Party food!

Wow I am so far behind! It is so easy to get busy and not have time for posts! I have cooked many things...but have not had time to post them. I will cook them all again so you will get the recipe eventually :)

So this is what has been going on....

1. Got a WAY better job
2. Quit Michael's.... :)
3. I cooked dinner for my Dad, Grandmom and Uncle
4. Had our housewarming party

So let's start with the first one...I got a job at a private nursery school, and I am loving it! I have only been there for two days now but it has been great so far. I will be working M-F 7:30 - 12:30 as a lead teacher for kids from about 2 - 3 y/o. I will have 5 kids in my class, and 2 of them are boys that don't come everyday. I am so excited to get my class and get started. I have to make a lesson plan for each day. It is going to be so much fun! The kids that are in my class are so cute! I have this one little girl that I'm already in love with. I can't wait to get to know them better. The other teachers are great too. My class will start on November 2nd...so I'll keep ya updated with how that goes.

With the new job I had to quit Michael's...I just stopped going. I should have called but I just didn't want to have that converstaion. Oh well...just can't show my face around there for the next few months.

It was so nice to have my Grandmother, Dad and Uncle over so I could cook them dinner. I felt like such an adult! We had a great night. I will def. be cooking that again because it was so good! So you will get that recipe soon enough! :)

Our housewarming party was amazing! We had so many friends and family come. It was so nice to have people over and show off our new house. We are so in love with it and so glad we finally got to share it with the ones we love. It turned out so well!! So that is why this blog is going to have the recipes that I had at the party. I wish I had taken pictures..but I didn't. So no pictures this time sorry! I'll try and remember to keep up with that!

Fruit Dip

8 oz marshmellow fluff
8 oz cream cheese

Mix together with a hand mixer and enjoy! We had apples, grapes and pineapples with it, and I know strawberries are great with it too!

Amazing sausage dip

1 lb. breakfast sausage
8 oz cream cheese
1 can Rotel

Brown breakfast sausage in pan. Then put sausage, cream cheese and rotel in crock pot and wait for the cheese to melt. It's great with chips!

Veggie Curry Dip

1 cup mayo
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 tablespoons grated onion
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Mix together and enjoy with some veggies!

easy do nothing day = easy do nothing pizza night

I did nothing today! It was actually quit nice! I did spend a little bit of time in my scrapbook room where I made a frame for David's office. It turned out very nice I think. I tried to make these cake balls....was A LOT more work than it looked!! They are SO GOOD....but not worth the time. I'll give you the recipe though if you ever have the time and want to try it out. I will try it out again...one day.

Cake Balls

1 box cake mix
1 can frosting
package melting chocolate

Make the cake as directed. When done take out of the oven and crumble into a large bowl while it is still warm. Then mix in the whole can of frosting and blend the two together well. Put into the fridge for at least 2 hours. Take out and use a melon baller to make the cake into balls. Melt the chocolate (following the directions) and then dip the balls into the chocolate. Let cool in fridge....then eat the greatness that is cake balls.

They are REALLY REALLY good....just very time consuming! Because it's a lot of cake and if you don't have a melon baller....it's a lot more work.

Pizza

1 package refrigerated pizza dough
1 can mushrooms
shredded cheese
peperoni
1 jar pizza sauce


Unroll the pizza dough and spread the sauce on top. Then place the peperoni and mushrooms on top and then the cheese. Cook as the directions say.

This is the cheapest easiest meal to make! And David loves it! I make it for him when ever I don't feel like really cooking.

The pizza dough is $1.50 (I buy walmart brand), the sauce is $1 a jar and you only use 1/2 a jar so you get two uses out of it...sometimes 3...the can of mushrooms is less than $.50 and I buy the large back of graded cheese (like 8 cups for $6 so I'm not sure the price of cheese per pizza). But I think the total to make the pizza is maybe $4! AMAZING!!

Chicken Fried Rice

So today was my first day at Michael's. It was alright...didn't really do much. Watched like 6 videos for 4 hours and then practiced on the cash register. That part was quite easy...like riding a bike, just takes a little bit to remember it all but I did. Though their registers are very different from the WD. But it was a good day. I go back on Friday and Saturday. But I also got a job interview a a preschool on Friday morning. I would love to have that job b/c it's #1 at a school, and #2 Monday-Friday so I don't have to worry about the next 5 weekends that are coming up and all my plans. So we will see....but my hopes are high!

For dinner tonight we had my famous chicken fried rice. I've cooked this for my husband several times because it is one of his favorite dishes and a few other people. I've only had one person that made some negative comments about it, but other than that everyone seems to love it and asks for the recipe to make it themselves! So I hope you enjoy it as much as we do around here!

Chicken Fried Rice

3 pieces chicken
2 cups rice
1 tablespoon EVOO
1/2 cup onion (I don't do this b/c I don't like them)
1/4 cup peas and carrots (I usually do 1/2 to 3/4 cup)
1 egg
soy sauce

1. cook rice
2. cook chicken and cut up into small pieces while the rice is cooking
3. saute veggies w/ evoo
4. scramble egg in pan with veggies
5. add rice & saute for about 5 min
6. add soy sauce (I add way more than 2 tablespoons....so just do it for your taste I don't know the measurement)

Sauce

1 1/2 cup mayo (you have to use the real stuff...miracle whip makes it not taste good)
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
dash cayenne pepper

mix all together....it taste better if you make it the day before. But I usually forget so I make it and put it in the freezer while the food is cooking so that it can get cold fast and mix the flavors faster :)

Mushroom Chicken Cordon Bleu

So I didn't post yesterday because David cooked us some hamburgers. I do have a great recipe for hamburgers I'll have to do that sometime and post if for ya'll. But that's not what we had last night :). Yesterday was such a productive day! We got the office and my scrapbook room finished. Well I still have 1 big box in my scrapbook room to unpack but for the most part it is finished. It was so nice to get that finished yesterday! We also got the garage all cleaned out so now I can park my car in there. That is so exciting.

Today I did nothing! Well I guess not nothing I did finish making our housewarming invitations and I did cook dinner tonight. So here is the recipe for my chicken cordon bleu

Mushroom Chicken Cordon Bleu

4 pieces of chicken

1 small can mushrooms

8 slices provolone cheese

12 slices (thin slices) of ham

bread crumbs

1. You need to put the chicken in a zip lock back and use something to smash them out some. I put a towel over the bag and used the side of a hammer to smash them to get them nice and thin and flat.

2. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on the bottom of the pan you are going to cook in (I always cook this in a 9x13 glass pan). Take a piece of chicken and lay it on the bread crumbs then put the ham, 1 piece of cheese and mushrooms on top of the chicken and roll it up. Doing this will keep the bread crumbs on the outside of the chicken and the ham, cheese and mushrooms on the inside of the chicken. Then I put a few mushrooms on top of the rolled up chicken. Repeat with the rest of the chicken. I usually use a toothpick to hold the chicken together but I didn't have any today and it still worked fine.

3. Bake @ 350 for 25 min. Then take out and put the last 4 pieces of cheese on top of the chicken and cook another 5 min for cheese to melt.

** This is the first time that I've made this with provolone cheese and it has worked the best, and you also don't have to use the mushrooms. This is the first time I've used the mushrooms and they turned out great, but if you don't like mushrooms then leave them out. We love mushrooms around here.

You will see the side I added tonight....it was a very simple package of broccoli fettucine that I cooked following the directions and then I added a bag of microwave steamed broccoli. We really like broccoli around here too so it was really good but if you don't like broccoli then don't add it.

Natalie's Picadillo

So as you can see I didn't post anything on Friday or Saturday night! On Friday night once David got home I didn't want to cook anymore. So we went out to eat. Then on Saturday I wasn't home so again there was no cooking. So on to Sunday...today...it has been a great relaxing day! I slept until 1...I didn't get home last night until 1:15 in the morning and my mind was just going and going that I didn't fall asleep until 2. Though that still doesn't mean I should have slept 11 hours...but I did and it was GREAT! Once I got out of bed I went and laid on the couch with David and we watched TV for the next several hours. Somewhere in there he watched the cowboys lose and so I watched Bridezillas....those ladies are crazy! I just love that show!

