Do you have a famous double?

Brittainy came over my house one day a couple of months ago and asked me if I'd seen this commercial. Well, yes, it was on EVERY DAY! She asked me if I noticed that girl that breaks her heel looks like my niece Stephanie. At first I thought she was crazy. As soon as that girl walks through the door she is the spitting image of Stephie. How could I have seen this commercial all these times and noticed that.

take care,

Dawn

Out of the mouths of babes :)

One of the things I like to do with my kindergartners at writing time is to let them pick a picture to write about. I have folders full of pictures with lots of different themes. (In case you can't read "kindergarten" writing, prite means pretty!!!) Well, imagine my surprise to read what one of the little girls wrote one day. So insightful :) :) If I could I would have sent her right to second grade. She's obviously gifted LOL!

The little girl that wrote this is a twin and her sister was also in my class. I just LOVE those girls. They are full of life, always laughing and you can't help but smile when they are with you. Their mom (a secretary in our school system) has to work two weeks past the close of school and I offered to watch the girls if she needed the help. Today they are over (as well as tomorrow and Friday).

Right now the girls and Timmy are out in the back yard playing in the sprinklers. Life is good!

take care,
Dawn

119 years ago

Today is my great grandmother's birthday. Mary Elizabeth Frizzle was born on June 26, 1888 right here in the same town I live in. She met her first husband Edmund Burliegh Ryder in Chatham MA, picking cranberries. They both were born on the same day, and I believe the same year! He was a lighthouse keeper and died early in their marriage of TB. She later married Frank Lynch who she also outlived.

When I was a child my sister and I would spend weekends with my great grandmother. I called her Nana, people in the neighborhood called her Miss Lizzie, but she was Lizzie to her friends. There are lots of things I remember about her.

We would walk down the street every Sunday morning to church and come home to a big Sunday dinner.

On Saturday she would do her baking. She'd make fresh apple pie almost all the time. I remember her getting out the paring knife and peeling the skin off the apple. I used to get to eat the apple peel. When it was cold out she would take the pie out of the pantry and put it on top of the kerosene stove that was in the living room to heat up. The whole house smelled wonderful. She was a wonderful cook. I still have some of her cookware and recipes that I use. She had a great recipe for orange cake. It had a marmalade like filling and an orange glaze frosting. It was so good, but I never got the recipe for that.

My Nana taught my sister and I how to play croquet in the backyard. She also taught us how to play Parcheesi and Checkers.

I remember the big old tin of buttons she had in the spare bedroom. We would open that tin and play with those buttons for the longest time.

I also remember on Sunday afternoons watching a Shirley Temple movie with her. I still love Shirley Temple movies.

My great grandmother died when I was 16 years old. I still think about her all the time.

Happy Birthday Nana.

take care,
Dawn

My creating update

Debi asked me to post what I've been creating since I haven't done it in a while. These are the projects I've made since I last posted an update.

The first two are sweater sets for a Bitty Baby. I made one for a little girl I had last year. (Hi Livia!!) to thank her for some things she made for me. The other I made for Shauna (another friend's daughter).
Then I started a baby blanket. I went to a local yarn store to buy the pattern but they wouldn't sell it (give it) to me unless I bought the yarn. I already had the yarn I wanted so I went home and figured the pattern out myself :). A friend of mine told me that her daughter was having a baby this June so I knit the blanket for her. The baby was born on Friday, so my friend picked up the blanket today and is flying to Florida tomorrow to see her daughter and new granddaughter.

I also finished an Irish Hiking scarf that I started a while ago.

Lastly is a sweater that I made for Mackenzie for her birthday. It's a little bit big but it should serve it's purpose this fall and winter :)

I think there is a bit of a pink theme going on here LOL! Now I am working on the mates to two different socks that I made.

take care,
Dawn

There's GOLD in them thar washing machine

I couldn't wait for Rich to come home at lunch time today. I had used the new washer and dryer for the first time today. (Imagine being excited to do laundry!). I did a load of towels and they washed and dried so nicely! Then I did a load of dark clothes. (SIDEBAR: Do you sort your laundry to wash or throw it all in together? I'm a sorter!)


When I took the jeans (etc.) out of the wash, there in the bottom I spotted GOLD!


I told Rich when he stopped home how very fortunate we were to get a washer that spun dirty clothes into gold! He looked a little surprised and asked what kind of gold....so I showed him the gold band that I found in the washer.


The funny part was he said it was his wedding ring he lost yesterday. Imagine loosing your wedding ring and not telling your wife!


Rich has this thing about wearing his ring when he works (construction). He said he once heard that a guy lost a finger. I told him I've heard of THOUSANDS who haven't. He still won't wear his ring to work, or to wash dishes, or mow the lawn...well, you get the picture!


take care,
Dawn

My expected delivery

Brittainy and Jay just moved from their apartment to a house this month. They have no washer or dryer so....I gave them my old one and bought this new one. Did you think I was going to say I bought this new one for them? :)

I'm waiting for the delivery men to show up. I've got another three hour window to wait.

I bought this simple washer and dryer because the old ones were Maytag's...nothing fancy, but they served me well. Now, if Brittainy could only get the outlet situation fixed she'd have her dryer running now. My poor impatient daughter has been waiting two whole days now to get it fixed! (a three prong cord with a four prong outlet!)

I selfishly wanted a top loader so I could do felting. I hear it's a bit tricky with a top loader. On Tuesday I did every bit of laundry I had before Rich and Jay took the old ones out.

So here I sit waiting......

take care,

Dawn

How "Tweet"

Last Saturday I was out in the back yard with Tim and Mackenzie trying to finally weed my little garden. Several years earlier I had bought a bird house I saw at a craft fair. My only purpose for getting it was that it was cute :) While I was weeding I kept hearing swooshing by my head. When I finally stepped away I saw a bird flying back and forth. After it left I got a flashlight and looked into the bird house and saw at least two little babies. All day long the bird would fly to the bird house and bring worms! I don't even know what kind of bird it is. I'm awful that way! Tim and I have been watching the birds and they are still alive and, I hope, protected in the home they have.

take care,
Dawn

School's out for Summer!!!

I don't know who gets more excited, the children or the teachers!!! I am thrilled to have summer vacation. The hardest part is saying goodbye to the children. I had a WONDERFUL class this year and enjoyed every child in my room. Some years are more of a challenge than others but this year was just the best group of kids. I will miss them! Yesterday before the end of school I read Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the Last Day of Kindergarten and got all choked up reading the story. We ended our year together with root beer floats and a few rounds of the Limbo dance. The principal came in and joined us for a few minutes!

I have started my vacation by scheduling too many things today. I went for a mammogram this morning, followed by grocery shopping (I still have to put much of it away) and later this afternoon I have to take my mother for a hair cut bring her home and go back to get mine colored! Tonight Rich and Jay are taking our washer and dryer out and bringing it to Jay's. I gave my old ones to Britt and Jay and bought a new pair for myself.

My house is a COMPLETE DIASTER so I am going to try to accomplish something. I hope to be around much this summer so if you have missed me (and I hope someone has!) I'll see you around.

take care,
Dawn