I have an editor

I mentioned before that I was working on a book about Multiple Sclerosis that has been several years in the making. I finally reached a point where I was ready for an editor. The good news, I found one! Thank you Damama for your help, your links and advice truly paid off. I now have an editor and she sent my first round of edits to me yesterday. Some of them are simple clarifications and/or revisions and some will entail some more work. Regardless, this dream of mine is finally coming to light. I am extremely excited about how things are coming together. A couple more rounds of editing and I'll be ready to submit to a publisher. If anyone has any suggestions on this other than randomly sending my manuscript to every publisher in the country, it would be greatly appreciated. Either way, I am really happy and glad to see my hard work is finally paying off. Thank you.

My job

I finally landed a job I love in September. I am now working at the University of Kentucky in the Undergraduate Education research department. My supervisor is a wonderful woman who is not only easy to get along with, but also understanding about family life. She is willing to work with me on meetings and appointments during the day. Although my position is temporary, it is guaranteed until Dec. 2009. Hopefully, it will become permanent in July when the new Fiscal budget comes out and the department grant is renewed. If not, I will be eligible for other positions within the university. Regardless, I finally have a gym membership where I take Yogilates, dental insurance (my wisdom teeth come out Dec. 12) and vision insurance (I get glasses next week). I hope to stay here for years to come and I am finally able to be proactive about my health. Now just to get permanent so I can have health insurance!

On a personal note, Adam turned 13 on Halloween! I am now officially the mother of a teenager! He acted like one before then, but now it's official. We went haunted housing to Nightmare Haunted House, Trail of Terror, and Terror on Tates Creek. The first and last were great, the middle was a huge waste of time and money. Regardless, we had a blast. Nov. 1st I threw him a surprise party at the house with an Ohio State theme (his favorite football team). Three of his friends stayed the night and they had a great time playing football and XBOX 360.

Aurea is getting ready to turn 7. Hopefully, I can update again before her birthday, but we are having her party on Dec. 6th. She is really excited about the party. She is also on the academic team at school and starting Upward Cheerleading in December.

We have had some family issues since moving back, but I won't get into my dysfunctional family issues. All-in-all, we are doing well. I love my job and Lexington and the kids are doing great.

What is wrong with this world?

I went to pick Aurea up from school on Thursday as usual. No big deal, until I pulled into the parking lot and saw several police cruisers and five or so policemen standing at the front of the building.

Aurea got in the car and told me the school was on lockdown because the police were "chasing the bad boy." She is 6-years-old, so that is really all I got from her. The note home from the school explained it a little better, but here is the newspaper article on it (I've taken out the names of the schools and stuff though).





Posted on Thu, Sep. 25, 2008

Two (local) schools sent letters home with students Thursday following separate incidents: a brief lockdown after fourth-graders allegedly saw a man with a weapon and a high school student's "personal medical emergency."


______ Elementary School was placed on lockdown for about 45 minutes Thursday after some fourth-grade students reported seeing a man with a weapon as they were going inside after afternoon recess, according to a news release.


School district officials and (local) police determined the facility was safe after a search of the building and surrounding grounds. An investigation continues.


"We are very proud of the students who did the right thing by alerting adults to the situation and we want to remind our kids that anytime they have any safety concerns they should tell an adult immediately," said a news release from the school district.


Meanwhile, at ____________ High School, an ambulance was called after a student experienced a "personal medical emergency" Thursday morning.


The district said privacy laws prevent them from sharing more details, but said rumors that the students was a victim of violence or criminal activity are untrue.


Okay, the kids did the right thing by reporting the adult with the weapon. I'm also glad the school was put on lockdown so they could check for danger. However, the police stayed the rest of the day, well past 45 minutes to ensure safety. I'm also glad they were being cautious. What bothers me is that a man with a weapon would even be near an elementary school in the first place! It also bothers me that the school didn't call parents.

Some of my friends think I'm overreacting and can't expect the school to call every single parent in this type of situation, especially when no danger was found. That might be true, but it doesn't make me feel any better. Especially the parts about no danger found yet the investigation continues. What does that mean? Does that mean the man existed but left before being apprehended and could come back? The kids were out Friday for records day so should I worry about a repeat incident on Monday? Should I be freaking out or am I overreacting?

A similiar incident happened at an elementary school in Pensecola, FL on Wed. A high school boy was arrested in Oklahoma City on Tues. for bringing a gun to school.

Nobody seems to have these answers. I just know I don't like the situation and it scares me to pull up to my daughter's school and find cops everywhere!

The world is insane and it is extremely scary. Sorry if I'm overprotective, but I think I have reason to be. Something is seriously wrong with the world today.

I'm back

Obviously, it has been quite some time since I last updated my blog. I have actually been reading the blogs of my friends and fellow bloggers, I just have not had time to respond to each one. I have been keeping up though! I moved back to Lexington in July and I've been using the internet at the library ever since. Unfortunately, the library has time limits so I have not posted or responded like I wanted. I've had way too much to do in a very short time.

