Elephantine

I am thinking of buying myself a necklace to celebrate the end of the semester in May. I love elephantine's necklaces (she has a shop on etsy, check it out here). Which one of these 5 should I choose? Leave a comment.

1.Eastern Holiday. Thai bead, silver chain.
2. Petit Ami. Dutch charm, gold chain.3. Koko. Gold vermeil disc, red bead.4. Oaxaca. Dotted brass pendant, turquoise bead, black garnet bead.5. Satellites. A group of wavy vermeil discs.
So, which do you like best?

How good...

do these look?
They're mini cheesecake bites.I don't have much of a sweet tooth, but I don't think I could eat just one of these!

My week is finally over...it seemed extra long this week, I don't know why. Maybe because getting up early (6:30am - that's early for me!) makes for what seem like extra long days, or maybe because the weather is so beautiful that I don't want to be sitting in class! Once again, though, the kindergarteners brightened up my day on Wednesday.
Some funny things they said:
*"I want lots and lots of hugs!"- A cute little boy who hugs me about 5 times a day.
*"Did you know I can read EVERYTHING!?!" -from a little boy who clearly can't read everything.
*"One time there was a kitty outside, and my baby brother wanted to pet it, and I wanted to bring it inside, but my parents said no." - A funny little girl who cracks me up with her random outbursts!

A little girl said this next one while we were eating lunch, and I couldn't help but think, "aaaah....they grow up so fast!"

*"Miss Fletcher, I want to be you."
"Why is that?"
"I want to be older. I want to be in high school!"

Oh, what tangled webs we weave...

I wanted to share with you a poem that I got from another woman's blog. This reminds me that I complain way too often about what I don't have, and in the process I am missing out on the good things in life that I should be appreciating. This was especially true when I first moved to Phoenix from Seattle when I was 16. I was mopey and I didn't want to make new friends and I would lash out and threaten to run away. Looking back, I really regret the sour attitude I had. I didn't realize that there are beautiful things about Phoenix, and things that I will miss about it when I eventually leave here.
Also, I was reading my diary last night from when I was 14 (yes, I still have that and many other diaries that I have written over the years!), and at the time I was living in Seattle still. In almost every entry I was complaining about wanting to live in Texas and not Seattle! Oh, the irony! Anyway, here's the poem:


It was spring but it was summer I wanted; the warm days and the great outdoors.


It was summer but it was fall I wanted; the colorful leaves and the cool dry air.


It was fall but it was winter I wanted; the beautiful snow and the joy of the holiday season.


It was now winter but it was spring I wanted; the warmth and the blossoming of nature.


I was a child but it was adulthood I wanted; the freedom and the respect.


I was twenty but it was thirty I wanted; to be mature and sophisticated.


I was middle-aged but it was twenty I wanted; the youth and the free spirit.


I was retired but it was middle-age I wanted; the presence of mind without limitations.


My life was over but I never got what I wanted.

-Written by a 14 year old boy; from a message by Dr. Charles Swindoll at Northwest Bible Church in Dallas

Thoughts about school

I have a throbbing headache right now because I just finished one of the most epic school projects I have done in awhile. A pointless video about snail mail vs. e-mail. Sometimes I can't believe that I subjected myself to 4 more years of projects and deadlines and papers after completing the first 12. We tend to celebrate high school graduations more than college ones, but shouldn't it be the other way around? Once your out of college, you're really done. For good. Forever. Unless you go on to graduate school. Which I don't plan on doing.
Not that I'm against lifelong learning. I desperately want to be a lifelong learner and I want to instill that same passion in my kids one day. But sometimes structured, organized schooling under flourescent lights isn't the best way to learn. And so after I graduate ASU, I am fully looking forward to being in the "real world" that everyone dreads. I don't dread it AT ALL. I welcome it, I embrace it! I want a dog, a house, a kitchen to clean, a deck or a patio to sit on, or at the very least windows that open all the way (The one's at the dorms don't because they don't want people committing suicide by jumping out. Considering I live on the 12th story, it's a legitimate precaution because you would definitely die.)
Anyway, I am feeling stifled right now in my current existence at the dorms. My extreme exhaustion could have something to do with it.
On the bright side, I spent all day in a Kindergarten classroom. I like school a lot more when I'm the teacher, and not the student. When I'm "Miss Fletcher" and not just "Lindsay". I know each kids' name, and I love the questions they ask me on a daily basis: "Do you remember us?" "Are you coming back?" "How old are you?" (They guessed 34...to them, anyone over the age of 10 probably falls under the super old category and their age is indecipherable). Or, my favorite: "Do you have a husband?", and when I say no, they gasp or look shocked. They probably aren't used to a teacher who isn't married or a "Mrs." I guess they don't grasp they I'm an intern, because their always saying "We're lucky, because we have TWO teachers!" It's really cute.

