Since we were going to be gone and had a 5 hour drive to and fro, I grabbed 3 books to dive into during our trip. Well, I managed to only read one of the books while we were gone, which was read only while we were driving. I just read/finished Counting by 7's by Holly Goldberg Sloan. I really enjoyed the book. It had a good pace, and I didn't get bored. On page 360, I ran across a line that touched me.
"I'm not brave; it's just that all other choices have been thrown out the window."
I thought, "If 'brave' were changed to 'strong,' that would be me." I don't mean for that to sound conceited or anything, but I find that with everything that I have thought about, felt, and gone through the last few years, that I haven't been brave. I have had to be strong. Stronger than I ever thought I needed to be. Strong enough to get through. Maybe I have put things off, not mourned when or how I should have, over or under reacted, but I have survived. Strong and the way I have handled things is the only way I knew how b/c "all other choices" were "thrown out the window."
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Thanksgiving Break 2014 and Toys for Tots 5K
We had a great Thanksgiving Break. I have had this feeling that keeps me thinking . . . what if this is our last Thanksgiving with Mom. Tomorrow isn't promised, and we have no idea what a year will bring, so I have decided to live up each holiday, moment, etc. This may all be made up in my mind, but it is still a feeling/thought I have.
We went to spend several days with my niece, nephew, brother, and sister-in-law.
On Tuesday, after we arrived, we enjoyed a great dinner and went shopping for all the groceries needed for our Thanksgiving lunch. We also picked up the last of the Science Fair project materials.
On Wednesday, we decided we weren't going anywhere until both Science Fair projects were completed. Both needed to do the experiment portion, but they had the majority of the write-up finished. By the time we left for lunch, they had done their experiments, finished their typing, and printed off their pages to put on their boards. We then went to lunch and ran several errands and picked up a few Christmas gifts. We also picked up the turkey, ham, dressing, gravy, cranberry sauce, and rolls, which we ordered from Luby's. We find ordering the larger pieces makes things so much easier. We ended our day with my niece making two pie crusts almost from scratch and then the two pie fillings. My niece loves to bake, and I love to watch and help. This time, I helped, but Mom helped even more. I loved watching the two of them. My niece loves Pumpkin Pudding Pie, which she learned in 1st grade from her teacher when they made it in class. She also tried Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Pie, but in the end, it did not turn out. We will try it again another day.
On Friday morning, our first task was to go to Walmart to get the pics I had printed. We needed them for their Science Fair projects.
Here is their finished work:
On Friday evening, my nephew was to volunteer with his Young Marine group to put out chairs, usher, and pick-up chairs at the San Antonio's Holiday River Parade & Lighting Ceremony. My brother signed up my niece, Mom, and me to help. This got us free lunch from a food truck, free viewing of the parade, and free dinner. They will also get to attend a dinner in a few weeks put on from the sponsored for their gratitude toward volunteers. While we worked hard to set-up hundreds of chairs, it was great helping people, meeting new people, and watching the parade. It was a fun evening!
One of my favorite scenes was looking over to see Mom and my niece watching the parade together. My niece had the program and was reading about the floats/companies as they entered our viewing area.
This morning, we woke up and got dressed as fast as possible to be at the Toys for Tots 5K by 8:00. We made it just after 8. Whew! My nephew and his Young Marines group led the opening ceremony with the flags and National Anthem. They also helped with the water station. My niece agreed to do the Fun Run with me. Yea! It wound up being a 4K, and there were no more than 25 runners/walkers. It was the weirdest thing I've ever experienced. All the 5Ks I've done have had thousands of people. This one had 25 max! We were the only walkers, so we only did one of the two laps. I hated the thought of everyone being finished and us still out there. My niece was great, seemed to enjoy it, and was happy to stop after one lap. My niece and nephew have both agreed to do a Color Run with me at some point.
We went to spend several days with my niece, nephew, brother, and sister-in-law.
On Tuesday, after we arrived, we enjoyed a great dinner and went shopping for all the groceries needed for our Thanksgiving lunch. We also picked up the last of the Science Fair project materials.
