Post Black Friday Thoughts !

Black Friday is the second reason I love Thanksgiving Weekend ! My Mom and I have a tradition of going shopping and then to lunch. We are not like those CRAZY shoppers who get up at 3AM and go to the stores. We plan which store we are going to go to the day before after our yummy turkey dinner . This year we decided to head right to JCPenney's and the mall.

Penney's had the best door buster deals and at 8AM I pulled into the parking spot ready to shop! My Mom and I walked the whole store looking for deals. I found some great gifts for the DH and a pair of pjs for me! As we walked around, we looked for the quickest cashiers. After we had all our items, we headed to a line and we were checked out within 5 minutes. We took our packages to the car and then headed over to Macy's! I found a great deal on a purse and my Mom had coupons so it was even cheaper! I had not planned on even getting a purse, but who can pass up a 17.00 purse that was originally 45.00!

We went to a few other stores and headed back to the car to drop off more packages. Then it was time for our annual lunch at Friday's! Our husbands do not like it there, so it is nice treat when we go every year!

Afterwards, we stopped at a shoe store because I had two 10.00 rewards coupons. I found sneakers marked at 40% off and then with my two coupons I only had to pay 10.43 for these awesome running sneakers. That never happens!

All in all it was a very successful and fun shopping day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It is TURKEY DAY ! This is my favorite holiday and time of the year. It is a weekend of family fun, food, and traditions!

I woke up to watch the Macy's parade and then the dog show. I am still relaxing, mainly b/c I have been sick all week (GRRR) !! A little later, the DH and I will go to my Mom's for a YUMMY TURKEY DINNER !! I can't wait for sweet potatoes, stuffing, cranberries, and pumpkin pie!

Today I am Thankful For:

1. DH

2. Family

3. Warm House

4. Clothes on my back

5. Good Friends

6. Family Traditions

7. Shopping on Black Friday!

Here's to eveyone's good blessings!

Feeling Yucky !

I am sick and I am NOT happy about it. I worked last weekend and I had a customer who was coughing. She pretty much coughed in my face. In my head I was thinking " OH GREAT... I am going to get sick now!"

Well, I was teaching on Monday and about half way through my day I started to have the sniffles and sure enough by the end of that evening I had a cold. Now the thing about getting sick, is I don't just get a little cold. I have asthma, so I tend to go from a cold to a full blown respiratory infection. It is terrible!

I worked the past two days sick. I feel terrible about that b/c I do not want to pass on my sickness to another person. The sad thing is that with my jobs when I work, I make money and when I don't work I don't make money!

I have had soup and medicines and naps the past two days. I am going to relax as much as possible tomorrow before TURKEY TIME! I have one day off before another week of working without a break! Hopefully I can sneak some naps in there!

Working Weekend Begins !

It is Friday. It is time for me to begin my working weekend! I am teaching in a kinder class today. This is my least favorite grade! The kids are needy, the lessons are slow, the day drags. I am hopeful today will go by quickly!

After teaching I will head home for a quick bite before I head off to my part time job. I love working there, but sometimes I would like a surprise of having a Friday off without having to request it off! I also work Saturday night and Sunday! At least, my days and nights at my part time job go by quickly!

I was complaining to my DH because I am good at my job, which means I am usually scheduled to close b/c I do it well! It happened when I was in college and I use to work in customer service. I had a partner and we worked well as a team together. We use to close every Sat. night. Back then I did not care. I was 22 and would go out after work until 4AM! Time was never an issue when I was younger. Now I have days when have worked for 6 days in a row and I am just plain tired!! I like sleep more now then I did when I was young. Where did all that youthful energy go? LOL

One perk of this working weekend: TURKEY DAY is getting CLOSER and CLOSER !!! YAY!

Thoughtful Thursday

I am looking out my window as the snow falls and I am filled with a variety of thoughts! Yes - they are pretty random!

1. Why, after five years, am I still subbing with 10 years experience but there are 24 year olds getting hired??

2. How come, even though I am working two jobs, I still worry about paying my bills?

3. How come a 25 year old can go on a fancy vacation year after year, but the DH and I save for one before we make plans to go anywhere?

4. Why do CEOs of companies continue to get outrageous raises and profits, buy there is all this news of people losing their homes and their jobs?

5. How come a college coach makes more money than a firefighter or a police officer?

6. Why are prices going up faster than people's raises ?

7. Why are certain people more gracious and well-mannered than others?

So many questions and so few answers.........

Happy Thoughts !

I read Redbook. I love it so much that I subscribe to the magazine. I also cut out quotes and little blurbs to add to my journal.

There are two things I really LOVE to read each month! The first one is called "The Real Deal... How ___________ Does it ." Redbook chooses a reader every month to interview. I love how the woman has to chose three adjectives to have to describe herself. I often stare at the list wondering which 3 I would choose. Wife? Multi-tasker? Cheerleader? Maid? Problem-solver? Partner? How does a woman choose JUST THREE? Most women wear a lot of hats at any given time in the day! It is what we do! We have this inner need to get things done, do it well, and be in control all while looking good! Who knows why... but it happens!

The second part I love to read is the "5 Things to Be Happy About Right Now." It changes with the month and the season. It makes me think about all those silly things that bothered me on the day I read it and I realize they really were not what mattered ! I also cut out and save these. I usually add my own Top 5 for the month in my journal.

It has been a awhile since I have written or decorated my journal, so I thought since I just read Redbook. I would list those five things here and then head off to bed!

