Back to work

This is my second official day back to work for the school year and I am already exhausted! I have put in more hours than ever figuring out schedules, special ed rosters (which are nowhere near done) and sorting supplies than I ever have.

I can't complain, the weather hasn't been ungodly hot as usual, but having an interior room with no windows or working vents makes for a very sweaty day. If it were any hotter I can't imagine even moving in that room let alone getting anything done.

I need to get motivated to teach this year. I am teaching 4 different subjects with 5 different teachers. I have an entire new department of special ed teachers, which means I do ALL paperwork until they get trained NEXT MONTH. Anyone who has seen one IEP knows what all goes into it, I have 90+ to keep track of.

I think I am going to float through the year being so busy that I don't notice how quickly times goes by because I am not going to know which way is up until winter break. (like the run on sentence?!?)

Oh well, it could be worse. It is always worse for someone else. I just need to put things into perspective, go with the flow and suck it up. I need to spend more time doing yoga and meditating this year than in the past. I can do this. If things go my way it will be my last year in SPED. Then I can enter into a world of different challenges, students and less paperwork. I am really looking forward to less paperwork!

Creative Juices flowing again.....

This is Gumball the kitten.

A lovely garnet necklace which I can't decide if I want to sell it or keep it. Probably keep it.....
The flying bunn as I like to call him. I love the posable ears.
I hope to have my market bag done soon and plan to post that as well. It is taking much longer than I thought to finish.

Guest Book

This past week we went on our annual family vacation to Galena, IL. If you have never been you should try it. We rent a couple of houses in the territories and have a lot of fun. The landscape alone is breathtakingly beautiful. Not to mention most houses have a hot tub. Bonus!!!

The house my hubbies mom stayed in had a guest book. I always have a great time reading what other people have written and this one was no different. I thought I would share the funny entries that people have written. Enjoy!

This one is funny for what was erased. Underneath a list of nine women's names is the phrase: "This place needs more whores." I wonder who wrote/erased that little gem.

"If I had a nickle for every good time I had in this house I'd have like TWENTY SEVEN DOLLARS AND THRITY FIVE CENTS." (That is 547 incidents of 'good times'!)

OK, this one is funny for the THI MI SHU LEE, PHAM LEE, AND FUG LEE. You figure it out...

This one confused my because of the Nation Waffle Association addition. Any ideas?

Other than reading the guest book we spent our days playing corn hole(it is a game get your mind out of the gutter), cards, shopping, crocheting, drinking, Trivial Pursuiting and hot tubbing. Now I am nice and relaxed to head back to work in two weeks.

~Namaste~

What happened to society?!?

I was channel surfing a few minutes ago and found something very disturbing. I happened to stop on the Jerry Springer show. Now mind you I only left it on for about 2 minutes. The show was titled I slept with my best friends' man. The guy they were arguing over was no looker. Heavily tattooed, severely overweight and just gross. The women were what I expect to be typical ladies they have on the show regularly.

I use the term ladies lightly. They didn't get into a physical fight over the man. Oh no! They had a 'Jerry Springer STRIP OFF'!!!

When did they start doing that on daytime TV?!? I had no idea that you could settle arguments by taking off your clothes in front of a live studio audience! Have I been arguing wrong all these years? To get my point across I need to take off my clothes?!?

I think I will stick to the traditional raising of the voice and walking away to argue. In fact after that spectacle I think the TV needs to get turned off and I need to open up a good book. I need to wash away those images from my brain!

Yuck!

Creative Juices flowing again.....

This past holiday weekend I decided to break out the beads and see what I could come up with.  I ordered some beads a couple of months ago, but haven't done much with them.

This first necklace is made from moonstone and Swarovski crystals with silver accent beads.
I love the Earthy tones in this.  It made me think of my sister in law who may be the recipient of this beauty.  
This little guy is mine, all mine.  I found the pendant and knew I had to make something with it.
I used black agate and Carnelian (the orangeish beads) and I really like it.  Now I want to get dressed up and head out for an evening so I can show it off.  I think I may make earrings to go with it.  We'll see.

