I finally turned the snow app off. Hopefully, we’ve seen the last of this year’s snow.
It’s officially spring, though we’re almost two weeks in or a month depending on which measure you use – astronomical or meteorological. Either way you look it is spring with Easter Sunday this weekend.
Monday morning’s sunrise. The sun is rising. Key Colony Beach, Florida Monday, March 30, 2026 9:07 AM EDT
I am certain It won’t snow where we are. It’s spring break and my wife and I are in the Florida Keys for a week. We are staying where we’ve spent every spring break since 2016, with the lone exception of 2020 when we were locked in at the lake.
Our rental offers a front row seat for sunrises. Every morning, I wake early so I don’t miss one. This morning, I set off to watch the sunrise from the eastern approach to the Bahia Honda Bridge. I miscalculated, the old bridge obscured the view of the sun breaking the horizon, but I waited patiently and was rewarded with the image below.
the sun has risen over the Bahia Honda Bridge West Summerland Key, April 1, 2026 7:36 AM EDT
Last night when we returned from dinner, we gazed at the moon which had risen over the Atlantic. Over dinner we talked about today’s scheduled moon launch when NASA will launch Artemis II for the first manned spaceflight to the moon since December 1972. And, of course we shared our childhood memories of launches and splash downs.
Tuesday, the moon is rising. Key Colony Beach, Florida Tuesday, March 31, 2026 8:30 AM EDT
another perspective of the moon over the Atlantic, Key Colony Beach, March 31, 2026 8:33 PM EDT
I wondered if people will be watching the launch like we were some fifty years ago.
It is Wednesday morning and April Fools. I’ve been fooled more than once, and I’ve done my share of foolin’ but not today. Today is going to be an amazing day, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, under the sun, the moon, and the stars.
How is the sun or the moon lighting your path today?
It is Friday after school and it has been a week of weather. Storms, wind, sunshine, hail, tornados, flurries, and shirt-sleeve weather for an afternoon.
Scullen’s sign – we need spring vibes, please!
I took the photo above last Friday after finishing my morning bus duty shepherding parents as they dropped their children off for school. It is fun duty and I have struck up a friendship with a former student’s dog who always is along for the morning ride. At first, the dog parked at me, but now she (or he) just looks at me and makes eye contact with me as they drive past into the circle drive.
I figured I would have time last weekend to put together a “Sign of the Week” post, but somehow the time slipped through my fingers and here I am a week later writing that post.
We all go through storms and somehow we end up on the other side of the storm in a better place and maybe a little stronger for the experience.
The past few months I’ve been chasing my tail and trying to keep up. I never seem to catch up, but here I am.
Last Friday afternoon, I stayed late to grade papers and sort through the study guides I had collected and review the data from the summative assessment (teacher word for final exam) I had given in science classes. My students did well and I was impressed, I had been worried that the February slump we’d all fallen into had taken a toll on their learning, but their scores showed they had recovered. My persistence, stubbornness, and belief they had learned the content was rewarded. And so were they.
It had been a stormy Friday. When I walked out, the storms had passed and the setting sun was making an appearance as the storm clouds moved out the area. It was the perfect moment and a rainbow was visible.
Friday evening after the storm passed through Scullen Middle School, Naperville, IL March 6, 2026 5:41 PM CST
It was stunning.
Really it’s been a stormy week from last Friday’s thunderstorms to Tuesday’s violent thunderstorms with a reported F3 tornado a little south of us to the windstorm that plowed through last night, it has been a week of weather.
In some ways that is life, we roll with it make the best of what comes at us. We make the best of what we get, because what we get sometimes is not within our control. We Make the Days Count, one day at a time, sometimes fighting a wind, or sometimes catching the wind.
How are you handling the weather this year?
NOTE: I am leaving the ‘snow’ on until April. The forecast calls for snow Monday morning and we are really never out of woods for the possibility of snow until Mother’s Day in May. Really.
Saturday I took the dogs to the dog park for a much needed walk (for me) and run for them. It was good to get out and move.
