Highlights of the Week (#16)

wow. it's september! I can't believe it...2012 is flying by. I love september for many reasons. college football starts up again (shout-out to my beloved Iowa Hawkeyes on their win yesterday!) and I know cooler weather is on it's way soon. well, not super soon seeing as I live in florida...but you know what I mean. I really love fall and must admit this is the time of year I miss living up north most. 

so now that we've finished our 2nd week of school I have to say I'm just loving my class. we've all settled into our daily routine and that helps immensely. they really are a good group of kids and just so cute! we had our first birthday on friday and I was really pleased with the way they behaved. let's hope I didn't just jinx things by bragging on them here. ; )

children's choir started up again at church this past wednesday. I am helping do recreation again and though we had a small group for the first week back, we really had a good time. I've already had requests to play dodge ball and I promised we would play that next time. they love playing dodge ball and let's face it, I do too. it reminds me of being a kid and sometimes it's a really good thing to relive those times. we all need a chance now and again to act like a kid. 

I'm cat/house-sitting for a few days for a friend of mine. she has two kitties and they're so sweet. I always enjoy being able to help my friends out and bonus: I get to pretend their pets are mine for a little while. pets have a way of relaxing me and that's definitely a good thing. 

have a blessed week!

Highlights of the Week (#15)

so there's one week of school in the books...yay! we had a good first week so that definitely makes the list of highlights. also among the highlights from these past seven days: my copy of The Hunger Games came in the mail on Wednesday. so of course I had to watch it right away that evening. and it was just as good as it was in the theater. if you haven't seen it yet, well, what are you waiting for??? it's so good. seriously though...I would definitely recommend reading the book first. and just remember: the book is always better. always. 

not sure yet if we'll be feeling any effects of hurricane Isaac. it's been windy and uber cloudy all day. guess we'll have to wait and see. in the meantime I'll continue to prep for school this week and possibly do something fun like paint my nails. since I'm ready for fall, I'll probably paint them in a fall-ish color. like this or this or even this. 

have a good week and stay safe!

Highlights of the Week (#14)

whee!!! school starts tomorrow! after meeting my students on Friday I'm definitely eager to get this year underway. right now I have 13 students in my class (9 girls, 4 boys) and they're all completely adorable. it was great to have a whole week to get the room prepped and ready. my assistant and I are proud of what we've done and now the fun really starts. since this is a completely new situation for me, I'm anxious to get a few days under my belt and settle into a routine. I expect I'll be exhausted come Friday but that's a good thing for sure. 

I spent this afternoon catching up on shows from this past week. and since it's been a rainy, rainy afternoon it was a smart choice to save 'em up for today. I love having a dvr...being able to skip the commercials makes tv-watching much more enjoyable. 

there was a surprise baby shower today after church for our youth director and his wife. their little boy is about a month old and he's simply precious. so so cute. I wanted to hold him in the worst way but I feel a cold coming on so I thought I'd better hold off. there's nothing like being around a precious little newborn to make me want a baby of my very own. all in good time I suppose. 

blessings my friends.

Highlights of the Week (#7)

wow. so another week has come to a close. and it's the first of July. complete. craziness. 

the weather has been just wacky all over the place the last couple weeks. I am so thankful for the modern convenience of A/C and hope everyone that is currently without power and suffering in these out-of-control temps remains safe and have their power return soon.

last weekend I fell down the stairs when I was getting ready to take the dogs outside for their final walk of the day. I sprained my ankle pretty severely. it was definitely not fun. but, I am thankful I was able to pack up the dogs and myself and head to my mom's for the rest of the week. she has a huge fenced-in backyard so being able to rest my ankle without having to walk the dogs 4 times a day was a big highlight for me. 

sadly today was my last day watching the "boys"...but I'll get to see them again soon. if you follow me on instagram (pendygal80), I hope you've enjoyed seeing pictures of the dogs these last 3 weeks. I just love them!

another highlight of this past week was making these. not only are they completely delicious, but they are a healthier alternative to the standard version. and because they are petite, they're just plain cute! you should try them. immediately.

I think the final highlight from this past week was working in the garage with my mom. see, the thing is, her garage is jam-packed full of stuff. there's no room for one car, let alone two. our goal this summer is to remedy that and at least clear out enough stuff to get her car in there. and I am happy to say we are slowly but surely starting to make some visible progress. I must admit, there is a lot of stuff in that garage that belongs to me and she is graciously storing it for me. she's a good mom. 

so there you have it. another interesting week in my world. I must say that this week is shaping up to be super busy. I'm going to see Magic Mike tomorrow and I'm uber excited! a couple years ago when I was in Las Vegas I saw the gorgeous men in Thunder from Down Under and every. single. time I see the preview for Magic Mike I relive my time at that show. so much fun! 

have fun!

Highlight of the Week (#3)

there are a lot of things to highlight from this past week. the beginning of the week began with much cooler temperatures than we've experienced in several weeks. it was fantastic! along with perfect temps, we've had just plain gorgeous blue skies every day. there's nothing better than to walk outside, look up, and see the most beautiful blue you've ever seen...and not a cloud in the sky! 

right outside the garage is a big, beautiful gardenia bush and the blooms started appearing just this week. the smell is so heavenly. *sigh* I just adore it. 

two of my favorite TV shows, The Big Bang Theory and Revenge, had new episodes this week and they were both fantastic. sadly, these shows will be disappearing for the summer in just a couple of weeks. but, I suppose that's alright...I mean, summer's a great time to get outside in the evenings and do lots of fun things. one of my favorites that I'm looking forward to enjoying this summer: mini-golf. I love to mini-golf even though I'm really not very good. 

finally, it was my birthday yesterday. even though I don't like the number I turned this year, I am thankful for the many good things in my life. and, not only did I enjoy a free ice cream treat on my bday, I got to spend it with some family members...the most fun people I know!

enjoy your week everyone!

Something Wicked This Way Comes...

so for the last few years my family has gathered at Disney for a weekend in October. we dress as Disney villains (because what's more fun than being a baddie?!) for the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. as there are generally 9 of us who attend, we manage to make quite a statement walking around the park. not only do we compete to see who collects the most candy (my uncle, aka Syndrome from The Incredibles, won this year), but we also compete to see who gets the most picture requests (again, my uncle won this year...gack!). it rained on us this year but thankfully it was only for the first hour or so. 


the other big event we attend on this auspicious weekend is the Food & Wine Festival at EPCOT. now, this is perhaps my favorite special event that happens at Walt Disney World. who doesn't love to eat and drink their way around the "World"?! it rained on us. again. but we managed to enjoy ourselves in spite of the nasty weather. the only thing we really missed out on over the weekend was some pool time because yes, it rained all day Saturday too. though the young ones (6 of us) did hang out in the hot tub a little at night. in the rain. and that was kind of fun.

to recap the weekend: trick-or-treating in the rain Friday night. playing games and drinking in the room all day Saturday. eating and drinking around the "World" Sunday. yep, I'd say it made for one memorable weekend. and Monday when we left, that's right, bright blue skies and lots of sun. go figure. 


below are just a few interesting pictures from the weekend:

rain, rain...

the rainy season here in florida has definitely been apparent this week. lots and lots of rain...every, single, day. I took some pictures of an approaching storm across the lake; then went outside later and took some great shots of the raindrops on the flowers. seriously...beautiful stuff. I love the macro setting on my camera!!!