Wordless Wednesday-Halloween

Happy Halloween from

a Hufflepuff Student, Elliot and ET and a Pirate

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Disclaimer: I will receive a small percentage from any books purchase through the links below.

For School:

Woof: A Bowser and Birdie Novel by Spencer Quinn is on the 2016-2017 Texas Bluebonnet List this year.  Woof starts with Birdie and her grammy picking out a dog at the pound for her birthday present.  Birdie lives with her grammy while her mom is on active duty in the military.  So far we don't know much about her dad other than Grammy doesn't like to talk about him.  Birdie's family owns a Fish and Bait shop.  Their stuffed priced marlin is stolen off the wall.  Birdie and her new dog Bowser are on the case!

Five For Friday-Book Fair

The Book Fair

1.  I'm always so happy to see it come!

2.  I love seeing students pick the books they want to buy.

3.  It's interesting to watch parents interact with their children over what they are going to purchase.

4.  It's exhausting.

5.  Boy, am I glad to see it go!

Stealing

There are a lot of behaviors I can overlook in my students.  And there are some that send me over the edge in a matter of seconds.

I hate lying.

I hate stealing.

I hate bullying.

Those three things are a deal breaker with me.  There are immediate consequences if one of those three things happen.  I never look the other way or just give a lecture if a student does one of those.

Which leads me to my Book Fair.  Book Fairs are fun!  So many books and book marks and pens and pencils.  So many tempting things.

To steal.

Sigh

I want to add that I believe in second chance before continuing here.

One of our teachers caught a student with a "Top Secret UV Pen".  He stoled it.

This irritates me for sooooooo many reasons.

1.  Another teacher told him the day before that she'd buy him the pen if he behaved for 2 days.  I put the pen aside.  I wrote the teacher's name on it.  I made a big deal about how cool it was that she was going to buy him the pen.

2.  He stole from the Book Fair last year.  And we caught him then too.

3.  Him stealing affects the fundraising the Book Fair does for our library.

4.  It makes me not trust him.  At.  All.  Like ever.  And I hate not trusting a kid.

Wordless Wednesday

A throw back this week!

No Time To Be Sick

There's never really a good time to be sick.  But man, this really is a bad time for me!

I went home early last Thursday.  Luckily I was able to get into the doctor right after lunch.

2 shots, 2 prescriptions, and one over the counter medication later I had bronchitis, upper respiratory junk, no voice and a low grade fever.

My Book Fair is this week at school which I normally set up the Friday before it starts but now couldn't since I was sick.  I also had our church's college Bible study at our house that Thursday evening.  Not to mention the birthday parties Saturday.  Both were for members of our church.  One man turned 105 and the other 90.  Oh and the birthday party on Sunday for a 3 year old and her 5 year old brother.

Ain't nobody got time to be sick!

Luckily my bestie, Lara, (who was helping us host the college Bible study) and I had decided to serve 4 different kinds of sliders.  They were super easy to throw together so cooking for that Thursday night wasn't too bad.  During the actual class I stayed in my room so I didn't expose everyone to my coughing fits (I figured the food was "clean" of my germs since it had to cook and I had my daughter put it in and pull it out of the oven).

I laid around all Friday.  Jay worked that morning but stayed with me after lunch.

Saturday morning we decided to run up to the school and set up the Book Fair.  It only took us an hour and Jay and Reagan did the majority of the work.  Thank goodness for my family!

Jay and Reagan made the party rounds Saturday and Sunday while I rested.

The party for the 5 year boy... yeah, he totally called me out at worship Sunday night.  He gave me a pitiful look and asked why I didn't come to his birthday party.  I explained how I had been sick and didn't want to be outside and around a bunch of people while I coughed.  I think he understood.... Ha!

And now it's my Book Fair week.  I'm still coughing and I'm a bit tired but I am feeling better.  And I have my voice back!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

For Pleasure:

I finished  Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets the illustrated version by J.K. Rowling this weekend.

I've said before and I'll say it again, I love going back to the land of Harry Potter!  I especially enjoy these illustrated versions.  Holding such a large book for days in a row did cause my carpel tunnel to flair up but it was worth the pain!  I am a little worried once we get to books 4 and 5... they are huge!

The illustrations are very detailed and so real.  Not real like a portrait but real like it makes the story come alive.  I was hoping for an illustration of Slytherins dorm but there wasn't one.  The illustrations of Gilderoy Lockhart and Draco Malfoy were amazing!

At School:

Last week we were gearing up for the Book Fair so we watched the Book Fair DVD instead of reading a book.

What are you reading that I should add to my "to read" list?

40th Birthday

I celebrated my 40th birthday yesterday.  I remember when 40 felt a lifetime away!  And yet here I am.

I love birthdays!  I love the attention!  I don't mind getting older.

