Columbus day Apple Picking!!!

so it's FREEZING here.. we are still bound and determined to keep the thermostat below 70 on some kind of consistant basis, but my will is BREAKING!!!

Since its columbus day and the kids (and ME!) are off of school we decided to do what all the other locals do and we went apple picking.. Ben was working so we took off early (to try to beat any kind of crowds!) and ate at a GREAT pancake place and headed up the mountain to pick apples.. it was SO fun BUT it took like 15 minutes before we had filled out big 18-20 pounder bag and we had gotten our assorted variety's (according to the kids)... my fav variety so far are the Empire... the weather was cold BUT at least the sun came out so it didn't really do anything to the temp but it made me feel better at least (total mind trip I know!!!) these apple trees were nothing like I had ever seen before, they were puney and more like apple shrubs but boy the HUGE apples that they produce are YUMMY!!! the guy at the farm said after the first good snow the'll probably close cuz the apples get too mushy and since there is snow forcasted for tonight (VERY early for this neck of the woods) it's so sad all those great apples will go to waist (ok not to waist the guy also said they go through and get the ones that aren't totally smashed from the ground below the trees they send off to make cider so I would think after some snow it all goes to cider)...

now the question, what the heck do I do with 22 pounds of APPLES!!! i'm defrosting pie crust (no judgements steph!) and i'm going to do a couple of pies and probably some apple sauce and I found a recipe for cookies but i'm not sure about those.. here's what I know forsure.. we will be COMPLETELY appled out by time we get through all of this...

ta ta

Changes!

So due to a special ed student moving out of the district (not MY student mind you) and ME being the last aid hired AND the fact that our school as ABSOLUTELY no discretionary budget for spare aids, My position at the elementary school was dissolved.. in REAL terms I was laid off, I have a GREAT principal who lamented and was sorry and felt terrible and seemed VERY sincere but said the Middle school had just been approved for 4 new aids and there might be something that could be a good "FIT" for me...

so with only 2 days notice life has been up ended and I'm not at the middle school as of Monday, this means KayLea is now in the before school program which she is ECSTATIC about, but Ben and I are both having to "get good with" it's a GREAT program and she'll only need to be there like 40 minutes before school it's VERY in-expensive and she has LOADS of friends.. she's excited... so that's good..

there are some "pro's" in all of this.. all of the kids I would be an aid to are COMPLETELY potty trained, and most if not all RARELY fall into a puddle onto the floor and refuse to move... my back will be grateful...

some "con's" I will be in Hunter's cluster (his group of teachers)... I don't know yet if I will be in any of his actual classes but he seems excited for this, I'm nervous we'll just have to take a "Wait and see" attitude about this, as I told the person I met with today about the position.. "I won't know if it's not going to work until it doesn't"...

so as I posted already on face book the only constant in live is CHANGE... don't I know it.. I am taking a "wait and see" attitude about it all, if it doesn't work out it won't be the worst thing to ever happen and I'll sub or something while I'm awaiting a new position at the elementary school...

ta ta for now..
p.s. it's COLD Heater's going on tonight and we had a fire in the fireplace today... yea summer's officially OVER!!!