Wow...it has been a long time!

So, it looks like it's been almost a year since I last wrote! Wow, things have been busy. I'm going to make an effort to write more often :)

So, since I last wrote, I graduated with as Associates Degree in Education. Then, last fall, I got a job at a local high school working in Special Education. It has been the hardest, greatest, most stressful, most fun and most rewarding thing that I have done in my (almost) 30 years.

Starting out was interesting. I had never worked with teenagers before, all of my previous experiences were with early childhood and early elementary education, so I was nervous to say the least. In addition to that, I had some experience with Special Education, but not a lot.

The classroom that I am assigned to is a CD (Cognitive Disabilities) classroom. In my position, I assist the students in our classroom and in the Regular Education classes. I have met so many amazing people. Firstly, the amazing coworkers in my building. The people that I work with are so committed to education and to our students. All of the teachers (Special Ed and Regular Ed) that I have had the pleasure of working with are passionate for working with students of all ability levels and giving them all possible opportunities in and out of the classroom. Secondly, my awesome students. They are so fun and I have grown quite fond of them. It goes to show you that just because something seems scary at first, give it a chance, because it could be something great!

On the homefront, the kids are doing great. My son is in second grade this year and is growing up so much, right before my eyes! Sadly, this is the first year that my son has been embarrassed of me :( I am no longer allowed to hug him at the bus stop or at his sporting events. This is extremely hard for me because I am an over-the-top affectionate parent. I just can't help piling on the hugs and kisses. I guess it's all part of growing up...
My daughter is in preschool and doing great, I can't believe that she's going to be in Kindergarten next year! She amazes me with her confidence and independance. She can be stubborn and iron willed, but I keep telling my self that these traits are going to make her a strong woman who can take care of herself, as she gets older.

Balancing out family and work as well as other commitments (bookclub, politics, extra curriculars, etc.) is not easy. I will admit that I have my share of freak out moments. I get overstressed and take it out on my husband and kids by yelling. I am not proud of this. It is something that I'm working on improving. But we all have our moments and you can't dwell on them.

Up next: The Joys of Buying a House (did you catch the sarcasm there?)

My Earth Month Efforts

Okay, so April is Earth Month. I feel like I'm better than most at being "green" all the time. But my family is going to step it up for this month. I took Aiden to the library yesterday and we got some books full of ideas. So here is what we are going to do this month:

*No eating fast food (all of the packaging that comes with fast food is very wasteful and they do not recycle)

*No driving unless we NEED to be there (obviously Joe needs to go to work and I need to go to school, anywhere else we need to go we will go on the way to or from work or school; no special trips)

*Along with that, we will play outside and walk to the two parks within walking distance from our house, as well as do fun activities at home; without using materials or gas

*We will not buy anything we don't need (the only things we will buy are essential groceries and essential gas; there is no need to clutter our lives with things we don't need)

*We will make meals from what we already have and only buy things that are needed ( we have so many things in our cupboards and freezer that we always just pass over, we will also eat all leftovers before making new meals to cut down on waste)

* When we do buy groceries, I will not buy processed foods or overly packaged foods

* We will make an effort to recycle or reuse everything we can

*I found some great programs going on in the area this month. We are going to several programs at the EcoPark on animals and nature, we are going to do a marsh walk/cleanup, we are going to go to the Green Fair at the Waldorf School on Earth Day and much more stuff!

*April 11th is "Pull the Plug" Day, we will not use any electricity on this day (the only exception being keeping our refrigerator plugged in, but everything else will be off, including lights. I'm excited for this one...should be interesting :)

*April 19th-25th is the annual Coulee Region Turn off the TV Challenge. No TV!

I'm sure all of this sounds excessive, at least that's what my husband said :) But it's only for a month. I'm hoping that after a month of "green" living, we will adopt some of the changes permanently.

Thus far...not so good :(

Well, it has been a reallllllly long time since my last (and first) blog. Let me just explain by saying, "I hate winter!" What does this have to do with writing a blog entry you might ask? You might think that winter would be the perfect time to cozy up with my laptop and spew my life/feelings out into the world, but for me, you'd be wrong. I hate winter so much that not only does my outdoor activity cease, but my indoor activity pretty much ceases also. Some call it the "Winter Blues"...I call it, "I live in Wisconsin"...that should be explaination enough for those of you privilidged/cursed to live in the midwest. Don't get me wrong, I love the area that I live in. We have beautiful bluffs, gorgeous rivers and awesome people. I just hate winter. I wish I could enjoy things like skiing, sledding, ice fishing or playing in the snow...but I am so daunted by the insane, bitter cold that I can not possibly enjoy any of these activities. In the winter, my outside exposure consists of walking from my car to school/the store/wherever I'm going. For those of you who are thinking that I deprive my two children from the fun winter activities, don't worry. I make their dad do it :)

