Thanksgiving break + a little time = a new post

First off, the date today is really November 20...disregard the date above. I'm a computer dork and don't know how to fix it... Carry on:

There comes a time each fall when most people are more thankful than at any other time of the year. You guessed it: Thanksgiving. I'm also very thankful for Thanksgiving: the food, the pumpkin desserts in abundance, the smells, the weather, the love, the (gas) fire in the (gas) fireplace, and a wonderful family whom I adore!

BUT...

There is another reason I get absolutely giddy with thanks at this time of year...

One whole week off from school!

Oh, my goodness, how I am thankful for this week off from the alarm clock, from planning lessons, from chaotic mornings, and from rushing here and there to find things for school.

Yep, I (and every other teacher in my school district) and EXTREMELY grateful for this week of bliss and celebration!

Oh, and it also gave me a little time to put some pictures on this pathetic ole blog! Enjoy! (I know I will!!)

Here is a little peek of some things that have been going on this fall here at the Ball's:

Yep, when we get together we love to eat and be photographed enjoying the food...

Mr. and Mrs. Seth Roth! What a great looking couple, no?

Four of the Ball boy cousins - Payton, Ryker, Ryan, and Preston.

Aren't the backs of their heads ridiculous??

Candid shot of the very candid Ball gang.

We didn't even try to coordinate and look how great these gals look! Lindsay, Brynlee, Kourtni, and Alyssa.

Two blue-eyed beauties - and best friends/cousins. So sweet.

The family at sweet Grandma Burleigh's funeral in Evanston. What a beautiful day to celebrate her life. A wonderful program with lots of family to see and re-acquaint ourselves with.

Mom and her kids minus Kenyon who had to catch his flight to Hawaii.

A labor day bike ride - yeah, we still can't get enough of the baby of the bunch. We love to hold him whenever we can...

Lindsay took to cross country running like a pro. She was born to run.

First day of 11th grade. Where has the time gone...

My newest sophomore, little Lindsay. sigh.

The stud of the eighth grade...(at least in mom's eyes!)

Summer lovin' (note the tans...) and summer birthdays!

Two chocolate cream pies from the truck stop, please. Yes, it was a request and, yes, they really were from a truck stop. Delicious, too!

Little trekkers off to the Owyhee desert for 3 days to get a taste of what the pioneers faced. Bill and I got a taste of what empty nesting will feel like: WIERD!!

Bye bye flip phone...

I have never thought twice about the coolness of cell phones. Truthfully, they are not a status symbol to me. Never have been, never will be. I didn't mind when Kourtni and Lindsay got my upgrade 2 years ago. Didn't mind when Bill and Alyssa got cool new phones WITH data plans last Christmas. Nope. It was just me and old blue - old "flipper"!

I never thought twice about my status as a flip phone holder. Never even thought I was uncool when I answered my phone by unfolding it. I didn't even realize what I was missing when everyone around me was surfing the internet, reading the news in class, checking Facebook at church, or, heaven forbid, reading their scriptures on those little gadgets.

Never thought twice about it until I pulled out my phone in a class I took with several teachers from my school.

Me: Pulling out my phone to check for a lone text that one of my children didn't send me.

PE teacher: Aghast - YOU have a flip phone?

Me: Yeah, I do. I use it to text and call my kids and husband.

PE teacher: Aghast - I didn't know anyone had flip phones anymore.

Me: Well, I do, and I love it!

PE teacher: Still aghast and speechless.

It was a great relationship with old "flipper". We got along well, I learned to text at lightening speed, and I could talk on that thing for hours without getting too many neck cramps. I really liked him. (Not sure if the phone was a girl or not...)

I dropped old "flipper" in the parking lot a couple of weeks ago. I had done it plenty of times before so I didn't give it much thought as I bent over to pick up the three pieces that had fallen off after skidding across the blacktop. As I put the pieces together, a feeling of dread came across me. There was no life in my phone. Just a white screen. A barren white screen. No familiar picture that told me if I had texts or messages! Crap. Crap, crap, crap. A trip to the T-mobile store was in order.

Fast forward to the next day. I was weak. I needed a phone and needed one pronto. I was prepared to pay $0 in the store and get myself another good old flipper. Imagine my horror when the sales guy told me that the 6 flip phones he carried were going to be obsolete in a couple of months. WHY would I NOT want a SMART phone??? Peer pressure crept over me. Panic struck at my core. I was totally missing out on something I really didn't care about - I know cuz the sales guy told me. Pressure, fatigue, desperation, and weakness set in.

I caved.

I tested.

I listened with tired ears.

I pondered.

I purchased.

I didn't spend $0.

Nope. Add about $130 to that number.

What's a girl to do? Most of MY parts are becoming obsolete; I don't want my phone to become obsolete as well!

Long story short, I am now the owner of a SMART phone that makes me feel very UN-SMART. In fact it makes me feel rather stupid. I miss my old phone. I miss the ease at which I could operate it. I miss the cute little envelope that told me I had texts, or a message. I miss old "flipper".

May he (or she) rest in pieces...