New Year

OMG! I have done this in so long I hope I remember how...

Well, it is August and that means the beginning of a new year...a new school year. This is the time that all teachers start to get jittery, shop for new classroom decorations, and begin to look forward to meeting a whole new groups of students! This is one of the most exciting times of the year! There is no way to describe the feeling of walking into your classroom and deciding how to arrange the furniture, where to put your Word Wall and what your theme for the year will be. Only teachers know this feeling...and it is hard for us to put these feelings into words.

The four years that I did not teach were a blessing. I was able to spend time with my young children, watching them grow and being there whenever they needed me. However, every August I would get melancholy and teary eyed when my friends would start talking about going back to school. Guess I was born to be in education!

This is the beginning of my 29th year in education (not counting the 4 years I "retired" and voluntered at two different campuses!) and it is still exciting for me! Shopping for supplies for the teachers, picking out my yearly theme, buying new school clothes...yes, I still do all those silly things. I look forward to each new year, but for some reason, I am especially excited about this year. Don't know what makes this year different, but I have a renewed excitement and passion and I know this will be one the best years yet!

Teachers are a special breed of people. Teachers instinctively know the needs of thier kids, they know when to joke and when to be serious. Teachers know that the weather does have an effect on student behavior. Teachers know that parents want to be active partners but that life sometimes get in the way. Teachers have a love and compassion that cannot be beat. Teachers are a special breed...

Here is to all the TEACHERS in the world...active, retired, staying home for a while...you are very special and appreciated!!! Bring on the 2010 - 2011 school year!

Spring Break!

The weather is gorgeous, the time change has begun so we will have longer days, I have a week off of work...yea for Spring Break!!!!

Lots to do this week! Sushi lunch dates, taking some time to take care of myself, tanning, shopping, grilling out, working on the house and yard...sounds like a full week of fun! Juan will be off the last part of the week so we will be able to spend some time together, too. After the last month of work, this will be a much needed break!!

I know that once I go back to work it will be nonstop stress and pressure. So all the more reason to take this week and be selfish. TAKS season is gearing up so 3rd - 5th is working overtime. PK, KN, 1st and 2nd are busy getting the kids on level and ready to move forward. We know that the next few months will be hard. Hopefully we all spend time this week resting and rejuvenating!

I love having this week off. But, I know it will be so hard to go back to work after this!! Oh well! No time to worry about that now. I have sunshine calling me! Happy Spring Break ya'll!

Every day choices

Ever wonder how many times in a day you have to make a choice? Some days might not be so tough, but then come those days when it seems like every time you turn around you have to make a choice...not easy to do most of the time.

Everyone has different experiences that require different choices. Moms make different decisions that dads. Blue collar folks make different choices from white collar workers. Kids have tough choices every day. But, we all have to answer for our choices and our decisions.

I read somewhere that a teacher makes over a million decisions throughout the day. WOW! 1,000,000 decisions in an 8 hour work day! No wonder we are soooo tired by the time we get home. Then, we have family decisions to make...and it never ends!

God makes choices every day as well. He chooses to stand by us and support us no matter that we make bad choices. Kinda wonderful knowing that even if we make an unwise choice He is there to hold us up and guide us. Maybe next time we will make a better choice!

If we would all just take a few minutes each day to contemplate our choices, and spend time asking God for wisdom to make good choices, our lives would be so much easier!

May all your choices this week be good ones...and if not, reflect and move forward!

Strength

Life is so hard at times. Just when you think things might become normal it all falls apart.

My family is the most important thing to me. My husband and two kids bring me tremendous happiness...and tremendous pain...How do I keep everything going? Keep everyone happy? Mediate between arguments? Offer financial and emotional help? and still be a good mom, wife, friend and professional????

It is just so hard to balance life right now. I try to be optimistic and put on a happy face, but it just isn't working. I feel sad and depressed, and taken for granted, helpless and frustrated.

Prayer is the only thing that will help right now so I am going to go have some quiet time with my Lord and pray for his help.

Christmas Eve

Today is Christmas Eve and it is snowing!!!! How cool is that?

