Alone... when they are in a hurry to get to the airport and "Run Run Rudolph" is playing?  THAT is how I've felt.  Every Day.  Pretty much every day since spring break.  From the time the alarm goes off it is like Chuck Berry singing in my ear, "Run run rudolph, Santa gotta make it to town."  (of course I googled that singer's name... who actually knows the name of the guy who sings run run rudolph?)

Joe and I have both been like this.  I looked at him the other day and said, "How do people do this AND take care of another living creature?"  Sue's pretty tulips didn't last too long.  I have a dream of owning two kittens come August...but that just may not happen til we get a grip on this fast speed at which we're traveling. 

Joe has some excuses... he's taking a class and in charge of the intramural program at school.  His Rudolph's got places to go.  I, however, am just trying (and often failing) to get to 2 exercise classes a week while feeding and dressing myself like every other normal functioning human.   True, school is still taking up a lot of my energy right now.  I'm really hoping 3rd year teaching lives up to the rumors I hear... that it is actually easier than the first two. 

As for working on the house... ha.  We don't even have time to really enjoy the house we've put together so far, let alone improve upon it.  I don't even have the energy to update my photos and post pictures of my sweet little kitchen chairs we picked up Friday (story later on how that went).

To top it off... I think we're getting sick.  And we have a wedding this weekend.  Joe has been in bed since 8:15 and he took a 2 hour nap this afternoon.  That's a sign right?  He's getting sick.  I'm doing my usual overdose of vitamins in hopes of heading the damn thing off.  Today, when my fifth period got back from lunch, I announced that we were having quiet time.  10 minutes of quiet time.  (5th period is 20 minutes longer than all the others.)  They loved it.  I loved it.  We are all exhausted.  We're having quiet time every day from now on.  Thank god for summer.  If there wasn't a summer, then something would have to give.  But there is a summer.  That's when it'll slow down.  I just hope my Rudolph doesn't run out of gas before then.  

P.S. I don't know why some of the words on my blog are underlined and orange like a link to something.  I didn't make them like that.  I don't know how to unmake them. 

House life

Other randomness about living in a house:

5) (or whatever number I'm on from last blog post) - Driving time! -- so this is maybe one of my top
      favorite changes.  We used to live 30 seconds from the school.  Literally.  Like, I should've been walking to school, but that never happened.  Take that environmentalist tomfoolery somewhere else for this one.  It is a rare day in MS that you get beautiful walking weather in the morning AND afternoon.  Plus I am "bag lady" going and leaving school.  Plus I got cute shoes.  ANYWAY,
When your "drive" is that short, you don't have time to take even one sip of coffee or listen to one second of radio.  The second your butt settles into the seat it is time to get out of the car.  I have thoroughly enjoyed my looooong and relaxing 10 minute drive to work.  I even eat my breakfast in the car as I sip my coffee MULTIPLE times to the sound of NPR/MPB - and I get to hear the complete news story!  It's truly fabulous.  And it's extra fabulous the mornings Joe and I ride together (does this make up for us not walking to school?... I think so)

6) Driving time part 2 = phone time.   I can make more phone calls now that I have some car time.  In Tallahassee this was always the time I caught up with Mom or some friends.  But since moving to Oxford I'm rarely in the car long enough to make a phone call as everything is only 3 or 5 minutes away.

7) Neighbors -- all you get from apartment neighbors is noise through the walls.  We barely ever saw them.  House neighbors you see occasionally and never have to hear them through the walls.  (we had a guitar player on the other side of the bedroom back at the apartment).  Also, (and this has made us feel super old) you might have an awesome neighbor that brings you tulips and cookies.  Sue from New York is proving to be quite the friendly neighbor with excellent taste in flowers and desserts.

8) Light switches -- there are a million of them.  We spent the first few days just figuring out what they do.  But no matter how many times I go to turn a light off/on I still manage to try all the wrong switches first.   It would be tacky to label them right?  

