This & That

Proud Mama

That's me today.  Last night I had a School Committee meeting and afterwords I was able to have a GREAT talk with Jacob's teacher.  I love his 4th grade teacher.  I really think that she has become both a great mentor to Jacob, but also a good friend of mine. 

Having that open relationship with his teacher has allowed me to really see what kind of student he is in a truly unique way.  I am sure that this knowledge will help Dean and I guide him through his own education in a more insightful way.  For that I am truly grateful.

In addition to having a great chat, his teacher shared with me a piece of his writing that she really enjoyed.  I made a copy of course ;) and want to share it with you!

It goes as follows:

I have a very special hero and I know he can't fly or run 100 miles per hour but he is still my hero.  His name is Andrew.  He introduced me to hockey.  Without hockey I wouldn't know Stevie one of my good friends.  Andrew taught me all about hockey and he is much older so you would expect him to be very mean but he is one of the nicest and funniest people I know.  That is why I follow in his footsteps.

How cute is that!  Andrew is my 16 year old cousin.  He really is a great kid and I am proud that my son has found a great role model.  Of course I immediately called my aunt and read this too her.  She loved it too of course.

I just wanted to share that.  Sometimes it's the little things that make such a huge impact on your life as a mother and give you great insight into your child.  This short writing exercise means more to me than he will ever know.

I am heading to work tonight and then tomorrow I am having a "pto finances meeting" with two of my favorite ladies, Kathy and Renee, to get some work done and I am sure there will be some silliness.

ps.  aren't you impressed by my lack of huge gaps between blog entries???????  :)

Set your DVR's!!!

Why?  Because I am going to be on TV!!! 

It all started two weeks ago when I got an e-mail from Jayne asking me if I was interested in doing a segment on a local TV show.  Somebody from the show came into the store and asked if anybody would be interested in coming on the show and doing a feature on handmade Valentine's cards. 

Seeing as I am the local expert on kids Valentine's cards and I have a class coming up specifically for Kids Valentine's Day cards (still a few spots left!), Jayne asked me if I would be interested in doing this.  I hesitated for a bit and then said, "Sure, why not? If it is going to help bring the store some extra publicity, I am game!"

Last Wednesday I packed up my Kids Valentine's Day card samples and some "sophisticated" card samples courtesy of miss jenn and headed down to the Cape Cod Community Media Center and taped a show called Homefront with Melanie Lauwers, Book Editor for the Cape Cod Times; Gwenn Friss, Food Editor for the Cape Cod Times and Alicia Blaisdell-Bannon, managing Editor for the Cape Cod Times. 

I had a great time!  Everyone was super nice and friendly and best of all they thought I did a great job...phew!  Initially, I was really nervous.  The 26 minute segment went by in a FLASH!!!!  I couldn't believe how fast it went.  It seemed like we had chatted for maybe 10 minutes and all of a sudden out the corner of my eye I could see the director giving the five minutes sign.  I could have gone on talking for AT LEAST another 20 minutes :)  I have never been know to be a person of few words.  Hey, at least there weren't any awkward silence moments!!!

The show is set to air on Monday morning at 9:30am and Tuesday night at 7:30pm on Channel 17 in the mid-cape area.  If you are not in the area and you HAVE to watch this episode you can access "Now Showing" via the internet using the above Cape Cod Media Center link. 

IF you would like to set your DVR to record this program (if you are Comcastic like I am) so that you can watch it over and over and over you can turn your TV to channel 17 and press the record button.  This will bring up a screen that allows you to put a specific time/date to record on this channel. 

I don't know if I am actually going to watch this show.  I might just have Dean watch it and then tell me that I did fabulous and leave it at that.  :)

Aside from being a TV star (hahahahaha) I have been pretty busy with work and just the general daily duties of a devoted wife and beloved mother of two sweet baby angels.  (hahahahahahahaha)

Hope everyone had a great weekend and is well rested to start the new week. 

WOW

That is my word for today!

What a historic day today is.  Political beliefs aside, right and left leanings left at the door, today is an incredible day.  I am truly excited to see what this man has in store for us and wish him the best of luck with these incredibly challenging times that are ahead. 

