"Pocket Change Adds Up"

My school made the front page of the Macomb Daily today for our "Million Penny Drive"!

Our students are raising 1,000,000 pennies to give to a local charity, The Giving Tree.

And, if you look closely, I made the picture too!

Here's the full article

Week-long Movie...

I have been trying to watch the movie "The Princess Bride" for over a week now. Every time I start it, I either fall asleep or get distracted.

The thing is, is that this isn't unusual! LOL I am notorious for falling asleep during movies (even in the theater)! And, as I write this blog, I have started the movie, yet again, in hopes of making some progress.

I will give myself a goal of 25 minutes to stay awake and focused. I have a feeling this is going to take two weeks!

(And, yes... this IS what I am doing on a Friday night!!) =)

Oysters...

I ate oysters yesterday!! Wowie wow!!

They were delicious!

In the words of my favorite Disney character, "Slimy; yet satisfying"!

Coldplay 2008!!

I was lucky enough to see Coldplay at the Palace on Monday. It was my first time seeing this band and they lived up to every expectation!!

Not only did they play my favorite song (The Scientist), but they played it acoustic in the middle of the arena surrounded by the crowd. This was one of the best concerts I've been to!

For my fellow Coldplay listeners, the set list was:

Life In Technicolor
Violet Hill
Clocks
In My Place
Speed Of Sound
Cemeteries Of London
Chinese Sleep Chant
42
Fix You
Strawberry Swing
God Put A Smile Upon Your Face (techno version)
Talk (techno remix)
The Hardest Part
Postcards From Far Away (piano instrumental)
Viva La Vida
Lost!
The Scientist (acoustic)
Death Will Never Conquer (acoustic - Will singing)
Viva La Vida (remix interlude)

Encore:
Politik
Lovers In Japan
Death And All His Friends

Encore 2:
Yellow
The Escapist (outro)

Turtle Wax!

After a very long week of work, grading papers, volleyball, report cards and conferences, I was able to enjoy a day off on Friday!!! Yay-hoo!!! Mandy was also not working, so we enjoyed a little bit of pampering together: manicures, pedicures, and a wax... by a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle!!

"World's Best Kept Auto Secret"

During a road trip to see Jimmy Buffett in Wisconsin this summer, I learned a little secret about cars that nearly everyone else I was with knew about, except for me. They were flabbergasted that I didn't know! I'm usually full of useless knowlege, but this one escaped me.

Today, I received the following as a forward in my inbox: (about 12 years too late, if you ask me). So, now I am merely giving you the information in case you didn't know either. And, hopefully, if you're in a car for a 10 hour road trip and the topic comes up, you won't be caught as the only one NOT knowing like me!

"I have been driving for many years now... I would think I should have noticed the little secret on my dashboard that was staring me in the face the whole time...I didn't...and I bet you didn't either...
Have you ever rented or borrowed a car and when arriving at the gas station wondered...hmmmm, which side is the gas filler cap?

If you look at your gas gauge, you will see a small icon of a gas pump. The handle of the gas pump will extend out on either the left or right side of the gas pump. It's easy...

= If your tank is on the left, the handle will be on the left!

= If your tank is on the right, the handle will be on the right. It is that simple!

Don't feel dumb, just go out and share the world's best kept auto secret with your friends."

Introducing: Belle!!!

Meet Belle! She joined our family in May of this year. She was bought as a gift for someone, but they didn't want her. Crazy! So, of course, Roo and I thought she'd be a perfect addition.

At first, she was extremely shy. It was hard for her to let anyone get close to her to pet her or even talk to her. All she wanted to do was chase and jump on Roo.

She is now 7 months old and much more personable. She still is a little skiddish at times, but she's coming around. She has a personality all her own. She loves to snuggle close, she's mischevious and spastic, and loves to explore. You can't help but love her cute little face!

