Four Years of Teaching & First Weekend of Summer Vacation!

If you look closely, you will see the hand of one of the 6th graders, waving to me through the bus window!

This past Friday marks the conclusion of my 4th year in teaching, as school let out for summer vacation. The past 3 weeks have been so hectic, chaotic, and insane- rush, rush, rush- that I actually have slept very little. Despite being on "vacation" a whole 48 hours, my sleep schedule has been very out-of-whack. I slept most of the day yesterday, and awake most the night last night. I hope this crazy no-sleep thing gets kicked back to normal and very soon! It poured rain all day yesterday, as well- which is extremely unusual for northern Arizona. I had the windows open, and the cool air was so refreshing & peaceful. Still wish I'd have been able to sleep better...

I've been thinking a lot, these days, about what I want to accomplish with my immediate future. I don't want to allow another summer to go by, and be as unhappy as I was at this time last year.

• Priority - finish up the last details on paperwork at school. Need to turn in laptop by Fri.
• 2nd priority - gather up school materials so to prepare for new carpeting put into classroom. Already boxed, need to move above floor level.
• 3rd - gather up garage-sale-worthy items. My parents' neighborhood is having its once-yearly, 'hood-wide sale next weekend. Can't argue with an excuse for extra money! I know that I have waaaaay too much extra stuff that I simply do. not. need!
• 4th - establish a summer budget. I don't want my lump sum paycheck to taunt me into shopping sprees! I also want to travel someplace new & have an adventure this summer!
• 5th - finish paperwork to send off to Flagstaff. Inquire with the necessary people & hopefully do some observations.
• 6th - Schedule appointment with NAU's Special Education / Assistive Technology Program. I really want to find out more about their Graduate program.

This list is plenty long enough to start out with!

As a side note, I peeked into a blog titled "The Beautiful Cayman Cindy." Her mother shares the life of her beautiful daughter, Cayman, who was born with Hydrocephaly. I remember learning about the condition briefly in my "Low Incidence" undergraduate SpEd classes @ NAU, but haven't come across the condition since those years. This little girl has come soooo far from where she began, and is making leaps & bounds at her own comfortable speed. She has an amazing cast of supporters helping to ensure that her "film" is the best show that it can be. Mostly, this blog left me wishing SO. MUCH. that the students I've worked with had such a supportive cast behind them every step of the way. What a lucky, amazing little girl. I'm awed, truly. (I'd link to her blog if I knew how- but I'm illiterate when it comes to linky tricks like that! Ha!)

I'm hopeful to get some of that paperwork accomplished today. Nothing difficult, fortunately, just extremely time consuming... I may also start a load of laundry. Sleeping on freshly washed, fabric-softened sheets is sure to guarantee a sucessful night of sleep, right??

For Today: May 20th, 2009

For Today

Outside my window: The sky is gray and cloudy, and the sun is almost fully set. The air is quiet.
I am thankful for: Honey lemonade from New Frontiers
From the kitchen: Sesame bagels and cream cheese
I am wearing: My "life is good" jammies- I always change when I get home from school.
I am reading: "Look Me in the Eye," by John Elder Robison. It's a wonderful and personal tale of a man's perception of the world while strggling with Asperger's Syndrome.
I am hoping: That I can get all of my paperwork completed this week...
I am creating: Helped my mom plan the menu of food we'll eat on our river trip this June!
I am hearing: The washing machine on the rinse cycle, the tv on low volume
Around the house: Sayde is sleeping next to the couch where I am laid out, my cup of lemonade sitting on the table. I have a pile of clean socks to match on the dining room table and a dishwasher full of dishes to put away. Small chores such as those can wait until this weekend- oh wait- I mean- summer vacation!!
One of my favorite things: The coffee creamer called "Italian Sweet Cream." So delicious with my Starbucks espresso roasted coffee every morning. Mmm.
A few plans for the rest of the week: Continuing the file organization/paperwork completion at school. I am hoping to get my list of "to-do's" crossed off, and to keep having the kids boxing up stuff for me. (They will work very eagerly for food!) So much still to do. SO. MUCH.
A happy thought for the day: Evening here, as it's nearly 8 pm. My happy thought for today was getting to see one of my (former) 8th grade students, unexpectedly. BP held its promotion last night, so this student now is now officially a 9th grade freshman. My timing was perfect as I drove by his house as he was at the mailbox. I loved getting to see his smile and hear his laugh at least one more time... It truly brings such happiness to my heart. I will miss him fiercely.

Perhaps I'll put together a post of end-of-year photos... It's been a crazy last few weeks, but they've been FUN. (Mostly. ha.) 1 1/2 more days of the school-year. Hallelujah!

Thoughtful Thursday

If you knew exactly what was around the bend,

would you go anyway?

Comments welcome!

Show Us Where You Live Friday - LIVING ROOMS

This is something I saw occurring on another blogger's page (http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/), and I thought it looked like a lot of fun. If you'd like to join (even after the "Friday" factor- like I did), please do! (Click on the picture above to get to Kelly's blog, where I found this event.) I missed the Kitchen edition last week.

Here is my living room!

