Thursday Thirteen

Today is devoted to the 13 worst Homework excuses I have ever heard in my 8 years of teaching in the South Carolina Public School System. Have a chuckle or two at my former students' expense.

• I could not turn in my homework because I was finishing it on the way to school and while passing a big truck it blew out the window.


• My dog ate the disk my homework was on.


• My lizard died and I just wasn't in the mood for thinking.


• I couldn't do my homework because it got dark inside and Mom didn't pay the powerbill.


• I took a nap afterschool and never woke up until this morning.


• "Mrs. GH, I have 5 brothers and we all play football. Do you know what our game schedule looks like?"


• You never told us we HAD to do it EVERY night.


• "I did my homework at my momma's boyfriend's house and forgot it there." Teacher to Johnny Banana, "Isn't your mom married to your dad?" Johnny's answer, "Uh-huh, but we see him when we get home." (Johnny was excused for that night's work)


• My right hand hurt so I tried to write it with my left and it didn't look good so I threw it away.


• My dad didn't do it for me last night like he said he would.


• I thought we were moving and I wouldn't be here today. (Remember people, I used to teach in da' hood and the population was quite transient.)
• Teacher to student, "You didn't get your reading log signed last night, Why?" Student to teacher, "I didn't think you'd want to see that I read my dad's Playboy?" (students was excused for that night)

5 Things...

Before I can be tagged, I am copy/ pasting Jill's lists so I can be pro-active and go ahead and do mine before I get hit up for it ;)

5 Things happening in my life 10 years ago:

• junior at The College of Charleston


• dating Rob


• earning the name "Tic-Tac" (Blake couldn't say Nikki, remember?)


• living in a million-dollar estate (as the nanny)


• going to the beach at Folly or Sullivan's Island all the time!!!

5 things on my to-do list:

• check and see online if my package is in route to Fort Worth


• file the papers I graded yesterday to go home


• go online tolook for more WWII/ Civil Rights flipcharts


• graph the test data from my kids' scores today on the computer


• go to Blake's 6pm ballgame after leaving work at 6...can I make it??

5 snacks I enjoy:

• 100 calorie oreo pack


• celery and homemade ranch


• cold baby carrots


• fresh local strawberries


• honey mustard & onion pretzels

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire:

• pay off EVERYTHING!!


• buy a house in: downtown Charleston, Sully's Island, and on Lake Hartwell


• go ahead and pre-pay for my great-granchildren's college education


• TRAVEL!!! (Venice, Tuscany, Napa Valley, Africa...you name it!)


• VOLUNTEER when I FELT LIKE IT at a school wherever I lived.

5 bad habits:

• Blogging....is it really this addicting??


• used to be biting fingernails


• my sarcasm and overuse there of


• loving to shop


• leaving food in the fridge

5 places I have lived: (only 3)

• Fort Mill, SC


• Charleston, SC


• James Island, SC

5 jobs I've had:

• clerk at The Peach Stand


• short order cook at The Peach Stand


• pre-school teacher (OMG, hated it!!)


• 3rd grade teacher (2 years)


• 5th grade teacher (6+...)

Ten Things Tuesday...

Again Already...

1. WARRANTIES!!! My Palm Treo that I gave myself for Christmas completely went on the friz last week....I mean, completely fried!!! Called Palm, spoke to several broken-English speaking Computer technotrons, and finally after being placed on hold and sent to the powers that be....all I have to do is send it to Palm and it's ALL COVERED!! Even if they have to replace the thing, YAHOO!!! My thumbs have been in withdrawal from texting my peeps this week=)
   
2. Personal Days....I'm taking one today, when my husband's friends read this he'll find out too.


3. Free Haircut at Aveda Institute this morning!! My favorite stylist graduated from the Charlotte Aveda school last December and I followed her to her very couture Charlotte salon....but every so often she needs models for her career days they hold each month back at Aveda=) Tadah, she needed me!!!


4. My HD-DVR.....I have a lot of work to do this week in prep for E.O.G's, however, this weekend all of my shows will be right there waiting for me (Did anyone else just hear the tune to Richard Marx?)


5. iTunes!!...how did we ever survive without this??? Where else can I find a Steve Tyrell 17-song album for $9.99.


