Day one: DONE!!!

I survived the First Day of School and I can say it wasn't THAT bad. I was really stressed and even felt the anxiety on the inside, just because I didn't feel like I was as prepared this year as I was last year. I ran around this morning before school, trying to get some things done and I didn't get much of it done, as they asked teachers to go to their duty stations 10 minutes earlier than planned. Apparently since school starts an hour and 15 minutes earlier than last year (last year: 8:45, this year: 7:30), there was some confusion on when we would open the doors in the morning and let them in for breakfast. I sure hope they get it figured out, because if I don't get to school until 7, 7:05 is gonna be unreasonable to start duty. We'll see.

Meeting my kids was interesting today. I have 4 students this year that are siblings of students I had last year. That's kinda weird. I am going to try not to compare them. I also have Mrs. Principal's son this year and I think he's gonna be a firecracker (and if you knew Mrs. Principal, you'd know why. She's admittedly ADHD and very high spirited!)! I predict he's smart but a little quirky. I can deal with smart but quirky...

Didn't tell them I won't be there the last quarter of school, as I wanted to ease them into that. I'll probably tell them soon though, because I don't want it to be a secret and they're gonna start asking pretty soon, since a lot of my regular clothes don't really fit me anymore! And perhaps if they know, they will be sensitive to the fact that I will need to eat in class and run to the potty while the neighboring teacher watches the class.

This year I'm helping with Boot Camp. Not military Boot Camp (yeah, could you really see me doing sit-ups or running or anything resembling an excercise?!?), a kind of training we give all of the students on the rules and regulations and procedures for our school. Basically, the first 3 days of school are Early Release Schedule for regular classes, and then they spend the last 2 hours of school in Boot Camp. It's mini classes on all the stuff we want them to know. I am getting to teach Drills (Fire Drills, Lockdown Drills, etc.). We teach the class 8 times a day. That's saying the same thing 24 times over 3 days! I don't mind being a part of it, but I really wish I had recorded my shpeel and could just press play for each class...

Well, I would really like to spend time with my son and hubby now. I shall get back to you soon!!

A lot to say and not a lot of time to tell it

We are heading out here soon to celebrate our 7th Anniversary (the real day is tomorrow), by going to see "The Simpsons Movie" (Hubby's choice, of course) and eat at Red Lobster (my choice!). But I wanted to stop by and say I didn't drop off the planet or have my baby yet (we've got another 7 1/2 months to go, people, so calm down!). Just been REAL busy. School starts Monday and I guess I'm ready. Eeek! Can you ever be ready? We handed out schedules for 7th and 8th graders last night and that was interesting but tiring. I saw some of my students from last year and they were bummed to hear I wasn't going to be teaching them for 8th grade. Oh well. At least I get to see them every once in awhile when they pop in to say hello. I even saw a few of my 8th graders from last year, as their parents were getting their siblings' schedules. That was fun. We've also been doing a lot of house paperwork stuff and tomorrow we go to pick out countertops and flooring! Yippee!! Lastly, I've had little to no energy a lot of the time, being that I'm about 6 weeks pregnant now. The morning sickness kicked in the day teachers had to return to work (of course!). It hasn't been too bad, I just feel icky and my stomach churns. No blowing chunks. Yet. Yeah, and I've been trying to enjoy the last few moments of summer with Mason and my hubby before school starts.

So that's what I've been doing. And it's only gonna get busier. I will try to write again, probably Sunday about the house stuff or after the First Day of School. Ta ta.

6 days until school!!

That's crazy. I can't believe the summer's over. It was so wonderful being home for the summer (since I've never been at least not with Mason) and we did so many great things (lots of art, Summer Movie Fun, waterplay, working on potty training, Family Camp, etc.) that I don't want it to end. But, I'm also ready to go back to work (and now, my state of mind is the sooner I go back to work, the sooner we move and the sooner we'll have a baby!!).

I went today and moved some things around, put some posters up, unpacked the rest of the boxes and tried to arrange my room just the way I want it (for now). And then I got visitors. Two of my 8th grade boys from last year popped their heads into my room. It was Hormone Boy and Jock Boy (d0n't know if I mentioned him last year--HUGE kid, all about football and a bit chauvanistic, but very smart). I inquire why they're at the school, and they proceed to tell me why they were suspended the last 3 days of last school year, AND currently suspended for the first 4 days of high school. Apparently another kids had a Swiss Army knife (or something like it) in his backpack on the school bus and Jock Boy wanted to see it. He started playing with it, and then Hormone Boy wanted to see it. Needless to say, the bus driver saw it as "three kids were holding a knife" and the 3 boys got 10 days of Out of School Suspension. And since there were only 3 days left of school, their suspension carried over to this coming school year. To total 10 days of suspension, they are serving 2 of them helping around our school--taking out boxes, moving things up and downstairs, etc. I even saw Jock Boy with a mop and bucket when I was leaving. It's good for them. It's humbling. But I will admit it does suck to already have a suspension hanging over your head before school even starts.

I don't plan on going to the school tomorrow, as it is my last opportunity to spend time with Mason before I really start working. Wednesday is my real return date anyways, and I can finish up odds and ends in my classroom the rest of the week.

Well, Mason just fell asleep and I have Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows waiting for me!

Wow. Today was surreal.

We are buying a house. Our first day out. What a crazy day.


What? You want more details? Fine.

We went out with our realtor friend and he showed us a bunch of so-so houses, some pretty good ones and 1 REALLY CRAPPY ONE. Let me just pause here to tell you about the Craptastic one. Let's just say that we learned the owner was a cat lover with no peeing boundaries for her feline friend! We barely got through the threshold and we all covered our noses. Oh my Lordy, it was soooo bad! The smell of cat urine is no aromatic, if you've never taken a whiff. Especially with the carpet is saturated with it. So gross. It didn't matter that it had walk-in closets and a spacious kitchen--IT SMELLED LIKE AMMONIA!! That was a "no" before we even got inside.

Our last stop today was in a subdivision where Ms. Cindy and her family are moving. We went with our realtor into the sales office and chatted a bit. They are having incentives for buying immediately, PLUS, if you could make a committment before the weekend was over, they'd knock another $10,000 off the price! The salesman showed us a model home and it was real nice (as they always are), and then showed us a spec home that was in the framing stage. Oh so pretty. And just what we wanted. And we could get it for over $30,000 under the value! We hemmed and hawed and went home and talked about it. But it didn't take long to feel that this was the house for us. We were getting a brand new house right off the bat!! It was (and still is) really scary, but so very exciting too. My hubby made some calls (including my dad that's helping us with the down payment) and went back to the sales office during Mason's nap to sign papers. Yes, sign papers. And give Earnest money!! Tomorrow we take some more paperwork back to them and get the ball rolling! Yikes! We are both elated (and so is Ms. Cindy, as we will be about 2 blocks away!!) and scared out of our minds. A lot to think about. Oh, and we will be moving in either November or December.

Then 3 or 4 months later, we'll have a baby. We must like change.

Good things

My class is over. Hallelujah. I came away from it with some fresh, new ideas on how to approach my entire class, but especially those who are usually lost in the shuffle. But I am glad it's over, because I'm not one for sitting in a classroom for hours and hours at a time, listening to one person speak. And I'm expected to pay attention!! I'm good for retaining information for the first hour or so, but after that, it's questionable.

The other piece of good news is that my hubby got somewhat of a promotion. Well, it increases the consistency and stability of his hours and gives him some extra responsibility, which is good. He wasn't sure that he would get the position, since others were also applying, but he found out today that he got it. Yeah for him! Yeah for us! Yeah for more money!!

Last little tidbit: we're going to meet with a realtor (friend of a friend) tomorrow to look at houses. It's exciting but a little scary too. I hope we make some progress. It would be fun to start the process of buying our own house and not paying someone else's mortgage for a change.

And that's it. That's all. Ta ta.

Nighty night

I know some of you (mostly one of you) can't stand it when I don't blog for a few days. Heaven forbid, if I have other things more taxing to do than to keep you afloat on my every move!! JK

Anyways, not much new to report. Still pregnant. Real tired all the time. No other symptoms yet. I'm probably about 4 weeks by now. I don't see my doctor until September 6. That's over a month away.

I've been in this SEI (Structured English Immersion) class for the last 4 days and I'm about SEI'd out. It's all about how to reach the students in your class that speak little to no English. They are trying not to let those kids fall through the cracks. And as much as I appreciate the effort and training, I'm done. Well, I'm not done, I'll be done tomorrow. But I'm mentally done. There's been a lot of lecture, PowerPoint, videos, notes and worksheets. For 6-7 hours a day. Blah.

Maybe I'll have more time to blog when this class is over. Ha!

Goodnight.

A few minor things to report

I just read an email from a cranky, pregnant friend of mine that pointed out that I hadn't blogged since last Wednesday, and apparently she needs reading material and explained that I had information to share. ;) I suppose she's right.

