Meds For All

Last week Chanel had to go to the vet due to some problems that she was having. They put her on meds. Oh boy, a sick bunny.
This week I found Versace had a problem with his toe. He got meds, and a special bath for his toe. Oh boy, another sick bunny.
Sick bunnies involves fighting with them to get them out of the cage, fighting with them to sit still, and then finally fighting with them to take the stupid meds.
Today, I went to the Doctors. Guess what, I'm now on meds. Oh boy!
I hate being sick. T_T

Dissapointment

I found the perfect pets for my kids! I went back to the humane society to see the rats one more time yesterday. The two that I wanted to see were not the first two that the girl showed me. She showed me these two that I had passed over because I thought the other two were cutier. Well, how wrong was I! The two that I thought were not so cute turned out to be the NICEST rats ever! They were so friendly and sweet. They both would be great with the kids. The other two were not friendly at all. The one tried to pee on me and the other nipped my finger. Not good for my kids. I asked to hold the two sweet ones for me so that I could get a cage and whatnot for them. I came home and debated about what was the right thing to do for my kids and the rats.
When I talked to my husband last night before he came home from work I told him about the two wonderful rats I had found. I was still wrestling with what to do, but when I talked to him I felt like I should get the cage and prep for having rats in my classroom. I got the cage and talked my hubby's ear off about the rats. He, however, had had a bad day and was not so chatty. I tried not to annoy him with my chatter about the rats, but now I was excited. Can you see what is going to happen next?
I came to school today. I had the cage in the car and I was on my way after school to get my new ratties! I had even renamed them and dreamt about them. It all came crashing down when an e-mail to the vice-principal and principal was replied to. The principal sent me an e-mail saying he would rather not have pets in the building at all. I was stunned! The vice principal had said that as long as I check with the nurse to see about allergies. I had the all clear from the nurse. I thought I was good to go. I sent out an e-mail to the VP and Principal this a.m. to double check that I was OK. So, I had to tell my kids today that we are not getting a pet for our room. No pets that's the rule. My kids were so disappointed. I have to admit, so was I! I called my hubby at lunch to tell him how sad I was. He called me back when I came home from school and told me to call the humane society and tell them to take the rats off hold. That was a hard phone call. I had already gotten attached. he also suggested that I keep the cage for the night and see if Wednesday when I'm back at school if the VP can talk the principal into allowing me my pets. I feel so bad letting those kids down. They all said the same thing "yeah, but..." I know I told them. I wanted to run down to the Principal and say "yeah, but..." to him too! I know that would do me no good. I guess we'll see what happens. I'm not in school tomorrow due to another conference that I have to go to.
Right now it's thundering and lighting out. I better turn the computer off!

Busy Week!

Recently it seems like I never have enough time! This week I had another conference. I HATE missing the day with my kids! It's so hard to make sub plans to have someone else teach your kids the way you do it. Oh well, they were fine.
I also had my post observation this week. It went really well! They said that next year they want to look at new goals and see if there is some way that they can keep me in one building all day so I don't have to drive to a second one. That would be great! On cold snowy days when I have to march out and dust my car off, everyone else is eating lunch and waving hello at me. Sucks, it does! So, if they could find a way, that would be amazing! Also they are planning to keep me in the district so maybe the 2007-08 school year will be the first time that I start the year with the kids! That hasn't happened yet! Both years since graduation I have been hired in October. It's hard because the kids already know the school and you have to play catch up! Oh well, maybe next year is my year! Then I would have 2 years in the same district, one more and I'll get that wonderful thing called tenure. WOW! Then, the plan is to start my PhD! Then, I'll be a Dr! HA HA! That will be cool!
This week one of the fourth grade teachers and I sat down to start talking about creating a drop spindle club at school and then having the kids knit/ crochet their yarn into something simple! I had one of my classes build a drop spindle so I know kids can do it, and if I teach her to spin, then we just need the go-ahead from the principal. I think it would be cool with the principal and vice principal. They are always looking for something different for kids to do after school. This would defiantly be something different! ^_^ We have more talking to do before it could really happen, but I think it's fun to think about it. I recommend that we model it after the knitting club at my second building. The kids are selected by the teachers only 4th and 5th graders can be a part of it. Then they are part of the club for 6-8 weeks to learn and then a new group comes in to learn. I love that idea. The kids in knitting club take home their needles and yarn to practice at home, if they get stuck, the next day they can bring it in and ask for help. I like that idea. We'll see what happens.
I've been really good about my gym membership. I went every day this week. I did skip belly dance on Friday night however, since yesterday my in-laws came for the day and I had to clean my house! It was nice to have them come. We went out for dinner and it was a nice evening.
Today, I'm on a mission for my kids. I asked the vice principal if we could have a pet in our room. I was told that as long as no one has allergies, it's OK. I think I'm the only one who has allergies because my kiddos are all free and clear. We put it to a vote. Mice, rat, hamster, gerbil, or hermit crab. No one voted mouse, or gerbil, so the top three were hamster, rat and hermit crab. Personally, I don't like hamsters. Their nubby tail grosses me out! So, the vote went to rat or hermit crab. I wanted the rat, and my kids saw things my way. Well, not at first, but a lot of talking, they did. I told them that this is not a promise that we will even get a pet. I had to see how much a cage costs, and I need to do some more research on them. Before we got the rabbits I read as much as I could find to know what I was getting into. I want to do the same for a class pet. We might not even get a pet after all this hoopla! So sad for them, but I have to take care of it on breaks and weekends, so we'll see.
After seeing about our pet choices, I am going over to a friend's house to dye my hair tonight. I have done that since college! It should be fun! ^_^

