perks.

There it is. The Stack of papers. You are fully aware of this if you are a teacher. It is a special creature, a life form all it's own. It manages to multiply very rapidly in normal settings, even more quickly if you neglect it for even a day. It can sense tiredness & stress & will use these to its advantage. You repeatedly think you have tamed it, only to turn around & see that it has regrown in a fashion similar to Medusa's heads. You want to sic it on the next person you hear talking about "the great teacher hours." The beast cannot be tamed at school because you barely have time to pee at school, much less actually plan or grade. No, that fun follows you home. You tell yourself, "This time I am not going to write as much feedback or I am not assigning an essay on the next unit or I am only grading one every other unit." Then, you do it all because you can't help but want your kids to learn & it's the only way. It is a necessary evil. AAAAGHHHH!!

Grading the work of 150 students is not a perk of teaching. BUT (always a but) there are definitely lots of perks to be found. For example, a few weeks ago was Spirit Week. I am never going to pass up a chance to participate in something like that (Sophomore Sitcoms, anyone?), so on character day I gave a shout out to Hogwarts. If you guessed Mad Eye Moody, you are partially right. I am Barty Crouch Jr. who is Mad Eye Moody under the influence of polyjuice potion. The real Mad Eye is in my trunk. (side note: wearing the eye patch was NOT fun. It gave me a headache & made everything really bright & fuzzy when I took it off. I wore it for probably 2 minutes. Have I mentioned I love my kid?)

Spirit Week=Homecoming Dance=I live at school for a few weeks planning everything & hope that no one ruins it by puking at the dance.
The theme was "The City that never Sleeps!" (You know, Knoxville...) And we did a lot of glow in the dark themed decorations, complete with handing out glow necklaces. This is a pic of the mass of hormones that was the dance floor. You can sort of see the skyline up against the wall & the light up balloon arches across the ceiling.
We had a little carpet painted like a street that was lined with lanterns as the entrance. Each post had different colored light bulbs & it was really so cute.
We paid a lot of money for these balloons, so I wanted to take a lot of pictures.

The skyline while we set it up.
Cute little street signs that the girls painted. They really did such a great job.
And, it's over for another year! I do love my job, but I must admit I am relieved when Homecoming is over for the year.

The seal, the parrot & the fam.

Anderson is just getting over croup. I am not a fan of it. In addition to coughing like a seal, he has been Grumpy(that G is capitalized on purpose.)Thank goodness I can drop him off at Noni's where he is rocked, gets to watch go to Bop's shed & is totally loved by a woman who is much more patient than I am. From a different perspective, it is interesting when your kid has a long term "situation" because you tend to take other things in stride. I had such an AWFUL patch day the other day (Seriously, probably 20 by 9am) that I totally forgot he was sick. It was not even on my radar. I have learned that if it is going to go away within 2 weeks (months, years...) then, while it is annoying, it really is fine. Of course I hate him not feeling well, but the #1 concern remains The Eye.

Anderson must be an animagus because he is also able to turn into a parrot at whim! He seriously repeats everything we say. I love it. I know that kids who aren't around other kids sometimes don't talk as well, but clearly Noni makes up for a room full of toddlers!
Love some cousins.
Anderson is such a BOY! He & Brandon wrestle on the floor all of the time. And, it has to be daddy. I am told, "Move, Bobble!" when I try to join in the fun.
Bobble Cole reading the Spoon book to him. He kept patting her every time the Bobble Cole spoon appeared in the story. It was like he couldn't believe the real Bobble Cole was there & so was the spoon Bobble Cole.

Running to see GG!! He is all about seeing his GG and Bu Pa. Whenever we get in the car he asks to go over there. How cute is this picture?

We drove to Ooltewah to meet Aunt Manda & Uncle Zack to drop Lily off with them & it was such a random/fun thing to see them! Anderson spent the entire drive saying their names, but I don't think Lily really believed it until she saw them.

