where's my inner Julia Child?

Lately I've had the desire to cook. Not necessarily lengthy, intricate recipes, but to spend some time attempting to make delicious meals.

Emphasis on the attempt.


The running joke in our house is that every single meal I make is so close to being awesome, but I always miss out on one step that would make it great. I made Pad Thai last week; didn't soak the noodles long enough so they were a little tough. Spaghetti sauce, kept the heat too high so the flavor wasn't quite perfect (but was pretty okay for my first time.) Chicken wings, missed the step that said to heat the pan up without the oil... almost started a fire.

I'm very much a learn-by-doing kind of person, so the second time around it usually ends up being pretty tasty. Good thing Mike is patient and eats whatever I put in front of him...

So anyways, I've been craving this falafel recipe I read on Jenna's blog (http://www.pbs.org/food/fresh-tastes/falafel-burgers/) but every time I decide I'm going to make it, I'm missing one crucial ingredient. And I'm too lazy to drive back out to Publix.

I was going to make one of my staples that takes all of 30 seconds to prepare (cheese, garlic, and spinach or whatever I have on hand wrapped in pizza dough, baked, dipped in sauce, ready GO!) but I think I'll save that for a rainy (cough STRESSFUL) day.

I think I'll attempt go attempt the pad thai again...

and oh how it delivered

i think it's going to be one of those years where we're living for the weekend

yup. 

Looking forward to this 3 day weekend... in fact, it's really the only thing pulling me through.

to be honest, I'm worried for us. 

we are weary & burdened. 

And i'm not meaning to come off as a whiner, 

because i am SO very thankful for the time that teachers have off to recharge, 

but education is getting a bit scary.

(i'm not sure i'll be able to make this a lifelong career.)

but who am i kidding? we're all exhausted.

Mike and his fellow DBers...

my mom and the whole health care system in general...

yes, we will continually work harder than ever have before, 

but most importantly,

we'll relax and play even harder 

:)

& for me this weekend that means cashing in my massage gift certificate from April, getting a haircut, multiple barbecues, long runs that will ensure I can fit into my skinny jeans come October, and hopefully looking at pianos so I can bang the keys in fits of hysterics

done and done. 

Weekend morning favs

I love coffee.

Weekday mornings I'm heading out the door with a travel mug in tow, where it gets finished in first period as I breathe dragon coffee breath all over the kiddos. 

But the weekend hits and I pull out my favorite mugs and ohhhhh

i'm in my happy place. 

We usually watch a little HGTV as I sit and dream about the decorating I will one day accomplish, the backyard space that will be my happy place, the second cabin in the mountains that will be our respite. 

D dreams with us too.

and now, since we skipped church this morning, I'm heading off to be productive. 

An empty fridge equates to a much-needed Publix excursion. 

a feisty puppy needs some exercise.

The floors are still littered with remnants of the feisty puppy's latest kill, his victim being the thank-you cards that were carelessly left at his eye level. 

and most importantly, the foosball table we scored from the neighbors needs to be christened. 

This is the first time all week that I've been able to just SIT and RELAX. I've been staying at school late, exercising (not tonight... oops...) cooking meals, cleaning, lesson planning, taking care of D.... all these things as I get back into routine, and I didn't feel like I could just, well, sit without doing something productive.

I so needed this.

Relaxing on the back porch, enjoying the slight breeze that's stifling the oppressive humidity, keeping Michael "company" as he mows the lawn, soaking it all in. This year is going to be a doozie; I need to savor the quiet moments of not thinking about work and enjoying a cold one when the opportunity arises.

I can't even imagine doing this job right now and coming home to little ones. Those of you who do this (and will be soon!)... you're all my heroes.

Cheers to Friday and knowing the weekend will deliver!

out of order

like my entire life!

Day 11-- Something blue. Didn't use the camera for these two which at first I thought defeated the whole purpose, but that's okay because I heart instagram. "Something Blue" was super easy.... ermmm... try everything in my stinkin' house is blue?! I went for the whole "everything in my closet is blue" against the "every wall is painted blue" background. And yes, I'm starting to tire of blue.

Oh stinkin' well.

Day 13- me with 13 things. i'm late on this one. in fact, i'll have to take three pictures today, oops. but hey, the 13 things is appropriate because i have about that many things to do tonight for the rest of the week's lesson plans, and if I wanna make it to Zumba in an hour an a half (so not happening...) I need to get moving.

first day 4.0

Oh the first day.

i'm exhausted.

happy with the first round of kiddos, apprehensive about tomorrow's. i'm keeping my fingers crossed that they're just as great.

i hope that every day will be this productive. i woke up nice and early and didn't have to rush to make it to work on time. i actually did work instead of socializing right after school... then i came home and ran 4 miles on the treadmill, making my way through half of the first "Series of Unfortunate Events" book. dinner was served, kitchen was cleaned, and now i have a chance to blog.

done, done, and done.

all that's left is accompanying the pup on a walkies.

i can't believe this is my 4th year of teaching already. i wish i felt like i knew what i was doing... i thought that was supposed to come with time? instead i feel like a new teacher all over again.

no worries. this will be my best year yet.

i wish i could use a dunce cap in the classroom...

