Mother's Day

I love Mother's Day! When the kids are little, it's as much about them and their ideas as it is about me. Let me tell you, Daddy does it right! I am thoroughly spoiled, and I'm still laughing about the whole day.

I got to "sleep in," which translates to laying in bed listening to the chaos. I could hear the giggling, squealing, and cooking. Occasionally, I would hear little feet running to see if I was still asleep, and I would do my best fake and not laugh until they were safely downstairs.

The day officially began with breakfast in bed, and Daddy was thoughtful enough to snap a picture before they brought it up:

 Homemade crumpets, fruit, bacon, and coffee. The kids wrapped their own gifts, too!

When they came up, I was handed the official post-it itinerary:

 And then I was presented with gifts the kids chose all by themselves. Evan chose a bear:

 And this super snazzy sunglass case:

 Yes...it is in my purse right now. He checks daily.

Issa chose this travel mug because she liked the purple and flowers:

 I find the poem hysterical:

 Yes...it begins "friends are like bras." I am so glad Daddy didn't censor. I'm still laughing, and I used it this morning.

She also got us matching pajama shirts:

 I'm quite certain I glow in the dark.

The first item on the list was to make this craft, which was presented along with the gifts:

 It is a little book of all the reasons they love me. We then enjoyed breakfast and some great snuggles.

Lunch was a picnic in the park, and even Viv got to come along:

 And...Evan picked me flowers:

 And...he put them in his pocket so I wouldn't have to carry them. They never made it to a vase.

We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping for dinner ingredients and snuggling. They made me dinner, and we watched a couple of really great movies while it rained. It was a perfect day.

And this is what the kitchen looked like yesterday morning:

Scary. Brad asked me not to post this, but it shows just how perfect the day was. The kids helped cook, which makes a bigger mess, but no one was worried about it. It all cleaned up yesterday. I'm sure I'll miss these messy Mother's Days someday, so I'll enjoy it--and laugh about it--while I can.

Celebrated!

There was too much celebrating this weekend to contain it to one post. So...let's just focus on Saturday today. I was able to participate in the official doctoral hooding at UNC:

 It was one of the most surreal experiences of my life. After four years of the hardest work I will most likely ever do, I received the hood from my advisor and provost and was greeted as Dr. Bower by the chancellor of the University.

My advisor:

 She and I suddenly have a completely different relationship now. We're colleagues, and she's fun. Surreal.

My friend:

 It was great to walk with Karla! She and I were there for each other for every bump in the road. It was wonderful to celebrate together!

My family:

 These four have been so patient through the whole process! Evan is holding my diploma tube, which is only given to doctoral graduates.

Shannon and Jeff:

They flew in for a whirlwind trip to be here to celebrate. We had dinner and lunch together, we played, and they dealt with my panic about getting there on time.

Pictures just don't do the day justice. It is finished and official! I am one happy lady.

When Worlds Collide

Yesterday an insanely crazy day. It started with Evan having his annual physical. He's great--no surprise! He's 33 pounds and just over three feet tall.

I dropped him off at school, and then hustled home to make the ballet bags for Issa's class. It was picture night at ballet, which is a great time to distribute tap shoe ribbons and big bags to hold all the costume parts. All I needed to do was cut the ribbons and put names on everything. (I also had to clean the house--no fun, but much better now.)

I picked Issa up from school, and we got her all ready for pictures! I love doing her hair and make-up. Our beautiful ballerina:



 Then, Issa and I headed to the airport to pick up a friend who is also graduating this weekend, which required a slight costume adaptation:

 Yep...that's how Issa went to the airport. We picked up Karla and headed straight for ballet. Karla pitched in herding girls (and their mother's) for pictures. On our way out, Crystal surprised me with these:

It's a good thing I had my sunglasses on. It was funny to watch Crystal and Karla meet. I love them both, and I hoped they would hit it off. They are so different, and yet their hearts are so similar. It was wonderful to look over and see them laughing.

And it was wonderful to come home to a husband who made dinner and cookies for Issa's school's bake sale. I got to spend the evening laughing with an old friend and getting ready to walk across the stage together.

Today, Shannon and Jeff come in. Tomorrow, I graduate for the last time. My heart is so full.

On Teachers

This is teacher appreciation week, and we are certainly grateful for all of the teachers in our lives. That being said, it's been a bit of a bizarre experience around here.

Evan's school keeps it simple. They put a note on the door recognizing the week and encouraging families to thank their teachers. We have always done a small gift of the kids' choosing for each of their teachers. Evan decided he wanted to do plants, so we set off to find the perfect ones. Tada:

 Yes...that is an ugly little bunny planter with mock roses. It wouldn't have been my choice, but Evan was in love, and it certainly brought a smile to each teacher's face. He is very proud.

