Money Saving Tips

Next Friday at Kelly's Korner is show us your money saving tips. I do love to save money-it makes me so excited. I have a few random ones, so let's see.
1. I love flowers for my flower garden, but they can be pricey. My mom always divides hers at the end of the season and I always agree to taking some off her hands- cost: $0
2. Sign up for emails from your favorite stores- you will get emails on some great deals. I barely missed out on a duvet from Pottery barn for $30.
3. Grow your own fruit and veggie garden- I love fresh fruit and veggies and the seeds are around a dollar a piece- far cheaper than if you bought it fresh from the grocery.
4. Buy antique or used! It has character.
5. Buy clothes at the end of the season when you can get great deals.
6. Swap books with friends- twice the books for 1/2 the price.

Hanging in the Mall Parking lot

Please ignore the underlining. I can't figure out how to get it off!

On Sunday Anthony and I ran to the mall. We were planning on a quick in-out trip. We accomplished the in part with relative ease. It was the out part that became a bit challenging. It was an icky day with clouds looming overhead as we raced to the car with our purchases. We made it to the car and...nothing... again turn the key... nothing... UGH the battery was dead. So, the next step was to call Anthony's dad to come and jump the car. After an hour of unsuccessful tries in the rain the 2 men couldn't get the battery going. Then another call was made to our friend Teague, who came up to the mall with tools to take the battery out. Once the battery was out they tried to clean it up again and give it one more go at jumping it. No luck. With that Teague left and Anthony and his dad went to AutoZone to get a new battery (side note: it was still under warrantee but because they was a small amount of damage they wouldn't honor the warrantee). Where was I you might be wondering? I was staying nice and dry in the car with my book, leaving the men to their manly work. By the time they returned we were going on 2 hours of our quick mall trip. Finally, with a fresh battery installed we were on our way... 2 hours and several chapters later in my book!

Here are some pictures of the men hard at work.

Wordless Wednesday

Saturday brought a smile to my face with football alumni events and the Blue White spring game.

A relative bad day

I'll go into more detail in another post, but for now I want to leave you with something to think about. I talked with my Grandma today. It was our weekly phone call. I love my Grandma, and today she made me realize something. A bad day is all relative. For example she was talking about how her day was so long and bad because she dropped her ring in her bedroom and can't find it and she was at the store and the cashier forgot to use her receipts, so she had to void a check and re-write it. To me one voided check does not a bad day make. I thought I had a bad day, again that is a whole other post. But I would classify it as one of those "no good very bad days". I was proud of myself for remaining pretty positive throughout the day, but I found myself getting irritated with the grumpiness of my grandma. But overall I had an: epiphany: A bad day is relative. Your bad day may be someone else's good day. Be happy with what good things there are in your life. Today, on my "no good very bad day" I am still grateful for a wonderful family, amazing friends, a good job, roof over my head, sweet beagle, and warm bed.

And as you find yourself going through a relative bad day remember:

I repeat, be strong and brave! Don't be afraid and don't panic, for I the Lord your God, am with you in all you do. ~Joshua1:9

Sunday verse to ponder

A perfect verse will get you through your day. Hope this one gets you through yours.

Trust in Him at all times,

O people; pour out your hearts to

Him, for God is our refuge.

Psalm 62:8

My Week in a nutshell

What a long week. The buzz on Facebook is teachers are exhausted. Why? You might ask. Well, because of this. These two studnet interactions will sum up my week to you: Note: normally my class is super well behaved and wonderful!


Interaction 1:
My studnets are on the carpet- getting ready to watch News Quiz. One of my boys is turned around talking to the studnt behind him.
"Nick"..... "Nick".... "NICK", I say.

Nick finally turns around, "what, I heard you".

UGH! Then why on earth wouldn't you listen!!

Interaction 2: At a bathroom break

From time to time I have to pop into the boys' bathroom. There is a wall I can stand by at the front of the bathroom, so I give them their privacy.When I walked in today there were 4 boys in a stall. They are all ammused with ...for lack of a better word, a big poo that hadn't been flused. OH boys really that ammuses you that much... Come on boys.