Day 12- Sunset

I'm cheating-- I'll be preoccupied during tonight's sunset, and I saw this fabulous one a couple days ago so it will have to suffice. And yes I took this picture while driving. Oops. 

Tomorrow I'll post yesterday's "something blue" and explain the church picture that Mike created his monkey story about (the guest blogger...)

Guest Blogger in the house (get it...)

Hello Bloggers...

This is a house with a brown cross on it (if you look close there is a bow in the background)

Somehow I need to turn this picture into Rachel's favorite childhood memory...sounds a little too emotional for me.

Instead I will tell you a tale of the miniature monkey family who lived in a little yellow house with a brown cross and a blue roof.  Rumor has it that this monkey family was put under an evil spell for disobeying the current monkey king.  

The miniature monkey family was under this spell for quite sometime and thought the spell would never be reversed, forcing them to live as a miniature family in the yellow house forever.

Wait, what is that in the background? It's a RAINBOW! The miniature monkey family all quickly ran to the front door.  They all stood on the porch gazing at the beautiful rainbow that had formed, all thinking about their old normal sized lives.

Little did they know the power of the rainbow was exactly what they needed to reverse the curse.  Moments later the monkeys returned to full size and were able to rejoin the monkey tribe.

And everyone lived happily ever after...THE END

(It's all centered because I don't know how to change it...that is all)

Goodbye Bloggers

Oh and here is the monkey family living happily ever after:

Day 9-Someone I love:

(Can I cheat and have two?)

He's the half and half to my morning coffee, the pita to my hummus, the rainbows to my feet. 

He works hard to support our adventures.

He lets me vent and talk about my emotions.

He makes my heart happy.

My BFF <3

Day 8 (i think...) a bad habit...

and ohhhhh there are so many. 

But in the spirit of going back to school, I'll highlight a related one:

Hanging on to CRAP.

There is junk everywhere. 

Take this stack of papers, for example. I kept a running pile throughout the year then threw it in a crate, fully intending to organize during pre-planning in August. 

That was three years ago. 

Fortunately God loves me despite my numerous faults.

(Mike says my worst bad-habit is not putting things back where I got them.

Fortunately I just happened to have all things in their places when I was supposed to take a picture yesterday...hahayeahright...)

Day7- Fruit?

A picture of fruit? Really?

First of all, I am embarrassed to say that there is currently no fruit in the house, unless you count the 5 or so rotting cherries in the back of the fridge. Party foul.

I went to Publix to pick up some nanners (along with other things... I didn't just go for the fruit I swear...) and I thought just fruit on a table would make a pretty lame picture. I tried to think of something different, like throwing fruit in the air or taking a picture of an apple at school (real creative, huh.) Then I felt silly for overthinking how I was going to take a picture of fruit and decided to just incorporate my favorite dog. Wasn't sure what he would do with the nanner, but he figured it out right quick.:

Fortunately I had the brains to move this party outside before he got mushy nanner all over the floor. 

 he totally posed for this one

Day 6- Low Angle

I know it's kind of cliche to take lame pictures of road signs, 

but something about it stuck out to me on my way home from church. 

Everything about today's message spoke directly into my heart... 

Lately I've been struggling with an overwhelming sense of inadequacy, like everything I do isn't good enough in my job, my marriage, and most importantly, for God. It's difficult to put into words... but this morning I felt the Lord reaching into my broken places and whispering words of encouragement, that I am good enough to be called His child and I was not created to feel inadequate. 

I know that God will provide companionship, strength, and joy to make it the best year yet. 

There's only "one way" to not get wrapped up in the negativity that can encompass teaching...

and that's by looking up.

Day 5- High Angle

So excited she and her momma and daddy came to hang out yesterday...

we looked for lizards, watched Mickey, ate hot dogs;

I think she's my new BFF. 

And she kind of (*just sort of*) makes me wanna 

have a girl one day instead of a brood of boys. 

So long sweet summer 

         I stumbled upon you and gratefully basked in your rays 

So long sweet summer I fell into you 

Now you're gracefully falling away 

Hey thanks 

Thanks for that summer 

It's cold where you're going 

I hope that your heart's always warm 

I gave you the best 

Gave you the best that I have

 So, so long sweet summer 

       

I stumbled upon you and gratefully basked in your rays

So long sweet summer 

I fell into you 

Now you're gracefully falling away  

Day 4-Something Green

The tomatoes are sick. 

