Books, Books and More Books

One of the most favorite part of our summer (2017) was the time we spent in books!!! 

Each kiddo plowed through their own books and we also listened to books in the car to and from our grand adventures.

Did you know that kids go silent in the car when you turn on a book.... #momwin

Coletyn's Book Lists

(Momma and Coletyn bedtime/T-Ball reads!)

1. The Adventures of Captain Underpants (1997)
2. Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets (1999)
3. Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space (and the Subsequent Assault of the Equally Evil Lunchroom Zombie Nerds) (1999)
4. Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants (2000)
5. Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman (2001)
6. Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets (2003)
7. Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2: The Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-Boogers (2003)
8. Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (2006)
9. Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Re-Turn of Tippy Tinkletrousers (2012)^[5]
10. Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers (2013)^[6]
11. Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000 (2014)^[7]
12. Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot (2015)^[7]
13. The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby (2002)
14. Dog Man (2016) 

Yeah, I am pretty sick of reading Captain Underpants....Where does Dav Pilkey get that stuff?

I did did get to teach Coletyn why squirting hemorrhoid cream in someone's mouth would be funny, etc!

Five year old little boy giggles are pretty cute!

Cecelia's Book Lists

Lea Clark- Lea Dives In by Lisa Yee

Lea Clark- Lea Leads the Way by Lisa Yee

Lea Clark- Lea and Camille by Lisa Yee

EJ12: Girl Hero Hot and Cold

EJ12: Girl Hero Jump Start
EJ12: In the Dark

The Witches- Roald Dahl
A Junie B. Book where she read one book in a day!
Another Junie B. Jones book.
Grace by Mary Casanova
Fantastic Mr. Fox- Roald Dahl

Our Audio Car Book List this Summer

Charlotte's Web- E.B. White

Stuart Little- E.B. White

Mouse and the Motorcycle- Beverly Cleary

Diary of a Wimpy Kid - The Third Wheel

Stink (one of the Stink Moody books)

Beezus and Ramona- Beverly Cleary

Ramona and her Father- Beverly Cleary



We just finished Rump together. Liesl Shurtliff is a wonderful author. We started it just as the summer ended. With all the Captain Underpants reading, Coletyn is now ready to hear chapter books and my mommy/teacher insides are bursting. I can now read the same books aloud to both of my big babies and we can spend time together enjoying great books. This one was for sure a winner and we can't wait to read Jack and Red by the same author. But first, we are reading Wonder by RJ Palacio.

Check back if you want book recommendations!

Happy Anniversary- Wehr Nature Center- Cider Sunday

Jason and I got to spend our 12 year anniversary at our favorite kids' event where it all started! 

Every first Sunday in October, Wehr Nature Center puts on an apple cider event. The kids press apples into cider right were Jason and I said "I do!"

This year the event fell right on our anniversary. A few years ago, we donated for a block to be placed along the pathways that they were redoing. Our block ended up at the back of the amphitheater. So every Cider Sunday, the kids do crafts on our block!

 Here are a few pics of this year!

I'll see if I can find another picture of me with Jason to put here. Our wedding pictures aren't digital!

We saw this block along the walk. We we curious if pure coincidence???

Here's a few from the year prior!

Cider Sunday- October 2, 2016

Come and meet us next year. We'll be there!

Thank a Teacher.

An article passed my Facebook last week about compassion fatigue and secondary trauma in teachers. It mentioned how teachers can show symptoms of stress and anxiety as a result of hearing about the trauma their student's experienced. In the last 13 years as a teacher, I can attest to this. Hearing about my student's trauma and watching them navigate it without much you can do about it, leaves it mark. Short of bringing some of these kiddos home with me, all I can do is feel their trauma with them.

Ways I cope....

• I honestly try to leave work at work. This doesn't always work but this is why if you know me closely you'll rarely hear me talking about school. I try to leave it there as a way to cope.
• If you work with me, that's another story. I think a way educators cope together is to share their (student's) stories with those who may offer suggestions or just empathy.
• Stress relief... it may come in a beverage form. Or a suggary form. Or a "let's take our kids somewhere fabulous" adventure. (Maybe I should reverse the order on those!)
• Celebrate and cherish the events that seem to happen to far apart.... those listed below. (I may need to come back and reread these sometimes. So I wanted to publish them somewhere!)

This week I was visited by two different individuals.

First a former student came in. He has since passed onto the middle school but we spent 4 years together. The last year together, we went toe to toe quite a few times. And the stickler I am, I never let him not meet my expectation (apologies for my double negative). My goal for him all along was to make him a functional independent student and hopefully a good boyfriend/husband/father one day. There were many hard lessons. Some taught in a tender way. Others through a school of hard knocks. I was always well aware of not wanting to induce more trauma but I knew we had a well established relationship as I had known him since he was a younger sibling of a former student as well. Well, going toe to toe that last year meant there was friction. I was bound and determined to continue to teach him what I could until that 3:35 bell rang that last day in June. This was a kiddo with a HARD exterior who would never really give you much back. I am used to it. That's what I deal with as a special education teacher, but it doesn't make it easy.

Well, this week, this kiddo was at my classroom door at dismissal. I saw him and my face lit up. The moment my face lit up, his broke down. He ran into my arms sobbing and wouldn't let go. After he calmed down, he shared how different everything is and thanked me for everything I had ever done for him and mentioned over and over how I was always right. There it was. The "payback" I had never gotten but needed to hear to know that I had done something right for this child over the years. He caught me up on what the family was up to and I reassured him that he would always know where to find me.

Second, a grandmother of a former student dropped of goodies and a card for the teachers at my school as a thank you for her grandson who was now doing well at the middle school. Due to a tragic event, she found herself guardians to her grandchildren and had to make the hard decision to pull them out of their school and move them to where she lived. This is where we met this young man with a pretty significant disability two years ago. He thrived at our school and passed onto middle school like the other 45 kiddos in his grade level. When chatting with her in the hall this week, she also shared a sobbing hug with me and expressed her gratitude for everything we had done and shared how well her grandson was doing thanks to us.

Third, I shared this post last spring. This was that kiddo. That kid in the last 5 years that I so wish I could bring home with me. This is a kiddo who could be college bound, get a degree and be a master computer programmer one day. I truly hope this is his destiny but I worry that if his disability doesn't hold him back, his life will. But this day below, after I move heaven and earth on a daily basis to make sure he can access continued learning through his disability, he brought ME the roses.

Those roses stayed bloomed in my classroom for almost 4 weeks and I finally had to toss them while closing up my classroom in June.

These were three events that I will take with me moving forward. Honestly, those two visit this week were enough to reenergize me. For how long it will last, I don't know. But I am hoping a while because I don't know the next time something like any of these events will happen again. But apparently, all the effort physically, mentally and emotionally IS making a difference. So, tomorrow starts another week at school. I'll keep doing what I do best (after mother) teach.

If you haven't lately, thank a teacher. Not because you haven't lately, but because another family doesn't have the ability to as they have their own traumas to worry about. It takes a village. Support your village as they help hold up others.

Summer of Firsts!-- 2016

If you've followed me for a while, I am sure you can assume how we spent our summer.

• Crossing off our bucket list
• Eiting summer school
• 4th of July Festivities
• being just a mom!

We did have quite a summer of firsts however!

Pop Rocks

Bubble Blowing

New Bike

Independent Swimmer

Smoking Ribs

T-Ball

Bread

Signs

Science Projects

Shoes

Pony Tails

Airplane Rides

Names

Standing (finally!)

Splash Pad

Monkeys

Wagon Rides

3D Movie

Art

Chapter Books

first library books on own card!