I have had the BEST day!
After breakfast I kept rolling and unleashed my inner power-cleaning fury on the house! Every room (except the basement – that’s Ben’s domain!) has been swept and/or mopped, disinfected and dusted, from TOP to bottom. I even scrubbed the tub, which I hate! 
Sometimes you just need a day off to do stuff you don’t want to do on the weekends, know what I mean?
It wasn’t all comet and Lysol though – I had a date with my Dad’s fifth grade class this afternoon, so I got cleaned up and had an early, light lunch! First up, strawberries & cheese.
Not at the same time. 
Strawberries are EVERYWHERE right now, but I rarely buy them because I hate cutting them up. Isn’t that lazy of me? At any rate, I just cut the tops off of these babies which took ~1 minute. Why didn’t I think of that sooner?!
A cold colby jack cheese stick was a nice supplement to my berries. Do you eat your cheese sticks like a…stick?…or do you peel them? I eat mine like a stick.
I also had the last of my Summertime Salsa Goat Cheese with Special K Herb & Tomato Crackers.
This goat cheese blend is SPICE-AY! In a really good way though, as I can’t tolerate super hot foods.
Locals: find the Northern Prairie Goat Cheese Stand, at the downtown Farmer’s Market, on the west side of 4th street as you’re heading down to Java Joes. I recommend their products!
And I will not be buying these crackers again because they’re highly addicting. Cracker crack, if you will.
After lunch I set out for my Dad’s school.
Every year, at the end of the year, his students do an “Apprentice” type thing, where each group picks their favorite candy and creates a marketing campaign around it, trying to convince the judges (me, my Mom and my Mom’s coworker) why their candy is the best. They’re supposed to make a poster, power point presentation, bring SAMPLES, create a skit, etc., to try and convince us.
Never underestimate a fifth grader, because these children were whipping out power point presentations that were better than what I could even do!
The Hershey’s Chocolate group had some stellar samples.
The Laffy Taffy group had a nice presentation.
Those kids were very animated (perhaps because they were hopped up on Laffy Taffy?!)
The Snickers group was SO cute!
A couple of them dressed up in blazers, and they even sang a little jingle while one of the boys played his sax. So professional!
The snickers sample didn’t hurt either. 
The Lemon Head group had a fabulous poster,
and excellent presentation of their samples.
Shot glasses!
The Sour Patch Kids group won due to an exceptional poster and choreographed dance routine they busted out.
Oh, and lots of sour patch candy. I was buzzing after all this sugar.
The winning group was supposed to get ice cream, but of course, my Dad brought treats for EVERYONE because “nobody leaves my classroom a loser!” The kids all cheered when he said this – it was hysterical.
My Dad is proof positive that it is never too late to change your life. He worked in the business world for 30+ years before deciding that life is too short to waste it doing something you don’t love. So, at 50 years old, he went back to school and became a fifth grade teacher. I’ve never seen anybody love their job more.
Plus – his kids ADORE him. We’re talking, invite him to all their baseball games, plays, piano recitals… and he goes! It’s so cute!
After I left school, I picked up an awesome frame for a cool postcard I bought when we visited the Laura Plantation on our New Orleans trip.
I LOVE THIS FRAME! It’s so ornate and historical looking! Now I just have to decide where to put it…
Then I made a pit-stop at my local library. I haven’t been here in probably 15 years (there’s that number again!) due to my preference for buying books over borrowing. (GERMS!)
I got over it though.
Apparently, since finishing American Wife, I have a newfound fascination for Laura Bush…weird. I wanted to check out her new memoir, but I’m 39th on the waiting list. Sheesh! I might just go buy it!
Anyways, the author who wrote American Wife said she used this biography as her main source of info on Laura, so I decided to give it a go. I’ll let you know how it is!
Any good books I need to read?! Your suggestions would be so very helpful! (I’m on the waiting list for Prep and The Help, btw!)
Ben and I are still trying to decide what to do for dinner…
What will you be having tonight?
You absolutely most read Leap of Faith: Memoirs of an Unexpected Life by Queen Noor of Jordan. Since you love autobiographies and seem to have an interest in history/politics you would love it. One of my all time favorites.
I would agree that “Prep” is a good read although completely different from “An American Wife”. I read “The Help” over spring break and it was so good I read it in two days (I stayed up waaayyy too late one night to finish it.) I also HIGHLY recommend anything by Adriana Trigani.
On my list for the summer: Water for Elephants and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
I just read Sarah’s Key and loved it. Other books I would recommend would be The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series and The Glass Castle.
I just finished reading Sarah’s Key. Thought provoking, poignant, moving, amazing. I absolutely love books that take place in a different country and before our time. I love how they totally transform where YOU are, ya know!?
I love this post about your dad. I am considering a major career change as well and this was just what I needed to read today.
[...] Locally made products (Gino’s, Graddy’s, Bisignano’s, Northern Prairie Goat Cheese) [...]
[...] When you’re working 8-10+ hours a day, usually longer than you’re actually at home, I think at some point it’s important to find a job and/or career that you strongly like – a job that fulfills you on a personal level (ie, my Dad leaving the business world he found completely unfulfilling after 30 years, to become a teacher!) [...]
We have the same reading tastes since I LOVED “The American Wife” and immediately after finishing it I went to put my name on the list for “Prep”………..which reminded me a little too much of Cruel Intentions…..yikes! I have recently become OBSESSED with Karen Kingsbury. She has a book called “Unlocked” about a boy with autism. If you share any of your father’s passion for children, you will LOVE it. Her books are a tasteful blend of faith and hope. If you need other recommendations just let me know……….I am a reading machine (since I have some extra time in the summer).
P.S. “Heaven if for Real” changed my life and took 2 hours to read!
and “Gideon’s Gift” is to die for with the holiday season approaching…..it is set during X-mas time when miracles tend to just happen!
P.S.S. I heart your dad! Best decision I ever made was to teach! The money is not so wonderful but the intrinsic rewards you get daily are priceless.