No Thanks Swine Flu!

My goal this on-track session: To not get swine flu...or any flu

Poppy

Book #41: Poppy by Avi

Poppy is a young deer mouse whose troubles began when she and her boyfriend Ragweed are caught on a hill by without the permission of Mr. Ocax, a horned owl. Mr. Ocax carries out the consequence to not following his rules by killing Ragweed and Poppy manages to barely escape from his deadly talons.

After another terrifying encounter with Mr. Ocax to ask permission for her entire family to move into New Home, she is blamed on all sides by her siblings when their request was denied.

Heartbroken and lonely, Poppy sets off to New Home to see why Mr. Ocax is so afraid of letting the mice move. On her way, she meets Ereth, a grumpy porcupine. Poppy is originally scared of him because Mr. Ocax has told all the mice that porcupines kill and eat mice. Poppy soon discovers this to be a lie and begins wondering what else Mr. Ocax has lied about.

I really enjoyed this book and thought that it was a great representation of how bullies work. I may be reading it to my class when I go back on track.

I'm a Grown Up

I put an offer on West Jordan Condo today.


Holy cow. I don't think I've ever been this excited and simultaneously close to vomiting in my life.

Wish me luck!

Even Newer Hair

I went back to get my hair colored today. I also had Rachel make my hair less "soccer mom meets Kate Gosselin" and more "hip 20-something teacher/bird.

Here is the product of Rachel's hard work:

Front view

Side view...

The cowlick that ruins everything and makes my hair look like this...

Crazy cowlick view


This crazy cowlick has given me a very good idea for a Halloween costume though...I'm going to be a bird. Amazing. And I'm making the outfit...how Susie Homemaker of me.

House Dreams

Here's some background before I get into the dream I had last night.

When we went to see #2--Taylorsville Condo yesterday, another realtor and a client were looking at it when we got there.

This condo is priced right now at $128,000.


Here's the dream:

I went to Tom, my realtor, to tell him I wanted to put an offer in on Taylorsville Condo. So to do this you go to the persons house and tell them what you're offering. When we arrived this same realtor lady that was there yesterday came strolling out of the bedroom and told us that she and her client had just made an offer that was accepted. We asked what they offered and she said $220,000. I was baffled at why you'd offer almost $100,000 more than the asking price but I left and went home.

When I got home I was going to watch TV so I plopped on the couch and pressed the "on" button on the remote. Nothing happened so I looked up and saw that the TV was gone. I then looked around and noticed that doors were open and many of our things were missing.

I freaked out and ran out of the house because I was sure that who ever had stolen our things was still in the house. I was headed to my neighbor's house to call someone. As I'm walking over there a big black dog comes running down the street and then heads to our fence. The dog is barking and going crazy. I see the fence open just as the dog is getting there and a young kid (probably 13 or 14 years old) runs out with the dog chasing him. I'm super freaked so I scream and run to the neighbor's house.

Weird.

House Hunting Marathon

In this post, I told you I started looking for *houses and I was very disappointed. Well, today I also looked and it was a much better experience. Though I still ended up looking in some ghetto areas, the houses were very nice.

We began looking at 9am and weren't done until 2pm. Geesh! Looking for a place to live it exhausting.

Here are my top 4:

#1--West Jordan Condo

This is the outside of the building. One great thing about this place is there is a mammoth amount of visitor parking. Some places we saw had like 2 extra places. Also, this place was built way after I was born (2004 to be exact).


This is the living room. The big glare-y window is a sliding door that lead out onto a deck. Please ignore the old man furniture. The guy that lives here now is about 80 and moving to a retirement condo.


This magical place has 3, yes 3, large beautiful bedrooms. This is the master bedroom. It also has a giant walk in closet in the master. Really, this thing was huge. About the size of some of the bedrooms in other condos.

Here's the kitchen. The man who lives there now was there when we went to look. He kept telling me, "The microwave is an upgrade and the counters and the floor and the cabinets and..." What a cute old man. If I had some single 80 ladies in my life I'd set them up...and then the owner would give me a really good deal.

