Monday, May 28, 2012

Day.???.

Well, it has been a LONG time for my posting. Life has really gotten busy with the end of school coming quickly, baseball season coming to a dramatic close, and just my lack of dedication.

I have had a few interviews... so the wait is on. Super hard for me, but what happens, happens. I hope and pray nightly that one will be the perfect fit for me and I will fulfill my goal to be a teacher.

I got to spend a fun, relaxing weekend with John and family. It was great to just relax and not dwell on what may happen. I continue to look for jobs and do what I can to get one.

I have a busy 4 day week of school. I will try to keep up with the blog. No promises. I just ask for prayers that the Lord will help me with my patience and find me a job!

Here is an updated picture of John and I at the Olentangy Baseball Banquet (ignore the stache')
<3

Monday, May 14, 2012

Day.Seventy.Eight.

Monday. Whew was it busy!!

After school today, I had a list of things to do all before my meeting. 1. fill out injury report 2. get sub plans ready for two days of jury duty 3. get to my meeting 4. head home after my meeting, feed dogs, take dogs out, change my clothes 5. head to the Braves baseball game.

All of this by 5:00. I did pretty good. I made it by 5:20 and it was a great game. The Braves pulled out a win!! Woo Hoo!

I am glad to be home and able to relax and watch the tube. I love to just relax. Jury duty tomorrow and Wednesday. I think this week is going to fly by!

-Alexis

Day.Seventy.Seven.

Well, today was day seven of the diet. I didn't do the only soup day. I 'gave up' so to speak. It was Mother's Day and I wanted to celebrate with family. I had my own little celebration with a DIET COKE! Yum! I love it. It isn't terribly hard to miss when you used to have 3 a day.. but I limited myself to a small amount.
We celebrated Mother's Day with John's side of the family. My mom was living it up at the beach (lucky!). We all went to Christie and Tom's to have steak. I had a hot dog... I am not a huge fan of steak. I love seeing all of my nieces and nephews! They are so much fun to hang out with and watch them grow. They are so big! I love them. 

John was having a major allergic fit (still don't know what was causing it) so I made a quick dinner when we got home. John grilled some bbq chicken, I made some steamed fresh green beans and some quick parmesan noodles (from a box). We always used to make dinner, but time gets the best of us. I must say... I LOVE the grill. I need to use it more often. 
(Yummy dinner for TWO)

Well the diet is over and I lost 5 pounds. I did not do day 7 at all. I think that it was a great way to get more conscious of what I was eating every day. It also made me find new recipes to try with vegetables! I know  I will use some again. 

So, if you are going to do the diet, I recommend you keep an open mind and go into knowing that it may not be the easiest thing, you will be somewhat hungry at times, and you may get a headache. But, it was worth it. I definitely found that I felt better and was sleeping better. 

Happy Detox/Dieting!

-Alexis

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Day.Seventy.Six.



My Journey with the Seven Day Diet
Day: Six

Food: Chicken and Vegetables


Breakfast: Chicken breast cold cuts. 

Lunch: Salad with chicken on the top with fat free ranch. 

Dinner: (FAIL with friends) We had snack foods and none contained a vegetable or chicken. 

Water Consumption: 4 bottles (8 glasses)

Morning Weigh In: 162.4

Thoughts/Feelings: No Diet Coke again. Today was going great until we hung out with our friends tonight. Alissa had already confessed that she was done with the diet... so, for dinner, I had a few taquitos, chips and salsa. I really do not want to do the soup all day tomorrow. It is Mother's Day. I think today is my last day of the diet. 

TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS: 5 pounds in 5 full days

Day.Seventy.Five.



My Journey with the Seven Day Diet
Day: Five

Food: Chicken and Tomatoes (6 required)

Breakfast: Chicken cold cuts (2 pieces).

Lunch: Bowl of tomato soup, chicken cold cuts, raw tomato with salt and pepper.

Dinner: Grilled chicken and a baked tomato (follow me on pinterest to find the recipe on my board).

Water Consumption: 4 bottles (8 glasses)

Morning Weigh In: 163.4

Thoughts/Feelings: No Diet Coke again. 6 tomatoes. I was able to eat a total of four. It was grossing me out and I LIKE tomatoes! I used a baked tomato recipe I found on pinterest and it was yummy! I recommend it! I was yummy to have some meat. Not something I thought I would miss, but it was a welcomed food today. I thought I would be pretty hungry, but today was a good day!

