Good times

 Yesterday was a pretty good day at school.  It was not so much how many students were absent as who was absent....

It made for a good day and I'm just going to leave that there.

I zipped from school to my math fluency class (squeezing in a quick phone call with Marianne).

I zipped from my math fluency class to meeting our first wave of guests, Stella and Ardi, at Kneader's for dinner (squeezing in a quick phone call with Braeden).  Braeden told me that I would like Ardi and he was not wrong.

We had a nice dinner, chatting and figuring out tomorrow.  I texted Adam in Texas to ask him how long he thought it would take for them to drive to Roots Tech in the morning.

We came home and I unboxed the steaks and burgers on the doorstep from Omaha Steaks that Stella had had sent.  I got them settled in the basement, cranked up the heat, because they keep their houses much warmer than we do, and went to bed.

I woke up very early, stressed about all the comings and goings (me: Piglet).  Today I'm back at school and then Emma is picking up Braeden and QE at the airport and the fun continues!  Braeden is the salve that soothes all my stress and QE is just plain delightful.

Doing what I can

 Monday night Braeden and Anna called.  Braeden said, "I need to talk to my mom."

We talked about the disorienting/harmful/embarrassing/choose-your-adjective events happening in our country.  Some of it directly impacts them and people they know.  I don't think I had any great wisdom for them, but I did say that the things that matter most are completely fine.  We have that to hold onto.

Braeden said that he heard recently that people should choose an institution they love and do everything they can to support it.  He said, "Like a library."

I thought about his words yesterday after we came across the word diversity in our phonics lesson and no one knew what it meant.

I said, "Here's a hint, if everyone in the class was exactly the same, we would not have diversity."

They clamored with hands raised, "Diversity means different!  We look different!"

"Yes," I said. "It's more than just how we look though.  Diversity is great because we get new ideas and new solutions and life is more interesting."

We started talking about food and where it originated from.  I said, "If we only had food originally from Utah, what would we eat?  Deer?"

A girl raised her hand and said, "Deer bacon is actually very good."

I will have to take her word for it.

It was the kind of rare and magical time where they were all engaged.  They were super interested that pasta went to Italy by way of China and Marco Polo.  They loved that chocolate was originally from America (but European chocolate is way better).  I looked into their faces, ranging from black to very pale and about 15 shades of brown in between.

I hope they remember that when they were in 3rd grade, Mrs. Davis thought diversity was great.  

They are my institution to love.  I will continue to throw my all into what I can do.

Skin of my teeth

 Yesterday was something.

This was on my desk:

Someone's tooth in a tiny bag....

I opened my plan book to this:

If that doesn't put fear in a teacher's heart I don't know what does.

Every week I plan the future week, but last week I was gone for three days and the days I was there, I felt pretty sick and was more surviving than thriving.

I did as much as I could before school, tidying and changing the calendar and the schedule and the weekly jobs.  I pulled together a day's plan.

It more or less worked out.

I asked who the tooth belonged to and they said it was a student's who moved in December.  I said, "I don't think it is his."

They insisted because they found it on the floor where his desk used to sit.  In December.

Not wanting to offend any of their tender sensibilities, I waited until school was out and then threw it away. 

We had the teachers vs. 6th graders Battle of the Books and happily, the teachers won.

For one thing, we need to maintain our street cred and for another thing, it's getting to the time of year that 6th graders are very much too big for their britches.

I got through my discombobulated day, staying until almost 5:00 to get things sorted and planned.  I went straight to the Orem Library book sale which has been on my calendar for months.

There was a convivial atmosphere there and let me tell you, people at the Orem Library book sale are my people.  

One woman said to me, "I need to stop; I can't carry any more."

I was about at that point too, but there were still books I wanted!  Finally, I decided I really was at max capacity (my arms weren't long enough for a bigger stack).  Genetic predisposition for Egbert loads notwithstanding, I couldn't carry any more.  I spied some boxes under a table and asked a librarian if I could have a box.  She said, "Sure!"

I finally decided I was done and scooted my box along in the line with my foot.

It was books for me, books for QE, books for my classroom, and one for Emma.  The woman in line behind me had both arms full.  She said, "I was not anticipating getting so many books."

But we did it!  