So, tonight is our family gathering. We have always celebrated as a family on Christmas Eve. My entire family gets together for dinner and we open presents. This is the tradition that my mom and dad began and we have continued. After mom and dad passed, it was Jana's family and my family that gathered, and we still do that today!!! This year we will be at my niece's house with her family, my nephew and his family, my sister and my family--all together.

We always have a nontraditional/traditional dinner. Tonight is Mexican Christmas--Yum-O!!! We will all eat more than we should, we will laugh and tell each other funny stories. There will be some holiday cheer and toasts to be sure! Then, we will gather in the living room and let the kids all open their presents. After all that is what Christmas is--a time for kids! We have to get this all done early so the little ones can get to bed so Santa can come!

Tomorrow is our Orphan Christmas at Leslie and Tom's. All our Aardvark friends and family will gather to eat (again) and celebrate with even more cheer! Should be lots of fun!!

Merry Christmas to all!

This time of year!

I love the time between Thanksgiving and New Years! All the time with family and friends, the yummy food, decorations, shopping, movies, memories...so many great things!

As a child I remember the big family Thanksgiving meals when all the aunts, uncles and cousins would get together and have a glorious meal then watch football. Christmas would bring simple tree and house decorations and pretty wrapping under the tree. Hurrying to bed on Christmas Eve to make myself go to sleep so Santa could come and brings his gifts. Then, New Years Eve would find all the extended family together again to ring in the new year! We were a very close family and we celebrated holidays together.

As we all grew older, there seemed to be fewer and fewer occasions that we gathered. As our parents aged there were fewer of them each year. As young adults we married and started our own families. Maybe we became too selfish or too busy to continue the old traditions. At any rate, here we are, many years later, isolated. Or, at least that is how I feel these days.

My mom died at the young age of 46 and my dad passed when he was 52. I am blessed to have lived past those years. I am now the adult. Planning family gatherings should fall to me, and I truly wish I could provide them. I wish I had a home that could hold all the family...not just my kids, but my nieces and nephews, and their families, along with my cousins and families. I wish there were time for us to all gather and visit and celebrate together. We have all gotten so busy and our schedules are so disjointed, that these traditions have fallen by the wayside and will probably never be revived.

Right now I would just be happy to have my immediate family together again, happy and congenial. Right now I just want my family to be a family. I miss having my kids be little! I love that they are growing up and they are moving forward, but I am sad that they are not always around.

As Christmas approaches I pray for the peace. Peace for the world, and peace for the family--my family and all the families in general.

Hopefully this season will bring to all...

And then...

There are days that I feel I get nothing done, nothing accomplished, nothing satisfied.

Today is one of those days. I worked all day, but feel like I got nothing completed. It seems like no matter how much I do, or how long I work on things, I never get caught up. There is always something that MUST get done right now, four other things have to be finished today, and then...still more to do when all that is done.

Some days I feel good about what I do. I pull out of the parking lot and smile and think, "Today was a good day!" Other days, I get in the car and start to cry because I feel totally useless. Today was the latter.

And then...I get home and am greeted by my loving husband and two precious dogs. They see things differently and have no idea what my day has been up 'til now. All they know is that I am home and it is time to have dinner and relax. And then...I take a deep breath and move forward.

Bumps in the Road

Just when you think everything is going along just fine...a bump in the road pops up.

Being a parent is the hardest job in the world. There is no way anyone can explain or prepare you for all the happiness and heartbreak that will occur when you have kids. There is no greater joy in life than hearing your child say, "I love you, Mommy" or the belly laugh that happens spontaneously. There is not deeper pain than hearing, "I hate you" or having your child purposely ignore your requests.

I have been a mother for 24 years. These have been blessed years! I have laughed and cried both with my children and for my children. I have two of the most wonderful kids in the world. However, right now I feel completely helpless and sad.

One child is moving forward, maturing and working to make a life change. One child is defiant, rebellious and purposefully hurtful. One makes me smile and one makes me cry. What's a mother to do?

