summercon18 (nothing like comic con- no relation)

summer conference. i do enjoy our summer conferences, because it's always good to see everyone on the team. we don't all get to see each other throughout the year, as we train in different areas and have unique assignments. so when we do all get together, it's great to collaborate and laugh a bit!

this year it was no different. we weren't in a hotel like last year; we tried something new. we were in air bnbs, and vrbos. i'm pretty sure each house had its own pros and cons. we were in an ideal location, near everything. i got in a little late (non-stop flights only go out twice a day from tpa)...so brian was good enough to pick me up from the airport, and take me to the condo. once we got there, it was a little adventure finding the unit, but we did! it was great to see julie k and lori h when i arrived so we sat around for a bit before hitting the hay.

love that there is a starbucks around the corner from the office, so we went each morning-great way to start the day! day one was a happy birthday theme, and fortunately no one came in their birthday suit- we had a birthday fairy and several festive hats...day two we did super heroes and on the last day we did memes or t-shirts that characterized us. we worked on math content and did some product knowledge, as well as sharing some tdl lesson-fun. we had a great time working together and playing!

our evenings were busy as well-we were entertained at the home of one of our higher-ups in the company- i personally loved the burgers! the layout of her house is perfect for entertaining, and everyone pretty much gathered in the indoor/outdoor patio area around the pool. that was the first night we were all together, and we had our white elephant gift-there were some good ones! from practical tool plunger to amazing 8-ball, we had fun with it. 

the second night we were at our boss' home, which has become tradition, and we hung out in the backyard-sitting around in the pools, on the patio, and i will say that the food truck was pretty fabulous! i'm so glad michele was up for splitting portions so that we could experience a couple items! it was a great evening.  

i brought a 'friendship ball' with me because we'd been discussing EQ (emotional IQ) over the past few months in preparation for the summer conference. i've loved the concept of the friendship ball since i first saw one when i was down near the river market in kc back in the early 90s. i've purchased a few over the years and tried to start them in circles of friends, but they never got very far. sad day. so i decided this might be the perfect chance, and i introduced it that night and the concept and purpose behind it, offering to start it and send it to a colleague who had to leave early. the kicker was that when we got back to the house we were staying at, i couldn't find it anywhere! i couldn't remember if i'd sat it down in the house while gathering my things, or what. looked all over the suv, and didn't find it anywhere...looked again the next day-no dice. so i just decided that i'd purchase another (fortunately i remembered the name of the website where i'd gotten it!)

thursday we finished out the conference and everyone headed out a little after noon. i was set to take off on the 4 pm flight through nashville, but unfortunately things were delayed with a huge storm system moving through the semi-east portion of the u.s. and my flight was too close for comfort, so i got it switched to the 8:30 nonstop. grr. i hate getting back so late...but at least i made it back the same day. 

that wraps up summercon18 we managed to finish a lot of work and have a lot of fun, but i think the most important thing about these get togethers is always just having conversations, touching base with everyone and just building on relationships. love my job and love working for such a great company-thanks, and happy 20th birthday, istation!

good day-

julie

p.s. i just got a text the other day from amanda-it was the friendship ball she found buried deep under one of the removable seats in the car! so we may just have to figure out how to integrate that one into the mix without things getting too confusing- or i'll just hold onto the extra for another day.

it's official: #newhobbyalert

this past week was the actual birthday week-monday i received many warm wishes throughout the day as i traveled to texas for a training. it was good to be able to meet work with julie k in leander again. we had birthday dinner at chuys, a sweet card with some starbucks love, great conversation, and an early night!

the training was fun because we got to work with many of the educators we'd previously worked with, presenting small group formation and goal setting! they were super attentive and appreciative of the information!

when i got home, i had a couple cards in the mail, and something i'd ordered. and while it's alright to get shout-outs on social media, it doesn't quite beat the good ol' fashioned in-hand card! (although..video/ pic montages from friends are also very high on the list!! ICYMI: hurricane memoires)

warm fuzzies!

saturday we took advantage of the weather, as it was forecast to rain sunday. we went out to mixon farms (thanks, groupon!) because before you can take anyone out to see a new place, you want to personally check it out and give it your seal of approval, right? right! when we got there, we went in to check out the store which was full of all sorts of chachkies...then presented the groupon for a pass-sticker, and coupon for ice creams!