None of the women in my family mind getting older.  My grandma said age never bothered her. Except 80.  80 kind of bothered her.  I think I'll give her 80! Ha!  She's about to turn 90 in December. She said 90 is not her favorite number either.

I celebrated with my Nac girls Tuesday night.  We went to Pepper Jacks and Starbucks and had a late wild night ending at... 9:00. Ha!

Wednesday, my actual birthday, was pretty uneventful.

I worked.  The students sang me Happy Birthday during Jump Start and I got hand made cards through out the day.  We had Bible study that night so as a family we ran to Newk's and got dinner.  I got a free birthday meal!

And I started coughing some time during the day.

So today I can barely talk, my throat is killing me and I feel yucky.  All my work peeps are teasing me that I had a wild birthday party last night.  Ha!

I'm taking a 1/2 day off and going to the doctor this afternoon.  I'm hoping it's nothing worse than bronchitis. Fingers crossed!

Wordless Wednesday-My Aunt

My mom, me, Reagan, and my aunt

Froggy's Halloween

The Deaf Ed teacher and I are continuing with our collaboration.  This time the signing aid joined in the fun!

1.  I love this collaborating thing!

2.  I'm not as creative as others.  I would of never thought to add cut out construction paper strips to my shirt.

3. I want to stretch this collaboration in other areas.

4. And with other teachers.

5. The kids LOVE seeing us dressed up and matching us with the book characters.

I Got To See My Aunt and Uncle

I got to see my aunt and uncle this past weekend.  We just happened to be in Houston at the same time.  And when I heard she was going to be at my grandparent's house Reagan and I headed over there too.

My dad, me, Reagan, my aunt, & my grandma

It's been two years since I've seen her and my uncle. They moved to Fredericksburg and we moved to Nacogdoches so we don't see each other much anymore.

She's hilarious!  We laughed the whole hour we were together.  When Reagan and I got back in the car to head back to Nac Reagan said "Aunt Pam's so much like Grandad!"  It's true, they are a lot alike.

Aunt Pam was telling us how her dog got bit by a rattle snake and was allowed on the couch even with a yucky wound.  

Me: Reagan, you know what my favorite part of this story is?

Reagan: What?

Me: Holly (my cousin) couldn't have a dog cuz dogs weren't allowed in the house.  And now Aunt Pam's dog is not only allowed IN the house but ON the couch too.

Aunt Pam: A lot of things change when the kids are grown and out of the house.

Bawhahaha

I forgot how much I miss her (and my uncle too).

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Disclaimer: I get a small percentage from any books purchased from the links on this blog.

For Pleasure:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets:  The Illustrated Edition (Harry Potter #2) by JK Rowling.  I love going back and visiting the wizarding world! The addition of illustrations in this book just add to the experience.  The only "bad" thing about the books is size.  It's not easy to stuff it in your purse and take pull out while you get your oil changed or while you're sitting in a waiting room.  Though I'm willing to make those sacrifices for Harry Potter!

He's Gone by Deb Caletti is the book we are reading in our Faculty/Staff Book Club this month.  I'm listening to the audiobook through the Hoopla app.  I'm a little over 1/2 way through the book and all I can think is "Oh my word!  Tell me what happened!" Dannie wakes up one morning after a party and her husband isn't home.  At first she thinks he's gone out to pick up breakfast but quickly realizes he's gone.  There are a lot of flashbacks in the story.  We learn how Dannie and her husband meet and some of the conflicts in their relationship.  It's a very suspenseful book.  I'm ready to finish it and found out what happened!

For School:

For Pk-2 I read Froggy's Halloween by Jonathan London.  I love the Froggy Series!  Froggy is a lovable frog who, when embarrassed, turns more red than green.  In this story Froggy has a hard time deciding what to be for Halloween.  He also has a secret admirer.

I love reading this book out loud.  I holler when Froggy's mom hollers for him.  I sing the "Trick or Treat" song and clasp my mouth when I sing "or I'll pull down your underwear".  And yell "Ew! Gross!"  Which always gets a giggle.  When froggy gets kissed I gag.  When froggy eats chocolate covered flies I pretend to choke.  When the book end I say "That's the grosses book I've ever read!" It's just a fun book!

For 3rd-5th I read Scary Stories 3 by Scholastic Children.  To set the ambience I project a fire place on my Promethean Board.  I also turn off all the lights in the library... which really doesn't do a lot since I have 3 walls of nearly solid windows.  But still, I have the lights off.  I pick 3-4 different scary short stories to read.  I try to read them slow and in a creepy fashion.  3rd and 4th grade get a real kick out of it and always want to know if the stories are real.  5th grade tries to be too cool but secretly enjoys the book.

Five For Friday-Critters

I don't like critters.

