Joke Book 119.365

The Academic Decathlon team at our school is going to the state competition soon. Our decathletes have been working hard, meeting as a group twice a week (4 hours total), and working with their subject coaches. Each class is sponsoring a decathlete or two, which means we pray for them, make them cards, and thinks like that. We sponsor three students - two class siblings and my Danny. Our class thought that because they work so hard, they need something to relieve the stress. We collected our favorite jokes and made them a joke book. Each student in our class will sign the inside of the book. We will present it to them just prior to the event.

Bridal Shower 118.365

Last year I turned 40 - when did I become my mother's age??? Then, on my way to Kelly's bridal shower, I realized something. I am now really my mom's age. I am attending a bridal shower of a daughter of a friend of mine!!! I haven't been to a bridal or baby shower of any of my friends in, well, forever!!!

Here is Kelly admiring the scrapbook her sister, Kasey, made for her.

Me, Maria, Helen, Tammy, and Hailey enjoying the nice weather, fun decor, and each other's company.

Instead of cake, we had cupcakes. Aren't these just soooo fun????!!!!

Getting it Done!! 117.365

This is Kasey. Her sister is getting married in June. The bridal shower is tomorrow.

Kasey is such a sweet young lady. She wanted to make a scrapbook (her first!) documenting the year leading up to her sister's wedding. She started it last summer (I think) but has not touched it since then - wedding plans and just life got in the way!!

My friend Helen is a Creative Memories consultant and was having a crop tonight. So, Helen and I helped Kasey finish her book, giving her tips on how to use the tools, helping her with layouts and putting the pages together. We had loads of fun and she was so appreciative to get the book together.

Helen and I will be at the shower tomorrow. We are going to be Kasey's fan club and OOhh and Ahh for her when her sister looks at each page. :) I know that Kelly is going to love it!!

Hibiscus Parts 116.365

Spring has sprung!!

A closeup of the Stigmas of the Hibiscus. Kind of strange looking, don't you think??

The stigmas, the stamens (yellow parts) and the staminal column.

Clouds 115.365

There were so many beautiful, puffy clouds overhead today. I used my telephoto lens to take these photos. I don't know which one to put into my Project 365 album. Which one would you choose??? Using photoshop, I took the original color photo, enhanced the colors then turned it into black and white. I do like the effect. Looks kind of spooky...

I like the contrast between the blue and white.

This one looks like a Biblical storm is a brewin'.

Okay, use your imagination. Can you see a cartoon frog head??? Danny can't. Please tell me that I'm not too crazy.

Shadow and Light 114.365

This is a candle sconce in our family room. I rarely light it, but when I do, I truly enjoy the lights and shadows it casts on the wall.

Wash Day 113.365

Two things were washed today, that haven't been washed in a long time... 1) My poor car has not seen a drop of water (except for rain) or a sud of soap in many months. I couldn't take it anymore! My black car looked gray. So off to the coin op car wash. Dan and I had quite a time trying to get the car washed within the limited amount of time our quarters allotted. In the end, my car did look a bit better.


2) Clifford. Poor Dear Clifford. When we first got him, he let me trim his nails. Once. After that, he would go run when he saw me approach with the clippers. He let me clean his ears. Once. After that, he wouldn't come near me when he saw me with the ear cleaning stuff. So off to the groomer he went today. Kind of like a dog spa: bathed, brushed, and a pedicure. He's not too happy with the doggy decor they put on him, though.

Then he broke out into a song. Aerosmith's "Dude Looks Like A Lady!"

Macro-Moth 112.365

Another opportunity to work with my macro setting on my lens. This moth, which is about 2.5 inches long, was on a wall right outside our front door. Using a tripod and a stool, I was able to capture some of the detail of the picture. If you click onto the picture, you can see the "fuzz" of the head and wings.

Clifford & Me 111.365

Tonight Danny and I were watching Marley & Me, about the world's worst dog. If you are a dog lover and have not yet seen it, you should. It is a funny movie!! While we were watching the movie, Clifford was outside, until the ending scenes. We started smelling an awful, acrid smell! We tried to call him in, but he was no where to be seen or heard, at least for a few minutes. Needless to say, he met up with a skunk. Dan and I think that the skunk was on the other side of the fence, though, because Clifford was not "too" smelly and wet.
So off to the bath we went. I did not have any tomato juice in the house and because it was late, the stores were closed. So, I had to improvise. Spaghetti sauce it is!! Clifford licked his chops as I spread the sauce on his face and also on his legs. It seemed to help, but there is still the smell in the house. Ewww!

