Time, where are you?

I am great at managing time...I thrive on lists, organization and am slightly anal with my paperwork....I should have bought stock in 3-M with the invention of post-its as I thoroughly enjoy them and all them offer me in quick notes about what I shouldn't forget to do. I am able to multi task and, as most of my friends can tell you, am pretty dependable in doing the things I say I will do. With all of this super efficiency, and borderline type A behavior, you'd think I would have done all the things that I should have done.....but,somehow, I never have enough hours in the day and end up with more lists... So, then...what benefit do I get from creating all of the lists, being organized and efficient??? I suppose that it is partly what keeps me sane....I, as sadistic as it sounds, get great pleasure of working up to the last minute, crossing off items on a list that I have accomplished (and yes, I have gone back to add items to a list that I already did, just to be able to cross it off :) and basically creating this lack of time that I seem to have just working!
I am learning, however, that I truly LOVE my job..I love working....and I could spend many more hours than what I do just getting ready for the next days lesson plan and activity...but I need to prioritize my time so that I am spending it where I will get the greatest returns...with my children. Sometimes I feel like I might be shortchanging them......that somehow, I end up worrying about time spent on the wrong things..... But everyday it is the time I have with them when we have our chats about our day (brags and bummers) and the fabulous hugs and kisses I get that I realize that lists and time management or not, the time I have with them is time always well spent, regardless of all the other stuff I have to do...so, give me a few more hours in my day, or not, somehow I will manage to use them to get my list checked off and read a few extra books with my kiddos....maybe instead of extra hours, I just need extra arms!!??

Investing in memories...

Due to crazy conflicts with first days of school, back to school meetings, Madeline's Montessori school being closed for annual cleaning, she got to spend a week with my parents. As always, after carefully packing, giving kisses and talking about not bossing Ee-ma and Popsy around (this is what she calls my mom and dad), she happily left with my dad to spend a week away without blinking an eye or shedding a tear...something that at the core makes me feel so fortunate about. Although I lived across the country from one set of grandparents, and 30 minutes away from the other..the memories that I have still fresh in my mind are ones I will treasure like most adult grandchildren. The smells of my grandparents house...the cereal they would always remember to buy me when they knew we would be coming (which for my PA grandparents was not so often, but somehow, my Nanny Jean always had Quaker Granola for me - no nuts, no matter what), or the undivided attention we would always get when we were with them (lots of Old Maid games, shopping, and swimming). I know now that it is my children's turn to create and experience the same memories....and my parents have done a knockout job so far....all the way from the sweet cereals that we won't buy at home and they NEVER bought for us growing up, to tea parties and painting...they get it all when they are with my parents. My mom emailed me about Maddie waking her up at 2:30 at night just to say to her "I just wanted to give you a hug and a kiss Ee-Ma"....that was enough for me to know that my parents have become legends in the minds of my children....and just how lucky they are to have them...and how lucky I am to have them as parents. From the summer lemonade stands that my mom organized, to the tea parties using her childhood tea set, to my dad playing music for them while they dance, and chasing them around the house while they are in a fit of giggles....lots of treasure hunt walks with ziplock bags in hand that come back with mostly garbage AKA "treasures" they get it all...attention, love, laughter, a few tears and lots of memories....how lucky they are...

Change is good...or is it?

Let me sum up my first week at my new school:
Day 1: No parking place....park in student parking...phew..didn't get a ticket....
Students seem nice, very quiet but listened intently as I went over the basic first day "stuff"...
Getting sick...nose ran incessantly during all classes...head throbbing by the end of the day...
I sold my only free hour to teach a second level internship course...crap..no time today!! Get home and realize I forgot to attend Madeline's school orientation meeting..where did the time go?
Day 2: No parking place...park in student parking lot.... Find cockroaches (again) in kitchen labs..gross. Sick as a dog...horrible head cold..
Can't take school credit card overnight due to school/district policy...I have no prep to get the, card must be back by 3:15....school is out at 2:30...I have 45 minutes to race to the store and buy $200 worth of groceries for my foods class...WHAT?!
Get into confrontation with very SASSY girls....argh... have no time....Feel horrible..have meltdown in front of department chair..must sit down with head between legs as I am SO worked up from sick..stress..and sassy girls..oh, and changing schools...my old school is looking pretty good right about now..
Go to leave, find ORANGE sticker/ticket on car...CRAP.
Order takeout as I am TOO tired to cook...go to pick up...they don't have my order??!!...I ordered from the wrong restaurant...CRAP, again.
Day 3: No Parking place..again. Can it get worse? Still no time, SASSY girls drop my class (yay!)....discover mold in my classroom..still can't get custodian in my room...still feel horrible..is it Friday yet...?Again, No time.
Day 4: It is Friday, need I say more?

