funny quotes from years gone by (part 2)

In anticipation of a new school year, a fresh start, and a whole host of even more hilariously funny comments and/or questions, I would love to share a few more laughs from the past.

After passing a rather elaborate fountain in Highland Park, one student exclaimed, "The only time I see this much water in my neighborhood is when a pipe busts."

Upset about having to play another basketball game, student: "I'm bringing my Z game" (as opposed to his A game for those who are not up with the lingo).

Advice from an recent graduate about high school: "Depending on how old your teacher is, if they give you homework, you might want to do it. Because if she is old, she might give you a detention."

Impersonating Martin Luther King Jr.

After studying the ratification of the constitution and how Rhode Island was the last to sign on even after the Constitution was ratified, one student proclaimed his innocence in a notorious water fountain debacle like this: "I'm Rhode Island! I didn't do anything."

A seventh grader asking to go on the eighth grade DC trip: "Can I go? I can be a pet. I won't have to take a shower!"

Me on the Texas History Trip: "Come on guys. Walk faster!"
Student: "With or without swag?"

After asking a student why she decided that eating a leaf at the Alamo was a good idea, Student: "Well, I have eaten a leaf before at school."

Study Hall shenanigans (which were not endorsed by me, for the record)

secret garden

This summer I went on a little British literature kick with Dickens, or course, and The Secret Garden. Perusing through the library, I found this children's classic and don't remember reading it (although my mom claims she read it to us and I am sure she is right. . . sorry, mom). I was totally transported by this beautiful story of an ugly, ill-tempered girl growing up and learning to care for people and creation and losing her ugliness and ill temper in the process.

Reading this lovely story made visiting my mom's precious garden in Nebraska even sweeter. Every evening we went to her garden or Neighbor Bill's garden and picked our veggies for dinner: asparagus, eggplant, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and my favorite--Swiss Chard!

This is my favorite salad in the whole world. The sad this is that I can't replicate it--mom specialty.

surviving mrs. freeman

In order to cut through the frequent melodramatic complaining, I often tell my students that my favorite hobby is to make their lives miserable and that it has taken me many years to perfect my craft. Seventh graders believe me at first, but the eighth graders think it is funny.

I have worked long and hard to develop a reputation as a tough teacher. Some may think I am heartless, but I would submit that those are the ones that have spent little to no time in a classroom setting. I learned very quickly that in order to maintain order there must be a real authority structure and high expectations. Authority is from God and under a Biblical worldview, submission is a good and even chivalrous virtue. As believers we submit to God's law so we must learn to do the same in the classroom. And high expectations call the children up; I ask them to be their best because I respect them and believe that they have enormous potential. All of this can be achieved with many hours of homework, several just and creative punishments, lots of mean teacher looks, and countless hours of talking and listening.

Recently, I received what some would consider an insult, but I consider a great professional accomplishment. One of my former students said of me to another student about his fast approaching high school career: "I mean I survived Mrs. Freeman so I should be okay (barely survived :P)"

With that said, I am kind of looking forward to getting my mean pants on again, brushing up on my mean teacher look, and assigning lots of homework.

baby gifts

I have entered the stage in my life where I am buying quite a few baby gifts for friends. For these types of occasions, I like to have a few creative/cute gift ideas that I can come back to over and over again so that I can pick up the present without having to expend to much creative energy or thought. Here are my go to baby gifts. I simply love these darling little books by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. They stories are precious and the illustrations could not be cuter.

1. Little Pea and a food mill

In Little Pea, Pea is forced to eat his candy for dinner before he gets to eat his vegetables for dessert. My mom used these inexpensive food mills when we were little so that we could get our veggies.

2. Little Hoot and a sweet baby blanket

Little Hoot is an owl who has to stay up late to play even though he is so tired and wants to go to bed. It is perfect paired with a cuddly blanket.

