Monday, monday

Hope your Thanksgiving break was WONDERFUL! I had such a relaxing time with mom's side, dad's side, and just being at home. It was so great having all the sisters in the same place and getting to help mom decorate for Christmas. I really missed my little bees over break, so I was so excited to get back. It was hard waking up, but I was pumped to get back in the building. I was running late due to my daily Sonic run and the soggy weather.

Imagine my surprise when I walked in and met one of my students with her grandmother. Now, this is a lady who I have met with several times all ready. She has her stuff together and is doing EVERYTHING she can to help her granddaughter succeed. She has been to every parent-teacher conference, signs B's agenda every night, and makes sure any behavior concerns are immediately nipped.

Grandma shows me all this paperwork and says she doesn't know what to do. It turns out she had been trying to help out another family (that also has ties to my classroom) by letting them live with her. They messed up, and their actions have caused this grandma to become evicted. The only stable thing in this little girl's life, and now they have to be out of the apartment ASAP. Grandma comes to me (whose biggest worry so far has been whether or not Sonic had fresh tea) to ask for help, advice, and prayer. Jeez louise. Don't take your home for granted. Grandma doesn't know who to talk to or where to go. She was headed to Legal Aid when she left me, and I sent her to the principals and social worker. I told her I would do whatever I could to act as a reference, so she could try to fight this. Poor thing.

It really weighed on my heart. And when the other student whose family was involved rolled in, it made me so sad. I expect my students to come in, do the right thing, and work hard to get to college. How different is this from what they are seeing at home? How can I be so tough on my bees who don't do their homework when they are watching their parents get arrested the night before? Or being told they have to go live in a homeless shelter?

I used my planning to do research and talked to the social worker and housing coordinator. She does have options and may be able to fight this. I'm really hoping that she can stay in her home and have a good Christmas for her precious granddaughter. I am just hoping she can stay in my class and not have to go to a homeless shelter. That is really tough. A lot of my most troubled kids in middle school lived in homeless shelters. Can you imagine not having somewhere safe to go at night? Or having to sell/store all your furniture to go to the mission? Please say a prayer all works out both for my little girl and the other little boy. And really for all my kids.

It was a great day, and they were both remarkably normal considering their out of school drama. It makes me wonder what else my other students are dealing with that I might not even know about...

Hope you have lots to be thankful about today!

Much love,

Miss P

Top 10 Things about my Weekend

I have had a super-chill but super great weekend in Nashville...here are some highlights:

1. Thanksgiving cards for my family.

2. Started Christmas decorating

3. Saw "Breaking Dawn"

4. Thoughtfully discussed all romantic scenes from BD with sisters and friends

5. Mazatlan

6. Caught up on some phone calls and Facebook stalking (Loveeee all the new baby and wedding pics on FB!)

7. Attempted to "edit" my news feed so I didn't see intimate thoughts from random acquaintances

8. Slept talked to M and then proceeded to be made fun of by the whole family

9. Taught 1st and 2nd graders in Sunday School at Grace that God is faithful.

10. Slept...

Hope you had a nice weekend, too!

New Year...New School

Okay, so it has been ridiculously long since I've posted. So many things have changed.

1. I'm at a new school

2. I'm teaching 2nd grade.

3. I'm blissfully happy and love my little bees.

4. I love my job.

I cannot even tell you how much I love elementary. I have an amazing principal and 2nd grade team. I am sooo thankful. As we approach Thanksgiving, I have so much to be thankful for this year. I think I have found my calling!