Like a fish out of water

Project 365, day 27

2011-06-04T09:25:00.000-04:00

I know, I'm a bit slow with this lately but I have a good reason. We bought a house and we are spending five weeks redoing it before we move in. Between that and keeping up with the girls activities, things are a bit wild and many pictures aren't really taken for the project.

Last night, I committed a grave error and didn't bring my good camera to my daughter's baseball game. So, when she was put in to pitch for the first game ever, I was only manned with my iPhone to take pictures.

Thankfully, I was able to capture an interesting one, even at a a distance.

Project 365 - day 26

2011-04-18T10:31:00.000-04:00

I took this picture at our local coffee shop on Friday.

Then, when making an avatar, it cut off part of the coffee cup - I thought it added an interesting look to the picture. I hadn't considered this until technology accidentally showed me another option. I may have to try this again when I go back.

Project 365 - day 25

2011-04-17T23:07:00.000-04:00

The other day, it snowed. Yes, it's April. So, I took a few pictures as it was snowing. I like how this one captured the snow (this was not filtered through a window).

Project 365 day 24

2011-04-07T21:49:00.000-04:00

The other day, I took picture during a dance practice. I was so happy with so many of the pictures I took. I chose this one because it didn't show faces but it shows amazing strength and movement.

Project 365 day 23

2011-03-30T12:56:00.000-04:00

I call this one "Neighbors Meeting by the Fence." Over the 6 mos we've been living here, Spots has gotten used to the dog next door. She quickly ran to him when the dog came outside, then stalked towards him.

Project 365 day 22

2011-03-27T14:13:00.001-04:00

Here are some pictures I took yesterday morning. I couldn't quite get the effect that I wanted, but I'm not sure what I really wanted. Maybe I needed to wait for the sun to come up a little bit more (but I was walking the fine line between sun reflecting off snow and sun melting snow). Maybe I needed to get the macro lens to change the focus. I'm not sure I'll have the chance to do this again -- depends on the spring snow.

Project 365 day 21

2011-03-26T21:06:00.001-04:00

Yesterday evening, it snowed. This morning, I wanted to try to take some backlit pictures of the snow on the bushes before it all melted. I didn't like the way they came out. Later, glanced over and noticed my cat sleeping in the sun. She looked so cool with the halo of light that I went to grab my camera. Just as I started to focus, she jumped up and I was quick enough to capture this picture of her. Not what I intended to post, but fun.

Project 365, day 20

2011-03-23T10:41:00.000-04:00

The house we are renting has a great yard for chasing birds (but perfect for the birds to escape before they become a trophy). . . and our cat loves to hunt.

Project 365 - day 19

2011-03-14T11:32:00.000-04:00

This past weekend, we were in Denver for a skating competition. When we finished eating lunch, I looked up to see a great image of the Rocky Mountains. I wish the photo did the mountains justice, but this was the best I could accomplish. I did blur the edges some to reduce the look of the shopping center.

And in black and white to see if that would change the depth of field. I think it made it harder to see where the mountains ended and the clouds began once you changed from color to black and white.

Project 365 - day 18

2011-03-10T11:39:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I bought new blades for my ice skates. I decided to see how my skates would photograph.

I liked this photo because it really show the shape of the blade.

With this photo, I was trying to get a better photo of the teeth (the teeth and the rocker are the real advantages of the blade)

And the same photo in black and white because I wanted to see if it changed the definition of the teeth.

Project 365 - Day 17

2011-02-26T09:21:00.000-05:00

The picture I took last Saturday of Spots (day 16) was the day she got sick. She managed to get a hold of some of my sewing thread and ate enough to make herself sick. Monday she had emergency surgery to get the thread from her digestive system. Friday we brought her home. She still wasn't voluntarily eating, but everything thought that since she would eat some for me, that maybe it was just that she wanted to eat at home. Last night she started to eat kitty food. We still have to keep her from jumping on things for the next two weeks, but we (Spots and her sister cat included) are all happy she's home with us.

Project 365 - Day 16

2011-02-19T13:08:00.000-05:00

I love the silhouette of a curious kitty. I think she was watching the dog next door.

Project 365 Day 15 - Twilight

2011-02-13T09:56:00.002-05:00

I love the sunsets and sunrises here. Unlike when we lived in Michigan, we usually have clear skies that go forever.

Last night I went out to grill and was drawn to the sunset. I loved how the sunset was orange and pinks and the silhouette of the houses from the backlight and the sky was that deep blue to black with a single star in the sky. It took me a minute to find a setting that didn't autoflash, and then realize the porch light was reflecting off the snow, and as I fixed all of those things the sun was still setting so I did lose a little of the effect, but I think it will be a cool picture once I get everything set and a tripod so I get rid of the shake.

The first picture was taken with the close-up setting (not that I meant to choose it, it just happened). It gave it an almost fisheye effect.

This one was taken with the landscape setting. I want to try this one again, maybe tonight, but with the camera stabilized and a few minutes earlier to get more of the pinks.

Project 356 - day 14

2011-02-07T10:58:00.000-05:00

Our cats love to be outside. Because of the wildlife in our area, the cats aren't allowed to be outside unless we are watching them. When I peeked outside to see what the cats were doing, I saw Sparkles sitting up on a chair watching the sunset. Based on the reflection off the trailer, I'm guessing the flash went off when I took the picture. I'm thinking that is what created the reflection off the cats fur that outlines her, almost making it look like she was photoshopped into the picture.

Project 365 day 13 - Playing in the Extreme Cold

2011-02-02T11:27:00.003-05:00

Last night, it was sub zero temps - actually it had been sub zero F all day. On our drive home from quilting, we took a side road and saw a graduate student standing in the parking lot of a housing complex with a camera. Then saw his friend run out of the door holding a pot of water. The girls and I slowed the car down while we watched them throw the water into the air and saw it turn to snow and vapor.

Not surprising, the girls quickly asked if we could try that. Hey, we have to have some fun with the cold so we set the pizza aside and tried the experiment. The girls tried first and the water that fell on them froze before they could feel wet. Then DH tried:

Project 365 - day 12

2011-01-27T16:18:00.001-05:00

Breakfast in our house usually involved two girls and one cat. They just looked too sweet this morning so I had to capture it.

Project 365 - day 11 - Pictures from a Car Window

2011-01-24T10:07:00.002-05:00

The other day, we had to drive 2.5 hours to Denver to pick up the girls skates. Usually, while we are driving, I will see the most amazing scenery. Being on the interstate, we can't just pull over so I can take pictures, so I decided to just pick up my camera and see what happened (I couldn't open the window because we had some pretty decent gust of wind going (it's not unusual to drive in 40-60+ wind gusts.

One segment of our drive takes us through a mountain range. It was quite a bit snowy and foggy:

I loved the way the clouds were swirling. They are obscuring the mountains a bit.

Project 365 - day 10

2011-01-21T15:10:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I was trying to take a lovely picture of my pummelo. As I was trying to get a picture with my macro lens, I realized the cat was taking an interest in my fruit. So, I can't just post one picture, but the series.

Project 365 - day 9

2011-01-20T11:17:00.001-05:00

I'm still posting pictures from this past weekend...which is probably good since I'm lacking motivation to take pictures at the moment.

Here is a sunrise picture I took from a friend's back porch in Denver. The funny thing was, when I was taking the pictures I didn't think this picture had caputured the pinks of the sky as well so I took one from another angle that I thought was perfect. Once I loaded them, I discovered that this one was the best of the three. I love how the pink is reflecting off the house and how the sun is backlighting the pine needles of the tree.

Project 365 - day 8

2011-01-18T10:50:00.000-05:00

This past weekend, the girls competed in a skating competition. I took a ton of pictures during the weekend, and I'm going to use these pictures over the next few days.

The pictures were taken from a distance, and the judges were on the opposite side of the rink so it was harder to catch the pictures I might have liked.

Practicing a backward crossover during warm up.

Practicing a snow plow stop during warm up.

Project 365 - day 7

2011-01-12T10:23:00.001-05:00

I belong to a quilting group - quilting ministry actually. We make quilts for people who are sick or need love and support after losing a loved one. I tend to be pretty private about anything religious. So it took me a few weeks after learning about this group to decide to show up. But, I learned that while the group is based on the tenants of prayer, it's more a giving group than a religious group.

At quilting yesterday, I decided to bring my camera and see if I could capture the feeling of the group, the camaraderie, the feeling of peace that I get when I work with these women.

I missed noticing how the light in the background of the first picture would affect the overall affect. Playing with the color, adding black and white, and softening the edges seemed to help.

Project 365 - day 6

2011-01-11T10:24:00.001-05:00

The other evening, we were celebrating my daughter's birthday. While I'm not sure I love this picture, I do love the joy in her face when she saw the picture my parents had sent her of her face superimposed in a Harry Potter uniform and holding Hedwig. What I love most is that she couldn't decide which she was more excited over, the picture or the money that came with it. If you click on the picture, it should enlarge it so you can see her expression.

Quilt shop pictures

2011-01-08T17:28:00.001-05:00

I was at the quilt shop and took pictures of a bunch of the fabric. These are two of my favorite pictures. I wish I could have gotten back just a little further from the sewing table, but the darn wall got in my way.

Project 365 - day 5

2011-01-08T14:59:00.000-05:00

See day four published below this one.