Let's see...Well, for those of you in the know, my brother is doing well and is back at home, after two trips to the hospital. There was a very good chance he was going to lose his leg to an infection he had ignored for years, but it looks they caught it and now he's on a plethora of prescription drugs for the infection, the pain and his heart. Thank you to those who had him and our family in your prayers.

Two weekends ago, we almost bought a house through an auction, but the owner decided not to sell it to anybody. I guess it wasn't meant to be. I'll admit, we were a little frustrated and disappointed, but we're okay with it. There's a house that's meant for us, and we plan to find it real soon!! In fact, we are meeting with a realtor that our friends know this evening, and hopefully he can help us get down the right path.

Hmmm...was that all? Was there anything else exciting or worth telling anyone? Thinking...thinking...Oh yeah, one last tidbit: I'M PREGNANT!!!! We just found out early Friday morning (and took another test Sunday, to be sure), so I'm probably only about 3 or 4 weeks. I know it's new and some people would say to wait to tell people just in case something goes wrong, but oh well. We told everyone who would listen as soon as we found out we were pregnant with Mason, so I don't see anything wrong with it. And if you know me at all, you know I can't wait for anything!! If we're doing our math right, Baby #2 is due around late March or early April. And since I intend on having a scheduled C-section, Baby #2 will most likely be born around mid March or so. (Maybe St. Patrick's Day??) I guess we'll know more accurate information when I actually go to the doctor.

It's been fun trying to get people to figure it out on their own, as we had things planned to do when we found out: my hubby was growing a goatee until we got pregnant and I wanted to donate my hair for Locks of Love (for cancer and Alopecia patients). My hubby shaved Sunday morning, and it took my parents an hour to notice, and later, Ms. Cindy a half an hour!! I guess people aren't as observant as we'd like to think sometimes.

Anyways, that's my news. Hope this satisfies you, PBAF! :) Feel free to send congrats and love my way!

No more Summer Movie Fun

Well, at least not after today. And at least not for me. The movies keep going for another 4 weeks I think, but today is my last one. Next week, I'll be in a training (for highly qualified stuff), the following Wednesday is my first official day back to work (Inservices), and the Wednesday after that, school will have started. So sad. I've enjoyed the weekly visits to see movies I've already seen, just to get out and give Mason and I something to do. Ms. Cindy will probably still take Mason with her next week, which is good. I'll be sitting in a classroom at the high school, listening to someone drone on and on about God knows what, and Mason will be stuffing his face with popcorn and sitting in front of a big movie screen. Not fair.

I can't believe that technically today is my last day of actual summer. Tomorrow and Friday I will be doing Team Leader stuff at the school, and like I said, I have that training all next week and then the next Monday and Tuesday I plan on working on my classroom (right now it's in shambles, since all I've done is move everything upstairs), and it's Inservices after that until school starts. But you know what gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling? I am so excited that when we go to that first teacher meeting, I won't be the Newbie! I know people and know stuff about the school!! I remember last year (and every year before that), the first meeting day was so nervewracking. I'd sit nervously at a table and try my hardest to remember everyone's names and act as casual and as comfortable as I could. This year is different. I know my way around the school and I can introduce myself to the Newbies. What a comforting feeling...

I'm of course a little sad that my one-on-one time with Mason will be diminishing significantly after today. Although it's been an adjustment for both of us, I have honestly treasured my time with my son. I have watched him grow and change and do new things everyday this summer. And I wouldn't trade it for any summer job out there. But I know it must come to an end, and I'm more at ease by the fact that he's returning to Ms. Cindy, at least for now. He's nowhere near fully potty trained (he's peeing a couple of times a day on it, but no poopy and he doesn't tell us when he needs to go), and she offered to take him as long as we needed. Well, I'm sure she'd probably step in and say something if he's getting his driver's license and still wearing diapers. Pretty sure we'll have it conquered long before that. At least by Kindergarten. ;)

So, instead of spending any more time on here while Mason's in the living room, I'm going to watch the rest of Veggietales, "Duke and the Great Pie War" with my son. Time is precious and getting away from me as I write this...

Rain, glorious rain!!

I live in the desert. Well, the entire state is considered the desert, and I live in what is more like a flat forest: some trees and mountains and cooler temperatures than a desert, but it's a desert still the same. And this desert is always in danger of droughts and fires. That's why we rejoice in rain. We haven't had much to speak for in a very long time. Today it rained. And it's still raining. It's such a lovely sound. I love sleeping at night, hearing the distant thunder and the raindrops dancing on the roof and windows. It makes for such a restful night. Ahhh...

My Bad

Sorry I haven't written since Sunday. I guess I've just been enjoying my week at home. I don't have many of those left, ya know. I recently started playing Sims 2 again, and as before, I've become addicted. I pride myself on not playing it when Mason's awake, as I get so into the game that I might miss my 2 year old starting fires or shaving the cat or finding the keys to the car and heading for Wendy's for chicken and ranch. And we can all agree to that being bad.

Anyways, I don't remember all that much from the past 5 days, but I do remember a few snippets: Monday night we went with Ms. Cindy's family to see "Ratatouille". Very cute. But it was Mason's first REAL movie (since I don't count the Summer Movie Fun) and he got a little restless about halfway through. Daddy graciously ended up taking Mason into the lobby and entertaining him until the movie was over. Tuesday, I talked to my dear friend PBAF for awhile, which was nice. I got to be the "experienced mom" in the conversation, which is still a new concept to me. Wednesday was the Summer Movie Fun, which was "Happy Feet". We'd seen it before. Cute movie, but a little too long for the attention span of a toddler. Thursday was yesterday. (Duh!) I went to the grocery store and then on over to Ms. Cindy's for most of the day. I helped make Rice Krispy Treats that Ms. Cindy's sister will send to her friend that's an Air Force Colonel in Iraq. Today I went to Walmart and afterwards, Mason napped for almost 3 hours (of course I was hypnotized by Sims 2 the whole time!!)!! Now, we're just hanging out until Daddy gets home and then we'll be back at Ms. Cindy's for dinner.

Tomorrow we're going to look at a house that's for sale. It's highly unlikely that it's meant for us, but it's worth looking into. If we have a chance, I'll tell you more about it.

Sorry for the lack of humor in this blog (and most of the ones in recent past). Didn't really feel inspired I guess. At least I filled you in on my week, right? Can't you just be happy with that?!?

That was Zoo-tastic!!

Yesterday was Mason's first visit to the zoo. Around here, we don't really have a full-fledged zoo per se, but it is an animal rescue sanctuary. We thought Mason would enjoy it anyways, since he loves animals. And he did. He kept running from one exhibit to the next, and climbing on the split rail fence and calling to the animal. We saw all sorts of animals (mostly native to this area): a black bear, lemur, badger, deer, jaguar, mountain lion, javelina, among others. It was already toasty out at 9 am when we went, but that's okay. Mason had a good time and that's all that matters.

This is a coati. Isn't it cute? We're

convinced that it's Max's distant cousin!! They sure have the same nose and dig dig dig the same!!

This, of course is a llama. Llamas are funny. They have squinty eyes and buck teeth. And they like to spit. They are really furry and tall. This was my report on llamas.

I also like peacocks. Peacocks are birds. They are pretty and have lots of colors. They have feathers that look like eyes.

So, although we were sweating like overweight pigs in a sauna, we still had fun and Mason got to see a tiger get fed chunks of raw meat. That's always a good time.

Holy Frijole!!

It was a hot one today!! I don't live On The Surface Of The Sun (that's about 2 hours away!!), but it's close enough. Mason and I tried to play outside a little today, and it was just too darn hot for a penguin to be walkin' around...

His little watering can that he got for a late Christmas present from a friend (you know who you are!) has long since faded in the blistering sun. It used to be a bright orange (you can kinda tell by the color of the spout) and now it's a dull peach color. Sad.

So, needless to say, Mason didn't have to be told more than once to skeedaddle back into the house.

With that event, we stayed inside the rest of the day. Which was a good thing, because our power went out around while Mason and I were at Costco, sometime after 3:30. Yuck. We came in long enough to unload the groceries and head back out to meet Ms. Cindy and her family at Del Taco (ahhh, glorious air conditioning!). When we returned home around 8, the air was back on and I was so relieved. That could have been ugly.

Oh yeah, on a different note, I don't think I mentioned that I will be teaching all 7th grade next year, not 8th grade like I had thought. Things have changed already this summer, and I'm basically taking over for a teacher that left for the high school. Which is fine, since then I will only have to plan for 1 grade level not 2. But today, the principal's secretary called to tell me that I will be moving rooms from last year. I was kinda bummed about that, as I was downstairs and centrally located. Now I will be upstairs and not near much of anything. Oh well. I plan on heading over there Thursday and taking a look at my old classroom and my new classroom and deciding what I need to move or change. Wasn't expecting to have to do too much when the summer ended, as I was FINALLY returning to the same school two years in a row, but oh well. At least I can take my time making changes and getting all settled in before school starts, as opposed to the mad rush I'm too familiar with. So that's good.

