With all of the technology available to teachers, and classrooms, and school districts, educators are bombarded with choices. Marketing reps from EdTech companies put their information out there at conferences to show-off how their program can be used to maximize student achievement.
But where are the teachers in this process? Teachers are on the front line. Teachers already know what they need, what their students need, and can imagine ways to make their classrooms run more efficiently. Some are intimidated my the tech aspect of their job and are satisfied with using their devices for attendance, grading, and power point. Professional development in tech is usually centered around a new program adopted by the district. Some teachers can't wait to jump in, while others may be reluctant to try it. For someone already anxious around technology, experimentation, in front of a room full of students whose attention is already a hot commodity and not something you want to risk losing, can be daunting.
My school received Apple's ConnectED grant and recently went 1:1 with Ipads. Apple sent in support people to make sure our school was physically wired and set up to run 400 devices, but they also sent teacher trainers. We had a wonderful trainer who quickly realized that the level of comfort our teachers felt with technology was as diverse as our student population. She focused her instruction on teaching us the basics-Keynote, Pages, Padlet, GoogleEarth, IMovie, and Explain Everything. Clearly, these are Apps that she has found educators to use and appreciate. As we explored with our new devices and programs, teachers began discussing ways these apps could be used in their classrooms. "I wonder if it could be used for..." "Would this help with..." "How would it work if..."
Great questions. And a great place to begin?
NOLA 2014
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Where You At, Tech?
Why are Software Developers beginning with the App and then asking teachers how to implement them? This seems so backwards. Why are teachers not at the helm of technology?
I may not be a software engineer, but I most certainly can tell one what I would like to happen in my classroom, for my students. Teachers are by nature, dreamers and creators. Free thinkers and problem solvers. If we're going to "Be The Change," we need someone to ask what that change might be and help us with it.
Last year, I participated in Digital Promise's Pilot to Purchase Program at the Ed-Tech Industry Network Summit in San Francisco. This was an open conversation between School Districts, Administration, Teachers, and Ed-Tech companies. Our focus was on how to improve piloting technology in our classrooms. By gathering all of the stakeholders in a space to discuss what is working and what is not was wonderful. We need more conversations like this-up front.
Why aren't Ed-Tech software engineers approaching teachers and
asking them for ideas? Why isn't there a hub of savvy app builders willing to listen to a teacher pitch their idea and make it happen? A couple years ago, May 2014 in fact, I sent a message to a techy friend of mine asking if he could help me face my LCD projector downward 90 degrees and set up my interactive whiteboard on the floor so my squirmy little kiddos could actually get down and dirty. He told me this was not possible. I moved on. Now, I see videos about interactive fitness gyms and wonder why couldn't this have been done in my classroom? Maybe I didn't know the right people.
Organizations like 4.0 Schools appear to be moving in the right direction, offering a space and collaboration around an idea or concept. We need more. We can't wait for policy to catch up with the modern demands of education. I have another idea. As do other educators. Where do we go to bring them into reality? Open collaboration between Educators and IT. It shouldn't be this difficult.
I may not be a software engineer, but I most certainly can tell one what I would like to happen in my classroom, for my students. Teachers are by nature, dreamers and creators. Free thinkers and problem solvers. If we're going to "Be The Change," we need someone to ask what that change might be and help us with it.
Last year, I participated in Digital Promise's Pilot to Purchase Program at the Ed-Tech Industry Network Summit in San Francisco. This was an open conversation between School Districts, Administration, Teachers, and Ed-Tech companies. Our focus was on how to improve piloting technology in our classrooms. By gathering all of the stakeholders in a space to discuss what is working and what is not was wonderful. We need more conversations like this-up front.
asking them for ideas? Why isn't there a hub of savvy app builders willing to listen to a teacher pitch their idea and make it happen? A couple years ago, May 2014 in fact, I sent a message to a techy friend of mine asking if he could help me face my LCD projector downward 90 degrees and set up my interactive whiteboard on the floor so my squirmy little kiddos could actually get down and dirty. He told me this was not possible. I moved on. Now, I see videos about interactive fitness gyms and wonder why couldn't this have been done in my classroom? Maybe I didn't know the right people.
Organizations like 4.0 Schools appear to be moving in the right direction, offering a space and collaboration around an idea or concept. We need more. We can't wait for policy to catch up with the modern demands of education. I have another idea. As do other educators. Where do we go to bring them into reality? Open collaboration between Educators and IT. It shouldn't be this difficult.
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Is Anyone Happy with the State of Education??
Maybe Pearson? Or Bill Gates? Who is benefiting from our current educational system? I can say it's not the teachers and it's certainly not the students.
I'm fed up!
I have children on both ends of the spectrum, SPED and GT. Neither is getting their needs met. My youngest GT child began third grade this year, full of excitement to meet her teacher and see her classmates and learn cool new things. She wore her back pack for the whole week preceding the start of school and had me pack her lunch to eat at the dining room table. She LOVED school.
This is not the smiling face I'm greeted with when I pick her up. The pressure of testing and content and curriculum (that isn't even developmentally appropriate), the lack of play and choice and exploration, compounded with inconsistencies with staffing and stressed out teachers are all making my little eight-year-old's passion for learning disappear.
Sadly, I don't see any of this changing any time soon. Am I to just roll with it, tough it out, and send her off to test or practice for the test or "build stamina" for testing everyday with a knot in both of our stomachs? Everyday--for the next 9 years?? I can't do it. She cries at night. Complete meltdowns.
Her class recently took Unit Assessments in ELAR and Math. She received a 73 and 81 and was overcome by anxiety and the feeling of failure. This is not okay. At what point do we do something? What can we do? I'm a teacher in the same district and don't see any enjoyment---staff, students, no one.
What are we doing to our schools? What are we doing to learning? What are we doing to our future? Who's going to say enough is enough? How do we change this? We're all dying inside--our creativity, our passion, our love for knowledge, all of it. What are we going to do and when?
I'm fed up!
I have children on both ends of the spectrum, SPED and GT. Neither is getting their needs met. My youngest GT child began third grade this year, full of excitement to meet her teacher and see her classmates and learn cool new things. She wore her back pack for the whole week preceding the start of school and had me pack her lunch to eat at the dining room table. She LOVED school.
This is not the smiling face I'm greeted with when I pick her up. The pressure of testing and content and curriculum (that isn't even developmentally appropriate), the lack of play and choice and exploration, compounded with inconsistencies with staffing and stressed out teachers are all making my little eight-year-old's passion for learning disappear.
Sadly, I don't see any of this changing any time soon. Am I to just roll with it, tough it out, and send her off to test or practice for the test or "build stamina" for testing everyday with a knot in both of our stomachs? Everyday--for the next 9 years?? I can't do it. She cries at night. Complete meltdowns.
Her class recently took Unit Assessments in ELAR and Math. She received a 73 and 81 and was overcome by anxiety and the feeling of failure. This is not okay. At what point do we do something? What can we do? I'm a teacher in the same district and don't see any enjoyment---staff, students, no one.
What are we doing to our schools? What are we doing to learning? What are we doing to our future? Who's going to say enough is enough? How do we change this? We're all dying inside--our creativity, our passion, our love for knowledge, all of it. What are we going to do and when?
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
Thank you, Swivl!
I often wonder how I leave school feeling beaten up, run down, and truly exhausted--while my students leave with as much excitement as when they arrived. Do they have a way of sucking the life right out of me and filling their little bodies with all of my energy? I really don't think non-educators, test-creating companies, and politicians have a clue what we do every day in our classrooms.
