a time and a place

I teach 4th grade, at a year round elementary school in Utah. I love my job (most days), and the year round schedule is the greatest thing on planet earth. Teach 9 weeks, get 3 weeks off. Genius. I just love it...

Except for the entire month of June. It's kind of horrible. I mean, I love the tiny humans, and we do some wicked fun activities, but the month of June, when every other student on planet earth is on vacation? It's rough.  

There was one particular day towards the middle of June when these little ones were acting more like psycho non-human-beings that were trying to drain me of all sanity. I finally had to throw out the math lesson and have a little Come-to-Jesus meeting with them. We talked about the on-going headache I had been experiencing, the lack of patience we all had, and the fact that we were literally still in school for 3 more weeks, and I needed them to chill out so no one died. We talked about having fun, and making the last few weeks memorable, and how that would be much more enjoyable than having their teacher go certifiably insane. I kept saying there was a time-and-a-place for their lunacy, crazy outbursts, and hyperactivity, and that we all needed to work together. It was beautiful.

For like 3 hours.

I kept saying 'Guys, time and a place, come on! Time and a place!" and I made the face that looks just like the weary/tired emoji. -------->

After saying that exact phrase multiple times over the next day or so, one kid said "Why do you keep saying that? What does time-and-a-place even mean?!" (he said this quite dramatically, mind you, it was probably one of my favorite moments, ever)

Hanging my head in defeat, I threw another lesson out the window (this time reading) and we had what I like to call an "Un-Common Core" lesson (that is for all my teacher friends...don't even get me started). We talked about appropriate behavior and how some actions are allowed in situations where at other times they aren't. We talked about different examples in the classroom, as well as in everyday life. My favorite examples of inappropriate behavior they came up with were: 

1. "I probably shouldn't sing Let It Go during sacrament meeting, my mom looked at me so mad!" 

2. "Like when Jaxon was talking like Elmo during the fraction activity last week?" 

3. "When my sister started rolling on the floor at the dentist office. Ummmm, awkward!"

Yes. Kind of. Good work tiny ones. 

It was a great real life moment for the kiddos and I. We made an agreement, and I'm happy to report that "time-and-a-place" was all I had to say for the remainder of the year in order to get my class to a semi normal, yet workable state. 

Luckily July 3rd came (yes, we are in class until JULY 3rd!) no one poked their eye balls out, and there were even tears of parting on the last day of school...but for weeks I haven't been able to get that question out of my head: "What does time-and-a-place even mean?!"

I've been asking myself that and trying to apply it to my life.  It's one of those concepts that on any given day I can totally understand and appreciate, and then 4 hours later, I'm throwing my hands up in the air in complete exasperation. #typicalgirl

For the past 7 months I have found myself really struggling with this. I was going through some weird emotional turmoil, convincing myself daily that I was happy, but living with a broken heart and not attempting or knowing how to fix it. 

So I packed up my bags, (literally) and filled up an entire 10 foot Uhaul (real life tetris people), and moved.... again. (I am 3 for 3 when it comes to moving in January, sheesh). This move did not come easy, I uprooted my life a little bit. I left my friends, my church calling, people I loved, and a life I was comfortable with. It was one of the hardest things I have had to do, and there was a part of me that hated the other part of me for doing it...Lots of tears, insecurities, not knowing anyone, and feeling rejected by people I had once confided in and felt so close to, and suddenly being overwhelmed with that feeling unimportance. 

It was a weird few months...but when it comes down to the facts, there is a time and a place for everything, right? And as much as I hated closing one chapter, it was time. It was time to worry about me, my sanity, and my happiness. It's been a struggle, but luckily (with time) this struggle, and this next chapter is turning out to be pretty okay too. 

I think about the opportunities and situations I have found myself in over the past several months, and am grateful for that leap of faith I sometimes have in not knowing that it is in order to make other things possible. I'm genuinely grateful for my struggles, and the lessons I have been able to learn... even if they were suuuuuuuuper sucky in the process. There is so much that God has in store for each of us, but it's hard to even comprehend the possibility of something good when we only focus on the bad, especially when we close ourselves off to only the timing that WE feel is best. Things will happen in their time, and in their place, there is no sense stressing, and no sense being unhappy if we can just stop and realize that the now is good too. So here's to 1986, and all of its wisdom,

Life sure has a way of breaking us if we let it, I'm happy to report I'm embracing the here and the now. Because THIS is the time, and THIS is the place. #accidentalbrighamyoungquote #imkeepingit

PS. Cheers to the tiny humans who give me a headache far too often, yet allow me to feel needed, loved, and help me ponder life's simple lessons. 

PSS. I feel like it would be blasphemous if I posted without a Jason Mraz moment... so here. Don't worry, it's super applicable, at least in my brain...

this is my life

I have been watching jungle gold and gold rush the past 2 nights, and it makes me feel incredibly stressed... yet I can't look away. What does this mean?

A couple of my kids found out I went on a date this week...oh boy! (apparently some of them have bat like hearing...I swear I was whispering to my team). 1st comment though was "Miss Ward! I knew you weren't going to die alone!" Naturally, I thought of this song. Thanks kiddo....you are the best!

