Back to Life; Back to Reality

The Cat and I got back from visiting family in Wyoming yesterday.  We had a great time; Alli got to go riding, she got to go to her first rodeo, and we got to visit with family, which was my favorite part.  My cousins Debbi and Darci (they're twins, in case you could not tell from the names) moved to Wyoming with their family when we were all still in high school.  We went from seeing each other several times a year to hardly ever.  It had been about 7 years since I'd seen Debbi, and at least 8 since I had seen Darci.
We took advantage of the three of us finally being together again after all those years- concerts, bars, shopping... Things we missed out on doing together because of distance, time, and life in general just getting in the way.

Tiny, crummy picture, I know, but it is from my tiny, crummy phone, and I think it is better than nothing!
Anyway, when we started off on our trip, Alli and I were walking through the airport, having just bought an extra magazine for the plane, when my purse strap (the only purse I brought!) broke.  I obsessed over this and immediately ran to the CNBC store to see what they had.  I had to buy a giraffe print bag that is way too big as a normal purse but ended up being perfect as an impromptu carry on.  This proved especially useful on the trip back when I had to stuff it full of all the purchases we had made while in Wyoming and Denver.
I was still obsessing over not having a regular purse, so when we landed in Denver we stopped at a T.J. Maxx where I picked up an Emma Fox straw and leather bag on clearance.  I also got a little Calvin Klein wristlet because I knew I wouldn't want to be lugging around a big purse everywhere we went.

The color of the leather on both is much prettier in person, and the little wristlet is so soft, it's like buttah.  (That should have been read in a Mike Myer's  SNL Coffee Talk accent, by the way.)
So now we are back to real life, with only a couple (deep breaths) weeks of vacation left.  For having no plans to go anywhere at the beginning of the summer, we have managed to squeeze a lot in.
Hope you are having a great Tuesday!

Be Back Soon

The Cat and I are still off on our road trip, taking in all the natural beauty in Oregon and Washington.  Coming from the desert, it is crazy to see so much greenery everywhere we look.  It's ridiculously beautiful and we are enjoying every minute of it!

School's Out

Aaaahhhhh, Wednesday!  I love you, you beautiful thing you.  Why?  Because this week it means that school's out.  Which means Hello, Summer!

Source: Uploaded by user via Lori on Pinterest

So after I've done this (kids seem to think summer vacation is for them, when in reality it is for the teachers!), I will need quick access to one of these:

Source: tumblr.com via Lori on Pinterest

And then after that, I will try to spend my summer following this advice:

Source: itsabugglife.tumblr.com via Lori on Pinterest

Ooh, and I plan on having mornings filled with this:

Source: dustjacketattic.tumblr.com via Lori on Pinterest

And an afternoon or two with this:

Source: perfectly-preppy.tumblr.com via Lori on Pinterest

Oh, and PLENTY of this...

Source: 3segundos.me via Lori on Pinterest

So, how about you? Any big plans for summer?  Oh, and as always for Wednesday Pinsday, big thanks to Michelle at The Vintage Apple!

Farewell to Summer

Well, this Monday signifies the end of summer for me, as I am allowed to go pick up the keys to my classroom and start putting my room together for a new school year.  I can't believe that school is going to start next week!  We do not officially start, with kiddos in the classroom, until next Thursday.  Having all this week and more than half of next to prepare my classroom would normally be very welcome indeed, but I don't actually get this full week to work in my room; I have to go to San Diego.  Don't get me wrong; I love San Diego.  I love Coronado Island and Old Town.  But this isn't a last hurrah vacation kind of deal; it is for a conference.  It should be good, and I am looking forward to learning new techniques to employ in my classroom, but, well, I would love to have that time to work in my classroom.  Oh well!  I can take comfort in the fact that this conference will help me be better prepared to prepare my new set of kiddos, right?  Anyway.

I'm sad to see this summer go, but I can't complain; we got to do a lot of fun stuff and we got to make some pretty fantastic memories! Now I'm off to my classroom to get it set up. For the past two years, I've done a Hollywood theme, but I've decided that this year I am going to switch back to my old favorite, Alice in Wonderland. Rebecca's party reminded me how much I LOVE this theme, so I am excited to go back to it. My class is just a bungalow (wow- David Lee Roth just popped into my head. Not just a gigalo- just a bungalow), so it has its issues.  I've got to get creative about how I decorate, but I've got a few tricks up my teaching sleeves that I'll  have to show you in another post, once I get my classroom up and ready.  For now,   I hope you enjoy your Monday!  Here's a little Roth for ya, since he's now dancing around my head, singing.

image via daylife

~Lori

Summer Fun: From The Getty Villa to the Santa Barbara Pier

The summer is going by so quickly!  I am thrilled with the things we have done and the places we have gone.  As I type this we are in the process of packing for our trip to Montana.  It will be a wonderful time for us to visit family and do things that we have never done before, now that my kiddos are getting a bit bigger.  Here are a few of the things we have done thus far this summer:

 At the end of May my husband, Ty, and I were treated by our wonderful friends, the Ryus, to a free weekend hotel stay near Beverly Hills for Ty's birthday. We then zoomed over to the Getty Villa and, let me just say, I have been wanting to visit this museum for a long time and it definitely lived up to my expectations.  If you have never been you should absolutely make it a point to visit if you love beautiful Italianate gardens and architecture, ancient art and artifacts.  Some of the highlights are the statue of Herakles and the busts of famous Roman leaders.  I also loved the great collection of gold jewelry and perfume oil bottles.  The best thing about it, though, was the peace and tranquility.  As parents it is a luxury to be able walk around together in perfect quietude.

I want to go back as soon as possible.

We just returned from a wonderful trip with my parents to Santa Barbara.  We camped together close to El Capitan.  We ate ice cream on the pier, roasted marshmallows, collected sand crabs, made a sand castle and splashed in the waves.  It was a blast.

Ah, summer!