Fall Break - Sick!

Late Saturday afternoon I noticed I was feeling chilly. Thinking it was just our unusual weather, I checked the thermostat and went about my business.

That night I was awoken around 11:00 PM with genuine chills, and by 1:30 AM I had begun a long night of bathroom runs every half hour or so. I vomited, I had other bathroom issues, I was sick, sick, sick.

By mid morning Sunday, the bathroom issues had ceased, but I was running a temperature of 101.4 and ended up sleeping most of the day. I was very weak and tired and had no appetite, but I did manage to eat a little late afternoon and keep that down, plus I was drinking a lot of water.

Not the way I intended to spend one of my Fall Break days, but by the same token, I didn't have to miss school or write sub plans since it was Fall Break!

Fall Break - Cleaning Out the Closet

This afternoon I FINALLY got the time to clean out the closet in the horse room. Mostly model horse and Star Trek/Star Wars things, it is always fun to pull things out, see what I've tucked away, and get it organized again.

 It was a mess.

 Things were stacked up in no particular order.

I pulled out eight empty boxes that I'd tucked away for future use. I may keep them, but I really don't need eight.

All done! And it looks so much better.

Fall Break - a Trip to Williamsport Falls and Portland Arch

After babysitting the kids, Craig and I headed out of town toward Attica. We had decided we wanted to see some local attractions.

First on our list was the Williamsport Falls.

At 90 feet, they are the highest falls in Indiana. And, they are right in the middle of the town! Hard to believe that the town just grew around them - it seems dangerous to me.

 This is the view from the viewing platform. It's a huge rock ledge that the water runs over and then drops down into a creek below. We haven't had much rain recently so there was little water going over the falls.

 Craig. (Look at him! He has lost 78 pounds since the end of January!)

 We hiked a little ways down into the gorge.

 Craig went further than me - I love this picture of him on the trail.

 We took a selfie on the trail, too.

After visiting the falls, we drove south and west of Attica. We wanted to see the Portland Arch. Naively, I thought it would be right by the road like the falls are, and that we could pull up, take some pictures, and be done. Was I wrong!

Getting to the Portland Arch meant driving down some country lanes and then into a beautiful nature preserve. Then we had to park the car and hike a long trail down into another gorge. The trail was covered in fallen leaves and hard to see at times. And there were "stairs" on the trail made with giant roots and slippery rocks. I needed help more than once from Craig to navigate the trail, and my hips and knees hurt as we did.

But coming upon the arch made those aches and pains worth it.

 It was a very large hole that the creek had cut into and through the cliff over thousands of years.

 I anticipated something much smaller, maybe a foot or so tall; certainly not an arch as big as this one was!

 Craig and I took simultaneous photos of each other!

After the arch, the trail followed the stream bed and under some towering cliffs. My camera died, but one cliff we estimated was about 150 feet tall!

The trail hugged the base of one cliff.

 It was chilly in the shade, but so lovely. And the smells! A woods smells so fresh and clean. There was also a bit of a sweet smell in the air as we meandered the creek bottoms.

 There was one place where the cliff's roof lifted high into the air. We walked back under it for fun.

 We reached up to give our pictures some perspective.

 You can see how tall the roof of that overhang is.

 After a mile of hiking, we made it back up and out of the canyon. I was very surprised in retrospect at how well I had done - surely my spinal fusion last July contributed to making it possible for me to hike down and back into the canyon as well as remain standing for so long.

We had hoped to also see the Falls Creek potholes, but decided we had had enough and would do them another time.

Cross seeing the Portland Arch off my bucket list!

Fall Break Kick-Off

Fall Break got started on a good note - we babysat Ian and Mila for a couple of hours Friday morning while Vanessa did a photo shoot!

 The fun began in the playroom where Ian played with his much loved trains.

Mila decided to do a little traveling, so Ian used Olaf, the stuffed snowman I gave them last Christmas, to lure her back.

I tried to get a picture of the two of them together, but this was the best I could do! (And I think it's pretty cute.)

 This girl melts my heart.

Ian and I went into the living room to get something, and he had to show me his chair. 

 He also found a leaf on the floor which he insisted on taking outside, barefoot and pantless. 

While we were outside, Boompa decided to hide himself, and so Ian and I went looking for him.

Nope! Not Boompa! That's Flurry, the stuffed snowman Curt won from the dentist when he was about four years old.

Boompa's hiding place was the best of the best. And believe it or not, Ian walked right past him!

