Grand Hotel

My Grandparent's 60th Anniversary was this year and there is no better occasion to celebrate than that, so we went to the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island for the night. So we packed up our stuff into our Vera Bradley bags and headed out!

The first thing we do once we get to Mackinac Island, and I mean every single time, is rent old-fashioned bikes and ride around the island. It's a really nice 8 mile ride, with a nice little stop to see Arch Rock. After that we eat lunch. We actually broke our tradition this year and ate at somewhere other than The Yankee Rebel.

Then we went up to the hotel and checked in. Peter got his and Brian's room key first, so we all decided to go up and check it out. We walked up the stairs and were confused when we couldn't find the room number. We casually asked the maid where "150" was and she pointed towards the President Suite. Okayyy... well the room key works. Ummm pretty sure this isn't our room. It was huge! There was a whole sitting area with a private porch and a bar and all we knew is that there must have been some mistake. So we quick took some pictures and got our fill of the gorgeous suite, and headed back down to the lobby.

Turns out, it was our room. But it was meant for Grandma and Grandpa. Now my standards are set when Jake and I get to our 60th...

After exploring the grounds, swimming in the pool, enjoying daquiris, tennis, bocce ball, and watching the sad ending to the World Cup, we got ready to go down to dinner. We met in the President's Suite for pre dinner cocktails and pictures.

Dinner was very nice and very tasty. Complete with Steven posing for pictures with everybody that we could purchase at the end of the night. Here he is with Grandpa - I don't really know what he's doing, maybe chopping off Grandpa's head?

Here are Jake and I opting for a normal picture...

and here are all the grandchildren with Grandma and Grandpa.

After that, we changed out of our nice clothes, and went out to the bar. We went to the Pink Pony where my Grandma Haverkate actually worked at a long time ago.

We ordered a Beer tower.

Allison, Laura, and I wanted to get something for Jake for being such a good photographer and for putting up with all our craziness, so we decided to give him a picture of the three of us!! (and we even let him be in the picture this time) Thanks Jake!

It really was a great trip to Mackinac and I'm glad so many of us could make it. We now have stayed at the Grand Hotel for the 50th and 60th anniversaries, and I can't wait for the 70th!!

...so began my love affair with water...

Summer is coming to an end - good thing I have cousins who take too many pictures so that I actually have something to look back on. And post to my blog. I started out my summer by asking Laura, Allison, and Caroline to be my bridesmaids and they said yes!! I gave them picture frames. It is very exciting and we have made several wedding plans already. Jake and I are very excited about the progress and looking forward to our special day! Our wedding site is www.mywedding.com/andreajake; feel free to check it out!!



Here is Jake and I on the dock one night at the Lodge in front of a gorgeous sunset.



Sevens was the card game of the summer. Originally, it had a different name, but we managed to change that very quickly. Here we are playing it on the deck in the sunshine.

Here we are playing it in the Barn at night. We were slightly obsessed.

At night, we often play Rock Band (but definitely not Eye of the Tiger anymore). Here's our all girl band consisting of Alli and Laura on Guitar/Bass, Margeaux on Drums, and Andrea on Lead Vocals. I'm sure we rocked.

The Lodge is the perfect place for dogs as well. Here are Duke (the chocolate lab), Britta (the brittany), and Splash (the little black puppy) playing very well together and, hopefully, wearing each other out.

But, of course, the Lodge usually revolves around water. The highlights of the summer being waterskiing, jetskiing, superj etting, swimming, kayaking, boat rides, and just laying out in the sun. We also tried windsurfing for the first time this summer, but I don't have a picture here. It was hard, but a lot of fun.

Here we are going down the Indian River.

We probably jumped off the back of the boat about 20 times before we got a good picture.

My next post will be about our Grand Hotel/Mackinac Island trip.

WE'RE ENGAGED!!!!

On Wednesday, June 2nd, Jake and I drove up to Fort Collins to go apartment shopping. Jake got a job up there so that is our most probable future home at this point. We found two really cute places to live and found Fort Collins to be a beautiful town, but we were still tired of driving around looking and looking. So we drove over to Horsetooth Mountain to go hiking. We had our sandwiches that we brought from home for lunch at the picnic tables at the trail head, then headed off. I stuffed a map in my pocket, but our plan was just to walk and see where we ended up. We got to Horsetooth Falls first, but once we passed that, there were no more hikers in sight. I found a squirt gun on the side of the trail and proceeded to carry it the rest of the hike, squirting Jake every so often. (just to cool him down, of course!) It looked like the trail went in a loop, so we decided to keep hiking instead of turning around even though it sprinkled on us, the trail kept going up, down, and deeper into the woods, and we were hot and running out of water. But when we got to the top the view was beautiful and you could see the entire city of Fort Collins!!! We were admiring the view of our future home and laughing about how much we (well, mostly me) complained about the hike up and then I decided to start heading back down. I didn't know at the time, but I guess Jake had other plans because he managed to stop me before I got too far. He started talking and asking me if I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him and I don't remember all he said after he started to get down on his knee. I was so surprised, even though we had talked about it a lot beforehand. After I said "yes," I just sort of floated down the mountain, I was so happy.

