Cross one off the bucket list

Bucket list entry: 

Grow something I can eat.

'V' for victory!

....mmmmmmm....

AMERICA!

After months and months of hard work, Carlos finally became an American citizen! Woo hoo!

So proud of him. 

Of course, what better to celebrate than with everything 'American?' 

Look at this yummy spread: 

Unfortunately I did not document the amazingness of Michael and Bobby in their inappropriately cutoff jorts, sleeveless shirts and hater-blockers, and Alex with her homemade patriotic suspenders. 

Buuuut Michael was able to make his own sweet headband out of the shirt he got at Goodwill.

Nike, Apple. Win. 

Mr. O was here to stay this weekend. He says 'hello!'

We used our Groupons to go to Beerfest downtown. Found out it's NOT worth it.

Here we are waiting in line forever to get in, drinking BudLight while the delicious beers ran out inside. 

Yep, this was pretty much the highlight of the night. I want to be her. 

At least we got a good picture out of it :) 

Stolen moments of solitude in the classroom are priceless. Even though I'm not in the teacher's lounge because I'm too lazy to walk down there today, I need these quiet, alone moments to recharge. Sitting at my desk, I look out over my room at the haphazard items strewn all over the place... a student's planner with a picture of her puppy proudly taped to the front, Rand's neatly stacked pile of belongings, his glasses meticulously perched on top of its case, waiting for his return from lunch. Nikki's stuff, on the other hand, is a discombobulated mess flung around underneath her desk. I see a ridiculous pile of OM props crammed into the corner--- 3 foot tall "broccoli trees" stand like sentries guarding the bookshelf, a paper mache heart sits safely on top of the lockers, a random bright-orange wig is tucked into the corner.

And I wonder, what will the new 5th grade parents think of this room when they venture into it tonight? I'm not even going to attempt to organize the chaos that has turned into our 'home.'

I hope they see that beyond the clutter is a creative, passionate, hard-working educator.

I hope they feel their child will feel loved and respected in room 480 as they see students' work proudly displayed on the walls, their smiling faces on the 'who am i?' board, and an overflowing, messy bookshelf.

I hope they realize that teachers at this school are so much more than 7:30-3 educators; we are counselors, friends, and sometimes parents. We stay until it's dark outside to make sure our lessons are engaging, challenging, and effective. We stay for band concerts, talent shows, OM meetings, sports games, religious organizations, and whatever else, just because we want to.

I hear the 7th grade herd returning from lunch. Time to greet them at the door and delve into Ponyboy's life in "The Outsiders."

Mike's Home Mike's Home!

Oh how I missed him. 

When he was gone I had to do man things, like change a tire and mow the lawn. 

I missed his companionship... somebody to hang out with and talk to and to play football with. 

I missed playing wife, because apparently I felt like I didn't need to do laundry or dishes or food shopping. 

I accidently put him to work right when he got home. 

The cukes had gotten out of control; we had to build a ridiculously tall trellis:

While driving downtown, we got to play a ridiculous game of

 "one of these things is not like the other," which I play often while driving. You tell me what's wrong with this picture:

And THIS!

it's amazing outside.

... so this post will be short so i can go play.

Finally Kristin and I had a chance to wear our AMAZING 80s prom dresses that we unexpectedly purchased last year. We came across them in a consignment shop while looking for something to wear to the redneck Christmas party and knew they were destined to be ours. Friday I hosted our bunco group... the dresses may have inspired the theme....

Saturday brought a quick but fun trip to Melb for a wedding & mom/dad time. The pictures don't do any justice to the weekend but oh well. Really need to get back on board with the compulsive picture-taking. Had a fantastic time pointing out every landmark to Kristin that was associated with a childhood memory... took her to Diego's namesake (Da Kine Diegos!) and went for dinner/drinks downtown. 

Here's Annie contemplating how she got talked into going to second-dinner at Bizarros, even though we just ate a huge dinner, had drinks and dessert. Win for me!

Oliver had the closest encounter with cats that he's ever had in his life. Let's just say that my cat TJ's survival mode kicked in; while running for his life away from Oliver, he may have superman-busted through the screen and attempted to climb a tree. Little did he realize he does not have claws, so he sat there pawing the base in a dazed stupor. It was pathetic. And kind of hilarious. 

On the other hand, Princess Madeline (who is mildly brain damaged,)  just sat on the other side of the glass door and taunted Oliver all morning. 

D wore himself out. 

Now it's time to go enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Um, I totally already posted these pictures last week. But apparently Blogger deleted it. So here they are again, but without any thought to the captions:

And again, the mid-run swing.

my thoughts

more meetings.

stoic face.

repeated words,

an empty space

within my head

(i feel displaced.)