Sometimes I have dreams that are so on the border of reality, I have to take a few minutes in the morning and decipher wether it actually happened or not. And usually, it is something dumb like being asleep in my dream and people coming in my room...so I try to wake up enough to brush my teeth.... my brain is so weird.

I significantly lowered the number of shows in my Hulu queue while off track the past few weeks. I am not even going to tell you how significantly...

Which reminds me: #February17thIsOctober19th best news ever!

Remember how I moved to Midvale in January? Up 3 flights of stairs? I have to move down those 3 flights of stairs soon. Yup...moving again. But only 7 blocks away. Awesome.

I have a love hate relationship with the heater. Mostly HATE. I would much rather have it be cold and cuddle up in my Aggie sweats, slippers, and blankets, than turn the heater on. Most people don't agree with me.

Which also reminds me... I just REALLY need to make it to an Aggie basketball game soon. I have lot's of screaming to do... Who's with me?

Fact: I kind of dislike the thought of the twins being 16 and going on dates. It makes me feel old and weird. Yes, I said it.

My coworker and I are applying to present at the UCET conference in March. #soexcited #ultimatenerdalert. Someone should just buy me suspenders and a pocket protector already....

I literally had to talk myself out of putting up my Christmas happiness tonight. I LOVE Thanksgiving....but I just am so excited to decorate! I blame my mother.

Have a ever mentioned how great my job is? I work with some crazy kids, and some crazy adults, and I love it.

Now I leave you with some of my latest faves:

this song has been playing nonstop for several months

same with this song + the rest of the album, and this song + the rest of the album. Just can't get enough.

I admit.... I wasted a lot of time on this site a bit ago..... and just now.

Watch this.... I bawled my eyes out

Source: lumea.tumblr.com via Whitney on Pinterest

Why I'm Talking to You...

let's talk for a quick second about how being a grown up and having a social life do not go hand in hand.

lets in turn not talk about the fact that my social life is winning, and my grown up life is suffering.
deal with my snappiness tiny humans...i'm having fun.

let's talk about how i LOVE year round schedule. except for today. A-tracks last day today makes it really hard to want to finish out the next 3 weeks

let's talk about how i still giggle at the fact that my sister had NO idea who ricky martin was. #imsuperold

let's talk about this strange new thing i have discovered called flirting. actually, let's not talk about it. geez, nosy people

let's talk about how i wanted a few minutes of silence at work today, so i checked out the iPads. shoving an iPad in a ten year olds hand not only gave me a few minutes of silence, but an entire hour. *bonus* they were reviewing for end of year testing!

let's talk about how i have a plethora of Toms and people are starting to notice the fact that i wear a different pair everyday. #shoeproblem

let's talk about how i think in terms of tweets now. i used to think in FB status updates, then in blog posts, now every normal conversation involves hashtag dot dot dot...

let's talk about how moving to midvale in january was downright the greatest thing that has happened in a long time

let's talk about how much i LOOOOVE Jon McLaughlin and how I FINALLY got to see him in concert, and how I was MOST DEFINITELY front row, up against the stage.

let's talk about how JM could stand for Jason Mraz, OR Jon McLaughlin...i love my life

let's talk about how completely and utterly happy i am that Sara Michelle is back from the mish and we have already had so many wonderful adventures. #don'tleavemeinthefall

let's NOT talk about how miss jen jones hasn't even LEFT on the mish yet. noooooooooo

let's talk about how awesome my roommates are. they are the bee's knees.

let's talk about how my 4th graders are SERIOUSLY trying to get me married. there are at least 4 or 5 comments a week. serious.

let's talk about how much i look forward to hanging out with people from my ward. yes, i just said that.

let's talk about how my nails were painted for 2 days and it was the most stressful thing ever

let's talk about how much i love that my favorite summer shows are baaaaaack

okay, let's stop talking so i can go to bed now. yesssss.

one of those days

preach Zooey. preach.

LOVE her.

LOVE this show.

that is all for now.

oh wait, except for this song.

so fun.

ok i lied, here are two more.

can not WAIT for these 2 concerts. YES!

and yes I just barely realized that sara bareilles is in both....go her!

and don't worry. 

more summer songs and happiness,
 coming your way!

many posts are in progress...go me!

new favorite holiday

so, today is OBVIOUSLY leap day

...and though it may just seem like just one extra day shoved into the year, every 4 years...

well, its so much more… actually not, it really it is just that.

But yet,

i don't know why, 4th graders find this day FASCINATING

apparently.

we researched the history of leap year, did leap year math, learned about myths, legends, and traditions of other cultures and even pretended that we were reporters back when julius caesar made this business official. 

it was quite an entertaining afternoon. observe:

*julius caesar organizes leap year in rome, 45 BC

• of course BC brought up the whole 'before christ' series of questions, oh bother...
• “miss ward, was julius a little dude? you know like... LITTLE caesar? Haha

*In Pirates of Penzance, the hero, Frederic, is bound by contract to serve as an apprentice until his 21st birthday. Because Frederic was born on Leap Day, he won't reach his 21st birthday until he is in his eighties!

