Summer Living

It is light, but it is there!

 

This picture represents life for me.

 

In October 2011 my step-mom passed away. This was my first encounter with a grief stronger than I had ever known. My whole life changed that day in ways that I never thought were even possible.

 

I was very, very (I can’t stress enough) lucky to have the support of my team teacher, friends and boss and was allowed to have a week and a half off to deal with what I needed to do. Yet as we know, grief is not allotted to a week and a half time frame, and eventually I had to go back to work.

 

I know it would have been ok if I had had hard times at school, but how do you explain to twenty nine and ten year olds why you are crying in the middle of their math lesson on fractions? So I pushed aside a lot of my grief while at work. At home I was able to let the tears flow freely while I sat on the floor of my closet while trying to figure out what to wear that day, but not at school.

 

So when summer came and I no longer had to push anything aside, the grief over took me. I had a very hard summer. I rarely left my house and hardly communicated with anyone. I am trying to think of one thing I did last summer, and I can’t really. When I did leave the house, I suffered from severe social anxiety issues and questioned every interaction with friends. Sadly, I fear that some bridges may have been burned during this time.

 

It is hard to know if what I went through was a helpful way to deal with the gaping hole that was now in my heart and in my life, but it was what happened.

 

In May as the school year was coming to a rapid end I decided that this summer I was going to live and the bucket list was born. I wanted to make sure that I didn’t have a repeat of the summer before.

 

Back to my picture, in order to get a glorious Chaco tan, one has to be outside in the sun. In order to be out in the sun, one can’t sit at home on the couch. I got up and I got out there doing things that made my *heart flutter* and built memories. Thank you to all that helped me live this summer and also for your patience and understanding when I wasn't.

 

I lived this summer.

 

This is not to say that I forgot about my grief or that there is still a void in my life that I am not sure will ever be filled again, but it does say that Sandy would have been proud of me and wouldn’t have wanted me to spend another summer not living. She always lived her life even when she knew that the end was near and could have easily just given up.

 

Thank you, Sandy for once again being an inspiration and guide and still making an impact on my life. You were such a kindred spirit with *heart flutters* and truly understood that it is about the little things in life. I love you Blue Box Mama.

Reading RAOK

I can not understand why my RAOKs don't always go as planned! I suppose it adds a little bit more of a challenge.

Today I did this RAOK for a friend from high school to honor her on her 8th wedding anniversary (married on 8/8 and this year is their 8th...how cool is that?!)

I met Trina our freshman year when her class from Crawford came down to Hotchkiss to go to high school. We also worked at the pool together for a few summers and this is where I really got to know Trina and fall in love with the person that she is.

Trina has such a beautiful heart and love for life. I very much enjoy following her goings on with her family and uber cute children! She is an amazing mom and loves her children with her whole heart.

Amazing pictures taken by Trina's SIL. Check out her website at http://www.katiericephotography.com/

For my RAOK I wanted to hide a little something in a book. I choose this because while working at the pool when I was sitting at the front desk reading and she was on her break from guarding, I would read to her from whatever book I was reading. We read parts of the Left Behind Series and also explored "Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging (Confessions of Georgia Nicolson #1) by Louise Rennison. So I planned to put my little something in Angus since that book just makes me giggle.

So I made my little something and headed to the library.

 

Here is where things start to "fall apart," I can't find Angus! I look all around the young adult section and it isn't there. So I hop on the card catalogue and it is no longer even at the library anymore! Strike one.

Ok, no big deal, just find another funny book. "Matilda!" Strike two! It was checked out. Which I shouldn't complain about because some child somewhere is really enjoying a good book!

Now what am I going to do? I see tons of great books I can hide it in, but they aren't funny and since I added my P.S I had to find a funny book.

So I found "A Long Way From Chicago" by Richard Peck. Success!

 



I don't know how popular this book is (it should be read by everyone in my opinion) so I don't know how long it will take for it to be discovered. It will be fun to see if it is still there or not next time I go to the library.

Happy anniversary Adam and Trina!     

Revamped Ideas

I was once again blessed with pairs of little helping hands in my classroom again today, and boy howdy did we get lots done! As Abby exclaimed at the end, "It's starting to look like a real classroom!"

