I can be crafty

I am not a very crafty person, but on occasion, I can be. Remember when I posted those nerdy math signs a few posts back? Well, I decided they would be a nice addition to my classroom at school. I tried to just steal them and copy the images, but they were too small to make bigger, so I recreated them, with some minor adjustment. I bought sturdier-than-dollar-store frames at the D.I., I spray painted them, and ordered prints of the signs. The whole project came in at under $10 and I am very proud of myself. (The "octopi" sign was the hardest and it took some sweet skills using Paint and Microsoft Publisher to make that one.)

House Update - Framing

Our house is coming along nicely and is beginning to look a bit like a house.

We don't have much of a backyard,

but we have big side yards.

The back wall to the 3rd car garage was finally re-poured and backfilled, so that garage floor could finally be poured.

Overwhelmed

When I was a little kid I had extreme anxiety about going to school. It wasn't pretty. When I say, "little kid," I mean from 1st grade up through about high school and beyond. So what did I do to relieve this extreme school anxiety that I had (besides perhaps some medication)? I became a school teacher. What was I thinking??????

This year (this week, in particular) the anxiety is beginning to maximize. I don't really know why, but I start having a million thoughts a minute about things I need to do for school, things I should have been doing at home all summer, but still haven't, things that will be new this school year. It is scary. To ease my thoughts a bit, it is sometimes healthy to write them down in a journal (or on the internet for the whole world to read).

Positive things to look forward to:

• Teaching Concurrent Enrollment Math
• Teaching U.S. History again
• Double blocking our lower level kids again and working with Mr. Berg
• Having Molly as my carpool buddy on the way to school and taking her to a place where people love her, take good care of her, give her structure, socialization, and cool art projects
• No more Master's Degree Classes (still waiting for my final grade and then degree to post, though)
• I finally painted most of my outside fence that has been gross all summer. I just need to do the very bottom that gets chewed up by the weed eater.
• A new house coming soon

Anxiety Ridden Things that make me Nervous:

• Dropping Molly off at a place that is not with me at home
• I need to do some touch-up painting in my house and I haven't done it yet.
• Renting my house still scares me
• Building a new house still scares me
• I have to give a presentation next week in front of my faculty, I don't know how all this concurrent enrollment class stuff works, I didn't keep good records of how I taught U.S. History last year and I'm afraid I'll have to reinvent the wheel.
• There always seems like so much more than is humanly possible to do in a few days to get my classroom, curriculum, etc. ready for a new year and I have zero desire to work on it at home. Oh well. Somehow or another it always comes together.

Hi, Molly here.

Hello blog world, it is me, Miss Molly. I haven't written an update on the blog for a while, so my mom told me I probably should. I don't really do anything else she tells me to do, so I don't know why I am doing this, but oh well. I like to walk, but I kind of waddle around like an old lady. Plus, my left arm is always pulled up to my side while I walk, and my right arm sticks out straight. I kind of veer to the left, but one of these days I'll figure it out, I guess.

I try really hard to talk to my mom, but she just doesn't understand me. Like, she'll say, "I love you Molly" and I'll say, "a-joo-ewe-wagga." Or, my mom will say "thank you" and I'll say "allajooda." She just doesn't get it, but maybe one of these days she will. Oh, there are a few things that I can say that she DOES understand. Thank goodness. Here is the list: Hi - but it is more like Hiiiiiiiyah - Hot - but it is more like Haaaaaaat - Mama - but I don't like to say this one unless I'm crying or whining - Dada - my favorite word. I have also used this one a few times in a complete sentence, "Hiiii Dada." -

I like to throw things in the garbage can, but then I don't understand why we can't take things back out of the garbage can. My mom is so mean about that and she says, "Cu-cu" and I say "Sckaaaa." She also says that a lot when I try to throw things in the toilet.

When I feel like cooperating, I can make lots of animal sounds, but that has gotten kind of old and I get tired of telling my mom what different animals say. Doesn't she know already? Why does she keep asking me?

I can also say, "mmmmmmmmmmmmm," when I see food.

Oh, I haven't felt like doing it for a couple of days, but for a while, I would say, "A-Ha" really loud at the end of a prayer. Every time I did it, though, my mom would tell me "shhhh," so now I've stopped.

I have a red necklace I love to wear around the house.

