Balloon Classic 2008

Some of you may remember last Labor Day weekend when Nathan and I attended the Colorado Springs Balloon Classic. I posted pictures and wrote about the event at the time. What I didn't write about was the reluctance with which Nathan agreed to attend last year (and, come to think of it, even the year before). The past two years, I've been dragging Nathan to Memorial Park at o'dark thirty to view the lift-off or at dusk to watch the balloons glow. It was always with resigned hesitation, and a deep desire to be sleeping (or better yet, listening to rock 'n' roll) somewhere anywhere else, that Nathan would allow himself to be woken early on a weekend to placate his girlfriend.

This year, the story went a little differently. Nathan came home on Friday evening and asked me (with an unmistakable tinge of excitement in his voice) if the Balloon Classic was this weekend. I had not heard even a whispered rumbling of the upcoming event, and was shocked to realize that this was indeed the long Labor Day weekend known locally for the balloons. (Is it just me, or did Labor Day come early this year?) Nathan willingly eagerly made plans for us to attend the very next morning, even going so far as to call other friends and invite them to join us!

When the alarm buzzed at a ridiculous hour the next morning, Nathan popped up out of bed and, humming cheerfully, jumped into the shower while I, groaning, huddled down deeper into the nest of warm blankets and, later, peeled my eyelids open against the new morning sunlight.

Be careful what you wish for.

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Quote of the Day

As I'm walking to the fourth grade class where I do interventions on Tuesdays & Thursdays, I notice one of the kiddos from my intervention group standing in another teacher's line.

"Monte, what are you doing here?" I asked him. "You belong in my group."

He looks up at me confused and says, "But, I'm supposed to be in Mrs. Gilligus' class!"

Then, "Who is Mrs. Gilligus?"

He looks around frantically, "I can't find Mrs. Gilligus!"

Literacy Corner: 08-26-08

“You're the same today as you'll be in five years except for the people you meet and the books you read.”- Charlie "Tremendous" Jones

I'm not sure I agree that the only two factors that will change a person over the course of five years are people and books, but I do think they could be two of the most important! Right now, I am spending the majority of my time reading the books pictured above to prepare for a book study with some of the newest people I have met- the teachers at my school.

In many ways, this has felt like such a heavy burden. I don't think I read my grad school textbooks with as much thoughtfulness and depth as I have been scrutinizing these two huge books! I have never led a book study before and certainly not one covering a topic as important as guided reading instruction in elementary classrooms. I am considered the resident "expert" at my school, but at my worst moments I feel completely inadequate. I so badly want these teachers to understand what good reading instruction looks like in an elementary classroom and I want them to be excited about it!

No matter what, reading these books is building up my own knowledge of effective reading instruction and I can only hope that studying these books for the next nine weeks (teachers will study just one- primary or intermediate) will positively affect all the teachers who attend, including myself. Our first meeting is tomorrow.

Thank God...

...the Olympics are over! Maybe now I'll finally get a decent night's sleep.

Names

If you're looking for a good movie to put on your Netflix queue, I highly recommend Lars and the Real Girl. It's a very sweet movie and Ryan Gosling does a phenomenal acting job! In the movie, it is briefly mentioned that it's a proven fact that everybody's favorite word is their own name and I got to wondering if that is really true. Thus... my new poll. How do you feel about your name? Do you like it? hate it? feel indifferent about it? I'm curious. (As always, comments are welcome!)

My Morning Jacket

Last Thursday night, Nathan and I attended a concert at Red Rocks (near Denver) with our friends Nate and Liz. We saw My Morning Jacket (& The Black Keys) and we had a great time! We didn't get home until after 1 am and I was up at 6 am getting ready for work. It has been a long time since I have stayed out so late on a "school night" and as a result of my late night, I have spent the weekend recovering! I took a three hour nap yesterday, even after going to bed early on Friday night. It's times like these that I feel every bit of my 32 years. Nathan took a couple of pictures on his cell phone. They aren't the greatest, but here we are enjoying ourselves at the concert...









Here's the music video of one of my favorite My Morning Jacket songs....

Literacy Quote: 08/19/08

Teachers do the most important work of our time.

This was the theme of our district convocation this year. Our superintendent repeated this statement, 'Teachers do the most important work of our time,' over and over again. I don't know if this is an original statement or if he heard it somewhere else, though. I like this statement (of course!) because it validates what I have chosen to do with my life. And this video offers a great explanation why the teachers in our society play a pivotal role in shaping the future.

Broken For You by Stephanie Kallos

I loved this book!

Wanda comes to Seattle looking for her wayward boyfriend and answers an ad to rent a room in the mansion of Margaret, a septuagenarian who just discovered she is terminally ill. Margaret and Wanda develop a close friendship and together discover that Margaret's endless collection of valuable antiques (and the heartbreaking history that they represent) are destined to change their lives forever.

This book was chosen by my church book club, and if it hadn't been I might never have read it. A scary thought. Reading the back cover of the book left me only mildly interested. Reading the first chapter didn't incite me much further. But, soon enough, I was captivated.

The interesting dreams, the ghosts of family members, the mysterious histories, the enchanting love interests, the irresistible friendships, and the happy accidents that tie the pieces together in the end are all mesmerizing.

It's simply fantastic.

