I loveeeee waffles, but we don't have them often.

Kat, if you make up a half batch of waffles, whatever you don't end up eating you can freeze then pop in the toaster or microwave, just like eggos!

Also.. we have a SMALL kitchen. We have cupboards for our baking dishes and pots and pans on the sides of the stove.. then two more cupboards for our dishes. We have two drawers that have leftover containers and such in them, and then there's just three cupboards for food.

I keep all our appliances that we don't use much in a room down the hall from the kitchen (so like the blender, food processors, waffle iron(s), etc. The only thing we have out all the time are the small air fryer and the stand mixer. Everything else lives elsewhere.

The one piece of countertop (maybe a foot wide?) has the keurig and it's pods under it, and then the flour and some of the spices we use all the time that aren't on the wall (because they don't all fit on the wall OR on the magnetic racks on the fridge!). The stand mixer and air fryer take up the entire other side of teh counter (again, not much bigger). We just need to switch the positions when we want to use one of them :P

Then on the other side of the kitchen there's the knife rack and paper towels... and dirty dishes. The other side of that one has the dish rack and some containers with rice, oatmeal, etc.

It's SO. SMALL.

But, now that the rabbit died (poor Jim), we can actually finish demo-ing the upstairs kitchen and try to slowly work on replacing it... still small, but definitely bigger than downstairs!

We're having a veterans day service at the schools Monday too, they're coming up and having breakfast at the high school (and the band is going to play. Lilys going to sing the star spangled banner!), and then they do a short presentation up at the high school before they go down the elementary school and do their presentation. At the high school, there's a big bulletin board with family and friends of students, and former students who went into the military. At the elementary center, the kids are asked to bring pictures and hold them up during the presentation.

There's about 40 veterans who come, they can't have everyone because (1) there's not enough room, and (2) they're slightly worried about clearances, etc.

I left the house yesterday to bring Lily to a birthday party.. ended up wandering around for 2 hours while she was there. I bought myself some new panties (VERY needed, I don't know where they all disappear to?!), and I got Iz two pairs of pjs for her birthday (which yes, is in June) and El a pair?? from Carters.. I spent $12 there total! I didn't really get much while I wandered. And Duck Donuts, my favoriteeeees! :P

Then Lily and I ran to Sams Club.. spent almost $300. DID spend $300 after buying gas, too. But we needed toilet paper, pork, bacon, etc. So anyway. Then we went to the mall.. Old Navy to pick up fuzzy socks to go with PJs, then Lily ran to Claires while I went to Hot Topic to pick up my online order. We went to Kohls to pick up an order (then ended up wandering a bit, used the rest of my kohls cash to buy reusable bags to do some wrapping in) and then five below. Went to taco bell quick because by that point it was quarter after 7, INHALED a quesadilla in the van and went to walmart to finish our grocery shopping. It was 9 by the time we got home! Oof.

Kat, I love the romaine lettuce at Sams, I think we get our membership fee worth that alone haha. I mean, it's half an hour away but definitely worth it for us.

Thanks Hollie! I hope you enjoy whatever ceremony you end up seeing!

Wow Mieke, nope you don't have too much cabinet space. And that sounds like really nice activities for your Monday as well! Will you still use the downstairs kitchen if you finish the upstairs one? Or will you switch to only using the upstairs one? At least with both of them useable, you'll have more room even if they both are small!

I spent around $350 at Sams. Yikes. I didn't mean to. But since I got meat....that was probably $100 by itself and will last me several weeks at least!

also, i just ... I don't know. fresh waffles or pancakes are great. leftover ones, not so much. even nicely reheated they just don't taste as good to me? LOL

- We tried making homemade and ended up with an unholy mess in the kitchen. So, now we get Eggos. We never have to worry about leftovers. My 20 year old bottomless pit of a son makes easy work of anything that's leftover. Sometimes it's aggravating because you think something is left over and look forward to it for a snack or lunch only to find that the bottomless pit got there before you. 😂 You know, I think our grocery bill would be half as big as it is if he didn't live here. XD

while I sometimes feel Nathan is a bottomless pit (he does seem to always be eating SOMETHING) - he doesn't like leftover food any more than I do!!! We both only like certain things leftover - like chili, spanish rice, broccoli casserole...i will eat steak or pot roast if its the next day only but after that I'm like, eeeek yuck for some reason LOL I just don't like leftovers. Weird eh? I do try to eat them if I have them, but I also try to cook so that I do NOT have them!!

