Good-bye Rex

 First- Goodbye, Rex.

Today we held services in the backyard at the National Hamster Cemetary for Rex. He was a good hamster. He gave us 2 happy years. His brother, Larry,  went on to a better place this past September and a distant cousin, Chuck, was buried in the first plot a few years ago. We are going to shop for Rex's headstone tomorrow.
Stop smiling because I am not kidding. They were all boarders in the Tori's room. I went in to give her a kiss to wake her up this morning and noticed Rex was in his food bowl, but not eating. She took him out and we held him and rubbed him to keep him warm. We laid him back down comfortably after about an hour or so and then we waited, and waited, and waited. And around three o'clock when I checked on him there was no breathing.
So when the Mr came him he went straight to the back yard and began to dig. We went outside and there were a few words spoken and then it was over. It was all very sad and yet another crappy thing that has happened to her on her Christmas break. poor baby!

We tried to pep her up  a bit. We all went to Opryland Hotel and saw the lights. And we drove through Jellystone Park lights and we went to Santa's village and she did the jumpy thing with the bungees. The boys did it too and it was pretty funny! They were WAY up there!
We also tried something new for dinner.

Before I can go any farther, I have to share SOME MORE OF MY CRAZINESS with you. And I am in no way knockin' crazy, because I know I am - it's on paper and they make me take my meds!!!!! Remember the OCD thing???
Well, the CRAZY started kicking in when I was preggers with #2. I began having trouble driving. A real tightness in my chest. It was just a weird feeling at first, but then it manifested into this physical discomfort and eventually- full blown panic attacks! thanks to the meds- I can drive short distances (I live 2.2 miles from my school).
I also got this weird thing about metal. I am not allergic to metal, I can (prefer not to ) touch it. That was 10 years ago and now my silverware is packaged up under a counter. and we use camping ware. It is plastic and hardy and dishwasher safe,
I cannot drink from a can. I cannot touch unfinished metal....chalky stuff also gives me problems. I know it is weird- the Dr has no idea....I am going to head over to the therapy couch one day and see what the heck happened and why I am so screwy when it comes to that!

OK, back to the regularly scheduled post-

So we went to Cock of the Walk near the Hotel. Have you ever been there? I haven't . Don't know why, but we just never did go there! It smelled wonderful and I couldn't wait to be seated and start eating.....until.......I saw the set up. It is family style- which I can handle but,,,

Let's count the metal:

1. Apps are served on metal tray.
2.Cornbread in cast iron skillet. (several on table)
3. greens are in a metal pot.
4. There is a metal bucket with the silver and napkins for the table.
5. The cups are the little tin camping cups.
6. A giant platter of our family style meal
.7. and the silverware to eat with.

Oh, and you can't see it pictured, but there are metal pitchers all up and down the table for you.


I thought I was going to stroke out! the Mr asked our server for a to go cup and to go plastic silverware..






The food was great, but I wasn't able to have a conversation with anyone because my jaws were clenched the whole time! So I looked like a real anti-social B***H! His fam knows about my weirdness.....but the 75 other people who were in the dining room didn't and they were just scraping away on those tin plates with their metal forks and spoons!!!

It was supposed to be an evening to cheer up the girl. which I guess worked because she sat across from me and giggled the whole time, threatening to scrape her fork on her plate!!! "You're welcome, sweetie!"

11 in 11

Hola!
I have missed the bloggin'!
Christmas Eve was at my house (after we got home from the hospital), yes, we still hosted it- it was because we have the youngest children and the most stuff to move if we go to another family member's house....so by default, having #3 earned us an eternity of Christmas Eve Festivities! "Thanks a lot, Jonathan!!' :)
Our tradition is that we open all of our presents on on the 24th and then the only thing under the tree the next morning is what Santa left.  So we opened everything and then kicked everyone out because we were E.X.H.A.U.S.T.E.D!!!!

I could see the {{{{{HUGS}}}}}} flying over in a million, tiny, colorful pieces when I logged on yesterday! (Wait, the little tiny pieces are the picture on the TV.....but I know I saw something!) Thank you for all the teacher-love! She is perking up a little each day.

Now for the 11 in 11 Linky party hosted by Kristin at A Teeny, Tiny Teacher and Hadar at Miss Kindergarten. This is a super cute idea!



11. Favorite Movie You Have Watched

 

If you have never seen it, I won't spoil a thing.....I recommend you watch it on a rainy day when you need a good cry!

10. Favorite TV Series

American Horror Story! on FX
I love, love, love Dylan McDermott! Can you believe he is 50?!?! The show is a bit risque.....okay, it can be down right dirty, but he is such a beautiful man...I guess I just have to endure it!

9. Favorite Restaurant
All time?

(I don't think they even have kid menus or high chairs!)

8. Favorite New Thing You Have Tried
BLOGGING! If you are reading this, then you are interested in blogging, too! I just love logging on and seeing all the great ideas and reading what others are experiencing (so i know I am not the only one!!!_) And there is something to be said for a follower and a comment~ It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside- like peppermint mocha from Starbucks, but free!

