final blog post/date night

Now that my "year of counting my blessings" is almost up I thought this would be a great time to change it up.

For date night this week Joel decided we should redesign my blog! We have been talking about it for awhile but haven't gotten to it. Of course after Joel suggested this we realized I had forgotten the camera at school. Joel was such a good sport he drove back to school with me to get it! Thankfully there were a couple people still at school, working way too late on a Friday, to let us into the building. When we got back home the fun began!

Here we are in the beginning of the design phase.

After I decided what materials and colors to use I started working on the layout. Once I decided where everything should go I sewed it all together.

Then Joel took pictures and worked his magic on the computer.

You can see Lindy hard at work in the background. She was there supporting us and offering encouragement whenever needed!

So sadly...this will be my last post here on Blogspot. Henceforth please visit me at:

www.peoplecallmeliv.com

Visit now to see the new layout! It is still a work in progress but I couldn't wait to start using it! Bear with me as I transition. I have no idea how to post on Wordpress but Joel will be there to guide me!

Thank you Joel for a great weekend. You are seriously the BEST husband ever!

Thank you friends for following me on this blog, be sure to bookmark the new blog! I hope you like our design. Joel is pretty much a genius. Every little thing I would ask him about doing with the blog he would immediately know what to do.

It was really fun working together with Joel to make it! I have loved all of our date nights but this one has definitely been a favorite.

first grade moments

So far I LOVE my kids! I have very high hopes that this is going to be a great year.

My favorite quote from a student so far happened after I turned on the quiet relaxing music that I play in the mornings while students are working. A student raised his hand (just like I taught him to) and said, "Mrs. Stewart, do you have any hip hop?"

My answer was yes, but I don't play it during quiet work time. Thanks for asking!

I thought it was cute :-) but there is no way I am playing hip hop in the morning...the day would most likely get out of control!

date night rounds 1 and 2

Date night this week was pretty low key. It was exactly what I needed after my first week at school. We ate left over tacos and started watching "Two Towers" the second movie in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I ended up falling asleep after about an hour and a half. So date night continued the following night. We finished the movie and had a delicious meal of pork chops, roasted red potatoes and green beans. The potatoes and beans were from our trip to the farmers market.

I love eating these potatoes. The recipe came from Rachel Ray. Basically you just preheat the oven to 400, wash and cut the potatoes, place them on a cookie sheet, pour olive oil over them, add salt and pepper, then I stir the potatoes around so they are evenly covered in the oil and seasoning and bake for 25-30 minutes.

I got this green bean recipe from my aunt Lynda last weekend. She served them at Tahnee's baby shower and they were so delicious! I seriously could just cook the beans by themselves and eat them as a snack. The best part is that they are super easy! Just clean and cut of the ends, put them on a cookie sheet, pour on some olive oil and sprinkle with McCormicks Steak seasoning. Bake at 450 for 5 minutes, take them out and shake the pan, cook for five more minutes and enjoy. The hardest part about making these for me was making sure I didn't eat them all before Joel got to try any!

enjoying the moment

As part of our farmers market adventure I wanted to bike around that area and over the stone arch bridge with my mom. It was part of my "dream" for the morning. Let's just say that my great expectations of the morning almost prevented me from enjoying the moment as my plans didn't quite work out as envisioned.

First off, Joel thought he would have the car for going kayaking but I needed it for my bike. We worked it out, he came with for the biking and farmers market and went kayaking later.