Bring on Day SIX!

Day.Seventy.Four.



My Journey with the Seven Day Diet
Day: Four (literacy night)

Food: Bananas and Skim Milk (or yogurt)

Breakfast: One banana and a yogurt (strawberry flavored Light and Fit).

Lunch: Yogurt (strawberry cheesecake Light and Fit) and a banana.

Dinner: Banana after school, 1/2 yogurt at home after literacy night.

Water Consumption: 4 bottles (8 glasses)

Morning Weigh In: 164.4

Thoughts/Feelings: No Diet Coke again. I was really worried about today. I am not a yogurt fan, but I have found a few that I like and can actually eat! This is a very recent development, so I knew this day would be a struggle. I shouldn't have. This was the EASIEST! I was not hungry at all! Whew!

Bring on Day FIVE!

Day.Seventy.Three.



My Journey with the Seven Day Diet
Day: Three (jury duty day too)

Food: Fruits and Vegetables (no potato)

Breakfast: A large green apple, but I couldn't finish it.

Lunch: Salad of romaine and spinach with light italian dressing and a SMALL amount of parmesan cheese.

Dinner: Salad with different veggies and about 3 oz. of chicken with fat free ranch dressing. 

Water Consumption: 4 bottles (8 glasses)

Morning Weigh In: 164.4

Thoughts/Feelings: No Diet Coke again. Today I had jury duty. I wasn't as hungry as I thought I would be. I did have to go to the bathroom a lot! All this water takes a toll. I feel SO much better today. I am always tired, but I don't feel very tired today and I feel like I actually slept last night. I knew if I didn't have something on my salads, I would want to cheat, so I allowed myself a few things to prevent that. (water at dinner is not yummy)

Bring on Day FOUR!

Day.Seventy.Two.


My Journey with the Seven Day Diet
Day: Two

Food: Vegetables (One Baked Potato)

Breakfast: A few small carrots, not really hungry.

Lunch: Baby carrots, Miracle Soup, and my baked potato with butter (Thank you Misty!).

Dinner: Cooked cauliflower and brussel sprouts (I found recipes on Pinterest to guide my way).

Water Consumption: 4 bottles (8 glasses)

Morning Weigh In: 165.4

Thoughts/Feelings: No Diet Coke again. This is amazing me! The veggies were much easier! I could cook them or eat them raw. Much more exciting and other choices. The baked potato was fabulous! Headache again tonight... off to bed early. 

Bring on Day THREE!

Day.Seveny.One.

My Journey with the Seven Day Diet
Day: One

Food: Fruit (no bananas)


Breakfast: Grapes and watermelon pieces.

Lunch: Grapes, strawberries, and watermelon pieces.

Dinner: Grapes and Miracle Soup.

Water Consumption: 4 bottles (8 glasses)

Morning Weigh In: 167.4

Thoughts/Feelings: No Diet Coke today! (pretty proud of myself for this) I had a BAD headache around 8:30pm, stuck it out and headed to bed to get rid of it. I wasn't starving, but I would love some WARM food. I worked out tonight.

Bring on Day TWO!


Day.Seventy.

Alright.. I decided I would do the diet. I am not one who normally does diets, but I thought about and it seems ok, not terrible. I will blog about the week that is coming. Here is the basic layout (found on pinterest)
I decided I need to do more research, but I was going to do it! John immediately doubted my ability to do it, so of course... it was game on! 

So, off to the store I went to stock up on fruit, veggies, and the ingredients for the soup! The kicker for me isn't the food as much as it is the DELETION of Diet Coke. I usually have 2-3 cans a day. Now, I am going to go cold turkey and have only water. Yuck! I hate water. 

Day one starts tomorrow... I will keep you updated. 

For more information about this diet visit: www.my7daydiet.com  (It was full of info and why it is like this. I liked the science behind the madness. Also, it was more detailed.) This is more of a cleanse that will result in weight loss. 

I guess it is my last chance to have a Twinkie... so, I shall eat and then go to sleep!

-Alexis

Day.Sixty.Nine.