7.Favorite  Gift You Recieved
A great big bag of goodies from BeautiControl.
Normally, I am not a big fan of smelly stuffy and rubs and lotions but this is an extra special goody bag.
My daughter babysits regualry for a woman (ex classroom mom) who is a rep for BeautiControl. She has 3 beautiful children- a K, a 2nd grader, and a 1 year old! A huge handful. Well, their dad was gone (Afghanistan) and mom had a seminar that would really benefit her, but it was in Memphis- which is 4 hours away. She needed the seminar to learn about new product to make money and barely had enough gas $ to get there. So she asked my daughter if she would babysit (ALL DAY) and whatever the total bill was, she could get that amount from the catalog- so bascally, paid in product instead of $.
So she agreed. She went over at 4am and I didn't pick her up until 10pm that night. That's 16 hours of babysitting!!!! And when she went through the catalog, everything she picked was for me. It was to be my Christmas present! She didn't get one thing for herself.....

6. Favorite Thing You Have Pinned

I have pinned WAY too much- I don't remember who sent me to Pinterest, but my family and Chef Boy Ardee thank you...NOT!....way to many times I have gotten mesmerized by the pins and dinner time snuck up in me! (I know that "snuck" is not a real word- but I have always thought that "sneaked" sounded weird and in speaking conversation I always find a synonym to avoid having to say either one)! My Squirrel and Cute Baby Animals Boards are my favs!

5. Favorite Blog Post
Squirrels Gone Wild!
And that awful Squirrel-on-a-nut-Candy Jar thing???? Saw it in a Pin...followed the link, this is the description

When you’re searching for a scenic spot to squirrel away your favorite snacks, store them safely inside this vintage container - an oversized, ceramic walnut guarded by a precious, pint-sized friend. Glazed in light brown with recessed detail across its shining surface, this creature-capped container will delight when displayed on any coffee table or counter top. In need of another nibble? Simply lift the lid by this sweet, little squirrel - and discover a discreet supply of roasted nuts or other tasty tidbits! With your place looking this as cute a woodland cottage, it won’t be long before friends are scurrying by to admire your enchanting retro style.

• Period: circa 1970s
• Size: please see Details
• Condition: excellent

This is a vintage One of a Kind item.(Really?)
Darn it! It is Sold! I was going to add more to my "retro style".....it was $16.99 on this site! Who writes those descriptions???? And if it is so "Vintage" why is it only $16.99??? And only my grandmother puts nuts out for people!

4. Favorite Accomplishment-
Mom, Wife, Teacher, (whew, needed a short one!)

3. Favorite Picture

Wow, 10 years ago  Easter.

I didn't tell her to close her eyes, she just happened to blink when I took it. It was a 35mil camera, so I didn't see the picture for a couple months until after I took it....and it became my favorite picture of her....I know, that's weird. But it was just so sweet and I cried a few minutes ago when I went to look for the disc that it is scanned onto....sniff sniff.... (don't tell the boys)!
(Thought you were going to get me to post a pic of myself...bwhahahahah....evil laugh)!

2.Favorite Memory
Really? I am old, I remember a lot of stuff!! There's too much in my head....maybe that could be a separate post for me because I have already been working on this one for close to an hour!

and finally

1. Goal for 2012
Bring less stuff home! I love my class, I love my job, and I love all the great stuff we do- I just have to manage my time better. I don't think my family feels much consequence because I bring the stuff home- because I wait til they are in bed before I work on it...but that makes for sleepy momma and too much coffee the next morning.

Whew- that was really long!
I am going to link up now and read some more of the funny, interesting, and many times inspirational posts in this linky party!

In-laws are here for two more days, I will sneak in again to read and post soon!

I Was a Scaredy Squirrel!

Merry Christmas! (Even though on a technicality, that was "yesterday" I am posting a little after midnight).

There has been lots of Holiday Bloggy Love out there! In case you missed me (and I kind of hope you did), I was off line for a few days. I would like to say it was because I was so wrapped up in the holiday cheer and I was baking and decorating and shopping- but that was not the case....and I warn you now, this is where I actually get serious-

I spent the last 4 days at Vanderbilt's Children's Hospital in Nashville with my daughter!
It was the craziest thing. ( Even in my own head, it is hard to wrap my brain around it- so I am going to give the extremely short version...who am I kidding, right?)

She just wasn't herself- very tired, very pale, no appetite, a little nausea (and to boot- it was "that time"). And when I say pale, I mean like her lips were the same color as her face. So we took her into the children's clinic here at home. They in turn, sent us to the ER at Gateway (our local hospital) because her hemocrit  (can't get spell check to fix it) levels were low. They explained that for a woman they expect between 15-18. When it is "that time" 12-15. When it gets to 8 there is a big worry, need transfusion. Hers was a 4.6! So they were afraid she was going to go into shock!

Her bp was out of whack, and her heart was racing. So they put her on fluids and heart monitor while they do labs on her blood. Obviously anemic, but something more serious going on.

They come into the ER room and say, "We have called the ambulance to transfer her to Vanderbilt." I was in total shock! They said she needed a transfusion and needed to be under the care of a peds gyno (which we do not have here).