6. I found my shadowbox to put my Masters Flag, tickets, and pictures in for 60% off at Hobby Lobby this weekend. Now I just need to time to assemble.


7. Jen, Jake, & the boys made it successfully from El Paso to Fort Thrill this weekend, PTL!


8. Harris Teeter is now carrying Starbucks ground coffee on the coffee aisle, amen!!!


9. Tornadoes touched down near our school yesterday and we were on lockdown in the hallway for an hour and 40 minutes. 100 minutes with 4th and 5th graders people!! Why am I thankful for that you ask??? For every minute that ticked by, we were safer one more moment and it was time that I spent in quiet prayer even thought I was surrounded by others. Thank you God!!!


10. 25 more school days!!

Check out my friend X-Box Wife for her list of the blog-posse that celebrate each Tuesday our little lists of thanks.

Attitude by Charles Swindoll

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes." ~ C. Swindoll

Cowboy Up!

**This was passed to me from a school board member in Rock Hill. He is a fellow blogger and snagged an interesting debate from a teacher blog in California. WOW, I love it!! Long, but so worthwhile as we look state testing time head-on!

http://ukiahcoachbrown.blogspot.com/2008/04/just-cowboy-up-and-get-to-work.html

Just "Cowboy up and get to work". I am often amazed at the ability of education pundits, those that haven't stepped one foot in the classroom, to constantly blame teachers for the problems of the educational system. While I fully admit that teachers could be doing more (God knows that I mentioned that we need to represent our profession better many times on this blog), I disdain the fact that society and the government constantly don't admit the other factors in the education of children; student apathy, parent apathy, little funding, and idiot testing, really matter.Take for instance Friends of Dave (blogroll), who is a fellow Ukiah blogger who made the common reference to "other jobs have less than favorable conditions so teachers should stop bitching" argument.

I think all too often in public education, we continue the same strategies year after year and we blame student apathy, parent apathy, too little funding or high-stakes testing for our failed teaching practices and educational strategies. If the goal of public education is to educate students, we can't stop trying simply because students or parents aren't making it easy. As I've said before, fireman don't ignore fires that are started by dumb decisions made by a homeowner. Police don't ignore calls from people who have made bad choices. Doctors don't stop treating fat people because they made bad diet and exercise choices.

First of all, California constantly makes the mistake of CHANGING teaching strategies that have worked in the past to satisfy.......well, someone who was bored I guess. You could hate "drill and kill" to death, but the memorization of multiplication tables sure worked a hell of a lot better than that "whole math" crap.Now for the "fireman, policeman, doctor" remark, which is often used when non-classroom related people decide to pop off about what's right for education. Last I remember, firemen, doctors, and police are all given the tools of the game to make learning work. No, I'm not talking about gimmicky learning programs or "one laptop per child" tools, I'm talking about schools that are palaces and not dirty, in disrepair, or straight out crumbling. I also don't remember doctors being told, "you don't get O2 today", cops being told, "you don't get bullets today", or firemen being told, "sorry, your allotment of water was used up this week". In many cases, a teacher is ill-equipped for the job, ill-supported for the job, and then told to preform. Donald Rumsfeld was basically fired for saying, "You go to war with the Army that you have, not the Army you want", but teachers are told that every day.And by the way, firemen are never blamed for starting the fire, policemen are never blamed for committing the crime, and doctors aren't blamed for people getting fat. Teachers are most certainly a target of blame for the lack of education of children, even though they have no control over a multitude of variables. Teachers still teach, firefighters fight fires, police control crime, and doctors treat patients, but only one of those is actually held accountable at the end of the day to entities that they have no control over; the other factors of a student's life. Firefighters aren't held accountable for the meth lab fire, they put it out. Police aren't held accountable for the domestic violence, they arrest the suspect. Doctors aren't held accountable for patients getting diabetes, they simply try and treat the condition. Yet teachers are somehow given lessor tools, more government oversight, less pay, and are supposed to be held to a greater accountability over things they have no control over?

The duty of public education is to educate. If our instructional strategies aren't working for large groups of our students, but other schools are having better success with the same students, we need to stop whining and making excuses and start looking to those successful schools for the answer. Schools aren't relieved of the responsibility to educating students simply because they're making it hard. Cowboy up and get to work.

