A weekend Away!!!

Tomorrow morning, bright and early, Evan and I head out on our kid-free weekend away. I can't wait. It is the first time in almost 18 months that we'll have had a night away from the kids. And, to boot, it is going to be such a fun wedding, and so much fun hanging out with the whole college crowd. Plus, it has been just long enough since the last wedding we went to, that I'm looking forward to the actual wedding itself. For a while, it seemed like we were on the wedding circuit, and I got kind of 'over' the whole thing. But, we haven't been to once since May of last year (our last entire night away from the kids, coincidentally), so I'm up for the pomp and circumstance of it all. Can't wait to see Kristin's dress, admire the flowers and ooh and ah over their wedding bands.

Sadie is pretty excited for her sleepover at Grammy's, and I'm assuming Eden is going to just go with the flow, as is her nature. I'm sure Grammy and Grampy will be completely wiped out by the time we pick them up on Sunday afternoon, though. Anyway, I doubt I'll be posting again until Monday, so ... enjoy the weekend, everyone!

Still No Word

I still haven't heard back from the doctor's office with regard to whether or not Eden is going to qualify for coverage for Synagis shots. I'm not really sure what the timeframe for getting an answer was supposed to be (I guess I should have asked), but if she is going to get them, she needs to start in the next month, so hopefully, we'll hear something soon. The last time I spoke to the nurse, it didn't sound terribly promising--her risk factors (prior hospitalization for RSV, in daycare, older sibling in school) don't rate as high as others would (propensity for asthmatic episodes which require using a portable oxygen concentrator or nebulizer, prolonged hospitalization for RSV...). I would like her to get the shots if she qualifies, but won't be too upset if she doesn't, as I'm glad she doesn't have some of those more serious issues.

Doesn't this sound nice?

A skiing vacation in Europe. Don't you just picture amazing, Alpine slopes, gorgeous little villages tucked into the mountains, amazing coffee and hot chocolate, tasty food, and sipping wine by the fire? That's what I think of, anyway. Somehow--and maybe this is just complete fantasy on my part--the thought of a ski holiday in Europe just seems a little more glamorous and refined than say, the Poconos or the Catskills (our closests ranges).

While skiing may not be the first thing you think of when you think of vacationing in Europe, it is actually a pretty big deal in many parts of the continent. Courchevel, France, St. Anton, Austria, Meribel, France, as well as a zillion places in the Swiss Alps are all renowned destinations for luxury skiing holidays. I think it would be awesome to rent one of the luxury ski chalets in Courchevel, for example, and have a real, old-world style skiing vacation. I mean, everyone always complains that Europe is too hot and crowded in the summer, so why not visit in the winter?

Ok, so far, so good...

after my 'motivation' posting, I seem to have started to get my butt in gear, at least with regard to exercising. Monday, I had a great workout right after work. Yesterday, I biked to and from work, and then in the evening after dinner, Evan and I (with kids in tow) took a leisurely ride down to the boardwalk in Asbury. Bruce Springsteen was performing a sold-out pre tour show at convention hall and we thought it would be fun to just go see the crowds and maybe catch a bit of music from the beach. Anyway, it was a total zoo down there, so we didn't end up staying for long, but it sure was nice to take a moonlight ride (btw, anyone else notice the gorgeous full moon last night? watching it rise over the ocean was pretty amazing).

So, I'm 2 for 0 so far this week, with exercising. I think I'm going to take today off (truthfully, I'm pretty stiff - funny how quickly those muscles forget what they are capable of!), but I plan to hit the gym again tomorrow.

Need Motivation

I've kind of fallen into a slump lately, with regard to being motivated about too much. I'm not sure what it is, whether it is just a natural slowing down after the crazy summer, or something 'deeper.'

I have really slacked off with working out and/or bike riding. I'm not quite sure what happened - I had been doing so well, had great momentum, was working out or riding the bike five days a week. I was feeling great about how I looked and felt, and then all of a sudden, it has all gone to hell.

I missed a week, due to scheduling conflicts (I normally go at lunch) and that seems to have really thrown me off track. So, today is Monday, and I'm going to try to use the fresh start, new week thing as a motivator. I brought my workout clothes today and am going to try to leave the office right at 5 so I can get a good workout in immediately afterwards. I'm hoping that will be the kickstart to getting me to do it again regularly.