So I ride in the ambulance with her, Dad followed behind. It was soooo scary! We get into the Er and it took 5 hours and 2 units of blood, then they admitted us to the PICU (the pediatric intensive care unit) ! At this point,  I am in a zone. That is the only way I know to explain it. My body went on auto-pilot to keep her calm and listen to the Drs but I just could not get over the fact that everything was so serious and I didn't know- does that make sense? Like when you tell one of your children to go on to school because they will be fine, and then they come home by 10am because they have the flu or a stomach virus.....kind of like that, but only a billion times worse!

So she ends up with another unit of blood and they keep taking blood to make sure she was accepting it and checking for bleeding disorders and she never got to sleep for more than an hour or so at a time.  She as on IV estrogen and they had to check her constantly to make sure that was working okay. There was an ultrasound to see if it was a gyno issue- no results there. The final answer was "Anemia can lead to heavy bleeding and heavy bleeding can lead to being anemic, we just aren't sure where she fell into the loop"/ So we have to follow up. They are keeping her on the estrogen pills and we have to follow up.

We made it home by 7pm on Christmas Eve- in time for Santa to get the news that she was back home in her bed for the night.

It was the scariest 4 days of my life!!! I want to just wrap her in bubble wrap and keep everything away from her to make sure she is okay. The boys were worried sick! They came into see her one night  and were immediately silenced by the sight of her hooked to so many machines. They were also amazed when they looked around- and you are not going to believe this- well, you will, because I have pictures.
But they wheel her in the room in the PICU and as I am talking to the Dr, I look up. Here is  a shot of the wallpaper in the room:

(I waited until she was asleep and we were alone to take the pictures) These squirrels went all the way around the room.)

 

 

 

 

And behind her bed was a masterpiece of a painting:

There were a few others, but my cell phone batt went out.

I told her there were squirrely little angels looking out for us!
Of all the rooms in that gigantic hospital!?!?!?!?

I have my fam back together (the Mr did a wonderful job of holding things down while I was gone with her) and that is the best gift I could have gotten this year!
I hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas as well, and the best wishes for a happy and healthy new year!

First Full Day of Vacation!!!!

Well, what can I say?

The Mr. gets home around 4pm each day- I was out of bed promptly around 3:45pm....I am totally not kidding.

If you have followed me, you may have noticed a theme. Naps. Naps  are golden.  During the week I stay up way too late and I wake up way too early- so I treat myself on the weekend. With today being the first full day of the Winter Break, I took FULL ADVANTAGE!

Now, some of you are thinking- hasn't she posted about children?....aren't there children in the home?...should we be concerned???!?!?

Let me refresh your memory...The oldest is 15, oldest son is 10 and youngest son is 7. So my theory is that no one no longer needs my assitance in the bathroom department, they can all reach the breakfast and lunch foods that are in the kitchen pantry (that do not require to be heated) and the longer I hide out in the back, the fewer chances they have at getting into trouble! PLUS they get extra time on the Wii.

So put down the phone, no one needs to contact any children's services.....UNLESS a certain 10 year old comes stomping down the hall again- then there may be issues!

I rested all day in my new kajamas (that is what the youngest used to call them and so it stuck in our family).

They say "Squirrely!"

Too cute! And pretty comfy, too- One of my sweeties gave these to me Monday.! They just don't make enough clothes with squirrels on the them!

When I was between naps I was on the blogs and Pinterest and I found some pretty cool stuff! If I ever get that sweater, I want this purse to go with it. And if I go rouge and leave the teaching profession, I will probably get all tatted up like this:

Really?

Maybe not that big of a statement, maybe I'll just get my nails done

I know, that's a little out there, too! I will probably be a teacher forever and get things like these squirrel lunchboxes and squirrel paper clips...well, I guess I need to get on the ball- Christmas is at our house this year OH GOD HELP ME yeah!






I am almost done decorating the outside and then I have to clean up inside.

All I have left are the lights!

Things have been a little nutty these last few days, so I just have to it all put back together!

Giveaway- Post #1 for the Day

Caitlin over at KIndergarten Smiles is giving away EVERY UNIT in her TPT store!!!! I love having  so much K material, it ensures that every child in my room is working on the theme but at their level!!! SO I am definitely entering! Click here to go enter!

includes:

Good Evening! And Happy "I-get-to-stay-up-late-tonight-because-I-don't-have-to-work-tomorrow" Day to all of those who get to stay up late because they don't have to work tomorrow! I DO! As I am sure you have heard me complain say, we don't get out til Tuesday.

I would like to go ahead and give a big YOUR WELCOME to all of the parents whose children I will be babysitting for the next two days- 'cause you know there will be no learning going on!

I was kinda of productive today- I finished the gifts for my sweeties and took two naps. I KNOW there were two naps this time, because I was out of bed for a short time in between!

I am sending the hubby to Wally World to scoop all of the Ho Hos and Ding Dongs (see the end of Jodi's post from over at Fun in First.....classic!) Everyone on the street will be getting them!

I must acknowledge that I have rec'd the Liebster Award from Jill at Marvelous Multiagers and I still haven't done the post from two days ago! (I am a loser).

The goal of the award is to spotlight up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers. The rules are:

1. copy and paste the award on your blog
2. thank the giver and link back to them
3. reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog
4. hope that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers

2. Thank you very much to Jill at Marvelous Multiagers, Erika at 2B Honey Bunch and Sara at Smiling in Second!
3. My top picks in random order are:

Ms. McBee's Kinder Bugs

Buzzing with Ms. B

4. I am sure the love will be spread......especially since we are going to have so much time to be online over the break!!!



