School Newspaper Updates

So we've updated The Talon, the school newspaper here at Newton Community High School, and it is awesome!! We have gone from print copy last year, to an online pdf file last semester, to finally a newspaper website. The kids give me new stories several days a week to post and they are taking pictures and videos to put on the newspaper site also! We are SUPER excited about it! Check it out! It's a work in progress but it's much better than what we've had in the past!! The banners for the NCHS website and Eagle Eye all sorta match. I've created them all and we are very excited about our new updates. My WebDesign classes create the pictures on the front page and the Eagle Eye pages. Check them out and let me know what you think!

Oh Guess What!?!?

I'm gonna be an aunt and Rylan's gonna be an uncle!! Little Miss Leslie is pregnant! Yep! You heard that right! Leslie is gonna have a wittle baby!! She's about 5 weeks along and due September 21st. She goes back to the Dr. next month and she will have her first ultrasound then! OHH I can't wait till it's my turn!! I just love babies and pregnant people!! (Can you tell I'm SUPER excited?!?)

Another First For Us!

So yesterday was mom's birthday..HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!! We celebrated her birthday with everyone at Mimi's by eating lunch. My job was to make a pie..my first pies ever made all by myself..with Rylan's help of course. We love to bake and cook!

I made a dessert a couple weeks ago that was an apple-blackberry crumble. So I did the same thing this time..only in the version of a pie. I did a crumble top and a crust top pie.

Rylan and I spent most of our evening and morning making these two pies so they would turn out just perfect! And oh did they ever! I finally got to use my pie placemat and rolling pin sock(we call it a rolling pin condom) from Mimi!

This is Rylan rolling out the extra dough on the pie placemat..notice the rolling pin condom being used also..we gotta protect the great antique rolling pin! :-P We used the extra dough to make pin-wheels..like Mimi used to when we were little. (Don't mind his hair..this was shortly after we crawled out of bed Sunday morning.)

Oh yum! I love fresh blackberries!

Pies before baking.

The yummy pin-wheels we made.

Mom blowing out her candles. The picture before this was not appropriate..so I had to post one of her blowing out the candles instead of her smiling.

KitchenAid Mixer

Sooooooooo I got a KitchenAid Mixer over the loooonnnggg weekend and I'm officially sold on it! I made 2 loaves of homemade bread and a batch of homemade cinnabon cinnamon rolls. YUMM YUMM! It was all so tasty and I really liked baking. I was a little scared of the whole yeast thing..but I didn't have any problems. Below are some pictures that I took while baking my first homemade bread.

Rolling the bread up and tucking the ends under to make such a pretty little loaf of bread.

Letting them raise before baking them.

In the oven.

The Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls were really good. A little messy..but good. We're gonna try a glaze icing next time instead of a cream cheese icing. We thought the cream cheese icing kind of over powered the cinnamon roll flavor. But it was still good.

Smearing the cinnamon mix on the dough before rolling it.

 Oh yum! The finished product! Half eaten! :-)

 

Oh Where Has The Time Gone

I know..I know..I know! It's time to update this thing! Seems like when I'm home..there are too many other things screaming my name that need attention..that I don't have time to post something. So here goes..I'm gonna try to catch everyone up!

Christmas was great..between all 8 Christmas gatherings that we made it to..we were only nearly dead at the last one. We had 5 on Christmas day to go to..and the best are always at mom's and Rylan's parents. I love opening stockings at mom's! I get more excited about those little things than I do big presents..probably because mom puts only the best of things in our stockings though. Randy had Julie play Deal or No Deal this year..and she won a cruise to Cozumel..FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!!! Woo Hoo! We're going over Easter and I can't wait! I've never been on a cruise..and we're flying..which neither Rylan nor I have ever done either. So I am in for a real treat!

We spent New Years at the 'rent's house with some of their friends..it was either that or stay home. I'm just not a big fan of going to a HUGE gathering on New Years. Too many drunks out I guess. We played Partini..a game that Jen got Rylan for Christmas. It was really fun. We ended up with Sherri getting humped by Laney..and Sheila peeing her pants..Oh..and the Weilers winning all of the screw-your-neighbor money.

We're ready for Spring to come. It was SUPER cold the other day and Rylan asked me if we could just go out to Betty and Clarence's pond and sit on the dock and drink a beer...just for Summer's sake. I had to laugh and I told him he was crazy. We just love summer so much!

Oh What Fun..It Is To...

