My dad saw my husband's boss at a conference, and he said to stop paying my husband until we produce children.
I care what people who know me think of me.
I can't wish I weren't something that I am.
Not Shakespeare. In college I took a Shakespeare class because I was an English major, and they had a Summer program called Shakespeare at Winedale, which is out in the German Hill country in Texas , where you go out and live for two months and then you perform three plays at the end of that time.
I hope that I serve by being a teacher.
I don't have any children. I just have a cat, to my parents' dismay.
People ask me if I ever see my father and I say yes, because he puts in the effort. He calls all the time to tell us he's proud of us.
I'm sure there were times when I wish I had thought, 'Gosh, that might really embarrass mom and dad,' but our parents didn't raise us to think about them. They're very selfless and they wanted us to have as normal of a college life as possible. So really, we didn't think of any repercussions.
Writers know - especially new writers - [that] a lot of it [creative process] is the prewriting stage, the talking, brainstorming, the narrative arc and the character sketches.
There's no job that's more rewarding than being with kids. I adore it.
I was sports editor for my high school newspaper, but I think I shied away from journalism.
I think I know a lot about campaigns.
Kids are so dynamic; if you're tired and you walk into a roomful of kids, your energy is brought up to their level.
I don't think I'm portrayed in the media the way I really am - but then who is?
I don't think of myself as a policy expert. I think education is the most important thing.
I decided to go to Latin America because many of my students in Washington emigrated from this region and inspired me to learn more about their home countries.
As I've gotten older, my mannerisms are more and more like my mom's. Also, she was an educator - she's extremely passionate about education and children. I guess I inherited that in some way.
As a teacher you can see the difference in kids who have parents who were involved. That difference, by the time these kids get to the third grade, is drastic.
I'm a perfectionist - I could rewrite forever.
I think I've become more like my mom just because of what we're both interested in, children and teaching and writing.
I didn't go to Latin America thinking, 'I'm gonna write a book. This is what I'm gonna do.' I went there to work for UNICEF and to learn.
I like to go to bed early.
I hope to work with kids any way possible.
I don't know about the world, but I know kids. And I feel like sometimes kids don't get involved because they think, what can I do? I'm just a kid. And really kids can do so much.
I hope to focus on what I'm passionate about because I think I'd do them best job on them - education, urban education, women and children's issues and literacy.
