Daily Ooos: Wednesday, May 15

[faerywings]

Hello, hello~
How are you all today? Is a cool and drizzly morning here but I am not working at Weis today so that's good news for me and my outside plants. Not the best for the kids and staff on the field trip today. Today is a small Special Ed group so hopefully they can make it work out in spite of the rain.

OT: Any English majors/teachers or otherwise smart people out there? What is the difference between "in spite of" and "despite?"
Grammarly wants me to change in spite of to despite and I ignore it. Grammarly is very unhappy with those sentences as well. Red lines everywhere!

I wrote this yesterday:

And lemme tell you, some of the teachers are harder to deal with than the kids

Nailed it!

It wasn't the amount of kids that made yesterday chaotic it was the disorganization of the teachers and chaperones. OMG. *blinks rapidly*
I was on the Stream Rotation all day and that is an easy one since there are always two staff members on that rotation. We usually stay on the opposite sides of the area helping the kids find and ID the macroinvertebrates. We also make sure that they are safe but that is supposed to be the teacher and chaperone's main responsibility. Our second group didn't even have a teacher with them. 18 or so kids and two chaperones. The parents said they didn't even know who the kids were other than their own. No teacher, no head counts. No help. Another group had 4 adults but they were sitting at picnic tables on their phones. Wild. :/
I have been on plenty of field trips as a teacher and as a parent and no way would I have been as lax and disconnected as this group was. We do a debrief after each trip and we are coming up with a chaperone checklist to go over with them on-site. Everything is emailed to them when they book the field trip but apparently not everyone reads it.
Main reason why it's important that they know what they are doing: Bears. The day before, there was a sighting of 2 cubs on the trails. Cubs=mom is nearby and will *not* be happy if a group of rowdy kids get too close. I'd rather come upon a huge ol' bear by itself than a mom with cubs.

On a good note, the kids seemed to have a fun time looking at the macros and we also found a frog and a toad hanging out on some moss on the side of the stream. A bunch of crayfish, too.

By the time I got home, I was pretty much stick a fork in me done but I was able to get about half of the ATC/candy bags wrapped up. I hope to finish the rest of them today.

I have to pick up my groceries this morning and its a bigger order since its o the party this Sunday. I hope everything fits into my firdge. I'm cleaning for my friend this afternoon and in between is everything else that needs to get done around the house. I forgot that I have to get the donations all boxed up by tomorrow, the Lupus Foundation pick up is Friday morning. I only have three boxes taped and labeled so far.
Scrapping, whats that?

blergh, I am running so late!

Hugs!

 

[faerywings]

@JeanneMN Haha For a sec, I thought you were talking about "tall" people as in anyone taller than me --which was most of the kids yesterday. I'd rather deal with preschoolers any day.
BJs is a warehouse club, like Sam's or Costco. Not the place I want to get lost in!

@vickyday hope you had a great time with your friends!

@MariJ *waving hi*

@mimes1 Hahaha! Is it hijacking if DD left the iPad for you? just don't go and mess up her settings bwuahahaha!
I hope that the time flies by while Paul is away. I can't imagine how hard it is for everyone. Hugs to you and Erinn ♥

@taxed4ever So happy to hear that you made it out on the lake again!
Good luck finding a new Mac and don't; forget we want to see in-progress photos of your new painting when you can

@bcgal00 hope all of the dr appts and tests went perfectly for you. Bet the dogs were happy to go for the rise and park too

@BrightEyes bet you had a lot of laughs at your lunch with the gals yesterday, you always do!

I was a good gal and could stand while I unloaded the tall bookcase.

Proud of you!!
How wonderful to see D-SIL as well.

@AK_Tracy I still had enough spoons to finish a few of the candy bags and cook dinner. But lemme tell ya, I did *not* want to get out of bed this morning Again-- TGFC (Thank god for coffee) Hahahah!!
Some people should not be near anything sharp. My DD got me a chopper-thingy that I use to make egg salad. You put the egg on top of a grate and push it through. Last week I was rushing to put stuff away and grabbed the grate and didn't get the plastic frame but the edge of the metal part. That tiny cut bled through three bandaids before I got it to stop.
Space Case Trace!!!!! That is hysterical! Is there a story behind it?

