It's January....

I don't really think I like the month of January....It's gloomy, cold, and it means going back to work after a couple of much too busy weeks off. Despite all of this, we're finally getting back into the routine of things here (not that we want to be!). School's back in full swing for both of us, with Dave trying to stay caught up on readings and me trying to control my hooligans so that I don't go as crazy as before Christmas break! We're also both looking for jobs for next year, so if anyone hears of any openings, be sure to let us know.
One good thing that's happened is that we went to Mamma Mia yesterday at Hamilton Place. For those of you who missed it, Dave bought me tickets for Christmas and was rubbing in my face for like three months before Christmas! Anyways, yesterday was the big day, and it was really cool! We were a little disappointed by the simplicity of the set, but the story line and music were great! We both enjoyed it, although Dave always leaves those places feeling really stiff....he's too tall for seats with very little leg room. But it was fun to go out on a "date" and just to do something different!

Lovin' the Library...

Every month, Steph takes out approximately 100 children's books from the public library. She divides the books up into 5 baskets, and each student in her class is assigned to a basket. The kids get the opportunity to read different books every month.
What's the biggest fine you've ever heard of at a public library?
I'll tell you!
$150~! For those of you who don't read numerical digits -- ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS!!!!
Steph almost fell off the couch when she heard that number.

Today, I'm thankful for the Librarians. Those stewards of the books and knowledge. The shelvers of books. The Maidens who waved our fine.

Teaching Resources

Just thought I'd share a few online Teaching resources:

http://www.schoolhousetech.com/Products/Default.aspx has a couple of programs for math, and literacy. I saw what the Math program offered and can say that it is a GREAT resource. You can download trial versions and print off as many pages as you want. (they recommend that you do!).

www.math.com is also a phenomenal site if you've forgotten how to do math. Once you've learned your way around the site, you'll be able to look up "how to's" for almost anything math related!

http://nces.ed.gov/nceskids/createagraph/default.aspx has a program for making Graphs (math class!). It seems to be fairly kid-friendly.

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html is an Excellent source of online Math Manipulatives (so you don't have to buy them all!). Potential saver of money.

I'll add more online resources as I think of them! If you know of any, let us know!

F.Y.I.: Parents

Alright all you parents: I'm sure that you've sent your kids to school telling them NOT to talk about something specific that may go on at your house. You're trying to instill in them a sense of personal/family privacy.

Well as a Grade 3 teacher, I'm here to inform you that they don't get it! They really do go to school and talk about things that they probably shouldn't! Let me tell you, being the teacher at times such as those isn't the greatest either! I know things about some households that I KNOW I shouldn't know!

I started a unit today on Drugs and Medicines. We started by discussing prescription drugs and over-the-counter medicines. Well, my class likes to share, they like to make real-life connections to concepts and share them with all of us. Most of the time I encourage that...today however.....not so much! I got a lot of "My dad takes medicine for this....," "My mom has this problem and takes medicine at breakfast and dinner for this," "My Grandma takes like 10 pills a day" (which I'm sure is an exaggeration!). Anyways, the unnecessary comments just kept coming! No matter how many times I said, "I don't want to know what medications your parents are taking and for what" that sense of personal privacy was not getting through to them.

So now that I have a much more in-depth knowledge of the parents in my class, I'm begging you: Please don't tell your children things you don't want them to repeat, because you can bet they'll repeat it!

C'est la Vie

I'm reading "Why I Hate Canadians" by Will Ferguson right now. So far its alright. A little slow at the start. But it really gets funny in a chapter about the Cold War - referencing the Hockey Wars (Summit Series, and the Canada Cup).
I'm a little disappointed that all my supposedly original thoughts about Canada have already been taken by someone else... And made into a book.
I hate Canadians for doing that.

The Dog Won't Make Eye Contact

We were visiting Steph's parents last night. So, this morning I woke up early. Really early. So I got out of bed, went upstairs, sat on the couch, and started reading my book. The dog, in need of human companionship, chose to lie down in front of the couch I was sitting on.

I usually like dogs. Their company is comforting, and they are usually quite content to simply lie at your feet.
The dog farted.
Yep.
No apology either.

In fact, as the rank odour filled the living room, she made no movement. (Kind of like the guy who thinks 'maybe my silent fart won't be noticed by anyone' and then blames someone else when it actually does stink...). Yeah. Well, I noticed.

"Awww, Ros............," I said.

She didn't look up. She didn't want to look me in the eyes. She knew what she did.

She just lay there. Pretending it wasn't her.

But we both knew who did it. And it wasn't me.

It was awful. So, I had to leave the room.

Touch my book and the Teddy Bear gets it!

Steph and I are finally home from Christmas visiting!

Now we begin the annual re-opening of gifts. You see, when you spend your vacation time on the road, you tend to open your gifts, appreciate them, and then pack them away again (as efficiently as possible)(to save space in the car!). When you get home, you get to unpack all the presents again. Re-opening gifts is great! This year I recieved a bunch of books (hence, the title of this blog!), some clothes, Mindtrap (an intelligent game), a pretty nice wooden plaque from Dad to welcome people into our home, and an Ottawa Senators Baseball Cap.

Unfortunately, the flowers Steph recieved (for conducting the school play) have all wilted. She was able to enjoy them for only a short time. We mourned for them by unceremoniously stuffing them into a garbage bag and throwing them out into the cold, cold, garbage bin outside.

Speaking of outside. There's no snow! None, nodda, zip, nien, rien, n'est pas (I don't know what half of those 'words' mean...). But there's no snow. Qu'elle disappointement! (you gotta love french).

I would have to say that the highlight of my personal Christmas was keeping Steph's present a secret from her.... FOR FOUR (4) MONTHS!!!!!! I had Steph's present figured out in September. Which, of course, tormented her because she hadn't even thought of mine yet, nor, had she told me what she might want. So for four months I kept it secret. Which I usually can't do. She's going to see Momma Mia! in Hamilton. I don't know who she'll bring....

Here are some other highlights:

- Playing Bond with Matt, GT3 with Nan,

- Almost winning Euchre after going down 8-0 at the start (final score was 10-9)

- Making a luge run with Stevin and Michael,

- Almost smoking a tree when we tried the luge run,

- Getting Mom and Laura to play Dance, Dance Revolution,

- Seeing Friends and Family

- Getting a chainsaw stuck in a tree,

- Getting the chainsaw unstuck from the tree,

- Playing 'Ticket to Ride Europe' and winning,

- and Eating.