I cured my fat ankles!!!

Thank you, God, for book club.

This is our little set up for the big night.  Every seat was full, save one.  It was so nice getting together with other ladies (lots of mammas!) and discussing things we found interesting.  Of course, I felt like I couldn't remember anything from the book--even character names.  It was sad how my brain was working.  I guess because all of my energy went into work for the day and then making sure I had things ready for food/cleaning prep that I just had no cells left to retain book information.  It was still a great evening.  I met some new ladies and caught up with "old" ladies--it was really great.  I enjoy a good book club--I need to remember this so that it's not another year before I go back (I hadn't been in a year....eeeek).

We got word that B didn't get the job in Tennessee.  We are horribly disappointed and sad...but not much we can do.  At least we'll be in one spot for the birth of our baby and will get to be close to family.

Work is going........interestingly.  I am so overwhelmed that I've given up on putting together a schedule and am just going to go randomly see classes for now so that I'm getting some time with my students.  It is impossible to have a schedule for gifted inclusion (unless you are assigned to either one subject area or one teacher...or perhaps one grade).  Doing four grades and up to four content areas each is insane.  I am going to pick and choose periods and just go see some kids.  The kids are what make teaching so great, so time for some greatness instead of brain wrack and stress and paperwork.

In way more exciting and happier news:  Mrs. B is well on her way to finishing the baby bedding!!!!  It is unreal!  All she has left are the bed skirt (which is a serious pain to make in general--God bless her) and the ties for the bumper.  Here are some pictures!!!!!  YYAYYY!!!

Yes, she even made the sheet!!  I will get a close up of the pattern on the bumper when its finished.

Just a little taste--I love it.  The cream fabric has tiny pink flowers on it, so it's not too plain.  It's so old fashioned and simple and sweet--and it matches the crib beautifully!!  It goes well with the rest of the room too, which is awesome since I had no idea if what I was picking out would go with the bedding.  She's a talented seamstress--she made our sister-in-law's bedding too (baby bedding--they're due September 15th!!) and its awesome too!  She also makes beautiful gowns and she's making curtains...I mean, she's just great.  More pictures as things develop!

Oh--I cured my fat ankles!!  I discovered that on the weekends I wasn't having nearly as much swelling, even though I was sitting/walking/standing approximately the same amount as during the week.  I figured it had to be something I was eating--and voila!  I was having decaf coffee every morning for work (as though it would be the same as regular--ha) and wasn't having any during the weekends.  I tried it out Monday, and even though it felt like my feet were hurting and were tight--they were still only half of the size as the previous week.  Today too--hardly any swelling by comparison.  I suppose coffee was dehydrating me so I was retaining fluids instead of flushing fluids?  Anyway--I can do without decaf if it means less gross feet.  It's too hot to slap boots on!

Survival of the Swollen...

I made it through a full week of work, although only three included lots of me working.  Next week I may not make it.

My ankles were....hmm...elephantile today.

B:  "You officially qualify for a cart at Walmart"  (meaning the electric ones...so I can ride around--nice!)

My feet are elevated to the max, and I'm about to read and crash (I've already eaten and showered--it's 7:05pm).

I am finally getting some idea of what inclusion will look like for gifted students, and it's making things way happier for me.  Next week I'll actually get to go into classrooms and be productive with students.  WOW--that's fast.

In other news......

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Bruh...my GUMS!

I went to the dentist today...8 months pregnant....

Aren't dentists aware of sensitive gums during pregnancy?  They all kept saying, "You know when you're pregnant your hormones are all out of whack and your gums become sensitive."

HELLO--if you know that, why are you stabbing them with metal hooks??  Do you hate pregnant women?

I also heard, "and pregnant women cry all the time."....hello....you are talking to a PREGNANT WOMAN.  Did you think that would make me laugh?  Plus, I will have you know, I haven't been emotional in quite some time.  Happy, yes.  Sometimes very irritable--but not sappy lately (although, of course I went through this stage a while back and may go through it again soon).

Not only were the hooks going after my gums, but then while polishing my teeth she was resting the metal handle portion of the polisher (is there a technical name?) on my teeth!  She rested a rapidly vibrating piece of metal on the tips of my teeth.....can that really be good for teeth?  Isn't she supposed to be concerned about my teeth more than me?

That's my dentist vent.  I'm home recovering now.

