Basket Case

The title is probably pretty obvious to you if you've been around me lately. It's been kindof a crazy time and I'm not as resilient as I thought I was I guess. I will explain more later. (I say that in every post I swear.)

Memorial Day

We had no school on Memorial day and dallin took me to Blackbear Diner for breakfast to celebrate. The food was really good, but I don't think he liked the "let's-awkwardly-get-your-picture-in-front-of-the-wooden-bears-to-commemorate-going-out-to-eat-like-we-always-do-anyway" thing. lol Obviously.

After that we went and spent time with the newly-returned-home Graff Fam. We went swimming and ate and talked and all that jazz. HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY! (Gavin got sunscreen in his eyes and it was the cutest/saddest thing I've ever seen because his face was priceless.) I got sunburned :(
But I always love Memorial Day because that's the holiday that declares "summer has arrived and you've made it!"

The Grand Opening of the Brand New, Long Awaited Theater!

Tom worked endlessly to finally finish the theater room in the basement of their house. It turned out sooo cool. I was impressed because they found a lot of really unique finishes for it. The sink is copper, those sconces, the beveled edges on the counter, the velvet around the screen, and the lighting on the side of the stairs. Turned out so cool. 

The Tri Annual Doing of the Hair

My mom and Dallin make fun of me for how often I change my hair, and truthfully, "tri-annual" is an understatement because I'll end up changing my hair about 5 times a year. But this year I've gone soft ;) lol anyway...

This was the inspiration.....

And this was the result!

The ones with straight hair were the first day after, the curly one is today. So it's lightened quite a bit and I'm happy with it not being as inky as it was at first.

Look how funny it is when Josie runs.

So many moving parts and so much exertion lol

School and the saying of the "goodbyes"

I (or Yearbook staff) was tasked with the planning and execution of our end-of-year assembly, and it was unexpectedly stressful. The planning and the script didn't completely pan out because there were still day-of crises and mistakes. But all in all I was proud of their public speaking and help with everything. I will definitely miss those guys because they were the students who always showed the most "can-do" attitude. 

I was also stressed about how the social dance class would perform. I literally had nightmares about it the night before. I think it's safe to say that I now fully understand why my mom always said she was more nervous than me in every pageant/game/race/meet I competed in. I had a student film the performance for me because I was busy freaking out on the side. I was soooo proud of them because I know how hard they all worked and I saw them working through insecurity and stage fright. The whole thing was eye-opening to me because they all complained at first but in the end I could tell they loved it. 

The end of the school year is really fun when you're a kid. I was looking forward to the end of the year because of all the exciting events that were taking place. (end of year assembly, jogapolooza, school carnival, lagoon day, yearbook signing) But as those things started happening and the end of the school year encroached, I realized that part of the year is more like wrangling cats when you're a teacher. They're all so squirreley to be done, and I was preoccupied with moving, but I kept trying to refocus it all. This was one of my attempts. It's a communication game where the students have to talk through the person to the end with their eyes closed. They loved it and so did I!

It was really hard telling students that I won't be coming back next year. It was difficult emotionally because you have this expectation and burden with saying it. And I didn't know it was going to be as difficult as it was until after the fact. I know that they're not mature enough to always be able to express themselves, and they're at that age when it's embarrassing to show gratitude or admiration for a teacher. So I didn't want to put too much pressure on how they'd respond, and I also didn't want to make it worse by being overly emotional. Overall the response was semi-sorrowful but not as spirited as I would have hoped since I clearly don't do this for the money. One student straight-up told me that he didn't care I wouldn't be there next year. On the same day another student told me they didn't like my new hair, and I think with the change of everything else that's going on, I took it hard. When Jill (another teacher) left mid-year it was a big deal for the students, and I guess I was comparing it to that. I think this was one of the many times when I feel like my co-workers saved me. Fries told me that it was mostly just because half way through the year they've gotten used to that teacher and they're nervous about who they'll have next, whereas now they're all too preoccupied with their own summer break to think through the implication of me not being there when they come back. Sommerville listened to my vent sesh and told me some of the things people have said to her too (making me feel like I'm not alone in this weirdness). Nielson and Fowels reassured me that I have made a difference and I can't base everything off a few negative responses. I came in the next day to flowers on my desk and nice note from a student. It helped to convince me that the opinion of one isn't the opinion of all and they will notice my absence after all.

It's Party Time!

The school carnival was really fun. They got tickets based off of their grades that they could spend at the various booths. One was "silly string a teacher" and of course I had to do it twice. But luckily it wasn't as bad as I thought because it all mostly shakes off. Here are the other's reactions to it :)

The teachers all got water guns and I highly enjoyed that! lol until a student stole it and squirted me with it. There were slushies, drinks, candy, activities, games, and a photo booth. The main events were teachers getting pies in the face and an epic dance off between 4 students. 

Here was the anticipated Pie-Meets-Face for Mrs. Nielson.

And the plot twist for Miss Slade.

