Insert picture of adorable celebrity baby here

So most of you probably heard about my brush with fame last weekend. I couldn't wait to tell people. This stuff never happens to us. Anyways, Eric and decided to take a day in NYC by ourselves last weekend and wandered into FAO Schwarz to find a toy for Ryan. I was still a little ticked about coming out of Tiffany's empty-handed- Eric has really mastered the "it costs HOW MUCH??!!" expression when I try to talk him into buying me something, even a silly little "fashion" charm bracelet.
Anyways, as we were walking into the toy store, an adorable little girl in a purple suit ran in front of us in a beeline for the larger-than-life teddy bears. I couldn't believe how cute she was with her little pigtails and track suit. We were smiling at her and watching her run around when her father came up behind her and apologized to us because we had to stop walking when she stepped in front of us. We told him it was fine (still admiring the little girl) and it was only as we were walking away that we realized it was FREAKING BEN AFFLECK. I know, I know, I keep kicking myself for paying such attention to the cute girl and not realizing which little girl she was. I'd even seen her picture all over Star Tracks in People. Just imagine if we had engaged them into a casual conversation. Yknow, a little "oh, she looks like she is my son's age, yes, I remember when Jennifer was pregnant, we were pregnant at the same time!!" And then they'd be our BFF and we'd get invited to all their parties. Ryan and Violet would have a play date, fall in love, and our inlaws would be movie stars. Shut up. It could totally happen.
We don't have a picture to commemorate the experience because I was really impressed with the fact that this huge movie star was spending a Saturday morning bonding with his kid without a nanny or paparazzi anywhere in sight, so I didn't bother him with a request for an autograph or picture. Jessica still hates me.

Schoooooool's out for Summer

I *swear* it was just last week that spinning instructor Dan was playing that song during class. Alas, here I am, 3 measley days away from the first day of school. How did this happen, people?? I claimed I would spend every day at the beach! I dreamt of trips to the outlets and afternoon excursions to the children's museum! Eric promised me a day trip to a winery! You may envy us teachers for our summers off, but let me tell you, almost nothing makes up for that moment of dread when you realize summer's almost over and you haven't even THOUGHT about what you're going to teach next week. I'm teaching honors classes this year and I finally- today, mind you- glanced at the curriculum. Whatever, it can't be all that different from regular 9th grade classes, right? You know, aside from my questions being answered with something besides the sound of crickets chirping and having to actually grade homework, and *GASP* having real live telephone conversations with an ACTUAL PARENT. And I'm not talking about an answering machine or the monotone lady who tells me the number is no longer in service. I mean a PERSON. I'm so excited. But remind me to check my voicemail every time you see me, ok? Cause this really will be a foreign concept for me.

So we're back from North Carolina, where we were once again awarded Best Dinner. Well, *I* was awarded Best Dinner, since Eric didn't help. We also were nominated Most Photogenic, which I don't get, and you wouldn't either if you saw Matt and Emilie's pictures. Still, it's an improvement from last year, right? Oops... I was going to link you to a picture from last year, but guess what... I posted a picture of my sister last year because she was much nicer to look at. In any case, this year all of the baby weight is gone, plus another 10 pounds. I can actually look at pictures of myself without cringing!

Ryan went back to daycare a few days this week and I'm reminded once again of how fast he's growing up. At the end of the school year he was barely speaking and certainly didn't seem to understand much. Now he says "cracker" quite clearly, although he seems to use the word to refer to anything food related. The other day he said it when I gave him a french fry. Maybe he was just hoping the french fry was as healthy as a cracker. See how clever my boy is? Today at daycare he apparently spent a full 35 minutes climbing up and down the stairs. He KNEW his Mommy was sweating her butt off on the treadmill at the very same time!! What a brilliant child!

Speaking of which, my friend is trying to convince me to run a 5k with her in October. I think it would be a great accomplishment, but I've been unable to convince Eric to enter to ensure I don't come in last.

That would be mean if he hadn't called me fat today.

I promise I won't spoil it, but will you hurry up and read it already???

Oh. My. Wow. Is there anything better than Harry Potter??!! If you love him as much as I do and have read the final installment, you know the answer is no. If you're a Dursley-ish Muggle and want to remind me of how old I am, shuush and go away before I hex you.

