hello dahling, its me!

I really am horrible at blogging! I guess we just enjoyed our summer so much that there wasn't a moment to spare to update! We spent our whole summer beaching it up as much as possible. Oh yeah and Troy took a law class (BORING!) He is doing so good at it though! I am truly proud :) The "kids" are doing well and as active as ever! I swear they are really humans in puppy bodies! Troy and I keep telling ourselves that we need to videotape them so we can show everyone what a normal day in the Staley household is like! But then again we're probably not as entertaining as we think (haha)

Since our last post, we have been busy getting back in the swing of things. I started back to work at in late August and I have 16 new kinders to mold **scary!**- Troy has started back at Campbell Law and is now in his 2nd year~ ONLY ONE MORE TO GO BABE!~ We're busy as ever and missing the relaxation of Summer dearly. In early August we took a nice vacation to St. Maarten and often wish we were still there enjoying the crystal blue water and powder white sand. But it is definitely a blessing to have a job/career to work for.

That is all for now- i will tryyyyyy to get better at this :) 

Schoolsssss out for summer!

WOW do I stink at blogging! Although I will say I have been kind of busy the last few months closing up the kinder room. Who knew teachers had to work so hard? :) Troy has started, and by now, just about completed his summer class. Summer has finally arrived and we're enjoying the small doses of free time we're getting! Our ONE YEAR anniversary just passed and we spent the weekend at the beach house. So relaxing! Troy and I still cannot believe it's been one year! I guess time does fly when you're having fun! Here are a few shots from our trip! ;)

Cutting the cake a 2nd time on the beach!

a little teacher humor

A teacher was doing a study testing the senses (taste)

The children began to identify the flavors by their color:

Red.....................Cherry

Yellow................Lemon

Green..................Lime

Orange...............Orange

Finally the teacher gave them all HONEY lifesavers. Noneof the children could identify the taste. The teacher said, 'I will give you all a clue. It's what yourmother may sometimes call your father.' One little girl looked up in horror, spit her lifesaver out andyelled, 'Oh my Gosh! They're butt-holes!

The teacher had to leave the room!

Hello from Holly Springs!

Prayers needed!! Troy is in the midst of studying for finals and I honestly can say I don't know how he does it! Law school is definitely something that I would never consider doing myself, especially after witnessing first hand the late nights he has had lately. Poor thing only gets to come down for dinner and maybe a stretch break here and there. BUT, come May 1st he will be "free" for a few months until round two starts up in September! Troy has really done an excellent job during his first year and I am super proud! (Hear the teacher in me??) WAY TO GO TROY!!!

As for me, it's crunch time in the ol' kinder room. We have 35 days left, and lots to cover before then! I am excited that I will no longer be labeled as "first year teacher!" It's exciting, yet scary at the same time, to see that one year has already come and gone. Time has flown, and not only will my first year of teaching be behind me, but so will one year of marriage. It seems like yesterday we were stressing over the final details of the wedding, finding a home, and graduation. I guess we're really "grown up" now. HA!

Troy and I have been extremely busy lately and apologize for not updating our blog sooner!!! Between work, school, and sickness we have barely had time to breathe! I have honestly caught every single bug that has passed through my classroom this year and it has been rough! And poor Troy usually recieves some form of the virus as well. I actually had someone tell me I should send a message to the parents to keep their children home when they're sick so I wouldn't catch it, but who are we kidding?!

Troy has been studying nonstop for almost a year now, and I know he can't wait for his 1L to be over! He has done so well, and i'm not just saying that because he's my husband! I was told before we were married by another wife of a lawyer that during these 3 years I would never see him. I believe it now! The only time we see each other during a normal day is on the commute to Harnett Co for work, dinner at night, and a moment of TV time at night. Other than that he belongs to Campbell Law! But, I am extremely proud of him and his hard work and dedication so far. Lord knows I would have given up months ago!! Besides, I learned all I need to know about law from Legally Blonde :)

I will leave you now with some of our favorite things of March so far:

1. Warm weather!

2. Ending of the semester (for Troy)

3. Relaxing beach vacay

4. Friends visiting

5. Flowers blooming

6. TWILIGHT coming out on DVD (Kristen)

7. S*P*R*I*N*G

First Valentine's Day as Husband and Wife :)