•  “miss ward that’s so depressing! how would you like to only be in your twenties but have the body of a wrinkly old person!”

*Women in Ireland have a special privilege on Leap Day: they can propose marriage to a man

•       “ooh! Miss ward its like the movie! Don’t you just love her dress in that movie, oh and her ring, oh yes!?”  wow

*Over the centuries, rules were created for Leap Day proposals. A man who refused a woman's offer of marriage had to give her a small present. A woman was supposed to wear red if she intended to propose on Leap Day—fair warning to her intended.

•       “MISS WARD IS WEARING RED!!! She is going to get MARRIED!” (dead serious…this girl got wayyyy too excited)
•       “so you mean a girl could just propose on leap day to tons of boys just to get presents? stupid.”
•  “miss ward you should do that!! Ooo can I come with?”
• "i dont think this is fair. i do NOT want some girl proposing to me"

*In Greece, it is considered bad luck to get married in a leap year. In India, it is bad luck for a happy occasion to occur in a leap year or month. In China, superstitious people believe that more accidents and mishaps occur during leap month, and that children born then tend to be "difficult."

•  “oh my goodness. Is anyones birthday in february? …oh phew! That would have been SO AWKWARD!”
• “speaking of awkward, its spelled awk-WARD. Haha GET IT miss WARD?”'
• "ahhh that must be why i forgot to eat breakfast this morning. bad luck..."

*We know that a year is 365 days, but it actually takes 365.242 days to revolve around the sun. That's 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds. We can’t really add that extra quarter day to each year without messing up school schedules, alarm clocks, flight times, and just about everything else. Instead, we lump those extra quarter-days together into one extra day every four years to make Leap Year with 366 days.

•   “how do even they know that? What, did someone sit and stare at the sun for 365.242 days? then all dramatically starts yelling, Oww my eyes are burning!”

clearly, it just may be the fact that all 10 year olds are CRAZY, but it definitely made for an entertaining day. Clearly i have the...Best.job.ever. 

also this is great. crappy sound, but great

peppermint and cocoa

Dr. Neil Miller: Charlie, I'm sorry I didn't believe you.

Charlie: That's okay, Neil. You were just denying your inner child.

Dr. Neil Miller: You're going to make a great psychiatrist someday, kid.

Charlie: Nah. I think that I'm going to go into the family business.

Source: themeadowbrookblog.blogspot.com via [maisontwenty3} on Pinterest

Teaching 4th graders during the Christmas season is probably one of the greatest and downright most stressful things I have ever done.

Its so insanely busy this time of year, but these kids are hilarious and fantastic and just plain great.

It keeps me in touch with my inner child (not that I will EVER be capable of losing it)

But I'm pretty sure Christmas was meant to be celebrated with children.

I wouldn't trade my job for anything....

even if I do have to work this ENTIRE week.

Not kidding. Let's not talk about that...

Luckily the Christmas 2011 playlist is turning out quite nicely, I expect lots of crafting and Christmas celebrating on my evenings this week. Yes, yes I do.

hello! I've just got to let you know...

First off, the fact that this is the 2nd post this month and it's only the 10th is pretty legit right? Well, I'm getting back so don't you even fret!

Second of all, its SEP week. AKA Conference week. AKA report card week. AKA meet with all the parents week. AKA might as well bring a sleeping back and my toothpaste to school week, cause I will be THERE wayyyyy more than I will be anywhere else. Needless to say its going to be exhausting, and long. But its all good. After this week we have 3 pretend days of school next week, and I go off track until 11.11.11....I love year round school :)

Third of all, I have been scrambling to get my report cards done, finished and printed, but one of the things I am realizing about my self, it that I kind of a little bit despise entering grades into the computer. So I leave it all to the end, which mean instead of a weeks worth of grades to enter...I had 9. Kill me. Luckily, I have that finished, but still had one project left to grade. Social studies. This project consisted of 12 maps...PER KID. Oh, 12 times 23...why YES!!!! I DID just finish grading 276 maps. Jealous right? *ooooowwww head hurts*

Well, amidst these 276 pages of maps, I had to have the 5 following things in order to maintain my sanity
1. Glee playing in the backgroud
2. a few Jason Mraz breaks
3. left over Cafe Rio (i love that i can get 3 meals out of their salads)
4. several facebook/youtube breaks.
5. roommates to come talk to me

and that is why I bring you this post...these are the best videos that surfaced from this Monday night adventure:

ahhh this kills me!

I have no clue why I laughed out loud at this one...but I really did

this is for my sister...she is obsessed with this group, and they sang a little JB. in your face Gretch! Just embrace the Bieber Fever like the rest of us!

I love him. duh.

 

and last but not least. I am OBSESSED with this song...can't even tell you how many times I have played it since it was released. Especially the strings that come in like 20 seconds in....oh. my. gosh.

okay. now to put in comments for all 23 students and then I can be done!!!!

