So this has been a busy summer...

Just saying. Classes for my Specialist 4 nights a week the month of June. Taught 5th grade summer school (Reading ALL day) mid-June to mid-July. Set up my new 2nd grade classroom. Working on an insanely huge project that's due in Oct (for Specialist). And I turned in my Research "Book" in June. So excited! I worked on it in 3 classes, nearly a year. I call it a book because it has chapters. I bound a copy for myself and put it on my bookshelf. =)

Mom has been visiting for a month or so. Ben is here for the summer. 2 dogs. An occasional weekend visit from my dad. Nice and crammed. But I love them!

I got to go for a long weekend to visit my uncle and family at the BEACH. But I got burned after a bad decision to visit the water between 11am and 3pm. I stayed under the umbrella the whole time, but my white skin didn't appreciate SPF 8.

So today was my first day of summer! Yea! Stephanie took me out for my birthday. I chose a Vietnamese restaurant. Fun, new experience.

Little Rock

To start off Spring Break, I got to spend time with my lovely Lipscomb ladies.

Tiff is having a baby, so we got together to shower her with love.

We filled our time with eating, pedicures, shopping, hanging out. I just love these girls!!

Latest Pics

I really have not been taking my camera on my outings in... FORever. I'm just not interested in whipping out my camera. We even had our Ladies' Retreat for the church this weekend, and I only got 2 pictures! My goal is to do much better next year!!

my friend Christi

my friend Kim Gibson

Jake got his new Spring haircut. A before/after picture:

Steph had told me about a burger boutique in Atlanta, and I wanted to try it! It's called Flip, if you're ever here; it's near Atlantic Station (IKEA). It had a modern atmosphere and gourmet burgers. Stephanie's favorite is the Southern Burger- battered and deep fried, with chow chow and pimento cheese. I was not quite so adventurous- caramelized onions, green peppers, and mushrooms. But the BEST part is the milkshakes. I didn't get a picture b/c I downed it in a matter of minutes- Nutella with toasted marshmallows. There's also Rice Krispies and Krispy Kreme milkshakes. Sooooo good!

Ben joined us.

Ella enjoyed a yogurt and banana meal.

This one cracked me up!!!!

Thanks, Steph, for the great suggestion!

Bruiser, the ball phython, has been visiting my class for years. But b/c he's getting so old, he hasn't come to the school in a couple of years. Well this year, Michael (the owner) is in MY class, and he's the youngest in his family... it's the last time for Bruiser to make an appearance. Bruiser is about to pass, so I'm so glad he stopped by for a visit. The kids love watching him.

Finally, my brother has decided to become an expert in Irish cuisine. I'm very excited about this. He came to dogsit this weekend and even made dinner for me tonight. Bangers and mash- He made homemade mash potatoes, sausage, caramelized onions, and a homemade gravy!!! I was sooooo impressed.

Moving to a New Grade Level....

I will be teaching 2nd grade next year! I am very excited. This was a tough decision. I love the 5th graders, and I love my co-teachers in 5th. I have had 2nd in the back of my mind for a few years now, and this year I asked for the move.

I'm antsy about learning a new curriculum again. I'm also hoping I remember how needy the little ones can be. I'm used to self-efficient students.

But I have been getting tired of fractions/decimals/percents. =) I miss the time to explore and discover.

Yea! =)

Junk Mail!!

My brother's home address is with me until college is finished. Man, did I forget how much junk mail is out there! He gets a credit card offer every day! Many of you may know about this already, but if not: https://www.optoutprescreen.com. I opted out of junk mail a few years ago, and it is awesome!!! And yes, I did the permanent opt out, which means you'll have to mail in a signed document stating so.

Another tactic I use: I cut off the top of his credit card offer that shows his address. I write on the top, "Please take me off your mailing list." Then I mail it back in their pre-paid envelope. I heard about that on a finance show; they hate that!! =)

If by chance you get solicitors on the phone, you can head over to: https://donotcall.gov/.

Just some ideas to get the clutter out of your life. =)

Chicken Breast

Disclaimer: this is me getting on my soapbox, and I won't get off. Now, I'm not some crazy girl that wants to be a vegetarian (I LOVE meat.). BUT something's up with our food. Have y'all seen Food, Inc.? Just an incredible, interesting documentary. I've got a friend at church whose cousin is one of those chicken farmers. She says, yep, that's how it really is. And I somehow remember my grandfather saying, when I was young, "The chicken will kill us all one day. They grow 'em too fast and too big." I was terrified and didn't know what that meant. But I tucked it inside my memory. He's a very educated, vegetable-growing pharmacist. Now I know what he's talking about.
I've only really been cooking since I was a senior at Lipscomb. Since that short time, I've watched the chicken breasts that I buy grow and grow. Well last night topped it all. I got my boneless, skinless breasts on sale for $1.79/lb. I was cutting the fat off, and could NOT get over the size of these breasts! We're way past double D here. I had to take a picture to show the monstrosity of it. This is ONE chicken breast. The past year or so I've had to fillet them because of their size. And it got worse in the next package! I had to quarter one sucker!!
So, what's a girl to do? The nearest whole foods type place is over 1/2 an hour away. Not real eager to "run to the store." Do I save chicken for special occasions and get the "organic," $6.99/lb chicken??? I'm afraid my beloved government is letting me down.

Pumpkin Time!