8.2) Motion lights... this light switch had to be turned off.  One night I thought we were getting robbed because I heard the screen door bang and then the motion light outside our bedroom kept blinking.  This light has been turned off until we can get the sensor fixed or something because it had me creeping around the house peering out every window looking for robbers at 3 am.  I don't know what my plan was if I'd actually seen robbers.  Joe slept soundly until I poked him and informed him the screen door kept banging.  He was unconcerned. 


9) Entertaining -  you don't invite people over for dinner in an apartment. . . at least not our weeee one.  Sure, we had people come stay for the weekend but we didn't have people over just because.  Especially since our other friends here have houses.  But now, we can entertain guests.  So far we've had 2 dinner nights with friends and 1 porch sitting afternoon with crawfish (and friends).  The first couple that came over was Amber and Duncan.  We set the table and then sat by the window waiting for them to get here... I felt like we were kids waiting for our birthday party to start.  So excited.

Mike and Murry 


Crawfish with Christine and Jarrot (sp?)













Spring breaking --not at our house.  Just trying to make him look cooler than those house slippers did.

We bought a house

I never want to buy another house as long as I live.  So it's a good thing I'm in love with this one.

We started really courting this house in January.  It was the most exhausting courtship.  Going to banks, discovering how important credit was (and how detrimental NO credit was), and learning a WHOLE new vocabulary related to house buying.  Some of our favorites:
esgro
origination fee
amorization
earnest money

I feel like I really learned to speak another language.  And like another language, I now find myself having conversations in this language.  Conversations I never used to have but can now have with people who know this language too.  Conversations that start up and about half way through I think "Oh wow we are really talking about this.  How boring / foreign this would've been to me a year ago or even a 4 months ago."

Once things started rolling with the bank and the headache of daily scanning documents came to an end (they even needed my FSU diploma) we really started to believe we might get this house.  I didn't let myself get excited until the day before closing.  Again, "are you excited??" -- NO, this is not exciting.  Nothing about buying the house was exciting to me.  Exhausting.  Tedious.  Time consuming.  Those are adjectives I'd use.  "Exciting" is saved until AFTER the closing.

We closed March 1.   We took a half day off of school.  It was lightly snowing as we ran around the house with the inspector who was inspecting the house literally 2 hours before we were supposed to close.  Then, we signed a gozillion documents in a nice little law office and just like that - the house was ours.

We moved in right before spring break.  I dislike moving almost as much as house buying.  But Joe got some big strong boys from the power lifting team to help.  You'd think the worst would be moving the big stuff, but for me it's all the random little crap that is a pain.  On the last day we were trying to get all the random little crap out of the apt. things happened like:  Joe dropping and shattering a glass jar on the kitchen floor or me tracking in a dollop of dog poo on my shoe.  Small things in the end but headaches at the time.

We LUCKED out and overheard a girl at church talking about this estate sale she was running.  We went to look at what she had and scored two bedroom sets of wooden furniture. 

 There's another wooden bed frame and dresser with mirror for the guest bedroom.  So come one come all .. you are invited to our house.

We have quickly entered the world of decorating (which comes with vocab of it's own).  This we learned is called a "great room."  And it is a great room.  Or it will be one day when we get it looking great. 

 Joe and our couch cushion as we traveled Oxford to find rugs.  We're gonna need lots of rugs.  Sound is bouncing all around our empty concrete floors. 

 He found this chair.  Major improvement from ugly orange one.  Look at that comfort. 

 We didn't buy this rug.  But we looked at lots like it.  I don't have a pic of the one we picked.  It'll be here soon.

 Things about living in a house (especially one with no rugs) :  1) You need house shoes.  House shoes also mean that the sound of shuffling feet on the floor is becoming very familiar. 

2) Infinite space (or seemingly infinite space compared to apartment).  The kitchen is suuuch a long walk from the bathroom in the morning.  Your cell phone can ring and you don't even have time to reach it... you may not even hear it.  This didn't happen in the apartment.  If Joe is out in the "great room" and I'm in the bathroom... I may as well be in Memphis. 

3) Unsolicited (yet much needed) advice -  big things in life tend to come with this.  Weddings, Kids, and Houses.  People got either advice or stories about their own and they like to share it with you.  Seeing as how most adults our age and older live in a house, there is plenty of advice going around.  But it's advice you really try and listen to cause it's your house...and you wanna get it right.
 
