31

In 2 days I'm turning 31.  Here is life as I know it at 31:

• I have a loving/silly/talented/temperamental/amazing guy of 5 years.  
• I have 4 nephews and 1 niece and no words to describe the love for them.
• I still want and need the love and support of my parents and sisters.
• I'm in my 8th year of teaching, and it still feels like my 2nd. (Not my first, because that was a nightmare.  My second because the learning curve is still so big.)
• I live in a condo downtown that is gradually getting too small.
• I fell in love with running again, and wish I could do it more.  

Life is good.  Cheers to 31.

If I were president of our country I would. . .

During writing class today, I told the kids that anybody in ourclass could become president when they're old enough.  "Even girls?!"  was the response.  I gave them an emphatic "YES!" They couldn't believe it.  Then I explained to them that before Barack Obama, we all thought that a Black president would never happen in this country.   It makes me smile to know that for them, a Black president is the norm.  With that, they envisioned themselves as president of the country, and went off to write with this prompt:  "If I were president of our country I would. . ."  Here are some of their replies.  If these are our future leaders, we may just be in very good hands.

• give more money to the schools for good teachers and after school programs.
• make healthy food cheaper so people can eat healthier and be healthy.
• give food and homes to the homeless.
• make a rule that only the army can have guns.
• let everybody get married.
• make sure that we don't have war.
• help businesses make money.

Then there were the funny ones like:

• make people only eat fruit instead of candy because fruits are sweet too.
• go to tent city and build an apartment for all of them.

Oh, second grade. . .

Boat Loads of Fun

Last week my class took a field trip to the Center for Wooden Boats.  It's located in South Lake Union, literally blocks away from my home.  (I wish I could have just met my class there!)  For any K-3 teachers out there, I highly recommend this field trip.  The children learned about local boats, built mini boats that they were able to float around in the model pond, and rowed one big boat together.  It's really a great experience for both the children and adult chaperones.

Up to 18 can ride and row in this boat called the Umiak.  It's pretty awesome.

I'm still here!

I haven't blogged since the summer!  Sad!   The end of August came along, school started, and work consumed me.  Now that the dust is settling, I can blog again.

Love Love Love

The whole crew at Disneyland.  We roll deep.

Anybody who knows me knows that I love love love my family.  My best friends are my sisters and my cousins, and friends who are so close they feel like cousins.  This summer, we got the chance to reunite, and it was EPIC.  No matter how many miles are between us, or how much time goes by that we are apart, we always seem to get right back into "crazy family mode" when we are together, and I love love love it!  We all met in LA to celebrate Bess and Mark's wedding, and it was the first time in a long time that we were all together for a whole weekend, day in and day out.  It was just like old times, and even more fun than I can explain.  I'm so blessed to be a part of a family that really knows how to love each other.

On the Run

What have I been doing with my summer so far?  Running around Lake Union.

Thanks to Vince for convincing me that it's not so bad.  Best part is. . . it's right outside my door.  

First Day of Summer, Officially

Trust me, teachers are even more excited.

Students were done on Friday, but I had to go in yesterday and move classrooms. . . again.  It's going to be my 6th classroom in 8 years.  Ardon and I woke up bright and early, ready to lug boxes around, only to find that my new teammates had already moved almost all of them for me!  Needless to say, Ardon and I were pretty stoked, and we were only at the school for less than half the expected time.

So today, on my official first day of summer, I woke up at 9:30!  Something that I haven't done in a long long time.  No alarm clock to wake me up, just my body clock telling me "It's time."  The weather isn't looking all that great, so I think I might just catch up on things around the house--the stuff I had ignored for the last couple of weeks because work had been so busy.  Possibly vacuum and wash and fold some laundry.  Ardon is having some company over, but other than that, it's a pretty chill day.  I might even cook every meal today!  Now, THAT would be amazing.

I'm just excited that the break is finally here (even though the weather says otherwise).  I'm really looking forward to the relaxation, spending more time with family, the trip to LA in July, and the trip to NYC in August.

Oh, the perks of being a teacher.