Beautiful Day 110.365

A view of the Chapel and the mall of the university from the Administration building. I was there taking care of paperwork for my credential. Today was such a beautiful day! Spring has finally sprung! It was in the low 80's and not a cloud in the sky!

It's a beautiful day

Don't let it get away

It's a beautiful day

- U2

Soul Sisters

At the NCEA conference that I attended this week, I was able to see many nuns wearing their habits. This is interesting to me because nowadays, many nuns do not wear habits, but "regular" clothing. Anyway, I made it my mission that during the conference I would photograph as many sisters as I could. Here are a couple of wonderful sisters that I met during these past three days. I have never seen a purple nun!! Sr. Elizabethrose is from North Dakota. With her religious order, the sisters can wear regular cloths and the veil is optional. She choses to wear her veil. Sr. Anne is an Urseline nun from Nebraska. Her traditional habit is floor length.

Tea Party aka Tax Revolt 108.365

Today is April 15th, Tax Day. To "commemorate" this day, many communities were holding Tea Parties to voice their "displeasure" of California's higher taxes and the nation's anticipated higher taxes. People were protesting the taxes but were also protesting the obscene, excessive spending by the government that is now occurring.

Roger took Danny to nearby downtown Redlands to participate in this event. There were about 500 people on the four corners of this intersection - not too shabby for this little town! It was very peaceful and civil. What a great way for Dan to learn first hand what is going on in our country today. It was good for him to see how passionate people can be about their communities and country.

NCEA Conference 107.365

This week, the homeroom teachers and specialty teachers from my school attended the National Catholic Educators Association (NCEA) conference in Anaheim, CA. My colleague and friend, Kathy, not only attended the conference, but she was also a presenter. Here she is, pointing out when her session is! She talked about the importance of having a Student Success Team at each school in order to meet the needs of all students, from special needs to gifted students. Kathy has so much knowledge and enthusiasm for this topic, and I'm sure she did a fantastic job at her session. She wouldn't let any of us watch her!!

Of course, there are pleny of vendors at this convention. I had to stop at this booth for the photo op! The reason is that Danny's nickname at Academic Decathlon is Danford from Stanford. I would be so proud of Danny if he was accepted to Stanford! (However, I wouldn't be any less proud of any college that he attended.)

Easter Basket 106.365

Last night I made this Easter Basket. One of my blog "buddies", Chrissy, made one and posted it on her blog. Inspired (or is it insanity??), I asked for the instructions, which she so generously gave. This is the result of my first try. I hope the next one I make (did I mention the insanity??) will be much better, as I know better what to do and what not to do.

Easter Greetings!! 105.365

Oh! Danny is going to kill me when he sees this is the picture I decided to post!! I took this picture using the timer on my camera. Right before it took the shot, I tickled him. And now you see him giggling. I love to hear and see him giggle. It warms my heart.

I pray that all of you have a blessed Easter Season. During the 50 days of Easter, may your eyes and hearts be open to the beauty and blessings that our Lord gives to each of us. Happy Easter!

Easter Berries 104.365

I had a plan. A great plan. A plan that Roger would LOVE. My plan was to have strawberries on angel food cake for dessert on Easter (tomorrow!!). My plan involved going to Buoye Farms to get strawberries. They have the BEST strawberries in the universe! They are as big as the palm of my hand and as sweet as heaven! You wouldn't dare put sugar on a Buoye berry! Well, I arrived at the farm at 12:30 and they were sold out!!!! I couldn't believe it!! I would not have a single Buoye berry in Easter! Alas, we had to settle for the inky dinky berries from the grocery store...