(It is K-I-L-L-I-N-G me not to look! And apparently he has threatened talked to the children and they aren't givin' up ANYTHING! )

It is late and I must move Gary the Elf up a spot before I get busted....ha ha! Maybe I'll just go in the garage and look for the "tubes and wires"!

Update on the Waffle House.....One side of the sign now reads: AFFLE HOS!!  (pronounced "awful hos).....If I am out after dark tomorrow I will get  a picture....

Currently December

People I Want to Punch in the Throat is a real blog! I couldn't link it in pic...here is the elf post- I swear....I laughed so hard at the last paragraph that I had to get out of the chair in the living room because I was afraid I would have an "accident".....really! (There is a naughty word or two.....but HILARIOUS!)

"Don't Make Me Pull This Line Over....!"

HOLY MACARONI, BATMAN!!!

Things that have happened in the last two days:

1. One of my boys got suspended for pinching a little girl when I am not looking. I know, shouldn't have escalated, right! She is selectively mute. So she didn't tell me! Her mom came in and SHOWED me what had happened!

2. One of my girls went to the office today because she tried to pick up one of her friends by two fistfuls OF HAIR.... FROM THE CARPET!!! The same girl, hid in hall bathroom at dismissal because she didn't want to take the note home to be signed....so that was a nightmare to find her.

3. Another girl came in and said "Mommy and ________ are both sick. She said if I feel sick to tell you." This same child tiptoed to the nurse because the LIQUID POO did not make it to the potty, but instead, into her socks!!  Can you imagine that conversation: "Well, honey, both your brother and I are a little dehydrated FROM POOPING OUR BRAINS OUT, so we are going to stay home, but you go on to school." My room smelled HORRIBLE for awhile.

There are other things that have been cuckoo, but I have to respond to Santa letters in a bit and I just don't have the time to write it all down!

I did have some positives:

1. I won Day 10 of Farley's 12 Days of Christmas- looking fwd to how cute that Thirty One organizer will be in my office!!!!!

2. I rec'd the Liebster Award- 2 times!! From Erika at 2B Honey Bunch and from Sara at Smiling in Second Grade!
(I will post my picks in a separate post!!!t) (Erika, I just now labeled the post that tells about the name)

3. I got out of shopping with my mom AND sister and only went with my mom and we had lunch and it was beautiful because I followed it up with a nap!!

4. I found out that even though the evil Google Friends and Followers Gadget  does not show me the truth- you can see it!
At this particular moment- there are 99! I must reveal that there are only really 98.....to see if it worked, I started following myself from twitter to test it! I wonder if stalking yourself is a condition!!!! How crazy is that!?!?!? I can't get the people in my house to listen to me- but 98 people I have never met, check in see what I have to say.....Maybe I should start communicating with my children via blog!!!!

5. We made the cutest ornaments- idea and tags courtesy of Busy Bees -

Just A-dorable!

I also wanted to do some ORF progress monitoring so I had them make snowmen after reading Frosty- Not any old snowmen- POINTILLISM SNOWMEN!

 

WIth a cup of white paint and  A Q-TIP!!! They did a great job with buttons, hats, scarves, and brooms- too! And I was able to

test 16 children!!!!

And I also created  an I CAN statement because of the paint and it is called:

I CAN clean up after myself.

Tomorrow is Friday and there are no crafts planned, four of them have already left for vacation and I think the Mr and I are going on a date tomorrow night!!! So things are definitely looking up!!!!! As long as there are no fist fights or socks full of poo- I think tomorrow will be a great day!!!

Any ideas?

I had planned on posting this evening (and I probably still will), but I am so frustrated with this Followers gadget!!!
I have done the Google Friend Connect and then just the Followers from Blogger....and only like 9 of them show up!

There are 97 on my dashboard!!!! When you look over to the right right now, do you see them??? I never can! Just a few.

I "googled" the issue and there are a bunch of angry people out there!!!!!
Apparently it goes in and out for a lot of people!!!!


I have removed all the html.script stuff to try and see if it wasn't just that there was too much trying to start  at one time....but still, it is VERY hit and miss....


If you have a suggestion- please send it my way!!!!
THANK YOU !

I Need Some Real Elfin Magic!

What a whirlwind!

I sure can tell that we are getting ready for a break, and I am glad it isn't just me!

It's like the minute Thanksgiving is over, they are in CHRISTMAS MODE! I think if you have an elementary student, it should be a law that you cannot decorate your home or talk about wish lists, you may not send out Holiday Greetings, and you cannot DVR ANY Christmas shows until your child is home for the Winter Break!! And they must go through "Holiday Detox" before they can return!

Now don't get me wrong, I have 7 and 10 year old sons, and a 15 year old daughter- I am not a Grinch- although one of my girls actually "told" the Tattle Monster that "Mrs. Quarles was bossy today!" -did she think I wouldn't recognize her handwriting?!??!?!?

I am just a little grumpy- which is totally not me.....ok, maybe I get a little grumpy sometimes, but normally not with my class.