The only bad thing about this place is that it's just a bit out of my price range. Ugh! I'm hoping that I can get him to come down a bit and hopefully I'll be moving in soon.

#2--Taylorsville Condo


This is the point I got a little ghetto. First, look at this building. It's a bit run down. It was built in 1985. Plus, the condo I'm there to look at is not on this side, it's on the back, with a nice view of Family Dollar's garbage dumpster. When you walk around the building, it gets really dark (there are a lot of large trees) and the grass and plants either all died, were pulled out, or just never there (it's kinda creepy, it would be a great place to live during Halloween). I was not expecting anything nice.


Obviously, I was surprised by what I saw. This condo has been kept up very well and it's super cute (any very in my price range). This is the living room. It has really nice carpet and it's a pretty big space. To the right is the kitchen. There aren't any pictures but it's nice.

This is the master bedroom. Again, it's really nice. I don't know what else to say about it.

This place has 3 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms (which is really hard to find. Most have 2 or 3 bedrooms with 1 1/2 bathrooms. Ugh! That's annoying!).


#3--Salt Lake Condo (West side)



This place was vacant. It's a really nice complex nestled in a kinda rough area but I'm ok with that.


The front door is the white door next to the window on the left. The kitchen is on the right and that smidgen of blue you see is one of the 3 bedrooms. There is a second bedroom right behind the living room and a full bath between the 2 rooms. If you're standing in the living room facing the kitchen, the master bedroom is to your right.


A better shot of the kitchen. That faucet was a bit messed up. Things were not in the right place and the handle that turns on the water gets in the way. I'd replace that if this were the one I bought.

This is the master bedroom and bathroom. Yes, the carpet is horrible. Yes, I would also replace that.


#4--Salt Lake Condo (East Side)

This place is in a really nice but older area of Salt Lake. It was built in 1964 (my dad was born in 1963). It's really maintained well though. The window in the picture is the window in the living room. I liked this area a lot but the only drawback is that everything I do is on the West side and this condo is way on the East side.


The couple that live here are older and a bit formal and outdated so ignore the furniture. When you walk in the front door, you come into the living room. It's really big and nice.

The kitchen is updated. It's right off the living room. If you go out to the left, you come to a hall. There is a laundry room (it's actually a closet but whatever) an ity-bity bathroom (only 1 in this place), and two bedrooms. I think this place could have so much potential but it needs some work.

So, out of 11 places we saw, 4 were acceptable. Well, more than acceptable. 4 were places I'd actually live.

*I know I always say "house" even though I really mean condo. To me, it's somewhere I'd live and own so it's a house.

Bye-bye hair

I cut all my hair off. By all my hair, I mean ALL my hair.

Here's a nice shot of my before hair. Add a few inches because this picture was taken in April.


And here's my new hair:








I'm not sure what I was thinking. I feel a bit naked. And I'm thinking I'm beginning to look a bit like Kate Gosselin which is never a good thing.

On the bright side, I have a pretty easy Halloween costume. All I need is a Blackberry and 8 babies strapped to me.

What do you think? Be honest!

It's Been a Very Productive Day...and P.S. It's Opposite Day

Kinda how I'm feeling right now.

Growing Up Part 2

I began officially (I think) looking for a home today. I went and met with the realtor and he showed me a few places. It was very disappointing.

I want something like this:


but can only afford something like this:

Very disappointing.

About 50% of the homes that came up in his system he would say, "I can't let you live there. Your mom would kill me."

I responded with, "Why?"

"Lots of crime...you'd probably be killed."

I may have to reconsider my stance on Sugar Daddies...

Ok. Maybe something really good will pop up really soon.

On a happier note...

How I Met Your Mother starts tonight! I love that show!

So Stinking Cute!

After my rant yesterday, I spent some time blog surfing. I came across this blog and now really want a cute little girl (and a sewing machine) so I can make all these great things for her.

First, how cute is this little dress made from an old t-shirt? You have to check out the site to see how cute the little girl looks in it. Plus, it's super cheap and easy to make...perfect.


