When I Grow Up...

This week at school is Education Go Get It Week! I shared some of my childhood dreams with my I remember when I was little I wanted to be a lot of things. Some of them were possible, and some of them were not. For example when I was 5 years old I wanted to be a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle! The only problem with that was, I am not a turtle nor was there a toxic ooze spill for me to frolic in. I also wanted to be a fire fighter when I was younger. That was an aspiration I could have accomplished. I made the right choices, as far as getting an education, but as I grew older what I wanted to do changed. I knew I wanted to help people, but the chance of me getting BBQ'd was something that turned me off to the idea. In high school I applied for a class that allowed me to visit the local elementary school and volunteer with little people. After the first day I knew I wanted to be a teacher. There are so many things about being a teacher that I enjoy. I could not have my dream job if I had not gotten an education. Stay in school and make good choices, and you will someday have your dream job.

From Happy Hour to The Happiest Place on Earth to Happy Birthday to Happily Ever After

It seems no matter where I go happiness is everywhere to be found. I just recently got back from the happiest place on Earth- Walt Disney World! However everything before and after are going to be full of happiness.

On our way to Florida my friend Jackie and I decided to stay in New Orleans for 2 nights before driving to Orlando. We were pleasantly surprised to have our room upgraded to an executive suite for free! Everyone we ran into was nice and friendly. It's no wonder especially since New Orleans has one of the streets known for its all night happy hours, Bourbon Street. It was a good time. We arrived the afternoon of July 4th and decided to catch a firework show. At the time we didn't realize what a challenge that was going to be for us. We got lost several times and ended up paying the same toll twice. The fireworks were really something though, at least the ones I could see from the car. We gave up and headed to our hotel. The next day we spent on the Riverwalk and French Quarter Marketplace. I controlled myself and only came back with a legit Mardi Gras mask. Now all I need is a masquerade ball to wear it to.

After our second night we headed to Orlando for our 3 night stay. When we arrived we weren't greeted by a suite upgrade, but we would be staying 1.8 miles from The Happiest Place on Earth! Our first day we headed over to Disney's Animal Kingdom. The weather wasn't cooperating and by I mean not cooperating I mean I was soaking wet before I got to the park entrance. We had a good time though. I got to ride their newest ride Expedition Everest. It's set to the theme of mountain climbing to discover the elusive Yeti that has been terrorizing hikers for centuries. On the ride the Yeti jumps out and rips apart the roller coaster tracks which sends the rider traveling backwards in the direction in which they came. I am not going to lie, the ride did take my breath away for a good 3 seconds. It literally ripped the breath from my chest and I loved it!

The next day we spent 13 hours at Disney's Magic Kingdom. I used to work there in 2004 and all those memories came rushing back once I loaded onto the monorail to get to the park entrance. At the park I got the chance to run into one of my former students from this past year. It's funny to see kids out of school because they act completely different. This kid was the kid who showed my how to do monkey butt on the first week of school and now he was sitting quietly and being shy. It made me smile. If you don't know what monkey butt is go back in my blog posts and find it, it will be worth the time. I also got the chance to catch up with an old friend that I worked with when I worked at Disney. It had been 5 years since we saw each other last, but it was just like old times. We got to see a lot of the shows and ride almost all the rides. My personal favorite was Mickey's Philharmagic Show. It's a 3-D show that stars Donald Duck and his wacky adventure with Mickey's Magical sorcerer's hat. It combined many of the classic characters such as Simba, Ariel, Jasmine, Aladdin, Peter Pan, and Tinkerbell set to their trademark songs. I forgot how magical of a place Disney is. I had a great time and thought it was well worth the money spent. I really do miss working there. Who knows, I might end up back there again someday.

Tomorrow I am heading to Fort Worth for my mom's birthday and a good friend's wedding in Dallas. I have to leave early so I can make it time to take my mom out for lunch and then head to Dallas for the wedding. I will be glad when it is all over so I can come home an relax. I have been going nonstop since the 3rd. It will be nice to just relax, even if it is just for a little bit before returning to work on Monday.

Gotta Love These Summer Days...