A wii little accident

So, I am a spaz.  I can hurt myself doing the simplest of activities because I have a tendency to not pay attention to my surroundings.  I consider this a minor flaw, but a livable one.  Usually I just walk into the corner of the chest of drawers or end tables.  Or maybe the occasional getting my belt loop stuck on the door knob frame.  It is an every day event for me.

So last night the hubby and I were playing Super Swing Golf Season 2 and I went a little 'over the top' with one of my swings and I somehow kicked the glass door on our TV stand/console.  This is my ankle (It is a lot more bluish purple than the photo) this morning .  Luckily I didn't break the glass, but I woke up this morning in pain.  The bruise is right in the crease of my ankle so every time I take a step it stretches the skin and I can feel it.  

Will that stop me from playing again tonight?  I don't think so.   This time I will make sure to pay attention to my surroundings and not be a spaz.  Wish me luck with that one.

Artsy Fartsy Friday/Creative Juices

Most people who know me know that I am a creative person.  I love to work with my hands and create all kinds of things from jewelry to knit and crochet animals to you name it.  This week I made a barter with a friend of mine, two malas (seen below) for massages.  Not a bad deal if you ask me!  I just got these beads yesterday and had to create.

The blue is Lapis intermixed with 500 year old jade and other beads.  It turned out gorgeous.  I hope the intended recipient likes it.
This lovely is made from a type of Turquoise.  I am not sure what type, but it turned out great as well.  Now my hands need a rest after hand knotting between each bead.  

Let me know what you have created lately so I can check it out.  Speaking of checking things out, make sure to stop by Candid Carries place and see who is playing along!

Things I learned this year...

Friday was the last student day and Monday is our last teacher day. (unless you have textbook training on Tuesday and helping interview throughout the summer)

I learned several things this year from my seventh graders and thought I would share some of them. I hope you enjoy.

~I can never name my future children Nick, Tristan, Austin or Tina. There is no way these names wouldn't evoke the urge to scream

~Point sheets don't save everyone, but they do help some.

~Meetings EVERY MONDAY MORNING really suck, especially because they start 10 minutes before contract time.

~If you are good at your job you get the privilege of doing MORE work and get put on more committees.

~We are going to have so much fun with IDM/SF paperwork. I Don't Member So F**-it is what I like to call it.

~Sometimes it is good to get new staff into the building, especially when one of the ones leaving is a pathological liar.

~Being Special Education Department Head you get asked ALL of the questions that people can't answer AND are expected to come up with ALL of the solutions because that is your 'job'

~Sometimes it is more fun when you aren't in the 'cool kids club' You get to go out for Naughty Schoolgirl Martinis and have way more fun on the last day of school. Not to mention the martini comes with a blowpop. Delish!!!!

~It is really hard not to tell a student they are being a major bitch in class. Things like that could get you fired even if it is very true!

~Hearing my name over the intercom makes me cringe every time because I know it is never good and I will probably be subbing for the day

~I am going to miss a lot of my students, but some I pray transfer over the summer...

~7th graders have too many hormones

If you are a teacher, I wish you a fantastic summer full of relaxation and rejuvenation. You have earned it.

The Countdown has officially begun

12 days left.

12 days of putting up with students who have checked out for the school year.

12 days of terrible behavior.

12 days of (most likely) covering for teachers who are absent because I am almost always first on the list to cover classes.

12 days of my favorite advisory student who is off his meds. Summer is coming up and no more refills until August. Yippe!

12 more days of getting up at the crack of dawn just to hit my snooze alarm an extra 3 times because I don't want to get up and go to work.

12 days and summer will officially begin. A much needed break. I am starting to think it is a really good thing I didn't get the 8th grade reading position. I don't think I could put up with these 7th graders for another year. They have been pretty awful lately.

Now I look forward to the time off from work, online grad classes I can do in my jammies, family vacation in Galena, and catching up with some reading.

12 days to go...

A well deserved break!

I am so excited. I have a three week break from Grad Classes!