I made some brownies for my Mother-in-law and the crew at her house because seriously...dinner last night couldn't have been more appreciated!  Now I just have to manage to drive myself over there....and it's not lookin' good.  Maybe tomorrow?  Hm...maybe later tonight I'll have a burst of energy.  HAHA.  I am more than happy to bake in exchange for dinner.  I know that seems silly--why not just cook instead of bake?  But I can bake super fast; I'm not so good with cooking and it messes up tons of dishes.  As you may have noticed by the comment from a great person on my last post--I am lucky enough to be surrounded by awesome people, so I will be baking a lot in the future.

Work's going well.  Met some more kids today, talked to some teachers...meeting with the rest of the kids tomorrow and some teams...hopefully being productive.

Here's my thing this year:  Get some serious publicity!  I emailed a ton of people at the local university to get some contacts going and maybe get some cool presentations or projects for my kids.  We want to get the word out and make the program worth something so that we can get our numbers up and make the program better each year.  I am way excited about that.  Having a baby right at the beginning of my year will make it tough, but I'm going to try super hard to get things in motion before I leave and at least maintain them while I'm out.

Now on to dinner with Dr. B, the great.  He cooked.  I guess he can have a brownie.  I get one too, since I have no cavities.

Pooped.

I made it to work for 6:40--it took 8 minutes to get there.  Rational thinking would lead you to believe that I could leave at 6:47 and be there on time, but the traffic screws it up if I leave later than 6:30.  BOOOOO.  I am worn out.

I did paperwork ALL DAY.  Special education requires tons of files and insane records, and we just so happen to be revamping our records to make sure they are in compliance.  So, it was a long tedious day, but I loved it.  I enjoyed being productive and having some idea of what I was supposed to be doing at all times.  Yes.  Plus I got it all finished (except for 6 kids, which will have to wait because paperwork is tied up somewhere in transition).  I like tedious things sometimes.

In other news:
I met one of my students today and she made the day so much better.  Teaching would be awful if it weren't for the kids.  Thanks for being there kids.  She's got a sort of dry/sarcastic personality, but was genuinely excited about having gifted services this year (even if it's not as much as she deserves).  I'm way more excited now.  Rock on.

It's 9:08....an hour past when I should have been asleep (because I am that tired).

I would like to give major props to my Mother-in-law before I go to bed.  She totally had us over for dinner (spaghetti and awesome, huge meatballs) AND is making our baby bedding, and it is beautiful!  So much prettier than I even imagined.  I love it!  Plus, if she hadn't had us over for dinner we would not have eaten because I was so tired that I would've passed on food if it meant less things to do.  Thanks Mrs. B!

Summer: Over.

Ahhh...100 degrees outside and back to work.  I will miss you free time.  I am awaiting your arrival cooler weather.  Hurricanes:  continue to stay away!

This time work is completely vague.  I have been directed to do "inclusion" with my gifted students, but still have no clear view of how to pull that off without disrupting class.  I will be internet searching all day tomorrow for the answers in my..............OFFICE!!!  I do share with two other people, but luckily they aren't home based at my school, so I should have it for now.  I won't need it much once I start teaching, but it's so nice to have a little space to do some work and have some quiet for IEP's and paperwork madness.

Oh yes.  It will be madness.  The paperwork is a jungle, and my machete will be ready!

That sounded more violent and aggressive than I meant...and I'm not particularly feeling that adventurous just yet.  More like my butter knife will be ready.

Today this thought actually ran through my mind (be prepared to think I'm a moron):

"Thank God I'm wearing a dress.  I can just keep spilling crumbs and they'll land in the dress and then I can pick it up and shake it out later."

Yeah....slob.  I laughed at myself after thinking that because I knew it was pretty trashy...but then I finished my brownie and shook my dress out outside.  So...I laughed at the truth.

I am learning to censor myself a little...so I can't comment a whole bunch on my job other than to say:
1. I work with a handful of pretty awesome people with great senses of humor and a good focus.
2. I've only met one student, but this student really made me excited about the opportunity I have to expand some horizons for some kids this year.

I'm definitely more excited about the actual teaching part of my job now that I've met a student, but I'm still so confused on what it is that people want me to do.  I am hoping to find some good models and examples tomorrow during my search time.  I can't meet kids on the first day since there is so much going on in their classes--new routines, expectations, etc.  Plus there's the whole business side of things the first day--attendance when you don't know kids' names is a lot more time consuming.

I went from job to slob to job.

What else?  I'm exhausted.  I am FOR REAL going to be in bed in about 22 minutes (6 pm).  I will be reading to relax for a bit, but then will hopefully be asleep around 7:30 because I have to be at work even earlier than the afore mentioned 6:55 tomorrow due to first day insanity.  Parking could go awry, and this big ole pregnant lady ain't walking too far in the heat in the morning before her first day starts--I will not start off the year by sweating like a cow!  I plan on wearing my suit coat, so I really want to make sure that I stay as cool as possible.  Shoooo.

