Seriously?

Sorry Bonnie for taking your word. Where have I been this week, you may ask? Not at work! This short, four day week I managed to make it to work half a day. You heard me right! .5 of one work week. How sad.

Picture this...
Patty wakes up Saturday morning refreshed and happy. It's a 3 day weekend. Also, the night before she was out with her friends at a bar having a great time. She even karaoked!!! After getting the laundry started and cleaning up a bit it happens...that tired feeling out of nowhere. Patty tries ignore it continuing her weekend chores. But then it becomes too much and she MUST.TAKE.A.NAP. After her lovely siesta Patty wakes up achy and with the chills (and not the cool Grease kind). And sadly, two hours or so later her throat begins to feel bad.
Naturally, Patty knows that every September she gets sick so she is prepared and takes her usual doses of medicine and continues her chores. BUT...later that night her body is so hot but she is so cold. She showers and calls it a night, taking a last dose of her meds. Somewhere in the middle of the night her fever breaks and she starts sweating up a storm. YUCK!!! Sunday comes and she wakes early to get ready for church. The only thought in Patty's mind is to get ready so she can drive 30 minutes to her mom's house for coffee before church. Why? Patty's throat hurts more than it ever has in her life.
Fast forward to Tuesday...
Patty does not go in to work. She goes to see the school district's nurse practitioner. Ms. Nurse doesn't want to call it strep throat but gives Patty antibiotics to treat strep throat. Patty misses school on Wednesday too. Fever and throat are still bad and Patty is a good teacher so she doesn't want to get her kids sick. Patty goes to work on Thursday morning but can't make it through the day. A visit to Ms. Nurse again and Patty has better pain meds for her throat.
Prepared to brave work on Friday, Patty heads to sleep at about 9. She thinks, "One day of work isn't so bad. I have a training in the morning so it's just really the afternoon." Or so she thought. At about 10 Patty wakes up to go potty and feels that her left eye is wet and sticky. "HUH!?! Oh %#@*!!! NOT PINK EYE!!!!!!" Indeed it is pink eye. So for the third time in 4 days Patty goes to Ms. Nurse for medicine. Needless to say that Patty was ordered to go home. No training today.

And that is the story of my .5 day work week. What my principal must be thinking...Luckily, I have an amazing grade level, literacy coach (Jen) and had a great sub.

Happy Birthday Jennifer!

Dearest Jen,
I hope you have a great birthday today. Too bad we go back to work today. Thanks for being a great friend and for putting up with my not so great moods.
God bless and we'll celebrate soon!
Love,
Patty

Picture to be posted soon. I have the perfect one on my school computer...

Last Days

So here I am enjoying the last days of my summer vacation. This summer I'm a bit sad about summer vacation coming to an end. I know what you're thinking: "Duh, Patty! You're sad because you have to go back to work." Although this is true there is a different sadness to it that I can't quite put my finger on. (Wait, did I say that right, Jen? You know how I get my sayings all mixed up.) I've narrowed it down to a few possible reasons. Maybe if I ramble about my thoughts one of you can pin point it for me. Sort of like free therapy!

This summer I moved into my new house. (Yes, yes, I know I haven't posted pictures. So sorry. Will get those up soon...guess I better take them first!) I've officially lived here for a little over 2 months. A few of you were on the emotional journey with me of trying to find the perfect house for me. Now that I'm all moved in I feel like I'm leaving my child behind whenever I leave it. Then there is the addition of my boyfriend living here to add. I have to say that I've definitely had to adjust to that but things are going good.

Moving to my new house also brought me closer distance wise to my sisters. They both live out where I do and I've become closer to both. I spent so much time with my older sister and her boys. Have to say that right now I'm going through withdrawals because the boys have already started school, and my sister and I are both teachers so we start soon. My other sister and I talk on the phone more often. She's a crazy gal and cracks me up.