Here's the deal. This last class I took, Intro to elementary and middle school curriculum, (I know snooze) was worth 300 points. I missed 2 points on 2 different assignments and I scored a 291. For some reason I find this absolutely hillarious. The guy is retiring this sememster and didn't seem to give a shit (or grade ANY assignments since March) and it isn't worth telling him about his mistake because I still got the A I wanted. Quite frankly I am kinda pissed that I put that much effort into the class because I think he would have given me an A if I did everything half assed.

Big yeah, I move over a bracket on the pay scale because I have 15 graduate hours. Awesome!

Now I sit and wait for my transcripts to be read to find out how many classes I have to take to be a bonifide reading teacher. (at $1200 a class I hope it isn't too much!) Since I am special education I may only have one class to take. I should find out this week. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Things I learned I could do on NyQuil

I have been sick over the last few days and have spent a good chunk of that time hiberating and taking cold medicine. Over the last 2 nights I have been going the NyQuil route in hopes of sleeping enough to make it to work and actually be productive.

After taking said NyQuil I have come to some realizations about myself and my posible need to change my t.v. viewing habits.

See, I have been having weird dreams on the Quil. And by weird, I mean WEIRD dreams. For example:

~ I am pretty sure I could keep everyone in my school building safe if there were to be a zombie attack. That's right, a zombie attack.

~ I can travel through space and time via plasma.... while battling zombies.

~ I could turn my classroom into a cozy apartment (minus kitchen and bathroom) and live comfortably. The sad thing is, I could probably make that work. I have a comfy reading area, a t.v. with a DVD/VCR player, ample storage. I could make it work.

~ I can breathe underwater

~ I have mad fighting skills

~ I dream in the third person sometimes, 1st person in others. It is really weird when it happens in the same dream.

~ As Kratos I faught and killed Ares, for all you God of War 2 fans. Just last night I killed 'em.

Those are just the ones I remember off the top of my head. I am feeling better, but I still my try half a dose tonight. I wonder what I will dream?!?

I can't believe he said that!

So, I was walking towards my classroom this afternoon and saw a former student in the hallway outside his reading classroom. I asked him why he was in the hall. His response:

"I don't like reading. Reading's for rich folks"

I literally got a twinge down my spine from not only his hatred for reading but the horrible grammar!

I really hope he was joking around. I doubt it though.

Journal Prompt

Today in one of the language arts classes I teach we had this journal prompt on the board "When I look deep into the mirror I see....."

I thought it might be fun to do the journal as well.  This is what I came up with.

When I look deep into the mirror I see many things.

I see a wife, a friend, a lover and companion

I see empathy and understanding

I see a teacher, a role model, a confidant

I see stress and depression

I see a knitter, a crafter, a jeweler

I see potential 

I see flaws and imperfections

I see olive green eyes hidden behind glasses

I see messy curly hair with hints of gray

I see a smart ass, a joker, a goofball

I see happiness, good karma, contentment

I see the woman I have become

I see the girl who uses the phrases "Wicked Painful" or "Weak" when something goes wrong

I see me

I'm o.k. with that

So, what do you see when you take a long look in the mirror?

Artsy Shots

I was so excited when I got the Cannon SD1100 that I went into artsy shot mode.  Here are my top 5 favorites: 

Random yarn in my basket waiting to be knit.

Funky box that I really like for some reason.

A very cool shell that my hubby found in the Gulf of Mexico several years ago.  The conch extraction was quite a procedure.  Not for the faint of heart.  I do have it on film somewhere.

A close up shot of our new shamrock plant.  They are very cool plants.

Last but not least the Buddha head in our fish tank.  If you look closely you can see our male Kribensas in the back hiding.  He is so lonely since his mate died.  We will have to get another.

I look forward to many photos in my near future.  Hope you enjoyed.  

Friday Fx4 - Last shot

For this weeks phriday photo phinish, hosted by the ever clever Candid Carrie, I submit this final shot. Not final as in my last post, but in the final photo taken from my decade+ digital camera.

