Teacher Notes

New Year, New Post

2011-12-29T21:06:00.004-05:00

A lot has happened since February 2010. My father passed away in June of 2010, my son was born in August 2010, and I went from being a classroom teacher to an Art/Gym teacher for the 2010-2011 school year to an Art teacher/librarian this school year. It is amazing what life throws at you.

Although I do miss the classroom, I do not miss the endless hours of grading and the happenings with the parents. I love that I can go home at the end of the school day and hang out with my son and husband.

I LOVE all that I can have the students create in art class and all the stories I get to read to the students in the library. I think it is the perfect fit at this moment in my life. It also helps that I get so many compliments on so many of the items we create in art.

Four Days and Counting

2010-02-28T12:54:00.003-05:00

It has been four days since I have had the urge to throw up. Sure I still get queasy at the thought of some foods. The thought of ground beef is just nauseating, especially when I used to make tacos at least once every two weeks. Making dinner has become somewhat of a task because it totally depends on what I feel like eating.

I have also noticed that I just about finished with my 3rd jar of peanut butter in the last two months. I told Jay that baby just feels like eating peanut butter. :)

So as I am entering my 15th week, I am hoping that my morning sickness is going to be a thing of the past. I am going to try to go off my nausea pills next week and hope for the best!

Now I just need the patience to get through ISTEP testing this week. It is the applied skills portion which means the students are writing out their answers. We have practiced everyday last week and now I can just pray that they take their time and do their very best. However sometimes that might be asking a little too much.

Please Go Away January

2010-01-22T17:05:00.003-05:00

It has turned out that January has been quite an expensive month. We have had to replace a garbage disposal, followed by the demise of the poor computer, a crack in my windshield, the furnace needing a cleaning, and now the ignitor going out in the stove.

I am happy to report that we were able to replace the garbage disposal ourselves.

Tony was fixing the computer and found the stupid virus program and just as he was about to get rid of it, it locked him out of every single thing. So now you can't even log on. Hopefully the computer will be taking a ride with my Uncle Paul. Hopefully he can rid the nasty virus away.

I have done nothing about the crack in my windshield because I am still trying to fathom how pulling into the garage at night and coming back in the morning could actually form a crack. The poor car also needs to be washed and my dad says it will be okay going through the car wash. However I have visions of the crack getting larger as I am sitting in the car wash.

The furnace was probably the least expensive fix of $50. Only because the heating and cooling guy is a friend of the family and I expected it to be more because he came out on a Sunday afternoon. I was quite pleasantly surprised when I received the bill.

And as of today, I have a working stove again. How anyone can justify charging $62 to come out and then charge $20 labor and then $50 for a part is beyond me. Shouldn't labor and a service fee be the same thing?

So January I need you to leave. I really cannot afford for you to stay any longer.

Halfway through...January that is!

2010-01-17T08:52:00.005-05:00

It is hard to believe that January is already halfway over. I consider this a good thing because it means that I am closer to ending my first trimester. Yuppers I am preggars. :)

I'm sure that most everyone knows because of who we saw at Christmas, but I guess this is the first time I have actually written out that I am. According to my doctor I am due on August 22. So it means that I have about a month and a couple weeks to fit into my bridesmaid dress for Rosie's wedding in October. I have yet to order my dress.

Today marks my 9th week, that means that I hopefully only have 3 more weeks left of this fantastic first trimester. However I consider it anything but fantastic. I get to spend every day being nauseated and have a hard time keeping down my breakfast and lunch. It is amazing that I have made it through teaching without having to run out of the room to throw up. Although I am waiting for the day that it actually happens. I just tend to prop myself up someplace in the room and teach from there.

I have yet to tell my students, but the entire school staff knows. So I am debating on when to tell my students.

I was given nausea pills from my doctor and was told to take two before bed and one in the morning. So far I have taken one pill at night and it completely knocks me out. So needless to say I am not taking the recommended dosage. However when I wake up in the morning I do feel somewhat like I can function through the day. Although my mom would rather I not take any at all. At this point I really would like to fbe able to somewhat function.

So these last few weeks of the first trimester should be interesting. I have my next appointment on the 28th and was told I will be given an ultrasound and should be able to hear a heartbeat. How exciting! :)

Patience

2009-12-02T18:11:00.003-05:00

Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them - every day begin the task anew.
~Saint Augustine

This is something that I need to be telling myself as we get one day closer to the end of the first half of the school year. I also enjoyed the fact that on Sunday the homily was about patience. It is funny how the homilies reflect how I am feeling at the moment.

I will just remember to tell myself to breathe through the next 12 school days. :)

Celtic Thunder

2009-11-03T16:48:00.002-05:00

I saw these guys in concert last night and they were AMAZING! I had never heard anything about them until Rosie mentioned that she wanted to go and Laura proclaimed they looked too "gay" to see in concert. I was blown away! Plus who wouldn't enjoy seeing Irishmen in kilts! :)

Kitchen Redo

2009-11-02T16:59:00.005-05:00

Back in September, my parents ice maker went bananas overnight and they woke up to the flooding of their kitchen, mudroom, and my dad's room. Then all of that water had to go somewhere and it went into the basement. So after a week of fans and humidifiers running nonstop. The place was finally dried out.

The insurance people took off with the ice maker hoping to find something wrong with it. They also took off with all of the clothes that were "water damaged" in the basement and sent them off to be dry cleaned. The nice insurance people also took pulled off the laminate flooring so that the sub floor could dry.

So now that the kitchen has been pulled apart, it has forced my mom to go ahead and redo the kitchen. She has talked for years how she wanted to redo the kitchen. I just told her the ice maker gave her the shove that she needed to redo. :)

So my mom and I spent yesterday steaming off the wallpaper. We were quite proud of the fact that we have half of the kitchen done. She is having Kitchens Etc. come in and put in new ceramic flooring and granite counter tops. I am hoping that I can get the rest of the wallpaper off the walls and paint before the flooring people come in. However, it takes my mom an eternity to commit to the perfect paint color. I think I am going to go to Lowe's and pick out some colors and slap it on the wall and then maybe I will get an answer out of her!

What still needs to be pulled off:

What was accomplished:

Now if I can get in there this weekend and get the rest of it off, my world will be great. However I have a school function on Sunday that is taking up most of my afternoon. This might be tricky!

A Perfect Day

2009-09-27T16:50:00.007-04:00

It was a beautiful day for apple picking. I mentioned to Laura that I had wanted to go apple picking a couple of weeks ago. She told me that she was going with a friend. I was welcomed to come along, but I told her I would be a third wheel. :)

So Laura organized it so that the entire family could go. Despite the icky forecast that we got on Friday, today is absolutely gorgeous!

After about 10 minutes, my parents apple bushel was full and the rest of us had yet to even fill half. We even ran into people we knew.

We had a good time and we came to realization that we probably should have taken a group shot when we ran into the people that we knew after we had gone and left.

Now I have a bag full of apples, and I know that there is no possible way that I will be able to eat all of them. So off to school they go! :)

Laura and Eddie in a search for the perfect apples

Rosie and her tiny apple

Rosie and Steve with the giant apple that he found

Tony and Eddie

Rosie even picked a pumpkin :)

Bike Ride

2009-09-19T22:25:00.004-04:00

I had an old teaching friend call me up the other day wondering if I wanted to go bike riding at the Apple Festival in Nappanee on Saturday. She told me that her husband was unable to go because he had to work and she had really wanted to go. She mentioned that there was a 16 mile route and a 30 mile route. I told her I was up for either.

I don't know what in the heck I was thinking! I haven't ridden my bike in over a year. So we set out for the 30 mile route today. Gee was I stupid. Within the first half hour my legs were starting to hurt, but I kept pedaling. About 10 miles into the ride, I figured out that I have been on the highest resistance gear possible. stupid, stupid, stupid :)

We rested quite a bit for my sake and even took a short cut. The funny thing was that while on the shortcut we meet another rider and he is looking and talking to my friend. Then he said that he knew her. So here we are in the middle of a cornfield and they figure out that they went to school together at Washington. It really is a small world!

So after 13.2 miles we stop at the first SAG stop at an Amish house. Which I have no idea what SAG means, but they have some treats and I am more than happy to stop. My friend decided that I should stay while she finishes up the rest of the ride. I had no problem with that.

So I rested, while other riders were coming in and getting refueled. Some riders were even talking about the ride that is happening on Sunday and it is a 70 mile one. What the heck people!?!

Also while I was resting the Amish couple that was providing the treats had three small children playing outside. The one youngest daughter brought her chair and sat it right next to mine and she was bringing me treats and climbed on my lap and enjoyed her juice. She was a cutie!

So my friend gets me after an hour and she informs me that she checked off my name at the finish line so that people don't go looking for me. :) Also she mentioned that there was Amish homemade ice cream and apple pie at the finish line and that the organizers of the ride told her that I was more than welcomed to come and enjoy some pie. They even sent her with Apple Butter for me! I declined going back for the pie and ice cream.

Even though I am beyond sore tonight and probably will have a tough time of walking tomorrow, I really enjoyed my bike ride and catching up with an old friend. My husband thinks that I am nuts for biking that long of a distance. I probably am, but I enjoyed myself. That is what I will keep telling myself tomorrow! :)

Water Aerobics

2009-09-17T21:05:00.003-04:00

Water aerobics has become latest exercise craze. I have always wanted to partake in this activity, but have always been a little weary of walking into a class and not knowing anyone. However, I guess I am becoming braver because I actually took the plunge!

My first class was on Monday and I LOVED it! It is a 45 minute class and it actually seems like it is shorter. The water might be a little chilly when we first get in, but I quickly warm up after doing all of the warm up exercises.

The only thing that I need to get now is another bathing suit and it is the wrong time of year to buy one. I was hoping that I could find one on clearance but have had no such luck. So I went searching online and I think I found one at Land's End that is reasonably priced.

The only thing that I am not looking forward to is when the colder months arrive and I have to get into a chilly pool. Brrr!

For now though, I am content and even thinking about starting to spin again on Tuesday nights. :)

I am alive

2009-09-07T09:19:00.003-04:00

Sorry for the blogging hiatus. Since the end of July I have had to get ready for the start of school and that always drags me down. Now that we are two weeks in, I feel I have a grip on things.