We finally got internet back at home on Friday, my 30th birthday! OMG I cannot believe I turned 30, it does not even seem possible. Kevin made it a very romantic birthday though. I got lots of new clothes so I had a new outfit to wear out. Then, we went to Red Lobster for dinner where I received a gold and diamond necklace, it is absolutely beautiful! Then, he took me to Comedy Off Broadway. I love comedy clubs, I laughed until I cried! Then, yesterday I got a manicure and pedicure! I certainly got spoiled this weekend. It makes getting older a little more bearable!!

The kids are doing great. Adam is almost 13 and talks about football constantly. His favorite team (besides his school of course) is Ohio State. Aurea is 6 and loves first grade. She is back at the school where she started with her old friends. Her best friend lives across the street now so I feel like I have two daughters! It's great though because they are always playing with each other and being occupied.

I'm enjoying being back in Lexington and having a fresh start. I miss talking to everyone and hopefully I'll be able to update more often now. Talk to everyone soon.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of my blogger friends! Today has been a nice day. I got up and had coffee with my parents this morning. Aurea made a board with clothespins attached to the front and magnets on the back. I can now put it on the refrigerator and hang notes, how sweet! She also made a beautiful card with a poem and her handprints. My parents bought me a T-shirt.

The kids and I went out to Los Mariachis for dinner the other night in celebration. It was really nice, just the three of us. The food was great, but the service was awful. The margarita was good though! LOL

Anyway, after our coffee, I had to get ready and go to work. My family had a Mother's Day lunch so my dad brought me a plate at work. I love my daddy!! Yes, I still call him that even though I'm grown up! It was really sweet.

Fortunately, I got off work at 5 and was able to come home and relax. Adam gave me a Mother's Day card. It was one of those where you record your voice and then it plays music.

I have the greatest children! I hope everyone else has had a great day too.

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

My links

My apologies to anyone who noticed that my links and titles didn't all match. I have checked them and believe they are now all fixed. If anyone notices that I missed one, please let me know. It is certainly unintentional. The only thing I couldn't fix though, my computer won't do the upside down question mark. :( I'm sorry.

Otherwise, my life is about the same. Still working and taking care of the kids. School is fast coming to an end, so I'm preparing for summer vacation and all of the extra time around here.

The Derby was bittersweet today. Living in Kentucky, the Derby is a huge event. I was glad to see Big Brown win, but really sorry Eight Belles had to be put down afterwards.

Okay, that's my short and sweet post for the night. Take care all.

Stranger Safety

Note: Make sure your children are not reading over your shoulder before reading this!





I got the kids up for school yesterday morning as usual, no big deal. Aurea kept talking about strangers though and I wasn't sure why, but we've talked about not taking candy from strangers and knowing what to do if one approaches her. This being said, I didn't think too much about it.

Aurea takes her time doing everything in the mornings. Normally, I send her on out to the car while Adam and I are getting our shoes on cause I know she might actually make it down the deck stairs by the time we get out the door. However, yesterday I sent her out and she stopped on the stairs and started crying and screaming that she was scared.

I just looked at her in shock and was like, "Scared of what!" She said she was scared a stranger was going to kidnap and kill her. I was shocked! I got her to the car and asked her why she was scared of something like that.

Apparently, the D.A.R.E. officer came to school and did a program on Stranger Safety for the kindergarten classes. She was scared to get out of the car at school because she was afraid someone would grab her. When I got home, my mom informed me that the day before after school (I was at work) she went out to swing in the backyard, but wanted the back door open so we could hear her scream if a stranger came in the yard to get her!

I was appalled, so I called the school. I asked her teacher what this officer told these kids because he obviously did not tailor his message to the minds of 5 and 6-year-old children! She said he never said anything about children getting killed. She said he spoke about safety and some of the children started talking about kids being kidnapped and killed by strangers.

I have a problem with this! How do these kids know these things? Do parents really tell their kids about strangers by telling them they will be kidnapped and murdered in their own homes? Do they let these young children watch news reports of kidnappings? Or did the officer really include too much information for my daughter's sensitive ears to process?

I am confused! The teacher assured me she and the aide would talk to the children and try to clarify some of the confusion. In the meantime, I told Aurea last night I was going downstairs while she finished eating but I would be back upstairs in a few minutes to get her bath ready. She flipped out and refused to stay upstairs even though Adam was in his room. She went downstairs with me. My daughter is terrified to even be alone in a room in the house now, thanks DARE officer and fellow kindergarten students!

I tried to explain to her that she didn't need to be terrified. I'm not really sure how to alleviate her fears though without making her think that doesn't happen. I know it does, but I don't want her to be unable to live out of fear. Any suggestions?