Meme's Galore

Another school week is over which means I only have 9.5 days of school left. Yay! And I feel the love, peeps, I feel it! My stat counter went over 5,000 hits this week. Of course, 4,892 of those were me checking my blog to see if anybody had commented yet (anybody else check their blog obsessively for comments?), but thank you for checking out this humble work of mine. I love having readers and commenters and YOU! Yes you - the one reading right now - thanks for stopping by. It means much to me (mainly because I am an attention hog seeking validation).

I tweaked my blog name a bit this week because I noticed A LOT of blogs have the word "ramblings" in the title. And it doesn't seem to fit so much anymore. So now I am just Teacher-Mom going mad. Like? Dislike? Give me your feedback - comments, suggestions, or offers of free money and gifts.

Ok, now on to the real post of the day! I've been tagged. First by Stephanie and then by Maine Mom. *use your best announcer voice* And now, for your reading pleasure, I bring you - Rachelle a la meme!

The 4 Tag

Four jobs I've had:
1. Little Caesars crew leader
2. Day laborer for a cement company - I'll have to blog about that sometime
3. Jewelry Sales Associate at Walmart
4. Teacher!

Four movies I watch over and over:
Not big on watching movies over and over, so this doesn't really apply.

Four places I have lived: I've only lived in three places in my 30 years of life
1. Birth place
2. Hometown
3. Current city village redneck town

Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. American Idol
2. Almost anything Discovery Health Channel
3. CSI
4. E.R.

Four places I have been on vacation: I've led a very boring life
1. Disneyland
2. Portland
3. Seattle
4. Yellowstone

Four Places I'd Love to Go to On Vacation:
1. Italy
2. Brazil
3. Hawaii
4. Spain

Four websites I visit often:
1. Many, many blogs
2. Babycenter
3. FunTrivia
4. Ebay!!!!!

Four favorite foods:
1. Raspberries
2. Chicken Cordon bleu (made from scratch by dh - baked, not fried)
3. Raspberry swirl cheesecake
4. Garlic bread

Four Places I would like to be right now:
1. Home with my boys
2. Hawaii
3. My hometown
4. Italy

Two for Togetherness Tag

2 things you compliment your husband on while in his presence:
1. What a good dad he is to Cam and how much I love watching him be a dad.
2. How hot he is!

2 compliments you make about your spouse to your friends about your spouse:
1. How well he is doing in college
2. What an awesome man he is in every respect.

2 traits you married him/her for:
1. His strong spirit
2. His commitment to me, family, and the gospel

2 Days you cherished the most with your husband being together:
1. Our wedding day
2. Cam's birth

2 Material things you could give your husband if you just inherited a fortune:
1. His dream home complete with a library stuffed with books and squashy chairs, a gourmet kitchen, and a home theater (and yes, he would want a gourmet kitchen).
2. More children

2 things you would miss the most if she/he left for two weeks:
1. Laying next to him in bed
2. All the help he offers me with the house and Camden

2 thoughts that crossed your mind when you first met/saw your spouse:
1. Wow, he is really big! (he's 6'8" tall!)
2. What a strong spirit he emanates.

2 favorite dates:
1. Homemade dinners at his house - cooked by him
2. Hiking in the mountains

2 funny odd things you love:
1. His embarrassment over anything potty or sex related said in public by me, his ever embarrassing wife.
2. How we say the same thing at the same time.

2 two places you have lived with your spouse:
1. 1st apartment in redneck land
2. Our condo in redneck land

2 favorite Vacations: We haven't vacationed much
1. Our honeymoon
2. Visits to anyplace that is not here

Those were fun to complete! I now tag:
1. Lynanne
2. Snickers
3. Beth
4. Sunny

My favorite Young Adult books

Teaching junior high students, I am always looking for good books to recommend to readers their age. As I tell my students, you can never have too many books. I've been reading a lot of adolescent books lately, as well as many book reports, and have had time to reflect on my favorite books for young adults. I previously shared my favorite children's books with you, so today I bring you (drum roll) Mrs. D's freaking awesome book list for punk kids teenagers.

