WTF!?

This is gross. Just another reason why I hate Baltimore and the cops here. Baltimore is so currpt!


*warning* It's horrible.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2sZ30dhdRw

Hi all!
Just found this community on lj and am very excited to get to see comments from current teachers about the profession. I was wondering if I could get some insiders advice...

I'm applying to grad school for next fall, and the plan is to get a MA in History and then a MA in Education to be certified to teach social studies at the secondary school level. I just took the GRE and my scores were not where I wanted them to be (520 on verbal, 630 on quantitative). While the rest of my application is probably good enough to get me into most schools, I don't think those GRE scores are strong enough to secure funding. So, I had thought I could get the first MA paid for w/scholarships and assistantships, but if that's not the case I may only be able to afford to get one.

So, in order to be the most effective teacher, would you suggest a MA in History and then get certified another way, or would you go straight for the Masters in Education and get certified along the way? I want to go into teaching to teach about past inequalities and their historical backgrounds so that future generations are exposed to different ways of thinking and looking at these issues, and then maybe eventually these injustices will stop repeating themselves. (Note, I don't want to brainwash any kids as my friend told me when she asked why I wanted to go into teaching, I just want to be able to open up discussions about these issues and offer alternative views to the status quo). So I want to study history at the masters level to get a good foundation in history, especially race and gender history. But could I be just as effective of a teacher not having this academic background?

Any advice would be helpful :)

If you have a platinum engagement ring, please post a picture in the comments for me.

I have a white gold setting, and I've been thinking about changing it to platinum. I've been hearing for years (way before I picked out my ring) that platinum is stronger and more durable than white gold and that it is not mixed with any alloys, so it never needs to be replated.

However, our jeweler (who is also my best friend and bridesmaid) doesn't think I should do this. She is of the opinion that platinum starts to look terrible very quickly, and that it's just not worth the money.

I'm clueless; I usually wear white gold, and the only platinum I have is a pair of hoop earrings, which obviously don't go through as much wear and tear as a ring.

Opinions?

I have one particular 8th grader that has horrible behavior. He often throws the class of track (not as an insult to me though) and his actions disrupt his classmates and they rebel against him.

His mother is involved and has often talked to him about his behavior and his lack of proper etiquette. I want to make some kind of chart or system for him but I have NEVER had to make one before. I don't know what to offer him as a prize. (A letter home, a sticker, a pencil, a homework pass, etc.)

Suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Hi All...

New to this community & hoping for a better drama free dog lovers environment. I currently live in Northeast Ohio with my Lab/Poodle male, Vegas, & various other pets. Looking forward to some good discussions, fun stories & interesting points.

So here is the main reason for my post...My brother, in his infinite wisdom, thought it would be a good idea to get a puppy. Now mind you...neither he or his wife have ever owned a living thing. He got this puppy from his wife's friend who found him roaming the streets. No clue on age/breed at this point (dog is going to the vet tonight)

Any idea on his breeding? Saw him today...he's very aloof, not a bubbly puppy at all...just sorta there....

Here are some shots...Any ideas????


( The Puppy Known as No Name. )

This is the Dog I rescued that someone threw over the fence durring the middle of the night at the Human Society.

They were full and could not take in anymore animals, they were going to take him to the pound, where he could have been put down. Instead I gave him a good home.

The time is flying! I'll have a bigger update next week as I have some pretty major stuff going on this week but I do have a question.
We've set up a Honeymoon registry and we're starting to get gifts from it from guests who will not be able to make it to the wedding. Do we send out thank you's for the gifts now? Or would it be better to wait till after the wedding/honeymoon when we actually USE their gift so when we send thank you's we could tell them something how their gift helped us have a beautiful honeymoon?
Opinions?

Ladies, I need help! Mike and I are still wedding planning and we have became stuck on flowers! For a reminder our colors our Black, Tiffany Blue and White. We can't figure out what to do the bouquets in with those colors. We were thinking of dropping the white and adding another color? What do you ladies think? Suggestion and opinions please! 


