Olivia pilots, William directs, and the trailer waits!
It’s yet another Sunday morning. This one finds me in Michigan, for perhaps the last time for a while. It’s the end of summer. Summer has been ending for us for the last few weeks. The end began with school re-starting; first with me, then the kids. I’ve been back at school for over two weeks and had kids in my classroom for ten full days. William and Olivia have been back in school for nine days and we find ourselves at the official end of summer – Labor Day weekend. Continue reading Sunday morning – part two→
'77' is for Red Grange a Wheaton alum and NFL Hall of Famer
It’s the first weekend of the school year and it felt good to sleep past four. Though it is almost over, it was packed full of activities and appointments and I am finally sitting down to think and reflect back over the first week and look ahead to the second week and our first break – Labor Day. It seems unfair that we get started with two full weeks; then interrupt it with a four-day holiday for the kids and a three-day break for the teachers – the day after Labor Day is a teacher in-service day.
The next five days will go quickly with all sorts of activities in the classroom and skill and content learning will begin. The first few days of school are for introducing the class, beginning routines, and getting to know the students and allowing them to know me. I teach honestly and from the heart sharing my experiences as a student and a parent. Having ‘lived seventh grade’ last year, I know what happens at home. I’ll get to ‘live seventh grade’ once more, when Olivia gets there and I’ll see it from a female perspective. Continue reading Sunday morning…→
Today is the first day of school – WITH KIDS! I am excited. I have spent the summer resting, relaxing, and re-setting for this day. The best part of teaching is every year you get to start all over and begin again. Today is the day. I remember my mom telling me, “You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression.” I am ready. Continue reading First days of school→
Ivy greeted me very enthusiastically this morning. It had been a while since we had seen each other and she wanted me to know she had missed me, at least that’s the spin I am going to take. It was just after five with the moon sliding over the horizon and the sun was beginning to creep up, just enough light to cast a faint light in the yard. It is the time in summer when the days are getting shorter and evening’s dark before nine. It can only mean one thing, school’s back. Continue reading First Day→
August the first sounds bad, it really does. It sounds like the end of summer vacation and the return to serious things like school, work, and responsibility. I read the quote in my Franklin Planner this morning and it read,
“There shall be Eternal summer in the grateful heart.” Celia Thaxter.
I had never heard of her so, I let my fingers do the walking and discovered she was an American poet and author in the nineteenth century. Her father was a lighthouse keeper and ran an inn and she lived her entire life in New England. In addition, she is known for running her father’s summer inn, which attracted America’s literary elite in the late 1800s, and hence she lived a summer-like existence, year-round. I suppose summer does live on in our hearts and minds. It is the motivation when the mornings are dreary, the workload enormous, or the chores unpleasant. Whatever is coming in a few weeks when school resumes will not be as much fun as summer has been. Continue reading First Day New Month→
Olivia and her friends wait for the race to start on the river’s edge
It is late morning, not a particularly good time to start a post, but this will be brief at least that’s the plan. Sometimes plans change as they did earlier this week and I drove back to the cottage Thursday afternoon instead of early morning arriving just as the kids were coming in from skiing. Continue reading Canoe Race Weekend→
I woke up early and took my time getting ready this morning. I am at a conference in, of all places, Normal. That’s right, I ‘m in Normal, Normal Illinois. It’s about 140 miles southwest of Chicago on the road to St. Louis. I came to the same conference last year and walked away with a few ideas on how I could improve my teacher association’s website. I implemented a few and this year I’m back for more. Continue reading So, what is Normal?→
Our finished mailbox - ready for postcards, letters, and mail
It is early Saturday morning. The sun has yet to peak over the horizon and all is quiet. Even Ivy has decided it is better to stay in bed and has returned to her place on the floor in our bedroom. It has been a great week – for all of us.
Beth finished planting the mailbox on Monday and it has been a reminder of how beautiful her gardens are at home. It certainly makes a statement at the front of the driveway. After Julie’s letter on Saturday, we received a few more items including a postcard from mom! I’ve been writing and sending postcards all summer and this is the first to arrive, here. It is great to get mail and hear how other folks are spending their summer. Continue reading Friday and the past week→
Space Shuttle Endeavor lands for the final time. photo courtesy of NASA
I am bummed. I don’t know about you, but I am disappointed. I got up early this morning to watch the final shuttle landing. It was on a few channels, but I settled on Fox for the last ten minutes of flight. It was commercial free.
I am a space baby. No, I wasn’t born in space; as far as I know, no one has. What I mean is that as long as I have been alive, the United States has been sending men into space and returning them to Earth safely, with only two accidents – Challenger and Columbia. This morning, it ended. I am sad. Continue reading Space→
Saturday always feels like a Saturday at the cottage. It doesn’t matter that we aren’t following a schedule it still feels like a Saturday. It is time for a few chores and mostly time for recreation. It is also a busy time on the lake. There are more boats and jet skis zipping on the lake, more water skiers, and more noise. You run into more people on the lane, up for the weekend arriving Friday night and leaving, or planning to, on Sunday afternoon. Continue reading Reading and more reading→