I thought I would try to get some artsy type photos and this was the last one taken before the LCD screen cut out. I think it came out pretty cool. I'd been wanting to upgrade the camera for a while and I am quite happy with the new Cannon Powershot SD1100 IS. It is awesome!!! I look forward to taking many fun shots. Make sure to stop by Candid Carries place to see who all is playing along.

Many bad words...

I am thinking of a word that starts with an F and rhymes with duck. You know how you think financially everything is going o.k., then all of a sudden things take a turn for the worse. This has been my last month.

1. Home PC died. We knew it was coming, so it wasn't such a shock, but then the monitor went with it. Had to get both. Yeah, an extra couple hundred on top of that.

2. $808 for a grad class that started in January, plus the cost of books.

3. Digital camera just died. The screen just stopped working, today. I can take pictures, but I can't see them until I download them. How 1990. I'll have to wait to have the photo developed. I can't afford a camera right now. Maybe it will make me appreciate the simpler things in life.

4. Just found out the course that was supposed to start in June actually started in Feb. Now I am begging to get into the class a month late to pay another $808 for that class plus the cost of books. Not to mention IF I get in the massive amount of homework to make up what I missed.....

I think over spring break next week I am not going to leave the house. I may get struck by lightning, get a flat tire, break a bone, god only knows. Shit, who have I Karmically pissed off lately.

I'm just going to say it.....

fuck!

Postponed Contest and other gripes

I hate to do this, but with the pinched nerve I have in my thumb I am postponing my Friday the 13th contest for later in the year.  I am unable to craft without severe pain in my left thumb.  I have huge cortizone shot fear, I hear that is the remedy for what I am now calling 'craft finger'.  I sincerely apologize and those already entered get extra entries.

On to the gripes.....

This past weekend kinda (but not totally) sucked.  

The highlight:  Going to see The Watchmen.  The hubby and I are huge comic book geeks and when we found out this was coming out it was game on.  I loved it.  All 3 hours.  Not your typical super hero movie.  All of the so-called super heroes have so many personal flaws that it is more like a Jerry Springer show at times that true heroes.  Especially Rorschach.  He was a truly sick individual.

The lowlights:

Three hours of sleep on Sat and Sun night due to my brains inability to shut off.

Nasty cardboard cut on my middle finger.  However it gives me a chance to try out the different ways to flip the bird.  I guess it can't be all that bad.

PC is dead.  By dead, I mean dead.  Had to order a new PC so hubby can do homework.  Fortunately the income tax refund will cover most of it.  It is just a pain to be down to a lap top when you are spoiled with two computers.  I really shouldn't complain.  I just don't think he is as proficient with a mac.  

I lost my cell phone.  I have looked everywhere.  Can't find it.  I am sure that I am staring at it, but its dead and I can't call it to find it.  I am giving myself one more day and then I'm going to have to get a new one.  I am so scatterbrained sometimes.

Oh, my paper that is due on Wednesday was on the crashed PC.  I had to recreate all 6 pages by memory for my grad class this weekend.  It was fun!  Rectal extraction at best.  I have really stopped caring about grad class.  Unfortunately I have 8 weeks left!

And as always I have a Monday morning special ed meeting that I host EVERY MONDAY.  Not by choice mind you.  Oh, yeah and it starts 15 minutes before contract time.  I think I need spring break to come around, so I can do.... more homework.

I hate this semester.....

Friday Foto Finish 3.6.09 - parental advisory

My dear hubby had a birthday a couple of weeks ago.  In order to keep him feeling young I got him this book.  It just came in the mail today, I am so excited.

So, I thought I would share with you some of the lovely photos inside.  This is an example of the Waving Bird.  See how his arms are going in circles.  Classic.
The ever subtle pet the bird.  The dog does not notice or care, he's getting some love and thats all that matters.
This is similar to the running man.  Its called the running bird.  I like how this book includes several different cultures flipping that bird around.
The Bookworm Bird is also another goodie!
Oddly, I busted a student today flipping me the bird.  I wish I had this book sooner so I could have written on the referral what type of bird was actually flipped.