Technically this was our 6th Valentine's day, but being that it was the first one spent as a married couple it was a little more special :)

Troy woke up to go "work out" and I was cleaning the kitchen and getting ready to surprise him with breakfast. His actual Valentine's present was last week when I took him to see The Dark Knight at the IMAX theatre downtown Raleigh. Before I could even get started cooking I heard the garage door open. I figured he had a quick workout so I was just going to have to tell him that I was cooking! That was when I saw him walking through the door carrying a beautiful vase full of lavendar roses (my favorite!) and McDonalds!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE McGriddles!!! SO, he wasnt going to let me cook even if I wanted to! I was also given a box of chocolates and a nice card! Troy had everything so planned out. After breakfast we watch some movies and starting planning our December vacation! We're looking at Key West or Cancun. Any thoughts??

Our night ended with reservations at Bentley's Restaurant in Cary. We went there last year and spent WAY TOO MUCH money, but we kept it resonable this year! I had Mahi-Mahi and Troy had Tuna. Both verry good. Especially the Chocolate Creme Bruelle! MMM ;)

Overall this was the BEST first Valentine's day ever :) I am definitely one lucky girl!!

"HE SAID WHAT?!"

*Disclaimer: All students mentioned in this article are fictional, of course. Teacher's arent allowed to write about their students, or their troubles :) *

Being a teacher intitles me to a lot of interesting stories, especially being a kindergarten teacher. I always think of us as a different breed than other teachers. However, this does not mean I believe we are "better" or "more important", but I do think our job has several different requirements and skills than the upper grades. Here's a look into my day on Friday for an example: It's 7:45am...For starters, I was alone. Being without my assistant can be a good thing (we don't chat as much & I do get a lot done) but its usually a lot more stressful and makes me run home to bed in the afternoon. So, the day had started and I had 23 warm bodies to entertain all day long, with a chance of teaching them something that will stick with them throughout eternity. (Did I mention that one of my 23 was a brand new student? What a sweet child he is, although very talkative a times.) Having a new student always stirs up the room with new commotion as all the children try to show off. Report cards were due that day and I was ready! Luckily I had gotten ahead and finished a day early (who does that?) The only thing left to do was put them in the kids BEE Books to go home (BEE Books= Bring Everything Everyday, and our mascot is the yellow jacket. Catchy huh?) 8:45am...As I started the day I noticed that my "rowdy child" had obviously not taken his medication for the day and he was overly hyper. This can make or break his day..and mine :-/ Bathroom break, YAY!

9:30am..centers were in full swing and I was finally getting to the massive pile of paperwork (ONE of the many perks that they don't tell you/teach you about in college) I had yet to handle on my desk when I noticed one of my girls standing akwardly against the book shelf staring carefully at wet spot on the CARPET..Yup, we have a pee'er. This wouldn't have been so bad if we not just been to the bathrooms!! But, what can you do? I get out her change of clothes and talk her through the importance of trying every time we go to the bathroom..then I console her and tell her that it's okay, Mrs. Staley use to pee pee in her pants all the time. (which I didnt, but sometimes white lies help!)

10:00am..paperwork time...finally!! I get a good start on all this while the children are doing their independent work, when my "rowdy child" comes storming up to me with news he has to tell me right then or he'll explode."Mrs. Staley, *Gray* said you have a big butt." "HE SAID WHAT!?" The child, obviously confused on my surprised upset reaction starts questioning if he should have even told me, while the accused starts walking towards my desk already boo-hooing his eyes out realizing what he'd done. This is definitely the first time anyone of my kids even made mention to any part of my body other than my crooked finger (hey, we're all special) I stop and question myself on the appropriate way to handle this new and embarrassing situation. First off, these are 6 year old boys I was dealing with. Secondly, it was kind of funny. Regaurdless however, punishment had to happen for them to realize the important of not making any mention of a woman's features. ("Rowdy "has a history of this, as he has told a fellow teacher she looks pregnant before...and she wasn't) As the lecture began, "gray" decided to call out his friend for saying the same thing. "Rowdy child" said you had a big BOOTY! A big what? How do they even know these words! You are suppose to be innocent 6 year olds! Now this made it interesting. So the lecture continues on appropriate words for the classroom, and for punishment, walking laps at recess. Not a good thing! I believe they were both stunned so I felt that this was suffice. Plus, I didn't have time to take it to the office even if I wanted to!

