Pizza The Hut

To start...I am in a much better mood tonight. :-)

Well, the Pizza Hut bug bit me tonight. I haven't had Pizza Hut for years and the last time I had it we were in California. As a kid that is the only place we ever got pizza from. 

Jamie was on a mission tonight to get us Papa Murphy's new taco pizza but low and behold they don't have it here yet. They were supposed to get it last week. (Thanks for the coupon on SATURDAY then, people!) I craved taco pizza all day and was excited to try something new. When Jamie came home with a Hawaiian pizza, I just wasn't satisfied. I needed taco pizza. I said to myself...."Why not get Pizza Hut, it has been so long." So we did. Not bad. I kind of feel like "Pizza The Hut" now though. Very full, very full indeed. 

So, does everyone have good weekend plans? My cousin is having a bridal shower on Saturday. Since Jamie is M.I.A., and I have Teegan all weekend to myself, I am not attending. Hopefully I can get my gift for her to my sister-in-law who is going. I will however be continuing my "Earl May" abilities and keep planting our flowers and shrubs. 

I love pretty flowers but came to a realization today. I want a butterfly garden really bad. So I bought all these flowers and grasses and such to plant. Then I got to thinking. I bet all these will attract bees and other things that sting. Crap! I hate, and are allergic to, all things that sting. Hopefully, I will remain sting-free despite the beautiful garden I am about to design. Even if I get stung I can use my paramedic skills to save myself I guess. ;-) 

Have a great night!

Good Evening

Wow, I can't wait until this school year is behind me. I will greatly miss my kids, but I am ready for summer. I am also ready for the freaky weather to get back to normal. We had major frost today. My kitchen is a mini greenhouse right now with all of our 2008 flowers and shrubs inside. Who needs Yankee candles?! The fragrance is strong enough.

Okay, "What's Bothering Ali" is up next. Here goes....

1. With our economy the way it is, the recent WIDESPREAD flooding in Iowa, not to mention the prices for fuel and food and the housing market mess, our governor thinks he and other political officials need a raise. I will have to watch the news to see if it passed or not. I don't know why it wouldn't considering that would be like me voting at a school board meeting for teachers to get higher pay. Duh, it is a no brainer. Of course they are going to vote yes considering it will give them more money. This "raise" will make our governor the 12 highest paid governor in the nation. Okay, perhaps if Iowa wasn't going down the shitter right now it may be warranted within reason. However, I think they could wait a year to pass this. Come on, Iowa isn't the 12th largest state in the nation population wise. Why do we need to pay our governor more that what he deserves? I would trade his current salary for mine for even a day!

2. The San Jose Sharks are not playing up to their potential in the playoffs. Dallas is kicking their butts all over the ice. They lost AGAIN tonight making them ahead 3-0! One more loss boys and it's curtains. Hockey will be over golf will begin. You didn't win the Pac division championship for nothing guys! Get going!!!!!!!

3. Have I mentioned the weather yet???

4. After taking Tee for a bike ride tonight I parked my bike and the stroller-trailer on the driveway. When Jamie got home we went inside to get ready to go to supper. We looked out the window and what to our wonderful eyes should appear.....not a fat man and 8 tiny reindeer..... JUSTICE EATING TEE'S BICYCLE HELMET! The darn thing is absolutely destroyed. There goes $20 down the drain and the kid only got to wear it for 2 weeks. UUUURRRRGGGGG!!!!! Back to the doggie dilemma I guess. 

5. Lastly, Cleaning. Okay, given the fact that my husband is M.I.A. these days due to the wonderful opportunity he is getting with this temporary position, it is harder and harder to find the motivation to clean. My house is a mess. I'm not proud of it. I just don't have the time, or more so the energy, to do it. Tonight we picked it up at least. Well, the downstairs anyway. The garage is in shambles. The kitchen floor is disgusting. The bedrooms are frightful. My "type A" is really kicking in and it is bothering me. I think we are going to finally search out middle and high school babysitters to help me out. I need someone to play with Teegan so I can get stuff done. I also need to search babysitterland due to the fact that I am signed up for Pilates and Boot Camp for the next two months on Monday and Wednesday nights. Urg, that just brings up a whole new battlefield for stress. Who will we find? Will they be good and trustworthy? How  much will it cost? Can they drive or walk here so I don't have to pick up and drop off? Welcome to my world. Wanna trade for a day????? :-) 

Alrighty. This has been very therapeutic. Thanks for listening! Have a wonderful evening. I need to keep cleaning. 

The Elementary Teacher's Curse.....that involves Sesame Street and childhood

Okay, so I am teaching multiples and factors today in math class. To preface this in case you have forgotten a multiple is pretty much counting by a certain number like 2,4,6,8,10 and so on. A factor is what can be divided evenly into a number. For instance the factors of 12 are 1,2,3,4,6,12. 

