Where I've been, what I've done, and why I haven't...

Hello! My apologies for not updating for so long! I can't believe it's been over a month and now my reading audience has shriveled to and audience of one.......I'm so sorry!

There are many reasons why I haven't updated.....none of them real valid, I know--but October--November is THE busiest time for me as a teacher/mom/wife/human. I will try to do much better. Another reason I have not updated is I have lost my camera. It has been missing since Halloween--hence, no Halloween pics of my cute Mr. Potato Head, Blue dinosaur, or asthmatic bungee boy (he was sick that day). I have cleaned out my van, checked in my mother-in-laws couch (last place I remember having it), and have totally cleaned and rearranged my main level. Still no camera. I was going to purchase one yesterday at the black Friday sales, but couldn't quite give up on the search for the other. Once I really clean and organize my bedroom (and line up all my dust bunnies in a row), I will give up and buy a new one. Until then, I'm letting the German in me speak and it reeks of stubbornness.

So, in order to catch you up without writing a dissertation on my life over the past few weeks, I will just post a list of what has been going on. Sorry...no pics. Sad, sad.

-Noah has been sick 3X since October 31st. Rough Fall for him.
-I had P/T conferences and report cards and survived (thanks to the yummy meals provided by the PTO moms!).
-I've been coaching Kyla's YMCA team. Boy, have they come a long way! Still haven't won, but we just might pull out a "W" for the last game!
-I've sewn a Mr. Potato Head costume...it turned out pretty well--wish I had pics to show!
-We've been taking both boys to swim lessons 2X/week. They have improved immensely!
-Kyla has grown one inch.
-Noah is almost as tall as Kyla (which means he's grown at least 2 inches.
-Kyla and Noah don't have many clothes that fit them due to the above.
-Brody has become a dancing machine. Stay tuned for a video.
-Jamie turned the big "40".
-Due to Jamie's milestone, I had a "not-so-surprise" birthday party for him (I accidentally left the invite that I had made next to the computer--DUH! He confessed the day after the party that he saw it.
-On the week of Jamie's 40th, he actually won a trip to West Palm Beach Florida by pushing a penny across a stage for a radio station. He won all three rounds, making him the champion. He has the scar on his nose to prove it!.
-Kyla and Noah had Halloween party sleepovers--before and after report cards and P/T conferences. A scheduling failure on my part.
-Brody turned four years old. We celebrated with a Nemo cake on my side of the family. We have yet to celebrate November birthdays on Jamie's side. Maybe soon???.
-I have (if you Facebook friends haven't noticed) really enjoyed integrating the Smartboard and Mimio interactive lessons into my curriculum at school. The outcome in the lessons has been very successful due to this new technology we have been afforded through our school foundation. I'm still searching for tech grants so I can have a Mimio or smartboard in my classroom permanently (ours floats between three classrooms). Yes, I'm a smartboard addict, but I don't need an intervention.......yet.
-Barack Obama was elected our next president. Pray for our nation's security and pray for our president-elect.
-Jamie and I actually went out to eat by ourselves one night.
-I have more Christmas shopping accomplished than ever before at this point.
-Kyla and Noah earned wonderful report cards.
-Jamie got Direct TV for his birthday so he can watch ESPN everything (while he folds clothes, of course)--I enjoy giving gifts that keep on giving to others...like me:).
-I've enjoyed watching HGTV as much as possible due to my thoughtfulness in giving Jamie Direct TV *wink, wink*.
-We have (probably) been awarded bad parent of the year after Noah went to school without a coat and just a hoodie on a 20 degree morning....oops. Yes, I know how teachers talk in the lounge....and no, we parents are NOT perfect and never will be. Give us a little slack as we juggle the 283.75 things that we do each day.
-I bought a new carbon monoxide detector.
-We've had approximately 30 sightings of deer in our yard thus far.
-My brother sighted a six point buck across the street from his house today.
-Jamie and I have decided to send our two older children to our daycare provider on the weekends so they can learn to put their things away like Brody does. We certainly didn't teach Brody that.
-My bathroom is still not done.
-My kitchen faucet still leaks.
-My refrigerator is an energy sucker.
-My repair and to-do lists overwhelm me.
-My repair and to-do lists overwhelm Jamie...I often find him in the fetal position in corners of the house after I have had "talks" with him about the repairs and remodels this house desparately needs.
-Kyla and Noah got braces.
-If we had a family pic with Rob's family, there would be a lot of tinsel in the pic.....five out of the ten subjects would be flashing a metal grin.
-I've visited the dentist way too much (3X in one month) and am now in more pain and have less teeth. I didn't think it was going to be a good thing when after viewing my x-rays at the initial exam, he said, "Good news, we're going to become friends over the next few months, Tricia. Bad news, you have a lot of work to be done". Yikes! Pregnancy killed my teeth.

I've babbled enough. I will continue to look for my camera so I can post some pics. I hope everyone has had a blessed Thanksgiving and takes time to enjoy the true meaning of Christmas (no--not stampedes at Walmart), the birth of baby Jesus.