Since I moved up a grade this year to third, I have half of the same students that I had last year. In a way it is a good/bad thing. I do know what to expect and what the abilities are of the students without having to feel my way around. The bad thing is that it is hard to implement new strategies because half of them remember how I did things last year. So it has been a ride these last two weeks.

Also our playground is not finished. So at the moment we are playing in between the church and the parking lot. Lets just say organized chaos ensues and I want to pull my hair out most days after recess. However I just keep saying that it will only be a month until it is finished (fingers crossed).

Hubby started a job at Memorial doing laundry and his schedule is wacky. He has to be at work at 6 during the week and 4:30 if he works weekends. So he is getting up an hour and a half before his start time and it only means that I have to get up with him because the alarm is on my side of the bed and I refuse to wake up to annoying beeping sound. :)

However we aren't sure how long this job will last because 1. we believe he is becoming a scapegoat for everything and 2. he was told that Memorial is looking to outsource laundry. So we are back to the drawing board on looking for jobs. He is also toying around with the idea of a vet tech program at Brown Mackie. So we don't know really where we are headed. It is always fun to be surprised :)

Mom and Dad are headed to Texas today for two weeks. Dad is going to be part of a trial study and needs to be down there for two weeks straight and then he will go back every week Tuesday until Friday for the following four weeks after his two weeks are finished. Hopefully everything goes smooth for the next six weeks. I just ask that you keep him in your prayers. :)

I'm baking up a storm today for a get-together at my brother's. He is supplying the house and the grill and I am bringing the food for him to cook. I think it is a good deal since my house is a tad on the smaller side. So I hope everyone has a happy Labor Day!

So many pics...so little space

2009-07-27T17:31:00.006-04:00

We had so much fun this weekend. It was great seeing family and a long lost friend. These three pics are probably my fav from the weekend, although I could have put so much more up!

I love this one of hubby and I.

Keely and I met in Kindergarten and were friends through eighth grade. Then we lost touch because we both went to different high schools and colleges. It was so great to see her!

I LOVE this pic of Carisse and her red shoes!

Harry Potter Update

2009-07-23T17:06:00.004-04:00

We had a fantastic time at the Harry Potter Exhibition exhibit at the Science and Industry Museum. We saw many of the different props and clothing worn by the stars over the years. I also thought it was cool to see how small the clothing was in the first movie compared to the latest movies. We were not allowed to take any pics in the exhibition, but they did have the flying car that was used in the movie in the lobby and you could take all of the pics that you wanted.

We also saw the movie in the Omnimax theater. The Omnimax theater is completely different than an IMAX theater in that the Omnimax theater is rounded but still really big. So my neck got uncomfortable watching it because you had to keep turning your head to see all of the different things going on in the scene. But the flying scenes felt like you were right there in the movie!

We also ate at a yummy restuarant before we made our way back to the train station. Also just a FYI the South Shore people (aka the answering service with the schedules) do not even know what side of the tracks their trains show up on!

Harry Potter

2009-07-20T06:00:00.001-04:00

I am off to Chicago today. Friends from high school and I are off to the Harry Potter exhibit at the Science and Industry Museum and then viewing the movie in IMAX. I really cannot remember how the book goes or the last movie, but I am sure once I get into the movie I will start to remember.

I even have one of the gals making me a t-shirt with Hufflepuff written on it and the crest of the house on the lower left hip side of the shirt. :)

It should be a fun filled day!

Summer School

2009-07-13T16:55:00.005-04:00

I am in the final week of teaching summer school. There are four adults in the classroom. One is in charge of reading, another in charge of writing, another in charge of fluency, and another in charge of art.

I am the person in charge of art. After four weeks of completing art projects that go along with the theme of the week, I am happy with the way things have turned out. I literally go to work for three and a half hours and get paid to complete art projects. I have enjoyed myself. :)

I have taken pics of what we have completed. Hubby asked me why I made them and I said why not. It was fun!

Planet Bubbles for our Space Week

Pennants for our Sports Week

Monsters for our Scary Week

Fingerprint Art for our Mystery Week

Now I just have to make it to Friday and then I am back on vacation for three more weeks before I go in and start putting back together my classroom.

Demolition Derby

2009-07-12T10:17:00.004-04:00

Friday night hubby and I found ourselves at the 4-H Fair. We were there because we heard that they were going to have a demolition derby. Hubby really wanted to go and I was curious because it was being held in the main grandstand. I wondered how in the heck that would happen.

After the evening was over, we decided that we have to go to another one with a larger arena. Apparently there is going to be a bigger one held at the South Bend Motor Speedway September 12.

I have come to the conclusion that demo's are really LOUD and there is some fascination with Care Bears. I haven't figured that one out yet.

Here is our night in pics:

This car took Best in Show because it looked the prettiest (although that is probably not the technical term).

Wreckage! Oh and the field was grass and by the end of the night it was dirt and dirt was everywhere!

If you can look closely at the driver front tire it is completely off and dragging.

The driver of car 212 was only 16! He made it into the finals, although he did not win.

This pic just cracks me up because both the driver and the Pink Panther are watching the action!

Now for the next race we will attend, we just have to drag my brother along with us!

I feel extremely stupid today

2009-07-07T16:16:00.002-04:00

I was getting into the car like usual today and was backing out and then all of a sudden I heard a snap and a black plastic piece fly past me. I throw the car in park and jump out to see what I had hit.

Apparently the garage door never went all the way up and I backed right into the door. Mind you the door only had about two more feet to reach the top. Needless to say that was not enough clearance to get the car out. So I hit the button again hoping that the door would go up. No luck because the door fell off of the track.

I ran into the house to get wake hubby up and told him to get out to the garage. He came with and helped pop the track back into place. Then we closed the garage. The only damage to my car are the luggage racks that sit on top and some white paint scraped along the top edge. Luckily the luggage racks were there otherwise I would have dented the top of my car.

Also while we were outside, hubby slapped my neck. Before I could yell at him he blurted out spider and I freaked and started hitting myself. So with the spider not crawling on me anymore, I set off to work.

I'm sure we put on quite a show for the neighbors. :)

My Birthday

2009-07-02T12:49:00.005-04:00

Yesterday was my birthday and it was very low key. Which is exactly how I like it. I had some of the summer school students wish me a happy birthday and when I got out of work I had five texts telling me happy birthday. Then basically I laid around the house all day not doing a darn thing. It was wonderful!

I also received a birthday card from one of my second graders in the mail with a gift card to Friday's. I thought that was very thoughtful of the student!

I also checked the order status of my bench that my parents bought for me. I found out that it was arriving yesterday at some unknown time. So basically Mr. (or Ms.) Fed-Ex person kept me waiting.

So around 7 o'clock my package still had not come so we decided to go to Friday's and use the gift card. Dinner was yummy, the waitress was dumb. I know that she was busy rushing around to her four tables but we lost her for a good 30 minutes while waiting for our check. Then she didn't even run the gift card, just our debit. When I questioned her she said it was too late. I know that I should have raised a stink, but I just wanted to get home.

So we got home and the package was on the porch. I asked hubby if we could put it together even though it was 9 o'clock. He didn't mind, but then my friend called (whom I haven't talked to since Christmas) and so we talked for awhile, while we discussed me coming to Florida for a little relaxation because now that she has a real job and no longer is in school she doesn't know when she will be coming back up to South Bend. (She got her PHD in May and is now working for the Army Corp of Electrical Engineers in Miami.)

So after I got off the phone we proceeded to put my present together and realized that it didn't have directions, but we figured it out after some trial and errors. So now we have a nice piece of furniture on the porch that is hiding my shoes and only 2 pairs of hubby's because lets face it, I have more shoes than him!

So now that the porch is starting to come together, we are thinking about what kind of floor to put down. I would like to go linoleum or possibly a fake looking wood just because the real wood would get messed up with the snow and I am pretty sure under the carpet is just plywood. Decisions, decisions! :)

Need a book to read?

2009-06-29T17:04:00.004-04:00

You would think that since I am on summer vacation I would post more. However that is not the case. It is probably because I am catching up on reading and sleeping! :)

In case you are looking for something to read, I recommend Bitter is the New Black by Jennifer Lancaster. It is non-fiction and just very hilarious. It is a laugh out loud kind of story and very hard to put down.

Rosie recommended it to me and know I have have finished the second book written by her called Bright Lights, Big Ass. I have to read the third book written by her, Such a Pretty Fat.

So if you are looking for something to make you laugh, try Bitter is the New Black! (Dang I sound like some commercial!)

Elkhart Farmer's Market

2009-06-17T19:51:00.005-04:00

I went to the Elkhart Farmer's Market today for one purpose...jumbo jellybeans. They are my dad's favorite and he has been talking about how he needs to go to Wakarusa and get some jumbo jellybeans.

However I did not have to make the drive to Wakarusa but only to the Elkhart Farmer's Market because they have a booth there. I also wandered around the market and oogled at the Amish made tables and goodies on the second floor.

I did happen to find this nice little table runner. My original purpose was to place it on my new hutch in the porch. However I have found that it looks quite nice on my table. So I am thinking of going back and getting another one that matches the dining room and placing it on the table and the one I got today on the hutch in the porch. Only due to the fact that the colors would go better on the porch. Plus it the rectangle one was only $8! What a bargain!

So at the moment Mr. Gnome (who is also part of my dad's Father Day present) is hanging out on the table with a nice comfort under his feet. :-)

Pretty Flowers

2009-06-17T10:02:00.001-04:00

I am very proud of how this flower pot turned out:

Interview

2009-06-13T13:45:00.005-04:00

This past week I went on an interview with a school that is literally five minutes from my house. The principal was really nice and explained that he was being proactive and getting a list of names of people that he could hire in case the corporation didn't have anyone to fill the positions at his school.

While going through my resume, he told me that since I did not have any experience teaching the Balanced Literacy Program (the reading program that the school system uses) my chances of getting hired are pretty slim. Gee thanks!

He explained that since his school is a Title 1 school that he needed to see results right away and did not have time to teach the Balanced Literacy Program to the new hires that did not have knowledge of the program.

