Hey Ya'll....I've been spending some time on my new blog lately..so check it out when you have a chance! It's a little bit of everything: thoughts on Montessori, education and child development, interesting articles or videos I find, personal reflection, photographs and poetry...basically, little bits of inspiration from the many different parts of my life.

Apparently LiveJournal's not doing so hot these days...

Well, folks, the time has come...

I've decided to transition from using a combination of LiveJournal and Blogger to just having one blog on WordPress...

Well, I'm halfway into my second week of student teaching in Madison. It's been an exhausting and somewhat frustrating experience and I haven't had time to sit down and really reflect on how it's going. My brain is so fried at the end of the day that I really only have energy to come home (which is Brian's grandmother's house in Madison) and sleep until dinner.  Then I help with dinner, then I lesson plan, and then I go to bed. And do it all over again.

I can't help wondering how full-time teachers manage to teach and have families at the same time.

It's hard not to have these nagging self-doubts come up as I fumble through another lesson. It would be so easy to blame the teacher, the classroom, the children, the parents. It would also easy to say how differently I would do things, set up the classroom, etc. But I don't really get to do that right now, so what I have to work with is the moment in front of me.

I could use a big pot of soup and some bread and some friends and a fireplace to cozy up to right about now.

Wow. It's like I never left. Classes started today for the second of three summers. It's going to be wild and crazy intense, but fun. I think.

Brian and I had an awesome time driving from PDX to MSP. We spent three nights in Idaho, one in Montana and one in North Dakota (not so exciting, except the almost tornado). Friday night we attended a Midsummer's Eve wedding, which was fun, and then spent the rest of the weekend hanging out with good college friends of Brian's. The couple I stayed with last summer while in training have a three month old baby, who is adorable. I'm looking forward to seeing them more, even though I'm not living with them this summer.

I feel more alive than I have in a while, even though I'm still exhausted. I didn't really get much of a break after school, but I guess I'll take what I can get.

It's been a busy, busy week and I won't burden people with more lists, but really, I just can't stop gushing about my new job! [Insert choir of angels here]

I've been teaching the lower el kids songs that I learned in 6th grade from an artist in residence we had named Russell Packard. We made this CD of folksongs from around the world, which I've been playing for the kids. They love it, and want to learn all the songs! It's so incredible to come full circle like this....

Never mind that it's still February--the daffodils are up and that's all that matters!

We walked to the park near school this afternoon and it was just gorgeous--not a cloud in the sky!

Here are 10 reasons why I love my life right now. I like to do this every now and then, just to remind myself that it's all good. In no particular order:

1. It's getting warm enough for Chaco's!
2. A group of boys in class made schnitzel today, without a recipe (Two of them are brothers from the Czech Republic). We had a blast--they were awesome in the kitchen
3. I get to teach Spanish!
4. The bus ride home today included spectacular views of Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens.
5. I bought strawberry ice cream last night. Yum.
   
6. I now get medical, dental, and retirement benefits.
7. I'm going to see this movie tomorrow night with my honey and a friend...plus there's a live jazz concert that goes with the movie! The Steinway from the movie is the one that will be in the concert!
8. Brian's going to be in a tae kwan do tournament tomorrow. (I know, that doesn't really relate to me at all, and I can't even go because I have my Korean class, but  I still think it's cool)
9. I'm finally finding my place in the community here in Portland...on so many levels.
10. I'm getting a massage next week. I. Can't. Wait.
11. Oh, but there's more: I get a two week spring break!
12. I'm going to see Krystel and Alexis and all the Gaia's in LA soon...
13. The NAMTA Conference is coming up...whee!
14. The days keep getting loooonger and loooooooooonger!

I want one of these!

Walking Home on a Sunday Afternoon in Portland, Late February

I pass doors thrown open, vacuums humming vigorously,
spring cleaning in full force.

Rugs are taken outside to be shaken free of dust and lethargy,
winter doldrums and ash from the fireplace.

Intimate nights huddled together in the dark are exchanged for
strolls outside, coats and scarves defiantly left at home.

Curtains are opened and aired, piles of clothes
set out to be donated, winter sheets put away.

Cars are being washed by dads and daughters, who gleefully snatch
the hose and summon the warmth of days to come.

Boys run around barefoot despite the half-hearted calls from inside
to put those shoes back in, or you'll get sick.

Too late for that. Spring's here. The crocuses are up and
the daffodils are clamoring for light and air, more, more, more.

I pause to admire all the gardens, freshly turned,
and the gardeners, eyes gleaming and skin glowing
as their hands plunge into the rich earth once more,
just for the pleasure of that earthy scent.

And then, there's the beautiful middle-aged couple, in their Sunday best,
kissing tenderly in the church parking lot--
his hands moving over her face as if he's discovering her all over again in this
new, strange light of the afternoon, the sun a little higher in the sky,
the new angle of light refracting a sensation they have long forgotten.
She leans into him, pulls him closer, laughing,
abandoning propriety for joyous spontaneity.

She's a little more wrinkled, he's a little more flabby,
and when they move apart they will get in the car and
drive home to what was there before,
but spring is here and they don't care.

Today was a perfect example of why I love living in Portland. It was a gorgeous sunny day, which granted, is an anomaly in January. But whatever. It was clear and warm and I didn't need a jacket at all! Brian and I headed downtown this morning so he could meet with his capstone project group and I could run errands.

One of our Christmas presents was a gift certificate to Sur La Table, my favorite Portland kitchen store. I scored a set of Wusthof steak knives for $30...they were returned, so not brand-new, but good enough for me! I also came home with a marble cheese slicer, which, while not essential to my survival in the kitchen, is fun to have. Good for parties and such.

This afternoon I headed out to the yard to rake up those wet slimy leaves. Lo and behold, little daffodil bulbs are poking through! Oh, joy of joys! It will be a few weeks before they actually are ready to bloom, but there are signs of life emerging everywhere. I was inspired to cash in another Christmas present, so I drove over to Portland Nursery and purchased an awesome large pot and various grasses and evergreens to make a container garden for our front porch.

Among other fun events of the weekend, Brian and I went to an awesome restaurant that I've been wanting to try for a while. It's called Screen Door, and it serves really yummy Southern inspired food. I had an amazing Creole-style seafood stew. The apple cake with ice cream was heavenly--I would go back just for the cake!

I also started my Korean language class! The instructor is a middle-aged Korean Portlander and Presbyterian minister (we're all invited to his church, any time). Think very Christian, sweater-vest, etc. It's pretty funny. But I think the class will be useful. There's a mix of people, some older, some younger, a few Koreans, a few adoptees, and a random smattering of various different interests for taking the class.

So far, I'm amazed at the orderly reasoning behind the alphabet, called hangul. It was developed by King Sejong in 1443 CE, a result of wanting everyone to be able to learn to read and write. It's a phonetic alphabet, which is immensely helpful. There are only 14 consonants and 10 vowels, and each "letter" consists of some combination of consonants and vowels. There are three different shapes of letters, one representing earth, one heaven, and the third humans. So each combination of letters has a balance of the three. How cool is that?