Make a Smilebox slideshow

First Day of Kindergarten

Vacation is Almost Over

Summer is almost over for me and I can honestly say I am glad. I miss the routine of a "normal" day. It is hard to try to keep the kids out of Bill's hair while he is working but I hated sending them to daycare.

I finished all of my reading list for the summer plus got in a few extras. I really enjoyed reading and I hope to do the same assignment next year. It keeps me up to date on what the kids are reading.

I was able to attend a teachers workshop this summer called "Great Expectations". It was wonderful. I received a manual that was about 4 inches thick and was overwhelmed by all the information that I obtained. I am really excited to see how it works in my classroom. They told us that it was take a good three years before you were really comfortable with it and I am sure that will be the case. The key will be consistency. I HAVE to stick with it, even on those days that I am exhausted.

My classroom is pretty much ready I may post pictures. Not sure how many people care to see it because if you are not a teacher it is really hard to get excited about a decorated classroom. :) Bill told me I am in the right profession. I get very excited when it comes to teaching. However, teaching children's service at camp would not be my comfort zone I have realized. I don't know why but that kind of stuff makes me very nervous. I guess I am more into teaching the academics rather than the songs, stories and skits. Give me a good old math lesson any day!!

This post has got way to long so I guess I will sign off.

The Good Dog

Easy to read. From a canine's perspective the author tells how a malamute, McKinley's life changes when he meets a wild wolf. McKinley is the head dog of Steamboat Springs. He meets a wolf named Lupin who has come to recruit dogs to go live in the wild with her dwindling pack. The town discovers the wolf and organize a hunt to kill the her. It is up to McKinley to protect the wolf and his "human pup". This is a good story about leadership and friendship. Boys would love this book.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham

This book was very funny. I laughed out loud on several occasions. The Watsons are a colored family whole live in the the north during the 1960s. Byron Watson is constantly teased and harassed by his older brother and his friends. His older brother finally goes to far and his parents decide to take a family vacation to Birmingham and drop his brother off at their grandma's house and make him stay there the entire summer. While they are there a tragic incident happens and causes Byron to rethink life. Great read.

Out of the Dust

I loved this book!!! I couldn't but it down. The story in written in a poetry format so it is very easy to read. The story takes place in the 1920's when a girl named Billie Jo is born in a small cabin in the pan handle of Oklahoma. She is a very good pianist and loves apples. One day her and her mother have a tragic accident. All Billie Jo can think about it leaving Oklahoma and the dust and getting a new life. This is a heart wrenching book. It is a book of hope, tragedy, and love. I think I will read this aloud to my class next year.

Elephant Run

This is another WWII book (LOL!! do you think they boys in my class enjoyed reading about WWII?). Nick Freestones apartment in London gets blown up during the war. To keep him safe his mother sends him to Burma to live with his father because she thinks he will be safer there. While he is there the Japanese invade Burma and capture him and his father. They are separated for about a year. The book deals alot with Nicks mission to free his father. It was a great book. It is another book that has a different look at WWII. Several boys in my class tried to read it but couldn't get interested in the first couple of chapters so they abandoned it. I wish they would have kept on because I know they would have loved it.

Facebook

I have taken the plunge and joined up with facebook. If you read this blog I would love to have you has a friend on facebook. I have been reading Bill's facebook and decided I would get my own so I could comment to friends. I'm not sure I will like it. It seems like a bunch of "rubbish" but every once in a while I read something interesting.

Sea World

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

SOLD

I know most of you read Bills blog and heard that we sold our house. YIPPPEEE!! The realtor took this picture and I just had to post. It is such a relief. We will probably wait until after the first of the year before we purchase here for several reasons.

Al Capone Does My Shirts

I just finished reading this and it was a big surprise. I thought this would be a very humorous book but it really wasn't. It was very hard to get into but I LOVED the ending. The book deals with "Moose" and how he learns to deal with his autistic sister Natalie. Their father is a maintenance man at Alcatraz so the whole family lives there. I had a hard time trying to get any of my students to read this book this year. I may have to read this out loud. There are a few inappropriate words that I will need to mark out otherwise it was a great story.

This book was a great read. It was about a girl from Lidice, Czechoslovakia who was captured by Germans and trained to be a "german" girl. If you are interested or studying WWII and are looking for a different way of reading about WWII this would be a book worth reading. I know most books I have read (fiction and non) always deal with Germans killing Jews. This was different than that. I thought this would be a tear jerker but it wasn't at all. Very appropriate for 5/6 graders. This book was recommended by Emily. Thanks Emily.

Summer Reading

On the last day of school I had the class choose at least ten books for me to read this summer. The only requirement was I wanted books I had never read. Here is what the chose.

