Vacation

Got back yesterday from a week long vacation with my family. We first stopped in St. Louis, MO. We went up into the Arch. We took a tram ride up and looked out the windows and took pics. The tram cars are very small, sit 5 people in them. You can see Busch Stadium, where the Cardinals play and the other way, can see where the Rams play. Nice views.

Came down the other side, and went through the museum on the westward expansion. After, we left the arch, we went on a tour to see how Budweiser beer is made. Got to see the Clydesdale horses. The tour is free, and afterwards, those who drink were able to get to free samples of beer, otherwise there was Pepsi products and pretzels to have. That was an interesting tour.

Drove down to Branson for the week. We saw three shows, Buck 'n Boards, Cat's Pajamas, and the Baldknobbers, and rode the Ducks. They were all good shows. Both my mom and my niece drove the Duck while we were in the lake. The Duck is an old vehicle from WWII that drives on the road and can go into the water. We also got duck whistles. We were in the pool basically every day. There were a couple of days I didn't go in.

On Friday, I went to the Hollywood Wax Museum and Toy Museum by myself. We left Saturday, and stopped in Mansfield, MO, so I could tour the Laura Ingalls Wilder home and museum. I saw where she wrote her books. Did you know, she didn't start writing her books til she was 65 years old? She was only 4 ft and 11 inches tall, and Almanzo was only 5 ft, 4 inches tall. They slept in separate beds. Not all of the pics are on the computer. It was hot all last week. I mean TX hot! That means I was able to feel the heat, that is how high the humidity was. It reached 100 degrees at times. It was an enjoyable week.

Still Don't Know....

I met my team partners this afternoon. We still do not know how the district wants 6th grade to be at the elementary level. They haven't said if we, the teachers, can decide, or if the district will give mandates about it. The kids start back three weeks from today (September 1). We need to make plans on what we are going to do. We have no textbooks yet. We hope to know soon.

I will be working in my room tomorrow afternoon. I will work on my bulletin boards. I can't do them all, until I know what subjects I will be teaching. I think we will switch in some way, but not too sure how. We will talk some more tomorrow about things.

On a different note, I had a CT Scan this morning. I started at the Cancer center, so they could access my port, just in case I needed the clot buster drug. I didn't need it at all. Good blood return. I haven't needed the clot buster drug since the last CT scan, back in April. They even took me early. I was scheduled for 10:40 and they took me about 10 and I was done by 10:30. That was good.

I turned in my paperwork for my application for graduation, which is in May from grad school. I also turned in my application for doing my Master's project in the district I teach in. I do hope they okay it. I won't know for about 6 weeks.

Going to Meet....

Next week, I get to meet my team partners for this coming school year. I will meet them Wednesday or Thursday afternoon. We have things to talk about. I am looking forward to it. The last time I taught 6th grade was a decade ago. I have subbed at that grade level since then.

This afternoon, I saw my cousin perform in Suessical: The Musical. It was a good show. At times, it was difficult to hear the actors speaking or singing. Our seats were right up front, in the front row to the left.

Blood Draw and Port Flush

This morning, I had an appointment to have blood drawn and my month port flush. (Next week, I am getting a CT Scan.) The nurse did not have orders for the blood draw in my file, and I left the orders I had, were left on the refrigerator at home. But she did it anyway with out the orders. When my port was accessed, the nurse got good blood return. No clot buster drug was needed. I waited for the blood counts to be done, and my white blood count had slightly dropped. It is at 4.0. The last time I saw the counts, I think my white blood count was at 4.3. 4.0 is still good. It is on the high end of the being low.

Science Network

This week, I am doing a week long science staff development that any of the teachers who teach science, in my district, could take. Yesterday, we went on a green print tour of Akron. Today, we were at the Akron Zoo. I went to the zoo Monday afternoon, cause Monday and yesterday were community days for where I live. I took pics both days. Today, I rode the carousel, and I rode the panda, since that is my favorite animal. The zoo has two kids of lemurs, sloth bears, tigers, lion, Humboldt penguins, flamingos, red panda, tortoises, jellyfish, to name some of the animals.

First Visit

This afternoon, I went over to my school to meet the principal and to see my classroom. I had a nice visit with the principal and received a tour of the school. I have subbed there before. My classroom is up on the third floor. Only fifth and sixth grade is on the third floor. The art room and the LRC is up there, as well. My room is smaller than last year's room. The back wall has computers, of which they do need to be check to see if they work. One will become mine, since I will be doing attendance and such on the computer every day, and need access to it at all times. I have lots of bulletin boards. I had very little wall space last year, so this year I have more to play with. There are 32 student desks in my room, but no teacher desk. Don't know yet, how many students I will have. There are no shelves and very little storage space. Will have to figure that out later.

Once I meet my team members will know if I will be self-contained or departmentalized. One of my co-workers, who teaches third grade, was my fourth grade teacher. That is so cool!!!! I plan to work in my room before I go on vacation and after I get back. I would like to have my room ready to go before August 30. That is the day teachers report back. I have asked my mom to help me work in my room, and she said that she will.

Good News

I got the mail this afternoon, and there was an envelope from the school district I am employed at. There were two sheets of paper in the envelope. I read them out of order. I am not getting laid off!!!!!!!!!! I have been placed at one of the elementary schools to teach 6th grade. I do not know if I will be self-contained or departmentalized. I will not know until I can talk and meet with the principal. One of my new co-workers was my 4th grade teacher. That is so cool. I have subbed before for her. I am excited for the new school year.

Celebrating my Birthday

Tomorrow is my 39th birthday. Tomorrow my sis and my niece are coming over to help me celebrate my birthday. I will see my brother Monday morning and get birthday hugs from him. Its been a few weeks since I've seen him. I got books from the library to read to him.

Last night, I was hoping to go to the Indians game, glad we didn't. Way too hot! and rain delays, but they ended up winning! Instead, sis, niece, and friends from church met me at Pizza Hut for supper, and then just down the road went bowling afterwards. We had some fun. I bowled a 98 in the first game, and a 66 in the second game. I had way too many gutter balls in the second game. In my lane, were 3 guys, and none of them bowled a turkey (3 strikes in a row). My sis had good frames, when my niece wasn't paying attention to her mom bowling. 16 people bowled in 4 lanes. We all bowled 2 games.

Here are a few pics.

Master's Project Proposal

I finished my proposal this afternoon! So good to have it done. I also created my power point for tomorrow's presentation. There is a couple parts of the methodology that is no complete and won't be until I find out which school(s) I will be doing my case study at. The teachers involved are basically on a volunteer basis.

A week ago yesterday, I was so overwhelmed with this whole thing. Looking for references frustrated me.

I still have to fill out the application to the school district, I teach in, to get permission to do this research study.

My action research study is on thematic units. Teacher views and perceptions on thematic units. How are thematic units designed and implemented in the classroom. I want to interview and observe two teachers who will be using thematic units this fall. I am hoping my two teachers will be a primary and an intermediate teacher.

Today's Interview

I will not know till next month, whether I will be laid off, or if I have a job. I got a letter last week, about an opening at one of the schools in my district, so I called saying I was qualified and was interested in interviewing for it. I got the call Tuesday afternoon for when and where the interview would be. The interview was at 8:45 am this morning. I had class at 10 am. I got to the Board of Ed building, went to where I was told to go and I waited and waited. They moved the place of the interview and nobody told me, until somebody came downstairs and told me so.

I interviewed for a 7th grade math/science position. I had to teach a lesson and also answered some some questions. I chose to teach my lesson on the water cycle. I found out that the shoes to be filled are very big. Basically, the new teacher would be writing the science curriculum and working very closely with the science department person and the 8th science teacher. God's will to be done. It went okay.

I have taught this grade, but still it would be out of my comfort zone. My mom complained at times of my hours this past school year. If I got the job, my hours would be worse. Will see what happens.

Silly Bandz and Science

I narrowed down my my research question for my Master's Project this evening. I will be looking for a couple of teachers who actually uses thematic units that integrate science in them. I am hoping to find both a primary and an intermediate teacher to do case studies on. I think using thematic units would be something to try at some point in my classroom.

My niece is really into Silly Bandz. I wouldn't be surprised if she had close to 200 of them. I actually have four that she has given me. Mine are all Shrek related. I haven't worn mine for a few days, but I have worn them. Rob Croak lives in Toledo, OH.

