April Showers

Okay, this post is only about one of my showers, but I like the idea of bringing May flowers. (On that note, I woke up this morning thinking about the name Lilly, but that was the name of my first Cabbage Patch Kid--and Eli doesn't like the name--oh, well.)

There was a joint shower for me and the nurse after school today. I'm going to include some pictures...so here we go. This first one is a picture of the gift spread. Very nice.



This next one is a picture of the nurse and me before we opened our gifts. She's cute..it's sickening.



My handsome husband was able to make it to the shower. Consequently it was the first time he's ever been to my school or the town where it is located. He got lost. I found him. He had plenty to eat.



This is me trying to juggle everything and pose for the camera. Notice Eli stuffing his face in the background. Haha.



And who knew I was a facial contortionist? I'm posting this one because I think it's funny. I hate cameras when they catch a person off guard. Geez, I seem to remember something about not being photogenic. :) And I hope I didn't offend the giver--if so, I'm sorry. I'm not sure what the face was for, but the dress was darling.



And finally, I got an umbrella stroller--my new baby! It's green, and I LOVE that. Here's me cradling my new bundle of joy. Eli, as you can see, is greatly amused.



Fun, right?

On a separate school-related note, I got myself fired as cheerleading sponsor next year! As you can tell, I'm all torn up about it and I don't think I'll be able to sleep as a result.

Uh-huh. You believe me, right? No, really.

The high school principal is evidently also the athletic director, so she gets the right to hire and fire. She sent me a note today about how I haven't been at the cheerleading clinic/tryouts this week and that I was expected to be there. I basically told her that if I was expected to be there, then I should have been consulted in the planning of the tryouts rather than informed of the dates two weeks in advance. Sorry, lady. I have other commitments that supercede your last-minute tryouts. Evidently, I should just know that cheerleading tryouts are "always" the week before spring break. I told her that since this is my first year in the county, I wouldn't know what "always" happens if it's not in writing. Anyway, I filtered these e-mails and responses through Mr. Principal, and he wanted to claim me as an adopted daughter, he was so proud. Evidently he doesn't like the principal at the high school.

The double-edged side of this is that if I were to return to this school next year, the only bright spot in my year would be coaching the girls' basketball team. In the last line of her last note, Mrs. Principal made it quite clear that I would not be coaching anything for her next year. And she wished me well in the birth of my baby and hopes I have a happy spring break. All in the same breath. So, now there is no impetus for me to return or to feel guilty about not being there to coach basketball, because that is now out of my hands. In the end, it all works out.

I would just like to add that the woman can't form a proper sentence if she tried. I'm going to quote a couple sentences from her e-mail. Please remember that this woman is a PRINCIPAL at an institution whose purpose (purportedly) is to EDUCATE, and that to be in a such a role, she must have a MASTER'S DEGREE in administration, which means that she's been back to school and is somehow deemed "qualified" to lead educators, and should be, at some level, an effective COMMUNICATOR. Okay, okay. That last bit may be pushing the envelope. Now for the good stuff.

The opening line:
"You were to have been informed weeks ago of the dates when you were given information in regards* to garnering interest for the girls to express their interest in the trying out for cheerleader."

Huh? Welcome to the infinitives and prepositional phrase disco! Love that passive and extremely confusing, noncommittal verb construction. So, if you didn't inform me, then who was to have been informing me of the dates "weeks ago"? And how about all that garnering interest for the girls to express their interest? Classic.

Here's another good one. This is "in regards to" her policy that if you have a question, you should ask: "I have yet to be asked about when tryouts or any other questions about not attending camp or clinic."

Again, huh? Aside from the omitted thoughts, I'm the not the one with the questions, if she hadn't noticed. I have no questions about not attending camp or clinic, since, again, I was not included in the planning phase. And since I'm THE cheerleading sponsor at the middle school and there's only one at the high school, you would think that my 50% involvement would somehow be important enough to include me. Nope. No questions from me. Their actions were all the answers to the questions I never needed to ask.

So those of you who are bothering me about leaving the classroom and becoming an administrator, please note that even with my master's degree I am not so well "qualified."

And finally, a praise. After the shower, we came home, changed clothes, and went back out to remove the battery from the Saturn to take to AutoZone to be replaced. Eli decided to try to start the car one more time...and VOILA! It started.

Praise the Lord!

*I just looked this up to confirm my suspicions, because it didn't seem correct: “In regard to” “and “with regard to” are...correct. But “in regards to” is nonstandard [emphasis mine]. You can also convey the same idea with “in respect to” or “with respect to,” or—simplest of all—just plain “regarding.”