Okay, so I'm REALLY bad at keeping up on things...

Well, I'm finally getting a chance to post an update....again.....

I've finished my coursework for my teaching certification - FINALLY!!!! - and taken all the necessary tests, so now I'm waiting for my scores and a final transcript (okay, so I need to finish one paper in order to get a better grade....sigh....) and hopefully I'll get my certification credentials and be able to find a full-time teaching job. If anyone knows of a school system near Lewiston Maine that needs a wonderful social studies teacher for grades 7-12, I'm available.... :)

Seaside Treasures has been on hiatus for several months while I've been finishing up my school courses - I just haven't had time to even update the website, never mind worry about orders or new colors. I actually have several new colors that I just need to scan in and upload....just now need to get myself organized again and motivated toward that end.

On the home front, we've had an ... INTERESTING... year. Curt finally took early retirement from trucking last May due to health issues, and was working as a custodian for the schools, which was great...until his heart decided to give him fits around Christmas and he very nearly died on us. However, after a week of hospitalization and some cardiac surgery, he's doing better than ever. He stopped working full-time for the schools and is working part-time for a private custodial service, cleaning a kidney dialysis center 4 hours a night, and that seems to be working out very well for him physically and emotionally. Financially, we're struggling, as is most of the country, because of the health bills and the cutbacks in the paychecks we were used to from trucking. However, he is able to draw Social Security, which is helping keep us in the house, at least... :)

News on the boys....Michael is 14 now and headed to high school this fall - I can't believe my little guy is that old! Not only is he a teenager, he's taller than I am, has a lovely deep voice, and is sporting a mustache! I'll have to get some current pictures... :) David is 9 and ready for 4th grade. He's wanting to learn to play the guitar VERY badly and loves to tap dance - so we'll be looking for a good student sized guitar for him this fall, and getting him set up on lessons soon, I hope. Joshua is 8 and ready for 3rd grade....yikes! He's also scarily intelligent and very involved in all sorts of activities, from scouts to choir to wanting to start karate this fall.

Finally, on the stitching front - I've finally started stitching again! I finished an iris bookmark kit I had received as a gift a while back, a Prairie Schooler Thanksgiving sampler, and Bent Creek's Lighthouse ABC, as well as started and finished a Mill Hill kit called Making Lemonade. I'll scan them in and post photos after a bit. Now to figure out what I'll work on next.... :)

So, this is a rambling post, but its been such a long time since I've said anything here, I figured I'd better get as much in as I could. If you've made it this far, that's great! Off to see what is happening upstairs - its much too quiet.... :)

At long last, I'm blogging again....

I can't believe its been over a year since I've posted anything here.....yikes! Well, there have been TONS of changes in the past year or so.....and most of them have been good. Curt is retired now, because his health forced him to get out of trucking. He's working as a custodian for the local schools, and is doing much better health-wise. The boys and I are thrilled that he's home now as well. Its been a tough year financially, but we're getting there....slowly but surely.

I'm still working as an Ed Tech, and in my 2nd year of the ETEP program - at the end I'll have my teacher's certification in secondary social studies and special education. Its craziness right now, and I'm up to my eyeballs in papers and classes (on-line and in person), but there is a light at the end of the tunnel - I just hope its not an on-coming train.... :)

M. is in 8th grade, and so far its going well. D. is in 3rd grade, and J. is in 2nd grade - and they're both having a great time in school. They just recently started riding their bikes to school, and are really relishing that freedom. I've been biking to school much more myself - its only 1/2 a mile, but its nice to get the exercise and it also saves a TON of gas!

I'm not stitching nearly as much as I'd like - the classes and the family are making sure of that - but I'm working on a bookmark right now, and hope to finish up some of my UFOs this year. There are a TON of Round Robins that are close to being done, and I'd REALLY like to frame them and get them out of my "to do" basket!

We have a couple of new additions to our furry family as well - we just recently adopted two kittens from our vet's office - they're both black as night, and full of energy, especially when the rest of us are trying to sleep! Our older kitty tolerates them, and the dogs just ignore them.....and the boys are head over heels in love with them!

Finally, I've been participating in Weight Watchers since January of 2008 - and have lost over 45 pounds so far. I'm hoping to lose another 40 pounds or so to get to my goal weight, but I'm just beyond thrilled to be fitting into smaller sizes and feeling HEALTHY for the first time in a number of years. Its been a roller coaster these past few weeks - I've gained and lost the same 2-3 pounds for the last 3 weeks - but I know I'm over 1/2 way there - and I *WILL* get there eventually!

Other than all that, not much new here.....but I'll try to do better about updating as we go forward.