Disclaimer: Some of the books contain swear words or other material that may be questionable to some readers. I encourage parents to preview books before sharing them with their young adults.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card.

I dislike science fiction or fantasy in any way, shape, or form. This book is one of the few exceptions. Ender is a young boy, specifically created for a genius mind. Aliens have attacked the Earth and Ender is the boy chosen to save the earth. He thinks he is just playing video games, but instead he is saving the planet. The characters are believable, the plot is captivating, and it's an all around good read. There are several more books in the Ender's series. For a good study in point of view, Ender's Shadow tells the same story from another boy's point of view. There are some swear words and adult references in this book.

Holes by Louis Sachar

If you've seen the movie, the book is so much better (as books usually are). Stanley Yelnats ends up at Camp Green Luck because of a misunderstanding and family bad luck. Through his experience at camp, he manages to change his life and the bad luck that plagues his family. This is a fun, easy read. Many of my students who don't like to read like this story. There is very little questionable material (if any) in this book.



Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Just like Ender's Game is the exception to my science fiction dislike, the Harry Potter books are one of my only exceptions to my fantasy dislike. When I picked up the first Harry Potter book, I expected to hate it, just like I do most fantasy. I only read it because another teacher told me I should. This one captivated me from the start. I have eagerly anticipated each book and have even stood in line at midnight to receive the newest edition. If you have seen the movies, but never read the books, you are missing out. The books are light years better.


Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech.

I. Love. This. Book. It is one of my favorites of all time. Sal's mother has disappeared and she is on a journey to find her. There are several stories layered into one. We have Sal's journey to find her mother, stories of her life, and stories of her friend Phoebe. The reader is left guessing at what has happened until the end, when all the stories interweave and make complete sense. This book has little, if any, questionable material in it. I highly recommend it for teenage girls.

The Giver by Lois Lowry.

This is another book I just adore. I recommend it to all genders and all ages. Jonah lives in a utopian society. He becomes the Receiver of Memories in this society. Jonah bears the responsibility of remembering all the ills of society so he can prevent them from occurring again. Jonah questions his life and society, and ultimately whether a utopia is a good thing. The ending leaves you thinking. The whole book is thought provoking and well written. There are some disturbing deaths in this book (euthanasia of infants).


Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry

By the same author as The Giver, this books is just as well written and thought provoking. Unlike the utopian society in the previous book, this society is very rudimentary. In her society, the weak are cast aside. Kira is a cripple and when her mother dies, she fears for her future. But she is taken to the Council of Guardians because of her extraordinary weaving skills. There she is surrounded by many mysteries and secrets, which she seeks to discover. I recommend reading both this and The Giver together. It makes a great compare and contrast. This book has very little, if any, questionable material.

I am the Cheese by Robert Cormier

I read this book because it was recommended as a good book for young adults. I was immediately captivated by the story and could not put the book down. The plot can be complex and confusing, so the reader needs to pay careful attention. Adam is a boy who is in some sort of institution. Something has happened in his past that he can't quite remember. He is interviewed and helped to remember while in this institution. He also takes a bike ride which helps him remember and discover his past. This book keeps you thinking and guessing until the end. It has some references to violence, but nothing graphic.

I had planned on including more books, but am running out of time. Yikes! I'll do some more next week.

Now it's your turn. Share with me a young adult book you love. You never know, it may already be on my list for next week. And then you'll feel all smart and special because you chose the same book I did. ;)

Holiday Expectations

I admit it. I have "issues" with holidays. Not big holidays like Christmas, Easter, and Halloween, but all the other small holidays that seem to require a gift - like Valentine's Day, Father's Day, and Mother's Day. With Mother's Day rapidly approaching, these issues once again surface.

Don't get me wrong, I think it is good to have a day to celebrate love, or a day to celebrate your mother, or celebrate being a mother. We all want to be appreciated and these holidays give us a chance to be showered with love and attention for a few hours. But I hate the gift giving expectations that come along with those days.

