The Right Words

Posted on June 22, 2015 by Shoes

I do not have them, the right words.

I have the boys on a summer school schedule, one that we follow fairly consistently.  We do some store-bought, grade-level appropriate workbooks in the morning after breakfast.  We have free time/time to run errands after that.  After lunch they do Moby Max, a math program on the computer that tests them and places them at their individual level as well as Imagine Learning (an online reading program) and they read out loud to me for 20 minutes each.  We also do some science and art.  On Fridays we go on field trips to museums or to the Botanical Gardens.

Tomorrow is Tuesday.  On Tuesdays our mornings are wonky as we bought the summer pack of super cheap movie theater tickets and our day to see the movie for the week is Tuesday.  Cody, always the planner, asked me if he could start on his workbook tonight so as to be prepared for tomorrow.

I said yes and made sure I was near the kitchen table so as to help him if need be.  The first section of his workbook was multiplication.  Math is hard for Cody.  School in general is hard for Cody, but math is a struggle.  We worked through several problems together but my sweet boy doesn’t even have his combinations that make ten memorized so multiplication of double digit number is grueling, nonsensical.

And then it happened.  Cody, who is usually very positive and optimistic, started to tear up.  “Momma”, he told me “Mrs. W. always came and took me out of class to work on addition and subtraction while the rest of my class did multiplication.  I did not get a chance to learn this.  And no one even asked me, they just took me away!  I want to work on multiplication flash cards tomorrow.  I am still counting on my fingers and the rest of my class just knows their multiplication tables.  I don’t feel ready for fourth grade!”

It was awful.  Awful.  Here I am a mom and a teacher and I want with all my heart to help him be successful and I don’t know how.

I did not have the right words.  I talked to him about my weakness in spelling.  I talked about how everyone has strengths and struggles.  I asked him what we could do, how we could work together to help him feel ready for fourth grade.  I told him I was proud of him. And then I told him to go get ready for bed.

That is when I went outside, crouched down in our side yard and cried.

Posted in Being a Teacher, Little Feet | Tagged , , , , , , | 15 Comments

No Longer Worth the Fight

Posted on June 17, 2015 by Shoes

It started out like any other day.

We got up and lounged around on the couch in our p.j.s.  I read aloud a couple chapters of a Jigsaw Jones chapter book, tracking as I read with my bookmark.  The boys, sun bleached blond bookends, sat on either side reading along.  I finished my coffee.

We showered, dressed, and had breakfast.

The boys worked on their summer school work while I cleaned the house.  (School work was briefly interrupted when I requested the boys’ help in catching a baby lizard who was hiding behind a moving box in our living room.  We released him into the wild of our front yard.)

Prompted, I’m sure, by our lack of Cheerios and Lysol wipes, not of course our decidedly low level of tequila due to last nights Taco Tuesday at our neighbor’s house, we went to Costco.

With one hand I shoved my Costco card back into my purse and with the other I held up the receipt, preparing for the fight.  You may know it as the it-is-my-turn-to-hold-the-receipt-so-the-nice-Costco-person-checking-them-at-the-door-will-draw-a-cute-smiley-face-on-it-for-me fight.

Neither boy wanted it.  I was shocked and slightly saddened that this moment had come.

I handed the receipt to the nice man at the door.  He scanned the purchases in my cart and compared them to the receipt, drew a boring line through it and handed it back.

No smiley face for me.

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Moving x 2

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Shoes

Sorry for my silence as of late.  The school year ended, and while I could blame my blogging silence on moving not only my classroom but moving our entire lives into our new house, that would not be entirely true.

I have also been lollygagging, lounging, and loving having time off with Cody and Carter.

Oh and I did put in a week of work last week, collaborating with some of my coworker as we prepare for the coming school year.

I will not try to play catch up, but I do have some memories and photos I would like to share.

The Classroom Move:

LastDayMessage

The last week of school my allergies flared up and I actually lost my voice for three days.  Completely lost my voice.  As in I could not talk.

It was challenging especially since our usual school routine was punctuated by seemingly random announcements and end of the year activities.  My kids did great and I relied on several of them to be my voice.  I would hoarsely whisper to them and they would speak for me.