Would we be able to add pink just in the bouquets? Our bridal party is wearing black and teal! This is the only part that has nearly brought me to tears because I am so frusterated! Oh and changing all our colors is out our Bridal Party has already purchased their attire! 

So, I think for my gifts to my girls in the wedding party, I’m going to get tote bags and have my mom embroider their names or monograms or something on them.

Bags like these: http://www.amazon.com/NEW-Port-Company-Bi-Color-Pink-OSFA/dp/B000XMTL96/ref=sr_1_29?ie=UTF8&s=apparel&qid=1257864886&sr=1-29

Anyway, I need ideas on what all to fill them up with.  I was thinking little things like a notepad and pen, fuzzy socks/slippers or flip-flops (or both), some chapstick, a little sewing kit, some of those little one size fits all gloves (at least for my cousin Amy, because I know she’ll be cold!), and stuff like that.  Does anyone else have any other ideas for little things?

Thanks,
Tisha

ETA:  Just to clarify, this is not going to be their only gift.  This is just for fun, and will probably be given to them months before the actual wedding.  Their real gift gifts will be probably jewlery or something.

ETA AGAIN:  I never meant for this to a big debate on what's appropriate for a bridal party gift. I just wanted ideas on what to put in the totes I'm getting my girls.  Anyone else have any ideas for what to stuff in these tote bags?  LOL  Thanks!!!

I'm trying to think of some cute/silly/sweet Dahlia-oriented thing to give to my partner from Dahlia. For some reason I'm stumped. Anyone have any ideas?

On a side note, am I the only one who gives presents to someone from the dog? lol

Edited to add: Dahlia figured out what she wants to give him and thanks everyone for their awesome ideas. He's a HUGE coffee drinker and so she's getting him a mug with her picture on one side and Heidi's picture on the other side. Heidi was his first dog. She passed away in the 1990s.

Hello fellow teachers!

I come to you for advice on self esteem projects for 1st/2nd graders. I had a 6 yr old come to me yesterday telling me that she doesn't like how she looks, she doesn't think she's special, etc. I had another 6 yr old (who overheard this other child speaking) tell me the same thing. I've done self-esteem builders/activities/lessons for preschoolers, but never for 1st/2nd graders. I have 10 children, aged 6-7. I'm googling it, but I can't come up with anything that I'm too fond of.
So ... I come to you for ideas.

TIA!

Hello fellow teachers!

I come to you for advice on self esteem projects for 1st/2nd graders. I had a 6 yr old come to me yesterday telling me that she doesn't like how she looks, she doesn't think she's special, etc. I had another 6 yr old (who overheard this other child speaking) tell me the same thing. I've done self-esteem builders/activities/lessons for preschoolers, but never for 1st/2nd graders. I have 10 children, aged 6-7. I'm googling it, but I can't come up with anything that I'm too fond of.
So ... I come to you for ideas.

TIA!

So against my better judgment, I decided to branch out and check out some Alfred Angelo dresses. I was looking at only David's bridal because of my price range and I found some pretty dresses, but nothing that I was floored by. I have a DB and AA in my area so I figured why not check out the website? Well my dress choices are now back up to 4. My wedding is May 8, 2010 and everybody is breathing down my neck to make a purchase, but I'm very indecisive. I need some opinions before my FSIL/MOH can come with me to try these on!

( clicky clicky! )

So, I always hear Americans taking about all these weird and wonderful creations like tofurky and amazing sounding stuff like that!
It's never been available in the UK, so I just ignored it and stopped drooling over the idea.

I have, however, found a couple of sites that are starting to do a wider range of veggie things now.

I have finally found tempeh, which I had never found before, and so I've never cooked with it.

I mostly cook with Quorn, and sometimes tofu.