The gifts advertised during these times are always the same. For a woman your choices are flowers, candy, jewelry, or girly pampering stuff. For a man, you can choose a tie, wallet, electronic equipment, or a barbequer of some sort. None of these items are things I really want to either get as a gift (except flowers on occasion) or give as a gift. I don't want Mark to buy me a gift just because society says he should. And I especially don't want any of the advertised gifts for this holiday. Flowers? I like to get those "just because", not because it is expected on a certain day. And they die quickly. Candy? That will make me fat (although there is a great little sweet shop out here). Jewelry? I wear very little and so that's not a great choice. Girly pampering stuff? I have very sensitive skin and can't use most of it, especially not bath beads or bubble bath.

So what do I want on these holidays? All I want for Mother's Day is time with Camden and Mark, maybe a nice dinner, and a chance for a nap. If really pressed for what I would want as a gift, it would be things like new clothes or a new cell phone. But I'll get those eventually anyway, so it doesn't matter if I get it for Mother's Day or not. I look forward to the days when Camden makes me cute little things or chooses out a small gift, but until that point, I don't really want presents because society says I should get one on this holiday.

Worse than trying to think of a gift for myself is trying to think of one for my mother. She is at that stage in life that anything she wants, she buys. And she says she doesn't want more knickknacks or clutter around her house, so any gift that would contribute to that is out. I've been wracking my brain for a gift for her for days for now and am still drawing a blank. Mother's Day is just a few days away and I don't have a clue what to get my mother. I may go with the old stand by - a gift card of some sort.

Am I the only one who feels this way? Do you look forward to these holidays? What do you want in terms of receiving a gift? What are you giving to your mother as a gift? Share with me your feelings. Maybe you'll be the one to help me get over my holiday issues.

My Life Monday - Week 1

Ok, we're kicking off the first "My Life Monday!" I am very excited to read your life stories! Please put your site in the linky thing below if you complete the MLM. Lolly made these lovely MLM logo's for us to use. Feel free to copy one or both to use on your site.

Week 1 topic - My Most Memorable Childhood Experience
(or how I got my own bedroom)

Growing up, I lived in a two story, 5 bedroom house with my parents, my three brothers, and my one sister. We lived in an ordinary house in an ordinary residential neighborhood. My sister and I shared a bedroom in the basement. It was a nice, big bedroom decorated in a lovely Strawberry Shortcake theme - red carpet, Strawberry Shortcake curtains, etc (It's still decorated that same way today!). My older brother shared a room next to us. The rest of the basement was a big open family room. In the front area were the TV and couches. The middle consisted of the the fireplace and bathroom. The back consisted of our bedrooms. It was a wide open area which made for lots of fun and mischief. Upstairs were three bedrooms, plus the rest of your basic house stuff. My parents had their bedroom upstairs, as well as my two brothers who shared a room. The remaining small room was my mom's sewing/junk room. I tell you all this so you can hopefully picture the scene.

On a stormy fall day in 1984, my sister and I were downstairs in our room cleaning. I was nine and she was seven. Our three brothers were out in the family room watching TV. My mom was upstairs canning fruit and my dad was at work. My sister and I were folding clothes into our respective drawers when all of a sudden there was a thunderous crash. A noise similar to a million firecrackers going off at once deafened our ears for a brief moment. I glanced immediately out to the family room near the fire place, where the noise seemed to have emanated from. As I did this, the family room turned an eerie shade of brilliant blue. A massive fireball of red, orange, and yellow appeared in mid-air in front of the fireplace, rolled once through the room, and disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

My sister and I looked at each other, shrugged, and went back to folding clothes. Yes, we had just heard a booming noise, the room had turned blue, and a fireball had just rolled through our family room, but we went right back to cleaning. I was sure my three brothers had done something stupid which had caused this whole experience, so I just waited for my mom to start yelling at them. Sure enough, we quickly heard my mother's voice drifting down the stairs. But it wasn't to yell at my brothers as I had expected. She was yelling for us to get out of the house.

