11.21.2024 Today was not a great day for me. The details aren’t important, but let’s just say that today gets 0/10 stars. Would not recommend. In an after-school text rant to my dear friend Jaime, I declared what a crazy day it had been, how I was still sick, and how all I wanted to do was go home and go to bed in the hopes of leaving this bad day behind and feeling better tomorrow. It was something like that anyway (although perhaps my language was a tad bit more colorful).

11.9.2024 I had dinner with my friends, the Gonzalezes, tonight. I’ve been friends with this dear family for over 20 years now, but they’ve been very forthright about letting me know that I’m not so much a friend as I am a part of their family. That alone is a huge blessing and one that I’m grateful for over and over and over again. I have a no-pressure standing invitation to Saturday night dinner and game night at their house every week. I don’t show up every single Saturday

11.8.2024 My alarm went off at 4:40 this morning. I am typically a pretty early riser, however I’m not usually a 4:40 a.m. girl. But when one of your besties is willing to meet you for coffee before you both start your respective workdays, you gladly set your alarm extra early. My friend Julie works at the church that is right next door to my school. Occasionally we’ll meet for a quick cup of coffee and a catch-up before work. Sometimes we’ll meet at a Starbucks down the road

11.28.2022 Tonight my prayer group met at my friend Nancy’s house. We sat around her fire pit catching up and sharing about our lives. Nancy had a pot of coffee ready for us when we arrived, and she poured me a cup before we headed out to her backyard. She pulled several creamers out of her fridge and started to reach for another one. She stopped before she grabbed it though, and said, “I’ve got pumpkin spice too, but I know you don’t like that one.” Her comment caught me off

11.18.2022 After school today I met my friend Julie   at my eye doctor. I had an appointment last week to get my prescription updated, but I knew better than to pick out new frames without her help. Julie and I have an agreement when it comes to choosing new glasses. It’s a commitment to being kind, yet brutally and unapologetically honest. She’s helped me pick out my last several pairs, and I’ve done the same for her. When picking out new frames I don’t want someone telling

11.17.2022 Tonight we had Kindergarten Round-up at my school. For those of you who don’t live in the elementary school world and may not know, Kindergarten Round-up is a recruitment event. Prospective Kindergarten families come, tour the campus, and hear a presentation all about our school and what to expect as a Kindergarten parent. Tonight the other Kindergarten teachers ( Allison , Teresa and Katy ) and I gave tours and answered questions. We each gave a small portion of

11.4.2022 After a long and challenging week I was very tempted to go straight home after work, put on my jammies, and fall asleep on the couch by 6 p.m. It wouldn’t have been my first Friday night spent this way. But instead, I accepted my friend Julie ’s invitation to have some Friday night fun. Now despite what you might be thinking about my big wad of singles, I did not have THAT kind of Friday night fun. Nope, it was just Bunko night and Julie’s Bunko group needed a sub.

11/27/21 At my college orientation, they taught us how to answer the question “What is a DuHawk?” The proper response to this question, at least when asked it in person, is to smile at the person and say, “You’re looking at one!” I love answering that question. I really do. And I have answered it exactly that way many, many times. And yes, I am indeed a DuHawk. I’m really proud to be able to call myself that. The more technical answer to this question is that a DuHawk is the

11.13.2021 Allow me to brag on my friend Amelia for a minute. She is one of the most giving, generous people I know. In addition to the many, many, many ways she serves others on a daily basis, Amelia coordinates a massive effort each year to supply hundreds and hundreds of shoe boxes full of gifts to children across the world through Operation Christmas Child. Amelia, along with a small group of women, collects items all year long to give away in these boxes. They collect s

11.12.2021 I went to a comedy show tonight. After a full day of teaching. The opening act started at 9:45. The headliner didn’t start until close to 10:30. I mean, who do I think I am? A 22 year old, apparently. But guys, I had the best night. Sometimes you just gotta jump out of your routine, grab some friends, call an Uber, and go big. We saw the teacher comedian Mr. Dx3 and I laughed so hard I practically peed my pants. It felt good to laugh at the hilarity of this crazy p

11.2.2021 Is it just me or is life seeming pretty heavy these days? Actually, I know it’s not just me. The world is kind of a weird place right now. There are probably a million and two reasons why this is so, and I’m certainly not going to break that open here on my Facebook page. What I will say here, though, is that amidst all the craziness, I’ve really been craving a good ol’ belly laugh lately. Now, I actually laugh quite a bit. I can find humor in a lot of things. It’s

11.21.2020 This morning my friend Tami came over to my house. Our plan was to spend the morning working on my backyard. Tami is not only generous and helpful, she’s also quite talented and knowledgeable about plants and landscaping and all that kind of stuff (which I am not). I’ve had this ongoing backyard landscaping project going for months now, and Tami and I were going to kick it into high gear today, raking rock and laying pavers. Here’s the problem, though. I haven’t s

11.19.2020 Tonight my prayer group gathered around a backyard fire pit. We chatted and caught up, shared about our lives, and prayed together. I freaking love these women. I love that we can be totally real and vulnerable with each other, and we can also joke and laugh until our sides ache. I love that we lift each other up in prayer and sincerely care about what’s happening in each other’s lives. We try to meet every two weeks, and when we miss a week or two, I feel a defini

11.17.2020 My dear friend Julie works at our church, which happens to be right next to the school where I teach. On Tuesday mornings we often meet and have a cup of coffee together before either of us start our work day. It doesn’t work out every Tuesday morning, but when it does, it’s a guaranteed boost to my day. I didn’t really have time for coffee this morning, but we did squeeze in a 10 minute chat before work. We stood in the church parking lot before the sun came up a

11.2.2020 Tonight I attended a very touching memorial Mass in remembrance of those who have died this past year. It was lovely. One of these candles is for my Aunt Irene. She passed away at the very beginning of the pandemic and unfortunately we weren’t able to have a funeral to properly honor her. It felt nice to honor her tonight. I’m quite certain that she’s up in heaven right now discussing politics with my Grampy. I know that I’ve been abundantly blessed to have such ama

11.26.19 My church has a 24 hour adoration chapel. You will find someone praying in the chapel at all times. All are welcome at any time, but there is someone scheduled to be there at all hours of day and night, every day of the week. When I started my job at my current school, I signed up for an hour – every week, early on Tuesday mornings. I was all about starting new healthy habits along with the new job, so I was eager to volunteer. I love my adoration hour and each week

11.23.19 My appreciation for music certainly isn’t contained to just this one day. It’s a super important part of my life. But tonight I had the honor to attend a concert by Phoenix Singing, a group of local vocalists with some incredible talent. My friends Jaime and Annalicia are both in the group. The entire concert was acapella and featured many locally composed and/or arranged songs. It was an amazing night of music. There was a very eclectic collection of songs presented

11/10/19 Allow me to explain. About 4:45 this afternoon I was sitting on my couch avoiding my pile of laundry and my sink full of dishes, when my phone rang. It was my dear friend Alex inviting me to grab a bite to eat with her and her son Carlo. Of course, my answer was a resounding yes, and we quickly made a plan to meet. As they walked into the restaurant, Alex was chatting with Carlo about the little dinosaur toys that he'd brought along to play with. The hostess overhe

11.4.19 3 a.m. friends = the friends you know that you can call in the middle of the night in an emergency and they will, without a doubt, pick up the phone and come to your aid. I didn't have a 3 a.m. emergency today. But at 5:25 this morning, between snooze alarms, I did text one such friend to confirm our after school happy hour plans. She texted back immediately. I knew she would. Today's happy hour was spent with a friend who, over the course of our friendship, has: asse