Thursday, December 31, 2009

I can't believe I have been blogging for almost a year. It has been fun to go back and read all my posts from 2009. It's like a diary that you share with the world. Probably one of my favorite things is changing the background every few months. I added a winter background for January. Believe me, I saw my winter when I was back in Kansas for Christmas. We always seemed to stay one step ahead of it, so we didn't have any treacherous roads to travel on. We had to go through Oklahoma going to stay away from a storm. Of course that didn't bother me. We found a Garden Ridge to visit. I couldn't believe how bad the storm was in Oklahoma the day after we went through. I just read about a man who was buried under 6 ft of snow!

We had a great Christmas. It is always nice to see family this time of year. Both of our grandmothers are doing well considering one is 88 and the other is 95! The bodies may be weak, but the minds are pretty sharp! The highs most of the days were in the 20's. It made it very nice to stay in and read my book. I also go to experience one more time Kansas wind. One thing I wish Phoenix had was Dr. Pepper slushies. They were so go even when it was freezing outside. I guess it is a good reason to have to go back. Just kidding family!

Unfortunately, I brought a Arizona cold with me. I tried to be good and keep my hands to myself, but it is making it's rounds through everyone now. Sorry family! I have already put up my winter coat. It was 60 when we got home! Now I just have to remember where I put my gloves and scarf for next December!

Yesterday I took down all the Christmas decorations. It is always a little sad when I do that, but it was the best time. I realized I needed to get another storage box to store some more decorations, so off to Walmart it will be today. Hopefully I will get some cleaning in sometime.

I hope everyone has a wonderful New Year's. We are planning on going to a movie with family this afternoon and then out to dinner. I can't believe it's 2010 already!

Thanks for reading!
C.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

I can't believe it is Sunday night and I have not written all week. I need to try to do better. I really don't want this to become a weekly blog, but that is what it has become. I guess Sunday is when I reflect on my previous week and prepare for the one ahead. Or maybe it's because sometimes it's just hard to think of things to write about. Any hoot, it has been busy one.

I attended an AVID critical reading workshop all day Tuesday and Wednesday. I thought it was very helpful and something I could definitely use at the school I'm at this year. I was the only elementary teacher there though. It is a whole different world with high school teachers. It's funny that I always say I could not imagine teaching high school. And high school teachers say they could not imagine teaching elementary students. I guess we all have our place. Good thing I don't have to teach in a one room school house. I would be in trouble.

Tuesday night we celebrated my mom's birthday. We ate at McGrath's Fish Market. I had my faithful shrimp platter. I'm not big on fish, but I love shrimp. We then capped off the birthday celebration with my Angel Pumpkin cake that I had made earlier. It was okay, but I think I have had enough pumpkin for awhile.

Thursday night I attend my first Alpha Delta Kappa sorority meeting/party. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed getting to meet other teachers. The group has about 35 members and is made up of retired and current teachers. Next month they are having a mystery tour, so I'm looking forward to that.

I'm hoping this week goes fast. The 18th is the last day before our break. I think we are having our Arizona Christmas next Sunday night. We will be heading to Kansas later the next week.

I hope everyone has a great week!

C.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

The month of December is flying by as usual. I know the month has 31 days, but sometimes it feels more like 20 with all the activities going on. It definitely has turned colder here. I have even contemplated turning on the furnace. This thought has not been turned into any action yet, but it is only December! We are expecting some winter storms next week. Of course winter storms here will mean cold rain with temperatures in the low 50's as highs. It will probably keep us from hiking until next weekend. We hiked the four mile trail last Wednesday. It is amazing how much easier it is getting. It was dark when we were coming back, but between the moon and the flashlight it was actually fun.

School is going pretty good. I have the opportunity to attend a critical reading workshop this next week. It is two days, but it is close to home. I might even be able to come home for lunch. It is geared more for high school and junior high students, but I think I will still be able to apply the main ideas to my intermediate school. And AVID will be here on Thursday and Friday. They are bringing some more people this time, so that should be interesting.

We spent Friday evening with our former Ohio neighbor's daughter who was in town for a conference. She had never been to Arizona, so we had several places we wanted to show her. We ate downtown at a Mexican restaurant that was within walking distance to her hotel. It was good and it allowed time for the traffic to thin out before heading to the other side of the valley. She thought it was so funny to see cactus with Christmas lights. I think the highlight of her night, however, was visiting Sprinkles Cupcakes. She could not get over that a store would only sell cupcakes! If only the bundt cake store would have been open we could have kept the sweets rolling. Well, I guess I did. She came back to our house for angel pumpkin cake. This makes me sound like I should be really overweight with all the sweets it seems I eat. I guess this is why I hike. So I can eat!

Yesterday morning, we helped our church with a community outreach in one of the poorest areas of Phoenix. This was the fourth year for Christmas in the Park. They had taken one of the local schools and set-up a carnival like atmosphere for the families (minus the rides). They had games, climbing walls, face painting, basketball, crafts, Christmas music, hot dogs and even presents for the kids. I work in one of the poorest schools in my district, but it seemed like the Ritz Carlton compared to this area. One mother came in with her three kids and said they had just moved into the area. They had been homeless for three weeks. As the families were leaving they were thanking everyone for making this Christmas special for their kids.

Last night I attended the annual Sylvan holiday party. There were lots of great food and it was nice getting caught up with several people who I don't see much anymore. I even won one of the door prizes! Let's just say I think I have one of the best looking bathroom around now!

I guess I have rambled on enough. Hope everyone has a great week!
C.