Kids Say The Funniest Things...

Today I had an assignment with a fifth grade class. I really enjoyed these kids, they really said some funny things.
One of the boys was really excited about his weekend. "Mrs. Elam, do you know where I am going this weekend?" " No where, I asked?" My dad is taking me hunting! Really what are you hunting? Doves! Sometimes we hunt wild pigs. Wow, I said. I then proceeded to tell them how an uncle of ours raises pigs, and that they had hog meat on the menu at their wedding. "Was it a red-neck wedding, he asked?" I laughed at that one!
Then there was a girl who told me all about her ethnic heritage. I was proud of her for remembering some pretty big details about her family. I told her that she must really be proud of her family.
Then there was a little boy who proceeded to tell me that he needed a cell phone! You don't need a cell phone I told him. Who would you call? How old are you? "I'm eleven, and I would call my dog!" I thought that was pretty funny!
These kids kept me laughing all day, and I enjoyed all of their little antics. It makes me feel pretty good when a class I just have for one day wants to tell me all about their lives. Kid's say the funnies things!

Student Teaching

Well, today I have begun the process for student teaching in the Spring. One of the things that I have to do is write an essay about myself, my teaching experiences, and my educational background. I am finding out that this is quite a bit harder that I thought. You want to give them the information that they need, but you don't want to sound to dull or dis-interesting. I am really nervous about this. All the school districts will read this, and choose whether or not they would like me to be their student teacher.
Obtaining my teacher certification has been quite a process for me. I know with all of my heart that I want to teach. It is really hard not to be nervous, and worry if everything will work out for me. It is just one of those things that you have to let go of, and take a giant step of faith. In the meantime I continue to make the preparations necessary for that step. I hope that over the next couple of months that my friends and family will keep me in their thoughts and prayers.
Sometimes when I am alone I try to picture myself in charge of my very own classroom. I think about what the students will be like, and the experiences that I will have. Above all else, I want to make a difference in the lives of those students. I hope that I can.

Oops my mistake...

Normally when we leave the house for an extended amount of time we put Daisy in the utility room to keep her out of trouble. However, sometimes when we go somewhere for an hour or so we leave her out with no problems. Last night I went to visit Thomas at work because he was getting some overtime and I missed him. I thought that I would only be gone for a little while so I did not put Daisy up. After I visited him for a while I went over to Nanny's. Evelyn was in town so I stayed to visit there for a while. After about two hours I realized that I had left Daisy out. Oh no, I thought, what am I going to find when I get home? I found the picture above.

Daisy got bored and tore up the cat's bed.

Does she look guilty or what?

I had foam all over my living room. I didn't punish her because it was my fault. I just said Oops my mistake, and cleaned up the mess.

A Rough Week

This has been a rough week for me. Monday and Tuesday I did not have good classes to sub for. It may have been because the kids were so little, but it was hard to get them to listen. One of the girls in my class at school has the same age group on a daily basis. She has what she calls 30 minute talk time for her class every morning. I thought this was an ingenious idea, because part of the problem that I had was that the kids would all run up to me at once to tell me something. The other problem is that they constantly tattled! I have a pet peeve about tattling.
Yesterday was much better. I had a 4th grade class and they were really sweet. They were working really hard because if they were good they got to eat lunch with their teacher the next day. It was so nice to be able to tell them something and they just did it without arguing or talking. At the end of the day they asked me if they had earned lunch with their teacher. I told them that they did. They were so excited, and they told me Mrs. Elam you are awesome! I told them that they were the ones who did awesome, and thanked them so much for giving me a good day. It was a welcome change. When you are a substitute every day is different. It reminds me of a saying that used to be our slogan on mission trips, "Remember Be Flexible!"

Boys Will Be Boys...

This weekend Daniel came up to spend a day with Thomas and the rest of the family. The guys got to have a lot of fun with each other playing video games, watching football, and as you can see wrestling. These silly guys always pick on the little kids!

Here is a shot of the big boys wrestling.

Christy's boys are always so sweet. They posed for this picture.

Below is also a shot of a sweet little surprise they bought me, Yellow roses.

Kevin was so tired after all the fun that he fell asleep.

I guess as the saying goes, Boys Will Be Boys, no matter what age they are.

When The Mom's Away the Pet's Will Play...

Daisy has a bad habit of pulling the cushions off the couch. She usually does this when she is left alone to long or is in a playful mood. In this case, it was because she was left alone. Thomas and I were in the other room of the house just chatting about our days. It was one of those nice long chats that come only on rare occassions (If you know Thomas you know what I mean). I went into the living room and found this! Silly dog!

Gabby decided to have a little fun under the cushions!

This is Daisy all tired out after her rough and tumble play

My silly little girls! When the Mom's Away the Pets Will Play!

The Antics of My Animals

Isn't she cute?

Today my girls had me laughing. I wasn't actually able to get a picture of it in time, but Gabby did something pretty funny this morning. I decided that I wanted some toast for breakfast, and I hadn't had the chance to put everything away yet. I walked back into the kitchen to clean up after myself, and Gabby had her head in the butter bowel licking it. I called her name, and she thought she was in trouble. She headed straight for her hiding spot on the fridge. Of course this means that I have to buy new butter! Her head was all the way in the container!

Daisy had to have a bath for her return trip to the vet this afternoon. She was less than thrilled to be all wet and soapy. Because I only had 30 minutes to get her to the vet, I decided to use my hair dryer on her after the initial towel drying. The hair dryer terrified her! It didn't go so well.

Daisy getting her bath

Thomas went with us to the vet today. Daisy did a little better with him there than she does when I take her by herself. She sat all cuddled in his lap in the waiting room. She shook the whole time. Then when we were in the examining area she recognized the vet's voice. As soon as she heard the doctor talking she was trying to jump off the table and get away! Poor baby. They are so nice at the vet's office I don't know why she always gets so scared.

Daisy seeking the comfort of Daddy's arms in the waiting area at the vet.

Animals have so much personality! My life would be pretty dull

without my girls and their funny antics.