I have some things I want to vent about...things that frustrate me, but at this point they're directly related to my livelihood, so I will just have to bite the bullet!  Teachers sure put up with some crap to keep their jobs...
(I personally don't have much crap to deal with actually--I guess I just witness other people's crap and get aggravated.  The use of the word "crap" in this section has been taken a little too far.)

Back to school....back to school...

Back to your old high school to feel like a big ole fool.

Yeah...I have no classroom and no real department, so I just kind of wander around and leech onto the English department for now.  My 9th grade English teacher is department chair (she's got a great sense of humor and I remember really enjoying that in 9th grade--I always felt like she was my smartest teacher), so her and the rest of that department are pretty cool.  I generally just don't know anyone else, so where else would I go?

I hate that!  I miss having a classroom.  And, a set schedule, for that matter!  I will be making my schedule up based on kids' needs, class schedules, and minutes per kid.  It's going to be insane.

I'm meeting my first student tomorrow (a day before the kids get there) to talk to him about what he'd like to do or get from the gifted program.  I'm looking forward to it, but I'm not sure how mature he'll be about it--how many kids would say, "I'd really like to learn more about..." in high school?  Maybe I was just super lazy, and kids are actually like that.

Anyway--this wasn't technically my first day since I was in meetings all day Thursday and Friday, so I'm still counting this as summer.  Wednesday will officially end summer.  Especially since I'll have to be AT WORK at 6:55....versus today (8:30) and tomorrow (8:00).

AT WORK AT 6:55!!!!?????


I have some serious concerns about this.  SERIOUS.  I will let you know how successful I am after week one.  I am sure nerves and excitement will get me up for the first few days...but when that wears off....what then??

After work I had a doctor's appointment.  All good news--healthy as a horse.  Doctor asked about birth plans--told her we want to go natural and I found out that you can birth in the tubs now!!!  Yayyy!!  I may have a water birth like a total hippie (no offense--especially since that'll be me now)!  I'm so excited!  We went to a birthing class associated with the hospital a week ago and they said you couldn't, but it has JUST been approved.  This is big news for South Louisiana.  We're moving into a less medicated era!  :)

We've also discussed the squatting position for delivery and using the "birth bar" for that.  That seems like the most natural position to me, but I'm not sure my thighs can support my weight in that position while using so much energy for so long....I don't want to collapse or anything.

After the doctor I went shopping.  I have an addiction.  It's rough.  It's cardigans.  I bought another one....and some colorful tanks to wear underneath.  I currently own black and white everything, so I figured I should spice it up so it didn't look like I was wearing the same outfit daily at work.  We'll call it a work wardrobe.  The cool part was that I didn't have to buy a maternity size and some of the stuff was too big--even at 8 months pregnant.  WOW.  This is the skinniest I've felt in a while (boy does that tell you something).  I think it's because I opted to eat just one piece of pizza today for lunch instead of the 3 I wanted.

Good job me.

(really i just didn't want to retain 8 pounds of water for my doctor's appointment in the afternoon)

Lastly:  Video games.

I hate 'em usually.  They suck my husband in for hours and I miss him.  Well, tonight we took the PS3 to mom and dad's (they're not here tonight) and hooked it up to their huge tv to play.  It was a fun little date idea.  I think I drove B insane because I'm horrible.

It's too much going on--I can't keep track of which character I am or which way I'm facing or how to turn around fast enough to react.  It's so overstimulating that I get stressed out and cuss like a sailor.  Even simple games.  It's sad really.  However, now I get why students are so bored with classrooms--there is absolutely nothing going on in comparison to how much is going on in a computer game.  Sheesh.

B's playing "Flower" now--it's really a pretty game.  You are the breeze, and you blow petals through fields and each time you hit a flower a little musical cue plays and you pick up more petals.  As you go through the game you pick up lots of petals and watch them blow through the air and you get rid of dead grass patches or ruined industrial garbage.  It's pretty--and the music is pretty.  I think it'll be a cool game for him to play with his little girl one day.  Awwww.  So far this is the only game I've really approved of for our child.

Side note:  We don't have cable/watch tv at all.  I'm way excited about this for our baby--I'm hoping we can really get her into reading and activity.  However, I do want to get the Sesame St. Old School DVD's (some of them) for her--those were always so awesome.  That way we'll have something when she gets older that we know we like.