Spring Break 2010

It's been a long time since I last posted, but I've had good excuses! I had a lot of homework and projects prior to spring break that took up a lot of time. And once spring break started, I hardly even touched my computer! :)
Here were some of the highlights of my spring break:

1) I stayed at Lars' parents house for the first 6 days of break. Alas, I have no pictures. We mostly just lounged around the house in our PJ's, eating and watching shows on their GIANT new High Definition TV screen. We also made a few trips to Costco, Sprouts, and Target! His parents are so nice and so generous to let me stay with them for so long :) Also, during this time I got my haircut for free at Kohler Academy, a local beauty school. One of my friends was having her test-outs (final exams before you can move on to the next level). Below are the results. She did a great job!

2) On Thursday night, my mom and brother arrived from Seattle! I was sooo excited to see them and to show them my dorm and all the different changes since they were last in Phoenix 2 years ago! They only had 2 full days here, but we crammed in as many fun things as we could! Lars was with us for most of our adventures :) Here's a glimpse at what we did.

FRIDAY

(10 am) We waited in line at Matt's Big Breakfast. The boys didn't feel like posing for pictures, hence this picture. HAHA.

(12 pm) Lars and Nathan playing with the fountains at the park. It was a beautiful day!

(2pm) We decided to hop on the lightrail and head to Tempe. After some shopping on Mill Ave, we went to Mojo Yogurt. It was my mom's first time going there!

(3 pm) We went to Tempe Town Lake!
(3:30pm) And the Tempe Center for the Arts! (Below are Nathan's awesome photography skills).

(4pm) We walked to the very end so we could see the "waterfall" that has resulted from all of the rain we have gotten in PHX lately. Before this was a dry riverbed and now it's a raging river!

SATURDAY

First we got a rental car, and then we went to the West Campus so my mom could see where I'll be living next year. She seemed to really like the campus, and the apartments! Unfortunately I have no pictures of that. Then we went to Chick-fil-a, which my mom was craving since they don't have them in washington!

(4:30 pm) We got a yogurt parfait, yum!
Then we went to My Sister's closet (a consignment clothing store) and then met up with Nathan at Fashion Square. After some shopping at LUSH and some time playing with toys in the Microsoft store, all 4 of us went out to eat at Modern Steak, a brand new restaurant that just opened in the fall. It was SOOO good! The boys split a 12 0z. steak and my mom and I split salad and some parmesan/white truffle french fries.

(8 pm) We sat out on the patio. My mom and I loved the decor! It reminded us of Alice in Wonderland!

(8:30 pm) Here are Lars and Nathan, patiently (or not-so-patiently) awaiting their steak . My brother rated it the #3 best steak he has ever had, behind #1 which was Ruth's Chris Steak House and #2 which was a steak he and his friend made. My brother LOVES steak so that is pretty high rating in his book.SUNDAY

Today was the saddest day, because they had to leave! We had time to go to Target though, and to go on a wild goose hunt to find a Rubio's (another restaurant they don't have in Washington).

(2:30 pm) Here they are about to leave, next to "Short Butt", their rental car, so named because of it's extremely short tail end (it was a Hyundai Accent 2010).

I'm not gonna lie, it was realllly hard to see them go, but I am comforted by the fact that I will see them again in about 2 months. I'm glad they got to come and stay with me and see where I live, go to school and hang out every day! It means the world to me!

