Not Michael!

So yesterday afternoon when I started seeing facebook posts saying Michael was dead, I just didn't believe it. I hoped it was some kind of publicity stunt, especially when the intitial source was TMZ. I was devistated when it was confirmed my major news stations.

Michael Jackson played a major part in my childhood. My parent's old home had a living room in which one wall was completely covered with mirrors. I used to spend countless hours in that room, practicing my ballet positions, perfecting my flips from gymnastics, and dancing. Michael was one of my favorite performers growning up, and I used to always try to emulate him. I could never get the moonwalk though.

I remember being picked for a special dance group to perform to Black or White. I remember dancing with my brother as my dad played all his LP's. I remember the first time I saw Thriller with my family, and how I was so scared but didn't want to admit it.

Michael played an important part of my life, and despite the controversy that plague him later in his life, he'll always be my idol!

Here are some of my favorite songs through the years...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSqo17o2a1w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ex30DYwQlHU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k0GZaPPkf4

It's our Anniversary....

I know I've been missing in action, but there's been a lot of things going on in my life, which I'll update you on later.

THIS post is dedicated to our First Anniversary, which was this past Sunday.

Here we are on our wedding day, 6/7/08!

We were looking forward to this day, but didn't want to spend a ton of money going out of town. Law said he'd make the plans and that he wanted it to be a surprise. Did I mention that I hate surprises?

On Saturday, hubby told me I needed to wear a nice dress, a casual outfit, and an overnight bag. I couldn't decide what to wear, so I made him tell me the details. I was pleasantly surprised: we were checking into the Hyatt, going to dinner in Old Town Alexandria, and going to a National's game the next day (our anniversary). Loved the plans!

We checked into our room at the Hyatt on Saturday afternoon, it was the beautiful Ambassador Suite. We were about to see the planes take off from National Airport. Later that evening we had dinner at the Charthouse in Alexandria. DELICIOUS! I've been to the Charthouse in Annapolis before, but this one was much, much better. We had salads, and I had crab cakes. Lawrence had the trio which included plump grilled shrimp, grilled crab cakes, and grilled salmon. Yummy! They brought out an ice cream cake with a candle for dessert, we had fun acting like kids while we were blowing out the candle. LOL.

After dinner we walked around the city. I have never been to Old Towne, and I feel like I've been missing out on something. Such a charming little town with tons of history. We ended up sitting on a bench in front of a fountain and reminiscing about the past year. We've been through so much the past 365 days, and I love him even more than I did on the day I married him. Sappy, cliche, but so true. Here are a few pics from that night

Me in our hotel room!

Standing in front of the fountain!


The next day we drove to Chinatown since there was no parking near the other Metro Station. We ate lunch, and then hopped on the Metro to head to the National's game. I've been asking Hubby for awhile to take me to a game, we both have never been. It was fun sitting on the Metro with all the Nat's fans, and listening to them debate why they suck so much, lol.

Us at the game!

The stadium, was nice, the weather was beautiful, but the game was uneventful. I see why they're the worst team in the league, our pitching sucks!

We came back home that night, ate dinner, and then spent 20 minutes unwrapping our wedding cake. My dad did an excellent job, no freezer burn! The cake was actually moist, but was sweeter than I remembered. It was good, but I only ate once slice. DH ate quite a few more :-)

I smushed it while taking off all the wrap, but it still tasted great!

We had a wonderful first anniversary, it was totally us, and I can't wait until the next one. Only 362 more days to go.....

Rethinking my Career

Disclaimer: This is a mini-vent session!
You know I must be stressed if I'm blogging from work.

Sometimes I wonder if I made the right career choice. Now don't get me wrong, I love kids. I love helping kids learn. Some days I love my job. My kids will be as behaved as possible :-), they'll actually learn what I teach them, and we'll all have a great time doing it. Those are the good days.

Then there are days like today when I want to hand in my resignation. Students are misbehaved in more ways than one- not following directions, being disrespectful, refusing to pay attention, making no progress in reading despite all the efforts on my part- those are the things that frustrate me. Throw in a bunch of parents that think the world revolves around them, and that their child is a genius that can do no wrong, and you have a recipe for disaster. And don't forget the mounds of paperwork that come along with it. Sometimes I feel like I'm so busy filling out forms and testing kids that I have no time to teach.

I know this is all part of being a teacher. You'll have lots of good days, and lots of bad days. As long as there are more good than bad, then I'm doing ok, I guess.

I could definitely use a drink though.....

Thank God it's FRIDAY!

Zumba!

Last night I met my cousin and her friend/coworker in Alexandria for a Zumba class. I had taken classes before in my area and while it was fun it wasn't anything to write home about.

This class was amazing. It was located behind a strip mall, and the appearance left a lot to be desired. However, when I walked in I was amazed at how many people were there. It was at least 100! I quickly found my friends and got ready to Zumba. LOL.

Needless to say I was intimidated, there were tons of people who looked like they knew what they were doing. The instructor came out on stage and introduced herself, and from her energy I knew I was in for a hell of a workout.

Boy was I right. The dance moves were amazing, the music was hot, and I was dripping with sweat within the first 10 minutes. But it was a party-like atmosphere so I didn't really seem like work...at first. By the 30 minute mark I was dying, I'm so out of shape. I tried to keep up the best I could, thank goodness there were so many people there that I didn't really stand out.

I had the best time. Although I was dead tired, I'll definitely be coming back again. Maybe this class will help me get read of the stubborn 10 pounds that won't seem to go away. Just in time for the summer!

I'll keep you posted!

Finally- An Introduction

I'm finally getting around to starting my blog. I love reading others, so I figured I'd jump right in.

Where to start, let's see. I'm a 27-year old teacher who married the love of my life last June. We just purchased a home together and are living in wedded bliss. Or something like that :)

I've had a lot of changes over the past year, and those of you who know me well know that I HATE CHANGE! But that's the way life goes so I'm going to be happy about it. Plus it hasn't all been so bad...

1. Got married- Definitely the biggest and most important change. It's the most amazing feeling having someone with whom you love with all your heart tell you he feels the same way. And to share with family and friends was great, the best day of my life by far.

2. Moved in together-Since we decided to be "traditional" and didn't live together until after the wedding, there was a lot of adjustments involved. Sharing everything after living in my own home for 3 years was hard at first, but I wouldn't change it for the world.

3. Sold my townhouse- I loved that place. I was so proud to say I owned my own home at the age of 23, and it was a beautiful home at that, if I do say so myself. I had a lot of memories there, but was ready to start my new life with the hubby. So the week before the wedding, I moved out and moved into an apartment which leads to #4.....

4. New state- To us Marylanders, VA is like a foreign country. At least, that's how it felt to me. But since DH had a great job in VA already, and I was pretty much guaranteed to get a job regardless of where I was, we decided to make the big move. Plus it's a great place to raise a family. My only concern so far has been the lack of diversity...

5. New job- I worked at the same school, in the same grade, in the same classroom for 5 years. Did I mention that I don't like change? I was very sad to leave this school, as it had a close knit staff and I loved the children, despite their problems :-). Teaching in VA is so different, but I'm starting to get used to it.

6. New home- Our apartment in VA was cramped, and was a far cry from the amount of space we were used to. Immediately after the honeymoon, we began our housing search. It was frustrating because everything we liked was too expensive, or in bad condition. We got in a bidding war over one house and lost, but it was a great thing because we eventually found our dream home at a great price! The housing crisis wasn't such a bad thing after all. We moved in at the end of September and couldn't be happier!

So much change in just one year. I can't wait to see what the rest of 2009 will bring!