On Wednesday, we decided we weren't going anywhere until both Science Fair projects were completed. Both needed to do the experiment portion, but they had the majority of the write-up finished. By the time we left for lunch, they had done their experiments, finished their typing, and printed off their pages to put on their boards. We then went to lunch and ran several errands and picked up a few Christmas gifts. We also picked up the turkey, ham, dressing, gravy, cranberry sauce, and rolls, which we ordered from Luby's. We find ordering the larger pieces makes things so much easier. We ended our day with my niece making two pie crusts almost from scratch and then the two pie fillings. My niece loves to bake, and I love to watch and help. This time, I helped, but Mom helped even more. I loved watching the two of them. My niece loves Pumpkin Pudding Pie, which she learned in 1st grade from her teacher when they made it in class. She also tried Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Pie, but in the end, it did not turn out. We will try it again another day.
The kids did a great job helping to cook Thanksgiving lunch. I realized days later that I never took any Thanksgiving Day pics. Here is one of my nephew with the green bean casserole that he made.
On Friday morning, our first task was to go to Walmart to get the pics I had printed. We needed them for their Science Fair projects.
Here is their finished work:
On Friday evening, my nephew was to volunteer with his Young Marine group to put out chairs, usher, and pick-up chairs at the San Antonio's Holiday River Parade & Lighting Ceremony. My brother signed up my niece, Mom, and me to help. This got us free lunch from a food truck, free viewing of the parade, and free dinner. They will also get to attend a dinner in a few weeks put on from the sponsored for their gratitude toward volunteers. While we worked hard to set-up hundreds of chairs, it was great helping people, meeting new people, and watching the parade. It was a fun evening!
These are just a few of the parade pics.
One of my favorite scenes was looking over to see Mom and my niece watching the parade together. My niece had the program and was reading about the floats/companies as they entered our viewing area.
This morning, we woke up and got dressed as fast as possible to be at the Toys for Tots 5K by 8:00. We made it just after 8. Whew! My nephew and his Young Marines group led the opening ceremony with the flags and National Anthem. They also helped with the water station. My niece agreed to do the Fun Run with me. Yea! It wound up being a 4K, and there were no more than 25 runners/walkers. It was the weirdest thing I've ever experienced. All the 5Ks I've done have had thousands of people. This one had 25 max! We were the only walkers, so we only did one of the two laps. I hated the thought of everyone being finished and us still out there. My niece was great, seemed to enjoy it, and was happy to stop after one lap. My niece and nephew have both agreed to do a Color Run with me at some point.
We celebrated at Starbucks with Frappuccino and Hot Chocolate.
It was a great break, and I absolutely hated leaving.
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Lunch Book Club
The office staff, administrators, and support staff (all of us who are not classroom teachers but support the teachers in various ways) eat lunch the lunch period after all the students and teachers eat. We talk about a variety of things--family, work, movies, and more. We also talk a lot about books. We are always sharing titles that we enjoy, but we don't tend to remember them after we eat. We decided this year that we would read a book together and discuss it during lunch. We began on October 15th with the plan that we would read one chapter a night and discuss that chapter the following day during lunch. Well, once we were supposed to have read 5 chapters, many were behind. We decided to change our "rules." We would read the whole book by November 20th and then bring a dish on November 21st to share that symbolized the book to us. November 21st was the day we were getting out before Thanksgiving Break, so very few wound up being on campus and several ended up in meetings. We decided we would just have to put it off. Maybe after the break.
Oh! What book did we read, you ask? We read The Wife, The Maid, and The Mistress by Ariel Lawhon. I enjoyed it, but I have no idea what dish I would make.
Now, we have to decide what our next book will be.
I took a lot of books I really enjoyed (and have blogged about earlier this year) and created a little library in my office for them to borrow.
Oh! What book did we read, you ask? We read The Wife, The Maid, and The Mistress by Ariel Lawhon. I enjoyed it, but I have no idea what dish I would make.
Now, we have to decide what our next book will be.
