Right Now...

• Right Now... I'm looking at pictures from my graduation weekend (whoot Masters)

(My Friends Catherine, Mackenzie, me, and Jackie after receiving our diplomas)

• Right Now... I have a Master's in Education... WhAT?

• Right Now... I am laughing at the "Most Interesting Man in the World" Commercials which REALLY makes me want to drink Dos Equis

(I like the one that says his mother has a tattoo that says the word "Son"... hint hint Mom)

• Right Now... my poor little (big) puppy is sleeping on the couch right next to me because of an unfortunate injury at the dog park yesterday. His poor little paws lost the pads and then the inner layers of his paws got burned by the hot concrete :(
  
  

• Right Now... I'm watching the Suns lose to the Lakers, COME ON PHOENIX

(I think ESPY should be Steve Nash's puppy, they both seem to have little injuries - except ESPY's is debilitating and Nash is playing in the Western Conference Finals... if only ESPY had the stamina of Nash * Reason #1 my Dog is not like Steve Nash *)

• Right Now... I'm actually having a "Night Off" without much to do (only one conference call this afternoon at 5:00... what a welcomed reprieve. Tuesday is a celebration dinner, Wednesday is Science Fair, Thursday is Soccer Night and Friday is the WEEKEND!!!

• Right Now... I'm posting pictures to Facebook from my NEW CAMERA!!!! WAHOOOO.

• Right Now... I'm going to read a book (during the Halftime Show) and have a glass of Sweet Tea Vodka and Lemonade - if you haven't had this, I highly suggest it... it is phenomenal!

• Right Now... I'm signing off for the night. Hopefully with the camera I'll be more diligent about my blog posting!

On to the Championship

After two grueling games... my D-League softball team has made it to the CHAMPIONSHIP.

Next Wednesday (sorry Lauren you have to come :) ) we have our Championship game! Boo Yah!

Good Times.

20 Things You NEED TO KNOW about Kristen RIGHT NOW

After a long hiatus, I have returned into the light. And, with this return is some amazing news. Here are the 20 things you should know about Kristen RIGHT NOW! (in no particular order)

1) I just accepted a job as Program Director for Teach for America working in Phoenix!!!! WHOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!! I'm going to be supporting about 20-30 first and second year teachers helping them in the process to becoming highly effective in the classroom. While this is a tall order, I couldn't be more excited. The program team in Phoenix is incredible and I can't wait to work with all of them.

2) I will be working, also for TFA, at the Summer Institute (June 6 - July 18th). Here, I'll be helping incoming corps members learn how to be teachers... do I see a trend... maybe!!!

3) I am getting ready to leave for a Semi-Final Co-Ed softball game with all my best friends!!! Hopefully we win :)

4) I went to Vegas two weekends ago to play in a soccer tournament with more of my friends! We didn't play super well and thus did not win the tournament unfortunately. But, we had a great time and hit the strip pretty hard the first night!

5) I have officially finished my Arizona State University Master's in Education program. I graduate next Friday from the College of Teacher Education and Leadership... whoooooot!

6) I have a TFA Alumni induction celebration this Friday which I am very excited for.

7) I am renting a pontoon boat on Saguaro Lake with my friends on Saturday to celebrate it basically being summer in Phoenix now.

8) I only have 3 weeks of teaching left.

9) I had an amazing time when Grandpa and Georgette came down to visit. I went golfing with Grandpa twice (once I beat him by one stroke, the next game he beat me by one stroke so now we're even) :) We had fun hanging out with Georgette's family and eating some great Lebanese food!

10) I am still in the running for the Sue Lehmann Excellence in Teaching Award given to an exemplary second year TFA corps member chosen from the entire pool of TFA teachers across the nation (A SUPER BIG DEAL) :) :) I think I find out at the end of May if I get it or not, I'll definitely try to keep everyone more updated.

11) I went camping last weekend at Christopher Creek which is just past Payson Arizona. Interesting thing about Payson, Arizona is that they are not on the same time-zone as the rest of Arizona. The Navajo Nation follows the mountain time zone. So, needless to say, I was SUPER confused when it only took an hour to drive there even though it was much further away. Pictures to come from this camping extravaganza!

12) I still have a beast of a dog who seems to keep growing (yikes!). He thoroughly enjoyed the camping trip and slept all day Sunday (I should go camping more often)!

