Veggie Pie for the Soul?

Just as good (if not better) for the soul.

It's pretty delish.

The biscuits turned out way better than I expected. Ran out of baking powder, so B and I improvised with the cream of tartar and baking soda. (she's always hanging around to catch wayward morsels). They were just the right amount of brown, and nice and flaky on the inside. The tops could have stood to have been a little less crunchy, but hey I'm not picky! (and it's not like Chase would touch this with a 10' pole). ;)

I usually do the shortcut way (cream of chicken soup), but 1) didn't have that in the cupboard, and 2) wanted a veggie pie, not chicken. My stomach has been pretty messed up the last few days, and now I'm running a fever, so the less processed stuff in my system, the better. 

Anyhoodle, so that's that! I'll probably share the recipe a little later in the week! So stay tuned. 

Top Ten Things You Weren't Told About Pregnancy BEFORE You Got Pregnant:

10a. Eating for two? Eating at ALL during the first trimester and part of the second is impossible.
10b. The "pregnancy glow" also causes clogged pores apparently, causing your face to declare nuclear war on itself.
9. Sciatic nerve pain is a _________. (fill in the blank)
8. Taking nice hot showers makes you want to vomit.. and pass out.
7. One word. Constipation.
6. You will go through more bottles of Palmer's Coco Butter than you might imagine (especially during winter months).
5. Sometimes unwanted advice makes you want to kick someone in the shin. *smiles and rainbows!!*
4. No matter what trimester you are, you WILL go pee 25 times a day.
3. Zantac is your BFF. Just sayin'
2. You will want to LIVE in leggings, pajama pants, and sweats.
1. You will love your little nugget more than you can imagine...


Most of this is suppose to be funny, so please don't think I am not enjoying pregnancy!! I'm learning to take every moment in stride.

Right now, I just happen to striding to and from the toilet to either pee or throw up...

Thank goodness I love you Baby C.

Let it Snow..

It's snowing (flurries at least).. on Christmas! (two years in a row, really?) However, this year's snow isn't near as epic as last. For the south, snow at all is pretty incredible.

Christmas 2009 in Oklahoma

I bet that RV Dealership is realllllly regretting their '$10,000 back towards the loan on your new RV if it snows on Christmas when you buy now!' gimmick.. because there are definite snow flurries outside.

Anyhoodle, as a gift this year to Chase (and myself, who are we kidding) I got one of these. Battery life aside, it's pretty wonderful! So to share our first Christmas at home together, we recorded it.

We really miss our family, but travelling is a huge pain for me right now (imagine my already terrible car sickness magnified by 1000x). It was pretty hard talking to my dad,  mom, bub, nieces, nephews, and sister without completely busting into tears yesterday and today. They all had dinner together yesterday and got to be together though- which is awesome. Today they are all over at my brother's house celebrating together today. Next year we'll so be there (+1) I missed you guys (if you read this!). K, I promise to stop talking in parenthesis now.

Just in case the video was too boring for you,  here are some photos instead!

The end!

Merry Christmas!

Rainbows... and shiny stuff.

Why is it when I wake up in the middle of the night, I feel like a cold pancake after Sunday brunch??

Seriously, my body feels limp, I have NO balance (hence me falling flat on my face) and I walk around in a half zombie-like stupor when I get up to find the loo in the middle of the night... I don't recall this level of passed-out-ed-ness before. It's like a new level of hardcore sleep- which for me is ridic because I already slept like a hungover frat boy.

K, I'm going off in search of rainbows again... Where's Kenny Loggins?

Stupid crazy dream.

These dreams are ridic.

Last night, I had a dream that these white and black bots were taking over the world (think iRobot without the face). Apparently they were starting at my school, because in my dream, I was constantly going back to the school to get batteries/life supplies, etc.

Why batteries you ask? The bots ate only batteries, so if you gave them batteries they let you live. They were also sucking life, light, and color out of the world (from what my dream told me) because everything was dark all the time.. and the lights were always flashing and flickering.

In order to get out of the city, we had to take this train/tram thing, so I ran with Bailey and we magically got on board the tram to take us to safety.

Evidently, going south was the way to go, so I drove south with Bailey and ended up in a single wide trailer with lots of canned food in a forest in south Texas (funny, seeing as south Texas is barren as all get out). My biggest worry- how to let Bailey outside to use the bathroom without her running off, because the trailer didn't have a fence.

