Ding-Dong the Dish is Down!

Since we've moved into the house there was one thing that bugged me. No matter how good the house looked on the inside or even on the outside, one thing constantly plagued me. It ruined the whole look of the house, in my opinion. 


You see, we have this yellow ranch surrounded by trees and plants and flowers. We have woods in our back yard. Everything is really serene and peaceful, except that until this morning, there was a big, honkin' satellite dish on our roof! I can't tell you how much that bothered me, especially because we don't have satellite tv - we don't even have cable! (We watch everything via Netflix, Hulu, etc...) But my wonderful hubby scaled the roof this morning and dismantled it himself even though we were told by the previous owners that since it was professionally installed, it would have to be professionally uninstalled. Well, I guess Kevin is a professional then because he had it down in no time! I am so excited! 


So now the contraption is in our basement. Not really sure where to go from here with it. Is it possible to sell it on ebay? Can someone even use it again? Maybe someone would want it for some sort of technological, artistic sculpture? Is that the kind of thing that can even be thrown away? 

Goal List #1

I usually look at the first couple weeks of summer as a time for unwinding, relaxation and, dare I say it, a bit of laziness. But once July rolls around, summer becomes a time where I can get things done. I've come up with a few jobs to tackle for the time being:

1. Organize/clean out closets and cabinets

2. WEED!

3. Trim the bushes

4. Write poems

5. Add more decorative items to the house

I figure that's a good jumping off point. I'm especially looking forward to starting my organization project. I feel physically better when everything is in it's place. I get a kick out of chucking things that are of no use anymore. And I enjoy donating clothes and accessories that can benefit others. I also like the nostalgic feeling of going through various items and recalling memories associated with them. 

So let the games begin! 

Flashback to Fifth Grade

Today I got a wonderful opportunity to visit with my fifth grade teacher. I absolutely loved this woman. She made fifth grade one of my best years in school. I thought she was so cool. She had her ears pierced twice and drove a red pickup truck. She once danced the funky chicken while leading our class down the hallway. She got me really interested in poetry. In short, Mrs. Matarese rocked. 


I couldn't believe she remembered me too. She knew my name right away and as much as I hate to admit this, I was in the fifth grade seventeen years ago. Yikes! It was such a terrific feeling to be able to tell her how she impacted my life and how she has influenced my career. I can only hope that one day one my students would feel similar about me. I'm not sure if I'd be lucky enough to see them seventeen years later, but who knows? The universe is full of mysteries. 

Day 2 Of Camp

I'm seriously loving this summer job. The kids are really great, and the other counselors that travel with them are enthusiastic and helpful. My yoga space is really nothing more than a glorified storage shed, but somehow it works. I love that the little ones give hugs when they leave, I love that if kids see me walking through camp they'll call out, "Hi Yoga Lady!", and I love that the 3 I had at the end of the day for electives wanted to do "squish ball" for me.


I'll explain.


At the end of any yoga class there is this wonderful resting time called Savasana (the Sanskrit term) or in English, Corpse Pose. I definitely think "savasana" has the better ring to it. Anyway, for the kids, instead of having them just lie there, we do something called Squish Ball. All it really entails is taking a giant exercise ball and rolling it over someone's back and then down again. It seems really simple, but the kids go nuts for it. Almost all of them have been saying that was their favorite part of yoga. And honestly, it does feel really good! It's kind of like a mini-massage. So when one little boy today chimed in, "now you should get squish ball because you're the teacher", I thought it was incredibly sweet. 


I honestly think during the school year we should implement Squish Ball into our classrooms. Not necessarily every day, but maybe after something stressful like a test or a presentation. I'm always trying to look for new ways to incorporate yoga into school. I really believe it's so important because kids get stressed just as much as adults, and as they get older they just get subjected to more and more pressures. It's good for them to learn tools to help at an early age. 

Like Death and Taxes

Weeds. Again. And quite frankly I'm surprised because leading up to this summer I took all the proper precautions to make sure I wouldn't spend hours and hours of back breaking work pulling them out. We dug up all the existing weeds with a fabulous gizmo called a "hula hoe" that was given to me by my mother in law, then we put down something that was supposed to prevent weeds from growing back, and lastly that very same day, we mulched. It vastly improved the look of the yard. However, as I walked around the house today, to my horror I saw those little green beasts sprouting up again. 

So I guess it's inevitable. Weeds grow and you just need to pull them out one at a time, breathe, and do your best not to be overwhelmed with them.   

Gratitude

Today was my first day teaching yoga at the camp. I have to admit, I was a little nervous. I know I shouldn't be, but any time I'm venturing into the unknown, I always get slightly worried. Luckily, I was able to pull of few yogi tricks out of my sleeve and by the time I actually got there this morning, I was feeling much more confident. 


It turned out to be a great day! It was really interesting and to be honest, tiring - but in a good way. I've never taught practically 6 hours of yoga in one day before, and to kids of all ages. I had pre-schoolers all the way up to girls heading into ninth grade. I enjoyed each group, even the twelve rambunctious six year old boys...whoa!


So right now I am just feeling very grateful. I'm grateful that I am able to have a cool summer job, doing something I absolutely love and am extremely passionate about. I always look at my personal yoga teachers with such awe and admiration. I realized today that I've been doing the kids yoga thing now for nearly 6 months. I really am a yoga teacher too. I want to give my husband a huge thank you because without him, this wouldn't have happened. I had always toyed with idea of getting certified to teach kids yoga, and back in the fall I researched and found a program. I was still holding back though. I said it was the cost of the program, and that was probably part of it, but I also think I was a bit frightened and nervous of the unknown. But thanks to a lot of encouragement and support, I'm making a dream come true. Thank you, Kevin.

