Last Instructional Week of School

I had a busy day today. It happened to be my last Monday of the school year, which, coincidentally, was also my last day of lunch duty! Hurray! So, here are the things I've done today: woke up at 6 am and got myself and Colin ready for school. Then I taught 5 classes (if you count showing a movie as teaching), served my aforementioned lunch duty, and picked up Colin from Trojan Tots. Keith picked us up and we took Keith back to work and then I dropped Colin off at Aunt Erin's (where I also got to check out her cute nursery and try her homemade wheat bread).

From there, I headed to a doctor's appointment (don't worry, all is well!), rushed to convocation where I lined up students, fixed graduation caps, straightened tassels, collected gum, and directed them into the auditorium, and then finally got to come home. At home, I cleaned the kitchen, made lunches for tomorrow, and spent some time job searching. I wanted to make some cookies, but didn't realize that we were low on flour. Boohoo.

I am finally, just now, sitting on the couch, feeling a bit bummed about job prospects and dreaming about summer. It is so close I can taste it. Please pray for me about the job stuff. I am feeling a little nervous about being able to find something and I feel like I want a change, but I really need some leading...

Summer Break and Baking

I cannot tell you how excited I am for this school year to be over. It has been a pretty good year and I've had a pretty good bunch of students, but it is definitely time for a break. I am looking forward to sleeping in till, wait for it, 8:30!! (I know it doesn't sound late, but compared to 6 am, 8:30 am is a little miracle.) I am looking forward to spending all day with my son, going to the park and the pool. And, I am looking forward to time for baking.

I love to bake. I know it is probably not that great for my hips, but it really relaxes me to try out new recipes, to peruse recipe books and look for things that either sound yummy or interesting or that I've never made before. I've been reading this blog "The Smitten Kitchen" and she really inspires me with her recipes, photographs, and the creative twists that she puts on the things she bakes to give them her own flair. I am jealous of people who get to stay home with their babies and pursue hobbies that they love. I also want to try take some really nice pictures of the things I make.

Like this: (Doesn't it look good??)

Here are a few of the things I want to attempt making this summer:
1. Homemade poptarts - my husband loves the store bought kind and I think they are gross, but then I saw a recipe for homemade ones that actually looked appetizing. I thought I'd make them for him. Aren't I a good wifey?
2. Lemon bread - I have a weakness for anything sweet, lemony, and ewwey gooey. This recipe looked awesome.
3. Beef Bourguignon - Julia Child's recipe. I got the recipe book for Christmas and want to try out some of the recipes. This one looked especially good in the movie Julie and Julia.
4. Something chocolately delicious - I haven't decided on this recipe yet, so if anyone has any suggestions for the best chocolately thing they've ever eaten, feel free to send it my way.
5. More varietys of homemade baby foods for Colin - I got a pretty neat book, but haven't had the energy after work to actually make him much of it. I know he likes the veggies that I've made but I want to try some other things too.

Ok, I guess that concludes my list. If anyone else wants to send me some other things to try out, I'd be glad to take suggestions!

Professional Portfolio

I created a website for my professional portfolio. Take a look and let me know what you think!

http://web.me.com/heathermudd/Heather_Mudds_Portfolio/Welcome.html

Colin's First Steps!

Colin took his first steps yesterday! He was two days shy of 14 months and we were wondering if he was just going to walk on his knees for the rest of his life when he surprised us by taking 4 big steps towards his ball.  Keith ran and grabbed the video camera and we got some good shots of him walking back and forth between us. He is still really unsteady and won't do it without us standing really close by, but he's walking!

Check out the video for evidence: Colin Mudd's First Steps

Right now, he is hanging out in his crib jabbering away instead of napping like he is supposed to. Maybe if I leave him in there long enough, he will pass out. Hopefully...

Decisions

I am so looking forward to this weekend, even though it will be a weekend filled with decisions to make about future plans. It has been a LONG week at work. My kids finally finished The Great Gatsby and are taking their unit test on the book today. I think most of them ended up liking the story and enjoyed doing their final projects, especially the presentation part since I teach a bunch of hams. I am glad to have the book done and am SO happy that I only have 13 days left of school.

