Thanksgiving Dinner!

Okay, I got my rant out earlier, now I can move on. In spite of everything, I had a great time. If I could just foot the whole bill and/or cater it for the day, things would be just fine. But, I digress.

Of course, since I did almost all the cooking, the food was spectacular, amazing, & whatever great adjective you can think of. This is the menu:

*Honeybaked Ham, *Honeybaked roasted turkey, baked Turkey, sweet potato cheesecake, pistachio cake, yellow cake with cream cheese icing, yellow cake with chocolate icing, strawberry cake, *red velvet cake, 20 lbs. of homemade mashed potatoes, homemade & store bought gravy, *green bean casserole, *greens, homemade dressing, sweet potato casserole, *black eyed peas, *mac n’ cheese, *scalloped potatoes, peach cobbler, sweet potato pies, *whole candied cranberries, jellied cranberry sauce.

Yes, we ate gooooooooooooood! As I write this, there’s half a sweet potato cheesecake and 1/4 of a red velvet cake in the fridge calling my name. My husband & children are soooooooo happy.

* Didn’t make it *

New Family Wanted

Yes, dear readers, this is my rant for the month. I am so tired of my family’s antics. Most of them are so cheap. So, instead of running the risk of getting into a family feud with everyone picking sides, I will just do what I do best- blog about it.

Wanted:

New family members to replace old family members. Must:

1.) enjoy participating in family functions,

2.) being on time.

3.) participate in potluck. If you say you’re going to bring it, then bring it.

4.) have everyone’s best interest @ heart.

5. know that Thanksgiving is not Takesgiving, where you arrive a couple hours late and load up on food that you did NOT bring.

Always remember- Absolutely NO sabotage is allowed.

If you are interested in replacing any old family members, you can reach me @ savemysanity.com. THAT MY DEAR READER is my rant for the month.

Thank you so much and do have a nice day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Eat your ham, turkey, greens, dressing, sweet potato pies, cakes, etc. Just remember to wear loose pants or pants or skirts with elastic waistbands.

Lakeshore After Thanksgiving (Black Friday) Sale!

Present this coupon at time of purchase.

©Lakeshore	coupon code: 39259
Offer valid November 27-28, 2009. Valid on in-store purchases only. Limit one coupon and one bag per customer. 20% discount taken off lowest ticketed price. Excludes tax & shipping charges. Not valid on Super Deals or gift cards. Valid on in-stock items only. No ship-to or special orders. Not to be used in conjunction with any other offers, prior purchases, or sale items. No cash value. Must present coupon at time of purchase.

Much Needed Validation!

Hello dear readers. As you know, I’ve been having a hard time lately and have been feeling a wee bit sorry for myself. I have been thinking about ditching teaching and getting another type of job altogether. I was thinking that I was not meant to teach. You know, I’ve had so much trouble and all. However, all of that changed when I “worked” @ a daycare center yesterday & today to fulfill my community service obligation for that alleged $20 cell phone ticket that’s actually $242 once you tack on fees & penalties. I felt really good because I know that I still have it. I really am meant to be a teacher. I knew it in my heart but was having serious doubts as of late.

Well, yesterday I got that much needed validation. One of the teachers @ the center asked me if I worked with kids. I told her that I taught special ed. @ the elementary level.

She told me that I was a natural. She also told me she knew that I thrived on the challenge. Boy she read me like a book. I appreciated it though. I was feeling down, but not so much anymore. I feel really great that I got some much needed validation!

Mission Impossible Assignment: #4 (Hold On!)

Dear readers, this post is totally not like the other Mission Impossible Assignment of Holding On. I was positive then. Right now, that is not the case. Yes, this theme is becoming redundant. I am in the dumps. I have been fighting it, but so far, it’s winning. It’s so bad, I don’t even want to get my hair done or shop. I know, oh Horror! I’m so tired. I thought my life was getting better. I’m not saying the problem I have hanging over my head is bigger than God, but I just don’t see how things are going to work out. Not only am I stopped from getting a job in L.A.U.S.D., but it’s hurting my chances at getting a job in other districts. You see this is all because of my ex-boss who blacklisted me.  She had no reason to do what she did. Initially I was questioning God and why he would let this happen. But this has nothing to do with God.

