Sunday, March 26, 2006
Monday, March 20, 2006
Ho Hum...
I'm breaking from my dinner preparations and subsequent house tidying to say a quick hello and toss up a few recent photos of my beautiful children. Enjoy!
What'll ya have?
With "Mr. Paddy"
"Greg's" bullseye
What'll ya have?
With "Mr. Paddy"
"Greg's" bullseye
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Sharpen Your Pencils...
...It's Tera Nova testing week! So three of my children will be participating in Tera Nova this year. The rest are still a bit too young I'm afraid. Pity.
As I sat last night tying ribbon around freshly sharpened No.2's and Ritz crackers (yes, I'm insane) I began to reminisce about my tests of yester year. Ah, the memories! The entire population of my school filing into the auditorium where we were to be seated every other chair and a row apart...NO CHEATING!!! God forbid some poor kid behind me begin filling in his bubble sheet: R-A-N-D, Oh crap...testing hasn't started yet!!
And that adrenaline rush! No.2 pencils sharpened and prepped for bubble fillage...you sit, awaiting the "go" word, at which point you throw open your test book and begin hurriedly answering the questions laid out before you. Always sure to fill in the correct bubble line. Such a terrible waste of testing time if you find that you've accidentally skipped a line and must erase and re-fill bubbles...UGH! THE HORROR!!!!!!
Be sure to fill in those bubbles completely now. No X's, check marks, or half filled bubbles. By the end of Jr. High, every child in the United States will, if nothing else, be qualified to hold a job in the bubble filling industry. That is, if you can get your hands on the coveted No.2 pencil. Nuh uh...no No.3's for me! All test lead must be the perfect shade of gray and at just the right level of softness so not to tear the answer sheet. MY HEAVENS!! Whatever shall we do if the magical bubble reader can't decipher the hideous No.3 filled bubbles!!! GASP!
So much hype is put into Tera Nova week. Teachers send home notes the Friday prior:
How To Prepare Your Child For Testing: Get a good nights sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, practice math facts, have your child read to you, (and my personal favorite) Assure your child that there is no reason to be nervous. Are you KIDDING me?! No reason to be nervous? For heavens sake people, you make this out to be the test of all tests. The single thing that will make or break one's educational career. Every eight year old in the country is shaking in their Vans. Don't be nervous....yeah right!
And NOW, we are to send a healthy snack to class for break time. Say WHA? Heck, we didn't get snacks during testing...healthy or otherwise. we weren't even allowed a bottle of water or chewing gum. "Pardon me? You say that you are parched with the dryness of a thousand dessert suns? Well tough luck, finish that test!!!" What has our world come to?
Curious,I do wonder if anyone else had a favorite testing day. Mine...vocabulary & reading comprehension. Oh yes...I was a reading GOD!!!! A math god however, I was not. I do believe I quite likely fell into the "Your child seems to have suffered a serious brain trauma and should seek professional help" category.
Math day was the day when it was absolutely inevitable that I would be rushing to fill in bubbles as the clock ticked away it's final seconds. "TIME! Close your test books. If you have any remaining time at the end of the next section you can go back and finish this section". Remaining time? What the heck were they talking about? If my lame self couldn't get through the simple addition/subtraction section, I sure as heck wouldn't have any remaining time after the trigonometry section. GRRRRR!!!!
No matter. Here I stand before you...er, ummm, this computer...a Tera Nova "graduate". And thankfully, I am no worse for the wear. Now, I will send my children off with a full nights sleep and a healthy breakfast, armed with No.2's and a snack. Good luck young ones. May all your testing dreams come true!
And all these things will be passed down from generation to generation, so that we shall remember those who have gone before.
As I sat last night tying ribbon around freshly sharpened No.2's and Ritz crackers (yes, I'm insane) I began to reminisce about my tests of yester year. Ah, the memories! The entire population of my school filing into the auditorium where we were to be seated every other chair and a row apart...NO CHEATING!!! God forbid some poor kid behind me begin filling in his bubble sheet: R-A-N-D, Oh crap...testing hasn't started yet!!
And that adrenaline rush! No.2 pencils sharpened and prepped for bubble fillage...you sit, awaiting the "go" word, at which point you throw open your test book and begin hurriedly answering the questions laid out before you. Always sure to fill in the correct bubble line. Such a terrible waste of testing time if you find that you've accidentally skipped a line and must erase and re-fill bubbles...UGH! THE HORROR!!!!!!
