QUARTER OF A CENTURY

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Today is my birthday. I LOVE my birthday. Andrew showed up at work with cupcakes for my class and a Jamba Juice for me.
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I LOVE my Andrew. And as you might guess, Mr. Ashmore is popular with the kiddies too.
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A special delivery surprised me a few hours later. How gorgeous are these?

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We laughed out loud at the card. I guess my Mother-In-Law knows me pretty well.

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Here's a special blog-style shout-out to Joel, Rhonda, Erin, Ryan, Gabe, John, Riley, and Laney. Congratulations on making the blog!
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Students piled little presents on my desk: candles, nail polish, bath salts, bubble bath, candy, stuffed animals, books, and warm fuzzy socks.
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Every homemade card was covered in child-styled tulips. I guess my students know me pretty well too.
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I must also blog about my new Bath and Body Works hand soap...

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And my new hat. I honestly never dreamed I'd own my owncamolauge...and be so happy about it. Idaho must be rubbing off on me.

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After work, I requested Lazer Tag. Andrew, Lane, and I spent an hour dominating games full of elementary kids. I haven't had so much fun since I don't know when.

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Back at home, the guys made me dinner. I'm not sure why, but I always enjoy meals more when I don't have to cook them. Or clean up after them.

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Completely on accident, Andrew and Lane both ended up wearing the same outfit today: jeans and navy blue polo shirts.

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It kept throwing me off! At one point, while I was distractedly working on something, Andrew walked by me with a friendly smack on my rear end. From the corner of my eye, I had been so certain it was Lane that I was this close to dropping him to the ground with my ruthless Tae Bo skills.

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Lucky for him, I realized the truth just in time. And we were all able to enjoy our Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches in one piece.

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Now, I'm anxiously awaiting the time to open these babies!
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Apparently, we are in need of some birthday wrapping paper. Though sadly enough, this paper still works. We had snow flurries this afternoon. On my birthday. In April.
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Oh well. I won't let it ruin my day. I'll all be worth it in July, when the rest of the country is at 110 degrees...and we're not.

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Now...bring on the Setters of Catan! Hope you all have a Happy-Birthday-to-Me-Day!

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WEEKEND...

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.1. This is how Andrew looked much of the time. Apparently, kidney stones aren't fun.

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2. Andrew's little bro' moved in all the stuff he'd need for his new life in Idaho, into our spare bedroom.

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Above, Andrew's helping Lane set up his computer. As for Lane, I'm not sure what he's doing. Maybe singing show tunes?

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But anyway, we're really excited about Lane's decision to attend BYU-Idaho. Yay!

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3. Look at that! He even brought his cowboy hat! Lane'll fit right in now. All he needs now is an old pickup and a dog to put in the back.

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4. Oh...and on Friday, I learned that it's official:

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the school year has been cut an entire week.

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It was something about budget cuts... saving a hundred grand...and other blah blah blah. All I heard, though, was that the last day of school would be May 27th rather than June 4th. And I still get paid for it. I cannot even begin to express just how okay I am with this change in plans.
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ELEMENTARY TABLOIDS

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1. I was standing at the door as students filed in after recess. A boy stopped to tell me about how he had scared a girl while she was jump roping. He enthusiastically described her reaction as:
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"The girl totally fruck out!"
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I thought it was a nice experiment with past tense.
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2. A student informed the class that his big sister was having a baby soon. Taking the tone of someone who knows what they're talking about, he said:
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"There's about a 90,000% chance of it being a boy...and a 5% chance that it's a girl."
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(Can you guess the gender he's rooting for?)
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3. This next kid tests my insanity with his distractedness. One day, in the middle of a discussion in math, this young man raised his hand and announced:
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"My mom's mom has 4 eyes on the back of her head."
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I'm not even joking. This was said with complete seriousness and with a look that showed he was preparing for us to be shocked and amazed. I think we were all shocked and amazed, just not in the manner he was intending.
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There was silence for about 5 seconds while I processed what I had just heard and got control of my bearings. Finally, I decided it was probably best just to ignore it. Turning away from him, I continued right on with our math discussion.
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4. I had just given the class some instructions, and they were busying themselves to accomplish the task. This same distracted kid, I found, however, to be wandering around the the opposite side of the classroom...doing only goodness knows what. When I reminded him of my instructions and asked him what he was doing, he sighed heavily and said:
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"Sorry, Mrs. Ashmore. I get sidetracked very good!"
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5. A student came up to me the moment he was off the bus.
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"Mrs. Ashmore! Did you know that mermaids are real?! They are! It's true!"
"What makes you say that?" I asked with a sigh.
"They found one! It floated up to shark level and a shark killed it. Then it came all the way up to the top and people on a boat found it!"
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(I stared at him for a moment.)
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"Okay," was my response.
(How else do you respond to that story when it's told with such excitement and surety?)
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6. Last year, we were having a class discussion about the presidential election. I was introducing the candidates and the concepts of political parties and platforms. I was just giving a very basic overview when a young lady raised her hand with a comment.
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"Barack Obama believes in...abominations." She said the last word hesitantly, as if she wasn't sure she had said it correctly. I was confused, so I asked what she meant by that.
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"He believes in killing babies."
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Her words suddenly became clear to me.
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"Oh, you mean abortion!
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(she nodded)
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"Yes...well...moving on!"
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I wasn't about to discuss that topic with a bunch of other people's 8 year-olds. But secretly, I had responded within myself:
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"Oh, that kind of abomination! Yes, you're right."
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I highly enjoyed her innocent, yet very fitting mix-up. =)
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SNAPSHOTS OF HOME