I've also been pretty unmotivated at work. That in itself is weird, considering it is September, generally the most invigorating time of the year here. Our department is in transition (old boss quit, now we have a mostly absent, interim boss) and it is hard to motivate myself to give it my all when it seems like no one cares/notices. It is a good thing I'm not due to fill out my employee self evaluation form any time soon, because I think I'd have a hard time coming up with many quality contributions to the University lately. So, I suppose I need to set some goals for myself in this area, too, but maybe I'll do that tomorrow ;-)

More on the Party (and the weekend)

...anyway, as I was saying, the party was really good. I think Sadie got a real kick out of getting to show her friends how well she rides. She went off lead immediately, and was just tooling around the ring, controlling the horse beautifully.

The kids seemed to love the riding, too. I'm so glad we went with a smaller crowd and let them each have a mini-lesson (20 minutes) as opposed to a bigger group of kids and only a single ride around the ring.

Overall, it was a pretty low-key event. When they first arrived, they painted pumpkins. Then, they rode. As soon as a child was done riding, they got their face painted (patting myself on the back for that idea). Once all the kids were done riding, we had cupcakes and fruit, and then they got a little tour of the farm and got to feed the ponies.

And then, magically, the two hours had passed and they all left. It took us about 10 minutes to clean up (basically just rolled up all the plates and stuff in the table cloth and threw it in the trash - so easy) and viola! Party over and done.

I will never do a party at home again. This was so much easier and less stressful.

So, as for the rest of the weekend...

Saturday, the girls went with Grammy and Grampy to the kids' service at temple, so we had about an hour of quiet to ourselves (bliss). We spent a good part of the day running errands and getting everything set for the party on Sunday. Then, we went over to Evan's parents' house to break the fast (ha! we didn't fast, but we sure stuffed our faces as though we did). It was nice to visit with everyone, and we ended up staying out way too late, so we had some sleepy girls yesterday morning. Poor Eden got shortchanged out of much of a nap, due to the timing of Sadie's party, so I had figured I'd get her to bed early last night. Well, we ended up inviting friends over for dinner last night, and the girls were running around like banshees until almost nine - again, a super late night for them. Of course, Eden isn't big (smart?) enough yet to actually sleep much later in the morning to make up the difference, so come 6:30, she was up, and none too happy about it.

Tonight, definitely, is going to be an early night for both of them!

Party!

We survived Sadie's birthday party! It was actually a big success, I think. I'm too tired to post too much, and tomorrow I'll probably upload some pictures, or, if I'm feeling particularly industrious, some video, but for now, I'll leave it at that. A good time was had by all, and it was actually really pretty easy and stress-free, from my perspective. Oh, the lessons I have learned since planning last year's party ;)

Halloween

Have you figured out your kids/and or your own costumes for Halloween yet? The only one I know of for sure at this point is Eden, since she'll be wearing one of Sadie's old costumes, and going as a frog. As for Sadie, she changes her mind daily, but I'm guessing she's going to end up as one of the Disney princesses.

As for me? Well, I was planning on just going as a mom ;) , but Sadie almost has me convinced that it would be fun to dress up along with her. A quick web search has shown me that there is no end to the fun for adults, from scary, to funny to sexy costumes. So...who knows? I might just get into the Halloween spirit myself this year.

The Ocean

Yesterday, I took a long walk on the boardwalk in Long Branch, which is something I haven't done since the spring. I had forgotten how much I like that walk. Pier Village is so bustling with activity and the ocean is, well...it's the ocean. I've seen a lot of natural wonders, from snow-capped mountains to cascading waterfalls, from lava beds to canyons, and still, nothing inspires, awes, and calms me more than the ocean.

I know I am not alone in that feeling, either, judging by how many other people were on the boardwalk yesterday, just breathing it all in. It's the reason Wilmington NC real estate will command a higher price than say, Akron OH or Des Moines, IA. Yeah, yeah, I know houses in some mountain locales (Aspen, Park City) command even more money than the coasts, but let's face it...that's more about having a certain zip code next to your name than anything else.

Anyway, I guess the point of this post is just to blaaaaahg yet again about how grateful I am to live where I do.

So...Guess what we are doing this weekend?