Simply put, not nearly as easy to implement. I'm sure that the income of "successful schools" has plenty to do with it. Anyone that doesn't think that schools with money are more successful are in dreamland. Then add it Second Language Learners, increased Special Education populations, lack of money, sue-happy parents, towns with increased drug culture, lack of money, equipment from the 1990's, shoddy infrastructure, a district wide lack of vision or business sense, oh yea, and lack of funding. You say that California spends over half its budget on Education? Ok, when it walks into my classroom let me know. While your at it, let me know when you find a successful school that manages to operate through all these problems. I'll be glad to jump on board.In the meantime, until you make every effort to supply teachers with the tools needed to succeed, stop blaming them.

Oh yeah, while I'm making this blog post, I'm doing the following:
-updating my Moodle for the classes
-instant messaging with a student about an assigned book; Persepolis
-communicating with another student on Facebook about attending U.C. Irvine
-I also graded essays this evening.

Doctors, firemen, nor policemen take that kind of work home with them.Yee hah.

Posted by jimvining at 4:01 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Education News

Funky Cockatoo

I get the funniest things e-mailed to me, and when my office quiets down I usually get a belly laugh out of all of them. Thank Mother for this one!!

She won!!!

Okay, so she did it! When everyone was counting her out, she up and pulled out a victory in Pennsylvania....way to go Hillary=) Now onto my border state, North Carolina. Good ole' Bill is in the state today campaining for her and Senator Clinton herself will be in the Queen City (Charlotte, for you foreigners) next Monday. I wonder what the protocol is for taking professional development leave to go see such a professional, hmmm???

Ten Things Tuesday...

Another one.....you got it!

1. My husband!! Watching him on the baseball field helping to coach the ones that have never played that much makes my heart melt. He has such a sweet heart!


2. No faculty meeting today afterschool, yahoo!!


3. My friend Missy is heading back up north from Columbia to teach 5th grade next year!


4. The smell of wild onions....onions you say?? Yes, b/c when you get a whiff of those NASTY smelling pesky weeds you know that God has provided enough rain to make even those things grow like crazy!


5. E-mail....I finally caught up with a friend in Atlanta =)


6. Voicemail....when I see that irrate parent on caller ID in my office.


7. Phone warranties....mine was needed this week.


8. Magic Erasers...have you ever used one in your classroom, wowsers!


9. A car that gets 28m.p.g!!! Gas is 3.50 here in SC, WHAT!!!!!


10. Leftovers!! My grandmother's brown rice and spicy pepper baked beans are waiting for me in the teacher's fridge!! I may have to eat lunch early today...say, 9am!

The Lord's Prayer

This is absolutely precious!! It was sent to me in an e-mail today and I just had to share it with the world. She is adorable!

Thursday Thirteen

Okay....for today, as I am watching my beloved "ER" I am thinking of the top 13 televisions shows that get my motor running. I admit, several are guilty pleasures and I need no lectures at this time=)

• ER
• CSI (Vegas)
• Law & Order SVU
• Criminal Minds
• The First 48
• Intervention
• Deadliest Catch
• Paradise Hotel 2
• The Hills
• Scott Baio is 46 and Pregnant
• Platinum Weddings
• Ellen
• Nip/ Tuck

Now half of these come on in the wee-middle of the night, and thank the Lord we went "high-speed" like Jen's husband says and got digital HD cable with DVR....I love the 21st century!! Again, no lectures for my reality tv addiction, I love it!!

Tagged, AGAIN!!

I was tagged by Jen and Amanda to do a new tag game. The eerie thing is the description of my month (August) is SO on for me! Scary!! The ones in BLACK are all me baby!!

AUGUST: Loves to joke. Attractive. Suave and caring. Brave and fearless. Firm and has leadership qualities. Knows how to console others. Too generous and egoistic. Takes high pride in oneself. Thirsty for praises. Extraordinary spirit. Easily angered. Angry when provoked. Easily jealous. Observant. Careful and cautious. Thinks quickly. Independent thoughts. Loves to lead and to be led. Loves to dream. Talented in the arts, music and defense. Sensitive but not petty. Poor resistance against illnesses. Learns to relax. Hasty and trusty. Romantic. Loving and caring. Loves to make friends.