Weekend

Saturday was a special day.  It was the day we got ready for company.  We had four guest rooms to ready and lots of sheets and bedding and pillows involved!  Stella and her friend Ardi are coming on Wednesday and Braeden and QE are coming on Thursday.

I used my grandma's sheets to make QE's bed.  I just want to be like my grandma at every opportunity!

 I washed them so they don't smell like her house so much anymore (very faintly), but they delight me.

I halted my preparations to go to a baby shower for Liberty in Provo.  It was nice to get together with people who love Liberty and celebrate her and her new baby--arriving next month!  Desi was the master of ceremonies and did an excellent job.  Carolina decorated adorable little cupcakes and it doesn't surprise me that Marianne's girls know how to throw a party.

I went back home and continued my to do list.  My energy was seriously flagging from being sick so I probably took as many breaks as not in the afternoon.

Adam nobly did the grocery shopping.  There was a lot.  

Mark came over and we drove to Sandy together.  Mark and Adam were having a kind of intense discussion in the car about politics and I told them they had to stop before we met Emma because it would make her cry.

"True," Mark said.

"OK," Adam said.

2/3 of our kids can take the heat of disagreement and 1/3 cannot.

We met up with Emma for dinner and then we went to a show at the Hale Centre Theatre in Sandy.  (You can tell it's fancy because or the "re" instead of "er"...). 

We were FaceTiming with Braeden and Anna and QE right before the restaurant and we said we had to go and QE said, "I miss them."

Same, sweet girl.  Same.

We had a lovely time together.  The tickets for The Prince of Egypt were from Geri for Christmas and it was such a perfect gift for us.

Emma took some pictures to text to Geri.

The picture has weird lighting and shadows on our faces (Mark looks like he has measles, but HE HAS BEEN VACCINATED and that is just the lighting).  We were happy as clams to be in a beautiful theater together.

I got super sleepy because it was late and my body still wants to be sick, but I also loved the show.  Live theater is wonderful.

Sunday I continued on my feel-better trajectory and I'm grateful for that.  Adam is maybe getting sick and is maybe just tired.  Emma had a devotional yesterday so she didn't come to dinner.  Mark tried to convince her to come anyway and she said, "This is like in a primary lesson when you have to decide if you should go to the devotional or not."

The girl went to primary so she picked the devotional.

Mark texted Sunday afternoon that he wasn't coming, which didn't surprise me.  Often if one of them isn't coming, the other one cancels.

I get that I'm a lot of mothering in a concentrated dose....

Also we're seeing Mark tonight for Mark Monday (even without the Emma buffer).

When Adam got home from his long church day, we went for a drive and talked over last minute adjustments to our plans for our guests.  You never met such a nervous hostess.  Imagine Piglet having guests for a week.

Today I'm back at school!  I am happy about it!  I'm starting the morning with the teachers vs 5th-6th Battle of the Books team.  I'm on the teacher team and I'm a little nervous.  Those kids are smart!  The teacher team is all wearing Dr. Seuss shirts and I even have a stuffed red fish to go with my One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish t-shirt.

It's hardly a team without a mascot.

Grateful Friday

 I have felt a lot of angst about being sick this week.  I seem to think that I should be exempt from sickness, but I don't know why I think that.

Sometimes it feels like a personal failing.  If I weren't so weak/careless, this wouldn't have happened to me.

I'm a lot of fun.

I stayed home from school yesterday again because I completely lost my voice and felt awful.  I had activity day and I didn't know what to do about it.  There needs to be two leaders.  Maybe I would feel up to it?  I didn't want to have to reschedule or cancel.  I texted Becca, my partner, to let her know that I was sick.  I told her that I would see how I was doing in the afternoon and try to find a sub if I wasn't up to it.

She texted back in pretty short order that she had a sub.

She is pretty much the dream being my partner.  She is on it, always.

Would it surprise you if I said she is a mother of six?

Adam went with me to my school last night because I am home again today.  I talk for a living and it's hard to do my job when my voice is so raspy and then occasionally just leaves the building altogether.  I maybe feel better than I did yesterday?  Emma said if I'm on the same trajectory as her, yesterday was my worst day.

Here's hoping.

My students have mostly been doing things on the computer and I knew that was a recipe for trouble so I made copies of some things and redid the schedule and set things up a bit.  I handed Adam the one and a half pages of notes from the sub about the day and said, "See if there's anything in there that I need to know about."

