Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Three Things





- FANTASY READING LEAGUE -
One of Luke's teachers started a fantasy reading league and he is ALL ABOUT IT!  I don't know the details but I do know that they have weekly pep rallies and that the teams include kids from all three classes and varying reading levels.  However she's running it - HE LOVES IT!!!

- PALINDROMES -
Luke has been OBSESSED with palindromes.  We've been talking about and working our way through multi-step palindromes and having so much fun.  I'm fully aware of how nerdy this sounds and I'm totally okay with that!

- AREA 51 -
Luke has been cracking us up with alllllll the Area 51 talk.  He and his friends have apparently been having some in-depth conversations about conspiracy theories, likelihood of alien life, etc.  It's led to some fun dinner table conversations at home :) 



- GAGA FOR GAGA -
Our school JUST got a gaga ball pit and Mason is absolutely living his very best life during recess right now.  He LOVES gaga and, in fact, while I was waiting for the frozen drink machine guy to deliver the machines the other day I could hear kids chanting "Mason, Mason, Mason..." I looked around the corner and up on the hill was Mason playing gaga and his team was cheering for him. SO CUTE!!!

- COMBINED RECESS -
1st and 3rd grades have recess together so a few times a week Mason and Griffin are out there together on the playground.  Mason talked a big talk about NOT being excited about this because "mooooommmmmm.... what if Griffin tries to play with me and my friends" and so you better believe I was one proud mom when I found out that he has not only included her and her friends when they've wanted to play together but has gone out of his way to be sweet to Griffin's friends AND even stuck up for her in one situation.

- ASPIRING ARTIST -
I've mentioned Mason's love of art several times before but lately he has been all about "illustrating" books and stories just like Dav Pilkey.  Dog Man and Captain Underpants pictures are ALL OVER his room and he and his best friend have their own book in the works :) 



- BALLET -
Griffin has been asking to try out a ballet class for the past few weeks and I wasn't sure whether it was because she really wanted to do ballet OR because one of her friends from school was in the class :)  She tried the class on Tuesday and FELL IN LOVE (which kind of surprised me!) and so she's trying it out again this week before we add ballet to our weekly routine.  I'm secretly really excited to see her in a ballet bun and pink tights again.

- ALLLLL THE NOTES -
Griffin is VERY into writing notes right now.  She writes several notes every night to give to her friends and teachers the next day, she leaves all of us notes on our pillows and she likes to "take notes" during church.  She's even been asking to mail some of her notes which is so sweet.

- HOMEWORK BINGO -
Griffin's teacher is doing homework differently this year and Griffin has been eating it UP!  Every week she brings home a blank homework bingo card and she has to complete a row or column by Friday.  It's been extremely motivating and I love it when kids this age get to make choices.  It's the same things she would have been doing otherwise, but I felt like it was such a clever idea to keep kids motivated when it comes to at-home practice.


- BINDER LOVE -
This is quite possibly the most ridiculous thing but I am SO SO SO excited about it so I'm sharing :)  After 14 years in the classroom I FINALLY went out and bought enough 1/2" binders to have one for every chapter that I teach.  I feel like I've made answer keys/originals for assignments and notes every single year and I FINALLY have a manageable system in place that's all neat and organized and it's making me giddy.  And all the type-A people said Amen :)

- GOD BLESS TEXAS, EXCEPT FOR THE DARN SOIL -
So in adulting-land Dave and I have been dealing with some not-so-fun foundation issues at our house thanks to the treeline we back up to.  Sigh. There are about one MILLION other things we'd rather spend money on but such is life.  If you're not from around here - Texas homes are built on concrete slabs and when our soil dries out (or when you have a dozen or so trees who have roots growing underneath that slab) it can cause your house to rise/fall in certain areas and cause cracks/etc. inside your house.  It sucks.  But we're thankful for so many things including a great company that's dealing with the problem and hopefully creating a solution and some long-term preventative measures at the same time.  This is boring and not fun - BUT has been consuming a lot of our conversations lately so there it is :)

- JELLY BEAN'S BFF -
On a lighter note - Jelly Bean's best friend HANDS DOWN is Dave McAnally.  She waits for him to come home before coming inside at night, will always (and only!) lay with him in bed and we swear that her eyes light up when he walks in the door :)  It's hilarious because he swore he wasn't a cat person and isn't a cat person but he for sure has a soft spot for her. 

Happy Wednesday, friends!!!

14 comments :

  1. Yes I love an organized binder system! I’ve had it since my first year teaching. It makes things so much easier and if I change things from one year to the next I just change it out.

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  2. I feel a bit deflated - where is the binder picture?!

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    1. Right? :0 Haha... I felt the same way! I mean...your kids sure are cute, but SHOW US THE BINDERS!!! :)

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    2. Palindromes are my favorite! My brother and I both graduated in palindromic years (1991 and 2002) and I used to have a phone number that was a palindrome 531-3135. - wow!

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  3. Yay for the binder system, that makes my heart so happy and it's not even for me - ha! I am sorry you have to deal with cracks, etc. Paying for things like that is always my least favorite! Your kids are looking so grown up these days and I love that the hair buns are back, so cute!

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  4. Wow such a great update. I have no idea what a lot of the stuff is that you were talking about but it all sounds very exciting. I was so happy for you when I read about the binder update...yes it's the little things. Definitely a type A person!!

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  5. We recently got a Gaga ball pit(I think thats what its called) and my kids are loving it as well! :)

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  6. Dang that Texas soil! It is bound to happen to all of us, but I am sorry you are dealing with it.

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  7. I loved this update. Thanks for sharing. P.S. I had to google palindromes and now I'm intrigued! It's not nerdy at all. I love that Luke loves what he loves and follows that passion.

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  8. Love the updates! Hate the adulting part, boo! Same at our house!

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  9. Our favorite palindrome book is Palindromania! by John Agee!

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  10. UH, i had to google palindromes, AND gaga ball? :) lol!

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  11. Don't you love when teachers get kids excited about learning?! Love the report about Mason sticking up for his sister on the playground. That's awesome! And I agree with those that say we need a picture of the binders. :)

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