The Most Important One

There's a long-standing joke in my family that my only talent is wrapping presents. My dad was once talking about how all of his kids have different and special abilities. It went something like this: "Josh is just so musically talented. He can pick up and learn any instrument. And Chris is so spatially talented. He can easily see how to take things apart and put them back together. And Kaela... Kaela is so good at wrapping Christmas presents."

For a long time, I believed that my lack of athletic, artistic, or musical ability (especially in conjuncture with that of my family), meant that I really wasn't talented at anything. Except gift wrap, apparently. Until I found teaching. I'm by no means saying that I'm an amazing teacher - I'm not. Not yet anyway. But it is the first thing that I've ever felt like a natural at, and like I have the potential to someday actually excel at. 

As I've whined about in past posts, I spent a big chunk of last spring applying for teaching jobs. I got extremely disheartened by my lack of success with this, frustrated with the whole system, and essentially gave up. The beginning of the school year came, and I was fortunate enough to be blessed with other work. In fact, my other work was so potentially exciting that I thought that God was possibly taking me in a completely different direction. So when my friend Kelsey approached me at church to tell me about an opening at her school, I turned it down. I wanted to see where this movie job could take me. (I could move to LA, meet all the stars, marry Ryan Gosling... can't you see it all happening?!) But God pushed through my idiocy, and a week later, Kelsey told me again that they still hadn't filled the position. The timing of this was perfect, because in that week I learned that I didn't like the movie job. It was an incredible opportunity, but so unfulfilling, often frustrating, and it certainly wasn't using my abilities. So I sent Kelsey my resume, and 3 days later interviewed and got the job.

I could not be happier where I am. I am downright spoiled. I have 22 sweet, kind, eager, and hilarious third graders who make every day fun and joyful. I have an amazing team who supports me through the craziness of starting six weeks into school. I love my school community, and probably wouldn't choose to be anywhere else. 

While so many of these 101 goals are fun, or interesting, or silly, the goal of getting a teaching job was definitely the most important to me. Having this job makes me feel so much more sure of myself and my place in this world. It challenges me and fulfills my desire to do something worthwhile. And I can't get over how God has provided for me in all of this. While my perfect job was waiting for me, He provided other work and allowed me to have a crazy that job that, if for nothing else, makes for a really good story. The timing was so perfect, in fact, that I started my teaching job just one day after the movie wrapped. What a ridiculously lucky duck I am.

My precious class at our Halloween party! 

I heart Peeta

I did a lot of driving during the month of September. I had the exciting, strange, and tumultuous opportunity of working on a movie that was filming up in Nederland. (Side note: if I had thought it was at all possible, I would have made a goal about working on a movie. It was a life dream that I never thought would actually happen.) So while the movie was filming, I had the super fancy job of running errands all over Denver and Boulder, filling my car to the brim with goods from Costco, and making deliveries up to Nederland. Glamorous.

At the same time, part of my "Assistant to the Executive Producer" title included watching her truly awesome kids. One of them was reading The Hunger Games, and I agreed to read it along with her so that I could ultimately help her with a big book report she was doing. Given that I was driving an average of 2 hours a day, and had little time for actual reading, it seemed like the perfect time to complete goal #76: Listen to an audio book.

I absolutely loved the book (and the whole series), but I have to say that I wasn't a big fan of listening to it. I just didn't love the narrator, and I could tell that she spoke the dialogue differently than I would in my head. But I did love listening to it while I drove, and it definitely made the time go by much faster. If I have a job that requires a long commute again, God forbid, I would surely consider listening to books to pass the time. 

p.s. Read The Hunger Games if you haven't. You'll be happy you did. You're welcome. 

In Lieu of a Tattoo

Anyone who knows me well knows that my favorite thing is Harry Potter. And one of my favorite things within the world of Harry Potter is the golden snitch. I love the snitch because, to me, it's a symbol of Harry building an identity based on his own skills and abilities. He was famous as The Boy Who Lived, but that was something that happened to him as a baby, not something that he accomplished through any will of his own. But when he flies and becomes a seeker, he finds the first thing that he's ever felt exceptionally good at. The snitch not only helps Harry create a new identity for himself, but it also connects him to his parents: figuratively in that his dad was also a seeker, and literally at the close. 


Ok, I know that was just incredibly nerdy. I wish I could take a Harry Potter class and write whole papers on things like this. The point is, I just really love snitches. I was a snitch for Halloween once, I mean twice, with Ashley, and it will forever remain my best costume ever. And I've always said that if I was a person who got tattoos, I would get a tattoo of a snitch. In the last couple of years, in fact, I've been seriously wanting one. I would go for it, but I'm afraid that I'd regret it someday, like when I'm a grown-up or something. So, this summer, when Harry Potter mania was at its height in the country and in my heart, I decided to satiate my desire for a snitch tattoo with a less permanent substitute - a necklace.


