Sunday Reading

This morning, I was like a snail getting out of bed.  I  love Sunday mornings!

Around 7:00, I knew it was morning with the morning sunlight streaming in through our curtains.  I opened one eye, realized it was Sunday, and went back to bed.  Then, awhile later, I woke up.  Instead of getting out of bed and starting my day, I read.  I read, and read and read.  It was so relaxing.

When I did venture out of bed, my husband was in the living room reading, my son on the computer doing homework, and my daughter was still in bed, reading.  Everyone was reading and it was so comfy and such a Winter Sunday thing to do.  When I went back upstairs to say good morning to my daughter, and told her how cute she was in bed sleeping, she patted her bed, and invited me to come join her.  My first thought was  I really  need to start doing SOMETHING and not goof off anymore.  Laundry was calling.  Cleaning rooms were awaiting.  But I stopped and thought to myself, "She is nine years old.  In one or two years, she's not going to invite you into her room AT ALL, forget the fact of reading in her bed with her.  So I grabbed my book from my bedroom, and we laid in her bed, cuddling and reading our own books.  She would stop to laugh, and give me a retell of what she was reading.  I am glad I took the time to be with her this morning.

Slice of My Life, Year 2

First entry for the Slice of Life...

Today is the first day of the Slice of Life challenge.  During the  month of March, I am going to try to write everyday on this blog about a "slice of my life."  My kindergarten students are also writing in their composition notebooks, which I  glued possible writing topics for them in their notebooks' jackets, something they can refer to when they are stuck on a slice of their life to write about.  They were so excited to bring home their notebooks and start writing this weekend.

Meanwhile, their teacher sits at the computer, wondering what to write about.  

I am feeling a little stressed out today and it's all work-related.  

Every year, teachers in my school district get observed twice.  My first observation was a scheduled on, and that was in October.  It was a great lesson in Math, and all was good.  Your second observation is an unscheduled one.  Teachers receive an email, stating that their "10-day window" has begun.  So basically this means that in that 10 day window, your principal will be coming to observe you on any day for a lesson, at any time in those 10 days.  Last year, my principal let the "10-day window" expire, and we ended up just scheduling him to visit on what would had been the 12th day.  

So, I got my "10-day window" email last week, and the window starts on Monday, March 3rd, and ends on March 13th.  So anytime during the next 10 days, my principal will surprise me with an observation.

I'm not that nervous for him to actually come and observe me, but it's the waiting around for it.  It's kind of like walking through a haunted house, and waiting to get scared to death, and just getting it out of the way.  Yes, that's how it feels.  Just waiting for him to appear in my classroom, and hoping that it's not during a crazy transition time.

So, I skipped out on skiing with the family, and spent about 4 hours in my classroom today.  I spent an hour on "Smartboard Exchange," another hour with getting my guided reading groups ready, and another hour getting ready for my Dr. Seuss week  next week.  And then I decided to clean my room.  Because you might as well, right?

Today, I was finding that I was very scattered, and I felt so ADHD.  I would do one thing, and then do something entirely different, and then forget what the original task was.  I pretty much did that for the entire 4 hours in my classroom.    When I got home to my quiet house, since everyone was still skiing, I instantly feel asleep on the couch, so I must  had been exhausted.

So the 10-day window spell is upon me...Waiting, waiting, waiting

Reflecting Back

Today at dinner, I asked my husband if we could move back to Germany.   I still miss it so much.  It's been 31/2 years since we have been back.

Every Christmas, I teach all of the kindergarteners at the school I teach at, all about Germany at Christmas time.  My son helped me with a slideshow of pictures I took of the Christmas markets, and pictures of Germany.  This year, I felt a little sad after it was all over with.  Parents who were visiting my classroom commented on my presentation:  "Wow, that must had been so nice."  "Wow, the Christmas markets look amazing!"  I nodded and smiled and deep down felt so much gratitude that I had these experiences of living abroad for the year, but on the other hand, I want to go back.  A year wasn't enough.

Most of you were found my blog might have some questions like:  What  is it like for you now?  How did your year change your life?  Would you do it again?

Life now, is good.  I do miss the simple life of Europe.  Here, everything seems so busy.  I don't know if it is because I work full-time now, and I can't balance life, with work and home.  I love that Sundays, everything is closed, and you just hang out with your family.  Here, things are never closed. You can even shop on holidays, like this year, on Thanksgiving.  My husband, even though he has the same job here as in Germany, works more hours here in America.