Tomorrow's the 4th. Plan to have a little girly time with Ms. Cindy as the Daddies take all the kids to the Summer Movie Fun. I'm looking forward to that. And later, we're having a barbeque with them. Have a great Independence Day, people!! And for goodness sake, stay cool!!

I knew it!

I knew I had a #5!! Sometimes it just takes my brain a little while to remember, process and then complete the thought. So here goes:

5. Saying a toddler thrives on repetition is an understatement. I know Mason is my husband and I's child because he loves predictability and consistency. I can deal with that and even take the blame. But sometimes the repetition just about brings me to the point of insanity!! I mentioned in #4 above that he chooses the same toys all the time, which in itself can make you question his thought process, but then there's the Elmo toy. After blogging yesterday, I decided to get out in the living room and rearrange some things. I kept his Potatoheads and farm animals out still, but I just put them in different places. I took some toys out and replaced them with others from his closet. And that's when the Elmo toy came out of hiding. Daddy and I don't like this Elmo toy too much. It was a Christmas present from my parents (and you'll know why, in just a sec), and he loves it. It plays all these different kids songs ("Wheels on the Bus", "If you're happy and you know it", etc.), but just the first 4 or so lines. And he has discovered he can press the buttons and switch up the songs (or make the same song repeat over and over and over and over!) faster than a speeding bullet. Oh, that's fun. Don't get me wrong, I usually bask in his happiness, but this toy can grate on your nerves.

Then there's this "Maaawwwwmmeeeee!!" thing. I've wracked my brain and I still can't figure out how to get him to stop yelling for me when he wakes up. HE CAN JUST ROLL OUT OF BED NOW! He doesn't need me to come get him. I would so rather hear him playing with a toy in the living room (maybe not the Elmo toy though), than listen to him holler for me like he's trying to go for some World Record. I'm serious, if I ignore him (which I've tried, trust me), the yelling gets louder, and "Mommy" turns into
"MAAAAWWMMEEEEEE!!"
and man, that can bring the hair on the back of my neck to attention. I love my Mason Monkey Mover, but my patience is more than tested with this shouting out thing.

I know he's a child that's world revolves around habits and routine, but this habit would be great to break. Any ideas out there??

Some Things I've Learned About Toddlerhood

Lately, with being at home with Mason all the time and things changing for him, I've learned a few things. Here are the ones I can remember:

1. Taking the side off of a convertible crib to make it a "big boy bed" doesn't have to be that big of a deal. A few days ago, we took the side of Mason's crib off, and just put up a safety rail. We gave him a real pillow and made a big deal about him being a big boy now, but still in the back of my mind I was sure he'd have a rough time--whether it was crying, confusion, somehow falling out, or thinking he could get out of bed whenever he wants and not staying in.. He's been pretty good with it, actually. The first night we had a little trouble. Five minutes after laying him down and we went off to the bedroom to put away laundry, he came right out onto the couch and just sat there, with a bewildered look on his face. That was kinda funny. So I calmly walked him back into his room and told him it was bedtime. No other real problems, except that he forgets he doesn't need to call to me to get out of bed. He's still waking me up by yelling "Maaawmmmeeeee!" from his bed, instead of just coming out. We'll work on that.

2. It's true what they say: potty training isn't always easy and boys often take longer. Yeah, I get that now. In the past, I've worked for like 5 different daycares and worked with a lot of toddlers. I've helped them learn to talk, walk, eat and potty train. It doesn't seem that big of a deal when you're only their caregiver for the day. Having a two year old 24 hours a day is a whole different story. At first, my hubby and I were so excited because Mason was so enthused about the whole potty thing. He would run at full speed for the bathroom and say, "Yay, potty!" We thought, wow, this is easier than we thought. He would sit happily on his potty seat for as long as a half an hour, reading books and singing. This is a piece of cake, we thought. Then the cake was snatched from our prideful hands and all we were left with was smeared icing and hunger pains. Apparently the potty is not that exciting afterall. He started saying "no" and refusing to go. What is a parent to do? I don't want to be that parent that drags their child by the arm to the potty, all the while their toddler is kicking and screaming and crying. What does that teach them about the potty? So, we tried the M & M thing. Also great for a little while. He would receive an M & M for just sitting there and another one for peeing (and a handful for pooping!). He would sit gleefully on the potty with his sticker-laden jar of candy and I was positive this was the thing that would get him in underwear. Nope. He doesn't care about it anymore, no matter the inflection in our voice or our body language. So now we have a jar of M & M's in the bathroom, and he is pretty indifferent about them. Any suggestions out there? A sticker chart was suggested, like the M & M's and you could have a goal of so many stickers for a toy or something. I don't know. I guess it's worth a try. I don't want to be buying my 10 year old adult diapers someday, because we just couldn't find anything that motivated him.

3. A parent of a toddler usually has a harder time with transitions than the toddler does. Case in point. My hubby and I had been discussing moving Mason up to the older toddlers classroom at church for awhile now, but we thought we'd wait until after Family Camp. Well, Family Camp was last week. Last night, we signed Mason in at his regular class, but since there was still a half an hour before service started, Daddy took him for a walk around church. Next door (the bigger kids room) there's a fishtank. Mason loves the fishtank. So in they went to admire the fishies. I was still in Mason's regular class, chatting with the lead teacher. I came out and couldn't find my husband and son, so I walked across the way to the coffee shop and got a Frappucino. A little later, my hubby walked up to me and told me that Mason was in the big class. I was taken by surprise. We hadn't said we'd do it right then!! I began to get upset with him over it. I guess two of the main teachers in the older class had told my hubby that Mason was totally ready, so he left our son there. He was ready. And he knows and loves quite a few of the people in there. So why did it bug me so much? I don't know! But I eventually began to tear up and feel a string of emotions--sadness, confusion, happiness, frustration, among others. After talking it over with my husband, I realized my emotions were mostly driven by the fact that Mason is growing up faster than I would like. I've told you before being a mom can make you crazy (you just wait, PBAF!!)!!! Ms. Cindy told me that it was totally normal to feel this way, especially with your first (which she immediately added that we needed to have more kids, and then we'd be celebrating when they move up!). That made me feel better, and probably made my hubby feel better, since he wasn't quite sure what to say or do to make me feel at ease. I am now happy he moved up. He loved it in there. I peeked in on him before picking him up and saw him sitting in a little chair at a table, smiling and enjoying himself. And they got to take real Goldfish home. They had a little pool and let the kids catch their own fish. Mason caught two (which one has already died) so we brought two home. And I'm fine with him being a big boy. Or at least I'm fine with this event.

4. No matter how many toys a kid has, he will pretty much pick the same ones all the time. Mason has an array of toys and activities to choose from on a daily basis: 7 or 8 board puzzles, big bins of books, a bucket of cars and planes, a sit-down play piano thing, a bucket of blocks, a bin of shape sorter things, play phones and other musical toys and lots of stuffed animals. But you know what he spends most of his day playing with? Mainly potatoheads at this point, but sometime he'll switch it up and play with his farm animals and farm. That's pretty much it. I can rearrange the toys, bring out toys he hasn't seen or played with in months, be he still gravitates towards the potatoheads and farm animals. Why is that? The comfort of predictability? He doesn't like his other toys? Who knows? But I could pack away or throw away everything else, and I'm not sure he'd notice or care.

5. I'm sure I have a #5. I just can't think of it now. So, I guess you're left with only 4. And as I'm glancing back up at this, I think that's plenty. Sorry for the extensive length. Guess I was in a chatty mood this morning.

Summer, Summer, Summertime

...time to sit back and unwind...(name that tune)

Today has been a good day. This morning Mason and I went to the post office to mail a package and then to Fry's for some things. (I'm making an ice cream sandwich/oreo/chcolate pudding/whipped cream pie thing for a party we're going to on Saturday. Yum!) After we got home, we took a Rubbermaid bin and some toys outside and played in the water. Mason really liked that. He's a big fan of filling up a pourable container with water and pouring it into something else. He splashed and poured and spilled and laughed and drenched himself. It was too cute. I was going to take pictures, but I think Daddy took the camera to work with him. Oh well. It won't be the last time. Afterwards, I made lunch (fish sticks, popcorn shrimp and those smiley potato things) and we watched Veggietales "Minnesota Cuke". Mason is now resting peacefully in his bed (without the side on--just a little safety rail that we bought. He seems to be handling it well and seems almost more excited to go to bed now!) for his nap. I need a shower so I am off for now. Happy Tuesday and Happy Summer!

Am I making you crazy yet?

If you don't know me that well, than you may not know how stir crazy I get and how much I like things to change (but only on my terms and on my timeline!). So, I yet again changed this around. Not much, but I got tired of the black. Thought this seemed more summery. Hope it's easier on the eyes and it didn't make you want to grind your teeth in aggravation that I changed things up again. :)

You asked for it...

Okay, no one actually asked for it, but here it is anyway: My Post Family Camp Photo Extravaganza!! Be ready to be amazed!!



Here's Mason in the shirts we had made. Mommy, Daddy, Mason, Grandma and Grandpa (My hubby's parents came along too!) all had shirts with Mason's picture on it, and it said, "Mason's Mom" etc. Turned out cute.



