God Has a Sense of Humor ;)

Today I suffered what might be the first Advent 


wreath injury known to humankind. While putting up 


the Christmas stuff in my classroom, I was carrying 


too much, started to drop it all, launched it back up 


into my arms, and wound up stabbing myself in the 


eye with one of the candles, leaving a piece of wax in 


my eye as well. Yes, I am that clumsy. Then I turned 


to find one of my students drawing a crucified 


snowman, or a snowman on a cross, whichever you'd 


prefer. True story. 


Tomorrow I am wearing my glasses and hoping for 


drawings of flowers and robots.


Edited to Add: Just noticed that this came out appearing to be some lame excuse at poetry, when in fact it was just an error in copying and pasting from another location.  And yet somehow, after the day's many misadventures, it seems oddly fitting.

Sending Holiday Cheer

When I was a little girl, I used to love to check the mail this time of year.  It was so much fun to see how many Christmas cards we received each day.  I loved to compare them.  The art work on some was exquisite.  Others were funny.  Some were cute.  I would love to match the personality of the sender with the card; invariably, the two went together.  I especially loved the vintage looking cards.  I recall my great aunt sending cards with images right out of Currier and Ives every year.  My grandmother used to hang all of the cards along the kitchen doorway and the moldings.  At the time, it seemed like she received HUNDREDS of cards.  I loved opening each one and reading what different people wrote, learning names of relatives and friends I didn't see regularly, and even comparing handwriting.

Now Christmas cards seem to be a thing of the past.  My grandma has just a handful of cards that she puts up on the foyer table.  No more garland of cards.  My parents no longer send out Christmas cards and so only receive a few themselves.  It is in fact a custom in which I have never engaged as an independent adult.  That's all about to change.  This year, I'm going to send Christmas cards.  I'm going to revive this wonderful tradition!

Shutterfly has a Christmas promotion and is giving away photo Christmas cards to bloggers.  I am excited to get mine.  Of course, I've been debating which one to choose.  Here are a few of my favorites:

I love the sentiment behind this card.  And the red with the black and white really pops.

This one is so pristine and fresh.  Aqua is one of my favorite colors, and I think it's a neat spin on the traditional red and green.

This is very pretty and classic.  Elegant, if you will!

I love the simplicity of this as well as the words.  I also love the edging and the color.

To get your Shutterfly Christmas Photo cards, check out http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards.  Or if you aren't into photo cards and would like stationary, they have a selection of those as well at http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards.  I have friends who are Jewish or who may not be all that religious, and they can find holiday cards on Shutterfly at http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards.

Which one to pick?  Maybe I'll ask my little pup, as the picture featured on the card will have to include him.  For right now, it's just me and the pup.  I am so lucky to have him!

Now get out there and revive a beautiful holiday tradition!

There Was An Old Lady Who. . .

As I glance over this blog, I realize anyone reading it would think that I am 84 years old.  I live in one of the most exciting cities in the country.  There is ALWAYS something going on.  An incredible live music scene.  The best restaurants.  Cool bars.  Festivals.  And yet I sound like I am an 84 year old lady.

Today I was trying to teach my children about past, present, and future tense (think on a very minor, basic scale), so I wrote on the board:

I WAS a baby.

I AM a teacher.

I WILL BE. . .

And then I hesitated.  What will I be?!  Given the previous two sentences, I felt I needed to write something significant and thematic, not just, "I will eat dinner tonight."  Or "I will walk the dog in the park."  What did I REALLY want to put when reflecting on this whole crazy life thing and the chronological nature of my sentences?  "I will be a mom."  OR "I will have a baby."  Or maybe the thing that would have to happen (for me personally) for those things to occur: "I will get married."  But I couldn't write any of those things with any confidence.  I felt embarrassed at my hesitation.  What was I really certain of in my future?  What could I write?

[Sidebar----deep moment for 11:30 a.m. on a stormy Tuesday with squirmy children playing with their pencils and picking their noses right in front of you.]

So I wrote, "I WILL BE an old lady."

They all burst out laughing!  And I said, "It's true!  It is!  One day I will be!"

Some days I feel like that day is NOW.  I live in this amazing city, yet I'm such a home body.  Plus chasing 6 year olds has a way of exhausting you to the point where staying up late to listen to live music isn't really an option.

Part of me is perfectly happy with my old lady nature.  I have embraced it.  Yet part of me still feels guilty about it.  Like I should try harder to be young while I am young.  Don't get me wrong---my clothes are in style.  Nobody will ever "What Not to Wear Me."  I guess having a mortgage and being devoted to your job and being the sole person to take care of and be responsible for every aspect of your life can take its toll.  Over Christmas break, I will try to connect with my inner twenty-something.  Which happens to be my outer-twenty something as well.  ;)