Life Simplified? Not so much!

It's true that 2010 was supposed to be the year I simplified, but really things are not simpler. I think getting okay with the way things ARE is perhaps a more realistic goal. In early April I did finish my ProCert and last week I received my Professional Teacher Certificate to show that that is behind me. May and June should have been less demanding and complicated by thanks to the stress of ProCert by May I had shingles (not a terrible case, but exhausting) and in June my oldest daughter graduated from high school. So no time to rest or recover.

Summer has treated me well though or really I have been better to myself: regular exercise, healthy eating, time with friends and travel.

In late June I went to AVID training in Dallas (AVID = Advancement Via Individual Determination) with 12 collegues (all men) and learned a lot and had a great time. Thankfully I work with great people who are also a great time to hang out with. By time I returned home I was glad to find drier air, cooler days and food that was not beef or BBQ.

By the end of July my family of four, plus my wonderful mother-in-law hopped a plane for 11 hours and flew to Beijing, China on a tour. Dallas weather was cool and comfortable in comparison to Beijing this time of year. It was a fabulous trip. I climbed to the top of a section of the great wall, walked hours through the Forbidden City (no longer Forbidden), rode a rickshaw through Hutong and older section of the city, and ate Chinese food until I was ready to go back to beef and BBQ!

We came home after just 8 days grateful to have gone and equally grateful to be back. I spent two lovely weeks in my own home before heading out again with my daughters to my Dad's house in Eastern Oregon. He now has what I call a "gentleman's farm" overlooking the Umatilla River with grand views of pastures of horses and the curving river. We swam and tubed the river and ate delicious home cooked food courtesy of my step mother, Dee. My teen daughters even let me read to them at bed time for old times sake.

Now I am nursing a pulled ham string and wondering how to stop time to extend my vacation. I've already been back to my classroom to prepare things and have meetings. Students will be back on Wednesday. I'm not ready, but I know they aren't either. By 8:20 on Wednesday morning I will be prepared to begin a new school year. I don't think things will be simpler, but I think I am finding better ways to go with the flow and enjoy the moment.