Grits

So the "banana bread experiment" was a fifty percent failure and maybe forty percent success. The first batch greeted the trash can. The second batch is edible. Not as flavorful as I would have liked but it is okay. A little butter helps.  So there ya go. I have more bananas so I may attempt it again.

Today I had the lunch lady/aide make my class some grits. We've been reading about them in Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski. So this morning they got to try them. None of them hated them and some asked if we could have them every day.  They also got to try molasses and pure sugar cane granules. The molasses was definitely disliked by some and loved by some. The sugar of course was loved by all. The sugar was grown and harvested in Florida so that made it more meaningful to the story we just read. We've started our next "read aloud"  and I read the first chapter today. What is wonderful is after reading the first chapter they didn't want me to stop. We read our "news magazine" today which was about the Chinese New Year. I found some links online that were about the same topic.

I just felt so good about today and the students learning. I think the difference is I am starting to feel well. In desperation I went to a health food store on Friday. I tried an essential oil concoction called OnGuard. I really think this helped a lot. My friend had been telling me about it all year but it just sounded a little "hokey" to me. I tried it and I noticed a difference sooo if you've been feeling sick for awhile or are around some major littler germ carriers. Give it a try.

I also implemented the new behavior program ClassDojo. The kids have really been focusing. Most of the parents have signed up to get their students behavior update online. I really hope it continues to work for them. If I am consistent it should be! 

I am still thinking about my decision and I am giving it a little more time. I've invested so much of myself it is hard to think about leaving. I think a little more time will give me more experiences and probably make things a little clearer.

Banana

I'll call it  "The banana bread experiment". Oh boy.   So I forgot I don't have mixing bowls. Other than in a box in a storage unit over one hundred miles away. That's a long drive for a mixing bowl. I also thought I had packed the blade to my mixer in the mixer box. WRONG! So I couldn't even use that. So I used some small  plastic freezer bowls I use for freezing soup, a kettle, and a variety of kitchen utensils. I also have a couple lovely bread pans in a box in a storage unit far, far, away. I had bought a couple throw-away tins at the store awhile back and so I could use those. This was mixing at its worst. Mixing bowls are made to mix things in. Their sides are at the right angles, and steep enough to keep things inside of them. They have lovely rounded sides that makes things easier to scrape off of them. Overall a mixing bowl is a VERY useful tool.

So I mixed the ingredients in my wee plastic bowls and kettles. Then I buttered and floured my tins. I poured in my batter and " BAKING SODA I FORGOT BAKING SODA!" So I grabbed some and threw a little in and mixed it around a bit. So as I said before I'll call it "The banana bread experiment". I have no idea how this will turn out.  When I was at the store I bought a back of those lovely browning bananas they sell cheaply so they can put their pretty yellow ones on display. So if this experiment fails I can do a couple more rounds. I also didn't use a recipe that I normally would use because I found myself missing some of the ingredients. I can't rush to the store to buy them so once again we'll see how this turns out.  I surely could've done some better planning, but where is the adventure in that?

Improvised Pantry

Well, I got tired of trying to find all of my supplies in my tiny kitchen. So I improvised a pantry out of milk crates. It screams  "single guy" to me. If I start creating bookshelves out of planks of wood and cement blocks send in some help! :) I really miss having a complete kitchen. All of my favorite kitchen things are in storage. At least I can find some of my supplies now when I am doing some cooking.  Because I'd been sick and busy for so long my house completely got away from me. I've been working on cleaning, organizing, and tossing stuff out.  It feels good to do this. Maybe I have a touch of spring fever.  Whatever is to blame it needed to happen.

My new favorite soup item is fire-roasted tomatoes. They add such a wonderful flavor to soup. Whenever the recipe calls for diced tomatoes, consider using fire-roasted diced tomatoes. Yummy stuff.  My voice is back today which is nice. We'll see if I can make it through the week with it intact.  It should be an interesting week.

Stoolie Season

It's that time of year again. Yep the bar "stoolies" are out on the street again. Remind me not to complain about cold weather it keeps the "stoolies" indoors and off the street. I must exude strong independent woman, because four guy "stoolies" watched me unload my groceries tonight. I went to town today and did most of my errands. I picked up a few groceries for a colleague as well. 

I felt like I got a lot done on my " To do" list. That is always a good thing. I have a lot to do at home starting with dishes and laundry. I got some cheap browning bananas. After I get my dishes done I will make some banana bread to freeze. I love Banana Bread. Good stuff!