Issa's school, however, has a traditional production, which became my production. A letter goes home a month before the week asking families to have their children write or draw thank you notes and send them back to school along with donations for a catered lunch. The notes are then assembled into books for each teacher. All of this was due last Monday, giving me a week to put them together. I received the last of the entries yesterday--the same day as the luncheon. The finished books did come together nicely--all ten of them:

We set tables and the teachers enjoyed a child-free lunch. The head of school kept the older students, and I kept all of the younger ones. Let me tell you, jumping from teaching college to kindergarten took me a minute! But...the teachers are feeling very appreciated.

Ironically, I am most appreciating a school the kids aren't even in yet right now. I took Issa on her first grade tour yesterday morning. We had heard wonderful things about the school, but I was absolutely blown away. The counselor did the tour herself, and she really got to know Issa and show her what she wanted to see, including the art room (with a kiln), music room (with a stage and instruments), and school garden. And the media center, Issa is in love. It's an open center, meaning Issa can check out books whenever she wants, and the media specialist is a wonderful woman who takes great pride in trying to keep as many books in kids' hands, rather than on shelves, as possible. Every teacher was warm and greeted Issa, stating they hoped she would be in their class. When we bumped into the principal, who was coming back from making an emergency science supply run for the third grade who was in the middle of an experiment and wanted to try it again to see if they got the same results (how cool is that!),  he shook my hand but then dropped to one knee to talk to Issa. Later, when Issa said she was worried about getting lost, the assistant principal was who walking past stopped, dropped to his knees, and reassured her. At the end of the tour, the counselor took Issa to her office, explaining that it was her job to make sure she loved school and that if Issa ever needed help she just needed to come see her. Really? I spent half the tour choking back tears. The school has no idea that I am in education, which made their responses and the things they shared with me even more impressive. To say we are excited for the fall would be a mastery of understatement. This mama's heart is happy.

School Party

We believe in celebrating big and for a while around here, so I had no problems with delaying Evan's birthday party at school a day--especially since he asked. The teachers in his school work four days a week, and a floater covers the days the regular teachers are off. Evan loves Ms. Barbara, his floater, but she's not Ms. Shirley. Ms. Shirley has been his teacher since he was three months old, moving up with his class each time they age up to the next room. Mondays are her days off, so Evan asked to wait to celebrate with her. People first; we're raising this boy right. So...we waited...and yesterday we celebrated.

Cakes for school must be store-bought, and Evan settled on this basketball cupcake cake:

 My goodness he's a boy! He asked for baseball plates, and he gave each friend a baseball as a prize. It is so fun to watch these kiddos grow up together:

 And Issa was thrilled the party was after school so she could come, too.

And this picture, while it is horrible of Issa, just had to be included:

Evan eats a cupcake like a squirrel eats a nut, and I have this picture from every year.

I actually teared up a little yesterday when Ms. Shirley pulled out her camera because she wanted pictures of the party, too, and when she could remember every cake he's had at school. We are so blessed that he has a teacher that loves him like a grandson....it makes going to work so much easier for this mama.

Happy Birthday, Bad Guy!

Our boy is officially three, and I think he had pretty much the perfect birthday! I spent the morning putting Darth Vader on a cake:

 I am much more comfortable with fuzzy animals, princesses, or ballerinas, so this was a huge stretch. We set up for the party on the island:

 He loved the plates, too:

Daddy came home early so we could pic the kids up and head straight to dinner. Evan could pick anything, but he chose McDonald's...despite our other suggestions. But...since he's three he made it all the way to the"tippy top" of the PlayLand:

 This face...this face made the morning worth it:

 And the best big sister ever made her brother a Darth Vader picture and one out of felt:

 She was absolutely awesome all day! She woke up celebrating Evan, and she made the day his, following his lead at the PlayLand and spoiling him rotten...melted my heart.

Evan moved on to opening his big gift:

 A shell bag and jar for our trip to the beach to celebrate his big day! That was exciting, but it couldn't compare with his little gift:

 A light saber. And since light sabers are no fun when you have no one to play with:

 Issa had no idea we had gotten her a big sister gift, and seeing her face light up was amazing. They had big fun battling it out in the backyard:

 And it wasn't long before Daddy got in on the battle:

I'd say it was a perfect day for our little bad guy.

Happy birthday, little man. You are getting so big, and we love you so much.