Today has been a very busy day for the nation.  In my own tiny little microcosm there has also been LOTS going on today. 

I spent some time at the school today trying to put some of my ducks in a row and making a coffee run for special people ;)  Tonight is another big School Committee meeting where, hopefully, the final decisions will be made as to how the district's elementary schools will be restructured.  The issue of what schools are to be closed needs to happen ASAP.  Our students, teachers and parents need to know what is in store for them to begin to plan for the future. 

People, in general, are uncomfortable with uncertainty.  This process of budget cuts and restructuring has left a cloud of uncertainty over our schools since the beginning of the school year.  I am hoping that tonight the uncertainty will come to an end and we can all start to move forward and get to work.

We need to make sure, first and foremost, that our students will get the best education possible and secondly we need to make sure that our teachers are fully appreciated and given the respect that they deserve. 

Big things going on!   

Like I promised!

Here are some videos of the kids (and Betty Moo Puppy) skating on their very own ice rink.

No Audio

Memory Lane

It snowed today. 

It snowed a lot today.

I had some unexpected free time to occupy.

I finally scanned and uploaded some of my old photos from my days at BU and even before then! 

Here I am at my 8th grade graduation with my Mom & Dad.  (This one's for you dad!)

I did my hair all on my own too!  That bang was ALL THE RAGE!!!!

In addition to scanning in all my old photos, including my absolute favorite baby picture of Jacob on his first birthday, I thought I would scan in Jacob's latest Hockey pic. Take a look at these two photos together. 

Doesn't your heart break for me? 

Speaking of hockey...which I do all the time, I know.  We are becoming a little obsessed around here now.  Just tell me if it gets to be too much :)

Here is a pic of my cutie Julia in her very own hockey gear in front of the fireplace (OF COURSE!).  I love that she is wearing Jacob's old practice jersey / the jersey that Dean spent way too much money on when he took him to a Bruins game :)

 

Look at the pony tail coming out of the hockey helmet.....I want to bite her she's so cute sometimes.

I have lots more pics to share, but I am going to spread it out. 

Hopefully tomorrow/sometime soon I will have pics to show you of the ice rink that Dean has been diligently building in our yard.  Every night he has been spraying this "area" down with the hose and flattening it out.  The weather has been perfect for these types of shenanigans. 

In the morning Jacob has been getting up and "maintaining" it too.  They are both VERY SERIOUS about it.  All this in the hopes that this weekend they will be able to put their skates on and put a blade to ice IN THEIR OWN BACK YARD.  Skating party anyone?????????  I am skeptical but Dean never ceases to amaze me so I don't know why I even bother doubting....I think it's just my nature.

Keep warm out there! 

And these are two of my favorite things.....

I was lucky enough to receive lots of really nice things for Christmas.  Out of all of these wonderful and generous gifts I would have to say that my most favorite gifty is the maroon microfiber blanket that my parents got me.  I LOVE IT.  It feels like two blankets hemmed together therefore creating maximum snuggability.  I have been acting like a five year old and snuggle with it whenever I am hanging out on the couch.  I have EVEN been known to whine a little bit to have someone bring it to me.  I have also been seen bringing it to bed and snuggling up with it creating a formidable blanket wall between Dean and I. It's almost like I have my very own Snuggie.

It really is the simple things in life with me! 

Favorite thing number two is the Meatloaf that I made tonight!  I know that I was JUST talking about Lean Cuisine and all that, but hey, my kids can't eat SmartOnes.  I came across this meatloaf recipe about 6 years ago and I have kept the recipe pretty much the same.  It's soooo good.  I was a good girl and only had a teeny tiny piece....probably like 4 points worth ;)

I am feeling generous tonight so I am going to share with you!

This recipe makes TWO loaves!

