May 31, 2010

Day 151 - Memorial Day


Day 151 - Memorial Day
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
As a Nation, many of us have today off in honor of Memorial Day. Families and friends gather to celebrate with picnics and fun. I hope we all remember to pause and give thanks to the many men and women who have given their lives defending our Country. My Dad was in the Air Force during the Korean Conflict. This medal is on display at Memorial Park here in Arlington Heights. Thank you to all who have given unselfishly!

May 30, 2010

Day 150 - Cubbies


Day 150 - Cubbies
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
We saw a Chicago Cubs game on this very hot May day. We weren't actually in the ballpark, but had rooftop tickets nearby. A teacher friend was selling the tickets to raise funds for her son's baseball team. I had never watched a game from a rooftop before, so I enjoyed the new experience. Unfortunately, our Cubbies got beat.

May 29, 2010

Day 149 - Birdbath


Day 149 - Birdbath
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
My dear husband scrubbed out the birdbath and filled it with fresh water today. I haven't seen any birds taking a bath yet, but I'm sure they will find this nice respite from the hot weather soon.

May 28, 2010

Day 148 - Native plant


Day 148 - Native plant
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
This native plant is growing well in my garden this year. Two years ago, my brother, who is a master of native prairie plants, gave me a small cutting of this plant. I brought it home and stuck it in my garden. Last year it began to grow a bit, but stayed small and never bloomed. This year, it is getting big and looks like it will be blooming soon. I sent an email with a photo to my brother, unfortunately he can't identify the plant. Can anyone else ID this whispy plant?

May 27, 2010

Day 147 - Peonies 2


Day 147 - Peonies 2
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
These cut peonies are from my garden (see my photo from 5/25/10). I love the smell of peonies in the house! This may be the only batch I get to bring inside this year as they are fading fast outside because of the heat.

May 26, 2010

Day 146 - Sunflowers


Day 146 - Sunflowers
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Here's another great display of art from students at the school I was subbing at today. Just like a real patch of sunflowers, at first glance, it looks like all the sunflowers are identical. But, upon closer examination, we see that they are all different and all beautiful, much like the children who created them.

May 25, 2010

Day 145 - Peonies


Day 145 - Peonies
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Our peonies burst into full bloom over the weekend. Unfortunately, due to our unseasonably hot weather, they are fading fast. The original peony plants came from my mom and grandmother. They are a beautiful reminder of two beautiful women!

May 24, 2010

Day 144 - Concert!


Day 144 - Concert!
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Tonight my husband and I attended an awesome concert, James Taylor and Carole King playing at Allstate Arena. They were two of my favorite singers back in the '70s and they didn't disappoint us tonight. They played for over two hours and came back for two encores for the sold out crowd. A big difference between the concerts 30+ years ago and the concerts today is the addition of the JumboTrons. They enable even those of us in the cheap seats to get a good look at our idols!

May 23, 2010

Day 143 - Rhubarb


Day 143 - Rhubarb
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
We are experiencing HOT summer weather today. At 5:30 p.m. it is still 89ยบ and very humid and sunny. It is a little too early in the season for it to be this hot. I didn't venture very far to take a photo today. This is the rhubarb plant in our yard. It has grown a lot and looks like it is ready for me to harvest some of the stalks. I think I'll make some rhubarb bread this week!

May 22, 2010

Day 142 - Wedding dress


Day 142 - Wedding dress
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
We went to a family wedding today. The beautiful bride is my cousin's daughter. We had a wonderful time celebrating with the bride and groom and visiting with family. I took ooodles of photos, but chose this one for my photo of the day. I love the detail and beading on Emily's dress. She is a very pretty bride!

May 21, 2010

Day 141 - Downpour


Day 141 - Downpour
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
This is not what I needed to end my very busy week! I subbed all day today and had to run some errands after school. When I came out of the last store, it was pouring! Of course my raincoat and umbrella were in the car. Oh well, I guess it could be worse!

May 20, 2010

Day 140 - Lunch?


Day 140 - Lunch?
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Today's luncheon with my district retiree group was at Arlington Park Race Track. We enjoyed a great afternoon of eating, chatting, watching horse races, and enjoying time outdoors with wonderful friends. I took lots of photos, but this one of somebody's lunch (?) shows the joy of being retired!

May 19, 2010

Day 139 - Yikes!


Day 139 - Yikes!
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Today was our last night of bowling for this season and we had a lot of fun bowling 'crazy'! I love bowling with the school district league and spending time with colleagues and friends. We have so many good laughs!

May 18, 2010

Day 138 - Ant hill


Day 128 - Ant hill
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
I came across this ant hill in the middle of the sidewalk while walking the dog today. I know that ants are hard working, but I do think they could have chosen an easier spot to make their home!

May 17, 2010

Day 137 - Fragrant!


Day 137 - Fragrant!
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
When I came home from subbing today and stepped out of the car, I could smell the fragrance of these lilacs that are in our back yard. They are actually mini-lilac bushes next to our patio. What a lovely scent to have filling the air!