I know that all young adults have a lot to deal with. When you are in your 20's you have so much on your mind. There's the question of a job, where to live, how to deal with no longer being a teenager with no responsibilities--learning how to deal with all the adult responsibilities...life is a constant "moving target". Hard to believe, but I can remember those years. Trying to figure out if I was in love, how I could pay my bills, where to live, what would I be "when I grew up". All of those life questions.

My mom supported me, stood by me and defended me. She also set me straight when I screwed up. That is the type of mother I have tried to be. Sometimes I have been too strict, sometimes too lenient. Isn't like most mothers? The balance is hard, it is a thin line to walk.

So, I sit here, holding back tears of sadness because I can't seem to figure out how to reach her, how to make my child see how much I love her, admire her and worry about her. She doesn't want to hear me, to respect me, or to even be nice, unless it works to her advantage. And, yet, she is my heart, my soul, my daughter.

People say to just give kids time to grow up. I know this--been through this with the son. Same struggles, same tears. It just never gets easier...not even the second time around...here comes another bump in the road...

Tattoo

Yeah, I know. You are thinking "tattoo"? Seriously? YES! I am thankful for tats!

Tomorrow is Friday the 13th, and in the Aardvark world that mean PARTY and friends! Every Friday the 13th we all get together and revel in life. We celebrate being together and getting older. We see folks we might have seen in years. Aardvarks all over the area seem to appear on the 13th.

A few years ago I heard about the 13th at Elm Street Tattoo. Oliver Peck holds tattoo parties and will give a "13" tattoo for $13 and a $7 good luck tip--for $20 you can have a 13 tattooed on your body!! What a deal! So, 3 years ago I took a day off and Joy and I went to get our tats! It was great. That night we attended the usual party for the masses!

Well, tomorrow we do it again! I think the whole family will be there. Cool, huh? The family that tats together plays together! And, yes, there will be a 13th party that evening with BBQ, friends and brew! Another great day in the life of an Aardvark!

Veterans

Today we celebrate the men and women who chose to serve and defend our country so that we could have the freedoms we enjoy. Today is Veteran's Day and we are so blessed to have these brave souls in our lives.

I am proud to say that I have always been surrounded by the military. My Uncle Dub fought in World War II in the Army. Uncle Bond served in the Navy during the Korean War. My wonderful husband, Juan, was in the Navy and helped evacuate Vietnam. Brandon, my nephew, is currently in the Navy as a recruiter. What a rich experience!

Each Veteran's Day my campus celebrate with a ceremony to honor the families of our students. Today was the BEST ever! Several of my awesome staff members (Yvonne, Rachel, Tricia and Irma) put together a fantastic show. They had the gym decorate with a variety of symbols of the military, every grade level performed and they created an outstanding slide show! After that the Veterans and their families went to the library for breakfast.

We are lucky to live in the United States and to be able to enjoy or freedom. We owe a debt of gratitude to our Vets. God Bless each of you. For you I am thankful!

Dogs

One of the best things about dogs is their unconditional love. No matter what they love you!

When I come home each evening I know I will be greeted by two dogs--ZsaZsa and Bella--who will bark, jump and demand my attention. They will run up to and on me. They will jump around and bark until i sit down and take the time to pet them. They seem to forget they have been in their kennels all day and left alone. They don't care. They just love me and want my attention.

Once they settle down, they have their tummies full and they realize that I love them once again, all they want is to lay with me while I cuddle with a blanket, work on the computer or work my Suduko puzzles. They just want to be with me. If not in my lap, then on the floor beside me. Or on the sofa with Juan or laying ON his feet. Yeah, weird, but adorable!

I can't forget Deebo, my other granddog! Deebo loves his Grandma very much. Whenever he sees me he smiles (oh, yes he does!), wags his tail and goes straight to the doggie treats. He knows Grandma will always have treats for him.

So, today I am thankful for all the dogs currently in my life, as well as all the dogs in my past--Chrissy Miss, Beau, Pepe...they are all special because they have unconditional for me. And there are many days that I need that waiting for me!!!

New experiences!

Been out of 'web reach' for a few days so I haven't been able to update my Thankful List. So, two days late...