So, Monday morning I recorded a lesson. Our school just got a Swivl, and I was eager to try it out. Every other week, at 7:45am, a group of fifth grade students who struggle in reading come to me for reading intervention. We use Fountas & Pinnell's Leveled Literacy Intervention kits to help bridge the gap from where they are to where we're heading.
I now know why I'm so warn out and they are not...I'm doing ALL of the work. As teachers, we try to squeeze in so much in such a limited amount of time. We often don't give students enough time to process. Granted, my students are Tier 3 students with limited experiences and reading difficulties, but I definitely can see lots of room for improvement on my part.
With technology literally at our fingertips, teachers everywhere need to seek it out and use it to reflect on their practices. Watching my lesson has proven to be far more valuable than any walk-through or PDAS I've ever received.
How many times do I really need to say "Ummmmm" anyway?
Monday, Monday
So, Monday morning I recorded a lesson. Our school just got a Swivl, and I was eager to try it out. Every other week, at 7:45am, a group of fifth grade students who struggle in reading come to me for reading intervention. We use Fountas & Pinnell's Leveled Literacy Intervention kits to help bridge the gap from where they are to where we're heading.
I now know why I'm so warn out and they are not...I'm doing ALL of the work. As teachers, we try to squeeze in so much in such a limited amount of time. We often don't give students enough time to process. Granted, my students are Tier 3 students with limited experiences and reading difficulties, but I definitely can see lots of room for improvement on my part.
With technology literally at our fingertips, teachers everywhere need to seek it out and use it to reflect on their practices. Watching my lesson has proven to be far more valuable than any walk-through or PDAS I've ever received.
How many times do I really need to say "Ummmmm" anyway?
Monday, Monday
Monday, July 27, 2015
What to do with all of these peaches?
Thank you, Fredericksburg!
Seriously. If you haven't eaten a peach from Fredericksburg, Texas, you are missing out. My husband and I took a last minute trip to Austin this past weekend and visited the Barton Creek Farmers Market before leaving town. Great idea. We were able to find some of our favorites--Buddha's Brew Kombucha on tap, Hello! Grass-fed Texas beef. And Fredericksburg Peaches.
We always do a lot of eating when we're in Austin, so we try to stay active as well. This weekend was a bit hot to climb Mt.Bonnell, but we did kayak on Town Lake. Lots of fun.
It was my first time, so we went to EpicSUP on Lakeshore Drive. They're a bit further away from everyone playing around on the lake downtown. I was able to practice a bit with steering and syncing up with my husband before we hit traffic near the South Congress Bridge. And it made me feel less guilty for that avocado margarita from Curra's.
Anyhow, back to the peaches. We came home with a box of peaches. I have been eating them like they're going out of style, but don't want them to go bad. I sliced some up and paired them with our organic mint to do a second fermentation on a couple bottles of my homemade kombucha. Can't wait for that to be ready. I've also done a peach/jalapeno salsa to go on fish tacos tonight.
And I'm making peach ice cream. Yes it has dairy. And sugar. But I'm going to splurge. Only the best for these peaches.
This is my first time using the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker. Here's my recipe, thanks to Doug all the way from Negril.
1 cup Organic Whole Milk
1/2 cup Organic Cane Sugar
1 Fredericksburg Peach, peeled and pureed
1 Fredericksburg Peach, peeled and chopped, place in fridge until the very end
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 cups Cream (I used Organic Valley's Heavy Whipping Cream)
1. Add the Peach puree to milk and sugar and blend. Then refridgerate to chill.
2. After about 30 minutes, add vanilla and cream to the mixture and pour in Ice Cream Maker.
3. After approximately 25-30 minutes, when the consistency is just what you expect out of fabulous homemade ice cream, add in the chopped peaches.
4. Freeze in Rubbermaid 5 cup dish, and eat within a week. (Yeah right, this will never last a week.)
Now, just because I know you're singing it in your head too...Millions of Peaches
Friday, June 5, 2015
School's Out for Summer!
This is always a bitter-sweet day for me. I will miss my students greatly, especially those moving on to Middle School. I still remember my first group of 5th graders and the tears we shed on the last day of school.
I held it together today. But I will miss them just as much. I can't wait to see the wonderful things they will accomplish! Amazing young ladies.
I held it together today. But I will miss them just as much. I can't wait to see the wonderful things they will accomplish! Amazing young ladies.
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
I have foresaken all my pride...
Growing up in Flint, termed “the toughest city in America” in the New York Times, and born to parents who barely finished high school, my future could have
been drastically different. I was fortunate to have parents, family, and teachers committed to my education, constantly telling me to “Work hard and go to college.”
I was convinced that my future depended on it. Upon graduation, I returned to my roots and once again called Flint home. Bright-eyed and fresh from college, ready to give back to students like me, I accepted a teaching position with the same district I attended. I loved my students and truly felt I was doing what I was meant to do. But as time went on, I became increasingly frustrated.
Many students didn’t have parents like mine, pushing for college, but that was out of my control. So who do these kids have to encourage them? To motivate them? To get them to college?
Teaching isn’t the end for me. I want to be a voice for students, teachers, and school systems. As I continue to evolve as an educator, I have discovered that the greatest gift I can give students and teachers is the high expectations I hold for them. I want to ensure that the teachers in my school bring great pedagogical skill and knowledge of their content to the classroom, but more importantly, dispositions of genuine care, concern and love for their students. I appreciate directly how important schools that are organized around High Expectations and a culture of “No Excuses” are.
I have seen the difference made in educational settings that integrate the family connection. We need to put the community back into schools. The more support centered around the success of our students, the better.
This is my ideology and my passion, and probably one shared by many teachers. But then who is left to look out for us--the teachers surviving on a minimum salary with student loan debt? There is all sorts of talk about incentives to become a teacher and Loan forgiveness. Apparently, that does not apply to my situation. I attended the University of Michigan from 1994 to 1999. Did you know that if you took out a loan BEFORE 1997, you don't qualify for loan forgiveness programs? Not even if ALL of your teaching has been done in Title I, Hard to Staff schools. I have been teaching for 14 years and still have student loans in excess of my yearly salary. I can't help but become frustrated. If I'd have pursued engineering like my high school counselor suggested or business, I may have been able to pay them back already.
It's heartbreaking to know that in order to maintain my Teaching Certificate, I need to continue earning credits. I took out another loan to help pay for my Masters Degree. I returned to Flint to teach--and the housing market crashed. I attempted to sell my home and was offered a short sale, but the mortgage company refused. When I began working in Flint, there were 31 elementary schools. Today there are 12. I was laid-off every year. I moved to Texas to teach.
I had a daughter that needed multiple surgeries as a child. She was born with a chromosome deletion called 22Q. She is amazing! We struggled. My income was too high for her to qualify for SSI and receive financial assistance. Too high? I fall into the too high to qualify and too low to succeed financial category every time. Is there any wonder why there is a teacher shortage? I've been too proud to ask for help or even admit needing it, but paying $490 a month and not having it paid off for another TEN years is horrific.
I am proud to be a Michigan Wolverine and am extremely fortunate to have received the education I did, but I need help paying for it. I have created a crowd-funding campaign and appreciate any and all assistance.
http://www.gofundme.com/rwc5ww
been drastically different. I was fortunate to have parents, family, and teachers committed to my education, constantly telling me to “Work hard and go to college.”