Make hard candy at mom's house! With everyone there to help make a HUGE mess!! We made 9 batches yesterday..mom, me, Rylan, Jen, Bart, Sam, Tyler, Mimi, and Laney..oh..and Bart's sister Katie came for a bit to help too. We had waaayy too much going on in the kitchen..between washing dishes(so we could reuse the pans for hard candy), salsa cheese dip, cranberry tea, potato soup, and hard candy..two batches at a time, I might add. And with all of us in the kitchen..IT WAS NUTS!! But we had a blast..made some good candy..and a terrible mess of powdered sugar.

We made watermelon, pomegranate-watermelon, cran-raspberry, blackberry, spearmint, peppermint, and 3 batches of cinnamon. The pomegranate-watermelon and blackberry are my favorite! If you have never made hard candy..you have to make plans to make it with us next year! It is definitely a fun event that everyone should get to experience.

Jen decided to show us a game they used to play at camp in Colorado. They would line up flour along the tables and at random places, make a bigger pile. You have to put your mouth right on top of the line and say chugga-chugga all the way down the line till you hit a big mound..and then you say choo-choo..and keep going.

 

So Jen demonstrated for us with powdered sugar..and it went EVERYWHERE. But it was absolutely hysterical! So then we made Bart do it too..

This would be a great game to play when you're outside..it made a big mess in mom's house..but it was already a mess from making hard candy.

Fun times!!

12 Days of Christmas Correspondance

I had to put this on here! We had our Ladies Fellowship Christmas Party for the church Monday night. We are asked to bring a story, poem, or song we'd like to share and a lady reads this every year and we all laugh hysterically..even though we've heard it several times! I never get tired of hearing this! ENJOY!

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December 14th
Dearest John:
I went to the door today and the postman delivered a partridge in a pear tree. What a delightful gift. I couldn't have been more surprised.
With dearest love and affection, Agnes
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December 15th
Dearest John:
Today the postman brought your very sweet gift. Just imagine, two turtle doves.... I'm just delighted at your very thoughtful gift. They are just adorable.
All my love, Agnes
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December 16th
Dear John:
Oh, aren't you the extravagant one! Now I must protest. I don't deserve such generosity. Three french hens. They are just darling but I must insist.... you're just too kind.
Love Agnes
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December 17th
Today the postman delivered four calling birds. Now really! They are beautiful, but don't you think enough is enough? You're being too romantic.
Affectionately, Agnes
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December 18th
Dearest John:
What a surprise! Today the postman delivered five golden rings. One for each finger. You're just impossible, but I love it. Frankly, John, all those squawking birds were beginning to get on my nerves.
All my love, Agnes
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December 19th
Dear John:
When I opened the door there were actually six geese-a-laying on my front steps. So you're back to the birds again, huh? Those geese are huge. Where will I ever keep them? The neighbors are complaining and I can't sleep through the racket. PLEASE STOP!
Cordially, Agnes
***
December 20th
John:
What's with you and those birds???? Seven swans-a-swimming. What kind of joke is this? There's bird do-do all over the house and they never stop the racket. I'm a nervous wreck and I can't sleep all night. IT'S NOT FUNNY.......So stop with those birds.
Sincerely, Agnes
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December 21st
OK Buster:
I think I prefer the birds. What am I going to do with eight maids-a-milking? It's not enough with all those birds and eight maids-a-milking, but they had to bring their own cows. There is poop all over the lawn and I can't move into my own house. Just lay off me. .
Ag
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December 22nd
Hey:
What are you? Some kind of sadist? Now there's nine pipers playing. And do they play! They never stopped chasing those maids since they got here yesterday morning. The cows are upset and are stepping all over those screeching birds. No wonder they screech. What am I going to do? The neighbors have started a petition to evict me. You'll get yours.
From Ag
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December 23rd
You Creep!
Now there's ten ladies dancing - I don't know why I call them ladies. Now the cows can't sleep and they've got diarrhea. My living room is a river of poop. The commissioner of buildings has subpoenaed me to give cause why the building shouldn't be condemned. I'm sicking the police on you.
One who means it, Ag
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December 24th
Listen Idiot:
What's with the eleven lords a-leaping? All 234 of the birds are dead. I hope you're satisfied, you rotten swine.
Your sworn enemy, Miss Agnes McCallister
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December 25th (From the law offices Taeker, Spedar, and Baegar)
Dear Sir:
This is to acknowledge your latest gift of twelve fiddlers fiddling, which you have seen fit to inflict on our client, Miss Agnes McCallister. The destruction, of course, was total. All correspondence should come to our attention. If you should attempt to reach Miss McCallister at Happy Dale Sanitarium, the attendants have instructions to shoot you on sight. With this letter, please find attached a warrant for your arrest.
-Merry Christmas
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