its been awhile...

sorry its been awhile. ive been a little out of it. i got my wisdom teeth out on monday and have been laying low ever since. i am still not back 100% but im doing okay. this has been a horrible experience. you take for granted eating! i thought i would be able to eat on thanksgiving....negative. i swallowed my lasagna whole! i still can't open or close my mouth all the way and my speech is still not normal. i really don't know how im going to teach tomorrow....time to get creative!

well, monday i got them out at 8am. mom says we were back in the car 45 minutes later! the dr. came in about 3 minutes after i sat in the seat, talked to me for a second about the medicine he was going to give me, then stuck that IV right in. i HATE getting my blood taken/getting an IV. it gives me the creeps. needless to say i was squirming! after he stuck it in he says, "here comes the good stuff!" and withing seconds i was a goner. i don't remember much about waking up and getting to the car. I remember sitting in the wheelchair and the nurse walked away and i thought i was going to fall out of the chair! when they got me in the car mom says i did some weird things and tried to boss her around. :) i don't remember this but i wrote her some notes on a piece of paper ordering her where to get my prescription filled, how to drive, and where the pharmacy was! :)

monday was fine. everyone told me i wouldn't even remember the first day because i would be out. negative. i think i was awake more than i was asleep! some of tys family came over to visit and i felt left out in his room so i moved to the living room couch. :) tuesday was worse....the pain medicine they gave me made me sick so i quickly stopped taking it. it was advil and tylenol after that episode! i also got lightheaded in the shower. i was seeing stars so i had to sit down and my mom had to help me finish my shower. i have never felt more helpless! the rest of the week was fine, just PAINFUL. my mom/tys mom/ty took very good care of me. :) thanksgiving was sad. i was determined to eat my lasagna.....so i swallowed it whole pretty much. ever since thursday ive been eating semi-normally....just not chewing....sucking and swallowing. :( im really sick of it and as soon as i can chew again, im going to be a happy girl!

i don't think i stepped outside for like 4 days straight so yesterday i sat outside for awhile watching tys family put up their infamous Christmas decorations. they go all out and i LOVE IT!!!!

anyways, no pictures for this post. i refused to take any pictures this week....even though ty's sister and dad took pictures of me on their phones while was sleeping. anna tried to get some pictures of me on thanksgiving but luckily i escaped them everytime. :) all i did this week was watch movies and tv so not much to take pictures of. i have loved the Christmas movies that have started to come on this week. :) i love this season!

well, back to work tomorrow, hoping my 1st graders don't make too much fun of me. i did tell them i was getting teeth pulled out and it was going to hurt really bad. however, i figured i would be totally fine by the time i had to go back....negative. hopefully, tomorrow won't be too out of control. please say a little prayer for me. kinda hard to teach when you can't talk normally or alot. it hurts when i talk alot!

oh, my niece had her baby dedication last Sunday so I will post those pictures later on this week. She looked like a princess. :)

Hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving! oh and Roll Tide! Nothing sweeter than beating Auburn in the Iron Bowl. :) Alabama played a horrible game and Auburn played the best game of their season...and we still beat them. i love it! :) Sorry Auburn fans, that was my one "rub it in your face" moment. the end. :) Alabama 26 Auburn 21

17 school days until Christmas Break. :) Not that im counting or anything......

survey time

1. What time did you get up this morning?

I woke up at 7. I got to sleep in today because I had a meeting all day! :)

2. How do you like your steak?

I think Medium - last time i ordered a steak and they asked that question, I looked at Ty and he answered for me. haha.... don't like it well done but don't like red juice coming out of it!

3. What is the last film you saw at the cinema?

hmmmmmmmm i really couldn't tell ya....sad. i think it was mother's day and we went with ty's family but i have no idea what movie it was. i was traumatized that day because it was the day after graduation and my roommates had just moved out. :( i cried the whole way back to tuscaloosa that night after the movie!

4. What is your favorite TV show?

favorite? there's too many. grey's anatomy, private practice, friends, so you think you can dance, house hunters, and im always up for some full house re-runs. oh and call me a dork but i kinda like reality shows. :)

5. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

probably new york or boston- even though i LOVE the south.

6. What did you have for breakfast?

rice krispies

7. What is your favorite cuisine?

macaroni and cheese!=)

8. What food do you dislike?

peas suck. (if you're in my family, you probably just laughed!)

