do parents really hate summer?

As I have been recovering from my knee surgery, I have seen countless commercials about going back to school. A paper towel commercial and a Payless shoe commercial are two that really stick out in my mind.

Both commercials have moms who go through various motions and then celebrate their child's heading back to school by putting their feet up.

It really made me wonder--do parents really hate summer? Do they hate those 10 weeks where they have to find alternate child care? Do they hate finding activities for their kids to do in the summer?  Do most parents really just see teachers as overpaid babysitters?

As a teacher and a new mom, I have appreciated this summer more than most. I have gotten to see my daughter do so many cool things this summer--crawl, get two teeth, wave, etc. This has been such a wonderful summer!

It seems like teachers get less and less respect. I know we have all seen the info graphics where someone has broken down how much teachers should get paid...if we got paid for each kid we "babysat."

I know most teachers don't teach because they are going to get rich. Also, I don't know if those advertising executives that come up with the "back to school" commercials are trying to be funny? Maybe they just want people to buy their products? I will tell you--it makes me want to frequent their stores even less/not want to buy what they are selling every time they degrade what I do as a teacher.

Yes, I will welcome your kids back with a warm smile. I really do like my students! I am looking forward to using a lot more technology with my students including twitter and Instagram this year. As a matter of fact, I think this school year will be the best one yet.

I wonder how many parents think that way?  Or, are they really just so happy to send their kids back to school--they don't care?

I hope I am wrong on this one.

Time Marches On...You know you are old when you have to have knee surgery

I have been having some crazy knee pain for the last 4 months and when school ended I had decided to try to get it checked out. 

This summer I have had X-rays, an MRI, and a cortisone shot (which hurt more than my knee pain). My doctor determined that I have some issues with my kneecap. It sublexes (dislocates) and does not stay in the groove like a normal knee. This causes swelling and pain. It used to come and go, but for the last six weeks it has been really swollen and I have not been able to walk without a limp. 

I asked my doctor to write down my symptoms so I could google my options. 

After doing some research and talking to my doctor, I decided that surgery might help. My doctor will be performing a lateral release on Wednesday. He says I should be able to walk on it after 3-4 days and drive after 3 days. 

I hope so. 

I am nervous. I need to be able to take care of my little girl. I really can't do that on crutches. I also need to walk my dog. I can't do that on crutches either. 

At the same time, I figure my knee can't get any worse than it already is. 

Also, we have met our deductible for the year and met our out of pocket maximums too. I guess that is an advantage to having a baby in the same year. 

Keep your fingers crossed for me. 

I have got to get this knee back to "normal." 

Slow down...you are growing too fast!

It is hard to believe that our little baby girl is now 9 months old. 

This month has been the craziest in terms of her growth/developmental milestones. 

At nine months old, she has two teeth in the front. (So far she has handled teething like a champ--a teeny bit of crying, but it really hasn't slowed her down.)

She can wave. She loves to wave at herself (or the baby) in the mirror. She also likes to wave at random people she encounters and inanimate objects. 

She can go to a sitting up position from her belly. 

She can drink out of a straw. 

She has gone from an army crawl to a real crawl. 

Because of her crawling...nothing is safe. She loves the dog and his water bowl. She is constantly on the move. 

She can pull herself up using a little assistance. 

She does nap....typically two short naps and one long nap during the day. 

Sadly, she has been waking up about 2-3 times a night this month. We have been out of town for most of the month, so her sleep schedule has been off. She has been waking up in the middle of the night, she will sit up and then doesn't know how to lay back down. Then she starts crying. I usually go get her. I rock her and put her back to bed. 

I really don't know what is the answer to her sleeping issues, but I am pretty exhausted. We may try the cry it out bit, but we are also suckers for her crying.  

She is such a happy baby, we hate to have her cry. (Don't I sound like a first time mom?) 

Although I am tired, we are so amazed by these changes we see in our baby girl each day. 

Hard to believe in less than three months she will be a year old. 

Slow down baby. 

Learn to Grow...Getting my Master's Degree?

For a long time I had been debating...should I or shouldn't I get my Master's Degree?

In Texas it doesn't really seem to pay off for teachers...whereas in Michigan my mom made a lot more money having an advanced degree. 

But, on the other hand--if I want to get a promotion of some sort or work for a bigger organization/district in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math), it seems like I have to get my Master's. I have been talking about it and debating for almost a year. 

I love school. I love being in school. I love writing papers and since it's been over ten years since I have been in academia, I miss it a bit.  

After doing some research I found the University of Texas at Tyler has a STEM cognate with their Master's in Curriculum and Instruction. It is all online. It also appears that they are quite reasonable. I could get my Master's for less than $6500 as a Texas resident. So, if I decide to teach until I retire--it will only take me 6 years to move up the pay scale enough to pay off my Master's. 

Plus, I have actually been to UT Tyler. I have stayed in their dorms and eaten their dorm food. I lived on their campus for a month while I attended Project Lead the Way training. 

