Cole's Family Birthday!

Well, today was busy but a lot of fun! We had Carl's family all come for a pulled pork sandwich lunch, with baked beans and strawberries. The sandwiches included the pulled pork and coleslaw (from Stater Bros. which was very good!) and then we had some chips and for dessert a delicious cake made by Grandma! You can see in the photo of Cole with his cake what a great job she did! We always take the cousin shot and this year marks the arrival of another cousin! Tobias is being held by Kaleigh and he is only 2 weeks old! Neither of the big boys wanted to hold the little guy, but Kaleigh did great! Taryn is the little girl in front of Spencer on the left and Trenton is being held by Tyler. Spencer and Tyler also have an older sis Jackie who is away at Trinity College in Illinois. Cole had a great time and got some money and a bunch of legos and other cool stuff! Omi sent money for a gift and he was thrilled to get the "Apple tree House" which is in the photo of him. The one in the kitchen is Carl's dad, his sister and his aunt (dad's sister), they are putting together their sandwiches and all the fixin's. So one party down, one to go! Whew! I just have to keep the house clean for a week! Then the boys come to play!

Happy Birthday Cole!

Happy 9th Birthday, Cole!

Photos coming after parties!

Happy Birthday, Sistol!










Have a Great Birthday, my sister dear! I miss having you near, to talk to and go out with! I am glad you have such a great family that makes you laugh and that loves you so much! Hope you enjoy your day! Love you lots!

I am so Proud!

Well, today Cole was recognized in Chapel for his participation in the Math Olympics! He got a second place ribbon and a medal too! Carl and his mom went to see him and got these photos. Cole is definitely his Dad's son. Not like me, that is for sure! I am a math dope. I can't figure my way out of a paper bag! Kaleigh, unfortunately, is more like me when it comes to math. Good thing is she is very talented in other areas! But today was Cole's crowning moment and I am very proud! He took numerous tests that had to do with reasoning type math rather than the comprehensive type math. Don't ask what that means, because all I know is that most of his problems were word problems which is the worst possible math outside of algebra to me! So, they had about 29 kids in the 3rd and 4th grades that participated. 18 got ribbons and only 4 got medals! Cole was one of the medal winners! I think Carl said that out of all the questions, he got an 85% or more and that got him second place! So YAY Cole! He will get a small lego set for his effort!

What I like about teaching Preschool.

I was told many years ago (even before I had my own children) that I would make a good preschool teacher. I really didn't think so at the time, seeing as I didn't really like kids...yes, the nieces and nephews weren't so bad, but I did like going home to a place without the little rugrats! Obviously, at some point Carl and I changed our minds. Mainly the fact that we no longer worked at Disneyland made it easy to see that all children weren't horrible little beasts! Anyway, we had ours and then we ended up having the kids go to a private school that we couldn't afford without me working there. I got my ECE certificate and started teaching. I was terrified at first, but then I realized that the person that had told me I would make a good preschool teacher had been right all along! I enjoy teaching (for the most part) and there are more good days than bad (this year has been tough), but I really enjoy the creativity that goes along with it! When I first started teaching four year olds, they had some lame crafts. I asked if there was a chance that some crafts could be updated, and was met with a very enthusiastic YES, Please! So since then I have worked to make the crafts and other aspects of the curriculum a little more fun and new. One other thing I have done is made up some special days of fun for the kids. One such day, as you can see in the picture, was "Silly Dress Day". This stemmed from April Fools day which normally we take photos at the end of March with the kids putting on funny hats and we put the photos in our classroom window, saying "April Foolishness". It is fun and the kids love seeing themselves. Well, since Easter vacation happened at that same time this year, I decided to have "Silly Dress Day" instead. I send a flyer home before the break, saying that the week they return our class would have a silly dress day. So last Friday we (yes, me too!) all dressed up with mismatched socks and shoes, funny hats, inside out clothes, and anything else we could think of! As you can see we had quite a few participate. The girl in the front with the "Fro" wig, didn't want to dress up, and took off the wig and sunglasses right away. Everyone else was fine with it. I had fun dressing up too! I didn't get a shot of myself but basically imagine messy hair with flower clips everywhere and swim goggles as a headband. Lots of stripes and different shoes and socks and an apron tied on backwards! It was fun and the teachers had a blast too! So, sometimes my work is fun! I look forward to the next fun thing!

