Flying By Fast Summer: Friday Favorites!

Hello there!  Summer is the season that passes the quickest, and with good reason - there is so much to accomplish.  I'm linking up with Andrea from Momfessionals and Erika from A Little Bit of Everything to highlight this week's Friday Favorites!

                           Friday Favorites!

Sand Castles

At Revere Beach (the first public beach in America), there is an annual sand sculpture competition.  We went on last week after the crowds were gone:

Mapping Boston!

Here's a flashback to a summer course I took: Mapping Boston In the American Revolution course.  (Click here to get teaching materials you can use in your own classroom!)  My lesson centered around mapping the Boston Tea Party - the route from the Old South Meeting House to Griffin's Wharf:

This is an enlarged section of the Bonner Map of Boston (click here to see the whole map).  The Old South Meeting House is at the corner of Cornhill and Milk Streets.  Griffin's Wharf got cut out in this picture.  The lesson plan would involve mapping the route the Sons of Liberty took.

If you want to see the location of the Old State House, it's on the upper end of King Street.

As a follow-up activity, I'd love to recreate colonial Boston.  Here's the display from the Old South Meeting House:

Click here to see a Boston Tea Party diorama on TPT.

Books About Boston

When we were at Old South Meeting House, I visited the gift shop to get book ideas:

My favorite book was the Freedom Trail Pop-Up Book, but I just checked on Amazon, and it costs $29.99.  Maybe I'll save that purchase for when/if I get a gift card. 

Animal Atlas

I read about this great book in another blog, and I had to buy it for myself:

The Animal Planet Animal Atlas is amazing and colorful.  It's full of fascinating facts and close-up pictures of so many animals.  I picked the pictures of the moose and the puffin because I want to see those animals in real life - maybe some day!  Click here to check it out on Amazon!

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

Last, but not least, I went bought some items at Nordstrom's Anniversary Sale:

This cap isn't part of the sale, but it's so cute I bought it for my daughter.  But, if she doesn't want it, I am happy to have it!

I got this black Wit and Wisdom pants for the cooler weather.

Lastly, I bought this cozy cardigan.  Years ago, I bought a "grandpa" sweater from Nordstrom.  I wear it all the time because it's so cozy so I'm hoping this sweater is equally comfortable.

Did you buy anything fun lately?  

As always, thank you for visiting today!  Remember to check out the other great blogs at:

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Just July Friday Favorites: Montreal; What I'm Reading;

Hello there!  Happy July and welcome to another Friday Favorites link-up hosted by Andrea from Momfessionals and Erika from A Little Bit of Everything.

                                     FRIDAY FAVORITES!

Traveling

In August, we are planning a trip to Montreal!  I have been twice, but very briefly and a long time ago.  We can drive there, and it takes a little under 5 hours!  If you have been and have any must-do places to see, please let me know.

Puzzling!

Now that I'm retired, I have plenty of time to do fun activities!  Consequently, I pay for a games subscription to the New York Times for $50 a year.  The games are a fun daily diversion and keep my mind thinking. I'm amazingly loving the Connections Game in which you need to find groups of four :

This is today's (7/20/25) puzzle.  I end up spending a good chunk of time because I look up the words that might have multiple meaning.  I got the above puzzle with 3 mistakes.

Reading

What's not to enjoy about the summer?  Our weather has been in the 70's and low 80's!  There is usually a breeze.  I get to go in my pool and do my water aerobics.  Plus, I get to read a lot!  I just finished these books:

I often opt to get my Amazon orders delivered the following week in order to get digital awards like a free e-book.  The above book is a perfect summer read, too!  Here's part of the summary from Amazon:

After thirteen peaceful years in suburbia, Trixie finds herself on the run with her teenage daughter. Between dodging aging mobsters and bumbling assassins, she has to come clean about her identity with the people who matter most.

In this book, three women who live in 3 different time periods, struggle with similar situations.  This book was a Good Morning America Book Club selection.  If you're looking for new book recommendations, head to their site and pick out your next book!

Need a new bathing suit top?

I just picked a new bathing suit top on Amazon.  I just realized that all my old ones are stretched out.  Check it out:

A few things I love about this:

1.   It covers my chest.

2.  The geometric and colorful pattern.

3.  Tummy control.

Sweet Dog Book!

I am hoping that author Ewa Erdman who visited our school in June, can sell lots of copies of her book:

The author adopted a three legged pitbull who became a therapy dog for amputees and other rehab patients.  In addition, Ewa donates all proceeds to animal shelters!

