28 August 2007
Day 46-57 + Weekend Updates
8:18 PM | 
Posted by
K.Dingfelder
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...
.jpg)
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!
.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!!
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.
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