1:46 PM | 
Posted by
K.Dingfelder
24 December 2007
Breakfast Send-off
Here's the plan people. Otto and I need to take off early on Wednesday Morning. So, we figured we could meet for breakfast at Bonnie Ray's Cafe in Rollingstone at 8am. That way we can get back to Madison in time to make my appointment.
So, anyone interested just call me or message me. We'd love to see all of you one last time before we head back from our Holiday visit!!!
So, anyone interested just call me or message me. We'd love to see all of you one last time before we head back from our Holiday visit!!!
21 December 2007
Holiday Break Plans
Here's the schedule for our time home during the Holiday Break. If you'd like to get together just call me or post something, I'll check this often!
Friday night
(? 6pm) Leave Madison
(8/830) Arrive in Winona to attend the Holiday Party @ Rachel's (call for directions or ask)
(? ? ?) Drive out to the farm to crash for the night
Saturday
(? ? ?) I think at some point we are having dinner together as a family... other than that... ?
Sunday
(? ? ?) Wake up and get ready
(Mid-morning) Drive to Stewartville
(? ? ?) Nothing planned at this point
Monday
(? ? ?) Wake up?!
(? ? ?) As far as I know we have most of the day free
(Evening) Family Christmas Eve Tradition!!!
(Late) Drive to Gram;s house of the night
Tuesday
(? ? ?) Wake up to see what Santa brought me!
(Mid-morning) Drive back to the farm for the rest of the day
Wednesday
(? 10am) Drive back to Madison
Friday night
(? 6pm) Leave Madison
(8/830) Arrive in Winona to attend the Holiday Party @ Rachel's (call for directions or ask)
(? ? ?) Drive out to the farm to crash for the night
Saturday
(? ? ?) I think at some point we are having dinner together as a family... other than that... ?
Sunday
(? ? ?) Wake up and get ready
(Mid-morning) Drive to Stewartville
(? ? ?) Nothing planned at this point
Monday
(? ? ?) Wake up?!
(? ? ?) As far as I know we have most of the day free
(Evening) Family Christmas Eve Tradition!!!
(Late) Drive to Gram;s house of the night
Tuesday
(? ? ?) Wake up to see what Santa brought me!
(Mid-morning) Drive back to the farm for the rest of the day
Wednesday
(? 10am) Drive back to Madison
19 November 2007
Here's a quick pic of how our flowers are going to look. At least this is what we would like. Something simple and unique. At this point we're thinking Daisies... Anyone have an opinion?
Tried our chances with Thai food! It was so tasty!! We're definitely going to try it again!!
Friday we tried Granite City for dinner. I ordered the Asian Chicken Salad, and it looked so small, but it was actually very compacted shredded ingredients... I had to take at least half of it home for leftovers!
Otto ordered Fish and Chips. It was decent, but didn't hold a candle to my salad!
Saturday night I had friends over. I cooked Spicy Spaghetti, and our friends brought a loaf of bread to share. It was a ton of fun, especially when we made homemade chocolate chip cookies. We ended up having an unofficial contest as to who could eat the most cookies! We lost count!
I got new shoes!!! Converse slip-ons! I took a detour to DSW the other day, and I just happened upon them, and I couldn't leave them there! They are my new favorite shoes!!
Here's the plan for the upcoming holiday weekend.
Wednesday night: arrive in town, somewhere around 9pm or 930pm, and hang out with people at the Acoustic Cafe. Everyone should come join us!!! I'm talking to you Kathy and Sarah!
Thursday: Thanksgiving at the Dingfelder's
Thursday night: Drive to Stewartville
Friday: Grandma's Birthday
Saturday: Meet with photographer
Saturday night: drive back to Rollingstone
Sunday: drive back to Madison
27 October 2007
Local Cuisine
Our friends Traci and Greg came into Madison last night. Luckily we got a chance to meet up with them before we left town for the weekend. We decided to go out to dinner, but also invited our neighbors Anne and Ryan. The time was set, 7:30pm, and we had chosen a place called:
So, we also decided to invite Sarmila as well, then her friend Josh showed up too! We had a decent sized group going! Well, we got there somewhere around 7:45pm, and were seated about 8:15/8:30pm. We were having a blast. Josh started some random conversation about different drinks and life in California... Then Josh, Anne and I all ordered a drink called the Bomb Pov. 
Look familiar? I think so! This drink tasted like the Bomb Pop popsicle!! But it didn't look very nice after you stirred it all together, at least it was tasty! Then they brought out the bread! Warm, italian seasoned bread with olive oil and fresh ground pepper to dip it in!!! We devoured the first batch of it in no time flat!! Luckily our waiter rocked and brought us all some more.
I ended up ordering the New York Strip, it was Otto's choice. Personally I couldn't decide between a few meals, so I him make the decision. Unfortunately the bread and appetizers filled us up so much I hardly made a dent in my Steak!
Lucky me, Otto loves to take leftovers to work for lunch! So that's why he chose the steak... At the end of the meal everyone was stuffed to the gills and happy to have had the chance to meet some new people and share some excellent food!!
This is definitely a place Otto and I will visit again!!
So, we also decided to invite Sarmila as well, then her friend Josh showed up too! We had a decent sized group going! Well, we got there somewhere around 7:45pm, and were seated about 8:15/8:30pm. We were having a blast. Josh started some random conversation about different drinks and life in California... Then Josh, Anne and I all ordered a drink called the Bomb Pov. 
