Thankful Thursday

Today is Thankful Thursday #14! Today I'm celebrating my passing score on the Human/Cultural Geography DSST exam, which I took last night. I'm thankful . . .

1.  that there are exams that award college credit. It's a lot faster and cheaper to get college credit this way than by enrolling in a traditional course.

2. for free study materials I found at the public library and online. I saved a lot of money not having to buy textbooks!

3. for a testing center that administers DSST exams. I had to call numerous places to find one!

4. for Dad, who graciously drove the round-trip to Lansing for me, and treated me to a shopping spree and dinner on our way home to celebrate.

5. that I'm one step closer to finishing my Master's degree and teacher certification.

God is faithful!

Thankful Thursday

Today is Thankful Thursday #13!

My current facebook status reads, "The more frustrated I feel, the more grateful I must choose to be." In light of that wisdom, I have decided for today's Thankful Thursday post to list reasons I am grateful for my car. Lately, I've been only too aware of its quirks that irritate me. Earlier today when I was ranting to my brother about my car's latest idiosyncrasy, he convicted me that complaining or contentment is my choice. Since it's not in my budget anytime soon to replace it, I should be better about enjoying what I do have. Even though it's definitely not my dream car, when I stop to think about it, there are a lot of things about it for which I have to be grateful. . . .

1. Most importantly, it is a reliable vehicle. It gets me where I need to go.
2. I like the exterior color--a nice royal navy blue.
3. It has a comfortable interior. I'm especially glad the heat and defroster both work.
4. It has a spacious trunk.
5. It has low mileage, considering its age.

Thank you, Lord, for this vehicle that You have provided for me.

Sweet Blessings

This afternoon on my way home from school, I swung by the dollar store to pick up a few things. As I waited in the check-out line, this Butterfinger Crisp bar caught my eye. I had never seen a Butterfinger Crisp before. Since Butterfingers are one of the few kinds of candy bars that I like—I eat candy very sparingly—I decided on the spot to treat myself to trying a Butterfinger Crisp. Yum! I have a new favorite now!

Enjoying my little splurge this afternoon made me all the more aware of the fullness of sweet blessings in my life. Many women around the globe would only be able to dream of what I just did so casually this afternoon. . .

• While many women live under social oppression, I have the freedom to keep my own schedule and drive about town at will.
• While many women live in physical danger, I live with the safety and confidence to shop where I want.
• While many women live in deprivation, I enjoy the abundance of discretionary money in my wallet and a prosperous economic system that provides me plenty of choice.
• While many women live with serious illness, I have the good health to splurge on some candy without having to deal with adverse reactions.

Wow. I am awed to think about what is involved in the privilege of spontaneously buying a little afternoon snack candy bar. Thank You, Lord, for these sweet blessings.

Wedding Flowers

Checking facebook this afternoon, I noticed that my dear friend Rebekah had just posted pictures from her June wedding, taken by our mutual friend, the lovely and talented Sarah Eddy of Sarahdipity Photos.

Rebekah had asked me to do her flowers, so I was especially excited to see the professional images that she posted today. They brought a huge smile to my face, reminding me of the one-of-a-kind evening I had with my wonderful friend, Lisa, who had offered to help me with the floral arranging. When the bride's Plan A for fresh flowers didn't materialize as hoped, Lisa and I had to compensate with a resourceful Plan B--creating bridesmaids' bouquets from the blooming flowers we picked in the church parking lot! (Yes, we had permission!) That evening before the wedding has to rank as one of the most fun times I've ever had--despite me accidentally locking the two of us out of the church. What an adventure we had! Here are several of Sarah's beautiful pictures to prove it. =)

by Sarahdipity Photos

by Sarahdipity Photos

by Sarahdipity Photos

Creative Classroom: Seatwork Folders

In my third grade class, there are several boys who struggle with organization, unintentionally losing and crumpling many of their unfinished worksheets and other important papers in their chronically messy desks. I saw a solution on Pinterest—a great idea shared by a 2nd grade teacher on her blog 2ndgradesandcastle.blogspot.com. I relayed the idea to the teacher I assist, Mrs. D, and she was eager to give it a try. 

In the featured picture (from the blog), the teacher taped the file folders on the front of the students' desks. However, since we have aisle space between our desks, we taped the folders to the side of the desks.  We also let the children decorate their own folders before we taped them up.

Right now we're only two weeks into our new system, and I'm curious to see how durable the folders will be. I used scotch tape to create the pockets, but I think I should have used packaging tape instead. Today I stapled them, for reinforcement.

I love our new system! Not only is it much easier now for the kids to organize their unfinished papers, but also it's much more convenient for Mrs. D and me to keep track of the students' progress. With a mere glance around the room, we can easily tell who is finished, who has a little bit of work yet, and who is lagging with lots of work piled.    

Cheers!

Diggin' the Dictionary

This morning I had one of those heart-warming, morale-boosting, "Yay!" teacher moments. In third-grade English we are currently doing a unit on reference study skills, becoming more familiar with informational text such as an index, glossary, encyclopedia, and dictionary. During our indoor recess this morning, I couldn't help but smile when I noticed two of the boys looking through the dictionary together, just for the fun of it. Both of those boys have learning challenges—one of whom has dysgraphia and dyslexia. Schoolwork is usually very frustrating for him. But this morning those boys were diggin' that dictionary! They were so interested, that when recess ended and it was time to line up for restroom break, both boys asked me if they could take the dictionary to read during restroom time! (With a large class, restroom break takes so long that I encourage the children to read silently while we wait for everyone to get a turn.) It was so cute to see those two boys sitting quietly along the hallway wall, bent over the dictionary in their laps. =)