My dear Ella

Sweet Ella bo bella,

Have I told you today that I love you? You are turning into such a beautiful young girl. Here are some of the things I love about you at four years old.

I love your beautiful brown eyes that sparkle when you smile. Have you noticed that complete strangers will comment on them at the grocery store? They are beautiful. You are beautiful.

You love to be held and cuddled. You like to give hugs and to curl up in my arms. In fact, sometimes at church, you and Gabrielle fight over who gets to sit in my lap. Even though you are a "big girl", you still love to be held.

You are so sweet. Most days when Daddy gets home from work, you are the first one to say "Buenos dias, papi" and to give him a hug and kiss.


I love that you are trying to keep up with Michelle. You want to do what she does. You want to read the books she reads (even though I have to help you with all the words still) and you are always saying, "Let's do homework. I want to do homework too." (If only Michelle were always that excited about doing homework! Although she is usually pretty good about doing it.) You are so excited to start kindergarten next year.



I love how sweet you are with babies. You always want to hold Gabrielle, although now she is too busy to let you most of the time. You always ask to hold other friends' babies too.

I love your silly pouty faces (but I could do without your tantrums! At least you are not throwing tantrums as often as you used to!)



I love how close you are to Michelle and Gabrielle. You adore your sisters and usually you get along very well with them.

I love your burgeoning testimony of the gospel and your sweet faith.

But most of all, I love you! I am sorry that you are sick today, although I have enjoyed being home with you and getting time to cuddle. Get better my sweet girl. I love you!

Vacation Memory

The topic for this week's family history journal, sponsored by Evette is earliest vacation memory.

I have two. When I was young, we traveled from Phoenix to Salt Lake nearly every summer to visit my grandparents (mom's parents). I remember one summer we traveled with our neighbor, Linda (who moved away when I was in about 2nd grade but later moved into our stake after she remarried while I was in high school...) and her children. We drove in their station wagon. I don't remember much about the actual time in Utah. I'm sure we went swimming and went to the library near my grandma's house and picked raspberries and apricots and did stuff with my aunt Elaine and uncle Brent who were both still single young adults. What I remember the most was this long ride with 4 or 5 kids in the back of a station wagon. I remember singing lots of songs to the tapes that Linda had brought. "Sing, sing a song. Sing out loud, sing out strong. Don't worry that you're not good enough for anyone else to hear..." Janene Brady songs. Safety Kids. Favorite Things. We sang and sang. And while it was a long drive, it was fun.

My second memory is not actually my earliest vacation memory, but I still need to record it. As I mentioned, my family always went to Utah in the summer... nearly every year. But these were basically our only vacations. But the summer after I was in fourth grade, we took a vacation to California. My family went with my grandparents. They drove down from Utah, and then we drove from Arizona to CA in their motor home. We went to Disneyland which was so fun, of course. Then we went to San Diego. We got to walk on the beach and wade in the ocean a little bit. We also went to Sea World. This was so exciting for me and so much fun for all of us.

Interesting side note... When I was a senior in high school, Linda and her husband were taking a trip to Disneyland. I believe that combined they had 7 children, although they left the baby home with a family member. So they asked me to come along and help with their kids. In exchange they paid for me to get into Disneyland. I had such a great time. Their kids were so fun and they playfully argued over who would get to go with me on each ride. It was another great vacation.

