Lies, Lies, Lies

Okay, so yes I did say I have a lot of post to write but if you've been looking you can see that it's NOT HERE. One word to describe it BRAILLE! I started school a week ago. Since Friday, I have been brailling my eyes out. When my professor said I would be brailling 2 to 3 hours a day I thought she was crazy! Yeah, I am the one that's crazy. I have been seriously brailing like it's my full time job about 30 hours. Praise God that David has been home. He has been a life saver. It is hard to learn a new language when you have 3 year old playing 50 questions. I see now why this is the feeder class. We have already had 3 people drop the class. There are about 25 teachers in the state of Texas going out for this certification. This seems to be a high need field. I am okay for people quitting the program. I was able to receive another grant from SFA because people dropped out (this is the one I wanted at first but, didn't get). It will pay for ALL of my classes (18 hours towards my Masters)!!

If you are wondering if I am ready to quit, no not yet. I do get frustrated because you can only have three mistakes in the entire page. When you make more then than that you need to re-braille the page. I get aggravated with that. I am getting better and feeling confident. I think last week was the toughest week. I have a feeling it won't get any easier but the good news is I CAN make it!

So since I've been home what have I been doing with all that time (besides brailling)? I started to teach Hayden how to read. Yes, I know at 3 is that really necessary. Yes, for him. He is the kid that will pick up a book and tell you the story through the pictures. When that doesn't work he asks you for help or he will say what does C-A-T spell. He loves books, letters, and reading. I have been slacking off. We didn't do anything today or yesterday. He said today before I left for class, "Mom can you teach me again"? Uh YES!! How can you say no to that. I am not saying he will be a fluent reader by the end of summer. I know he knows a lot of the sounds so we will be working on sight words. I brought home all of my school stuff because I am switching schools, so he has been out in the garage playing with everything. He loves the magnetic letter the most.

The next couple of post will be about my couponing and stock piles I have going and Hayden's first trip to the movies.

So I have a video to upload of Hayden and I doing a warm up on the letters sounds, but youtube is uploading slow...so tomorrow!!

Crazy Busy

Yes!! It has been a CRAZY busy week. I can't remember the last time I have felt so overwhelmed. I am glad the work week is behind me and I can OFFICIALLY begin SUMMER BREAK. I have several post brewing and I will have plenty of time to sit down and write. I am going to start where I left off. (I try to capture many things that we do so I can remember the memories). On Friday, Hayden and I left to go to Aunt Ann's. We went and did some errand running and on Saturday David joyed us! It seems like David only joins us when he has days off. We went to the country (It's where my aunt and uncle have property). We had a BBQ and took Hayden swimming. Hayden enjoyed hanging out with the guys. He wasn't inside long...only to eat lunch! OH MY...I see David and I in Hayden. Hayden absolutely loved swimming, which is me. He has David's mind, so smart, clever, and entertaining. He cried when we had to leave (after almost 4 hours of constant swimming). He was jumping in, putting his head underwater, and kicking. I am pretty sure if we were fussing about his floats he would have taken them off. He is very BRAVE...there isn't much he is afraid of. He slept the whole way home. We moved him 5 times and didn't wake up once. On Sunday we went shopping, my favorite. He got some light up shoes which he loves...it is so hard to find light up shoes for WIDE feet. On Monday, Hayden went swimming again and David and I went to the gun range. It is official I can't shoot a target. Many I have terrible aim and I didn't like all the loudness. I enjoyed it when I was the only one. We had a great time. Came back very tired but so worth it. Hayden now thinks he can ride his bike by himself, since we let him at Aunt Ann's. I tried to explain that is was safe because of the gate and there wasn't a street but he isn't buying it!

Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday. I really enjoyed birthdays as a kid. Now its not something I get excited about. I am just another year older. Can't say that's exciting. Yesterday there were 3 different reasons why. The 3rd reason was I got to share my last Kindergarten Graduation with my kiddos. I loved it!! It was so neat to see their parents and family so excited for them. They have all worked really hard. I have such a wide range of abilities in the classroom. They all started at the same level but grew so much. When they leave Kinder they have to be reading a level 4 book. All of my kids WERE on a 4 (or higher)!!! I have some reading on a second grade level. I think that's why I love Kinder so much because the possibilities are endless with them. I have come to realize that the days are getting shorter. I am TRYING to enjoy every minute with them. It is hard because they know school is ending and are WILD!!

Second reason why my birthday was exciting. The whole day was about me!! My students sang "Happy Birthday" to me and made me cards. My team (friends at work) had cup cakes and lunch for me. Family kept calling me and wishing me happy birthday. David took me out to eat to one of my favorite restaurants.

The real reason why it was AWESOME

Money

I try to take pictures of the things I buy and post how much it costs. I have been forgetting to do this. A lot of people are asking does it really save money? Yes it does. That doesn't mean I won't pay full price for anything. Here are last week pictures.


Walgreens

I spent about 4 dollars and some change. If I did my math right it would have cost me around 30ish dollars. I didn't save my receipts to look it up.



