Parking in the Garage

Tonight, as I was driving the van into the garage, Reese says, "Ooh, I have never done this before." When I thought about it, she was right. I don't think that in her whole lifetime we have parked cars in the garage. It has always been a storage unit for mostly restaurant things including a 6 foot grill with a trailer hitch. Even though we have not had the grill in the garage for awhile now, the garage still never got clean enough to put a vehicle in last year. We still had kid outdoor toys and other storage items including some of my work crates and boxes that got in the way.  Through dilligent cleaning, storing, and donating in 2011, 2012 is the year we finally accomplished what was for many years impossible.

I did offer the one space that we have in the garage to my husband because he drives the older of our two vehicles (although mine has more miles on it).  He said that it was for me because he has time to warm his truck and scrape in the morning because he has to wait for the kids to get on the bus anyway.  Score for me!

Tailgating

I have to say that this is one of the coolest things that I have ever seen at a tailgate!  I didn't have the nerve to participate but I enjoyed watching other guests play as teams.  At one point there was a game of home v. visiting fans!  They won both the game here and the football game, but it was all in good fun!

My Former Teacher, My Present Boss

I am a tutor at a school where the principal is my grade school French teacher. I had told a few of the teachers at the school that I am a former student of the principal, but was wary of mentioning it to the principal herself. One day I was in the office with a parent consultant and the topic of the principal's former students came up, and I mentioned that I am actually one of her former students. She said that I should tell the principal. I still was wary about letting her know.

Well, the parent consultant took care of it for me. One day when I got to school, the principal asked if she could see me in her office. I was wondering what I had done. When I got into her office, she asked me if I recognized this green satin box with lace overlay. It did look kind of like the box I had my ring bearer carry for our wedding so I said yes. She said that the box was one that I had given her after I went on a trip as a student of hers. She still kept the box on her dresser and uses it for her earrings. I was amazed! The principal said that once the parent consultant jogged her memory, she knew exactly who I was and could even spell my maiden name to this day.

I have to say that it was nice to be remembered so fondly over 25 years later. The principal did not remember some of my former classmates, but she did remember me and in a positive light!

21: Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich

This is the inside story of six M.I.T. students who took Vegas for millions. I reserved this book because it was recommended on my library's website as a great read. It was floating around my car, and my husband found it on the way home from a visit with family. He started to read it and the book became the first book that I have ever seen my husband read for pleasure. It was a quick read for him since he enjoys gambling and Vegas. I was impressed that the book held his attention even after finding out that the movie had just come out on DVD.