My First Elementary School Classroom

When I accepted the position to teach HiCap Kindergarten, I knew it would mean taking a blank slate classroom and turning it into a fun and rich learning environment. The teachers at our school have set the bar pretty high in this area. The rooms are super fun and fancy. I didn't have much time or a huge budget.

I spent about 20 hours (plus many more if you count brainstorming and recruiting others to help me). 

For 10 years I have mostly been decorating for esthetic value more than for education. But as I started in like an HgTV host, (with a cute arrow theme, because UP WE GO) I pretty quickly converted to a "form follows function" teacher mentality. I created a space for our math stories, a place for story anatomy, and a place were we can dissect some of the stories they read at home. Our entrance from the hallway is all about reminding the kids that this is where they come to work.  Designing the space actually helped me design my curriculum and vice versa. I definitely needed the massage and adjustment I got at the end of the week. Hitting the stapler about 10,000 times did a number on my neck. 

It was also cool that putting the room together was a family affair. The kids all added their ideas (and books and toys).  They made sure I brought in the kitchen hutch toy because "Mom, all the other classes have a kitchen."

Best quote of the week goes to Sarah though. Ben didn't qualify to even test into HICAP. He was bemoaning the fact that he won't be in my class. Sarah said, "Ben, you had your chance and you blew it."  That Sarah!  

Anyway, here are some before and after pictures. 

I'm kind of excited to teach math "stories" meaning basic addition and subtraction. I'm pretty good at adding single digit numbers. Any more than that and I start to struggle, as my former students can attest. 

One of our class themes. I hope to get them dancing every day. 

Kids at work. 

My parents helped make all the cool arrows. Both my mom and dad helped

improve on my original design (that came from looking at the valentine hearts hanging in one of the other teacher's rooms.)

This board has lights!

Anyway, now off to Florida for a week. Then I have 2 open houses the week I get back to meet the kids and parents. Then I start teaching!!

Rhino Mid-Season Awards Night

One of the fun things about being involved in Rhinos again has been seeing some of the events/ideas that I started carrying on. This week was the Mid-Season Stampede!  I thought this event up to help build momentum and energy for freestyle season and at the same time recognize the best folk style wrestlers. They even still use the "Charging Rhino" certificate I created. My event had a rootbeer keg and a few more people. But, they 1 upped me in a major way. 3 wrestlers from each practice location got a trophy! And one of those trophies went home with us!!!  The coaches at MP gave SARAH the sportsmanship award. I ended up being the one presenting our awards, and I got a little weepy. I'm proud of all of our kids and their work on the wrestling mat this season. 

Sarah with Coach Alford

 

VOTE YES!

This year was a school bond election in Shoreline.  The district is ready to build 2 new middle schools to accomodate overcrowding in the elementary schools.  They will build schools for 6-8th grades, so they can bump up the 6th graders and make more space in the elementary schools.  We really wanted people to vote YES!  All 3 of our kids will get to go to the new Einstein.  And, I really care because this means that Einstein will have a scoreboard with the wrestling TEAM SCORE!  This is a big deal to me.  Can you imagine going to a basketball game and not knowing the score?  Seriously, yet wrestling fans have been dealing with this problem for years at Einstein.  

Anyway, we also wanted to the bond to pass because Aunt Maren was the bond chair.  I would NEVER have stood out in the cold and especially not in the rain to Rah-rah for the vote.  But I did it for her. 💓

The COLD AFTERNOON

THE WET AFTERNOON (which got even wetter after Ben wet his pants.)

WET

WET

WET (Geneva custom made her own sandwich board!)

Then, blessedly, the SUN CAME OUT for the last afternoon.  We busted out the trike and the scooters.  It was a fun way to Rah-rah.

We nervously waited for the outcome of the election.  It wasn't until Wednesday after the election that we had enough votes to validate the election.  But, we finally got enough and the Shoreline Schools Bond passed with 72%.  So proud of Maren and the committee who worked so hard!

Taxes, Tacoma & Time with Mimi and Papa

Last year I happened to be in Utah when my dad (an accountant) passed out the tax returns to all my siblings.  Since I paid $600 to a tax accountant last year, I suggested that this year I would pay for his plane ticket to come up and do mine!  It ended up being a perfect weekend of fun with "Mimi and Papa" (Grandma Debbi and Grandpa Kelly).

I picked them up from the airport and we went straight to Tacoma for the State Wrestling tournament.  We had already missed the 3 SW matches of the morning, so we made good on a promise from forever ago to take my mom to the glass museum in Tacoma.  It was REALLY cool.  We loved watching them blow glass.  I gave Libby my phone so she could take pictures of the exhibits, and she took about a hundred pictures.  Literally.

Outside the glass museum (and amazing weather on Friday too!)

One of Libby's many pictures.  

 Then we rushed back to the Tacoma Dome.  We missed the first match because we were a little late.  But we saw the next two Shorewood Wrestlers take their turns on the mat.  Sadly, they both lost.  We paid $75 to get in to support the wrestlers for a total of 6 minutes.  (And this doesn't count the amount spent on nachos, snowcones, cotton candy, overpriced water, etc.)  But it was worth it to support the team!

Some people enjoyed the wrestling spectating more than others :)  Grandpa was entitled to a birthday nap!

3 State Participants with the proud coaches.  

If you've never been to the Mat Classic, 24 mats of wrestling all going simultaneously.  It is intense.

On Saturday, my Dad did my taxes.(Having a small business complicates things!)  We took the kids to their activities, and did a little shopping (DD meats for my Dad!).    In the afternoon we went to see Moana.  It was a fun movie.  I wouldn't say it is in my top 20, but it was a good rainy afternoon activity. 