Another Spooky Tree

This one is again, from Oak Glen. It isn't so much spooky as it is weird looking...but hey, that can fall into the Spooky catagory!

The way the branches are so thin compared to the truck makes it eerie looking. It got a little less spooky when the sun came out. At dawn it was more eerie looking, but I didn't have my camera at that time!

Easter 2010 Photos

Easter was great! Outside of the fact that I have a work thing hanging over my head that I might get in trouble for when I get back, I tried to relax and enjoy Easter with the family. We had a good meal and yummy dessert and the kids got to search for 215 eggs with their little cousin Will! So three kids and 215 eggs! Whew! The older cousins got to hide them this year and I think they enjoyed doing that too. What was funny is they are both very strategic and it took them a while to hide the eggs. My sis in law Lisa and I went out and took some of the eggs to hide so we could move things along! We just dropped into bushes and so on. Spencer and Tyler were very methodical and were trying to find the perfect spot for each egg! I think Will had the most fun! Cole kept yelling out, "I think my bucket is getting too full!" Kaleigh was more subdued, but when Cole took one of her eggs she was going to pick up, she was not happy!

Competition is fierce in egg hunting! But having a lot of family there is always nice. It is very different from what I grew up with. Nice. So I hope everyone had a nice Easter, this was ours.

Happy Easter, 2010!






Happy Easter to friends and Family! I had more photos of our nice day, but I forgot my camera at Grandma's house! So I will post more photos later! This was a pretty flower that I was able to photograph up at Oak Glen! Purdy!

Things to do at Oak Glen

So outside of a decent place to sleep, good food, beautiful scenery, there are quite a few things to do! We do have services we go to (after all it is a Conference Center and we go to listen to speakers and Missionaries) and crafts to do, but there are fun things for the kids to do outside of all that. There is a little Putt putt golf course that is free and of course there is the game of British bulldog to play (I have explained this game in the past, so if you don't know what it is just ask), but this year they brought back the Pine wood derby races. This is where Kaleigh and Cole's Uncle Scott brings his equipment and the kids get to design their own cars, paint them and then race them. Kaleigh and Cole both participated but didn't win. The photo above has Kaleigh's car "the Lucky Penny" and another car racing down the track. They had the 14 and under group and then the 15 and older group. They all had a great time! Carl helped a lot since the kids could not work on the machinery. Some of the older boys knew how, but mostly the dad's did the machine work.

Things to See at Oak Glen

Ok, so I don't really know how these photos will be aligned in my post so you'll just have to figure things out! While at Oak Glen we like to look at the different animals! Sometimes we see a lot and other times (it was cold this time so a few less than usual) not so many. We did see a lot of squirrels, a couple of Jays that didn't want to be photographed, and a woodpecker and a nice plump little robin! The kids don't usually see these guys, but this time the birds were out a lot!

I turn into the amateur photographer and try to get as close as I can to get some nice photos! Enjoy!

Oak Glen 2010 - Family

Well, I am not exactly sure how long we have been going to Oak Glen but those who have been reading my blog know, that we go once a year and I have posted many photos of our trip. We go up on a Thursday, stay Friday into Saturday and leave on Saturday afternoon! It is a fun family time that we can share. Lots of things to do, people to see and things to see too! So there will be a couple of other posts including a shot of another "Spooky Tree"! Enjoy!

Oh the photos above are of the Chapel in the trees, the prayer chapel with Kaleigh and Cole in front, and then me and our family.

No, really, are you SERIOUS?