This a picture from the website, unfortunately I didn't have a camera or a charged cell phone with me.

After we got a bite to eat in Fort Collins, we drove to Estes Park where Jake had a reserved a cute, little cabin for us to stay the night. Again, this is from their website since no camera for me. It was right on the Big Thompson River, so you could hear the sound of rushing water as you sat in your cabin. There were flowers for me waiting on the kitchen table and Jake brought a bottle of wine that we shared in our private hot tub!

The next day, we called a bunch of people to share the exciting news with and headed home. This picture was taken off the deck in Larkspur with the flowers Jake ordered for me at the cabin.

This is my ring. Isn't it pretty?!!

I graduated!!

I finally graduated from the University of Northern Colorado on May 8th. It was a beautiful day to be sitting for several hours outside listening to more than a thousand names being called out and several speakers. But now I have a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education and a pending Teacher Licensure with the state. (And hopefully a teaching job coming up.)

Jake also graduated with his Business Finance degree. Here we are in the Gym getting ready to line up to go out to the football field.

Caroline and Matt got a puppy, so that means I have a new little nephew!! His name is Splash and he is really cute. He even came up to see me graduate and help move out of my Greeley apartment.

Here are my two little nephews: Tanner and Splash. They have a lot of fun playing together.

On Mother's Day, we went down to the lake for a picnic and to see the progress on the building. We brought Champ down there as well, so there was a lot of dog playing. As we were leaving, the Johnsons' called us to say that their cow just a had a baby. Here is the calf only about an hour old.

Happy Birthday to Me

It was my 23rd birthday on April 1st, 2010. Wow, I'm really getting old. To celebrate, I played an April Fool's Joke on my 4th graders... They had been taking CSAPs all week and so, during their break between tests that day, I decided to just let them relax and give them a fun, little word search puzzle. The first one done would be given a piece of candy. It took them a little while, but a couple of them started to figure out that the words listed weren't actually in the puzzle. (And, instead, the words APRIL FOOLS was hidden in the middle.) It was fun, for my cooperating teacher and I at least.

Also, since I was banned by state law not to be in the classroom while students are taking the CSAP tests, I got to help out in the Kindergarten class. Kindergarten can get pretty rowdy, as five year olds can probably sit still for a whole 5.3 seconds at a time. It was a good time though. Here's a conversation I had with one of them:

Kindergartner: Are you in college?

Me: I am

Kindergartner: How long until I'm in college?

Me: Hmm. About 12 years.

Kindergartner: (shouts) 12 years!!??!

Me: (smiles and thinks to herself): It'll go by faster than you think...

When I got home from school that day, Jake had made me a lovely dinner for my birthday. It was a great ending to a very nice day.

On Friday, Jake and I went home to Larkspur for the Easter weekend. We met Mom and Dad, Caroline and Matt, Tarah, and Steven for dinner at Champs. Steven couldn't pass up dessert, so this is what he got...

On Saturday morning, we all went down to the lake to hang out. We went hiking, it was super windy at the top, had a tailgate with the sandwiches Mom had got from the Larkspur Mall, and all watched as Dad waded into the still half-frozen lake to measure the depth of where the dock is going to be.

Then we went back to watch Michigan State play in the Final Four!! We were all decked out in our green, including Champy, ate green m & m's and "State" funfetti cake, and drank green beer. Unfortunately, even after all that, they ended up losing.

After the game, we celebrated my birthday with a cake Mom had bought me from Baskin-Robbins! It was very delicious; I had never had a cake from there before.

On Sunday, it was Easter! We had a delicious brunch before we went to church. Then, we went up to the Indoor Skydiving place. None of us were any good. It is such an awkward experience. I think I'd rather do it out of an airplane... Here are Jake and I all suited up in our skydiving outfit prior to the helmet and goggles.

Here's me "flying".