Be sure to fill in those bubbles completely now. No X's, check marks, or half filled bubbles. By the end of Jr. High, every child in the United States will, if nothing else, be qualified to hold a job in the bubble filling industry. That is, if you can get your hands on the coveted No.2 pencil. Nuh uh...no No.3's for me! All test lead must be the perfect shade of gray and at just the right level of softness so not to tear the answer sheet. MY HEAVENS!! Whatever shall we do if the magical bubble reader can't decipher the hideous No.3 filled bubbles!!! GASP!
So much hype is put into Tera Nova week. Teachers send home notes the Friday prior:
How To Prepare Your Child For Testing: Get a good nights sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, practice math facts, have your child read to you, (and my personal favorite) Assure your child that there is no reason to be nervous. Are you KIDDING me?! No reason to be nervous? For heavens sake people, you make this out to be the test of all tests. The single thing that will make or break one's educational career. Every eight year old in the country is shaking in their Vans. Don't be nervous....yeah right!
And NOW, we are to send a healthy snack to class for break time. Say WHA? Heck, we didn't get snacks during testing...healthy or otherwise. we weren't even allowed a bottle of water or chewing gum. "Pardon me? You say that you are parched with the dryness of a thousand dessert suns? Well tough luck, finish that test!!!" What has our world come to?
Curious,I do wonder if anyone else had a favorite testing day. Mine...vocabulary & reading comprehension. Oh yes...I was a reading GOD!!!! A math god however, I was not. I do believe I quite likely fell into the "Your child seems to have suffered a serious brain trauma and should seek professional help" category.
Math day was the day when it was absolutely inevitable that I would be rushing to fill in bubbles as the clock ticked away it's final seconds. "TIME! Close your test books. If you have any remaining time at the end of the next section you can go back and finish this section". Remaining time? What the heck were they talking about? If my lame self couldn't get through the simple addition/subtraction section, I sure as heck wouldn't have any remaining time after the trigonometry section. GRRRRR!!!!
No matter. Here I stand before you...er, ummm, this computer...a Tera Nova "graduate". And thankfully, I am no worse for the wear. Now, I will send my children off with a full nights sleep and a healthy breakfast, armed with No.2's and a snack. Good luck young ones. May all your testing dreams come true!
And all these things will be passed down from generation to generation, so that we shall remember those who have gone before.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Friday, March 03, 2006
Reality Exudes
No....you are not suffering from delusional fits of hysteria. After a very long and meandering month without me, you can rest easy. I am indeed, blogging again (here's a tissue, now wipe those tears from your eyes).
I've been on sabbatical in Thailand for the last couple of weeks. A much needed break if I do say so myself. And now, after great many massages, cups of coffee, glasses of wine, and baht frivolously spent, I am once again home with a much clearer head and lighter heart.
Unfortunately, there remains a far less appealing side to my holiday...the reality of returning home. I do believe that upon departure, the airlines issue rose colored glasses through which one will fondly remember home. However, the actual return is never quite as romantic.
After the customary hugs and kisses, gifts handed out, and general catching up...ones senses begin to overload as they take in the fine layer of dust, the over-growth of lawn, and the laundry pile slowly inching it's way into Mt. Washme status yet again. I console myself with the joy on my babies faces. I am, truly, happy to be home. Their smiles and laughter offer far more than the restorative properties of shopping.
So I welcome (albeit, tentatively) the laundry, homework, dishes, vacuuming, oil changes, and lawn work. Reality is a good place to be. I think I'll stay a while.
Missed you all! Smooches!! ~RD
I've been on sabbatical in Thailand for the last couple of weeks. A much needed break if I do say so myself. And now, after great many massages, cups of coffee, glasses of wine, and baht frivolously spent, I am once again home with a much clearer head and lighter heart.
Unfortunately, there remains a far less appealing side to my holiday...the reality of returning home. I do believe that upon departure, the airlines issue rose colored glasses through which one will fondly remember home. However, the actual return is never quite as romantic.
After the customary hugs and kisses, gifts handed out, and general catching up...ones senses begin to overload as they take in the fine layer of dust, the over-growth of lawn, and the laundry pile slowly inching it's way into Mt. Washme status yet again. I console myself with the joy on my babies faces. I am, truly, happy to be home. Their smiles and laughter offer far more than the restorative properties of shopping.
So I welcome (albeit, tentatively) the laundry, homework, dishes, vacuuming, oil changes, and lawn work. Reality is a good place to be. I think I'll stay a while.
Missed you all! Smooches!! ~RD
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