We all rushed outside where my mom met us. Once there, she told us our house had been struck by lightning. We sat in our car waiting for the firemen to arrive. Once they came, they went through our house quickly and assessed the damage. After they gave the all clear, we went back into the house to observe the damage for ourselves.

The damage was actually minimal. The lightning had traveled through our chimney pipe. Our chimney pipe went through a closet in the upstairs, where my brother's metal baseball bats were also stored. The lightning used the metal bats as a conduct to an electrical outlet. It traveled through outlet to my mom's sewing machine, which it had blown apart. It also burnt a hole in the carpet beneath the sewing machine stand. Downstairs, we discovered the fire place had been moved six inches off its foundation, which is why we heard the loud noise and saw our cool fireball. The firemen told my mom if anybody had been standing near the fireplace, they would have been hurt and if they had been touching the fireplace, they probably would have been killed. We were all very grateful that we were all safe.

Because of the damage in the sewing room to both the machine and the carpet, my parents decided to repaint and redo the sewing room. But they didn't want to put in all that work only to make it another sewing/junk room, so they said it could be my bedroom. I got to help pick out paint colors, carpet colors, bedding, and all sorts of other fun things. Sure it was the smallest room in the house, but it was all mine. I moved in as soon as it was completed, leaving my sister in the basement Strawberry Shortcake redness.

There was no real explanation as to why lightning chose our house. Our house wasn't any taller than other houses. The explanation the fire department gave us is that we were using a lot of electricity and that may have attracted the lightning bolt. For a few years afterwards, my mom would freak out when it would thunder and lightning. She would make us turn out all the lights and sit on the couches with our feet off the ground.

This is probably my favorite story to tell people - how our house got struck by lightning and how I got my own bedroom as a result.

Ok, now I get to read your stories! Post when you have yours done and I will check it out. And for week 2, your topic - The Story of my Spouse - how we met and got together.

The auto link below is only for MLM.

Week in Review

1. Hazy, very hazy today. I had one of my fun stomach pain nights last night and was up from 1:30 to 3 am waiting for my beloved Percocet to kick in. Whoever invented that deserves a medal. The only bad thing is although it makes me very tired and groggy, I don't sleep deep after taking it, so everything wakes me all night long. I thought about getting a sub today so I could stay home and sleep, but getting a substitute at the last minute on a Friday with just a few weeks left in school is like milking a rock. Not happening.

2. This is my new favorite thing. I love it! We just started signing with Cam and he is already trying to do the sign for dog. We don't allow much TV in our house for many reasons, but made an exception for these videos. Camden gets so excited by them! Yesterday I went to turn on the video. He kept crawling over to the TV and bouncing up and down until it came on. And then he sat transfixed, alternating between watching the video and then watching me do the same sign. Mark and I are also enjoying learning signs as well.

3. I am looking forward to My Life Monday! I hope many of you are ready to participate. As a reminder, the topic for this coming Monday is "My most memorable experience." This can be a good or bad experience. It may be a series of experiences. Have fun with it!

I am making a list of ideas for MLM, so if you have any topics you would like to see covered, please email me. I have several for the younger years, but need more ideas for our lives now. If you are not sure how to email me, click on profile and under that you will see a section that says "email". Just click on that and you can send me whatever you want, especially any extra money you have lying around. ;)

Also, does anybody want to make a cool graphic to go with MLM? I was thinking a little logo like they have for "Works for Me Wednesday" or for "Thirteen Thursday." I'm really good with many things internet, but clueless when it comes to that sort of stuff. If you are can make some sort of logo and are willing to, you would be my new hero. I would even erect a small shrine in your honor (except for that whole "Don't worship false God's" thing).

Have a great weekend!

Two touching books

I've mentioned before that I read a lot of literary fluff. But I do try to read at least one thought provoking book each month. In the past few weeks, I've been on a deep literature kick and wanted to share two nonfiction books that profoundly touched me.