In line for Moana at the Crest.  

 All day my mom had been worrying about this scrape on her arm.  Finally just before dinner I texted Derek the picture below.  Derek texted back, "Go to a clinic now.  Staph or Impetigo."  Yikes!  Sometimes it is good to have a wrestling coach for a husband.  After we ate we went to the Immediate Clinic and the doctor was like, "WOAH!  IMPETIGO!"  (Rhymes nicely, doesn't it?)  So we got some antibiotics and she was feeling better already by Sunday morning.  This is such a role reversal.  Usually we are the ones getting antibiotics for various ailments while we are in Utah.

I know, kinda yucky!

Sunday we went to church and then went into full on Randall mode.  Ate a big Sunday dinner, baked cookies, played games (even played Chicken Foot for Grandma Louise and Grandpa Kay).  And, my parents helped me make some decorations for my classroom.  They did a great job.  Reveal pictures of the classroom coming later this week, or when I get back from FL.  We will see how much I can accomplish this week. 

This morning we headed out to our annual visit to George at the University of Washington.  Literally EVERY building was closed.  (We were too early this year).  EXCEPT: the NEWLY REFURBISHED (Actually completely gutted and redone) Denny Hall.  They are still completing work on some of the offices, so it was open.  We checked it out and it is AWESOME!  Made we want to go back to school.

Hi GEORGE!

Playing "statues" outside the closed Suzzalo Library.  

Surfing on the Cedar (or Redwood or whatever kind of) Tree. 

Mommy and ME!  (I actually made it in a picture!)

Staying slightly dry.

Ben discovers Denny Hall

The new Denny is so white and bright inside.  I wanted to take 1 million pics. 

Dad and his DAWGS.

Putting his Dubs up!

Then our classic lunch at Shultzy's.  So So Good. 

Then off to the airport.  So sad to let my parents go back to Utah.  Spring break can't come soon enough.  (For more reasons than 1 this year!)

  This was in my fortune cookie on Friday night.  Great advice for me right now.
 

Selfie Time!

When you hand your kids your phone...you never know what you might find when you get it back. Love these two ladies!

Figuring Out What I Need...

This winter I was in a bit of a funk.  My training business was going really well.  It took just the right amount of my time.  Kept my out of trouble (read, no time to start any expensive home projects), and kept my in great company.  I love my clients.  I was (mostly) staying on my cleaning schedule.  I was having time to be the mom I wanted to be.  Except that I was missing the spark.  The something that makes me, well, me.  You know?  I couldn't figure out what I needed, or what was missing.  Should I quit training?  Should I cook more, project more, do some crafting?  What?
Occasionally the thought would cross my mind that I should go back to teaching Group Ex.  But I was afraid; afraid of the time commitment that it takes to learn choreography, afraid of the commitment of having people depend on me to be somewhere at a certain time, afraid that I wasn't strong enough yet.
Thankfully my friend Donna taught at a time and a place that I could sub some BODYPUMP to get my feet wet again.  And though it took some effort to sync my phone with the music and pull out the notes, as soon as I started learning a BP track, my heart SANG!  I had no idea how much I had missed moving with the music, and even better, leading other people in movement to music.  I am a born BODYPUMP teacher.  The tracks lifted me up and jolted my brain back to life!  WOW!  And guess what, I was a better, happier mom taking some time to learn and share my talents.  It was amazing.
Then, I went back to dance class.  I hadn't been to dance since before my surgery either.  I was afraid of all the same stuff, but it felt great mentally and physically!  I'm in to dance for the recital this year.  It felt so good to turn and kick and have Miss Sue correct me for forgetting (as usual) to point my feet while moving across the floor.
And then, my favorite principal intern told me about an open position she taught I might want to apply for.  A teaching position.  My dream schedule (2 days a week, so I could still train my awesome clients) and dream location (at my kids' school). WHAT!  So after a whirlwind week of applications, interviews, meetings with HR to sign papers, etc. and I accepted an offer to teach!  Kindergarten Hi-Cap.  What!!  I'll be in the classroom next to Ben's, across the hall from Sarah.  I'll be working with teachers and under a principal and intern that I admire.  I will have a chance to plan a curriculum again!  I am exhilarated by the thought.
My brain and heart are so happy with these 3 huge discoveries in one month.  It is okay to be a mom, and still be me.  I can be recovered from my injury.  I can be a teacher and a learner and a dancer and a mom.
I am already planning out some freezer meals for the days I am teaching.  And I am not going to be afraid to use paper plates as needed.  It's going to be a little hairy now and then keeping up with all of this.  But I am so thankful to be out of the funk and back into a place where I am learning and growing, not stagnating and fearing.
I am thankful to my Heavenly Father for his patience with me, that he let me learn and helped me to see the right decisions when the timing was right.
  

Happy Valentine's Day!

I decided to let the kids look at pictures of valentines online and decide what they wanted to do. I was pretty pleased that they all picked non-candy valentine ideas.

They turned out cute!

Sarah picked this bouncy ball idea. We found the Avery label template with the constellation heart. Perfect, right?

Libby loved the "You Rule" idea. And so did I because it was something they will use for real.

Ben's totally cracked me up. He loves "sticky hands" you know those things you play with for 5 seconds and then they break or get gross. But then he came up with the perfect little saying. I wanted, "Hands down you're the best" or "I'm stuck on you". Ben wanted " be my sticky-tine". How could I not go with that?  What a cutie!  

And we made all of you Valentine cookies. But then it snowed so we ate most of them. Sorry. 😜