2-Hour Delays and Dolphins

I woke up this morning to a 2-hour delay phone call! I'll take an extra couple hours of sleep anytime I can ;) It made the day fly by, too. I told the kids to pack up and they said, "I thought it was still morning!" Perhaps an exaggeration, but I understood.

Jared and I have been married 6 months as of today! I really feel like we got married last week. We've learned so much and grown so much over the past half year. I know 6 months is nothing compared to people that have been married 50 or 60 years, but to newlyweds, it's forever! :) I came home and Jared had assembled an over the toilet shelf thing that we bought for "my" bathroom yesterday. How romantic.

This! Just 6 months ago!

In other news, the internet strikes again. Our reading story today compared and contrasted different types of animals that we often think of as exactly the same, for example: ducks and geese, monkeys and chimps, toads and frogs. The lesson of the story was that God created each of us to be different, even if we may be very similar to one of our friends. 

The last comparison in the text was dolphins and porpoises (correct plural form of porpoise?). It mentioned how their snouts are different lengths, but the book only pictured a dolphin. I did a Google search - with the projector on "hidden" mode for safety purposes, of course - and brought up some porpoise pictures so that we could compare. Then just for kicks, I searched for dolphin pictures because several of my students really like dolphins. On ask.com, this was the second result listed, after a fetching 90's-era screen-printed denim shirt:

Because I searched dolphin.

Right.

We died laughing. It came from this website, a very clever advertisement telling you that if you saw anything other than two dolphins in the picture, you didn't pass the stress test and you needed to go stay in their tropical resort in Puerto Rico. I said, "I guess we failed the stress test," and another student said, "Do we get to stay for free?"

I wish! :)

Snow days, Saturdays, and Craft Fails

I got the phone call Friday morning at 5:30 that school had been called off, and I was pretty surprised! I fell back asleep, and as Jared was leaving, he woke me up to say "bye" and told me that it was already snowing. Considering that things were already icing over, it was for the best that school was cancelled. I'll never complain about a snow day :)

I had a productive morning, doing stuff around the house, and then I got to work on finishing a crochet project yesterday afternoon. I was pretty happy with the way it turned out! However, it is a gift, so I can't quite share it yet. ;) I decided after dinner last night to find and start an easier crochet project, knowing that today was going to be a lazy Saturday and that I would need something to keep me occupied.

I found a pattern for a simple and cute hat, and thought it looked easy enough to try. Jared started up "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" - see how much he loves me? - and we watched the movie as I crocheted along, not really paying attention to what I was doing. The movie ended and I started to think my hat was looking strangely big, but I figured I may as well finish it anyways.

I finished up my hat earlier today after Jared made us a tasty breakfast and we got some more stuff done around the house (side note: I have learned, as a homeowner/renter, there is always "stuff" to be done). I put it on, and all I could do was laugh. Perhaps I was distracted by the movie last night and followed the pattern wrong, or maybe I just made a mistake somewhere along the way...

But I think it's a little big! Hahaha Jared laughed too, and said it could be my Russian hat.

Oh well. I tried. And I have a big head, so this hat is really big!

That being said, if anybody has a really really big head, this hat is yours for the taking. Or perhaps you could turn it upside down and allow your small children or pets to sit in it. Ohhh goodness. I'm glad we can laugh at mistakes...what else are they good for? :)

Has anyone made a hat that ended up being more human-sized and less dinosaur head-sized? If you have a tried and true good old crocheted hat pattern that you can share with me, I would be forever grateful! If not, that's okay too, you can just laugh at the picture of me in my pink, blue, and purple Russian hat. :)

for the love of all that is lemon.

If you love lemon-flavored things, please. Pay attention.

I found this recipe on (surprise of all surprises) Pinterest! Jared and I love lemon - our wedding cake was even lemon! So when I saw this, I knew I had to try it out!

The part that caught my eye was the fact that it was a copycat recipe for Starbucks Lemon Loaf. I've had their lemon dessert more than once and I just love it. I'm not positive that it is 100% exactly like the Starbucks Lemon Loaf, but it's still pretty tasty!

