One Frozen Bunny

I traveled to Nebraska on Wednesday to pick the boys up from Grandma and Grandpa's house. They stayed a couple of days so Mom could get a few things done without them hanging around. While driving to Schuyler, I snapped this picture of the sunset. I was at a stop sign, so it was easy to take this picture, but what I really wanted was pictures of the giant snow drifts. Unfortunately, every place that had the giant drifts also had no place to pull over and take pictures. So, I decided this picture would be my one and only for the trip back to Schuyler.

While we were leaving, Grandpa noticed something strange at the bottom of the steps. As you can see from the pictures, a bunny tried to climb its way into the bottom of the panneling. Poor bunny. It didn't make it.

I sure hope that wasn't the Easter bunny!

When You’re Snowed In…

Here are a couple of pictures from our snowed-in days at the Broekers’ house. 

 

Evan decided he’d like to learn Origami while at Amy’s house.  We actually made it out to the public library one night and this is an origami dog.  With Madison’s help, Evan made this origami dog for Mom.

 

I think this picture speaks for itself. Hmmmm…I know a few boys who need to get out of the house!

A Very Snowy Christmas

Happy Snowy Christmas! Wow! Christmas 2009 is one to remember! The boys and I went to Lincoln, Nebraska to spend Christmas with the family. We left a couple of days early because of all the projected bad weather. Well, this was one winter storm that the weathermen didn't exaggerate. The Blizzard of 2009 (as I'm sure it'll be remembered) kept us stranded at Amy's house for a couple of extra days. After the roads opened up a bit, the boys went to visit with Grandma and Grandpa while I came back to KC for some kid-free time. The above picture is what I came home to. More snow. Hrrummph!

I thought this was a cute picture of Xander with the presents. The bow on top of his head makes him all the more adorable!

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without Dad's prime rib. It was yummy. And despite the near-coronary attack I give Dad every year, I still put ketchup on it.

Santa brought Dylan a Nintendo DS Bakugan game. (Evan got the same. Santa sure knows how to avoid brotherly fighting in my house!)

Grant was very good at helping everyone open presents this year. :)

Despite the yucky weather, we went to the Broekers' church for Christmas Eve. These family pictures were taken after church services at St. Mark's. (The Broekers - Grant, Andy, Madison, Tyler and Amy)

The Carters (Evan, Jill, and Dylan)

The Vests (Xander, Sarah, and Todd)

The Vests (Betty and Doug)

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Harvesters

Recently, a group of students approached me with the idea for starting a book club. As an English teacher, I was so excited to get this started. (Who wouldn't want to work with a bunch of motivated teenagers?) Anyway, the group (23 students) decided to read one book a month, but they wanted to do more than just reading; when the opportunity is there, they also want to give back to our community. So, our book club is also about volunteering and contributions. Our first book Pay It Forward was donated by the Pay It Forward Foundation; they sent us signed copies of the book. It was a very fitting book to get us started, as we decided to start our community contributions right away, too.

My group, along with the Read 180 and ELL classes, went to Harvesters last week to take a tour and volunteer our time. Our group spent the day sorting donated goods. They had a lot of fun in the process, and they definitely want to go back.

I'm very fortunate to work with such a great group of teenagers! (The pictures aren't great because I took them with my camera. By the way, I don't think BlackBerrys have very good camera phones.)

A Winter Program

These last few weeks sure have been busy ones! I'm glad we're home today (snow day) so I can catch up on a few things. While I have a minute, I thought I'd post a couple of pictures from Evan's winter program last night.

"Christmas at the Okay Corral" was last night, despite the incoming yucky weather. They still had a good turnout for the program. Evan's favorite song was "Sticky Situation" because of the "sticky strings" they attached to their pockets and pulled on during the program. (Amy - That reminds me of the kid I had in class a few years ago who sang 'Sticky Notes' all throughout my class.)

Anyway, it was very cute! They all had a great time.

Shhh! Don't Tell!

Okay, so there are a few things I lie to my kids about. My longest lasting "lie" is about Chuck E. Cheese. My boys (ages 6 and 8) think you can ONLY go to Chuck E. Cheese if its someone's birthday. I'm going to keep that lie going as long as possible, as I think the food there is awful.

Speaking of food...I'm all about the lies for healthy choices. Thanks to Hungry Girl (the book and the website), I've found recipes that allow me to substitute items for high calorie ones. For example, the boys never knew the French fries I made were actually butternut squash. (They noticed something was different, but couldn't really tell.) I also switched to turkey burgers without them batting an eye. Lying about what they are eating has been something I've done more than just a few times. It's how I got them to eat shrimp and seafood. ("Mom, what is this?" "Chicken." That is the standard answer at my house.)

Well, here's a picture of my favorite, most delicious switch of all. Hungry Girl's daily email sent this one to me. It's cake. Chocolate cake! Yum! It's what's in it, though, that might surprise you. This cake was made with only two ingredients...Chocolate Cake Mix and PUMPKIN. Yes, pumpkin. Mix the cake mix and one can of pumpkin together, and you've got a low-calorie cake. One slice of cake is only 170 calories vs. 300+ with all the egg and oil mixed in. The pumpkin works like the oil and the egg, but it cuts out all those calories and fats. I promise you, if you make this, you will not taste the pumpkin. I made my first "pumpkin" chocolate cake the other day, and the boys finished it off by the end of the night. I made my second one today, at the request of my kids. Dylan couldn't wait for it to come out of the oven. And, yes, they have no idea that pumpkin is hiding inside it!