13) I am currently looking to move into a house. I am pretty picky though when it comes to living arrangements: I want a pool, a back yard, and cheap rent... think I can find that???

14) I have not had time to blog because I've been going crazy with stuff from school (end of the year celebrations with 8th graders, Science Fair with both my 7th and 8th graders, trip to the water part, trip to the science center... eesh... it's been crazy), stuff in preparation for my summer job (conference calls, pre-work, videos to watch, interviews to critique), and now I my new job has some crazy pre-work stuff to do to!!! AHHHHH. Oh, and not to mention that I have been working with TFA to get the first Unit plan done for the incoming science corps members next year.

15) Did I mention I'm psyched for my new job?

16) I am still playing soccer. Outdoor season is done for the summer but I am still playing indoor twice a week - which looks like it's going to have to be trimmed down to once a week during the summer because of my jobs.

17) I have SO much going on, I'm not sure when I'm going to make it up to Washington, but I'm hoping in August... I know it seems like a long time, but it will fly by before we all know it.

18) I am bummed about not being able to come to leadership camp this year :-( but this is not something I could maneuver around. I am hoping a one year hiatus will not affect future years at camp.

19) I AM SO EXCITED for Lauren to come down next Tuesday and Mom and Dad to come down next Thursday! There are no words to express my elation.

20) I have to go now because my softball game starts in 30 minutes and my friend Jackie is coming to pick me up to go play. In case you want to cheer for us... our team name is:

HERE COME THE RUNS!!!!

Thanks for reading and sending you all my love!

Worthy Wines! 6: Merlot

A long overdue wine post is here. I'm sure you all were holding your breath to see what I was up to this time, and alas, the time has arrived. Because of some wonderful gifts from Lauren and Sarah, I bring you this edition of Worthy Wines! with a lot more expertise than I had before. I now have a WINE JOURNAL and a "Rate This Wine" scale to use when continuing this wonderful part of the blog. I'm actually pondering starting another specifically "Worthy Wines!" Blog, so chime in about your opinions on that.

Here is the wonderful "Wine Journal," trusty computer, and glass of wine for the week!

As previously noted, I also received a wonderful "Rate This Wine" notepad which I am proud to say was successfully used for this blog :)

This week's wine is a Fish Eye Merlot from the Fish Eye Winery, Vintage 2007 (note the new vocabulary brought to you by the wine lover gifts!!!

This full bodied wine originally sold for a whopping $4.89, but with the Safeway Club Card I managed to basically steal this wine for $4.19... that's right, a savings of .80 cents. Wow, that Safeway Club Card really does it for you huh? Awesome!

This wine lists itself as pairing nice with Pasta, Turkey, Pork and Beef. Sounds good to me!

Some categories on the "Rate That Wine" sheet include: Label, Color, Clarity, Nose, Body, Flavor, and Finish. This Merlot Rated an average of a 3 out of 5 (from me) on this ranking system. It ranked high on the Label because I'm a big fan of the purple and green. The color, it received a "Looks Like Wine" ranking and the Finish ranked a 4 with "Stamina to Spare."

This wine is a GREAT option for the price. I see the Fish Eye as a cheap effective way to start the night off right. If you're casually drinking wine with a dinner alone, or hanging out playing cards with friends, this wine would go wonderfully. I would not choose this wine if you're trying to Wine and Dine a certain someone... most people know that Fish Eye is not the most "Swank" label of wine.

Overall Ranking: 22 out of 35

Back from Reality

You know that show "reality bites"... feeling a little bit of that. What I wouldn't give to be on the beaches of Cabo San Lucas drinking Margaritas and sticking my toes in the sand.

(Chris and I along the Pacific Ocean) :)

Instead, I'm trying to cope with reality. After seemingly months of grueling interviews, I come away empty handed. No summer job, no recruitment job, and still waiting on the Program Director job. Waiting to hear if Seattle opens, waiting to see if anything else opens in the regions I want to be in... another waiting game.

Alas, the trip back to reality was not the best. But, the trip before "reality" was amazing (other than the fact I'm returning with one less camera and a few less pesos). For an all-inclusive resort, the Riu Palace had it going on. First off, we arrived in Cabo and immediately greeted with our first bar right outside the plane! We bought our Sol cerveza's and waited for our van to arrive to take us to the resort. When we hopped on our Van (along with numerous other Spring Break-ers) our first stop was non other than a liquor store. I guess the bus driver really knew what people were looking for! So, we drank our Pacifico beers and finally made it to our hotel about an hour later.

