I just finished using a Facebook app to create "My Year In Statuses," which I do ever year because, well, because other people do and it's fun to look back at a year's worth of posts and say "Oh yeah, that happened! I forgot about that."
My favorite ones are about the kids (surprise) and in particular about the goofy things they say like DS yelling "Watch out, DD! I'm going to do some speed!" as he careened around a corner to dive into a pile of cushions. Or when DD told J that I had said she could watch a show.
James: Are you sure mommy said that?
Phia: yes.
James: Are you really sure?
Phia: Yes.
James: Should I go ask Mommy about it?
Phia: No. Don't ask Mommy.
The best one, though, is my observation that DD said "Umbelella" for "Umbrella," and it was so endearing, and I would miss it when it was gone. That was back in January. I knew there was something really cute that she said and couldn't recall what it was until I re-read it tonight.
She doesn't say it anymore. She just says "Umbrella."
And I do miss it.
disapproving kitty
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Some days, I can't handle being me, either
I teach gifted kids. I'm not going to rant about all the flaws in how we find them and what we fail to do for them once we do find them because that's not what this post is about.* I'll just say that I get to work with them for one day a week. I've been doing this for 4th and 5th graders for about eight years.
For the first time in a very long time I'm teaching really small kids, which is rather different than working with the ones who get sarcasm and are pretty good at following multi-step directions. People sometimes ask if the kids are intimidating because they're so smart**, or if they're all absent-minded geniuses***or other such things. They do have very big brains, and they are different in many ways from other kids their age. But they're still just kids.
Yesterday, I had a 7 year old come into class, give me a sad, sad look and say "I just don't think I can handle being gifted today." I took him into the hall to talk and he crawled into my lap and just wept. He wanted to stay with his friends, and go to recess and lunch with them because those were the things that were important.
I let him go eat lunch and have recess with his friends. He missed about half an hour of class, but no matter. He'll catch up.
It is a wonderful thing to have a big brain that is capable of tremendous thinking. I take my job of stretching and challenging these minds very seriously. I do.
But some days, it's all about playing on the swings.
*largely because I don't have the energy for it right now.
**no
***still no
For the first time in a very long time I'm teaching really small kids, which is rather different than working with the ones who get sarcasm and are pretty good at following multi-step directions. People sometimes ask if the kids are intimidating because they're so smart**, or if they're all absent-minded geniuses***or other such things. They do have very big brains, and they are different in many ways from other kids their age. But they're still just kids.
Yesterday, I had a 7 year old come into class, give me a sad, sad look and say "I just don't think I can handle being gifted today." I took him into the hall to talk and he crawled into my lap and just wept. He wanted to stay with his friends, and go to recess and lunch with them because those were the things that were important.
I let him go eat lunch and have recess with his friends. He missed about half an hour of class, but no matter. He'll catch up.
It is a wonderful thing to have a big brain that is capable of tremendous thinking. I take my job of stretching and challenging these minds very seriously. I do.
But some days, it's all about playing on the swings.
*largely because I don't have the energy for it right now.
**no
***still no
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
in a bottle, shrink-wrap, cardboard box, I don't care. I'd just like some.
Dear Santa,
This year for the holidays I would like some time. I'm good with 15 minute increments or hour long blocks, anything is fine, really. Just some time to myself to get a little housework done, or some reading, maybe even do something crafty or bake something. Or sleep. I'd take several hours worth of sleep over a multitude of gifts, easy.
If it's something you can't make at the workshop, I'd be happy to go out and just get some local. Should you find any for sale, let me know. I'll go buy some and give it to J to give to me*.
It's a simple thing. You'd think someone would have figured out a way to do this by now. I suppose I could give up Facebook and get back untold hours of my week, but I don't see it happening.
I'll be looking for it under the tree.
Thanks,
Me
*this is actually pretty standard for our holiday gift-giving. I'll buy and give him several things I know I'd like. Usually by the time I get the gifts, I've forgotten I ever gave it to him. Really.
This year for the holidays I would like some time. I'm good with 15 minute increments or hour long blocks, anything is fine, really. Just some time to myself to get a little housework done, or some reading, maybe even do something crafty or bake something. Or sleep. I'd take several hours worth of sleep over a multitude of gifts, easy.
If it's something you can't make at the workshop, I'd be happy to go out and just get some local. Should you find any for sale, let me know. I'll go buy some and give it to J to give to me*.
It's a simple thing. You'd think someone would have figured out a way to do this by now. I suppose I could give up Facebook and get back untold hours of my week, but I don't see it happening.