TAGGING RULES:
1. Mention the person who tagged you and create a link back to them.
2. Copy-paste the traits for all the twelve months (see below).
3. Pick your month of birth.
4. Highlight the traits that apply to you.
5. Tag 12 people and let them know by visiting their blogs and leaving them a comment.
6. Let the person who tagged you know when yours is up!

The Twelve Months

JANUARY: Stubborn and hard-hearted. Ambitious and serious. Loves to teach and be taught. Always looking at people’s flaws and weaknesses. Likes to criticize. Hardworking and productive. Smart, neat and organized. Sensitive and has deep thoughts. Knows how to make others happy. Quiet unless excited or tensed. Rather reserved. Highly attentive. Resistant to illnesses but prone to colds. Romantic but has difficulties expressing love. Loves children. Loyal. Has great social abilities yet easily jealous. Very stubborn and money cautious.

FEBRUARY: Abstract thoughts. Loves reality and abstract. Intelligent and clever. Changing personality. Attractive. Sexy. Temperamental. Quiet, shy and humble. Honest and loyal. Determined to reach goals. Loves freedom. Rebellious when restricted. Loves aggressiveness. Too sensitive and easily hurt. Gets angry really easily but does not show it. Dislikes unnecessary things. Loves making friends but rarely shows it. Daring and stubborn. Ambitious. Realizes dreams and hopes. Sharp. Loves entertainment and leisure. Romantic on the inside not outside. Superstitious and ludicrous. Spendthrift. Tries to learn to show emotions.

MARCH: Attractive personality. Sexy. Affectionate. Shy and reserved. Secretive. Naturally honest, generous and sympathetic. Loves peace and serenity. Sensitive to others. Loves to serve others. Easily angered. Trustworthy. Appreciative and returns kindness. Observant and assesses others. Revengeful. Loves to dream and fantasize. Loves traveling. Loves attention. Hasty decisions in choosing partners. Loves home decors. Musically talented. Loves special things. Moody.

APRIL: Active and dynamic. Decisive and hasty but tends to regret. Attractive and affectionate to oneself. Strong mentality. Loves attention. Diplomatic. Consoling, friendly and solves people’s problems. Brave and fearless. Adventurous. Loving and caring. Suave and generous. Emotional. Aggressive. Hasty. Good memory. Moving. Motivates oneself and others. Sickness usually of the head and chest. Sexy in a way that only their lover can see.

MAY: Stubborn and hard-hearted. Strong-willed and highly motivated. Sharp thoughts. Easily angered. Attracts others and loves attention. Deep feelings. Beautiful physically and mentally. Firm Standpoint. Needs no motivation. Easily consoled. Systematic (left brain). Loves to dream. Strong clairvoyance. Understanding. Sickness usually in the ear and neck. Good imagination. Good physical. Weak breathing. Loves literature and the arts. Loves traveling. Dislike being at home. Restless. Not having many children. Hardworking. High spirited. Spendthrift.

JUNE: Thinks far with vision. Easily influenced by kindness. Polite and soft-spoken. Having ideas. Sensitive. Active mind. Hesitating, tends to delay. Choosy and always wants the best. Temperamental. Funny and humorous. Loves to joke. Good debating skills. Talkative. Daydreamer. Friendly. Knows how to make friends. Able to show character. Easily hurt. Prone to getting colds. Loves to dress up. Easily bored. Fussy. Seldom shows emotions. Takes time to recover when hurt. Brand conscious. Executive. Stubborn.

JULY: Fun to be with. Secretive. Difficult to fathom and to be understood. Quiet unless excited or tensed. Takes pride in oneself. Has reputation. Easily consoled. Honest. Concerned about people’s feelings. Tactful. Friendly. Approachable. Emotional temperamental and unpredictable. Moody and easily hurt. Witty and sparkly. Not revengeful. Forgiving but never forgets. Dislikes nonsensical and unnecessary things. Guides others physically and mentally. Sensitive and forms impressions carefully. Caring and loving. Treats others equally. Strong sense of sympathy. Wary and sharp. Judges people through observations. Hardworking. No difficulties in studying. Loves to be alone. Always broods about the past and the old friends. Likes to be quiet. Homely person. Waits for friends. Never looks for friends. Not aggressive unless provoked. Prone to having stomach and dieting problems. Loves to be loved. Easily hurt but takes long to recover.