4) The answer to "What'd you do this week or over the break?" is and will probably forever be "We worked on the house." 

We are old.  
More on the exciting world of interior decorating later. 

Married with(out) Children

 Been a wife for about 5 weeks now.  Just finished "our first Christmas." 

It's been fun.  That's my response to "How's married life?"  Cause it is so far.  People may say "is it really that different?"  And the answer is yes, cause Joe and I were not really living together before. 

        So waking up and going to bed with someone on workdays is different and fun.  We fell into a morning routine pretty easily (which I'm sure is interesting to nobody...so you can skip to next paragraph):  Joe tends to start the coffee and boiling the eggs while I start to get ready.  Then he gets ready and I finish up breakfast and get our lunches ready (which entails putting frozen food and other snacks in a bag.  I abhor sandwiches ...both the eating of and making of sandwiches).  Then we're off to work in the same car.  Fun fun fun.  (once you're married your idea of fun drastically changes).

      Whether our future involves children or not is yet to be seen.  We've seen enough struggles and heartache of others to know that no matter what we want, it could or couln't happen.  And we won't know until we decide we're ready to know.  Ya know?  Anyway, the point is we have enough friends with children to realize how precious our freedom is.  We don't even have pets.  As much as I want two ittle bitty kittens, I love that we can just pick up and go.  No responsibilities beyond making sure the coffee pot and the air is turned off before leaving.  Our New Year's plans are New Orleans.  Our weekends recently have consisted of bar hopping with childless friends, staying out past midnight, and swinging by Sonic/Taco Bell before calling it a night.   I know...we're pathetic.  Midnight..ooooo...we're so wild.  This should not be an accomplishment.  But it is for us.  And it has been fun.  Sitting around the table one night at Ajax with a group of people I thought, "This won't be forever."  We'll get older.  People will have kids or ... [insert other adulthood events] and this will end.  This is so fun right now.  I want to enjoy it while it lasts.  Just my overuse of the word "fun" in my last few posts could prove later that this is the time of our lives.  

       In the meantime, our goal for now is to decide what to do about a house.  We feel like the smart thing to do (since our plans don't include leaving Oxford ANY time soon) is get one.  This whole house-buying business makes me feel more adult than having a husband, kitten, or child.  We have laid out a "one-pay-check challenge" for ourselves for the month of January.  The goal:  (it's pretty self explanatory) live off one pay check for the month / save money.  The real challenge:  how to take the one-check-challenge while also "enjoying it while it lasts."  We don't want to lose friends because we are trying to save.  We don't want to miss out on this wonderful time of little responsibility.  We are not willing to sacrifice EVERYTHING.  So maybe we're not ready for the one-check challenge.  We're naive enough to think we can do it.  Just have one drink instead of 3.  Split an appetizer instead of ordering two entrees.  See, we can still have a social life and save money.  (You think I don't, but I do see you rolling your eyes).

     I would like to end with tipping my hat to two couples with kids.  Amber and Duncan -- 2 kids and a newborn.  Also, Thomas and Madelyn.  2 kids, one on the way.  Both these couples are raising kids and also trying to sell a house.  Our time and friendships with these couples make us realize... well ... make us glad we don't have kids yet.  We also realize if we're ever in their parental shoes, we will need all the help and wisdom they can offer.
            One day I'm sure we'll look back and laugh at how proud we were of these insignificant accomplishments:  establishing a married morning routine, cooking 4 days a week instead of eating out, living off one pay check for FUN.  We will probably yearn for the days when this was our life.  Which is all the more reason to enjoy it now.

Our first thanksgiving

Move in day

boys bathroom

Husband chair

husband chores

husband life is hard

Are you excited?