Selecting and ordering our decking!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The framing is finally all finished, and Evan was able to resuse a ton of the old treated wood for it, which saved us quite a lot in material costs. So, now we're ready to buy the decking. We're going with a synthetic composite decking, instead of actual wood. We gave it a lot of thought and ultimately, it came down to maintenence. There is so much that needs to be taken care of around the house, that the thought of adding on another annual chore (sealing and repairing) was just not so appealing. So, we're going with Timbertech. From looking online, I have an idea of the board style and color I think I want (Tropical Rosewood from the Earthwood collection), but I'd like to see the samples in person before deciding for sure. There are two Timbertech dealers around here, so Saturday, we'll go and make our decision and place our order. I can't wait!!!! This backyard project has been a long time in the making - it is going to be great to get to use the deck soon

She's Five! (and, a minor rant about toys)

I can hardly believe that five years ago today (well, tonight, actually), my beautiful Sadie made her way into this world. Where has the time gone?!?!? I woke her up this morning by singing Happy Birthday, and the look on her face was just priceless. She said "I'm five! I'm five! I'm finally five!" as if she had been waiting her whole life to be five. I hope it isn't a letdown!

Tonight, we'll have our family celebration for her (her 'real' party is next weekend), and give her the gifts we have. Finding a gift for her was pretty difficult this year. Once I decided what I wanted to get her (a bigger set of Legos than the current, starter set she has now), I had a hard time finding just what I wanted - which is just a basic (read: non-themed) set of Legos. I was amazed to see that even Lego, that staple of generic childhood fun, has succumbed to the appeal of being branded with whatever movie or character is currently popular, and has a very decidedly gender-specific bent to it.

Anyone who has ever shopped for toys in Target knows that they divide the toy area into three distinct sections: Infant, Girls, and Boys. So, first I looked in the girls section, and nowhere, amid the masses of Disney Princess, Bratz, Dora, and Polly Pocket stuff could I find Legos. So, I headed over to the boys area. In my opinion, all the really fun toys were there. There were a ton of things I would have loved to pick up for her, including battery-operated cars and a model rocket. But, since none of them were pink and sparkly, I knew better than to get them, as she would just wrinkle up her nose and say, "those are boy toys." Anyway, lo and behold, Legos must be considered boys toys, too, because it is in this area that I found them. Now, Sadie, who, if you haven't figured it out already, is the girliest of girly girls, happens to love playing with Legos, so it is interesting to me that Target considers them boy toys. Though, once I saw the selection of sets, I realized that it isn't just Target, but Lego itself that has assigned a gender to them, as almost all of the available sets were superhero related.

Anyway, I did manage to find a regular set (though, it wasn't as extensive as I would have liked), and that's what we're giving her tonight. So, anyway, I realize that my rant has overtaken this entry, when the point of it was really to celebrate five amazing years of the Sadie Show. So, Happy Birthday, big girl! We are so lucky to have you in our lives.

so, the weekend is upon us

This workweek just dragged! Finally, it is just about 'quitting time! - yabba dabba do!!!' (to quote Fred Flinstone.

Tomorrow night I'm headed into the city for my friend Kristin's bachelorette party/dinner. It is going to be great to catch up with all the college girls. Some of them I haven't seen since Lisa's wedding back in 2004.

Sunday, we're supposed to go out and finally celebrate our annivesary with dinner at Moonstruck. I'm going to play it by ear, though, and see how I'm feeling. If I'm completely wiped out and nursing a wicked hangover from Saturday night, I might take a rain check.

Also on tap, I have to get Sadie's birthday gift and buy or make a cake for her family celebration on Monday.

So, with that, I'm outta here...

Fire Glass

Have you heard of this stuff? As we're thinking about finally rebuilding our firebox and getting our fireplace functional, I'm looking into different options. I would really like a gas burning fireplace, as it just seems so much easier than a woodburning one. So, while I was looking into information about them, I stumbled across information about fire glass. I think it looks really cool (in the pictures, anyway), so I was curious if anyone has experience with it and can give me the down and dirty on it.

A Step Backwards...

I don't think I updated here, but Sadie has been doing really well with adjusting to both kindergarten, as well as her new morning day care situation. We implemented a reward chart in an attempt to stop the crying at drop-off at Cindy's, and it worked remarkably well. So far, kindy drop-off hasn't presented any problems. For whatever reason, she has been a real trooper about that one.