The day did not go as I intended it. I planned on planting my roots in my couch and drifting in and out of consciousness all day. I am glad that it did not go that way.

I was debating going to JC Penny to get a patio set I saw the other day that was on sale when my good friend Lindsay called me. She lives just outside of Austin and it is always a treat when she comes in town. She went with me to JC Penny and I ended up getting the set. I have yet to put it together, but once I do I will post a picture. After JC Penny we went to Petsmart to buy Mia a life jacket, Old Navy to get some $5 swim trunks(x3), and Walmart to get window treatments for my patio. I ended up spending too much but overall the saving on what I bought was well worth it.

When I got back Jackie called and wanted to try and take the pups swimming since they have never been. That was why I bought Mia a life jacket. We headed over to Bull Creek, which I have been there before, but it was dry. I thought that maybe if we hiked a llittle bit further from where we parked we would find a deeper part with some water. A mile later and I was wrong. The hike was very zen. It was quite and I really felt at one with nature. Ok not really but it was a great way to clear my head. I had to carry Mia for part of it. Poor thing is not used to that much physical activity, especially in that kind of heat! We made it to the car, sweaty, tired, and hot and decided we couldn't go wrong with Barton Springs.

I am glad we went. The water was just what the doctor ordered on a triple digit day. It was funny to see Mia and Marco in the water. It was even funnier to see them in their life jackets floating around and trying out swimming for the first time. I don't think Mia enjoyed it very much. I would set her out and she would come straight to me and try to climb me. I made her swim a few times before feeling like what I was doing was animal cruelty. We got out of the springs to dry off and watch Jackie and her pup Marco. She was drill sergeant having Marco swim laps.lol I really enjoyed it and think I might take Mia out there more often. She can learn to like it. Right?

Another Week Down

The second week of camp is over and yes, I am still exhausted! In this last week I have attended a book club, gone to swim lessons, attended trivia night, challenged my cranium, and have been professionally developed. When I reflect in my blog I see that I am quite the busy bee. I don't know what it is, but I can't sit still! Then it is poor little Mia who suffers. I come home to walk her and change then it is off again. I can tell she does not like it because she started running to the door when she sees my grab my keys. It makes me sad, so I end up loving on her for a few extra minutes, which in turn makes me late to wherever I am going.

Book Club was really fun this week. It was the first meeting of the summer. Everyone brought a book to trade and we voted on the book we would be reading. I brought "Life of Pi"(which is an amazing book that I recommend you read it if you haven't and read it again if you have) to trade and left with "Things White People Like". I am only 1/8 into it and it is hilarious. It is so cliche and slightly racist, but hey aren't we all a little bit racist according to the puppets of Avenue Q? We took a vote and the book we will be reading is "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" by Chelsea Handler. I have a few friends who have read it and I hear it is a good read.

Aren't you a little old for the sprinklers?

The first week of camp is over and I am exhausted. I have been swimming 1o times this week! The plus side to this is:
a.) I am getting some physical activity.
b.) My tan is slowly coming in.
c.) My backstroke is improving.
d.) All of the above.

If you chose D you are correct!

I am still having a great time. I am doing all kinds of things that I would not have done if I were not working at the camp. Not only am I doing things that I would like to do, but I am doing them for free and getting paid to do it! This summer job is really a dream summer job.

Today we went to Brushy Creek Lake Park. It has a fun sprinkler park, a play scape, some sand volleyball courts, and plenty of picnic tables. First we had the kids play in the sprinkler park. While they were playing another group arrived. One guy caught my eye because he was one of the first to jump in the sprinklers with the kids.

After a few minutes of observation I discovered I knew him! He did his student teaching at the same school I did my student teaching at. We weren't friendly enough to be friends, but weren't strangers enough to be acquaintances. We are in that weird middle ground. I was confused as what to do. I know he noticed me, and noticed that I noticed him noticing me. Do I go say hi? Do I wave awkwardly? Do I ignore him? Do I go about my own business? Yes, I probably should have been paying closer attention to the kids, but:
a.) They were fenced in.
b.) I was sitting at the only exit.
c.) There was another camp counselor there with me.
d.) All of the Above.