@Terri M Wow, that's an amazing trip! Glad you had (almost) perfect weather)
Good luck and have fun with all of your scrapping projects!

@Cherylndesigns You are so lucky that you have the family together on the compound. (I know I am lucky to have my kids close too but you have grands and I don't *sob*)
Sounds like Memorial Day weekend has a strong enough connection to Chuck's birthday to make it all work Is Asher coming out with Steph too? How much taller is he going to be?

ohhhhhh, that pond and memorial are going to be stunning. It already is naturally beautiful but when it is done... it's going to be incredible and peaceful. What a great place to sit and reflect and laugh at the memories.

@bitzee All of us at the O take our O-Family to heart. Glad that you are part of it too! ♥

Tracy-- my DH is like that with PICC Lines. He had two of them and I had three. Insurance wouldn't cover a nurse to come and change the dressings so we did it. He had an entire sterile setup and went to work. The first few times I saw the line going into my skin, I was squeamish then it was just another thing to do. We did the IVs oursleves to. One time his blood sugar was going extremely low and often so we had Dex 5 bags on hand. He was unconscious and I called 911. In the meantime, I hooked the Dex5 bag to his line. The EMTs were shocked when they got here, said they never came to a call and had the patient already hooked up LOL! You do what ya gotta do

@JeanneMN I know how it will feel for Cheryl since you have done the same for your loved ones. So special to have a place in honor of them, one that you can tend to as well as reflect.

Have any of us *not* sliced a part of themselves accidentally? Not sure why you would it on purpose so let's go with accidentally haha!

Tracy My bad! Should not have been an enabler...


Hugs!

 

[bitzee]

@faerywings Thank you. I am glad to be a part of the O Family. You are all so welcoming.

 

[JeanneMN]

Breathing still isn't quite back to ready to do cardio but it is getting better. I skipped the gym, but did get yesterday's page finished. I really think "he whose name shall not be mentioned" put a spell on that thing because I was just about to post it for my 6th challenge when I remembered Sylvia had put the twist on & I didn't have half a butterfly face in it. Oh well, another page done.
No track meet yesterday dgd had a choir concert. I've practically lived in the performance center the last two weeks.

@faerywings You wouldn't believe all of the flashbacks I was having reading about your day yesterday. Been there done that, got the gray hairs, but I polish them once a month. I'm going to go out and peruse the garden & then see if I can get that challenge done right.

@bitzee This place is like stepping into a warm hug and a magical dose of mojo.

 

[bcgal00]

Good morning ladies. Quick hello as I have to get dressed and get out of here. I have a 45 min drive to the park to go birding with the group. It's a park I've not yet been to so that'll be fun.

We have a birds nest under the deck and there is one baby in there that we can see. Hope to get photos at some point. We try not to be invasive right now, letting them grow and feed but....a few pics would be nice at some point.

@faerywings Physical was fine. No problems except for high BP which I knew had been fluctuating lately. I have to test twice a day for a week and send in the results before he decides on medication.

Gotta go. HAGD everyone.

 

[mimes1]

Good morning everyone - quick check in here too. Erinn and I already cleaned out their extra bedroom, hauled heavy items up into the attic, emptied out a bunch of boxes - now I’m getting dressed and we’re going to haul a truckload of stuff to the dump. Just quietly supporting her as she figures out a new normalcy.
@JeanneMN thank you for your kind words of support for my SIL. I will pass your sentiment along.

@Terri M my sister bike rides in Ohio and does overnight trips. I’ll find out who she rides with - you two may have crossed paths somewhere along the way!

