ahh...sunshine

after all the dark mornings driving to work before the sun's up and all the dark afternoons driving home after the sun's set...this week has been beautiful. it was very david gray's cover of a new day at midnight. tomorrow morning i'm not driving --sally is, so i'll take my camera and see if i can get a nice shot. it won't be done justice i'm sure.

here's a haiku inspired by my drive to school this morning:

sun behind mountains
it cannot hide daybreak
light pouring out

okay, i'm a little rusty.

man, i'm sick. i have a wicked cold. not just stuffed up but also runny nose. man, runny noses are terrible. if you don't have a kleenex handy at all times? things could get ugly. do you remember being a kid (or maybe more recently?) when you had a cold, you sneezed with no kleenex and a ton of snot came out accidently? oh, the horror as you asked the teacher if you can go to the bathroom with your hand up to your face holding a handful. can you tell this happened to me? haha. this is how i knew how one of my kids felt today when it happened to her. aww. colds in classrooms - if one has it, we all will soon.

here's a haiku inspired by the student who was embarressed by her cold today:

my nose is itching
i can run for a kleenex
ah choo! too late. eww...

(yep, count the syllables: 5 7 5)

i love to snack

this is what makes eating well so very difficult. i could be quite full but still want to snack on something. if you know my pain, here are some new snacking ideas for you.

> frozen peas -- they're small, you can eat lots of them and feel good about yourself for eating vegetables, and because they're frozen, they're almost like candy...but not.

> cucumber. if you buy a couple cucumbers and cut them all up right away and put them in a tupperware in your fridge, you can pull them out and eat as much as you want because they have close to no claories. however - also close to no nutritional value. but that's not the point here.

> smart pop popcorn - 100 cal. bags. i tend to eat the entire bag of popcorn no matter how large it is so these not only are great tasting for being healthy but they limit your intake.

> thaw some frozen berries and put them in non-fat no sugar added vanilla yogurt. i have been using raspberries and it's almost dessert-like.

> chocolate frozen yogurt. tim and i are big ice cream eaters. tim's anti-frozen yogurt but i found this brand at superstore called chapman's. the dutch chocolate? we won't be going back to ice cream.

> veggie burger -- a pattie can be microwaved and if you eat it knowing that it doesn't taste like meat, it's not bad. it also fills you up with protein.

> nabisco 100 cal. cookie packs. at first i refused to buy these but actually, each pack has quite a few cookies in them and at recess in the staff room when someone brings in cake or cookies - it's nice to not feel deprived by eating these instead of those.

> wholewheat eggos. for breakfast lately i've been having a wholewheat eggo with some more thawed frozen fruit on top. no syrup. it's really great. it would actually probably be good with yogurt too.

> kitkat and aero have put out "singles". pay 3 bucks for a box of individually wrapped kitkat pieces or just buy a bar for $1 and eat one piece? i will most definitely never eat just one piece of a kitkat so i am loving these singles despite the price. i think these are a little longer than the bars. there's also dark chocolate in both aero and kitkat. when you're craving - these are a great substitute. you just have to eat them really slow.

so snack away.

if you were a bad guy...

and trying to break into our house by looking in the backyard for a key...where would you look first? here are the options:

> on top of the light fixture
> under the mat in front of the door
> under the bbq somewhere
> under the pile of cement bricks under the porch
> under the large rock in the dirt by the fence
> under the steps in one of those magnetic key holder things

tim and i were going to do this but everywhere tim thought of, i said was too easy and everywhere i thought of, tim said was too easy. so prove tim wrong by telling me where you'd look. ha.

in school news, we spent some time on the bus today traveling to and from chilliwack to go skating. here's a joke one of my grade 2s told me:

"where do fair people who are always fair like to go?" "the fair." when i asked her if she made that up herself, she asked, "how did you know?"

dodge ball

yes, my students love this game. when it's games day (once a week in PE), there's no doubt that the student in charge of Parks and Rec that week will choose it. so today it was played in PE as usual. i have one student who figured out that "hey, if the ball hits you above the waist, it doesn't count so..." he started bending over and letting the ball hit him in the head whenever it was thrown at him. it was actually pretty hilarious. oh kids.

