bucket list for summer

Now that summer is in full swing & there are only 8 days left of the school year, I think it's time to tell you some of the things that I intend to accomplish before the temperatures start to get lower & people start adding more layers to their daily dress.

-go strawberry picking

-go to Six Flags {especially the water park!}

-hike to find a salamander, name him & make him a class pet

-attempt to visit Montreal again {Michelle’s idea}

-Dark Knight Rises

-go to the drive-in

-ride Coquette around the city at least three times a week

-get a robin’s egg blue helmet for when I ride Coquette around

-go to a bbq or cook out and play ladder ball, badminton, or some outdoor game

-climb Mt. Monadnock {again because I haven’t since 6^th grade}

-make the public pool my stomping ground, abuse the water slide & read many, many books

-go to the beach EVERY Thursday & devour fried dough

-take my tiny princess to the aquarium for the first time ever

-camp out, eat s’mores, & tell ghost stories… okay, no ghost stories

-go to a Red Sox game at Fenway

-visit a lake or a beach that is NOTHING like Hampton.

-go to the arcade, play skee-ball and win ridiculous prizes that take up space

-parasailing OR zip-lining. Heck, both if it’s possible.

-get a projector & have a movie night on the deck

-Have my copy of Cupcakes & Cashmere signed when Emily comes around for a book signing

-visit Harvard Square

-ride a horse on the horse trail

-take a cooking class

-sip mimosas on the deck every Sunday morning.

-create & hide my own geo cache & see if I can send next year’s students to find it

-produce something creative at least once a week

-get some arm muscle/strength

-spend a weekend in DC to take in the sights and visit the Smithsonian & National Geographic museum.

-get a boating license & rent a boat. If it’s anything like driving a car it’ll take all summer to accomplish this.
-Grow out my bangs & DO NOT cut them again {until at least September}.


What's on your to-do list?

back to the daily grind or how i spent my weekend

     Phew. I have managed to keep myself extremely busy in the past few weeks. Between work, job hunting, a broken dryer, car repairs and an unhealthy need to torment myself, I was one exhausted lady chickadee. Cue a three-day weekend. My intention was to do absolutely nothing, but nothing, all weekend. No BBQs, pool parties, camping trips, kayaking, or anything. I updated my Netflix queue, saved up some shows to catch up on via on demand & DVDs, stacked a few books I’m currently reading as well as magazines I’ve been meaning to tear apart, and I downloaded so many photo apps to putz around with. Not to mention my extensive collection of ridiculous pop music that requires dancing. Clearly I have a raging social life.

     My hermit plans were thwarted with a few invites. Since these are few and far between from anyone but my coworker friends these days, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. So I started my weekend with some delicious beverages, girly movies, venting sessions, and giggles. On a side note, are there any great waitresses anymore? I seem to miss them every single time. On another side note, Bugaboo Creek has very bizarre chicken tenders but extremely yummy & inexpensive mud slides.

     As someone who teaches New Hampshire history, I’ve realized that I haven’t been to or seen far too many of the things that I teach about. Covered bridges? Never seen one. Christa McAuliffe? I know the stories, but I’ve never been to the planetarium. Other than a trip I once took to the Old Man in the Mountain once with my aunt when I was,  hm… say… 10, I wouldn’t recognize the area where he fell from any other slab of granite up north. So, on Sunday, I went to see the Old Man memorial. I think I spent more time snapping pictures and raving about showing them to my kids than I did actually taking in what was around me, but it’s hard to take off the teacher hat.

So you can identify the deceased old man, or artist formerly known as Old Stone Face.

I'm so terrible at following directions, I stared for a good minute irritated that it wasn't working.

Are you drunk with anticipation?

Trickery!

The little tool that allows you to go back in time.

     I also went for a hike up a steep mountain & got eaten alive by black flies & mosquitoes. The little buggers got me on each side of my neck- right in the jugular. I’m apparently allergic to them, too because the welts ballooned up on my skin. Red welts the size of super balls? No me gusta. The cascades I saw from the trail; however, pleased me. 

The view from the top. The air up there. Other movie title references...

A rare animal: Patti wearing sneakers AND a tee.

I've also decided that {although I enjoy trail blazing} the north country just isn't the place for me. I need the bustle of a city and more importantly, delectable food from a variety of locations.  Also, I discovered the north is like the land that time forgot. 

Am I right or am I right?

