Amber is the Color of My Energy...

A Day in the Life of a 9th Grade Teacher

2012-01-24T13:13:00.001-07:00

Today, I assigned a religion research project. We went over the requirements and talked about the things the students needed to find. Examples included the founder, basic beliefs, sacred text, etc. When I said, "sacred site." I got an emphatic, "Website?" "Really?" I laughed. "Oh, you're serious. Sorry. No, like mosque, synagogue, etc." Oh, girls...

That reminds me. A few days ago, a student asked "Miss. Anderson, can I be excused?" I thought "why? Are you dying? Just want to go hang out in the hall? Bloody nose?" This came out verbally as, "huh?" He responded, "Can I be excused?" I said, "Why?" He said, in all seriousness, with no embarrassment, "Because I'm going to fart." Really? I mean, I am grateful that he asked, but it was just adorable...

New Years' Eve 2012

2012-01-22T18:41:00.000-07:00

After returning from a week away for Christmas vacation, apparently, we still needed more of an adventure. Sitting on the couch the Thursday before NYE (which was on a Friday), a few of us decided we should make a spur of the moment drive to Las Vegas. We discussed this option, yet no one made a final decision (apparently this is why we are all in a committment-challenged phase of our lives...). We decided that we would make the decision by 10AM the following morning. As Kristen and I walked to our apartment, we agreed that the trip would never happen.

Friday, I was scheduled to take the GRE at 4PM. I had studied the week before and was ready to get it over with. That morning, we decided we would go to Vegas, but we now faced the problem of me not getting out of my test until 9PM. I called and was able to take the test early. By 7PM, we were on the road to Vegas. It was quite the adventure!

This was the 1st stop of our trip. It might have been taken in Beaver, Fillmore, or Cedar City. Not really sure.

Caesar, Mike, Amber, Kristen, and Mike 2

We were able to stay at a home of Mike's friend, Caesar's friends older brother? (Not really sure where to put the comma's in that phrase...) I have no clue who the brother is, but for some reason the dog lives there by itself. It is big. Really BIG. It had a lot of hair--EVERYWHERE. For being a dog, it was a cute little chunk. Well, big chunk.

Kristen, Mike, Caesar, and Mike outside Treasure Island

To fill up the middle of the day, we bought tickets to Madam Taussad's Wax Museum. While there, we ran into these celebrities. They asked to pose with us. Not suprised.

Love this man. Judge me. I'm confident in my admiration and will back it up.

Poor Mike was sick. Unfortunately, 1/2 of it was self-induced by drinking 19/20ths of this bottle of DayQuil in a 8 hour span of time. We got some good secrets out of him while he was experiencing a "haze." I think he learned his lesson.

A very poor quality picture of the 3 of us waiting for Cirque De Solei Mystere to begin. It was amazing. I would highly recommend it.

The rest of the evening (pre-midnight) was spent watching people loose hundreds of dollars (which was extremely intriguing) as they played blackjack and other games, following around an individual so we could figure out if "it" was a man or woman, exploring the casinos, and braving the crowds.

Some individuals might or might not have gambled ($1). One person might have almost won enough to pay for the gas for the entire trip. All people might have lost all the money they won. That is addiction, ladies and gentleman. (Pictures are not being included just in case said people decide to run for public office some day).

Our evening ended as we counted down the seconds of 2011 and welcomed the new year. After the fireworks ended, everyone realized that they needed to leave the Strip at the exact same time, which created a monstrous traffic jam. We all latched on to one another and inched our way out of the crowd. Kristen had some drink poured down her and we all had it splash against us. Sick. I am pretty sure that a stampede could have easily occurred if some one would have fallen. It was crazy and while I will probably never go to Vegas again for New Years', we have lots of great stories.

The next morning, we woke up and jumped on the road. We stopped in St. George and went to church and drove the rest of the way home. It was a great trip--one that will not soon be forgotten.

Since I am a teacher, this is what I taught my students about the day I returned to school:

1. Don't gamble.

2. Dogs belong outside.

3. Men should never live without women because they are dirty

4. Don't drink an entire bottle of DayQuil.

5. Alcohol smells bad and turns people ridiculous.

6. Stay in school and don't do drugs (well, I just tell them that every day).

Just Another Day Brainwashing the Future of America

2012-01-10T12:57:00.001-07:00

Student 1: What is one of the qualifications necessary to becomepresident of the United States?

Student 2: You have to be born in America

Student 1: No, you don’t!

Student 2: Yes, you do!

Student 1: President Obama isn’t from America.

Teacher: He is from Hawaii.

Student 1:: Yeah! He was born in Hawaii, which isn’t in America.

Student 2: Hawaii is part of America.

Student 1: I just have this 8th grade head full of too manyfacts.

Me: You aren’t in 8^th grade. You’re in 9^th!

____________

Student 1: Who was President during the Civil War?

Student 1: George Washington

Student 2: No it wasn’t! Jefferson

Student 3: I put Kennedy.

Sigh…

Christmas at the Beach

2012-01-02T18:24:00.002-07:00

For Christmas, I was able to go to the beach to visit my parents. What a great time it was! I love spending time with my parents (unfortunately, I was stressed studying for the GRE and didn't spend as much as I'd have liked...) and relaxing. Christmas Eve, we woke up and ventured down Main Street. It was a little walk from their house and so nice to be outside in 70 degree weather after experiencing Utah's winter. We enjoyed watching surfers, shopped a bit, the parents took me to their traditional Saturday morning hot spot--Woody's, my dad forced me to get a flu shot (on Christmas Eve!!), watched Christmas movies, and enjoyed delicious food. All these were done by the fire of course. Who doesn't need a fire in California?

Here are some pictures from our stroll.

One highlight was talking to my brother, Sheldon. He is serving an LDS mission in Argentina and our family only speaks to him once a year. It was great to hear his voice. He seems to be doing well and will be coming home in 2 months. I can't believe it! It was great to be home with my parents! I can't believe it is already January!

New Years Resolutions 2012

2012-01-02T18:03:00.002-07:00

I can't believe it is this time again! Actually, I sincerely can't remember what my resolutions were from last year, which I realize that even if I created them, apparently I wasn't very successful. So, here's to remembering them this year!

2012 Resolutions

Spiritual: Temple and Visiting Teaching monthly

Social: Do less and say "no" (interesting that this is my goal, I realize, but sometimes, less is more and I need to realize that.

Mental: Take 10 credits--whether UEN or grad school.

Emotional: Be honest in my relationships

Physical: Run a 5K (I could probably do it now, but just never have)

2012 Bucket List

Read Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage

Leave the country

I will add to this...

The Reason

2011-12-25T18:50:00.001-07:00

I love Christmastime. I love the lights, glitter, and family time. I love shopping for gifts, Christmas parties, and building gingerbread houses. I love decorating the tree and listening to Christmas music. I enjoy watching the same Christmas movies year-by-year and participating in the annual traditions. I think I get just as excited as a little kid each time I pass by a beautifully lit home. I love Christmas. I hope that I love Christmas because I understand the meaning behind our holiday. In reality, I know I forget Him, or at least to thank Him.

I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. I am grateful for His miraculous birth, His perfect life, His atoning sacrifice and death on the cross, and His glorious resurrection three days later. I know He is my Redeemer, my Savior. I know that through Him, I can be forgiven for my sins and, eventually, return to live with Him again. I am grateful for the knowledge I have and hope to better remember Him a little more in the upcoming 364 days.

Merry Christmas!

Christmastime

2011-12-24T20:24:00.002-07:00

Here are a few things I was able to experience during the Christmas season.

The beautiful Temple Square lights. I love them and they seem to get better every year.

Braden, Jordan, Ryan, Matt, Courtlin, and Marge

Justin, myself, Mike, and Lisa
We went to the Utah v. BYU game and watched BYU win :) Always a good time.

My students are doing projects on world religions. Instead of making gingerbread houses, we made gingerbread places-of-worship for the individual religions they are studying. It was a great time. (Ironic that they made Christmas gingerbread houses on non-Christian religions, huh?) I wish I could post pictures of my students holding their houses...

My roommate, tap dancing... Her newfound hobby.

The kids at the family Christmas party signing "Mary Did You Know?" It was AmAzInG!!!

Apparently, we have a connection with Mr. and Mrs. Clause. Way to marry into that one, Cecy!

Sub for Santa

2011-12-24T20:12:00.000-07:00

Each year, our students do this Sub-for-Santa charity where they earn money to give to families in the area that struggle during the Christmas holiday. Here is my contribution, frame by frame.

Things I learned: Wear long sleeves, duct tape pulls off arm hair. It also hurts when 15 year olds try to help pulling it off. Also, it has a tendency to leave residue on your face if some random kid (that will now get an F ;)) puts it over your lips.

Merry Christmas :)

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-12-24T18:28:00.000-07:00

I love Thanksgiving. It is a great season to be grateful and it introduces the Christmas season which I love. This year, we were fortunate enough to go to my Aunt Caroline and Uncle Arnell's house in Hollister and be with their perfect little family. (Apparently, I am not entertaining enough for my parents with Sheldon away on his LDS mission). I love that we were able to go stay with them, as we don't see them very often. They were the best hosts!

Kylii and Kamryn at the Spanish Mission in San Juan Baptista (maybe? Can't really remember).

Adorable Kamryn

Not so sure what's happening here, but I couldn't pass it up.

Kamryn, Mom, and me. You might notice that Caroline, Berlin, and the boys are missing (Kylii was taking the picture). Poor Berlin started throwing up and Caroline was taking care of her. The guys decided to go golfing instead of sight seeing...men. ;)

Beautiful Kylii posing for her fb picture.

Take 457 of Kamryn and I after our trip. That night, both Kylii and I got sick. Disaster.

Caroline and I cut up probably 40 old EFY shirts. She is going to save me from being domestic and assemble them in a quilt. I am so grateful!

We had a wonderful trip to northern California. It was a great break from the cold and fun to meet my parents. I am so grateful for them. I also experienced Black Friday for the first time. It is infinitely more inviting to go Black Friday shopping at 12AM than at 4AM, so we did! I'll always remember those memories at Old Navy (line was too long to even pretend like we would wait in it), Nike, and a few other stores. Also, I learned a very important life lesson. McDonald's doesn't sell fries at 3AM. Noted for future reference.

Really?

2011-12-15T14:38:00.001-07:00

Random 9th grade girl: Are you married?
me: no
Random 9th grade girl: You're pretty though.
me: Ummm, thank you?
Random 9th grade girl: Why aren't you married?
me: Sometimes, people just aren't.
Random 9th grade girl: Oh. Bye.

My job...

Christmas Tree

2011-11-27T23:03:00.001-07:00

Our first tree!!

Christmas

2011-11-25T20:34:00.001-07:00

Christmas is here! I'm currently watching a great light show in the beautiful Hollister, California.

Apparently, the men in these two houses are both electricians and they work on their houses together to create an awesome show.

I am so grateful for my wonderful parents and Caroline, Arnell, and family. We've spent great time together creating memories-Black Friday, Poor little Berlin getting sick at the Mission we visited, and now, ditching the kids to watch synchronized Christmas lights (I kind of wish they were here but I guess the parents needed a break).

What a quick paced year it's been!

October 2011

2011-11-16T18:52:00.000-07:00

First of all, how in the world do you people get two of these pictures to fit on one row? It is a mystery to me.

Natalie, Cynthia, Brannon, Russel and I went to Raczka's wedding reception in Utah. We were pretty much the last ones to leave because we were enjoying ourselves too much. And that's before we even heard Christy's hilarious stories. Remind me and I will tell you.

Also, if you ever get cold, wedding dresses make great blankets. See below.

Wow! I just figured out how to move the pictures.

This month was also filled with corn mazes and costumes. I went to a corn maze with my ward for FHE as well as on a ward date night. They were both fun. Though, I realized, much more fun when you are searching for others to scare.

This is Jayden. He is my best friend Coralie's little one. He is adorable and I just love him. He was showing me his cool cop Halloween costume and conveniently arranged my hand cuffs around his neck somehow. Not really sure how that happened.

Russ and I with the pumpkin

For another ward activity, we were able to carve pumpkins. It always seems fun until you get going and pull out gunk after gunk with no end. Luckily, Russ came along and saved the day. He did all the gushy hard stuff and all the cutting. So basically, he carved my pumpkin. I am pretty sure it is still sitting on my doorstep (yes, on November 15th) for your viewing pleasure. If you come look at it, feel free to take it to the dumpster on your way out :)

Courtlin is one of those people you can't help but love. She is hilarious and great to be around. We had a little football viewing party. For some reason, I just deleted all of the other pictures off of this blog page, but just imagine 20ish people watching the BYU game with another TV set up in the same room for the World Series. Brilliant planning, boys. Brilliant planning.

