In honor of my first day back

Today is my first day back to school for my seventh year as a teacher. (I have a week of professional development meetings before the kids arrive.) Although I like my job and am happy with my career choice, I just have to say.... NOT working is always more fun than working!

I very much enjoyed my summer (how is it over already? I blinked and then it was gone!), but I couldn't resist creating this graph to represent how my summer seems to go. I pretty much stole the idea from something my husband said!

Whaddaya think? Is this you? Or are you better about living in the moment?

lots of fun between 33 hours of driving

For the past three weeks, we've been visiting family in New Jersey and Maine. Yes, we drove from Texas. Yes, we are insane! I took 406 pictures and wanted to share just a few with you here:

 Chocolate covered bacon - YUM

 A Princeton campus tour

 At Otto's Pizza - it was amazing!

 Ice cream in downtown Portland, ME

Hot dogs around the campfire with my brother and sister 

 Mom and Dad: we took this picture especially for you. Doesn't this bring back memories? 

Only this time we're not fighting back there!!

The whole gang

School starts tomorrow. I'm so glad I have such fun memories to look back on!!

what to say for back-to-school, a list of do's and don'ts

If there's a teacher in your life who's going back to school very soon, here's a little list of things to say, and things better left unsaid.

Things to say:

1. It'll be okay.
2. You'll be fine once you get in your routine.
3. The kids will be so happy to see you!
4. Are you having fun going back-to-school shopping?
5. It's so great that you got all that time to rest and recuperate!
6. I hope you have a great year and a great class!
7. Wow, where did the summer go?
8. It'll be okay.

Things NOT to say:

1. Welcome back to the real world of work.
2. It's about time you got off the couch!
3. So... you'll start actually earning that paycheck now?
4. It's about time!
5. Don't be such a baby.
6. Aren't you soooooo excited to go back to school?
7. My kids have been wild! I can't wait to send them back to school!
8. Only 180 more school days to go until next summer!

Well? Did I leave anything out?

School is the new "s" word

I'm trying VERY hard to live in denial that this upcoming week is my last week of summer vacation. (I am unashamedly greedy about my time off!)

We've been having a fabulous time with my sister and her husband in New Jersey. They complain it's hot here, but it's a full 20 degrees cooler than what we left behind in Texas! I have lots and lots of pictures to share as soon as I get them off my camera... So for now, words will have to do:

We've been...

eating out
playing pool
going to the beach (yay Jersey shores!)
shopping
cooking fantastic meals
crafting the day away
visiting with old high school friends passing through town
walking around New York City
eating homemade ice cream

And tomorrow the four of us will drive up to Maine to visit my younger brother. I haven't seen him in TWO YEARS!!! So I'm excited. It will also be my first time tent camping. (Wish me luck!)

Hope you're all enjoying what's left of your summer!!

Road trip coping mechanism

Today is the second day of our long trek from Texas to New Jersey. Twenty-five hours in the car! Normally we try to get it all over with in one miserable day (like the 20 hours from here to Michigan). But this time, we stopped midway.

Why are taking this trip? To see my sister and brother-in-law (who we haven't seen since Christmas) and to see my brother (who we haven't seen in TWO YEARS!!!). We'll be gone for few weeks so posting will be light. I am SO EXCITED for all the fun we'll have!

Any end-of-the-summer plans for you?

(accidentally) free starbucks

It all started on the last day of school. My cooperating general education teacher gave me a $10 Starbucks gift card to thank me for all of my help this year. It was totally sweet and unexpected!

However, when I went to use it a week or two later, the card reader said the gift card was EMPTY! I protested, said it must have been a mistake, that I had just gotten this as a gift!

The barista felt sorry for me and gave me my iced coffee for free. Score! But I felt sad about the empty gift card. It would have been too awkward to ask the gift-giver to reload it.

So a week or so later I went to a different Starbucks, hoping beyond hope that the last time was just a card reader mistake.

Nope. It happened again. The card came up empty. This time, although I did express my disappointment, I had my credit card ready in my other hand to pay for my drink just in case. But the nice barista behind the counter just waved it off, and said "Don't worry about it, it's on the house!"

WELL. Imagine my surprise when I cleaned out my purse today and found a different Starbucks card. When I looked up the balance online, I was pretty shocked to see that it had $10 on it!!!

Oops.

I guess I had mistaken an old, expired card for my new gift card and had been trying to pay with that. (And getting free coffee in the meantime, ahem.)