I found my snitch necklace on etsy.com, fulfilling goal #84: Buy something on Etsy. The lady who made it sent it in a very cute little box, and I love it. To be perfectly honest, I haven't worn it yet. The chain it came on is too short, and so I need to get a longer chain for it before I can wear it. And to be even more honest, I still want the tattoo. 

Jack, I want you to draw me like one of your French girls.
Wearing this. Wearing only this.

And if you also love Harry, you should most definitely watch this. It makes me cry like a baby. 

Scavenging

For the last 10 months, my favorite thing about my life has been being a Club leader. Club is a youth group that was an integral part of my own high school experience, and now I get to spend quality time getting to know some really awesome teenagers. My own small group of girls are seniors at Fairview, and they're some of my favorite people ever. I'm not sure what it says about me that I get along with and connect to high schoolers so well, but I sure do love them. This summer I got to go The Bahamas with my babies, as well as to their summer camp - The Week.

On the second night of The Week, we were all under a pavilion by Lake Dillon, when a torrential downpour started. It was one of the most intense thunder storms I've ever been in, and it poured rain for four or five hours. Since it was impossible to go out and play our planned night game, we decided to drive everyone over to the local Walmart for some warmth, hot chocolate, and a scavenger hunt. I was super excited, not only to get warm and dry, but also because then I could accomplish goal #45: Go on a scavenger hunt.

This was our list. We weren't able to complete it because Walmart doesn't carry Risk and there is no demo make-up. But we did win. Mostly because everyone else gave up after about 5 minutes, and did this: 

I was pretty set on getting as much as we could, perhaps more than anyone else, and we were definitely proud of ourselves for a few of them. Such as the Statue of Mary (which we found in the garden section). Either way, it was a fun break from the rain and cold.

Statue of Mary

I love my senior ladies.

They did it!!

A Motivating Manicure

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a slacker. I really am. And it's clear to see that in how little progress I've made on my goals, and how little I've blogged in the past few months. And it's not because I'm busy, because I'm really not. 


I've actually spent a lot of time and energy the last few (several?) months focused on one goal: to get a full-time teaching job. Well, it hasn't happened, and I'm afraid it won't. At least not this year. When you try so hard to get something, and all of your efforts turn out to be totally futile, it's hard to want to try for anything anymore. (Dramatic, I know. But I'm dramatic sometimes.) 


Luckily, though, I accomplished a goal today that required no effort whatsoever. The good news is that it seems to have reignited the flame in me to try and get out of my "half-life." My life has been so boring lately, and I need to stop wasting all of my time like I have been. So accomplishing this small easy goal today was maybe the little kick in the butt I needed.


I took my sweet mom, Nanci, to get her first ever pedicure today. It was my Mother's Day present to her, and she decided to finally redeem it (now two months later) so that her toes could look pretty for her trip to Wisconsin. I was excited for her to get pampered, as she is an exceedingly self-less lady who hardly ever pampers herself. So we met in Boulder this afternoon, and both got wonderfully relaxing and beautiful pedicures. While we were there, though, Nanci decided that she would also like a manicure. Since it was only an extra ten dollars, I thought I'd jump in and get one too, thus fulfilling goal #75: Get a manicure.


I'm not totally sure why I put this as a goal, to be honest. I guess just because manicures are fun, and something I pretty much never do. I love getting pedicures, but I'm not used to having my fingernails painted. This was, in fact, only my third manicure ever. I got one for senior prom, and one as a bridesmaid gift from Sarah for her wedding. So it really was nice to get one again, and to feel pampered and pretty. And I feel extra happy because my fingernails are gold. The last Harry Potter movie comes out in 4 days, so it only seemed fitting. They look beautiful and magical.


And Nanci loved her mani-pedi. It was so nice to share such a lovely time with that precious lady. 

Pedicures on our toes...
Not sure why my left ones are curled under.

Gold!

Easy as pie?

My senior year of high school, I took a Foods class as an elective. I thought it'd be fun to learn how to cook, I knew that I definitely loved to eat, and it seemed like an easy A. Win, win, win... right? Nope. Foods class turned out to be a sore spot in my day. For one, I would always leave class smelling like kitchen smoke, which would inevitably stay with me all day since class was during 3rd period. Secondly, my group insisted on always including onions in our recipes. My good friend and ally, Caitlin, was in my group and also doesn't eat onions. But somehow our opinion was always trumped by the other three girls. Rude. So Caitlin and I would often find excuses to leave class in the middle of the period, and we'd wander the halls of Fairview complaining about how much we hated Foods. And thirdly, there were a few mishaps...

The first mishap, I swear, was not my fault. We were making homemade tortilla chips, and the chips were frying in oil on the stove. Just as I was walking toward the stove from the other side of the kitchen, the oil suddenly went up in flame. I had been nowhere near it, but because I was close when it happened, I got blamed. 