Complicated

Teaching is so complicated. Some years feel harder than others. This year is going to be challenging. My class is very nice, but they are very low academically. Most of my students are reading below grade level, 1/3 of them are more than 2 years behind. They also struggle with writing, spelling and math. It is easy to get discouraged...for myself, but especially for them. Many of their lives are hard and education is their ticket to hopefully improve their lives, to get out of the poverty and abuse and other difficulties they face. But with one teacher to 24 students, and so much curriculum to cover, it is discouraging at times. How can I help them achieve? How can I help them learn to read and write in English (a second language for most of them) and help them achieve proficiency in math? And if I don't, what will happen? Of course, I know what will happen for me/for my school. We won't make AYP (adequate yearly progress under No Child Left Behind) and the sanctions begin... we get to hear regularly how we aren't doing enough, how we need to work harder, try harder, teach more, assess more, intervene more, etc. But more importantly, if I don't succeed what will happen to them? It feels as if I see the answer when I meet with many of their parents... they will live on welfare or take drugs or abuse their children or end up in prison, and repeat what has been done to them. As a teacher in a poorer neighborhood, I feel somewhat like a trapeze artist, walking this tightrope between hope and despair. Hope that I can and will change lives. That what I'm doing matters and means something. That for at least some of these children, I will be the one to give them a brighter future or to help them see that they are loved and valuable. Despair that I can't do more than I am (given my physical limitations and time constraints and imperfections as a teacher and a human being) and that for many of them, the future will be bleak. I believe in education and it's power to change lives. I believe in public education and that over all we are doing a good job. But I also know that it isn't enough...more needs to be done for these children, but I don't know how, and I don't have any more time. It's a dilemma, an invigorating one at times and depressing at others. I love the challenge of trying new things and seeing kids learn and get excited and grow. But I am saddened by the kids that don't make the progress they should and wish I was more successful. And that more of them had loving, supportive, educated families that could fill in the gaps that I leave. Don't get me wrong. The majority of the parents do love their kids and do want what is best for them. But many of them don't know how to provide that for them, due to their limited English or limited education or because they spend 10 or more hours a day just trying to eke out a living to provide for their kids. They are tired and overworked and don't have the time and energy to help. (And sometimes I can relate...although I don't work as many hours, it is hard to work and then come home and prepare dinner and help with homework and clean up from dinner and get kids ready for bed and so on... I have empathy for these parents... and at least I don't have constant worry about finances and I am educated and I do speak English and I came from a great home...)

But I must admit, I feel a little ashamed this weekend. I was talking to Brenda, my friend and the other 3rd grade teacher at my school. Our classes are very similar, although mine is a little easier and a little higher. I was telling her how very worried I am for these kids. She agreed. I said I didn't know what to do to help them... and we talked about a few ideas. Then as we were leaving, she said that she had asked friends to pray for her class. She believes in God, but isn't religious. But she said she's considered going to different prayer sites on the computer and asking for prayers for her class. I was a little ashamed that here she was the one talking to me about prayer. I have prayed for students before, and this is obviously not a new concept for me, but I have not been praying for this class this year. I am going to start, and especially praying for the children I am most concerned about. As much as I love the students in my class and worry about them, the Lord knows and loves them more. They are His children. If anyone else would like to pray for my class, I would certainly welcome that.

One happy note. I got a new student this week. I had been told she may be difficult. She was removed from her home for abuse/neglect and put in foster care. Then she was removed from that foster care home for abuse/neglect and just put in a new foster home a week ago. She is darling and sweet. On Friday she told me that she was sad it was a half day. I asked why. She said that she loves school. She said she has always hated school, but that she loved it now. I don't know if it is because she is finally in a safe home with a caring, attentive foster mom or because I have tried to make her feel welcome and the other students have welcomed her or because she is in a class where many of her peers are struggling students like her and she is finally not the very lowest in the class (maybe there is 1 advantage to having a low class and that is that struggling learners don't stick out so much!) or a combination of all these things, but this little girl who has had a very rough life is happy. Let's hope and pray that this continues!

Silly girls

May:
Michelle has started saying and writing that things are her "migas" for "mi amigas" (my friends.)

7/21: At dinner tonight, Michelle said, "This dinner is boring." She hadn't eaten anything so I told her she would like the food. She said, "I don't mean the food. I mean it's boring without cousins Evan and Sarah. It's too quiet."

7/21: Oh, the faith of children! While watching Land Before Time, Michelle said, "I wish I was a dinosaur. Then I'd be living with Jesus, because all the dinosaurs are dead." "Hey, are there sharp tooth dinosaurs with Jesus?" I said I didn't know for sure. Michelle: "I don't think so. They could eat Jesus." (I then explained a little more about how things will be after the Resurrection.)

8/3: Michelle asked, "Mommy, is today Daddy's congratulation too?" (meaning is it Daddy's anniversary.) She kept referring to it as my congratulation.

8/19: I've been sick. Ella while praying, "Please don't let Mommy be six any more."

9/24: Michelle to a friend: "My principal is Miss Buendia. She talks English and Spanish. That's why we learn English and Spanish at my school. She is the best because of that. And because she dresses so pretty. And, she wears high heels. Then she looks so beautiful!"