Kirsten

The Snow Day That Wasn't.....ARRRRRRGGGGGG

Okay, so I wake up this morning, and my phone goes off with a text message from the local TV station letting me know school was cancelled again today....I go start the coffee and sit down to watch the news. This was at 5:20 am. Half an hour later, the phone goes off again - guess what - school was NOT cancelled!!!!!! Now, this wouldn't have been too terrible - the boys still had enough time to get up and get dressed and ready for school - but for one HUGE problem - we had ALMOST TWO FEET OF SNOW IN THE DRIVEWAY!!!! I couldn't even get off the steps to walk the dog because the drifts were so deep - poor thing had to pee in the driveway....*S*

I go up and get dressed and try to dig my way to the front of the van so I can wade through drifts as high as my waist to get to the garage and get out the snow blower.......finally get there. I've woken the boys up early and Michael, bless his heart, is taking care of getting everyone breakfast and making sure they're all dressed and ready for school. I managed after 30 minutes or so to clear out enough of the driveway to get the van out - the snow was taller than the snowblower at the end of the driveway, and the drifts were ridiculous! I guess I'll get the boys together after school and we'll somehow try to get the rest of the driveway plowed out so that we can get Curt's truck in this weekend.....NOT looking forward to this afternoon!

I should have taken pictures, but I was definitely NOT in the mood this morning......

I ended up driving the boys to school because the bus hadn't made an appearance by the time I had to leave for work, and let me tell you, the roads were NOT really in good shape. I can imagine that the busses were having a hard time of it, particularly on some of the side streets - we live on a main road, and the street was white.

When I got to school, about 1/2 the staff still hadn't made it in - I guess we ALL saw the error, and went back to bed...LOL! About half the students are gone too - some are straggling in, but most decided to make it an unofficial snow day anyway, I guess. At least it will be a quiet day in the classrooms - I hope!

FIRST Snow Day

Okay, so I'm sitting here playing at the computer, and its 10:15 in the morning......how cool is that! Usually, I'm sitting at school, in 4th period, waiting for the bell to ring, just like the students....LOL! That's a math class, and I don't have any particular students that I'm responsible for in that class - I'm there to assist the teacher that period. But today we're getting SNOW SNOW SNOW!!!! Its wonderful - its actually pretty deep already - its been snowing since early morning, and I'd say we have 8-10 inches out there. Every time I take the dog out, its deeper, and he has to find his "special spots" all over again.....sigh...... Basically, the whole state is closed down. The town sand trucks and plows haven't been by here for about 2 hours now, but I'm going to have to go out soon (after I get dressed....ack!) and clean off the end of the driveway while I still can. If it gets too much deeper down there, the snowblower won't be able to handle it.

The boys, of course, are LOVING this day off - they're camped out in the living room, making valentines and watching TV. I'll get some pictures in a little while and upload them.

In the stitching world, I'm working on a very late order for an overseas shop - its been a bit crazy around here, and what should have taken me a week to complete and mail has taken three.....sigh....... I'm also stitching on a gift for a friend, and will post a picture of that when its done. In the meantime, here's a picture of a little goodie I made for a Valentine's gift....well, its at the top of this post.....I'll figure out this blogging thing one of these days....*S*

Stay safe and warm, friends, and if you are so inclined, offer up a little prayer or positive thought for Curt - he's on the road in NY State, between Newberg and Schylerville (near Saratoga Springs), and I'm more than a little worried!

Kirsten

Gonna try this thing out here....*S*

Okay, so I'm new to blogging.....I've never been really good at keeping a journal or diary, but I think this might be a different situation. Heck, I'm on the computer often enough, so keeping this going shouldn't be too hard.....right?

At any rate, a little about me. As the name of the blog says, I have three boys - and they keep me BUSY BUSY BUSY. The oldest is involved in Boy Scouts, art classes, church choir, and loves to read (takes after his mother, he does!). The middle one is a Cub Scout and a dancer, and also sings in his church choir. The youngest is a wannabe karate kid (haven't started lessons yet, but probably will next year), and does his best to keep up with his two older brothers and drive me crazy....LOL!

My husband is a tractor-trailer driver, and is gone all week, so I get to do the single mom thing for most of the time. He is home on the weekends, which is good - at least we get to see him regularly. Too many trucking families don't, and we appreciate that.

I am an Ed. Tech. (paraprofessional) at our local Middle School (7th and 8th grades), where I work as an inclusion aide for students who need a little extra help in the classrooms. I am applying to the ETEP program at the University of Southern Maine, and am hoping to be enrolled in the 2 year special ed/secondary ed program this summer. I am scheduled to take the PRAXIS exam on February 19th - and I'm a little nervous, since I haven't taken a "heavy duty test" in over 20 years, since I graduated from college.....ACK!

I have a home-based business, creating hand-dyed floss for counted cross stitch, and it keeps me occupied in those rare free moments I have with after-school activities and stuff. I also love to cross-stitch and read - both of which keep me up late at night and help me keep my sanity - they help me unwind after the boys have gone to bed. Right now I'm working on about 4 different projects - a Round Robin that belongs to a friend of mine in South Carolina, a Valentine's Day exchange, and Winter exchange, and an ornament or two.....somehow I think I'm managing to keep them straight, but you never know....LOL!

At any rate, that's a little about me. I'll post some more in a day or so - I just need to remember to do it!

Kirsten