Master's Project

I have settled on the topic of my Master's Project. The topic is Science Integrating. The how and the why of integrating science into the other subjects. I have started my searching for articles for my literature review. All of my articles, books, newsletters, etc. have to have been written within the last 10 years, and I have to have at least 10 of them. My proposal and power point presentation is due by Wednesday, July 21. I will study one elementary school, actually their teachers. My data tools will be surveys, interviews, observations and my reflection journal. I will be doing this action research study this fall.

Summer Classes

I am already overwhelmed! That is the short version of my five week classes for grad school. I am taking Historical Geology-both lecture and lab and Action Research. Action Research prepares me for Master's Research. By July 21, I will have my proposal written and presented. This proposal will talk about my project that I will be doing this fall. I have lots of reading, writing, research to do. I will be spending lots of hours at the university library. As usual, no life!

I have a few ideas for my project, but not completely sure. I started looking for journal articles this afternoon, and became frustrated, because I was having a hard time finding journal articles. I found a few, but only 1 or 2 that are actually action research journal articles.

Historical Geology is spending time on sedimentary rocks, which have been reclassified, structures, fossils, and geological time periods. My first exam for that class is next Wednesday. Had a quiz today at the end of the lecture. Will see. We will go on a field trip to the Gorge next month, during lab.

Control

It is so hard to leave every aspect of your life in God's hands. Let Him control everything. When there is something you want (heart's desire), one becomes impatient, tries to move things forward on your own. I have this one area in my life that I give over to God, after awhile take it back. I go back and forth with this. I have been waiting for God's timing when it comes to dating. There are times where I am content at being single, and times when I am not. When I am not, that is when I go looking. I check out different sites looking, and nothing. I know God's timing is better, and that He has somebody out there for me. I get impatient, and become tired of being single. I do not want to settle, I want God's best for my life.

Communication

Relationships and communication are both two way streets. Each person has to work at it. In the past, I got tired of doing all of the work with certain friendships and have dropped them, quit trying to get in touch with them. Guess what? It didn't seem to phase them, because they sure haven't tried to get in touch with me. That does hurt. Why does it hurt? My love language is Words of Affirmation. I need to hear or read positive words about me. My second main love language is time, spending time with me is important to me, in knowing that I am important to that person.

I have a small number of very close friends. We all get busy with our lives. Most of them have kids, married or not, they are busy. Case in point, I would love to see my brother more than I do, but I am busy and I have to plan my visits with him. These friends, we might go a bit of time without talking and when we do, we pick right up where we left off. We might not see each other very often. (One lives in MI, and other two live in TX. One lives locally, and we still are lucky to see each other a couple of times a year.) But here is the thing, we both work at the friendship.

In all types of relationships, one person can not just do all of the work. It is then one sided, and hurt feelings will happen. Each person has to put effort forward if you want the friendship/relationship to last.

Met a Guy

For over 10 years, I have been going back and forth with God about looking or not looking for a guy. God knows the desires of my heart. Sometimes I think it is a sin to look and other times I don't. I give it up to God and wait, and then after sometime, I take it back. I get tired of waiting. I will be 39 next month, and I am still single. I think why I struggle with it is where I look...

For about a week, I was getting on this one certain online dating website. I got on Sunday afternoon, and started talking to this guy online then moved to the phone after my parents left for church. I met him that night. He lives about 30 minutes south of me. We saw Shrek, close to where I live. Spent Monday afternoon/evening together. Then he came to church last night to meet my sis/niece and friends. We have been talking and texting each other since Sunday. I like him and enjoy spending time with him. Going out with him tonight and tomorrow night. He is a Christian, that is number one for me.

I have been praying to God about this, since Sunday. I have been asking for his will. I have given it up to him. I have had this one fear for a number of years, is that I would settle and not wait for God's best, because I want to become a wife and a mother. God's timing is not my timing. I do like this guy and enjoy spending time with him, and look forward to seeing him again.

Even though I have been single for so long, I haven't felt God wanting me to stay single and never marry. That could be because of my heart's desire, and it is still strong and not letting up. God knows, I just have to trust him. That is so hard at times.

God Know What He is Doing

Left school about 10 so I hung out at the main library for about three hours. Went to my meeting and it lasted about 1 1/2 hours. I will get paid through August, have health insurance through August, and I have moved up two to 23 from the bottom of the least. Of the 84 that has been slated for layoffs, 46 are elementary. Of the fifty some that have retired, only eighteen are elementary.

Before the end of the month, I have to go to HR and make changes to my yellow form and add schools, both elementary and middle school for my choices to teach at. Even though, I am saying I prefer certain schools and certain grades, I am certified up to 8th grade, but this should make it more likely I will be placed in an opening next month.

If I do get laid off, I will be put on a recall list, and depending on where I am on that list, determines when I will get called. When I am called and it is for elementary position, I have to say yes, but if it is middle school, I can say no, but the next offer, I have no choice but to accept. If I do get put onto the recall list (laid off), then I have to reapply to sub and will be given first dibs at long-term sub jobs. Then I can also get COBRA for 18 months or when I get a job, whichever comes first.

I have asked God for a job in one of the grades I prefer and in a school I prefer. But, I am also saying, "Your will be done here on Earth, as it is in Heaven." God knows what he is doing. God also knows I need insurance, and can not afford to pay for it myself every month.

The Year is Finished

Today was the last day of school! Yesterday, my kids "graduated" from the fifth grade. They were told that they didn't have to show up today. If they did, then they would be put to work. We were hoping that none would show up. Guess what? Some showed up! I had 5, one teacher had 3, and the other one had 7 (I think). Four of mine worked. I had to clean off the top of my desk, unhook the keyboards and mice from the computers, put thee elmo and projector away. They we had to stack desks and chairs and move them out of the way. My one partner spent yesterday morning and today moving up to my room and put things away and moving furniture around.

We have a teachers meeting tomorrow morning and then I am officially done for the school year.

Am I Laid off or Not?

I got a letter from the Board of Ed today in the mail. Basically, it says that I am one of the teachers who could be laid off come August. After the staffing process is completed in early August, the actual number of reductions will be determined and board action will be taken then, according to the letter. Also according to the letter, included is the right to recall when a position becomes available for which I am certified, also priority assignments to long-term substitute positions in my area of certification if available. I have to go to a meeting at the Union's office this coming Friday at 2 pm.

My Fun Day

There are 3 days left of the school year. This morning, we did two Grammar Minutes, listened to a story about a ballerina, then my kids got ready for our egg drop. I gave my kids one week to find a container at home and materials to use in their container to protect their raw egg for when they let it fall from outside the window. Only 4 people brought something from home. The rest found stuff in the classroom to use. Both volunteer grandfathers and two students went outside to stand outside the window. We used 10 eggs. Only 3 eggs did not break, the rest did. They enjoyed that.

I brought in one of the giant cookies from Giant Eagle for them to eat, after the egg drop. Then we had our final store of the year. I did it differently. First I drew tickets from a bag, and if they had the same number as what I drew, then they could take anything from the table. Not everybody liked that, so after awhile, we kinda did an auction on some items. Then it was time for lunch.

After lunch, all of 5th grade met in the gym, and a guy from The Akron Aeros along with Orbit came to visit. Two of my kids were scared of Orbit. It was funny. I took a bunch of pictures. This guy was supposed to talk to the kids, but he didn't. He just explained what was in the folder they were going to get.

Afterwards, we went back to the room, and I got out the bag of feather boas for my kids to put on and have their picture taken. I thought they would enjoy it. A few did. Then I sent six kids to third grade to help them make their protective containers for their egg drop. The two girls who went became mad, afterwards, because they were helping third grade instead of being outside for Fun Friday. Besides, that room had AC, and it was hot outside. They do not always make sense.

Compliment

This morning, before school started, I was called down to the office. You know how that is, you never like being called to the office. One of my student's parents was waiting for me. They wanted to talk about their child's grade on a couple of reports. We talked and they gave me a compliment. They have a daughter in the class next door, and told me that they prefer how I grade, because I am a tough grader. I liked receiving that compliment.

Is This a But, God or a Yet, God?