That night, a group of us went to a haunted house. (Breanna, Braden, Jenny, Lisa, Mike, Jeni, Kristen, me, and Matt). It was a great time (in a freaky way). How do these traditions get started anyways?

On Halloween, I dressed up like Rapunzel from Tangled. Get it, flowers in my hair? Yeah, let's be honest, I didn't really care enough to go all out, but it was fun! Monday night, we went to a multi stake dance at the institute building. Here is a picture of Amy, Sascha, Steph, Mike, and me dancing. Not posing. Dancing.

I am blessed to have such wonderful roommates. We had another one of our signature parties. AKA--Kristen planned another one of our signature parties and we did exactly what she said. Here are some of our decorations. Kristen doesn't mess. They are glittered pumpkins, squash and apples (thanks Jane for all the sweat and blood you put into growing this produce so we could later glitterify it). They then proceeded to throw this great breakfast where 1/2 of the ward, I swear, showed up. We had the BEST french toast EVER. I will add the recipe as soon as I get it from Kristen. Marge also made this adorable, thoughtful sign and Kristen's aide made us some little bat glittery, hangy things. More pictures to come. It was a great birthday (I'm 25 now. Sigh.).

My students were also adorable. Some boys came and presented me this candy sign before school. I also got to hear really "interesting" renditions of "Happy Birthday" about 6 times. They're hilarious. If you need a confidence boost (or a humbling--depending on the day), teach middle school.

2011-11-14T23:14:00.001-07:00

Comfort is...

A well-needed hug.
Roommates who listen night after night.
Late night drives with loud music.
Prayer.
Wanting to cry in your parents arms because you know they will listen with all sincerity.
Closeness.
Co-workers and students who always know just how to brighten my day.
A job that I can bury myself in and forget myself.
Smiles.
Remember the Titans.
The temple.
My grandma.
My warm bed.
My Savior--the most perfect, yet under appreciated constant in our lives.

Hard times come and go. All in all, I'm a lucky girl.

Pancreas

2011-11-08T22:49:00.002-07:00

If you were wondering, the new put-down is pancreas. That's right. You heard it right here. Pancreas. You see, as I was hidden in the copy room, I heard these two students yelling (well, jokingly yelling?) at each other, "No, you're a pancreas!" "NO! YOU are a pancreas." Maybe they are learning about the endocrine system? Is the pancreas even a part of that system? Regardless, some days, I'm just glad they are using words that aren't 4 letters. Carry on, my pancreatic people.

Cafeteria food

2011-11-04T18:07:00.001-06:00

So, the other day at lunch (school lunch, students, cafeteria, you remember how that was...) some random kid in front of me typed in his lunch number to discover that he was out of lunch money. He asked if he could debit as the lunch lady stuck out her hand to grab his tray and stuck it under the counter.

I stood there shocked. He asked if he could have a free roll and milk. I told the lady to wait and that I would pay for the kids food. He thanks me by name (which still shocks me that people I've never seen before know who I am) and walks away gratefully to eat. Not a big deal. Right?

Fast forward two days. Some kid, after school, taps me on the shoulder and says, "Miss Anderson." I turn to see a somewhat familiar looking face. He says, "You bought me lunch and I'm here to pay you back." I offered a profound, "huh?" He repeated his statement and after I refused it I finally accepted and the kid left.

What a great kid!! He was just adorable and sincere and I live that there are so many good people in this world.

Umbilical Cord

2011-10-26T09:41:00.002-06:00

Student: "Miss Anderson, my sister's guinea pig had babies and she cut off the umbilical cord."
Me: "She did?! By herself?"
Student: "Yes. It's not a big deal. It's just an umbilical cord. She kept it."
Me: "Why?! Gross"
Student: "Doesn't didn't your mom save your umbilical cord?"
Me: "No, why would she do that? That's weird."
Student: "Why? My mom has mine."
Me: "REALLY?! What does she do with it?"
Student: "I don't know. I figure it's just one of those things you only get one of in life so you don't want to loose it."

hahahahaha....

Quotable Quotes

2011-10-24T13:02:00.003-06:00

Today, the starter question was, "Where is Muammar Gaddafi?" If you watch the news, (or are alive) you'd know that he died in some type of Libyan rebel attack.

So the answer the students should have written is, "he is dead." This funny kid raised his hand and asked my student teacher, "Can I write hell?"

Hahaha--I thought it was hilarious. You might not.

Christy's Wedding

2011-10-13T22:50:00.001-06:00

Last weekend, I flew to Seal Beach to visit my parents and go to my friend, Christy's, wedding. We work together and since we began have been really close friends. We've shared dating stories (and dates...) and jobs (EFY, Journey), and lesson plans (A LOT).

I just love my parents. They are fun to be around and so generous. Example--I mentioned that I loved Costco mangos and what happens? My dad comes home with 3 bags of them for me to pack home. Example 2--my mom thinks that my pencil skirt isn't fancy enough for the wedding, so she took me shopping. Example 3--they let me leave my "bed" AKA the floor, and climb in to their bed after dad left for work. Great people, those parents. My mom even went to the temple with me and waited while I went into the sealing so I wouldn't have to drive there alone. I'm lucky. ]

Here is my beautiful mom outside the Newport Beach temple.

That night, I ventured out in my moms car and went to the reception. It was truly beautiful. She looked gorgeous and they are just so happy. I just adore them and think they are the perfect couple. Here are a few shots I took (and instagramed). I can't wait until she gets back to my faculty lunch room table!

What happens when teachers are at conferences...

2011-10-13T22:30:00.001-06:00

My teaching conference started out this morning, "The other day, I was at Sugarhouse Liquor and saw an old student. What? I only go there once a week..." Oh man...

Also, the person who taught us about adopting their school philosophies that "work" is 97% "Caucasian." Haha

Weekend Adventures

2011-10-02T20:43:00.003-06:00

This weekend, a group of us decided to drive up to the Utah State v. BYU game. It was especially fun because our group was comprised of people from both sides of the spectrum. It was enjoyable because BYU won in an insane comeback. I love Provo. I miss it at times and am lucky that I have had so many great memories to sustain me. Isn't it just beautiful?

Rodney, Marge, Jeni, Russ, Dustin, and Lisa

Memorable highlights include:

Rodney's Parkour (how do you even spell that?)
DInner at ~~Pizza Pie Cafe~~ JCW's
Nelson winning the game with a lucky throw to allow the win
Sitting so near my family, purely by chance
Running into some old friends, like Heather Andersen
Beautiful weather
Sitting on the next to the top row of the entire stadium. Haha.

Don't worry, the fans rushed the field. It was a pretty impressive comeback.

Last night was quite the adventure. After the guys got back from Priesthood Conference and we got back from CPK (can I just say that Salt Lake is SOOO calm when there is a University of Utah game going on and all the guys are at Priesthood). We met up with Mike and Braden and tried to figure out what we could do. After lots of discussion, we loaded the car with a huge Love Sac, flat screen TV, Clear Play, and blankets and pillows. We drove to Blockbuster and picked up a scary movie and decided to find a dark, empty park. Well, here is the problem. Parks don't have an abundance of electrical units. We 1st went to the one across from our apartments. We walked around using our phone lights looking for an electrical unit. We finally found one. Instead of carrying the stuff 1/2 a mile (slight exaggeration), Mike came up with the brilliant idea to drive across the field. We unloaded all the stuff (and I mean, ALL the stuff) and then realized that since the park was closed, there was no flowing electricty. We loaded up again and were on our way. This time, we drove to what we thought (what is?) church property. We figured we'd be safe there. The only problem is that there is like an 8 foot fence we had to hop. We surveyed the area and after finding electricity (this time it was turned on) we passed over, one by one, the Love Sac, blankets and pillows, the Clear Play, and ourselves. When we were finally situated, we had a little fright with the sprinklers so we moved all of our stuff again. Finally, we got all cozy and enjoyed the movie (which was a little farfetched...). We got a little nervous every time we saw lights, but seemed to be pretty safe. It was really fun and a perfect night to be outside. As soon as the credits began to roll, we noticed a car pull up that didn't drive off. It was the police. Braden was assigned to be our representative and we are lucky that we didn't get tickets. FInally, we pilled up in the car and drove off. Well, to Wal-Mart.

This is where highlight #2 of the evening came in. MIke and I stayed outside while Braden and Lisa ran inside to grab something. I told Mike I'd time him as he ran to the sign and back. It works for kids, who would've known it would work for grown men. I timed him as he sprinted across the huge Wal-Mart parking lot. It took 37.2 seconds (which was great because his "goal" was a minute and a half." When Lisa and Braden got back, they didn't believe us that he ran across but turns out he was panting heavily. It was hilarious. He is now really sore because he doesn't exercise very often ;) I kid, I kid.

The rest of the weekend was pretty much spent watching 8 hours of conference on multiple couches. I loved it. We are so blessed to have such a loving Heavenly Father who cares for us so much that he doesn't leave us alone. He speaks to us individually through prayer and collectively through our living Priesthood leaders. I love it and I know the words they speak are true. I especially loved this talk:

‎"How do you raise a girl? Love her mother, lead your family to the temple, be guardians of virtue and magnify your priesthood. Fathers, you have been entrusted with our Heavenly Father's royal daughters. They are virtuous and elect. It is my prayer that you will watch over them, strengthen them, model virtuous behavior and teach them to follow in the Savior's every footstep — for He lives." -Sister Elaine S. Dalton

NOT Saved by the Bell

2011-09-29T08:46:00.003-06:00

I looked up from my desk in between bells to see 3 of my male students awkwardly walking around my room. I asked if I could help them, and one of them said, "yes." It was apparent that he was the ring leader and the others were there for moral support. He came over to my desk and asked me to close my eyes. I closed my eyes but also covered my mouth. He said, "Nooo! You can't cover your face, just your eyes!" Super suspicious at this time, I covered my whole face and allowed my eyes to peak through my fingers. He said no once again and I saw a glimpse of a Hershey's kiss squeezed in his hands. The boys got frustrated (and giggly) and left my class conquered but not done.

One period passes.

The bell rang again and in came the trio. The boys learned to be less suspicous and started going through my files (which happened to be for another class). One asked me to stand up so I stood up. BUT THEN, super quickly he moved in super close to my face and said, "I've been waiting to do this for a while..." and handed me a Hershey's kiss. I shooed them out of my room and told them how obnoxious they were.

One period passes.

This time, I didn't see a thing. I was sending an email and all of a sudden, the same kid is on one knee by my desk. "Miss Anderson, I have a question to ask you. Will you...eat one of my muddy buddies?" I couldn't help but laughing. Then, I looked up and noticed that the two accomplices were sitting in the desks of my class.

They are just too much. Let's be honest. They are hilarious and I can't get mad at them.

A Surprise Visitor

2011-09-26T15:07:00.000-06:00

Well, school has started and on this blog that means less pictures and more funny stories. So, here is one for you.

At my school, I have a "special" assignment. I have more of the at-risk kids. I was responding to an email while my student teacher was teaching and I saw a warm body moving towards me from the door entrance. By the time I realized who it was, this student was already moving in for a hug. I slapped my hand over my mouth to keep from squealing (and dodged the full on hug) and guided him out into the hall. Then I just gushed over him. About 4 minutes into our conversation that went something like this, "Are you being good? Are you sure? Are you lying to me? Do you promise? I'm so proud of you. I can trust you, right? I'm so happy!" I realized that he was WET. Yes, wet. At first, I thought it was just sweat (which accounted for the dripping moisture from his face) but then, I realized he had a wet line across his chest. I asked how he was wet.

OH, don't worry! He swam across the canal to get to the middle school. He was sweaty because he ran the remainder of the way from the canal to the school. THEN, he had to swim back across the canal to get back to the high school.

Where do you get stories like these?

Today, I also taught that "damn" is a cuss word. I also responded to the question, "Why is North Dakota above South Dakota." Yep, 9th grade, ladies and gentleman. They'll be on the road in a few short months. For some reason, I just adore them.

This is Humility

2011-09-21T13:03:00.000-06:00

Well, this is how I learned about humility this week. Note to self: If you are an annoying BYU fan to your students/faculty, they will, in return, be annoying U fans when the U creams BYU. Duly noted.