Oh wait...I did wake up at 8:30 to the sound of banging like someone was hammering. I walk through the whole house and can't find David. So I go into the garage and the attic ladder is down. He is up in the attic banging around. So I ask him what he is doing....when all I want to say is "What the hell are you doing at 8:30 in the f*ing morning" haha but I was nice....he goes...I think we have either mice or birds because I keep hearing a noise in the fireplace. Which I did hear the other day also...but to me it was the sound of wind blowing and the metal hitting. So he asks me to come sit in the living room and let him know if I hear the noise while he is banging. Of course I don't hear the noise while he keeps banging for another 10 min or so. He comes back into the room and I go back to bed. I believe it was just the wind...he does not. But the noise has not happened since. :)

Anyways.....back to the day. Finally I got up off the couch and did the dishes which took an hour....that's what happens when you let it slide. Two loads in the dishwasher! Then David mopped all the tile. After that we finally moved the desk in from the garage to the office and he started to get that room put together! I'm so excited about all the rooms being finished! While he was unpacking I went and cooked dinner. So now we are at that time where I give you the recipe :) I hope you enjoy it!

Natalie's Picadillo

1 lb ground beef

1 bell pepper

1 can rotel

1 can black beans

1 cup (about) of salsa

1 1/2 cups uncooked white rice

Cut up the bell pepper. Put the pepper, rotel, beans, salsa and beef all in a pan and brown the meat. Cook the rice as normal with 3 cups of water.

Put the rice on your plate and the picadillo on top!

It's that easy and that great! Here is a picture of David's plate from tonight! I hope you like it!

new plan....

So since I'm cooking every night and am pretty much a housewife at the moment...I thought I would start sharing what I'm doing each day and what I cooked for dinner that night and the recipe. I feel like it's so hard to be creative and not repeat the same dish over and over....so I am hoping this will help me to be more creative.

So yesterday I was put in charge of finding a photographer for my friend for her wedding. She had some issues with who was going to do it in the first place and I told her to stop stressing I will get it done! And I did! I went on craigslist (which is now one of my favorite web sites!) and wallah found her a photographer! That's how I found mine for my wedding....so I know it will be great! She just can't blame me if she doesn't like the pictures!! haha

Once that was finished I had other things around the house to do....I didn't do any of it! I did pay all the bills. Which there weren't many this week because this is David's extra check. It went to paying for my car and phone. Then I went to walmart to buy groceries and to Sam's. I just love Sam's! I think...no I know if I had the money I would buy all my groceries there. That store is just amazing. They have so much great stuff...you just gotta love the buying in bulk. I only bought toilet paper and grapes yesterday though.

So for dinner last night I asked David if he wanted me to make pizza or enchiladas. He chose pizza, which was a good thing because I forgot to buy corn tortillas at WalMart. So I decided to do pizza a bit different last night....

Mexican Pizza

1 lb ground meat
1 can refried beans
1 can rotel
2 cups shredded cheese
1 packet taco seasoning
1 package refrigerated pizza dough

1. Cook the ground meat as the taco seasoning packet says.
2. Unroll the pizza dough on a pan and spread the beans onto the dough. (Next time I make this I think I'm going to try black beans and see how it turns out)
3. Drain the can of rotel and then spread it onto of the beans.
4. Spread the meat on next and then cover with the cheese.

Cook in the over following the directions of the pizza dough.

David loved it. He loves when I make pizza, and last night he told me this was the best pizza I've made yet. I only used 1/2 the can of beans and he said next time it needs more...I had to agree with him on that. But it was good.

So that was my day yesterday. I hope to be productive tonight after dinner and post about today. :)

so much it's almost too much

There is just so much to talk about....

I'm so excited about our Garage Sale on Saturday! I love getting money for things you don't use anymore....always a good thing expecially when money is tight right now because I don't have a job.

The house is coming along...slowly but it's coming a long. We have the guest room done except for hanging things on the walls, we have the guest bath done except for some stencil painting I want to do and hanging a few things. The kitchen is done though it is kinda a catch all for the living room and misc things that don't have a place yet. We have painted my scrapbook room a beautiful orange color and I plan to get that room done once our Garage Sale is over. We painted a wall in the livingroom a chocolate brown color, and I am in love with the wall! The office got painted red....then I did a second coat....it needs a 3rd but we really don't have much paint left for that. So I am thinking that will be put off for a while. I hope that this weekend we can get that room put together so that we can put the dining room together also. Because that is the room that is storing all the office stuff. We also have plans this weekend to paint our bedroom. It will be a blue/gray color. We bought a new bed last weekend at IKEA...it's so pretty. I can't wait for the house to be ready for people to come over and see it completed!! We have had a few people over but I really only want their first impression to be the completed model :) But I'm also super excited when anyone comes over even with all the mess! haha

jobs.....
So I had that interview last week and it went so well. They were all so nice to me, and told me during the interview how great I was. But I still didn't get the job :( I really thought I had it in the bag because the superintendant is a very close family friend of my Aunt Lisa (Scott's wife) and I was just sure she was going to push for me to get the job plus they told me how great I was......

fast forward to today I went to that school districts substitute teacher orentation and the Superintendant was there during it. After it was over she stood up and said "Natalie...." So we talked for a good 10 min, and she was very very very nice! She told me that I was the choice for the job, that the whole team loved everything about me, loved how nice I was, loved how bubbly I was, etc......and then at the last min a teacher applied for it that used to work in the district. The reason this job became open was because the 4th grade teacher became the new principal...so this lady applies that used to work in the district with this new principal...so in the end she picked her friend. I understand why she did it...it just sucks. But that just wasn't the place for me. I hope that I find the place for me soon!

With that said I do have an interivew for 2nd grade on Monday! I have nothing but positive thoughts going through my head. I will get this job!

Sunday is David's 29th birthday and he wants nothing....to do nothing...to get nothing....I am really really sad about this. I feel like it is all my fault. I don't have a job and so we can't afford his birthday. He keeps saying it's fine....but it's his BIRTHDAY...you have to do something...I just don't know what yet....

Our 1 year anniversary is in 16 days! I can't believe it has already been a WHOLE year!!! It has gone by crazy fast!!!!! Let alone the fact that so much has happened!!!
1. the wedding....
2. Vegas!
3. we bought a time share
4. we moved home
5. we bought a HOUSE!

crazy.....

I'm a celebrity....get me outa here!

I wrote this whole thing about some problems I'm having with adjusting to living with the in-laws...but I delted it b/c I feel bad even saying the things I was saying....I just have a few things to adjust to....

Let me take my earrings off....

Ok just bear with me because I am about to vent.....

Let's start off with an explanation....I'll even just give the basics and not the whole year long story....there is this first grade teacher at my school that is REDICILIOUS! She has something like 10 or 11 kids in her class, and talks all the time about how it is so hard to manage them. On top of that she has had two parents go into the office and demand that their kids be pulled from her class, and one parent that pulled their kid from the school so he wouldn't be in her class anymore. NO ONE likes this first grade dingbat (which is a REALLY NICE thing for me to call her right now!!). NO ONE! During the year she has shh'ed several adults durring mettings. She does not know how to speak pollietly to anyone. Even the other day she was yelling at her kids for not knowing what a holiday is. COME ONNNNNNN they are in 1st grade!!!!!!!! Don't be a bitch! I could go on and on, but I think you get the point. She's horrible and no one likes her.

Well today we had Multicultural day at school. At 12:30 the whole school went into the assembly room for several different grades to put on performances. My kids were sitting up in the front right behind first grade. I was standing in the back of the room because we had already preformed and I wanted to watch the other preformances. Well apparently my kids were getting a little too loud in between the performances, and I was called over to them. I walk up and say "Is there a problem?" because I wanted to know if there were some specific students that I needed to talk to, and she comes back at me in the most horrible tone "Uh yeah you could sit with your kids, please!" (which doesn't sound bad at all when you are reading it, it was the WAY she said it!!!) Right then and there I had to bite my tounge, litteraly, because I was about to rip her a new one. How dare you be so disrespectful to me in front of my students and your students. But I decided I would be adult about it and wait until I had calmed down some, and all the kids were gone to talk to her about the situation.