Ten years have passed since a perfect blue sky morning turned into the blackest of nights..."

Post title taken from this wonderful article

Can you believe it has been 10 years since that fateful day? I remember it clearly. I remember sitting in 8th grade math. I remember feeling strange all day. I remember being confused. I remember being scared. I remember losing my tennis match that afternoon. I remember feeling relieved when i got home that evening. I remember it clearly.

I have been reflecting a lot about this the past few days, as I am faced with the responsibility of answering questions to a class of wide-eyed 4th graders. As I have researched the past week, wondering what to say and how to say it to my students, I immediately realized that with the exception of, I think, 2 of my students, they had not yet been born on that September day 10 years ago. Woah. Now the responsibility has kicked in. What am I supposed to say? How do I answer their questions? Are they too young? Is this too touchy of a subject?

This is the battle that has been zooming through my mind. So as we left school on Friday, I took 5 minutes and asked them what they knew. And told them to think about these events and talk to their parents over the weekend, and we would talk about it on Monday. So as I have been battling and stressing over this responsibily, and trying to figure out what to say, I realized that this truly is a touchy subject. They are young, and hopefully their parents will educate them on these events, but we can take time to reflect on the feelings following the attacks and the heroism and patriotism that reigned.

So  its been decided that we are going to read the book "The Man Who Walked Between the Towers" by Mordicai Gerstein which tells the true story of Philippe Petit, a man who walked between the twin towers of the World Trade Center on a tightrope in 1974. He tells of the marvel of the buildings, his journey and then ends with the book's final painting of the imagined imprint of the towers, now existing "in memory"-linked by Philippe and his high wire. I feel this book helps us to remember that day, without striking up too many questions. Then hopefully we can read either "New York's Bravest" by Mary Pope Osborne or "14 Cows for America" by Carmen Agra Deedy (depending on which one I feel i will cry the least amount...) and then discuss the different heroes from that day, and from our own personal lives. Hopefully it will be a meaningful and lasting discussion, and hopefully I don't need too many tissues.

So now I feel much better about tomorrow and what I am going to say, and I am going to spend the rest of today reflecting and counting my blessings. As well as listening to this over and over again...

God Bless the USA

ABC, one two three

shoot. i fear i have been neglecting my blog. so sad. im totally trying to balance life right now. and am SLOWLY getting there.

i need to give more precedent to other things in my life, and not just my job. i mean not saying my blog should be the number 1 thing in my life, but its something for ME that i love and i think i should do more things for me too :) SO i'm trying to become the teacher that goes in first thing at 7 and leaves right at 4...and leaves everything at school for that matter...but like i said...i'm SLOWLY getting there. 

but such is life, and here's how mine is going...
 

i thought it was going to be super weird starting out with a new class since i got overly attached to my kiddos last year, but it was much easier than i anticipated. i have a super cute class, all very bright and for the most part very respectful, its weird how young they feel though compared to the kids i had at the end of last year, just goes to show how important 1 year can be!

speaking of school, but is it totally obvious if i say, i LOVE it? ya...it basically goes without saying, but serious now. the new school year is great, and the first day was so fun. seeing shiny new backpacks and shoes. crisp pencil boxes and an array of justin bieber folders and notebooks. oh it was glorious. but i am still waiting for that bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils...the ones that are just for me. not the ones i had to buy and then sharpen for my 24 kiddos, i want some for my very own!

life is super weird. i feel like its a constant roller coaster...why is that? and how do we make it stop?

i like the rest of the world have been addicted to pinterest for the past couple months. why? well...im kind of obsessive and when i see something i like i book mark it, or print it off, or save it to my computer...now i dont have to do that. its all there in one spot. just being awesome. ya, im a fan.

i have been obsessed with mat kearney's new album for that past couple months. still cant believe i havent blogged about it yet, but whatever. its amazing. i love him. a lot. and yes kym, i realize its another mat...coincidence?

im kind of over facebook. seriously considering deleting it for a while. its boring, and people are so superficial.

been going to the temple once week and its been wonderful. simply wonderful.

a couple weeks ago our home teachers were over, and upon leaving they asked the tyical question of "what can we do for you" we usually have nothing for them, but after a second of silence, katie perks up and says "i know! we need you to bring your vacuum over!" ya she was serious too. we have 2 vacuums, but neither of them work. in fact one kind of almost blew up...anyways. mr joe sure did bring his vacuum, AND actually vacuumed for us. it was glorious. glorious indeed.

some of my favorite texts i have received lately are:
* i hope he or she is not a big boob
*pizza is to new york as child birth is to utah
* i just bought that potato book you were telling me about
* im renewing my library books online. i guess my low iq wasnt enough to read them in the amount of time given
*ugh. your such a teacher sometimes

p.s gretch, the blog title is for you....

thats it for now. my creative juices have been used up the past 3 weeks, and now i must sleep. yay!

so long, farewell...