once we got out on the tram, the tour guide, kayla, asked everyone where they were from. this spurred me to talk to the people in front of us because the older woman was from ohio (most people were locals)...so me (who says i don't like small talk...and to be fair, i don't, but i think it's in my blood-thanks dad-and it just comes out like word-vomit. and every time i do it, i think i roll my eyes...when i blink so no one else can tell). ugh.

the small grove

because everybody needs a little vitamin c!

brings new meaning to the good, the bad and the ugly...

we splurged and got them chocolate dipped! 

making oklahomans everywhere proud! (smudge pot is not a drug)

i was shocked at how incredibly soft his skin was! 

well, we finally got off on our tour, and kayla from oklahoma drove us slower than most of us could probably walk. they had several different types of fruit in the little orchard, and she explained that this was just a small plot of land they kept for the tours, but their bigger plot of land was further out east. after several explanations, the smudge pot, and the creek, and several trees that had been damaged in the hurricane, we finally came to the 'exotic animals.' one of the local wildlife education and rehabilitation centers partners with their farm because they have the land and are on the outskirts of town, so they are able to house these animals that can never be released back into the wild. did not realize that there is an animal hospital on anna maria island, but the young man who works with them did a great job telling us all about the animals and their stories-all about being able to tell a great story!

on the way back, pulling around the building, kayla said, "and if you're interested in the self-guided tour, go through this door and back to the black double doors and the tour begins." shea and i looked to the left, and there were several doors on the outside of the building. so when we got off the tram, we went up to figure out which door it was....i looked in a double glass door, and there was an arrangement for some sort of meeting/reception...not the correct door. we checked another that looked like a tunnel leading down some stairs...then shea went to check another and i saw our tour guide walking toward the store, and called out to her to ask where the fruit factory tour was and she said at the back of the store.  OHHHHH! so what we both heard as: through this door was actually THROUGH THE STORE! hahaha!

i'm pretty sure shea tried all of the possible freebie-taster test things...twice (orange juice 4X)- i was about to have to start telling people she was diabetic and just needed to get her insulin. (?) the orange and vanilla swirl ice cream cones were like the creamcicles from kamp-yummers!

after all was said and done, we decided it might be wise to take a walk, so we headed over to robinson preserve, as it's always a pretty good walk, plus there were some geo-caches out there. i learned quickly that i am not as big a fan of the earth-caches, although they would be especially good if you were a science teacher with students, or something of that nature. lots of questions, lots of recording information...i couldn't remember the questions before trying to answer them in the app...

the preserve really has some beautiful areas!

one of the caches disguised as an electrical box-the hint: IT'S ELECTRIC! BOOGIE WOOGIE! (sneakies!)

when we got back from the fairly full day, shea disappeared for a couple minutes, then entered the kitchen with a beautiful 'woods-inspired' box (aka: Christmas trees), which got quickly upgraded when she saw a gift bag hangin' out on the table. i had no clue what to expect, but i was NOT disappointed!! fun gear!!! AND DONUTS!!! (the two go together!) the best kinds of gifts, if we're all honest with ourselves, are the gifts in which we can share in the enjoyment! am i right? duh!

forest themed...

gift-bag-upgrade...

it's official! #newhobby

and this morning we went to find a cache in our neighborhood, then off to lowes to find some ways to create our own...it's about time to take this adventure to the next level and share in the creation! we also made it over to target where i indulged in my other hobby and may have spent the majority of my time in the card section! it had already begun to rain sprinkle, so after 1/2 price sonic drinks, we returned to our separate abodes and i then spent the remainder of the afternoon creating cache-hiding-things, and watching netflix...good times!

let the games begin! did you see the spider? 'bout to be sneaky!!

if you don't have one, get a hobby!
julie

beginning of the end of january

alright, so i got a little ahead of myself- my birthday actually happened the day before ginger and i went to kilgore, and i celebrated it with nicolette and nafia with a simple dinner (reminiscent of last year-simple, small, private.not a big deal) we were going to do cheesecake factory, but it was so packed, we opted for blue mesa next door. it's always good to catch up with the girls and laugh a little! they were very thoughtful with their gifts-those who know me, know i am a sucker for stationery! so stationery, a sweet journal and the  i received some sweet cards over week leading up to my birthday, and silly/humorous affirmation cards! time i get to spend with these two has become so limited, but when we do get together, it truly is enjoyable!

