Wii Christmas

Well, I had my most relaxing Christmas to date. For me Christmas and the word "relaxing" do not go hand in hand. Christmas and the word PAXIL or PANIC ATTACK or HELL usually do. But this year it was easy. We put the tree up but I didn't go insane about the reindeer. (For those of you who don't know I have 9 years worth of hands and feet made into reindeer heads from friends since the 211 Westerly Parkway days when I lived "alone"). I also didn't have to work like a crazy lady at SBUX which always helps the cause. My time kinda went like so:

12/23 Christmas Eve Eve.
9 hours of baking. I will never do this again. But I had to do it once. You will recall that "i don't bake" this being the case I own ONE pizza pan that holds about 8drop cookies and ZERO rolling pins with which to flatten the sugar cookie dough and cut out shapes. (Mother-in-law to the rescue on that one!!) I got the job done though and PLEASE don't think that purchasing these tools for me will help. From now on my cookies are coming from outside the Miller-Corcoran household! A rolling pin for me would only be cause for a mental breakdown over what a domestic diva I am not (re: lying on the kitchen floor crying when we opened the glass pie pan we received for our wedding). The evening was a great success. VERY VERY VERY low key much to my enjoyment. It did not end in a visit from a holiday Mastiff but with a visit from Papa John and a viewing of some Crazy Indian Music Videos from youtube.

12/24 Christmas Eve.
Breakfast at the Park Diner.
Clean up - major recycling efforts made by the M-C Lites
Rest.
Off to the Corcorans for Holiday delight. We spend Xmas Eve with Nick's folks which is sooooo relaxing. The four of us drink some wine, eat some tasty food, have lovely conversation and open some gifts. This year the guys were finishing up the coffee table for A&S so I got some QT with Mrs. C. That was extra special.
That night Corky and I exchanged presents. My present was laaame (red barn gift card) compared to the coooool one he gave me (wii!). We boxed eachother into the early hours.

NICK AND THE TABLE:


12/25 Christmas
7:30am - Coffee brews, Audrey and Spero arrive and we exchange presents and play Wii until
AUD AND SPERO LOVED THE TABLE

10:00am - Off to Dad and Sue's for breakfast, more coffee, lots of laughter, conversation, exchanging presents until
3:00pm - Dad has to work, still, the cows don't know it's Christmas. Back home for a little more Wii action and RELAXING until
5:55pm - Heading to Windsor for the Miller family extravaganza. 19 bodies, one home. I love it. I feel so thankful and lucky that my family is so close. It once again makes me realize how fabulous it was to grow up in a farm family where everyone is there. Everyone is around. Even the Greens were always around in the summer because Aunt Syl was a teacher and came to the farm at least once a week. This is why Nick and I moved home being away from that killed me and knowing that we would have children and they would not have that same experience also made me incredibly heavy hearted. But now we're here and my family extends past the Millers to the Corcorans and my mom and Jon and our "family of friends." ... I digress...
here's a photo of my amazing grandparents and generation #3

9:30pm: Back home with Aud and Spero. More Wii playing, wine drinking...

12/26 Boxing Day
Yes, Kami, I say boxing day ;). I don't know what the hell Boxing Day is but I do know that since Nick's company is owned by a Canadian company he actually gets an official paid holiday on Boxing Day. I'm all for it.

This day was spent...doing what else? Playing Wii... obtaining an extra remote and nunchuk for the Wii... and avoiding the leftover cookies.

I'm going to end there because as you can guess the rest of the weekend involves visiting and Wii. The visiting included a trip to see Nick's goddaughter, which is always my favorite. Though she is one she was witty enough to give her Aunt Kate the "Knocked Up" DVD with a note attached "I want a friend!" Isn't she smart? (either that or her parents are smart asses...) *aaahh...* How I love my family...

remember the times, grandson

remember how much fun justin was at gollum's going away party...

some things i've done...

I woke up at 7am on a SUNDAY. It's snowing like the dickens outside, I may just have to go sledding today! I stole this from Sweetfern and Merry Journey's pages. I couldn't resist. The things I have done are in bold.