I took a lot of books I really enjoyed (and have blogged about earlier this year) and created a little library in my office for them to borrow.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
Run for God--New Hope America 5K
Because I have been out of commission for a while due to a hip injury and have not walked or worked out like I have been or should, I decided to set a goal for myself. I got an email about a free 5K being held on the evening of November 15th--Run for God--New Hope America 5K. While it was being held in Georgia, I decided I could register (it was free, after all) and walk my own 5K in my own neighborhood. So . . . I did. This weekend turned out to be very cold (snow coming in tomorrow), so I decided not to wait until the evening when the actual event started. I walked my 5K in the early/mid-afternoon. I impressed myself even more--I ran during different portions of my route. I have this big hill I have to go down and then back up. I walked this hill 6 times during my 5K. I ran down the hill 5 of the 6 times. Now, some of you may think that isn't that big a deal. Well . . . I don't run. I don't have the endurance (yet) and I don't like running when others can see me, so I decided to work it in when I felt comfortable. I was so excited to accomplish that little bit of running. This whole thing has really gotten me motivated to start working out and walking again. I hope I can keep it up.
Here I am before heading outside.
Here I am before heading outside.
More Girl Scouts--Meetings Fall 2014
October:
We met at the beginning of the month to plan our Bridging and Awards Ceremony. Normally, we have the ceremony at the end of the school year or during early June, but we put it off this year. Once the girls decided what they wanted to do for their ceremony, they decorated skulls for Day of the Dead of Día de Muertos. We discuss what the day was, the Mexican culture and the development of the holiday, and then provided the supplies for them to design their own skulls. One of the most exciting parts of the night was that my niece got to join us via Skype. I had mailed her the craft supplies, so she joined in the discussion and then got to do the craft right along with us. All the girls loved that she was joining us.
Two weeks later, we met with their families to perform our ceremony and bridge 4 young ladies from Brownies to Juniors and 3 young ladies from Juniors to Cadettes.
November:
We met twice this month. The first meeting was spent planning meals and beginning discussions around a Scouts Own for our Service Unit Campout in December. We finished the night with the girls creating a Thanksgiving craft.
The second meeting began with our Parent Cookie Meeting/Training and then concluded with the final discussion/plan of the Scouts Own we are leading at the campout next month.
We met at the beginning of the month to plan our Bridging and Awards Ceremony. Normally, we have the ceremony at the end of the school year or during early June, but we put it off this year. Once the girls decided what they wanted to do for their ceremony, they decorated skulls for Day of the Dead of Día de Muertos. We discuss what the day was, the Mexican culture and the development of the holiday, and then provided the supplies for them to design their own skulls. One of the most exciting parts of the night was that my niece got to join us via Skype. I had mailed her the craft supplies, so she joined in the discussion and then got to do the craft right along with us. All the girls loved that she was joining us.
Two weeks later, we met with their families to perform our ceremony and bridge 4 young ladies from Brownies to Juniors and 3 young ladies from Juniors to Cadettes.
November:
We met twice this month. The first meeting was spent planning meals and beginning discussions around a Scouts Own for our Service Unit Campout in December. We finished the night with the girls creating a Thanksgiving craft.
The second meeting began with our Parent Cookie Meeting/Training and then concluded with the final discussion/plan of the Scouts Own we are leading at the campout next month.
Sunday, November 9, 2014
Girl Scout Older Girl Event
Our Service Unit tries to host a Younger Girl Event (K-5th) and an Older Girl Event (6th-12th). Last night was the Older Girl Event. It was held at an indoor location that has high ropes, zip line, games, and more. It was a Girl Scout only lock-in with girls from our Service Unit and girls from all over North Texas. I took 4 girls from my troop, and they had the best time. The parents said they couldn't stop talking about it (when they weren't passed out from being so tired). I am so glad I got some video to show their parents. The girls really faced some fears up on the high ropes and zip line. I am so proud of them!
Monday, November 3, 2014
Thoughts from a Spinster
1. According to a presentation on Friday (presenter's description of certain women in literary history), I am well on my way to being a spinster.