First Day Hooray!

First day of school...what can I say. Fortunately I knew ahead of time that he would not be teary eyed, clinging to my leg for dear life. Instead, Steve said he happily got in line and waved goodbye... Being a working mom, my kiddos have always been in the best hands of other trustworthy adults during the day. Prior to PS, he was at a Montessori school which prepared him for this moment... Since my school starts at 7:30 and his starts at 8:50, Steve had to drop off...and I had the luxury of picking him up... as I waited outside of the building where his classroom is with all of the other moms and dads of the kindergarteners, I realized that he truly was growing up! When the bell rang...he came out smiling from ear to ear and said.."Mommy, I made new friends today!" giving me a huge hug...that was my hallmark moment...he is such a superstar..witty, funny, smart and intuitive...I am excited to take the journey with him as he navigates becoming independent (which is SO scary) and finding out who he is and his strengths. Our after school routine is sharing our daily "brags and bummers" focusing on the positives and what to do about the bummers....my only hope is that I can somehow help him to hold on to the enthusiasm and yearning to learn more as he gets bigger and help him feel good about himself regardless of whether or not he succeeds. Wow....we have an exciting journey ahead!

Summer slips away...

To think my last blog took place a few months earlier when summer just began scares me! Where did the time go? I will sum up our summer overall....
1. Trip to Taos with great friends...lots of kids and plenty of blackmail material, but a great kick off to summer!
2. Our 9th wedding anniversary....I will blog about this later...
3. Trips to Las Cruces to stay with my parents here and there...
4. Weekly playdates with my great friends and their children...fun for them, therapy for us...sweating to death...swimming..playing...laughing like crazy...a few tears...priceless.
5. My beautiful sister visiting ABQ! We love Auntie Nebin!!! (oh..and Uncle Dave too!)
6. Pheonix trip - we visited Steve's Aunt Cindy, Uncle Dan and family...SO much fun...visited the Grossology Exhibit, Diamondbacks game....swimming.....shopping....IKEA...visiting their boat during fireworks....amazing...we miss them already!
7. South Carolina trip....I (for work) visited Rock Hill SC for a training in a FANTASTIC HS program called Teacher Cadet...went with fabulous ladies and we had a ball and actually learned alot...
8. Slept in..need I say more?
9. Housesat our friends one-eyed weiner dog "Irene"...she ran away about 5 times and the 5th and final time we ran around our neighborhood withour pajamas on at 6:30 am screaming"Irene!!! expletive, expletive!!!"...BTW, we did find her, thank god!
10. I cleaned my new classroom while the kiddos played and did arts and crafts - AKA..undid all that I did!
11. Attended Mason's T-Ball games, and Madeline's ballet class....
12. Went to see The Honorary Title in concert at the Launchpad...Steve's cousin's Sunni is dating the guitar player....my friend and I were easily the most senior people there and were scared we would see students! It was fun and they are fantastic!
13. Spent too much time on my Facebook page...

Funny Maddie

While watching the Alltel commercial:
Maddie: Mommy there is santa! (pointing to the Wizard on the cell phone commercial)
Mom: No, sweetie, that is a wizard...not Santa
Maddie: Yes, Santa is a lizard!
Mom: ???

Vacation from a Vacation??

View of Beautiful Taos Ski Valley
Mason Hiking..notice he REFUSED to take off his T-ball uniform
Madeline generally ended up on shoulders...
Lame Idea, seemed good at the time (trying to "grab the mountain")
We ended up driving to downtown Taos to force them both to nap..didn't take long!
At the Gorge...

We went on our first vacation of the year... Pre-children, vacations meant relaxing, sleeping in, little actual "work" and alot of sight seeing...it also meant pictures of Steve and I in front of, back of, next to any major monument or landmark. Vacations sure have evolved......now we plan them to accomodate 2 little ones and have the pleasure of seeing it from their eyes, they now contain few pictures of at least one of us (usually me, since I am the crazy mother with the camera always in hand), and generally require a vacation upon their commencement. It made me realize however, that family vacations are about giving your children the experiences of the world around them....and are A LOT of work for adults, but worth every bit of stress they may cause. We went to Taos, New Mexico to the Ski Valley...it was amazing to see that NM actually was green in the northern part of the state, and gave me deja vu while driving up there. It actually reminded me of Idaho, and made me miss my home state.

