I'm now at 38 hours, and I know I'm being generous. . .

Okay so my plan of no PTO on Saturday and Sunday is working well. Even though there have been times when I've had nothing else to do and thought I could totally get on the computer to blog about the latest PTO business - I've held my ground exhibited control - because I know during the week I'll be busy and will have wished I'd had a few boring days. :) So, on Thursday I attended a Scholastic Book Fair Workshop. Being that it was in Appleton the 2 hour WS was, in fact, a 3 hour and 20 minute affair (and I did take in account my time in line at Starbucks). Honestly, it wasn't bad. It was kind of fun and gave me some confidence in getting our book fair off the ground this fall. Plus, they had freebies (folks - don't pass up going to a workshop - they always have freebies!!). I got a plastic travel mug, a button/pin, materials, and there was food. I did pick up some good tips. I came home with a lot of questions for my rep. Sometimes when you take over something that you either have no experience in or have not worked behind the scenes on - you don't know what questions to ask. Fortunately, I had all my materials ready for the PTO meeting at 4 that day. So, I was able to come home from the WS and look over my agenda. I did, I will admit, verbally say many of the things I planned to during the meeting. This is actually a really good tip I learned in my comm arts class which was a pre-req to the nursing program. Do I feel stupid doing it? Yes. Am I glad I did it? You bet! It pays off. But, I did leave early to go over a few things I was unsure of with someone who might know better. I didn't have that opportunity because when I got there I found out our principal was subbing for kindergarten. I was also informed our superintendent wanted to speak at the very - VERY - top of the agenda. (But, that's okay - it put me off the hook and gave me the opportunity to feel comfortable sitting in front of the crowd.) Prior to the beginning of the meeting though I had to make some copies, get the water and cookies to the library, etc. I had asked the librarian if I could go ahead and start moving books off the tables and setting up for the meeting. It was 3pm and she informed me they had another class coming in. About that time I looked up and saw that red folding chairs had been delivered to the library. I don't know why I asked, but something told me those chairs had been set up already. Sure enough! She said they came in and found the chairs up but took them ALL down because they had classes coming in. Though I didn't make it known - I was extremely peaved. First of all, I hadn't ordered the chairs. But, Dr. Lightner was speaking on the upcoming referrendum and we did expect more than usual in attendence. Secondly, I don't mean to belittle library time - they actually give lessons to the children, but the kids sit on the floor. ??? So, I'm confused as to why they couldn't have just moved a few chairs or even let the kiddos use them. Ultimately, I had to put them all back out. Well, I could have asked our custodian to set them all up again - remember I knew nothing about the chairs until I got there. But, I felt bad that he set up the chairs as directed and someone, without investigating, decided to take them down. That just seemed rude. I think the librarians may have felt a little ticked because their space is often invaded. But, I didn't think what they did was necessary. So, I set them back out when the class that was there left, I set up my cookies, water bottles, sign in sheet, and copies of the agenda and minutes. On to the PTO meeting. It was really good. We discussed things as they came about and made plans. I got some more volunteers. And, we voted on and approved three special requests for funds. All in all, I think I did very well. The actual meeting only took up 1 hour. I was home by 6 and the family went to eat at Doc's Timeline BBQ. It was my opportunity to pat myself on the back and relax. Whew! One down - four more to go (since we decided last year to have bi-monthly meetings). Point-of-fact, just for the fun of it, bi-monthly refers to every other month. Semi-monthly refers to twice in one month.