Saturday, August 23, 2008

Monkeying Around with the Burnham Boys




The Burnham boys came for a visit today! My sister-in-law Heather and two nephews Blake and Kaleb came for the day to visit and play. I bought them new dinosaurs to play with; both boys have loved dinosaurs from a very early age. We had tons of fun. They played with Reggie, running around the back yard and through the house. It was a merry time of playing chase, fetch and giving treats.
They loved the hammock in the backyard. Blake would get on it first, then Kaleb would try and climb up it and wound up flipping big brother off, then he too would tumble to the ground. They would go back and forth from playing outside with the hammock and Reggie to coming back in for water and back to playing with Reggie some more inside.
We all went to eat at Sodolak's for lunch and the boys both ordered steak and polished it off like true Tyrannosaurs Rexs. While eating lunch, they were able to look at the decor and watch Animal Planet. Of course, the boys commented on the hunting trophies on the walls and the different animals they like or want to hunt. Did I mention they are only 4 and 7 years old! Yet they have varied interests and the 4 year old was talking about using a telescope and binoculors to better see the animals, especially Reggie.
We then took a tour of the school where I teach and they had very insightful questions about lockers, maps, where Texas was located, the cafeteria and where to sit to eat their food; they loved this little adventure.
After the school tour we went to the park where they proceeded to run around some more, glide down the slides, climb all over both playgrounds, jump from frightening heights, and even wanted to stay when it started to rain.
We then proceeded back to the house for some cake and ice cream and to play Candy Land before they had to call it a day. They were sad to go, but I am so happy they came and can't wait for another get together!

Monday, August 18, 2008

Ouch!!!


This is the aftermath of a fight I had with my supply cabinet. I was attempting to move a desk that is next to the cabinet by sliding it out from the wall. I thought I had enough room to get the desk out, but instead I pinched my hand between the desk and cabinet, which left this lovely bruise. This is the best it has looked since the incident occurred on Friday of last week.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

School Days, School Days...

Well, here we go again, another summer has flown by and a new school year is just getting under way. I hope everyone has had a wonderful summer vacation, I know mine has been busy with both highs and lows.

I'm trying to get back into the routine of waking up early, so I have been going to JLMS trying to get things back in order, but who am I kidding? I am so organized that it did not take an entire 8 hour day to set up my classroom. Plus, my wonderful husband Ray helped me put up all the boarder and posters in my room!

On the other hand, it took me two days working on the different pages you see posted on my door. I am so picky; I am the typical type A personality and tend to overdo it at times. I wanted to introduce my family to my students this year in a new way so they could put more faces to the names of the loved ones I talk about off and on during the year.

Just getting everything laminated and put up took two different days. I put everything up with some weak tape, then I decided I wanted to add a border around the door. The next day I took everything down and tried out two different borders before settling on one. I then had to take everything down and put it back up using a different kind of tape. If this was not enough, I decided to add the words you see posted. Laugh, but it took me two days to get right. I had a collegue point out that I spelled "laugh" wrong, so I redid it, just to get a phone call later that day saying that I misspelled it again. I was so embarrassed. Apparently I'm not adapting as well as I thought to getting back into the swing of things, plus, I'm just a horrible speller. But hey no one is perfect and that is something I'm working on accepting of myself :)

I will be back full time starting next Monday for a week of training before the students come back on the 25th. I'm looking forward to this new year and the new students I will meet. I am excited about getting started, plus I know I'll be at work instead of being bored at home. I can only clean the same places so many times before I become a little OCD. Also, I think Reggie is ready to have the house to himself. Every time I wake him up he looks at me like "why are you still here, go to work!"

Ray and Brandie at the Olympics!

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Monday, August 11, 2008

Seven Years and Counting...


Today we celebrate seven years of wedded bliss! We started off waking up at the Hilton Hotel. Ray was sweet and went to IHOP to pick up our breakfast and bring it back to the hotel. We ate our traditional lunch from Jack in the Box. We ate there after our wedding seven years ago and we make sure to order the same meal every time we eat there to celebrate that event.