remember this one time, where i graduated from utah state in december, and on february 7th i started teaching 4th grade? sometimes it still baffles me...its crazy that something i worked so hard for, and something i wanted so badly has come true, and has been my entire life for the past 5 months. needless to say, im still ecstatic, overjoyed and i love my job. i had a super awesome class, and if i could i would post videos and pictures of our end of the year celebrations...but thats legally a no-no, so just imagine me and 23 ten year olds having a grand old time, and you will be set.
the last week was a crazy whirlwind. i had to get awards done, grades and reports cards done, had to clean my room, and pack up and move in to the off track closet, all while still teaching. luckily there was something awesome every day, monday we taught the kids how to make oragami frogs (a nice little angle and line review) and then we raced them in the gym. en-ter-tain-ing. tuesday we went on a field trip to the utah capitol, toured the daughters of the utah pioneer museum, and ate lunch and played at liberty park. seriously so much fun! wednesday was field day, and i got extra cool points for being the first teacher in the dunk tank...sweet. thursday we had our 4th grade rendezvous. played pioneer games, made leather necklaces, and made homemade rootbeer!
friday was the last day, and what a strange day it was. the kids were anxious, and i felt super anxious, like there was something dire that needed to be done. but we just had a lovely day, there was the faculty vs 6th grade softball game that morning, and it was a blast! im pretty sure we tied with the 6th graders, but we really just had a great time, and the kids loved cheering us on. we then had a class auction so the kids could spend the last of their class money. we had year book signing and then we cleaned up the room. the last half hour of school, we sat in a circle on the floor and the kids each shared their favorite part of the year, then i went around and told each of them what my favorite thing about them was, and why i was grateful to be their teacher...i felt myself getting emotional a few times, but then some kids would crack a joke, and that was forgotten. but when the bell rang, and i hugged each kid and wished them a happy summer, i felt it coming. once each kid was gone, i turned around and definitely burst into tears. i seriously felt so silly, but so sad! i mean, i will see most of them again, since they are only going to be in 5th grade right around the corner, but these were MY kids. my FIRST class. my FIRST year teaching! i learned so much about myself, and about teaching from them, and now i have to say goodbye? rude. i dont think its fair, but i guess thats part of teaching. hopefully i have a super awesome class next year...
next year which starts in 6 weeks...gotta love year round school! (i actually really do, i think its genius)
here's to my 6 weeks of summer vacation! PARTY!

I need a little bit of sunshine from you...

poor little blog has been neglected for several weeks. so badly in fact, that im now THINKING in blog post form just because i have been missing it so much! i really dont have much to say, but what else is new. its been a crazy few weeks with end of the year testing and all sorts of crazy things going on, so i have not really had the time to breath or eat normal meals, let alone blog. but here are random thoughts as of late. because as i know i have mentioned before, random thoughts are really the only the thoughts that matter...

i love my shatter nail polish. a lot. and cant wait to get more colors. ya thats right, i follow the crowd...

i also really love my car. i havent mentioned it on here yet, but my new car now has aggie license plates, and has officially been named pierre. i think he's cute.

i will admit though, while watching 27 dresses, and just friends, my lovely blue volvo named betty is momentarily missed.

the other day i realized that school ends in less than a month. and i literally got kind of emotional that i have to send my kids to the 5th grade. cant i just be their teacher forever?

since christmas, i have not been home for more that 24 hours. im REALLY looking forward to my boise adventure july 4th weekend. yay!

speaking of boise, i guess its just been an emotional week, because on monday i got kind of emotional that playcamp was starting that day, and i am definitely not there. man, i guess we cant have it all can we?

my new froomie katie is going to italy tomorrow. (rude i know) and we are currently watching letters to juliet and writing letters to juliet so she can take them with her. we were thinking of all writing the same one that says "dear juliet, im sick of waiting for romeo. will you please send the next best thing to holladay, utah? thanks friend!" think we will get an answer?

i have reached a definite level of creepy that only jesika and kym will understand. bah haahhahaha

i love matt white. like a lot. and i love that i met him and we 'talk' on facebook. he's just so great.

speaking of awesome male singers. i shouldnt be happy at someones breakup, but YES YES YES! his new album will TOTALLY benefit from this, and so will i...somehow...someday...have i ever mentioned how much i love him? well its like a lot.

i talked to my lovely cousin today for over and hour and it was so great! i love her.

kym and i are planning an awesome trip for january. i love teaching year round and being able to go on vacations while everyone else is in school

book club with the girls this summer...STOKED!

officially been to bob's TWICE so far, and there are MANY more trips to come! words can not describe the love i have for a snow cone. NO one gets it.

last saturday kym and i drove down to my favorite LOGAN TOWN! the weather was gorgeous, we went to lunch with karinne and 'little baby' and laid on the quad just chatting for a while. then we got snowcones at my favorite snowcone stop in front of hastings. ohhhhh its delicious. i just love everything about logan. boy do i miss it!

while in logan i bought aggie icecream for my kiddos and we are having a party tomorrow after our last test. they can hardly contain themselves, they are so excited! and...so am i!

