The Sunday Edition

Outside my window... it is a beautiful January morning!! Sun is shining, wispy clouds in the distance and the high should be 77 AGAIN! Yep, it's typical January weather. You know, the days that really make living in Arizona fantastic. It makes up for the summer and as we say, "you can't shovel sunshine!"

I am listening to .... the office clock and the silence. It's peaceful this Sunday morning as the neighborhood awakens. It took me years to appreciate silence. I am glad that we have become friends. I think it takes a modicum of peace within oneself and a confidence to appreciate the silence (the non-cluttering noises.)

Favorite things from this week ... The Invention Convention in class! 33 wacky and wild inventions hand-crafted from a bag of junk and with the specific purpose to alleviate fears!! Hmm. It was a risk worth taking with my students and they really blew me away!! It was fantastic. We invited neighboring 4th grade and 5th grade classes and presented a SmartBoard presentation with it. It was a crowded classroom - 90+ kids but it was all worth it!

for those who are worried about the Safe Play for their siblings

for those who are afraid of the sun

for those who are afraid of Vampires

for those who are afraid of spiders

I also had a blast at "Girl's Night" where we all went to One for the Money (Stephanie Plum - fun! We even ate 'Tasty Cakes' while watching, in true Stephanie Plum-fashion) followed by dinner and still more frivolities at Buca de Beppo ( yum - fun!)

I am thinking ... I need a mental-health day AND a car like this....

L.O.V.E. the license plate AND the hubcaps!

I am grateful for ... a random phone call from # 1 son, a random text from # 3 son, a drive-by afternoon visit from favorite daughter, a cleaning morning with #4 grandkiddo, diet Dr. Pepper, library books, jackets, and custodians who find lost favorite earrings on the floor in messy classrooms!!

I am reading ... My Side of the Mountain with my Walk2Read kids, two Rafe Esquith books (for teaching motivation), One for the Money (to compare and contrast), To Have and to Hold (for kicks), Focus (for work), and Midnight for Charlie Bone (for Literature Circles) ....yep, all at the same time!

I am listing ...
1. work "to-do" lists
A. Social Studies (it is Arizona's 100th birthday in 2 weeks!)
B. Science
C. math
D. writing
E. walk2math ideas
F. word derivatives for walk2read kids
G. MORE...
2. new living room ideas
3. upcoming trek dates, supplies and reasons why I "should" do it (but I DONT want to)
4. Valentine ideas....
5. I think I need to make a list so I don't forget to follow the lists!

I am creating ... lesson plans, Powerpoint presentations, SmartBoard lessons...it feels like the only 'creating' I do is for school. Last week I 'created' Genius Kit bags for the Invention Convention - it took ALL day to sort, label and bag up 33 kits of the same junk...but it was well worth it. Tuesday I cut 100's of straws for making triangles to sort by angles and lines, I created math games for Family Math Night, and that, ladies and gentlemen is the extent of my 'creating'! I don't really even create dinner anymore - I would rather 'create' dinner reservations!

Plans for the week ... Clean my classroom and desk (Houston, we have a problem!!!!!!), Hair appointment (yippee - I love an afternoon with Nikki), dinner with J & K, Saturday workshop and hopefully an author presentation (wahoo!)

And that, dear friends, is the Sunday Edition from my corner of the world! WHEW!