AUGUST: Loves to joke. Attractive. Suave and caring. Brave and fearless. Firm and has leadership qualities. Knows how to console others. Too generous and egoistic. Takes high pride in oneself. Thirsty for praises. Extraordinary spirit. Easily angered. Angry when provoked. Easily jealous. Observant. Careful and cautious. Thinks quickly. Independent thoughts. Loves to lead and to be led. Loves to dream. Talented in the arts, music and defense. Sensitive but not petty. Poor resistance against illnesses. Learns to relax. Hasty and trusty. Romantic. Loving and caring. Loves to make friends.

SEPTEMBER: Suave and compromising. Careful, cautious and organized. Likes to point out people’s mistakes. Likes to criticize. Stubborn. Quiet but able to talk well. Calm and cool. Kind and sympathetic. Concerned and detailed. Loyal but not always honest. Does work well. Very confident. Sensitive. Good memory. Clever and knowledgeable. Loves to look for information. Must control oneself when criticizing. Able to motivate oneself. Understanding. Fun to be around. Secretive. Loves leisure and traveling. Hardly shows emotions. Tends to bottle up feelings. Very choosy, especially in relationships. Systematic.

OCTOBER: Loves to chat. Loves those who loves them. Loves to take things at the center. Inner and physical beauty. Lies but doesn’t pretend. Gets angry often. Treats friends importantly. Always making friends. Easily hurt but recovers easily. Daydreamer. Opinionated. Does not care of what others think. Emotional. Decisive. Strong clairvoyance. Loves to travel, the arts and literature. Touchy and easily jealous. Concerned. Loves outdoors. Just and fair. Spendthrift. Easily influenced. Easily loses confidence. Loves children.

NOVEMBER: Has a lot of ideas. Difficult to fathom. Thinks forward. Unique and brilliant. Extraordinary ideas. Sharp thinking. Fine and strong clairvoyance. Can become good doctors. Dynamic in personality. Secretive. Inquisitive. Knows how to dig secrets. Always thinking. Less talkative but amiable. Brave and generous. Patient. Stubborn and hard-hearted. If there is a will, there is a way. Determined. Never give up. Hardly becomes angry unless provoked. Loves to be alone. Thinks differently from others. Sharp-minded. Motivates oneself. Does not appreciate praises. High-spirited. Well-built and tough. Deep love and emotions. Romantic. Uncertain in relationships. Homely. Hardworking. High abilities. Trustworthy. Honest and keeps secrets. Not able to control emotions. Unpredictable.

DECEMBER: Loyal and generous. Sexy. Patriotic. Active in games and interactions. Impatient and hasty. Ambitious. Influential in organizations. Fun to be with. Loves to socialize. Loves praises. Loves attention. Loves to be loved. Honest and trustworthy. Not pretending. Short tempered. Changing personality. Not egotistic. Take high pride in oneself. Hates restrictions. Loves to joke. Good sense of humor. Logical.

The Church of Oprah Exposed

Until this minute I had always been an Oprah fan, or atleast one to try and DVR a show that looked interesting here and there. I am absolutely appalled in her blatant denial in our Savior, and the fact that she considers there to be more than ONE way to heaven befuddles me completely. People, there is only ONE, one way to God and that is through the belief of Jesus and His sacrifice for our sins. Oh yeah, Oprah says there aren't any sins...can you beleieve that?? My point is this. So many famous people have platforms on which they stand, but how solid is Oprah's? Doesn't hold water in my book, and my book is the Word of God. The One and Only Word of the One and Only God. I hope you took the nearly 7 minutes to watch this video, and as much as I once was an Oprah watcher, no more for me.

Xan's First Big-Girl Bike Ride

Xan got her first big-girl bike today for her birthday. She was so excited and was smiling go big, I thought she was going to take in bugs=)

Ten Things Tuesday

Another week, OH MY!!!

1. God is Great!! And when I hear my daughter say the blessing each night, my heart tears up everytime=)


2. Today is my daughter's 4th birthday, Tax Day...I know!! She is my joy, but truly exhausts me. I am go lucky that God blessed us all with the likes of that little fruitcake!!