Make sure to stop on over at Candid Carries and join in the fun!

Friday Foto Finish 2.27.09

Today's fx4 is a lovely one taken of my new fish tank.  I had to get rid of my other 5 gallon tank because it would have cost more to fix the broken filtration system than buying a new tank.  I don't know why I like this photo so much, I think it is the dew like appearance of the air bubble on the plant.  The new tank now houses my little puffer fish, Mr. Green jeans.  

Make sure to play along over at Candid Carries place.  Always a good stop for a Friday!

Monday..... Again.....

I don't know what my problem has been lately, but I am sick of Mondays. They seem like the worst day of the week. I really wish we could just start our week on Tuesday. Here's how my Monday went:

Slept through alarm the first time it went off, then hit snooze about 4 times.

That put me late leaving for work and I got stuck behind several semi trucks going 10+ under the speed limit on the highway.

I was late to work (from my sleeping in), therefore late for the Monday morning meeting I host EVERY Monday morning at 8:00. Mind you, this is not my choice.

Teaching was actually the highlight of my day. Classes went well, even the one I subbed for. Some of the kiddos got on my nerves, but that isn't unusual in middle school. I'll explain my "little man syndrome" one of these days.

During my prep period I was working on sped paperwork. Got my current academic performance page done, hit save (it is a web program) and the computer locked up on me and I lost an hours worth of work. I cried a little at my desk..... in the dark..... because the motion sensors in my room are wonky and the lights don't stay on when I sit at my desk for more than 10 minutes with nobody else in the room.

After school I almost had to break up a fight.

After school a former student of mine brought in her 3 month old baby to brag to me about him. Oh yeah, she's a sophomore in high school. Oh yeah, and she walked him to school in his carrier when it was only 27 degrees outside.

I was thinking through a problem in my head and missed my normal exit home from work... I am such an idiot sometimes.

Once home I realized I left my grad class book on my desk at work, so I couldn't write my 5 essays tonight. They are due Wed. so at least I have some time.....




I can at least look at it in a semi positive light. Tomorrow is Fat Tuesday and we are doing a constant food fest in the teacher's lounge.

I wonder if I can get away with wearing sweat pants.....

Friday Foto Finish 2.20.09

Kids crack me up.  Especially when doing a research paper and they can't figure out how to write a thesis statement.

This one is awesome.  Can you feel the frustration this poor guy was suffering from?  

Make sure to stop by Candid Carrie's place and play along.

Also, if you would like to enter in my creepy cute Friday the 13th contest click here to find out how.

Friday the 13th Contest/ Giveaway

I am a huge horror movie/horror story buff. I love anything that will scare the pants off of you. I'm not into the gore, but the fright. I love it.

I am also a very crafty person. If I set my mind to it, I can figure out how to create most anything. I absolutely love to make jewelry, but my true passion is working with yarn. I love the way it feels slipping through your fingers as you create something new. Most recently I taught myself to crochet.

My true inspiration for crochet came from my mother in laws find of this book.

She immediately thought of me when this came through the library. It is chalk full of all kinds of creepy creations. They are so much fun to make I thought I should share them with others.

With that said.....

Would you like to win a zombie?

How about the Nosferatu?

Maybe a Vampire Queen perchance?

Or how about the dreaded Chuthulu?

I will be giving away one of each of these creations on Friday March 13th. I have only had a chance to create the zombie, the others are pictures from the book. Once I complete them the photos of the actual creations will be posted instead of their pictures.

So, how do you enter?!?

1. Leave a comment telling me which creation you would like. =1 entry

2. Post about the contest and then e-mail me at jen72175atgmaildotcom. =1 entry

3. Create a post with a scary story in which your creation choice is somehow involved. =2 entries. Then e-mail me your entry and it will be linked at the bottom of this post. An example is provided below for the Zombie. That way others can read your creative story.

4. Bonus point entry for the first 3 people who can tell me something about Chuthulu. I am a huge horror buff, so I am well versed on the Chuthulu stories.

