Cousins

It wasn't until one of my cousins passed away that I realized how important that relationship is. Because we moved around so much during my growing up years, I missed out on getting to spend lots of time with my cousins. I didn't even know my paternal cousins until I was in my thirties and I only actually met one of them. As an adult, I have gotten to know many of my cousins. They are awesome people.


Now, I am an aunt. I get to watch my own nieces and nephews interact with one another. They are such good friends. It's truly amazing to me to see what I missed. I love watching them play together. Caden is the only boy in Utah and really misses his cousins, Craig and Kavyn. They are like the Three Musketeers when they get together. The older girls (McKennah, Bethany, and Allie) play together and then there are the younger girls (Emma, Saydee, Erin, and now Lauren). I observed the younger ones, minus Lauren sliding down the stairs on their stomachs on Sunday. I love everything about them...their cute voices, giggles, kind personalities, even the crying (usually). Saydee made sure I got my share of the Jelly Bellys my sister brought.

I hope they are always good friends.

The Mom Song

All you You Tube fans out there will probably have already seen this. All you moms out there ought to see this. It's pretty funny! Just copy and paste the link and enjoy the ride.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anSpBUxsgAU

Snow in September is...well, it's just wrong!

I came home from a wet and rainy shopping trip. I could tell the temperature was dropping, but I didn't think it was dropping too much. I decided it was a chili and corn bread day. I made corn bread and asked my sister (ok, I told her... nicely) to make some of her awesome chili. We were doing a few things down stairs when I hear my sister, who was looking out the window, say, "That doesn't look like rain." Immediately, I moved to a better view at the sliding glass door. "You have got to be freaking kidding me!" Yes, there it was...the snow. It is now coming down at a pretty good clip. During the rainy portion of the morning, my mom mentioned I'd better get prepared for an early winter, which didn't do anything to stimulate the endorphins in my brain.

I'm pretty black and white. Celebrate Halloween in October, Thanksgiving in November, Christmas in December, The New Year in January, St. Patrick's Day in March, etc. We don't need to prepare too much in advance for holidays. That's why snow in September...well, it's just plain wrong!

Thanks, Girls!

Saturday I was having one of those moments when everything is bearing down on you and you don't feel like talking and really you're having one big pity party for yourself. I don't have any explanation for it, it was simply the way I felt until I got a really sweet phone call. It was my niece, Saydee. With her voice echoing the voice of her mom, she left me a message:

Patty: Hi, Kirsten, this is Saydee.

Saydee: Hi, Kirsten, this is Saydee.

Patty: I just wanted to talk to you.
Saydee: I just wanted to talk to you.
Patty: Call me later.
Saydee: Call me later.

As soon as I got the message, I called back and talked to her. Our conversation was short and then I talked to her sister, my niece, Bethany. We talked about school and her new bike.

I am really grateful for that phone conversation because it reminded me that people care. It pulled me out of my pity party fog and made the rest of my day better. Thanks, girls!

The Civil War Wall

Here it is...The Civil War Wall...

In my dream classroom of long ago I dreamed of having a wall dedicated to the Civil War. It is a dream I have managed to bring from the dream state to reality. My wall consists of a miscellany of pictures, maps, and paraphernalia all collected during my couple of trips back east, with more than one having been sent to me by a dear friend. The location of my Civil War Wall has changed over the years and last year it ended up on the wall adjacent to my desk and this year, when I moved my desk's location, it ended up by me yet again. I love it!

It's Nice to be Loved

I have spot on my white board in which students have a chance to write their comments. I put it up for the first time last year and it's one of the best things I have ever done. Here students take the opportunity to tell me what music they like, about the friends they have, their crushes, and, most importantly to me, they write personal messages to me. It's the greatest feeling in the world to look at that section of my whiteboard and see, "We love you, Miss Abel!" written in big letters for everyone to see. Aside from the love of my own family and friends, there is no better validation! So, to my students I say, "Thanks and I love you, too!"

Home, Sweet Home?

My classroom feels like home to me. It's my sanctuary at work. I hope that it's the same for my students. When I was working on licensure, I was asked to draw a picture of my ideal classroom. I have to say that my actual classroom is as close to that drawing as I could hope. Maybe even better. I think my classroom says more about my teaching philosophy than I ever could.

Being a teacher is really the fulfillment of a life-long dream. When I was a kid, I knew my career would either follow the teaching path or I'd end up one of "Charlie's Angels." My dad, knowing I wanted to be in law enforcement, suggested forensic science. That way I could be a part of the action and outside of any real danger (no surprise that advice came from my dad). Well, the reality of my junior year Chemistry class ended that dream. Honestly, it was not anything I really imagined myself doing. Now teaching, that was always a different story. I remember always paying attention to how my teachers did things and storing away in my mind the things I would imitate and the things I didn't want to copy from them. Since then, my becoming a teacher has become a way to pay homage to those few teachers I admired growing up. My classroom set-up is simply another way to honor those teachers.