Today, as we were driving home, we saw a herd of antelope eating lunch in a field. Since I had my camera with me, I pulled over and got a few shots. Some day, I'll read the book of instructions with my camera so I know what I'm actually doing, but for now, it's more 'point and shoot.'

I couldn't decide which picture I liked better...the one that shows that these antelope are hanging in a field in the middle of town or the one with the pretty mountains in the background that make it appear that I'm hiking in the wild.

Project 365 - day 4

2011-01-08T14:50:00.000-05:00

I missed posting this yesterday, so you will get two posts today instead of just one.

I took two pictures I really liked. So, you get both for Friday's picture.

This was our sunset Thursday night. While it was not intentional, I like how the buildings are all in the shadows to help the colors of the clouds pop.

On an almost daily basis, we have a cat that comes to visit our house. Thankfully, the cats have only met each other without a house between them once (which resulted in a few scratches), but they do try to fight between the doors. This is our cat Spots showing her opinion of our guest.

project 365 - day 3

2011-01-06T10:17:00.000-05:00

This picture was taken one evening as our cat decided to run out for one last tour of the yard to make sure everything was safe. Our cats had been indoor cats when we lived in Michigan, now they are pampered indoor/outdoor cats. They are allowed to go outside while we are home and as long as they don't leave the fenced yard. I quickly ran out without my coat to snap a few pictures of our little huntress. I also didn't have the right shoes to walk in snow, so my framing is a bit off. But, I love her focused attention on checking the yard to make sure it was free of the cat who visits sometimes.

I can't frame this one right, and the sun had gone down enough to change the lighting, but I love the way she has pounced on the snow.

365 project - day 2

2011-01-04T09:45:00.002-05:00

We are currently renting a house this year. I'm not sure if its insulation or the way we are heating the house, but our bedroom window has ice crystals on it. I've been staring at them for several days - intrigued. I decided to try to take some pictures of them with my macro lens.

The first picture I took was the crystals filling the camera. It reminds me a bit of a frosted shower door.

By changing the angle, I captured the blue sky behind the ice crystals.

This was one of the first pictures I took. It really captured the definition of the crystals.

Project 365 - Day 1

2011-01-02T22:51:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine is doing Project 365. When I learned I was getting a camera for Christmas, I decided that I was going to do this too. I'm not sure I'll make everyday, but I'm hoping to manage 3-4 times a week.

A friend of mine is doing it, and so it seems a great idea to do also. Here is her explanation of the project: What is project 365.

Here is my first picture. This is a sunset from our back yard.

Too much to do, not enough energy

2010-12-06T11:19:00.000-05:00

Today is finally a quieter day -- as a result, I should be doing something productive, and the list is long, but I find myself starting by forcing myself to update this blog on the off-chance someone is still reading. If you are reading, feel free to post a comment, I'd love to know you are here.

I've been working on a quilt for S1's teacher. After we moved here, I joined a quilting ministry. I love this group of women. They are so warm and giving, I look forward to each Tuesday morning. S1s teacher is Mrs. W. Mrs. Ws husband is sick and is going back for surgery right after Christmas. So, S1s class is giving her a quilt. Each of the kids drew a picture or wrote a message on a square of fabric and I'm sewing them together. I need to have the quilt finished for tomorrow. It's almost done, but I have to do some measuring and calculations. I'll go work on that soon.

I also need to finish sewing the backing for S1s quilt. I started her a quilt almost two years ago. Wednesday, I have time reserved on a big machine to quilt it. So, the backing needs to be sewn and ready. I can't wait to see this quilt finished.....

I have about 2 hours before I have to be someplace. That should give me enough time to inventory my presents purchased so far, package up some things for the post office, and maybe finish some dishes, and I WILL do 10 minutes on the treadmill.

Dinner last night

2010-10-03T12:59:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, I was finally able to get my grill to work. It took a little bit because I first had to borrow a propane tank from a friend to see if the new propane tank I bought was broke or it it was the grill connection. Once I determined that it was the tank, I had to exchange the one I had bought - sans receipt. I expected an argument, but the guy just exchanged it, no questions asked.

So, after firing up the grill, I was able to make the most amazing shrimp dish.

Bobby Flay's Grilled Shrimp with Garlic

I didn't follow the recipe exactly -- I used some chili powder and some chili con carne to cut the level of heat and I didn't use the garlic oil drizzle after the shrimp was cooked - and it was wonderful. I served the shrimp with warm tortillas.

I think if I were to serve it over pasta, I would use the oil drizzle as the sauce over the pasta.

I can't wait for lunch - it will make a yummy addition to my salad.

Today, the job I applied for reposted at part time. This is good news because I didn't really want to work full time and this way I can work three days a week while the girls are at school. I would still have to work my other job this school year (I think I would use some of my salary to hire someone to clean the house -- I can't keep up with it all). I'm still unsure about the faculty member who I'd be working for...I need to make sure I'm not going to enter into another work relationship like I had at my last university (not my current boss, the one before that). But, I'm smarter now and I don't need the job and I know I can do this without burning bridges.

When I was at the University Women's group meet and greet, I met a woman who decided that I had some skills that her old department needed. Now that the accounting audit is over, she's going to talk to the department head and tell her about me.

It's all about just getting my name out there and seeing how things end up. I'll find the right thing, at the right time. DH and I are still very exhausted from our last year so I'm not in a hurry to add more responsibilities.

Hello.... this thing still on?

2010-09-12T10:30:00.000-04:00

When I originally started this blog, it was a place for me to work out how to become a teacher. After 5 years of teaching, I started to feel a little more comfortable in my skin. But now, I'm a fish out of water in a new way. Recently we moved to the high plains. I'm now a fish with no water. Soon, I will have to make a life for myself. First, I'm doing the mom thing and helping my children adjust. So, I run from various activities. I know that soon enough they will be settled and it will be my turn to figure out what I want to do with my life.

I'm still working part time for my old university, and was invited to apply for a job at this one. I'm not ready for full time work, but since this is in DH's department, I can probably negotiate fewer hours for a while.

The 20 y.o. in me would be a bit appalled that I gave up my dreams of running the world for running the house. But, being a feminist is sometimes about being supported in the choices I make and not the choices I thought I would make. Part of me doesn't want to go back to a life that I have to figure out how to get a workout in while juggling the needs of the family. Not being able to go out to lunch if I want, etc.

This year won't be quite the same because we are renting a house and therefore I don't have plans to paint or fix or do. Just to make nice enough for the year.

But, eventually, I have to decide what kind of life I want for myself. Good thing the title of my blog still fits this new adventure.

The future

2010-06-19T09:50:00.000-04:00

So, it appears that we are heading west. Sorry I've not been writing much (for anyone who still visits), it seems to take a bit too much energy to formulate sentences and put my fingers into action. But, today seemed like a good day to try.

We weren't sure what would happen when DH didn't get tenure last year, and while there are lots of things I can't talk about here, one I can is where we are going.

DH got a job at University of Wyoming. We are very excited about the move. The city is nice, it's small (but not too small), and it's located in proximity to some nice larger cities and a well known ski resort town.

Now we just need our house to sell so we can go look for houses for us to buy.

Anyway, it's baseball day -- so I need to go. Finger's crossed!

Might need an ice cream maker for this one!

2010-06-01T09:56:00.000-04:00

I saw this recipe for mint chocolate chip ice cream. This is from the food blog I read of the American Chef who is working in Paris. Even though many of his recipes are also in his books, he still shares the recipe in his blog - showing photos of the process.

Today's recipe (as I mentioned before) is for mint chocolate chip ice cream. BUT, he uses fresh mint rather than extract.

I might have to buy a ice cream maker just for this.

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2010/05/mint_chip_ice_cream_recipe_chocolate.html

What this boy strut

2010-05-27T09:32:00.000-04:00

I loved this commercial - one of the best I've seen in a while.

Summer eating...

2010-05-17T09:00:00.003-04:00

Lettuce, dried cherry, little balls of goat milk cheese rolled in pecans, and poppy seed dressing (then - because I had them, I added heirloom tomato and red pepper).

It was very yummy.

What is your favorite summer salad combination?

Oh, and here is a great salad dressing - esp for a greek salad (just make sure you adjust the number of servings):

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Absolutely-Fabulous-GreekHouse-Dressing/Detail.aspx

The fun thing I did on Friday

2010-05-04T13:02:00.001-04:00

So, Friday I went to S2's first grade classroom to talk about one of my former careers. I decided that talking about being a teacher (lots of college professors in the class) or the jack of all trades job (too hard to explain) I'm doing now wasn't good fit, so I had to find something else to discuss for career week/month.

I finally chose talking about my life as a cost accountant. At first I was hesitant to discuss it as I didn't know how to describe this job in terms that first graders could understand. But, then I decided that their school was a great way to talk about cost streams. So, we talked about how I might analyze how much it costs to run the school. I had the kids talk about what things cost money such as the supplies, teacher salaries, the office staff, the food, the lights, etc.

Then I mentioned to them that one thing I might do is look at how much it costs to run first grade and what things one the list would I still have to consider (first grade teachers vs. third grade teachers for example).

Once they got this, I talked about how I might apply my job in a toy factory and that I can also help decide how much money someone would have to pay for a video game. Then I had them calculate how much it would cost for us to produce a game for three people to buy if it costs $30 to make it versus the price to make six games (I made it easy, it still costs $30 to make them).

