"There's a fire starting in my heart/ Reaching a fever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark"

Let's do a Television Recap Wrap Up. Yes, I know, why do it now when almost all shows are ending for the season? Because, friend, that way I can ease myself into the task. I do one, get a three month break, and then can start for real in the fall. It makes sense to me so let's run with it.

1. The Amazing Race-- Basically the order of who I wanted to win ended up being the opposite. I connected with Kisha and Jen the least. And props to the editors for not focusing on them since the beginning despite the fact they ended up winning (cough Survivor cough). I was pulling for a Zev/Justin win since they (read: Justin) dominated this season. When they got the heave-ho, somehow Mallory grew on me and I was pulling for them. Sucks that the cab driver really can make or break this race. And I'm happy the Globetrotters placed in the top three. So really, ho-hum season that had potential to be awesome. Just sucks when a team that didn't win first place any other leg ends up winning.

2. Make it or Break it. I'm a little over Emily's antics but I realize the pregnancy was written in since Chelsea Hobbs is/was pregnant in real life. Glad Sasha and Kaley are back at the Rock. Lauren is still obnoxious. Payson is hit or miss for me. I just wish these girls would actually change and develop as opposed to being consistently sucky-ish. And Summer needs to dump Steve and get over this "I need to be there for Lauren" business. Still love the show though.

3. Gossip Girl. Just when I was ready to give up, GG kicks it into gear. I still miss the contained drama of high school and could do without the parental issues. But with the addition of Crazy Cousin Charlie and the subtraction of Vanessa and Jenny, it's now on track. And loved Uncle Jack coming back. I have such a love/hate relationship with him (and every other character that actor plays). Looking forward to next week!

4. Glee. I liked this episode. Really the songs are what really determines it for me. And Jesse St James's return! I seriously hope Jonathan Groff pulls a Darren Criss and becomes a regular cast member. I LOVE him and Lea/Rachel together. I'm over Kurt and Santana's drama and wish there could be some more consistency in the writing so that plot lines ran smoothly and actually had resolution. But what can you do? I'm also embarrassed that I actually was enjoying the "Friday" song before I realized what it was. But hey they remixed it and it was almost unrecognizable. Almost. The shame.

5. Raising Hope. I think this show had potential to be in the vein of Arrested Development with the way all the little things add up in the episodes. Unfortunately, the past few episodes have been so-so. Here's to hoping next week's is better. It's still pretty funny though. And that baby is so cute.

6. Survivor. So freaking pumped about the finale tomorrow. I'm pulling for a Rob win. If another worthless, practically invisible Natalie wins because of a bitter jury, I'm going to be irked. I'd also be okay with a Grant/Mike win. I don't understand Phillip's logic of "playing crazy". It's one thing to be crazy and another to be annoying. He still annoyed his tribe on purpose even if it was just pretend. Like I tell my kids on the playground: Even if you're pretending, you still have to be nice. I'm hoping Rob ekes out the win (he's been playing for ten years trying to win. It took us ten years to find Bin Laden. I HAVE HOPE!) because he deserves it. I didn't understand why he didn't take Grant to the side after Ashley won and tell him, "Look man. Mike is dominating on Redemption Island. Since she can't go, one of us needs to and take this guy out or he is going to win it all. I can't do it. That stair immunity challenge really took it out of me. I know you can do it. You'll win, you'll get to come back, and we'll be in the final three." Maybe he didn't want to keep making promises he can't keep but that would have been flawless. If I wouldn't be miserable with no sleep, no shelter, and no food, I'd totally go on the show. But since I wouldn't get those things, I would quit three days (read: hours) in. GO ROB! Prediction for final three: Natalie, Phillip, and Rob.

7. American Idol. I can't believe James is out. I thought he had it in the bag. Sure he screeched but at least he was entertaining. I do think he started to slip these past two weeks. Lauren is still SO immature (evidence: when she was in the bottom two last week) and honestly not that great of a singer whether it is because of nerves or not (they praised her voice for cracking)! And Scotty McCreepy. I loathe thee. I know this means he is going to win but I LOATHE him and his flute playing-microphone. And how he totally pandered his vote to the southern, patriotic people. He was seven when 9/11 happened. If he was on Nashville Star, sure, win. But not American Idol. He also barely sings but rather sing/speaks. OVER HIM. The lesser of three evils is Hayley. While she has a horrible attitude (granted she is 19), she has the best voice and has actually grown as an artist while Scotty and Lauren have NOT even in the slightest. So go Hayley? I guess? My interest dropped when Casey got eliminated (for the second time). It still hurts.

8. Modern Family. This episode had some LOL moments but overall a weak episode. Season One was a lot stronger but the show is still very funny. I still laugh about the episode from a few weeks ago where Luke befriends the old neighbor: "We have oxygen in our house but we don't need to use tanks". *takes deep breathe before going inside* to paraphrase. I still chuckle.

9. The Office. It is struggling without Michael, that's for sure. I liked the antics of Dwight being manager but seriously, let's pick a boss and go with it. Glad Will Ferrell isn't permanent, wasn't feeling that.

10. The Vampire Diaries. Mock all you want, I honestly think it is one of the BEST shows on TV right now. It is SO addicting and consistently good. There are never s0-so episodes. While the final left me confused/ unsure of how I feel about several characters' fates, I still LOVE IT. I struggle with shipping Delena but I might come around just since Ian Somerhaulder is so darn attractive. Sad that Stefan has gone to the dark side. I actually screamed when Jeremy got shot. And I'm glad Bonnie loves/saved him. Totally shipping Caroline/Tyler. Matt can go. Totally want Ric to be Elena and Jeremy's new guardian. I was actually sad at the trifecta of deaths last week: Jenna, John, and Jules (apparently it was bad news bears if your name starts with a J) even though those were all characters I was only s0-so about all season. Glad Jeremy escaped the curse... or did he? I can't believe I have to wait all summer to find out. This show better get picked up for a third season.