The end of April I had a meeting with my principal, who told me that I should think about of going to younger grade, which I won't go younger than third grade. If I am back at my school this fall, I will start the year on an assistance plan. I've been on those before. He suggested I put in a transfer, so I did. Out of the 30+ elementary schools, I chose the top 21 schools that I like and numbered them. Who knows when I will hear about where I will be in the fall.

Last week, I got my contract for next year, signed it and sent it back. At school, we've been waiting for our numbers for next year, so people know if they want to put in an intraschool transfer or what. The district kept putting that off. The Board met on Monday and decided to lay off 84 teachers and other staff members. The union wasn't told in advance and the rest of us found out when we got Tuesday's paper. To top this off, the board is in the process of negotiating the new contract with the teacher's union.

My principal received our numbers yesterday and called a staff meeting after school today. My school is loosing 3 teachers, K, 2, 4. The K and 4 grade teachers have low seniority at the school and have to put in for a transfer, and have to also, while the second grade teacher can move to fifth for that opening.

A couple of weeks ago, my kids took the end of the year district reading test. Only 9 fifth grade students basically passed (over 70%), and 2/3 of those 9 are my kids. The other third is from my one partner's class, the other teacher, her highest score was like number 15 of the kids on the list. Isn't that cool or what?

Layoff notices have already been sent out. I have heard that over 50 have already decided to retire. I should know by end of month if I am getting laid off or not.

Scan Results

Saw my onc today after school. I was weighed, and I need to severely cut back on my pop intake, chocolate intake, and cut back on my portion sizes. He did not say anything about my weight, thankful for that.
I will have a full scan (abdomen, chest, and pelvis) in 3 months, August 11. I will have blood drawn a week before. I will have my port accessed by Infusion Services the morning of my CT scan, since I've been having problems with it. Blood was drawn this afternoon, and I do not have the results. My onc, doesn't think getting my port flushed every 2 weeks will be much of a big difference.
He wants scans in 3 months, because he is watching different lymph nodes. Some are bigger than others, and some have decreased in size, while others have grown. The difference is just by a few millimeters. I have had a stressful year, and that could've been playing havoc with my lymph nodes.

Today's CT Scan follow-up

I was looking at my papers in the envelope that had been on the fridge for today, and realized that I was scheduled to have my port flushed and maybe blood drawn this past Wednesday afternoon, and didn't know, so I didn't go. Oh, well. I was calling around this morning to find out if I was supposed to have blood drawn or not, turns out I didn't. I got to the hospital around 10. Around 10:30 I was given a bag of ice to ice the area of my port. I iced it for about 30 minutes and was called to have my port accessed around 11 am. Guess what? No blood return!! I was not expecting that. Nurse tried a different needle, still nothing. She even looked at both arms to see if she could find a vein, no way was she able to find a vein. She called and spoke of one of my nurses at the Cancer center. They were busy, but was able to take care of me. I was given the clot buster drug, and got back to the hospital around 1:30 and was done a bit before 2 pm.

I see my onc next Monday after school. The nurse from this morning, said to see about having my port flushed every 2 weeks. I will tell my onc that she tried to look for veins and couldn't find any. I even asked her to write a note to him. I'd rather go this mess, than try to find a vein and seeing if it would access or not.

My "ME" Weekend pictures

One of the above pics is one of the Wright's first planes. Air Force starts their history back with the history of planes and the Wright Brothers. A lot of the planes in the museum have nose "jobs", pictures painted on the nose of the plane.


I am standing in front of one of the plans parked in the parking lot.

A pic of the action.


I am holding a Steelers stop sign that was signed by three of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

My "ME" Weekend

This weekend, was my third "ME" weekend of the year. The first one, was back in February, when I went to TX for over Valentine's Day weekend. The second one was the first weekend of March, when I went on a Scrapbooking Retreat, and this weekend was the third one. Each weekend was something different.

Friday night, I ate supper at CiCi's Pizza, then I went over to Green High School to watch the Pittsburgh Steelers Footballers Basketball team play and beat the Summit County Sheriff Deputies in a game of basketball. This game raises money for different charities. One of those charities is the Soap Box Derby. The Pittsburgh Steelers who played Friday night was Harrison, and 5 players who were drafted last year in the 2009 draft. They were good. This is an annual event. During half-time, people got into line to get autographs. I did not get Harrison's autograph, but did get autographs of 3 new players. I bought a poster and a stop sign before the game to have something to be signed. I took over a 100 pics.

Saturday morning, I went to a women's conference with my mom and gma. There was brunch and the food was very good. I ate a lot. The message was from John 11. We got home after 12, and I was on the road before 1 pm, to head down to Miamisburg, which is south of Dayton. I went to Miamisburg Assembly of God last night to hear Carmen. The concert lasted about 90 minutes, where he sang about 10 songs and spoke from John 11. I heard two messages from John 11 on the same day. We were only able to take pics during the first song. I took some pics, but they seem dark, and is hard to see anything. The concert was good, and a good time of worship.

I stayed the night in Miamisburg, and attended Miami Valley Community Church this morning. One of the songs we sang was "Blessed be the Name of the Lord". Both last night and this morning, we sang, "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus". The sermon this morning was on Joseph, and it was good.

After church, I checked out of my hotel, and drove up to Wright Patterson Air Force Base to visit The Air Force Museum. That place is very cool! I really enjoyed it. I took over 100 pics. The planes were so big! I will post pics from the weekend in the next few days.

Pitching

Today's game started off so great, and then ended up loosing, because of our pitchers. They nibble at the plate. They seem to throw more balls than strikes. Walking batters will bite them in the butt. After six games, our record is 2-4, and the reason for that is the pitching. Yes, the bats, haven't always been awake, but the pitchers need to do better. We have too many young pitchers with not enough experience, we need more experienced pitchers.

I said it last year, and I am saying it again this year, Mark Shapiro needs to be fired!!!! Instead of being fired, he has been promoted as of the end of this season. What a mistake the Dolans have made in keeping Shapiro on as General Manager. Get us a new General Manager, and spend some money on some decent pitchers!!!!!!!!

Respect

I was told yesterday afternoon, that a few of my students I have lost their respect. I try to treat them all the same. I have a few who I have to constantly say their name, since they just do not make good choices. They do not follow directiosn very well, don't care about learning. One of those students, I can't stand any more. How do you get control/power/respect back, once you have lost it?

Starting tomorrow, the one tutor who comes into my room for reading and math will take two of my students and do reading and math with them til at least OAT or even past then. She is not here on Fridays, so they will probably be in the room with me on that day. They will still be with me for Science. Will see how that works. I have a few who any negative consequence doesn't faze them at all. They will learn pretty quickly come middle school in the fall.

Todd

Todd lived in the same group home as my brother. They have been housemates since Christmas 1991. Their relationship were like brothers. I was reading the newspaper Tuesday evening, and there in the obits was Todd's pic and his obit. I was shocked to see it. I had just seen my brother Saturday afternoon. Todd died on March 13.
Calling hours was Thursday evening and I went. Todd has a sister names Christina. Todd's funeral was yesterday. I didn't go. We talked about my brother going, not sure if he did or not.

Today's Port Check

I was scheduled to be at the hospital at 10:30 for registration. I got there a few minutes late, no big deal. I was walked back to where I was supposed to be. I was given a bag of ice, and it took longer to ice the are of my port, since the ice pack was different from what I normally used. Once I was ready, I walked over to the X-ray room and after lying down on the machine, my port was accessed. Guess what? The cute male nurse was able to get blood return! Can you believe that? Even though he got blood return, with out a problem, they still took the xray and saw a thin film of something in the port. So I was unhooked for the machine that pumped in some dye, and walked back to the observation bed in the other room. The drug was ordered from pharmacy. The drug was started around noon, via IV into my port.

I am still getting it flushed next week. I need my port in 6 weeks when I get another CT scan. Since the problems I have had, I figured it would be a good idea to get it flushed next week.

Afterwards, I went over to the cancer care center and saw a couple of my nurses.

Port Check

On Wednesday, February 24, I got my monthly port flush. I was scheduled for 4:30, after tutoring. My favorite nurse was there :). My port flushed, but did not return blood. She tried saline into the port, then even saline via an IV into the port, nada. I was given the clot buster drug, and after waiting for about an hour, just a tiny bit of blood returned, enough to say it flushed. She said that she was going to call my onc the next day and suggest I get my port checked to see if there was anything wrong with it.

