TToT – How is May Not Over Yet???
Is it really still May? This has been like the never-ending month. I suppose it’s all just part of the never-ending winter followed by the never-ending second semester. Late Easter and early Memorial Day make for a long fourth quarter of the school year. And we are all so ready for school to be over.
But Zilla took a look at her Fancy Nancy calendar this morning and assured me that it is indeed the last week of May (finally) and summer vacation is not far behind. I really do hate to wish my life away like that, but I am ready to move on to the next phase. Big time.
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I’ll start off by being thankful that I can cross off another massive deadline. A big project is finished and it went much better than I expected so that’s a good thing. The deadlines that remain for the year are fairly standard. I just have to remember not to shut down before I finish everything!
I am thankful that the Hub understands I do not handle stress well and takes care of me anyway. I am particularly inept at handling the kind of stress that goes with this week’s big task, so I’ve been more of a bear than usual.
Have I mentioned his coffee?
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I am always thankful for Zilla’s humor. Especially when she’s funny and has no idea. We had a family gathering to attend on Saturday and while there, Zilla decided to play shy with an uncle she hasn’t seen in a few months. Back at home that evening, I explained that she doesn’t need to do the shy thing with people.
Me: Zilla, I think it would make Uncle J. really happy if the next time you see him you’d be sweet and talk to him instead of hiding behind me.
Z: I was playing Hide and Seek with him. That’s sweet.
Me: (not buying the hide-and-seek claim) OK, but I think Uncle J. thought you were hiding from him and maybe didn’t understand that you were playing.
Me: Well, I guess old people just think that way sometimes.
My Uncle is all of about 58 – I hardly think he counts himself as “old people” and he certainly doesn’t look or act like “old people.” Nevertheless, I called to tell him the story and he got a good laugh. My Mom cracked up when I told her, too.
That the three Rotten Cats did not scratch the hell out of Zilla when they all got one of their nine lives scared out them this week. It’s really a whole other story. In short, the three of them got a pretty good fright this week and the potential to have been scared in Zilla’s direction was there, but they simply mewed at each other and left her alone. Hooray.
This from Zilla at the breakfast table this morning:
Z: Mom, you’re like the best Mom ever. Will you remember that for me, please?
I am particularly thankful that the Hub did not put me out on the doorstep this week like the Flintstones’ cat. This was a horribly stressful week for me and I have been pretty miserable. Somehow he managed to tolerate me and put up with my stress levels. Hmm…I may have put this in here already. It’s OK. It deserves mention twice.
Reaching for this one…I’m very thankful that school ends (finally) in only three more weeks. Really, I’d like to have a tantrum that it is STILL three more weeks because this year has been interminable. But I’m going to try and flip it to a positive and say it’s ONLY three more weeks.
I’m thankful that Zilla and the Fab Hub managed to get through this week’s Kindergarten field trip relatively unscathed. If you’ve ever been on a Kindergarten field trip you know that they can be pretty crazy. Some run very smoothly and others, well, others just don’t. So they survived this one and we’re clear for another year.
I have to mention here how thrilled the Hub and I both are that Zilla is such a good and eager reader. This kid is deeply entrenched in the world of chapter books already and she’s devouring them one after another. Some days we read to her; others she reads on her own. But I know all too well that there are people out there – children and adults – who do not read well and do not enjoy reading. I could write ten pages about the reasons why that makes me sad, but for her I’ll just suffice to say that I’m happy Zilla reads and reads well.
I am thankful that the Fab Hub finally dealt with the wasps’ nest that he discovered inside our grill. The grill is now ready to use again and he emerged un-stung from the process. He may have enjoyed burning the little buggers’ home just a bit too much, but I suppose that’s better than having them multiply out there and keep us from enjoying the deck.
And now I’ll be thankful that I’m finally finished and can post this list.
Three things of Worthwhile…hmm. I’ve been so cranky this week I’m not sure I can pull this one off without people snorting in disbelief. But here goes…
- I laughed off a few things that could have made me scream.
- I did not scream at people who were rude to me.