IceCreamGoodbyes

We did an end of the year ice cream activity.  They got to choose the scoops to go on their cone (each one had an open ended question to answer such as. “My favorite activity in second grade was…”) and we all autographed around them.  There was an end of the year ice cream party and we watched a movie.  One last check to make sure all the desks were empty, all items packed up, and off they went out the door.

It was a blur of a day.  It was bittersweet.

AnchorChartsNoMore

At my school we are adding a seventh grade to our campus.  As such, most of the rooms are being reassigned.  My room is slotted to be the new science room (rather fitting I thought with my background in Microbiology).  During the last week of school, teachers were told to box up their room.  I struggled a lot with this as I continued to actually teach during the last week of school (since there is no funding to pay teachers to stay beyond the school year to pack and move, we had to do it while the students were still there.  ~I will refrain from ranting.~)  Once the kids left, I tore down the remaining anchor charts, charts that we as a class created and had been up on our walls for most of the year.

EmptyRoom

One last look at my old room.  My very first room as a teacher.  Room 316, you were great!

JustSomeStuffInNewRoom

This is only a very small amount of the actually “stuff” moved over to my new room.  Room 225 you are going to ROCK (even if you are smaller and my class size next year will be bigger.  It is not your fault and I will not hold it against you.)

The House Move:

The move from the apartment to the house was a week and a half long process.  Back and fourth we went between the two places – an eight minute trip one way if you caught all green lights (and drive like me, not Husband which would automatically add a few minutes).  At one point during the move we rented a moving truck.

BoysAndDogInTruck

Haley, not to be left out, jumped up inside the truck to check it out too.

OurNewHouse

And here it is.  We are one of six houses in our cul-de-sac, and one of two in the back, making our lot about a quarter acre.  Not bad for central Phoenix.

InsideLookingOut

This is a view from our front door(s) looking out.  I love that we have two front doors!

ViewFromKitchen

Here is the dining room with fireplace that one sees when standing in the kitchen.  It is this fireplace, we have another one in the master, where we will hang our stockings for Santa.

ADifferentViewFromKitchen

Another view from the kitchen – a rather cute one if you ask me.  From left to right: Hool, Carter, Owliver, and Barney.

CookinginSwimSuits

Here is a view inside the kitchen.  The boys are cooking in their swim trunks while Haley supervises, secretly hoping something will fall to the floor in need of a more thorough inspection.

DuckPond

This is one of two duck ponds in the park that is a three minute walk away from our house.  I feel so lucky!

TwoDucksIndeed

Speaking of ducks…  Here is our pool.  And yes, one of them is real.  Our house sat empty for several weeks during the real estate transaction and apparently this duck moved in.  She stayed about three days after we got here and then decided that perhaps this was not the quite oasis in the desert she once thought it to be.

HaleywWilsonBall

And here is Haley hanging poolside chewing on her Wilson ball.  I think she approves.

JumpingIn

And lastly, here are the boys, just jumping in.

So yeah, I have been moving, but I have also been up to other things as well.

Life is good and I hope this finds you well.

Posted in Being a Teacher, Random Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Things I Find in the Dryer

Posted on May 16, 2015 by Shoes

me:  Carter!  You can not leave Steve in your pocket.  Don’t you remember what happened to Sheep?

carter: In his sweet little angelic voice – Sorry momma but sometimes I forget things.

me: sigh…

This is Steve.  He is from Minecraft.

Dryer Items Steve 

Steve’s journey through the wash ended without loss of limb and will probably make for a good story to tell his friends over a tiny mug of beer.  Steve is o.k.  (Although I do worry that Steve may have developed aquaphobia from his ordeal.)

The same cannot be said for Sheep (who is also from Minecraft).

Dryer Items Sheep

Sheep was not always this mangy.  His “wool” used to be a vibrant red color and was sleek, not tattered.  Sheep has developed a deep distrust of pockets, where he once found them to be warm and cozy.  And said pocket is no longer white, but permanently stained a deep pink.

And lastly this, from the dryer.

Dryer Items Y

Why not.

Indeed.

Posted in Little Feet | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Confusion and Delay

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Shoes

It has been a long time since Cody and Carter liked Thomas the Train but the expression “confusion and delay” has continued on as part of our household vernacular.  On the Island of Sodor, whenever there was a mix up or a mishap (which, lets face it, happened in every episode) it was referred to as “confusion and delay”.  For some reason Husband and I found this expression funny and so we started using it and haven’t stopped.  It is a great expression and I highly recommend you try it out sometime.