This is what I sent out to the whole faculty:

Dear teachers,

(My principal) asked me to send this to all of you. She left it out of collaboration on accident. It should’ve been inserted into the agenda after going over the “Norms.” It correlates directly to all of the Edmodo stuff I presented last week. You don’t want to miss it!

Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dflMnmCCZk
(Make sure your volume is turned on, and yes it is appropriate to watch with all of your students in the room...)

Much love,
Amber

This is what I got in my inbox in return:
--YOU MAKE ME SMILE!!!!!
--That was the year that BYU went to the BCS, wasn’t it? Oh wait. They haven’t been to a BCS bowl, have they?! GO UTES!!!!
-- Lol…. You're a brat… hahaha… So funny… even though I'm a UTE!!!
--Very clever - has the facade of something "official," but really, it is a jab at the Utah fans

And the worst response of them all:

Yep--the score. They certainly aren't letting me forget it.

Juls/Rascal Flatts

2011-09-18T00:03:00.002-06:00

Juls got married! She was so beautiful and it was such an awesome 2 days. Dustin and Juls are such a perfect match. He is so sweet to him and it's good to see that they adore each other so much.

This is at her reception, which she had the night before

Linnea, one of my old roommates was her photographer and it was SO great to see her :) She is an incredible photographer. Here is her blog if you'd like to check it out: http://laf-photo.blogspot.com/

Dustin and Juls after the sealing at the Salt Lake City Temple

Sara Evans and Rascal Flats with a few friends.

Cherise, Tavin, Lisa, Sarah, Mike, and Amy

It was a great weekend :)

Teaching: Take 3

2011-09-17T23:50:00.001-06:00

Here we go again! It's time to begin school. This summer seriously flew by, but it's great to have structure and accomplishment again in life. Here is to year 3!

This is my class room. It's an older school, but I just love it. Please note the 1930's fill-up-water swamp cooler in the back of my room (Thanks, Anne!!!) My school doesn't have AC (nor does it have outlets on 1/2 of the walls, which means there are some pretty sweet extension cords running along the back of the room...) but it allows us to get the job done just fine.

Please note the 6 columns on the calendar on my board. That's right, I teach SIX subjects this year (but might drop one of them...). Also, please notice my sweet Dumbledore quote that James put on my wall.

My BYU wall meets the Wall of the Unknown Student. That's where my no name papers get thrown.

The first day of school, my students drew continents on oranges and then we peeled them and drew maps based on what they saw to teach inaccurate map projections. They were a hoot.

I love my students. It should be an entertaining year! The crazy stories are flowing all ready.

2011-09-17T23:34:00.003-06:00

Sugarland and Sarah Bareillis

This was the last concert of summer. It was a blast!

Kristen and I

Sarah and I

Sugarland

I found this at Old Navy. Does any one else think it's hilarious that they would sell BYU bottle openers? I mean...what would BYU fans open with this? Hmmmm... For some reason they didn't sell to well.

Hawaii 2011

2011-08-19T14:00:00.011-06:00

Allloooohhhhaaaaa!!! Last week, I was fortunate enough to travel to Hawaii with my parents, grandma and aunt and uncle. I flew over separately and I am so fortunate that I was able to go! I guess that is a perk of being the only cousin over the age of 20 that is single ;) Here are some pictures of our adventures...
Dad and I at the resort
The USS Arizona
We Can Do It! WWII propaganda.
Flag at the Arizona
Inside the Bowfin Submarine

I know, there is a thumb, but it's still better than the non-thumb picture
Dalea and Brian

This bronze plaque is where WWII was ended aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo BayBig Guns
Picturesque
The shrimp truck (this would be a great time to mention that I don't like shrimp)
The arm extended is for dear brother, Sheldon. He's on his mish in Argentina.
Tahitian Dancers
Making fire. Well attempting to make fire. I couldn't even make smoke.
On the boat with tour guide, Brendan.

The parents
THE face of the PCC

Cute little grandma
The parents dancing in celebration of their anniversary
Dalea and Brian doing the same
Grrrr...
Soakin' up some rays!
Dole Plantation
Pineapples grow on plants. NOT trees.
My parents brought this shirt home to Sheldon the first time they went to Hawaii. He hates pineapples. This time, they bought him a new one and me one as well :)

Late night Phase 10 in the lobby--one of the best parts of the trip I might add.
The little swimmers
The non-swimmers
hanging with G-2-da-ma while everyone else had to sit in a time share meeting.
The happy pineapple

mom made me do approximately 42 cartwheels to get this picture. My pants ripped :(
View from the Poly something highway look off
I love this quote. It is a quote that President Lincoln wrote to a woman who lost 5 sons in the Civil War. it says, "The solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the alter of freedom."

The trip was a great success and we created great memories! I'm grateful for Kristen and her family who showed me the ways the last time I went :) I'm so lucky to have such a great family!! Thanks, Mom and Dad!! Love ya'll!

I Love to See the Temple

2011-08-19T01:09:00.002-06:00

Let's begin by saying that I have the most wonderful family. They support me through everything. My parents, grandma, aunts, uncles and cousins really have taken me under their wings and always been so loving and kind. I am so lucky.

Last month, we all went to the temple together. Some of my best friends also were able to come! I am really disappointed that I didn't get a picture of all of us together (Coralie, Jan, Mary Rose, Sarah, and Lisa). They really are the greatest friends that I could ever ask for and I am just so lucky to have them. I adore them and relish in our great, insightful talks.

I had a really great experience at the temple and love the peace I feel as I enter. The peace I feel reminds me that all things testify of Christ. We are so lucky to know that we have a purpose and that we can do hard things.
Coralie and I (we met 10 years ago!!! Happy Anniversary :))
My beautiful mother who joined me from southern California. We had a grand time--sharing a room, shopping, frozen yogurt at night, and driving around SLC on a warm summer evening.
My sweet grandma and mama.

This basically sums up my experience:

I love to see the temple.
I'm going there someday
To feel the Holy Spirit,
To listen and to pray.

--------------------------------------…

For the temple is a house of God,
A place of love and beauty.
I'll prepare myself while I am young;
This is my sacred duty.

--------------------------------------…

I love to see the temple.
I'll go inside someday.
I'll cov'nant with my Father;
I'll promise to obey.

--------------------------------------…

For the temple is a holy place
Where we are sealed together.
As a child of God,
I've learned this truth;
A fam'ly is forever.
My adorable family--Cecy, Jay, Marisa, Dalea, Grandma, Andrea, and Lorie
This one is just hilarious.

Madre at the Capitol

Rightwater

2011-07-22T12:07:00.004-06:00

The next week was also pretty great. Besides taking the GRE and breaking some ribs, we were able to go white water rafting with our church group. There were about 150 of us who traveled to Thane, Wyoming, camped out, ate great food, enjoyed each others company, got eaten by mosquitos, slept in a hay field, killed spiders, roasted marshmallows, had some workshops, shared our testimonies, and rode the Snake River. It was awesome. Here are the 2 pictures I have...

I wasn't lying about the hay!

New Friends

July: Kenny Chesney Concert

2011-07-20T00:32:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago, a group of us went to the Kenny Chesney, Uncle Cracker and Billy Currington concert. It was SOOO much fun and I realized that I like country concerts infinitely better than other concerts. Everyone is happy, swaying with their beer (or Diet Dokes in our case), singing, dancing, and just enjoying the night. It was so much fun and I'm lucky to have so many great friends to share the night with.Ryan, Amber (eating again, not suprised), and Tavin
Christy and Sam (we teach together. They're engaged :))
Sarah and I--we love each other
Kenny

Sarah, me, and Amy--We all coordinated EFY last summer and here we are together still!
Amy, Sarah, me, and Christy

It was such a fun night!

A few memorable experiences:

-The drunk woman picking me up and putting me on other peoples shoulders to "plank"

-Another drunk woman going to the bathroom behind two blankets in front of her kids. Embarrassing

-Ryan promising he would take me to the bathroom and LYING.

Morale of the story. People do dumb things when they are drunk (but they are slightly entertaining for those who watch...)

Just a perfect night.

June: Week 5

2011-07-11T11:02:00.003-06:00

The last week of June, a few friends and I traveled to St. George. Ryan and his family were so generous and allowed us to stay in their home while they are mission presidents. Here are some pictures from the trip!!We hiked through this river in Zion's National Park. It's called the Narrows and it was AWESOME!!
Hiking the river
The girls: Amy, me, and Marge
We also went to the Grand Canyon. It was a pretty amazing hole in the ground. I think I've been before but couldn't remember it. The best part was throwing rocks off of it. :) Haha otherwise, it's seriously just a big hole... (Marge, Tavin, Amy, me, and Ryan)
The GC
Amy and Ryan. If they are ever in love, they'll appreciate this picture.
HUGE!!
Amy and I

June: Week 4

2011-06-30T16:31:00.006-06:00

This week was awesome. It was super busy with some type of sporting event every night and this conference I signed up for during the day. I signed up for the Huntsman Conference at the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the U. It was seriously one of the greatest conferences I've been to. I loved it. I am such a political nerd. They had the greatest speakers set up. Senator Bennett, Congressman Bishop, Dan Jones, Kirk Jowers, many state representatives and senators, Mayor Winder and Mayor Love, the list continues. Oh, and did I mention, Kirk had an in that allowed us to go to the Mitt Romney Fundraiser at no charge. It was awesome. Also, I think I loved it so much because I met three of the most adorable girls. We were the only young ones of the group and instantly all gravitated to one another. You'll see them in plenty of pictures below.

Jordan, Amber, Kirk, Amber, and Amber (no joke...)
The "Mean Girls" and John. We nominated him to be our "class representative" at our graduation at the Huntsman Center. He didn't campaign for it and there were plenty of very "outspoken" people who wanted to do it. Let's be honest, we were a little tired of hearing said "outspoken" people and just LOVED him. In his speech, he dubbed us the "Mean Girls."
The Utah State Capitol Building
The Utah House (we sat in the Senate all day... but for some reason, I took a picture of this instead).
You might recognize this person--Mitt Romney. I'm fortunate enough to have met him and his family a few times. Quality people. Quality.

The mean girls with Jayne.
The Speech.
After the fundraiser, I really needed to high tail it to Orem for Erin's wedding reception, but I got out too late, so I headed over to the ward softball team. Afterwards, I took a picture with Matt because we played in our "work" clothes. This picture would be really adorable if we were in love...

Note to self (or anyone for that matter): Never play softball in a pencil skirt. It's way too hard to run and even if you hit the ball to the outfield, they can throw you out because there's not to much room for big strides thanks to the skirt...
Now for such a happy moment. I LOVE Erin. She is one of my best friends. We worked on the same team 2 years ago in Rexburg. I feel like it was my "girl" summer. Me, Erin, and Jan would stay up 'til the wee hours of the morning discussing (actually, I'll leave that up to your imagination) stuff. They have been the greatest friends in life. I always know I can count on those two girls. Anyways, last summer, we also worked together at EFY and were roommates for 11 weeks. We got to our last week and had the option to be in single rooms (actually, we were forced to be in single rooms and I remember being SO lonely because, though our rooms bordered, I was so used to having her with me). She is one of the sweetest, spiritual, driven girls I know. I'm so happy for her and Kimball!
Adrian (Erin's sister) and I
Oh, Jan...
Erin and her brothers
The ladies
To close a wonderful week, we headed to the driving range. Our ward has had a lot of turnover and it's been fun getting to know everyone.

I sent this picture to his mom. Haha--I sent some others to other random parents of other people but can't seem to find them.
Happily Ever After. :) Well, with her husband of course!

June: Week 3--Seattle

2011-06-30T12:28:00.005-06:00

Two weeks ago, my roommate and I drove to Seattle to help clean out my grandparents house. If you know my grandma, you know that she had a TON of hobbies and she went all out when she selected one. She had a room full of scrapbook stuff, an attic full of ceramics, a place full of woodwork, dishes galore, etc. We went to help my mom and uncle undergo this huge task now that they've decided to rent out the house. It was an interesting week full of memories!

The dried out paint we hauled out of the attic. Yes, those are FULL trash cans that contain nothing but paint.

We went to Spud Fish and Chips. Apparently this is a tradition in my home (from living in Seattle/visiting Seattle). What I actually learned is that my parents made it a tradition to go there whenever I was not invited because I had never been in my life. Thanks, parents ;)

The giant totem pole. Taking Marge was kind of cool because she has a weird sense of taste (haha jk). I would've taken a sight seer to the Science Museum, Space needle, Mariners game, etc. Instead she wanted to see poles, bridges, trolls, and parks. I guess it was great for both of us because I saw things I had never heard about before...