He did offer to put my name down on a list of instructional assistants. I asked him what the pay rate was for this type of position and he said it was $11 to 12 an hour with benefits. I told him that I would be interested but I really need a teachign position because I am at the moment the only wage earner in the family.

So who knows where the heck that leaves me. At the moment, I guess I am content staying at my school and teaching third grade. The only thing is that I am having some of the students that I had in second grade. Although I think I did a good job of splitting them up so I don't have as many behavior problems with certain "groups" of students.

So we shall see what happens.

The Finished Hutch

2009-06-13T13:39:00.004-04:00

I finally decided to finish the rest of the hutch in between the rain showers this week:

Now I just have to figure out what else to place on the shelves because the bottom part is pretty much filled up! I LOVE extra storage.

How I Spent My Day

2009-06-03T16:37:00.004-04:00

While Tony was cleaning out the garage at his house last summer, there was a hutch in there that I had wanted. My parents took it home to their house and that is where it sat until last night. I finally had the time to pay attention to this potentially cute piece of furniture.

However, it dawns on me after looking at the pictures that I took that I really didn't take a picture of what it looked like together. It had multi-colored drawer knobs and the one door did not close all of the way.

This is the original back of the cabinet and it was falling apart. Jay took the back off. He has decided that he loves to destroy things. :)

We went off to Lowe's to get a new piece of backing cut for us and all of the appropriate hinges and knobs and a new paint color.

It was the perfect day to paint because the sun was not too hot and the wind was just right. It took less than three hours to get it sanded, painted, and put back together.

Here Jay is attaching the new back to the hutch.

After our three hours of work, here is the final product. I am in love with it!

Now I just have to decide if I would like to place the top part on top of the bottom part. If I decide to do this, I have to sand and paint it. In the end it might just be worth it! :)

Curio Cabinet

2009-05-29T08:43:00.004-04:00

I am a huge fan of craigslist. I love just looking at the furniture that other people have posted. Rosie was looking for a curio cabinet and I told her I would look on craigslist and see what I could find. Lo and behold I found one and it was in pretty decent shape and it was only $35. Hey what a deal! The only problem was that it was in Rochester.

I told Rosie that I could pick it up only because Plymouth is halfway to Rochester. So I responded to the ad on craigslist and the lady selling it was going to meet me at the WalMart. So on Monday, May 11 after school I set off for Rochester.

Well I should have stayed in Plymouth and gotten schoolwork completed. The lady never showed up. I was mad because I had about an hour drive back home and with no cabinet. The lady e-mails me the next day and says, "Oh sorry I laid my son down for a nap and I had a huge headache so I fell asleep also. When do you want to pick up the cabinet?" What!?! Are you kidding me?!?

I e-mailed her back and said that I was not driving back to Rochester and she was going to have to come to Plymouth to drop it off. She e-mailed back and agreed. So we set up another date for that Thursday.

Thursday rolled around and still no lady. Nope she didn't show up again and not again the next two times over the next week and a half. Every time there would be a new excuse of why she couldn't meet. The last time she didn't show up I didn't e-mail her back and left it at that. Apparently she really doesn't need to sell it because otherwise a decent and courteous person would show up or e-mail and tell me that they wouldn't be able to meet that day.

Then as I was checking my junk e-mail today, there was an e-mail from this lady asking if I still wanted the cabinet. What...you've got to be kidding me! I e-mailed her back this morning and told her that she was done wasting my time and if she really wanted to sell the cabinet that she had to drive to South Bend to my house because I am not going to Plymouth until August!

Needless to say I probably will not get a response to that one. Some people are just plain rude.

Thank You

2009-05-21T20:09:00.003-04:00

As I was out on recess duty yesterday, I had one of my students come up and tell me that Logan just threw the basketball at his head. So I called the over Logan and asked why he threw the basketball at the other child's head. He replied that we were playing a game about aliens and so-and-so was the alien. So I asked Logan what he owed the other student, and Logan replied, "Thank you?" As much as I wanted to laugh, I reminded him that he needed to say that he was sorry.

So I guess the new thing to say to another child that one hits is "Thank You!"

Kids gotta love 'em!

The Countdown is On

2009-05-17T08:10:00.004-04:00

Well this is the final week of school and the last day is the day after Memorial Day. I am happy, but I am also feeling the pressure of the end-of-the year crap that needs to be done before the students get their report cards.

I need to finish grading the huge bag that is sitting in my car at the moment. I am also giving a Unit 7 test in Math tomorrow that I would like to stick in the grade book. On the other hand I am so totally sick of grading.

We have been informed by our principal that we still need to teach and go through workbooks and introduce new material. Hello....I am having a hard enough time to keep my students focused. It is not until I threaten them with sending them to the principal's office that they settle down. I loathe this time of the year.

I also need to write down report card comments and print up awards. So as the week drags on so will my body because I am also battling a sinus thing. It seems that when it rains it pours!

Happy Birthday

2009-05-14T07:25:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday to my brother! He is turning 27 this year and he is completely freaked. It was funny to remind him a couple of months ago that he was turning 27 and he said that he was only 25 and that he would be turning 26. Sorry bud! :)

Is This Really a Good Idea?

2009-05-13T16:53:00.003-04:00

We were told yesterday that our Home and School Association (HASA) is looking into getting new paper towel and soap dispensers for next year. That is a good idea because the ones that we have are really gross and in fact the entire bathrooms could be updated.

However they want to put in automatic soap and paper towel dispensers. Hello! We are in an elementary school where kids will play with anything! So I guess another duty to add to my job is going to be to patrol the dispensers and do I dare let the students go in by themselves? Why doesn't anyone ask the teachers what they think? Blah!

I have things to do

2009-05-12T17:58:00.004-04:00

A student of mine handed me a note today that said, "I will be picking her up at 11:00 today." Nowhere on the note did it say why. When the student handed me this note she told me that "She had things to do today!" What the heck you are in second grade. I just had to chuckle.

Apparently because her daughter did not make her reading goal for the school year, mom was taking her children who did not make it and treat them to an afternoon of fun. Due to the fact that the students who did meet their goal for the year got to go bowling.

Sometimes parents just don't make sense. Although I was sure to send home the work that we were completing this afternoon. :)

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T07:29:00.002-04:00

Happy Mother's Day to all of the mother's out there. I hope you have a very special day. I am in the process of making some yummy quiche for my mom and then I am making dinner for my mother-in-law tonight. It shall be a busy day.

Stupidity

2009-05-10T07:17:00.004-04:00

I feel awfully stupid today. I washed my cell phone. In the ten years that I have had a cell phone nothing has ever happened to it. I have always been very careful with the dang thing. Then yesterday I came home from work and picking out flowers for Mother's Day that I left the phone in my coat and didn't take it out and set it on the counter like I always do. Instead I threw my coat on top of the pile of laundry waiting to go downstairs.

I had hubby take the laundry downstairs last night and then I just threw things into the washing machine and went upstairs to watch TV. I didn't remember that my coat was in the pile. Then when I woke up this morning and headed downstairs to complete another load, I found it.

Now I just have to hope that my contract is up for renewal and I can get my new every two deal. Otherwise I have no idea how I am going to pay for a new one. Blah!

I feel a bit old

2009-05-08T17:43:00.002-04:00

I was aged just a bit this week when it was announced that one of my former students is being sent off to Iraq this week. Talk about feeling old. This student was in the sixth grade being of the first class that I ever taught back in 2002.

While that particular class is finishing up their senior years this month and getting ready to graduate, he is being sent off to the desert. His mother home schooled him for high school and it doesn't help that mom isn't all there. Although I am sure that he signed up for the army as soon as he turned 18 and left his house.

In the three years that I taught social studies to him, he was always engrossed in what wars there were and the kind fighting techniques that were used. Needless to say, he is probably loving the fact that he did get shipped out. Although I am sending prayers his way to keep him safe. :)

Summer Job

2009-05-08T17:36:00.002-04:00

Well I got my summer job, however it is not the position I was hoping for. I am helping out with summer school again for the South Bend Schools. My job title is "Helper." I was really hoping for the the Reading Instructor position. There is an extra $10 per hour for that position.

I am going to be ticked off if I find out that college students are taking part in the position of reading instructor when we were assured last year that all the title of that particular position were filled by licenced teachers. That was not the case! I shall come to find out June 18.

I Think We May Have a Problem

2009-04-29T20:51:00.004-04:00

This is what one of my students brought back to school today. It is his social studies book. He has been without it for the past two days. I told him that he needed to bring it back on Wednesday or he was talking to the principal about why he couldn't bring his book back to school. Well now I see why he couldn't.

It literally has been ripped out of the binding. In my seven years of teaching I have never seen anything like this. I asked him what happened and he told me that he left it at his babysitters and when he woke up the next morning this is what it looked like. I asked if Dad had seen it yet and he replied no. I believe that we have some anger issues going on here. What do you think?

So needless to say I was going to talk to Dad after 1st Communion practice tonight, and they failed to show up. However we did have one student there with a professional photographer and videographer. Hello....it is practice!

Why is teaching getting weirder as the years go on?

Monday Musings

2009-04-27T19:23:00.004-04:00

Okay I step into my classroom this morning at 7:20 and looked at the phone in the classroom. Yup the dang red light was lit up. That meant that somebody left me a message. Nothing like having a message first thing on a Monday morning. I was going to try to ignore it, but my senses came to me and I listened.

It was the same parent whose child was nutty last week (aka the one who called me such a lovely name). She asked me to move her daughter away from two other students. Okay so I complied with that. Then when I saw mom, she asked if I had gotten her email. I replied that I haven't yet checked my email. So I went and checked my email and read what she had to say. Oh the joys of teaching.

Just when I thought the day couldn't get any better, a student came up to me after morning recess to tell me that another student just flicked her off. Oh what the heck!?! I called the student over to me and asked if he just flicked her off and he said yes. (Heck the kid was honest, I have to give him props for that!) I just said in a very calm voice that he was going to talk to the principal later and told him to sit back down.

Needless to say the student that did the flicking missed lunch recess and afternoon recess. Also my principal came in with the student after lunch and personally moved his desk back to a corner of the room and told him that was his new spot until he learned to respect other students.