This summer I got the calling. I am FINALLY ready to leave the classroom. In 2005 I graduated with my educational leadership degree and passed my certification test to become a principal. Of course you have to be an assistant principal first but I hadn't heard the calling. And I felt like I needed to be an exceptional teacher myself before I could lead teachers to be the best they could be. Well this summer at a leadership conference I sat among assistant principals, principals and counselors. We held conversations and I have to say that I could hold my own. I was knowledgeable and had great input. Although I heard the calling too late and didn't apply for any assistant principal positions, I have applied for a couple of literacy coach positions available at some schools including my school. The thought of leaving the classroom deeply saddens me. But I have a passion and love for curriculum and feel that by helping teachers I'm still helping the students. I have to say that not being a classroom teacher feels like part of my identity is being taken from me. Also, if I were offered that position at another school then I would leave behind all the great people I met when I moved back home.

I will admit that there are some definite ups to going back to work. I do love my job. And if it is God's will for me to remain in the classroom then that is what will happen. I will gladly remain in the classroom. I have many things to be thankful for. A family I actually want to spend time with and miss, a job in a time when things can be uncertain, a boyfriend that loves me unconditionally, and now my very own house. I guess this was the summer of all summers and I'm sad to see it go.

Opps I forgot!!!
I have a fear...that this year will not compare to last year. I had the perfect class, with the perfect teaching situation with my co-teacher, the perfect student intern, perfect parents and perfect co-workers. Last year Jen and I carpooled and we had a blast. I'm sad to let all of that go and to be disappointed this year. So I guess I'm sad and afraid. Great!!!! Now it's two emotions. I'm a mess! :)

Jen's Teacher Swap

My good friend Jen is having her first ever Back to School Teacher Swap. I think this is a grand idea. I can't say that I ever do any particular year after year. I let the way I feel that year lead the way and guide what I do. This year I have to say that I'm still not in the mindset of a new school year. That's code word for "I'm still very lazy and my brain is still on vacation". I do have a book I love to read to my class, regardless of what grade and see what kind of a conversation we have. Before I share the book and activity I should first mention that I am currently a second grade teacher. I have also taught both third and fifth grades. I teach in Texas and have so all 8 years. I love something about every particular grade I've taught. However, teaching second grade is nice because I don't have the stress of the TAKS Test.

Now that I've gotten my background out of the way the book I love to read is The Crayon Box That Talked by Shane DeRolfe. Essentially the book is about a girl taking home a box of crayons that don't get along. Red hates yellow or something like that. But the girl goes on to show them that they need each other to create a beautiful picture. After reading the book I discuss the meaning of the book. I ask my class why they think I'm reading it. We talk about possible reasons we might face conflict throughout the year and what we can do to resolve it. Everyday of the first week of school we have several citizenship discussions. At some point I also want to point out that everyone in our class is important to the family. That no two people are alike and that it's our differences that make us so unique. During the week I may read other books that follow this same topic. My final activity for this book is creating a class social contract. I don't do this too soon because students need to feel a sense of ownership in the classroom. For the class social contract we brainstorm different words and phrases on how we want to be treated and to treat others. Then I use their words to create a paragraph that states how we will act, react, and resolve problems. At the bottom we all sign it. A social contract is not to be confused with your class rulles, consequences and rewards, which are non-negotiable. A social contract is more of a student/teacher buy-in on how we socially interact and deal with conflicts. And anytime a student (or teacher) strays from our contract we remind ourselves of what we promised.

On a side note, I've seen this same book used to teach about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s dream. I hope I've made sense and that this activity or at least this book is something you can use in your classroom.

My Little House

As y'all have noticed I have a brand new look thanks to Jen. I have to thank Jen again because she's had a lot going on and she still found the time to do this for me.

I wanted my blog to show how I'm currently going through my next big adventure. I think Jen did an amazing job of capturing that. Especially in a way that represents me. I'm not the easiest girl to please. Just ask Jen...I'm...particular. But I adore my new look.

DEAR JENNIFER

Dear Jen,
I love, love, love my new look. You are the BEST at blog design! I am so happy with what you did. Thanks for helping me celebrate my big moment. You are the best friend a gal could hope for.

Catching Some ZZZZZZZZ's

So Jen and I left school at about 12:50ish. We are officially on Easter break. I'm sooooooo tired. It's the strangest thing thinking how tired I've been lately. In fact I feel like taking a nap right now and the great thing is that I CAN.