time's up

for those of use who played this game on friday night, i have some news for you. norman bates isn't an artist. he's the owner of the bates motel in psycho. also, turns out sandro bottecelli is the artist who painted the birth of venus, not one of the three tenors (as seen below). and the guy who's name rhymes with melafonte? he sang the song, "Day-O". just so you all know for next time.














in preparation for the next time this game is played, i've compilied a few more unknowns for you to commit to memory. i'll hope i'm on your team.

clarence birdseye was apparently the frozen foods mogul.

Bjorn Borg is a seventies tennis player.

and Yuri Gagarin? he's a "cosmonaut" - the first man in space.

heep? heep hop?

so every monday night is hip hop. as you may have read in my resolutions...one of them is not to complain about hip hop. which is what i was logging onto here to write about. so i guess i won't...but if you want to see something funny...check out my dance teacher's website and click on Adult Hip Hop on the left then scroll down to see videos. Check out video 1. this was day one of this choreography. as you can see...i don't have my groove yet. heehee. umm...nor have i yet gotten it. but i'm sure it's coming.

heep hop anonymous?

an update...

there was about an hour of wet snow this past tuesday before it turned to powder in the cold temperatures and wind...that's all the time they needed to make this giant snowball. it will definitely be around for awhile.

in resolution news, i have had some difficulty drinking my 3 nalgenes a day so far. i usually get only about 2 done. maybe my new years resolution will be to drink TWO nalgenes a day. ha. i lose my bottle around the school everyday then have kids bringing it me, saying, "you left this in the computer lab. you left this in the gym. you left this in the gr.5/6/7 class." i need a belt to clip it onto. wouldn't that be a hot look?

also, in hearing about alyssa's exciting first triathlon news, i've decided that i'm going to attempt my second triathlon this summer. i've already signed up for adult swimming lessons for myself this may. yep, getting all planned out. i can surely do better than i did last year considering i barely could swim and i walked most of the run. haha.

i'm dreaming of a white jan. 11

i was hoping for a snow day this morning...maybe tomorrow...

poor tim has been sick for a week

rebecca? baking?

yes, that's what i did this weekend. i baked muffins. and i'm here writing about it because these muffins are the best ever. i got the recipe from my mom. ground flaxseed...oat bran...grated apples and carrots -- are they not the healthiest sounding muffins ever? AND only two tablespoon of oil!

however, they are totally amazing. and i'm not one to enjoy a healthy snack.

so here's the recipe for you:

ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour (whole wheat flour would make them even healthier i guess)
3/4 cup ground flaxseed
3/4 cup oat bran or wheat bran
1cup brown sugar
2tsp. baking soda
1tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 cup skim milk
2 eggs beaten
1tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cups shredded carrots
2 apples, peeled, shredded
1/2 cup dried cranberries or raisins
1 cup chopped nuts (or my mom used coconut)

directions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees. grease muffin pan or line with paper muffin liners -- i'd recommend liners because these are really sticky.
2. In a large bowl mix together all dry ingredients. add milk, eggs, vanilla and oil; mix until just blended. stir in carrots, apples, raisins, and nuts. Fill prepared muffin cups 2/3 full.
3. bake for 15 - 20 min. or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.



it makes a little over 2 dozen. (not all seen here.)

yum.

i'm not a pusher

okay, i get it. no one likes the idea of hometown 7. i'm on my own. oh well...you'll all learn a lot about abbotsford then. haha.

now in regards to the title of this post...this is something that i've learned about myself over the last week or so of my new years work-out resolution. i don't push that hard.

i'm doing this "bikini body by may 31" (i know - lame name) workout plan in shape magazine and i really like the strength training portion because it only uses 2 5 or 8 lb. weights (i use 5lb.) and a resistance band. every month, they give you a new set of strength training exercises and suggestions for cardio.

