Update

Wow, it's been a while since I checked/updated this thing. A lot has happened. Some good, some bad, some I'd rather not go into. So, I'll just go with the most recent good news.

I'm engaged! Jake finally proposed on September 1st [Mom & Dad's anniversary]. I can't believe that it's already been over a month since it happened. It sometimes seems like only yesterday. We haven't been able to decide on a wedding date yet, mostly because he wants to wait 2 years and I only want to wait 1. So, we haven't hammered out that big detail yet, but that hasn't stopped me from starting to plan our wedding and think about what I'd like to do.

Maybe he'll agree to do it next year, eventually. Until then, the date's up in the air and it'll have to stay there until we can finally agree. Chances are he'll just drag his feet and put off the decision until it's too late to do next year, but hopefully we can make the decision together.

This week's gonna suck

Since one of the staff members is on vacation, everyone else's schedules get mixed up so that we have enough people to cover all of the students all the time. This isn't really a big deal because I'm fortunate enough to come in an hour and a half later than normal when this happens, so I'm not complaining too much about the schedule change. Unfortunately, I have to help close when this happens, but it really doesn't take too long, so that's not too much of a negative, either.

This Wednesday, however, we have a licensing person coming in to observe us. That makes me really nervous. I don't like people watching me like a hawk while I'm trying to do my job. I just hope that I don't royally screw something up because I feel pressured by their presence.

Once Wednesday is over with, the rest of the week should fly by. I kinda want to just get it over with, but part of me is also dreading it and wanting to prolong the inevitable for as long as possible. Chances are, everything will be fine, but there's always the possibility that I'll screw things up.

Yay for pressure!

Busy, busy, busy

Well, the title says it all, really. I haven't had much time to be on the computer much lately, let alone had time to do anything besides check e-mail and sporadically update my status on Facebook.

I do have a bit of exciting news, though. I reserved a cabin at Hocking Hills for a weekend in September. Jake [provided they give him the weekend off] and I will be spending 2-2 1/2 days at Hocking Hills going camping, doing some hiking and horseback riding, maybe checking out a flea market or an antique/craft mall. Apparently they have all sorts of stuff down there. I'm super excited!

Father's Day Project

Well, I ended up finding a cute idea for a project online, but I had to modify it because it was for older children. I cut out construction paper hearts and glued pictures [that were obtained from a coworker] to the middle of the heart. I used a tracing of each child's hand to make 2 paper hands that I used to cover up the picture [it looked like the kids were covering their faces to play "Peek-A-Boo"].

On the top hand, I wrote "Look inside so you can see..." and on the bottom hand I wrote "Who loves you best. Of course it's..." And underneath their picture I had written "ME!".

Like I said, I had to modify this idea a bit to make it work for my age group, but I think they turned out really well! :) Of course, in this day and age, children don't always have both parents in their lives, so I figured that something like this was generic enough as far as its intended audience/recipient to be able to work for Grandpa or Uncle or even Mom or Grandma if they don't have any male figures in their lives.

I'm definitely going to have to hold onto this idea for next year. Unless, of course, I find something that's even more adorable! :)

Adorable Father's Day Poem

“Walk a little slower Daddy,”
said a child so small,
“I’m following in your footsteps
and I don’t want to fall.

Sometimes your steps are very fast,
Sometimes they’re hard to see;
So walk a little slower, Daddy,
For you are leading me.

Someday when I’m all grown up,
You’re what I want to be;
Then I will have a little child
Who’ll want to follow me.

And I would want to lead just right,
And know that I was true,
So walk a little slower, Daddy,
For I must follow you.”

Author Unknown

Father's Day

Since Father's Day is coming up, I'm trying to find a cute little project to do with my kids so they can take them home to their dads this week. Unfortunately, a lot of the stuff that I've seen so far is geared more towards the preschool-aged kids. So, I guess I'll have to do some more research. I really need to get this ball rolling by tomorrow or Wednesday so that everything's ready to go by Thursday or Friday. It's my first "holiday" project with the kids and I'd like for it not to be late. :)

Celebrating Home Party

I'm having a Celebrating Home [formerly Home & Garden/Home Interior - now combined] party tomorrow. I still have a ton of cleaning and prep work to do before the house is ready for it, but no matter what does or doesn't get done, I know it's gonna be a fun time. :)

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Speaking of cleaning, my room is in desperate need of some TLC in that department! It doesn't help that I still have Vivi and 2 of her brood in there 24/7 [and those kittens just LOVE making messes!], but a lot of it was there before they were, so I know it's not just them.