There was another gal in the trailer (dunno her name- just that she was a druggie) and I ended up kicking her out to the bots, because she was compromising our position to get stuff from her dealers.

In the end, I lived with Bailey in the trailer with lots of canned good, and the curtains perpetually drawn. What a life..


I seriously woke up about 4 times throughout the night, and tried to think about other stuff before falling asleep, but always reverted to this dream.

/wants more happy, snuggly, warm, delicious dreams...  not creepy druggie bot dreams.

Baby C makes an appearance!

I got to see baby C today! The heartbeat was so strong and the Dr. found it right away! 160bpm!

Over the moon excited right now. :)

Baby C is measuring exactly what we though, and everything looks healthy! We are going for a screening next Thursday and will get more pictures- woo!

The coolest news is that at our next appointment, January 7th, we should find out if it's a boy or a girl.

Fruit salad, yummy yummy.

How did gummy bear go from a raspberry to a lime so quickly?? The last few weeks have flown by.
We had Dessert Theater and Hanging of the Greens rehearsals ay church last week and three performances this weekend. It was tons of fun, but I'm happy for a break! The philharmonic has a performance in two weeks, so it's time to start practicing for that (during which we will be putting the 5th grade program on stage!)

See what I mean! Time is flying! Christmas break is quickly approaching!! *happy dance*

I feel horrible, but the only thing I want to do when break gets here is stay curled up in a blanket on the sofa! Hopefully after the 1st trimester, I'll get my energy back.

I found a small piece of it last night! Had a good ol' jog on the treadmill! Today= not so great, but small steps... :)

Oh, and can I seriously get someone to come clean out my fridge??? You might need a hazmat suit...
Toodles!!

Sigh....

I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror

And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer

But my breath fogged up the glass

And so I drew a new face and laughed

I guess what I'm be saying is there ain't no better reason

To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons

It's what we aim to do

Our name is our virtue

I made is 21 days...

until sickness, exhaustion, and pregnancy just kicked my butt.

Better luck next year, NaBloPoMo... You know, I could go back and fill in the gaps, but I honestly just don't have the energy right now.

Two more weeks until 2nd trimester... let the countdown begin!

O' Christmas Tree...

Christmas Tree, O' Christmas Tree. I'm so glad we bought you.

So two years ago, our Christmas tree official died. In its absence last year, we put up hub's mini-tree from his college days. It was uber cute, but since we could afford it this year, we finally replaced dear old tree... and it's uber pretty! (and was on sale at Hobby Lobby this weekend...and I definitely got the last one).

It's typical to wait until the day after Thanksgiving to put up the tree, but next weekend/the following three weeks are going to be so super busy that I want to be able to enjoy the process of putting up a tree instead of "making time." So today, I'm going to make myself exercise (because honestly I feel like poo, but hopefully it'll help!!!), clean the house, work on my 4 ft. mountain of laundry, and decorate for Christmas!! 

Definitely watch for pictures later!

Here Comes Santa Claus....

Right down Santa Claus lane.

It is upon us!

So I am the first to say "please wait until after Thanksgiving to start the Christmas festivities!!" However, we started the 5th grade program two weeks ago, and of course it is centered around Christmas. It was inevitable that I would get bitten by the Christmas bug... Stupid catchy Christmas songs!
So I'm sitting here making part assignments and contemplating if I should clean the house tonight, put away my lovely fall decorations and get in the Christmas spirit!! (and tackle the mountain of laundry that is literally 4 feet tall)
I think it's gonna happen... Be on the lookout for my cider/fireplace/snicker doodle post that is sure to follow.

Vivid..

In the last two weeks, my dreams hve seemed so so real. It's very strange to wake up believing that what just took place in dream land is true.

Last night's dream was wicked creepy at first- involving guns and machetees. Not a big fan...
The second half of the night involved someone from the past that I am just not too sure about... That's my way of saying they're shady. So, also not a big fan. Why can't I dream about living on the beach in Spain or nestlings up in the mountains of Aspen in a hottub.

Kapish?

Um.. really?

It seems unbelievable to me that Bristol Palin could beat out Brandy... /sigh.

I loved the look on the pro-dancer's faces though when it was announced the Brandy was going home. Utter shock!

Quite a disappointment DWTS. I voted every week (for Brandy- because I thought she was the best and most expressive!).

