Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Writer's Workshop - Before & After

Show us a before and after

For the last couple of years,
I've been growing my hair.
For over 10 years,
my hair has been shoulder length,
or shorter.

I loved my long hair.
There's so much you can do.
Keep it down,
put it up,
straighten it,
curl it,
so many choices!

My husband,
on the other hand,
likes it short.
When we met it was super short.
He's been bugging me to cut it.
I kept refusing.

Then,
this summer,
I bought 7 pairs of shoes.
And to make up
for the credit card bill,
I went and cut my hair.



It's taken some getting use to
and it will grow back,
right?



Dark Places - Gillian Flynn

I am probably one of the few people
who did not like
So when I saw
Dark Places
in the bookstore this summer,
I kept on walking.
Then, 
I stopped and picked it up.
Then, 
I read the back over.
And then, 
I bought it!
And I don't regret it!

When Libby Day was 7 years old,
her mother and two sisters were murdered.
She testified against her 15 year old brother,
Ben,
and he was sentenced to jail.

Now, 
25 years later,
Libby is approached by a group called
The Kill Club.
They believe that Ben is innocent
and want her to help prove it.

Unlike many mysteries,
where half way through I
think I know who did it,
here I really wasn't sure.
The story jumps from the day of the murders
to present day.
Flynn gives you glimpses 
into what was going on
on the day of the murder
with everyone in the family,
and allows you to make your own conclusions.

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Writer's Workshop - Ordinary

Write a blog post inspired by the word:
ordinary

It was suppose to be 
an ordinary flight. 
One we've done
a million times before.
You board a plane,
take a flight.
Easy peasy.

But not so easy this time.

The flight took off,
on time.
It seemed to be going smoothly.
When suddenly,
the captain announced
we were going for an emergency landing.

Two hours later,
sitting on a grounded plane
we get ushered into a
"more comfortable room".

Another plane is on it's way,
we are all assured.

Four hours later,
a plane arrives.
Finally.
Everyone is re-issued a boarding pass
and is told transfers have also
been issued.

Thinking all is ok,
we re-board.
Happy that we are all safe.

But the connections were not made,
so the ordinary trip
is a little more confusing.

But in the end,
we made it home.
Safe and sound.

An ordinary flight it was not,
but it did inspire this week's
post.



Friday, August 15, 2014

High Five for Friday

It has been 
AGES
since I last participated.
It's high time I return.
I always loved this meme.
I wonder why I stopped?

Well it's Friday
and that means
High Five for Friday!
Here are some of this last week's highlights.


1) Salted Caramel Ice Cream

I love ice cream.
And salted caramel.
Woohoo!

2) School mates

I grew up in Ottawa
and had some great mates.
This trip home,
we were invited to dinner
with a bunch of them.
Was fantastic!

3) Mates from Dar

I met Cam in Dar.
Her oldest and Ethan are the same age.
They've moved back to Ottawa,
so this trip,
we got to hang out!

4) Girl's Night

Every summer,
I'm with Ethan,
it makes it difficult to enjoy a movie.
But, 
every year,
a few of my cousins'
arrange a girl's night.
We hit a movie, 
and Ethan gets a boys' night.

4) The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

Ethan and I read the book this summer.
I promised him
when we finished the book
we'd do a movie night.
Complete with pizza, popcorn 
and ice cream!

How has your week been?

 photo H54Fbutton_zps973d26e1.png






Thursday, August 14, 2014

Writer's Workshop - Cupcakes

Write a blog post inspired by the word: cupcakes

Cupcakes
Sweet and tasty
For all occasions
For all your desires.
Forget the cake!
Go for a cupcake!

Something for everyone.
What's your favourite?
Chocolate, vanilla,
red velvet?
Pumpkin, banana,
or carrot?
Coffee, caramel, 
or peanut butter?

With so many choice
how can you not get excited?

Icing, ganache
and sprinkles.
Top it off anyway you want.

Cupcakes!
Think I may need one now too. 








Monday, August 11, 2014

The Giver - Lois Lowry

I am not entirely sure,
how it is possible,
that I have never read
The Giver.

I'm serious.

Isn't this book on like
every middle school reading list?

And yet,
I never read it.
I don't believe I was ever interested
in reading it either.

But then the last couple weeks,
I keep seeing a preview
for the movie.
(Yeah, it's a movie now)
And it looks pretty good.
But since books are always better,
I had to read it.

And I'm glad!

I really enjoyed this. 
I'm even ok with the
what-happened-to-them
ending.

And now, 
I look forward to the movie.


