Archive for the ‘Life’ Category

So Long Summer, I’m Sad to See You Go!

Today is the first day of school here in my little area of the world.  It doesn’t matter what I do I’m always nervous on the first day.  This year may be a bit different than most though, I’ve taught the better part of my class, either last year or three years ago, so I have a pretty good idea as to what I have to look forward to.

Of course with the first day of school comes the crashing end to summer and not just summer vacation.  The weather this past weekend was very much autumn-like with cooler temperatures and the sure sign that summer is coming to an end.  The leaves have started to change colours and are even starting to scatter the ground.  We have had a hotter than average summer, but I am honestly sad to see it go.  The long days of sunshine does a body and mind good.  I love the longer days, I’m more awake, I get more done.  With the end of summer comes the end of productivity.  Sounds pretty pathetic doesn’t it?  It’s true, especially once winter comes around.  I go into hibernation mode.  But we’re not quite there yet, so I have some hope left in me.

One thing I think I will miss most is all the time I have been able to spend bouncing through blogs, seeing what’s up in people’s lives, what people are creating, what people are sharing.  I found some really awesome blogs over the summer and I very much see my Reader being very full during the week.  I guess the good thing will be some relaxing time on the weekend getting caught up with everyone.

I am going to try and keep as caught up on my writing too. I have enjoyed writing as much as I have this summer.  It’s been very enjoyable for me.

It’s not all doom and gloom though.  I’m looking forward to this school year.  The group I have will be a bit of a challenge, half are in a testing year, half are in a different division (my split, crosses the line between junior and intermediate grades).

I’m looking forward to teaching what I have planned, it’s going to be a busy and exciting year.

I’m looking forward to the one field trip I have planned.

I’m looking forward to working with a new teacher at our school…it’s his first year with his own class and the enthusiasm is almost sickening, but also the most invigoratingly, positive attitude and you need that sometimes.

I’m looking forward to red and yellow leaves (although I’m not looking forward to clearing them off the yard).

I’m looking forward to snowy white fields (although not yet and not long).

I’m looking forward to watching my students grow into a new maturity (although the hormones can stay outside the door!).

I’m looking forward to Christmas presents being wrapped.

I’m looking forward to hanging with Hubby during his Christmas break.

I’m looking forward to the reading conference I’ve been doing to for four years, in February (already letting my principal know I’d like to attend a day…even though it’s NOT on a PD Day this year).

I’m looking forward to reading a few books over the coming months (I’m optimistic…hopefully 3 or 4, which is really quite sad).

I guess the end of summer isn’t so sad after all…I mean another one will come around again next year.  Right?

Another great Tuesday linkup or two…

These little guys won’t be around here much longer.

This is being linked several places this week…and as I link, I’ll update this so I can remember everyone I visited. We’ll start with here and here…my regular Wednesday postings. And here…here…

Thank you to everyone linking up, I appreciate your joining in.

I find it funny that I used to love watching award shows. Used to. Now, I just can’t be bothered for pretty much all of them. I occasionally watch some of the Academy Awards but that’s about it, and even then, my attention is usually pretty short.

I think I watched about 2 minutes of the Emmy’s that’s it. I did however log on to People.com to see the dresses afterwards and I’m watching Entertainment Tonight as I type this. I guess my attention is drawn to snippets at best. I do understand that I should probably hop over to Youtube to see if I can find the opening…I can’t imagine it’s not there.

Anyone watch the Emmy’s…did I miss anything else?

Update: Just watched the opener…oh my goodness, that was bloody AWESOME.  I don’t think I have ever seen such a great opener for an awards show.

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Mother Nature has decided to tell us that she is still very much in charge. Last Friday I froze because I went out in shorts and a t-shirt, determined to wear them a bit longer. Well, that lasted a whole 24 hours before she decided to throw another log on the fire and turn the heat up again. It’s in the low 30Cs and that doesn’t include the humidity…that just makes me melt. I may actually get to bring the dog in for one more swim before school starts next week.

What’s really annoying…by the weekend the temps are supposed to be half of what they are now. I know I live in Canada, but it still amazes me that we can get such temperature swings. And apparently we are going to get warm weather through Halloween. I can’t complain about the temps, but the allergies, that’s another story!

What’s good about the weather…the only day I have to go into the school this week, Thursday, is supposed to be rainy and the start of the temps starting to drop.  That will certainly make it a bit easier to go.

