Happy Heart

We spent the last 24 hours with dozens of our closest friends from out college years.   My heart is so full.  Every year I wonder who I'll see at homecoming and who I'll be encouraged by.  The day never disappoints. 

Funny how easy it is to dive right back into meaningful conversation...even with people I haven't seen for several years.  Funny how some things never change: the pep band still has a trap set at football games, Mary is still the most amazing cafeteria manager who ever lived, the beloved choir director still produces an awesome choir, and Kaylene still knows everything. 

And funny how some things change:  the coveted townhouses are no longer "new," professors have moved on to bigger and better ventuers, the stadium is no longer just a bunch of rotting bleachers, and the football team is back to being superb.

Two of the most enlightening conversations I had over the weekend were at a young alumni "reunion" of sorts that I didn't even want to go to in the first place (people, my feet were FREEZING and I was ready to sit on a couch).  Here are my thoughts after these two conversations:

1. People in their mid-twenties are all in the same boat.  We went to school for 4 (cough...or 5...cough) years for something we thought we would probably want to do for the rest of our lives.  Some people graduated and found a meaningful job immediately.  Others of us found what we thought to be a meaningful job but ended up realizing that we are more confused than ever.  Regardless, we're all in this together.  (And those of us who are still figuring out what we want to do with our lives want to smack those who already know...only out of jealousy, of course.)  This trying to figure out what life after college looks like.  This feeling like an adult but not really. This learning how to be in relationships of all kinds after college.  It's not always fun.  Seriously, it's not.  BUT it will be fun to look back at our twenties and all the ridiculous things we did.  Life is all about seasons. It's just that no one tells you about the mid-twenties season full of wondering and wandering.  
2. At my tiny school, everyone did everything.  Well, sorta.  Can't say I ever played on a competitive team, but I did try my hand at intramural volleyball, tumbling class, student senate, and a plethora of other activities.  All that to say that once college ended and we moved to a new place, I felt devoid of involvement.  In a brief conversation I had yesterday with a dear friend, she told me about a sermon she heard recently...the speaker spoke about how instead of throwing yourself into every little activity for involvements sake, perhaps it's best to slow down.  Take life in.  SERVE the people around you, but don't sign up for everything to just sign up for everything.  Dans and I are currently trying to figure out what being invested in a community looks like, so that conversation was definitely food for thought.

I will end this incredibly random assortment of heart-full thoughts with a video that, I think, appropriately sums up my years at Tabor College. Oh the memories.  Enjoy.

Y'all, it's fall!

Hooray.  I heart fall so much.  This post has nothing to do with fall.  I just like it.  And I like rhyming.  Boom. 

Moving on.

I am a domestic disaster 90% of the time.  You think I kid.  I don't.  If you come to my house and it's a planned visit, my house will look picked up.  However, if you stop by unannounced, your heart will be saddened.  Carlson casa stays pretty clean Sunday through Thursday.  But something strange happens Thursday night.  I call it "end of the week exhaustion" or EOTWE.  When EOTWE hits, all motivation to keep the casa clean leaves me.  Every last bit.  So by Friday afternoon, when I literally crash on our couch the moment I walk through the door, our house often looks like this:

 No crusty food anywhere, I promise. 

 As you can see, I'm too lazy by Friday afternoon to even edit the pictures. 

 So here's what I did.  I set my timer on my dying microwave (people, it is on it's death bed...worry not, a new wave is in the budget for October) for 20 minutes.  Turned on some jams.  May or may not have danced for 10 seconds to jazz myself up.  And then cleaned for 19 minutes and 40 seconds.  Yes, I had 20 seconds to spare. 

 Not perfect, but MUCH better. 

People, sometimes I am L-A-Z-Y, so a 20 minute timed cleaning session is just the motivation I need.  Do it sometime. 

On another note, here are some cute pics of the 1-year-old nephs.  Super presh, I know.

 Oh my goodness.  Seriously.  What is not to love.  Ahhhhhh.  They're making me cray-cray with aunty loving. 

On another note, I have a bruise on my hand.  Random, I know.  No clue how it got there.  But it does hurt.  So weird. 

Happy Friday, y'all.  Remember, it's fall!