Amazing Weekend

I went to a conference last week and it was really great! I had a lot of fun and saw a lot of ESOL teachers that I knew! It was really cool! I got a lot of samples from the book vendors and the speakers had a lot of interesting information. That was really great and it was nice to get a small break from my kids. However, the sub that I had had a run for her money with my afternoon kids! I guess, I knew that it would be a hard time. It's a hard time for me some days too! I did get my lucky little leprechaun gift and she went way over the limit! I was so sad, because she was my leprechaun and I didn't get her as much. Here' what I got:Crazy full basket of yarn! YUM!
I then went to the guild meeting on Saturday and showed off my scarf. It was also in the picture that will be part of next year's calender. I'm very excited to be so new a spinning and yet I've done so much with it already!
I left the guild meeting early because I wanted to sign up for a gym membership. While I was there my husband called me about 5 times to remind me that I needed to get home because he had a surprise for me.
I love my husband! He is so sweet! His surprise was spending a night at a bed and breakfast for one night and then going to the Outlet on Sunday. Our room was so nice! It had a hot tub in it and the owners have 11 horses, 9 dogs, 2 birds and one cat. Their kids are also part of keeping the inn running. Their son greeted us when we got there and their daughter is in charge of cooking breakfast for the guests on the weekend. Here are some pictures of our room! It was amazing!

Here's a pict out the window of our room: Here were the two baby horses that they had:

Observation and Knitting

Yesterday I was observed with my students. It seemed to go really well and they were so nervous. I felt bad for them because they thought that they were being watched by the vice principal, but she was really there watching me! Oh well, they were happy that today I told them that they did a great job. I'm so proud of how hard they are working.
Today I saw a skunk as I was driving to work. It was so odd because it was in the city, but there it was! The rest of my day didn't stink (HA HA!). It was really good and now I'm getting ready to pack a bag and head to my home town. Tomorrow I have a conference to go to and it's my Mom's birthday. I am so excited because my brother is going to be there too. It will be nice see my whole family for a night or two.
One of the teachers at school and I have been talking a lot about knitting and I was so excited when she showed me this crazy hard pattern. It's a shawl that's a dragon on it. It's looks wicked hard! I showed her the scarf that I made out of my hand spun stuff. She loved it and told me that she's a member of the knitting guild here. That guild is something like 300 people! Oh my, that's huge! I'm happy with my spinning guild of 70 people. I also found a knitting club around here that meets every Thursday. I can't go tomorrow because I'll be out to dinner with my family. Maybe next week!

Yum!

Last night after going out we stopped at the store to get more creamer for my tea. I never really used creamer before, but at Christmas time Hubby found this great stuff and now I'm addicted! Unfortunately, that flavor is only sold at holiday time. Too bad for me. So, I had to find a new flavor to drink. I found coconut cream! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH... I LOVE COCONUTS! Yummy! Here it is, and yes, my Santa mug is my all year tea mug!

