I'm Back!

Well. Have I had an exciting couple of weeks, or not? Definitely NOT. My little sickness turned out to be pneumonia. I ran a fever of over 100 for about 4 days straight, and I didn't get out of bed for about 4 days after that. I only missed 2 days of school, but I probably should have missed more. The land of the living is within my sights now, but I'm still just so darned weak. I'm like a little newborn kitten! I'm sick of being sick, that's for sure!

Last night was the first night I felt like getting out in over a week. Andrew & I went out to eat and then to the Fairfield High School speech team's Night of Theatre, Part I. Part II is next Tuesday, and these nights highlight all the group speech events for the year. I love it because I see a little bit of everything... ensemble acting, choral reading, one act play, mime, musical theatre, reader's theatre, improv... did I forget anything? Whew, that's a lot! I also love it because so many of the kids are my former students. It's just so fun to see them perform at the next level. I had at least 3 parents last night ask me if I'd come to watch "my kids" perform. I had. They're all "my kids," and I was so proud of them. I love seeing kids go out of their comfort zones and try new things, and I love watching the community, their parents, and their peers all come to support them. It brings a smile to my face just thinking about it. I can't wait for Tuesday's show to see the rest of the acts. The team took 19 acts to district competition, and 15 of those are moving on to state. State is in Cedar Rapids on February 4, so they're all working out any last kinks in their entries. Fun times.

The middle school play is going well. It's a drama called Number the Stars, and it's set during World War II. I haven't really asked this much of my middle schoolers before, so they are having to make big leaps to meet my expectations. I know they can do it. I'm seeing a lot of growth from the kids, and I think the show has tons of potential. They're supposed to be off book next week, so we'll see how I feel when that happens!

It's a New Day

As you can tell from yesterday's post, I was not in a good place. It turns out that part of the reason for this funk is that I'm sick. Boo! I should have known my defenses were down by how I felt, physically and emotionally, last night.

Things were not as terrible today as I'd anticipated. It was actually cute because the kids were so afraid I didn't know about the "incident." They were working up to breaking it to me gently. :)

My drama club kids performed a skit for the whole school today for the refresher assembly for our Positive Behavior Strategies program. I was really proud of them. I had lots of compliments today on their behalf, and it was just fun watching their peers appreciate what they did on stage.

Today is Andrew's and my 3rd anniversary. I can't believe it's been 3 years. In some ways, it seems like just yesterday, and in others, it seems like he's always been in my life. He was worth the wait. I've never known love like this, that it could be so safe and unconditional. It's amazing, and I highly recommend it. :)

Disappointment

A student let me down this week. Big time. I'm having difficulty dealing. I'm not even mad, which I should be. I'm just sad. Very, very sad.

I have high expectations of my students, and I know that's a good thing. But, it bit me in the butt this week. I know they're in middle school, and part of being an adolescent is screwing up. I do know that. And if it were only me, maybe it would be another story. But, I have about 30 kids who were also let down. I have to break the news to them all tomorrow and then pick up the pieces. I hope I can do it without crying. Maybe I got the crying out of my system this weekend. When I'm trying to hold off crying, I say things I regret, and I don't want to go there either.

Thank goodness for the long weekend without students for the end of the semester. It helped me get my emotional bunnies in a herd.

How do you deal with disappointment?

The Final Countdown

I can't wait for this movie to come out... I'm as excited as the kids. Maybe even more!

What Happens at Bookstores at Night

I love my Kindle, but I'm a sucker for any bookstore. Something about all those books. Love this film!

Pinterest

Have you played with Pinterest yet? I'm having fun building my pin boards. You can check them out by clicking here. I'm finding tons of ideas for crafts & recipes especially. From what I hear from my Pinterest friends, the biggest challenge is actually DOING some of those ideas instead of just pinning about them. Well, last weekend, I did my first Pinterest project. It came from a site called craftstylish.com and from this post exactly. Since I now have laminate floors (my Christmas present from Andrew along with new vinyl in the kitchen & bathroom), I'm going to be swiffering a lot more than before. This is a cool way to save a little cash on buying those swiffer sheets. My swiffer cover needs a little bit of tweaking to tighten up the top (I'm not great at decreasing yet), but it turned out OK for my first Pinterest project!