Everyday Adventures

Delphi 2010

2011-04-01T05:00:00.000-07:00

Clearly, I'm becoming a wee bit baby-obsessed! But I don't want to forget our lovely trip to Europe... in part because, with Mike's new job, I've been kissing him goodbye in the morning (during our 7 minutes of quality time) and often not seeing him again until the NEXT morning.

In comparison, the Europe trip was an embarrassment of riches. We had so much time to chat and sight-see. It was really just about the two of us. And as we move forward with the hectic pace of our current schedule, I don't want to forget that. I don't want to forget how important it is to make "just the two of us" time.

So.

I'm going to put up one more post for each of the places we visited. In Greece, we've still got to cover Delphi, Crete, and Naflpio.

Delphi is a definite contender for my favorite spot on the trip. We were only there for one day and night... but every moment was memorable. The Temple of Apollo was amazing... and much less crowded than all the Athens sights. The guidebook really built a picture of how these breathtaking ruins used to function.

The Treasury of the Athenians

Temple of Apollo

Theater (4th century B.C.)

Stadium for the Pythian Games

Next to the ruins was a perfect little museum--not too small, not too big, with a variety of pieces (small finds interspersed with statues and building ornamentation, dishes and jewelry placed next to huge blocks of marble).

After our investigation of the sanctuary and museum, we headed back through the modern town of Delphi. The alleys and streets were gorgeous, with plants growing on balconies and windowsills, then hanging down the warm stone walls. We had beautiful views on our whole walk back to the hotel, where we showered and rested before an awesome dinner.

Everywhere we looked inspired awe.

(Note to future Delphi travelers: the Acropoli Hotel might be a bit expensive, but it's worth it! It was our only Greek room that consistently had both air conditioning and hot water. And did I mention the views from the balcony? Gorgeous, as you'll see below.)

Dinner at the Taverna Vakchos: some of the best food on our trip. The salads consisted primarily of incredible olives. For an appetizer, we had fried local cheese with lime juice. And Mike is still dreaming of his entree--rooster with wine sauce on a bed of bucatini pasta. Our appetites were primed from all the hill-hiking, and the view was, again, truly awesome. We ate on a covered patio, surrounded by clean air and grapevines. Who could ask for a prettier dining experience?

March 2011: Belly Watch

2011-03-25T19:09:00.000-07:00

I haven't found the perfect March "belly watch" picture. So I need you to help me pick from the possibilities.

The perfect picture would (a) show off the belly (b) catch me on a good hair day and (c) at least suggest that I'm awake (as opposed to totally fatigued and spaced out). The photo would also be focused, with reasonable lighting.

This is actually harder to achieve than you might think, given that I now work twelve hour days with no benefit of caffeine. I'm also often asking coworkers (or my mom) to take my picture under the lovely fluorescent school lights.

And don't even get me started on the hair! Sigh. I miss the days of being able to dump chemicals all over my scalp for brighter, fuller tresses.

Farewell, various beloved toxins! This whole pregnancy thing is making for a much healthier me, in many respects. (Well, aside from the whole gobbling of Girl Scout cookies part...)

So... which photo should we put in Buffy's scrapbook? (Have I started the scrapbook already? Of course! It's called "nesting"... also known in certain circles "avoiding my grading.")

Feeling the Love

2011-03-15T17:55:00.001-07:00

Can I just say how much I adore being pregnant? Yes, it's amazing to grow a little person. Yes, it's awesome to feel her kick (often at odd hours--she's our little night owl already).

But what I really appreciate right now is all the love and support from our friends and family. It thrills me that we'll be bringing our daughter into a world with so many good people in it... especially since they're all ready to welcome her!

I've got loved ones all over the globe, spreading from New York to China. So many people, be they near or far, have offered their congratulations. It means a lot. Truly. On top of that I've got hand-me-down baby items coming my way. I've got experienced mothers (including my own) patiently answering my frequent (and ridiculous) questions.

When I came back to school after discovering the baby's gender, my gal pals at work surprised me with adorable pink goodies. It was the perfect way to liven up what I'd thought was a regular humdrum Monday. I was (and continue to be) grateful for their support and enthusiasm. Plus... how adorable are these baby clothes? Seriously.

Even my students are getting in to it. One of my T.A.s named my baby bump "Buffy," and some other kids tacked on "Jane." (Apparently "Buffy" was too informal, but the "Jane" just classes it right up... shades of Blue Castle, anyone?)

A whole class period--in which many of the members have issues with vulgar language--decided to give up swearing because "it might harm the baby." They've since begun policing my other class periods and have expanded their ban to include (a) all peer-to-peer unkindness and (b) "anything that might stress out Ms. D." It's incredibly sweet. All I can really say is "wow."

Chivalry isn't dead, folks. It is alive and well in American teenagers. They don't get nearly enough credit for their decency, so spread the good word!

Work in Progress

2011-02-27T11:30:00.000-08:00

The Europe trip: it would be nice to finish our blog entries about that... oh, soonish.

Why? Because there's a whole new adventure up ahead that I anticipate will pull focus from just about everything else. That's right: we're having a baby!

I'm due July 9th. I'm also past the stage where my students stare at my belly, wondering if I'm (a) getting fat or (b) finally pregnant. (I finally put them out of their misery and just told them... though it was really fun to watch them stew.) My belly finally looks like a baby bump, instead of just spare flab. Yay!

On Thursday, we had our second ultrasound. Baby is doing well and is quite active--the ultrasound technician commented, "You've got a wiggler on your hands!" We also found out gender: we're having a girl.

At 21 weeks inside Mommy, Miss Sassy Kicks already has some definite opinions. (I would expect nothing less from a daughter of ours!) She's a huge fan of peanut butter, and keeps begging Dad for more Girl Scout cookies. He's already fabulous at spoiling his girls, so we have quite the stash of Tagalongs in our pantry! I'm adding walnuts to everything I cook or bake, and we go through tons of milk.

Now, if only I could get her more excited about the benefits of gentle exercise for Mom... or maybe I'm just blaming my preference for napping on the wee one!

Driving to Delphi

2010-12-19T09:40:00.000-08:00

It took us five hours to get to Delphi--two and a half hours longer than advertised. If you're asking why, you've clearly never been driving in Greece.

The good news is that we survived this ordeal and, surprisingly, so did our marriage. And now that it's over, we can look back and laugh.

Several factors contributed to the long drive.

In Europe, they don't fill the rental car gas tanks... you have to do that. Our pit stop for petrol turned into a forty-minute odyssey--first trying to find the gas station, then trying to get back on the freeway after wards.
It was hard to match the map to actual driving conditions; some towns (and many roads) didn't appear on the map at all. Others were spelled multiple ways in English--on the map, on various road signs, and it made us nervous. (Lavidia, Livadia, Leveida... same town? You be the judge!) This made for several painful detours and mis-turns.
Our fear of getting lost had us driving through rather than around several towns.

Things got better once we (a) obtained huge bottles of water and (b) figured out how to turn on the air-conditioning. Still, Mike had to contend with a pretty crazy driving culture. Everyone in Greece goes fast, nobody uses turn signals, and the painted lines for lanes seem to be negotiable guidelines more than anything else. People love to pass slow (re: speed limit abiding) vehicles. It doesn't seem to matter whether the road is curved or straight, in the flat lands or the mountains. Cars were pulling all kinds of death-defying stunts.

Mike did what he could to assimilate, but our little tin can of a car was not made for aggressive driving. (Aggressive parking? Definitely.) The engine struggled every time we passed someone, turned a sharp corner, or went uphill. I could hear it humming frantically even as Mike would chant, "you can do it! You can do it!"