And while I'm cleaning, I should be looking for my senior pics because I have to take one in, along with a baby picture, to work for a bulletin board that they're doing. I have the baby picture, but the senior pics are illuding me. But, I've given myself a deadline to find it and turn it in, so hopefully that helps. :)

A brief update

I finally got a job in a daycare, and I started working there last Tuesday [4/27]. I've been pretty busy with that, so I haven't really been able to be online very much, which partly explains my lack of any blogging lately.

On Thursday [4/29], Dad, Mom, Nick, and I went and Dad picked out his Rottweiler puppy. He picked the last male, and we're naming him Bizmark von Gardner [because dogs apparently need multiple names now when they have papers?]. I plan on calling him "Bizzy" or maybe "Marky Mark" [just because it would be funny, lol!]. :)

I spent this weekend in Cincinnati with Brittany, Katy, Tabby, Derek, and Jessica and her "love interest," Andrew. While Jessica and Andrew were only there for a while on Saturday, the rest of us stayed at Britt's apartment Friday night through Sunday afternoon. It was a pretty fun weekend, even though the weather could have been a little nicer. But, it didn't really rain on us until this afternoon when we had to head back home.

Overall, it was a lot of fun and I really hope that we get to do it again soon! It's so nice to get a little vacation away from my house and work, even if it's only for a couple of days! :)

Think Spring

I went out a couple of days ago and checked on the flowers in my gardens to see if any buds were coming up or blooming. When I went out there, this is what I found.




I was so excited to see that I finally had some buds coming out, and that there were some blooming flowers out there, instead of just having a bunch of green in the garden. Not that green is bad, because after the winter, where everything's a dead brown color, the green is spectacularly welcome, but it's nice to see that my flowers actually survived the winter. :)

When I went back out to the garden yesterday, I discovered that many of the buds had bloomed. I have a bunch of yellow flowers out there right now!




It finally feels like Spring is here because the grass and plants are green, the bushes and trees are sprouting leaves, and the flowers are blooming!!

Exciting News!

We may have found the perfect Rottweiler puppy for my dad! There's a lady in Lima whose dog had 13 puppies [5 males and 8 females, I think] and they're only asking $350 per pup, which is super cheap compared to all of the other places we have looked. Plus, since they live in Lima, I won't have to pay for the gas to get somewhere that's 2-4 hours away from here!

I'm so excited! I should be able to go check them out in a couple of weeks and I'll be picking ours out that day. We're supposed to bring a collar so that we can "mark" which one is ours [so they don't give that one away to somebody else].

After over a year of searching, we might finally have found the perfect one, the one that it would appear that God intends for us to have!

Oh yeah, another sign that it was "meant to be" is that the puppies are only 4 days old, which means that they were born on the same day that our indoor/outdoor kitty, Vivi, had her 5 kittens [oh yeah, we have kittens!!]. So, it seems like this is fate or something.

I'm thrilled that we're SO CLOSE now to bringing a pup home for dad. There for a while it seemed like we were never going to find any that were in our price range or within a decent driving distance. Well, it looks like our patience has finally paid off!!

"Swanky Aprons"

I was turned onto the site Swanky Aprons through an e-mail that I got from my aunt. The site actually belongs to my cousin and I had known that she was involved with aprons in some way, but I had no idea that she was making them and selling them. So, I clicked the link in the e-mail and it took me to the site, where I spent about 20 minutes browsing through the different apron styles. I have to say that the site really makes me wish that I could afford an apron or 10 right now. :)

If you're a fan of aprons, you should seriously check it out! There are some that are really girly and flowery, some that are sexy, and some that are just plain cute! Here are a few of my favorites.