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SIL was in a dragon boat race on Saturday.  To park, we ended up parking on the bike path – I didn’t know it at the time, but we lucked out by not getting a parking ticket.  There just wasn’t enough parking for the number of people who were attending.

This was the first race she had ever been in…as a matter of fact, it was the first for most/all of the team.  And…

They came in first in the gold category.  The only category higher was platinum…and they almost made it into that category on their first race.  After the first race they were 11 out of 59 teams.  Not bad for a bunch of newbies!!

And while we were there, we saw the biggest husky I have ever seen.  I’m 5’5″ and the head of this dog was above me hips.  Apparently he wasn’t done growing either.  I found out from SIL afterward that the dog was just a pup…at six months old!  Holy crap, that’s going to be one BIG dog.

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Shopper’s Drug Mart…what are you doing?

I went into my local Shopper’s the Monday and wandering the aisles I came across quite the “display.”  Not only was there Thanksgiving decorations, with a bit of Halloween thrown in…and Christmas.  There was also Easter and Valentine’s Day.  Really, seriously!!  I think this brings a whole new meaning to the one stop shopping idea.

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Anyone got a pressure canner they want to lend me?  I’m not fully serious about this, but I was hoping to can some of the HUGE bag of green and yellow beans my neighbour sent me home with on Sunday night.  Alas, I think I am going to have to survive with freezing the beans instead, as there doesn’t seem to be a safe was of preserving them without a pressure canner and I’m not spending $150+ just to get one.  Either way, homegrown beans in winter will be awesome!

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If you’re a NASCAR fan, you’ll probably know about this t-shirt.  Kevin and DeLana Harvick made the most out of a stupid comment made by Joey Logano and decided to raise money for their charity.  I just helped the cause.

The look on the one girls face made me laugh…not your typical t-shirt for small town Ontario!

And just incase you were wondering, I’m linking this post up…

Some of you have been blogging happily about your kids going back to school this week.  Yeah for you!  Here in Canada we don’t go back until next week and in most cases the week after.  My students will arrive all full of enthusiasm and fear on September 7th.  Some of the students I will have are in my room by request, others based on the conversations with staff members to see how each students works, how they get along, etc.

I have a grade 6/7 split this year.  Unlike last year where I had 3 grade 7s, this year’s group is almost 50-50.  Either way, it’s not a great split.  It’s a split that crosses two divisions, which for one thing means the grade 7s have more work, not just generally speaking but because the social studies get split in grade seven to be history and geography.  Tee-hee-he!  I get to give that one away.  And the grade 6s have to write the provincial test.  For me, the test is no big deal.  I’m going into my seventh year at my current school and six of them I have taught a grade that has provincial testing.

I don’t stress provincial testing, until we get the results, which sadly/gladly rarely surprise me, after all I taught the students for an entire year.  Why don’t I stress the test?  Simple, I teach the curriculum and know that I have done everything I can to get each group of students through the year and ready for the test.  Do I teach to the test?  I’d be lying if I said no.  Unlike my American cohorts who have testing every year, we only have it in grade 3 and 6, in the elementary grades.  I teach to the test from the standpoint that I look at tests from the previous year and share strategies with my students on how to go about answering those questions.  I teach them how to write properly, I try to teach them how to problem solve.  See, it’s not really all that hard…and gee, aren’t these two skills that the students will take beyond my teaching them anyhow.

I’m actually going somewhere with this post.  Several weeks ago I left a comment, actually it was an email because the comments were closed at that point, about the lack of creativity in schools.  Sadly there are quite a few teachers who insist on teaching using what is affectionately known as the drill and kill method, or rote learning.  I’m not one of those people.  Love it or hate it, I’m one of those teachers who rarely uses her desk for anything more than a coatrack and dumping ground.  I’m one of those teachers who is constantly looking on the internet to see what other’s are doing, to see what I can do better.  I’m one of those teachers that some teachers don’t like.  It may be because I make them uncomfortable, it may be because I use technology.  I don’t do this for either of those reasons.  I do what I do in my classroom for my students.

I have only been teaching (in the classroom) for eight years and I can honestly say that I am not teaching the same way now that I taught then.  I have changed my teaching probably every year.  What worked for one group may not work for another group.  This is one of the reasons I do not believe in the drill and kill method, because students learn differently.

