May Day: Please Bring Flowers

Do you ever have those weeks that seem to go on forever? Where you continue to question what day it actually is? Those weeks where you could swear it is Friday, but it is only Wednesday?

Yep, that is my week.

This morning, I have been jumping on the Friday bandwaggon. Every move I make is in the assumption that today is the last day of the work week. But it is not. When you have weeks like this, what do you do to pull yourself back to reality? In my experience, the only thing to do is to give yourself a positive kick in the pants. So prepare for another list of awesome, super cool, grandiose things!

All right, they aren't that hugely amazing, but they are things that bring a smile to my face.

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Molly's 2nd List of Awesome

1. My inbox got a surprise today! My Yoga Pro, a website I have been dying to get my hands on, is finally launching next week! I cannot wait to check out all the videos, connect with other yogis, and hopefully learn some new things. I've been waiting for the launch since Christmas, and I can't wait!
2. My students made HUGE strides on our biome project yesterday. For a solid hour and a half, we cut, colored, researched, stapled, and glued our way to the savanna. We're not there yet, but I can finally see it coming together. 
3. My dad joined Snapchat. I don't know why this is awesome, but it made my giggle out loud when I got his "friend request". He is a retired teacher and is always proud of what I do in the classroom, so I look forward to snapping him cool school projects!
4. I went to Skyzone again, and I am feeling the burn today. Who doesn't love that sore muscle feeling, especially when you know you worked for it. 
5. Today is May Day! Do you know what that means? Goodbye April showers, and hello May flowers! There is still a ton of work to do, but my garden at home is shooting up and looking ever so pretty. 

Here is to the power of positive thinking! I feel better already. 

Happy May Day, friends! 

Biome Week: School Stress

To say I have been a bit stressed lately would be an understatement. I can't sleep. All I want to eat is ice cream. Yea, stress. However, it is all for a good cause.

This week is Biome Week in the fifth grade. What is a biome, you ask? A biome is a unit of the environment with similar plants, animals, and climates: oceans, tundra, desert, rainforest, grasslands, wetlands, etc. We have been studying the biomes of the world for the last month, and this week is the culmination. We are BUILDING the biomes! All five fifth grade classes contributed to the ocean in our hallway. The students all brought in a three-dimensional fish of their choice, and they are so impressive! Then we hung them from the ceiling so it feels like you are swimming through the ocean in our hall.

Hallway Ocean

Clownfish

Our classroom will be transformed into the savanna grasslands. As I told my students, "Think Lion King!" We are making a huge mural on one wall, student groups are making lions and cheetahs, there is a paper river through the center of the room, and several other projects. I have been so worried that we will not complete the transformation by our due date/walk through on Friday, but the students are determined. I love watching their faces think through how to build a tree or an exotic bird.

I will post pictures as the week continues. I will also learn to take deep breaths, and let it go! My students will make what they make, and it doesn't have to be perfect. But with the right amount of time, anything is possible.

RAWWW

The start of our savanna river

Whew! I'll sleep next week :-)

Bunny Cake

Each year Emily and I lived together, we made bunny cakes for Easter. Once we moved in with the men in our lives, we decided that carrying on the tradition would be fun. The bunnies have evolved over time; adding coconut "fur", carving them into realistic hares, and changing the colors. This year was no different, and I decided to try something new. The 2014 Easter Bunny Cake would be....a cartoon bunny face with a bow tie!

Bunny Cake 2014

Seeing as I gave up chocolate for Lent, I chose a double fudge box cake. I used two 8 inch pans as the base.  After fully cooling the two layers, I got to work.

First, cut one of the rounds into three sections making two "leaves" on each side. These will become the ears and the bow tie.

Next, build the bunny. One 8 inch round will be the face. The two "leaves" become the ears, and the remainder is the bow tie.

I used chocolate whipped frosting because the whipped is a little lighter and easier to work with. With the exposed cuts in the cake, the whip helps to avoid tears while frosting. Frost the WHOLE bunny.