3. Little Oink and a hooded towel

Little Oink is about a little pig who has to mess up his room so that he can be a good pig even though he wants to pick it up. This little hooded towel (designed by my sister for Target) is perfect for a clean, sweet smelling babe. Or as my great-grandmother would say, "All clean, and no bugs either."

for the love of all that is awkward

Last weekend Barrett and I had a garage sale so we did a lot of clearing out and throwing away. In our pairing down, we found tons of old pictures. Among them was my absolute favorite picture of me and my youngest sister Hannah. Hannah is 7 years younger than me, and this lapse in time made our childhood experiences dramatically different. But one of my greatest joys over the past few years has been watching Hannah grow up and getting to know her as an adult. She is the most fun and adventurous person I know, and where there is Hannah, there is a party!

Hannah and I Summer 2003

This is my favorite picture because it captures her in her most awkward years--middle school. She was going through a hilariously awkward phase that I can laugh at only because mine was worse. But after teaching middle school for a few years, I have formed a deep attachment to children in that difficult and painfully awkward phase. Growing up, I never understood why my mom wanted to have portraits made of us when we were 13 because we were clearly so awkward. But it was because she wanted to capture the simultaneous beauty and awkwardness that only comes in middle school when a child becomes an adult. Looking at this picture and thinking about how beautiful and fun Hannah is now makes me love this picture of her even more.

It also makes me really excited about a whole new batch of awkward kids who I will get to watch God grow in to amazing men and women. Whenever I tell people I teach middle school, I usually get a deer-in-the-headlights look like I might be crazy or like pain. But there is such fun and beauty in the awkwardness of that stage of life because it is a time when so much change and progress are happening; these children are officially becoming adults--reasoning for the first time and developing a sense of humor. I will need to keep this picture in front of me this year as a reminder of how lovable awkwardness can be and how awesome it can become later.

Hannah and I Summer 2010

happy aniversary, baby! got you on my mi-ind!

Today Barrett and I celebrated out 5th anniversary. While most of the day was very normal (except that I had the song Anniversary by Little River Band stuck in my head all day), there was a definite sense that we reached a milestone, however small. I cannot believe that we have been married for five years already. I have loved all the little phases and stages we have gone through so far, and I cannot wait for all of the many and different phases and stages that we have yet to venture into together. Cheers to many more years to come!

Found this card at Paper Source, and it was so perfect for our little occasion.

August 13, 2005

Five years later and still counting!

craftiness

Over the past few weeks, I have been trying to take advantage of every last minute of my summer (thus, the lack of recent blog posts). Tonight, I am trying not to mourn too loudly that I have to get up early and go to work tomorrow. To boost my spirits, I have enjoyed thinking about all that I have done this summer. It is amazing what one can accomplish with lots of sleep and creative energy. This summer, my creative energy manifested itself in a new hobby. . . sewing! My good friend Winsor got me hooked when she got a sewing machine and let me use it. I put a bug in my husband's ear that I really wanted a sewing machine for my birthday, and guess what he surprised me with when I got home from vacation? Yep! He got a fabulous deal on an old Viking. After having it serviced, I was so excited to got my hands on it and knock out some projects. My mom, quite the seamstress herself, loved that I was taking on this new hobby and sent me a package of all the sewing essentials (i.e. Ginger scissors, measuring tape, pins, some really cute vintage fabric, and Martha's Stewart's Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts). I have been pouring over Martha's wisdom and still have quite a few projects/techniques from the book that I want to try my hand at. Here are some pictures of what I've done.
I made these pillows for our living room. The inspiration was the crewel embroidery I found at an antique mall.

I painted this bench to match our shutters and made these little outdoor pillows for it.

I made this little receiving blanket for sweet Winsor's new baby, Reed. I cross-stitched his birthday on the flannel side. It is not perfect, but still cute.

This little tab curtain in our bathroom is way better than the blinds that were there previously, believe me.

I am so excited to tackle more sewing projects in the near future. But first, I desperately need to make my office/craft space more efficient and inspiring. Check out sweet Katie's ideas here. Maybe that will help me going back to work and being more productive in my time off. . . Here's hoping.