Look familiar? I think so! This drink tasted like the Bomb Pop popsicle!! But it didn't look very nice after you stirred it all together, at least it was tasty! Then they brought out the bread! Warm, italian seasoned bread with olive oil and fresh ground pepper to dip it in!!! We devoured the first batch of it in no time flat!! Luckily our waiter rocked and brought us all some more. I ended up ordering the New York Strip, it was Otto's choice. Personally I couldn't decide between a few meals, so I him make the decision. Unfortunately the bread and appetizers filled us up so much I hardly made a dent in my Steak!
Lucky me, Otto loves to take leftovers to work for lunch! So that's why he chose the steak... At the end of the meal everyone was stuffed to the gills and happy to have had the chance to meet some new people and share some excellent food!!
This is definitely a place Otto and I will visit again!!
23 October 2007
Serious Update
Well, I am now officially 26... not that it feels any different from 25. For my birthday I took off of work for a long weekend! We got into Rollingstone late on October 10th. We crashed out at the Dingfelder farm. October 11th Otto and I drove into town to pick up Jeb, then we dropped off Otto to spend some time with his mom. Jeb and I went out for lunch at the Acoustic! Very tasty!! I then dropped her off on campus for class and headed to Madison Elementary to see some old friends! I surprised my old student!! She was so excited she kept hugging me and refused to let me out of her sight. We spent her working time playing Go Fish with her new interpreter. It was a blast!!! I spent some more time walking around talking to kids, teachers and staff (sorry I missed you Kathy :( maybe next time). I then hit up 5 of the 6 Key Kids sites to see kids and staff!! It was a wonderful time! After I was done I headed to Becky's to start making dinner. I made Mmm Soup!!! And everyone ate almost all of it! Rachel bought me a cake! And we ate it all!
Then October 12th we drove into Rochester to have dinner with Michelle and her new baby boy Jayne! He's so adorable!!! After lunch we headed to Cold Stone to see Adam, and so I could get my free ice cream!!!
Joanna came down to meet my family at Mr. Pizza for dinner!! I miss that pizza! October 13th we met Emily in Rochester for lunch and did some shopping. Then headed home for my Birthday party! Mom made an awesome ice cream cake!!! YUMMY!!!
All in all, I was overly spoiled for my birthday! Some gift highlights are: Electric teakettle, chocolate covered espresso beans, coffee, UNO!, gift certificates, hoodie, pizza stone, antique sign, and getting a chance to see everyone I did!!!
I'm still getting over all the excitement from the long weekend! Wish me luck!
Then October 12th we drove into Rochester to have dinner with Michelle and her new baby boy Jayne! He's so adorable!!! After lunch we headed to Cold Stone to see Adam, and so I could get my free ice cream!!!
Joanna came down to meet my family at Mr. Pizza for dinner!! I miss that pizza! October 13th we met Emily in Rochester for lunch and did some shopping. Then headed home for my Birthday party! Mom made an awesome ice cream cake!!! YUMMY!!!
All in all, I was overly spoiled for my birthday! Some gift highlights are: Electric teakettle, chocolate covered espresso beans, coffee, UNO!, gift certificates, hoodie, pizza stone, antique sign, and getting a chance to see everyone I did!!!
I'm still getting over all the excitement from the long weekend! Wish me luck!
09 October 2007
Tag Again!
My husband... (to-be)
What is his name? Otto George Dingfelder III
How long have you been together? Just over 2 years
How long did you date? As of Oct. 2, 2 years!
Where did you meet? At a game night years ago.
How old is he? 23
Who eats more? Depends on the day, and what we're eating.
Who said I love you first? Otto.
Who is taller? Otto is 5'11'', and I'm 5'5''...
Who sings better? Uh, I would have to say I do... but there are times...
Who is smarter? DUH! The engineer... who isn't me!
Who does the laundry? Mostly Otto
Who does the dishes? Usually Otto, but we do try to do them together
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Otto, because I have to sleep on the other side.
Who pays the bills? We split the bills so we each have some to take care of.
Who mows the lawn? Neither one, we don't have our own lawn!
Who cooks dinner? We basically take turns. We set up a menu a week ahead of time and work from that.
Who drives when you are together? Depends on who's car we have... and how tired we are at the time. But mostly Otto.
Who is more stubborn? ME! :)
Tag: Michelle, and everyone I tagged from the last post!
What is his name? Otto George Dingfelder III
How long have you been together? Just over 2 years
How long did you date? As of Oct. 2, 2 years!
Where did you meet? At a game night years ago.
How old is he? 23
Who eats more? Depends on the day, and what we're eating.
Who said I love you first? Otto.
Who is taller? Otto is 5'11'', and I'm 5'5''...
Who sings better? Uh, I would have to say I do... but there are times...
Who is smarter? DUH! The engineer... who isn't me!
Who does the laundry? Mostly Otto
Who does the dishes? Usually Otto, but we do try to do them together
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Otto, because I have to sleep on the other side.
Who pays the bills? We split the bills so we each have some to take care of.
Who mows the lawn? Neither one, we don't have our own lawn!
Who cooks dinner? We basically take turns. We set up a menu a week ahead of time and work from that.
Who drives when you are together? Depends on who's car we have... and how tired we are at the time. But mostly Otto.
Who is more stubborn? ME! :)
Tag: Michelle, and everyone I tagged from the last post!
Tag
Who kissed who first? Otto kissed me the night of our first date, and I just sort of sat there stunned! I was surprised even though he told me he was going to do it.
Who asked who out? Otto asked me out, and then I told him I needed to think about it... so I drove the 3 hours home to talk to him on the phone for hours before I decided to say yes.