I am a relatively obedient person when it comes to laws, rules and regulations. We got a memo at work saying that we need to keep children supervised at all times. Ok, that is a given. What I was not aware of (and apparently neither was anyone else around me) was that we need to keep them in sight at all times...this includes the bathroom. Now the usual way that I take my class of 4 year olds to the bathroom is this...we go to the restroom area. I scope out the bathrooms (peeking in boys room then girls) just to make sure no "Bad" adults are in there. Then I stand in the hallway where I can see the entrance to both bathrooms and I send the little tikes in 3 at a time. I am supervising the ones that are on the outside, while keeping an ear out for any mischief in the bathrooms. There are no other doors in the bathroom and I am certain there are no magical portals either! So when we get a memo saying we must go into the bathroom in order to have the children in sight at all times, we (yes, all the teachers feel the same) start to grumble. Some in fact are mortified that we have to stand in the boys bathroom and watch the little boys as they are peeing into the urinal! Not our idea of giving these little guys privacy to do their "business". Our view is that if no harm can come to them, we are supervising in a way that should be appropriate. This is an interpretation of a rule set out by the Department of Social Services. There was a meeting (all I can really say) of the muckity mucks and it was brought up as a point in this meeting. So the interpretation is not a mistake on the part of the Social Services person that came out. What I would like to know is why. Why is it so neccessary to watch the children in the bathroom? They never gave a reason and I don't know why no one asked. The teachers all asked but got no answer. Because there was none. So now we have to have an additional person to split up the boys and the girls and they have to remain in the bathroom after finishing and washing their hands so that we can keep an eye on them and the little ones going potty. It is hard enough to get the kids in and out of the bathroom, now we are forcing them to wait IN the bathroom (near sinks, and paper towel dispensers), until everyone is done. We don't have an extra person that just stays at the restroom the whole time and there isn't a plan to get someone either. So before one of the kids can go to the bathroom, we have to call someone on the radio to come so we can have this child go to the bathroom. Of course there are times when we have to wait for someone. My question is this...what is worse, sending a child into a bathroom alone, or having them pee their pants in front of their friends? Comments welcome.

It's Baaaad, but I like it! (but only once in a while)

So, I was raised in a pretty strict household when it came to food. Very little sugary snacks, cereals etc. We also ate with little extra fat like gravy or sauces. My mom is a great cook and so was my dad. We ate good and healthy for the most part. We didn't really eat a lot of pork, other than sausages (but that was the german part of us), and none of us were that fond of pork chops or pork loin anyway. I don't cook a lot of pork either, it just isn't my favorite. If I am going to eat pork, I would rather have bacon or black forest ham. We don't have it that often and it is considered more of a treat than candy. So when Carl came home the other day with a "no brainer" meal (which is what I asked him to get, so one night of the week would be an easy meal) he brought back "pulled pork" from Costco. Now, I don't really know what you are supposed to do with pulled pork, so he explained what HE will be doing with it, and we can do the same or a couple of other things. Well, the photo is what I did with it...which incidentally was what Carl suggested. A nice kaiser type roll, barbeque sauce on the bottom, pulled pork on that and then a nice coleslaw on top of that topping it off with the other half of the kaiser roll. Now, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the nice combination of flavors! It isn't something I would do that often, but it made me feel like I was at one of those places you see on tv for their awesome sandwiches. So, it was a success. I am not trying to push this on anyone mind you, just wanted to share. : ) So all you vegetarians out there, no negative comments please! You don't have to eat it! : )

Consequences vs. Compliance

As a preschool teacher at a private school, we have a little more control over our classes due to the fact that our director supports us in our disciplinary actions. There are, of course, things we cannot due by law, but we can do some things that other schools cannot because they are more about "self esteem building", than modifying bad behavior. In my class we use a "Clip Chart". This is a chart with faces and words that describe where each child is on that day. On Monday, they begin at "Hello" and can either work their way up to "Outstanding" or move down to "Sad Day". There are seven slots ranging from "Sad Day"(the bottom) to "Outstanding" at the top. In between are those like, "Great Effort", "Good Work", "Try Harder" and "Think about it". Each day they are in school is an opportunity to "Clip Up" or "Clip Down". For each day when we have a specialty teacher like Perceptual Training (little kid PE) or Music they will get "clipped up" if they obey and behave. They do not get clipped down if they don't behave. They will get clipped down, however, if they hurt someone, break something on purpose, disobey in a manner that is way defiant and other things that may be to the teacher's discretion.