@bcgal00 do you know what kind of birds are under your deck? Last year we had a Carolina Wren nest in a water bucket that was hanging on the wall (to keep the bucket away from the dog). It was the most fun knowing they were there and watching them trust us as we would be on the porch sitting with my mom and they just went about their business. I only checked the nest once, when I accidentally discovered they were there, and once when I was 99% sure they had fledged. The rest of the time it was just so joyful watching the mom go in and out, and hearing the babies. Here at my daughters house we discovered Kildeer families all over the neighborhood. We were walking one day and Belle noticed the broken wing display - so then I told her to stand still and lets see what they’re distracting us from - and sure enough, a little family of 4 tiny nugget babies was running along in the neighbors yard. We swung wide across the street to give them their space. It was so cool. Also at a little park nearby we noticed all the turtles swimming to the bridge when we walked up. I think they’re looking for snacks so we have some mealworms to feed them, and we’ll go over today and see if they do the same. This time we’ll be ready for them.

Hope you all have a good day everyone!

 

[taxed4ever]

Good Morning everyone! Well the paddle on the lake was just lovely! The wind stayed away and the lake was like glass the entire time. We managed to go around the whole lake and saw some eagles, lots of ducks and geese and some alpacas on a farm along the shore. There was a huge sundog around the sun, wish I would have taken my camera with me. I have to get going right away as my hike today is in Honeymoon Bay and its a great day for it! I should be able to wear shorts for this one. Sending each and every one of you some love today and hope that you all have a fabulous day!

 

[Cherylndesigns]

Good morning,

Quick in and out for me, because I didn't get my blog post ready last night, so I'm running late on that. I talked to my sister for an hour and a half instead. That's always fun and I'll just have to buckle down and whip that blog out right now. Daisy and I woke abruptly at 6 this morning. My sound machine had stopped and it's real quiet when that goes off. I think that's what woke us up. I got up and turned it back on and told her it wasn't time to get up.

Whenever you new girls want to tackle Color Play, I explain it on the blog and also tell you how to possibly get your layouts featured on there. Anybody can have their CP pages featured. So, if you're interested, pop over there later. The link is up at the top of the page I'll also post a link in the forum when it's posted. I post "Color Play Wednesday" every week.

Looks like a have some catching up to do on here, so hopefully, I can do that later. I'll be back. Hugs to ALL. XOXO

 

[AK_Tracy]

@AK_Tracy I still had enough spoons to finish a few of the candy bags and cook dinner. But lemme tell ya, I did *not* want to get out of bed this morning Again-- TGFC (Thank god for coffee) Hahahah!!
Some people should not be near anything sharp. My DD got me a chopper-thingy that I use to make egg salad. You put the egg on top of a grate and push it through. Last week I was rushing to put stuff away and grabbed the grate and didn't get the plastic frame but the edge of the metal part. That tiny cut bled through three bandaids before I got it to stop.
Space Case Trace!!!!! That is hysterical! Is there a story behind it?

Yeah for enough spoons to finish the day. Do you have Lyme flare ups? You asked me so many questions and I went and answered and made it all about me and forgot to inquire about you. I'm sorry. I know nothing about limes (okay three auto corrects I guess I'm spelling it wrong ) I know its not cured or gone. Does it flare up or is it a consistent "drained" feeling?

And oh yeah the egg slicer! I had one of those. Was great until you grabbed it in a hurry the wrong way!!!!!

As for the nickname I have no idea. I have been Space Case Trace to my "uncle" all my life. It just has always been.

Tracy-- my DH is like that with PICC Lines. He had two of them and I had three. Insurance wouldn't cover a nurse to come and change the dressings so we did it. He had an entire sterile setup and went to work. The first few times I saw the line going into my skin, I was squeamish then it was just another thing to do. We did the IVs oursleves to. One time his blood sugar was going extremely low and often so we had Dex 5 bags on hand. He was unconscious and I called 911. In the meantime, I hooked the Dex5 bag to his line. The EMTs were shocked when they got here, said they never came to a call and had the patient already hooked up LOL! You do what ya gotta do

WOW! That's dedication. My hubs could probably figure it all out but man I dont know if I could do PICC lines or IVs. You rock! And have mad skills that most dont have. I bet the EMTs were super impressed.