         If I thought getting engaged was fun, getting married was really fun.  Planning to get married was not really fun.  Some how we pulled it off.
Here's how it went down:
One week after engagement Joe and I were driving around looking at possible reception locations--not fun at all.  So between Joe, my dad, and me (I?) we came up with an alternative wedding plan.  Dad wanted us to elope.  For real elope.  Ideally we would get married without his knowledge and then call him up afterwards to inform him the deed was done.  Those of you thinking, "Oh that's not REALLY what he'd want. He's your dad."  You know nothing and you are wrong.  Joe and I wanted some form of ceremony and small celebration, but we did not want the big thing.  Fast forward to when mom got home (she'd been hiking), we had it all laid out.  Get married in Southaven, go party on Beale Street.  Invite some close friends and fam to come along if they want.
         That's mostly what happened, but mom made sure it wasn't just "Y'all come on to the bar if you want...whatever"  We provided food and drinks through the bar (Rum Boogie) and had a little (ok a lot) more southern hospitality than my original, discourteous plan.  Thank God for mamas.
               It was hard drawing a line when it came to the guest list.  We basically just went with who would've been bridesmaids/groomsmen.  Once you added them plus dates plus family... that number jumps up fast.  People tell you "just do what you want."  We wanted small so we drew the line even though it meant not including some very dear people in our lives.  
Like I said, we pulled it off and it was my favorite day.  But even planning the little wedding we had was at times more than I could handle along with teaching (refer to Year 2 post).

As your wedding approaches, more than one person a day asks you "Are you excited?"
I was baffled at how often this was asked and, at first, irritated that these people didn't already know the answer.  Then I realized, it's just one of those things you ask.  Like, what else are they supposed to ask/say?      "I'm so sorry for your loss" is to Funerals as "Are you excited?" is to Weddings.  But between trying to keep it a secret from our students and also just being consumed with school, I didn't really feel excited until the Friday before.  And then that Friday morning I woke up with that tiny itch or twinge or whatever name you give to that feeling of "Oh no I'm getting sick."  Shit.

I pounded vitamin C and other vitamins the whole day.  Excitement took a backseat to straight-up survival mode.  I could NOT be sick on my favorite day.  (also Friday was my birthday... that definitely didn't matter at this point).  I went home and had about an hour to myself to try to nap.  Sleep is what I needed and what I'd been lacking all week.  But I don't fall asleep easily and after an hour, people started arriving:  first my brother then Beth.  I hadn't told anyone I was feeling bad.  I couldn't give the germs any more power.  So I picked myself up and put on a big "I'm healthy and excited face."

After an evening of taco soup and fire pit at Joe's parents house, in which I tried my best but may have failed in appearing excited,  a few of my girls and I went back to my apartment.  Instead of wine we all started drinking Vitamin C followed by confessions of how we all felt like we might be getting a little sick.

The next morning I woke up and couldn't breathe out of my nose.  I felt awful.  It was early.  I still needed sleep.  It's my wedding day.  I WILL feel fabulous. Idea: "I'll take a bunch of vitamins, go back to sleep, and during sleep the vitamins will aid my immune system in fighting the sickness"  Worst idea ever.  I ate like a bite of bread (never take vitamins on empty stomach...check) then downed 5 different vitamins or herbs.  Oh so dumb.  Never take vitamins on a bite of bread either.  I sat on the couch for 5 minutes then ran to the toilet to expel those vile vitamins.  Beth woke up in panic, assuming I had a virus.  No, no.  Just vitamin overdose.  I deserved all the making-fun-of I got for this stupid act of self-medication.

After vomiting I slept some more and all was fine.  The adrenaline of the day (and Claritin D) kicked in around 2:00 and I felt fine the rest of the day.... until Sunday morning when my body succumbed to exhaustion and the sickness germs.  But even the morning of consisted of "are you excited?"... which was difficult to answer with enough cheer due to secret sickness (only my overnight guests Anna, Elise, and Beth knew about sickness and vitamin vomit session). 

The other wedding confession I'd like to make before wrapping up this long post will be subtitled:  "Spanx potty training."  I wore Spanx under my dress.  Full body armor from thigh to rib cage--to create a smooth, no see through effect.  I didn't have to pee until after the wedding.  Joe and I checked into the Peabody.  This was the time I had to pee.  Should be easy.  The Spanx has an escape hole so you don't have to de-Spanx.  I thought I had it under control.  The sound of liquid trickling into the toilet confirmed that I did.  The feeling of something warm filling up my left Spanx leg confirmed that I did not.  Somehow half of the pee ended up taking a detour back into the Spanx.  To sum it up:  I peed myself on my wedding night.  Before the reception at Rum Boogie Bar.  The night was nowhere near over.  It was fine.  I dried off and soldiered on.  I think I told two other people... (it was too funny not to).  And now I'm putting it here. 

