Private Post

I wish there was an option for a single private post, as opposed to having to create a private blog.  If you know the secret, let me in on it.

Hotel Rant

Eric and I enjoyed seeing Sarah and Chuck last weekend at the Rangers game.  Although the Rangers ultimately lost, they had two home runs so I got to see fireworks.  That makes me happy.  After the game we went to The Cheesecake Factory.  That makes me happy too.

What doesn't make me happy?  Our hotel, which we made reservations at, did not have a room for Eric and me.  Apparently hotels purposely overbook, just like airlines, assuming that not all guests will show up.  Guess what?  Everyone showed up!  The manager of the hotel sent Eric and I over to another hotel, promising us that we would not be charged for our stay there and we would be reimbursed for our original reservation.  It has been a week and my credit card is still showing a charge for the original reservation and now Eric's credit card is showing a $180 charge for the alternate hotel.  I've emailed the assistant general manager and will take this to their corporate headquarters if needed, but really!  Have they never heard of customer service?  :(

The Scores Are In

The dreaded day (for me) finally came--TAKS scores arrived. There's a couple of things you have to know to understand why I was scared to see these scores:

1. Only 50% of the students passed their 3rd grade math TAKS test last year. Doesn't really bode well for fourth grade, does it?
2. This was my first year to teach math and on most days I felt like I was just winging it.

As I looked through the list to see who had passed and who had failed, I was shocked to see that some students who I knew were destined to fail had actually passed. It turns out that 73% of my students passed their 4th grade math TAKS test! Now I know 73% doesn't sound fabulous, but considering the fact that only half of them passed their 3rd grade test last year, I think it's great!

The students aren't aware that their scores have come in, but I can't wait to see the surprised look on some of their faces when they find out how they did. :)

If you want to read about the awesome scores Eric's students had, hop on over to his blog.

Maddie Ann

As you've probably seen on Facebook, our baby girl's name will be Madilyn Ann, Maddie for short. We can't wait to meet her!

Baby Name Jumble

Eric's mom figured it out really fast.  Can you?

3D/4D Ultrasound

For those of you who haven't seen it on Facebook. . . .

Turns out instead of looking at us, our baby girl would rather look at my back. We poked and prodded her and fed her a milkshake AND a snowcone, all without success. Thankfully the tech was really patient. We're going back next Thursday to see if she will be more cooperative.

One good thing about our visit today was we were able to get another confirmation that our baby girl is indeed a girl.  Bring on the pink!  :)

Exciting Week and a Half

• 3D/4D ultrasound on Wednesday--Hope she cooperates!
• Possible baby name reveal later in the week--Trying to decide whether or not to take some monetary bribes first.  :)
• Field trip Friday--We're only taking the "good" ones, so it should be fun.
• Rangers game with Sarah on Saturday--A year is too long to wait between visits.
• School baby shower the following Tuesday--Cake and presents, yay!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

It is amazing how much a body changes during pregnancy! Yesterday I realized I couldn't remember what I looked like without a belly, so I pulled up a picture from when I first found out I was pregnant at 4 weeks. Then I had Eric take a picture of me at 26 weeks and 3 days. Wow!

Daddy's Girl

Even though they haven't met face to face, our baby girl already has Eric wrapped around her really little finger. 

About a month ago he picked this out for her:

Then yesterday after an all day school trip he came home with these two:

What a lucky girl to have a daddy who loves her so much!  It makes my heart happy.  :)

Trying Something New--Swag Bucks

Several months ago I read a post someone had written about a free search engine called Swag Bucks.  The blogger said that all you have to do is sign up and then when you use Swag Bucks to do a search you may earn virtual money that can be spent on a variety of things from Amazon gift cards to Wiis.  Being skeptical, I tucked this little piece of information away for possible future use instead of signing up immediately.

Well today I decided to go for it; I am now officially a Swaggernaut.  Dorky, huh?  As far as I can tell the site is genuine and with the amount of googling that I usually do, I may as well earn something from all of my searching.  So goodbye Google, hello Swag Bucks!  I'm thinking that saving up for some Amazon gift cards sounds really nice.

If you're interested in signing up for Swag Bucks, then use my refer a friend link here or click on the "Search and Win" banner on the right side of the screen.

Do any of you already use Swag Bucks? If so, let me know how it's working out for you.

Okay, I'm done with my little promotion.  I've got some searching to do.  :)