There is just so much going on in our building right now- we've got Secret Santa, Dibels Benchmarks, AR kick off, Penny Wars, T-shirt sales, Super Sentences, evaluations, and oh, yeah....we do this thing called "teaching" sometimes!!!!
(Sarcasm. anyone!?!?!?)

We did have a great time with Leslie Ann's Elf Pattern (from Life in First Grade) the last two days. I have had a mom help me out. They all wanted to take them home, so I made a deal with a few of my girls and asked them to make another for me to use outside the door during recess.




That is another thing that is killing us- INSIDE RECESS...with the way the weather is, they could be in the 2nd grade before they get out there again!!!

Many of them LOVE anything that they can make, so that keeps them busy. But they need to run and play- (I know, I am preaching to the choir here).

Oh, and then the rolling croc bag that I really really really want from Franklin Covey is on backorder til March!!!! Boo hoo!

My evenings have been consumed with getting quiz #s for AR.( Our school hasn't had it in over 10 years). I have all of my 942 books logged and categorized in librarything.com....was able to export into an excel....but I still had to look up the quiz numbers...and now I am trying to remember how to merge doc and excel for my labels....I am almost there...I have to do some cleaning up on the Excel.
I don't know if you can use it, but I will put the EXCEL and the Labels up here this weekend. I just think it would be easier for them to type in the number to take a quiz vs typing in the title.

I need something good to happen~ but I better not get my hopes up- because I agreed to go door-busting shopping with my mom and sister this Saturday....it is over 48 hours away and I am already bummed about having to wake up early! I better get AWESOME thank you notes for whatever I buy on Saturday! AND they better let me pick my present out! (Do you ever do that with your family, and then you say "Oh, just wrap it and I'll act surprised!")

On a happy (funny) note, we went to O'Charley's for dinner tonight and we have to pass the Waffle House to get there. The u and the e were out....So yes, there was a building full of Waffle Hos! ha ha! I said it out loud before realizing that the only hose my boys know about is the one we hook to the sprinkler!!! So they didn't get it, but we laughed. And then my youngest said, "What if the W was out? Then it would be the Awful House!!" hee hee!

Even funnier, my daughter had to get these stoppers put behind her front teeth with her braces.....and she can't say anything with an "s" without sounding like Sylvester the Cat!! So of course, we have been asking her questions where the answer includes "s" words!!! It's the small things, really....

I leave you this evening with another happy thought:
Tomorrow is Friday!

Tomorrow is Friday.

"Things I did not accomplish for $200, please..."

Ever have one of those days when you are sooo exhausted at the end, but then can't for the life of you figure out why?

I had two of them .....in a row.
I woke up with the best intentions (aren't those great), but I think I took two naps...do they count as naps if you do not get out of bed in between them? I will have to check on that.

Today was a tad more productive. The MR was not buying the "I am pretending to be sick" spiel anymore. I was trying to use reverse psychology...I said "Well if i get up, I need to head out to the mall and get some shopping done".

I was certain he would quickly close the bedroom door and leave me alone~ no dice....he agreed! Imagine the shock on my face!

There, now you don't have to imagine it....here it is!

We shopped FOREVER!!!! I think it was less of a "lets-get-the-kids-shopping-done" trip and more of a "hey-let-me-drag-you-all-over-town-and-subtly-show-you-all-the-crap-I-want-for-Christmas" trip!

I kept texting ideas to my daughter (told her to write them down....never did check on that ) but we did get lots of the kiddos shopping done....I won't go into detail, because all 3 of them like to look at my blog.....and I know all three of you them have looked in my closet! BUSTED!!!! IT'S ALL BEEN WRAPPED AND MOVED!!!

We went into a few stores looking for things for our daughter (she is 15) and we quickly discovered that WE ARE OLD! We consider ourselves very lucky that she is not one of those grumpy, "everybody hates me" teenagers. She likes goofy, quirky stuff- so we thought we would go into what looked like a good store for her.


The music inside was SO LOUD that "Mel" had to YELL at us to tell us that everything was BOGO 1/2 OFF. She also pointed in the direction of a counter to show us WHERE SHE WOULD BE IF WE NEEDED HER. We couldn't see where she was pointing because it was so freakin' dark in there! We looked (tried to see) a few things and then finally he said ,"Ok, I tried to be cool, but I can't do it." Actually he said, "OK< I TRIED TO BE COOL, BUT I CAN'T DO IT!!!"

That, and going out for Chinese, was all that I did today. But it wasn't on my list, so it doesn't count.....I think I will quickly add it to the bottom of my list and then mark them off!


I was going to go to the classroom today to add pockets to a some books for the class library.  I was going to finish searching for AR quiz numbers for my 942 books that I have in librarything.com. I was going to get my letter to parents for the WInter Celebration finished. I was......but then I logged on and entered a ton of giveaways. I printed off two of Heather's Heart's
centers, cut and laminated them....but all of this was done from my comfy chair.....so no reason really to be so tired!

I also found where  Betsy at Tippytoe Crafts gave me the Liebster Blog Award!! An Award!!!!
"First, I would like to thank my mom and dad".....oops, wrong award!
How cool is it to give out some bloggy hugs to the newbies!

