Crash course on 2012

 So it has been almost a year since I last posted...anything. It has been an eventful year.

1) Jake completed his last semester of college and was able to graduate with not one but TWO degrees, one in finance and one in accounting.

2) Through some help from Joel, Jake was able to land a fantastic job up at Zion's HQ in Salt Lake a week before he graduated. It was a HUGE blessing to be able to jump from one career into another in a seamless motion. I am so glad that we have family who is willing to use their connections to help another.

3) We also moved....again. It was a bitter sweet deal. Being told you had to be out in a month, against our will, was to say the least stressful. BUT we have wonderful people who love us and wanted to keep us so we moved two blocks into another basement. How wonderful it is to be in a great apartment that doesn't smell and the general feeling and looks have improved as well. We get to have a dog without all of the work. This is because the dog is our landlords.

4) The Summer Olympics happened and we were able to watch and enjoy women's gymnastics and the swimming competitions.

5) I taught summer school for the first time at Reagan. It was a welcome break from the solitary confinement that is summer break. It was also fun to jump start some young minds.

6) My student entered 5th Grade and after a worrisome first week got into the groove and things have been great. He is maturing and becoming more independent (which is our ultimate goal!). I am amazed at the growth that he has had in the 2 1/5 years I've been with him.While sad I look forward to a time he doesn't need me anymore. That means I have done my job correctly.

                                                                                                                                           Jake laying down with Molly after a rousing game of fetch

7) Jake continues to be a wiz kid at work and is trying to work his way up the ranks and find ways to improve himself.

8) For the second time we were Joel's support crew for the LOTOJA in September. Not only that we had to wonderful opportunity to take one of his dad's puppies with us to Jackson. Since we knew what to expect we were more relaxed and really enjoyed it. The puppy wasn't too terrible. Mostly she slept at my feet and stole all of the air conditioning (since I put in on the floor setting since she was really hot curled around my feet all day). Joel did amazing! It is always great to share in something like that. We hope to help again in the years to come.

 

This is "Freckles" trying in vane to get away from the hot sun on our way to Jackson. Soon after this she crawled through the opening between the passenger and drivers side and curled under the gas and brake peddle. We had to coast to a stop for fear of crushing her head!

 9) For the first time since our honeymoon we were able to take a real vacation that didn't involve any family obligations. We went down to St. George in October during my Fall Break and enjoyed a few days at my uncle's home there. There were many hikes. Our journeys took us to Snow Canyon, Zions National Park, Tuachan, and Las Vegas.
 While we had tickets to Aladdin we were unfortunately rained out.  On the bright side we got a rain-check for next year plus two sets of tickets for other shows that have gone to good use. We were also able to go to Las Vegas and visit with Joel, Brooke, and the kids. It was fantastic to be able to see them one on one. We could get to know them in a different way then we have been able to in the past.

This deer literally walked right in front of us as we were on our way up to Emerald Pools in Zions. She just stood there for a few moments as if saying "Well? Aren't you going to take my picture?" Then slowly meandered away once we took a few pictures.

 This is a "Prehistoric Trilobite" we found in a pond in Snow Canyon. We only found it because Jake decided to throw a rock in and a bunch of these little guys swam to the surface


10) Christmas was a fantastic time for us. My parents were able to come to Utah and my whole family was together for the holiday season. Also due to Jake's new job and his grandparent's generosity we were able to have a very posh Christmas. Normally we are very frugal and have a budget for gifts and such not. Not this year. We went a little crazy. This year we felt very blessed to be able to indulge in the more commercial aspect of Christmas. Don't take this as bragging, we are just grateful we were able to do this for ourselves. 

11) Not only were we able to be blessed with a little extra $$ we were also able to confirm that I was pregnant! On the December 21, 2012 I was able to go to the doctor and he confirmed that I was going to be having a baby in July. Being able to hear my baby's heartbeat for the first time was the best gift anyone could have ever given me. Both Jake and I cried when I told him when he got home that day. It was such a precious moment that I am going to cherish for
 all time.

                      Wow-zaa! That's a lot of presents

 This is a poem that Jake found. I thought it appropriate what with the coming Valentine's Day.


Why I Love You
Udiah                                          
   
You give to me hope
And help me to cope
When life pulls me down
You bring me around

You teach me to care
And help me to share
You make me honest
With kindness the best

From you I learned love
With grace from above
It's for you I live
And I want to give

You are the reason
That fills each season
When I hear love I think of you
You are my world and best friend too

I love you because you are so kind, thoughtful and caring
I love you because you are so pleasant, lovely and sharing