Why my mom and Meggie are together in this picture and I am not invited is beyond me... ;)

Mama and I

Tree Hugger (haha get it? PS--I'm hoping these sweatered trees aren't supposed to symbolize something else...)

Pikes Place

Yes, we painted lines under our eyes with candle ash. However, please note this room. The two of us tore out the wall paper and painted it :) See below a few pictures.
We almost bought this for our engaged roommate Juls. However, after cleaning out so much crap, we vowed to never buy anything in our lives that wasn't either edible or clothing. I don't think I've broken that promise yet. Sadly, we made Juls a wedding count down chain with grandma's scrapbook paper instead of buying her random souvenir crap.

The Sound

Pretending to be an artist...

And then...DUH, DUH, DUH... My poor Charlie. We were going to see some random drawbridge and I was stopped at the light in the center lane. The left turn arrow flashed on and this car-carrying-semi side swiped me, cut through my car, and pulled us into the intersection. We followed him waiting for him to pull over, and it appeared that he would, but he didn't. He reversed and turned around (which is a little hard to do in a semi). This random man walked by our car, looked at the damage, made awkward eye contact, and ran up and hopped into the cab of the semi and DROVE OFF. At that time, we realized that they were not trying to find a large space to pull over, instead, they were ditching us. We called 911, who prompted us to pull over. Within 2 minutes, a cop found us and found the truck. The nice gentleman had me follow him to the other cop car where we identified the semi and filled out the police report. Wow. What a day! At this point, I have had my little rental car for 2 weeks and REALLY can't wait until my car is fixed.

Fremont troll. I had no clue this existed.

The finished room :) (Yes, you may now scroll up and compare it to the original room. Great progress, I know).

We stopped by the Boise, Idaho temple on the way home, snapped a quick picture, and were on our way. To make the trip just fitting, it rained the whole way home for us.

I learned a few things:

1. I'm allergic to Seattle

2. I love my family (already knew that)

3. NEVER put things in the attic

4. Garage sells don't work--just DI everything

5. Well...I'm sure they'll come to me :)

June: Week 2

2011-06-30T12:16:00.002-06:00

Well, here it is. My first official week off of school. I rediscovered:

nature

friends, The Sandlot, and outdoor movies

the TRUE American sport, baseball

and packing summer days full of people and random events :)

I love summer...

June: Week 1

2011-06-08T23:11:00.006-06:00

My second year of teaching is up and I seriously can't believe it. Here is a preview of the last few days...

I really, really loved this year. I fell in love with my students (as a collective whole, not individually, don't you worry). I'll miss the girls coming in to chat with me next year and all the "interesting" conversations we shared.
We made a quote wall. Here's an explanation of the few of them from an earlier post:

I made them say the contries names over and over as I pointed to them. Then one of my students said, "I'm going on strike!" jokingly. I slipped back, "I'll strike you!" Whoops. It was hilarious.

Then, I pointed to Moldova and pulled the whole SNL teacher skit. "What country is this? Mmmmmmoooo...." They yelled, Macedonia, Montenegro, Montague!" I replied, "Montague?! This is not Romeo and Juliet..."

Haha ok. Moving on.

I asked, "Raise your hand if enjoy learning about the Holocaust." Well I raised my hand to model that I wanted them to raise their hands, but apparently it was a little firm because the girl in the front row said, "Do you enjoy learning about the Holocaust, Miss Anderson?" I looked at them confused. Then about 7 of them "mirrored" my out stretched arm. So basically, I suddenly saw all these "Heil Hitler" responses coming from my students and then recognized that I myself had been doing the Nazi salute. Another student said, "She does have blonde hair and blue eyes." I replied, "Actually, they are green, but you have blonde hair and blue eyes. Hmmmm..." haha. Whoops.

Here are a few teachers from my school. Every year, 9th grade students go to our local amusement park, Lagoon. Well, some teachers are needed to "chaperone" them. This is what happens. We all ditch the kids at the door when they have to stand in line for tickets and we hang out for a few hours until we meet them back on the bus. It's great :) Here are the teachers of my school (Poore, Nielsen, me, Blank, Terkhorn, Terkhorn's sister, and Briggs. Unfortunately, Baily is semi-cut out. I'll blame that on the photographer. If you only knew...
This is a picture of my hand. Why do I have a huge cut? Why, let me tell you.

Setting: Last day of school, only about 15 9th graders showed up, in a classroom, with the desks pushed up against the wall.

Story: So this teacher was jokingly trying to tackle one of my favorite female students. Apparently she had done it before and she was going for round 2. Well I decided to help this student in need by trying to pull Harward off of her. Harward turned and tried to tackle me (please note that I was also eating Doritos. And yes, I realize that I should have been in my own room chaperoning during this time...). Well, Harward is larger (and apparently more powerful) than I am. She tackled me to the floor, straddled me, pinned down my arms and pretended like I was a human typewriter. So imagine tap, tap, tap, tap (on my chest), slap (my face), tap, tap, tap, tap (on my chest), slap (my face), tap, tap, tap, tap (on my chest), slap (my face). Also remember, there are like 15 students watching and my mouth is full of Doritos. Somehow, her wedding ring sliced open my hand.

I dramatically and jokingly insisted that I was going to go tell the principal. I rushed up to the office and the principal filled out a "Notice of Suspension" form and checked the physical assault box which I later dramatically hand delivered to her. It was funny.

Why do I have this picture, well I took a picture of it and sent it to her the other day "just thinking of you..." Oh man...
I decided to have a rebellious streak (or 5). Kind of fun... I love Katchie (she's my hair stylist).
My good friend Ann gave me tickets to see Ellipse. Her husband is in the band and she is just so generous to always think to invite me. I love going. Cynthia from work came with me (though she refused to be photographed). It was such a fun night and so nice to finally be outside.
Here is the cute math teacher turned stay at home mom. I miss her across the wall (coincidentally, her class room is the room I was turned into a human type writer. I was abused much less when she was in that room)
Here is her adorable little guy! One of the most precious, happy children I've ever seen! Thanks again Ann!
Well, I don't really know how to flip this sideways, but I made this. My best friend, Coralie, invited me to this little temple picture frame project. We made these!! It's huge. Please observe my toes and how small they are in comparison to my huge temple picture. Cool, huh?
On a less relevant note, I saw this homeless person. I know, I shouldn't have taken a picture. He might not have even been homeless. He was holding a sign across the street and he has 2 dogs. Most importantly, he was wearing a HUGE stuffed (pretend, I presume) dog head on top of his head which made hip appear like 7 1/2 feet tall! Crazy. I will now go wash my car windshield...

Les Mes

2011-06-07T16:38:00.003-06:00

Ever since living with my 2 roommates, I've been excited to see Les Mes. We saw it once before in DC, but it wasn't so great. Months ago, we accidentally purchased the matinee tickets instead of the evening tickets, so Kristen wasn't able to go :( We missed her, but I felt like she was there in spirit. It was incredible. If it comes to a theatre near you, you must see it!!!

Oh, did I mention that President Monson even loves it (well I don't know if that's true...but he quoted it here:)

One of the longest-running musicals in history is Les Miserables. The story is set in the period of the French Revolution. The principal character in the musical is Jean Valjean. In his heartfelt concern for the young man, Marius, who is going off to battle, he expresses in song a sincere prayer:

God on high,
Hear my prayer;
In my need
You have always been there.

He is young,
He’s afraid;
Let him rest,
Heaven blessed.
Bring him home. …

Bring him peace,
Bring him joy.
He is young;
He is only a boy.

You can take,
You can give;
Let him be,
Let him live.
If I die, let me die,
Let him live.
Bring him home. 9

MOAB

2011-05-24T20:04:00.001-06:00

This weekend, our neighbors, Wade and Justin, organized such a great trip to Moab. It was filled with tons of "firsts."
It was my first trip with these ladies.
It was the first time I rented a bike.
It was the first time I slept in a 4 man tent with 7 girls. (Just for the record, Jenny and I had a great idea. We took Annie's blow-up mattress and put it in the back of Wades truck so we could sleep on it and have room to move. Well, as you know, the beds of trucks have the little seats that cover the wheels. So we let out the air so we could squish it down around it. This caused us to roll in toward the center and we were ultra close--but it was SOOOO much better! So here it is, the first time I slept under the stars.
First time I climbed a steep rock wall (ok...that's a lie. Didn't climb this.)
First time riding/falling off of a bike in the wilderness.
First time I rode a bike with 20 other ward members up a mountain.
First time getting sunburned this year...
First time falling off a cliff...
First time pulling someone else off a cliff...
First time meeting an adorable little French couple (were they a couple? Who knows?) on a cliff.
First time seeing (sort of) Delicate Arch...
First time hiking it with 30 others in pitch darkness...
First time watching the stars under the arch...
First time sleeping in a mummy bag (thanks Annie) on a blow up mattress (thanks Annie) in the back of a truck (thanks Wade) near obnoxious neighbors (thanks drunk people).

What a great trip!

Quotable Quotes

2011-05-24T07:47:00.002-06:00

Student sings "Bad boys, bad boys, whattcha gon' do, whattcha gon' do when they come for you..."

The following is this students little "stream of consciousness":

--Man, I used to love watching that show. I'd sit with my mom and watch it and think that I was just going to be the best cop in the world. sings Bad boys, bad boys, whattcha gon' do...
--Wait! Oh my gosh! I used to sit talking about how I'd be a cop chasin' people, then I turned into the one bein' chased?! How'd that happen? I'd be the one seeing the cops 2-3 times a week. How'd that happen?
--Man! I should've run. I always just went up to them with my hands together for the hand cuffs. That was dumb.
--sings. Bad boys, bad boys, whattcha gon' do?...

This would've been a great time for me to teach an inspirational lesson...but we were all laughing too hard.

Then, this kid came into my next period. He was trying to send an email to the penpal I gave him in Germany but he said it wouldn't work, he just got a red box that said he couldn't send it. I figured he just typed something in the "CC" box. I assigned this girl to go help him (my student can't read or write past a kindergarten level). So he comes back into the room and I asked how it went. He said, "(Insert female name here), just told me to write the letters H-E-Y in the box." Trying not to smile I said, "oh perfect! I'm glad she was able to help you with that." We exchanged smiles (and eventually laughs) when we realized he couldn't send it because nothing was in the subject box and even more so that the letters "H-E-Y" spelled "Hey" and he didn't realize that.

I love my job.

In the Life of a 9th Grade Teacher

2011-05-18T12:09:00.002-06:00

This is pretty much how my 4th period went today:

Starter question:
Create a mnemonic device for the European countries that border Russia (Estonia, Latvia,Belarus, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey).

They came up with the mnemonic "I'll-stone-ya Later by-the-roof (in the) Cranium If-you-remain Bulgarizing Turkey's." (Estonia, Latvia,Belarus, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey)

I made them say the contries names over and over as I pointed to them. Then one of my students said, "I'm going on strike!" jokingly. I slipped back, "I'll strike you!" Whoops. It was hilarious.

Then, I pointed to Moldova and pulled the whole SNL teacher skit. "What country is this? Mmmmmmoooo...." They yelled, Macedonia, Montenegro, Montague!" I replied, "Montague?! This is not Romeo and Juliet..."

Haha ok. Moving on.

I asked, "Raise your hand if enjoy learning about the Holocaust." Well I raised my hand to model that I wanted them to raise their hands, but apparently it was a little firm because the girl in the front row said, "Do you enjoy learning about the Holocaust, Miss Anderson?" I looked at them confused. Then about 7 of them "mirrored" my out stretched arm. So basically, I suddenly saw all these "Heil Hitler" responses coming from my students and then recognized that I myself had been doing the Nazi salute. Another student said, "She does have blonde hair and blue eyes." I replied, "Actually, they are green, but you have blonde hair and blue eyes. Hmmmm..." haha. Whoops.

Only 10 more wake-ups. Can't believe it.

Red Dirt

2011-05-17T01:10:00.002-06:00

When I was young, I wanted a tree house. It seemed like all the trees in our 3 acre yard were ridiculously tall, old trees, or very young, weak trees. My tree house dream seemed as if it would never become a reality. Well, I decided to do what any driven, imaginative child would do. I had a master plan. I would dig a hole in the ground. That's it. Dig a hole, large enough to be an "underground tree house" (well, minus the tree of course. And minus the house, too...). I set out to work. I employed everyone I knew to help me. My two best friends, R and S helped me daily. I'm sure I forced my brother to help as well.