Who proposed? Otto, of course! He took me to the Arboretum. I was setting up a picture of lilacs and just as I clicked the picture he slipped something in the picture to blur it. Frustrated I said, "What are you doing?" He told me to look at him, and as I turned I called him a dork and there he was standing with the ring in his hand... He then got down on his knee and proposed! I was taken off guard, but at least I remembered to say, "YES!"
Who has more friends? Hard to tell; our friends are blending together these days!
Who has more siblings? Technically I do... a sister and a step-brother
Who wears the pants in the family? We make decisions together... but I tend to get my way, but he gets his too... when he really cares about the decision!
I would like to tag: Kerry, Kathy, Grandma, Mom, and anyone else who reads this!!!
Who asked who out? Otto asked me out, and then I told him I needed to think about it... so I drove the 3 hours home to talk to him on the phone for hours before I decided to say yes.
Who proposed? Otto, of course! He took me to the Arboretum. I was setting up a picture of lilacs and just as I clicked the picture he slipped something in the picture to blur it. Frustrated I said, "What are you doing?" He told me to look at him, and as I turned I called him a dork and there he was standing with the ring in his hand... He then got down on his knee and proposed! I was taken off guard, but at least I remembered to say, "YES!"
Who has more friends? Hard to tell; our friends are blending together these days!
Who has more siblings? Technically I do... a sister and a step-brother
Who wears the pants in the family? We make decisions together... but I tend to get my way, but he gets his too... when he really cares about the decision!
I would like to tag: Kerry, Kathy, Grandma, Mom, and anyone else who reads this!!!
03 October 2007
Day 81
Work
So this week has been interesting so far. I didn't go out and start telling all the staff about my engagement, in stead I saw my regulars and let them in on the news. And here's how it went. One of the Sunflower Teachers is often in my room in the morning because the ratio is over as early as 7:30am, I don't get in until 8:30 because they need me later in the day. So I came into the room, and we had a short chat about our weekends, and just before she left the room I told her to wait I had something to show her. She was super excited, since she's met Otto a handful of times and teased him about when he was going to get around to asking. She then gave me a huge hug and headed off to her room. A few minutes later the other Sunflower Teacher poked her head into our room, and said I had something to show her. So I did! She was even more excited about it!! And from there staff slowly learned about the engagement. Some found out by asking how my weekend was or by someone saying something to them. One staff from the Sunshine room stopped by just as I was leaving last night. She stood in my doorway and started saying, "No way you didn't tell about this! I gotta see it!!!" I started laughing and walked over to her. We chatted for awhile, and as everyone has offered she said if I need any help to just let her know. Thus, it's been an interesting week, and today my be ever more so. My co-teacher hasn't been in yet this week, she took Mon. and Tue. off, so we shall see how her reactions goes today...
Madison/Extra
Last night was our 2 Year Anniversary, and we decided to go out to dinner as an Engagement/Anniversary Dinner. We both got home from work, put on some nice clothes and headed to a local Hibachi grill called, Edo Garden. It was very good!!! We had the entire Hibachi table to ourselves! And the funniest part was the fact that they only gave you chopsticks! After awhile Otto called surrender asking for a fork, the waiter gave him and fork, but also gave him a set of chopsticks telling him to practice at home; the first surrender was acceptable, but next time... After dinner we headed to Cold Stone! Gotta love the Cold Stone!!! All-in-all it was the best!
Gas prices are down to $2.85! Now, if only it would stay that low!
I plan on making it back to the SE MN area as early as Wednesday, October 10. Unfortunately it won't be until extremely late! But the plan is as follows:
Thursday Morning: Head into to Winona to Madison Elementary to see children and people
Thursday Lunch: Somewhere in Winona with my best friend Jeb
Thursday Afternoon: Hit up Key Kids to play games and sing songs!
Thursday Evening: CSI night with my peeps in Winona!!
Friday Morning: Hang out at the farm
Friday Lunch: Meeting up with Michelle and baby Jayne!!
Friday Afternoon: Spend some time in Rochester
Friday Evening: Spend some time with Family!
Saturday Morning: Sleep in!!!
Saturday Lunch: ???
Saturday Afternoon: ???
Saturday Evening: Birthday Party!!
Sunday Morning: Sleep in!!!!
Sunday Lunch: ???
Sunday Afternoon: Leave to return to Madison
This plan is completely tentative... Cause one never knows what will happen!
So this week has been interesting so far. I didn't go out and start telling all the staff about my engagement, in stead I saw my regulars and let them in on the news. And here's how it went. One of the Sunflower Teachers is often in my room in the morning because the ratio is over as early as 7:30am, I don't get in until 8:30 because they need me later in the day. So I came into the room, and we had a short chat about our weekends, and just before she left the room I told her to wait I had something to show her. She was super excited, since she's met Otto a handful of times and teased him about when he was going to get around to asking. She then gave me a huge hug and headed off to her room. A few minutes later the other Sunflower Teacher poked her head into our room, and said I had something to show her. So I did! She was even more excited about it!! And from there staff slowly learned about the engagement. Some found out by asking how my weekend was or by someone saying something to them. One staff from the Sunshine room stopped by just as I was leaving last night. She stood in my doorway and started saying, "No way you didn't tell about this! I gotta see it!!!" I started laughing and walked over to her. We chatted for awhile, and as everyone has offered she said if I need any help to just let her know. Thus, it's been an interesting week, and today my be ever more so. My co-teacher hasn't been in yet this week, she took Mon. and Tue. off, so we shall see how her reactions goes today...