The goal of the award is to spotlight up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers. The rules are:

1. copy and paste the award on your blog
2. thank the giver and link back to them
3. reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog
4. hope that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers

These are my 5 that I have come across! I am glad we are venturing into this world together!
An Open Door
Tales from a Traveling Teacher
Following Optimism
First Grade Delight
2nd Grade Paradise

Head over there and check out why I'm following! I have lots of ideas bookmarked already!

Oh, I did get something for myself today: they are sandyLion stickers. I got them at Toys R Us. Thought they were too cute and they could inspire me. I need  friends who have a rabbit, owl, raccoon. fox. or bird similarities to their names, that way we can share and get the woodland creatures!

(WHew, It is draggin on..).
My fun activity this week is the parents reading the Christmas stories. I have 3 dads who just came back, and then others who have agreed to  read for us. Some of them are recording them on tape so we can hear them over again.Well it is getting late and I think I am going to have log off!@

I will write a shorter  list tomorr0w....that way I know I can get through it with ease@!

Look at me! Breaking the rules again!

Jennifer from Rowdy in First got my interest piqued to check out My Grafico for a HUGE Giveaway- a Silhouette Cameo Prize Package- head over there and check it out!


Holy Buckets, Batman!

This is the biggest giveaway I have ever seen! There are 12 days of Giveaways all to be announced on the 13th day........
It starts out at Oh' Boy 4th Grade

Giveaway on Heather's Heart!

I can't stand the cuteness! I want this shirt.....even if I don't win, I am going to head over to Carla's and get one.  You need to get over there and enter. You can win 3 items from Heather's Tpt store and a shirt created by her friend at Sassy Sewing!

Click here to check out all the  ways you can enter!

I Was Destined to be a Squirrel (and a Freebie)

First,
thank you all so much for your yay-hoos and "hollas" on my eval and my door! You are all so sweet:)

Update on Red and her door-mates.....they still do not have legs! They are creepy floating ghosts! I was going to get it done this morning while my boys were making CHA CHING from me over the paper....but I got cornered by "HER". You know who it is, that one precious colleauge whom everyone tries to NOT get caught up with when you have something important to do.....or when you have to pee really bad and you have 3 minutes til you pick up your brood, or when you just aren't in the mood!
"She" is in every school, we all have one ...bad news ladies....if you can't think of who "she" is in your building....it's you! Just kidding!!!!

Anyhoo...."she" consumed my morning, so Red and the crew "hovered" on the door all day!( I hope they can "land" tomorrow.)


I rec'd  an apology letter from "--------" this morning for the glasses. And she returned them..... Although she returned them in the wrong order, so he was unable to read the letter!  ha ha ha BUt then he did AFTER he got his glasses back!


THE FREEBIE

I had a couple of ladies ask me about that reflection letter that was in a post and a couple of emails asking me to elaborate on my behavior chart that I am so thankful for.....so I am putting that up here. The images are from Microsoft Office 2008 that came with my Mac, I cannot take credit for the clipart....but I do take pride in the way I used it .

Yes, my final product IS large....but you could modify it if you like it. And could really switch it up. The reason I created mine as large as I did (in the I am so THankful Post) was because it accentuated the positive part of everyday being new, being able to talk about what has happened, taking ownership for their own actions....the list goes on.....I am attempting to link and add from google doc:

Behavior Reflection Letter
WIndows
Weather for WIndows

For the reflection letter...if a child is anything other than "sunny" by the last hour of our day.....he or she completes this. The blank after "Today was_________" is filled with their weather for the day! and then you can understand the rest I am sure.....(and there are some who only write 1 letter, ever)

And now for something so amazing, I mean really, I am posting so late because I have been on the phone telling everyone about this!

(You will be fortunate enough to get the short version)

I was in a box in the office closet that has not been opened since we moved here 8 years ago.(the box, not the closet) I kind of knew what was in it....some of the junk precious memories from my attic in the old house that had once been in my  parent's attic that they insisted I remove forever ago.....
The box was in my way because I was looking for something else, and if you read my previoius post, I have the attn span of a gerbil, so I started going through it.



My rattle, my Baby Beans doll and my diaper stacker (yes they made those 38 years ago) were in the box. This is my diaper stacker:

It is wrinkled....it has only been in the box FOREVER. Can you see the design? Let me zoom in for you (you are going to FREAK OUT!)

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!?!?!?!

I WOKE THE MR UP AND MADE HIM LOOK AT IT! I still can't believe it! Almost 40 years ago, my mom was in store in GA and saw this and bought it! IT'S MISS SQUIRRELS!!!!!

I just can't get over it!  I joke about the name all the time, but this is just nuts (pun intended)!


I tried to show and  tell a very groggy Mr Squirrels how we were just meant to be! but he asked me to turn the light out and not forget to set the coffee pot up for the morning.......

I am taking it to school tomorrow and showing it to my class and my team....and then I am going to probably end up paying one of the boys to make legs for the people on my door!


Goodnight!

Support team?

Good evening, muchachas!

Does your school have a support team? Maybe it goes by another name, but it is a group of teachers who meet and discuss ways to help individual students who are struggling. We have to fill out what we call "The Blue Folder" and you recommend that the team meets to help you. (Sort of like a "tribal council" for 7 year olds- "cept we aren't allowed to vote anyone off). So you go through the hoops and red tape and you do all you can to see if "testing" is an option for one of your sweeties.