CVS

I spent more money here then I usually do. Sunscreen was on sale and we use a ton of it. Sunscreen is something I try to buy name brand. It makes a difference when you get sun burned. I spent around $10.50. It would have cost $35.00.



This was the first time I went to Kroger since they stopped doubling and tripling coupons. I wasn't really "banning" Kroger, but Walmart price matches so there wasn't any reason to go to two store that offer the same price. I spent $1.16. All of the pasta and chips were FREE!! The pasta usually cost a dollar but were on sale for $.50 and then I used a coupon. I only paid for the rice cakes (the were also on sale and I had a coupon but weren't free).

Home

Hayden's spring T-ball season came to an end on Saturday. Hayden has loved every minute playing. I think he enjoyed the coaches the best. Man he talks about his coach and what he learned. It's amazing how much he learned in 8 weeks. He has improved so much. His favorite thing is sliding into home. We signed him up to play summer ball! The same coaches and most of his teammates are coming back. It will be mostly David's doing. I will be at class so he will have to take him to practices. Hayden won't be going to school so playing ball will allow him to interact with kids.


He loves when Scott coaches 3rd base


I love how serious he is.



One of the few I got of him sliding into home!!

A classic dug out photo.

These are all videos of him playing. They are from the last 3 weeks. The last one is of him sliding. My favorite thing is that he didn't do it right so he tried it again!! That's typical for Hayden.









These are all of his party. We went over to his teammates house for food and a swim party. He had a blast. He didn't want to leave.

Change

Sometimes it is very difficult to make change. It doesn't really matter what your changing whether its jobs, lifestyle, or family stuff. I think many times we like to stay where you are comfortable. As many of y'all know the state of Texas is in a huge budget shortfall. That effects me because I am employed by a school district. If you don't live in the Houston area then you might not of heard that there are several school district's letting go teachers. My school district is fortunate not to have that happen. With that being said there are tons of changes being made across the district trying to save every dollar possible. One of changes is that every campus is going to be a Bilingual and GATE (gifted and talented) school. Right now we only have a few campuses that serve these kids, so they are being buses across the district. That means that we will be "losing" teachers at every campus so that we can make room for the Bilingual or GATE teachers need. The teachers that are "leaving" (the extra that have to be moved to make room for the bilingual and gate teachers) will go where teachers have resigned or been transfered. **I hope this is making sense it sounds right in my head**. There will be spots for everyone...they may not get the grade they want but they will have a job. On my campus the last one hired are being moved. There was also a form to fill out if you wanted to be moved. When my principal asked if there was anyone that wanted to be moved I said I did. After talking to him I found out that you weren't guaranteed the grade at the school of your choice. I chose not to fill out the form because I didn't want to get thrown into a grade I didn't want to teach. I told my principal several months ago that I wanted a Special Education job. I went to go talk to the Special Ed Director but there wasn't any VI jobs (what I am going to SFA for) so I figured I would be teaching Kindergarten. I love my kids, the grade, and how much they grow. I hate how there are so many rules, paper work, expectations, drama (with the people I work with), and no accountability. I began looking for other jobs in a different district. I WANTED change. After talking to David and really weighing the pros and cons we decided it would be best if I stayed there. I make more money then any district in the area, I would be able to receive another 1,000 scholarship for next year, and get some of my student loans paid for. So I felt really bummed. I want to go to work and ENJOY everything!! So last week my principal called me in. He started to move teachers around to different grade levels so I figured I was going to be teaching something else. I wasn't to thrilled. He ended offering me something better!!! He asked is I was willing to change campuses to go to a SILC class (students with Autism). I didn't even hesitate to think about it I just said YES!! So it will be a very busy, but enjoyable summer. I will be packing up my old room and moving into something I love and know. I miss Special Ed very much and can't wait to meet my kids. I will be going to my new school late this week or early next week to meet my kiddos. I am EXCITED about the CHANGE. I am a little nervous because it has been awhile since I've taught Special Ed. I am sure it won't take me long to find my "grove". So if you want to help me come set up I won't mind!! Last time it took Amy and I a whole week to get things ready!!!

8 1/2

Yes...it is official there is only 8 1/2 days left of school. I am so excited. The year has flew by fast. I think after Christmas that's when I suddenly realize how fast its going. Yesterday I was reading my class a book (I Love You Forever, it is about no matter how big or how much you grow or change I will always love you and yow will be my baby). I had to stop reading it because I got teary eyed. Every year I get very attached to my group of kiddos it is hard for me to let them go. I think mostly because I don't want them to spend 3 months without hearing I love you and giving them praise. Each child holds special place in my heart. When they go on to first grade I still check on my kids. I want them to realize that school is great place to come and feel loved. They don't hear it enough. A couple of weeks ago I faced one of the most difficult days of my career. I had to call CPS and it tore me up. I've called CPS a few times before but nothing like this. I don't think people realize how difficult and demanding teaching can be. We recently had teacher appreciation week and it was great to get notes from my students. It put a smile on my face to see how much the kids love me. I can honestly say I do it for them. I hate all of the politics, drama, and rules. I never hate the kids in my class, they are there for a reason. I love knowing that a year in my class could change their life forever. What a great blessing it is to know that I am a difference maker in a child's life.