The Real Lives of Teachers

I've been teaching long enough now, that I have to stop and count in order to figure out how many years I've been at it. And when I figure it out, I have to count it again, because I just can't believe it!!! I have taught for 10 years. Yes, you heard me right, I have just begun my 11th year as a teacher. Hard to believe, I know.

For me the return to school this year was accompanied by some mild depression. I know that many people think teachers have it easy. I mean, after all, we get our WHOLE summer off! We have great vacation time for Christmas and other holidays. We work from 8 am until 3 pm at the most.... Right?

Wrong.

Of course, I have spent time on my soapbox defending the work ethic of teachers, but today I think I will just send you to some other places to defend my profession, yet again.

Click here, here and here to read about the realities of teachers' lives.

And, when other professionals want to attend a family wedding in Illinois at the beginning of October or spend a weekend in Kansas at a blue grass festival, it probably doesn't take an act of God to get the day off.

A Lazy, Rainy Saturday

cold and wet outside

toasty and warm inside

yep, that's the kind of day it's been

Quote of the Day

As the students spilled through the doors of the elementary school into the rainy, overcast parking lot, the loud echo of children's laughter grew faint against the exhausted silence of a Friday afternoon. Suddenly, our counselor's low, deep voice resonated through the hallway, the words bouncing off the walls...

"One week down, fifty-one to go!"

(I'm pretty sure he meant ...37 weeks to go!)

Desperate Times call for Desperate Measures

Last night was a big night for my favorite Olympic sport- gymnastics. I knew the girls All Around Competition would be sometime yesterday evening, but I wasn't sure when.

I waited and waited... through beach volleyball and swimming.

No gymnastics.

My eyes began to droop and I thought with dread of my alarm blaring bright and early in the morning. But, I was determined to see the competition. Without TiVo, DVR, or even cable, I had no way to record it and watch it another time. I would just have to stay awake.

With determination, I unplugged the tv we keep in the study and hauled it to the bedroom. I placed it precariously on top of my tall dresser. Then, I happily snuggled deep down into the covers, settling in to wait as long as it took.

A good hour after my bedtime, it finally started. And I watched into the dead of night.

Boy, was it worth it! I may have dozed a bit during the uneven bars, but I was wide awake to watch Nastia and Shawn both nail their floor routines! I was sooo excited to see them win gold and silver medals, respectively.

And, even though the buzzing alarm marking the onslaught of a dreary morning came far too quickly, I was pleased with my decision to stay up so late!

That is, until I found out today that they were repeating the gymnastics competition during prime time tonight.

Go figure.

Quote of the Day

2nd grader: "My mom's rich!"

Me: "Really?"

2nd grader: "Yeah, she gots a thousand dollars!"

Literacy Corner: 08/12/08

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”
- Ray Bradbury

This is one of my favorites.

School Has Started

I guess I knew the day would come. Summer doesn't last forever.

With the start of the school year, I have returned to my 10 o'clock bedtimes and my living for the weekends. I have flung aside the flip flops and dug out the high heels. I have (sadly) begun to set an alarm again. Sigh.

But, I have also regained my motivation to cook! You might not have noticed, but I definitely lost it during the summer.

I blame the heat.

Tonight I made a new recipe that was quite tasty. Hopefully, you'll find the time to enjoy it as well...

Garden Bow Tie Pasta

Ingredients

8 oz. bow tie pasta

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium zucchini, chopped

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

1 (15 1/2 oz) can red kidney beans, drained

1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomatoes

1/3 cup chili sauce

1/4 tsp dried basil (I used more)

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

2 tbsp Romano cheese (although Parmesan would work as well, and cost less!)

Directions

1. Cook pasta using package directions, drain.

2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Cook zucchini and bell pepper in hot oil, stirring frequently, until crisp tender, about 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Add beans, tomatoes, chili sauce, basil and salt to mixture. Cook over med-high heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 4 to 5 minutes.

4. Transfer pasta and toss to mix. Transfer to a serving dish (or leave it on the oven and call your husband to "come and get it" like I did!). Sprinkle with parsley and Romano. Serve immediately.

I served (if that's what you can call it) this vegetarian dish with a garden salad and french bread and it was a good match.

Be on the lookout for a new literacy quote tomorrow (since I'm back in the game)!

I Love My Girlfriends!

shera & shannon

me & Raquel

Shera's pic: I got to hold baby Drew!

Shera's pic: Just the five of us!

Wedding Extravaganza!

Rehearsal dinner...

Getting ready...

At the church...

Zach: "McKayla, do you want to play Zach marrying McKayla?"

(Then, later, after McKayla had refused repeatedly to play 'Zach marrying McKayla', Zach began to cry. With his aunts and grandmother crowded around him, he wailed, "I'm just feeling awful lonesome!")

After discovering that McKayla would be receiving a sucker for walking cooperatively down the aisle, Zach insisted that he wanted one as well.

"No, sorry, you can't have one."

"But, it's not me that wants it, it's my body!"

Zach and Austin were standing outside while the entire wedding party and most of the family were getting their pictures taken.

Just as it gets silent, Zach says adamantly, "Austin, that is for smoked cigarettes. But, of all the people at this church, my mom is the only one who smokes!"

(above photo by Leonard Nolt)

(above photo by Keith Blackwood)

(above photo by Keith Blackwood)

(above photo by Leonard Nolt)

The remains of a party...

The reception...

(above photo by Leonard Nolt)