Red Raider on the West Coast

I love reading the "Show Us Your Life" posts on Kelly's Korner, and since I love my Red Raiders so very much, I thought I'd participate today. It's not often that I get to celebrate my school spirit up here in Washington, since Red Raider fans are few and far between. I also have to pay homage to my Mizzou Tigers, since I went there for Graduate School. I love a great Mizzou basketball game!! My younger brother and I both went to Tech, and then I worked a year at Tech in the Office of Admissions. I decided after that to go to Mizzou for Grad School, and my brother decided to go there for his Master's, too! So, we got to move to Columbia together, which was so fun!! It was nice to have him close, and it meant that my parents only had to make one trip to visit both of us!

The year after I graduated from undergrad, one of my good friends, Dayme, had her grandma make her a t-shirt skirt, and I fell in love with the idea, so I decided to make my own. Then, when I went to Mizzou, I made one for the Tigers, too. I turned some of my students into Red Raider fans after I taught the "Gun's Up!" and the Fight Song before the big Tech/UT weekend this fall. Even though we didn't win, it's always fun to recruit new fans. Some of them even ask how the Raiders are doing - LOVE IT!!



Here's some of my favorite pictures of the Tech and Mizzou campuses:
Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas:




University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri:

Ear Infection

It's only been a couple of weeks since I posted, but it feels like it's been months. I got a cold a week after I started teaching - everyone in the education world has told me that you will be sicker than you've ever been during your first year of teaching. While this isn't my first year, it's my first year with the same kids every day, so I think that's what makes the difference. And now, to top of the cold, I have an ear infection. The doctor laughed because he says he doesn't see many adults with ear infections. My mom said I used to get them all the time when I was little, so I guess this is nothing new. My manager at Girl Scouts substituted for me today, and if my ear pressure doesn't let up, I think I may ask her to substitute for me again tomorrow. It's only 8:00 here, but my Theraflu Nighttime is starting to kick in, so I'm off to bed. Hope all is well in your corner of the world!! And, hopefully it won't be two weeks before I post again :)

In A New York Minute

I had a blast in New York!!

Here's a (not so quick) recap of what we did:

I took the red-eye flight on Thursday night and arrived in New York at 6:00 a.m.. After (not so gracefully) navigating through the airport with my backpack, bag, and crutches, I made it to the subway downtown. I stopped for a nice breakfast at Cafe Europa - one of my favorite little New York bakeries, and then went to my hotel. I was exhausted because I'd only slept about 2 hours on the plane. I tried to check-in but the room wasn't ready yet, so I just found a couch and took myself a quick nap in the lobby. Classy, I know, but hey, I was tired!!

My parents, Bryan, and Leann arrived around noon, and we headed to Cafe Europa (again!!) for lunch - it was delicious!! Our next stop was H&M, and then a tour of GIRL SCOUTS headquarters - so much fun!! I really enjoyed getting to meet some of the headquarter staff, look around the museum, and of course, stop by the shop! Next, we went to a really cool coffee shop, did some shopping at Grand Central Station, and then headed back to the hotel to change for dinner. Dinner was at a fabulous restaurant called Friend of a Farmer. I had a blackened salmon salad that was amazing!! Bryan and Leann left for a broadway show (they saw 4 while we were there), and my parents and I leisurely walked back to the hotel, enjoying Gramercy Park and Midtown. We stopped for drinks at the Waldorf Astoria before heading back to our hotel for the night.

At lunch...


Friend of a Farmer




The Waldorf




Saturday morning we went to Cafe Lalo (where Meg Ryan was waiting for her pen pal in "You've Got Mail") for brunch. We met Leann's cousin, Megan, and her boyfriend. It was really nice to catch up with Megan, and brunch was delicious. I actually opted for lunch - an avocado tomato sandwich - YUM! After lunch we explored Central Park. It was crazy crowded because it was beautiful outside! We made a stop at Crumbs for some AWESOME cupcakes - I had one called "The Good Guy," and it was vanilla cupcake with sprinkles in the batter, a vanilla buttercream filling, and a cream cheese frosting topped with sprinkles - I'm totally craving one right now - YUM! Then, we walked around Times Square for a bit. After changing at our hotel, we headed out to dinner at Lombardi's Pizza, and then to the Palace Theater to see "West Side Story." It was wonderful! I loved it!! After the show we headed to Magnolia Bakery for a midnight snack - delicious!! I indulged (hey, it's vacation!) and got two cupcakes - caramel and pumpkin - YUM! Okay, how many times have I said "yum" in this post - but seriously - all of the food we ate was, well, yummy!

Central Park - I was relaxing in the grass while my parents did some geocaching


Ahh, Crumbs!




