A long time ago, I took this picture of a t-shirt that one of my students was wearing because I thought it was a) hilarious and b) a good indicator of a child with a learning disability. The kid didn't even understand why I thought it was funny which made it even funnier to me. I know. I'm terrible.
Fast forward to a few weeks ago when one of my students came in wearing this shirt. I thought it was awesome. So many teachers call kids who struggle in the classroom lazy, and for me "lazy" is a huge red flag that something else is going on. Kids, by nature, are not lazy. They work for reward just like adults do whether that be intrinsic or extrinsic. When a child is labeled as "lazy," my ears perk up and I start listening.
The month of February flew by, and I can't believe that it's March. Spring time is just around the corner, and everyone I know is ecstatic. The winter was pretty mild in Portland; in fact, I read that February was the warmest we've had on record. I think what I'm enjoying most is the extra daylight in the mornings and after work.
Randy and I have been spending a lot of time with Curt and his daughter Ana. We are so glad to have them back in town, and we look forward to seeing even more of them. On this day, we went to Ecliptic Brewing and I took this picture to send to Steve, our friend who is coming to visit later this month. Ecliptic will be new to Steve, and I can't wait to introduce him.
I know I've written about the sunrises before, but they continue to amaze me. The only downside of it getting lighter earlier is that I'm missing the sunrises. One day I was in a bit of a morning daze but walked out of my garage to see this. Wow.
Then just down the road, I actually pulled over into a neighborhood to take this picture. I'm sure glad I did because as soon as I hit Sherwood I was socked in by clouds and fog for the rest of the drive.
One night Trey came out to say good night to Randy, climbed into his lap, snuggled in, and...
Watched this. Ewwwwww... a boy after his daddy's heart.
Last Sunday we went wine tasting with Kris and John. I know, shocking. It was a gorgeous day to be outside, and we started at Archery Summit.
Drinking wine outside in February? Amazing.
Ted, Sara, and Silas came to meet us in Carlton for some more wine drinking. We went to Troon (highly disappointed), Barking Frog (we've been there enough times the lady asked if I was a wine club member), and Folin Cellars (one of our favorites).
Trey was so happy Silas was there, and the two of them had a great time.
A sunny day and drinking wine with these guys...almost felt like we were back in Hawaii. Almost.
These two are the cutest.
My love
If you're a faithful follower of my blog (or my boy), you know that he loves his little figures. First it was Sesame Street, then Mickey Mouse (and all things Disney), and now it's Super Heroes and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I cannot tell you how many hours I have spent sitting on the floor with this kid making up voices and stories using his little figures. I love his imagination, but I am kinda over it.
Today Trey and I went to swimming lessons and then spent the morning at Julie and Tim's. We enjoyed some donuts, mimosas, and even some outside play time. I thought it would interfere with my ability to be productive this afternoon, but I was able to rally and got a lot done. Monday morning will be here too soon, but it was a beautiful sunny weekend, so I'm recharged, refreshed, and ready for another week of work!
I feel like I've been doing a lot of reading lately, but when I look at my book list, it doesn't seem to be getting much longer. Maybe I feel like I've read more because I'm always listening to an audio book and so I'm getting double the content with half the reading...who knows.
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr has been on a ton of book lists and mentioned by many as one of the best books of 2014. I bought my own copy (this doesn't happen very often because I use the library for most of my reading) because it was just so beautiful and felt so great when I picked it up. This book is the perfect example of why I don't think I'll ever read on a tablet. I love the feel of a book way too much. As for this book, I felt really uncomfortable while I read it because of the suffering the children went through during World War II. I thought the writing was exquisite and I enjoyed the back and forth between narrators/stories, but ever since Trey was born, I have trouble reading or watching about children in any sort of pain, physical or emotional. I will say that looking back on the book after I have finished it that I like it a lot more as a reading experience than I did when I was actually reading it.
I use the Beaverton City Library a lot. And I mean A LOT. I am probably there at least once a week if not more (and definitely more during the summer). I am constantly managing my holds, checking due dates, and putting new things on hold. Just today I read a
book review on Twitter from the New York Times and went straight to the Beaverton library app on my phone and put it on hold. So anyway, I love a good pick up. This day was especially great because not only did I get an audiobook I had been looking forward to, but also a book I was excited to read. Neither was a disappointment.
Boys on the Boat has been recommended to me many times, and, for me, it was the perfect audiobook. I love listening to nonfiction and reading it puts me to sleep faster than I'd like to admit (which is sort of funny considering how much trouble I have sleeping...hey, maybe I should read more nonfiction), so a great nonfiction book is a great audiobook for me. This one was great and I was bummed when it was over.
The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez was a book I must have found somewhere on a book blog or list that I follow. I'm not sure how I came across it, but I was looking forward to reading it because I like reading about other cultures. This was about a family of immigrants who moved to the US so their daughter could receive a better education after receiving a traumatic brain injury. The chapters alternate between narrators, and I appreciated reading about the perspective of recent immigrants as they enter our country.
The last book in that stack was suggested to me because it is about only having one child and the benefits of being an only child. I skimmed parts of it, but I didn't read much of it (bor-ing) and returned it to the library pretty quickly.
Some other books I have read recently include
Lay it on my Heart which was good enough for me to finish but not good enough for me to remember much what it was about.
Life Drawing by Robin Black was really good and about a couple who moved to a rural part of their state whose life was turned upside down by a neighbor moving it. It was an honest portrait of their marriage, infidelity, and forgiveness, and I really enjoyed it. I just finished
Some Luck by Jane Smiley a few days ago, and that was my favorite in a while. I am sort of a prairie book junkie, and I often forget how much I like a good farm book until I read one again. This was the first in a trilogy and the second one comes out in April. I can't wait to read how the story of this family continues.
As for audiobooks, I listened to the Lena Dunham book (blech - no idea why it has gotten so much press and I really have no idea why I listened to the whole thing) and I listened to
Whole Brain Child by Daniel Siegel. I think that this philosophy of parenting and raising your child with the brain in mind has impacted me more than any other parenting advice or wisdom. It just makes so much sense to me, and I probably reference it in my mind at least a few times a week. Right now I am listening to Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan and it is laugh out loud funny. I don't think it's something I would want to spend time reading, but listening to it is well worth it.
Tomorrow is a big day for three important people in my life who are all dealing with cancer. Somehow they are all having scans or MRIs and are anxiously awaiting news about how things are going. Please send positive thoughts to the universe for good results from these tests.