Drum Roll Please!!!!!!!!!!

And the winner is.....

Yay!

Emalee from i Am Me

I want to thank everyone for playing. I enjoyed the scavenger hunt and I've found some great, new blogs. Hopefully Jen and I will have a round 2 or cook up a whole new contest in the future. Head over to Jen's blog to see who won her blog make over.

I Promise

I just wanted to reassure everyone that Jen and I will be drawing for our grand prize winners of our FFFF Scavenger Hunt this week. We had every intention of doing so today but I had a follow-up doctor's appointment and both of us were pretty beat after our first day back from spring break. We promise to do it this week. Im actually really eager to see who the winner is.

Fresh Flip Flop Find

In anticipation of Spring Break Jen from Following the Footsteps and I are excited to host a fun contest! Unlike any contest you’ve participated in before, you have to flip flop through blogs in order to find clues to our Blog Scavenger Hunt!!

Here’s how it works! Next week, March 14-March 20, during Spring Break, we commit to really getting to know THREE blogs EVERYDAY! Each day we will feature these three blogs and post a question about one of them. You will then need to search these blogs for the answer and hopefully get to know this blog better too! We also encourage you to comment on each of the featured blogs. Once you find the answer come back to the post with the question and leave the answer in the comment section. That’s all you have to do! Your comment with the correct answer will enter you into our contest! Our hope is that we will meet some wonderful bloggers by going beyond commenting on the first post and really reading and getting to know the authors of our featured blogs!

So starting Saturday March 14th until Friday March 20 we will each post a question. Both Jen From Following Footsteps and I will be getting to know different blogs and posting different questions all week. That means you have the opportunity to enter our contest 14 times!!

The only rules are:

1) You show the blog you visit some comment love
2) Comment on Patty and Jen’s blogs with your answer. Make sure you have the correct answer because we will only take your first answer
3) Comment must be left on the appropriate blog for the appropriate question of the day

Wondering what you could win? We have decided to giveaway 1 Blog Makeover* From Jenieshell's Design Challenge and some hand made jewelry made by yours truly!!! If you answer my questions and comment here you will be entering to win the jewelery! If you're interested in winning a blog makeover head over to Jen's blog and answer her questions!! I will be posting a picture of the jewelry later in the week!

If you would like to be one of our three featured blogs please use Mr. Linky below to link your blog here!

We look forward to our Fresh Flip Flop Find!! Doesn’t this sound like FUN? Please join us!

*Only Blogger Blogs will be eligible for the Blog Makeover!

Weekly Rewind

This week was unsual but refreshing. In preparation for the upcoming TAKS test (sigh) our principal offered teachers in the 3rd, 4th and 5th grades the opportunity to have primary teachers work with their students. I have 6 years of TAKS experience so I offered to do this. At first it seemed that I was only going to work for about an hour with 4th grade writing on Tuesday, while Jen worked with my second graders. Then it turned out that while Jen was out having an hour and a half for lunch (kidding...she was at a training) I would cover her classes and her sub would be in my class for the day. This would be on Wednesday and Thursday. As it turns out I ended up being out all day on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I got to work with many of my former students. I wanted to share a few of the tings that I heard them say. I never realized how much they remember about what you said to them or what happened in class. They are so cute and too funny.

Tuesday AM: Work with 3rd graders on TAKS reading: I worked with C, T, and H. C was in my class last year. He always was my favorite. Everytime I did something he would say: "Miss Garcia doesn't like that, Miss Garcia likes it when..., Stop, pay attention because Miss Garcia is going to teach us..., or I remember you taught us to...." He cutely remembered that I LOVE the San Antonio Spurs. When we played a fact and opinion game and his statement said: Basketball is a sport, he thought I gave him that one on purpose. It made me realize that even when you think they aren't paying attention they are.

Tuesday PM: Work with 5th graders on TAKS reading: I worked with C, I, A, and a few others. C and I were former students in 3rd grade. (C is the former student that brought me cupcakes for my class on my birthday). This is a conversation between the two.
C: Yes, the best teacher I've ever had.
Me: Shhhh! (because his current teacher was about 3 ft away.)
I: I know. It's a shame you didn't win teacher of the year.
Me: Shhhh!!! Giggle, giggle, giggle.
I did manage to get their attention long enough to do the fact and opinion and main idea activities.