ANYWAY, the kids got to use the multiplication chart in their math books that was 12x12. I wrote the numbers on the board 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12. ALL OF A SUDDEN a classic Sesame Street clip popped into my head. You know the one....Pinball 12. The one that goes 

1-2-3   

4-5    

6-7-8-9-10     

11-12 

Do do di do do do do do di do do do do dodo do. 

You get the picture. So tonight I snickered at it and decided to look it up on You Tube since I haven't seen it in a while. Okay, I realize that there are a lot of bored people out there in the world and that the internet is an information super highway for freedom of expression. The clip below came up. Watch it and afterward you can read my comments below. 

So, I love the fact that the girl in the remake is mixing a martini throughout the song, then drinks it. I know I wished I had one of those while I was teaching math today. ;-) Just kidding. What is up with the Ghostbusters outfit? I'm pretty certain that pinball 12 is a 70's creation, not to mention that all the outfits that the actors have on involve the 60's and 70's. And the ending credits were just dumb. But overall, pretty funny. If you type in "Pinball 12" or "Sesame Street Pinball" you can see all kinds of clips about the cartoon. I would recommend it if you are an 80's kid like me and that silly song gets stuck in your head. It has been in mine all day. Hopefully I have passed it onto you!!!!!

"No Doggie, No No!" said Teegan

You can tell our dog has a behavioral disorder when our 15 month old child sees the dog out of the blue and says, "No Doggie, No No!" We are trying like mad to make Justice fit in around here now that our family dynamic has changed. Before Teegan we were on top of Justice, training her to be a good puppy. Well, ever since September, we have been bad dog owners. Right now she is out of control. She destroyed, and I mean DESTROYED, the work that we did on the deck last spring. She feels the need to get under the deck to chase the rabbits that go under there. To watch it reminds me of a Bugs Bunny cartoon to be honest. The rabbits AWAYS outwit her. 

We have seriously toyed with the fact of finding her a new home. It breaks my heart because she is such a wonderful dog. We just don't have the time to train her. The big two are just as calm and lovable as always. I know Justice could get there but it will take another year or so. 

Now we contemplate. Do we find a new home for her or not? I would give her away in a heartbeat if she could go to a family that I knew that would love her as much as we do. I don't want to just give her to any old person where I would spend months worrying about her. 

If you are interested or know anyone that might be let me know. 

One Moment Please....Violet

I feel like I  am becoming a weekend warrior. So many tasks to complete and not enough time to complete them. The weddings were wonderful yesterday.... however I am relying on Jamie's judgement with the first one. It sounded really nice. They served fondue at that one. The second wedding was really great. The chapel was beautiful and the Celebration Barn was as equally cool if not more. Job well done Diane! 

Well, I better go enjoy the nice sunny cold day. We had to explain to my nephew yesterday that just because it is "shiny" outside that doesn't mean it is warm. He wanted to play outside yesterday but Iowa has somehow received a cold snap. We have gone from near 80 to below freezing this week! 

Later.

Oh, to be a toddler again....

I wish I were a toddler again. To be carefree. To have all your needs taken care of. To not have to go to work everyday. TO HAVE NO INSIDE VOICE OR INNER MONOLOGUE! Man, wouldn't that be nice. I would only want to go back for a few days though. ;-) Yesterday we took Tee on a Target and Costco run. He was soooooo loud. We are teaching him Shhhhhhh and he is picking it up nicely. However, he will shhhhhhh and then scream-babble right afterward. 

Well it is wedding weekend! I have two to attend tomorrow although I am only going to one. Jamie is the best man in the first one. He has to wear a black tux with a pink vest and tie. I will be taking LOTS of pictures. Jamie is not a pink fan. Must be the macho fireman in him. The second one is here in town. I am going with friends since Jamie will still be at the other wedding. We will all meet up at the reception. 

 I need to go have  a cup of ambition to get all the toys picked up, the house cleaned, the dog chores completed, and get these wedding gifts wrapped. Later Gators. 

Headaches Suck.

Yesterday Jamie had a headache. Today it has passed to me through osmosis or something. I know it has to be the weather change, allergies, damn contact lenses, etc. I have taken Tylenol Sinus, Zyrtec, and hope to peel the plastic off of my eyeballs here momentarily. I wish that Lasik surgery was cheaper. I would have it in a heartbeat to correct my vision!!!! 

6 of my kids were gone again today. I think I passed them the plague of spring break '08. They have fevers, coughing, vomiting, an such. I only had 13 kids the other day in class. the other 9 were out with strep, bronchitis, or whatever the spring break plague is. 

Well, I need to go have "Art Time" with my son. He is at his art table whining. Now he is bringing me a crayon. Gotta go. 

Later.

Welcome!

We all work 9-5 and then some don't we?! Hi, my name is Violet Newstead, I mean Ali, and I will now be blogging my innermost thoughts, discoveries, and feelings. I have been blogging for a year now, mostly about our little boy from Korea. I intend to keep that blog going, but I would also like to have my own little piece of the information super-highway. So, in honor of one of my favorite movies, 9-5, I have created my new blog "Working 9 to 5 & Then Some." I dedicate it to all those who need an "Atta Girl" every now and again.