Since I've had whatever virus, lung condition,  throat issue that I have; I've been drinking a lot of tea. It  has been getting me through the days lately. A couple of years ago my friend introduced me to  Teavana tea. This company sells the most amazing loose leaf tea combinations. It ruins you for all other teas. I've been drinking a lot of Apple, Lemon, Pomegranate and Blackberry Mojito. If you want dessert in a teacup Cacao Mint Black is just amazingly yummy.  My friend got me a electric tea kettle when the heat was out at school to make hot cocoa for the students. I've been using it at work to make tea when I start coughing and can't get stopped. I am sooooo over eating cough drops.

Yesterday, we finished our last chapter of Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski.  I remember when I was little she had a whole series of these kinds of stories you can't find in print anymore. It would be fun to go back and read them again I really remember liking them.  The kids really responded to this book. It was a story of neighbors not getting along well and it made for some enriching conversations. The next book we are reading is called Little Pear by Eleanor Frances Lattimore. I am excited to start this one.

We began our next PBL  on solids, liquids, and gases. The kids really started making connections what these states of matter are, but we have a ways to go. They are excited about it which excites me. Well, I'm going to rest my head. G'nite

Short Week

Well this week was round two of "Spirit Week". I guess the older kids decided to re-do spirit week since they didn't plan so well last time. I didn't do as much as requested for the week because well it was round two and we have things to accomplish. The High School students did do a great job organizing it this time and executed it very well.  It was really fun for the elementary kids so that is good. 

I am still going through a lot of mixed emotions right now. One day I totally want to move and the next not so much. The kids make my days wonderful. All the other stuff not so much.  It sounds like we are going to lose a family of five kids when they leave. I see the pressure being put on me to move in the future.  I am updating my resume and thinking things through.

Feedback

I am back online after leaving my hot spot at my out-of-town friends' house. It is good to be "connected" again. Although it was good to be a little disconnected as well. I have had a lot to think about. I've been gnawing over the pros and cons till I'm driving myself crazy. It was maybe not the best time to have a job offer because I have been ill and tired. I feel more like myself all the time so hopefully that will make it easier to make a decision.

I had some encouragement today. I was observed by a person at the state level today. I got such encouraging positive feedback. I was told that I am a "natural teacher" awww! I also got a lot of other positive feedback. It was sooo nice to get that because it validates you that you're on the right track and doing what you should be doing. I was also told it is a pleasure to work with me because I am willing to learn. WOW!  Here is the difference between what I was told today and what I usually get.  She gave me some criticism but, she also said try this strategy or teaching tool. It was very specific.  This is because she has the experience and knowledge to share. This is a huge difference from what I get from my own boss. I usually leave confused, frustrated, and irritated. I also know she doesn't know what she is talking about and she can't back up her criticism with information to help create change. That is where my bosses lack of experience really shows. So there ya go.

Today was the first really great day of work I'd had in awhile. When I got up this morning I wasn't feeling that positive. The kids were ready to work and in great moods so that started my day off well. It was good to come back. I am very grateful I could get away for the weekend I think this helped me to bounce back from my discouragement. Then the rest of the day went well.

When I went out of town and spent time with my friend who is an RTI teacher she shared a cool site called Classdojo it is a behavior management software that is free. I messed around with it and decided to use it in my classroom. Parents can log in to it at any time and see how their child is behaving in class. It compiles all the scores separately so students can't calculate how their peers are doing. Anytime you finish a class you can hit save it and start anew. Then it compiles all the behavior data and gives a percentage. It can be up and viewable by the students or off screen as well. It is done through points and gives a happy little ding when they are awarded for positive behavior. The students really bought into it as well so hopefully it will help eliminate some of those behaviors that make me a little nutty.

The snowstorm came in this afternoon and we are having a blizzard. We are supposed to have wind gusts up to 35 mph. It is definitely blowing I don't know how hard. I am glad I don't have to drive over any mountain passes tonight.  I told the kids if they rode the bus tomorrow to tell the driver to take his time. I said tell him Ms. C said it was okay to be late as long as they got there safely.  I know these kids and I know they will tell him to take it slow. They don't hold back on stuff like that. Our old bus driver makes me very nervous. I've had parents tell me they don't want to put their kids on the bus when he is running late because they feel he rushes after that.  Scary stuff.  Hey Dad want to move to Nevada and get your CDL???  I've tried to get sooo many people to get their CDL the problem is people who have it will go to make more money at one of the mines, or work for the county road department.  Well, I'd better sign off and go to bed. G'nite

Rule!