February in the Midwest can be almost anything, especially as we move from meteorological winter 2/28 to meteorological spring on 3/1.
unedited photo….Fern then Nova at the Blackwell dog park in West Chicago, IL
Friday the 27th was amazing with sunshine and temps in the low sixties, not so a day later. Even with gloves on the overcast and low thirties froze my fingers. But it was good to move and watch Fern zip ahead of me, then zoom back. Nova stayed close but would chase Fern, then circle back. The two of them had a great time and both were quiet and curled up in the back seat on the way home.
edited with Adobe Express… making the days count…
It was wonderful to get out move, breathe fresh air, and watch the dogs be dogs and maybe burn a little bit of energy, too. I think the three of us were able to do all three.
It’s on the waning side of the day and I’ve been bust making the day count doing things I put off because… well, I just put them off. There is still life in the day and I’ve made the day count so far, so I’ll finish bu making the last quarter of the day count as much as the first three-quarters. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, because sometimes life is no walk in the park.
This weekend has been a cold one. Yesterday the high was in the tens, low tens.
This morning, it was -4F or -20C. At the moment, it is 3F (-16C), but the sun is shining brightly.
I discovered this week’s sign on the way home from serving others at Loaves and Fishes. It was a cold afternoon and fewer folks than normal were out getting what they need. We stayed warm and I shared my favorite cold weather hack. After several years of working out of doors for a few hours each Saturday, I have learned that the best way to keep hands warm (and dry, too) is to wear vinyl food service gloves underneath my regular gloves. Works every time.
I parked the car and walked back to get the photo above.
It’s been a few months since this church’s sign has been featured here. The past few months it’s been sharing messages promoting church events and I’ve been patient waiting for this week’s message of love, hope, and joy. There are signs all over – Christmas lights on houses, wreaths for sale, and sadly there are too many signs urging me to make a purchase in stores all over.
As the sign suggests, I am going to use love, hope, and joy take me far. There are eleven days until. Christmas and I have five ahead of me in the classroom.
Sunday is always a busy day but there is room for love, hope, and joy. There is always is and I hope it takes me far. Today is started and it going to be a million and six times better than yesterday. I am going to stay warm by Making the Day Count or doing my best at it.
This week’s sign of the week was supposed to have been taken before Thanksgiving Break, but I never took the photo and left for a nine day break away from school.
It was needed.
Last Saturday the snow began to fall and it didn’t stop until Sunday morning; It was the largest single day snowfall we’ve had in more than a decade.
before break, I noticed the sign had changed and chuckled. It is fun to play along with the students and their language development. My generation had cool, groovy, and a few others that are cringeworthy to say out loud today!
Every Thursday and Friday I have bus duty at the corner for the carline. I’ve been doing carline duty for several years and I enjoy seeing the kids walking to school and the parents dropping tier kiddos off for a day of learning, I have even befriended (well maybe) a dog or two. The past few years I’ve had a partner at the corner, but she’s been out this year and I am looking forward to seeing her back next year – true, bruh.
I take my wireless speaker out with me and I play tunes as the kids cross the street and I wave the cars in for the drop off. I share a few high fives and a bunch smiles. When I finish, I am able to encourage the hallway stragglers to make it to call before the 8 o’clock bell. But this week the carline has been brutal and the carline has persisted past the first period bell.
Office Hedge is our school resource officer and he’ll will join me when he’s at our school. Thursday we took care of the line and had it clear by 8:02, with time enough to take the photo below. It was cold and it took my fingers twenty minutes to warm up when I went inside. Friday I was back at it again, but without Hedge.
We’ve got snow forecast for tonight into tomorrow morning with a couple more inches to add to the snow pack.
We have two more weeks before winter break and I am sure the kiddos have visions of sun plum fairies dancing in their heads. I know the teachers do, too.
It’s Saturday and today is always a busy day for me. I am off to Loaves and Fishes to serve others and get love in return. The rest of the afternoon are afternoon chores and maybe, just maybe I’ll get to enjoy a college football game by the hearth. Today’s going to be an amazing day so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, having a little fun and sharing joy with others.
November has been a beast, October started it. Maybe it’s the leaves falling, or first quarter ending and second quarter starting. Either way, I feel as though I’ve been chasing my tail all month long.
Last weekend, I took a quick trip to the lake house – up Saturday afternoon and back Monday afternoon. It was a trip to replace the Nest thermostat which Google stopped supporting in late October. I figured (correctly) it would still work, but we wouldn’t have a way to check or change the temperature settings. O offered her Nest thermostat from her college house, and I took off when my Saturday shift at Loaves finished. I packed the car leftovers from the fridge for dinner when I arrived and both dogs.
