Wordless Wednesday

This is what my day is devoted to on this wordless wednesday. Totally devoted to painting my friends.

The Sand Dollar

I found one of my fav things at the beach on vacay. Sand dollars. I have always loved finding sand dollars- it was an extra special treasure. I was trying to remember the significance of the sand dollar to tell Anthony. I ended up looking it up. It actually has a powerful significance. Here it is in poetry form.

The legend of the Sand Dollar

There's a pretty little legend
That I would like to tell
Of the birth and death of Jesus
Found in this lowly shell.

If you examine closely,
You'll see that you find here
Four nail holes and a fifth one
Made by a Roman's spear.

On one side the Easter lily,
Its center is the star
That appeared unto the shepherds
And led them from afar.

The Christmas poinsettia,
Etched on the other side
Reminds us of His birthday,
Our happy Christmastide.

Now break the center open,
And here you will release
The five white doves awaiting
To spread Good will and peace.

This simple little symbol,
Christ left for you and me
To help us spread His Gospel
Through all eternity.

Miscellany monday

Thank goodness it is Miscellany monday because I really am recovering from my slow pace of life from the beach. Here we go:

1. I miss the beach- I want to bottle it and bring it home with me. There is a little girl in my class for the past 2 years who visits the on spring break and brings me back a bag of sand and sea shells. Love her heart.
2. As we finish our basement the new debate is pergo floors or carpet. I vote pergo, the hubby wants carpet. Carpet= stains and allergies. He says carpet will "soften the basement since it isn't a walkout"... what?!?
3. I love football, I absolutely can not wait till that day in September!
4. I am not ready to go back to school. I know I still have a little over a month but every time I think about it I get a bit overwhelmed with all the newness I have to figure out.
5. I missed my beagle and I'm so happy to have my walking buddy/snuggler back.

Sunrise on the beach comes early, but it's worth it

MIL in the house

While we are on vacay my MIL and BIL (he is 11) offered to stay at our house and take care of the furbabies while we gone. I was so happy about this for a couple reasons.

1. 1. I know Gracie will get her daily walks, at least most days.
2. 2. I also know both Pheobie and Gracie will be properly spoiled.
3. 3. My flowers won’t die.
4. 4. My house will be clean.
5. 5. Even if she thinks I am neurotic about my pets, she appeases me.

However, there is one negative:

1. My typical OCD nature kicked into overdrive, because while to the majority my house is super clean, it needed to be perfect. This means I spent all week doing extra cleaning. I even went as far as to paint the guest bathroom ceiling. Yes- I am aware that I am crazy, because more than likely she doesn’t even care and wouldn’t notice if the ceiling were painted or not.

Show us your kids activities

I’ve missed the past couple of Kelly’s Korner show us your life posts. I will have to post about last week’s sometime soon, because it would be fun to share- it is your engagement story. Anyway, this week is show us your activity ideas for kids. Right up my alley, being a teacher. I love to take the time to do things with my students outside of school, and you could easily convert these ideas to your own children with a few modifications.

1. Bake/cook: I did an after school cooking club this year and it was so fun! The kids love to dig in and help, along with the fact that it is great for math, and nutrition.

2. Picnic: I have an annual back to school picnic with my students. I bring the recess bucket, cookies, and drinks – instant easy picnic.

3. Theme days: crate a theme, for example sports day or Olympics- do different activities for the day that relate to the theme.

4. Painting: This is my favorite. Get a couple of cheap canvases and paint (real paint- it makes them feel grown up) . Sit down with your own canvas and paint with them. There has been some great conversation that has come out of this time, and some very creative works of art.

5. Book Club: Even if it is just you and your kiddo pick a book to read and meet to discuss. You could also do activities that go along with the book. Even young ones can do this, and they love the opportunity to do something grown up. See this post to find out more about my book club. I love my summer book club and plan on making it a routine.

Another Blog Giveaway

Alright kiddos- here is another giveaway I am loving. Go check it out here. It is a fun basket you could keep all for yourself or share with friends. You could win:

A wicker basket

A bathrobe & slippers from Restoration Hardware

Philosophy's Grace Moisturizer

A Cottonelle Puppy Plushie

Coupons for free Cottonelle products

Friday Vacay updates

Dare to Care

Twice a month at church is a program called Dare to Care. I haven’t been able to help because of work, but since I’m off for the summer I decided to help out this past week. Basically what happens is a truck rolls up loaded with lots of food. This week they had 2 huge (like car sized) boxes of fresh apples, lettuce, bread, potatoes, and cakes and cookies. When the truck arrives the volunteers start bagging the food and setting it out on tables. There is a line of people that has already formed, waiting patiently for the food. All they have to do to get the food is sign in and put how many people are in their family, then they go through the line and the volunteers hand out the food. On the day I worked, the line was long, as I’m sure is a result partly of the bad economy. There were several kids in the line- all adorable, polite, and very helpful. I loved that one of the volunteers had suckers for the little ones. Their sweet faces lit up at the sight of candy. I love to volunteer, and have been getting back into volunteering more lately, like I used to. This one was very rewarding. I’m looking forward to doing it again in a couple of weeks. I was thinking of baking cookies next time to share as the people went through the line. On a side note Mammaw (Anthony’s mammaw- but everyone needs a mammaw and since I only have grandmas I have adopted her as my own) was there and that is part of the reason I went. I love to hang out with her. She is one of the most kind, giving, and compassionate people I know. On top of all that, in her late 60s she busted her butt unlading apples out of those huge bins, making me feel a bit like a slacker. And after she was finished with Dare to Care, she was heading to volunteer at the nursing home.

Wordless Wednesday

I caught this the other day and thought it was so cute. Anthony and Grace watching the World Cup (and y’all I swear she was really watching). For those of you that adore and spoil your first furbaby as we do, I know you will appreciate this.

Our day in Savannah

I could walk through this town all day every day and still not discover everything!

Church Picnic

On Friday I worked the church picnic in my MIL’s booth. By worked I mean I sweated my butt off. Hair up in Anthony’s hat, tank top, smelly in all. I love the atmosphere of the Catholic church picnics. If you aren’t familiar, and I wasn’t until I moved here, a church picnic has rides for kids, live music, AMAZING food, beer, and booths where you can play against a spinner to win prizes. Kind of like an old fashioned fair. I often wonder what the strict Baptists think when the Catholics roll out their summer picnics. It is a huge community effort and I really enjoy our church picnic because like our church it ends up being a very diverse group of people. You meet a lot of great people that you wouldn’t normally talk with on a daily basis. If you are in an area like mine, where there are church picnics all summer long, give one a try. It is a great environment, and helps support the church.

Just a taste

of what I am doing this week...

Miscellany monday

1. I I have been in the car for 3 hours now. My hubby has slept the whole time and there is not much entertainment, as my mom is reading and dad is driving. I remember when I was little we had a book of all kinds of fun car games to play. I think I need one now. Gotta love the license plates games.

Grace found skunk (or maybe it is rabbit) poo on one of our walks this week, and promptly decided it would be a good idea to roll in it to savor the smell. I promptly took her home and gave her a bath. She found this particular poo in our backyard last year and we couldn’t keep her out of it.

Someone knocked over our mailbox Friday night or early Saturday morning. Like the post and all (not sure if it was kids on purpose or our across the street neighbor- accident). Anthony worked for about an hour fixing it and I bought some spray paint to touch it up. It looks better than it did before, so ha! to whatever mean person knocked it down.

We woke up at 3:30 this morning to meet my parents at their house to leave for vacay. We got there and the lights were all out, garage closed… awesome- they thought we said 6:00. Good times.

My friend pulled together a girls get-together in September to see Aerosmith at Riverbend in Cincy. So excited! A trip to see Legally Blonde and outlet shop is also in the works.

Last Class!!!

I (remember Anthony has to make up a class- ha) am officially finished with the state foster classes and beach bound as we speak! Woo Hoo! This class went fairly quickly and we even got out an hour early. Our friends’ social worker actually came to do part of the training and I fell in love with her. We haven’t been assigned a social worker yet, and I am hoping we will get her. She has been doing this for 15 years and is the type of person who is honest, but shares the good and the bad equally- no sugar coating it, which I appreciate. She reminds me of a seasoned teacher, she knows the system isn’t perfect, but she loves working for the kids, and you can tell she is passionate about her job. She shared some helpful tips. The thing she said that stuck with me the most was being a foster parent is emotional. The 1^st, 2^nd, and sometimes even 5^th kid end up back home, but if you stick with the program you will end up with a forever child. I’ve thought about that a bit. Yes, our goal is adoption (different from the state’s goal of reunification), but I know that everything happens for a reason and when the perfect child (or children) is put into our lives it will be forever. I hope that if that forever child isn’t the 1^st or 2^nd or 5^th child placed with us that we are able to have a positive impact on that kiddo for the time we have them.