During camp, there was a Lego building contest, and here was our entry. (I'm sure those who know us know which parts my hubby did and which parts I did--my favorite addition was the bear in the spaceship!)

The winning Lego creation was this giant dog, doghouse and dogbowl. We only had 1 hour to build, and this is what they came up with!! Amazing, huh? Each team had 2 pounds of Legos, and I think the winning team used 95% of theirs!



Mason's Grandpa brought along his telescope and my hubby managed to take a picture with our digital camera through the eye of the telescope and this is what he saw. Nice, huh?







During our week at camp, there was a Free Day--where you could sit around and do nothing or go off and find something different to do. One family went all the way to San Diego (more than 2 hours away!), but most stuck around and just lounged. We decided to drive about 5 minutes around the mountain to Lake Arrowhead. It's this pretty little town around the lake that is definitely built for tourists. You can rent boats, feed the ducks and do lots of shopping. We found a playground and saw TONS of squirrels. Mason spotted the toy store and looked longingly into the window. We picked up some things from the Harry and David store and Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (my mom loves Divinity!) and just enjoyed the fresh air, oceans of green trees and serene water.



Later, Mason woke up from his nap in the room and still seemed groggy. He stumbled over to the arm chair and cuddled with his beach towel. And fell asleep. Thus the picture.


As we expected, the trip was more than enjoyable. It was great that the grandparents could come too and I know they enjoyed themselves immensely. There were tons of activities that were new this year: a race quite similar to Amazing Race (called AmazinGrace), a game show with just the grown-ups, a pygmie skit (oh, that was something else!), a treasure hunt, a cannonball contest (which my hubby won!), Rock,Paper, Scissors competition, Fear Factor for the teens and tons of other stuff. Along with swimming, playing in the sand, enjoying fellowship, lots of laughter, praying, a baptism in the pool, more laughter, eating loads of junk in the game room (including but not limited to: Corn Nuts, popcorn, trying a different Frappucino or smoothie every night, Oreos, Twinkies and more!) some intense games of Yahtzee Turbo, learning to play Mexican Train dominoes and even more laughter, it was bittersweet for camp to end. You walk away with new friendships, a renewed sense of faith and so many fantastic memories, you really don't want it to end. But it did. It's nice to be back in our own beds and get Mason back on his routine. (P.S. We took the side off of Mason's bed yesterday, because he managed to climb out of the Pack N Play at camp, put on his socks and shoes and greet me at the door as I came to get him up from his nap!)

We are so thankful God gave us this opportunity to share with friends, make new ones and create memories that will last a lifetime.

I know this seemed lengthy and perhaps too much information, but at least I didn't give you a day-by-day replay of all the events. :)

Thanks for reading through all of this and hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Have no fear, Princess Lionhead is here!!!

Yes, I'm back from Family Camp. What a great week. We actually returned from camp yesterday, but we stopped in to see my parents last night before coming home. We are still unpacking, doing laundry, putting things away and just plain settling back in at home. We had a great time, as we expected and I plan to tell you all more tomorrow. For now, I'm off to bed. Nighty night.

On Hiatus

THE FOLLOWING BLOG WILL BE IN LIMBO FOR THE NEXT 7 DAYS. DON'T BOTHER COMING BY DURING THE NEXT WEEK, BECAUSE THERE WILL ABSOLUTELY NOT BE ANYTHING TO NEW TO READ. GUARANTEED. THE NEXT TIME THE BLOGGER WILL HAVE ACCESS TO A COMPUTER WILL BE NEXT SUNDAY. THE BLOGGER WANTS TO WISH YOU A PLEASANT WEEK, A HAPPY FATHER'S DAY AND WOULD LIKE YOU TO KNOW THAT SHE WILL BE THINKING OF YOU. GOD BLESS AND SEE YOU IN A WEEK.

Mission Completed

We're done with Family Camp stuff!! Well, my hubby still has some work to do this weekend on the Photoshop classes he's gonna teach at there, but the part I was helping with is done!!

Yesterday was another day spent mostly with Ms. Cindy and the visit was mainly Family Camp related. We went to Walmart and Target to take care of some loose ends. Today, I went with her to the church to copy off the newsletter that's going to go out everyday we're there and we went back to Walmart. Ms. Cindy and her family headed off to California tonight and we will be leaving early Monday morning. Can't believe it's actually time for camp. There's been so much build-up for it this year that it felt like there was so much to do and so little time to do it. (I know it's all I've talked about for my last couple of entries, but it seems to be the major theme and topic of discussion around here!)

Now, tomorrow will be spent with me going to get a pedicure (because I desperately need one before I wear summery shoes all week!), dropping our dog Max off at the boarder (it's cheaper to take him tomorrow than to drop him off on a Sunday), my hubby working on his Photoshop classes, maybe doing some laundry and packing some more.

I may or may not find the time and the effort to write again before we leave Monday. So, if this is the last blog entry for a week, don't be sad or lonely or worried. I will be back home next Sunday and I will do my best to have something posted by Monday at the latest. I promise! I know my dedicated readers (the ones I can count on one hand!) depend on a constant update of the mundane workings of my everyday life. I will try not to disappoint. Have no fear: a lengthy, picture-filled blog entry is just around the corner! Until then, I hope everyone out there in cyberspace (or at least my 3 or 4 dedicated readers) have a fabulous week and don't miss me too much. Hasta!

Folding, counting, packing, cutting

Yesterday was a long day. In fact, I'm almost sure that God lengthened the day, and it was in reality two days total. I spent pretty much all day at Ms. Cindy's house, preparing things for Family Camp. There are loads of neat things that all the campers are getting in their gift bags: a foam bookmark kit for the kids to make while the parents are unpacking, popcorn to pop and share with friends, lanyards to keep the room key on, friendship pin kits to create and give away to fellow campers, inflatable beach balls, rubber relgious bracelets and paper and instructons to make paper airplanes for a contest later in the week (my hubby's the judge), just to name a few. So, of course all of these things had to be sorted and assembled and organized and packed. Whew. It was fun to sit around her kitchen table to put it all together, but it was tedious and a bit tiring. I'm happy that I could help (and she did keep me fed!), so I'm glad I took part.

Most everything is done now, except a few odds and ends, which will be done in the next couple of days. Before this all began a few months ago, I really had no idea there was this much work involved in planning and establishing Family Camp! It'll be neat to see it all together when we arrive.

Today was Movie Day. We saw "Over the Hedge", which we've seen. Mason wasn't all that interested, which surprised me. He sat still for maybe the first 10 minutes or so, and then started squirming and whining and climbing in and out of his chair. I guess it's a toss of the dice with a two year old, but it's still a little frustrating.

But now we are home and Mason needs a nap. I will try to write again at least one more time before we leave Monday. Ta ta.

A week from today...

I will be very close to Lake Arrowhead, California. We are going there for Family Camp with our church. We are leaving Monday morning and are planning on arriving around 4 in the afternoon. We are really involved in the planning and details this year, so it's been crazy, busy, a little stressful and fun. Today I spent most of the morning with Ms. Cindy and Mr. Super Organized Camp Leader making copies and organizing stuff for next week. It was fun, but time consuming. And tomorrow, I will be back at her house to fold and staple and organize papers, giftbags, packets, etc for our pre-camp meeting tomorrow night. I told her that my labor is at her disposal, as long as she keeps me fed. :) My hubby is doing most of the work that we're responsible for, since he's the computer guru. I think he enjoys the responsibility and the sense of accomplishment immensely, but he can also get carried away with getting the details just right that he lets the perfectionism take over. I know we'll both be glad once we arrive at camp. We just need to remember the overwhelming sense of peace and relief we felt when we drove up to the camp last year. It is so beautiful there, among the trees and mountains. And it's so lovely to be surrounded by friends and just fellow churchgoers that are outright good at heart and love the Lord. It's more than a vacation for us--it's a spiritual experience that uplifted us and created new pathways and friendships that changed us forever. (see blog entry Monday, June 26, 2006)

There are a few odds and ends that need to be taken care of before next Monday, but we are well on our way!! I am excited and anxious to see how camp will different from last year. Trust me, you can expect a similar blog entry after we return home, as I posted Monday, June 26, 2006. You can look forward to hearing about that, as it will be a much more eventful and uplifting week compared to my summer so far.

Until then, I have some things to do, not to mention just daily routine stuff. When there's time again later in the week, I will write.

Ten Thrilling Things About Me

Just for the fun of it:
Here are Ten Thrilling Things About Me (not in any particular order)

Number 1) I am a very big fan of food. Huge. And I'm not particular or have high standards on its quality.

Number 2) I love reality television, especially American Idol, Hell's Kitchen and So You Think You Can Dance. I know a lot of people cringe at reality tv. But I'm not afraid to admit I'm a junkie. The first step is admitting I have a problem, right?

Number 3) I am a very, very, very big wuss when it comes to scary movies, and yet on occasion I attempt to watch one, telling myself that it's just a movie. And then I have a week of nightmares. "Saw" was the last scary movie I watched. It scared the bejeesus out of me. I have vowed never to watch another one. I don't have to prove anything!