Madison/Extra
Last night was our 2 Year Anniversary, and we decided to go out to dinner as an Engagement/Anniversary Dinner. We both got home from work, put on some nice clothes and headed to a local Hibachi grill called, Edo Garden. It was very good!!! We had the entire Hibachi table to ourselves! And the funniest part was the fact that they only gave you chopsticks! After awhile Otto called surrender asking for a fork, the waiter gave him and fork, but also gave him a set of chopsticks telling him to practice at home; the first surrender was acceptable, but next time... After dinner we headed to Cold Stone! Gotta love the Cold Stone!!! All-in-all it was the best!
Gas prices are down to $2.85! Now, if only it would stay that low!
I plan on making it back to the SE MN area as early as Wednesday, October 10. Unfortunately it won't be until extremely late! But the plan is as follows:
Thursday Morning: Head into to Winona to Madison Elementary to see children and people
Thursday Lunch: Somewhere in Winona with my best friend Jeb
Thursday Afternoon: Hit up Key Kids to play games and sing songs!
Thursday Evening: CSI night with my peeps in Winona!!
Friday Morning: Hang out at the farm
Friday Lunch: Meeting up with Michelle and baby Jayne!!
Friday Afternoon: Spend some time in Rochester
Friday Evening: Spend some time with Family!
Saturday Morning: Sleep in!!!
Saturday Lunch: ???
Saturday Afternoon: ???
Saturday Evening: Birthday Party!!
Sunday Morning: Sleep in!!!!
Sunday Lunch: ???
Sunday Afternoon: Leave to return to Madison
This plan is completely tentative... Cause one never knows what will happen!
14 September 2007
Day 68-69
Work
I still get to see my old crew almost everyday. Actually, one particular class, who received 4 of our old crew, is outside the same time as my new class. Thus, I get to see them and talk to them regularly. The funny part is that they always ask how my "babies" are. I chuckle every time! But the other day one of my old crew asked if the "babies" talked. I said, "Of course they do." I then proceeded to try and get one of them to say something unsuccessfully... But the child from my old crew responded, "I know they talk, they have teeth!" Moral of the rambling story... If you have teeth you can talk!
Madison
My hours at work have been shifted 15 min earlier each day... this is now a problem because traffic is horrific at this time! Driving to work now takes me 10-15 min, instead of just 8. :( I can't believe how 15 min makes such a drastic difference on the Beltline!
Extra
Wednesday night we won our first game at sand volleyball!! So, we went for ice cream to celebrate! Not the best idea since we were frozen! But the ice cream tasted great!!!
I'm excited! We're having our friends James and Heather come to Madison on Friday. I think we plan on taking them to eat at this Vietnamese place that has very tasty food!!! I will try to get some pics of the food and post them! I've eaten there once before, during my "in-service". Our co-director, Spanish teacher, and one of the support staff all decided to give it a try! I think we all had a great time sharing our meals!!
I still get to see my old crew almost everyday. Actually, one particular class, who received 4 of our old crew, is outside the same time as my new class. Thus, I get to see them and talk to them regularly. The funny part is that they always ask how my "babies" are. I chuckle every time! But the other day one of my old crew asked if the "babies" talked. I said, "Of course they do." I then proceeded to try and get one of them to say something unsuccessfully... But the child from my old crew responded, "I know they talk, they have teeth!" Moral of the rambling story... If you have teeth you can talk!
Madison
My hours at work have been shifted 15 min earlier each day... this is now a problem because traffic is horrific at this time! Driving to work now takes me 10-15 min, instead of just 8. :( I can't believe how 15 min makes such a drastic difference on the Beltline!
Extra
Wednesday night we won our first game at sand volleyball!! So, we went for ice cream to celebrate! Not the best idea since we were frozen! But the ice cream tasted great!!!
I'm excited! We're having our friends James and Heather come to Madison on Friday. I think we plan on taking them to eat at this Vietnamese place that has very tasty food!!! I will try to get some pics of the food and post them! I've eaten there once before, during my "in-service". Our co-director, Spanish teacher, and one of the support staff all decided to give it a try! I think we all had a great time sharing our meals!!
11 September 2007
Day 58-67 + Weekend Updates
I'm going to work with bullets for this post. It's been 2 weeks since I last updated.
But as for now, my body is requiring sleep!
- That last week in August, we had "in-service" days. It was boring... I wish I could get that time back.
- The first weekend in September Jeb, Ribbit and Sean came to visit! We went to a Ren. Faire, checked out the Taste of Madison, visited the Children's Museum and just enjoyed our time together!!
- My first week with my new crew went fairly well. We had some rough spots, but we got through it.
- Wednesday nights we're playing sand volley ball at a local pub. Of course I hurt myself, nothing serious. Just a jammed finger for about 2 days.
- Last weekend we spent some time with Chris and Jess!
- I officially hate the UW Health System! If you want to know more, ask me via email or something...
- And finally... the main reason why I haven't written in 2 weeks.... My computer hates me and gives me the blue-screen-of-death! No particular reason really. It just decides it's had enough and turns itself off. So I'm finally getting back at it!! Mwa ha ha!! I bought a new computer!!!! I'm super excited, and I wasted no time setting it up and post a blog!
But as for now, my body is requiring sleep!
28 August 2007
Day 46-57 + Weekend Updates
Work
It has been completely hectic at work lately. Since tomorrow is the last day with my 2 years olds we've been hosting our new 18 month olds during mandatory transition time. They've spent a total of 8hrs in our room over the course of two weeks; and as of Tuesday they will be in our room full time! But I don't think we'll have too many problems. They all get along, and seem to be a pretty laid back group, but that could change after they become more comfortable in our room.