Wednesday and Thursday was fun because I got to work with teachers I usually have little or no interaction with. And I got to see more students that I had before. It was a tiring schedule because it's constantly walking. I also realized that now that I teach a primary grade I really am getting my little ones ready for the upper grades.

In the end it was a rewarding experience. I will say that I was SO HAPPY to be back in my own class with my own kids on Friday. D, the same girl that write about so often, would come up to me whenever I came into my room to get something. She would take a big whiff of me. (I don't know why she likes to smell me.) And then she would ask...Who hugged you? I would tell her no one and she would be relieved. She would say: Good! Only we can hug you. So cute how possessive kids get of their teachers.

Introducing My Friend...Purse

My great friend Jen, posted this purse meme on her blog. She tagged me but hadn't had the chance to do it. So here goes.

Everyone knows I love the San Antonio Spurs. This is the purse I carry around.

So kidding! I wish. This is actually what I'm currently carrying. I actually got the Spurs reusable bag from one of my students for my birthday. Awesome gift right?

I am not into name brand purses at all. Anyone who knows me knows that I get bored very easily so I can't bear the thought of spending $200 dollars on a purse I'll change in 3 weeks. In fact this purse cost more than any purse I've ever bought. A whopping $55 at a little boutique called Francesca's in Austin. I think they have them in a lot of places but sadly not where I live. I have to say that the purse has sentimental value because like I said I bought it in Austin the same weekend I met my boyfriend for the first time.

Background Info:
We met online so we met in December for the first time. We actually began talking in October. I'm so happy he's in my life.

I actually bought two purses that day but since the rules say the purse you're carrying right now I guess I can only show you this one right now. On other blogs I've seen that people are posting the contents of their purse, which I am game for. It's a funny thing what some gals carry in their purse.

Contents

Large zebra purse: personal necessities, lens wipes, asprin, gum
Small zebra purse: lip gloss, Burt's Bees lip balm, lipstick, flavored lip balm, lotion
Pink purse: LOL! My grading and writing markers
Red textured wallet: credit cards, member cards, money
Small red wallet: insurance card, a couple of gift cards
Cupcake coin purse: all my change
Luden's throat drops: they taste like candy
Hello Kitty mirror
Old Christmas gift cards: They play music and make me happy when I play them
checkbook
Cocktails for Dummies: because you never know when you'll be out and need it

Closer look at smaller items
cell phone/headphones: since Jen and I carpool and now we have Kidd Kraddick I listen to the radio in the mornings on my cell phone without bothering Jen
classroom keys
tissues
flashdrive
license
purse hook
tiny scissors
gauze and wrapping tape: I'd been nursing an infected finger

So now I'm supposed to tag other bloggers so they can share what they are carrying in their purses. I tag...

Celine over at My life, my hopes, my future

Tina over at Yes, That's My Child Screaming!

I'm In Also

Lately I've had a bit of the blogging blues. I've been feeling discouraged and uninspired. Don't get me wrong. I love to blog and I love that I've made a few blogging friends but lately I've just been in a funk. And although I can be funny I've felt that the quality of my posts was a little on the weak side.
I shared my doubts of continuing my blog with Jen. She suggested I become a part of the SITS (The Secret is in the Sauce) Community. I'm not one to join something without first looking into it so I clicked on the link from Jen's blog. I have to say that I had the same reservations when Jen suggested I do the NaBloPoMo thing. Yet I had a great time doing that so I figured I'd love this too. And in clicking on some of the Featured Bloggers I realized that I would love to read other people's blogs. So thanks Jen, I'm in and looking forward to reading some great blogs.

La Letra H

Everyone knows I'm not a fan of the forward but Jen's my one of my best friends and she's never steered me wrong with forwards so here I am. She has so kindly given me the letter H. Unfortunately, the letter S was already given out so no Spurs for me (thanks Bonnie) and she took the letter M (so no Manu either). But the way I see it y'all already know I love all that so...H is a change of pace.

