Photo Day#18 - And we're out. . .

Today was the very first day of school, and it was GREAT!  I had a few "at school" photo options, but the day was pretty crazy, and I just didn't want to take time to snap a shot in the middle of all the first day fun.  I figured, something from home would work - - and so, this is a picture of what I did when I got home - and for a good part of the evening - and then all night.  Well, not real "what I did" but more like "what I saw."  This picture is the view I had for a good part of the evening - the view from behind my eyelids as it were.  Oh, well, awesome first days often come at a price!

Photo Day #17 - Ready or Not

I don't think it's ever possible to actually feel completely ready for the first day of school. . . There's always "one more thing" that could have been done or should have been done.  This year it seemed especially crazy.  I thought it was just me until a fellow educator pointed out that our new technology (google websites) probably played a part in my pre-starting overload.  Oh, well. . . my class is at least workable for the first day.  It's ready - I sure hope I am.

Photo Day #16 - Holding summer in my hands!

I don't claim to be a hand model, but I just had to show off my new favorite, summery nail polish.  I know it looks like just a generic, green nail polish, but it is called Beach.  AND if your computer screen had smell-o-vision, you would be able to smell that my nails are now enjoying the fragrance of sun-screen!  My nails smell like they've been to the beach!!  So do my toes!  I'm hoping that will help counteract the back to school suffocation my toes will soon be experiencing!  And having the smell of summer will have to make things like lesson plans and grading papers be easier too!  I mean really - everything's easier on the beach!!

Photo Day#15 - Weddings

I don't know why, but ever since I got married, I am a total MUSH at weddings!  I guess it's because they make me remember my wedding day - waiting to walk down the aisle with my dad, seeing Steve get a little misty-eyed as he saw me, making my dad cry when the letter I recorded for him was played, making everyone else get teary-eyed at that same letter, asking Pastor Fred after the vows (during the duet) when I was going to be able to kiss Steve and having him announce my question to the entire congregation, and finally the joy of standing before the Lord and my family and friends and pledging my life and love to the man of my dreams.

It may have been over eleven years ago (actually 11 years and 21 days), but sometimes I still feel like we are just silly newly-weds.  We still giggle and laugh together, and he can still make my heart skip a beat.  He thinks I'm a mush - and I think he's still the man of my dreams!

Steve was in the sound booth for David and Jessica's wedding, so I sat with him.  

During prayer I snapped this silly picture of the two of us!
The smirk on his face indicates that he knew what I was doing,
but wasn't too happy about it.
Oh, well - - good thing he loves me!

Photo Day#14 - Let the Celebrations Begin

Okay, I'll admit it, I love celebrating my birthday - I'm never exactly sure how old I am, but I love celebrating them!!  For me, it's not just a birthDAY celebration, it's more like a birthWEEK celebration!  This year the week officially began tonight!  Part of what makes this week-long party possible is the fact that I sign up for every imaginable restaurant birthday thing.  So, I start out the birthWEEK festivities with a handful of coupons - consisting mainly of getting things free.  Tonight's birthWEEK merriment began at Red Robin where I had a coupon for a "Free Gourmet Burger" with the sentiments of "Here's to staying forever YUMM."  And really, who doesn't want to stay forever yumm!  We then continued the festivities at Borders where we have our usual date night.  At Steve's suggestion to one of our favorite barristas,  I was given a free medium shaken Strawberry Lemony Tea.  Tonight's picture was grabbed by Steve at our first stop of the evening.  I knew I was getting a free burger; what I didn't know was that I was going to get a free sundae and singing!  Aren't birthday weeks GREAT!

Photo Day #13 - The Waiting is Over

I know this isn't the best of pictures, but it was taken off my computer tonight; and although I'll never be able to find myself in the sea of 1,500 faces, I'm there - - somewhere.  On August 9th, I applied for a really neat program called "Month at the Museum" sponsored by the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.  The winner would be living for thirty days in the fourteen acre museum.  During the day they would take part in demonstrations, hang with the guests, and do a lot of blogging.  At 5:30p when the Museum closes, the whole place would becomes their playground - they could paddle around in their p.j.'s all night or hang out in their private apartment [in the museum].  No place would  be off limits.   Needless to say, when I filled out my 14 page application, wrote my 500 word essay, and taped and edited my 60 sec. video, I knew it was going to be a long shot, but I never dreamed that there would 1,499 other people wanting that same ONE position that I did.  Well, the waiting and wondering ended this evening with an email - I didn't make it to the next round.  Am I a little bummed?   well, "little" is a relative term. . .   Fortunately I still have plans with a friend for the exact day that I would have been moving into the Museum (had I been the one picked.)  Instead of 30 days in the Museum of Science and Industry, I'll be doing 3 days in Las Vegas.  I bet the other 1480'ish others who didn't make it, didn't have back up plans as fun as mine!!  Well, my headshot is in there somewhere, and if you ever find it. . . let me know.

