The tree

Luis finally got to do one of his favorite things that involves cursing in spanish a la Ricky Ricardo... he untangled the Christmas lights and put up our tree. It is really nice (of course I'd say that). We also put up the Christmas village. Good thing his cousin Andres was here to remind him the bad words in his native language in case he forgot any of the good ones. So after a bunch of mumbled mal pa-somethings and bestia hijo de pu-somethings, the tree is up and we are filled with Christmas spirit!

Christmas House

The Christmas decorations have been out since Monday, but now that Thanksgiving is done Luis could finally put up the lights. I love our house and now I love our house with Christmas lights.

And then there is the matter of the cute creature who put the lights up in shorts, a camo jacket, and hat -- Christmas lights AND eye candy... it doesn't get much better!

Huge Bone

Simon and Jools celebrated a very successful day today. Simon was celebrating his trip to the vet where he got a ton of shots and was maligned as being overweight by 5 pounds and Jools was celebrating her first day ever out of the crate while no adults were home.

This bone is HUGE. It is literally as long as my arm from my wrist to my shoulder. I had to buy it for them. The funny part is that neither of them can chew it -- all they can do is lick it and carry it for short distances.

And the bathtub

Here is the bathtub we've been working on. It is a real tub that we have painted (with the labor of the children included) to get ready for a reading destination. The kids read sitting anywhere (it is funny to see where they choose) and they are always so good that when the offer of a tub came we couldn't resist it. It is hard to tell from the picture but the pillows are made out of towels -- an idea much too creative for me to take credit for. So, soon as the rest of the pillows arrive the kids can have another place to read.

Thanksgiving Feast

So we had our Feast today and here is one of my students dressed as a Ingrim (a pilgrim/indian hybrid that was so unintentional I had to let him keep it on). The feast was much less chaotic than any of us expected.

Rainy days and Thursdays

I had my observation and it actually went really well. The mom (and the backup) mom had to cancel for centers so the principal ended up observing a math lesson. The children were super. They had no problems and looked brilliant by sorting manipulatives by esoteric sorting rules like "these blocks have scratches and these ones don't" she loved that. It is supposed to be a rainy day today so we are knocking out some assessments -- at least that is the plan.

Wal*Mart Oil Change

So we're all about saving the pennies so Luis asked me to go to Wal*Mart to get the Jeep's oil changed. I considered the last time I went there and wasted 2 (TWO) hours of my summer waiting to save about $11 ( or 1.64841 Switzerland Francs), but considering that I did get to sleep in past 12:38 this afternoon I was down. I showered quickly and put on my best "I don't care how I look because I am going to the Wal*Mart in Wake Forest" outfit and hopped in the jeep. I put Dr. Laura on my IPOD and nodded along while she got impatient with a guy who wouldn't get rid of his 8 year old cat even though the cat didn't get along with his wife of 4 months -- jerk. About, oh, 24 minutes later I pulled up to Wal*Mart and there was an empty car parked where you're supposed to wait for the guy to check you in. I pulled beside it so the guy would come and he told me to go ahead and park. OK makes sense Sam, so I parked. Twenty-three minutes (that would be 1,380 seconds) later and 2 handheld devices critical to checking me in running out of batteries I was in. I wandered around Wal*Mart in Wake Forest and I was able to hear a lady point out that she had enough ammunition in her dad's car in the parking lot to keep some other person at bay for at least 5 minutes (I swear she really said this and she wasn't joking). About an hour and 17 minutes later (but who's counting) I went back to see if they had successfully been able to replace my more than 1,247 miles overdue oil... of course they were done about forty minutes ago-- they just had not called me like they promised they would. LOVE saving money.

It's the freakin weekend

So, it's been a long week with my TA out one day. We are really a pair so it was good to have her back even without her voice. We made the Native American costumes (vests, necklaces, and headpieces) and part of the Pilgrim costumes. We are looking forward to the feast that we have scheduled for the day before we go on Thanksgiving break. The kids made their invitations today so we'll see how many parents RSVP -- I suspect most will. It's going to be a nutso day that day.

Oh Crap (again)

So we have a new principal and apparently she likes to observe a little more casually than the old one... she dropped in with her laptop today just as my little blessings were lining up for PEPI (where the high schoolers come and play games with them) so I dodged the perverbial bullet this time but now I know she's on the prowl. It's not like I have anything exciting to hide, but I like to be over-prepared for observations and today we were not going by the script... we've been doing 2nd quarter math assessments and even for Kindergarten those assessments suck the life out the the kids. So today I was letting them work on their Native American necklaces for our upcoming feast. It was an ambitious project since we were using bottled glue and sand so I guess she would've been impressed... but now we have to wait for the next unexpected visit. I can just about hear the jaws music in the background.

Cheyney is in Raleigh

So, I opened my facebook today and there was a message from my high school friend Cheyney. She and I went to school together when we lived in Georgia and now she lives in Raleigh... what are the chances? I am so excited to see my friend. She and I had a great time back in those olden days. Can you stand how life works out like that sometimes?

Sandy Toes

So here we are at the beach. Our condo is called Sandy Toes and it is owned by one of my students' family and some other friends of ours. They have an album of the condo makeover and I am IMPRESSED! It is also funny to see pictures of 2 of my students on the wall -- work is never far away, but that is a good thing sometimes (like when we get to go to the beach because of it :) It has been so nice and Luis is having fun playing Nintendo 64 Vietnam-vet style (marine jacket with no shirt and ripped off pajama pants).

The dogs have had fun fun and attacking each other in the sand and we have eaten TOO MUCH. That's what the beach is for.