Professional photos will follow as soon as my photographers (Chad and the beloved Pablo) finish their editing.
I can't wait.  For two weeks, every Saturday I woke up and wished for a wedding day replay:
my friends piled on my bed in the morning eating Bet's pimento and cheese
walking to High point for coffee with mom, bet, carly, adam, etc.
a girl tornado of showers and blow dryers at my apt as other friends drop by to drop off wedding gifts
caravan to Southaven
champagne out of pee cups courtesy of Anna Marsh Selby
First dance:  "Love the one you're with"
and so much more.

Walking to high point

            

Hildebrand brings a veil

Series:  Anna finds sticks

Prep team

Beale Street y'all.

This girl has the excited face DOWN.

If you can't be with the one you love....

So excited.  So happy.

 

Year 2

Exhaustion beyond recognition.  I mean there's recognition... I sure as hell recognize this exhaustion.  By "beyond recognition" I mean I am so tired I am having trouble recognizing things.  Like recognizing I am headed towards the wrong car until I get right up to the door handle.  Then recognizing I had not even parked in that area of the parking lot.  Not even close.  ....That happened today at the gym after my first day of school of my second year teaching high school.

Feelings the same.  eyes crossing feeling.. like they are headed to the area between my eyebrows.  Like they are moving their to create a uni or something.  Anger at having to do extra things that boys don't (drying hair, shaving legs and armpits)... really I get frustrated at the time these actions require of me... and they only take minutes.. that's how precious my minutes become. 

small feelings of "i'm not ready"  not to the point of terror and insecurity.  and I Have no idea what to do.  this year i have an idea.. jsut have to organize them.  so that is better.

know more faces.  good and bad about that.  The ones I know are more comfortable with me and therefore talk more or feel more confidence in being laid back and arrogant.  It's good though cause we already have a relationship.  I love being able to joke around (be sarcastic) with the kids and know that they get me already. 

Mrs. West... this time last year .  remembering her and how much more time i wish i'd had with her.
 More on that.  Mrs. West was the teacher across the hall from me.  She was very experienced.  Older.  Much older.  larger (taller and bigger).  She had short peppered hair and glasses.  I just want to paint the picture of her so a I remember her.  She mostly wore cotton dresses.  During class transitions she stood in the hall (like we're supposed to do but I can never make it there... always doing some last minute work or something frantic like that).   But the few times i'd make it into the hall, she was there... telling kids (just passersby, not her own students) to put their ID's on.  I'd think "I can't do that.... tell kids I don't even know to put their id's on in the hall??" ... As a second year i can see more now how that is not a big deal.  They are all kids.  I thought to myself "maybe one day i'll be in a place where my concern can be students' id's who aren't even my students"   For the record, i'm not there yet.

Mainly, I remember Mrs. West b/c one day, across the hall, she was looking at me and she asked, "I'm gonna be a mother right now and ask a question.  Are you taking a multi vitamin?"
I said no . . . . why? do I look like i need to be?

She said, "yes"

Well that summed up my first year.  Looking like I needed a multi-vitamin.  Mrs. West retired in Februrary or March of that year.  She had some illness that made her dizzy and she carried a cane so she left school early.  I hated for her to leave.  She had so many years of experience that could field the inundation of questions I had for her... and would still have for her.  This year I finally have A LITTLE more time to ask the questions.  I wonder if I'll ever be in that spot... if I'll ever make it to that time where I'm sniffin on retirement and staring across the hall at some malnourished newbie... doling out advise and vitamins.  Who knows.  To be determined.  The things is, Mrs West didn't want to quit.  She loved teaching.  That is an even harder spot to imagine myself in.  It's an extremely admirable spot.      

