Filling my Bucket

I've had the best weekend.

The good vibes are rolling in tonight and I am trying to soak in positivity. The coming week may be hard. District cuts are expected to be announced this week. There is a lot of anxiety in Teacher's lives this week.

In the meantime though, Gabe and Megan were home for the weekend to celebrate Gabe's birthday. We had Chili House, an Escape Room (Bella and Carter's treat), and chocolate cheesecake. Gabe still does not eat desserts, but the rest of us managed his cake for him.

Life is so good. We missed James and Nay, but we are planning, planning, planning their return. I am so ready for their return.

I am working hard at school with my Creative writing class to focus on our Art - to be MAKERS. I have posted a few student examples above and below - stay tuned for more. My students are remarkable, creative, amazing humans. They make my life bigger and better. I am so grateful. They are the reason I go to work every day.

Nic and I ended the weekend with a long walk at our lake with the dogs, and some talk about our Side Quests this summer for our trip to France (and Germany, Austria, and Italy...). Stay tuned. We are working hard on good plans.

I booked our hotel for our first night in France in Reims - one of the towns I did not go to in 1997. In my youth, I failed to appreciate Champagne - both the wine and the region. I plan to make up for this mistake in my middle age. We chose this city for a few reasons: I have never been. I love champagne. It is on the way to Germany. It is two hours away from Paris.

Nic and I have a rule about traveling to Europe. Fly in during morning hours. Rent a car, and drive to a location we want to see about 2 hours away. This way we can avoid big city stuff, start to adjust to the time change, and see something cool in between naps. Our plans beyond this are skeletal, but each weekend, I make Nic sit down and plan with me. It is helping me cope with work. It reminds me that my real life is outside of the walls of the school I teach at. It gives me something concrete to hold on to and to plan for beyond what I will teach tomorrow, and what bad news awaits me, and what toxic shit the universe of public education has for me this week.

My life is full, rich, beautiful, and it is so much more than the 40 hours I spend in a concrete block. Here is to February, champagne dreams of the summer, and a good night's sleep on the pillow of gratitude.

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Bubble an' Squeak

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