Okay, so obviously I've been beyond bad at keeping up on here. In a nutshell: We're all a little older, all still alive. The end.
Well, not the end. I've been feeling the urge to actually do better at this. I need to write; it's just part of who I am. And yet, the novel is still stalled at the 5000 or so words it has been almost since I started it almost 15 years ago. (That's FIFTEEN years. Not believable, and yet, true.) The story is there in my head, jumbling around with two other solid ones and several more wisps. But why don't I write?
Fear. I am nothing if not chicken. Fear that I can't make it long enough to actually be a novel. Fear that people will not like the plot, or the characters, or my vocabulary or...me. The few people whom I've actually had the nerve to show it to like it, but they are my friends, so they don't count. (No offense, friends. You know what I mean.)
At any rate, maybe if I just make some time to write something (in other words, this blog) on a fairly regular basis, I will get some courage.
So here we go.
Teacher, mom, writer, coach...too much to do, too little time. One day I'll write that novel. And one day my house will be clean. With all the unfinished projects I have, I won't die until I'm 293. Now, can someone tell me please, where did I leave my brain?
Monday, February 18, 2013
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Yearly update?
Whatever. There was a party here yesterday! Andy and Sara were home from Portland, and we had 10 kids from 2 1/2 to 8 for Canna's fourth birthday party, complete with pirate theme. We painted treasure chests, floated boats on our little swimming pool, played "stick the treasure on the treasure map", ate "Pirate pizzas" and pirate cupcakes, and had a pirate ship pinata.
See?
See?
Monday, July 5, 2010
"Birthdays. They come. They go. They come again."--Eeyore
As many of you know, Eeyore is my hero. I own his Gloomy Little Book of Instructions. But I'm not writing about Eeyore today. I'm writing about birthdays.
Today is my 46th. I don't feel like I'm encroaching on 50. Must be something to do with having a three-year-old?
Over the years, I've had some good birthdays and some not-so-good. I don't remember all of them. But some definitely stand out in my mind! Having a birthday smack up against a major holiday often meant delaying my party until my friends were back in town. I also remember camping with my stepdad on a few birthdays. I think it was my 12th that we celebrated at Camp Nowhere with a frozen Sara Lee cake and one candle. For several years, the Hyde family get-together was over the Fourth of July holiday, so I would often defer my birthday until some event of my choosing--the Portland Highland Games, or Johnny Martin playing live at Portland's Viscount Ballroom.
But, just for grins, here are the worst and best of my 46 birthdays:
#46--1999, my 35th. Bob and I had a huge fight over some things that now seem pretty stupid. On our way home from the family get-together, we stopped at the Centralia outlet mall to do a little shopping, but didn't find much. We had a flat tire--in the rain--before we ever made it home.
#45--1982, my 18th. As with this year, the Fourth was a Sunday, so our local parade was deferred to Monday, July 5. I was Miss Riverdale, and this was "my" parade! It was a drizzly morning, so Mom wouldn't let me wear my satin dress; it had to be the pale pink spaghetti strap dress that I thought made me look too skinny, so I was NOT happy. Nonetheless, I was all decked out and we went to the parade lineup area, only to be told that the parade had been canceled due to the weather. Getting back into the car, I whacked my tiara and broke it. Later that day, my dad showed up at our door with a little cake for me. Let's just say that my mother didn't like my dad my dad much. She must have at one time, or I wouldn't be here, but.... So, yes, more contention!
#44--1990, my 26th. We were living in Texas, but Bob had just accepted a position with Kaiser Aluminum in Spokane. Mom was in Olympia and had just broken her ankle badly. Bob's dad gave me a frequent-flyer ticket to bring almost-one-year-old Sara and take care of my Mom. I left Sara in Renton with the family and spent my birthday getting my mother out of the hospital and watching Wimbledon on TV.
#3--1967, my 3rd. Yes, I actually remember this one! Mom and I hadn't been in England long as she was separated from my Dad. But I remember the party in the dining room at the Mitre Hotel, with lots of kids I didn't know, and games, and cake. I particularly remember all the children having balloons tied to their wrists and we played "Ring Around the Rosy." Trouble was, instead of "all fall down," we all stood up--except me. I sat down. On my balloon. It popped, and there were no more left, and I cried, but it was still fun.