Yesterday I also worked on plying some of the yarn that I had made before. Now that I have my amazing ball winder, I can ply much more effectively! Here are some of the hanks of yarn that I've plyed!

Great Finds!

This a.m. I did go to the thrift store but, I did not need to buy a coat rack. I did buy some 100% wool sweaters that I already felted in the wash. I want to make some felted bags out of them. I think I might wash them one or two more times since they are not as small as I would like yet. I got three sweaters and they are drying in the bathroom right now. I also got some ugly old ties to use as handles for the bags. After shrinking them a bit more I can cut them out and sew them into bags! Pretty cool, huh? ^_^
My parents had a coat rack at their house that my dad had made in shop class when he was in grammar school. They were in the area today so they brought it to me. Hubby and I met them at the mall in the food court so that we could pick it up. My dad was really proud of it but didn't want to admit how proud of it he was. It will be perfect for my classroom to hold my coat. The only thing that it needed was new hooks. The old ones had kind of corroded away so I couldn't use them. My hubby replaced the old hooks for new ones. Yeah! Monday I will now have a nice place to hang my winter stuff!

Creative Feeling

Ah, Saturday. My favorite morning time. I can relax and start to recharge for the week ahead. Today I had the guilty pleasure of eating bacon for breakfast and drinking some nice hot tea. YUM! I wanted toast today but we don't have any bread. My hubby bought some bacon a while ago and he cooked some when he got home from work last night. I love the way bacon makes the whole house smell like it. I couldn't resist it. It was great! I don't remember the last time I eat it.
Today I am on a mission. First, I have the unhappy task of calling the parents of my kids. Then, I get to go out and hit the thrift shops (recycled stores) for a coat rack. My classroom has no where to hang a coat, and so my chair is over full with my coat, hat, gloves, and whatever else I need to wear to keep warm! I think it's time I find a cheap coat rack to hang all my winter gear on. I also just love to look around and see what else is fun there. You never know what you are going to find. It's like a big treasure hunt! Oh boy, the fun I can have today! ^_^

Sad Story

Wednesday there was a major car crash here. The roads were dry (well, I thought they were) and the sky was clear. No one really knows what happened, however, a man and women were killed in it. I can not imagine the families pain during this time. I think it is so sad.
Today my kids were very disrespectful and rude. I think I'm going to have some parent conferences soon. The special ed teacher and I found that we have many things in common. We are planning to go out some night as couples. I'm looking forward to that.
Tonight I am just taking it easy. I need to unwind from this week and nothing sounds better than eating some popcorn and watching a cheesy movie. Then, I want to read a little bit and go to bed.

Wrong Era

I'm sitting here listening to some good 'ol Frank Sinatra thinking about how other 20 somethings are not listening to this. They have their rap, and their hip-hop, and I have my Frank and my techno. Ahhh. My friend Monica told me the other day that I'm stuck in 1880 because of my desire to learn to use my spinning wheel. My Japanese friend Jerry wants to know what kind of music is cool here now. Honestly, I'm not a good one to ask. I like loud thumping music with a strong beat and the words are not understood by anyone. On the other hand, I like country and old crooners (ie: my boy Frank). Sorry, Jerry, I'm not a good one to help you with this! T_T

COLD!!!!!!

Today it was crazy cold! School should have been closed, but oh no!!! We had school! Can't miss testing! On the drive to work there was snow, ice, black ice, and wind! Oh man, there was WIND!!! Oh well, I made it to school and to the Dr.'s office after school. I was worried this a.m. that my car was going to get blown off the road. Ahhhhh!

Crazy Strong Wind!