1.  There was a snake IN our house.  IN THE HOUSE.  It was small but still!

2.  I don't like snakes.  I especially don't like them in my house.

3.  Jay killed it.

4.  I let the dog out Tuesday night and a killer frog jumped in the house.

5.  I don't like frogs in my house either.

PS I didn't get a picture of the snake.  All I could think about was getting the snake OUT of my house.

All Hands On Deck

The Texas Educational Agency (TEA) visited our school this week.  They met with the administration and teachers.   We needed substitutes to cover classes while teachers met with the TEA team.

But we didn't have any subs pick up any of the jobs posted.

So it was all hands on deck kind of day.  My principal asked me to cover a class for two hours.  Our secretary asked if I minded I said "Yes I mind but of course I'm going to do it."  That got a laugh.

So at 9:00 I headed down to 3rd grade math.

It's been four years since I taught math.  I taught 2nd, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grade Deaf Ed math for four years.  So this lesson took me back a few years.

It was kind of nice to teach a math lesson again. But it also reminded me why I moved to the library. Ha!

The teacher had taped shapes on the floor for students to find the area of eight different shapes. Students worked in pairs.  They drew the shape on graph paper (it surprised me how hard that was for some students), counted the units, and label the length and width.  On a different sheet they wrote out the formula.  If they new their multiplications they found the area that way.  If they didn't then they used equal grouping or made arrays to find the area.

I loved how this lesson included so many different learning styles, included partner work and reached the high level students as well as the low level students.  The lesson encompassed every aspect they teach us in teacher school.

I'm so blessed to work with awesome teachers!

Wordless Wednesday-Pumpkin Book

I've wanted to make book creations for awhile now but it just kept getting put on the back burner.  But I finally did it this year!

Superman and Batman

Disclaimer: I will make a small percentage off the book if it's purchased using the link here.

I've been collaborating with the Deaf Ed teacher!  Collaborating is something I've been wanting to do better.   It's my goal for this year.

We've been working on characters.  And for the last 3 weeks we dressed as characters in the books I'm reading in the library.

Last week I read The Amazing Adventures of Superman! Battle of the Super Heroes by Yale Stewart. Batman looses his mind and attacks Superman!  But wait a minute... is that really Batman or the shape-shifting super-villain, Clay Face?

I wore a Superman shirt and the other teacher dressed in a mask and black cape like Batman.  The students pointed out which characters we looked like and learned the sign names for the superheroes. We also discussed "who" and if they could dress like characters.

Next week I'm reading Froggy's Halloween.  I'm dressing up like Froggy, the other teacher is dressing up as his love interest and the interpreter is dressing up like his mom.

I'm really loving this collaborating thing!  I'm ready to take it to the next level!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

At home:



The Fate of Ten (Lorien Legacies, #6) by Pittacus Lore is the 6th book a great YA series I started this summer.  Let me preface the rest of my review with, I know aliens aren't real. I realize the book is about aliens from a planet that would take a space ship a year to travel too but I struggled a bit with this book seeming... real.  Ha!  I know, I know, it's about aliens.  But hear me out.  The Loriens come with powers. But suddenly some teenagers on earth have gained the same powers.  Yes, there's a reason but it's still not believable to me.  Other than that I really enjoyed the story.  I love the battles, the romance, the struggles these teen aliens go through to save our planet Earth.  The ending is a total cliff hanger.  The last sentence is "She's gone."  Yeap, that's it.  Nothing else.  And the next books isn't out yet and I can't find any info of when the next book will be out one the website. Ugh!

In school:


For PK-2nd I read We Forgot Brock by Carter Goodrich.  This book is on the Texas 2x2 reading list.  Philip, a little boy and his family head to the Big Fair with his imaginary friend Brock.  But Philips falls asleep before the family head home and... Brock gets left behind.

This book reminded me of my imaginary friend Jimmy who used to wake up my baby cousin. He was so naughty to do such a thing!  My aunt would get so mad at me for tell her it wasn't me who woke up my baby cousin but it was Jimmy.  Ha!

For 3rd-5th I read the Texas Bluebonnet Nominee Hiawatha and the Peacemaker by Robbie Robertson.  This story is part of the Iroquois oral tradition.  Hiawatha learns to make peace instead of war.  He travels to other tribes to spread the message of peace.

I got my Junior Library Subscription this week.  I was able to read some of them before I put them out for check out.

Dragon  Was Terrible by Kelly DiPucchio Dragon is... well, terrible.  He scribbles in books.  He steal candy from baby unicorns.  He even burps IN church! Gasp!  The king, all the knights and villagers try to tame him but fail.  In the end a very unlikely person tames him.

Return (Journey Trilogy, #3) by Aaron Becker  is a lovely wordless picture book.  It's the third in the Journey series.  The illustrations are phenomenal!   