1. Started my own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than I can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched lightning at sea
14. Taught myself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown my own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught myself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had my portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had my picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Ridden an elephant

...i may be one of the few people who visited vatican city but did not see the sistine chapel. instead, since there were too many people, we visited a nearby castle and then went and ate sherbert and drank beers. ...i did not like disneyworld... i slept under the stars before grassroots one year on a tarp with nick, shane and one of our good friends at the time. i also sat up all night at grassroots and watched the sunrise under the influence only of coffee and the understanding that at sunrise you can wander through the dreams of those around you... i slept on the overnight train on the way to Paris with Nick to see the Mona Lisa. The Louvre was fun but the Picasso museum blew my mind... I hit a homerun when I played "girls softball" and it was a fluke. No one could catch the damn ball, they kept overthrowing and the fat, uncoordinated girl finally got a homerun... Nick and I woke up at 330am when we lived in baltimore to drive to the loch raven reservoir and watch a meteor shower. Sometimes you can hear the meteors rip through the sky...

nick in paris in March 2000...

kate at picasso museum also march 2000...

delinquent

I'm ALIVE!

I'm actually only half alive as it is the day after Corcoran's Christmas party where each year I continue my love-hate relationship with company parties. Somehow it feels very 1950s and also lovely. This year I've lost enough weight to wear this BEAUTIFUL dress and I felt like a million bucks.

(at the christmas party)

(after the party, experimenting with the timer)


First though, we had my "company" Christmas party, or uh, Holiday party or whatever is politically correct. The center's Secret Santa is like nothing I've ever participated in before. My brain literally hurt by yesterday. My secret gift giver (as we used to say at the bucks to be PC) was Becky who granted me with the beauty of my secret LOVE. (Don't tell my old friends at the bux...because its flavored coffee) Flavored coffee is like the coffee snob's worst nightmare...it totally takes away from the natural flavors of the bean...but let me tell you this cinnamon crumb cake coffee i'm currently imbibing is like crack it's so good. Not that I actually know that crack is good or bad...

My paper is done. It's not my best but it was my first attempt at anything over 15 pages so it was quite an accomplishment.

I am now off for the next 4 weeks. I am in heaven. I seriously SERIOUSLY am going to miss the kids though. I tell you what, I am madly in love with all of them. They are all so precious to me and so special. We've been together now for weeks and I know their quirks and when they're off and having a bad day. We celebrate together and cry together and I'm just crazy about them. Last night at the party I was talking with one of corky's co-worker's husbands about my job and he was all "what about first grade? what about third grade?" and I told him flat out, no way am I getting back into the public school system! He then proceeded to get out his wallet and point to it. How about advocating for early childhood educators? I think that's my next step in life, actually. I have found my calling (thanks HP) but now what? Fight for it.

Giving Thanks

When I was a child my father wrote this grace that we said before every meal.

"Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this food. Thank you for helping us through the day. Thank you for our love and our lives and everything we have especially eachother. Amen."

As a child I would make everyone at the table say "We love eachother" at the end. I liked that extra affirmation and we would all hold hands around the kitchen table and say it. I said this grace at my wedding reception where I made everyone there say "we love eachother."

I don't say any other grace because none means as much to me as that one because I think it sums it all up.

I am thankful everyday that I wake up. I wake up with my health, which I am thankful for. I wake up with my amazing loving kind incredible husband, whom I could never ever ever thank the universe for enough. I'm thankful that I have food in my home for breakfast. I'm thankful that I can afford to heat my house. I am thankful that I walk out to my car and drive to a job that makes me giggle. I am thankful for my job, that I work with 15 little brilliant stars. I am thankful for my co-teacher, Karen and all her infinite wisdom. I am thankful that as I move through my day I have a family supporting me that extends past bloodlines and moves to the family that I have created for myself. I am thankful that my sister married her perfect match and is happy in Pennsyltucky. I am thankful that 2 doors down, in the toddler room I have a friend who I can walk and talk with at lunch about our first year of teaching and our lives. I am thankful that my best friend is here and I can call her or text her and she gets it, and she supports me even when I'm crazy. I am thankful that my friend has found a job within driving distance and a girlfriend who makes him look dizzy with happiness. I am thankful that I have the smartest cutest niece in the universe! and that she makes her parents shine brighter than they ever have. I am thankful for my friends who have found resolution within them, have been through hell and have found the light inside themselves. I am thankful that I have friends who have supported me when I was heartbroken and who will continue to do so even when I am not. I am thankful that I know that I don't have to be just like my girlfriends to love and appreciate them. I am thankful that I wound up with inlaws who love me just for being me. I am thankful for my grandparents and their home which has given me a place of solace for 29 years. I am thankful for my parents, who even though they can be nuts, instilled in me a sense of value of myself and influenced the strong woman that I have become. I am thankful that I have a full heart. I am thankful that at the end of the night, when I climb into bed, I have spent another day of my life with Nick Corcoran.

gratitude and procrastination

I woke up at 530a. Ready, set, paper writing!

yeah right...

but as I was checking my email I ran across this beautiful thought and decided to share. I'll write about my own gratitude at a later date.