So first off; how do I cook with tempeh? And any great recipes with it that are different to Quorn/tofu?

Secondly, they have veggie chorizo pieces!
OMG!
Any good recipes for that?
They also have proper 'turkey' and 'beef' roasts.
Wow!
I'll try them as they are first off, with the usual roast potatoes and veg, but any ideas for making them nicer?
I use the Quorn chicken style roast, and I like smothering it in garlicy herby butter, and stuffing it with the same. That comes out lovely.
I could do that with turkey I guess, but not beef.
I WILL try a stilton sauce with the beef, as that just sounds gorgeous.
Ooh and people have peppercorn sauces with beef?

What other turkey and beef roast recipes has anyone got?

There's steaks too... never done a steak!!

Sorry for the total vagueness, but I've never cooked with any of this stuff, it's all totally new, and I'd just love a whole bunch of ways to cook with them that are all yummy!

Over Thanksgiving break, my fiance will be home. We plan to go check out a few weddings venues. Our wedding isn't until 2011, but I figure it's good to get an early start.

Anyway, I have a couple questions.
1. What do you do to look at venues? You usually call and make an appointment? I don't know how to get the process started.
2. Did anyone other than you and your fiance go with you to look at venues? it's not like wedding dress shopping, where you'd bring along your mom and bridal party, right?

I just don't even know where to start.

First off, the question: When did it hit you?  I mean, when did the realness of your wedding really hit you and spur on that exhilarating rush of mixed emotions: nervousness, excitement, etc.?

( Calm, last-minute bride ponderings... )

It's almost christmas and i want to ask my dad if he'll get me a puppy for christmas. I already asked me once and he said no. i am of course going to ask again because i know it won't be a problem. see i take walks around the our neighborhood anyways, so walking a dog isn't a problem. and we have a good sized front and back yard with a fence. and i wouldn't neglect it, because i am the animal lover of the family. my question is how do i get him to agree to get me one?

Currently I'm living with my sister and her dog (my dogs are at home with my parents, I miss them terribly)
My sister has a 3 year old male shihtzu whos face is always wet and gunky, I assume its from his eyes, is this a medical problem or does it just happen to some dogs? Is there anything I can do about it, I always try to avoid getting near his face cause I find it really gross, haha.

9 months left to go! I thought I would finally post our progress so far. I can't believe it's already been 3 months since he proposed!

Just a re-cap, my FH's name is Cale and we're getting married August 8, 2010 in Salmon Arm, BC, Canada.

( Cut for LOTS of images! )

That's it for now I think!!! We've gotten a lot done so far but I know that things are going to start creeping up as our date gets closer and closer. For now I'm enjoying a little break from wedding planning and focusing on school. Ugh. I can't wait until it's over and I can ONLY think about the wedding!!!!

So exciting!

Hi All!!!

I was wondering if any of you took a visit WITH your SO to check out engagement rings, if you just *hinted* at what you liked or if they just took a shot & got you what they thought you'd like best.

What did you think about what you did/ plan to do? Would you've done it any differently?

My puppy is getting older and I am starting to wonder when I should take him off of the puppy food. I assume everyone has their own opinions and would like to hear some of them!! Raw diets are totally out of the question, sorry!

At the moment he is getting Purina large breed puppy, he is a golden, almost 8 months and around 60lbs. My general mindset would be to go for a full year, but am interested in other ideas.

And for making this post interesting, here's Ditto hanging out at the barn last Saturday!

I'd rather post this here then on craigslist and get any joe schmo.

Bosco needs to go asap. I'd like to give him to someone other the taking him to a shelter because they will put him to sleep. Yesterday he "attacked" me in the face after he barked at me for no reason at all. He's snapped at me before but has never broken skin. Yesterday it landed me in the ER and needing stitches in my face. He needs to go! He is free to good home please serious inquires only. I'm located in Baltimore and can meet half way if not to far. Please email me at lillyorchid AT gmail DOT com

Hi planners!