Full Name: Taloola Bellerina

aka: Belle, Belle-belle-belle, Belly, Sneaks

Birthday: March 23, 2008

Breed: Miniature Yorkshire Terrier

Birthplace: Big Rapids, MI

Current residence: St. Clair Shores

Favorite Color: whichever color Roo is playing with

Hobbies: dancing, cuddling up with Roo and mom, eating 3 Dog Bakery treats, sneaking out of the backyard, going for long walks, playing with her sister, dressing up, chasing and barking at cats (Ariel, Bailey, and Lola), visiting Kaylee and Jennifer, playing with her friends Jager, Tank and Henna.

Dislikes: Car rides, loud noises, shopping and meat

Story of bravery: After eating some beef from a shish-kebob when she was only 8-weeks-old, (I won't tell, or yell at, who gave it to her!!), Belle had to spend a WHOLE night in the animal emergency hospital. She was near death and close to joining Jesus! :( After the vets got her back to her normal self, she came home, spry and ready to face the world! She's SO brave!

Meet Sadie Roo!!

This is Roo. She's the best dog in the world. You can argue with me but you will lose. :) She's obedient, loving, a great cuddler, a vegetable eater and she looks good in everything she wears!

Full Name: Sadie Roo

Nicknames: Roo, Sadie, Roo bear, Ruby (what her best friend Greg calls her)

Birthday: July 31, 2006

Breed: Miniature Yorkshire Terrier

Birthplace: Rochester, MI

Current residence: St. Clair Shores

Favorite Color: yellow (don't ask me how that happened!)

Hobbies: Playing fetch!, giving kisses, eating snacks from 3 Dog Bakery, shopping, riding on my shoulders in the car, long walks on the beach, sidewalk, or at Partridge Creek, looking for Uncle Jeffrey in the morning, spending days at Merritt Academy with the kids, watching me teach math (that's her favorite subject), playing with her best friends Belle, Jager, Charlie, Henna and Tank.

Favorite Store: 3 Dog Bakery

Most Daring Feat: This summer, she went swimming AND tubing on Burt Lake with Uncle Dave.

Funniest Story/dumbest move: At our cabin in the U.P, Roo hopped a fence and chased an entire herd of 100+ cows while inside their fenced area. Surprisingly, they ALL ran away from her. Perhaps they were the dumb ones!

Kaylee's First Trip to the "Creek"

Kaylee marked a BIG day in her lifetime on Saturday!!! It was her first time at the MALL!

Jennifer, Kaylee, Roo and I headed to Partridge Creek for some fun shopping in the beautiful autumn weather. It was a perfect shopping day: Starbuck's, sun and a few sales; the best being at Old Navy where all the summer kids clothing was marked wayyyyyyyyyyy down. We were buying outfits for as low as $1!!!

We met a HUGE GREAT DANE outside of Roo's favorite store: 3 Dog Bakery. He was honestly the LARGEST dog we both had ever seen in our lives!!! His back was easily 4ft. tall!!! I wish I could have snapped a picture of Roo meeting him! The size difference was hilarious!

Although I missed the pic of the GINORMOUS dog, I did make Jen and Kaylee pose for one to mark the moment. (Isn't Jen the cutest mom EVER!!) Kaylee was perfect - she slept the whole time, which made it very convenient for Jen and I to peruse the shops. She also was an integral part of this trip by providing drink holding spots. I LOVE traveling with a stroller!! (fitting it into my small trunk is another story) I'm already looking forward to when she'll actually enjoy shopping rather than sleeping through it!

I'll be your WINGMAN anytime!

We celebrated TWO birthdays this weekend: Jennifer on Friday and Brandon on Saturday. We had an event filled weekend of celebrating.... singstar, shopping, dinner and laser-tag. Oh, and, of course... even more singstar!

The fam plus our close friends got together to celebrate the birthdays Saturday night for dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise (they have the BEST sweet potato chips, by the way) and an AWESOME game of Laser Tag! I haven't played Laser Tag in probably 10 years and I certainly don't want to wait that long to do it again!!!