Geek-out

I'm totally geeking out today due to a google form I made after school.  Because I'm so slap-happy-pumped about it, I'm going to tell you about it.  **Note:  unless you love education and/or special education, the following will make no sense and/or be completely pointless.**

Prior to beginning the writing of an IEP, SPED teachers are to gather information from the student's regular teachers.  There are a billion ways to go about this, and I've been longing to use google forms for such a task.  So today I made a form and sent it out...and I've been thinking about it ever since.  Nerd. Alert. 

And because I'm so crazy-ecstatic about it, I made a sample to show you.  (I know, I'm a hot mess.)

So, please, go to this link and take the survey.  I thank you in advance.
Heidi's Pointless Survey of Awesomeness

randamach: it's Irish

Oh my heavens, it has been awhile.  Since we last chatted, there have been a few more "happenings" in the Carlson casa or the ol' school house.  Let's dive in.

• One of the kiddos I work with is on the autism spectrum and I adore him more than life itself.  He brings me immense amounts of joy.  A few weeks ago, I saw him in the hallway before school and we were both wearing blue-striped shirts.  So I said, "Hey look!  We're practically twins!"  To which he responded, "Um, not really," and promptly turned and walked away.  He wasn't being rude, he was just telling it like it was.  Then, since he had nothing else to say, he saw it as an appropriate time to exit my presence.  Love him.
• Another kiddo had been giving my para and I grief for awhile, so I instigated a behavior plan last week.  And, what do you know, it's been working marvelously.  I can't wait to see if what we're doing will actually impact him positively in other areas of life.
• Yet another student I work with daily has seemed, as of lately, to be much less intelligent than I earlier thought.  However, after getting to know him better and visiting with his instructional manager, I came to find out that he actually is quite bright but his self-esteem is so low that instead of trying and maybe doing something wrong, he just assumes that everything he does is wrong.  It has been my absolute joy to pour into him and try to show him that he is capable of doing much more than he ever thought.
• I tripped on a pencil while walking through the halls during passing period a few weeks ago.  Yes, a pencil.
• Dans and I are doing Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University right now.  We're getting all fired up, so beware...  If you ask us (well, me in particular) any financial-related questions, I will promptly get on my Dave-Ramsey-Soapbox.  This is your fair warning. 
• We caught one of the lizards outside.  He is now in the classroom of one of our teacher friends.
• Dans saved up and bought himself a used riding lawn mower.  Perhaps now our lawn will look less overgrown now.  
• I've been taking less pictures as of lately.  I'm considering doing 2013 in pictures like I did in 2009.  I loved that project.
• The gals in my small group from church gathered a few weeks ago to make some freezer meals.  And our system was awesome.  Perhaps I will tell you about that later this week.  So great.  

I believe that is all I have for you right now.  I need to vow to myself that I will stop by once or twice a week.  Friends, this is my vow.  I will be back before October 1.  Many thanks.

Year 1 of Year 3

Let me explain.  This is my third year of teaching, but it is my first year of teaching special education.  And I love it.  I really do.  Dansie kept waiting for me to have my "beginning of the school year meltdown," but it never happened.  Serious hallelujah.

So, because at least a dozen people have asked me how it's going and/or how it's different than my last two years, in no particular order, here is a list of the top 8 reasons why I'm enjoying what I'm doing from 8-3.
1.  I have administrative tasks to do. Don't laugh.  I love that part.  I love feeling like a "manager" over the 14 kiddos on my caseload.  I love chasing them down, chatting with them, and being their laison.  I love it.
2.  I'm in my home classroom only 2 hours of the day.  Yes.  And I love it.  My day flies by.  I walk probably 1.5 miles every day because the classroom where I go 3 hours of the day is all the way across the building (and our building is ginormous). 
3.  I can really focus on individualizing the curriculum for specific students with very specific needs.  Part of what stressed me out about the general classroom was the fact that, at any given time, 30 students would be demanding my full attention.  Yikes.  In my new position, my stellar co-teacher can handle the class while I grab a few students who need excessive amounts of attention.
4.  I'm forced to think about what I'm teaching my babes.  In my previous position, the curriculum was pre-determined by the district (which is awesome...especially for a new teacher).  However, it's causing me to exercise different "muscles" as I'm attempting to figure out what I want my tiny class of 6 (yes, friends, 6!!!) to learn by the end of the semester/year.  I love the planning aspect of teaching, so I'm happy to continue doing that.
5.  I feel like I know fewer students, but those I know, I really know.  You know what I mean?
6.  I co-teach with a good friend.  So fun.  Every day.  And even when the kiddos don't think we're funny, we think we're funny.  It's so good.
7.  I'm loving my new department.  Loving the support and the relationships I'm building.
8.  I have a para (or co-teacher) in every class.  That extra adult in the room is excessively helpful.