You made me the man I am
Thank you

It has been a little over two weeks, almost three, since school started. I am happy to report that my student and I, for the most part, don't want to tear at each others throats.
However, this is not what I want to talk about, though it is amazing news! His teacher is a new teacher. I don't mean just new to the school, but freshly graduated, as wet and green as you can get. This is not intended to be a mean, but more my observations and frustrations. I don't want to get up on a soapbox and preach that I always know better or more than she does. What I want to do is more vent. Ms. X as I will call her to protect her identity, is generally a great teacher. She keeps command of the class for the most part, they are a bunch of 4th graders (enough said), and has a okay grasp on the curriculum and what is expected of her.
For those who know me know that I don't like to be idle for too long I start to go crazy. When I am at work and my student is doing well I would like something else to do. I have made it clear to Ms. X that I am willing to correct, record scores, and do any other odd job that need to be done. I am also more than willing to read to the class after lunch recess to give her time to do her things and relax for a few more minutes. I am a little befuddled as to why she wouldn't take advantage of that the other, more seasoned, teachers leapt at the chance to catch up on things. Ms. X does not only further leading to her own tardiness in grading and so forth. This goes especially for teacher reading after lunch. I don't mean to toot my own horn and say I am the best, but she does not read aloud very well. I find, and I think the kids agree, it can be fairly flat and lifeless. This leads the kids to fiddling and whispering. However, in the past when I have read they tend to be a bit quieter and more attentive to the story. At the moment it isn't the most engaging story for the boys. I also try make sure that I am saying the correct words and bring them to life. I'm sorry but ogre (ˈō-gər) is NOT said orge (or-g). Orge is a river in France not a scary mythical creature to be feared by all who meet it.
Being the type of person I am I love to learn new information. They are learning about the earth in history class. Now, I understand that words will just fall out of your brain at times and you can't remember them for the life of ya. It  happens to everyone, even me. Believe it or not! Now if that word is supplied you wouldn't take offense. Ms. X has. I am instructed not to correct her on pronunciation or  information.  This is to be done after the class is gone. Wha..?! If wrong information or words are being taught is it not the responsibility of those listening (and know the proper info) to fix it at the time of instruction so the wrong can be righted and said incorrect info is not ingrained. It is always harder to correct something if it is left to sit and take root. I don't want to imply that I think she isn't a smart individual, but why hamper freely given or accessed knowledge? The other teachers I have worked with always welcomed my two cents as it were. They would even ask for it during lectures. It is not as though I am talking down to her or being rude about it, only piping up when needed.
Then again those other teachers were much more experienced and confident in themselves. In so being,  were comfortable to be told when they were doing something not quite right and correct it then. I guess the moral of this story is, keep my mouth shut and nose in a book to keep said mouth shut. Ms. X will need to learn for herself since she doesn't want to hear it from me.
I guess I need to get off my soapbox even if I didn't intend to jump on it in the first place.

Back to School

Like all good things they must eventually come to an end. Yes Moms and Dads it is back to school time. For some it is a time of celebration, the kids will be out of the house for most of the day and you don't have to hear the dreaded words, "I'm bored", or "(S)He's touching me!", or just screaming in general. However there is always a twinge of remorse (or so I have heard from some parents) that they can't just be with their kids and go out on adventures or play at the park all day.
I for one am happy that another summer is ending! It means I get to go back to work at a school where your darling little dears get to harass me all day. Sarcasm aside, I do love my job. Just like kids I need the mental stimulation that comes with book-learning or teaching as the case maybe. While I don't enjoy the paper grading, indoor recesses, smelly/sweaty kids, and clamor that is lunch, I do enjoy watching their little minds grow, make connections, and listen/watch them interact and have to remember I was once like that.
With this new school year it will be one of change. My student (now in 4th grade) will be moving half way through the school year to a new country(!). I am not excited about the potential anxieties and emotional turmoil that will come as it gets closer. It did not go well when he first found out.
It will have its challenges since the class as a whole will be starting into the mutant stages of being a preteen. They will be treated more like adults and not little kids. This will mean more personal responsibility for work and the condition it is turned in as, having to deal (more) with their own problems and finding an acceptable solution to them. Oh growing pains. So glad that I have gotten passed -most- of them.

On to completely different though slightly connected tangent! With the start of this new school year it also marks the beginning of the end for my dear sweetheart and his school career. Jake will only have two semesters left and then he graduates with a double bachelors in Accounting and Finance! I am so excited to see he walk this spring. It will be nice not to have to buy books or pay for tuition for awhile, at least until he decides he wants to get a Masters. By then hopefully he will have started a "real" job and the company can help foot the bill. We only need to get through the next nine months. I am hoping we will have more wonderful news to spread as the months pass.

"I'm old enough to know what I like!"

First and for most I am going to state that I'm really not that old. With that said I feel like an old lady. The reason behind this statement is that I am turning into one of those people that is slowly hardening my resolve to like the current trends, mostly in music. When I am in the car or listening to Pandora I find myself shuffling through my stations until I find a song that doesn't sound like...well noise. I can't tell you how often I have been listening and all the sudden I don't hear music anymore, but noise and it makes my teeth go on edge.

I was talking to Jake about this and he just laughed, agreed and then said "'I'm old enough to know what I like.'" 

This came from one of the best shows I've come across in awhile Modern Family. To give some context to this quote I'll briefly (or try to) the episode or segment(s) that this comes from.

Gloria is trying to get Manny to eat scrabbled eggs. Manny is saying he doesn't like it. Jay walks in and tells him to try it. Manny says he doesn't like it. Jay asks if he has tried it before. Manny hangs his had and says that he hasn't and concedes to try them. Fast Forward. Jay, Gloria, and Manny are going to a concert. Jay sees that it is for a classical concert and not a rock band. He stops and says he wont go in. Manny asks if he has ever tried it. Jay promptly says no. Manny then pulls the same tactic of trying new things. Jay simply and firmly says, "I'm old enough to know what I like!" This is when Jay storms off.

I am by no means trying to say that I am completely set in my ways, just in certain things (like my music). I just watch those who are older (grandparents, parents, aunt, uncles..etc) than me and find it funny how set in there way they are. This doesn't mean that it is a bad thing, just interesting how they perceive the ever changing world around them. I know that I'll be (am) set into certain patterns of thought and actions eventually. I am just a little taken aback that it has happened so early. Oh well. 

I guess what it all comes down to is comfort in familiarity.