Okay--LOTS of words tonight and no pictures.  Here's a picture of the cardigan I bought.  :)

Oldnavy...they apparently have a billion cardigans for sale right now....which is bad for a cardigan junkie.  I don't know when I adopted this style, but I could wear a cardigan every day...and almost do.  Sorry future coworkers.

Let the Fun Begin!!!

I went to my first meeting as a teacher at my new school today (or...new place of employment, since I attended school there for four years)!  I have lots of feelings about it...

1.  The coach epidemic was more prevalent than I had hoped...at least two of the new people hired are strictly PE...even though half of the staff is PE already...how does the school afford this and justify it?  Am I going to get fired for asking this?  Sorryyyy.

2. I remember being a student there and hating it...I hope that doesn't affect how I interact with kids.

3. Some of my teachers are still there...will that make me more of a wuss and less confident?  There are also former classmates working there, and I was one goofy fool back then.  I still am, but not in a professional setting....will seeing those two worlds collide be weird and make me act dumb?  The good news about both of these:  I can blame it on pregnancy hormones!!

4. Gifted education isn't a priority at all at this school (or maybe it is for some people now and that's why I'm here).  I am going to be fighting a battle to get these kids what they need--but not necessarily a battle with teachers and resources and administration.  The kids themselves (older ones at least) are going to be a little put off by the idea of trying something new that requires more thought or more effort or possibly even some work on their part.  What high school kid wants more to be responsible for?  I have a job ahead of me as far as planning goes.  I may have to plan something different for each individual in a lot of cases.

5. A lot of people don't know what gifted is...will I be teaching staff about this at some point so we can maybe get a little support for the kids?  Will the kids feel labeled and get made fun of?  I think that's more of a middle school problem than high school--what high schooler doesn't want to be acknowledged for being smart?

Okay--enough feelings.

At the "training" today there were some memorable quotes:
"There's me some Language"
"Front row for Billy Sue"......Billy......and Sue.......is it just me on this?

I had to get fingerprinted for the fourth year in a row this year.  Maybe I should chill on the job switching, huh?  Last year was for the Catholic school I was working for--not a new job, but still....I feel like a criminal.

Highlight of the day:  pop tarts for lunch--blueberry!!

Sad, I know.  It'll be better once B gets home and I've had some time to lay around.  I don't know how I'll do on a full day of work.  I just did 9-3 today!

The constant rain is helping me relax a lot--love it! (but want it to stop before I have to go to work regularly)

Working Out the Prenatal Back Pain

I have been super lazy as of late, and my back is definitely reflecting that laziness in the form of pain!  My goodness it's hard to go to bed when you know you'll be uncomfortable all night and wake up with one side in enough pain that you can't walk right away.  I am not sixty!

I realized that the only difference was my level of activity, so I figured I'd better bump it back up!  My good friend leant me copies of Prenatal Yoga, Prenatal Pilates (10 minute workouts), and the Perfect Pregnancy Workout.  I figured that even the heat couldn't be a good excuse not to workout at all when I have these at the house.

Perfect Pregnancy Workout (with Karyne Steben):  Hardcore, but soooo helpful!  The squats and lunges and hip circles and pelvic tilts and "keep it up exercise"--they are all bearable (even for a larger lady like myself) and make you feel so strong and in control of your body.  I highly recommend this one--skip any parts that seem too difficult, and you'll still get a great workout all around.  I like that she works out your arms too--we'll need those for when the baby arrives!

Prenatal Pilates (with Lizbeth Garcia):  Great!!  10 minute bits--do whatever you have time for and want to focus on.  There's a great segment on flexibility that helps fix my back aches and stretch things out so that I feel like that baby has more room to move (and thus--I can breathe a lot better).  Plus, they're short, so you can't really make up an excuse not to do it.

Prenatal Yoga (with Shiva Rea):  I haven't tried it.  I've never done yoga (or pilates for that matter) before, and this one requires a chair, a block, a strap, some folded blankets....I rarely want to take that much time to prep for a workout and our living room doesn't accommodate that much stuff.  It looks like it would be a good idea though.

Anywho--just after doing some of the first workout and then a the flexibility pilates I had no back pain.  It's insane how much they helped and how quickly.  Now I have no excuses to be a lazy moo on the couch.

However....that's what I did today.  B had a big interview out of town and we stayed up all night getting him prepared, then woke up at 3:30 to a really crazy lightning storm, then he left at around 5:30 and I half slept until about 8:30 when I realized he hadn't called to say if he landed or not.  (He had--whew.)  I guess the stress of his interview rubbed onto me and I've been a mess all day--unable to focus on anything.  It's over, he is pleased with how he did, and he'll be back in about four more hours.  :/  Long day!

