Too much to do...

as usual. Definitely a common theme in my posts - I have too much to do and too little time to do it! Actually, it is probably more of a time management issue than truly not having enough time, but why split hairs?

Bryn's party went well (i.e. she had lots of fun and Aaron and I survived!). I do think that it will be the last year for a big slumber party as we did have a little more attitude from one girl about the activities than we have had from anyone in the past. I am thinking by next year, they will all have a little more attitude and I am not sure I can handle a dozen girls with attitude at a time! That being said, Aaron and I were once again truly impressed with Bryn's group of friends. The girls are all polite and caring - there doesn't seem to be any of the clique-ishness that girls are famous for. I just hope that lasts for at least a couple more years. It is nice to have sweet girls around! They also filled 3 big boxes full of stuff for the Lawrence Humane Society (we asked them to bring things for the shelter instead of birthday gifts), so they have generous little hearts, too!

I got off to a productive start for the week. I cleaned out the playhouse, swept the back porch and picked up a yard full of petrified dog poop during the brief burst of dry, warmer weather. Grant loved going in and out of the playhouse and driving his trucks and cars around in it - I plan on spending a lot of time in the backyard with him this spring and summer so I hope that continues to be a good source of entertainment! I also got the basement picked up after the 15 girl tornado that blew through and I am hoping to work on the kids rooms today. Time to purge the closets of clothes and toys and create some space for the birthday presents that make there way into the house at this time of year!

Class has been surprisingly pleasant this semester. Unusual for any semester, but especially the spring when students seem to be less focused than in the fall. I also managed to finally get through the Quality Matters certification process for my General Biology course and I am sincerely hoping that the monetary bonus that I was told would come with that pans out. I suppose I should be happy to know I have a decent class to present to my students, but the extra cash was definitely a big motivator for me to get it done!

I am getting excited for our trip to Chicago this weekend - Bryn and I and my friend Rhonda and her daughter are heading up there for a couple of days for a girl's weekend. We are going to go to American Girl for brunch and hoping to see some of the Chicago sights - maybe the Sears (Willis) tower, the zoo, Millennium Park, a museum...whatever we do I think it will be fun!

On a sadder note, it is hard to believe it has been a year since Mema died. This is also the day that my friend Rhonda lost her first child only 6 days after he was born. So a sad day for us and other people I know and love.