On the Wings of Heros- Richard Peck- I've already finished this book. It was a really good fiction book. It was a great look at how life was like during WWII in the U.S.A.

Someone Named Eva- Joan M. Wolf- this is the one I am reading right now. I have a feeling this is going to be a tear jerker.

Runs with Horses- Brian Burks

Rules-Cynthia Lord

My Side of the Mountain- Jean Craighead George

Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry- Mildred D. Taylor

Out of the Dust- Karen Hesse

Sarahs New World-Colleen Reece

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963--Christopher Paul Curtis

Al Capone Does My Shirts-Gennifer Choldenko

Walk Two Moon-Sharon Creech

The Westing Game- Ellen Raskin

Wringer- Jerry Spinelli

My life as alien Monster bait-Bill Myers

Elephant Run-Roland Smith

The Good Dog-Avi

The Fall of the Amazing Zalindas (Sherluck Holmes)- Tracy Mack and Michael Citrin

Some of these books have been read by students in class and are highly recommended for me to read. I just love it when students read a good book and tell me I need to read it. I may try to write a short review of each book I read and let the world know what I thought.

Great Thougt on Marriage

I read this today and thought it was so good.

You think you know who you are. Then you get engaged and you try to do all these things to be the person you’re suppose to be. Then you’re married for awhile and you find out the person you really are.

I’ve been thinking about those words. I think she’s right. And when the marriage is strong, really really strong, you end up being a better version of the person you thought you were before being engaged. You find out you’re a better person than you ever could have been without your spouse. You find out that two is better than one. And you spend each day grateful for the delight of every day.

At least I do. Bill has made me such a better person in so many ways of course some ways maybe not so good :). I know that when I got married I thought I knew who I was and what I wanted in life. I look back now and realize how immature and naive I really was. I wouln't want to go through life with anyone else.

Boys will be Boys

Just last week I was talking to my sister-in-law and telling her how much Patrick is like her son Nicholas. They like to dress up and have many other things in common. Well, yesterday we found another thing they have in common. They like to visit the emergency room. I won't go into too many details you can read them on Bills blog. I was very thankful Bill was there because I could hardly look at him it looked so awful. He did a great job with the Dr. and was very cooperative. He acted worse this morning when I tried to clean it. Go figure I guess it was just because it was mom and not a man in a scrubs telling him to sit still. Nellie was with him when it happened and I think she may have gotten a little spooked. She has been very clingy to me since it all happened. She saw it happen so I am sure it was upsetting. I hope the pictures don't upset you too bad. If they do just don't look. :)

Soccer Pictures

We got Patrick's soccer pictures this week and thought I would share them. He loved soccer. We plan on enrolling him next season. Yes that is Patrick with the shades on. He found them on the way to the soccer game and insisted on wearing them the entire game. He is so much like his dad it isn't funny. They are not afraid to be different. That is one of the many qualities I love about them. :)

COOK-A-DOODLE-DOO

This week in class we read the book "Cook-A-Doodle-Doo. If you haven't read this book it is a great story young and older (5th/6th) children. At the end of this story there was a recipe for strawberry shortcake. I split the class into teams and had them make one w/o my help. This was a great activity for teamwork and following directions. We had a few kindergarten students come in and help us out. It was pouring down rain outside so the kids were soaked. That is why they look so wet!!





These boys didn't like strawberries (crazy I know!) so they made their own version. :)

This was my conversation with my 2 year old daughter this morning.

"Nellie, it's time to wake up"

She rolls over and says, "Mom, ice cream cone"

"Why don't you drink some milk?"

"No! Ice cream cone."

I go and get her an ice cream cone because at this point in her life you need to let her eat when she is hungry because we have a hard time getting food down her.

I give her the ice cream cone and she says....

"Mom, watch Scooby, Shaggy" LOL!!!

I just cracked up. What I wouldn't give to have someone wait on me like that.

Happy Birthday to my Little Skipper-Rooni

Today my eldest turns 5!!! How quickly time flies. I hope he has a great birthday. I am going to take some treats up to his class later on this morning so he can celebrate with his friends. He is a very compassionate child and a great big brother. Happy birthday Patrick.

Patricks Soccer Game

Halftime: Time for Gatorade

Patrick had his first soccer game Sat. morning. It was very entertaining. Patrick spent half of the game in his own little world (as did some of the others). I was by myself so I couldn't really tell him what to do or help him out. They don't keep score so they just have a ball.

Patrick throwing the ball in after it was kicked out of bounds. He loved doing this.

Here is was being called over to throw the ball in.

Lining up on the center circle to start the game.

This was taken during the game. Notice how he is standing in the middle of the field. The kids wasn't too sure of all the yelling. They were getting a little confused. Patrick is enjoying it.