3. This morning it was announced that my dear friend Hana won this year's Teacher of the Year. She is a teaching phenomenon on our 1st grade team....readers of an earlier post know that this is a job I would NEVER have=)


4. My husband was successful in helping me find my boyfriend on the 14th tee box in Augusta, yummy!!!


5. I have a friend that can talk her way to getting a new fridge AND diswasher for the price of one at Lowe's!! She will be coming with me to furnish my next home for sure!!


6. We are having cheeseburgers for lunch today.


7. We don't have ball pratice tonight, my wife-in-law just e-mailed me to inform.


8. My white pants from last year's summer stash still fit, albeit I am wearing a longer shirt over them though.


9. Harris Teeter had a special on cupcakes at Tam this morning when Xan and I trotted in to make a small purchase, buy 12 get 12 free!!!!!!


10. My husband's friends will laugh at all of these items and give him heck at work today, lol!!!

7 Randoms...

My new-found friend, X-Box Wife, has linked me to her meme (whatever the heck that is...lol!) This one is to include 7 randoms about oneself and thenlink it back to the sender. I've never linked, so this will be new....here's the randomness=)

• I am absolutely 100% scared to death of bees!!! I have never been stung and used to even help my uncle that was a master bee-keeper when I was as little as 2. I guess something happened in a former life to make me scared to death of them since he died when I was 4.
• I love fried pickles, but only with HOMEMADE Ranch salad dressing, none of that storebought fake ranch-in-a-bottle. My husband hates it when I actually ask our waitress if their ranch is homemade.
• My stepson has called me "Tic Tac" since he was 18 months old. He couldn't say "Nikki" and that just stuck. It may even be on the wedding invitations years from now, who knows?? Even some of his friends call me that now.
• I LOVE the smell of Apple Cider Vinegar, Downy fabric softener & gasoline, mmm!!! Not together of course, that'd be too weird. Do I need therapy for that?
• I think teaching 5th grade is the best grade ever. Older or younger seems to be birth control in human form for me.
• In college I nannied and lived in a 2 million dollar home on the intercoastal waterway in Charleston, SC. I'd move back tomorrow. If ever I win the lottery, I am destined to pack up my family and head back to the coast....now I work for bupkis in the public school system, go figure!!
• I hypenate my last name b/c my grandfather asked me to a month before he passed away which was 3 months before I was married. I love you Pop.

So now it is up to me to tag 7 random people and tell them to keep the tradition going!! Make sure you leave a link in your post to me at Hill-billies. Here are my seven people that I am tagging to continue with the randomness...

1. Jen @ Wade's World
2. Jen Whizzy @ The Nut House
3. Amanda @ Her Madhouse
4. Jill @ Perfectly Parks
5. Joy @ The Jarretts
6. Resa @ Fast Lane
7. X-Box Wife (back at you babe!)

Aloha Hula Girl!

My in-laws returned from their Hawaiian cruise yesterday and you know what that means....souvenirs!! Xan decked herself out in her new outfit tonight. I didn't even know they made pink grass skirts, nor a coconut bra so little. I thought the bra was for me before I saw the size 2-4 grass skirt attached, lol!! I now have the theme song from Hawaii 5-0 playing in my head, thanks Nana and Papa.

Sergio Garcia

The Masters slideshow

http://s283.photobucket.com/albums/kk288/ngodfreyhill/?albumview=slideshow

Click above to see my Photobucket Slideshow of the pics I took at the Masters. I was having EXTREME trouble putting it into blog as a page element, sorry. Hopefully the link directly to it will work for you=)

The Masters...green, of course!

OH MY GOSH....we had the perfect day in Augusta!! My 3:45am wake-up call for the 7am arrival time was well worth it!!! The weather started out quite nippy (42* in a sundress is not the tropics), but by noon it was 78* and gorgeous!! I was absolutely speechless as we entered the gates and passed by the clubhouse. It was like stepping back in time. HDTV can't even show you the true green hues and brightly colored azaleas that you see. It was amazing. We followed the crowds and caught up to several big-name groups. Ladies, you know my goal was to find my "boyfriend" Sergio Garcia.....we did!!! My hubbie was too sweet in helping me on my mission too, brownie points for him. We found him on the back nine, along with Robbie's highlight of his life as well...Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus together on 14. I inched up to the tee box and got xome great pics. Even I know how big this was, and I'm not even a player. There was a guy standing beside me and he mumbled, "I think I am going to vomit, this is too big!" I just giggled b/c it was so funny to hear a grown man get the jitters from seeing someone. Well, the day continued and we took in some great (and extremely CHEAP) lunch on the move and proceeded to walk around seeking my man. For an hour and a half we watched Amen's Corner from the best seat on the course. AT&T had set up 4 chairs against the ropes and none of the corporate big-wigs were there at the time, so the course guard told us to just have a seat and enjoy, wow! Here is only a few (out of 135 I took) pictures from the higlight of my Spring Break....maybe my life!! ENJOY!!