Recap

Okay, so I really need to be better about posting on my blog. I have a LOT to recap. First of all, back on Friday, March 12th, I went down to go to the Air Force Hockey play off game against Army. Air Force easily won, it was a good game. They went on to win again against Army on Saturday, but then ended up losing to Sacred Heart. So, now their out of the playoffs. Oh well. They had a better season then AF basketball anyways...

On Saturday, after meeting up with Jake's family for his grandpa's birthday dinner at Lonestar, Jake and I went over to Caroline and Matt's house for a "Minute to Win it" party. It was fun and very entertaining to watch everyone get really into their silly game. Here is Jake attempting to put together a Cap'n Crunch cereal box puzzle in one minute. He failed.

Here I am playing the "Candy Elevator" game. I had to pull a pencil balancing 3 m & m's on it by string over both of my ears. I was successful with one m & m, but that one m & m sure tasted good by the time I got it all the way up to my mouth...

Because it was my Spring Break, my parents rented a place up in Vail for a few days. On Monday, Mom, Dad, Caroline, and I just hung out and walked around town. That night, Cindy, Matt, and Tim arrived and we all went skiing Tuesday morning. It was a beautiful day, a little icy in the morning, but we had a good time.

The three of them left Tuesday night, but the rest of us skiied on Wednesday as well. We quit early in order to be rested up to go ski biking that evening!! It was an adventure... we made our way down, rode the gondola back up, and on our second trip down, we went through the trees. Oh man. But we almost missed the whole thing all because we dutifully signed the waiver forms, got our mini skis attached to our boots, and went and sat down outside just like the guy told us too. Apparently, they forgot about us. After a while, we went over to check it out and found out we missed the whole safety demonstration! The guy pulled out some extra bikes, dusted them off, and quickly told us how to ride it. We never did get the safety lecture.

Here's Mom, Caroline, and I on Wednesday.

Here's me about to go down Lindsey's run!! They renamed the International to Lindsey's because Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn trains at Vail.

Here's me ski biking. I rode it about as slow as it looks in the picture.

Here's Caroline.

Here are my parents. Mom takes the record for best (and most) wipeouts.

We survived! Here we are at the bottom of the hill at the end of our 2nd run down. My hands were stiff from having the handlebar in a death grip. My legs were sore from using my feet too much. And I was sweating buckets from the intensity of it all. I might be convinced to try it again, but only on a powder day. And I could probably skip the tree run.

On Friday, Michigan State played New Mexico State in the first round of the tournament. Michigan State was up the whole game, but almost blew it at the end. But they managed to pull it out. On Sunday, Michigan State played Maryland in the 2nd round and it was another super intense, amazing finish with a shot to win it at the buzzer. Geez do they always have to make it nerveracking? Michigan State plays Northern Iowa in the Sweet Sixteen on Friday. I was cheering hard for Northern Iowa against Kansas, but no more. Go Spartys!!

On Friday, we had a blizzard all day. But then it was nice and sunny on Saturday for Mom and I to go shopping. The purpose was to get a professional looking outfit for my Teacher Employment Fair the next week. I got a very nice suit. And lots of nice clothes for everyday teaching. Thanks Mom! Then, on Tuesday night, we got another blizzard. It even cancelled school on Wednesday. It was a nice break, it allowed me to prepare a little more for the Job Fair today. It was beautiful, sunny day. It's just like Colorado to snow one day and shine the next. I got one interview at the Job Fair - hopefully it comes through. It looks like a good one and it would be very nice to be relieved of the pressure of finding a job after I graduate. We will see.

Happy March

On Friday night, Jake and I went down to Larkspur for the part of the weekend. Jake joined the guys at the lake for the Ice Fishing Derby on Saturday, while the girls, Mom, Caroline, Tarah, and I, went out to breakfast and got pedicures. It was a very nice morning and our toes are all very happy. Jake had to work, so we went right back up to Greeley. At least I got some homework and lots of grading done.

On Sunday, I slept til noon. I am very lazy. Jake and I were going to go to the rec center to shoot some hoops or learn how to play raquetball to make up for my laziness, but some youth tournament going on had all the gyms reserved for the day. So that plan failed. We went to the grocery store instead and got some food for the week. Then we came home and read our book. We're reading Pursuit of Honor by Vince Flynn out loud together... aren't we cute? It's really intense though - very good.

Today, at school, was my first evaluated lesson by my UNC supervisor. He observed my math lesson - we are learning about percents, fractions, and decimals. I had set up a "store" with various items on sale that the kids had to "buy" and figure out how much the items cost after the discount. It went pretty well and I passed!