The first is Hana's Suitcase by Karen Levine. This book is written for the middle grades, approximately grades 4 to 9. A teacher friend loaned me this book to read and I am definitely adding to to my classroom library. It is the story of a young girl killed during the Holocaust and how her suitcase ended up in a Holocaust remembrance museum in Japan. It is a quick, easy read. You come to know Hana through the stories and pictures in the book. You also learn about the journey this museum in Japan took to find out about Hana and her life. It is very touching story of one little girl and a good overview of the Holocaust. Although I knew Hana would die during the course of the book, I came to know her. She was a beautiful young girl exposed to awful acts and the worst of man kind. The book is not detailed in terms of the atrocities committed during the Holocaust, but is good for middle grade readers who want to learn more.

The second book is Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza. This story is much too intense for a younger audience and is definitely meant for adults. It is the true story of Imaculee's survival during the 1993 Rwandan genocide. Imaculee's family was horribly slaughtered during this genocide, along with 1 million other Tutsi tribal members. Imaculee miraculously survived by hiding in a bathroom with seven other women in a pastor's house. More than just a story of the genocide, it is her story of faith and how she came to have a better relationship with God and forgive the killers. Although I am of a different faith than Imaculee, I was very moved by her story and her faith. She taught me important lessons of forgiveness and faith without fear.

I didn't intend to read two books related to separate holocausts when I started out. I picked up the second book on a whim while at the library this past weekend. I had watched the movie Hotel Rwanda a few months ago, and seeing a book on the same subject as that movie caused me to read it. I didn't expect how profoundly reading these two books on similar subjects in a short amount of time would affect me. I came away questioning human nature, but resolved even more to teach my son and any future children to love people of all races, religions, creeds, and nationalities.

Both of these atrocious holocausts happened because of hate. One would think the Holocaust and the killing of 6 millions Jewish people would be lesson enough. I would think it would teach people not to hate a group of people based on their skin color, their religion, their heritage, their life style, or anything else. But that is not the case. Less than 50 years later, another million people are killed in Africa for no other reason than the tribe they belong to. I am sickened and amazed at how quickly hatred can spread. I cannot comprehend how people can turn on another group of people and justify, whether to the public or in their own minds, the annihilation of a group of people. I do not understand how human kind can treat another person in such wicked ways. And I hope I can never comprehend or understand, because then I might be able to become like the people who commit such horrors.

What I can take from these books is knowledge. A knowledge of what hatred and prejudice can do when embraced and spread throughout a society. I hope that if ever faced with such pervasive hatred, I can stand up to it, not turn a blind eye and let it happen. Although I teach English, I actually majored in history. History is one of the best teacher's there is. I hope I can take these lessons from history and stand up for what is right. I hope I can raise Camden and any future children to love all of humankind, despite their differences. I hope that by having read these two books, I can become a better person, more filled with faith and a love for all of God's children.

Do you have a book that has touched you or taught you something important? Share it with me. I want to keep up with this deeper reading for awhile!

Show some love

Want to make a teacher's day? This week is National Teacher Appreciation week. If your child attends a school, whether it be preschool or high school, send their teacher a note of thanks. I promise that simple little act will make a teacher's day, especially in the upper grades where teachers are often forgotten. Some of my students showed me some love over the weekend.

As for "My life Monday", after some feedback, the topic I posted yesterday will be the topic to post this coming Monday. Then you can have a week to think about it and plan it. If you already did it, that's ok too. Or if you want to do it sometime during the week, feel free! Next Monday, if you haven't already posted, you can post your "My life Monday" on Monday and I'll put up a new topic then. If that works (or doesn't work) feel free to let me know! I think this will be fun and look forward to reading your life story (and sharing mine). Feel free to email me with any topics, questions, concerns, etc.

Weekend fun

Two fun things from my weekend.

First, I learned how fat I really am. My friend invited us over for breakfast Sunday morning. During breakfast, her oldest daughter (almost 5) said to me, "Why is your belly so big?" Ah, if only I could use the pregnant excuse. Instead I told her honestly, "Because I am fat." Nothing like the honesty of a child.

