Day 181 - June 30

We are in the midst of a climate war at our house.  The sun shines on the thermostat in the afternoon, so it gets warm really quickly and then blows the AC like crazy.  I prefer not to pay to make the house so cold that I need a blanket, but he gets hot easily.  76 is way too cold for me when it's actually blowing.  Unfortunately, if we make it much warmer than this downstairs, it hits mid-90's upstairs in our bedroom.  Thank goodness for ceiling fans!

Day 180 - June 29

Happy anniversary to us!  We decided to go to Bonefish instead of Outback with our gift card so that he could try the Bang Bang shrimp.  He said they were good, but he could only eat half.  The waitress offered to box them up for us before our meals were even served.  It was a little odd, because then the food delivery person couldn't find our table because I guess bagged food is a symbol of a table waiting for a check, not waiting for their entrees. 

Day 179 - June 28

Mike's anniversary present.  I decided that I wanted to get him a grill, since my old little one was really pushing to get by lately, but I let him pick it out. 

I was proud of the fact that the one I would have picked is the one he picked.  And amusingly enough, it's the one Consumer Reports picked, too.

Day 178 - June 27

Spotted in Walmart's parking lot today.  In case you can't read it due to the size, it proclaims the driver's daugher's wedding from the day before.  The side window says "I have the best son in law ever." 

I guess my parents just don't love my husband as much as these people love their new son in law, because I don't remember their car being that decorated! ;)  I'm curious to know how the kids felt about this display of emotion.

Day 177 - June 26

We live very close to the "middle of nowhere" and I teach in what many would consider the actual "nowhere."  There are some downsides to this fact but one up the benefits is that there are farms around that make and sell their own fantastic ice cream.

Tonight we went to get ice cream at Bloom's Broom which is the local ice cream place near our house.  I was surprised to see that this week's bottled milk was from the dairy local to my school, Kilby Cream. Go figure.

Day 176 - June 25

We may have passed the first day of summer already, but even though the days are technically getting shorter it doesn't seem like that is possible!  This is the moon, as seen after 9pm!!!

Day 175 - June 24

Just as we were packing up to go today, a huge storm blew through the town where I work.  The power went out because the rain and wind was just pummeling the area.  It didn't last long, and when we walked towards the car to leave, we realized why the power was out - that line you see dangling from the post was supposed to be connected to the next pole!  The custodians called the power people so they could pinpoint the problem.

And yes, I was sitting still when I took this picture. :)

Day 174 - June 23

Ok, so don't yell at me here.  I stopped the car to take the picture.  (Although I saw one coming in my rear view mirror, so I had to start moving, hence the blurriness.) 

Every day, we come around this curve and up the hill and the rays are shining through the trees in a really pretty way.  However, even for a back country road it's pretty busy in the mornings so I have never been able to stop and get a picture or even snap one that looks decent while my carpool-mate is driving.

Today, there was nobody on the roads because school is out!  (I'm still working this week, but we appear to be the only group up before 9am up there.)  So, I stopped, took a picture, and went on my merry way.  The picture isn't as pretty as reality, so maybe someday I'll have a better chance. :)

Day 173 - June 22

In the summers, instead of watching the summer reality series on TV, I get series that I don't always watch on DVD.  I used to do Netflix, but our local library has a TON of *free* series!  I enjoy Big Bang Theory but always forget to watch it, so we're on the 2nd season of that right now.  We're also just beginning the 2nd season of Friday Night Lights.  I really, really liked the first season.  I've been warned that season 2 is a low point, but I'll watch it to see the rest!  Even Mike likes both of these, so we don't have to play rock-paper-scissors for the good TV. :)

Day 172 - June 21

What I really wanted to be the picture today was us on the jetski, however, we took that with a waterproof camera so it'll be awhile before it's developed.

This box was on the porch when we got home.  I couldn't think of any free sample I had signed up for that would come in such a big box! 

I was amused to open it and find only that little tiny bottle that was a face cream sample. :)

Day 171 - June 20

We are now affectionally referring to this mound of sugar as a "Redneck Ice Cream Cake."

Recipe:

#1 - find a pan that is deep enough to hold 2 ice cream sandwiches with extra room, plus fits a rectangle of sandwiches side to side ... either 2x3 or 2x4.  (You'll notice I did not follow this step, hence the cake is floating in the middle of the container.)

#2 - Unwrap and put down the first layer of sandwiches

#3 - Dump caramel sauce all over the first layer

#4 - Unwrap and put down 2nd layer

#5 - Dump hot fudge sauce on top (That would be better than the Hershey's syrup that I used due to the thicker consistency)

#6 - Slather in cool whip

#7 - Put cookies on top for decoration

#8 - Eat

Although it looks really unhealthy (and obviously all the ingredients are), mine was only 12 sandwiches total and fed that many people.  So we each only ate one sandwich plus a cookie and some sauce.

Day 170 - June 19

Last night & this morning, we made these cinnamon rolls.  I have wanted to try it for awhile, and have been waiting for a weekend where I had a few hours at night to get them ready followed by a day where I  didn't have to be anywhere in the morning so I could do part 2.

