New Computer!

I'm typing this from my new Macbook Pro!  Ahhhhd;flkadjfa;glf! You may think that I am unreasonably excited - I didn't even get the brand new retina display Macbook pro that got released this week. But let me summarize the past 6 years:
1 new hard drive (free, thanks to my brother's friends)
1 new power cord (old one became a fire hazard with exposed wire)
1 free RAM upgrade (again, my brother's friends)
1 free OS update (see above)
1.5 years of keeping my computer constantly plugged in due to a battery that can't keep a charge
1.5 years of a loud, whirring fan because my computer can't find its own heat sink
1.5 years of living in fear that my computer would die at any moment
1.5 years of a faulty wireless card and dead ethernet port
2 degrees (B.A., M.A.T.)
2 countries (USA, Australia)
3 states (PA, OH, IN)
countless itunes upgrades (I hate those!)

With a new computer, I have no excuse not to be better at updating this blog. My computer can always find the internet! I can actually unplug the power cord and still use the computer! My computer can run multiple programs at once without becoming overwhelmed and confused! It's a glorious day.

Even better: I went to our local farmer's market for the first time, and got delicious artichoke asiago sourdough bread and a basil plant!

College Rugby Championship: 7s

This past weekend, I went to Philly to watch the college rugby championships for 7s. Sevens is a variation of rugby, where each team has 7 players, and they play two 7 minute halves. It is played on a full-sized pitch, so the focus is much more on running skills than on rucking. The playoffs included 16 men's teams. The play-offs are set up a lot of the World Cup: There are pools of them that play each other, and the winners of each pool enter a playoff bracket.

I wasn't sure what to expect, because I have only been to small college and high school games. I was very impressed! For many people, rugby and beer go hand-in-hand. The venue did not disappoint: There was beer everywhere. At the concession stands, in the sponsored beer garden, etc. People spent the whole weekend drinking. Yet, I never saw any fighting, vomiting, or out of control rugby fans. Part of what makes me love rugby is the level of respect: Between teams, players and referees, and the fans. While there was drinking, there were also kids everywhere. The weather was beautiful, and the fans allowed people of all ages to enjoy the tournament. I highly recommend it for any of you that live near Philly!

Sadly, I was too distracted by the games to take pictures. I only managed two: The beer garden and lovely bride to Delaware, and a super amazing bacon/egg/cheese everything bagel sandwich I got. Yum!

Also, today was the last day of school! I don't know what I'm going to do with all my spare time now...

DIY: Lace Earring Holder

How I told you how much I love Pinterest? There are so many recipe and craft ideas I've seen! This weekend, I brought one to life. Here's the inspiration (left) and my creation (right):

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I wish I could have found a really ornate frame, like in the inspiration. I could have searched used furniture stores for old mirrors... but I was impatient and wanted to start the project! I found this wooden frame at Michael's. It wasn't in the frame section. Or the wooden "things to paint" section. It was in some random section on the side of the store. My sister also made one, and they both turned out great!  Here's what you'll need:

- Wooden frame

- Paint and paint brushes (I used acrylic paint)

- Tape (to tape off designs)

- Lace

- Glue gun

- 3M Command Hook or other way to hang frame

1. Decide how you want to paint your frame. If needed, use painters tape to tape off your design. Note: I highly recommend this! I decided not to use tape, and ended up with some blue splotches I had to cover with my yellow paint. Also, my art school sister recommends Scotch brand Magic tape. It looks like scotch tape, but is better (somehow). Apparently it was unbelievable that I hadn't known about this tape before yesterday.

2. Paint your frame! I opted to paint the front and edges of my frame, while my sister decided to paint only the front, and keep the sides natural.

Notice the use of tape, ensuring a splotch-free frame...

I did two coats of blue, and three coats of yellow. The good thing about acrylic is that by the time I finished the first coat, it was dry and I could start the second coat right away!

Once your paint is completely dry, break out your hot glue gun. Decide how you want to hang your lace, and mark the back of your frame accordingly. I applied hot glue to the frame, pressed the lace down, and rolled a pencil over it to make sure it was snug to the frame. After it all dried, I went back and did a second layer of glue on top (am I paranoid? Maybe. But I don't want the lace to fall off when it's holding my earrings!).

