I’m sick with a wicked cold (there’s some Boston in me still!), so you’ll have to enjoy these pics alone until I feel like expanding upon them

**UPDATE**  Ok, so it’s taken me awhile to get back into the swing of things and finally get a real post written about break.  I was in Dothan for the first part of holiday, and it was great meeting the babies of my 1st cousin, Dave, and my 2nd cousin, Kim.  Haha, one evening everyone went out for a bit and I volunteered to to watch Jospeh and Addyson with my Grandmother.  Everything was going fine until Addy started wailing and then when she stopped Joseph would start up.  I think that little bit of motherhood is all I needed for the next, oh, ten years.

On Christmas Day, my brothers and I headed down to DeLand to see my parents.  It was SO HOT in Florida.  I mean, I wasn’t expecting snow, but I thought it would at least be no humidity.  I was wrong.  I only packed long pants and long sleeved shirts - I had like one short sleeve - and I was just burning up the whole time.  It was great to visit with some old friends and I took pictures of my college and downtown….I really am old now, haha.  I’ll post those soon.

Me and Addyson (my 3rd cousin)

My cousin David’s wife (April) and son (Joseph)

Addyson and her Great-Great Grandma (my Grandma)

Finally, my favorite, Addyson crushing Joseph

That’s one of my favorite lines from my favorite movies, Steel Magnolias.

I was thinking about how your memory works - how you can picture some moments clearly, forever, and you forget about 99% of every other moment in the day.

I mean, I understand some moments.  When you get married, when you give birth, etc.  But then are there are other times that are implanted in our minds and it seems like we subconsciously save them because we know they will be important in the future.  As in, memories that serve no great meaning until years later when you look back.

I’m not sure if this would count as that, as I think these memories were important soon after they occurred, but I can remember meeting two of the most special people in my life.  My best friend and I met in 4th grade - and I’m pretty sure one of us asked the other if we wanted “to be best friends??”  Crazy things that kids’ say.  But hey, we both agreed and it hasn’t failed us yet.

Another memory I have, and it’s clearer than the first, is when I met my favorite/best ex :)  I know, it’s hard to think of a proper way to write that, haha.  It was in a friend’s living room, it only lasted a second, but I remember thinking to myself “I hope he’s the one that’s single and not the one that’s basically married to my friend’s roommate.” 

I’m grateful to have this memories, as so many other privotal moments in your life can fade into black before you realize you need to keep them permanent.  Ok, now I am prattling on, which happens more times than I’d like to admit

My brothers came to visit this weekend, which was really nice.  We were supposed to do some Christmas shopping, but ended up just buying things for ourselves…isn’t that how it always is?  It snowed on Wednesday, the day BEFORE they arrived and it was such poor timing because Jason really wanted to see some snow.  There was some left on the ground when they arrived, which was THE FIRST snow he’s ever seen!  At 30 years old, that’s pretty amazing.

Here is his first snowman:

Since they were here on Saturday, they had the opportunity to come to my holiday work party.  How lucky are they??

Here we are at the party:

 

One of the benefits of attending a KIPP school is that they follow you for the rest of your life, basically.  Hmm, perhaps that’s not a benefit….Either way, we have a wonderful Alumni Relations program that tracks and supports students as they make their way through high school, college, and beyond.  Here at KEY Academy we’ve had three classes of promoted 8th graders.  They attend excellent public and private schools in the city and surrounding states, and several go to boarding schools in the Northeast. 

One of our alumni, Branden, attends a private school in the area.  His class is planning a trip to Italy in the Spring and he would love to go.  The only thing standing in his way is finances - Alumni Services to the rescue!  They have been campaigning relentlessly to raise the necessary funds for Branden.  So far they have enough to cover his flight and most of his meals.  However, we’re getting down to the wire and are short several hundred dollars.

So, being the good co-worker that I am, I offered to campaign a bit for Branden on my own, using Swirling Snow.  If you would like to contribute to the Italy trip, you can send a check to me here at school.  Please make the check out to KIPP DC: KEY Academy and mail it to me at 770 M. Street SE, 2nd Floor, Washington, DC 20003.  It is a tax-deductible donation.

If you need further convincing, here are some words from Branden himself

A trip to Italy means a new experience and a new perspective. Italy offers different things that America can never give me. A foreign experience would make me worldlier and expose me to other cultures, which is unachievable in America. I have been taking Latin at school and many of the places we learn about are located in Italy and will be part of our tour. It will be a great learning tool through which I can visualize what I have learned and appreciate it from my own perspective as opposed to the text books. Latin originated in Italy and I have to take it for three years at school. If I did not go on this trip, my classmates who do go on this trip will have an advantage over me. They will have an experience and memories from the trip that they can remembered past freshman year and onto years to come.

Another reason I want to go to Italy is that I have a goal of becoming an architect when I grow up. Italian architecture has had a huge influence on several of the most important architectural structures in our country. Observing Italy’s amazing architecture would be a great experience for me personally and help me ensure that a career in architecture is what I truly want to do. In Italy, I can witness first hand the similarities and differences between Italian and American design. I can also see how and why Americans use Italian design and maybe who influenced the Italians. There are many things that I want to learn that can only be learned through the Italian experience, not by flipping through my textbook. This trip may be a once in a lifetime opportunity and I hope to take advantage of everything my school has got to offer.