But today, there is no school (closed for Rosh Hashana) and so my plan was to leave her at Cindy's all day. She got hysterical at this notion this morning and made me feel really bad. I'm not sure why she was so upset about it, though I suspect it may be because she spent the day with her grandmother yesterday (they took her to temple).

Anyway, the short story is that in a moment of weakness, I told her that I would leave work early and pick her up. I don't know why I did that - while it isn't a problem to do this today, generally, it isn't something I can do, and I probably just reinforced for her that crying will get her what she wants.

update: I just called over to Cindy's and she's fine (as I expected), so Cindy is going to tell her that I called and she and I decided that Sadie's having a great time and that daddy will pick her up at the normal time.

Speaking of Photography

My friend Val is soliciting input for a tagline for the face (website) of her photography business. She asked for suggestions from her readers and got a ton of great ones. So, now, she's opened up a poll for people to vote. The person who suggested the winning tagline is going to win a super prize (a photo of their choice on canvas). I'm psyched to see that two of my suggestions made it to the list of contenders, and as much as I'd like to tell you which ones they are so that you could vote for them, I'd rather you just go with whichever ones you really like.

So.

First, go check out her photography blog to get a feel for her business.

Then, go to Val's blog and vote on your three favorite choices.

Thanks in advance!

Sadie is going to love this

Alyssa, Jim, and Kayleigh's birthday gift arrived yesterday - I'm going to wrap it and give it to Sadie on her birthday. She's been very interested in playing with our digital camera, and she's taken some pretty good shots, actually. I just know she's going to love it. And, I look forward to seeing what kinds of pictures she takes, given free reign over her own camera.

It is hard to imagine life without a digital camera anymore, isn't it? I know this blog wouldn't be half as interesting (it is interesting, isn't it? *insert worried, paranoid look here*) without the inclusion of the photos I take of the kids. In fact, until I invest in one of those digital picture frames I'm interested in, this place (and kodak gallery) are pretty much the only place I display them, since I rarely get prints made anymore.

Shamelessly Stolen from Another Blog

Happy New Year! Celebrating 5,768 Years With The Same Management.

Clever, isn't it? Anyway, just wishing a happy and healthy new year to those of you (us?) that observe the Jewish New Year. Even though I'm not particularly religious, I always think of this time of year as a great time to reflect about the year that passed and make plans, goals and visualize dreams for the year ahead. And, it never hurts to bury the hatchet on grievances with people...life is too short to sweat the little things. I need to remind myself of that more often. L'shana tova!!

What do you think?

Does this seem like it would work? The concept is 'cheating to lose', where you are allowed--required, even--to eat traditional no-no's like french fries, ice cream, pizza in order to lose weight. Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? I guess, though, that the idea is that you'll kick-start your metabolism and trick your body into getting into the fat burning zone. My guess is that you aren't given carte blanche to eat and eat whatever whenever, but that you will be allowed strategic treats instead. Definitely an interesting idea. I'll be curious to see if the cheat to lose diet gets traction.

Eden's Well Check

How quickly the months fly by, when measured in well check intervals. It was time for Eden's 18 month well check today. Yeah, yeah, I know...she's twenty months. Better late than never, right?
The appointment was a good one. She has grown three inches since her last appointment!! As I expected, she is meeting all the developmental milestones, and is overall a healthy, growing girl. :)

The big thing that came out of the appoinment, though, is that her doctor would like her to get the RSV vaccine. She considers her 'at risk' for complications from RSV, should she develop it again this year, because she was hospitalized with it as an infant. So, the big hurdle is going to be getting the insurance company to approve it. If it were a one-off shot, priced at even a couple of hundred dollars, I might be willing to suck it up and pay it. But, each shot is over a thousand dollars, and she'll need at least six of them (one a month for the entire cold and flu season). Not exactly pocket change.

So, the doctor referred us to a pediatric pulmonologist's office and the nurse there took our info and is going to bat with the insurance company. She has some things working in her favor, as far as qualifying for coverage (being in daycare, having an older sibling in school, and having the previous hospitalization), but a few things working against her, as well (primarily, no family history of asthma). So, we'll see. I hope she can get it, because I'd really like to avoid a repeat of the fiasco that was last Thanksgiving weekend.

If she's going to get the round of shots this year, she needs to get the first one asap (before cold and flu season really kicks in), so hopefully, the approval process can be expedited.

Anyway, I'll update on this as I have news.