I am sad that my classes last day is tomorrow. :( We did make T-shirts as a-going-away gift. The front has their hand print and their name, and the name of the room; while the back has the names of all their classmates and teachers... and under the names we had them all put a finger print! Thought it would be super cute! And they are!! I will take a pic of one, blur out the names and post it for all to see.
Madison
Gas prices have hit a new low of $2.82. Unfortunately I saw some stations jump up to $2.89. :(
My friends Becky and Jenny came to visit this past weekend. We took them to the Farmer's Market (which seems to be a frequent stop of ours), then down to State Street and then to the Botanical Gardens. Here are some pics:
It has been completely hectic at work lately. Since tomorrow is the last day with my 2 years olds we've been hosting our new 18 month olds during mandatory transition time. They've spent a total of 8hrs in our room over the course of two weeks; and as of Tuesday they will be in our room full time! But I don't think we'll have too many problems. They all get along, and seem to be a pretty laid back group, but that could change after they become more comfortable in our room.
I am sad that my classes last day is tomorrow. :( We did make T-shirts as a-going-away gift. The front has their hand print and their name, and the name of the room; while the back has the names of all their classmates and teachers... and under the names we had them all put a finger print! Thought it would be super cute! And they are!! I will take a pic of one, blur out the names and post it for all to see.
Madison
Gas prices have hit a new low of $2.82. Unfortunately I saw some stations jump up to $2.89. :(
My friends Becky and Jenny came to visit this past weekend. We took them to the Farmer's Market (which seems to be a frequent stop of ours), then down to State Street and then to the Botanical Gardens. Here are some pics:
Just some random flowers I liked.
An orange moth I found in the Conservatory.
Otto, Jenny and Becky posing on the bridge as I yelled at them from across the Conservatory.
This is basically what I look like when I'm at the Botanical Gardens! The sad part is that all the pics I took on my Da's old Canon decided to hate me when I took them to get developed. One roll was blank and the lady couldn't even get the other roll open without the possibility of ruining all the pics I had taken. Luckily I took some pics with my aging digital camera. And both Jenny and Becky let me take their pics from the day, but I still have them on Otto's computer. I may have to post them later, they took some nice ones.Extra
The Girls Camping Trip... what can I say?! Becky, Jeb and I got the site around 11pm on Friday. We all crashed at 12am with our nicknames: Stubby Pete (me), Tentacler (Becky),
Salsa (Tracie), Food Shelf (Kerry), Cheesy Poof (Jeb) 
and Tator Tot (Emily).Saturday morning we woke to the wind and the rain. The problem with this? Kerry's tent was horrible. It had a vented roof... which is nice and all, until the wind starts blowing the rain into your tent.
Salsa ran to her car to take cover. Tentacler, Cheesy Poof and I ran to the 'Burban to take cover, while Food Shelf and Tator Tot held town the tent. At this time it started to pour! I jumped out of the 'Burban during the first downpour to push pockets of water out of the awning we had connected to the tent. Needless to say I was soaked after my successful attempt at saving the awning. By the time the second downpour arrived Food Shelf was out standing on the table getting wet. Luckily shortly after the rain stopped and the sun shined! We pulled stuff out and made breakfast. After eating and cleaning up we hopped on our bikes to ride to Lanesboro!! Upon arriving we had ice cream! Traveled the town, and ate at a tasty pizza place. By this time it was late afternoon and we biked back, each at our own pace. Once everyone was back some of us headed to the pool to cool down. After returning to the camping site Salsa decided to depart, and I suddenly began to feel ill. I was put into the 'Burban with the air on for awhile. I felt much better after sleeping in the cool air for an hour or so. When I work up we all put everything in our vehicles, minus our sleeping bags, because the weather station was telling it was going to rain. So, we sat in the tent playing cards, cause it was too hot to sleep. And then the rain started. Rain is fine, it's the wind that scares us. The scanner told up finally that the storm reached Lanesboro with 70 mph winds. That's where we draw the line! We put our sleeping bags in the car and drove to the main shelter (a renivated barn). We got their just in time! The rain came harder and the wind started! We couldn't open the doors the wind was blowing so hard!! So we sat and played cards from about an hour or more, then looked outside. The rain stopped, so we decided to try and find what was left of the tent. Coming upon our camp site we found the tent upside down with a nice pool in the middle. This is the point where we decided to call it quits! We packed that tent up in 10 min, and got back to Winona by 1 am Sunday morning. I got the crash at Becky's, and in the morning we made a run to Target to get Starbucks! We deserved it after that kind of camping trip!!
Sunday afternoon I headed out to Otto's Mom's farm for a family BBQ with his family and my family. I also ended up purchasing his Aunt's '97 Buick Le Saber.
And because I can't remember if I posted it before... here is a pic of Otto's '06 Saturn Ion.
In other news. Lavender died last Thursday. She was my Hamster of 2.5 years. And her death came suddenly. Now, for any of you who know me... when a pet dies there is an immediate trip to the pet store in order. Otto and I hit 2 different pet stores, and in the end I came home with Victor!
He's a rat, if you couldn't tell. He's very curious and friendly, but according to my research he was lonely. So, Sunday I came home with Sergio!
I believe they are from the same litter since their markings are very similar and they had no problems when put into the same cage. And speaking of cage... here is a pic of theirs:
It has three levels, a hammock (that they refuse to use), a litter pan, water bottle, food dish and toys. So far they are a ton of fun! Each has a very distinct personality. Victor is neurotic, and Sergio is very laid back!
And no! They do not carry the plague...
10 August 2007
Day 43 - 45
Work
My lesson plan this week was the 4 seasons... I had a blast planning it out and the kids really enjoyed the activities. I might write more about it next week.
