Happy Monday!

I hope you all had a nice weekend. When I was teaching, I often wondered if weekends
would be no different than weekdays when I "retired" from the job. The end of this school year will mark 5 years of being "retired." And, for the most part, the weekends are quite a bit different than the weekdays. There are those times though, when it's hard to tell the difference between the two. Don't get me wrong, I like my weekends AND I like my weekdays, but, I would much rather be back in the classroom, teaching first graders and having daily interaction with other "2 legged individuals!"



Yes, boys, I'm talking about you! (And, yes, Asa is carrying around a piece of firewood....you never know when you might need a nice piece of firewood...)

Saturday really didn't "feel" much different than a regular weekday. My dear sweet husband had a morning workout and then had a meeting ( I know, I told him it was Saturday...but...), then when he got home, he headed outside to mow the yard. We have a large yard, and it takes several hours to finish. So, it was really like Rod being at work all day. Please do not interpret any of these comments as whining, because they are not! I'm so glad that Rod goes to these workout sessions. It is one of the very, very few things that he does just for himself. Plus, with his workload, it's a great stress-reliever. I am frustrated though, that I can't help him with the yard. Mowing the yard was one of my many household "chores" before I got sick. As a matter of fact, I mowed for two summers after I was diagnosed (don't be too impressed, they are riding mowers!) But, it became frustrating because after 20 minutes or so, I'd get real sleepy and kind of fall asleep while I was driving the mower! Sometimes, we are really slow in the Markin household and we didn't realize what was going on. I wasn't on oxygen yet, and it didn't even dawn on us that all of the bumping and jerking while driving the lawn mower, was knocking the air around and I was actually "de-satting" which means my oxygen levels would decrease and I was kind of passing out! After I started on the O2, I did take another stab at mowing. I did better, but, I really didn't feel good at all. So, we decided that that chore was to be taken off my list...permanently. Rod did buy a new mower this year, though. I'm seriously thinking of doing another "experiment." I'd love to be able to help out my guy. So, we'll see.

Anyway, because Saturday felt like a weekday, I decided to head on out to a chick flick. So.....

MOVIE REVIEW TIME!!!

I decided to go see, "Letters to Juliet" with Amanda Seyfried.



It was an absolutely adorable "romantic drama" that would be about the best example of a "chick flick" I have ever seen! Amanda Seyfried is absolutely adorable as a "fact finder" for the "New Yorker" magazine who heads off to Italy with her fiance for a pre-wedding honeymoon. As her fiance heads off on his own to do some work regarding his soon to be opened restaurant in New York, Sophie (played by Amanda Seyfriend) gets in the middle of a decades old tradition related to woman writing letters to Juliet Capulet (as in Romeo and Juliet) asking for her help with a love interest. Some would call this movie "predictable" and "sentimental" but, I would then ask them what they thought they were going to see? Were they expecting a blood-bath with machine guns and rocket launchers? I don't think so!

Anyway, I give it 8 puppy paws up, if you like this type of movie!

Oh my, this post is turning into quite a novel!! I think I'll tell you about my exciting Sunday adventures when I post tomorrow. Just to tweak your interest, I'll tell you it has something to do with buffalo, sandhill cranes, outhouses and celebrating my birthday with Rod, Nick and Kara.

Before I go, I'd like to thank all of you for your cards, notes and well-wishes on this, my 54th birthday!! It's hard to believe that when I was 48 years old, I was diagnosed with a rare disease that was suppose to "do me in" by the time I turned 53. Hah!! I showed them!! Those goofy doctors, they just didn't know how stubborn I really am!!

I'll see you tomorrow.
Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Annette