Spicy Shrimp Wraps

The Spicy Shrimp Wraps were a hit at bible study. They were so easy and very tasty. I found the recipe at Coastal Living, how could you go wrong? Hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

Yield: Makes about 1 1/2 dozen

Ingredients

• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
• 4 (6-inch) chili-flavored or plain flour tortillas
• 1 cup loosely packed spinach leaves
• 1/2 pound peeled and deveined large shrimp, cooked

Preparation

Combine cream cheese and seasoning, and spread on one side of each tortilla.

Top cream cheese mixture with spinach. Place shrimp about 1 inch from edge, and roll tightly. Cut into 1-inch slices, and secure with wooden picks.

My cat

You might remember my cat. Pheobie. She is a big cat, and a big cuddler. She also is a big shedder. So, since she is constantly losing fur all over the house I decided to brush her.... and brush her... and brush her some more. I brushed her for over an hour before I finally gave up. Look at all this hair.

I could make another cat! No wonder I have to vacuum all the time- it' not at all because I'm persnickety.

Apron Giveaway at Woodchips

Go check out http://thewoodchips.blogspot.com/2010/06/giveaway-from-aprons-by-julie.html. She has a great give away of adorable homemade aprons "Aprons by Julie". She can be found on Etsy, and after looking through her site there are some super cute aprons. Stop by and check it out- it beasts that Target apron I have, that everyone who was married in 2005 has! This one is my fav.

Wordless Wednesday

Gracie is like her mommy- she loves to go for a ride in a Jeep, especially if it is to Starbucks for a puppy cup:)

My Book Club

I'm so excited to tell y'all about my first summer book club. It meets 3 times during the summer at a local coffee shop. I have really been looking forward to it. We are reading a book called Running Out of Time. I couldn't ask for a better group, there are 10 of us in all and we had great conversation!

Alright so it is a group of my students. Ten in all showed up, which I thought was really good. They all ordered strawberry smoothies, and it was so stinkin precious- melt my heart. We sat around a long table and talked about chapters 1-5. They are such little grown ups. I can't wait for the next meeting.

miscellany monday

My head is full of randomness today so this works out perfectly.

• It has been crazy hot this week.
• I am trying a new recipe each week for bible study. This week I tried spicy shrimp wraps. I found the recipe at my favorite site- www.coastalliving.com . It is super easy and very tasty. I'll post the recipe if they are a hit at bible study.
• I made the first purchase for our future foster/adopt kiddo- it is small and required for our home visit, but it made me happy.
• I killed part of our grass in the front yard, trying to get rid of weeds with weed and feed. Crap! Now we have strips of brown grass- awesome.
• Vaca is so close I can smell it.
• I watched 2 of our friends' babies this week- and they made it out with no bumps, bruises, or scratches.
• My friend Ashley is helping me out with my etsy site tomorrow- I think I need it, I know nothing.
• I bought new sheets this weekend and a fan. Sad but I'm excited.
• I get my hair cut and colored on Tuesday- it so needs it. I'll post a before and after. My roots are a bit scary.
• Gracie has a vet appointment on Tuesday, since we will be in Georgetown anyway. I LOVE her vet and therefore drive an hour 1 time a year (I'm not sure if she is a fan, but we had a horrible experience up here and I am traumatized). side note: I also love my hairdresser in Lexington so much I still drive an hour and a half to get me hair done.
• I am having a hard time finding a new bathing suit. I refuse to pay so much for such little fabric!
• Finally, I'm excited to see some of my students tomorrow at our first summer book club meeting.

Busy, busy, busy

I'm so busy this week, but I love it! Here is my running list:

tutor, tutor, and more tutoring, then book club with my students, followed by hosting bible study, and a crash course about etsy from my friend Ashley, Gracie's vet appointment and my hair appointment, and of course dinner with mom and dad, potential pool day, and then lunch with my room mom- love her, volunteer at my church for Dare to Care with Anthony's mammaw (love her too) and then carpet cleaners coming and mom is coming up for the day, church picnic (work) and make cakes for the cake walk, last foster/adopt class

in between I will find time to pack, clean, run a few errands, and walk the beagle. Here's to a great week!

1 more left!!