Madison
Gas prices have dipped to $2.85!!! Too bad I don't need to fill the tank right now.
Extra
Leaving for the Girl's Camping Trip after work today, thus I logged on really quick during lunch at home. I will most likely post about the weekend on Monday or Tuesday, depending on how I feel and how tired I am for the weekend!
My lesson plan this week was the 4 seasons... I had a blast planning it out and the kids really enjoyed the activities. I might write more about it next week.
Madison
Gas prices have dipped to $2.85!!! Too bad I don't need to fill the tank right now.
Extra
Leaving for the Girl's Camping Trip after work today, thus I logged on really quick during lunch at home. I will most likely post about the weekend on Monday or Tuesday, depending on how I feel and how tired I am for the weekend!
07 August 2007
Day 41 + 42
Work
Yesterday was a serious "Monday"! Those type of Mondays you hear about...
What started it all? Well... let me tell you!
First of all I arrived at work to find Bubbles was out sick. I had no idea, and it always throws me for a loop when I show up and my teammate is missing! (this is the time I've decided we need to exchange phone numbers so I'm not so caught off guard next time) There was a sub in my room, so at least my kids weren't alone (not that they would ever be left alone!) I was happy to hear the sub was going to stay with me! That is until the assistant director came by and shipped the sub off to an infant room!! Not to worry... I was within ratio (which really doesn't mean much with my class, they are a serious handful!) Not more than 5 min. after the sub leaves one of my kids looks up at me and says, "If you leave I'll mess with your stuff!" :o EXCUSE ME?! I asked them to repeat themselves, and I didn't hear them wrong. They went on to say that if I left like Bubbles and the sub they would mess with my stuff and make trouble. (This is what they said, I kid you not!) I went over to the student, gave them a big hug and reassured them that I would not be leaving and would stay with them all day, which I did. This was only the beginning...
The second incident, qualifying this day as a "Monday", was when a student from another class, stood up, stepped out of the sandbox, exclaimed - "Uh,oh", and just let the flood waters run! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I know this student is potty trained, and yet... It was amazing the amount of liquid stored in this child! Do you know how hard it is to clean and disinfect sand?! DO YOU?!
The third incident was ridiculous! One of my students wanted to use the bathroom with the door open. I don't think so. I stood just outside the door to talk to the other kids who were waiting in line. Since our bathroom doors are short enough to look over I asked if the student was done, and got a very looking face... I peered over the door to see where the student had decorated the walls and floor with their fluids... :( SERIOUSLY?! I had had enough at this point! I handed him some latex clothes, sprayed down the walls and floor, and handed him some paper towels. I was beside myself!
And that, my people, is a true "Monday"!
Madison
We ordered pizza tonight! It was way too hot to even think of using the oven. So, I recommended we order from a local joint we like. It was extremely tasty!!
Extra
This weekend is the girls camping trip! We're staying at the Old Barn Resort! I fully intend to bike to Lanesboro on Saturday!!! And maybe tube down the river as a lazy afternoon treat!
Yesterday was a serious "Monday"! Those type of Mondays you hear about...
What started it all? Well... let me tell you!
First of all I arrived at work to find Bubbles was out sick. I had no idea, and it always throws me for a loop when I show up and my teammate is missing! (this is the time I've decided we need to exchange phone numbers so I'm not so caught off guard next time) There was a sub in my room, so at least my kids weren't alone (not that they would ever be left alone!) I was happy to hear the sub was going to stay with me! That is until the assistant director came by and shipped the sub off to an infant room!! Not to worry... I was within ratio (which really doesn't mean much with my class, they are a serious handful!) Not more than 5 min. after the sub leaves one of my kids looks up at me and says, "If you leave I'll mess with your stuff!" :o EXCUSE ME?! I asked them to repeat themselves, and I didn't hear them wrong. They went on to say that if I left like Bubbles and the sub they would mess with my stuff and make trouble. (This is what they said, I kid you not!) I went over to the student, gave them a big hug and reassured them that I would not be leaving and would stay with them all day, which I did. This was only the beginning...
The second incident, qualifying this day as a "Monday", was when a student from another class, stood up, stepped out of the sandbox, exclaimed - "Uh,oh", and just let the flood waters run! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I know this student is potty trained, and yet... It was amazing the amount of liquid stored in this child! Do you know how hard it is to clean and disinfect sand?! DO YOU?!
The third incident was ridiculous! One of my students wanted to use the bathroom with the door open. I don't think so. I stood just outside the door to talk to the other kids who were waiting in line. Since our bathroom doors are short enough to look over I asked if the student was done, and got a very looking face... I peered over the door to see where the student had decorated the walls and floor with their fluids... :( SERIOUSLY?! I had had enough at this point! I handed him some latex clothes, sprayed down the walls and floor, and handed him some paper towels. I was beside myself!
And that, my people, is a true "Monday"!
Madison
We ordered pizza tonight! It was way too hot to even think of using the oven. So, I recommended we order from a local joint we like. It was extremely tasty!!
Extra
This weekend is the girls camping trip! We're staying at the Old Barn Resort! I fully intend to bike to Lanesboro on Saturday!!! And maybe tube down the river as a lazy afternoon treat!
05 August 2007
Day 38-40 + Weekend Update (continued)
I tried to get a nice pic of them, but they refused to cooperate... so they goofed around and I took the pic anyway. This is how they really are! GOOFY! Either way, we had a ton of fun!!!