One thing's for sure: we will never forget our adventures in that orange Fiat Panda.

Sweet Teaching Victory!

2010-12-12T12:17:00.000-08:00

We interrupt the (probably) never-to-be finished posts about Europe in order to bring you a real-time life update: I passed my National Boards!

Here is a picture of me, triumphantly holding up the computer notice that I passed:

What does this mean, exactly? On an intrinsic level, there's validation for what I do. On a practical level, there's a slight pay hike. More importantly, it means my certification is valid for 10 years, so I've got a decade off from worrying about that particular maze of bureaucratic red tape. No longer will I be jumping through hoops to keep my job. No longer will I have to worry that, if I take a year or two off for kiddos, I'll be ineligible to teach when I'm ready to come back.

Never you fear... I'll get plenty of exercise jumping through other kinds of hoops. This is, after all, public education we're talking about. :)

Athens: Other Sites

2010-11-21T13:40:00.000-08:00

Other sites we visited in Athens included the Roman Forum, also known as the Agora. It was built by the Romans after they conquered Greece. While the ruins were very tumble-down (and the plaques were few and far between, we got an excellent view of some mosaic floors.

The Library of Hadrian was built in 2nd century A.D. and once contained a library, lecture halls, garden, and art gallery.

It may not be a typical tourist activity to attend the open-air markets, but this was one of our favorite things to do in Greece! The market in Athens did not disappoint. We enjoyed the shiny mounds of olives, as well as the butcher stations full of recognizable animals (as opposed to ambiguous meat blobs).

We toured several flea markets and plakas, but didn't really take any pictures. Then it was off to the Temple of Olympian Zeus (started in 6th century B.C., finished by Hadrian 7 centuries later) and Arch of Hadrian (2nd century A.D.)

The Temple of Zeus was truly impressive; it's the largest temple in ancient Greece and originally stood 360 feet by 145 feet.

Having traipsed about for a good portion of the day, I entered my "fatigued and obnoxious" phase of the tour. Poor Mike--it's a wonder he didn't pitch me over the wall into some unlabeled archeological dig. We cut through the National Gardens to get a respite from the heat. Hurray for shade!

I wasn't fully recovered, however. My attention wandered a bit at the Byzantine and Christian Museum... tragic, really, as it had a huge collection of art and artifacts pertaining to my favorite era of history. (By the time we got to the awesome display on the fall of Constantinople, I was like, "hey, look. More religious icons. Whatever." So sad!)

Athens: Acropolis

2010-11-14T10:55:00.000-08:00

Any sightseeing tour to Athens must include the Acropolis. This ancient "city on a hill" is quite awesome, in the true sense of the word. It still dominates Athens--you can see the ruins from everywhere else in the city.

As my travel journal will attest, words cannot adequately convey the grandeur of the ruins. There's no way to fully describe the experience of walking through ancient Greek ruins... of finally seeing the things you've read about for so long, of absorbing artifacts and staring at plaques that make history come alive. My original attempts to write about it involved such salient phrases as "this was cool" and "wow." Rather than bore you with such inadequate phrases, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves!

On our second day in Athens, we arrived at the Acropolis as soon as it opened. We worked our way slowly uphill, with many pauses for water breaks. (Athens may have few public bathrooms, but they've very wisely placed drinking fountains at all of the major sites... we were grateful for every opportunity to refill our water bottles!)

Some of our first sights included the Theater of Dionysus and the Odeon of Herodes Atticus. Later--at the top of the hill--we viewed both ruins from a breathtaking distance.

The Odeon, a music hall built in A.D. 161, still hosts performances during the annual Athens Festival. We attended a concert at night, but had to leave at intermission--I'd fallen asleep twice, and Mike was afraid I'd take a fatal tumble down the steep stone seating. (Oh, jet lag...)

The Theater of Dionysus: Reason for my grin? This is where Sophocles watched his plays performed during the Golden Age! These photos capture me thinking of of Oedipus and Antigone... having a literature/history geek moment of truly epic proportions.

The Acropolis contains some truly marvelous examples of "shock and awe" engineering. Everything was designed to overwhelm original visitors to the city... and it still works for tourists today! Here we are at the Propylaea, grand entrance to the Acropolis.

Our two favorite buildings up top were the Parthenon and the Erechtheion. It was hard to get good pictures, as the sun was merciless and the entire Acropolis swarmed with tourists. We did our best, though!

Parthenon:

Erechtheion:

Of course, the up side of having so many fellow tourists around was that people were always willing to take pictures for us.

Many of the original sculptures, as well as artifacts found during excavation and renovation, are now housed at the New Acropolis Museum. We had a lovely ramble through the museum at the start of our third (and final) day in Athens. Unfortunately, there were no photos allowed.

Perhaps one of the best things about the Acropolis was the view of other ruins. We got a sneak peek at the attractions we'd be visiting later.

the Temple of Hephaistos in the Ancient Agora (marketplace):

the Temple of Olympian Zeus:

Athens: Fabulous Food

2010-10-03T20:33:00.001-07:00

Apologies for the delay in blogging. Leaving the country for a month means that you have LOTS of house/yard work to catch up on once you're home. (Of course, it's totally worth it!) Then there's that whole pesky day job thing...

Of course, it's kind of nice to take a pause in the midst of my hectic to-do list and remember our lovely vacation.

At the moment, I'm having "taste memory" of some of the delicacies we tried in Athens. Unfortunately, our jet lag meant we slept through several opportunities to eat (a misfortune that was NOT repeated on the rest of the trip).

Generally speaking, we'd have two meals a day: breakfast, and late dinner (though often with a snack in between). This was easy to do... the heat made us crave water, not food! Dinner was always a spectacularly filling affair and often took several hours to consume. (The wait staff in Europe isn't quite so concerned with hurrying you through your meal... you can sit for hours at a cafe table with only a lemon soda, and they'll just let you be.)

Our best meal in Athens was definitely Xenios Zeus on the Mnisikleous Steps. To get to this taverna near the base of the Acropolis, we had to walk up several winding alleyways. The view was gorgeous: grapevines and rooftops.

We had an insanely tasty feast, prepared simply with fresh ingredients. The salad was one of the best I've ever tasted, though it was just lettuce, salad greens, and lemon juice. We mixed it with a taramasalata (fish roe dip). There was also super garlicky bread as well as an olive tray. And this was just the first course!

Next came fried eggplant.

When the calamari came out, we thought (a) "We didn't order onion rings!" and (b) "This must be the main course."

We were wrong. There was also fish, still on the bone and absolutely delicious... crunchy skin, tender flesh, and lots of lemon.

This was also the meal in which Mike and I discovered that we are not the biggest fans of ouzo. Bummer! Still, it was nice to try the local libation and get another (literal) taste of the culture.

Next up: some actual sightseeing photos!

Athens Impressions

2010-08-28T10:39:00.000-07:00

Athens hotel: Marble House Pension

Lovely owner who gave us maps and sightseeing recommendations
Inexpensive and within walking distance of major sights
Thin walls... experienced when the inebriated Australians on our floor locked themselves out, chatted merrily at the top of their lungs, and then vomited copiously.

Acclimating to Europe

This was my first encounter with a European shower: a tiny square of porcelain, water nozzle on a hose, and two drains... one in the tiled bathroom floor, one in the "stall" itself. Want some walls, or a shower curtain? No way. And hot water? Well... maybe if you're lucky.

Another common sight in Europe: the scooter. Scooters zipped between the multiple lanes of street traffic, often jumping up to the sidewalk to circumvent slow spots and scatter pedestrians. We saw lots of crazy scooter driving in both Greece and Italy. What we didn't see were helmets!