Gee whiz...I really didn't have this much trouble teaching junior high students. Heck I am already counting down the days until the start of summer vacation....19 days! It really couldn't come soon enough.

She Said What?

2009-04-21T18:11:00.004-04:00

I have a second grader who is beginning to test her parents. Needless to say that she has begun using swear words around them and I was told yesterday that she really wanted to get in trouble at school. This is my student who couldn't be anything but nice.

Mom also told me that when her daughter walked out of school yesterday, she walked straight up to mom and told her nothing about her day and just whispered to mom that "My teacher is a *itch." Needless to say mom went home and had the girl put soap in her mouth for a minute, just like she warned her she would do.

Why the mom felt the need to tell me is beyond me, but I think the student is wanting some attention. However, I'm sure that is not the first time some student had called me that. Heck I taught junior high for five years! However it is the first time a second grader has called me that.

Shouldn't a second grader be happy go-lucky? Gee whiz!

Goodnight Stella

2009-04-19T20:20:00.004-04:00

Bruno and Stella...these were two dogs that we had gotten when my parents moved us out into the country. They were just pups. Over the years they had gotten into plenty of trouble.

They loved to run, because that is what shepard huskies loved to do. They once crossed the toll road and made it to the State Police station with no problem, they have swum in other people's swimming pools because it was so gosh darn hot when they ran away, and they loved the rabbits.

Over the years the goat pasture was made for the dogs to run around in safe secluded area. Then eventually the entire back woods was fenced off so they could frolic in the woods.

Bruno passed away about a year and a half ago and Stella was still going. Though her body was slowing down, she no longer ran like she used to. We could leave her dog cage open and she would wander and make her daily trips around the house.

Her hearing eventually left her last summer and I'm sure her eyesight was not the greatest. She began having seizures and it would knock her down, but she would get back up after it was over and go about her business.

For the past few weeks she has been having seizures that left her down a little longer than usual. Until last week when she just couldn't get back up. Her back legs just wouldn't cooperate. She enjoyed the sunshine of Wednesday night and the following night my parents had her put to sleep.

While my dad was out feeding the goats and the sheep tonight, he got locked in the barn with them. Somehow the latch caught itself. He had to go out through the gate of the pasture and he came back into the house asking who went out and locked the door on him. We said it wasn't us and he told us it was probably the ghost of Stella watching over the barn.

Goodnight Stella you had a good 15 years! :)

Something to Smile About

2009-04-18T14:23:00.000-04:00

Fire Codes

2009-04-16T16:00:00.003-04:00

The school had a visit from the state Fire Marshall last week and we were updated about fire codes.

We were told at our meeting yesterday that we must keep our classroom doors closed at all times because they are fire doors and apparently fire cannot make their way through them. So I am guessing that the hallway doors must be closed too? Does that mean that we are going to whack a few unsuspecting students?

We have also been told that our bulletin boards must NOT have any paper backing and that only 20% of the board can be filled.

Excuse me but what in the heck am I supposed to do with my calendar and message center? "Sorry kids, we cannot learn the calendar because it takes up more than 20% of the bulletin board." Also my bulletin boards are over 50 years old and they are not the prettiest things in the world, so paper backing is a must.

As for displaying student work out in the hall, I guess I can forget that too because having 16 students would definitely cover up more than 20% of the board.

If there is a fire, do you think that 20% of a bulletin board is going matter in the long run? I swear that some people have nothing better to do.

Keep it on the QT

2009-04-06T19:19:00.003-04:00

This is what my principal said to me today. I'm a little confused but I think she was referring to the information she gave me on next year's teaching status. At the moment, there really should be only one third grade classroom because of the numbers for next year, which is 29 students. But this is way too many third graders to have in one classroom and plus combining the two classes for next year would be disastrous. They really do need another year to grow.

So my principal asked me if I was looking into other schools. I said that I am, but I am just looking. (I did sign my intent form saying that I was coming back next school year.) She told me that the school that I interviewed at last year probably would not have any openings (at least what she has heard). I also threw in the comment that maybe many people would not be getting out of teaching because of the way the economy is at the moment.

She said she was going to ask if we could have two third grades next year, just so I could have a teaching position. Gee thanks, it all rests on me. So if I do get another job, you are just going to throw 29 students together who really shouldn't be together? Thanks!

I just cannot seem to win. I am hoping that the six resumes that I sent to schools all within 10 minutes driving distance hopefully come through.

Only time will tell. Keep your fingers crossed. :)

Thank Goodness for Weekends

2009-04-03T17:50:00.005-04:00

I am itching to settle into reading this weekend, although it might not happen as long as I would like. I am on a new series called the Sookie Stackhouse books and I am hooked. I can see how Twilight was adapted from this series, although these books are for adults. :)

However, I need to catch up on bookwork on Saturday at the station because my parents are out of town again in Houston. Dad is getting more chemo and they are having it all done down there. He has to go through four treatments, this is treatment number two. He goes back at the end of April and then the middle of May. So hopefully it does stop the cancer from growing. In the meantime, I get to get caught up on the sheets that my mom usually does, but I am slowly teaching myself how to do them.

Then since the parents are away, we have orders from them to go to church on Sunday because of it being Palm Sunday. I think my mom just wants us to go to the bake sale after church for the yummy peanut butter pie that she got last year from there. :)

Rosie has decided to plan out the entire day for us. So we are going to church, going out to breakfast and then going to look at/buy furniture for Tony. (I still have his credit card) Then at some point I have to get my pizza dough started because I told my parents that I would make dinner for them on Sunday night at their house because they get back into town that morning and my dad is going to be bushed. So homemade pizza is in order and I cannot wait to make it!

Have a restful weekend!

Bomb Threat

2009-04-01T21:08:00.003-04:00

As I was trying to get students situated on a Phonics paper, we get a message over the intercom saying that all recesses were to be held inside today. I look out the window and the sun is shinning and I know for a fact that it was above 20 degrees.

Then the students are convinced that it is an April Fool's Day joke. But after five minutes they weren't so sure because no one came back on to say April Fool's! I knew that there had to be something going on, but we were given no information. So as the students were having inside recess, I got onto the computer and went to a news site hoping for some information. Nothing.

So as I was beginning to teach a rousing lesson on adjectives, the other second grade teacher came over and told me not to say anything to the students, but the court house got a bomb threat called in.

So long story short, nothing was found and the students got to go outside for the rest of the day's recesses. Although now I am thinking that maybe we should have done things differently. It really would be nice to be informed.

Ta Da...Strawberry Cheesecake

2009-03-29T09:43:00.005-04:00

It might not look like the picture, but it was in its own right a work of art! :) My mom was very impressed and Laura told me that I have too much time on my hands. However this only took 30 minutes to prepare and pop into the fridge. I did forget to keep a strawberry to dip in the chocolate to place on top. But I am still impressed on how it turned out.

It was also very yummy to eat. Laura said to do without the chocolate on top next time and my mom suggested white chocolate drizzled on top. I suggested putting some graham crackers in the middle with the strawberries and pound cake. However, I will be making this for my grandparents for Easter. :)

Baking Attempt

2009-03-28T12:27:00.004-04:00

This is what I am planning on recreating today. It just looked so good, that I had to give it a try. When I am finished, I will post what mine looks like! :)

Pretty Flowers

2009-03-28T11:58:00.003-04:00

On Thursday, when I picked these up from the American Cancer Society's Daffidil Days they were nothing put stems and closed up flowers. Low and behold on Friday they opened up and now I have pretty flowers to admire! :)

Happy Fish

2009-03-24T14:29:00.003-04:00

I cannot even remember the last time that I cleaned this fish tank. It probably has been a year or two. Disgusting I know, but the fish didn't seem to care and they all were swimming happy.

I made it a priority to clean the tank today and here they are, happily swimming in their fresh tank.

I only had one fish casualty. I placed all of the fish in a bucket while I cleaned and scrubbed their tank. When I placed them all back into the tank and was cleaning up the kitchen I found a dead fish laying on top of my stove. The poor little fish committed fish suicide by jumping out. So needless to say he was not sucking wind and had to be flushed.

Spring Break

2009-03-22T09:45:00.002-04:00

A whole week of non-teaching duties. What else could be better?

I stayed until 5 PM on Friday, just to finish up grading and lesson planning so I would not have to worry about completing any teacher duties during this week. I am so happy that I did. Now I just need to walk into school on Monday, March 30. :)

I have a load of things that I would like to accomplish over break:

Update my resume and fill out a summer school application for South Bend Schools.
Complete cover letters and some various applications for school corporations around the area. I have no idea what my job situation looks like at the end of this year. Technically I could bump a teacher, but I would really like to be closer to home.
Tear apart the front porch lattice because it is dingy and plain disguisting. I would like to put up the plastic lattice therefore it would not need painting in the years to come. The railings also need to be replaced, but that might be a summer project.
Get my brother's house up and going. I made him go with me after work yesterday and we made a list of things that need to be finished before he can move in. Technically he could move in right now, but he keeps coming up with excuses of why he cannot move in. I am taking away the excuses! :)
Clean out my parents basement so that they can finish the wood flooring. Again my brother's things are in the way of the floor being finished.

If I can accomplish half of what is on my list I will be a happy camper!

Take Time

2009-03-14T17:50:00.003-04:00

It has been all sorts of crazy around here and I came across this poem/prayer at our teacher meeting on Tuesday. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. :)

Take Time

Take time to think;

It is the source of power.

Take time to read;

It is the foundation of wisdom.

Take time to play;

It is the secret of staying young.

Take time to be quiet;

It is the opportunity to seek God.

Take time to be aware;

It is the opportunity to help others.

Take time to love and to be loved;

it is God's greatest gift.

Take time to laugh;

it is the music of the soul.

Take time to be friendly;

It is the road to happiness.

Take time to dream;

It is what the future is made of.

Take time to pray;

It is the greatest power on Earth.

Cinnamon Rolls

2009-03-07T08:20:00.004-05:00

The next time I roll out cinnamon rolls the night before, I will put them in the oven to rise because this is what happened:

If you notice the obvious slope in the middle of the rolls it is because the dang cat slept on the towels on that side of the pan. So half of the rolls are not that fluffy as the other half.

Oh well...I guess that they are still yummy to eat.

