Outdoor Science School 2012 - Malibu, CA

Last week I took my annual trip to Outdoor Science School with my 6th graders. I have such a great time and get to see my kids in a different atmosphere. It makes such a difference in them and it's totally worth all the preparation and fund raising. Needless to say I do miss my sweet husband and little girl immensely during the week but we are able to talk to and see each other through Facetime. Otherwise it may be unbearable!
Here are some of my favorite pictures from the week!

We took this picture so I could put it on our class blog! We are teaching the kids about internet safety.

I get paid to do this every year...more or less.

Having an underwater camera makes for some awesome tide pool shots.

Baby crab found by the kids...I had no desire to hold it.

Squirrel!

We spent Friday evening at a very crowded Disneyland but still managed to have a great time together. We spent a good amount of time at DCA and got to meet Dug, the dog from Up.

 We have always said Abby is just like Dug because she is so easily distracted. Squirrel!

 

I love watching Abby's face throughout the fireworks, especially when Tinkerbell flies over the castle.

This was taken around 10:30...way past Miss Abby's bedtime.

If It Fits, It Ships!

During Christmas time we were sending out a lot of packages to friends and family. Abby has a brand-new cousin, Bradley, who was born in October and she is so sad that she has not had the chance to meet him yet. So one day she climbed in the shipping box and told me to send her to Bradley.

Bradley is my brother's first and is such a cutie! We can't wait to meet him and wished they didn't live so far away!

Early Mornings

I love mornings like this. It makes it worth it to be up so early.

 

(Yes, I did take this picture with my cell phone from my car but I was stopped at a light.)

Making Pretzels

I read too many blogs. I get all these crazy ideas in my head and then I can't get them out! One blog I love to read is Clover Lane. Sarah is a mom of five and blogs about their everyday life. She is very inspirational and I just feel good after reading her posts. She also has a recipe blog called Cooking on Clover Lane.

One day Sarah posted a recipe for soft pretzels, and sure enough I got the itch to make them myself. Surprisingly, I had all the ingredients in my kitchen already. Wahoo!
The only problem was my fear of yeast. Ugh!
(This is why I was surprised to have all the ingredients because I hardly ever stock yeast in my kitchen.)

The mouth-watering desire to have fresh, warm, soft pretzels won out over the fear. I was shocked at how well they turned out with very little effort. I have now made them several times and we all love them! They are simple and yummy.
Check out the recipe here.
http://cookingoncloverlane.blogspot.com/2011/09/soft-pretzels.html

The one thing I did struggle with is making them really thin like the recipe calls for. Mine are fatties. Either way they taste good, so no big deal to me.

Cousin's Weekend

This weekend we had the chance to visit Aunt K., Uncle K. & cousins G, B & J. We had such a great time celebrating G's 7th birthday, playing games together and eating lots of pizza. Right before we left everyone decided it was time for a wrestling match.  Many giggles, some bumps, several briuses and a couple of tears later, Abby slept very well on the way home! Thanks for a great weekend...let's do it again soon!

We're Still Here!

Amazing isn't it? How people disappear for a while and then suddenly there they are, a year later, looking better than ever. Well that's the O'Leary family...we're back! 2011 was a good year for us. We were so busy that we had trouble keeping up with the blog. I hope there are still people out there who are willing to read this thing. I still read all your blogs all the time. Thank goodness for Google Reader! So here's a few things that have been happening.

This is us on December 31st, 2010 and here's a year later:

I can't believe how much our little munchkin has changed in the last year. She is definitely a little girl now and not a baby (and she reminds me of it all the time). We are in the process of singing songs, storytelling, potty training, choosing clothes and make-believe. I love listening to her play with her dolls and toys. She has a great imagination! She loves Tinkerbell and her fairy friends (Fly-Me's), all the princesses (her favorite is somewhere between Ariel & Aurora) and stamping with Momma. We also love the library and the park where we spent a whole lot of time this summer and her boyfriend is James because it's the only boy she really sees on a regular basis. We all love to laugh and dance together - just the other night we had an "Irish Rave" in our living room...picture flashlights and the sounds of the Flogging Molly station on Pandora with a whole lot of bouncing around like a Tigger. Fun times!
Abby has also started her career. We decided that with the cost of college tuition on the rise it's never too early to start earning your way. Check out her profile here: Off the Ricter We have only had one audition so I don't know how it will all pan out but we'll see and I'll keep you updated. :)

Other news: Pat is starting school on Jan 30th and will be getting his degree soon. (I say soon but in reality it will be at least 4 years...with the way time flies it doesn't feel that far away!) He is working at the Pro Desk for the Home Depot and will be a Gold level associate this year - meaning he sold over a million dollars in product for 2011. Too bad not much of that million dollars comes back to us!
I am still teaching in 6th grade and am also working as our schools Technology Lead Teacher and Assistant Principal. I was just released from teaching primary for two years. I am also a supervisor for Close to My Heart. CTMH sells traditional scrapbooking supplies and also has a great digital scrapbooking program. If you want to see some of my art check out my other blog: scrappingboogie.blogspot.com or find me on Facebook.

We are still going on lots of trips to Disneyland so if you're ever in the neighborhood, we're almost always up for a trip. We also love going to the street fair to ride the ponies and eat yummy caramel apples.

I hope some of you are still following and I am going to make a more determined effort to update. I love reading each of your blogs and I love to read new updates so I hope to do the same for you.
As always we are so grateful for your love and support. Happy New Year!