The second mishap, I will admit, might have been my fault. We had a class competition baking apple pies. When all of the apple pies were done, our teacher tasted them and gave out awards for the best pies. Our group's ribbon said 6th place... out of 6 groups. It seems that *someone* put a little too much salt in the crust. Perhaps they mistakingly put in 1 Tablespoon instead of 1 teaspoon? Woops! So yeah, the crust was a little salty, sure. But besides that the pie was just fine! Delicious, you might say! Well not according to Mrs. Kester-Meyer. I still hold a little grudge about how much she made fun of our pie. Again, rude.


All of this is to say that I was a little hesitant to ever attempt to make a pie again. But nine years later, I strove to prove Mrs. Kester-Meyer wrong... or something. So the night before Easter, I spent some quality time with my mom and sister-in-law, Kathy, making two hopefully delicious pies for our Easter dessert. Kathy made a strawberry pie, and I made blueberry, because blueberries are my favorite fruit. The crust was, without a doubt, the hardest part. I know people (Laura) say it's so easy, but it was hard for me, and when I do it again, I think I'll make more crust. There wasn't quite enough to make my lattice top at the end. 

Bottom crust, as pretty as I could make it.

The final product. Not as pretty as I'd hoped. 

So the pie didn't turn out perfect. The filling sure was delicious, but the crust wasn't quite right. I'm not sure if it cooked long enough. I'd like to try some different crust recipes/ tactics without the painful memories of Foods class looming behind me....

Side note: It took me a few months to finally blog about this one. Lately, though, I've been re-watching Pushing Daisies (the most magical television show that ever was), and it's inspired me to attempt some more pies. I can't wait! 

Bedward and Ella

Once upon a time, in the Fall of 2008, I was living in Seattle and working at Starbucks. One of our regular customers, who seemed to live her whole life within the walls of our store, made a joke about going to Forks. I didn't even really hear what she said, but my ears perked up at the name "Forks." At that time I was reading a series of books, quite obsessively I might add, that took place in Forks, Washington. Up until that moment, I assumed that Forks was as fictional as the vampires and werewolves in the books. My heart raced, and as soon as got home I did some investigative googling to find out that yes, indeed, Forks is a real place. And only a few hours from where I was living, at that. So I convinced Ashley, who was also reading the same series, to go on a road trip to Forks with me. It ended up being a more gloriously beautiful and fun day than I could ever have imagined! The drive requires you to take the ferry over Puget Sound, which is always a treat, and then drive along the Olympic Peninsula, which is incredibly lush, green, and breathtakingly beautiful. I fell in love.

After my trip to Forks with Ashley, I had a number of different friends express a desire to go there too. Especially as the books (and subsequent movies) became more and more popular, it seemed like everyone I knew was wanting to take the trip. I had friends visit from other states under the guise of "wanting to see me," but I feel confident that it was Forks that drew them to Washington. As a result, I have been there seven times now. Forks itself has gotten insanely touristy since the first time I went, and I'm pretty over that whole vampire thing by now. But I'm always happy to go because I love the drive so dearly.

The seventh trip, which took place last month, actually counted as completing a goal, which helped me feel productive or something. The goal: #83 - Help Jess achieve a goal (Jess's goal being that she wanted to go to Forks). 


Every trip has been different, and has had its own set of highlights or special moments. Honestly, what made this trip special was the music. Jess and I share a common love of beautiful indie music, but also fully enjoy some good old pop. Britney, Beyonce, Celine, Glee...? Yes please!! So we had some super fun sing-along times, almost losing our voices in the process. Jess also introduced me to one of my new favorite bands - The Civil Wars. We may have listened to their song, Poison and Wine, about 25 times... It was glorious. 

Jess and me at Lake Crescent.
I have a picture like this with everyone that has gone on the drive with me.

We had a lot of fun with cardboard cutouts too... 

I also found a perfect spot to accomplish goal #40. It's happening. 

Part of the Forks tour includes a side-trip to my favorite beach, Rialto Beach (see picture at the top). It is truly one of my favorite places I've ever been to. On this trip, the beach was rainy and cold, but also producing the most sea foam I've ever seen. I call sea foam dead mermaids... because that's what it is. 

Stomp! Stomp! Stomp!

Only an additional 20 miles, or so, from Forks is the Hoh Rainforest, one of the only temperate rainforests in the world. It's like Fern Gully meets Jurassic Park, minus the dinosaurs, plus Avatar. And the trees look like muppets.  

The fairies travel up and down the giant trees
by using those mushrooms. See?

Hobbit.

As with every trip to Forks, it was a beautiful and special day. And I was so happy to help my little Jazzy complete her goal! Anyone else want to go? I'm sure I'd be up for an eighth time...