If anyone ever needs to figure out a gift for me, you can just get some ideas from this list. :)

Speaking of gifts, these aprons would make wonderful presents for a birthday, house-warming, Christmas, or any other type of occasion where you would need a fun, cute gift for a friend or relative. :)

Surprise

I got a call on Monday from one of the HR ladies at Macy's. Apparently they'd been trying to get ahold of me for a while now, but they were trying to call a 738 # and it wasn't working. I have a feeling that they were using the home #, which mom canceled because it wasn't getting used enough to merit paying the phone bill.

But, they did manage to get ahold of me on Monday and they offered me some hours for recovery. Of course, since I don't have a job right now, I'd have to be pretty daft to refuse the hours. So, starting this Sunday [3/14], I'll be working at Macy's again part time.

I'm still really hoping that I can get a job somewhere that would allow me to use my degree, but for now, I'll be glad to have the money coming in [even if it isn't much to start with]. In a perfect world, I'll be able to have a job in a daycare and still be able to work at Macy's in the evenings and on the weekends [if they still need me].

But for now, I'll take what I can get.

Frustration!

I've been looking for a job for months now and I've gotten nowhere. I had those 2 interviews, but they never called me back after the 2nd one. I figured they'd reject me anyways, but not calling to tell me that they don't want me seems really... disheartening. I mean, the woman that told me that she would keep me in mind for their summer program, even if they didn't hire me. I mean, I went to college with her, so I know her on a somewhat personal basis, and she still couldn't call me and reject me? I'm just so tired of waiting. I suppose that I could call, but I don't really want that job, anyways.

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In other aspects of my life:

Mom and Dad are back in the hospital. Dad's having another surgery on one of his vertebra, so they most likely won't be home for a while, which means that I'm in charge. I don't really mind watching the house and everything, and since I have no job, it's not like I'm busy or anything. But my brother seems like he wants to make life as hard as he possibly can sometimes. He's the reason that I want to move out and get my own place as soon as I am able.

For the most part, we're able to get along, but sometimes, and I'm not sure what causes it, but we just get on each other's bad side or something and then the fighting starts. The kid's going to be 18 in less than a month and he's supposed to have a genius IQ, but I swear he's one of the dumbest people I know! He may be book smart, but he seems to completely lack common sense and the ability to put himself in the shoes of others to see why they may be reacting or acting the way that they do.

He and I just don't get along sometimes and I wish that I was able to just leave, but I'm afraid that if I do, he'll turn on Nick and start beating up on him, literally or figuratively. So, I feel like I have to stick around to protect him.

*sigh* I just want to get a job or something soon so that I can have a reason to get out of the house, and also a way to earn some money so that I'm not mooching off of my parents.

Dead End

Well, I haven't heard anything back about a 2nd interview, so I would guess that it's safe to assume that that's led to a dead end. So, I guess I need to move on. It's really hard to move on when there aren't any other prospective jobs or job offers. After sending my resume to 8 different preschools/day cares and only getting a response from 1 of them, it sort-of makes me feel like I don't have what it takes to work at these places.

So, I've also been on the look-out for secretarial type jobs in the area, because I had some experience with that at my job on campus. So, mabye I'll have some better luck there? Well, it doesn't appear to be so because I haven't really found anything there, either. Ugh...

So, I still have no job and it's looking like I'll have to go through a temp agency to find anything, and that "anything" is probably going to be factory work, because that seems to be mostly who the temp agencies seem to work with. I guess I could survive with factory work, but I feel like it would be a waste of a Bachelor's degree and the time that it took me to get it. But, at this point, pretty much any job would be welcome.

Job Interview!

I got a call yesterday to go in for an interview with the Heir Force Academy. It's in Shawnee, so it's not too far away. Still, I wish it was a little bit closer than that. But, I don't know why I'm worried because I don't have the job yet.

Anyways. The interview is at 10:30 am and I'm hoping that I completely wow them and that I walk out of there with a job [yeah right!]. I'm a little nervous about it, though because I really don't know what sort of questions to expect. I just hope that I don't completely fumble when they ask me something...