Number 4) I'm still not sure if I'm in the right profession. I plan on staying at the same school, doing the same thing for awhile, and then I'll re-evaluate.

Number 5) I love to make my son laugh. The deep belly laughs are my favorite. It warms my heart.

Number 6) I'd like to lose weight (like 20 pounds), but I like food too much (see Number 1)

Number 7) I find that my life is much more fulfilling and joyful and blessed, now that I am committed to walking with the Lord.

Number 8) I get really silly when I'm sleepy. Everything makes me laugh. My hubby says he knows I'm really tired when his jokes are hilarious to me. :)

Number 9) I have secretly been buying baby girl clothes for a few months now. Nope, not even pregnant yet, but it's a level of insanity that I'm okay with.

and Number 10...
Sometimes I stay in the shower longer than I need to, just to have some "me time".

Ta-Da

Decided it was time for a change. It's not much, but it's different pretty colors. I'm not sure about the black background, but at least the other colors and summery! :)

My fellow royalty is expecting!!

(if anyone says, "expecting what?" I'll give them a wedgie, then a swirly, then a purple nurple!!)

Yep, that's right!! My very good friend Princess Baby Ass Feet (if you don't know why she's called that, don't ask. you had to be there, many years ago in a different time in college) is having a baby!! Yeah!! I'm so excited for her!! She called me at 6 o'clock this morning, and as soon as I saw that it was her, I knew what she was calling for. She caught me a little offguard at first, but I soon became ecstatic for her and her hubby! They just found out, and even their parents don't know yet!! (and since you're all in cyberworld and don't know her parents, this doesn't count as people that know before their parents, right?)

They've been trying for a little while and there were doubts that they'd even have a baby. There was even talk of them attempting fertility treatments soon. But guess what? (if you say "what?", I will spank you like the bad bad donkey that you are!!) God had other plans. Yippee!!

Now it's her turn to get fat. And whine. And cry for no reason. And eat for two...oh wait...

A quick fill-you-in

Okay, the last time I blogged was Saturday. Let me think of what has happened since then. Hmmm...I tell ya, although I'm greatly enjoying being home, the days are starting to blend together.

Sunday was church. Typical day to begin with. Church. Come home and Mason naps. Go back out and meet Ms. Cindy's family for Del Taco. Then I headed off to do some bra shopping (well overdue) at the mall by myself. It was nice to be out alone, but looking for bras wouldn't have been my leisurely activity of choice. At least I came home productive in my shopping excursion, so that's good.

Monday. I'm drawing a blank. Oh, that's right. After a tearful morning of attempting to potty train Mason and then a meaningful conversation with Ms. Cindy, Mason and I headed off to Target to get him M&M's and a special jar to get him motivated to go potty. The problem is, when he first started sitting on the potty months ago, he loved it and would dart to the bathroom in a dead-heat run. Then, the thrill wore off and he started dragging his feet. You'd ask him if he wanted to go potty, he'd say, "I did go potty!" even though he didn't. Very frustrating. We decided to take a different approach. He needed to get excited again about sitting on the potty. So, he decorated his "special jar" of M&M's with stickers and holds it when he sits on the potty. He gets 1 M&m for just sitting on the potty and another one for peeing (and perhaps a handful if he poops!!). So far, it's been okay. He wants to sit there and get candy, but not really peeing consistently. Then again, this was only 2 days ago. We'll keep trying.

Yesterday Mason and I met a friend from my school and her daughter at the mall. We walked around and just enjoyed adult female conversation. We were even able to shop in Bath and Body Works (which I never go in anymore, just because I have a handsy 2 year old with little patience for just staying in one place looking at stuff), because the two toddlers entertained each other from their adjacent strollers. It was nice.

Today is Movie Day. We'll be heading out here soon to meet Ms. Cindy and her crew to go see "Charlotte's Web". I'm curious to see how Mason will sit for a live action, full length movie. I think because "Curious George" was cartoon and it was his first time in a movie theater, he was in awe. We'll see if he's as interested this time. At least I'm only out like 75 cents if he doesn't sit through the whole thing.

Well, I should go get dressed or something, since I want to be out the door in 17 minutes. Ta ta and Happy Summer!

Say what??

I had the opportunity to sit in on two interviews yesterday, for the opening at our school for assistant principal (ours is leaving and opening her own spa). That was interesting. I've never sat in anyone's interview before. There were 12 of us!! I'm glad I've never had to do that! Anyways, the first was a Resource teacher from our school. That's good and bad. Good, because she's familiar with the school and its philosophies. Bad, because she's had a few run-ins with some teachers and I think they had preconceived notions of her, before she even answered the first interview question. I was impressed with her professionalism and quick answers, but I don't think she has a chance, unfortunately. The other candidate was a guy, and we all seemed to like him. He has a lot of experience, even in really tough schools. We all agreed that it would be nice to have male administrator for obvious reasons--they tend to get more respect from the male students, and some of these kids need some male guidance. There are other applicants, but my vote's for that guy!!

I also received an interesting tidbit of information before the interviews began. Mrs. Principal showed me the TENTATIVE schedule for next year. It looks like I'm teaching all 8th grade, no 7th. And although I'm fine with that, as I would only have to plan for one class, I cannot be a 7th grade team leader, which I was planning on. Don't know how that's gonna play out. Of course no schedule is set in stone until the first day of school, but still. And actually, I kind of liked teaching a block of 7th graders. It broke up the monotony a little, and I got to work with some great kids. I guess I'll be seeing at least some of them again next year! I suppose teaching all 8th grade will make the end of the year activities much easier to coordinate, as I would not have any 7th graders to find a place for, during the 8th grade festivities.

It's just funny, because just a few short years ago, I would have told you that I would NEVER teach higher than 7th. And before that, I thought 6th grade was as high as I would go!! And in college, I wanted to teach Elementary school!! Ha! Funny how things work out, isn't it? Now, I couldn't imagine even teaching 6th graders!! They seem like such little guys!

I guess you never what God has planned. For any of us.

So, this is what it feels like to be a Stay-At-Home Mom

Okay, I've technically only been doing it for two days now (since I would have had Monday off anyway), but it's kinda strange to be home with Mason on a weekday. And to know that I'll be home with him everyday for the next 2 months. It's nice but still foreign to me.

Here's how today went:

6:45 Wake up, hearing "Mawwwwwmmmmeeeee" (which is normal for any morning)

6:50 Put Mason on the potty and entertain him so he will stay on there. And yeah!! He pees!! It gets on the potty seat, but who cares? He peed!!

7:00 Put on Veggietales "The Ballad of Little Joe" (just got it yesterday), and Mason sits down on the couch with a Poptart and a sippy cup of water.

7:40 I plop down on the floor and play Potatoheads with Mason. He eventually ran off with the Darth Vader and Stormtroopers ones, and they "fought" on the ottoman.

8:00 Make pictures for Daddy and Ms. Cindy. Mason first drew with crayon (green is his favorite), then put stickers all over the construction paper (puffy dinosaurs for Daddy and Veggietales for Ms. Cindy)

8:15 Went outside for some fresh air. We dug in the dirt, drew with sidewalk chalk and played ball.

8:35 Came back in and Mason sat on the potty. Nothing happened, but that's okay.

9:00 Headed over to Ms. Cindy's to meet her and go to the movies at Harkins (for their weekly Summer Movie Fun)

9:45 Watched "Curious George with loads of other parents and their children.

11:30 Headed home. Mason sat on the potty.

12:00 Mason took a nap. After putting away the dishes, I read The Giver for awhile and also drifted off on the couch.

1:30 Mason woke me with his traditional "Maaawwwwmeee" call. He was yet again put on the potty.

1:45 Mason played throughout the house and I checked my email and made a shopping list.

3:00 Went to a secondhand children's store to take in a pair of Mason's shoes (never worn, but I bought them awhile ago, and now I realize that his Flintstone feet are too fat for them!), and go to Safeway. I have a Frappucino and get some groceries.

3:45 Arrive home, with a new Weeble toy for Mason (from the secondhand store). He plays joyfully with it, as I put away groceries and get online.

4:21 And here we are. Daddy should be home soon. It's hard to believe I get to have days like this everyday for about 8 or 9 weeks. It's great to be home with Mason, but I definitely see emotional obstacles ahead. I guess we'll face them as they come, right? For now, I am enjoying staying at home.

If someone could interview my 2 year old...

Thought just for fun, I'd let you all have a peek into the life of my 2 year old monkey mover, Mason. Here's how the interview would go:

(The interview would of course need to be held in front of a Veggietales movie and Mason is given unlimited popcorn and juice to keep him happy)

INTERVIEWER: Mason, how old are you?

MASON: Two!!

INTERVIEWER: What number comes after 2?

MASON: Four Five!!

INTERVIEWER: Interesting. So, what did you do today?

MASON: Coloring, outside, good nap, eat cheese, watch Veggietales movie.