ONLY 1 MORE CLASS! Can you believe it? I trudged to class today by myself, because Anthony is having his "boy's weekend". This just means that there is a golf tournament and some guys came up, so they make it an excuse to play all weekend long, well actually since Thursday, but who's counting. Anyway, back to class. If you have kept up you know this isn't something I look forward to. This week was different though. It was the first week I felt 100% positive when I left, without having to pump myself up. So, why this change? Well to start out today I found out that the couple who have been sittting at our table are the parents of my friend's best friend. I know that is kind of hard to follow, but it made me feel good to have a link to someone. There was also a panel of foster parents. It was comprised of 3 women who started out fostering and ended up adopting. They shared some wonderful stories. Not saying every story was butterflies and rainbows, but there were happy endings. There were also a lot of tips and ideas of things to do before you foster a kid and when you have them. So, now I have some things I can do to prepare this summer while I have the time. They also took you through all the steps if adoption turns out to be the goal. At the end there was a video put together of kids up for adoption. So sweet, and a tear jerker too. It solidified that we are on the right path. So, let me restate: ONE MORE CLASS for me and when Anthony has to make this one up I will smile.

On Friday I went into my classroom to start to pull everything out of the closet and arrange my room. On the way home I stopped by Barnes and Noble to pick up a cd with a gift card I have been wanting to spend. As I walked into the front doors I inhaled deeply. I was immediatly taken back to my childhood. I never really noticed or thought about how much I loved the book smell of a bookstore, or the book smell of a library (they're different ya know). Some women go to spas to relax, don't get me wrong, I love a good spa treatment, but that smell of books, old or new does it for me.

The origin of Graciejess

Have I ever shared with you the origin of Graciejess? It is actually pretty easy to explain. I am a klutz! I mean a serious klutz. I fall up stairs, down stairs, I did a summersault walking down the stairs this year at school. I almost always have bruises or cuts. I think I go through more band aids than a 9 year old. My mom always said I was such a graceful dancer, but couldn't stop tripping over my own feet when I walk. This is my newest battle wound, as I like to call them. I climbed over a chair at a theatre, the chair cushion went up and I went down. Therefore, I now have a new battle wound on my ankle.

So, Graciejess is me, being sarcastic, being ok with my lack of grace, being ok with the bruises, because that's me:)

Wordless Wednesday

Check out what I've been up to. And.... I finally did it- I started a website. Check me out at etsy. I only have a couple of things up- it is a work in progress, but I finally did it!

Back at Bible Study

Last night bible study started up again. This time around it is done in home. I decided to start a group at my house. There are 8 of us, all in our late 20s or early 30s and I love it. It is so nice to get the group together for the study, and of course the fellowship. Last night we decided to work through the first day together. It brought a couple things to light for me that I thought I'd share. First, I'm Catholic. And I love it, but since I started the studies I have realized that I don't know the bible like I should. I've felt a little bad about that, but the good news is I'm not alone. The second thing that was brought to light last night is how we pray. One of my sweet friends brought up the fact that when her and her hubby pray they make a point to pray for all the little things in life that they are grateful for (down to their bed and the food on the table). In my mind I know that we should give thanks for all the good things, and I have gotten much better at that. But honestly (since we are being honest here)... before all these crazy fertility issues I just wasn't there. I took for granted all the amazing people and things God placed in my life, without stopping to thank Him. I feel I have learned so much from my experiences and am now at a point where I am completely grateful for all those things and thank Him daily. My world had to be shaken up a bit, but I'm there. I think for some people it takes that experience to become aware, for others it comes naturally. Either way, it is a good place to be.

Not only this, but we also rejoice in sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance. and endurance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us

Romans5: 3-5

Celeb look alike??

I was at the pool today (I know shocker right) and one of the girls who works in the dining room told me she had been trying to figure out who I look like and after watching Up in the Air she determined I look like this actress.

I was telling my friend and she said her husband thought the same thing. So, of course I had to check it out. Her name is Anna Kendrick, and she also plays in Twilight. I looked her up and I really don't see much of a resemblance besides the hooked nose. Nonetheless it was sweet of the girl.

Class number 3 and 2 more to go

We have one more class under our belts, and only two more to go! What a relief. We are over half way there. This week the first part was about discipline. The majority of the things they talked about were things I use in the classroom everyday. Things like natural consequences. For example, you write on the wall, you clean it. Or behavior charts with rewards. It was nice to here so many positive forms of discipline are encouraged. They are so much easier and more rewarding to all those involved. The second part of the class was about culture and the different cultural impacts there are in society. It was interesting. Not bad, but interesting. It sums it up that the last 10 or 15 minutes or so we got tips on how to do african american hair. Who knew we would learn that? All and all we are trudging through. And it isn't as horrible as the first time. I feel like each time we go it is just another hoop we have jumped through. On our calendar I love to countdown the number of classes left and mark them off. It means we are just one step closer! Two more weeks and I will be finished with all the classes. Anthony will finish up in July because he can't make it this week. Regardless this process is going pretty quickly and painlessly.