At check-in we were once again met with more alcohol. Yes, that is right, fresh margaritas in the hotel lobby... awesome.

When we arrived in our hotel room we were pleasantly surprised to find an AMAZING ocean view overlooking two pools of many over the property. We also found our refrigerator STOCKED with Dos Equis and a hard alcohol dispenser (which we thankfully never used) above the fridge... crazy. They don't mess around with the all inclusive business.

And, when we ran out of beer or water or Pepsi Light, we just called and the brought us more. AMAZING! So we threw on our suits and went straight to the ... bar... no beach... no wait, they were the same thing. The beach had a bar on it. This place was nuts. So we sat in the sun, drank Margaritas and wonderful Mexican beer and then headed out on the town.

Downtown Cabo was potentially the craziest place I have ever seen (even rivaling New Orleans). It could be because it was Spring Break-ers paradise, but it was insane. A four story outdoor bar with bleachers on the top... insane.

The next day we went down to our breakfast to be met with amazing food and guess what, more alcohol. This place is NUTS. There was ten bottles of Champagne around the breakfast area with orange juice near it. There was pre-made bloody mary mix with the bottle of Vodka sitting next to it. There was smoothies that were pre-made with rum sitting next to them. So crazy. Here is a picture of Me, Pete and Chris at breakfast on the first morning. Notice, I am the only one drinking a Mimosa because the boys were not feeling super after our first night :)

Unfortunately this day two was when my Camera went Kaputt. And by Kaputt I mean fallen and wet in the Pacific Ocean. Day two we sat by the beach, drank more margaritas, soaked up the sun, and hit up the beach bars. We went to Mango Deck bar where there were an insane amount of drunk college people. It was super fun, even crazier and... needless to say we hit the hay pretty early that night.

The next day we hit the pool and went parasailing. Went out on the town. I would expand more but the other stuff is very similar (more beach, more margaritas, etc.). The day after we hit up a sunset cruise, checked out the seals near Los Arcos and saw the whole other side of Cabo. It was amazing. That night we hit the town one last time before our last day!

Last day I sat in the sun while the boys watched the beginning of the NCAA games. Then, we took a Taxi to the airport and hopped on a plane back home. Back to reality.

And here we are today! Happy Monday!

Off I Go... #2

After spending a few days with crazy interviews in Atlanta, I arrived back in Phoenix for a day and a half, just to be leaving again. In this day and a half though, mom and dad came down (how awesome)!!!

Now, I'm getting ready to leave for L.A. to catch a 6am flight in the morning to CABO!!!

Here is the ALL-INCLUSIVE hotel that I'm going to be staying at. Enjoy looking at the pictures while I will be basking on the white sandy beaches drinking Margaritas and pushing away all the peddlers selling their goods!

Happy Spring Break!!!!

Off I Go...

To Atlanta for my Program Director and Recruitment Director Interviews.

Day 1 = Recruitment Director

Interviewing With: Seattle and Portland

Day 2 = Program Director

Interviewing With: Seattle, Colorado, Phoenix, Hawaii

BOOM!

I come back Thursday, Mom and Dad are in town!

Saturday... CABO HERE I COME!!!!

Wish me luck.

Thank you to the Parents...

Who are like my parents.

I have more and more faith in the success of many of my kids when I meet their parents. I see my parents in these parents. I begin to thank them for raising their children so well because it makes my job easy and their eyes well up with tears. I thank them for instilling in their children morals that make me not have to discipline them. I thank the parents for telling their students that they EXPECT them to go to college (one parent of an ELL student said - hey Michael, you promised me not only were you going to go to college, you promised me you were going to graduate). How great is that? And another parent saying, "going to college isn't an option. taking a year off is not an option. where he wants to go to college... that is what he gets to choose." How AWESOME are these parents?

The cool part is, I know that my parents said the same things at our conferences years and years ago. Does this surprise me... no. Look at how Lauren and I turned out. Pretty damn good huh? Well, thanks to our parents who got us here (love you mom and dad), and thanks to the parents who are trying to get their kids where Lauren and I are today!

