Spring Break Days

It's ironic to me that the last post was named "Winter Days" and I just wrapped up the last day of my spring break enjoying +70 degree weather.  I think I will officially declare winter over spring HERE.

We did get a snow day on March 25th.  It was our first one in 2 years.  Silly that we would get 10 inches of snow at the end of March 3 days before SPRING break.  However, I did enjoy sledding and helping dig a friend's car out of the interstate median.  It was a pretty great snow day.

Things I enjoy about spring break:

• Eating cake for breakfast - it is a VERY good thing this isn't more than a week.  I would probably gain 30 lbs
• Walks - long ones to justify the cake
• T-Shirts
• Jeans
• Not showering - when you don't leave your apartment showering just isn't necessary
• Boredom

I think the cabin fever will be vanquished.  We are going to race through the next 8 weeks and summer is going to be here before I can blink.  (Somebody hide the cake!)

Winter Days

Does anyone still read this anymore????  I would guess that if a person takes 1+ month between posts people probably stop checking it to see "what's new."  Oh well, I'll update anyway.  Can't promise this will continue into year 5 though.

The biggest update is that I was lying when I said I couldn't have more than 24 kids.  I now have 25.  It was a matter of circumstance because a student who has been in foster care moved to be with dad but is now back in foster care.  When she moved back, it was only fair and right to put her back in my room with people and a routine that she knew.  I definitely wanted that even though it means we are smushed together all the time.

This leads right into the next thing which is that at this point in the year we can't get to spring break fast enough.  It's cabin fever at its worst with lots of inside recess, nitpicking, name calling, and all the other little things that make the teacher crazy.  It has taken all the self-restraint I have to stop myself from walking over and snapping in half the pencils of an overzealous aspiring drummer.  Seriously.

The other addition is a student with a host of issues.  He was moved over from the class across the hall; and having been in that position a year ago, I know how it feels to do that.  Now, it's my turn to be the recipient and what goes around comes around.   Honestly, I'm ok with that because it just shows that it all evens out in the end.  I won't go into all the issues here but suffice it to say it is going to challenge me through the last 2 weeks and a quarter.  However, there are a lot of things I have learned over the last year, and hopefully it will carry us all through to the end.  Or at least Spring Break.

January Thoughts

One student found the word "date" at the top of his page.  He asked what it said.  I said, "date."

The next obvious response was "My parents go on a date!!!"

I share to say that I have found one of the hardest things for kids to understand is time.  We do calendar everyday.  We talk about the "date" every day.  We cover days of the week, the month, and year but it is still completely foreign to most of the them.  I don't know when they "get it." I hope most of them start to have a general sense by the end of the year, but I don't count on it.  I've decided it's one of those things that will suddenly make sense one day and nothing I do will make that day come faster or sooner.  I have a feeling if I taught them how to tell time that would help but then they would tell me when it was time to do things and I would lose some of my precious control.  Besides, the new common core standards say that I don't have to teach time.  Easy cop out but completely true.

I do not like writing sub plans.  I am getting ready to do 2 days of testing so I get to listen to 2nd graders read while there is a sub in my room.  It helps that I have a good one, but that does not make it easier to write them.  I drive away sickness with my loathing of sub plans.

We are HALFWAY through the year!  That seems crazy but I am loving what we have accomplished so far.  So many of them are reading and writing independently that it is exciting to watch them learn.  I have an idea for a post about taking pictures of their writing and making you guess what it says.  It probably isn't nearly as exciting to you as it is to me but it's fun to watch.  They have gone from nothing to something.  AND we still have 85 days to go.

The 100th day is Thursday!  It's a fun day.  Pictures?  Maybe. 

They're Cute

This year's kids are just plain cute.  They say cute things.  They have tiny bodies and big smiles.  They care about each other and mostly want to make those around them happy.  I really wish I would show you their pictures and prove it to you.  I think you would agree.   However, I can show you this.  I am not really even sure what it is.  It might be a dinosaur or it might be chicken.  It's a little hard to tell.  He was SUPER proud of it as he presented it to me and whispered, "And there's a message on the bottom!" and ran away.  I mean how cute is that??!