#2--1984, my 20th. We actually sort of celebrated on the Fourth. We were still at school at BYU and had been married just about a year. We got together with our friend Lance and whole bunch of people and went to the park for live music and a picnic. It was wall-to-wall people and, while others were barbecuing dogs and burgers, we had shrimp and steak kebabs going on the hibachi. Somehow, my dad found us and gave me a cake, which we shared with everyone, and we capped the evening with fireworks synchronized to music.
#1--2004, my 40th. Bob was already working in Kalispell and the kids and I were still in Aloha. We'd all got together in Ephrata for the holiday and left on my birthday, but we had some family birthday time before going our separate ways. That evening, I got together with my "drinking buddies." Let me digress a little--I had just completed my M.Ed. program, which was a cohort program--20+ of us doing our coursework together. Four of us student taught English at the same school, so we got pretty close. Jim and Christy and I would meet most Monday nights at the Goose Hollow Inn and just hang out. I'd drink lemonade; they'd have a beer. So anyhoo, on my birthday we got together. Another cohort-mate was there for a while. Christy gave me a pretty photo album, Jim gave me a Wonder Woman pez dispenser, which still makes me giggle and which I still have, and Jim's crazy friend James gave me flowers an a very nice compliment! It wasn't anything spectacular, but the cameraderie and everything just made it a really great day.
Today is my 46th. I don't feel like I'm encroaching on 50. Must be something to do with having a three-year-old?
Over the years, I've had some good birthdays and some not-so-good. I don't remember all of them. But some definitely stand out in my mind! Having a birthday smack up against a major holiday often meant delaying my party until my friends were back in town. I also remember camping with my stepdad on a few birthdays. I think it was my 12th that we celebrated at Camp Nowhere with a frozen Sara Lee cake and one candle. For several years, the Hyde family get-together was over the Fourth of July holiday, so I would often defer my birthday until some event of my choosing--the Portland Highland Games, or Johnny Martin playing live at Portland's Viscount Ballroom.
But, just for grins, here are the worst and best of my 46 birthdays:
#46--1999, my 35th. Bob and I had a huge fight over some things that now seem pretty stupid. On our way home from the family get-together, we stopped at the Centralia outlet mall to do a little shopping, but didn't find much. We had a flat tire--in the rain--before we ever made it home.
#45--1982, my 18th. As with this year, the Fourth was a Sunday, so our local parade was deferred to Monday, July 5. I was Miss Riverdale, and this was "my" parade! It was a drizzly morning, so Mom wouldn't let me wear my satin dress; it had to be the pale pink spaghetti strap dress that I thought made me look too skinny, so I was NOT happy. Nonetheless, I was all decked out and we went to the parade lineup area, only to be told that the parade had been canceled due to the weather. Getting back into the car, I whacked my tiara and broke it. Later that day, my dad showed up at our door with a little cake for me. Let's just say that my mother didn't like my dad my dad much. She must have at one time, or I wouldn't be here, but.... So, yes, more contention!
#44--1990, my 26th. We were living in Texas, but Bob had just accepted a position with Kaiser Aluminum in Spokane. Mom was in Olympia and had just broken her ankle badly. Bob's dad gave me a frequent-flyer ticket to bring almost-one-year-old Sara and take care of my Mom. I left Sara in Renton with the family and spent my birthday getting my mother out of the hospital and watching Wimbledon on TV.
#3--1967, my 3rd. Yes, I actually remember this one! Mom and I hadn't been in England long as she was separated from my Dad. But I remember the party in the dining room at the Mitre Hotel, with lots of kids I didn't know, and games, and cake. I particularly remember all the children having balloons tied to their wrists and we played "Ring Around the Rosy." Trouble was, instead of "all fall down," we all stood up--except me. I sat down. On my balloon. It popped, and there were no more left, and I cried, but it was still fun.
#2--1984, my 20th. We actually sort of celebrated on the Fourth. We were still at school at BYU and had been married just about a year. We got together with our friend Lance and whole bunch of people and went to the park for live music and a picnic. It was wall-to-wall people and, while others were barbecuing dogs and burgers, we had shrimp and steak kebabs going on the hibachi. Somehow, my dad found us and gave me a cake, which we shared with everyone, and we capped the evening with fireworks synchronized to music.