Then we got to the Nice Ride hub to park and get my mom a bike and realized we didn't have enough quarters for the meter, but then I asked the homeless guy near by if he had any we could exchange for and he had one so that bought us some extra time. Then the computer that you use to rent the bike wasn't working very well. We finally got through the process but didn't see the code for unlocking the bike...ten minutes later after speaking to a company rep on the phone we got the code to unlock the bike. Finally we were ready to go! Joel went to put the quarters in the meter and the meter ate 2 of them! So now we only had enough to pay for 30 minutes. We decided to go and have Joel return early to move the car. Then I had a slight emotional moment (which wasn't fun, but I don't want to get into it...lets just say I am switching depression meds and feel a bit crazy at the moment). Thankfully we worked through that and got to a docking station for my mom's bike. We put it in and were going to get another one but the computer station there wasn't working at all and wouldn't give us a new bike. A few phone calls later we were told to walk back to the station we had started at to get a new bike! We decided to just to head towards the farmers market with my mom on the bike and me walking. Joel headed back to the car hoping he would get there before receiving a ticket. After he left I realized that I had another quarter in the storage on my bike...it made me laugh...I had stopped on a bike ride last month to pick up a quarter thinking it might come in handy some day...like today if I had only remembered it!

By this point I was a little frustrated and sad that the perfect picture I had created in my mind for the morning wasn't quite working out. I was able to let it all go and decided to just enjoy the moment for what it was. It was a beautiful day outside, I was with my mom and Joel (two of my favorite people) I was in a great part of the cities surrounded by people out enjoying themselves and on the way to a farmers market.

After we went to the market we were able to get another bike for my mom and my dream of biking over the stone arch bridge with my mom was realized after all! Thank you to Joel and Mommy for your patience with me that morning. I hope you were able to enjoy yourselves as well!

farmers market

While my mom was here this weekend we went to the Mill City Farmers Market which is between the Mill City Museum and the new Guthrie theater. What a fabulous location for spending a Saturday morning.

Stuff I bought:

garlic sourdough bread

honey

red bell peppers

potatoes

green beans

zinnias

ground beef

cantaloupe

Rasperry Pepper Jam

When we left my money was gone and my bags were stuffed! I couldn't wait to use all of my fresh produce to cook. I get very excited about cooking when I have delicious ingredients to use.

this is what I am intending to make:

stuffed bell peppers

Lynda's green bean recipe

roasted red potatoes

mashed potatoes

put honey in fresh mint tea and homemade bread

I hope that we go back again soon. I am definitely looking forward to apple orchards this fall so that I can bake apple pie and apple crisp!

twas the night before school

Instead of going to bed early or spending my last minutes prepping for the first day of school, I choose to stay up a little bit past my bed time to try to bless others. On my way home from school on Tuesday I stopped by Target to pick up some bread and items for my lunches at school. I stopped by the flowers and thought how sweet it would be if Joel got me flowers, but knowing that I had the car and he had been busy this week, I knew getting flowers was an unlikely event...so I decided to buy myself the flowers and give him the credit! Thanks Joel, they were just what I wanted!

When I got home I thought it would be nice to share my flowers with the three girls on my grade level team, and then I thought it would be nice to give some to my director and the front office staff as a thank you for all their work, but then I kept thinking of all of the people I work with and how nice it would be to surprise them with some flowers in the morning to wish them a great first day. So I got out all of the jars from our wedding and got to work splitting up the flowers. I also grabbed the tags that I use for labeling my items on etsy and wrote them each a little not thanking them or saying kind words etc. I decided to give all the boys on staff a card because I didn't have quite enough flowers and I don't really know how boys feel receiving flowers any ways.

So with $10 of flowers and about two hours of work I came up with this:

As I put these together and while driving to work I prayed for my school and co-workers. While staying up past my bed time might not have been the best idea, I think it was an appropriate way to get ready for the new school year as it is my goal to encourage and uplift my school this year in any way I can. Join me in encouraging others this week and in praying for my students and school if you are the praying type!

first day of school

I survived. It went well. I am hopeful that this will be a great school year. I am also completely exhausted and about to get ready for bed. It is only 8:50. How sad is that!

homemade spaghetti sauce

I have been collecting the tomatoes from my garden for weeks planning to make something with them. They continued to sit there and taunt me. I had NO idea how to make anything with them and I don't know how to can anything. Thankfully my mom saved the day. She sent me the recipe for her spaghetti sauce. I continued to wait, hoping to build the confidence and have time to make it. But I finally did it this weekend because my mom was here to help me!