We dug for months. Eventually, I kid you not, we had a huge rectangular hole. It was about 5 feet long by 4 feet wide and probably 4 feet deep. I kid you not. We dug, day after day in the solid Georgia clay as mosquitos and gnats flew about, birds chirped, and the pine needles fell. Season after season, we continued. My brilliant plan was to stack a foot or so of left over bricks from the house (cemented with mud--and yes, for some reason I thought mud would be a forever lasting mortar) and then easily lay a piece of plywood over the top, with a door cut into it, of course.

Why am I thinking of this at 1:17 AM on a school night? I have no clue. I guess I can learn many lessons from this childhood project.

#1--I would give almost anything to move back to those times. I loved that little city--the culture, the community, the weather. I love the South.

#2--I guess this is a reminder of how there are always more options. When a tree isn't available, the thick Georgia clay worked. I feel like I am making 42 decisions in my life right now. I'm not sure which one is right--but odds are, they will all work out perfectly.

#3--Some things are ok to leave unfinished. I never put the final piece of wood on the top of my "tree house." We sold the house (all the while, I'm certain that my mom thought it would be a sore spot and made me cover up the "grave" with pine straw) and left. I didn't see the finished product, but I learned a lot in the journey (not to mention I probably ruined TONS of T-shirts with the clay and burned tons of daylight). I wonder what things in my life I can just leave "unfinished" and move on to bigger and better things.

#4--I need to go to bed, so that is all. :) How's that for an abrupt finish of spewing my thoughts...?

Weekend Events

2011-05-15T21:43:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago, we bought season passes to some SLC attractions. I haven't used my pass until this weekend. We went to the Utah Blaze game. It was great! (Ok--well I was seriously STARVING the whole time so it took forever... but it was a fun experience).

Wade kicking field goals. Yep--you heard it, my friend was on the field kicking field goals. Pretty sweet. And, yes, we were this far away. Haha...
This is the group. Shad, Marge, Justin, Jenny, Ryan, Wade, and Jeff.
Afterwards, we ate at an adorable little waffle shop downtown. Yum :) We got waffles and fries and the guys got something called "the machine gun." You're creative. You can probably figure out why...
Our table :)
Don't forget Petunia the pig. Apparently it's a piggie bank for some museum. I put in a whole dime (thank you Jeff for the dime).
Then Jeff took us to the most random place I've seen in all my life. It's called Gilgal Gardens. Some artist displays his beliefs through religious art. I don't really get it but it was kind of cool (and moderately creepy at night...). Look closely. Yes--you see it. That is Joseph Smith's head on the Sphinx. I don't get it either...
This is a fuzzy picture, but it looks like Voldemort. There are all these scriptures around the place...
Today, after church, Ryan (and others) cooked us a gourmet meal! I love Sundays.
Marge, Tavin, Me, and Jenny

That's all for the eventful weekend. We're currently watching The Other Side of Heaven. Two and a half weeks of school left! I can hardly believe it! Summer--here I come!

FNL

2011-05-11T21:49:00.000-06:00

The recent obsession of our apartment has been what we prefer to call, "FNL." Kristen introduced us to the show "Friday Night Lights" and there has been no turning back. We have loved it. We laugh, we cry (a lot), we gasp, we just love it.

Mainly, it's over dramatized high school. It includes the South, God, football, high school. How can you go wrong? There is no way.

Mostly, I have loved watching the relationship between Coach Taylor and Tammy, his wife. They are the perfect example of marriage. Sure they have problems, but they are so good to each other and just adorable. I love watching their relationship. Just goes to show, that everything turns out ok when based on a solid marriage. Oh, and there are definitely a ton of problems--murder, pregnancy, drugs, religion, custody issues, drunkards, siblings, relationships. Good stuff. I just love Coach and Tammy :) You will too.

Love it...

Quotable Quotes

2011-05-09T13:42:00.003-06:00

I just told a class about the ship that had 600 people aboard that just sunk in Libya. One of my students just said, in all seriousness.

"Do you know what Africa should do? They should just get a big saw and saw off Libya. Then everyone will just stand on the other borders and push it into the ocean. Think that could happen?"

PS--these people can start driving soon.

Quotable Quotes

2011-04-28T20:37:00.001-06:00

"You think education is expensive, try ignorance."

It is increasingly difficult to enforce good behavior in my students when unacceptable behavior is so frequently modeled in their everyday lives. "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." -Gandhi.

"Be grateful for people in your lives who love you enough to correct you, to remind you of your standards and possibilities, even when you don't want to be reminded." --Elder Neal A. Maxwell (this is on my wall at school)

Love these quotes.

2011-04-10T23:23:00.003-06:00

if i were a month, i'd be June.
if i were a day of the week, i'd be Friday.
if i were a time of day, i'd be evening.
if i were a sea animal, i'd be a seal.
if i were a direction, i'd be east.
if i were a gemstone, i'd be diamond.
if i were a tree, i'd be a magnolia tree.
if i were a flower, i'd be a tulip.
if i were a kind of weather, i'd be a warm summer day.
if i were a musical instrument, i'd be a piano.
if i were a color, i'd be green.
if i were a fruit, i'd be an apple.
if i were an element, i'd be silver.
if i were a food, i'd be cream cheese.
if i were a place, i'd be DC or Georgia.
if i were a material, i'd be stripes.
if i were a scent, i'd be vanilla.
if i were an object, i'd be a blanket.
if i were a song, i'd be Firework or Beautiful World.

Beautiful World

2011-04-10T23:10:00.002-06:00

If you missed out on the song back in the day entitled, "Beautiful World" by Coldplay, you should check it out.

Today, I drove down to Provo. The thoughts and feelings I associate with that place are really indescribable. I love the familiarity, the goodness, the familiar curves of the mountains. I love the memories that flow from late night WalMart trips, Krispy Kreme runs, and warm summer nights. I miss it. Here are a few pictures. Hopefully they capture the feelings I associate with that little town. To top it all off, I was able to go to Brother Smith's fireside and see some really great EFY and non-EFY friends. I'm a lucky girl :)

Why I can't stop reading Mormon housewife blogs

2011-04-03T22:06:00.000-06:00

I love this article. Odds are, you will too...

This is the perspective of a feminist, atheist woman who has a strange addiction with reading married, LDS women's blogs. Turns out, happiness is contagious and REAL. I'm grateful that I too am a happy, optimistic, LDS woman (young woman?). Take a peak.

Why I can't stop reading Mormon housewife blogs

Testing day. Please be serious.

2011-03-20T23:53:00.003-06:00

So, I gave a test last Wednesday. The neighboring Language Arts teacher was teaching climax by playing Taylor Swift's "Love Story" to teach climax or something. In two of my classes, I found myself trying not to hum along, however, some of my students couldn't help it. It was rather cute.

Well, Friday, at the lunch table, my LA neighbor said SHE would be giving a test. Then, it hit. Payback. Teachers in school wear these microphones around our necks. I thought they were ridiculous at first, but holy cow, it saves me. I don't have to raise my voice, they can hear my emotion (whether joyful or annoyance). The only problem is that I can hear everything my neighbor says and vice versa.

Back to Friday. After marking 124 kids tardy, I covered my mic and whispered to the class that I had a brilliant idea (I'm pretty much an actor--trying to entertain them, right?). I whispered to them that the class would be taking a test and reminded them what happened when we were taking a test. I told them we should play the song back and sing at the top of our lungs. Well, after three groups of kids gave their Asia PowerPoint presentations, I found the lyrics on YouTube and we sang at the top of our lungs. Promptly thereafter, my phone rang. It was my neighbor. I put it on speaker. "Hey, what'd you do with all that money we gave your class for singing lessons?" she said. We laughed and hung up.

Twenty minutes later, right before the bell rings, I hear T. Swift wafting through the poor ventilation of our walls and all these 8th grade voices. Not to be out performed, we put on another Taylor song and belted out the words at the top of our lungs (don't worry, I gave them my mic to help).

It was a very educational day. (haha don't worry, we only wasted a collective 5 minutes...but wow, can that build class morale. It was hilarious and I'm pretty sure I enjoyed it more than they did).

Let me know if you have ideas because I'm pretty sure this will turn into a battle.

An Insight into My Heart

2011-03-20T23:45:00.003-06:00

Things I fear:

My grandma's basement. Missed opportunities. Being forgotten. The fact that I always want what I can't have. Pride. North Korea (I watched a documentary...). Closeness. Shellfish. Being alone. Being late. Getting older. My skin loosing elasticity, someday. Love. Hurting others. Leading on guys I go out with. Allowing people to be lonely because I didn't spend time with them. The turmoil in the Middle East. Ignorance. The state of America's uneducated. Myself.

Deep down I'm just a scared girl. I guess we all are sometimes.

Books...

2011-03-10T21:13:00.003-07:00

Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it. ~P.J. O'Rourke

The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them. ~Mark Twain

I just got back from book club and feel inspired. Can you tell. I've read these books and need some new suggestions. Leave me some comments with your favorites. Summer is near!

To Destroy You is No Loss

The Alchimest

Flags of Our Fathers

Brave New World

Poisonwood Bible

Huckleberry Finn

Heart of Darkness

Warriors Don't Cry

Long Walk to Freedom

The Boy in Striped Pajamas

The Help

Mr. Pip

Tale of Two Cites

Shanghi Girls

Outsiders

Hunger Games

Billy Budd

Beruit to Jerusalem

Lincoln in Pictures

John Adams

Jane Eyre

Scarlett Letter

The Power of One

Wuthering Heights

Frankenstein

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Ms. Dalloway

The Hours

Left to Tell

Gurnesy Literary Society

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

Catcher in the Rye

Lord of the Flies

Harry Potters

Animal Farm

To Kill a Mockingbird

The Book of Mormon

The New Testament

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

The Declaration of Indepedence: A Written History

Things Fall Apart

A Prayer for Owen Meany

The Tipping Point

Freakanomics

As I Lay Dying

Lemon Tart

Spare Change

The Professor and the Madman

King Lear

Julius Caesar

Jacob Have I loved

The Screwtape Letters

The Outsiders

Distant Waters

To Draw Closer to God

Peak

The Carousel

Chains

Coming of Age in Mississippi

Amusing Ourselves to Death

The Awakening

The Giver

Anne Frank
1984
Room
Twilight
The Infinate Atonement
Speak
Winter Girls

7th Period

2011-02-23T15:43:00.003-07:00

First of all, I realize this won't be interesting to anyone. I just want to document the hilarity of my 7th period, because, seriously, how does this happen?

Bell rings.

Students to their starting activity on the board.

Then, I ATTEMPT to discuss a few current events.

Unrest in Tunisia, Egypt, Lybia, Iran, etc.

"Miss Anderson, will you come to our baseball game." "Yes, just tell me when it's closer"

More discussion of middle east, Muslim brotherhood, democracy.

My typical spill on my shock about how pirates still exist. I explained somolia, yacth, 4 Americans killed, upcoming trial.

"Will we go to war?" "How many people would have to die to go to war?" "Will we start a world war with Somolia" "The words "World War" imply that the whole world needs to be involved not just us and them" (suddenly it clicks in their head. Mind you, this is all them talking).

"Can we just talk about current events the entire period?" "Yeah! We never have a free day!" "This will be so good for us!" "Can we talk about drug cartels in Juarez again?" "Yeah, Miss Anderson, we need to know about them!!" "can't we just have a discussion all period." (In my head, "What do you think I'm trying to do?") Outloud, "Only if I start getting some really good questions. If not we'll take notes."

I ask them a question about N Korea. "Do they have nukes?" "Would China beat us?" "If a nuke goes off won't the entire face of the earth be slaughtered?" (lot's of speculation) (Finally, I respond, answer questions and ask a question about New Zealand).

"Did you guys hear about the earthquake," I ask. "Oh yeah! Didn't 4000 people die?" "We just learned where that is!" "What earthquake?" "Aren't we supposed to have an earthquake?" "When will it come?" "Can we practice an earthquake drill?" (student we will call Huck gets under his desk promptly) Huck "I'm scared! Can't we have a drill? Wouldn't it be so cool if it came!" Other students, "Is our school earthquake proof."

"Do we have to do anything today?" "Can we just keep talking and learning things like we are right now?"

I tell them we are going to take notes but "I promise, I won't make you do anything for the WHOLE rest of the period if we have a 6.0 earthquake." "Sigh... MISS ANDERSON! This is important. We need to know this in real life."