February Update

On February 22nd, Jake and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary. He had a homemade surf-and-turf dinner waiting for me when I got home from school. Steak and Lobster tails! It was very tasty! I know the setting isn't picture perfect but, hey, we're college students. It was a fabulous night.



We had also celebrated the anniversary of our very first date, on February 2nd, by reliving the experience. We went back to Margie's Java Joint and then to dinner at El Charro's. (Neither of us had been to either since that first date.)

Can you tell that the number 2 must be my lucky number? ;-)

My Valentine's Day flowers!!

Lotta Catchin' Up To Do

Buzz Buzz Ding Ding. The alarm on my cell phone goes off at 6:30 AM. I wearily roll over to check the time as I select the 'Snooze' option that appears on the screen. Thankfully I intentionally set the alarm a few minutes early for this purpose. The alarm goes off once again. This time, I dutifully shut it off, pull back the covers, and climb out of bed. Another day begins.

I sputter off down the road at about 7:25 AM in the direction of Timnath, CO. School starts at 9:00 sharp, but I need to arrive an hour early to make any last minute preparations for the day. During this time, I might be planning with my cooperating teacher, using the copy machine, reviewing the lesson plans for the day, entering grades into the computer, or a number of other random things.

DING, DING, DING. The bell signals the time when the students will begin filing into the school building. The students get settled into their morning routine of turning in their homework, studying spelling, listening to the school news, saying the Pledge and Attendance. Some days they go to Specials first thing in the morning, if not, we get right to work.

Math: We just finished the Area and Perimeter Unit and will be getting into Symmetry and Reflections.

Science/Social Studies: We finished the Human Body Unit and are starting the Geography of Colorado and Colorado History. My Capstone Unit for UNC will cover the Prehistoric People of Colorado. I'm excited about my lessons for this. The students will become archaelogists and builders. They will be note takers and show their mastery by being teachers to their classmates.

Then we have 45 minutes for Recess/Lunch.

IE: This is when students from my class and the other 4th grade class are split up into smaller groups and rotate between 4 different teachers to learn writing skills. My class focused on Narrative writing and now are getting into constructed responses for CSAP preparation.

Reading: Each week, we read a different story in the student's reading textbook. We focus on different reading skills or strategies. Just this last week we finished a story called Shadow of the Bull. In order to teach Comparative and Superlative Adjectives, I had the students create a pamphlet persuading an audience to be for or against bullfighting. (The story revolved around bullfighting in Spain.)

We have Recess again for 20 minutes.

Writing: Lately, we've been working on paragraph writing. There's a really cool way to organize an Expository paragraph. It's called the Traffic Light. First, you start off with a green strip of paper for your Topic Sentence. Then, you have a yellow main idea sentence with pink supporting details. Then you need another main idea with supporting details. You finish your paragraph with another green for a Conclusion sentence. The kids either use paper strips, or highlight their writing.

Then, as quick as it started, it's the end of the day. And we usually didn't get to everything we wanted to. But that's okay. We usually overplan anyway. Downtime with a room full of 4th graders is NOT a good thing. Some days I get home at 4:45. Other days I don't get home until 6. It all depends on what needs to be done or, on Wednesdays, I stay after school for Homework Club.

It's funny that no matter how well a lesson goes, there is always something you could have done better or taught more effectively. Or, sometimes lessons look amazing on paper, but just aren't that good of lessons in reality.

Here is proof of my job status:


Official Job Title: Student Teacher in Mrs. Dreckman's 4th Grade class at Timnath Elementary.

Today was our Valentine's Day party at school. I got Valentines!!

I can't wait until I have my own classroom! I know I'm not quite ready for it though. Timnath is a great school to be a part of and I have a great class and cooperating teacher to learn everything I can from. By the way, I welcome suggestions on what school districts I should apply to...

Of course, I keep busy with activities outside of school too. Last weekend was the Super Bowl and even though the Colts lost [:( ] and I didn't win anything in the pool, I had a great time with my family. Before that, on Saturday, my mom took the girls to see the musical Legally Blonde at the Buell. It was a cute show and had some great music. After the play, we had some snacks at Cindy's and then drove down to the Air Force Academy for the DU vs Air Force hockey game. Unfortunately, DU won 2-1 in a really close overtime finish.

Jake and I have been going to a few of the UNC basketball games because they are so awesome this year. They're record is 19-5, so we're hoping for a NCAA tournament appearance!!

Jake and I also took a skiing weekend and went up to Breckenridge. It was really fun, but super windy and cold. I think we hit more lodges for hot chocolate than we did runs. Oh well.

"...a bottle of wine and two dixie cups..."