An Update through Pictures

Awww,sleepy-eyed bear. 

On our anniversary weekend we went on a bike trip to East GR where we explored the awesome library, oogled the yacht club and ate delicious ice cream from Jersey Junction.

p.s. my sweet bike celebrated its 2 yr anni. with me too!

This is what happens when H can't quite hang on til the end of a burley ride for his nap! 

When we picked up H from my parent's house we saw that he was again spoiled with presents :) He immediately convinced Jon to blow up the fish pool and loved crawling in and out of it.

H got to visit his ladies in Holland, he even took them out for coffee and shopping!

He's just too much!

Burley Babe

H is fast asleep in the burley, snuggled between a Boppy and Brobee. He woke up way early this morning. He sang happily from his crib until 6am when I finally decided his talking was turning to a more demanding tone.

It downpoured last night and I'm sitting on slightly damp wooden steps watching for signals that H is waking. It's a gamble taking him on burley rides in the am before his first nap because he tends to pass out and sleep for a shorter time than he would in bed. Oh well. Can't wake him now.

I am looking around this crazy backyard right now. It is so BUSY with things. The guy that lived here before had a thing for flowers. Yes I like them fine but wow, So many! Tulip, daffodils, tiger lily, a crazy purple bamboo-like plant, roses and then there are the fruit bushes. Raspberries surround the fence on all sides, an old growth grape vie is ranging free and a bizaar plum-like tree is growing knarly looking fruit. And on top of all this there is a gazebo smack dab in the middle.

We need to par down. Plus I's take a garden over flowers any day. It'll be a big project in the fall. A lot of work for a postage stamp sized back yard!

A Snapshot

 Too Lazy to do a proper post. But here is a snapshot of life as it is today :)

What I'm Listening to:
 Ray Lamontagne and a lot of Miles Davis (Harrison likes the blues while he eats dinner)

What I'm Eating:
Unfrosted strawberry Pop Tarts, they are just delicious. I blame not growing up eating them so now they are a huge treat for me.
But when not eating those I've been making hot oatmeal which makes a good start to the day

What I'm Drinking:
French pressed coffee with cream no sugar and Corona Light (clearly not together nor at the same time of day)

What I'm Watching:
The Skins (UK), somehow Jon started watching this on our roku box and I've taken to watching it too
Yo Gabba Gabba, our favorites include Sharing, and Careful

What I'm Doing After 8pm:
Facebooking far too much. Reading juvenile fiction. Talking to my sisters. 

What I'm Doing for Work Outs:
Not a whole lot. Biking with the burley (and HP), walking probably twice a day around the neighborhood.

What I Do During Nap Times:
Make and check off things on lists. Clean the ever-dirty kitchen. Do laundry. Drink coffee :) 

A Rant (consider yourself warned)

School is almost out for the summer. We have an annoying 2 and a half day schedule next week packed full of field day, talent show and awards ceremonies. Quite scholastic. So from one job to another. Wednesday I will be a teacher, Thursday I will be a full-time Mom.

Me co-worker and I had our hopes high on doing a teacher share next year. It sounded too good to be true, and like all things teacher related in the state of Michigan it ended up being just that. My half-time job share was shot done by the higher-ups and so I am left with the same job title, the same pay (with a potential increase) and the same hours. Sigh. Oh Michigan, why must you torment me on the job front? I guess this is what I get for thinking I got a sweet deal by earning my Masters in Ed in NY so I could easily transfer to a MI school when I relocated. Ugh.

The worst part of it all is just how beaten down I feel about it. I've been fighting this battle for almost two school years now. The MDE has almost go me convinced that I really am not qualified. That's the true injury. Not so much the money and the title but rather the feeling of unworthiness. And that's a shame. I don't mean to make myself out as a world-class teacher but I did earn something working with NYC public school kids in middle school no less.

There is a 2nd grade classroom teacher position opening up at my school and there are 10 people up for the job. I was speaking to one last week while we both took part chaperoning the K field trip to a farm. She's pretty convinced she wont be selected for the position. She's a new parapro, just graduated from college and is still really green. I told her about an instance in my first year. In a desperate search for something, anything that would save me from my class from Hell  I sat in on a co-teacher's English lesson. She taught those same kids (class 7A5 you haunt my dreams to this day!) and I could see it from the minute they walked in. She had it. She knew they were going to listen. She knew they would open their books to page 32 when asked. She knew thay'd at least pretend to listen, if not be slightly engaged. That was the real difference. I asked them to do things and I knew they would not respond. And they knew I knew. And they fed on me that whole year long.

But 5 years later, I am a better teacher because of those hellians. And now, I walk into a class and I know with certainty that I can control it. Not by yelling or intimidating them with my awesomeness. But I know I will win the final struggle.

And yes, that is why I deserve to be a teacher. So thanks a bundle Michigan for denying me.

Yeah, I need a vacation...