Peacock Park and Kindergartners :)

On Friday I went with my good friend Michelle to Sahuaro Ranch park, AKA "Peacock Park", where we walked around and scoped out places that she could have her ceremony/reception for her wedding, which is scheduled for sometime next year! She is such a sweet girl, and afterwards we ate Rubio's (my fave Mexican place) and shopped at Old Navy for what I like to call "teacher-y clothes" - khaki pants, cute little embroidered cardigans, headbands and the like. Anyway, here are a few pictures of the peacocks:

These were the first ones we saw. The one on the ground is a female, with only a hint of color and none of the big, pretty feathers that the males have. I think she needs some bling!

Next, we stumbled across this big guy, who we thought was the Alpha. He had a HUGE plume of feathers, and he is the one who stretched out the feathers territorially in the next picture. I thought it was amazing that all these peacocks were just roaming the parking lot, like it was no big deal. Apparently this is how it is 24/7, they're never in cages or anything! If you look on the ground you can see the cap'n crunch that we were throwing for him :)
Look at those feathers! They were seriously like 5 feet tall! I didn't want to get too close.
Here is a closer look at one of the non-alpha males. At one point there were about 11 of these guys, plus all sorts of birds like pheasants, roosters and pigeons all crowding around us! They must L-O-V-E cap'n crunch!

Anyway, as for the "Kindergartner" part of the post...I started my internship on Friday in a Kindergarten classroom at a charter school! The kids were sooo sweet and they gave me lots of hugs from the very beginning! One kid threw up (apparently he makes himself do it when he wants to go home) and another got sent to the principal's office for refusing to listen or cooperate. It was definitely an eye-opening look at the challenges of teaching 5-6 year-olds. They are constantly wanting to go to the bathroom! My teacher has a really good system called "The Bean System" where every time they go to the bathroom (not including recess or lunch time), they put a bean in a big jar. Once they are out of beans (they each get 5), they can't go any more! So it's a good way to keep them accountable and help them to ration their beans!

I am already learning so much from observing the classroom, and pretty soon I will start teaching lessons! But for now, here is some of the awesome artwork that they made for me:

My Cooking Creations

I'm obsessed with cooking and baking. I love to see the finished product, but even more I love to be able to spend hours in the kitchen with my family, taste testing and maneuvering around the kitchen, and eventually pulling everything together just in time. It keeps my hands busy and unlike arts and crafts, everyone usually appreciates the end product...because it's FOOD that they can EAT!

Here are some of the things that I made over winter break (sorry for the poor resolution, these are cell phone pics):

Cinnamon rolls before.......

And after (no frosting yet).....

Can't you just smell the cinnamon-y, ginger-y, clove-y goodness?! I made the dough from scratch, with yeast and everything! Each cinnamon roll was so big and so sweet, that I could only eat one! Recipe at : http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/05/overnight-cinnamon-rolls.html

And now for some scrumptious gingerbread men....

Seriously, the best ones I've ever had. Recipe at: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/12/gingerbread-cookies.html

I made these Stuffed Bleu Cheese Potatoes for Christmas Dinner...

They were DIVINE! I ate 3! Recipe at: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/03/stuffed-bleu-cheese-potatoes.html

Cashew Sweet and Sour Pork. Yum.....

We used edamame instead of snow peas and it still turned out great! Recipe at: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/04/cashew-sweet-and-sour-pork.html

And last but not least, and possibly my favorite....

STUFFED PIZZA ROLLS! These are the first recipe I ever tried from ourbestbites.com and since then I have made them multiple times! You can fill them with any pizza toppings you like and then dip them in marinara sauce! I made this particular batch at the dorm kitchen. Recipe at: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/06/stuffed-pizza-rolls.html

Here is Lars enjoying one...

Honestly, I was never a fan of cooking AT ALL until I stumbled upon Our Best Bites, so check them out! I even have a link on my sidebar! No, they don't pay me to advertise for them ;) I just really love their recipes and their descriptions of each step, as well as the pictures! I don't think I'll ever need a cookbook as long as they're around.