the perfect noun/adjective/verb substitute

So I borrowed The Smurfs on DVD from the library so Emily understands what the little blue creatures on our refrigerator magnets are... and realized just how much they use 'smurf' as a word substitute- good, bad, and in between! My favorites are:

"What the smurf is going on in here?!"
"Quit smurfing around!"
"Smurftastic!"

bubble paint!

For my last time teaching preschool before we take a break for summer, our theme was BUBBLES! First we played with big bubble wands outside, then did a baking soda and vinegar experiment.

The highlight was making bubble paint prints, which was fun, exciting, and messy! Of course I had to use the leftover bubble paint later to experiment and have my own fun making stationary.

Halfway through I found I was even more fascinated by the visual process of creating and capturing the ultra-colorful bubbles, so I busted out my camera.

I was having so much fun I lost track of time!

This green print is one of my favorites!

Here is red and purple blown simultaneously...

The red(pink)/purple print with some bubbles still remaining...

And after they popped! End result:

I love how the paint collects at the base of the bubbles

The paper towel afterwards was saturated with color! Next time I do this I'll put cardstock under the cups to create a print from.

Here's the recipe I ended up using, one color in each cup.

- A generous squirt of dishsoap

- about 1/4 cup of tempera paint

- about 1/4 cup water (but I would use less next time to keep the colors brighter- maybe just 1 tablespoon)

Mix, then put in a straw and blow to form the bubbles! The more bubbles, the better. They need to be above the rim of the cup. Place your paper (I used cardstock) on top of the overflowing bubbles to capture the print. I played around with scooping the bubbles onto the paper and letting them sit and pop on their own after a few minutes. The paper warped as it dried, so I pressed them in between two heavy books overnight to flatten.

break time!

2010 Friend Survey

Welcome to the 2010 edition of getting to know your Friends. Copy and paste, change all the answers so they apply to you, and then TAG your friends. The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!

What time did you get up this morning? 7:30 am
Diamonds or pearls?  diamonds
What was the last film you saw at the cinema?  New Moon
What is your favorite TV show?  The Mentalist, The Office
What do you usually have for breakfast?  cereal or grapefruit
What is your middle name?  Lynne
What foods do you dislike?  seafood
What is your favorite CD at the moment?  Dan in Real Life soundtrack
What kind of car do you drive?  Toyota Corolla
Favorite sandwich?  PB&J
What characteristics do you despise?  in myself- procrastination, easily distracted
Favorite items of clothing?  jeans, soft t-shirts
If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?  Europe, Hawaii, the Caribbean, South America
Favorite brand of clothing?  whatever's cute...
Where would you retire to?  a motorhome. Road trips!
What was your most memorable birthday? 18th
Favorite sport to watch?  football, but only if there's a lot of passing.
Are you a morning person or a night person? night owl, the later the better. But I'm trying to change. It's not going too well.
What is your shoe size? 8.5
Pets? when we get a house and IF we get a dog (the stipulation being that the turds get picked up twice a day by anyone other than me...) a beagle that is trained not to bark too much. So that's a big IF.
Any new and exciting news you 'd like to share with us?  I'm starting my photography business up again; we moved into a cute duplex house and I LOVE having a garage; we're starting the adoption process again; Jason is buying me my first washer and dryer for Valentine's Day <3
What did you want to be when you were little? mom, artist.
How are you today? Stressed, but it feels good to get important stuff done.
What is your favorite candy? Snickers and any high-quality chocolate!
What is your favorite flower? Freesia- smells so lovely.
What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to?  the day we leave on our ROAD TRIP!
What are you listening to right now?  raindrops
What was the last thing you ate? tortilla chips with six-layer bean dip
Do you wish on stars? only falling ones
If you were a crayon, what color would you be? green
How is the weather right now? cold and rainy
What is your natural hair color? brown in winter, dirty blonde in summer :)
Favorite soft drink?  root beer
Favorite restaurant? currently BJ's for their deep-dish pizza
Favorite color of nail polish? anything purple
What was your favorite toy as a child? Maple Town and Sylvanian Families (small fuzzy animal figurines)
Summer or winter?  Summer with low humidity.
Hugs or kisses?  hugs
Chocolate or Vanilla? chocolate- that's not even a question.
Coffee or tea?  Yuck. Hot chocolate stirred with a peppermint stick.
When was the last time you cried? a couple weeks ago
What is under your bed?  the drafting table from my 12th birthday- saving it for my future studio :)
What did you do last night? laundry, read a book
What are you afraid of?  high-speed freeway collisions
Salty or sweet?  sweet
How many keys on your key ring? only four! (and a mini-flashlight and CPR mask pouch... just in case)
How many years at your current job?  mom- three years, self-employed- three years (then three years off), now two months.
Favorite day of the week? Thursday- Music Makers with Emily, TV night with Jason- Community, The Office, The Mentalist
How many towns have you lived in? two
Do you make friends easily? I'm not good at making close friends, but I'm pretty friendly. Not as shy as I used to be, that's for sure. 

I tag...

Megan E, Megan H, Genine B, Sarah P, Leah G, Camille G, Erin M, Diane B

jason's new classroom discipline policy

This poster is now hanging in Jason's classroom with a sign above it that says "Behavior Modification Plan".

(click image to read)We were laughing so hard in the store! Here's some of our favorites:

- When you're Chuck Norris, anything+anything is equal to one-one roundhouse kick to the face.

- How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could Chuck Norris?

All of it.

