Easy week ahead

It's Sunday night, which is usually when I start worrying about the upcoming school week, however, I feel a little differently this Sunday.

This week will be a piece-of-cake! I have one teaching school day this week, a Day 6, which is my easiest day. Tuesday is an in-service for all of the regional schools' music teachers. Wednesday is an in-service at my school. Thursday and Friday we have off for the NJEA convention. I guess technically we should go, but for the past two years, we haven't. There is never really a whole lot there for music teachers, and we usually go to the NJMEA convention in February, which is much more beneficial (BTW, the "M" stands for "Music"). I was actually planning on going to one day of the convention, but I changed my mind. Since Meg is home, I'd rather stay at home and spend the 4 day weekend with her.

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I have this feeling right now about the baby that can be described as that feeling you get when there is a major snowstorm in the forecast. You know how it is. You stay up to 11 and watch the news reports, snowfall total forecasts, and the Doppler radar. You know it is late, but you don't care, because there is a chance that you will get to sleep in tomorrow. Then, you finally go to bed, and can barely sleep. You wake up every hour or so, and want so bad to peek outside and see if the snow has started, but you can't get up the guts, because you'll know that if it hasn't started, you'll be going to school. It is just a feeling of anticipation and excitement, but only conditionally. It all depends on whether the snow actually comes. I am feeling like this right now with the baby. Just being told that it can happen at any moment is like constantly waiting to see if it is going to snow tomorrow! Chances are it won't anytime soon, but just knowing the possibility is there....

* * *

This weekend has been very fun and relaxing. Friday night Meg and I went to Peter's, which wasn't our plan, but Meg got some money from her surprise baby shower at school on Friday. Afterwards I went shopping solo, so that Meg could go home and rest. I know she really wanted to go with me, but I feel better knowing that she is comfortable, and don't mind shopping on my own.

Saturday morning we went to Sam's for our monthly stock-up trip. Oh, the 'grocery experiment' as I call it went well in October. We were only $7 over our budget for the month (which is way better than the $50-$100+ that it was before), and that was with our 'mock thanksgiving' dinner that we have every year with my family.

On the way home from Sam's, we saw that they were doing free carseat inspections in the new Target parking lot. We had both of our cars inspected, which was good, because I really didn't have either carseat tight enough, even though I had them as tight as I could get them.

After that, we cleaned the house, since Meg's mom was coming to, well, help us clean. I learned this weekend that some people are cleaners and others are straighteners. I am a straightener--a major one. I hate clutter; I like everything to have a place and be nice and organized. I like desks, counters, and tables to be clear, and floors not to be covered with stuff. Meg's mom is a cleaner. She spent a while today cleaning the kitfchen: inside the microwave, cleaning the vents on the front of the oven with a toothbrush, scrubbing down the fronts of the cabinets. However, she is not a straightener. When she was finished, the kitchen was cluttered with dishes and cleaning supplies. I felt bad, because to me, it looked worse than when she started. And I hardly ever notice things like dust and dirty microwaves. Oh well, at least I know the area is clean and germ free.

Meg's mom took us to Cotardo's, a nice Italian place in Blackwood. This has been one of my favorite restaurants since I was a little kid. I had the special, which was black and lobster ravioli. Meg had chicken, topped with cheese and crab meat, and Mom had one of my personal favorites, Tortellini della Casa, which is homemade tortellini served with blush sauce with shrimp and scallops. Yum!

I spent the rest of the weekend getting caught up on grading papers, and deciding how to best utilize my Zen. I put on my Christmas list that I want a yearly subscription for Yahoo Music Unlimited To-Go, but was disappointed with the performance of Yahoo Music Jukebox. In the process of syncing with my Zen, both the Zen and the computer froze three times. Plus, I love the new version of Windows Media Player. So, after talking to my brother and doing some research, I discovered that I can download the songs from YME and play them in WMP. Windows MP will even refresh the licenses for the files too. So far, I have been very impressed with the new version of WMP. It has integrated seamlessly with my Zen. It is also much faster than WMP 10 (especially with searching). It also has a new, clean interface, which relies on album art. Most of the CD's I have ripped did not have the album art, but that is okay, since you can manually add it yourself. I am most impressed with the synchronization. It automatically synchronizes all music, pictures, and videos, and playlists. It also synchronizes media information whenever you change something.

* * *

Okay, I really should be getting to bed now... I've gotta be mentally prepared for my easy week.

Birthday Pictures and More

Here are some pictures from today...


My awesome birthday gift from Nick, a new car stereo, with a line input! No more computer speakers in the car!!


Our house, with a well manicured lawn


The delicious cake Meggie made me.


My other big birthday gift, the chest freezer!

There's a new clue on our Baby's Blog. Keep guessing!!

If you want more pictures, I have uploaded two more web albums:

House Pictures September 2006

Sep 17, 2006 - 9 Photos

Bob's 26th Birthday

Sep 17, 2006 - 18 Photos

Weekend

Okay, so I got lazy about blogging over the weekend. Here is my weekend so far...

