Wedding!

In February, Maia got to live every little girl's dream.  She was a flower girl!  My nephew Michael was married, and Maia had the honor of being one of the flower girls.  It was very adorable.  The wedding took place in Cleveland, my home town.  It was a lot of work driving back and forth for the shower and making sure we had everything for the wedding, but it was so worth it!  I'm thrilled that my nephew is now married to a terrific woman, and our family has grown.  Enjoy the pictures!

Our Baby is Getting Big

I'm a little worried Tai will outgrow Maia in the near future. I've already mistaken his clothes for hers on a couple of occasions. See the problem?

Back to Reality

December was a lovely month of few commitments, and our family enjoyed sleeping in every day during Christmas break. Although I love vacations and traveling, I have to admit that nothing is as restoring to my psyche as some relaxing time at home. I got a lot of that this year, and am eagerly anticipating our next break.

For now, it is back to the grind. I'm taking my second class for my master's and this time it's Methods and Materials for TESOL. Last quarter, my class was a research writing class, and although I grumbled, in the end I feel like I learned quite a bit. The course I'm taking this time is more like an education class, and I'm already feeling a bit of dread. Education classes tend to have a lot of busy work. And group projects. Yes, 40% of my grade is based on a project that I have to work on with a partner. I also have to tutor an ESL student for a minimum of 8 hours and observe two ESL classes and write up observations. Can you feel my excitement? I'm sure once I get into it, I'll love it, but right now, it just feels like busy work. Is that terrible of me to say? After all, I have tutored students after school quite often, even helping one young man earn the missing English credit he needed to graduate. The timing of this feels off to me. Finding a babysitter is going to be tough!

Maybe one reason I feel this way is because I'll be back in a school situation, but it won't be my class. I sure did love teaching, and although I am happy with my decision to stay home, I largely cope with that decision by not thinking of what I am missing. Now I'm being thrust back into classroom situations and I am feeling some resistance. The good news is that I hope to work (at least part time) sometime soon. Maia will be in school full days next year, and Tai, I'm happy to report, loves exploring new places and situations, so he will do fine in a school or day care setting for part of the day.

Right now my plan is to finish up this class, plus one more during the Spring quarter. That will give me enough credits to renew my teaching license, which is important in case I suddenly find myself in the position where I need to work or my dream job comes along! After that, I will take the summer off and apply for a graduate assistantship for the 2011-2012 academic year. If I am approved, I will have to teach one class each quarter, plus take two courses toward my degree. By the end of that year, I would be done with school and have my master's in TESOL. My only reservation is that I will need a babysitter for Tai, but as I mentioned previously, he thrives in social situations, so I think it would work out just fine.

That's my little dose of reality right now. For the moment, I'm just hoping I get a good partner for my project!

New Year's Eve

We went to the zoo for New Year's eve this year. They had a special celebration for the kids with a ball that dropped at 9:00, fireworks, and other fun things. The best part of the evening was the unseasonably warm temperatures. As you can see, the kids are only wearing their clothes with no jackets! It was a lot of fun and the unexpected good weather made it even better.

Woodland Lights

The kids and I braved the winter temperatures to see some outdoor lights this year! Yoshi was out of town and missed the fun! Notice that the kiddos are dressed in snow suits. I was very determined that they would stay warm. Overall, it was a wonderful time, and I'm looking forward to doing it again next year!

This place had a lot of fun rides. The kids loved them, and I was struck by how very grown up Tai is. At one point, he would not sit next to his sister and demanded to have his own car! She was brokenhearted. Our little man is no longer a baby.

This Santa ride was pretty fast, and I was worried that Tai would get scared, but he loved it. I've got a little dare-devil on my hands. Maia, of course, is the cautious one of the family.

We stopped inside for a while for some face painting. This is the first time Tai has been interested in having his face painted. Notice how patiently he is waiting while Maia finishes up.

She absolutely loved her snow flakes.

Tai chose this deer all by himself, and he is pleased.

Santa Visit

just pictures

Maia at the zoo. The kids love the lorikeet exhibit. We always have to spend a long time in there feeding the birds.

The merry-go-round at the zoo!

Maia and Tai at the library

Maia outside the library door just before she received her very own library card!