I'll be looking for it under the tree.
Thanks,
Me
*this is actually pretty standard for our holiday gift-giving. I'll buy and give him several things I know I'd like. Usually by the time I get the gifts, I've forgotten I ever gave it to him. Really.
I'm not saying I want to join a commune, just that it's nice to get out once in a while
My mother - in - law has been staying with us for about a week and it has been really, really nice.
No. I'm not being sarcastic here. Really. It's been fabulous. She looks after the kids and likes to watch Downton Abbey and pays attention to the cats who have been luxuriating in all the extra petting. She's fun to talk with and likes to tell me stories about J when he was a kid.* J and I both got to go play games at CABS on Friday and tonight we got a bonus date night. Dinner and a movie!
It leads me to believe that, quite possibly, the optimal number of adults in a household is not two. We all know that one adult with children is really less than optimal, because, let's face it, children are exhausting. It's good to have another adult around to help take up some of the slack when you're dead on your feet and you cannot, cannot face reading the Berenstain Bears just one more time. Or someone else to step in and be the voice of reason and support when the whining just hits that pitch that makes you want to rip your eardrums out with a fork. Two adults is good.
But three is better, when all of them are caring and responsible individuals who are good at getting along. And while I don't think I'd be up to the level of closeness needed to live like our neighbors who have four different couples, with varying ages of children living in a house not much larger than ours**, I can't help but think that they might be on to something. If nothing else, I'm going to bet that they get out to the movies more often than we do, and don't worry so much about how much they spend of babysitters.
So that's it. Nothing snarky tonight. Just a little gratitude for having married into a good family of people I like.
And a recommendation to go see Wreck-It Ralph. It's cute. If you'd have to pay a sitter to go see it, though, then maybe just wait till it's out on DVD. Sitters are expensive. I know.
*this probably endears her more to me than to J
**I'm thinking that have at least one more bathroom, though. I hope so. I realize it's a thoroughly late 20th-century American trait but I love having my own bathroom with it's gorgeous tub and walk-in closet. If moving to a commune requires giving up my own bathroom then I'm not going, I don't care how nice the childcare arrangements are.
No. I'm not being sarcastic here. Really. It's been fabulous. She looks after the kids and likes to watch Downton Abbey and pays attention to the cats who have been luxuriating in all the extra petting. She's fun to talk with and likes to tell me stories about J when he was a kid.* J and I both got to go play games at CABS on Friday and tonight we got a bonus date night. Dinner and a movie!
It leads me to believe that, quite possibly, the optimal number of adults in a household is not two. We all know that one adult with children is really less than optimal, because, let's face it, children are exhausting. It's good to have another adult around to help take up some of the slack when you're dead on your feet and you cannot, cannot face reading the Berenstain Bears just one more time. Or someone else to step in and be the voice of reason and support when the whining just hits that pitch that makes you want to rip your eardrums out with a fork. Two adults is good.
But three is better, when all of them are caring and responsible individuals who are good at getting along. And while I don't think I'd be up to the level of closeness needed to live like our neighbors who have four different couples, with varying ages of children living in a house not much larger than ours**, I can't help but think that they might be on to something. If nothing else, I'm going to bet that they get out to the movies more often than we do, and don't worry so much about how much they spend of babysitters.
So that's it. Nothing snarky tonight. Just a little gratitude for having married into a good family of people I like.
And a recommendation to go see Wreck-It Ralph. It's cute. If you'd have to pay a sitter to go see it, though, then maybe just wait till it's out on DVD. Sitters are expensive. I know.
*this probably endears her more to me than to J
**I'm thinking that have at least one more bathroom, though. I hope so. I realize it's a thoroughly late 20th-century American trait but I love having my own bathroom with it's gorgeous tub and walk-in closet. If moving to a commune requires giving up my own bathroom then I'm not going, I don't care how nice the childcare arrangements are.
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Extraverted iNtuitive....squirrel!
I have approximately three bajillion hours of grading to do.
I don't want to do it.
I've been able to avoid it thus far by prepping for a birthday party and now tidying up after it but really, it's sitting there. Mocking me. The kids have done all this work learning and I'm supposed to check and document all of it so I can tell them where they need to improve, but truth be known I'm terrible at grading in a timely fashion and given the set up of my program, (I see students one day a week) it's not as useful as it might be in a normal classroom. At least, this is what I tell myself when being mocked by my stacks of ungraded papers.