First I chopped the tomatoes and boiled them until they were soft

then I chopped 3 peppers from my garden and in a separate pan cooked them in 1 cup oil, added 1 onion and some garlic

thankfully my mom was there to encourage, guide and stir!

Next we combined both mixtures, added 1/3 cup sugar, some basil, oregano, salt and pepper along with 3 cans of tomato paste (*see note in recipe below) and cooked for 30 minutes.

It smelled so wonderful we could hardly wait for the noodles to cook in order to eat it!

It is SO delicious I could eat it for every meal...but Joel says no!

Spaghetti Sauce

1/2 bushel tomatoes, (boil until soft)

Dice 2 or more green peppers, onion, garlic

1 cup vegetable oil

Cook in separate pan; when tomatoes are done, add two mixtures together plus: basil, pepper, salt, 1/2 cup sugar, oregano, (3) 12 oz tomato paste (* I only had one 12 oz can on hand so I used that and added one can of tomato sauce)

Cook for 30 minutes; pack in jars. Freeze or consume.

The other fantastic thing about this recipe was that after boiling the tomatoes I was left with a lot of tomato broth which I used to make a veggie soup! Also quite delicious!

Thanks Mommy! I love you!

congrats Jenny and Bart!

While biking with my mom we came across some notes written in sidewalk chalk to a girl named Jenny. We thought they were encouraging notes to someone running a race and thought they were sweet. Later we saw a guy wearing a tux standing in a large red box with a bow on it at the top of a hill and a sign pointing for Jenny to go up the hill. We realized Jenny must be on a scavenger hunt for her birthday with a proposal as the ending gift!

I thought it was the sweetest thing! My mom and I were scanning the crowds hoping to see Jenny on her quest! I wish that we could have stayed longer to see Jenny go up the hill to meet Bart but I felt honored to have witnessed a part of it! I don't know you, but congratulations Jenny and Bart!

sister!

I was very busy this last week preparing for school by day and hanging out with family by night! My dad and baby sisters came up from Chicago and Tahnee came down from Brainerd. We all met up at Lacey's on Tuesday and Wednesday evening. I love when we can all get together but it definitely makes me wish we all lived closer so this could happen more often.

Wednesday morning Tahnee came to school with me to see my classroom and to meet my co-workers. We decided to dress alike since we don't actually look like twins at all. We are nerds but it was fun! It felt like we were 4 again wearing the same thing!

The next time I see Tahnee I will be meeting her baby girl! I can't wait, and neither can Tahnee!

*No I am not pregnant, I am just mocking her stance in the photo!

Joel said I could start another project since the house is clean...

I bought these flower shaped bowls at Savers last week but didn't know where to put them. Then last night I came across a bar of handmade soap that I had gotten during a gift swap and it gave me an idea. I could redo our bathroom and then I would have the perfect place for my bowls and my soap!

I knew that Joel was going to be gone all day, out with his college friends for their annual golf event, so I decided to redo the bathroom as a surprise for him. Here is the blah beige before:

After a biking back and forth to target and menards for supplies and a few hours of work here is the after:

It is all finished except when Joel gets home he will be helping me install the new faucet.

I was going to try to do that myself but I decided that if I didn't do it correctly my "surprise" for Joel might not be as fun since the whole idea was to do all the work rather than making a mess he has to come take care of for me. I hope he likes it!

hallelujah

While this picture might not look like much to you, it is a sight for sore eyes for me. I have not seen an entirely empty floor in front of my washer and dryer in months, seriously. Some of it was things I brought home from school to wash over the summer and never got around to. Who knows what all was piled up to be washed but now that it is all done I feel a new sense of freedom. I am posting this as a reminder to myself how good it feels to have it all done...and also maybe as inspiration for you to do the same!

date night

By the end of this week both Joel and I were exhausted. When I got home from school on Friday I crashed on the couch. He woke me up from my nap to suggest we just order chinese food for dinner and stay home and watch a movie. While that idea sounded wonderful for my tired body I wanted to preserve our date night tradition of doing something out of the ordinary for us. So we ordered chinese, picked it up and had a picnic dinner at a park near us.