INTERVIEWER: Wow! What a day you've had! What you like to elaborate--
(interview is interrupted by Mason belting out the Veggietales theme song, as the video begins)

MASON: Bob! Larry!!

INTERVIEWER: Indeed. Tell me, Mason, what is your favorite Veggietales movie?

(Mason ponders this a moment...or maybe he just can't take his eyes off his movie)
MASON: LarryBoy!! Moe Eccik (Moe and the Big Exit), Bean (Lord of the Beans), Josh (Josh and the Big Wall), Bunny (Rack, Shack and Benny), Guinea (Gideon), Easter (An Easter Carol), Sheerluck (Sheerluck Holmes)

INTERVIEWER: I guess you can't pick just one. That's fair. Would you say you are a Veggietales conneiseur?

MASON: I like Veggietales all day.

INTERVIEWER: I'll take that as a yes.
(before the interviewer is able to ask any more questions, Mason has hopped off the couch with a mouthful of popcorn and his juice cup in hand and goes off to play with his farm animals)

THE END. :)

Take time to remember

Today is Memorial Day. Please don't just spend it barbecuing and drinking beer. Remember why we have Memorial Day. It's important to always keep in mind how we got where we are and how thankful we should be that we are free. For a touching Memorial Day blog, please take a look at Bluebird's Page: http://www.bluebirdsclassroom.blogspot.com/

God Bless, and thank you to all the veterans and soldiers that have lost their lives to fight for us and protect us over the years. You will never be forgotten.

Was it really the LAST FRIDAY?!?

Yes, I think it was. And what a crazy day it turned out to be. Well, I guess it wasn't that much out of the norm for any last day of school, but it still felt like a whirlwind.

The morning started out as a mad dash to get some end of the year paperwork completed. Then I had my 7th graders for 2 periods (which was 1 hour total, since it was Early Release). We watched most of "Finding Nemo" and they just socialized and signed yearbooks and wandered from my room to other rooms and back to my room. Later, I had 8th graders and it was supposed to be my normal 3/4 kids, but kids came in and out and it wasn't really mandatory that they stayed in their assigned room, as long as they checked in with their teacher and were with one of their teachers. I had kids popping in and out all day. They said hi to their friends, they came by and said goobye to me and there were a lot of tears from some of the girls as they said farewell to each other, especially Klutz girl (she was known to trip and fall or hurt herself on a daily basis). Man, she didn't stop crying. I understand that finished 8th grade can be emotional and bittersweet, but most of them will see each other over the summer or chat on myspace anyways! And 95% of them will be in the same school next year! I felt bad for Klutz girl to some degree, but it just got out of control, as she sobbed incessantly as the students were getting in their buslines after school. And she continued to cry at the dance last night.

The dance was fun. It was like a mini Prom. Some schools even treat it as such and kids get limos and go all out. None of our kids showed up in anything but their parents' car, but you could tell some of the girls spent all afternoon getting ready. The Commons Area was decorated with a Hollywood Nights theme and the PTSO went all out. The walls were covered with stars and a wall decoration that looked like paparazzi and you kind of forgot you were in the cafeteria and where kids sit to wait for the bus. I dragged my hubby along under the terms that other hubbies would be there. Turns out there really weren't. The assistant principal's husband was there, but he mainly hid out in her office. Some of the kids got quite a kick out of the fact that Mr. Lionhead was there. In fact, at one point, 3 of my boys approached us and one of them asked if that was my hubby. I said yes, and introduced them. And they all shook his hand. That was cute. I was just entertained by the whole thing. I love watching my kids attempt to interact with the opposite sex. And at the end, two of my students hooked up and surprisingly, that made me smile. They are both good kids that deserve each other. She's a silly, skinny girl with a quirky sense of humor and he's a genuis level bookworm that gets along with everyone. I told her that she should be with him, because he doesn't run away when she laughs at everything. It was really endearing.

Then the goodbyes came and it took forever and a day. The lights were coming on gradually, and that didn't seem to deter groups of teary, hugging teenagers. There were kids hugging that didn't even know each other. Oh, for Pete's sake! I mean, it's nice that they were being nice to each other, but come on. No one's dying and you'll all see each other in August!! Ah well, that's middle school, right?

And I've signed a contract to do it all over again next year...

The last Thursday

Today felt like the last day of school. We still have a half day tomorrow, but most of the 8th graders look at the last day as "8th grade Ditch Day", so they won't be here. Which meant today was alotted for crying, a mad dash to get yearbook signature, more tears, hugs, pictures, sentimental words and more sobs. I had kids come by my room and give me hugs and want their picture with me. That made me smile. It's nice to feel that you'll be missed and remembered.

We didn't do much besides the 8th grade awards ceremony this morning, play outside and watch movies. Sure felt like this was the last day.

Now I just need to get through the REAL last day...

The last Wednesday

Yesterday was a lot of fun. The waterpark was a lot more eventful than I had imagined. Just to briefly name a few events: 1 of the severe sped kids pulled down his swimtrunks in front of God and everybody when told to change (instead of going to the changing room), I accidentally put my metal deckchair down on the Resource teacher's toe (serious ouchie! luckily all she ended up was a scrape on the top of her toe), right after three of us teachers went down one of the slides a girl from another school apparently had her "womanly cycle" and it flowed down the waterslide, one student was brilliant enough to wear his eyeglasses in the wavepool and lost them, and after we returned to the school at 5:15 p.m. we waited until SEVEN P.M. for one parent to show up.

That was the trip in a nutshell. I only got sunburnt on the part of my back that I couldn't reach, which ended up looking like red angel wings (kinda cool, actually), and I didn't get dehydrated.

And I got to know some of the other teachers on a more personal level, which was delightful.

And oh yeah, I think the 8th graders enjoyed themselves. :)

The last Tuesday

Things went rather smoothly today. Apparently Hormone Boy got suspended for the rest of the week (aka rest of the school year), for screwing around with one of the school's walkie-talkies. And I heard that he didn't even do it, but he got blamed for it. I don't know. It's just kinda sad that he couldn't make it to the end of the year. And one of my other boys got suspended for giving another teacher a hard time when she was talking to him about dress code (his shirts are always down to his knees and his pants sag so bad he looks like a penguin). In the long run, it doesn't really matter, as most of the 8th graders weren't planning on coming the rest of the week anyways.

Now, it's off to the waterpark tomorrow!! I will write again tomorrow night, as long as I am not burnt to a crisp!

The last Monday

Well, I wouldn't exactly call paper airplanes a mistake per se, but it was a bit too chaotic. The kids were so darned excited to be allowed to make and throw airplanes in the class that they started throwing them within seconds of me passing out the paper. And they kept flying until I called it quits. We did, however, manage to have a contest for furthest distance and most creative. I had one student make a boomerang and another make a chicken out of paper. Pretty fun to watch what kids can make with one piece of computer paper.

Then, they worked on a mega Last Week of School word search I made last night on a whim. I'm glad I did. I had to stop the airplane flying by the first half of each block, so I was glad I had the word search to keep them busy.

This was the last Monday of the school year. Weird.

And tonight's the season finale of 24.

This time next week...

I will be a happy girl. I plan on speeding up this next week as much as I can...wait, what? I don't have that power? Well, I'll just try to make the best of it then. Here's the tentative agenda for the last week of school:

Monday-making paper airplanes and then giving candy to winners (Most Creative, Prettiest and obviously, the Furthest Flight). Not at all related to Language Arts, but it keeps their hands and minds busy.

Tuesday-7th graders are doing an activity about if their lives were made into a museum, and doing a Roundtable Activity (sitting in groups and listing as many as nouns, verbs, etc. they can think of). 8th graders will be watching "Akeelah and the Bee" (which they saw earlier in the year)

Wednesday-going to the waterpark with the 8th graders. ALL DAY. I plan to lather myself in Mason's sunscreen and relax. The 7th graders will be watching "Akeelah and the Bee" while I'm away. Easy for the sub.

Thursday-taking my 7th graders down to the auditorium to watch the 8th grade awards. Later, I think the 8th graders will be outside playing field games.

Friday-Early Release and LAST DAY!! Don't really have a plan. Maybe just playing Heads Up 7 Up and maybe eating snacks. That night is the BIG 8th GRADE DANCE. I'm dragging my hubby along so we can make a date out of it. I'm looking forward to it. Not sure how much my hubby wants to be dancing and hanging out with 13 year olds, but I'm thinking he'll still enjoy himself. It'll be like Prom but without the are-we-dating-or-just-friends awkwardness. :)

Here's to hoping you all have a good week too.

Almost done

Today was the Yearbook Dance at school. It meant that the kids were out of class at 1:30 and then basically had 2 hours to run around in the gym and Commons area to get their yearbooks signed. It was a tad bit crazy.

I don't miss my middle school years. I was an awkward, nervous, self-conscious girl who hadn't found herself and let her friends treat her like a doormat. And the end of the school year meant yearbooks, and it meant the nerve-racking event of trying to approach boys that I liked and try to get them to sign my yearbook. I wasn't at all aggressive or even assertive, so it was a very anxiety-driven process. I would make my friends ask them, or I'd make many failed attempts at walking up to them on my own. Oh, those are days that I am glad have passed.

