Raining Acorns

Is there something happening that I'm not aware of? I've heard that when acorns drop early it means we're going to have a hard winter. Oh boy, are we ever in for it if that's the case! I was just outside dumping scraps into my compost pile. I realized that all around me I could hear subtle dropping, hundreds of them, on the leaves and ground all around me. It was amazing. I thought perhaps it was a squirrel or two having fun way up there in the high limbs but, no, that wasn't the case. It was happening all around me from several trees. My backyard is littered with acorns and acorn pieces. It's interesting and perplexing all at once!

Check out the Farmer's Almanac article "Can Acorns Predict a Rough Winter?" for some more lore or truth in what nature does in preparation for what it's planning to do later on.

All Set to Go

This is it -- my last few hours before the start of school. I have mixed emotions about the first day.  Summer is over, a schedule begins again, routines, wearing makeup and nice clothes, headaches, early mornings (5:00 a.m.), and long days. There are a lot of positives to look forward to though; routines, fall, smiling faces, challenges, camaraderie, success, and a feeling of accomplishment.

I am going to be greeted tomorrow by 22 smiling faces (well, maybe 21 smiling faces.  I've got one girl coming to me who never smiles. I hope to change that.) and an eagerness to learn.  The desks are set, the pencils are out, and I am ready. This year is a special year for me as it's my tenth year teaching.  Whoa! My very first class of first graders (1999-2000 school year) are entering their sophomore year in high school this year.  It's still hard for me to believe!

So, here's to a good year, here's to a productive year, and here's to a memorable year. I am...... READY!   :) 

Weekend Work and a Wonderful Visit

What a great way to end my summer vacation! My parents stayed two nights at our house in their motor home. They arrived late Friday morning and left mid-morning today. The motor home was able to fit right along side our garage. 

One of the many reasons my parents came out was so that Mom could help me finish cleaning and organizing our basement. We rearranged quite a bit of stuff, put down some new rugs, got rid of some stuff, and bought another shelving unit. We were able to minimize what was thrown away by putting it out by the road for free. Within 3 hours of having a roll top T.V. cabinet out by the road, it was gone. There was nothing wrong with it; we just didn't have a use for it any more.
The bum window..... We're still working on it. That "super" caulk we bought is actually still drying. We have another piece of plexiglass to put up still.
My laundry area, all spiffed up.
This, however, was the main reason my parents came out: our tankless hot water heater. Pete and Pop had to finish hooking it up. Over the winter they hung it and ran the copper piping. Yesterday they finished the piping, drained the house of water, and hooked it up. We decided against doing the propane lines and exhaust ourselves as it can be very dangerous (ka-boom) if they are not air tight. I'm going to call the gas company tomorrow and get a quote on that end of the installation. We can't wait to get this thing up and running! We're hoping to be using little to no oil this winter as we'll be heating our house by wood and warming our water with propane.
Yes, aren't our litter boxes lovely? I have a nice lampshade now to go over that awful bare bulb on the lamp. (Nicky needs to see where he's going..... hence the lamp that'll be on 24/7.)

Friday consisted of a Home Depot run while Pete was at work. We met Pete over at Imperial Buffet (my most favorite restaurant ever) after he got out of work. We then took my parents to see some of the bigger houses that have been built near where we live (many of them were for sale; gee, I wonder why).

Last night, after dinner at A.C. Petersen Farms in West Hartford, Pete and I took my parents to the Hartford Riverfront. After having trouble finding a free place to park, we brought them down to the river and the walkway. We walked all the way to the foot bridge that goes over 91. It's always neat to see the traffic zipping by below you. It was a wonderful evening that was made even better by riding "topless." We really enjoyed ourselves. 

Next weekend, we're heading to their house for Saturday and Sunday. Saturday, we have plans to enter George into the car show in Putnam. Sunday, we're all heading to the Woodstock Fair!

Living in Harmony (Well, Not Exactly Just Yet...)

Meow, meow, meow.

Hiss, hiss, hiss.

Grrrroooowwwllllll!

That's the music that has been playing non-stop in my house, day in, day out. Things are getting better though, albeit slowly (and sometimes painfully). The girls still hiss and growl at Nicky but are allowing him to come closer and closer to them. I think Nicky really likes Chloe as he wants to smell her and visit with her the most. (I gave her a good brushing today so she can look her best for the new man in the house). Hannah just watches with dilated eyes and gives a low and mean growl whenever he comes too close. (Don't forget, she's feral and could really mess him up if she wanted to!)

In this rare photo opportunity, all three of them were within a few feet of one another. Nicky is on the floor, Hannah is resting in the chair, and Chloe is keeping a close eye on things from her perch on the magazine table.

