Scared

I am supposed to be on Spring Break this week, which means I am supposed to be relaxing. I had not been feeling very relaxed. I went to the doctor yesterday and was scared out of my mind. Last week I went and was diagnosed with a bladder infection, even though I swore to the nurse that I knew what my body felt like when it had a bladder infection, and I was positive I did not have one. I called again on Monday because these mysterious symptoms had not gone away with the antibiotic, and they informed me that I did not have a bladder infection after all! I went in to see my doctor yesterday and every possible scenario had run through my mind. People kept reassuring me, telling me that it would be fine, and not to think of the worst case scenario. I felt bipolar though, fluctuating between thinking it was no big deal, and thinking it would turn out horribly. Mostly, I was scared because I didn't know what was wrong with me. Searching online for the answer only frightened me more! Luckily, my mother went to the appointment with me for moral support and because, well, mom's really do make everything better! After doing a bunch of tests, they didn't find any abnormalities. The doctor has a strong feeling that it was an ovarian cyst that burst that was giving me discomfort. I got home and looked it up online (I'm a glutton for punishment) and the symptoms matched what I'd been feeling. While I got no definite answer, just knowing that it quite possibly could have been a cyst has set my mind at ease.

Hi, I'm With Stupid

I went to the doctor today, and when I walked into the medical building, I stopped at the directory to double check the suite number. A woman who walked in with me went directly to the elevator. I joined her when I was done, and waited with her for the elevator. And we waited. And we waited. For 3-4 minutes. There was an elevator behind me (in addition to the one in front of us which we were waiting on), so I pressed the button, and noticed it turned red. The button on the elevator we were facing was not lit up. I then noticed that the button I'd pressed for the elevator behind us, was to go underground, so when it stopped at my floor, I did not step on. However, it dinged when it opened. The woman, observed the whole thing, and when she heard the *ding* of the elevator, realized that she should probably press the button to call elevator we were facing!! DUH! I naturally assumed, with her standing RIGHT IN FRONT of the elevator, that she had called for it. Not so. I ask you, who is more stupid: her, for not pressing the elevator, or me, for just standing there like a dum-dum??

A Eucalyptus Cord

I have been waiting all day to post this one! Today, we had our Human Growth and Development talks (that's code for sex education). I had the privilege/horror of sitting with the 5th grade boys. Our state is an "abstinence only" state (don't get me started on this topic), so they don't teach anything about preventative measures. They do, however, talk about both reproductive systems, and for many of the boys, the stuff about girls is brand new. One topic they discuss is pregnancy. Not how to prevent it (as stated above), but how babies are conceived and how they are born. The woman giving the talk asked the kids if they knew the name of the cord that attaches a baby to it's mother while in the womb. One of the kids raised his hand and very seriously said, "Oh, I think it's called the eucalyptus cord, or something." Yeah. Try not laughing out loud at that one!

BIG Weekend!

Kevin and I had a FABULOUS weekend! Three big things happened for us. On Friday, we decided to go look at new washers and dryers. Ours are a little old, and since they are on the second floor (which we LOVE), when the washer runs, it makes the whole second level shake. It is very reminiscent of living in California, with constant aftershocks! We ended up buying a pair of Samsungs. They are front loaders, and the washer has a hand wash setting for me, while the dryer has the steam setting for Kevin. I love shopping for these big items with Kevin, because we have very similar tastes, and it is always easy to find stuff that we both like. They are being delivered today!

On Saturday, we ran our first 5K since last June, and both did very well. Kevin ran it in 27:14, which equalled 8:45 miles! I squashed my last time by 2.5 minutes, and ran it in 34:41, which means I ran 11:09 miles. That's fabulous, seeing as how my last one, I was running at 12:35 miles, or something like that! Also on Saturday, I got to spend some girl time with my friend Brandi. We hit the outlet mall, got some great deals, and burned tons of calories walking from store to store.

Finally, and this is the BIGGEST one of all...we booked our plane tickets to...(DRUM ROLL, PLEASE............)

We are SUPER thrilled about that! We are going August 2nd-8th (we really get back on the 9th, though). It's perfect because I'm still out of school, so no time off is needed, plus we got married in August, so it will be like a 1st anniversary vacation. This weekend has been such a positive one for us, and we have many other fun filled ones in our future. Keep checking back for more of our adventures!