Students' future?

Standards-based.

(what does that mean?

-a wild-goose chase.)

And for teachers?

*passion erased*

Hey little guy. I covet you. 

You'd have a great home here. 

I'd take care of you forever, and you'd have plenty to keep you busy for the rest of your life.

I asked Mike if we could adopt you and he said said "yes" 

if I can save up half of the costs from other-than-salary money. 

So I sold some things at the garage sale this weekend. ($76)

I cashed our life savings of change. ($138)

I have a weekend of dogsitting in line ($60.)

Only $536 to go... but what now?

Sunday Funday

Yesterday was yet another Sunday Funday with Ms. Loscalzo and her momma, who has graciously opened her house to us in Singapore. Needless to say, I am BEYOND EXCITED for this trip and can't wait for it to be here!! But rest assured that I refuse to eat "Pig Smiles." Forever scarred by that story.

mmmm....cheesy grits and eggs....

The lovely weather was encouraging to actually sit down and attempt to complete CAR-PD homework and lesson planning. I wish every day could be as productive as yesterday was. 

Hilary always inspires me to think about life-things through her blog, so props go out to her for today's list!

I Love My Mom because she...

...introduced me to great music, like Joni Mitchell, Michael Feinstein, Raffi, and ABBA. 

...is a phenomenal, passionate musician and I loved watching my parents sing together when I was a kid.

....has always worked so hard to provide for us.

....makes an excellent roadtrip partner.

... loved and instilled in me a love for Starbucks way before it was the cool thing to do.

.... is inspiring me to get back into tennis after she re-found her love.

... prefers homemade, thoughtful presents....

...  made sure I received the best education possible and went to the best schools.

... went back to college for her Masters, even though I know it was tough to be away from us (or maybe she welcomed the time away!)

... is impressive for creating fantastic soups out leftovers

... told me that one day I'd be best friends with my sister... (and she was right)

...comforted me during my awkward stages by saying, 

"You know, the dorks are the ones who end up being CEOs of companies while the popular kids work at McDonalds...."

... took away cable when she saw how demeaning and negative MTV was

... questioned when I had Bs on my report card, but was never demanding or angry. She just knew I could do better.

...sang songs and read to me before bedtime

...cheered on the sidelines for countless tennis matches, went to every band concert, sports banquet, and choir recital imaginable. 

...still drives up to watch my OM kids perform or to cheer me on at the teacher-of-the-year banquet

... shares fond memories of her Mom & Dad growing up on ranches, chugging away at guitars, and taking in numerous children's friends who had no other place to go. They sound like amazing people-- I can see where my mom gets her gentle demeanor from her mother and humor from her dad.

...always let me figure out my own way, but was there encouraging me through every step.

... supported me financially through college... and emotionally all the time...

...let's me pick out her outfits...

... is always there to listen to me and offer comforting words when I'm sick, whiny, or just having a bad day.

I love my mother googooplexilly and am so thankful for her!

Cinco de Mustache

Mustaches never cease to amaze me and I've found they are appropriate for every occasion. I've gotten used to drawing them on my finger whenever the mood strikes, but this time we pulled out the big guns:

Serious creeper...

 Frieda, is that you?

I can't say it enough: I'm blessed beyond belief to have such amazing friends. Cinco de Mayo was fantastically chill and just what I needed to help me power through the rest of the week. 

 Even Diego joined in the fun for this picture... then promptly ate his mustache. 

3 years ago I said "I do" to my best friend. It's hard to believe it's been that long already. I've learned so much about who I am and what it means to love unconditionally. I'm sure I'm not the easiest person to live with. But Mike and I complete each other. Where one is weak, the other is strong. 

I love our adventures. 

Here's to the rest of our lives :)

Look look!

That little blob might not look like much, but it's JUST what I needed to come home to after a long, exhausting day at work. 

MY FIRST TOMATO!! 

I'm sick. 

And when I'm sick, I like to milk it for all it's worth. So I wallow in self pity and shuffle around the house looking as miserable as I can. Good thing Mike is gone, cause he always catches my colds (but worse.) I did force myself to work out twice (twice!) today, low-impact, not-too-jostling workouts. 

The goal is to lose a size by July; 

I wanna feel confident enough to wear a bikini again this summer!

Easter Weekend Highlights

Da Kine Diegos

 Dad

 Beach

 Dels

 Mom

 Mullets

 Sunrise Service

 Cat Hairballs

Bunny Cake

 Peeps and Easter egg hunt