Athens itself

Our first day in Athens fell casualty to monster jet lag. On our second day, we woke up long before anything was open and strolled down the Dionysiou Areopagitou and Apostolou Pavlou. These streets, which border the Acropolis, were redone for the 2004 Olympics. Flowering bushes and trees lined the wide cobblestone avenues, perfuming the air with the scents of sage and sugar. We had the ruins mostly to ourselves--and we certainly didn't mind sharing with that tortoise.

Outside of this area, Athens was an exhausting blend of the ancient and modern. There were many Greek Orthodox churches and squares--not landmarks, just a beautiful part of the city.

Athens was HUGE! The city seemed to spread forever, a mix of bustling thoroughfares and narrow back-alleys. Even from the vantage point of the Acropolis, we couldn't see an end to the buildings.

It seemed that everyone in Athens smoked. There was an ashtray on every cafe table, and the smell lingered in the air--mixing with the oppressively sweet odor of rotting garbage. Also prevalent in Athens: feral cats. The stray felines were everywhere... in the streets, on porches, or hanging out at the ruins. The only exception was the Acropolis; apparently, only tourists feel compelled to climb that high in the heat!

Revote

2010-08-27T10:55:00.001-07:00

I put the top two pictures on the sidebar, so we could see them small. Which do we like--bridge background, or Tuscany background?

The Power of Yard Work Parties

2010-08-09T18:01:00.000-07:00

Thank goodness, it's not a jungle out there... not anymore, at least.

Check out these "before" and "after" photos and you may understand why we're so grateful to our parents for showing up. Thanks to both families for donating your trucks, tools, and time to scraping back the layers of awfulness in our front yard.

Our parents turned the driveway from Dandelion Central into a place we'd actually be proud to park our cars:

As for the transformation from Curbside Eyesore into Non-Embarrassing Bare Flower Bed... well, that took a little longer than one afternoon... (This one's worth clicking on the picture so you can see how bad it was originally. No, really.)

How did we tackle that shrubbery mess? It took months, but only because we get distracted very easily. It went a little something like this:

Step One: I cut out all of the old plants--including one sad, scraggly fir tree. There was also an initial weeding. (Note: weeds grow back if you don't, you know, put real plants in the bed. Who knew?) As you can imagine, this created quite the yard compost pile! (The picture is just one part of one hedge...)

Step Two: Mike dug out most of the stumps, but we had to hire a stump grinder for the tree.

Step Three: Our parents came over to help us weed and level the flowerbed, which we'll be covering with weed-block (and planting next spring). They were so energetic, they even moved on to some of the other flowerbeds, picking weeds that you can't see from the road. (So thorough!)

Thanks for all the help, family! We'll be sure to call you when we get brave enough to tackle the backyard...

The 2010 Photo?

2010-07-28T11:39:00.000-07:00

We are back from our amazing vacation in Greece and Italy!

I imagine it will take me a few days to organize the many photos we took... and even longer to clean them up, then post the generally interesting ones. (I sincerely doubt you all want to see pictures of every hotel room.)

In the mean time, however, I've decided to copy Tara's brilliance. On her blog sidebar, she's posted a family picture from each autumn (going back to 2006). I am going to do the same, and our 2010 photo will definitely come from the trip. So... which of the following do you like best?

1. Athens (in front of the Parthenon)

2. Crete (Captain Nick the Greek's boat)

3. Florence (Ponte Vecchio)

4. Montepulciano (Tuscan Hills)

Sun Lakes Camping Extravaganza

2010-06-28T10:14:00.000-07:00

To revisit my twin themes of (a) belated picture posting and (b) my families getting along... the Sun Lakes camping trip from Mother's Day weekend!

My sister-in-law (D) meets her family for an annual camping trip in Sun Lakes. Last year, D expanded the trip to include her in-laws (Mike and me, the eldest brother's family, and the grandparents). In 2010, the trip got even bigger! My parents joined, as did one of D's close friends. There were kids running around everywhere, food being cooked at all hours of the day, and some pretty cutthroat games of hand and foot.

Mike and I won every round, in case you're curious.

My father was happy to take Mike and James (Mike's middle brother) out for two days of fishing on Banks Lake. I spent a lot of time napping and snacking, though there was a poorly played game of miniature golf...

Giving Thanks

2010-06-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

I realize it has been quite some time since Thanksgiving. However, I recently discovered these photos on my sister-in-law's Facebook page. I couldn't resist sharing!

It's also worth noting that I'm so grateful that all of my families get along. Thanksgiving participants included: my parents, Mike and me, my brother and his family, plus Mike's brother and his family. One of my sister-in-law's closest friends even came along. It was great, and of course the food was fabulous.

Belated Mother's Day

2010-06-06T20:00:00.000-07:00

Recently, I went over to my parents' house for a belated Mother's Day celebration. My aunt and uncle--recently back from their winter in Arizona--joined us for a lovely lunch and a bit of triplet/L-Pie wrangling. A good time was had by all!

I enjoyed getting to catch up with my aunt and uncle. Then there was puppetry with the boys (they love to stick their hands in the bear's mouth...) and reading a Little Critter book with L-Pie. She found the mouse on every page!

I love watching my little family at their parenting and grand-parenting best. And I swear, my parents have the best toys at their house (to say nothing for the cookies). My old Fisher Price dollhouse? Always a big hit... and my mom can play with Hot Wheels for hours.

Here is Renae's beautiful present for Mom. I regret to report that I showed up sans gift!

Tigger-dorable

2010-05-20T21:26:00.000-07:00

Eleise, this one is for you!

For those of you who haven't heard the band Hey Marseilles before, the song is from their album To Travels & Trunks. It's the first track, titled "Marseilles."

Cross Your Fingers

2010-03-26T17:07:00.001-07:00

My Countdown Countdown

The Gauntlet

2010-03-07T20:14:00.000-08:00

National Boards. Good heavens.

The expression "biting of more than I can chew" comes instantly to mind.

I've been whining about this for awhile now, but I haven't fully explained it. So, for those of you not in the teaching biz, National Boards is a process akin to "super certification," a sign that the teacher in question's at the top of her game. To become an NBCT, teachers must meet rigorous standards--mostly through intensive study of their own classrooms. It involves videoing oneself (and one's students), analyzing those videos through a series of essays, and then submitting it all for peer review. That's right. Total strangers get to watch me teach.

(Commence emotional vomiting here.)

It's great professional development, but it's also incredibly nerve-wracking. There's only so much navel-gazing I can handle before I turn into an epic freak show. I'm so worried that my evaluators will confirm my worst fear: that I'm actually a horrible teacher. (Bonus worry: they'll be so distracted by my terrible taste in clothes that they won't even be able to evaluate my teaching.)

What's been really fun is having my teaching insecurities bump up against my writing insecurities. I've put off writing my essays because I fear showing them to anybody--much like the latest draft of my novel. This has made for some extreme stress!

Most candidates put in 200 to 400 hours of work in the course of their candidacy year... on top of full-time teaching responsibilities. Which is somewhat insane, considering that I grade 121 essays every two weeks.

Well, in theory. I've told my students they're not getting any work back until April.

It's true! The end is in sight. No matter where I'm at in the revision (don't lie: writing) process, my National Boards portfolio must be postmarked by midnight on March 31st.

Yeah, if you see a crazy lady at Kinko's/Fed Ex that night, it's probably me.

I'll be working down to the wire on this one. It's definitely time to assume crash positions and wait for the frantic e-mail. Any words of encouragement would be appreciated!

At this point, I'm trying to remind myself that projects are never done. They're just due.