i feel as if this is long enough, and probably was already long enough like 12 comments back, so not that anyone reads this, but i will cut my random string of thoughts a little short so as not to bore you any more. i promise i will be back soon! i have missed my dear little bloggy blog!

hope everyone is having a stupendous week! pray this beautiful weather holds up! tonight on my evening run, it actually SMELLED like summer. it was glorious!

peace. love. happiness. <3

June 2, 2011

i felt as if i should make it known that on this day, the second of june, i found myself sitting at a little league baseball game, with frozen toes, goosebumps, my entire body freezing and running for a 7/11 hot cocoa as soon as the game was over.
when did june mean 46 degrees? with freezing wind? and had i known this was the case, i wouldnt have packed my coat and cozy ugg boats away back march! just saying. man, i just am at a loss. for cryin in the beercheese soup!!!!

but just fyi the game was way fun. 3 of my boys are on the team, and they are darling, so i went to see them play. i had a great time, and it was totally fun to finally see what they constantly talk about in class! plus i do love baseball, they were really excited for me to come, and the umpire was attractive, so all in all it was a glorious night.

p.s. these same 3 boys had a baseball tournament in vegas last weekend, and when they came back they were so excited to tell me about the eiffel tower in vegas. haha and one of them brought me back a paris mug, and yummy french cookies. A+ for him eh?

.oh i have the best job in the world.

<3

Because when you know something, its yours forever...

I honestly don't even know how to start this post, because I don't know how to effectively express something that means so much to me, without sounding ridiculous...but here it goes anyways.

I distinctly remember being in Miss Sanderson's 3rd grade class, and deciding that I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up. I wanted to be in school for the rest of my life, because I loved it that much. I loved learning and I wanted to teach others to love learning. I remember always playing school in Emily's garage, and demanding to be the teacher. I would give Emily and my little brother Ethan 'assignments' that they would need to complete before the next day. Well, as you can see, not a whole lots has changed. I had a dream, and I did it. I am a teacher now, and I couldn't be more happy. Yes there are struggles, yes the legislature is a bunch of crap, and nothing in the education system is fair, but I do what I love. I work with kids every day and I have the opportunity to make a difference, even if it be small and simple.

Well, last year during student teaching, I had the opportunity to work with 3 amazing women who will always hold a special place in my heart. Two cooperating teachers who taught me more than they will ever know, and one supervisor who guided me and helped me be the best I could be. My supervisor was Stacey Bess, and she is without a doubt a remarkable woman. The first time I met her, I was a scared little pre-teacher, intimidated by her teaching history and amazing-ness. At the age of 23, Stacey was assigned to teach at the 'school' at the homeless shelter in downtown Salt Lake. She was given no resources, no training, but just told to show up and hopefully keep the kids off the street. So what did she do? She changed lives. The experiences she had as a young teacher are remarkable and as she shared her story at our little pre student teaching orientation, I was moved to tears....well, more like sobs. Then I found out she was my supervisor, and I was scared to death. How could I ever impress a teacher that had impacted so many lives? How could I teach in front of her without being nervous? But then I met her face to face, and knew I could learn so much from her and was excited to begin the journey. She came in every other week to observe my teaching, and always gave me great advice and ideas to help improve. We had seminars with the other student teachers in the school, and we usually ended up just talking and laughing about who knows what.

During student teaching I read and re-read her book "Nobody Don't Love Nobody" 3 times, and am almost finished with it again. It is seriously an amazing story that makes me multiple times throughout the book. Well, Hallmark purchased the rights to her book and made it into a movie entitled "Beyond the Blackboard", and tonight I had the chance to see one of the first screenings of it in Logan. To say I cried throughout the entire movie would be a complete understatement. It was a beautiful movie, yes cheesy Hallmark-ish at times, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. The movie showcased how remarkable of a woman Stacey is, and what she did to help change the lives of these people. Watching the movie definitely gave me that reassuring feeling that I am in the right profession, that I am lucky to be a teacher, and lucky to have the opportunity to make a small difference.

Clearly, it was a wonderful experience. And to be able to talk to Stacey afterward was fabulous. The movie is going to be aired on CBS on Sunday, April 24th and I think everyone should watch it. Its cute, its funny, its happy, and its a touching story about an amazing teacher. What more could you ask for?

"What Was THAT?! And where did all those stars come from?"

i had a blog post in the works, and i just went to finish is...and somehow its gone. i dont approve. im actually quite bothered, because i dont even remember what it said. so...i guess it wasnt important.

this week was insane. i feel like it was maybe like 2.7 weeks, when in reality it was only one. i went off track this week, and had to move out of my classroom, and teach at the same time. plus there was something going on every night. monday fhe. tuesday birthday shopping with jesika. wednesday birthday celebrating in honor of the wonderful katie jane. thursday was the end of year sigma celebration. and friday was tale of two cities (again) and playing with the girls. phew! thats a busy yet FABULOUS week! and can i just say that seeing tale of two cities again was definitely one of the highlights. i followed the story much better, since it had been so long since i had read the book, and i definitely bawled the ENTIRE second half. no joke. it didnt help that 'young gaspard' was played by one of my former students (he was adorable in it!) but his character dies, and it got to me...bad. such a beautiful and heartbreaking story, and amazing musical. im obsessed to say the least.