Again, all this took place from 8:30-10:15am..not even close to lunch time, which is a-WHOLE-nother story! So, in a days time I play mommy, nurse, friend, teacher, social worker and much much more. What a tiring career I have chosen..but, we do it for the money...I mean the rewards of the children we help mold :)

..is it Friday, yet? :)

Hello February

Today has been a lazy Sunday in the Staley household! Troy's parents left this morning to head back to the mountains, and we've just been taking it easy. The Super Bowl is tonight, but since our eagles are not in it we're not too pumped. We've invited a few friends over for some food, and I am excited about the 3D commercials! On a side note, DUKE did win today which made us very happy! Last week's game was disappointing, but hey, we're still on top of the Tarholes! :)'

Tomorrow starts the beginning of another week! Looking forward to FRIDAY already, especially since we've got big plans! More to come on that ;)

ps: happy 5 years to me and Troy! February 2004 seems so long ago! To be in highschool again!

weekEND :)

I couldn't resist. This picture makes me laugh every time!

(Lily August 2008)

It has honestly been one of the longest weeks of work since August! Troy has been busy with studying, and i've been so busy with the kids we hardly feel like we've had time to breathe! Last night I was so ready for bed I think I was asleep before I got under the sheets...that was until I realized that Mr. Squeeks wet the bed!!! We beleive he did it in his sleep, which actually worrys me more than makes me mad. I'll have to get that checked out..after we pick up the comforter from the dry-cleaners. :( Ah, the joys of parenting (haha)
We feel like all we do is eat sleep and work! Who knew the "real world" could be so demanding? Oh well, pay day is tomorrow and the in-laws are coming down. We're definitely looking forward to a relaxing weekend!

Snow Days

Squeeker's first snow!

Where's the salt? haha

we're from the mountains!

Lily's a snowball!!!




What we woke up to 1-20-09




Last Monday was one of the RARE occassions that I was off work. Thank you MLK jr. for all you did, and for giving teachers a break for at least a day! Anywho, as I lay sprawled out all over the bed as Troy got ready for school (sorry!) I heard a mention of "snow" on the TV in the background. Being half alert and aware that winter weather just isnt in the forcast for the flatlands, I feel back to sleep. When I finally woke up at, oh 9:00am!!, the single thought of any kind of winter mix was far from my mind. That was until I talked to Mom who told me to check our weather! I immediately had flashbacks to when I was in highschool literally praying for snow days. Could this be true? Would Raleigh, NC be getting snow? I was so excited for the chance of even a dusting in our area, or better yet, a 2 hour delay on Tuesday! (I really do love my job!) I spent my entire day off excited and jumping around like a little girl telling Troy to get home early before the storm came through..Harnett County Schools had already called and canceled school..and about 4:00am Tuesday morning I awoke to see a winter wonderland outside our window. SNOW DAY! Although I knew I had the day off, Campbell Law still had not decided. What they were waiting on I do not know, but it did take them until 10am, after a round of classes, to cancel school. Apparently 6in of snow was no factor for future lawyers! Needless to say, we spent the next 2 days burrowed inside staying warm with the pups taking the ocassional road trip out to see the snow. I mean, hello, we are from the mountains..snow was nothin' new to us! Although, after our trip to McDonald's we quickly decided that even we shouldnt be on the roads...people down here don't know what 4x4 is, or how to use it!

Hello!

"BLOG!? What would we do with a blog?" was our first reaction to the thought of writing about our simple lives. But the more I thought about how many times a day we call family/friends back home just to share a story from my classroom, or something incredibly rediculous the law school is demanding from Troy, the idea started to make more sense. So, here we are, on a Tuesday night sitting in our PJs watching American Idol and keeping the pups company. I told you we live simple lives, so this shouldn't come as a shock!

So, i'm Kristen, and Troy is my wonderful husband of 7 + months. "WELCOME" to our blog.