Tracy My bad! Should not have been an enabler...

No, you shouldn't have Besides being a control freak, I have a hard time turning down challenges. Especially when someone says you cant do that. I say here hold my beer So far, 24 hours later, its fun so we shall see. I think the hard part would be coming up with more original ideas that haven't been done. But hey, no flowers is fun.

 

[MariJ]

@faerywings

 

[vickyday]

Hello, hello~
How are you all today? Is a cool and drizzly morning here but I am not working at Weis today so that's good news for me and my outside plants. Not the best for the kids and staff on the field trip today. Today is a small Special Ed group so hopefully they can make it work out in spite of the rain.

OT: Any English majors/teachers or otherwise smart people out there? What is the difference between "in spite of" and "despite?"
Grammarly wants me to change in spite of to despite and I ignore it. Grammarly is very unhappy with those sentences as well. Red lines everywhere!

I wrote this yesterday:

Nailed it!

It wasn't the amount of kids that made yesterday chaotic it was the disorganization of the teachers and chaperones. OMG. *blinks rapidly*
I was on the Stream Rotation all day and that is an easy one since there are always two staff members on that rotation. We usually stay on the opposite sides of the area helping the kids find and ID the macroinvertebrates. We also make sure that they are safe but that is supposed to be the teacher and chaperone's main responsibility. Our second group didn't even have a teacher with them. 18 or so kids and two chaperones. The parents said they didn't even know who the kids were other than their own. No teacher, no head counts. No help. Another group had 4 adults but they were sitting at picnic tables on their phones. Wild. :/
I have been on plenty of field trips as a teacher and as a parent and no way would I have been as lax and disconnected as this group was. We do a debrief after each trip and we are coming up with a chaperone checklist to go over with them on-site. Everything is emailed to them when they book the field trip but apparently not everyone reads it.
Main reason why it's important that they know what they are doing: Bears. The day before, there was a sighting of 2 cubs on the trails. Cubs=mom is nearby and will *not* be happy if a group of rowdy kids get too close. I'd rather come upon a huge ol' bear by itself than a mom with cubs.

On a good note, the kids seemed to have a fun time looking at the macros and we also found a frog and a toad hanging out on some moss on the side of the stream. A bunch of crayfish, too.

By the time I got home, I was pretty much stick a fork in me done but I was able to get about half of the ATC/candy bags wrapped up. I hope to finish the rest of them today.

I have to pick up my groceries this morning and its a bigger order since its o the party this Sunday. I hope everything fits into my firdge. I'm cleaning for my friend this afternoon and in between is everything else that needs to get done around the house. I forgot that I have to get the donations all boxed up by tomorrow, the Lupus Foundation pick up is Friday morning. I only have three boxes taped and labeled so far.
Scrapping, whats that?

blergh, I am running so late!

Hugs!

Just from the little bit of parental "attentiveness" I see at some school functions, I totally believe the laxidazical attitudes you experienced! What happened to true parenting?

 

[vickyday]

@JeanneMN Haha For a sec, I thought you were talking about "tall" people as in anyone taller than me --which was most of the kids yesterday. I'd rather deal with preschoolers any day.
BJs is a warehouse club, like Sam's or Costco. Not the place I want to get lost in!

@vickyday hope you had a great time with your friends!

@MariJ *waving hi*

@mimes1 Hahaha! Is it hijacking if DD left the iPad for you? just don't go and mess up her settings bwuahahaha!
I hope that the time flies by while Paul is away. I can't imagine how hard it is for everyone. Hugs to you and Erinn ♥

@taxed4ever So happy to hear that you made it out on the lake again!
Good luck finding a new Mac and don't; forget we want to see in-progress photos of your new painting when you can

@bcgal00 hope all of the dr appts and tests went perfectly for you. Bet the dogs were happy to go for the rise and park too

@BrightEyes bet you had a lot of laughs at your lunch with the gals yesterday, you always do!