Discussion on federal laws, how tectonic plates move (for someone who missed all the science classes in her whole life apparently). Randomly, Huck jumps up from his desk, folds his arms, "Dear Heavenly Father, Please let us have an earthquake and let us be safe if we do. It'd be really cool and we'd learn a lot. In the name of...Amen." (I'm not kidding). The class got silent, because, let's be honest, we were all a bit in shock. Well, thanks Huck for asking that we'd be safe.

More discussion on natural disasters. Tectonic plates. Huck has a question. He asks if he can ask it. "Sure, why not," I respond. He comes to the board. Draws America (a perfect circle). He draws where the highest points are. He thinks they are around the coasts. "Huck, we JUST discussed that the lowest points are typically near the coasts."

We discuss Katrina, flooding, lot's of floods, lots of earthquakes. Huck continues his drawing. Huck says, "So if it rains, the whole continent would have to fill up before it floods?" We discuss rivers, elevation, and more floods.

Oh man, FINALLY, we get back on track to taking notes about monsoons in south Asia. Huck inquires, "Miss Anderson, do pipes have filters?" We discuss the difference in incoming clean water and outgoing dirty water. "So, would fish live if they get dropped in the toilet and flushed?" He divulges that his mom accidentally flushed his fish last night. He was so sad.

More notes. Huck says, "Miss Anderson, how does water not fall off the earth when the world is upside down." Class together, laughing/exasperated/shocked, "GRAVITY!!!"

Oh my gosh. Oh my. Oh.

I will add more as the memories come. Can you imagine if I was observed that period? (Actually, I'd probably get a ton of high points on asking good questions and student interaction). My brain hurts.

Education Today

2011-02-14T21:56:00.002-07:00

I'm grading tests. Please be amused with me:

Q: Where do most people in New Zealand live?

A: Australia

A: IDK, underwater?

A: Hawaii

BONUS Q: Hosni Mubarak is the president of what country that is currently experiencing civilian unrest against the government?

A: Australia

A: Egipt

A: Eygept

Q: From what continent did the Aborigines arrive?

A: Grate Briten

B: Africa

Q: Name a language spoken in New Zealand? (ps--we just watched a movie that took place there, and I'm pretty sure it was in their language--English)

A: Spanish

Q: The Maori are the native people of _______.

A: aliens

A: immigrants

BONUS Q: What team does the future college basketball MVP, Jimmer Ferdette, belong to?

A: Houstan Rockets

Essay quotes:

"I think that is not fair to take their land because is their land. They should do something better then tooked it from them. A good idea will be talkin to them, and get to. Something better for both of them."

"They were pretty muched tooken off there own land."

Join the cause! Become an educator!

I need Advil...

Christmas 2010

2011-02-06T17:16:00.005-07:00

This Christmas was very different than all the rest. My brother, Sheldon, is serving an LDS mission in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Since he is my only sibling, Christmas was very different! My parents and I went on lots of adventures. We went to Hollywood (with hopes of seeing West Side Story--but it was a bit pricy for our taste), the Long Beach Playhouse, watched TONS of movies, ate at many restaurants, and just enjoyed each others company. Since they just moved to LB and live in an apartment, I got the privilege of sleeping on the couch. Next time, I will take one of those eye cover things. Not the most comfortable place, but spending time with my parents was well worth the sacrifice.

We were really excited for Sheldon to call. Missionaries are only able to call on Mother's Day and Christmas, though they do email weekly. It was stressful waiting for his call. You see, he called from a member's home and told us to call him back. Turns out, we aren't too savvy on calling other countries, so we didn't really know what to do/the number he gave us was slightly wrong (minor detail). All in all, when we finally talked to him, it was wonderful to hear his voice. Turns out, I really love him. I'm so proud of the decisions he is making and I know we are being blessed for his sacrifice. I also know the Lord is taking care of him and blessing him for his desire to put his life on hold to serve Him.

Well, enough about Sheldon. This is what he missed:

The little apartment front room. Also, functioned as my bedroom for the week.

My parents decided to spoil me while Sheldon was gone. This is a computer. My parents are hilarious. My mom thought it would be funny if she decorated a Cheerios box so she went online and printed off pictures of a Macbook Pro and glued them on the box. Not to worry, she left Cheerios in there (half-eaten, mind you).

I also got a Kitchen Aid mixer attachment for ice cream making. It was my grandma's wish to buy us all Kitchen Aid's for our wedding gift. Well, I didn't get married while she was alive. My mom decided to continue the tradition, however, she couldn't wait. She lost hope in my marriageability and now I enjoy a beautiful Kitchen Aide mixer. :) Can't wait to use this little gadget.

The real deal. (PS--I bought a portion of this, before you all think I'm ridiculously spoiled. Which I probably am.)

My parents speaking to the golden child.
I cried. They were so generous.

NYC 2011

2011-01-25T19:30:00.013-07:00

Over MLK weekend, I was able to take a trip with a few friends. We went to NYC (perhaps you've heard of it). We did so many fun things and are so fortunate to have had a connection with a very generous family (you know who you are). It was a great time and I was reminded how lucky I am to have such incredible roommates. Some of the most memorable times were just sitting around playing NERTZ and chatting before bed. Oh man...what a trip! I love America!

(here is a QUICK, quick, very out of order, summary of events)

Battery Park. Berlin Wall chunk.

Ellis Island. This man was mad at me for attempting to run off the boat to take a picture. Whoops.

Ellis Island. May remind you of Hitch (which we did watch, along with You've Got Mail, a NY must)

The roommates at the Statue of Liberty

Beautiful (COLD) day. The towers would have been there.
Underground in the Statue of Liberty museum. Let me please call attention to my outerwear. I would have died if Kristen didn't turn on her mother mode and MAKE me buy gloves, boots, and a hat. I seriously, seriously would've been miserable. Really.
This was the original torch, but I think it retained water or something so they decided to put out one that was easier to maintain.
Lady Liberty has no bad side.
Hilarious!!! Apparently, this is what happened to us.
Brooklyn Bridge. COLDEST night of my entire mortal existance.
Observing the night skyline. Deep in thought.
I know it's blurry, but look how happy we are!
At Kristen's apartment. Love that little place.
A mummy. Thank goodness we saved it from the craziness that is occurring in Egypt.
Kristen explained to me how this is art. Very impressive. Turns out Kristen can make museums bearable.
I think this should be Kristen's new FB profile picture. Don't you agree. Fascinating.
She taught me about this. Ask her if you need details.
Central Park on Sunday.

After church, we sat by the heater and looked at the view, while enjoying Ben and Jerry's (and Marge with her sorbet)
Went to church. Love it.
Planet Hollywood for supper after the Broadway show. Hilarious waiter.
THE Will Smith put his hands here. Sigh.
"In New York, New York, New York. Concrete jungles..."

This is a private place. The security guard will teach you that if you forget...
NYSE headquarters (I think)
This is where GW himself was inaugurated!!! We searched all over for it!
Street vendors. The boys and Marge LOVED it. I thought it was sub par. Don't tell.
Braden, Marge, Wade, Kristen, and I at the Bull.
Trinity Church/Ground Zero
Little Italy/China/some ethnic place. LOBSTERS!!! My favorite picture of K.
I'm not sure where this is but I love it.
Canal Street at a Starbucks. A very common place to attend during this trip.
Brooklyn Diner. Delish

Kristen made this AWESOME scavenger hunt for us taking us to many of the quick touristy places across the city. It was pretty spectacular and tons of fun. Wade and I were partners. It was a fun adventure!
Diamonds are a girls best friend :)
Cathedral

Rockefeller Center
Lego impersonation of the Rockefeller statue. Incredible! I was blown away.
NBA store
The Jazz stretch far across the country!
Radio City is in the far distance
Grand Central Station!

Cute little flower shop
Street Performers
What more do you need in life?

What an amazing trip! We were so fortunate to have jobs that allowed us to take a little hiatus! Where should we go next?

Extra Credit

2011-01-11T12:50:00.002-07:00

At the end of every term I give an extra credit assignment. This time, they had two options. We've been studying Latin America so they could bring a Latin American food to share with the recipe and an interesting fact OR interview someone who lived a Latin American country.

Most students brought flan, Mexican cookies, burritos, etc.

But not one. Chicken feet. YES. Chicken feet. I imagine my position is similar to that of a missionary. If someone prepares it for you, you must eat. Right?

Well he brought chicken feet. Do you understand? Chicken feet.

The students were freaking out. They still had toes (talons? what are they?). Someone said they found a beak. I'm not sure how much of a reputable source he is though...

Anyways, crazy day.

Oh, also, someone brought a Venezuelan shrimp dish. Who would've known, boys can cook.

(oh, and they ran out of chicken feet before they got to me. Whew.)

Good Times in the Classroom

2011-01-05T14:41:00.002-07:00

Quotable quotes. My 7th period class is HILARIOUS. I can't handle them.

When I was plugging up the projector this kid starts humming the chicken dance. The class prepared for me to rebuke him when he gets to the clapping part. Instead, three of us just clapped and then kept on going just like normal. All the kids had shifty eyes. It was funny.

Then, between student PowerPoint presentations I forgot to click a button. I asked someone to do it since I was in the back of the class grading their presentation. I must have muttered "I'll be lazy, I have heels on." After the presentation finished, I walked to the front of the class and someone muttered, something. I said, "Sorry, I can't understand you." My kid from Africa said, "She can't understand you, she's wearing heels." It was SO funny. We all died laughing. Then, to make things better, one of my other entertaining said, "Wait! Wait! I missed it! What'd he say?" The same kid replied, "Your face." Welcome to life as a 9th grade teacher... It is true. I am beginning to laugh at "your face" quotes.

Day 12: Music

2010-12-21T14:37:00.004-07:00

Can I just tell you that I don't love my Advisory class everyday. But today, they won me over. So we didn't raise enough money to go to the Sub-for-Santa Assembly (our auditorium isn't large enough to fit us all). We do, however, have a TV so we were able to watch the happenings from my classroom. Ok--so the sound was cutting in and out and people were positive. It made me so happy. One girl asked (every time the sound cut out) if she could go see if it was working on another teachers TV. I told her we would play charades instead. HILARIOUS.

Then,this group came to perform and we seriously couldn't hear a word. I started singing "Silent Night" (partially as a joke because I have a horrible voice) and a few chimed in, until, eventually, we sang the rest of the period. It was hilarious. I just love them.

Also, another plug for music--Ann, my friend who used to teach here until she decided to do bigger and better things with her life (AKA--be a mom) gave me and some friends tickets to her husbands concert. Their name is Eclipse and they are seriously INCREDIBLE. We talked and talked about it on our way home. Thank you so much Ann! I adore you (and miss you HORRIBLY!!)

Here is a clip from Eclipse (courtesy youtube.com):

Day 11: Teeth

2010-12-16T11:58:00.001-07:00

I got my braces off yesterday. Enough said.

Actually, enough not said. I requested a blue retainer with a Y in it. I'll show you all at a later time.

Day 10: Humor

2010-12-14T18:38:00.002-07:00

I love laughing. I love when others laugh. As a matter of fact, that's why my students have officially and completely won me over. I can't help but laugh at them. For instance, see the following example:

7th Period. My class room. Discussion on--actually, I can't even figure out how we got to this subject (reminds me of Ms. Massey in high school. We'd always get her off topic).

Me: (we were talking about a hybrid of instruments from Latin America that have been blended to create new instruments. One was made out of an armadillo. I told them that my brother, in Argentina, ate an armadillo and that he said it tasted like a blend of chicken and fish).
Student 1: Chicken and fish?! Gross!
Student 2: Dude. Chicken and fish? How can he tell the difference? They are both poultry.
Student 3-31ish: giggle. really? huh? what'd he say?
Me: (laughter) really?
Student 2: Why are you laughing? Aren't chicken and fish both poultry?
Student 4: Man! Poultry are birds.
Student 2: Yeah! So fish and chicken are......OHHHHhhhhh...Wait! They're both white
(discussion continues)
Me: I'm so glad I have you in my class. Just think of all the entertaining things you've said this year. (We then proceeded to go over all of his funny moments. Oh wow.)

Funny story #2
My cousin Marisa is staying with me. I had a White Elephant party tonight. She came up with the GREATEST idea in the world. Buy batteries. Take out the batteries. Put in a slip of paper that says, "batteries not included." So, today, the girl who got my gift didn't even laugh. So I thought maybe she didn't get it. Somehow we ended up showing the thing to the gift and I just seriously thought it was the funniest thing in the world and COULDN'T stop laughing. Oh man. Batteries not included. Battery wrapper. Get it?