Back in July I posted about the idea of the Reading Graffiti Wall and that I had the dream of implementing it in my class this year. It almost didn't happen! *Gasp* The really cool makers I bought weren't going to work and I was going to have to use white paper. This wasn't much of a problem, but I really liked the idea of the black. Well with some quick thinking and tween obsession with polka dots, Abby helped be fix said problem! Her idea was actually even better than my original idea!

We would still use the black paper, but the students would write their quote on some sort of paper and then tape it on the paper. Abby used the di-cut to make circles out of regular copy paper and we added a colorful border and had complete success!

I like this idea better because it is a unique but also the students will be able to write on the dots easier than on the wall. Also if they make a mistake they can get a new dot and won't be scribbling on the black paper. Plus when it gets filled up, I can take the dots off and we can start over. I think it looks so cool!

We didn't just work all day, we even had time for a little picnic in the classroom!

On a side note, I had two other *heart flutters* today. Twice I had two different gentlemen keep chivalry alive! The first time I was carrying a rather heavy box down the hallway and it was promptly taken from me and taken to my destination. The second was while picking up lunch we were walking towards the door at the same time as another gentleman and he picked up his pace so he could get to the door before us and hold it. Of course I said thank you and he responded with a very friendly "have an amazing day." I exclaimed on the way to the car that chivalry was still alive and sadly Abby asked what chivalry even was. (She didn't seem all that impressed when I explained.) It just made me happy. Aren't nice people cool?

Here's to revamped ideas, creative juices and kind gentlemen sirs!

Friend·ship - the state of being friends

“Sometimes,' said Pooh, 'the smallest things take up the most room in your heart.”  
-A.A. Milne

 

 

My smallest "things" are two of my youngest friends. True kindred spirits and life long friends.

 

 

 

When I started teaching, I never thought about actually becoming friends with my students. I am pretty sure that this concept is probably frowned upon. Good news for me, they aren't my students anymore! I also never would have thought about having such a good friend that was 15-20 years younger than me either.

 

I realized that age really has nothing to do with friendship.

 

 

My team teacher and good friend, Kris, and I are about 20 years apart and I am not sure if we could get along any better. The age difference between Kris and myself is the same difference between Bre, Abby and myself. So who says I have to wait until these girls are 30 to become their friend?

 

The point of this post is to share how these two girls have filled my heart with flutters the past week.

 

The other day Abby and I had our annual August date. The past two years we have gone to the county fair for her to show me her projects but this year we decided to shake it up. We had ourselves a craft date and it was outstanding! I showed her a list of projects that I needed to get done and let her pick which one. We ate mac and cheese (always better shared) and decorated our notebooks for school. We also spent a little time working in my classroom (would have spent more time there to Abby's liking but had to go move the water on the lawn.)

 

 

Bre helped me with my classroom today. It isn't any secret that I have been slightly freaking out about being ready in time for school to start. With the ceiling caving in and my room being cleaned again I feared it wouldn't get finished in time. Bre's mom is our new secretary at the school so it worked out well for Bre to come and help me. What makes Bre the perfect candidate to help me is that she was in my class last year and she helped me pack it all up at the end of the year. I could just hand her something to do and she knew where and how I wanted it. Thankfully she had two other little helpers with her also. Oh how much we got done today! When I wanted a break and a snack, they wouldn't let me, they wanted to keep going! I wouldn't have gotten as much done today without them, both because they helped, but also kept me going!

 

Both girls touch my heart in different ways. I have known both of them for about the same amount of time (going on eight years)  and have gotten to know their families as well. We share some of the same interests and just enjoy each other. I have learned so much for them in their young lives, and am grateful for their friendship.

 

 I know that no matter where life takes us, and no matter our age, we will have a special bond. Strengthened by time, books, hot drinks to put our hands around, fun words and memories.

I'm thinking....

Going into year eight of teaching, I find myself wanting to change up the small things. The current thought on my mind is the name of my groups. Currently I have colors for both reading and writing. I have the same four colors for each subject and that just seems so boring!

