Jumping Off Swings by Jo Knowles is coming out in paper back! To celebrate she is giving away a signed copy. Read her blog post for more information:
http://jbknowles.livejournal.com/434578.html?view=8133778#t8133778
Monday, October 24, 2011
Saturday, October 1, 2011
A Monster Calls by Patrick NessMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Wow. Everyone should read this book. It truly is an amazing story. It is one that is a must have for my classroom library.
My dad died of cancer two weeks ago, and during the last week of his life, we all were telling him it was okay for him to let go. I completely identified with Conor and his struggle with himself over not wanting his mum to die, but also wanting the pain to be over. This book helped me as I am in the process of grieving my father's death. I know that there are many young adults out there who will be helped by reading this story.
View all my reviews
Friday, September 16, 2011
Friday Five
1. At 5:45 this morning my dad passed away. My brother was at his side, whispering in his ear praise for the amazing husband, father, teacher, and friend that he has been. I can't help but believe that at the same time he was hearing my brother's praise for his life on Earth, he was hearing God welcome him into heaven. I am grieving, yet I know that he is no longer suffering and I will see him again one day. I went to school today. I know that he would have wanted me to do that. I felt that was a way that I could honor his memory.
2. I've not been writing or blogging much lately. Life has been so crazy with Dad's illness and school. I need to write. It will help me process everything. I need to carve out the time.
3. This morning after I told my freshman homeroom about my dad, one of my boys came up to me and said, "You need a hug." then gave me a gentle hug. It was very sweet. The two Korean exchange students each came up to me a grasped my hands for a moment. Another girl came and gave me a hug. These kids have known me for two weeks. I was very touched my their compassion. They are great kids.
4. I still feel the tug of war of the demands of school (correcting and planning) and the need to be with my family. I know that everyone understands if I'm with my family, but I'm falling farther behind in my school work and that is frustrating to me.
5. I have an amazing husband. He has been doing the house work, shopping, and cooking; he just build a bench for us to use as a coffee table until he designs and builds a real coffee table, and he has been so gentle and compassionate as I deal with the death of my dad. He hasn't found a job yet, but he's still looking, and this morning he received a commission to build two pieces for my principal and his wife.
2. I've not been writing or blogging much lately. Life has been so crazy with Dad's illness and school. I need to write. It will help me process everything. I need to carve out the time.
3. This morning after I told my freshman homeroom about my dad, one of my boys came up to me and said, "You need a hug." then gave me a gentle hug. It was very sweet. The two Korean exchange students each came up to me a grasped my hands for a moment. Another girl came and gave me a hug. These kids have known me for two weeks. I was very touched my their compassion. They are great kids.
4. I still feel the tug of war of the demands of school (correcting and planning) and the need to be with my family. I know that everyone understands if I'm with my family, but I'm falling farther behind in my school work and that is frustrating to me.
5. I have an amazing husband. He has been doing the house work, shopping, and cooking; he just build a bench for us to use as a coffee table until he designs and builds a real coffee table, and he has been so gentle and compassionate as I deal with the death of my dad. He hasn't found a job yet, but he's still looking, and this morning he received a commission to build two pieces for my principal and his wife.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
I really enjoyed this book. Rebecca Skloot did a wonderful job of bringing the Lacks family to life and explaining the science. She clearly presents the moral issues and gives you a lot to think about.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Just a little up date and slice of my current life
I haven't been doing a whole lot of blogging lately. It's been a very busy summer. In July we made numerous trips between Maine and Massachusetts. We worked on our new rental, cleaned and moved out of our old. I've been meeting with parents and teachers and trying to recreate an entire high school program (still much to do on that). In August we officially moved to Maine. I've been trying to take care of all those things that must be done when one changes states. I've been meeting with parents and teachers and trying to recreate an entire high school program and be ready to teach in a new school starting September 6. We've made two trips to our family cottage in central Maine, a trip back to MA for a wedding, and now here we are two weeks before the start of school. I've still not been able to get into my classroom (actually, I'm not sure which room is going to be mine), I don't have my curriculum guides for World Literature or World History, my 79 year old aunt is in the hospital awaiting open-heart surgery, my dad was just diagnosed with cancer (they found it in his chest on the CT scan yesterday), and this morning my brother called to tell me that Mom was calling the paramedics to take Dad to the hospital because he wasn't doing well (physically or emotionally) and there was blood in his urine. My husband is unemployed and we have no insurance. When I took this job (which I still believe was the right thing to do), I took a pay cut and my husband quit his job because we would be moving out of state. The leech field at our house has failed and we are still waiting for it to be replaced; it was supposed to be done last week. In the meantime, we are continually checking to make sure the septic hasn't backed up into the basement, conserving use of the plumbing, and having to go to the laundry mat instead of using the washer that is here.
Now all that sounds pretty bad, but I'm actually doing pretty well so far. I'm not freaking out or getting bowled over by the stress. It's not because I'm such a calm, put together person. It's because of my faith in God and my trust in his care and provision. It's a rather eerie feeling to see all that is going on in my life, and just feel so calm and at peace. But it's a whole lot better than feeling stressed out and overwhelmed!
Monday, August 22, 2011
You Don't Know Me by David Klass
I stayed up until midnight to finish this book and when I turned the last page, all I could say was "wow". It took me a little bit to get into the book and to adjust to the narrative style, but once I did, I loved John's narrative voice. He was very funny! It's a very unique voice and a very compelling story.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Slice of Life
The only misadventures of this move so far was when beloved husband got on I-495 South, instead of I-495 North. I teased him that I thought he'd decided to head to Cape Cod rather than Maine. Oh, and then there was this morning when we went to return the rental truck (2 days late) and the owner and secretary were not in, but the owner's wife who knew nothing about checking in rentals was manning the shop. We figured out what we thought we owed, paid in cash, and got a handwritten receipt with a promise that if we didn't hear from them, everything was fine. You can't make a major move like this without some story to tell!
On the more delightful side, I'm at my library (that is open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays) and the collection is pretty good for a little library and it is a really nice, interesting space to work.
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