But as one of my sweet boys said at the end of the day "we will start fresh on Monday".

How I meet the hubby

I made a little oops- did you notice? Today on Kelly's Korner is actually how you met your hubby. Here's our story:

It was September 2000. We were freshmen in college, had a biology class together and a mutual friend. She introduced us one day and nothing really happened. But I was smitten. He was a football player, I was a bit of a dork. I sat in the back of class, and he sat closer to the front with some cute girls. I stared at the back of his head 2 weeks, but I didn't dare to approach him. It just isn't something a southern girl does. I just hoped he would notice me again. Or at least feel my eyes boring in the back of his head. Not sure if he felt my eyes boring in on him but finally 2 weeks later he caught up with me after class and asked me out. From that date on we were a couple.


Our 4th year of college, he proposed under a waterfall.

On July 23rd 2005 we were married and are living happily ever after. 5 years this year. We are pretty much opposites in all ways, but it works- and i wouldn't change it for the world!

Ahh the Sweet smell

of honeysuckle. At the very back of our yard each summer grows tons of wild honeysuckle. Most springs I smell it before I actually see it. It is one of the most natural, heavenly smells I have ever experienced. When I was little I used to love to taste the honeysuckle straight from the vine. If I could put a scratch and sniff on here to let you experience it I would. So, i know honeysuckle is used for me to taste and to enjoy the smell, but I did a bit of research. Did you know, according to the honeysuckle site, honeysuckle also has a lot of other useful purposes.

honeysuckle is edible and medicinal. High in Calcium, Magnesium, and Potassium, the leaves can be parboiled and eaten as a vegetable. The edible buds and flowers, made into a syrup or puddings. The entire plant has been used as an alternative medicine for thousands of years in Asia. The active constituents include calcium, elaidic-acid, hcn, inositol, linoleic-acid, lonicerin, luteolin, magnesium, myristic-acid, potassium, tannin, and zink. It is alterative, antibacterial, antiinflammatory, antispasmodic, depurative, diuretic, febrifuge, and is also used to reduce blood pressure. The stems are used internally in the treatment of acute rheumatoid arthritis, mumps and hepatitis. The stems are harvested in the autumn and winter, and are dried for later herb use. The stems and flowers are used together a medicinal infusion in the treatment of upper respiratory tract infections (including pneumonia) and dysentery. An infusion of the flower buds is used in the treatment of a wide range of ailments including syphillitic skin diseases and tumors, bacterial dysentery, colds, and enteritis. Experimentally, the flower extracts have been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels and are antibacterial, antiviral and tuberculostatic. Externally, the flowers are applied as a medicinal wash to skin inflammations, infectious rashes and sores. The flowers are harvested in early morning before they open and are dried for later herb use.

Wordless Wednesday: It's worth the picture

Are you a follower?

I'm not going to lie. I get excited when I glance at the left hand corner of my blog and see that I have a new follower. I have always loved to write. I don't want to brag but I took the advanced writing class in middle school. I know you are impressed. I would love to write a children's' book one day. All of this is why I really love to see that I have new followers. It makes me feel better that people actually read this blog, because while I write it for myself I also hope others enjoy reading it too. So, I have a favor for you. If you really do follow my blog, but you haven't clicked in the left hand side of the page, take a second and do so now.

That thong th thong thong thong

Not sure if this is one of those TMI posts... but I'm going to go with it. In my younger days I used to adore the thong. It was the in thing. There was even "The Thong Song" by Sisco.

Baby make your booty go da na da na

Girl I know you wanna show da na da na

That thong th thong thong thong

I like it when the beat goes da na da na

Baby make your booty go da na da na

Girl I know you wanna show da na da na

That thong th thong thong thong

Sorry I just had to reminisce a bit. Anyway, thongs were everywhere. As I have grown older I have grown smarter and learned the thong is not as enjoyable as I once thought. Why am I telling you this? Well because when I was getting my hair done I found an article in Cosmo (again a younger pleasure of mine) about the death of the thong. Thank goodness is all I have to say. Here is a link to the article below for your reading pleasure. Now the boy shorts are in:). That makes me happy. It does make me wonder about all the crazy women's trends over the years that we have subjected ourselves too. Thank goodness I am not forced to wear panty hose on a daily basis like women of the past.