Ten Things Tuesday...

• I only have to wait 19 more hours for my trip to The Masters!!
• I have officially been on SPring Break since last Friday at 6pm.
• My class won the Boosterthon Fun Run pledge contest with $2,598.00!!
• My daughter is spending the night with great-grandma whom she adores!!
• My wife-in-law is one of my closest friends, ask details later.
• Xan's birthday at Chick-fila is her highlight of the week=)
• My new fingernail polish says "10-day wear" and today is #12!!
• X-Box Wife is going to tell me how to link my photos to their website, love her!
• Jen Whizzy's mom is doing fabulous post-boobie op, YEAH! KEEP PRAYING!
• Thank the Lord for Claritin, pollen is in full-effect here in the south=(

I AM...so excited to be heading off for Spring Break in 30 minutes!
I WANT...to go to the beach, but I don't think we'll make it.
I HAVE...tickets to the Masters for Wednesday's practice round
I WISH...all students learned their times tables
I HATE...being a tag turner. I wish I never had to do it.
I FEAR...my children growing up.
I REGRET...smoking for 5 years.
I LOVE...making sherbert shakes with Sprite instead of milk, mmmm!!
I ALWAYS...try to clock out right on time each night.
I AM NOT...over being sore from ripping up my carpet!!
I DANCE...to Flo-rida's song Low, and give my kids the giggles!
I CRY...and my nose runs like a faucet
I SING..."watermelon pencil" when I don't know the words.
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

Go For the Gold!!

Okay, so the Special Olympics were in town today and I was asked by one of my favorite former students to come and watch him run his 50m race today. I thought, Gosh, I've already been out so much, should I even bother to ask my principal if I can get off? And is it even really worth it." Well, I thought about it and decided to go. I am so glad that I did. I have never been so humbled in all my life. I was so blessed by the hundreds of kids and adults that were genuinely so HAPPY to be there, rainy weather and all!! Everywhere you looked there were people waving on friends, family, and students. There was more cheering than at a state football game. When I finally caught up to Kevius and his class, he was on the fence cheering on his classmates. He turned around and said, "I knew you'd be here to see me Mrs. GH, I told everybody that you not let me down." Boy did I want to just take back my earlier thoughts of not coming at all. He introduced me to all of his new friends and promised to bring back the gold. Finally it was time for his heat race. He ran the 50m in 7.82 and came in first....GOLD it was!!! I was so proud and he was so happy to have kept his promise of gold to me. He wanted me to take his picture all morning long. When I got back to school this afternoon, all of my students wanted to hear all about Kevius and how he faired. I figured I'd introduce the world to Kevius, afterall, Kevius opened my eyes to his world a little more today too.

Tadah...new floor, smell the pine!!

Well....they're done, finished, and absolutely beautiful!! I am so proud of my husband and father-in-law. They did the whole 800 square feet themselves. I think they should go into business, but they tend to disagree. Just look at my gorgeous new floors, mountain pine!!

Ten Things Tuesday...

1. I have the best husband and father-in-law in the world....they installed our hardwoods yesterday and they are GORGEOUS!!!
2. I won a coupon for a free book at our school bookfair today, ILOVE BOOKS!!
3. A parent ordered pizza for our class today since it's her child's b-day, mmm!!
4. Gas was ONLY $3.07 a gallon this morning at the Petro Express.
5. My bean plants finally sprouted in my classroom today, the kids were getting restless.
6. No one has gotten me with an April Fool's joke today, at least not yet anyway =)
7. I noticed someone in Europe looked at my blog, hope you enjoyed!!
8. Today is only 3 days away from our Spring Break!
9. My new sandals are NOT rubbing a blister....yet.
10. I LOVE MY FAMILY and am thankful for them each and every day.