Ramirez and Anderson Family: May 2010

Since I have to share my birthday with Mother's Day, I usually take a whole week to celebrate. Next year I will have my 50th birthday on Mother's Day so I may have to take the whole month. Anyway, it started with Clint and Amanda coming in last Sunday to stay until Wednesday. They both work on weekends so it was easier to celebrate early with the Moms. Amanda took Monday to spend with her Mom and I took off Tuesday so we could spend the day together. They started off by getting me Tim Horton's coffee (my favorite), then we went to the mall (Clint, Amanda, Cheri, and I). Paul and Alex met us for lunch (Olga's) and a movie (Date Night). We did some shopping before and after the movie. Paul had to go ref and Alex was done shopping, so they left. I think Clint would have liked to leave also but we wouldn't let him. We finally left the mall and Cheri and Amanda joined me while I taught my Zumba class. When we got back, Charlie and Kortnie were down here, Paul was home, Alex was over, and we all went to Mongolian BBQ. We had the cooks all to ourselves because it was nine o'clock before we ate. They were crazy. They even got in the group picture the waitress took of us. Clint and Amanda got me new towels and put them into four gifts. They are green and beige. I love them! I was so excited; I don't think I have ever had new towels. It was a perfect day!

Wednesday was the day from hell. We were facing our final yearbook deadline and we had problems up the ying yang. No one had done their pages properly so we spent HOURS fixing issues. The kids that stayed are the most amazing people you will ever meet. They refused to leave until the job was done. I left for a while and renewed my driver's license, got them food, got Romeo (he is our mascot), and then we worked until late that night. We went from silly, to sleepy, to cranky, to ticked as the night went on. We took out our frustrations on the room and then made the kids that didn't stay clean it up the next day. It was a ton of fun. I didn't have my camera; I wish I did. We dumped old yearbooks, papers, page proofs, and whatever else we could find. By the end we were laughing and stress-free! I have a picture of Thursday 5th hour when the kids that stayed late came to my other classroom to watch my Speech and Theater kids act. They discovered I had a storage closet and went in to talk and rest. I had to wake them up when the bell rang at the end of the day. I love those kids!

Wednesday Clint and Cheri helped Charlie and Kortnie move into Nana's house. I can't tell you how much it means to me that they are living there. That house has so much sentimental value to me. I haven't been up there yet, but I am looking forward to visiting my son in Nana's house. She would be so happy to have him living there. It is close to Charlie's work and Kortnie is looking for a job. I told him it is time to think about getting married. He has a job, a house, a wonderful girl...Hmmmm....

Saturday was my actual birthday and Paul took me shopping for a bike. I've been wanting one for several years. I can't even remember the last time I got a new bike; I think I was a teenager. I got a blue mountain bike and now I can't wait for this weather to get warmer so I can take it for a spin. I spent the next several hours doing homework. I am working on some Master's classes. About nine that evening Paul and I headed for The Dog House. This is a bar that Charlie's friend, Kerri, owns with her parents. May 8th is Kerri's birthday too so it is getting to be a tradition for us to celebrate together. She is the mother of my pseudo grandkids, Thomas and Natalie. Their DJ is moving to Alabama to join an up and coming band so the party was a combined birthday/going away party. We had WAY too much fun! Paul and I, Charlie and Kortnie, Cheri and Alex, Brad and Melissa (Charlie's good friends), Pam (my friend from work) and her son John (Charlie's good friend home on Navy leave), and of course Kerri were all at The Dog House. At some point in the night I got everyone up to sing Karaoke to Bob Seger's Old Time Rock and Roll. I was feeling no pain until this morning, then I had a bit of a headache.

I got some breakfast, coffee, and a couple of aspirin and then it was Mother's Day. Cheri got me roses (she also got me a massage for my birthday). She also went and got me an Iced Cappuccino from Tim Horton's. We went to Paul's parents to celebrate Mother's Day. Mom and Mike joined us out there for a wonderful family day. Cheri and I stopped at Walmart on the way home and she got a set of pink golf clubs. Alex is a golfer at Adrian College so she is going to give it a try. Her and I also got some tennis racquets and tennis balls so we can play tennis at the park. Her and I have been running and doing Zumba. Now we are going to give tennis a try. She also wants me to take her to the driving range so we can practice hitting some golf balls. She went the other day with Alex and she said she sucked - Alex said she did fine. I told her she needs to practice, just like any other sport. She has the pink clubs, pink balls, now she wants the outfit and shoes. She thinks my shoes are dorky. Beggars can't be choosers!!! This is Cheri so looking cute on the golf course is important you know!

It was a wonderful week and now it is back to the old grind...at least for the next 4 weeks and then I'm off for the summer!!! Yeah me! Have I ever mention how much I love being a teacher? Enjoy the pictures and I love you!