did you think i gave up blogging again for lent? not so. i spent the better part of last week in cough medicine-induced stupor. coming out of it now, but i have no words for you. i got nothing. hopefully inspiration will strike this week. come back again? pretty please?
xoxo
kris
p.s. it’s sweets i gave up this year. i will definitely need will power until april 4…
Filed under me
and still need something for your honey for valentine’s day…
help is to be found on mint. via the sweetest occasion.
can i just say that these new-to-me blogs are among my favorites?
ooohhhh! valentine’s day and a three-day weekend. does it get any better????
have good one!
Filed under celebrations, inspiration
vintage cameras via scoutie girl.
this print being given away on rich inner life.
humongous polaroids via you are my fave.
free water bottle label download via blonde designs.
and the most delightful of all?
little mikayla, made by a dear friend (and her hubby helped, too!)
welcome to the world, little one!
Filed under Uncategorized
{via flickr}
do you know what today is? today is tomorrow. it happened-bill murray, groundhog day
a work day.
{i have a job!}
rise and shine.
{it’s sunny california.}
get ready.
{time to be creative with what i have. kind of fun.}
help get j ready.
{kisses and hugs on a good morning.}
breakfast.
{i love a good bagel.}
load up car.
{car runs well. no worries like in the “old days”.}
drop off j.
{j loves school and his teachers.}
work. teach and grade. teach and grade. teach and grade.
{teens are hilarious. i teach what i love. i love my friends at work. lunchtime is fun. i get to eat lunch with my husband.}
pick up j.
{kisses and hugs and excitement.}
run errands.
{grrrrr. thinking…}
make dinner. eat.
{we love good food, and have the means to have it!}
bathtime. bedtime.
{kisses and hugs, and mostly no tears.}
make coffee for morning.
{the anticipation of having coffee ready-made makes me sort of happy.}
make lunches.
{i get really happy during 4th period when i know i have a good lunch to look foward to.}
set out clothes.
{makes for a no-stress morning.}
blog/read. tv.
{laugh. look at pretty pictures. talk to friends.}
sleep.
{i love my bed.}
do you ever feel like bill murray in groundhog day? sometimes i do. but when i read between the lines life is pretty beautiful.
random questions from one class in one period in one day. and, yes, these are all serious questions. kids are constantly thinking…
Q: do animals get constipated?
A: well, yes, i suppose they do.
Q: can a cow really stop a car?
A: i think i’ve heard of that happening, but i’m not sure. maybe you should look it up at home.
Q: did people a long time ago have big, round heads?
A: i have no idea what you’re talking about. get to work.
Q: would you ever date a guy with guns?
A: if you mean a guy with big muscles, yes. if you are referring to weapons, then no.
Q: are guys with guns scary?
A: yes, i think so.
Q: why?
A: well, i am a pacifist by nature so i don’t like guns, or weapons of any sort.
Q: what does “pacifist” mean?
A: look it up. the dictionary’s in the cabinet.
Q: i can’t cut this box for my project. do you have a dagger?
A: no, i leave my dagger at home, and you should too.
teaching is fun, right?
Filed under teaching, Uncategorized
those of you who’ve read my blog for awhile know that i don’t show pictures of j because he was not yet adopted.
well, if you’re reading this, please welcome this adorable little boy to our family.
today we appeared before a judge to sign the FINAL adoption decree stating that, forever and ever, this little boy is ours.
we couldn’t be any happier!
xoxo
kris
p.s. photo is by christian cruz, an amazing photographer whom i’ll blog about later.
