Alamo Bowl

21-20 Michigan State with 8:53 left in the third....What's going to happen?? AHHH! Come on Tech!

Picture #2: January 2, 2010

I'm pretty bummed about Mike Leach leaving, and I'm REALLY bummed about all the negative attention Tech is receiving because of some doofus football player....Definitely interested to find out what happens. Perhaps Ruffin McNeill will be the next head coach - I think I might be okay with that, it'll certainly keep our defense in line.

A Picture A Day

I tried this a couple years ago, and I think I made it to January 10th or something sadly pathetic...However, I seem to always carry my camera in my bag and my phone has a decent camera, so I'm going to give it a go again. And, now that it's on my blog, it's official, right?? I am going to take one picture a day and document my photos on my blog. Wish me luck!! Do you make a New Year's Resolution? What is it?? Happy 2010!!

Oh, and are you going to say "Twenty Ten" or "Two Thousand Ten" - just curious because this was a topic of conversation at the Girl Scout office this week - busy week at the office, as you can tell....

Picture #1: January 1, 2010
The last ornaments on the tree are these little snowmen bells - I'm leaving them on the tree and leaving the tree up for a few more days.... It went from a "Christmas" tree to a "Winter" tree - Just can't quite get rid of it yet....

Google Search

I followed Stephanie's lead and googled my name to see if my blog showed up, and sure enough, there it was first thing. My bank account got hacked into earlier this year, and I work with some pretty computer-saavy 7th graders...Thus, I've decided to make my blog private. I plan to do this later this week, so e-mail/leave me a comment to let me know if you want me to add you to the list. Thanks! I hope everyone had a great holiday...more on mine once I upload the pictures :)

Holiday Update

When I was younger, December seemed to take FOREVER, but the older I get, the faster the month goes. Geez, I'm really starting to sound like my mother..

So, since my last post, things have not slowed down one bit! I got back from a wonderful trip to New Mexico (minus falling and twisting my knee...again...where, you ask? Not on the ski slopes, not on the hike...in the shower. Go figure!!) and had a busy week of teaching.

I've been working with my classes on a Women's History project. Each girl picked a woman from history and wrote a report about what she contributed to society, then made a poster. The girls L-O-V-E making posters! We also were busy developing curriculum for younger girls. Then, each of my classes got to take a field trip to the elementary school to put their lesson into action. They had a blast! My 6th grade girls developed lessons on honesty and fairness. My 7th grade girls developed lessons on the 5 senses. It was so neat to see them teach, and to hear their feedback - they all said, "I didn't know it would be this hard." HA! This week we're focusing on taking care of your body, eating disorders, and dating violence. We're ending the week with a self-defense class. Hopefully the girls will use it only when necessary and not to fight with their friends - we've had several talks about this in class!

My 7th grade girls teaching the 2nd graders about the five senses.




I went to Pullman, WA a couple weeks ago to visit the Kappa Delta Chapter at Washington State University. I'm officially the Chapter Advisor for the chapter now, and spent the weekend meeting the girls and learning the ropes. I got to stay in the guest room at the beautiful KD house. It was really fun and I'm looking forward to going back.

The KD House


A building on the WSU campus - I passed this on my morning workout in the 8 degree WINDY weather - BRRR!!


Last weekend was spent at Girl Scout Camp River Ranch with 16 middle schoolers. I'm part of a team developing a new program that trains girls to become public speakers for Girl Scouts. We spent the weekend in one of the camp cabins and led sessions on developing speeches, stage fright, positive feedback, and talking to adults. We also went on a "no flashlights allowed" night hike - the girls screamed most of the way - it was hilarious!! I was in charge of the meals and cooking for the trip, which I really enjoyed.

The girls in front of the "Feedback Podium," where they learned to give positive feedback to each other


I'm REALLY looking forward to Friday - TWO WEEKS of no school. I still have to work, but it will be nice to taking advantage of working from home, sleeping in, and gearing up for next semester!!

Red River for Thanksgiving

I flew in to Colorado Springs late on Tuesday and stayed in a hotel with my parents. We drove to the cabin Wednesday morning and enjoyed an afternoon of skiing. It was great to be back on skis again!! Only half of the mountain was open, since it was the first day of the season, but we got some great runs in. We headed back to the cabin and hung out for the night. Today has been a great day at home, relaxing and enjoying some delicious food. We're heading into town in a bit for the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony. Tomorrow we're heading to Taos for a Christmas Craft Fair - yay!! I hope you and yours had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! Looking forward to a busy and fun Holiday Season!!

Red River Ski Area


My dad and me on the slopes

Me after a fun afternoon of sunny skiing


Thanksgiving Dinner


Sadie and me


My parent's cabin

Moving Fun

Things have been pretty crazy around here lately. Marcy and I moved to Ballard (a neighborhood in Seattle). We are really excited to be closer to downtown/my work/friends, but the move brought some big changes. Marcy is working full-time with a live-in client, Linden, who has Down's Syndrome. We moved into Linden's house so her parents could travel to Mexico to teach English for the next 8 months. We have free rent, minimal bills, and a great view, but it's definitely an adjustment to have a roommate that requires a lot of extra care. We're almost out of our old place - just have the couch and kitchen table left to move over - and we have until November 30th to get those moved and the cleaning done. However, since I leave Tuesday to go to my parent's cabin for Thanksgiving, that doesn't leave much time... Looks like I know how I'll be spending my weekend.... :) I'll post pictures of our cool new house soon - gotta wait for the rain/wind/more rain storm to let up a bit......

Green and White, Rose and Pearl

....I hope all of my sorority sisters are singing along now :) .... I'm a Kappa Delta Girl!!

I officially stepped in as the Chapter Advisory Board Chairwoman for the Washington State University KD Chapter!! I am SO excited to serve Kappa Delta in this new role!! Pullman, Washington is about 4 hours from Seattle, and I've made the commitment to travel to Pullman once a month to visit the chapter. I know I'll face many challenges, as I know my advisors faced when I was in college, but I'm thrilled to be volunteering for KD!! This chapter is one of the top on the WSU campus and I'm looking forward to going out there soon to meet all the members. Check out their website: http://www.myrso.wsu.edu/kappadelta.aspx.