Saturday, December 15, 2007

BUSY DECEMBER ADVENTURES. . .

I cannot believe that I haven't stepped a proverbial "foot" into the month of December on this blog yet. I am here, however, to rectify that claim.

Proverbial "foot" now stepped. . .

***********

December is typically a very busy month for me as a teacher and person (my birthday is on the 26th!), but the month is usually a quite busy one for most people.

Let me list and post pictures of some of the highlights of the past fifteen (well, a few more) days:
The pictures for most of these are on the blog below. Scroll down and don't miss them!

Down below I have also posted a great Holiday cake recipe. Really, the cake is a hit anytime, but it is called the "Heaven in a Bottle" Cake, and it is made with Irish Cream. You don't even have to like Irish Cream to like this cake. It really is a winner regardless, and it is good anytime of day - morning, afternoon, and evening. Try it, and I think you'll like it! It's an easy cake as well!

* Fondue Princess had her little baby boy Bodhi! That actually happened at the very end of November, but I have been so negligent I haven't written about it yet. I am nonetheless totally thrilled! Fondue is such a wonderful person, and she will be a phenomenal mother. She already is! Isn't he cute?

* Went to a student's Quinceanera (Hispanic "Sweet 15" Tradition/Ceremony/Party for Girls). It was simply lovely, and I have included a picture of my student's gorgeous lavender dress up above. It is almost like a wedding except it celebrates the girl becoming a woman and being "betrothed" to Christ. This Quinceanera was especially uplifting because it had a strong Christian theme. Some Quinceaneras are just huge birthday parties akin to America's "Sweet 16" birthday parties, but this one was focused on my student's Christian faith.


* Attended the first of several Faculty Christmas Get-Togethers. This one was given by our Principal and was a full seafood or steak dinner at a local seafood restaurant on him (the school). It was nice visiting with other teachers outside of school. I wish I had ordered the steak, though. The seafood was a little greasy, but still tasty just greasy. No pictures on this one.

* Went to see a grand Christmas Show/Spectacular with three students and one of my Resource Teachers. The teacher was able to get six free tickets because she is good friends with the main lead/host of the show, and the students were rewarded for their hard work and good behavior. It was a great show and really put you in the Christmas spirit!

* Had a wonderful Saturday lunch at a nice restaurant with two fellow teachers. One of the teachers is pregnant and expecting in January (Jan. 10th to be exact). She is so gorgeous and actually involved in Figure Sports (modified and more feminine competetive body building). She looks great pregnant. There seems to be a lot of the pregnancy "bug" going around. Late Winter/Early Spring was a busy time for many LOL!

* Attended our high school's Winter Formal Dance. It was a great time! I love to dance, and I took my dog Riley as my date. No kidding, but he spent most of his time in my classroom while I worked on lesson plans for while I would be gone to the next event.

* Went to a Literacy Conference in Charleston, South Carolina and loved every minute of it! It was a great conference, and Charleston is such a fabulous city. If you've never been, you must go! It is a city full of history and lovely character. You always feel as if you've been transported in time. I've included some pictures of that as well! We took a carriage ride (a can't miss), a neat historic walk, and a tour of the Old Exchange, Provost, and Dungeon. The pictures of the trip are great. Lots of fun! I work with such great people!

Well, those are the highlights so far, but there is more to come. I have three Christmas parties this coming week, and, guess what? Green is coming for another visit, and we're going to visit Charleston ourselves! It should be fun!

More to come later. . .

Don't forget to enjoy the pictures down below for now. I posted them under a different date, so the writing would come first!

Friday, December 14, 2007

DECEMBER PICTURES SO FAR. . .










I wanted to put these pictures in order, but Blogger is a bit particular about how these are posted. The pictures cover all the things mentioned in the post above, but not necessarily in that order.
By the way, the temperatures here the last few days have been in the 80s. Oh, it has been wonderful, but it is getting colder as I write this.


Also, did you think I was kidding about bringing my dog to the Winter Formal? Well, he is a male, and he was a hit! Everyone wanted to "meet" him! LOL!

Thursday, December 13, 2007

"HEAVEN IN A BOTTLE" CAKE


Here is a great "anytime" cake recipe, but it is especially wonderful at the Holidays and a big hit at Christmas get-togethers and parties:
Another interesting note is that when I went to find a picture online to post here with the recipe, I found this picture, her recipe, and her baking experience from another Blogger right here at Blogger.com. To give proper credit, her blog is Texasjoy.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html . Isn't that neat? Apparently, this Irish Cream Cake recipe is quite a popular one. I found it all over the web!

"Heaven In A Bottle" Cake

1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup finely shredded coconut (optional, but so good)
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup Irish Cream liqueur
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup Irish Cream liqueur

Preheat oven to 325 F. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt (or hole in the middle) pan. Sprinkle chopped nuts and coconut evenly over bottom of pan.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix. Mix in eggs, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup oil, and 3/4 cup Irish Cream liqueur. Beat for 5 minutes at high speed. Pour batter over nuts and coconut in pan.

Bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan while you prepare the glaze. To make the glaze, combine butter, 1/4 cup water, and 1 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 5 minutes, sitrring constantly with a whisk. Remove from heat and whisk in 1/4 cup Irish Cream.

Invert the cooled cake onton a serving platter. Prick top and sides of cake. Spoon glaze over top and brush onto sides of cake, until the glaze is absorbed.
- Recipe taken from Susan Wiggs' novel THE WINTER LODGE, p. 189-190