i also received several cards leading up to my birthday-a few from colleagues (thanks leadership team, alyshia, and joyce-so thoughtful!) not to mention, the following weekend i received a gorgeous bead necklace, which is totally me, (for which i have the perfect matching earrings) and another stationery set from sabrina, none-too-soon, i might add...as i only have about 4 cards left from the punny set, and maybe for from the inspire set. yes, i may have substituted letter-writing for blog-posting over the past couple months. oops.

that last weekend of january, we were off to abq, new mexico. i found out about a month too late that one of my old kampers, and dear friend, kelly v lives there! if only i'd known sooner! anyhoo. i was pleasantly surprised that my flight was hooking up with sabrina's, so she saved me a spot on plane while i was boarding from dallas. i was excited that we were going to get an opportunity to fly together-a little hangout time long overdue. we did some work on the plane (as much as we could, as the wifi was sketch). we arrived in the afternoon, had some copies to run and things to do to get ready, then we grabbed a late-lunch/early dinner and went to settle into the hotels.

 notice i said hotels plural? well, as it so happens, the two hotels are basically connected by a courtyard, divided by a gate. so i checked into my room, then made my way across the courtyard to hang out with ju and sabrina in the other hotel. it was like playing marco polo trying to figure out where they were, but eventually, i heard my name ring out through the air, "JUAN!" and then my phone rang out and we talked my way through the mine-field...as i tried to use my sense of direction and looking at where the sun was setting, as the constellations hadn't come out yet (and even if they had, i'd left my astrolabe at home)...reunited and it feels so good... 

when i first arrived to my room, i was a little worried, and i ransacked the place, trying to locate the hair-dryer. i was getting worried. i looked under the sink (the usual place) under the OTHER sink, not there either, in the closet, in each of the drawers,

BIBLE: beauty is fleeting, why you need a hairdryer?
DEX PHONE GUIDE: baby, i got yo' number... (closed that drawer right back up)

behind cupboards...but finally! really? hanging on the back of the door? who'd-a-thunk?

oh! there you are!

it didn't take too long before it was time to go to bed, and wake up again! of course when you wake up with these two, you know it's going to involve a little starbucks, as well-and so we were off, and i tried the sous vide eggs for the first time-gruyere and bacon...ah, delectable! somewhat heavenly bites-if you can handle the consistency. as we slowly drove through the parking lot, past the carl jr's, i'm pretty sure there was a homeless man in the back corner who was making drug deals or something. i mean, there was something going down back there- both mornings a truck drove by and then the next morning a car was back there-and they weren't dropping off blankets and toiletries. just sayin'.

we got back to the convention center and had some setting up to do-it took pretty much 30-40 min. creating the posters, setting up the tables, passing out the papers-but it got done, and people started showing up, many of whom the girls had worked with before (several of them seemed so excited to be back-which has been a welcome progression!). cris appeared out of nowhere and we got her stuff set up as well, and it wasn't long before we saw lori come in as well. it was good to see her out of her boot, although it may have been a little premature, she did pretty well. this was the first chance i got to meet kelly and she introduced us all to heather, her partner in crime.

the session began with a little review from the previous round, because there were lots of positive comments about it, in fact, believe it or not, there were a couple of teachers in monday's group, and tuesday's group that actually brought their lap-folders with them-so excited about all the foldables! so there was a bit of review on portfolio/profile/display ideas, goal-setting, problem-solving, and then a bit on PLCs, followed by a survival -type team-work-collaboration. and that was followed by more end of year reports/work-time.

it was comical when one of the gentelmen that was in the session shared that he disagreed with the order of some of the survival game entries...and he was a survivalist. HA! (keep your opinions to yourself, mista!) it was still fun!

we had a great lunch (when it comes to sushi, i trust julie k, she never does me wrong!) i forget the name of the place, but we did it for lunch both days, and i was a happy girl! yummers!