I have gained almost 20 pounds since I've returned.  I miss my daily workouts of just being active in Germany- walking everywhere and running after trams.  I hate that I have to depend on my car so much here.

That year changed my life forever.  My world is not confined in just my town, my country, but spreads all around the globe.  I listen to the news, to NPR.  My kids are global thinkers now, and at a young age, know about cultures and languages.  If anything, I love that we moved for that splendid year, for our children.  My children think outside the box, and are both participating in enrichment classes in our district, and I think living abroad helped them to even be considered for these programs.

I would definitely do another expat assignment.  We'll see.

Today's writing prompt from Teachers Write:

Getting to know our main characters!

Think of this as an interview, of sorts, where you ask your character questions to better get to know him or he. This applies to all ages, whether you’re writing a picture book, middle grade, or YA. Remember to treat this like a free writing exercise and have FUN. Things to ask yourself:

• What do you look like? (Remember to answer how your character would answer)

• Describe your bedroom. Do you have your own room? Share?

• What is your family like?

• Do you have any pets? Describe them.

• What is your favorite thing about yourself? Least favorite?

• What is your biggest pet peeve?

• What are you afraid of?

• What do you want, but can’t have?

• Who is your best friend?

• Who is your worst enemy?

• What do you want people to know about you, but are afraid to share?

I have been told I should write a children's book on my dog Toga, who traveled around Europe with us when we lived there.  We have pictures of him in famous landmarks, and he did things and saw places that some people never get to see.  So, I am thinking of writing a non-fiction book about the places Toga saw, from Toga's point of view.

What do I look like?  I am a Boston Terrier dog, black and white.  I use my enduring black eyes to get what I want.  My bedroom is my whole house.  I sleep in my dog bed that's downstairs, my dog bed that's upstairs, Maggie's bed, Tim and Stacey's bed, and all the couches and the window seat.  As long as I am on a blanket or something soft.  And, I love to sleep under the blankets!  My family is the best.  I love my mom, Stacey the best.  She, I know, loves me the best.  Tim is alright, and I love him too.  The kids, I guess, are alright.  Sometimes they are nice to  me and I like them, but then sometimes they like to tease me on purpose, and I growl at them.  My pets are my "birdies," which are my stuffed animal toys that I like to suck on and bring from room to room with me.  My first stuffed animal that I ever had was a white bird, and Stacey called all my stuffed animals from then on my birdies, since I knew what she was talking about.  My favorite thing about myself is that I am smart.  I love where I live, and where I have been with my family.  I feel safe with them, wherever I go.  I have lots of adventures with my family, so that is my favorite thing.  My least favorite thing about myself is that I am always hungry.  I am allergic to lots of food, and I hate that.  My biggest pet peeve is when Riley bothers me and is rude to me and teases me.  My other pet peeve is barking dogs.  I just don't understand them, especially this dog, Ruby, that always barks at me.  I am afraid to be by myself.  I hate when Stacey and Tim go to work.  I always want to be with them.  I want people food, but Stacey and Tim can't get it to me, because of my food allergies.  My best friend is Stacey, duh!  I love her so much and I go room to room with her when she is home, because I can't stop looking at her, and I don't want her to leave me.  My worst enemy is Ruby, that dog down the street.  I want people to know, but afraid to say...well, I don't have to tell you.  I'm smart, so nice try.

Sometimes...

Today's writing prompt from "Teachers Write," a writing community of teachers, is to write about your favorite place, and start your writing with the word Sometimes-  Here it goes:

Sometimes, standing in the European square of Dresden, Germany, one feels so insignificant and small when looking up at the old historical baroque buildings.  Glancing down the narrow, quaint cobblestone streets, I am fascinated with the women in their high heels and marvel that women here look so chic and fashionable.  A tram whizzes by, church bells at the Frauenkirche sound magical and so European, as lunchtime vendors are serving bratwurst while the bakeries entice people into their shops with smells of fresh bread.  I find a place to sit in the square, and look at the church bells as they continue to ring.  A horse-drawn carriage is trotting through the square, while bike taxis are waiting for tourists to notice their business.  It is noon, and the city is beginning to wake up, with business people on lunch breaks and tourists.  It is Spring, and the sun is shining brightly.  I look up at the sky, at the skyline, and again, at the old buildings.  I take a mental picture of it all.  I close my eyes;  maybe to quiz myself and to see if I will remember it all.  With eyes closed, the bells are still chiming,  people are talking, and walking with shoe heels, and horses are stamping by.  I open my eyes, and I find that I did remember everything I see.  It's very important that I remember everything about this city.  I lived here for one year, and in just a couple weeks, my life as an expat will be over, and I'll be moving back to Upstate New York.  This is my favorite place in the whole world.  Sitting here, in  the Frauenkirche Square, watching the energy of the city, my city,  and marveling at the old architecture, that I have never seen in the States.  I am at my happiest, right now, in this moment.

Writing About Toga

My last day with my kindergarten kids was last Friday, but today and tomorrow, teachers need to go to school for staff development.  Our school district is getting a new reading program, which is aligned to Common Core.  This morning, with temperatures in the 90's, no air conditioning, and a somewhat disorganized morning of presenting from our presenter, it was a relief to be in an air-conditioning restaurant for lunch.  After lunch, the task of cleaning and organizing our classrooms seemed impossible, since we were back in our sweaty classrooms.  Nobody wanted to move or work.

I was in good shape.  My two children came to my classroom after school on Friday and helped me to organize and clean.  As I was scanning my classroom for last minute pick-ups and cleaning jobs, I saw the anchor chart I wrote in front of my class about revising with peers, taped to my wall.  I wrote a two sentence story about my dog, Toga.  Then, the kids asked me question after question about my writing, about my dog and they begged for more details.  I revised my writing, added lots of supporting details with their suggestions.

My dog Toga passed away in mid-May, and taking down my anchor chart about him was so difficult to do.  Toga has always been my fun topic to write about in my Writer's Workshop mini-lessons.  My last 13 classes have known him, have laughed at my stories about him, and he has became my classroom mascot.  When he was a  puppy, I used to bring my shoes that he chewed up to school and wrote about how mad I was at him.  I wrote about how he climbed on our dining room table when he was left home alone, and ate a dozen cupcakes, even the cupcake liners!  My students have learned to put spaces between their words, stretching their words out, use using juicer words, and add supporting details to their writing;  all with my modeling, and usually it was a writing piece about Toga.

Taking down my chart paper and realizing that I would no longer be writing about Toga in the present tense was very emotional for me.  It was like grieving him all over today.  I miss my little buddy.

Toga; Two weeks After

It's been nearly 2 weeks since Toga's passing, and it's still hard to talk about him, or look at a picture of him and not want to pet him or imagine he's still laying on my front porch.  Everywhere I look, there are his things, his pictures.  Even in my classroom, I wrote a story about him, and my class of kindergarteners had to revise my writing to make it better.  It is on my wall, as a reference as to how to revise.  His stuffed animals are tucked into corners of our Victorian house. His big cozy bed is now Guppy's.  His photographs are all over the place.  Pictures of him in Europe, pictures of him with our newborn children, pictures of him with all four of us.

Guppy seems to be alright, but is confused at meal times.  We always fed Toga first, and Guppy patiently waited for his meals.  Now when it's time to eat, he hasn't been eating.  I don't know if it's because he's still waiting for Toga to eat first, or what... But I think Guppy even misses him.

Guppy has been our lifesaver.  All four of us have turned to Guppy for comfort.  But Guppy will never be Toga.  There can only be one Toga.  Toga, the dog who wasn't really a dog.  The dog who was so human-like with his emotions, so human-like with his intelligence.  And then there's Guppy;  the dog who chases his balls, can't learn a new trick after 3 weeks, barks at everything he hears outside, and is just a dog- yes, Guppy is your average, run of the mill dog.

Toga's vet has yet to call us about picking up his ashes.  We talk about putting them in the front yard garden, or in the backyard.  I think that will be a hard day, since it's almost like putting closure on a dog we loved, and who loved us back more.

I have never gone through a death of a pet.  Toga is my first pet.  I don't know if deaths of your pets get any easier after experience...maybe they don't.  I tell myself that it's harder for me, since I have  never grieved for my pet.  My best friend.  My buddy.