I was convinced that my future depended on it. Upon graduation, I returned to my roots and once again called Flint home. Bright-eyed and fresh from college, ready to give back to students like me, I accepted a teaching position with the same district I attended. I loved my students and truly felt I was doing what I was meant to do. But as time went on, I became increasingly frustrated.
Many students didn’t have parents like mine, pushing for college, but that was out of my control. So who do these kids have to encourage them? To motivate them? To get them to college?
Teaching isn’t the end for me. I want to be a voice for students, teachers, and school systems. As I continue to evolve as an educator, I have discovered that the greatest gift I can give students and teachers is the high expectations I hold for them. I want to ensure that the teachers in my school bring great pedagogical skill and knowledge of their content to the classroom, but more importantly, dispositions of genuine care, concern and love for their students. I appreciate directly how important schools that are organized around High Expectations and a culture of “No Excuses” are.
I have seen the difference made in educational settings that integrate the family connection. We need to put the community back into schools. The more support centered around the success of our students, the better.
This is my ideology and my passion, and probably one shared by many teachers. But then who is left to look out for us--the teachers surviving on a minimum salary with student loan debt? There is all sorts of talk about incentives to become a teacher and Loan forgiveness. Apparently, that does not apply to my situation. I attended the University of Michigan from 1994 to 1999. Did you know that if you took out a loan BEFORE 1997, you don't qualify for loan forgiveness programs? Not even if ALL of your teaching has been done in Title I, Hard to Staff schools. I have been teaching for 14 years and still have student loans in excess of my yearly salary. I can't help but become frustrated. If I'd have pursued engineering like my high school counselor suggested or business, I may have been able to pay them back already.
It's heartbreaking to know that in order to maintain my Teaching Certificate, I need to continue earning credits. I took out another loan to help pay for my Masters Degree. I returned to Flint to teach--and the housing market crashed. I attempted to sell my home and was offered a short sale, but the mortgage company refused. When I began working in Flint, there were 31 elementary schools. Today there are 12. I was laid-off every year. I moved to Texas to teach.
I had a daughter that needed multiple surgeries as a child. She was born with a chromosome deletion called 22Q. She is amazing! We struggled. My income was too high for her to qualify for SSI and receive financial assistance. Too high? I fall into the too high to qualify and too low to succeed financial category every time. Is there any wonder why there is a teacher shortage? I've been too proud to ask for help or even admit needing it, but paying $490 a month and not having it paid off for another TEN years is horrific.
I am proud to be a Michigan Wolverine and am extremely fortunate to have received the education I did, but I need help paying for it. I have created a crowd-funding campaign and appreciate any and all assistance.
http://www.gofundme.com/rwc5ww
Monday, March 30, 2015
Hello Animoto!
As I continue my journey towards Google Educator Certification, I've begun to explore Google Sites. How cool is Sites and why didn't I know about it last year when I bought starraustin.org?
I decided to play around with designing a class site before taking my Google Sites Exam. I passed my first two and don't want to press my luck. I've had way more experience with Gmail and Calender. Before creating my site, I wanted to check out other classroom sites and kept coming across teachers using Animoto. Another program I have never used. Yes, I must be living under a rock. I created a short video showing off my most recent trip to Jamaica, just for fun. It was super easy to use. I mean, it took me a whole 5 minutes, maybe. Easy to upload your pictures-right from facebook or instagram. I just used a ready-to-go template and song.
Just from this brief experience playing around with the program, I can really see how much fun my students could have with this! I'm going to have them create an Animoto video as a culminating project for the book we're currently reading The Mighty Miss Malone, by Christopher Paul Curtis. I'll post a link when they've finished it. The possibilities are endless though. Imagine a math class creating a video on angles, where they have to take pictures of angles and share. Or a unit in science on habitats. I can already see that I will be using more of Animoto.
If you want to check out my Animoto, just click the link below.
Jamaica
*Hey, and you can change the music... Jamaica 2.0
https://animoto.com/play/9fWCjVrSmA2N2Z4ONU9bKw
I decided to play around with designing a class site before taking my Google Sites Exam. I passed my first two and don't want to press my luck. I've had way more experience with Gmail and Calender. Before creating my site, I wanted to check out other classroom sites and kept coming across teachers using Animoto. Another program I have never used. Yes, I must be living under a rock. I created a short video showing off my most recent trip to Jamaica, just for fun. It was super easy to use. I mean, it took me a whole 5 minutes, maybe. Easy to upload your pictures-right from facebook or instagram. I just used a ready-to-go template and song.
Just from this brief experience playing around with the program, I can really see how much fun my students could have with this! I'm going to have them create an Animoto video as a culminating project for the book we're currently reading The Mighty Miss Malone, by Christopher Paul Curtis. I'll post a link when they've finished it. The possibilities are endless though. Imagine a math class creating a video on angles, where they have to take pictures of angles and share. Or a unit in science on habitats. I can already see that I will be using more of Animoto.
If you want to check out my Animoto, just click the link below.
Jamaica
*Hey, and you can change the music... Jamaica 2.0
https://animoto.com/play/9fWCjVrSmA2N2Z4ONU9bKw
Monday, March 23, 2015
Google Educator...In Training
I have decided to pursue the prestigious Google Educator Certification. I began this mission with an ulterior motive...I want to apply for the Apple Distinguished Educator (ADE) program and learn from all of the innovative educators out there. I first found out about the program when my school was selected for Apple's ConnectEd Grant, which will provide every student in my building with an ipad! Talk about exciting. But once that initial adrenaline subsided, I felt a tremendous amount of pressure to make the most of it. My school is being given the tool of technology to help level the playing field for our students, I need to maximize this amazing opportunity. As I began searching for what other 1:1 districts are doing--what's working, programs being implemented, I discovered one thing many of these leading educators had in common. Most of them are ADEs and Google Certified. I had never even heard the term. I guess, I'm probably considered prehistoric for not knowing. I use gmail. I "Google" everything. I'm on twitter. After reading and learning and connecting with some of these ADEs, I am even more determined to become part of this network of innovators in education.
I am still in the beginning phase. I have completed the Gmail and Calendar Exams and am currently going through the Sites Training. It's crazy what all these programs can do that I was completely unaware of! Can't wait to learn more.
I welcome any and all advice! Also, if you are currently a 1:1 school or classroom, what are you using? What's working? I'm especially interested in programs being used to help students struggling in reading and math.
I am still in the beginning phase. I have completed the Gmail and Calendar Exams and am currently going through the Sites Training. It's crazy what all these programs can do that I was completely unaware of! Can't wait to learn more.
I welcome any and all advice! Also, if you are currently a 1:1 school or classroom, what are you using? What's working? I'm especially interested in programs being used to help students struggling in reading and math.
Monday, March 2, 2015
Donors Choose: Building HEROES
Building Heroes
Talented. Inquisitive. Sensitive. Tough. Complex. Eager. Confident. Timid. Challenging.These are my students. They are not your typical kids. They are low performing (according to standardized tests). Yet they love coming to school. It's safe. It's welcoming. I need to meet my students where they are and use what I can to inspire them. My "Building Heroes" project will give them the tools of technology, and trust, to dive into literacy through blogging, reflection, and sharing our lives with one another.
Real World Application...Hello! The GoPro camera system will
allow us to video our real lives, not just our school lives. We will be utilizing all of the higher order
thinking skills to contribute to our blog--from deciding what to use,
evaluating its importance, reflecting on others experiences, asking relevant
questions to better understand one another and learn. The possibilities are
endless.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Refocus and Re-Energize
Results are In
I feel like I'm at a turning point in my career again. Constant change is my only consistency and I need to change this. I am finding this out in my years serving as the Reading Interventionist on a high-need campus.