What will our kids be like

Since the majority of our friends have kids, and since I am around kids I often wonder- what will our kids be like? I am not unlike you- I know you have said somewhere along the way "my kids won't act that way". The fact is they may. I try to remember that. I thought about that a few weeks ago. I stayed at my parents' one night over spring break and took Grace with me. We were sitting out on the deck and Gracie jumped on my lap, from which she proceeded to jump onto the outdoor table and sit, starring at my dad as if this was a normal routine for her. I can assure you it is not. But in that moment I couldn't help but wonder "what will our kids get away with"? And while I made her get down- I also probably let her linger a bit too long, because it was kind of cute.

Coconut Cupcakes

I found this recipe in Coastal Living and can't stop thinking about it. I may have to have people over so that I can have an excuse to make them. Otherwise I would make them and eat them all by myself. Warning: mine will not look these pretty. It reminds me of my Grandma's gosh awful Easter coconut cake she used to make every year. Note: I loved her cooking- but that cake- no one ate it, no one liked it, but for some reason she always kept making it and was so proud of it. I'm assuming the cupcakes will be better. Anybody up for making them. If you do let me know what you think.

Here's the Recipe:
Prep: 24 minutes; Cook: 20 minutes; Cool: 30 minutes.
Prep Time: 24 minutesCook Time: 20 minutesCool Time: 30 minutesYield: Makes 1 1/2 dozen
Ingredients
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 large egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
3 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons coconut milk, divided
1 tablespoon amaretto liqueur
Coconut-Cream Cheese Frosting
1 1/2 cups large-flake unsweetened coconut, toasted
Preparation
1. Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy and creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until well blended. Add egg whites, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Add extracts; beat well.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture alternately with 1 cup coconut milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed until blended after each addition.
3. Divide batter evenly among 18 paper-lined cups of muffin pans. Bake at 350° for 20 to 23 minutes or until batter is set but centers of cupcakes still look slightly wet. (Do not overcook.) Cool in pans 10 minutes; transfer to wire racks.
4. Combine amaretto liqueur and remaining 3 tablespoons coconut milk; stir well. Spoon mixture evenly over tops of warm cupcakes, spreading with back of spoon. Cool completely.
5. Frost cupcakes with Coconut-Cream Cheese Frosting, and sprinkle with toasted coconut. Store at room temperature.

Best Teacher Gifts

Today on Kelly's Korner she is featuring "the best teacher gifts". I have declared myself an expert in this field, since I am a teacher- who else better to ask. Let's see. First, let me say the ultimate teacher gift is a vacation to somewhere warm, at least that is my personal opinion. Really- I feel honored when a child thinks of me in the first place, and if a student gave me something on any list I create I would be grateful. All teachers are different but here is a top 3 best gifts and top 3 worst gifts:

Top 3 best gifts:
3. I have a little girl who has discovered 2 of my favorite things: Reese's and the beach- so every so often she brings me a Reese's or a fun beach sign- find out the teacher's fav drink or snack. it means a lot.
2. mani/pedi
1. gift cards to fav stores

Top 3 worst gifts:
3. ornaments- I love Christmas, and ornaments- but I have a ton already
2. random decorative do dads for around the house (unless you know what my house looks like)
1. coffee mugs- my mom has a jillion from all her years of teaching

Don't take me out to the ballgame

If you have followed this blog for awhile, or know me outside the blogging world, you know I love sports. Especially college football, and basketball. But this is the time of year I dread. The only worthy sport to watch (and I have had to acquire a taste for it) is golf. Besides that it is the time of year for the worst sport EVER. It is baseball season. Ugh. So boring. Slow. And really I know you have to have talent- but how much athletic ability does it take. It isn't like soccer or basketball, or football, where you are consistently running or doing something. Even in golf they don't sit in the dugout- they walk the course. Sorry, if I am offending you. I just can't stand to watch the sport and I am longing for September, when college football season comes back around. Specifically September 4th for UK's opening game against Uof L.

