looking back on my #goals post from last year at this time, i did so-so i guess. i feel like i did really well in the ‘good deed’ department – with spreading kindness around elementary school and writing 30 thank you cards in november with linds for ‘thankful november’. i also am really happy with how my reading goal has changed my life this year…though i didn’t do as well with the blogging as i would have liked. the other thing i didn’t do very well on was the over-eating thing. i think that i did really well on focusing on improving my mental health this past year but i need to do better with my physical health.
so, with that being said, here are my goals for 2019:
keep up with reading (52 books in 52 weeks – and i have a list of things i want to accomplish. more on this soon!)
keep focusing on my mental health: taking time for myself and making myself a priority. AND being CONFIDENT. i think this will be my word of the year. CONFIDENCE.
prioritize my physical health by making changes that are realistic and life long.
be better at blogging – i’m working on a fun new library series of posts – so, stay tuned for that!
**disclaimer** i’m always nervous to make a post like this because i don’t want to upset anyone but the truth is that i have a terrible memory. SO, if i did forget something, please forgive me!! it’s be a YEAR, people! 🙂
01. linds and i had our first professional photo shoot for the glue. our friend othman had an idea for a series of photos…and the space, so we went for it. we just looooooooved the way they all turned out. and that was the beginning our of #amugandastory series. we hope for more to come this year!
02. this little nugget turned FIVE! i literally remember the day that linds told me they were expecting…and now THIS!? where does time go?! i am so lucky that i get to watch her grow up into a smart, funny, and loving person. i love you, nory girl! we also celebrated kuwait national day and had a fab four day staycation at the end of the month!
03. i travelled to lebanon with my lovely friend, pam. it was SUCH AN AMAZING trip! and it was so cool to return to lebanon after about 10 years! it’s such a beautiful country and pam was an amazing travel companion! we definitely made the most of our short trip – saw sooooo many amazing sights and had even more laughs!!
04. caught up with some lovely friends in kuwait at the beginning of the month. i feel so fortunate that kuwait brought this group of amazing people into my life – from sweden, france, lebanon, and canada. short but sweet, it was sooooo great to see sylvette and her boys and always happy to spend time with caroline and her boys (although thankfully, i still get to see them most days!). also hosted a very successful spring reading celebration at school!
05. i took a serious leap outside of my comfort zone and went on a SOLO trip, to istanbul, for a librarian conference. i am not really a fan of being alone all the time. and i definitely am not into travelling alone…but this trip was a great opportunity for me, professionally, and it was so close to kuwait that it was hard to pass up. i had a great weekend of learning with so many other teacher librarians.
06. june started off a bit rocky when my bestie had a health scare, but the end of june was EPIC. after school ended for the year, i flew to ho chi minh city, met up with valerie, and we surprised these AMAZING young people at their grade 12 graduation!! valerie taught these guys in grade 4 and i taught them in grade 5! the look on their faces when we arrived was priceless and i am so glad that we were able to be there. we also met up with our dear friend cindy, explored saigon, AND spent a week in hoi an – my very favourite place on earth. after a quick stop in kuwait, i was off to canada for the summer!
07. july was also a great month. i had lots of time to spend with my family. visited my aunts in the soo. spent time with my nephews. read and relaxed. then my aunt melissa and i took a trip to montreal. i absolutely LOVED the city and i can totally understand now why people love it so much!! we had a great time exploring and eating our way around the city. we also met up with a student that i taught in vietnam who is now living in montreal! a seriously wonderful trip!
08. this month included a lot of visiting with family. i got to spend more time with makai and fynn, got a tattoo (or two or three), saw my friend cynthia who i haven’t seen for ages, and visited with sandra for a (VERY OVERDUE) while. also got to catch up with a bunch of cousins and aunts while i was home and that never happens so that was fab. i could post so many cute pics here but i’m trying to stick to highlights so bare with me 😉
09. back to kuwait. back to work. back to my kitties! spent time catching up with kuwait friends. had a book fair at school. and had our first aunties day of the school year with a little trip to build a bear. the girlies sure know how to suck auntie in! 😉 how could i say no to that face?!