Save the Trees

Have you ever closed on a house? How about refinanced? Taken out an equity line? If so, you know how much paper is generated by these transactions. Tons of paper, tons of signing and initialing and all for a stack of papers that gets filed somewhere in your house, and generally never touched again. We refinanced twice on our Mass. house, and when we moved and I was cleaning out the files, I came across the closing packets from the original sale. Why did I keep them? More importantly, why did they have to be generated in the first place?

I think the idea of eclosing makes a lot of sense. It is an entirely electronic closing process for mortgages. I already do all of my banking and bookkeeping online, so it makes sense that these types of transactions should happen there, too. And best of all...say goodbye to the enormous stacks of closing documents cluttering up your important papers files!

Ah....all better!

Good morning, world! Yes, I am a bit chipper today. I went to bed last night at 9pm, and remained dead to the world until E chirped for us at 6:50am. I feel like a new person. Or, at least, a little more able to take on the week, anyway. :)

Now the the entry way is looking 'fab'....

I'm thinking about getting a new front door. The one we have is...interesting, to say the least. For starters, the doorknob is in the center of the door. Not sure what the previous owners were smoking when they chose that, but it certainly is...unique. It is almost comical to watch people try to leave/let themselves out of our house. They automatically reach for the spot where the doorknob should be, kind of half paw the deadbolt and then step back in confusion.

Secondly, the one we have is just, well, ugly. Really, truly ugly.

So, even though the one we have is functional, for the sake of aesthetics, we really do need a new one. The picture to the left is as close to the vision I have in my head of what I'd like. Evan really had it in his head that he's going to make us one, but given the long list of projects that poor man has on his plate, I don't know if that is a realistic plan. Plus, then I wouldn't get to shop around, which is something I'm really looking forward to.

Ah well, I just realized, as I stare at the front door from my perch here at the computer, that once the door goes, we'll need to shop around for mailboxes, since we have a mail slot in this one. So, one way or another, I'll get some home goods shopping in.

I'm Dragging Today

So very tired! It was a really good weekend, but very busy. To top it all off, I just didn't sleep well last night, and Eden woke at 6am, raring to go. Lately, we've been able to go in a rub her back for a second and just reassure her that we're still there and she'll go back to sleep for another hour or so. Of course, she wanted none of that action today. So, I've been up since 6, after a night of very little sleep. I'm already counting the hours until I can get to bed tonight (10 more!).

Yesterday, I took the girls to a birthday party of one of Sadie's former classmates, Jordyn. Her parents are really super nice, down to earth people, but they're also super wealthy, and so, with Sadie's party coming up soon, it is hard not to feel a little insecure about the party we're throwing for her, because all of the same kids will be at both. Last year, we had Sadie's party on a Saturday, and then Jordyn's party was the next day. I was so thankful it turned out that way, because Jordyn's party was a huge extravaganza, and Sadie's was pretty modest. This year was no different (they had a great kids' magician, rented a bouncy castle, and had everyone over for a pool party). In my heart, I know that the kids are going to have a great time at Sadie's party, but I worry a little bit that Sadie won't think it is anything super special, since she gets to ride horses every week.

In the late afternoon and evening, we had our neighborhood block party. That was definitely a good time! We have the best neighbors/neighborhood. The short stretch of Lake St. in front of our house was blocked off to traffic, and tables, chairs and grills were set up. Everyone brought their own meat to grill and alcoholic beverage of choice, and the the rest (side dishes and desserts) were potluck. The kids had a blast tearing around everyone's yards and getting to ride their bikes in the closed off street (without parental supervision-woot, woot!). The party ran until about 7:30 and then by the time we got everything cleared up and the kids bathed and in bed, it was close to nine. Even Sadie was dragging her tush this morning when I had to wake her.

Anyway, the week should be pretty quiet and uneventful (save for some back to school, meet the new principal event we need to attend tonight), so hopefully, we'll all catch up on some rest.

Two Notable Things

1. I had four hours entirely to myself on the beach this weekend. No kids, no restless husband...it was heavenly. Of course, I forgot my book and my iPod battery was dead, but it didn't even matter. I alternately snoozed and sat and stared at the ocean and just...thought...and enjoyed the solitude. I haven't had an opportunity like that in years. Five, to be exact. It was a much-needed spirit refresher.