So, I took the plunge. I just applied. I am excited and a little nervous. I am fairly sure I will get in, but I am nervous about how I will be able to do all my mommy tasks and all my "me" tasks + work full time and teach 3 preps. 

I will be ok...right?

Cross country trip with an 8 month old

I am writing this post from my IPhone. We are wrapping up a ten day trip to Michigan with a 2 night stop in Nashville. (Nashville is my favorite new town, by the way.)

I was nervous on how things would go. We have an 8 month old. She is totally 100% fantastic 99% of the time. She really did great--and I think she might be starting to teethe. I saw a little white spot in the front. It hasn't come through yet.

Before the trip, I spent about $50 on new toys and snacks for the trip. However, it turns out I could have just given her empty water bottles and she would have been just as entertained.

One day, after driving about 8 hours, with one more to go, I did have to google a YouTube episode of Sesame Street.

Oh, and I sit in the back seat with her. We tried to let her go solo in the back seat, but she needs to hold someone's hand when she feels lonely.

She did great in the hotels, too. She would get fussy from time to time, but we got her to sleep without  incident. Granted she was in the middle of hubby and I on a king size bed, but I had visions of sleepless nights. Funny, the first night on the road we stayed in a Marriott in Little Rock, Arkansas. (Thank you Priceline.) It was a huge king size bed with many fluffy pillows. We put her in middle of the bed and she sprawled out like a queen.

So do I recommend road trips with all babies? Maybe if you are willing to invest in earplugs and don't mind hearing a baby cry..or you could sit in the backseat.

Just make sure you have room in your car to change a diaper. So many restaurants and truck stops don't have changing tables or if they do--they are pretty sketchy.

I can't handle two babies....(even to babysit)

Summer is in full swing, which means it is time for the teachers in our district to attend obligatory professional development.

I have been to one day and my sister (who is also a teacher) has been to five days. Since she has a three month old and my mom is recovering from shoulder surgery, I have been the primary caregiver.

I cannot handle two babies. I am not cut out for it.

Kedzie is 8 months old and Leila (my niece) is 3 months old.

Today I was trying to prepare for a 11 day road trip—trying to pack and get all of our stuff around, plus watch the two girls—PLUS clean my house. And I was watching two babies.

This is how the five days have gone….One would start crying as soon as the other stopped. They would both cry at the same time. They would both be hungry at the same time. As my sister warned me, they have bottle envy. Oh they do. One would see the other’s bottle and burst into tears. But, they would not nap at the same time.

Poor Leila spent a lot of time in the swing. Kedzie may or may not have been playing with a Wii remote.

I don’t know how people with multiples stay sane.

I might need a drink.

But, my house is finally clean. And, I was able to shower by the time my husband made it home from work.

Both of the babies are also alive.

That is positive.

My advice to my students from this year...what I won't tell them, but should

Dear students of Lab 199,

This year has not been easy. For many of you, it was your first year of middle school. You had to learn a lot about following middle school rules. You had 7 teachers, some nicer than others. I hope when you look back at my class, you learned something. I hope you enjoyed some of the projects. I hope you made some new friends.

I enjoyed watching you work together and solve different problems.

I just don't feel like I have been myself this year. Granted, I had a baby in October--but when I came back and realized some of you had lost your minds, we had to go back to the basics. Sitting down at our computers when we type, coming into Lab 199 quietly, not horseplaying, and also not arguing with your teacher when she asks you to do something--those are simple things to do--those things also keep your teacher (me) happy. I really don't like to be mean. It makes me sad to raise my voice.

And to my quiet, sweet students who always do the right thing--please don't change. Your teachers appreciate you for following directions and working hard--all the time. We don't forget that.

To all of you, thank you for letting me into your lives. I have been so impressed with your E-Portfolio Reflections. I am sad I waited until the last month to really learn about your hopes and your dreams.  (Would you have shared them with me in August? Maybe we needed our own time to warm up to each other?)

Your career ideas have been so interesting--reading about where you want to go and your plans for your lives. Don't loose sight of those dreams. Let them guide you when things get tough.

Middle school is not the greatest, and high school is not the end of the world. College (if you choose to go) is awesome and having a baby after you are older (like 30ish) is a better idea than if you had one when you were still in high school. Love that baby. PLEASE, take better care of him or her than you did with your "flour babies" in 8th grade.

You may not know what you want to be when you are in 6th grade, you may not know what you want to be when you are 30ish--but if you are happy--if you smile at least a few times a day--you will be ok.

At some point in your life, move somewhere away from the place you were born. Don't be afraid to take a chance. You will fail. You will also figure it out, and when you do it is the most amazing feeling ever.

Be nice. You never know when you might need a job reference or a letter of recomendation.

Have a good summer. Watch out for cars.

I will see you in August. 70% of you will be in my class again next year--because you chose to deal with me again and sign up for year two. Thank you for that.

Let's make next year even better.

Sincerely,

Your teacher