Those were the days

To this day I have to fall asleep to Nick at Night. I've done it for as long as I can remember. There were some classics on when I was younger: I Love Lucy, Green Acres, Mr. Ed, Golden Girls... I could go on forever. I remember watching those and laughing deep, belly laughs. I smile thinking about it now. Now on Nick at Night there are shows like The Nanny, or George Lopez, or Roseanne. These are not, nor will they ever be classics in my book. Back to the Golden Girls. Golden Girls was always my favorite. This week a 3rd of 4 of the Golden Girls passed away. Blanch (or Rue Mclanahan) died on Thursday. So, if you grew up watching and the show like I did, if you know this house

and these faces

take a minute and try to find it on tv again. You won't regret it and be sure to think about the ladies who made you laugh, that deep belly laugh. There are not a lot of show that can do that now.

Show us your life

Today on Kelly's Corner is Show us your random acts of kindness ideas. I love random acts of kindness. I feel it is so important! What is that commercial on tv? The one that has people doing small random acts of kindness and then someone sees them and then they do something nice. So sweet and it makes me tear up a bit. On a side note, did you know there is an ap on your i phone and a website all devoted to random acts of kindness? Anyway... here are some of my favorites.

5. Instill random acts of kindness in children. I have my students write a group random act of kindness letter weekly to someone in the building who is working hard, or has done something nice for them.

4. Bake a homemade yummy treat to share with others. I like to attach a Bible verse.

3. Do something small, don't tell them, there is no need for credit- it is simply the fact that you did it.

2. If you are a Starbucks junkie like I can be in the winter, pick up an extra coffee for a friend.

1. Listen. I know this isn't a big thing, but sometimes we are in such a rush we forget that simply listening can mean more than anything you could buy or do for someone.

Sketto bites

This is one bug bite- I have 8. They are all huge. And I hate them. Welcome to summer in the south! This is after 10 minutes in my back vegetable garden. Really? So, if you are like me and the skettos are just drawn to you here are some tips of how to treat those painful bites.

Household Items To Relieve Itching

1. Rub a bar of soap over the itch. I just tried this (Ivory soap) and the relief was near instant. I used a dry bar of soap directly on the skin, but I also have notes that you can spritz bite with water and then run bar of soap over area–or use a wet bar of soap.
2. Place a piece of scotch tape on the bite; or dab rubbing alcohol or ammonia on the bite first then stick on a piece of tape.
3. Hot water: Take a hot shower, or a hot bath, or apply a hot compress. As hot as you can stand it without burning you.
4. Ice cube, ice pack or very cold water

Dabbers For Itch Relief

The quicker you can apply one of the remedies below, the faster the relief. These are topical suggestions, apply directly to the bite area.

1. Nail Polish
2. Strong tea mixed with rubbing alcohol
3. Toothpaste (works for me)
4. Mouthwash
5. Vinegar (apply directly to bite or take a hot bath with 2 cups of vinegar in the water)
6. Honey
7. Underarm deodorant (solid or roll-on) – apply directly to bite area
8. Rubbing Alcohol
9. Ammonia
10. Bleach
11. Tea: Use a hot tea bag or a cotton ball soaked in hot tea to dab on bite area

Paste Applications

Mix these fresh then apply to bite as soon as possible. The consistency should be nice and thick so it won’t run, yet will still stay in place on the affected area. You could also spritz bite with water then apply grains/powders directly (generously) and rub them in.

1. Baking Soda & Water (works for me)
2. Meat Tenderizer & Water
3. Salt & Water
4. Epsom Salt & Water (could also do this as a foot soak if it’s the ankle/foot area affected)
5. Tums Tablets: crush and add a few drops of water
6. Aspirin: crush then add a few drops of water
7. Aspirin – crush then apply a few drops of rubbing alcohol

Why I adore my students

This was part of their surprise to me for teacher appreciation. This and cleaning the room, flowers, and homemade note cards. It melts my heart.

My randomness

*We hung out at the pool Monday with our friends and their 2 kids. What a fun afternoon. Hanna is almost 3 and Matthew is 1. They are amazing kids. We enjoyed hanging out with their parents too:) But those kids- make us look so forward to having our own one day.

*The Jersey House Wives are crazy! Really- there are no words!

*Today was the last day of school. I love my kids and will miss them, but I'm also looking forward to a break.

*A bunch of teachers moved classrooms tonight, including me. I'm exhausted. There is so much left to do!

*I love all my fresh fruit in the house right now. It is such a tasty treat!