Homeless

Technically, we are homeless. But in this case, that is a good thing. I have been waiting to blog about this until everything was settled. Most of you know though that this has been going on, but we are moving! Of course, we are not leaving this Promise Land town that we love, but just upsizing in homes. We closed on the sale of our house on Friday and we close on the purchase of our new house on Monday. We aren't moving into the new house until the end of May, but we are very excited.

Here is how it all went down. In January we decided it was time to put the house on the market. I called my awesome sister who has been going through real estate woes to tell her we would be joining her in the house market. She was really supportive. She called me like 5 minutes later and said that she and Clint wanted to buy our house and use it as rental property in Lubbock. Awesome! We sold our house without even having to clean it! The next day I was at school and visiting with the librarian who I have blogged about before and love so much! I told her that we were going to be looking for houses in her neighborhood and to keep her eye out for cute ones. She told me they were going to put their house on the market, but they had a couple of things to do to it first. We were joking about it, then I asked her if I really could come look at her house. She said okay so the next day Cody, Carley, and I went over to the house and fell in love with it! It is just the right size for us. It had so many things we wanted. We were sure we couldn't afford it though. So I asked her how much "as is" without the flooring fixes and painting the dining room. They came back with an offer that was too good to be true because we weren't using Realtors, they were saving 6%. And tah-dah in 36 hours we had sold our house and found our new one. How is that for divine intervention!

It has been quite a few months, buying and selling a house without Realtors or any real clue what we were doing. We had a great mortgage company who talked us through every step and helped draw up all of the forms.

The best part is that Clint and Alyssa made Cody and I their property managers. Our first renter is our cousin. She is getting married in July so this will be their first home. I am so excited. I love this house. It is very special to me.

I bought this house during my first year of teaching. I was single and really enjoying my independence. It was a huge accomplishment for me at the time to buy this home and fix it up. I felt like a real adult the day I closed. This house is where Cody and I watched a movie for our second date. It is where we held hands for the first time. It is where we came home to from our honeymoon. It is where I took several negative pregnancy tests and cried. It is where I took the one positive pregnancy test and cried tears of joy. It is where Carley came home from the hospital. It is where she took her first steps. It is such a special home to me. I am so glad it will be a special place to another couple so dear to me.

And I can't tell you how excited I am about the new house. It has almost double the square footage of this house which means I might not step on Little People in the middle of the night. I can't wait for you to come see it!

Anyway, I am homeless today, but luckily my landlord isn't kicking me out!

This Week's Grey's Gab

I think the most important lesson tonight was not to pee in the Amazon. YIKES!

Tonight's episode was pretty good. Here is what I thought about it all.

Addison is on her way to her new spin off. She is done with the guys and she will star in a new series with Taye Diggs and see how it goes. I liked her and Alex finally hooking up and I did not blame her for wanting to leave after it was all over. I mean, Alex and Mark both showed her that they are not what she really wants. The Alex stuff was a bummer.

I don't know what will happen with Ava. Do you think she will bring Alex out of his funk?

George won't leave. He just won't. I thought the triangle between Callie/George/Izzie was well acted tonight. Nice parallel with the fish guy and Dawson's mom. I do like the way the show ties things together.

I know some of you thought of me when Mark offered a meeting of the dirty mistress club with Meredith. Poor guy, he really was trying. You could tell the end hurt him.

And Derek and Meredith....what can I say. They are headed to breakup. She was annoying with the constant check ins and he was annoying with a case of the blues. They are going to break up for a while but you know this is not the end of them.

I hated Burke and Christina till the end. What do you think will happen with them?

Now for the real question, how can Izzie eat a cake and a half and not gain weight? I wish I was on TV.

There is your weekly Grey's wrap up!

Grey's Predictions

I thought last night's episode was VERY good. Here is my take on it all.

I think George will choose Izzie and then in the finale Callie will turn up pregnant. She looked AWFUL last night and I just think that will be the direction. Thoughts?

