So much to post, so much to say! I'll start with updates.
London: Not doing so well in school. Dropped French for next semester, because he failed it for the semester with a 56. He failed last year as well, so it's not look well. He will pick up study skills, and then will start with Spanish next semester. It gets worse- He failed 5 classes for the nine weeks and had a 78 in English. He passed Biology, which was just a recovery class from failing last year. They didn't even put it on his report card. Geometry came out with a 67 for the semester, but he could still pull it off for the year. He at least passed the other classes for the semester. And, because he did so much better the first nine weeks, he has several B's for the semester. Needless to say, he'll be going in to tutoring for something every morning and afternoon for the rest of the year. He's allowed his fun during Christmas break- but when school starts back, he's on lock down. Of course, he'll not be taking drivers ed this semester either. IF he passes everything next semester, we'll allow him to take it during the summer. If not, he won't have a chance until next spring, after he proves his grades in the fall.
On another note- London has a girlfriend. Brenda. Perhaps the cause of the decline in grades? She's a Senior, really sweet girl, and probably a good influence on him. Although, he spends an awful lot of time on the phone with her, so in addition to locking his TV, we'll be confiscating his phone daily. They only see each other at school, haven't even seen each other over break yet. She doesn't have a licence, and has strict parents, which I am perfectly fine with. He'll be spending the rest of his break locked in his room I'm sure, since his Christmas gift from the grandparents and us, was a new super powered CPU! It was a complete surprise to London and such an awesome computer, we got for a great deal! Enjoy it while you can, London!
Jeff: Still slaving away at Godiva. Retail at a mall- during Christmas: uuuhhhhh. Yeah, enough said. It's made for a jolly Christmas however! Can anyone say fudge made with Godiva chocolate???? So, Jeff is still in school. This is absolutely his last semester however, and I can't wait until he graduates! His co-workers/employees/friends gave him a Turtle Beach gaming headset for Christmas, which I believe is really a present more for me! Soooo glad I don't have to listed to machine guns for hours on end any longer! His boss gave him gift cards to the On the Border/Macaroni Grill chain, so, date night soon! I gave him a great big new roasting pan which we tried out on Christmas morning. He'll have his dream kitchen soon enough. Seriously, if you ever need a gift idea for Jeff- kitchen stuff! He's really loves to cook and bake. Good thing too, because he's fabulous at it!
Leanne: Well, there's not much to talk about in my life, since my life is school right now. I pretty much eat, sleep, and breathe school. Things have been going well. I'm not working as many hours and it's getting easier every day. It is a lot of work though, and I am still working quite a few 12+ hour days to get everything done. I am really thinking I would love to move in to Gen Ed. middle school math. I do love teaching Special Education, and I love my school and administration. Most of all, I am grateful for any job right now. I'm just exhausted. Oh, and fat. I'm a stress eater. Needless to say, I've gained back about half the weight I lost. I have my work cut out for me to get it back off. I'll be counting calories again, starting... uh, tomorrow. I'll also be going to the thrift store this week, to try and buy some pants that fit me. I'm loving being on Christmas break. I've done a whole lot of nothing, shopping, and cleaning the house. My house has never looked better. The fun is almost over however, and the week flew by! One more lazy day today, and then I have to start getting ready for the upcoming semester. I have some lesson plans to write, visual schedules to make, and STAAR Alt assessments to create. The last part is the doozy. I was going to start today, but I've got a kitchen full of dishes, and a lunch date with the in-laws- one last visit with Josh and Stephanie, before they head back to Austin. Which brings me to the family update.
Family: Had a great time Christmas Eve at the in-laws for the traditional Chicken Fried Steak Christmas Eve dinner. Delicious. Stephanie made home-made Sangria that she brought for us to enjoy. It was to die for! On Jeff's side of the family we open all the presents on Christmas Eve, and since we were not all together in the morning, we opened stockings too! Great fun. (Oh, and Jeff's present to me was a
sterling silver butterfly necklace that I've wanted). Then, we had my folks, my brother and his wife and daughter, Jeff's folks, his brother and fiance, over for Christmas Day dinner at our house. You know I love to entertain. Ham dinner with all the fixings, including made form scratch
macaroni-and-cheese, that I (not Jeff) made. I also made a peppermint cake, which I must say turned out fantastically (see pictures to come). We did a white elephant style present exchange, which was fun, and funny. Everyone got exactly what they wanted (except Josh and Stephanie), and no one wanted to steal presents! I forgot to take pictures until the very end, when Josh and Stephanie stayed late to play Rock Band with us! All-in-all, it was a fun 2 days!
So, now we have spring to look forward to. Planning a weekend in Austin during march, and a trip to Florida in July. I'm hoping the whole family will come down to Texas this summer again. I'm already tired of the winter, and ready for the summer. Of course, that may have to do with the 2+ months I'll be off of work! But, really, I'm ready for the sun again. I believe my in-laws will be moving out of their house before summer, so we'll have to go sign up with a membership at the public pool! Guess I won't be floating on the pool with a cocktail in my hand anymore though. That is, until we're ready to buy a house of our own of course- but that won't be until next summer, I'm sure. We re-arranged the furniture to fit a second table in to feed everyone yesterday, and I think we'll be leaving it this way. Our living room is twice as big! See if you notice the difference in the pictures I will post.
Well, that pretty much sums up the goings on of the Campbell's. I'll try to post more often this spring, now that I've got everything under control, I should have a sliver more free time.