Now here is my not so secret, secret. Toothpicks are amazing! Toothpicks are the best things ever when it comes to cake decoration! I wouldn't be anywhere without toothpicks! Okay, maybe I'm going a little far, but they are the perfect tool for sketching out the decorations before you begin with the real stuff. If you make a mistake with a toothpick, it is a quick fix (erase), and you are back on track.

Once you are satisfied with your toothpick sketch, start the real deal! Before you know it, you will have a beautiful bunny cake that is not only delicious, but it is also pretty darn adorable to lay your eyes on.

The finished product! 

Bunny Cake 2013

April Date Night: Spa Day

Back in December, when I was planning all 12 dates, I struggled to find a variety of fun activities, yet keep a few dollars in the bank. Hence, idea of "at home" dates was born. There are only a couple throughout the year, and April is one of those months!

APRIL

The Fitzpatrick Home Spa promotes relaxation and well being with a variety of services. Choose from the following:

·     Full body massage with relaxing music

·     Exfoliating facial masks and treatment

·     Bubble bath

·     And a special treat of chocolate covered __________. 

The only treatment we skipped was the bubble bath. Our ugly beautiful pink tub just didn't seem like the best place to relax. We were all set to have an almost free, relaxing evening at home! However, if you have read about any of our other date nights, we always find a way to change things up. I love it!

They didn't turn out quite a pretty as we hoped...but still delicious! 

After looking at our schedule, date night was penciled in for April 20, also known as Easter. After a great day of egg hunts and family visits, we decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weather.  Off to Wal-Mart we went to pick up burgers, buns, and tons of fruit for the chocolate covered treat. I love that we now have a grill, because it has given us so many opportunities to enjoy the outdoors and our gorgeous lake view. By the time we gorged on burgers and chips, more food (chocolate dipped fruit) didn't seem appealing, thus date night part two emerged! Two dates, back to back? AMAZING!

The spread of fruits and chocolate! 

Day One

• grilling
• massages
• face masks (he was such a good sport!)
• eye brow shaping - Adam is strangely good at plucking eyebrows, and I reap the benefits! 
• Thor

Faces of silk...or milk...

Day Two

• dinner at Iron Horse
• chocolate dipping (YUM!)
• game night
• lots of laughs

GAME NIGHT!

Adam was victorious.

Adam won by 2 points...arg! 

But wait! We were having such a great time on our dates, we added in a day three! Can you imagine my excitement? Three nights in a row with my best guy? Thrilled, amazed, SO MUCH FUN!

Day Three

• 18 holes of disk golf
• grilling
• movie snuggles

I love date night! Bring on May! 

Weekend Delight

What is the difference between a regular weekend and an amazing weekend? Generally, the answer involves great people and spectacular weather! This weekend had both, as well as the bonus of Easter.  As you may have gathered from my last post, there has been an unexpected transformation in the way I've been viewing the world lately. While I'm not sure what caused the shift or how long it will last, I feel like my mantra of "love the little things" has finally taken root in my soul.

Friday night, my expectation was to come home, possibly attend Good Friday service, clean a bit, and head to bed early. Instead, I watched a Good Friday video, made frozen pizza for Adam's break, went out for Mexican with a group of teachers, ended up at a local bar (that was a first!), Adam came out after he got off shift, and we danced. I love dancing. It is normally done in my kitchen, but when there is real music and the hubs joins in...the whole world clicks into place.

The sign of a good man: he holds your purse so you can dance.

Saturday morning, we went to Des Moines for an appointment, got Target shopping in, and had a bonus Jimmy John's meal. I found Catholic TV so I could watch the Easter Vigil mass, and I schemed about where to hide the eggs. 

Yes, we are in our late 20's, with no children, but we still hide eggs on Easter. And why wouldn't we? It is so much fun trying to out-hide one another. We have been doing it since our first year living together, and it has become one of my favorite traditions. This year, however, Adam decided to take it one step further...he must have been confused on the holiday, because I woke up to my house rearranged. April Fool's and Easter apparently go hand in hand in his brain. Which is actually quite okay, because for the first ten minutes of being awake, I couldn't stop giggling.