Happy Cinco De Mayo!
On this day, we relaxed, cleaned, and I outlined the blog posts that I was behind on. I will get around to them.

Funny thing happened today:
I was outside with the dogs. It seems like I am all the time. The people in the house behind me were out. She was cutting grass. I kept thinking, she looks familiar. Hmmmm... Later in the day, we were out again, no surprise, and she came out and said, HI ALEXIS! Well, my neighbor that moved in about 8 months ago... is also an employee of SACC! What are the odds. I worked with her over spring break and we would email back and forth about the plans, and we could have just talked in our backyards! Small world.

Now.. how many times have I taken the dogs out looking like a hot mess that just woke up... too many to count... hehe.

This week is going to be busy. Alissa called and asked if I was interested in doing a diet that she and Dena are doing next week. I said I would check it out... We will see.


Have a great night!

-Alexis


Day.Sixty.Eight.

I love musicals! Delaware Hayes was putting on Legally Blonde and I thought it would be a great thing to do with Kennedy! She has been working SO hard with me and her reading, I thought it would be a fun treat. Here are some pictures from the show:
 Pretty Girl<3
 We are EXCITED!
 Show TShirt (we also got a brownie, water, and donated to breast cancer research)
 -Checking out the Playbill-
 -All Smiles-
 -Sassy Girl Rockin' her new Gear-
 She met ELLE! (Thank you Susan for making that a wonderful experience. She was starstruck and was so excited to meet you. In Kennedy's words "You sing really good.")
A Wonderfully Pink Night at the Theater :)

Congrats to the cast and crew. Fabulous show! Thanks for a wonderful show!

-Alexis (and Kennedy)

Day.Sixty.Seven.

Years of Service Reception/striving
Today, after school, the district held a ceremony to celebrate those employees who have been with the district for a certain number of years and those retiring. Because I do not work after school, I decided I would go. Misty, who is my 'relief' every day at KSACC was being recognized for 15 years of service with the district. Another SACC employee, Judy, was retiring. Two wonderful people.

As I sat through the ceremony, it was so wonderful to see what people had to say about those being honored or retiring. The whole time, all I could think about was, I wish I was being recognized. I want to work! I gave myself a small pity party about the current 'classroom job' situation. I love my job and am blessed to be where I am, but I REALLY want to fulfill my goal and become a contracted, classroom teacher. I will get there!

Then, once the pity party was over, I wondered to myself... what will people say about me at my retirement? It was kind of interesting to think about. Who am I as a teacher? What will people see? I hope that they will say:

Caring, Creative, Hardworking, Organized, LOVES the Children, Happy

I know that I try to be the above, but I can always improve.

So, cheers to those who are celebrating their time in the district!
Here is to many more years!

-Alexis

Day.Sixty.Six.

Well.. the day has arrived. Jury Duty. Grand Jury Duty to be exact.

I started the morning off checking in with my sub and making sure that everything was ready for the day. With my last sub's experience.. I was nervous. I knew it would be an ok day, but I still had a bit of nervousness. I made sure she was planned until after lunch, and then I thought I would be back. I also made sure that she let them know that the new Pete the Cat would be shared if they were making the best choices they could.

Off I went. To the courthouse. It is such a strange experience. I have never been in trouble with the law or do I ever foresee that happening. How do people who are in trouble, deal with this all the time. It is eye-opening. I headed upstairs to the waiting room area and it filled in pretty quickly. There were 44 people in the room. Keep in mind, I have NO idea how or what we would be doing. Would I get chosen? My chances of getting chosen were about 50/50. I chose to be on the May-June Jury list. Well... I was chosen.  Next thing I know, I am off to the courtroom. I was in the first 14, so I was automatically on the grand jury. As the day went on, it became clearer that there was no 'getting out of it'. I am glad I was chosen, now, looking back. I will get into that more later.

After we were sworn in and given our directions, we were sent upstairs to the Grand Jury Room. I was still very unaware of what our job was exactly. Now I know: To hear the testimonies/witnesses of the prosecution and we vote to decide if there is enough evidence to send the case to trial(indictment). Interesting! I won't be in the courtroom at all! Anyway, the prosecutor was getting us comfortable, and gave us a brief outline of our day, "brief training, lunch, then cases to be heard". At that moment, I panicked! My sub was only prepped for 1/2 of the day. EEEK! I called her immediately and let her know I would be there all day. So, on my lunch, I rushed to the school, explained the plans, and read PETE THE CAT! (maybe it was selfish of me, but I wanted to share it with them). Grabbed a quick lunch, then headed back to the courthouse. Crisis averted.

