here are a few reasons i want a mac...

Ben and I both desire to own one of these incredible machines.  Since we're house-sitting for Bobby and Kelli this weekend, I figured I would take advantage of the fact that they are fortunate enough to own a Mac.  Currently, Ben is asleep and I can't seem to find a comfortable position, so I resorted to a few 7th grade tactics.  What can you expect at 1:17 in the morning?  

(P.S. I get annoyed when people say redundant things like 7A.M. in the morning...duh, the A.M. implies morning.  You can use one or the other, but you don't need both.)

DISCLAIMER: It is late, I know I don't look cute...that's not the point!  Try and see the humor as I do.

I have always wanted a twin!  (Maybe one that's not connect to me though...)

Oh, I almost forgot to mention the theme of these pictures.  I'm trying to show off my new teeth.  My bottom braces were taken off earlier this week, so I want the world to see how nice my mouth looks now.  In these shots, I've got on my night guard (I grind my teeth) and a stellar bottom retainer.  Ben is so lucky that he gets to sleep next to me each night!  :)

Square head, large nose, tiny eyes...just plain ugly!  (Yet those bottom teeth are still so straight)

A "normal" picture to use as a comparison.

If I can take this x-ray picture with a computer, why the heck does it cost so much for a similar photo with my orthodontist?  Okay, so it's not quite the same...in fact, this is much scarier!

Tasteful, artistic...black & white!  :)  I'm also doing my best to show off those pearly whites.  (You can't blame me, braces are not cheap.  I'm so thankful my mom and dad paid for them the first time around.  I had no idea how much they could set you back.  Ben and I are saving now for our kids...we might have enough banked by then, but there are no guarantees.)

WARNING: Extreme close-up!

Hottie!  (Enough said.)

This post might be deleted tomorrow morning - a few hours of sleep might change my mind!

P.S.  I'm pretty sure the Apple company is going to come knocking on my door...hoping to use this as a great form of advertising for their incredible machines!  (Oh, and the formatting on Blogger works much better with a Mac...reason enough to make the switch.)

life...

...is good because God is good!

As of late -

• House-sitting for the 'rents this past weekend


• Preparing to spend Mother's Day with the Simmons family...which means we're also celebrating May birthdays. There are at least 6!


• Jamie graduated from Westmont over the weekend (M & D attended the festivities in Santa Barbara and that's why Ben and I were at their house). CONGRATS TO HER FOR GRADUATING EARLY WITH A DOUBLE MAJOR!






• I finished my Professional Certification classes! My original teaching certificate (issued in July of 2004) expires in June of 2010. So, in the lovely state of Washington I have 3 options. I could have applied for an extension, earned my Professional Certification, or worked towards my National Board Certification. Since I'm guessing we'll have kids someday, I decided to get this out of the way now. An extension wasn't an option for me. Instead, Pro-Cert was my route of choice. It's a class divided into 3 parts. The Pre-Assessment class was something I completed last year at this time. In the middle, I had to take 9 credits that were aimed at my goal (I used classes from my Master's Program), and then Culminating piece is the class I just finished. By the end of this summer I should have my Master's completed and then I'll be good to go for another 2 years. After that, I'll have to be sure that I'm earning 15 credits every 5 years. DOESN'T THE FIELD OF EDUCATION SOUND SO ENTICING?


• Searching for Dessert Auction documents - I know they're around here somewhere.


• Loving my marriage - Ben and I are communicating well, focused on what matters most, and things are running smoothly these days. I am just enjoying him more than ever...he's the best! He's so thoughtful these days. Every time I turn around he's surprising me with the little things (making sure there's gas in both cars, taking out the garbage, helping with laundry and the dishes, working lots of extra hours washing windows, washing the cars, and playing endless rounds of Ticket to Ride). He's the best!



<-- He is so stinkin' cute!

• Enjoying each day with my students - we've had a lot of fun reading about Japan between the 9th and 12th centuries (samurai warriors, ninjas, foot binding, aristocrat homes, cosmetics, manners, beauty, shallow societies, etc.) The kids are soaking it all up and realizing that life exists outside of "their world."

• Mid-term grades for the students = entering late work, updating grades, tracking down missing work, printing out grades, responding to parent emails ("he/she said they turned in this assignment"), collecting signed Progress Reports


• Preparing for the Maywood Middle School Talent Show...the auditions are so much fun! I wish I could make a video of these and post them. They're so sweet (often funny too).


• Being spoiled this week (Teacher Appreciation Week) by our PTSA - they had gifts donated and each day several teachers have their name drawn. My name has yet to be pulled and I'm okay with that...the big gifts are still out there (a weekend at Chelan, a day at the spa, etc.). They have also arranged to feed us lunch each day. These parents are amazing! I guess you could say that this kind of appreciation makes up for the endless credits I am supposed to be earning.


• End-of-the-year stuff - Ordering supplies for my team, finalizing elections for next year's ASB officers, putting together the packet for potential Leadership students, trying to squeeze as much curriculum into the next few weeks, working around chaotic school schedules, attempting to make progress on my work-to-do list, hanging out on Tuesdays and Thursdays to help kids with their failing grades (and credit retrieval for failed classes throughout the year), waiting for next year's master schedule (to see who will stay and who will leave), filling out recommendations for the potential Leadership students, looking into nannying part-time for the summer, trying to find a time to squeeze in a trip to NY to see my best friend (who still needs to start a blog)


• Annoyed by Brianna and Joey - these are 2 of the individuals on this season's Real World. Joey has a drinking problem, but he's getting help from Dr. Drew, so that's good. However, Brianna is a mess...I don't even know where to start. Although these characters frustrate me, I still watch this crazy show (and I love it).