Filed under adoption, books....i heart books
“hair brings one’s self-image into focus; it is vanity’s proving ground. hair is terribly personal, a tangle of mysterious prejudices.” shana alexander
we women make a lot of hair. for us, it can make or break a day.
ever heard of a “bad hair day”? of course you have.
a bad hair day starts out in the morning and colors everything to come after one sets off to the day’s doings. bad hair can make one spill her coffee. bad hair can make a car fail to start. bad hair can make everything seem like the world is conspiring against a woman. i know it’s dramatic, but that’s just the way it is.
just before thanksgiving my stylist cut me straight bangs, but my pesky hair refused, just REFUSED, to fall flat. they were determined to remain just where they were trained to be many years ago.as a result, i was having many bad hair days at the end of 2009.
just before christmas, however, they decided to do what i had wished and hoped they would. and now i am receiving more compliments on my hair than i ever remember.
an ex-boyfriend once told me i should always wear bangs.
why? i asked.
well, because you don’t have a forehead.
much to my dismay (i was terribly self-conscious about everything), he explained, in a very logical way, that a forehead is derived from the original meaning fourhead, as in four, the number, meaning the four fingers that fit on one’s head. i, he explained, have a fivehead, meaning that i could fit five (count them out. five) fingers on my head. (let me guess, you are now testing out this theory). many a time did i hold my hand up to my head, and, sure enough, five fingers seemed to fit.
so, yes, i believed him, despite the fact that he was, in fact, not an expert in word origins. let’s just say that for many years thereafter i squarely DID NOT wear bangs. call it rebellion towards the memory of aforementioned ex-boyfriend, but i just refused to do as he told, even after he was long gone.
i am here admitting that boyfriend was right. i should wear bangs. not because i have a large forehead. but because i ROCK them. i totally rock them.
looking back at pictures of myself proved to be very telling. i was happiest and most confident with bangs. exhibit “a” above.
sound stupid? maybe. but whatever works right?
thank you, hair gods.
xoxo
kris
p.s. just another little insecurity ex-boyfriend played on was my teeth. i had one crooked tooth, which he pointed out several times. after breakup with said ex-boyfriend i got braces. i have perfectly straight teeth, thank you very much, although it made for a very difficult time student teaching in a high school. many, many a time did a school security guard and cafeteria lady yell at me for not being in class or in the wrong place.
p.p.s. just in case you think ex-boyfriend is a total jerk, he really isn’t. i think he turned out to be a perfectly nice guy.
p.p.p.s. there is a moral to this story.
what is it you ask?
1. don’t listen to a boyfriend’s advice on beauty. that’s what girlfriends are for.
2. look at pictures of yourself from different times. what did you like about certain pictures? what made you feel confident? a certain piece of clothing ? a hairstyle or way you held yourself? remember when you felt at your most beautiful.
any hair advice or stories to offer? please feel free to comment.
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{via}
having many moments lately where j makes me meltdown, then meltdown. what’s the difference, you ask?
meltdown number one is the kind where my child does something very naughty (i.e. scream at the top of his lungs in a restaurant or throw toy plane across to other diners, or,{ gasp}, repeat an unsavory word overhead from his father).
meltdown number two emerges in various forms, all while this mother is disciplining aforementioned child (so, yes, picture me with a very stern face, probably looking down at and probably sticking my “you are being naughty” finger towards the child). he likes to say:
“i like your shirt, mommy!”
“smile, mommy!”
“i love you! are you happy?”
and the newest…
“you’re a sweetheart!”
meltdown number two is also called a meltdown because it melts this mother like butter. not that fake kind of butter that slooooooowly melts and tastes like melted artificial something.
this is the creamy, churned to perfection butter that just gets you. the one that makes you say OMG! (i really don’t ever say OMG, but you get the point).
this butter is smoooooooth.
Filed under mommyhood
things i learned and/or was reminded of this weekend…
{via}
1. nutella is a perfect food
2.i like games that are not complicated
3. i can paint my own toenails, and save $30 while doing it. so it takes me two tries, but i send my $30 here.
4. potty training is very trying
5. banana cream pie for lunch is perfectly acceptable
6. sunday morning rituals (cuddling in bed with the sunday paper while watching olivia and drinking coffee then getting ready for church) are awesome
7. i write for love
8. God is my constant
big news coming down the wires this week, people.
stay tuned.
Filed under Uncategorized, weekend
thank you for being an amazing husband and father!
xoxo
kris
p.s. i filled your q-tip container…
Filed under celebrations
thezestdiaries.wordpress.com 