9. Favorite place to eat?

Olive Garden or Red Lobster

10. Favorite dressing on a salad?

Ranch

11. What kind of vehicle do you drive?

1992 Jeep Cherokee - can't wait to get a new car but will be sad to see the jeep go....

12. What are your favorite clothes?

sweatpants and a tshirt :)

13. If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Italy!

14. Is your cup half empty or half full?

half full - or i try to look at life that way :)

15. Where would you want to retire?

wherever my family lives

16. What is your favorite time of the day?

when i get home from school and eat my snack and finally get to sit down and relax :)

17. Where were you born?

In Atlanta

18. What is your favorite sport to watch?

Baseball

19. Are you a morning person or a night person?

night! all the way! mornings are evil

20. Do you have any pets?

my parents do - static (the dog) and an evil cat named tiger

21. What did you want to be when you were little?

a teacher....guess things worked out :)

22. What is your favorite childhood memory?

Playing outside all the time with my sisters and friends in our neighborhood. we played outside ALL the time! we even had bases painted on the street because we played kickball so much in our culd-i-sac (spelling??)

23. Are you a cat or a dog person?

dog!

24. Are you married?

nope, not yet. maybe soon? we'll see.

25. Do you wear your seatbelt?

Always. Always. Always!

26. Have you ever been in a car accident?

2 fender benders, once wasnt my fault, once was. i was waving to a friend then hit the car in front of me and couldnt stop laughing! the guy probably thought i was a complete idiot!

27. Do you have any pet peeves?

ummm yes....whistling, when my kids hum in class, burping, stupid drivers, when my kids tattle, when my kids say they "didn't do it" when i know they did, when my mom is right, paying bills....etc.

28. What is/are your favorite pizza topping(s)?

sausage

29. Do you have a favorite flower?

roses-yellow with the pink trim.

30. Favorite ice cream flavor?

vanilla!

31. Favorite fast food restaurant?

chick-fil-a

32. How many times did you fail your drivers test?

past the first time with flying colors....take that all you people who say im a crazy driver!

33. From whom did you receive your last email?

Umm ... let me look ... Steve Olejnicak!

34. If you could max out your credit card at any store, which would you choose?

hmmmm probably target

35. What are you listening to right now?

the tv-Reba's on :)

36. Who was the last person you went out to dinner with?

does lunch count? i went to lunch with my teacher friends today.

37. What time is it?

3:32

welcome back!

Molly is back in America and I am so excited! She got back on Saturday and I cannot tell you how excited I am that I can pick up the phone any time I want to and text her or call her. She called me this morning at 6:30 just to say good morning. OHHH how I have missed that!!!! You take for granted being able to talk to your best friend. When it is taken away from you, it sucks. Molly has always been my sanity in this sometimes insane world and when I have my meltdowns, she is the one to bring me back to reality. I have had many meltdowns since she has been in Germany and there were many times when I picked up my phone to call her and then realized I couldn't!! :( I will never take for granted talking to a best friend ever again! Not to mention I lived with her for 2 years and not being able to go lay in bed with her and chat kinda sucked as well. Anyways, this post is dedicated to my molly ann who is back safely in America! :) I love you to the moon and back!!!!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of our college life together....

This was when we got to see Kenny Chesney up close and personal on his Keg in the Closet College Tour at the Jupiter in Spring 08

The day we graduated from College....May 2009. We've been friends since 5th grade when she asked me to sit by her on the bus so this day was a big one for us!

This was in April 07 I think! We went to Lake Guntersville with our guy friends and checked out the Volunteer Fire Station. :)

Tubing on Lake Guntersville

Our favorite place to be....a baseball game. April 07 (i think)

Right where we belong-in front of Cinderella's Castle - Spring Break 07

One of my favorite pictures of us (and emily) on Spring Break 07

My 21st Birthday Toast with the roommates! August 08

Shooting Range!!!!! August 07

it's the most wonderful time of the year

Today was the day that got me in the Christmas mood! I am now fully engaged in all Christmas festivities. I don't know what it was about today, but it just happened. We didn't have school today so Lauren and I met at zoe's for lunch. If you've never been there, you need to go. They have the BEST chicken salad ever. I noticed today that they had egg salad sandwiches, which I am definitely without a doubt trying next time I go. If you know me, you know I love eggs. Any type if egg, every way you can make an egg, I like it. Anyways, after our splendid lunch, Lauren and I went all around Tuscaloosa shopping for Christmas presents. The first couple of places we went were duds. I found nothing....I was getting pretty frustrated but at the end of the day, I ended up getting some stuff and I feel accomplished. It is November 11th and I have quite a bit of Christmas shopping done! I usually do alot of shopping on Black Friday but this year I am getting my wisdom teeth removed on the Monday of Thanksgiving Break so I might not be up to going shopping this year. Plus its the BAMA/Auburn game so even if I do feel like getting out, I'm going to Auburn. AND we do not get out of school until December 23rd (that's our first day off) so I'm not going to have any time before Christmas to buy any presents. At target today I found some cute Christmas towels for my kitchen. =) I also put out my snowman coffee mug. These are my first two Christmas decorations. I have a tree but I think its at my house in GA so it probably won't be going up in the apartment this year. I just love Christmas. I love being with family and friends. I love the smells, the music, the food, the fun, everything about Christmas. I love the story of Jesus' birth, I love how nice everyone is, I love the decorations, the lights, the candles, and I love church in the Christmas season. There's just something so wonderful about this season. It might not even be Thanksgiving yet, but I am totally in Christmas mode. I cannot wait to do Christmas activities with my kiddies at school! We are having breakfast with Santa one Saturday in December and I cannot wait! Brings me back to my childhood....good ole Milford Elementary. We always had some Christmas shenanigan with Santa, crafts and food! :) ahhh, memories.