Make Up November & December

FINALLY Kindergarten Kids Pictures

 This is the best group of faces yet.  Some are half colored but they mostly are all human!!  Yeah!!!

We carved pumpkins for our small group Halloween Party.  Next week, we are going to decorate cookies for Christmas.  Yeah, yeah, I'm a little behind.

• I now have 24 students.  I'm pretty sure it's illegal or something to give me more.  Or at least they have to pay me more if they do.  We don't really fit anywhere and line is something like 100 yards long.  They don't get sick and they don't move away.  They are just all there every day.  Thank goodness they listen or I might be halfway to crazy.
• They really do listen.  And their parents care.  I am a big fan of parents who are involved.  They read with them, practice sight words, sign papers, and return phone calls.  Honestly, it isn't everyone but it's more than most years and it makes a big difference.  I will not wish this year over too quickly
• Christmas vacation is only 3 weeks away.  That is CRAZY.  It seems like we are just barely getting started.
• They say funny things but I forget them.  Sorry.  
• On Sunday evenings, I make muffins and take them into school for what has been dubbed "Muffin Mondays."  I started it just to bring some cheer to the building and it's been a lot of fun each week to find and try a new recipe.  Check out my Pinterest board for most of the ones I've tried.  
• I Christmas shopped and wrote my Christmas letter yesterday.  I will probably be decidedly less grumpy in the next three weeks.  
• I am going back to Ethiopia in June and we have a meeting next Sunday.  Are you interested?  You should come.  It's great. 

October

Well, I bet you think our softball team must have won state by now because that is the only reasonable explanation as to why I would not have the time to update this.  Unfortunately, that isn't the case.  Softball has been over for a month.  In my defense, it feels like I'm just getting all caught up but that's probably just an excuse.  I'm out of the habit and I don't know if I'll ever pick it back up the place it used to be.  For now, I will catch up the last month.

The softball team lost in the regional championship game 5-3.  We had a chance but not the extra luck we needed to pull it out over the other team.  The highlight of the game was successfully pulling off the suicide squeeze and surprising everyone in the field and the stands.  Shoot, I even think we surprised ourselves that we did it so well.  It was a great year and I am really proud of our girls.

School is also off to a great start.  I have pictures of Kindergarten faces but they aren't on this computer yet and my camera is at school.  It's refreshing to have a group that listens, responds appropriately, wants to learn, and is eager to please.  They are a breath of fresh air and making our time together already go too fast.  I can't think of any funny or crazy stories off the top of my head but they are pretty cute and have me smiling most of the time.  If I could post their faces, you would know what I mean.

We took a field trip to a local apple orchard last Thursday and that was superb.  We had beautiful weather, lots of time to play, and donuts to eat.  Alas, I forgot to take my camera so there won't be pictures from this year's trip, but I captured them in my mind.  : )

Illini football is bad but I go to and watch the games anyway.  My new car turned 1 year old and tomorrow is going to get cleaned out and cleaned up for a present.  I got my hair cut to right above my shoulders and am planning on going back to Africa next June.  That pretty much hits the highlights of what's going on for me.  Hope your fall has been a blessed one!

Post Season Play

Some very significant things are happening for our softball team.

First, I got my best bruise as a coach.  It came while sitting on a bucket calling pitches and our shortstop over threw first base into my hip.  It looks a lot worse than it feels.  I'm actually pretty proud of it.  I expect it will be gone within the week.

Second, we are 10-4!  We've only been schlacked once and have done a pretty good job of putting it on everybody else.  We have far exceeded expectations.

Third, we got the second seed in the regional and have a really legitimate shot at getting to the Regional Championship game.  We will play Wednesday and Saturday this week.  If we win both, we will play next Monday for the regional championship.  All the games are in our town so hopefully we will have some home field advantage and got out with a bang.  Go Bulldogs!!!