Ocoee River Trip

This past weekend Matt and I traveled to Georgia and Tennessee to white water raft. Friends of ours invited us to go along with them and 15 others. 

I was hesitant about driving 6 hours there after work, rafting, and making it back in time Sunday to do what I needed to for school. On top of that, I've managed to pick up some germs from my kiddos and have been fighting a cold. The last thing I felt up to doing was spending time on the road and staying up late with a full house.  

Photo taken by someone in our group.

Needless to say - the views alone made me forget any school work, and ignore my runny nose. 

We stayed in a gorgeous 3 level cabin. 

We had a thrilling experience rafting with our guide Benji. 

We met a lot of great new people. 

Photo taken by someone in our group.

We can't wait to go back!

exhausted, tired, drained,

zzzZZzzZZZzzzzZZZZZzzzz

St. Louis

This past weekend Matt and I were able to spend some quality time with Mom and Dad Z. in St. Louis. We needed an alternative to shipping all of the resources and supplies that were donated to my classroom. A meet up to enjoy some time together and to also transfer the school things to me killed two birds with one stone.

Here is a top 10 list from St. Louis:

10. Long car rides and random gas station purchases.

9.  A great night's sleep on a COMFORTABLE bed with a balcony door open. Perfect.

8. Saturday night jazz band at the hotel.

7. Mom and Dad survived getting lost in East St. Louis at 11:00 PM.

6. People watching during breakfast at the Boathouse.

5. Romantic late dinner by the fountain with Matt - despite the disappointing food.      

4. Dessert and cheese plate at Bailey's Chocolate Bar.

3. Baby elephants at the zoo. Soooooo cute!

2. Feeling 'ritzy' staying at the Ritz Carlton! (Thanks Dad P.)

1. Hugs from Mom and Dad!

iphone photo upload

Sometimes pictures are better than paragraphs. Here are a bunch I haven't shown you yet. The photos below span from yesterday to about a month ago. Enjoy! 

My attempts to begin making my classroom more homey- A rug from Tuesday mornings. 

A fun banner I made hanging above the computer table. (Computers are still hiding away in a closet.)

Matt bought me a laminator so I can make durable leveled readers from Reading A-Z. They offer a one week free trial with a limit of 20 downloads per day. I made the most of that offer since other resources are limited. 

An easy pinterest treat. Ritz-Rolo sandwiches. We had two friends over last weekend and this snack was a hit with the boys! 

 An impulse Wal-Mart purchase. First we wanted chicken wings. Then we wanted hooters sauce for them. Then we wanted hooters breading for them. Then we wanted a deep fryer for them. A moment of weakness I guess. They were VERY tasty, however our apartment smelled of oil for quite some time. 

The front and back view from our condo when we went to Gulf Shores in Alabama over the 4th of July weekend.

Matt spilled his drink, so the waitress gave him a lid, straw, and umbrella. 

The two pictures above are from Florabama. An eclectic bar on the state line. Great for people watching! 

Enjoying the patio over looking the Gulf. 

Yum.

Out for some seafood! 

Golfing the 9 hole course our apartment is on. 

Matt gave me a tour of the steel mill he works at. It was WAY awesome! Very hot, very big, and I learned a lot. Now I can actually picture what he is talking about when he gets home from work. 

We don't normally eat on trash bags, but this meal required it. We had crawfish and crab legs from the gas station. Sounds sketchy, but it is tasty! I also requested KFC that night (just in case I didn't like sucking head juice from the crawfish. Yes, that is a real thing.)

Matt's family mailed some of the things his grandma made. This blanket is so sweet. 

I enjoyed a maple bacon donut. Only in Mississippi....

Fresh produce from the Saturday farmer's market. 

A mini cake for our mini glass display plate. 

Pyper- the cute puppy we took care of for a weekend. 

There was a promotion when we signed up for internet through AT&T - we were sent a free Kindle Fire HD! 

Love the pool here! 

I hope you enjoyed seeing life through the eyes of my iphone photo gallery! Next post will hopefully include more updates about my classroom. 

WHW

One "tradition" I haven't mentioned yet is Waffle House Wednesday (WHW). I use the term tradition loosely because of two reasons. 

1. The first WHW was on a Tuesday.

2. We didn't go last Wednesday. 

Waffle House Wednesday originated due to the location of my first meal in Mississippi. After arriving in town Matt promptly took me out for dinner...to Waffle House. We both felt it was a true initiation to the South for me. We got such a kick out of it, we decided to make it a weekly thing. The boys at work golf on most Tuesdays though so Wednesday became our day. The following five Wednesdays we sat in the same booth and chatted about our days as we chowed down on peanut butter and chocolate chip waffles, hash browns smothered and covered, and even chili and hamburgers - bravely demonstrated by Matt below.   