monday night after the training, we headed out to dinner with kelly and heather, and it was loud. partly because it was like 8 girls in a small room, surrounded by small parties and some business men. add a little wine, and the girls get louder. the food was really good-we had quite the variety-a bit of everything! lovely evening. while my reach wasn't bad, the gentleman from the next table offered to take our picture, and it came out much better! (i'm sure he was probably thinking, 'just let me take this and get it over with so ya'all can get out of here and we can have a peaceful conversation, bringing the decibel count down a notch). ha!

my lovely friends/colleagues. 

i do enjoy working with these ladies! abq day tuesday-ish next up.

julie

playing with knives, birthday love and naked mannequins

is it just me, or...i should know the answer almost every time when i begin that way...so i play with knives. sorry.not.sorry...i am that crazy person that sees the knife thrower in the circus murder-mystery (murder she wrote), and decides that i need to learn how to throw knives, and this desire is once again rekindled when i watch the bodyguard, because that would be such a powerful ability!! but this was a legit accident. i was down to one chew treat, so i had to split it for the boys, because i would NEVER hear the end of it if i didn't...well, while i was forcefully trying to cut this rawhide treat in half, the knife slipped and cut a chunk out of my finger...and today, a pen slipped while i was signing a debit receipt and somehow managed to drive into that hole in my finger! AH! OUCH! but i didn't cry-we all good.

i know, you can barely even see the gash, and you're probably thinking: what a baby...but i seriously went through three bandaids before i was able to put one on without it bleeding through.

fast fwd the knife incident happened last weekend.

during the week, i had a meeting off campus for personalized learning. it went well-i really like the group of coaches, and i appreciate everything that kristen and vanessa do for us and the planning they put into our meetings!

#favorites

this weekend was my bday. friday i was greeted in the morning with a cupcake and birthday cake-flavored bubble gum from the 5th grade team (maite's daughter picked it out-so sweet!) it was a pretty busy day, with modeling and meetings, then i had a chance to sit with one of my teachers and look at some video that i had taken for coaching purposes. it is not easy to sit and watch yourself, so i was proud of her. while i was there, she gave me a birthday present, which was so thoughtful-loved everything about it! one of my favorite things in this assortment was the book-how full is your bucket...it reminds me of tim hise, our principal from a few years back- he was a firm believer in this philosophy, and he was really good at it! i have not read the book, so i am looking forward to it!

love the book,journal, candle (smells are always good)

and this made my day! she is so very thoughtful and she is teaching her students to be as well.

 then, when i got back to my office, there was a little envelope on my desk from the admin team-when i opened it: instant smile! dunn bros coffee! i'm pretty sure andrea organized it, because she knows me that way! if you recall, i do enjoy me some dunn bros and have stories that are related-here and here!

more live music, more coffee, more scrabble...or coloring, or writing

 oh, so back to while i was doing what coaches do, nafia said she and nicolette were going to dinner, and would i join them to enjoy a birthday dinner. so later that evening, i drove down to mckinley, and parked in the parking garage. i was surprised that there were spots available! then i walked out and around the corner to the restaurant-the same one i'd gone to with natalie, xochitl, lindsey, olivia, and i can't remember if maria was with us that time, or not...a full on wine place. nafia had text and said she was parking and waiting for nicolette, so i went ahead and got a seat, and ordered a drink...then i got another text that it was taking a little longer, because nicolette was at the wrong place; IMMEDIATELY, i looked around for the name of this restaurant, because the menu looked nothing like the one i'd seen on the website and yelp...i stopped the waitress, and apologized profusely because i was most DEFinitely in the wrong place! she was so kind and understanding and gave me a pass, because it was my birthday! smile. and she even told me that the place i was looking for was just up a couple of blocks. the two at the hostess stand asked if anything was wrong, but they understood as well-i was not supposed to be at imax's.

so on my little hike up the street, i was wondering how far up it was and i asked a preppy looking guy where entourage was. he looked at me with a blank look...entourage? why did i say entourage, and why couldn't i think of the name?? EUREKA!!! yes, "do you know where eurkea is?" that he was familiar with and pointed just up and around the corner. so as i was walking i was kicking myself, entourage? really? perhaps it was a subconscious thing-channeling tracy morgan from 30 rock, thinking about my entourage--i mean eureka-reminds me of california gold rush! no worries, and i know everyone was on pins and needles, i did arrive and found them waiting for a table. when we finally got a table, one of them asked for lemon for water or tea-i don't recall, and this was what was delivered...apparently lemons are in short demand, and highly guarded!