So my FH and were just discussing the possibility of having a courthouse wedding in June 2012 and then have the big wedding later in September or October. This is because of health insurance reasons. Anyway, I'm trying to find info on how to go about a courthouse/JoP wedding in Michigan (specifically Detroit) but I can't find anything really. I just want to know the basics like how many people can we have at the actual ceremony and how much it will cost and how much time between applying for the license and getting married there is.

Any courthouse brides in the Metro Detroit area? Thanks!

I have been looking for an opportunity to watch and discuss Dead Poet's Society in my 8th grade class. I wanted to show it in my health class when we talked about stress, mental health, and suicide. The idea was vetoed due to a lack of time.
This week we are reading "O Captain! My Captain!" and the urge is back.
I just need an extra shove to get me from "that would be nice" to "I'm doing it!"
Good experiences? Bad ones?
It's PG so I'm not planning to get permission.

After going through the tags I couldn't quite find what I was looking for... so I hope you all can help me.

I'm designing the invitations for my cousins wedding and I'm having a difficult time coming up with a nice way to word it. The bride and groom are hosting it themselves without any help from their parents so "together with their parents" doesn't work and I cannot find anything nice and simple online.

The only thing, so far, that I have is "So and so request the honor of your presence..." which may work if I don't hear anything better. Little poems and cutesy things like that (though adorable) won't work with the invite design. I'm looking for a one-liner type of thing.


( Here is an example of what we're doing... )

Thoughts? Ideas?

My dear friend, my team Science teacher, was at 7-11 this morning indulging in a sandwich and hot cocoa. This woman literally lives hand to mouth, because her ex-husband doesn't take care of his financial responsibilities. Due to this, she does a TON of after school coaching to earn some money for their 3 kids. So, I literally mean indulge-- she saved up $5 over the last 2 weeks because she knew today was going to be a long day and she'd want a little pick me up.

There's a long line, and the parent behind her says, "Aren't you my son's honors science teacher? Didn't you graduate from Random Name High school in the 80's?" Turns out, they went to the same school 20 years ago, kinda knew similar people, yada yada. The line progresses: her in a hand-me-down dress and slippers, him in a sharp 3-piece suit. Finally, it gets to her turn in line and he says from behind her, "Great talking with ya, bud. Thanks for taking care of my coffee!" and. he. leaves.Dodges out the door before she can say anything In his tricked out Mercedes. So, there is my friend freaking out because she doesn't have a spare quarter to her name right now.


I gave her my lunch.


Now, our Touching Base day is Wednesday. I'll be interested to see if he comes in, and what she says.


Seriously, wtf? Parents...

I was wondering if anyone had seen any neat ways of displaying cupcakes at a wedding besides the traditional round cupcake tower where they're all kind of jammed in there. I would love to have something a) elegantly unique and b) easy for guests to maneuver should we treat our cupcakes like the buffet dinner and have everyone get their own off the tower. I have nightmares of someone grabbing a cupcake and knocking over 5 more or worse knocking over the whole tower...

Some examples I've found of "unique" towers are ( this ) and ( this ) but neither are quite what I'm looking for. I have this vision of (bear with me here) a kind of spiral staircase of cupcakes, where they're all in single file spiraling upwards with individual holders. But after much Google-ing... this does not exist lol. Anyone have any good descriptions/pictures? Thanks in advance!

Bonus points for people already married who can tell me how close their planned timelines matched up with what actually happened.  I checked the timeline tag, but there's a lot of variance and a lot of speculative timelines but few posts about the times things actually happened, so I thought I'd ask here.

