Wednesday Wonders v.3

I am really excited about this week's Wednesday Wonders because I have some really neat (yes, I still use the word neat) photos, mostly courtesy of my awesome boyfriend who is addicted to Mozilla's StumbleUpon and sends me awesome stuff every day. :)

Before we get started, I want to remind you about my very first giveaway. Entries are closed on Friday, so get over there and enter NOW! You might win a Mixed CD + cover made by yours truly! There are three ways to enter, and all you have to do is leave a comment for each entry.

Wednesday Wonders....*

1. So continues my obsession with owls... Should I or should I not? 

2. This is the album cover of the CD where I got my blog name. 

You can learn more about it at my feature by Blackbird Fly here! 

3. Another awesome picture sent to my by Nick. How do

you think this would look on Guillermo?

4. Readers, meet Guillermo. Er... Guillermo's tongue. Hello!

5. I don't remember where I found this picture, but I thought it was

incredibly inspirational. And subtle.

6. Courtesy of Nick, again. He sent me this site of 60 amazing 

fall pictures. I absolutely love the colors in this photo.

7. This is a piece of art that I swiped from strataflora.com. She 

featured an amazing artist who has many more pieces

lik this one. Check her out! 

8. Remember when I said I have the best boyfriend ever? Still do. 

9. This is my puppy. This is my puppy napping. Are you

bored of hearing about my puppy yet?

10. Another courtesy of Nick. He sent me this site with an article called

"Human Bones Take Part in an Artistic Project Against Violence." You

should check it out, because there are some awesome pictures. 

That's it for this Wednesday's wonders!! Don't forget to check out the giveaway mentioned at the top of the post! p.s. Hello to all my new readers and followers!! <3

Love notes and puppy naps

Hello, friends! I really, really wanted to update earlier today, but I was SOTIRED. Today at school we had a pep rally, and consequently, it was spirit-wear day. OFCOURSE I left my only WHDT t-shirt at Nick's house and dirty. Thankfully he agreed to wash and dry it for me when he got home from work last night, which meant that I had to pick it up EARLY this morning. It was worth it, though. I think the kids were surprised :)

School was pretty okay today, we got lots of papers in that need to be on the report card (by Monday) so that was a small accomplishment. The pep rally was fun to watch (and a nice break for the kids) but since it was right in the middle of the day (4th bell) with two bells after it before dismissal, the kids were a little more than rambunctious.

When I got home from school today, the only thing on my mind was SLEEP. So, I turned on Dr. Phil, grabbed my puppy and my blanket, and hit the sheets. AND I SLEPT. I just woke up, in fact, and I feel so much better. I have to work tonight, eight to close, and I am not looking forward to it, but we know how much I need money right now... And after tonight, I am off until Monday morning when I go back to school!!

I also came home/woke up to this in my email via my wonderful boyfriend:

Just how did I get so lucky?

Hope you all have a great Friday and a greater weekend :) xoxo! 

Weekend Haps!

Today is going to be spent doing lots of things: We already went to the grocery to pick up a few things. Pomegranites were on sale, so we scooped one up because Nick has never tried them (SOGOOD) and we also got some frozen veggies, a frozen pizza (mmm) and some moisturizing puppy shampoo. Guillermo has had such problems with dry skin lately and we finally found some extra moisture shampoo (all natural, of course) that we really trust! We also scooped up some strawberries because Lynzie told me the other day that broccoli and berries are great for inflammation in puppies, and Guillermo has had a bum leg for a while now. We are hoping he grows out of it, but here's for wishing.

Right now, we're sitting on the couch cuddling with Guillermo (and each other ;) ) watching our television addiction #1: Hell's Kitchen! It was awesome finding out that they are having another season so close in time to the last one. We love this show, along with Weeds and Dexter. Speaking of Dexter... omg. This season is going to be AMAZING. 

Laura and Justin are the married couple that live below us, also great friends that we have known for a long time. Laura offered to dye my hair when she gets home from work tonight and I cannot WAIT! My hair got so light over the summer, and I am ready for a fall color. I chose Dark Brown by Revlon Colorsilk. It's fairly cheap, and they have the colors that I love. 