Here is a picture of Ewa and me when she visited our school:

As always, I appreciate that you visited my blog today!  Please let me know if you have any book recommendations or ideas for what to do in Montreal.  

Check out the link up to read more great blogs here:

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Happy Summer Days and Happy Fourth of July!

Hello there!  Today I am once again linking up with Andrea from Momfessionals and Erika from A Little Bit of Everything for:

                                                              Friday Favorites!

Heart Shaped Hoya Plant

Years ago at Valentine's Day, I bought a cute little plant in the shape of a heart (officially called a Hoya Kerri).  Now this cute plant has several heart shaped leaves, and it flowers:

Every time this plant flowers, I feel so lucky to see these special and unique flowers!

Cooking:

Now that summer has arrived, I have been cooking on my grill ~ A LOT!  I love to make chicken and steak.   I especially love the petite sirloin (when it's on sale) sprinkled with Montreal steak seasoning.

In addition, I have a Cuisinart steam powered grill cleaner.  I love the sizzling sound!  More importantly, I love knowing that my grill is cleaned!

Falling and Getting Hurt = Resilience and Taking It Easy

In the past few weeks, I have had two falls.  

One was in my house where I tripped going into the kitchen.  I landed hard on my knee which ballooned up.  At Urgent Care, the doctor explained that nothing appeared broken on the x-ray but to get to the orthopedic as soon as possible.  Luckily, I went to the next day, and the PA drained the fluid from my knee.  The fluid contained blood so he said I needed an MRI.  At age 64, I got my first MRI which showed that I had a bone bruise.  I never even knew a bone could get bruised!

Six days after the first tumble, my dog pulled me down the stairs due to seeing a rabbit.  I landed on the brick walk flat on my back.  I headed back to Urgent Care that morning.  The doctor returned with news from the x-ray:  "So you have a compression fracture, but it's not that big a deal.  People have these all the time and don't even know it."    The orthopedic approved an MRI for my back.  Amazingly, I had two MRIs at the same time.  I do have a compression fraction and some bulging disks.  

Needless to say, I have been resting and icing frequently.  I can still walk, and I am grateful every day that I can move.  On Monday, June 30th, I start Physical Therapy.  It will be exactly two weeks since my fall down the stairs.

I got a BIG reminder after my tumbles:  Life can change in an instant.  I need to slow down and focus rather than letting my mind wander to the point that I misstep and/or become unaware of what's in front of me (like the rabbit).    

On the plus side, I still managed to give blood.  I figured that I am injured, but I am not sick.  The people who need my blood desperately need it to get healthy.  Plus, I have O negative blood, and the Red Cross never lets me forget how much they need my blood.

American Library Association 2025 Reading List:

Today I am sharing a link to check out summer reading books for Summer Reading Lists for preschool to grade 8 from the American Library Association.  I'm always on the lookout for new and exciting picture and chapter books!

Scaredy Squirrel books are always amazing!

In the meantime, have a happy 4th of July!  

Remember to check out other great blogs at the Friday Favorites Link-Up:

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Friday Favorites in June: Cecilia; Father's Day; Massachusetts; Line Leader Letters!

Happy Fabulous Friday!  Today I am linking up with Andrea from Momfessionals and Erika from A Little Bit of Everything for:

 Cecilia
Every Monday and Friday, my husband and I take care of our almost 11 month old granddaughter, Cecilia:

She is the happiest and most pleasant baby I have ever known.  She wakes up from her nap with a smile on her face.  
Father's Day Boston Harbor Cruise
Several years ago on Father's Day, my family and I went on a sunset cruise of Boston Harbor.  Here are 2 highlights:

Here's a picture of Boston Light - the oldest lighthouse in North America.  It is also a lighthouse that is still manned.  Back in colonial days, the purpose of this lighthouse was to warm of the presence of enemy ships. 

Continuing on, here's a picture of the famous USS Constitution.  In the background to the left of the ship, you can see the Bunker Hill Monument.  Every evening at sunset, the crew of the USS Constitution holds a ceremony to retire the flag in which they play Taps and set off a cannon.  The sound of the cannon is really loud, and many other harbor cruise ships stay in the area to witness this nightly ritual.

Massachusetts History I always loved teaching about Massachusetts history.  Any time I go to another state, my heart does sing when I'm on my way home and see the "Massachusetts Welcomes You" sign.  Plus, in 3rd grade, we studied about Massachusetts all year so I'm always happy to add to my knowledge base.  
Now it's the 250th anniversary of the start  of the Revolutionary War, knowing history is even more relevant!

This picture shows the recent 250th anniversary of the first battles in Concord, MA!
Line Leader Letters/Acrostic Poems

Here is an idea to keep in your back pocket for next school year!  