I'm printing out invitations next week so I need to figure out what time to do everything--so I at least need to nail down a ceremony and reception time.  We have the ceremony venue and the reception venue reserved all day, so that's not an issue.  I'm wondering specifically:

• What order do you do things at the reception?  We're having a buffet dinner, first dance and parents' dances, and a cake cutting.  No garter/bouquet toss or any other dances.
• How long did you plan for dinner?  How long did you have for dancing?
• How long did pictures take?
• How long after the reception started did you serve dinner?
• If you had to set up/take down the reception area, how long did you allow for that?  How many people did you have helping?
• My ceremony venue is a 5 minute drive from the reception venue.  Parking is simple so once guests arrive it'll be quick for them to get inside.

This is my current timeline-

4pm ceremony
4:30pm cocktail hour begins (photos taken here)
5:30pm reception begins
6pm dinner is served (any speeches at this time)
7:30pm cake cutting
7:40pm dances begin (while everyone is eating cake)
8pm open dance floor for everyone
11pm last dance
11-12 clean up

Does this seem reasonable?
Also:  Regarding speeches.  Did you tell people they were supposed to do speeches, or did they know on their own?  How long do people typically talk?

Show me your diy boutonnieres and corsages.

My past posts for a refresher:
http://community.livejournal.com/weddingplans/16352326.html
http://community.livejournal.com/weddingplans/16734774.html
http://community.livejournal.com/weddingplans/17570013.html

( Now onto the pictures! (TONS of pictures--NOT DIAL-UP FRIENDLY!!!) )

I noticed a recent post about your FH's or DH's wedding bands, and didn't see that any but one guy had diamonds or other gemstones in their rings. Are there others out there?

Why I ask is, FH is considering diamonds in his ring (we're inheriting am eternity ring from his family that has several small diamonds, and we're resetting them in both his and my wedding bands), and I wanted to see other mens' diamond- or gemstone-containing bands.

Just 'cause I'm curious. ;)

Thanks!

Name and/or LJ userID: Kris (i_come_undone)
Wedding Date: Summer 2010
Bride/Groom/Other (please specify): I'm the bride
Age: I'm 31; he's 34.
City/State/Country you live in: Renton, WA, USA
City/State/Country you're getting married in (if different): Not sure yet.
Your song/First Dance song: Our song is "Bohemian Like You" by the Dandy Warhols, but I'm not sure we're having a first dance yet. If we are, we'll probably dance to something goofy like "American Wedding" by Gogol Bordello.
Wedding Colors: Blues and greens
Formality: VERY informal
Theme (if you have one): Erm...cheap, not fussy, and crazy fun?
Number of guests: For the ceremony, probably less than 40. We are hoping to either elope in Vegas or have a small, intimate ceremony here where we live and then have several reception "parties" since most of my family is in California and his family is in Canada.
How'd you meet your fiance?: Yahoo! Personals
How long have you been together?: 6 months
Do you have a personal wedding website?: Not yet, but I am sure we will, as we are both super geeky.
Have you read the community rules before posting this survey? Yes
Anything else you'd like to tell us?: This will be a second marriage for both of us; we are looking to do something fun and totally us without spending a lot of money. We aren't officially engaged yet, but I know it's coming and I don't want to get caught with only 6 or 7 months to plan something, you know? We don't want to wait years and years - we have waited for each other our whole lives and don't feel the need to wait any more :)

( And just for giggles, here's us. )

I want to have my students create Facebook pages as historical figures, then interact with each other via wall posts, notes, etc., and also create a profile for the historical figure, and photos, etc. I don't know if this is even possible. Is it? I know about the caution I will have to take re: digital citizenship. Has anyone ever done something like this?

