All the Blog Posts Never Posted

August 31st. That was the date of my last post. I was coming off a summer full of hopes and possibilities. I knew, I just knew, I was going to keep it up. This was the year - the year I would keep writing while I was teaching. I would start writing in my journal again. I would keep up with my blog. I would keep writing the middle grade book I started, and fell in love with, over the summer.

I entered the school year armed with a mission and words from Mary Oliver to cheer me on.

"I will not forget. I will not regret."

Well, my friends, alas, I am human. I did it again. I got wrapped up in the craft and demands of my paying job. Funny how that happens, right? It's too bad hopes and dreams don't send me a paycheck. What would a world be like for all of us if that were the case?

So here I am, just over a month in from school and I am starting to see myself emerge from the fog. This is year 13. This should be the year where I can maintain some balance. If only my career were a predictable one. How do I ignore the stack of papers that I should look through? How do I put off a strong curriculum and let these kids coast with "just good enough?" I want these kids to be the change, I want them to know that there is such a thing as a fact. I want my students to move beyond the mistakes of our education past. With so much knowledge of what it should be - could be, how can I possibly put anything else first?

And yet, I am determined. The fog, it is lifting. I am on a two-day writing streak (celebrate the small things people!) and feeling good about the plan.

I've attempted two brave acts to force me to write consistently and they both fizzled. So it is up to me, my friends. I'm going back to breathing through it and facing my fear. I have a long line of "what ifs" that run through my head every time I sit down to write. Has that ever happened to you? I am sure it has. I know it has! Let's be in this together, shall we? If you see me, ask me about my writing. If I see you, well, tell me what to ask and I will.

I'll be back. I always am. In the meantime, here are some snippets of my adventures. These are the things I've done instead of writing and I only slightly regret the shift in priorities. Despite the lack of writing, as you will see, reading has not been a problem.

Currently reading. (although swapping the book on the right for the 2nd edition)

I'm part of this initiative, brilliant. What up, Harvard??

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. Holy crap. Read. It. 

Some quintessentials. 

Baby starter kits!

A whole lotta knitting happening. How many things do I do???
andhoweknits.com dudes #girlboss #sidejobsfordays

First 5k since pulling my hamstring this summer. #proud #ouch

Read this one too. Brilliant. 

Kindergarten teacher. Year 2. Peace. 

Disrupting Thinking by Kylene Beers and Bob Probst. Read this. 

You Don't Have to Say You Love Me by Sherman Alexie. So intense. So good. 

Last summer #lakelife up in Maine at this amazing cabin.
Perfect way to end this magical summer.