EVERLASTING LIFE

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100% of my students are LDS. As a result, it makes for some very uniqe dynamics in my classroom. Fun comments like these are made almost daily.
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For this assignment, each student picked a topic to argue their opinion for. Most chose to argue the importance of video games, daily visits to Disneyland, or the legalization of Pokemon cards at school. But this young man chose to argue against swearing. From the sounds of it, he must listen well during primary. It warmed my heart.
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For those if you who don't read 3rd-grade handwriting-ese (of which I happen to be fluent in), here is the translation:
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I think that everybody should not swear. It will make you feel bad. You have a feeling you should not swear. It'll make you feel sick to your stomach.
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It makes you a mean person. No one will play with you. No people will want to talk to you.
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It might make you addicted to swearing. Everything you do you might get addicted. You will not have everlasting life.
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THIS DAY IS BANANAS, B-A-N-A-N-A-S

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1. I woke up on May 1st, pouting, and Andrew asked me what was the matter. When I explained I was sad that my birthday was over, he only laughed at me. No compassion.What-ever. Here's to making it last a little longer.
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My dad sent me an e-mail, listing other notable events occurring on April 30th. Some really important things occurred on this day in history. To name just a few of the coolest:
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This Day in History, April 3oth


* On April 30th, 1492, Christopher Columbus was granted a commission for exploration by Spain.
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* On April 30th, 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.
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* On April 30th, 1803, the United States more than doubled its land area with the Louisiana Purchase. It obtained all French territory west of the Mississippi River for $15 million.
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* On April 30th, 1945, the burned body of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler was found in a bunker in the ruins of Berlin. Also that day, Soviet troops captured the Reichstag building in Berlin.
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2. My mom sent me this key chain for my birthday. Key chains don't normally fall into the category of: totally awesome birthday presents...but this does. It is a see-through locket with personalized charms inside. Love it! I couldn't have picked better charms myself to personify myself with.

• Camera (I am slightly obsessed with capturing everything)
• Teacher's Apple (Duh)
• Stack of Books (I have quite the collection)
• Paint Palette (My Associates Degree is in art)
• The Letter "R" (My First Initial lined with my birthstone)
• "My Man" in a Heart ( I really do love Andrew)
• Faith (See HERE)

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The key chain was only made cooler by the way it was wrapped. What a cute box!

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3. Have you played this game before? It is like Scrabble, but leaps and bounds better. Think fast-paced versus waiting-30-minutes-for-it-to-finally-be-your-turn-again.
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Andrew, Lane, and I are addicted. We've played a lot. The moment someone finally beats Lane though, it may lose much of its appeal (no pun intended). One more win out of him, and he may be living on the streets.
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4. On a totally unrelated topic, I NEED ADVICE:

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How do you teach the concept of honesty and trust to children, so that they reeeally, truly internalize it? I have a student who is on a daily basis caught cheating and lying. She doesn't seem to care about anything but getting caught. I have tried:

• time outs
• lectures and explanations
• expressing deep disappointment
• expressing anger
• prayer
• notes home (her mom isn't one to care much)
• a visit with the principal
• parables (boy who cried wolf)
• losing privileges

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And I have run out of ideas. Today, I had her stay in from recess, so that I could handle it, yet again. But I couldn't think of another way to address it. So, we just stared at each other...I guess I was hoping for inspiration to strike, but it didn't. So the bell rang, and I excused her. I know there are several teachers who read this blog...not to mention parents. Help me!
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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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