If You Were At Our Table...

For the first time in months the girls and I reunited at our weekly Why Not Wednesday hub. We sat down over drinks to catch up on all our summer shenanigans and celebrate Annie's birthday. We do this every Wednesday solely for the fact that it's Wednesday. So, why not?

If you had been at our table I would have told you that...

I love summer, I'm dreading winter and yet I'm over this whole non-air-conditioned summer thing. Would it really cause Northerners that much trouble to install air conditioning? The heat is fine, and even expected when you're outside, but when you're in a classroom full of children it's a little much. I keep hearing teachers say, "Bring on winter!" and as much as that makes me want to curl up into the fetal position I am slowly starting to see why Canadians enjoy winter. You probably would too if your only escape from the heat was in the solace of your air-conditioned car. I'm not kidding, I found myself driving an extra ten minutes yesterday on my way home just to keep the cool air flowing.





On the other hand, we are under a frost warning for tonight...so I guess my complaints about air conditioning are null and void.





If you were at our table, I would also tell you that it is still skate boarding season around these parts.

Old Grey Beard is younger than she looks and will do absolutely anything if it means she can go wildly running down the street like a maniac.

I don't know who loves it more - TC or Maple. Actually, I might love it the most. I mean really, who else is married to a man that still rides his bike or skateboard on a daily basis...and then wakes up the next morning and puts on a tie to go to work?

It makes me happy.

I would also tell you about this Fall Shred I'm doing. Basically, I paid a personal trainer $30 dollars to send me a months worth of workouts and weekly menus of clean eating. So far, I've followed about half the menu and used the jump rope so much that I'm pretty sure my calves are no longer attached to my body.

The best part of the menu is the late night snack. It involves three ingredients that have never before graced my kitchen - almond milk, chai (vanilla) tea and stevia. Let me tell you, it is amazing and I crave it all day long.

If I could, I would make you a nice steaming mug of it right now and pour it right through the computer screen for you. Clearly that's not going to work, so this is what you do: boil 2 cups of almond milk, add in two bags of chai vanilla tea and a big pinch or two of stevia. Perfect for cool fall evenings!

Don't knock it 'til you try it.

Have a wonderful weekend and be sure to do something fun!

The Stratosphere of Chaos.

It's Wednesday. Typically, my favorite night of the week. However, tonight was a little on the bittersweet side.

So much has been going over the past few days. Where do I even begin?





Let's back track a bit, shall we? There are four major things that have been consuming my life in the past week. In no particular order:

1. Getting an interview for a teaching job (that isn't an ACTUAL teaching job mind you, just the list of people that could potentially get a teaching job if one should ever open up).

c. Repainting, fixing up and finding new renters for our first floor apartment (remember, we own a triplex house and our tenants of the past ten years moved out, dammit).

5. Packing up and tying up lose ends so I can leave for my summer job at camp in Maine. On Monday.

3. Fighting the most persistent and headache-inducing sinus infection this side of the Mississippi.


I don't know where 2, 4, a and b went. Into the stratosphere of chaos that I call my life, I suppose.

Here's where I stand as of this very moment: I have a teaching interview. However, during the days that I was waiting to hear word on whether or not I got an interview, I had a major meltdown. Like the kind where you question the meaning of life and consider the fact that maybe, just maybe, you should go eat worms.

During that meltdown I found solitude in the hours and hours I spent painting the entire downstairs apartment...which lead to us finally securing a new set of tenants this afternoon! Thank goodness, the mortgage will be paid.

On the other hand, I'm leaving for the summer in exactly four days and not only have I not packed one iota of clothing, I haven't even made a damn packing list or done laundry.

Also, I have enough oral, nasal and eye antibiotics to wipe out an entire country.

So. Tomorrow begins the list. Lists of what I need to get done. Lists for what to bring to the Birthday Extravaganza this coming weekend. Lists of what to pack for the summer. And, finally, lists of all the things that I need to present at my interview - in Power Point format.

Should be fun, no?





Tonight was our last Why Not Wednesday of the year. Instead of sipping wine at our usual hole-in-the-wall, we chowed down on Chinese at Jaclyn's house and ohhhed and ahhhed over baby Zara. She has the biggest smile and biggest blue eyes of all time.





We changed up our routine tonight because we had to get Jaclyn to the airport so she could catch her flight to Peru! She's heading out on the adventure of a life time where she'll spend two weeks exploring Machu Picchu, Lima and Cuzco. I know she was feeling a little jittery with all of the anticipation, but she was more prepared for this trip than I have ever been on all of my trips combined - and I'm an organized person!

By the time she gets back from her adventure Annie and I will already be galavanting through Maine. That means our weekly Wednesday meetings are on hold until September when we will all be back in town.

Oh, we will have so many good stories to share by then. Let the adventures begin.





Also, shout out to TC who has been my rock through the chaotic days. He's pretty great.

And the cool photos? Courtesy of the rockin' new app from the blog A Beautiful Mess. Search 'Beautiful Mess' in your app store and you too can have fun phrases, doodles, borders and filters :) You can even upload from there to Facebook and Instagram. Elsie and Emma are pretty talented.

