Master of Arts in Teaching from USC

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of USC. All opinions are 100% mine.

I think teachers are some of the most important people in our society. They certainly have some of the most important jobs. I'm not sure I'd have the patience needed to be a teacher, but I really respect those who do. Our kids all deserve great teachers.

The USC Rossier School of Education’s MAT@USC offers a great way for both current educators and aspiring teachers to earn a Master of Arts in Teaching degree. The program combines highly interactive online learning with field-based experiences where you live. That means you can earn your degree no matter where you live in the country. They even have an accelerated program that can be completed in as little as 12 months.

The USC Rossier School of Education is one of the world’s premier centers for graduate study in urban education. The school has been ranked #22 in the United States, and #9 among all private universities by US News and World Report. They prepare and develop educational leaders who are agents of change, and here's what I like, their international reputation is based on the application of research, not simply the theoretical construct. Their goal is to effect positive change in high-need education environments. Anyway, what it sounds like is that the USC Rossier School of Education doesn't just turn out your run-of-the-mill average teachers, they turn out exceptional teachers, the kind our kids deserve.

Participants in this program also enjoy full USC student status and benefits, participation in commencement ceremonies and free lifetime Alumni Association memberships.

Request your program information information today, and be sure to ask about the groundbreaking tuition reimbursement program designed exclusively for MAT@USC graduates.

Heads or Tails - She's not Mine, but I'm Proud Anyway

The theme/prompt for THIS week, December 1, is:

HEADS - "Proud"

I ought to come up with something of my own for this week's Heads or Tails. But...

Instead of writing my own (unless I come up with something amazing tomorrow), I'll just point you to Tammy's post, because her daughter Aurora was an Olympic Torch Bearer, and that is definitely something to be proud of! She's not even my daughter, and I'm extremely proud of her - and just downright thrilled. What an amazing, awesome experience that she will never, ever forget! I'm sure her proud mom will never forget it either. Be sure to check it out - there are pictures and video, and it's hard to watch without getting just a little tear in your eye, at least.

Camera Critters (#86)

Beth brought new kitty Teddy up to visit for Thanksgiving. Actually he’s supposed to be Tana’s kitty, but Beth keeps threatening to keep him if Tana doesn’t take care of him by feeding him and taking care of the litter box. I said Teddy could come for the weekend, but he doesn’t get to come here to live.

Teddy is a calm, easy-going handsome boy. He’s a little older than Weasley, but quite a bit bigger. Both Weasley and Teddy have been enjoying having the other one to play with. They run all over the place, jumping on each other and wrestling. Then they stop, take a little break, and go at it again. I just happened to catch them both on a break.

Tillie, for her part, has been mostly keeping out of the way and letting the boys play. I think she’ll miss Teddy when he leaves, because Weasley will be wanting to play with her again, more than she wants.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in.

Note: I keep forgetting to mention this here, but Beth has been living with my brother the last few weeks and helping him take care of his daughter Montana. Beth has to get Tana up in the mornings and off to school and be there when she comes home in the afternoon - basically be there while her uncle is at work and can't be. I don't know how long she'll be there, but it's a big help to Mark and Tana, and it's good that Beth has been able to do it. And it's nice to have all three of them here for Thanksgiving - even if Mark won't do the dishes!! :P

All That Food Means...

I just want to say that I'm really thankful to my family for cleaning up after Thanksgiving dinner - NOT. After working all day Wednesday cooking and then making dressing, peeling potatoes, cooking sweet potatoes, and whatever else still needed done Thursday so we could eat, the LAST thing I felt like doing after eating was clean up the kitchen. I did pretty good keeping things washed up as I cooked, and I got all the leftovers put into the fridge, but the dishes were just too much. I guess they were just too much for everyone else, too, because this is what my kitchen looked like this morning:

I did eventually get around to washing them all, and Cory dried and put them away - just in time for turkey sandwiches for lunch! We used paper plates for that.

Oh, and just saying - the food was so good! Yep, I cooked it all (Beth mashed the potatoes) and I can say that. I love turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, rolls, the whole thing. (and I don't have any pictures of the actual food - just those dirty dishes)

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• Cooking for Thanksgiving (alwaysbcmom.com)

So Much to Do, and it Takes so Much Time

All right, I finally got to sit down - but I made a German Chocolate pie, Oatmeal Rolls, a pumpkin pie, and cranberry sauce - and cooked a turkey today. I made African Burritos for dinner, too, then had to clean up the kitchen and get the turkey all cut up and the broth put in a pan so I can use it tomorrow. And now I'm just tired.