Winners will be chosen at random on March 12th and announced on the 13th.

I truly look forward to your creativity! Good luck and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Zombie Posts:

Two Knit Monkeys Example Post - Friday the 13th Scare

Nosferatu Posts:

Vampire Queen Posts:

Chuthulu Posts:

Creative Juices a flowing... Friday the 13th Style

I have been sick these past few days.  The icky cold type symptoms with lots of Kleenex, nose blowing, cough, you name it.  So, I needed something to do.  What better than to teach myself to crochet.  I have been in love with the Amigurumi crochet style for quite some time and I just had to figure it out.  Plus, my mother-in-law got me this awesome book to inspire me.

Being the sick twisted horror movie buff I am, this book was all it took.  I had to make a zombie with blood coming out of his mouth.  I have to make a vampire queen, the grim reaper and the devil.  Why?  I say why not!

This guy is called corporate zombie.  Look at his little tie.  Isn't he just perfect?!?  Here are a few shots horror movie style.

Brains.....

Must have brains....

How intimidating!  A 3" high zombie.  He will make a nice addition to my desk at work.  Maybe I will gain some street cred with the kiddos at work!

Before I attempted the zombie I had to do a practice creature.  A friend of mine at work collects frogs.  He was really good to practice on because he used all kinds of wacky stitches.  I sure home she likes him!

This photo isn't the greatest, but I wanted to show you the whole frog as he is wedged in the crevice of the couch.  (I think my shutter is slowly dying on my camera, so all the pics lately have been very fuzzy.  It is 9+ years old)

Make sure to check back on Wednesday.  I have a Super Awesome creepy Friday the 13th giveaway/ contest for March.  

Creative Juices = a pretty cool teddy bear!

I have been so busy lately I haven't had a chance to do much blogging.  I am taking an online graduate course which is kicking my butt.  Work has been kicking my ass.  Students are taking the Iowa Test of Basic Skills next week and scheduling has become such a headache I have been having dreams of ITBS... wait they are more like nightmares.  

I decided I need some crafty time to center myself.  One of the businesses I sell jewelry at is having an open house so I went into crafting mode by making 100+ earrings and some malas and necklaces, but that just wasn't doing it for me...

So, when a bloggy friend, mama dawg, asked about a knit animal for her daughters birthday I got a little giddy.  I haven't knit for a while so I was up to the challenge.  I found an awesome teddy bear pattern and went to town.  This is what I came up with.

I absolutely love him/her.  It was so quick and easy I may have to make myself one.  But, what would the monkeys think about that?

A much needed day off

I have been so busy with paperwork, reading books and articles on tape for the kiddos to use for their research papers, getting ready for ITBS and grad class nightmares that I needed a day off!

It just so happened that the guitarist and bass player of Cracker were playing an acoustic concert last night at the Redstone Room.  We knew about it for a while and decided to make a go of it.  I took a personal day today just in case we didn't get home until late.

In a word the concert was awesome.  The sound was great, the setting small and intimate.  We were surrounded by aging hipsters and former college hippies.  We had the best time.  I took a short video clip of one of their more famous songs Low.

I was surprised at how reasonably priced things were too.  $15 for tickets and $15 each for drinks and tip.   Guiness for $3.50, AWESOME!  We are definately going to be looking for more concerts there in the future.

And happy early b-day to the hubby.  Last night was all my treat.

Lost Theories

I am a Lost addict. If you haven't seen the show, you are seriously missing out on some drama and mystery. The new season started last week, and already the theories have been a brewing at our house. Here are a few ideas we have:

1. Faraday is traveling through time. There have been hints about it, but I think that he is traveling and not just from the bright lights these last two episodes.

2.. Richard is on a linear path. Locke revealed tonight that Richard is free to visit him after he is born.... 2 years from now. He does in Season 3 (I think) and says he's not ready....... OMG what does that mean?!?

3. *Hubby theory* - Richard is actually John Locke's dad. Could be, but I'm not sold yet.

