Custom Camera Strap GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Custom Camera Strap GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

I am thankful for...

...delicious food that Hubby made! He pampered me with awesome turkey, homemade pumpkin pie (and crust made by scratch!), stuffing made from scratch, and the best gravy I've ever ever had. I contributed the cranberry sauce, sweet potato pie, and the mashed potatoes. Oh, how delightful! I'm stuffed!

I am also thankful for good weather last weekend. It was so sunny and warm that I went to the beach. Not only wasn't it windy (like it always seems to be), but I didn't even really need a jacket. Many pictures were taken.

Those are sea lions out there! Unfortunately, it was back-lit, so I didn't get a lot of quality pictures. At least, none that I don't have to correct in Photoshop. None of these have gotten the treatment yet.

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It's that time of year again...

Hubby and I are hoping I don't get sick again this holiday season. I'm jinxed, I tell you. Help!

So far, though, I'm feeling pretty good, and I even avoided a nasty cold that Hubby had. How I avoid such things when I'm the one with the compromised immune system is beyond me, especially with the number of students who have been ill. That place is a Petri dish.

School's going great though. I mean, the students are getting antsi (sp?), but that usually happens around the holidays anyway. We also just got done with our first quarter. In another two weeks we'll be 1/3 the way through this school year. Man, is it flying by.

I have a silly friend at school this year, too. Liz is the technology/art teacher, and we both strongly believe in being absurd. There is much absurdity that is keeping me sane this year.

Speaking of absurd: yesterday, in one of my science classes, I gave the kids a 5 minute break between two activities. One of the particularly understated kids walked out of the classroom, and 30 seconds later walked back in... with a taco. A perfectly formed, un-bitten taco. Mind you, my classroom is rather isolated from the rest of the school, and there's only one other class nearby, and few students. He just walked back in holding the taco, looked at me, looked at the taco, then said, "If Stephani didn't want her taco stolen she shouldn't have given me her locker combination." Then he ate it. ...Tomorrow when he's in class again, I'm hiding a taco in my classroom to procure at just the right moment. ...And I guess you guys might not think that was such a funny story, and maybe it's just one of those you-have-to-know-the-kid-and-you-had-to-have-been-there situations, but that incident has kept me going now for two days.

The Edgefield

Hubby and I will be celebrating our 3-year anniversary this Wednesday! Since it's the middle of the week, we did the bulk of our celebrating this weekend. Neither one of us had been to McMenamin's Edgefield, we thought it would be a nice place to check out.

It used to be a workhouse for the poor; at one time it employed and housed 600 people! The facilities were beautiful, and of course they've given it the McMenamin's touch - everything is painted with murals, quirky and beautiful details, and fun little niches. It's quite a large complex - there's a vinery, a brewery (of course), a few restaurants, a theater (we saw The Dark Knight again for $3), a venue for music - the works.

I would have taken more pictures, but a) it was a little rainy, and b) I got food poisoning. I don't want this to taint anyone's opinion of McMenamin's, because they make all their stuff from scratch (not processed), so there's a bit higher chance that that could happen. It just sucked that it did. So, we had to cut our trip a little short. Sadness.

creativity

I've been feeling a surge of creativity lately, probably because school isn't stressing me out as much. I need to do some painting this weekend for sure, since we have the art auction coming up, but for right now photography is doing a pretty good job of keeping me busy. I just love how everywhere I go now, I look for things that I wouldn't normally notice - how can I make the most everyday, mundane things exciting or beautiful? It's helping me be optimistic about the whole world around me. :)

America, I believe in you!

Yay!!!!

It's been a while since I've had a healthy faith in America. Thank you, voters, for resurrecting my faith and hope!!!!

I feel:
hope
joy
relief

*I was excited this morning when I discovered it wasn't too cloudy out to take pictures. I finished the book I was reading, then headed out - only to realize I'd forgotten to take my medicine, and before I'd taken 10 shots I was too sick to continue and had to come home. Then, it got cloudy. I was upset.

*Last Friday helped confirm Laurie and I's suspicions that I am a magnet for student trouble. A fight was in the midst of breaking out (shoving but no punches yet) a few yards from my classroom, so I broke it up. It's funny how my mind goes directly to my de-escalation and restraint training from Northwest. Sounds totally cheesy, but if you play mind tricks on them it works. I broke this particular one up by telling the bigger kid just how much I care about him.

*James and I have had a totally relaxing weekend. I read my books, and he got a new game. Also, we watched Interview With a Vampire, which neither of us had seen in a while. Funny, because I just finished the Twilight series again, and I realize how much of Interview Stephenie Meyers ripped off. I'm a little disappointed.

*Totally not ready for school this week, but I keep reminding myself that I have a four-day weekend after that. Woot! James and I have anniversary plans, which pleases me immensely.