my favorite time of year

Hello friends...

I know we've been a little negligent about posting around these parts, but the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are typically very hectic, especially with me taking classes again.

All that to say, I've finished my first of two papers and am taking a bit of a breather today, which brings me to the subject of my post today.

This is most certainly one of my favorite times of the year.

I love getting together with family and friends and eating and socializing.

I love the conclusion of a semesters worth of learning (especially when the papers actually get done on time!)

But perhaps most of all, I love the Scholastic Warehouse Book Sale!

This is the time of year when Scholastic opens up their warehouses across the country and teachers and book fair volunteers get to come and purchase from their overstock for over half off the cover price in many cases.

One of the primary reasons I really appreciate this sale is because I have been able to find a number of very good books that I would not have read otherwise.

At the Scholastic Warehouse Book Sale, you may find a book that looks interesting and since it's half off you don't feel bad about throwing it into the cart and trying it out.

Well, the pie is done and it's time for us to get going.

Have a happy holiday season and a

Merry Christmas!!

The Star of the Show...

...at least in my eyes.

e-i-e-i oops!

the weeks of practice with the students paid off in a wonderful way last night. my first time directing the 1-2 musical at school was busy, exciting, and well worth it. here are a few pictures from the performance from last night.

the wonderful sets

reading to the kids before the musical started

mrs. farmer in the dell, the farmer in the dell,
madam cow, mrs. old mac donald, and old mac donald

crazy pigs

madam cow, mrs. mule, and mr. rooster

cute chicks

lost sheep

devotion about living in community

teachers and students involved

thank you for all the prayers and support throughout the musical!

Psalm One

Blessed are those
who do not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,

but who delight in the law of the LORD
and meditate on his law day and night.

They are like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.

Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will be destroyed.

happy halloween!

for halloween we attended the baham's annual halloween bash, which was a very good time. i was a pirate...attacking the island of the character "charlie" from lost...notice the writing on his hand...very authentic.
here is a picture of princess leia and yoda...luke was hanging out somewhere else in the crowd.for more pictures from this rousing party click here .

ps...report cards are now finished and the musical is on friday...prayers for continued sanity would be appreciated :)

sharks vs. red wings

for dad denouden's birthday he received tickets to the sharks/red wings game at the pavilion. jeremy needed to study, so i had the priviliage of attending with dad do. we had a good time with the sharks winning 4-2. we were shocked by the number of teal jerseys in the crowd peppered with a few red wings fans. i would have to say that i would like to attend more sharks games in the future...so if anyone is interested in buying me season tickets, they wouldn't go to waste :).

apple hill adventures

This weekend we headed up to Rocklin to enjoy a visit to Apple Hill on Saturday. It was a great time had by all. We headed to a few different apple orchards and wineries. Enjoy the pictures!






Did I mention I saw an Emu (I have a fear of birds...Jeremy made me take this picture)
We also saw dinosaurs...It was a little bit of a Jurassic Park flashback...frightening.

my attempt at uploading video.

A (Futile) Attempt

In an effort to get myself to write more (both on this blog and in general) I have
added a poll to the sidebar in order to allow you (whomever 'you' is) to help me make a decision on what to write about. While the poll doesn't officially end until the end of the month, I will (in theory) write the blog once there is a quorum, or I make up my own mind.

Also, I will accepting suggestions on other topics you want me to write about in the comments section.

Thank you for your help in making this blog a more enjoyable experience!

orange tractors and downtown rockford

on saturday morning after working out at the ymca (boy oh boy i miss this place) we headed to ACE hardware to see my grandpa, dad, and brother at the tractor show before they drove the tractors into the downtown area.
tractor guys...all the orange ones belong to my family...the green ones are not as cool
with my grandpa and my dad along with one of the tractors they restored.
green guys...not as cool.
after getting some amazing popcorn from inside the hardware store, we headed to herman boys for coffee. after grabbing coffee we headed downtown to do some shopping. here are some pictures from downtown rockford.
the river was very high from all the rain recently.
amazing weather!

the leaves are changing!

a taste of fall at robinette's

on friday after recovering from my red eye flight by sleeping for about 15 hours, my mom and i had a wonderful lunch at one of my favorite fall spots in michigan. i had an amazing chicken salad along with those out of this world broccoli cheese rolls and a glass of cider.

it was nice not to have to wait in line...usually there is a line all the way out the door for those amazing donuts.

you have to get a shot by the giant apple...it brings me back to the days of my elementary school field trips.

faster than a speeding bullet!

well, i arrived in michigan this morning after my red eye flight from san fran. let me just tell you it was an interesting ride. first i was "searched" when i walked through the metal detector because i was wearing a bulkier sweatshirt jacket, then my bag was searched...of course, the first time i don't check my luggage, this was bound to happen to me...and then a group of tourists was shaving in the gate area in the airport, and speaking so loudly i had to move...oh well :)

now, on to photos from michigan. here is my crazy brother on his pimp ride...of course it's an allis chalmers...what else would he drive?

i think it's pretty sweet too...but i like to be safe-the reason i'm wearing the helmet :)
check out my pimp ride...i totally want to take this to california-do you think it would fit in my carry on?
ok so maybe it's not street legal, but think how cool i would be.
more updates again soon i hope :)

friday is always better than monday

i just wanted to introduce you to my class this year. 23 students, 17 girls and 6 boys...this is just a rare look at what i feel like on monday mornings.
p.s. they are great kids :)