So, now as a middle school teacher, I get to sit back and observe the hormonal and confused teens as they suffer through the antics of yearbook time. For some, it's a badge of popularity--they get as many people as they can to sign their yearbook. For others, they make a point to save a full page for each of their friends and then MAYBE ask other underlings to sign in some miniscule spot. And then there's those that have 2 or 3 people sign it and then put it away. I suppose that's more meaningful and you have a higher probablity that you'll remember those 2 or 3 people after middle school. I flipped through my 8th grade yearbook the other day (And by the way, there was a current events page, and the favorite singer was MC Hammer and the Gulf War was currently making history!! Yikes, I feel old!!), and it just made me shake my head and laugh. I don't recall 99% of the signatures in that book (except one whom I am still friends with!!), and I don't really care. It's just funny how people sign your yearbook with, "Let's hang out over the summer!" or "Keep it touch!" or "Call me at..." and none of it matters even a year later. Just a weird thing that doesn't seem to change after generations.

It just made me more glad that I was the teacher today and not the student. It's far more fun to be the observer than the participant.

And it was a dance too, so that's always fun to watch. A couple of girls got in a fight (over who knows what), and apparently a group of Mexican boys wanted to beat each other up as the dance was ending, so that's interesting. I tell ya, the natives are restless and they are ready to be out of the confines of the school. And so am I.

Thanks for the inspiration, Mrs. Bluebird!

I saw a ticker like this one on my dear friend, Mrs. Bluebird's site, and I thought I'd join her in the Vacation Revolution!!

Happy Mother's Day!!

Tomorrow is Mother's Day. If you're a mother, God Bless you and you are appreciated, even if you don't always think so. And if you're not a mother, be sure to call yours and tell her you love her.

Hurry up and wait

I hate waiting. I've never been very patient with it. It doesn't matter if it's waiting for presents on Christmas morning or waiting on the mailperson to deliver the mail or waiting to get pregnant (which I am currently doing).

But visiting the doctor is the worst. I've been struggling yet again with a sinusy issue and decided that it was time to go see the doc. I don't like any part of the procedure that entails seeing the doctor. I hate finding the time to call. I hate being put on hold by the receptionist. I hate telling the receptionist what's wrong with me, and feeling like I have to measure up to her standards on whether or not I'm worthy to make an appointment, more or less get one for the same day. I hate sitting in the waiting room. You sit there, among other sick people and hope you don't also catch what they have. Today, there was a cranky two year old whose mother looked just about defeated with his sickness (I heard wheezing and coughing). There was also a few other people that came and went (that's another part I hate--waiting longer than other people!!). Then they call your name at the front desk and you think, "Bingo! I've won! It's my turn!" and then all they ask is if your information is all current. Grrr. So I waited another 20 minutes or so and then finally, the magical door between the waiting room and the exam rooms opened and a nurse called my name. Then you are put in a small room and asked AGAIN what you're there for. What was the point in telling the receptionist? Then they leave and you wait some more. And I really hate waiting in there. You're just sitting there, on an exam table, listening to doors open and shut and the chatter of nurses and doctors and sometimes I wonder if they're all just standing out there giggling to themselves, "Let's see how long this one will wait." Or maybe I'm on some sort of hidden camera show and someone's going to pop out and say, "You just got punk'd" or something. But nope. It's just the cruewl process of being seen by a doctor. Which I didn't even get to do. I saw a NP (nurse practioner), which I know is valid and trained, but I just feel a little cheated. So, she examined me, asked me the basic questions and told me I had Sinusitis--which I've had before. I think it's a made-up name. Sinusitis just sounds fake--like what you tell your boss you have when you are calling in to tell her that you're, "cough, cough" sick. Then, the NP writes me 3 prescriptions and sends me on my way. Just like that. I probably saw her for 5 minutes tops. And I still have to wait some more, to stand in line at the payment desk to pay my $15 copay!! And here's the best part--I HAVE TO WAIT SOME MORE AT WALGREENS!!! And to pay $80 for 3 prescriptions!! And that's with insurance covering 90%!! Good gracious.

And that was my day.

Pleasant Surprise

After the incident with Hormone Boy, I was really dreading my 7th/8th period yesterday. I was expecting him to march into class and whine and disrupt the class by wanting to discuss why he was sent down to the office and how outrageous it was that he had to carry all those journals to the crate. But I was happy to realize that he wasn't in class. I was just hoping he wasn't ditching. Soon after class started, Mrs. Vice Principal gave me a ring and asked if my class was quieter than normal, to which I replied with a laugh, "why, yes it is." She said that I would be relieved of Hormone Boy for the rest of the week, as he visited the administration office during my class. Fine with me. Things went much smoother yesterday. Not to say the class acted like angels, but there wasn't any arguing or confrontation. In fact, when we were finished with journals yesterday, I said, "Now, it's time to pass them up, and if it isn't too much to ask, could the front of each row put them away?" to which the class laughed. They knew how ridiculous it had been for Hormone Boy to put up such a fuss.

And today I noticed on the absent list (that comes out 3rd period), that Hormone Boy was Home Suspended. Which means 1 of 2 things: he either acted up while in the office yesterday or got his butt in trouble for something else. Who knows. And sad to say, who cares. I mean, I care about Hormone Boy and really wish he would work to his potential. And I feel for his mom, as she is raising 4 boys (with only about a 6 or 7 year span total between them) alone. It's just that I want to get through the last few weeks of school without wanting to strangle a student. Is that too much to ask?

Oh yeah, and we had an Early Release today, for teacher training. Yeah!! The day just zooms by on shorter days. And the Inservice was vertical training (department level) and we got out about an hour early. Hallelujah. Thank God for the weekend.

3 more weeks to go...

What a letdown

Issue #1 today:
I have a 7th grade student I'll call N'awlins Boy (as in New Orleans--his family were victims of Hurricane Katrina), because that's where he's from. He has a sweet disposition and a very thick New Orleans accent. Anywho, he started out the year an average student: he came to class and did his work. However, as the year progressed, he slowly stopped doing both of those things. Eventually, he was in class maybe once a week. We found out he was outsmarting the system. Apparently if a student is out more than 9 days in a row and they are unexcused, then he is automatically withdrawn. So, he'd be out 9 days exactly. And then he'd come back for a day or two. Then he'd be out again. And when he came to class, I felt like I was always playing Catch-Up with him. It got to the point where I just didn't bother telling N'awlins Boy what he missed, because I knew he wouldn't be at school long enough to retain it or actually turn any work in. I guess the attendance issue got so bad that his parents got a letter warning them of the danger of them getting in trouble for not bringing him to school. Well, then he started coming. And I've seen him in class probably 8 out of the last 10 days. He wasn't getting a lot done, but at least he was sitting in a desk and perhaps absorbing a thing or two. But unfortunately, his nonchalant attitude had started rubbing off another one of my boys and together they didn't get much accomplished, besides chatting across the room to each other. Yesterday, I warned my entire class (about 10 minutes before the bell), that if they didn't have their vocabulary assignment finished, they would be coming in at lunch to finish it, because I had given them plenty of time. Quite a few students kicked it into gear and got it done just in time. N'awlins Boy, however, continued to work at a snail's pace. So, I handed him a Lunch Detention and guess what? He didn't show. So, today, I told him that he now had 2 Lunch Detentions (today and tomorrow) and if he didn't show, it would end up being ASD. Well, guess what? He didn't show. AGAIN. So I wrote him an ASD and as protocol, called home. As I am beginning to explain to Mom why he was written up, she stops me and says, "It doesn't really matter, because I am disenrolling him at this moment. I'm putting him in private school." Okay. That's weird. N'awlins Boy did stop by my class later today to get his final grade and he didn't say much. I asked why he was switching schools, but he said he didn't want to talk about it. If it's because they think he won't get harassed about not coming to school somewhere else, they are in for a big surprise. It's just sad, because he has potential. But if no one at home finds it important to be in school, then he doesn't have much of a chance.

Issue #2:
My day went pretty well (excluding Issue #1), and even my last block was being pretty good (partially because I was short like 10 kids, because of a few being sick and it was a track meet). Except for when it was time to pass up journals. In my class, we do journals everyday, and instead of 30 kids bringing journals back up to the crate in the front of the room, I have the person in the front of the row take them up. It works better and it's organized. No one has really complained about it. I switch the seating chart around enough, that no one is in the front for very long. And they've only had their current seats for about two weeks. Well, Hormone Boy sits in the front of one of the rows. And today, he decides he doesn't want to take up the journals. He tosses them on the floor and just sits there. I ask him what the deal is, and he responds with something along the lines that he doesn't think he should have to take anyone else's journal up. And that he didn't ask to be put in the front. I tell him I don't care if he wants to be in the front, and that it is his responsibility. He says (get this--this just kills me!) that he's going to go home and tell his mom that he doesn't think he should be responsible for anyone else's stuff. So what? I hope he tells his mom, and I hope she laughs. We're in this class as a team and we all have to help each other out once in awhile. I tell him that others put his journal away before and he says he doesn't care. It slowly escalates to a bigger deal, to which he eventually tosses the journals into the crate with defiance, and I send him to the office. To which he sits there for the remainder of the period, and no one talks to him. He just sat there and then headed off to go home when the last bell rang. I talked to the vice principal after school and she said that suspending him wouldn't help (because he wants to be home alone) and nothing else works. Okay, but what about the fact that he's distracting the learning of the other students and he's disrespectful to me constantly and he's refusing to do what he's asked to do?? I don't know what's going to happen, but I really don't want to spend the next 3 1/2 weeks with him and I in a battle. I've heard that his 2 older brothers that attended our school never made it to the last day of school, because they ended up suspended the last week. I guess Hormone Boy just wants to follow in their footsteps. I wish some of my students had better role models...