Here's the website!
http://www.familycampingchat.com/forum/index.php?topic=623.0

And if you don't feel like going there, here's the copied and pasted recipe, courtesy of the above website:

LOAF
1 1/2 cup(s) FLOUR
1/2 teaspoon(s) BAKING SODA
1/2 teaspoon(s) BAKING POWDER
1/2 teaspoon(s) SALT
3 EGGS
1 cup(s) SUGAR
2 tablespoon(s) BUTTER; Softened.
1 teaspoon(s) VANILLA
1 teaspoon(s) LEMON EXTRACT
1/3 cup(s) LEMON JUICE
1/2 cup(s) OIL
 
LEMON ICING
1 cup(s) POWDERED SUGAR; Plus 1 Tablespoon.
2 tablespoon(s) WHOLE MILK; I Used 2%.
1/2 teaspoon(s) LEMON EXTRACT
_____
 

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
Use a mixer to blend together the eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla, lemon extract and lemon juice in a medium bowl.
Pour wet ingredient into the dry ingredients and blend until smooth.
Add oil and mix well.
Pour batter into a well greased 9x5-inch loaf pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until a toothpick stuck into center of the cake comes out clean.
Make the lemon icing by combining all the icing ingredients in a small bowl with an electric mixer on low speed.
When the loaf is cool, remove it from pan and frost the top with the icing.
Let the icing set up before slicing

See how I set up a nice picnic for us on this toasty 28 degree evening? Kidding kidding - this is from the website, too! :)

Thanks, Internet!

Blog Makeover

I love finding and using helpful tutorials online - what did we do before Google and Pinterest?

I decided to use part of my snow day (term used lightly) to update my blog. I wanted to change my header to a picture collage, and I found a super helpful tutorial that made it so simple. Check it out if you are a blogger and are interested in making a picture header!

http://www.memoriesoncloverlane.com/2009/08/tutorial-on-how-to-make-blog-banner.html

Christmas...in January!

I'm also a big fan of making Christmas presents. I wanted to post this back when I was making them, but that obviously defeats the purpose of a present! I found this idea on Pinterest in another very helpful tutorial.
http://twogirlsbeingcrafty.blogspot.com/2011/02/ramseys-finally-have-coasters.html

Here are some that I made!

I bought plain white bathroom tiles at Lowes for a whopping $0.16 a piece. I cut a tile template out of a file folder, and traced the square on to pretty Christmasy/wintery scrapbook paper.

Ah, Mod Podge. My best craft friend. Cover the tile in Mod Podge...

Then add the picture! I found it was helpful to Mod Podge the corners/edges down after this step. The first round of coasters that I made had issues with the corners popping up.

Let that set for a couple minutes, then cover the top of the tile in Mod Podge, too. I love Mod Podge because it dries so fast!

At this point, I put my camera away for whatever reason and stopped taking pictures of my steps. Oops. The rest is easy, though. I glued felt pieces on the bottom corners of the coasters to keep them from sliding. I used E-600 glue, which is waterproof and super strong! It also smells really weird and has cancer warnings on the back...um, maybe keep your use of it to a minimum. Jared advised me to not eat it. I'll probably be fine. ;)

Then I used spray Mod Podge (also a great invention!) to further seal the coaster and make it more waterproof. I would advise doing that outside...just not on a windy day!

Once they were dry, I tied them up in a ribbon and that was that! They were pretty easy to make, and have heard that they work well. It would be fun to make them for different seasons and holidays!

2 Thumbs Up!

Jared laughed at my thumbs at dinner tonight, because they curve back when I do a thumbs-up sign. His go straight up in the air...what a weirdo ;) Somewhere in the recesses of my mind I recall a biology lesson about thumbs and genetics. But let's be honest, that was high school.

Anyways, I was doing a thumbs-up because I was enjoying my dessert. I wanted to share with you a couple of quick and easy recipes that I tried this afternoon!

First, I made pretzel (just had to spell that word three times...seriously) s'mores!
http://www.lovefromtheoven.com/2011/07/21/pretzel-smores/

I'll be honest and say mine turned out nowhere near as pretty as the talented blog lady's look (pictured below). But they were pretty tasty, and I highly recommend them if you're a fan of the salty/sweet combo like I am! They were super easy to make...put a marshmallow and chocolate piece (I used Hershey's, of course!) on one pretzel, microwave it and make it melty, and then add the other pretzel to make a s'more! I put them in the freezer for a few minutes while I melted baking chocolate, and dipped it in there once they had firmed up a little.