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Another rustic barn that HAD to be photographed.

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A horse. In the parking lot.
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Little planes from the little airport in town.
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Yep. Gone Fishing.

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Silos. Have the need to photograph them almost as often as rustic barns.

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LDS temple on the hill.

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It is an actual house, built to look like an actual boat.

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A dog awaits another car to chase down his country road.
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Red barn, in white snow, behind yellow buses.

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Melting snow.

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Charming old houses.
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Holy wildflowers! (Nearby mountains)

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Rexburg's spray park: A happenin' place in the summer.
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Farmer's Market.
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Sand dunes.

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Not sure who Tom is...but love his meadow.

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Harvest time.
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. Spuds!
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Mater himself.
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Snake River Valley
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Rustic Charm.
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Now that's classy...

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And getting classier. =)

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Only ten minutes from my house.
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And spacious skies.

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RECESS

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. I instructed two students to raise the flag in front of the school. They raced to the pole while I watched from the play yard. After they had it hanging successfully over the building, they raced back to me--their faces plastered with large, goofy grins. They were so proud! The kids excitedly turned back to admire their handiwork.
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After several seconds, however, one of the student's shoulders suddenly drooped dramatically, his excited smile turning upside down in horrible disappointment. Surprised by his change in mood, I looked at him expectantly. Eyes still on the flag, he pouted:
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"The wind needs to be blowing! It would look so much better!"
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I did my best not to laugh at his affliction, as I gazed back up at the flag, that was indeed hanging as limp as a wet noodle.
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Just then, I heard one of my little freckle-covered guys, exclaim: "Mrs. Ashmore, They've got me!" I surveyed the group of 4th grade girls, grasping his jacket firmly, and all grinning at me mischievously.
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"So girls, what are you going to do with him now that you've caught him?"
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They simply giggled in unison, as they began to drag him in the opposite direction. "We're going to suck his blood," the smallest one stated matter-of-factly, her pigtails bouncing as she walked (oh dear. that one's mother must be a Twilight fan).
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"Well, be sure to have him back in time for class. "
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*Another chorus of giggles*
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"Mrs. Ashmore, Noooooo! "
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This was all I heard, as they disappeared across the field. I sighed and let them go. For some reason, I just had the feeling that my little guy would be more disappointed if I did put a stop to the torture.
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Never a dull moment.
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LAUGHABLE

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If any of you work/worked at Micky D's and happened to love it...I apologize in advance.
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Christmas Morning
Graduating from high school
Getting asked out on a date by a crush
My Wedding Day
Student loans being forgiven
Summer vacation
Winning a free Shabby Apple dress
Tulip Bouquets arriving in the mail
Winter turning into spring
The neighbors with poopy dogs moving away
Free Miata convertibles...
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These are a few things that might merit such an exultation. (refer to picture above)
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A job at McDonald's is not generally one of them. I just don't believe any of the pimply-faced teenagers serving us chocolate-vanilla-twist cones the other night, felt the same way about their jobs as that man does on the poster. I look that guy every time I think about how I don't have to work at McDonald's to pay the bills. I love my current job, thank-you-very-much.
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I'd rather chase around, trying to educate, twenty-two nose pickin', chatter-box, summer-hungry 8-year olds any 'ol day.
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OUT OF THE BLUE

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Andrew: So...In The Sound of Music, does the nanny fall in love with the father?
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Rachel: (after a stunned silence) Yes, they get married.
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Andrew: The dad wasn't married?
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Rachel: No, he was a widow.
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Andrew: Oh.
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Rachel: Maria was about to take her vows as a nun. That's why it was complicated.
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Andrew: (nods) That's right.
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But she wasn't a very good nun, was she?
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Rachel: No.
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Andrew: (nods)

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(silence)
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...Maybe we should watch that move again sometime.
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Rachel: (stares back to gauge sincerity) ...Okay...
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Andrew: Maybe it'll give me some culture....
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Rachel: ...Okay.
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Andrew: ...so I don't just watch "man movies" all the time.
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Rachel: (laughs) Okay.
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