     Now I’m rested and ready to tackle a month of heavy assessments, grading, packing up my classroom, finding a new job {and possible domicile relocation}, preparing my science summer program, catching up on Girls, and just all around being amazing as usual. 

sunday special

A little weekly review in pictures:

1. Yummy smelling soy candles & some faux dandelions.

2. Fueling a nailpolish addiction

3. Penguin balloon animals?! Phenomenal.

4. Locking my keys in my car... again. Thanks, AAA.

5. Some weekend reading. Getting ready to administer NECAP science.

6. Michael Bolton writes children's books. Life is hilarious.

7. Finally found a maxi dress with a skirt long enough to cover my feet.

8. J.Crew bauble & a shimmering skirt.

9. White Russian from the Oyster House where JFK used to frequent.

10. Lilies of the Valley from one of my kiddos.

11. This movie was... exactly what you would expect.

12. Teacher appreciation week. I even won a prize!

Tweet

old lady floral

Am I the only one who goes ga ga for floral fabrics? The crazier the better. Unfortunately, I've been talked out of buying skirts or dresses that were deemed "too old ladyish" but no more! I've decided to embrace the crazy little old woman inside of me. I scored this skirt at Goodwill for $2.50. It was from Arden B originally and still had the price tags on. Whoo hoo! It has a zipper that is supposed to be worn in the front, but I can't be bothered with all that business. I love how nineties I feel in floral and I think I'm going to start humming The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme whenever I'm getting dressed.

I was at the Weston Observatory {built in 1896}in Manchester. It is dangerously close to my apartment, so I might go back for some outfit shoots. I wish I could have gone to the top and check out the view, but instead I get to read the charming graffiti someone left on the cannons in front of the tower.

day zero

Stephanie from The Raspberry Branch posted about her 101 goals in 1001 days and I was inspired to create my own. I headed on over to the website for the Day Zero Project and after a lot of thought, I created a list of things that I thought I would be able to accomplish in approximately 2.75 years. Some of the things on my list are silly things I'd like to own, some are places I'd like to visit, and some are experiences. There's nothing about traveling to 14 different places because realistically I know I won't be able to accomplish those. Summers are only so long, you know?

I'm not at 101 yet because I wanted to save some room for a few that spring into my brain. I'm hoping to track my progress here on the 'ole blog.