West Side Story


Our cupcake selection from Magnolia



On Sunday we went to the old meat packing district and to the market where Food Network headquarters are located. We enjoyed some great bread from Amy's Bread, and then explored all the cool market food shops. This was definitely a highlight of the trip for me. We went to Eleni's cookies - I was so excited. I fell in love with her shop after I saw her on Martha years ago!! We left the market and caught a subway to Queens for the Mets game at the new stadium. It was really fun to see them play at their new stadium (my dad and I were there five years ago and saw them at Shea). We had a quick barbeque dinner before Bryan and Leann left for another show, and then my parents and I acted like true NYC tourists and boarded one of the double-decker buses for a night tour of the city. It was actually really fun, and we got to go over to Brooklyn for some great views of the city, and some awesome ice cream. Since I'd been crutching it/limping around the city, it was nice to see the city from the bus!!

Eleni's Cookies




Citi Field




Monday morning we woke up really early to go to the Today Show. We saw Sean Kingston perform as part of the summer concert series. He was pretty good! After hanging out watching him perform, we had breakfast at Dean and Deluca, and then went to the Top of the Rock (top of Rockefeller Center). It was super cool to see the city from up there. Last time I was in NYC I went to the top of the Empire State Building, but it was cool to see the Empire State Building from up there this time. We met Bryan and Leann once we were back on the ground, and did some shopping at Anthropologie in Rockefeller Center - I was in awe of the size of that store - wow! I found a back-to-school outfit - yay!! Our lunch spot was Serendipity 3 - a delicious way to end the trip!! We split the Frrrozen Hot Chocolate and a Brownie Sundae for desert - no need to talk about our entrees - dessert was definitely the highlight! After lunch I caught the subway to the airport with a quick stop in Greenwich Village - where I saw the Stonewall Inn (site where Pride began 40 years ago).

Our view from the Top of the Rock




Indulging in my sundae at Seredipity 3 - I did actually share...I promise :)




Stonewall Inn


I had a wonderful trip and I always leave New York excited to go back, and this time was no different. I love that city!! If you're interested/bored, feel free to check out my dad's New York album: http://gallery.me.com/donwendell#100143
User Name: newyork
Password: 2009

Off to New York...

...Crutches coming too...I got my x-ray results and there is no fracture on my knee cap...whew!! That was a huge relief. The doctor told me to rest for the next few days, and I laughed and told him I was going to New York for the weekend. He laughed and said I had to bring my crutches. That should be interesting...entertaining...maybe both (especially for my family)...

Tonight is Back to School night at my new school - I'm super excited!! I get to meet all the new 6th graders and recruit them for the Girl Scout class. Then, Marcy is picking me up and taking me to the airport. I'm catching the red-eye to New York at 9:40.

Tomorrow I'm going to visit the New York City Library while I wait for my parents, Bryan, and Leann to arrive, and then we are going to lunch, a tour of the Girl Scout Headquarters (yay!), and more exploration in the afternoon/evening.

Have a marvelous Labor Day weekend!!

My Knee

We've been back from our backpacking trip since Friday. We had to come back early because I fell in the backcountry and sprained my knee. I fell a couple of weeks ago while working at Starbucks, and I think this was just re-injuring that injury. I've had knee problems ever since playing softball in high school, but seriously, this is ridiculous. My knee is swollen to the size of a grapefruit. I've been wrapping it, icing it, and keeping it elevated, but it hurts like heck!! And check out these bruises - this is a progression of the swelling:

The morning after I fell


Sunday


Today


I'm going to the doctor tomorrow, and hopefully I'll have some more answers.

Other than falling, our trip was great. And, I think I'd have to consider falling a good thing, because the original plan for our trip had us hiking right into where wild fires had broken out (they started after we had already started hiking so we didn't know anything about them). If I hadn't fallen, we might have hiked right into that area - eek!! Here's a quick recap:
Tuesday - Long hike - camped in a quaint spot and enjoyed veggie soup for dinner - everything tastes amazing in the back country
Wednesday - Saw a black bear while pumping water from the stream. Had AMAZING views of Mt. Oympus
Thursday - Decided to hike back and try a different trail for the remainder of our trip....I fell on our decent. I had to hike 6 miles on my sprained knee, and Marcy had to carry both of our packs. Couldn't make it all the way, so we camped one more night.
Friday - Finished our hike - my knee was super stiff. Took the ferry back to Seattle and rested the remainder of the weekend.

A few pictures:
The start of our hike.


Marcy pumping water - this is when we saw the bear. Sadly I didn't get a picture of the bear - we wanted to move quickly so as to not disturb the bear.


The beautiful Mt. Olympus


Marcy carrying the two packs


Me with my trekking poles - I hobbled all the way down the mountain.