May 16, 2010

Day 136 - Dogwood


Day 136 - Dogwood
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
A cool and cloudy day was predicted for today, but Mother Nature fooled us and gave us a sunny spring day. It was a perfect day to sit outside and enjoy the spring blooms in our yard. This photo is of the blossoms on our Pagoda Dogwood bush.

May 15, 2010

Day 135 - RAM


Day 135 - RAM
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Today was a rare day with no plans on the calendar this afternoon, so I was able to clear off a couple items on my desk and to do list. I listed this RAM on eBay. I took it out of my iMac recently when I upgraded its RAM. I hope it sells!

May 14, 2010

Day 134 - News


Day 134 - News
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Fox News and many other stations were on hand today for a huge celebration! Hometown hero, Lee DeWyze, returned from Hollywood to celebrate his American Idol status with friends, family, and his community.

I'm not a huge American Idol fan, but many of my friends are. I got caught up in the positive energy and headed to Arlington Park Race Track to see Lee DeWyze. There were about 40,000 fans crowded into the grandstand and ground level by the track. When Lee took the stage in the winner's circle, he was overcome by emotion as he looked out at everyone who had come to support him.

I didn't have a great view from where I was sitting, so I searched for a better spot and came across the jumbo screen in the paddock area. What an exciting evening!

May 13, 2010

Day 133 - Clouds


Day 13 - Clouds
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
As I was driving late this afternoon, I was stopped at a red light, listening to the radio talk about severe weather moving in. I glanced to the sky and saw these clouds rolling by. This still photo doesn't do justice to the scene. The wind was blowing so hard that I could see the clouds moving across the sky. In fact, they moved so quickly, we never did get the predicted severe weather!

May 12, 2010

Day 132 - Countdown


Day 132 - Countdown
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
This great sign is hanging in the lounge at one of the schools where I sub. I taught with the infamous 'Ed Rowley' many years ago and he has always been known for his countdown to summer vacation. He's been retired for many years, but his tradition lives on!

May 11, 2010

Day 131 - Salt and Flour


Day 131 - Salt and Flour
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
I'm subbing again today at the school I retired from. On display are salt and flour maps made by the 2nd graders during their study of landforms. When I taught 3rd grade, I loved making salt & flour maps of the 50 states with my kids. It is a great hands-on project that kids never forget!

May 10, 2010

Day 130 - Color Poem


Day 120 - Color Poem
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
I love reading poetry that children have written! First graders and their intermediate reading buddies wrote these color poems together. They are hanging in the hall at Ivy Hill where I substituted today. It is a wonderful example of excellent writing.

May 9, 2010

Day 129 - Hello?


Day 129 - Hello?
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
We celebrated Mother's Day today at our daughter Cheryl's home. The cutie in this photo is Seth and Cheryl's niece. The baby's mom was not at the party, so she pretended to call her on the phone to say hello. We had a fun afternoon!

May 8, 2010

Day 128 - Game night


Day 128 - Game night
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
We do a game night once a month with my husband's side of the family. We enjoy eating, drinking, laughing, sharing stories, and of course playing games. Tonight we were in Rockford at Scott's brother's home. We played Tripoli. Both Scott and I came home winners!

May 7, 2010

Day 127 - Whirlybirds


Day 127 - Whirlybirds
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
The wind and rain overnight blew down a lot of these maple seeds before they were ready to fly. I wonder if that means we'll have less random maple trees sprouting up in our gardens this year......

May 6, 2010

Day 126 - Happy Lucy


Day 126 - Happy Lucy
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
This is one happy dog! She just came back from a fast walk with Scott. She loves being outside during the evening when there are rabbits to smell and chase!

May 5, 2010

Day 125 - Tulips


Day 125 - Tulips
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
The sun is warm, but the wind is cool on this pretty spring day. Notice how the tulips are blowing! I love to walk around this lake, but I don't get here as often now that we have the dog. Our Park District does not allow dogs in the parks. :-(

May 4, 2010

Day 124 - Peony bud


Day 124 - Peony bud
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
May 4, 2010 - Here's a close shot of a bud on one of our peony plants. Usually the buds don't open until around memorial day, but I'm guessing we may have blooms before that this year due to the above average spring temperatures we've been having.

May 3, 2010

Day 123 - Keyboard


Day 123 - Keyboard
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
I love these new keyboards that they just received in a special education classroom where I enjoy subbing. I'm sure the color-coded keys, the big letters, and the well labeled keys will help the kids.

May 2, 2010

Day 122 - Founding Father

We participated in a Historic Bike Ride this afternoon sponsored by the Park District and Historical Society in Arlington Heights. It was a great afternoon for a ride and we enjoyed learning some things about our town. This photo was taken in the Wheeling Township Cemetery. The headstone belongs to Asa Dunton, the founder of our town.

May 1, 2010

Day 121 - Thief!


Day 121 - Thief!
Originally uploaded by Karin Beil
Last week I posted a photo of a squirrel feeder I bought at a craft fair (see Day 114). Scott and I have been enjoying watching the antics of the squirrels as they scamper up the tree and take whatever treats have been left for them in the jar. However, this squirrel has become a thief! Instead of sitting in the jar eating the corn, he drags the whole ear out of the jar, scampers down the tree and tries to run off to enjoy it by himself!