Wednesdays Are My Favorite Night.

Our weekly gathering of Why Not Wednesday had a twist to it tonight. Instead of hanging out at our favorite hole-in-the-wall, The Laundromat, we went over to my dear friend Annie's brand new house! It's absolutely adorable and the space fits her just perfectly. Great layout, beautiful floors, awesome paint colors and fun art. I couldn't be more excited for her. It is a really cute house and if I'm being honest, I'm a tad bit jealous of all the fun she is having with it.





We had the full crew together tonight, but sadly the founder of our little Wednesday night group is moving on to a fun new adventure in Nova Scotia next week. We'll miss her tons, but she won't soon be forgotten because she brought us all gifts tonight. Like, reverse going away gifts so we won't forget her. Annie and I are both in the market for new teaching jobs so she brought us each an old school bell. You know the kind that sit at cash registers for you to ring when you need the clerk? That kind. As much as I would like to think it would be great in a classroom, I can very easily see it ending up next to the couch so TC can ring me when he needs his pillows fluffed or a fresh glass of water.

(I can see his feathers getting ruffled right now. I'm only kidding, honey!)





As usual, we talked about a whole lot of nothing. Work, babies, plans for the summer, how bad my calves hurt from the ridiculous martial arts/cardio class I took at the gym tonight, where to buy cute summer dresses, many tales of old injuries, and pilonidal cysts (don't google if you have a queasy stomach). Basically, the usual conversation.

{Are you going to google it?

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Seriously, don't do it.

And for the record, none of us currently have a cyst. I don't really know how it came up...

Let's pretend I never even brought it up.}

Speaking of creativity in her new house and summer plans - Annie and I will both be heading to Maine for the summer in a few short weeks. In honor of our home away from home, she made the coolest coasters to decorate her coffee table since she wanted a fun splash of color.

Can you tell it's a photo of the coaster as seen through my glass of wine? Photography at it's finest.

I'll have to get the exact details from her, but she essentially took a pieces of $0.20 tile, cut out a piece of a map, glued it on with spray adhesive and mod-podged over it. To finish it off she bought a pack of leather cut-outs for $10 and glued them to the bottom of the tile to prevent scratching.

She made several versions. Some coasters with maps, some with scrap book paper, some with pages from her favorite books, and some with a combo - so creative, that Annie!

That's all for tonight, folks. Let's hope that tomorrow I have more exciting things to report.

Seriously, don't google the cyst. If you don't know what it is, be thankful.

If We Were Having A Glass Of Wine...

Tonight is Wednesday, which means I just got home from my weekly girls night. We meet at a cute little hole in the wall called the Laundromat.

You guessed it, the place used to be full of washers and dryers but now serves a full bar and good brews. Not to mention, our Wednesday night bartender is great. He knows us by name and what we each drink. Beer for Annie, white wine for Jaclyn, beer for Ashley, red wine for me and a dish of salty cheese for the table. I look forward to hump day every week.

We chat about everything and nothing all at the same time. But, if I could dominate conversation, here's what I would tell you.

I got one of the best notes I've ever received from a student this week. Not because it was cute or sweet, but because it was ridiculous. Suffice to say that it involved the words, "im sorry i hide ur lunch in the ceiling."

Yes, middle school boys are hilarious and think it is funny to hide watermelon in the ceiling tiles.

Please remember that I work with behaviorally challenged children.

I got a new pair of cheap sunglasses this week. They're way more fashionable than I am, but I love them so much. They make me feel fun and free. Which, obviously, is the best feeling in the world.

I'm desperately trying to lose my winter weight. Every spring I seem to find myself in this same position. Maybe one day I'll learn not to gain twenty pounds every winter. Until then, I'm enjoying a lovely lunch of pineapple every day (that is, on the days it doesn't get shoved in the ceiling) and busting my tail at the gym every night.

You know you've reached a new low when a student asks if you're pregnant....and you're only preggo with a birthday cake baby.

The rowing machine? It's my new best friend.

TC? Are you there? I miss hanging out on the couch with you. 

Also, I'm in the middle of revamping my resume. It's been collecting dust for several years now and the revision process is about as fun as a colonoscopy. Not that I've ever had a colonoscopy, but I imagine they're about the same level.

On the sunnier side, we're heading to the maple sugar shack this weekend. I'm desperately in need of some time in the woods with my favorite people. It's like our annual pilgrimage for sugar.

It's a safe bet that I'll be rocking my new sunglasses.

I also just finished reading Bloom, which is a fabulously written book about a mother who's baby was born with a small surprise - an extra chromosome! Children with Down's Syndrome are so amazing. The book was a great read. The mom, Kelle Hampton, has an amazing blog that you can see here. It's called Enjoying the Small Things.

I love my Why Not Wednesdays, which is the official name for our evenings. I always bring a treat from the bar home for TC to make up for my absence.

And while I savor every minute of talking about whatever is going on in our lives, my favorite part is that it is with a group of friends that I have found all on my own. If you've ever moved to a new city, you know what I'm talking about. The friends I've made through TC are the best. Seriously, they are. But there is something about having a group of friends that have been found independently. They're also the best.

Good Lord, I'm one lucky girl.