Random Tid Bits

1. I'm not really starting out the semester the best. Usually I have more done, but we had one week less on the break because Thanksgiving was so late. 


2. On Sunday Mica was talking about how they go back to school on Monday. I rolled with it. I sent them to bed early, from all the late nights previously. We got up early. Mica went to the bus stop. When Isaak's carpool didn't seem to get there, I had him call her. Turns out there was no school. We called Mica, who was wondering why he was alone at the bus stop to tell him it was a Teacher Planning Day. The award for the best parenting of the year goes to us!
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. On Tuesday the bus didn't show up for Mica, so Travis had to take the kids to school. Thankfully there's enough room in our Subaru for his bus stop kids.


4. I'm ready for wellness. Isaak had Strep. Mica had some nasty cold. I swore it was Strep because he got it after Isaak. He never got a fever. His sore throat came and went.
   
   My Mom and Dad were really sick. My Mom had to go in to get a chest x-ray, was put on antibiotics and a steroids.
   
   My Sister Terra's whole family got Influenza A. It's the worst in the US, right here in Douglas County. I was worried about my nephew Emerson, with having an already compromised immune system. He's ok.
   
   One of my Uncles has been in and out of the hospital, since before Thanksgiving. He's having internal bleeding, crazy number for his hemoglobin. He had to get an iron fusion, blood, and more than one colonoscopy.
   
   One of my Aunts had a UTI.
   
   One of my cousins turned jaundice. They rushed him off to the hospital. He had no health insurance. Too old to be on his parent's, went to college later, so he doesn't have a job to help. I'm sure an expensive scan later...he had to get his gallbladder out. The surgery was just this week. He got health insurance through school; as of January 1. It was like cement. They had to keep him in a day later than normal.
   
   Have you had any sickness in your neck of the woods, so to speak?
5. That whole thing with students complaining about a few questions on my test last semester...lingered. The Education Director emailed me about it 3 times. Every time was right before the end of the day. His mailbox was full, so I couldn't email him about it. He never called me in to talk to me. I feel odd about that. A girl had problems with 4 questions on the final exam. There were 120 questions on the exam. Yes one was picky, so I'm changing that. The rest were not. First thing on Mon. I see the girl. I smiled and said, "Hi!" She looked down, and didn't say anything. I'm thinking this is more her problem, than mine. If she's going to get that upset over 4 questions on a test, how is she going to be in the work world? 

Random Tid Bits

1. Isaak and I got our first head cold in the school year. My head feels fuzzy - like bees are flying around in it, and I'm stuffy. Isaak has been snotty big time, has no appetite, and feels feverish at night.
   
   I can tell fall is on it's way, plus school started, which is all breeding ground for sickness.


2. I figured out what I want to do for the big blow up project this year. Every year I find an image, or shoot my own image. My boss prints it out on the large format printer. I cut it up in squares, or rectangles. Then each student gets a square from each poster to recreate larger. I don't tell them what it is. They don't get to see it until the end when it's hung up. This year I had a hard time deciding. This year I didn't use my own photos. I found images that were so great by the Illustrator Tom Whalen. I love his work. The images below belong to Tom Whalen. When my students do a little piece they are not recreating the whole thing, nor are they selling the work.
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. I got the book Wonder By R.J. Palacio for Mica to read. Normally he reads the books I pick out with kind of an annoyed look. Like he's thinking, Geez Mom! Let me pick out my own books! This one I kept seeing displayed at Barnes and Noble, and the library. He can't put the book down. Travis once said, "Ok you're not doing the tasks you ask us to do! Stop reading!" I know...every parent wishes that they had this problem. If you're looking for a good book to read...Wonder might be it.
   
   
    
4. Isaak watched The Boxcar Children movie at school. He came home, and was super excited to read the 1 The Boxcar Children book that he has. Maybe I'll have to check out more of those. Typically he's not one that likes to read.


5. I printed out a coupon for Michael's. It's a 50% off one. I feel the need to use it. What would you buy at a craft store?