teacher thing

i am SO proud of my 4th graders' writing they did today!! : ) they are making progress!!!

and i told them all that : )

shout hooray!

so... i was just entering myself in another disney sweepstakes contest (is that redundant?). when i find these, 99 times out of 100 i enter. i'm usually not the winning type for these things, but i did win a burger king contest when i was a kid once... ha : ) so i feel like i've got a chance to win again someday. (i won one of those little (slightly annoying) "keyboards" for kids.)

anyway, i felt like the chance to win an expenses paid trip to hawaii (or $100 gift card to the disney store) was incentive enough to fill in the fields with some personal/contact information (as if they don't already have it... : )

the last box was a drop down box asking for my age range. .... ..... the moment i realized that i'd graduated to the 25-34 range i had this funny/sick feeling inside.... i'm playing with the big kids now!!

had i aged a year for every "birthday" i have at preschool, i'd be vacationing with the seniors... : ) last fall i had TONS of birthdays at preschool. it mellowed out a little, and then i had none for a while, until my real birthday, of course. then we started gradually ramping back up, and in the last couple of weeks i've had a few more! this usually consists of me having a "surprise" made for me and i can't look in the "kitchen." when they've prepared every "food" they can find i'm invited to look at my smorgasbord of plastic delights spread out on the table. somehow i manage to be extremely surprised each time. and of course overcome with joy. and of course i'm so hungry and they've made some of my favorites!!! !!! !!! : ) it's a wonder i don't get a tummy ache as i nibble and chomp my way through every bite lovingly prepared. they are pleased as punch to present me with whatever they can get their hands on - a hot dog, a box of cereal, an eggplant, you name it. through all of it, i don't seem to age a bit... or put on the weight you might expect... : )

here is a picture from a birthday i had last week. it was taken fast, and just on my phone, but you can get a general idea... : )

most people have to wait a whole year until their next birthday.... not me : )

just sayin...

i have to write this here because i can't write it on facebook for fear of offending people and i just have to get it out!!...

if you're expecting, you most most most likely don't need to take your own picture in the mirror... have your husband (or friend, sister, mom, etc) take it for you!! one time i saw someone post that she had to take it herself because her husband went to work out... ... ? ... ... so??? just wait until he's back then. or take it before he goes.

while we're at it... : )

if you'd like to annoy me here's how: write one of those ______________? yes, please! statements. i don't know why... but they kill me.

i'm only human. so sue me... : ) (for you, walph : )

attitude check

maybe you needed this today like i did....

uncle!

there seems to have been a sudden surge in memes all over the internet.

there also seems to have been a sudden surge in people thinking they can make funny memes. it doesn't seem to matter the style.... there are too many that just aren't funny. that's most of them, really... pick a style, any style. most just aren't that funny. (there are plenty that aren't funny at all....)

so when i found this picture.... i thought maybe i should pass it on and let people know.... : )

enough time spent on that! i'm going running now... : )

edit: there are several that i DO think are funny or clever, and so does will... : ) let's just not get carried away here

making lemonade

we've lived in tracy just about 8 months now. today i was hired by my 3rd school district in california. that doesn't include a charter school and my "private" preschool employment.

tomorrow i will begin my career as a paraprofessional at monticello school in the jefferson district. subbing had some serious pros, but it also had some real cons. this new job also has pros and cons... we're just hoping the ups far outweigh the downs... and as far as our analysis has gone (before i've even spent a moment on the job : ) we think this will be an improvement!

i'm going to know where i'm going to work each day, and it won't be far (about a mile!). no more guessing or dreading getting jobs the morning of!

i don't know anyone who has paraprofessional down as their dream job, and i'm no exception... but we're grateful for this opportunity and the blessings it will bring. this part-time position will fill my mornings, and my preschool friends will still delight my afternoons.

life can be tough, but we're making it!

i think i can i think i can

when the going gets tough, this girl tries to keep going.....

i've run 4 times in the last week. which is also 4 times in the last few months. 2 times with will and 2 times without him. only because he had to go back to work. it's good to get back into it. we're going to run a half marathon this summer. rather than pay a lot of money just to go run, we're going to do our own course on our own day. it will still be a half marathon. heck, i could even make us shirts... : )

i told a couple friends that idea at mutual last night. i said we'd just do "our own family half marathon." they said, "oh, with one of your sides of the family?" i said, "no, our family: me and will."

the howes family half marathon.

"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." (Isaiah 40:31)

i can't do it alone.