Name and/or LJ userID: Callwolf, aka Heather
Wedding Date: September 18 2010
Bride/Groom/Other (please specify): I am the bride. My FH's name is Pat.
Age: I'm 26, he's 29.
City/State/Country you live in: Ottawa, ONT, Canada.
City/State/Country you're getting married in (if different): Merrickville, ONT.
Your song/First Dance song: We have a few :) "You and Me" Lifehouse and "Love Song" covered by Tori Amos.
Wedding Colors: Aubergine, olive and walnut.
Formality: Semi-formal
Theme (if you have one): Sort of shabby chic
Number of guests: 80
How'd you meet your fiance?: We met at the birthday party of a mutual friend in 2000
How long have you been together?: We've been together 8 years :)
Do you have a personal wedding website?: We do! It's here.
Have you read the community rules before posting this survey? Yep!
Anything else you'd like to tell us?: We've been living together for two years, and engaged for about a year now. We're just getting into the real planning of the wedding now that we're within the 365-day range.

Want to see what we have done so far?

( The details, some images )

Well, I think that's basically it for now! I'm so excited to have found a group where I can feel good about talking about to other brides going through the same things I am.

Name and/or LJ userID: Amber
Wedding Date: June 2010 *we need to still set the day but we're waiting on when we can get the Hawaii thing set up and booking a venue
Bride/Groom/Other (please specify): I'm the Bride!
Age: 25
City/State/Country you live in: Idaho
City/State/Country you're getting married in (if different): Hawaii for marriage / Idaho for reception
Your song/First Dance song: I don't want to miss a thing - Areosmith
Wedding Colors: Black, White, Egplant Purple, & Silver.
Formality: Casual on the beach in Hawaii / Semi-Formal Reception
Theme (if you have one): All about us
Number of guests: Unknown so far around 200?
How'd you meet your fiance?: On MySpace haha
How long have you been together?: A little over 6 Months
Do you have a personal wedding website?: Not yet
Have you read the community rules before posting this survey? Yes!
Anything else you'd like to tell us?:

Lots of pictures and text under cut.
( Nothing set in stone yet... )

I was wondering if anyone planned to have an interpreter for their wedding? Or has ever attended one with an interpreter? My parents are both deaf as are a few of my Aunts and Uncles. I'm trying to figure out where an interpreter could stand so my guests could see both me AND the interpreter. I'm probably going to say and sign my vows and possibly teach my fiancé to do the same but I'd like to have someone interpret the rest.

Any thoughts/ideas/experience to share?

Xposted for sure.

Well I havn't posted here very much... except for a few comments as I havn't really had any progress to report on... but as of Saturday just gone I have a Venue! and a DATE! We'll be getting married at 5pm on Saturday 5th March 2011.

Just to refresh i'll post my intro post again:

Name and/or LJ userID: Kat
Wedding Date: 5th March 2011
Bride/Groom/Other (please specify): The Bride!
Age: 24 will be 25 on the wedding date
City/State/Country you live in: Melbourne Australia
City/State/Country you're getting married in (if different): Same
Your song/First Dance song: Hard to concentrate (by the red hot chilli peppers)
Wedding Colors: Classic black and white with muted blues and greens.
Formality: Semi-Formal
Theme (if you have one): No real theme but im aiming for a 20's - 40's look for the whole affair.
Number of guests: 120ish.
How'd you meet your fiance?: He dropped a beer can on my head (a full one, from up high) lol
How long have you been together?: Almost 3.5 years. We bought a house together and moved into it in April his year
Do you have a personal wedding website?: Nope
Have you read the community rules before posting this survey? Yes!
Anything else you'd like to tell us?:
Follow me for some snap shots of our venue:

Edited to also as some inspo boards I have been putting together (sorry if I have 'borrowed' some of your images etc. if you would like me to remove them i would be more than happy to).

( More behind here )

short hair wedding styles? My hair is growing out but it definately won't be any longer than shoulder length and I doubt it will get there, probably more like midneck. I have no idea what to do for the wedding!

Thanks, all!

