the best way to spread christmas cheer...

is singing loud for all to hear.

I started hanging lights

but decided to take a few pictures instead

until recently I never realized how much I loved the photos that

 used to hang in my dad's office

now one is mine, and hanging some winter cheer around the frame

 just makes me smile

december first is tomorrow - let's do this.

lately...on instagram

I've been enjoying these things lately.

trees & turkeys

pups & thanksgiving

twinkling lights & luna

meg, her pink hair & pyrex

what have you been enjoying lately?

small business saturday

so let's get out and do some shopping ladies!

support those small businesses we all love

and, not that we need one more reason to love either west elm or etsy-

but I'll give you one more...

and this year I am lucky enough to know one of the local etsy shops

that will be featured at my west elm here in roseville, ca

so if you are in the area - go check out Jaymee Srp from Retro Menagerie

who will be selling her prints

here's a peak at her holiday collection

so, if you love etsy & supporting local businesses as much as me

go check out your local west elm

December 1st, 2011

from 6-9pm

each store will also be decorating a christmas tree that will then be donated

to a local children's charity!

win-win for everyone

just because I enjoy it

Pyrex

Because I just like keeping things pretty around here, I'll save you from the Pyrex stories for each piece.  However, if you're into that kind of thing, I've posted more about it over at the Pyrex Collective II!

sunday's "so they said" on monday...again!

today was my first official day of thanksgiving break

and I've been enjoying my time off already

yesterday morning the husband and I went for a little walk...

to the doughnut shop!

not a bad start to the day

we also visited our favorite antique mall

where I found some pyrex treasures I'll be sharing soon!

we ended the day by strolling the mall

and getting some coffee, so not a bad end to sunday either 

This week was pretty fun with my kids.  When doing a pre-activity with them to teach them the frustrations the writers of the Constitution had while drafting, I was called a name that I will use as this week's "so they said".   Instead of jumping right into the Constitution we spent the first part of our day trying to vote on a Pandora station to listen to in class for the day.  We went through the formal process of voting, but what they did not know is that I rigged the game so that they would never reach the nine votes they needed to reach a consensus!    After several proposals and the equal amount of rejections (and the tensions & frustration level highly elevated!)  we reflected on the activity where I was called...

"an evil genius"

Well, thank you.  I take that as a compliment.  

I also had one student, who I may let you know has been "identified" with oh so many "labels" tell me...

"so you just spent more than half of this class period making a point?"

Yes.  That is exactly right.  And I don't feel bad about it, not one bit!

To my teacher friends out there - enjoy our first, very well-deserved, break!

vintage birthday gifts are the best

last night we celebrated mom's birthday

before I went I snapped a few shots of her gift

now she will have two Enid Collins for her vintage purse collection

these purses are amazing - period.

inspired...yes

It is funny how once you get out of school, meeting friends is a very different process.  The way you make friends can get pretty creative.  This particular couple, Geoff & Lisa, were friended by the husband and I in a very strange way indeed - we shared the same wedding photographer!  Turns out, they also happen to be wedding photographers and we met them when the husband surprised me with a first-year anniversary shoot and they were there, with our wedding photographer, to second-shoot.  We hit it off pretty instantly, and even though we all have pretty busy lives, we still get to see each other for some good-fun shenanigans.

So, I'm getting to the point, I promise.

Day Sixteen - Who Inspires Me

Geoff & Lisa of The Goodness

Not just for their awesome photos they capture of their couples

or their ability to cook from scratch like its nobody's business

but also for this - the darn cutest photo shoot I've seen

and tying it all together with a pretty little bow

they took these photos for their 2nd Wedding Anniversary

go figure!

If you want to see more of their "Up" inspired photos go check out their blog

And yes, there is an "Up" house - in Utah

Photos by Blue Lily Photography

(who also happens to pretty inspiration, and super blog-stalking worthy!)

day fourteen - favorite movie

this is a real hard one... so let me give you two.

Almost Famous 

image here & here

The story of a young girl who travels with a rock band.  It's hard not to fall in love with this storyline.  I first saw this movie in college and have been enamored by it ever since.

A League of Their Own

image here & here

A movie about a girls professional baseball league that also happened to have just about the cutest uniforms you could imagine, and inspired by true stories = favorite movie of all time.

Funny thing I just realized, I have been both of these leading ladies for Halloween!

sunday's "so they said"

this wonderful three day weekend I've had quite a bit of time on my own

so what better thing to do than taking a little afternoon stroll...with my camera

and now on to some sunday business -

this week was filled with lots of grading

here are two things that were "said" on paper, and cracked me up, and scared me all at the same time! And one classroom question I had to keep a straight face for!

one of the essay questions I asked students was what event they thought had the biggest impact on getting the colonists to enter into war with England...here was one response:

"The boston tea party had the greatest influence because they got tired of the tea."

Sounds like a good reason to go to war.  I'm not a big fan of tea either.

And I also learned some geography facts:
Asia is now apparently a country.

My favorite question from the week:
"Is Martha Washington the wife of George Washington?"


Really?  I mean, REALLY?  I kindly responded yes, and that I blame your first grade teacher for that one!

Pretty proud of the above three quotes, and that brings me to...
day twelve: what I'm pretty darn proud of
Well, it's pretty clear I'm not going to say the above knowledge that was displayed this week.  At least they are trying, and I do remember that they are thirteen, and so I just smile when they have a "moment", even though it hurts me inside just a tad.

But, in all seriousness, what am I proud of.  Hearing that my class is an 8th graders favorite class to go to, who is a self-proclaimed "hater of history", that is a moment to be proud of.

Also, the fact that I taught a teenager Martha Washington was our first President's wife.  Hey, at least she got it before high school!

love me some...

day eleven: I sometimes always crave

image here

day twelve: blogs that inspire me

rockstar diaries

I'm not a mormon blogger - but I'm pretty into this one!

the dainty squid

her hair, her style, her overall awesomeness

her library adventures

the thrifting, the design, & pyrex = daily reading

ten on ten - november

 happy ten on ten

previous ten on tens here