But, if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that KARMA is a bitch. She will get hers but good. You know what, I’m going to see it. When my husband got rudely fired from his job with no explanation, we were shocked. We didn’t understand. He was fantastic at his job. He actually, literally gave his company a million dollar idea and got no absolutely no compensation. NONE. So, we were very shocked when he was fired and blacklisted. We found out the reason why. It took about a year, but we found out the reason why. The CFO was embezzling money- to the tune of $250,000. He thought my husband knew. But he didn’t. He fired Phillip to cover his own ass. The good part in all of this is that my husband was totally vindicated. Dookie, as I like to call him, fired Phillip by sending a messenger on Sunday telling him not to come in with no explanation. However, Dookie was escorted out of the lobby on a crowded day while handcuffed by the police. KARMA catching up to him? You bet. I would like to say I took the high road and didn’t take any glory in his displeasure, but I’d be lying. I was jumping around, doing cartwheels, & laughing at the top of my lungs. That bastard got his and so will ???.

Never Would Have Made It by Marvin Sapp

Happy Veteran’s Day!

Happy Veteran’s Day to all the former, current, & future veterans. Thanks for all you’ve done!

Lakeshore 15% Off Coupon!

Present this coupon at time of purchase.

©Lakeshore	coupon code: 1631
Offer valid 11/14/09 – 11/15/09. Valid on in-store purchases only. Limit one coupon per customer. Offer excludes sales tax & shipping charges. Valid on in-stock items only. No ship-to or special orders. Not to be used toward the purchase of gift cards or in conjunction with any other offers, prior purchases, or sale items. Limit one item per coupon per transaction. No cash value. Must present coupon at time of purchase.

Happy Anniversary Sesame Street!

Happy Anniversary Sesame Street! The 40th to be exact. Can you believe it? It’s older than I am. I remember watching it when i was a child. All of my children watched it, now younger members of my family watch it. It truly transcends generations.

Happy Birthday David!

Today is my baby David’s 12th birthday. He is such a great kid. I love him so much.

Happy 12th Birthday David! Here’s to many more.

I Don’t Like To Read! by Nancy Carlson

I Don’t Like to Read!, written & illustrated by Nancy Carlson, is a book that I’ve been looking for.This book, my latest purchase, deals with slow learners. I am always on the lookout for amazing books; especially ones that deal with slow learners or those with learning disabilities.

The hero of the book is a little boy named Henry. He’s now in first grade and he’s learning lots of new things. But there was one thing Henry did not like about first grade…READING!

This is a really good part. I know a lot of slow learners or special education students will really empathize & identify with Henry. He feels so left out. When his teacher Mr. McCarthy asks who wants to read, everyone volunteers. Everyone, that is, except Henry. Henry never volunteers to read. HE.HATES.READING!

“Reading is boring!” he said.

No matter what, whenever Henry was asked to read (@ school or @ home), he said, “No. I don’t like to read! It’s dumb!”

His teacher, being the wise soul that he is, asks Henry why he doesn’t like to read. Henry responds, “Because all the words and letters just don’t make any sense!” cried Henry. His teacher tells him that it’s okay, that everyone learns to read in their own way and that with a little extra help, he’d be reading soon. Henry still wasn’t so sure about that. But he started getting extra help with his reading at school.

Pretty soon letters and words around him started to make sense. (The book shows him reading another Nancy Carlson book, “I Like Me”.)

The pivotal part of the story happens when his babysitter is reading a brand-new book to him and his little brother. Just as she gets to the best part, her friend calls and won’t stop talking. What is Henry going to do? He really wants to know how the story turns out. Not to mention the fact that his little brother is begging him to finish it also. What do you think Henry does?

I guess you’re going to have to read it to find out. As always, check it out @ your local library or bookstore. You’ll like it. I highly recommend it.

*** I had Phillise read this book and was quite surprised by her response. She said she felt the same way when she was beginning to read. We used to work on Starfall.com together. She told me she hated it. I didn’t know that she felt that way. I thought she loved it. I would never have thought my little read-a-holic felt that way. This lets me know that I really need to write my own book. Once again, go out and get this book.***

God Always Has A Plan B! Part 2

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want…. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the path of righteousness for his namesake. Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me… Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies…Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. Psalm 23

When I was in church a couple of weeks, the preacher, Caleb, spoke on this very scripture. Imagine my surprise at finding myself in the very situation of being in the valley of the Shadow of death just a couple weeks later. When the preacher spoke on this, I simply thought this was a great sermon. I liked it but only had a small personal connection to it. Now that I feel I’m in the valley of the shadow of death, I feel the connection to this sermon even more.