If you chose D you are correct!

I talked it out with the other counselor I was there with and decided to go say hi. Can you guess what my opening line was?
a.) Hey! You!
b.) What it do player?
c.) Aren't you a little old for the sprinklers?
d.)All of the Above.

If you chose D you are wrong! The correct answer is C, also the name of this blog entry.

We caught up on the previous year. It turned out that not only were we first year teachers, but
a.) We were both male teachers.
b.) We both took a summer job working at a summer camp.
c.) We both teach 3rd grade.
d.) All of the Above.

If you chose D you are correct!

It's fun to see how much you have in common with people. After talking for a bit about our first year of teaching we parted ways. It is nice running into people you know. Believe it or not that happens to me a lot.

Well that is it for now. I don't know how many more multiple choice questions I can come up with.

Smurf Hands

It is our 3rd day into camp and things are still going swimmingly, literally. I have been swimming everyday since school has let out, yet I see no difference in my tan. It is quite puzzling to me. Maybe the difference is so subtle each day that I don't notice. At least I am not burning.

Today we tie dyed t shirts. Talk about clan destiny. I was meant to have this job. I tie dye like no other. I didn't even schedule this activity, it was decided before I got the job. It was cute to see some of the little kids trying to rubber band their shirts. I swear that I had to go over each one and redo their bands. After everyone had their bands on it was time to dye. We dumped the dye in a bucket with warm water and had the kids put their shirts in themselves before we took them out to wash them. I called the first kid up and had him put his shirt in. What could go wrong? Well I forgot to tell him to put gloves on! It didn't dawn on me until he showed me his hands after he was through. I laughed and told him to go wash his hand. Well he washed and washed, yet his hands still had a blue tint to him. Of course Smurf hands went around showing everyone his hands. All the kids were excited to get to dye their hands too, until I brought out the gloves. I had never seen so many smiles fade so quickly. They were more excited at the possibility of dyed digits instead of the shirts. It made me long to be a kid again. Hoping for those simple pleasure. Not caring about the color of our skin...

Mr. Jesse can you put me on the black cow?

Today was another good day at camp. I don't know if the kids are being good because camp is new or if they are being good because we have instilled fear on them. Either way, I'm not complaining at the moment. I hope it is the later reason though : )

Our field trip today was to the Arboretum Park and Amy's Ice Cream. The kids were super excited about the ice cream part. I didn't think I had been to arboretum park, but to my dismay I had. All it is 5 giant marble cows, a fountain, and some benches. The kids went crazy for the cows. I spent most of the morning hoisting little people up top of cows. It was funny to hear their conversation on top of the cows. Some were telling of adventures in far off lands while others were wondering how their cow would taste. It was nice to let their imaginations run wild above an over-sized ceramic big mac.

After that we headed to Amy's Ice cream. It went a lot smoother than I expected. We only gave the kids the choice between Dutch Chocolate and Texican Vanilla, then they got to add 2 crush ins. Can you guess the 2 most popular crush ins? M & M's and Rainbow Sprinkles! We had a lot of multicolored smiles by the time we finished there. Amy's is such a great place. The lady there who was helping us was so patient. She was a whole lot of woman, but she worked that counter like an well oiled machine. I was impressed at how fast she was able to take the order, scoop the ice cream, add the crush in, and served it to the kids.

By the time we got back to the center the sugar had fully enter the kids blood stream, luckily it was time for my lunch break! I went home to let Mia out. She did her business and then we snuggled on the couch. She was a little stinky so I decided to give her a bath. She of course was not a happy camper. She kept trying to escape, good thing she is a little pup and I have a garden sized tub. After the bath she ran away from me. That forced me to chase her around the apartment with a towel. As I was trying to towel her off she squirmed out of the towel and went between my legs. As I was turning Mia jumped and bit me in the butt! It made me laugh. Then she took off around the couch. The next 10 minutes was dedicated to Mia dodging, ducking, diving, dipping, and dodging away from me. It was pretty cute.