I still take my shoes and socks off almost every time I get in the car.

People keep telling my mom that now I'm walking, "I'll bet she's in to everything," but my mom just replies, "No, she was in to everything before, now she just gets there faster."

I love to be outside. I like to play with the hose, ants, my ball. I'm still not really sure about grass. When we go get the mail my mom makes me poke this sharp tree with needles. She says, "ouch," and I say, "hot." I don't know why we have to get the mail everyday. I am excited to go outside, but then we have to walk so far to the mailbox. Sometimes I just stop and look at pine cones instead.

I can give you a high 5 and blow you a kiss.

I still drink a bottle in the mornings. I don't really care if I have it or not and sometimes I tell my mom, no, but she says I have to drink it or else I'm not getting enough milk.

I hate getting my diaper changed and I run away or crawl away almost every time. My mom gets really mad at me then, but I still do it.

I have 4 teeth on the bottom and 2 on the top, but like 4 more coming in. My nose is runny and I've been kind of grumpy lately.

I pretty much just like to play by myself, but I really like it when other kids are around, so I just follow them sometimes.

I eat cheese, bread, hot dogs, chicken, noodles (including mac & cheese), yogurt, grilled cheese, mashed potatoes, marshmallows, fish crackers, fruit loops, did I mention yogurt (it is my favorite), applesauce, anything with sugar. My mom still makes me eat baby food every once in a while because she says I need some fruits and vegetables. They are always giving me weird things that they are eating, probably fruits and vegetables, but unless they are mooshed up like baby food, I usually just spit it back out at them.

Oh, and lately I like to help my mom comb my hair. She always gets really frustrated. I don't know why. I am just rubbing my hands all over my hair when she's finished. Doesn't that make it look even better?

And, I had my first real haircut at a haircut place. I sat like such a big girl in the chair and ate a sucker while the lady cut my hair. I was sooo good. My mom told me I had to have them fix it because she did a bad job trying to trim it herself. Duh, mom, why didn't you just give me a sucker and a big chair? I wouldn't have wiggled around so much.

That's about all for now. It is past my bedtime.

That's Willie's Head

I just happened to be reading the Tribune tonight and caught site of my brother's head in the background of this picture. No, he's not mentioned in the article, of course, but is a member of the offensive line being the "biggest hole" in Hunter's football season. Oh well.

BY TONY JONES

The Salt Lake Tribune

First published Aug 04 2011 12:12AM
Updated Aug 4, 2011 12:12AM

Les Hamilton is back. Way before anyone expected him to be.

The former head coach at Alta, who led the Hawks to state titles, resigned this winter to pursue a seafood career. He’s since returned to Hunter High and is poised to lead the Wolverines to what he hopes are similar results to what he produced at Alta.

On paper, Hunter is well-stocked to make a run at the Region 2 title. The Wolverines have one of the best defensive ends in the state in Utah commit Moses Foluahola. Derrick Payton is back from Lehi to be the defensive coordinator, and the defense overall looks deep and poised to make a lasting impact on the upcoming season.

The question is whether Hunter will be able to score points.

It seems almost silly to wonder whether a Hamilton-led team can get into the end zone. But there are holes. Gone up front is Ului Lapuaho, a 6-foot-7, 285-pound left tackle who’s now at Brigham Young University. The offensive line will be new; so will the quarterback, Jairo Tarver, and a host of receivers.

Still, the talent is there. Hamilton loves Tarver’s dual-threat ability. Devonte Maez, a 6-1 wideout, already has an offer to Weber State and could have a breakout season. And then people wonder how a team full of players designed for a running game will adjust to a spread offense.

“People think we’re going to throw it like Jordan High,” Hamilton said. “But at Alta, we’ve always tried to be a balanced offense. We’re going to run the ball, but when it comes time to throw the ball, I feel confident that we’re going to be able to do that too.”

Last year » 7-4 (lost to Bingham in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs).

Key returner » Moses Foluahola anchors the defensive line and will be perhaps the most important player on the team this year.

Player to watch » Wide receivers usually excel in Les Hamilton’s offenses. The best one for Hunter this season will be Devonte Maez.

Biggest hole » An offensive line that dominated last season is gone, leaving a huge question mark.

Need to know » Hamilton considers Kearns, not his team, the Region 2 favorite.