OK, so I guess I should try to share my reactions without giving too much away. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was absolutely fantastic. A perfect, perfect way to end the series. I laughed, I cried, but mostly I cried. So many questions were answered, all the pieces fell into place, and the ending was satisfying while realistic. I still can't believe it's over. I'm already trying to fill the void by rereading the other books and watching all of the movies in order. (Eric can't understand why I want to go see Order of the Phoenix when I just saw it, opening day, 2 weeks ago. HE JUST DOESN'T GET IT!)

So without ruining the ending for those who haven't read it, could you believe it when..... ? And how 'bout the... ! And OHHHH when they.... ? Yeah, that was my favorite part, too.

I have to hurry up and post, because next week I will be cut off from everything and everyone

I am, of course, referring to the fact that the last Harry Potter book comes out in a week. I already have plans to attend a midnight launch party, even though my parents foolishly decided to come visit that weekend. They've already been informed that I won't speak to them until I'm done reading, but who am I kidding? They're not even here to see me.

I have a lot of theories about the end of the series, but mostly I'm very concerned about Harry's fate. I really don't think Rowling would kill him- it would be too traumatic for her younger readers. And by that I mean me.

Although this entire post could be my feelings about the last installment of Harry Potter, that's probably not why you're here... I've been having a great summer so far. The first week I spent in Charleston helping Matt and Emilie with their new arrivals. All I can say is, I am not nearly organized enough and I love my sleep entirely too much to ever have TWO AT ONCE. I don't know how Emilie does it, but as she keeps reminding people, she doesn't know anything else, so to her this is normal. The babies are very sweet and Cameron reminds me so much of Ryan when he was a newborn. They really have a lot of the same gestures and expressions, and so much personality, even at only 5 weeks old. Maybe it's a Thomson boy thing?

I have been having a blast just spending the days with Ryan. This really is the best age. Also the most mischevious, but at least it forces us to keep the house relatively clean! He's talking a lot now, and almost every day says something new. Yesterday I asked him if he wanted to go to the playground and he ran to the back door and said "OPEN DOOR!!" Before that it was "PUT ME DOWN!" and "GIMME!" It probably doesn't help that we laugh and clap when he says things like that- maybe we should be teaching "please" and "thank you."

I still have a lot to look forward to this summer. I'm teaching a 3-day AP Readiness class in two weeks, we're spending a week in North Carolina in August, and I'm helping to prepare the Freshman Academy in the week before classes start. Eric and I are considering an overnight trip to Block Island somewhere in there.

Psst... one last thought... I am officially 8 pounds below pre-pregnancy weight. I hope you never have to lose baby weight. IT SUCKS.

P.S. Re: the last post: No, my school year did not really end on May 7. I started a blog entry on May 7, forgot about it, and didn't finish it until June. That is how much I suck: it took me a month, and then I was too stupid to figure out how to change the date.

But they're supposed to THRIVE on neglect

I arrived at daycare earlier in the week to see Ryan toddling around the outside play yard. He was scrambling to keep up with one of the big boys and every few minutes SPLAT! he'd fall on his butt or on his knees. Not that it stopped him. He just got up and kept waddling around.
Did I mention the yard is on a hill, and he BARELY knows how to walk? My kid is a genius. So far ahead of his age!
The only downside to his newfound sense of adventure (besides the mud on the pants- but it's ok. really. he's a little boy. I'm fine with it!) is that when I arrive to pick him up, he no longer runs towards me with open arms. In fact, he screams when I finally make him leave all of his friends and all of the mud behind. I spend all day at school thinking how nice it will be to spend my evening with a child who doesn't talk back to me or call me names- or at least someone whose language is incoherent so I wouldn't know even if he was insulting me- and now instead of looking forward to it, I almost dread the moment I have to go pick him up because I know it will be a battle to get him out the door. It's very sad. I thought they didn't hate their parents until they were teenagers?? Huh???!!
Honestly though, people keep telling me it's normal (although it's not one of those things that seasoned parents offer BEFORE you have the baby) and I'm sure it's just a sign that he loves his friends at daycare. Once the novelty of walking upright wears off, I'll no longer be That Chick Who Sucks the Fun Out of Everything.
In other news, I have a renewed passion for gardening- that is, I'm desperately trying to ressucitate the garden I have managed to basically kill in the past two years. I really hope the former owners don't ever drive past the house because they'd be horrified. Those hydrangas that were lovingly planted and aesthetically, perfectly spaced? The dog pees on them and now they're dead. The beautiful flowerbed at the bottom of the driveway? The town snow plow destroys it every winter and now it's overrun with leaves and grass. What about the assortment of rosebushes? ROSES!! aren't roses supposed to do best when you leave them alone, a skill I have clearly mastered? I've become convinced that I should just let nature take its course in the garden until I come into a fortune and can afford a landscaper.
Countdown to the end of the year: two more days of grading and cleaning up my classroom. I PROMISE I will be more diligent about posting then. We have lots of fun times ahead of us this summer!