I've also decided that we'll have to give up Thanksgiving if/when I ever have to get a job outside the home. Not that I really want to, because I'm already making list of things that will have to go and Thanksgiving is the least of them. But my husband seems to think that when Cory gets out of high school that I'll want/need to go back to work. Never mind that I don't know what I would want to do - definitely not rv repair and preferably not retail again, but other than that? And who is going to do what I do now? Still me? With less time?

I know other people do it, somehow. And I used to do it before kids, but I forget how, and back then we lived in a much smaller place. For now I guess we better enjoy this Thanksgiving while we have it, and I better try really hard to get things caught up around here.

Cooking for Thanksgiving

Image by kendiala via Flickr

I've got a lot of cooking to do tomorrow, because Thursday is Thanksgiving, and we're having it here. We're not having a big group, just us and my brother and his daughter, but I've still got to fix turkey and all the rest. It just wouldn't be Thanksgiving without it all. So tomorrow I'm cooking the turkey, baking rolls and some pies, and maybe making cranberry sauce. I say maybe on the cranberry sauce because the people in my house like the jelled stuff that comes out of a can, but I just really want some real, fresh cranberry sauce.

I always cook the turkey the day before because it's just easier to deal with that way. I can cool the broth, remove all the fat, and have it to make the dressing and gravy. I add some broth to the sliced turkey and reheat it in the oven. No pretty turkey for the table, but so much easier. And seriously, I've never been able to get the turkey out of the pan in one piece.

So if the turkey and the baking is done tomorrow, all I have to do is dressing (I already have the bread laid out to dry a little), mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, and a vegetable on Thursday. Right? I feel like I'm forgetting something, but I have time to figure it out. As it is, it sounds like there's going to be so much food people are going to need appetite suppressants or they're going to eat so much they'll explode. Time to start talking up the benefits of leftovers, I think.

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• Baked Goods (& Butter) for the Thanksgiving Bread Basket Recipe Roundup (thekitchn.com)

Peter Pan Pics

I finally got pictures from Peter Pan uploaded to Facebook. You can see them here.

I took a bunch of video, too, but I haven't had a chance to look at it or upload it or anything.

I think Cory was an awesome Captain Hook! (and not just because I'm his mom)

Heads or Tails - Soft

The theme/prompt for THIS week, November 24, is:

HEADS - "Soft"

This is pretty easy, because we have the softest cat in the world living here.

Everyone who touches her remarks on how soft she is, and it really is hard to walk past her without touching that soft fur – especially when she rolls over and exposes her Tillie tummy, which is even softer than the rest of her.

Heads or Tails is a fun weekly meme created and hosted by Barb (aka Skittles) – feel free to join in!

Who Do You Think Will Win?

So far this Dancing With The Stars season I haven't picked a favorite and haven't voted for anyone. In the past I always had my favorites - Emmet Smith, Kristi Yamaguchi, Apolo Anton Ohno, Ty Murray - and I voted. I didn't go so far as to get t-shirts or promo keychains, but I used several email addresses and my home phone and my cell to vote. This season, no one really stood out, and it wasn't until last week that I decided it should come down to Mya and Joanna, because they were the best dancers. I still didn't vote, though, and Joanna got eliminated.

So now here we are in the finals. It's down to Donny, Kelly, and Mya, and I might even go ahead and vote. Of the three, I think Mya is the one who deserves to win. What do you think? I think Kelly is adorable, and there are flashes of good dancing in her performances, but she just hasn't put the whole package together. Donny always seems to have so much fun, and he really knows how to put on a show. But Mya can really dance. If the Mirror Ball Trophy goes to the best dancer, then she should win.

I guess we'll find out tomorrow night.

ETA - never mind. I'm voting for Donny (if I can get through and if the ABC website will cooperate) - that freestyle was awesome!

Camera Critters (#85)

I caught Weasley watching TV on Thursday.  Good Morning America was showing just a little about the huge cruise ship they were planning to show the next day.  Wow is that ship huge!  Did you see any of the GMA story on Friday?

Weasley, are you planning to go on a cruise? 

Who, me?

He looks a little guilty, don’t you think?  Maybe I better check my credit cards and be sure nothing’s missing.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in.