Cup of Coffee with Katie

In just 2 days, I will pull the 2014 calendar off my wall and 2015 will quietly sneak its way in. In the 48 hours before 2014 makes its quiet escape, however, I’d like to pause and reflect on the year that was. Turn on any news station these days and you’re bound to run into some form of year-in-review. If you watch those reviews, it will seem 2014 was a dark year- one in which planes mysteriously fell from the sky, ebola ravaged a nation and claimed far too many lives, and celebrities and commonfolk alike left us wondering what has happened to the moral compass of our society. Despite my proclamation to the contrary, this year left many of us shaking our heads and echoing the eternal question of Fergie and the Black-Eyed Peas: Where is the love??  Well, I can personally assure you it was there. It may have been overshadowed, as it often tends to be, by the more disheartening news stories…but I guarantee if you stop and take a look at your own year in review (and I don’t mean the one

Here we are, December 22nd, and Christmas is nearly upon us. Now I could claim my lack of Christmas advice/aid in your allergen-free Christmas quest was intentional. I am a Theology teacher after all...hence in my classroom, there has been no sign of Christmas. Because I'm Scrooge? No, because liturgically this is still Advent. The Christmas season hasn't even begun yet. We had nothing more than a Jesse tree which we added to each day as we read the associated Scripture passage. And I finally wished the students a Merry Christmas as they walked out the door on the last day...only because I won't see them when the Christmas season officially begins...and I can assure you our classroom will be decked out in Christmas festivity when they return in January until our Epiphany celebration. Ah yes, the life of a Theology teacher. Of course, anyone who knows me is aware that outside school I don't live by these same rules of Christmas conduct. I try to find a happy blend of b

Yes, I made all of my classes listen to Josh Groban's classic tune "Thankful" on Tuesday as part of our reflection before prayer. And let me tell you, the reactions from "Who is this guy?" to "Oh, my grandma LOVES him" made me realize just how old I'm getting (compared to high school students that is!) Today is Thanksgiving. When I begin to tell you about my week, you may become a bit skeptical about the title of this post; however, you’ll learn, as I have today, that it could not be more true. My week began with a jam-packed Sunday, driving back from a conference in Ocean City with 6 of my students. Also, we were a little extra tired on the ride back since a 1:30 AM leak in the hotel rooms above ours resulted in a middle of the night wake-up call/relocation. I made it through my final two days of classes prior to break, including Grandparents’ Day, before the ER decided it had been too long since we’d been acquainted with one another. So Tu

Yes, this beautiful song was written to address your true love; you know, "the one you want to go through time with".  However, I think if I were to compose a love song right now, it might be directed toward that ever-elusive companion of time. There just doesn't seem to be enough it. I hung this quote on my mirror to remind myself to stop complaining about my "lack" of time, and I've taken to scheduling out my days quite extensively in my planner.  Pinterest Yet, despite my most faithful and fervent efforts, time just slips through my grasp. I seem to wake up each morning with a yet-unfinished to-do list from the day before, and an overwhelming desire to roll back over and steal just a few more minutes of precious sleep. Of course I think this is the case for most people in our world these days, and I know it's the case for the teachers of America right now. These dwindling days before Thanksgiving are quite possibly the longest of the year.

I know, I know. It's been WAY too long. I couldn't agree more. However, October is my favorite month of the year...and between the craziness of starting a new job/taking on a few (perhaps too many) side jobs, I decided that what time I had left in October should be devoted to soaking up every minute of my favorite month rather than writing about it. That's not to say I didn't miss writing because I did; perhaps if there were just a few extra hours in each day, I could manage both. Until then, I chose to dive wholeheartedly into living life...and now that daylight savings is upon us, I'll do my best to document all those life-filled moments. Trust me, my brain and my camera memory card are packed with pictures, memories, and products just waiting to be shared. And so it begins... Anyone who knows me well has heard (probably about a dozen times) my profession of love for all things autumnal. I love Fall. I love everything about it: the crisp morning air, the fiery o