I try really hard NOT to clip down, it is hard on a 4 year old, and they may not always understand why even if we explain. There are times that I have clipped kids down and they get upset but that is what the clip chart is for, to teach them what is unacceptable behavior. At the end of the week if they are in either "Great Day" or "Outstanding"(the two top spots on the chart) they will receive something out of my "Treasure Box". They look forward to this a lot!

Now, in some instances, I am sure I have given a child treasure box when they shouldn't have gotten it, but if they are on the fence, and they can redeem themselves I will help them to acheive the goal. Most of the time, all the kids in my class will get treasure box. This year, unfortunately, there has been a child that has missed treasure box quite a few times with no chance to redeem himself. It is difficult and he gets upset, but after talking to his mother, and understanding more about how this child works, it seems to be the best thing for him. (By the way, it is not the child in the photo). So, I continue to work on the behavior as best I can and I will be praying for the teacher that gets him next year in Kindergarten. Think about how difficult it will be for her to watch him out of 20 kids instead of 10! I will be praying hard!

I cannot imagine how hard it would be for this child in the public school system. We are able to teach about God and His love at our school and it is a great help in teaching the Why factor. Why should we behave? Why should we not hurt our friends? Why is it important to do our best?

We can also pray with the children and ask for God's help in doing good. Believe me, it makes a difference! This child will have a hard time no matter where he goes but at least the teacher will understand better and will be able to pray for and with him!

Ack! Here we go again!

Well, this was a cute animation that waved it's hands and stuck out it's tongue but this will do anyway.

The time has come once again, to do the waiting game. As usual I am in limbo when it comes to what I will do at my school next year. It is actually a lot better as I don't think I will have to move rooms again unless I make a decision that warrants it. Right now, I am teaching M-W-F four year olds. Three days a week which allows me to receive a 30% discount on tuition for my kids. Last year, they dropped one of the Monday thru Friday four year old classes because there were not enough enrolled. This year enrollment seems to be a little better and they may reinstate that class which is where I am located right now. I moved from another room last year, hoping I would work 5 days, but ended up still working 3 days in the 5 day room.

Sorry if this gets confusing. So now, if they open up another 5 day 4 year old class, I would basically be first in line and I am already in the room. This would be really beneficial, money wise because with 5 days I would receive a 50% discount on our kids tuition. Big difference!

So since enrollment lasts until late March and we have a lot that can happen even as late as the summer months, I am basically waiting to see how enrollment goes to see what I will be doing next year, 3 or 5 days. If I work 5 days there is much more prep work that I will have to do so I am starting now! Just in case. I will miss my two days off during the week, but the money outweighs all my trivial wants! So if you are in a praying mood, pray that this is the right thing for me this year and that the enrollment is such that it all works out!

Open House

2010

Well, at our school we used to have Open House at a decent time of the year, but because enrollment dropped a bit the year before last, they decided to make Open House happen during registration time so that people that were considering coming to our school would have a chance to come and see what we are all about.

Now, this may make sense to the higher muckity mucks but it makes no sense to us. I had no outside people visit my class last year and neither did any of the other preschool teachers. The curriculum at this time is staggered, we are doing communication, Valentine's Day and Space right now. Not the best mix for Open House. We used to do Open House in May towards the end of the year to show off all of the kids' work. The curriculum was Insects, Reptiles and Pond life. All of which kind of went together. One part of the room was dinosaurs with a volcano, the other wall was pond life with giant bullfrogs, salamanders, dragonflies and turtles, and the ceiling was full of branches with bees, ladybugs, butterflies and spiders. They hung down and the whole room was decked out for a great look. We (the teachers) all wish we could go back to the way things were, but unfortunately, the superintendent and principal of the elementary school don't see it that way. So we have decided we put up what we put up and although it isn't really the children's best work, it is what we are doing at the time.

So this is it.

Just thinking...

