Happy New Year!

Michael and I are headed to San Francisco for the big 2-0-0-9. It has always been one of my dreams to go see the New Years fireworks in San Francisco. So, yay!

Before I go though, I wanted to post one more time in 2008. I usually do all of the talking so I'll keep this short, but please leave a comment with your resolutions, if any. I am usually pretty cynical and sarcastic and just say, "my resolution is to have no resolutions". This year I am seeing things differently for some reason and think I will work on telling my family I love them as much as possible and being the best teacher I can. The first one is simple but I don't do it as much as I actually feel it. The second one is a little tougher. I want to work on giving more guidance, building more confidence, and making sure the kids have the basics before heading off to third grade in a few months.

I did ask my kids if they had any resolutions and have to share a hilarious one. One of my girls said very confidently, "Well, I don't think there is anything I need to change about myself. I do want a new baby brother in the new year though because baby brothers are fun!"

Happy New Year!!!

Vacation!

Yay, two weeks off!! I was so excited to sleep in today, but of course little Miss. Cleo's stomach alarm went off at 7 am. She was meowing her little head off! I don't know if she was trying to help us because she thought we were sleeping through a school day or if she was just mad because breakfast was already a half an hour off schedule. Either way, it was nice to be able to get back into bed for another couple of hours. I was so freaking exhausted after yesterday that I was startlingly tired on the way home from school. I actually had to roll my windows down so the cold air could wake me up a bit. I think I was running on necessity the last few days of the week and my brain was just DONE. Our holiday party yesterday was really fun though. Another teacher told me, for her holiday party, she asks parents to volunteer in her classroom to teach arts and crafts projects . I loved the idea of breaking the kids up into groups and handing them off to other adults. With all their energy lately, it was a perfect way to disperse the chaos into manageable little clusters rather than one full blown, pre-holiday riot. The other teacher, however, said she was having a hard time getting parents this year and I started to get worried. She ended up only having a couple of parents volunteer and had to go out and buy a bunch of activities herself. My parents really came through though, I actually had more parents volunteer to do crafts than I had tables for and only had to spend about 15 bucks myself! The food situation was way more manageble and reasonable than Halloween was too. I, like the other teacher, chose to do the party in the morning so that all of the glue, paint, glitter, etc, could dry in time for transport. Therefore, we had a nice little breakfast themed selection of food and not just junk. One parent even brought in little breakfast burritos with eggs, sausage, and cheese- one of my tiniest little girls ate three however then complained of a stomache ache! Hmm, wonder why?! We had some really cute craft stations too. I did a Santa ornament and parents did everything from paper snowflakes, to snowman doorstops, and cookie decorating. It stayed organized and most kids made it to each craft table. They were too stuffed to even eat lunch though, oops! When they came back in from lunch, I threw on "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and cleaned up the room. I handed out their presents, books of course (a little pricey, but worth it), and opened some of my presents. Man, I hauled in some loot too: 4 Starbucks gift cards, candles, candy, decorations, two popcorn tins, a movie theatre gift card, and a Barnes and Noble gift card! I was shocked and so grateful. I had a moment yesterday when I just wanted to give them all a big hug and tell them I love them! A few of them said they were going to miss me over break, which really melted my heart. I said I would miss them too and meant it. Happy Holidays to anyone still reading my babbling....

Hello, I know it's been a while since I posted anything but I'm still alive over here! Life is whizzing by! I can't believe how quickly winter break approaching! So, some updates:

• I had to get a sub on Monday so that Miss. Cleo could go see a dental specialist at UC Davis. The poor thing had 6 kitty teeth removed and is now on 3mgs of opiates for the pain. Meow-ch!



• The kids were really nervous when I told them there would be a sub because they thought I wasn't coming back. Awww! I assured them I would be back Tuesday.



• I had to get a sub on Tuesday because, after waking up from a nap on Monday, my throat was on fire.



• The kids were excited to see me again even though I drug my still-sick-self to school! I was so in love with them that I taught my little voice out and was hoarse for the rest of the week. Everyone that heard me said I should have stayed home some more. It is Saturday and I am still resting the voice.



• I have learned that it is very hard to plan everything, label everything, explain everything, and anticipate everything a sub will need. I would rather just go in half-dead and do it myself. Oh, and I guess I am a control freak...



• On Monday morning I have my first real evaluation from the principal. He is going to come in and watch a math lesson. I hate observations but have gotten better over the last few years. During my first one ever, I got so nervous that I literally forgot what I was teaching. It was a nightmare, my blood was whooshing so loudly in my ears I couldn't even hear. I was sure everyone could hear my heart thumping and I'm pretty sure I blacked out at some point. That was a few years ago though and now I worry more about just teaching and whoever watches is secondary.



• Lastly, I wanted to share a sort of "Kids say the darndest things" portion of my daily life.
  
  While the kids were all walking in line to lunch one of my rather quirky little boy proclaims to nobody in particular "I like tuna salad." Now mind you, our line is supposed to be "straight and silent" at all times so it's not like he was even having a conversation with anyone about sandwiches!
  
  Our school is having a "Toes and Tushes" drive. Students are encouraged to donate brand new, in the package socks and undies for families in need. Upon explaining this to the kids, one of my little girls comes up to me all embarassed after class and says "I don't think my mommy will let me bring my underwear to school." Hehe!
  
  Every morning I check the students' homework logs. They write down their homework for the night and there is a portion where parents are to sign when the child reads for 20 minutes. If they bring back all of their homework completed and have a parent signature, they get a sticker. The sticker goes in their sticker book and when they fill up a page in the sticker book they get to pick something from the "big blue boowl" which is filled with all kinds of cool trinkets and do-dads. Well, I think kids think that if they tell me why their parents didn't sign, that it makes it all okay and I will give them a sticker anyway. I usually hear the run of the mill, "I forgot", My mom forgot", "It got late, I had to go to bed", but one girl last week told me.....drum roll, please...."My dad didn't sign it because he got too drunk." Oh, really? Note to self: keep an eye on that one!
  
  And in honor of the season... about a week and a half ago, one of my little boys that has some anger and resentment issues announced to the class, "Santa doesn't really exist, it's just your mom." I swear a couple of my kids were about to vomit from the shock. Luckily, we were finishing an art project (to be translated as: it was a little loud in the room) and many kids didn't hear him, but the ones that did just went pale. I pulled him outside and had the little talk about, "Just because you don't believe, doesn't mean others don't."

So that's it from me. Thanks for reading, it feels good to vent all this and save my voice at the same time. Hope everyone is happy and doing well. Peace!