It was fun and they really seemed to understand at some level.

Not sure, but maybe I inspired one of the math and logic kids in the class to think about a career in cost accounting.

2010-04-21T23:00:00.000-04:00

Here is the before:

And now it better fits the house.

Flexing my muscles!

2010-03-27T07:09:00.003-04:00

So, my project this weekend is to tile the bathroom. Two weekends ago, DH pulled the carpet and yesterday I finally had a few minutes to get backer board (the previous weekend I spent most of the weekend at the ice rink while the girls either had rehearsal for or skated in the ice show). DH has also been sick for a few weeks and I don't want him breathing the dust from cutting the backer board, so I started doing it for him. Not a bad job so far. I have half the board set.

Last night, DH pulled the toilet for me and advised me on the finer points of how to prep the area (cutting back the trim, etc).

Once the girls wake up, I'll work on cutting the rest so one of us can screw it down and I can dryfit the tile and then set it tonight.

I can't believe after 8 years, I finally have no carpet in either bathroom!! I'll post pictures later of the finished little bathroom that we finished putting back together last weekend.

China at lunch - on a Thursday?

2010-03-26T08:00:00.002-04:00

Sometimes, you just have to throw caution to the wind and do something fun. If you can surprise a friend (and even her darling husband) it's even better.

One day, I happened to stop by a friend's house and it turned out she had a special spinach pizza in her oven. She invited me to stay and share this delicacy that she had willingly shared with me. I've been thinking about it for years.

Today, I returned the favor. Earlier this week, I placed an order with Giordano's in Chicago and ordered my friend's special deep dish spinach stuffed pizza. I invited her to lunch telling her that I had a mystery ingredient and wanted to surprise her with lunch, put a table cloth on the table, set out the good china, the wine glasses to use with the water (I don't have water glasses), and covered the box the pizza arrived in and boy was she surprised when she discovered that the mystery ingredient for lunch was her very favorite pizza. In a last minute inspiration, we called her husband to join us and I set another place.

Her son gave us the biggest happy dance smile when he discovered that I had pre-made chocolate milk!! And not only did he get some with lunch, I sent the rest of the container with him. Oh, and he also borrowed our marble run toy.

So, on a Thursday, I put out a nice table cloth, my good china, and had a rare pizza treat. AND IT WAS WONDERFUL!

Tonight, as I washed the plates by hand, I thought not about what a pain it was to not just throw them in the dishwasher, but about how much fun it was to just use the dishes for lunch, on a Thursday, when it wasn't a holiday.

I challenge all my friends to take out the special dishes one day because it's not a holiday!!!

2010-03-11T09:51:00.001-05:00

This year, I was invited to an Oscar party - a women only wear your finest do or don't party.

So, I thought about wearing my do/don't combination (my wonderful dress with winter boots and scarf), but then I was told that comfortable shoes were not allowed.

Instead I went with my nice (but 10 years old out of style) dress and uncomfortable shoes that I wore all night.

When I left, S2 was laying in a chair, very tired. I asked if she felt well enough to take a picture of me. She perked up immediately, took a crooked picture of me, then snuggled back in the chair looking tired.

How we play in Snow.

2010-02-04T10:03:00.002-05:00

When you are surrounded by snow for an average of 6 mos a year, you have to adapt to new ways to enjoy it. This weekend is our annual university celebration of snow. The night before the celebration begins, we have what is called the all-nighter. We wandered around watching everyone making their statues.

So, while working on statues, this is how we listen to music:

And this is how we play mini golf:

And, this is the sock I'm currently knitting. The yarn is hand dyed at a little shop nearby. It's a pattern called Charade on ralvery. Once I have more of it knitted, I'll do a close up of the sock pattern detailing.

Pictures of the tile and conversations with my 1st grader

2010-01-30T09:18:00.005-05:00

S1: Can we go outside today?

Me: Not sure. S1 is busy today.

S1: Not even for a 1/2 hour?

Me: Probability is low that your sister will have time.

S1: Like 5 - 10%?

Me: Yep. But, probability is much higher that she will have time tomorrow.

S1: Like 90 - 95%?

Me: Yes.

S1: But not 100%.

[not sure where she learned probability - but she seems to have it down.]

Earlier this week, I finished laying and grouting the tile in the bathroom. Next we need to put the fixtures back and figure out how we are going to do the trim.

I'm pretty impressed considering I've never done this before.

What I've been doing

2010-01-21T07:55:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, I started my part of the bathroom tiling job. DH had already taken out the carpet, and the blue tile we found underneath. Now I have to lay the tile. Today I plan to lay out the edges (with the exception of the tiles that need to be cut. Well, after I finish a task that needs to be done at work.

2009-12-22T19:24:00.001-05:00

A year ago today, my friend Kelly from Jenelle's Journey and Missing JT Snow was declared cancer free. Today is a great anniversary.

Several years ago, I decided to see if I could grow my hair long enough to donate to Locks of Love or some other organization. I stopped dyeing my hair, I kept growing it and cutting out the dye. Last year, when Kelly shaved her head because it was falling out so much from Chemo, I thought about cutting it. I couldn't do it. I wasn't ready for short hair yet. I talked to Kelly about it, I felt like a very vain friend, but she told me it was okay with her.

Today, I was going to get my hair cut. I decided that I was going to cut off four or so inches and regrow it to donate next year. I just wanted to look more like me and my hair didn't look good the way it was - it was too heavy and therefore flat. When I sat down in the chair, I asked the hairdresser how much I had. It wasn't my normal hairdresser, I can't get in with mine on short notice so I went to the hairdresser my girls use. She knew why I was growing my hair. When she told me that I had 11 inches I told her to cut it. She bounced! She was so excited. I let her cut my hair into whatever style she wanted. She was so excited that *she* got to be the one to cut my hair.

It looks really cute.

When I got home, I discovered that today was my friend Kelly's one year anniversary. I didn't know, the haircut just fell on today, I just happened to watch "what to wear' today when they cut someone's hair short (I don't normally watch the show), I just decided that today was the day. Little did I know that today was a very special day.

So, for my friend Kelly - I have short hair. Just like she does a year later!

(picture will go up tomorrow or as soon as I can, but since this wasn't planned, there are no before shots)

Cheers.

Silent Monks singing Halleluia

2009-12-06T21:23:00.003-05:00

I saw this and I had to share!!

Cinnamon-Spiced Hot Chocolate Cookies

2009-12-06T16:56:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, I made the most wonderful cookies. They are a new favorite. They are very chocolaty, but with a nice little, lingering bite.

Cinnamon-Spiced Hot Chocolate Cookies

Recipe courtesy Aaron Sanchez

via Foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened Mexican cocoa powder (or substitute by adding 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon to unsweetened cocoa powder)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 tablespoons sweet butter, at room temperature
3 tablespoons margarine
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Generous pinch ground black pepper
Generous pinch cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg white
1/2 cup dulce de leche, optional
1/4 cup almonds, finely chopped, optional

Directions

Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Mix thoroughly with a whisk and set aside. Combine the sugars in a small bowl and mix well with your fingers pressing out any lumps. (Combine in a food processor if lumps are stubborn.)

In a medium mixing bowl, using a hand mixer, beat the butter and margarine until creamy. Add sugar mixture, cinnamon, peppers, and vanilla. Beat on high speed for about 1 minute. Beat in the egg white and until the mixture is smooth. Stop the mixer. Add the flour mixture, beating on the lowest speed, just until incorporated. Gather the dough together with your hands and form it into a neat log, 9 to 10 inches long by 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap in waxed paper or plastic wrap. Fold or twist ends of the paper without pinching or flatting the log. Refrigerate at least 45 minutes, or until needed.

Put the oven racks in the upper and lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

Use a sharp knife to slice rounds of chilled dough, a scant 1/4-inch thick. Arrange the cookies, 1-inch apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Bake 12 to 14 minutes. Rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back about halfway through. Cookies will puff and crackle on top, and then begin to settle down slightly when done.

Remove the baking sheets from the oven and use a metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool. Allow the cookies to cool completely before storing or stacking. Store in an airtight container up to 2 weeks, or freeze up to 2 months.

To spice things up, after the cookies are baked, let them cool on a wire rack, drizzle with dulce de leche and sprinkle chopped almonds on top.

I am professor - hear me roar!

2009-12-04T10:17:00.003-05:00

Some of my students are not going to be happy with me.

Yesterday, I told almost half of one of my classes that I was not grading their papers - they could re-write them.

Somehow the paper revision - which was a brand new grade - became a "all I have to do is add a paragraph with the missing information, but don't have to change my analysis and those extra 200 words will take my 78 into an A. Oh, and adding new information won't change my analysis so I don't have to change that!

Yea, right.

I told them that I will not accept anything less than their very best.

They may mark me down on my teacher evals, but they will learn!

Where do we go!

2009-11-16T09:00:00.002-05:00

This weekend, I've been watching college football. For a while, it seemed that every time we flipped the channel, another team was playing for a school that has expressed interest in DH.

I spent my time wondering which team we will be cheering for next year.

I have my list. DH has his. Thankfully in a few cases they cross. I'm hoping that we land in the cross section.

The hardest part of all of this is trying to not get too excited, not to dream too far. I have hope, but I'm praying that we don't end up at the end of the process crushed because he ended up 2nd on the list for one position.

