BOO!

Five Little Pumpkins

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate

The first one said "Oh my, it's getting late!"

The second one said "There are witches in the air",

The third one said "But we don't care",

The fourth one said "Let's run and run and run",

The fifth one said "I'm ready for some fun!"

OOOOOOH went the wind

And out went the light,

And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight!

Have fun this week--remember, not too much candy! (this song was brought to you compliments of my childhood :)

*This is a long time coming but I wanted to send a special "thank you" Bonnie's way for the beautiful gift that will remind me of her thoughtfulness for years to come!

It's Random but, is it Interesting?

What a beautiful Saturday we've had here in Windsor--tomorrow promises to bring more of the same. I washed the windows, did some gardening, went for a run and now am delaying some studying for a quiz and exam this week! I've been tagged by Sherre to share some random and possibly interesting things about myself so,

1. I'm a notorious procrastinator! I let things go to the very end and scramble around like a chicken with it's head cut off (you can thank my mother for that image !) trying to get things done on time. Although, I have to say that since I've been back in school this year I've been much better about it.

2. I'm frugal (my sister calls me a cheapskate). I've always been careful not to spend my money on frivolous things but am a sucker for expensive perfumes. The only products I use that don't cost an arm and a leg are Bath and BodyWorks Cherry Blossom.

3. Lately I've been reading a lot of nonfiction. I can't even remember the title of the book I finished this summer because it's too long! That will change as I work on creating a library of picture books and young adult fiction. Any suggestions?

4. One of my funniest memories is a trip to Europe with my family. We always rented cars so, on one trip we arrive at the Frankfurt airport in Germany and get onto the elevator to pick up our car. Even though it explicitly states that only so many people with their luggage can get on, my mother shoves us all in insisting that it will be fine. Needless to say, the elevator got stuck and we had to wait until someone came to open it up. He pointed at the sign. My mother simply shrugged and pushed us all out!

5. I'm a nerd in case you haven't figured it out. My favourite shows are Britcoms, Jeopardy and documentaries. I LOVE the NYTimes crossword puzzle and have an oline subscription.

6. I love to sing along with anything I hear on the radio, driving my brother insane any time that he's with me because I invariably mess up some of the lyrics!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and hopefully you found this a little bit interesting and perhaps insightful into the fascinating person that is me :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, I just can't believe it's Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada. This is the longest I've gone without blogging and I knew that I had to make time today for a short update. I really do miss my posts and visiting all of you! Thanks for the kind comments and support so many of you have proffered during these few weeks--it was much appreciated.

The strike finally ended and classes resumed last Monday. The worst thing that happened was the cancellation of my 3 week practicum that was to begin this Tuesday. It has been added to the December practicum and we'll now have 6 weeks beginning November 20. I was looking forward to Halloween with the kiddies! Ah well, next year if I'm fortunate I'll have my very own class to have some fall fun with.

The week was crazy getting caught up. Most of you know just how much is packed into a semester--even moreso in my education program. So, while 2.5 weeks may not seem much to some it made quite an impact on all of us. The important thing is that we're back so, onwards and upwards.

I've been trying to get back to running. The weather has been absolutely gorgeous so I'm glad to be outdoors as much as possible. I'm just not keeping track as I was before. I hope to be able to start posting on my little calendar again. My summer garden is pretty cleaned up. I dug out tomatoes and peppers yesterday and hope to plant some tulip bulbs when the weather cools a bit--it hit around 80 today! I want to take some pictures and will hopefully be able to post some pictures.

There's a lot more I can say but I'll end now with wishes that you are all well and with the best intentions of visiting as many of you as I can throughout the week. I'll also express my thankfulness for good friends, opportunities, the love of family and too many other blessings.

'Til the next post!

I Should Be In Class Right Now!

I'm not happy. As you know, one week after classes started, the faculty went on strike over a variety of issues. While I support that right I'll now admit to getting antsy about this semester. There are only so many classes scheduled and in 2 weeks I start my student teaching. I am now beginning to wonder if that will even take place! I'm trying to keep a positive attitude but it's getting tougher--especially when I'm not hearing about them even being back to the table! Okay, breathe in/breathe out :)


On another topic, I went to Stratford with my mom and brother this Saturday. It was a gorgeous day and there was lots going on. We walked around, did some shopping and just enjoyed the scenery. In case you don't know, Stratford, ON is world-renowned for it's Shakespeare theatre festival. I'll never forget being in Stratford, England and having someone from there tell me that they thought the Canadian one was nicer! I haven't been to a play in some years but they are incredible productions. If you're ever looking for a weekend trip GO!

