Mount Eagle Will Miss Meghan

For those of you who have never met my wife, let me tell you, she is an amazing woman.  The first thing that probably jumps into your mind is, "Well, of course she's amazing.  She's carrying triplets!"  Well, yes, that's one of the reasons, but there are so many more.  Besides being a great friend, being completely adorable, and making you feel completely at ease, she also has passion, specifically for education.

When she graduated from PSU about 10 years ago, she started off as a 3rd grade teacher.  She only taught for one year.  One of her co-workers knew that she was questioning whether or not she had made the right decision by getting into teaching.  Her co-worker's husband worked at a consulting company called Bearing Point.  She decided that she would give consulting a try and leave the classroom.  Well, it turns out that she missed the classroom and the kids.  She found herself going to Sylvan Learning Center after work, just so she could be with the kids.  She missed them so much, she decided that instead of putting up with a lot of the frustration she encountered in her first year, she would re-dedicate herself to fixing the problems which made her leave in the first place, which were primarily focused around reading education.  She went back to school, got her master's degree, and has been teaching at Mt. Eagle Elementary school as a reading specialist for the last several years...and she loves it!

Apparently, they love her there, too.  On her last day of school, the teachers gave her a book titled Mount Eagle Will Miss Meghan From A To Z.  Now, I'll warn you, I've typed up every letter of the alphabet they used to describe Meg because I want her to remember this time and I want our girls to be able to look back one day and read about how loved and appreciated their mother was.  So, don't feel like you need to read them all because they're really more for us :)



A is for always smiling.

B is for Bear Rock Cafe, where you spent hours on your day off (not mention simultaneously recovering from a stomach bug) to help fourth grade make sense of the language arts standards and create an intricate schedule only to have it snowed upon my Snowmaggeddon 2010!

C is for collaborating about student's needs and discussing reading and speech/language and how they are closely linked.  Thanks for challenging me and making my understanding of accommodations and the DRA.

C is for your contagious enthusiasm and love of reading and teaching.  I always appreciated when you shared new resources and strategies and helped me incorporate them into my classroom.

D is for DeBauche...and all the DeBauche daughter weddings you will be having.

E is for exemplary, which you are...an exemplary educator, an exemplary leader, an exemplary woman, an exemplary friends...

F is for your friendship which I have been fortunate to have.  I will our runs and walks, our talks, dinners, and all the support you have given me.  Thank you so much for your friendship.

G is for Go Penn State!!!  and for getting  me ready for my first year of teaching!  Thank you so much for everything you did to help me prepare for this whirlwind of a year.

H is for hooking me up with both a tutoring job and a summer curriculum job.  Thanks for networking!

I is for the way you have inspired me to be a better educator.  I will miss you and the way you love your job and our students.  It has helped me to never give up, to keep trying and to love our kids even when it's hard.

J is for joyfully coming to work everyday.   No matter what, you had a smile on your face and an optimistic outlook on the day.  Thank you for making my first year as a reading teacher a joy!

K is for keeping the kindergarten team on the kicking path.  We will miss your kind, karing, kool face.

L is for always lending an ear for fourth grade as we shaped our language arts block.

M is for mentor because you were an amazing one to me.

N is for never slowing down...you are always on the move!

N is for your never ending energy.  I'll miss you speed walking down the halls.

O is for our desire to have children and some of the struggles we both faced.  I enjoyed our talks and will miss them.

P is for positivity because you always turned my frown upside down.

Q is for all of the questions I come to you with every day and the patience with which you answer.  I have learned so much from you, Meghan.

R is for our reading team.  You and I had a lot of crazy times squeezed into a lot of overloaded days and I wouldn't have done it with anyone else.  You will forever be my favorite reading teammate.

S is for the shock I felt the first time I heard you curse.

T is for triplets!  You are truly going to be a tremendous mother to all three!  In time they will be toddlers, teens, and then Brides-to-Be!

U is for your unbelievable support.  I could not have survived my first year of teaching without you!

V is for very cute as I'm sure your babies all will be.

W is for walking fast...even these babies haven't slowed you down.

X is for your extremely positive attitude that makes everyone's day brighter and inspires me to try to stay on the sunny side of life.

Y is for your smiling face that I always enjoyed as we passed each other in the hallway.  I'll miss seeing you around the school.

Zzzzzz's are what you will need when the babies arrive!

Z is for zooming all your teaching skills to help 2nd graders have an awesome writers workshop.  I'll miss your gentle admonitions when the kids try to get out of hand "2nd graders we have to get in line..."

Thank you Linda Layton, Jessie Bagnall, Chrissy Gibbs, Tara Murphy, Barbara Anzalone, Sarah Trevino, Devon Parks, Katie Keier, the Kindergarten team (Shiela, April, and Jordan), Hannah Aldridge, Beth Reidy, Jacquie Heller, Margo Trollinger, Amy Stoffel, and Zeba Ahmed.