Ouch! It's hard to believe that it's been almost a year since I last put fingers to keys and posted my drivel. It's not that I haven't had anything to say... Lord knows I always have something to say. It's just been a year of major adjustments, and it was truly a difficult year professionally for me.
I guess I should recap the year so that we can catch up with each other. Obviously it will be Cliff's Notes, but I'll include pics where I can, and if something requires more depth- it will be a separate post. So let's see what's been cooking the last year
July 2014
We can pick up here since my last post was June 28, 2014, seems logical. July went by as most Julys do: hot, humid, and mostly on an never ending quest to escape the heat. I did continue to exercise which was great. I was on a roll determine to get into shape and feel great by my 40th birthday. The biggest event of that month, hell the high point, was our Siblings Week, which had been in the works for some time.
You see there are 4 of us, 3 different mommas, and we range in ages from 40-22. So we have NEVER had a vacation where all 4 kids were with our Dad. So it became my mission to facilitate this excursion. In short, it was a great week! We had fun with our dad doing the touristy things, pool, and just enjoying our time together. I won't forget that week and the glimpse into what our sibling relationships could be if we lived closer. I know for dad it was great to have all 4 of his kids under one roof.
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| Bottom Left: Melissa, Gavin, Ashley and Megan |
August 2014
August was a month of UPs and DOWNs. While I started working, I was pretty sure about 2 weeks into it, that I was completely in over my teaching head. Just 2 days after I had signed my yearly contract, I was pretty sure I would have killed to break it. I wasn't happy with my job, and I knew it was going to be the death of me. You can't imagine how long a year can seem when teaching in a new environment, in a new state, in a very unique set of circumstances. It truly felt like year one all over again.
We also learned that Hubby did not get selected for promotion which left us one choice: retirement. Retirement became the focus of the next few months, with all efforts gearing towards making it a smooth transition. While Hubby was transitioning out of the military, we saw our little girl transition into the ROTC program at Southern. It was an amazing thing to see her in her uniform and getting herself ready to be a soldier. Awesome!
We rounded the month off with the popular ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which proved to be cold and trendy. I always wondered how that became so VIRAL? Only on the internet will people dump a bucket of ice cold water on you in the name of charity. That is if people gave to the charity....many didn't.
Lastly, August ended with a great weekend visit by some old friends from our Maryland days. Jeff and Shelley has a great time with us in Savannah, and I can't wait for them to come back!
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| Girls just wanna have fun! |
September 2014
We have a few first and lasts this month. With the end of summer came college football, and our first game at Georgia Southern University. As proud parents of a new ROTC cadet, we attended our daughter's first military appreciation college game. I got to see her for the first time in uniform. It was so emotional!
Another first we had was our first Savannah River boat ride. The Norris Family took us out on the boat and we had such a blast! Who knew we would it would be so much fun to swim in the river!?
It seems that our family's professional life had some firsts. It was the first year I had ever taught in an urban setting. I won't belabor the point of how difficult it was, and how many challenges I faced this school year. Or how it felt like year 1 or maybe a little like year zero. What I will say is that I learned more about myself than in any other year of teaching. That's all I got to say about that.
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| 224th MI Ball |
Some first were my own: like the Outlander series started. Holy moly is that a great series! I was especially excited that I had already heard the books on tape while we lived in Germany, and so I was thrilled to see how it transpired on the screen. They did a phenomenal job at every aspect of having the story come to life on the screen. I can't wait until next season. If you haven't watched it, I completely recommend it for summer viewing! It's a must!
October 2014
October was quiet in that nothing "happened" that was note worthy, other than the daily business of living. Now don't get me wrong that can be consuming and tiresome, but not noteworthy. You see noteworthy would be Magic Mike the sequel coming to Savannah to tape, and the production looking for, seeking, women of all ages to populate the night scenes in the movie. Even more noteworthy would be me having a full time job, and being completely unable to provide my services of a middle aged Channing crazed MILF. So that.
Halloween came and went, as did the outrageous decor I did this year. While teaching tried unsuccessfully to break me down, and by 'unsuccessfully' I mean I'm still alive, although I'm pretty sure there were times where I reduced to a puddle of blubbering tears and snot. October was closer to December than August was and at least I could see a substantial break around the corner.
November 2014
Who doesn't like BIRTHDAY MONTH? Lots to report on November:
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| Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon 2014 |
- We did the Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon- LOVED IT!
- I was thrown a surprise birthday party by hubby. It was great since I'm not the easiest to surprise.
- We had a special "just us" dinner at the famous Pink House, where I devoured the BEST shrimp and grits I've ever had. No lie, hands down- the best!
- Of course the big Thanksgiving blowout in the new house. It was a hodge podge of peeps that included local family as well as Granny and uncle from Florida, the Princess and the new beau, the Loud Cousin- he has NO volume control whatsoever, and our Canucks who came to see us and stayed for the American Turkey Shit Show at our house. By far the most surprising guest, was Hubby's oldest son and his wife. We weren't expecting that, and it was great to have him/them here.
- No month of November would be complete without Black Friday shopping. We took our Canadian friends out to do some combat shopping! And it was a huge success. All violence averted and sales targeted. I would say it was a win win!
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| Painting with Mom |
December 2014
December was quiet and peaceful. We celebrated a quiet Christmas, and just enjoyed each other's company. It was the first year we had a real tree in about 4 years, and it was lovely to have up and decorate. I also just enjoyed having some down time to relax and not have to worry about school or grading or lesson plans. That was heaven!
I did make one discovery in December though: I discovered that I love to paint! I took my mom out to Painting with A Twist, and LOVED it. We had a great time and I realized how relaxing painting can be.
Gonna try to add.... but given that it's 3/17/2016 my memory may not be what it should be. Let's see what I can remember.....
January 2015- Outside of bringing in the New Year, our highlight was selecting classes for our rising Freshman! That's pretty cool, and our last one was getting ready for high school.
February 2015- seem uneventful...at least as far as I can remember. The highlight might have been Painting with a Twist with Mom.
March 2015- Hubby had his retirement ceremony from the military. What a phenomenal ceremony and we had friends and family there and fantastic lunch together! He wanted the Old Guard Ceremony held in Washington, DC and it was beautiful and very formal and very fitting for 25 years of service. I'm glad he made that decision!
April 2015
Birthdays are the big deal in April and while that was true again this year the biggest deal was Harvey's last day in the Army. He transitioned into a job with a large aviation company here locally and during his 3 week transition he painted 4 big rooms in my house! Winner! It was great time for him to take some weeks, do what he wanted, work on the house, and just transition in civilian life. The only drawback was not having the time to be with him those weeks.
May 2015
End of the school year and I couldn't be happier! Let summer begin.....
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