Taking a bite out of education...

Tuesday I returned to the wonderful world of secondary educating with a bevy of "helpful" workshops designed to kickstart hundreds of teachers into didactic action! Most workshops are fairly boring as they leave very little time for teachers to work in their classrooms or do collaborative work with each other. Yesterday's workshop was different. Via webcam we were treated to a speech/demonstration of how and why to use Apple technology in our classrooms and schools. The presentation was equal parts "Let's show old teachers that being old is dangerous" and "If you don't adopt this technology, China will rule the world with a giant robot fist". Anyway, it was interesting in that it inspired me to take action with technology in my classroom, even if none of us have been properly trained. Blogging, iPods, facebook, and dozens of other things I had never heard of (folksomony? googlejockeying?) are not tools for education anymore. They are supposedly parts of the ubiquitous environment anyone born after 1982 is easily comfortable within. Regardless, I came away with some killer diller ideas I will try this year using blogs and podcasting. Maybe they'll bomb. Maybe they'll succeed. I have to try something new and lord knows these kids might be left behind otherwise. I wonder what Auntie Mary Lou would say about that.... -C.L.

Kids Say the Darndest Things...

Well, for the most part Ethan has been a mama's boy. The tide may be turning after last night. He was snuggling with me on the big chair and then said, "I want to go snuggle with Dad." I said, "How come?" Ethan's priceless reply was, "Because he's the greatest man I've ever seen." I think Chris may get that printed on a t-shirt, coffee mug and ID bracelet and may tatoo it across his back. He is a great dad. -RL

J-Lu From the Block

Emma, Ethan and Julia Lu

I think the blogosphere needs to see how adorable my niece Julia is.
Look at her sweet face, she is the cutest little girl!

Differences of Opinion

While Chris likes to blog about Harry Potter and post terrifying pictures of Voldemort on our blog, I choose to post precious pictures of my non-horrifying children. Elliot was having a very smiley day and I captured some of his cuteness. He got this onesie from Auntie Sara and pooped all over it later in the day. I guess it was comfortable.

Ethan is a little ham. Here he is in his robe and cowboy hat. What a smile this kid has. Summer is almost over and he will soon start pre-school, swimming lessons, gymnastics and church choir. I will miss seeing this smile as often as I get to now. But I will not miss how stir crazy he is without activities to keep him busy!

Voldemort Can't Stop the Rock!

Sorry for the horrifying image, but sometimes you wake up in the morning and you feel like Voldemort looks. Today marks the last two weeks of freedom I have before school begins and I am thrown into another stressful year of events. While I am aware of the relative luck I possess in having three months of freetime (not including grad school classes, continuing ed credits, and general curriculum upkeep...) like many students at this time of year, it is with a certain bittersweet taste in my mouth that I return to "work". My summer was wonderful, though, getting to know my baby boy, playing countless games of hide and seek with Ethan, visiting the Brainerd Lakes area for fun in the sun, and working on various house projects. The summer of 2007 may be coming to a close, but the feeling of accomplishment will continue into the autumn.

Looking again at the above picture, it occurred to me that as scary as it is, I never actually feel as ugly as Voldemort looks. Life is pretty wonderful, really. To all of you who toil with the increasingly difficult job of balancing family, marriage, and career good luck and if you need a reminder that life could be worse, simply remember the image above.---C.L

The 2 Faces of Elliot

I don't want to be one of those moms who talks non-stop about how perfect her child is. But, I really must say that Elliot is close to perfect. These are his two modes: smiling or asleep. He has had his moments of crabbiness, bouts of crying, but overall, he is a dream baby. I'm pretty sure he was switched in the hospital and our baby is actually in the home of some nice couple, driving them crazy. It's okay though, I love this guy and am so glad he came into the world. -RL

Happy Birthday Ethan!

Here is Ethan with his friend Boston. Boston is my friend Tiffany's 4 year old. They are very alike and would be best friends like their moms if only Boston didn't live in Illinois. Hopefully, they can move closer one of these days and the playdates will never end!

Ethan blowing out the candles. In 30 seconds, this cupcake is devoured.

Ethan turned 4 on August 1. We had a party at our house and then went to Brainerd for more birthday celebrating. We went on a boat ride with the Schmeck's + Sara and Nate and stopped at Gooseberry Island for some rock skipping and swimming. This is Ethan with his cousin Julia having some fun in the sun.

Schlienfest

Chris and I had our 5 year wedding anniversary on July 26. Our wedding is known to most as Schlienfest, as it was a festival to join the Schmeck and the Lien. It was a hot, humid, mosquito- infested wedding and I would use the same words to describe our marriage. -RL