Have you made anything from Pinterest? Make anything this weekend?

My First Cheesecake

For my birthday last month, I asked for a springform pan so that I could make cheesecakes. Last year, I discovered this recipe for Key Lime Pie Cheesecake Bars, and they were a huge hit with my family (pictures of a batch I made here). I wanted to be able to make real cheesecake, and now I can!

I got a springform pan and a cheesecake recipe book with 125 recipes! I decided to start with the basics (and the first recipe in the book): Blue Ribbon Cheesecake. Here it is:

I really want to try the Key Lime Cheesecake recipe next, and see how it compares to the bars I've been making!

In other news, I'm halfway done with the Couch to 5k program! I'm already looking at races to enter this summer... There's one in my hometown near the 4th of July that I want to do. And I really want to do the Color Run! I wish I could do the Warrior Dash or Spartan Run, but I think I'll have to wait until next year.

Mother's Day Gift

This year we had a pretty low key Mother's Day. My mom didn't ask for any presents, and we went out to dinner Saturday night (at our local, delicious Belgium restaurant!). Of course, we all got her something regardless of her "no gift" declaration. My sister and I got together to sew a knitting needle case! My mom had all of her needles in a bag from our yarn store. I do the same thing. It's hilarious when one of us is starting a new project, because we end up getting both our bags out and combing through the needles looking for the right size. We always joke about organizing them, but always put it off.

I remembered that the first Stitch 'n Bitch book has a needle case pattern, so I hopped over to the fabric store to pick out cute canvas.

My sister didn't get home from college until late Friday night, so we agreed to get up early Saturday to work on the case. We cut out all the pieces (my sister is an art student, so her T-square was incredibly useful... without it I tend to cut fabric into parallelograms instead of rectangles), and ran down to the sewing machine. Crap. There was no thread in the machine. I tried my best to thread it, but usually I copy whatever thread is already in the machine. Without a guide, I was lost. We had to ask my mom for help! After she threaded the machine, we got down to business. And sewed about 2 inches before the bobbin caught and the machine was stuck. Double crap. Mom had to come help again (she pretended not to see what we were working on). I learned how to fix the bobbin, which was good because it caught about a dozen more times during the project! With two of us to do the sewing and pressing, the case got done in a few hours. We have enough extra fabric that we could make another case, or a circular needle holder.

It's so nice and organized now!

I hope everyone had a nice Mother's Day.

Life In Pictures: May 4 - May 12

Top Left // Hanging out with some cats at my boyfriend's house
Top Center // Stalking the RED PANDA at the zoo. I may have stopped at the exhibit multiple times...
Top Right // I found some Turkish money in the street!
Middle Left // My first attempt at gradient nails: purple into yellow
Middle Center // Fancy dinner: lobster and salad with my new favorite toasted sesame dressing
Middle Right // The llamas my school district bought to graze the grass around our solar panels
Bottom Left // Driving by Three Mile Island to pick up my sister from college
Bottom Center // Fabric for the mother's day present my sister and I are making
Bottom Right // Mystery present for my mother (if she reads this tonight, I don't want to ruin the surprise! I'll post more pictures tomorrow.)

End of Season: Reflections on Coaching

This year, I was an assistant coach for a high school girls rugby team. I've done a previous post comparing coaching to teaching, and my view on that hasn't changed much. If anything, I agree with it more. My goal is to be a middle school math teacher, and I am well aware that many most middle school students don't like math. They think it's hard, they don't want to do it, and they don't try. As a teacher, a large part of my job isn't teaching math, but getting students interested in math and trying their best. I never thought I would have that problem with my rugby girls. As the season went on, we had problems with getting girls to commit to attending practice. If you don't practice together, you sure as heck aren't going to play well together. It was frustrating not only to the coaches, but to the 9 or so girls that did come prepared every day. As a teacher, I can understand that I will have to convince students it is worth their time and effort to participate in math class. As a coach, it's hard to understand that I need to convince players to put time and effort into a sport they volunteered to play. How do you encourage players when your team is so small that we can't sit out players who don't come to practice? If I can figure out how to inspire my rugby players, then it seems like I'll sure know how to translate that into the classroom.