What. A. Week.

Brace yourselves for laughter, I fell down the garage stairs. There are only 4 of them, but they're wooden, and as gravity became more successful, I dropped my cereal bowls, water bottle, and purse. I skinned my shins and knees, and I was able to see 2 toes turning black without my glasses. My ankle was swollen, and I have a welt on my knee. That said, I am fairly certain that if someone recorded this and was on America's Funniest Videos, I would have fallen off the couch laughing, because I'm sure it was quite a sight. My loving husband who thrives on his first aid skills studied my injuries that night, said, "Whoa," and suggested he bandage me up. All my injuries have improved, and I can now walk somewhat normally. What a blessing that, A) I didn't break any bones or hit my face, B) I didn't fall on any garden tools or the car, and C) I was still able to get to work, since my injuries were mostly on my left leg/foot.

Finally, I completed my second to last semester of graduate school, and made all As. It was a little stressful trying to finish all my final papers, but am really proud of myself for submitting everything early and doing a good job. (Insert silent cheer here.) Every time I make an A, I get to buy myself a reward. After not purchasing any kind of shoes in the last 7 years, with the exception of a pair of flip flops from Old Navy 3 years ago for $2, I caved, and went to DSW for shoes. I found some excellent deals, and came in under budget. I replaced some shoes that were grimy and kind of too small, and I invested in a pair my fashionista friends would applaud me for- Yellow strappy heels that I don't look too clumsy walking in. (I made sure to get my walk approved by a coworker I ran in to while there.)

So, in light of such a chaotic week at school and home, I had some moments when I thought I might just lose it. BUT, I remembered to "praise God in this storm," and found things within these chaotic moments to be thankful for, and thankful that I was able to learn something about myself in these lessons. For example, I learned that when I am being verbally attacked to the extreme, I go through some mental stages- shock, surprise, shyness, anger, and lastly self defense. I learned that when someone questions me or my actions, I automatically assume I am wrong, which isn't right. I learned that my quietness in these moments has been such a good thing in the past, as it has allowed me to not say something I will regret, but that my consistent quietness has made me say nothing at all, which is wrong. I can say my opinion, or confront someone, with respect- I know how to do that, I just have chosen not to. I hope this changes.

God plans and allows times like this week for his children to teach us lessons about ourselves, but more importantly, about Him. He never leaves us, and wants us to offer prayer and praise through these lessons. Being Miss Negativity early this week didn't help me one bit, and once I gave it to God, all that negativity was lifted. Try it next time you have a time like this week was for me.

Friends. Gilmore Girls. Glee. In that order, and Glee is moving on up to at least tie with Gilmore Girls.

I've been blasting Rent and Glee songs a lot lately, and even my sister Lindsay (musical chick that she is...truly) said I was correctly hitting those high notes. It makes me wish I had the confidence to actually sing in public. To say I have stage fright is an understatement. I was in my school's talent show last year, and had to write my 6 words on my hand. And in high school, I was in my church's teen singing group, which we all had to audition for. I even made a solo once, and (thankfully) the girl who always got the solos suggested we sing together with another girl as a trio. The other girl was upset, I was relieved, but wished I was upset. Then, in college, a good friend was pursuing a music career, and asked me to sing with her on her demo. I agreed, and the guy said we sounded really good. I, naturally, flipped out, and was thankful my friend ultimately decided (rather her parents decided) to change goals.

I wish I was kidding on all of these examples.

In other news, the CRCT is almost over! Hooray! I find it incredibly boring, and I am more nervous about the scores than my students are. It doesn't help that half of them keep falling asleep. After testing, I will have 4.5 weeks of teaching...not sure...since we covered everything prior to testing. Post your ideas.

It's Spring! (officially) Jeremy and I have BIG plans:

- Dream, Plan, Plant our garden

- Visit family in Michigan (we leave earrrrly Saturday morning)

- I have a few doctors visits

- Jeremy just started a job at Ted's Montana Grill near the Mall of GA. It's great, because it is paying the bills, is closer to home, and it closes at 10, which means I get to see him more than 2-3 times a week. :)

I got my first real hair cut in a real salon. It wasn't just any hair cut. I was razored. :) And I did it for Pantene's Beautiful Lengths. Some of you may have donated to Locks of Love, and I have in the past as well, but have since learned that they sell 80% of their donations. They claim it's because they receive so many donations. They spend the money on research, salaries, and financial aid for the kiddos. That's all well and good, I suppose. I mean, the employees need to eat, too, right? If that was it, then that's it, except it's not. To be eligible for a wig, the child must write an essay explaining why he/she deserves it. THEN, the family has to prove that they need financial assistance, which I can sort of understand. (I mean, I wouldn't want to give a millionaire a free wig, ya know?) For me, it all just seems too fishy. This is why I chose Pantene. Now- they create wigs specifically designed for the individual, so that he/she can grow into it, swim, play, braid each other's hair at slumber parties, etc. They also donate to children and adults, with much less hassle.

If you don't dye your hair, and it's not all gray, you can donate, too! You need 8 inches for Pantene, and 10 inches for Locks of Love. Tons of places will cut and style your hair for free, give a discount, and/or mail your donation for you.

Jeremy has been in a yard work kick, which I like. He mowed the front lawn a few days ago. I think 95% of our yard is weeds, but they are green, so it makes it look nice, since the little grass we have is still yellow. I mowed half the back yard, but the mower broke. I looked everywhere, but I couldn't find the bolts to save my life.

I am finishing up my second to last semester of grad. school. The last day of classes is April 30th, I believe, and I am ahead on my assignments, and have planned the rest of my assignments enough to turn them all in early. Yesterday, I briefly (for all of 20 minutes) considered getting my Specialist degree in teaching, only for the pay increase. I did the math, and after 25 years of teaching, I would make $60,000 more than I would with just my Masters degree. Sooooo, I looked at a few online programs' websites, rapidly losing excitement/motivation because I hated all of the class requirements, plus being in school another 2 years. I 99% dismissed it entirely, and told my friend Suzy about it in the hallway. She then reminded me that I wouldn't get the pay increase, since Perdue's newest "idea" on education means that teachers won't get higher pay for professional development degrees. I then became 100% confident in my decision to not get a higher degree.

Jer and I will be joining our neighborhood's swim and tennis association. This means I will be taking water aerobics 3 days a week this summer! (wahoo!) This also means that, hopefully, the pool and tennis courts won't be paved over due to a decrease in membership, due to the economy, which in turn means that the home values in the neighborhood will increase.

I'm still selling Tupperware. Please let me know if you are interested in hosting a party and earning free Tupperware products. (Tupperware doesn't have to be the focus.)