I got the call on Tuesday afternoon, and she first said for today, and I said I couldn't since I already had 2 half days for subs this week. So it was scheduled for the 12th. I found out yesterday at lunch, that I had 2 days/half days of training next week for this one program. I emailed my principal and talked to him this morning. He said to see if I could get it changed, and I was able to get it changed til the 15th of this month. That means a sub for all day, and a sub for after school tutoring that day, as well. Come the 15th I will be able to post what the whole procedure entailed.

Still NED!

On the 18th of this month, I saw the Dermatologist, to have about a 2 cm area from where the mole was, the one that was removed last month, excised. I got the report yesterday afternoon, that it came back clean. Which means I am still NED!!! I am still getting another CT scan in April, though.

My right knee, actually the back part of it, has been sore and a bit of pain this past week. It is a tender area, and I have to bed my knee to walk and to move about. I can always sit down with my leg up. It is not possible. I am a teacher. I have sat and taught at different times this past week. I get the stitches removed Monday afternoon. Will know then, if I still have to keep a bandage over that area and for how long. I haven't worn my compression stocking since the 17th, and probably won't for a couple of more days after getting the stitches removed.

My New Hole

Actually, I'm not sure if it is a hole, but I did hear the derm say something about doing about 2 cm on Thursday. Thursday morning, I had minor surgery on the back of my right knee. Little more around the area of the removed mole was taken and sent to pathology to be tested for cancer cells. I received 6 stitches with at least a couple of them under the skin. There is a bandage over the area. I gt the stitches out on March 1. I try to keep my leg elevated when I can. I do have to be careful with my right leg.

My TX Visit

I had no problem leaving for TX last Thursday. I left snow for snow. Dallas area received a record breaking 12 inches of snow that day. My sub that I had requested didn't show up, and a different sub got to school about 10:30 on Thursday. Kids didn't' like him, I heard he was like a drill Sargent, which kept them in line.

I had fun with my friend's 15 month old. I took over a 150 pictures. The whole Dallas area had no school on Friday. So we met up with another friend for lunch on Friday at Jason's Deli. I took a bunch of books and a few cassettes down with me to sell back to Half-Price Books and only got $5 for the whole lot. For supper Friday night, we made tacos with ground turkey, and they were good. Saturday afternoon, went over to Stonebriar Mall and met up with our friend for some shopping. We parted ways about 4:30, then we went to the theatre to buy our tickets for "Valentine's Day". That was a pretty good movie. Afterwards had supper at Cristina's which is a Mexican restaurant.

Sunday morning was church at The Heights Baptist Church. Pastor Gary preached from Deuteronomy 6:4-6. It was a very good sermon. I had been looking forward to hearing him preach. I didn't yawn, and I usually yawn during the sermon. For lunch, we ate at Genghis Grill. I like that place. Spent about an hour at Family Christian Bookstore. I bought a movie starring John Schneider and we watched it that afternoon. Made spaghetti with ground turkey for supper.

Monday morning, went for a walk in the neighborhood, was cold. I was at the airport by 1 pm and had no problem getting home.

Saturday, my niece texted me to tell me that she and her mom were in an accident. My sis spent the weekend in the hospital and came home yesterday afternoon. My niece is fine, but my sis broke her left kneecap. She had surgery Sunday morning. They are both here at my parent's house.

Change with my next Derm appointment

During tutoring this afternoon, my phone went off, the vibrating bothered them. After tutoring, I checked my voice mail and it was my derm calling me. They had a cancellation, and now I am seeing her on Thursday, February 18 instead of April 12. She will excise a little more and do measurements around the area where the mole was removed. It will take about 30 minutes. I am going to take the day off from school, but be at school by the end of the day, for interim pick-up. I really need to talk to parents.

I have students who start an assignment in class, don't finish it, but them don't even take it home to finish. I am giving them zeros for that, and grades are much lower than they would otherwise be, because of the zeros.

I am leaving snow and going to snow. North TX is expecting 1-3 inches of snow tomorrow. Praying that I will have no problem flying down to Dallas tomorrow. I didn't leave school til about 5:35 today. I graded papers, redid my sub plans for tomorrow, and for next Tuesday, for just in case.

Getting Ready for TX

We had a snowstorm over the weekend, and in the midst of another one. Today's staff meeting was postponed for a week, because of the weather. I still didn't leave school til about 5 pm. I had to get my valentine's gifts for my kids ready and passed out to their box/bag. My sub lesson plan and papers are ready for tomorrow or Thursday depending on whether we have school tomorrow. I also have plans ready for Tuesday, if I have a problem getting home on Monday from TX. This past Saturday, received about 14 inches of snow or slightly more, and did not get driveway plowed til after 11 am. Will see about tomorrow. I am praying that I will have no problem leaving on Thursday. I still have to pack my suitcase for Thursday.

Deer

I wasn't far from home early this morning. I was driving on Ridgewood Rd when I see deer crossing the road and one hit my car. I have two dents, and the biggest one is on my driver's side door. Will be getting it fixed next week. I am fine.

Why?

Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? If my cancer is back, how does it prosper me, not harm me? God says in Jeremiah 29:11, "I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you." Why now? I am teaching full-time. I Thessalonians 5:18 tells us to be thankful for everything. I am not thankful! Some day I will be, not now. Yes, I have still told God thank you. I don't' understand. I didn't understand 3 years ago, and I don't now either. True, I told God last year, that I would rather move up a stage than my sissy be above stage 1. She is only stage 1, and now I might be moving up. I won't know until May if my cancer is back or not. I've been crying and I have been questioning God. I know God has a plan, and I have to trust Him. It is going to be very hard to do. I do not like this at all.

Derm Report: Is it Back?

I was getting ready to leave school to go to my dentist appointment. I had two fillings replaced this afternoon. I checked my phone, and there were two voicemail messages. One was my dad, no big deal, and the other was my derm. I called them back, they wanted to tell me the report about my mole that was removed almost two weeks ago. She said there was no melanoma, but there were some A Typical cells. I now have an appointment for April 12 at 11:45 am for surgery, where she will numb that area of my leg, do an excise of the mole area. Stitches will be used. They will then send that info to the lab to be checked. Please pray! I told the nurse to tell my derm that a lymph node had shown up on teh CT scan, and she will tell her.

Science Fair Judging

This morning, I judged Science Fair projects for the district I teach in. Middle School was kept separate from high school. I arrived and signed in then I got to choose which level and branch of science I wanted to judge. You could not judge your own students. I didn't have any there. I chose middle school chemistry. Of the six I judged, only one was really chemistry in topic. The students were given 15 minutes to do an oral presentation and then my judging partner and I were able to ask questions. Afterwards, we conferred and decided on points for the scoring. We had to write comments on the back, and we made sure we wrote at least one positive comment. I left after eating lunch. I saw two people that I had met last year through grad school. After I left, I went to the library and then to see my brother, since today is his 33rd birthday.

Stress!

Teh behavior of my students haven't been very good. I sent home a letter today, asking parents to go over the rules nad consequences with their child and to sign the letter and return it. I have had 2 P/T conferences and would like at least one more. Certain students' behaviors are making it difficult to teach. One conference I had this week, has led to no changes in this child. I hear a lot of "this is boring", attitude and disrespect. I am not sleeping well.

No clot buster drug was needed yesterday in flushing my port. I am not feeling well, and debating or not to call off sick tomorrow. Saturday, I am planning on judging science fair projects, and I have to be there by 7:30, no sleeping in. Then I have to go and see my brother, since his birthday is on Saturday.

Next Scan

I called my Onc this morning to talk to the scheduler, and my CT scan has been scheduled for Monday, April 26. That is the week after OAT testing. I told my principal and asked the dates that we are testing and he told me.

CT Results

After I got back from the short field trip, I called my onc's office to find out the results of the CT scan I had a week ago. I did not find out til about 3:30 the results. Everything looks good,except for the lymph nodes in my pelvic area. I will have another CT scan in 3 months to see if there is any change in those lymph nodes. I am waiting to hear back from my onc's office to find out when it will be.

