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May 28, 2006

Birds gotta eat too.

Earlier on this warm and sunny morning, the kids and I were sitting on the back porch watching the birds. I asked Owen if he knew what birdies ate. He said something about the mulberry tree, which has berries on it that the birds do eat. Then I told him that birds eat worms, to which he replied, "no no, birdies no eat worms." It was time for a little lesson. So, we watched some birds pecking at the ground, and I explained that the birds were looking for worms.
About 30 minutes later, I was picking up some lumber and building materials that have been sitting on our driveway forever. Under a board, there was a family of worms, so I called Owen over to see them. He was very excited, and immediately, in his intense voice, he looked around the yard and yelled, "Birds! Birds! Come!"
Wasn't that thoughtful?

Posted by amy at 11:43 AM | Comments (1)

May 26, 2006

School's Out

Today was the students' last day of school. It was nonstop from the time I woke up and shuffled our kids out the door by myself, since Duff is out of town. I really had a great year. I am glad that I decided to work this past year and get one more under my belt, but now I am ready to stay home a while. It feels like a maturing thing--I'm ready to take it on, and I see the need for it. Owen needs the structure and the deliberate attention, and Carly just looks at me like I'm the air she breathes (ya know I love it).
It just felt so strange today when the kids left. I got some gifts, some hugs, "I'll miss yous", and such, but then they were just gone. The year went so fast, and there goes another group of kids. I hope that I did good by them. Forever, I'll be their fourth grade teacher. That is one of the mystical things about teaching. "A teacher affects eternity. He can never tell where his influence stops."-Henry Adams. It's one of the things that keeps drawing me to it. I really have thought about teaching a lot over the past year, and Duffy and I have had some good discussions trying to come from all sides. My conclusions at the end are
-yes, it can make a difference,
no-we don't do it for the money, and
yes- I could do something else, lots of things, but this is what keeps calling me. The principal said some kind words about me at the fourth grade awards ceremony today, and announced that I wouldn't be teaching next year. It felt good to be recognized for my work. One of my goals is to be bring some respect back to the teaching profession.

By the way, Duff is in New York (and I want to be there so bad), some of our best friends just moved across the country, and today was my last day as a teacher for a while. Needless to say, I'm feeling melancholy. (thoughtful sadness, pensive meditation, depression of spirits).

Posted by amy at 10:25 PM | Comments (0)

May 14, 2006

Month of May

May is a great month for me. I celebrate my birthday, wedding anniversary, and Mother's Day all within 2 weeks time. This year, the anniversary outweighed the rest. We have been married 5 years. I really feel like this is one of the bigger marriage milestones. I've heard things about the divorce rate dropping sharply after five years (not that that has ever been a thought), and it is the big one that we talked about when we first got married. We said on our 5th anniversary that we would go back to our honeymoon spot, and we wondered, "wow, I wonder where we'll be in five years. we might even have kids by then." Yes, five years have gone by, and we even have kids. Going back to the honeymoon spot is another story. Instead, we got a sitter for O, and took Carly with us to Ikea. We bought ourselves some pictures to hang on our bare walls, and then we went to a local greasy spoon and had milkshakes. We did have some teary moments being thankful for our marriage, and how far we've come. I think we've both grown a lot, and are better able to love each other as the time has gone by. I just couldn't be happier, and it is nice to feel like we are where we are supposed to be. I'm pretty sure that I have the best husband ever.

Posted by amy at 11:58 PM | Comments (0)

May 11, 2006

Busy

"I never want to be so busy that I can't answer the mail." 'Mister' Fred Rogers

As cliche as it sounds, we've been busy. The kind of busy that we want to get away from with me staying home in the fall. The worst is having to wake up the peacefully sleeping 2 year old and 3 month old, just to put them in the car for a half-hour ride. It also starts to get tough when I've been saying for a week and a half that I need to give my daughter a bath (did I just admit that?). I look forward to giving them stability, routine, and nurturing. I look forward to taking care of my own children. I like teaching a lot, but it will still be there in a few years. My new role is household manager. My kids will eat healthy food, the house will be livably clean, and I'd even like to send out birthday cards on time.

We spent the weekend in the north Georgia mountains for a church retreat. There was a good combination of meaningful conversation, fresh mountain air and playing games till 2 in the morning. It is a privilege to be part of such an amazing group.

Posted by amy at 10:04 PM | Comments (0)

May 02, 2006

Go Braves

We just got back from yet another baseball game. We have become regulars at Turner Field, and we're lovin' it. We drive by the field every day on our way to and from work, and every single time Owen gets so pumped up--"baseball! baseball!," and then he proceeds to swing his arm up and down in a very intense Braves chop-"ohhh, oh, oh oh oh" He can also do a "charge" right on cue, and that always entertains the fans seated around us. I, too, have become a faithful fan, and finally broke the news to Duff that I am 90% Braves and only 10% Red Sox (and that's just to keep the peace). When we aren't at the games, we are watching on tv, or listening to the radio coverage--I think it is starting to interfere with our work, and DFACS may come and take our children away with how late they've been getting to bed. Oh well, it will all be over in another 6 months. Season tickets could be in our future..
Oh yea, Caroline and I were on the big screen tonight during one of the breaks--she is just so darn cute!

I also had to include this pic of Owen and Gideon. The other day they shared one of the more memorable moments of childhood--eating ice cream cones with a friend. How young ones can make a small ice cream cone last for 45 minutes remains a precious mystery.

Posted by amy at 11:45 PM | Comments (1)

May 01, 2006

Q is for Mommy

Yesterday, Owen's best little bud Gideon was over, and his mom Lynn and I were visiting. Owen had spilled the Scrabble letters all over the floor, and the boys starting sorting through them. Gid held up the letter G and said "G is for Gideon." Owen held up the letter Q and Lynn asked Owen what Q is for. Owen said "Q is for Mommy." Lynn was sort of like "Uh, ok," and I just couldn't believe how cute what he had just said was. In our alphabet book, Q is for Queen, and, of course, all of the pictures of Queens are Mommy. Yes, Q is for Mommy. What else does he need to know?

Posted by amy at 09:32 PM | Comments (2)