Pepper Spray, Puppies and Presents

Looks like this is probably going to be another short post, because I have been super busy! I am currently on week 2 of the new job and it is going really well! I miss my students, but do not miss being in the classroom at all! Fortunately, this new job lets me work with kids (babies, in particular, which I love even more) and lets me do some of the aspects of teaching with more flexibility and less "after hours" commitment. I have actually gotten to go to bed before midnight the past two weeks. It's a miracle! Next week, I will be visiting my first families--two Hispanic families that live together in a trailer. Should be interesting...In training last week, we learned how to spot meth labs in a house and a friendly co-worker told me what clues I might see that signal that someone is selling drugs. I told Tom these things, and today, there were two packages of pepper spray laying on the kitchen counter. Apparently, he and my mother are in cahoots. Speaking of my mother, she was concerned enough about my safety to instruct me not to go into a house if there is only a man there. If this situation ever arises, I am still not quite sure how I am going to explain to my boss why I did not complete an assigned home visit. I just can't see, "Well, my mom said I wasn't allowed," going so well.

Things at home are going well. We got our tax credit, so Tom has been going all out. Yesterday, he splurged on blueberry muffin mix at Harris Teeter. The man is out of control. Scarlet is a terror. She is over the cute-little-puppy-who-sleeps-most-of-the-time stage. She is into everything. This week alone she has unrolled a roll of toilet paper and ran through the kitchen with it, knocked over our strawberry plant out back and ran around the yard with the empty pot in her mouth, found an old soda bottle in the woods and chewed it up, pulled all the stuffing out of Bauer's bed and snuck a discarded tissue into her crate for an afternoon snack. Bauer wishes he could go back to the pound that we got him from where no one bothered him and he could just sleep the day away. We bought mirrors for the master bathroom off of Craig's List. One has pawprints all over it because we haven't Windex-ed it yet, but we promise we will do that soon.


Last weekend, we went to Raleigh to semi-host a wedding shower for Mike and Renee. We spent the whole weekend there and had a great time. We stayed in on Friday and played Rock Band all night. At one point, the disc got scratched and wouldn't work, but we averted crisis by immediately calling all local Blockbusters until we found one that had the game for rent. Saturday was the shower. It was very small and very casual, but lots of fun! It was in no way a traditional wedding shower. I'm pretty sure that there were more shots taken than presents opened. Speaking of presents, Tom was super excited to give Mike his gift--a coin jar that counts your change automatically as you add it to the jar. Seriously. Tom thought that this was the most important thing Mike and Renee needed to start their married life. He even put in 27 cents before wrapping it up as an "added bonus." I had my doubts, but the gift was a success. Even Renee has admitted that she enjoys putting loose change in that thing. Renee has her "real" shower this weekend, so I tried to drop a couple hints that she should probably have very different expectations for that one :) We stopped and visited with Tom's Aunt Barbie and cousin Colby on Sunday before we left Raleigh. She made a yummy brunch for us and we enjoyed talking with her.


Tom just accepted a long-term sub position at a local high school for the last month of school, so that will keep him busy. This weekend, we are headed to Athens to celebrate Mary's 21st birthday. It also happens to be High Fest this weekend, so it should be a good time!