Physical

I had my physical this afternoon by my doctor. This is the not fun doctor's appointment. My left ear was almost blocked due to all of the wax. I was told to quit eating potatoes, pasta, and bread. That is going to be very hard to do. I will not completely stop eating those, I will cut way back on them. I like pasta and pizza. If I do pasta or bread at lunch, then try not to eat any of that for supper. I will just have to play and figure it out. I also need to cut back on my salt intake as well. I don;t use as much salt as my dad, though. This is all to help in trying to loose weight. I also need to increase my movement activity.

Saw the Dermatologist

This afternoon, was my 6 month checkup with my dermatalogist. She does a complete skin check on my body. Last spring, a mole popped up on the inside of my right knee. I didn't say anything to her in July. I have checked it periodically since it has popped up. I said something to her today, and she took it off, just to play it safe. She doesn't think it is anything, but she will send it out to be checked. It was just a small mole. I will get the results in a couple of weeks.

Today's CT Scan

I started the preparation for today's CT scan last night at 10:40 pm, by drinking the first third of the yucky stuff. I took a 30 minute nap before then, since I was tired and ready to go to bed.
I was over at the hospital about 10:30, since I was scheduled at 10:40 for my CT scan. I was called around 11 am to go back. I was given a bag of ice to ice the area on my skin where my port is located. The nurse got the needle in, and my port flushed, but it would not return any blood. I called my mom, since she was upstairs visiting a friend. The nurse called over to the cancer center, and talked to one of my nurses. They called the doctor to order a dose of the clot buster. Mom and I walked over to the cancer center, and had to wait about 10 minutes before going back to a chair. I was given the sterilized needle, for my nurse to use, when she accessed my port. I was given the dose of the clot buster about 12:15 pm. I have had quite a bit of water, by that time. 30 minutes later, my nurse was able to get blood to return, and gave me a dose of heparin. I called my mom, since she left to have lunch with my dad, and I walked back over to radiology at the hospital. I got back just before 1 pm, and was done by 1:30 with my CT scan. I left the hospital 3 hours after I arrived. I will call my onc in about a week for the results of the scan.
I am not supposed to see my onc until May, but that might change after he gets the report of my port not returning blood and having to receive a dose of the clot buster. I have a feeling that my port will be coming out sometime this year, which means the nurses will get to have fun, trying to access my veins for blood and CT scans. That I will not be looking forward to.

Master Contents of Each Book of the Bible

OLD TESTAMENT
Pentateuch
In Genesis the world was made.
In Exodus the march was told;
Leviticus contains the law.
In Numbers are the tribes enrolled;
In Deuteronomy again
We're urged to keep God's law alone.
And these five books of Moses make
The oldest writing that are known.
Historical Books
Brave Joshua to Canaan leads.
In Judges oft the Jews rebel;
We read of David's name in Ruth.
And First and Second Samuel;
In First and Second Kings we read
How bad the Hebrew state became;
In First and Second Chronicles,
Another history of the same.
In Ezra captive Jews return.
While Nehemiah builds the wall;
Queen Esther saves her race from death.
These books "Historical" we call.
Poetical Books

In Job we read of patient faith.
In Psalms are David's songs of praise;
The Proverbs are to make us wise;
Ecclesiastes next portrays
How vain fleeting earthly pleasures are;
The Song of Solomon is all
About the Love of God, and these
Five books "Poetical" we call.
Prophetical Books
Isaiah tells of Christ to come,
While Jeremiah tells of woe.
And in his Lamentations mourns
The Holy City's overthrow.
Ezekiel speaks of mysteries.
While Daniel foretells kings of old;
Hosea calls mean to repent;
In Joel, judgements are foretold.
Amos tells of wrath, and Edom
Obadiah is sent to warn.
While Jonah shows how Christ should rise.
And Micah where He should be born;
In Nahum, Nineveh is seen
In Habakkuk, Chaldea's guild;
Zephaniah, Judah's sins.
Haggai, the temple's built.
Zechariah tells of Christ.
An Malachi of John, his signs.
The Prophets number seventeen.
And all the books are thirty-nine.

NEW TESTAMENT
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
Tell of Christ, His life they trace;
Acts shows the Holy Spirit's work;
And Romans how we're saved by grace.
Corinthians instructs the church.
Galatians shows God's grace alone;
Ephesians, how we are "in Christ,"
Philippians, Christ's joys made known.
Colossians portrays Christ exalted.
And Thessalonians tells the end.
In Timothy and Titus both
Are rules for pastors to attend.
Philemon pictures charity.
Thirteen Epistles, penned by Paul.
The Jewish law prefigured Christ;
And Hebrews clearly shows it all.
James shows that faith by works must live.
And Peter urges steadfastness,
While John exhorts to Christian love;
And those who live it, God will bless.
Jude shows the end of evil men,
While Revelation tells of heaven.
These end the whole New Testament,
In all, they number twenty-seven.

The above is from What the Bible is all about Bible Handbook. It is written by Dr. Henrietta C. Mears.

More Port Fun

In October, had problems getting my port to flush, had to have one dose of a clot buster, just so my port would flush. I had to fast about 12 hours between last night and this morning, because of have blood drawn this morning. I needed labs done for two reasons: next CT scan is January 15, and my physical is 5 days after that on the 20th. I ended up 20 minutes late, but I did call them to them I was running late, because I had to go back home to get both of my doctor's orders for my labs.

My favorite nurse was there, of which I knew she would be, and she forgot to show me a pic of her baby, as you continue to read, you will understand why, she forgot. Another one I like was there as well, and they both were my nurses this morning. My glove of ice was ready for me, when I was walked to the back. I iced my port, and was ready to be stuck by the needle. My nurse put in the needle, and got nothing. She took it out, and got a new one. She still got nothing. My port would not flush. The other nurse came over, jiggled the needle, and after giving me some heparin was able to get my port to flush, but got no blood return. So they put in an order for the clot buster. I was given the clot buster about 10:15. 30 minutes later, one came over, tried, and nada, no blood return. She waited about another 30 minutes, and they tried again, still nada. It is now between 11:15 and 11:30, I am getting hungry. I've had nothing to eat or drink since about 8 pm last night. I am given another dose of the clot buster. I get up use the RR and walk down to the middle nurses station to get a cup of ice water to drink. Come back and mess with the tv. A little after twelve, one of the nurses tries again and voila! she gets some blood to return. Draw the vials of blood that is needed, and gets some more heparin to flush my port with.

I leave around 12:30, go pick up a friend to go out to lunch, after lunch meet up with my best friend and her kids at McD's for a visit. Left there about 4:30 to head for home. I get home after 5 pm, check in over at the Cancer care place to get a report on my labs. Wonderful news, all of my counts are normal. That is good. Back in July, my white blood count finally hit normal of 4.0. Today, my white blood count is at 4.1. That is a low normal, but is still normal. Will take awhile for counts to get back up to where they were before I ever started Interferon.

Merry Christmas

I had a very enjoyable Christmas. I got a new card game called, Monopoly Deal, for my birthday, back in July. Finally learned how to play it yesterday. Played a couple of hands yesterday, and probably played close to 20 hands today. I actually won a few games this evening. Dad and played for almost 3 hours this evening.

Played a joke on The Entertainment yesterday. She got an ice cream cake for my her bday the day before, but we didn't eat it. So after supper yesterday, I texted her saying that we ate her ice cream cake and it was very good. She believed me and her mom kept saying that we were playing a joke on her. We thought it was funny. This morning, for her last gift, she had to go on a scavenger hunt to find her gift. We had to give her some hints in helping her to figure out the clues. She enjoyed doing the scavenger hunt. She had asked if she had to find one of her gifts. We never really answered that question.

Watched the movie "Faith Like Potatoes" this afternoon. Was pretty good, but hard at times to understand a couple of the characters, due to their accent.

Saw my brother this morning. He had to put on one of his new pajama tops and then two other tshirts over that. I took pics.

The Reason for the Season

Christmas and Easter are my two favorite holidays. Christmas is when the first gift was given to us, in the form of baby Jesus. God first gave to us, and I love to give to others. My love language is words, but I show my love by giving to others.

I love Easter, because that is when we celebrate what Christ did for us on the cross, then was buried in a tomb, and three days later, rose again from the grave. One of my favorite worship songs is "Here am I to Worship". We sang part of that song this morning in church. We even sang one of my favorite Christmas hyms, "Angels We Have Heard on High".

