whew!

last week was a busy week. i know, no excuses, but still.

i started back to school with kids. not enough kids (only 39 students across three sections) but we still got started. what will happen to me, and my job, remains to be seen! maybe, no one in the big d district will notice, and i will get to stay in my fabulous situation. hope for me. or send in job leads!!!

other things have been happening in the past week. little mama started pre-school! she is so big. i didn't sleep for three nights prior to the big day! so, of course, all that stress was for nothing! she loves it. she loves her teacher. she loves her new friends (although she can't seem to remember any names!) she loves that they get to paint at school, and play outside. she loves her new "cool bed" for nap time. (its a cot!) i hear random details about mixed-up days at random times. but everything she tells me is good. some of the things i have learned about preschool:

first day!

"today we had red soup. it was just right and delicious. the put in goldfish crackers and i mixed it all up. i only made two new polka-nots on my dress!"


"miss b. says that if we get thumbs up, we did a good job. thumbs down is a bad job. i don't get tumbs down. some of the boys do."

"the girls bathroom is right by my room and the gym. the boys bathroom is on the other side. i went into the boys bathroom, but miss b. said it was no big deal. it looked like my bathroom but there were boys inside." (i have heard this about three times, so i think she was not pleased she went in the boys room on accident)


"i got to paint today. i got to paint today. i made a yellow picture of my house and my family and my friends. we got to paint on our table mommy!"


sooo, things seem to be going well up there. and the boy is adjusting to not having his sister around full time. he's not to thrilled to leave her some mornings.....

oh, and today was the first day of ballet lessons at her school. i will post the pic now, and try to get a movie of her new moves to post later tonight!

ready for our first day of ballet!

so tired....

ok. so i made it. the first day of school is done. i had eleven (yes, thats right...only eleven) students show up for my homeroom this morning. second class....twelve students. third class...sixteen. folks, these are some seriously low numbers for a public school. you really can't get teacher-to-students ratios like this even in some of the BEST private schools in dallas.


of course, there is always a downside. as with every year....you have a couple of darlings who have been advanced to the next grade under questionable circumstances. which leads your coworkers to accost you at your break with statements like "how did this child get to my class? they can't read anything?" to which you reply...i did try to hold this kid back. or...well, you should see the one i failed. or...now that they are on meds...give them a chance... anyways, you get my drift. it was a long day...lots and lots of talking. lots and lots of practicing things like going to your locker quitely, or raising your hand and then waiting to be called on before telling me about how the sprinkles on your poptart melted this morning in the microwave. (i wish i was joking)


but, thats enough. but for sure i am stressed about those numbers. texas state law says we must stay at a 22-1 raito in the Pk-3 classrooms. so if someone decided to split my class up in to the other two sections (those teachers have more seniority than i) then you would have two homerooms of 20 students each. that is not good news for me. also not good, all the english gen. ed classes are low. only our bilingual classes are on the full side. that doesn't look good for me to stay at my school this year. i won't know anymore until levelling..sometime after sept. 3rd.


arg. cause, you know lots of pricipals are happy to inherit cast-off pregnant teachers!!!


oh, and here are some pics of my room before and after the two days of work in there!

before








and after....

watch for a milestone post tomorrow afternoon. little mama moves from her sitter (where she has been since 2mos old) to a pre-school for three days a week. did i mention i am stressed out????!!!??

not winnin' any awards tonight...

man. i. am. grumpy.

seriously.

just a grouch. could be because both my 3 and 1 year old have decided to say "no" to everything (with varying degrees of defiance) for the last three days. could be because i am a raging ball of hormones. could be because i have to go back to work (school) on monday. could be because i am extra-tired today. could be because...well, i think you get the picture.

i almost feel sorry for my kids. almost. had i not started to apologize and then heard "no" (just teasing!)

so i gave up the regimen tonight. not supermom right now. the kids are eating dinner, and the backyardigans are on. yup. that's right. tv on during mealtime. a habit we are not cultivating, and yet, it is working so well to keep them occupied...and the manners are good right now...i wonder why not? (i know....it's terrible)

and the boy has learned a new word. (he is actually learning a ton of words right now, but this one is extra-amusing!) he was getting his diaper changed..and i was talking with him about his socks, and his stinky pants...and then he grabbed his shirt and said....clear as day..."sh!t"

seriously. so i laughed. (oops) guess who has a new favorite word?