Week in Review

What a week this has been! I have been utterly swamped. My grandmother is home from the hospital and doing fairly well. School this week held a disaster and also an amazing experience.

I had to build a butterfly habitat last weekend for my Teaching Science class. We're raising Painted Lady butterflies. Here's what I built with the the help of my mom:

My caterpillars before they went into their chrysalis.

My caterpillars died, as did a lot of other students' caterpillars, but I got two more that were already in their chrysalis. I don't have any pictures of them though.

I had to do my social studies minilesson on leadership contributions this week. I was unaware of their prior knowledge, which made my lesson planning difficult. I took people specifically mentioned in the standards such as Jefferson, Washington, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., etc. and made a matching game where the students matched two contributions or facts to each person. The first day this went horrible. The kids had no clue about over half of the information. For example, they thought FDR was the 4th president, and that Eiesenhower commanded the Continental Army during the American Revolution. I was highly upset, because the kids didn't enjoy it and were frustrated. That was the worst lesson I've ever done. So that night I made some changes. I cut the amount of people down from 10 to 6, removing the ones they had no clue about. The next day when I taught the other half of the class, the lesson went so much better! The kids enjoyed it and opened up a good discussion on these people, their contributions, and what life would be like if they hadn't happened, like women not being able to vote or segregation still being legal. I got nothing but praise from my mentor teacher.

Thursday evening was also the Undergraduate Research Conference at my university. I was selected as a poster presenter for the College of Education, a first for the Department of Elementary Education. My presentation was on the effectiveness of guided reading as found through my first internship in a first grade classroom. My mom took pictures, so I'll do a separate blog post when I get those from her. It was a fantastic experience!

Five Question Friday

 

1. If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?

Physically, my weight and I am already working on that. 20 down, 60 to go.

Personality, I wish I was more confident and outgoing. I'm a whole lot more that way than I was when I was younger (think high school), but I have room for improvement. Being around new people can make me nervous, but I do open up after a few minutes.

2. Write about a time when you got lost.

I'm actually really good with directions/maps/etc. I can't recall a time I've ever been lost. 

3. Camping or 5 star hotel?

Both! I like being pampered, but I also like getting out in nature and enjoying the beauty. 

4. Have you donated blood?

Yes, I used to frequently, but I always felt sick for three days afterward. Come to find out my neurocardiogenic syncope is the reason, so I can't donate anymore.

5. Do you have a budget or do you 'fly by' most months?

I don't have a strict budget, but I know what I need for bills and necessities. I try not to spend too much beyond that since I'm just a college kid. 

Weekend Wander to the Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden

Today I took my mom to see the Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden in Nacogdoches. It's situated on my university campus and it is gorgeous this time of year. It's eight acres of walking trails through beds containing over 7,000 plants.  My mom has been wanting to go, and this is one of the last weekends when it is in bloom. Some of the plants were already losing their flowers. It was a beautiful day for the trip. The weather was nice and warm with a cool breeze under those tall pine trees. We wandered the trails for an hour looking at all the azaleas and ornamental plants. My mom's degree is in horticulture so this was right up her alley. I think she could have spent all day enjoying the garden.

A beautiful white hydrangea tree

A camelia bloom that fell off.

Chinese Fringe Tree

My mom loves fringe trees.

Spring Break Sickness

When I think of the words "Spring Break" I think of hundreds of college students crowding gorgeous white sandy beaches and blue water. There's lots of drinking, partying, and general craziness. Me-I'm not this kind of person. I had my spring break all planned: a few days at my friend's lake house relaxing, remodeling my laundry room, working in my yard.

Spring break started off with me heading to my friend Steven's lake house with Steven and Jason. We got there Friday evening, cooked dinner, had some wine, played Phase 10 (which I rule at haha). Saturday we slept in, went walking along the beach, watched some movies, cooked, had another friend over, etc. Sunday morning I woke up sick and ended up coming home that morning, a few days earlier than planned. Here are some pics from the weekend:

My room. The light coming in early in the morning is so beautiful.

Playing Phase 10 with Steven and Jason (taking the pic)

I love the entryway. The doors are beautiful and there are fleur-de-lis in the tile.

Lake Sam Rayburn

Jason and I walking along the water's edge. The water was so nice and warm.

Jason and me

Isn't this wall of windows beautiful?

Ever since coming home Sunday I have been sick. Just when I think I'm getting better it gets worse. I'm finally over the fever, and this morning I wake up feeling like someone hit the left side of my face/jaw/neck with a baseball bat. I called my doctor and my back-up doctor Wednesday and they're both out of town until Monday. Without insurance, the urgent clinic is $150-$200 just to get seen. It's absolutely ridiculous.

One bit of good news, I got a dog yesterday. A family friend needed to find her a good home, because the family they had given her to originally weren't taking good care of her. I gave her a bath last night and took her to get her shots this morning. She's a shih tzu/chihuahua mix, black with a white stripe down her belly, and weighs 9.6 lbs. She's five years old. I'm taking her to get groomed Sunday, and I'll post pics of her then. They named her Prissy, but I have to see what name I think she earns.