Here's a picture of my first Christmas decoration of the year. Not that anyone will see it other than Ty, and maybe Lauren, and you of course. I took a picture of my kitchen towels but my phone wouldn't send them to my computer so maybe I'll post a picture of that later when my phone decides to work......
:)

something in the water

so my kids were INSANE today. i think there was something in the water they drank this morning to make them so crazy. they have been so good lately. and then today, they were out to give me a headache from the moment they walked in the door. im apologizing now to all my former teachers who had to put up with me (not that i was a bad kid, i was a suck up!). however, i think times have changed and "listen to the teacher" and "follow directions" dont really mean anything to kids! however, if i EVER disrespected, disobeyed, ignored my teacher, or misbehaved in any classroom....my deepest apologies go out to the teacher. i feel your pain. there were times today i just wanted to jump out the window and run. far, far, away. luckily, i know everyday is not like this and hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. and maybe some more sleep tonight and some good praying will help my patience. good news-tomorrow is thursday. then the next day is FRIDAY!!!! yay :)

ps-i really do love my job. it was just one of those days......

Halloween

I've never been really big into Halloween. It was fun when we were little....my memories of Halloween consist of mom making our costumes from various things around the house, my sisters and I walking around our neighborhood getting all the candy we could, then coming home to an amazingly good bowl of chili (which my mom made every year on Halloween). Her chili is the BEST! Anyways, I have good memories of Halloween, I just haven't been really big into it since I got into high school. I always had a cheerleading competition on Halloween in high school so I just remember spending every Halloween there and then coming home to chili and passing out candy to the trick-or-treaters. In college, Halloween really means "who has on the sluttiest costume?" If you know me, thats not really my style. My roommates were always really into it and ordered their costumes like 5 weeks before Halloween. haha...anyways, they got me to dress up one year, and I'll admit, I had fun. Anyways, now that I'm working with children, I had to go back to my childhood and get excited about Halloween. Ty's grandmother gave me this awesome light up Halloween decoration for my classroom and I've had a pumpkin in there all month so my kids loved that. I promised them awhile ago that if they were good, we could carve the pumpkin. So, of course, the second they walked in the door on Friday, it was "Ms. Alfano, are we going to carve the pumpkin?", "Ms. Alfano, you said we could carve it!", "Is it time to carve the pumpkin yet?" I was thinking, "Oh no, what did I get myself into?" I've never carved a pumpkin before!!!! Ty's first question when I told him I carved the pumpkin was, "you sliced your hand open didnt you?" haha...he has no faith in me! Anyways, after lunch...the adventure began. They were so excited they could barely handle it. I told them if they got out of hand, they would have to put their nose in the corner (which a couple of them ended up having to do....) and I also told them they couldn't get to close (fearing the knife my slip out of my hand) and they had to stay seated. They were good for the most part.

First, we drew on the face, I just did a generic face...next year I might get more scary.

Next, I cut the top off and let each child come scoop out some guts......Then, I cut the face out. It was harder than I thought and it took about an hour to get it all done but they loved watching me do it! I was trying to pop one of the eyes out and it shot out and hit me in the face...they loved that. :)

Lastly, I put a candle in it (shhh...don't tell. No candles allowed at school!) and turned off the lights.

Disclaimer: no kids were harmed in the carving of our pumpkin.


Friday was also pajama day.....talk about crazy kids. pajama day AND the day before Halloween? We were just asking them to be crazy. I wore my hello kitty pj's and pretty much all my kids wore their pjs! It was so cute. Anyways, I survived the day and I had a great 1st Halloween with my 1st class!

This weekend Ty and I went to Birmingham and I got to see my niece and nephew in their cute outfits. Before you see the pictures, please forgive me for their outfits. Now, I am their aunt, so of course I'm going to say they are cute...because they are. However, if I had my way, they would be WAYYYYY more adorable in ALABAMA attire. :)

Aren't they SOOOO cute?

Happy Halloween!!!!