The current stack is mostly packets students did during "brain labs" where they got to learn about the different jobs of different parts of their brains. This year I get to teach a little bit about psychology, and how all the bits and pieces of the brain work together to create "the mind." I find it a fun and fascinating topic*, and would probably spend a lot more time on it if I could, but I like the previous unit for this year a lot, too, and the unit that comes after this one, and I never want to cut anything**. This is understandable, at least according to my personality type, which I get to find out yet again this year.
You see, each year I teach this, I have the kids take the Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory, which is a long list of somewhat awkwardly-worded Yes/No questions. It's hard for 10 and 11 year-olds to decipher so I go through it with them, reading each question aloud and translating as needed. Which means I typically take the thing four or five times in the space of a week.
I'm sure you're asking why I bother clicking Yes or No, and not just read the questions. Truth is, I don't know. I guess I just like answering questions about myself.
The weirdest part? My personality type changes, even over a couple days. If you've never taken this test, you can here and you'll get a little set of four letters, telling you if you're more introverted, or more of a judger or perceiver or whatever. Each letter comes with a little percentage, telling how much you are that particular type of trait. But as the week progresses, and I think more about the questions, my answers must change because usually by the end of the week at least one of the letters has changed and all of the percentages have moved quite a bit. I'm not sure what this means.
In general, though, I usually tend to be some kind of "ENFP" which is probably what that dog Doug was in the movie UP. I'm highly distractible, friendly, love to learn new things and have a tendency to chase squirrels***. I'm not a perfectionist, I can't be bothered with fiddly details and I have difficulty following the rules when I think the rules are getting in the way of things being done well, properly, efficiently or all three. This last trait does not endear me to administration, I'm sure, but what the hey. Nobody's perfect. I do try.
Speaking of, I should try to get some grading done. After doing a little more cleaning. Or watching Downton Abbey. Or....
*This is one of the coolest things about my job. I get to teach fun and interesting stuff all the time. I constantly get to research new topics and add cool new ideas to my curriculum. It is a charmed and wonderful thing.
**This is probably the worst part about my job† I really do hate cutting things out. It's all interesting. But stuff always falls out of the plans because I take too long to get through lessons. I'd like to think it's because I'm thorough, but really I think it's because I get sidetracked easily††
***not really
†besides grading. Grading is the worst part of any teaching job. Right now, writing in this blog is my way to avoid grading papers.
††as you might guess.
I don't want to do it.
I've been able to avoid it thus far by prepping for a birthday party and now tidying up after it but really, it's sitting there. Mocking me. The kids have done all this work learning and I'm supposed to check and document all of it so I can tell them where they need to improve, but truth be known I'm terrible at grading in a timely fashion and given the set up of my program, (I see students one day a week) it's not as useful as it might be in a normal classroom. At least, this is what I tell myself when being mocked by my stacks of ungraded papers.
The current stack is mostly packets students did during "brain labs" where they got to learn about the different jobs of different parts of their brains. This year I get to teach a little bit about psychology, and how all the bits and pieces of the brain work together to create "the mind." I find it a fun and fascinating topic*, and would probably spend a lot more time on it if I could, but I like the previous unit for this year a lot, too, and the unit that comes after this one, and I never want to cut anything**. This is understandable, at least according to my personality type, which I get to find out yet again this year.
You see, each year I teach this, I have the kids take the Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory, which is a long list of somewhat awkwardly-worded Yes/No questions. It's hard for 10 and 11 year-olds to decipher so I go through it with them, reading each question aloud and translating as needed. Which means I typically take the thing four or five times in the space of a week.
I'm sure you're asking why I bother clicking Yes or No, and not just read the questions. Truth is, I don't know. I guess I just like answering questions about myself.
The weirdest part? My personality type changes, even over a couple days. If you've never taken this test, you can here and you'll get a little set of four letters, telling you if you're more introverted, or more of a judger or perceiver or whatever. Each letter comes with a little percentage, telling how much you are that particular type of trait. But as the week progresses, and I think more about the questions, my answers must change because usually by the end of the week at least one of the letters has changed and all of the percentages have moved quite a bit. I'm not sure what this means.
In general, though, I usually tend to be some kind of "ENFP" which is probably what that dog Doug was in the movie UP. I'm highly distractible, friendly, love to learn new things and have a tendency to chase squirrels***. I'm not a perfectionist, I can't be bothered with fiddly details and I have difficulty following the rules when I think the rules are getting in the way of things being done well, properly, efficiently or all three. This last trait does not endear me to administration, I'm sure, but what the hey. Nobody's perfect. I do try.