Working with students performing two or more grade levels below grade level expectations, watching them fail mandated district and state tests, and continuing to motivate them to not give up is often exhausting. Giving everything I have to my students and getting failing test results back crushes me to my core. Hearing my principal tell me to look at the growth column, “All of your students received a 1 or a 2 in growth,” meaning they either met their expected growth or exceeded it by our state’s standard is supposed to make me feel better. I frantically go through the list of 116 fifth grade students and highlight all of my Tier 2 and Tier 3 students, physically and mentally falling lower and lower with every “No” I read.
And just when I feel crushed to the point of tears, I see a “Yes.” A “Yes” next to Dashanae’s name. That “Yes.” Dashanae passed her STAAR test. A part of me despises that test. Another part protests the excessive amount of standardized testing our public schools endure. How can a four-hour test determine your achievement? Your success? Your future?
For my fifth graders of poverty, taking a test may be the last thing they care about on that day. They face so many battles outside of school. I have no idea how they cope.
I mean, I can talk to my parents. I am not on medications one day and off the next. I know that I will eat dinner. I know I will sleep in my bed, in my home.
Dashanae
I have worked with Dashanae for two years. She was in fourth grade reading on second grade level. According to the Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark reading assessments I gave her, she was at a Level L, which correlates to just below a third grade reading level. She struggled with writing conventions, spelling, and grammar. She didn’t like reading. Or teachers. She certainly didn’t trust teachers. She was constantly disrupting the classroom, no big infractions, but silly distractions that annoyed all. She was assigned to my Response to Intervention reading group. Her teachers were relieved to have a break from her for that 45 minutes each day.
I instantly liked her. It’s easy to like students in a small group setting. I find that often, they really just need someone to talk to or a minute, someone to listen to them. I took an interest in her life, in her person, and worked to get her back on the reading track. I’m not sure which happened first, her silliness prevented her from learning, or her struggles increased the silliness. We had our work cut out for us.
As teachers, we read article after article on better teaching practices, classroom management, student engagement. My key is building a relationship with Dashanae, of caring and support. She learned to trust me, the teacher who grew up in a different neighborhood with different circumstances and different experiences. I shared stories with her about growing up. I actively listened to her stories, and problems, and concerns. What I discovered was Dashanae was an amazing young lady, full of creativity and brilliant ideas. She was very artistic and her peers recognized her abilities and humor.
When she read with me, she naturally made connections to her life (a TEK that many students struggle with). She needed to share her thoughts as they came to her head. I watched Dashanae make gains in comprehension and fluency. She began to love discovering new words. She took great pride in her ongoing list of vocabulary acquisitions she measured on an anchor chart in my classroom. Although she was making these gains, and learning to love reading and learning, she was still at third grade level at the end of fourth grade.
Fifth Grade
When fifth grade began, I brought her to my room in September to assess her, and all of those gains we had made seemed to have vanished. She was still just as creative, but her fluency drop greatly impacted her reading comprehension. She hadn’t read a book over the summer. This “Summer Slide,” was devastating to her progress -- and for me.
Two positions to take: Why bother? or Let’s get to work.
We started reading. I pulled out my childhood favorite Boxcar Children. She started out reading the words very choppy, but we began a new vocabulary chart. She related to the characters -- begging me to stay longer to read another chapter. We moved onto another book. She could not put Sideways Stories from Wayside School down. Thank you Louis Sachar! This book accelerated Dashanae’s growth spurt -- from learning to read to reading to learn. The entire reading group began talking about the book so much that other fifth graders were asking me for it. We laughed -- not just chuckled, but belly-laughed with tears -- and couldn’t wait to meet the next character in the book.
I looked forward to working with her group. We began to feel like a real family. They asked if they could come read with me during lunch, we formed “The Lunch Bunch”, eating and reading every Friday. It was one of those books that none of us wanted to end. When we finished, Dashanae proposed writing our own version starring each of us as characters. They had just as much fun writing their chapter as reading Sachar’s. Struggling fifth grade students loving reading and writing. It was amazing. We went on to Shiloh and Camille McPhee Fell Under the Bus. They were unstoppable.
Relationships Above All Else
It made me realize that it wasn’t the reading strategies I taught or the mini-lessons I delivered. It was the relationship I built with Dashanae. Dashanae was often the scapegoat in her classes. It seemed as if even when other students were also talking, her classroom teachers singled her out. They grew tired of writing her up and began sending her to me. She liked coming, so her behavior continued. A female Holden Caulfield at age 10. It’s difficult to find a connection with every student, but that is what an effective teacher must do. Think in terms of Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller. It wasn’t a miracle worker,, it was a dedicated teacher, with the same affliction, giving Keller tools to pull herself out of her blindness.
If classroom teachers would have made the time to really get to know Dashanae, and accept her humor, they could capitalize on it within their classrooms, like our reading group did. We would listen to her crazy connections to her life, which evolved to connections to other books we had read, and eventually to world events and theme. Her thinking helped her entire group grow as readers and thinkers. Isn’t that the ultimate goal?
As teachers begin the new school year, building relationships with students must be their biggest priority. Not just the students that are easy to connect with, every student. There is a Dashanae sitting in every classroom, waiting for a teacher to take a genuine interest in her, to awaken the brilliance within. The classroom is the only constant in many of their lives. Make it genuine, caring, and fun.
New Perspective, New Job
Dashanae’s success motivated me to create a summer program, STARR Austin, to combat the Summer Slide. She’s inspired me to do more. I’d love to help teachers grow to further their growth in students exponentially.
I have envisioned what a school I helped lead would look like for a long time. All of the great teaching strategies and programs and curriculum will get you nowhere without an environment of family, mutual respect, and high expectations. Genuine, positive relationships will help every child succeed, every time. It’s worth the effort and needs to be given priority over all else. Thinking of Dashanae gives me strength when I feel I am getting nowhere. I will remind myself of her when I’m in that final stretch to STAAR. I will continue to stay focused on my students and not tests. I will teach my students, not my subject matter. Students are where educators find their true successes, not scores.
Thursday, December 11, 2014
What am I going to do with this sweet tooth?
So, I originally decided to do a Whole20 for the month of December. But around the 7th I came down with a horrible headache that would not let up. I caved, and took some Excederin and decided to just stay Paleo until January and go for a Whole30 then. After I was rid of the headache, my sweet tooth kicked in. Maybe you've already concluded that my hormones were at work. I began searching paleo treats on Pinterest and found a new book to add to my wish list: Every Last Crumb by Brittany Angel. #EveryLastCrumb The recipes look amazingly delicious. But I didn't have a lot of the ingredients on hand.
I came to a picture of Red Velvet Truffles from Plank, Love, and Guacamole. Surely I could make these--No Bake, Hello! I picked up some beets at the grocery store. I never have them on hand, because I don't like the taste. Every now and then, I'll throw one in the juicer with some carrots and apples. Anyhow, as soon as I got home from work, I peeled it and shredded it. (Have paper towels handy--they are juicy and hot pink.) Mixed up the other ingredients, balled them up, and chilled them in the fridge. Melting the chocolate chips was the most tedious part of this recipe, which is awesome for someone who is new to baking. Once the chips are melted, I dunked each truffle in the chocolate and drizzled the extra chocolate on top. I added sprinkles to a few in hopes I could get my daughters to try them. Success! If you're sweet tooth is acting up and you want to stay paleo, give these a try. Thank you #planksloveandguacamole
Planks, Love, and Guacamole Red Velvet Truffles.
