more classroom funnies

• one of my students spent a good 30 minutes on his journal entry to draw a very detailed picture and wrote at the bottom, " I am awesome." He proudly read his journal aloud to his classmates. Very shortly after journal time Mr. Awesome tripped on his shoelace and hit his head on a chair leg landing him a bruise shaped like a long, red line on his forehead.
• funny journal entries from my little guy Simon: "last summer i went to the most amazigst country in the whole universe." (when i asked him what country this was he said, "florida.") another entry from simon: "i went to taco bell and aeted a taco. it was the bestest thing i ever tasted in my whole life!" (can you tell he's an enthusiastic boy? i told his mom that if she took him to florida and fed him taco bell he may just keel over from an overload of euphoria)
• another one of my charming students has come to school the past 4 days wearing one glove. i asked him why and he just shrugs and says, "i dunno. i just got one glove." i guess one warm hand is better than none.

happy new year!

things i'm thankful for in 2010...

• my sweet husband has moved back to daegu! it's so great being able to say goodnight and good morning to each other without having to say goodbye for a while.
• we were able to pay off all of our debt this christmas. we are officially debt free!
• our trip to hawaii was pretty amazing. i will never forget it and i still dream of those beautiful waves and mountains. *sigh* hope to get back there again one day...
• all of the dear friends i've made or the friendships that have grown stronger this year
• my adorably cute students who kept me laughing every day and helped give me a good night's worth sleep during the week... : )
• skype! it's been such a great tool for staying connected with our dear family. it is almost as good as seeing you in person. : )

what blessings have you had this past year?

don't cry over spilled milk...

today was crazy. we had a jam packed day in first grade. santa was visiting us in the morning, we had our book exchange party, cake and ice cream, and on top of that, it was pajama day. here's a brief little look into what my day was like:

8:00am. kids roll in, exciting about showing off their jammies to each other. rolling on the ground, high fiving, giggling and laughing. kids are running up to me to hand me homebaked cookies to bring to santa, milk, their books for the gift exchange, and excitedly tell me stories about how they chose their outfits.

pretty soon i have one boy ask if he can go to the bathroom. he wants to go with his bookbag (never a good sign), but all of the high-fiving, giggling and somersaults distracts me from saying no to his weird request. we have to leave to go meet santa. we leave and i try to tote about 8 bags of groceries to meet santa. (it takes a lot to feed 18 first graders) : )

the kids line up to sit on santa's lap while i snap pictures of them. hyperactivity ensues.

i forget to grab plates and napkins and send my intern and a student to go back to get them and also realize my bookbag bathroom friend never returned so i send my intern to look for him. he's escaped to the bathroom (a bathroom in the high school wing), locked himself inside and was crying because he thought someone was making fun of his jammie slippers. my intern tries to coax him out, but to no avail. i have to leave my 17 hyperactive first graders to go out to find my runaway student (the parable of leaving the 99 sheep behind is so much more meaningful to me now). after about 8-9 minutes of coaxing, i get my runaway to follow me back to meet santa. when i return my kids are hyper, jumping around, milk is spilled on the ground (cue for me to start screaming or just cry). my teaching style then closely resembles a traffic directors, waving my arms here and there, guiding kids to grab napkins, etc. i'm saying things like, "Don't eat food off the floor!" , "Quiet!", "Stop running! Stop jumping! No tackling!"

when we returned to class i looked at the clock and said, "we've only been in school for 45 minutes?" :/ one of my students overhears my mumbling and replies, "woah! it feels like we just got here!" me: "honey, you have no idea."