The trip took 3 + hours, and contained several potty breaks along the way. We met several families up there, many of whom also taught with me. The weather stayed in the 70's and allowed us to really enjoy being outside. Packing for 2 children with all of the accoutraments is never an easy task, especially when you add on your own things...of course, in true Miskee style, I forgot the video camera (no biggie) and managed to pack A shirt...as in 1, shirt, which also happened to be a tank top..I think I may have really thought I was headed to California. This was a departure from my usual forgotten toothbrush, pajamas, underwear..all of the important items, so actually I didn't do so bad this time.

The kids had a great time, and with 10ish other little ones to run with, I also realized it wouldn't matter where we went, they would have fun running with each other regardless. Less the lack of sleep, over "adult "beveraging it, and occasional "out of our routine" tantrum, we had a blast...I did karaoke for the first time (something I can't imagine how I didn't get suckered into before :) and laughed more than I have in a long time.

Madeline entertained by shedding her clothing virtually the entire time. I could easily find her by the trail of socks, shorts, shirt and occasional panties....we are so proud. The kids hiked, ran, played, ran, played, ran played...and did a little more hiking.

By the last day, we were worn and the kids were in need of a routine again...or maybe it was me who needed a routine again..or another vacation :).

Madeline's First Blog

Madeline's First Blog.....Q & A...

• Madeline, what was your favorite thing to do today: "I like to do snuggle with RuthAnn, and den (then) ride bikes, den we weed books"
• What is your favorite food?: popsiples (popsicles) and nocomes (snowcones) and lunch
• What food is yucky?: Milk
• Who is your favorite person?: RuthAnn
• Who is prettier, Mommy or Auntie Nebin?: mommy cuz you are pettier!!
• Who is cuter, daddy or mason?: mason, cuz!!!
• what is your favorite thing to do at school?: ummmm...work...doctor work.... (?)
• What is your favorite TV show?: barbie, dora, indiana jones, doctor shows (she loves to watch the discovery channel, Maternity Ward)
• What are you going to do tomorrow?: i dunno, water guns????

I am officially a mom...

It is official .. I have entered real parenthood (although I am not sure what that would make the last 5 years). At dinner last night we sat patiently eating dinner and then, as many nights evolve into, our pleading began....
Mason: I am done
Me/Steve: A few more bites
Mason: A few is two
Me/Steve: Don't count, just eat...it is good!!!
Mason: I don't like steak/chicken/pork/etc.....it makes my tongue feel funny
Me/Steve: It is fine, just eat a few more bites, you need protein to help your muscles get bigger!
Mason (whining): I don' t like this!!!!!!
Me/Steve: Mason, you need to eat...a lot of people in other countries and even here in Albuquerque don't get to eat the nice meals we do....they don't get any food! It isn't fair for us NOT to eat what we have in front of us when other people don't have any food...just eat!!
Mason: Can't we give our food to them?
Us: JUST EAT............!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

I cannot believe we actually used the starving children speech...it is official....we have entered where we swore we never would!!

Pay it forward...

I am not sure if I have eluded to in before now, but I decided to leave the current high school that I teach at to one just north of here. The decision & opportunity were unexpected since the teacher at the other HS decided to take a position at a new high school at the city unexpectedly. After much thought, I decided to take the leap after establishing my program and myself here for just 3 years. My decision was sealed after realizing that this school was a hop, skip & jump away from Mason's NEW and first school - allowing me to visit and pick up easily, and also allowing us to share the same days off, inservice days, etc. In any case, when I finally decided to take the leap, I knew telling my administration, let alone students would be difficult...I was leaving with a program that has nearly tripled in size in the few years I have been here, I have met and established many new friends and had begun a journey into working on our schools redesign initiative with great success....why leave? Telling my students proved to be the hardest part..especially those who had chosen to take my second level class... after sharing my decision to leave for another school, students were incredibly kind and humbled me with their kind words. It is not often that you hear whether or not you have made any kind of difference in the life of a student. High school students by nature don't share that kind of personal information and, as I have discovered, may not even be aware of the impact a teacher has had until long after they have left the steps of their alma mater.
Last Friday in my first hour class, students presented me with a bouquet of flowers and 3 sealed cards....as I sat flabbergasted at this display of kindness I silently read each card. Every student in my class had written kind words of support. The last card included a $100 gift card to a local salon/spa......I was speechless, but not without tears. I knew that pulling this together took time, effort and thought. The gift itself was certainly generous and most appreciated....however, it was the words that I read and the knowledge of their time and effort in putting the surprise together that humbled me the most... In a profession that is often thankless, and where the hours you spend planning and preparing for a class to share information in hopes that they can use and apply it to their own lives go unnoticed, I realized that these students did notice and did care and made me feel like I had made a difference...
This experience has led me to pay it forward...I know how fantastic it felt to read and hear from my students and as most teachers know (at least those who teach high school), this opportunity is golden as they don't come around often. So I tracked down my high school art teacher and shared with her the impact she made on my life....receiving always feels good, but paying it forward felt even better....