I had a student a few years ago who just needed to stand to work.  The student was in on was disruptive when working, as a matter of fact as long as he could stand to work, he was no only on task, but often so on task he almost zoned out.  I had no problem with this method of working at all.  My supply teachers, well that was another story all together.  It drove them nuts!

I’m not saying any of this to toot my own horn. I’m sharing this because of the email exchange I had with this person (I’m sorry, but I don’t have a blog name, just the email addy).  I’m sharing this more to tell you that there is definitely creativity going on in schools, I promise.

Have you read Mocha Momma?  If not, why not?  She’s an educator who inspires me to keep up my crazy ways. She’s also proof that there is creativity still going on in schools.

It’s coming, maybe not this year, maybe not next, but there is a change going on in schools.  It’s just a matter of time before people are not needing to post about the lack of creativity in schools.

This is just another example.

I found it fascinating to read about what is going on in the education system in New Orleans since Katrina.  I just hope it doesn’t take a disaster to bring change to your schools.

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Care to join in on the fun…or to see what others are writing about today?

I was up late the night before because I lost track of time when putting together my classroom newsletter than goes home at the beginning of every year.  Not a big deal, it’s still summer and I didn’t have to get up that early to go into the school.  That said, I also figured it would mean I would be good and tired the following night and be able to get a good night sleep.  HA!

11 pm – Get ready for bed. I was pretty tired at this point so things were looking pretty good. Remember to take allergy pill.

11:20 – Let the dog outside one last time.

11:30 – In bed.  Hubby had left the TV on so I thought I’d watch it for a few minutes.  Apparently I was tired enough though because I couldn’t even tell you what I was watching, but I think it may have been Entertainment Tonight.

11:45ish – Give up on TV, too tired and ready to sleep.

12:10 am – Here a dog barking down the road (I’m in the country, this is not a normal occurrence). My dog starts barking, of course!

Toss and turn, toss and turn

12:54 – My nose decides this is the time to have a sneeze attack.  Wake Hubby up with all the noise.  Oops.

12:55 – Hide in the washroom until the sneezing is done and my nose isn’t running anymore.

1:00 – Back to bed.

Toss and turn, Toss and Turn.

Refuse to look at the clock, because really all I want to do is sleep!  Refuse to get up and do something, because, although I can’t get comfortable, I am more comfortable lying down.

5:00 – Alarm starts going off…not mine, Hubby’s

5:09 – off again, plays a little bit

5:21 – off again

5:30 – off again, here a bit about traffic not being heavy ( I know people commute, but I almost want to say Duh! to the radio because traffic should not be heavy at 5:30 in the morning).

5:40 – off again

5:50 off again (now, I can usually sleep through these, but considering I wasn’t sleeping anyway…)

6:00 – off again, Hubby gets up and turns off the radio!  YEAH!

6:30ish – Hubby comes into to say goodbye.  YEAH!  I should be able to get more sleep.

Toss and turn, toss and turn.  This time with the dog beside me, not Hubby.

7:00 – Oh look, that’s the time.  I’m NOT getting up yet.

Toss and turn, toss and turn.

730ish – Dog’s panting “wakes” me up.  Turn the ceiling fan higher.

7:54 – Really?  It’s only been an hour since I last looked at the clock, how can that be?

8:30 – Damn, only 30 minutes later…and I’m still not getting up. Pull blankets up closer because the ceiling fan is making me too cool now and I refuse to hit a button to lower the speed.

9:00ish – Cat jumps up on the dresser and somehow opens the top drawer, trapping her up there.  Jump out of bed to get her down.  Screw it, I’m going back to bed.

9:45 – Heck, this just isn’t working.  Drag my sorry butt out of bed and hope I’m so tired tonight that I will actually be able to sleep!

10:40 – Sitting here typing this because that’s about the only thing I have energy for or care to do.

Sidenote: Coffee will not be helping me stay awake today…coffee in fact puts me to sleep.

So I will probably flog this one for a week or so, but after having several people ask me about it last week, and many more ask me about it in the previous weeks and months I have finally added a Google Friend Connect widget. The only problem, it’s not that easy to find. You’ll have to head right down to the bottom and add yourself because the silly thing is wider than my sidebars. I’d love it if you would add yourself.

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It’s almost time to head back to school. Actually, classes start exactly two weeks from today. Last year was such a very hard school year, despite having a great group of students that it’s taken everything I have to get ready for the coming year. I’m very glad to hear that I am not the only one who has felt like this. Apparently, several of us A-type teachers have done next to nothing this summer. I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing. On the good side, it means we have tried to relax and rejuvenate. On the bad side, we’re likely to do the same thing to ourselves again this year because we will feel like we are so far behind.