Here's the recipe from Planks, Love, and Guacamole
1/4 cup raw beet, packed, peeled and grated
Directions:
1. Combine all truffle ingredients in food processor.
2. Pulse until smooth batter has formed.
3. Place in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to harden a bit.
4. Roll balls. (makes about 16 balls)
5. Place balls back in fridge to harden for about 30 minutes, or until hard enough to coat with chocolate.
6. Melt chocolate and coconut oil on the stovetop on lowest setting, or use a double boiler set up.
7. Coat each truffle with chocolate. (*Optional- reserve 2 truffles to crumble on top of the truffles) If you have, place chocolates on a fine meshed cooling rack with foil underneath to dry so that the foil catches the dripping chocolate.
8. You will have extra chocolate to drizzle on top once the coated chocolate has dried a little bit.
9. Allow chocolate to cool and store in the fridge or at room temp.
I came to a picture of Red Velvet Truffles from Plank, Love, and Guacamole. Surely I could make these--No Bake, Hello! I picked up some beets at the grocery store. I never have them on hand, because I don't like the taste. Every now and then, I'll throw one in the juicer with some carrots and apples. Anyhow, as soon as I got home from work, I peeled it and shredded it. (Have paper towels handy--they are juicy and hot pink.) Mixed up the other ingredients, balled them up, and chilled them in the fridge. Melting the chocolate chips was the most tedious part of this recipe, which is awesome for someone who is new to baking. Once the chips are melted, I dunked each truffle in the chocolate and drizzled the extra chocolate on top. I added sprinkles to a few in hopes I could get my daughters to try them. Success! If you're sweet tooth is acting up and you want to stay paleo, give these a try. Thank you #planksloveandguacamole
Planks, Love, and Guacamole Red Velvet Truffles.
Here's the recipe from Planks, Love, and Guacamole
Ingredients:
1/4 cup coconut butter
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup almond flour
1/4 cup raw beet, packed, peeled and grated
2 tbsp arrowroot flour
2 tbsp unsweetened cocao or cocoa
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
For the chocolate coating:
1 cup chocolate chips (use enjoy life for dairy/soy free)
2 tsp coconut oilDirections:
1. Combine all truffle ingredients in food processor.
2. Pulse until smooth batter has formed.
3. Place in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to harden a bit.
4. Roll balls. (makes about 16 balls)
5. Place balls back in fridge to harden for about 30 minutes, or until hard enough to coat with chocolate.
6. Melt chocolate and coconut oil on the stovetop on lowest setting, or use a double boiler set up.
7. Coat each truffle with chocolate. (*Optional- reserve 2 truffles to crumble on top of the truffles) If you have, place chocolates on a fine meshed cooling rack with foil underneath to dry so that the foil catches the dripping chocolate.
8. You will have extra chocolate to drizzle on top once the coated chocolate has dried a little bit.
9. Allow chocolate to cool and store in the fridge or at room temp.
Friday, November 14, 2014
New Paleo Lifestyle...Let me back up a bit.
In July, I went to the doctor for a regular physical, blood work, check all my levels. I've been having more frequent headaches and a couple other concerns. Turned out my vitamin B was low and my cholesterol was high. I was baffled. I thought I ate a well-balanced, healthy diet. I juice. I buy organic. I stick to the 5 ingredients or less rule on processed food. I exercise a couple days a week. What is going on? Of course, my husband and I had just visited NOLA and ate some amazing dishes. But overall, I thought I ate well.
I started looking into how to increase Vitamin B and what I need to eat to lower cholesterol (I refuse to take meds for something I can control). And Whole30 keeps popping up. I look at the restrictions--no dairy, no grains, no sugar, no legumes, and no alcohol. For 30 days.
My kids were in Michigan for their summer visit with dad. So, why not? I decided to give it a try. First big adjustment I had to make was to make myself eat breakfast, with protein and vegetables, not just fruit. I never would have thought to eat asparagus or cauliflower with my eggs before this. What a wonderful discovery. I felt very tired and had weird cravings by day 6. I was ready to quit. My husband had been cheating during his lunch. But we kept going for a couple more days. I found recipes on Pinterest and NomNomPaleo became my go-to source. I loved our meals and they way I was feeling. Unfortunately, with Day 9 came a migraine. I caved and took to Excederin and got a coffee from Starbucks. I live in a town with a very limited selection of healthy eating options out and was not cooking dinner. My husband and I had sushi. I am a Whole30 failure. Neither of us were ready to start over at Day 1. But we did agree to stay Paleo/Primal, I'm not yet sure of the difference. We have been successful with this plan and have not suffered at all.
I just had my 3 month blood work done to recheck all of my levels. My B12 was right on and cholesterol was fine. I have been eating eggs everyday and my cholesterol went down, guess I disproved that myth. I do, now, take a Vitamin B12 supplement too. I wake up every morning to a spray from Garden of Life and apparently it has helped. But what's crazy is I'm down TWO clothing sizes and have lost twenty pounds.
We have another trip to New Orleans planned for Thanksgiving. So I may attempt another Whole30 after the Holidays. But for now, I leave you with a couple pictures and recipes of pure paleo deliciousness for breakfast and dessert. YUM!
Quick and Easy Breakfast of turkey bacon(Wellshire Peppered is my favorite, thought not Whole30), scrambled eggs with kale/garlic/onion/tumeric/s&p, sweet potatoes (leftover from dinner), plated with avocado(well limed) and cherry tomatoes. Okay, so easy and delicious, and such a better way to kick off my day than a piece of peanut butter toast and a banana.
Paleo Pecan Pie
For the Crust
2.5 cups of almond flour
1 TBSP of coconut flour
1 egg
A splash of very cold water
3-4 grinds of sea salt
3 TBSP ghee (not melted)
Mix all of the ingredients and roll into a tight ball, pack it as tightly as possible. It took me several attempts. Then roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper until it's the size of a 9-inch pie pan and press it in. If it cracks in spots (mine did), just press together. You're going to cover it up with all things good. Bake for 10 minutes at 325.
The Pie
2 eggs
1 egg white--save the yolk for brushing on the crust
Half a cup of Coconut Palm Sugar
Half a cup of Organic Maple Syrup
3 TBSP Melted Ghee
A Splash of Mexican Vanilla
2 cups of Pecan Halves
Whisk together all of the ingredients and pour into your crust. I saved out some of the pecans to arrange on the top. Bake for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees then cover the crust with foil and bake for 5 more minutes--it may take a little longer to not jiggle.
Try it! It's delicious. I found a recipe for a bacon crusted pecan pie from Predominately Paleo that I'll be trying next!
I started looking into how to increase Vitamin B and what I need to eat to lower cholesterol (I refuse to take meds for something I can control). And Whole30 keeps popping up. I look at the restrictions--no dairy, no grains, no sugar, no legumes, and no alcohol. For 30 days.