Tonight will be spent at a house warming party for Nick's cousin, Amy, and then getting ready for tomorrow! Tomorrow is going to be so exciting because it will be our first baseball game together, and my first Reds game in SOLONG. Lynzie and Brandon are using our other two tickets, and we're all going together. It's going to be pretty cold out tomorrow so I can't wait to break out my jackets and scarves and boots! Yay for fall events :) I can't wait. 

After the game, we'll head over to my parents house to have our first weekly Sunday dinner. My mom always has something yummy for me to eat, so I can't wait to see what she comes up with this time! In the meantime, we're just gonna sit back and have a few beers.... ;) 

Hope everyone is having just as great a weekend as he is! Don't forget to check me out on Facebook and Bloglovin'! Thank you everyone for stopping by, and don't forget to follow! <3

Late night thoughts!

I am really excited about the next few weeks on this little blog of mine. I have so many fun posts and new things I am planning! That being said, I have had some incredible writer's block today. That or it's just been on of "those days" and I need a teeny tiny break.

I will leave you, however, with a little update about school, today. And some puppy pictures! 

It was a fast day at West High, today. The kids worked on Daily Oral Language Lessons in each bell, and then silent sustained reading. The AA kids (third bell advanced kiddos) worked on a journal slash pre writing activity for their next paper. They all complained, naturally, but they'll thank me when they have to write a paper with twice the amount required and half of the work is already done! Personally, assigning paper after paper is not my idea of a fun time in the classroom, but thank you, Ohio standards, for giving me so much more to play with than paper after paper! I would love to just have the kids read a book and write one of the characters a letter... or re create a setting in the novel using ANY OTHER MEDIUM than words! For chrissake. 

Third bell today was SO talkative, and during our plan bell, Holly and I talked about what I can do to put a stop to this. Thankfully, it's not just me that can't get their attention or get them to calm down, it's Holly, too. So, she thinks that I should call a few parents of the biggest problem kids. Can I just say: This TERRIFIES me. What do I tell them? Your child is annoying. Please get him/her to shut up, PLEASE. What do I say when they react the same way their kids are acting in class? I would really like to skip the entire business.

All the sudden, 2-6 weeks of complete control is looking a whole lot more enticing. 12 weeks to go. 

In other news, I spent the afternoon cleaning the apartment. A plumber is coming tomorrow morning because our sink has been inoperable for about 5 days now. Since I can't stand for someone else to see a messy home, I finally took matters into my own hands and humbly did our dishes in the bathtub/bathroom sink. Somehow, this just does not seem kosher to me. At least the kitchen is clean. 

Shew! Beck + Kings of Leon got me through the two point five hours it took to get the job done.

Nick will be home shortly, and then we will probably indulge in more than enough Seinfeld and puppy snuggles.

Unfortunately, though I have been asking for hours for weeks and weeks at famvid, they haven't been able to give them to me. Until now. I have to work every day this weekend, and probably next, too. So, you probably won't see me much around this blogging space of mine for the next few days. Don't miss me too much!

Is it a bad idea to have coffee now?

xo

P.S. Autumn, WHERE ARE YOU? I do not want one more 90 degree day. Please and thanks. 

Weekend Adventures

Here's to spending a lovely Saturday with my boyfriend and our puppy. We took Guillermo to the vet to get his ONE stitch out from getting neutered. He was scared, but very happy that we took him home with us this time. There has been talk of going to Oktoberfest tonight, which is going to be really fun. A friend of ours invited us, and I have never been, so I can't wait! I am going to take lots of pictures and post them here probably tomorrow night. There was ALSO talk about going to see The Toadies tonight at the Mad Hatter in Covington. This isn't exactly my favorite place to see a show.... but Nick has been wanting to see them for a long time, so I will oblige with no complaint :)

Last night went smoothly; I cleaned the apartment and make sure there was a beer and candles waiting for Nick when he walked in the door from work, and he seemed happier already, just from being home. I am glad I could help make his day a little better! First we sat around in the living room and listened to The Flaming Lips and just relaxed and talked. Then we ordered food and we stayed up late and fell asleep to episodes of Seinfeld, season 7. Make that: I fell asleep to episodes of Seinfeld and Nick had to wake me up to go to bed later. I was so tired I slept in my clothes from the day all night!