After a few more rounds of hide and seek with Ian, and a diaper change for Mila, Vanessa came home and our time with the kids was up.

What a great way to kick off my Fall Break!

Pumpkin Pi!

Tim Schnepp has worn many hats at Hershey. He was my classroom aide, and now is a tech specialist, chess coach, morning announcements cameraman, AV club sponsor, and so on. I know him pretty well, and vice versa.

Today he walked in with a gift for me.

 He made me a pumpkin pi!

Not only did Tim carve the pi symbol into the pumpkin, he also grew it, too!

The students loved it, and now it is here at home and on my grandmother's antique table.

A Rock Star Moment

Being recognized when you are out and about town is a common thing when you are a teacher. And it isn't always a student who you know or who has been in your class - sometimes the child running up to you crying, "Hi, Mrs. I!" is totally unfamiliar to you. (I just smile and say, "You must go to Hershey," and their little faces light up because you KNOW them. Think Elf and you've got it.)

Lisa and I call those "rock star moments" and they make us both smile. And they happen because we are seen around the school, at assemblies, and on morning announcements. You may not know all 500+ kids at your school, but they sure know you!

Like this:

The day after I won my award, Linda asked me to be on morning announcements so that she could honor me in front of the whole school.

 It was a bit outside my comfort zone, so I just sat there quietly.

 Until she pulled out the Hershey tiara.

And the Hershey pink boa (which sheds badly - I picked up a lot of feathers before I finally decided to take it off.)

It was lovely to be recognized and has led to more rock star moments with Hershey kids I do not know but who walk up to me and share congratulations.

But that's not a bad thing. In fact, it's been fun, and I am touched by the sweetness of the children who come up to me and say something.

Mrs. Frizzle Goes to Indianapolis

When I first began teaching, there was a popular series of books and videos about a magical Science teacher named Mrs. Frizzle. She frequently loaded her students onto the Magic School Bus and took them on all kinds of Science adventures.

My Yankee Ridge students called me "Mrs. Frizzle" for years  whenever we would do Science. I continued the tradition of doing hands-on Science learning when we moved to Indiana, and as the years have passed, I have added STEM learning into those activities to keep them current and relevant.

Yesterday, I received the nation's highest award for Science teaching - The Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.

It was a HUGE honor and a highlight of my teaching career.

There was a luncheon for the honorees in Indianapolis hosted by the Indiana Department of Education.

We were on the top floor and in the penthouse of the Ivy Tech Culinary Center.

The tables were beautifully set with cloth napkins and molded butter pats!

And Glenda Ritz, Indiana's Superintendent of Education, was in attendance!

She was elected with more votes than the governor received after eight years of Tony Bennett, a lousy predecessor, and has fought for much needed changes in Hoosier education

She made it a point to personally congratulate every winner, taking time to chat and pose for pictures. (I was so excited to meet her, I almost wanted to ask for her autograph!)

She also presented our awards.

Bea Younker (Director of Gifted Ed for TSC) and my principal, Linda Fields came down to support me. So did Craig, but I failed to get any pictures of him!

Linda encouraged me to go through the intense nomination process, even giving me a personal half-day to work on the paperwork. (I put at least forty hours into it!)

Still having a hard time believing that this is all real.

The other finalists - three in Math and five in Science. (One finalist was ill and not there.)

Glenda Ritz with the state finalists.

It was a beautiful day and, as we were told, doors to new opportunities are already opening. I've been invited to present at HASTI (Hoosier Association of Science Teachers, Inc.) by the association's president. Bea has some ideas for professional development that she'd like me to consider. And so on.

Pretty heady stuff. But I am most happy being Mrs. Frizzle and simply exploring Science with my students.

Seing the Sandhill Cranes

On our way home after the Pumpkin Train ride, we decided to stop at the Jasper County Wildlife Refuge and see the sandhill cranes. We knew that midday was not the best time to see the birds, but we were in the area and thought we'd give it a chance anyway.

The path to the viewing station was blocked by a tree that had come down recently. We were able to hop over it, though.

Look carefully in the center of this picture and you will see a pair of cranes.

 Craig looking out over the landscape.

 Me using the telescope to look at the birds.

The fall colors at the refuge were lovely. I like the juxtaposition of green and red leaves plus the tiny red berries.

A close-up of the red berries.

We did not see a lot of sandhill cranes, but we saw a few and heard them as well. It was certainly worth the trip to the refuge.