Madeline made it to 3 for her oh, so pink birthday! We had a blast on Saturday inviting several personal & teacher friends and their children over....although I probably at one point thought I would never waste my money on it, we rented a jumper and it was the best money we spent! The kids spent 99% of the time playing it it (less the occasional tears over being too rough and landing on top of each other :). We BBQ'd, laughed, ate cake (that was WAY too sweet), opened presents and marveled at our little girl!
She had a wonderful time, but by the time bedtime hit - she was ready to hit the sack! We got her a tricycle and decked it out with a basket and streamers for the handlebars - she loved it and was out today riding around...again, we are certainly stocked on pink at our house!

In like a lamb, out like a lion...

Time has once again escaped me...I have my blog bookmarked and so when I have a few moments to check my email, I see the link and a pang of guilt washes over me... So, along comes May and the events of potty training, birthday party planning and tying up loose ends at school have come upon me.

• On the homefront, Madeline has FINALLY conquered wearing panties.....I must say that for her it is the ultimate freedom, but I can't help but to think that it is also freedom for Steve and I too! She was the anti-Mason of training...ONCE she decided, she was quick and easy and responded to little incentives like stickers...who knew I would whole heartedly embrace hello kitty and Dora the Explorer panties with such open arms!
• Mason continues to play T-ball...weekly games in which he shines each time. More importantly, and I am sure to remind him of this, is that he is a READER!! He brought home his first reading book a week or so ago- Jan and Pam...although each page has only about 2-3 words, he is actively sounding out the words, is getting better at his sight words and is SO proud of his ability to read at 5. He likes to go around the house looking at food labels, mail and the newspaper sounding out words...."momma, does this say puh - puh -paper?".......
• Madeline turns 3 this Saturday, May 10th...the theme of her party (if you ask her, anyway) is pink...apparently she has ideas about what this party will look like more than I do!!
• At work...I chose to accept a position at another high school. Despite having a rock solid program here, having tripled the number of students in the last 3 years in our program, another opportunity came knocking. I spent A LOT of time thinking and stressing about what to do. Unlike many other jobs, when you leave a school you leave behind the friends you have made (which is the case with any job I know), but you also leave behind students who only know you as their teacher in that classroom...although many I will have only had this year, I had several returning students who were upset with my decision. I actually had a girl in my second hour class shed a few tears and a few threatened to follow me to the school and be in my classes there. Their comments made me feel good, but I also know that they recover quickly and within a day the discussion had faded and they were back to their chatty selves. I also know that it is easy to think that as teachers we are not replaceable (a little egotistic I know), that somehow it can't be done without us..but I know that this is NOT true as there are many fantastic and caring teachers at this school who will provide them with the compassion and encouragement they need. I do look forward to my new adventure however, and hope to create many more memories at this high school!

I am, gasp, a soccer mom....

Watching Mason's T-ball game...patiently...
Really, Madeline should be giving ME advice on golfing...even if it is mini golfing!
It is official....less the bumper sticker advertising it, I am officially a soccer mom..except Mason plays T-ball. Amazing to think that I am NOW what I once swore I would never succomb to. The reality is that I love it in every way... I once saw my reality as overinvolvement on the part of parents who had no hobbies of their own....what I know now is that my children are my hobbies (although I have many things I try to do once they go to bed if I can keep my eyes awake!!) and make me quite happy!

We have entered into the territory of weekends planned through the month based on practices and games and looking at the addition of Madelines venture into "ballerina school", which will also eat up more evening time. However, I look forward to the games...eating popcorn, sticky hands, dirty clothing, whiny children sitting impatiently for an hour and 15 minute T-ball game, and the look in his eyes each time he catches or hits a ball - total satisfaction. His first game he was awarded the first game ball...now in t ball this really equates to "you didn't pick grass, gaze at the sky, take your hat off or run to the wrong base", but in his mind it might have been an MVP award! He was so proud..., and I must admit, even knowing the reality of the ball, we were also proud :). Game on.