So here we are in the middle of February and we have had some heavy rains, almost tornados, 80 degree heat and now back to cloudy with a chance once again. This is odd for California. I enjoy the rain a lot and it would be nice to have just some nice brisk weather with the sun shining...like in the mountains. I would like to take the kids up to the mountains but unfortunately every time we get a holiday that no one else has (like this Monday for instance), the snow on the local mountains is not really there anymore. I don't believe in any case that we are the only school to have this Monday off and we will be lucky if the kids museum that we want to go to isn't totally packed! So, I am especially glad when we get to go on retreats with our church! No crowds, wonderful accomodations (no tents, simple cabin with bunks and a bathroom) good cafeteria food and a beautiful serene area to contemplate life and listen to nothing except birds singing, frogs croaking and wind playing in the trees. The Chapel is nestled in the pines and the speakers tend to bring out the best in all of us because they bring us back to why we exist in this world that God created. It is a wonderful time and I look forward to it every year! I hope everyone has a place like this to go to and get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life! So, just a thought. : )

The Last with Glasses in the Family!

About a month ago, I started noticing that Cole was squinting a little when looking at things far away, the same squint that Kaleigh had and the same one I had at around 9 years old. So, once Carl got the kids put on our insurance, I took Cole in to an Optometrist that was recommended by quite a few people at our school and they did the tests needed, including a really cool new one that takes a photograph of the eye that basically tells the optometrist what prescription you will need! The still put them behind the machine and have them do the old, "is 1 better or 2? Is 3 better or 4? How 'bout now?" and so on. But they have a good starting point. We also got to see a 3 dimensional picture of Cole's eyeball and he let us know that Cole has very healthy eyes outside of the nearsightedness and the slight astigmatism. So we went and picked out the frames. He actually wanted some Nike ones that were really cool but they were a tad bit too big since they were not meant for kids. We ended up with these and I like them well enough. I am sad that his beautiful blues are hidden but unlike the rest of the family, he doesn't need to wear them continually. Just for the distance for now. Once I got my glasses I never really took them off and Kaleigh is the same way. We like to see...all the time! As you can see, he looks very distinquished for an almost 9 year old!

17 Years of Bliss

Well, Carl and I have been married for 17 years today! We have enjoyed many things together and have had our little spats or what I like to refer to as "pout sessions". All in all we are happy and content with our lives. We have two wonderful children that did not start out in the equation at all, and are now the biggest part of our lives. It helps that we are a family that loves each other and we base that love on Christ's love for us. Without that love I don't know where we would be right now. We have a home and Carl and I have jobs that keep us fed, clothed and healthy. The kids enjoy their Christian school and they have a wonderful group of friends that have the same values. We have now lived in our house for 14 years and still have only one bathroom! I am truly hoping that will change before the next few years.
So life is good, even if we need to tighten our belts for a while. At least we have belts to tighten!
So for our Anniversary we are splurging (once a year) and going to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. Can't wait! We had Carl's waffles this morning for breakfast and he brought me flowers! Yay, Carl!

Headache Journey Part 4

So I have been taking the Butterbur root supplement for about 2-3 wks now and other than a few headaches here and there, I am doing ok. There were a couple of days where I had to take about 6 advil in one day to get rid of a particularly nasty one, but so far not too bad! Of course it could be a couple of things that are helping. Number one would be the supplement and number two could possibly be the yoga I am doing. I try to get it in everyday, but like yesterday, I was all over the place and didn't have a chance too. I did Thursday though and I did a good workout as well on that day. Today I will try at least to do my yoga since my goal is not really to lose weight but to have less tension. I find when I do my yoga I am a little less likely to get as frustrated as usual with my kids at home and the kids in my class. So I guess that helps. I cannot be certain, that this is the cause of the lessened headaches as there have been times that I have been headache free for a week or so at a time. That is the hardest thing about these headaches, they don't come up every time for the same reasons. The weather could be especially dry and my head will hurt. I could have not had enough water the day before and maybe that causes it, I just don't really know. But they have been better lately and for that I am very thankful!