Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Ok, tonight Caleb and I went to see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at Fair Park. This was our 2nd summer musical to attend and we really enjoyed ourselves. The singing was great, right up there with Dick Van Dyke and the movie that I so truly love. I had wondered if they would have a flying car and yes they do. I'm not sure how the car flew, if I really thought about it I could figure it out but where would the magic be? It's kinda like Santa, if I stop believing the magic will disappear.

Flying cars, children catchers...all great things. If life had real children catchers, one can only think of how quiet the world would be.

What made me sad was the lack of a carpet sucking machine. Hubby and I have been to Ripley's Museum, I think the one in Springfield, MO, and they had one there. I have pictures and they make me laugh when I look at them. How sad to not have the carpet sucking machine that would have made me laugh.

Do I think you should not go to CCBB because of this? No, you should go. The flying car is worth the price of the ticket.

The intermission is about 90 minutes into the show so don't drink too much before because the line for the bathroom will grow rapidly.

Oh you pretty chitty bang bang we love you!

Daniel's First Ride

Daniel's First Ride, No Training Wheels

Daniel, 6, rode a neighbor's bike that did not have training wheels. He came home and proudly proclaimed that he was big like his brothers and no longer needed them. Josh, 15, took off the training wheels and, guess what? Daniel rode in the back yard all by himself. I was smart enough to grab my Flip Video to record this momentous occasion. He even 'hot dogged' for the fam, since we were all watching. (Never mind that the jalapeno poppers were in the pan cooking too long.)

Daniel's brothers Josh and Caleb, 10, like to ride BMX and I think he may also want to do that but he must become a little more steady first. I'm sure by next week he will be able to start on the gate like the 'big kids' do.

After the amazing feat in the backyard he proceed to go to the front and ride in the road. Our road does not have a lot of traffic as it dead ends and does not have too many houses on it either. He found some new friends at the other end of the road, they are new to the neighborhood so I guess I need to meet them since our children will play together this summer. Daddy and I had to go down the road to get him to come home, selective hearing prevented him from hearing us when we called him.

He made a few more passes in a neighbor's driveway and rode to another friend's house, across the street, to show off his new skill. He was absolutely beaming, so proud of himself. I decided to put the video on the computer, which is really easy (get a flip, you won't be disappointed) and in comes Daniel, all teary eyed. Turns out, after I came back in he had a little accident and bumped his little head and scraped his little arm.

Being the caring, loving mom that I am, I inspected the boo boo then told him he needed to suck it up and be a big boy. I informed him that he is not allowed to come running into the house crying every time he has a little boo boo. In order to grow there must be pain. Sad but true.

I was going to include a 48 second video but it was taking way too long to upload, over 10 minutes, so I gave up.

Movies, Gran Torino

Ok, I just finished watching Gran Torino. This is a great movie as long as small children are not home, our little ones are at my parents until Wednesday. The language is terrible at best, lots of derogatory slang terms are used and will make you cringe.

I liked the way the grumpy old man changed during the movie. To figure out most of the plot you just need to think about what is going on. I never get movies and frequently need to have jokes explained to me but I could totally get this one.

The problem I had with the movie, aside from the language which was necessary for the plot, was it made me cry. I don't like to cry and this really, REALLY made me sad. Not wanting to spoil the ending, it made me cry. Well the last couple of scenes were funny, or at least they appeared to be through my tears. I really don't like to cry.

One of the problems with crying is I am the only female in a house full of males. When I cry they tend to look at me funny, I guess males of the species do not have feelings. Another problem is my makeup may run and that is just NOT attractive. The last thing I can think of right now is this is just not a time for me to cry. I am overly emotional during this time and it really doesn't take much to make me cry.

So, watch the movie but send the little ones to Granny's house and have a box of Kleenex near by.

=)

Blogs and School

Blogs and school, I really wish those two words went together like peanut butter and jelly or pickles and ice cream, but alas, they do not. I would love to blog with my students but the 'man' (the tech department) says no. They have allowed me to set up a blog on an approved site for teachers and school but it is not as 'nice' as blog spot.

I'm really an easy going person, just give me what I want when I want it and we will get along just fine. If I could blog with my classes then we could work together as a group and we would not even need to be in the same class. I would love to assign work to students and force them to blog to reach the answer. These students would be in different classes and this could be a major grade for the 6 weeks.

Technology is the direction we are headed and the school needs to jump on board. I understand that the school is trying to block out sites that are not appropriate for students but my school blocks out so much more. Only in the last month before school let out was Google unblocked and Google has some great teaching sites.

This is my personal blog. I write this because I want to. This is not an assignment but I do this in the hopes of becoming a better writer. Will that happen? Who knows but writing is something everyone needs to know how to do. If I were to blog with my students in the way I would like, they would incorporate writing and communication into math and that would help to make the students more well rounded.

If I could blog then we could blog with other students in other schools on the same types of problems and discuss problem solving. Isn't that where we are headed as a global community? I really think the school should allow me to blog in the easiest way possible. My students would be the ones that would benefit.

graduation with fam.jpg

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VBS

VBS, Vacation Bible School, started last night. I am in charge of the crafts for the week and really enjoy it. My friends Hope and Carey do crafts with me. We he have been doing this for several years and we each know our role. I coordinate the crafts and get all of the stuff, Carey decorates the room, Hope develops the pictures. We all enjoy it.

VBS starts on Sunday night and ends on Friday night with family night. During family night everyone gets fed, hamburgers and hot dogs. There is a video of the events of the week for everyone to watch.

Most of the homes are neglected during the week because everyone spends so much time at church. The kitchen ladies show up at 4:30 each night to prepare the food. Even if the teachers do not show up at church, they are busy doing last minute preparation at home. My husband even pitches in. He helps in the kitchen as the maitre d.

Josh is too old for VBS and that makes me sad. Daniel looks forward to going and then there is Caleb. He is at a strange age. Thinks he is too big to do things (wants to be like Josh) and feels that if he enjoys things he is being a baby (doesn't want to be like Daniel).

Overall I think everyone gets something out of VBS. It is a lot of work for everyone involved but very rewarding. Would I want VBS to come more than once a year? NO! That is what makes it special, that it only comes once a year. Kinda like Christmas is special because it only happens once a year.

End of school

Alas, school ends this week and I have mixed feelings. Part of me is jumping for joy ready to have the summer without students. Part of me is already planning the next school year. I am so conflicted.

This year had numerous difficulties with students and parents and teachers, you can't please all the people all the time. Teachers, well when you get a bunch of women together there will be problems. Luckily, as each year, we make amends with one another and get along in the end. We are professionals and have personalities that sometimes clash but we do what is best for the students.

Parents, well Betty Sue and Billy Bob would never sass the teacher or do the things the teacher claims they are doing. If Betty Sue or Billy Bob fail the class then it is the fault of the teacher for not teaching. Never mind the fact they never turn in homework, that is the teacher's fault for assigning it. That is just one of many things that go on with parents.

Students, well they are there to socialize for the most part. They specialize in passing notes. I do my best to make the lessons fun to 'entertaining' to pull them into learning, but I cannot captivate all of them all of the time. There are so many different learning styles and trying to reach all of them all of the time is difficult at best. I try to have hands on lessons, games, activities to help them relate to the math at hand but this is not always possible. There are times when the lesson is 'boring', me at the front showing and having them do it too and on their own under my watchful eyes.

I love my job, I love the age I teach, don't get me wrong. This has been a long year. I'm ready for summer. We have two days left, actually only one and a half, the students have a half day on Friday. We have to stay until 5 and that is OK.