Nothing about nothing

Another work week is over, hooray!
Tomorrow is Halloween and it will be a bit of a challenge for the gestational diabetes,
but we'll be very busy so that will help.
Helping out at the Preschool Halloween Party,
library, nap, trick-or-treating and another Halloween Party.
It is possible that Hubby will be...pastoring...at some point tomorrow
so we'll just roll with it.
He has a session retreat on Saturday morning.
I'm making the breakfast casserole somewhere along the line.
Oh and we're in charge of Fellowship Hour on Sunday.

Getting slower and more ponderous.
May get some work done on the baby's room this weekend...might not.
OK bedtime now.
Perhaps a Friday5 tomorrow.

Tests

My teaching license is reciprocal, which means that its good for a year
...provided I take two classes and pass the Praxis and Praxis 2.
Took the classes this summer...no problem.
Procrastinated way too long on the tests though.
So, I'm taking the Praxis 1 on Monday morning...8 months pregnant.
And Praxis 2? Two weeks before I'm due.

I am worried.
I haven't had a lot of time to study, with the new job and being pregnant and everything else. Plus I constantly feel... less than smart.
I know its the absent-minded scatterbrained pregnant thing
but not the ideal circumstances for test-taking.

The due date for my license is Mid-March...so there's time if need be.
But I guess what I'm really saying is...
Prayers please?

Location Friday5

Therefore, tell us about the five favorite places you have lived in your lifetime.
What did you like?
What kind of place was it?
Anything special happen there?

I haven't lived in many places so...here goes.
1. Main Line Philadelphia, PA...
Where I grew up and went to school until college.
My family still lives there, sisters too.
Excellent education, safe neighborhoods.

2. Chapel Hill, NC
The Southern Part of Heaven...it even says so on the sign!
Where I went to college and grad school, met my husband, got married
Great school, great place.

3. Rural South GA
Ha! Got married while Hubby was finishing his first Masters in Rural South GA.
It was a good thing I'd lived in Chapel Hill all those years or I'd have been in total culture shock. Newly married, working a lot, no church, not a lot of friends from these couple of years.
But it was good for Hubby and I to be together and far from family and friends as newlyweds.

4. Hotlanta! We had two residences in Atlanta. The first apartment burned down six months after we moved there. Then we bought a cute little house not far from my library. An hour from my in-laws. Got dogs, got pregnant. Lost one child. Left there after 5 years witha 4 month old bound for seminary.

5. Seminary, NJ. Such community in Married student housing. Hadn't experienced it before and likely, will never again. A little rough with the dogs, I worked a lot, but a wonderful experience.

and NOW...
6. Rural Corn Country. 10 hours from family. A little isolated, ok maybe a lot, but going well. Great schools and community. I found a great job finally, Hubby is rural small town pastor and always busy, Flash enjoys our town, and I'm 8 months pregnant. I think this will be a place I think of fondly down the road...

Baseball

My team is in the World Series.
When I say that, I should really say that I grew up in Phillies territory during the 70s
and am also nominally and Eagles and Flyers fan.
Couldn't care less about the Sixers though, sorry.

In honor of the series...which I will watch only when Hubby has it on...
I will be reading Casey at the Bat with all 7 of my classes tomorrow.
Such is my fanaticism.
Go Phils

OK...

Apparently
the hospital where I'm planning on having this baby
will stop taking my insurance on Nov. 1.
Hmmmm.
Time to start calling around
in that crazy-pregnant-lady voice.

the flippin' friday 5

1) When was the last time you flipped a coin or even saw one flipped in person?
A football coin toss I guess. I haven't seen one in a NFL game, I never seem to see the beginnings of games... must have been a High School game. Our last home high school game is next Friday night and we'll probably lose.

2) Do you have any foreign coins in your house? If so, where are they from?
Yes! I used to collect foreign coins and had a whole box of them, mostly pocket change from anyone I knew who went anywhere. I have only been to Canada, myself. I still have a "representative sample".

3) A penny saved is a penny earned, they say. But let's get serious. Is there a special place in heaven for pennies, or do you think they'll find a special place in, well, the other place?
Um, pennies are wonderful, still coins of the realm, a distinctive color, good for game pieces, not so good for actually buying things. Also fantastic in songs and idioms...Pennies from Heaven and a penny for your thoughts.

4) How much did you get from the tooth fairy when you were a child? and if you have children of your own, do they get coins, or paper money? (I hear there may be some inflation.)
I think the tooth fairy gave half dollars at my house. The first time the tooth fairy visited me, she collected and delivered to the mailbox...I was creeped out by the idea of this creature coming into my room while I was asleep.
Flash is almost old enough for the tooth fairy, I guess. I hear the tooth fairy gives a dollar in our neighborhood.

5) Did anyone in your household collect the state quarters? And did anyone in your household manage to sustain the interest required to stick with it?
Hubby's mom drove everyone crazy with it, shopkeepers, relatives, everyone. I think she has a full set. I didn't bother...and I'm the coin collector in the family.

Mission Bookfair: Complete!

This was the school bookfair week and I was in charge.
It was a very busy, very tiring week
and I am looking forward to a restful weekend (hmmm).
But, we sold enough to be able to get a new encyclopedia!
And other books also.
But we really needed a new encyclopedia. I am so excited!

The commute

I drive 40 minutes to school.
Its about 33 miles.
One week after school started they closed my shortcut.
My 27 mile, 32 minute shortcut. And now its open again!!!!
Hooray!

