It was a sad day on Sunday. I walked into church, kind of in a hurry to find My Man, as I had some stuff to prepare before Sacrament started. At the door to the chapel was one of the bishops counselors, which is also one of our good friends. I shook his hand, as I was searching for My Man, and almost had a thought like he wanted something, but didn't say anything. I couldn't see My Man, so I took off to do my stuff. I came back a few minutes later and there was the counselor again, but this time he asked if he could talk with me.
He asked if I would be willing to be the teacher for the 15/16 year olds. WOW SHOCK!!! He asked if I would, and what my thoughts were. At this point My Man walked in the room, laughing as he already knew and had warned the guy that I would probably get some grief from me, for taking me away from primary.
Even though the calling scares the crap out of me, as I have never taught teenagers, I grew up being taught that callings come from the Lord and he will bless you, so don't say no to a calling.
After joking around, giving grief for a few minutes, I am now the new teacher for the 15/16 class.
I am really going to miss primary, as I have been in there for the past two years. I am really going to miss teaching the 9 year olds, as they were a great class.
Even though I am still a little scared, I am looking forward to this new calling.
If any of you have any suggestions on teaching teenagers,I would love to hear them.
Just before Easter, I went into our local Michael's store to check out the classes which they offered, as I have had a desire to learn how to decorate cakes.
After doing some research, I decided that I was going to take the classes, so I could stop pretending to know what I was doing, and actually know how to decorate.
There are four courses, starting with basic decorating leading up to using fondant icing, which was the big pull to take the classes. Each course is four weeks long, which is perfect, as I will have the know how to do Miss P's 3rd birthday cake in July.
I just finished course 1 on Thursday, and I start course 2 on this Thursday. I am totally loving the classes and having a lot of fun practicing. I can handle this homework, to bad it wasn't this fun in school.
I also have an amazing husband who made sure I had all the "toys" a cake person could or would need. He told me one day, that if I was going to do this, that he wanted me to have what I needed and not have to improvise. AAHHH, he is such a great guy and I love him so much.
The first class the instructor went over the book and told us what we would need for the class, and what we could expect to accomplish in the class.
The next three weeks, we had to bring an iced cake each week so we could decorate it during class. The first cake, Miss P wanted a clover, yes I know it is purple and not green, but heck I have a little girl, who is going through a princess stage, so I thought she would like that more.
The second cake (week three), we practiced the "Wilton Rose". Pain the the butt rose is more like it.Yes that is something I really need to do more practice with. The teacher taught us that it can look a lot better with accents, as she added some leaves to the cake. (Pink Cake).
The third cake (week four) was our final cake for the course. We spent most of the time (class is two hours long), practicing on the rose, learning how to do leaves, and a few other tips.
I either send them to work with My Man and they get to enjoy them or the neighbors get dessert. Which Miss P sad, as she thinks they are all her "birthday cakes", and when they come up missing, I have to start explaining.
Miss P loves Dora the Explorer, so I told her that if we gave the neighbors the pink cake, I would make her a Dora cake. Poor girl, in the end I don't think she ended up eating any of it, as it sat on the counter for a few days, then went to work with My Man.
On Sunday, after one of our good friends found out I was doing these classes, mentioned that it was her husbands birthday on Tuesday. The husband has been working with My man to try and help him get into law enforcement, as he himself is a Sargent for the Washington State Patrol. I decided instead of a Dora cake as we had joked about, I would try and make a police car. After two cake batter disasters, and many hours, it turned out really cute. They were totally shocked and loved it. Since Miss P loves police cars and anything police, I might have to do another one for her birthday.
My Man has Mondays off as he works Saturdays. Yesterday we decided to take Miss P to the Children's Museum, as I had heard that it was a really fun place.
We had a great time after Miss P warmed up to the idea. First she was tired and hungry as it was nap time, and then I kind of scared her, as you walk in they have a large alligator chair (like a dentist chair) with its mouth open so you can brush its teeth. She strongly dislikes dentists as she had her first trip to one about two months ago. I know, I know... go going mommy.
One of the first rooms was a toddler grocery store and restaurant. She loved this area and wanted to stay in it. They had tiny carts, and check out stands. The kids could take the carts around to do their shopping and then cash themselves out. When we took her to different areas, she kept saying " I have to go do my shopping". Oh she is turning into such a girly girl. Scott told me I had to give him a boy, after we ended back up in the little shopping market so Peyton could do "her shopping."
They have building areas, a big sand pit that had little rubber pieces instead of sand, clay shop where the kids could play with clay, train set area, water area, a hospital area with an ambulance, doctors office with exam tables, a place to look at x-rays, a scale, they had one table with a wooden doll that had parts to take off and see the organ underneath.
It is a great place for kids to have hands on and to expand their imaginations. I am adding a few generic pics from the internet until I can get the pictures off My Man's phone. Yup we didn't take a camera with us, I will have to start carrying one with me, now that I have a big bag again.