We do.

And I think I am going to  recommend myself. I am going to have one of my neighboring teachers fill out a "blue Folder" on me and  put myself out there so they can meet and decide if I need further testing.I have seriously lost my mind....no seriously- it's gone...if you come across it, please put it in the nearest mailbox and it will be returned to the owner!


We are supposed to decorate our doors for AR kickoff week...I have no problem with that- Our grade level voted (actually, I felt slightly bullied into the idea, but on paper it looked like a vote) and we are all doing Red Hen or GIngerbread Man, Three Little Pigs, etc....I chose Red Riding Hood.

My door is the door that all 900 children (and teachers) see EVERYDAY because I am the door right across from the cafe where they all line up to go in....so I always feel a little pressure when it comes to my displays and I end up making a ton of work for myself!

It started out simple enough....found some cute pics, and I thought "Hey , it will be cool if I don't color it, but instead layer it with colored construction and scrapbooking paper for depth and dimension."

OMG! Then I thought "Hey, what if it is all 3-D-ish and stands out from the wall!"

Then I thought "Hey, this closet with my construction paper in it is a MESS! I can't start a project like this until I straighten it up...

so I pulled all of it out.

Holy Crapazoli, Batman! It is 3:30pm what are you thinking?!?!?!

And then I thought, "Hey, why are there sooooo many different shades of these colors.....I can't start until I have organized them!"

Good Gravy! Why are there so many shades of orange!?!?! (It is now 4:30pm)

And then I thought "Hey, dummy, this has to be finished by Friday, you have a Math test to create, a Data Chat tomorrow, you have to type up the minutes from the Leadership Meeting this morning, you are in charge of Secret Santa, (and so on and so forth....) SO GET ON THE BALL LADY AND QUIT THINKING SO MUCH!"

So this is the pic that I took at 8:00pm tonight:

Almost done, when I go in in the morning, I have to make feet and a few flowers for the bottom.

(Pay special attn to the little guys at the Woodsmans feet)...hee hee!

The Mr asked where the "paw print" was bc it looks like Blue's house.

Then I thought Red's Basket of flowers looked dopey so I sat down and made these:

Very cutie patootie....and not too difficult after I made 15 of them that looked like doo-doo!

 And when all of that was done I had to clean up that huge mess that was on the floor- but before I could start I thought "Hey, I should check my email!" (Dumb idea! I am going to copy and paste the actual words that were in an email from a parent):

Hi Mrs. Squrriels,

I wanted to know if the glasses "-----" brought home from school were actually hers?  She said she got them out of the treasure box, but she was acting so sheepish about it that I thought maybe she took them from a class mate or something.

I just wanted to make sure they were truely hers b/c if they are not then some poor kid can't see and "---------" is stealing which will have to be dealt with.

Really? They are prescription glasses!!!!!!! Why would I have prescription glasses in my treasure box?!??!?! I'm getting low on funds, but geesh!

At this point it is getting closer to nine, I am pooped, my room is a  mess, there is a child out there tonight who cannot see, and none of the characters on my door have feet.... I decided that I was done for the day. 

I wrote back the mom, put a sign on my door that said "project in progress- no need to vacuum tonight", locked my door and came home. And then I showed the picture to my boys and bribed them both ($5 each) to put all that paper away in the morning. I made a cup of coffee, put on my slippers and logged into my bloggy world.  

And quite frankly- I no longer care if my oranges are mixed up....!

"An Eval, a Christmas Wish and Pac-Man all walk into a bar..."

First, Whew!
How glad are you that today is OVER!?!?!

I have 18 students- 10 of them had to write a reflection letter today~ it was a madhouse, I tell ya! And it was some of my golden ones too.

But I smiled and I laughed and I enjoyed my day...why? Because at 1:05pm I had my Post Conference for that eval that I had 2 hours before the break....here's how that went:


I was sooooo nervous! I was hoping that I would come down with a case of malaria or explosive diarrhea (really) or maybe a firstie would vomit on me so I would have to go home. Man, I DID NOT want to walk in that office.

I really like the new PAL-but she does make me really, really, really a little nervous. I did my first three years with those ton of evals with my first PAL, and the turnstile of ASST PALS we have had in the past with no problem..... I have no idea why she makes me so jittery.

OK, remember the Let's be greedy and take all the money    Race to the Top thing I told you about? Well this was my first one for the new eval system. The rubric for the instructional one is three pages FRONT AND BACK! and I am not kidding! There was a lot of preparation for this one.

And I was determined to stick to my guns  and do what I do- not the fluffy for show stuff. And I did. It was a great lesson! And I hit all the points I was "apost" to (I love when my kiddos write that in their journals).... so even though I felt good about it, there were still those things that made me worry....like when "Quinton" spun himself around UPSIDE DOWN in his chair with his feet straight up in the air while I was teaching.....and when "Jamaraqui" went to the bathroom and while he was waiting for nature to take it's course decided to start singing "Tonight, tonight, there's a party on the rooftop top of the world" in our small tile bathroom with wonderful acoustics.....

(At that particular moment I was pretty sure that aliens had taken all of my children at lunch and replaced them with evil beings from another planet) ! All I could do was watch her type away feverishly on her laptop and think about which factory I was going to apply at this summer.