Don't take me out to the ballgame

Don't take me out to the crowd

I don't like peanuts or crackerjacks

I just want football to come on back

So I rout rout rout for the end of this silly season to end

Cause it's one two three times I say that baseball's lame my friend

* I know it's cheesy, but I kinda like cheesy sometimes!

Wordless Wednesday

All these pictures were taken at a vineyard close to my parents' house. It is a favorite for the wine, and its beauty. I love spring in the country.

Our recent movie experience

Anthony and I rarely go to the movies. It has to be a movie we just can't wait to see. And most the time we can wait. But since I was on spring break we decided to go see Clash of the Titans. It was a movie he really wanted to see. He had seen the original and so we ventured to the 9:00pm show the other night at our local theater (I know you are already impressed that I stayed up that late right)? Well we had setteled into our seats (always the seats with the bar in front of them to kick up your feet). And guess what? That annoying group of 12 to 13 year old boys decided that right behind us was the perfect place to sit. This is where they felt the need to be loud and annoying. It took Anthony about 10 minutes before he turned around and asked them to be quiet. I'm not sure how much it helped because the 3 boys continued to do the typical pre teen annoying things that typical pre teen boys do. Now, I am usually pretty laid back about these things. I get kids and their need to act like fools when they are in groups- I really do. But... when they started to make fake farting noises I had had it! I wheeled around and in my best teacher voice tsked them "Seriously, y'all need to knock it off". Insert the I mean business look here too. I was feeling pretty proud of myself for standing up to them when one of them made the farting noise again. Now I was not happy. Once again I wheeled around "I'm not playing, cut it out or I'll get someone and you will leave". So out of character for me. Finally, they got the idea. Not a peep was made the rest of the movie. But now I'm concerned... am I the mean old lady that has forgotten what it is like to be young? I've thought about it, I don't think I am, at least I hope not. I could have been nicer, but we had already tried that route. But here is the kicker, as we were leaving the movie I commented to Anthony "I never acted that way, and if our kids act that way I'll kill them, it's just rude". Ok I admit it that is an old lady comment, I'll own it.

*Side note- the movie was really good- once we got past all the farting noises.

Breaking out my artsy side

One of the things I love about my breaks is that I have time to find my artsy side. This spring break my artsy side consisted of busting out my paints and putting use to the pile of wood pieces left over from the basement framing project. I made some cute markers for my vegetable garden. I needed something to help me remember what I planted where. I forgot last year and the garden turned out to be a big mess. This year, with my signs I am prepared, and I can use them again next year. I also had an extra board laying around and the last time I was antiquing I saw a fun old sign that said "one day at a time". I loved it and thought I could make one of my own.

Finally, and not pictured here I am working on some things for my new room next year. When I finish them I'll be sure to post them.

35 days

I have to go back to work tomorrow. I have loved my spring break. I will have 35 school days left. I will miss these kids like crazy. They are an amazing group of students. I am also craving the pool, the sun, a good book, and my free time. Sigh. I guess I will wait those days to see the other side of 10pm again, or to read a book for fun. In the mean time- parents, put sun screen on your kids because I will be outside teaching AS much as possible.

A new type of house

I've searched the Internet for my new fun find in this month's Coastal Living magazine- but I haven't had any luck. I did find some other pictures that will help you to visualize what the heck I am talking about. You need to see the pictures, because otherwise you may think I am crazy. This month's issue had several eco friendly homes featured. I love to read about all the great eco friendly ideas, but there was one in particular that caught my attention. I like the out of the box ideas, and hope one day I'll be able to have an eco friendly home of my own. I don't know if I could do this idea, but I'd like to think I would. This man who lives in Washington surfs in his free time. He decided to buy a piece of land on the beach and make a little home away from home. The little home away from home is a former supped up shipping container. Complete with electricity, running water, and a deck. It is simple, eco friendly and creative. Apparently he isn't the only one with this idea because I did find a lot of shipping container homes online. Who knows, if I don't end up with my dream beach shack one day, maybe at least I'll end up with a beach shipping container. I just need to convince Anthony that it's a great idea.

