Too busy to post about the last few weeks, but I can do it quickly with pictures!

I started back to work (unofficially) in my classroom early in August. It takes a lot of time to get things unpacked, uncovered, and organized. I was happy to head back in with my new camera, to share my room with better photographs. Here is my new calendar set ... may not be exciting to most, but I was happy to have something fresh this year (even though it was a hand-me-down)!

Here is my new, FABULOUS, fabric banner that the author of one of my favorite blogs, Whatever, made for me. I found a picture of this banner on one of her blog posts & knew she was the creator. I left a comment & she emailed me later that night! After much encouragement on Megan's end that I could make one myself, I thought it would look better if I could pay her to make one for me. It arrived just in time for school to start! It was the perfect way to tie in my current, bright decorations. The kids really love it, too!

Here is poor Minnie after her day of shots with Dr. Jed. This year wasn't as bad as years past, thanks to antihistamines the day before, during and after her vaccinations. She sure was tired, though :(

The unbelievable sunflowers in Jill's garden! Look at how much taller it is than Mitzi. There were beautiful orangey pink ones, too!

I needed a change & asked for your advice. Molly sent me the link to this idea. I liked it, but had another idea instead.

Jill helped me one night to empty out the jars, clean the jars and then fill the jars with various glass pebbles. I LOVE the way they look now!

I finally got to put my Jayhawk license plate on my new car. I bought it the year that I got my VW Bug, and minutes after I bought it, I realized I didn't have a front plate. Now I can share my KU pride!

Enjoyed my last official day of summer at the pool. This summer, I was fascinated with the clouds and the reflection lines in the pool water. I didn't have my camera with me at the pool very often, but I did make sure to take some final pictures.

As a family, we went out for a "Going Back to School" dinner the night before my meetings started. I picked Los Cabos in Mission Farms because of their giant patio outside and because the weather had finally decided to cooperate a bit. This little one was begging for "moe sasa" (translation: more salsa) during the entire meal. She even liked the spicier ones that I couldn't handle :)

At the end of our meal, we saw three vans that held hot air balloons. We stuck around long enough to watch them inflate & take off. Quite the experience for Ellen!

Great night for picture-taking, too. I was sad I had just removed my new Canon from my purse and had to use my point & shoot for these pictures, but they still turned out.

This year at school, we voted on a Western/Cowboy theme. We've never had an all-school theme before, but it was really fun to see how everyone decorated. I just did a few things here & there, because I really like my regular decorations. Becky, down the hall from me, created this mural out of bulletin board paper & wrapping paper. SO FUN!

The first weekend after school started, some KC friends flew out to Columbus, Ohio to surprise Julie for an early 30th birthday party! We went straight to the party from the airport and she was BEYOND surprised!

The next day, Mike & Julie opened up their house to all the family and friends for a BBQ. My camera was passed around the table for everyone to play. Becca changed some settings for me, and took this great picture. I have a lot to learn!

Here's a picture of all the girls. Exactly a year ago, we were together for our 10 year reunion. Glad we got to celebrate together!

I hope to have more updates this year, but it's going to be a busy one. I'm going to be working towards my National Board Certification, which will mean about 300 hours of work (outside of my job) between now and March when my portfolio is due. If I become a hermit and have a hard time keeping in touch this year, now you'll know why. Writing here and continuing with my 365 photo blog have been easy ways for me to keep in touch with others, even though it's not face-to-face time. Keep checking back from time to time!

Come on in!

Tomorrow morning is the first day of school! I've been up in my classroom for about 2 weeks, even though our official work days didn't start until last Friday. As always, things really started to come together in the last few hours.

Tonight, we had our Popsicle Pop-In where I get to meet kids and parents for the first time and they get to see the classroom for the first time. The third grade classrooms are right next to ours, so some kids I knew really well, and some I hadn't ever seen. They all seemed excited to be there!

My room finally came together. I have some new decorations, new bulletin boards, new name-tags, new books, new rules ...

... and a new mess! Way to start off the 2010-2011 school year, Betsy!

UGH!

Girl without the Pearl Earring

Last week when I babysat Ellen, we had a little photo shoot. It was little, because she was a sicky and didn't want to play along with my games. The second I took this picture, I knew I liked it. I uploaded and forgot about it until Molly used it in her blog post today.

Looking at it a second time, I had a feeling about it. It looked like something I had seen before. Then, it came to me. This picture of Ellen reminded me of the famous Vermeer painting, Girl with the Pearl Earring. I thought I was crazy, until I commented about it and Molly said she thought the same thing.

What do you think?

A few new pictures

Pictures from a little visit last Saturday afternoon. It's always fun to play, read, explore, and laugh with this one.

Looking for change

I love these apothecary jars, and I started collecting them before I even had a home to put them in. When I moved into my condo, I was excited that I had the perfect place for them. I have a counter that opens up to both my kitchen & my living room. Most of the other condos that have the same floor plan have an extended counter that allows them to have bar stools there for eating. I wish my counter was like that, because it might mean the counters wouldn't become my catch-all for mail, recycling, magazines, etc.

Anyhoo ... the jars have been filled with various grains and beans for 2 years, and I think I'm over it. I'm looking for ideas for new fillers. Candy would be a lot of fun, but that's just a recipe for a disaster (and a bigger a$$). I can also take them away completely for a cleaner look, but I like them so much.

They could go on top of this cabinet in my dining room and I could put the lamp somewhere else. They might look nice with the sunlight coming in through the jars, even if they were empty.

The other place I need help is with my TV and table. This is one of the few new pieces of furniture I have in here. My TV used to sit on my coffee table, but when I found this great piece, that had storage, I was happy to have my coffee table back! Erik's parents were nice enough to let me have this TV when I moved in because they were doing some redecorating. The one I had before this was a measly 19 inch TV, which was difficult to adjust to since I had gotten used to Molly & Erik's GIANT TV when I lived with them. The problem is that this table isn't very sturdy and I think the weight of the TV is causing the joints to shift, and the cabinet doors and drawers are becoming difficult to open.

Since this has been the summer of spending for me, I'm not sure that I have the money for a replacement TV, but I know a thinner, lighter TV would probably be the answer.

I'm taking any and all suggestions at this point. Today's Day Of Cleaning has been slow going, but I know that if I really work on cleaning this place top to bottom today, I'll be much happier once I head back to work full time!