As for the healthy me, YUCK! I've been slacking off the last few days and it's mostly because I'm not in school. So, today it's back to my schedule without the snacking!!!!!

And finally, HAPPY FIRST DAY OF AUTUMN! I hope you all had a great weekend and are able to enjoy some fine fall weather as I plan on doing :)

No Classes For Me

Well, my classes were cancelled today due to a strike by faculty. It's very unfortunate because of the effect it has on students, particularly those of us who are in a demanding program like the Bachelor of Education. However, I support the faculty in exercising their right to strike. I just hope that there is a quick resolution because my practice teaching begins mid October! Fingers crossed.

On a positive note, I have finally managed to work in an exercise routine. I've started running again, albeit at short distances, and I'm trying to get in as many bike rides as I can while this beautiful weather holds. I've put on a few pounds--nothing drastic as my clothing fits the same--just a number I don't care for when I look down at that scale! So, now that I'm in a routine I expect (you hear me?) those pounds to go away and put me on track to losing the last few to get me to my goal.

Having had a few beautiful Indian summer days (I'll be going out this afternoon and taking some pictures of my garden) and cool nights put me in the mood for my favourite pumpkin bread. I can't remember where I got the recipe but I love it! It's moist, spicy and absolutely yummy with a nice cup of coffee. I'll include the recipe for anyone who'd like to try it out. I bake mine in the longer, narrower loaf pans because it bakes evenly without overdoing it (you know how the middle can stay raw for a long time?)

Anyhow, hope that you're all having a great week so far and that I'll be hearing from you! (P.S. How do you like the new background? I was playing with the colours and am never sure about how it comes across to readers--let me know what you think!)

PUMPKIN PATCH BREAD
1 ½ c. sugar
1 c. canned pumpkin
½ c. vegetable oil
½ c. water
2 eggs
1 2/3 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. each ground cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon
½ tsp. baking powder
½ c. chopped pecans (optional)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, spices and baking powder; gradually add to pumpkin mixture and mix well.
Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 70-80 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Yield: 1 loaf. (I have a convection oven and it's usually 1 hour baking time :)

School Daze!

Wow, first day of classes and I must say I'm pooped! There is a lot to do in a relatively short time so I'll see how my Library skills come into play when it comes to organization and time management. Today's classes were Science, Education Foundations, and Music. Last Thursday and Friday I had the opportunity to visit a local public school and sit in on the first week of classes for 5th grade and a 3/4 split. What a great experience that was as it's been, ahem, 30+ years since I've been in a public school setting. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to learning a lot!

I must say that I've been lax in the exercise department and when I manage to fit it in, I'm not getting it down on my workout calendar. I'll have to look at my calendar carefully and make sure to schedule the time for it, especially while the nice weather is still here. It was great to get responses for goals you'd like to set for yourself this month. I hope that we can all manage to keep up the pace no matter what else is going on in our lives.

So, I have no interesting numbers to report as the end of August was a bit of a downer. I'm hoping that with a busy schedule I can have good figures to share with you all at the end of this month! I hope that you all have a great week and I look forward to catching up with your blogs over the coming days :)

Happy September!

I hope that you all had a wonderful Labour Day weekend. The day was perfect here and I got in a bike ride and some gardening. My sister was visiting and left late this morning. She's been living in Illinois for over 8 years and has quite the drive home. We had a lot of fun shopping. Believe it or not, that's something that I hate doing more and more as I get older--at least when it comes to browsing. I like to go in, get what I want and leave.

Well, she insisted that we visit the MAC counter (she LOVES the stuff!) and got me set up with a few starting essentials. I've never been one who enjoyed playing with makeup and apart from some foundation, lipgloss and maybe blush, I've never bothered with doing my eyes. Well, the older I get I realize that I could use a lift in that area so my dear sister gave me some tips. I think that with some time I could look quite polished and professional!

So, tomorrow I go back to school and I'm quite excited and just a little bit nervous. Classes don't start until next week so the few days this week are mostly about meetings, some panel discussions, etc. I'll fill you all in on my experiences while in the program.

Some of you know that I usually do a wrap-up of how my month went. Well, because of my nasty bout with sinusitis I'm not going to tally up the numbers. It started out well but the exercise was missing for 2 weeks even though I managed to get some in the last few days. I'm down a few pounds (haven't looked yet--sorry Bonnie!) but I don't think I'm down by many inches.

My goals for September are to do well in school, first and foremost, then try to fit my exercise routine into my new schedule. It shouldn't be too hard judging by what I've seen so far. I would love to lose a minimum of 6 pounds but I'll be overly optimistic and shoot for 10. Any little inches can join those pounds too!

What are your goals for September? Anything new or just to keep on keeping on? I'd love to hear from you all.