Funny story

I had just finished reading with this little 1st grader and he had his library books with him and as he was going back to his classroom, he said, "Look! I'm gonna hit my kidney!" I said, "WHAT?? Alright, let me see...(not knowing exactly what he meant)" And so he takes his stack of library books and whacks his KNEE with the stack. I said, "Oh! You mean your knee!" HAHAHAHAHA.... I told him, "your kidneys are located in your lower back!" He said, "oh." and he went back into his classroom.

Oh and this morning was "explosive", to say the least. Maren and I had a group of kindergarteners and they were all working on their K posters (that's the letter of the week). All of the sudden, one of the kids exploded with a sneeze and it was like Chris used to do when he sneezed, except much MESSIER! It seriously looked like the kid had just reached into a bucket of yellow slime! Like that gak stuff that we kids used to play with. EW! Maren about had a gag reflex as we both threw kleenex at him and said, "Here, Clarence! Clean yourself up, please!" It just didn't even look real! Okay, enough description. Kids are gross! ;)

Go figure...

My first winter in Idaho and after just about EVERYONE had told me that they don't ever have snow days and close down schools....at about 5am this morning, I found out....schools were closed on account of this winter storm that has been wreaking havoc here in the Treasure Valley! HA! I guess this is the most snow they've ever had here in a long time. So, we've experienced the hottest summer and the coldest/snowiest winter so far. We shall see what happens next, right? Now let's see if they'll cancel school tomorrow--probably a long shot, but we can hope, right? Of course, if there's no school, I don't think I get paid......so, which is the better deal? Tuesday night was an indicator of how dangerous the roads were and that's probably why they decided to close the schools down. Anyways, I was on my way home from the gym, and the snow was coming down so hard and heavy that when I wiped my windshields off they filled back up with snow by the time I got down the road. Also, I stopped at an intersection and there was a car in front of me and when the light turned green with no arrow, the car in front of me pulled off and turned left and I hung back a little so that I could go slowly and safely across the intersection. When I did make the turn onto the main street that goes by our road, I saw a pair of headlights staring straight at me. That SUV had made the turn but kept turning and spun in a complete circle. Luckily, I could stop and let him get out of the street to get turned around in the RIGHT direction. Interesting, huh? We're getting inducted pretty quickly into this severe winter weather culture--wouldn't you say?

Random note: I almost chopped off the tip of my finger the other night while cutting carrots in small strips for a stir-fry. Instead of chopping my finger though, I ended up chopping my fingernail and cutting it in half and it's still attached. I'm scared--I don't want to clip it off! I decided to wrap gauze around it and tape it so it has more padding instead of just using a bandaid. Now, it looks like I either broke my finger or really did chop my finger off. One of my first graders said while I was reading with her, "I hope your finger gets better. I know it will get better soon!" So cute...

Plans have more than likely changed...

See, Mom? Tiger was all excited about coming to visit you, that he just jumped in the box! He'll even bring his tiny tshirt with him!
"My angel is a centerfold!" (it's from a song)

I don't guess we're going to McCall tomorrow seeing as though we're up really late and I'm posting at 1:15am (m/t). Disregard the time that the blog says I posted because it's wrong. Plus, I heard that the road that leads to McCall is narrow and windy and scary especially when there's snow and ice in the mix.

We went to go see "I am Legend" with Will Smith. It was CREEPY!!!!!!! It was a pretty good movie though--very suspenseful with a little tear-jerker appeal when dealing with family issues. It seems kinda realistic, but you know it probably won't happen in our lifetime at least. Brief synopsis for those of you who haven't seen the previews: Will Smith is the only survivor in NYC after a terrible epidemic swept through the city. He's staying there in order to continue finding a cure, but there are some living beings there that are infected with the disease and it causes them to kill in order to eat and they are very aggressive! Caution: this movie is rather graphic, so be prepared to cover your eyes at some points in the movie! I know there were some times when I was expecting something scary to jump out and so I was hunched over with my jacket covering my eyes. It's fun though. Next movie I wanna see is "Juno". I've heard some really good things about it.