It was a perfect evening out. The sun was setting and families were out enjoying the last few hours of daylight. Some were fishing, playing basketball or enjoying a picnic of their own.

since I posted last

It has been a few days since I posted...here are photos to summarize what I have done in the past week:

I enlisted Joel's help to get the top of my table attached and then I sanded it.

I came across this old church cook book and found this recipe for cookies that didn't have butter/dairy in them

They were delicious. I substituted butterscotch chips for half of the chocolate chips because I didn't have enough. Also I didn't include the walnuts because nuts should be optional when baking...I always opt out!

It made 4 dozen cookies. I shared them with Joel and with all of the staff at school. I went back to school this Tuesday. I can hardly believe my summer break is over!

I do a lot of my teaching in this area so I decided I wanted a cute chair to sit on. I went to Savers, of course, in search of a chair to paint or reupholster and found this wood one. I liked the simplicity of it and the spindle carvings on the legs and chair back. I spray painted it aqua and for $6 total had a new chair.

Last but not least I painted and brought the completed table to school. I think being able to bring my new table to school to see how it looks in my classroom helped me to have something to be excited about when I returned to school on Tuesday. It is already loaded up with art supplies and ready for kids to come be creative (hopefully they won't spill to much paint on it, but I guess that would just signify being well loved and used!)

Now that my classroom it cute and organized I will begin my actual teaching prep work which is of course more important but I needed to ease into the school year by doing the fun decorating part first.

I still have a couple items left on my summer to-do-list but I figure that since I don't actually teach students until September 1st I still have a little bit of summer left to finish.

hope you liked your present Joel!

Today Joel got to take his new kayak to the lake for the first time! He was very excited and visited three lakes before choosing the one he wanted to play in! I sat in the car patiently as he looked at beaches and finally chose the one that fit the vision he had for his first time out. It was really cute!

Pushing off to begin his maiden voyage.

Me relaxing while Joel was out playing.

Visiting me post-paddle. He was VERY happy!

He sent me out to try it. We are still trying to decide what type of kayak to get for me. His was really nice!

Here is the video of Joel rolling his kayak for the first time. He did great, the only problem was that his spray skirt kept coming off as soon as he flipped over...he successfully rolled 4 times, each time the skirt was unsuccessful so we might need to buy him a different one.

kayak demo

Joel has been wanting a kayak for a long time. Growing up he and his friends would kayak the Poudre River in Colorado. He has been missing the river since moving to Minnesota so about a month ago I agreed that we should get kayaks. Joel has been doing his research ever since then. On Thursday we went to a kayak demo hosted by Midwest Mountaineering at Lake Nokomis. We were able to try out several boats and we both really liked the Daggers.

After the event we went to Midwest to look at a few other boats that weren't at the demo. When we arrived there we saw they were having a event to celebrate winning Backpacker Magazines "Retailer Of the Year" award. There was music, food and prizes. We had been planning to go out to dinner but since this was free we stopped by. The first thing we did was spin the wheel to win prizes. I was hoping to win a water bottle, since I can never have to many of those, but won a spork instead. Then Joel stepped up and used his normal "wanting it real bad" strategy and won the grand prize $100 gift certificate!

So we went inside, used the gift card and a 20% off coupon and bought Joel his very own kayak: LiquidLogic Remix 10.

We didn't have our roof rack on the car yet so we had to go back the next day to pick up the kayak. Now Joel won't be jealous every time we see a car with a kayak on top!

last date night of summer

I was hoping to get the Marque in this picture to show we went to the movies but oh well, I like this picture of us so I will share it with you! Date night this week was Joel's choice. We went to see "Inception". I was worried that it would be too scary for me but it wasn't really scary. It was very twisted and thought provoking and a fun evening for us. We are still discussing it today. I will not spoil it for you but you should see it!