This wild idea came to me first at the end of last year and I asked my current class if they thought it was cool if I had "fun" names for my groups and they resounded with a YES! All summer I have been wondering what to do. First I thought of doing reading characters for reading and then authors for writing, but it just never seemed right. I couldn't hear myself shouting out the names I had picked out to call up the group.

Tonight I am sitting and watching the very first Muppet Movie and it hit me! I could do Muppet characters! There are a good eight of them and I could print out their pictures. Then I thought maybe I could do superheroes.

To sum it all up, I still haven't decided what to do and I have only a few days left!

Teachers out there, what are the names of your groups?

Non-teachers, you could have some good ideas too, what should I do?

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken tortilla soup. Yum.



Today I got to meet up with one of my dearest friends/roommates from college. She currently lives in Nicaragua and I don't get to see her often, so we make the best of the time we do get together. What better way to celebrate than chicken tortilla soup!

While I was eating a few bites of her soup (because I wasn't smart enough to order it,) I decided that I really need to try to make my own soup. I think the reason that I have not tried yet is because I am afraid it isn't going to be good.

Well this is nonsense! I am just being a footler! I need to get my tookus into the kitchen!

Now the task of finding a recipe. There are more recipes for this soup than I have unread books on my list!

So I am asking for your help.

What recipe for chicken tortilla soup have you tried? Please share. I will make each recipe shared and whichever recipe I like best will receive a prize.

Out of My Mind

I am so stinkin' excited right now! I can barely contain myself! I have been given the green light to do read aloud in my classroom this year!

When I first started teaching fourth grade, we had a scheduled time to read aloud to the students and honestly that was my favorite time of the day. I would turn the lights off, turn the lamp on and sit in the rocking chair while I read to them. I made it through several books that year. Then because there just isn't enough time in the school day, it got cut. I was able to do it sporadically but it just wasn't to my satisfaction.

Here are a few reasons why I think it is important to do read aloud at any age (these are all based on my personal opinion and not necessary backed up by research):

• Allows students to hear what a fluent reader sounds like
• Modeling is such a huge piece in student's learning. If a student isn't read to at home and they only hear their classmates read, they may never hear what a fluent reader is supposed to sound like.
• Exposes them to books they wouldn't read on their own
• Once again, I feel like this helps the lower reader tremendously. If a student is reading at a lower level, they are missing out on some grade level appropriate content.
• All students benefit from this because often students will get stuck with only one type of book (sports, animal, vampires etc.) and once again miss out on some great literature.
• Sometimes it is just nice to sit and listen to someone read to you
• I like this as an adult and wish I could experience it more often
• It builds community
• One great thing about read aloud is the discussion that can come with it. During this time students have to learn to listen to each other and to respect other's ideas and opinions.
• It makes memories
• This point is probably my favorite. When I was in first grade, my teacher read to us every day during our milk time. She read James and the Giant Peach, Stuart Little (per my request), Indian in the Cupboard and there may have been more, but I remember those the most. I remember getting lost in the story and how much I enjoy it. Now 24 years later, I still remember it.
• Now that I am the teacher, I have students come back to me with comments about the books I have read to them. Every year I read Where the Red Fern Grows to my class, no matter what. Every year an upper class man always asks if I still am reading this book to my class.

Which leads me to my last point. It kind of goes with the modeling.

• Shows students it is ok to have emotion
• Up until this point, many students have never read a book that has made them feel anything. They are just books and stories to them and they may get enjoyment from them, but haven't really connected to it. Isn't that one of the big reasons to read? While reading Where the Red Fern Grows, I cry. I cry like a baby, long before the sad part even happens. I am ok with this. It shows the students that it is ok to cry at a book. It is ok to show emotion and that a book caused that emotion.

Ok well, that is my little opinion on read aloud. I can not wait to share the world of books with my students. I have picked to read Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper to start the year out. In the blog world, this book has been raved about and recommended for read aloud. My new blogging friend Sarah posted about this book not too long ago and it totally made my day! I was able to find questions, writing activities and other activities to go with it. My job is done other than reading the book to them!

I am sure there is more to come on this adventure I am about to take my students on.

What about you? Do you remember your teachers reading out loud to you? What books did they read?