Let us pause for a moment of Erin...

It's January! It is the beginning of second semester, and I couldn't be happier! The first semester of First Grade is always a bit of a challenge. The kids are getting used to all the new routines, schedules, and actually having to do things on their own. First Graders can sometimes have a difficult time becoming slightly independent. I get to go through this change with six year olds. I am the one who has to force them to think and act for themselves. I'm not going to lie...sometimes it is rough. There are days with such frustration and crying that a nap is needed after class - and it's worse for the kids! ;) It is something that is forced upon the kids, and let's face it - we all have a little trouble with any kind of change, especially when we are six, and not used to the ways of this brutal world. I am the bad guy that makes these kids accountable for their actions, and start to teach them the truth of consequences - both good and bad - for their actio...

I love snow days. Why wouldn't I, right? I'm a teacher, who lives in a town with a lot of country roads. Snow is a happy thing for me. Since I grew up in a household of teachers, we usually knew ahead of time if we would be missing out on expanding our education for that day. For everyone else, I remember there was once a time when parents would listen to the radio to discover if school was not in session. This moved on to broadcasting the information on the news, or scroll across the bottom of the TV screen during your favorite prime time show. Now you can simply log onto news websites to quickly view school closings as they happen. I now receive the wondrous snow day text message from my work phone tree. I then pass on the text to my responsibility of the phone tree, and then a small celebration occurs in my household. When I see those snow flakes fall, I am taken back to a memory of one of my perfect moments in my lifetime. Have you ever had a perfect moment? A pe...

At the very end of each day, I have my students gather all their things, pack them into their backpack, and put on their coats. We get our areas cleaned, put the chair on own desk, and line up for the bell. It is always interesting conversation during these last moments of the day. Everything is very low key and they find themselves full of random information that they feel they simply must tell me right now. The funny thing is, a chain reaction of conversation usually occurs. As an example - if little Billy were to blurt out 'Ms. Williams, I got a new dog over the weekend!' I would reply with something along the lines of, 'That's exciting Billy! What's it's name?' As soon as Billy would reply, every single kid who has a dog, once had a dog, or ever even though about having a dog feels the need to tell me their story. And lots of times, they want to do it all at once. It is sort of humerus to watch them waiting for their turn to tell me something. ...

When I buy a picture or piece of artwork to put in my house I know at first glance whether or not I like it. That is the easy part. Now the hard part for me is deciding exactly where I will place it in my house. Sure when I obtain pieces they are specified for a certain room in the house, but I must then set it on the floor or against the wall and wait. For some reason I must casually walk into this room for a few days - maybe weeks - and see how it strikes me and whether or not I will be able to live with it that high or that close to the other item hanging on the wall. I take consideration into every part of decor that hangs on these walls. So when my dad made a comment a week or so ago about my basement walls, it just now hit me tonight what I wanted to do. He mentioned that he thought I might draw some of my characters on the walls instead of just painting them an all over color. That stayed in the back of my mind and tonight I was inspired as to what I wanted to do. I pic...

Well another year is upon us. The holiday season is officially, completely, and utterly over. Tomorrow I return to work. I always kind of feel like the new year doesn't really begin for me until I start back to work. I haven't dated anything, so to me 2011 hasn't officially began. I didn't see the ball drop, and haven't cared if I did since back in the day when I was still having New Year's Eve slumber parties with my girlfriends. After those days, I didn't get much of a thrill out of the countdown and dropping. I especially didn't care to find out if they really were going to drop some idiot from the Jersey Shore this year. I haven't started any of my goals, because to me the year begins tomorrow. Everyone is always talking about the fresh start that a new year brings. You hear many saying things like, I'm going to do things differently this year - or the diet will stick this year - or I'm going to finish that this year. Resolution...