Day 9: America

2010-12-14T07:22:00.003-07:00

I LOVE AMERICA!!!!

America is much more than a geographical fact. It is a political and moral fact - the first community in which men set out in principle to institutionalize freedom, responsible government, and human equality. ~Adlai Stevenson

I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him. ~Abraham Lincoln

Each man must for himself alone decide what is right and what is wrong, which course is patriotic and which isn't. You cannot shirk this and be a man. To decide against your conviction is to be an unqualified and excusable traitor, both to yourself and to your country, let men label you as they may. ~Mark Twain

Day 8: EFY

2010-12-10T12:11:00.002-07:00

I am SO grateful for the great friends I have made working at EFY over the past 5 years. You know who you are and I (most likely) adore you :) Here's a special shout out to my GREEN TEAM. Go Slytherin!!! I'm excited for our weekend reunion (and werewolf...naturally)!

Day 7: The Gym

2010-12-08T14:52:00.003-07:00

Well if you know me, you know that I claim to be athletic, yet I don't exercise. Well, I haven't in the last 5 years. Things have changed lately though. It all started with a little gained EFY weight (gotta love the blue BYU coordinator card), a "free" seven day pass at Golds, and about 13 annoying phone calls from Golds which began the moment after I typed in my phone number online. Did I mention how annoying they were? When asked if I join Gold's, I asked if that would mean no more obnoxious phone calls. They said "yes" and I signed for 39 months (Oh, when you join a gym you usually sign up for a month to see if you actually like it? That's weird. Ok, maybe I'm weird. But I got a great deal!).
Anyways, I LOVE going to the gym. I mean I'd love it more if it was in my house or if the weather wasn't cold in between my house and Gold's, but I enjoy it.

Yesterday, I learned what I always thought. I'm not a yoga girl. I also learned something new. Yoga makes you SORE!!!!!! I'm dying. Really. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet...
I am grateful for the gym (but not so much for Kristen and Billy who dragged me to yoga...).

Day 6: BYU

2010-12-06T12:32:00.000-07:00

Yet another reason why I LOVE BYU (and miss it dearly). Harry Potter on the Bell Tower. Good job, BYU.

Day 5: Prophet on the Earth

2010-12-06T12:24:00.004-07:00

Oh Holy Night

http://new.lds.org/general-conference?lang=eng&bcpid=605542470001&bctid=693347140001

LDS First Presidency stresses true meaning of Christmas

December 5th, 2010 @ 10:47pm

By Carole Mikita

SALT LAKE CITY -- More than 20,000 people filled the LDS Conference Center Sunday night in for the annual First Presidency Christmas Devotional.

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square performed traditional hymns and the three leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spoke, emphasizing the need to concentrate on the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of the Christ child.

"While it's true we can find materialism and anxiety at Christmas, it is also true that if we have eyes to see we can experience the powerful message of the birth of the Son of God and feel the hope and peace He brings to the world," Pres. Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency said.

"Let it be a time of forgetting self and finding time for others," said the President of the LDS Church, Thomas S. Monson. "Let it be time for discarding the meaningless and for stressing the true values. Let it be a time for peace."

Pres. Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency talked about service and the joy that accompanies helping others.

"You can give him the gift of doing for others what he would do for them. Many of you have already done that and felt his appreciation. It may have been visiting a lonely widower," Pres. Eyring said. "It may have been joining with others in a project to help those in need."

The First Presidency urged Church members during the next few weeks to draw closer to the Lord, their families and their fellow man.

Day 4: Finally!

2010-12-04T15:14:00.002-07:00

I finally found a table I liked and it was delivered this morning! My camera got wet in the Panama Canal so I can no longer take pictures, but it's counter height and black with one of those spinning things in the center :) I think it's much larger than this. Have a great weekend!

Day 3: De-Iced Windshield

2010-12-03T14:38:00.002-07:00

I LOVE when I wake up and my windshield has NO ice on it. (This is a special surprise in winter).

Gripe: Why don't 9th graders know how to multiply without a multiplication chart? America these days... I'm really annoyed.

Happy Friday!

Day 2: Sweet Notes

2010-12-02T14:49:00.003-07:00

This was on my note with Sprite and treats. Adorable.

To: Mrs. Anderson
thanx for always helPing me and caring about my grades you are a awsome teacher! my favorite thanx for all the candy if i added up all the candy you gave me it would make a meal! but it's good motivation :)

early merry Christmas

love,
ur favorite student in the whole school

(PS: I don't teach English. Just saying...)

Day 1: Gratitude

2010-12-01T07:19:00.002-07:00

Funny students.

Everyday, I eat oatmeal. I cook it and put it in a dixie cup so I can hold it and stay warm while I drive. Well, today, I didn't finish it and threw it away in the trash can inside my classroom door.

My students are going CRAZY when they walk in.

"Ms. Anderson, what you eatin' in he-uh?"
"It smells GOOOODDDD in here!"
"You makin' us pancakes?"

They're hilarious. I need to be more strict with my 3rd period, but I just start laughing too much when they say things. Oh wow.

I am grateful for those crazy little people.

Braces

2010-11-22T12:37:00.001-07:00

23 more days... That is all.

When they think no one's listening...

2010-11-11T07:13:00.002-07:00

Student 1: "I don't drink coffee, I'm Mormon."
Student 2: "I drink coffee and I'm Mormon."
Student 1: "Yeah, but you got hit by a car."
Student 2: "Oh, yeah..."
________________________________

more to come.

Don't try this at Work

2010-11-09T14:40:00.002-07:00

If you teach at a public school in a racially diverse part of America, you should probably NEVER say (even if in complete innocence) this:

When asked by a non-white student if he could copy some one's assignment, I responded, "This is America! We aren't lazy!"

You better believe I apologized up and down and seriously had no intentions of making it sound that way. Whew. I turned red. Embarrassing.

The Gym and Miners

2010-10-20T13:39:00.002-06:00

My new fetish (and not a super common one) is to attend the gym. Typically, I come home, take a nap, and then head to the gym (alone--thanks, Kristen). Last Tuesday, was probably one of the greatest trips there. You see--usually we have institute, but it was cancelled for Fall Break at the U. I discovered the most inspirational TV lineup in the world.

Imagine.

Chilean miners being rescued, one by one, AND The Biggest Loser.

Yep. Best show ever. Well, imagine me on the eliptical tears welling up in my eyes as I skip back and forth during the commercials. Usually, I set the timer for 30 minutes and then head out. BUT--the TV just kept getting better. I'd increase it a minute or two, then five more, then five more, and a few more, until I realized that not only had a single miner not been pulled out of that capsule yet, but also no one had been kicked off of The Biggest Loser. My timer hit an hour and I left thinking how excited I was to share the miner rescue story with my students.

The next day, I share the story with my 3rd period (including the story of Miss Anderson crying at the gym because I was so happy). At that point 17 miners had been rescued. The next period, I saved it for the end after all of our student presentations had been given. During the presentations, we kept hearing people "crunch, crunch, crunching" on the roof. We didn't think anything of it. It got loud and we could hear some laughter. We thought the custodians were up there. Then Spanish words were heard and we thought it was coming through the speakers. I turned off my microphone but, alas, no solution. All of a sudden, in the middle of the presenatation we heard LOUD clapping. All of a sudden, it hit! I forgot to pause the live feed of the rescue on my computer.

Blonde moment. You can bet I'll be hearing about that one from my students for a while. We had a GREAT laugh.

Dear Dad

2010-10-02T15:29:00.003-06:00

Dear dad,

I got my flu shot. Now, for your end of the bargain.
Medium please. You can even click here.

Love,
Your daughter,
Amber

SLC Apt: The Virtual Tour

2010-10-02T14:57:00.004-06:00

Welcome to my new home! Turns out, I have moved on with my life (which involves an unfurnished apartment!). This picture above basically summarizes my new apartment.

--I met my mom in St. George. She unloaded a car full of stuff from my parents home into my car. I was so excited to get my desk. However, we missed two minor details (probably my fault that I didn't explain better...hmmm...): screws, and the bar that acts as 2 of the 4 legs of the desk. So yes, here my desk--sits. It's lonely, lopsided, and, frankly, annoying.

This is a dresser that my roommates and I built (from a box...) and my prized picture of the Jefferson Memorial from DC's Eastern Market.
I bought/put this together last night. Pictured are some pictures of Panama and a hilarious picture of Sheldon and mom. hahaha. Wish there wasn't a glare.
This is my new, queen sized bed. Don't worry. It's currently a mattress and box spring set sitting on the floor. This was my first real purchase (besides my car and computer). It's SO comfortable. You're welcome to come spend the night at any time.
This is my jewelry armourer (sp? aka...jewelery box on stilts) that mom gave me for Christmas a few years a go and I wanted to leave it home so I wouldn't mess it up in college housing. Now--here it is!
This is another bookshelf we assembled :) The plate and shells are from Panama.
Here is the bathroom. Pretty exciting.
My roommates were very good to me and gave me the walk-in-closet. I need to stop buying clothing.

Piano for the cultured girls (AKA--not me) to play. I always beg Kristen to play the Pearl Harbor and Titanic songs. She complies :)
Margaret in the kitchen. She is very good in there. Hint, hint--boys. That means she can cook. Look at here cute new shirt under that cardigan... PS--she owns 9 cardigans she informed me yesterday.
We love our home. We also love our roommate Kristen. She has been home babysitting and we miss her. Since she's been gone, I've had a traumatic experience with my fire detector. It keeps beeping. I even changed the battery. No change. It is currently downstairs, under a pillow, in Kristen's room. Come home soon! (I'll put it outside...)

Now, if we could just find a kitchen table...

Parent Teacher Conferences

2010-09-29T17:57:00.002-06:00

I feel like my life has been sufficiently boring lately. Here are some quick updates (don't worry, I'm currently at Parent Teacher Conferences).

-My 7th period is seriously the best entertainment in the world. Hey are HILARIOUS. This one kid always has some new theory about how he's jinxed or just the craziest questions. I can't even explain how funny they are.

-I have a new assignment. I'm in charge of all the students in the custody of the state at our school. NOW--if there is anything in my life that I would tell you about, it's this...and I can't. I'll just tell you I am the go to girl when these students have to get drug tested, are cheating, or mouthing off (or when they come to me in tears because their backpack was stolen), or suspended, or whatever. Oh the stories. Let's just say... actually, I won't say. I really enjoy it though. It's rewarding and it's cool to see them turn their lives around (and not too cool to see them severely mess them up...).

-I'm in a new ward. It's a great ward and it's fun getting to know new people. It's definitely older. That is for sure. Our little apartment of teachers is the young group of the ward--which is kind of nice after coming from Provo. I miss my EFY friends, work friends, old roommates, and ward members, but it seem to be a necessary change.

-In other news, I've recently discovered a dent in my car (? hoping that was not one of my students in a fit of anger...), I got a Gold's Gym pass, I'm completely debt free, I'm completely EFY free, I'm NOT a first year teacher anymore (which means I have SO much more time than last year!!!), I'm still indoctrinating my students with a love for BYU and I've been spoiled by my parents and Kristen and have been able to go to both the home games.

I'm pretty sure those are the only updates on my entire mortal existence. Sheldon's seem to be more entertaining: Held up and robbed at gun point, possible rabies from a random dog, a man hanging him self that was a potential baptismal prospect. Sheldon's got it rough. Oh, Argentina. Eek.

Back to the parents...

How to Start a Day Out Right...

2010-08-25T14:45:00.000-06:00

We Pray for Children...

2010-08-25T12:22:00.001-06:00

A teacher sent this to all of us today:

We Pray for Children . . .
Ina J. Hughs

We pray for children
who put chocolate fingers everywhere,
Who like to be tickled,
Who stomp in puddles and ruin their new pants,
who sneak popsicles before supper,
who erase holes in math workbooks,
who can never find their shoes.

And we pray children
who stare at photographers from behind barbed wire,
who can't bound down the street in a new pair of sneakers,
who never counted potatoes,
who are born in places where we wouldn't be caught dead,
who never go to the circus, who live in an X-rated world.

We pray for children
who bring us sticky kisses and fistfuls of dandelions,
who sleep with the dog and bury goldfish,
who hug us in a hurry and forget their lunch money
who cover themselves with band-aids and sing off key,
who squeeze toothpaste all over the sink,
who slurp their soup.

And we pray for those
who never get dessert,
who have no safe blanket to drag behind,
who watch their parents watch them die,
who can't find any bread to steal,
who don't have any rooms to clean up,
whose pictures aren't on anybody's dresser,
whose monsters are real.