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They had this super sweet playground, but it wasn't open yet. :(
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We needed to do some grocery shopping, so we took her along. She was extremely amused, she tells me all the time how domesticated I've become... I don't think so. I just enjoy going grocery shopping. It's like a stress reliever for me. After taking everything home and putting it away we split up. Tami and I went to do some hardcore shopping while Otto chilled at home doing his own thing for the afternoon. At 7pm we met at a Japanese Steakhouse for some dinner. I've been to better... but they had a fun time. The chef wasn't that talented, and the food was lacking some flavor, but we sat with some nice people and got a ton of food!! We made a quick stop at Target and came home to watch a movie for the rest of the night. On Sunday we all slept in, which was wonderful, and after we all woke we made Monkey Bread for Brunch! IT WAS AMAZING! We took our sweet time getting ready and then headed to a local bowling alley to play a couple games. Then it was time for some dinner, so we headed to a place called Cancun. It was very tasty! I had the best Cheesy Steak Burrito. Unfortunately I ate most of it before I remembered to take a pic of it! It was filled with steak, onions and mushrooms... then they covered it in this spicy cheese sauce!! YUM!
Extra
Otto and I tried this place on Friday called Rice Cafe. Sort of like a Noodles & Co., but everything is made with rice. So I thought it would be cool! Not so much. :( I had this BBQ pork bowl... as you can see from the pic below... It was not very good. I don't think we will be going back anytime soon...
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They had this super sweet playground, but it wasn't open yet. :(
.jpg)
We needed to do some grocery shopping, so we took her along. She was extremely amused, she tells me all the time how domesticated I've become... I don't think so. I just enjoy going grocery shopping. It's like a stress reliever for me. After taking everything home and putting it away we split up. Tami and I went to do some hardcore shopping while Otto chilled at home doing his own thing for the afternoon. At 7pm we met at a Japanese Steakhouse for some dinner. I've been to better... but they had a fun time. The chef wasn't that talented, and the food was lacking some flavor, but we sat with some nice people and got a ton of food!! We made a quick stop at Target and came home to watch a movie for the rest of the night. On Sunday we all slept in, which was wonderful, and after we all woke we made Monkey Bread for Brunch! IT WAS AMAZING! We took our sweet time getting ready and then headed to a local bowling alley to play a couple games. Then it was time for some dinner, so we headed to a place called Cancun. It was very tasty! I had the best Cheesy Steak Burrito. Unfortunately I ate most of it before I remembered to take a pic of it! It was filled with steak, onions and mushrooms... then they covered it in this spicy cheese sauce!! YUM!
Extra
Otto and I tried this place on Friday called Rice Cafe. Sort of like a Noodles & Co., but everything is made with rice. So I thought it would be cool! Not so much. :( I had this BBQ pork bowl... as you can see from the pic below... It was not very good. I don't think we will be going back anytime soon...
Day 38-40 + Weekend Update
Work
We had a field trip on Friday. We went to a place called Gymfinity! It was a blast, they really had some age appropriate activities planned for us. Even some of the parents and staff got into the fun!! Once they told my I could go into the foam pit... oh, man! I just jumped right in and started playing with the kids!! It was a fun day! Everyone agreed!!!
Madison
My sister, Tami, came into town this weekend! Friday night we had our friends Rachel, Ed and their baby stop by for some dinner, and after Tami showed up we cruised around the local mall eating ice cream and getting me a new phone. (my phone was having some minor issues, but they're all fixed now) Saturday morning we took Tami down to the Farmer's Market for some Spicy cheese bread, fresh cheese curds and beef jerky. Then we strolled down State Street looking at the shops and ending up at Ian's Pizza for some lunch! After that we decided to check out the local zoo, even though it was raining... not pouring, but enough to where we were pretty wet by the time we left.
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We saw some scary alligators who kept disappearing under the murky water... it creeped us out cause you seriously had no idea where they were! I never want to share water with an alligator!
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We saw some penguins who really wanted into their house because it was raining, so they all stood by the doors and made awful noises!
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This parrot was just sitting and swinging on the rope singing a song! I kid you not! He was singing!!
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Then we saw a Polar Bear!! Power to the Polar Bears!!
We had a field trip on Friday. We went to a place called Gymfinity! It was a blast, they really had some age appropriate activities planned for us. Even some of the parents and staff got into the fun!! Once they told my I could go into the foam pit... oh, man! I just jumped right in and started playing with the kids!! It was a fun day! Everyone agreed!!!
Madison
My sister, Tami, came into town this weekend! Friday night we had our friends Rachel, Ed and their baby stop by for some dinner, and after Tami showed up we cruised around the local mall eating ice cream and getting me a new phone. (my phone was having some minor issues, but they're all fixed now) Saturday morning we took Tami down to the Farmer's Market for some Spicy cheese bread, fresh cheese curds and beef jerky. Then we strolled down State Street looking at the shops and ending up at Ian's Pizza for some lunch! After that we decided to check out the local zoo, even though it was raining... not pouring, but enough to where we were pretty wet by the time we left.
.jpg)
We saw some scary alligators who kept disappearing under the murky water... it creeped us out cause you seriously had no idea where they were! I never want to share water with an alligator!
.jpg)
We saw some penguins who really wanted into their house because it was raining, so they all stood by the doors and made awful noises!
.jpg)
This parrot was just sitting and swinging on the rope singing a song! I kid you not! He was singing!!
.jpg)
Then we saw a Polar Bear!! Power to the Polar Bears!!
01 August 2007
Day 30 - 37 + Weekend Update
Work
This last week or so was a little hectic. Bubbles and I have been trying to plan the transition from 3's to 1.5's coming in September. We have to switch out most of your toys, rearrange the room to work with some new equipment we need to bring in (a climber), and start getting their portfolios ready. Also, since we're having such a drastic age change we need to look at our lesson plans and convert them to work with our new students. It's going to be a challenge, but I think we're going to be up for it!
