Out & away

This weekend I'm in Lake Tahoe helping a friend celebrate her upcoming wedding this August. I must admit that packing for a bachelorette party/weekend extravaganza almost 6 months pregnant should be outlawed. But besides that, I've been loving every minute of this girls weekend.

little things

one of the best parts of knowing if you are having a little girl or boy

is finally feeling how "real" it is all becoming

one of the fun perks of knowing we are having a little girl this fall

is getting to finally go shopping

and that's what the husband and I did last night

hello target clearance rack - got just a few little things for next summer

 bows, floral, stripes & polka dots

yes please

we are having a little GIRL!

well, we were feeling girl

our friends and family [mostly] were feeling girl

and let's just say I was pretty excited to find out today 

that yes, we are having a little girl!

I pretty much can't explain my excited-ness right now

so I will try again tomorrow!

the one thing I can say is my husband is officially on the awesome husband list

for giving me what I deep down really wanted

so yeah, thanks for that

over a year in the making

a little over a year now we acquired several pieces of 

danish modern/mid-century furniture

and one of the coolest pieces was a three seat sofa with attached side table

the only downfall was it was super original

meaning some awkward cream pleather cushions [see below]

so I tried to make do with some pretty pillows

but part of making room for baby has also been making sure we do all those "things"

that can easily get put on the back-burner

no longer a questionable sofa, just awesomeness

thanks to the owner's of Scout Living for referring us to Standard Upholstery

we couldn't be happier with their work & our new addition to our home

20 weeks

oh yeah baby, half way there

officially five months along and only TWO more days until we know the biggest

most exciting news we have had in quite a long time [boy or girl]

and honestly, at the moment, I can't think of bigger news

that the husband & I have ever waited for

so, speaking of the mr.

I figured he deserved to get in these pics too for the little half way party

we had on the street

so yeah, happy sunday

and currently baby is moving all around

which must mean one thing, and one thing only

baby supports mommy's blogging obsession

at least that's how I'm taking it

so you can only imagine how excited I was when I felt baby for the very first time

after finishing playing in our 8th grade vs. teachers slow pitch softball game

on the last day of school

clearly, future ball & glove kind of little one

rebranding teaching

so, when we think of teachers many of us are still stuck with the 

old fashion images that have been associated with education for generations

however, as great as apples and pencils are

I have always felt like they were a little lacking to what the profession has truly become

the dedication

the imagination

the inspiration

the effort of the amazing people out there who call themselves teachers

realizing that education is kind of my thing, a friend, Dawn Steinbock, shared with me this

a new taking on branding teaching

and I'm kind of in love with it

all images here

learn more about the rebranding project done for Studio 360 by Hyperakt

and see Dawn Steinbock's own design work here

also, all the images seen here, and the rest of the branding project 

are available to download here

and I'm thinking that a few of these images will be making their way into my classroom

this fall

19 weeks

I'm starting to realize this week a few things

that baby of mine was sure busy making sure that they had plenty of room

by making me look very pregnant very early

but it seems like the last couple of weeks there haven't been many changes

so I guess for the moment little lewis is quite comfortable

and another thing is still true

black is slimming, even with a baby bump

the one change this week is I'm starting to have baby dreams

most recently, they have been about our big upcoming ultrasound

where we find out boy or girl - finally!

but the fun pregnancy twist, well of course, who was the ultrasound technician

well no other than Randy Fenoli from Say Yes to the Dress 

talk about a fabulous appointment

I'm sure mine will be exciting, but probably not as fabulous

so nesting is kind of addicting

well I think I can officially say that I am in crazy nesting mode

while working on some masters homework I decided that this afternoon it was dresser makeover time

and that's exactly what I did

in under three hours from start to finish I was snapping these pictures

I was on a crazy mission

and now I am happy

for the day at least, who knows what tomorrow will have in store for me

the best part was getting to put little lewis' goodies away somewhere

and not just sitting in a shopping bag on the floor of the bedroom

the place where they had been collecting for the past couple of months

also, Luna was a perfect angel today for me while I had the house turned into a 

painting war zone

so bottom line, second trimester of pregnancy means more energy than all the starbucks in the world

making room for baby part I

this week the husband & I started officially making room for baby

when we first found out we were expecting 

our initial plan was to move over the summer and buy a house

however, buying a house means leaving our neighborhood

a neighborhood, which, I may be biased, but I do believe to be the best part of 

our state's capitol 

so, as soon as we officially realized we were going to be staying in our one bedroom flat

for at least another year

it was time to start making room for baby

and even though there is only one official bedroom

we technically have two living rooms

and one will be turning into little lewis' nursery in the coming months

here's some ideas I'm currently bouncing around

1. crane mobile  2. colors  3. lamp  4. rug  5. crib  6. alphabet

but for now I will keep organizing and cleaning out what we already have

and only six more days until we find out if we are having a boy or girl!

