Why is it that every time you go on vacation you come back to twice the work? The last 2 weeks have been spent playing catch up in between visits from the district staff. Ugh! And why is it that no matter how many great things you do, they always find those little deficiencies to pick at? Maybe their mentality is that no one is perfect and we're gonna make damn sure she knows that she's not perfect... Who knows? Still, it's a job that pays the bills and provides me with health care, which is more than some people can say these days! I'm still holding out hope that PetSmart will call me and say, "Teresa, can you come manage our store and oh, by the way, would you please bring your dog to work everyday as well?" Hey, a girl can dream, right?

Vacation - Day 5. Not much accomplished this week, but I guess sometimes that's the whole point of vacation, right?

The kids are in the summer production of Willie Wonka Jr. this weekend at the Bell Tower Theater, so stay tuned for pics...

Chilly and rainy. Where did summer go? Thinking about going back to bed for the day and can't seem to find a reason not to...

Vacation, Day 1 - Taking it easy, resting and regrouping. Work has been kinda tough lately. They've been asking me to travel more and take on all kinds of new responsibilities. Now, you know I love a good challenge and have never minded additional responsibilities, but the things they are asking me to do fall more under the realm of someone with a much higher salary than I...

I spent the day puttering around the house, watching seasons 1 and 2 of "The Office", cathing up on emails and posting some unused crafting supplies for sale on Craig's List.

The weather is in the 'in between' stage - not quite hot enough for the A/C, but still a little sticky. I've settled on keeping the windows open to enjoy the fresh air and slight breeze, but have dug out the tank tops...

My nephew Trey left for Afghanistan last week - hoping he stays safe and hurries home soon.

Had a great Fourth of July weekend, despite the fact that I had to work both days. My brother John was here and we spent the time hanging out, watching movies and playing games. Saturday night, we skipped the fireworks and resorted to setting off 'illegal fireworks' in the front yard. By 'illegal fireworks' I mean firecrackers, LOL. Only in Dubuque...

And that's it for today!