Bye, Bye, Bunny!

March is a month that passes before I have a chance to breathe....with birthday after birthday, spring break and Easter...the month is almost over before I know it. Spring break has arrived and this year that meant Easter has also come (and since gone). With Mason's birthday SLOWLY dragging out well past the date of his birth (March 5th) due to presents slowly filtering through the mail, he was excited to know that more goodies were coming his way. The Easter Bunny visited our house after several community and friend sponsored egg hunts, so by easter AM , the kids were pro's! Mason decided to leave a note for the Easter Bunny...it was so cute because he sounded out and wrote each word...lets see if you can de-code his note " DR ESTR BNE, BST ESTR BNE, HR IS CRT, FRM MASON" - in case you didn't catch it, "dear easter bunny, best easter bunny, here is carrot, from Mason" - so cute considering he just turned 5 and isn't in school yet...

He also left a carrot at each door along with some pennies and pesos my parents brought him from Mexico...in case he needed money to buy something :).

Madeline spent 3 days with my parents..her first big girl trip without us.. I was worried that she would miss us and cry..unfortunately, she literally ran out the door for their car and played happily with my parents making mud pies with gravel sprinkles, going to library story time, playing in the water and at the park and talking up a storm...how lucky my kids are to have such fantastic grandparents! My children would rather spend time at their house looking for bugs, going on treasure (trash) hunts, reading books than almost anything else...how can I complain?

Although I revel in the spring break, I am happy to be able to say bye, bye bunny - see you again next year.

Does watching this count as my AM workout?

My sister is a rockstar (not literally)....I only wish I had as much motivation and energy! Check out my beautiful sister in this clip - she is the fitness model...
http://www.kusi.com/news/goodmorning/16610521.html?video=YHI&t=a

BIRTHDAY BOY & BALLERINA GIRL!

We had Mason's birthday party this past Saturday...the weather was decent. I decided this year I couldn't stomach a birthday party and Chuck E. Cheese or Peter Piper Pizza...those places make me crazy since you spend half of your time trying to keep track of your child in an overly loud playpen and then spend half of your money on horrible pizza that most of the kids don't eat...having his party at the park allowed them to run and play and the parents could have some kind of a conversation!

He had a great time and had fun playing with his friends. I brought toys, games and a parachute from my school so they also had sack races and had the chance to do other fun things, but most of all, they had the chance to be loud and run without parents nagging about "slowing down" or "using indoor voices".

The days before the party Madeline made a tutu that she is proudly showing off...once she got in a kit from my sister as a gift last year. She is dead set on going to "ballerina school" when she turns 3. Now we just have to convince her that ballerina's don't wear diapers and then we should be doing good!

So I won't forget..

I picked the kids up from preschool today...Mason, little papers in hand asked, "mom, don't you want to see my work?", assuming it was more of the same little drawings he does daily I said "sure". He handed a picture that I couldn't figure out with a picture of a person on it and a handwritten word "grandma". I asked him who drew it and he answered that he had. "What is it?" I asked..." a picture of grandma Marla - So we don't forget what she looks like"...I am speechless...

Mason never met Marla (Steve's mother) but knew about him shortly before she passed away in 2002. Although he has never met her, he knows of her presence and has seen many pictures. It is amazing that in a typical school day, filled with activities, screaming and playing children, singing and a million other distractions that she entered his mind. He amazes me. We agreed that she loved the picture :).

Five comes and goes...

Like the blink of an eye Mason turned 5....

Steve and I took Mason out for lunch - "an adult restaurant" was his request, our destination? Applebees :).

As he sat with us waiting patiently for his PLAIN burger and rootbeer I couldn't believe that next year he would be in kindergarten. I know every mom has a moment when their child turns 5 and begins the journey to kindergarten. It must be a hallmark of parenting or something. He was incredibly proud of his big boy status. After lunch we went bowling together (Mason and I).. I felt a pang of guilt when I realized it was really the first time that we had spent time together by ourselves and it made me eager to make a point of having "dates" with him more often. As we got ready to bowl and found our lane between the chubby 12 year old with his grandmother and professional bowling bag and shoes, and the grey haired bowling team drinking what must have been their 10th cup of coffee of the day, we eagerly began to bowl. I was surprised at how clean this bowling alley was compared to the Cherry Bowl in Emmett - a smoke infested, greasy alley that probably still hasn't changed since we went bowling as a PE class so many years ago.