2. Evan and I left the girls with a sitter last night and went out to dinner. This is the first time we've ever left them in the evening with anyone other than a family member. I put Eden down right before the sitter arrived, so she awoke this morning none the wiser. But Sadie had a great time "playing" with Erica (she is the fourteen year old daughter of our regular, daytime daycare provider) and apparently gave her no trouble at all. So, all in all, a success! We'll definitely be doing that one again. I don't know why it took us so long to take the plunge?

More about the weekend later...right now the kids are calling....

Falling into careers

I'm teaching a freshman seminar course, as an adjunct. This is a one-credit course designed to help new students settle in and succeed at the University. So, I'm putting together a 'lesson' on career-planning, as I'm required to by the master syllabus. It seems so funny to me to think about planning a career at the age of 18. I know when I was a freshman, I had no clue what I wanted to be when I grew up. For that matter, even though I had picked a major, and even applied to grad school, I didn't really have any more of a clue upon graduation. But, I suppose not everyone is like me, and some people actually have a calling and know what they want out of life from an early age. I suspect, though, that those people are in the minority. The rest of us? Eh, we sort of fall into thing, either by chance, or by life/work experience. I'm actually really happy with my career, and did eventually go to grad school in order to pursue it, but if you had told me 15 years ago that this is what I'd be doing with my life, I would have been very surprised. I'm guessing many a podiatrist, fragrance tester, New York car accident lawyer, tax accountant, high school administrator, and even college professor feels the same way.

Someone order a truckload of...sand?

I just thought this photo was funny.

First Day!

She did great! No tears (for her, anyway...I was teary as we walked away). I can't wait to get the end of the day report.

Getting Motivated

One thing I did over the long weekend was finally do the finish work in the entryway to the house. The previous owners had cedar shingles on the walls (don't ask...they had a lot of strange decorating ideas), and we had pulled them down when we redid the living room. However, the glue that was adhering the shingles was impossible to remove, and couldn't be painted over. So, for 18 months, the entryway around the front door has looked terrible (unpainted with black splotches of dried up glue). So, I got motivated on Saturday evening and--with some guidance from Evan-- mixed up some durabond and plastered over it. Sunday morning, I primed it, and that afternoon my dad came over and painted. It looks great! Finally, all the walls match. So, of course, now that the walls look great, I'm noticing what doesn't look so good. And that would be the cheapie light fixture we have in the ceiling. We really did just buy the Home Depot special without too much regard to asthetics, and while it has done a fine job of providing light, I'd like something a little dressier. So, I'm kind of torn between a fancier ceiling-mounted fixture, or possibly a small hall table with a table lamp instead.

Anyway, I guess the point of this entry is to say that completing this mini-project has sort of rejuvenated my desire to take on small projects in the house. We've been so focuses on the yard for so long that I haven't wanted to take on anything indoors. But, buoyed by my durabond success in the entryway, now I have my sights set on doing the same for the hallwayways (yep, they had that lovely shingle look going on, too). I've been eyeing up potential wall colors and lining up a couple of day-long babysitting commitments from the grandparents so that I can get it done. I'll definitely post pictures when it is complete.

Today's the day

Sadie starts kindergarten this afternoon. She is nervous, but putting on a brave face. She did well at yesterday's orientation, and I think going and seeing it has helped to allay some of her anxiety.

I have butterflies in my stomach about how drop-off is going to go...so much so that I haven't even allowed myself to really feel sad about the fact that my baby is going to school. That will come afterwards, I'm sure.

The Cherry on the Sundae

I honestly don't remember a better Labor Day weekend than the one we just had. Usually, it rains some, if not all, of the weekend, putting a damper on any beach or barbeque plans.

We had a great three days of sun and fun, and visiting with family(ies). Even though I can say with certainty that we had our fill of the beach this summer, it was definitely a little sad to clean out the locker yesterday and say goodbye for another year. Oh sure, we'll be back down on one of the public beaches any and every nice weekend through October, but it won't be quite the same. My kids (and, Evan and I, to an extent) really thrive on ritual and routine, and we certainly had that one down pat this year.

Anyway, on to new things...Evan is taking Sadie for her Kindergarten orientation this morning, and then out to buy her supplies. She is really nervous about starting school, but I think after tomorrow, some of ther anxiety will have dissipated. I hope, anyway.

My class starts this morning, too, so I'd better get going and get things together.