Hi Ho! Hi Ho! It's Off To Work I Go!

I am looking at one container of Yoplait Light Thick & Creamy mixed berry yogurt and a banana which are sitting by my computer. They are my breakfast, and they haven't been eaten. Pretty much sums up my first day at work after the break.

But, you want to know more, right? Since arriving, I've dealt with students who have mistakes on their schedules, parents who are just now requesting class changes for their kids, teachers who are unhappy with the installation process on the smart boards that were put in over the break, the scheduling of our accreditation visit for March, and playing phone tag with a woman who wants me to present a seminar to another district in February.

I also had a voice mail from the girl who picks up Gym Girl from school and takes her to gymnastics practice every day. "Ummm....just wanted to be sure that my dad told you I wouldn't be able to pick up Gym Girl today, or really any time until March because I have play practice." Okay, yes, he told me about today, but NO he did not mention the "not until March" part. After making a mad dash to beat our own buses out of the parking lot, I made it to Gym Girl's school just after she had called me from the office wondering where her ride was. So close, and yet, so far! I then dropped her off at the gym before heading over to Soccer Boy's school for his IEP meeting. He is on an IEP for speech articulation. He's been making great progress, and I was worried the therapist might be looking to exit him. Nope. He's mastered several sounds but still needs work on "s" and "z." Good. I want him in at least one more year until he's really got everything down.

Adventure Guy made a quick turn in and out of town yesterday. He came in just in time to make his great spaghetti for dinner, then packed for his trip this weekend. The Virginia trip earlier in the week was for work, but this time he's headed to Walt Disney World to run the "Goofy" marathon and a half race. They call it the Goofy I'm assuming because anyone who would do it must meet that description! Participants run the "Donald" half marathon on Saturday and the "Mickey" full marathon on Sunday. Just as he did after he first went skydiving, after his first marathon Adventure Guy asked, "Are you sure you don't want to do this with me? It's great!" And again, as I replied regarding skydiving, my answer was, "Let me make this clear. I will NEVER do this." My lack of participation, however, has obviously failed to deter him from his pursuit of his goal to run a marathon in each of the 50 states before his fiftieth birthday. So far, he's four states down with 9.5 years to go, so he's doing pretty well.

I do have some of my own goals for the new year, however. Though you wouldn't know it from looking at my desk or my house right now, I am vowing to declutter and get more organized. My house isn't messy to look at for the most part, especially if you don't look at the upstairs kid zone, but please...don't open that drawer, cabinet, or closet! My office this year has reached an all-time low, though. It reflects the pressures I've felt all year. I have too much work and too little time to do it. Organization should at least make me feel more in control, even if I'm not, right? I'm also going to go back on the wagon and lose the weight I gained at the end of the year. I'm in the range where I can get back on track without a major intervention if I do it now and not six months or a year from now. I'm reading Bob Green's new Best Life diet book, so I'll let you know if I find anything novel there. Most likely, he'll suggest eating less and exercising. Hmmmmm........