Here are some random thoughts:

First random thought: I am a Floor Safety Member at work. I like to imagine that I am like Peter Brady when he was a hall monitor but without the groovy armband. Each building on campus has a building go-to person in an emergency. Then each floor has at least one floor safety person. When this first came to be, we were required to go through CPR/AED and First Aid Certification. There was a member of the Public Safety team that was a certified teacher in CPR/AED and First Aid and he held classes for us to attend. I think that was five years ago this summer. I am very glad that I have never had to do CPR to anyone. This spring, I received an email that it was time for a refresher class to update certification. In those five years, things have changed. Nowadays it is much easier to remember what to do and the AED units are really a no-brainer. IF one is around. Granted when one is in an emergency situation like this, adrenaline flows and forgetfulness can occur. Now when the chest compression’s are done, they say 100 bpm. I find it very ironic that two songs noted in training that are 100 bpm are Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees and Another One Bites the Dust by Queen. I hope and pray that the first one is the one in my mind if I ever find myself in that position. Also, if I am ever on the receiving end, I hope it is in the mind of my CPR person. Maybe I should get a tattoo on my chest that has ‘Staying Alive’ in a pretty script font as a gentle reminder for anyone having to give me CPR. Hmmm, I’ll have to consider that.

Second random thought: Last week we were dog sitting Murphy. His owner is our friend Andrew who lives in Chicago but was in Australia for the week. Murphy used to be a regular here. Our boys know him and he knows the ropes around here. On Friday when I came home at lunch, the Murph was not in the house or in the yard. I found the spot he traveled from our backyard to the Cotsones’ back yard. I went next door to see if he was still in their yard. Sue answered the door and said there was a friendly little dog in her backyard about 9am. She copied down the rabies tag number and called Animal Control. They were of no help because he did not get the tag in Kankakee County. Next time Sue checked her backyard, Murphy was not there. I looked in her yard and there was a space across her back fence where he easily must have escaped. Mind you, this is noon and he visited her at 9am. She was not aware that we were dog sitting either. I thanked her for the information then took off in my car to check out the neighborhood and campus. He has had previous escapades to campus and Weber Center so I needed to check there too. No luck. I came back home and posted a status on facebook. I do know that whenever I need to get the word out that facebook is the vessel to use. I got some well wishers right away, also one texting me a picture of Murphy to post if I needed to. Just after that I got a text that said “Gina! Someone found Murphy! I just tagged you in the picture on facebook. They said they took him to an adoption place. Idk which one though.” I called her immediately and she said that Murphy was at Kankakee Animal Control. I was relieved slightly because I knew where he was now and that he didn’t get hit by a car or something. PSA: Please, please don’t ever, ever take a dog or cat there. We managed to get Murphy out of doggy jail for the low price of $105. This charge included three $25 ‘running at large’ charges. They micro-chipped him for $20, as that is the law in the State of Illinois. They also stated that if he were to be lost again and get back to their place, they would neuter him and charge the owner in order to get him back. You guys, they are a KILL shelter, remember. I am very thankful that we got him back for just $105 and still intact. I’ve heard many stories and know that people have had to pay upwards of $300 to get their beloved pets back. An Olivet student found Muphy at about 9:30.  This same student was at my desk that morning at 9am for a grad check! She found Murphy near her Grand apartment and had class or work so she couldn’t take him in her apartment and find out who he belonged to. She called the number on his tag (Andrew was in Australia), posted a picture on facebook, then brought him to the K3AC. Since Animal Control and I are not friends I had to send someone else to get the Murph from jail. Luckily, my coworker is a dog lover and was willing to bail him out in my place. When Andrew got back in to the states on Saturday, he said his heart sank when he started retrieving his voicemail, email, and iMessages. It was short term since he also saw my status saying Murphy was back at home safely. Huge thanks to Cassidy for finding Murphy and taking him in. Another huge thanks to Abby for connecting the dots. And a final huge thanks to Annette for going out to that awful place I call doggy jail and returning Murphy to me, safely. Whew!

Third random thought:  I love spring! I just love that I can go out for a bike ride or a walk after work. Also very soon I will be starting some projects in the garage. I imagine those will be cause for posting as well If you didn’t already know it, Mindy has B.O. (Book Obsession)! So, for her, I am making bookshelves to hold all of her books! She has sooooo many‼

Thanks for reading!