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.
It turns what we have into enough, and more.
It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today,
and creates a vision for tomorrow.
Melody Beattie

november

wow... it's been a REALLY long time since I have written an entry here... it's been a VERY LONG month!

After Obama won the campaign I began writing my oral presentation for my Romantic Lit class. There were a few things I touched on in the poems I was comparing both entitled "To a Skylark" - one by Wordsworth, one by Shelley. I shared a little background on the skylark, including a clip of what the bird sounds like (thanks to the ipod and ilive!) and then I tried to look at the poems through the lens which the author of the poems views poets and poetry. For WW, he views the poet’s art as an “acknowledgement of the beauty of the universe.” WW sees the poet AS a divine spirit, part of the divine or voice of divine. For Shelley poetry is a fire which is sparked by a diviner nature. The poet will never be equal to a voice of the divine. He laments that he cannot pour fourth as naturally as a skylark which is part of the divine.

That's it in a nutshell...if you want more info just let me know. i doubt you do.

So that went well and then that weekend it was off to NYC. I took the bus down which was super easy and relatively inexpensive. Ilyse took me to Chat-n-Chew for lunch which was delicious. We watched Penn State's only loss of the season (booo!) and had some dinner and time out. It was an interesting time. I highly recommend the shortline bus out of bingo for trips to the city. I doubt if I will be returning any time soon, though. I am a country girl. Even in the "big city" of Binghamton I still feel like this is 100 times more country than the concrete jungle of NYC.

I took a Medication Administration Training course and passed on November 13th. Now I can give children medication. Isn't that EXCITING!! It certainly is for my center.

I've also been to two Binghamton University Men's Basketball games. My inlaws get season tickets and have been on a cruise so we were able to take another couple with us to the Friday 14th game. It was a blast. I love being at collegiate level games. I love the fans. I love the feeling and the school spirit. I am a Penn State girl and with that comes this familiar feeling when everyone is cheering. It feels like "home."

Last Saturday (the 15th) I was able to hang out with my favorite little girl, Miss G along with her padre, John, and Shane and Nick. It was BY FAR a "best day." Her mama had her first full day away from the house, going on a delicious wine tour on the finger lakes! We watched noggin, my new favorite show is Jack's Big Music Show. Not only because they played EXCELLENT music but because Miss G was too friggen cute dancing to it. We really just spent the day watching the baby play and Bear Grylls survive in nature. It was so relaxing and really exactly what I needed. To actually relax for a day. I was sick earlier that week due to a weakened immune system caused by exhaustion. oy!

The BAEYC has also been working on a conference for the past few months. We brought national speaker Larry Griffin in for the day this past Saturday. I am hospitality chairwoman so it was up to me to feed the masses. I was able to get my friends at Starbucks Front Street to donate coffee for the morning. I had Gance's do the catering for lunch, sammie boxes. I was ready to have a heart attack by this past Thrusday night! I was thinking of everything that could go wrong and how I would fix it. (awful concept) Would there be enough? I wondered. Would it get there on time? 1 MILLION thanks to Gance's who did an INCREDIBLE job they did. Holy crap. Highly highly reccommended!!

Larry Griffin was amazing. He spoke about "Challenging Behaviors" in children. His message was basically, get to know your children. There are things that you can't change in their lives but they are with you for X hours a day and during that time you have to give your all to them. He spoke about the brain and the differences within according to gender. He spoke about teaching the children that we are all here to help eachother. It was beautiful. I, of course, cried. It was a great reminder that I LOVE WHAT I DO. I love love love love love all of the children in my classroom and I am so glad that they are part of my world.

You see, in addition to freaking out about the sandwich boxes on Thursday night I was also freaking out about the fact that I will have a Master's Degree by the end of August. oy. Then what? Well, I don't need to decide that now. I have ALWAYS trusted in the universe, the hp, to guide me. It hasn't lead me astray thus far.

So what's next??