4. Widmore gets booted off the island and that is why he is so desperate to find it. OMG a young Widmore was on tonight's episode!

5. Faraday's mom traveled back in time to be in the movie Grease.

6. Desmond will go back to the island to save Penny when he finds out Ben is trying to kill Penny. AND they named their son Charlie. Nice dedication.

7. Sawer is just meant to be hot.... and Kate will come back to the island and tap that.

8. Jin isn't dead. The island moved before the freighter blew up. I think he will be back.

9. Widmore is kicked off the island for something to do with Emma (I think that's her name). She was the chickie with the gun pointed at Faraday. BTW, what is up with the H- bomb?!?

10. Jacob is Locke in the future. Yeah, I said it. My wacko theory I've had since last season. Locke was the only one who could hear him.....


Things to keep in mind:

Jack and Claire are brother and sister.
Locke dies, but at his funeral he is listed as David Faraday
Where is Claire anyway? Jacob's cabin? And why did she leave Aaron?
Sayid is killing for Ben
Kate has Claire's son, who for a time was being raised by his uncle
Sun has taken over her fathers' business
The Oceanic 6 have to go back to the island, but why exactly?
Too many items to list here.

Once again, lost is the best show ever! I can't wait until next week to see the episode. Unfortunately (kinda) we have to watch it on Thursday because Cracker is playing an acoustic show at The Redstone Room here in the QC and we gots tickets! Great band and a good time will be had by all.

Lost Rocks!

What would you do?

I am pulling my teacher card here today.  I knew that there was a fight during lunch, the kids all blab as soon as its over.  Here's the deal.  Apparently a LARGE group of our 7th graders got up and applauded the student who started the fight.  If we would have known about it before the end of school, we could have addressed it today.  However, now we have to wait until tomorrow to address the behavior.  Here are some of the things I think we may do:

1.  Reprimand our lunch students and go over lunchroom procedures as well as what to do when there is a fight.

2.  All grade silent lunch.

3.  Have students write an essay about why it is inappropriate to applaud a fight.

4.  Those students who did clap, silent lunch for a week

5.  Make students sit in assigned seat during lunch.  Our class just got that privilege back today.  I don't think they will have it tomorrow!

6.  Your suggestions...

Let me just say that I was livid when I found out, as I am sure you would be too.  What would you do in this situation?

I've been busy.....

I've been thinking about opening up an etsy shop for a while and decided it was the right time.  So, I went into craft mode and made 24 more pairs of earrings this weekend.  These are just some of them.  I was getting ready to photo them to post on my etsy shop.

Later this week, I am going to start a giveaway centered around my etsy, but haven't decided what exactly to do yet.  I have some ideas, but if you have any suggestions let me know! 

Here's my problem.  I am having a great deal of difficulty getting the site linked on this page.  I have tried a couple of times, but I keep getting just words and no pictures.  I really want some photos on the sidebar so y'all can see what I've been up to.

So, If anyone knows how to post it so there are pictures would you please e-mail me or leave a comment.  I would really appreciate it.

If you would like to check out my etsy, click here.  Any suggestions, criticism would be appreciated.

Friday Foto Finish 1.23.09

For this weeks Fx4 I captured a couple or rare moments with my fishies.  These two love birds are cribensis.  The female is in the front, male in the back.  Right now they are pretty content, but when they are happy or mad their bellies turn a bright red of purple.  They look content together!

I think our loache is taking a nap on the leaves in the tank.  Lucky fish, he gets to laze around all day eating, napping and pooing.  Such is life when you are a fish!
Make sure to stop by Candid Carries and play along.  Its a lot of fun!

By the way, my etsy site will be up this weekend.  So, make sure to stop back check it out! 

Creative Juices flowing again.....

This past week I had a few days off of work due to being *ss smacking cold out so I decided to make a few pairs of earrings.  I have never made them before but I think I did a pretty good job.  Here are my favorites.

The above pair I made for a friend of mine.  They are labradorite, sterling silver and Swarovski crystal.  You can't tell from the photo, but the labradorite has a sheen to it that make them shimmer in the sunlight.  Very pretty stone.

