Century Middle School

Today I resigned from my position as eighth grade English teacher at Century Middle School. I have never quit at anything in my whole life, so it was pretty difficult. Walking through the halls, alive with students and faculty busily walking to one class to the next was something that I have missed in my past 18 months off. Not only will I miss the interaction with students and seeing the light-bulb moment when a student finally gets the answer, but I will miss the camaraderie that I built with so many wonderful and established teachers and staff. Century was a place where I enjoyed going to work, always had fun, and felt satisfied and challenged. Although I still am engaged in furthering my education, this will be missed.

It is finally Spring!

Today was such a great spring day. When Coretta and Geno came back from the school playground, they sat outside and enjoyed the sun.

As you can see in this picture, Geno is definitely getting tall.It is hard to think that in just a few months they will be Switzerland bound! Here are a couple of photos of the two of them!

The Look See visit...

Nick and I had a conference call from Switzerland this morning and found out that we will be traveling to Switzerland May 6th-12th for a Look, See visit. During this time we will be looking for adequate housing and touring schools for Coretta.

While we are away, Tom is going to watch Coretta since she still has school, track, and piano lessons. This way she will not have her life disrupted any more than it needs to be and she can just enjoy time with her friends.

Geno will be staying with Grandma and Grandpa Earnest for the week. Bridgette, who also lives in Detroit lakes now, has also agreed to help.

It is all very exciting. I will miss both of my children so much, but it is easier than putting them through the 13 hour flight. Thanks in advance to all of you who are helping out! We appreciate it!

Our first biking adventure...

To prepare for our trip to Switzerland in July, Nick and I bought new bikes to replace the ones that were stolen last year. We decided that we would like to go for a family bike ride after church on Sunday. After we went out to eat, we began to put the bikes on the bike rack, when we noticed that the burley trailer did not have the wheels on it. After looking through the entire house and garage literally turning the house upside down with no luck, we ended up ordering new wheels online. Since Geno could not ride in the burley, Nick pushed him in the stroller and walked Charlie while Coretta and I rode our bikes all the way to Lake Phalen. It was not completely ideal, but we still had a great time.

The many faces of polio

Coretta is participating in the science fair at school. She had to choose a topic, research it, and present the material on poster board. She chose the topic polio. So far she has learned that many famous people have had polio and are alive today such as Mia Farrow and the artist Freida Khalo. I believe the science fair is at the end of the month and each child presents their information for all to see.

In science, they have been busy observing meal worms and making predictions. They are still making observations about their frogs as well. Science is by far one of Coretta's favorite subjects.

GBob...

Although Geno is not walking yet, he likes to jump on his bike and rock. he is also big enough now to sit on a trike. I think he may just ride a bike before he walks. He is currently wearing 4T clothes and he went to the store with Daddy today to pick out some new summer clothes.















One of his other favorite past times is to look out the window. I always wonder what is he thinking...Here is a photo of just that...Geno pondering life's little mysteries.

Geno's bath tub experience

Well, my mother said that this time would come, but I am not sure I ever fully prepared myself for it. I remember when I was a child and my mom did daycare. In the summer one of our favorite things to do was to swim in the kiddie pool. Here Wendy, Mikey, Brian, and I would splash and play for hours. Yes. This was always a happy memory. One thing that we were not so fond of is when Mikey would consistently poop in the pool.

When I told my mom how much Geno loves his bath time, she asked me if he has pooped in the tub yet. Until now, my answer was a consistent no. Yesterday Geno took his first dump in the bath tub and I have proof. Not fun to clean up, that is for sure!

Me and My Guy Dance

As part of Brownies this year they have what is called the Me and My Guy Dance where every girl can bring one guy who is important in their lives such as their father, uncle, grandfather to the ball for a night of dancing, finger foods, punch, and conversation. Coretta chose to take her father, and the two of them left this evening at 6:30 and will not be home until 10:30. Here are a couple photos of them all dressed up before they left today.

Got Chocolate?

Yesterday at 9:30 a.m. while I was creating Coretta's Holy Communion movie, I got a call from Nick stating that the Swiss hiring manager had offered him a job. Event though we knew this might be coming, I am in shock. I am going to move to another country for three years of my life. Three years. When we return, Coretta will be going into the sixth grade and Geno will be 4 and a half years old. I think about all of the travel we will have the chance to do: visiting Spain, Greece, France, Italy, and Germany. What a once in a lifetime experience.

We went and applied for our passports yesterday and soon as they come we will be off for a one week paid visit to do a "Look, See" at the country we will be calling home for the next three years. During this visit we will be looking at furnished apartments and touring Coretta's soon to be new school.

The school that we are thinking about enrolling her is called The Zurich International School. They are a certified International Baccalaureate School (PYP) which is common at the high school level, but not as common in the primary years. Although she knows she will miss her friends at Saint Thomas More, she, too, believes that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. An adventure with her family braving new terrain, new experiences that can only enrich our lives and makes us better people.

We believe that we will be leaving in July to start this new chapter in our lives. We will keep you posted on our updated news.

Turning 35...

Today is the day that I turn thirty-five years old. Thirty-five. Some people (like my sister Erin) would call this over the hill, time for a mid-life crisis, or just plain old. I guess getting older has never been a problem for me. I guess with age, comes wisdom, and with wisdom comes knowledge and understanding of life experiences and their purpose in order for us to grow into the destined individuals we were meant to be.

I have never been a person who is afraid of gray hair and wrinkles. I guess I am more afraid of not meeting my own expectations I have set for myself. Looking at my life so far, I am proud of where I am and who I am. I have two beautiful children, a loving and supportive husband who gives me the room to grow and the nurturing that I need. I have great friends, great family, and great memories. The older I become, the more comfortable I am in my own skin. I think that is the most important. You have to love who you are, or at least like who you are, most of the time to be truly happy.

