Lots of ideas, but not a real post

So I have all of these ideas for great blog posts to write, but I just can't seem to make it happen tonight. So instead, I thought I'd just start writing and see what happens.

First, I thought I'd write about Reid. Poor guy seems to be having serious nose issues. Reid fell asleep on the way home from picking up Jack at school today. As we pulled into the driveway, Jack announced very excitedly that Reid had learned how to snore. I tried very hard not to laugh because Jack was truly proud of his little brother. Poor Reid is really suffering though. He isn't sleeping well, and he's starting to hate the nasal aspirator.

Tonight, I did a little research on sinuses in infants. It was interesting, but also very complicated. In order to write about it, I need to interview some medical experts. I think I'll call my mom and sisters tomorrow.

Then I thought I'd write about my recent reflections on my teaching career. This is an idea I have had for a while now. Every once in a while I hear from a former student or find out about some awesome thing a former student is doing. This makes me feel very proud of said student, like when I'm proud of Jack for something amazing he has figured out. My pride in their accomplishments doesn't come from what I might have taught them or didn't teach them, but rather I am proud that people who were/are a part of my life are having success and doing such neat things.

So I have this idea to write an open letter to my students professing my appreciation for their updates and their accomplishments. It makes me feel like I did something worthwhile. I like to think of myself as a little signpost that might have been useful on their journey through life. You know, like the "Turn Left 20 feet ahead" announcement on a GPS. I am certainly not responsible for what they accomplish (or their destinations), but I think I like to share my former students' joy since they were such an important part of my life. I hope they keep sending me updates!

Part of this reflection makes me think I should also write to or call the amazing teachers I had throughout school. I think I keep the Tantillos in the loop pretty well, and I better considering how important they are to me and who I have become. But I also think about Jean VanderArk, Pete Fishbach, Pete Ogilvie, and so many others who were my amazing signposts.

Another idea I had was about Trader Joe's from yesterday's post. I really enjoy so much of their food, and I thought it would be fun to write about our favorites, like the mini ice cream cones (Hold the Cone) or the awesome Mango lemonade we just discovered. I also love the way they treat us. Jack always gets cool stickers. The current stickers are scratch and sniff. Let me tell you, they are awesome! Especially the chocolate one. One year they gave me free chocolates on my birthday. It's just fun to shop there.

I also had an idea to write about finances. Now that we are living on one income, I thought it might be fun to write about how we budget ourselves. It's like a game to me to try to make and keep a tight budget. We use the app and website The Mint.com, so I can always see exactly where we are with our budgets in beautiful visuals. This week, I am attempting an at-home pedicure since I need one badly but it's just not in the hair/beauty budget this month. I was going to do it tonight, but I'm running out of time. Maybe that can be a post later in the week!

Tomorrow is library day for us, so that was another idea I had. I thought it might be fun to write about the really cool books we find at the library. Jack is amazing at picking out awesome books. I'm not sure if it's just luck, his skill, or if our librarians are really talented at putting the right books in front of us to pick. I'm going with the librarians.

This week, the hits were "Question Boy meets Little Miss Know-it-all" by Peter Catalanotto and "Over at the Castle" by Boni Ashburn and Kelly Murphy. Jack loved the superhero aspect of Question Boy. I loved how well the author captured the toddler/preschool personalities. "Over at the Castle" was definitely my favorite. It's a counting book that's beautifully written to the song "Over in the Meadow." I don't know that song, but the rhythm comes through easily. It was so fun to read. I also thought I could have easily turned that book into a week's worth of fun activities to do at home. I did not since Jack is still in school and we had plenty of fun activities to do anyway.

So you can see why I had trouble deciding on a topic, right? Maybe you can tell which one you think I should develop. In the meantime, I'm going to sleep.