9/26: Ella: "Mommy, Michelle and I don't want to marry hot guys." Me: "Why?" Ella: "Because." Me: "What is a hot guy?" Ella: "You know, a guy who is hot. One who is burning himself up." Michelle: "No, it's a guy that you love and want to kiss."

July -September 09 Reads

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (sequel to Hunger Games... I can't WAIT for the third one to come out!)
Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
Don't Tell a Soul by David Rosefelt
Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman
The Gardner Heist:The True Story of the World’s Largest Unsolved Art Theft by Ulrich Boser
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Hot Lunch by Alex Bradley
Pursued by Lynn Gardner
Schooled by Gordon Korman (VERY interesting book! Quick read.)
The Daily Coyote by Shreve Stockton
The Gardner Heist by Ulrich Boser
Stalking Susan by Julie Kramer
The Stepsister Scheme by Jim Hines
Vanishing Act by Jodi Picoult


Our Favorite Kid's Books Right Now
Mary Had a Little Lamp by Jack Lechner
On the First Day of Grade School by Emily Brenner
The Chicken of the Family by Mary Amato

Women's Meeting

I just returned home from the General Women's Meeting. Alfredo took the girls somewhere and the house is quiet. I, of course, have lots of things to do (such as fold the rest of the 8 loads of laundry I did today or finish vacuuming downstairs or grade 4 days worth of math homework), but I wanted to take a few minutes to record my thoughts. It is a wonderful thing to belong to Relief Society. President Eyring talked about the history and heritage of Relief Society. It is an amazing organization we belong to, one based on love and serving others. When I was in the Relief Society Presidency a few years ago, I learned a lot about charity and felt like I came to somewhat understand what it really means. I feel like I still understand, but don't always live it as well as I should. I truly do love my neighbors and the women in my ward, but I know I don't always show it as well as I could. I am an introverted extrovert. Is there such a thing? I love to talk and be surrounded by people. And yet, I also have a shy side. I often want to start talking to others, but unless I know them really well, I often can literally not think of a thing to say. But as our stake relief society president talked about, I need to take my hand out of my pocket (or step outside my comfort zone) and be friendly and kind to others. I need to be more diligent in visiting teaching. I know it is inspired and I always mean and want to do my visiting teaching, but I don't always follow through. And really I have no excuse. Our ward is very small... only a few streets wide. I can walk to any ward member's house within 5 minutes or so...so I should be much better about visiting.

I really loved Sister Smith's talk. She started by talking about the warnings in the London tube (subway) to "Mind the Gap". She spoke about 3 gaps we need to mind. The first is that between believing we are daughters of God and knowing that we are precious and beloved by Him. This really was powerful. I have recited the Young Women's theme countless times, and I often get teary eyed as I say, "I am a daughter of Heavenly Father who loves me and I love Him." I know it is true. But sometimes as life gets busy and I make mistakes and I yell at my kids or argue with my spouse or I forget to pray or do other things, I begin to not feel that I am loved or worth loving. It is so easy to be hard on myself and see the ways that I need to improve. So this was a good reminder.
Her second gap was the gap between graduating from Young Women's and entering Relief Society as a participating member. They talked quite a bit tonight about Relief Society not being a class on Sunday, but being an organization that we are all members of--whether or not we attend on Sunday. I was reminded of quotes I've heard before that say that it is up to us to determine how much we will get out of church each week... if we are prepared spiritually to be edified, then we will be. Same with Relief Society, we will get about as much as we give.
Her third gap was the gap between believing in Jesus Christ and living in such a way as to qualify for his Atonement and return to live with Him. Her talk was very powerful.

I was so grateful to feel the spirit so strongly tonight.

Asking & Answering Questions...

Today, when we arrived at Michelle's school, someone (almost certainly gang member) had spray painted graffiti on the wall of her school. Michelle was upset by it. By the time I picked her up after school, the graffiti was gone, painted over. The whole way home she talked about it and asked questions. She wanted to know why people would do that, and what it meant and why people do bad things and what happens if the people got caught spray painting. She saw them taking photos of the graffiti and asked why they did that. She asked why there are bad people and what gangs are and who made bad people. She really needed to process what had happened...it made her sad and worried and maybe a little scared. So I listened to and answered her questions the best I could, including a discussion about making choices and about choosing to do what is right. Which led to a discussion about the Savior and about Satan. She told her friend who came over to play about it and her dad about it. Then at bedtime, she was worried that she might have bad dreams because of it, and asked me to pray with her that she could forget and sleep.