My morning routine is to help Mindy get out of the house with her breakfast and snacks (since she works 30 minutes away), and then I start getting ready for work once she leaves. When I head back to my room to get in the shower, the littles come with. Fondue and Tucker are generally snuggled in my room for some quiet while I get ready.  It is a new tradition that Fondue stays in my room until I come home at lunch. He likes the warm quiet time he has to himself, away from the others. He snuggles under my covers while I get ready and just stays there, not to be disturbed. Well, Tucker does NOT like that Fondue stays in my room for the morning shift. There are times when he would stand there and look for Fondue to come out of my room when I say it is time to go. He knows now that Dude is staying and barely looks back on his exit.

As of late, Tucker has devised a new plan. He decided that he wants to snuggle under the covers during the time I am getting ready. Since Fondue gets four hours, Tucker wants 45 minutes!  Tucker will rush back to my room and get on the bed first. Then he noses under the covers to make his nest. This morning, Fondue went to get under and Tucker started cussing at him, I kid you not!  He was throwing four-letter words all over the place! Under no circumstance was Fondue allowed under the covers with Tucker. He was there first and Dude was NOT allowed!  I laughed.

I turned back the covers on the bed on the opposite side to entice Fondue to go under the covers. Then I got in the shower. When I got out, Fondue was sitting on the floor on the side closer to Tucker and just looking up at the bed with disdain. Then I called Fondue over to the other side again, pulled back the covers more. He inched forward and I covered him up, making his own little nest. Not a word came from Tucker.

Twenty minutes later I was ready to go to work.  Tucker came right out from under the covers and jumped down.  He didn’t even look back today.

I have funny boys!

Anyway, years ago when Randy was in junior high, he read The Giver by Lois Lowry. He loved the book and he encouraged me to read it. A few years later I read it and loved it. There were a couple of companion books, Gathering Blue and Messenger. I got my hands on both of them and really liked them. I remember waking up early to finish Messenger. I was in tears.  Then last fall a book was released by Lois Lowry called Son and it was noted as the ‘thrilling conclusion to The Giver Series.’ I was all over it. It came out around my birthday and I happened to have a gift card to Barnes and Noble. I bought it that night and then asked Mindy if she could bring me book two and three from her classroom. I had book one on iBooks so I started reading it that night. I worked through the first book in two weeks and then started the second and finally got through the third. I was finally ready to start reading that thrilling conclusion. Remember that I don’t have a great memory when it comes to books. I remember the gist of the story but thought it was only fair to reread and refresh my memory so I wouldn’t miss anything. I wasn’t sure which characters would be showing up in book four besides the son.

I really liked the last book. It had yet another utopian society that Lois Lowry created. There are three sections within Son: before, between, and beyond. All four books have their own utopian society different from the others. I don’t want to give anything away so I will stop there.

If you need a light read, I highly recommend this series by Lois Lowry. Actually, if you have kids in junior high, read them all as a family. It would make great conversation, I promise.

Now to figure out what I should read next.  Any recommendations?

First: Denim

On Thanksgiving Day, Gina and I took Denim for a hike through Perry Farm. He had a fabulous time. He sniffed everything at least one time.

Den also loves to dip his toes when possible. We went down by the Indian Caves and he splashed around a little. Gina wasn’t too pleased with this, but he had plenty of time to dry his toes before we made it back to the car.

This is my favorite picture. You can see the joy and excitement oozing out of him. He was just so happy with our Thanksgiving hike.

Second: Angel Feathers

I finished my second reading of “The Girl Who Chased the Moon” by Sarah Addison Allen. It is a wonderful book and I am so inspired by it. I highly recommend it as well as the rest of her books.

There is a character in this book who makes cakes. I was inspired, but I am not good at much of anything in the kitchen (except doing dishes and buying groceries). I have wanted to make this cake for years. Gina agreed to help me. It turned into Gina making the cake and I was her sous chef. The cake is so good! It took a very long time to make, but it was so worth it. Please ignore the counter top. It really is clean. It just has these weird indentations that never look clean.

It is a snow white vanilla cake with butter cream and angel feather frosting. I am telling you, this cake turned out so well and I am so excited!

He seriously works design magic on any space. Check out his blog post about the process here.

]]> http://www.morkandbean.com/2013/01/13/a-design-link-up/feed/ 0 http://www.morkandbean.com/2013/01/11/project-headboard/ http://www.morkandbean.com/2013/01/11/project-headboard/#comments Fri, 11 Jan 2013 01:44:02 +0000 admin http://www.morkandbean.com/?p=310 On January 5^th I began making my queen sized headboard. I sold my headboard with the rest of my bedroom furniture years ago and have had my bed on just the frame. Last fall I decided I would make a headboard and drew up my idea in November. I found some on Pinterest but this one was my first inspiration. Actually, it is the first pin on my DIY board. While I pinned several headboards, I would always come back to this one. It is simple, clean, and can have a g on it. It seemed like a good first project.