Ray and I had to hang out around the house waiting on the AC repairman to show up, so I worked on school stuff and Ray helped me out with that. I know not romantic but, hey, we wanted our AC fixed. We finished our celebration up with dinner at The Republic restaurant with a very formal dining experience and the Pineapple Express movie. Ray bought me the beautiful flowers you see in the picture to the right and a fantastic pair of amethyst hoop earrings. I bought him some cup cakes and peanut butter cookies from Sweet Memories.

*Just FYI if you ever need to stay in a hotel with your pets the Hilton Hotel allowed Reggie to stay with us. If I was not going to stay in my house with it being 88 degrees then neither was my pup.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

The Two Z's



Zoii is now 11 days old and she is being held by her big brother Zeth who is 4 1/2 years old. He loves being a big brother! My sister Vickie their mom (we call Lulu) said he likes to try and feed her and shares his cars with her. They are all doing really great and Zeth will be starting pre-k this school year.

Ray and I took them for a little bit to the Pheris' house so Mommy could get some chores done around the house without interruption. Plus Sharon got to hold Zoii and that made her feel better. Zeth got to spend some quality time with his Uncle Ray. The two of them looked a little like twins in their matching shirts. Zeth loved playing with the camera and making funny faces. He got such a kick out of it, you could not help but laugh and smile along with him. Zeth still asks us every visit when he can go to the big house, this is what he calls my house. He has been to my house when he was a little younger and had a fun time with powdered donuts all over my couches. They grow so fast its amazing how much they change in such short an amount of time. But I love being Aunt Brandie : )

Sharon Pheris



Mom had a procedure done months ago to numb the pain in her lower back and this procedure was successful, except that the solution they used touched the skin when they were removing the needle. Unknown to us, for months this solution deteriorated and made a quarter-sized wound on her lower back that would not heal. Finally, after seeing doctor's and specialist, they decided to do some major surgery to fix the problem. She had her procedure done last Wednesday, August 6th and was able to come home Saturday, August 9th. The surgeon said she came through it like a champ! The recovery will take about six weeks and she can only lay on her left side or on her belly. She is not even allowed to sit on her bottom. She is taking everything in stride and staying 100% positive. She has that gritty determination that she will recover and do everything it takes to get well. We love her courage and determination that she exhibits through all life's journeys.

Ray and I went in to see her on Saturday and she was doing great! She was smiling and after settling in at home she was improving every minute. I handmade a flower bouquet and took it to her and she loved it ; )

She has a wonderful support staff with Dad and Eric at the house, plus her sister Trish has been there for her and helps to boss her around and remind her what she needs to do. Ray and I will be visiting often and calling on a daily basis. We all love her and send our best wishes, hopes, and prayers her way for a speedy recovery!!

Friday, August 8, 2008

08-08-08



Today marks 15 years of bliss for us! We started our celebration this morning with breakfast from Shipley's. Our first gift to each other was a 1 hour massage at Boardwalk Spa. Ray bought me a beautiful pair of Aquamarine and white gold hoop earrings. Ray also had a beautiful flower arrangement delivered to the house. We finished off our celebration by having a romantic dinner at Madden's and going to the movies to see The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2.

*In a side note our A/C has gone out on us and this is day 6. So that is why we are a bit flushed in the face!! The repair man got here and told us it had frozen up and there was nothing he could do for us today. That hopefully someone can come out tomorrow to help us : ( The A/C repair man called and informed us that no one can come out until Monday!!

Thursday, August 7, 2008

The Gift of Sight!

Today I received a very moving and emotional phone call. My Mamaw "Mississippi," as Zeth my nephew calls her, called me from Mississippi while I was at work. I thought it was going to be a regular phone call full of questions of "How are you," "How is Ray," and "We love and miss you very much." Of course the conversation did start out in this manner, but then it changed. Mamaw was calling to tell me that she received a letter in the mail from Mississippi Lions Eye Bank. I'm wondering if she has had trouble with her eyes and shes going to tell the results of her exam. Before I could fully develop this theory she explained that my Papaw Burl, who passed away last month, donated his corneas to give others a chance for sight. The letter went on to thank the family for their thoughtfulness of others and that both of my Papaw's corneas were successful transplanted into two different recipients and that both transplants were successful.

This act was one more example of the unselfishness that my loved ones continue to exhibit. I truly believe that life and this world can be a better place when we think of others.