This pair is all mine.  I absolutely love purple, so I figured why not.  They are Swarvoski crystal, cultured pearl, sterling silver and Czech glass.  

From top to bottom on this pair is a citrine tube, citrine chip, baltic amber tube and then an amber chip.  I am not sure if I like this pair yet and I have no idea what to do with them.  I think I may sell this pair.

These are a birthday present for my friend Emily.  Since she never reads my blogs she will be surprised when she gets them on Friday.  They are Swarvski crystal, garnet rectangle, sterling silver and czech glass.  I really hope she likes them.

I don't know why these came out blurry, but they are pretty much the same as the pair I made for myself, just green.  I really liked how they turned out.

This last pair is all kinds of crazy.  I am still on the fence with this pair.  I like how they dangle, but I think I need something else to add a contrasting color.  Maybe some rose quartz chips or something else.  Any suggestions?

I have also been thinking about selling things on etsy.  If there is anyone out there who has used etsy would you let me know what you think.  I currently sell things in a couple of stores in the Quad Cities, but I have been thinking about expanding.  Let me know your thoughts.

Back to back snow days!

I couldn't believe my eyes when I woke up this morning.  I looked outside to see beautiful white, fluffy snow on the ground.  I could tell that it was just light and fluffy as the sun glistened off of it.  Better yet, I checked the internet to see that I didn't have school today.  Over six inches of the fluffy stuff fell overnight in Illinois and in Iowa, where I work, they had even more.

So, I spent my day lazing around.... aka spending 4+ hours updating IEP progress into the system.  Thank god I grabbed it on my way out the door on Tuesday!  Then finished up the movie Eagle Eye, did some wii fit for an hour and caught up on a good book.

Then my mommy called to say "Congratulations, you don't have to work tomorrow!"

"Bull shit, your fucking with me"  (yes ladies and gents, I swear in front of my mommers)

"Yep, most of the Quad Cities is closed due to -40+ windchill factor for tomorrow morning.

"Holy Shit, forty below!"

"Yep"  I was surprised she didn't ask me to stop swearing....

From there we went on to figuring out if we want to go out to lunch tomorrow, their pursuit to find a wii (they just have to follow in my footsteps) and other random conversations.

So, now what am I going to do with my day tomorrow?  I think I will try to work on finishing up Sheldon the Turtle.  I need to make a couple of birthday presents for my January birthday buddies so I will probably work on that too.  I am sure I will find something to do.

BTW, I have been thinking about doing a necklace give a way for my recent 100th post.  Give my some ideas on a contest....

New Toys!

I have been a bad blogger lately.  I have been too busy playing with my new toys that I have neglected to blog.  What new toys you ask?!?  My wii and the game Spore.

I absolutely love my wii.  I had no idea how much fun they could be.  I have recently started doing the wii fit game.  I just love the fact that it tells me my body type every time I step on the damn thing, but it keeps me motivated to use it so it can't be all bad.  Here is my avatar for the game.

Don't I look so smart and sassy with my glasses.  Oh, and check out the junk in the trunk I got going on in the back.....

I really like the yoga and aerobics on the wii fit.  I just recently opened "free step" where you can set a timer and use it like step aerobics while watching something else.  Pretty sweet.  

We have a few other games, but I highly recommend the Shaun White snowboarding game especially if you have the wii fit board.  It is hella fun.  I took some photos of my hubby playing, but I'm not allowed to post.  Maybe one of these days I'll sneak one in...

The other new addition to my geeky computer world is the game Spore.  I think being a science nerd really helps me make it soooo much more fun.  The premise of the game is you start out life as a single celled organism and you evolve through the different stages of life.  You can constantly change your appearance, special skills, coloring, etc.  Right now I just started the Tribal Stage where I am the head of a tribe and I have to keep my tribe alive while others begin around the world.  Very cool stuff.  

I am pretty sure it isn't going to be endorsed by the Catholic Church (it reminds me of the Scopes monkey trial for some reason) but it is a lot of fun to play.