The ingredients to these delicious hunks of yumminess (was that redundant?) are not healthy in anyway, but boy were they good.

Things we learned to fix for next time - spend the time to roll the dough out more.  The slab was still pretty thick when we slathered on the swirl.  Also, wait even more time before putting the icing on.

These were more cake-like than the rolls that come in the tube from the grocery store.  I forgot to take the butter out of the fridge in time for it to become room temperature, so I used the microwave.  It got a little more than room temp, and I think that inhibited the yeast from rising as much as it normally would. 

I wish we had a food scale so I could weigh one.  They were crazy heavy.  To round out the breakfast, we had turkey bacon (which was WAY better than I thought it would be) and the last of the hardboiled eggs from salad night earlier this week.  Thank goodness for that, because this cinnamon roll by itself would have killed me!

Day 169 - June 18

Schoooooooooooooooooooooool's out for summer!

And it came at a good time.  Moose is all kinds of discombobulated these days.  Super clingy and whiney, which is really bizarre and unusual for him, because he was always the quiet one.  He's been squeaking at me everytime I walk away or heaven forbid close the bathroom door. :)  So hopefully me being around for awhile will help with the transition.  This has been surprising me, because I really didn't think Moose was going to care when it happened. 

This pillow is his favorite thing in the whole wide world.  My mom's friend made it for us a couple years ago and it must, even after the fibers were cleaned, still have some kind of sheep smell to him.  He is obsessed with it!!

Day 168 - June 17

The kids are gone.  The books are back.  (Well, except for 50 or so of them.)  This is the only time of the year where the shelves are full.  It almost looks funny with this many books crammed in there.

Day 167 - June 16

This month I remembered to snap the photo before I ate.  I know it's junk food.  And I'm aware that there are entire states that make BBQ better than any spot in MD could.  But it is just so good.

Day 166 - June 15

Today was the 4th grade heroes tea.  The kids write essays about an important person in their lives and share them.  All the parents and heroes are invited in.

3 cakes were ordered.  2 of them said "Thank you Heros."  (Missing the e.)  The other one, pictured above, said "The You Heros."

Um, yeah.

Day 165 - June 14

Earlier this school year, we lost a staff member suddenly.  One morning, she just wasn't there.  It was someone who put the effort out to smile every day and even the kids who didn't work with her directly knew her and liked her.  She stood in this hallway every morning for hall duty and bellowed and sang good morning to everyone who went by.

Recently, we had a memorial service for Cherry and this mural was unveiled at her old corner.  I finally remembered to take a picture today.

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass.  It's about learning to dance in the rain."

Day 164 - June 13

This is today's whole shopping trip.  We had to buy the butterfingers at the last minute because we had too many coupons as compared to shopping items.  We got snacks for our airplane flight in July (They are already put away so we aren't tempted) and we bought actual Advil brand because with the coupons/sales they were cheaper than generic.  Grand total, $20.50.  After all the meat and pasta super sales for the last few weeks where we stocked up the freezers and pantry we didn't buy any of that today because it was a blah week for prices. 

Day 163 - June 12

Snapfish had a free 8x10 sale this week, so we made another enlargement.  We just keep getting one at a time when they have the promotions.  Then each one goes in a black frame and we'll put them up together.  So far we have Paris, London, and now Vatican City.  Each frame is a little different but they're all black.  The frame was only a dollar because we had some Kohl's cash to use up, too.

Day 162 - June 11

This morning, we had to say goodbye to Sneakers.  Moments after doing his daily 5:30am run around and up and over and back up and back down and around again with Moose, (meowing all the while), he had a bad episode.  We took him to the 24 hour emergency vet and the tests sadly showed it was time. 

We can only hope that all of our pets live just about 17 years and are only sick for a couple hours, right?  It was still hard.  Moose even seems a little out of sorts. 

This picture was actually taken a couple years ago.  Since Sneakers didn't actually know that he was really old, he didn't act like it.  This day, he jumped up on the half wall in the foyer of the old house.  Then he climbed on to the top of the TV, balanced himself on top of the open front door (we had a storm door back then, so the door was open a lot) and then walked onto the window sill of the window above the door.  It was really funny.  It happened so fast that I almost didn't have time to grab the camera, which explains the awful blurry shot. 

In better news, I went to a 5th grade graduation today for a former student. It was super cute and awesome to see him so proud of himself! :)

Day 161 - June 10

You have probably heard about the new fad of Silly Bandz.  If not, well, perhaps you don't spend time with small children. :)  These are the new jelly bracelets/slap bracelets type fad.  When they're off, they make crazy shapes.  Then you can put them on your arm by the dozens.  Luckily, our school didn't really hit the craze until the last 2 weeks.  It's been all over the country much longer than that, based on other blogs I've been reading.  Since they're different, it is apparently fun to take them off and line them up on your leg/desk/arm/notebook/library book/ etc. to look at and admire your collection.  In my classroom, the rule is that they are either on you or they are on me. 