Superbowl Sunday

2010-02-15T15:10:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to assure all of you that yes, in fact, we are still alive. We're doing quite well, but we're busy... and not with the kinds of activities that generate fun photo opportunities. (Oh, National Boards, how I loathe thee!)

That's right. I've been heavily involved in career-oriented navel gazing. But I did take a break to do Superbowl Sunday with the family. Mike and I joined my parents at their house. My brother's family was there, too.

It's a good thing I'm not a die-hard football fan... because I barely got to watch the game! Instead, I was chasing after nephews and nieces. Everyone was playing with blocks, puzzles, and potato heads. And the fact that they're tall enough to climb in the toy box and reach Grandma's spatula drawer? Good, good times.

(Click on the collages to make them bigger!)

Of course, the adults had a lovely time as well. My brother was thrilled to have a chance to watch the game. He may have been a little less thrilled about our birthday present for L :) It was a brand new Fancy Nancy book ("Way to go, Katie. It's got pink glitter on the cover." That's right, bro. I do what I can.)

The food, as always, was fabulous. And Mom made too much potato salad (shocker, I know).

All in all, it was lovely to spend a day with family!

Belated Christmas Clean-Up

2010-01-09T16:33:00.000-08:00

I'm ashamed. We just took the tree down this morning and de-holidayed the house. That took much longer than anticipated! In my defense, I didn't want to take down decorations while I was on break. That would be tantamount to acknowledging my return to work. And then, said return to work was so stressful that I fell asleep within two hours of coming home every day this week. So there you have it.

In addition to putting the decorations away, I've also finally downloaded all of the Christmas music to my I-Tunes. Next year, we won't have to bust out the CD player! It's a very exciting thought.

But as I was redecorating the halls and taking down the boughs of holly, it occurred to me that I never put up pictures of Christmas with Mike's side of the family. Without further ado, here you go!

Denise and one of her daughters

Mike and his brothers

other family pics

I must say, I'm so grateful that our two families get along. My parents have been coming to Christmas Eve almost since Mike and I started dating (and Denise and James have been bringing their family to Thanksgiving at my parents' house).

We gave our nephew E some DS games. He's right at that age where he can't quite read the directions for himself, but he's very impatient to start playing. So Mike showed him how to play the game...

... and then the brothers got intrigued by the game and took it away from young E. Ah, well. Boys will be boys, right?

I think the most popular gifts this year had to be the musical instruments, though. As you can see, everyone wanted to play!

Once the kids had unwrapped their presents they disappeared to enjoy the loot. That meant the adults had time to play games. This year, it was all about Hand and Foot... but I was too busy losing to take any pictures!

As always, we enjoyed the holiday. I am so grateful for our family--the one I was born into, and the one I was blessed with through marriage!

Christmas with Katie's Side

2009-12-27T16:03:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone had a lovely Christmas!

I am in process of going through many holiday pictures. It was easier to edit down the photos from Christmas at my parents' house, so that's what you get to see first. (The kids are so active that it's hard to get them to sit still. The adults are so busy chasing kiddos that they can't exactly pose for pictures, either.)

If you click on the collage, a bigger image will pop up!

We had a lovely visit. The kids are finally old enough to rip into their presents. Of course, they were just as excited about the wrapping paper as they were about their gifts! While little R ran around swinging a gift bag like a lasso, I managed to entertain his brothers for quite some time with a bear puppet.

It was good times!

A Midsummer Night's Flashback

2009-11-28T12:11:00.000-08:00

If you're on Facebook, you probably know by now that I was involved in a theatrical production at RRHS. No, really. Having a few hang-ups left about the whole high school experience, I approached the entire experience with trepidation. (As David T. joked, "Your journey to the Darkside is complete. Indeed you are powerful.")

Actually, it was really fun--helped me clear a few skeletons out of my closet and reminded me of all the good times. I had some serious flashbacks. It wasn't just the theatrical rituals (like passing the squeeze) or the familiarity of the space (sitting in my old chair in the green room while doing makeup). It was the kids themselves... the flirting backstage, the obsessive analysis of what a boy's actions might mean, and the excitement of a show romance. There were kids making comments I actually remember saying (almost word-for-word), most noticeably "I can't wait to graduate and go to a college far, far away from here."

It made me quite nostalgic. It also made me quite grateful that I am an adult now, and have weathered some of those self-identity storms! I'm sure there are more on the horizon, but I know myself much better now than I did the last time we performed A Midsummer Night's Dream at RRHS.

Now, if only I could reconcile myself to how easy it was to make me look matronly for the show... :)

Big Brother

2009-11-07T15:35:00.000-08:00

I love watching my brother with his kids. He is such a good dad! That's pretty much all I had to say... just needed to do a Dan shout-out (and really wanted to share this photo)...

Weekend Whirlwind

2009-11-07T15:10:00.000-08:00

Recently, we had a whirlwind weekend full of amusing events. Thought I'd share... we've been so busy lately, if I don't blog about it I am likely to forget!

On Saturday, we went to our nephews' third birthday party. There were presents everywhere but, not surprisingly, the boys were most fascinated by a tiny tear in the window screen. They kept sneaking over to widen the rip and eventually tried to escape the house! They were quite miffed when Dan rotated the screen and the rip was out of reach. Luckily, distractions came in the form of many wheeled toys. The boys really love cars and trains (which makes my gift-buying life so much easier...)

Unfortunately, we couldn't stay long... though our reason for leaving was also fun. It was off to Mike's brother's house, to watch our nieces get ready for Homecoming. (Lie: Mike just wanted to intimidate their dates, especially since one of them is apparently nicknamed "the Stallion." He is an overprotective uncle... I weep for our unborn daughters.) Don't the girls look gorgeous?

We spent the night at James and Denise's and then got up early to head towards Seattle. We met up with T and K. It was off to the pumpkin patch with their adorable toddler. Little A is big enough this year to actually enjoy the art of pumpkin-picking, to say nothing for all of the farm animals she got to see. A gravitates towards piglets and kittens... good taste, I say!

We are so lucky to live in beautiful Pacific Northwest, near so many family members and friends. Reflecting back on that weekend makes me so glad that I moved away for college... and so glad that I moved back. Now I can really appreciate my good fortune!

The Great Gaming Weekend

2009-10-31T12:11:00.000-07:00

I am lucky. I married into a great family, and I really enjoy my in-laws. James (Mike's middle brother) and his wife Denise host all of the big family holidays... as well as all of the not-so-big impromptu family weekends. I love those weekends. They usually go a little something like this: out for dinner, home for hours of board games and/or dominoes, and maybe a brief stint in the hot tub. Fabulous!

We didn't used to play so much, but then Mike and I discovered some great board games and decided to share the love. Now, whenever we get together we play one of the following:

If you're pondering Christmas presents for the upcoming holiday season, might I suggest these as a fun gift for a whole family? And while we're on the subject... what kinds of things do you like to do with your extended family?

Wheels

2009-10-30T17:28:00.000-07:00

Dear Ford Taurus,

I'm just writing to say that I loved you. You were my first car, and will always hold a special place in my heart. Forever will I remember your trunk space, your comfy seats, the cheap price at which I purchased you.

Unfortunately, my husband never fully approved of you. And so it is with heavy heart that I must bid you farewell. You were a great college car, but I'm moving on to a new phase in my life now. I'm no longer footloose and fancy-free, zooming cross-country while subsisting on peanut butter and jelly. Now I need a grocery-getter; something with luggage rails and a high safety rating.

I promise I'll never forget you! I'll think of you nostalgically, even when I'm driving my 2010 Subaru Forester. Her name is Babe, because she's my big blue ox of a family car!