(You may notice we are wearing hoodies. No, it isn't an abnormally cold summer here. But Waffle House does keep their air on at an abnormally cold temperature. We learned quickly to dress warm.) 

Now as fun as WHW is, last week I suggested we expand our horizons a little bit and just make Wednesdays our day to eat out together during the week. Otherwise, I have been making dinner to support our efforts to save some money and eat healthier. Last Wednesday the weather was bad so Matt picked up food from Sweet Peppers. Sweet Peppers has a variety of sandwiches, flat bread pizza, and salads - It was tasty! Who knows where this Wednesday will take us! 

Gulf Shores

In order to celebrate the 4th of July Matt and I decided a trip was required. We traveled with Kyle and Mary-Kathrine down south about 5 hours to Gulf Shores, Alabama. The four of us rented a condo on the beach for two nights.

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We enjoyed ourselves despite the never ending drizzle by staying busy:

shopping at the outlets: new Ray Bans - check!

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eating lots of delicious seafood - check!

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singing along to country music at Florabama's - check!

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The trip was exceptional, and I can't wait to go back! 

Life is Good

Well, life is good in the Passanante home. Today I have three surprises for Matt to come home to. I told him he did too, so that makes it even better! Anticipation!!

1. Matt's been asking for Duck Dynasty Season 1 for....a week. I realize you might think a week isn't a long time to wait for something you want. Well, with Matt things are different. When he sets his mind to something, it is set. I've been saying no, it isn't a "need" every. darn. day. Well, I finally gave in today when I was at Wal-Mart for the billionth time this week. I figured for $9.67 his happiness would be well worth it. The little things in life. 

2. Bubba Kegs are important down here. They allow you to keep your beverage cold for up to 12 hours! Woah! This is especially essential for pool and beach trips! (I bought myself one to0 - hot pink!) 

3. It is covered because it isn't that pretty looking. However, what it lacks in looks it makes up for in taste. "Melt in Your Mouth Chicken" Matt's been requesting this for quite some time. During our first month or two of being married I made it twice in one week he liked it so much! (It's not healthy...) Click the link below if you'd like to try it for yourself!

Recipe

 Update: It's a little salty- next time, I would omit the seasoning salt or at least cut back on it.

That's what I was up to today! The normal pool time and reading are a given part of my daily schedule. I'm still plugging away at Steve Jobs. Although his life was certainly interesting, the 600+ pages are starting to seem a little redundant and I'm only 1/6 of the way through it. I'd like to finish it just for the sake of finishing it though. We'll see.

Bye now! 

Encouragement

Since recently being encouraged by my mom (and a glass of wine) to bring back the blog I've decided...she's right! Being a Yankee in a Southern world isn't always easy, especially when language and sometimes culture seem to be completely foreign. These happenings need to be documented and later laughed about. Therefore, the blog is revived!

Below are a few recent examples/discoveries. You learn fast when you're the one who needs to adapt!

*Grocery cart = buggy

*After the Wal-Mart cashier mumbles something or other, a silent stare down ensues. "What could she possibly have said?" I think. Then suddenly I am able to process what she must of said - "I'm waitin' on you now." Oh! Right, She is waiting for me to push the button as to whether or not I want cash. I guess I'm the idiot this time. One thing is for sure, I'll never forget to quickly push "no" on cash back question!

*There are many more bugs in existence than I ever considered. Somehow most of them do end up in the house. Thank God for fly swatters.

*Ever been to an interview where the other candidates wish you the best of luck and want to know your life story?? I have.

*College football is a BIG deal. If you don't care, pretend you do.

*My name is Miss Katie.

*You're better off picking up a Digiorno frozen pizza than the "best" pizza in Mississippi.

*At the post office, people let other people with big boxes in front of them so they don't need to wait as long with their heavy box. Same goes for women with babies. I've witnessed both.

*Pastors call on new visitors. Right to their home. Don't worry I showed some of that southern hospitality and had coffee and brownies ready.

Life in the South can sure have it's perks (and it's downfalls - just killed another fruit fly). As I knew it would be, it is full of learning and exploring. With my time off before the school year starts I plan to discover more about my new town, create some good materials for my kiddos (aka read some good ideas on other blogs I find via pinterest and try to replicate them), and relax at the pool with a good book!

Here are a few I have read so far. More details can be found on my goodreads account: http://www.goodreads.com

Currently reading: Steve Jobs 

Read Summer 2013:
The Dog Lived
Warrior Ethos
Up the Down Staircase 
A Message to Garcia 

(What I liked most was that A Message to Garcia was referenced in Up the Down Staircase. A reference I most likely wouldn't have understood had I not happened to read the pamphlet first. Ah ha!)

Alright ya'll, hopefully I post again before another year or two goes by!