I've browsed chapter 5 like 3 times trying to find "three things you learned" for the quickwrite this week. I've got... one. Argh. I know I'll choose something but its like, I feel I already know most of what this chapter went over, so I might have to lie and just pick something to talk about hahahah I need to bring my observation sheets home and type them up. I know no one can read my writing :P I also have no clue HOW she wants us to turn those in, there is no assignment to turn it, as of yet. I'm assuming that something will show up by next Monday when they are due ?! I also did the literacy checklist that is due that week already too ... I need to begin work on the literacy center project soon, but need to do the PreK lesson plan first. I want her to grade the toddler one before i begin the PreK one tho, so I can see what I might need to adjust/do differently.

No, we'll remove the downstairs one again and turn it back into a normal room like it was before. Well.. actually, before it was a kitchen and living room it was a garage, but we can't go back to that :P We can make it into a living room that you can actually fit in though! :P

Ahh mieke well that is cool too. Whenever I think of people having two kitchens, I think of my grandmas house - it was built into a hill, so the front door is level with the street, but the back door had a huge porch and staircase, and the downstairs area let out onto ground level. There was a foyer, sitting room, dining room, dining area, living room and kitchen upstairs, as well as 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and the garage. Downstairs was 3 more bedrooms, a bathroom, a living room (it had a billiard table and a piano, couch and tv) and another kitchen, as well as a storage room. the upstairs and downstairs had the same basic layout, so the kitchen was over the kitchen, the bedrooms were over the bedrooms, etc I know most houses aren't as big as my grandma's tho. She had a really BIG house. It was nice. I'm not sure if its still in the family or not.

- There are some things I won't eat 2nd day but that mainly depends on if it was left out the night before. Aside from that I don't have a problem. I do like homemade chili and beef stew better the 2nd day, though. That is made in a crock pot, though, and never really cools off until we're ready to eat it. That reminds me, I need to get ficings for chili and stew as it's getting chilly enough to make it now.

I hate it when professors are coy with assignments. I like it better when they lay out all the assignments from day 1 so I know what's expected of me. When is the pre-K lesson plan due? Tomorrow? I know you'll do well on it. Good luck with the rest. :D

- doing some remodeling? Good luck. I hate the mess that comes with remodeling but love the results. :D

NO thank goodness. The due date says Nov 24th, but she said turn it in early if we could. - the quickwrite I turned in last night and the toddler lesson plan were what is due tomorrow. I just dont want to work on it (the PreK one) until I get feedback on the other lesson plan (the toddler one). I also prefer when all assignments are set up and ready to at least look at. I don't normally work TOO far ahead, but when I have free time I like to prep and get ready or even go ahead and complete it but not turn it in too early, if you know what I mean? It also depends on how much instruction I need on HOW to do the assignment and what is wanted. Some teachers will put out a an assignment and it might even have a rubric but not really explain how they want the assignment done - like these observation worksheets. I had to observe two kids, one typical one atypical. and write down a bunch of literacy things I saw or did not see them do over the course of the observation. I chose to observe all day long to get as much as I could hahah but I could have just observed for like an hour each. but there is no explanation of how to turn in the assignment. does she want the original notes copy? does she want us to write up a paper? who knows!

- I hated it when professors were cagey like that. If you want something done then tell me how! I never have been a mind reader. lol :P Usually, I just came right out and asked them if I didn't have a clue and it was getting close to the turn-in date. I'm thinking your due dates are a lot further off then mine were. We took one class per month and it was broken up into 4 1 week segments. The lesson was given on Sunday/Monday and the assignments were due on Friday/Saturday. It was a lot of work but it went by quickly. :D

wow that is a short time period for a class!! but I guess if you are only doing one class at a time, that wouldn't be too bad. My classes are set up so I have 2 classes every 8 weeks, so 4 classes per semester by the end. My Monday night classes, the items are due by Sunday night. But my Wednesday night teacher set the assignments up to be due Wednesday nights.

I am sure she WILL tell us how to turn it in, when she opens it up so that we CAN turn it in :P I am just like, well I've done the prep work, I'd like to complete the assignment...but I cant since I don't know what you want! :P

- They called it an accelerated course. By the end of a semester I would have 5 classes done. I would have gotten my degree in 2 years if I hadn't switched majors. 😂 Shot myself in the foot there. 😂 If you hav 2 classes every 8 weeks then you're on the same kind of time table I was except we only took 1 class at a time. Have you tried sending her an email explaining that you don't understand how she wants you to turn it in? Sometimes professors leave it ambiguous so you have to ask. It shows them you're reading the assignments in full. Personally, I don't like those kind of antics but it seems every professor does them. XD

no. if the assignment had a way to turn it in, i might. But for now, I'm just waiting to see what she says in the next class or two I don't think this assignment is due until like, the week of Thanksgiving. so that is like two more weeks? I'm sure she will open it and discuss it this Monday or next. She told us at the beginning she was NOT opening assignments early. But then she did open a few bigger ones and like, the forms for others. So I dunno what her thought process was on that! Maybe to just let us see/know what big assignments we had? So we can choose kids and start planning?