Friday, September 15

A Day 1 at school, I am starting to see all of my students for a second time. Most of my classes were very good. I like Day 1, because I don't have any 7th or 8th grade classes. The big deal of today was the 4th grade instrument demo. Joe, the rep from the Local Music Store that services our school, came and brought the instruments. He is a woodwind player, so he demonstrated the flute, clarinet, and sax (WAY better than I demonstrated the brass). Then, I demonstrated the trumpet and trombone. We decided to leave percussion out of the demonstration, as Joe suggested not to encourage any more 'drummers,' than the usual bunch to sign-up. I am thinking, for next year, of starting anyone who wants to play "Drums," "Percussion," etc. on bells. The Local Music Store offers bell kits that the kids can rent. It would my rehearsal planning much easier, and would weed out the kids that only want to play drums so they can bang on something. Then, later, I would introduce the other percussion instruments (snare drum, bass drum, etc.), since the rhythm-reading and technique skills would already be learned from simply learning the bells. It's too late to try it this year, but I'll definitely do it next year.

Meggie came to pick me up, and then, the WEEKEND officially started! On the way home, I stopped at the bank and deposited my check. It was still the same amount as last year, as our new collective bargaining agreement hasn't been ratified yet. It is also the last time I will have to stop at the bank, as our next paychecks will be direct-deposited (It's about time my district caught up with the 21st century)!

We came home, had a snack, made the shopping list, and headed to Peter's. I got the patty melt, Meggie got the fried chicken platter. It was insanely busy there for some reason, so we had to wait a while, but the wait was worth it. If you are ever on the Black Horse Pike in Williamstown, you NEED to go to this diner.

We then headed up to Wal-Mart, did our shopping, came home, put everything away, and collapsed into bed at 9:30! Some exciting Friday night, huh?

Saturday, September 16

Our living alarm clock, also known as Max, woke us up yesterday morning. We got up and showered, and headed to Meg's school. Since there was construction at her school this summer, and every one's rooms had to be completely cleared up, they decided to open up the school on Saturday this weekend, so teachers could get into their rooms to finish setting up before Monday. Meg brought me along, and I helped by decorating the higher parts of her room. She made it very easy for me, by laying out what had to go where. Meg got her stuff set up for Monday. We ended up staying there for a while, as it took time to complete all of this.

We headed home, and had lunch. Afterwards, Meg ran to Wal-Mart (or at least I thought), to get me some stuff for my birthday. While she was gone, I cleaned up the bedroom, brought the dirty clothes downstairs, and started the laundry. After starting the laundry, I decided to see if I could fix our squeaky dryer. For about the past month or so, our dryer makes this terrible metal-on-metal squeaking noise as it turns. Years ago, my parents had the same problem with their dryer, and temporarily fixed it by rubbing candle wax against the shaft that the drum turns on. I figured I'd give this a try, so I started to take the dryer apart, only to find out that I wouldn't get access to this part of the dryer.

So, here I am , with the dryer in the middle of the laundry room, and my tools out, when I hear Max making all kinds of noise at the front door. It was my parents. So, I let them in, and explained the dryer problem, and my dad started to look at it. Soon after they arrived, Meg came home to find us all in the laundry room, with the dryer half apart. My parents then told me there was something in the van for me. I went out to the van, to find my birthday present, a chest freezer! Now, I was surprised by this. I knew that I was getting a chest freezer for my birthday, but I didn't expect to get it now. Here, Meg had met my parents at Sam's Club, so they could pick up the freezer. Now of course, the freezer's destination was the laundry room, which was now all in pieces. So, I put the dryer back together, and my dad helped me bring the freezer in. They took off, I read the instruction manual, and plugged it in.

Afterwards, I got started on school work. My goal this weekend was to make and print personalized band reminder cards for all of my band students. These cards contain the usual days and times for lessons and rehearsals. I also included this year, a calendar that high-lights the days they need to bring their instrument to school. Using mail-merge, I was able to complete this job.

Meg and I were going to make salmon for dinner, only to discover that the frozen fillets we bought had to be defrosted first, so we ended up doing burgers on the grill. After dinner, I made two copies of a video a fellow teacher had given me about instruments of the orchestra. I made one copy for Meg, and other for myself. While copying these, I kept up with the laundry, and made a CD of upbeat music appropriate for school that another fellow teacher had asked me to make. I am pretty much done my schoolwork now. I just have to fold and sort all of the band cards I printed yesterday.

We went to bed, where I read and sang to Baby D (through Mommy's belly). They said you should do this, as it helps the baby get used to Daddy's voice. We also need to start playing music through headphones for the baby.

Sunday, September 17
Max woke us up again this morning. We had breakfast, then I did money stuff. Now, I am blogging. After this, I will get dressed into work clothes, and mow the front lawn. Tonight, we are going to my parents, and having my birthday dinner. Tomorrow is technically my birthday, however, I have school, then Back-to-School night (yeah, pretty crappy birthday). So, today is kinda like my birthday celebration. Mom is making tortellini for dinner, and Meggie is making me my favorite kind of cake- yellow cake with white icing.

