Hats!

This week, I finished 2 hats.  Last night I even worked on one while sick in bed.  Here are the pics. (Notice the strings.....I haven't gotten rid of them yet!)

This is the one that I was working on last Monday!

This is the one I completed last night.

What I like about the second hat is that it has a hem inside that I knitted while I was completing the hat.  One of my students asked what did I do with the hats I make.  I told her that I give them away as gifts.

The Iron Lady!

My youngest and I decided to go to the movies.  We decided to see "The Iron Lady" starring Meryl Streep.  This movie was an intriguing look into the life of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.  I loved how they decided to tell her life story.  Instead of taking us from the beginning of her life to the present, the story is told from the present and jumps around her life.  Because of her failing mental capabilities, she hallucinates and remembers things out of sequence.  I don't know why the critics didn't get that this was told from the mind of someone who is battling dementia and should be done this way.  As much as I didn't like her when she was the leader of Britain, this movie made her human.  Meryl Streep deserves any awards she receives because of this role.

Saturday!!

As most of you, I look forward to Saturday.  I put in about 11 hours each day at school, and then I come home and put in about another hour or two.  By Friday evening, I'm fried.  But, I'm also a mom, and I have to schlepp my 15 year old here and there.  So, I drink lots of tea and coffee at night so that I don't fall asleep while I'm driving. 

This morning, I got up around 7:30 a.m. and ran on the treadmill again.  I'm determined to be able to run a 5K by May.  Also, I want to sign up for the 3 day walk to help end breast cancer.  I just want to mooove! 

Finally, I'm getting back into knitting again.  I love the feeling I get when I've completed a project.  I also like the challenge of a difficult pattern.  So, I'll take pictures of my latest completed hats.  Then, I'll post them. 

C25K

That's right!  I've started the C25K program.  This is a running program that gets you from the couch to running a 5K in about 6 weeks.  Tonight was my first night.  I was afraid at first.  But what I did to help me prepare for this is that I've been running in the halls of my school.  I do this when I first arrive.  I'm usually alone in the building (I arrive at school around 6:00 a.m.) so I run.  This let me see that my bum knee would be a non-issue.  So tonight when I got home, I put on my workout clothes and hit the treadmill.   Can't wait for round two.  My goal is to run a 5K sometime in May.

January Blues.

I'm home from school today because I have the January blues.  I have been putting in 12 hour days at school----I get there at 6:00 am and leave around 6:00 pm----and need a one day mental health break.  I have taken up knitting again to help me remain sane.  So, here is a pic of my lastest work.

I am a little over half done.  When it is finished, it will fit an adult medium head and will have a tassel that hangs from the top.  I am making it as a gift for one of the people I teach with.  I've also started another hat that I plan to give to whoever wants it.  Strangely enough, I don't have a hat for me.  I tend to give away everything that I make.

I'm Back!

Since my last post, I've been to see my mom in CA.  It was a great visit and as always, I got a little sad when it was time to come home.  School has started and I am in back to the hectic life of a teacher/mom.  On the weight loss front, I've lost a total of 53.6 pounds.  I continue to learn and grow with Weight Watchers.  I attend the meetings and listen and learn.  I walk about 3-4 miles a day.  Secretly, I want to start to jog, but I don't know if my knees can withstand the pounding.  This about takes me to the present.  I hope to become better about blogging, but life does get in the way.  For instance, this Thursday evening is Back-to-School night and I will be at school from around 5 pm to around 9 pm.  I also have to do some pop-in observations this week, create a open-notes quiz, buy gum for a lab activity, prep for a lab activity, and grade papers.  I am also copying labs and notes from another teacher and have to begin mapping the curriculum on our curriculum mapping software.  Other than that, I'm good.

I'm Hanging On!

I haven't posted in a long time, so I should say that all has been pretty hectic.  School's out (yay!!).  But with that comes my summertime responsibilities:
1. I've taught a week-long workshop.s,
2. I've got two days of summer work with the sixth grade science teachers.
3. I've two days of summer work with the 7th grade science teachers.
4. I've still got to teach a week-long workshop in August.
5. I've got to schlepp my daughter to her summertime activities.
6. I've got to clean out the science workroom... I started today.  Got lots more to do.
7. Somehow I've got to fit a visit to CA to see my mom.

After all of this, I've got to start putting my room together.  Oh, and I forgot to mention, there's less of me to love.  Yes, I've continued my weight-loss journey.  I've lost a total of 46 pounds and look forward to losing 4 more pounds for a total of 50.  Now, that's not all I intend to lose, but it is a major milestone.  I've increased the distance that I walk each time.  I walk for at least 90 minutes and I walk all over our town.  Up and down hills, around the track, or just in my neighborhood... it doesn't matter.  I do Zumba and take a Spinning Class.  Both are intense.

I hope I don't take a long hiatus again.  I hope to continue to share this journey called life.