My Allergy app, where I record my shots and get instructions, has a pollen tracker for my area. This week was off the charts! We're talking in the red, where it reads extreme. If nasal passages could scream in terror...
I had some coughing, some congestion. But Analiese was hit the worst. (My theory is my allergy shots actually helped. Not 100%, but then, nothing's perfect). She would cough all day into the night. She wasn't sleeping well and couldn't taste anything when eating. At least she knows Mom sympathizes.
Ken gave her a blessing Monday and, that evening, I had her sleep propped on more pillows. Amazing what a difference that made. Just being able to sleep!
But I limited her contact with the outside. If I was smarter, I probably should have had her wear a mask when outside. Instead, we didn't walk this week...what, all those trees with pollen? And when Ken offered to open windows on a lovely day I emphatically said, "No!" Let's not encourage more pollen to come in! And, yes, the wind has been busy blowing, too. All very (NOT) helpful.
But, the good news is I'm done with shots. For now. I go back to the doctor the first of May to assess how well I've done and whether to continue or not. The downside is I have to go off all of my allergy meds (and some others) until then because my system needs to be clear for them to test. Please settle down, pollen!
Pest Control
It is embarrassing to admit, but the mouse wars continue on. I don't know why; in the spring they should have abandoned ship! And those suckers are so smart, they've left alone every single sticky trap I set!
Then, with spring comes the insects. Some ants have come into the house; I keep finding one or two in the shower. Don't forget the swarm that was all over my potting soil in the shed! There are wasps and muddaubers (a more benign type of wasp) that seem to congregate around the front door. Some would say spiders are also an issue, but I haven't seen that many and I consider them allies in my fight against bad bugs!
However, the situation with the rodents (BTW...rabbits are NOT part of the rodentia family. One of the first things we learned in 4H.) was becoming untenable. We went over our budget and decided that it was in the cards...hire an exterminator.
There's only one local exterminator in town, and I've not heard good things about them. So, I called the closest one outside of Chickasha and found that they serviced our town. Friday, the guy came over, set bait, sprayed around the house and outside (Yes, it's safe for pets. The guy himself has had rabbits and knew it would hurt as long as they didn't get into the bait, which was put in tiny, sheltered corners they - namely Alice - could not get at). He's supposed to come back every other month to check and spray and whatever as needed.
Full Steam Ahead
It's the middle of April and everything just seems to be speeding up. Take Seminary, next month is graduation (for High School, too) and I have to have my lessons done and the assessment taken before the 19th, which is the stake graduation. My seniors graduate from high school that Saturday, but the actual last day of school is the Friday after. I had planned my lessons for that because the rule is, for every day of high school, you have a day of Seminary. Not in this case, mainly because the next weekend is Memorial Day weekend and - Poof! - people are gone.
Okay, okay. But I was behind already because of two "snow" days (there was NO snow) that the school district called and we didn't have seminary. So this weekend, I had to review everything and double up a couple of classes. I hate being pressured and I like to give ample time to discuss everything. Not gonna be the case for a couple of days. SIGH.
Analiese's school work with EPIC is speeding up, too. I met with her teacher this week if only to get things squared away. I want to use her remaining educational funds with EPIC for this school year to pay for her Driver's Ed. That's because next year's funds need to go to cover USAO classes this fall. In OK, the state will pay for high school seniors to take college classes, but junior year, they don't. Why? Who knows? She will be taking English and Algebra 2 in the fall. Gosh, this makes her feel so grown up!
And...on top of all that is VIPKid. I didn't have Seminary Friday morning because of the Easter weekend, so I opened up Friday morning. Cuz who wants to sleep in? I ended up with three classes that morning and two in the evening. Saturday, I had two in the morning, but then...oh my! I had FIVE in a row that evening! I've never done more than two back-to-back before. What had I gotten myself into?
It was CRAZY. The first two classes were with the same child, one right after the other. The nice thing was, the lessons were on similar topics and used similar props. At least I didn't have to prep as much.The last three were regulars. I have to tell you about one of them. This was my fourth lesson with her and, in the beginning, she frustrated me a lot. She was distracted by something else to the side of her computer and seemed listless. Of course, my Saturday night meant her Sunday morning and I'm sure she was tired. My third class went a little better; I got her to smile and look at me more. So, I hatched an idea for this one: this lesson was talking about speed, fast, slow, move, etc. I had Analiese sit beside me with the rabbits and when the student did a good job, she could see a rabbit (I swapped Pom and Alice from time to time) and ask a question about it. She LOVED it! She is a very pretty girl and her smiles just thrilled me. I think we are getting to know each other and be comfortable. And I'm pretty sure I just won her over!
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| Pom shares the hoodie with Analiese! |
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| Pom is a climber, she likes to be up high where she can see! |
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| Analiese is a sucker for Pom's antics! |
Oh, I got a sweet note from parent feedback this week. Apparently one of my new students "loved" his teacher and just had to rebook. This is the icing on the cake!
More Crazy...this week I certified to be a teacher for the Voice of VIPKid. I know, I just barely got my level 1 certification, but this was open and the other teachers in my FB groups (currently five), say it's a lot of fun. It's basically teaching them to sing and perform a song. When they get it down, they can record it, have it uploaded into a video with effects that their parents can post on social media. It's a big hit, apparently, plus it helps a lot with diction and pronunciation. It's for the level 1 and 2 students, primarily and often those kids can go on and book you for other classes. I'm just opening myself up for more opportunities to teach!
I may go on and get my Phonics certification, too, for the lower levels. Those are special classes to help struggling students booster their phonics skills. Carpe Diem!
Easter
You know my Easter Sunday was pretty much a bust because of my sleep/tooth problems. (Sad Face) But we had our "Easter" dinner Thursday with the sister missionaries. We had the traditional ham (but not sweet, the kids don't like that) with the funeral potatoes, green beans, and a jello salad that turned out very pretty as well as tasty!
The funny thing was, that evening, with the sisters there, another ex-sister texted me from her home with a photo of a tray full of...bunny butt cupcakes! She had been here last year and remembered them and loved them! I had to laugh as I sent her a photo of mine this year.
I took some to Seminary, too. Unfortunately, half of my class doesn't like coconut! Bummer. They were so cute, too!
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