We pray for children
who spend all their allowance before Tuesday,
who throw tantrums in the grocery store and pick at their food,
who like ghost stories,
who shove dirty clothes under the bed, and never rinse out the tub,
who get visits from the tooth fairy,
who don't like to be kissed in front of the carpool,
who squirm in church and scream in the phone,
whose tears we sometimes laugh at and
whose smiles can make us cry.

And we pray for those
whose nightmares come in the daytime,
who will eat anything,
who have never seen a dentist,
who aren't spoiled by anybody,
who go to bed hungry and cry themselves to sleep,
who live and move, but have no being.

We pray for children
who want to be carried and for those who must,
for those we never give up on and
for those who don't get a second chance.
For those we smother . . . and
for those who will grab the hand of anybody kind enough to offer it.

Last night I caught myself praying for my students. They'll come tomorrow and will bring with them a lot of challenges, funny moments, and things I'll always remember. Ready or not, here they come!

Panama Day 3: Monday

2010-08-15T17:58:00.008-06:00

Monday we woke up to a torrential downpour. I'm not talking a Georgia, summer rain. I'm talking flash-flood, DOWNPOUR. So, our agenda that Sister Galke (who will soon be a multi-millionaire for selling world class tours of Panama to college students that Erik and Derrick send over) made us had to be edited a bit.

We moseyed around. The guys watched the World Cup in Spanish while I accidentally slept on the couch. The kids were all at school, so it was pretty quiet.

As anyone should do when it rains, we headed to the mall. There was this superstore called Dorian's. To compare it to somewhere in the US it's like a huge TJMAX...but bigger and wayyy cheaper.

The guys didn't love shopping as much as the girls and filled their time with these kinds of adventures.
Oh my gosh, Sister Galke introduced us to one of the best places in the world to eat in Panama. It's called Lenos. We got like a 4 course meal for 7 dollars. It was shishkabobs (how do you even spell that?) with all kinds of meat and good stuff. Mmmmm... I could live here. Really.

Mark got Popeyes. To each his own.

Eventually, the rain cleared and we began our adventure. Now, this is the life. The Galke's have a boat that they conveniently keep in their garage. We took it out for a spin on the Panama Canal. Yes--apparently you can do that.

Three Guys--Typical picture. They make me laugh.

Amber and Julia

Derrick feeding the monkeys

Braden and the monkeys

Julia and I and the Monkeys

Erik and the monkeys

Let's be honest, I think he's just posing...

Mark and the monkeys

Scary!

We got a little closer than the tour boat. They were jealous.

Ahhhhh!!!!!!!!!! Ladies and Gentleman. This is NOT zoomed in. He was SO mad.

When boating on the Panama Canal, you might pass this boat carrying, oh, apartment complexes...

Don't run over monkies?

This was Erik and Mark on our hunt for Monkey Island. Try to find it on the internet. You won't. That is because it's a local thing to do. There are all these islands on the Canal, but apparently, the monkeys gravitate to one. It's pretty awesome and we're so lucky that the Galke's knew about it and took us there!!! If you ever go, bananas are over rated. It's all about the marshmallows!!!

Amber and Julia

Swimming in the Canal--this was ended abruptly when the Canal Police "pulled us over." They stopped us and requested licenses. No one had theirs, except me, and I surely didn't want to hand it over. I've had way too many tickets. The Galke's told us they are corrupt and probably jsut wanted money. Anyways, they told us to leave and that they'd follow us. That basically turned into a high speed chase which was pretty scary. We didn't have money so they left us alone... It was an adrenaline rush.

Derrick wakeboarding

Don't worry--a huge wave hit and we all got soaked...including my camera. It's been a good 4 years. RIP Camera. The impressive thing is that the guys took every single picture on this whole trip. EVERY ONE. I was impressed.
That night we went to Mi Ranchita. A little different than the one in Provo--AKA Betos. If you look behind Mark and I, you see water. That's right. A wonderful, ocean front meal for about 8 dollars. Incredible. Seriously. I want to move here...or honeymoon here...or visit them all the time...or something.
Cuna Indian ladies. They embroider lot's of cool things. This is one of the indigenous groups to Panama.

The whole gang

Weird, this never happens

The LDS Panama Temple is about a mile from the Galke's home. It is beautiful!!!

THE GUYS Recap:

Hi Guys!

It's 12:50, you haven't even left Panama yet. We just got Curt home. Sorry we had to drop you off so early, but I don't think I could have dropped you off on time and picked up Curt at the same time. :)

Thanks for such a fabulous week! I keep telling Curt we need to take day trips and do things, we did for the first couple of months, this has rejuvenated us and inspired us to start playing more around Panama. I am so glad that you came and spent time with us, what a wonderful time. It turned out kind of crazy with Curt's surgery, the boys leaving the same morning and me leaving on Monday, but I would change a thing - INCREIBLE! (New word for Amber and Erik). I don't have Mark's e-mail or as a friend on FB so please pass this along to him.

PLEASE come visit us this summer up at the cabin.
LOVE YOU TONS! -- Alethea

Panama Trip

Road trip to Vegas
Amber Sleeping in the car
World Cup in Cedar City
Parking the Car at the Airport (E2)
Flying to Mexico City
Guy snoring on the plane to Mexico City
Pollo or Pasta… Do you have Ginger ale?
Mexico City Airport
Immigration
Asking 3 different people for directions and were still lost
Customs (Ambers Orange)
Kicked out of the Airport until 4
Let’s go outside… ok let’s go back in
The smell of Mexico City
Honeymooners
Hearts… Derrick lost
Sleeping in the Airport Strategies
Amber- Under the arm rests
Derrick- Let’s make a tent
Erik- just let me sleep
Mark- I can’t sleep

Total hours of sleep: 2 hours per person

Monday
Pouring rain Sleeping on the couch World cup Mall Dorian’s Lenos and Carbon Grill/Popeye’s
Missionaries Mark in soccer store being followed Boating Water Monkey Island Bananas
Angry Monkeys Tour Boat Canal Wakeboarding Big Wave Amber's Broken Camera Swimming Angry Police Police Escort Amber’s ID Boy’s Clean boat Derrick finds a newt
Boy’s bit by ants Dinner at Mi Ranchito 11 people/ 1 mini-van Speaking Spanish Kuna Ladies
Derrick’s license plate, Missouri Plate Amber likes fish? Cool city—Causeway Temple at Night
Sleeping with Julia Blogging Tea, toffee, and an orange

Panama: Day 2--Sunday

2010-08-15T12:32:00.004-06:00

Ok, please let me begin by saying...I finished a week of EFY at 10 AM and left for Vegas at 10:30 AM. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have made it and would've just thrown in the towel if my roommate, Kristen, didn't let me vent of my emotional breakdown while being exhausted and packing all in 2 minutes. She is seriously so good to me. With that said, The guys/Galke's made fun of me sleeping ALL the time. Isn't that what vacations are all about though?!

Erik and Derrick at the Panama Canal.
Sister Galke, Julia (my roommate for the week) and Me

I was probably pondering this:

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, naturally...)

"The history of the Panama Canal goes back almost to the earliest explorers of the Americas. The narrow land bridge between North and South America offers a unique opportunity to create a water passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. This potential was meeee by the earliest colonists of Central America, and schemes for such a canal were floated several times in the subsequent years.

By the late-1800s, technological advances and commercial pressure advanced to the point where construction started in earnest. An initial attempt by France to build a sea-level canal failed, but only after a great amount of excavation was carried out. This was of use to the U.S. effort, which finally completed the present Panama Canal in 1914. Along the way, the nation of Panama was created through its separation from Colombia in 1903.

Today, the canal continues to be not only a viable commercial venture, but also a vital link in world shipping."

Brother Galke, Derrick, and Erik
A boat going through the canal. We watched it from the entrance of the canal, watched the locks fill/empty, and watched it travel through. It's truly amazing...

The locks.

And here it is...our walk.

We have lots of fond memories from this Sunday walk: Frogs, Video Frogs, Cutter Ants, Fireflies, and The Jungle

We walked from the Galke's home to the US Embassy. That is where Brother Galke works. The coolest thing is that he rides a bike there!!!! It is a beautiful building up on a hill that provided easy access to the canal back when the US owned it.

That night we went back to the Galke's and celebrated Decker's birthday! (And Julia's...)
The Galke's were seriously SO generous and inviting. They made us feel just at home as early as day one. They are such a wonderful family. We are so grateful for them! On to day 3!

More memories of the day (from the guys):
Julia, Amber, and THE frog
Niche
Sunday Night
Amber sleeping on the couch

Here's a clip of the canal...

Panama: Day 1--Saturday/ Too Early Sunday

2010-07-21T16:23:00.003-06:00

Some friends and I decided to go on a summer vacation. The past two years, I have worked at EFY and the Galke's have session directed weeks with us. They kept trying and trying to get our teams to come visit them. Well, we planned on it, but it never really happened. I really wanted to go and eventually decided to just make it happen. Erik and Derrick (good friends from my old Glenwood ward) and my friend Mark (from my current ward) were spontaneous enough to come with me. Don't worry, I know girls too...but my friend Erin, who planned on coming, had to stay behind to work a week of EFY at the last moment.
A shout out to Sheldon, my brother, who is serving a mission in Argentina.I had never left the country before, so all of this seemed to be pretty foreign. Luckily, Erik and Mark served missions in Germany (which didn't really help with the language, but helped with other things) and Derrick knew Spanish from serving a LDS mission in Chile. I was well taken care of...though typically confused.
We had a LONG layover in Mexico City. They didn't open the gates until 4 AM so we walked, and walked, and walked. Eventually, we settled down and played Hearts until 5 AM. Erik seems to be feeling a little tired.
I learned a few things. I never want to go to Mexico again (all theories based on my hatred of two over-nighters in the Mexico City Airport). Also, if I ever design airport benches, I WILL NOT put arm rests. They poke into your back when trying to sleep.
I am grateful for these guys. They seriously helped me so much. I especially am thankful that they cared about me enough to claim me as a spouse every time we went through customs...

Finally, we made it to Panama and there waiting was Brother Galke. Oh, I just love him and his family. They are so generous and it was SO great to spend so much time with them.

Here are some memories from the first day (the guys recorded these...they're so good):
Road trip to Vegas
Amber Sleeping in the car
World Cup in Cedar City at Chili's
Parking the Car at the Airport (E2)
Flying to Mexico City
Guy snoring on the plane to Mexico City
Pollo or Pasta… Do you have Ginger ale?
Mexico City Airport
Immigration
Asking 3 different people for directions and were still lost
Customs (Amber's Orange)
Kicked out of the Airport until 4
Let’s go outside… ok let’s go back in
The smell of Mexico City
Honeymooners that Mark knew from BYU in the Airport
Hearts… Derrick lost
Sleeping in the Airport Strategies
Amber- Under the arm rests
Derrick- Let’s make a tent
Erik- just let me sleep
Mark- I can’t sleep

Total hours of sleep: 2 hours per person

Plane ride to Panama
Very little sleep on the plane
Eggs disgusting/ other stuff looked weird (ask Derrick)
Panama
It’s Sunday
Immigration (What is the Address where you will be staying?)
Customs (Derrick and Amber are Married???)
Meet Galke’s
Welcome basket on the bed

My First Year of Teaching

2010-06-08T09:50:00.004-06:00

Well, my first year of teaching has come to a close. It is really amazing to think about how close we've become. I've really come to love and trust them. I've enjoyed getting to know their personalities. I've laughed with them (a lot...) and cried with them. I'm sad to see most of them move up to the high school and I might or might not have given them all a mushy "I love you/pep talk" the last day of school. Some might think I'm just a crazy first year teacher--but I can't imagine not feeling this way after a group of them leave. They are good kids, with good hearts. I will truly miss them.
6th Period. This class sure had an "interesting" dynamic and it took me a while to get used to them. They were always entertaining--to say the least.

5th period. No clue where the other 20 students are. They were always trying to teach me to "jerk". haha--I just saw that a student recorded it. I'll insert it. Welcome to a day in Miss. Anderson's room...

I wish I could say this was the first time they showed me, but I honestly couldn't get it. When you see me disappear to my computer, I am looking up "We Like to Party" so I could teach them PB&J (an EFY line dance...). Haha--they are SO funny.

Well there you have it, my first year (except Advisory and 3rd period). I learned to not take pictures the last week of school, because no one shows up. There are my 250+ students that I will really miss!

On to EFY! (And Panama, next week!!!)