*YAWN* I guess it's about my time to hit the sheets. Night! Don't let the bed bugs bite!

Just thought this would make ya'll laugh. Got it from http://www.lolcat.com/ . Thanks Mom and Dad! I love this kitten with the mashed ears. It's so pitiful and really makes you feel like you took a cookie from a baby kitten. hahahaha....

Learning to drive...

I've been carpooling with a co-worker lately because she and I both live in Meridian and we actually live just down the road from each other. I've been kinda scared to drive on these snowy roads. We just got another couple of inches of snow last night and it was my turn to drive this morning. Rellis said that she could drive if I wanted her to because she has 4-wheel drive but I said I'd be okay. So, I drove and she said I did really well for having just come from GA. Anyways, my car loves to swivel around on the road sometimes. It's kinda fun but scary at the same time. Luckily, that swiveling only really happens on my neighborhood road where not much traffic passes through. I can get my bearings before I get on the real road. This evening, however, I was leaving the gym and I was creeping to the exit intersection and when I put on the brakes, my car didn't want to stop and I just kinda kept sliding toward the intersection with oncoming cars. I think I was being watched over because my car came to an abrupt halt right before cars started coming! WHEW! That was a close one! I also think though that the cars that were coming were in the left lane and I was kinda hanging in the right lane. I guess that was lucky, right? Anyways, it sure did give me an adrenaline rush! I mean, that road must've been really bad and packed with ice and snow if it kept me moving even though I was going like barely above 5 mph. No friction at all! It's supposed to snow all next week! I think I'll make it.

We're going on a day trip possibly on Sunday to a town called McCall. It's the winter carnival and it's supposedly the biggest draw in the winter. We probably oughta buy some chains for our tires since we'll probably be driving on some pretty treacherous roads. If we make it up there, we'll get some pictures for sure! Alrighty, nothing much new has happened lately, so I'll leave it here.

Thinking about something...

I'm thinkin' about becoming a Mary Kay consultant instead of a Body Shop consultant because I love make-up! You think I should? Anybody interested in buying stuff from me once I become one?

I'm also thinkin' about getting a job with Weightwatchers during the summer for a part-time stint. I think that'll also help me with my Mary Kay because there are so many women that come in there and so many women work there. Haha--we'll see if I get to the status of selling MK where I get a free pink cadillac...yeah, that won't happen probably.

So, I've been seeing pictures of the south being covered in snow...guess we blew all our snow all over there for ya. You can thank us later. ;) Wonder if that snow will make up for some of the missing rain?

Snow and School

We've had so much snow in the past days and yesterday was actually so bad that some of the surrounding areas had to call a snow day on account of impassible roads. Kyle and I did something we've never done before (us having naturally come from GA) which is SNOW SHOVELING! I never realized how hard it was to do that! I couldn't get my feet to grip anywhere because under the snow was thick ice and every time I pushed the shovel into the snow, I pushed myself backwards and then when I let go of the snow on the other side, I'd slide back to my original position. Surprisingly, I wasn't as sore as I thought I would be the next day, although, when I erased the board at school, I did feel a little bit of the work from the previous night. Our neighborhood roads were pretty packed with ice and snow and when I pulled out of our driveway yesterday, my car just kinda swiveled there on the road without me doing anything. This is quite the experience for both of us Georgia kids! We're kinda getting a break from the snow right now--it's been kinda sleety/rainy/moist today but nothing too much.

I started my new job this past Monday as Title I tutor. So far, so good. I like the people I'm working with and the children (well, most of them) are angels--even the ones who don't know their alphabet. I participate in a 1 hour extended day literacy program and I work with 3rd graders. I think I like it so far. The kids are pretty good! They're a little loud but ultimately, they're good kids. I've been working with them on their weekly spelling words through activities such as a word search and scrambling the words (I've only been doing this for a week so I'm sure I'll get new activities--I've been consulting a 3rd grade teacher). Anyway, this program only goes M-Th every week and so it's nice that it doesn't go on Friday and I get one day to go home at 3:15.

