I HAD A DREAM

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It officially feels like autumn in our neck of the woods. I run the heater in my car in the mornings and the a/c in the afternoons, leaves are are turning gold, and I keep passing trucks of freshly harvested potatoes on the highway. 

These are also harbingers of college football, Andrew's sacred hunting season, and the school district's week-long week off for spud harvest. I love spuds. If southeast Idaho was given a week off of school for harvesting bowling balls, I'd love those too.

So anyway, I had a dream the other night that was truly horrifying.

Andrew was trying to kill me. With a knife. I had to protect myself curled up beneath a couch cushion.

What spurred this, I have no clue. You Freudians out there might argue that it was an expression of repressed feelings of anger or hostility toward my man. Or that I feel I am being controlled or victimized by him in real life.



Whatever.  Anyone who knows Andrew Ashmore wouldn't believe it for a second. Just look at that face!   

Then I had to wake up and act normal around him. Ha. It's amazing how real dreams can feel sometimes. Like the time I dreamed he drove our car into the river, and then I spent the next morning angrily lecturing him on the evils of reckless driving. Poor guy.

On top of everything, this haunting images happened on the eve of his 27th birthday. Then I woke up and was all whimpery over what possessed him to attempt slashing me to pieces! I thought he loved me!

My poor husband can't catch a break. 

I guess that's my whole story. Andrew hates me and wants me dead. Have any of you had dreams so realistic they affected your emotions the next day? 

BEE-THEMED CLASSROOM {freebies!}

This year, I wanted to have a bit of a theme for my third graders. I didn't want to give up my September sunflower door, so I thought adding bees to the mix would mesh nicely.

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You may recognize the hanging beehive I made from THIS post.

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The kids made their own sunflowers and wrote things that make them happy on the leaves. THIS little gal wrote: "my hores make me happy," until I made her fix the spelling.

This is the display that greeted my new students by the door...each of their names written on a cartoon bee.

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FUN FACT: This phrase comes from the fact that bees actually have little sacs behind their knee to store pollen. That's where the good stuff is.

In the classroom, I added a bee themed sign above the birthday cupcakes.

And labeled the class jobs chart: Hive Helpers.

Here is where the "bee" happy bunting hangs above my desk. I made flags with scrapbook paper, color printed text, and an Internet found clip-art bee. Then, I strung ribbon through punched holes in the top corners. 
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Easy peasy.

And I revamped my writing center area with bee-patterned cloth, a sunflower border, and my favorite part: beehives for each phase in the writing process. Each child has a bee clothespin with their name on it that they move according to where they are on their project.

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I'll post more on this later with free downloads for my teacher followers who are interested.

I also made several variations of slips I can randomly place on desks looking especially neat and organized...a behavior I definitely want to encourage! Maybe I'll include a little treat too.

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(Drones are male honeybees that forage for pollen.)

Here is a similar one I made for a simple, quiet recognition of those especially kind acts I see around the classroom.

Desk Drone certificates for Bee-themed Classroom

You're welcome to a download if you could use them too. Just print and cut into strips.

Caught Being Nice

Print, cut, and enjoy.

HOUSE UPDATE {bunches of beginnings}

Hi, friends!

Here is a picture I took of the house last week. It's all wrapped and prepped for stucco.

The sidewalks and driveway are prepped for concrete.

The garage is poured and pretty. 

The living room fireplace is framed.

The beginnings of plumbing have cropped up...

As well as electrical...

...And heating and ventilation.

It was especially exciting to find a stack of newly delivered windows learning against the garage one day. 

The windows have since been installed. Do you like my kitchen skylights?

This is the most updated picture of the exterior so far. I'm loving the look of the windows!

Next up: Concrete will soon be poured for sidewalks, the driveway, and the porch cap. And as soon as we get the front door installed, it will be STUCCO and STONE TIME!!

KITCHENS

Source: rehkamplarson.com via Rachel on Pinterest

I've had kitchens on the brain lately: cabinets, counters, wall colors, back splashes, light fixtures, and appliances. After hours of research and deliberation, I think I've got our new kitchen pretty much figured out:


*White cabinets and dark wood floors...no question. 
*Oil-rubbed bronze fixtures...to pop against the white cabinetry. 
*Dark, dark concrete counters...because they're cheap. And cheap is good. Except for the island, that is. The island will have a butcher block top. 
*Stainless steel appliances...because they're pretty, and apparently, I'm a glutton for punishment. 

{I once worked as a maid and am no stranger to the elbow grease required to clean stainless steel.}
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*And pale, pale blue-grey tile backslash...because Andrew is being difficult.

Source: rehkamplarson.com via Rachel on Pinterest

Here's another semi-close version of my vision. 

Source: 3.bp.blogspot.com via Rachel on Pinterest

This would be my first choice. I am in LOVE with this kitchen...the white back-splash with a dark green-grey paint behind it. *sigh*

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Unfortunately, Andrew HATES white back-splashes. I never would have expected him to care so much about tile...but he does. "It looks like a grandma's kitchen." He won't budge on this point. 