So my Americorps team and I are doing a literacy night themed around Roald Dahl and all his wonders. For part of getting kids excited about it we went in the intermediate classrooms and signed up 4th and 5th grade volunteers to do a readers theater from a selection of different novels. Since the school doesn't have funding for afterschool activities I proposed that the students would be sacrificing their lunch recess to practice. To my suprise, all but about 5 kids signed up.. from all classes.
So enough overview. I'm just a little overwhelmed and was wondering if anyone had advice for elementary readers theater? I know I'm not doing the "traditional" readers theater because the students have a few lines they will be saying. Along with actors, a narrator I'm also having students be "Set Crew" (which will most likely stick to simple props and maybe a background)
So other than keeping it simple, any advice for how to manage or make this a success? Also, if anyone has skits already.. please share! I've spent the last few days transcribing excerpts from: The Twits, George's Marvelous Medicine, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Magic Finger, B.F.G and James and the Giant Peach.

Thank you! I've been following this forum and it always has great ideas and stories!

Hi all. I'm brand new to the community and just wanted to say hello! I’m currently a senior in college so cooking options are limited. I’m not new to vegetarianism seeing as I go through random episodes of being vegetarian and then falling off the band wagon. But I’m going to try really hard for it to stick this time. 

So, with Thanksgiving coming up and the whole turkey issue, I wanted to know your thoughts on “tofurkey.” If possible I’d love some description on how it tastes, best store bought brands, ways to spice up a tofurkey, or any other good advice you can offer! Also, any other Thanksgiving substitutes for the traditional turkey would be welcomed.

Thanks so much and I look forward to participating in the community!

Best wishes!

Gracie

Grooms' rings! :)

And if you could, please note where you found them.

My fiance has yet to find a ring that he likes well enough to even try on. We're still a year out, so it's not a big hairy deal, but I'd like to help him find something he likes!

Vegan Pups in Blankets Recipe

Makes: 4


You can assemble these in the morning or the night before. If your children like to help in the kitchen, let them flatten out the dough with a rolling pin and help roll up their own little veggie pups. They are perfect with ketchup or mustard on the side for dipping.

INGREDIENTS

* 1/3 cup plain, unsweetened soymilk
* 3/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
* 3 tablespoons wheat germ
* 1/4 cup nonhydrogenated margarine, chilled
* 5 soy hot dogs

INSTRUCTIONS

1. If you are baking these right away, preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with nonstick spray, and set aside.
3. Mix the soymilk and apple cider vinegar and set aside.
4. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and wheat germ together in a medium mixing bowl. Cut in the margarine with your fingers or a pastry cutter, until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the soymilk mixture and stir until a dough forms.
5. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead four or five times, just enough to incorporate any loose pieces of dough. Add more flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking. Roll the dough out into a 10-inch square using a lightly floured rolling pin and cut into five 2-inch strips.
6. Working with one strip at a time, place a soy hot dog at a slight angle at the base of a strip of dough. Roll the dog up in the dough so that the dough overlaps along the length of the hot dog and covers the dog from end to end, leaving just the tips of the hot dog exposed. Press the seam and edges gently to secure. Place the pups seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dogs and dough.
7. At this point, the pups can be covered in plastic wrap and refrigerated until the morning. When ready to bake, remove the pups from the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 375°F.
8. Bake until the pups are warmed through and the dough is browned on the bottom, 15 to 18 minutes.


Taken from http://www.chow.com/recipes/13487, originally from the Vegan Lunchbox cookbook

My own note - the dough seems rather sticky each time I make it and thus I just roll out snakes of dough, then flatten them slightly and wrap around the hot dogs. Same effect with much less effort than wrangling sticky dough!

These are delicious! I highly recommend...

Okay, so they are fast approaching for my School District in a couple weeks.

I was curious how yours are organized and how you prepare for them.

Ours are the night after report cards are issued from 7-9 and the following day from 8am-noon. We are a grade 7-12 school. Instead of being in our individual classrooms with specific times for specific parents, the grade 7-9 teachers are all set up in the gym and 10-12 in the theatre. Parents pretty much just wait in the centre of the room until the teacher they would like to see is free.

