The Simple Woman's Daybook - July 21, 2008

FOR TODAY June 21, 2008...

Hosted by Peggy @ The Simple Woman

Outside My Window... Hot and sunny with a promise of being hotter tomorrow.

I am thinking... I don't want the summer to go by too quickly but I am looking forward to the cooler fall weather.

I am thankful for... My family

From the kitchen... Open faced turkey and cheese melt sandwiches for lunch

I am wearing... denim shorts and a pink top

I am creating... space on my dining room table that seems to love clutter

I am going... to the gym to workout and shopping for a bridal shower gift

I am reading...Where Willows Grow by Kim Vogel Sawyer & The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

I am hoping... That my blog will load faster now that I have spent some time cleaning it up.

I am hearing... Water running while someone is in the shower. The television that Holly is watching while she is folding clothes.

Around the house... We are working on cleaning/decluttering. It needs to be done anyway and tomorrow we are having the pastor and his wife over for lunch.

One of my favorite things... Lazy summer days when we don't have to get up so early

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: The bridal shower on Thursday, Hopefully the gym three times and then just staying home the rest of the week. I have a lot to do before the end of August.

Substitue Summary

Today was my next to last substitute job for the 2007-2008 school year. I was in a headstart class. When I arrived at the school this morning, the office was really hot. I quickly discovered that the rest of the school wasn't any better. The AC was out and that was not good news when the morning temps were already close to 90 degrees. The teachers were all hopeful that school would be canceled and we could all go home. No such luck. We had to endure the heat for 3 hours and they finally were able to fix it.

Yesterday morning, I received a phone call from the principal of the school where I had the long term sub position. She wants me to teach again. This time it's in regular ed, thankfully! I will be teaching kindergarten in the fall for 12 weeks. The best part is that I will be able to start at the beginning of the year and the students will not think of me as a sub. I also love the fact that it is just a couple of miles from where I live. I won't have to leave terribly early or spend tons of money on fuel.

School is ALMOST Out!

Public school ends here in Virginia on June 13th. I have two days already scheduled for subbing next week but I doubt that I will get much more than that. The bad part about that is I won't be getting a paycheck until the end of September. I am hoping to sell some things on e-bay. Hopefully I can earn enough to buy a tank of gasoline.


Holly is finished with 4th grade! She took her state required standardized tests last week and we are anxiously awaiting the results. Gabriel and Hannah also took their tests but they have one more class to finish up. We are trying to squeeze in as much algebra as we can so that they can be done on the 13th. They are going to summer camp the following week.


While we may be done with "school", we'll still find lots of opportunity for learning. Holly and I are planning on working on several Girl Scout badges. I've promised the girls we will find time for crafts. And of course we'll read. I have to include myself there. Perhaps I should challenge my kids to see if they can read more than me. There's a thought worth thinking on some more. . .

Right now, I promised Holly that I would take her swimming. Maybe while I'm there I can think of a more interesting blog entry.

Is it Fall Yet?

I would like to see some fall weather, real fall weather. Here it is, halfway through October. The days are cooler and the nights dare to dip down into the 40's. But many days are still seeing temperatures that soar up into the 80's. That, in my opinion is hot and hot means summer. Add to that, the fact that I spent the last several years in Romania where we had about 3 weeks of summer and therefore I do not own a large wardrobe of summer clothes. It was an insufficient wardrobe to begin with for a summer in the southeast and now it's worn out. I really want some cool, crisp temperatures. Is anyone else tired of summer?

Tomorrow is my first day as the board substitute in the special education class. I do not know if the teacher has had her baby yet or not but her doctor told her that Friday had to be her last day. So I'll be the new teacher from October 15 - November 21. There is one student holiday and one half day during that time. I'll be there for 26.5 days. I am excited and nervous at the same time. This is not the typical classroom that I am accustomed to. Your prayers are requested!

Looking Forward

Summer is not my favorite season. The only good thing about the hot, sticky, muggy weather is being able to slip on sandals every time we go out the door. I will miss that when the season ends along with lazy days of sleeping late. Holly has an Open House at school this Thursday to see her classroom and meet her teacher. It’s in the afternoon. She will probably be ready before the rest of us are awake. School starts the day after Labor Day. I won’t begin subbing until sometime later. I have an orientation meeting on the 10^th. On Saturday, I received a fat envelope in the mail with a ton of paperwork to fill out. It looks like I’ll have to get a TB test done since I have to mark “yes” to “Person has lived in a country other than the US, Canada, Western Europe, Australia or New Zealand for 3 months or more and has been in the US for less than 5 years.” We’ve been in the US for a little over 5 months.

