Let's try this writing thing...

So it's been a while... ok, a really long while. They say when you are preggo that your mind wanders endlessly, and you lose it. Literally, you lose your mind and your thoughts. I think i've lost my muse. She is missing! Perhaps I should take out a want ad?

Today was baby dedication day for my precious Frog Man, Andrew, the precious little nephew that has given me a lot of clarity on being a mommy... well maybe. He has definitely gotten me real excited to hold my own Baby Jaxon when February gets here. The priceless photo of the day:

Yep..... That's right folks! Jason Woodall actually held a baby today. A real live baby. You see, it always boggles my mind why guys just don't want to hold babies. How could you not??!?!? I would think he would want all the practice he could get to prep for the real game. Today while we were having the luncheon for Andrew's baby dedication at his church, Jason looked at me and said, "I wanna hold him." Como what? Of course I jumped at the thought! He, of course, like a new Dad, wanted to make sure he was doing it right. "All you do, is hold him just like a football!", I kept telling him. "Yeah," he mumbled, "but you can't hurt a football." I think he looks just great. He's ready Coach! put in Daddy Woodall to the play. He's so got this. On a side note, I wrangled my sister to take a real preggo pic of me for the world to see. I was tired of the frumpy photo booth ones I had to take myself.... not too bad if you ask me. I think I could get used to this mommy thing... real quick.

I mean.... we look like we could be parents? Don't we?

Toasting you with my non-alcoholic bev of choice... oh how I miss wine. Have one for me won't you? 

Today is O dot M dot G day.

"The Snake Charmer" by Henri Rousseau

"I'm naked and snakes are everywhere! I knew I shouldn't have eaten those mushrooms back there!"

Gardening with Ouiser Boudreaux (based off of Billy Collins' poem "Shoveling Snow With Buddha")

I pull into the driveway from a long excursion at Lowes, and with my husband's help we cart in 40 bags of top soil, organic matter, landscaping timbers and such. Jason assembles the timbers into a box-like shape to hold the dirt for my raised garden. I wait inside in the a/c for my friend Ouiser Boudreaux to show up. I am glad she is coming to help because I am NO green thumb, and Jason doesn't do plants. It isn't 5 minutes later and Ouiser just comes waltzing into my living room, slamming the front door shut like she owns the place. "In case your wondering," she snickers, "I didn't see the point of knocking because you know I am here! You can't help but know when the neighbor 6 doors down is home because of your dog's insane bass bark." I smile and pat Duke on the head. "You are momma's baby boy!" I coo at him and scratch his chin. He grunts just like he did when he was a puppy. Ouiser can do nothing but stick her tongue out at me. 

We head to the backyard and I don't even make it to the back door when she starts in on me. "For Christ's sake! You can't go out in that crap!" she snaps. "What ever are you talking about? Athletic shorts, a tee shirt and this baseball cap are perfectly appropriate for this mission, love." I can't take it when she thinks she knows everything. "Well what am I supposed to wear? I am gardening for crying out loud!" I scream at her, because talking nice never gets me anywhere. "You have to wear overalls, a ratty white tee," she tosses me a straw hat, "and this ugly ass hat." We get outside and work the earth, and magic starts to happen in her hands. We talk about life, our families and she taught me some valuable lessons....

1. Southern women are destined to grow old, wear ugly clothes and grow vegetables in the dirt. 

2. Tell it like it is... always.

3. Fake people can kiss your ass.

4. Ugly overalls make tomatoes grow faster.

Today, I get to watch childhood favorite TV shows (Hey Dude and Salute Your Shorts) I found on Itunes!

~Twanda, out.

Life is more than unfair...

So my little boy has numbered minutes with me and Jason. He was diagnosed at the vet today with Parvo. Not only does he have Parvo, but he has roundworms too. The worms are making him sick, while the Parvo virus goes to town, killing him slowly. Why couldn't this little boy just be healthy and be the thing Jason and I could take care of as our own? So, so, so unfair. Jason is at a regional tournament in Huntsville, slowly and painfully on his way home. We contacted the breeder and he feels terrible about it. He wants to take Duke back, and refund our money and the vet bill cost. The upsetting fact to this is he most likely will put him to sleep. This leaves Jason and I with a painful decision. We either take this baby, and spend an undeterminable amount of money caring for him and nursing him, with the understanding he may not make it, or give him back to his owner... knowing his fate. I have never been this devastated or at a loss.