-FIVE DAYS OFF!!!!! For the first time in YEARS i'm not working Thanksgiving. Sweeeeet! I'm having dinner here with my adorable inlaws and my lovely friends the KOZs. But first... I have to make serious strides on my 20 page paper (due: 12/11). I also will be sharing beautiful times with much of my family of friends this week and I can't wait! Hopefully it won't be a MONTH before I update this thing again!

enjoy...

true. hope.

After eight years of disenfranchisement and disenchantment the tide changed last night. For eight years of my life (the defining years of 20-29) I have lived with GWB as the president of my country. I finally feel that a president who will listen to my hopes and dreams and fears is running our country. I can't wait to see what the next four years will bring.

PS Did you hear about the GWU students who went to the White House last night??

VOTE!!!

I took the following from a moveon.org email I received yesterday. During of the first presidential election I ever voted in I wandered the streets of State College, PA, asking people if they had voted that day and giving them pretty much the same speech as you see below. I also ran into Republican Headquarters when we thought GWB had lost and yelled "George Bush Sucks!" Yeah...that kind of backfired...

I'm also wondering if anyone knows whether or not it is legal for an "election official" to tell you that if your name was any longer it would need it's own zipcode while you are in the voting booth. This is the second time I've gotten comments about my last name at the place where I vote. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to say something this time...

Anyway...from Adam Ruben of moveon.org...


People died so you'd have the right to vote. Self-government—voting to choose our own leaders—is the original American dream. We are heir to a centuries-long struggle for freedom: the American Revolution, and the battles to extend the franchise to those without property, to women, to people of color, and to young people. This year, many will still be denied their right to vote. For those of us who have that right, it's precious. If we waste it, we dishonor those who fought for it and those who fight still.

Live your values. Love your country. Vote.

P.S. It ain't right but it happened! A guy dressed like the traditional depiction Jesus Christ handed this to my girlfriends outside a restaurant on Saturday night. (that's my hand, isn't it beautiful, haha)

MIA on Halloween.

I feel that's what I've been. HOLY CRAP. Life is churning, churning, churning. But today I got out of work early. And I decided no plans tonight. It's Halloween so naturally I will turn OUT my front porch light, get in the car with my beautiful husband to go eat some tasty dinner and then come home to crash on the couch. I am not doing a damn thing.

Yeah, I'm a bah-humbug Halloweener (halloweiner?). We don't get many trick or treaters and I don't think that being a parent allows you to get your own bag to go trick or treating with. And please, half of the people that came to our house last time I handed out candy had "sick kids" they were gathering candy for. please.

Plus I'm SUPER religious and this is a pagan holiday. Totally against my religion.

right.

would you like to see how cute we were at Sarah's Halloween party? (I'm not as cute as this butterfly)


Here's a better look at what I was going for... maybe float like a butterfly, sting like a bee muhammed ali?? Really I wanted to be a ladybug and spent the day learning CPR/AED/FIRST AID so had no desire to make my own wings. I went to Party City to get ladybug wings, they didn't have them so I just decided on these figuring I'd find a perfect shirt to go with them. While waiting for the Penn State-Ohio State game to come on I realized that I had it... my Tiki jersey. oh yeah.

What else is new on the M-C Lite homefront? I am up to my elbows in Wordsworth-Shelley-Keats books from my university library. My prof. was showing us some really AMAZING old, out of print books she owns about Keats last night. They were incredible. I love seeing pictures of the people and reading their letters. I give my oral presentation next week on the comparison of Shelley and WW's "To a Skylark." I took a half day in case I just lose myself this weekend.

Tomorrow I am going with Karl, LD and RD and of course, the love of my life, the Corkinator, to see Spero and Adriana. I can't wait.

friends

Marcie and I have been friends since the beginning of time. Time that started on Bus #147 that Chuggy drove back in the 80s. She was in town this past weekend with her beautiful little boy, Carter. Last night we had dinner at her sister, April's, house. Where I met HER daughter who is possibly the sweetest most well mannered child I have ever met in my life. I love this next generation of my loves.

take a hike!

This weekend I took two hikes. One with the love of my life, Nick on Sunday. The other today with my inspiring friend, Kristina. Nature is awe-some or awe-full in and of itself but pair it with a great companion and its that much better.


Of course, both days I had my camera but left it in the car. Here are two pictures from my phone taken on Sunday at Chenango Valley State Park.

Sports Update by KMC

you know me, ever the watchful eye on sports.