I am not perfect at it, but I try to honestly listen when Michelle asks questions (and she asks a lot!) and to answer them if I can. If I can't, I try to remember the question and find out the answer. Of course, I don't always follow through when I don't know the answer, but I do try. I also try to answer Ella's questions and when Gabrielle gets bigger, I will do my best to answer her questions as well. Sometimes it can get annoying when kids ask "Why? Why? Why?" But I can remember my grandpa always telling me when I was a child that asking questions and being inquisitive helped you to learn and showed your intelligence. So I try to encourage their question asking and to answer as often as I can.

That is my Proud Mommy Moment for this Monday. If you'd like to share something that you have done right as a mom, hop on over to Shannon'sand join in the fun!

Also, if you're looking for ideas of something to blog about, my friendEvette is starting a weekly family history journal topic. Each Tuesday, she will post a topic and you can blog about it and then link to her blog.

3 of 10: Take A Quiz

Creating Keepsake Challenge 3: Take a Quiz. I didn't really love either of the quizzes they included in the magazine, so I found a quiz in an old issue of their magazine. Here are my answers:

If you could have one superpower, what would it be: I usually say flying, because I hate driving in traffic and would like to get places faster. But really, I hate heights, so that probably really wouldn't be that great. Probably, I'd like to be like Bewitched and be able to wiggle my nose and have dinner done or the house cleaned.

What chore do you dislike the most? Hmm, I almost never clean my windows. I hate taking out the trash. I absolutely HATE cleaning the oven.

What was the last movie you saw at the theatres? The Proposal. Very cute and funny. I want to see several movies right now, but I usually end up waiting until they come on video.

What is your favorite song? I like lots of songs. I especially like country songs that remind me to appreciate life. I love the song "Let them Be Little". I also love Josh Groban.

What do you eat for lunch? I almost always eat leftovers from the night before. If I don't have leftovers, then I eat a Healthy Choice frozen meal.

What makes you mad? When people do things that are unfair/mean to kids. That is especially true if it is my kids, but also true when I hear about reports of things on the news or see it in my school. Adults should not hurt kids. PERIOD.

Where would you like to go on vacation next year? I would really like to go to Costa Rica. We will probably go to Disneyland or Canada. I'm excited to go to Canada, as my sister lives there and I've never been there. Really, I love to travel and have a long list of places I'd like to go.

Stake Conference

Stake Conference was today. It was pretty neat. We had the temple president, mission president and our stake president there as well as Elder Huntsman and Elder Rasband. It was a really beautiful meeting.

Two things stuck out to me. One, that we need to be doing what is right, even if it means standing alone. He had all the youth stand up and talked to them about doing what is right, and that there may be times when they may have to stand alone as they make the right choices. While I'm sure that is true, my main thought as I watched all these youth stand up is how amazing it is to have so many young people that are (mostly) trying to do the right thing! And that if they join together, they will have others to stand with them. And really, I guess that applies to all of us. Here we were joined in conference and there were hundreds of us. If we join together and are all doing our best, think of the good we can do! And I don't think that is limited to those who are members of my church. There are many good people, and many of my friends, who are not members of my church but who are great people and we all have the power (and responsibility) to make this world a better place. But ultimately, we need to do the right things even if our friends and neighbors aren't. Something to work towards, a challenge for myself to improve...

The second thing I found very comforting. President David O. McKay once said (and is often quoted) "No other success in life can compensate for failure in the home." I think this is a very important quote, but it sometimes makes me worry. Am I doing enough? Do I spend enough time with my kids? Am I teaching them enough about their Savior? And so on. So I was very touched by what was shared today. At a meeting not long after President McKay said this, he was answering questions at a gathering of university students. One person asked a very insightful question, "What does failure in the home encompass?" President McKay's immediate response was, "Failure means you have given up. You do not fail if you continue to try." This was so comforting. My kids are still young and they have beautiful, developing testimonies of the church and they love the Savior. And I am trying to be a good mother and to teach them and be a good example. But I know I fall short in many areas. So I found it incredibly comforting to know that I'm not a failure because I work outside the home or because I don't do everything as well as I would like to. I am trying, and I am getting better at some things...and still have many areas I need to improve in. Anyway, this made me feel better about where I am and where I'm trying to head.