Dear God,

I know you are the almighty healer. You have a plan for everything. Lord, I don't know what your plan for this is, I don't know why this little baby was put into my hands... but all I ask is that you help me to make the right choice. Give me comfort and strength to be able to deal with my decision. Help me to understand why things like this happen. Bring comfort and peace to little Duke, Lord. If it is your will that he gets to stay with me, heal his little body and bring him healing. I give this all to you. Amen.

ABC's of today...

Alarm clock goes off at 6:00 am
But I didn't want to wake up...
Cozy in my bed I was, and Jason was still snoring away.
Dazed, I turned off the alarm and snuggled deeper under the covers...
Eventually, I resorted to kicking myself out of bed.
FRIDAY! I shouted, so excited. That means Jeans DAY!
Good lord this tile is cold! I thought as I trod into the bathroom to start my morning routine...
Happily I sauntered into the kitchen, where I fed my screaming cats.
Is it really time to get up? Or can I just go back to sleep?
Jason! I scream... You have GOT to get out of bed! It is almost 6:30!
Kicking and screaming, he finally awakes.
Loudly, he protests also going to work today.
Men, I thought... can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.
Now it was almost 6:45... I had to leave to go to work...
Oh how I needed some Starbucks this morning! I owed it to myself.
Peddling it to the metal I headed to my destination
Quickly I ordered a ham breakfast sandwhich and a tall bold blend coffee, with a little cream please.
Racing down 71, I made it to WMS.
Sweetly greeted by the smell of Kim-Chee, I knew it was Korea studies time in Pawpaw Patterson's room.
Time to teach!
Under the radar, I concealed my bad hair day, by sporting my pomeranian hair-do
Victory is mine!!! 3:25 has arrived!
Whisking myself off to a much needed weekend...
eXamining myself as a writer...
Yearning to be published...
ZZZZZzzzzz.... A dreamer can dream? Can't she?

I affirm you... clap, clap, clap.

It is so good to have people in your life that help you live your dream. I SUPER heart a certain soup maker (you know who you are...) that is fostering my inner writing self. She kicked my butt and started my writing craze once upon a December day. She has kept me on my toes and checked in to make sure I am doing it... then today, gave me a book about "how to get published." It pains me knowing someday soon I may have to leave that school to be at one closer by. I know I still have one year left in me... Could I just pack her in my things and bring her to my new school? Super LOVE. xoxo

A good day on the block...

I awoke this morning, and wasn't to thrilled that I had to get up extra early. You see, I had a parent meeting this morning. Parent meetings can make a great day really bad, or they can make a bad day your worst ever. I have had some positive ones in my day... but they are few and far between. This one was awesome. It was a good reprieve from the norm. These parents are REAL 'parents'!! They knew and put full responsibility for their child's actions/grades, on THEIR CHILD! It was amazing! So often these days, a lot of parents want to make it my fault their child is failing.

My students were even pretty well behaved today. I usually have total chaos on Fridays. Especially when the weather is changing. I even took a class to the computer lab, which usually spells out disaster. They were silent and WORKING! WOWZERS!

The highlight however, came when I brought a class to the library to meet our author speaker, Rupert Issacson (author of The Horse Boy). I bought a copy of The Horse Boy and he signed it for me. I always love getting an autographed copy of a book. I had one of those dork moments in the presence of someone famous. I told him he had my dream job. He replied (and imagine a thick SUPER AWESOME british accent), "What's that? Being a writer?" "Uh-huh," was all I could get out. "Well, that's easy!" he says,"All you have to do is write a book!" I laughed, almost sarcastically. Then he had the nerve to ask if I was writing anything right now. OF COURSE I AM! But I feel totally unworthy to even talk about my meager little writing excursions on the 'ol Mac to this published author. I reply sheepishly, "Well, I have been playing with a few fiction pieces that haven't turned into anything, and well... a memoir about my journeys as a teacher." "Which one do you totally love?" He asked. I answered that the memoir was my fav at the moment, and we preceded to have a conversation about ME... WRITING... it was very cool, and extremely out of place feeling. I was glad he didn't laugh, or respond with a "that's nice" or something else you might expect from a "big timer".

I get home to be greeted with an eager chef husband, who wants to go to Central Market to get goodies for dinner. He feels the need to grill me a steak... a $35 ribeye.... No one is complaining!

As I draw the evening to a close, here I am at 9:45 at night, sipping some super lovely Pinot Grigio I discovered at HEB (Bandit, comes in a 500mL box-bottle.... I can drink the whole thing and not be a super lush!), smelling the grill churning out my late night dinner, with my favorite cat Baylee sitting beside me... He is so ready for the weekend, so he can spend some good time with his momma.

Spring is upon us! and with Spring comes new. I may just try this author thing out. Everyone has a story, right?