It was a good thing I drove up. When I arrived, the thermostat was set to OFF and the inside and outside temperatures were the almost identical! 44F (11C) yikes. It was cold. I turned on the heat and within a couple of hours the cottage was a comfortable 65F (18C).
I am thankful I had the flexibility to take off for a quick trip to the lake.
I remember the weekend when I installed it in 2013. It is funny how the mind works. I re-read the post and like almost every post I reread, I found a typo or two. I also discovered I’ve become a better writer, and I realize that WordPress has developed incredible storytelling tools, even when I still must edit after I press publish.
I am thankful I continue to learn and grow, and I am thankful for WordPress. It was a good choice fifteen and half years ago and it is still today.
Sunday morning, I had a list of chores and a hope. I decided to tackle the thermostat switch, but I discovered that O’s thermostat wasn’t a good match and I needed a replacement. I checked Home Depot and discovered I could get one on Wednesday, so I checked where I bought the original Nest – Lowes and they had three in stock.
So, the dogs and I took off for the Lowes in Gaylord and a new thermostat. Hopefully this thermostat will last another dozen (or more) years.
Two hours, total. Up, back, and then a quick install and now we can monitor the climate in our lake house remotely.
On our way back to the lake, I saw the above sign; boy, do I love the wisdom. Gratitude and thankfulness, indeed it is a lifestyle, yet like many of the values and ideals in America it has a day set aside for it – Thanksgiving.
This year my school district switched the timing of parent conferences to October, instead of November and set aside the ENTIRE week of Thanksgiving as a break for teachers and administrators. This year we had nine days instead of six.
I am thankful for the three extra days; it makes a difference in where I am on the ninth morning.
After the installing thermostat I had another errand and few chores before cooking dinner and settling down for the night.
It was a beautiful day to be working outside; and my canine companions enjoyed the time to play, and I enjoyed the sunset and moonset. Monday morning, while practicing gratitude with Five Minute Journal app, I caught the most beautiful morning sunrise. I was at the right place at the right time for all three photos.
Sunday evenings’s sunset, 5:08 PM EST
Sunday evening’s moonset, 6:57 PM EST
Monday morning’s sunrise paints the early morning sky, 7:41 AM EST
I am thankful I was able to see the sky and enjoy the beauty of nature.
It is the ninth and last day of Thanksgiving break, and yesterday we received a good amount of snow, had it fallen during the school week it might have been a snow day, but it fell Saturday. The yard is beautiful and I am thankful I was able to get the yard mowed, as many leaves as I could gather, and finish almost all our Christmas lights up Friday.
There was one thing I couldn’t squeeze into Friday, and it was refilling the bird feeders. Saturday morning as the first snowflakes fell, I filled the feeders. A couple of hours later, I saw a bird I have never seen at the feeder. I snapped a photo and asked Merlin to identify it, and it came back – Dark-eyed Junco.
There were several Dark-eyed Juncos enjoying the opportunity to take part in a Thanksgiving feast of their own. The bird feeders continue to spark my curiosity and learning. There is always something at the feeders to see and wonder.
I am thankful for the family of bloggers who encourage my curiosity and challenge me.
It has been an amazing break, and I have done the things I needed to recharge and finish 2025 strong. When I started writing t was Saturday and I was by a warm hearth, and it was snowing. It is still snowing and the fireplace has gone cold, for the moment. Today is going to be an amazing day, it could be a million and six times better than yesterday. But I will ever know unless I jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days COUNT, one day at a time, practicing Thanksgiving as a lifestyle, not a day.
What’s on your gratitude list?
The video above was created in October during our visit over the Columbus Day\Indigenous People’s break
W^2 or W squared for Wordless Wednesday, November 12, 2025
Yesterday, I had heard about the possibility our area would be able to see the northern lights, but by the time I had gotten home I had forgotten.
the Aurora Borealis from my backyard – Wheaton, IL Tuesday, November 11, 2025 7:55 PM CST
Fortunately, I saw several messages from friends with their photos of the Northern Lights and I went outside to see for myself.
At first I couldn’t see them, but my daughter joined me outside. While she stood beside me she pointed and said she could see them – her eyes are better than mine. So, I trusted her and used my phone camera to capture them – it is more sensitive to the light than I am. What a beautiful sight. The light pollution in our area limits what we can see, but I have to trust that it is there.