day of service kick off

The Bennion-Lowell Center of the University of Utah has a huge day of service today. About 500 university students are out in the community doing a number of projects to improve South Salt Lake. And because the Bennion Center is one of my school's partners, they do the kickoff at my school. So this morning, all of the students and their families were invited to come to school. They served breakfast (bagels, juice, oranges, coffee) and then had a couple of people read stories. Then they had hundreds...probably a thousand or more...of books so each child could choose 2 or 3 books to take with them. University students were there to help kids select their books and then to read to them or listen to them read. Then they did face painting. They will wrap up their morning with a luncheon for the university volunteers (also at my school, but the luncheon is just for the volunteers). So my girls and I headed to my school this morning to participate. It was a lot of fun! It was great to see so many of my students and their families involved in this literacy event. And cute to see all the fun face painting. My girls loved getting their faces painted, and we're always happy to get more books!

Ella decided to have her face painted like a clown.
I had to shre this photo, because it really shows off Michelle's missing teeth. She has lost 5 now, although the two bottom ones have grown in. So there are 3 missing. So cute!



This is just a small sampling of the numbers of kids that came and participated in the event. Families came and left and came and left during a 2 hour period.

Yes? No? High Five!

Gabrielle is starting to be able to communicate what she wants. She can shake her head no and nod yes. (And she knows what she wants! She is not afraid to tell you.) She can point and then if you ask, "Do you want ___?" she will shake or nod to tell you if you got it right. It's fun to be able to understand her. She also loves to give high fives. Take a look at these shots of her giving a high five to her daddy.




Look at the pure joy on her face!!

Have I mentioned that she likes routines? She put herself on a napping schedule (I'm sure my babysitter did assist with that too). All summer she was almost like clockwork...woke up about the same time, took naps at the same time, went to sleep at the same time. My other two were never that consistent. Now she has a routine each morning. After Alfredo showers and dresses, he comes into the kitchen. I'm usually finishing up breakfast. Gabrielle walks over to the backdoor and expects Alfredo to pick her up and take her outside with him as he feeds Chester. She is not happy if she doesn't get to go say hi each morning (and usually each evening after we get home too). She loves Chester. In fact, she says both "woof" and "perro" and she doesn't say many words yet. And she adores her daddy.

She also is turning into a climber. A few days ago, we were downstairs watching a movie. Gabrielle had climbed the stairs and after a few minutes, I decided I better go check on her. So, I went upstairs. She'd climbed up on our glass coffee table and was just sitting there, as happy as can be.

She is a delight! When you hold her, she'll put her head on your shoulder and then pat your back. She is so sweet. She also loves to give kisses and "head butts" (softly bumping foreheads...I'm really not sure how this got started but it's our new favorite way of showing affection with Gabrielle...including Michelle and Ella giving her head butts. But it's not something we ever did before having her.) I am so grateful to have her in our family.

Proud Mommy Monday: Developing Courage

Here is my Proud Mommy Monday moment for this week. If you would like to participate by blogging about something you have done well as a mom, visit my friend Shannon's blog.

I tend to shy away from "scary" things. I don't like heights. I don't like roller coasters and would never consider doing bungee jumping or skydiving or anything like that. I am not a risk taker. But Michelle is not scared of these types of things like I am. She is quite athletic and loves the thrill of rides and being up high. There have been several times when Michelle has wanted to try things that my immediate reaction was no, that is too scary. But I have tried to step back (in my head) and think about whether what she wants to try is dangerous and if it's not, then I keep my fears to myself and let her try. And I'm trying to do that with all of the girls.

A few examples:

*Last year Michelle wanted to do a climbing wall. At first thought, I thought she was too little, but she wanted to try. So I let her do it and she made it to within a few inches of the top.

*This weekend Ella wanted to go on a slightly scary ride. She'd been on it before with me at West Fest, but I didn't buy any tickets at the state fair for myself, so Ella had to go on it with just Michelle. Again, my first instinct was to say no. But she had really enjoyed it at West Fest (even though I really didn't) and so I said okay. And Ella rode the Tornado with Michelle and they both loved it!

*At the state fair, Michelle wanted to do the jumpy thing where you are hooked up and jump into the air (I just wrote about this and posted pics in the last post). And even though it looked awful to me, she wanted to try, and so Alfredo and I said yes.