So at 3:00 once all the kids and buses are gone all the teachers were still outside helping to clean up and just talking. She had kinda walked away from everyone else so I decided that this would be a good time to let her know she needs to be respectful to adults in front of children if she expects them to act the same. I start out very pollite and calm, and as I'm trying to tell her what the problem was she cuts me off and starts talking about a WHOLE other situation that has NOTHING to do with her speaking to me respectfully. She tells me that at breakfast duty I need to be watching my kids more, because the only time that I get on to them is when they are running around. Well shit if that didn't confuse me. Because I figured that if they were sitting down at breakfast then there wasn't a problem. Though again that is not what I was talking to her about. And I have no idea how breakfast duty has anything to do with her talking to me with respect in front of the kids. So I try to get back on topic and then she tells me that I wasn't teaching my kids well enough during the assembly. So I was like well shit what the f*** is she talking about now b/c I know we were not teaching during the assembly, we were watching an assembly. So again I try to get back to the point at hand, and the she just decides to stand there and stare at me. So I say do you understand? Again she says something to the effect of me not teaching my children correctly, so I just walked off and said "I'm not even going to talk to you about teaching." I was really trying to not hit below the belt and she was really trying to pull me down there. It was I walk away or I really start to rip into her.

Well durring all this pretty much all the other teachers were standing in the background listening. The best part of it was that when she moved away from me she stood there and looked around to see that everyone was moving towards me and not her, and then she just walked away.

BUT WAIT! It gets EVEN BETTER!! The BITCH had the balls to say under her breath as she was walking away "Well that's why I'm going to be here next year and your not!" Another teacher and her aide her this INSANE woman say that! When she told me that's what she heard I about went postal! I wanted to go find her again and rip into her again! Not once did I say anything mean or negative towards you. Not once was I caddy or degrading. First of all you should get your facts straight before you say shit like that! Because I would be there next year if I wasn't MOVING TO ANOTHER FUCKING STATE!

I'm just glad I'm not going to work tomorrow, because I'm pretty sure I would rip into her again. I am really going to need 3 days to calm down from this! She is a freak! The whole time she had no idea what I was saying to her. The WHOLE point of the converstaion was to let her know that when children are around you need to treat all adults with respect if you expect the children to do the same. They learn more by watching you than by what you say! And them seeing you talking to another adult like that shows them it's okay for them to talk to each other or another adult like that. It is NOT OK!

AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! She makes me insanly angry! I have to stop talking about it now so I can calm down again! haha

Day 1....well really hour 1....

David is gone...:( He just left about 30 minutes ago for Texas. I cried....of course! haha I'm even going to see him on Thursday, but still I cried. I know that we are finally going home and we are both very excited to be back there. But I think that being here alone for this month is really going to suck! I hope it goes quickly. I have a lot of packing to do, and a lot of packing to do at work. Plus I have to say goodbye to all my friends and all my kids. I hate goodbyes....they are sad....

Best chicken I've ever cooked!!

So last night I tried a new kinda recipe that my friend Amanda gave me just with words. So I had to do my best to remember it. But it was mega easy to remember. Anyways....it was soooooo good that I just have to share it! Also it all only cost about $10...that is my guess because we already had the chicken and cheese. What I paid is $4! I have no idea what it's called so I'm just calling it

Ooh Ooh Good Chicken! (this is my recipe)
4 pieces of chicken (next time I will also put 6 pieces of chicken, or 4 large pieces)
1 box stove top stuffing
1 can rotel
1 can of mushrooms (I added this b/c we both love mushrooms)
1 can of chicken broth
shredded cheese

Turn the oven on to 375. Put chicken on bottom of pan, the pour on stove top (which I used the walmart chicken flavored brand), rotel, mushrooms and chicken broth. Mix it all up. Put it in the oven for 30 min. Take out and put the shredded cheese on top to cover the whole dish. Put back into the over for another 10 min. Ding....it's Ooh Ooh good! haha

**actually when I made this I also put 1/2 a can of water in it. But I thought the stuffing was too soggy, though David said it was perfect. Next time I make it I'm not going to put the water in, and that is why I didn't include it in the recipe**

(this is what my friend put in hers)
4-5 pieces of chicken (that she cut up before putting in the pan)
1 box stove top stuffing
1 can tomato chuncks
water to cover to the top (I just thought the chicken broth would have better flavor than water)

She cooked it the same way I did but she had the cheese on the whole time.

May 9, 1995

Dear Diary,

Sorry I haven't written in a long time well I'll just sum up what has happened in the past week or 2. Me and Joe broke up again, then got back together. Me, Joe and Neeley are playing a big trick on Stevie the BITCH Mayo. Okay it started Mon morning Neeley told Stevie that Joe was going to break up with me for her. So Tue. Joe fake broke up wht me (were still going together)then Thur. he's going to ask me back out and tell Stevie that he's only asking me out to have a date to the dance, then at the dance when there song comes on I'm going to go over to Stevie and Neeley and say he broke up with me again then act really upset, then Joe's going to ask her to dance and ask her out Then of course she's going to say yes, so after she says yes, he's going to tell her off and tell her that we just majorly pulled a very BIG joke on her so then me and Joe are going to dance to the rest of the song if it's still playing. Well Robby did something I never thought anyone on the face of this earth would ever do. He was going out with Virginia and asked Allison Six to the dance, and then wrote Virginia a note telling her he had ask Allison to the dance and she said eys, then dumped her. Well GTGTB

Love,
Natalie

So I picked this one totally because I think it's funny that Rob made it to my diary! haha He was a teenage boy! I would have done the same thing if I was him!! haha Allison Six or Virginia? Hmmm....haha....

I don't even know what to say about the whole Joe/Stevie thing.....I don't know why I thought that was even funny. First of all it didn't happen...but no matter how big of a bitch Stevie was that was just mean what we had planned! And still with Joe?? Why didn't anyone slap me?? haha

Oh also, I tried to read some of this to David and we just couldn't get past the part where I start each entry to my diary with hello, how are you, or sorry I haven't written....it's not a person! haah Who was I writing to?

Dear Diary,

So the other night I went into our guest closet to get a book to read. While I was in there I found my diary from jr. high and high school. So I decided that could be the next book I read! It has so far made me laugh out loud! Some of the things I wrote were just too funny!! I've made it all the way through jr. high now, and I thought that there we some entries I just had to share....so for the next few days you will be reading my jr. high/high school diary! I hope you laugh as much as I have!

P.S. I am going to type it just as it is written with spelling mistakes and all...sometimes that is more funny than what I'm talking about....