I am mostly frustrated because of the attention Bristol is getting for her "abstinence" speeches.. when it seems that she hasn't had much time since the birth of her child to practice those values. Maybe if she had been taught something other than "abstinence only" then... well that's another rant entirely.

Anyhoodle, this blog is reserved for happy stuff, so on to cooler stuff! There are only 4 more school days until Thanksgiving break!!! After that, there are only three weeks until Christmas break!

It's a whole new world.

I totally loved the usage of the 4th movement of Dvorak's New World Symphony in GLEE this week.
Not gonna lie, I kinda /gigglesnorted.

In other news, my face decided to declare nuclear war on itself, so I have intervened with Proactive. During my freshman year of high school, I used it and it worked wonderfully, but I haven't used it since... and in TWO days my face is almost completely clear.

This stuff is absolutely marvelous- and it smells uber fresh!

Toodles until tomorrow!

Magic pill!

This little pill has FINALLY given me some relief today. How fabulous it was to spend the last half of the day nausea free.

I know they call it "morning sickness" but whoever coined that term was seriously delusional.
So, off I go to work tomorrow, nausea free!

Which means I can focus on cooler things like the 5th grade program parts and countdown to Christmas!

wordless weekend.

Wordless weekend... Driving to store and not getting sick!

Wordless weekend...

Music to my eyes...

So many of you know I teach elementary music... But if you don't, well now you do.

I have become increasingly fond of a publication called MusicExpress. The creative lessons in this magazine are wonderful and really help get my creative juices flowing! I say all this because tomorrow is my lesson plan day and I finally got all of this years issues of MusicExpress!

Talley ho into lesson plan-ville!!! (gobble gobble)

Pampered... and Chefs.

Mmm. pedicures (and manicures) rock.

My tootsies are so refreshed after some tender-lovin'-care. I wish I could do this every day... but that just isn't happening. 

Right now, I have a homemade lasagna in the oven and am about to make a salad. Then we're heading to Stephanie and Chris's house for dinner! She's making dessert, soup and bread. Tomorrow night is my Pampered Chef with my favorite pampered chef, Jenni Cox!!

If you want to order anything online, feel free to do so at:

http://www.pamperedchef.biz/jennicox 

(make sure I'm your hostess!)

So, off I go, into the wild blue yonder.. er, I mean into the kitchen to make a salad. 

Also, don't forget tomorrow is Veteran's Day, so take some time to think of those who have sacrificed for our freedom. I'll be commemorating with a fun program with my 4th grade friends! 

Toodles!

Nostalgia..

So I saw Emma Watson's short hair-do a while back; however, seeing this today at the grocery store made me REALLLLLY want to cut off all of my locks again. Maybe it's the hormones, or maybe it's the fact that it seems that the more hair I have, the more hair that falls out... because man, I hate cleaning the shower drain now.

and because short hair rocks.. and it SO easy.

And on a site note, I love my dad (and mom), they're the best.

(could I say the word "and"  any more today?)

The end.

So my face has mostly been the color of my delish Flying Burrito Quesadilla all day.... Until I finally decided spaghetti sounded amazing.... Only to find Joe's was closed. So here I am, eating a a green quesadilla waiting for 5:45 to roll around so I can watch my 4th graders rock their Veteran's Day program tonight.

wordless weekend... Clean house.

wordless weekend.

Friday post.. totally didn't post!

So tonight I was at the FJC concert after a long afternoon of retail therapy with my great friend, S, and I made post from my phone... but guess what, it didn't show up! Bummer bummer!


We enjoyed shopping, (I enjoyed Qdoba)  and then we both enjoyed some stellar jazz at the UARK Bowl.

Good night!

For your viewing pleasure..... Not.

It figures that the one morning I get up early enough to lounge, and toss on the tele while drinking my juice, that the connection would be interrupted. I'll take that as a sign that I should try to use my time wisely...

-sighs

Coming soon..

Baby Cavalier!!!

Baby Cavalier was a little surprise that we are overjoyed about! We are still in shock and awe that we will be parents in less than a year.

Cute huh? I'll keep you updated!!

Coming soon...

Stay tuned for excitig news... Coming soon!