You would think being so near Santa, their conscience, or rather their desire to receive gifts from the man himself, would have created more self-control. nope.

they did calm down eventually post-santa, post-cookiesugarhigh. *sigh* it's a good thing they are so cute.

first grade love

an update on "simon" and "anna":

anna has proclaimed she has moved on to another six-year old man. simon is crushed and feels completely blindsided by her sudden "falling out of love with him". Here's a bit of the conversation they had with me this morning:

anna: i'm just not in love with simon anymore. i'm in love with tyler. i think i've been in love with tyler for a very long time!

simon: *insert deep sigh of despair* oh gosh. hannah felled in love with me, but now she says she loves tyler. i'm feeling so crazy now.

me: what do you mean? do you feel sad?

simon: well, not really.

me: what do you mean when you say you feel crazy?

simon: my mind is just spinning. first she says she loves me, then she says she does not. it's so confusing!

poor simon, this is just a taste of some of the puppy love heartache he may feel as he grows. perhaps he should write anna a letter disapproving of her love for tyler. apparently it worked for tyler!

thankful

so today in class we learned more about the thanksgiving holiday and i encouraged my kiddos to reflect on what they are thankful for. of course, their answers were very dear and charming. here is a little sampling of what six and seven-year olds deem worthy of thanksgiving:

I'm thankful for...

"living!"

"Hannah Montana, Justin Bieber....and donuts"

"peppero sticks and planet earth"

"chocolate!"

"my mom"

"my family and the whole earth"

"my baby sister" (note: this baby sister is actually a twin sister that is a whopping 2 minutes younger than her older twin brother)

"everything in the whole world and everything in it!" (imagine a little boy saying this while jumping up and down ecstatically--from "simon" my most enthusiastic lover of life)

"makeup, donuts and Hannah Montana"

"my mom, dad and teachers, life, and the earth"

so, i hope this little list helps pump a little gratitude into your heart as you reflect on the good things in life, from the big, beautiful planet to the smallest donut hole.

more funny first graders

a journal entry one of my little girls "anna" wrote:

"today my writing partner is Simon and I am so happy becoz I am in love with him!"

a note i found in my classroom from a jealous little boy to anna:

"dear anna,

i no that you are in love with simon but i think it is time for you to stop.

love,

tyler"

a couple funny quotes:

"mrs. watt, i know a lot about girls even though i'm a tomboy."

"mrs. watt, i think you are going to have lots of kids. maybe 2 hannah montanas and 2 justin biebers." (my reaction: "well, i kind of hope not...")

a little girl who notices some hair on a boy's face in the "unibrow" area of his forehead:

"hey, you have hair right there!"

unibrow boy: "yeah. that's where MEN have hair."

funny how you learn things from trees

so fall is here. man, is it here. the trees are just bursting with color and the falling leaves dance along the streets and sidewalks. it's like a dream. the gingko trees are what have really taken me this season. have you seen a gingko tree in autumn? if you haven't, well, then...you're really missing out. i can't explain to you how gorgeous they are. the beautiful fan shaped leaves turn from a bright crisp green to a bright, fearless, golden yellow. i was driving home today after work with gingkos lining the streets and i felt as if i were approaching Glory. their delicate leaves blow in circles and kiss the ground, like small dancing butterflies searching a place to rest their delicate wings.

I believe that the beauty of these trees is a gift from God. who else could create such a striking spectacle, as these heavenly trees?

now, to backtrack a little: yesterday was one of those rough days. i had a not-so-pleasant human encounter that left me feeling discouraged, angry and hurt. i got in my car determined to go home, vent and soak in a tub of suds to mend my damaged ego. my plan was derailed. i got in my car to drive home and there they were... those beautiful trees. glistening in the autumn daylight, embracing me with all of their glory. my healing began. it was as if i felt the mercy of God pull me out of my darkened state and place a crown upon my head. i knew this sight, this glimpse of God's love for me was a gift and I felt the heaviness of my heart lighten.

now, don't get me wrong. there was still my fair share of venting and frustration later that evening. i mean, i am human after all. : ) but when i got in my car again this afternoon to come home, i saw the trees again. again, a beautiful reminder of God's love for me and oh how completely delightful it will be to see Him in glory!