Moving Phases

Summer is finally starting to pick up a little bit for me with softball and moving so I'd thought I'd give a brief rundown of what I'm up to the next 6 weeks in case I don't post for a while.

Phase I (last week and this week): Pack, box, pack

Phase II (tomorrow July 20): Nabor House Room 4 comes and helps move the boxes, tubs, and furniture that are ready to go to Grandma and Grandpa's garage and basement. Both home/apartment things and school things

Hiatus I (July 21-26): Go to White Lake for a Twardock family reunion and fun times with family

Phase III (July 26-28): Finish packing and moving the remainder of my stuff to Grandparents. Turn in keys and say goodbye to 308 Village Park Way

Hiatus II (July 28-August 7): Live with John at my grandparents out of a suitcase and around the boxes while starting softball practices everyday 6-8 PM. This is when I actually plan to start on my "list of things to do before school starts." We'll see how far I get.

Phase IV (August 7-?): Move into the new apartment. I have a new address but I'm not going to post it yet. I'll email it out after I actually move in. My first game is on the 7th so my new roommate Cory is going to get the keys and start moving in first. I probably won't actually move anything until Sunday when her stuff is a little more settled. I also haven't yet figured out what bed I am going to have either buying or borrowing so that will inhibit actually being able to fully move in and sleep there. I don't want to have to store it but just move it in no matter which I decide so that's the reason for the question mark. It could be a little bit of a drawn out phase.

Hiatus III (Mid-August-September 1): Settle into the apartment, get ready for school year 10-11, go to practice, and games.

Phase V (September 1-7): Move back into my classroom and arrange for my 2nd first day of school! Fingers crossed that it will be before this but I doubt it. Construction is a tricky thing and there hasn't been an "update" for a while. I wonder if that means they don't want to admit they've fallen behind schedule. We shall see . . .

In lieu of no construction news, I did drive by my building yesterday when I was in town for a coaches meeting and it looks like they have the windows done. Very exciting from the outside but I wonder what state the inside is in.

At the coaches meeting, we decided to have practices 6-8 PM to avoid the heat of the day, camps, and work schedules. I get to experience my first tryouts next week and they expect anywhere from 40-60 girls for 18-20 spots. Should be interesting for a person from a tiny school where everybody made the team and everybody played. The high school coaches are going to help otherwise I'm not really sure how we would do it. However, they seem unconcerned about the whole process so I'm taking their lead and doing the same. What could possibly go wrong with that kind of plan??

Princesses and Princes

That cute little girl in the car seat a few pictures down? She's 4 and thinks that princesses will someday rule the world. She's pretty adamant about it too. It's probably her favorite thing, and since it's her favorite thing, it is obviously the favorite thing of everyone else. Duh. Which led to this conversation:

L: What are you doing after you leave here?
J: Going to my parents' house.
L: You have a different house than your parents??
J: Yes. I live by myself in an apartment now.
L: Are you married?
J: No. Not yet.
L: Why not?
J: I don't know.
L: Well, have you been to the ball?!?? (Because DUH!! that's where you meet the prince, get married, and live happily everafter! Come on! You're an adult for crying out loud why do I have to tell you these things!??)
J: Actually, no. I'll try that and let you know how it turns out. Thanks for the advice.

Atlanta

This past week I had the chance to spend the week in Atlanta, Georgia with my cousin Kendra and her three kids. Her husband wasn't able to go and they graciously invited me to go along in his place. While I was no substitute for dad, I enjoyed the chance to tag along for a great trip. We visited the zoo, Stone Mountain, and hung out with even more cousins.


The Atlanta zoo is one of only 4 zoos in the US to have Pandas. They are actually only on lease from China for 1.1 million dollars a year. Even a baby Panda born in the US is still property of the Chinese.





Stone Mountain is the world's largest mountain made completely of stone. We took the Skyride to the top since it was 100 degrees out but I did walk the mile back down. You could see miles from the top except that I didn't really know what I was looking at. It has a stone carving of Stonewall Jackson and two other people that I don't remember. Sorry history people. The other neat thing about the park was what they called the SkyHike. You were put in a harness and then hooked up to a beam to traverse a course of tight ropes, balance beams, and ropes and wood combos all 24, 36, and 44 feet off the ground. Two of the kids and I did the first two levels and then I went on up to the third. It was a lot of fun and I would highly recommend it for anyone who isn't afraid of heights. No pictures because we couldn't have cameras on the course but Kendra took some from the ground that may end up on Facebook or the blog sometime in the future. At the end of the day, we saw a laser show on the side of the mountain. It was amazing how they blended music, lasers, and fireworks for a great show and way to end the evening. Again, highly recommended.



Big thanks to Kendra for inviting me to go along and the kids for being such great travelers. Now it's time to relax for a few days and begin the packing and moving process. I figure if I start now it will be less work later. We'll see how motivated I get in the next 4 days.

Love Them!

These are a few of the cuties that I am have been practicing my mom duties on lately. No, I wasn't driving from the passenger seat but it worked better to take the picture from that side. It's too bad they both weren't smiling because they can get away with almost anything when they do.

Shhhh

the kids are sleeping. For how much longer I am hesitant to speculate. One thing I do know is that I am currently going to start playing the quiet game . . . by myself. And breathe a little quieter. And move a little less. It's not that I don't love them because trust me I DO. But nap time is special. Sacred really. And I don't mess with sacred. Trust me, neither should you.