Proud of you!!
How wonderful to see D-SIL as well.

@AK_Tracy I still had enough spoons to finish a few of the candy bags and cook dinner. But lemme tell ya, I did *not* want to get out of bed this morning Again-- TGFC (Thank god for coffee) Hahahah!!
Some people should not be near anything sharp. My DD got me a chopper-thingy that I use to make egg salad. You put the egg on top of a grate and push it through. Last week I was rushing to put stuff away and grabbed the grate and didn't get the plastic frame but the edge of the metal part. That tiny cut bled through three bandaids before I got it to stop.
Space Case Trace!!!!! That is hysterical! Is there a story behind it?

@Terri M Wow, that's an amazing trip! Glad you had (almost) perfect weather)
Good luck and have fun with all of your scrapping projects!

@Cherylndesigns You are so lucky that you have the family together on the compound. (I know I am lucky to have my kids close too but you have grands and I don't *sob*)
Sounds like Memorial Day weekend has a strong enough connection to Chuck's birthday to make it all work Is Asher coming out with Steph too? How much taller is he going to be?

ohhhhhh, that pond and memorial are going to be stunning. It already is naturally beautiful but when it is done... it's going to be incredible and peaceful. What a great place to sit and reflect and laugh at the memories.

@bitzee All of us at the O take our O-Family to heart. Glad that you are part of it too! ♥

Tracy-- my DH is like that with PICC Lines. He had two of them and I had three. Insurance wouldn't cover a nurse to come and change the dressings so we did it. He had an entire sterile setup and went to work. The first few times I saw the line going into my skin, I was squeamish then it was just another thing to do. We did the IVs oursleves to. One time his blood sugar was going extremely low and often so we had Dex 5 bags on hand. He was unconscious and I called 911. In the meantime, I hooked the Dex5 bag to his line. The EMTs were shocked when they got here, said they never came to a call and had the patient already hooked up LOL! You do what ya gotta do

@JeanneMN I know how it will feel for Cheryl since you have done the same for your loved ones. So special to have a place in honor of them, one that you can tend to as well as reflect.

Have any of us *not* sliced a part of themselves accidentally? Not sure why you would it on purpose so let's go with accidentally haha!

Tracy My bad! Should not have been an enabler...


Hugs!

Yes, enjoyed being with the widows yesterday! They are all so sweet!

 

[vickyday]

Good morning everyone - quick check in here too. Erinn and I already cleaned out their extra bedroom, hauled heavy items up into the attic, emptied out a bunch of boxes - now I’m getting dressed and we’re going to haul a truckload of stuff to the dump. Just quietly supporting her as she figures out a new normalcy.
@JeanneMN thank you for your kind words of support for my SIL. I will pass your sentiment along.

@Terri M my sister bike rides in Ohio and does overnight trips. I’ll find out who she rides with - you two may have crossed paths somewhere along the way!

@bcgal00 do you know what kind of birds are under your deck? Last year we had a Carolina Wren nest in a water bucket that was hanging on the wall (to keep the bucket away from the dog). It was the most fun knowing they were there and watching them trust us as we would be on the porch sitting with my mom and they just went about their business. I only checked the nest once, when I accidentally discovered they were there, and once when I was 99% sure they had fledged. The rest of the time it was just so joyful watching the mom go in and out, and hearing the babies. Here at my daughters house we discovered Kildeer families all over the neighborhood. We were walking one day and Belle noticed the broken wing display - so then I told her to stand still and lets see what they’re distracting us from - and sure enough, a little family of 4 tiny nugget babies was running along in the neighbors yard. We swung wide across the street to give them their space. It was so cool. Also at a little park nearby we noticed all the turtles swimming to the bridge when we walked up. I think they’re looking for snacks so we have some mealworms to feed them, and we’ll go over today and see if they do the same. This time we’ll be ready for them.