saturday kym came down for a visit, and we went to this charming little belgian waffle place downtown called Bruges Waffles and Frites, which was to DIE for.  holy cow. new favorite for sure. then we went and saw Kings Speech and I was honestly astounded. amazing movie, brilliantly filmed. the only part that was dumb, was how they edited it from R to PG-13. the way they did it was ridiculous, and made me kind of mad. BUT it is definitely worth seeing over and over again. and it further affirmed my love of colin firth, that has been a part of me since i was little (i know he's old...whatever) so...GO SEE IT! yay! after that we had an ikea adventure with a bunch of other girls,  and dinner at chilis. i LOVE the weekends! and i LOVE when kym comes to visit!

i finished off the night with Tangled and a sleep over in my living room with katie jane and jesika. it was lovely, but im realizing im old now and cant sleep on the floor successfully....gotta love it.

tomorrow marks my first day off track. im excited to take some 'me' time. go to the temple, the gym, and relax for a few weeks. honestly though, im definitely going to miss my kids! 4 whole weeks without their randomness?! how will i survive? haha im sure i will be ok...but it is a long time! i guess that means i love my job or something...

but needless to say, it was a fabulous, yet long week and i am exhausted. im ready for bed, and am looking forward to sleeping in a little tomorrow. hope everyone had a most triumphant week!

and now i leave you with a picture of my awesome girls and i. oh, i heart them :)

arrrr beeee ellllll

R B L are my 3 favorite letters right now...


pathetic. simply pathetic.
somebody help

oh life......

no ending

im a huge advocate for children's literacy.

simply because i love children

and i love books

and because every child deserves a chance to succeed in life.

there is nothing better than seeing a child get so wrapped up in a book that they never want to leave that new found world.

i know its an experience that i have enjoyed from a young age,

but to see it happen with kids seriously just fills me with all sorts of joy. 

this exact thing is happening in my classroom, and it makes me want to jump for joy each day.

my very first day teaching, my students asked me what my favorite book was...

now this is a very hard question for me to answer. basically impossible...

but being that this is 4th grade, i tried to think back to my favorite book as a kid, that captivated me and led me to that new found world. 

a book that brought about the full range of emotions, and had me loving the book and hating it all at the same time. 

so i told them "where the red fern grows, by wilson rawls"

because honestly, i love that book.

so much.

well not a single one of my students had read the book,

or even heard of the book.

after gasping, i knew that was about to change.

we started the book my 2nd week of teaching, 

and i will have you know that my students are eating it up.

they never want me to stop reading.

they absolutely love it, and it just fills me with joy.

now we already had a little chat about emotions, and how some people are affected differently, and how if i cry not to be freaked out...

(i mean, i have already choked up twice while reading aloud, and we are only barely half way through the book)

but they are so captivated, and excited about this book, i just love it.

it seriously only takes one book for a child to grasp on, and learn to love to read,

and i love that i get to be a part of that each day.

Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book.  

~Author Unknown

 

A good book has no ending.  ~R.D. Cumming 

If you resist reading what you disagree with, how will you ever acquire deeper insights into what you believe?  The things most worth reading are precisely those that challenge our convictions.  ~Author Unknown  

 

Reading well is one of the great pleasures that solitude can afford you.  ~Harold Bloom
 

i hear the sound of the ticking of clocks

i love weekends. last weekend was clearly FABULOUS. i went to my amazing sorority retreat, and seriously had the best time! so glad i joined! best decision ever!

i also got to spend saturday with my 3 best friends! we have been trying for MONTHS and MONTHS to get the 4 of us together, and it finally happened! we went to lunch, did some shopping and had a glorious time catching up. i love them sooooo much!

this weekend i hung out with kym, saw an awesome movie, and we got cheesecake, which is always a good idea.

saturday, i went running with my new butt kicking shoes, and my latest splurge i was pretty much a happy camper. (ps those shoes really do work, my legs are killing me today!) also, i have been waiting a long time for that splurge. sad something as silly as an ipod could make me so happy! but now ALL of my music is on there and i dont have to choose favorites. now no one feels left out.

i also went on a sigma date on saturday. now i dont even remember the last date i went on...apparently im un-dateable or something.... well the boy reminded me of my brother ethan, so that will never go anywhere, but we did have so much fun! went to the jazz game and they won! and got frozen yogurt. happy! i seriously am so glad i joined sigma, can i say that enough?

oh, my point in telling you how i love weekends, is that i really do LOVE weekends. i always have weekends planned at least 10 days in advance in order to ensure they are awesome. pretty sure i have every weekend in march planned out already. these weekends include, but are not limited to: seeing 'hairspray' live , making a quick adventure to saint george, seeing 'drowsy chaperone' and best of all, seeing my newest favoritest obsession. oh im going to marry him.

now, do you believe me when i say i love weekends?