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He's just lucky he has dimples. That's all I have to say about that.

Source: nestegg.typepad.com via Rachel on Pinterest

But light blue is okay too...as long it isn't baby boy nursery blue. It has to have a lot of light grey in it. 

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Is this back splash not the coolest? Its coolness level probably puts it out of our price range, but I can dream anyway. 

So...any thoughts? Does this color scheme work? And the BIG question: Is the blue neutral enough for resale in a couple years? 
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Also: Lots of updated pictures of the new house to share! I'll post soon.

MISS GRUMPY PANTS SAYS SORRY

Source: jimaiemarie.tumblr.com via Rachel on Pinterest

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SOOOO...I was just reading over a post I wrote this weekend about my pet peeves. 
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Afterward, I was, like:
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YIKES. 

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I sound like a really. angry. person.

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I had Andrew read it and give me his opinion. He said he didn't like it and it didn't sound anything like me. "Usually, your posts are all upbeat and laughy."
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(That was a direct quote.)

Well, I'm glad he doesn't think it sounds like me, because I sure don't think I'm a total downer all the time.

Looking back, It must have had something to do with the fact that: I wrote the post while I was miserably sick with a high temperature, irritated that it was keeping me from my long to-do list, home alone all day, and really, really grumpy. 
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And I guess that leaked out in my writing. 

So anyway, if you read that post with all my most negative, loathsome thoughts smeared around in a whiny hissy fit, I hope you won't hold it against me.
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I promise to try and keep my future posts as upbeat and laughy as possible.


Most sincerely,
Rachel

AT GROUND ZERO

This sculpture sat just outside the World Trade Center before the attacks. What was salvaged was put on display here in Battery Park. It was sobering to see the painfully obvious damage inflicted to metal. Gashes, dents, and gaping holes covered the whole thing.

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The afternoon lighting makes it difficult to see, but just in front of Andrew,  an eternal flame burns from the cement circle in the ground.

Later that afternoon, we arrived at Ground Zero. This is the fire station literally across the street.  

I'm bummed this picture is blurry, but here we are at a memorial stretching along one side of the building. 

I can't even describe my feelings upon seeing the actual spot this occurred. It made it too easy to visualize the devastation an attack like this would have on the surrounding city blocks and the hundreds and hundreds of people on the streets, in the subway, and in the buildings. It must have been truly horrifying...as we know it was. 

Standing there, the reality of it hit me like never before, and I was reliving newsflashes of hordes of people running for their lives through the streets of Manhattan. I spent the next hour with a lump in my throat.  

It was here, that we met this gentleman. Yes, he may have been a little eccentric, but I was very grateful we did. 

After learning these tourists were from Europe, he proceeded to pull out a tattered binder full of pictures that he used as visuals to eloquently and movingly recount the entire story of the attack...all from the perspective of a New Yorker. 

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He directed his speech at the young boy in the blue hat there, because he especially wanted him to understand the significance of what had happened that day. 

After describing in great detail, the New Yorkers' reactions to the initial plane, how the falling towers destroyed surrounding skyscrapers, and the chaos that ensued as the people tried to escape, I started thinking that this was powerful stuff and I should be recording it! 

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Sadly, this is the tiny bit that I was able to capture near the end. He went on to describe the future of Ground Zero after I stopped recording.

That skyscraper in the middle will be known as One World Trade Center. I believe it is only a little over half-way built up at this point. It is going to be HUGE. 

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To be finished in 2015, it will be tagged as the tallest building in America at 1,776 feet.

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As for the actual two sites of the towers, memorials were unveiled today that sit within the footprints left behind by the buildings. We were sad to have missed it by only a month. When we were there in August, it was all surrounded by fencing. 

The twin reflecting pools are about an acre big with the largest man made falls in the country (30ft) cascading down their perimeters.  Names of all those who lost their lives that day are inscribed along the edges.   

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This picture lets you see both pools from above and the crowds gathered for the ceremony today. 

Each year, I teach my class a little bit about what happened that day. Of course, I don't want to traumatize the kiddos, but I think they need to understand the basics and what an impact it had on our country. I'm surprised each time, how little they actually know. 

It's hard to believe my third graders weren't even alive when September 11th happened! Crazy. And it was one of the most memorable days of my entire life...

PET PEEVES

My list:
1.) Talking/laughing during a concert, movie, play, performance, speech, Sunday school lesson, etc. Others are trying to listen! Are you not aware that it is distracting and rude? Did your mother not teach you this when you were, like five? It drives me absolutely crazy.

2.) Bad Parenting: Now, I don't go around critiquing everyone's parenting skills. Heck, it's not like I've had a whole lot of experience yet. But there is one thing that always makes me cringe.
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For instance, we've all seen that child at the grocery store who asks their parents for something, are told no, and then proceed to throw a tantrum. But isn't it common sense, that a parent giving in at this point, is training the child to throw a tantrum every time they want something?

If I scream loud enough, mom'll give me anything I want. That's what they are conditioned to think.