Because we are suppose to be watching our spending, I just bought the entire collection of West Wing. I need it for my class, and it's going to be bought from my birthday and Christmas money, so I'm not really spending money.

I need to go grade papers, I think that quilting will have to be pushed off for today. I also need to paint the retaining wall, I'm hoping the weather will hold out so I can do it later this week. Need to go check weather.com.

Starting the week with a clean house! or why it's good to have friends.

2009-11-07T19:55:00.003-05:00

We had company for dinner. It was one of my former students who is now the girls gymnastics coach. Being a college student, we invited her for a home cooked meal. We all love her!

So, we cleaned all day so the house would look nice (two weeks of everyone except Sarah being sick meant that the house was a bit in disarray.

But, I cleaned the dining room (including the shelves with the girls stuff, the draws with their art supplies, everything was put in it's rightful place and not just shoved around. Floors were vacuumed and washed. Shelves dusted and washed. I just have one box of office papers that I didn't have time to deal with.

I do have to work on the office and the back hall, but I have a great start to a clean house! Now I can work on DHs quilt tomorrow. I've had it almost tied for months and I need to sew a binding for it.

I'm so excited for Wednesday when I have a day to myself in a clean house! (now to keep it this way!)

And the girls really helped! So much, without whining, so they are each getting an extra book from the book fair as a thank you!

Conversations from the back seat.

2009-11-02T09:24:00.003-05:00

While driving this morning:

Me: humm, there goes one of my freshman, I wonder if he really is a freshman. I might have to look that up.

S1: I thought a freshman was a 9th grader?

Me: Well, it can be a 9th grader or a 13th grader.

S1: MaaOmmmm.

Me: Ok, there can be high school and college freshman.

S1: What are they men. Why can't we have freshwomen?

Me: Well, our language tends to be male dominate. It's because

S1: I know, women were in the home until WW II.

The conversation continued about how we are changing things a bit. She way too smart for a 4th grader.

Halloween pics

2009-11-01T09:31:00.002-05:00

Here are the girls from Halloween. Sarah is "Don't call me Nymphadora" Tonks from Harry Potter. Sydney is a pink Supergirl (and is in her supergirl pose).

Here are the girls pumpkins. Syd designed her own, Sarah found the design/instructions for Lewbert from iCarly. For those who don't speak iCarly, the blue stuff is Lewbert's wart.

As a bonus, here is this morning's sunrise. I couldn't quite get the contrast of white/dark in the water, but I kinda like the picture (the dark I did capture was a land mass).

2009-10-25T07:45:00.002-04:00

I'm tired.

I was tired before, but then Friday night I went to an all night scrap book. It was very productive. I set realistic goals for myself. My plan was to make a pre-prepped album for a baby gift. I also needed to make some birthday cards. I got those done too. While I should have done it before I left, I cleaned out all my paper and stickers. It ended up being a good idea that I did because we decided to have a place to put stuff you no longer wanted so people could help themselves. So, things I might have kept just because they were too good to get rid of, I happily threw in the box. I did have fun, and even went to bed at a reasonable hour.

I went to sleep at a reasonable hour last night, which was good. The cat tried to wake me at 3:00, 4:00, maybe 5:00?. Then at 6:30 S2 woke up. She asked for something to drink. Knowing she wasn't feeling well, I just got up. It was a good thing. For the second day, S2 has commented that her brain hurt. She also has a bit of a runny nose and a 100.something fever even with motrin. Thankfully, I only have to volunteer at the elem school tomorrow so I can cancel that, but I'm not sure what to do with my classes on Tuesday.

I'm thinking about going back to sleep for a bit. We can't miss church today because S2 signed up for coffee hour, so I have to do something with that.

But, I think going back to sleep for an hour is required first.

Easily confused

2009-10-17T18:11:00.004-04:00

My brain is on overload - so it comes as no surprise that reading product reviews for AIO printers is more than my brain can take - best thing since sliced bread, takes 10 minutes to print a photo, great printing, horrible image printing - and this is all from one product.

So, do you have a great All-In-One (printer, scanner, copier) you like? I'd love wireless so I can print from my laptop, no more than $199.

My shopping is limited to:

Walmart, Shopko, Office Max, and Apple Store (the University can order). The internet is also an option so if you have a great site!

So, put me out of my misery - make a recommendation.

TIA.

I'm so very impressed!!

2009-10-15T10:15:00.001-04:00

My students are having a phone conversation with a employee from Harley Davidson. These kids are asking some of the BEST questions!

I'm not sure what my afternoon class will produce, but my morning kids are soooooo cool!

Yesterday, today

2009-10-10T19:37:00.003-04:00

Yesterday was beautiful. It was a good day for it to be beautiful. It was in-service day and the girls were home. We went to a stamping party for kids our friends had - then it was off to the pumpkin farm because it was 45 and blue skies. I got some great pictures of the girls. They may even become our Christmas card (which WILL get sent out this year)!! I'm starting now.

Today, it was suppose to be the last day of soccer for Sarah. It was 30 degrees and snowing. Unfortunately, they called 3 minutes after we left to tell us it was cancelled. Oh well, I got a picture of Sarah standing on the snowy field.

My mood seems to match the weather. I'm feeling sluggish and tired.

Now to clean the kitchen and sit down with a glass of wine. Which will win - grading or reading.

Good Kitty!

2009-10-08T07:54:00.001-04:00

Our cat has a mouse trapped in our room. I've not yet gotten to clean our room since the girls finished going through all their clothes this weekend. So while I've gotten a bunch of stuff out, I've not finished cleaning (as DH has reminded me several times this morning).

So, while the cat has trapped said mouse, DH can't quite get to the mouse.

I'm so glad that I have to be out of the house all day at school. Just wish I didn't have to go into the bedroom to get dressed this morning.

will I have nails left

2009-10-06T21:15:00.001-04:00

This game has turned into a real nail bitter. I'm not even sure who I want to win - can you imagine if I did?

Always exciting. . .

2009-09-21T08:13:00.002-04:00

Saturday, the eye doctor called just before we were leaving for soccer to tell us that Sarah's glasses were in. She was dragging a bit so this news got her completely motivated. She's been waiting for them. They look really pretty, but I've not had time to take a picture yet.

Saturday night, we went to see the Music Man at our local theatre. The community group did a pretty good job. The girls really enjoyed it, although Sydney got a bit tired at the end.

Yesterday morning was church. Sarah was tired from the late night, so she stayed home with her dad. As Sydney and I were leaving, someone stopped me to ask about a grant DH was awarded that she had read about in the local paper. As we were discussing the irony of his getting this grant as it was also the lack of said grant that caused the university to deny him tenure. As I was about to tell Sydney it was time to go, I heard several adults gasp as Sydney had fallen over after spinning in circles with her bunny and she hit her head on either the pew or the chair next to her. Our friend Chris had gotten there first, so I let her comfort Sydney until I realized that there was blood on her stuffed bunny. Yep, she nicely cut her head open. Everyone mobilized to help me get things for Syd, clean her bunny, offer to drive so I didn't have to. It was very nice and comforting. Ultimately, Syd and I went to the ER by ourselves, Syd holding a washcloth to her head. She ended up getting two staples.

She's doing much better now, but I've told her that if she's feeling badly at school today, she can stay home from school.

Waves Hello

2009-09-14T08:46:00.002-04:00

It has been quite the busy couple of weeks.

I started back to school two weeks ago. This year, I am teaching two sections of my class. And I've been lucky to get two good sections. I'm really enjoying this.

When I was teaching my first semester, I was looking for an activity that would engage the students and would teach them about the theme of my course. I came up with a great idea of having the students build a structure made from marshmallows and spaghetti or toothpicks. The trick is that they are assigned personalities that will make success difficult. This does a great job of teaching them working together. If we were to change the personalities to say contractor, subcontractor, government agency, and construction inspector - you have the dynamics of a building site.

All freshman engineering students take some core courses together. The department that teaches these learned about this activity because one of their instructors asked me to do it with their summer youth (middle school/high school age kids). They decided that these concepts and method of teaching them were wonderful for all the freshman engineering classes. I've giving the activity to this group. If we are still here and I teach next year, I'll find another activity. I think that this will be a great way to teach so many students the importance of knowing how their approach can help and hinder a project they are working on both in school and after.

The girls are enjoying school. They each got their first choice teachers. Sarah had a conversation with the boy who bullied her last year. He started teasing her a bit and another boy told him to back off. Then the group of them started talking about other things and she seemed to really enjoy the conversation. Sydney, she's just smiling and spinning her way through life.

I have more to say, but I have 40 papers to grade, a house to clean, and things to do.

The Big Lake

2009-09-07T07:51:00.002-04:00

Today, we are going to the Big Lake (Lake Superior) with some friends. They have a lake house and we are heading out their with them and their minister's family for a day of playing and picnicking.

Back in June, one of my friends (and the dad of one of Sarah's really good friends) mentioned that they wanted to have us out to their lake house sometime this summer.

As usually happens, we finally managed this week.

I'm looking forward to something fun. This is a really nice family. She's a ER doc, he's a sometimes SAHD, they have three girls - the middle one is in Sarah's grade but at a different school. She is really sweet. In fact, when she came over for a playdate earlier this week, the two of them ended up sitting in Sarah's room reading. I almost told them to stop reading and go play, but it dawned on me that any friend you are comfortable enough to just sit in a room and read with was actually a great thing and left them alone for a while.

