As you know, I was pretty sick for the last few days. I had strep (boo) and even had to stay home from school on Friday (yay! Don't tell the kids I said that though!). Anyway, in my time off I thought a lot about blogging, but stopped myself multiple times. Why? I thought to myself, "Self, you have nothing interesting to blog about." But then today I was reading hilarious things from my second graders (see below :)) and thought to myself, "Self, you don't need a concrete, monumental reason to blog." Because to tell the truth, life isn't always monumental. And thank goodness because that would be exhausting. So here (if you continue to read...) are the ramblings.
In no particular order (thanks for continuing to read... you die hard, you. I like you.):
My kids are far more attached to NFL football than I anything I can remember being attached to in elementary school. There are students in my class who come to school on Monday and journal about every game from the weekend and how happy/sad they are about the Packers/Saints/Patriots/Broncos/Cowboys/Seahawks winning/losing. Seriously! I have one student who came to school all down in the dumps today because the Broncos lost over the weekend. And NO I did not rub it in his face (although I did really want to tease him). This student told me he's pretty bummed because he's worried that Peyton Manning is going to retire. Whoa. Then he says the Broncos are going to have to get another really good quarterback or he might have to start cheering for another team. I encouraged him to come to the blue and green side. #gohawks. So I thought that was kind of interesting....
Next, my parents got me this really cool fitness bracelet thing for Christmas. The real name is Samsung Gear Fit. It's this awesome little watch/bracelet with a touch screen. It "Samsung Gear Fit SM-R3500ZKAXAR Fitness Watch: Monitors your exercise and sleep habits with this Samsung watch that features accelerometer, gyro and heart rate sensors provide helpful fitness data. A Bluetooth 4.0 + LE interface allows pairing with select devices, so you can receive SNS, call, e-mail and app notifications." And yes, I copied that straight off of a website. Basically it syncs to my phone and gives me the capability to utilize all kinds of fitness-y options.... like a pedometer. Which is how I know that I walked just over 3 miles at work today! I also get text alerts via little vibrations... which I discovered while the kids were working. (Thanks Cody!) It's really kind of cool and I'm super excited to use it for running... once it's warm enough to run outside again. Because let's be honest: I'm no longer a collegiate athlete and hence, no longer some crazy die-hard runner who will brave arctic temperatures 6x a week all in the name of training....
Although I really do miss being a college athlete. I miss everything about it. Especially the smoking hot bod (KIDDING! Okay.. not entirely). I really miss the camaraderie.. and YES, I had to look up the spelling of that word. There is no equivalent to having people at your side who share your same passion and desires, who love you, support you, share in your physical and mental struggles and goals, know all the drama, know what it takes, and (more than anything else) believe in you 110%. After 15+ years of identifying myself as an athlete, as part of a team I guess I'm (still) adjusting to life without it. Shoutout to all of you, my teammates. Especially BCUTF & BCUVB. You've got a special place in my heart.
BLECK. Enough of that drama. Seriously, even I didn't expect it to get that sappy.
Back to school for a hot second. Today was the first full day of the first full week following Christmas break. Woof. I realize that I spent about 67 hours this weekend lying in a horizontal position sleeping and watching Law and Order SVU, but SHOOT I forgot how hard teaching is. Maybe hard isn't quite the right word... more like exhausting. Today while teaching I was reminded of a popular comedian who my dad loves. While describing what it's like to have four kids he says, "just imagine you're drowning... and then someone hands you a baby." (You can catch the video by clicking on the crying baby picture. You're welcome) I felt like that saying could also sum up teaching. Except for there are 25 of them and a whole lot more paperwork.
Teaching does have it's perks though! Those darn kids can be hilarious. For example... check out these nice writings I found today. First of all, we took a selling pretest this morning over words with silent(ish) diagraphs (kn, wr, gh, and ph). Pictured is # 6 wrap. Such a valiant effort... I really did laugh out loud.
Now this next picture is kind of tricky, but there were a lot of names included in the journal entry, and this particular student tends to write a LOT. So here's the gist. Said student attended a party to celebrate a baby's bathtisom. Aka baptism. But since they really do douse those little ones in water, I do think that possibly we should rename this sacrament to represent what it reminds us of... hence: Bathtism. Consider it! :)
Finally, I've included one picture of a sparse looking bulletin board. I know it's not finished yet, but I'm so excited for the kids to pitch in and make it complete! The Olaf was hand drawn by yours truly and Cody is responsible for all things pink and heart shaped (seriously!). The kids are going to write book reviews on white paper and cut their reviews out in puddle shapes (see where I'm going with this?), complete with the melted snowman parts (eyes, nose, stick limbs). Look for a completed update of the board later. And, as always, thanks pinterest!
Moving right along. I think it's time to do some blog shoutouts. It's been a while! (Except for the one to BCUTF and BCUVB. Just ignore that.)
To my financé: First and foremost, I need to give a ton of credit, love, and thanks to you, Cody. For taking care of me when I'm sick, for cooking when I can't (that's all the time-I'm a horrible cook.), for doing all the manual work at school, for going outside of your comfort zone to please me, for always putting me first, and for making me feel happy and loved every single day, thank you. You da real MVP. I can't imagine a better half to my dreamteam.
To my fam: Ma, Daddy, La Reg, Cerm... You already know. I love you guys so, so, so, so, so much.
To my future fam: Inlaws. It's a joyous, weird thing. Thank you for putting up with my never-ending sass, for advising me, and for welcoming me into the family. JT, you know none of this would be possible without you. Thanks for never giving up. I guess my mom was right when she said, "if it's meant to be, it will be." You always knew that, brother...(in law). Still weird!
To my colleagues: I know that many of you read the blog (creepy or dedicated? haha). I want you all to know that you make a huge difference at school. I feel more and more comfortable everyday because of the way I'm treated and accepted. It's an amazing thing to be absorbed into a community and I've really been feeling the love lately. For that, for your encouragement, advice, and friendship, I thank all of you.
To my readers: I know I joke all the time about how dedicated you guys are and how I "can't believe" that anyone even visits this blog anymore. But honestly, I am incredibly lucky and blessed to be surrounded with the sweetest, most caring people. There's a chance I could dedicate an entire blog to writing "watermelon, watermelon, watermelon" and you people would still come here to check. It's amazing and very much appreciated. Thanks for giving me someone to ramble to. I love you readers... is that weird?
Alright, that's all for now.
Until next time...
Peace, love, and warm fuzzies,
Jayna