10. october was super busy! lindsay and i hosted canadian thanksgiving in the courtyard. i arranged an author visit for school. i got to go into nory’s class for ‘grandpals day’ and she showed me all of the amazing things she’s been learning in KG2. linds and i went to a launch event for othman’s ‘soapbox’ initiative where the glue had mugs in each of the giveaways for the 300 attendees! and we celebrated halloween IN STYLE! i dressed as belle from beauty and the beast, before she became a princess and i just really felt in my element! 🙂
11. we got FOUR rain days in kuwait. which is completely unheard of. but more importantly, i travelled to lebanon again, but this time with my academic games team. it was an AWESOME trip with the coolest group of highschoolers EVER. and i am so proud to say that they WON!! my kids really nailed it and although i don’t feel i taught them much academically, i know that i loved being their coach and i hope that they learned about being a good team and being good humans! what an awesome opporunity! i can’t wait to work with some of them again next year!
12. we celebrated juliet’s 4th birthday. i did two professional development presentations for teachers about interactive read alouds. and i travelled to london with suhaila and the parkinsons for an AMAZING winter holiday!! (more to come on that later!) we’ve been bsuy walking and sightseeing and shopping and enjoying some down time as well!! what a great way to end the year! tonight we will watch taylor swift on netflix, enjoy some appetizers, and blow up some confetti balloons! sounds PERFECT to me!
so yes, 2018 had some not-so-fab moments, but i think it’s important to recognize those moments and FOCUS on the good ones. and there were lots of those too! wishing you all a SUPER 2019, wherever you may be! HAPPY NEW YEAR! xo
actually. i think that i will start with what i loved. and then i will post a complete list of what i read this year. BUT FIRST, i have to say that i am so proud of the fact that i reached my reading goal for this year! i wanted to read 52 books and i think that i ended up with a total of 53. and yes, some of them were young adult or middle grades books, but i did it!! and i loved every minute of it! there were also some other books that i started but didn’t finish so those don’t make the cut…yet.
i’m also SUPER proud to say that quite a few people have told me that my love for reading has inspired them to start reading or start reading again!! HOW COOL IS THAT?! i have always loved reading, although i definitely didn’t make it a priority for a long time, and i am so happy to inspire others to love reading as well. that is GOALS!
some reading notables from 2018:
i read my first harry potter book (i read books 1-4).
i read and started LOVING mystery/thriller novels.
i read my very first john grisham book.
i read a trilogy…and followed through til the end.
i read my first graphic novel.
anyway, let’s get going. here are my very favourite books that i read this year:
july.
december.
august.
april.
august.
march.
october.
it was hard to narrow it down. but i did it. a TOP SEVEN for 2018. not sure why it’s seven…it just is what it is. HA! if you want more info on any of these books or why i liked them, i have captioned them with which month i read them in so you can go back and check it out. i will also link all of the books i read to goodreads down below in case you’re interested!
i’ve never really felt that ‘urge’ to have kids. growing up when friends were talking about getting married and having kids, it wasn’t really something that i ever saw for me. and don’t get me wrong, i LOVE kids! i am a teacher, after all, and i work with about 1000 different students in a 6 day rotation. i make friends with random children everywhere. it’s just that i truly don’t think that being a mom is my calling.
BUT.
i am a REALLY good auntie. i LOOOOOOOVE being an auntie. with all of my heart. i would give anything for the little people in my life. i’m not a biological auntie yet, but i am ‘auntie’ to some super special little boys and girls. and i would do anything for them. for real.
at times i have felt that people judge me when i say that i don’t want to have any kids, but i suppose it is becoming more accepted. the other day, lindsay shared an article with me from a cup of jo, in which different women talk about their decision not to have children. i really connected to tracey…you can find her at the bottom of the article. and i just LOVE how she puts it, “…I am more sure than ever that this is my calling. This isn’t second prize, it’s an alternate first.”