A Well-Mannered Young Wolf by Jean Leroy The Young wolf heads out for his first hunting trip.  He's so polite to those he hunts causing him to keep losing his prey.  Until he meets a little boy....

Lift Your Light a Little Higher: the Story of Stephen Bishop: Slave-Explorer by Heather Henson is a historical fiction based on a real slave's life.  Very little is known about Bishop except that he was a very brave man who lead many other slaves to safety.

Thankful Thursday-Spiritually Inspiring Sister Weekend

This past weekend my BFF, Emily and I went to a Bible Retreat called Spiritually Inspiring Sisters. We've been going for 3 years now.  Here's a recap of our weekend. 

We started off our weekend by stopping at a friends popcorn shop, What's Poppin' Popcorn, and getting some delicious popcorn!  Movie Theatre is my favorite.  It's so salty and buttery! Yum! Yum! Yum!

We always take a picture in the morning before we go in.  This morning it was very bright so we're a bit squinty.

The shirt I have on... Emily bought it for me for $5 from some lady.  I love it!  You can't see the bottom but it's animal print... Em hates animal print but I love it.  Ha!

These are the ladies we sat with.  They all go to church with my parents and Emily.  I'm connected to each of them (well, except one) in other ways too. They are a great group of Christian women!




The topic this year was Gentleness.  There's a fine line between being uplifted and sitting there thinking "I'm anything but gentle".  It's very easy to be hard on yourself when you listen to these women teach their lessons on gentleness, thinking about all the ways you are anything but gentle.                                                                                                                                                                                     Then I remembered the point of these weekends.  It's to ENCOURAGE us.  Not to point out our faults. So I quickly got my thoughts under control and started focusing on what I do well and what I need to work on.  Because really, even if we are excellent at something there's always room for improvement.  Although... I'm not excellent at gentleness. Ha!

The topic gentleness gave Emily and I a lot to talk about on our way home!

We've already marked our calendars for next year!

Wordless Wednesday-Twins

I had these shirts made for us by a teacher friend at school.

Five For Friday-Gentleness

As I mentioned earlier this week, my BFF, Emily and I went to a Bible Retreat called Spiritually Inspiring Sisters.  The topic was gentleness.

1.  Gentleness is an action I have to work at doing.

2.  It's easy to be gentle to cute little babies.

3.  It's not easy to be gentle to grown folks acting like a morons or the student you've literally total a 1,001 times to stop doing the same behavior they've repeated 1,003 times (cuz you gave 2 times to fix it... but they didn't)... that statement is so not gentle.  But it's the truth.

4.  It's way to easy to not be gentle with our family.  They are easy targets.

5.  I'm working across the board to be more gentle with others (maybe I'll make this my OLW for 2017). 

Weird Day

Yesterday was a weird day.

It started off with me waking up still mad about something that happened the night before (Newk's doesn't allow you to buy 1/2 a sandwich and a cup of fruit... yea, I nearly lost my mind over 1/2 a sandwich and a cup of fruit).

Then I get to the eye doctor first thing in the morning and the receptionist questions whether I really have an appointment.

Deep breathes.

Really deep breathes.

They did find my name in the system but didn't have any papers pulled for me so all was good (thankfully I took some deep breathes!).

I've been having weird eye twitching and a ton of pressure behind my right eye.  After a week and half of dealing with this the school nurse told me I HAD to go to the eye doctor.

The eye doctor says I've been having optical migraines.  I've never had those before.  I have 3-4 regular migraines a year and I have aura migraines (very rarely though) and now I have optical migraines.  Yay for me!

I have steroid eye drops I'll be using for the next 5-7 days.  And I have to wear my glasses.

We didn't have students yesterday so I had big plans to get a lot done.

I never get as much done as I think I should.

Never.

But I did get some stuff done.

I pulled my Halloween books for a display and set out my pumpkin book.  I helped a couple of teachers to pull books.  I scanned some books in.  And I got my lesson plans done through the 1st week of January.  I passed out Pizza Hut's Book It! Program and sent an email to our new faculty/staff book club members.

I ate lunch with a good work friend.  Then went to a website training where I was happy to hear I'd be getting a stipend for taking care of our school website.

Then I had to listen to some... not so nice teachers get snippy with our PR Specialist because they didn't want to be the website person for their campus.  It didn't matter how many times she told them she had gotten their names from their principals they still snipped at her.

That irritated me.  She did not choose them.  Their principal did.  Take it up with your principal not the PR Specialist who is just doing her job.

I ended my work day talking to one of the other librarians who was also having a bad day.  It helped to remember I wasn't the only one having a bad day and actually... my day wasn't really THAT bad. Her's was.

I ended my whole day with a walk with Jay and us watching the new series Pitch on Hulu.  So what started off as a rough day turned out to have a pretty good end.