Today when I woke up, Nick and Coretta had some beautiful gifts waiting for me. Coretta and Nick went shopping and chose the most exquisite perfume for me. They also bought me a book, and Nick gave me a girls' weekend package where I will stay at the Hawthorne Suites in Duluth, Minnesota with some of my closest friends, possibly go to the spa, and relax. Relax. That has always been hard for me. As a mother of two, as many of you know, you live your life trying to make sure that your children/husband are provided for, nurtured, loved, happy. Many times we tend to forget about ourselves and what we need to replenish our spirit, our souls. This is why Nick's gift to me is so important. After 10 years of marriage, there hasn't ever been a time when my loving husband hasn't known exactly what I needed. He even created me a movie that highlights the children's journey together that was very touching and moving as well. Tonight we are going out for Thai food (which is my favorite) and Nick even bought me a cake!

Today as I reflect on who I am and where I am and where I will go, I am so privileged to have such a loving and supportive husband to make that journey with. I love you Nick...always and forever!

Track season has begun...

Coretta has started track this year at Saint Thomas More. The track team is K-8 and consists of 100 participants. They practice on Mondays and Thursdays and the primary grades will have one track meet at the end of the season. Here is a photo of Coretta in her track shirt.

Coretta and her friends...

Your first holy communion...it only comes once in a lifetime. It is your first real taste of independence and growing up. It is just like saying your first word, taking your first step, riding your bike, getting your driver's license...these are all milestones that again only come once in a lifetime.

Here are a few photos of Coretta with her friends on their first holy communion! They all did such a wonderful job. We were all very proud of them.

As nervous as they were, it all turned out fine. No one tripped, no one forgot what to do, and no one seemed to make a sour face when they tried the wine. Needless to say, it was a very elegant ceremony.

From their procession into the church two by two, to the blessing from Father Joe of holy water in remembrance of their baptism, to the partaking of the Eucharist, it was a very special and memorable day.

It really had me reminiscing about my own Holy Communion and how special, I, too, felt on that day. It also had me thinking about how quickly my little daughter is growing up. For me, this signified my little baby turning into a little lady. I told her the next time I will see her in white is on her wedding day. And she retorted, "It won't be any time soon! Which I retorted, Good idea!"

It was great to have so much family there to celebrate with us and I know it made Coretta feel important.

First Holy Communion

Today was finally the big day where Coretta became a true member of the church by receiving the Eucharist. She did an excellent job and could not have looked more beautiful. While getting her ready, I caught myself getting misty eyed...she looked so absolutely angelic.

Many relatives came to celebrate her big day including her Godmother Bridgette, Uncle John, Auntie Erin, "Uncle" Ryan, Grandpa Tom, Grandma and Grandpa Earnest, and her cousins Emilia and Jack. Many relatives that live far away such as Grandma Marilyn, Auntie Heidi, Sarah, and cousin Imania were definitely there in spirit. Grandpa Earnest even toasted Coretta with a short speech that just added to Coretta's feelings of uniqueness on this day. Thanks Grandpa!

She received many beautiful and treasured gifts such as a prayer book, necklaces, bracelets, flowers, and picture frames and we would like to thank each and every one of you for your thoughtfulness. It sure meant the world to Coretta.

It is at times like these that I truly feel the power and importance of family and feel blessed that I have such a close one. I know that no matter what happens, in good times and bad, that I can count on all of you to be there. Thank you for that. I also want to thank Bridgette, John, Emilia and Jack for waking up at 5 am this morning to make sure that they could make it on time especially considering that there was a snow storm in Detroit Lakes. Bridgette, thank you so much for taking your role as Coretta's godmother so seriously. I could not have picked a better person for the role.

Afterwards, we went to Buca for some family style Italian and even the pope joined us!! How many people can say that they actually dined with the pope? At our table, he was there looking over us as we passed around the food.

Coretta even managed to not get any spaghetti sauce on her white dress. That in itself was an amazing feat! Here are some photos of her special day!!

Holy Communion Rehearsal

Today was Coretta's Holy Communion rehearsal and it went well. First, each child was told which pew to hang their banner from. Our family pew is the sixth row from the front. They then explained the ceremony and their role in it and had each child come up and taste the bread and the wine. Coretta did not like the wine very much at all. She had a sour look on her face. She asked me if the bread and wine would taste different after it was blessed and I said probably not.

Then, Father Joe came out and talked to them a little bit about how special this day is and even shared with us his rosary given to him from his parents on his holy communion in March 1960. He stated that he used it so frequently that he had wore it out, so they gave him another on his Confirmation day.

He then presented each child with their own rosary that glows in the dark in case they want to pray at night. He blessed them with holy water and passed them to each child. Here are some photos from the rehearsal. Tomorrow is the big day!!

Geno's 15 month check-up...

Today Geno had his 15 month check-up and all is well. His stats are as follows:

31.8 pounds in weight
34 inches in height
19.5 inches measured for his head.

The doctor said he is a happy, healthy kid. Geno even gave the doctor the pleasure of listening to him read Green Eggs and Ham in his own babbling performance. He also stated that Geno should be on the e-trade commercials because he is so cute! Dr. Hamilton stated that he will probably take his first step in a month or two. He also said that he is progressing fine with speech. They look for toddlers his age to say two words.

Geno also had the privilege of getting two shots today and he definitely put up a fight. It took myself and two nurses to hold him down to get his shots. He is definitely my little welterweight.