I wouldn't mind if we started doing more things with this family (although just when we lived in CA we could end up finding a nice couple the hang with just before we move).

[And their daughter gave Sarah a great gift the other day. I guess that Sarah was telling her about being teased at school this past year. The school has moved the biggest offenders so they are in a different class than Sarah and this years Teacher's in-service theme is bullying, so we are hopeful that things will be better. But, we told Sarah that if it gets bad again, she doesn't have to put up with it and we can move Sarah to the another school. The school we'd plan on moving her to is the one this girl attends as well as another good friend of Sarah's. Sarah's friend told her that she didn't want Sarah to be teased, but she really hoped Sarah moved to her school. She also talked with Sarah about some of the other teasing incidents that she knew about both at her school and Sarah's. Knowing that these two girls will be there to welcome Sarah if she needs to change schools makes both Sarah and I feel better!

Really, it's been more than 10 days?

2009-08-19T08:47:00.002-04:00

Oh my goodness - I didn't realize it had been so many days since I updated.

Well, I've been locked in a room - painting - for the past two weeks.

First I had to scrape the paint off the walls, which was the entire reason we were embarking on this painting project. The paint has been peeling off the wall for years. So, I scrapped and the paint just popped off with almost no effort - all the way to the plaster - 12 lbs of paint.

Then it was sanding the spots that didn't come off, washing the walls, priming, taping/painting, remove tape, let dry, repeat.

But all I have to do now is check to see if everything I painted last night was properly covered, tape the top so DH can paint the ceiling, then move Sarah back.

Sarah is very excited as now she gets to put everything in her room any place she wants - nothing has to go back where it was.

But, now I have to clean the house because I'm having a stamping party on Thurs, Sarah has skating at 10:30. They started this wonderful thing call small group lessons. They are a cross between the larger group of the community programs and the private lessons. They are perfect. Sarah is guarenteed time with the professional skating coach rather than the high school aged kid who can't always motivate the tired kid and she is in a group with 2-4 kids rather than 4 -6. She's really enjoying it.

Sydney has skating lessons at 5:15 tonight. She's still in the community program basic programs, but it great for her. Sarah's best skating friend "I" is still doing the night lessons and her dad started lessons this week too. During practice time, she was working on 'helping' "I"s dad with his skills and taught him the rules of the red light/green light game they play at the end of lessons.

It was too cute!

And Sarah's very excited because I set up a playdate for her to go the I's house between her lessons and I's.

But, now I need to go make coffee and clean the kitchen before I have to wake Sarah for lessons.

Success

2009-08-07T08:27:00.002-04:00

Last night, we had a friend of DHs over for dinner with her family. They are moving here in a few weeks as she is joining DH's department.

Slowly, over the past few weeks, I've been working on getting the house put together so it's neat, properly decorated (a visit to my sister's house does this to me all the time). So, as a result we didn't have a ton of cleaning to do, but still more than I managed. The good news is that my ILs are due in sometime in the next few weeks and I'm that much ahead.

DH knew that when he told me one key piece of information, he knew I was going to be thrilled. A and her 2 y.o. daughter are vegetarians! Her husband was, as A put it, a carnivore. So, I planned this lovely menu to meet everyone eating desires (and that my girls would not complain too much about whatever they had to eat).

The menu was:

* veggie kabobs of zucchini, onions, mushrooms, and tomatoes marinated in a french vinaigrette
* flank steak marinated in my special marinade
* grilled potato wedges
* green beans
* artisan bread
* rustic peach pie w/ vanilla ice cream and fresh whipped cream

Well, at 4:30 (they were due sometime after 5:00), I still hadn't made a pie crust so the rustic peach pie turned to a peach crisp. Still wonderful.

As I was cooking the veggies on the (newly cleaned) grill, I noticed that the flame wasn't very high. One peak at the gas indicator showed that I was about out of gas. So, the steak was grilled in the broiler.

Dinner was wonderful, conversation was fun, the two year old was a little out of sorts but was completely darling (and we know what it's like to travel with a out of sorts kid so we managed fine.

Syd was in her element - she was able to play big sister to the little girl. She was teaching her to color, gave her a princess crown, and a bob the builder ball.

We had a great time. I look forward to them moving here. And I'm not completely sorry to no longer be traveling with a cranky 2 y.o., no matter how cute.

The unexpected friendship

2009-07-29T08:28:00.003-04:00

Last night, I got an email from a friend of mine. She's not a traditional friend in that I see her a lot, we talk all the time, etc. We talk when we run into one another and connect on a unique level. At one point, I almost went to work for her. But, the job never opened up and later she left the organization in an argument with the board for the non-profit where she worked.

I ran into her the other day and forced her to open up about her son's illness. She wasn't quite ready to say the words out loud, but I pushed. I'm not sure why I pushed so hard, but I was worried about her. It turns out that I have two friends with enough expertise that if she wants to go for another opinion, I know how to help her find the best. She felt a bit better about everything after we talked and didn't fear the unknown quite as much. You could see it in her eyes.

In this email, my friend told me that "you make me feel like I am really missing something important by not having you more in my life." That feeling is completely mutual.

And I'm so humbled by her words. And grateful that she feels the same way about our friendship as I do - that while we interact in some ways as acquaintances, we really are actually friends.

Ten years later - or what I did on my vacation. . .

2009-07-18T08:16:00.002-04:00

I grew up in Southern Maryland. I tend to just tell people I grew up in the DC area, but as with all other major metropolitan areas, different regions surrounding the city have different cultures. One thing our area was famous for was tobacco fields, sweet white corn, and hard shell crabs.

For years, I've wanted to get crabs while I was visiting. Finally, Wednesday, I did!! (blogger wouldn't let me in yesterday). Being a good (hah) blogger, I remembered to take a picture of them.

Unfortunately, it was the first time Sarah had ever seen food cooked and presented in it's 'original' form. She was horrified that I would break open these animals and eat them! She started to cry a bit because she felt so bad for the crabs. It made it a little tougher to enjoy them - but I still enjoyed them!!

As a bonus, here is a picture of the girls at the National Gallery Sculpture Garden. This was after touring the Gallery and the Air and Space Museum - so they enjoyed dipping their toes in the water.

I'd write about my thoughts about the Harry Potter movie, which I saw Wednesday at midnight, but I know that a few people haven't seen it yet, so I'll wait a bit before I tell them. I will share the experience from outside the theatre:

Normally I don't bother with midnight showings, just have never been that interested in being first. The line was long and the movie theatre workers were just a little more aggressive than they needed to be (including threats to move people to the back of the line if they didn't stay in a single file line and instead "bubbled" making it really tough to talk to the people you are with. They had two screens the movie was showing on - a bigger screen and a smaller screen. Mom was really opposed to being in the smaller theatre and sitting in the front few rows.

So, we were directed to the larger theatre and told that there were 44 more seats. The were starting to seat people in the smaller theatre too. When mom realized that we would be sitting in the front, she made a break for it and dragged us all to the smaller theatre. When the guy asked if we were sent to that theatre, mom lied and said "yes." So, she happily sat in the smaller theatre and not in the front and loved the movie! My mother, the rebel.

2009-06-21T08:07:00.002-04:00

This weekend was our community's annual festival to celebrate the bridge that joins our two communities. Being a small town, we have parades, lobster dinner (we are in the midwest, a lobster dinner is a treat), activities, etc. We also have fireworks.

We've never been down to the activities, but last year we took the girls to the fireworks for the first time. Hopefully next year we will be able to do some of the activities. I would have this year, but between the garage sale I was involved with (and will do again next year) and Sarah's ball game which was from 2-4, we just didn't make it. Then again, it's not DH's thing.

Last year, we started to take the girls to the fireworks. This is a bit of a big deal because we don't have sunset until 10:30. They loved it last year, so DH wanted to take them again this year. We sent them to bed for a nap at normal bedtime (and S2 pissed DH off when she wouldn't go to sleep) and got them up about 10:15 so we would have time to drive to a friends house, feed her cats, set up their hammock and wait for it to be dark enough. The first fireworks started at 10:45. The girls had an absolute blast!

Earlier this week, my friend Sandy and her family came to visit us for a day. They live in Virginia. Sandy and I have been friends since I was 16 and she was 17. I remember when her kids were born and she and her daughter came to see me in the hospital when S1 was born. I've not seen them since we moved from VA exactly 9 years ago this month.

Man it was good to see them. We had such a nice relaxing day. They were were camping up on a campground on Lake Superior. The came in on Wed night and I headed up to see them while we watched the sun set. Thursday, we picked up some breakfast and headed back up to the lake. The kids (my two and her two teenagers), played on the beach together for several hours before we made them take a break for lunch. Then, I drove Sandy and the kids down to see our house. The girls and J (who is 14) started playing Wii and K (who has me unsettled a bit because she's 17 and I can't believe we were so young when we met) wanted to go back to the camp to take a nap. So, J stayed at our house and played with the girls while I drove people back. I then made some dinner and we got S1 ready for her baseball game (which everyone came out to watch). It started to rain and we called the game at 2 hours and 20 min (this was a game that started at 7:15 and ended at 9:35 when the kids were too tired to get an out. I adore our coach, he calls it when its time and doesn't have to 'play to the end.') So, we ran back, got changed, picked up my DH and went back to camp for dinner and s'mores. It was a very long day and the girls didn't get to bed until midnight, but boy was it a great day. I'm sorry they couldn't stay longer, but it was a fabulous time.