Next is this fabulous dress made from a woman's tank top...how cute! I think I would wear it.


Then she made a dress out of a too-small onsie...So cute! I love this skirt!


Lastly, there is this so cute dress made from an old button-up dress shirt.

Holy cow. There are so many cute things on this site! I am very impressed.

I'm Moving Too Slowly for My Family

I had a great weekend (as long as I forget about all the bad and annoying things that happened).

On Friday I spent some time with some girls I graduated from Westminster with and we caught up, complained and laughed late into the night. Thanks for hosting Jenn, it was a great night!

Saturday was a surprise party for my cousin's husband. He turned 40 and we had a nice little party for him. This night was the beginning of the baby insanity that has infested my sisters. While at the party, we got to see another cousin who had a baby a year ago. He is super cute. This made my sisters need a niece or nephew. Here was the conversation:

Them: "Oh, he's so cute! Ash, don't you want one of these?"

Me: "Sure but I think I should think about finding a husband first."

Them: "We need to be an aunt within the year. We need to get you married then you need to have a honeymoon baby."

Me: "Oh. Ok." (Cue eye roll)

Them: "Seriously."

Me: "uh-huh."

Onto Sunday. We went to another cousin's house (on the other side) for dinner. Another cousin, who had a baby 9 days ago brought her little one. This is when the baby hunger infestation infected my mom.

My sisters and mom: (in unison and baby voice) "Oh, isn't he a cutie. Goochy goo. Yes, you think Ashley should hurry up and get married and have babies, huh. I know you'd love a cute little baby to play with...we need to get her a husband...blah, blah, goo, goo, ga ga...blah...Ashley needs to have a baby...baby...baby...goooo..."

Then I left and hung out with the unobsessed in the back yard. This is what I come back to about 15 minutes later:

Random family members: "So, we need to find you a husband?"

Me: "Uh, why?"

Random family members: "Because your sisters and mom want you to have a baby."

Me: "Oh. Ok."

A little bit later...

Family member: "I have a few guys I think I could set you up with but tell me what you would like in a guy."

Me: "A good job."

Family member: "Ok. That gets rid of 2 guys, I still have 3 I'm thinking of though."

Me: "College education."

Family member: "Ok. I still have 1 in mind."

Me: "LDS."

Family member: "Ok. Sorry."

Later when I'm holding 9-day-old baby:

Random family member: "I hear you're baby hungry."

Me: "What?!"

Random family member: "I thought we were trying to find you a husband so you could have a baby."

Me: "Umm...No."

Later...

Gay family member: "You could be the surrogate for me and Bri."

Me: "What? When did this turn into 'Ash just wants to be pregnant'?"

From there everything just got weird. I had to leave.

Let's just say that my family is a bit crazy. Sure, I'd love to find a great guy, get married and start a family but really...you're nuts family, I love you but you're nuts.

Sent

Book #40: The Missing: Book 2 Sent by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Ok, I read the first book in this series when I student taught and loved it. That's where my author crush began. I decided to make it my first read aloud when I began teaching (I would have done it as a book group but don't have enough copies). My students absolutely loved it. When we first began reading I told them it was the first book in a series and the second one came out at the end of August. When we finished Found, my students begged me to go buy Sent, the even offered to each bring in a dollar so I would have enough money for it. I told them no but they were welcome to go buy it or check it out and read it.

A few days later, I broke down and had to buy the second book, Sent. I am so glad I did.

At the end of Found, Jonah and Chip, who are both thirteen-year-olds, are trying to contemplate the news that they're both missing children from history, kidnapped from their proper time period. Before they can fully absorb this revelation, a time purist named JB zaps Chip and another boy, Alex, back to the fifteenth century, where they supposedly belong. Because Jonah and his sister Katherine do not want to lose their friends they grab Chip's arms just as he's being sent away. As a result Jonah and Katherine also end up in the fifteenth century, where they do not belong.

