sigh : )

drills were cool. everything's cool. no more worrying for now.

(thanks for the card, mike and janet... made my day)

a spoonful of peace for the end of the year. good, good.

what is holly? my students inquire.
i explained the mistletoe tradition and they all looked disgusted.

they're getting fidgety now. these poor kids never get a break. it's christmas: have a saturday off school. they are stinkin' smart, though. their brains are well exercised and fine tuned, and growing. but still...
so i'm planning on preparing some christmas gifts for them. either something tiny for everyone or something a bit cool as a prize for whoever gives the best presentation each class. something wrapped and shiny, either way.

tonight i think we'll be making cookies; kevin and i.

this time of year often brings memories of childhood around to the front. i think of my grandparents' home in texas, and all the pine trees i counted on the way there.
i think of lying on the concrete slab in the back yard with mom, watching a sky full of stars. i never see stars these days. not like those, for certain.
christmas eve was the only day of the year that my sister and i would sleep in the same bed. we'd listen for bells and hooves on the roof, and we heard them most years.

i must admit, i'm really missing the excitement surrounding the holiday this year. it's coming, and i see it, but i don't feel it yet. but, like i said, tonight- we'll make cookies. i'll tape the christmas cards we've received on the doorframe, and play our new christmas cd, drink hot chocolate, and see if we hold any influence over the weather.