new reasons for a happy day

this father's day is something I have been waiting for for quite some time

a reason to celebrate the day again

losing my dad at only 19 has made this holiday less than wonderful for the past 8 years

but today I get to spend the evening with that mr. of mine

celebrating father's day in a very new way

can't wait for him to get home from work so he can open his presents

as we continue to get more and more excited with each passing day

about our little november arrival

as for today, I'm thinking spending it poolside with some of my favorite ladies

mom & grandma

sounds like a pretty great way to spend the day

18 weeks

first off, let me start by saying I am absolutely in love with my baby bump

 ok, with that being said, I am NOT in love with how many people treat pregnant women
and when I mean pregnant women
I mean ME
now let me start this little moment by reminding everyone of the stats
I'm 5'3 and have about 4 inches of waist from hip to rib, if I'm lucky, and stand tall
needless to say, this little lewis has not many places to go but out and say hello

however, the constant comments about my size from everyone on the planet is getting
just a tad old
and just like we tell our kids
if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all
apparently that goes out the window as soon as you are showing
and even though I am probably receiving an equal amount of praise as I am negative comments
we all know which ones stick in our heads
in fact, I had a little meltdown on monday night because I had just had enough
enough of "well, clearly it's twins" [just one]
"I showed a lot faster with my third child too" [first baby]
"you are really packing on the pounds" [I've barely gained any weight actually]
"you must not be watching what you eat"
[in fact, my healthy food choices are no different than before]

so here's what I'm saying
people, just keep your mouths shut
if I don't know you, I probably don't need you guessing my due date is in the next two months
when really, it is in five

also, I'm realizing I just need to stay close to home in my neighborhood
because I am getting some of my biggest compliments from the wonderful
gay men that live in my part of town
they are so kind to me and my appearance
 and right now I can use all the kind words possible

however, on the most awesome side ever
this week I can officially say that I am feeling the baby kick
and just as the doctor predicted the last time she was trying to get a heart beat
baby is very mobile
and I am very ok with that
it makes all the negative comments melt away pretty quickly

a school year in review

it wasn't really until today that I got a little sentimental about this year

even when I am ready to move on to next place

saying goodbye to a classroom is the hardest thing for me

I just kind of stand there and take it all in

thinking about how many hours I spent in that room

and all the amazingness that happened between those four walls 

so I decided to spend a little time reflecting on this year

and I've put together a list of a few of my favorite posts from this year

#1 Why Study History and a Bit of a Middle School Rant

I love looking back and seeing how far I've come this year

my first couple of weeks were such an adjustment

I literally thought this year was going to be an impossible journey

#2 My Day

Our debate on Loyalists vs. Patriots was a day to remember

they were so prepared and enthused about the entire lesson

it was truly one of those days when I began to realize how awesome middle school can be

#3 Confessions of a First Year History Teacher

The learning curve was pretty big this year

and I quickly learned how little I really knew about U.S. History

I must admit I feel like a better citizen after this year

#4 Sunday's "So They Said"

A few years back I had done a poetry reading with my 6th graders

but I must admit doing this type of activity a second time around proved very sucessful

getting to have the kids read their original pieces of poetry on Andrew Jackson

was a favorite day for me and the kids

#5  Coffee, Candy Canes, & Constitutional Conventions

 I found as many ways as possible to have my kids debate this year

their compromises and thought processes were so amazing to me

and man, did that information really stick with the kids

 they made me very proud when reviewing for the big end of the year standardized test

they were quoting this debate, months later, success

#6 "So They Said"

And finally, I learned that not all conversations with middle schoolers 

were going to be "on topic", especially when chaperoning school dances

but one thing is true, they always knew how to make me smile

and that's what I'm going to miss the most

so there it is

a quick look back at my year in 8th grade

see the rest of my middle school years here

and now the reality has sunk in

I'm not going to work tomorrow

let the nursery planning/baby prepping begin!

and then year five was done

today was the last day of school

and officially the end of my fifth year of teaching

and if you have been reading long, it also happened to be the end 

of my first year in middle school

something I realized may have my name written all over it

so yes, my pink slip hasn't been rescinded

and it will be a wait and see game again this summer

but one thing is true

today I said goodbye to my students with no tears

and just happiness as I send them off to high school with my tagline

"go do great things"

they left me with some pretty great messages as well

and when you are packing up your things once again

getting to spend a couple of minutes reading all their messages is kind of the best way 

to end the year

so thanks middle school, you're alright in my book

so year six, what will you have in hold for me?

middle school again, I'd be ok with that

ten on ten [june 2012]

1. morning dishes  2. summer fruit  3. luna  4. watering succulents  5. summer wedding invite  6. salads ready for today's b.b.q.  7. yum  8. root beer floats, this summer's staple  9. knick knacks  10. good night

happy ten on ten everyone

85 years

yesterday was for seeing best friends

spending time with family

and most importantly, celebrating my grandma's 85th birthday

thanks to meg & dawn for helping snap our day yesterday

17 weeks

the past few days have been amazingly perfect weather wise

we even had a little rain yesterday

and seeing as it came and went in one day

it was perfect for the beginning of june

and something we probably won't see again for months

things are winding down pretty quickly now at school

and having some fabulous T.A.'s to help with the packing has been amazing

especially with the belly I've got going on lately

so tomorrow is our last actual "work" day in class

then off to the waterpark on thursday

yearbook signing and paper pass back on friday

and rounding out the afternoon with a staff v. 8th grade softball game

I think I can handle that

best of both worlds

well one thing is true

I love me some history and some indie rock

well, when that indie band, formally the format (front man at least), now fun. makes it big

they get a large enough video budget to make a video like this

Get More: fun., Some Nights, Music, More Music Videos

fun. + civil war + a husband that texts me this video link = happy monday to me

and seeing as it will be another late night at work

8th grade graduation ceremony later, I needed the pick me up

this did really just happen

well weekends when I have class are typically less than exciting

however, getting a text from the sis right as I was leaving class

letting me know there was an impromptu pool party happening at grandma's

was pretty perfect and I was there in no time

and seeing some kids in their early 20's who now live in san francisco (brrrrr)

that grew up in las vegas, hawaii, and oh so sunny sacramento

was pretty hilarious

as you can see from the above shot

yes they do have mad swimming skills

and no, they don't get to use them often