Happy New Year!

Hello everyone, I am writing from my parents' house in Abilene once again as we count down the minutes before 2006. It has been an incredibly short weekend with my family, so I am sad that it is almost Jan. 1 and tomorrow we have to return home. However, it is okay because I only have to work mornings for the next two weeks and get to hang out and do whatever during the afternoons. Plus, Angie is coming to visit me next weekend, so that will be fun! She's never even seen our apartment or anything, so I'll have to give her the tour of San Antonio (I hope I don't get lost...).

It has been a lot of firsts for me this holiday season: first Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years with the new hubby plus my first Texas Christmas EVER. It has been vert different, that is for sure. But, Derek and I have had a great first six months together, and the next 60 years or so will continue to get better.

Until next time everyone!

Mary Christmas

Well, hello there, little girl! And what would you like for Christmas? Man, if I had a nickel for everytime someone asked me that...

But seriously, Christmas is almost upon us! They're not joking when they say it's the "most wonderful time of the year." Unfortunately, I still have to work mornings this week, so I'm getting up at the crack of dawn to work 8 to 12 so far this week. Oh well, just two more days of having to get up. I get off Friday, Dec. 23 and am off all next week and then back to the grind on Monday, Jan. 2. Not a terribly long break, but at least I don't work retail!

Our computer is in the shop, so I'm writing from my work computer (hope I don't get caught...as I sneak a glance over my shoulder and listen for footsteps approaching). I probably won't be able to post much more this week or next week at all. However, Derek and I hope to get cable internet (SBC dial-up JUUUUUUST wasn't working out), so maybe I will be able to post more in the Spring semester. I know you all just love to read about my life!

Well, all my Christmas shopping is done, our tree is up, and we even have a little wreath on our front door (courtesy of a lady in my office, who gave them to everyone). I only have to work a half-day until Thursday, and I've been shopping twice in the last three days with Derek's mother. I am so in the holiday spirit!

Until next time, everyone, have a great Christmas break and a very mary christmas!

PS--yes, it is a pun on my name, I'm not stupid.

worst week of my LIFE

Well, this has been pretty much the worst week in a long time that I've had. And it's not because of school. Oh, no. It's all these stupid grades that I have to do and turn in. The professors (I work for three of them) all decided to have their finals on Monday, so I only had a few days to grade and record them all. I've stayed up until midnight the past two nights and I'm STILL not done! It's too much for one person to do!!!

Today, I have to meet with two of them at noon (how I'm going to be in two places simulataneously is beyond me) and then come home for another fun activity, a physical. It's one of those things that you have to do to get life insurance, so Derek and I are both getting one at 2:00 today. Yippee skippee. They measure you, take your blood (ouch!) and oh, boy, weigh you. They'll find out the truth now...

So, anyway, this had not been a fun week. I'm tired, irritable, yet there is a glimmer of hope in the distance. Grades are due tomorrow at 2:00 pm and after that, I am FREE! Derek and I will both be done with school, although I do have to work next week, but it's just 8 to 12. I can handle that. I just want this week to be over!!!!

Well, enough belly-aching. I need to get to work! Talk to you all later.

Time flies when you've got stuff to do

Wow, I can't believe I haven't written in this thing for nearly two weeks...okay, yeah, I can. I'm so awful at writing in diaries--why would this be any different? Okay, so my internet at home is TERRIBLE (SBC Dial-up is going on my hit list) and I have had so much to do with finals and grading (grrrrr....) that I haven't had the time to get around to telling all of my loyal fans who read this what is going on in my life. Well...just school and grading and...yeah, that's about it.

Well, that's not all true. I just got back yesterday from the best weekend I've had in a long time. I took the day off on Friday from work, slept in with Derek :-), went to breakfast at IHOP, then packed up and drove to Dallas to visit my best fwiend, Angela Heiderich. She had invited me to her company Christmas party at a cool Brazilian restaurant, so I decided that I deserved a break. I hung out with her at her job, then ran errands with her before the party that night. The party was fun--lots of Brazilian meat!!!

Saturday was great--I woke up at 8:00, wrote my paper in four hours (that was my one condition for going there--I had to get this last paper finished on Saturday), then we ate lunch and headed for the mall to go Christmas shopping. We stopped by Half Price Books while we were out, then off to a nice dinner and after that--Narnia!!! Best movie ever. Then back home to bed.

Sunday was good--Prestoncrest (where Angie goes to church) is pretty cool for a giant church in the Metroplex. After a quick lunch at Jason's Deli and a few last minute things (including packing back up), I headed back for San Antonio, making it back JUST in time to go to the University of the Incarnate Word's Christmas party with Dere-bear.

So, now I just turned in my last paper via e-mail and I am sitting in the computer lab. I was going to do grades online tonight, but it is already 9:30 and I gots other stuff to do. So until next time, adieu!