I am supposed to be on call tonight at work, but there is a slim chance that I will actually be called in. Part of me hates that I am never getting hours but part of me is so thankful to have almost every single weekend off. I need a decompressing period after each week at West High, and this one was NO exception. We are planning on watching an episode or two of Lie to Me before heading out for our adventure tonight, but for some reason Netflix is being crappy!

I will leave you with this sweet cover of The Flaming Lips' "Do You Realize??" by The Postal Service, whom I love, love, love.

Anyways, hope everyone has a great weekend, maybe I'll see some of you at Oktoberfest tonight!

xoxo

Friday: naps, walks, and boyfriend.

Not much to report today. I had a rough night last night, so I kind of expected school to be awful today (I only had about 4 hours of sleep, and was not in a very good mood. Add cramps and headache = WIN.) but it was actually one of the best days I have had at West High in a really long time! I am satisfied. Due to having such little sleep last night, I plan on taking a long nap with Guillermo, and then going home to hang out with my family until Nick gets off work tonight around ten thirty. Guillermo and I just had our daily neighborhood stroll, and now he is munching on some kibble while I type this! We’ll probably end up playing tug for a while during Dr. Phil, and then head off for our nap.

In other news, Carla’s (Nick + Lynzie’s mom) birthday was last week, so we celebrated last night at O’Charley’s. Unfortunately, Nick had to work, and since it was a very last minute plan, he couldn’t get out early. But we still had lots of fun! And Lynzie made some fantastic cupcakes that were SO delicious. Carla had a great time, it seemed like, and it was nice to spend time with everyone! I ended up ordering a salad with salmon on it, which I don’t normally do. It is hard to get a satisfying meal at places like O’Charley’s and Friday’s, so these are the times that I usually opt for fish. I still feel weird when I eat/order it, because I know that it was once a living, moving/breathing (kind of :)) animal, and I feel guilty because of that. I have come to terms that being healthy is more important, though, than being stubborn at times. Since I had such big problems with B12 anemia and other various aggravations, I am going to be making wiser decisions for my body. Although, it won’t happen often because I STILL kinda feel weird about it.. :-\

Tonight, I plan on making last night up to Nick, since the crappy argument was mostly my fault. There will be candles and ice cream and…. BEER! I hope he likes it and accepts my peace offering :) Although, I am sure he will considering he is the best boyfriend ever. I am a lucky, lucky girl.

My birthday this summer; Nick bought me this
rose before posing for the picture :)

I am planning on doing a few updates this weekend since I won’t be working at all, so keep checking back :). Don’t forget to follow me at the top left of this blog! I really appreciate everyone stopping by, and the numbers are showing that it’s becoming more and more popular. I hope everyone has a great Friday and a greater weekend!!

<3 s

Monday thoughts.

Not much to report today. I am feeling guilty that I didn’t take advantage of a whole weekend with Nick, and let my bad mood from Friday overshadow time with him. I apologized, and he said it was okay, but I still feel bad. School was not so bad, but nothing exciting there, either. A surprise staff meeting was very interesting, though! 

I’ll just leave you all with a few cute pictures of the fur baby.

And one of my favorite pictures of my man. 

Thanks for stopping by, everyone. Don't forget that I love to hear from you and see that you're reading! Click the little follow button at the top left to show your support! Thanks!! xoxo

Not as inspirational as I would have liked...

Wow. Today was absolutely the longest day I have had as a teacher this far. It’s four weeks into the school year, and I knew that assigning the kids’ research paper was going to be a hurdle, but I didn’t expect what I got. For my first day in complete control of the classroom, I was hoping for a little easier of a time. On one hand, working in an urban setting is the most eye opening and soul-fulfilling experience one will ever have, and on the other hand it’s the most frustrating and testing. I have never met more endearing (some, at times) and more frustrating (most of them, most of the time) kids in my life. There are some that sincerely want to learn and are trying so hard to understand, and there are some that have blatant disregard for anything anyone does or says. This is so different from my own high school experience and I cannot understand how this happens to teachers on a daily basis. I can’t imagine acting the way these kids do towards my teachers, or having anyone in my high school classrooms that acted this way. I know that I am in a completely different environment from an all girls, catholic high school, but we are still humans! Goodness, today, these children absolutely exhausted me.

