Sunday, September 11, 2011

Sunday, September 11th, 2011

Later this afternoon, my favorite team in the world, the Washington Redskins, will kick off another season. :) I'm bummed that I won't be able to see the game in person (recovery from a procedure will keep me home-bound), but the rest of my family will be there to cheer in person.




It is a little odd that the football game happens to be on the same day as the 10th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. I am glad that the NFL is arranging various memorial activities to honor the victims and their families. I know it will be a hard day for many people who lost loved ones, but I hope they know they have the country's love, support and prayers.

It is so weird to think that an entire decade has gone by--I can remember that day very well. I was in high school (in the Northern Virginia area) and we heard about the first planes hitting the World Trade Center towers when I was in my Champ class, which was basically like homeroom, and at first, many of us thought it was some sort of horrible accident until the TV anchors started talking about terrorists.
 
Soon after, we switched classes and I went to my drama class, and after the plane hit the Pentagon, the teachers turned on the TVs, and a lot of people were really upset. I had three friends in that class whose parents worked at the Pentagon, and they were obviously quite worried and upset. For a little bit, the news reporters on the TV talked about there possibly being another plane circling Dulles Airport, and the teachers made us all get away from the windows in case something else happened, since Dulles is very close to where we were. This turned out to not be true, but it was definitely a scary day for many Americans.

It was a very sad day and certainly one that I won't ever forget. I'm proud of our country for being able to come together to remember the victims, applaud the courage and resilience of the survivors, recognize the heroic efforts of the rescue workers, and honor the bravery of the men and women in our military who have fought to keep our country safe - it makes me very proud to be an American! :)

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Take me out to the ball game! :)

On Sunday, I went with my sisters and cousins to the Nationals Ballpark in Washington D.C. for a fun afternoon of baseball! 

Molly, Me, Matthew! And two presidents, haha!

We usually go to at least one game every summer but hadn't gone to any games yet this year. When my sisters heard that we could get kids tickets for $1 for Sunday's game, we decided to go and take my two younger cousins.

Entering the stadium!

It was extremely HOT out that day, but thankfully our seats were in the shade--whew!

Great view from our seats!

We had fun watching our team score a few runs but unfortunately, it wasn't enough to win, but we still had a great time.... At one point, my cousin Matthew (almost 13 yrs old) said after someone struck out to end the inning, leaving the bases loaded,  "You know, I just don't understand why that guy didn't hit a grand slam!" Haha! You and me both! 

It was a fairly big crowd for Labor Day weekend--must have been those $1 tickets! ;) :)

Molly and I--fun day with family!
The President mascots race every game and Teddy Roosevelt has never won! Sad! He was in the lead for a bit and I thought we might get to be a part of history if he did win, but no luck! :(

All in all, it was a great way to spend our Labor Day Sunday! :)

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Yay--it's the weekend!!!! :)

Well, this has been quite a crazy week between returning back to work, dealing with a surgical procedure (a definite non-favorite is stitches--yuck!), setting up my classroom, preparing for our Open House, and somewhere in there finding time to plan for the first week of school! 

My classroom came together very nicely with the help of family (thanks to my mom for helping me set up things in the classroom, sort through books, hang up posters, etc. and to my sisters for helping me create posters, make supply runs, etc.!) 

I will post pictures of it soon but it will probably be after the weekend...I took a few pictures before I left today but I didn't realize that I had left my memory card at home, so it took the pictures on my actual camera's memory (I think?) and I don't know where my camera cord is! Hmm, must add that to my to-do list for the weekend...

I'm so glad that it's the weekend now! I definitely feel worn out from this week but I also feel like I'm a good spot as far as being prepared for the first day. I have a few little things I want to get done before Tuesday, but otherwise, I'm planning on having a fun and relaxing weekend!

On Saturday, I will probably go on a shopping expedition with my sisters and then I'm going to my friend's birthday party that night. She is having it as a Christmas-themed party since she loves Christmas, which is perfect since it is my favorite holiday too! I can't wait to listen to Christmas music--I hope the Glee Christmas soundtrack is played! :) 

My Sunday and/or Monday will most likely be spent doing this: 

Reading the second book in this fabulous series! I will write more about The Hunger Games later for sure! :)


 Or this:

Painting my nails this ADORABLE pink: Strawberry Margarita by OPI! :)

Or this: 
Watching one of my high-quality, educational films such as the motion picture masterpiece 13 Going on 30! Love it!


I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend! :)