Recovery, Alpacas & A Birthday

Feeling like myself again, though it took almost two weeks to get over whatever that was... I do NOT recommend it, nor would I wish it on my worst enemy!

I had a low-key birthday, hanging out with my parents at the Alpaca Ranch in NM. We're here for our annual Thanksgiving vacation/ranch sitting.

Mom & Dad celebrated their 44th wedding anniversary yesterday, another low-key event.

We're always so relaxed when we stay at the ranch. I feel like it is a very healing place. They only get 2 TV stations, the Internet is slightly faster than dial-up, and you're surrounded by mountains and animals. It's the perfect place to "get away."

I love it here.

I'm spending another week here and my focus is on creating (crocheting & spinning) and spending time with the critters.

A while later...

I know it's been a long time.... And as you may have guessed, a lot has happened.

Most recently I became so ill that I spent the night in the emergency room on IV fluids trying to get re-hydrated.

I started in with a stomach bug last Wednesday and by Thursday night I thought I was dying. I've never been so sick in my life... I couldn't even keep water down. By 2am Friday I asked my mom to take me to the ER and then I was begging the ER doctor for an IV.

It was my first-ever IV and it was SO needed and SO appreciated. I felt better within 5 minutes, even though my fever persisted until late Saturday night and I'm just beginning to eat solid foods again.

I was supposed to leave Monday to begin a 3 week visit to Victory Ranch Alpacas, my NM friends. I'm hardly in any shape to drive, so my departure has been postponed until this Saturday.

Sunday is my birthday so I WILL be better by this weekend!

I have a lot more to say regarding the big events in my life that have occurred this year, but I'm exhausted!

More to come later.

Promise.

Moving on

It's been a while....

After four years filled with doctor's visits, medications, allergy shots, acupuncture, and sinus infections... I've finally made the very difficult decision to leave Colorado.

The immediate plan is to move back to Texas for a year so I can get healthy (physically and financially) and then find a job somewhere where I will be healthy.... Maybe back to Minnesota?

My uncle's funeral

Oh blog

Quite a bit has happened since my last blog post...

I turned 33. My parents celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary. My lil "nephew" turned 2 (good luck Aya!)

Mom, Dad, Kaylee and I spent Thanksgiving at the alpaca ranch in NM, during which time I learned quite a bit....

1. I learned how to crochet some new things
2. I learned about an awesome root, Osha, not to be confused with OSHA, that has been used forever - dating back to Native American healing. It helps with fighting infection and loosening mucus. It seems to be helping with my allergies and sinus infection (going on week 5).
3. I learned cutting out dairy will also help me out
4. I learned cutting dairy out is even harder than I thought

I'm back at school now, with one week under my belt and just 2 more weeks until winter break.

Mom is getting her other knee replaced on Monday. She was going to wait until April or June, but she is in too much pain. I hope this knee does as well or better than the first.

I'll be in survival mode the next couple of weeks - in anticipation of break time, Christmas and family.

Fidgety

I have a hard time watching baseball on TV... but since the Rangers are in for a second year I felt the need to watch them this go-round.

And you know what I've realized? Baseball players are as fidgety as Middle Schoolers.

Seriously. It could drive a person crazy.

Crazy week. This one ranks up there with the top of the crazies....

Bomb threats. Knives (as in plural) brought to school. Red Ribbon Week = costumes every day and kids bouncing off the walls. And a fist fight at the Halloween dance tonight.

I love my job. Right?

On the positive side....

There aren't enough words to describe how excited I am about these upcoming movies:

The Avengers

Much Ado About Nothing

And I did something new.... I supported an upcoming movie through Kickstarter - because I love the cast (also from Whedon projects) - Lust for Love. I pledged to donate a small amount of money - only having to pay it if they make their $70,000 goal - and they did! In return for helping to support the movie I get an autographed DVD. Exciting!

Beware the Bowling

Two Fridays ago I tweaked my knee whilst bowling. It has been bugging me since then, especially if I move it the wrong way. Today I went to the doctor to have it checked out and she said I injured my MCL (pulled or strained). That's a proper sports injury! So to all the people that say bowling isn't a real sport - my knee says " Neener - neener - neener! Is so!"

I didn't bowl last week and the doc said to take another week off and rest it up. I also need to wrap it up next week and watch my leg placement.

In other news - big snow storm last night/today. A good foot or so. Enough that the trees were feeling it.

Morning Commute

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I'm still here

Busy busy busy

School is almost 1/4 of the way done.