I am also waiting for my quiche to finish and then I am taking them all to work at the station. They love when I bring them food. :)

The Lesson

2009-03-03T19:46:00.005-05:00

Here's a giggle:

Then Jesus took his disciples up the mountain and gathering them around him, he taught them the saying:

Blessed are the poor in spirit for their is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are the meek
Blessed are they that mourn
Blessed are the merciful
Blessed are they who thirst for justice
Blessed are you when persecuted
Blessed are you when you suffer
Be glad and rejoice for your reward is great in heaven....

Then Simon Peter said, "Do we have to write this down?"
and Andrew said, "Are we supposed to know this?"
and James said, "Will we have a test on it?"
and Phillip said, "What if we don't know it?"
and Bartholomew said, "Do we have to turn this in?"
and John said, "The other disciples didn't have to learn this"
and Mathew said, "When do we get out of here?"
and Judas said, "What does this have to with real life?"

Then one of the Pharisees present asked to see Jesus's lesson plans and inquired of Jesus his terminal objectives in the cognitive domain.

And Jesus wept.

Really

2009-02-25T19:56:00.003-05:00

My winter coat zipper broke last week just before the temp dropped. Mind you that I got this coat last February because the current coat that I had last year the zipper was getting stuck. I was stuck in the dang coat during Mass with the students and couldn't exactly wriggle out of it in the middle of Mass.

So I found another one of my dressier coats in the closet and decided to wear that one last week. Gee that was a mistake because of the temperature drop it really wasn't keeping me warm. So I stole my hubby's big warm coat for the rest of last week.

I then put on my dressier coat today and after Ash Wednesday services I went to zip my coat and guess what....the dang zipper broke! The little piece that you stick into the zipper fell off and now I had no way to zip up the dang thing. Good thing that today was on the warmer side.

I think that it just means that spring is around the corner and there is no need for a winter coat anymore! In the meantime I have another dressier coat (not warm) but it does button. Maybe I will have some luck with that or maybe one of the buttons will fall off. Then again it probably will be my luck that all of them will fall off!

Randomness of a Busy Week

2009-02-22T10:01:00.005-05:00

Dad came home from the hospital on Wednesday. I even think that he was back to work on Thursday. The man just doesn't know when to take it easy!

I had after school duty all this week. That means that I usually don't tackle the grading until all of the students are gone. So I was a half-hour behind everyday. So it meant that I didn't leave school until almost 5 o'clock everyday. It makes for a long day when you get there by 7:15 every morning! I am still behind on grading and lesson planning and having to finish up the rest of it today.

On Saturday, our school had their Mardi Gras fun fair. We were required to be there for an hour. We were also required to purchase a spaghetti dinner ticket. I handed mine back. There was no way I was going to pay $6 for a ticket. I showed up for my hour despite the weather being totally horrible outside. I have a feeling the person who ordered us to be there did not even show up. It is usually the case.

I have two cats who have been required to go to the vet for the past three weeks. Isabelle has a pirate eye. After going to the vet for the first time two weeks ago, the vet thought that she had an eye irritation and gave us drops. A week later it still was not clearing up. So we take her back to the vet and it is determined that she has a scratch on her eye and he missed it the first time because her eye was so swollen. So now we have a cream we have to smooth on the inside of her eyelid two times a day for ten days. The other cat Jenni has a skin infection. The back end of her is bald. She was taking pills and an antibiotic. I treated her for fleas and now she is still not looking better. So needless to say she needs to go back to the vet this week. It figures that all of this happens while hubby has no job.

My winter coat's zipper broke on Tuesday. I thought that it was a heck of a time to break! So I have been wearing my hubby's large winter coat. It keeps me warm and that is about the only thing that counts at the moment. Plus every store is wiping out their winter coat collection to make room for bathing suits. Blah!

We got our DVR on Thursday. I am totally in love with this piece of equipment and did not eeven know what I was missing. Hubby even went through old VHS tapes that we used to record shows on and disposed of them. He says it is going to save on wear-n-tear of the VCR.

Now this coming week is a four-day week with a meeting on Friday here in town. Hopefully it will be a normal week despite the snow that we are having outside. Happy last week of February!

My day

2009-02-16T21:34:00.004-05:00

I usually check my phone during recess while the students are away. However today, I was so completely busy that I didn't have time to check it until 3:30 because I had after school duty. So when I check it I have a text from my sister saying dads rm #xxxx and his phone number is xxx-xxxx.

By this time I am in panic mode. I know my dad didn't feel good last night and that he was running a fever. I had a voicemail from my other sister telling me what was going on, however that was at 8:30 this morning. She tells me that mom took dad to the er because he had a 104 temperature at 4:30 this morning and that he has xxx infection in his leg. I didn't catch the infection part because I didn't understand the medical terminology.

So I try calling my mom and she did not answer her phone. So I call my dad at the hospital. I asked him what was going on and if he was okay. He told me he was fine and to come visit him.

My mom called back and told me what was going on and that he was staying the night to bring his fever down and to get rid of the infection.

So hubby and I went to spend the evening with dad. He had quite a packed room with my sister, brother, cousin, and my mom.

He is getting pumped full of antibiotics and they do not want to release him until the infection in his leg is gone. He has also been running a fever off and on all day and he is sweating like crazy.

Rosie took him some lottery tickets and chocolate. He said that he really wants a cookie. :) I told I would bring one to him on Tuesday.

He is happy that he gets his own room because he is on the Oncology floor of Memorial and there really are no set visiting hours. So technically we could all go see him at 3 in the morning. :) My cousin was joking with him that one of the tow truck drivers would be there to see him at that time in the morning.

So hopefully the antibiotics are working and his fever will go down. I ask that you keep him in your prayers.

I hope you had a happy heart day!

2009-02-15T09:50:00.003-05:00

We have never really celebrated Valentine's Day. We usually go to the extent of getting each other cards and that is that. I, however, did not even get my hubby a card this year. Instead I got him an ice-cream cake from DQ. He just loves these cakes and has been carrying on about one for the past month and a half.

Even though the message was kinda cheesy, it was a yummy cake!

I even got tulips from one of my students on Thursday. They look very pretty in my living room. I cannot wait for spring to hurry up and get here!

Frustration

2009-02-06T17:46:00.000-05:00

Bathroom breaks. Yup I am frustrated about bathroom breaks. It seems no matter what I try to do I get yelled at about it. I can't take the entire class because we get too loud in the hall waiting. I can't send one student at a time because they end up goofing around and they have to go with the entire class.

I have three boys that cannot be in the bathroom at the same time together. So taking the entire class becomes a 10 minute event. I have two boys that cannot go by themselves because they were goofing around in the hall or in the bathroom. So unless I want to have an accident in the room the entire class has to go.

I had my entire class ready except for one student. I took the class back because they were already yelled at for being too noisy. So I figured one student wouldn't be a big deal. Gee was I wrong. I get called out into the classroom to be asked "Did you know so and so was in the bathroom?" I replied I did and then was proceeded to be told that he is no longer allowed in the bathroom by himself because he was making noise and talking to another student (not from my class). I explained to her that I only took the entire class because so and so cannot use the bathroom by himself. She told me that tell him to come to her office and she will take him.

HELLO you are never in your office!!!!!!!! She then proceeded to tell me that I need to limit my bathroom breaks to two a day. Yuppers that's right two bathroom breaks a day for seven and eight year olds.

I am screwed either way.

You know it is cold when...

2009-02-01T16:49:00.003-05:00

you find your cat curled up under the covers. Seriously this is what I found last night as I was crawling into bed. Lucy has done this on occasion, last week I found her completely under the covers.

Although today is rather a nice day, I feel horrible. I hate, hate, hate shifts in the weather. My poor head cannot stand it. Also I had three students out sick on Friday. So between a change in the weather and the germs floating around in my classroom I feel crappy. So as a result I have been in bed or laying on the couch sleeping for the majority of the weekend.

I have had a headache since Friday night that will not go away. I feel so bad that I am thinking about getting a sub for tomorrow. Which is something that I hate to do because it is more work for me. I have not taken a sick day in over two years. It is easier to drag myself through the school day than it is to plan for a sub. Although I really don't think that I will be able to drag myself through.

So happy February! What a way to start off the new month.

Happy Flying

2009-01-25T10:27:00.004-05:00

My parents are leaving today for Houston. This should be dad's final chemo treatment for awhile. He then gets to take his "Chemo Holiday." He will still be required to get his blood drawn and get scanned every so often here in South Bend and down in Houston. They will be back home on Tuesday night. Please keep my dad in your prayers this week. :)

Need Snow?

2009-01-24T15:45:00.005-05:00

While going through the classified ads last night, hubby came across this ad:

So if you feel that you don't quite have enough in your yard, you now have another option to get some more! :)

The Art of Handwriting

2009-01-22T18:40:00.005-05:00

This is a topic of conversation that came up today during our In-Service. Our principal is really old-school and believes in the art of handwriting. We have a contest that we are supposed to have the students complete by the end of February.

She would like us to constantly correct the students on their pencil technique and how they pull their pencil down on the paper. She would like us to spend more than 15 minutes teaching handwriting. We are NOT to tell the students to open up to page so and so and complete it. We are to have the students practice on the board, on blank pieces of paper, and newspapers.

I, on the other hand, totally disagree with the teaching of handwriting. I am constantly short on minutes trying to teach Reading, Grammar, Math, and if I am lucky I can squeeze in Writing and Science on a good day.

I believe that students have their handwriting technique down from Kindergarten and it is somewhat tweaked in the first grade. By the time I have them in second grade, I believe, that they are already set in their ways and it is impossible to correct them.

I also remember this speech back when I taught junior high. Explain to me how to correct a 12, 13, and 14 year old on correcting their handwriting. It just isn't going to happen.

I believe that if I can read the paper, I am in good shape. Even on standardized tests it tells the student to write in what is most legible (cursive or print). However, isn't everything being done on computers?

Now I will go through the correct techniques for teaching cursive in the next few weeks when we begin, but I will not have the time to spend more than 15 minutes of my precious time on these correct techniques.

What do you think? Is the art of handwriting really that important in school anymore?