The many colors of my hair

I get bored fairly easily. In general. With pretty much everything. Anthony says I need to be entertained. He is probably right. My hair is no exception. I often change the color- usually with the seasons. I just got it changed this week to a dark blond. I doubt that I will ever make up my mind on a favorite color. I'm too indecisive. Plus- what fun would that be? A girl needs a little change in her life. I know there are others out there that do the same thing- admit it, so I don't feel quite so crazy.

My newest color.

This winter I dyed it "dark brown"- it was really black.

A couple years ago.

2 summers ago.

Back in college. This picture dowsn't really show how REALLy blond it was. Please igore how awful the picture is.

Thumbs up to the Keurig Mini

I used to be a once a week or every other week coffee drinker. A new partner teacher moved into the room next to me and along with all her stuff she brought 3 coffee pots into our sink room. She also is so generous to share a cup with me, whenever I feel I need it. Her generosity has encouraged me to have more if a 3 coffee a week habit. I won't let myself buy Starbucks more than once a week. Seriously, it is crazy how much that stuff costs. Anyway- this past fall when we visited Anthony's uncle he had a coffee pot that made amazingly yummy coffee. I came home talking about how good the coffee was. Well, look what I got this past weekend as an Easter gift!

It is so easy to use and really does make the tastiest coffee. It even has a wide variety of different flavor coffees to try. I could explain to you how you could use my fun new gadget, but I wouldn't do as good as if I just copied and pasted from the Keurig coffee website.

"The Keurig® MINI Personal Brewer is ideal for gourmet coffee, tea and hot cocoa lovers who desire a brewer that is compact and easy-to-use in the home. Its small size means you can enjoy Keurig Excellence just about anywhere you call home: vacation home, home office, off campus apartment and loft living. The MINI allows you to brew a cup of in under 2 minutes with no water left in the reservoir.The MINI is easy to operate. Simply add the fresh water into the single-use reservoir, CHOOSE your favorite K-Cup, BREW in under 2 minutes and ENJOY"

Wordless Wednesday

The river in spring time.

Prep for 5th grade

I am the type of teacher that loves to have what I need in the classroom. Over the years that has come out of my pocket. This year I am thinking differently. With the change in grades I am a little short on materials. I am thinking smarter to save money. Tonight I logged onto good old www.scholastic.com and used up almost all of my bonus points I have stock piled the last couple of months. Do you remember the Scholastic Book Order when you were little? I used to LOVE to get mine. I would spend hours analyzing and circling all the books I liked and then beg mom and dad to buy them for me. Yes, I am/was a complete nerd. But when they arrived at school- aww- it was like Christmas. Back to the point. I have a ton of points saved up from this year (thanks to my 1 child who orders an enormous amount of books each month). Points accumulate based on the number and cost of books purchased by students, and in the end teachers can use their points to buy free materials. So- here is what I bought tonight:

The Greatest Moments in Sports
Newbery Collection
Percy Jackson Set
Two Miserable Presidents
Older Grade Picture Books Value Library
Fantasy Value Library
Holocaust Value Library

All of these books, except for The Greatest Moments in Sports (I know boys will love this one) are multi pack books which equals great deals. This is a pretty good start! Can't wait to figure out where to buy more classroom goodies for free.