and to my little people, i will ALWAYS be there for you. no matter what. unconditionally. and forever. being your auntie makes me happier than you can imagine. you are amazing and special people. auntie, LOVES you! xo
GUYS!!!! I DID IT!!! i met my reading goal for this year!! i’m so excited that i actually accomplished it! and i will do another post to talk about how my reading went this year and what my faves of the year were…but for now, here is what december looked like:
after reading “dumplin'” by this author, i knew that i wanted to read the second book. this book is written from a different character’s point of view but you still get a look into the lives of all of the characters from the first book. i like that the characters feel REAL and go through a lot of the stuff that teens today can relate to. the main character in this second book deals with being over weight her whole life and the struggles of dealing with an overbearing mother and applying to university. all of these things that they go through, makes the characters realize just how similar they are really are. i really liked this book. it was a quick but adorable read.
this is a middle grades book that i got in the library this year. i put it aside to read before i put it on the shelf as a sort of censorship but it turns out that it’s a GREAT book. i think that my kids, especially my girls will love that this book is very relatable for them. the main character is pakistani-american and goes through some difficulties being muslim and trying to understand her faith. she questions some things that her family believes and goes through a difficult time when there mosque is vandalized. i think that this book touches on so many important issues, especially in the lives of my students. i also loved that there were some arabic words thrown in throughout the story. i think this is a great book for kids in grade 5-8 or so.
THIS. BOOK. where do i even start?! i am SO in love with it. like utterly and totally in love. i think that even though it’s a middle grades book, all adults, young adults, and kids should read it. i think it would make a great read aloud for about grade 3 and up, or an independent read for grade 4 and up. this author is a GENIUS. i just love how she writes from such unique perspectives, and this book is no different as it is written from the perspective of a tree. it gives some interesting facts about nature and tress, but also touches on some really HUGE topics like hope and racism. although the talking animals can be a bit much at times, the themes in this book out weigh that and you will breeze right through it and i promise you will love it. it’s just INCREDIBLE.
another sequel or more of a follow i guess – this one follows ‘simon vs. the homo sapiens agenda’ but instead of being narrated by simon, this one is narrated by his best friend, leah. she’s such a relatable character who struggles with all the things that a teenager struggles with. i feel that she and i probably would have been friends in high school. i guess this book would be classified as young adult but i still really enjoyed it. i think that the topics presented in the book are very NOW and that many teens would connect with leah and her journey with finding herself and who she really is. i liked this book a lot. i probably preferred simon, but am definitely glad that i read this one too.
rhyming. it’s an interesting stage of learning. and as a kindergarten teacher for many years, i have been presented with some PRETTY interesting rhyming pairs!
nory has been learning all about rhyming and so of course, there is a lot of rhyming going on at home. and, naturally, that means that juliet is also working on her rhyming words. it’s SO stinking adorable because she tends to rhyme most this with words that begin with P. for example:
daddy…paddy
nory…pory
cat…pat
tree…pee
the list goes on…like this…for just about any word you can think of. and so, i would like you to think about how that has worked out for me…
yesterday, lindsay and i took our ‘little business that could’ to a christmas market! it was our favourite market last year and we decided that it would be the only one we would do this year. we had a super amazing day, met so many wonderful people, and made tons of sales! we are currently taking our final orders for the year and making sure we can get our orders out before the christmas holiday. i am so, so proud of our little passion project and i continue to be amazed by that little idea we had over coffee 2.5 years ago!
business partners. best friends. sisters.
at the market, many of our friends and students came by to support us. there’s this one little sweetie pie from elementary who popped in (with her mom and her brother — and they are all FAB) and while she was there, she won a prize for answering a christmas question. so, she picked her prize which was these two adorable christmas tree ornaments in little bottles. when she opened it up and discovered that there were two, she asked her mom if she could give me one!! DYING! it’s the most precious little gift, from the most precious little girl, and i will treasure my BFF ornament forever! *insert lindsay crying while this all happened because it was so darn sweet!*
we now have BFF headbands, cat ears, and ornaments! xo
**DISCLAIMER — if you aren’t into cats or if you don’t want to read my crazy cat lady tales, skip this paragraph.** i LOVE my cates. they are my children. i talk to them. i love hanging out with them. they are my babies. anyway, it seems that we have recently established some sort of ‘bedtime’ routine that i feel is super adorable and i want to tell you about it. every night as i get ready for bed and brush my teeth, the cats join me in the bathroom. loomi drinks water from the sink and auggie drinks water from the washing contraption beside the toilet. then when we get into bed, auggie lies on my chest and loomi lies on my legs as i read. as you can imagine, this isn’t especially comfortable for me, but it is what it is. then, when i’m ready to sleep, i roll over and loomi lays and the bottom of the bed and auggie lays beside my pillow. this happens EVERY NIGHT. it’s like a thing now. and it’s a thing that i really love. that’s all.