you gonna hafta squeeze the crap outta that thing to get all the lemon you need!

 dinner was delicious! i would SO go back!! the conversation was rich, and by the end of the evening, we unintentionally came up with some major challenges-it will be good to see everything unfold, and that's that. oh! and it took me a minute to come up with one for naf, but i have. i need to let them know so that there is accountability.

entourage..eureka..whatevs.

 they drove me back to my car, and i looked at the clock when i got home--i'm not a late night gal anymore...i used to be, but i don't stay up late anymore...so even though it was late, i had a great time.

 and i was SHOCKED that i woke up at 6:30, rolled over and tried to go back to sleep-couldn't, so i got up and made breakfast, and when it was finally late enough, i went shopping. i still had to find a dress, and shoes, and some other stuff, so i drove until i decided where i wanted to go. i finally found a dress, but they had 2 sizes too small, and 2 sizes too big. boo. so i txt b mayes, and asked if she wanted to go shopping that afternoon-as soon as i got a text back, i headed up to norman to hang out with one of my besties! (every time i write that, i snicker a little, because it's not really a term i use...i mean...bff? besties? not terms i grew up with) 
anyhoo, on the way up, i saw a wind-turbine farm just north of ardmore. it was real surprising-i certainly didn't recall seeing them before! had i been oblivious? i sent a pic and asked bmayes, and she said she'd never noticed either. well, once i got closer, they were right there next to the road like giants! very distracting, and all i wanted to do was stare-so yeah, they were new. i just looked it up and the project was completed at the end of 2015.

so i arrived and we got to play for the day! before we started our dreaded shopping trip, we chatted for a bit, then stopped at chic fil-a for the kale salad, which was surprisingly good!! i wasn't expecting it to be! she hates kale, but had tried it on a whim and loved it, so she brought me into the fold! then we set off to find hat i needed, and we were able to find the dress that i couldn't find here. in the process, i wanted to try on two dresses just to make sure. well...the only dress that was the right size of the other make was on a mannequin...so...i may or may not have awkwardly undressed the mannequin-which b got some pics of, and she showed me a video that she took as well. and then the shop girl came over and helped because she saw it wasn't going completely as planned. (apparently i wasn't as smooth as i thought!) after trying them on, my first choice was the best choice. later in the evening, we went to ted's for fajitas, and it was delicious! the bartender wasn't a super social-personable guy, but that's ok, because we weren't talking to him)..but it was perfect, as always, i might add. #tedsfan

good times, right there! if we could eventually live in the same neighborhood...that'd be good. just sayin'...and it'd be really good if it were in fl by a beach..and shea were in that neighborhood too...live the dream?

 i was a little tired driving home, as it'd been a long night before, and an early morning-with no nap! we should have taken naps! my saving grace on the way home was talking to brandy on the way home! we had a good conversation, and i was happy to see this morning that she acted on it! the boys were a less than happy at my arriving home so late!

 so this morning, i woke up with a crazy craving for bacon! i didn't have any in the place to cook up, so i  twisted someone's arm to go out to breakfast- i didn't have to twist very hard, because breakfast (and BACON) is a necessity-even if it's for brunch! we had a good conversation-which at one point went to extrovert/introvert talk, which bmayes and i had talked about a little yesterday. it always helps me to understand people better-today was not a surprise, people fall at different places on the continuum, and while i do fall on the introvert side of the spectrum (for the most part), i am not nearly as far down the spectrum as she is, in fact, it's an adjustment, because i don't know very many people who are that far down the spectrum-learning curb-good to know. you can read a little more about it here. good post.

anyhoo-i got home from brunch, and went for a walk-which was really good! before nicolette took off for her trip, she dropped off some sub/class work to take back to school tomorrow. and she dropped of a birthday present too-which was perfect:

a. stationery-we all know it's a weakness of mine b. this notebook/journal: TODAY SOUNDS BETTER THAN SOMEDAY! this is it. this is exactly right, and this is somewhat our conversation from the other evening. live life..today. 

and this was the other part of the gift-which i LOVE! i have a few pics i actually need to go to office depot and get printed off-update! yes, pictures-friends and family are important to me!

i will end with this last thought. on my way home friday night, as i was thinking about my own challenges, i was reminded of a quote that i have loved since high school, which was a chapter opener in a book-the singer.

what do you want to be when you grow up, little girl?