Yes-- it's small. Yes-- it's a rental. Yes-- it (often) needs to be vaccummed, and yes-- it has the world's sweetest dog laying there. But best of all, it is all Mine to enjoy! Outside of being in my bed & asleep, this room is where I spend the majority of my time while I'm at home. I have my laptop here, which is where I do paperwork for school or play around on facebook or the internet. TV & movies. I can fall asleep so easily on that couch. I bought the four prints above the couch with my very first paycheck after college (love those bi-monthly deposits!). They are various paintings of Italian countryside, with my favorite colors. The green frame above my (garage sale) entertainment center is a watercolor of Heidelberg, Germany, that I bought from the original artist. Above that city is the first castle that I ever experienced, and remember so clearly. I was in SO much awe on that day - Europe was brand-new to me at that time! My eyes were literally widening every second. LR: Various photographs of loved family & friends. And though it's hard to see above- I have a stunning view of Sedona's famous Bell Rock from that spot on the couch. My living room is sunny and brightly lit during the day, and cool & dark at night. It's become a safe retreat for me, and a quiet haven after a hectic day full of loud & demanding teenagers and crazy staff members. I love that I share it with the best little rez dog in the world, my sweet Sayde. She loves to lay on her pillows, and does so for hours as she watches the quail, birds, and lizards go by in the backyard. My only request is that I wish I could paint the walls; these are currently a pinky-tan, with a lot more pink than tan. It is much mmore apparent in person, not so much in pictures. I notice it all the time, even after 2 years of living here... Fortunately it doesn't show well in pictures!

Thanks for stopping by! Friends and family are welcome here, anytime!

Leavin' on a jet plane...

I'll be back from Chicago on the 28th! Hopefully a fun-filled, photographic post of my family & explorations will come afterwards. (I am hopeful for much smoother travels this time around!)

Brief Update

Awake at 4:00 am to tackle school paperwork... yet here I am making a brief update online. Isn't that the way it usually works?? :)

Brief updates:

-April 22nd-29th, I will be in Chicago with family. We are reuniting there to have a burial for my "grandma," my step-dad Peter's mother. I am really excited to see my cousins again, as it has been far too long; also very excited to travel to a place I've never been. Plans for the week include touring the house that Peter/Siblings grew up in (Winnetka), visiting Lake Michigan, Navy Pier, possibly the Art Institute/Field Museum. We have family gathering from Paris, Montreal, Minneapolis, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, and the Bahamas (to name a few). Family reunions were among Helen's very favorite things in the world- and she would be so thrilled to have us gathering to celebrate such an amazing woman, so long as we were all together. As I said, I'm very excited about the trip. It will be a perfect excuse to get out of Sedona for awhile, and to rejuvenate my already-exhausted mind & body for the last few weeks of the school year.



-Been slamming down paperwork like there's no tomorrow, these past few weeks. After working from 7:30-4:00 each day, I typically spend 2-3 hours at home working on IEPs, meeting notes, progress reports, documentation, or finishing the neverending project of organizing student files. I've got 3 IEP meetings scheduled for this week, for example. One down, one today, and one tomorrow. Sigh. It's a lot to keep up with, and to keep ahead of, but it's getting done somehow or other.

-Finally am putting the finishing touches on my job applications to Flagstaff Unified School District & Prescott/Humboldt School District(s). I know it is a crummy time to be looking for a new job, with all the tension of the statewide education budget crisis. I still have to be in charge of my own personal budget- and Sedona is NOT working out in that category. I must look at other, less expensive ways of living. Especially since I still am paying for the house in Goodyear that I own, as it's currently not rented. The daily grind and expenses really do add up- even as a party of ONE. I really dislike it, but there really aren't a whole lot of options. Fortunately, though, I can work just about anywhere as a Special Education teacher...


-My Junior High students have spent the last few weeks tackling a junior-high required extensive research paper, for both Language Arts & Social Studies classes. While not every student of mine will live up to his potential (frustratingly so!!!), I am immensely proud of some of my students in this challenge. Many of them do qualify for needing special support in Reading and Writing. They've worked SO hard to research and investigate their topics, interpret articles, write their drafts, ask for help when they need it, and to go through edit after edit after edit. They've done all of this with their heads held high, and their confidence has grown leaps and bounds each day. It's been such an amazing process to watch, and I truly do think the kids are proud of THEMSELVES. What an amazing thing to watch, and be a part of, as their teacher!! These kids do have learning disabilities, and they're motivated and encouraged to tackle on an extensive, 450-point research project. It's been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G and soooooo encouraging!
(It is times like these, and with as wonderful kids as these, that make it REALLY difficult for me to approach the path of possibly leaving Sedona- and them.)

- Time to get that paperwork done. Adios!

April 2nd - World Autism Awareness Day!

Did you know…
1 in 150 children is diagnosed with autism
1 in 94 boys is on the autism spectrum
67 children are diagnosed per day
A new case is diagnosed almost every 20 minutes
More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer combined
Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
Autism costs the nation over $35 billion per year, a figure expected to significantly increase in the next decade
Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases
Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism
There is no medical detection or cure for autism

Watch for the Red Flags of Autism

(The following red flags may indicate a child is at risk for atypical development, and is in need of an immediate evaluation.)

In clinical terms, there are a few “absolute indicators,” often referred to as “red flags,” that indicate that a child should be evaluated. For a parent, these are the “red flags” that your child should be screened to ensure that he/she is on the right developmental path. If your baby shows any of these signs, please ask your pediatrician or family practitioner for an immediate evaluation:


No big smiles or other warm, joyful expressions by six months or thereafter
No back-and-forth sharing of sounds, smiles, or other facial expressions by nine months or thereafter
No babbling by 12 months
No back-and-forth gestures, such as pointing, showing, reaching, or waving by 12 months
No words by 16 months
No two-word meaningful phrases (without imitating or repeating) by 24 months
Any loss of speech or babbling or social skills at any age