If I build it, they will come.

2009-06-17T14:48:00.001-04:00

So, I am wearing exercise clothes around the house, and the treadmill is now set up and I even took it for a test run. Felt good, maybe I'll use it more often now

Cats, Otters, and 19 girls

2009-06-08T09:30:00.000-04:00

Saturday at 9:00 AM, five vehicles, 19 girl scouts, and eight adults headed out on a four hour drive. We arrived in Duluth after a picnic lunch. There was only a small skirmish in between the four girls in my car.

At the zoo, we divided into different groups. The zoo was fun. The girls wanted to run to everything, and then we had a hard time dragging them away from each exhibit. Me and my co-mom found ourselves completely fascinated by the bats. Yes, the bats. It was so amazing watching them interact with each other.

Then we drove to the restaurant for dinner and on to the Aquarium where we unpacked the cars in the rain bringing in bags, sleeping bags, and pillows.

The Aquarium was fabulous. We learned all about sea horses, had a behind the scenes tour and saw the kitchen where the animal and fishes' food were prepared. Including the defrosted rats and baggies of rat and mice-icles. By then, it was pretty late because our schedule was on Central time, but our bodies on Eastern. We got the girls snacked, jamied, teeth brushed, and all in sleeping bags. They were so tired, they almost all fell asleep with almost no discussion or noise!

During one of the girls classroom activities, I had wandered into the main exhibit area. I was drawn to the otter tank. They have two otters. The otters kept swimming and then jumping out of the water to stand at the window on a tiny ledge before falling back into the water and doing it again. I wondered if they were interacting with me or just playing. So, I wandered to the other side of the corner I was standing. The otters followed me and played the same game in the new corner. It took everything I had to leave and return to the classroom.

In the morning, we watched the sea horses playing. They mate for life, and each morning, they spend an hour with their tails entwined as they talk to their mate. Then the men stay attached to their seaweed while they wait for the eggs the female transferred to them to hatch while the women head out for coffee with their friends.

Slowly the girls woke up and we gave them time to look at the exhibits, have breakfast, get dressed and packed up.

When the person in charge of feeding arrived at work, we all gathered around the otter exhibit to watch them feed the otters. BUT, as a special bonus, we were able to walk behind the exhibit (where the otter's sleep) to watch them have their private breakfast of cat food and carrots. Then, they cleaned out the pen and attached bananas with some peanut butter to the walls of the rocks so we could watch them jump and eat. Then, they scratched their faces on the tree limbs as they continued to ignore that we were on the other side of the window. When they were finished, one left the public view to sleep while the other first laid completely before curling up in a little ball just like my cats at home, to sleep.

Where did the cats come into the trip - the otters are so very catlike that I'm still amazed.

My cold is a bit worse now, but I had a great weekend! (sorry about the lack of cut - I'm too lazy to go back and fix it)

2009-05-25T08:17:00.002-04:00

For years, I've looked forward to posting the results of DH's tenure decision. I spent years looking forward to the day we could relax a little knowing that he had been promoted and given a lifetime contract. In the last three years, I was looking forward to the day we knew he could easily go find another job - one that would make DH happy because the culture at this one was not good but it would be much easier to find a job with tenure than without.

But, it didn't happen this way. DH didn't get tenure. It would have been ok if he hadn't deserved it, but he did.

His department voted for it unanimously. But, the levels above it did not.

At the higher levels, DH was noted for excellent teaching, even creating new teaching techniques, and excellent service. But, they decided he wasn't strong enough in research. Yea, pretty sad when a university doesn't value teaching.

There were the official reasons, but really it was political. I can't go into them in such a public arena, but they are really stupid. So, at this point DH is being given a one year contract and will have to find a new job.

So, we are appealing because there were some procedural violations. Depending on the decision they make, DH could go back through tenure (but we don't anticipate a different decision because the same individuals are involved), but it could give DH a second one-year contract and that could help us find a better job because he'd have two hiring cycles rather than one. Plus, he has some thing that he'd like to have negotiated here before a hiring cycle and we need time for this.

Since March, things have felt pretty bleak. BUT, this week we got some fabulous news that has given us some new hope that DH will be OK.

While DH was in DC this week, he was at NSF (National Science Foundation) and he was informed that the grant he applied for in January was being funded - $300K. Not only that, but the project officer was appalled that DH didn't get tenured and asked what he could do to help undo this decision. Yep, DH, who wasn't tenured based on research had the person who funds his research appalled that he wasn't tenured when he was proposing such a unique and innovative research project.

So, we think we will be OK. We have some very strong people in our corner and the project officer is going to structure DH's grant so he can take it with him.

If you see my parents, don't tell them. We haven't told them yet.

Now to finish fixing up the house for selling. We know that either next spring or the spring after the house will have to go up for sale. MAN we love this house and I've been fighting much anger as I have to think about buying things for the next owner. I am doing as much as I can this summer so we can enjoy our improvements as much as possible.

Off to clean some before the race starts today. Let's hope for dry track conditions.

OMG, what I missed by not going to Prom

2009-05-14T14:19:00.001-04:00

I'm watching this weeks episode of Castle online. I just got to the scene where his daughter's date rang the doorbell to pick her up for prom. Thank goodness I wasn't drinking anything or I would have snorted it out my nose (yes, that funny)

Coffee - the nectar of Gods

2009-05-13T08:04:00.001-04:00

I must be tired. I just brewed an entire pot of coffee and realized I forgot to put in the coffee grounds.

Take two worked much better.

2009-05-02T08:32:00.003-04:00

I was looking up at my mantle today. Syd wanted to see the giant pine cones that I have in three huge candle hurricane type thing that I put things in.

They look like this, only without the candleholder part (I have a different version, but don't like the candle holder thing that came with it).
I was looking up at my mantle today. Syd wanted to see the giant pine cones that I have in three huge candle hurricane type thing that I put things in.

They look like this, only without the candleholder part (I have a different version, but don't like the candle holder thing that came with it).

week in review.

2009-04-27T08:08:00.003-04:00

This week has been a bit insane.

As you may remember, DH's Uncle David died last weekend. The girls and I decided to drive out for the funeral. Uncle David was was the darling husband of DH's Aunt Jean (my FILs sister). For me, I've always known Uncle David with Aunt Jean. Melanie might be able to help me with dates more, but I believe Jean and David met in Jean's late 30s. Their only daughter Elly was born when Jean was 40(?) David really wanted to hang on long enough to see Elly leave for college, then graduate from high school. He didn't quite make it. This make me sad.

The funeral was very nice. It was almost enjoyable. There were 3 different officiants contributing to the service - people who really knew and respected David. They told stories from people who really knew him. The music was so very David - cowboy and celtic. I discovered that it was very hard to cry and be sad listening to Cowboy songs. I want Cowboy music played at mine.

David's daughter from his first marriage was there (so was his son). His daughter brought her two boys - A and C. I've been hearing about them for years since Sarah and A are only 6 mos apart. We've not met them before. Sarah and A hit it off amazingly well and they can't wait to get together again. C is a little younger than Sydney. Life was so much easier having playmates for the girls.

The girls were really good on the trip. On the drive home, we detoured slightly and stopped at the Mall of America. We only had one stop. The girls didn't know we were going until we pulled into the parking lot and I suggested they take their dolls with them. The girls had a budget they could spend. Sarah started getting her doll's hair done, but then noticed that they would pierce ears at the store. So, she walked out with her dolls ears pieced. We also found out that her dolls eyelash problem is a manufacture defect and if we send her to the doll hospital, they will repair it for us. She just needs to be away from the house for 4 weeks.

And, the massage was really, really good!!

2009-04-24T13:50:00.002-04:00

Way cool! I'm heading for a 100 minute clinic given by the massage school.

The impromptu trip - but not one I wish I was taking

2009-04-19T08:39:00.002-04:00

Yesterday morning, my Uncle David died. He was just the sweetest guy. I adore his family. Aunt Jean (his wife) is my FILs sister. She found love later in life, not marrying until she was around 40. Elly, their daughter, was a little unexpected but provided quite the spirited life for Jean and David.

David was very sick but was trying to hold on until Elly left for college this fall. Elly is a senior in high school this year. He was just too weak and tired to hold on any longer. He made it to his 73rd birthday last weekend.

The girls and I will drive to minnesota tomorrow for Tuesday's funeral. I wasn't sure if I was going to bring them, but Sarah really wanted to come. She wants to help make Elly feel better. This child of mine is such a sweet soul.

Sydney, well, she just wants to be where I am.

So, we'll hop in the car, drive LOTSSSS of hours and be there for our family. I'm thinking about coming through Minneapolis on the drive home and stopping by the American Girl store. It only adds another hour of driving time to make that little detour. I'm thinking we will stay in Minneapolis on Tues night to take a couple of hours off the driving time on Wednesday. The hours are long, but when adding bathroom stops for three girls - yea, another hour or two.

I'm just glad I have the flexibility in my life that I can do this. I wish it wasn't the last week in the semester so Joe could come too. Aunt Jean is very special to Joe.