My kids were in Michigan for their summer visit with dad. So, why not? I decided to give it a try. First big adjustment I had to make was to make myself eat breakfast, with protein and vegetables, not just fruit. I never would have thought to eat asparagus or cauliflower with my eggs before this. What a wonderful discovery. I felt very tired and had weird cravings by day 6. I was ready to quit. My husband had been cheating during his lunch. But we kept going for a couple more days. I found recipes on Pinterest and NomNomPaleo became my go-to source. I loved our meals and they way I was feeling. Unfortunately, with Day 9 came a migraine. I caved and took to Excederin and got a coffee from Starbucks. I live in a town with a very limited selection of healthy eating options out and was not cooking dinner. My husband and I had sushi. I am a Whole30 failure. Neither of us were ready to start over at Day 1. But we did agree to stay Paleo/Primal, I'm not yet sure of the difference. We have been successful with this plan and have not suffered at all.
I just had my 3 month blood work done to recheck all of my levels. My B12 was right on and cholesterol was fine. I have been eating eggs everyday and my cholesterol went down, guess I disproved that myth. I do, now, take a Vitamin B12 supplement too. I wake up every morning to a spray from Garden of Life and apparently it has helped. But what's crazy is I'm down TWO clothing sizes and have lost twenty pounds.
We have another trip to New Orleans planned for Thanksgiving. So I may attempt another Whole30 after the Holidays. But for now, I leave you with a couple pictures and recipes of pure paleo deliciousness for breakfast and dessert. YUM!
Quick and Easy Breakfast of turkey bacon(Wellshire Peppered is my favorite, thought not Whole30), scrambled eggs with kale/garlic/onion/tumeric/s&p, sweet potatoes (leftover from dinner), plated with avocado(well limed) and cherry tomatoes. Okay, so easy and delicious, and such a better way to kick off my day than a piece of peanut butter toast and a banana.
But here is the killer! My husband's birthday was at the beginning of the month and he asked for a Pecan Pie. Yeah right, say Goodbye to Karo Syrup. But I pulled it off! No Karo Syrup. No Grains. and No Sugar. And it, too, was delicious. Check out the recipe below.
 |
Paleo Pecan Pie
For the Crust
2.5 cups of almond flour
1 TBSP of coconut flour
1 egg
A splash of very cold water
3-4 grinds of sea salt
3 TBSP ghee (not melted)
Mix all of the ingredients and roll into a tight ball, pack it as tightly as possible. It took me several attempts. Then roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper until it's the size of a 9-inch pie pan and press it in. If it cracks in spots (mine did), just press together. You're going to cover it up with all things good. Bake for 10 minutes at 325.
The Pie
2 eggs
1 egg white--save the yolk for brushing on the crust
Half a cup of Coconut Palm Sugar
Half a cup of Organic Maple Syrup
3 TBSP Melted Ghee
A Splash of Mexican Vanilla
2 cups of Pecan Halves
Whisk together all of the ingredients and pour into your crust. I saved out some of the pecans to arrange on the top. Bake for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees then cover the crust with foil and bake for 5 more minutes--it may take a little longer to not jiggle.
Try it! It's delicious. I found a recipe for a bacon crusted pecan pie from Predominately Paleo that I'll be trying next!
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Love Unexpected
I wrote this several years ago, but while cleaning out my Google Drive, uncovered this piece and thought I'd share it.
Love Unexpected
I was 32 years old. I thought I knew what love was. I had two children, two failed relationships, but surely I knew love. I suffered from my first broken heart during my senior year of high school, crushed and alone, but I recovered. It was nearly ten years later when I fell in love again, only the stars were not aligned. The circumstances surrounding us and our love were beyond less than ideal, they were controversial and many would say down-right appalling. I don't know if that heightened the romanticism for me or not, but it was a love I'd never experienced. It was risky and exciting, flirty and sensual, loving yet forbidden. He was 22 years my senior, my married neighbor, and childhood best-friend's father. Our relationship began in secrecy, stealing a cup of coffee together on the porch, bringing over a sample of dessert, a wave or a nod pulling out of the driveway. This progressed to arranged meetings at the lake, lunch dates, and overnight camping trips. He ended up leaving his wife and moving in with me. We were engaged to be married, in spite of the lack of approval. We had a daughter together, a perfect little girl. I was the happiest I'd ever been.
March 19, 2008, he left me. I came home from work and his things were packed and his face was grim. He sat me down and explained that he loved me, but what we were doing just wasn’t right. Heart break senior year had nothing on the hurt and loneliness I felt. I couldn't eat, sleep, work, breathe. I was shaken to the core and devastated. Everyone told me time was what I needed and things would get easier with time. So I waited, and wallowed, and tried to go on. The following year I got a job offer 1500 miles away and jumped at it. Some might say I was running, but I saw an opportunity for a fresh start, in a new place, with no memories of the love I thought I lost. I had no family where I was going, so raising my girls alone was exhausting and my work was demanding, but it kept my mind occupied. Work and my girls became my sole focus. Being a single mother was not what I had envisioned for myself, but it was my reality. I felt like I was finally establishing my own identity. I felt free and empowered. I was doing what I loved (teaching middle-schoolers), in a cool new city (San Antonio), and trying to give my girls great experiences and show them how strong a girl could be. I didn’t need anyone. I had my girls and my career, convincing myself everyday to be satisfied with that. I was successful most days.
March 19, 2010, I had a date with a stranger. Ironic, I know, realizing this is exactly two years after my world came crashing down (A fact I realized at the end of my date, making it even more spectacular). My mom was visiting and gladly volunteered to watch the girls. Nervous, anxious, giddy, hopeful. Trying to maintain no expectations, I drove an hour north to meet the stranger. Let me preface this by saying, though we had never met, we had exchanged facebook communicato, instant messages, emails, and even real old-fashioned conversations via telephone for several weeks. I pulled into the parking lot of a Tex-Mex restaurant at the exact time he also pulled in. As he approached me, my stomach churned with anticipation. We ate, told real stories (not the cheesy, getting-to-know-you-but-not-really-revealing-anything stories), meaningful stories of the experiences that made us who we were sitting there together at that table. The date moved on to a local music festival full of good tunes and people-watching, but all I saw was the stranger who no longer felt like a stranger. I leaned in and stole a kiss just before it was time to leave. It was the best date I've ever had. So many feelings were rushing through my body, excitement, anticipation, and I guess, relief. Before this date, I promised myself that I would be okay. I didn't need a partner. I had my daughters and could love them enough to negate the need to share my life with anyone else. I convinced myself of this. But now, I'm left to wonder if maybe I could have it all. This time, perhaps, the stars were aligned.
The next couple months, we spent every weekend together. He lived 8 hours from me and made the trip every weekend. As the school year came to an end, my belongings were boxed up and began gradually making the return trip with him every weekend. It didn't matter that we hadn't known each other for very long, or that I hadn't even seen the home where I was moving my family, that I had no job lined up, that I was a city girl and the town I was moving to only had a post office, it was happening. This was LOVE! Me, the girl who swore it off, found it, as everyone always says, when I wasn't looking.
We were married that July. It wasn't entirely easy. My adjustment to "BFE" was difficult and is still progressing and digressing, depending on the day. His passage from bachelorhood to husband and father of two is a continuous learning process as well. Oddly enough, all of the changes have felt so natural. I love this man more than I ever thought I could love someone (that didn't come directly from my body). Loving someone selflessly and completely and honestly is the most amazing feeling. I love the way his arms feel around me. I love that I can tell him anything. I love that he cries when I'm upset. I love the way he flares his nostrils before he says something he deems witty. I love how he strives for perfection in raising the girls. Love doesn't seem like a powerful enough word to evoke how I really feel. The word "Love" is thrown around casually and doesn't come close to my adoration for my husband. I know I'm not the only person to feel this way, but I also know how rare it is. I found it and am not letting go. I think that the hurt I felt back in 2008 forced me to find myself, discover who I was, what I wanted, and really made me grow up...which led me to finding love.
