leave of absence

This week JP'smother will be on hiatus due to mid -year progress monitoring. Tons of paper work both at school & at home. I'll be back on Feb. 2 (ground hog day).

Eating in public

Yesterday was our monthly "Student of the Month" assembly at my school. Parents were invited to school for breakfast and to attend the ceremony in which one child from each class received a certificate for academic achievement & positive social interaction with peers.

I was seated in the 3rd row with my student & her dad. Ahead of us a woman in her mid to late twenties was sitting with a baby in her lap. When the ceremony was about to begin my principal came over & asked me to take pictures of the event using his digital camera. As was taking pictures I noticed some of my colleagues whispering & pointing in my direction. It seems they were concerned about the woman in the row in front of me who was breast feeding her baby without covering herself.

Anybody care to comment on this? I really don't understand all the controversy, but it seemed to be the hot topic at lunch on Friday.

5 yr. olds

Hi everyone.... it's been a relatively uneventful week, except for today. As all of you know , I spend my days with five year olds. This afternoon I took the 5 year olds down to the gym for phys. ed. class. After 35 minutes I went back to pick them up & found 2 boys sitting in chairs while the rest of the kids were playing basketball. When I questioned the boys they told me they were not allowed to play because they were biting their friends.

When we got back to our classroom I had to give the whole class a lecture about not hurting our classmates & treating others with kindess. Before the kids went home today I made them repeat a new mantra, " We wll not bite our friends...... friends are not food!"

Tragedy at school

Imagine you're a high school student. It's after an hour after school has ended on a Friday afternoon. You're playing handball with 2 friends behind your high school. This sounds like a typical scene at any suburban high school in America, doesn't it?

Unfortunately if you live in Hempstead , NY this story does not have a happy ending. The day before yesterday a gang of thugs (7 in all) robbed some high school students after school. They stole money, a couple of cell phones & an MP3 player, but that wasn't enough as they were leaving one of these punks stabbed repeatedly one of the three boys that were playing handball.

By the next morning Michael was dead from his wounds. He was only 15 years old. He had been my student when he was a kindergartener. He was murdered less than a mile from his home. He was on the school grounds when it happened. As I read the newspaper account this morning I was shocked, saddened & angry. I don't understand how anyone could have such little regard for the life of another human being.

Top of the World

I saw on the internet & heard it on TV and the radio that Sir Edmund Hillary died yesterday. Of course most will people remember him as the first man to reach the peak of Mount Everest.... the highest point on earth. He was, as he described himself, a simple bee keeper from New Zealand.

When I read his obituary this morning I started thinking about my own mortality... how will I be remembered when I'm gone? Have I made a difference in lives of the people who knew me? Have I done anything for the good of humanity? I don't have any of the answers, but I do know that there are people who love me and I love them... that's all that really matters isn't it?

sleeping angels

The guys at the McCoy/McDermott wake up early from Mon. to Fri...... my sweetie has to be at work by 7 a.m. so he's usually up before 5 and the teenager leaves for school at 7 so he's up before 6 a.m..... luckily I don't have to be at work 'til 8:15 so I'm not getting up as early as the guys... tonight while the guys are in dreamland i'm enjoying the quiet time as I watch Law & Order.

While I enjoy the peace & quiet for an hour or so, I can't imagine how some people can live alone. I definitely enjoy our noisy times, especially when my sweetie & the teenager are playing practical jokes on each other. Sleep well my angels!

Cowboys in Manhattan

As part of my sweetie's Christmas present I got tickets to the PBR (that's Professional Bull Riding tournament for all the civilians out there). So we took the train into NYC this afternoon & had some dinner (Puerto Rican food of course!) After dinner we headed to, of all places, Madison Square Garden to see an indoor rodeo. I had never done this before so I didn't know what to expect, but my sweetie was like a kid on his first trip to the circus.

I'm sure all the football fans out there will think a 280 lbs. linebacker tackling the guy with the ball is exciting, but exciting is watching a man riding bareback on a 2000 lb. raging bull. As usual date night with my sweetie was a lot of fun! Hope you enjoyed yourself honey, I know I did!!!!

am open letter to my guy

hey sweetie....just a quick note to tell you how much i love you.....i can't believe how quickly the past 11 months have gone by.... do you realize that in just 6 months we will be walking down the aisle ( 7/3/08 can"t wait)!!!! xoxo, liz

Best of times...worst of times

2007 proved to be bittersweet... after a long illness my mom left us in May, then over the summer my grandmother suffered 2 strokes...she lingered for a couple of months, then she died as well (she probably died of a broken heart). OK maybe I'm feeling a little sorry for myself, but on top of all this my brother isn't talking to my dad and my dad isn't talking to my uncle... I'm close to all three & they're driving me crazy...luckily they each live in a different state.

No more whining, I promise! I have so many things to be thankful for ... I have a man who loves me & tells me so everyday....my son is healthy & on his way to college in a few months... my friends are more caring than I deserve..... so I guess 2008 will be better than the previous year.

God Bless everyone & Happy New Year.