Now, as I stated last time, I have a couple of things I want to work on. I have been doing pretty good in the areas of money and doing meaningful activities with my children. Now what I have downright sucked at is the being healthier part. I am also blaming winter for this one. On a cold winter night, I just want to snuggle with my kids and watch a movie or snuggle by my self and read a book, or snuggle with my hubby...I'm sensing a pattern :) But now that spring is sprung, I am going to start pushing myself to start accomplishing something. Now, the good news is that I haven't really gained any weight...which when you spend a whole winter sitting on your butt and eating comfort food, is pretty good, but I haven't lost any either. I'm really hoping to drop at least one size by the time summer is in full swing...I'll keep you posted.

New Year's Resolutions

This is my first blog, so please bear with me!

*A little introduction...My name is Melissa and I am many things. I am the mother of two young children, I am the wife of my high school sweetheart, I am the daughter of two parents who are still married, I am the sister to six siblings, I am a student pursuing my degree in education. Besides all these genaric (but not unimportant things), I am also a lover of books, art, music, movies, and food. I love to leave the windows open and let the breeze into the house. I love to sit and do nothing all day as long as it is spent with my children. I am an obsessive cleaner and organizer. I enjoy making my home look beautiful and it drives me nuts to live in a rental because I hate white walls. I love the area I live in, but I dream of moving to a number of "cool" cities. They include Seattle, Flagstaff, Boston, Washington D.C., Chicago, New York and San Francisco, to name a few.

But that's enough about me, let's get back to the point; my New Year's Resolutions.

My New Year's Resolution's basically have one theme; to make my life simpler, happier and healthier.

First, simpler...
1. I will only keep the things that I use. I have been reading a lot of articles in magazines and online about organization and that is the kind of home I want to have. I have started going through all of the closets, drawers, boxes and cupboards in my house. I am getting rid of anything that is broken, that I don't use or that doesn't go with the decor of my house.
2. I will stop buying things that I don't need (or at least deperately want :) Things do not equal happiness. This is going to include clothes that I don't need or one's that I only buy because they are on sale. It will also include things for my house and toys. I have decided that my children do not need a toy every time we go to the store. They have enough toys and getting things for holidays and birthdays is enough.
3. I will save money. Hopefully by accomplishing number 2, number 3 will come easier. The goal for 2010 is to buy a house. I have been waiting my whole life to own a house and I want to get it done in 2010.

Alright, on to happier...
1. I will stop sweating the small stuff. This is going to be extremely difficult for me. I worry about EVERYTHING! My main stressors are my large dysfuntional family (whom I love dearly), school and my children (whom I also love dearly). I am going to start accepting people and situations for what they are and live by the prayer;
Dear God,
Grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.
2. I am going to stop being a doormat and stand up for myself. I take things very personally and get very upset over the smallest conflict or unpleasant situation. I am going to stop letting people make me feel that way. This is also going to be very difficult for me.
3. Lastly, I am going to take time to create wonderful memories and traditions for my family and children. Too often, we spend evenings and weekends watching TV, and just sitting around. I am going to check listing for events in the area, go to storytime at the library and plan trips during school vacations. These are things that I didn't have a lot of when I was a child and I do not want my children to miss out. I am also going to make time for my husband and I to spend time together without the kids.
4. In addition to spending more time with my husband, I am going to try to make more time for myself. A couple of months ago, some friends and I started a bookclub and I have enjoyed it greatly. I need to do more things like that. Some ideas I have had include girls night out with friends or my sisters, and the occasional manicure/pedicure.

Lastly, but most importantly, healthier...
1. I need to lose weight. Weight is a funny thing. You gain weight here, gain weight there, have a couple of kids and suddenly, you hate the person you see in the mirror. I don't want to feel like that anymore. I also hate that I am not healthy enough to run around with my kids as much as I want to. This is going to be hard because I LOVE food and I love to go out to eat. I am going to accomplish this by cutting out fast food, excercising daily, cutting my portions and switching to whole grains.
2. Also, I feel that by accomplishing the above things, it will make me and my family healthier mentally and physically.

Whew...
Do I think this is going to be easy? No.
Do I think I am going to accomplish all of these goals? I am optimistic but I know that it will be hard.

Until next time...