They're also Jared-approved!

The second thing I made was homemade fruit gummy snacks.

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/06/homemade-jello-fruit-snacks-recipe.html

I might be 24 years old, but I have a snack diet that closely resembles that of a nine-year old.

I know this because I snack with nine-year old kids every day...I don't mind if you judge me.

They were super easy to make, too! You just heat 2 packs of unflavored gelatin and a Jello mix (I picked grape, of course!) and a little water over medium heat and stir it all until it dissolves. Then you pour it into a form of some sort and let it sit for a while. They ended up super gummy and pretty tasty, I thought! I don't have any cutesy candy forms, so I just partially filled up an ice-cube tray. The candy forms would definitely make the snacks more cute compared to my rectangular ones. If you (or your children) like fruit snacks, I would highly recommend these. They are surely less expensive than buying name brand gummies from the grocery store. Just a recipe for you to tuck away if you have a few minutes to try something new!

In case you're wondering, these were Jared-approved, too. Thus, the two-thumbs up! I hope everyone enjoyed their rainy Monday! :)

2013!

I can't believe today is New Year's Eve! I mean, literally. Some friends at church yesterday were in the process of inviting us to their house to celebrate tonight. We kept saying "New Year's Eve," and I said, "wait...is that tomorrow?!" Can't believe it!

2012 has obviously been a big year for us. Marriage and moving (a little closer to the mountains!) and an ordination and so many other exciting things! It seems like two days ago that Jared and I got married and about a day ago that I met my sweet class of fourth graders. In reality, Jared and I have been married for five months and a few days, and Christmas break marks the official halfway-over point of the 2012-2013 school year! Bizarre, right? This school year has flown by. Even my weeks go by quickly; I guess that's what happens when you love your job!

Thinking back on the year, the first part seems like a blur with all of the wedding planning excitement that was going on. Once the wedding was said and done and happily married life started, things eventually started becoming normal again, and I could pay attention to the real world once more. I tend to ignore the news, mainly because it makes me sad. Anyways, all you have to do is look at Facebook and you'll know all the news you need to hear! ;)

I was thinking about the big-ticket items of 2012 - the things that people got really fired up about. The presidential election, obviously, was one of them. Fun fact - my students asked me a question about Mitt Romney that I can't recall anymore, so I typed "Mitt Romney" into Google. One of the first suggested searches that popped up in my search bar was "Mitt Romney's height." Haha is that what people based their votes off of? And for the past month or two, all you have to do is say the word "gun" or "cliff" to the wrong person and you can count on an hour-long debate commencing. I started thinking about the platform that people have found in social media - it's a place where you can be outspoken and opinionated and people pretty much have to listen to you. It can obviously be abused, but I think it has its positives, too.

For example, I've learned how passionate people are. Think about it! People fighting, perhaps in vain, for their beliefs on Facebook. While it's true that President Obama probably doesn't care what's on your Facebook page and he won't change his mind because of an all-caps post containing your rage against him, I still love seeing the fact that people care. I wish that posting a picture of an unborn baby could change abortion laws, but we all know, unfortunately, it's not that easy.

As we leave 2012 and 2013, one thing that we can do is direct our passion in a healthy way. Think about the things that you can change. We all know how easy it is to brighten someone's day by doing something that seems minuscule, because we have all had that happen to us personally. Jared and I fought for our lives in the grocery section of Walmart this afternoon (note to self - don't go to Walmart on New Year's Eve!), and we had a near head-on collision with another woman's cart. She smiled and laughed as I told her to go ahead - seeing a smile and hearing a laugh in Walmart is always welcomed! Has a stranger ever held the door for you when your arms were full, or perhaps when you were wrestling with an umbrella on a rainy day? I heard someone earlier today talking about "paying it forward" - the person in front of them in a drive through paid for her food, so she paid for the man's food behind her, and so on. Small favors like this stick in my mind because they've served as a bright spot in my otherwise normal days.

