Merely Day By Day

31/365 New Books Originally uploaded by Catmere My class was thrilled to see I finally went to the library and restocked our classroom baskets with new books. I also made the mistake of wandering to the picture books when I was at Barnes and Noble this weekend. I wanted to get a class copy of Knuffle Bunny Free by Mo Willems and the new Kevin Henkes book, Little White Rabbit. Of course, I couldn't resist a few other titles.

30/365 Ahhh, No Salt! Originally uploaded by Catmere Wow, no salt! It was a relief to finally be able to take my car through the car wash. I was getting kind of tired of the salt and grime. It won't last this time of year so this picture will help me remember.

29/365 Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday! Originally uploaded by Catmere There are pluses and minuses to having a birthday so close to Christmas. As a kid, I knew I could wish for things I didn't get at Christmas for my birthday. Of course, who really wants to celebrate a birthday so close to Christmas? This year I saved my money from Christmas and my birthday to buy something interesting. I weighed new blinds for living room, a baker's rack for the microwave, new towels, and maybe a wardrobe update. However, I kept coming back to this idea of a reader. I've become quite a tech geek. I'm pretty sure everyone is quite tired of my device mania. I enjoy learning how to use new technology and am finding it makes my life simpler and more enjoyable in so many ways. But a reader? First, let me be honest, I'm not the reader I need to be. I've always worked to keep reading. I must confess that I read mostly for the conversation of reading. I enjoy b

28/365 Chipotle! Originally uploaded by Catmere Just looking at this picture makes me hungry. The best thing about Fridays is Chipotle. Each Friday my friends and I rush out of the building to have lunch at Chipotle. This is not an easy task in 45 minutes, but we have it down to a science. We know who should drive, who will get utensils, who will watch the clock. Some weeks, knowing I'll have this time to catch up with my friends helps me finish all that needs to be done. Friday just isn't Friday without friends at Chipotle.

27/365 Laughing and Learning with Katie Originally uploaded by Catmere Yes, I should have thought to take a better picture than this. This 365 thinking is tough. Do I look for the best picture? Do I remember the most important part of the day? What story am I trying to tell? Well, you know me, I want to tell the story of life. The little things that make such an impact on our lives. We often over look these little gems in our day. This evening I met with Katie at Panera. We met to finalize our Dublin Literacy presentation. We spent about 20 minutes on the final plans for that, and spent the rest of the time chatting about families, life and teaching. I gained so many new ideas and interesting things to ponder. Most of all, it gave me some much needed energy in this mid-winter slump. Thanks, Katie.

26/365 A Reason To Go Paperless Originally uploaded by Catmere It's Wednesday and I kind of feel like our copier. Things are not going so well for it these days. Luckily I'm moving toward being paperless so this doesn't stress me out too much (and besides I have Reese's).

25/365 Love these! Originally uploaded by Catmere These cards where a gift from my friend, Deb, for my birthday. I used the first one today. They're the perfect size for me (if you know my small handwriting you'd agree). I love that they allow me to send a small note to someone without too much fuss. Most of all, I love that Deb could get into my classroom and left a treat instead of a few birthday tricks. I'm getting too old for those.

24/365 Nothing Like Reese's! Originally uploaded by Catmere What a nice surprise to come into school to find a few cards and gifts. Gotta love a bag of Reese's. My friend, Carolyn, knows me well. I'm so lucky to teach with such great friends.

Mmmmm. Birthday Cake. 23/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Today we went over to Bob & Anita's for a birthday celebration. Anita made delicious stromboli. I know I ate way too much. She also made a Ho Ho cake that was a-maz-ing! It was so much fun hanging out with them for the evening. Max, Aly & Sam helped add to the fun. Thanks for a great night.

Baby, it's cold outside! 22/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Yesterday's temperatures were crazy cold! I woke up to take Cassie to volleyball practice at 8:00 a.m., and the temperature was -9 F (without wind chill) when I returned home. Brrrrrr.

21/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Yea! Our first snow day. I thought about going out in sitting in our swing, but brrrrrrrrr.

20/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere The snow began falling in big flakes during the school day. It was a long slow drive home. All evening events were cancelled so I was blessed with some extra time.