The past two weekends Juan and I have been adventurous and done some things and really surprise me--new experiences! Last weekend we went to the MMA fights at QuickTrip and that was really fun! I had seen these fights on TV but being there in person was even better. All types of people were there--parents, other principals...it was very different. We liked it so much I think we might go to the one in Frisco at the end of the month.

Saturday we did the TCU game, a Halloween party then went to the Hard Rock to listen to the Texas Red Legs, an up and coming Texas rock band. They were really good and it was fun to sit and listen to the music and spend time with friends.

This weekend...wow! What can I say--NASCAR at the Texas Motor Speedway. What a blast! We have friends who have gone for years and always beg us to come out. We never have gone because we didn't want to mess with the traffic. Well, we gave in a agreed to go out and stay with them (they have a nice RV) and see how we liked it. OMG!! It is one big party. There are camps set up all over with bars, music and food. Everyone is so nice and you never go hungry or thirsty! We went to the race on Saturday and Kyle Busch won. I was pulling for Kasey Kahn, but his car left the track early. Kyle won the truck races on Friday and the car race on Saturday. I was really hoping he would win today so he could get the triple at TMS, but his brother Kurt won. We had so much fun and we are really looking forward to the April race now!!!

So, I am thankful for new experiences. I am glad that Juan and I still like to do this kind of stuff and can enjoy a wide range of people and events. I guess growing older has it's advantages...you can do the same things the 'young uns' do but it means more now I think!

The Greatest Staff in the World!

I know I have said this before, but I am truly blessed to work with the men and women at Hobbs Williams! This staff never ceases to amaze me. They really love kids, they are passionate about teaching, they are positive, hard working and dedicated!

I am so thankful to have these people in my life. They accept a challenge and turn it into a victory. I know they have to be stressed out with all the new things they are asked to do every day. I know that they are exhausted from all the demands put on them. I know they would give anything to have a little more time in the day, or less paperwork to deal with. But, no matter what happens they just move forward.

Real teachers are rare. There are people who have a teaching degree/certificate. There are people who have taken a second career to teach. But, to be a real teacher you have to be a special breed. Real teachers can read any handwriting. They tolerate runny noses and dirty hands. They understand that homework isn't always done and that parents don't always follow through with signing papers. Real teachers accept weeds for flowers and every picture colored with love. Real teachers know that they will never get paid what they are worth. They believe they make a difference every day.

These are the type of teachers i get to work with every day! Yes, I am truly blessed and thankful for each and every member of the staff--custodians, cafeteria, teacher aides, support staff, classroom teachers, counselor, office staff and assistant principal...ALL of them are real teachers and ALL of them are unique. I am thankful!

Reality TV

I know what you are thinking...she is thankful for something as trivial as reality TV!? Yes, I am!

Reality TV gives me an escape from the drama of my own life. For an hour I can pretend to be a ballroom dancer, a survivor, a old rocker looking for a lover, or running a race around the globe. Remember being told you could grow up to be anything you wanted to be? Well, with reality TV I can live that dream. Sixty minutes of mind numbing, obnoxiously ridiculous entertainment that give me cause to fade away and think about NOTHING. Nothing to solve, nothing to follow, no effort at all...a perfect way to unwind at the end of a busy day.

So, thank you, Reality TV for giving me nothing to do!

SUNSHINE!

Thanks goodness for sunshine! October was so dreary and wet, and dark and yucky! I am thankful for the sun. I need my Vitamin D and I am loving the sun rays!!!

Ever notice how happier you are when the sun shine? Or how people seem friendlier? And, I think the sunshine even makes food taste better! ha!! Hopefully we will have more sunny days in the month of November so all will be brighter!

Fall is my favorite season. The air is chilly, cool evenings, sunny mornings, early evenings and football! All of this and SUN! What a great way to begin the month!

The Thankful Season

Last year several of us blogged each day about what we were thankful for. Kelli reminded me of this today when I read her blog, so I decided to do this again.

November 1, 2009 and I am thankful for my husband, Juan. We will celebrate our 28th wedding anniversary in December. Those years have been eventful to say the least. Two kids, five moves, job changes and challenges, family drama, chili cookoffs, graduations...too many events to list!