My Man surprised me this year with tickets to Cirque Du Soleil. They have come to town every year since we have been married. Every time we would drive past the tents while they were in town, I would always comment that one day I would go, as the tickets are expensive.
This year was my year, and I was so excited. This year on their North American tour they were performing Corteo. Now, I wish I had done some research before I went to the show, as it would have made a lot more sense, as the show is french based.
I liked how our local newspaper has described the show, as my description is picture Tim Burtons idea of a funeral.
"Imagine your death bed, with just a little bit of time left to reflect. What kinds of thoughts go through your mind? Do you wonder about your funeral? Who will go? What they will say?
An elderly clown shares such an experience in “Corteo,”
This isn’t a somber moment for the clown. It’s a raucous revival, blending his most dramatic highs and lows.
The show demonstrates that Cirque du Soleil isn’t just about amazing acrobatics anymore. “Corteo” extends the company’s exploration of more structured storytelling.
As the dying clown begins to look back at the loves of his life, the young women start swinging from ornate chandeliers in a sinuous dance symbolic of the passion and energy of youthful relationships.
The clown then recalls being a little boy and having nonsensical fun bouncing on his bed with friends — that is, before the militaristic authority figure in his life, his father, snaps him back into the world of pragmatic concerns.
That’s where the show loses focus on the story. It strays into random circus acts as the clown fades in and out through the rest of the piece...."
http://www.columbian.com/lifeHome/lifeHomeNews/2008/03/03112008_Cirque-du-Soleil-Death-bed-clown.cfm
I have attached the website if anyone wants to read the full story.
Honestly I have mixed feelings about the experience. I really enjoyed the show, as am grateful I had the opportunity to attend. Now the down to it...within the first ten minutes of the show, about four girls were twirling dancing around on moving chandeliers. They would hold on, run in a circle to get them to spin, hold on and then the chandeliers would move up and down. Well one girl was on her chandelier and it was about 20 feet in the air, and she fell off it onto a wood stage extremely hard. She literally fell right in font of us, as we were 4 rows back from the stage. The last update the news paper gave, was the girl was ok, was released the next day from the hospital and was going to take time off to recover, then planned to return to perform with the show.
I admire the cast to be able to continue on with the show and the rest of the air stunts, which they did an amazing job. For me it just made me really uptight watching them, not wanting to see another person fall.
Over all it was an amazing night and I would be totally okay if My Man surprised me next year with tickets again.
They don't allow you to take pictures in the tent, so I found some off the internet from Cirque Du Soleil, as they tape every performance.
For as much as Miss P loves cars, trains, and balls, her inner princess is starting to come out.
Aunt Tammy and Uncle Jim gave her this outfit for her birthday, which she loves. She also got a chest of dress up clothes from Grandma and Grandpa W, so this outfit goes perfect for those dress up moments.
On this particular day, don't tell My Man... She was watching Barney, and the kids on the show were dressing up and dancing around. The next thing I know, she ran upstairs, and came back with this outfit and asked for help putting it on, so she could be like the kids on the show.
"It isn't as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out. Don't worry. I say that to myself every morning. It all works out in the end. Put your trust in God, and move forward with faith and confidence in the future. The Lord will not forsake us. He will not forsake us. If we will put our trust in Him, if we will pray to Him, if we will live worthy of His blessings, He will hear our prayers."
-President Hinckley
I thought I would share this quote which I came across by President Hinckley. I was again reminded, that no matter what we are faced with in our lives, if we have faith in Heaven Father we will be okay. I am so grateful for the gospel and for my testimony of our Savior Jesus Christ, and that we are never alone.
I have been in and out of primary over the years. In our current ward, I have been serving in the primary for about 2 years. I started out teaching CTR8, then when January came they asked me to teach CTR 6 for the year. This past January they asked me to teach Valiant 9. I have loved all my classes which I have taught, and have loved to watch the kids learn.
This year I was a little nervous, as I would be teaching the adult lessons, and no longer the "picture/ little kid lessons."
I truly have to say, this is the best year. I love the lessons, and studying the Book of Mormon with my class. I challenged each of them at the beginning of the year to read the Book of Mormon by the end of the year. It has been great to hear them, as they come to class to let me know where each of them are at, and to see there excitement as we are doing the lessons, and to hear them say, "I read that".
I have great kids and I love them. As they are 8 turning 9, they are continually challenging me to find ways to get them involved and keep their focus. I have been blessed to find a few websites dedicated to teaching primary and one especially for senior primary. I was thinking last week about General Conference, and remembering when I was a child, knowing that it can be a hard time to sit for that long and listen. So I knew I needed to come up with something that would help my kids in my class.
Let me tell you how much I love the website Sugardoodle.net. They have such great ideas, to use for primary.
Saturday night, my amazing husband, who I sucker in quite often to help me with my crazy ideas, and I put together 10 of these activity folders for my class. It seemed to go over well when I gave them to them, and I look forward to hearing what they thought after conference.
They arrived Friday night, and then we suckered my other brother who lives about 2 hours away to come up on Saturday. We did some last minute shopping to prepare for the Easter Bunny on Saturday, and then just relaxed at our place while the kids entertained themselves in Miss P's room.
