Quichey quiche

Today is Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of repentance. You're supposed to fast all day and reflect on the sins you have committed throughout the year. Being a non-believer, I've decided that you should reflect every day in an effort not to do things that hurt people so often, so I ate a delicious breakfast and lunch, and I just sampled the spinach and mushroom quiche I baked for tonight's feast at my house.
I've been cooking a lot lately, way more than usual, and using recipes properly so that I don't have as many screw-ups in the kitchen. The other day I made potato gnocchi all by myself, and my mom gave it her seal of approval. Now all I have to do is get a real Italian to tell me how to improve it and I'm all set! I made an Alfredo sauce from a recipe too, but it was awful and I'll never make it again. I like my own white sauce, that I make with butter, flour, garlic, salt, milk (or cream, when I'm feeling ultra-indulgent) and a little bit of Parmesan cheese. I've also been baking bread; I seem to be pro at white bread, but whole wheat isn't going so well. I'll try it again on Wednesday.
Anywho, I'm going to take a nap before getting up to vacuum, sweep, and shower. My house smells amazing.

-Laur

Slow return to reality

2 weekends ago I helped put a famous pig-roast party into play in Muskoka on a family friend's island. It was fantastic, and the weeks leading up to it were spent focused on getting the right food together, prepping, packing, and mentally preparing ourselves for the madness to come. This picture is of Jessica Poland and myself, goofing around during the party (it's mostly me goofing around, but hey, someone had to!). But the party ended, and reality struck, and I realized something:

I feel really bad. That may not be the most profound statement ever made, but it's true. I realize that lately I've been really selfish, and it's time to stop.
Things haven't been easy since Sarah came home. She's been depressed, and was out of work for a while, and when she's home she sits in front of the TV all day or never gets out of bed. She doesn't contribute, and lately more than ever it's been apparent that Mom is going to need some more financial help running the household.
Yes, when I'm home I tend to do things. I clean, or I get rid of items that need getting rid of. I empty the cats' litter box, I vacuum, I organize the kitchen, I do handy-work...but that's not enough.
So, even though I said I didn't want to even look for a teaching job until January, I'm going to start putting my resume and cover letter out there, to see if I get any bites. Not just to public schools, but to private ones and tutoring companies, too. I feel burned out from last year, discouraged for sure, and my teaching confidence definitely took a hit (for those of you who don't know, last year's teaching placement experience was ANYTHING but positive, for the most part), but I'll do it.
So wish me luck! Soon I might have a classroom of my very own!

-Laur

Countdown!

So I now have a widget at the bottom of this web page that is counting down to my departure for parts unknown, AKA London, England. 15 days and counting. HOW DID IT GET SO CLOSE???

I'm nervous but excited. I have so much reading to do! Time to shower and hit the books.

-Laur

Oh, and I also graduated on Monday

I almost forgot, I also graduated on Monday. I guess the excitement from the weekend preceding sort of detracted from the actual event. Nevertheless, I marched across that stage to the cheers of my friends and accepted my Bachelor of Education gratefully.
Now I'm finished :)

-Laur

Feels like home to me

So I spent the weekend with my family in Edmonton. We were there celebrating my grandmother's 85th birthday in what was basically a 48-hour party, though the official shindig was only 4 hours long. It was amazing, I got to see my old boss and my Edmonton friends and have great visits with my family and see some people I hadn't seen in over 9 years.
Feels like home to me.

-Laur

Skills

So I got my new camera almost a month ago and it has been so much fun to play with. Please enjoy these pictures from the last few days, including Princess Xander under the patio table. It was actually too hot for him. What a princess.

-Laur

A year of firsts

On Saturday I went to my first friend wedding. My dear friend Marisa Williams became Mrs. Josh Tierney. When I think about it my first instinct is to scream in terror, because I AM SO NOT READY, but it wasn't my wedding, and Marisa was ready. And now she's someone's wife.
I think it's so cool that she got married. She planned the whole event so perfectly, and it looked so beautiful and I know everyone there had such a great time. She should be so proud.
Today she and Josh flew to Paris for a 2-week honeymoon. I know they're going to have the most amazing time.

-Laur