Yeah... I watch a lot of tv. But it's really like one show a night... okay maybe two. That's how I feel. And you? You feel free to leave comments about how YOU feel! :)

"These words... from my heart flow/ I love you"

And since I'm already here....

In celebration of Easter I made the decision to teach my kids a string of six bible verses. My nieces learned it at their school when they were five. My kids are three or four. They remember bible verses from October. I thought, Let's give it a try. The first day was rough. They struggled with the world "Sabbath" and they didn't understand that "dawn" didn't mean the name of one of the girl's moms. And then I started handing out SweetTarts and Hershey's Kisses anytime the kids got a line right and the ball started rolling.

We learned the verse in two weeks. That means some of the kids learned it in FOUR days (the other kids in six... still impressive!). I was so proud. But that didn't mean we didn't have some stumbling blocks along the way. The last line in the verse is "He has risen!". Instead of risen, one kid said ribbons, another prison, and presents got mentioned a couple of times. It references Mary Magdalene and my assistant had a baby girl named Mary Ellen a few months ago. We talk about her a lot and all the kids think she's really cute. And apparently they always have her on the mind because one girl said "Mary Ellen and the other Mary Ellen went to look at the tomb". And if there was ever a tricky word, we would break it down syllable by syllable and say it over and over until it wasn't scary. This lead to us chanting/screaming "cru-ci-fied" for about twenty seconds until I realized how it must have sounded to passerbys in the hall and we moved on.

We really pounded this into the kids' heads. On Thursday, the last day of school before Easter, I was telling them about the "Angel Rolled Back the Stone" craft we were going to make later that day. And I asked them what the angel said to the women and they ALL automatically replied, "Do not be afraid. For I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, He has risen!" I said, "Wow. I kind of turned you guys into robots". And one little boy laughed and said, "No! If we were robots we would sound like this: "Do. Not. Be. A-Fraid" as he did the actual robot. It was AWESOME. And then we were done going over it for the morning so I started to tell them what I had planned for the day. I said "First we are going to have snack. Then you need to go potty before music. After...," and several of the kids jumped in and started with "After the sabbath." Like I said, robots.

But I am SO proud of them for learning SIX verses all together (Matthew 28: 1-6). They are little rockstars. I would totally post the video I spliced together of all nine kids saying it but I don't want to get fired for privacy issues. And if you want more kids stories (and I want a paycheck) let's not and say we did.

Happy Easter!

"Cause I just found someone special and that's really something special/ Nice to meet you anyway"

I got a new laptop! I am SO excited (I'm talking I danced as I waited for the FedEx lady to walk up to my door). And you can be a little excited too since maybe this will mean I will write more on here. I know. I abandon all the time. I keep telling you I'm going to come back and then I leave again. It's an abusive cycle. I'm sorry. And I really am trying to get better.

But seriously I had my iBook G4 since I was a senior in high school (the summer of 2004). I did get Mac a new hard drive circa 2008 and that solved the slowness/memory issues for about a year. And while it was hard to say goodbye, it was time. I couldn't even watch YouTube videos because the processor was SO slow. And now I can do all sorts of things! Like make movies and actually burn them (Mac lacked a DVD burner... so two-thousand-and-late). But productivity may go out the window cause I now have PhotoBooth and we all know how much fun that can be.

So now I have new inspiration/motivation to write on here and edit the book some more. I still have been working on the book but man, having a job really cuts into my free time. So I know I always say it but stayed tuned!

"Maybe I'm amazed at the way you're with me all the time"

True Story:

Me: Who.... *Girl #1 raises hand* You don't even know the question yet. *Girl #1 lowers hand* Who *Girl #1 raises hand again. I give up* Who can tell me one of the old bible verses we learned a long time ago?

Girl #1: Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid. Deuteronomy 31:6 [give her props. We learned this back in October]

Me: Nice. So I guess you did know the question before I even asked it. Good job!

Girl #2: Booyah.

It was so perfectly timed. Said so deadpanned yet with feeling. It was amazing. And yes shameful* since I have uttered this term in my classroom (five times at the most... okay six) but it's cause I watched a lot of Community in a short period of time.

Another little girl told me she liked my shoes (grey new balances) and asked if they were new. I told her they were approximately seven years old (but apparently are still in good shape) and she said "Wow. Wait. So are you seven years old too?" I wish.

* Whoops. I also then begged her not to repeat it at home or say it to her parents.

"Who are you?/ Who who who who"

A few months ago, my mom got an iPhone and she jumped on my plan so we could do the family plan and save some money. Apparently now when she calls from her phone, my name shows on caller ID since it is in my name. That's your background information.

I was sitting at home playing on my iPhone when the house phone started to ring. We have a phone where it will say the name on the caller ID out loud after two rings. So it started saying (in it's weird automated, accented voice) Call from Petrella Ansley. I looked down at my phone, still words with friends on the screen. I'm not making a call. But I keep hearing my name. HOW IS THIS HAPPENING?!

Mystery solved when my mom called my phone and we realized that my name shows up when she calls. Still, I was a little scared. It was like that Urban Legend where the killer is calling from inside the house. And it's like the killer was ME!

This could also be because I am currently knee deep in watching The Walking Dead. I'm a little paranoid. Zombies! Run!