Dirt!

So I just have to share this photo. Granted my son is playing with his new tablet (thank you Grandma R.) but check out the dirt. I think he brought more home than he left at day care. Must have been a real good day of playing outside. And this is after both our day care and my husband worked to clean him up. I guess you could say his shirt is very appropriate for the situation :)

Update-- 6/20/12

Motivated by my friend Mar, I entered Dunc into Joshua's Photo Party... and low and behold!!! We won first place for the week. Check us out over here....Our Footprints on the World.

Sesame Street Live

This year the hubs and I took Duncan to Sesame Street live for his 2nd birthday and it was quite an experience. We bought our tickets as soon as we could and ended up with GREAT seats on the floor, just to the right of the stage. Duncan was excited to go, after a bit of walking around and some Annie's bunny snacks, he settled in for the show. It was a bit overwhelming at first we could tell--he stuck to me like glue-- but by the time Elmo's World started he was dancing in the isles. As with any two year old, time is of the essence and we made it through about 3/4th of the show before Duncan just couldn't handle much more--I'm just happy he made it through intermission! We headed to lunch at a restaurant in town for hotdogs, bbq, and hamburgers and by the time the three of us got into the car to head home, Duncan was fast asleep for a 3 HOUR nap (it was heavenly!). All in all... a pretty good birthday celebration if I do say so myself. Now, just if they had a Thomas the Tank Engine traveling show... we'd be set for life!

Our seats, right up front near the stage. The characters came down and visited us a couple of times during the show.

Having our Annie's bunny snacks.
We pretty much can't go anywhere with out these :)

The start of the show.

Duncan was a bit overwhelmed by everything at first. That quickly changed once he saw Elmo and Cookie Monster.

Ernie came down off the stage into the crowd. Duncan really wanted to meet him.

A quick picture of daddy, taken by Duncan of course.

Dancing in the isle and having a great time.

Ernie captaining the S.S. Rubber Duckie.  This was daddy's favorite part.

Memorial Day--Time to remember

Being the wife of a newly retired serviceman and the daughter of a soldier, niece of a soldier,  the daughter-in-law of a a soldier, and even the former teacher of many soldiers makes Memorial Day important. Growing up as a child we always flew the flag proudly and thanked others for their service. So many of my students don't realize what sacrifice our service men and women make for us. So when I saw this posted on a friends facebook page, I had to "steal" it to share with all of you. Happy Memorial Day and thank you for all you do.

 Happy Memorial Day and thank you for all you do.

Time for another Blog Share :)

Well... really, I'm not sharing a blog, it's a comic. If you are a parent or even just a friend of parents and you haven't read "ThatABaby" by Paul Trapp, you have to. The best place to find it is at Go Comics  I think I have found the comic that explains my life and all the crazy things that go with raising a child. Here are some of my favorites as of late. I hope you enjoy.

This is what my house looks like as both my husband and my son build different things every day. I expect the loop-de-loop to appear any day now. 

This would be my dinning room wall or bedroom or even living room wall if Duncan was given the chance.

Yep--we still have these nights--how about you?

Happy Friday all. Enjoy your weekend.

Happy Mother's Day!

On this special day I want to say thank you--to all the mom's in my life. My own mother, who had been my teacher, guide, and friend; my sister, who has been an inspiration to me; my mother-in-law, who is so supportive of me and helps keep my husband in place (he, he);  my dear mommy friends who teach me about being a better mom, the fur-mom's who remind me that a mother's love has no boundaries--all moms and mommies. You are truly amazing. Happy Mother's Day to you.

As I look back on my life
I find myself wondering.....
Did I remember to thank you
for all that you have done for me?

For all of the times you were by my side
to help me celebrate my successes
and accept my defeats?

Or for teaching me the value of hard work,
good judgement, courage, and honesty?

I wonder if I've ever thanked you for the simple things...
The laughter, smiles, and quiet times we've shared?

If I have forgotten to express my gratitude
For any of these things,
I am thanking you now....
and I am hoping that you've known all along,
how very much you are loved and appreciated.

           --Anonymous 

Have a wonderful Mother's Day. :)

Why I teach.

There are days when I ask myself this question--and as sure as April turns to May (and then June), I find myself asking it over and over. Maybe it is because I teach high school and I am surrounded by teenagers most of the day; sponsor teenage activities, go to high school sports and so on--I get to ‘live’ high school all the time. Or it maybe that my students senioritis has finally begun to affect me and I find that my patience for them and their lack of motivation is driving my nuts.  It may also be because being a teacher, a really good teacher, is reaching out to kids who-- all ages, levels and abilities and making learning personal to them--which can be SO hard to do.

I became a teacher because I wanted students to be excited about learning. Once I realized that learning was about how to do things and not remembering random ideas and facts, it became easier and made more sense, more practical. I know many of my students question whether they will ever use the information I teach again--especially since I teach social studies. Hopefully one day one of my students will watch the news and see what is going on in the world and say... "hey, we talked about this in class." Or that they will vote and become active citizens in the process.  I work hard to help my students (and now my own)  make sense of the world we live in, where we come from and where we could go. It's such an incredible challenge, so when a student ‘gets it’ or really embraces the ideas, it is amazing and rewarding, and wonderful. It's what makes the job of teaching so much fun and at the same time, so exhausting.

Today marks twenty eight days (if you include the weekends) until school lets out for summer. Yes I have a countdown... most teachers do (even if they don't say it out loud). It seems like a long time, but it isn’t. The time will vaporize before my eyes and then it will be summer vacation--but it will too go so fast, and I’ll be back prepping for and working with kids again next fall.  But today, as the seniors enjoy their class trip and my freshmen review for the state SOLs – I will take the time to stop and appreciate just how far my kiddos have come. Today will go by so quickly and I won't get it back-- I had better make every minute count.