Thursday, October 29, 2009

Yeah for short weeks!! This week was conferences, so we have had a couple of half days plus Friday off!! I think my mom and I are going to checkout the new Steinmart tomorrow. They have recently opened a store closer to us, so I have some high hopes. I guess we will see. Tomorrow night my family and I are going to dinner at a Mexican restaurant downtown and then to a one person play. It is The Screwtape letters by C.S. Lewis. Should be a lot of fun.

We did our 4 mile hike again yesterday afternoon. I wish I could say it is getting easier, but I'm not sure about that. The temperature was around 58, so that made it very pleasant. Unfortunately it didn't help me much going uphill. Once you make it to the "Saddle" it is mostly downhill, but the first hour is a killer. I usually am so excited to get out there, but once I start I'm like what in the world am I doing??? Lounging on the couch with my Sonic Dr. Pepper sounds so much better!!! A week later most of the pain is a distant memory, so I do it again to myself. We do get some great picutres of the desert.

I got the idea from my cousin to watch Mary Poppins
tonight. It has been a long time since I had seen it. Maybe a Disney marathon is in the future. I remember my sixth grade operetta when I played Mary Poppins. The only reason I got the part was my British accent. It wasn't particularly good, but it did make me stand out.

Time to call it a day. Have a great weekend.

C.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

I hope everyone had a great weekend. Yesterday was hair day for me. Boy, did I need it!! I love to highlight my hair a little darker in the fall. Mandy added a little red for fun. Unfortunately, I'm noticing that I need to do this a little more often then say oh a few years ago!!! Surely it can't be because I'm getting older??? Last night we went over to my parents for hamburgers. All in all it was a good day.

Today I woke up early and decided to do some cooking. Hey, whenever the cooking bug hits you have to cook. I first made some pancakes for breakfast. Unfortunately we didn't have any syrup, so I had to make a run to Safeway (No shower, no make-up= kind of scary). Oh well, I figured I wouldn't see anyone. I got home and finished mixing up the batter. They turned out really yummy, so I decided to continue the streak and try a new recipe. I had bought all the ingredients to make chicken pot pie the night before. All being the key word. I was about half way through when I realized I had a can of cream of mushroom soup instead of cream of chicken soup. So that made another trip to Safeway with no make-up. I wore my sunglasses hoping to hide a little. Thank goodness I didn't see anyone. The chicken pot pie was delicious. I will definitely being making it more often. It is a Paula Deen recipe that Kelly had posted on her blog. I guess you could say I had a successful cooking day even if I made to two trips to the store within a hour. It is all about the results!!!

I took some pictures of my kitchen when I was finished. And then I took some after I cleaned up. Cooking would be great if you didn't have to clean it up!!

We finished up our day by going to Sunday night church. Paul Coleman formerly of the Newsboys helped lead the music. He sang several solos which were very good. It is amazing that Sunday night is the fourth service of the day and there is still over 1,000 people in attendance.

I guess I'm ready to start a new week. It is conference week, so that should be fun!! Have a good one!

C.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Happy Tuesday!! I never thought Tuesdays were particularly interesting, but hey it's one more day closer to the weekend. So far my week has been okay. AVID was here yesterday and today. They seemed to be pleased with our progress, so that is good thing. I have a couple busy weeks coming up with my sixth grade tutorial groups. Let's just say it should be interesting. We are working on Cornell notes right now. While that may not seem like a big deal to most for these students it is huge. I have been pleasantly so far. I'm also looking forward to our visit this Thursday to one of our local high schools to watch their tutorials. It should be a good learning experience for all of us.

After my class tonight, we had dinner at Chiptole and then ran to the store for a few items. We are planning on hiking our four mile trail tomorrow, so bottled water was a must tonight. I hope it is easier than it was last week. At least it will be cooler!!

I'm going to enjoy my Dr. Pepper and get caught on NCIS. Have a great rest of your week!

C.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Happy Birthday to my Aunt Mildred!! It was nice getting to talk to you on the phone today. Enjoy some brownies for me!

I started my morning with a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks. It is kind of funny I only go there in the fall. Since I'm not that big on coffee, a Dr. Pepper always wins out as my drink of choice in the mornings. I think the candle open house was a success. I'm not sure what the most popular was though. I enjoy the candy corn this time of year. I do know that I had a hard time deciding on which tea I wanted to get. I finally decided on a walnut/almond green tea that is delicious. These teas can either be served warm or cold. I thought this one would be a perfect for when or if the weather ever decides to turn colder. I hope she will come back next year. One of the ladies there made some delicious raspberry muffins. These were free, but I will pay in calories.

I'm watching the KU football game on t.v. right now and it's not looking good. I sure hope they can turn it around. I think it will take a miracle now. 24 to 3!!!! Not a good football day.

I guess this is my Saturday update.

C.



Thursday, October 15, 2009

I can't believe it is Thursday night already. I guess it helped having Monday off, but this week still feels like it flew by. Today was a very busy day at school. We took 152 fourth graders to Arizona State University. They were able to watch a jazz concert and take a very quick tour of the campus. I thought it was funny that the highlight for some was noticing you could eat Panda Express on campus. We were also able to go through the tunnel on the football field. Afterwards, a member of the girls' basketball team spoke to the students about working hard in school. Arizona State has 67,000 students on their Tempe campus. Quite different then Wichita State. It was hot outside, but still fun for everyone.

We are still recovering from our four mile hike yesterday. Some of us were very anxious to try this path, while I was very hesitant. Everyone we talked to said it only took 1 1/2 hours. Well, 2 hours and four miles later we made it around this very large mountain. I think some of us failed to take into consideration that these people were probably in better shape than us. It did feel good to say we made it. I think our new goal is to try to do this trail twice a week. We will see how that goes.

I will be helping my mom with her candle open house this weekend. Hopefully we will have a good turnout. I wish the weather was going to be cooler. I think it could be a weekend of 100 degree temperatures. Not really feeling like fall.

I guess this is all the news for tonight! Have a great Friday!

C.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

It is a beautiful Sunday here in Arizona. I just completed my first Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure. A friend and I walked the 5K along with a few thousand other people this morning in downtown Phoenix. We had a great time. I was amazed at all the people there. Breast cancer sure has come a long way in the last 60 plus years. We were able to wear tags that either said in memory of or in celebration of someone who had cancer. I wore two. My in memory was for my Grandma Zugmier, who died from breast cancer in 1945. My in celebration was for my mom and mother-in-law. I thought I might need a coat this morning. It was 63 degrees!!!! But I forgot this is Arizona and it warms up quickly. I felt kind of bad for thinking I needed a coat when in Kansas it really is cold!!

Today is my brother's birthday, so we will be celebrating later this evening. He is very hard to buy for, but I think he will like his gift. My mom has made him a lemon cake, so that should be good. Yesterday, I tried to make cake balls. I had heard some great things about them and they sounded easy. I was disappointed because the store didn't have almond bark, so I had to use white chocolate chips. The consistency was not right, but we managed. My friend pointed out that I probably had the chocolate chips too hot. I will have to remember that next time. And, yes I will try these again!!

I have another Monday off tomorrow. I'm really starting to get use to having four day weeks. I think I'm having lunch with a friend. On Thursday, I'm helping take 152 fourth graders to ASU. Field trips are not my favorite thing to do. We are attending a jazz concert and then touring the campus. Our time is very limited, so we will have to walk fast!! I will definitely be wearing my running shoes that day!!

I guess I have a few things to do before church. Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday!

C.