Mother's Day at the Zoo...

Yesterday we had a fun day out at the Zoo for Mother's Day with Cindy and Thomas and the Joneses. It was such a beautiful day to go and when we got there, a nice lady gave us FREE tickets...sweeeet! We spent a couple of hours walking around looking at all the animals and then we all packed up and went to lunch. to our dismay, Chow baby (the original plan) was closed on Sunday for lunch, so we ended up eating at IHOP which was still good...we joked about being so hungry that it really wouldn't have mattered where we ate, we would've cleaned out plates anywhere we went! We had such a fun time with everyone and I hope that Cindy and Katie both had a wonderful Mother's Day out!!

***I took several pictures, but for some reason they are not loading, so I only loaded 3***

One of our favorite videos...

If you haven't watched this video yet, you must! Greg and I have watched this 1,000 times! It. Is. Hilarious...and SOOOO us in a few years! Too funny!


*** For some reason it always cuts a portion of the video screen out...so to see the full screen youtube search: Swagger Wagon

Before and After...

Hair Before...

Hair After...

It's all gone! It was so unhealthy and I got to the point where I couldn't do anything with it and even straightening it made it look stringy...so, I went this morning to get it all chopped off and guess what? I donated FOUR PONYTAILS (!) to Locks of Love...That's a lot of hair gone! I hope it makes a few good wigs for people that need them =)

What do you think?

Best. Book. Ever...

Ok, so my Collaborating Teacher gave me this book the week I left, but I waited to start reading it until this week. Oh. My. Gosh. I LOVE it! It is based on the Book of Hosea which I have never really studied, but in a nutshell it is about a strong Christian man being called to marry a prostitute. The unconditional love that is shown in this book that the husband shows for his wife and that God shows for her is awe inspiring. Anyone can relate to this book because we have all strayed or questioned God at some point in our lives, whether we are a Christian or not. Anyway....you should read it. It's awesome (well, at least I thought so haha).

Last day in 3rd grade...

Today was my last day of 3rd grade TOSS. It was SO sad leaving, but since I know I am going back for Field Day, it wasn't too bad. This is such an AWESOME group of kids and I am going to miss them tons! My teacher was fantastic and I know I will keep in touch with her because we have become such good friends! This experience has really shown me where my heart truly is, and that it is in the classroom!

Me with my collaborating teacher

My awesome bag of goodies my class surprised me with!

All of my sweet cards and gifts

Inside one of the sweet student cards...

Me with a goofy bunch of kids!

Random Rant...

This video is insane. Are the girls good dancers? Yes. BUT THEY ARE 8-YEARS-OLD!! If my daughter wants to take dance, I am more than happy to sign her up, but the second I see a routine this provocative, I would have her off the stage in a heartbeat! What kind of message are the parents and dance instructors sending to these young girls? At lunch today, the teachers were talking about the way some of the 4th and 5th grade girls were dressing. The sad thing is, they don't buy their own clothes, their parents do. I know I should not point fingers at any parent, because I am not one; however, who let's their 12-year-old daughter out of the house with either a super short skirt and a tank top where you can see their bra and belly button, or super tight pants with their thongs hanging out over their jeans. I'm sorry, but those parents should not be surprised when they get a phone call in a few years that they're going to be grandparents! Call me a prude or old fashioned, but I hope to instill a sense of modesty and pride in my daughter's self-image so that she does not feel that she has to put everything she's got out there for the world to see (not that I would buy the type of clothes that shows all she's got anyway). It just blows my mind that people continue to wonder why there is such an increase in teen sex and pregnancy, when at age eight little girls are being taught that this is an appropriate way to dance and dress and if they do dance and dress this way they will win and succeed in life. Granted, this is an extreme video, but the lack of clothing in the 5th grade hall is a daily occurrence. Anyhoo...I'm finished ranting for now! I better go put on my shortest skirt and tightest, low cut shirt...we're having company over =)

***** For some reason the whole video isn't showing on the screen, I guess because it's a wide screen video...but you get the drift****

One of the perks...

Yesterday I did a fun activity with my 3rd graders where we wrote Spring cinquain poems (noun, 2 adjectives, three -ing participles, phrase about the noun, and synonym for the noun) to display on the wall outside of class. They were SO cute! Being able to do fun, cute crafts is one of the things I cannot wait for. However, I do realize that it is very time consuming, so I'll have to get Greg a good pair of scissors for after hours cutting =) Anyway...just thought I'd share a little of my week and why I love what I'm doing!