Someone loves her Aunt Manda.

How awesome is Uncle Zack? He took Anderson into the play thing so many times, despite the fact that I don't think it is really made for adult size.

Started a new game called, "Here Comes Sissa".It's really fun.

I cannot get enough of his little voice. Just in case you can't either, here is a little video of him pointing out his trucks.

I am partially embarrassed to post this video. Our kids are Spoiled Rotten. Please check out their excitement with seeing a few of their favorite people, Aunt Manda & Uncle Zack! Also, check out the grumpiness and lack of patch/glasses that usually accompanies lengthy car rides. Anderson is kind of squinting with his left eye, which he does sometimes in the light. EYE MOMS: do your boys do that ever with their cataract eye? Dr Cogen assured us it is normal, but I still like to check.

Conversations with Anderson

Anderson is the best person to have a conversation with because he is honest, precious and thinks what you have to say is very important (based on the fact that he repeats everything you say.) I made a picture journal book to write down his cute sayings (thanks Nicole & Lindsey for the idea!), but I like to record things on the blog since I print it in a book. Plus, an online back up is always nice. So, this is not going to be interesting for anyone else. I am just starting by keeping a record of how he is talking. I love all of it.

First words: Daddy, Bop, Ball

Very close to first words: truck, tractor, vroom vroom, beep-beep-beep (back up noise)

Some of his cute versions of people's names: Ne Ne (noni), Bu Pa (JPa), Bobble (Bobble), GuGu (Chloe)

First conversation: Sept.2011 (20 months)

Me: "What did you do at school today?"

A: "Play ou side"

Me: "What did you do outside?"

A: "Aesson slide"

Oct. 2011 (21 month) conversations

Me: "Where is the moon?

A:"Moon behind clouds. Sun night night. Wake up, sun!"

Me: "Where do you want to go?"

A: " GG, BuPa? No. Bu pa-night night! Wake up, Bu Pa!"

First actual sentences that I took note of & took time to document: Oct. 2011 (21 months)

A: "I see big truck that way."

A: "I hear ai plane ou side."

A: "Aesson no wear eyepa, wear gyasses."

And, there you have it. Trucks, outside, eyepatches. The story of our lives.

November, 2011

A: "May I please have choco milk?" said so sweetly to the McDonald's employee at the drive thru. It might would have worked if her window was open, his window was down and we had not already ordered. (It was the pay window)

He points everything out to me! Pink chair, Bobble!

what I learned from Jackie Kennedy.

I love history, but I have never been a huge, huge fan of the Kennedys. Interested for sure- who doesn't love a story full of drama, intrigue, scandal and an assassination? But, JFK just seems like a cliche kind of "favorite" and Jackie was always a bit too glamorous. Sounds weird, but being a very un-glamorous person myself, I tend to favor Abigal Adams' outspoken personality (John once called her "saucy"!) and even Teddy Roosevelt's 2nd wife (his first one died on the same day as his mom, Valentine's day, actually) who climbed a mountain in Europe on their honeymoon.

So, when the librarians at school set this aside for me to read I was a bit skeptical, but you need to check this out from the library yourself because it is awesome!! Jackie did a set of interviews in March 1964 which was about 4 months after JFK died. She recognized the value of preserving her husband's legacy, which is so appreciated by those of us in her future. But,since she wanted to preserve her privacy, she prevented them from being published...until now! The book comes with the actual interviews on cd, which I also was skeptical of a bit. I wasn't going to listen to them, but I am so glad I did. I love her voice! She has the neatest accent and her word choice is antiquated & glamorous, yet totally natural. You can actually hear John Jr walk in a few times, her lighting and smoking a cigarette & clinking ice cubes. It is so real. The actual interviews are what made this book blogworthy, so don't skip them! So, here is what I learned from the widow of our first Catholic president.

1. "Don't judge a book by it's cover."