Some times I have to let the light shine and trust that it is reaching me. It’s Wednesday and middle of the week and I am going to make the day count. It is going to be an amazing day. I know it and I can feel it, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day.
When was the last time you had to trust that something was there, even if you couldn’t see it?
Monday on the way to work an 8th grade teacher texted me….
The sign outside the parking lot is going to make you laugh this morning!
and it did, the other side made me laugh, too.
the sign I pass on the way into the parking lot….
I made a point to slow down and look at the sign on the way into the parking lot and paused at the entrance to admire the other side, before I parked the car and went into the building to get ready for all day parent teacher conferences.
When we broke for lunch, I walked out for some sunshine and a breath of fresh and of course, to see the signs up close. They are amazing. IYKYK (if you know, you know) or if you have adolescents or know a couple, you know.
In the first few days of school, I learned there is a new craze or phrase middle school kiddos have learned over their summer break – it is the 6-7 thing. Every time I used the numbers, six and seven, in sequence 6-7the, kids would call out,
sixxxxx – sevennnnn and move both hands up and down in front of them.
The first time they did it I was….flummoxed… but they didn’t stop and now nine weeks later, I have resigned myself to join them and sort of poke fun back. I have surprise for them on this coming Friday for Halloween. heh heh heh.
It’s a middle school thing, bruh.
Last week, a friend forwarded me a photograph of a sign in front of middle school in Minnesota poking fun at the 6-7 phrase\craze used by our students. The photo is at the bottom of the post. On Friday of last week, I shared it with our principal who, shared it with the PTSA, who are in charge of the sign; and ‘presto chango,’ a BLANK SIGN becomes a message to the world or two messages. Ha!
This coming week, I will be taking my classes outside for a class picture and a little bit of fresh air as we try to figure out what we need in order to see the sign. It’s science and the beginning of our unit on light and how we see. It’s also a bit of fun all wrapped up together. There are times when learning is disguised as a trip out of doors.
Sometimes signs are there for us to let us know and sometimes they are there to encourage us to laugh. The sign for me is that I need to read more books, I’d settle for one in a week. Today is going to be an amazing day, in some ways it already is and it could be a million and six times better than yesterday, but the grandies’ first year birthday party might be difficult to top. Making the days COUNT, one day at a time, slowing down to read the signs.
Can you read sixxxxx or sevennnnn books in a week?
This week’s sign is from the ice cream shop I pass on the way to the lake and along the way home. Friday night it was well past closing time when I stopped to admire the message.
Summer season is the high season along the lake and there are few folks on the lane this weekend. Yesterday, I saw a few walkers and a neighbor couple, both of whom I watched grow up, are here with their newborn – their first. It’s hard to believe, but I am the first of three generations that come here now.
I didn’t make it to that ice cream shop this year, maybe I will next year. It all depends on if I get there in time or if the line isn’t too long and I can spare a stop along my way.
It’s Sunday and I’ll be looking for a new sign today but there are signs all around that fall is in full bloom, the weather has a chill in the air and the forecast promises sunshine later in the day. So, I’d better jump up, jump in and seize the day. Making the days Count, one day at a time, making time to take in the season.
W^2 or W squared for Wordless Wednesday, October 8, 2025
My drive to school usually takes about a half an hour, sometimes a little more depending on the weather or the traffic or both. I’ve been driving the same route for over 25 years and sometimes I take the road less traveled.
Herrick Lake Road service entrance for Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, Wheaton, IL October 2, 2025 7:14 AM
Last week, I took the road less traveled and passed by the forest preserve in full sunrise. It was a humid morning with ground fog which scattered the sun’s light. It was beautiful.
Herrick Lake Road service entrance for Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, Wheaton, IL October 2, 2025 7:14 AM
September was dry and warm, especially the second half of the month. This past Monday night it rained hard, and the earth soaked it up; then yesterday afternoon cool winds, clear skies, and high pressure moved into the area bringing cooler fall weather. It was great sleeping weather last night, but I don’t think I’ll get the same shot this morning. Only time will tell.
It is Wednesday and today is going to be a wonderful Wednesday. I am going to take the alternate route and see what the sunrise brings. Sometimes a diversion is the best way to tackle a Wednesday. Today could be a million and six times better than yesterday. I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, sometimes mixing it up on the way to school.
