I Love You Always Forever

(Martin in 2006)

You've got, the most unbelievable
blue eyes I've ever seen
You've got, me almost melt away
As we lay there, under a blue sky
with pure white stars
Exotic sweetness, a magical time 

                ~Donna Lewis

Raise Your Hand Please!

The honeymoon is definitely over.

All of my students are showing their true colors, some of them more vibrant than others if you get my drift.

Our days aren't bad...just tiring.

I don't know what I'll do if I have to say one more time, "Raise your hand for permission to speak."

But I'll keep saying that and all of our rules over and over and over until it sticks.

Sometimes I think maybe my expectations are too high?

I expect my students to sit on the rug quietly and be good listeners, not playing with their shoes or sticking their heads in their shirts like turtles.  I expect them to line up silently with a hug and a bubble without running into the line and bumping into the person next to them creating a domino affect. I expect them not to interrupt me shouting, "MRS. WOLFE! LOOK I'M RAISING MY HAND!" I expect them to participate at all times and not act like a limp fish on the carpet.   I expect them not to hit, punch, kick, pinch, or shove...and I expect parents to agree with me that these things are indeed very wrong. 

Creating a positive classroom environment is hard work.  I think people sometimes think the kids come into the classroom and just learn....but there's so much more to that.  We have to teach them everything we want them to do and it usually takes weeks and weeks.  You have to be on top of your game at all times.   You can't get upset when someone doesn't do it right the first time...you might be upset but you have to pretend that you're not and smile and use a kind voice.  You have to like your students. You have to like your job. 

Tomorrow I'll repeat myself a bajillion more times, but that's okay because slowly but surly they're learning how to be in school, how to be a student, and most importantly how to be good, kind, and caring people.

Most Adorable

Dear Wilson,

I'm thinking that you are the most adorable little boy on this earth.  

I love you SO much.

Love,

Your Mommy 

Race Across the Sky

As I'm typing, my dad has already been running for 5 hours.

He'll keep running and running and running until he crosses the finish line tomorrow morning with 100 miles behind him.

I can't even imagine what that will be like for him, I know it won't be easy by any means, I know he'll be exhausted physically and mentally, but I know that he can do it.

Keep him in your prayers today! 

A quote about the Leadville 100

"Running the Leadville is like running the Boston Marathon two times in a row with a sock in your mouth and then hiking up to the top of Pikes Peak and then repeating the whole thing again, this time in the dark.  The Leadville 100 boils down to: nearly 4 full marathons, half of them in the dark, with twin 2,600 foot climbs in the middle." 

(here)

Good luck daddy! I'll be thinking about you until I get that phone call that you made it! 

Summer Thunder

I love the sound of thunder.

I love listening to thunder as I fall asleep on a warm summer evening...like tonight. 

It's slow and rumbly. 

It reminds me of when I was little and would run and snuggle in with Kate when a thunderstorm hit late in the night. We would count 1 mississippi, 2 mississippi, 3 mississippi until the thunder boomed. 

I could listen to this forever.  

When I was younger I insisted on buying a nature CD called Summer Thunder.  I would listen to it until I fell asleep, while I did my homework, while I read.  It was so soothing and comforting.  

Martin even bought me an alarm clock that has a special thunder button.  

I wish we had more thunderstorms here in Colorado.  Since Kate moved to Florida she has experienced more thunder storms in a year than I have in my lifetime.  

Lucky.