Well, the summer is going pretty well.
I dont think I have mentioned this before (but I may have). We have been watching a fun video series- Road to Avonlea. We get the DVD's from the library and have been watching season by season.
They are nice because:
1. We can watch them whenever we get a chance (after we get our chores done).
2. Brilyn can can understand them (mostly).
3. They don't give her nightmares (although Aunt Hettie is a little scary).
4. They allow me to maintain my (possibly unhealthy) addiction to anything connected with Anne.

Okay cool, so when I was looking up the link to give you for this TV series, I saw that they just made a prequel movie Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning. Let's hope it is as good as the book prequel by Budge Wilson.
Just a reminder, if anyone would like to go the the Anne of Green Gables picnic with me at Present Tense Book Store in Batavia, it is on Saturday, August 16th, at 1 pm. We need to RSVP by August 9 if we want to attend.
Okay, enough about Anne for now.
I found some GREAT goat milk soap at the new Farmer's Market in LeRoy. It will be every Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It's nice, but not very big yet. But, judging by the turnout, it will probably grow to be big and famous. Anyway, about the soap, it's from Harper Hill Farm in Darien and works so nicely. Ah, my face is so happy that I am not putting salicylic acid on it everyday anymore.
And lastly, I would like to make a rag rug for my NEW kitchen floor (that's a story for it's own post). So, if you have any old flannel sheets, shirts, nightgowns, etc. please pass them down to me. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me with that.
Here's a rag rug in case any of you don't know what I am talking about.
Okay, I'll tell the floor story and update you on my flourishing garden next time, I have to go work in the garden before my kids wake up.
Love ya!
XOXO
Joce

Okay-
For those who like to have updates:
Bailey is a great dog! He has the best manners and worked his charm on Joe. So, I put my application in to the NESR and I understand that they are checking my references. I will keep you updated on the process.
Summer school is going well. I have nine students- two boys and seven girls. Let me just say that there was a reason God had me take play therapy this summer before starting work. It has really changed the way I deal with kids, and for the better. (Which is saying something, because, not to toot my own horn, but I have always had a knack for working with kids) (toot!)
I have one little lady in particular who is one of the most overtly manipulative people I have ever met. For example:
Me: Go to time out.
Little Lady (LL): I'm SORRY!
Me: You are sorry that you made the choice to go to time out. But, now you have to go, because that is what you chose to do. But, you are really sorry about that.
LL: You're mean! You don't like me.
Me: You're thinking I must not like you if you have to go to time out, but really, you are the one who chose to go to time out by talking during the story.
LL: I promise I'll be good. We can be friends! You're pretty and we can do ballet together.
Me: You think that if you promise to be good, you won't have to go to time out. But, you already made that choice to go to time out.
LL: I hate you, I wish Miss Alissa was my teacher instead. Miss Alissa! Miss Alissa! Can you be my teacher?
etc. etc.
Fun, huh?
Anyway, you can also see in the example my new tool in dealing with challenging kids. Pretty much, empathy. It is amazing because, it works. And that is cool.
Well, gotta go eat Ralph and Rosie's pizza. And that is a really good thing.
You should absolutely eat only Ralph and Rosie's pizza for the rest of your life. That's what I think.
XOXO
Joce

Some quick pics:
Sunday Best!



YUMMY!

The thinker...

Going to see Bailey tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. YAY!

News Story of the Day~
"Today the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) delivered its ruling on District of Columbia v. Heller. This case challenged Washington D.C.’s ban on the possession of handguns and its requirement that guns be stored locked or disassembled. In a 5-4 split decision the court affirmed Heller and ruled the ban unconstitutional. Justice Scalia delivered the court’s opinion which went on to clarify many disputed attributes of the Second Amendment while leaving others open to litigation. Justices Stevens and Breyer delivered separate dissenting opinions. The entire text of the opinion is available here.
This ruling is a huge victory for those who interpret the Second Amendment like the other nine in the Bill of Rights: an individual and inalienable right. Among other things the court held:
The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home.
One of the few things the court clarified without room for interpretation is that the Second Amendment is an individual right. Justice Scalia delivered an impressive argument for the ruling consisting of textual criticism, historical precedent, and context within the Constitution.
Comparing the phrase “right of the people” to its usage in other parts of the Constitution, he writes
Nowhere else in the Constitution does a “right” attributed to “the people” refer to anything other than an individual right."

Hear, hear! Whatever else folks may say about George W's work as President of this great nation, his role in filling spots on The Big Bench has certainly been helpful here. And now, on to the....

Quote of the Day~ "Our unalterable resolution would be to be free. They have attempted to subdue us by force, but God be praised! in vain. Their arts may be more dangerous then their arms. Let us then renounce all treaty with them upon any score but that of total separation, and under God trust our cause to our swords."

Samuel Adams, letter to James Warren, April 16, 1776

Not only can he turn a nice phrase, but man, can he make beer!

Happy Fourth of July!

xoxo
~Joce