I Call Him Al

I think I  need a new iPod. My iPod, aptly named Al Podcino, is not doing well. For a while he hasn't been able to sync with my itunes, probably because itunes has evolved past him. (He was born in 2007, during the first generation of nanos that came out in colors.) He had a recovery a few months back and I was able to reset his factory settings, but I have no such luxury this time around. It's so hard to say goodbye. We've gone through many great times together, but I think I need to start looking again, unless an electronic miracle happens and brings good ol' Al back from his technocoma. We'll see what happens...

This summer is becoming...

a retrospective of the 90s. I feel like all the media I've been ingesting lately has come from the decade I consider my "growing up" years. Yesterday I watched My Best Friend's Wedding with Rebecca while reading bridal magazines (yay!) and then later on Kevin's instant Netflix choice was Dumb and Dumber. You don't get more 90s than a Jim Carrey comedy. Fun fact - that movie was the first one I saw in theaters with only friends and no parents. So while it is an absolute ridiculous and sometimes disgusting hour and forty some odd minutes, it will always hold a special place in my heart. 


Also from the 90s - Bec brought over old book series we used to read like The Babysitter's Club and Goosebumps. Classic! And now after flying through Mary Ann Saves the Day in, oh, like an hour I want more 90s classic reads! In fact, I want more 90s. If you can think of any good, solid 90s movies, tv shows, songs or books that you enjoyed when you were younger, send them my way!

Oh Bagel, where art thou?

Last night I had my first meeting for the camp that I'll be teaching yoga at this summer. It was pretty fun- I met a couple of nice girls and I really started to get excited about working there. I think it's a really good gig for the summer. The meeting however spanned over dinner time- it was from 5:30 to 9, so I had leftover pasta at 4 as a super early bird special. Naturally, when I left the meeting several hours later, I was starving...


On the drive home I decided what I really wanted was a bagel. Nothing fancy, plain or whole wheat, with a nice, thick layer of cream cheese. I pulled into the Dunkin Donuts near my house. The only bakery items left were a couple of sorry looking croissants and some plain stick donuts. No bagels. 


I move on down the street a little and pop into Cumberland Farms. Sure enough, they had cream cheese, but no bagels. They had loaves of bread, English muffins, even 100 calorie flats, but no bagels!


At this point it's about quarter to 10 and I simultaneously can't believe I can't find a bagel at this hour and also can't believe I'm trying to get one with such vigor. I finally head further into town to the Star to buy good ol' Philly cream cheese and Thomas's bagels.


Now you may think why didn't I just give up my bagel quest and settle for a snack at home like microwave popcorn or cereal? The answer to that is the complete satisfaction of biting in and experiencing all the creamy deliciousness. Any of you who have craved something and then eaten it know that there is quite no other food experience like that...getting something you truly desire. So the moral of the story is, don't let anything get in the way of you and your snack. I figure, that's one of life's great pleasures. 

"Sorry I'm not home right now..."

"...I'm walking into spiderwebs..."


Not only are these lyrics from No Doubt's incredibly epic album Tragic Kingdom, it's what happens every time I step out into my yard. I have an army of spiders that live around my house who make webs in virtually every nook and cranny they could possibly find. It's a little icky to be honest. I know spiders eat mosquitoes and other pesky insects but I find the urge to wipe them out whenever I see them, but just when I think I've cleaned them all out, a whole other spider condominium complex gets built up in its place. I suppose that's the trade off for having tall, green, leafy trees around. Is there any way to get rid of webs and have them not return? How do I make my yard an undesirable neighborhood for prospective spider homeowners?

***

And in a trip down memory lane, I am very happy to discover that Netflix has Dawson's Creek now available on streaming. It's totally different watching this show as an adult. Who knew that Dawson's dad was such a fox? I totally don't remember thinking that when I was in the eighth grade when the show came out. I love the smattering of old songs from my high school days that play throughout the show - Savage Garden? Hello, 1998. The only HORRIBLE and I mean horrible thing is that there must have been some sort of licensing problem with the theme song, and the show does not open with Paula Cole's "I Don't Want to Wait". I mean, come on! Still enjoying myself though, despite the fact that I have a sudden urge to smile with only half my mouth and use big words. 

What's Cookin'?

One of the perks of being at home in the summer is that I can make more complicated dishes. Today was rather overcast and the heat wave has not yet approached, so after spending a relatively cuddly day on the couch, I wanted a yummy, hearty, Italian dish.

Baked Rigatoni in a Bechamel Sauce with Spinach and Mushroom:

This little number was full of cheesy and buttery goodness.

This is a take off on a Giada de Laurentiis recipe from the original Everyday Italian cookbook. (Thanks Ipsi!) I know Giada isn't everyone's favorite, with her semi-pretentious pronunciation of everyday word's like "spaghetti" and "mozzarella" but I like her and her recipes always seem to be sure-fire hit. I added my own special touches, and made some replacements of ingredients based on what I had in the house and it came out dee-lish if I do say so myself. And at least Kevin seems to agree. 

Second Summer Begins...

Hello again dear reader(s),


There is more than one of you right? :-)


Today was the last day of school and I'm actually a little bit sad about it. I miss the kids already. They really were such a sweet group and one little girl's tears almost put me over the edge. I guess it's a sign of doing a job well done if there are students that don't want to leave the 6th grade. You don't really hear that every day. Still, it's very difficult to say goodbye to them. It's probably one of the toughest parts of teaching. 


I wanted to have something really exciting to talk about today but my afternoon/evening went as followed:


1. Lunch with Rebecca


2. Snuggle-time with hubby


3. 3 1/2 hour nap 


4. Mini marathon of "How I Met Your Mother"


5. Frozen yogurt at my new favorite place that I've been to 3 times in the last week


Come to think of it...that doesn't sound half bad.


Let the summer begin!