Love Unexpected
I was 32 years old. I thought I knew what love was. I had two children, two failed relationships, but surely I knew love. I suffered from my first broken heart during my senior year of high school, crushed and alone, but I recovered. It was nearly ten years later when I fell in love again, only the stars were not aligned. The circumstances surrounding us and our love were beyond less than ideal, they were controversial and many would say down-right appalling. I don't know if that heightened the romanticism for me or not, but it was a love I'd never experienced. It was risky and exciting, flirty and sensual, loving yet forbidden. He was 22 years my senior, my married neighbor, and childhood best-friend's father. Our relationship began in secrecy, stealing a cup of coffee together on the porch, bringing over a sample of dessert, a wave or a nod pulling out of the driveway. This progressed to arranged meetings at the lake, lunch dates, and overnight camping trips. He ended up leaving his wife and moving in with me. We were engaged to be married, in spite of the lack of approval. We had a daughter together, a perfect little girl. I was the happiest I'd ever been.
March 19, 2008, he left me. I came home from work and his things were packed and his face was grim. He sat me down and explained that he loved me, but what we were doing just wasn’t right. Heart break senior year had nothing on the hurt and loneliness I felt. I couldn't eat, sleep, work, breathe. I was shaken to the core and devastated. Everyone told me time was what I needed and things would get easier with time. So I waited, and wallowed, and tried to go on. The following year I got a job offer 1500 miles away and jumped at it. Some might say I was running, but I saw an opportunity for a fresh start, in a new place, with no memories of the love I thought I lost. I had no family where I was going, so raising my girls alone was exhausting and my work was demanding, but it kept my mind occupied. Work and my girls became my sole focus. Being a single mother was not what I had envisioned for myself, but it was my reality. I felt like I was finally establishing my own identity. I felt free and empowered. I was doing what I loved (teaching middle-schoolers), in a cool new city (San Antonio), and trying to give my girls great experiences and show them how strong a girl could be. I didn’t need anyone. I had my girls and my career, convincing myself everyday to be satisfied with that. I was successful most days.
March 19, 2010, I had a date with a stranger. Ironic, I know, realizing this is exactly two years after my world came crashing down (A fact I realized at the end of my date, making it even more spectacular). My mom was visiting and gladly volunteered to watch the girls. Nervous, anxious, giddy, hopeful. Trying to maintain no expectations, I drove an hour north to meet the stranger. Let me preface this by saying, though we had never met, we had exchanged facebook communicato, instant messages, emails, and even real old-fashioned conversations via telephone for several weeks. I pulled into the parking lot of a Tex-Mex restaurant at the exact time he also pulled in. As he approached me, my stomach churned with anticipation. We ate, told real stories (not the cheesy, getting-to-know-you-but-not-really-revealing-anything stories), meaningful stories of the experiences that made us who we were sitting there together at that table. The date moved on to a local music festival full of good tunes and people-watching, but all I saw was the stranger who no longer felt like a stranger. I leaned in and stole a kiss just before it was time to leave. It was the best date I've ever had. So many feelings were rushing through my body, excitement, anticipation, and I guess, relief. Before this date, I promised myself that I would be okay. I didn't need a partner. I had my daughters and could love them enough to negate the need to share my life with anyone else. I convinced myself of this. But now, I'm left to wonder if maybe I could have it all. This time, perhaps, the stars were aligned.
The next couple months, we spent every weekend together. He lived 8 hours from me and made the trip every weekend. As the school year came to an end, my belongings were boxed up and began gradually making the return trip with him every weekend. It didn't matter that we hadn't known each other for very long, or that I hadn't even seen the home where I was moving my family, that I had no job lined up, that I was a city girl and the town I was moving to only had a post office, it was happening. This was LOVE! Me, the girl who swore it off, found it, as everyone always says, when I wasn't looking.
We were married that July. It wasn't entirely easy. My adjustment to "BFE" was difficult and is still progressing and digressing, depending on the day. His passage from bachelorhood to husband and father of two is a continuous learning process as well. Oddly enough, all of the changes have felt so natural. I love this man more than I ever thought I could love someone (that didn't come directly from my body). Loving someone selflessly and completely and honestly is the most amazing feeling. I love the way his arms feel around me. I love that I can tell him anything. I love that he cries when I'm upset. I love the way he flares his nostrils before he says something he deems witty. I love how he strives for perfection in raising the girls. Love doesn't seem like a powerful enough word to evoke how I really feel. The word "Love" is thrown around casually and doesn't come close to my adoration for my husband. I know I'm not the only person to feel this way, but I also know how rare it is. I found it and am not letting go. I think that the hurt I felt back in 2008 forced me to find myself, discover who I was, what I wanted, and really made me grow up...which led me to finding love.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Using the Juicer...What took me so long???
Okay, I have had a small citrus juicer for quite sometime and never used it. My mom gave me hers and I decided it was time. Not sure what took me so long.
Bought 6 large oranges, cut em all in half and gave it a whirl today.
I've never been a big oj drinker, but let me tell ya, I will be drinking a lot of it from now on.
Once I had a pitcher of the most beautiful and fragrant orange juice I'd ever seen, I was left with a container full of pulp. The juice was so freakin' good, it seemed a shame to waste.
I decided to give Orange Poppy Seed Muffins a try. So glad I did.
2 cups flour
3 tablespoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon of Salt
1 Cup sugar
1 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 cup orange pulp
handful of poppy seeds
Mix together dry ingredients, Make a well.
Beat egg, and add milk and veg. oil.
Pour wet ingredients in the well and add Pulp. Mix together with a fork.
The dough will be lumpy. Pour into lined or well-sprayed muffin pan. Bake for about 20-25 minutes at 350.
Pin It
We like ours sweet, so we whisked together some of the orange juice with powder sugar, creating a glaze, and poured it over the muffins. YUM.
Bought 6 large oranges, cut em all in half and gave it a whirl today.
I've never been a big oj drinker, but let me tell ya, I will be drinking a lot of it from now on.
Once I had a pitcher of the most beautiful and fragrant orange juice I'd ever seen, I was left with a container full of pulp. The juice was so freakin' good, it seemed a shame to waste.
I decided to give Orange Poppy Seed Muffins a try. So glad I did.
2 cups flour
3 tablespoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon of Salt
1 Cup sugar
1 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 cup orange pulp
handful of poppy seeds
Mix together dry ingredients, Make a well.
Beat egg, and add milk and veg. oil.
Pour wet ingredients in the well and add Pulp. Mix together with a fork.
The dough will be lumpy. Pour into lined or well-sprayed muffin pan. Bake for about 20-25 minutes at 350.
We like ours sweet, so we whisked together some of the orange juice with powder sugar, creating a glaze, and poured it over the muffins. YUM.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Another soup, I know...cold weather must be approaching!
A friend of mine sent me a recipe for Tortilla soup and I couldn't wait to try it. Of course, I had to doctor it up a bit. This is what I came up with...