Yes, I do 5 classes a semester, when I have a practicum class (field work). I will have that next semester but this semester I got exempted out of it. I won't have summer classes again, but next fall I will have another practicum I have to go to a day care for :/ Not thrilled. And then next spring semester (2026) I have my student teaching, not sure if that counts as the practicum, I'll have to check. I want to say it does and that I only have 4 classes that semester. Practicum class lasts all 16 weeks tho, not just 8 weeks. Makes it better to get the hours in you need. Of course, for the ones I do at my own work I'll have plenty of hours, but the one at the daycare I'll have to find time to go after work UGH,

my supper is about ready so I guess I getting off here for now. I'm all done with quests and everything too anyway. See you later or maybe tomorrow!

- Have a good dinner! :) If I learned anything from uni it was that no one professor taught like another. I learned pretty quickly not to assume that one professor would do the same things as a previous one. This lead me to make a nuisance of myself when I wanted to know what was going on with a lesson or project. My youngest daughter got her bachelors in elementary education. She said that the one part of her studies she didn't like was the practicums. She didn't mind, even loved the kids but the teachers she had to work with/under weere another story all together. She passed with flying colors and graduated last spring. I was so proud of her. She's now teaching a first grade class and loves it. :D

Ours is built into a hill too, so actually.. if you come in the back door from the driveway, there's a big dining room, our bedroom, a big closet thing, bathroom, heater room (which isn't REALLY a room, but also is?), the kitchen/living room, and a sunroom.. which is REALLY only a sunroom, because it's not heated at all :/ so we just use it for storage.

And then if you come in the front door, there's just stairs to go up or down and a small landing. Upstairs there's where the computers are (living room?), and a dining room and kitchen.. but we're going to eventually remove the wall between the kitchen and dining room, or make it into a half wall, so it's a bit bigger..

and two small closets and a bathroom and three bedrooms.

So yeah. That's our house haha.

When I was little, it used to be a bedroom, den, bathroom, garage downstairs. Nana closed in part of the den to make a closet.. but the closet is actually really weird sized, and now the "den" is pretty small too :P But still bigger than our bedroom, so I'm not sure what I want :P

And the kitchen/living room will make a good sized living room, so.. that's good. And I think eventually we're going to take the sunroom part off, it wasn't built right and so the roof is.. trash. But I think I'd rather have that spot as a big covered patio anyway? There's a pretty big porch off the upstairs dining room but we don't use it much because it's just out in the sun and I am a vampire :P

that is so true. I do know not to expect the same things from each teacher. But unless its close to deadlines, or I just REALLY don't get how to do something, I normally just do my best and turn it in and see (and do way better than I think I did usually !!) rather than email the teacher about anything. I WILL email them if I really feel I need to.

Good for your daughter! Of course you are proud! (Katies going to graduate in Dec and I'm so excited for her! She's getting a bachelors in Fine Art)

The good part for me, is except for that part at the day care, I am in my OWN classroom, with the teacher I've been with for 7 years now, so that won't be an issue. Unless she ends up being a butt about her part, but she agreed to do it, AND she went through childhood education (general ed, K-5 I think tho) so she knows what a cooperating teacher needs to do for a student teacher as she had to have one do things for her.

- Good Morning! you're here early! I believe most houses built into a hill will be 2 stories hahahah!! I am glad MY house is not two stories, because I don't like stairs. I don't like going up/down them and I hated cleaning them in the one house we had as a kid that had stairs. A covered patio would be nice! I am also kind of a "vampire" as I don't go outside unless I have to - for recess with the kids, to mow the grass....very rarely do I go out and sit on my swing, which I love my swing but eh its outside!!