Has it always been fun? No. Have we fought? Yes. Did I ever wonder if maybe we wouldn't make it? Of course. Did I want to give up? Yes.

However, through all the good times and bad times, I can honestly say that I am glad we made it! 28 years is a long time. I have been married more that half my life! OMG! How scary does that sound?? Juan makes me laugh with his silly little dances, songs, and words that he makes up. He loves me and he loves the kids. He is a caring man, he is a good provider, he is a man of faith and he is faithful. He supports me in all that I undertake and encourages me to be strong and to stand tall. I am lucky he loves me! I am thankful for Juan!

Try Again!

So much for my first three wishes. We still have H1N1, I haven't magically lost 20 pounds, and it RAINED all day!!!

OK. Let's try again...
Magic Genie! Where are you???

Wish #1 for today is more Glee and Nip/Tuck on Wednesday nights!

Wish #2 would be for my house remodeling issues to be all done!

And, the final Wish #3 for today...to not feel guilty for eating the frozen pizza that I fixed for dinner!

May all your wishes come true.

Three Wishes

Ever wish you had a genie in a lamp? A little genie to grant you three wishes? Yeah, we have all had that fantasy.

I don't have a magic lamp, but for the next few days I am going to pick three things each day and make a wish. We'll see what happens.

1. No more H1N1 flu! We have had enough! Too many sick kids and adults with no real end in site. Genie! Where are you??

2. A magic pill that would melt away 20 pounds and motivate me to exercise and eat right! Yoo! Hoo! Genie!

3. No rain for the next 10 days! We NEED recess for a while! Genie is definitely not an elementary teacher!

Now, I am off to search for a little genie in a bottle. He has got to be here somewhere!

Frog Alley!

College football has begun and so has Frog Alley!

There is something electric about college football. I never experienced that while attending college, so I get to relive my youth at the TCU home games. Some friends and I do face painting during the two hours before the home games. Frog Alley is so much fun--or so I hear! We have a magician, face painting, bounce houses, bands, food, balloon art...lots of fun things to do. Not that I have ever actually seen any of that! For two hours I sit and paint faces--one right after the other! No breaks, no getting up...just constant painting! And, it is so much fun!

The coolest thing is the most of the kids come back year after year. This is my 3rd year to do this and I am beginning to see the same kids and families coming back. They are so cute! All dressed in their TCU attire, cheerleader uniforms, jerseys...school spirit abounds!

I will get Juan to take pictures so I can post them--maybe--if I don't get too frustrated putting the pics online! ha!

Oh, by the way, no, I did not attend TCU. But, when it comes to football season I really love my Frogs!

A New School Year Has Begun!

Well, bet you thought I had quit! No, just being lazy. Actually, I kept trying to post my vacation pictures and got frustrated so I decided to take a break.

The best time of the year is here--the beginning of a new school year! As a child I loved going to school. I did not like summer vacation. I missed my friends and the routine of being in class. As I got older I loved being a college student. At one time I thought being a professional student would be the best career ever!

As a teacher I looked forward to buying things for my classroom, planned out the furniture arrangement, and relished in the smell of the ditto machine (yes, I am old school!). I never slept the night before school started.

Now, as a principal, I have the same feelings. I spend my summer thinking of my back to school theme, working on pre-service agendas, finding door prizes and goodies for the staff and thinking of ways to make each year better. I still do not sleep the night before school starts.

Being an educator is one of the greatest gifts of God. Being able to touch the lives of children in a positive manner, mentoring and nurturing those in need, what more could you ask for? There are two kinds of teachers--those of the head (knowledge) and those of the heart (commitment). You can have all the content knowledge in the world, but unless you have the heart and soul to reach kids, unless you have passion for what you do, and a passion for student success, then you will struggle to be a real teacher.

There is truly no greater experience in the world than to have a first grader run up to you the first day of school, throw their arms around you and say, "Mrs. Nunez, I missed you!" What a way to start the new school year!!!

Here's to all my teacher friends, to everyone in education who makes a difference for kids--have a great year!!!