Having never been to a parent-teacher interview and having a couple parents that intimidate me over the phone, I am rather happy about the interviews being set up in this manner.

Anyways, are your interviews set in the traditional setting of being in your individual classroom? Or do you have something similar to how my school does it? Or do you have something completely different? How do you prepare for the interviews?

I've been slowly making progress, so I thought I'd share a couple of the things going on. Lots of images, so I REALLLLLY hope I did the cut right!!!


( Follow me for dresses (bride and maids) and centerpieces )

Slightly off-topic: This coming week me and my Field Spaniel Audrey, Audrey's breeder, and Audrey's litter sister Quest will be heading up to Houston, TX for their OFA hips/elbows X-rays, and so that I can show Audrey at the Brazoria Kennel Club show.

Does anyone have any suggestions for must see dog-friendly stores, boutiques, bakeries, cafes, etc. in Houston? And for that matter, any good restaurants and/or non-dog-related stores we need to stop at? Thanks in advance for any suggestions. :)

I went to Alfred Angelo (Angie in OKC is AWESOME!!!) and also David's Bridal (I don't even know the name of the girl who helped me... she kinda sucked).  I had so much fun.  I also found my bridesmaid's dresses.  Anyway, I'm still floating on excitement, so I wanted to share.

If you want to see all the pics, you can click on this link for the wedding dresses:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30964727@N02/sets/72157622756137732/

and this link for the Bridesmaids:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tisha_mc/sets/72157622631751695/

( Warning: VERY Picture Heavy! )

X-posted to Fatshionista

Hello! Since I got my upset question post out of the way, I should do a formal introduction.

I'm 20, Canadian and the owner of a lovely 6 year old female shitzhu named Joachim (Joe/Josie for short). Here she is:



I also own three rabbits (a male netherland, a male polish and a female english spot, all approx. 6 months old, all of them 'mutts' but predominately those breeds) and they get along swimmingly with my dog who treats them like her puppies- grooming them, snuggling them, occasionally nudging them to try to play, and helping me round them up for sleep time at night. :)

( And now some questions about clicker training and teaching a dog to play with toys )

Just want some opinions. I teach Grade 6 and I need some opinions on my next Language unit.

Background: Just finished an "essay" connected to a novel study about bullying.


Option 1: start new novel study (Hoot), connect it with Biodiversity in Science. Writing focus will be persuasive essays. Novel study will continue into the new year so they'll have a 2 week break from the book.

Option 2: short story unit. Explore all elements of short stories. Writing focus will be developing ideas and writing their own short fictional narrative. Unit will be finished by the Christmas Break. Start novel study in January and have it go continuously.


I'm leaning more towards the short story unit so I can do the novel in January in it's entirety and start persuasive writing when we get back in January. Also since we just did an entire novel maybe a break with short stories.

The thing is, this job might end in the end of January and I REALLY REALLY REALLY want to do Hoot as a novel study but I think I shouldn't plan for what I want to do but rather plan for my students.

Just curious about other's thoughts, although writing this has really heplped me make up my mind.

Have any of you done your own invitations and/or save the date cards? Did you find it cheaper or more expensive once you got all of the supplies and them printed out? Also any good sites or stores that have the paper supplies for good prices are helpful.

My fiance and I are working on a tight budget, though our wedding is a year away (we hit the one year mark yesterday!!!) and confident that we will be able to save more than enough anywhere we can save a few dollars would be nice. Any ideas or advice is appreciated!!!

So, I hate making decisions. I've come to all of you wonderful advice givers to make this decision for me. As a reminder, we are having a very casual wedding at a ranch. There will be a slight western theme, but our main focus is choosing things that reflect us, regardless of whether or not it goes with other stuff. That being said, I need your opinions on save-the-dates. I've found three that I like, but I'm not necessarily in love with them. I've looked through pages and pages of examples, but I haven't really found anything else that has personality.
( Here are the one's we're thinking about: )