"From up here, you all look like little ants..."

Yesterday, my hubby took me flying. It was the first time since he was an actual student at that school, probably about 9 years ago. It was just him and I in a 4-seater plane and we flew to the Red Rocks (for you natives of my state, you know where that is) and had a nice, quiet brunch at the airport's restaurant. Then we flew home. It was neat. Weird, since it had been ages, and honestly a little nerve-wracking (even though I trust my hubby's abilities and judgment), but neat. It was worth the wait.

What a Fantastic Friday!!

Probably more so for the kids, but it was a pretty good day for me too. It was our monthly Fantastic Friday (kids get out of class early, and the good ones get to participate in some sort of activity), and this Friday was one all the kids (that got to go) seemed to enjoy. The PTSO organized a carnival of sorts, and sold wristbands for $5, for unlimited play on inflatable stuff like a slide and a bungee race thing. The kids could also purchase tickets for carnival style games like ring toss and the ping pong ball in the fish bowl game. But the kicker--and the big money maker--was the dunktank. And what's more, Mrs. Assistant Principal sat in the dunktank. I would be interested to know how much money was raised on that alone. The tickets were 25 cents a piece, and it cost 4 tickets for three balls. Let's just say, a lot of kids had no qualms about whacking balls at a trigger that tossed an adminstrator into a tank of cool water. They were laughing. They were screaming. They were applauding. And the best part, they were buying tickets for it like it was going out of style. The PTSO also sold snacks like soda and popcorn and there was face painting and inflatable hammers and bats that could be won. A good time for all, I think. It was quite toasty after 2 hours of being outside, but I was enjoying watching my kids out of their classroom element and running around like they hadn't seen grass in ages. A game of football got started on the side field and that seemed to attract a lot of my 8th grade boys. With food to snack on, an assistant principal to watch getting drenched and loads of other activities to choose from, I didn't see a single kid wandering around looking unhappy or slumping down in the grass looking bored. They were happy to be outside and able to be free from work. And it made the teachers happy too.

Happy Friend Day!

I don't know if it's anything official or national or whatever, but the local news said something about today being Friend Day. The newscasters had their long, lost friends on the show, and reminisced about their high school days and whatnot.

It just reminded me of how thankful I am for my true friends that have been more than I could ever ask for and have been a blessing in my life. I also feel sad and sorry that I have lost touch and/or lost the bond with certain friends, partially by my own fault. It's a little disheartening, when you really think about it. When you have a history with someone, and for a certain period of time you were close and had such great memories together. And then something happens. Life happens, I guess. Whatever it is, things change. You move on. You grow up. You have different priorities. You forget about that time in your life when you were connected at the hip. I guess it doesn't have to be a sad thing, since life just does that. We're grownups. We're not always going to enjoy the company of the same people we would have 5 or 10 years ago.

Maybe we're supposed to just remember those times in life fondly and move on. Maybe we're supposed to try to make it work with that person and try to get to know who they are now. I don't know. I don't have the answers. I guess what I'm trying to say is, if I've neglected a friendship with you, it was not at all with ill intent, and I am still deeply grateful for what you have meant to me.

So, take a moment and really think about those people in your life. I know it's cliche', but think about how they've changed you, inspired you, made you laugh, helped you cry, hugged when you needed it, listened to you gripe about crap. And even if you don't talk to them anymore, or it's awkward when you do, remember how your life was affected by them, and if you can't tell them personally, just keep it in your heart that they were placed in your life for a reason and it has forever changed you.

Warning: This entry is girly and a bit materialistic

I bought these shoes today at Payless! Aren't they fun? I was there looking for dress shoes for the 8th grade dance (last day of school), and of course, they were having Buy One Get One Half Off, and I saw these. They're fun, a little girly (that's leopard print) and they don't have to be tied (great for when I'm pregnant again)!! I love new shoes!

The natives are restless

I'm too tired and worn out to say much (plus it's Results Night on American Idol!), so let's just say that the kids are chomping at the bit. They're ready for summer. We're ready for summer. It's getting ugly. In my classes alone, I wanted to strangle a good dozen of them (but instead, I took the Christain approach and took a deep breath and said a little prayer in my head). But at least that was the extent of my antics. Somewhere else on campus (I'm not sure where, as I heard it secondhand from the vice principal), a kid bit another student. Yeah, BIT them. You don't hear about that much in grade school, not to mention MIDDLE SCHOOL. Oh yeah, and two other students were hauled off to Juvie today. 5 more weeks...

...And now I can breathe a sigh of relief

The BIG FAT STANDARDIZED TESTS are over!! What a relief. We took them Tuesday through Friday and it felt like longer. The test schedule was broken down into 2 hour segments (the first day being the writing assessment and the other 3 days were an hour of reading comprehension and an hour of math), which isn't so bad. I tried to tell the kids that I remember when I was in school that the state tests were all day. You tested all day, with just lunch and recess as a break. Could you imagine this generation (ones with an attention span of a gnat), sitting in a desk all day long taking a test? Yikes! I think the 2 hour segment is long enough.

I tried to peek at some of their tests (especially the writing one), and check out how they were doing. Most seemed to do pretty well. That test is so hard to analyze as a teacher though, since some just want it to be over, so they just rush. And others get stressed out at the end (which was like me as a student) and kinda give up. You hope that most of them care enough about it to try their best. It at least looked like the majority did. I guess we'll see when the scores come back, right?

I'm also glad testing week is over so we can get back to our regular schedule. I guess because of lunches, the day was broken down by taking test with 8th period class from 9-11 and then going to 3rd period and continuing from there and having 1st and 2nd period at the end of the day. I don't know who was more out of whack by the switch: the students or the teachers! We had this same schedule about a month ago, when we did a little version of the state test, but it was only for the day. This was 4 days!! I'll be glad to have my 1st/2nd period kids back in the morning. When they're still half asleep. At the end of the day is apparently their prime. And it just about made me crazy.

Needless to say, we are all able to relax a little and pray that the next 6 weeks go by without much incident. Once the BIG TEST is over, some of the kids sort of check out. They figure the school year is over already. Not so. And how do you keep them motivated to keep working and keep caring? That's the magic question!!

Happy Easter

MySpace Graphic Codes

Hope everyone has a peaceful day with family and it is a happy, joyful day for all.

P.S. Eat lots of candy!!

God Rocks!!

I'm gonna make this short and sweet, since the last 2 days have been non-stop. Yesterday, we left home right after I got off work and hurried down to my parents' house. We gave a few last minute instructions, kissed Mason goodbye and headed off to the concert. What a show. Stellar Kart opened (think Green Day with Christian lyrics), which we weren't familiar with, but they were high energy and a lot fun, and then came Kutless (the band we knew best--medium hardrock) and the headliner was the Newsboys (kinda U2-esque). They put on a great show. My throat still hurts from singing so loud. We're really glad we went.

We returned home this afternoon. I took a nap, but Mason decided he didn't need one, so Daddy entertained him for awhile. Then, we went to church for Good Friday service. And now we're home. Tomorrow we're going to our friends' house to color eggs with Sesame Street and Star Wars decorations (which one do you think Daddy picked out?)

The Spirit is alive and well in us lately. And just in time for Easter. :)

Long weekend, here we come!!!

Today I was at an Inservice at the District, which was pretty interesting. I learned some new things and felt refreshed about some old concepts. It was pretty worthwhile. Tomorrow my classes will just be doing last minute review for the BIG FAT STANDARDIZED TESTS that are next week. They're going to take a Practice Test and we're gonna grade it. And that's it. Tuesday begins the testing and I figure if they don't know it by now, oh well. I'm not going to cram or stress. Some kids aren't going to try on it anyways...

Tomorrow right after school, we're heading down south to go see Kutless and Newsboys (Christian rock) in concert, while Nana and Papa watch Mason. We're really looking forward to it. We haven't been to a concert in awhile, and we really like Kutless.

And did I mention NO SCHOOL Friday? Yeah!! We get it off for Good Friday, but the school calendar labels it as "Spring Recess". Don't get me started...

Hope everyone enjoys the weekend and if you're Christian, keeps Christ in mind and remembers why He died and what that means to us. God Bless.