- I handled a particular situation relatively calmly.
Now it’s your turn…share ’em or link ’em! And have a wonderful week!
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I am REALLY looking forward to hearing the tale (ahem!) of what happened with the three Rotten Cats, especially if it was bad enough to scare a life out of each of them!
Zilla is a hoot! “Old people just think that way sometimes.” How exciting that she is such an excellent reader so young! Chapter books in kindergarten? That is HUGE!
ONLY three more weeks. ONLY three more weeks. ONLY three more weeks….
First comment, despite the fact that WordPress hates you and dumps you in my spam folder every. single. time.
The tale of the three Rotten Cats and their Great Fright is quite amusing. Stay tuned – sometimes this week, if all goes well.
Yeah, chapter books in Kindergarten…what in the world will she be reading by the time she hits high school? Good thing I have a degree in English and can keep shoveling stuff at her!
Thank you for the mantra…I shall keep repeating it until this year is OVER!
Wow, I identify with that title. I, too, hate to wish away time, but this month has been ROUGH, and I’ve been doing way more than my share of the parenting while Brian finishes up the school year. June will be so much better. Three weeks til school’s out!
June will be glorious. Like May said over at Achieving Clarity this week, there is a wonderful instantaneous relief on that first day of summer vacation…I am so looking forward to that! I wish you and The Dude all the best that only another family of teachers truly understands as you finish out the year.
guess what. you may be half my age, but my May was a LOT like your May. It was not exactly the kind of May they sing about in Camelot. But I got a lot of laughs out of it anyway, just like you. Good entry!!! love your family. Say hi to uncle J from me! 🙂
Jean, I’m going to hazard a guess that you are not twice my age…I’m older than you think! Yeah, May was not the lusty and glorious thing of Camelot at all. But hey…it’s one week from finished!
Awww well done you for posting your Three Things of Worthwhile. I was in no mood to do mine, but now I am, so will leave them here at the end, if I may?
Glad you’ve managed to keep it together in spite of stress and rudeness from others this week. Glad your hub has made the list twice – that’s really great (even if he had to get stung to do it!) and I’m pleased for the both of you 🙂
HUZZAH for Zilla reading chapter books. That’s so awesome. I hope she keeps doing that. And yes – the child is funny and awesome 🙂
Three Things of Worthwhile:
i – I can be the mature one, and have a reasoned and well structured kind-of-argument
ii – I have been pleasant company today in spite of a very disturbed night with Neff (who i ended up sleeping with, cos every time I tried to leave him, at dark-o-clock in the morning when he woke me by screaming).
iii – I wrote my challenges on my face for Kristi and didn’t feel too bad that Our Land will see them.
Let me tell you, my three things of worthwhile were a big stretch this week. I have been a monster and a half and I know it. (hangs head in shame)
But look at you for getting some in here! Number 1 can be so important, right? Especially in the face of falling-asleep husbands. Sorry Neff had such a bad night – that’s the worst! Not so much for the grownup because we can deal, but for the child. OK, it’s bad for the grownup when we can’t figure out how to help. At least that’s true for me.
And you really must explain the thing about challenges on your face because neither Zoe nor I can figure out what the hell that means.
Amen to the never-ending May! It has been a long final grading period…extended days are hard on everyone! We have to plod along until June 5th. Coffee is my drug of choice, too :).
Love reading your conversation ancedotes with Zilla. Zilla’s love for reading is certainly something to rejoice over! I didn’t develop my love of reading until I was a young adult and I try not to think of all I missed out on!
Happy long weekend to you !
Seriously! This is the worst possible school scenario, isn’t it? A long and tedious winter, late Easter, early Memorial Day, and no days off anywhere in sight thanks to using up all of our days for snow! Argh! You plod till the 5th…we got pushed out to the 13th!
I love that Zilla reads. When I was a kid, I did much of the same, so I can’t say I’m surprised.
Happy long weekend to you, too! Here’s to the push for the end of the year! (clinks coffee mug)
And Zilla is reading which books?? I’m always on the lookout for new early reader chapter books. Well, any books really.
