My country

When I was a kid, I'd flip through National Geographic magazines and giant coffee table books with images of aquamarine beaches and snowy mountains. I'd daydream about visiting far-flung, exotic places. In Paris, I'd explore Montmartre and sit down at a sidewalk cafe with a croissant and a dark roast. Ride an elephant in India. In Peru, I'd climb Machu Picchu like the Incas. Return to the Philippines, to a culture which feels both comfortable and foreign at the same time. I'd hike the Torres del Paine in Chile and travel to Argentina, where I could enjoy a Malbec tasting in the Andes. (Obviously this is not one of my childhood daydreams. But it's a current daydream.) And of course, I'd go to England, a country I've longed to visit since I could remember.

I'd love to have all of those experiences. But I would never entertain the idea of calling any other place home than the United Sates. It's so easy to take all my freedoms for granted. Listening to NPR and hearing about oppression and political unrest in other parts of the world, I realize how incredible and blessed my life is just because I live in this country.

My favorite place I've visited in the U.S. so far...Big Sur!

I am grateful for the opportunities I've had to travel in the U.S. And not simply just see, but experience the diversity of landscapes, the people, and the cultures. America is really the best. Happy Birthday to the land of the free and the home of the bravest...my country!

Huntington Beach

San Francisco, so special

What is more American than Hollywood?

I don't know where. But it's pretty, right?

San Diego!

Zach backpacked in Wyoming at the Grand Tetons for a week.  He  is always trying to convince me that the Tetons looks like Argentina. He may be right, but I still want to go to Argentina.

I can't wait to explore Seattle again one day.

My original favorite city, New York

Places I'd like to go to in the U.S.A:

• Oregon. The Oregon coast looks unreal. Portland to drink coffee and hang out in the drizzly rain.

• Colorado. Mountains. The high altitude makes me nervous though.

• Boston. Because it's Boston! I love the accents. I'd go to a Red Sox game. Or better, a Patriots game! Hey Tom Brady, I still love you!
• Santa Fe, New Mexico. I've heard New Mexico is beautiful. Plus they put green chiles on all their food.
• I'll pretty much go anywhere in the U.S, to be honest. I'd like to see as much of the country as I can!

Mixed bag

To my horror, it is July. This means my summer break is half over. How can this be?! It feels like the school year just ended. This post will be all over the place, like a hastily assembled scrapbook page documenting the last 6 months. Even though I'm inconsistent with writing, I'm sometimes surprised when I scroll through my past entries. "I forgot that happened!" It is nice to have a record of events, recollections, feelings. There is definitely something to this blogging thing.

• Perhaps the biggest change of the past few months is a job switch of sorts for me. After 2 years of splitting my week between two schools, I'll be the full-time counselor at only one of them in the fall. I'm really excited to see what I can do with all of my energy concentrated in one place

Being on the non-kid side of Field Day = stressful; not as fun

However, I'm so sad to be leaving St. Patrick. I learned so much during my short time there. I love the kids and it breaks my heart I won't see them grow. I also love the teachers and staff and made some dear friends. What will I do without them next year?!!!  But I couldn't pass up the opportunity to grow professionally. Working at two schools, it was challenging to develop an effective guidance program at either one. It was the right choice. But I'm so bummed to leave such a great place. If I could clone myself...

• We took a quick trip to Nashville in April to drive Amanda to a half marathon. It rained like crazy the entire weekend. My favorite part of the trip (other than hanging with my husband and one of my bffs) was the gigantic inflatable bowl of pasta at the expo. I looked for it at the expo in Seattle but it wasn't there. Boo!

There was some sort of exhibit inside with treadmills. But that's not important. The important thing is: Someone created a giant inflatable bowl of pasta. I would have rented this for my wedding reception if I knew about it. Am keeping this in mind for a future child's birthday party.

• On Memorial Day weekend (which JUST HAPPENED, RIGHT?) Zach and I went to Northwest Arkansas to visit his sister and brother-in-law.

We hiked to a waterfall! It was such an easy, relaxing little trip. I won the in-law lottery!

• I turned 32 in May. I don't think I've ever felt my age (and hope I never will). I briefly debated doing something like biking 32 miles or running 16. I decided it would be more fun eat cupcakes instead. Then I realized it's been sixteen years since I was 16. Sixteen years ago, I wanted to be a writer. I dreamed of living in New York City. I loved the Beatles, the Beastie Boys, and danced in my car to N*Sync. I put pictures of Prince William on my bedroom wall, my locker, and my binders. 

This actually might be when I turned 17. And I still have the same best friends as when I was 16!  I wish I could see them every day like we are still 16. It is like coordinating a G8 summit, deciding on a  time to get together with my friends. I do not agree with that part of adulthood. 

Sixteen years later, I'm a school counselor. I didn't think I'd meet the love of my life in Tennessee, let alone Memphis. But I did! I still love the Beatles, but have been listening to the Rolling Stones a lot. I cannot believe my favorite Beastie Boy passed away. I'm going to see Justin Timberlake in concert in November! I am more interested in Kate Middleton than Prince William. (A couple of weeks ago, I read an article online about Kate and scrolled down to the comments. One of them mentioned that William looked pretty good. I was like, "Prince William was in those pictures? Get out!" I had to double check. Sure enough, he was.) Funny how life turns out. I wouldn't have it any other way.

We clearly refuse to grow up. I mean, we'll act like adults if we need to. But we'd rather not.