I was highly entertained. And glad that I wasn't up for nomination :)

JOGAPOLOOZA

This is a school fundraiser where they try to get em' active. It was not as fun as I thought it was going to be because we literally went around the field 4 times and it was over. But maybe that's because I wasn't as excited about the dunk tank as the students were. 

And fancy that! It's Fries again! Good thing he's the best sport in the world about it. 

Here are the glorious videos of Cutler, Fries, and Smith.

LAGOON DAY!

It was this experience that made me realize how freaking old I am. When they were talking about who would chaperone my hand shot up in the air like I was getting an invitation to party. But after that I realized "that's a long day!" and indeed it was. Lol I literally fell asleep on the way home. But it all went smoothly without a hitch and everyone had fun. I was more motion-sick than I have been in the past, and I got tired more quickly than I used to. I only had to sit out on a few rides, but it was still like a "come to Jesus meeting" with myself on the fact that I'm aging. I seriously started thinking "I think it'd be nice to just sit and get out of the sun." Like my mother. And I remember vividly sprinting at full speed with my friends from ride to ride and staying until they closed the park. Oui. I guess it had to happen some time right? And it's only fitting because I have grey hairs to match now. lol 

It was so fun going on the rides with students who were scared and getting them to overcome it. Me and Miss Slade were buddies all day, Principal Cutler mostly worked all day from a table, and we met up with students sometimes. It was soooo fun. And it was pretty cool that we were getting paid to be there!

This was one of those times when I was feeling old because the last ride made me feel queazy so I was the "bag holder." lol It was good to get to know Kelli more and see the students having fun. (And for the record, I only missed out on like 3 rides total. So I'm not that bad yet.)

The Fateful Last Day

The last day wasn't like I thought it'd be. Everyone still had business to do and everyone was scooting off at different rates so you didn't really have time to be sappy. Which was good, because it didn't really hit me until the evening. Those kind of goodbyes have so much pressure, and it was nice to not put even more on it than we needed to. It was sad packing up the classroom and seeing everyone go. 

A nice letter from "Mr. Creg."

This woman helped me a lot along the way when I ran into troubles, and she was a great roommate :)

(I wish I didn't look like I have huge gut in this picture)

After we cleaned up everything all the teachers went to lunch at Iggy's. It was a nice, relaxing end to the craziness. I will miss those folks.

The yearbook signing went by so fast and again, it's one of those things where you can't put a ton of pressure on what they're going to write. But I did get some really nice notes. Still some that just wrote HAGS and their name, but that's what happens when you're signing thousands of books.

Nails

I got together with Rachael and we went to Olive Garden and then did our nails. (run on sentence whoops.)

It was really fun and I felt like she understands me really well. Neither of us felt like we looked very good so we just took a picture of our hands. I know I will definitely miss her.

Nov.19

Since Ben and Jamie set the date and it's in November and they're colors are maroon.... I want this coat. Cute for over a dress when you're freezing because you're used to wicked-hot weather from moving to Arizona ..... right? lol I wish I could find it in anything but a 1XL

The Story of My Trip to See My New Home

I left immediately from the last day of school and went to get on a plane by myself. It was oddly significant. Like a real dose of reality and a sense of the whole "striking out on my own" kindof thing. Jakey and Josie were sad when I left. But they didn't miss me too much because my mom spoils them and they love playing with Bentley and Indie. 

Soooooo.... I'm trying not to read into this, but Arizona kicked my butt.

I didn't realize this until later, but I didn't really drink anything the 2 days before in Utah, and then when I got there I got severe heat exhaustion. I was throwing up and dizzy and headachey and all that for a full 3 days. And even my first day back in Utah I still didn't feel 100% yet. So I was chugging water and still couldn't keep anything down. The hard part was we still had to house hunt and eat out every meal, and I didn't feel good unless I was laying down. I was sick of spending money on eating out and not being able to eat it or throwing it up right away, so we went to the grocery store. Long story short, I ended up hangin' my head out of my car door and throwing up in the parking lot! Probably the lowest moment of my life so far. And it was a lot and I couldn't stop, and people were looking and cars were still trying to go behind us. AND DALLIN KEPT DRIVING!! lol Granted, he was barely moving, but he was pleading with me to stop so that people would stop staring. Yeah, I think we've both got a new story to tell to that age-old question, "What's your most embarrassing moment?"

The only thing that saved me was hammering Pedialite. That stuff is miracle juice because it didn't matter how much water I had, it wasn't going to cut it against 118 degree heat. I looked like a lunatic, but I clearly stopped caring about appearances if I was okay spewing all over a Sprouts parking lot.

LOOK! I'M AN AUNT AGAIN! (or still... idk what you'd say) But this is Calvin! What a cutie. I got to meet him at about the same time in his life as I got to meet Kaden so it's somewhat of a tradition now. Truthfully, I can't tell the two apart if you put their baby pictures up to each other.

But I can obviously tell them apart now. Kaden looks like a mini Twenen.