• It's a great season in my life and I wouldn't trade it for anything (although, I could use more than the 3 hours of sleep I got last night).

a huge leap of faith...

Each year, when the Breast Cancer 3-Day rolls around, I tell myself I should consider taking part. So many of us have been affected by this terrible disease. With the help of a co-worker, I have decided to jump on board for this year's walk. The most difficult part of this journey is trusting that the funds will pour in. I'm a willing walker who fears this part of the challenge...much more so than the physical aspect. If you would like to help me meet my goal (we have to bring in $2,200 to participate), please click the picture below. It should lead you to the donation site.

If you're not able to contribute monetarily, I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND (I don't have much to donate myself). Instead, I really covet your prayers - for my training, for my health, for the strength, and the financial criteria to be met.

Thanks so much for your help!

the WASL: did you know?

To some this may be a bit dry. To those who feel a bit more connected to the field of education, you might want to read on...

• According to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), the costs of WASL (Washington Assessment of Student Learning) for next year will increase an additional $41.7 million over current costs. That same amount of money could have helped reduce class size ratios in grades K-3.
• Overall, the WASL has cost at least $850 million since its inception. This does not include the unfunded portion picked up by the local districts.
• The WASL has decreased the amount of time spent in schools teaching art, health and fitness, social studies, world languages and career and vocational-technical classes.
• The WASL and the accompanying regulatory implementation decisions under OSPI's authority have created an increasingly intolerable workload for teachers and other educators, and take critical time and resources away from our primary task - the classroom instruction of all our students to bring them up to the state standards.
• The disproportionate impact of the WASL on the graduation of minority, special education and low income students has not been reported by OSPI since a report using 2004-2005 data. In that report, scheduled to NOT graduate in 2008 were: 45% of American Indian students, 41% of Special Education students, 40% of Latino students, 39% of African American students, 36% of English Language Learner students (ELL), and 35% of low income students.
• 15% of this year's graduating class - the first class who has to pass the WASL to graduate - are not included in the OSPI reporting of WASL pass rates. The OSPI total enrollment reported for the class of 2008 when they were 9th graders is 17,000 students less than their total enrollment reported by OSPI this year.
• As recently as 2006, when the Math WASL was still a graduation requirement, OSPI promised the legislature and public there would be a 'motivational bump' which would increase the rates of the graduation WASL. She predicted the 42% passing rate of 2005 would increase to a 94% passage rate for the class of 2008. As of last year only 61.7% of the class of 2008 passed the WASL; a figure that only accounts for those students still enrolled in school and classified as seniors scheduled to graduate on time who had taken and completed all three tests. (Source)
• OSPI has promised the legislature and public that the high stakes WASL would not increase student dropout rates, but has not published any data on state dropout rates since a 2006 report which used 2005-2005 data. In that report, 15,921 students dropped out of school in 2004-2005.
• Last year on May 8, 2007, 14,000 teachers' signatures were delivered on an Open Letter to Terry Bergeson asking her to be more accurate with the public and the legislature about under-reported WASL passing rates; to lower the high stakes for graduation WASL and to eliminate unfunded mandates for school districts caused by the regulations over which OSPI has authority. (Source)

Most of the above information can be found on the OSPI website - other sources are noted where necessary.

ben and i...

...are going to DISNEYLAND!

Today during my planning period (which ends shortly), I finished up the details. We have a car, a hotel, tickets to the park, and a flight itinerary.

With both of us being in school, money is tight...to say the least. At the same time, we are getting a rather large chunk of money back from our taxes and with the $1,200 coming in May from the government we have a bit of extra. (Can you ever really have "extra" money?)

My parents casually suggested we take a trip and Ben ran with that idea (praise the Lord). Once we talked it through and shopped around, we figured it would be good for the two of us. We're super excited and we've got less than 2 months to go - we leave Thursday, June 12th (after school) and we get back on Monday evening.

I'm kind of surprised at how cheap this is going to be...we got some great deals! Ben and I are super excited for a long weekend away, in the sunshine, at the Happiest Place on Earth!

I think I just might be the luckiest girl on earth! :)

blog watchers...

A while back Kara and I had a conversation about this whole blogging craze. I told her that it often feels a bit strange when you run into someone and they mention that they've been keeping up with the events in your life. Let me explain a bit. Yes, we have blogs to keep people updated and share what's taking place over the course of time. The fact that people are reading is not odd...that's a good thing.

The part that feels a bit awkward is that some folks don't ever comment. Now, when Kara and I were talking about this, she came up with a great comparison. Let me share...it's like seeing someone at the grocery store, but not waving to say hello. Do you like that? I do! :)

So, if you're out there, let me know (besides, I'm low on comments these days). You don't have to be a registered user...I allow anonymous comments. So, there are no excuses. Come out from behind the curtain. I'm excited to meet you and that way it won't be nearly as awkward the next time we see each other.

Wave hello! :)

one more thing...

I know this is my third post today, but I had to comment on something before it slipped my mind.

I'm over David Archuleta from this season's American Idol. Before marrying Ben, I didn't watch this show all too often. Now, we've got each episode DVR'd and I must say that the fellas are doing rather well. I was awed by young David's voice, but as the season has continued, I can't say that he's my favorite any longer. Once the show's over, I can't really see myself purchasing a CD created by this kid. There's not enough dimension to him. On the flip-side, I have become a huge David Cook fan! This guy can take a song and turn it into something unique...it's awesome to watch his work. So, I might have called a few times (16 times to be exact) to vote for Mr. David Cook. You should head to iTunes and check out his spin on some favorites.