While I was away they crumpled in on each other and were ravished by bugs;

they're just now starting to heal and make an appearance.

Keep it comin', little guys! 

Day 3-Clouds

I was hoping for an epic storm, but everyday clouds are kinda cool. 

They don't get the same attention they received 

when you were a kid splayed out in the grass guessing their shape. 

Day 2- What I Wore Today.

Summer essentials: jorts, headband, sheer tee, rainbows. Done.

Couch Potato

I once saw on TV that ESPN hosts a couch potato competition to see who can sit and watch sports the longest without falling asleep. I think right now I could win. Instead of using these last precious hours of summer to be productive, I've become a recluse and only want to sit on the couch and watch HGTV. I'm making sure to soak up as much lazy-time as I can, because it doesn't happen once school starts.

Okay, I'm being ridiculous. I'm going to go put together my new Ikea dresser.

Day 1: Self- Portrait

If every day is as difficult as this one, then I'm definitely not sticking with this picture challenge. 

Why is it so hard to take a picture of yourself? 

I've been trying to get the 'perfect' one for an hour.

Sometimes being a girl is lame. We are too critical of ourselves.

We can't help it, boys. Just keep reminding us we're beautiful and everything will be okay. 

It's much easier to take pictures of this guy:

and one more thing...

I'm 'stealing' this from Danielle as an excuse to use the camera... although I'm not good with following through... we'll see :)

I complain about living in Florida a lot. Sometimes it feels hopeless, like I'll have to live here the rest of my life and will miss out living in cool places. Doesn't help that my sister is on an epic roadtrip across America en route to Washington...       

But then I am gently reminded to be content and thankful to be where I am, and to not worry about the future because it will take care of itself. God knows the desires of Mike & Rachel's hearts, but He also knows what's best for us at the moment.

Reading the articles in Backpacker over coffee made me so excited and hopeful for the fall season. They always include incredible weekend hikes that are relatively close by and I rip the pages out to one day complete. I have my whole life ahead of me.... and it challenges me to remain active and healthy so that in the future I can expose my kids to the joys of backpacking.

Hiking through the woods resonates through everything within me.... I feel alive and closest to God overlooking stunning mountains and swimming next to waterfalls. I love visiting cities and seeing old landmarks, but for me it's nothing like romping through God's creation. With that said, I will plan backpacking trips this fall. Sure, it takes extra effort/time/planning to get there. But I simply have to get over the fact that I live far away and make appropriate accommodations. North Carolina isn't that far away....

Summer Training & 6th Grade Camp

This week I kinda went back to work.

Every day I woke up before seven and begrudgingly put on my 'teacher hat' which was hastily crammed into oblivion last June. I put on my game face and braved through cut and dry training sessions on the teaching model our county is adopting this year. At least I had good friends to keep me company.

Kristin might need to work on her game face... 

workin' REAL hard here.... errr, hardly working?

Along with the training, we ran a 6th grade back to school summer camp for the past two days. Talk about some squirrely kiddos... why they think it's okay to crawl in the hallways or to talk back to adults, I'm not sure. I had to have special conversations with a few, questioning if they thought this was a good start to a school year that hasn't even begun.

sigh.

I'm actually pretty relieved that I won't be teaching the 6th graders this year. It's not that I don't enjoy them, but after having both 6th & 7th grades last year, I found that I prefer the older ones. Not so much hand-holding.

 I'd like to say that I'm absolutely 100% excited to go back, but that would be a lie. It's hard to come down from the high that is summer... and I know this year will be a tough one. But I have confidence that God will provide the strength that will be needed to survive and be my best. Maybe I'll end up loving 8th grade and wondering how I ever taught anything differently (although I'm sad to leave the 6th grade team!)

Another weight on my shoulders is OM. I just don't know if I have it in me to do it another year, especially with how difficult I know it's going to be. Decisions decisions... this one is difficult.

For now, I'm going to not worry about it and go read. Maybe I'll even attempt to tackle our summer reading assignment...

Things I love today.

I love a blustery, evening rain when I'm inside a quiet house. 

Quiet is nice since there's currently three pups living here, and it's not usually an option with all of the 'intruders' who dare walk by the house on the sidewalk.

I love the memory of bang bang shrimp that I just ate two nights ago.

 I wish Bonefish was much closer; I'd be there every night. 

I love this guy. Duh. 

I love the book I'm working through, "Remembering the Forgotten God." Tough stuff.

And I love the "Instagram" app that makes me feel like a real photographer.

the hubs just got home... love him the most :)