This is how I feel right now. I feel like I’m not really living life. I feel like I’m being tortured. My life has been really hard for the past couple of years. If I’m not experiencing financial hardship, then I’m experiencing emotional hardship. It always one bad thing or another. Murphy’s law- If it could go wrong, believe me when I say that it has gone wrong.

I’m extremely disappointed in my early warning “system”. Usually I can feel when something is going to happen- good or bad. I’ll have an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach. I don’t know why, but it didn’t happen this time. I feel sideswiped. Because I was so taken by surprise, I am having a hard time recovering. When something happens to me, I like to withdraw to my little cave. I’ve been told that I’m like a man in that  respect. But, I digress.

I am so distraught. I feel like nothing has been going my way for a couple of years now. I thought things were different. I thought my life was going to get better, but it’s just one trial after another. I really feel like giving up. I don’t feel like I’m living life, I feel like I’m being tortured. I know. I know. I know life is not fair, but life sucks. It sucks so bad. I know this is going to pass. It always does. It’s just what happens in the meantime. All the hell I have to go through as I go through the valley of the shadow of death. But, I will prevail. I know that God is with during this travail through the valley of the shadow of death. I’d just like to know when is it going to end?

God Always Has A Plan B!

Ok, so I’ve been screwed over, but I don’t have time to stop or worry about that now, I still need a job. I am going with Plan B. I will begin applying @ Charter schools & private schools. I don’t have a choice. I know I will make a difference no matter where I go, so onward I march.

Guest Bloggers Needed!

Although I get a significant amount of hits, I know that I’m not one of the most popular blogs out there. That being said, I would like put out a feeler for guest bloggers who teach elementary special education. I am not in the classroom right now and cannot bring the latest information to you, so I would like to connect with someone who is. I would love someone who teaches SRA’s Open Court to multiple grade levels. Voyager is also perfect, if you teach that. Contact me if you can help me out. My e-mail address is specialedandme@gmail.com

Wow! Some People Never Cease To Amaze Me!

Wow, dear readers, you are not going to believe this. I received an e-mail today saying there was a problem in regard to further employment with L.A.U.S.D., so I called and found out that my former principal blackballed me. It’s not really a surprise. She really was a piece of work, but I am pissed nonetheless. Now, because of that,  I have to find employment in another district or private school for two years before I can work for L.A.U.S.D. again.

Maybe that’s not such a bad thing. I’ve always said there are other districts, but to have it happen this way is so fucking heartbreaking. I am so upset right now. If I saw that woman right now, I don’t know what I’d do.

Now that I’m thinking about it, that’s probably why I didn’t get that job in Palos Verdes. ISN’T THAT SOMETHING! I am so totally fucking discouraged. I really feel like giving up. I’m at a crossroad right now. Should I quit or keep going and try to find a job elsewhere? If that’s even possible. Maybe it’s not meant for me to teach. After all, it’s been a lot of hard work and hassle. As usual, I will see where life takes me. I swear, if I didn’t have four children to think about, I would just end it all. I am so tired of having a shitty life. Just when I thought my life was going to get better, I see that I was wrong. Oh well, that’s the way the cookie crumbles!

SOME PEOPLE NEVER CEASE TO AMAZE ME!

Anxiously Awaiting News!

I contacted L.A.U.S.D. regarding the available positions and am awaiting news. I’m very hopeful though. Here’s hoping!

I Got The List!!!

Yes, dear readers, I am so happy. I have acquired that once oh-so-elusive list of teaching vacancies. Here’s hoping for the best!

A Message So True!

I love these messages from Facebook. This is the one I got the other day.

You are not your wallet, your job, your kids, your house.

You are not your activities or your worries or the labels other people give you.

Like an actor you play these roles, and like a good actor you sometimes forget who you really are.

Time to wake up now, and remember that you are a being of immense power and breathtaking beauty created in the image of God.

Happy Daylight Savings!

Yes, dear readers, I hope everyone put their clocks back last night. I am so happy that now until April, we are the proud recipients of an extra hour of sleep each day. Yippee!!!