The Seven of Us

Well, here I am... Mid-July of my 39th summer on earth.  I guess to Heavenly Father that's nothing. But there is a lot going on.  I was hired to teach science in Holyoke just two weeks ago.  I start on Aug. 6th!  Yikes!  I lost a lot of work time by not knowing what I was doing right away, and by waiting on the administration , etc.  I am feeling very very pressured to get my prep Done. And, I 'm anxious   to see how the classroom feels and get started.  I will be teaching Biology and Bio II and anatomy  and 7th grade science.  The biology is overwhelming me.  I have not had much time to look at it and I don't remember it...at all.  Yikes.  I am scared--but I know that with hard work and Heavenly Father's help I will be okay.  I just have soo much to do.  Complicating things, I am having serious pain with my scapula and trigger points that developed from sleeping on a bad mattress for two years. I wish...

This is how Kenna spends her free time in the summer!  (Today was the first time she used the fan.  She paid Isaac $1.05 to go get it!) 

It's Taylor's birthday on Friday.  She is at Disneyland today, although she's actually in Cali for the national FBLA CONFERENCE.  She worked hard, raised every bit of what she needed for the trip, and hopped on the plane with 22 other kids yesterday. And she sat by a boy. (His name is Elliott.  He is like a son to me, connected to our family by several different threads.  The first and most enduring thread is Taylor.  They have been friends for a long time, and he watches out for her, and I think he likes her, but right now I am just thankful that he is her friend.) Yes.  And today I was remembering some things about Tay when she was small.  I remember her dressing herself in trash bags and making Tay soup.  She created woven placemats from iris leaves and put an old white curtain over her head for a wedding veil.  She was always singing--often songs from the little Mermaid  or Mary Poppins, but almost as often  they were songs s...

Taylor was named the Star Farmer of the Haxtun FFA Chapter this year.  Basically that's the most outstanding FFA student in the chapter.  She was also the ost outstanding student in Accounting I, Coffee Cart, and World History.  Way to go, Tay Tay!

Years ago, when I was a younger mom and knew a lot more in theory and a less in practice, I saw a book entitled "A Day Late and a Dollar Short".  I was disgusted.   As if I want to read about how to be late and poor, I thought. Sixteen years later, I still haven't read the book.  I'm not poor, but I'm not wealthy, either.  I do feel like I'm always late, though--generally because I set silly, unrealistic deadlines  for myself in order to keep from being truly late. Anyway, I have been working on a post about Marco Island and it's two months overdue.  So, in the meantime, I'm gonna brag about my kids. Taylor is working her tail off to fund her trip to Anaheim for national FBLA.  She is doing well.  I was proud of her for qualifying and am even more proud of her for working so hard to pay for her trip. I am also dying inside--just a little death, but dying nonetheless, because she will be gone on her birthday, and when I think of th...

Boisterous boys Awesome skies Sacrifice squeeze Earthy clay Bombs of white All night long Launching toward the Lights

Yesterday I received a call from my friend/mentor/superintendent, Darcy Garretson.  I was not hired for the junior high science position.  I had expected her news.  Here's why:  Prior to last Tuesday, I felt like I'd landed the job. Darcy had called, concerned but optimistic, five days after my interview to see if I'd be interested/able to enroll in school in order to complete my licensure requirements.  A few days after that, we met to discuss the likelihood that I'd just complete the seven credits I had remaining this summer, which meant I'd be free to enroll in the Alternative Licensure Program this fall.  Darcy was visibly excited about that and asked me to write a letter to the school board explaining my plan. I left her office that Wednesday euphoric:  I had a LOT of work to do, but I probably had a job. The following Tuesday afternoon I was driving into town, thinking about dinner and wondering what chaos would greet me at home when s...