A Few of My Favorite Summer Activities
So, even though the temps outside are triple digits and we are only in the second week of August, school has started and summer is over, at least for all intents and purposes (or do you prefer intensive purposes...no, that is just wrong, people). This blog post will share a few highlights of my summer. It has been a crazy busy one, a hectic one, and at times a stressful one. However, it has also been fun and eventful! Here is the highlight reel of my summer. Enjoy!
1. I went to Orlando. I have always wanted to go to Florida, and this summer, that dream came true. My dear friend Crystal decided we should submit a proposal to present at the Educators Rising National conference in Orlando. I generally am game for whatever, and it was right around her birthday, so I let her submit for us. Then I kind of forgot about it. You know how life is. Then, bam! We were accepted and we decided to make a vacation out of it. We took the kids and went to Universal Studios and had a blast. It was hot. It was humid. It rained in buckets on us. But we had so much fun. It was her kids' first time on a plane and they handled it like champs. We went to Coca Cola World, saw Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Incredibles 2, and enjoyed being away from the nice, dry heat of Arizona. The presentation was a success and we had fun trying to save money while eating in the most expensive place on Earth. Okay, maybe I am exaggerating, but I am pretty sure Kale's cereal cost $5 one day. We ate $12 ice cream sundaes and just had so much fun.
2. I traveled to Minnesota. Another conference: Flipgrid Live and Student Voice Conference. Another presentation. But this time, I went alone. I traveled completely alone and stayed with a stranger who was also traveling alone, attended the best conference I have ever attended, and spoke at the conference. It was amazing. I had never been to Minneapolis before, let alone by myself, but it was great. The people were so awesome, and I will cherish the memories of that conference, even though I was freaking out about traveling alone and worried about rooming with a strange librarian from Kansas. Turns out she was not strange after all! If you have never done something like this, alone, I highly recommend you do it. Go somewhere new, put yourself out there, have some fun, and push yourself beyond your typical comfort zones. I love presenting, but have always had a co-pilot, so to speak, so this was new exciting, and fun. Check out the itinerary here and you will see how fun it was: https://flipgridlive.splashthat.com/
3. My granddaughter visited. My six year old granddaughter, Kenley, came to visit. She flew alone on a plane like a big girl, and she brought so much joy to my summer. She is a force, a bundle of joy and wonder and whimsy, and she spreads love wherever she goes. Kale and I had so much fun with her. We went to the Science Center, to Sodalicious, to Toasted Mallow, to the movies (she hated Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom), and to Build-a-Bear for out annual Build-a-Bear visit, among other things. The saddest part was taking her back to the airport and sending her home.
4. I got an AMC A-List Membership. With this membership, you get to see three movies a week, any movies you want- including 3D and Dolly and IMAX, for only $19.95 a month. For me, this is the best deal ever, because I am always going to the movies at least once a week. Now, I get to go three times for no extra cost, just the monthly membership. I have seen lots of good films and a couple great ones, and even some mediocre ones. So far this summer, since I got this membership, I saw: Tag, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (three times), Gotti, Sicario: Day of the Soldado, The First Purge, Hotel Transylvania 3, Sorry to Bother You, Skyscraper (twice), The Equalizer 2, Unfriended: Dark Web, Three Identical Strangers, and tonight I am seeing Slenderman. Not too shabby.
5. I went to Michigan, twice. I have lots of relatives in Michigan and had a fun time on the lake, going to bonfires, having BBQs (or some people call them cookouts), and just enjoying family time. It was hot, and humid (see a theme here?), but the fireflies and evening sunsets, and the breeze by the lake made it worth the heat during the day.
6. I read lots of books. Do you know what lots of travel by plane means? It means lots of time to read! I read some amazing books this summer. Some of my favorites were Love Does; Everybody Always; The Death of Mrs. Westaway; Girl, Wash Your Face; and Baby Teeth (a great thriller if you are in the market for a thriller/psychological suspense story). I love reading and I enjoy the fact that I make myself read the entire time I am in the air. It is like a game to me. Or an obsession. Or whatever. I am not sure there is a distinction... Lol. I used to hate flying and over the past few years I have done it more and more, so to make it more palatable, I made myself decide to read and do it from boarding to de-boarding. Wait, is de-boarding even a word? Hmm. You know what I mean. I will just go with it. If I am not overwhelmingly exhausted and asleep on a plane, then I am reading. I could have my own movie. You know, Books on a Plane. I am sure it would be smash.
How was your summer? Tell me in the comments. See you next week!