Good luck with your next owners, Taurus. I'm sure they'll be wonderful. Maybe they'll even shell out the big bucks and fix your oil leak!

Fondly,
Katie

Goodbye, Summer!

2009-10-03T11:31:00.001-07:00

Today I didn't want to get out of bed, because I was so nice and warm under the covers.

It's official: summer is over.

All the signs are there. It's raining (or drizzling) more often than not. I have to turn the heater on in the morning. It's dark when I go to work and dark by the time I get home. Sigh. Summer, you were gone so quickly!

Fall, of course, brings its own pleasures... heartier food, cups of cocoa, and plenty of excuses to cuddle under an afghan. No mistake, I'm going to enjoy the pleasures of autumn. And yet I can't help looking back on some of my summer enjoyments!

My favorite thing about summer: a free schedule, that I spend trying new recipes and puttering around my home. Here are some pictures from one of the last (and best) meals I made all summer: peach roasted chicken with jicama-avocado salad, followed by blackberry shortbread for dessert. Very Pacific Northwest! (Let me know if you want the recipes. Everything was actually quite easy to make.)

The Dan Show

2009-09-27T19:57:00.001-07:00

Confession: I've been feeling kid envy. Yesterday I went to an open house for my cousin's third daughter (she is so cute and tiny--even more so in his gigantic, tattooed arms!) Then I hopped over to Tara's blog and read about K-Lady's first day of school.

It's official: the biological clock has begun to ring.

Unfortunately I have to hit snooze bar for the time being. Happy substitute? I'll share photos of my brother's adorable kids!

Here's my niece L-Pie, who observed Dan very closely as the first step to learning how to cross her arms. (And you've gotta love the Northwest look my brother's sporting--we're the only region that wholeheartedly endorses socks with sandals!)

And here are all the kids in the Alaska shirts I got them on my trip this summer (yes, they'd just woken up from a nap--can you tell?):

Woo-hoo! Doesn't my brother have a gaggle (posse?) of cute little ones?

Do the Puyallap!

2009-09-20T10:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we took a trip to the Puyallup Fair. Mike and I had a great time. As always, my favorite part had to be the barns full of animals (especially the piglets!) and we really enjoyed the food. It's a truth universally acknowledged that fair-goers must overload on all things fried. In addition to elephant ears and Krusty Pups, we snacked on fair scones, barbecue, and curly fries.

This was also the year I finally had the courage to do the Extreme Scream--what an adrenaline rush! The guys had wobbly knees for quite some time afterward. I was fine, though my palms were sweaty for the duration of the ride!

The best part of the fair, though, had to be hanging out with friends. T & K are our closest pals from my graduate school program. Seeing them, and watching their daughter A enjoy the fair, was totally awesome. A loved the petting zoo, and she really enjoyed the carousel. I can't wait until she's old enough to go on more rides!

(Very) Belated Holiday Cheer

2009-09-07T11:47:00.000-07:00

Since I just bought my first round of Christmas presents for 2009, I figured it was high time to post a collage of last year's festivities! As you can see, it was the year of the baby. For the first time ever, all of the great-grandchildren were under one roof (and that roof just so happened to belong to my Grandma G).

A good time was had by all... but I'm guessing the triplets enjoyed themselves the most. After all, it's not every day you get to strip down and play with Swiffers!

I really enjoyed getting to see my cousin Rose. She's a chef (as is her boyfriend) and they live most of the year near Yellowstone, working the big resorts. When they're not in Montana they're off traveling to an exciting new job opportunity (last time it was a stint in Las Vegas!) Needless to say, it's always a bonus when I get some face time with Rose.

The Dark Lady

2009-08-17T19:35:00.000-07:00

My husband knows better than to tell me what to do with my hair. He has, however, hinted rather strongly that he loves long hair and wants me to grow mine out. I've explained to him over and over again that this doesn't work--with thin, soft hair like mine it just ends up looking lank and disgusting.

His second desire is to see what I would look like with black hair (yes, in case you're wondering, Mike dated his fair share of Goth chicks before we got together). I can't do black--I think I'd look like a corpse. But I definitely went darker.

I also decided to do something drastically different in terms of cut. After all, I've had the same one for years now! So... here are some pictures of the change.

*Nerd question: did anyone get that my post title is a reference to Shakespeare's sonnets?

Love and Marriage

2009-08-15T11:52:00.000-07:00

Today is my parents' 40th wedding anniversary. Four decades of marriage: pretty impressive, huh? Even more impressive when you consider that they're high school sweethearts. Yeah, they started dating back when my mother was 15 (or, as she likes to say, "we've been together since we were fetuses"). They've never been with anyone but each other!

Over the past few years, I've learned a little something from watching my parents. (Before that, I was a teenager and I knew everything.) I think one of the reasons they're still happy together is that they're not complacent about their marriage. They're not lazy about it. They don't take each other for granted.

Instead, they still find new things to do together--they vacation in new places or try new things. (Watching my parents try Moroccan food for the first time = priceless.) They laugh together A LOT and still create their own personal in-jokes with admirable frequency. They're friends as well as spouses.

I hope, in 40 years, that Mike and I can say that we happily followed their good example!

Super Special Travel Plans!

2009-07-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

When I was an undergrad, I completed a Group Independent Study Project (GISP) on children's literature. What does this mean?

(a) I got college credit for reading Harry Potter
(b) I wrote literary analysis on Mary Anne Spier and Logan Bruno
(c) At age 20, I had a sleepover party and played the Sweet Valley High board game
(d) I made some excellent lifelong friends
(e) All of the above, and then some!

It was one of my best college experiences, mostly because I've stayed in touch with the other women in the GISP. After graduation, we continued to have semi-regular reunions. But then people started moving away from the Providence area. Now, we are spread throughout Boston, New York, Washington, and Alaska. So when we want to get together, we have to have a Super Special.

Those of you who read the Baby-sitter's Club books know the term "Super Special." They were the thick white books chronicling the club's group vacations. The GISP had our first Super Special last year, when everyone flew out for my wedding.

Starting tomorrow, we're on our next Super Special: GISP Alaskan Adventure! I can't wait. Everyone's been joking that, if our vacation runs true to the BSC model, we will care for adorable toddlers (and meet equally adorable men with accents) on our trip.

I am more than happy to do without both kinds of adorable. I am just excited to hang out with my friends and see Alaska!

I'm sure I'll have all kinds of pictures and stories when I return. For now, I leave you with an image from the first GISP Super Special:

Cute Couch Potatoes

2009-07-12T21:41:00.000-07:00

The men in my life know how to relax!

Clearly, I need to learn from them.

Summer Breaking Point

2009-07-09T20:16:00.000-07:00

Hi there!

After five months of neglecting this blog, I figured it was time to post something new. Rest assured, dear reader: my absence is not a sign of sloth. Rather, I've been running around like the proverbial chicken with its head cut off. The reason for this post? I've finally reached my breaking point.

Ah, break. It's such an interesting word. As a teacher, I am currently on summer break. But is that "break" as in "vacation," or "break" as in "to smash violently; to reduce to pieces"?

Good question. I'll let you know when I have an answer.

Here it is, only July 9th, and I already feel like summer has slipped through my fingers. All told, I've got ten glorious weeks to myself. But two of those will be devoted to teacher training. And I have tons of planning to do for next year.

That's right. I've got my dream schedule for the '09-10 school year. But with great opportunity comes great obligation: I've got tons of planning to do. Don't get me wrong: I'm really excited about next year. But I've been working every day and I still feel behind the eight ball. That closet picture? Yeah, those are the materials I brought home for summer review and revision.