Well, this week at Chase Manhattan Bank there was confusion and delay of the not-funny-at-all kind.  Someone did not do their job and that has led us to not receive the keys to our house, not to close in a timely manner (which incidentally legally opens the window for the sellers to be within their rights to simply up and walk away from this many-month-in-the- making-deal.) There is no reason for them to walk away, but they could (and I think I would simply have a nervous breakdown if that happened).

The closing date has been pushed and the keys-in-our-hands date is now looking like it will be Monday.  Not only am I disappointed, but that means we lose this weekend for cleaning and moving.  This is more critical than it sounds because Carter’s birthday party invitations have gone out with the date of May 24th on them and the location, our new address.  No stress.

To add to The Week of Confusion and Delay, Cody is on day number two of staying home with a fever.  At one point yesterday when his temperature was a glowing 103.2 and the Tylenol and Advil were both on board and not doing much, I started to get that panic-rising-in-the-back-of-my-throat feeling and fully expected him to start seizing (he has been seizure free for 13 months!).  He did not seize.  His temperature dropped and we continued reading The Mouse and the Motorcycle as if I had not just had an internal panic attack.

On the plus side, while Cody rests, I have been finding great ideas for the next school year and have been organizing my school related electronic file folders (all this in an effort to not clean the house, mind you.) Hopefully the confusion and delay will be sorted out, there will be no nervous breakdowns or seizures, and everyone will return to and stay at their rightfully normal internal temperature of 98.6.

Posted in Random Thoughts, Sniffles & Seizures | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Simple Sunday – A Double Special Day

Posted on May 10, 2015 by Shoes

Happy Mother’s Day to all you amazing, strong, brilliant mothers out there.

It is not only Mother’s Day here at Casa de Wrong Feet but it is also Carter’s birthday (you can read about his exciting arrival if you wish – a post I wrote quite awhile ago).

My baby boy turned seven today.  We had a very low key celebration, for both him and I.  A simple day that started with a morning dog walk from which we came home to find Husband had cooked us all breakfast.  Carter opened some gifts (the 100 pack of Pokémon cards and the four pack of Minecraft books were the favorites).

CarterBirthdayCollage

We ran errands, had lunch, ran more errands, I lesson planned and the boys watched a Myth Busters.  Dinner was Carter’s choice (mac and cheese) followed by a small carrot cake (also Carter’s choice).

He asked if he could have his birthday party in a couple weeks when my mom comes to visit – he wanted his Grandma there to celebrate with us.  It will be the first, of what I hope will be many gatherings in our new house.  (We get the keys on Wednesday!  (I am so excited by this that every time I say it, I can’t help but squeak a little.))

It was a good day, a double good day.

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Simple Sunday – New Chapter

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Shoes

We found out last week – we are getting the house we put in an offer on!  The house in the lovely neighborhood.  The house that is in the middle of the city but walking distance from a little park with fields, playgrounds, and ponds.  The house that simply felt right the first time we walked in the door.

We get the keys in ten day.  It feels right.  I am excited for the memories, the adventures, the laughter, and even the tears that we will share in our new house.

This will be the house where Cody and Carter grow from children to young adults.    Where the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, and even Santa will be “found out” – although I hope the magic of each and everyone of them linger on into their adulthood as they have done for me. This might be the driveway I will stand at the end of waving furiously as they, one at a time, drive away to begin independent lives of their own.

It is the house where Husband and I will gracefully (I hope) tiptoe from middle-aged to, well, older than middle-aged.

I hope this house realizes that I have high expectations for it.  There will be a lot of growth and changes.  There will be highs and lows.  And there will be gatherings – BBQs, Pie Days, Practice Thanksgivings, as well as the traditional holidays, and perhaps we will create and carry on new gatherings that will become tradition in our family.

I am ready.  A new chapter in this wonderful, crazy life.

Small Plants in Rock Crack

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All in an Unplanned Ten Minutes

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Shoes

Today in class, small math groups ended early.  I looked at the clock and realized that I had about ten minutes in which I had nothing planned.  I usually have lined up across the lip of the white board, a row of books the students or myself have selected for class read alouds.  On this day the selection was slim so I walked back to our classroom library, swiftly flipped through some books, and grabbed a Shel Silverstein book.