Here are 10 things I love that begin with the letter H.

Horacio: My cute and most adorable great nephew and godson. He's such a good baby.




Harry Potter: What can I say about this boy wizard? He took up many years worth of sleep and will continue to do so. I have to read his books every few years.

Hallmark movies/commercials: Boo hoo...meaningful movies and commercials that are worthy of my tears.

Heroes: I love this superhero show. I've watched it since day 1.

Huevos Rancheros: Ha ha, it pays to be bilingual. I love the eggs with their yummy, runny salsa.

History: I love to teach about it, read about it, watch it in movies, and talk about it. I'm not always 100% accurate but I'm pretty good with information.

How I Met Your Mother: OMG!!! This show is hilarious. Neil Patrick Harris is a scene stealer.

Head Over Feet: The song by Alanis Morissette. It's been my absolute favorite song for about 14 years. That's almost half my life. And now I finally have someone in mind when I hear it...This version is awesome!!!




Hope Floats: I love this movie because sometimes in order to find your inner strength you have to through some real challenging experiences. Or how I'd like to say it...you have to go through crap to get to the really good stuff.



Hand-made crafts: I love to make and give hand-made gifts. I make my own jewelry, cards, and invitations. Some of them have actually come out nice.

2008...The Best.Year.EVER!!!

Note: I started this post on New Year's Eve but haven't gotten around to finishing it until today. Super sorry!

As I mentioned in my previous post 2008 has been my best year ever. I have so much to be thankful for. So many amazing things happened in both my professional and personal lives. Here are some random but meaningful things that I'm grateful for in 2008.

• A whole year with Horacio - My baby and godson is so handsome and awesome. I'm a better person because of him.
• Best class ever...2B - I truly have a great class. They are brilliant, kind, attentive, and amazing. I'm so sad to only have them for 4 more months.
  
• New friends in the blogging world and online - NaBloPoMo 2008 introduced me to many new friends. I've also made some great friends online. And I've met some awesome people through current friends and family.
  
• Carpooling with Jen - Jen and I have been carpooling since September. I enjoy our drives to work and home. If either one of us has to miss my day just doesn't go the same.
  
• Co-teaching - I am having the best experience sharing my classroom with another teacher. I have become a better teacher because of the opportunity.
  
• The Summer Olympics and Argentinean Basketball - It was exciting to see Michael Phelps win all his metals. Also, Manu played for Argentina. Let's just say that even though I had to wake up at strange hours to watch them play it was worth it. Manu ended up getting hurt but I have to support my man's decision to play for his country.
  
• Love - The potential for love made 2008 a great year.
  
• Twilight Saga - I fell in love with Edward. It was a great read and I got many of my peeps to read it too.
  
• The Sex and the City movie - What can I say? The movie was as great as the series.
  
• Shopping Spree - I don't like to shop for myself often but when Avenue opened in town I went crazy. Now I feel great in some awesome clothes.
  
• New found hobbies - I bought a Cricut machine and now I found a new love for card and invitation making.
  

So there you have a few reasons why I will miss 2008. I hope this means 2009 will be even better.

My New Grandma

If you read my previous post I spent the afternoon with Jen and her MawMaw. I met Jen's MawMaw about two months ago and thought she looked fabulous. Today I got to know her a lot better. She bought me dinner, welcomed me into her home, showed me her beautiful Christmas tree, and shared a lot of her family history. Being a lover of history in general I absolutely loved everything she shared with me. And there were pictures to go with it. I have to say that I had a great night.

So again thanks to Jen for sharing her grandma with me. And thank you to MawMaw for making me feel welcome and for the great history lesson.

Aw S@&t! I Forgot to Shave

Today I had the privilege of going to the beauty salon with Jen and her MawMaw. Jen had invited me one previous time but it conflicted with family night. I'm so glad I got to join in the fun today. Jen and her MawMaw had their nails done and I had a pedicure and eyebrow waxing. By the way...OUCH!!! It had been a couple of years since I had touched up my brows.