For sure. I was totally not going to read/listen to this, but I did and I loved it. Now, I daresay, I have jumped on the "I love Jackie Kennedy Onassis with the big sunglasses " bandwagon.

2. Be who you are.

I have always been a bit annoyed at her for being so glamorous, fashionable and having effortless hair. For those of us who somehow forget to brush our hair, it's annoying to see someone always so "together." But, listening to her talk made me realize that was just who she was and she was good at it because she figured it out and went with it! From listening to her voice, I can tell she was just a calm, relaxed person. This sounds crazy, but I think we might have even been friends. This thought could just be a result of listening to her voice over the past week in my car. It is like she has become a part of the family. (sidenote: Anderson is NOT a fan of her. He makes me change it back to the "Aesson songs!")

3. I am so glad I live in 2011.

I am familiar with life in the 1950's and 60's from reading about it, but listening to someone who actually was living it talk about it is fascinating. It was even better because she didn't know what the future held. Her thoughts on "the papers" (the only form of media then), Vietnam (it was only 1964), Nixon (again, only 1964-he wasn't elected until 1968) and the women's movement were fascinating. Clearly her "job" was to keep her husband happy. Don't get me wrong, I love Brandon and always want him to be happy, but I love this time when my opinion matters.

4. Being a mom defines you, no matter who you are

When JFK was elected, Jackie was only 31 & Caroline was 3. John was born in December 1960, right before JFK was inaugurated in Jan 1961. I kept waiting for the parts of the interview about the toddler destroying the Oval Office, recapping a day when the president was frustrated because he had a bad day with the patch or where the kids were during the state dinners. But, then I realized that while there wasn't an entire section devoted to the kids, they were definitely woven throughout the story. How could they not be??

5. Don't bring work home with you

Jackie had a desk in their personal living space where she kept folders of things she needed to do until she realized it was getting in the way of her time with her husband. (Again, where were the kids? the dishes? the laundry?) She moved it back to her office and said it was much happier for them to just hang out. This one stuck with me because if the First Lady didn't bring essays home to grade, then who I am to do that? We clearly are different because there is no way I can completely escape working at home (the First Lady probably actually had a plan period), but I can try to leave most of it at school. I am taking this lesson with me in the future.

The point is that I highly recommend this book/cds! You have to listen to the cds, too.

And, while you are at it, check out this one, too.

It is FASCINATING! It's written like a thriller but is all true.

punkins.

Mom & I took Lily & Anderson to this really great pumpkin patch place over the weekend. It's called DeepWellFarm for anyone who lives in Knoxville. It is just a few miles into Lenoir City, so it is completely realistic for an afternoon. It's $8 for adults & kids 2 & under are free & everyone gets a small pumpkin to take home!
I hope we always get our pumpkins from an actual "patch". They are so much more legit than a store. Some of them were still growing, which was just kind of fun.
I recommend always taking Mom with you when you go places. It just makes your life easier.
Part of the fun is a hayride to the pumpkin patch & when the tractor returns everyone runs over there to jump on it. Anderson saw the running & assumed everyone was running to touch the tractor. So, he joined in...I run & run past the tractor rides...(Taylor Swift, The Best Day)
Nicole might never leave Lily with us again. Lily had to go to the bathroom twice in the port a potty. I told Lily not to touch anything & totally sanitized her, but it was pretty gross. I don't think she realized the grossness of the situation or she might have requested a diaper.
They both left filthy, which is really the only way.
There were a lot of fun slides!

We fed the chickens....
and the goats!
There was another little kid hanging around his & I guess his grandma didn't splurge on the $1 goat food because he was just kind of staring at ours. I told Anderson & Lily to share some with him & when they did the kid ate it. The goat food. Obviously it was edible, but I felt really bad. And, to make it more hilarious, a few of the adults were old students of my mine from a few years ago & they decided to try it, too. The goat food. I told mom as we walked away, "That is what I deal with at school, which might explain why I am a little frustrated sometimes."
A little kid hay maze!