I hope all who read this, has a wonderful Christmas this year, and I hope you remember why we even get to celebrate Christmas.

Self-Contained Again

Christmas Break has started, and I am so ready for it! I am going to enjoy my two wees away from school, so my batteries can recharge. When I go back on January 4, there will be two weeks left of the grading period and semester. Starting Tuesday, January 19, I will be self-contained again. I will be teaching all the subjects to my students. It did not work to switch. We will talk and try to plan a bit. There is a lot of work to be done to be ready for the OAT the third week of April!!!!!

I Played a Joke

I played a joke on one of my students today. I thought it was funny. My student was a good sport. Yesterday, at lunch ( I ate with a few of the teachers 3 days this week), one of the teachers found a toy grasshopper in her salad. I thought it was real. It was meant for one of my grade-level partner, but it didn't get into her salad. I took the grasshopper from her this morning, and stuck the toy grasshopper, just inside my student's desk this morning, and waited for her to see it. She saw it during reading, and I laughed. I got a good reaction out of my student. I knew I would, because she had a fit when there was a bee in the classroom, back in September.

My Day

I had a student withdrawal yesterday to move to another district. He is actually moving.
I had a sub this afternoon, for training on a certain program we got through a grant. My kids will start using it tomorrow. I have noticed that some kids will rush and not do their best so they can get on the computer. I had a break around the time my kids were at the RR after lunch/recess. I go use the RR myself, come out and two girls start hanging off of me begging me to come back to class. I was laughing it was funny. None of our subs had an easy time teaching Distributive property to the kids. So their test will now be on Monday, so we can teach it tomorrow. I made up a new worksheet this afternoon for them to do tomorrow. You know, they will treat me the same way tomorrow, not very nicely.
After school, meet my sis and mom to check out the decorated trees at John S. Knight Center. Get to class, to see a list of chapters to read for the final that is in two weeks and two papers that are due in two weeks. I also have an article critique due on the 2nd. You should guess what I will be doing this weekend. Writing 3 papers. Not fun at all!

4 month Onc checkup

I saw my onc this afternoon. Guess what? I don't have to see him again for another 6 months! Yeah! I was weighed and I only gained 5 pounds in the past 4 months. That is pretty good. I will try to loose weight again. My blood pressure was good, but I think the top number was slightly high. Blood work will be done at the end of December. Getting a CT scan on January 15.
I forgot to say something and my onc forgot about having to get my port flushed. I went next door to get my port flushing scheduled through April. Then I went to the back to see which of my nurses were working. My favorite was there. She went ahead and flushed my port this afternoon, instead of me having to show up on Wednesday for it to be flushed. I so had missed seeing my favorite nurse.

Today, was our Halloween costume parade around the playground and party in the classroom. I wore this headband all afternoon. Mom and Gma came to watch the parade and I introduced my kids to them.

Problems with my Port

This past Tuesday, was my monthly port flushing. The nurse was able to stick the needle into the port, but the port would not send back any blood. Another nurse, kinda took the needle out, and put it back in, moved it around, but no blood would do anything. One of the nurses put in a dose of a clot buster. Had to sit and wait about 20-30 minutes for it take affect. After than, they were able to get blood, then were able to flush it. Whenever my port is flushed, I am given a dose of heperin. This was the first time, this has happened with my port.

Changes

We are making some changes in my grade at school, starting tomorrow. We will be changing for 3 subjects, writing, science and social studies. Each one of those will be taught for 30 minutes just about every day. We are doing this so we can do flexible grouping in reading and math. By doing flexible grouping, we are hoping the students will learn the concepts and will help in the test scores come spring.

We will now, also all be using the same reward system, tickets. The students will be able to earn and loose tickets.

Happy Anniversary

Today is my Second Nedaversary! I am two years NED today! Two years cancer free!

Respect, Why so Hard to Get?

The phrase I say the most is "You are being disrespectful", goes in ear and out the other. It literally doesn't phase them that they are being disrespectful. I sure can use some prayer in this issue. I am trying to think what can I do to help them to choose to be respectful. They think it is my fault that they are disrespectful, and I say it is not, that they choose to be disrespectful. Between that an missing work are my two main problem. Other than, I am enjoying being back to my favorite grade.

My Room

8 days into the school year. I was suppose to have 17 kiddos on the first day of school. 14 showed up. The next day, one moved down to 4th grade, another one withdrew. That left me with 12. This week, I received a new student, moved me up to 13 students. The next day, one student switched to a different classroom (trying to nip bad behavior choices in the bud, and separating a couple of students.) If you are following along with the math, that puts me back down to 12 students. I have 5 girls and 7 boys. The school has more boys than girls.

I am doing pretty good in teaching all the subjects during the day. Following along the benchmarks/standards are so confusing, TX was way better to understand and follow along. My 3 biggest complaints are as follows: Disrespect towards me, NO name papers, and Missing work. I am working on it. Starting next week, I am taking points off for being late and for turning in a NO Name paper.

I am thankful to my Heavenly Father for the job. I am in the grade I love. The challenge is good for me. Still doing grad school this semester. I am thinking of taking Spring off for grad school, because of preparing my kiddos for 3 state tests.

First Day

This pic was taken on the first day of school.

I GOT A JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As you can see from the title of my post, my awesome news. I got a job. The phone rang this afternoon not too much past 3:15 pm, with a call from HR from one of the districts I have subbed in. I was offered a job teaching fifth grade. I accepted the job. I was told to report tomorrow. Students start on Wednesday. I will find out tomorrow if I will be self-contained or departmentalized.

Besides working full-time, I will be taking two grad school classes this fall, and finishing up the one I started earlier this month. I will be one very busy bee.

God...It's Hard

God...It's Hard
by, Judy Farrar (goes to my parent's church)

God, it's hard to hear You
Because i feel so bad
My circumstances make me
Feel lonely, lost and sad

Is my situation hopeless?
Can I find the way to go?
I'm tired and so discouraged
As You seem to move so slow

I feel as though I'm groping
In a dark and barren land
I'm reaching out for answers
I need comfort from Your hand.

Help me Lord to focus
On the God who loves me so
To trust You for deliverance
Lead me Lord where I should go.

It was then I herd the Saviour
Speaking to my wounded soul
When You give me broken pieces
I can work to make you whole.

Literacy Intervention Interview

Last week, I got a letter in the mail from one of the districts I sub in, explaining they still had openings for Literacy Intervention teachers in grades K-2. This is a two year position (from the stimulus $). I typed up my letter of interest that evening, and had my mom drop it off the next day. I received a phone call this past Tuesday, saying they wanted to schedule an interview.

I had the interview yesterday morning. The interviews were only 15 minutes long, due to all they had scheduled. I also had to answer a writing prompt before my interview. I was not expecting that. Just about what I said in my essay I said in my interview. School starts next week, so will see if I get the job or not. I haven't heard anything today about it.

Monday, of this week, I added 3 school districts to where I work as a sub. That puts me up to 7 school districts, and they are in two different counties. Between subbing and grad school I will be busy.

Trap Time

A little over a week ago, I was in my room and all of a sudden smelled a skunk. (The skunk was outside my bedroom window, and my windows were opened.) I knew the skunk had to have sprayed, and I thought maybe the skunk was in the trap. The next morning, it didn't look like anything was in the trap. (I can see the trap from my bedroom window.) This past Saturday night, I heard a sound, that sounded like the trap door closed. This morning, I looked out the window, and behold, what did I see in the trap?


That makes two skunks this year that we have caught, and it ties last year's number of skunks. Two skunks in both 2008 and 2009. There was no food in the trap either. I wonder how long it will stay in the trap until it goes bye-bye.

Hot Dog Solar Cooker

Yesterday, I started my new class for grad school, Operation Physics. It is all day, M-TH of this week and M-F all of next week and three Saturdays this fall. We do a different unit everyday. Today's topic was heat and temperature. I had to take in a pringles can. The Pringles can was turned into a solar cooker, and we cooked hotdogs for lunch. The temp outside wasn't very hot, so the hotdogs didn't get very hot. We called the shrubs covered with our hotdog cookers, hotdog trees.