In any case, Mason kicked my butt (albeit I forced gutter balls so I could see the excitement in his face from winning over his mom). In any case, he is 5 and I am proud to say he is a great kid who is too smart for his own good!

Time...where is it?

Life caught up with me once again and when I found a few minutes to breath between school meetings, calling parents of students who decided that school wasn't important enough to come, T-Ball practice and trying to clean our 2 car garage so we could actually use it to house a car, I was more interested in sitting on the couch in a vegetative state watching American Idol...yes, I do watch and enjoy it.
Mason's birthday is this week, tomorrow actually. He is turning 5 years old and this birthday in particular makes me realize that time really does fly by. I was looking at his baby photo album (which by the way contained monthly professional photos and a thousand photos of him smiling, sitting, rolling over, you name it - of which Madeline has about 25 of) and I realized that I almost couldn't remember those moments - where did that baby go? Kindergarten
In addition I got an email from a student that I had when I taught in Wisconsin...a student that is now in her 20's and still is in the same predicament she was in when I left...living at home with a dysfunctional (although whose family isn't these days) family trying to decide what to do - work at a daycare to have money in hand or try to go to the local community college and further her education and have to take out loans. She is such a sweet girl, I had her in the 6th, 8th, and 12th grade. Has time gone that fast that?
Speaking of time, I am off to proctor our Standards Based Test....students sitting in desks for 3 straight days for 14 sections of testing.....

Things that make me smile....

Things that made me smile this past weekend:

1. Waking up Friday morning knowing I didn't have to go to work .

2. At a restaurant while eating ice cream for dessert - Me: " Hey Mason, can I have a bite of your ice cream?" Mason: "Yes, but it is a little drinky" (translation: melted).

3. While at the grocery store waiting to check out - Random lady behind us to Madeline: "Well hello there! What is your name?" Madeline: " I Maddie, this is mommy Miksee" pointing to me....

4. Mason after practicing baseball at the park (without a tee) and nailing EVERY ball making my dad run to get the ball...." mom, I did good didn't I!" with a huge grin on his face - so proud....

5. Madeline to me while changing her diaper (argh)....."Mommy, guess what?" Me: "What" Madeline: "Chicken Butt" with a stream of giggles to follow.....

6. Watching my dad grin from ear to ear while Maddie followed him around giving him undivided attention (and instructions for where to go and what to do) for once (my mom is the center of their world)....

7. Watching Madeline and Mason intently hammer and nail together a Valentines Day mailbox at Lowe's with their safety goggles and aprons - so concentrated!

8. The WARM weather in Las Cruces - 70 degrees!

9. Relaxing with a glass of wine and being able to read in peace....

10. Setting off fireworks Saturday night with the neighbor kids - you would have thought that they had just seen Santa Claus they were SO excited!!

Books and babies and choices....

One of the programs my classes participate in is the Baby Think It Over Program http://www.realityworks.com/realcare/realcarebaby.html. Since most of my class is related to child growth and development, we spend part of second semester talking about parenting and eventually lead into discussions of teen pregnancy, birth control, labor, delivery and infant growth and development. My students are SO excited to see that I have the babies (I have 6 of them) and that they will be able to take one over the weekend. If you don't know about them, they run about $700-800 a piece, and are the closest thing to an actual real baby less the dirty diapers. They are programmed with 24 hour schedules from real mothers diaries, and need to be rocked, changed, burped and fed, they cry, coo, cough and make breathing sounds. The students average about 4-6 hours of sleep, if not less, and experience many of the same emotions new moms face when bringing home a new baby. I have done this program for almost 9 years now, and am amazed at what an incredible learning tool it is. This morning I had 6 bleary-eyed students show up after a LONG weekend with the baby. Each shared a story from their weekend....embarrassed (by the looks on the faces of strangers seeing them with what seemed to be a baby), ...tired (from the lack of sleep each night, having to wake 3-4 times).....frustrated (by not knowing what the baby wanted and its incessant crying).....delirious (from a lack of sleep coupled with frustration!).....resentful (of not being able to do the things they normally do on the weekend)...
One girl came in looking as if she had just rolled out of bed...she emerged red eyed on the verge of tears. She set the baby down and sighed..."I am going home....I didn't sleep..." and then the tears poured. I felt a pang of guilt as she looked at me so exhausted and clearly frustrated. But I knew, that it would be this experience, the one that made her realize how priceless her current life is...the one that allows her to come and go as she pleases, to be a teenager, and worry about friends, and boys and what she would wear in the morning....the one that allows her to sleep until noon on Saturdays and spend her money on herself...the one that allows her time to discover who SHE IS...to find true love...to experience a broken heart and recover from it without the baggage of having a baby to raise on her own....to graduate and be able to embrace life and all it has to offer with open arms and all of the time and freedom being young without children has to offer. So, as much as I felt her pain, and wondered if it would be worth it for her, I was confident that she (once distanced from the experience) will have gained more from the experience than any lesson learned while sitting in class for a 52 minute class period.....
Every time I teach this unit and begin sending students home, I am always grateful for the choices I was able to create for myself by NOT having a child young...the choice to go to college..the choice to take time to meet my true love, Steve...the choice to get married and have my family and friends celebrate with us....the choice to take a few years to be with my husband, have fun, love each other....the choice to decide to have our first and the second baby....the choice to go back and get my master's degree...the choice to allow myself to be and do the things I want....
I hope this experience helps them to choose being a teenager.......and sleep :).