1. A Warm Cozy House
2. Teaching & Working Part Time
3. My Hubby getting my AM coffee for me
4. Keeping up with the 20 year olds at my spinning class
5. Turkey Day is just around the corner

Sunday Night !!!

Another weekend has come and gone! However, for me, the weekend is not as relaxing as it use to be!

I use to spend my Saturday afternoons at B&N having coffee, reading magazines, and chatting with one of my good friends. Then I would head home for dinner with the DH. I would surf the web on Sat. nights and maybe throw in a load of laundry. Then on Sunday, I would get up and go to the gym. I would be home by 12:00 for pre-game. Then it was a day of football, laundry, naps, and web surfing! That was pretty much my weekend routine for the past five years!

Now, I am working a part time job and I spend a lot of my weekend working. Once a month I am lucky enough to have off on Sat to go to the theater with the DH. I do have some Sundays off, but it is just not the same. I miss those Do Nothing Sundays where I would watch my favorite football game or take a nap!

I am going to try and not feel too sad about it. I just have to come up with some new rituals. I guess Sunday nights will be my "ME" time and I will have to create new routines. I love my part time job and it makes me happy on a lot of different levels. I just might have to pick one Sunday a month when I meet that friend on Sundays for coffee and girl chat time! Anything is possible !

Ahh.... Sunday night football! YAY!

Surprise .....

I arrived home on Friday night from working my part time job, to discover a sweet surprise from my husband!

I love pink roses and I found them on the table with some Hershey Bliss chocolate! It was a wonderful surprise!

I love the fact that my husband knows that pink roses are my favorite and the thought of giving me a small amount is what makes me feel happy and loved! It is so nice to wake up in the morning and walk into my dining room to the smell of sweet roses! Having those candies in the pantry is another perk!

It has been awhile since DH has given me roses. In the summer, I usually cut a few off of our bush and put them on the table. I would rather do that than have him spend the money. However, I must admit... it is always nice to be surprised with flowers and chocolate!

What I Love About November

It's time for another " What I love...." Post. I am having one of those days. I blame the full moon. I need an internal pick me up so I am going to write about the things I love about November!

* It is still Fall
* Watching Football on Sundays
* Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Gingerbread Lattes
* Thanksgiving
* Pumpkin Pie
* Black Friday - Shopping with Mom and then lunch at Fridays!
* Extra Days Off
* Going to the theater b/c of our season tickets
* Going Out the Wed before Turkey Day - It is wild & CRAZY, but so much fun to people watch!
* Watching kids jump into the huge leave piles
* The smell of the fresh fall air, the fireplaces, and crisp leaves
* Apple Cider
* Homemade Soup Season has just begun
* Cozy Sweaters over Jeans & a Tee-shirt

Now, I feel better !

One Tired Gal !

It is Wednesday. I am subbing this afternoon. Once I get out of work, I will have worked SEVEN STRAIGHT DAYS! I am one tired gal!

I am happy for the work. I had to fix my car two weeks ago - something I had not planned in my budget. There is always something that puts a bump in my road. With all the news and reports about the economy and places closing, it does not make a person feel at ease. I have two jobs and I still feel nervous about the state of my own personal finances.

One a positive note, I had my boss from my part time job tell me what a great job I am doing! For a long time, working as a sub has been a job where I am treated like a second class citizen. Everyone assumes you are an idiot. You are taken advantage of by others and basically ignored by others. It is terrible that a person who is so valuable ( b/c they take over when teachers are sick!) is treated so terrible.

Because I now work a part time job, I have really been enjoying working as a whole. I am a hard worker by nature. It was great that yesterday, my boss said how I am trustworthy and a hard worker who takes initiative at work. She also asked me about thinking about if I want to advance at the place. It is nice to know if I never get back into the classroom. I possibly have another option.

Sunday Night Thoughts!

I have had another busy weekend! I worked, I shopped, and had a lunch date with my husband. I am looking at the date and I cannot believe that in 17 days it will be Turkey Day! WOW!

I love the whole Turkey weekend!!! I love the Wed. before because I get to go out on the town with my brother and DH !! Turkey Day is fun just because we always laugh a lot when family gets together. Not to mention the good food and PUMPKIN PIE ! Friday my Mom and I will have our annual tradition of getting up early to shop together and go to lunch! I am sure I will then have to work. Normally, I come home from shopping to decorate the Christmas tree. I am sure it will be decorated before the weekend ends!

The leaves have now fallen outside and I have cleaned out my garden. I am always sad to see my gardening season ending. It is so nice to see how my hard work pays off and how the front looks so pretty and colorful all spring, summer, and fall!

Well, it is getting late and I feel like I am rambling. I will be substitute teaching tomorrow, so I better get myself to bed!

The 44th President

I am probably the last person to write a post on this, but I have been internalizing the historic event that happened yesterday .

The USA has a new president elect. What makes yesterday so historic is that our new president elect is man who represents truly what America means to many. Barack Obama is for hope, change, rebirth. He also is the first African American man to be the president elect. What an amazing Tuesday.

As I watched the speech last night, I was overcome with emotion. I felt the same way I feel when I hear Amazing Grace at church or I see photographs from 911. My whole inside is engulfed with warmth, happiness, and hope. My face feels warm and my eyes fill up with tears. I am thankful that I live in a free county where I can walk outside wearing what I want, praying to who I want, and I can get into my car and drive to my local polling place to vote!

God Bless America!