Well here we are here on June 9th. I can say without a doubt that it’s been the craziest year  of all the years I’ve been teaching. So many twists and turns. Ups and downs. Heartbreak and happiness. Back in early March, I could never have fathomed all the changes we went through and continue to go through. I made some mistakes. I did some great things. Overall, I’m really proud of the resilience and tenacity I brought into this season. Not sure this will be written the best- just thinking as I go.

When all of this began, I set some goals. One of them was, that with the blessing of being given time that I would spend more of it with my son and husband. How have I done with that? The honest answer is that I was hit and miss. I had a hard time drawing already murky lines (I think all teachers can relate) between work and home life. It became even harder when we are lucky to have our jobs. The pull to stay always connected was ever there. It was incredibly hard to work full time at home with a husband that also works full time. With my son here full time. That said, I did a great job at times. We had many dinners at our table together which was something I really wanted to get going on anyway. The cooking was therapeutic. I had more conversations with my husband. John and I learned and played a ton more than we normally would have. Still have some more work to do with being 100 percent present with them and everyone. I will keep working on it. That gets into my technology goal of putting it down more.

Another goal was to get into a healthy morning routine again. I am proud of that. I didn’t make it every morning. I set a goal of moving my body 30 minutes a day in some capacity. MWF I do some running/peak exercises and push-ups/sit-ups. T/Th I alternate between dance and pilates. Sat/Sun is just a walk with Remi and/or John. Bike rides and walks interspersed when I can. I am proud to report that today was day 80 of moving my body every single day. Even if it wasn’t always intense, I moved everyday. Seems like a dumb thing but it can get easy to get gripped into work or just get tired and not address it the way it needs to be. So… day 80 for me!! I also wanted to sleep better. I have ups and downs with that. But mostly getting much more than I normally do.

As for school? We did the very best we could. It was incredibly sad at times to see kids go through things that they missed over and over again. It was hard as a teacher to miss those things. It is hard to see kids struggle with this new form of learning at times too. On the flip, I also saw some kids excel. We had laughs and tears. Music trivia and band lessons. Loss but also letters and unique events that ordinarily wouldn’t happen. I am really proud of the way my colleagues handled it, switching everything on a dime. We got some major curriculum writing done. Had some extremely inspiring and motivating band webinars for how we move forward. One more tonight about teaching band in the fall. Lots of work done in the band conference.

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So I guess to sum up this time- I tried my best. The house is frequently destroyed.  There’s alway something on the to-do list. I really think we did the best we could given the circumstances. We were lucky to have jobs and our health. We used them the best we could.

In funny news, I’m pretty sure JM is going to be working for Nate Mann one day. John: “I’m not gonna do just anything. I will just puff on the train.” (I know that doesn’t sound good haha, but he means the train puffing).

Also- John thinks it’s cool to sit and watch me exercise as a spectator.

Tomorrow begins summer school and I will be working a bit each day with students who still did not pass term 4. We may do some summer lessons/band camp as things change (if they do- we will have to monitor). Since my meetings should be a bit less during this time, I plan to get back into my photography projects. We also need to spend some time with my family and Joe’s. I feel really bad for not calling them these past two weeks- it’s just been a bit of a zoo. So plan to check in with them very soon (hopefully tomorrow or Thursday). I also plan to take some time for rest because I very rarely get to. Shut off the computer and recharge. Need a bit of a break.

I’ll be calling you soon, mom! 🙂

 

 

 

It is Wednesday night and I last wrote on Saturday. Mostly because we’ve been slammed. Busy at work and all. There are genuine moments of frustration- kids just turning in blank assignments without bothering to read anything. Kids emailing without bothering to read anything. But then there are kids who are doing an incredible job that make it worth it. Lots of grades pouring in means lots of grading. Lots of forms. Lots of correspondence. Lots of curriculum to write. I wrote for hours. I am proud to say that the 5-12 Band Curriculum for Marinette has been completely roughed out. Now we tweak.

In other news, I found out my checking account has been hacked. Fun times. Tomorrow we deal with that. Ugh.

By contrast, the weekend was lovely. Seeing Joe’s parents again for dinner was wonderful. It has been a long time! Thanks for such a nice weekend, Oskeys 🙂

 

It’s been hot. My son seems to take after me. He likes to eat food and watch people exercise.  (I have been known to do this in the past) hahaha. Now I know what it’s like to be on the other side while people observe. Sweaty…

Some good foods.

Some letter writing.

John is happy.

Today I received really sad news. The father of one of middle school student and two high school students (2 trumpet players and 1 saxophone player) died last night in a motorcycle accident. One of the kids was riding with her dad. They hit a deer on the highway. Such a heartbreaking thing. They are a truly great family. So many thoughts.

The world seems to hurt. I wish everyone peace and understanding.

 

 

 

Definitely a different graduation this year, but also special because it was different.

John Michael loved the car parade. Remi “loved” delivering signs with me around town. 🙂

The virtual graduation ceremony turned out lovely. They prerecorded it and it was released today. More thoughts to come on my band seniors this week- few more things to do. For now, congratulations to all graduates! I also wish my Lena students congrats too! They look like they’ve had some special events recently.

So Remi and I took a nice walk outside and it’s gorgeous. Will see Joe’s parents today for the first time in a long time which should be really nice. 🙂

John was explaining the train falling in Back to the Future Part III.

Have a nice weekend!

Some things I love. Feeling proud after a hard workout in heat and humidity. Remember that glass of water? A haircut and color after months of going gray. Good foods like shrimp pasta and tostadas. Watching John run in the sprinkler. Rain through the open window as I work. Laughing at John’s sour cream taco.

 

What to know something I don’t like? This stool. Finding this stool around the house means a certain person is up to things…

Down to the grind. Did a LOT of grading and communication today and last couple days. Busy busy. Got a lot of curriculum work done. Rainy but liked it.

 

 

Evenin’ to all on this sticky humid night. Bit behind today on the post but did lots of good work for school. The weekend was wonderful! We did go to Elk Rapids (which is north of Traverse City). Now, before you question my judgment here, we only went to my parents/grandfather’s house and there was never more than 10 people. We didn’t go anywhere while there and we’d all been quarantined prior to this. My grandfather is older and we have some immune compromised people in the family so it made the most sense to go now. While things are starting to open back up, we felt that since it was in the early stage it was the best window of time to go to their house. We will be responsible.

It was Papa D’s birthday awhile back so we gave him some presents!

The weather was great for the most part and the foods even better.

Enjoyed some time in the hot tub and a fire on the deck. JM even got to play in the pool his Nana and Papa got him to hang in. John Michael said he had so much fun! I enjoyed my run along the lake.

When I got home, Jess had left this cozy blanket on my doorstep! Thanks Jess 🙂 I love it!

And onto the real reason for the season. I am and will always be forever grateful for the sacrifices men and women have made for our country. Thank you will never be enough really. Normally, I have my students participate in Memorial Day services every year. Since that could not happen, I participated in Taps Across America. It was an honor. Thank you to all who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

 

Well… I gave it my best try cutting the hair of a squirmy 4 year old and my husband. Joe’s hair was significantly easier because he sits still. Still gotta work up the nerve to fix the top of his hair some more today. And John’s needs some tweaking. Still… they look a little less shaggy. Do not think I will add hair stylist to my resume. haha.

John Michael has this dog that John Fay got him- this big stuffed lab. I am always shouting at that thing thinking it’s Remi. Pretty hilarious. I walked into the back bedroom and he put this dog in the crate. hahahaha.

Beautiful day here. Some things to get done school-wise. Might just have to do some grading on the back porch!