26 year friendship

This evening we went to have dinner with my friend Lindsay and her family. Lindsay and I became friends on the first day of 7th grade- which was almost 26 years ago now. Even though we don't see each other often, it's always lovely when we do. 

Family Night

Thanks to the Shaky Knees festival, Korra and I were both home from school at 1. After a relaxing afternoon (me in the hammock, Korra having a water squirter fight with a neighbor), we decided to walk to the new board game store. We then walked to dinner and got ice cream for dessert before walking home. I love when we make the most of living close to so many cool things. 

Walking Field Trip

As part of a community service project, the group I facilitated planned a field trip to a local park to raise money for a local non-profit. We sold water squirters and snacks and donations from parents. The kids had a great time and we raised $265!  

(I did not volunteer to be squirted by the kids as seen above!)

4th grade school photo

Korra's last school photos were from 1st grade so we were pretty excited to have this!

Hand clapping games

Korra and I spent 15 minutes last night and the same tonight learning and practicing hand clapping games like Sailor and Mary Mack and Mexico. Lots of giggling. 

Good News!

Our landlord wants to renew our lease- and keep the rent the same!  We were getting a little nervous with the current housing market that the owner would want to sell this condo or that they'd realize they could charge another $800+ a month.  We really like this place and couldn't afford anything similar in this area so we're really happy!

New Shoes

I have been admiring one of my student's shoes all year. I finally asked her if it would embarrass her if I bought the same shoes (she said no) so I bought a pair. Today we decided to twin :)

Sweetwater Creek State Park

We meet Todd and Sarah to go on a hike at Sweetwater Creek this afternoon. The weather was pretty much perfect. 

This is how Korra dressed to walk to the library

Papi's and Jesus Christ Superstar

Nate's parents came into town tonight. First we walked to Papi's Cuban restaurant (I've been wanting to try it for years and it was really good). Then we walked to the Fox Theater to see a performance of Jesus Christ Superstar. It was a wonderful evening!

"Day of Play"

Instead of our usual Friday afternoons of meetings and planning, this week was a staff "Day of Play." It was basically a field day for the staff of all 3 schools. While the idea was fun in theory, forcing adults to do 3 legged races on teams they didn't get to pick with no one really directing the events was less than successful. I did enjoy being outside and having a few "What are you doing next year?" chats while eating shaved ice. 

Day of Play

This afternoon, instead of the usual meetings and planning time, we had a staff "day of play." It was supposed to be like a field day with all the staff from the 3 schools. 

Outdoor Classroom

Today the weather was gorgeous so I made sure all the work I wanted the kids to do could be done outside.  Everyone is always in a much better mood after sitting in the sunshine.

Getting out of bed

Getting out of bed is so hard. It's not that I want to go back to sleep, it's just that I don't want to get up. 26 more days. 

Easter Monday

I took PTO on Monday. I drove up to Clayton, GA to my parents for brunch. It was exactly what I needed. 

Monday evening I had a third interview with a law office. Even though it went well and I went into the interview thinking I'd take the job if they offered it, by the time I went to bed on Monday, I knew it wasn't the best fit for me. 

Happy Easter!

Easter Bunny

On a walk through the neighborhood this evening, Korra and I saw a bunny!  It let Korra get pretty close, too!

Dunk Tank

Yesterday afternoon, the school had a carnival with the main purpose of getting families excited about our middle school program. It was mandatory for me to attend and I was really struggling with it since I won't be returning next year andI don't really believe in their middle school plans for the coming years. That's why I volunteered for the dunk tank. There I wouldn't have to talk to parents. Also, I couldn't be expected to man a table the whole time (and could maybe slip out early). Plus, it's a good memory for both me and my students. For the last 2 weeks I've been telling them that I only agreed to be in the dunk tank because I didn't believe I'd get wet because they're all such terrible throwers. I told them I wasn't even bringing a change of clothes. Riling them up was part of the fun. 

The water in the tank was freezing and the tank was in the shade but it was still fun. According to Korra's count I was dunked at least 15 times. And as predicted, I didn't have to talk to anyone and was able to slip out 30 minutes early. 

Bad days and good days

Yesterday was a bad day. A student said, "you're so f****** lame" because I told him he couldn't play with a ball in class after he threw it at a classmate's face. The assistant principal told a student her shorts were too short so she just left the school. Walked out the front door. She came back 30 minutes later with pants... and a bag of Popeyes. 

Today my homeroom invented a new game where they tried to change seats every time I wasn't looking. Eventually there was a point system added. It was a tremendous amount of fun. I also created a scavenger hunt for class today and almost all the kids were really engaged and enjoyed it. 

I have 2.5 hours of training ahead of me. Then I have 2 hours of a middle school tailgate party thing where I will be in the dunk tank. More on that later. 

Tired

I am so tired. Having a really hard time getting up at 6am after spring break and having motivation to do much of anything after work. This seems like a really pointless blog post but honestly that's all I can say about the last 3 days. 

New Ice Cream Place

It was such a pretty day so we decided to walk to get ice cream after dinner. Even though a few summers ago Korra and I extensively searched for and visited every establishment that serves ice cream within a 2 mile radius of our apartment, today we discovered a new one! The owner served us and was super friendly- and the ice cream was yummy!

Contacts

Korra got her contact lenses yesterday!  

The hope is that it will slow down her myopia. Yesterday we got them in her eyes in 7 minutes. Today it only took 3!  She said they make her feel really grown up. 

Letterkenny Live

At the Fox Theater for a double date with Dan and Genevieve!

Pinball Palace

We drove over to Brunswick today (about 25 min) and went to the Pinball Palace. It did not disappoint!  We payed for 2 hours of play and all really enjoyed ourselves. There were so many machines AND a room with bouncy inflatables for kids. We will definitely be adding a visit there to our annual Jekyll trip. 

Happy birthday, Nate!

We tried to go out to brunch but it ended up just being lunch. Then we went spent few hours at the beach. Korra found some friends to dig in the sand with (she wanted to stay all day) and Nate got to fly his new kite. 

Later we enjoyed Brie and bread over the campfire and a walk to Driftwood Beach at sunset. 

Jekyll Day 1

We biked a lot today. First thing in the morning, Korra and I biked to the park. Around lunch we biked to the grocery store to meet our friends and have a picnic lunch. After checking in to our campsite and briefly setting up, we biked to the Club Hotel area and walked around before biking back. 

It's been cloudy today and the gnats are terrible. Usually they aren't out yet when we come at spring break so we don't have much tolerance for them. I hope it's a fluke and not the way it will be from now on. 

Half Day

The kids at our school always have a half day on Fridays. Teachers usually have professional development and meetings on Friday afternoons, but not today! Thanks to some packing last night, we were able to hit the road at 1:30 today. We should be at our hotel on Jekyll Island by 7:30 tonight.