But I went in today with my post conference notes waiting for the worst, while hoping for the best,  and it was AWESOME!

I got all threes and fours (3s are where we are "apost" to be and 4s are way better! Actually on the 12 points of the Instructional Rubric, I had 7 fours!!!)

She loved my rapport with the children. I kept them engaged and active (they were actively engaging in watching the circus act and listening to the Top 40 from the crapper), but they were all working!  I was so relieved!

So when I picked them up from PE we read an extra chapter of Junie B. and I set the timer for 15 mins and let them each share a craft basket! It was beautiful!

I even stayed way later than I normally do so that I can work on  decorating my door (will post details about that tomorrow).

Now for the Christmas Wish...I posted two goofy squirrel pics last night so I thought I would wait until today and I am adding it to this one ....I can tell right now that if there is a bloggy jail, I will end up there for more than one post in a day.....too many things go on in my head at once to remember all that I wanted to say the first time. And sometimes if I don't say it (or write it) when it is right there....it is lost forever!

So here is the first thing on my Christmas list:

Found it on Pinterest.... I want it and I will wear it every Thursday!!!!

Is that not atrocious!!! I am pretty convinced that the designer of this sweater is either married to or related to the "squirrel-on-a-nut-candy-dish-guy"! (see Squirrels Gone Wild post)

And finally, this is where Pac Man comes in:

There was a "ruckus" before lunch today over in the reading corner....lots of laughter....uncontrollable giggles...you know the sound.....the one that means no one in the reading corner is reading!
So I go over to get in on the joke break it up and "Jamaraqui" (yes, the potty crooner) informs me that if you put one finger in your ear and while it is in there, scratch it with a finger from the other hand- it sounds like the game Pac Man.....really- this is what they were doing......so I told them this was not the time, go wash your hands, get back to reading.....and then I headed back over to my desk.....

where I pretended to pick something up off the floor on the other side and I stuck one finger in my ear, scratched it, and SON OF A BISCUIT EATER!!!! It sounds JUST like Pac Man when he is chomping......(I'll wait while you try it) ........tick, tock, tick, tock....

Ok, do three things for me please.....give me a "hip hip hurray" in your head for my eval, google and find out where I can get that  #@&%* sweater (ha ha ) and go show someone the finger in the ear trick (and if they are under 15 - explain who pac man is)!!!

Have a great night! I am off to TPT to do some shopping!

This will be my look when I have stopped listening to someone!

(I promise to post something with a purpose tomorrow....but right now, these squirrels are just cracking me up!)

"I can't hear you!!!"

This will be my new look when I am freaking out about something!

 

Guys! Guys! Listen.. Come on Guys! GUYS!

New Look! New Button! Same ole Chatter!

Hello my stuffed bloggy friends!
I ate entirely too much....and it took w-a-y too long! I could only chew on the left side of my mouth! But I suffered through the pain and made sure that I was able to eat as much as I could!(This is me after I finished eating) har har!

I did get out of the kitchen though....because of the "throbbing".....it really did hurt kind of REALLY BAD! (I'm such a stinker!)

We went around the table and my beautiful children made me cry! We do the "what are you thankful for" around the table before anyone can eat. Each of them was very serious and sweet and everyone was thankful for family.

Now I don't want to assume anything, but after dinner, we all go through the Black Friday ads and the children let the rest of the family know what is on their list....I am wondering if they have made the connection from "I'm so thankful for YOU" to "BUY ME THIS!!!" (They are definitely my children!)

You may have noticed the new look! I was surfing last night and found this wonderful blog!

I REALLY liked the red,black, and white that I had before, but it was a scrapkit and I had to change the html and css codes all the time....and I started confusing myself! This template was free and I purchased the embellishment kit for the low, low price of $.75! I think the main seller for me was this:

ADORABLE! This is my absolute favorite dessert for lunch! I joked just the other day that if all this pressure we are under doesn't change, I want to get a job at the hostess factory and I want to be in charge of putting the little swirlies on top of the cupcakes!!!! I bet that is a stress free job!

Anyway...the MR has a big football game to watch today and then he has to get all the Christmas stuff down from the attic. During the holidays, I change the ringtone for him to "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch".....He takes the boxes out of the attic and he puts them back, but he does not participate at all in the decorating!

He says it is because I am too picky about where the ornaments go on the tree....I know you will side with me on this, you cannot have two of the same ornament right next to each other!!! And you have to spread stuff out! Last year I compromised and waited until they went to bed to move them around.

One thing I am dreading though is the Elf on the Shelf!

A relative bought him for a us a few years ago...and the elf (who they named Gary) has to be in a different spot each morning, so you know that he left, reported to Santa, and came back.....The story and the elf are cute! But I can't remember to move that $^#*% thing every night! (One time my oldest son asked if the Tooth Fairy had an email address because it had been two weeks and his tooth was still on his headboard!!!).....

I am seriously considering hiding Gary and then have him write the family a friendly letter telling them that he was homesick and decided to stay in the North Pole, but not to worry, he'll still put in a good word for them!

Do you have any "traditions" that you secretly wish you could get out of?....Come on, we promise not to tell anyone!!!!

Enjoy your next two days off!