What I Want to Talk About During Conferences

What I'm really thinking:

• Come talk to me about the fact that your child hasn't turned on thing in the entire quarter and has a 2.9% in my class right now.
• Come talk to me about the fact that I think your student is INCREDIBLY bright but is the laziest student I have ever met.
• Come talk to me about your student attempting to sleep through my class and then complains that you (the parent) makes them go to church until 10 pm every single night and then do chores when they get home.
• Come talk about the fact that your student DRIVES ME NUTS in class and I can't get them to stop talking.
• Or, don't come talk to me because you know your student does all those things and you don't need to hear it to believe it.

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• Come talk to me about the fact that your student doesn't know how to speak English but yet they come to class every day and at least appear to be interested in what I'm teaching.
• Come talk to me about the fact that I KNOW your student can achieve if we work together to find the best strategies.
• Come talk about the fact that your student amazes me because he moved from the English Language Learner class to the "honors" class in one year and has the highest grade in the highest class.
• Come talk about the fact that your student never ceases to amaze me with the awesome questions they ask which challenges me every single day.
• Come talk to me about the leader I already see in your student and I can't wait to see who and what they lead.
• Come talk to me about the fact that I am SURE your student is already WAY smarter than I am and I can't wait to see what incredible things they do with their life.
• Come talk to me about high school, scholarships, and various colleges that I know your student can attend if YOU just believe in them the way their teachers do.

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• Don't come and talk to me if you are going to suggest that your student isn't smart enough - every student can achieve.
• Don't come and talk to me if you are going to complain that the only reason your student has a bad grade is because they are not getting taught - everyone needs to take some personal responsibility some times.
• Don't come and talk to me if you are going to put up road blocks for your student as they progress throughout their education - they should all have the opportunity to succeed.
• Don't come and talk to me if you do not EXPECT your student to graduate high school and go to college - THEY CAN.
• Don't come and talk to me if your mind is closed to education - education can free your mind.

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• Come talk to me if you think these things but are willing to change your mind.
• Come talk to me if you have heard these things but you think they are untrue.
• Come talk to me if you want to make a difference in your child's life like I do.
• Come talk to me and we can figure out what to do.

Worthy Wines! 5: Cabernet Sauvignon

From the request of my beloved cousin, this week's (or should I say month's) worthy wine is a Cabernet Sauvignon from down under. That's right, it's the wonderful Yellow Tail brand wine, product of Australia! Shout out to Aunt Sue, who I'm hoping is still an avid follower :)

This wonderful Aussie wine was sold at Safeway for $7.99, but with my wonderful Club Card, it was a shockingly low $5.59. I will have to say thank you to the old North Bend phone number for keeping it real at Safeway every time I go. And, you're welcome Dad for getting you the Safeway Gas ten cents off when I spend too much money on groceries (cough cough... beer and wine... cough cough).

So, back to the wine. This wine tastes more expensive than the $5.59 that I paid at Safeway (apparently it is supposed to sell at $10.99). After a few nights of savoring the wine, I think it would go well with some very flavorful meat. I'm thinking a peppercorn ribeye or a spicy flank steak. Eat something that makes you think "cowboy" but with class (hence the wine). As Carrie Underwood would call it... A real Cowboy Cassanova of a wine. (click the word for the awesome music video!)

This wine has a mild spicy taste, unlike my accidental SUPER spicy Gumbo that I put in 1 whole jalapeno instead of 1 tablespoon chopped jalapeno... oops. This wine, is unlike my gumbo in this manner. Also, unlike my gumbo, it has bold fruit flavors. On the [yellow tail] website, it notes that this wine has "blackberry, chocolate and luscious vanilla aromas."

In regards to the aroma, this vanilla and chocolate aroma is very unlike my dog. For one, ESPY has had horrible stomach problems and has filled the room with everything but chocolate and vanilla aromas. Bummer. While I would like to say that this wine takes after me, I do not think that I smell of chocolate and vanilla... another bummer. Although, that might be a good thing, ESPY might bite me even more than he already does if I smelled of vanilla. Not chocolate, because chocolate apparently kills dogs.

Guess what doesn't kill dogs... hopefully at least? Wine!

Here's ESPY enjoying this smooth Cabernet Sauvignon :)

Truth to the picture, ESPY didn't take a gulp, but he did pose nicely for the picture.

Alright, that is the end of the Worthy Wines! 5... more to come. I bought 5 more bottles for 15% off at Safeway... WHOOT! I'll try to squeeze in a few more before I leave for Mexico.

Enjoy and Drink Up!