Goodbye Derek and Meredith. I think Derek will dump Meredith so he can be chief then Burke will get Chief and Sloan will get Meredith and Derek will get lonely. What do you think? McSteamy was so cute last night. I loved the scenes with Mark and the Chief. Too funny.

I am having trouble staying interested in Burke and Christina. What do you think will happen there?

I thought Izzie's scenes were great last night. The bone marrow stuff was an interesting twist that we have not seen the end of yet.

Oh, and the HEARTBREAKING stuff with Jane Doe/Ava was really sad. I have no idea where that story line is going. What do you think?

Other TV thoughts:

October Road- I don't LOVE it, but I do like it.

I really like Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters right now. Both are getting really good!

LOST, lost, Lost. Man, that show keeps me hooked and completely "lost". I love it!

What are you watching these days?

:)

What do you call a naked Eskimo?



A Northern Exposure

Hug a Teacher and a Student

In public schools, this is THE week. It is TAKS time and you definitely know it. It amazes me how the test has changed and the rules have changed every year that I have been in education. This year is even more stringent than previous years, which blows my mind. This post isn't to be a commentary on TAKS, public education, standardized testing, or anything of the sort. Schools are what they are and testing is what it is. Right or wrong, it is the tool that government is using to measure education and provide accountability. Are there other ways to do this? Is this stressful on all parties involved? Yes to both. It accountability necessary? YES! So whether you love it or hate it, support your local teachers this week. You cannot fathom the changes this year and all the bits and pieces involved in testing. Tell teachers you appreciate the job they do. Tell kids you love them and find value you in them for a million different reasons, none of which are multiple choice. There are just weeks where the world seems more intense than others and this is one of those weeks.

Don't judge, criticize, give your two cents, cast blame or doubt, and most of all, don't minimize the reality teachers face by telling them that testing is "stupid". Like I said, for the time being, schools are what they are. In the midst of all the craziness, teachers are trying to find creative, energetic, interactive, supportive, varied, differentiated, ethical, fun, and educational ways to tell kids every day that they are here for them, they love them, and they want to prepare them academically, socially, and emotionally for a world that changes each day.

Hug a Teacher and Hug a Student.

I will get off of my soapbox now! :)

Catching Up

Last weekend we spent with Alyssa's family for Easter. It was so fun to see my precious niece Camryn turn one. She has a smile that lights up a room. She also has a hysterical laugh straight from the belly. It is so cute. She is such a blessing.

Carley loved Easter. The Easter Bunny brought her books. (hey, make fun of me now, but one day she will thank my intellectually responsible Easter Bunny) She loved her new books and the eggs in her basket. I know holidays are just going to get more special each year that she knows what is going on!

As always, Lauren kept me entertained as well. She said some really hilarious stuff. My favorite part was when she came to me and said, "What is your vision for dinner tonight?" I cracked up. She is such a little woman! My sister had a big birthday too. It was great to be there to celebrate Alyssa as well. She was the hostess with the mostest for the weekend. Cody had to stay here and work so my parents and I drove up together. Carley loved sitting in the back seat with Nana. It was too cute.

Now for nonimportant news....television. Friday Night Lights and Lost were AWESOME on Wednesday. My favorite part of FNL was when Tami told Coach she was pregnant. They are so cute and so sweet. Any predictions on what will happen?

Then there is Lost. That show never ceases to surprise me. I thought this episode was excellent and I was dying at the end.

The Office was so funny tonight (as was last week) The watermelon stuff had me in tears. That show is such a crack up.

Finally, thanks to all the ACUers who posted about the Bachelor stuff. Who knew so many of you read my blog? It was neat to see us all connect again, even over something trivial.

On a side note, please keep reading Corbin and Kanyon's blogs. These sweet boys and their families need our prayers.

Club Sister?

Jenn K and I know we were in Siggies with Amanda Delp of the Bachelor. Her sister Melissa was in club with us too. One was my age and one was two years younger. Do any of you have the scoop? I can't believe there is an ACU girl on the Bachelor.

If she wins, can we all go to the finale and "circle up"????

Random, random, RANDOM

15 Months/ Easter