faithful friends who are dear to us

gather near to us once more...

for a sunny christmas hike in the almaden hills.

merry christmas!

breaks are nice

But being with the people you love is nicer. I love my students and didn't know that I could love them more, but I miss them so much that I feel a little 2nd grade-shaped hole in my heart! 

Really though, how could anyone not miss this sweet little face?

not every woman belongs in the kitchen

On an impulse, I decided to make my own pizza. No, it wasn't frozen! For some reason, I thought things would be fine. I cannot tell you why I thought this, knowing that success does not come often to me in the kitchen.

After spending too much time fighting the dough (also known as rolling the dough), I had to substitute butter for pizza sauce when I realized we were out of the latter. Don't ask me to rationalize that choice. But I kept my chin up, overlooked these challenges, sprinkled some cheese, and moved on to the can of olives.

I was fairly certain I knew how to use a can opener. However, my first few attempts made me start to doubt myself. Try as I might, this can would not be opened from the top.

I soldiered on and decided that if the top of the can was going to be so stubborn, then fine! I would go through the bottom. I am smarter than this can! And when the can opener produced the same results a second time, I proved this to be true with the help of a a steak knife... And I won!

For those of you with similar struggles, just follow these simple steps below.

why i can't make decisions

Except all of my thoughts aren't in nice little packages like that. 

ii corinthians 4:17-18

dear san francisco zoo,

If only I had known how great you were years ago, I wouldn't have waited so long to visit! Of course, I don't think I could have asked for better company on this field trip, so perhaps the delay of my visit was for the best.

Adventures like this one are always better with seven year-olds. It's almost as if I can become one of them, and the world becomes so much bigger and more fascinating, and I don't even remember to worry about the things that weigh so heavy on me all the time. 

Oh, and sorry about that whole incident with the dropping of the Spider-Man lunchbox in the monkey enclosure.

Love, 

Miss Hatcher