Saturday, August 9, 2014

Conferring: The Keystone of Reader's Workshop - Patrick Allen

A lot of what I've been reading recently
is about reading.
I've noticed the last few books 
I've read
talk about getting students to choose
their own reading materials. 
In Zambia,
I met a teacher 
that did not have reading groups
but instead conferred with her students.
Conferring: The Keystone of Reader's Workshop
follows this premise.

Allen shares his experiences
as he improved his ability to conference
one-on-one with his students.
He spends some time explaining his purpose
or philosophy for conferring. 
He provides examples and strategies. 
What I really loved,
was how he related a lot of his thinking
to developing students' metacognition. 

The strategies and routines he sets up
help students become better
readers, writers and thinkers.

Now, 
the challenge lies,
in getting schools and teachers to see the benefit
in conferences over the 
group sessions where students
are not reading for themselves.




The Theatre Calls

Anyone who knows Ethan,
knows he's not very athletic.
He has Development Coordination Disorder.
Basically, 
he has poor motor skills. 
He enjoys playing football (soccer)
but knows he's not very good
as he tends to skip
instead of run
and is starting to notice
this.
I often worry about his confidence.

This summer,
Ethan attended a theatre camp
at the Living Arts Centre
in Mississauga.

In the last two weeks,
I've seen my son grow
more than I have in the last 8 years.
He is confident and proud.
He sings, dances and acts. 
His lack of coordination doesn't seem to
matter here.

Everyone made him feel welcomed.
They complimented his dancing
and acting skills.
They loved his enthusiasm.
He would practice his songs
and lines each night.
And on the day of the show,
he was fantastic!









Thank you Living Arts Centre for a
fantastic summer camp!

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Writer's Workshop - Summertime

List 6 things you are going to miss about summer.

Ethan and I head back home
next weekend.
I can't believe our vacation
is almost over.
We've had a great
summer vacation. 
Summers home are fabulous.
There's so much to see and do.
So here are some things
we will miss about this summer.

1) Going to baseball games

With Scott home this year
we were able to go to a 
couple of games.
And while we hoped to go to more
with us leaving, 
we're done for this summer.

2) Seeing this girl


She lives here.
We don't.
So summer coming to an end
means it will be another year
before we see her again.

3) BBQ with the family

Again,
since we don't live here,
we cherish the BBQ
with cousins.

4) Going to museums


We've gone to a few this summer
and had a great time
at each one.

5) The Nisbets


It's not often
we get the three generations
together.

6) Being a tourist in your hometown


We went for a boat ride.
Something I probably wouldn't normally do.
But being a tourist 
is a lot of fun.

We've had a fantastic vacation this year.
And while we're sad to go,
it that time of the year,
we need to head back home.
And start planning next year's
vacation!!



Monday, August 4, 2014

Kiss of Midnight - Lara Adrian

I've had this book
on my TBR list
for quite sometime.
But I never got around to reading it,
until now.
And once again,
I'm wondering why I waited.

So, the storyline here,
is eerily similar
to my beloved
Black Dagger Brotherhood series,
and for the most part,
I'm ok with that.
There are others out there
who call it a blatant rip off.

Lucan is a vampire.
A Breed vampire.
A Gen One vampire.
He is the leader and his quest is to destroy their enemies,
namely the Rogue vampires. 

Gabrielle is a photographer.
She's never felt like she belonged anywhere.

One night,
Gabrielle witnesses a grueling murder
and her life spins out of control.
She's introduced to the world of vampires
and meets Lucan.

Just like the Brotherhood,
the Breed protect one another.
They fight the evil us mere humans
cannot see.
And when they bond,
they are mated for life.

Despite the similarities,
this is one series I shall continue with.
And I won't wait as long to read the next one.

Saturday, August 2, 2014

The Enchantress Returns - Chris Colfer

Last month,
I read and fell in love with 
Chris Colfer
did an amazing job
of bringing fairy tales to life.
So,
of course,
I had to get the second book in
The Land of Stories.

In The Enchantress Returns
the evil enchantress,
the one that cursed Sleeping Beauty
is back.
And she wants revenge!
Part of her plan
is to kidnap the granddaughter
of the Fairy Godmother. 
However,
she ends up kidnapping Charlotte,
Connor and Alex's mother instead. 

Now the twins must find their way back
into the Land of Stories
and find a way to save their mother.

Colfer brings up our favourite characters
from the first book.
Red Riding Hood is still as shallow as ever!
But he also introduces us to new ones,
and gives them their own stories.
Have you ever wondered why Cinderella's
stepmother was so mean?
Maybe she was just misunderstood?
Wonder why the name Beauty
is used twice?
I mean,
there's Beauty
from Beauty and the Beast
and then there's 
Sleeping Beauty.
Hmmmm.....
could they be related?

Once again,
I was transported into a land of stories
and loved Connor and Alex's adventures.