[edit] Today I clicked on assignments instead of modules, and guess what I found? Instructions on how to do the assignments :P They aren't showing in the MODULES but the assignments were posted under assignments, which I don't normally click....so now I have printed off the instructions for the observation and the PreK lesson plan AND the major literacy centers/lesson plan assignments! Whew. At least I have time to work on them. The next one due is due Nov 24th (the PreK lesson plan). The other two are both due Dec 8th. I have to write a freaking 700 word paper for the observation, detailing all the stuff I observed and more. Yay what fun. Glad I found it so I have time to do all that LOL

- It's a good thing you clicked on that link!n 700 words? Oh, hon, please... rofl I had to do that in my sleep but that's what I got for getting a bachelors in Fine Arts in Creative Writing. What area did your daughter study? You can do the 700 words, it'll fly by and you'll soon find yourself over the word count with much more left to say. I promise. ;)

yeah! Good thing. And no, 700 words isn't really TOO bad and I will have it before I know it. It was more I didn't realize I had to write a paper lol I also just realized I should have already done my observation for the other class because the rough draft is due in a week. Eeek. Well I have the rest of this week and some of next week to do the observation. I had hoped to do it while I had her in small groups (the child I picked) but I had her today and we were doing math things (which would have been fine for this observation honestly but i just forgot about doing that observation) Maybe I'll just do my best to remember what went on today during small groups and observe her at centers/whole group time tomorrow :P Even though it was supposed to be all in one hour. Who will know. Except us :P

[edit] 530 FInished all my quests. AND got a BHH purchase! You purchased: [item2=Book of Lost Ancients]

[edit] 655 I have completed my PreK lesson plan. I have NOT turned it in. I really am hoping the teacher will grade the Toddler lesson plan and give feedback so I can see if I need to add/change anything before submitting the PreK lesson. I also wrote down all my upcoming assignments and realized other than doing that observation, I am doing fine on time for assignments. LOL I am going to do some research and whatever else I can to put crap in the powerpoint for that next. YAAAY FUN :P Not really but eh. I'll live.

[edit] 635am When do you guys think Fireside will start? I've got a bunch of red rreign items in my "other" shop :P some i saved from last year, some I bought up cheap.

Also, I am not sure what specific area Katie studied in, just Fine Arts - she took all kinds of classes, she said it was required. So she did pottery, ceramics, painting, sewing, drawing, photography, etc. As well as things like art appreciation and art history I think.

- I think you'll remember more about your math lesson with the child as you start to write down your observations. Plus, she'll never know that the observations weren't done in one continuous hour. ;) I'm not going to tell. :P Ugh, PowerPoints. I always hated making them because I had a hard time getting the boxes to align up correctly on the pages. 😂 You may want to take the red rreign things out of your shop and save them. I have a bunch in my vault that I'm going to toss. I hope it starts soon so I can get rid of them. I'm really waiting for Black Friday so I can plunder the Cash Shop for books. XD That's awesome that they made her go through the classes like they did. I didn't have to do anything like that, though. My major was part of the English department so I was safe. :P 😂

- no no the red rreign things are in a shop that isn't a shop - it's a gallery hahaha my bad. But no, I don't price anything in there even if I could have, its ALL saved for events, the stuff in there.

As for the child observation, I just used a few glances at her table today for small groups - it was fine. Her table was independent with playdoh so I was able to see how she interacted with the other kids some, add a bit to the "social" part of the observation. I really don't think its going to be a GREAT observation, but I tried and not too bad for my first ever observation for a class. I'll do ok on the powerpoint I think. I worked on it last night for everything I could, besides the actual observation stuff.

One of my assignments was graded last night, I wondered why I lost a point for one comment, she'd highlighted it and said it had not been mentioned and then copy/pasted exactly what it said, in which it DID mention it... today, I saw my other assignments had been graded and that one had been re-graded. I got full points after all :P Guess someone else said something? I didn't. I almost did but decided one point wasn't worth it. But now I have full points LOL (and that comment is gone) And this type of comment just makes your day- Katherine, you consistently exceed my expectations and make grading a pleasure! Thank you for your hard work and dedication to the course—it truly shows in everything you do. Keep up the fantastic work!

In the other class - I got a 13.5/15 for my toddler lesson plan and was told I needed more "details" so that "anyone can pick up my lesson plan and implement it" ok then. I thought they could have? But ok.

- I finally asked my hubby to help me subscribe to this thread. I couldn't find the spot eventhough I looked with 2 different screen readers. So, now, I'm subbed to the tread. You don't have to ping me any longer. :)

That is one awesome comment. Perhaps, if your school does it, you'll get honors in that class. What do you mean that you got a 13.515 on your other assignment? Is that out of 100? If she's going to be that nit-picky over your lesson plans then it's best if you break everything down into it's smallest parts. It'll be more writing but at least you'll get more then a 13.515. :O

Oh, I see, I put my stuff in my vault because I thought it would be easier to get at it. I now think I have red rreign stuff in my shop so I'm going to go take it out. I hope they have more stuff for Fireside then they did Morostide. I wish they'd have another plot. :D