Jay and Carson

This is about as close as Carson let Jay get to him last weekend. It's so funny; all kids ages 3 and up just seem to be magnetically attracted to Jay; they love him! But Jay gets a little nervous around kids younger than that. He will hardly even hold a baby.

Low posting...sorry

Sorry about the lack of posting in the last couple weeks...I've been studying for the Teacher Certification tests, and so have had several teaching ephiphanies. If you want to see what's been going on inside my head, you can check out my other blog.

But back to the present: last weekend (almost a week ago I guess), Kyle, Audrey, and Carson came down (Jay's brother, his wife, and their adorable almost-two-year-old son), and so we hung out at the Mauck manor quite a bit. This pic is of me reeling in a fish that Jay caught. (What I call a pity reel--I can't catch anything, so Jay lets me reel his in.) It's actually a good-sized catfish, caught at one of Paul and Diane's ponds. Also pictured are the back of Diane's head, holding Carson, and little Spike, who was recently injured. That's my camera dangling from my wrist, but I have yet to upload the pics I took last weekend. Anyway, thanks for the picture in the meantime, Audrey!

Wish me luck on my tests this weekend: the Oklahoma General Education Test and the Oklahoma Subject Area Test in Journalism. I'm really most nervous about getting up on time: for the second time this week, I'll have to leave the house before 6:30 a.m.! (This is waaaay too early for me.) Yesterday, I rode with Paul and Diane to OKC, where we all had engagements: I had a daylong training seminar, Paul had a meeting at the zoo, and Diane had a doctor's appointment. My meeting was a bit superficial and boring, Paul's was a little boring, but he got to look at the seal tank the whole time, and Diane got good news back at the doctor. Plus, we ate at Red Lobster and made a stop at Westies shoes! Yay!

You are my Sunshine!

Here's the video clip of our camp's closing serenade! To me! Fun times!

Ride a little horsey, don't fall down!

Hey check me out, conquering my secret fears! Last week at camp, one of our evening activities was a Western playday at the SOSU Equestrian Center. I wore my urban cowgirl boots and everything but had absolutely no intentions of straddling one of those beautiful beasts. I rode horses when I was younger, but because I haven't in so long, I had this kind of subconscious fear of them. I'd love to ride again, only with my family and/or close friends, so that if I burst into tears or fall off or something, it's the people who love me who will laugh at me, not total strangers (does that make any sense at all?). Anyway, that was my thinking last week, but Jay's buddy Seth, who was also one of our camp counselors, made a big deal out of me trying it, so I did it. And I didn't get kicked in the face or thrown off by the horse or slide out of the saddle! I did it!

Two years of wedded bliss!

Two years ago today was the happiest day of mine and Jay's lives! That's right, it's our anniversary today, and we just got back from our little getaway. We couldn't miss a whole lot of work, so we spent last night a great bed and breakfast in Ardmore called Shiloh Morning Inn. We had a picnic at Turner Falls yesterday, along with about 250 other vacationers...we hiked around a bit, checked out the 77-foot falls, and we even found a cave or two! The inn was awesome: we had our own hot tub, and a library of books and movies to entertain me while the NBA championship was going on. That's right, we watched [most of] a basketball game on our little trip. Ah, the joys of being married to a sportsfan.

Summer Camp is OVER!

I just finished up my first supervisory experience with teens since I decided I wanted to teach the little darlings. SOSU GEAR UP Summer Camp is officially over!! I can only describe the experience with two words, which I must type in allcaps: EXHILIRATING and EXHAUSTING. Isn't this kind similar to the teaching experience in general? Anyway, this only solidified my belief that I am meant to serve these young people. I love that their persepectives, personalities, and ideas are all so beautifully unique. I love their energy and their ambition. I love their enthusiastic responses when you teach them something they understand is useful and important. More reflections to come, but now I must study for the teacher certification test I'm taking soon.

I can't wait to be a teacher.

Summer Camp is under way!

So our GEAR UP campers are taking the ACT right now, so I'm back at the office for a few hours. It's been crazy so far, and waaay too disorganized for my taste, but still we've got a great group of kids who make me excited about teaching high school.

Over the weekend, my mom, sister, and cousin Dani Rose and I all went to see Little Women the musical in Dallas. I LOVE that book, but next to 1776 the musical (a musical story of the first Continental Congress), it was the most boring stage production I've ever seen. Amy was doing a subpar imitation of Kirsten Dunst the whole time (remember, Dunst played Amy in the GREAT film adaptation), Laurie was childish and pompous, and Professor Bhaer had what sounded like a clipped Indian accent. What should have been a fun girls trip turned into a snorefest. I basically watched the movie in my head, picturing the beautiful Christian Bale as Laurie and the spot-on Winona Ryder as Jo.

Sorry bout all the griping. Here's an example of how celeb-savvy (crazy?) my mom is: we were all trying to remember who played Meg in the movie (because the others are easy: Dunst as Amy, Ryder as Jo, and Claire Danes as poor Beth), and Mom popped off with, "Isn't it Trini Alvarado?" Who??! Guess what? She was right!

Bottom line on Little Women? See the movie.