Birthday Celebrations

Happy birthday to our little man! We started celebrating yesterday by redecorating our little gingerbread house. Evan got to choose all the candies:

 Fish, worms, fruit slices, and gum drops. He was one happy kid:

 Issa was more than happy to help decorate, too:

 Here is Evan's finished side:

 Please notice the worms popping out of the frosting. It is apparently hysterical.

Issa did her side entirely on her own:

 And here is Evan's fishing side:

 The fish is eating the worm. It is also hysterical.

The little house continues to be a favorite! I keep waiting for the kids to get tired of it, but they are the first to point out when it needs to be redone. I won't complain. It's a fun hour in the kitchen, and I love seeing them become more independent and creative with it. I also have become the queen of royal icing--just saying.

And...everyone should wake up to something a little special on his birthday:

The balloon curtain did the trick. They are already a tangled mess from being batted about, but it was a great way to start the day! He was not feeling the camera, though, so we'll try again tonight. He has chosen Mc D.'s and the playground for his birthday dinner. (Daddy and I are a little sad about that one.) For now, though, I need to go put Darth Vader on a cake!

Yesterday was one of those nearly perfect days. Our morning started with a trip to the strawberry patch with some friends. Evan figured out pretty quickly that if you "accidentally" squeezed the berry when you were picking it you needed to eat it:

 As always, Issa dressed for the occassion:

 These two really are the best of friends:

 The strawberries are super sweet, too. We did learn one very important thing: picking berries in a big patch is a little like shopping at Costco:

 It looked like a reasonable amount in the field, but we came home with a little over seven and a half pounds of strawberries. That's a lot of berries. We (as in I) sorted and stored them by ripeness. Those that were really ripe, well, there was only one answer:

The kids and I made a pie. And we ate the pie while watching the Derby.That is pretty much an ideal day for me. It would have been perfect if Daddy was with us, but he's been at another conference. We can't wait for him to come home tonight. After all, we have some celebrating to do tomorrow!

To Remember...

I usually don't post about work, and I can't believe I'm doing it two days in a row, but I had one of those surreal experiences yesterday, and I want to capture the feeling in case I ever have doctoral students (which is not in my plan, but I have learned better than to say never gonna happen).

I was asked by a colleague to put together a conference presentation proposal based on my dissertation. The presentation would be a summary of my study and then an extension into the implications for pre-service teachers and those of us who teach them.

I sat at my computer--dumbfounded. It's not that I don't know the material. It's not that I haven't thought about these extensions; it's what I hope to be my next line of research. But...the idea of condensing three years of my life's work and one hundred odd pages plus the extension into a three page proposal was daunting. As if that wasn't enough, there was no one to grant permission, dub it worthy of submission. Throughout the entire doctoral process, there is always someone to sign off, someone to critique before anything heads out the door. It's how I learned, but it was also a safety net. A voice stating, "It's good enough; you're good enough."

Suddenly, they threw a few letters after my name and kicked me out the door. There is no voice to deem it worthy. I'm supposed to just know. It's a little overwhelming, a little humbling, and a little empowering...but mostly overwhelming at the moment. It's one of those little things that a doctoral program doesn't really prepare you for--but it should.

It was actually a wonderful reminder. Next fall, I will be working with student teachers, and my experience yesterday reminded me of those early days as a teacher, when they hand you some books, a classroom, and some students and say, "Go forth and teach." It's a little overwhelming, a little terrifying, and a littler thrilling...but mostly overwhelming. I want to try to prepare them for that moment...and it's good to remember what it feels like to be a little overwhelmed and a little thrilled all at the same time.

Soul Crushing

That is a big pile of grading. (I put the creamer from the tea service beside it for reference.) I want to cry. I do not want to grade. There are honors reports and lesson plan projects in that pile--all labor intensive to grade. Grades are due Monday. I can feel my soul being crushed by the weight of that pile.

*This daily dose of melodrama brought to you by me. I feel much better now...just had to get that out there.

Phonics is my Friend

Having a child that is learning to read and write is pretty darn hysterical sometimes:

She was playing with the letters on the refrigerator last night, and this is the sentence she wrote. In her head, she wrote, "Mom is very good." I got a good laugh out of it...and maybe a slightly bigger head.

Un is No Fun

I love decorating. I love celebrating big. I do not love the clean up. Hence, bunnies are still abounding:

Balloons and cards are still on the mantle from my defense:

And although it's a bit embarrassing, the leprechaun hops are still on Issa's doorway--and the tape from the Valentine's Day streamer curtain remains long after the streamers have been ripped down:

Oh how I despise un-doing the celebrations. But...we have a little man with a birthday next week, and I'm using that as my incentive to do all the un today. After all, I have a few surprises up my sleeve for next week.