Monday, September 28, 2009

A Very Potter Musical

After being introduced to "A Very Potter Musical" by Devon, I have been a little obsessed with watching it on YouTube. Fortunately, now the soundtrack is available on the StarKids website. It's free (donations are welcomed) and it is hilarious. If you enjoy "Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog" and other humorous musicals, I recommend checking out the show.

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Butterfly Hero




Spencer rescued a butterfly during recess this past week. He had it when I picked him up to go to an appointment and wanted us to find it a safe home. Luckily, Anna lives close and she generously allowed the use of her lemon tree for our butterfly recovery program.

Night at the Park





Last weekend we went to a wedding reception for one of Steen's coworker in Julia Davis Park. It was a nice evening and we had a lot of fun. The video below is a clip of the couple as they sang together.


I am Spencer, hear me roar!


Spencer has been playing in the fall season for Nampa Kids Soccer, and he is loving it. Most of his teammates are the same ones that he had this past spring and all of them have improved. One of the things Spencer has been working on is being aggressive and going after the ball. At his game today, we saw the difference. He went after most of the balls and at the end of the game, he got in his opponent's face and growled (that is what he is doing in the picture above). Seriously, the kid he did it to is like a little mini D.B. who is far more advanced in skill development than the kids he plays against. Steen was beaming, I was laughing, and Spencer felt like a hero in that moment.

Friday, September 25, 2009

Friday Nights

It is 5:06 pm on Friday and I just got home. I cleaned my classroom and put together a packet for the sub I will have on Monday and now it is time to relax... just as soon as I:
  • do the dishes
  • take out the trash
  • get some groceries
  • email my mom some info.
  • read with Spencer
  • help him with homework
  • go to the home football game
How is it that our to-do lists never seem to get any smaller, no matter how many items we check off?


Woot woot Bulldogs, nice comeback!! (9/26)

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Santa's Crush

One of my all-time favorite professors was/is Gaymon Bennet. I always thought his jovial personality and optimistic outlook were reminiscent of an intellectual Santa Clause. Little quirks, such as the fact that he totally had a crush on Anne Bradstreet (if you don't know who this is... google it, and seriously, read a little poetry now and then) made his class highly enjoyable. When he would read her poetry, his eyes would get a little twinkle, his grin was contagious, and he always seemed to go "somewhere else" as he spoke.


This little trip down memory lane was inspired by the fact that I am currently having my juniors read Upon The Burning of Our House, a poem by Anne Bradstreet. It is such a beautiful poem and, while I am not keen on all Puritan ideals, her faith and resiliency is something to admire. A colleague found the above film clip. Enjoy!

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Scary









I was thinking about the way images stay with us and the way nightmares don't discriminate between adults and children. These are the images that have starred in my adult nightmares.



















Hmm... I wonder if this is a result of my fascination with darker themes and Utopian/Dystopian literature.

Guilty Pleasures


Ok, much as I hate to admit, I am a huge fan of vampire novels, movies, and TV shows. Every time something new comes out, I get a little thrill and can't wait to experience it. This is hard to reconcile with the side of me that loves classical literature and is tickled at the prospect of attending the yearly Jane Austen tea in Boise with my book club. Regardless of the contrast, I love both elements and have decided to stop being embarrassed by the "darker" side. That being said... I have to say that I am a huge fan of True Blood. I read the books first and while I liked them, I can't say that they gripped me. The series, however, has me hooked. If you enjoy the vampire/occult genre and don't mind a little gore and some gratuitous sex, I recommend this show. :)

Friday, September 11, 2009

Weekend Plans

So much to do... so little time.

Plan # 1: Grade papers, plan units, & organize classroom filing cabinets.

Plan # 2: Run 10 miles.

Plan # 3: Create some art projects with Spencer.

Plan # 4: ZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Cup of Tea


This week has been long, which is humorous considering it was a short week of school. I got more students in my classes (ensuring that some of my students have no place to sit), I had to deal with some serious behavioral issues, I still have no phone in my room to call for help in case of an emergency or a discipline problem, and I have had some serious migraines this week. Tomorrow is Friday and I am counting the hours until 2:27 when the kids are released.

It's not that I don't like the kids; I feel lucky that I have such a great group. Instead it is the fact that I am tired and feeling the strain of grading my first significant assignments while helping Spencer get off on the right foot in second grade and in soccer. My marathon in a few weeks, Steen is starting city league, and the house is messy. All of this can be summed up in one word: stress.

Tomorrow after school I will be taking a break to have some snow monkey plum tea with orange honey and a vanilla bean scone. I am going to finish reading Traveling Mercies and plan to spend some time journaling. After that, it will be off to bed and to sleep by 9 pm so that I can get up for my 10 mile run on Saturday feeling refreshed. Somehow, even just the thought of having this "break" is enough to help me relax. Friday is almost here and I am ready to find my zen.

Desire


Ok... it is completely impractical and entirely too opulent for everyday wear, but I want this necklace. I love it. It makes me think of frog princes and love stories. :) It is a big maybe for me.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Something to Admire

So here it is…a reminder of my life goal

I wish to live a peaceful, yet productive life.
I wish to allow God complete control over my actions and thoughts
I wish to think of others more than myself
I wish to create on a regular basis for His glory and not my own gratification

I wish to not take relationships for granted

I wish to create harmony and order in my life

I wish to cherish every moment as is it were the perfect moment

I wish to trust in HIM


(from Katie Thompson)

I find this incredibly sweet in it's sincerity and it's simplicity.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

The LLS Benefit



















Our benefit at Liquid was not as successful as we had hoped but people had a lot of fun and we were able to raise some money for a great cause. Hopefully, next years benefit will prove to be more profitable for the organization.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Cheesecake & Laughter


We had our 17 mile run today and it was an exercise in perseverance. I twisted my knee on the 9th mile and had to do the remaining 8 (with significant hills) on a throbbing knee. It was fairly miserable, however, I did feel immense pride when I was finished. It was the longest I had ever gone on a run before.
Coming home, I stopped by a gas station to get two bags of ice to create an ice-bath in our tub to help ease the sore lower half of my body. It was twenty minutes of burning cold that I have not missed since leaving college athletics. Once I had showered and napped/watched movies for awhile, I went to meet Tammy at The Cheesecake Factory (it was supposed to be Christin's farewell Jane Austen Book Club event, but both she and Anna couldn't make it) and had a lovely time eating good food and watching Asher play. It is funny how something as small as a tasty red velvet cheesecake and baby giggles can make a tough day seem peaceful. I guess it is true that the simple pleasures in life are the ones that have the greatest impact on us.

McCall



We decided to go to McCall this year and catch up with all of the cousins. It turned out to be a wonderful decision. We drank lots of coffee, ate good food, Chad taught Steen how to fly fish, I helped Katy "reclaim" some farm trash for her art projects, and Spencer played hard.
Shaant and I had some much needed one-on-one time on the paddle boat when we decided to stay an extra day. It was a good choice for us, we all needed the time away from everything that we do while at home. Steen thought the high point was the fact that Troy loved him. Seriously, you'd think they were old friends by the connection they had.
Although we were unsure that it was going to work out, we ended up deciding that it was the perfect vacation to finish out our summer and bring in the new school year.