Name dropping...

http://www.mylifetime.com/lifestyle/health/diet-nutrition/meet-dawn-jackson-blatner-rd-ldn
Please see the link below!! I will toot her horn since she is family and she is fabulous!! This is my sister-in-law who is the registered dietician for www.mylifetime.com - and does the commercial break Keri heath and beauty tips on the new lifetime show How to Look Good Naked...way to go Dawn!!

Making connections...

Recently I worked with two really dynamic english teachers on an integrated unit between their english 12 class and my Working with Young Children class (a career and tech ed class). The idea was for both classes to see how what they are learning in each individual class applies elsewhere... Their students learned about the growth and development of 4-5 year olds (especially social and emotional growth) and the importance of reading to children from my students, and then took that information as they created (wrote and illustrated!) their own children's book that they later read to the preschool children in my program. It was AWESOME! It also emphasized the importance of allowing students to see HOW what they learn in the classroom can be used in both the real world and their own lives. Isn't that what we all want? To make connections of some kind between what we are doing and learning and our own lives? I think back to high school and realize that part of my struggle was that I was not able to see how what I was learning was applicable to me or my life.......I wasn't able to make connections (for whatever reason, whether it be lack of opportunity or that I just would have rather talked all class period) in a way that encouraged me to try harder to make my education meaningful to my current or future life...I learned in a box - english in english class, math in math class, and the only other time I saw the applicability and importance of say, math, was when I was applying for colleges and they looked on my transcript, gave a shrug, and said, "not mathematically inclined? you will have to take a basic math class since you did so poorly in high school ." Fantastic.... I now see math everywhere - at work, home, when I cook, paint, hang paintings - need I go on? Why can't we help kids make those CONNECTIONS NOW?

Time....

Where has time gone? I cannot believe that my two babies are almost 5 (Mason) and close to 3 (Madeline)...I recently found these pictures and realize how precious time is AND how quickly life moves....amazing...

A book club, really?

So the other day I received an invitation from my friend/school librarian...there was a meeting for a new staff book club during lunch...my curiosity was piqued as my first reaction was that this would provide me with an adult with which to have a conversation on a campus that is incredibly disaggregated and lacks the group/staff cohesion and team spirit that my last school did.
In any case, I showed up along with about 10 other teachers and we discussed what books would make for a great discussion, but that wasn't incredibly "heavy". It dawned on my as we were discussing that I hadn't read a REAL adult book in quite some time..In fact, I realized that my only contributions would be suggestions related to children's books I read during our bedtime routine, the daily newspaper and an occasional People magazine. Later as I talked to my mom and dad she commented that they had both laughed initially at my crazy inclination to take on yet another obligation...after all, I work full time (as in 6:30-3:30 +), am now working out in the AM (as in 5-6 AM) and am also a full time mom with endless triumphs and tragedies...was she right?
I have come to realize that it is a part of who I am to bite off more than I can chew....join one too many committees, attend one to many meetings, say "yes" to one too many people, the list goes on. HOWEVER, when I sat down and thought about it, most of my day is spent DOING things for OTHER people. Whether it is getting lunches prepared (some of the time, I won't steal Steve's thunder), answering my students demands (all saying "miss" at the same time, needing me for some kind of reassurance or troubleshooting), answering emails from other people, picking up my kids, dinner, my day is about everyone else but me. So is a book club going to take more time that I don't necessarily have? is it a bit ambitious? of course, but it is for ME. It gives me time to talk with other adults and attempt to move beyond Dr. Seuss and David Shannon books ( ala bedtime routines). The club is more about being with people and less about what I actually read.
Now, I am off to read. :)

Oh how I relate....