3-19-95
Dear Diary,

Howdy, How R U? Me - OK :) I'm so upset though. I was so close to going to Stoval Park with Kelsey, Joe :), Loren :), Jessica, & Sarah. But mamma said NO because it was to far. But oh well Spring Break is almost over, and I will soon see all of them except Sarah, she goes to Young. I'm also happy because I won a bet with Joe last night. He bet me that I could not last on the phone till 5:00 am If I hung up and went to bed that meant that Tue. when we went back to school I had to give him a kiss which would not be that bad, but I won so sometime this summer we both have to go to 6 Flags together and with none of our friends, just us 2. Which I don't mind either. Joe also said that probly by the end of the year we will be going out. :) But soemtimes I wish Kelsey had never come to Boles because I would be going out with Joe as I write :). Oh well, I can't wait until 7:25 because were going (mamma, Nick, Cliff, Catie, & I) to see The Tall tales of Pacos Bill, then MAN OF THE HOUSE (Doubel feature) I miss TJ, and Joe, except for the fact that I have talked to Joe everyday of Spring Break, except for today. But hey the days not over yet. Well I GTG mamma wants me to make some sugar cookies with easter M&M's in them. Bye Bye

Love
Natalie :)

P.S. I forgot to tell you that I dumped Zack, then went out with a major dweebe named Nathan But then I dumped him. I'm also very happy because Joe always says he loves me and I think he really means it I know he really cares about me because he says it all the time and Kelsey also said it. Loren also said I was his baby, and he loved me too, but I think he means as friends, well GTG again

Love, Natalie :)

So my first favorite part is when I am talking about going to the movies and then jump right into missing TJ and Joe! haha Plus wtf am I missing about TJ!!??!! If I had known then what I know now I wouldn't have wasted so much "love" (hahahaha) for him!! I am kinda mad at myself for calling Nathan a "major dweebe" haha. He was so sweet in jr. high.....I was so blinded by Joe!! And OMG I would sooooooooooo much rather be friends with Kelsey than Joe anyday!! I also love how I talk to my diary as if it is a person, and that I sign it all Love Natalie....as if it could possibly be someone else! haha.....another to come tomorrow....I hope this one has made you smile!

Testing Day #3

Did not go as well as day 1 and 2. Today was their Language Arts day and they had 3 timed sections. I had kids not finish the first timed part and the last timed part. I hate having to turn in tests with blank answers. Blanks are so much worse than a guess! At least with a guess you have the possibility of getting it right....but oh well.....I also watched a kid fail the test today. She chose for almost 10 questions in a row that there were no mistakes in the sentences. Which was not at all correct :( Oh well at least they have a 2 day break before we finish the test. All that is left is Science and Social Studies. Which is probably going to be the hardest part! Oh well......I did get two good days!

proof that I do know how to do my job

Testing Day #1

So yesterday, day 1, was math. I have to walk around the room and watch them take the test to make sure they are doing all the "things" right. Like bubbling in the right places, not marking on the answer sheet where they are not allowed to, not opening another part of the test we are not on, not going back to a part we are already finished with, etc. etc....the list goes on and on. So anyways....I'm walking around and I can see that for the most part my kids did pretty well on the math section. Well at least I think/hope so. None of them got stressed out. They all took their time and I could tell they were doing the work. So we will see when the scores come in....

Testing Day #2

Another successful day. Today was our writing and informational text part. So the writing topic was to write a letter to a friend that you went to school with last year and tell them all the fun things they missed out on this year by not coming back to your school. I about cried tears of EXTREME JOY when I saw this topic!! I can't tell you how many times we have worked on writing letters! I had my kids write a letter at the first of they year and they did so bad on it that we would write letters often just to get into the practice of what a letter is supposed to look like and sound like. I know they had to of done well on that part today! Again I'll have to wait for the true results when the scores come in.....but I am confident! Plus my kids have been extremely confident in themselves these past two days which really really helps!

So.....so far so good!!

YAY!!

I sure did have a lot to say today.....:)

When you are finally content in your own situation...

....is when He does what you have been wanting all along!

So I wrote that blog about my revelation, and it really was. I have gone back and forth from wanting to be here, to not wanting to be here in Louisiana. Last September when David was offered a job at home I thought it was horrbile timing because I was so very happy here. I loved everything that was going on in our lives here in Louisiana. I was so upset about the whole thing, and then it fell through. I was sad it didn't happen, but I was happy to get to stay in Louisiana for more time. Then life got hard, and I got to the point of not wanting to be here anymore. It was really my job that ruined everything. I was so upset and stressed out everyday. I hated going to work. So I sat down to type that blog and it turned into me realizing that where I am right now is okay. I can be happy in this place, because it's where He wants me to be. I have to take the bad and find the good. And I did just that. I was content with being here in Louisiana, and I decided that I would be happy here for however long that has to be......

Well that only has to be for 2 more months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE MOVING HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited about the whole thing I could scream from the roof of our apartment!! David was offered a mall in Allen, and it couldn't have been better timing!! On Tuesday David's boss came out here and they posted a help wanted ad online, and got 3 hits by the end of the day. Last night David and his boss interview a guy, and they have decided to hire him to take David's job. They are going to tell him on Monday, and then David will have to train him for 2 weeks ones he starts. So by the first of May David will be home in Dallas at his new job in Allen! I will have to wait it out here until the end of the school year. Then I'll be coming home. The timeing couldn't be more perfect. While I'm home for Spring Break Richardson ISD is holding their job fair. So I'm going to go to that. Garland is also holding their job fair too, so I am going to do by damn best to make it to that one too. They are on the same day at the same time. But I'm going to try and do them both. I'll just be tired when they are over and have to haul ass to make it to Jennifer's baby shower in time!

But anyways...so right now our plan is to live with David's parents until our lease is up here. We will still have to be paying rent for June, July and August. Then we wanted to stay through December so we could save some money. We'll see how long we can handle it. 6 months can be a long time! I hope it all works out though. I'm sure it will.....again I just need to trust in Him because he clearly is watching out for us!!

So anyways....that is the exciting news! WE ARE MOVING HOME!!!!!! I'm so happy about it!!

But I haven't told my boss yet. Acutally today I sent him an email telling him that I can't wait to come back for next year. Just in case....you never know....expecially after what happened in September. I don't want everything to fall apart and we not go and then to top it off I gave up my job here. So that is the only string left to deal with once it's all said and done! I'm so excited!!! :)

a time warp

****20 YEARS AGO (1989)*****
1) How old were you? 7
2) Who were you dating? I was 7! Though I did have a "boyfriend" in first grade...don't remember who
3) Where did you work? Corey Elementary 1st grade baby!
4) Where did you live? Arlington
5) Where did you hang out? I'm gonna go with home and school haha...sometimes the playground
6) Did you wear contacts or glasses? not yet
7) Who were your best friends? Kristin
8) How many tattoos did you have? just the temporary ones
9) How many piercings did you have? ears
10) What kind of car did you drive? my bike
11) Had you been to a real party? I think my 6th birthday was probably the craziest thing anyone has been to!
12) Had your heart broken? nah
13) Were you single/taken/married/divorced?
14) Any kids? I was a kid!

****15 YEARS AGO (1994)****
1) How old were you? 12
2) Who were you dating? no one
3) Where did you work? Boles Jr. High
4) Where did you live?? Arlington
5) Where did you hang out? Home, Neeley's house
6) Did you wear contacts and/or glasses? glasses
7) Who were your closest friends? Neeley, Dorothy, Kim, Kelsey, Virginia, and Jessica
8) How many tattoos did you have? whatever I would write on myself
9) How many piercings did you have? just the ears
10) What kind of car did you drive? still the bike
12) Had you had your heart broken? a 12 y/o heartbreak...nothing to write home about :)
13) Were you Single/Taken/Married/Divorced? single
14) Any Kids? nope

******10 YEARS AGO (1999)***
1) How old were you? 17
2) Who were you dating? no one
3) Where did you work? So Tan, Toys R Us, Winn Dixie
4) Where did you live? Arlington and Fort Worth
5) Where did you hang out? Home, work, Candi's house
6) Did you wear contacts and/or glasses? contacts
7) Who were your closest friends? Candi, Kim, Jessica
8) How many tattoos did you have? none
9) How many piercings did you have? ears
10) What kind of car did you drive? 1990 Chevy Silverado....miss that truck!
11) Had your heart broken? many times, and by people I never imagined
12) Were you Single/Taken/Married/Divorced? single
13 Any Kids? 0

****TODAY (2009)****
1) Age? 27
2) Where do you work? Abramson Science and Technology.....hell.....
3) Where do you live? Kenner, LA
5) Who are your closest friends? David, Amy, Jessica, Candi, Deb, and Kim
6) Do you talk to your old friends? not really
7) How many piercings do you have? ears
8) How many tattoos? just one....trying to convince David for us to get one
9) What kind of car do you have? 2008 Saturn Vue...orange of course
10) Had your heart broken? never again!
11) How many kids? 0
12) Are you Single/Taken/Married/Divorced? happily married!
13) Contact or Glasses? contacts still....one day I hope no more!

