Meggy came into town this weekend so naturally we made it a girls weekend. I definitely married a winner who is so sweet and let me spend our money and neglect him while I had a girls weekend. Kira even joined us! We shopped, ate all-you-can-eat sushi, watched movies, did some hard-core lounging, and laughed uncontrollably as usual when we get together. My hubs also gets brownie points for being a better host then me. He made us girls breakfast in bed, and not just any breakfast.....his famous chef-worthy omelets. Yum! I'm always sad to see Megan go, but Christmas is right around the corner and we are already planning our next adventures. I'm so blessed to have an amazing, sister-like friend that just gets me even when I'm ridiculous.

Notice a new fabulous feature to my blog? Thanks to my bestie, Megan, our family blog has been revamped. She is a graphic designer and amazing at what she does. That new header took her .2 seconds to make. Talent I know. Check out her blog to see her unique eye for design and photography. Love you Meggy Baby!

White man CAN jump....in Jesse's case. I love watching him do what he loves and what he loves is sports, especially basketball. I got some great shots of him being a "baller" as he calls it.

It's one of those days where it's none stop at work and then the same thing when you get home. I haven't been able to catch my breath all day. There is laundry to be done, dinner to be made, cleaning to be done, and I'm still hoping to squeeze in a hot bubble bath and finish The Good Earth. My highlights of teaching today were:

1. As I am teaching one of my first graders interrupts me and says, "Hey, Hey Teacher! Did you paint your nails?" I reply, "I sure did." And the student replies, "I like them!" (mind you this student is a little boy) Such a doll!

2. Playing a math fact game of Around the World with my first graders where they have to shout out the answer to the problem before their partner and then they get to move on. My kids start shaking and screaming with excitement when they get the answer right. It's a better reaction then on Christmas day I'm sure.

3. I teach a reading class for struggling readers and today as my fourth graders were silent reading I had a boy chuckling to himself as he read. I cried with joy inside because what a break through that was for me to have a struggling student first understand what they were reading, second understand the author's humor, and last be truly enjoying reading at all.

4. I dismissed my fourth graders after reading to go home and 4 of them tuned me out so they could finish their chapter in their books. I think I am finally getting through to them. My goal for the year was to find out what my students are interested in and help them to find books that they enjoy so reading is fun. I think I'm seeing the success of my labor. I mean how can I be angry at them for ignoring me when all they want to do is read? Not gonna happen.

Our life in food lately:

1. Gourmet omelets (Jesse has an incredible talent for making perfect omelets)

2. Homemade ice cream sandwiches

3. Thai food (yum!)

4. grilled veggies tossed in seasonings

5. Pumpkin chocolate chip waffles with buttermilk syrup (divine)

6&7. Caprese pasta with fresh basil

Lots of fun recipes are debuting in our kitchen recently.

Today I am grateful for:

-warm socks

-long naps

-holiday breaks to look forward to (can't wait to go home for Thanksgiving)

-the light layer of powered snow that I woke up to today (never thought I'd be grateful for snow, but this morning was unusually gorgeous)

-hot apple cider that the hubs loves to make me almost daily

-good books

-the fall season

-a wonderful ward

-weekend plans with a best friend (Meggy comes into town thusday!)

-old movies that make you feel like a kid again (just watch Marry Poppins)

Halloween is over and kind of a let down just because I had a headache that night and have had the same headache ever since. I'm dragging to get through this week of teaching, but my students are trying their hardest to be on their best behavior because they know I'm not feeling 100%. On our Halloween night menu.....homemade butternut squash soup. It was a perfect combination for the rainy weather and gave us a weeks worth of our vegetable servings. Gotta love healthy, divine tasting food. It made it even more tasty to dip gourmet turkey sandwiches in the soup. The fact that Jesse ate the soup alone for a meal is a testament to how yummy it was because Jesse doesn't consider soup or salad to be a meal. I topped the soup with cream and parsley and it was a hit.