Blah: Day #2 NaBloPoMo

Candy Corn = 1

Kalyn = 0

(disclaimer: I only ate 1/3 of this bag... today)

I didn't just fail my eat healthy trend today.... I spit in it's face. (hey, at least they were made with REAL honey and are FAT FREE! Right?!?!?..... not)

Dear body,
I'm sorry for ingesting an obscene amount of sugar today. I promise not to do it again (mostly because Halloween is over and they've taken away/sold all of the candy corn).

Please forgive me and don't blow up into a blimp. I promise to jog and extra mile tonight.... And do yoga.

Sincerely,
Kalyn

Pizza Night: Day #1 NaBloPoMo

Tonight is definitely pizza night.

Don't you ever have those days where you seem to run, run, run?
From the moment I sat down my bag this morning at school, I had one thing going on right after the other. Definitely a run, run, run day.

I'm not complaining, because the more I have to do during the day, the more enjoyable the school day is. I love working with the students and being creative with time.

Another great thing about today was the awesome 4th grade! We are currently working on a Veteran's Day program that will take place a week from today. Today was our first day on stage, and they were FABULOUS! Their behavior was soooo respectful, and that just blessed me to no end at the end a looooong day.

We've been getting new technology in the music classroom, and the big thing is the Smartboard, new laptops, and ELMO projectors. Well... since day one, mine have not been working/connected properly. First, my D-drive on the computer was not registering, and second the audio wasn't being projected correctly.
Thankfully, the computer lab manager was able to make my new laptop work after school, and connect the audio to my new Smartboard, so it's in full functioning order!!! (thankfully..)

So when I came into my class after car duty, I walked in to a room infiltrated with Michael Jackson! It was awesome!

Anyhoodle, it's time to order some yummy, delish, mouthwatering pizza and put my feet up! My big news is due on Wednesday. I hope you're excited- because you totally should be!

Until tomorrow, Adieu!

Tomorrow is a new day...

full of lots of new stuff!

The most notable thing beginning tomorrow is NaBloPoMo! Which means National Blog Posting Month. It's a great time where bloggers set the goal of posting on their blog every day for a month.

Sound easy?

I did it once last year for the month of February (because it had the fewest days..) but never have I attempted during the actual blog posting month of November. We'll see how I fare.. hopefully I won't be a snore.

During the month of November, I'll post every day (whether it be short and sweet and from my mobile) or goofy/funny/boring/long... you get the picture. On Saturday/Sunday we'll observe the allowed "Wordless Wednesday" as determined my the official NaBloPoMo rules! ;)

So, I have a few surprises up my sleeve for you guys- I promise you won't be let down!

Toodles!

Apple of my eye...

I am addicted to apples... and more specifically honeycrisp apples.
Seriously, go get one and try em! They're kind of delicious.

McCrafty

Last weekend was quite a blur- the Arkansas Philharmonic concert went well! I always get inspired to practice more when we play amazing repertoire. We had three rehearsals (3 hours Friday, 3 hours Saturday and 3 hour Sunday prior to the 2 hour concert at 3:00)

Quite the whirlwind it was! (.... says Yoda). After the 3 hour marathon on Saturday, hubs and I thought it would be relaxing to stroll around at the War Eagle Craft Fair because the last two years we have gone it has been just that, relaxing.

Boy, were we wrong! We got about 5 miles from the parking areas and traffic was at a standstill. We sat for an HOUR after sitting in a rehearsal for 3. By the time we got there, we tried to enjoy it, but there were so many darn people it was just miserable... so we left after walking through two tents. 

Lesson learned? Go the War Eagle UBER early in the morning to avoid massive traffic.

Apparently the craft fair has become quite popular, because in recent years I have never seen it this busy! (mind you we went DURING the Arkansas vs. Auburn game as well!

Even though it was crazy, hubs and I made a pretty good time of it and enjoyed lots of fab. conversation in the car (for an hour... ahem).

Regardless, I'm pretty darn-tootin lucky to have a best friend like him. :) 

We DID manage to get a photo there!

This year's photo: 2010 War Eagle

2009 War Eagle

2009 War Eagle

So that's that! Today we are going to meet Tim, Trinitie, Faith, Barrett and Dad at Grubb's in Fayetteville to watch the Arkansas vs. Ole Miss game! Hopefully we get a W!

More news coming in November!

Until then, toodles!

Rockstar

My apologies... I forgot that Peter Ilitch Tschaikowsky was a rockstar.

I've been practicing/listening to Symphony No. 4 for the past few days, and have never rocked so hard before in my life.