however...i've discovered that i don't push myself very much. i thought i did. i mean, i'm pushing myself to do the work-out, aren't i? they tell you to do 2 sets of each move. i've only been doing one set because i'm huffing and puffing by the end of the first one and i think to myself, "i don't want to overdo it". i just can't do one more lunge or whatever. i seriously think that i can't. then the next day, i'm not even sore. well it occured to my this weekend that maybe i can do one more lunge. or even a whole set more lunges. well to my total amazement, tonight i just kept going onto the second set and even though i groaning as i counted aloud, i made it! sweat was dripping onto the mat. hey - maybe i'll become a pusher after all.

my attempt at "hometown 6"

perhaps one or two of you remember my attempt at "hometown 6" way back this past spring.

let me re-explain:

last year, i was reading my cousin rachel's blog and she had posted these 6 pictures that she entitled "hometown 6". i thought they were interesting despite not understanding why they were posted. HOWEVER, i eventually found the inspiration to rachel's hometown 6 photos. her friend was doing a year-long blogging project (yes, it's true) where each month of 2006 on the 6th, she gives 6 categories to inspire photos of your hometown. it's quite an interesting project. for example, january's 6 were 6 signs of your hometown or area's name. well...i think this is a great idea. so last year i tried it out once and then she didn't continue her project. the hometown 6 project fizzled out. hopefully michelle will be feel flattered and not completely annoyed if i attempt to totally copy her as closely as possible and introduce you to my own year-long blogging project. i just love the concept so much. drum roll please...

hometown 7

like i have implied in the above explanation, every month of 2007, you can check here on the 7th for your challenge. your challenge will involve you introducing us to your hometown through photos. each month will have a theme of 7 things that you will need to photograph in your hometown.

for this project to be truly successful, it would require some participants. you can participate for all 12 months, however, if you would like to participate on a month-to-month basis, that would be great too. not everyone has the time or energy to, as my dad put it, "drive around looking for things to take pictures of". i personally think this could be great fun.

so check out this blog on the 7th for your challenge and then you have about a month to complete your photo montage. post it on your blog OR if you don't have a blog but would like to participate (ontario-ites...), email me with your pics and i'll post them. let me know you've participated and i'll post an entry each month of all the participants links.

wouldn't this be cool if there were pics of hometowns from all over? not just the lower mainland? so encourage your blogging friends and tell them to participate. i know some of sharelle's artsy friends would love this. and maybe photographers domi and james would too. spread the word about hometown 7 (umm...and give the credit to michelle)

here's January's SEVEN theme: where do you live?

> find SEVEN signs in your town that tell us where you live. this could be the "welcome to..." sign, or a combination of signs that say your town, district, province, country...i don't know - be creative.

go to it camera fiends! let me know in the comments if you plan on participating. (yes, even those of you without a blog)

resolutions?

this concept of "new years resolutions" is an interesting one. i've always liked it - feeling that the new year is a good time to make some new plans and new goals for yourself. but when i was standing in line at save-on numerous times this week, looking at the front of magazines, i'd have to say that the majority of them had something to do with losing weight. and really, my main new years resolution is along the same lines -- get in shape, lose weight, eat better etc etc.

i guess after all the christmas baking that we eat in december, it's only enevitable that we're sick of ourselves. or is that just me? haha.

there was this ad on the radio in december about how to "eat guilt free this christmas season!" what was it? it was to eat all you want (they honestly said that) and then hire this personal trainer who will come to your house on your schedule in the new year. whaaat? what kind of a plan is that?

once when i was a kid, my nikkel cousins were in town over the end of december i guess and my cousin rachel and i sat down to write our new years resolutions. she explained to me that new years resolutions can be anything that you'd like to do in that next year -- i remember writing, "buy glasses that have just glass in them". hmm...

but on that note, here are some of my resolutions for 2007:

> eat my full 5-8 servings of vegetables everyday
> follow my Shape mag workout plan 3 times a week
> park far away from stores so that i have to walk farther to get to the door
> stop drinking coffee at work
> learn to play the guitar (since we have one now)
> drink 2.5 - 3 nalgenes of water a day
> keep in touch with my grandparents
> begin buying caffeine-free diet coke
> plan more fieldtrips with my class
> read something other than chick-lit
> buy "little miss sunshine" on dvd
> quit grumbling about going to hip hop on mondays
> get to the maritimes this summer
> see what bangs look like on me again
> trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding (prov.3:5)

there you have it. maybe i'll post a resolution update in a couple months and see if i can keep these up.

what are your resolutions?

additional fondue photo...

the first annual fondue party

dear alyssa, james, ang, domi, liz, darian, lynn and adam:

we missed you all very much tonight at the fondue party. we had enough food to feed you all. i hope you can come next year...or maybe the next time you're in town we'll just have fondue because it's a way of eating sugar and fruit that people just don't do enough. if i knew how, i'd photoshop you into these photos.

happy birthday liz!

love from, bec

liz - where are you?

if you're reading this, please call me. :)

boxing day

for boxing day we were in abbotsford at our house. we went and saw "the pursuit of happyness" then had dinner at home. at the end of the night we realized we hadn't taken any photos so we re-enacted our rousing game of "scene it". haha.

macdonald christmas - dec. 25

we like to try things on immediately - umm...not necessarily the way they are intended...
this is a tree skirt (which my mom loved by the way...for the tree...not herself)
thanks janice! perfect size.
judy thought this baby blue neckwarmer/headwarmer would be perfect for matt on the construction site. haha.


matt loved this distance finder thing for golf. he measured distances around the house all day.

carolyn -- i told matt to take a picture of me with my popcorn bowl. this is what he took. he obviously missed the concept of what i was doing. that popcorn you sent though? oh dear...it was SO buttery and i ate all three bags myself over the past week. it was a fantastic treat from my "light" popcorn that i force myself to eat instead. thank you!

shulba christmas - dec.24

see if you can match the pics to these captions:

the girls' year to do the dishes

yes, there are always accordians just sitting around...and shaun knows how to play ONE song...

so this is a radio? --jerry (upon opening satellite radio thingy)

the scene

joy tends to get tools for christmas every year from jerry - this is a drill set

the shulba fondue. shaun and i went all out making it our duty to finish it off...

the most exciting thing ever

i used the above phrase when talking to rachel this afternoon...that "the most exciting thing ever had happened!" she said, "you're pregnant?" i said, "i got my computer to upload music to my ipod!" okay...so maybe it's not the most exciting this ever but i'm pretty pumped about it. i've spent the past evening/day putting cds into the computer and transferring them to itunes. sweet!

and now...what you're all waiting for...Soundtrack to my Life (this is when you press shuffle in your music library and write down the songs in order...no cheating)

opening credits: hand in my pocket - alanis (hey! i love this song!)

Waking up: dead in the water - david gray (that's exactly how tim would describe me)

First day at school: when the stars go blue - ryan adams

Falling in love: rosebud - ryan adams and the cardinals

Breaking up: black horse and the cherry tree - kt tunstall (this must be a metaphor)

Prom: let's hear it for the boy - footloose soundtrack

Life's okay: raven - dave matthews band

Mental Break down: firecracker - ryan adams

Driving: turn this car around - tom petty (ok...i skipped over a "track 3" song to use this one for this category. how perfect hey? and who wants track 3 to be their driving song?)

Flashback: December - david gray

Getting back together: damaged by love - tom petty (okay...so this doesn't sound like the best "getting back together" song...)

Wedding: same in any language - ruckus from elizabeth town soundtrack II

Birth of child: blue eyes - cary brothers

Final battle: sexy plexi - jack johnson (maybe my final battle is against...umm...i'm not sure how to make this one work...)

Death scene: absolutely zero - jason mraz

Funeral song: rescue blues - ryan adams (blues i guess because i wasn't rescued?)

End Credits: i just don't think i'll ever get over you - colin hay

okay...the closing credits song makes this the best soundtrack ever...the rest were okay. i'm a little disappointed in how many ryan adams songs there were considering i only have 2 r.a. cds downloaded. 4 songs? weird. anyways...now you know.