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Friday night Hubby put the movie Airspeed on.  Oh, it is not a good movie in any way, shape or form, but I found myself watching it anyway.  I wish that Canadian productions were better, but they are not,  not even close.  What I did find funny, aside from the horrendous acting was the fact that Elisha Cuthbert (from 24 fame) was in it and I didn’t even recognize her!  Let’s just say she’s come a long way in her acting abilities since then.

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Have you heard of Groupon, or FabFind, or Teambuy or Living Social?  I cannot tell you how much I’m loving these sites.  I don’t buy from the very often, but last week I purchased a coupon from Groupon…$25 for a $50 GC at the Gap!  Love it!  Needless to say I went shopping for a few back to school items on Friday.  Between the coupon and the additional money I had to put in, I ended up with a savings of about 40% off the amount I spent…on top of the sale prices the clothing already was. I hope that makes some sort of sense. (BTW, I’m not being paid for any of this paragraph at all…I just love the sites!)

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I have been as lazy as I could possibly be this past week because I screwed my knee up AGAIN!  I actually did it while we were at the race in Michigan, but I haven’t bothered mentioning it until now.  I know better, but I can’t help but push myself a bit more than I should.  I was planning on making a Dr. appointment to get it checked out over the summer, but it hasn’t bothered me until now.  I’ve had knee problems for over 20 years now and back then there was nothing that could be done for me.  I really should make the appointment though so maybe I can get some physio or something for it.

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Speaking of bad body parts…my FIL got some really bad news last week about his bad.  Long story short, his doctor said the problem would heal, and now, months later he finally got to see a specialist who was hopeful that he would be able to help him with the pain.  Not so, unfortunately in the time that it took to get to the specialist and set up the procedure the spine has gone too far and the surgery would have been too risky and the doctor didn’t want to risk it.  So, now there appears to be nothing they can do and my FIL has to live with the pain.  Sadly, this is not the first time small town doctors in my area have screwed up…years ago it took two months to diagnosis my father’s heart attack.  Sometimes small town living can really suck the big one!

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On that note, I’m off to enjoy what is left of my summer vacation.  I only have one day that I HAVE to go in before school starts and I plan on being a bum for as much of the rest of it as I can.

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Oh and just to plug it again…I finally added a Google Friend Connect at the very bottom if you are interested in adding yourself to my list of followers.  Thanks in advance.

I haven’t done a meme in quite a while. While bouncing around the different Friday Follows I came across this one at

and I liked the questions.

What is your favorite time of the day and why ?

I honestly don’t know that I have a favourite time of day. I know that I most definitely do not like mornings – ick! I think my favourite time of day would be evenings, I tend to get more done then.

salt or sugar ?

Usually sugar, although my sweet tooth does seem to have a limit now. And when I can figure out what I want to eat, I usually end up going for salty – go figure.
Sea or mountains ?

I may be a skier, but this is one very easy questions for me…definitely sea!!! I love the sound of the ocean, I love watching waves crash on the shore, I love the water running over my feet. I just find it very tranquil and relaxing.
What country would you like to visit and Why?

I have many countries I would love to visit, but for the sake of this meme, I’d have to say France is still on the top of my list. There are many reasons…to see WW battlefields, to climb the Eiffel Tower, to eat a fresh baguette, to sit at an outdoor cafe, to see the Mona Lisa, to visit a winery (and I don’t even like wine), the visit Cannes, to visit the French countryside. As I said, there are many reasons why France is the first country on my list.
Favorite song ?

This is always changing. I think right now it’s a toss up, between Defying Gravity from Glee, yes Glee. And, Up on the Ridge by Dirks Bentley. Oh and I can’t forget about Stuck Like Glue by Sugarland. As you can see I don’t really understand the meaning of the word favourite.
Do you cook? What is your favorite dish to make ?

I do cook, I do enjoy it, but I don’t like my kitchen one bit! Favourite dish…probably fajitas.
What is the one thing you want to do before you die ?

There are two things that always seem to come up on my Bucket List no matter when I have made it…although the second one would help me the first one. I’d like to visit all continents (although I’d be fine if I make it to six) and I’d like to visit Everest base camp.
Favorite flower?