I am looking forward to Thursday and meeting Holly’s teacher. I’m looking forward to fall, cool crisp weather and a nice cup of coffee. I am looking forward to seeing how God continues to lead us through this season of our lives.

Too Hot!

Currently At 3:22PM

100°F

RealFeel®

112°F

It's hot. Too hot. I don't know how many days of 100+ degrees we have had. More than enough. Poor Gabe was outside yesterday afternoon in his polyester Chick Fil A uniform unloading a truck. When I went to pick him up at 4 PM he was absolutely soaked and literally dripping.

Today we took Holly to get her physical that is required for school. Just going a short distance from the car to the door of the building was miserable. I am so looking forward to fall.

How is the weather where you live?

Dog Days of Summer Bloggy Giveaway

The dog days of summer are certainly here and it has been hot here in Virginia - high 90's and humid. I can't believe that there are just a few days left in July. It always seems that after the 4th, Christmas comes up in no time. I'll be glad for cooler weather but otherwise, I am looking forward to these last few weeks of summer. I have a few more things to do in our bedroom but otherwise I feel settled. If you have followed my story the last few months, you know what a relief that is for all of us. Gabriel got a job at Chick-fil-A and today he went in for training. He's excited about that.

To add some more excitement to the summer, Rocks in My Dryer is hosting a Bloggy Giveaway. I don't have a clue what I'll do but I thought it would be fun. To find out the details, click the button below. It begins this Monday. I hope to see you there! Come back on Monday to see what I am giving away.

Melting in the Heat

Today was more packing and loading the truck. Temperatures were above 100 degrees. Did I ever mention that I melt in the heat? Extreme temperatures always give me a headache. I took a pain reliever before going outside but to no avail. We still have more work to do. Tomorrow we will go to the storage building EARLY in an attempt to work in the cool of the day – if such a thing exists in this Alabama summer. Wow! I cannot believe we have less than 36 hours. I need to go to bed and get some sleep!

The ABC's of Summer School

Growing up, I learned that there are rules to learning. Math has its 1 2 3’s and for Reading one must know the ABC’s. However, in the past eleven years or so I have discovered that is not true with homeschooling. There are as many varieties of homeschooling methods as there are families. I am a firm believer in doing what is right for our family. That may change in any given year, month or moment.

This summer, we are doing what I would call semi-relaxed, very eclectic homeschooling. Some days will look like unschooling and others may resemble more traditional methods. My main goal for Gabriel and Hannah is to finish Geography and Physical Science. With Holly, we are just working on reading and spelling.

Listed here are just a few of the ABC’s of our homeschooling program for this summer, at least for now. What’s on your schedule?

A. Art, Apples to Apples Game

B. Blogging, Bicycling. Book reviews

C. Croquet, Computer games, Chick-Fil-A

D. Devotions, Driving

E. Educational DVD’s

F. Free time

G. Geography

H. Hopscotch

I. In a Pickle Game, Internet research, Instant Message with friends

J. Journaling, Jump rope, Jacks

L. Library

M. Maps, Move – hopefully!

N. Newspaper reading for current events

O. Ongoing organization attempts, Outside free play

P. Physical Science, Pictionary game, Piano

Q. Quilting

R. Reading, Read alouds, Recipe book making

S. Spelling, Sewing, Scrapbooking

T. Timelines

U. Unplanned learning opportunities

V. Vacation Bible School

W. Writing, Walks, Water fights

X. X- box (It is summer and what else could I put here?)

Y. Yarn painting

Z. Zealously sleep late!

Spring Reading Thing Update

The forecast says that it will be about 85 degrees today. With the typical Alabama humidity, I am sure it will feel even warmer. It seems summer is here already, even if the calendar says there are six more weeks until the summer solstice. I thought I would share where I am in my Spring Reading Thing Challenge. I am not quite half done but I have read some things that are not on my list- some other Bible passages and The Giver by Lois Lowry. I am not sure if I will finish my list or not. Six weeks is a long time and a lot can happen during those days. Are you doing the Spring Reading Thing? Where are you on your list? Or what have you read?

Fiction

The Truth Seeker by Dee Henderson

The Protector by Dee Henderson

This Time Around by Debra White Smith

Let’s Begin Again by Debra White Smith

Non Fiction

The Prayer that Changes Everything by Stormie Omartian

The Unfolding of Language by Guy Deustcher (Currently reading)

Praying God’s Word by Beth Moore

Finding Your Path by Mitch Raymer (Read my review!)

Bible

John

Romans – Philemon (Romans, 1 Corinthians) Currently Reading 2 Corinthians

Ruth

Proverbs