Tonight, Keith and I are taking Colin to the FSU baseball game and relaxing. Then, for the rest of the weekend, I will be working on making decisions about future plans. The first thing that I really need to work on is getting my resume up today and in order. I am also going to create an online portfolio to send along with my resume so that future employers can check out sample lesson plans, handouts, work samples, etc. I will also be job searching, applying for jobs, and sending out inquiries.

The second thing I need to decide is summer plans. I have to decide where I am going when so that I can buy plane tickets. This may be the more difficult of the decisions to make because I have a few places that I really want to go but don't know if they all will be possible. I hate making hard decisions!

Ah well, I best get started if I am going to get anything done at all. When I've got my portfolio website created, I'll post a link and you all can tell me what you think!

Mother's Day Weekend

Just thought I'd write a little about my mother's day weekend. I decided that I needed to take Friday off since I had an awful week, finding out that I wasn't reappointed at school and then some student breaking my nice director's chair, etc. A couple really great teachers volunteered to cover my classes, which was so sweet, so I was able to have a long weekend and leave early for my mother's day trip. We had planned to take our last trip to Disney as annual passholders this particular weekend.

Also, Keith and I decided to try out a weekend without Colin and let him stay with his Grandma and Nanny overnight. I know, strange weekend to be without my son, but we knew that we probably wouldn't be taking anymore big trips any time soon and we wanted to start having some longer stays away for Colin before the extended stay he would have with his grandmas when Keith and I travel to Paris in November.

So, we packed up the car and headed to the Boardwalk Disney Resort on Friday morning. We got to Orlando around 3 pm, which is the earliest that we have ever arrived for a Disney trip, so we decided to hang around the resort and take advantage of the amenities. First we relaxed by the "quiet pool" and went for a little swim. Our room looked out over the pool courtyard, so it was a really nice view. Here's a picture of Keith at the pool:

After relaxing at the pool, we decided to stroll the boardwalk and check out the little shops. When walking toward the Beach and Yacht Club, we noticed that one of the paths looked familiar, so we decided to check it out. Well, it went straight to Epcot! We could walk to Epcot from our hotel! So, since we were there, we decided to spend the evening at Epcot. We toured the countries, had egg rolls in China and School Bread in Norway, and then decided to take the ferry boat back to our resort. That's right, not only could we walk there, but if we got too tired, there was a ferry that would charter us back and forth!

The next morning, we checked out the map and decided to walk (yes, we were that close!) to Hollywood Studios for extra magic hours! We got there around 8:30 am and went straight to the Tower of Terror! I LOVE that ride! It was so fun! We got right on the ride because the park was only open for resort guests, so there weren't many people there. From there we headed to the Star Wars ride, Star Tours, and both got a little sick from bouncing around the galaxy. Here's a picture of Keith geeking-out:

From there, we headed to the Toy Story ride, which was a blast, literally. It was a shooting game and I am proud to say, that although my accuracy was less than Keith's, my points were higher and I won the game!
After Toy Story, it was time to head back to Epcot for my "birthday-mother's day-teacher appreciation" lunch reservations a Le Cellier Steakhouse in Canada! I was thrilled to be able to eat here because, not only was Canada the only place in Epcot I had never eaten, but it was also the most difficult reservations to get in all of Disney! The food was wonderful! We had lump crab and sweet corn custards and Canadian cheddar cheese soup as appetizers. The New York strip steak topped with bercy butter and potato gratin was for me and Keith had the mushroom fillet mignon with wild mushroom risotto and white truffle and herb butter sauce. It was all SO delicious! The steaks just melted in your mouth and you barely needed the knife to cut them! Then for dessert, we shared the chocolate on chocolate whiskey cake, which they brought out on a cutely decorated plate for my birthday. Here's a picture: (ignore my hair, please!)

After lunch, we road Soarin' and then decided that it was so hot that we needed another swim in the pool, so we headed back to the resort. After a swim break, we ended the evening at Magic Kingdom, riding everything from Dumbo to Haunted Mansion. We made the rounds and then crashed back at the hotel after a long, but WONDERFUL day!

