Back to Work

A lot* of people have asked how my new job is going. *By “a lot” read: an elder's wife, a neighbor, and my boss. After 3 months, I wanted to document where I am at with the whole "back to work" thing.

I’m a teacher with no “classroom”…but my life is still run by bells. Nothing hearkens one back to the sounds of industrialism's golden age like a bell set to ring at 2:03 pm every day. That’s the start of 7th period.

Gone are my 75 to 160 students; here are my 40 teachers. I’m not an administrator or evaluator; I am a support teacher. I am to Tim Gunn as the principals for whom I work are to Nina, Michael, and Heidi. I’ll leave it to them to figure out which one of them is Heidi. As for the teachers (contestants)? Well, it is one wild season. Does my Project Runway analogy reveal too much into my Thursday evenings for you? :P I have to cope with the stress somehow.

My unofficial job description is to support teacher growth in classroom management, lesson planning, instruction, and assessment. No day is the same, but in the course of a week, you could find me:

Co-writing lesson plans
Cutting out and laminating manipulatives
Compiling assessment data
Modeling a lesson
Emailing documents between two campuses (I split my time between 2 high schools)
Facilitating a team meeting
Daydreaming about the next weekend or vacation day with my family
Collaborating with the support teachers from other subjects
Researching end-of-course exams from other states
Doing any random task a teacher or administrator asks...and there have been some doozies
Listening…a lot of listening.

I’m still working on that part: the listening. If you marry your opposite, consider that my husband is a therapist. He listens all day long. I talk all day long. The discipline of listening to a teacher or team of teachers flesh out a problem, discuss a grievance, share a hardship, or elaborate on a plan has been good for me. I am so blessed to hear what our AMAZING teachers need to say and want to share. I’m working on being someone who knows more of what she says than saying what she knows. Toughest part of the job, by far.

Make no mistake, this job is a gift, but I would be remiss not to tell you that it is a gift that comes in a big box with 1,000 pieces and no instructions. And on most days, I am happily working with my eyebrows furrowed and chewing the inside of my lip as I tackle today’s unexpected opportunity.

Now, back to work.

PS: a post with no pictures and little mention of my children is a rarity. Don't worry, Grandmom, I'll return to our regularly scheduled programming soon with Halloween photos. :)

Trouble Sleeping??

So, Mommy is at Back to School Night and can't tuck you in? This change in routine might be upsetting to some and impede their bedtime routine. What to do? I don't know.

But here's what NOT to do:

#1 Don't sleep on your comfy bed. Make a pallet for yourself on the floor.
#2 Don't bother with comfy clothes. Add an itchy, polyester tutu from your bottom drawer. Pull that over your monkey pajamas. Don't look at the monkeys...they'll give you nightmares.
#3 Don't invest in a sleep mask. A pair of sunglasses works just fine. Hint: wear them upside down so they pinch your nose. Might help with the sleep apnea or snoring...pending FDA approval.
#4 Don't cuddle with any of your soft lovies. Choose a naked plastic baby and cuddle her feet first. (Maybe her baby doll is a breech baby too?)
#5 Don't sleep on your regular pillow. Drag a boppy out of your closet to get your neck creaked just enough to let visions of chiropractic care dance in your head.
#6 Don't worry about a bedtime snack. Play Russian roulette with an old sippy cup. Could be water, could be homemade yogurt.
#7 Don't worry about bedhead. Did you look in the mirror before you laid down? Already there.
#8 Don't bother covering yourself up with a blanket. Leave it to catch the pee that would have otherwise been caught by the pullup you took off and left on the other side of the baby gate.
#9 Don't skip nighttime prayers. You've obviously stolen your brother's race car and Buzz Lightyear. Repentance is like a glass of warm milk.

Yet, she's asleep. Maybe she's onto something after all.

Whatever your bedtime routine may be, I say, "Sleep tight! Don't let the bedbugs bite."

1st Grade Boy (plus one Wannabe)

1st Grade, here he comes!
Yes, that's a B-Boy shirt he's sportin'. Thanks to "The Electric Company" and "So You Think You Can Dance," Owen spends a lot of time beat boxing, rhyming, and working on his dance moves. It's a hilarious stage...if it's a stage.

June wanted to wear her skeleton shirt for her first day. That's the beauty of being 2: you can.


And for those of you wondering, Michael is still not a morning person.

As for my first day back, I forgot to take a self portrait. Stalkers can hunt me down on some high school's website. :P

Here's to a great year of loving and learning!

Excuse me while I lie to myself...

You should be aware that the pictures in this post are not designed to show our full experience with swim lessons. They are designed to ensure that I enroll my kids NEXT summer because my brain will remember these photos...not the actual events that transpired before and after leaving the pool. Also, it was difficult to take pictures while motivating people to put on their suit, get in the car, drying tears, processing fears, discussing why we learn to swim, and handling the pent up post lesson emotions. So much for the lazy days of summer. :)


That being said, once O got in the pool, he was his typical "school persona". When at school, he listens very well, focuses on the task at hand, and aims to please. The coaches at the YMCA were AWESOME, and I would recommend swim lessons there for any beginning swimmer. The lessons themselves were never the issue; it was the emotions that came with them and how to handle those emotions.

O and Coach M. She was patient and calm and she followed up on an off the cuff promise she made to Owen. Two thumbs up!