Kyle started the night shift again yesterday. Here goes 4 months again (second try)! Well, the last time he went to nights, they switched him back to days about a month or so into it. We'll see if he stays with this shift the whole 4 months or not. It's a bit difficult now since both of us are working. I'm working M-F, 8:15-4:15pm and he works W-S nights and that means that I'm leaving in the morning right as he's getting back into Meridian from Boise. We passed each other on the road this morning. Then in the afternoons, I get home about 45 minutes before he has to leave for work. It's just enough time for me to be there and watch him eat and make his lunch and get a quick hug before he walks out the door. *sigh* We'll (I'll) get through this somehow... :)

I better try to go to bed since I know it'll take me a little while to get to sleep. I kept waking up last night every few hours, partly due to this cold thing that I have and also because of not having Kyle there. Different noises that I never hear when he's hear all of the sudden become more audible. I'm gonna start wearing earplugs. Night night!

What a surprise!

We woke up to a BUNCH of snow this morning! I think it's the most we've had so far...if the snow keeps going on with this more and more pattern, who knows how much we're gonna get next!?

It is with deepest sorrow...

I announce that Kyle's Granddad just gone into a hospice home, so the end is near. He's been having so many difficulties as of late dealing with intestinal blockages, cancers, and other health complications, that it's just all finally come to a head. He's considerably young too--he just turned 81 in November. Please keep Bill Campbell and his family in your thoughts as they go through these next couple of weeks. Kyle will probably be flying alone to Tampa because of me having this new job (it's hard for me knowing that I won't be there for him in this trying time) but all the same, please keep the Campbell family in your prayers.

Some winter pictures from Idaho

Near the Lucky Peak Park.
Entering Idaho City with a population of 458.
The main drag through town. Look at how tall they scooped the snow!
On the way back home. During the summer, there's actually a big river that goes through the "canyon" area.
These are some of the same pictures we took way back in summer but now it's all snowy--totally a different look!

Peek-a-boo! Tiger sees you!
Those mountains are the ones that we can see from our front room window. We can also see them once we turn out of our road onto Franklin Road going towards downtown Meridian.
I was trying to pose but it just looks like I have to go to the bathroom or it looks like I'm really cold (which I was).
We saw a small bunny sitting not too far from where we were standing near a bunch of rocks near the river. So cute! It's little bunny foo-foo!
The park we went walking through yesterday.

Since Kyle's been suffering from sinuses, we had to buy a humidifier and Tiger's been fascinated! He'll sit there for hours! We think he likes the sound and watching the bubbles.
We drove across the dam at the park at this is how deep the snow was on the dam bridge (hahaha).
Don't eat the yellow snow!
It's Kyle standing in the snow.
The cat's going in the bag.

It's sooooo cooooold!!

It's so cold here in Idaho...it just makes your bones shiver. I like cold weather, but I guess this is a little much. :) We went to go play in some snow today at this one park called Lucky Peak. We've taken pictures near this park but it was about 70 degrees warmer when we were last there. Oh, and there was no snow there when we were last there. Yesterday, we were curious to see how much snow had fallen in different areas and so we discovered how much Lucky Peak had received and we went there only to find that it was FREEZING COLD without gloves and the snow was soaking into our tennis shoes. Today we decided to get extra bundled up and wear our heavy duty boots and gloves and hats and go brave the cold today. It still was cold, but not so miserable. We took some pictures and I'll have 'em up tomorrow. We also took a nice drive up to Idaho City to see how much more snow they had-- it looked to be about a foot! That's so much more snow than Kyle or I have any recollection of seeing...ever! We were amazed. It was the powdery snow too, so we couldn't make any snowmen or snowballs to throw at each other. Anyway, that's about all we did for our New Year's Day.