Well....last night Bill took me to urgent care to get everything settled. When I went in and told the Dr. my symptoms and family history they decided to run a EKG on me to make sure I wasn't having a heart attack. Everything was normal. So no need to worry!!?! I did have a lot of fluid behind my ears which is causing my dizziness. The Dr. also said that my back look awful and that I need to go to the chiropractor (which I love to do. It feels great to me). She thought because my back was so bad it was pulling muscles in my chest. Not sure if that makes sense but I plan on making a chiropractor appointment today and see if that helps. I am going to have to stop carrying my 2 1/2 yr. old daughter around. Thanks for the thoughtful comments. It is nice knowing people do understand what I am going through.

Head Sickness

hypochondriac n. A person who has hypochondria

Hypochondria: n. worry or anxiety about one's health that is so great that one may imagine oneself to have some sickness.

If you are around me any length of time you will find out I am and have this disorder. Lately, I have been "imagining" (or am I?) that I have a illness. I attended a meeting at PSU Sat. morning and the facilitator was telling us about her symptoms of having a heart attack this last January. Well...guess what.....on my way home I started having these symptoms?! I am trying to cope with this and don't know what I am going to do. Bill is telling me to go to the Dr. and just get it settled so I don't worry. I think he is probably right and I know he gets frustrated with me. I am wondering if I am not just having a panic attack because I am worrying so much.

Nellie's Progress Report

As a somewhat new teacher, I have taught for almost 5 years but that is nothing compared to some people I know, I find myself overwhelmed by everything teaching involves. You have state standards, national standards, state and national tests and so many other day to day issues that you have to deal with. There are so many resources out there that make teaching look so easy but I am finding there is never a quick fix. As a teacher I want my class to be fun and engaging. I don't want to be that teacher that just has students open a book, read, and then answer questions or do a worksheet. I want them to dig and discover new things and apply them to life. So many kids today don't know how to "think". They need to learn how to read and write and really think about what they are doing. I don't want to be a teacher who falls into the trap of doing things the "easy" way. I am finding it takes time and energy to plan out lessons (and I don't mean tearing out worksheets. :) ) This time is hard to come by when you have two children and a husband at home. One of my goals this summer is to go through textbooks and start planning early. I'm going through my textbooks and coming up with some new and hopefully exciting and engaging ideas.
I am a huge graphic organizer lover. I'm not sure if any of you out there use these in your classroom or if you homeschool but these are a great tool for writing and reading comprehension. I haven't used a lot of them this school year but that is one thing I am going to more of next year. I have used them a lot of in the past. I also am a big advocate of writing. As you can tell I'm not the best writer but I am working on it. As a student I never remember getting much training in writing and wish I had. I know teaching language has it place but I read this today and loved it.....Author Dave Marks believes that kids become good writers by ... writing! Not by doing endless diagramming or laboring over parts of speech worksheets. He eloquently equates the process of learning to write to learning to ride a bicycle ... you get on and ride, not spend weeks, months, or years labeling the parts of a bicycle on worksheets! I use a program in my classroom called Six-Trait Writing. This is a great writing program and the kids are doing quite well with it.
Well, these have been thoughts on my mind today and thought I would share. If anybody has any great websites or ideas I am open. In closing I found this great website this week and LOVE it.

Movies I can watch with my kids

• Cars (one of my all time favorites) btw: on of my favorite lines from that movie is "people didn't drive to make good time, they drove to have a good time" -sometimes in life we just need to slow down and enjoy what we have around us.
  
• Ratatouille
• Scooby Doo
• Bugs Life
• Toy Story
• Veggie Tales (any of them)
  

However I am SICK of Max and Ruby and Blues Clues!!! LOL!!! Can you tell what I did all day!!!

Misc.

If you have been reading Bill's blog you know that I am off this week on spring break. I was going to take the kids to daycare just to have some rest but I feel guilty shipping my kids off when I am just sitting at home. :) I am enjoying my time with them and playing with them. This morning we had a "picnic" in the living room. I tried to get them to watch a Shirley Temple movie but they weren't too interested. Tomorrow I would like to go to the used book store here in town and see if I can find some books for my classroom. I am trying to collect all the Newberry award winning books.

Bill and I are in the process of deciding what to do with our house. The first of May will make it one year ago that we put it up for sale. We are strongly considering just renting it out. Bill is not looking forward to mowing this summer.

Weight watchers went well this week. I lost 1.2 lbs. I have lost a total of 11 lbs. I am not near as close to my goal as Bill is his but I am making progress. I'm thinking of starting water aerobics. I'm not sure if I will have the time though.

Patricks Report Card

Patrick received his report card today. He knew everything that was circled. We are very pleased in the progress in school this year. He is very excited about kindergarten next year. Our boy is growing up.