Second, I came out to this on my car Sunday morning. Some former students came and showed me some love. They were even nice enough to keep it on the car windows. It was fun and creative of them. Not as creative as the time some students stole all the political "Vote For _____" signs in the neighborhood and put them in my yard. Or the time that my front door frame was Saran wrapped and then shredded paper between the Saran wrap and the door so that when I opened it, all the paper fell in my house. But still, this is part of the fun of being a teacher.























I'm thrilled so many people want to do "About me". I think we can have some real fun for this. I think to begin with we'll alternate every other week with doing something more recent in our history and something from our childhood. If you have ideas for topics, please email me! How about calling it "My life Monday"? I'll post the topic on Monday, you do it some time during the week if you want, and then let me know you did it so I can add you to a list. I'll post that list somewhere on my blog.

For our first "My life Monday", your topic is: My most memorable childhood experience. Ready? Set? Go!

Randomosity

My life is boring. Really. Yeah, that's why I haven't said much this week.

Today is a bunch of random thoughts shamelessly telling you how wonderful I am. Or other random things.

1. I'm doing what I call "The Toddler Diet" in addition to WW. I eat the same things Camden eats. Just like I obsessively have Camden eat a fruit and veggie with each meal (except no veggie for breakfast), I am doing the same thing. It helps me to feel full and I like it. I've also gone walking the past three nights. I'm feeling really good these days. *Pat myself on the back*

2. I TURNED DOWN A DONUT! I did! Somebody came to my classroom offering me a donut earlier this morning and I said no. I am so impressed with myself right now.

3. My husband is wonderful. The man puts up with me and loves me in spite of all my many flaws. He writes posts like this that make me feel good. I got lucky when I got him.

4. Blogging buddies - what would you think about doing some sort of "About Me" topic each week where we write autobiographical stuff about ourselves? Like the story of how we met dh, or a topic of something from childhood, or something like that. I'd love to learn more about you and "the story of your life" in your blogs. If you are interested, let me know. If not, I may just do it on my own.

5. I used a lot of quotations in this post. Just "for fun."

My son's warped sense of humor

The older my son gets, the more I notice what a warped sense of humor he has. He must get it from his dad. Because we all know I am perfectly normal. ;)

Once Camden became capable of laughing, we discovered his twisted sense of humor. Inducing laughter in the boy was not easy. We had to employ various humiliating techniques to get him to laugh and what worked one day (or even one hour ago) would not work the next time. One time Mark had to repeatedly beat himself over the head with a book. Another time we had to fall off the bed again and again. Yet another time, he would only laugh at extreme imitation farting noises. But these times of laughter were few and far between. At times we felt it would take an act of Congress to get Cam to laugh. He was a happy boy, smiling all the time, bouncing up and down when excited, squealing with delight, but he would not laugh. When he did laugh, we would both race to watch, thrilled to hear the sound once again!

Now that he is getting older, Camden does laugh more freely and at more things. But in the past few weeks it has become perfectly clear that his sense of humor still has some quirks. For example, during the big birthday bash, we had Mark's sister stay at our house, along with her husband and her 6 month old baby. She was feeding A. (the baby) and Camden had to come watch. A. spit up all over the place after a few bite and Cam laughed hysterically. The other day Tai Beaux, our dog, was hacking on something and Cam laughed at that too. The sound a squeeze bottle of ketchup made caused belly laughs from Cam again and again.

But yesterday? Yesterday showed me how far gone he really is. Cam was pinching me, hard. Telling him "no" or "stop" caused him to smile because he was trying to gauge my reaction and see if I really meant what I said. Which I did. He did it a few more times and I decided that the next time he pinched me, I would say "Ouch" really loud in hopes the noise would startle him and help him realize I was serious, much like I did the few times he bit me during breastfeeding. So he pinched me and I said "Ouch" really loud. What did he do? Look at me and start laughing. In that laugh, it was over. I started laughing too. So much for my discipline techniques.

Can you imagine what he'll find funny as he gets older? I love his laugh. More than that, I love his unique sense of humor. Thus far, it never fails to take me by surprise.