There are 14 people chosen for the grand jury. I am number 11. Jurors 1-9 are voting members. Jurors 10-14 are alternates in case one juror is unable to cast a vote. I still have to be there to hear all of the case and I leave when they vote. The alternates do not find out which cases are indicted until Friday, when we can read it in the newspaper.

Before we could vote, we had a brief training. The Delaware County Drug Task Force came to acquaint us with the drugs that are in the county. Talk about an eye opener! Yikes! I was astonished at the technicalities of drugs and pretty bothered by how prevalent it is in the county. Then we met with a S.A.N.E nurse (for sexual assault victims). I just happen to know her! Lastly, we met with victim advocates who are there for those who are mainly in domestic violence cases. I felt a bit more prepared and knowledgable.

All in all, I love jury duty. I miss being with my kiddos, but it is a really interesting to be part of. I have learned so many things, met some cool people, and am doing my civic duty. I have jury duty every week, every Wednesday for two months. I was initially dreading it, but now I look forward to it almost.

If you get called, I urge you to take advantage of it and learn from the experience.

-Alexis
*I am sworn to secrecy, so no juicy details to share, SORRY*

Day.Sixty.Five.

IT IS HERE!!!!! Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons!


Today was the day. After school, I headed to Barnes and Noble to pick up my reserved copy of the new Pete the Cat! As I was there, of course, I saw at least 10 books I would love to buy and use in my classroom. That is my true weakness.... book for my classroom. I love children's literature. Anyway.. back to Pete! So, as I was standing in line, a woman in front of me was talking to the cashier about how her daughter loves the books and she was excited to get her the next book. Well... she didn't have the new one. So, I thought I should tell her about the new release. She was grateful and went to buy the new one.

As soon as I got into my car, I couldn't just let it sit on the front seat as I drove home. I just HAD to read it and find out the ending. I am definitely a kid at heart. I couldn't wait. Well... I won't give away details, but the ending was FABULOUS! I chuckled a bit... and I know the kids will!

Tomorrow, I have jury duty. I should be able to be back in the room by the afternoon, so I will be sure to share it with my KSACC kiddos. They are going to love it!

Check it out online: http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/feature/petethecat/

Happy Reading/Listening!
-Alexis

Day.Sixty.Four.

Well, the baseball season is coming to a close. I really like the group of kids that are on the team this year. One has a special place in my heart. His name is Tyler and he reminds me SO much of John. He is a good kid who is always willing to help us out. (ok... help me out when John is out of town) This young man would shovel our driveway, cut our grass, and even made sure John was able to get his car after I got stuck one day in the snow early in the morning. His parents are so sweet as well. I know he will do great things in the future!

The senior night game was fun to watch. There was a lot of support from fellow classmates who play different sports. Sometimes, when John comes home and he is grading and griping, it is hard to picture these high school kids. I know how my friends and I were in high school... so it is strange to hear some of John's stories. But this group... just some really good kids who genuinely care.
Kudos to you parents!

Check out these two crazies! (I'm telling you.. they could be twins)
-Alexis

Day.Sixty.Three.

-just a thought-

-Alexis

Day.Sixty.Two.

April 28th... saturday, pedicure, TV,

Well... after my stressful end to yesterday, I got a welcomed surprise. Wendy and Kerrigan came to visit and we got to hang out and get pedicures! I always love pedicures... and sassy Kerrigan loves to get her feet soaked and painted. She chose a bright green color, Wendy chose an orange (not too bright, but not fall-ish), and I chose a pinkish-red. It was definitely a needed relaxation.


While the girls were getting pampered, John went to his parents to help around the condo. He got to come home with...drumroll please.....
.
.
.
.
.
a TV for our bedroom!! YAY! We have been wanting one so we can fall asleep actually in our bed instead of on the couch and have to get up and go upstairs. So exciting! Now we just have to get a cable box for up there so we can use it.

All in all, I am feeling refreshed and recharged for next week.

