Celebration

 Happy Birthday to Me!  

This year's celebration, much like everything else, will be different. Usually I don't have anything planned other than preparing a nicer dinner than normal and baking a strawberry shortcake for dessert. This year I actually have fun plans for my birthday! After work I'm heading to Pittsburgh to connect with my sister at the Bruce Springsteen concert. I'm so excited!

I can't remember the last time I had true plans on my birthday. I suspect it was back when I was in college and we would collectively go to the bars to celebrate at each opportunity. Since I graduated into adulthood, my birthday celebrations have been held at home (sometimes at a local restaurant with only family) followed by cake at home. I know that I have not spent my birthday in a 'party' type atmosphere in nearly 3 decades, a trend that is both pathetic and in desperate need of being broken.  

I'm really looking forward to unwinding tonight! 

Summer Soon

 The school year is heading into the final countdown. By the end of this week, we will be into the single digits when counting down until summer vacation. I've never been one to countdown days in front of students because not every kiddo is excited about the weeks without school and the structure that it brings. While I keep the countdown private, I am so excited about summer vacation!

Are we doing anything spectacular? Hopefully, although nothing is planned. I would love to take Timmy to the beach for a few days in July, but we are unsure where because the cost of flying is simply too high. So we are looking at Virginia Beach for a few days but that is still tentative. Too much can change, and planning isn't fun with this many variables.

While summer vacation is on the horizon, it is not yet here. Today we are back to work and back to school. It is going to be hot, which means that my day is going to be a lot harder. Hopefully the heat will stay away until I'm done with my final student. 

Ready

 I've come to the conclusion that my body and mind struggle when my schedule fluctuates. Having a random Tuesday off continues to play tricks with my mind calendar. I was hoping that I would settle back into the routine and the rest of the week would flow smoothly. Instead I'm still feeling disjointed and overwhelmingly tired. 

I suppose much of my fatigue stems from the end of the year chaos. It's a crazy time of year in those halls!While teachers are busy packing up their rooms and collecting devices, the kids are nearly bouncing off the walls in anticipation of summer vacation. While I will miss most of my students, I'm ready for a vacation. 

Summer break is on the horizon but it is not yet here. At this point, I'm just waiting for Saturday so that I can try to sleep away this fog I'm living in. 

 

Sweetwater!

 Yesterday was wonky because it was election day in WV, closing all public offices and schools. Scott and I were left with an extremely rare day off in the middle of the week. Wanting to take full advantage of the opportunity, we logged Timmy out of school at noon (with his teacher's permission) and headed to Northern Virginia for lunch. We have all been missing Sweetwater Tavern, a local favorite, and were delighted that fate aligned for a road trip.

The food was as good as we remembered. The bill was considerably higher than our norm because we ordered all of our favorites. It was a fun treat and I'm glad that we went. It feels like it was an amazing kick off to summer vacation, with the glaring exception that everyone except for Robby are still in school for another several weeks.

It is hard getting up this morning and getting my head in the school game.  A solitary day off in the middle of week has messed up my entire schedule! I know that it won't take long to get my footing, but my goodness I do not want to put on real pants this morning.

Have a great day!

 

The Graduate

 After work on Friday I gassed up the car and headed to Indiana Pennsylvania. The drive was long only because I was tired, but I knew that I would be happy for the effort on Saturday morning. With my niece graduating promptly at 8:30 AM I knew that I wanted to tackle the lion share of the drive ahead of time. I pulled into the motel, an unsavory local rendezvous spot outside of town, and barricaded myself inside for the night. I went to bed early and woke up ready to watch my baby niece receive her degree!

 

Graduation

 Yesterday I received a very special invitation. Due to unforeseen circumstances, my niece had several extra tickets for her college graduation. While I understood the need to prioritize attendees when graduation plans were being discussed, I am delighted to be able to witness this amazing milestone in person. Recognizing the importance of my attending, Scott immediately started to find me a hotel room semi-local to the university. I'll be 20 minutes away tomorrow morning, allowing me to relax and actually sleep before the 8:30 start time. 

I am so proud of my niece. She has worked so hard, both academically and literally, throughout her college career. She has already accepted a position as a social worker. I swell with pride when I imagine the families and lives that she will enhance through her efforts.

What a great way to kick off Mother's Day weekend!

Pics tomorrow. 

Mall Cops

 Yesterday I took a student to the mall to practice some of his skills in a real-life environment. I love community mobility days. Being out of the physical schools makes the practice more fun and the time goes quicker. As a bonus, I usually get to enjoy a snack in the food court!

To say that I am proud of my student would be an understatement. Yesterday he navigated through the mall, located the Bath and Body Works, solicited assistance and made his purchases without me. While I was still supervising, he was essentially 100% independent which is an amazing accomplishment. Unfortunately, he may be too comfortable in public.  

While he was in the store I was surrounded by three mall cops. In a chilly tone, I was asked why I was following around a blind individual. "There have been reports that you are suspiciously stalking this individual."  Sigh. Apparently the school employee badge that I was wearing around my neck and the mobility training cane in my hand was not a signal enough that we were on a school trip. 

I was able to quickly justify my role, my student found the exchange hilarious. I was frustrated but I tried to frame the incident in a positive light. At least the community was truly looking out for each other. Somebody was concerned about his safety and spoke up. That isn't a bad thing.  

The fact that they failed to notice the teacher bad is simply moronic, but their intentions were well placed.