Our group battled eachother in 3 separate games with strategy and skill. Surprisingly, the best players weren't the hunters who get lots of practice, but the 'gamers' and young ones. Jennifer's brother Jeffrey came out on top in TWO of the games, outscoring everyone in the group!!

The girls made camo shirts especially for the occasion - we brought along all your favorite TOP GUN fighters: Maverick (me), Goose (Stephanie), Iceman (Jen, the b-day girl), Merlin (Kristy), and Viper (Sarah). We topped off our shirts with a little under-eye paint and we were ready to battle. I wish I could say that our TOP GUN team blasted our opponents, but I CAN say that we didn't take last place. (ahem, boys!!!) It was the perfect way to celebrate Jen's day - with family and FUN!

Jen, you are an incredible mother, niece and friend (one of my bestest)!!! I am so happy that God placed you in Christopher's life and mine. You fit perfectly into the 'Ketelhut' family and bring with you an awesome personality and outlook on life! I love you like a sister and look forward to all of our memories ahead! (I'll be your wingman anytime!) LOVE YOU!!! XOX =)

Home Sweet OWN!

Well, I don't OWN my house quite yet; the bank still makes me pay them for it, but I DO officially own my appliances!! YAY-hooo!!! Stainless steel appliances... you're ALL MINE!

It's a small victory, but any victory in this case is a good one! (and, one less check to write each month) =)

Lawn Decoration!!!

I finally got my favorite decoration of the season!

All the way from California!

Jennifer and Barry flew in from California and I got to spend some time with them over lunch at BD's. They have been married for over 5 years and it seems like it was just yesterday I was standing next to Jennifer as her MOH. Time flies!

Jennifer, I'm so glad that you found Barry! Now, if you could just come back to visit a little more often, that would be fantastic!!! xox

Superhero!!!

The art teacher at my school drew me as a superhero... (notice the token heels and pink)

ha! I love it!!

Now, I just need a superhero name...

Awwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, one of my little guys in class saved his own money and insisted on buying these flowers for ME! How sweet!!!! I give his mom a HUGE 'Way to go!' (She was quite impressed, too!)

Aren't they gorgeous!?!

Concerts!!!!!

Oasis

Two of my favorite bands are coming in concert soon (and I really want to see them live)!!!

Now I've just got to get the tickets! =)

Coldplay

Ways to keep warm, part 1

Apparently, Belle thought this spot inside Jeffrey's coat was a perfect warming place!

She's such a cuddler!

Win and WIN!!

Monday was a great sports day for me as a coach AND a player!

My JH girls took home another win vs. one of our biggest rivals with great serving and movement on the court. I wish you could have seen their excitement!!

I am SO proud of how much they improve EVERY game!

After my girls' win on the vball court, I headed out to my last kickball game of the season. The Shaggers played a great game, beating an undefeated team 8-2! Way to go, Shaggers!!! (I'm still working on a picture... stay tuned!)

I'm sad to see the kickball season end but I still have another month of volleyball to look forward to! YAY!!!

Congratulations, Scott & Amanda!!!

My nephew Scott married his beautiful girlfriend, Amanda in Saginaw this past weekend. They had a gorgeous, fall reception and the Ketelhut family, in our usual fashion, closed the hall after a long night of dancing, singing, and this time... dressing in New Year's gear (that we found somewhere lingering in the reception hall).


I absolutely LOVE family weddings!

Chelsey and I

Rachel, Nane, Jennifer, Chelsey and I

Jeffrey and his Grandma

The girls

Mandy and I (holding 4 caramel apples!!)

Why wouldn't Rachel and I be making silly faces?!

Jennifer, Rachel and Eric

Jennifer, Mandy and I

Shawn and Chelsey

Moments like these

It's little moments like these that I am reminded of how important my job is. It makes all the hours and stress worth it and certainly can't be compared to any dollar amount.

In case you can't read it, it says...