Working a second job and have bowling on Fridays.

Inservices. Parent-Teacher conferences. Trainings. Yearbook. School sporting events.

Yup.

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A room with a view

Fall colors from my classroom.

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This little girl's hat was madefrom my parent's yarn.

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Taos 2011

Farewell 2011Taos Wool Festival! You were filled with good friends, new friends and the widest assortment of dogs found outside of a dog show.

Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures this year. Too busy manning the booth. I didn't bring any of my own things to sell. It's been a crazy year.

Next year I vow to come with fiber of my own to sell!

Until then, stay inspirational.

Love,

Aspen

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What a start to the year...

Yelled at by parents...

Students who don't listen and have attitude issues...

A mouse nested in my desk over the summer so I had to disinfect it...

And now on my 3-day weekend = Food poisoning...

I hope it's like what Mom said - get all the bad stuff out of the way to begin with and then the rest of the year will be much better.

On the plus side:

The parent issue has been resolved.

The students are remembering how to listen.

My desk is now mouse-free.

I'm starting to feel like myself - and it could have been during the week where I would have had to miss school.

I did a little math - impressive since math isn't my thing - I teach 10 classes and 3 of them are giving me a hard time... that means that only 30% of them are giving me trouble... so 70% are going quite well. Trying to find the positive and focus on that.

And best of all my new principal is EXTREMELY supportive. She consults with me on things to get my feedback (since it directly impacts me) and she's on my side with upset parents and students.

Dear current and former teachers:

I've got a question for you... How do you get over/deal with the following situation:

A student makes a bad decision.

You try to correct the student's behavior, implementing an appropriate punishment.

The parent attacks you - "How dare you!?! My child doesn't deserve this treatment!"

I find it extremely difficult to deal with and I wind up taking it very personally. What it says to me is that the parents see me as the bad teacher and/or think I'm out to get their kid...

How could I do my job if I didn't love my students?

How could I possibly do my job if I wasn't absolutely committed to trying to educate my students to be safe and responsible technology users and all-around good people?

I go to a Middle School 200+ days a year. I'm surrounded by almost 300 pre-teens and teens who have raging hormones, varied home lives and backgrounds, and attitudes galore.

I listen to their stories. I cry at the indignities of their lives. I see the adults they will be and I pray for their futures.

I see them in the grocery store. I see them at the post office. I see them two hours away in Denver at a Target.

They shout "Hey Ms. E!" and run up to me wherever I am.

I do a good job and I care about my students.

And then I have parents questioning my commitment to teaching, my decision making, and the way I run my classroom.

Maybe the parents are just being defensive because they know their child made a bad decision and they feel ultimately responsible.

Whatever the reason.... How do I deal with it? How do I keep it from feeling personal?

Fun new discovery - a blog that finds links to a variety of free e-books. I've started using the Kindle App on my phone and the Overdrive App through my local library. I love free books!

Books on the Knob

Relief from the heat

I'm back in Colorado after a month in Texas where they were having record breaking temperatures and it was over a hundred degrees every day.

Yuck.

Today's top temperature was 80 degrees and it felt gooooood.

Now back to the boxes and boxes... have to finish unpacking before I go back to work!

Also... Dad and I saw a bear! My first and his third.

Moved but not settled in

The last couple of months have been crazier than usual.

Then end of the school year - fellow teacher staying with me for a few days while she was in-between homes - Aya and family visiting for a week - packing up to move - Dad here for a week helping me move - the big (pain-in-my-bum) move - and today I finally turned in my key for the old place.

My new place is a MESS. It literally looks like a localized tornado broke out or that the boxes simultaneously puked their contents all over the place.

Yes. It's THAT bad.

Ugh.

This is why I waited 3 years to move - because I realllllly hate it.

I think I'll be much happier here... at least that's the hope. And I'm hoping I'll be healthier here. It's not nearly as dusty as where I lived before. They opened a gravel pit down the road from my old place last summer and it went from being annoyingly dusty to impossibly dusty. I would start at one end and by the time I was done dusting the other end of the place the first half would need dusting again. Disgusting.

I have high hopes for this place. A yard for Kaylee. A big front window for Sheba. A living room 3 times the size of my old one for me.

Yay!

Here are a few pictures from my last trip through the park:

Aya, D and Baby are here!

They're here for a few days and we spent today walking around one of the local towns and we took a short drive to the park. I'm especially happy with the bull moose pictures! It's only taken me 3 years to get pictures of moose with decent-sized antlers!