Dollar Days...add up quick.

$377.00 grocery bill.
Mr. Chad and I could live easily on $30 a week, and for the most part we do. However, now that we have somewhat settled into our new house we needed staples, so we went to the grocery.

I kind of felt like Gilligan. We left for a quick trip and it became a "3-hour tour"...LOL. Everything was fine and going great until Mr. Chad discovered what I call the "armpit" of the grocery store...the dollar section.

This particular area has nothing to buy that you can eat, but is like a toy store for a man. By the time I got him out of that aisle, my cart was full of $50 of crap that "we'll need this one day". OK...so I bought an apple corer, but that means $49 was his stuff...LOL.

I laugh, but it was a fun night. It was like a scavenger hunt date. The 2 of us had the best time together and I saw the future us pushing a cart nearby. It was magical, if nothing else.

I love you, Mr. Chad...and we could so win on SUPERMARKET SWEEP.

Mrs. B :o)

Eat Vegan

Raw diet? Have you heard of this one? I mean, is she suppose to look better in the thinner picture? I think she looks sick. No offense, but maybe they need a different poster child. I can definitely see that the weight has come off...I'm just not sure about it for me.

CNN.com has a section on successful dieters and what they did to get in shape. It's pretty neat to see the extreme dieting of these folks. It's hard for me to believe that Dr.Sanjay Gupta thinks these diets are OK?...LOL.

Check it out...maybe there's a diet for you.

Mrs. B.

PS...I here a lot of celebs do this "raw" diet thing.

My name is Christy...

...and I'm a habitual dieter. How many times on this blog have I talked about dieting, eating right, nutrition, blah, blah, blah???? Lots, right?

Today, I just want to rant about skinny people who complain about being fat. Yes, we see that you are skinny...so, yes, we know that you know that you are...Don't expect us strugglers to feel sorry for you. Give me a break.This un-nerves me to no end.

I realize that there are people out there that struggle to gain weight as much as I struggle to lose, but it's still very different. I do not think that society considers skinny-ness to be a product of laziness, as thought with people that are overweight. I think I'm fat, but have never thought of myself as overweight...yet, I am.

I'm not unhealthy by any means. I don't drink cola. I don't add salt. I walk on a treadmill daily...and truthfully, I'm not big-boned. Yes, I am a thyroid cancer survivor and I know that somehow messes with your metabolism, but here I am wearing clothes in double digits (12/14).

How do I get to a figure "8"? Eight that's a good healthy size, right?

Mrs. B :o)

Run Elizabeth Run

http://pages.teamintraining.org/in/nikesf08/ecase

Just a little blurb on my gal pal's marathon. Elizabeth is running a marathon in California to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. It is such a blessing to have her run in honor of my husband, Mr. Chad, a survivor of non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

The funny thing is that E-beth is really into her health and eats and drinks strange crap all the time. She does yoga and pilates, but I could have never pictured her running...yet she is.

She has raised $2000 already and has set a goal of $4000. I'm sure she can do it...both run the marathon and raise the cash.So, today is just to say, "Good Luck, girlfriend...it's me, you , and the Flying Pig next year."

CBB :o)

Different Faces...Same Parties.

My friend, Tim, is a philosopher. Now, he would never say so, but he is...OK, so maybe he's just a wise ol' drunk, but I like him. He was my first boyfriend way back in 1st grade, and that stands for something in my book...LOL.

Tim likes to remind me that I am NOT a city girl. (Yes, in my heart I am a New Yorker, or should I say, a New Orleans-er.) But he is right, I was born and raised in the mountains, and found love and returned here, but that's not what this story is about...

Recently, we were standing outside another friend's house when I looked at him and said, "Tim, it's the same anywhere." He looked at me somewhat puzzled and I proceeded to tell him that no matter the place, no matter the people, no matter the money involved...all parties are the same...just different faces. He laughed and said, "Christy-Daryl (yes, around here and to my old classmates, I have a double name), you are exactly right." For about 5 minutes we talked about how the same types of people are always at parties...the dancer, the drink-til-you-pass-out guy/gal, the fighter, the singer, and so on and so forth...and talked a little about how there was nothing better than being at a party and having a good time with good friends.

...I've seen him at 3 other parties since that night...
The unexamined life is not worth living. -Socrates or was that you Tim Hall?

Mrs. B :o)

Cheerleading, Academic, Math Club...oh my!

I guess I volunteered for all of this...LOL. I did want to help with cheerleading, and the academic team, but my true love was to start the math club, Mu Alpha Theta. I wanted a way for Catarina and I to be connected other than email--when it comes to school.

Cheerleading is sooooo full of drama. I guess that's why no one wants to do it and they let the "1st years" get suckered into it. ****Note to any new teachers out there...if the club, sport, or organization does not have a coach or sponsor...RUN. No doubt, there is a good reason why...LOL.

Academic team, what do you expect? I mean, smart kids that show respect to their fellow classmates and say "please" and "thank you". I bet teachers line up for this one. I like working with them b/c one of the coaches was my high school coach many years ago...and she still looks the same. Go Babs!!!!

