Turn up the volume for Belly Laughs!!!

After work and before Sofia goes to bed is such a special time for us. We love to play as a family and work on develpment and interaction. Tonight, we even got Sofia to take a couple of steps as we sat on the floor, legs overlapping, guiding her back and forth. Don't worry, we will be sure to get that big milestone on film shortly! In the meantime, enjoy the belly laughs.




Sofia enjoying the time and kid tested Cherrios for the first time. Note the ones stuck to her fingers...hehehe...

Mmmm....Lasangna!!!

Dad, If this football were the Raiders, I would chew up the whole thing.

What do you mean its pre-season?

Dad, do I make you proud? I love you...

"And Cutler is back to pass..."

Tailgating before the game with Meg, Matt, Stacey, and the twins.

What Sofia's Been Up To Lately

Sofia has learned all kinds of new tricks! Check it out!

Thanks

Hey Everyone,
I just wanted to say thank you for all the well wishes, support and reminders of balance with the start of school. Luckily, despite my increase of involvement at school, I have been able to work out an amazing schedule where I get to leave my work at work and ALWAYS put my family first. :)

In other news, Chris has started his new projects at his new MYC office in Frederick. The 2 hours of driving are officially OVER! Yesterday he even got home before me! I am so thrilled for Chris and the added time he will have back in his day. He deserves it!

My students are busy analyzing energy in bridges, chemical bonds and push-ups....gotta run!

xoxo

Back To School Quote of the Year

Today I wore the dress pictured above for my first day back at school...

Student 1: Whoa! I just got dizzy when you walked by!
Me: Watch out. This dress can play tricks on your eyes.
***The class laughs.***
Student 2: That dress doesn't play tricks...it looks like you're a dalmation!

Awesome. Summer is definitely over.

Besides the Fido moment, my first day back was great. It is going to be a fantastic year. :)

P.S. Sofia has just learned how to wave! Daddy took a picture of us when we walked in the door from our first day back.

The Year of Involvement

Alright. Take a deep breath. In less than 48 hours, year three of my teaching career will begin. Summer is officially OVER!

This year is going to be unlike any other so far. I don't know how it happened, but my career has been catapulted into hyperdrive. Here's a glimpse into what the next 9 months hold:

1. I will continue to be the adivsor for National Junior Honor Society, but this time it starts the 2nd week of school and not April.
2. I am advising Student Council and running it as a class. Can anyone say Robert's Rules?
3. I took a training last spring on how to develop a special "teacher" type website that allows for all kinds of things from video clips to assessments and am now responsible for training our entire 72-person staff.
4. I was asked to be the tech liaison for our wing. This means that all the teckie-type stuff goes through me first. If I can't fix it, then it goes onto our tech coordinator. I am such a dork!
5. I am in charge of a vocab initiative school-wide.
6. I am the literacy coach for my science department.
7. I was asked to be a district committee to for cultural sensitivity training and then come back and train the staff.

AND, oh yeah...

8. TEACH!

Here's the thing: I LOVE my job. But what I love most about my job is being with the kids and creating an environment in which they can feel inspired, special and successful. I am feeling a little overwhelmed by all I have been asked to do this year outside of my classroom, but energized at the same time. I am lucky to have such a supportive husband at home and family that cheers me on from the distance. Please keep my time at school in your thoughts and prayers this year. I am going to need every ounce of positive energy that I can get! I will definitely keep you posted on how everything goes. I will no doubt have some funny stories to share. :)

I've stayed up late, laid by the pool, laughed with friends, visited family, adored my daughter and husband and done my very best to appreciate each moment this summer has had to offer. It's been a good, no a great, summer.

Welcome back. My name is Mrs. Daniel and I will be your 8th grade science teacher this year.

Just Call Us The Doolittles

It's been quite the week. Meg went back to work, we dog sat not one, but THREE dogs and Sofia offically became a Spartan. We got some video footage of Sofia and are in the process of editing it. It will be up soon!

Love is in the air...

On Friday, one of my co-workers, Andrew Ruder got hitched. He married his longtime girlfriend Megan Gillogley from his hometown of Colorado Springs. The also went to school together @ Colorado State University. It was a short Catholic wedding up in Fort Collins. The wedding was beautiful and reception was so much fun. We ended up reserving a room at the Marriott where the rest of the out-of-towners stayed. Sofia was terrific during the ceremonies and cut a rug with Mom and Dad for quite a while. She ended the night with a slow song on Mom's shoulder and then slumbered away in the carrier for the rest of the night. We had a great time and enjoyed the flashbacks to our own lovely night. One of the highlights of the night was when Meg taught one of the elders such dance moves as "the shopping cart", "the sprinkler", and how to "raise the roof".

Gotta Love Denver

This afternoon as I was driving home from school, I passed a quite interesting site. Sitting on a corner in a RECLINER was a man in his swimsuit. Now that's waiting for a ride in style AND comfort!