Chip's true identity is Edward V, king of England, and Alex is his younger brother, Richard, Duke of York. But Chip is convinced that his uncle, Richard of Gloucester, plans to kill them and seize the throne for himself.

JB promises that if the kids can "fix time," he will allow them to return to the present day. But how can they possibly return home safely when history claims that Chip and Alex were murdered?

Now that I have read it I'm really wanting to read it to my students because it takes place in the Middle Ages (one thing I have to cover with my 6th graders) and it's just as riveting as the first. I'm stuck. I wanted to make sure I read a different genre each time I do a read aloud but now I'm torn. This book is more difficult to categorize than the first. It obviously has elements of science fiction (time travel) but it also has historical fiction (the entire story takes place from 1483-1485). Maybe I'll just call it historical fiction and read it to them.

My Desk

During the last week of school, I took a picture of my desk because it was such a mess. A few days later I was reading through older posts and I came to this one and had to laugh at how spotless my desk was.


Before:

After:

Goal: Be more organized when I go back on track.

The VMAs...Always a Good Time

Oh, wow. Those are the only words I have after watching the VMAs (in fast forward...I love Tivo!).

Here's a run down on me watching and my reaction to everything.

Show starts out with the host heckling Lady Gaga.

Host: 'Gaga is a hermaphrodite...' [Cut to Gaga]

Me: "What?! Are those feathers? Who's wearing the other half of her mask?"

More show happens...nothing involving The Gaga but I did get to try to find her in the audience. It was kinda like a game of Where's Waldo? but it was more like What's Gaga Wearing Now?

Lady Gaga performance--otherwise known as The Best 4 Minutes of the Show--

[Time frame and my reactions to the performance.]

0:04--"Wow. All white like angels."

0:10--"Nice Pierrot. This is obviously going to be amazing."

0:26--"Ok. She looks like the Easter Bunny's crazy uncle."
0:30--"Is that guy wearing underwear on his face?"

1:00--"Ooo...sparkles."

1:02--"Yes! She has a cape too!"
1:07--"Yes! Another costume change."

1:13--"Why is that guy still wearing underwear on his face?"

1:18-1:34--"Sweet choreography!"
2:16--"Bedazzled wheel chair...Why?"

2:22--"Cane...Why?"

2:31--"I think the cane made her very angry."

2:49--"That guy was on So You Think You Can Dance. I think his name is Mark. He has weird fingers."

3:05--"Playing the piano with your leg up = super classy."

3:21--"Is that blood?"

3:24--"Yep. It's blood. Why?"

3:34--"She should really go see a doctor. That's not just a paper cut."

4:00--"There is still underwear on your face, dude."

4:15--"Holy cow! Blood in your eye. Yuck."

{This section was at one time the video of Lady Gaga's performance. However, I keep putting up videos that the person doesn't own and MTV takes them down. If I ever find an "official" video I will put it back up. Until then, click here to watch it...it's classic.}

You think Lady has no more tricks up her sleeve? Oh, you are wrong...so wrong.

There is yet another wardrobe change (this one's the best...make sure you're sitting down before you look).

A see-through, red lace dress with a mask, gloves and crown. Who saw that one coming? Really. No one.

Then you think it's over. She cannot get any better, right? WRONG!! Last wardrobe change.


I have no idea what that is...a wreath made of feathers...the left over hair from one of her many crazy hair styles...an old costume from Cats...trimmed and styled Santa Claus wig and beard? I don't know but I do know it's awesome and I'd like to know what Gaga was thinking through the night.

That was the last crazy thing the Gaga did. But Kanye West was a different story.

If you haven't heard...Kanye got on stage while Taylor Swift was accepting her award and said how Beyonce had the best video of all time (and implied that it was ridiculous that Taylor would have won.)

Kanye: "Here. Hold this moonman while I take the microphone."

Taylor: "Ok but I thought I was supposed to talk."

Look at her face...she's so confused.

But in the end Beyonce was a class act and let Taylor give her speech during the time Beyonce was supposed to give hers.

Kayne = word I don't use. Read Kelly Clarkson's blog about it. I think she sums it up nicely.