**Sidenote: Mindy who left a comment on the last post, please email me if you want! My email is melissaglover8@hotmail.com. I am assuming you are new to patching? It is AWFUL at first!! Absolute hardest thin I have ever done in my life, hands down. Please, please know that it DOES GET BETTER!! Oh, my. SO much better. Please email if you want or have questions. I have so luckily found 2 more moms who are in the "patching a toddler" world and their blogs are like my therapy!**

Half full

Today marks the day that Anderson has officially worn a patch more than half of his life. He has been wearing an eye patch more days in his life than he hasn't worn one.

I think that when he is 15 or so he will be on the other side of this, the side where he has worn an eye patch less in his life.

I am proud of him. I am proud of us. I am SO proud of us. It's harder on us. I really think it is.

The last few days have been really difficult with keeping the patch on. We've gone through 10 or more patches/day. (Thank goodness for Noni.)The positive of this is that it is not the norm anymore. The negative is that it is still really hard/annoying. I tell myself I am not going to give in, but it would be so easy to just give in for a few minutes. I only get to see him a few hours a day. I don't want to spend it forcing a patch on his eye. But, I do.

The fact that he talks ALL of the time is the most precious/fun thing ever. It has made life, in general, so much easier. He can tell us what he wants! (watch tractors, please!, more bread, me!) But, he can also tell us what he doesn't want. (NO eye pa! No, Aesson pa!) Usually the yelling is accompanied by covering his eyes with his hands. Pitiful.

BUT, (always a but) he is still perfect. P.E.R.F.E.C.T.

Probably the best way I can gauge our progress is by my reaction to Public. My gut reaction at first was pain, hurt and annoyance when someone stared at us in public. I noticed every curious glance. Worse, I noticed every sympathetic glance. I never volunteered info & thought it was rude if someone asked. Now, I literally don't notice stares at all. Someone asked me the other day what was wrong with his eye. I LOOKED DOWN TO SEE WHAT WAS WRONG ! Is that not hilarious? I forgot that to someone else the patch implied "wrong". I said, "Oh! He had a cataract so we have to patch his good eye to develop vision. We're so lucky we caught it! Tell everyone you know with kids to take them to the eye doctor!"

Every now & then I catch myself drifting back to the simpler time of no Eye awareness. Then, I come across pictures like this one & realize I think it was with us all of the time. I think it is more than ironic that Anderson's first pumpkin was decorated like a pirate with the patch on the right eye & everything! What on earth? This was a month or so before we started patching, so we were not aware of the foreshadowing. I love everything about this picture, but mostly the kid in it!

Truck table, a trip to CVS & a bounce house

Oh, my. When both of your parents are a bit OCD, you have no hope. Anderson lines up his trucks/cars (& Dora carriage) perfectly when he plays with them. This table was the best $20 I ever spent! I am so grateful for people selling their used stuff at garage sales.
I took Anderson to his first volleyball game where he quickly stole someone's football & proceeded to fetch up & down the gym. I would throw it & he would run after it. I think he has been watching Gabs chase her ball a bit too much.
So many attempts to get one normal picture with the cheerleaders. So many failures.
I went to his Open House at "school" & I felt like such a parent. I introduced myself to both teachers & the first thing they told me was, "He loves his trucks!". Apparently this is his favorite one.
The other day he grabbed a bag & started putting stuff from the drawers in it. I think he thought he was at Target.
A creation at GG's with his tractor, a ball & a coaster. He takes his tractors very seriously.

Two of my favorite things: the bug & CVS! He looks gigantic because the CVS carts are really small.

Laundry helper. I couldn't get a good pic because he kept climbing in & out.
We went to the Fox Den Fall Festival (planned by our very own Jpa) & had fun jumping in the bounce house, playing & watching Bop make balloons! Why am I standing like this? I have no idea.

Loving the bounce house!