...or maybe you don't know that. i am an addict. i am also an addict for NPR. if I don't hear morning edition in the morning i feel a little lost throughout my day. i feel that NPR cuts the fat and gives me information that matters. and the news "articles" are about cool things like stratotankers (!) and groovy girls who are DJs of an Indian/American fusion music. You know things are heating up in sports when they are actually mentioned on NPR. I love it when they mention it though. I want to take the newscasters in my arms and give them hugs. They talk so matter-of-factly about things like The Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay or Joe Torre making it to the NLCS when the New York Yankees barely made it out of their beloved stadium with a winning record!

Let's begin with that lovely tidbit:

I feel so happy that Joe Torre, my personal favorite for Skipper, can give the big middle finger to the Steinbrenners. I love that Don Mattingly is working with him in L.A. I am rooting for the Dodgers to win the World Series. How DARE those spoiled brats offer Joe a mere year/one million dollar offer! Good for you, Joe, for going to L.A. for pulling those guys together and going to the playoffs for the THIRTEENTH YEAR IN A ROW. Maybe the Yankees will realize that they need to sink their money into real, quality players they can raise rather than buying has-beens for more money than they are worth. I love you, Joe, no matter what coast you're on or who you're coaching!! (unless you decide to coach the red sox. then we are breaking up)

Now, onto my other favorite Joe from Brooklyn! JoePa!! You didn't know both Torre and Paterno were New Yorkers? Come on, now! ;)

Joe Paterno, thank you. Thank you first and foremost for the money you gave to the Pattee/Paterno library. Because of you I saved LOTS of money as an undergrad not having to buy the 75 books you need as an English major. Each time I opened the crisp new book while up in the stacks and it read "gift from Joe Paterno" I thanked my lucky stars for you.

And I continue to do so as you lead our brave Nittany Lions to a 7-0 record this year. Where the hell did this come from?? We are rated Number Three. THREEEEEEEEEEE in the country. (USC? The AP ranks them #6... I know my father-in-law and his son feel that USC could play in the NFL and would probably flatten our beloved Nittany Lions if they were ever to face eachother...and I know they are probably right...but I choose to ignore such things and tell people they could do it... positive thoughts bring positive outcomes, right?!) I can't wait to play the Ohio State Buckeyes on 10/25. I hope we hand them their ( l )s.

here it is: Paterno Library. One of my favorite places on the Penn State University Park Campus:

And now last, but certainly CERTAINLY not least, defending SuperBowl Champions (and we're still not sure how that happened) The New York Giants led by my future brother-in-law, Eli Manning. They play the Cleveland Browns tonight looking for their fifth victory this season. Despite Plaxico Burress being suspended last week, they still won. I love them. I love that since Jeremy Shockey hurt himself and didn't play this team has been kickin' ( l ) and takin' names. He was like a cancer that was removed to allow the New York Giants to flower into the beautiful team they have become.



Did I mention that I have the coolest husband in the world and he is taking me to see the Giants vs. the 49ers next weekend? He is so awesome. I can't wait to tailgate in East Rutherford, NJ. I will be wearing my new Strahan jersey from my sissy poo. yay!

strahan with manning and his future wife celebrate during the parade.

29.

(me, 1979)

I've been 29 for over 24 hours now. It's a pretty big deal. heehee. I had a wonderful birthday! I got to share it with one of the students in my class who will be 3 on Sunday. I love having birthday buddies. :) The sunshine group at work made the MOST DELICIOUS blondie brownies for me. Applebee's maple walnut blondie. I can't do it justice when I describe it but just know I probably ate 20 points in one sitting. (did i mention i'm doing weight watchers? well, i wasn't yesterday).

Corky took me to the #5 last night. It was both the first and last time I will ever dine there. If I'm going to have steak, I'll go to Russell's. It was fabulous company, though. I do love my adorable husband and told him I would have eaten at a rest stop vending machine for dinner as long as it was with him.

My head is only slightly pounding this morning due to the copious amounts of sodium and wine I ingested last night. I still woke up at 7am though. Isn't that amazing. Well, it's because I'm getting old and set in my ways. haha.

Okay, let's see what have I learned this year? I hate baking. After two failed attempts at blueberry muffins from scratch I've realized I suck at it. And I'm okay with that, I have no desire to be good at it. That's why God created Betty Crocker. obviously.