They did really good this time, I think they emptied all of Miss P's toys, and only fought a few times. Many thanks to Aunt L for reading to them, painting nails and playing with them, while the rest of us were bums.
Uncle R and Aunt J and the kids headed for home Saturday night, as they had church responsibilities.
We had decided since church was at 9am, and to let there be focus on the true meaning of Easter, the Easter bunny would not come until after church.
Miss P was excited to go to church, as she got to wear her pretty "aunt L" dress. We had gone shopping the weekend before to target, and picked up this dress, and told her that she would be able to wear the dress, when aunt L came. My kid may not have a princess room, but I do make her dress up like one every once in a while.
Miss P had been looking forward to the Easter bunny coming to our house. She even sat next to him at Walmart one day. This was a big deal for her, as she is usually afraid of "holiday characters." She likes the idea of Santa, but sitting on his lap, no way.
After she had lunch, we told her that she needed to go take a nap, and then the Easter Bunny would come. Poor thing, I really wondered if she thought she was actually going to see the Easter Bunny, as she kept telling everyone he was coming to her house. While she was napping, we set up an easter egg hunt in the house. Yes we live in Washington were it seems to rain a lot, and it was yucky outside.
It was the cutest thing to watch, as she went on her easter egg hunt. Every time she found an egg she would go "ahh haa" She loved her "po po" cars,I swear she is going to grow up to be either a cop, fire fighter or ambulance driver, as she loves the lights and sirens. She also loves her baby which Grandma Watson sent to her, she takes that baby with her every where. Miss P being my sugar baby, she loved that she got lots of candy and mommy was letting her eat it.
I originally saw this bed on a website and fell in love with it, and of course at that time she was way to young for a toddler bed, and My Man was not going for it, as it was close to $100. So needless to say when she was old enough to move to a toddler bed, I really wanted to get her this bed, but we didn't have the money, so I found her a nice wood toddler bed at a garage sale last spring.
About a month ago, I was looking on Craigslist for a bed for my brothers little boy. While I was searching, I went under the free section and saw this bed. I was ecstatic as this was the bed that I always wanted to get Miss P, and it was FREE!!! Now all I had to do was convince My Man that we needed it, which actually turned out to be easier then I thought it was going to be. With a little "honey, how much do you love me", My Man and Miss P were headed out the door to pick up her "new car bed."
Miss P has always loved cars, so naturally she loves her bed and loves to pretend she is driving. We are working on Scott to see if he can figure out how to attach a steering wheel to it, so she can "really drive".
Once she had her bed, of course she had to have the car mat to go along with it. My brother was planning on coming for a visit, so I found this huge 9'x6' car mat on his local Craigslist, and they brought it up for her. Scott likes to call it her replacement carpet, as it is so big.
One Sunday after church, My man let her help make lunch. From then on, she is always at our feet with her arms in the air saying "up, up", and "me help" or "me do it." Thanks to that Sunday lunch, she thinks she is a pro at cooking Mac and Cheese, as she was able to make it by herself, with Daddys supervising.
This past weekend, Miss P has perfected her baking skills. Our friends Uncle O and Aunt K were in town from Colorado, and we went to dinner at K's parents house. This made Miss P's day, as they live on a farm and have a few types of different animals. She was so excited about this goose which her parents had walking around. Miss P stood at the door and then later at the window, just so she could see the "beautiful goose."which she was calling it.
After dinner, K's mom asked if Miss P would like to go out to the barn and feed the goats.It was really fun to see her excitement over the animals, after she warmed up to them. She talked all the way home about feeding the horses carrots, even though mommy and aunt K did the feeding, as she was a little afraid. Miss P was able to help K's mom collect duck eggs. I was telling her to be gentle when she picked them up, as being 2, she can be a little rough. Well she did her gentle pick up with two hands, being so careful, then tossed it into the bin. Oops I forgot to mention, she needed to be gentle with that process too.
After she collected all the eggs, we headed back to the house, and she was chattering away at us about the eggs and the horses. Then all of a sudden she asked where was the "holy ghost". and she kept asking for it.This was kind of a shock and random, but K and I just thought it was something that she has learned about in nursery, and explained it to K's mom as she is not a member. My man and I figured out on the way home, as she continued to ask the for "holy ghost", that she was asking for the goose.
When we came back into the house with the eggs, K's mom let Miss P sit on the counter by the sink and wash off the egg. Miss P of course was in heaven, as she loves to play with water in the kitchen sink. She then received her science lesson on discovery (K's mom is a science teacher and a wonderful, patient lady.) For probably the next half hour, she taught Miss P to break open the egg to see what was inside. After they were done discovering three eggs, she let Miss P play with a bowl of mushrooms that were by the sink, and break all of them, then throw them into the sink. K's mom sent home the rest of the eggs with Miss P, which she is so excited about, as she says they are her eggs, and can't wait until she gets to use them. I do have to watch the fridge and eggs though now.
