My Door

If you've been in elementary school lately then you know that Read Across America Day, aka Dr. Seuss' birthday, is a big deal. We are having a door decorating contest. Our guest readers are judging Friday morning. I invited the Chatt State baseball team.

Speaking of school, I have my job for next year! Yay for me! Although there are days... Well.

Farewell

July 2012

Either you've been there and you know how it feels, or you haven't and there's nothing I could say to express it properly. We'll miss Grandma M. but we know she is at peace and not in pain any more.

Choices, Changes, and Life

This is more of a Chattanooga DP photo. But I already used this track and car a couple of times last week and didn't want to overdo it. It sort of illustrates how life often changes directions and sometimes we stop and wonder if we should have taken that other track. Unfortunately, in life we can't usually back up and give it another go.

This week I interviewed for my job for next year. I won't hear until next week if I have it or not. I also might get an offer in a different grade. And that could still change before school starts in the fall. I have decided that if I don't get this position, then I will go back to school (community) to switch to another field. I think I could work in an office if I had a paper that said I had the proper training. I feel like I can't work any harder at teaching than I do right now. If what I'm doing now isn't enough, then I don't have it in me to do more. So that's where I sit on my track.

Last week was sooooo busy. I actually got to the park and walked on Monday. I started the week trying to be healthy in my eating and everything. That lasted until Wednesday when I reached my breaking point in my patience with my class. Then I came home and ate some Cheezits. Tuesday we had conferences after school until 7:30. So that was 12 hours in school, plus an hour in transit. Wednesday was Ash Wednesday, so off to church for an hour and a half. Thursday was Valentine's Day and I made some steak/spinach pinwheels after taking Mr. C to get his allergy shots. After dinner we went back to the allergy doctor because he had a lump on his arm the size of a golf ball. It turned out to just be a muscle reaction to the shot and he iced it and took some ibuprofen. Friday M had a couple of friends from Alabama but she entertained them and I didn't have to do anything. Hubby and I went out for a "date" by ourselves (to Lowe's to buy light switch covers).

My exciting news is that next week I have a local meteorologist coming to talk to my class. She is bringing a TV camera and we're going to be on the evening news. I don't know how to put it up on here, but if I figure it out then I'll share. You can try checking it out on Wednesday at WDEF .

Mr. C had his induction into the National Junior Honor Society Friday. I should have taken the day off and gone, but I just have a hard time taking time off work. I guess I get personal days, I should use them. Last week he took the ACT as part of the Duke TIP program. He participated in the 4th grade Duke Talent Search and his standardized test scores (100 in science, 98 in math) qualified him for the 7th grade Talent Search. I think that Duke TIP is nation-wide, but I know there was some confusion when I mentioned him taking the ACT last week. Click on the high-lighted words to take you to the website.

I hope this update satisfies everyone (especially the two people who complained to me, haha) about the goings on here. I bet you wanted pictures of the kids though.

Weekend

Light in a jar

I think I definitely need to change my diet (thanks for the suggestion). In the previous post you can see my daily afternoon snack of Cheezits. M tracks her diet and exercise on a website. She has to have kiwis, bananas, and cherry tomatoes in the house at all times. I have to have Cheezits and Coke in the house at all times. Hmmmm... Is it too late to add to my New Year's Resolutions?

I also think that I am becoming addicted to teacherspayteachers.com and kevinandamanda.com. I can literally spend hours looking for stuff on there. Mostly I just download the free stuff, but I have bought a couple of things. Just this week I purchased a set of Essential Questions for First Grade (hoping I'll be in the same position next year!) from Deanna Jump. How does she make all those activities and still teach full-time??? I think she made over a million dollars last year on TPT. I can't imagine.

This morning Mr. C is taking the ACT. We forgot to get the traditional Toaster Strudels that we usually have on test days, so I told him we'd take him anywhere he wants for lunch. Knowing him it will be McDonald's.

Sunny today which is nice. I hope spring is on the way. We have had so much rain this winter and it's supposed to start again tomorrow. M hasn't been out on the water in forever and they are worried that the next time they have a chance will be at their first regatta. I saw an article in the paper that said the local barge company hasn't been able to operate for the last 5 weeks and the Delta Queen has been closed some too. However, TVA says that they have averted over 700 million in flood damages to Chattanooga in the last month with their dams. M said they went for a run on the Riverwalk to downtown this week. On the way out it was fine, but on the way back the water level rose so much that they had to run through 2 inches of water on the Riverwalk. I have noticed them spilling everyday on my way to work this week. I suppose in July we'll be praying for rain.

The photo at the top is one I've taken lately of objects around the house in natural light. I cropped it down a tiny bit but didn't adjust the color or lighting at all. I like this one because it looks as if all the light is caught in the jar. Well...I don't claim to be an art expert. Or any other kind of expert either.

All About Me

I have an interview for my job next Thursday--Valentine's Day. I'm not quite sure how to prepare. Bring a box of chocolates--haha!

Lately I've been so tired. I hate February. Almost as much October. Maybe more than October. I honestly believe the Earth passes through some negative energy field every February. It is the most depressing time of the year. We try to cover that up by celebrating everything possible in February: Valentine's, heart health, dental health, black history, Mardi Gras...

I've been getting up a half-hour earlier everyday to read a devotion and the Bible. (Maybe that's why I'm so tired?) It is amazing how the little passage can relate to my day. Earlier this week I read that whenever you start to say "If I just had more money/time/stuff" you should stop and realize that God has given you enough. You just have to use it wisely. My big thing at school is running out of time, or feeling rushed to get everything done by the end of the day. After reading that devotional, I stopped being stressed about what I wasn't getting to and concentrated on what I did get done. My kids are doing remarkably well. At least I think they are.

One thing I am trying to work on in my personal life is putting my family before work. It is so easy to put the job before the kids. I have been purposely leaving work at work so I can concentrate on home when I'm here. Just look at me trying to pay attention to Mr. C as he explains his newest Mine Craft creation in the photo above!

Indoor Rowing

M had an indoor race today. They all get on their ergs and row while little boats move across a screen, representing where each rower is in the race. Yes, it really is that exciting. We went to watch one of her two races. I thought she did fine.

She spent the last two months in physical therapy and finally got a shot in the shoulder this week. If she's still having problems in six weeks then she can get another shot. If she is still having problems after that then she will have to have surgery.