Here's the whole video, if you're interested:

Thank You, from the Month at the Museum

Photo Day #12 - Detroit FOOD WARS

We have been waiting for this episode of Food Wars for over a year - they promoted it before the first season and are finally showing it at the beginning of the second season.  For Steve and I it's a no-brainer. . . Lafaytte CLEARLY has the best coney dog.  The meaty chilli - the perfectly grilled dog - the onions that are slightly sweet as they bite back - all of these things make the food fantastic.  And you can't beat the little dive for atmosphere.  (On the show they definitely used a wide angle lens on the interior shots of Lafayette!)  We watched the show, we cheered for our team, and in the end - THEY GOT IT ALL WRONG!  American does NOT have the best coney dogs - - I don't care WHAT Carmen Harlan or that food critic said! We're still  Lafayette fans all the way!  Regardless of the outcome, though, it's pretty pathetic to be begging your husband to take you down to get a coney dog at 10:30p - I'm way too easily suggestible when it comes to TV.

Photo Day #11 - . . . sigh . . .

Summer is CLEARLY now over. . . it hit my toes like a ton of bricks this morning.  My tootsies have spent the entire summer in a delightful shade of bright blue, and this morning, they had to change into a more school-acceptable neutral color. (Purple seemed to be a moderately fun and yet neutral choice.)  As they were being painted, all they could think of were being stuffed into closed-toed shoes and never again seeing the light of a beautiful summer day or feeling the flip of a flip-flop. . . sigh. . .  it was sad.  The toes of me are already beginning to feel claustrophobic - I hope it isn't contagious!!

Photo Day #10 - Welcome "Home"

Well, it's official - summer is over. . . As I opened my classroom door and looked around this morning, I don't mind admitting that it felt pretty good.  It's sad that it means summer is over; but, at the same time, it's brimming with excitement and possibilities.  A brand new year - a brand new class - a brand new me - - okay, yeah, it's the same old me, but for some reason I feel like this year is going to be different.  Maybe it's the year's classroom theme already starting to work on me - getting off on the right foot.  By the end of the day, the black plastic covers were gone, my desk was set up, and two bulletin board were almost done.  Not bad for one day's work - especially when I managed to fit all that in around "catching up" with all the various teachers that wandered in and out today.  See, from the moment I opened that door, I really did feel a "Welcome Home."

Photo Day#9 - "Riding" with Steve

Since Steve owns a Harley, one of the most common questions I get asked is "Do you ride with him?"  Well, today's picture is a visual example of how, "Yes, I do occasionally ride with him."  He's in front - on the bike, and I'm in back - in the car!  That's riding together isn't it??

I'm glad he gets to enjoy is toy so much, and maybe someday I will be brave enough to actually ride with him, but right now, I choose to accompany him only when he is riding in a car.  The thought of staring only at the back of his head and not being able to "wiggle" is enough to scare me away from joining him.  Please understand, it's not that I don't trust him (he really is a very safe driver), it's just that I don't trust me.  So until then, when we ride together it will continue to look something like this. . .

Photo Day #8 - To eat, or not to eat

To eat, or not to eat: that is the question:
Whether 'tis wiser in the stomach  to suffer
The pains and groans of outrageous agony,
Or to take arms against the sea of salmonella,
And by returning end them?  To cringe, to run;
No more; and by a cringe to say we dismiss
The agony and the thousand painful cramps
That poisoned folks are heir to, 'tis a sickness
Devoutly to be avoid'd.  To cringe, to run;
To run: perchance to make it: ay, there's the rub. . .

I hope you have enjoyed my slight homage to William Shakespeare in light of the fact that the eggs we were going to have for breakfast were produced by the newest company in the egg recall.  In all fairness, Michigan was not part of the listed distribution, but I wasn't sure I was willing to risk it.  See, Shakespeare is truly a "living" author applicable to our lives today - with just a little help of course!

Photo Day #7 - Look What I Made!!

Before you look at the picture, let me tell you a few things:

1. I can sew - see Photo Day #3 for an example.
2. I learned to sew mainly for the stage - good for seeing from a distance, but not so much for close up.
3. I have become Grandma's sewing project this summer - her goal is to give me the skills and patience I need to be able to "really sew."

Now you can look a the picture as I tell you that when this particular piece of material started out its life - it was a blouse; my skirt was actually a blouse!  YEP - I even have the sleeves left to prove it!  Even though it had the original tag on it for $29.99, I bought the blouse for $1.25 at the S.A. Boutique and took it over to grandma's for some help.  She did the measuring (while I was measuring, pinning, and cutting another adapted garment) and then I did the cutting and sewing of the skirt.  I am so excited!!  I have to find the right shirt to match it - I'm thinking a white shirt with a matching belt from the sleeve material, but we'll see.  Fun isn't it!!

