Summertime Blues

Yes, I know it has been a while. What can I say? School is all consuming. The good news is that school is going well. This class is over on July 3rd...so I am on the home stretch for this class. Next week will be a big week since we have a test Monday, a lab final Wednesday and the lecture final on Thursday. Tomorrow is an exam in lab.

I know my title is Summertime blues. I am not really blue. I'm just worn out. In fact, I have taken a nap both yesterday and today. Then I get up to study. Thank God for my DH who has really picked up the slack around the house. I came home yesterday and he had straightened the garage and worked on laundry. Today he worked on some more laundry. Right now he is bathing the children. What a man! I can't imagine what life would be like with someone who didn't help.

We are currently watching the College World Series. Fresno State is playing in the finals. If they win tonight, they will force game three tomorrow night to determine the champion. Right now, their bats are on fire!!! It's exciting to see a "local" team do so well on the national level.

Well...I am off for the night! Have a good one and I hope to be back sooner than later!

Busy Weekend Equals...

One tired Mamma! I spent the weekend doing some housework...well a lot of housework, studying and some partying with the in-laws. As a result, I have been dragging all day long. Not only has my energy been lacking, but so has my motivation. This is not good since this week of school is super busy. I did finally manage to motivate myself to get a little bit of studying done for tomorrow's quiz.

I think my DH is wishing he were the one in summer school right now. Keeping the kids occupied all day long can be, well, challenging to say the least. Preston has laid on James all day long. When Preston is bored, he can be ultra clingy, which translates into annoying if I am being perfectly honest.

And now, for the results of my blood agar petri dish. I was surprised to find that there were no visible colonies of beta hemolytic bacteria on my dish (from my throat). The beta hemolytic bacteria tend to cause more sickness than the alpha and gamma hemolytic bacteria, both of which were present on my plate. The alpha hemolytic actually makes the agar turn a brownish green color and the gamma doesn't change the agar at all. Okay, I know, you don't care. But hey, if I tell you about it, it reinforces what I am learning in class and it's kind of like studying. Right? So you get to hear about it, just like poor James. He doesn't really care about all this stuff, but he gets to hear about it anyway.

Well, since I am worn out, I think I will head off to bed. My days are pretty long. But there is good news. Thursday marks the half way point of my first summer school class. I can't believe how fast it is going by!

What Will Grow?

Okay, so you all know by now that we are growing "things" in my microbiology class. More specifically we are growing microorganisms. Let me just tell you that after our lab the other day there was some pretty funky stuff growing on my plate that I touched my hand to. Even after I washed my hands, there was funk that grew! But today, it got even more interesting. We swabbed a "sweaty" part of our bodies...armpits were off limits because deodorant may inhibit bacterial growth and we all hope that everyone is wearing deodorant. We also swabbed the back of our throats! My throat I am sure will grow a ton of stuff, but we are looking for a specific type of bacteria that is Beta hemolytic. These are more likely to cause sickness. I won't get too specific, but this class has made me realize what a true nerd I am. I love this stuff. Yes, it's gross, but it is so fascinating!

School is going well and I am maintaining good grades despite the rapid pace of the class. But I am spending lots of time studying at home to maintain it. I have spent a couple hours today, a few hours yesterday and about five hours the day before. It will all be worth it in the end.

Today was Preston's kindergarten graduation and I was sad that I couldn't attend. In fact, Preston asked me again this morning if I was going to be there. I had to explain to him that I wouldn't be there, but that Daddy would be there and he was going to video it for me. That made him feel a bit better. And might I add that James did a wonderful job on the "video-ing." I was able to watch it this afternoon and well, I almost cried when I saw what I had to miss today...almost cried.

Oh, by the way...that "sweaty" part I swabbed was the crook of my arm (inner elbow). My swab had self tanner all over it! How funny is that? I am glad that I don't really care because that could have been embarrassing if I were to claim that I was naturally this color of orange!

Here's somthing fun to look at. I grew these all by myself! But for clarification, these are from cultures, not from my body! The green stuff on the bottom is E. coli. There are two other types of bacteria growing on this plate as well, but I won't bore you with their names!

HMMMM

What should I say? Everyone will be done with school after tomorrow. Everyone, that is, except for me. Aren't you sad for me? Honestly, my days are going by so fast right now that I think school will be over before I can blink. I did, or should I say, Wii took some time to play the Wii today. I needed to work out some of my stress and there's nothing like smashing a baseball or swinging a tennis racket to get that stress out. Who cares that its not a real tennis racket or baseball bat, it has the same end result. I really work up a sweat when we play the Wii.

James is celebrating the end of the school year with a round of golf tomorrow. He deserves it, don't you think?