So life is good.  Still extremely challenging and frustrating at times, but, for me, this was the best career move I could have made.  I'm incredibly thankful for the 2 years I spent in the general classroom, but I'm just tickled pink to be where I'm at.  And to think that in my initial interview with my district, when my head principal asked me if I would be willing to teach special education (since they were trying to fill a few positions and knew that I was certified in SPED), I vehemently said, "No."  Ha. 

Friends, SPED is not scary.  Different, but definitely not scary.  So many people stay away from it because it is different and, thus, apparently terrifying.  It's not.  Sure, it's not for everyone, but it is a beautiful part of the school. 

To end this "several people have asked so I want to indulge everyone" post, I'll leave you with a brief, but enlightening, story.  In chatting with one of my girlies (who has mild disabilities but pretty major social disabilities) yesterday, she told me about her sister who is 28 and about to get divorced for the second time.  My gal seemed pretty disheartened about it, but after chatting for a moment, she all of a sudden said, "But it's okay.  We're having pizza tonight!"  Simple minds are beautiful. 

My 21st first day of school.  Dan's idea. :)

Friday Funnies: Year 3

Friends.  I only have a few school-related funnies, but let's go ahead and get started.

1:
Let me set up the scenario.  Two days ago, I wore skinny black pants to school.  It's important to know that I wear these at least once week and I've had them since last fall.  They're dang comfortable and they're black, so they go with everything.  I've never, in my dozens and dozens of times of wearing them, had a student make a comment in regards to their style/fit.  I suppose there's a first thing for everything.  What follows is the dialogue between a female student and I:
Female Student:  Mrs. Carlson, are those skinny jeans?
MC:  Yes.
FS:  I bet you feel like you're in high school again when you wear those.
MC:  Well, skinny jeans weren't around when I was in high school.
FS:  It's only a matter of time before you're walking in the hall and a boy comes up behind you and is all, "Hey girl, how you doin?"
MC:  Thankfully that hasn't happened yet.
End of conversation.

2:
I walked into school this morning at approximately 6:50 am (I'm a morning person, just let me be).  And what should my wandering eyes see?
A hostile mob of parents?  No.
The marching band?  No.
A stray cat?  No. 
A million construction workers?  Yes, but that's not the point.
A suspicious bookbag?  No.
A snake?  Yes.

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!

People, I do not lie to you.  One of satan's own was on the freshly scrubbed tile.  Thankfully a student was only a few feet ahead of me.  I literally froze in my tracks when I saw it.  Enter dialogue:
MC:  Is that a snake?
Male Student:  Yes.
MC:  Are you afraid of snakes?
MS:  No.
MC:  Will you please remove it from the premises?
MS:  Yes.

I stuck around long enough to see said male student pick up said spawn of satan.  Then I bolted to my classroom, keeping watch over every crevice where another spawn might live.  Nasty.

That's all I have for now.  Come back later...there's sure to be more.

Summer 2012

A farewell to summer 2012 and space phone pictures:

You were fun, my sweet summer.
You were full and wild.
You put paint in my hair.
And made me feel like a child.

Much food was consumed
While a symphony was heard
It only would've been better
To have the view of a bird

We camped in the desert
And got a terrible sun burn
While it made a good memory
I said, "No more!" very stern

With bats in the attic
Huzzie knew just what to do
So he donned a ridiculous suit
And the space is good as new
Lots of time with friends
And lots of belly laughs
Memories made all around
And only a few social gaffs

Challenges to the heart
Not to be taken lightly
God's doing a new thing
We only need to move slightly

Hours of prepping, priming, and painting
And gallons of paint washed off my hands
Summer, you knew this was a heckuva project
It's done! I now watch the Olympics from my couch (aka: grand stands)

Vacation, vacation,
You have such a sweet tone
Especially with a fam
Who is super to the bone

Daniel even wore red pants
But only for a short bit
Would have totally bought them
If they were a better fit

And last but not least
We celebrated these two
Adorable twinsies
Before them, what did we do!?

Summer, you were kind
But you went so dang fast
Please come again
And let it not be your last.

Love,
Heidi