oooooh. and speaking of the cats, this one doesn’t really qualify as a GEM, but noteworthy, nonetheless. the other night, in the midst of our night time routine, the cats had the BIGGEST fight they’ve had since i got auggie. it was AWFUL. i can’t even explain to you the amount of fur that was flying. i thought loomi was going to eat auggie. and as i sprayed them with water and hit them with pillows, trying to split them up, they completely ignored me and continued to fight. it. was. horrific. since then, we have had a couple of tense moments, but nothing even close to that huge fight. sigh. all i want is for them to sleep together in a heart shape. is that really too much to ask?!
other random thoughts: two work weeks left until christmas vacation, which means two weeks until LONDON! how has this happened?! SO EXCITED! but before that, one PD presentation for teachers, purchase orders need to be submitted, secret santa fun, and a fun surprise or two from the sunshine squad! BUSY, BUSY!
this week, i volunteered to do a workshop for ‘teachers leading teachers’ at my school. i have never done something like this before but i decided to put myself out there and make a presentation on something that i have had a LOT of practice with over the past 2.5 years — read alouds. i have 46 classes in a 6 day cycle that come through my library, so naturally, read alouds are something that i feel pretty confident with.
as i was thinking about what i wanted my main points to be, i came up with three things that i decided to focus on:
being prepared
believing in what you’re doing
making it interactive
with the help of my SUPER-DUPER-AMAZING-AND-CREATIVE bestie, this handout for my presentation was born:
i tried to give a summary of why i think that these three points are SO important, give simple ideas on how to assess using these skills, and introduce some new read aloud “sign language” into our school community. (i will have to try and get some pictures of the sign language in action!) i modelled an interactive read aloud and also had teachers work with picture books to come up with simple ways to make those read alouds interactive. anyway, i think the presentation went well. i got some really awesome feedback as well, so overall, i am feeling proud of how it went and i will be doing the presentation again in a couple weeks with a grade 3, 4, 5 focus so it will be exciting to see how that one goes! if you are interested in more info, please don’t hesitate to ask!
i have been wanting to read this book for a while because i saw it on lots of recommended lists and it certainly didn’t disappoint. my friend suhaila (who has reaaaalllllly good taste in books) loaned it to me and she was so right in describing it as a page turner! it’s a mystery for sure, with a bit of darkness and underlying…strangeness…but i really enjoyed it. it’s about two girls (and their family) and the mystery of why roanoke girls always disappear. i don’t want to give too much away, but you can read the summary on the link and if you like mysteries, i think you’ll really like this book. i am so glad that i broadened my reading horizons this year!
this is a middle grades book that i have been wanting to read and when it arrived in my school order this year i added it to my “to be read” pile. i think this may be one of those times when i had hyped it up too much in my mind because i didn’t really LOVE this one as much as i thought i would. it was the winner of the 2018 newberry award so that in itself says a lot, but i just didn’t feel the excitement around it that i thought i would. it’s about four kids who’s lives come together one day and the relationships that blossom through that. there is a lot focus on coincidence and fate and all of that, which i did really like but i felt bored through the middle of the book. that being said, i think that kids would probably enjoy this book and it could be the basis for good conversations about bullying, being kind, etc. overall, it wasn’t my favourite, but it’s not terrible. you know?