The Indians Have Made Me So Mad!!!!!!

I could just scream, I am disgusted with the GM and Manager of the Indians. They so trying to destroy the team!!! I wish they would be traded or let go. At one time, the Indians actually did trade their manger. They need to do it again.

They have let go or traded too many guys this year. One of the guys they signed in the off season has been traded. He was traded a month ago. Last week, Bentacourt was traded to the Rockies. The other day, Garko was traded to the Giants. This afternoon both Lee and Fransico were traded to the Phillies. The worse part is, we just get prospects, that's it. One guy we got for DeRosa did join our bullpen, but wasn't very good at first, not sure how he is now.

Two years in a row, we have traded our Ace, the current Cy Young winner. Yes, part of the problems this year, have been the players, but the blame needs to rest on the GM and the Manager. They are destroying the team. They do not care if we try to win or not. Don't get me wrong, there are problems in their playing, but they have been able to pull it together and win. They actually won 5 in a row this past weekend, and two series in a row. Cliff threw two complete games back to back this month.

We have so many prospects, but they are not all ready to play in big leagues, but when they do, sometimes can't even play or adjust. Marte was brought back up last night. He hasn't been able to play. Supposedly, he had made some adjustments and improved this year in Columbus. We'll see if he really has.

3 Month Onc Visit

I saw my Onc today. Since April, I had gained 9 pounds and was a bit upset about that because I was actually trying to loose the weight by going to the Rec over at Akron U the past 5 weeks. Both, the nursing student and my onc said it is probably muscle, since muscle weighs more than fat does. So, the weight gain is okay. I am taking a few weeks off from using the rec, and will get back to it when the fall semester starts the week of August 24 at Akron U. Since I will have a class that meets twice a week in the evening, I will be able to work out after school and before my class.

Blood was drawn before my port was flushed this morning. My white blood count is finally in the normal range!!!!!! I am thankful for that. It has been at 3700 for a few months, and is now at 4100, which is just normal. It is still slightly low, but finally working its way back up.

I now have to start getting mammograms yearly,so I am scheduled for one in September. I do not have to go back to see my onc until November. That is four months between visits. Next visit, will schedule my next CT scan, only have it get that once a year, since mine have been good. Come next summer, I will be graduating to 6 months between visits. Nothing was mentioned today about removing my port. I didn't say anything. My onc will probably say something after my next CT scan. Until then, will get it flushed every 4-6 weeks.

In summary, all good news.

Your Heavenly Father Knows You

"Therefor do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him." Matthew 6:8

Even before we call on Him, the Father has already begun to provide all that we need (Isaiah 65:24). Jesus wanted His disciples to learn how intimately God knew and loved each of them. That is why He told them to pray. He assured them that even before they prayed, God knew all about their situation.

Prayer is not designed for us to inform God of our needs for He already knows them. Why, then, should we pray? Prayer enables us to experience God more intimately. The more a child experiences the loving provision of a parent, the more convinced he becomes of his parent's unrelenting love. Often a parent will anticipate a child's need before the child recognizes it and be prepared in advance to provide for that need. Our heavenly Father knows exactly what we will face today and next week. He is eager for us to experience Him as He provides for us.

To our surprise, we often discover that God knows far better than we do what is best fro us. At times we assume that we know what would benefit us. We can even be foolish enough to assume that we don't required anything of God. Yet God wants us to go to Him in our need (Matthew 7:7). He is ready to show His strength through our weakness. Our heavenly Father knows exactly what is best for us, and He is prepared to provide for every need, if we will but ask (Philippians 4:13).

The above is today's devotion from Experiencing God Day-By-Day. It is written by Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby. It is both a devotional and journal. I have been using this book since October 2000.

Happy Birthday to Me

Today is my birthday! I am having a cookout later this afternoon to celebrate my birthday. I am not calling it a birthday party, but that is what it actually is. I ordered an ice cream cake from DQ, which I will got in a couple of hours to pick up. I invited family, Real Life, people from my parent's church and my nurses. Not sure how many people will be here. On the dining room table are three wrapped presents, and one is wrapped in paper with my name on it. The bow also has my name on it. Here is a pic of it.



I had never seen wrapping paper with my name on it. I do not think my mom knew I took a pic of my wrapped presents. A lot of things that sell names on them, don't always do Christina. Instead they will do Christine, or Chrissy, or Christy, but sometimes will do Christina.

Went and saw my brother this morning. I read to him, like I always do.

I Passed!!!!!!!!!!!

On Saturday, June 13, I took the Praxis II Middle Grades Science Test. It was so hard!!!!!! I went to their website this morning, I logged in to check my score. I passed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I needed a 144 to pass the test and my score was 157. That endorsement is now on my OH Teaching certificate.

Daily Walk

"Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise." Ephesians 5:15

As you walk with the Lord each day, you will face many crossroads. God will open the way before you, but He will not mandate your steps. He's given you a free will with which to choose the steps you take. He does admonish you to choose wisely, tough. The safest way to do that is to keep your hand in God's hand at all times. He will never let you wander off path. Reach out to Him and He'll be there.

This devotional comes from the book titled Everyday Blessings Spiritual Refreshment for Women.

3 Years Ago Tomorrow

3 years ago today was a Monday. That afternoon, my Grandpa Morton was transferred from the hospital to the Hospice close to our house. 4 days before Grandpa had a stroke, and I add a few phone calls from home telling me about Grandpa. So, on Saturday, July 8, I left early in the morning for OH. I got home Sunday afternoon, and as a family we went to the hospital so I could see Grandpa. Grandpa was on a ventilator, and that Sunday evening, he was taken off of it.

Tuesday, July 11, mom and I went over to the hospice after supper. She just had this feeling that she should go there. I took my scrapbook that I had been working on. I read Psalms 23 to Grandpa, and went through my scrapbook explaining the pictures on each page to Grandpa. Grandpa was breathing on his own, and while mom and I was watching tv (sometime between 7-8 pm), I looked over and could see that Grandpa's breathing was getting very weak, like he was about to stop breathing. I told mom, and she called to the staff and 2 or 3 of them came in, and we watched Grandpa while he stopped breathing and went home to be with Jesus. That was the first time I was with somebody who died.
We still talk about Grandpa. He was my third grandparent to die. Grandpa Sanyo died almost 16 1/2 years ago, and Grandma Sanyo will be gone 10 years ago this November. I still miss Grandpa Sanyo a lot. I do have warm memories of my grandparents, and I am thankful that I was able to enjoy them during my lifetime as long as I was able to.

Happy Foruth of July

United States is 233 years old! Have an enjoyable Forth of July. The bottom pic was taken at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. The other two, I got off the internet.

Didn't Get the Job

A week ago, I had a phone interview for a middle school job in SC. A couple of days ago, I had a feeling that I didn't get the job. I was correct, I received a letter in the mail, today, telling me so. I do appreciate how the principal kept their word about letting me know that somebody else was chosen for that position.

This afternoon, I did receive a phone call from somebody in another city of SC. My name will be passed on to principals in that city for possible interviews for their openings.

God has something for me, I don't know what or when, but I know in good time, He will let me know.

Today's Phone Interview

I had a phone interview this morning at 8:30 am. I was supposed to have this interview Tuesday afternoon, but it didn't happen. This interview lasted 30 minutes and was for a sixth grade position teaching math and science at a middle school in SC. Listening to this principal talk about her plans for the fall and how they are going to try to reach all of the students to help them reach their potential was interesting. I like what they are planning on doing. I should know within a week if I got the job or not.

This week was week one of all three summer classes for grad school. I've had two lab quizzes for my geology class, and tomorrow is my first lecture quiz. I completed my project on using the Socratic method in a lesson for my philosophy class last weekend. For this same class tomorrow, I am hosting a 30 minute chat on racism in schools. I have a paper I have to write in my psychology class that is due on the 14th of July. I will think about it more next week.

I should find out in a couple of weeks what I got on the Praxis II test.

Summer classes

I am in week 5 (halfway through) of my Philosophy of Education class. This class is eight weeks long. It is all online. There is a lot of reading to do, answer a few questions, type in my responses and then have to read and respond to my classmates answers. It has been pretty interesting so far. The different views we have on the different articles are interesting. We can read the same thing, and come away with something different. I haven't started this week's work yet. I still have to do a project for week three and it is due in two weeks. That project is on using the Socratic method in teaching a lesson. I do have a couple of ideas for it.