Madison
Gas prices have been falling again! This time they've made it so low at to hit $2.92! I know those of you in MN have cheaper gas prices, but I don't live there anymore and I get excited about how low it gets over here!!
I took Otto to Mickies Dairy Bar on Saturday morning! It's a place in Madison, close to the stadium, where all walks of life go for good, cheap food!! They have very good breakfast, and you get a ton of it! I would've taken a picture, but I forgot to pack my camera... :( We had so much food that we both ended up having to take some of it home to eat later! So, if anyone loves breakfast, or pretty vintage restaurants, just let me know and I'll take you! But never on the day of a Badger Game!
Extra
We had a couple come over on Saturday to hang out and play games with us, when another couple stopped by, because they didn't write down our new numbers and wanted to get them and ask us if we wanted to come over and hang out with them... I chuckled and invited them to join us over at our place! So, we had a blast playing games and, of course, playing on the Wii!! The funny thing was that I planned on cooking for the four of us, but then I had to add two more! Luckily I always buy extra! So, I had a loaf of bread, Rosemary and Olive Oil, and sliced it up, got my bread dipping set out and grabbed some of my seasonings!! They loved it! Then I made Chicken Parmesan!! I also add some Italian seasonings to the sauce, which everyone loved! Then I was worried about making sure I had enough food, so I had to scan all my cookbooks looking for a recipe for brownies, because the only box I had had nuts in it and one of my friends is deathly allergic, and since I didn't want to kill him I decided I needed to find something else. The recipe I found was very tasty, and they were super simple to make. Maybe I'll post the recipe sometime.
Madison
Gas prices have been falling again! This time they've made it so low at to hit $2.92! I know those of you in MN have cheaper gas prices, but I don't live there anymore and I get excited about how low it gets over here!!
I took Otto to Mickies Dairy Bar on Saturday morning! It's a place in Madison, close to the stadium, where all walks of life go for good, cheap food!! They have very good breakfast, and you get a ton of it! I would've taken a picture, but I forgot to pack my camera... :( We had so much food that we both ended up having to take some of it home to eat later! So, if anyone loves breakfast, or pretty vintage restaurants, just let me know and I'll take you! But never on the day of a Badger Game!
Extra
We had a couple come over on Saturday to hang out and play games with us, when another couple stopped by, because they didn't write down our new numbers and wanted to get them and ask us if we wanted to come over and hang out with them... I chuckled and invited them to join us over at our place! So, we had a blast playing games and, of course, playing on the Wii!! The funny thing was that I planned on cooking for the four of us, but then I had to add two more! Luckily I always buy extra! So, I had a loaf of bread, Rosemary and Olive Oil, and sliced it up, got my bread dipping set out and grabbed some of my seasonings!! They loved it! Then I made Chicken Parmesan!! I also add some Italian seasonings to the sauce, which everyone loved! Then I was worried about making sure I had enough food, so I had to scan all my cookbooks looking for a recipe for brownies, because the only box I had had nuts in it and one of my friends is deathly allergic, and since I didn't want to kill him I decided I needed to find something else. The recipe I found was very tasty, and they were super simple to make. Maybe I'll post the recipe sometime.
22 July 2007
Weekend Update (continued)
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I finally caught one of the street painters out this summer! Unfortunately I've never seen this guy before, and he's no where as good as the guy who normally sets up shop farther down on State Street.
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Otto's cousin, Steven, happened to be in town for day and we had a chance to hang out with him! We headed over to the Great Dane Pub for lunch and some games of pool! We had a blast!!!
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Then later on one of Otto's co-workers brought over his fiance to hang out for the rest of the evening! We talked for a while, then decided to have dinner at a place called Arbat. It's a Russian Restaurant not too far from where we live. It was very tasty! I had something that starts with a G... like Goltubsti... er... Golubsti! It's meat, rice, carrots and spices inside a huge piece of cabbage in a lake of tomato paste and sour cream! It was awesome! And I also tried to a Russian Beer with dinner. It was very different, yet tasty! If you're even in the area it's worth the time to eat there!
Extra
My friends Chris and Jess had car problems on Friday and we ended up going to eat pizza at Di Roma's, before heading to Blockbuster to rent the new Pirates game from the Wii. I had a blast with the sword fights in the game!
Today, Sunday, we signed up for new phone service with Verizon. I wasn't happy that Midwest Wireless was bought out by Alltell... so I opted out of the rest of my contract and Otto and I opened a family plan today. We got some super sweet phones though!!! I got a red one, and Otto picked out a black one! Eventually I hope to call everyone on my contact list and give them my new number, but in case someone is reading this and gets left out you will need to email me or message me to get the new number!
Weekend Update
Madison
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This weekend State Street had a massive sidewalk sale called Maxwell Street Days! I thought it would've been bigger, but it was fun none the less! I ended up purchasing two ankle bracelets from one vender... and I love them!
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This weekend State Street had a massive sidewalk sale called Maxwell Street Days! I thought it would've been bigger, but it was fun none the less! I ended up purchasing two ankle bracelets from one vender... and I love them!
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We walked all the way up State Street to the capitol where the Farmer's Market was still taking place. We were told by some friends to try Spicy Cheese Bread! It was absolutely yummy!!! And you purchase it warm from the oven! We basically found a spot on the lawn and started digging in!
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Otto was enjoying his Mocha and Spicy Cheese Bread during our little break near the capitol!
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I was sipping my mocha and playing around with the camera!
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