Family Literacy Night

On Thursday, November 11th, the boys and I attended Meadowmere Elementary's Family Literacy Night. We've participated in this fun evening each year, but during the last couple of years I've had "writers" reading their original stories. Last year, Evan and Dylan wrote a story together; it was about being brothers. This year, Dylan (1st Grade) read his Scarecrow story.

Here's his story:

"His name is Darth Dyl. He has a pumpkin face and a light blue shirt. I like him because he has a red hat and green pants. His hed is orange and black. He has a star on his light blue shirt. I like my scarecrow." -Dylan

October Photo Hunt Challenge

This photo hunt was a little harder for me than the last one, but here they are...

1. A Fall Activity: High School Football (Hickman Mills vs. Center)

2. A Fall Treat: Pumpkin Bars (My favorite dessert - and low calorie, too!)

3. A Harvest: My boys buying a pumpkin

4. Leaves

5. Fall Colors

6. Something Orange: Fountain in front of Grandview's Court House

7. Something Spooky: Kansas City, Worlds of Fun

8. A Cemetery: Kansas City, Worlds of Fun

9. A Costume: Center's Band celebrating Halloween in costume

10. A Black and White Photo: My friends, Jill and Cristin (Thanks for the photo idea, Cristin!)

11. A Critter: A jellyfish

12. Symmetry: My boys

13. Contrast: The View in Grandview, Missouri

14. Texture: The blanket that kept me warm at the football game

15. A Logo/A Mascot: Hickman Mills High School's Cougar

16. Something Neon: Kansas City, Worlds of Fun

17. Something Inspiring: Women's Health Magazine

18. Something Entertaining: Kansas City, Worlds of Fun

19. Something Fast: KCTV 5's Helicopter

20. Something Slow: The clock in my classroom (It goes so slow on Fridays!)

Just Say Cheese!

The boys and I took a little road trip to Osceola, Missouri today. I made the short drive with the intention of stopping along the way to take pictures for this month's photo contest. Well, with a destination in mind, we went to the Osceola Cheese store. This store has over 80 different types of cheeses. (They have items beyond cheese, but cheese is definitely the featured item.) The boys enjoyed sampling the various cheeses, but when it came down to it, they still liked their favorite kind of cheese the most...string cheese. The below items are what we purchased while there. Dylan fell in love with the beef sticks, and as he was eating them tonight, he asked if we could go back and buy some more when we run out. Well, Dylan, we're not going back tomorrow, but the next time we do go, we'll be sure to stock up on beef sticks and string cheese!

Top Five Reasons Why It's Rough to Lose Your Power On A Sunday Morning

For the last two Sundays in a row, I've lost my power around 7:30 a.m. I'd like to be able to tell you why or how, but all I know is that I hear a really loud *POP* and then everything turns off. Transmitter? Downed power lines? God's personal alarm clock for Jill Carter?

Whatever it was...last Sunday's power came back on around 9 a.m. Today's power...I got a little worried...It eventually made it back on at 10:30 a.m. Normally, a weekend morning wouldn't be that big of a deal if you don't have power, but it's just at the time when I'm trying to get ready for church.

So, here is my top FIVE list why it's rough to lose your power on a Sunday morning...

5. The boys can't turn on tv, which means that they're fighting downstairs while I'm still trying to sleep.

4. Taking a shower can be tough. Even though it's a great thing that you can't see very well while you're in the shower, it becomes problematic when you accidently mix up the shampoo bottle and body soap.

3. The blow dryer. It doesn't work without power. 'nough Said.

2. When the power has been out for over two hours, THAT's the exact time both boys want to get multiple items out of the fridge. Without knowing how long the power will be out, I had to veto the opening of the fridge several times.

1. Electric garage door opener. Homebound it is!

Pokemon It Is

The boys' elementary school has a pumpkin coloring contest every fall. The contest allows one entry per family, so it seemed rather fitting when Evan and Dylan decided to create a Poke' Ball for their pumpkin. It was a great choice, as it was very easy for both of them to color and work together.

Thanks to the rain, we had to color the pumpkin inside, but, as you can see from the picture, they did a pretty good job.

The Haunting at Worlds of Fun

The boys and I went to Worlds of Fun tonight. There aren't too many days left for this season, so we have to make the most of our season passes. The weekends are open, and the Worlds of Fun Halloween activities are going on right now. We got there early enough that the sun still allowed for daytime activties, but as soon as it got dark, the haunting began. We didn't go into any "scary" parts, but it still scared Evan and Dylan, at times. Dylan thought it was entertaining, and Evan left saying, "Mom, today is the scariest day of my life." I think he was being a bit dramatic, and, even though he was scared, everyone had fun!

Evan's expression here says about all. This was how Evan felt through most of the evening.

Dylan jumped in front of one of the "creatures". I didn't have my camera facing the right direction, as I cut the head off. Dylan thought this thing was great, but Evan wouldn't stand in front of it.