S A T U R D A Y night!

Well the day started off with me going to the zoo...that was interesting. It was all for work and I wasn't there but for like 2 hours. I didn't see any animals at all. There were like 2 million people there....that's a whole other story in itself....While I was there I saw a booth that was selling fresh strawberries, and I was going to buy some before I left. But I forgot :( So I am walking to my car and there this guy is selling fresh strawberries out of his truck! So I bought half a flat of strawberries for $9! It's a TON of strawberries!! They are soooo good too!

But on to this evening.....David really wanted us to do something "together" so we looked and looked on the Internet to try and find a script because he wanted us to do a duet and record it on our new camcorder. Well we couldn't find anything that we both agreed on and it was really hard to find anything in the first place. So I suggested that we paint! So we did! It was so much fun too! This all started because earlier this week I made us watch this man paint on tv. We watched him paint for a good 20 minutes. It gave me a big itch, and tonight David and I scratched it. And now all I want to do is paint more!!

Here are some pictures of us painting.....

this turned into my revelation...

So I am officially certified to teach in Louisiana. I honestly don't know what to think about this. I think that part of me put it off for two years because....I don't know...so many reasons.
*I thought in the back of my mind if I didn't do it, then it would be easier to go home.
*I thought in the back of my mind if I didn't do it, then it would be easier to take getting fired.
*I thought I don't need to do it, we'll be gone soon, and no one will know the difference.
*haha for a while I thought that I couldn't have Texas and Louisiana, so that was another reason I didn't do it, because I didn't want to lose my Texas one...found out that wasn't true......haha

But it's just looking like we are not going home any time soon. This makes me so sad and happy at the same time. I miss all that is home. There is nothing about home that makes me think "Man I sure don't miss that!" I miss my family so much. I miss seeing them often. I am sad that they are doing things together all the time and I am missing so much of it. I feel like they are so far from me. Though I know this isn't true.

I miss my friends so so so so so so very much! They are out doing things all the time, and I wish each time that I could be there. My heart is sad each time I miss a meeting. :(

But then I am happy. I am happy to be someplace different with my amazing husband. I love that we are experiencing this together, and it will be a part of our lives forever. I love that when we try something new here, we are doing it together, and that it's new for both of us. I love that this is a place where people come to visit us. I love that. I love having people to show my "place" to! I do love my job. We all know the things I hate about my job. But I do love my children and the other teachers I work with. These woman have become a huge part of my life. Especially Amy. I just love her. She is a really great friend, and she does a great job of showing me her "place" that is called New Orleans!

The other day I was driving and all I could think about was how great this place is that I'm living in. There are millions of people that take their vacation here, and I LIVE here! It is a fun place to be. There is always so much to do. I love going out and doing anything here.

So for how ever long God's plan is for me to be here. I am ready to face it. I know that some of it will be hard. Since I have seen how some of it has already been hard. I lived through that, and I know I can live through the rest of it. I will be home when He wants me to be home. I also know that the second he says "it's time to go home" I won't hesitate to get my butt on that road home!! But I am enjoying what I have at this moment. Though there are just some days....like Tuesdays ;).....when I really just want to be home.

ZYX's

The Letter A
Are you available? most of the time I am...I don't really have much planned
What is your age? 27
What annoys you? work emails...grrr
The Letter B
Do you live in a big house? no it's a small apartment
When is your birthday? August 12th
Who is your best friend? David
The Letter C
What's your favorite candy? anything with chocolate and peanut butter
Who's your crush? I don't know...don't really have one
When was the last time you cried? saturday
The Letter D
Do you daydream? often
What's your favorite kind of dog? yorkie
What day of the week is it? Wednesday
The Letter E
How do you like your eggs? scrambled
Have you ever been in the emergency room? I have
What's the easiest thing ever to do? think
The Letter F
Have you ever flown in a plane? I have
Do you use fly swatters? nope
Have you ever used a foghorn? not that I can remember
The Letter G
Do you chew gum? sure
Are you a giver or a taker? I give too much sometimes
Do you like gummy candies? love them!
The Letter H
How are you? happy to be home, and a little less stressed so far this week....
What color is your hair? brown
The Letter I
What's your favorite ice cream? sweet cream
Have you ever ice skated? it has been a while
Do you play an instrument? I used to play the violin
The Letter J
What's your favorite jelly bean brand? there are these organic ones that are amazing!
Do you wear jewelry? I do
The Letter K
Who do you want to kill? a few people...but I will never put their names in print!!
Do you want kids? yes
Where did you go for kindergarten? Corey
The Letter L
Are you laid back? I have my moments
Do you lie? it's a waist of time
The Letter M
Whats your favorite movie? I could never pick just one
Do you still watch Disney movies? sure do!
Do you like mangos? don't know that I've ever had a mango..though I do like mango flavored things
The Letter N
Do you have a nickname? nat and noni
What is your real name? Natalie Christine
Whats your favorite number? 12
Do you prefer night over day? I do
The Letter O
What's your one wish? to have millions so I don't have to work
Are you an only child? nope
The Letter P
What one fear are you most paranoid about? losing my parents
What are your pet peeves? adults that tattle without finding out the facts
What's a personality trait you look for in people? kindness and careing
The Letter Q
What's your favorite quote? "Most of us end up with no more than five or six people who remember us. Teachers have thousands of people who remember them for the rest of their lives." - Andres A. Rooney
Are you quick to judge people? I think that I take too long to judge people....I think that is part of my problem
The Letter R
Do you think you're always right? oh yeah
Are you one to cry? Oh yeah
The Letter S
Do you prefer sun or rain? sun
Do you like snow? sure
What's your favorite season? Fall
The Letter T
What time is it? 6:38 p.m.
What time did you wake up? 6 am....I woke up late today
When was the last time you slept in a tent? It has been a while
The Letter U
Are you wearing underwear? yes
Underwear or boxers? boxers
The Letter V
What's the worst veggie? calaflower....haha I know that's not how you spell it...but you get the point
Where do you want to go on vacation? anywhere tropical
The Letter W
What's your worst habit? I have no idea...
Where do you live? Kenner
What's your worst fear? a bridge falling on me when I'm under it or it falling when I'm on it or me driving over the side of it
The Letter X
Have you ever had an x-ray? oh yeah
Have you seen the x-games? nope
Do you own a xylophone? hells yeah I do! I even have a group that meets every monday night to play
The Letter Y
Do you like the color yellow? it's alright
What's one thing you yearn for? a better job
The Letter Z
Whats your zodiac sign? leo
Do you believe in the zodiac? no
Favorite zoo animal? giraffe

Mine and David's new blog

http://andthisiswhattheywrote.blogspot.com/

This is the link to our blog...go check it out, and become our followers. I hope sometimes it makes you laugh :)

More Love Notes

Dear GIANT girl to the left of me at Endymion,

Look girl I know you are from Michigan and have no idea how a parade works so I will let you know. You are in YOUR space and I am in MINE! So when beads come towards me and my friends you do not have permission to dive in front of us and take them all. I'm sorry you have a very misproportioned body. But don't steal our beads!! We didn't dive for yours!

Dear GIANT girl's dad,

You are sitting in a chair in the middle of 100 people standing? Really? Move the F out of the way! And you better put your hands down. Plus just in case you don't know this, but glow sticks don't work the next day. Take them out of your bag and share the weath of your stingy GIANT daughter! Horder!

Dear Mardi Gras,

I love your parades so very much! Thank you for being two weeks long. You are great! You give me fun throws, and amazing cups! I love you!

Dear New Orleans,

Why do you have to be so far from home? I miss my friends and family, and you are too far for them to come and visit! Or for me to go and visit! You need to move closer!

Dear Mean People at Work,

Thank you for not being so mean at the end of last week. It has helped my stress level to go way down. Please continue to not be mean to me between now and the end of the year. That would be great! Thanks!

Love,
Natalie

I have some great positives today!!