Every week, there is a Line Leader for the class.  Besides, always being first in line, this person gets to lead the class in the Pledge of Allegiance and choose a song to sing in the morning.  Every Friday afternoon, the students and I write a Line Leader letter (for the first half of the year) or an acrostic poem (for the 2nd part of the year).  Then I staple all the pages together and share the pictures with the rest of the class on the rug.  The prior Line Leader and I read our letters/poems out loud, and then the Line Leader receives their book. 

Here's a sample of the acrostic I wrote to one of the students:

This Friday afternoon tradition was VERY important to me because it is a community and confidence building experience.

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there!  Make sure to visit this link up to check out other great blogs!

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Friday Favorites in the Beginning of June!

Happy First Day of June!  Today I'm linking up with Andrea from Momfessionals  as well as  Erika from A Little Bit of Everything  for Friday Favorites!  I have to remind myself every day that it is actually:

Planning

Next weekend I'm hoping to open up my above-ground pool and install the air conditioners.  Even though it is officially June according to the calendar, it was only in the low 60's yesterday so it's hard to believe that it's spring and that summer will ever arrive.

That super tall tree is my favorite tree in the world!

What I'm Reading

Now that I am retired, I am getting to read A LOT MORE!  Here are some books I would recommend:

Good Dirt

I already loved the book, Black Cake, by Charmaine Wilkerson, and I loved this book just as much.  In Good Dirt, ten year old Ebby Freeman grapples with witnessing the murder of her brother in their family home.  This violent act dramatically defines Ebby's life.  When she has the opportunity to house sit a cottage in the French countryside, she grabs it!  Unfortunately, her ex-fiance who stood Ebby up on their wedding day,  shows up to rent the guest house.  

If you're looking for a new book, this is definitely a book to check out!

 A Book Of Longings:

First, I love all of Sue Monk Kidd's books.  Second, the setting of this book is during Biblical times. (One of my all time favorite books is The Red Tent by Anita Diamant.).  Third, the premise of the book is that Jesus gets married to Ana ~ this book is Ana's story.  Ana is a woman who knows how to read and write which was very unusual at that time.  I highly recommend this book; it's a book that I love so much that I don't want it to end!

Check Out My You Tube Channe

I never expected to be a You Tuber.  Many of my students claimed to want this job as a career because of fame and fortune.  I'm not expecting any of that; I was just hoping to maybe help another teacher with virtual learning/teaching.  However, I continued recording the books I read to the kids during snack so there are plenty of videos to check out!

Remember to check out some other blogs here:

Thank you for stopping by the blog today!  Have a fun weekend!

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Happy Mother's Day and Happy May!

Happy May!  I'm excited to link up with Andrea from Momfessionals and Erika from A Little Bit of Everything for:

Student Drawn Portraits

My student, Blessings, drew this picture of me, and the resemblance is pretty close.  Of course, I do appreciate the long, thick eyelashes Blessings gave me!

Even after retiring last June (how is it almost a year!?), I still have all these student drawn portraits ~ they are very special!

Playing Corn Hole:

Yesterday I was browsing around in T.J. Maxx when a pink box caught my eye.  I pulled it out from underneath a display, and it turned out to be a Corn Hole game with a donut theme!

For $40, I got a one of a kind game!  If you go online at T.J. Maxx, you can get a similar version with an American flag theme right here!  We were outside in the cool, damp weather playing

Spring?:

I remember to check the weather every day lately ~ just in the event that the sun might peek out.  Here in Massachusetts, it's been a very changeable spring with 

Plus, I'm trying to not wear winter clothes which is challenging due to the low temperatures and rainy weather.

Reading: 

I have been reading online books on the OverDrive app.

Right now I'm reading Hopeful Hearts at the Cornish Cove.  

What I'm especially loving about this book is that the main character, Meredith, is 50 years old!  She decides to jump start her life by buying a lighthouse on the coast.  How cool is that!  If you're looking for an endearing book to read, check out this book! 

A while ago, I read a really fun book, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, by Gail Honeyman:

 Eleanor is completely honest and sees everything in black and white terms until circumstances, beyond her control, force her out of her comfort zone.  She is forced to assimilate into "normal" society and experience "normal" social situations which cause her to blurt out her own viewpoints ~ which are so true and funny!  If you're looking for a book that you'll remember for years to come, check out this one!

Well, thank you so much for checking in today!  Please let me know what another good book would be!  

Happy Mother's Day and Happy Spring ~ hopefully the weather is more cooperative where you live!

Also, remember to check out more great blogs at:

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