Some Sweet Sentiments

This was a conversation I had with one of my students today: Student: Mrs. Pinsky, I have been debating on whether I should tell you this or not. Me: What is it? Student: Well, if you have kids they should feel lucky, because you're gonna be a good mom. I told her that her comment was one of the nicest I've received in a long time. Because I'm neurotic and paranoid, I often wonder what kind of a mom I'm going to be someday. I'd like to think that teaching has given me some of the tools I'll need to be successful, but I also know it's a whole other ball of wax when it comes to your own kids. Sometimes I think that my perfectionism will cause me to expect perfection from my own kids. Sometimes I think I'll nag them to death, because let's face it, I'm kind of a nag. Sometimes I think that there is no possible way I will be able to deal with children all day, and then go home and deal with children all night. Those are just some of the thoughts that float around in my worrisome brain. Comments like the one my student gave me today put me somewhat at ease. The students who said this is no angel. She has been disciplined by me many times this year. (So she could've been saying this to suck up.) But I'm going to believe that this came from an honest place, and that's why I think it's so meaningful. Even though I've had to give her some of my "tough love", she still recognizes that it comes out of the fact that I want her to be a successful student and a better person. Maybe when I have kids, they'll be able to understand that my nagging/perfectionistic/trampled nerve tendencies will be coming from a good place, too!

Old Habits!!

I promised myself that I would blog 2-3 times per week. Clearly, that did not happen last week. I kept trying to think of something to post after that unique letter, but I just couldn't think of anything. Kevin and I did have a major breakthrough this weekend...we FINALLY finished picking out our wedding pictures for our album...only 6 1/2 months after the wedding! Oh well...better late than never. Just in case you haven't peeked yet, here are our wonderful pics.

A Letter of Apology

This morning, a student left a letter of apology on my desk. He got in trouble for inappropriate language the day before, and took it upon himself to write this to me. It completely made my day, and once you read it, you'll see why. (I have blocked out his name.) It is chock full of his personality. In fact, his mom read it last night, and said that she wanted to correct his grammar and spelling, but just couldn't bring herself to do it because it was so sincere and so full of his voice. This is what it said:

March 9, 2010

Dear Mrs. Pinsky, I am very sorry for my mistakes. My parents raised me different. I know what were the consequenses for cussing, (a green ticket and it saying about this on my permanent record.) I know it's wrong, and the 0 tolerance policy. (Pretty much, if you catch me cussing again, I'm in big trouble.) All I wanted was to make my freinds laff. But nope, it caused nothing but trouble. Those people who told on me weren't tatling, they were telling for a very, very, very good reason. I lost 6 pennies today. I have learned my leasson. Sincerly, __________________ P.S: Are me and you o.k.? I wrote him back a nice note to let him know that he and I were "O.K."!

Exhibit A - The Actual Letter

Personal Day....Part 2

What a beautiful day to take a personal day! It was meant to be...60 degrees and sunny! I packed my day with things to do, like...

grading writing prompts, and... running at the gym, and... getting a mani/pedi, and... folk dancing at the JCC.

The only thing I didn't get to do was yoga, but I was already so relaxed, there was no need! Personal day = success!

Personal Day....Part I

I have decided it is high time I take a personal day...considering I have not taken one (and I mean a true personal day, where you do stuff for yourself) EVER. After 5 1/2 years of teaching, I'm cashing one in! Here are my plans for tomorrow: 1) Grade writing prompts...I know...but I can't help it. 2) Run at the gym 3) Go to yoga class 4) Get a mani and pedi 5) Go to folk dancing class This is a LOOOOOOONNNNNNNNGGGGG list of things to do, and I'm honestly not sure if they will all get done, but I'm willing to try. I will update tomorrow evening (thus the title, "Personal Day....Part I), and share what I did and did not actually do. Wish me fun times! P.S. - For my teacher (and non-teacher) friends who live in the area...we should totally plan a "mental health" day in the future. What do you think????

Lunch Date

It's been a stressful week at school, since it's state testing time. The kids are paranoid and so am I, thanks to the state of Indiana and their ridiculous high stakes testing. That's why I decided it was high time that I stop, and remember why I decided to be a teacher. The reason is, first and foremost, I love kids. I love spending time with them, getting to know them, and making them feel like someone else cares about them. Instead of eating with my fabulous teammates, I chose to eat with some of my kids. It made my day when I saw how excited they were to have me sit at one of the tables. We had great conversations about sushi, tv shows, and birthdays. I was having so much fun, I decided not to just monitor recess, but to participate, too! We played some circle games, and "Down by the Banks". It completely lightened my attitude, and brought me back down to earth. My students may not remember half the stuff I teach them, but they will remember that I chose to spend that time with them, because they are the most important part of my job.

Calling All Moms-to-Be!

I have MANY girlfriends who are pregnant right now, and it's been a little difficult to keep track of who is due when, what they are having (or if they plan to find out), and the names they've picked or like (or whether or not they are telling). I thought it would be cute to have them reply to this post with the following: Name: Due Date: Sex of Baby (or whether you plan to find out): Name Ideas (or whether or not you're telling): Favorite thing about being pregnant so far: Least favorite thing about being pregnant so far: What you are MOST looking forward to: I know there are at least 3 of you pregnant pals out there who read my blog (or it's link to Facebook), so I'm expecting some answers! :)