Trying to Stay Warm

2009-01-15T23:11:00.004-05:00

This is what the temperature is right now at 11 o'clock at night and it is supposed to get colder. We usually have the door between the porch and the living room open for the cats to run in and out. However we closed it at 6 o'clock tonight because we were just chilled. So the cats better be good tonight.

I went out there earlier to retrieve a plant and I came back chilled. The heater we have out there is barely making a dent in this ridiculous temperature. I think the only thing going for us is that we will be a little warmer than the country because our houses are closer together here in the city.

The other good thing is that we have school off again tomorrow and so I think I will be baking to help warm up the house. Think warm thoughts!!!

Happy 60th Anniversary

2009-01-10T18:50:00.003-05:00

On Thursday, my grandparents celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. We had a small party for them today at their house. We saw some video footage of before they were married and another video of when my aunts and uncles were under 5 years of age. I can say that I really do look like my mom's side of the family.

You wouldn't mind one more...

2009-01-05T18:23:00.004-05:00

I knew a week before school let out in December that I was getting one of the students from the other second grade class due to conflict of personalities with another student. However I was told not by my principal but by the other second grade teacher.

I was waiting all week for my principal to say something to me. Heck the student even knew and told everyone in his class. I kept telling the other teacher that it would be Monday morning when we returned from break that we were shoving his desk into my room.

Surprise, surprise..this morning I open my door and there is desk sitting in my doorway. The other teacher asked me if I was told yet and I shook my head. My principal only said something to me 10 minutes to 8 when the parent and the student were standing in my classroom.

Another teacher told me that I really do need to find another school where I am not stepped on. I guess part of that is my fault because I go with the punches and I am really too flexible.

Only 18 weeks until summer vacation. It should be a fun ride until we get there. Argh!

A new post for the new year!

2009-01-02T11:51:00.002-05:00

I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year! We are currently in the process of getting an alarm system installed because my father says that we need one. Rosie's house was broken into back in October and so my father said that we were all getting an alarm system. Tony got his about a month ago, Rosie's was installed two days ago, and so today it is our turn.

The cats were curious when the alarm person came. Lucy was going bonkers with all of the new noises that were being made by the drilling and pulling of wires. I just had to snap this pic...

She looks like she is being terrorized by all of the wires. Goofy cat!

Happy New Year

2008-12-31T19:28:00.005-05:00

As I am baking, yet again, a memory crept into the back of head of past New Year Eve's. While we were growing up there were always new Disney movies that came out into theaters around Christmas time. My parents would load all of us up including my cousins from Texas into the car and take us to a movie on New Year's Eve.

I can remember seeing Aladdin, Little Mermaid, and many others. We always went to the last show of the night and the new year would be upon us when the movie let out. I remember always looking forward to these movie nights. I also remember one of my cousin's walking into the wrong restroom by accident after the movie was over.

As we grew older the movies stopped. The last movie that I do remember seeing was 101 Dalmatians (the one with Glenn Close) with my sister and my mom. I was 16 when this movie came out and I was working at the theater and we got in for free.

Hubby and I are going over to my brother's house to celebrate. I hope everyone has a safe and happy night! Welcome to 2009!

No more drip!

2008-12-30T08:56:00.005-05:00

The old kitchen faucet has been dripping since fall and it has just gotten worse since then. So we went out to Lowe's on Saturday night and bought a new faucet with a spray handle. It has been hubby's dream to have a spray handle. My parents even got him pipe wrenches for Christmas.

Here is our old sink faucet with some water
spicket that was never hooked up.

Here Jenni is trying to help hubby complete the task.

Ta da! Our brand new faucet and sprayer!

Hubby was surprised on how easy it was to change out the old handle and put in the new one. He said we should have done this years ago. Then he went off with his pipe wrenches to change out the shower head with the new one I had bought three years ago. Gee whiz! Who knew new tools could be so much fun!

Ten Years

2008-12-24T17:03:00.002-05:00

It is hard to imagine but this is my 10th Christmas that I am celebrating with my husband. Six years while we were dating and four years as husband and wife. Who would have thought that 10 years ago we would be where we are today.

Finished

2008-12-24T15:24:00.007-05:00

This is how I have spent four days of my winter break:

The only thing that I did not make on this platter were my mom's chocolate chip cookies because that is one thing that I cannot duplicate. I have even tried. Tony, Rosanne, and Laura have all told me when I made them that they were good, but they weren't mom's. Although mine will never compare to mom's!

Rosie helped me put all of the platters together last night, and I believe that my mom is delivering them today. I am just happy to have them out of the house.

Good news, bad news

2008-12-21T09:48:00.003-05:00

So last week was a whirlwind of activity. My parents and Laura left for Houston on Monday and they came back Wednesday. After the tests that my dad had on Tuesday, it has been concluded that chemo is working and he will only need two more sessions. One here in South Bend at the beginning of the new year and the last session down in Houston at the end of January. Then he gets to take a "Chemo Vacation." Yahoo!

The bad news is that hubby was laid off from his job on Thursday. He went into work on Thursday afternoon where they told him at the beginning of his shift that they were laying him off along with 11 other people. They also mentioned that they would pay him for Thursday and that he could stay or go home. Gee that is a hard choice, stay or go home. He went home. They also told him that they would not fight him on unemployment. (Gee thanks a lot!) So we filed unemployment on Friday over the Internet. Now we just have to sit back and wait to find out what he will receive.

Cheap dinners

2008-12-17T21:25:00.002-05:00

Do you feel like eating out but is money tight? I got an e-mail today from my coupon saving website advertising www.restaurant.com This site gives discounts on certain restaurants around your area.

So naturally I went exploring. I typed in my zip code and it brought up different restaurants around the area. I saw one that we like to eat at so I clicked on adding a certificate to my cart and then typed in a special promo for the season...SANTA. For a $25 certificate it was $10 but if you type in the code SANTA at the check out screen you get it for 80% off. So my $25 certificate was $2.

Nope that isn't a typo, it really was $2. The only catch is that I have to spend a minimum of $35 and they will also add a 15 % gratuity before the discount. But heck I got $25 for $2. But then again maybe I should be leery...but it is only $2. :)

The weird thing though is that I have to print out my certificate and my printer is low on ink...so guess what I am doing at work tomorrow before anyone gets there. I won't tell if you won't! :-)

Grrr...Circuit City

2008-12-14T17:15:00.005-05:00

While I was wrapping gifts today, one of the Blu-Ray DVD's that I got my brother fell out of the paper sleeve. I then was joking to my husband that, "Hey we could watch this and put it back into the case and he would never know."

I opened up the case as I was saying this and low and behold it is missing a disc. It is a two disc set. We have the bonus features disc. The movie disc is missing.

So I called up Circuit City, but because I got it at the southside location (aka the one going out of business). They cannot do anything for me. I made the comment that so because of you I am out 20 some odd dollars. The dang employee says well not me. I then asked to speak to the manager and he too said the same thing. So I just hung up on the rude manager.

So I am ready to march on down to the store and just fling it through the doorway and walk away.

I am now refusing to do business with Circuit City. Grrr to them! So if anyone wants to see the bonus features of Pirates of the Caribbean in Blu-Ray...let me know.

You think that they starve

2008-12-14T08:41:00.003-05:00

Yesterday morning I noticed that the cat food was empty. So I drag out the new bag we got last week and fill it up. Five minutes later this is what I had...

Keep in mind that only 20 minutes earlier they ate the can food that I fed them in the morning. They really are strange.

Well this stinks...

2008-12-08T20:06:00.004-05:00

Hubby was told last Thursday that there would be a meeting at work before his shift on Monday. He thought it would be the same old crap that they tell everyone at every meeting.

He called tonight and I asked him what the meeting was about and he says I don't remember. WHAT! Then he said he really wasn't paying attention. Gee that's helpful.

Then he preceded to tell me that his last day of work is tonight and he doesn't go back in until next Monday. He will then proceed to work for four days and then be off until January 5.

So as much as I love to have him home and actually have a husband during the week; I would much rather him be at working making money. Gift buying just got a whole lot more tricky and interesting.

He did tell me however that he can file for unemployment for the days that he is not working. So tomorrow when he is home we are going to try to navigate the world of the unemployment website.

His company has told him that they will have orders to fill when they come back to work in January. We can only hope for the best. :)

Christmas Spirit

2008-12-07T10:30:00.005-05:00

Well it only took a week to finally finish the tree, but I am happy to say that it is complete. Hubby has decided that we need more ornaments. I told him we can wait until after Christmas for clearance priced ornaments.

We are also hoping that the dang thing just doesn't topple over because one of the screws holding the tree up is stripped. So I need to find a good artificial tree stand. If anyone has a good one let me know where you got it.

I am planning to work on Christmas cards today and bake cookies. The cookies are going to the SMC local students who are studying for their finals this week. I am trying to be more active in service projects with the Alumnae Club. Plus baking is my passion, so all is good. Have a happy Sunday!

Free Soup

2008-12-06T13:08:00.004-05:00

I came across this offer in a magazine I was reading a few weeks ago. If you text TLC to 467467, you will be prompted to give your name and mailing address. In two to four weeks you will have your coupon for a free can of Campbell's Select Harvest Soup. I got my coupon in the mail about a week ago. The only catch is that it is only available to the first 50,000 texts. But I doubt that has happened yet.

My sister thought I was crazy for wanting a free can of soup! I told her that every little bit helps! Enjoy your soup!

I wanna go here...

2008-12-04T18:16:00.003-05:00

Doesn't this just look peaceful? It is located in the southeastern part of France. Just extremely breathtaking!

Lysol Please

2008-12-03T18:51:00.002-05:00

I have had a student out since Monday. I received a note from the office on Monday stating that he was in the ER the previous night and was sick. That was it nothing else. Tuesday rolls around and the student is still sick.

Today (Wednesday) the student shows up and still looks horrible. He doesn't say anything to me. So I send everyone off to art and then they come back after 45 minutes and we do our spelling test. He barely makes it through the spelling test because he is all congested and coughing a nasty cough. At this point I am keeping my distance. When we begin our grammar lesson that is when he sneezes and apparently pukes on his desk.