As far as my job goes:  I have no idea what is going on!  I went to get the paperwork to fill out and will go return it tomorrow.  However, I just found out that there's a new teacher orientation at my school tomorrow.  Seems like I should be there for that!  I don't know when it starts, but I may have to go in.  This is the most unorganized I've ever been at the beginning of a school year, and it's extra crazy because I don't have a classroom and can't plan anything until I meet my students.  I don't even know how much I'll get to see them-it will vary student to student.  Panic.  We start next week.

I miss having a classroom, by the way.  It's been a long time.  I think I will do well with my gifted enrichment position, but booyyyyy what I wouldn't give to go back to teaching high school social studies in a classroom.  I genuinely feel like that is something I am very good at, and it's something I really enjoy.  It is nearly impossible for me to find a position in that field though with all of the coaches taking priority--gotta have our sports down South.  Social Studies often gets shafted, which may explain why I hated it for so long.

**Of course there are some excellent teachers that teach a variety of subjects that are coaches as well--I'm not trying to peg them all in that hole!  One of my very good friends was definitely born to teach social studies, but also to coach--and he's great at both.  I just know of certain cases where someone who was an athlete was offered a social studies teaching job without even being a certified teacher.  That is what makes me burn up a bit.  I had a science teacher and a couple of social studies teachers in high school who were just coaches (not teachers) and boy could I tell.

Black hole rant of doom over:  Let's go give these gifted kids something to think about!  Time to get ready to challenge young brains!  

Did you enjoy being challenged academically in high school??

My answer:  YES!!  But it didn't happen often enough because I didn't take any of the tough classes; I was lazy and afraid to have to work too hard and end up not doing well anyway.  I feel like that's what happens to gifted kids--they need practice doing challenging things so that they can attack things in a successful way.  I have a goal!

Stepping Up

Well, even though it's unofficial (as far as I know), I can't keep a secret and I have to announce that I have a new job.  I am going to be teaching gifted enrichment at my old high school this year!  I have finally moved out of middle school and back into the High School World I love so much. 

It's good to be back working with this age bracket (I haven't started yet, but I can just feel the difference already), but I'm a little weirded out by returning to my alma mater.  There are actually still teachers and staff there from when I attended, and it is very hard to treat them as co-workers rather than revered elders.

Also, my gifted supervisors are my mentors from years and years back and now they want to be on a first name basis.  Not going to happen.

I am excited about a new job, but it's such odd timing.  I'll be out from October to January with my little one, so I'll miss just about the entire first semester of school.  It's going to be hard to establish myself with such a wide gap.  The pressure is on.  I'm the first full time gifted teacher at the school (I think ever??), and it's my job to build the program from scratch...definitely a challenge!  I hope I can step up.

Gifted education is definitely a tricky area with a lot of teachers, which I didn't realize until last year when working with teachers who had no idea what "gifted" was.  It is not typically viewed as a necessary branch of special education by people who have not worked with gifted students directly.  However, if you know gifted students--you know the need some special services!  

I'm not sure on statistics and I did just hear this from a professor in college, but here's a little fact that scared me:  A lot of the people who are homeless and are living that way without seeking help from facilities are gifted.  Again, I'm not sure on the accuracy of that or what "a lot" means, but it made sense to me.  People who are considered gifted are just motivated so differently from most people and are genuinely only interested in what they are interested in; you can't force them to do things just because it seems like a good idea.  Then, there's also the "I'm not used to being challenged" side of things--when things get tough they might panic and not even try because they've never encountered that kind of feeling before.  I can see how those factors would lead to someone living independently on the streets and in their own little world.

That was a random aside, but I always think back to hearing that when I think of people overlooking the needs of gifted students.  They are a special group of people for sure.  Gifted adults are a whole other conversation.

Back to mamma-hood.

I'm definitely making room for my baby girl, and I've got the proof on my belly.  I've juuuust started getting little red lines around the bottom of my belly.  You would know I'd make it to week 31 without any marks, and then BAM!  Permanent skin stretching.  Dang.  She's worth it though--I'll get through it. Luckily, my husband has been great about it and is so complimentary about me that I still feel beautiful and attractive.  It's like he works magic!

Today is baby laundry day!  I couldn't be more excited about washing clothes.  I'm going to clean out the antique dresser and let it air so I can pack it full of soft baby goodness.  Also: finishing all things painted today and adding wings and eyes to our owl shelves.  My Dad cut these out for us--I love them!  Here's a look at the pieces I've got to work on...