Sooooo, anyone want to meet me at Starbucks?

Swimsuit score

We're taking a trip to New Jersey later this week to visit my sister and brother-in-law. On the phone, she told me to make sure I packed my swimsuit.

Unfortunately, the only swimsuit I have is from 2005. It's a bit outdated. All summer I've been on the lookout for cute swimsuits. It kind of made me sick to my stomach that the cheapest one I could find was $36. Dropping that kind of cash on something I won't wear that often is out of the question!

So I waited.

Every once in a while, I would pop into a store only to get discouraged by styles, price tags, or both.

UNTIL! Until today I went to Old Navy on a whim (it was right next to Joann Fabrics, my original destination). We leave on Friday, so today was going to be my last ditch attempt.

And I scored big time! They were having an end-of-season swimsuit clearance - all swimsuits just SIX DOLLARS!! I found this super cute one similar to this (the picture is from a seller on ebay since I couldn't find it at Old Navy online):

It looks way better on me than on the mannequin if I don't say so myself... Can't wait to wear it with my sister at the beach!

Mooooooo for free food

Last Friday was Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-Fil-A. For those of you who don't have a Chick-Fil-A in your state, you have my condolences. It's the best fast food ever.

Anyways, if you dressed up like a cow, you could get a free MEAL (yes, with delicious waffle fries and pop to boot!). So guess who went out for a free lunch?

The expression on Max's face just about sums up how he felt about the whole ordeal. Mixed feelings.

We pulled up to our local restaurant and saw that it was packed -- and besides the employees, we were the only ones dressed up!!

But then we got thirteen dollars worth of food - for FREE.

I said to Max: "Look at all this food we got for FREE!"

He said: "Well minus the social cost...." (as he looked nervously around the restaurant.)

Me: "Honey, all these people could have gotten a free meal. Guess who's the idiot, now?"

Him: "I know exactly who the idiot is."

Near the end of our meal, a gaggle of giggling girls walked in. They were the only other ones dressed up like cows. As we walked by them on our way out the door, one of them said: "See we're not the only ones who did it!"

And to make Max feel even better, on the way out to our car, a guy standing in the parking lot with a group of friends hollered: "Hey, man, so did it work?"

YES! Yes we got our free food. And by the end of it, even my husband was feeling good about it.

What's the craziest thing you've ever done to score free food?

is it ever really over?

You may remember from a few posts ago that I've already started setting up my classroom for the new year (teachers report 8/15). As sad as this makes me, I know I'll be glad when I'm not worrying about school during our three week vacation in late July/early August.

As you may expect, NO ONE is at school yet, besides the janitorial staff.

The other day, our custodian walked by my classroom and looked at me in surprise. "Back already?" he said, "What is there for you to do here?!"

[Insert crazy maniacal laughing here!]

Here was my list:

Four and a half hours later, here was my list.... all but one checked off. Not bad, huh?

Then I hit Target and scored some major loot for my classroom in the dollar bin section. I also bought a rug for my calendar area (this was not in the dollar section by the way, but not bad at $30!)

When everything is exactly to my liking, I'll give you the grand tour - it's froggy themed this year!!

PS: Have you entered my giveaway yet?

Collagical vacation

We spent a too-short week with my in-laws in Michigan. It was heavenly! It was great being with family again, plus, nothing (and I mean NOTHING) beats Michigan in the summertime. It's simply gorgeous.

Here's a recap, collage-style:

We played mini golf!

We hung out with my nephew!

We played in the pond behind the house!

And, of course, we went out to dinner!

Hope you're having a lovely summer as well :)

home is where the hearts are

We're in Michigan this week for a mini-vacation with my husband's family! We've been having a lovely time, and I can't wait to show you pictures later on. But for now I thought I'd share a crafty little project I did to spruce up our dining area:

I cut out silhouettes of all the places we've lived, then glued down hearts in our specific cities:

Then I framed them in a display!

Now, when someone asks me where I'm from, I can just point to the wall!

making my mouth water

There are a gazillion recipes I'd like to try and make this summer. I made this chocolate chip cookie dough dip recently and I was happy with the way it turned out!

Next on the list:

Red Velvet Cookies

Stuffed Zucchini

Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte

Roasted Tomatoes with Shrimp and Feta

Sweetie Pies

Have you made anything delicious lately?

Summer reading

Besides crafting, I have a list of books I'd like to read this summer.

source

I recently finished Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore (LOVED it!), and next up:

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. by Sandra Gulland
Bossypants by Tina Fey

Anything I should add to the list? What are you reading this summer?