#1--2004, my 40th. Bob was already working in Kalispell and the kids and I were still in Aloha. We'd all got together in Ephrata for the holiday and left on my birthday, but we had some family birthday time before going our separate ways. That evening, I got together with my "drinking buddies." Let me digress a little--I had just completed my M.Ed. program, which was a cohort program--20+ of us doing our coursework together. Four of us student taught English at the same school, so we got pretty close. Jim and Christy and I would meet most Monday nights at the Goose Hollow Inn and just hang out. I'd drink lemonade; they'd have a beer. So anyhoo, on my birthday we got together. Another cohort-mate was there for a while. Christy gave me a pretty photo album, Jim gave me a Wonder Woman pez dispenser, which still makes me giggle and which I still have, and Jim's crazy friend James gave me flowers an a very nice compliment! It wasn't anything spectacular, but the cameraderie and everything just made it a really great day.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Didja think I'd fallen off the earth?
It's been about 18 months since I updated this thing, and it's hard to believe it can possibly have been so long. I'm going to make a much better effort to post now, but no one hold your breath or anything.
We're in a huge state of flux here. Bob has been working in Kennewick, WA, since before Thanksgiving. I stayed here for school. It put a screeching halt to traveling for speech, which I missed horribly, though I did get to go to the first meet of the year and to State, where one of my kids won in both of her events. The house has been officially on the market since March, but we're in a terrible price range for a valley with a whole lot of unemployed people in it. In the time we've been on the market, three people have looked (not counting the six who came to the open house, two of whom were neighbors).
I have been applying for teaching jobs in the Tri-Cities and actually interviewed for two, neither of which I got. Bummed? Yeah, pretty much.
My mom's place sold in April and she moved in here the week before Memorial Day. Sara spent two months at home and is back at BYU for summer term.
That's the update. I'll try to be back soon for more of life as it happens.
We're in a huge state of flux here. Bob has been working in Kennewick, WA, since before Thanksgiving. I stayed here for school. It put a screeching halt to traveling for speech, which I missed horribly, though I did get to go to the first meet of the year and to State, where one of my kids won in both of her events. The house has been officially on the market since March, but we're in a terrible price range for a valley with a whole lot of unemployed people in it. In the time we've been on the market, three people have looked (not counting the six who came to the open house, two of whom were neighbors).
I have been applying for teaching jobs in the Tri-Cities and actually interviewed for two, neither of which I got. Bummed? Yeah, pretty much.
My mom's place sold in April and she moved in here the week before Memorial Day. Sara spent two months at home and is back at BYU for summer term.
That's the update. I'll try to be back soon for more of life as it happens.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Prayers, please.
Just popping in for a moment to ask anyone reading to remember one of our speech kids in your prayers. Our head coach just called me about an hour ago to say that E's father committed suicide this weekend. The family is coping as best it can and the speech kids have been rallying 'round E, but I'm sure more prayers would be appreciated.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Ahhh...Friday...
Not that "Friday" has much meaning. I've got Swing Club after school. Then we've got to do some grocery shopping (which means planning menus for more than a week first, since I'm off to Missoula next weekend for speech). I might get a little sewing in tonight. Then I have to be at school at 6:20 tomorrow morning to go to Whitefish with the JV speech team. (I let my assistant go on the varsity trip to Helena this weekend--trying to limit my travel as much as I can and still be able to do my job.)
Now, Whitefish is only 20 minutes up the highway, and Extemp draw isn't until 8, with rounds starting at 8:30, so why do we have to go so early? We're sharing a bus with Glacier, since we both have small JV squads this week. ::sigh:: Won't be home tomorrow night until just time to bathe Canna and put her to bed.
We don't have church until 1 on Sunday. Thank goodness that'll only last a few more weeks; it's exactly at naptime. And...I'm the nursery leader.
You may all laugh.
There's a reason I teach high school.
Ah well, this, too, shall pass.
And, because I'm the mommy, more Canna photos for you!
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