still daddy's girl?

Aside from the fact that I've never called him "daddy", I'm sure family would agree that I am definitely still my dad's girl...

My mom would probably say that I've inherited my dad's tendency towards the obnoxious.

In fact, I think relatives have referred to it as "obnoxious compulsive disorder".

(And proud of it!)

think spring

As I sit/lay home from school on my 2nd day of absence, I can't help but wish we were beyond the flu season. And with the blue sky and sunshine, my soul aches for warm days.

dad's 60th surprise!

About 24 people gathered together to surprise my dad on Saturday at our house with a spectacular shindig to rein in the good times to come!

Although Aunt Nancy and the southern family were unable to attend, they sent this special collage poster; I think if you click on it, you'll get a bigger version. But, for humor's sake, my aunt had me create a speech bubble for her (back in her baby days) to tell my dad his shorts are pulled up too high!

THANKS TO EVERYONE! You really made it a night to remember for my dad. And Dad, just remember Ali's comment-- She couldn't remember whether you were turning 50 or 60. :)

what's the key to keys?

An incredibly simple post to end a long, but productive day...

As I gazed at Jenny's keys dangling from the ignition of her car while she pumped gas on our way home from belly-dancing bootcamp, I realized how much her house key resembles my own house key. And then I pulled out my own keys and began an assessment of the various differences purposely put into each key in an effort to make it unique-- from the edging patterns, to the groove depths and widths. But then I wrapped my mind around a couple of questions that I cannot seem to escape... How do keymakers know whether or not they've created a certain "pattern" previously? How do keymakers know what other keymakers have created? Could my house key fit into someone else's front door?

who's hiding there?

Yet another place for the mischief-maker! Of course she's the only one able to fit under the new shelving unit, so it's likely to become a new stalking spot. Lucy has been driving me crazy lately, running wildly about the house and getting into troublesome places (such as behind the computer, getting trapped and also shutting the computer down in the midst of my work). But, I'll never be able to resist her precious "mew"... Actually, it's more like "MEEEWWW".

poetic ice

"There's a certain Slant of light, Winter Afternoons-- That oppresses, like the Heft Of Cathedral Tunes--"

-Emily Dickinson

c-c-cold as ice

cuddly computer companion

Miss Lucy nearly always keeps me company while I work/play on the computer. She is, by far, our neediest cat... and I *love* that about her! "Pet" names (ha ha) include "Purrball", "Lucerloo", "Looloobee", and many more. It does make one wonder... is Lucy needy by nature, or perhaps by nurture?

valentine surprise

Usually I find Valentine's Day somewhat obnoxious, leading to greed among the youngsters. However, today, my first graders were absolutely fabulous. We had created our own Valentines in class, homemade with a nice message written personally to each student. They checked off names on a class list as they finished the cards, to be sure everyone got one. So, when students opened up their Valentine bags today, I was delighted to hear them reading their cards aloud, smiling at the kindness of the other children. A couple of them were *so* attentive to reading each and every word that they were the last ones to make their ice cream sundaes!

cosmo, the skijoring wonderdog

These photos are a bit old... Now, Cosmo wears his booties out on the trails! At first he walked like his legs were giving out (since he was completely weirded out by the strange fuzzy things on his feet), but then he got comfortable with them. We think it's because it's been SO bitter out, and he *must* like having something on that warms his paws. Anyhow, these pics are from a couple of weeks ago (the first skijoring attempt). Ali, too, has posted some photos from the outing! As you can see, Cos can be quite a booger.

the proposal production

Check out Ali's blog to see what we were busy with last night, and Glen gives a great blow-by-blow of his anxious moments and super-sleuth plotting skills... Glen recruited us to play a MAJOR role in his proposal to her! He called me last Tuesday and since then we were plotting. Last night, while he and Ali were out, we took over the numerous things he'd left in our back room (we left a key out for him on friday), and we set up her house (after glen called and said it was "go time")... We set up the cool schwinn cruiser bike with 2 dozen white roses and champagne and a trillion candles, with Itunes playing Diane Krall on repeat! Then, we took the 20 bucks he gave us and went down to Gordy's Bar (just down the road from Ali's) to wait. Glen said that they'd have us over to celebrate, or, if she said no, he'd be joining us for a beer... Thankfully, she called and was ecstatic! She couldn't believe how sneaky we all had been. When she opened the door of her house, her first thought was that it was on fire in places. :) We were actually very relieved that the candles hadn't started any fires, as it took them a lot longer to get there than the 45-min. window we'd been given... The candles were probably lit unattended for about a half an hour (a "don't try this at home" adventure)! Anyhow, so we went over to drink champagne, play Scrabble and Euchre, and celebrate with newly engaged Ali and Glen... Woo-hoo! Congratulations, friends-- We are SO happy for you guys!

a new hobby

Last night was our first night of Bellydancing Bootcamp. Ali, Jenny, Becky, and I received personalized instruction from Marie of Beledi Global Dance Center (since we were the only ones in the class!). There are a couple of other interested teachers, and some others have asked when our recital is! :) I enjoyed pinpointing my individual muscles, trying to isolate them from others. For example, there are times when you use only your upper abs or your lower abs. And a lot of the moves are simply switching from the left side of the body to the right (it's a lot harder than it sounds, right, Ali?). I also enjoyed using muscles that don't often get a workout-- such as my shoulder muscles and butt muscles (how do you spell "gluts"?).

Super Tuesday

On this day, I thought it would be appropriate to share a political cartoon with you...I think if you click on it, you should be able to see a bigger version? If not, click here.

On a personal note, I'm anxious about the long evening ahead, as poll results come in!

And now, for an amusing political tale... Last night I had decided, in my pre-primary excitement, that I would partake in the campaign calls for Obama. So, I logged into the website and retrieved a list of Colorado voters. My first call was to a gal named Heidi. A gruff man (who I'm imagining may have been her father?) answered, I asked for Heidi, and he asked who was calling. So, I read my little call script, identifying myself as a supporter of Obama. The gruff man then said something close to the following: "Listen here, Erin, you make sure you take me off your list and don't ever call again, or I will go out of my way to be sure that I do everything in my power to vote against you and your people." Needless to say, my first call became my last.

the pizzazz pizza oven

I must admit, we were slightly skeptical when we received the Pizzazz pizza oven for Christmas as a gift from dear cousin Sarah and her hubby Mike, but we took it for a test run this evening with two frozen pizzas... cheese for me, pepperoni for Bryce. AND, the results are in-- neither of us have *ever* tasted frozen pizza SO good. The crust was delightfully crisp!

So, in yet another entry that acts as a product placement (also see "hmmm..."), the Pizzazz does indeed get our vote. Thank you, Sayrah and Mikhael!

White Pine Stampede

Bryce raced yesterday in his very first 10K cross-country skiing adventure! Ali and I caught up with him at a few spots on the trail, even though we "hootie-hooed" at the wrong racer at one point...




















I'd say he even looks refreshed! Actually, we went out for more skiing at Sand Lakes afterwards, trying out the skijoring gear.

the village flock...

...of wild turkeys!







I have spotted these buddies numerous times throughout the last 6 months or so, wandering the streets of Kalkaska.





Today I just happened to have my camera with me as we drove by them, only a few blocks from home. :)