Home improvements

2009-04-10T19:10:00.001-04:00

Yippee!! We just ordered new lights for the outside of the house, and a new ceiling fan for the bedroom.

Soon, I won't be able to whine about the mis-matched ceiling fan. I will only whine about the multiple finishes in the bathroom.

And, I shopped for the fan "guy style." I bought the first one I liked with a reasonable price. I fear there might be a better one out there, but I can live with this. And, because I ordered it through the guy in the 'ask a question' section of the website, when I asked if he had any discount codes, he dropped $50 off the order!

Big YEA!

2009-04-05T14:16:00.001-04:00

Is cleaning the house before my ILs arrive on Monday.

Ohhhh pretty

2009-03-30T19:54:00.002-04:00

I just finished installing the first of three new pleated shades in our bedroom.

I've hated our old blinds since we moved in. They are a dingy color. Our walls have some bright white in them, and they don't look right. A few years ago, when the strings broke, I bought new string rather than new blinds. Sometimes I can't replace what is perfect functional if not pretty.

This time, when the string broke, and I couldn't get the locking mechanism to work, I BOUGHT NEW!

It took me a few times to figure out how to get them installed because of bracket placement - but I got it up - and it's SOOOO pretty. They are bright white and look nice. I can't wait to get the others up in the morning and see them in daylight.

For the first time in three years, I can easily put my blinds over my bed up! And I did it myself (ok, DH stood by while I tried to figure out the problem. Talking with him helped me find the solution).

And now the refrain

2009-03-29T15:50:00.002-04:00

The heat is fixed. This time it seems for real. As in, the house actually is warm.

Some hose was knocked loose.

So, we may actually have heat now.

Took the girls to see Monsters vs. Aliens. Sydney was a little scared by the movie, but liked it in the end. Sarah really liked it.

Where timestep whines about the heat while drinking coco with Kahlua.

2009-03-28T20:54:00.001-04:00

This morning, our heating guy drove to the UPS site in town. The truck hadn't arrived yet, but he asked that they look for our package as they unloaded and if they found it, to call him.

By some miracle, our package arrived, being a small town the UPS guy called, and mid-morning, heating guy arrived to install the new control panel. All is good. . .

except we waited all day for the house to warm up.

By dinner time, it was obvious that more is broken as the furnace will turn on, but it won't force hot air.

So, it's not as cold as the heater is doing something, but it also isn't warm.

I'm not a happy girl.

Not unhappy enough to call repair guy (I have his cell number), but not happy either.

2009-03-27T08:23:00.001-04:00

The furnace needed part, so we had a dead furnace last night. Lovely repair man is picking up part at UPS rather than waiting for delivery. So, I have a fire in the fireplace, I'm making coffee, and will clean house 'til repair guy shows.

I hope he's not offended that I'm in my jammies, but I have unders on and a turtle neck. But, my fleece jamies are WARM.

I might change into a fleece pullover just so it doesn't look so much like jammies.

I promised the girls that if the furnace isn't fixed today, there will be a hotel or mini heaters for the weekend.

Motivation to clean or exercise

2009-03-26T08:07:00.002-04:00

When you aren't sure you have the energy to clean, all you need is for your heater to stop running. When it's 60 degrees in the house when it should be 65, perpetual motion helps to keep the blood moving. So, my choices are exercise or cleaning.

I think I'll clean a bit first, then exercise if the heating guy still isn't here.

open mouth, be thankfully only DH saw me insert foot.

2009-03-22T20:46:00.001-04:00

So, today I was chatting with our two ice dancers after the show about the rules of ice dancing and the timing of when they are allowed to be separate from one another. I remember clearly the discussions that occurred after Torvill and Dean performed their routine to Bolero the first time in the 1984 Olympics the pushing of the rules that routine created.

We chatted a bit about how the rules have relaxed a bit since then - allowing for more separation during certain routines (i.e., not compulsory where you never separate).

When I got home, I decided to look up the name of their coach - which I knew from the program was Christopher Dean. I knew the name, but could not place who the skater was.

ThankgoodnessIdidn'tsayanythingstupid

Um yea, Christopher Dean is THAT Dean, as in Torvill and Dean.

(such a dork).

Ice Show

2009-03-22T08:46:00.003-04:00

Ice Dancers Jane Summersett and Todd Gilles skated at our local Ice Show this weekend. It seems that Jane is from our area and skated with our skating academy when she was little.

Jane and Todd are the alternates to the U.S. Ice Dancing team for the 2009 Worlds next week in Los Angeles and stopped by our little ice show to skate their programs from the 2009 U.S. Nationals. They are so nice taking pictures and signing autographs. In fact, they spend most of their time standing in the hallway where the skaters dressing rooms are rather than hiding in their own room - so all the skaters can stop by and talk to them, take pictures, and ask for autographs.

Here is the link to their pic at nationals:

http://www.universalsports.com/PhotoAlbum.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=23000&PALBID=59504

And here is a picture with the girls. We took this at intermission. After Sarah and Sydney got Todd's autograph, tomorrow we will get Jane's.

The girls did a great job at the show. But, I'll be a bit happy when the show is over today.

Kirsten

Disgusted

2009-03-20T21:32:00.001-04:00

It's the first day of spring.

It's snowing.

It's not right.

I want to ban Murphy from my house

2009-03-10T10:15:00.003-04:00

I keep stubbing my toe - my broken toe - on things. Do I ever stub the right foot? NO. . .that would be to convenient. No, I keep stubbing the broken toe.

And, last night I couldn't fall asleep. Too much on my mind. I finally forced myself to walk to bed at 2:30. It took a little bit more to fall asleep. I woke up to help get the kids out of the house.

It's going to be a rough few days while I try to get my groove back. I'm too old to lose sleep.

AND, I just realized that I forgot to start the chicken in the crock pot. I'm bringing dinner to a friend who tore several things in her knee, has two kids, and her DH is on travel this week. I need to bake brownies too because life is always better with a little chocolate.

Oh, and I decided to give up equal and splenda. My craving for sweets was getting a little out of control. I decided to see if there was any truth to the studies that artificial sweeteners leave your body craving more sugar. Most of my artificial sweeteners come from coffee or tea.

And, I've actually seen some improvement in what I *need* to eat.

But, now I need to get dressed and get stuff going for dinner.

Mom, the Girl Scout Cookies exploded in our basement!

2009-03-08T09:01:00.001-04:00

I'm cookie mom for Sarah's troop. The cookies arrived on Thursday.

Sarah's troop sold 1080 boxes, which means we had over 90 cases of cookies. I had to sort all the cookies for the troop. Then, I have to sort the 157 boxes Sarah sold and the 76 Sydney sold.

I've still not sorted Sarah's cookies out of the troop cookies and I then need to sort the girls cookies.

It's almost 9:00, we have to leave for church in 45 minutes and I have to bring Sarah's cookies so she can deliver them.

But, I'm going to drink a cup of coffee and wake up a bit before I go sort.

Oh, I'll be so happy when cookie season is over!

Custom blinds

2009-03-02T11:35:00.003-05:00

I am in search of a reliable (and fairly quickly) place to order custom window shades. Our front bedroom window is BIG (three panes, two small, one bigger).

I really like Smith and Noble, but they are a bit pricey.

I'm leaning towards Next Day Blinds, but I thought I'd see if anyone else has a site they trust.

The other advantage of the NDB place is that they can inside mount in a shallow window frame.

Anyway, looking for ideas!

TIA.

I should know better

2009-02-27T23:43:00.002-05:00

I should. If I start to exercise - I will get in a few good days, start really getting into a groove AND get hurt.

This time, it's a broken pinky toe. Not much they can do, but does put a crimp into most of the easy "at home" exercises.

But, I'll get back - I was feeling better with it.

I do have to take it easy this weekend.

Worst yet, I broke it running into a backpack and a pair of skates.

Did I mention they were my skates that I hadn't put away yet? I can't even complain at the girls.

Oh well. At least it's not my sewing foot because I've started the quilt for my daughter's bed. I'm hoping to have it finished in time for the fair in August (including ripping out seams that didn't work).

The surprise

2009-02-21T18:16:00.001-05:00

I decided that today was the day. I told the girls I had a surprise for them. BUT, before they could get the surprise, they had to do their chores.

Chores were complete, surprise was granted.

My girls now have earrings.

Sarah chose blue topaz since it's close to turquoise (her favorite color).

Sydney chose garnet, which is the girls birthstone.

They look so cute!

Pictures tomorrow.

Generally ramblings

2009-02-20T09:45:00.004-05:00

Things have been pretty quiet this week. Monday was a bit insane while I tried to desperately gather all the marketing materials I was in the middle of developing before she left for Puerto Rico. It was a bit crazy because in the middle of it, I got a phone call that Sydney wasn't feeling well and needed me to pick her up. It really wasn't anything and soon she was feeling better and wanted my attention.

But, since I was working so hard on the stuff for work, DH and I both getting sick, and the things for birthday parties, the house (which has been so nicely cleaned up before Syd's party) was a bit trashed. So, I've spent this week getting the house picked up AND playing on my Wii Fit.