My summer to-do list

I'm a list-maker, even in the summer time. I can't help it! Here are some crafty projects I've been meaning to sink my teeth into:

Ruffle Headband from Funky Polka Dot Giraffe

World Map from 30 Days

Flower ring from V and Co

Fabric tape from Sunshine and Carousels

Ruffle Bracelet from Craft Snob

What's on your summer to-do list?

Forced amnesia

On Wednesday of last week, while we were still in school, I had a really hard time falling asleep. I was worried about next school year. I was stressing over being paired two general education teachers that I don't get along with. (One who doesn't pull her weight in the classroom, the other one who talks nonstop.) I was worried about teaching Kindergarten for the first time. I was dreading the fall.

I woke up so groggy and so tired. When I told Max why I didn't sleep well, he said:


"You had better enjoy your summer vacation because you've been talking about nothing else for the last 8 months!"


I'm pretty sure that was a slight exaggeration on his part, but whatever. Message received.

And I'm happy to say that I've crammed a lot of enjoyment into my summer break and it hasn't even been a full week yet!

STOMP was mind-blowingly awesome! I have no pictures (against the rules at the concert hall) so you'll just have to take my word for it! Those performers are crazy talented - the show was so cool and surprisingly funny too! Go see it if you can. Trust me!

Then yesterday we went to see the Rangers play the Tigers with some friends. Sadly the Tigers lost, but at least I got some hotdogs and a frozen lemonade out of the deal! Nothing says summer like a warm night at a baseball game, right? I feel so American.

Today I'll be crafting away for my little store, and tomorrow I'll be meeting up with some bloggy friends at a local Mexican restaurant! Ahhhhh the life of a teacher....

Stomping the summer off to a great start!

Today is Tuesday. It is also the Best Day Ever.

Why?

Because today I'm crossing the number one item off of my life list: I'm going to see STOMP!

Last week, Max randomly surprised me with really good tickets to see the show. I didn't know they were going to be in town. I didn't know Max was planning to do anything special! But he wanted to celebrate the beginning of my summer! Isn't that sweet?

I've only been talking about seeing STOMP for, I don't know, like the last ten years! I can't wait to get all dressed up for it tonight! Hopefully I'll have some pictures for you later this week!

Are you doing anything special to kick off the summer?

Spring Break Recap

Back in March, we went here for our Spring Break:

 It sure can be pretty, but we don't miss the long Michigan winters!

We went out to eat! 

(My nephew's game with the salt and "peppa" shakers was adorable!)

We went bowling! 

(And now I understand where Max gets that lovely habit of jumping into pictures from!)

And we scared the right eye off of my Flat Stanley with this Jungle Boa!

And now, only nine more weeks till Summer Vacation!! :)

Spring Break finally makes an appearance

The countdown is over, folks! It's a whole week off for this teacher!! And I'm feeling super blessed that Max has the same week off from his PhD program.

To celebrate, we're going to go spend 20+ hours in a car and visit family up in Michigan. I'll grumble when I have to wear my winter coat, but at least we'll be in good company!

We're bringing Barney with us. He loves my in-laws' house... he's pretty sure it's an amusement park specially created for him!

In any case, I won't be around much this week, but I do have some excellent posts scheduled to keep you company. They've been hand picked as my favorites from 5 years of blogging!! Think of them like reruns you probably haven't seen before!

happy new year!

Instead of sleeping in after a wild night of partying (as I imagine all of you cooler-than-me people did), we're taking a flight back to Texas today. That's kinda sad, mainly because: Texas = Not France.

Here are a just a few pictures of our lovely time here - from my dad's camera, because we were too lazy to upload ours just yet.

Local restaurant in Strasbourg

Shopping at the Christmas market

Eating at our favorite Greek restaurant in Germany

Visiting Belfort. It was cold!

My sister and brother-in-law solving some kind of marital dispute ;)

I hope your holidays were as joyous as ours were! Happy 2011!!

yeah, someone might notice i'm missing

I'm too lazy to upload the pictures I currently have in my camera, so I thought I'd share an older picture of the cathedral in my parents' little French town:

We are still having fun with family here! Between braving the snowy roads to go on day trips, eating out at fabulous local restaurants that serve all my favorite dishes, and hanging out at home with board games and movies, I may just never return to Texas. My first graders won't miss me.... will they?