I was careful selecting the wood. I went with pine from Lowe’s. I measured, measured, cut, sanded, measured, measured, cut, sanded, measured, measured, attached, stained, sealed, sanded, final gloss coat, then waited.

Then tonight, I installed my magnificent headboard. Can I just say I love it! It is a perfect match to my blinds, it is simple, and it has MY “g” on it. It is always a good habit to clean your workbench before and after any project.

This is my plan book. Pretty much all of my ideas start out here.

I started this project by cleaning and organizing my workbench/pegboard

These are the basic tools and supplies I used.

I laying everything out before I started putting it together.

After assembling the headboard I added the legs.

I painted my “g” in one corner. I used the method from the “That’s My Letter” blog to make it nice and clean. Click the picture above to check out the tutorial.

The next step was staining the headboard.

This is how the final stained headboard looked before installation.

Here is the installed headboard. Fondue thinks it’s great.

That is my signature “g”…see  What will I make next?

When my kids were young, we also did the presents in the morning. I remember saying that they could not get up before 8am. I am not much of a morning person so I valued my sleep =)  As they got older so did that wake up time. When they made it to the teen years, we added the tradition of opening one gift at a time. Then that person would grab the next gift for opening and deliver it to the lap of the receiver. I like this tradition most because it spotlights one person at a time plus everyone can see the gift and the look on the openers face. A more recent tradition we started is a gift rule. I get each of my kids three gifts. Hey, if Jesus got three gifts, do they deserve more?  This helps for the season to be not so commercial and costly. When I first started this, they though their list had to consist of three things. I straightened them out quickly. Give me your lists and I get to pick the three I will buy.

Last year started a new tradition with a new family member. Randy got married in 2011 but they lived in Bourbonnais. We had a Christmas get-together at their apartment, played video games, ate a great meal, and exchanged gifts. This year they live in Florida!  So, I will be mailing a box early enough to arrive before Christmas. I also have a grand-dog to buy for =) I am hopeful that they will get time to drive up and visit the families up here in Illinois this Christmas. They closed on their first home last week and have moved in. I am so excited for them! I wish I could fly down and help them get set up. I think our next visit will include an airplane because that is one long drive!

A new tradition that we have begun is a Christmas Open House in December of every year. I get to make some yummy food and treats, deck the halls and stoop, and have family and friends over for some Christmas cheer for a few hours. At our open house we have a photo booth set up. I cut a Polaroid frame out of foam core and we hang it with 3M hooks. We have a variety of things on sticks to hold in front of our faces for the photo op! It has been such a fun time. Our house isn’t big by any means so at times there isn’t much room. We pull out some games and have a nice time. Last year the big hit was the Cocoa Latte Maker. It worked overtime! This year the s’mores bar was the hit. It was also 60 degrees outside this year so I didn’t even get out the hot chocolate machine.

Old and new, traditions are fun to help celebrate the people and the seasons we love!

What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

A new extension cord is about $15 or so for 50’ length cord and the reel it is on is about  $7 and looks like this.

While my spinach/zucchini lasagna was in the oven, I went out and got the cord and tools needed to attach the end. I had to look up online which wires went to which slot. The green is ground (always), the white is neutral and goes to the wide slot and that leaves the black is power to the small slot.

I took the small set screw out of the plug and removed the insides. I fed the cord through the outer part of the plug. In the past, I have replaced the plug end and forgot to put the cord through the outer part first so I had to take it apart and redo it. I have learned. I stripped own the cord to fresh wire and cut back the orange sheathing as well. I twisted the wire strands to keep them all together and “hooked” them around the appropriate screw, then tightened them up. Remember, white to wide slot, black to small slot, and green to ground.

Then I pulled the outer plug cover up around the plug and fastened the set screw back to hold it in place. I brought it out to the garage to test it. It works!  For $4.74 and about 10 minutes I have another working extension cord.

I also bought a new three prong outlet.  Next weekend I will change out a two prong outlet for a three prong outlet.  I am tired of hunting down one of those adapters.

Now go fix something!

We were able to go up to Mont Eagle when we were in Tennessee. It is absolutely beautiful there.