Oh, I forgot, it was also the garden festival at Epcot, so here is a picture of a really cool Chinese Dragon that is created entirely out of plants:

Sunday was our last day at Disney, so we decided to round out our trip by visiting Animal Kingdom. We had a blast watching the Lion King Show, riding the River Rapids, and watching the Jungle Parade, but were soon ready to head home. We had an amazing and relaxing time, but missed our boy. It was fun to get home and see his face light up. He was so excited to see us that his Grandma couldn't even finish buttoning the pajamas she was putting on him because he was scrambling to try to get over to see us. He gave me a big sloppy kiss before practically vaulting into Keith's arms, ready for Daddy to show him things up high and help him turn on and off the lights. Colin did great with his grandparents though. We had good reports from both Grandma and Nanny that he was on his best behavior and ate, played, and slept like a champ. I was so proud of him for doing so well on such a long weekend away!

Here is a couple other pictures to end this post. The first is the cutie plaque that Colin made for me at school for mother's day:

 
And the last is a good picture of my new haircut. I decided to cut my hair off in celebration of summer! What do you think??

Well, see you all later and I hope that all my other mommy friends had wonderful mother's day weekends also!

Sweet Treats

Yesterday was the official Teacher Appreciation Day and I had a surprisingly, in light of previous events, good day. My mom started the day off right by bringing me Starbucks, and a grande no less! She also brought me some beautiful red roses and a box of cupcake truffles, which were picked out by my dad, so it was a super nice morning. My students were all very good for me yesterday also. They are devastated by the news and have started a petition and a facebook page to "Save Mrs. Mudd". In spite of their efforts, I am pretty sure it will have no effect on the administration. Its nice to know they care though.

Then, during 5th period, my wonderful husband stopped by and brought me flowers, daisies and carnations in the cutest vase, and a BIG sugar cookie and card. My students went crazy, telling me how sweet that was, and wanted to read the card and all told me how much they appreciated me. It was nice. Then, after work, Keith took me to Kohls and bought me some new clothes (some cute jean capris and dress shirts for work) for Teacher Appreciation/Mother's Day/Birthday celebration. It was fun!

On top of that, I made a super fantabulous dinner last night! We had turkey burgers and parmesean crusted steak fries. Yum, yum. I'll include the recipe, in case anyone is interested in trying them. They were so so so so good.

Turkey Burgers:
1 pound ground turkey (I didn't get the lean kind because it has less fat and the burgers aren't as juicy)
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1/4 cup guyere cheese (or mozzarella works well too)
1 clove of garlic minced
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive Oil for the pan

Mix the turkey, bread crumbs, dijon mustard, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper together in a bowl. Mix just until combined. Over mixing will cause the turkey to dry out and the burgers to fall apart. Form into 4 quarter pound patties, making a small indentation in the center of the burgers so that they will stay flat when cooking, instead of puffing up in the middle. Heat olive oil in your skillet over medium heat. Cook burgers in olive oil over medium heat about 5 minutes per side or until burger is cooked through. These burgers, because they are poltry must be cooked until well-done.

Serve on bun with mayonnaise, tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, or any other toppings that you like. I do not prefer ketchup on these but Keith likes mustard.


Parmesan Crusted Steak Fries:

4 baking potatoes
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Parmesan Cheese


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash and cut the potatoes into long wedges. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and peper, and toss to coat completely. Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until potatoes are cooked through and crispy!


Enjoy! :)

Teacher Appreciation Week

Just thought I'd let everyone know that I've had a great start to my Teacher Appreciation Week. I was handed a pink slip this morning and told I would not be recommended for reappointment for the 2010-11 school year. He also had the gall to say that it was due 70-80% to budget cuts. Well, what happened to the other 30%????

Thanks, thanks a lot. I am glad to know that I am so valued.

Dedicated to Shannon, Maddie, Cupcakes, and FSU Baseball

I thought I'd post some pictures of my last (for a month or so) get together with my friends, Shannon and Madeline. Enjoy!

We went to Lucy & Leo's Cupcakery and over indulged.

My cupcakes:

Shannon's cupcakes:

Both together:

After cupcakes, we looked around the shop and found the cutest-ever (till Shannon made more!) headband for Madeline:

Isn't she a doll??

Colin wasn't to sure about all the girly stuff: (But Mommy had a great time!)

After a day with the ladies, he was ready for a ballgame, so Keith and I took him to see an FSU baseball game. I love love love going to baseball games. They are so relaxing and Colin is surprising well-behaved at the games. I think he likes them a lot also. I hope one day he wants to play baseball. :)

Here are some photos from the game.