A teacher friend emailed this to me...as a teacher myself, I was amazed at how close Jeff Foxworthy was (as much as he irritates me)... I color coded the ones I most relate to!

Jeff Foxworthy's Take on Teachers

HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU ARE A TEACHER?

1. You can hear 25 voices behind you and know exactly which one belongs to the child out of line
2. You get a secret thrill out of laminating something
3. You walk into a store and hear the words "It's Ms/Mr. _________" and know you have been spotted
4. You have 25 people that accidentally call you Mom/Dad at one time or another
5. You can eat a multi-course meal in under twenty-five minutes.
6. You've trained yourself to go to the bathroom at two distinct times of the day: lunch and prep period
7. You start saving other people's trash, because most likely, you can use that toilet paper tube or plastic butter tub for something in the classroom
8. You believe the teachers' lounge should be equipped with a margarita machine
9. You want to slap the next person who says "Must be nice to work 7 to 3 and have summers off
10. You believe chocolate is a food group
11. You can tell if it's a full moon without ever looking outside
12. You believe that unspeakable evils will befall you if anyone says, "Boy, the kids sure are mellow today"
13. You feel the urge to talk to strange children and correct their behavior when you are out in public
14. You believe in aerial spraying of Ritalin
15. You think caffeine should be available in intravenous form
16. You spend more money on school stuff than you do on your own children.
17. You can't pass the school supply aisle without getting at least five items
18. You ask your friends if the left hand turn he just made was a "good choice or a bad choice."
19. You find true beauty in a can full of perfectly sharpened pencils
20. You are secretly addicted to hand sanitizer and, finally
21. You understand instantaneously why a child behaves a certain way after meeting his or her parents. (YES YES YES!!)

Christmas 2007

Some pictures from our visit with Steve's brother, wife and son....and of course my M&M....

Work, Work and more Work

It occurred to me this week that keeping my blog up to date might be a little harder than I thought. I created my blog with the intention of adding at least weekly...however, I chose a horrid week to begin! I decided to take this journey the day my school was let out for "holiday" (tsk, tsk) break, 3 days after closing on our new house, 5 days before we would start to move, and the day family came to town to visit...I seem to have a problem with being overly ambitious...
In any case, it is a new year and I resolve to add weekly to my blog...so today I begin.
Being home for two weeks over Christmas was wonderful less the constant movement in and out of our new house, in and out of our rental and between trying to entertain a 4 and 2 year old who were contstantly antagonizing each other and begging for attention. I became one of the many moms who turned on the TV out of sheer desperation to get SOMETHING, anything accomplished. I felt pangs of guilt when I looked up and an hour had gone by with little griping or whining but as my children sat lifeless with their mouths draped open as they watched the same episode of Spongebob Squarepants...again...
However, we were able to move in completely, paint 3 rooms and unpack 95% of what we owned. Mason chose "schoolboy blue" for his room, and Madeline, via me, chose "lemon butter" yellow which gave Steve and I both headaches while we painted (or at least while I edged - my job in the painting process). A bit bright, I might regret this color since it invokes panic and rapid heartbeat as you enter the room.
As my first day back to "the real world" approached, I began to panic as I thought of all of the work I had not done. I function by lists. Lots of lists, post its, and things I can check off...it gives me 100% satisfaction (and is the butt of many jokes among my co workers and fellow teachers) to be able to check off all that I have to do... The list I had created on the last day before break had gone untouched and I knew I would pay the price! I still hadn't graded finals, hadn't reviewed the two resumes emailed to me by my students (what students do work over break anyway?), regrouped my students in hours 1-4, run copies, gone to the store for dry pasta needed for an activity for the preschoolers...gawd....
It is Monday - back to work, and as the reality of being a teacher and mom to 100+ students during the day, mom to M & M at home, and wife to my poor husband who somehow puts up with it all has set it. By 6:45 am I have completed 2 items on my list (note: I am the first in the school parking lot this AM -what is wrong with me :). Off to inservice today. Somehow, like every other day, it will all get done and I won't know how I did it. I will still be able to kiss my kids at night before bed....read them a book...talk about school and know that I am truly happy.