#1. I didn't get fired today!! YAY!!

#2. We had a Mardi Gras parade today at school, and my kids were so cute!!

#3. My kids were supper good after the parade!!

#4. My dad is on his way into town and should be here very soon!!

my positive for today

Today is the first day I haven't gotten in trouble in 5 days.....

FYI....I haven't done anything wrong but be a woman.....yeah....

again....the fear

for fear...

I have come here almost everyday for a week now wanting to write about what is going on. But I type a line or two and then just close the window. I do this in fear of putting out into the world the true fears that I have and then those fears becoming a reality......

Life is really hard right now...really hard. I am on the verge of tears or vomit at all times out of fear of....life....for the best way to describe it.

The only safety I feel is at home with my sweet and loving husband. But then the feeling comes back when it's time for bed and I know I am one short night time away from the fear again....

I hate this life....I hate this feeling of fear all the time....and at the moment there is no end in sight. Because I fear the end. I don't know if the end will come on my time.....or my fear....

Please don't feel sorry for me.....I pray each night that this fear is just something I have made up in my mind....

I am just sad that someone has made me hate my job. That someone has made me question my education. That they have made me question my career choice. That they have made me dread the place where I can go to find at least 20 children who can't make it through the day without me. I have never in my dreams wanted to hate this job. But I do.....

oh how I love me some Friday!

1. I only had to do my job for 4 hours today, and that was not 4 hours in a row either!

2. We went to the highschool basketball game tonight. Both girls and boys, and the girls won...boys lost :(, but it was a lot of fun.

3. I talked with my prinicpal today about getting a pep rally set up for all the kids the day before LEAP testing and he was all excited about it. Today was the first time we have had a positive converstaion in about 3 weeks! It was great!

4.....yes I acutlly have 4 today!!.....4. The new security gaurd at school is an ex New Orleans Hornets player and I asked him if he could give me the hook up on having a Hornets player come and talk to the kids at the pep rally and he said yes!! I hope it really works out!

day 2...

1. The second grader that is smart enough to be in 3rd grade doesn't want to be in 3rd grade anymore....one less kid for me!

2. My kids were really good today, and we got a lot done. To reward them I bought them a king cake! It was good :)

3.....why is the third one always the hardest????.......I found out that I have worked with the brownies enough that they have earned their first badge! (I wish my junior girls would get in gear and earn thier first badge!! but yay for the brownies!!!!)

Yeah #3 took me a good 30 min to think of! I think that tomorrow will be another hard day to think of pisitives again, but I have hope!

:)

positivity day 1

well on the way home from work I tried to think of at least 3 positive things about today....it was not easy.....it doesn't help when you end the day with a stressful meeting....but anyways....

1. I rearanged my classroom yesterday, and so today was the first time my kids where in there with the new arangment and it worked out quite well.

2. I got a lot of papers graded today and while doing that noticed that my kids are starting to make better grades. (I think this is a huge positive!!)

3.......David says that #3 can be that I left alive and didn't kill a kid either :).

So those are my 3 positive things from today......oh well and I got a cupcake, but that has nothing to do with work :)

angry

I am so tired of being angry all the time. I just read that last post that I wrote and I sound so angry. It's not like things are going wrong in my life, but it sure does seem like everyone is out to piss me off. I feel like I've surrounded myself with a bunch of people who are out for only themselves. I don't understand how you can be in the education field and be out for only yourself. I mean your job is to watch over and look out for children. Does that mean to you it's then okay to screw all the adults around you? I just don't understand. And what I don't understand the most is why I'm left in the cold everytime and no one seems to notice. The first one quit, and then the second one came. I thought she was going to be great and we would be a team, but at the first chance she got she bolted. Then I got number three and we were not a team at all. There were times when I really thought you were teaching something completely different than me. I love her as a person, but a team mate she was not. Then bang she was fired because she messed....which some how became my fault....another story for another time.....then came number 4 and I feel bad but I don't want anything to do with her. She is so nice, and I think she would be a great person on my team. But I'm tired of getting burned. I like her as my friend, and don't have a problem helping her at all. But it really bothers me that I can't help but keep her at a distance.

I don't want to leave because of the children, but I think this place is really making me an angry person. I'm so angry because of the horrible people I'm around all day. There are some really great people too, but when the whole office is bad? This all makes life too hard! At the moment I don't feel like the good out weights the bad.

Good:
1. the kids (LOVE them).....that is a big one.....
2. the teachers I do like and get along with, and that they are there to work as a team....
yeah that's about it....

Bad:
1. all the other teachers....oohh expecially that one that called me a bitch the other day!
2. the office
3. iss
4. ohhhh.....the list could go on and on....but it gets me angry again.....and I'm tired of being angry......

I don't want to be an adult anymore! How do I go back? The only good thing I've got going on right now as an adult is my amazing husband that loves me more than I can even imagine.

ooohhh.....I just want to not be angry anymore.....

Ok I am going to start fresh....I am going to find at least 3 positive things per day and hold on to them....I want them to be different each day...we will see how long this lasts :) I'll keep ya updated....

angry = tired!

I'm just calling them letters...because I don't know that they are "love" letters

Dear Jerk that thinks he's my boss,

Look you are NOT my boss, and when I tell you that I've done your damn paper work you better look at it! I have a full time job...unlike you...and I don't have time to make copies of things that are already finished just to justify your salery.

P.S. You also need to turn off the copy counter, I was not the problem!

Dear ISS "I think I'm in charge" teacher,

You have a classroom, where you are supposed to be all day with the kids that are in trouble. Get over it and stay your ass in your room. Put down the stupid mega phone and shut the hell up. You don't even know how to speak correctly either! You are also not in charge of the announcments. Just get over yourself.

Dear crazy lady,

Don't ever make threats again like you are going to kill yourself....makes me hate you a little, and that makes me hate me a little.

Dear Officer Douchebag,

Just because your life sucks doesn't mean that you have to be so mean to me. I didn't even do anything wrong. You just have a crappy life and want to take everyone down with you. Stop it!

Dear co leaders,

It's your troop too! Do your damn job. I am not here to do it all for you, and then for you to get pissed of at me when I stop doing it all. I will not do everything for the troop anymore at all. You need to do it for a while. That's why we are CO LEADERS!

Dear mean "used to be my friend" teacher,

Yeah that's right I said used to be my friend. We were all the way up until you told on me to the boss for something I didn't do. Thanks for checking with me first before you called me out on something that didn't happen. Way to "work with the team."

don't really love you,
Natalie

:)

annoyed

You know the #1 thing that I hate about teaching has to be parents! I mean parents can be great, but they can also be an extreme annoyance. Especially if they thing their child can do no wrong and that you are just lie all the time.

So this is because of this one dang parent in my class...don't even get me started on the parent in the other 3rd grade class that tried to get me fired last week.....

So this one parent...of one of my kids right...she is just so dang annoying. Her son is a pretty average student. His grades and kinda low average grades. He could do a lot better, but he doesn't try hard enough.

Well the first problem I had with her was when her son wasn't doing all of his homework so he was making poor homework grades. So she called to complain to me, and I decided I would make a homework sheet that I would make copies of each week for the kids to keep up with and they could write down their homework for each day of the week on the paper I give them. All because of this boy and his annoying mom, and the fact that he is so scatter brained that he couldn't write down all his hw. Okay...well that worked for a little while, and then he started to not write down all of it. He was writing down a few of the things, but not all of the things. Why? I have no idea....so yeah that is an on going problem that I have with them....oh and she expects me to check his hw paper every day to make sure that he has written down everything. Like I have time for that!!



