First Grade Awards!!!

Jonathan had his First Grade Awards Ceremony this morning. He received all A's this year, so he got a certificate and a medal for the A Honor Roll all year, and he also got a special class award............Most Curious! His teacher really knows him well!!! :-) Nana came to see Jonathan get his awards, and so did Richard...........both made Jonathan really happy.

He had a great year, and I am so thankful that he had such a wonderful teacher. He went from reading a DRA level 14 at the beginning of the year to reading a DRA level 40 at the end. The library program that gives us reading levels so students can choose books on their independent level recorded him at a beginning fourth grade reading level. That's a HUGE improvement in one year, and I truly believe that his teacher did a great job pushing him this year. His math is getting better, too, but he still has to work on focusing and completing his work instead of drawing or talking.............I'm not sure WHERE he gets that from!?!?!!?

Field Day 2009

Field Day this year was a TON of FUN! We started off with a parade of classes around the stadium, and then we had a flag ceremony led by our scouts - Jonathan was so excited! Then the big kids ran races and did obstacle courses, and our first graders played various relay games, had potato sack races, played with a huge parachute, and had a great time! Richard and another dad cooked hot dogs for the kids and fajitas for the parents/teachers. They were really yummy! The fire department even came out later and turned on their big hose so the kids could play in the water. I think it was good for both the fire fighters (who had just come from a fatal wreck) and the kids. I know it was good for the teachers, because it gave us an hour of cooled down fun with the kiddos. And, yes, everyone was a MESS when the day was over. At least Jonathan had a change of clothes for the ride home!

A Zoo-lightful Day!

Today I went with the entire first grade to the local zoo. We had a great time, saw some wonderful animals, and the weather was gorgeous!! Jonathan asked his dad if he could wear his red cowboy hat. Richard said yes! I must admit that I was a bit upset about the hat because it looks so funny, but it ended up being a good mistake.........not only did it completely cover his whole head and neck from the sun, but it also was VERY easy to spot in the sea of lime green shirts! And while we're on the shirts...........what's up with lime green! We thought for sure that lime green would be a great color and that students would be easy to spot............and they were........except when we ran into two other field trips with the SAME COLOR SHIRTS! It must have been lime green day at the zoo. On the way home, the emergency alarm went off on the bus, and after I checked each emergency exit 3 times, it was still going off. We finally pulled over, and a driver from another bus told us that a bolt was loose on the alarm located on the back door - no one was in danger, but that darn thing kept going off! It only took five minutes to figure it out and fix it, but it was a bit frustrating. At any rate, we had a good time, we didn't lose anybody, ONLY one kid puked on the bus, and so far no parent complaints. Now that's a good day!!! :-)

Happy Memorial Day!!

Well, because of ice, we had to make up a day of school today. But, the good part was that Jonathan got to participate in the morning's flag ceremony at school. He was the only cub scout to participate, and he got to actually help the boy scouts with the flag. He was so excited! Enjoy the photos, and Happy Memorial Day!

Just Horsin' Around!

As part of the Black Stallion Literacy Project, our First Grade classes received a visit from the horses (characters) in two books, read both books about Little Black, and then visited a horse farm. They learned about the horses (care, feeding, tack, etc.), read books to them, and had lunch. The project covers all the reading skills kids need - comprehension, fluency, vocabulary, etc. It's a great program. We stopped at a park on the way there to let the kids play and enjoy the beautiful cool morning (and to get some of their wiggles out!). All in all, we had a great day.

On the Road to Recovery!

Well, I finally got off my medicine from Hades! Now I don't have bad headaches, no 104 degree fevers, no body aches, and I'm not seeing weird things when my eyes are shut! Life is getting better.

I'm still a bit tired, and folks tell me it will take a week to get my strength back, but I'm feeling better. I didn't realize that going back to work would be so exhausting. But, thankfully, the wonderful folks I work with have been sending me home each night with a meal so I don't have to cook. It's been just wonderful!

Thank God for Moms!

Well, it has been a week.........and that's an understatement. I have felt horrible since last Wednesday, but even worse than that since Friday. I finally took off work Friday, went to the doc, got tested for everything (even swine flu) and found out I have walking pneumonia. Unfortunately, the "walking" part was a misdiagnosis. It's been more of a "lying on the couch, not doing anything, feeling like crud pneumonia." I have so many little bottles and inhalers that I am actually carrying it all around in a tupperware bowl like I'm 90 years old! (I told my doc I was frustrated by this, and she just laughed and reminded me it was temporary).

The weekend was the worst because my temp hit 104 on Sat. and 103.5 on Sun. I called the doctor at 7:40 on Monday, and she called me right back when she arrived at 8. She called me in another medicine to get rid of all the joint pain, headaches, and fever. It worked really well last night, but it leaves me pretty loopy and stupid--which was a huge, and well enjoyed, improvement. But, this morning, again, I felt terrible. I couldn't even stand up long enough to fix breakfast. So, Richard called my mom about 10:00 and she came over to take care of me. I'm glad she did, or I don't think I would have eaten anything today. Thank God for Moms!

Anyway, I'm feeling a bit better now and am sitting up, but I know that in about an hour I have to take that horrible antibiotic AGAIN, and the cycle will start all over. It just stinks!