"alive"

i've always wanted to feel alive. i need to remind myself of those things which make me feel most alive and make them happen on my TODAYS!

may you find what makes you ALIVE, and not wait for someday to do it!
julie

avocado mousse, birthday surprises and a dream that gave itself away

since my last post, i've tried a few new recipes from this amazing paleo cookbook- i am especially fond of the avocado/chocolate mousse, and the blueberry cobbler stuff! for real though...non-dairy mousse?! what?! amazing, i tell ya! my food processor has gotten more use in the past few weeks than it has in a LONG time!

seriously...too good to be good for me!

a birthday has occurred, so we're taking that in stride. i'm so glad that they work the way they do; the gradual release is a good thing. so glad that we don't just gain a year's-worth of growth over night. can you imagine waking up the morning of your birthday and having all of the aging signs show up at once in one day? that would be a dead give-away. people would look at you and say, "yep, must be her birthday!"

my co-workers treat me well...thanks jeri, andrea, dr. hughes, sean and carmen--bundt you really shouldn't have!

they know me well! my heart belongs to nothing bundt cakes!

always fun to walk into a bday greeting! thanks!

 it's always fun to get all of the messages on fb and whatsapp-feeling the love from afar, and i got the bday card from mom and dad-somehow they always pick out the perfect cards that make me feel super terrific! this year mom sent me an awesome calendar of rain forests-love it! (they also called, so they are in luck, they get props in the blog!) sending out props to gigi for remembering as well, because she is kind of a birthday master mistress..she is queen of all things birthday..in fact, she celebrates hers twice-crazy girl!

HONDURAS! appropriately placed on my bday month!

as i was at school, on my birthday, i got a phone call. my apt. people said they needed to get in because there was a leak in the apt below mine, so they needed to check the utility room. they had to call in because i have the boys, and they needed to know if the boys were locked up so that they could get in...

they got in.

 i was a little flustered that they left it this way, and i was going to take this picture to the office to have a chat, fortunately i stopped back at my place beforehand, or i might've made a fool of myself! they did come back to patch it up. thankfully.

also this month, i was able to go to a great workshop: identifying learning differences 1-6 yrs. it was truly enlightening! i really wish our entire staff could go to this workshop. for those of you with young children, think about teaching your kiddos to write in cursive, and read in print. why, you might ask? well, cursive is more fluid, they don't have to worry about all of the individual steps for printing letters, and spacing isn't an issue. not only that, they won't struggle with the b/d, p/q. so take that tip and do what you will with it!(it's free).

the other free tip for today is that, if you have lower back problems, placing a large pillow under your knees while you sleep will really help ease some of the pain.(two for one!) 

last week i was also able to video chat with my lil sis, sheryl in HONDURAS, and discuss possible plans for a little vacation time in the summer (? maybe?!?) and the biggest surprise was a fun phone call from a dear old friend, with whom i used to play basketball and softball in high school. it was really special and meant a lot-so good to catch up and hear the familiar voice of a friend from the past! catching up is like..the best thing ever! (better even than avocado mousse-just sayin...)

and to close it all out for tonight, i had a dream a few nights ago, and in the dream, i knew it was a dream. two of my colleagues-teacher friends, were in it. penny had decided to invest in a business venture: a library book store. i am not certain how you make any money from this type of a venture, as the two are in direct opposition, everyone would borrow and not purchase, right? but since she is a reading/language arts teacher, my 'dream mind' let it go. then carol decided that she was interested in investing with penny, and they were going to do this together. but at some point carol convinced penny that a roller skating rink would be a better business investment. i'm pretty sure at this point my 'dream mind' confirmed it was a dream because there was no way these two would ever open a skating rink! there's no fooling me! not even in a dream! 

and that reminded me of so many different roller skating memories! couples skate! limbo! conga chain! falling flat on face! woooo! when i lived in brodhead, there was not a rink there, so we would sometimes take a bus, with a group of people to a nearby town that had one (always with my brother and his friend tom walker...and sometimes the mcguinty's) good times! 

i'll save the roller blading memories for another day-they are pretty exciting, too! (the invincible college years)

'evening!

julie