Back to school......and statues in the park

Summer is over for me, as I returned to school this week for workshops, planning, setting up my classroom, and meeting with my new students and their parents.
I met about half of them tonight and it seemed like a good group of kids.
I always worry that I will get a few challenging ones that like to disrupt, but
I'm sure they are hoping just as hard that I won't be a "mean" teacher.
The night before school starts will probably mean a restless sleep for all of us!

But,
not for these kids below.

This little group of kids are happily playing in a little country park where my mother-in-law grew up. This statue was a gift from all of my husband's siblings to his parents.
Cool, isn't it?

It overlooks the new playground.

The old band stand sits near by. Can't you picture Harold Hill, The Music Man, conducting his little band of beginning students here?

These old trees have been standing guard for many years. Think of the memories made under their shady branches.These three sisters (sitting) all grew up down the street. Imagine all the fun they had living on a farm, being courted by their husbands, marrying, and then leaving the safety of the little community for the "big wide world".

We recently celebrated a family reunion here with them and some of their posterity.
All the cousins had a lot of fun vacations and reunions here, too.


Ken's parents have done a lot of community service, here and in other locations where they have lived. They have truly made the world better for many people.

I'm sure the little statue has found a happy home!

Now, if I can just create a classroom that will foster some good learning and a few fun memories.
Wish me luck!

JoAnn

Woodstock......2009 version

(photo from Google.com)

It's been 4o years since half a million young people crowded together
at Yasgur's farm in Bethel, New York for the now famous Woodstock festival.
While that event on August 17, 1969 had a big impact on society, a much smaller event took place this very year (well, a few days early),
with not much notice or fanfare (except to those gathered and a few near-by neighbors).
We had our own family "Hippie Party"!
(A "G" rated one at that!)

We all gathered together in our most creative versions of 60's liberal fashion.
Chris's white disco jacket became the documentation of the event as people signed it throughout the night. He was a disco + hippie or "Dippie".

There's more.....

We had a lot of fun, including playing in the playhouse, making smores, playing giant wii games, laughing, dicso dancing (wrong era, I know), and visiting. We abandoned the idea of sleeping out due to some wind and rain, but everyone found a place to sleep for the night
(and no crops were flattened).
It was a night to remember!
Peace!

JoAnn

Family photo.....almost

The official wedding pictures finally came.
This is our immediate family (minus Ovidiu who couldn't come- he is heading back to Romania soon for a visit and couldn't take off time for both. We missed him!).

We love our family!
Don't you agree that the family unit is so important, especially today in such turbulent times?
(You get to practice and learn all kinds of behavior skills on them-
and they still have to put up with you!)

"The family is the cornerstone of civilization and no nation will rise above the caliber of its homes. The family is the rock foundation of the Church. We therefore call on the head of every household to strengthen the family." -James E. Faust

(Heidi and Ovidiu)


Today I'm off to help Liz and Karl do some cleaning and packing.
They get to move to a real house (as house-sitters) while Karl finishes his masters.

Would somebody please slow down summer!
Only 5 more days left for me!!!!

I LOVE Facebook (at least today)!

The old Fairview Gang


I just saw these old pictures posted on Facebook by a granddaughter of one of these people.
(Alicia Bronson Lesser)
These people were my parents and their wonderful friends
and
I have never seen these pictures before!
(My dad is the second from the right on the back row.
Mom is the second from the right on the chairs.)

We spent so much time with each of them and their children.

We went on canyon picnics together, annual trips to Yellowstone (caravan style), and enjoyed so many other fun activities.

They all knew how to work and how to play.
They were the best of friends.

What a bunch of handsome men!
(They look so young.)
(Dad is on the left.)

They were all fun loving, too.
This picture is my dad and Helen (who is actually a cousin).

So many of them have passed away and seeing them together and happy just made my day.
Thanks for sharing wonderful old photos!

Doesn't it just make you wish everyone would dig out their old photos and share them, too!!!
(Think of the hidden treasures!)

Another year older....but with a new perspective

Yesterday we celebrated my husband Ken's birthday.

Happy Birthday, Ken!

He is one of those people who never changes sizes (I hate it!).


He is quite a super hero, too (I love it)!
(He can build, repair, or create anything.)

Click here if you want to see how we first met.

He used to drive a really cool car. Click here to learn more about it.

Anyway,
we received an email yesterday that fits in perfectly with having birthdays and getting older and I thought it would be fun to share.

It's long, but it is right on target (especially the end where he gives tips on how to stay young.)

George Carlin's Views on Aging


Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions.



"How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key.


You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.


"How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . you become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!



But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?



You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50

and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!


So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.


You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!



You get into your 80s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; "I Was JUST 92."


Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!"

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!


HOW TO STAY YOUNG


1 Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay "them "



2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.


3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.



4. Enjoy the simple things.


5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.


6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.


7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets,keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.



8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.


9 Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.



10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.



AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.



And if you don't send this to at least 8 people - who cares? But do share this with someone. We all need to live life to its fullest each day!!

The little disclaimer at the end won't delete. Sorry!

Remember these little napkin-towel-things I bought?
(I'm not really sure what their official purpose was, but I liked the material.)
I thought they would make cute bed pillows.



Well, I finally got them finished.
They were pretty simple to make.

I just opened up one seam and slid an old pillow inside, then hand stitched it closed.
Because they are different on both sides I can change them around for variety.

This.....
This......
Or this.

Now I just need to get a few more pillows to go with it.

And that's about as " crafty" as I have been lately.
(Which means I have been very LAZY this week!)

"Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability." -Sam Keen

Have we had enough summer fun yet?

School starts on August 24th.
That really means I go back the week before (or sooner if I can get in the building).

I'm not sure I'm ready to have summer be over.

Yes, it is HOT and that part I won't miss, but not the kind of lazy, relaxing fun that only comes with carefree days and "hanging out" with friends and family.

I always create a big list of summer work projects
and sometimes I get some of the things done,
but more often than not the list just carries over.
(Will it really matter if the shed doesn't get cleaned right now?)

Anyway, I decided to make a new list of things I WANT to do.
Some of these things I have already accomplished (♥). Yeah!

My FUN Summer To Do List:

Sleep in.
♥Take a short road trip or vacation.
♥Sip icy lemonade
♥Go on a picnic.
♥Go to a Parade of Homes.
Go camping with my family. (It's planned!)
Build a fire in the back yard fire pit. (Maybe the skunk interfered!)
♥Eat fresh fruit and pick raspberries.
♥Play in the dirt (garden).
♥Run through the sprinklers.
♥Visit with old friends (Yes, I did go to my class reunion!)
♥Lie in the grass and hunt for cloud pictures.
♥Go on pretty hikes.
♥Read a novel.
♥Go to a parade (even if it is mostly tractors and horses).
♥Go to a fireworks show.
♥Have a barbecue.
Fly a kite.
Go swimming.
Attend a family reunion. (Soon.)
♥Play with my granddaughter.
♥Have a son's wedding and get a cute new daughter-in-law.

I guess my summer has been better than I thought!
The next few weeks will be busy if I get all my playing done.

I'll end with a picture of Maddie having a great summer on the beach in Oregon.


I hope you are having a fun summer, too!
JoAnn