Let's hope things are a little more quiet tonight (Nicky howls all night long) because both Pete and I were hurting this morning after two consecutive nights of the "music."

Isn't he gorgeous?

Book Buzz Tag & 6 Quirky Things About Me

Thanks for the tag Anna. Here goes....

Here are the instructions:

I am going to list three categories of books: 3 MUST Read Books, 3 Keep Your Eyes on These, and 3 Look for These Soon. Keeping with the theme, I am going to tag at least 3 bloggers. They should put these same lists on their blogs but SUBTRACT one book from each list and ADD one of their own. Then they should tag at least 3 more bloggers. It will be fun to see how the lists change as they go around the blogosphere. Please come back to this post and leave a comment so I can see how the lists are changing. Since this is Book Buzz...please keep your lists to titles released in 2007-2009.

3 MUST Read Books:

Somebody Else's Daughter by Elizabeth Brundage
The Painter From Shanghai by Jennifer Cody Epstein
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

3 Keep Your Eyes on These:

The Memory of Water by Karen White
Seeing Me Naked by Liza Palmer
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri

3 Look for These Soon:

The Good Thief by Hannah Tinti
Testimony by Anita Shreve 

The Longing by Beverly Lewis

(The books I added are the ones that have a link.)

Since I'm so lame with looking at other blogs that I don't have 3 people to send this to as Anna and Serena have already been tagged (not by me). So.... Roxy from There's No Place Like Home, you've just been tagged!  :)

6 Quirky Things About Me

Anna from Diary of an Eccentric also tagged me for this one!

Here are the rules:
1. Link the person(s) who tagged you
2. Mention the rules on your blog
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
4. Tag 6 fellow bloggers by linking them
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger's blogs letting them know they've been tagged

Here are my 6 quirky things:

1. I have to leave the house for work by a certain time each morning and get there 5 minutes before I can get in. I get mad when I'm not the first one there!

2. I always wash and dry the same parts in the same sequence every time I shower.

3. I don't pick up the phone on the first ring.

4. I hate wearing shoes and I HATE wearing jeans.

5. I like to look inside Pete's mouth (he, as you might have guessed, hates it).

6. I make up random songs and sing them to Pete off-key.

Again, don't feel obligated to play along (especially if I tagged you twice), but here goes.....

I tag (once again):  Roxy from There's No Place Like Home

Homemade Pizza

My Homemade Pizza

• 1 pkg. pizza dough (found in bakery section of most grocery stores)
• 1 ball fresh mozzarella
• 8 oz. bag shredded mozzarella 
• 6 oz. container crumbled Feta cheese
• 1 tomato
• 1 cup (loosely piled) spinach
• 2 T corn meal
• 2 T melted butter
• 1 t. chopped/minced garlic
• salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)

1. Leave pizza dough out on counter for 2 to 3 hours. Make sure to cut bag open for dough to "breathe."
2. Once ready to begin, preheat oven to 400 F.
3. Knead dough (making sure all rings are off of fingers!). Stretch dough out uniformly into a disk. Continue stretching. Occasionally place disk over fist and let drape. Continue this process until desired size.
4. Coat pizza stone or non-stick pizza/baking tray with cornmeal. This will prevent sticking. Place dough onto coated pizza stone or non-stick pizza/baking tray.

5.  Melt butter with garlic. Brush onto pizza dough.

6.  Sprinkle salt and pepper (to taste) over dough.

7.  Layer dough with 7 oz. of shredded mozzarella.

8.  Place spinach on top of mozzarella.

9.  Add 2 to 3 oz. of Feta cheese to top of spinach.

10.  Slice tomato and add slices to top of pizza.

11.  Slice fresh mozzarella and add slices to top of pizza.

12.  Sprinkle remaining shredded mozzarella over top of pizza.

13.  Bake in 400 F oven for 20-25 minutes or until crust is desired color/texture.
14.  Slice with pizza slicer and enjoy!

My Classroom

One of the many reasons why I love being a teacher: setting up my classroom! School starts next Wednesday, August 27th. I've been in "prepping" for 5 days, both this week and last week, getting ready for the big day. I've had to arrange my desks (3 groups of 5 and 1 group of 6), laminate things, put up posters, organize cumulative files, put tennis balls on chair legs (all 128 of them!), make name plates (for desks and lockers), write names on folders, find out birthdays, move bookcases, organize my classroom library, put out paper, sharpen pencils, photocopy, the list goes on and on.

I absolutely love my classroom. It has a very workable space, both in functionality and in learning. I try to keep it neat and organized all year (with about 90% success) for my sanity as well as for a more conducive learning environment.

I am glad to say though, that I'm done! Today was my last day in my classroom until we (the teachers) have to go back Monday and Tuesday for professional development. My 4-day weekend is my last hurrah before work begins!