Course I won't be able to use it in the deep winter,
cuz' I doubt it will be reliably plowed.
But Hooray!

Oh and Flash gave us a speech tonight about Jesus from behind a podium-like end table.
He took questions.
And he continued with a speech about Spiderman.
And then we all were required to present an item for Show-and-tell.
What is that Shakespeare quote about "all the world's a stage"?

Update

Baby is moving around quite a bit tonight. I'm feeling snacky.
My blood sugar has been high, but not crazy high.
All medical folk have been notified.
I am to watch it for the next couple of days.
Hubby and Flash have decided to enforce my evening walk.
The school Bookfair is this week and I'm just getting my feet wet,
although I feel like I'm only treading water.

Blood pressure is great. Ankles look fantastic.
Almost 32 weeks along.
Baby room has not been started, even though
...let's be realistic the baby could be here in 5 weeks.
Thats just 5 weekends, really
Wow.
In good news we seem to have a name.
and yes...its the name Flash suggested months ago.
We just started calling her that and well, it stuck.
So if she's a girl...thats her name.

Sidewalk chalk

I don't think I've mentioned the sidewalk chalk games...

Have I?

It started with obstacle coursses and has evolved into,

well, Currently our driveway (which is immense) is covered with:

Halloween drawings, mummies ghosts and pumpkins,

a small ocean with a sea turtle

an RV, a schoolbus, a road and a school with playground.

Before the last rain we had a whole Diego adventure

with jungle, beaches cliffs and animals to rescue.

And quite a few dolphins, courtesy of the 2nd grader next door.

We've gone through a lot of sidewalk chalk this year

and the neighbor across the street just brought us a new box.

Isn't that nice?

Above is a picture of Flash drawing a mummy.

Friday5- Business Trips

1. Does your job ever call for travel? Is this a joy or a burden?
Never required travel, but I used to go to the Library conference every year.
Love to go! This year its in Chicago and I hope I'll be able to go.
I'm not sure if work will pay anything towards it though.

2. How about that of your spouse or partner?
It seems like he travels a lot, but its all within the northern part of the state.
He goes overnight maybe 4 times a year. Never very long.

3. What was the best business trip you ever took?
Hmmmm. Maybe the last time ALA was in Chicago

4. ...and the worst, of course?
Nah, its all been fine.

5. What would make your next business trip perfect?
Rooming by myself (!) and meeting up with some friends for supper
somewhere interesting and nice but not pricey.
And everyone orders desser

Recipe Time and car wash

It was the perfect kind of rain tonight.
Perfect for a car wash!
Hubby was a little worried because Flash has had a sniffle and it was not quite 70 out.
BUT IT WAS FUN!

Our church PW is having a fundraiser early next month.
Its an annual event: a dinner and a bake shop.
So, I'm contributing my recipe for candy mints...
and when I say MY recipe I really mean the grandmother of a friend.

Cream Cheese Party Mints
3 oz cream cheese - soft
1/4 to 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
food coloring as desired
2.5 cups powdered sugar
Little bit of regular sugar

Beat the cream cheese add extract and coloring.
Gradually add sugar.Knead until its like pie dough.
Roll into marble sized balls.
Dip into sugar and press into mold
OR mash them with a fork like peanut butter cookies
Put on wax paper and ideally, let them stand overnight to dry.
Put in airtight containers, with wax paper in between layers
Store in the fridge, or freezer.
Makes 50 or 60 good creamy soft mints.
I could eat the whole batch, yum.

Monday

Its monday and a grumpy grouchy day.
I have many blessing,
I know that
But I'm having a grouchy day.

World Communion Sunday

Oh hooray!
What a wonderful service, even if I was wrestling Flash a bit in the back!
The six Presbyterian churches in the county joined together
at the H.S. for a wonderful joint worship service.
Joint choir met a half hour before and sang beautifully (we don't have a choir).
I'd have loved to join but my duties today were parental.
Powerpoint of the service, not our usual style but very accessible.
Fantastic hymns.
The only thing I would have changed
was having a Passing of the Peace to try to get the churches to mix a bit.

Afterwards a big potluck, or here they call it a "carry-in" lunch.
Totally blasted my food plan thingy, but I tried very hard to be good.
Why is everything at a potluck so good, and yet so carb-laden?
Must be the comfort food thing huh?
We'll see how my blood sugar is at the end of the day.

Boy I hope we do it again next year!

Update

Turns out the DSL problem was something at the "hub"
Internet has returned to the house!

So I'm pricking my finger twice a day and being better about food.
I was not being "bad" mind you
...it has to do with spreading things more evenly throughout the day.
So it would seem, that things will be back on track and its really not so bad.

Had a great morning with Flash. 8:30 soccer game...we were very late.
But he played a solid 15 minutes...and acctually paid attention some.
Then Build-It Day at Home Depot (fire engine!) and a visit from a real fire engine too.
Chick-fil-A for lunch - and a romp through the playground.
Home and nap!

But now I'm up for finger pricking. Woohoo.
Oh, Hubby had to go have the church records reviewed.
Ha ha
We win again.

Computer drought...

The DSL folks sent out a guy who determined that it was our modem.
The DSL folks sent a new modem.
THe DSL folks sent out another guy who determined that the new modem they sent was defective.
THe DSL folks are sending another one...

In the meantime,
gestational diabetes.
Appointment with the dietician on Friday.
Hopefully just a dietician, please...

And I know I'm just whining here today, after nothing all week,
so forgive me that,
but some prayers for my sister would be wonderful...
she's had several setbacks in a row
and just when things seemed to be going well.