My second class starts tonight. It meets twice a week, and is half in person and the other half online. This class will meet for four weeks. This class is on Education Psychology. There will be a lot of reading for this class.

Next week, will start my third class, Intro to Physical Geology. That class is also for 5 weeks. I will have the lecture M-F and the lab M, W, TH. That class will be done on July 24. I was on campus yesterday and bought my books for these two classes. Three books, and they cost me basically $285. Two were brand new books, and that is all they had. I can return them if I don't' nee them.

My fourth class is the first two weeks of August and three Saturdays in the fall. That class is called Operation Physics. The two science classes is for my science content portion of my Masters.

No news on the job front.

Praxis II Middle Grades Science Test

This past Saturday, June 13, I took the Praxis II Middle Grades Science Test, and let me tell you, it was hard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think that is enough emphasis for you to understand how hard it was. There were 90 multiple choice questions and 3 essay questions. I had two hours to complete the whole thing.

There were some questions I knew, some I wasn't sure about, some I didn't know and just out right guessed. I haven't taught science in three years, and have only taught fourth-sixth grade science. This test covers fourth-ninth grade. Actually, the study guide said it covers high school and college level science.

The essays, there were three of them,and they count for 25% of the total grade. You receive a 3, 2, or 1 as your grade for each one. The first question I didn't finish, so I'm expecting a 1 on it. The other two, I think I did decent enough job on answering them. So for a score, 3 or 2. Will see. I will my score in about 4 weeks. I do hope I passed. The test cost me $140. By passing, my OH teaching certificate says I can teach science to grades 4-9. I already can teach science up to the eighth grade, but with having the old certificate, some might not think I can.

The Divine Weaver

"The Divine Weaver"

My life is but a weaving
Between my Lord and me;
I cannot choose the colors
He worketh steadily.

Oft times He weaveth sorrow
And I, in foolish pride,
Forget that He seeth the upper,
And I the underside.

Not till the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly,
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.

The dark threads are as needful
In the Weaver's skillful hand,
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned.

The above poem was in the devotion I read today in the following book: Walking with the Women of the Bible A Devotional Journey Through God's Word by Elizabeth George. I liked the poem and thought that I would share it with all of you.

Philosophy of Education week 1

To start I got an A in both of my classes from last semester. Time for a new semester and new classes. My new class started this week and it is an online class. I actually took this class 11 years ago, but it doesn't count, so I have to take it again. Was told up front that we have to give about 10 hours a week to this class. I am okay now with that, but wait until my other two classes start next month, and dedicating 10 hours a week to this class will be much harder.

My time to this started by not being able to view everything I need to view. The problem, my MAC. I spent time on the phone with help desk from the University and they said to download a certain program from the Internet and it should help. Guess what it didn't. Where I subbed yesterday, I was able to view the needed article and printed it up. I went ahead and printed up all of next week's articles.

I have to read articles, respond to a question and my views, then respond to other people's responses. At the end of the week, I am to send a reflection and self-evaluation of the week.

So, what did I read this week? My first article was about how the mayor of NYC had control of the school system and his control expires at the end of next month, unless the state lawmakers pass a new law to extend his control a few more years. There are still some problems, not everybody feels they have a say. But it was interesting.

Another article was John Dewey's belief of education that he gave over 100 years ago. I had to reflect on my pedagogy of education and compare it to Dewey's.

Then I had to read an article that compares Jefferson's bill of education for VA from the 1790's to NCLB. I learned some interesting things. It was good. Jefferson wanted VA to be divided up into districts like what we have today. Both bills mentioned curriculum, what should be taught, they are similar but different.

Phone Interview

Yesterday I had an email from a charter school in Cleveland. (This is not the one I have been interested in). I gave them my resume at either one of the two job fairs last month. I went to their website yesterday and filled out an application, I also checked on job openings for the next school year. I replied to the email and said I was interested in a phone interview. I came home from school today to find out the interview was for this afternoon. The interview lasted about 30 minutes. It was okay. I will find out later this week or first part of next week, if I made it to the next round of interviews.

I looked at the study guide I got for the Praxis II test I am taking next month. I will need prayer for that. The topics to be covered is not middle school science topics. The topics are high school and college level. There are things I have never heard of. I am making a list of things to look up on the internet to help me to study.

No Reason

For awhile I was shaking inside and a bit scared, now I'm getting a little angry. Do the police have to have a reason to run your plates and registration? Mine was ran for no reason this evening. The only thing I could think of was the fact I still had expired TX emissions window sticker still on my windshield. (Most of it is now gone.) That alone should not be a reason to run some body's plates. I do have OH plates on my car, but my DL is TX. I was leaving the movie theatre around 6 pm this evening. Across the road was a police car. He pulled out, then I pulled out. He pulled over and I went on. He then came behind me. I pulled out onto the main road and into the left lane. He turned out behind me and the next thing I knew, he put his lights on. I was doing nothing wrong. I pulled into a dealership. He asked if my name was so and so. He said that my license were expired. I said that they weren't and didn't expire until 2011. He asked if I had them and I did and got it out of my wallet and gave it to him. I haven't had OH DL since the summer of '99. He went back to his car and came back saying I could go, there was nothing wrong. He did ask how long I had been in OH, and I said two years. I did tell him that I kept thinking I was going to move again, which I still do. He told me I need to get my OH DL. I was still a bit shaky an hour later. It was a weird and a scary experience. Besides thinking I was going to move again, I didn't want to take the written test again so I could get my OH DL again. I had just renewed them back in '05, they were still good when I moved back home two years ago. I will probably do it at some point this summer. I still think he had no reason to run my plates and scare me like he did.

A New Normal

Yesterday, I had my port flushed. I was talking to the nurse about my white blood count. I finished Interferon 7 months ago, and my white blood count is still at 3.7, as of last month. I asked how long does it take for your white blood count to go back up to normal? She said about a month or two. I told her where mine was, and she said that might be my new normal. I am very close to normal. Normal is 4.0, and I am at 3.7. I still get cold pretty easily, but not as much, since the temps are rising, but still....

EMU Job Fair

Tuesday afternoon I drove up to MI. I spent the evening with my best friend and her boys. We haven't seen each other in year. Yesterday, was the teacher job fair at Eastern Michigan University. This is the largest job fair in the state of MI. The number of school districts were down, due mainly to the recession and districts cutting back on expenses. There were schools there from Alaska and Hawaii. I talked to schools from Kansas, Ohio, Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. There is a charter school I am interested in working at, here in OH. Turns out, my best friend's boys goes to one of these schools, and they have high praise for these schools. I mentioned it and so we will see. I have applications to fill out, emails to send, and doing some online research about a variety of schools. Will see what happens from this. I did have a couple of screening interviews. I have now added Kansas to my states of interest in thinking of moving to depending on getting a job. They are OH, NC, SC, and KS.

The Power of One

Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. --Ralph Waldo Emerson

Being a mom, Wyn knew that her attitude and emotional state determined what kind of fay she'd have with her family. If she was off, they were all off. What a terrible responsibility that is, to be a human barometer. Even with this knowledge, it tool Wyn a lot longer to recognize how she affected her students as well.

There were days that, for one reason or another, she just didn't want to be there. there were days that she never stopped complaining. There were days that she couldn't smile no matter how she tried. And on those days, her students' behavior mirrored her own. She believed their behavior was out of control.

One day, Wyn received notice that she'd gotten the grant she had worked all year on. It would supplement her classroom in a variety of ways. But most of all, it was an accomplishment that reenergized her attitude toward teaching.

In the weeks that followed she approached her job with a renewed sense of purpose and joy. Her students seemed to join in on her enthusiasm, and they too had a renewed sense of purpose. The funny thing is that Wyn had the power to change her students' behavior all along. The first step was to change her own.

Take away: Wondering why your class seems a little ho-hum? Try brightening your outlook and see if it is reflected in your students.

This was the devotional I read yesterday from Apples & Chalkdust. Written by Vicki Caruana. Actually, this book is the revised and updated 10th anniversary edition.

I wrote down on the page that "My students mirror my attitude. I now understand." That made me think.