My big week

I mentioned last week that I had a big week ahead of me. So, I'm still here, still standing. If things would have gone horrible that would have been questionable. Tuesday I had my doctor appointment to see how my surgery had gone. The surgery actually went really well. Better than my doctor or we had expected. It is truly amazing for us to have good news here. Thank God! We still aren't finished with our journey, but this is such a positive thing. With the good news we received I was ready for anything on Thursday when I found out what grade and team I would be teaching on next year. Remember, I had no input on this decision (which kills a control freak like me). I sat down for my meeting feeling confident. I had prepared myself for the grade I thought I would be teaching all day. I had a gut feeling I was moving up to 5th grade. I've taught 5th grade before and I've been in 3/4 since I came to my school, so I figured if they wanted to change things around- now was the time. After sitting down and telling my principal what my guess was she confirmed I was right. I will be teaching 5th grade next year. Yikes! Not overly excited about it, but not upset either. Lots of planning lies ahead of me, but I'm teaching with a great friend and I have a chance to get a few students back. Overall not a bad week- and honestly they could have put me in 1st grade and I really wouldn't have cared because of the good news earlier in the week. Now- it's time to enjoy my spring break!

Tan in a bottle and baby spit

This time of year I crave many things, the warm sun, and a good tan being two of them. The problem is there is no tan to be found for me around here, unless I go to a tanning bed. I used to do that all the time, but I've tried to avoid it as I've gotten older. Yesterday, I went to Sephoria on a mission to find a good at home spray tan. I was helped by a tan looking younger guy. He insisted that this product (Syven Nyne) is what he used. He went on and on about the great smell, easy use, and natural tan. I had to admit his tan did look natural- so I bought a can. I couldn't wait to get home and try it out. I had to rush because we had decided to meet some friends for dinner. I sprayed quickly and was impressed with the nice even tan I developed in the short time. I glanced at the bottle and noticed that I shouldn't shower for at least 5 hours, and that I needed to wear dark clothes. No big deal- I wasn't planning on getting a shower anytime in the next 5 hours and I had the perfect new top to wear. At dinner I was playing with our friends' baby, raising her up and down above my head. She was having fun, and was relaxed. So relaxed a bit of drool landed from her mouth to my neck. I quickly grabbed a napkin to blot away the drool, but it was too late. i could see my tan come off on the white napkin. A long streak appeared. All tan with one line of pure whiteness. Everyone was amused by my new look. Who knew? So, note to self, the warning on the bottle should say "avoid water, and baby drool". Luckily it was an easy fix and I completely recommend this product to anyone who needs a little tan in their life.

Notice the drool line. It actually does help to show you how tan the spray makes you.

Show me your organization

I am writing this on Tuesday night. I am sleepy. It is only Tuesday. It's been a good week. I think the problem is I can smell spring break around the corner and I'm a bit spent. I'm telling you this because I don't want you to expect too much from me tonight. Kelly's Korner is focusing on organization. This is another topic right up my alley. Here we go:

1. If you have a small space- consider older furniture. The drawers are typically bigger and deeper, allowing more room for all of your stuff.
2. Consider furniture that has multiple functions. Our coffee table is a trunk that is perfect for the storage of our board games.
3. Baskets-Baskets-Baskets: i love baskets! I have one, my husband has one- even the dog has one. It is a perfect place for us to organize our own items instead of leaving things like keys and mail just laying around.
4. Labels are amazing- I have labels for everything... that way if I'm ever not there the hubby can find things.
5. Under the bathroom sink- it can be a messy place. I have tubs stacked on each other. Each tub has bath products that are similar in nature (lotions, hair products, etc)
6. Ok- this is a bonus- don't put off your organizing- there is not much more of a tedious task than having to organize a big ole pile of stuff.

Here we go

I am determined to tone up for the summer. Since I had to take a break from exercising I really wanted to hit it hard. I am so grateful that I am able to get outside and walk the beagle again, but I am punching it up even more. And I am certifiably crazy- clearly. I am starting P90X. All I can say is WOW! I did the arms and chest and the ab ripper. I am in for it, but I figure if I post it on here you can hold me accountable. I think I'm gonna need it. I've even convinced Anthony to do it with me. With all this accountability I think I am in for the long haul- because I hate to disappoint.