There was fighting; punches were thrown.  There were tears.  There were girls listening to music on their computers while they worked (so going to YouTube, which is a no).  There were girls working together at the back table and saying I "always" let them.  Someone got in someone else's "bubble."

Not great. 

I hope today will be better.

I hope my voice will get itself together.

I'm grateful for Adam's kindness to me.  I'm grateful that I can get a sub when I feel awful (even though I'd rather be there).  I'm grateful for people picking up the slack.

BEM

 I went to my math fluency class last night.  It makes for a long day, but I really like it.  One of my favorite things is interacting with 3rd and 4th grade teachers from around the district.  They are good ladies (and there's one guy--it seems like no matter how big the group of elementary teachers is, there's just one guy).  

I was working on a project with two other women and they were looking at my necklace and trying to figure out my name.  I was wearing the necklace Janet gave me that has the letters BEM on it.

I said, "I'm Thelma.  The necklace is my kids' initials."

"Ohhhhh."

I sure like BEM though.  I talk to Braeden on the phone more frequently, but texts from Emma and Mark delight me.  

These all happened Tuesday evening.

This from Emma:

Then Mark couldn't find his new institute class so I texted him the room number.  He asked me how I knew:

Awhile after the class started, he texted this:

Later still, Emma texted this:

The drama!  The details! Adam said it was better than the murder mystery he was reading me at the time the text came in.

I like being on the other end of their texts (and Braeden's calls).

Being a mother is a pretty good gig.

After school

 Yesterday was warm and sunny.  I only wore a cardigan over my t-shirt for recess duty.  I decided to take down my winter decorations.

I have a wooden decoration I made years ago at a Relief Society thing.  It has three pumpkins stacked on each other, but if you turn it around, it is a snowman.  The bottom section is screwed into the base and a pain to disassemble.  The top two sections just stick together with pegs.

I decided I was finished with it and I plunked it in my garbage can that was in the hall awaiting the custodians.

There's a second grader who is trouble.  I think everyone in the school knows his name.  He is super cute and super rascally.  He stays after school for boys and girls club and he was walking by my door.

He said, "Wait!  What is this?!?"  He reached into my garbage and pulled off the top layer.  He said, "That came off easily."  He stuck his head in the door and said, "Hey, can I have this?"

I said, "Sure."

He quickly unzipped his backpack and started putting the fairly big pieces inside. When he got to the bottom layer, he said, "I can't get these apart."

Not looking up from my grading, I said, "Yeah, they are tricky."

He said, "But I can't do it."  

He brought it over to my desk and I gave it a cursory try, but said, "That is why I'm getting rid of it," and handed it back to him.

He looked around the room and asked, "What is this place anyway?"

I said, "Third grade.  You might be here next year."

He said, "I'm in second grade." (Like every teacher in the school doesn't know that, like I didn't know that because I said he'd be in third next.)

He said, "Well, I better go.  Thanks for this and...maybe I'll see you next year."

I said, "OK."

And I wouldn't mind him so much.  He's the type of boy Mark and his friend Gavin prepared me for.  If I do have him, I'll remind him that I gave him the pumpkins/snowman and he owes me some good will.

I was finishing up my grading and Miriam and Alissa came in my room to watch the professional learning hour over google meet together.  It is every bit as soul deadening as it sounds.  We sort of listened/participated with the camera off and I graded and then took down some more decorations.  They were both on their phones. 

Miriam accidentally bumped something and the volume came on her phone it was clear she was watching a video.

She looked sheepish and apologized.  I was up on a chair removing a heart that was hanging from the ceiling.  I said, "Yeah, you should be as engaged as I am."

Alissa said, "How dare you.  But what are you watching?"

Miriam said, "The high school state basketball championship."

Alissa and Miriam both played college basketball.  It shows in their competitiveness and wardrobes (Alissa has a Nike collection that would impress my brother Enoch) and the fact that Miriam plays basketball with kids when she has recess duty.

Alissa said, "You should have told me!  I want to watch basketball!"

The chatted about basketball and I kept taking down hearts.  I said, "Do you guys even have to stand on chairs for stuff like this?"

They are tall girls, but said they did.  Eventually we got tuned back into our professional learning hour.  

It was a multitasking kind of after school day.  Making friends with a future 3rd grader, climbing up and down a chair 50 times, professional learning hour.

And I got the papers graded!