Ah, Mondays. Probably the most hated day of the week, just because we have to go back to work. When I worked in Japan, I had Sundays and Mondays off. So by default I hated Tuesdays. Now I like Tuesday because it means that Hubby and I are home for dinner together. Today was not such a bad day. My kids were pretty good but the wind was crazy! It's MARCH! Did someone forget to tell Mother Nature that she should not be using the strong winds and heavy snows in March???
At one point today the wind was so strong that it was scaring my kids. It sounded like an little girl crying in my room. It was a bit freaky! It was white-outs everywhere you looked! My drive to the other building was awful! My drive home was worse! My car was shaking from the wind pushing on it. They said on the radio that tomorrow it will be between 10F (-12C) and 0F (-17C) degrees and that the wind will be 30 mph (50kph). Oh man, we will have school? OF COURSE!!!! State math testing starts tomorrow! Heaven forbid we miss a day of that! Good grief!

Sundays

It seems to me, that Sundays are the day I run around the house picking everything up and trying to put the house in order for the coming week. I have a list a mile long of things that I need to do and a shopping list just as long. I try to get a few of these things done while I make my tea, and before my hubby gets up for work. I've already taken the trash out. I emptied the dish drainer so that I can wash more dishes today. Dishes and laundry are never ending jobs!!!! Grrrr... Oh well, they have to be done and I'll get to them sometime today. I have been finding that this past week I've been better about cleaning up a little each day so today shouldn't be as bad as normal! Maybe after 3 years of living here I'm starting to get a handle on the domestic stuff. Ha! My mom would be proud! Actually, it's my allergies that are forcing me to get real about cleaning up. I need to keep the dust under control or I could have an all out allergy hay day. YUCK!
In addition to watching the lunar eclipse last night, we watched some hockey. I love hockey, but I was only half watching... I think my hubby was mad that I was missing all the really good plays and the replays! I was busy looking for some new knitting ideas for my hand made yarn. I want to make something special with it, not stuff I make everyday. While I was doing that, I came across this website. How cool, a bag knit from old plastic shopping bags! I love it! Well, I saw this person's pictures of some sandals that they had crocheted from plastic bags and I started searching for more patterns like that. I can crochet (I learned it before I learned how to knit), I just prefer knitting at this point. Anyway, maybe tonight after I finish my list of things to do I can cut some bags into strips so when I have some free time I can start to knit a plastic bag from plastic bags! ^_^

Lunar Eclipse

Tonight was a total lunar eclipse. Hubby and I went out for Chinese food tonight to celebrate Chinese New Year. The food was so good!!! The restaurant that we go to is the best in the area for Chinese food and my Taiwanese friend told me that this is the only place that Chinese people will eat. Yes, it's that good! Hubby got something from the New Year's menu and I got my favorite shredded beef with brown sauce. I got green tea mochi ice cream for dessert. YUMMY!!!!! Green tea ice cream is not popular here, so when I can get it I do! I love it!!! On our drive home we were able to see the lunar eclipse. ^_^ It's the first total lunar eclipse in 2 years! I was able to watch the whole thing on our drive home. I love watching the night sky. There is something magical about seeing the constellations and the moon. It was cool to see! Hubby was able to see the beginning and the very end of it as he was driving us home.

Proud Day

Yesterday was Dr. Seuss's birthday! Happy 103rd birthday! YEAH! Of course I dressed up for the occasion. Two teachers were Thing 1 and Thing 2. We then made up Thing 3 so I could join in the fun! It was a ball! I had my hair in a gold mohawk and the kids loved it! Then in the afternoon, we celebrated Chinese New Year! It was great! The parade was very successful.

Today I for the first time wound a ball of yarn! This is something that I have been very challenged at. Here it is:

OK, so it looks more like a squashed tomato that a ball, but that's the best I've ever done! Next to it is a hank of yarn that I haven't wound yet. This is the stuff that I spun. It's been washed and now it's ready to knit with. I chose a very simple scarf pattern to try it out. This is the first time I've knit with my own spun yarn. Here part of the scarf:

I feel so proud of it! I made the whole thing from start to finish!!! The scarf came out pretty cute and I'm going to take it to the March guild meeting. I want to show it at show and tell, but also because it's green, I can have it in the March picture for the guild's 2008 calender!!! YEAH!!! I'm on cloud 9 right now. It's so simple, just a scarf, but I feel so good about it! ^_^

As for the rest of today, I'm not sure what we are doing. My friend already stopped by to pick up a few things that she wanted to borrow, and now that I finished my scarf I'm not sure what I will do. Maybe I'll spin some more yarn! That sounds like a good idea! ^_^