I'm challenging myself this year to channel my efforts in a more positive way. Sure, we won't change the world in a day, but think about how easy it is to make one person's world a little brighter. I know I can use a break from watching my Facebook ticker, and I think a lot of other people could say the same thing. As our Christmas and New Years season has quickly come and gone and life settles back in to a normal routine, I encourage you to find a way to intentionally help someone. Use that passion for something worthwhile...you never know the difference you could be making! Happy New Year - make it a good one!

The Past Few Weeks, and Thanksgiving!

I think it's been about a month since I posted anything! Whoops. But since we are on break, I'm not doing my weekly plans right now like I normally do on a Sunday afternoon. So, here I am! Here's what's been going on the past few weeks :)

A couple weeks ago, I had to go to West Jefferson. The Coney family has vacationed in and around West Jefferson since I started college at Appalachian...I love the small town feel there! They had there Christmas decorations up already when we were there (no judgement here!) and it was so pretty, I had to take a picture.

My students had to create science projects that use a simple machine. Their projects were incredible, but I sadly didn't get a chance to take a picture of each project. We had a mini science fair and the children all told how they built their simple machine and how it worked. This is the only one I was able to take a picture of...various pulleys that can lift powered bottles! ("Hey Mrs. Blair, can I drink that when he's done?" "No. No, you may not.") We had everything from a Lego man whose car went up a ramp to a series of sailboats that turned on a lever. So creative!

Last weekend, we had nothing going on with church or our families. Jared spent a large part of the day doing yard work, and I went to the store and then tried out some new recipes! It was a fun and relaxing day. I also closed the garage door when I went to the grocery store and almost locked Jared out of the house. Whoops again. :) Anyways, I wanted to share these recipes with you because we enjoyed them so much!

Dinner was pizza casserole. It obviously made a lot, so we ate off of it for almost the rest of the week!

I found the recipe on Pinterest. It's from this website:

http://cullyskitchen.com/3-meat-pizza-casserole-recipe/

Our pizza casserole was not 3 meat, because I enjoy sausage as much as I enjoy a baseball bat to the head. Thus, we had 2 meat pizza casserole.

For dessert, we had Krispy Kreme cupcakes! I also found that recipe on Pinterest. We really didn't think they tasted like Krispy Kreme doughnuts, but they were still good! I would recommend this recipe, too!

http://www.bforbel.com/2011/12/krispy-kreme-cupcakes.html

At some point a couple weeks ago, I was inspired to try crocheting a hat. I've never done that, so I was pretty happy with how it turned out! I had to undo and redo some parts because I realized after the fact that parts of the pattern could be altered if needed. It's a beret-style hat, and I think it turned out pretty well!

I got the pattern here: http://creativeyarn.blogspot.com/2008/02/puff-stitch-crochet-beret-with-bow.html

If you like crocheting and are interested in trying to make it, I say go for it! It was pretty simple once I got the hang of it!

A picture of the finished product!

My bff Teenia mailed me a Thanksgiving card...she's the best! Yay holidays!

*Note the penguin pj pants...on laundry day, anything is free game!

Yesterday, I ventured to Concord Mills with a couple of ladies from church. One of them is the music pastor's wife, and the other has children that hang out with us on Sunday nights and she teaches with me. We had a full day - met at and left the church around 8:45 and got back around 10:00 last night! It's been a while since I've had a long shopping day, and I got a good start on Christmas presents. I'm saving some of my shopping for when we're in Winston-Salem later this week...Hanes Mall, consider yourself warned.

We're so excited for Thanksgiving and for spending a few days at home!

We are going home Wednesday so that we can go to the mall. It was either go Wednesday or go on Black (go to the mall if you have a death wish) Friday. Wednesday was the obvious choice. We're also going to FBCW's Thanksgiving dinner Wednesday night...I hope we get to see a lot of familiar faces while we're there!

Thursday, we'll be celebrating a Coney Thanksgiving, and Friday will be the Blair Thanksgiving! Nothing like stuffing our faces three days in a row with our favorite people :)

I hope everyone has a blessed Thanksgiving. Our pastor shared some thoughts about Thanksgiving this morning, one of which I would like to re-share: "Who you're thankful to is more important than what you're thankful for." So true! Happy Thanksgiving, friends!