As the girl was getting the foot tub ready something hit me like a slap in the face. To my horror I forgot to shave my legs. I was mortified. I apologized repeatedly to the girl and she said repeatedly not to worry that she had seen worse. What??? Worse than me? As embarrassing as this is I have to admit that I haven't shaved in about...6 weeks. (Opps, guess y'all know I'm not getting any.) Anyway, I didn't really believe she meant it but still it was nice of her to say.

So to conclude my next embarrassing chapter I had a great pedicure, the girl was nice and I enjoyed myself tremendously. So thanks Jen for inviting me to come.

Not Again

So my perfect class has one flaw. They are NOT Spurs fans. When I mention the Spurs the boys in my class roll their eyes. They even say, "Not again!" Most of them have their own favorite team so they don't follow MY team. Every year I'm able to win some kids over and make them Spurs fans but not this year. And not even the fact that my co-teacher follows the Spurs helps win them over. What can I do?

So picture this...I am reading a book to my class. I want my kids to enter the Kids Can Be Authors Contest through Scholastic. Students write and illustrate their own book. Well I've been reading different books that have won before. The kids really like them. I read one where students wrote about a farm that became the place where their school was built. It was very sweet. After the book I talked about possible subjects for a book the class could write. I said that you can write about something you really love. I did a think aloud with the kids.

Me: "What is something I love?" (I actually thought of mac and cheese but I couldn't write a book about that. My next thought was the Spurs.) "I know. I love the Spurs. I would write about them."

J: points to his mouth with both hands "I knew you were going to say that with that little mouth of yours?"

The whole class cracked up including me. But of course I didn't back down. (FYI: J is a New England Patriots fan.)

Me: "Yes, I'm going to write about the Spurs. That's my idea!"

So today my class started brain-storming their own idea for a book. I started my Spurs story. Jen had a great idea that I should keep every part of my story so that I can show my kids (present and future) that you have to work hard at writing something good. It isn't perfect the first time. So I'll share my process with y'all. Of course the kids can't take my idea. But it would have been nice if they chose to write about the Spurs.

I can picture it. It would win, I could send the Spurs Organization a copy, then they would invite us all to one of their games, we would meet the team down on center court, I would lock eyes with Manu, he would want to marry me. Kidding...he's already married. But just meeting the Spurs team would've been amazing.

Wishful thinking! Hope my kids end up loving my story.

Ok, Ok, Jen...I'm Spoiled

Note: I began this post on November 20th and am finishing it today.

Today when Jen was dropping me off there was a HUGE dog outside. Since I live at home I called my dad to come help me. Of course my dad bundled up (it was cold) and he came out to shoo away the dog and help me carry in my stuff. Unfortunately, by the time my dad came outside the HUGE dog was gone. But it really was there, ask Jen.

Today, December 3rd, my dad was cooking out for dinner for our family night. It's not really all that cold here so it wasn't a big deal. Of course Patty has a special request. My hamburger patty has to be made in a pan outside. I hate the taste of grill marks. Yuck!!!
Also, when I got home I had two bottles of Dr. Pepper on my nightstand. I know y'all are thinking: "so what?" but they are football shaped Dr. Pepper bottles. He brought my mom one at the beginning of football season and wanted one ever since. So he remembered to buy me two.

These are just a few examples of how my dad spoils me. My mom spoils me too. Jen and I have huevo con chorizo burritos every Friday. Yummy! I love being at home.

Things I'm Happy About

I have a lot to be happy about. I had a great weekend and I'm thinking this week will be just as great!

• Jen and I worked on my invitations. I am almost done and will post the final pictures. They look fabulous! Thanks, Jen.
  
• The Spurs beat Utah on Friday. And they won by a lot. GO SPURS GO!!!
• I met a new friend. We have tons of fun when we talk.
• I have my bathroom back and all to myself. Yay!!!
• Twilight had a great opening weekend so now for sure there will be a New Moon movie.
• Dallas Cowboys win again. Hope they do well for their Thanksgiving game.
  
• Just two and a half days of work this week.
  
• And I'm so lucky to have such kind and supportive blogging friends. Y'all had such encouraging and kind words. Thanks for that.

So I'm definitely looking forward to this week and this coming weekend. Turkey, turkey and more turkey. Have a great week everyone!!!