The student next to him made a ewwww sound. I sent the sick student off to the bathroom while I took a paper towel and threw it over the desk and went on with my lesson. If I had made a huge commotion out of it, an entire class of 7 and 8 year-olds would be chaotic. So once recess rolled around (15 minutes later). I called down to the office and had the janitor sent down to my room.

She had already cleaned up and disinfected the bathroom. She then Lysoled everything in the vicinity in my classroom. I had her throw his papers and pencils away that were on top his desk. She sprayed that stuff everywhere and used Clorox wipes to wipe even more things down. I have a very clean room at the moment. At least I am hoping.

After that whole episode this morning I just felt icky the rest of the day. I was planning on going over to my parents tonight to eat. However I decided against it because I don't need to be carrying some flu bug to my dad. It really is the last thing he needs.

So a nice relaxing evening of not touching anything school related is in order. :)

Heat?

2008-12-01T18:56:00.003-05:00

As if driving home in this lovely weather wasn't enough, I get home and I am cold. The only thing that I can think of is that hubby forgot to turn the heat back on. Sure enough he went off to work without turning the heat back on. So it was a lovely 64 degrees in my house.

He has gotten into the habit lately of turning off the heat before he takes a shower because he overheats. It has even gotten to the point to where he is opening the bathroom window when he takes a shower.

As much as I vent to him to just turn the heat down or close off the register vent, it still has not sunk in that I am a fan of heat!

Black Friday

2008-11-28T10:20:00.006-05:00

Yes, I was one of the insane people up and about today at 5:30 this morning. I will say however, I did not venture out onto Grape Road. I am not THAT insane! I stayed on the southside here and shopped at Kohl's, Old Navy, Target, Circuit City and Lowe's.

I really thought that Kohl's would have been busier. I was there at 5:45 this morning and by the time that I checked out at 6:30 I walked right up to a register. Last year I waited in line for at least 1/2 an hour. Not this year. The only real line that I waited in was at Target and that was maybe 5 minutes at the most.

So I have my father's gift finished. I then have everybody else started. I even have my secret santa present for school finished. I am trying to get everything finished within the next two weeks, so I can enjoy the season. Also school gets very crazy the last week before break. So I just need one less headache.

I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving. I ate way too much, but it was all yummy. Here are some pics from our festive event. Enjoy!

Run, Run, Run

2008-11-24T20:45:00.003-05:00

It feels as though I have not stopped moving since my feet hit the floor at 6 this morning. School felt like a blur. Since we were not in school on Friday, it means that all of my tests that I give on Friday were pushed to today. So that means I have a spelling, grammar, and reading test to grade for each of my students. My prep today was really spent to trying to figure out my Thanksgiving Basket deal and our annual feast that is happening tomorrow. So nothing has really been graded. Ugh!

Then I had to run to pay a bill after school and then off to Martin's to shop for the turkey and other items for our Thanksgiving Basket at school. Normally I love stuffing our basket full of goodies, however since hubby has not worked a full week since September. I need to get creative. But I think I got some great deals and the basket should be really nice. Normally the students bring in more than enough however this year I ask for cans of beans and I get one lonely can. So it has been interesting nonetheless.

Then I had to run home and start peeling apples. A couple of weeks ago the St. Mary's Alumnae Club here in South Bend was asked to donate pies to help out the Thanksgiving feast at the Hope Rescue Mission. They needed 80 pies. So I volunteered my baking talents to make two pies. I opted for making two apple pies. The funny thing is that I have never made an apple pie in my life. However I will say that they smell delicious and I am sad that I will not be able to taste one.

My mom-in-law also brought me over 3 cups of pecans tonight. Some client dropped off a huge bag of pecans at her job today. So she shoveled out some for me for baking. So I called my mom and said that I have pecans for her pecan pie that she makes. I also asked about my dad because he had his second round of chemo today. Mom said that he looked tired but that is about it. He is also starting to lose his hair. As I was helping my parents clean yesterday at their house for Thanksgiving preparations, he kept tugging at his hair and moustache. I told him to knock it out, needless to say he didn't listen too well. His next treatment will be in December in Houston.

Now I am off to NOT grade papers and watch Heroes before falling asleep and having another chaotic day tomorrow.

No more two hour delay...

2008-11-21T07:57:00.003-05:00

Now we are closed for the day. That just means that I have a three day weekend. How nice! Although now we go to school on President's Day in February. Oh well.

You know you're a teacher when....

2008-11-21T07:24:00.004-05:00

I am sitting around the house this morning because of a two hour delay. I normally would go back to bed but I fell asleep at 8:30 last night. So I am well rested. I came across these funnies called You know you're a teacher when....

You can make up games on the spot.
You realize there are never enough pencils/glue sticks/scissors in the world.
You see a child misbehaving in the supermarket you automatically give them "the look".
You have perfected "the look" which turns any child to stone.
A social life was a thing you used to have.
You know the life story of every single child in your class, and can recognize them all from the back of their head.
You dread notes from parents.
The word OBSERVATION sends blind panic through your system.
Weekends are spent planning for next week.
You can't remember the last time you blow dried or straightened your hair.
You can maintain a straight face in ANY situation.
Stupid names of children in your class become the norm to you. Also, you realize some names you will never name your own children, due to experiences with children who have that name!
The staffroom is your sanctuary.
Packed lunches are a part of daily life.
You want to choke a person when they say "Oh, you must have such FUN everyday. This must be like playtime for you."
You know what all the "must haves" for children are right now.
You can sense misbehaviour without actually seeing it.
You don't know whether to laugh or cry when someone says "Teaching? That's an 8-3 job! You're so lucky!"
You say things once, then repeat them, then ask if everyone understands what you are saying, before repeating again.
You know at least 5 different methods of doing multiplication (not including a calculator)
You secretly love it when a child in your class has a birthday - treats!
You get fed up with different news reports everyday from politicians telling you how to do your job - why don't they spend a day in a school for a change?
You find yourself using cliche teacher phrases that you swore to yourself you would never use - e.g. "pens down, arms folded, eyes front." "I'm sorry Reece, you clearly have something more important to say/be doing than concentrating on my lesson" "tuck your shirt in"
You don't bother telling people anything about your job as they never seem to fully understand the stress...(sigh)
You count down the days till half-terms, holidays, weekends knowing that without them you would be headed for a nervous breakdown.
You have more control over/respect from children than their parents.
When you meet someone else who is a teacher, you have an immediate bond.
You loathe children who finish their work quickly!
There are headache tablets in your desk drawer.
Stickers are still a form of excitement for you (especially scratch n sniff ones!)

He did what?!?!

2008-11-20T19:32:00.005-05:00

As I was conducting reading groups today, one of my students came up to the group in a panic yelling, "Bobby* just ATE a crayon!" What the heck was the first thing going through my mind.

Then Penelope* proceeds to tell me, "I told him to eat a crayon and he did. I didn't think he really would!" I look up and sure enough Bobby is wiping crayon out of his mouth with a tissue, shouting "I didn't know she was kidding!"

I asked Penelope why she would do this and she just replied, "I don't know." She felt totally horrible though.

Then another student comes up to me five minutes later and says, "Tiffany just put an eraser in my mouth."

Oh gee whiz, could life in the second grade get any more exciting?

*I have changed the name to protect the innocent. :0)

Waste some time

2008-11-18T17:11:00.003-05:00

If you feel like you have some time to waste, check out my cousin's wedding pics at: http://grantisaacstudio.blogspot.com/

The photographer did an awesome job. Also check out some of their other work. I really enjoyed some of the pics!

I hate rainy days!

2008-11-14T17:08:00.002-05:00

There is nothing worse than a rainy Friday. I actually dread Friday's because I have no preps. I have the students from 8:00 in the morning until 3:00 in the afternoon straight. My saving grace is usually 15 minutes for morning recess, 20 minutes for lunch followed by 15 minutes for recess, and then a 15 minutes of recess in the afternoon. However when it rains it means the only time that I am away to hear myself think is the 20 minutes that I get to scarf down my lunch. Otherwise I am cooped up in the classroom watching recess float by. Gee an indoor playground sounds great on these days! It would save my sanity. :)

Happy Birthday

2008-11-10T18:32:00.004-05:00

Happy 22nd birthday to my little sister! Too bad that she is in class today from 10 AM until 7:30 tonight. But then again her weekend begins on Wednesday...so I don't feel too sorry for her! :)

Isn't it too early for that?

2008-11-09T20:02:00.002-05:00

Does anyone else think that Thanksgiving gets mixed up or even forgotten about this time of year? I love Christmas, but I also think that it is too early to start with Christmas music. I think that just about every store I walked into today, there was Christmas music on. There was even a radio station with Christmas music on. School is just wacky this time of year because of our huge Thanksgiving feast that we put on. Just please let me get through Thanksgiving, then maybe I can start to think about Christmas. :)

My Father

2008-11-07T21:38:00.003-05:00

My parents made it to Houston safe and sound on Tuesday evening with no problems. They did however get lost when they made it towards my aunt's house in Montgomery, but they made it there and enjoyed a yummy steak dinner.

They met with the doctor on Wednesday in Houston. They answered all of the questions/concerns that my parents had. My dad, however, is not a candidate for the experimental pill. So they scheduled him for a bunch of medical tests that probably required a bunch of poking and scanning of his body and a scan of his brain yesterday (Thursday). Then they scheduled chemo for Friday (today).

He will have chemo every 21 days. His first round was today. His next round will be in 21 days back here in South Bend and then after that it will be back to Houston for his third round of chemo. So by the time Christmas rolls around he will have lost his hair. Hubby just told me that him and my father will be bald for Christmas. :)

The images from the brain scan and countless MRI's that he had shows that there are no masses of tumors on his brain or on any other part of his body. This is a good thing because they thought that would have been the case due to his spread of cancer.

So they are trying different combinations of chemo, hoping to stop the spread of the cancer. The doctor says that the outlook should be good after these rounds of chemo. So now only time will tell. One thing that my mom told me is that on this particular floor of the hospital, there are 30 doctors dedicated to stopping the spread of prostate cancer. My dad's doctor is a lady in her mid-thirties heading this experimental study. So they feel she knows what she is talking about.