Good Friday 103.365

We adore You, O Christ, and bless You. Because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

Geek Squad 102.365

Guest Blogger: Roger (as posted on his blog Roger's Smoking Lounge)

I realized the other day that we have our very own in-house geek squad (of one). It is amazing how childhood can differ so much from one generation to the next. The other day I was explaining to my son Danny how “in the old days, we had to look words up in the dictionary and then flip back and forth to the pronunciation key to figure out how to speak the words – we didn’t have the little sound button on dictionary.com.”

Dan has an old IBM laptop that he is allowed to use for experiments (he upgraded it of course). I really don’t know what he is talking about half of the time. I catch a phrase now and then and try to understand. He has been intrigued with Linux operating systems. I told him that he could try things, but not to remove the Windows OS from the computer. What I heard from him was “…partition the hard drive…or a create multi-boot system…Puppy Linux operates through the RAM…or I could…”

My response: blank stare and then “yeah, partition the hard drive, right – ok” How the heck does a 13 year old know all of this stuff? We’re sure glad to have our own in-house technician though.

Heart 101.365

At the morning assembly, one of my students excitedly asked me if I had my camera with me (they know me well!) because there was a heart on the ground. Sure enough there was! The microphone wire ended up on the ground in this heart shape. Purely accidental... Perhaps Someone was telling us they love us. :)

Daytime Moon 100.365

Here I am at the university again, waiting while Danny is at his music lesson. I spied the almost full moon. Isn't it marvelous to see the moon during the day??

Guard Dog 99.365

Here is my guard dog, Clifford, on duty in front of my scrapping casita. I was scrapping and there he was, sitting at the door, making sure that I was safe. (and chasing moths!) What a good dog! Love him to bits!!

Days 91 - 98

I haven't posted all week! Life has been busy - just like everyone!! So here we go:

Birthday Girl!! 91.365
We are celebrating Connie's birthday. This wonderful woman is my mother-in-law. She is the BEST m-i-l in the entire world. She is there for us always and loves me as her own.

Trees w/ yellow blooms 92.365

I was driving home today when I spied this amazing tree. I immediately pulled over and took many pictures of the tree. Another person saw me taking pictures and started up a conversation about the trees. We both had never seen such a tree and could not tell what it was. It is truly remarkable what there is out in the world! Doing this Project 365, I have noticed so much more, especially since I carry my camera everywhere!!

Labyrinth 93.365

This is the Labyrinth at the university. It is a beautiful, peaceful place. From lessons4living.com: A labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the circle and the spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. The Labyrinth represents a journey to our own center and back again out into the world. Labyrinths have long been used as meditation and prayer tools. A labyrinth has only one path. It is unicursal. The way in is the way out. There are no blind alleys. The path leads you on a circuitous path to the center and out again.

I have walked several labyrinths in the past few years. As my mind is always busy, walking the labyrinth is an extremely challenging exercise for me - to focus myself to one thought, prayer, meditation. But in the end, I am so much more at peace. If you ever get a chance, give it a try.

Spoiled Dog 94.365Clifford is such a spoiled dog!! Danny is scratching his belly with a backscratcher! He is enjoying every scratch!!!

Spring at sunset 95.365Just playing around with my camera. Catching shadows and light in the Liquid Amber trees in the backyard.

Fountain 96.365

This is a fountain at a local shopping center. I love to sit here, drink my Chai Tea Latte, and watch the children "play" in the water. What is so cute, is during the summer, some kids really do play in the fountain!

Figs 97.365

This is a fig tree in our backyard. My father-in-law (The best in the world!!) gave us a sappling that started growing in his front yard. It has grown nicely. HOWEVER, the figs are inedible! Each year we cut them open, to find a spongey texture, that is almost poweder-like. The dog and the neighborhood skunks like them though...

Palm Sunday 98.365
Today is Palm Sunday. The gospel reading is the Passion of Christ. This environmental decor reminds us that Peter denied Christ three time before the cock crowed. And he wept. Sitting in church, looking at the rooster, I contemplated the times I denied Christ. How many times have we each been unfaithful to God? How many times have we denied God to worship something else - money, power, possessions? I love Peter. He gives me hope. In one breath, he tells Jesus that he would die for Him. In the next breath, he doesn't know Him. Yet, there he is, holding the keys to the kingdom, the foundation for His Church. God loves each one of us in spite of ourselves. I pray that each one of you have a reflective Holy Week.