We went over to see the Miller-Flan fam and we ate dinner. It was nice because I was feeling better so I could actually eat and it was so good to see them. We hadn't since December when we came for Christmas to see the Packers game. Mozzie is a cutie. And the sunset was red! It didn't really picture well, but it was amazing. 

Trenden and Kaylynn are sortof in our same position right now because he's out in Ohio fixing up their new house and she's going to move out there in a few weeks. 

This was our hotel. It was hands down the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in. We felt so rich just by staying there. Look how pretty the gardens and pool is! Dallin wanted to show me Scottsdale and he took me to so many places he's already seen since he's been working down there. It was so relaxing to lay by the pool at night because it's still hot enough to swim. 

This was the view when you first come in of the stairs. It was so beautiful and I was so grateful Dallin took me there. (Even though I was sick)

Dallin got a really good deal on the rental car because of some coupon he had. So he got a mercedes and we got to feel all cool rollin' in cool wheels for the weekend. So part of this picture was that it was cool that he got to drive this car, and the other part was seeing the "118" degrees on the dash. Holy crap. I can't make this stuff up people. Arizona almost killed me this last time so I have to condition myself to be ready for it when we move. lol

This was an authentic Italian restaurant and we had the best Italian we've ever had. We met the owner and he was probably the coolest human being on the planet even though we couldn't understand a word he was saying. lol anyway, even through my sickey haze I still had to get a picture.

On Sunday we had to check out at Noon and our flight didn't leave until 9pm, so we went and looked at a bunch of model homes. It was pretty fun looking at stuff that's super expensive and also the more realistic options lol 

When we got home we were both exhausted from the trip, and I was thanking my lucky stars that I don't have a job to go to anymore. But Dallin still had to get up the next morning and go to work. Then a couple days later he had to fly back down again for more work in Scottsdale. I can tell that it is definitely draining to him and he's working really hard, but he always seems really happy about it. I'm glad he's enjoying it still even though it's a lot right now. 

Saying Good bye to Kiminee

After having our schedules revolting against us for a few weeks, we finally made it work! lol It was sooo good to see her and talk to her again about what's going on in her life. I will miss having people like her when I move, she's so honest and down to earth. I wish I could take people with me too lol 

Mother-Daughter Time

I've been hanging out with my mom a lot lately because she has taken major pride in packing up my house. lol She is better than me definitely but idk why she just volunteers herself to do things like that because it is not fun at all. In Graff language she's a "high gold." She'll be organizing my crap in a box or making a list and say "see isn't this fun?" 

Um, no. But I'm glad she's sortof saving my butt right now with the packing. Because if it were up to me I'd shove it all together and just tape the crap out of it. lol And it's a good thing we get along so well because we've been together for a couple days straight and it will continue until I don't have anything left that isn't labeled and listed and sorted and boxed and taped. (I'm exaggerating of course....but not that much lol)

So this was Bentley and Indie the 2 besties in their house. Literally cuddling each other. :)

To kick off our massive packing endeavors right, I thought our inspiration would be Rosie the Riveter. And since I had too much time on my hands in the airport, I watched a video on how to fold a bandana like rosie the riviter. And then I bought them for both of us so that we could be matching in that totally tacky way that mothers and daughters always do. 

The Bachelorette is back on again! I've been watching it but I'm less enthused. It seems more sex-crazed now and less regularness. And the whole Chad thing seems like a character that the producers cooked up to keep viewers interested. And yet, I still watch. lol

The Nature of Change

I was so excited for the move and now I'm grasping the importance of a place feeling "homey." When I was there I knew I would love it once I had a house and job and my normal life. But since none of that is there yet I felt lost. Especially when we were driving lol. I know that I'll be much more comfortable once I get a teaching job there and after the actual moving part is over. With both of us it seems to ebb and flow. One of us will be stoked to live amongst the palm trees while the other is thinking about all the people we're leaving behind. In the end I know it's going to be good thing. As cliche as it is, I found myself listening to "Closing Time" by Semisonic (or if you've seen Friends With Benefits, it's by 3rd Eye Blind lol) and becoming inspired by, "every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." So it's been cause for some reflection, and I think I'm pretty easy to please. I made a new Dream Board since I haven't had one of those in a while. It was cool to think that my old dream board is no longer up because I accomplished all of those things. So I know I'll get there with these things, but I want to be fit, have long hair, a house I love, friends, hobbies, financial freedom, and a job I love. Even if none of those things look like this, those are the things I want. lol 

(Let's all pretend this isn't all cheesey and cliche. I'm starting to see why these are the classic things that people want because I obviously want them. I guess the only person that wouldn't see these things in the "Mirror of Erised" is Professor Dumbledore! To which he said, "One can never have enough socks." lol There's your daily dose of Harry Potter.)

Here's to hoping that Arizona can bring happiness in all of those areas and that we survive this next month in limbo. I will most-likely continue to be the basket case and Dallin the perfect example of "go with it." 

-Sydney the Mover