2. I can't tell you how many times this weekend I've been asked, "Where are you in your program?" (ie Doctoral Program) Um . . . finished 6.5 years ago. How young do I look? Note: Just last month, I was asked if I've retired.
3. Just because someone attends a research conference doesn't mean they must be in Higher Ed. Some folks enjoy working within school districts at various levels. No need to look down upon us or feel sorry for us or assume we don't have our Doctorates yet. The comments/questions weren't so bad, but the facial expressions and body language that went along with it were pretty brutal.
4. Learning is fun and allows us to gain so many new ideas. I have a few ideas to share with everyone for vocabulary and other literacy strategies, with our History Dept. on making History more engaging, with our Creative Writing teacher, with our Spanish teacher, and with our Science Coordinator for our 1 to 1 iPad initiative. I have a few ideas for my own research too.
5. I'm a great timekeeper for presenters during their presentations. However, they must pay attention to me in order to stay on time.
6. There is no Shepherd's Pie like the Shepherd's Pie served/eaten in an authentic London Pub. MMMmmmmm, good! Blue Anchor Pub is delicious!
7. My niece and nephew are so creative and had some of the best Halloween costumes ever. She went as Junie B. Jones to school and a Minion for trick-or-treating. He went as the main character from Maze Runner to school and an old man or old Native American or something while trick-or-treating.
8. It is very hard being away from family on a holiday.
9. Conferences aren't all fun and games. I had to get some work done too, so I knocked out two tests. One more to go. (Nothing like procrastinating.)
2. I can't tell you how many times this weekend I've been asked, "Where are you in your program?" (ie Doctoral Program) Um . . . finished 6.5 years ago. How young do I look? Note: Just last month, I was asked if I've retired.
3. Just because someone attends a research conference doesn't mean they must be in Higher Ed. Some folks enjoy working within school districts at various levels. No need to look down upon us or feel sorry for us or assume we don't have our Doctorates yet. The comments/questions weren't so bad, but the facial expressions and body language that went along with it were pretty brutal.
4. Learning is fun and allows us to gain so many new ideas. I have a few ideas to share with everyone for vocabulary and other literacy strategies, with our History Dept. on making History more engaging, with our Creative Writing teacher, with our Spanish teacher, and with our Science Coordinator for our 1 to 1 iPad initiative. I have a few ideas for my own research too.
5. I'm a great timekeeper for presenters during their presentations. However, they must pay attention to me in order to stay on time.
6. There is no Shepherd's Pie like the Shepherd's Pie served/eaten in an authentic London Pub. MMMmmmmm, good! Blue Anchor Pub is delicious!
7. My niece and nephew are so creative and had some of the best Halloween costumes ever. She went as Junie B. Jones to school and a Minion for trick-or-treating. He went as the main character from Maze Runner to school and an old man or old Native American or something while trick-or-treating.
8. It is very hard being away from family on a holiday.
9. Conferences aren't all fun and games. I had to get some work done too, so I knocked out two tests. One more to go. (Nothing like procrastinating.)
Sunday, November 2, 2014
ALER October 31-November 2
One of my BFFs, Robin, and I went to Delray Beach, Florida October 30th-November 2nd to attend ALER (Association of Literacy Educators and Researchers). I attended some great sessions, enjoyed presenting with my BFF, and enjoyed seeing the Atlantic Ocean.
Here are a few pics:
Photo Op at the Airport
The view of the Atlantic Ocean from our room.
It wouldn't be a great trip without a little excitement. Yep! That is a fire truck at our hotel, which had to be evacuated, and no, we did not hear the alarms to evacuate. We found out and evacuated as the firemen were loading up and everyone was returning.
I'm almost always working. Just kidding! We were resting.
Our Selfie on November 1st
My feet in the Atlantic Ocean!
The Atlantic Ocean
Checking out the beach again before we left.
Our gift to our other BBF, Jill, who couldn't attend.
For some reason, I don't have any pics of our presentation. Oh, well!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