In other news, planning for school has gone really smoothly, I have planned through the entire month of September, and the first few days of October. It has been a blessing that everything I have planned has magically fit perfectly into each and every bell. And when I do have a few minutes extra, the kids (usually) read quietly or talk softly. The only other worry I have niggling away at me is my mentor teacher. I sometimes feel as though she doesn’t completely trust my abilities, and maybe she doesn’t, but the evidence of this can be very discouraging at times. She seems to occasionally get impatient with me, or make me feel as though I am doing something wrong without giving me direction or constructive criticism. I hate to say it, but this happening a few times today, and also the reaction I had from the children had me seriously questioning my career choice, again. I know that this happens a lot, especially for new teachers, or anyone for their first time in the field, but I am really worried. I hope this gets better over the coming fourteen weeks.

* * * * * *

Lastly, today we picked up Guillermo. I was a little disappointed to see find him sleeping on the blanket that we left with him overnight. it was mainly used as a receptacle for his pee, I was hoping they would have someone there at night to walk the kenneled dogs, or else not give them food or water for the 12 hours they were there. Other than that, he seems his normal self! Digging imaginary holes, playing tug, and trying his hardest to jump onto the couches (which isn’t allowed to do for four days!). He cried the whole way home, and shook, too, because he was so excited to see us! I am happy to have him home again and hopefully we wiped away any fears of abandonment he may have had. ;)

I hope everyone had a more uplifting day than I did, back tomorrow with another update :) Don’t forget to drop me a note if you are stopping by, or to click the little “Follow” button over to the side of this column!

xoxo S

A few of my favorite things...

Since I haven’t posted a music entry yet, and it’s such an important part of my life, I thought I would introduce a few of my favorite bands right now!

The first one I want to feature is of Montreal. They are fantastic, an indie pop band that is full of wacky lyrics and fun euphemisms. I am actually seeing them on September 21 with Nick and a couple of our friends, plus his sister, Lynzie. I have seen these guys once, last year at Bonnaroo 2009, but at the time I was fighting a serious case of vertigo, and didn't really enjoy the show. In fact, they kind of irritated me. But, since then, Nick has gotten me hooked on them and I can't get enough.

Next is She & Him. First of all, I have a giant girl crush on Zooey Deschanel, and I love almost anything she does. Her partnership with M. Ward in this American folk-y duet is no different! She is also fantastic in 500 Days of Summer, which I recently rented and then purchased, she was so great in it! (Plus, it’s just a really fantastic movie all around). I have seen these two twice this summer, and I was only introduced to them back in January of this year. I saw them once at Bonnaroo 2010, and they had a huge, huge crowd. I saw them again at Forecastle, a music festival in Louisville, KY, that Nick surprised me with tickets for our anniversary. They had a small crowd the second time around, and it seemed like only a handful of people were familiar with them. It was a fantastic show.

Also, if you're interested in seeing her in one of my favoritest movies, click here for a peek at the trailer ;)

Next up, The Decemberists. One of my all time, favorite indie rock bands. They have lots of upbeat songs, and also tons of slow ballads that use accordions, organs, and an upright bass. Very fun. I have only seen these guys once, during the same trip to Bonnaroo 2009 and on the same day that I had the aforementioned vertigo, but I really enjoyed them. They didn't play anything that I was familiar with at that show, even though I have been a fan for a few years. They played most of their newest album, Hazards of Love, which is FANTASTIC, and in my opinion, should be listened to from beginning to end with no interruptions. It's like an epic, terribly sad and beautiful novel that you can't tear yourself away from.

Anyway, there you have a few of my favorite tunes. Lastly, I thought I would leave you with a picture of my pretty little puppy being cute, per usual.