Now, about the math club, these are some of the kids from the academic team, but some are just kids that like math and me. I have 30+ kids that could do it, but only about 10 will...and that's OK. I like small groups. It was great looking up their grades to see if they qualified. Mu Alpha Theta requires students to have a 3.0 in their math classes, but I went one step further for our group and required 3.0 overall, as well.

I'm excited about starting the club, but more excited about it taking shape, and letting the kids take over...I'm not sure they know that ultimately they will do it all themselves, but I'm sure they will do just fine at pulling it all together. I mean, c'mon...they're mathematicians...they'll just have to use some logic...LOL.

Onward my little PI-oneers...show me what you can do!

Mrs. Boyd :o)

New Towels...Thank you, Martha Stewart.

It's always the little things that make us have an epiphany, isn't it? I like to shop, but it seems that after my "shopping-detox" that sometimes, I find it to be a burden...LOL. This is not true, however, when buying things for my house.

New pants, that kills me!!!! What size? What color? Wear with heels or not?...but for the house, it's not how it looks on you, but what it is most times and what it means to you.


Towels for example, pretty insignificant in the grand scheme of life on this planet, but very important when reflecting one one's life. I only buy white towels. Why? I can tell if they are clean or not...long story short...not a big fan of tan colored towels...LOL. They go with any color of shower curtain...LOL...and they remind me of a calm day full of inner peace. Also, they have to be big and thick to wrap around my kids like some kind of bathroom security blanket...LOL.


Anyway, buying these towels had my mind in deep thought. Somewhere, in some remote part of the world, someone has never felt, smelled, or used a towel. Now, that in and of itself, is not important, but it brings me back to my life. A life with a lot of white towels.


A life with clean drinking water. A life of free speech. A life blessed with 2 AWESOME girls and a fabu-husband. A life that I am in control of and where I create my own destiny every day. I was so overwhelmed in that moment that I stood in the aisle crying and praying in thankfulness. A life so blessed that I wished my grandmother was alive to see it. I looked up and hoped that she was smiling down...and she was I'm sure and probably saying, "Lord that poor child is standing there trying to figure out whether to buy bleach or not."...which was true, also.



Mrs. B :o)

So long, Collective Soul!

Years ago, on a far away stage, Ed Roland danced with me. In another city, at another time, he professed his friendship with a gift of a tye-dyed T-shirt. I LOVED that shirt. It has traveled with me for years, but today...it became a "paint" shirt...LOL. Yeah, y'all know what I am talkin' about. Those shirts you hold onto forever and think that if you let it go that somehow that memory will die. It won't. I promise.

Ed was one of the nicest guys I'd ever met. I always thought if it had been a different time and place...we'd live happily ever after. He was such an average joe, but could mesmerize you when speaking to you. I love people that can do that--men or women.

Anyway, in this chapter of the Book of Christy, I am a different person. As with everyone, getting older and settling down leaves us with the ability to let things go that seemed to have been so important, but weren't. He would never remember me--time does that to you...LOL, but I'm OK with it now. I love that shirt still, but now it means more...in a different way. It reminds me of a time of no direction and personal confusion to now--happily ever after. A time where it's much more important to have a good paint shirt then to dwell on old memories...LOL.

Soooo...so long, Collective Soul. I've moved on to Johnny Cash...but you probably have, too.
Mrs. B :o)

paperwork, paperwork, paperwork

I often here people do not teach b/c of the pay...WRONG!It has to be the paperwork. I'm not complaining--I LOVE MY JOB!...and I guess, you could say that about any job, really? I mean, I assume trails upon trails of paperwork are for the protection of the teachers, and I'm good with that, but meetings upon meetings to discuss the aforementioned paperwork seems so tedious.

I said this once to my principal, and he just smiled (I'm sure because he knew where I was coming from), but then said in his best "cup half-full attitude" voice, "Mrs. Boyd, you should try teaching primary."...LOL. Guess that's why I never will...LOL. The only paperwork I feel appropriate in any class is the I.C.E. info...In Case of Emergency--who do I need to contact.

Sure grades are important. I understand why we test, though most tests, standardized anyway, mainly tests what you don't know, not what you do.

The best thing about being a teacher, and I hope it continues, is being excited about being in the classroom. I love every student and the potential each and everyone of them have to learn. I know at this point in their lives, math may seem unimportant and they may think that this is just work to me, but in 20 years, when they are doing something simple, they'll remember that Mrs. Boyd (maybe) taught them something about numbers that stuck with them all that time.

Mrs. B :o)

Football Season is here!

Are you ready for some football?...I am. I love football season. Since meeting Mr. Chad it has become one of my favorite sports and one of our favorite seasons.

I am more of a college football person and he is an "any and all" types of football person. He can just flip on a game and start watching it..me, not so much.

I like old, traditional rich teams and the SEC, but he will watch it all, and if I haven't mentioned it before...he LOVES him some STEELERS (says it's the working-class man's team...LOL).

Anyway, it is nice to be able to go to my school's games on Friday night for high school action, lay around on Saturday and watch college, and then get a whopping dose of pro-ball on Sunday. Yep, we're good on football around here...Now, I just need to get him hooked on something I like...Wait, he has been watching that Antique Roadshow with me...LOL.

Go Trojans! Go Irish! Go Wildcats!
Mrs. B