And that's just the teaching job! Most of you know that I have a second ambition: to be a published novelist. Well, technically it's an ambition. At this point, I'm wondering if it's really just a pipe dream. I never seem to find time to write. I don't know whether that's because I'm lazy, busy, or scared. Maybe I just don't want to do this anymore, and I haven't admitted it to myself yet. Though I haven't been writing much, I have created an Excel spreadsheet to track all aspects of my non-progress. According to Excel, at my current rate of progress I won't finish my manuscript until March 18, 2010. Yes, I am an anal-retentive freak show: I've found a way to make computers criticize my snail's pace of composition.

So, we get to the crux of my breaking point: I want to hone better discipline as a writer. I want to feel further ahead in my planning for next school year. And I want, at some point, to relax. But I really don't think I have time to accomplish all of those goals, and I don't know how to pick and choose between them.

And oh, yeah. Minor detail: I'm a wife now. I hate the fact that this salient point comes at the end of the post. I don't want my marriage to be an afterthought. I don't want to hit my one-year anniversary (coming up soon!) and wonder why I wasted my entire honeymoon phase on lesson planning and creative angst. This is my summer break. I want to date my husband. I want to woo him with wonderful dinners and walks in Priest Point Park. I don't want him staring at the back of my head every night, wondering why I'm still busy writing vocabulary quizzes even though school's not in session.

When does it end? Better question: how do I admit that it never ends, so at some point I just have to take a break and/or stop?

How do women do it? How do we balance day jobs against personal relationships? When do we find time for our own individual dreams?

I've got a few weeks off from the daily grind, and I'm hoping to find a bit of peace. If you have any advice, I'd love to hear it.

Friends @ Wedding, Part II

2009-03-01T17:43:00.000-08:00

And now for a video montage (so much easier to make on my new laptop!)

More Wedding Pictures

2009-03-01T17:12:00.000-08:00

Yes, there are still more wedding pictures in the vault! You've yet to see the family photographs, and I'm determined to put together a Mike and Katie montage. But for right now, I'm going to share some great photo collages of our friends.

Here are the SU MIT graduates (and spouses):

Now for some of my favorite Eleise pictures:

And last but not least, the GISP (children's literature, Brown University... good, good times).

Our Honeymoon

2009-02-17T10:22:00.000-08:00

I know this is ridiculously out of order, and that Mike and I have now been married for over six months... so it seemed like the perfect time to tell you about our honeymoon! (Does that mean that the wedding posts are over? Oh, no! That would be too logical!)

Mike and I did something lovely for our honeymoon: we took a whole week off, and we spent part of it at home. We got married on a Saturday, hosted a brunch on a Sunday, and didn't leave for Cannon Beach (Oregon) until Wednesday.

You don't need the details of our mushiness. Suffice to say that we had an excellent time. We spent a lot of it lazing around and just enjoying one another's company. There were also long walks on the beach and some truly excellent food. We took a trip to Astoria in search of Goonies memorabilia and ended up discovering the Lunar Boy Gallery. Artwork for our home--what a great souvenir! (Real paintings, not just poster prints sold in the college quad! It's like I'm a real grown up at last...)

Last but not least, what coastal trip would be complete without a stop in Raymond (Washington) to mock the rusty two-dimensional statues?

The Year Without Pants

2009-02-08T12:31:00.000-08:00

Confession: I am absolutely infatuated with my brother's kids. Thanks, Dan and Renae, for giving me such adorable kiddos to spoil!

Yesterday was L.'s first birthday: cupcakes, party hats, and hours of play time! B. and I played "Toe Monster," a game that involves him running about and me crawling after him, trying to touch each of his tiny little toes. R. took a flying leap at me, and seemed pleased that I fully committed to rolling all the way back with him in my arms. At least, my assumption was that he was pleased--why else would he keep doing it until I was exhausted?

Meanwhile, Uncle Mike helped A. to compose a percussion masterpiece: yes, they were bouncing Mr. Potato Head parts back and forth off the top of a drum.

Niece L. watched all the crazy antics from the safety of her dad's arms, where she was glued for most of the party. I think all the birthday antics (to say nothing for guests) were a little overwhelming. That shy girl is such a cutie!

"Shy" is not a word I would apply to my nephews, especially since they've developed a delightful new habit. This involves stripping down to their diapers (although R. has grown adept at stripping completely, a habit that I'm sure his parents just love). I, of course, find this hilarious--especially when they grab the Swiffer after getting naked. These little guys could come clean my floor any time!

Zen and the Art of Knitting

2009-01-09T22:45:00.000-08:00

Let it be known that I am not a knitter. I am, however, a grateful recipient of all gifts involving yarn, skill, and beautiful clothing. One of the coolest Christmas presents I got this year:

Thanks, Theresa! I love my new mittens! (Does this mean I have to stop wearing my PEI pair all the time?)

Auld Lang Syne

2008-12-31T12:16:00.000-08:00

During my adolescence I thought it quite profound to discuss the question, "If you found out that you were going to die, who would you call? What would you say? And why are you waiting?" At the time, my answers (not surprisingly) always involved confronting the object of my latest heartbreak and/or secret crush. He would, of course, be moved to tears by my eminent demise and tragic love scenes would ensue.

Then I moved out on my own, and I was a bit too busy paying for electricity to worry myself with such matters. But now I have a husband, a house, and (gasp) steady access to health care. This is all wonderful. But I've discovered that with great security comes great complacency.

Don't get me wrong. I love my life. I love my husband. And I'm no longer gaining perverse satisfaction from imagining dire deathbed scenes. But it recently occurred to me that we've put off having kids specifically so that we can experience certain things and accomplish certain goals before we put our energy into parenthood. Sounds smart, right? And maybe it would be, if we didn't spend so much of our time (a) engrossed in the banality of everyday tasks or (b) whining about our lack of energy and lazing about the house.

So this year, I'm not making a virtuous new year's resolution. I'm not going to try to exercise more, or lose weight, or (heaven forfend) quit whining about things that annoy me. Instead, my resolution is to quit waiting. Quit waiting for the perfect circumstances. Quit plodding away at the daily to-do list and instead start crossing off things on a list I actually care about. Here are the top five things I'll quit waiting to do:

(1) Travel more. Mike and I want to take interesting vacations, but he keeps saying that we don't have the time or the money. To break us out of that mindset, I'm determined to orchestrate four mini-breaks to local destinations (one mini-break per season). In winter 2009, we will take the train to Portland, OR for two nights at the Benson Hotel. I've already made reservations!

(2) Spend more time with family. My grandmothers are getting older and my nephews and nieces are growing fast! Why guilt-trip over our lack of contact when I could reinvest that time in actual visits?

(3) Take classes. As a Christmas gift, Mike signed me up for an online writing class with Patricia Kay. I'm so excited! I'd also love to study some non-writing things. At some point (I don't know if it will be 2009), I would like to take Latin again.

(4) Finish Revising Mr. Right and submit it to at least four agents. This one's self-explanatory!

(5) Read five non-romance novels. (Aside from Water for Elephants, which many people have recommended to me, these are all books that I've started before and long to finish.)

Dracula (Bram Stoker)
Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
Water for Elephants (Sara Gruen)
Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945 (David Kennedy)
King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa (Adam Hochschild)

Whew! This turned out to be quite a long post (to say nothing for a long list). I'll wrap up with that most interesting of questions: what is your new year's resolution? Best wishes to you in 2009!

O, Tannenbaum

2008-12-19T09:18:00.000-08:00

Not to steal a line from Mariah Carey or anything, but I look at Mike and I think, "All I want for Christmas is you!" Just look at how adorable he is, sawing down our Christmas tree! Who wouldn't feel lucky to cozy up to such a husband all through the Christmas season?