Just a little dramatic, but not much!

Really though- listen to the Finale and tell me if it doesn't send you to another universe?! Definitely a MO.

Marathon Life

At the end of each day, it seriously feels as thought I've ran a marathon... or atleast a 1/2.

Teaching really does rock my face off though, and I put all I have into it everyday (which I guess kinda explains the exhaustion)! Maybe some amped up exercise in the evenings or mornings would help give me an energy boost?

Some exciting news-- I FINALLY got back into my Weight Watchers groove this week. Thankfully I maintained for the last 3+ months? (Wowie, did that fly by or what), but I am so pumped to be back into my groove! Hopefully I can shed these last few pounds before the end of the year.

Now I must rant.. just a little.. it doesn't happen often, but I am appalled by a new up and coming fashion... 

Now, I am the first to say that I love ruffles... when done right. But seriously, what is up with these tacky one-shouldered tops and dresses with ruffles that look like 80s Barbie gone wrong?

Example #1:

 Example #2:

Ick.

Ruffles = cute and feminine... 

Most of the time.

In other news, our 3rd Grade Program at Walker went fabulously. The kids were so amped, and so was I! What a talented and dedicated bunch of kiddos. <3

Off to read some with my buddy, Nook!

(OOooo, and Happy Birthday to my best friend, Hubs!)

By the way.... have I mentioned that I love this girl?

Just sayin'. She's cute.

The End.

A day without sunshine is like, well, night...

...and my weekend was definitely full of sunshine!

Friday after school, I traveled via the lovely and (a-hem) scenic I-40 to Oklahoma. If you didn't catch the sarcasm, I-40 just so happens to be one of the straightest, blandest stretches of highway. The trees aren't bad... but after a while, they all sorta blur together.

However, the drive was so worth the outcome because on the other side of I-40 awaited my family! I was able to see everybody in the family minus the sister and nephew/niece/brother-in-law. Hopefully next time, there will be enough minutes in the day to see everyone! I always leave home with plans to try to see/do more, but once I arrive at my destination, time always runs away.

Friday evening, Mom and Paul and I had a delish dinner at Paul's Place and then returned home for a fun evening of Farkle with friends.

The kiddos arrived the next morning.. and from there it becomes a whirlwind in my mind. I definitely remember lots of fun being had... swimming, snacking, football-ing, and relaxing, but I can't quite remember in what order those happened! Photo proof!

Also, Mom gave me my first real birthday cake in... 5 years! Minus the really sweet/gimpy cake hubs made two years ago.

Little goose with the water hose kept spraying us...

He looks sweet.. ;)

<3

Mini-Me Niece!

Nom.

We kinda rock.

The following photos are from the previous weekend when Chase and I watched the Hogs game at Kris' house. Isn't he cute?

and yes... they were as good as they look.

That's all folks! It's another lovely school day tomorrow! I'm working ont he 3rd grade program right now, and assigning parts has kinda been messing with my head, so off to dream land I go!

Oops.. just remembered I need to set up vet appointments for the kiddos to get their yearly check-ups! Time sure does fly.

Shenanigans

Not many words describe weeks like this one except... fabulous!

#1 reason this week was fab is Hubs.

Meet Nook (and my delish peppermint tea). Hubs surprised me with a trip to Barnes and Noble to buy my coveted Nook. 

I LOVE NOOK!

Barnes and Noble really knew what they were doing when they designed him. He's super stellar awesome. The end.

#2 reason this week was fab is.. (drum roll please)...........

TA-DA! I'm officially certified! I took a summer class, so it took me a bit longer to receive my certification, but it made itl! I'm a real teacher! :)

#3 reason this weel was fab was... 

Blue Man Group calling the Hogs!

NOM!

The Razorback game!! We devoured delish wings and cheese dip at our friend Kris's house and watched the Hogs trample Tennessee Tech. *Sighs* I missed football season!

and the final (#4) reason this week was fab was...

A relaxing evening with Hubs and friends. 

We also added some fall decor to the outside (and inside) of the house, which coincidentally brought cooler temperatures along with em'. Fall truly is my favorite time of year. Summer is great at the beginning, but at the end, nothing is better than crisp air and turning leaves.

So my friends, I'm going to go enjoy Nook and read another book! (and possibly enjoy one of the beverages pictured above... a-hem!)