- Ninja's want to grow up to be just like Chuck Norris. But they usually grow up just to be killed by Chuck Norris.

- When Chuck Norris was born, the only person who cried was the doctor.

Never slap Chuck Norris.

So funny. I'm now a fan of Chuck Norris power statements.

new moon trailer!

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON trailer in HD

tilt-shift

This is a great little video using time-lapse and a technique called tilt-shift, which makes everything look miniature by saturating the color and having a narrow horizontal plane in focus. I've only seen it used before in still photos (create your own here!) and thought this video was fascinating! Love the music, too.

Bathtub IV from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

found via How About Orange

the office peeps

HILARIOUS.

Office Tally had 'The Office Peeps Contest' where fans depicted scenes from the show in diorama form with Peeps as the characters. Here are my favorites from the 20 finalists... Closing ceremonies from Office Olympics

Michael's politically incorrect Diversity Day training. "Diversity tomorrow. Because today is almost over."

Dwight's failed attempt at the hot coal walk from Beach Games. Love the lighting and birthday candle torches :)

Michael's grilled foot bandaged in bubble wrap from The Injury. "What does this look like to you?" "Mailboxes, Etc."

yet another reason I love books

New fabulous discovery:

The Book Cover Archive

These are my favorites from the 1,035 covers you can peruse. Click on it to view them larger! Highly creative, no?

color revolution

I feel the need. The need for vibrancy.
I want a fuschia wall. Sigh. Yellow accents, my new love.

And a cave bookshelf, while I'm at it.

Give me high color saturation, or give me death.

lovin' it

Chocolate shavings... from chocolate pencils! via Oh Joy!

love is in the air...

Happy Valentine's Day!

http://flickr.com/photos/av_photography via design is mine

unpacking reminds me of...

"I can’t relax. I can’t sleep. I’m having nightmares about being chased around by boxes with arms and they tackle me and pile clothing on top of my face and secure it around my head with packing tape and I’m just lying there choking while you’re sitting in the corner laughing, putting gel in your hair with a switchblade!"

-Luke to Jess, Gilmore Girls

my backyard view

Okay, so my backyard is technically a third level balcony, but we have front row seats to the awesome sunsets. I'm beginning to realize that I'm going to miss this apartment- it's been my favorite so far!

Just keep thinking- 2 bedrooms and a dishwasher. 2 bedrooms and a dishwasher.

lovin' it

Emily will have her own room in our new apartment. And I want this. The dark pink one, specifically. Unfortunately, I can't remember where I found this picture! Figures. It's super cute, though!

primary shout-out

Check out this hilarious-yet-true Tribute To Primary Music Leaders Everywhere.

"After watching these Sisters lead the music, I realized that a good Primary Music Leader must have four important qualities...
1) Drill Sargent
2) Saturday Night Live Cast Member (Minus the coarse debauchery)
3) Multilingual Interpreter
4) Warshack Test Administrator"

And he goes on to explain...

1 am poetry gem

Apartment House

A filing-cabinet of human lives
Where people swarm like bees in tunneled hives,
Each to his own cell in the towered comb,
Identical and cramped--we call it home.

~Gerald Raftery

via Miss Erin

100 things

Copy and paste it into your blog and then just bold the things you've done!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band (Curlers Plus!)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Gone on a hot air balloon ride
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language (Pig Latin- FLUENT!)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (does 37 mph in a 35 zone count?)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Totally copied a post from someone else's blog to your own

how I love twilight

First, check out the review of Twilight on Cupcake Chowder by my friend Megan . . . I completely concur, and it will save me from writing a less articulate review myself, which will basically say the same thing :) She was also able to write a great review without giving away the storyline- something which would be difficult for me!

I also have to give props to Chris for setting up a fun girls' night out and waiting in line with the crazy teenagers so we could have awesome seats!

These two actors came pretty darn close to how I imagined Bella and Edward.
Those gold eyes... *swoon* Alternately, the red eyes of Laurent gave me the chills

I loved the wardrobe choices for Bella, especially since that was the style I dressed in high school :)

Although the settings in the movie are not what I had pictured when reading the book (why didn't they hire me as a consultant??), they made the movie beautiful yet grounded in reality. So while the movie could never top one of my favorite books of all time (mainly because of the "butterfly factor" as Chris and Deannah put it), it sure was a great experience and brought new life to the story.

What did you think??

oh-so-heavenly

Today I made a dessert. Not just any dessert. An Ice Cream Dessert. Not just any ice cream dessert. A Mint-Chocolate-Chip-Ice-Cream-Oreo-Cookie-Crust-Chocolate-Shell-Topping Dessert. Only two things are saving my bathroom scale from hyperventilating... it's for someone else, and I just started the Girls In Shape group blog. Thank goodness!

So here's the evil recipe:

1 package Oreo cookies

1/2 stick butter

1/2 gallon mint ice cream

1 bottle chocolate shell topping (the kind that freezes quickly)

Soften ice cream by microwaving or leaving out until soft.

Crush the Oreos, add butter, flatten in bottom of 9x13 pan.

Spread softened ice cream, add shell topping in cool designs.

Freeze until ready to EAT!

new blog!

Girls In Shape is my new blog dedicated to living a healthy lifestyle. I've invited some friends and family to be team members and contribute by posting their experiences, recipes, ideas, resources, and fun random stuff.

Check it out, leave comments :), and let me know if you're interested in being a team member so you can post also.

I'm compiling a list of awesome workout songs to play on the blog... comment with your favorites!