also, today im having a sunday adventure with some sigma girls, dont worry im sure you will hear all about it.

here are some other thoughts that i thought of:
i think its rude that everyone knows whether or not a girl teacher is married, but there is nothing to inform you if a male teacher is married or single! there is the use of 'Ms.' but 9 times out of 10 it just means the woman is divorced, and no one uses that anyways....it just doesnt seem fair to me...i mean its not like i need to know....er....uh....shoot....

i have been having major coldplay/muse obsessions lately. i cant even explain what that music does to me. love it.

can i just say how awesome it is to get paid? its quite nice. sucks it only happens once a month, but getting paid is getting paid. yes.

i just love finger nail polish. a lot. i am building quite the collection without even really realizing it...

spring is coming, and i LOVE it! birds chirping, no more snow, sunshine, blooming flowers, ahhhhh so happy.

sometimes its still weird to me that i am a real teacher. i haven't quite wrapped my head around it, but regardless...i LOVE it! i am seriously having so much fun, and my kids are fabulous!

life is good. and thats that!

thats my man and his legs dont work!

so.... i survived week 1 as a real life teacher. and it was AWESOME! my students are adorable, and i am seriously loving every minute. i even managed to get a wicked cold before i even started, so i feel week two will be even better.

my mom and brother came to visit last weekend, and it seriously felt like only a few hours they were here, and then they were gone. i feel jipped.

i wish there was more time in the day, simply to listen to music. sometimes i feel like i neglect all my music because i run out of time. am i insane? well yes i am, but i have accepted it.

did i mention the school district gives me a macbook to use while i teach? im in heaven. i will never go back to PCs. they are evil.

as you may have guessed by my blog design change. i am currently pretending its spring in hopes that it will just automatically become spring. because im through with winter. im ready for green grass, chirping birds, budding flowers, and flip flops. whos with me?

we had a lesson on heros this week, and i asked all the kids to write about their hero. some where really entertaining, and some were really touching. but one girl...she wrote about me. haha apparently i am doing something right during week 1? wait till next week deary...muh hahaha.

currently watching anne. no one understands the love i have for that movie. well, my mom does, but thats about it.

i found this website somewhere a few weeks ago, and i love it. sometimes things are dirty, so take that as a fair warning, but sometimes there are really magical things on there :) and im all about magical...

glees doing rent this week! rent! yes i LOVE rent! they are also doing justin beiber...oh yes. i said justin beiber.

got to hang out with miss katie on friday. i seriously love that girl, and all the good times we have together. she seriously is one of my favoritest people in the world. love.

SO i pretty much LOVE this new TW song. yes? much better than the lady gaga original. definitely.

there once were all these things in my head i knew i needed to blog about. apparently they are gone now.

oh watch this. cause i like it. a lot. (#22 is a ninja!) (i'm so overcome with love!)

thats all i have for now. peace and love.

except for the fact that i REALLY want to do this to my bike:

very nice

#1. i LOVE mr darren chriss.

he's very...nice.

#2. i LOVE gap. its always been my store. ya know, i did work there one summer, and spend more there than i earned.

#3. two new glee episodes in one week?

heaven.

p.s. first day was SPECTACULAR will post more soooooooon.

<3

also, this is fantastic...admit it. you love glee

one last hoo-rah

well folks, the time has come.

the day i have been looking forward for one heck of a long time.

the day i become a real teacher.

i am so excited, a little freaked out, and very anxious about tomorrow.

this week i celebrated lots,

because i felt it was very important to have a last hoo-rah before i say goodbye to a social life

and hello to utah history, and long division.

not that you really care what i did all weekend, but here ya go:

monday: slept in, attended a fabulous ward fhe talent show, and watched the bachelor 

tuesday: went into my school for the majority of the day, cleaning, organizing, and throwing out lots of random papers and such. then went to a concert with miss emily m. which was pretty grand, just uber long :)

wednesday: slept in...again, went to lunch with liz, went to some darling little shops in sugarhouse, went to liz's parents house for groundhog dinner, (get it, ground hog-pulled pork haha) and to watch groundhog day of course

thursday: movie marathon and ultimate 4th grade planning. it was epic. i watched a few movies, and got almost 2 full weeks of school planned out. thats pretty legit. also went to a chinese new year party, and had AMAZING chinese food. awesome

friday: spent the entire day at my school. met with a parent, got all my papers copied, organized some more, met MOM and BROTHER for lunch and then they helped me move in and make my classroom look glamourous! 

saturday: ran errands, went to the teacher store :) out to lunch, visited more cute shops, walked around gateway, ate dinner, and chatted the night away with family and friends.

sunday: had a much needed talk with my mom. had to say goodbye :( went to church with liz, drove to kyms watch the pre-glee show (aka the superbowl) and THEN glee finally came back! oh thank you thank you!

it was grand.

and now i sit her in my bed. wishing sleep would come,

but alas, it doesnt.

heres to hoping i dont fall asleep teaching my students tomorrow!

ahhhh MY students!

glorious.

farewell and goodnight folks.