I love my family. Which I knew before I just know it even more now. A lot more. And I realize that I have the greatest family in the universe because it extends out REALLY far and there's always room for everyone! (I imagine big loving arms hugging encompassing each little sector of my family and friends that I call family. It makes me so happy)

I learned that I am a pretty smart cookie. I actually didn't know this before. My level of selfconfidence leaped a bit this year. It was when I was given that scholarship. I never thought I would be smart enough to be given a scholarship I didn't even apply for. Now, does anyone else want to give me money to learn??

I think in this upcoming year there are goign to be a lot of changes and choices to make in my life. The big one being... Now that I've got this Master's Degree, what am I going to do with it? When I started the answer was very clear. Attempt to get a job at BCC and apply to PhD programs. But I didn't know how much I loved teaching 3 year olds then. I have some possibilities stewing in my brain... guess you'll have to stay tuned to find out what they are.

dog-gone it, joe!

Dear Sarah Palin,

Your accent and "downhome" quips made me want to ram my head through my windshield as I drove down I-81 on my way home from class. Your voice is like nails on a freaking chalkboard.

Love,

Kate

P.S. Ronald Reagan? Really?

Celtic Thunder

The local PBS, WSKG is running another funding campaign and they are TOUTING Celtic Thunder to the MAX. I have seen not one but TWO nights of this musical group. It sucks me in. The music could only be appreciated by someone who giggled through the likes of the movie The Notebook.

One of my favorite lines is during a song which a man is singing to his wife. The chorus goes:

Life is an ocean, love is a boat
In troubled waters it keeps us afloat
When we started our voyage
There was just me and you
Now gathered 'round us we have our own crew

I mean, really. That is freaking poetry. By that I mean poetry written by a middle schooler in love. Ha. I spent the half hour I first spent watching this giggling and saying "Nick, did you HEAR THAT?" and repeating the lines. And they sing so seriously and also have some hand motions to go with it. I mean, I love these guys, for the mere fact that they are SO CORNY!!!

And you should SEE THE AUDIENCE! These people are IN TO IT. During one song they sing they show an audience member, about 13 with tears STREAMING down her face.

But I couldn't turn my head away. This is because the men singing this song are my favorite kind, Irish. Seriously. I told Nick, THESE ARE YOUR PEOPLE AND THEY LOOK LIKE YOU! He disagrees but I beg to differ.

penn state slippers

I keep throwing my fluffy penn state slipper at the debates. Thank the HP its so soft.

Just remember my friend, who within an hour of returning from his second tour in Afghanistan, remarked "Afghanistan is the forgotten war."


Thank the HP I can't reach through the TV and strangle presidential candidates. I'd currently totally be in jail.

a quickie before work...

...a metaphorical one, that is. One full of words like you are reading.

Yesterday I left work and immediately drove to Cortland to roam around the library and do some preliminary research for my oral presentation (i guess) and my paper. As I was telling Karli, it's not easy to come up with a topic for a research paper when you've merely read 15 poems (from 2 poets) and you're writing a 20 pager.

So I did my favorite thing: i just roamed the shelves that contained the Romantic writers.

Two big finds:

A) A book of Percy Bysshe Shelley's notes. IN HIS WRITING! It was like I opened a treasure. Why am I research Shelley, you ask? Because I'm speaking on To a Skylark a piece by both Wordsworth and Shelley and comparing the two. ROCK!! :)

B) The words: Near Escapism with the conclusion of Tragic Reality.

Seriously, the beauty of those words. Really I just found the last two and came up with the rest on my drive home. The drive which I took in complete silence contemplating the fact that I was back in the library, doing research. Which is like eating a juicy peach for me. Perfect beautiful delicious TANTALIZING.

I chose all my books, a stack of about 8, took them to a large table by a window overlooking the gorgeous rolling mountains of Upstate NY that had the waning autumn daylight shining upon them and ruffled through them.

Please, if there is an HP, please help me find a way to do this and get paid!


happy friday, y'all!

Occupational Hazards

I am a drippy little girl today. By that I mean I have gone through almost two boxes of tissues and over a hundred gallons of OJ in the past two days and I'm still sitting here coughing and yucky. It happens when you have 14 adorable little spouts of mucus that you teach everyday, that you are in close proximation to for 8 hours, five days a week. Pair that with running around like a mad woman for the past 2 weeks and you get... kate home sick the fifth week of school. I hate calling in sick.

I think I called in 3 times in the 3+ years I was at the BUX...