1. Vacation somewhere {other than Canada} that requires a passport

2. Go on a cruise

3. Have a romantic weekend getaway

4. Visit Shauna in San Francisco

5. Swim with dolphins

6. Visit the Four Corners Monument

7. See cherry blossoms in bloom

8. Swim in an infinity pool

9. Visit thrift stores in 5 different states

10. Take a zumba class

11. learn to play chess

12. learn to be proficient in Photoshop or Illustrator

13. learn to tie a tie

14. take a pole dancing class

15. learn to do something car-related

16. learn to French braid

17. take a pottery class

18. learn rudimentary Spanish

19. learn 3 new board/card games

20. become CPR certified

21. take a cake decorating course

22. learn to whistle with my fingers

23. learn a new word every week for 1 year

24. Learn to make 5 dishes like a professional chef

25. Make my own candles

26. Build a bookcase

27. Sew myself a dress inspired by Anthropologie

28. Create a personal cookbook

29. Own a DSLR camera

30. Own a trench coat

31. Buy a necklace/bracelet from Tiffany & Co

32. Own a pair of bunny slippers

33. Buy a fainting couch

34. own a Blythe doll

35. Own an iPad

36. Buy a petticoat

37. Own a pair of prescription sunglasses

38. Get hired as a full-time teacher

39. Ride in a horse drawn/bicycle drawn carriage

40. Donate clothes & accessories to charity

41. Compliment a stranger

42. Complete a coloring book

43. Try gelato

44. No complaining for 1 week

45. Build a fort in the living room & sleep in it

46. Find out my blood type

47. Jump into 9+ feet of water WITHOUT holding my nose

48. Play paintball

49. Get a massage

50. Go to a fortune teller

51. Visit a haunted house

52. Conquer a wave pool at a water park

53. Go a week without buying anything

54. Identify 100 things that make me happy

55. Dance in the rain

56. Remember to bring canvas bags to the grocery store EVERY TIME for at least 1 month

57. Make a new friend

58. Ride in a hot air balloon

59. Go to a wine tasting

60. See a broadway show

61. Snorkel or scuba dive

62. Go skiing or snowboarding

63. Host a dinner party

64. Make out at the drive-in

65. Go to see an opera

66. Get a hole in one

67. Grow out my hair

68. Sell crafts in an online store or craft fair

69. Have a slumber party

70. Do daily outfit posts on my blog

71. Sleep under the stars

72. Find a beer I enjoy drinking

73. Meet a papillon pup to see if I like and really want one

74. Reconnect with an old friend

75. Ride a horse

76. Finally decide on a location for the tatto I want & get it

77. Visit a butterfly garden

78. Visit the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art

79. Treat myself to a mani/pedi before every season for 1 year

80. Go to a book signing

81. Perfect the "cat eye" eyeliner application

82. Drink nothing but water for 1 month

83. Have dinner by candlelight

84. Join Big Brothers/Big Sisters

85. Quit drinking Mountain Dew

86. Read The Game of Thrones book series

87. Eat a cupcake from Sprinkles

88. Wear a skirt/dress every day for a week regardless of the weather

89. Run a half-marathon

90. Knit a headwrap or scarf

91. Find a penpal

92. Finish an inspiration book

93. Ride a vespa

94. Watch 2 movies at a cinema in the same day

95. Try 10 new restaurants

96. No fast food for 1 month
97. Go parasailing
98. Attend a clothing swap

I'm going to be updating this list on my 101 Things page

doing some good

This weekend I took part in a revitalization of a local hiking/rock climbing location here in my city. A little background on this rock is that it is located next to the town pool, a playground, and an elementary school. There are also projects that were built just below it. I had never actually been up the rock, but I have always heard that it is littered with beer bottles and broken glass. This was not an exaggeration.

I got there and was assigned rake duty. This meant that I was raking up as much of the shards of broken glass, bottle caps, beer bottles, and food wrappers that I could. Leaving them in piles, other volunteers {on bag duty} came over and cleaned everything up.  It was a good system and I can’t even begin to express how it felt to see not only adult volunteers, but groups of children volunteering, too.

Isn’t it great to see everyone working together? I know I can’t get enough of it. Plus, if seeing a clean area prevents one or two people from tossing a beer bottle, something was accomplished, right? 

P.S. Wearing sandals was not the best of ideas. Oh well.

Just a Snapshot

I apologize for neglecting my blog. There’s no real excuse for it other than I just haven’t felt particularly inspired to write about anything. My summer days have been spent watching my niece & nephew for 8 and 9 hours a day. I love them dearly and they’re full of spirit and hilarious quotes, but I don’t want to dedicate weeks worth of posts to their adorable antics. I’ve also been a little down lately trying to figure out my job opportunities for next year {there don’t seem to be any!} so thanks for sitting tight & waiting so patiently.

Here is a snapshot of my days that you missed:

Summer School

I’ve been teaching a summer class/author study on Kevin Henkes. It’s 4 hours a day and I love the program. It’s a nice break from the rigorous schedule I have all school year and I get to teach a new crop of kiddos.

The Littles

My days have been spent with these little cuties. They are completely fearless and everything is an adventure. Particularly swimming. We’ve been sticking to the sprinkler & dumping buckets of water on one another.

Treats

We’ve been busy making treats around here. With temperatures up over 100, it was impossible to even think about preheating the oven to a million degrees. We settled on popsicles- my goodness I almost forgot how much I love frozen treats.

Oh and who could forget swimming and organizing? I wonder if there's a way for me to swim while organizing...

Don't Stop Believin'

I came up with the idea for this blog post title because it's what I listened to twelve 9-year-old girls sing on an hour long bus ride to Bear Brook State Park. My group was absolutely wonderful. But, let's rewind. Before I embarked on the bus journey, I had to go to West High School to pick up lunches for the 3 4th grade classes. This was my high school but it wasn't a blast from the past walking into the cafeteria. It looked so different! I would say I felt old walking in there, but I wasn't there for more than 5 minutes before a high school boy came to chat me up/ask me out. Yup, I've still got it. I politely declined of course.

Anyway, back to the trip. They went ponding and some of the kids found baby dragonflies, icky swimming bugs that I would never have touched, and even leeches. Blech. But the highlight of the ponding experience was the teeny tiny turtle with a bright orange belly. I think they said it was a Painter Turtle. Either way, he was so cute that my heart melted for him despite his being a pond dweller

{he lives with leeches, guys}. My student with the biggest behavior issues and zero interest in school was absolutely batty for this trip. I  overheard him telling one of his friends that today was his best day ever.

When we were on a hike through the grounds we saw so many lady slippers. I don't know if it's how pretty they are or the fact that they're protected but I couldn't get enough of them!

 I even got to taste some wintergreen berries. There were cucumber plants and the kiddos shared in the cucumber feast. I didn't partake.

The whole thing was even worth donning sneakers. Oh how I loathe sneakers.

Roller Derby was interesting. I wish I had read up on the rules of scoring before I went, but it was fairly easy to figure out. It wasn't like Whip It though. Sad days. There was a stylish girl there with a Mia Farrow haircut. I admired it to the point where I felt like Tyra Banks. I like Tyra as much as I like sneakers.