Here's to Mrs. West. 

How is my hand like a piece of pie

Cause it's got meRINGue on it!


So it's only been a little over a week since he popped the question but it feels like forever.  The 2 days after, I was able to relive the engagement in my head and still feel the adrenaline rush from the surprise I felt when I turned around and saw Joe down on his knee.  But after about the 30th time of retelling the story, it just becomes a story you're telling... not feeling. 

So I should've written this in those days immediately after... but of course I can still remember everything.  Friday night we drove down to camp for P-Staff reunion.  Good times with friends that night and then Saturday morning we got up and left the Big House on foot headed towards camp.  Joe had slipped the ring in his pocket as I brushed my teeth.  I had no idea.  I was exhausted and had only been thinking about school (we had just finished 2 days with students).  And on that morning I was just thinking about breakfast.  It was a little warm but as we got closer to camp Joe said "Let's walk behind the chapel and around back a little bit"
This was not weird to me.  We like to try and be healthy and walk some.  (on friday afternoon he said "bring something to walk in" .. i said "ummm i'm not gonna do a lot of walking" because I just planned on drinking and sleeping and relaxing.  "but I can walk a little in what i'm bringing")

We walked around cabins A B and C.  At that point we were talking about a ball box that camp could bring back to the basketball court (cause we were walking by the bball court)... Nothing exciting.  Then he said "let's walk over to the bench"--- this bench is where we used to make out in high school (and a bench several other couples claim to be THEIR bench).  It's in a great spot by the lake.  Far enough away from people. ...   So we walked over there.  Sure, i thought,  why not. 
Then I proceeded to tell some idiotic story from the night before.  I stopped my story, not sure if joe wanted to sit on the bench or something or just walk by.  I was standing behind it when I said "ok can we get outta here" --again, breakfast was the main thing on my mind. I turned towards the dining hall.

He said "hold on you wanna hear something crazy first"
"Sure" i said as I turned and expected to hear some crazy piece of gossip he obtained the night before.

And there he was.  Knee down.  Ring out.  It's amazing how many things your brain can register at once.  Here are the thoughts that ran through my mind all at once
oh my gosh.  this is happening.  when did he plan this.  he's been planning this!  where'd this ring come from.  Look at that ring.  This is the story we'll tell.  oh my gosh what am I wearing.  (neon yellow shirt, neon pink shorts and a lavender hat with Dylan's name airbrushed on it)

Screaming commenced and then hugging.  Joe cried first.  Then me.  THen we sat on bench and talked about:  what just happened, how he came about this ring (thanks to Amie and Jason on that one), how he told our parents.  More screaming and hugging and smiling.

Amie and Jason (the only people outside of family that knew) drove their mini-van down by the lake after joe text them (amie had been texting all morning wandering if it'd happened).  They got out as I was on the phone with mom and more hugs and tears.  Amie had a fun happy for us full of t-shirts, drinking glasses with an S, boa, veil, and wedding mags.

Grae walked down to see what was going on.  Not sure if he suspected something or just wanted to see what was going on.  Then we drove up in the mini with our new outfits on and showed them off to the crowd of girls in the pool.

It was fun to see people's reactions all morning as they stumbled in to the dining hall.  They'd look at us weird (pink shirts and a veil) and we all stared at them waiting for the reaction, it usually took me throwing up my hand for it to completely register in their fuzzy morning heads what was happening.  Then followed by "oh S&$* or F#$%"   more hugs.

So like i said... i relived this in my head several times and could still relive the emotions.  That was fun.  But teaching has a way of quickly snapping you back down from the mountain.  It tends to push all other thoughts and emotions out of the way as it requires 102 percent of my attention.  So teach teach teach then I'd remember.  Of course monday was fun.... some kids knew already some didn't.  some didn't find out til days later.  As a teacher you learn that you can't stop teaching for every special occasion.  Kids are just waiting for those days.  5th period's idea "we should throw you an engagement party"  Maybe this sounds sweet to you... but don't be fooled.  That's what they want you to think.. They really just will do anything to not have regular class.  And they have no shame.

So fun.  Getting engaged is SO FUN!