But that's neither here nor there... you're probably wondering about that last post. I'll keep it as short as possible. That Saturday my grandpa had a stroke. He's doing alright but he's my grandpa and he had a stroke and that is not okay with me. I spent Sunday at the Angel of Hope dedication. You can follow the link for more information on the statue but it is meant to be a place of mourning for parents who have lost their "angels." Needless to say, it was a VERY emotional ceremony. My family was there because a brick was being dedicated to our Uncle Johnny who passed when he was 3 from cancer. It was heart breaking to see friends there who have also lost siblings and their children.



It was a crazy busy week last week. I was at the hospital most evenings.

Our butterfly emerged last Wednesday and we released it Thursday. Here's a snap of my little loves waiting for the butterfly to fly away.




The picture of it flying away wasn't as good as the last one I took: HAHAHA!


Audrey and Spero were up this weekend to see Gpa and so we chilled with them on Friday night. Saturday we went to the last day game at Yankee Stadium.



It was a beautiful day with great friends and a game which the Yanks won. I was, of course, teary at the game. I turned around at the top of our section and looked down at the field one last time. I had waited so long to see that field and finally, after college, was able to see it. Close up. Like, 6 rows from the field. (This is me walking in for the first time in 2005)



The coolest part of the day was that, as I was walking down down down the ramps to leave Yankee Stadium for the last time I feel someone bump my left arm. WTF, I thought, I'm gonna have to hurt someone. I look over and it's my friend, JD from HIGH SCHOOL. We've kept in touch over the years but he lives in Annapolis now. seriously? I couldn't believe in a sea of 50,000+ people he found me. Just goes to show you... there are some people in this world that you are just meant to always know.

one last look at, what I am referring to as, Yankee Stadium I.

this has been the most emotionally draining 36 hours I've had in a really long time.

full moons can sometimes really suck.

this is you.

I wish I could show you a picture of the little boy who drew this rendition of me. I cannot tell you how precious this child is with his big eyes and eyelashes and his little boy voice. I wish I could describe him to you properly, as only an almost-master of English would...but confidentiality prevents me from doing so. But let me say this, when this little boy, who I adore, who my heart breaks for, turns to the first page in his notebook scribbles with his fat purple marker then looks up at me and says "this is you"... suddenly, in a moment i realize, he's right. this is me. this child, this classroom, this life that years ago i would have "poo-poo"ed. this is me. and it's a me i never thought would be. i never thought i could have wanted to be.

who knew?

...sometimes i even surprise myself.

Poopy on the Potty and other amazing feats...

Right, so...my last post was a lame attempt to keep this thing updated. It turns out after 8 hours with 14 three year olds, blogging is not on the top of my list of things to do.

But anyway...

Teaching is fabulous. In some "spots of time" (that's a Wordsworthian reference, folks) its rather challenging and I must take deep breaths and focus on the fact that the people I am dealing with are not adults but tinies who can't even be trusted to put their own toothpaste on their toothbrush. We have had two chrysalises (chrysali?) in our classroom. One butterfly emerged on Friday and the I delighted the children with my random knowledge. This time that butterflies do not have noses but smell with their feet. I have no idea how I knew that but it is true. I'm like a sponge for useless knowledge. This seriously comes in handy as a preschool teacher.

We are awaiting butterfly #2's emersion. Maybe I'll try to grab some photos with my personal camera. The pics from #1 were pretty incredible.

Other than the butterflies we are really just trying to teach the children our classroom routine and learn about them. Not just "facts" but... oh! It's 11am, hopefully we can get little Billy to the pot before he poops himself as he has the past two days. Pooping on the potty is seriously a big deal in our classrooms. We have celebrations complete with stickers, jazz hands and telling any grown person that enters a 10 foot radius of us.

I love these kids, though. For. serious. If I didn't would I KNOW that Billy needs to crap at 11am? would I care?

Alright, so on other fronts...

I got to see APMZ and SZ Labor Day weekend. My loves. I miss them!! We did our usual ritual of some food at the Appalachin Brewing Company followed by chillaxing at their apt with beverages in hand. Always such an amazing time but this time it was coupled with the new addition to the family!

This is Chloe Kate Miller-Zervos...that's right, our family gives animals middle names.



I also got to spend some time with Miss G and her parents which was a sunny, fabulous, tasty, relaxing time...