Onto the next problem I have with them....yeah I told the kids on like a mon we will have a science test on wed....and I told them again on tue we will have a science test tomorrow, and I gave them science hw that was EXACTLY the same as the test. So Wednesday came, and I decided to give them an open book/hw science test to make it easier on them. Of course he failed the test.....right you're asking how? Yeah I don't know either....but apparently he didn't tell his mom that he had a test in science on Wednesday. She saw the failing grade when he brought it home FOR A SECOND CHANCE TO RAISE HIS GRADE! That's right after they take tests I send them home to be signed and corrected with a parent and I will raise their grade to either passing or add 10 points if they already passed. This is when she called me all pissed that he failed a test that he had no idea he was going to have. So I told her oh yes he did know he had this test, and it was an open book and hw test....but no it wasn't good enough for her. It wasn't good enough for her either that he had the second chance to raise his grade...whatever!

So then a few weeks later she calls me again to complain about how low his science and social studies grades are. I explained to her why they were so low, and it only pissed her off. We pretty much got into it on the phone. She cont to tell me who wrong it was of me to not give them a better grade. FYI for SS we do 1 worksheet a week, it has mon, tue, wed, thur, and friday part on each ws. For each day you read a short paragraph and answer 2-4 questions about it. I did this worksheet with them for about 10 weeks everyday and slowly worked my way to them doing the worksheet alone. He doesn't read the paragraphs at all, and fails everyone...and you wonder why he is failing SS?

So just now I got a call from another teacher at school who just so happens to be this boys teacher from last year. She is now the asst. dean of students and deals with discipline. So today the boy was running out of my class after school and she got onto him for running, and then she said "I'll see you tomorrow" to him. Which of course meant that he had ISS. You see that too right? yeah! Well that's what he told his mother. So the mother called last years teacher to complain about the whole ISS bs, and then proceeded to complain to her about me!

The mom told her that the boy doesn't even have time to write the hw down b/c I write it down and then erase it too quickly!!! THAT IS SOOOO A LIE!!! Here is the best part of that I write down the hw, and I don't erase it until the NEXT day AFTER I have checked everyone's hw!!

The mom also told her that he isn't doing as good in the class as she would like, and that it's all my fault!

I want to punch this woman in the face!!! I feel like I should call her and be like wtf?!? But I don't want her to think that she can't confide in another teacher.


There have been too many things this week that have really had me questioning my job at my school, and I don't understand it. :( So frustrated!!!!

I know you want to know these....

100 things all about me. I am totally taking this from Kim. But I really liked hers and thought I could stand to think about myself for a little bit and all the random things about me...Which by the way ended up taking me all day to do.....

1. I love 90210 (the classic of course) a little too much. It is the highlight of my Saturday to get to sit on the couch and watch 10 episoes of it! I get to laugh, cry and just have a grand ole' time....

2. Scrapbooking is my #1 favorite thing to do and I am pretty stressed out about the fact that I don't have time to do it anymore and that it is pileing up more and more with each event in my life. But no matter what I still love it!

3. I have 20 children that annoy the crap out of me everyday, but I coudln't imagine my life without them, and I extremely miss all of the kids that have passed through a classroom I was teaching. I can't imagine my life without many of others peoples children in it.

4. Yummm.....cake....

5. There are times when I feel like my husbands name really is baby, and that is what I believe is the name he was given. I always stumble in public when saying his name..haha

6. There are times when I take my phone out in public places just because I want people to notice that I have nice things and be jealous.

7. When I was little my grandmother taught me how to crochet when I was little and I made a very long purple scarf, now I couldn't make one stitch.

8. I can't spell to save my life. I am horrible at it....and I'm a teacher!

9. Speaking of teaching.....I think that 3rd grade is the best grade of all time! It was my favorite grade when I was a kid, and I can't imagine teaching another grade ever again.

10. I think I married a mexican because I love mexican food a bit more than life. I mean I love my husband...but I do love me some good mexican food too!

11. I can't clean the house unless I have either friends on or Ocean's 11, 12 or 13. Otherwise I have no motivation.

12. My wedding really changed a lot of things for me, and though some of them may have been hard to handle I think they were all very good things. I lost what I thought was a very good friend in the process, and a friend that I knew was a great friend became an even better friend. Plus I got a great husband in the whole thing.

13. I love all of my friends very much and I know I would not be where I am today without any of them. They each have been there for me in different parts of my life and made me the great lady I am today!

14. As bad as I want to see celebrities, when I see them I chicken out for talking to them. Yesterday I saw Dave Matthews at the children's museum and couldn't talk to him, though two of my co-workers had no problem saying hello.

15. When I was younger I always said I would never live outside of Texas, and look at me now! Plus I can't imagine not living here in Louisiana.

16. I am a serious soap snob and I can not use any other soap except for soap from Bath and Body Works.

17. I never imagined that being married could actually be this wonderful.

18. I can't wait to be a mom, but I sure can wait another 3-5 years.

19. I was really bummed that my honeymoon was going to be in Vegas, but it was the best vacation that I have ever been on. I think that everyone should have their honeymoon in Vegas!

20. Cooking is so much fun, but the cleaning part sucks and I just don't do that.

21. The crock pot is one of the best inventions ever.

22. Giraffes are my favorite animal and when I go to a place that has them and I don't get to see them it pretty much ruins my day.

23. I loved living in Lubbock so much that if David was offered a job there I wouldn't be able to get there fast enough. But I'm sure I would only enjoy it for about a year before I was done with the place.

24. I have always wanted to take a trip around the coutry in a RV and see all the random things that each state has to offer.

25. I collect flat pennies, you know the ones that you have to pay 50 cents and it will have some type of picture on it.

26. Almost all of my grandmother's siblings have died from cancer, my uncle died of cancer and my other grandmother had brest cancer....it really freaks me out.

27. I believe that no home can have too many pictures out for people to see. I look at all my pictures all the time, and I have many frames waiting to be filled and put up for visitors to look at.

28. My husband is 28 and I have to remind him of that all the time, he can never remember how old he is.

29. Taking pictures is one of the many many things that I love to do. I think that is also why I love scrapbooking, ya know since it uses pictures :).

31. I believe that all women should be able to get a manicure and a pedicure at least twice a month. It is an amazing thing, and all women deserve to be pampered.

32. My first drink of alcohol was on my first birthday when my dad gave me his beer....but my first drink that I could remember was when my mom took my brother and I on vacation to Corpus while her boyfriend (who I really hated) moved out of our house. We went to a drive thru liquor shack, again my first one, and she bought me a 4 pack of wine coolers. I had one, and my brother got all pissed off that I was drinking and made me feel guilty so I didn't drink the rest of them. We poured them down the sink and lied to my mom about it.

33. The first time I was drunk that I can remember...was gradution night from hs. My mom let me have a party at our house, and I puked and told Candi not to tell my mom. So she ran and told her! haha I was so mad

34. My favorite time of day right now is when I am driving home from work and I can listen to Twilight on cd, but I am also at the end and I need to get the second book soon.

35. Yes I have ready all four books in the Twilight series, I am one of those girls.

36. It is still weird to me when my students say Mrs. Hernandez. Sometimes I question who they are talking to because my name is Ms. Hudgins. Then there are still kids that say Ms. Hudgins when they are talking to me and I have no idea who they are talking to because that isn't my name....it's a weird feeling questioning your name all the time.

37. I love checking the mail and I love it even more when I get things in the mail from my friends that I am not expecting. Like the other day I got a save the date magnet and it was the highlight of my day. I love real mail.

38. It really really bothers me that my family is die hard UT fans, and that they have turned my little cousin David into a UT fan when his dad went to Tech. He doesn't even care about Tech or any of their teams. It really makes me angry.

39. I love Texas Tech football, but I think I have turned David (my husband) into an even bigger fan than me.

40. I think that orange is the most beautiful color there is. Green and Red are close seconds, but I just like them, I love orange. It is beautiful.

41. I actually love all things orange, anything orange flavored is great, well except tang. That stuff is just nasty.

42. My favorite flowers are gerber dasies. To me they look like a flower that is smiling, it has a big happy face.

43. I have one tattoo and would love to have a second one but I think I'm afraid of the pain.

44. Blood and guts is so interesting to me, it dosen't gross me out at all. In fact I only want to see more and more of it. I would love to see inside someone's body. But not the nose!