This past weekend we went to a tree farm out on Yelm Highway to find ourselves a tree. It's the same one I used to go to growing up, and I couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic for the days when Dan and I used to run through the rows of Douglas Fir together, pointing out the ugliest possible trees to our parents and/or holding back wet tree branches to slingshot rain at each other.

Of course, now Mike and I have started our own traditions. Thus far, these involve (1) matching Christmas stockings (Mike's made by yours truly in a VERY rare bit of sewing and (2) bickering as we try to get the Christmas tree level and secure in its rickety stand.

On a totally different note: thanks, Tara, for the recommendation about Picasa! As you can see from the photo collage, I'm enjoying it very much.

Veni, Vidi, Vici

2008-11-30T09:56:00.000-08:00

I'm done with the 50,000 words.

I'm not done shaping my final draft manuscript.

I'm not even done shaping the part I'll send to agents.

But I won NaNoWriMo.

Let me repeat: I won NaNoWriMo.

You all know me, so you'll understand that this is a big deal. I managed to set myself a deadline and a goal. I managed to meet it, despite the delights of procrastination promised by my day job, my social life, and my utterly delectable husband (not necessarily in that order). I managed to write 50,000 words despite the fact that I had (a) 1 out-of-town visitor (b) 10 teaching coaches camped out in my classroom (c) over 200 papers to grade and (d) an overwhelming desire to watch 3 seasons' worth of Bones in the span of two weeks.

Throw in a partridge and a pear tree, and you have it just about right!

Suddenly, anything seems possible. Maybe I can actually make a go of this writing thing, even with my hectic day job. I'll be back in a week or so to offer you up my musings on life, and where I go next. In the mean time, I am going to put up Christmas decorations and put my efforts towards pampering Mike. (Hopefully, a week of cooking dinner will make up for all the nights he stayed clear of my writing space and subsisted on Honey Smacks...)

Thank you all for your encouragement as I tackled NaNoWriMo 2008!

The Writing Life

2008-11-15T22:46:00.000-08:00

I've yet to post on this blog about my other life as a would-be writer. Well, the time has come. It's November, and in certain circles November means National Novel-Writing Month. I'm deep in the heart of writing. What does that mean? I spend at least an hour every day obsessing about my novel, writing hideously purple prose, and then obsessing that I'll never be able to edit said purple prose into something I can live with.

But you know what? Despite all the angst, I think I'm actually getting better at this whole writing thing. If nothing else, I've finally acquired the ability to mock up interesting covers. (It helps to have a photogenic husband and a brilliant wedding photographer who's willing to hand over some lovely engagement proofs!)

But I won't lie. I still suck at book blurbs. You don't even want to know about the tragically awful blurb I had up on my NaNo profile for the better part of this month. Luckily, inspiration came in the form of my Writing Buddies (primarily Ciaralira and Flamez). Based on their brilliant blurbs, I managed to jazz mine up a little!

Revising Mr. Right: Book Blurb

Hard-working Jessica Jo Carter has fought tenaciously for her reputation as a brilliant, ambitious professor. She’s desperate to forget her past and find a place to belong, but one final hurdle may destroy everything she’s worked to achieve.

Laidback handyman Jude St. John has learned the hard way to play it safe. He likes to keep things simple, but that’s impossible when Jessi Carter returns to town. The last thing he needs is this dangerously sexy woman questioning the boundaries he’s set for himself. But the last thing he wants is the pain of watching her walk out of his life… again.

When circumstances throw Jessi back into Jude’s arms, she is faced with an impossible choice: to finally snag the security she craves, or risk her heart on the one man capable of breaking it.

Will this gamble cost Jessi her place in the world, or will Jude's love give her the home she craves?

Let me know what you think: of the blurb, of the cover, of my handsome husband!

Wedding Photos, The Sequel

2008-10-21T19:50:00.000-07:00

Wow! If the time it took to post this is any indication, I should have the rest of the wedding videos done by our first anniversary! My goal is to create two more videos (family and friends, happy couple). In the mean time, enjoy the rest of the reception pictures!

At long last...

2008-09-20T23:50:00.000-07:00

... Here, at least, is a partial look at the wedding! I will upload reception and bridal photos later. For now, I'm just happy to get anything up! (Please note: any awkwardness is entirely my own fault, as I attempt to use Windows Movie Maker for the first time. If you want to see my photographer's true brilliance, head to her website.)

High School Sweethearts?

2008-08-24T19:39:00.000-07:00

As some of you may or may not know, Mike actually went to RRHS! That's right: we could have been high school sweethearts.

Actually, that's not true. He was Mr. Shy Guy in the Hooded Sweatshirt, desperately trying not to be involved in high school. And I was Ms. "Ooh! Goodie! Sign Me Up For That!" Still, it begs the question... what would we have looked like, as high school sweethearts?

Courtesy of yearbookyourself.com, you can see what we would have looked like as high school sweethearts in 1992. How does our "look" change depending on the decade? Check the slide show here to see Mike and Katie, from the 1950s through the 1990s!

Enjoy, and let me know which one is your favorite!

Before the Big Day

2008-08-14T06:58:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are more details about the wedding!

The wedding and reception were both at my parents’ house, so that’s where we had the rehearsal dinner, too. All of this took place the day before the wedding. I really enjoyed:

The relaxed atmosphere
My father (who wanted to practice walking with me several times)
The fact that our different groups of friends got along so well
Mike’s brothers making a special effort to be there, despite the fact that I forgot to tell them they were in the ceremony!
Laughing so hard that my stomach hurt
Teasing my friend Eleise about her love life (poor girl! It was romance by public committee all weekend!)
Watching my brother play in the sand-pile with Mike’s nephew

The minute I woke up on August 2^nd, I just felt so happy. Everything was a joy, even before the festivities began! Some of my favorite “getting ready” moments included:

Mike calling me while I was at the hair salon, to see if I needed the earrings I’d left at home
The fact that Mike was at the house, dressed and ready, at 11:00am (ceremony started at 4:00pm)
Our fabulous photographer chatting with all of our loved ones
My aunts fixing a minor wedding gown issue (none of us really sew, so it was sheer slapstick)
Aunt Bunny loaning me the back of her earring
My friend Shannon doing my makeup
Bru, Shannon’s delightful husband, fixing the cake topper groom so that he had Mike’s facial hair.
Watching our different groups of friends sit out in lawn chairs, laughing and talking (and theoretically directing parking).
Taking family pictures—especially when the triplets got loose, and everyone took a turn at baby-wrangling the boys!
Maren, Eleise, and Theresa keeping me company before the ceremony.
Mike sneaking the GISP back to where I was hiding in my childhood bedroom.
Getting to see Russ before the ceremony, too!

Husband and Wife!

2008-08-04T15:05:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday (August 2nd), Mike and I enjoyed our beautiful wedding in my parents' backyard. The ceremony--lasting a mere 11 minutes--was great. I walked down the aisle to the theme music of The Princess Bride, only to be greeted by tulle-wrapped garden gnomes at the end of my stroll (long story, but suffice to say it was hilarious). Everyone was laughing or crying. Mike and I whispered private jokes to each other during the ceremony and afterwards, my grandmother came up to me and quipped, "It's a pity you didn't look very happy."

Yeah, I think my face muscles are still twitching from all the smiling!

Of course, I could agonize about a million tiny details or questions. What about the typo on one of the chocolate wrappers? Did I say "um" too many times during our thank-you toast? Were people offended that we didn't spend enough time with them? (What they say is true... it really did go by in a blur...)

