jennifer patel

I am the picture next to the definition of a 'creature of routine'. Almost boring. Maybe boring! The sheer amount of work that a regular school teacher has to do has been eye opening for me. I did a lot of work at alternative school, but I realize now I had it made. Other than the soul sucking environment that left me emotionally empty, the actual work was e-a-s-y. It's always greener on the other side. from husband, son, dog, and Dan Cortez The good news is, I am adaptable and once these first weeks (maybe months) pass, I know I'll get more and more efficient at what I do (after all, I was at alternative school for 9 years) and it has actually been fun. Of course sixth graders are immature and have to be taught the ways of everything, but most of them are so so sweet and I am not used to students wanting to help and stay after and talk, and give me drawings (not of gang violence) and tell me everything about everything. That is refreshing. And while I miss...

Throwback to both the day this was taken and the 90s.

Sometimes I think, hmmm he needs a pair of shoes to match every possible thing he might wear.  Don't worry, some of these were hand me downs (like, one pair) and we usually buy shoes on sale, but seriously? What's happening?

When I turned 16, like most new drivers, I was involved in a car accident. I was on my way to afternoon swim practice, and decided to go with the car next to me at a very busy intersection (that is now a light) on their turn instead of coming to a complete stop and then going on the next round. A truck turning left blocked the view of my car to the next side's turn and I got hit in my driver's side door. The person who hit me was also a brand new 16-year-old driver and while I was at fault, I don't know how you run into something head-on coming off a stop that far away, but whatever... We pulled into the gas station parking lot on the corner and it was sort of the blind leading the blind. We asked each other if we were okay, agreed we were, and I think I apologized (thereby admitting fault). We were exchanging information when a lady pulled in behind us and got out of her car, fuming. She looked at the other girl and was like, "I saw the whole thing, here's my num...

Remember this ? Well, it got kind of hot and uninviting to manage. It's okay, you can laugh. Okra loves heat.

Dear Occasional Second Driver, First of all, there is no need to act vexed when readjusting the driver's seat settings to accommodate your larger stature. Bigger people than you drive us just fine. Sorry it takes longer to adjust as there are more manual adjustments compared to your younger, sexy German sports car. She might be sexy as hell, but she's kind of a bitch. Just saying. What is your problem with me, anyway? Have I ever stranded my main driver anywhere? No. Okay, that one time when my battery died and you had to come jump me. I could not have picked a better place to die. The Target parking lot? It's not the worst place I can think of. I take good care of your precious cargo. She and I are a great team. Given her birth race, she has become quite the defensive driver. I wear my corner scuffs proudly to remember how far we've come. Although highway speeding has become a problem, we are alert. I just gently remind her that we don't go that fast b...

My Mom won a trip to San Antonio in a silent auction this past Spring. We did a one day beach trip turnaround and drove down where we then tried to pack as much stuff as we could into two days. No, I've never seen Blackfish and didn't care to watch it before going to SeaWorld. Zoos already make me sad if I think about them too long and yes, so does SeaWorld. That doesn't stop me from wanting to swim around with their dolphins and whales. They are really cute. Also, if you're interested, SeaWorld cares. They say so on their website. You can learn about all the inaccuracies of Blackfish here . (mainly directed at V) Which side is more truthful? Did anyone who declared a major in Marine Biology actually get that degree? I didn't think so. The real tragedy of our trip took place in Historic Market Square. We ate Tex Mex at Mi Tierra Cafe. In the back room, there is a huge 3D mural of influential people to Hispanic culture, past and present. It was very detailed ...

cousin john's boogie board...both boys did well and both boys wiped out! Can someone, who is a licensed child Psychologist (or someone who thinks they are), please tell me why my son will run with reckless abandon into the ocean but take 10 minutes to decide he wants to swim in a pool? Why he will get pushed around by waves almost to his neck, and wipe out getting trapped under his boogie board for a few seconds and recover but wants to go home after choking on pool water? It's very confusing to me, but I am not complaining. He is my beach baby and I'm glad I have one because I also love the beach. As V puts it, our yearly TRIP to the gulf is "forced relaxation". We beach it up twice a day and eat and sleep a lot. Rinse and repeat. "cause baby I could build a castle out of all the bricks they threw at me..." (gotta work in Taylor Swift when you can) #newromantics surf ninjas is a real game third year in a row to wear this swim sui...

Lack of the proper 'X' angle. Sometimes, I call him Tetas now. Last summer, we got an email through our adoption agency informing us that Choo Choo (this is what we call him) and family were personally inviting us (and paying for our tickets) to sit in his designated corner on a game deemed 'Korean Heritage Night at the Ballpark.' We were unable to attend and didn't think too much of it. This year, we were invited back and signed up to go. I feel that as much money as we have spent on the Texas Rangers organization, and the number of games we've been to, I have the right to be a seat snob. Best seats in the house (other than lowest level first rows behind the plate or either dugout) are second level infield baselines (sections 219-233)...1st base best because of early shade. When I emailed back for tickets, I assumed because they were free, they were going to throw us up on the third level nose bleed. We were very pleasantly surprised that we were l...

photo credit: Lynn in Love I make a lot of mistakes on the daily as a parent. Sometimes I let my frustration get the best of me and I make up crazy consequences that don't make any sense. For example once at Jason's Deli, Alex was eating chocolate soft serve and kept spilling it off of his spoon onto his clothes. I kept putting napkins everywhere where I anticipated it would land and it kept missing and landing on clothing. After the 5th time, I was like, "Are you serious?! If you spill one more spoonful, you are done and we are leaving!" And then once I say something, I'm stu[pid]bborn enough to follow through. Because you're supposed to follow through, right? I've gotten very good at apologizing. He did spill another time and we did end up leaving. Naturally, he screamed on the way out and even I walked out thinking, WTF MOM?! I did apologize to him for acting crazy later. Our latest battle is chewing and swallowing vegetables. Alex can cam...