I know there is more to tell, but Rosie couldn't explain it to me because she said that she is not the one studying to be the nurse in the family (as she put it). Only Laura could do that, however Laura is feeling crappy and went to bed early. When I was talking to my parents tonight, their phone died because the battery went dead. But they will be home Saturday afternoon.

I just ask that you please keep my father in your prayers.

Where's George?

2008-11-04T18:01:00.003-05:00

Has anybody ever seen the dollar bills with the inked wording, "Track This Bill"? I received one of these bills last night at Barnaby's in Mishawaka. I was excited because I have seen these from afar and just have never gotten my hands on one.

So I entered the necessary information and hoped that I was one of many that has tracked this bill. Gee was I wrong! It has traveled from Mishawaka to South Bend. Whoppie!

So I signed up to receive notification of where this dollar bill will go when it leaves my hands. (I know I'm a dork!) So now I am off to spend my hard earned dollar on a very yummy Culver's ice cream sundae because it has been one of those days!

Also keep my father in your prayers. They left for Texas today and hopefully they have found their way to my aunt's house with no problems!

Let your voice be heard

2008-11-04T06:00:00.000-05:00

I am looking forward to tonight and seeing what the outcome will be. I am also ready for the political commercials to be over with.

I thought I would post a poem about voting, but there are none that are halfway decent. So instead I found some quotes that I like. Enjoy!

"Those who stay away from the election think that one vote will do no good: 'Tis but one step more to think one vote will do no harm." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

"The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all." ~ John F. Kennedy

"Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be." ~ Sydney J. Harris

Let us remember that our right to vote was not a right earned easily. So please get out there and vote today!

Happy Halloween

2008-10-31T06:42:00.000-04:00

Spooks

by Sandra Liatsos

There's a goblin at my window,

A monster by my door.

The pumpkin at my table,

Keeps on smiling more and more.

There's a ghost who haunts my bedroom,

A witch whose face is green.

They used to be my family,

Till they dressed for Halloween.

Happy Halloween!

The Call

2008-10-28T20:12:00.005-04:00

My father has finally received the call from Houston. He is going to Houston for a promising new drug treatment that will hopefully slow the growth of his cancer.

He leaves on Tuesday with my mom and Nana in tow. They will be renting a car at the airport, driving and then staying at my Aunt Rosa's house in Montgomery.

This will be my parents first trip to Texas. It is probably a good thing that they are going in the fall time when the weather is cooler!

Wild and Wacky Weather

2008-10-27T18:36:00.006-04:00

This has been an extremely wacky day of cold, miserable weather. I thought that we might have indoor recess all day because of the heavy rain that I drove in this morning. Then all of a sudden we have sunlight for the first recess. Yahoo!!!

Then during lunch recess it looked like it would start raining. It was spurting little rain drops here and there, but nothing major. So the students went out. About three minutes before recess is supposed to end they are lined up because it just started to downpour! Okay I can deal with the three minutes that we have left of recess. I just get to transition early into Math.

Then afternoon recess rolls around and the sun is shining and all seems well. That was the case for 11 minutes of recess and then the other 4 minutes we were being pelted with hail. Yup hail! Try lining up second and third graders in a hail storm. I have some students covering their heads, some opening their mouths, some screaming, and some picking up the hail off of the ground. Just as soon as I got the students inside, it stopped hailing and the dang sun came back out.

I just cannot win today!

Meet Marigold

2008-10-26T20:33:00.008-04:00

Nope Marigold isn't a cat, but a lamb. My cousin Margaret is a senior at Purdue and is majoring in Animal Science. She works in the sheep housing part of the lab and the mother sheep rejected her baby a couple of weeks ago. So Margaret has been bottle feeding the baby lamb because she did not want to see it put down.

So my parents met Margaret in Michigan City to pick up the lamb. So Laura named the lamb Marigold and they have been trying to bottle feed her. She ate really well when they first got home and tonight she hasn't been wanting to eat. But Marigold did figure out how to drink water from a bowl.

So Marigold is going to hang out in my parent's mud room in a dog cage until she is bigger. Then she will be placed with the three remaining goats that my parents have.

So you know how some people like to dress up their dogs, well we dress up farm animals...

My Dad said that Marigold was shivering when she was outside, so while they were at the farm store this afternoon, my Mom bought Marigold this dog sweater. This going to be one spoiled sheep!

This is what I want to do today....

2008-10-24T09:24:00.002-04:00

Although she looks like she is pissy, she is actually enjoying curling up inside the bottle water case to sleep. After looking out of the window this morning, I feel the same way.

Weekend

2008-10-23T18:20:00.002-04:00

My weekend started today at 11:00. I am looking forward to a nice little break from school. It is also ultra nice that hubby has the day off tomorrow also. So I actually get to see my husband. :)

So what did I do to start my weekend off...I cleaned out my fridge. It was quite disgusting if you ask me. I think this is the first time in the 3 1/2 years that I have actually washed, wiped, and cleaned out the inside of the refrigerator. Kinda scary if you ask me. However I do have ubber space now! Just in time for all that holiday baking!

As if that wasn't enough, I also cleaned the rest of my house. It is nice to have a fresh start to the weekend. Hubby usually does the cleaning on Saturday morning, so I think that he will appreciate it that he doesn't need to clean now!

So tomorrow I am deciding what to do about my Halloween costume, frost my pumpkin-shaped cookies, and make some cupcakes. I love this time of year!

Clueless

2008-10-21T19:06:00.003-04:00

We have a Halloween party on Saturday and I still have no idea what I am going to wear. I always seem to wait until the very last second to decide on a costume. Last year I was a witch and the year before that I was a vampire. Not very original, but I was able to use the same costume for each. I just accessorized differently. :)

So here it is Tuesday night and I still have no idea what to do. Hubby said that we could do a couples costume. I was quite surprised by that comment. I suggested Raggedy Ann and Andy. He just rolled his eyes. So since I do not have school on Friday, I figured that would be a great time to think up a costume.

Frozen

2008-10-20T17:51:00.003-04:00

I am a frozen popsicle at the moment. When I arrived in my classroom this morning it was chilly. I thought once I had some heated bodies in the room, it would warm up a bit. Gee was I wrong. I am so glad that I brought my sweater this morning. However my fingers and nose were freezing, there is nothing that can help me warm back up.

The principal got on the intercom this afternoon telling the students to bring their sweaters and sweatshirts (uniform of course) tomorrow because the boilers were broken. From the news in the grapevine, apparently the boilers have been broken for quite awhile and it is going to cost a chunk of change that a Catholic school really cannot swing. I can see why the school hasn't fixed the problem already. As if 40 degrees in the morning isn't reason enough to fix it.

The worse thing is that my room is right next to the playground doors. So I have three outside walls and I just freeze anyway. This is not helping the situation. I am really contemplating about bringing in my space heater on Wednesday because the students leave at 10:50 and I am working on everything that I can so I can breeze out of school on Thursday at 11:00. However I do not want to be a frozen popsicle on Wednesday afternoon.

I even left earlier than usual today because I just feel lousy. My ear is hurting again and my throat is sore. I just feel another cold coming on or my sinus' are just insane.

Maria's Wedding

2008-10-19T12:23:00.011-04:00

Saturday was spent at my cousin Maria's wedding. Maria is a cousin on my mom's side of the family. My mom has 9 brothers and sisters. All 9 brothers and sisters and their families were able to make in for this joyous occasion. It was the first time that we were all together in years.

The photographer took a picture of all of us at the church with the bride and groom before the ceremony. It took about 10 minutes to get all of us situated and then he took 10 shots. Then he arranged all the cousins together with the bride and groom. It will be neat to see those shots when they come in.

Maria got married in Elkhart and then dinner was at Das Dutchman Essenhaus in Middlebury. They even got to pull up in front of the restaurant in a horse and buggy.

The Amish food was excellent and even hubby agreed because he usually doesn't like wedding food because it always too greasy for his taste. Even though there was no music or alcohol we still had a good time.

Hubby and I

I just LOVE this picture of my brother and hubby!

The sisters together, even with Laura's goofy smile!

Joke for the Day

2008-10-15T16:56:00.005-04:00

After a day of rainy weather and 15 very energetic students with four walls surrounding them, I sure needed a laugh....

Never make your better half go shopping against his will......

This is why women should not take men shopping against their will. After Mr. and Mrs. Fenton retired, Mrs. Fenton insisted her husband accompany her on her trips to Walmart. Unfortunately, Mr. Fenton was like most men--he found shopping boring and preferred to get in and get out. Equally unfortunately, Mrs. Fenton was like most women--she loved to browse. One day Mrs. Fenton received the following letter from her local Walmart.

Dear Mrs.Fenton,
Over the past six months, your husband has been causing quite a commotion in our store. We cannot tolerate this behavior and may be forced to ban both of you from the store. Our complaints against Mr.Fenton are listed below and are documented by our video surveillance cameras.

1. June 15: Took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put them in people's carts when they weren't looking.

2 . July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.

3. July 7: Made a trail of tomato juice on the floor leading to the women's restroom.

4. July 19: Walked up to an employee and told her in an official voice, 'Code 3 in Housewares. Get on it right away.'

5. August 4: Went to the Service Desk and tried to put a bag of M&M's on layaway.

6. September 14: Moved a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to a carpeted area.

7. September 15: Set up a tent in the camping department and told other shoppers he'd invite them in if they would bring pillows and blankets from the bedding department.

8. September 23: When a clerk asked if they could help him he began crying and screamed, 'Why can't you people just leave me alone?'

9. October 4: Looked right into the security camera and used it as a mirror while he picked his nose.

10. November 10: While handling guns in the hunting department , he asked the clerk where the antidepressants were.

11. December 3: Darted around the store suspiciously while loudly humming the 'Mission Impossible' theme.

12. December 6: In the auto department, he practiced his 'Madonna look' by using different sizes of funnels.

13. December 18: Hid in a clothing rack and when people browsed through, yelled 'PICK ME! PICK ME!'

14. December 21: When an announcement came over the loud speaker, he assumed a fetal position and screamed 'OH NO! IT'S THOSE VOICES AGAIN!'

15. December 23: Went into a fitting room, shut the door, waited awhile, then yelled very loudly, 'Hey! There's no toilet paper in here!'

Regards,
Walmart