19/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere I think I'd give up eating bread before I'd make a sandwich with these.

18/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Just another ball game. The Lady Rider varsity team just pulled this one out by one point. They had me on the end of my comfy bench. Whew.

A Fun Family Visit 17/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Always a good time when my brother's family stops by for a visit.

16/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Cass and I were at Target today. When she saw these we both laughed at the memory. "We haven't had cheese balls forever," she pleaded. Of course, we bought the cheese balls and are enjoying them on movie night. Movies and memories.

Happy Birthday to Me From the BMV 15/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere I headed to the BMV this morning to pick up my registration. For those of you that know me, this is proof that I am finally growing up. Most years I have gotten my registration updated well after my birthday. Maybe I was motivated because I would have to pay a fine for being late this year? At any rate, we'll call it progress. There was no line which was a miracle. Happy birthday to me from the BMV = -$245

14/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere It's game night. I wonder how many nights out of 365 I spend on the bleachers?

Ouch! 13/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Everyone needs a few "rules" in life; a few non-negotiable items in which one stands strong. Personally, I think life should never begin before 6 a.m.. I have tried getting up earlier to write, to get laundry done, to exercise. It just never works for me. I've learned to live with the fact that I can only function if I sleep until 6 in the morning. Unfortunately, our van (a turn of the century vehicle), has decided it cannot run in temperatures below 20 degrees. Picky thing. For that reason, I'm getting up early to take my husband to work. He's an early morning guy. He wakes up and is friendly. I wake up and can't talk to others for at least an hour. For the entire week I've been getting up at 5:30. It's really quite astonishing. I suppose this morning was the hardest....and tomorrow, 5:30 again. Ouch!

New Year Cleaning 12/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Student boxes were getting quite messy. It was most obvious in the background of Photobooth pictures students were taking of their writing. I decided it was time for a cleaning. The students did a great job, and the room looks terrific.

My Poor Keys 11/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere 1-11-11 (Love that!) I told my class today I loved writing 1-11-11. They reminded me that it was "all ones" on 1-1-11. Then another student said it will happen again on 11-1-11 and 11-11-11. Gotta love 1st graders (oh, another 1!). Well, I have a zillion things I should be doing, but for some reason I can't get my computer off my lap this evening. Look at my poor sad keyboard. If I ever go on "Wheel of Fortune" I'm guessing s, c, n, d, l and buying an a & e. :o)

Easy Go! 10/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Whoever said "Easy Come" knew something I have not figured out, but the "Easy Go" part I have down to a science.

IMAG0745 Originally uploaded by Catmere Every year I look forward to getting out Christmas decorations. I suppose, in part, because all of the decorations carry so many memories. There is the nativity made by my great grandmother, the stockings purchased when Cassie was just a babe, the ornaments representing various events in our lifetime, and treasures made by the kids when they were little. In the mornings, I love turning the lights on the tree and in the evenings I like to sit in the living room with the lights on as I read and work. I'm never in a rush to take everything down in part because I enjoy the look of the house at Christmas, and in part because IT IS SUCH A JOB! This year, everyone helped in taking down the tree. Today I finished up by boxing all of the house decorations until next year. The boxes are now packed away. The living room looks huge and the house seems so clean. I guess I'll enjoy that for a few days.

New Grounds 8/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Nothing like starting the weekend with a good cup of coffee.

7/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere Jeff and I decided to go into the Arena District this evening for dinner.

Insanity 6/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere I am THRILLED to have two of my friends join me in my blogging madness.

5/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere I was watching my daughter play basketball. At half-time, I began to think of my photo for the day. I started playing with my phone and was amazed to see how closely it could capture the detail of the fabric of my jeans. I'm easily amused. Snap! Picture 5/365.

Mmmmm! 4/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere The last Reese's.... well...... for now....

Just Smile Originally uploaded by Catmere These fries kept us smiling after our first day back to school.

2/365 Originally uploaded by Catmere It took awhile to remember where I put my bag when I returned from school nearly two weeks ago. Bag found! Time to get to work.

I decided to get the china out to start the new year. My dad came over to help our family feast on pork and sauerkraut. Happy 2011!