But I guess the only valid worry is about whether or not our guests had as much fun as we did. I truly hope that everyone who came (especially everyone who helped out beforehand!) knows how much we love and appreciate them! We are so fortunate to have had so many wonderful people sharing such an important moment of our lives.

In the days before the wedding, my (adorable) father agonized over every detail, because he wanted me to have "my perfect fairytale wedding." And I told him not to sweat the details: I was going to have a perfect day because I was marrying the right guy. I was going to have a perfect day because I'd be surrounded by the family and friends who've supported us all our lives, who've taught us how to love with respect, compassion, and patience.

Well, I was right about the wedding. It was an absolute fairytale--one of the best days of my life. But you know what? The next day was even better, because I got to wake up in bed next to my favorite person in the world. I got to hear him say, "Good morning, wife!" and I got to say "Good morning, husband!" right back to him. Somehow, I don't think that will ever get old. Even when we're wrinkled and toothless, I'll still be tickled that I had the good sense to marry this wonderful man!

More details--and pictures--soon. In the mean time, I'm off to pack for the honeymoon!

Take That, To-Do List!

2008-07-31T14:47:00.000-07:00

On Monday, my mother hosted the last of our bridal work parties. We finished all of the crafty stuff for the wedding (including the wedding programs... aren't those cute? Well, trust me. They're very cute without all the sensitive information blocked out).

Now, I need to head to the mall for some last minute honeymoon items. I need to finish cleaning the house, whip up some thank-you notes, catch up my laundry, clean my car, take some stuff over to the wedding site, decide whether or not I'm going to iron, and tidy up the backyard. Ooh! Don't forget the grocery store and a quick trip to Kinko's. Did I mention that I have to write curriculum for an F. Scott Fitzgerald novel today?

Yeah, and instead of doing any of it I am obsessively watching the weather forecast and wondering how Saturday will turn out...

But lest this blog entry sound too narcissistic, let me assure you that I'm not the only one from the old high school crowd currently enjoying an eventful summer. Tara had a beautiful baby girl on July 20th, and tonight Dawhud (yes, you know him by a different name) is celebrating the release of his first album: Basement Sessions. Congratulations to everyone!

Just Say No To Stress

2008-07-21T11:36:00.000-07:00

There's a tiny, terrifying countdown in my planner. Today, it proudly proclaims, "12 days until Kate gets hitched!" As the pressure mounts and the to-do list grows, I find myself less the Blushing Bride and more a crazy stress case.

I'd feel better, I suppose, if the alterations on my wedding dress were done. No such luck--last Friday, when I was supposed to take it home, the lumpy bodice issue had yet to be fixed. I regret to say that there were tears. My mom did her tight-lipped, efficient anger thing. Hey, presto! They're going to do their best... I don't hold out much hope, given their track record. But you know what? I have a fabulous photographer who's a whiz with Photoshop. So, if nothing else, I'll look good in the pictures!

Luckily, my soon-to-be-husband is adept at dealing with what we like to call the "Katie Kaboom" phenomenon. When I shared fears that I thought my dress might be ugly, he said, "Honey, you could show up to the wedding in a bath towel and you'd still be gorgeous."

Sweet, no? I'm so glad I'm marrying him! I'm trying to remind myself that that's the important thing. I want to take a day to just go lounge at the Naked Spa and ponder the deep meaning of marriage... but I'm not sure I'll be able to. After all, I have luminaries to make...

Any advice on how I can calm down (without torturing Mike, that is)? Is there any way I can stubble the stress and enjoy my last few days as an unmarried lass? I want to be a gracious bride, not Bridezilla!

My Bridal Shower

2008-07-14T11:33:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, my aunties (and Grandma G!) threw me a bridal shower. It was so fun, and I felt so well-loved! Now my kitchen feels well-loved, too--it's jam-packed with goodies! And I must tell you, it's lovely being related to so many crafty women... though occasionally I feel guilty that I can't (a) crochet afghans (b) make adorable centerpieces or (c) wrap gifts attractively.

Highlights of a grand shindig:

Just getting to see everyone! Don't you hate it that, as we all get older, we have less time to relax with our family and friends? Needless to say, hanging out at the shower was a treat!
Aunt Elaine organized a game where we all had to feel kitchen utensils wrapped in paper bags. I regret to say there was rampant cheating on one side of the circle... and rampant tattling on the other side. :)
Annalisa dressed up the cover for "Lover's Touch" with hilarious speech bubbles ("Oh, Katie! The game has just begun!")
Aunt Marla and Melissa put together the cutest themed centerpieces for each little table. My favorite? They were all super cute, but I loved the breakfast centerpiece (which included several mixes, honey, jams, and a scone pan, all wrapped up in a cute arrangement!)
Cheryl introduced herself to everyone as "the ex-boyfriend's mother," which definitely got some laughs. (Fun... my future mother-in-law really has a blast with her.)

Thank you to the party planners and everyone who came! I know this is a busy summer, and I appreciate the time and effort you took to make it a special event.

Tammy's Wedding

2008-07-07T16:49:00.000-07:00

This holiday weekend, I was at my friend Tammy's wedding in South Carolina. I just got back from the longest airplane adventure of my life, and I'm exhausted. But I couldn't resist putting up a few photos. Aren't these great?

Tammy and Ahmad were married in an intimate ceremony on Kiawah Island, their favorite vacation spot. Tammy, as you can see, was quite gorgeous--and terrifyingly organized! There's no way I'm going to pull off this kind of elegant, seamless affair.

The flip-flops in our welcome bags came in handy as we explored the island. In addition to the wedding, we all went to the resort's Fourth of July buffet and saw some truly spectacular fireworks. Other fun memories from the trip:

Ahmad and Tammy took us to one of their favorite restaurants, where we had buckets of shrimp and oysters. Yum!
Maren and I indulged in an ocean dip, despite the fact that we'd forgotten our bathing suits. I love swimming in the Atlantic--it's so warm!
Tammy wanted a traditional girl-gathering before she got married at 6:30pm. So we met for an early lunch consisting of kimche, Ramen, and gossip!

The best, by far, was watching Tammy and Ahmad staring at each other in that gooey newlywed fashion. Their ceremony was truly moving, and they have my congratulations and best wishes!

Deep Thoughts at 3AM

2008-06-25T03:21:00.000-07:00

For your Transcendentalist pondering tonight, a quote from Henry David Thoreau's Walden: "Our life is frittered away by detail. An honest man has hardly need to count more than his ten fingers, or in extreme cases he may add his ten toes, and lump the rest. Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumb nail."

I ran across this quote in my mad scramble to amass curriculum for 2008-2009. (I know, I know--it's only June. But these things have a way of sneaking up on me, so I'm trying to be proactive.) The quote struck me as particularly fitting for this point in my life. It's a very special summer: I'm getting married to an absolutely wonderful man. I can't wait to get started on this next phase of my life; sharing the daily joys and sorrows with my best friend... who, after four years of dating, can still make me tingle whenever he smiles at me. How lucky am I? (Very lucky--yes, I know!)

And yet, sometimes I forget to prioritize my relationship. Sometimes, the wonder and frustration of love gets pushed aside by laundry and grocery shopping. I can't focus on the important things, because I'm too busy defrosting dinner and obsessing about work drama.

So how do I change? I want to enjoy my life. I don't want to "fritter away" this amazing summer worrying about things I can't control... or working on things I don't really care about. So, how does a high-strung perfectionist with a long to-do list learn to take a breath and enjoy the little things? How does she learn to let go of all the needless minutiae?

I have no idea, but it's my goal to find out.