However, I see parents give in just because they want the screaming to stop. LAME. Then I get them in my third grade class, and have to deal with these whiny outbursts myself. That is, until they learn it will get them NOWHERE with me.

3.) Poor Grammar. I realize that I am not perfect. I hate catching myself screw up "your" and "you're" or "they're", "their", and "there." But there are a few grammar rules my mom drilled so thoroughly into my head that there is no escaping my battiness when people mess them up:
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You may be good at golf, but you play golf very well.
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You are NOT, "doing good," you are, "doing well."

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You don't, "got to," you, "have to."
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You don't, "got something," you, "have something."

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You are not "done." The bread is "done." You are "finished."

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When you answer the phone:

It's not: "This is her." It is: "This is she."

And as I often hear in Idaho:

"I says to my brother..." should be, "I said to my brother..."

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And it's not "we was," it's "we were."


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4.) Gossip. "...I love her to pieces, but..." "...She's super nice, but..." What a guilty pleasure gossiping is! I hate how easy I succumb to it, and how uneasy I suddenly become around anyone else doing it. If they talk like that about Betty, couldn't they easily talk like that about ME?
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5.) Packing up early. Let me expain: It's the very end of Sunday school, and the teacher is wrapping up the lesson with the most important part: their testimony.

And yet, I often seem to miss it.

Why does everyone around me choose this moment to noisily snap shut their books, zip up their scripture cases, and gather up their bags? Just wait another second!

6.) Twisty ties. I throw them away immediately upon opening a bag of bread. Talk about a pointless waste of my time!

7.) Cruelty. I don’t understand it. Have a heart, you bullies, you!

8.) Worms after rain. In Idaho, it is especially bad. After a spring rainstorm, I can't even walk on the sidewalk without squishing something. YUCK.

9.) Phone etiquette. I hate it when I am on the phone and the person I'm on the line with keeps having conversations with people around them. Half the time I don't know if they are talking to me, or to someone else, or even if they're listening to a thing I'm saying.

10.) Drama. You know those people who always seem to be in a crisis? The melodramatic is what they thrive on...what makes them feel alive. If they don't happen to have any real turmoil going on, they'll stir it up in those around them. I even had a friend who would simply fabricate it from her imagination. As adults, this got old real quick.
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We're not in high school anymore.




11.) Insincerity. Don't say it if you don't mean it, please.

12.) Slow drivers. I don't speed. I will set my cruise control to the exact speed limit (even in town) every chance I get. Sure, I get those who like to go a few miles over, whipping around me with a glare every so often, but wasting money on expensive tickets just doesn't appeal to me.
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So, if there is someone driving slow enough that even I am frustrated, there's something wrong with that. Going thirty-five in a forty-five zone will make me irritated with you.

WEBSITE WEDNESDAY {jolleyonmovies}

Then you have to check out THIS site!

Let me explain why I love it:

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1.) Its snarky synopses and movie reviews hold just the right mix of the profound and the cynical to keep you entertained and informed.

2.) Movies geared toward all ages and interests are included: action, sci-fi, romantic comedies, children, movie adaptations, new releases, old classics, and even TV series.
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3.) Not sure if that show will be appropriate for you or your family? Find out the reasons behind those ratings.
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4.) Can't find the specific show you're looking for? No worries. Click on the "requests" tab and fill in your suggestion.
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5.) The site may also be run by my lil' sis. But WAIT! Don't be so fast to roll your eyes. I promise I'm not biased! This girl can write. I wouldn't post about it if I didn't sincerely think so myself.
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6.) If anything, the clever writing will make you laugh out loud. It's seriously hilarious.


GO AHEAD! Browse around for your next movie rental, and give her some blog love while you're at it. Let her know where you came from too. I am SO going to be the favorite sibling after this.


P.S. You can also like the Facebook page HERE.

MANHATTAN TEMPLE

Our first day in New York, Andrew, Mom and I decided to attend a session in the Manhattan temple. It was at the top of our list of things to do, and Becca would be at work anyway.

After taking a subway, we walked over thirty blocks to get there. 

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We figured it was worth the trek. 

It was surreal to see an LDS temple in the midst of the taxis, skyscrapers, and general chaos. And we were so excited to go inside to rest from the heat, humidity, and loud, busy city!

This is us pouting after the front-desk security guard informed us it would be closed until next week. 

We were sorely disappointed. 

The plan was to wear our church clothes that day because of the temple  in the morning and the Broadway play in the afternoon. But with no temple session to attend, we were pointlessly dressed fancy for NYC sightseeing instead. Ugh.

I though we might stand out a little bit...but I didn't realized how much until a group of guys stopped us in Central Park.

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They wanted to know if we were Jehovah's Witness missionaries. 

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Ha! 

But apparently, the Jehovah's Witnesses' worldwide church headquarters is in Brooklyn. 

I guess you could say that Watchtower is to Jehovah's Witnesses as Temple Square is to the Mormons. 

Anyway, has anyone out there actually made it inside the Manhattan Temple? Was it quiet, or could you hear the honking traffic and construction from in there? I was curious about that. 

*If you are curious about Mormon temples, you can read more about them HERE.