My husband has confused Easter for April Fool's. #atleasthehidtheeggs

So, what does that leave for Sunday? The egg hunt of course! Before Adam was even awake, I had already found three of my eggs, which really feeds into my competitive side. Though in his defense, I found all three by accident. One was in my Kitchen Aid mixer; I baked a cake in the morning. The next was in my yoga mat; I greeted the sun with an Erin Motz session. The final was in the tissue box; that one is pretty self explanatory. 

Happy Easter everyone! Hopefully it is filled with joy, celebration, family, and chocolate!

ps. Stay tuned for this year's Easter cake post!

Loving the Little Things

This week has been good. Maybe just the last 24 hours, but when you have a good day, it seems to overshadow the rest. As school winds down, my anxious wonderful students have started to become antsy, loud, and restless. Currently there is a student teacher in my classroom. He has been full time teaching for the last 4 weeks, but next week, I get some subjects back. I am thrilled! It is just what I need to finish the year strong.

Which leads me to today's post about loving the little things and being in charge of my own happiness!

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Little things that add up to great joy! 

• Last weekend was spent with Adam's family in Council Bluffs. There are so many people who do not enjoy their in-laws, but I love mine.  Of course they have quirks, but who doesn't? Plus they welcome me with open arms! 

• Letters from my old students: this week I received three letters from my Sacred Heart students. It was so nice to hear from them and to know that I meant enough to write to, even after I have moved away. 

• PUSH-EMS! Do you remember these? Orange sorbet in a tube with a pushing stick on the end? I loved them as a child. Last night, my husband gave me two! Best. Present. Ever. 

• Grilling out on a cool spring day is the best! Well, maybe it would be better on a warm spring day, but I will take it! Wednesday night, we bought two huge chicken breasts, asparagus, and pasta and went to town with our NEW grill.

• Which brings me to good deals! Last weekend we bought a new grill. Nothing fancy, just something to get the job done. Though it still has 3 burners, and it does look nice. There was a sign that said $88, so we jumped at the chance. When we were at the register, it rang up for $128! Not the plan! I was about to walk away when they said, "The sign was in the wrong place. Our fault. So, we will give it to you for $88." Score! 

• Adam threw me over his shoulder and ran around our driveway. I could not stop laughing. 

• The SUN! Oh the glorious sun! 

• Self motivated workout days! 

• A clean kitchen: Some people think I'm crazy, but when my kitchen is clean, I'm a much happier person.

• P.P. in snuggle mode: I am a cat lady, and I don't care. 

• Recess duty on sunny days

• Taking back control of my classroom and quiet, happy students

• And finally, Adam in his bike uniform. He seemed so happy to be wearing it, and I sure do love how it looks!

There you have it ladies and gentlemen, my list of little things that have added up to my great Friday mood. Today, I choose happiness, how about you?

1000 Rep Workout

Yesterday was one of those days that was either going to drive me to Junction Creamery (yum ice cream!) or to a sweaty, get some stress out, gym session. As I sat on the steps of our living room, giving Adam puppy dog eyes, I was inches away from blowing my healthy day with a big, fat sundae...but then, I chose the workout. Proud moment!

I knew Adam would be going to the gym either way, so yet again, I used the hubs as motivation.  We decided to head to the high school gym instead of Snap because it was a leg day for him, and Snap just doesn't have what he needs. I like working out at the high school, but that also means I need to find a workout to do that doesn't involve a cardio machine and HGTV.

To solve my workout dilemma, I browsed my fitness board on Pinterest and came upon the 1000 Rep Workout from Julie Fagan's blog, Peanut Butter Fingers. Her blog is full of great workouts and recipes.   As the name suggests, the 1000 Rep Workout is just that, one thousand reps! It is mainly focused on legs, but has some good overall toning as well. I made a few tweaks to the reps to accommodate my current fitness level. Thus, I'm calling yesterday's version the 900 Rep Workout.

When I was losing motivation half way through, my friend Teresa jumped in and finished it out with me. It was just what I needed!  Grab a friend, give it a try, and let me know what you think! 

Boom! Fitness!