My Dad visits Seattle

My dad left early this morning after a FULL week in Seattle. We had a great time and I enjoyed getting to show my dad all my favorite Seattle spots!! (Lots of photos - my dad LOVES to take pictures....)

He got here last Thursday and we visited the Ballard Locks (where the ships and boats come in and out of the Puget Sound), ate at Dahlia Lounge (YUM!!), and had Trophy Cupcakes (Double YUM!!)

Pops


The Locks


The next day we headed to Rainier. It was totally foggy, but we had a great day hiking around among the wildflowers

Entrance gate


A marmot!! Cute little guys!


Freezing!


We spent Saturday downtown. We ate lunch at Fisherman's on the water, then headed to the Experience the Music Project. We also did some shopping and went to a Brewery for dinner.

Our lunch spot


Enjoying the view


Experience Music Project Sculpture


Sunday was the Mariners/Yankees game - Mariner's won!!!

Pulling out my photography "skills" for this shot...


The stadium


Monday and Tuesday we spent on the Pacific Coast. We drove out to the peninsula of Washington and enjoyed being by the ocean!!

The cabin we stayed in


The view from our cabin


Giant trees are everywhere


I'll be back here next week for my backpacking trip!!


Yesterday was another day downtown. We went to the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, and shopped!! Our last dinner was at Lunchbox Laboratory and it was DELICIOUS. I love that place!! If you ever visit Seattle, it's a must!! We also had cupcakes from Cupcake Royale - so good!!

Pike Place Market


Starbucks HQ


I love this city!


Ahh, the Space Needle - I love it!


This weekend, Marcy's cousin is getting married, so tonight is her rehearsal dinner and tomorrow is the wedding. Then, next Tuesday, Marcy and I are headed to the Olympic Peninsula for a 6-day/60-mile backpacking trip. I can't wait!! After I return from that trip, I leave for New York a few days later!! I think things will actually slow down once school starts....

Catching up...

It's been a while since my last post, and I really just can't believe how quickly the summer has passed... Last weekend I took girls to camp with my co-workers at Girl Scouts. We took ten girls for two nights and had a BLAST. The girls really enjoyed getting to hike, swim, kayak, and experience all the cool aspects of camp (including sneaking out of their cabins in the middle of the night for a party in the bathroom...yes, you read correctly, the BATHROOM. One of the girls snuck snacks into her pack, so they even had snacks at their party...in the bathroom...SICK!) We overheard some of the girls talking about sneaking out on the second night of camp to have a party in the teepee, so we thought we would outsmart them and be hiding in the teepee...well, our well-laid-out plan was shot when one of the girls saw us waiting for them...dang...that sure would've been fun :)

When I got back from camp, Marcy and I went to see the Indigo Girls at a Concert at the ZOO!! It was so much fun. We took a picnic dinner, and really enjoyed relaxing and listening to great music. Brandi Carlile showed up as a surprise guest, which was a cool bonus to the evening.

This past week I was busy at work getting things ready for the upcoming school year. I'm going to teach two Personal Growth Classes at a Seattle Public Schools Middle School as part of my Girl Scout job. I'm really excited about it, and I get to create my own curriculum, with lots of fun lessons on self-esteem, team building, bullying, etc...

Then, this weekend, Marcy and I spent a lot of time with Linden. (Background Info: During Grad School, Marcy started working as a care-giver for Linden, who is developmentally delayed) Linden's parents are in Paris for the week, so Marcy is staying with her, taking her to t-ball, and doing lots of other fun stuff This weekend we went bowling, swimming, and hiking. Linden works at Starbucks as a cafe attendant, and she always like to talk to me about Starbucks and what drinks I've had lately and what I get to do at work. We had a fun, relaxing weekend, and I'm ready for a full week back at work!!

Art Projects at Camp


Tie-Dye Fun


Kayaking


Marcy and me at the Indigo Girls Concert


Video of Indigo Girls singing "Closer to Fine." Beware - it's shaky and off-centered - I was grooving to the music...just like all the other folks around me :)


I've got a really fun month ahead...
Tomorrow: Badge Workshop with my Girl Scout Troop - I haven't seen the girls since our camping trip, so I'm really excited
This weekend: Going to see "Julie and Julia" - YAY!! I love Julia Child and hello, it's my namesake in the movie :)
Aug. 13-20: My dad is coming to visit - we've got a JAM PACKED week planned and he hasn't been out here since I moved here, so it should be really fun!!
Aug. 24-30: Marcy and I are going on a backpacking trip in the Olympic Mountains - 60 miles total!!
Sept. 4-7: NYC with my parents, Bryan and Leann - SO FUN!!
Sept. 9: First Day of School!!