There are probably other examples, but these are the first 3 that come to mind. Even though there are moments when I want to keep my kids little, I am pleased that they don't have the same fears as I do. I'm so happy that Michelle, especially, is willing to try new things and be adventurous. And so, I'm glad that I'm learning to let go and let her try new things and not hold her back. Who knows? Maybe someday she'll climb Mount Everest or invent a new rollercoaster or become a skydiving instructor. And even if not, I will know that I allowed her the freedom to safely try things and find out what she loves and what she doesn't.

State Fair

Yesterday, we went as a family to the Utah State Fair. It was the first time for everyone (although I've been to the Arizona State Fair, and I think Alfredo's been to other state fairs as well). It was a lot of fun!! We watched a juggling show. We went to the Kachunga alligator show where he "wrestled" an alligator and taught a lot about alligators. It was two brothers and one talked and the other interacted with the alligator. The one who talked did a lot of teasing and joking and kept it entertaining and informative. We didn't have great spots to watch but we all enjoyed it.








Michelle got to go on the sky jumper thing where you get hooked in and then jump on a big pillow way into the sky. She absolutely loved it, although she was a tiny bit disappointed that she couldn't flip. She tried, but just couldn't do it. But she launched herself as high as it would go. No fear of heights for her!

The kids went on tons of rides...most of the rides there and several rides they went on 2 or 3 times.


We also enjoyed looking at all of the animals and petting many of them. Michelle especially loved the bunnies. Unfortunately, both Ella and Gabrielle missed the bunnies...they fell asleep in the stroller and were OUT! (We saw most of the animals at the beginning of our day, but the bunnies and birds at the end.) Michelle also got a kick out of the fruits and vegetables. There were huge pumpkins and also vegetables and fruits carved to look like animals and other shapes.

I was hoping to see the Bear show but we missed it and were too tired to stay until the next showing. But we spent a little over five hours and had a great time!

 

the circle of life

This afternoon, we watched most of the Disney movie The Earth as a family. It is very interesting and beautiful. It shows animals around the world and how they survive, migrate, find food and water, etc. It really was quite interesting; a lot like watching the Discovery Channel. Anyway, I really liked it and it made me really want to travel everywhere and see all these amazing places and animals. But my girls have sensitive hearts. They are both so sweet. They cried when a wolf caught a baby caribou and again when a pride of lions attacked an elephant. I tried to explain about the food chain and how it would actually be bad if all the caribou lived and so on. But Michelle and Ella were so upset to see animals killed. They are such sweet girls (at least most of the time and in most ways).

Number 2 of 10: Childhood Memories

So, here I am completing another challenge from Creating Keepsakes' List of 10 Pages that should be in your scrapbook. This one is to include stories of your childhood. Of course, there are tons I could include but here are a few that spring to mind.

*I was the oldest of 3 girls. I loved playing outside with my sisters and my friends. I spent countless hours playing hide-n-go-seek and tag, riding bikes, and wandering the neighborhood.

*I once went trick or treating when it wasn't Halloween. I was young (probably 6 or so?) but wanted candy. So I talked my sister into dressing up and going to several houses to say trick or treat. I know at least one person laughed at us, but a couple of people gave us candy, which is what I wanted. So all in all, it was a successful venture. :)

*I had a sweet tooth, even as a child. Often when my sisters and I would get desserts, I would eat mine quickly and then beg one of my sisters to give me part of theirs. I would promised to share mine the next time. They often would share theirs with me, but I don't know if I ever shared with them.

*Once I was vacuuming and my littlest sister was being a pest. She was lying on the floor in my way. I told her if she didn't move, then I would vacuum up her hair. She didn't move and I kept vacuuming, getting closer and closer and suddenly some of her hair DID get tangled in the vacuum. I felt terrible. I don't think I even really meant to do it, and I felt so bad.

*I went to Andalucia Elementary for Kindergarten through 4th grade. Then I went to Barcelona Elementary for 5th and 6th grade because they had a full time gifted program there. Then I went back to Andalucia for 7th and 8th grade, because it was a K-8 school. My teacher in 5th and 6th grade was Mrs. Garant. She was an amazing teacher, and we did many very fun and exciting projects that I still remember. I would like to be more like her. My favorite project was a unit on ancient civilizations and archaeology. We studied how archaeologists have learned about ancient Egypt and ancient Babylon and so on. Then she divided the class into 2 groups and we had to invent our own society/culture complete with its own language, dress, food, religion, holidays and so on. We created artifacts as clues to our culture. Then we were able to dig deep holes in the playground of our school and bury our artifacts in layers. We let our artifacts "age" all weekend (to represent the thousands of years they would be buried before being found). Then we archaeologists carefully unburied the other group's artifacts and pieced together as much as we could about their society. It was amazing.