Oh, I have been meaning to post a bunch of pictures. I will try to remember to do this tonight. I'll take one of the freezer, as well as the dresser we got for the nursery. Also, I am sure we will have some fun pictures of my birthday dinner.

Lots to do, gotta go!

More Yard Work, Parents Over

Very tired now... I felt like I never stopped moving all day.

I got up around 8:30 or so, had breakfast, watched TV, and did my morning news, mail, and blogs. I also finally started to get my blinkies up-and-running again. We switched to Verizon a few months ago, but still had been using our Comcast web storage space. Well, apparently the space expired, and we lost everything we had stored there, including the blinkie I made myself. :-( So, Meg went on a hunt for new blinkies for me, and I just got everything up again the way it was before.

After my usual morning routine, I got started on the yard work, which took pretty much the entire day. I...

• Raked up the bigger sticks on the front lawn.
• Mowed the front lawn.
• Weedwhacked the front lawn, trimming the edges of the sidewalk, driveway, and curb in the process.
• Started by blowing as many grass clippings off the lawn as I could, but gave up and decided it was easier to do with a rake.
• Cleaned up the sidewalks and driveway with the leaf blower.
• Watered the front lawn.
• Mowed the back yard.
• Weedwhacked the back yard.
• Cleaned off both decks with the leaf blower.
• Cleaned off (with bleach) one of the extra patio chairs, since it was all grey and gross.
• Re-filled the Tiki torch oil, and replaced wicks where needed.

After all of this, I went inside, and did the upstairs floors with the Floormate, and vacuumed our room and the nursery. Meg took care of cleaning the rest of the house, and going back to Wal-Mart to get the stuff we lost when we forgot to take one of our bags on Friday.

I finished the floors pretty much in time to shower, then my parents, Nick, and Scamp got here for dinner. Meggie had marinated London broil this morning, so I cooked it on the grill. This was a first for me, doing beef on the grill. At first I thought I didn't cook it enough, but I let it sit for a while after I carved it (I did let it 'rest' before carving too), and it looked better. It tasted delicious--very tender, and good flavor. We also had mashed potatoes, corn, salad, and beer bread. We had dinner out on the patio, which was nice, but it got a little chilly towards the end of dinner when it got dark. For dessert, my parents brought water ice from the Water Ice Factory, and a Friendly's Tiramasu roll.

I asked my parents to bring Scamp along, because the two dogs play, and it tires both of them out. It is good for Max to get some interaction with another dog from time to time. Sometimes they both ignore each other, but most of the time, they are chasing each other around the backyard, or wrestling, as seen below:

Dinner was fun, although I am exhausted, and probably won't remember much of the evening (good thing for this blog). After my parents and Nick left, Meg and I gave our next clue to Baby D's name. Check out the clue, and keep on guessing!

Piece of Summer

Ahhh, the weekend--a little bit of summer does exist! The weather was great today, which helped too.

The day started off well, with getting up at 9 AM, which is late for us. Of course, things went downhill when I felt that my back was hurting worse than it was yesterday. I got up, had breakfast, was about to get ready to do some yardwork, and just needed to lie down. I felt like an old man, with my back hurting and all. I hate not being able to do stuff. So, I laid down in the bed, used some pillows to get my comfy, and relaxed for a while, reading my news, mail, and blogs in the meantime.

My back was still hurting, even laying down. I finally decided that since I felt no worse laying down than standing up, that I would get up and do some yardwork--after lunch, of course. Meggie made some leftover cheesesteaks for lunch, and then I went out to do yardwork.

My goal was to have both lawns mowed, but I didn't get to either. Instead, I backwashed the filter, since now I have a hose long enough to get me to at least our driveway. Then, I raked up all of the leaves and sticks in the backyard. I was planning on mowing, but was hot, tired, and thirsty, and REALLY wanted to get in the pool. I decided to put off mowing till tomorrow morning, and go in the pool. We took Max with us, of course, and cooled off.

After the pool, I got showered, laid down some more, and then got started on the sauce. I decided to make a double batch this time, to yield more leftovers. This was a little challenging, because the sauce pot isn't quite big enough. I ended up having to cook some of the sauce in a smaller pot. No big deal, though, we got six meals out of the whole thing. We had a delicious pasta dinner, and then I got to work on my goals for the evening: school work, and money stuff. I got my list of stuff I made yesterday at school done (so now, I don't have to worry about school the rest of the weekend), and I also finished the money stuff. I don't think our grocery scheme is going to exactly work out this month. We budgeted $500 for the month ($100 per Saturday), and we are already at $367. That leaves only $133 for three more shopping trips (about $45 each). This might be difficult to do, but, we bought a lot of stuff this month that will last us at least 2 months, meaning it'll even out eventually (I hope so anyway!)

Okay, gonna get to bed now, so I can get up early and mow the lawns.