45. I had blonde hair in high school. I really miss my blonde hair. I love my brown hair. But I miss my blonde hair.

46. When I go to the mall the only food that I can eat is Chick fil a, I like other food at the mall, but it's like Chick fil a calls my name. Sometimes I go to the mall just so I can have chick fil a.

47. Any time that I buy a book I have to buy it in hard back. I love to read books and then put them on the book shelf for people to see what I have read. I love to talk about books that I have read with anyone. Sometimes it really makes me feel smart to talk about books instead of talking about what is on tv.

48. I played softball for 10 years and I really miss it.

49. Purses are amazing. I can't get enough of them. In my closet I have probably 50 of all different colors and I still know I don't have enough. I also don't have every color that I need. You can never have enough purses.

50. Since I was 13 the only car that I would dream about having was a mustang. Once I paid off my truck it was time to sell and of course the only thing I was going to get was a mustang. I bought the first one I saw, and I still love it to this day. I miss it often. I know that if I ever get to a time in my life where I can afford two cars, my second car will be a mustang.

51. Why is it that everyone wants to live in NYC? I want to live in NYC too, don't get me wrong....it's an amazing place......it's far away from home....but I would move there if David had a job offer there we would move there too. :)


52. Snow...love to look at it, love to be around it, just pretty much love all things snow.

53. The beach...hate it. Can't walk in the sand, don't like to walk in the sand, and it gets everywhere. In everything, and comes home with you and stays for too long.

54. I love college football and I love watching it.

55. The fall is an amazing season. I love the colors, I love the weather, and I love the holidays that are in the fall.

56. I believe that my birthday will always be a week long occasion. It is a requirment for all birthdays to be a week long celebration. I mean it's your birthday! You must celebrate for as long as possible.

57. I have only been on one real date in my whole life. Where the boy picks you up, you go to dinner, maybe go do something else like a movie or putt put, and then he takes you home. I have only had one of those. We went to dinner and the IMAX.

58. I used to be a smoker. Now I only smoke when I drink and am with David or Deb. They are bad influences!!

59. Ham is the only lunch meat that I will eat alone. I do not like turkey, but I can eat it if ham is next to it.

60. I don't wear make up. Not even a little bit of it. I might wear it sometimes for something special. I have a ton of make up, but I just don't wear it at all. I pretty much have no reason either for not wearing it. I just don't.

61. I have two really big LL Bean bags with my name them and I want more. Many more. I want one that says Mrs. Hernandez. I just love them.

62. David and I own a time share in Las Vegas. We are those people that can't say no to a salesperson....

63. I love Taco Bueno and Louisian doesn't have any...it's quite depressing.

64. All my life I have loved to play video games, but have never been good at it. Which means that no one, when I was a kid, ever wanted to play with me. So I stopped wanting to play....David has changed that. I love to play video games with David. We sit for hours and play, and it is always so much fun.

65. In junior high my friends called me smiley.

66. I was a girl scout 20 years ago and sold cookies. I am a girl scout again and I can't wait for my girls to sell cookies this year. It's in about 2 weeks and I'm sure it will not be all I've made it out to be, but I am still excited.

67. I think the names I have picked out for my future children are perfect. I want to share them with other people, but I am too afraid to do that because I did that once before and that person stole my name.

68. I didn't vote for this election and I feel pretty un-american about it. I am pretty upset at myself for not being more pro active about it so that I could have voted here in Louisiana.

69. I love my job...teaching...I love my kids....I really enjoy the other teachers I work with. My administration is horrible. They are all Turkish and really don't respect women equally very well at all. I kinda made a stupid mistake the other day at work, and a student lied about what I said and the principal believed the student over me. Yeah as much as I love my job, I hate my job.

70. I pretty much only bought my car because it was orange.

71. I really enjoy buying new phones. But I have the best phone (in my oppinion), so I am obbsessed with getting David a new phone all the time. He has two phones, and I talk about him getting new phones at least once a week.

72. I love dr. pepper, but I can only drink it with food or in a cup with ice. And I hate when you are at a place that doesn't have dp, and they have mr. pibb and offer it instead. It is not the same. It really makes me mad when they have neither and say well we have Root Beer, as if that is even close to dr. pepper! Root Beer is, in my oppion, the worst drink there is.

73. I also love sweet tea and I have no idea why all reasturants don't have both regular tea and sweet tea.

74. Christmas decorations is something I look foward to for the whole year. I love everything there is about Christmas time. Real trees, stockings, Santa, wreaths, all of it. I love giving gifts to people. I would just happy with that, just giving and not getting. Though getting presents is great.

75. When I was little we used to eat dinner with my grandparents every Wednesday night. That was my favorite night of the week, and is something that I want to do with my dad when David and I have kids.

76. When we would have dinner with my grandparents sometimes my grandmom would cook dinner at their house and we always used place mates. Mine was a wizard of oz place mate. When David and I were living in Wichita Falls we went to an estate sale where I found 2 of them and bought them.

77. My favorite movie as a kid was the Wizard of Oz.

78. I am in the middle of a law suit with a stupid guy that is trying to steal money from my insurance company for a wreck I was in a month after I moved to Dallas from Lubbock.

79. I love me some sesame seed chicken and no one here makes it! It is quite depressing when I want to order chineese food.

80. I think my wedding was the best wedding ever, and if I could relive any day of my whole life I would relive that day a million times, even with the mama drama.

81. If I had the money and could do anything I wanted I would open up an classic soda shop. I think that would be so much fun.

82. The best salad is at The Cheesecake Factory. Most people go there just for the cheesecake, I go there for the salad....well and the cheesecake, but mostly the salad.

83. My husband calls me Noni. To him that is my name. Not Natalie...it's Noni...and I love that name.

84. My brother and I have no relationship....it makes me very sad.

85. I love all that is Harry Potter. I have read all of the books twice. Some I have read three times. And right before each movie I have to re read that book. One time I cut it so close that I was reading the book the second time in line whiel I was waiting for the movie.

86. I love breakfast food and could eat it at any time of the day. I think that sausage is the best part of breakfast food.

87. Sonic drinks are the best.

88. The first Mavs game I ever went to I sat front row on the floor. Now I think that is the only way to go to a Mavs game. I'm a basketball seat snob.

89. I think I make a mean hamburger, and I pretty much dream to enter a contest for the best hamburger. I know I could win.

90. When I was a kid the whole summer I would spend at my grandparents house with my cousins in the pool. Those are some of my favorite childhood memories. I think it is the reason that I am so close with my cousins. I can't imagine my life without them.

91. I have 20 cousins.

92. I love when songs bring back memories. I have only a handful of songs that bring back some strong great memories. One is with Jessica. It was at the end of 9th grade and we had a half day because of exams. I went over to her house after school to watch her pack and this song came on the radio that she knew all the words to and I had never heard before. Now I love that song...."I love you always forever, near or far, closer together...."

93. When David and I go to fast food places I always have to order, no matter which seat I am in, because I am so picky and David always messes up my order.

94. I don't think I've been in David's car in at least the past 6 months, probably more than that.

95. David and I have random game nights where we sit down and play some type of board game. It is so much fun, and we act just like kids.

96. The first time that I ever had a cigarette was when I went to Germany right after highschool. It was my first night there and I went to dinner with Jessica and her friends. Jessicae kept telling me not to do it, but her friend Lindsey kept saying "do it" and giving me a cigarette.

97. My favorite Disney movie is Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and I can name all seven dwarfs. Doc, Dopey, Sneezy, Sleepy, Happy, Grumpy, and Bashful.

98. I love having fake nails. I had fake nails all during high school and most of college. But they are just too much upkeep and I usually don't have the time or money to keep them nice. But when I do have them I love them, and I always have a french manicure. Though in high school I did love the neon colors during the summer.

99. I graduated from high school in 1999, which wil be 10 years this summer. I am quite excited about the 10 year reunion this summer, and I think I am the only one of my friends really excited.

100. I have lived in 7 apartments, 9 houses, and 1 dorm in my life. I have lived in 6 different cities and 2 different states.