Tulips, although lavender and daisies are pretty close behind.

I got back Monday from our yearly trip to the NASCAR race in Michigan. This is always one of the first signs that my summer vacation is coming to an end and I have really start thinking of getting ready to go back to school. This year’s race was a week earlier than normal so I’ve been sort of procrastinating a bit this week. I have started to pull stuff out, but as far as really making an effort to get things together – no really. I do plan on maybe heading into the school Friday to try and get as much done before everyone else comes in – I get more done when there are less distractions.

Getting ready for school is not a sure sign that summer is coming to a close, because let’s be honest, school supplies start to fill the shelves a week or two after the last school year was finished. I almost found myself crying in Walmart this year, the first time I walked in and saw the front shelves filled with supplies. It was just to early for me! This is kind of funny to me considering last year we took a roadtrip to Daytona Beach, the week after school was done, and I came back with 2 VERY full bags of school supplies. I guess it was slightly different last year…I was a long way from home and the prices for the supplies in the US is so crazy cheap compared to here in Canada. I think being away from home some how made it okay that I was buying them.

Monday night, after the in-laws fed us an we got the animals back home I realized that there was NOTHING for Hubby to eat the next day for either breakfast or his lunch (well I did have a leftover hamburger but that doesn’t amount to much of a lunch). So, into town we went. That is when I saw the first true sign that summer is indeed coming to an end! While we were gone the fall fair people started putting out the signs. It may still be pretty warm here (although as I type this it’s a little cooler because of a thunderstorm passing through) and certainly doesn’t feel like summer is coming to an end but those signs, those signs tell me otherwise. They tell me that it doesn’t matter how much I cry and have a temper tantrum summer is in her final weeks.

There is one very bright spot in all of this…with fall comes cooler temperatures and sometimes even cool enough to have a frost (yes, I’m talking frost in August) and with frost comes the end of my nemesis – ragweed. I’m okay with summer coming to an end, even an absolutely amazing one like this one, if it means getting rid of the stupid plant, a plant that is so VERY abundant where I live.

So, it’s your turn, what sign do you look for that signals the end of summer for you?

Sorry if you are coming from

my autofill chose my Tuesday linky one and I missed it before I posted. Not linky this Friday.

Care to join in on the fun…or to see what others are writing about today?

So this past weekend was the 40th Biennial Family Reunion of Hubby’s mother’s family, and…it rain! And rained. And rained some more. I gotta tell you though that it didn’t make that big of a difference in the festivities. The food was plenty and then some. I cheated, sort of, and bought these freakin’ awesome ginger snaps, because I wasn’t turning on the oven this week with the heat (okay fine, I was being lazy…it was actually cool for a few days). I did however decorate them!

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I’ve also spent a bunch of time getting our trailer ready to go for our yearly trip to Michigan. Yep, if you haven’t picked up on it, we are a NASCAR family. Yep, it’s completely against the environment. Yep, the cars go around in circles (well ovals) for hours. Yep, there are a lot of drunk people (we are actually not among that group…I can’t stand the taste and Hubby just can’t be bothered). But you know what, it’s bloody AWESOME. There’s just something different about being at the track. Not to mention it’s a few days for Hubby to sit and relax…no working on the garage, no working on the truck, no working at all. Although what’s really funny…he does a lot of the cooking. He doesn’t cook all that often at home, but when we’re gone, he cooks. So, it’s a nice break from cooking for yours truly.

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With our trip this weekend comes the end of summer for me. When we get back I’ll likely head into the school for a day or so to get things set up for September. It may seem really early to some but I want to get everything set up before everyone else is coming in and wanting to chat. We also have PD Days before the Labour Day weekend, so there won’t be much time to set up the classroom during that week.

I’m one of these people who would really like year round schooling. I’m ready to go back, sort of. I’m still hoping to win the lottery this Friday – $50 million, not that I need anywhere near that much, but let’s be honest, I’d happily take it!

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This has been one of the hottest summers in years. Since Mother Nature and I don’t have a great relationship most of the year – too cold, too wet, too snowy. I’m not easy to please when it comes to weather apparently. Well, let me be honest here, I really haven’t had much to complain about this summer. Mother Nature has treated us well. Thank You. (Now watch, it will probably snow next week just to make me bite my tongue for even putting this down here).

Heading for NASCAR race next weekend!

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Please head over and see how else is participating this fine Saturday. Well, it’s nice here anyway.