*Junior high was by far the worst time of my entire life. My parents divorced. I went to a K-8 school where there were only about 100 kids in 7th grade and 100 kids in 8th grade. I had known most of them my entire life and almost all of them drank and slept around. There was terrible peer pressure. It was so hard to not do the things that everyone else seemed to be doing.

*I had shoulder-length blond hair when I was little. Most of my clothes were made by my mom or my Grandma Faye (mom's mom). My grandma often made dresses for my sisters and I, especially Rebecca (who is 2 years younger than me) and I. She would buy fabric with the same pattern but one would be red and one would be blue and then make dresses that were the same style. She always asked what color we wanted, and since I knew Rebecca liked red better, I would almost always say blue, even though I hated blue. Now blue is probably my favorite color. My other grandma (dad's mom) started getting our hair cut into short, feathery hair styles when we were about 8 or 9. We hated it. I usually didn't complain, since it didn't do any good. But Rebecca hated it and would fight with my grandma about it.

*My Grandma Marj (dad's mom) lived about 2 miles from us, and she was our babysitter while my parents worked. I can only remember about 3 times having a babysitter besides my grandma. (And it was always another adult or parent from our church. I don't think I ever had a teenager babysit me.)

*My Grandpa Reed (dad's dad) would always tell great jokes and stories. He also sang to us. "Oh, I've got six pence. Jolly, jolly sixpence. Oh, I've got six pence to last me all my life. I've got tuppence to spend, and tuppence to lend and tuppence to send home to my wife, poor wife....." (and on it went... with each verse him having two pence or tuppence less) He would chase us in the swimming pool and pretend to be the drain monster. He would have us stand on his feet and dance around. I've seen my mom do some of these same things with my kids and it always brings a smile to my face to see the traditions carried on.

*I grew up living in a trailer park. We didn't have a lot of money, but we had enough of what we needed. And Christmas was a huge deal. My parents bought us piles of gifts (possibly with help from my grandparents or else they just saved all year to make Christmas special). We weren't really spoiled, but I never felt poor either. And really, our neighbors weren't any better off than us, so I guess I just didn't realize that some people had big homes and fancy cars. Those things weren't important. (Hard to remember that now sometimes as an adult!) When I was in fifth grade we moved to an apartment and it felt so much bigger even though it only had two rooms for the five of us.

*The first time I got my own room was in junior high. My dad moved to Texas prior to the divorce (although we didn't know my parents were getting divorced at the time) and my mom, sisters and I moved in with my grandparents (my dad's parents). I got my "own" room which was really my grandpa's office. So he was in there ocassionally, but I no longer had to share with my sisters. When my mom remarried, we moved into a house.

*I lived through the 80's and loved The Bangles, Whitney Houston, New Kids on the Block, MC Hammer (I had MC Hammer pants...do you remember those awful things?), and others. I had big bangs and brightly colored shirts with crazy patterns.

*My childhood was happy. In high school, my nickname was "Smiley" because everyone said I smiled all the time, even if I was sad. I had a great family and many friends and despite having some bad things happen, I really was a happy, blessed kid.

I would love to post pictures but most or all of my childhood photos are still at my mom's house... maybe some day I will get some posted.

Saw this challenge on According to Kelly's blog and thought it looked like fun. The challenge is to describe yourself in 25 words or less.

Me: Avid reader, Chocolate Lover, Mexican food eater, Freezer Meal cooker, Mormon gal, Wannabe world traveler, Third Grade Teacher, Wife and mom of three beautiful girls


So here's what to do if you want to participate:
step one: take your self portrait. no primping necessary

step two: describe yourself in 25 words or less

step three: introduce yourself to the world, by posting it to your blog. Just make sure to leave a comment at kelly's...or here on my site, so i can make the blog rounds. or, if you're feeling lazy, just post your 25 word bio in my comment section. either way, i can't wait to get to know you just a wee bit better.
(So I liked the first shot of myself better, but figured I better put one in that wasn't just a profile. Even though I prefer profiles lately.)