Last Monday, I sat in the dentist’s chair as he tried to break off the five year old ‘temporary cement’ on my front tooth, and I mentally cursed my 16 year old self for her carelessness. Sometime in the 1980’s I had ridden my bike down a hill thinking the most important thing was to… Read more
2013
The pain started as my students finished their writing tests. It wasn’t unlike a lot of the pain I had been feeling lately in my gut — just more intense. I stood up to see if that would help as my last two students wrapped up their sentences and spoke to me about their worries… Read more
I often think of decoding grammar as piecing together a giant word filled jigsaw puzzle. A thousand pieces to put together on a kitchen table is really not so daunting compared to the complex ways English and other languages fit together, moving with our new ideas and needs for communication. The analogy somehow helps me… Read more
Out my door and to the left and past the newest development with million dollar homes my boys and I have found a place of wonder. To the east of the road sits a pasture where horses roamed when we first moved here. On the other side, blackberries my sons love to pick crawl over… Read more
Title: SCAT Author: Carl Hiassen Narrated By: Ed Asner Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (hardcover); Listening Library (audio CD) Publication Date: January 27, 2009 Length: 371 pages; 9 hours and 17 minutes Genre: Eco-fiction; humorous; mystery; realistic fiction Source: Checked out from library Completed: October 7, 2013 POV: Third Person Grade Level: 4-12 Age: 9-12 Memorable: Humorous and memorable character descriptions. Beginning scene… Read more
Not too long ago I found a post from a shirttail relative on my Facebook page. My father’s cousin’s son (I think that means he’s my second cousin) posts a variety of things from science tidbits to grammar funnies and photography. One day he posted a mural in progress that caught my imagination. I shared… Read more
In a slight change from my usual posts, I’d like to offer you the chance to win a video course through the Brave Girls Club. I took my first course from these ladies in January 2011, the month I learned my dad had pancreatic cancer. Soul Restoration held me together through that time and the… Read more
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HswDduOinMw#t=21 Last night I watched the Dallas Brass perform and it threw me back to my high school band days. My teenage trumpet player forced me out on a Friday night because his junior high band was performing with this group. I sat in the Puyallup High School auditorium thinking I had robbed someone by… Read more