Hope you all have a good day everyone!

We love watching the wrens. They nest in the most interesting places, too! My husband found one nesting in a box he had underneath the shelter down at the fire pits in our woods.

 

[vickyday]

Good Morning everyone! Well the paddle on the lake was just lovely! The wind stayed away and the lake was like glass the entire time. We managed to go around the whole lake and saw some eagles, lots of ducks and geese and some alpacas on a farm along the shore. There was a huge sundog around the sun, wish I would have taken my camera with me. I have to get going right away as my hike today is in Honeymoon Bay and its a great day for it! I should be able to wear shorts for this one. Sending each and every one of you some love today and hope that you all have a fabulous day!

I love alpacas! They are so cool looking!
Hope you had a wonderful hike! Shorts?! WOW! Your weather must be warmer than ours is today!

 

[vickyday]

Good Evening to All!
Just popping in for a few minutes. I've read today's posts and commented on a few. I have baked potatoes about ready to eat, so I will probably wait until tomorrow to catch you up on what all I've been up to this week! You will need a fresh cup of coffee!
We will be leaving for church soon, so I'm not even going to try to catch you up tonight.
Have a great evening!

 

[Cherylndesigns]

Well, I think I can settle down now and do a proper post. Been a busy day; I finally got my blog post done, finished up a layout for Tracy's challenge @AK_Tracy , called her Amy and tried to stealthily change it and she caught me. She was too quick for me. She was "channeling her inner Amy" @mimes1 and my brain just registered "Amy". Like I said, it's been a busy day.

Also had to wash my hair (Chris @faerywings ) you know how long that takes. I'm getting ready to color it, so I had to wash it first. I'm trying a little darker blonde color this time. The last time, it didn't really make much difference and with the LONG hair I have, it's a real job to color it. Nobody noticed. So, I'm going darker. It's almost dry - I blew it out straight so it didn't take me as long as usual.

Chris @faerywings yes, Asher will be coming with Steph - they'll arrive on the 25th and have to leave on the 28th because Asher has school, which he'll miss one day of. He'll be as tall as me soon, but you should hear his voice. He sounds like a man. I call him a man child. He'll be 13 in July!! I wish they could stay for the 30th, but I take what I can get. We'll do something while they're here. I can hardly wait to sit out by the pond and just meditate. I'm just so humbled that Roger is doing this. We have Alyssa's HS graduation this weekend. It kind of slipped up on me because she isn't looking forward to it and just wants to get the ceremony over with. LOL She's not a big fan of school, yet, she's going to the U of AK this fall. We're all wondering how long she'll last, but she might surprise us. She and Braden are going to live together, and Adrienne and I are going down there Saturday to secure the apartment.

Well, I just got back on here. It's now almost 8 pm. Adrienne colored my hair, blew it out and curled it and I love it! I went with a darker blonde and I think I found the perfect shade. I put it on reorder from Amazon to receive it every two months. I have strict orders from Adrienne NOT to mess with it and get it curly again before Friday. She's coming to do my hair and makeup for Alyssa's graduation.

BRB - must eat now.

 

[AK_Tracy]

Tracy's challenge @AK_Tracy , called her Amy and tried to stealthily change it and she caught me. She was too quick for me. She was "channeling her inner Amy" @mimes1 and my brain just registered "Amy".

O thought it was funny!!!! I had just sat down to eat lunch and saw the post, replied and phone rang and been on the run since. Had a moment before dinner but then we had to watch Fargo. LOL kids (teens) hadn't seen it. Nothing like a good true crime over dinner.

 

[Cherylndesigns]

O thought it was funny!!!! I had just sat down to eat lunch and saw the post, replied and phone rang and been on the run since. Had a moment before dinner but then we had to watch Fargo. LOL kids (teens) hadn't seen it. Nothing like a good true crime over dinner.

Oh, I remember Fargo. I thought it was funny, too but I thought I was quick like a bunny. Not quicker than you. It's been one of those days.