this was a strange one in my opinion. i was really excited to read it, not for any particular reason, and in the first few chapters, i was totally into it. i texted my friend sean and told him to read it and he went out to the library that day and picked it up. then things got weird. and i wondered if i had dropped the ball with this recommendation. turns out sean loved it, so that’s good! i liked the beginning. and the end. and i thought the middle was super weird and some times painful! HA! so, it takes place in the 1700’s and i don’t typically read historical fiction, so that could be part of it. i don’t want to give too much away in case you decide to read it, but it covers a lot of interesting topics, such as being gay in the that time as well as mixed race relationships. and there are moments when i LOVED this book. and other moments (ahem…pirates and eating hearts?!) where i wondered what i had gotten myself into! anyway, mixed reviews on this one but now i kinda want to read the next book, written from the main character’s sisters point of view.
i didn’t read as much as i hoped this month but i only have to read three books in december to reach my 2018 goal so that’s great! i have already started two books so i should be good to go! i am so excited that i decided to take this reading journey this year and i am so proud that i’ve managed to commit! stay tuned to find out what my final books of 2018 will be! and thank you for sticking around! xo
okay so i should preface this by saying that i don’t know if i actually believe in all of this kind of stuff…BUT…this may just be toooooooo coincidental????!!!!
it all started a couple years ago when i met kelly in portugal for spring break. it was an absolutely AMAZING trip and at the time, i thought nothing of it, but when other things started happening, i looked back and the proof was in the pudding! one day on our vacation, we were out at these stunning cliffs and this adorable stray cat started following me. naturally, i stopped to pet it. and naturally, kelly freaked out because it was a street cat and germs are NOT his fave. but the cat was SO cute!! it followed us all around the sight and all the way back to the car. i felt SO SAD to leave it there. we talked about how i could possibly smuggle it back to kuwait…but kelly was being practical (or mean!) and we left without the cat. please note: the important detail here is that i was wearing this long, maroon cardigan (pictured below). and that, my friends, is where the curse of the sweater began.
^^ the super cute cat that i made friends with.
^^ the cursed sweater.
fast forward a few months. i don’t know the exact timeline here, but it was a while later when i decided to break out the maroon cardigan again. i don’t actually know why i hadn’t warn it, but it was one of those things that seemed to slip to the bottom of the pile, i guess. anyway, i wore it to school one day and thought nothing of it. i was going about my business as usual when someone came into the library saying that they could hear kittens crying. we looked around, went for a walk, and couldn’t see any kittens. not long after, my principal came in and asked me to come outside. and there, beside the school building was a super tiny little orange kitty, all by itself. apparently maintenance has been called because the kitty was in the ceiling of the school and so they took it out and just left it on the ground by itself. the poor little thing was shivering so i picked it up, wrapped it in my MAROON SWEATER and proceeded to walk around, looking for it’s siblings or mama. long story short, we did finally reunite him with the family and all was good in the world.
^^ sweet kitty, wrapped in my MAROON sweater.
fast forward again, to october of 2017. the maroon sweater makes it’s way out of the closet, without much thought. it’s getting cool in kuwait and it seems like a good choice. it’s early in the morning and my vice-principal comes running into the library and asks me to come outside. i run out with her and there, by the gate, is the friendliest cat, rubbing up against her legs and letting all the children pet it. i go over to the cat and start petting it, immediately enamoured by his sweet nature and then i notice that there is something wrong with one of his eyes. i pick him up to get a closer look and he starts purring and rubbing his head against me. so, CLEARLY, i have to find the cat a good home. i bring him into my office where he spends the rest of the day…before i decide that he’s meant to be MINE. and so, auggie was named, in the library and became my fur baby that day. but OF COURSE, what was i wearing that day?! YES! you’re right! THE MAROON SWEATER!!!!! i can’t make this stuff up people, this is REAL LIFE!
^^ auggie, cuddled up on THE sweater!
it was after the auggie thing that i made the connection with the sweater. i have been meaning to tell you about it since, really. but now just seemed like the right time. why?! WELL, i wore the sweater again a couple weeks ago. on auggie’s ONE YEAR adoptiversary! ANNNNNNND…i didn’t cross paths with any stray cats! so maybe auggie broke the curse? or maybe it’s still cursed and i should continue to be careful?! i am still a bit skeptical to be honest…but i really do love the sweater…AND CATS! 😉