So, on and on to Thursday afternoon when I met Karli at Applebee's on Front Street and proceeded to spend the weekend celebrating her arrival, finally going to see The Dark Knight (excellent movie), watching Penn State football, losing my first fantasy football game (to Nick! damn!), and reading Romantic Literature.

Have I mentioned that I love my Romantic Lit class? I'll save that gushing for my next blog... Until then enjoy these photos:


You know it's gonna be a fun night when that's our smallest wine glass available...

I wanted to rename this the small gathering of Italian-American women...but then I wouldn't have been allowed...



I'm always out of place... then I put on a cowboy hat and big brass buckle...


Nick's reaction to that INCREDIBLE photo...


hmm...compare that to the photo below... ;)

smiley

Did you ever watch Sesame Street in the 80s? Do you remember Guy Smiley? (see above)

Well, this week that is what I have become.

I haven't smiled or laughed this much in years.

Smiling RULES. :)

yup...that's my blog today.

12 new loves...

Oh man. What a perfect day...including 6 children who napped and one who sat quietly on her cot playing with felt figures. yeah... this may never happen again but it was the best first day to teaching EVER. I got to meet 12 of our 16 new children, read to them, rock them, feed them... but not change them because they all used the potty. yeah, you read that right.

perfect.

first.

day.

wonder what hell i'll have to endure to pay for this one...

Tomorrow!

So here I sit...the day before I the children show up in my classroom and I begin the career that I feel like I have done battle for. I know I'm not the first nor the last person who has undergone an schedule destinted to make you insane but I am dang proud that I did it. And I am SO THANKFUL for my friends who cheered me on along the way.

Now I'm on chantix as most of you know and I need as much cheering. Yesterday was day 2 and it went pretty well. I even chilled with my friends for a couple of hours until the craving got so bad that even the helpline relaxation therapy couldn't do it and I had to go home. :( I did it though. I'm on day 3. I'm a little weepy today for my sister and Karli and Emily.

Luckily, I have friends like these here in good ol' Bing:






and places to go like this:
Port Dick Park



...Thank God/the HP

First Week...

Yes, friends, its the moment I have been waiting for... have gone through the dark tunnel of the past year for...

MY CLASSROOM!!


okay, it's OUR classroom, but it's mine. We've been interviewing parents and meeting our children. Writing lesson plans via themes (the first one: Welcome to School...lacking in originality but fun nonetheless) and doing general paperwork and getting ready.

The children that I have met (approx 9 of 16) are so cute. A few of them I already know from my summer in with the tots. It's amazing what strong personalities 3 year olds have. We just get to help them to express it through language, math, science, dramatic play, music, art, etc. I just can't wait for Monday.

Okay, honestly...I just can't wait for Friday. Talking with parents is informative and a great way to forge relationships but, really, it's a bit tiring. I'm getting up later than I was at the bux but I'm using my brain in such a different way. I'm also taking chantix and having weird dreams and sleep. That's right, you read it. I'm not going to write about it too much because this blog is searchable but it's a huge step.

I really enjoy the people that I work with, including a GREAT friend (T) who I met while in the ECE program. It's so so FABULOUS to be able to share this experience with her. Our first days together, our first classrooms, our first children. It's absolutely a blessing.

What else is a blessing is the other teacher in the classroom. I feel like we are totally insync. She's into music and art and the children's CHOICES. I cannot cannot wait for year to begin!!

Some shots of the classroom for your viewing pleasure:

The cubbies and Dramatic Play Area


Cozy Book and Computer Area


Music Area (MANY instruments in those drawers!)


Construction Area (blocks, legos, cars, etc)

Weekends...

...so this is what having weekends off is like! For the past three years the only reason I have had a weekend off is if I had something to do like travel plans or weddings. Don't get me wrong, both things are spectacular but no one told me how fun a Saturday could be!

We did so much yesterday and yet it was so relaxing. Knowing that today would be a day that I "accomplished." Preparing for that I am drinking a tasty americano (that i made here, cuz i am a champion barista) out of my Chase Lake mug Mom bought for me and contemplating TOMORROW which is my first day as a teacher.

No children tomorrow just a staff meeting and putting our rooms together. I can't wait though. I hope to take lots of shots tomorrow to post here. Wish me luck!!

Creepily, I googled the center in google images and found this photo. This is my room and my co-teacher, Karen, who I hold in VERY HIGH regard! The love and caring she feels for these children is IN-CREDIBLE. I learn so much from her every second I am in the classroom. yay! yayayay!!