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In other news:

I got to bring Penny home. She's the cat that I've had on 'lay-away' out at Jake's farm for over a year now. Since our cats handled having Rosie and Bebe [the kitties that were staying with us until Brittany got her place in Cinci] here, I figured that after they left, it would be safe to bring Penny home. So far, it's going pretty well.

Salem isn't too happy with her being here, but she seems to be submissive, so that should help. Leo doesn't seem to know how to handle her yet. I wonder if it's because she smells like the farm and not just outside our house [because he's been out there a couple of times]? Oh yeah, and Ming hissed at her several times when they first met. I don't think their relationship will improve. *shrugs*

Overall, she hasn't gotten her butt kicked or anything, so I'm thinking that's a good sign. :) Now I just need to get a job so that I can get her her kitty shots and get her spayed. Just 2 more things to add to the list of reasons why I really need a job.

Do you think that if I told the interviewer tomorrow that I have all of these things going on that I need to pay for and if I throw some begging and a little groveling in there, that they'll hire me?

Yeah, I didn't think so, either...

New Look

I figured that since we've rung in 2010 & it's no longer the Christmas season, that it was high time for an update to my blog's look. I was going to try to find something that was Valentine's-y but that I could leave up for a time after that was over, & I think that this is it. I mean, hey, it's chocolate, which is something that's 'in style' all year long!

I really like this template. Because of the color scheme, it seems very adult-like to me. And I'm hoping that 2010 is my year to become more adult-like, more independent, so it seems like this background is a perfect fit. :)

One of my goals this year [besides trying to grow up some more ;p] is to stop procrastinating as much [because it's not realistic to try & stop it altogether], and so far this year, I've been sucking at working on that. It's now technically the 11th of January & I have yet to mail out any resumes. I had applied at one job, but I was informed that there were 'more qualified' applicants, so I was booted out of the running for that job.

So, I Googled the day cares that are in my area and I found a list of 7, plus another one that had posted an add in the Classified section, so that makes 8 potential places that I could possible have a job at, provided that they're searching for employees & that nobody more qualified comes along to snatch the job away from me.

But anyways. I've decided that regardless of me being sick right now & feeling like poop on a stick, I'm going to mail out my resumes tomorrow [because I was a good, productive girl because I got them all printed off & sealed in addressed & stamped envelopes today] & keep my fingers crosses & pray that somebody calls me to give me a job. :)

2010: A New Year and a New Job Search

Saturday [January 2nd] was my last day of work at Macy's. Since it was a seasonal job, I knew it wasn't going to last forever, but I at least thought I'd have a little more time to find another one before it was over. Of course, it didn't help that nobody bothered to tell me that they weren't actually keeping anyone from the seasonal team on after the new year. Oh well.

One of the ladies that I worked with told me about an opening at the Heir Force Academy for a Day Care Teacher. The add says that a degree in Early Childhood Education is preferred, and since that's the degree that I have, I decided to put a resume and cover letter together and send it in. What's there to lose by doing it, right?

I intended to send it in tomorrow [Monday, 1/4] but since Mom & Dad are in the hospital trying to get Dad's nausea and pain under control, I haven't really had a chance to get out and buy some resume paper. So, I intend to do that tomorrow since I have to run to the store anyways. I'm also going to send a copy of my resume to the Head Start in Wapak and pray that one of these places calls me for an interview!

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As far as New Year's resolutions go, I don't really have any. I would like to work on my tendency to procrastinate. I'm actually doing that by forcing myself to get my resume sent out early this week. So far, it's working. I just hope that I don't loose my steam and fall back into my old habits. My future depends on it.

Another thing that I would like to accomplish this year is becoming more independent. I would love to say that I'll be able to get out on my own and have my own place and everything sometime this year, but after the start that I had [with the whole lacking a job thing], I'm not confident that that would be an attainable goal.

Of course, like pretty much every female that I know, I do have a weight-loss goal that I would like to meet. My goal is anywhere between 20-60 lbs. Will it happen? I don't know, but it's definitely something that I would really, really like to accomplish.

That's pretty much all I've got. I hope that everyone had a fun and safe New Year and good luck with all of your goals/ambitions!