I did not give it much thought until I was seated in my “Teacher Chair” (which is really just a student chair that resides next to the rug we meet on several times a day).  It was The Giving Tree.  Now I don’t know about you, but this book gets me choked up every time I read it.

It started out fine.

The students like it and made connections to times they had climbed trees.  The boy in the story grows up, spending less time with his friend the tree.  The tree, missing the boy who used to play in her branches and rest under her shade, gives him her apples to sell to make him happy.  And it made her happy too.  The students again made connections to their lives and the conversations we have about “filling buckets” by giving compliments and making our friends feel good.

Then it got a bit hairy.

The tree offered the boy her branches.  A hush fell over the students and small gasps escaped their lips when the boy actually cut off the tree’s branches.

The boy stayed away for a long time.  When he came back he was old and wanted to get away.  The tree offered him her trunk to make a boat.

He took her trunk, leaving only a crooked stump.

The students protested.  A few sat quietly, eyes moist.  My voice wavered and I paused in places during my reading, not for effect, but to keep myself in check.

At the end, the boy, now an old man, returned.  The tree lists off all the things she can no longer offer him.  The boy, for each, replies that he no longer needs any of those things.  He is tired and wants only to rest.  And so the tree straightens herself up and offers him her stump as a quiet place to rest.

How can you explain the depth, the willingness to give anything to those you dearly love?  And yet this book, these words, paired with simple illustrations could, did.  Most of my students, maybe not fully understanding it, felt it.

The tree was happy.  And the boy was happy.  The story ended.

At the end of the ten minutes, which had turned into twenty, I had a lump in my throat and a couple of my kids were wiping away tears.

Posted in Being a Teacher | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

1998 Was a Good Year for Sidewalks

Posted on April 24, 2015 by Shoes

A person who has a great appreciation for and deep knowledge of wine is called a oenophile.  But what about a person who has a great appreciation and interest in sidewalks?  What are they called?

Let me tell you.  They are called Carter.

Carter and I had the task of walking Haley around our apartment complex for her final nightly walk tonight, a job usually reserved for Husband who is off on an all day fieldtrip with Cody.

Carter, who is not used to the evening walk, had a great time using his flashlight (even though there was enough lingering day in the sky that a flashlight was not really necessary).  He became quite interested in the company name and date stamped into various sections of the sidewalk.  As we strolled along he would stop to squat down and examine them closely with his beam of light.  In an excited voice he would call out the date stamped into the concrete as if it were a long lost snippet of Shakespeare (or in Carter’s world, a forgotten rhyme from Dr. Seuss).

Most of the sidewalks were dated 1998 and it caused me to chuckle as the comparison of dates and good bottles of wine, with dates and good sections of sidewalk, popped into my head.  Knowing Carter would not appreciate my odd sense of humor and Husband was not here to wow with my wit and whimsy, I thought I would share it with you.  You are welcome.

Oh, and while I mostly trusted Carter with his sidewalk-date reading abilities, I did have to question him when he proudly announced that the sidewalk squares right outside the entrance to our apartment were made in 1398.  Hum.

Posted in Little Feet | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Simple Sunday – A Nest to Call My Own

Posted on April 19, 2015 by Shoes

We have found a house.  It is nice, not perfect, but nice.  It is a short walk away from a wonderful park and it is located in central Phoenix.  We are in love with the neighborhood, the location.  We are also quite taken with the house.

The process of trying to buy the house is another matter.  It has been awful.  I have cried – more than once.  We have convinced ourselves to walk away, but we can’t quite bring ourselves to do it.  We are staring down the last hurdle in a long line of maddening hurdles.  We will know if the house is ours either late this week or early next.

Today we loaded up the dog and the kids, hooked Carter’s bike to the bike rack and drove to the park that both Husband and I secretly consider our future neighborhood park.  We have not verbalized that the park is ours, the neighborhood is ours, the house is ours.  What if it is too much to ask?  What if it does not come to be?

As we entered the park, I paused in the shade of a small tree and happened to look up.  This is what I saw.

Nest

A nest in a tree.

I am ready to move from this apartment, this temporary dwelling, to have a nest to call my own, our own.

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