Yesterday, I hit the motherlode as a 4th grade girl took off *15* at one time!!!!!!!  There were all kinds of cool shapes.  But because these things are way more money than they should be, I put them in an envelope and gave them back at the end of the day.

This one, however, is mine.  It was sitting on the floor in my classroom this morning when I got there.  I guess someone was playing with a bunch and didn't realize they missed one when they re-banded themself.  Alllllllllll mine.

Is it a bat? A dinosaur? A dragon? I can't tell.  And since there are knockoffs now, the silly bandz website is not helping.

Day 160 - June 9

Surprise!!!  We have 10 lily plants.  2 are close enough to death that they didn't flower this year.  7 others bloomed with buttercup yellow flowers.  But today, this one plant bloomed a pinkish purple color.  It was a fun, different surprise.

Day 159 - June 8

This mark has been in the garage since we moved in.  It's on the left wall, several feet before the door into the kitchen.  It was not until I started parking in the garage every day that I realized it was probably put there as a "STOP HERE" sign, because it lines up with my sideview mirror perfectly.  So even if that wasn't its original purpose, that's what it is now. :)

Day 158 - June 7

Sometimes little kids are funny.  I have a 2nd grader who is a stinker, but adorable.  You know the type.  They keep work fun!  After we did our activity with the clipboards today, I told them to just stick the boards in a pile on the side counter.  I long ago gave up trying to organize them because I have a few of several different kinds and sizes and there's no easy way to make them pretty.  2 minutes later, he had them organized by type and size (although obviously not color, as evidenced by the random purple one up there).  I never would have taken this kid for an organizer, based on personal appearance & the way his papers always look, but it was a nice gesture to have my room look nice at the end of the day. :)

Day 157 - June 6

This week I didn't put all the super cheap stuff in my picture, but instead a representative selection of stuff I actually bought. 

All of this stuff was $24 total.  Plus, it came with a $5 off coupon for my next shopping order.  So it was like paying $19!

Best deals in the picture:

• Sausage was 49 cents after a sale & coupon
• The blue Dawn soap was 72 cents after a sale & coupon
• Each roll of foil was 75 cents
• The produce - grape tomatoes, raspberries, 2x blueberries & 5 apples was just 8 dollars
• The Scrubbing Bubbles spray starter kit was 69 cents with stacked coupons
• Scrubbing Bubbles spray refill - Free!
• The pink Dawn soap - Free!
• The Bengay - Free!
• Shout Wipes - Free!
• Italian Ice - Free!

 The checkout guy at Target was even surprised by my little shopping trip today. :)

Day 156 - June 5

Today we took the tour at Clipper City Brewery.  I've done it several times in the past, and this was Mike's 2nd time.  If you are like me and just there to hang out, it's free.  If you want to participate in the beer tastings, it's just $5.  That gets you a pint glass to take home and 5 tastings (which yesterday were running about a 1/2 glass.) 

I've taken the tour enough times to know the jokes.  This was the first time I've been on the tour with a tour guide who WASN'T the owner/head dude.  It was pretty much the same stuff.  We brought Mike's dad this time and he had a good time too.  So the boys got to drink beer and buy beer to bring home.  I used the day as an excuse to stop at a craft store I don't visit often. :)

Day 155 - June 4

We're having a bit of a cloudburst here.  The massive amount of rain is best illustrated by our overflowing rain barrel, less than 10 minutes into the storm.  Lots of thunder, lots of lightning, lots of rain.  Unfortunately, we mis-calculated when it would get here and our dinner got stuck on the grill for the downpour.  It's a little well done. :)

Day 154 - June 3

In an effort to curtail the ant problem, the trees got a haircut.

Day 153 - June 2

WOW!!!!!

A couple months ago, I signed up on the House Party site to get emails about previewing new products.  They set up different party packs and you can apply to get one and review it.  At first, I signed up for each one.  There are (rather indepth) surveys with each application.  I suppose it makes sure people will really use the stuff.

The first one I really wanted was the Breyer's pack.  We all know I love ice cream.  But I didn't win.

Then this game night one showed up.  It said we'd get the newest version of Trivial Pursuit and "other fun things for a game party."

I was shocked today when the box came.  ALL OF THIS WAS IN THE BOX!  For FREE!

-Trivial Pursuit (This version isn't even in stores yet)
-Taboo (The original)
-CatchPhrase (The original)
-4 boxes of various flavors and styles of Triscuits
-2 boxes of various flavors of Wheat Thins (Lets not even talk about the 4 boxes I bought last weekend because I had coupons/sales/etc and they were a quarter each...)
-Bag of "Hershey's Pieces" candy
-Coupon for batteries for Taboo & CatchPhrase
-Pack of $5 off coupons for board games for everyone who comes.

I'm impressed.  I'll definitely sign up for more of these in the future.

Day 152 - June 1

Our first lily bloomed today.  The plants were randomly growing out of places in the lawn, so Mike did some transplanting.  We weren't sure what would happen, but now we know at least one is turning into a flower!