2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeds & pith removed, chopped (unless you like it super spicy then keep the seeds and pith)
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 ground nutmeg
3 eggs (whisked)
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup ketchup
1 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
3 pounds ground beef
1 package bacon (regular or thick cut)

1.  preheat oven to 350.  In a large skillet over medium heat add the olive oil, onion, celery, garlic and jalapeno.  Cook until the vegetables are tender but not browned - about 10 minutes.  Add the salt, cumin, nutmeg and mix thoroughly.  Remove from heat.

2.  In a large bowl combine ground beef, eggs, milk, ketchup, breadcrumbs and vegetables.  Mix well.  Divide Mixture in half and add to two 9x5 loaf pans. 

3.  Open your bacon package and cut the whole thing right down the middle. If you are using thick cut bacon just layer the bacon on the top of the meatloaf in strips.  If you are using regular bacon use two pieces layered and layer the strips across the top of the meatloaf.

4.  Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until temperature is 150.  Remove from oven and pour off any fat.  Let stand ten minutes before serving.

5.  Prepare for deliciousness!

Dear Lean Cuisine,

Thank you so much for making my new favorite "Entree".  I am now obsessed with the Butternut Squash Ravioli.  It is lick-every-little-last-drop-out-of-your-little-black-microwavable safe vessel GOOD.  I would go to a restaurant and order it....for real....it's that good!  I have two of them and tonight I was thinking that I had enough points to eat two AT ONCE.  A moment of clarity came upon me and I did not GORGE myself on Lean Cuisines.  That would be sad....who overeats on Lean Cuisine?  HA - leave it to me to figure out a way.

With those shenanigans aside, tonight was a pretty big deal.  I attended the School Committee "Special Meeting" as part of the District Leadership Team (because I am on the School Council at the kid's school).  There are some pretty serious things going on in Barnstable.  In short....we have a budget deficit of 6 MILLION DOLLARS and the Superintendent is trying to figure out how to fix that.  There are a lot of talks about elementary schools closing and a massive restructuring of the district as we know it now. 

I was pretty proud of myself because I did muster up the courage to get up and speak at the meeting that was telecast LIVE on TV for all of Barnstable to see.  Dean said I did great...I don't really remember what I even said.  It must be PTSD :)  I know what I had to say was a drop in the bucket, but I am glad that I was there.  I am glad that I try and be as present and available to my kid's school as a parent can be.  I know....cheeeeezzzzzyyyy and dorky by some people's standards....but seriously, for me, it's one of the best things I do. 

Get out there people and volunteer.  It doesn't have to be at a school or PTO.  Find what interests you and JUST DO IT.  Not only will you help others but you help yourself too. 

I am now stepping off of my soapbox :)

Once Upon a Time....

I used to blog on a semi-regular basis. These days....not so much. OBVIOUSLY!  I have toyed with the idea of just canceling my blog and have mentioned it a few times to a few people and was met with PROTEST!  I do not want any picketers on my front lawn (dad) so I am going to give it another shot. 

Hopefully in my near future I will be in possession of a NEW laptop...that will make blogging much much easier.  My computer and the typepad compose feature do not get along well....I think I might have mentioned that before :) 

Lots of things going on around here these days.  My little Julia has jumped onto the hockey bandwagon and is now participating in the Learn to Skate program and LOVING it!  She told me that she wanted to play hockey (after two years of saying NO WAY) about a month after I went and traded in all of Jacob's old equipment to buy her new figure skates.   It's her prerogative I suppose to change her mind...she is my daughter :)

The holidays were very good to us.  Once again the "Community of Love" that exists between both of our families here on the Cape was amazing.

Dean was on vacation for the last two weeks of the year.  We really just relaxed around the house.  Nothing too exciting.  I worked a bit.  The kids played with all of their new toys.  We spent the New Year at a hockey family's house with a few other hockey families. 

Now we are getting back into the swing of things.  Kids are back to school.  Hockey practice tonight.  Need to start getting ready for our next PTO meeting at the school.  Dean is back to work.  Tree is down and Christmas decorations are packed away for another year. 

Maybe this whole getting back into the swing of things will inspire me to start blogging more.  Hope so! 

Sorry to desert you my little blog.  I promise to try and do better :)

Love, Melissa