A Great Pair

You know those moments in life where your heart just melts? I experienced one of those moments yesterday. I had been upstairs putting some laundry away and on my way back downstairs, I looked over the railing and saw my mom and Ginny sitting together, looking out the front door.

These past five months have not been easy on my mom. This pandemic has really forced her to stay home because she can't take any chances of contracting the virus. Being home is certainly manageable, but she can't even sit outside because the atrocious humidity in the summer here makes it very difficult for her to breathe. So she is really stuck inside. I cannot wait to autumn weather to get here because then she'll at least be able to go outside and enjoy some fresh air.

Seeing the two of them sitting together so peacefully reminded me how lucky I am to have them and how lucky they are to have each other.

Ginny has grown irrationally attached to me since school closed on March 13. Losing Riley on March 17 had a profound impact on Ginny, and ever since, she doesn't like to let me out of her sight. She spent the final thirteen weeks of the school year sleeping up on the dining room table beside me day after day, and throughout the summer, she has rarely been more than two feet from me at any given time. When we went away for a few days in July, my mom told us she spent a lot of time just staring at the door. Heartwrenching!

I've been worried about having to return to work because she's been sooooo clingy, but it's nice to know that despite her dramatics, she's quite happy to while away the hours in my mom's arms. They make a great pair!

Happy Tails to you!

Year One Done!

I've got a meeting all day tomorrow, which means that for all intents and purposes, the school year begins for me. I thought I would reflect on this past year – my first as a reading specialist. I'm so grateful to have the opportunity to support all of the readers at our school!

The year was interesting to say the least!

It started with me saying yes too far too many things and bring burnt out by early October. I'm not someone who easily admits defeat, but I was so completely miserable. Thankfully, both C and my best friend could tell things were not okay and reassured me that the world would not end if I withdrew from something I wasn't enjoying whatsoever just because a few people might be annoyed with me. I cannot overstate the importance of having people in your life that can see things about you that you're unable to see yourself!

I didn't write this;
I saw it online and resonated with me.
"to be known without knowing it"

Life improved a million fold after I decided to remove that particular obligation from my list of responsibilities and I highly recommend knowing when to walk away from something. There's this false belief that "quitters never win," but that is complete and utter nonsense. If something is not serving you in a positive way, let it go and don't look back. That's what I did and the only I regret I have is that I didn't do it weeks earlier! I could have saved myself a lot of tears!

EXACTLY

The year ended with thirteen weeks of virtual school, including countless zoom meetings, with my favorites being the classroom meetings where I could read to and interact with the students!

After so many years as a classroom teacher, not having my "own" kids was the biggest adjustment for me. On the upside, though, I've gotten to know so many more kids than I ever did as a fifth grade teacher! This is also partially due to Kiss and Ride duty before and after school; some people might not enjoy it, but I really love being among the first faces a student sees upon arriving at school and one of the last faces they see when they leave for the day!

What I love most about this job is that I can advocate for the teachers I work with and this is a responsibility I take extremely seriously. I know how hard teachers work day in and day out, and how much of what they do goes unnoticed and unappreciated by most people. I've been able to observe the challenges that are unique to each grade level and enjoy a "big picture" view that I hadn't ever necessarily considered. Although I've know some of my colleagues for 18 years, it hasn't been until this past year when I've had the chance to collaborate with many of them, and that gift is something I do not take for granted. No longer being a classroom teacher means that it's easy for me to be seen as an "other" or an "outsider," but I hope the teachers I work with know that I will always support and go to bat for them. Always! I love how graciously they invite me into their space to work with their students and I love learning from them when I witness the incredible things going on in those spaces.

While my first year as a reading specialist may not have been conventional in many ways, I value all of the experiences because I can take what I've learned and continue growing professionally from here on out.

Not going to lie, though…I REALLY miss teaching math! #proudmathnerd

Happy Tails to you!

Recent TV

I don't know about anyone else, but I feel like we've been watching a lot of TV! Without many sporting events, that has meant movies and shows (although surprisingly, C became very invested in English Premier League football…go Chelsea FC!).

Being home for so long has given us the opportunity to watch so many more movies and shows than normal life typically affords. I'm sure other people have watched way more than we have and could therefore provide lots of recommendations, but in case anyone is looking for something to watch, these are the ones we've enjoyed the most over the past few months!

I don't know why we hadn't already watched
this show because it is amazing!

We watched this at the end of May and it remains
one of my strongest recommendations!

We love all things related to space
and this did not disappoint!

Ridiculous, but hilarious!

Improv that made us laugh so hard we constantly
had to pause the show to catch our breath!

Amazing magic!

We've also watched a lot of movies, but the best so far has been Knives Out. No contest!

We loved this so much!

Of course, not every movie or show is a winner…I had been told for YEARS to watch Gilmore Girls. Since C is still working full-time, I decided to finally watch it while he was busy. Sorry to say, but I had to abandon it. I gave it a real shot and watched ten episodes because I know sometimes it takes a show a while to find its groove, but I had to stop. I know some people love it, but it is just not for me!