Fond memories

It goes without saying that this has been a traumatic and heart-wrenching week for everyone. Those of you who know me know that some of the best years of my life were spent in Blacksburg. What saddens me the most about this event is obviously the completely senseless and tragic loss of lives, but it also saddens me to know that this is how people will remember my alma mater. After all, no one ever wonders about this year's Valedictorian at Columbine, or who won teacher of the year, or how the football team is doing. Everyone associates Columbine with a single, tragic, senseless event, and I'm afraid the same thing will happen to a place I love and called home for five years. I told one of my friends about this, and she urged me to tell people how I feel. This is the only place I could think of to do it.

Virginia Tech is the kind of place that welcomes you, despite its huge size. Everyone feels like family. On a campus of 25,000, I constantly found myself running into someone who grew up in my neighborhood, or the girl I sat next to in the 3rd grade and hadn't seen since. I could always find someone to eat dinner with me... and breakfast, and lunch, and coffee and ice cream at Deet's Place in between. (At Virginia Tech, you don't gain the Freshman 15. You gain the Freshman 50. Or so.) Even four years after I left, I occasionally run into a fellow Hokie (they're pretty rare up here) and have an instant bond with them. There is a sense of pride, even among people who left the campus years ago.

You haven't seen loyal until you've seen a Hokie Fan. The campus, except for Lane Stadium, is always a ghost town during football games, and there's never an empty seat. You celebrate victories with everyone sitting near you, whether you know them or not.

Finally, Virginia Tech introduced me to so many wonderful people, including my husband Eric. We fell in love and planned our lives together while living in Blacksburg, and we will always remember our time there- especially the class we took together. (If you want a conflict-free relationship, I don't recommend it.)

I hope everyone will remember the wonderful things about Virginia Tech and not just the acts of one very troubled person. In memory of those who died, wear maroon and orange tomorrow (April 20).

Thanks to my friends Emily and Heath- they attended the candlelight vigil and took the picture above.

I should talk to Webster about aaahhhgggurrr!

It has officially been a year- OK, thirteen months, since I suck at updating- and it's true what they say. It really flies by. I was driving home from daycare today, looking at Ryan (when they have their birthday, you can turn their seat around! it's surprisingly exciting to admire how cute he is while driving! also, rather distracting) and I noticed that he's looking less like a baby and more like a little boy. It's evident in his talking, too. He still mostly babbles, except for "dog," "mama," "dada," and "byebye," but it's sounding more like talking than babbling. I also detect more emotion and purpose to the babbles. Like "aaahhhgggurrrr!" generally means "I got a block stuck in the dinosaur toy, someone come help me!" The little guy has taken a few hesitant steps, but still prefers crawling as it's more efficient.
We're headed to DC in a few weeks to visit my parents. Daycare is closed during my spring break, and I need to finish Connecticut's Official "Screw You and Your Degrees" aka the BEST portfolio. It's going pretty well. The kids are doing a fantastic job and after I showed some of the reflections to my department chair (also a scorer) she said she's confident I'll pass. And Murphy's Law dictates that around the time I find out my Connecticut teaching license is safe, Eric will get the word that we have to move. If that happens, I might have to become the world's first Professional Puppy Cuddler. Will you pay me to do that??