Tomorrow Preston has a Kindergarten graduation program. I will be in school, so I won't be able to attend. This is the first time I will have missed something like this. It's very disappointing for me, but that's part of the price I have to pay. James is going to go in my stead and I will be sending the video camera with him. I guess that's the next best thing to being there. Preston was disappointed when I told him I couldn't go. I had also told him that his daddy wouldn't be able to make it. He replied with a very heart breaking "I guess I'll just be there by myself then." Now how could we possibly miss that, especially after he said that?

Well, I don't have much more to say. There are not a lot of exciting things to say about your day when all you do is go to school and then come straight home to study.

Feelin' the heat

Okay, the temps are rising here and it's starting to get hot in my house. But the weather isn't the only heat I am feeling right now. Summer school is proving to be a challenge for me. I am not doing poorly, but it is a lot of work to keep up in this class. As a result of the added stress, "Crazy Mommy" made her first appearance since summer school began. If you were to ask my darling husband (DH) about "crazy mommy" he would give you one of two responses. He would either say, "Crazy mommy? I don't know what you are talking about." Which, by the way is the correct response. Or he would say, "Crazy mommy's first appearance? She has been here since summer school began." Whatever the case, I am convinced that the pressure will let up a tiny bit once I am not trying to get these kids ready for school before I leave for school in the morning. I am looking forward to next week when my DH is done with work for the school year and I can leave it all in his hands in the morning.

Let me tell you what this all boils down to. I was unprepared. Instead of making lunches last night, I studied for my test. Which is a good thing, but I should have taken the time to get the lunches made. And instead of getting Preston's stuff together for his party, I waited until this morning. We all know that when I am disorganized, it's a recipe for insanity. It was totally my fault. I should have been more prepared last night and maybe, just maybe, "Crazy mommy" would not have made her appearance this morning. Okay, who am I kidding? She would have been here, just maybe not quite as crazy!

On another note. The test went well, I think. Due to the crazy schedule in summer school, our professor hasn't had much time to get grading done. In fact, he just posted the grades from last week's quiz tonight. He thinks he may have the tests graded by Thursday, which would be nice. I really do feel for the guy. He starts class at 7:30 in the morning with my lab. There are two labs for this class. He has a ten minute break between our morning lab and lecture. Everyone goes to the same lecture. After lecture, he has a ten minute break and starts the afternoon lab for this class. The guy is teaching from 7:30 to 2:30 with only two ten minute breaks. I am sure that the last thing he feels like doing once he finishes the afternoon lab is grading a bunch of homework and quizzes.

Well, I have to run and check laundry. Which reminds me of another reason that "Crazy mommy" made her appearance this morning. You see, mommy hasn't done any laundry lately and the only thing mommy had to wear to school today was her short shorts. That was another reason that mommy jumped the barrier to become "Crazy mommy." Tonight, mommy has made the lunches for tomorrow and done some laundry along with five hours of studying to avoid another performance from "Crazy mommy" tomorrow. I am sure mommy's DH and children appreciate the preparation and organization! And I appreciate grace! It's days like these that I need it most! Thank God for His grace and for showing His grace and love through my DH and kids who haven't held "Crazy mommy's" appearance against me!

Oooohhh! So Cute!

These pictures were taken on the night of my reunion, but they weren't taken on my camera, so I couldn't post them right away. But aren't they cute?

Big Test Tomorrow

It's our first exam tomorrow in Microbiology and have spent some quality time with my flash cards.

I am feeling better today, but I really wish I could get rid of the funk in my sinuses. The congestion is making my head hurt and my voice sound extra "nasal-ly". I've been a bass for the last couple of days.

This week is Preston's and James' last week of school. Preston has a party tomorrow. They are headed to the park across the street from the school. It has a wading pool, and they get to swim. They are cooking hot dogs. He is really looking forward to it. James is of course waiting for the end of the school year. It's always the perfect birthday present for him.

Preston went outside to play today and when he came back in, he brought me a little purple flower. It was really sweet. He was so happy to bring me a flower. He really has a good heart (most of the time). He really likes to please.

We have been watching the Women's College World Series of softball for the past few days. We usually watch it every year. Of course we love baseball, but softball has its own strategies and a finesse that baseball just doesn't have. It's not always about power hitting like it is in baseball. It is great fun to watch. The finals this year are between Texas A&M and Arizona State. We have decided to support Texas A&M. They lost the first game of the series tonight. The finals are best of three games. If they don't win tomorrow night, it's all over for them.

We are really looking forward to playing softball this year. We are on the church co-ed team. Games start June 30th. It's a lot of fun and I figure I better do it while I still can! I'm not getting any younger!!! I still got a few good years left in me though!

Wheel of Fortune is starting...got to go! I am still hoping they will call me to be a contestant!