Speaking of, I should try to get some grading done. After doing a little more cleaning. Or watching Downton Abbey. Or....
*This is one of the coolest things about my job. I get to teach fun and interesting stuff all the time. I constantly get to research new topics and add cool new ideas to my curriculum. It is a charmed and wonderful thing.
**This is probably the worst part about my job† I really do hate cutting things out. It's all interesting. But stuff always falls out of the plans because I take too long to get through lessons. I'd like to think it's because I'm thorough, but really I think it's because I get sidetracked easily††
***not really
†besides grading. Grading is the worst part of any teaching job. Right now, writing in this blog is my way to avoid grading papers.
††as you might guess.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Sometimes the wine and thou aren't enough
I've been working for a couple days on what is supposed to be a funny little bit about being one of "those parents" who can't get home-school communication right. It isn't turning out and I think I need to try working on it some time when I'm not done with thinking for the day.
So instead I'll just say that the house smells fantastic right now because I'm baking little individual pizza crusts for DD's birthday party on Sunday. I was going to buy the already-made ones from the store that kinda look like cardboard (my kids wouldn't care, honestly) but I couldn't find them in my mad 15-minute-have-to-get-the-kids-by-six dash through the grocery the other day.
So I'm making homemade ones.
I was going to double the recipe but I could only find a single packet of yeast, and that was from a gluten-free box mix that I wound up not using because I used the gf flour within for something else.
Which means I haven't bought yeast in a really, really long time.
I used to buy it as a staple. I baked all sorts of things. Focaccia. Sweet rolls. Grain breads. Cakes and pies and cookies which don't require yeast but do require lots of flour.
Now I don't.
This is unarguably healthier, and is probably a primary reason I've been able to maintain a healthy-ish weight for the past couple years. But when the house smells like this it is all I can do to not grab a warm crust, cover it in butter and and garlic salt and tear off great chunks to eat with marinara.
Sometimes, I just miss bread.
So instead I'll just say that the house smells fantastic right now because I'm baking little individual pizza crusts for DD's birthday party on Sunday. I was going to buy the already-made ones from the store that kinda look like cardboard (my kids wouldn't care, honestly) but I couldn't find them in my mad 15-minute-have-to-get-the-kids-by-six dash through the grocery the other day.
So I'm making homemade ones.
I was going to double the recipe but I could only find a single packet of yeast, and that was from a gluten-free box mix that I wound up not using because I used the gf flour within for something else.
Which means I haven't bought yeast in a really, really long time.
I used to buy it as a staple. I baked all sorts of things. Focaccia. Sweet rolls. Grain breads. Cakes and pies and cookies which don't require yeast but do require lots of flour.
Now I don't.
This is unarguably healthier, and is probably a primary reason I've been able to maintain a healthy-ish weight for the past couple years. But when the house smells like this it is all I can do to not grab a warm crust, cover it in butter and and garlic salt and tear off great chunks to eat with marinara.
Sometimes, I just miss bread.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
It's December Already?
It's holiday newsletter time.
Notice the lack of exclamation points. I'm just not feeling it quite yet. Could be the prednisone. (threw my back out)
Since the advent of Facebook, it seems less necessary than ever to even write a holiday newsletter. But I'm going to write one anyways, as soon as I can figure out what to put in it. I love my life and my family, but we aren't what you'd call intriguing*. I try to find some clever and creative way to do it, but even that can get a little old.
People always bitch about how there are never crappy things in holiday newsletters**. They're all wonderful this and terrific that and life is raining gold and rainbows. What else should we write about? How we got into a multitude of stupid arguments involving the proper method to fold socks? That people disappointed us? There were family spats and hurt feelings and sometimes J's job resembled a Dilbert Cartoon.*** There was a divorce, and hospital stays, health scares, nagging, passive-aggressiveness, annoying habits and a host of other things that are part real life but just don't belong in a holiday newsletter.
So I will write my newsletter, and the most down thing in it will be that DD doesn't say "memato" anymore for "tomato."
And that will just have to do.
*At least as far as you know. We could be secretly fascinating, but very private about it. Like Spiderman.
**Well, they do in advice columns. I like reading advice columns. Did you know that if you read enough of them, you discover that they run differently edited versions of the same letters? I don't know if all advice letters just go to a giant pool for columnists to pick from or if people who think that advice columns are the best way to go just have a tendency to write to ALL of them in hopes of getting a response. Either way, seeing the variety of responses can be amusing.
***All of his jobs have resembled a Dilbert cartoon at some point. All jobs do. If they didn't, Dilbert wouldn't be funny.
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