I broke my own rule on the weekend. Don’t check your work e-mail. UGGH Not sure what I was thinking. It usually adds unnecessary stress when I need to be relaxing or focusing on my life outside of work. That wasn’t a good plan. I headed east this Friday on a day when we were getting significant snow. We had close to one foot of snow when I left.  The roads were quite entertaining the whole drive. On one mountain pass I was grateful to be behind a semi-truck. It was literally plowing snow off the road with its cab.  I drove in the tracks left behind. It was slow going but it was worth it.  I got there and had dinner with the family I was visiting.  We hung out, visited, caught up on everything and I babysat one night so the parents could go to dinner.  It was soooo good to get out of town and away from the insanity.

My first day there I was offered a job opportunity. I felt like I really had to carefully consider it. I had so many mixed emotions about it. I have such a love/hate relationship with my job here. My students and their families are amazing. My boss and most of my co-workers are amazing in the opposite way. While there I spoke with the superintendent and a principal. It felt really good to be wanted. I think in part why this opportunity was so tempting is I am coming off of a month and a half of stress, illness, and just plain old tiredness.  What was a huge factor is that this job would need to start soon. I don’t think I would feel good about not fulfilling my commitment here and completing the year. I will keep you posted on my decision on this. The pros and cons are being weighed.

On the way over there I listened to the next several chapters in “The Complete Tales of Sherlock Holmes”. It was a very exciting chapter at the height of the action when “you have completed this section” blah blah blah. I kept looking thinking I had the next part, but NOOOOO I didn’t upload it to my I-pod.  So when I got there that was something I worked on. I uploaded the next couple sections. So my drive home was good and entertaining. There was a lot of snow coming down when I left but the further east I got the less snow there was on the roads and the sky. I made it home to see we got two feet of snow.  I was excited for the kids because I knew it would be a sledding day at school.  It was great because just walking through the snow to the hill was quite a workout for them.

Rest

Rest makes allll of the difference. I really needed some quiet time, some sleep time, and just time away from work. I finally got a bit of it this weekend. I went to work ready to face Monday. I think I would've gotten sick again without that. I had hit my wall. On Wednesday I head up north for another training. It will give me a chance to stock up on a few groceries and hopefully learn some good things.

This weekend we were supposed to have three basketball games. Two junior high games and one high school game. We were playing a small school similar to ours with co-ed teams. One of the parents of their students passed away so they cancelled all the games. I am sure their community is really feeling it because it is such a small town.

I plan to head east for the weekend and hang out with some friends. I talked to them over the weekend and they told me they weren't making any plans. I said "PERFECT"! A no-plan, plan sounds like a great plan!  I need to get out of town. The lunch lady calls winter the "mean time of year". I can kind of see it. The locals apparently aren't getting enough vitamin d. They don't get out enough and really start getting in everyone's business. The negativity is wearing. It may snow on Saturday but I am still heading out.

Today was school-wide pajama day. Tomorrow is "Flashback Day". I suggested flashing back to Pajama Day. A couple of people thought that was a good idea. Speaking of "Flashback Day"   I need to figure out what I am going to wear!

Teams

Well, our little co-ed team had a game last night they played against a JV boys team and won by 19 points. Today they played a JV boys team and lost by two, then played the JV girls and won by 4. They are fighters. Today I went up north to a training that was actually worthwhile. It was kind of shocking. I really hope that the method we were taught I can put into place. If it works like it was described to work, I can make a HUGE difference in students reading. I am very excited. I also got the contact info of the people who did the training. I am very hopeful about this process.

We didn't get to finish the training because I had to go purchase items for concessions and then head back for the game. We ran to the store and filled a cart and drove back. The first game was exciting because it was so close the entire game. One of the fathers of our players was getting quite loud. After the first game and before the second the ref told me if he didn't tone it down I would have to escort him out. ME, MYSELF, and I would have to escort a grown man much older than I from a game. Oh my. That idea didn't excite me so I went to the Dad and told him what the ref said (he was sitting with his wife). I turned it into a laugh but he knew I was also serious, and the ref was serious. He toned it down thank goodness. I couldn't imagine having to do that.

After the second game we cleaned up. We were supposed to have a town team tournament tomorrow but one too many teams cancelled. I am soooooo relieved. What this means for me is that I can sleep in tomorrow. Then I can head to school and finish cleaning the kitchen. YAY!  It was just what I needed because my whole self is yelling at me to TAKE A BREAK! I can tackle some of those things I need to get done before another busy week. I head north on Wednesday for my STEM class. There is a lot going on next weekend but I decided I am taking a weekend for me. With everything that has gone on this last crazy month I know I need to get out of town. So I'm heading east for the weekend. There is also a coyote derby that weekend so I will need to escape the smoke and bar sounds. My friends were quite gracious in their welcoming me. It will be fun to hang out relax and chat with fun, positive, people. I need to be refreshed like that!