I'm watching one of my favorite West Wing episodes. It's something that bothered me during this past election and is something I might have the class watch and discuss this next semester. It deals with a democratic convention where there are three viable candidates --

(although I hate the camera angles where they spend the entire time with cameras doing a 360 spin around the room - it' makes me dizzy)

-- this past summer, there was a lot of pressure for Hillary Clinton to step aside for the 'good of the party' so that when we arrive at the convention, we have 'party unity.' I always wondered why we needed to have party unity prior to the convention. What was the point of having a convention where we stand up in the first minute of the convention and say "oh, by the way we only have one candidate left, so we don't need to vote. But, since you are all here, let's spend millions of dollars and 5 nights listening to speeches from the people who might be contenders in the future.

Why do we need to pressure our candidates to drop out of the race mid-primary so the 'heir apparent' doesn't have competition. I guess this way the politicians get to decided who are candidates are, not the public.

This episode covers the issue so nicely.

But, I need to get back to cleaning and I'm going to re-caulk the shower stall this weekend, so I need to remove the old caulk.

And, this weekend I need to create two lists of school in wisconsin and minnesota that I would potentially visit, the cost to visit these school, and then chat with my boss and department chair next week to decide which loop I should take first.

The party cake

2009-02-15T16:24:00.001-05:00

In some ways, parties are getting a little easier. The kids just played in the pool - we set up the food, watched to make sure no-one drowned, and corraled them later for cake and presents. We had a few no-shows, but just sent their bags home with a couple of kids with siblings.

Everyone had fun, and I'm really pleased with Sarah's cake. I made this myself. I used a metal bowl for the top, licorice for the eyes, and fondant for the spots.

If I were ever to attempt this again (or another tiered cake), I'd do a few things differently. But, all in all I'm pleased.

I give you the Mario Bros "1-up" cake (and for those of you not involved in playing Mario Bros (which would have been us at Christmas), the 1-up is the character that gives you extra lives

The party!

2009-02-08T11:18:00.004-05:00

Yesterday we had Syd's birthday party. One little girl commented several times that "it was the best party ever." While everyone arrived, they just played and my friends helped me finish getting everything together.

Then, once everyone arrived, it was time to decorate the fleece pillows I made. One little girl decided the pillow was so nice, she didn't want to add anything to it.

Then, as the girls finished their pillows, we painted nails, had a snack, opened presents, and then it was time for the cake. I was pretty impressed with how well the cake turned out. I've never tried some of these frosting techniques. The base coat didn't quite come out the way I wanted, and so the rest wasn't quite as pictured - but it tasted great.

Most importantly, Sydney thought her party was a success!

Up late/Up early

2009-02-07T07:06:00.003-05:00

Today is Sydney's "Fancy Nancy" Soiree.(I'll leave it to you to google her name if you don't know her. And, if you have little girls, you MUST buy her books. We are having an 'at-home' party. The girls are all coming in their fancy clothes. (I just hope I have enough time to get dressed myself.

I decided to go to bed early and get up early in the AM to clean the house. Needless to say, that just as I was trying to fall asleep, Sydney woke up crying because her ear hurt. I gave her motrin and a decongestant to clear out the pressure and sat with her while I waited for the meds to take effect. She whimpered and told me how much it hurt. I kept counting the minutes until the meds would take effect. She fell asleep 21 minutes after she took the Motrin.

She lost her 2nd tooth at school yesterday. Good thing the Tooth Fairy remembered to come.

So, I got up early today and I'm working on drinking some coffee and having yogurt before I start the intensive cleaning of the house so I can get the food ready and set up the play centers.

I'm so excited for the party. The cake is decorated - not bad for a first attempt with some of the cake decorating techniques. I've also made 11 crown shaped pillows out of purple fleece. I've written each girls name on the pillow with fabric paint. Later today, each girl will decorate the pillow with ribbons and buttons.

We are also going to paint their nails and have a dress up area. A bit of the time will be spent just playing whatever they want.

I will post pictures later.

But, it's time to get cleaning!

For love or money

2009-02-04T15:44:00.003-05:00

I just got done spending a half an hour in 3 degree weather digging up my front yard to locate my daughter's glove (all because we didn't want to spend the money to buy a new one).

Do you remember my front yard?

Brut Force

2009-02-04T13:58:00.004-05:00

I wish I had a picture of me working the snowblower Monday - in our 18-24 inches of snow - but alas I can't quite manage to show you that. Surfice to say, I'm sure it was a pretty amusing sight.

But, after all this snow, here is how our house looks:

Here is the backyard. You can see the height of the snow piles from the grill on the patio.

Here is the front yard. This was before I cleared a path. The front steps were completely invisible.

And the measure of how much snow is on the front path. This is just what fell between 8:00 am and 3:00 pm

As for the brut force - it's what it took to run the snowblower.

Some dates you just remember

2009-02-02T09:32:00.000-05:00

Last night, as the game was ending (great last quarter), I looked at DH and asked him if he knew what today was.

DH: Feb 1st.

Me: No.

DH: Sunday

Me: No.

DH: Feb 1st

Me: No, it's an anniversary of sorts.

DH: Yes, the first day you doubted me.

You see, we'd only been dating exclusively a few weeks and seeing each other a couple of months, when he told me he loved me on Feb 1st. I didn't think it was enough time for him to develop real feelings and not just infatuation. I guess I was wrong.

And DH remembers!

Vanity or health

2009-01-29T20:51:00.002-05:00

As some of you know, my dear friend Kelly from Jennelle's Journey on my list is back in the hospital for round 2 of Chemo.

A couple of years ago, I decided to grow my hair out with the intention of donating it. Prior to this, I didn't know about certain restrictions on hair coloring. But, I knew that donated hair was used for many things so I decided to go forth with my plan. Well, a few months ago, my hair was finally long enough, but after spending so much time I wasn't ready to cut it. A few weeks ago, I decided that I had no style left in my hair, it was long enough, and my friend Kelly has lost her hair even though she has no choice about it. Maybe it was time to cut and donate it.

I spent weeks trying to decide if I should be selfish and keep my hair, or join her husband and son and cut it off. I finally decided to cut it back two inches and keep growing it. Part was a selfish desire to keep my hair. Part of it was the knowledge that if I cut the ratty ends and some of the strongest parts of color - what I donate will be better than what I could donate now.

Part of me was glad I decided to keep it when my dh told me I was - well, let's just say that he likes it long. I'll save my SIL's eyes from seeing her brother's words.

I still feel a bit guilty that I couldn't bring myself to cut it now, even though I know it was for a good reason.

HUGS Kelly. I promise I will donate as soon as I can donate healthy, lovely hair for people who need it.

Doing the right thing

2009-01-26T10:01:00.001-05:00

I love my small town!

We had ordered a package with the girls Birthday Party stuff. It's due today.

I just had a knock on the door. It was a guy in a regular truck wearing regular clothes. He told me that after all the UPS drivers had left for their routes, he saw our box sitting there and wanted to drop it by. I didn't need it today, but I love that it was important to him.

It made my day!

Restlessness

2009-01-20T12:03:00.002-05:00

Right now, I'm watching our two cats roam around the house a bit restlessly. Yesterday they were spayed, and we just got home a little while ago. They are not quite sure what to do with themselves.

As I watch the cats roam, I'm also watching the inauguration.

I am a democrat, I did vote for Obama, I wish that his race was not so much of an issue, but I'm not sure it can be, nor should be, avoided. I cringe a little every time I hear "the first woman/jew/minority" to hold. . . But, change hasn't happened as quickly as I think it should have. I heard a statistic this morning that Martin Luther King, Jr. anticipated that it would take 35 years before an African American was elected president - he was off by a bit, it took 47.

So, as we have nibbled away at the barriers that have made it difficult for many to pursue these leadership roles, it does bear celebrating when we have broken another barrier. We have many more barriers to cross on many more issues and I hope we don't forget that crossing these should be celebrated.

But, I don't view Obama as a savior, I don't think that all that is wrong will suddenly be fixed. I expect that he will do the best he can. And while people may be right and the media may have gone easy on Obama - well maybe it's like a sporting event where one bad call cancels out another. That the years that things were done just because someone was a minority is canceled out by this one being supported.

I hope that this is what we need. I hope that years from now we have a clearer picture of the Bush years (I think there were mistakes made and I think that some things were done that should not have). I think that Bush spent many years listening to the wrong advisers.

At this time, I have hope, but I'm a bit restless as I wait for the hullabaloo to die down and reality to set in. To wait for those who are bashing Obama simply because Bush was bashed and in spite of their comments that Bush was not treated well they are practicing an 'eye for an eye,' waiting for the people who are so vocal about how amazing Obama is to, well, tone down a little. Because the reality is probably going to land in the middle.

To pierce or not to pierce

2009-01-16T13:33:00.001-05:00

The girls have talked about wanting their ears pierced. DH wants to wait until they can take care of their ears themselves. I truly don't care.

So, there is the possibility that the Claire's in town will close. If you go in when they have two people working, they can do both ears at once. The other place that pierces ears in town is Walmart. Not sure I completely trust that. Otherwise, we won't be able to pierce them until someone else we move back in town.

I mentioned the idea to DH about getting their ears pierced now. He said he didn't see any reason to get them pierced, but he really didn't care.

They are 6 and 9 (boy that is strange to write) - kindy and 3rd grade.

So, any thoughts?

I can't wait too long to decide. The manager at Claire's said that while they are currently meeting the targets they've been given, if they close they will be given one weeks notice. I'm not sure I'll hear in enough time.

I hate making pressure decisions. Then again, I would have done this long ago if not for DH.