Simply Amazing

"It's the most wonderful time of the year!"- really. While I love the holidays and truly cherish the vacations in order to spend invaluable time with family, there is something about the start of a new school year that excites and propels me forward to take the next steps towards the potential me that I dream of one day becoming. This is when I set my new year's resolutions, evaluate my personal growth over the last year and goals for the next, and then truly make strides towards being the person that I was sent here to be....well, at least for a few months that is.

For the past three years this process has been accompanied by the "Back to School" meetings held at the high school where I teach at in preparation for the new school year. All of our faculty and staff gather together at 9 am one week prior to the day when we will open our doors to students, and take in a simply amazing, motivational message delievered by the president of our school. This year was no exception.

This brings me to the picture displayed at the beginning of this post. His name is Peter, one of the defenders on the US Mens Water Polo team that earned the silver medal in the Beijing games.... he is also the son of the president of the high school. Listening to the president as he spoke of building character through the familiar traits of honesty, idealism, healthy skepticism, positive self-esteem and even some disappointments along the way, as they were embedded in the context of Peter's journey in water polo and then so eloquently related to our jobs as educators, was undoubtedly a source of motivation that encouraged me to believe that what we do really can matter. At least I'll believe that for the moment; it's hard to hold on to that thought amidst competing college admissions processes, grades, and a whole host of other issues that arise throughout the year. However, the year hasn't begun yet and so I'll simply relish this moment of excitement, dreams and possibilities. Cheesy? Yeah....but it feels good.

An Update about our Golf Therapy

It's been about a month and a half since AJ and I dedicated ourselves to the game of golf in our spare time. Luckily we've had our fair share of spare time over the last few weeks and have had the opportunity to get out and practice quite often. While we both still have a long way to go before we're each satisfied with our own games, I must say that I'm really proud of the length to which AJ has improved his game. It turns out that golf has been good "therapy" for us, and maybe the pro is right....it will keep our marriage intact longer ;)

Where we've been...

AJ and I enjoyed our trip to Utah last week and wish we were still there. We loved visiting with family, catching up with friends, and improving our golf games....but alas, we must return to the lives that we chose here in LA.

A's B-day was celebrated while I was in Utah. My parents gave her this trike as well as "Bounceland" which she loves!



Ruby didn't want to be left out either, so we brought up this Lion for her to ride around on and catch up with her big sister. I love little Ruby's smile! It's worth a million! She's either sporting this gorgeous grin or she's screaming. It's much happier when she's in this state and we all simply melt into her whims and desires ;)


A is not a fan of the cameras. Whenever she realizes that she's the subject of a photoshoot, she crosses her eyes! It's rather frustrating. However, I liked this snapshot of A and my mom cuddling on the couch.

What follows is the ONE picture that I have of AJ and I on our anniversary.....

Yes...he is trying to give me bunny ears in this shot. I was hopeful that most boys left this phase in grade school, but apparently not.