I’m glad your project is done and your husband still wants to live with you. 🙂
Just think, time between TToTs is fast, and the next time you write one there will only be 2 weeks of school left. That doesn’t help much, does it?
Currently on our reading pile are two Roald Dahl books – Matilda and James and the Giant Peach. Two weeks ago, we finished a book called Whatever After: Sink or Swim by Sarah Mlynowski which was a fractured version of “The Little Mermaid.” Third in a series, but it worked fine on its own. (Of course, we’ll need to find the earlier books in the series and catch up!) That was really cute – two kids get sucked into a magic mirror and have adventures adjusting the outcome of fairy tales. Zilla loved it! We just finished Junie B., First Grader: Aloha-ha-ha! the other night. There is a whole Junie B. Jones series – my cousin’s girls read them. Junie B. Jones is an awful lot like Kidzilla, it seems…great match! Authors are Barbara Park and Denise Brunkus. Other recent favorites are the Rescue Princesses series by Paula Harrison and (try not to gag on the total sweetness) the Rainbow Magic Fairies books. The pen name is Daisy Meadows, but that is actually several authors writing under that author name for the series. Can you tell we have a girl child, by the way? Her interests are diverse, however, because the first thing she read from her school book fair purchases was Terrors of the Deep by Deborah Lock. It’s from something called DK Adventures – go to the link here and read about them. It’s a clever mix of narrative fiction and nonfiction and Zilla absolutely ate it up! They have quite a few of them with all different interests. http://us.dk.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9781465417220,00.html
Outside of chapter books, some of our favorites are anything by Mo Willems, particular the Gerald and Piggie series and the Pigeon books. Cute and funny for kids, pretty hysterical for adults, too! Good pre-school and early elementary school reading.
The time between TToTs does fly…and yes, knowing it will be only two weeks next time does help!
Awesome that Zilla loves to read… and can logic her way around questionable behavior! ….
Sorry but I am so distracted by a comment… did Lizzi say she wrote her challenges on her FACE?
Not sure how thrilled I am about the logic-ing her way out of questionable behavior. Perhaps that won’t be quite so amusing when she’s fifteen…
Um, yes, Lizzi did say she wrote her challenges on her face…but I have no idea what that means.
Three more weeks???? Oh, my gosh. I just have to get through three more inservice days. The kids are long gone by now having finished last TH. So, it is only the housekeeping/paperwork stuff and staff learning opportunities standing between me and summer bliss.
Hang in there.
And by the way…Zilla be a good and eager reader really is sooooo huge it could count for the whole list. It will serve her so well in so many ways as she grows.
Oh, I am so JEALOUS! I really am so ready to be finished!
I agree that Zilla’s reading interest is worth a list of ten all by itself – I can’t tell you how many people I encounter every day who don’t read, don’t enjoy reading, can’t read well…it’s so foreign to me. Something I am blessed to have had all my life and am so glad to see her enjoying it as well.
We have 9 days left of school. NINE DAYS. Don’t think I’m not counting those down like Christmas. It’s been a long year. I assumed it would be pure magic because my youngest started kinder and I had the house to myself for 7 whole hours…..but getting both of them up and ready by 7:30 is the biggest beating EVER. I’m very sure I’m as anxious to get school over as they are.
My son used to dislike reading until he found some chapter books that interested him, like the Nate series and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Now he zooms through them, which I’m happy about because so many boys/men aren’t readers.
Anxious for the cat story…….:)
Ugh…we have three more this week, then a full week, then five days of exams and wrap-up. Interminable!
We have not yet ventured into Diary of a Wimpy Kid, but I’ve heard great things about them. We may have to check those out, too.
The cat story is in the works – it’s a pretty good one.
For me this month has gone by with the blink of an eye! I hope summer does not go this fast!!
Oh, me too! I’m looking forward to a nice long summer and a slow pace.
Your ten things of thankful always make me think of my own – it’s so inspiring to read about the little things that make up the goodness of a week!
You should join us, Andrea! Make your own and link up! It’s hugely powerful. 🙂