After two weeks of lessons, Owen looked at me and said, "I thought you said I would be able to swim after two weeks." Hmmmm...am I a liar? What I should have said was, "I didn't realize that you would be carried into the swimming facility, literally, kicking and screaming. I'm sure the stress of such an experience might have limited your ability to acquire the skills necessary to swim or distracted you from absorbing the full intent of the lessons." So, we went back for two more weeks, wanting to end on a high note. Or, I'm a glutton for punishment.

Praise God (literally, for we prayed for a better behind the scenes experience), weeks 3 and 4 were better. Coach C was a gift! I kept wanting to ask him what he was studying in college because he is a natural teacher. The kids connected with him, and he navigated that tricky balance between motivating the kids out of their "safe" spot and pushing them too far where they were too anxious to try new things. Owen did much better these weeks. I guess I forgot what a creature of habit he is, and he finally adapted to the "swim routine". Sweet mercies!



June, on the other hand, LOVED the experience. So much, in fact, that she did spend most lessons in the YMCA child care center. She tried to take her clothes off and get in with Owen every time, so maybe one of my kids will be a swimmer after all. It was a bit distracting for all parties though, so she played with her little friends in the air conditioned play area. She didn't know how good she had it because it is a hot 30 minutes on the side watching people swim while you sit on hot concrete.


The last day, the kids get to go down the big slide. For most of the kids, this is a big motivator. For mine, it's an episode of "Fear Factor."



Did I mention we all got reacquainted with some verses from Joshua, sung in the car, in the locker room, at the pool side..."Be strong and courageous and do not be afraid. The Lord goes with you each and every day. He'll never forsake you. Don't be afraid." It's true...both for Mom and Son.

And here he is on the last day.

Oh, and the delicious irony of Owen...now that lessons are over, we go to this same pool and instead of splashing and playing, he does drills for himself. He picks a skill and does reps until he can go farther than he's gone before. Coach C had lifeguard duty the other day and just shook his head at Owen. He said, "Umm, where was this motivation last month?" Buried deep, Coach, buried very, very deep. All's well that ends well, right?

Our Home

From McKinney to San Diego to Paris to Houston to Fort Worth to Searcy to Athens to Searcy to Pasadena to Fort Worth to Fresno and to Fort Worth...

Your decrees have been the theme of my songs, wherever I have lived.
Psalm 119:54

Praising God, once again, for His faithfulness, forgiveness, and provision,
shown to me through every age and stage of my life.

Catch Us If You Can...

Summer is in full swing (103 degrees) and so are we. Summer schedules (packing, moving, unpacking, swim lessons, grandparent time, play time, popsicle time) are not for the faint of heart. Still, June is taking it in stride.

Yep, that's how she leaves the house. I said, "Let's go to Sushi's." She said, "I be right back." 2 minutes later, she emerges with her shades, purse, princess ball, and a discovered sucker. A diva moment, for sure.

Aside from grandma visits, we've been busy with a list of to-do's and to-go's.

Here's a pic of June smiling, getting ready for "my Bible class...my animals". That's June-speak for our church's vacation bible school. This year was the story of God's passion for us and promise to us, told through the story of Noah. She is still asking to go to class and wears her shirt as soon as it comes out of the dryer.


Owen has gone crazy from two back to back sessions of swim lessons. See how the chlorine is affecting his brain?

This is the tough guy face.
Even after a 2 year hiatus from swim lessons (or perhaps because of a 2 year hiatus), the daily trip to the Y was met by weeping and gnashing of teeth. Fortunately for his coach, he suspended all surliness during the lesson, tried his best, and summoned courage on a daily basis. We'll keep practicing.

Sadly, we won't be practicing here:
Yes, we have moved and will only be at the beautiful Lost Spurs Ranch pool if we trespass. Almost 2 years there (our 2nd longest stay anywhere as a married couple) didn't make for an easy goodbye. Blessings to our friends and neighbors there; you are loved and will be missed.

We packed the apartment in record time and were blessed to have some Gordon time in the process. Alas, the pack-n-play was at Sushi's, so Aunt Nat thought quickly and made a crib-o-boxes for our sweet nephew. Graco, eat your heart out.



June is naturally affectionate and that love for Gordon combined with wrestling moves learned from Owen leads to headlocks of love.
June, distracted by the TV; Gordon, engaged by the camera. He's so stinkin' cute!
McNeese grandkids, so happy together!
Owen calls him G-Money; Gordon cackles EVERY time he sees Owen walk into a room.
This helmet hair led to a summer buzz cut for Owen. Yikes!

We also caught up with the infamous Skippy Jon Jones at the Roanoke Public Library. Have you ever read one of those books? Loved by the boy, but they wear my tongue out. Anyone else?


As far as the house goes: fireplace removed, lighting installed, tile laid, floors laid, paint on, odd jobs ALMOST done, 3 more boxes to unpack, one garage to organize (our first!!), and an Arnold open house will be here soon! With that and the unpacking, I'm exhausted but happy. Many a morning, I have to slap on my "fake-it-'til-you-make-it" face

but we are loving the life we've been given and cherishing every moment with friends like you!

June's House Hunt

The house hunting bug was contagious. Who needs a realtor, iPhone apps, and Sunday afternoon drives through random neighborhoods when you have June?

According to her, any good house needs

a welcoming entrance:

A good view:


An efficient kitchen layout:

A place to entertain with friends:
(Embry had an important phone call to take)

A nice porch:

Fortunately for us, our new home has all of that and more. Unfortunately for June, Miss Andrea's playhouse was not included in the purchase price.