Now I Fell Really DONE!

With work, I mean.

I was officially done turning grades in last week on Tuesday, but then I had professional development meetings I wanted to go to at U#1 -- I didn't have to, but I enjoy them so I went and they involved a few free meals and I'm all for free meals!

I also had to do "tons" of yoga last week which is not work and it's actually great, but I had to go four times because my class pass had already expired and I had to beg the studio to postpone it for two more weeks which ended this past Sunday. So I drove three times into town (we live 17 miles away) just for yoga classes, something I usually avoid at all costs (even though it's just a couple of dollars in gas to do the trip, I'm that thrifty, sigh, but I want to change that and just go more often for free yoga & other fitness classes on campus and also at the studio!).

Then there were two more things I needed to do and which I completed last night (OK, at like 2 am!). These weren't work related either, but they made me feel like "not done:"

1) I wanted/needed to take three of the boarding academy girls out to eat and to the mall because I'd wanted to do that for years and was never able to do it.* So I did that last night, from 5-9:30 pm, even though needed to finish item #2 below. We had a good time and the girls were also able to do some shopping (one girl is from Angola and she'd actually never bought/wore sweatpants and we found some for sale at VS yesterday and I also helped her pick a bra for a strapless dress as well as a cover-up little jacket). I need to do this more often because as a mother of boys it's fun to be out with these "daughters" that I don't actually have!**
*Our church, which is in the campus of a boarding academy, has this "adoption" of students thing in which we give students small gifts throughout the year, keep in touch, take them out for meals, etc., but had never managed to take them out to eat until last night!
**I'm so looking forward to my nieces growing up, I plan to spoil them rotten (take them shopping for clothes or things they want, etc.) Ahhhhh!!! I had one aunt that did that for me once I a while when I was young and I love(d) her for it! She still always buys me gifts -- two of my aunts do that, my aunt Esther in my mom's side (the one who took me shopping) and my aunt Ofélia on my dad's side. They're sweethearts!

2) Our private elementary school's principal, his wife, who teaches 5th grade, and their four children are moving to California and we're throwing them a big farewell party next Tuesday. I, the photo fanatic, was responsible for making a photo book for them and I hadn't had time to work on it until this week, so I was crazy busy doing it during all day and part of the night in the past two days. I'm relatively happy with the results, but it was SOOOOO much trouble that I've decided to never use Shutterfly again and try out blurb and MyPublisher (that now owns Shutterfly or is owned by it) instead. We'll see how that goes.

So after I finished the book last night -- I was so tired I ended up laying down on the sofa around 11 pm and taking an unexpected nap until a little past midnight when my husband found me and I woke up scared and came back to work, finishing a bit after 2 am (I had a 50% discount that had to be used until midnight, California time) -- I was actually wide awake and never went to bed until 4 am!

I slept in this morning then, and was woken up by the school calling me at 9:30 am to let me know my youngest son is eating lunch there and won't need me to bring him food.

I should be working now, cleaning the house (which is a mess! K's been incredibly busy writing a grant and I was doing this photo book) because we have guests coming from Brazil today -- the parents of an academy student who came to spend her senior year here and who is graduating -- but I'm just enjoying my first day of summer break! I'll write more about our summer plans later. Meanwhile, I'll go eat something and start cleaning!

P.S. I didn't start working on the book until after Monday because I also had to plant three flowering plants/bushes I'd bought two-three weeks ago and which urgently needed to go on the ground and needed some serious digging. Hopefully I can share photos. And I'm glad I'm all "updated" now!