-Alexis

Day.Sixty.One.

Well, today was a frustrating day for me as a teacher. Not so much frustrating as it was upsetting.

Every month, I have a meeting that has all of the KSACC teachers and the before and after school managers together. I like meeting with them to share our thoughts and ideas. My main concern is it during the school day. This requires the KSACC teachers to get a substitute. Well... my main sub was sick. I had a different sub come to my room who had never met my students. She is a fabulous person and sub... but it went crazy upon my departure. I feel bad leaving, knowing that some events may occur because of the change in the dynamics of the classroom. I am always a nervous wreck when I am not in my room. This is probably a personal issue... the lack of control, missing my kinders, etc. Today was no different.

When I came back from my meeting, I walked into a child bleeding (caused by another), children not obeying, and it was just a bit chaotic. What a bummer. It is hard enough to leave now, and I was just so deflated returning to all of these things. So... with 20 minutes left in the school day, I had to check their work from the day, pack them up (folders, work, lunchboxes, etc.), write an incident report, write a behavior update, AND finish a rainstick. WHEW! It was quite the doozy.

Did I mention how much I don't like to lose control of things?  Next up, jury duty. We can only see how that goes.

-Alexis

Day.Sixty.

Rain, Rain, 
Go Away, 
Come again another day, 
All the Children Want to Play, 
Rain, Rain, 
Go Away. 

Well, I must admit, it was a wonderful addition to our rain week to see and experience rain in a new light. The kinders were very excited to, in a way, examine the rain with new knowledge. It was very exciting to watch as a teacher. I just wanted to put on my wellies, and head outside to play in the puddles... that must wait for another day.


-Alexis

Day.Fifty.Nine.

So I have had a twitter account for a while now. I don't know what possessed me to get one, but it seemed interesting. So I did. After attending the Dublin Literacy Conference this year, we learned about our presenters and their twitter names. So, I added them.

Well let me preface this story...
At the Dublin Literacy Conference, I met Eric Litwin and James Dean, the author and illustrator of Pete the Cat! I bought the first two books and had them signed. I couldn't wait to go back to school and share them with my kiddos. They LOVE LOVE LOVE to dance, and these are the perfect books for movin' and shakin'. Well, Pete quickly became a staple in our classroom. (end of preface)

Back to today. Well, on twitter I received a wonderful text. A NEW PETE THE CAT WILL BE ON SALE MAY 1st! I was just like a kinder... super, super excited!

Well, with news this great, I had to share with my kids. So, I found the clip on youtube that had a preview of the new book. They loved the new groove and started a count down on the calendar for the new one! I was required to go to the Barnes and Noble that day to get it!

I will keep you updated!

-Alexis

Day.Fifty.Eight.

Well, with regards to my post yesterday I wanted to talk more about non-fiction in our classroom.

Every day I get a break while my 'relief' reads for story time. WHEW! I am so glad she does this for me. Anyway, I usually have her read a fiction book and a non-fiction book. I always tell the kids on my way out, make sure you learn a fact... and share it with me later. 

They have really started to enjoy non-fiction. I make it a 'big deal' to find a fact or information about our subject. Not only are they becoming more comfortable with reading, they are more comfortable with non-fiction texts. Not all of my non-fiction texts are on grade level. I have the students look at the pictures, draw conclusions, etc.

I am looking forward to dinosaur week. They LOVE dinosaurs!

-Alexis

Day.Fifty.Seven.

This week in KSACC we are focusing on April Showers! Rain Rain Rain...
I am so surprised that it ACTUALLY rained this week. I am very glad as well because we could use it as a reference. There were a few things that were really fun this week. We took a picture of ourselves under a big umbrella. I printed them out on paper and we used a pencil eraser to create RAIN all around us! The kids loved making it rain inside the classroom.

Every week and every theme, I ask the librarian to pull me some specific books. (She is so helpful! Thank you Mrs. Jackson!!) With the theme this week being rain, we were able to read a lot of non-fiction books. As a class, we each read/browsed a book about rain. Then we shared with a partner. Then we came together and wrote the facts on an anchor chart. I had some fun answers/facts. My favorite of the exercise:
RAIN IS WET!

True. How could I not write it. It was a great observation.

Kindergarteners at their finest. I sure do love them!

-Alexis