It's a no from me.

With hockey back on TV and school around the corner, I suspect it will be a while before we undertake another series, but I'm always open to suggestions if you've watched something and loved it! It never escapes me how very fortunate we are to have so many options for entertainment!

Happy Tails to you!

Hockey is back!

As I've written about over the past many months, I haven't minded staying at home. It has been a really good fit for my introvert tendencies! Since mid-March, there are only two things I've missed (obviously seeing my family in person goes without saying!): travel and hockey.

Well, hockey is back! Right now, we're in the midst of the qualifying round to determine the seeding of the teams for the playoffs. There are several games on every day right now and it's the best! We literally watch hockey every day when there's a game on during the season, so we've been experiencing a small sense of normalcy over the past few days!

In addition to live games, the NHL announced the name of the new Seattle team! Yay! NHL Team #32! I can't wait to go to a game in a brand new arena during the fall of 2021! I love Seattle and gladly welcome any excuse to travel there!

My mom gave C a Maple Leafs puzzle and while I helped a little, he really did most of the work. Between all of the white ice surface and the tiny people in the crowd, it was a challenging puzzle, but it looks great all put together!

So excited hockey is back! Here's hoping the Leafs can make it through the qualifying round! We really need that Cup drought to end!

Happy Tails to you!

Sunday of Summer

I know there are a lot of dogs who are scared during storms, but Ginny is not one of those dogs. We had some nasty weather earlier today and as you can see, she is not bothered at all, which makes no sense because she is afraid of almost everything! Strangers, other animals, being out in public...all terrifying. If we're outside and a leaf flutters to the ground near her, she will jump and skedaddle back to the door as quickly as possible. But thunderstorms? No reaction. Same for fireworks. The only explanation I can come up with is that she feels so safe inside the house that things happening outside don't concern her? I'm not complaining though; some of our other dogs would shake uncontrollably during storms and it was awful, so the fact she sleeps right through a storm is great!

We dropped my car off for a state inspection today, and I'd be lying if I didn't say I was a bit nervous about it. While I certainly think it's in great shape, it's almost 13 years old and it has 235,000 miles on it, so there's obviously a chance something might be wrong with it that's not immediately apparent. The good news is that it passed inspection and needed very minimal work! Having a car with so many miles on it also means service/repairs can be costly, but that wasn't the case today! It's nice to know I'll be able to continue driving it for the foreseeable future! These days, I'll take any small victory!

I've got professional development later this week, so I spent some time today organizing all of the stuff I brought home from school back in June. It seems like I JUST packed up my office and carted everything home! How is it that even this year, when life has been on hold for almost five months, summer feels like it has come and gone in the blink of an eye?!?

I saw this the other day and it is absolutely true!

Happy Tails to you!

Happy Birthday, Ginny!

Today is Ginny's 12th Birthday!

We didn't adopt her until she was 13 months old, so we also celebrate her "Gotcha" day, but the rescue organization knew her actual birthday from the paperwork at the puppy mill where she was born.

What a gift she has been in our lives and we're forever grateful to the rescue organization for saving her and fostering her! I tend to make a big deal out of a lot of things, and her birthday is no different. As you can see, she had a busy day!

looking good!

the party hat way far too big and it took
many tries to balance it on her head...
she didn't really love the process,
but she was pretty cooperative about it

birthday car ride #1

birthday ice cream

birthday walk

birthday nap

birthday car ride #2

birthday cheeseburger

Happy Tails to you!

Hello, August!

With the new school year and its many unknowns looming, I've decided to write a blog post every day in August. I think doing so will give me something happy to focus on, even if it's just a quick recap of the day or pic of Ginny!

Speaking of Ginny, it's been a couple of good days around here. Yesterday we had an appointment at the neurology office to follow up from her episode at the end of June. We still weren't able to go into the office with her, so the tech came out to the car and carried her in. She was seen by a different neurologist than her last appointment, but this one was equally lovely. She called us as we waited in the parking lot and it was all good news! Ginny is walking almost completely normally, she wasn't exhibiting any signs of pain or discomfort, and she actually lost two pounds, which might not sound like a lot, but for little dog, it is a huge deal! She recommended that we start re-introducing walks and light activity, so we took Ginny for a walk today, and she did very well!

While we're thrilled and so grateful that she has made such remarkable progress, we know we are very lucky. For a Dachshund of her age, with a history of IVDD, and having already had spinal surgery once in her life, the outcome could have been much more grim. We will continue to restrict her activity at home as much as possible to protect those fragile discs!

she really loves car rides

celebrating National Hot Dog day

using her costume as a blanket

I asked if she wanted to get ice cream

watching the squirrels and birds

nervous about going into the neurology office

pleased with the good report she received

Happy Tails to you!