Half a Purple Onion, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
Seasonings to taste(salt, pepper, oregano, chili powder, cavenders greek blend, basil, parsley, cumin, red pepper flakes)
Garlic, minced
Jalepeno, chopped very small
1 zucchini, sliced
1 yellow squash, sliced
Bunch of Cilantro, loosely chopped, stems removed
1 Large can of Rotel
1 Can of Chicken Broth
2 cups of water with 2 chicken boullion cubes and 1 Knorr Veggie cube
Rotisserie Chicken
Mexican Rice
Tortilla strips
Avocado
Monterey Jack cheese, Shredded
Lime
**In large soup pan, saute carrots, onion, and celery in about 3 Tbs of Olive Oil until softened. Add spices. Add jalapeno and garlic. Cook for about 5 more minutes or until garlic becomes translucent and fragrant. Add squash, zucchini, and cilantro. Stir well and cook for a couple more minutes to blend the flavors.
**Stir in Rotel. Then add the Chicken broth and water. Stir well. Bring to boil, then simmer until squash and zucchini are fully cooked.
**While you are waiting for soup to heat up, cook Mexican Rice and shred the Rotisserie Chicken Breasts.
**When the soup is ready, throw in the chicken and rice and cook for another 10 minutes or so.
**Garnish with tortilla strips or chips, avocado, and your cheese of choice. We used Monterey Jack. Squeeze a bit of lime juice over top and serve.
Pin It
I found a great companion to this soup to be a cold bottle of Negra Modelo.
Half a Purple Onion, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
Seasonings to taste(salt, pepper, oregano, chili powder, cavenders greek blend, basil, parsley, cumin, red pepper flakes)
Garlic, minced
Jalepeno, chopped very small
1 zucchini, sliced
1 yellow squash, sliced
Bunch of Cilantro, loosely chopped, stems removed
1 Large can of Rotel
1 Can of Chicken Broth
2 cups of water with 2 chicken boullion cubes and 1 Knorr Veggie cube
Rotisserie Chicken
Mexican Rice
Tortilla strips
Avocado
Monterey Jack cheese, Shredded
Lime
**In large soup pan, saute carrots, onion, and celery in about 3 Tbs of Olive Oil until softened. Add spices. Add jalapeno and garlic. Cook for about 5 more minutes or until garlic becomes translucent and fragrant. Add squash, zucchini, and cilantro. Stir well and cook for a couple more minutes to blend the flavors.
**Stir in Rotel. Then add the Chicken broth and water. Stir well. Bring to boil, then simmer until squash and zucchini are fully cooked.
**While you are waiting for soup to heat up, cook Mexican Rice and shred the Rotisserie Chicken Breasts.
**When the soup is ready, throw in the chicken and rice and cook for another 10 minutes or so.
**Garnish with tortilla strips or chips, avocado, and your cheese of choice. We used Monterey Jack. Squeeze a bit of lime juice over top and serve.
Pin It
I found a great companion to this soup to be a cold bottle of Negra Modelo.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Bok Choy Soup **WARNING** SPICY!!! But ohhh, so good!
I bought some Bok Choy at the grocery store the other day. It always looks so appealing, I decided to give it a try. Not really knowing what to do with it, I looked at several recipes on the internet. I decided to combine a few ideas and ultimately created this soup. I used the rest of the leftover Thanksgiving turkey, what a relief that was! Allrecipes seriously needs to add this one!
Ingredients:
4 cups Chicken Broth
1/3 cup Soy Sauce
1/4 cup Sugar
3Tbs Ginger
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tbs Sesame Oil
2 Tbs Sriracha Sauce
White part of 4 scallions, chopped
**WHISK All of these ingredients together in a mixing bowl**
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs Ginger
3 Tbs Red Pepper Flakes
Salt + Pepper
Bok Choy, cut up into sticks, roughly 3 inches
Carrots, cut up into matching sticks
**In soup pan, heat 3 Tbs peanut oil, add the above ingredients and cook for roughly 5 minutes, until smells begin to awaken your senses.
*Pour broth mixture into soup pan, stir well. Cover and bring to a boil. Add in left over Turkey if you have it (That's what I did). But any meat would work--cooked chicken, pork, shrimp... Then simmer for about 20 minutes.
**Bring another pot of water to a boil. Add Rice Noodles and remove from heat.
To serve, add a ladle of noodles and cover with soup. You could garnish with lime, cilantro, or chopped peanuts.
This would be an incredibly easy soup to make vegetarian. Use veggie broth, omit turkey, add tofu or not. But YUMMMMM!!!
Pin It
Ingredients:
4 cups Chicken Broth
1/3 cup Soy Sauce
1/4 cup Sugar
3Tbs Ginger
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tbs Sesame Oil
2 Tbs Sriracha Sauce
White part of 4 scallions, chopped
**WHISK All of these ingredients together in a mixing bowl**
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs Ginger
3 Tbs Red Pepper Flakes
Salt + Pepper
Bok Choy, cut up into sticks, roughly 3 inches
Carrots, cut up into matching sticks
**In soup pan, heat 3 Tbs peanut oil, add the above ingredients and cook for roughly 5 minutes, until smells begin to awaken your senses.
*Pour broth mixture into soup pan, stir well. Cover and bring to a boil. Add in left over Turkey if you have it (That's what I did). But any meat would work--cooked chicken, pork, shrimp... Then simmer for about 20 minutes.
**Bring another pot of water to a boil. Add Rice Noodles and remove from heat.
This would be an incredibly easy soup to make vegetarian. Use veggie broth, omit turkey, add tofu or not. But YUMMMMM!!!
Pin It
Saturday, August 20, 2011
They say the darndest things
Yesterday, we were getting ready to head off to Dallas to spend the day at the Childrens' Museum before picking up Mackenzie, and Sadie comes in wearing sunglasses. I sang to her that her "future's so bright," laughing, she asked me what a Future is.
My husband and I gave examples, tomorrow, the next day, when she goes to college, Christmas, when she gets older (She has a birthday coming up)...
She immediately begain crying and proclaimed, "I don't want to get old!"
We consoled her, but she refused to wear her sunglasses all day.
So I may not be Rachel freakin' Ray, but...
I think I'm getting close! I used to follow recipes step by step and never attempted to cook without one. This past year, as a stay at home mom in the middle of BFE, Texas, I have had more than enough time to play with my cooking skills. Last week I made a Kicked-Up version of Rice Krispie Treats trying to put a bit of added-health-value into the little chewy delights...and they turned out fabulously.
Thought I should share!
Kellogg's Rice Krispies Gluten Free Cereal--5 Cups
1 package of Marshmallows
3 Tablespoons of SmartBalance butter
1/2 Cup Pumpkin Seeds
1/2 Cup Sunflower Seeds
1/2 Cup Dried Cranberries
1/4 Cup Flax
I then just followed the normal recipe.
1. Melt butter in saucepan on low, add marshmallows and stir until they melt.
2. Add all of the other ingredients and mix well.
3. Coat 13x9 pan with cooking spray and press Krispie Mix into pan with Wax paper.
4. Let cool, then cut into treats.
And let me just say YUMMO! These little treats, packed with added goodness, were devoured even by my picky little eater.
Thought I should share!
Kellogg's Rice Krispies Gluten Free Cereal--5 Cups
1 package of Marshmallows
3 Tablespoons of SmartBalance butter
1/2 Cup Pumpkin Seeds
1/2 Cup Sunflower Seeds
1/2 Cup Dried Cranberries
1/4 Cup Flax
I then just followed the normal recipe.
1. Melt butter in saucepan on low, add marshmallows and stir until they melt.
2. Add all of the other ingredients and mix well.
3. Coat 13x9 pan with cooking spray and press Krispie Mix into pan with Wax paper.
4. Let cool, then cut into treats.
And let me just say YUMMO! These little treats, packed with added goodness, were devoured even by my picky little eater.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)