We went to this adorable little community. People either own or rent homes there. It’s like summer camp for families. We went to hear Mary Badham (the woman who played Scout in the film adaptation of “To Kill a Mockingbird”) speak.While we were there we were able to see a friend’s vacation home. It was beautiful.

The vacation home was being guarded by a beautiful princess. The home is called “At Long Last.” So I will call this little beauty Princess At Long Last.

When we left Tennessee (for the first time) we went to Savannah, Georgia where we enjoyed River Street.

We enjoyed shops with taffy, various tchotchkes, and a massive supply of gnomes.

The next day we went to Forsyth Park. I’ve read about it and couldn’t wait to get a look for myself. It is magical.

Since we were so close, we drove over to Tybee Island for some beach time. The view on the way to Tybee Island is just as good as going to the beach.

The beach was beautiful. The sun was high, the water was a great temperature, and the scenery was fantastic.

After Savannah, we high-tailed it over to Florida to visit Randy and Brooke. While we were there, they took us to Clearwater Beach. That place is BUSY but beautiful.

Shortly after our arrival, we left for Charleston, SC. Now THAT place is great! It was beautiful, historical, and the people there were so nice. We ate at a place called Sticky Fingers. I would jump on a plane right now for their fried corn on the cob. If you ever go there, you have to try it.

I wanted to take a picture of everything there.

This vacation was such an amazing opportunity. We drove everywhere. This was great because we got to see so much of the U.S. This sucked because we spent over 45 hours in the car. There were definitely times when we all wanted to run in opposite directions, but in the end, I think we were better for it.

I have been teaching for nine years. In that time, I have realized that professors only teach you a small portion of what you need to know in the real teaching world. I think that teachers should have to take more psych classes. I also think that we should all be certified in CPR and first aid. Those just seem like logical classes for a teacher. Something that I did not expect to need is a marketing class. I really wish I had taken one. If I had it to do over again, I would keep track of all of the fundraising money I have organized for. My guess is that it would be somewhere in the $50,000 range. Just last week one of the student council advisers asked if National Honor Society (my kiddos) would like to pair up and do something for American Red Cross and Hurricane Sandy disaster relief. I said sure, but was a little hesitant. It was Monday and she wanted to do this event on Thursday (an early release day). The best part was we didn’t know what we wanted to do. I started googling hurricane fundraisers for something creative. I found tons of cute ideas but nothing that we could execute by Thursday.

The student council adviser came back that afternoon and said that she was thinking that we could have a student/teacher volleyball game. That sounded fun, but we would need to have it during the school day and we can’t charge students to participate in an event that is taking place during the school day.  She suggested that we take volunteers for the teacher team and then make jars for each teacher. Students could put money in a teacher’s jar and the eight teachers who had the most money would be on the team.  We would take student volunteers for the student team and then just draw names out of a hat. This seemed logical and it would get kids (and teachers) out of class for a while. I’m all for making the most of learning time, but sometimes teachers and students need to have fun and be silly.

Here is a run-down of what we did to organize:

Monday

- Request permission for a student/teacher volleyball game from the principal

- Scramble to put something in the announcements so students know to bring change.

- Meet with student council and National Honor Society to get additional ideas and recruit odd-job volunteers.

- Make jars with a catchy label (I did this Monday night at home. I had some mason jars and used card stock for the labels. It looked pretty last minute, but they did the trick).

Tuesday

- Odd-job volunteers man the jars during lunch.

- Announcement is carried over from yesterday for students who missed (or were oblivious to)  the previous announcement.

Wednesday

- Odd-job volunteers man the jars during lunch.

- Count the money from the jars to determine teacher winners and send an e-mail to participating teachers so they know to dress for a volleyball game the next day.

- Draw student names and then put the results in the announcements.

Thursday (game day)

- Get permission to release student players early.

- Luckily the student council adviser had plan right before the game, so she was able to set up the gym.

- Students were released to the gym. The athletic director and the student council adviser acted as announcer. Some student council and NHS members maintained the score board. Other odd-job volunteers walked through the stands with jars to collect last minute loose change from students.

Thursday (night) and Friday (morning)

- We had parent teacher conferences (hence the early release) on Thursday and Friday. Someone had the brilliant idea to put the jars out for parents. This was fantastic! Parents were more than willing to drop some change in our jars.

Reflection:

We had so much fun. The kids had fun. We did not have any problems and we were able to donate $300 to American Red Cross. I know $300 isn’t much in the big scheme of things, but at least we were able to raise awareness and some funds.

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