I do have to give a "Thank You" shout out to Marisa of http://newdressaday.wordpress.com/ since she was the inspiration for this little adventure.  Never met her, but she seems fun and I love what she can do with a mumu!

Photo Day#6 - "It's a Winner!"

I love to watch cooking shows like Top Chef where these people seem to be able to whip amazing dishes out of thin air without even a thought.  As much as I like to watch them, I'm not very good at cooking like that myself.  I usually use recipes, but I often don't follow them word-for-word; I "tweak" them a bit as I go.  Every so often I step it up and wing it like those folks on TV.  I know what I want my end product to be, and I know what ingredients I think I need to get there.  Well, tonight I tried my hand at homemade rice pudding.  It was pretty good.  (Steve declared it "a winner" so I guess he really liked it.)  YAY!   However, I don't think I'll be heading out to participate in a cooking show any time soon.  But if I do, I know I can at least make rice pudding!!

Photo Day #5 - New Do

Let's start by saying I'm not a big fan of photos of myself - I can think of a lot more interesting subjects to photograph,  but when ya get a "new do" it's just customary to chronicle the event with a picture.  So, here it is.  I'm still getting used to it.  My husband says it's just like it was last time I got a haircut, but I don't think it is. . .  I wanted something "fun" for the start of the school year, and something that would last me until about Thanksgiving. (I'm still holding out hope for the Month at the Museum gig.) This haircut seemed to fit the bill.  So, I guess my hair's ready for school - too bad that's about the only thing that is. 

Photo Day #4 - Our Library

I know it sounds pretty cheesy, but Steve and I still have "dates" to go to the library every two weeks.  We've actually done that with relative consistency since we were first married.  WAY BACK THEN, it was just a tiny little library in downtown Redford.  Now, it's a really nice building just down the street, within walking distance of our house.  OH, I forgot to mention, with all of our overdue fines, we helped to build this lovely building, so if you're ever in the area, come and enjoy the library, it's on us!

Photo Day #3 - Going Blue

Okay, I am NOT a radical "Save the Trees" kind of person, but I have been trying to be socially responsible when it comes to taking my own bags to the store and recycling the plastic bags that I do occasionally have to get.  Lately, I've been trying to kick up our veggie eating, and have found the local Westborne Market to be one of my favorite shops - next to Trader Joe's of course!  Well, after coming home with a rather large collection of plastic veggie bags in my fabric shopping tote, I realized I had a bit of a problem.   In the past handful of years, I have found there are very few problems that are not clearly solved and illustrated online.  SO, to remedy my problem, I surfed around and found a suggested way to make my own veggie bags.  When I went to the fabric store, I picked pacific blue for my bags; that way no one can pick up my bags by mistake!  And besides, going green is so cliche - I'm starting a new trend - going blue!

Photo Day #2 - My Dear Husband

For some reason I thought about this picture tonight as I was out running a few errands so I stopped back by the church to snap a real quick shot.  (I knew Steve would NEVER consent to allowing me to take one of him actually in the picture, so this was the next best thing.)  I am so proud of Steve.  He decided a few years ago that he wanted to learn how to play the bass for the praise band, and in those few short years, he took a few lessons, practiced a lot, and now is a very intricate part of the group.  His deep, steady tones keep the music moving, and his silent presence at the very outside edge of the band doesn't do anything to hide the fact that his consistent dedication is part of what makes worship time what it is every Sunday morning.  So, to thank my sweets for all his hard work, I moved his bass out in front - where he will always be in my eyes.

Photo Day #1 - Close to Home

I love going away for vacation, the excitement of being someplace "new."  It is however, nice, when you can find something "new" right near home.  I saw the Corn Roast advertised in downtown Farmington on Friday, and so I had to drag Steve there in the hot, stickiness of Saturday afternoon just so I could buy my first fresh roasted corn on the cob.  (I may have had it roasted before, but never at a Corn Roast!)  My sweet one obliged, and with a promised stop at Starbucks as incentive, he stood in line with me for the corn and then sat there while I enjoyed every little kernel!  It was the most wonderful, juicy, sweet corn!  Steve even had a few bites himself.   I told him to think of it as vacationing - right near home; he didn't seem too convinced. . .

The 31-day Picture Challenge

Okay, I figure if one of my friends can make this commitment - I can too!  Plus this might be a pretty interesting 31 days to capture - the very last bit of summer vacation, the preparation for a new school year, the actual start of the year, a holiday (Labor Day) and my birthday.  I guess we'll just see just how interesting of a life I have in 31 days!!