The Summer of the Patty.

Dream Patty/Deck overlooking the ocean. I'll let you know when we move in.

The PARTIES on the Patty, that is. Basically all that means is we're planning on getting a patio poured outside our house, so I feel every gathering we hold there needs to be referred to as a "Patty Party." With my love of abbrev(iation)s, this makes total sense to me.

If you're a teacher, you KNOW the exciting promise that summer break brings. The long days spent with family/friends or just by yourself, in quiet solitude. Some probably don't think teachers really need summer breaks, but if you're a teacher, you know how essential it is to your mental and physical health. Nine months out of the year you are drying tears, wiping noses, teaching, guiding, mentoring, loving, taking countless bathroom trips, answering strange questions planning parties, and putting band-aids on boo boos. There are even the occasions when you have to clean up barf, poop, or pee, or, if you're lucky, all 3 at the same time. It can be utterly and completely exhausting, and you feel as if there's no possible way you can do all of those things and run a household or get together with friends. It's tough.

But despite the exhausting days, teaching is one of the most rewarding things I've ever done, and I wouldn't trade it for the world, and I'm crazy enough to do it again next year!

This year I had exceptionally awesome classes, in both preschool and high school. Like, SERIOUSLY. It's crazy how you start off at the beginning of the year not knowing any of the parents or kids, but by the end you count the parents as your friends and you can't imagine not having those silly sweeties in your class the next year. One preschool parent who has become a friend got me sweet little gifts throughout the year, and somehow nailed my style exactly, and she also took amazing headshots for me. Another parent brought me super yummy "apple crispy" during my long parent/teacher conference day and invited both my husband and I to her son's birthday party (which was awesome by the way). Those seemingly small gestures are part of what made this year so fabulous and as mentioned before, those kids are NOT allowed to move on to PreK!

Poo Drizzle--what you make when the teacher forgets the ingredients for a student's dish so you just have to make something up with what's in the cabinet.

My high school classes were also pretty grand, though a bit rocky at the start. There were 18 in my Culinary Arts class at the beginning of the year (!!). Let me tell you, in a fairly small kitchen with a singular stove things got a bit...chaotic. Being from the "Just-Throw-Crap-In-A-Bowl-And-Don't-Measure" School of Cooking, I struggled with slowing down and teaching the basics.We burnt some things, dropped some things, placed well in the school's dessert auction, and made a delightful dish called "Poo Drizzle", which people still ate, surprisingly. Despite some of my shortcomings, the kids remained enthusiastic all year. (The class was cut in half due to scheduling conflicts, so that cut down on crowd control/hair pulling out significantly).

Oh ya know, the cast just "breakin' it down."

Theater was great as well, yet, like Culinary Arts started out a bit on the rocky side. Nearly everyone failed our first quiz, which made me pretty mad at the time. BUT then I thought back to the big fat "F" I received on my first acting quiz of my college career, and so the only choice I had was to give them grace. Things greatly improved after that, and I may be biased, but I have an AMAZING group of kids who love theater. I've found that I truly have a passion for teaching and directing, which can be seen in the way my face gets flushed and my ears get red when I talk about it for too long. I hope that the kids continue to catch that passion this next year, and work on developing their own passion. I had 19 students by the end of the year and nearly half were boys--how often does that happen?!

IT'S GONNA BE GREAT! (Totally non-biased statement)

I'm really looking forward to these next 3 months of respite and relaxation. Well, it won't be totally relaxing, but a lot of fun. I'm in rehearsal for "Mary Poppins" at the Marion Palace Theater and I think it's going to kick my butt, in the best way possible. I'm ready (?) for those dancing rehearsals! Really though, WHO in their right mind is ready for "Supercal"? I'll also be working for an amazing business a dear friend owns called "Special Riding Stars", and I can't wait. She gives riding lessons to both typical children and children with a wide range of disabilities. It's really amazing. Not sure if the mister and I will be able to go on a vaca like we were thinking, but I'd be okay with a few long weekends away. After all, Ohio really does have SO much to discover...

You know me, I have several DIY projects up my sleeve this summer and I'd like to take you along and get your feedback...that is, if I can remember to take really artsy and softly lit photos during the process. I've been meaning to post my chair reupholstering project I started last August and finished in Decemeber awhile later so hopefully I'll get around to that. There are some things that I just think of in my head and should probably document so I can recreate them in the future. And who knows, you make want to try your hand at something I've done!

Maybe you'll go a-riding on a magical dolphin this summer!

What will YOU be up to this summer? Any fun family outings planned, or plans for evenings spent by a bonfire with friends? (Personally, that's one of my most favorite summery things to do). I'm off to get DIY-ing (whilst taking softly lit artsy photos) and then getting ingredients for one of those around the campfire/s'more times with friends!


Happy Summer!