The Kohlmans

This is Lincoln and mommy's version of a messy room - books everywhere!

Last week I packed up my classroom. I consolidated five years of teaching into three storage crates and a flash drive. On the last day of school, at 3:00 p.m., I walked away from classroom teaching for the foreseeable future. Five years ago, I had just graduated, was preparing for my quickly-approaching wedding, and was picking up my keys and textbooks for my first job. When I started teaching, my job was a dream job. I taught with amazing people, had plenty of time to collaborate with them, had great kids and good parent support. My administrators understood what it takes to be a great teacher and supported us completely. And then, at about the two-year mark, the budget cuts came . Things changed. I traveled. There was no longer time in the day to work together. Administrators did their best to support us. But the staffing and the budgets, stretched thin, could only go so far.  It was difficult for me to love my job. Don't get me wrong - I loved and still love teaching, ...

Well, last week was a momentous one. I actually completed a project that I found on pinterest less than a month after pinning it! We got a Kansas cutting board from Barb and Jeff for Christmas, but it's more of a decor thing than a use-in-the-kitchen thing. We tried a shelf from Target; it was defective. We tried a command strip; it didn't stick to the wood. So, when I read the directions for this shelf, I knew it would be the perfect thing. And it is. I just need a little something to go next to it and cover up the other screw. I think it looks pretty good on our collage wall in the living room. You can find the directions here.

Lincoln, You are two months old! It's been fun to watch you grow and learn and discover over the last four weeks. The other day, you were fussy after your bath. There happened to be a couple of Reese's on the counter next to you. Daddy picked one up and put it in front of your face. This calmed you down immediately, and you stared at it for several minutes. We think it was the bright orange; you're an Oriole already!  Sometimes when you are fussy we put you in your crib by yourself and turn on the mobile. All you need to calm down for a bit is a little "alone time." It's funny - you wouldn't have a mobile at all if it weren't for your NICU stay. I thought it was silly and unnecessary, but you loved the one on your crib at the hospital so much that we had to get you one. And the nurse told us that it's good for learning to track; we are suckers for anything that will help with future reading!  You definitely and purposefully follow ...

When we refinished the deck last summer, I knew we would need some furniture to put on it. But outdoor furniture is expensive, and we didn't (still don't) have much of a budget for those things. I also knew that my parents had some outdoor furniture that they hadn't used since the tornado hit in 1990. The original cushions were full of glass (which makes sense, since they were on the sun porch, which had three walls and a ceiling of glass, I think). Mom and dad never got around to buying new cushions (cushions alone are almost as expensive as a set of actual furniture). Yes, folks, these beauties were sitting out in farm storage for over 20 years! So, I put on my sweetest face and asked my mom if she would mind it if we took these off their hands. She was happy to oblige. We brought two chairs and a glider home and spent quite a bit of time hosing them off and wiping them down. I took a few cans of spray paint to them (before I was pregnant, no worrie...

In college, I lived in the mods for my sophomore to senior years. Well, one in particular - 2B. (Mods have four double rooms and one single that share a living area and bathroom.) We nicknamed ourselves "The Nunnery" for several reasons. First, we wanted to live in mod 2B, and there's that great "to be or not to be" Hamlet quote... and that play also includes the line "Get thee to a Nunnery!" In addition, none of the nine of the original members were dating at the time. Through the three years, our "make up" changed. Girls graduated and moved on, others moved in. These young women were an incredible gift to me at that time and still are today. Those of us who live around Newton still get together on occasion. This past Saturday we went to Becca and Beau's for lunch and smores.

The day's end is sacred.  One more diaper change, jammies on, the day's clothes tossed to the laundry basket. I switch off the floor lamp and settle into the glider in the corner, Lincoln resting on the pillows laid across my lap. One more feeding, while I rock gently. His swaddle blanket laid out in the crib, a pacifier to the side, just in case.  The monkey nightlight glows. The froggy humidifier hums. Light from the hallway spills across the carpet. My baby peers up at me through barely awake eyes. I lift him to my shoulder and pat his back. He snuggles his head into the crook of my neck, and I rock. Just a few minutes more. And a few more. Until his body relaxes completely, melts on my chest. Then a few precious minutes more. I set him down in the crib. He always wakes up as I wrap the swaddle blanket snugly around him and looks up at me, calm and trust spilling out his blue eyes. I pick him up one more time for three kisses - two chubby cheeks, ...

I just realized I never posted this news. It got lost in the shuffle of giving birth and raising a kid, since it happened about a week before he  made his appearance. Next year I'll be the high school librarian in Augusta. I'm feeling excited. Nervous. Scared. Giddy. Intimidated. Confident. Eager. And a lot of other emotions I can't quite name right now. The last librarian left in the middle of the year on not-so-good terms, from what I can piece together. So the expectations of what a librarian actually does are pretty low. But I may have interviewed really well, which would mean the expectations of me are pretty high. (At least, from what the superintendent told Brad about what the principal told him, if that makes any sense.) I met with the middle school librarian on Thursday. I'm so excited to get to work with her guidance. (Her name is also Megan, and she's a Bethel grad.)  There's a lot of work to be done. I have lots of books to buy bec...

My mom came over yesterday to babysit while I toured "my" new library. She insisted on pictures, and we finally got a few of Lincoln smiling and laughing!

I can tell already. Lincoln is an ornery one. How do I know this, at less than seven weeks? He smiles and smiles and smiles at me. All day long. Except when he cries. Mostly, though, he smiles. But, as soon as I pull out the camera, or my phone, he puts on his "yeah, right, mom" face. I think he thinks he's funny. I try and try to get another smile out of him, but he just won't do it unless I put the camera down. Ornery boy! Don't worry, though. I'll keep trying.

I have so, so many pictures I haven't posted. Oops... Here's some catch-up for you!

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday, dear Grandma Valerie! Happy Birthday to you!