"Dear Miss Ketelhut,

Thank you for being the most wonderful teacher ever. You always knew how to make someone laugh. Even on your bad days you could cheer someone up. Sometimes I wish I could have still been in 5th grade just to be in your class. I never understood why we can't have the same teacher twice, but that's how it works. If there was a way you could be my teacher forever, I would make it happen.

Now that your my coach, I'm even more excited to go to volleyball everyday. So Thanks for making that happen and for always being there!"

WOWie!!! That's one amazing letter! Not to mention there are few spelling errors (and she even started a new paragraph!!! yay-hooo!!! =) (okay, I'm done gloating!)

CMU Homecoming 2008

It's been quite a few years since I visited Central and this seemed like the perfect year to return for Homecoming. I couldn't believe how much the campus has changed, yet still looked the same!!!

We reminisced as we visited some of our old favorites: The Sigma Chi, DZ, and Sigma Pi houses, The Malt Shop, The SBX, Fazoli's (LOVE the free bread stix), BW's, O'Kelley's, The Wayside, Main St., The STORE, Calkins Hall, May St. Apts, The Cabin, and more!

It was great meeting new people and catching up with old friends. We spent some time with Scott's daughter, Stephanie and her friend. They reminded me alot of Mandy and I when we first met!!!

Needless to say, any day at Central is a fun one! Especially when accompanied by great friends!

Fire Up CHIPS!!

((ps... gotta' represent your political party everywhere you go!!!))

Weekend with my bestest...

Every time I get to spend some time with my bestest friend, it's a TREAT! Love you, mando!! xox

Time for the heat...

Goodbye, warm, summer weather. Hello, blankets and furnaces! I can't wait to *cuddle* up in blankets on the cold days!

I guess it's time to turn on the heat!

"Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist"

Following dinner and birthday cake for Nane's birthday, Rachel, Matthew, Jeffrey, Nane and I went to MJR to see "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist". We were contemplating a few different movies and rested on Nick and Norah mostly because it fit into our time frame. We should have made a different choice!!!

The acting was mediocre, the storyline was predictable and there were WAY too many moral issues for me to handle. There were a few memorable lines and was sort-of a cute 'teenage love story', but overall, I would have much rather seen something else. But, I did get to hang out with my family, so there are certainly no complaints about that! LOVE YOU!

Happy birthday, Nane!! (and, Nicole) =)

Turkey Stew?

Okay, so let me first apologize for the picture you are about to see...

Every 3rd week at work, I only get a 20 minute lunch because I have to cover recess duty. During those weeks, I make something on Sunday night that I can heat up and eat quickly before I go out for recess.

Since the weather's been getting colder, I thought it was time to bring out the slow cooker and make something warm. I don't eat red meat, so pot roast and beef stew is out of the question and since I've been on a turkey kick, I figured ground turkey would be a great replacement for beef.

All I can say is that I'm thankful I'm brave enough to get past the 'presentation' of the stew because it looks absolutely AWFUL!!!! The taste, however, is excellent and I feel that if I close my eyes, I can get by with eating this for lunch this week.

My recommendation is to stick with the beef. (ew) LOL (I am laughing still that I am posting this)

Go Chelsey!

Chelsey's parents, Rachel and I watched Chelsey and the Lancers *smoke* Marysville in 2 quick games tonight!! 25 - 18 and 25 - 14!!









*My niece did an awesome job setting, passing and serving. She was consistent with every set and her serves DOMINATED for 8 straight points in game 2! Way to go, Chelsey! I can't wait to watch you play VARSITY!



There's volleyball in the Ketelhut blood!!

Sweet or a sign?!

Several of my students came equipped with belated birthday presents for me this morning. Here's a sneak peek of all the 'food' they brought...


I'm not sure what to think of this!!!

Almost Mrs. Woehler!!!

Cheers to Julie, who in a matter of hours will be the new Mrs. Woehler! I'm SUPER excited for her!!! I met her when she first started dating Kevin 6 years ago... (...making pizza at Dolly's when Sean first opened his store)



And, here we are just a few days ago celebrating at her bachelorette party...