Back in September I was telling my students about all the exploration we got to do in Kindergarten. I told them about all I did with apples- taste testing, baking, sorting, investigating. They were quite jealous. They begged me to do that for them. I preface my next sentence with this: I loooove my students and this age. However, I miss Kindergarten. In 5th there is so much pressure for them and tests. We have to rush through everything to get to everything. I miss the discovery of K. I have no time for exploration if I am to teach all they need to know. I did agree, though, to do something fun with pumpkins when the season came. It needed to be Math related, so we measured, weighed, estimated/counted seeds. We had a great time!
This is our intern, Amber. She was with us a couple of days a week for the past 3 months. =)

Freshly Sharpened Pencils

Well, the first week of school is almost to a close. We are spending tiresome days going over procedures, rules, and getting-to-know-you activities. I have 26 smiling faces greet me each morning. The Lord has blessed me with another good class, as past teachers quickly tell me.
Today they were working on "rules" our class should have. They wrote a few down and then got together with their table group to decide on the 5 most important rules. I overheard conversations with thoughtful suggestions, and others were:
"We should get to take home Ms. Collins's books.
We should get to walk around during dismissal.
We should get to eat/drink when we want."
I was afraid their rules were turning into a wishlist- these were all procedures I had taught that apparently didn't sit well with some. I had to ring my bell and ask for reminders of the purpose of rules- all examples had to do with safety and learning. So we'll see... can't wait to read their final copies. Of course, now I take those lists and come up with the "best five rules that would work." I wonder if any notice how often they "come up" with things that I've already set in stone. =)

On another note, I myself have started school. I started on Monday, along with my students. I'm getting my Specialist degree. And oh, I'm not sure if I'm ready for that again! The month of Aug. is twice a week, 4 hrs. a night. Then we'll be once a week. But ready or not, here I go...

Cincinnati

Our annual Lipscomb girls' trip was to Cincinnati this year. Both Kelsey and Maurie live there, and we were able to welcome Kelsey's new baby, Findlay.

at the baby shower

We then went to a salon for mani/pedis.

Me & my sweet JodiTiffany & Laura

Lindsey & Jodi getting pedicures.

Eating Thai at Teak. This picture made us laugh so much. Apparently with the way I was sitting and the angle of the shot- it's just a picture of me and several heads. It was supposed to be a group picture!!! =)

At Skyline Chili. Apparently Cincinnati is famous for "their kind" of chili.

I had ordered my chili before Cinci-native Kelsey had come in. She saw my meal and said, "Oh, no, Kim, you've done this all wrong." I just couldn't quite grasp the idea of their kind of chili- on noodles. ???

This is my new version of the Cincinnati chili- complete with spaghetti noodles, chili, onions, and WAY TOO MUCH cheese. =)

Here we are after digging in and being just about finished.

Girls, I had the best time with y'all- as usual. Love y'all!!

May in 5th Grade

May is insane at school. Among all the fun, last-year things we do for our 5th graders is the ABC Countdown. Each day is a letter, working our way down to Z (Zee End!). This is a picture of Funky Clothes/Hair Day. They just looked awesome!!! I loved how these students went all out. =) And amid these students are 4 that colored their hair! =)

Some of my favorite people on Field Day. Today was the first-ever FLARE competition. We're teaching kids how to use renewable energy. The elementary division was creating solar cookers. There were about 22 teams in our division. I took 3 from Winn Holt. This team is The Braniacs.They made vegetarian lasagna. (I decided to go with meatless items juuuust to be on the safe side.) We were judged on both the design and the tastiness of the food.The Silver KnightsThey made turtle brownies: choc chips, marshmallows, pecans, and caramel topping. Unfortunately when the judges came for the taste-testing, we had to serve half-cooked brownie batter. =( It was still yummy, though! Who doesn't like brownie batter?! My 3rd team: the Golden Chefs. These kiddos are actually in my class. I had another, but she had a soccer tournament today.It was so hot, so hot, so hot! We got starting cooking around 9:30, once everyone was checked in, and the area was decorated. Judges came around to check out the design, and then around 12:20 they came to sample our food.Here are the judges sampling the Golden Chefs' award-winning vegetarian quesadillas!!! I was so excited; this team placed third! Yea!! =)

Ben Graduates From AIT

Ben is officially finished with all training! He is home and awaiting college to start back up. He will have Reserve drill monthly for the next 2 yrs.

Steph came with me. =)


I got to give Ben his official pin. Such a cool part of the process!!

Is it time to retire my Bible?

This has been coming for a long time. My Bible is my most prized possession. Y'all understand. I can flip to verses so quickly; I see highlighted verses in my mind and know where to look. My grandparents gave it to me on my 11th birthday, about a month after I was baptized. A few years ago I put it in a case. But it still kept deteriorating. I even looked into getting it rebound. The inside is still good; I just need a new cover! But unfortunately, it takes months to re-sew and costs a fortune. =( I guess I'll just have to shelve it.

Joke of the Week

Hahahahaha!! =)

He's in the Army now!!!

Well, the 3 months has passed. My little brother has finished his basic combat training for the Army.

This was the first day, Family Day. We were able to retrieve our soldiers after they ran onto the field. We were herded into these bleachers and waited nearly 2 hrs. The forecast had said 50's- I even left my big coat at the hotel. NOT SO!!! NO one was prepared, and businesses made a killing selling their blankets/hats/sweatshirts. When they sold out, people started buying towels to wrap up in!

Here they come! It was so cool to see 1200 soldiers running out from the treeline.

This is Charlie Company (240 soldiers).

And here is the 3rd Platoon (60 soldiers).

Mom and her baby

It was cool to see where Ben has been living. (Don't mind his messy bed. They were allowed 1 day off.)

Some of his awesome friends: Detmer & DeCesare

Charlie Company at the graduation. I loved the ceremony. Everything was so precise, and the creed gave me chills. They spoke in unison, and the last line was shouted: "I am an American Soldier!"

Now Ben is at advanced training for the next 7wks. He's actually at Ft. Jackson again. He's training to be Chaplain Assistant. That's like a bodyguard. =)