MOTHER'S WEEK

This has been a week of mothering. If any week at all could represent what it means to be a mother... this would be it.

Animal Mothers
Mother's Day must be in Spring because it's the time of year for babies in the world. We've had the greatest week seeing them come out!

Early this week, when we were able to take our walk (most of the mornings it was dreadfully rainy and wet), we got to see a new family of goslings! Oh my! They are so cute and fluffy, you just want to touch them! But Momma and Papa are on the lookout. There was a third goose keeping a watch as well. Auntie?

Good size family - Seven adorable goslings!

Squirrels are out in abundance; sometimes there are too many, as witnessed on the streets! (SAD FACE) Skunks, too, are making their presence known, maybe not visually, but...boy! I think one has crawled underneath my house. It smelled SO BAD all week, especially in my living room. You'd go outside...no smell. Inside...Whoa! I sprayed and lit candles and did all I could to try and cover the smell until it dissipated later in the week. That strong, that close up, gives me a headache!

Mockingbirds are interesting during hatching time. They swoop down viciously on any creature they feel is getting too close to their nests, be they feathered or furred. Tuesday afternoon a couple of them were acting crazy, but we couldn't see why they were so agitated. Later, I saw that our summer vacationers, the Mississippi Kites, had begun to return to the power lines above us. Figures; that's why the mockingbirds were so upset!

Babies Growing Up
The bittersweet part of motherhood is the maturation of your younglings. Both of my kids did a little growing up this week. I loved it; I rejoiced in it. And I felt a little sad. Babies aren't forever.

Tuesday evening, I drove Analiese to Norman for her appointment with the Stake Patriarch. She was a little nervous at first, wondering what the Lord had in store for her, but soon settled down due to the kind reception we received by Patriarch and Sister Tanner (relation? Still figuring that out.). I am not at liberty to say what was said, but the feelings were very tender. It started with her asking me to give a prayer before the blessing was pronounced. I started weeping even before I could say a word! Let's just say she's as special as we all know she is and know she knows that her Father in Heaven loves her very much.

The Patriarch is an artist (and a gardener - we had a great conversation!). He painted this pics on his fence. They are amazing!

My favorite

Sunflowers still under construction

Side Note: We drove home with a strong storm on our tail. One that the weather people said threatened heavy hail and possible tornadoes. The wind and rain were enough, trust me! In the dark, with driving rain buffeting the van, it was a little scary going! But we made it safe, thankfully.

Friday, I took her over to USAO and we enrolled her in two classes for the fall: Writing 1 and College Algebra. She will get high school AND college credit for them! She will go on MWF, with about an hour in between classes. She figures she'll go to the library and study for her EPIC high school classes during that time. And...one of my seminary students will be taking the math class with her! She's kind of shaky on algebra, but he's not, so I'm hoping that he can help her. Plus, the college library offers free math tutoring, so we're going to start her off right!

Jonathan grew up a little this week, too. He's my late bloomer, a little shy, but once he gets started, he goes off just fine. Like his driving two years ago! Only this time, it's been something we've been encouraging him for a while to do...he went on a date! Saturday, he took a young woman from the Norman Singles Ward (and his Pathways class) our to the movies. He said they had a good time, it wasn't so scary, and yes, he'd go again. (You know what questions Mom asked!)

Mothering Others - Seminary
I love those kids so much. I worry and pray over them like I do my own. Graduation comes next week and I am dreading losing the ones who will leave!

One of my non-graduating invited me to the band concert Thursday evening. I told Ken...I HAVE to go, she wants me there! Well, three out of my six are in band, so I got to see all of them! Two are in Jazz Band, and did some special numbers I enjoyed. The band itself was very good, not a lot of squawking. Their percussion section was amazing! It wasn't a long concert, about 30 minutes, but worth every moment to see the one student's face light up to see me!

In red, on the left, is one of my seniors playing the biggest saxophone you ever saw in Jazz band. Her brother is on the second row, dark hair and classes (about the middle of the picture) playing clarinet.

Blue hair, one of my students. On the right, dark hair, glasses, bow tie, my 6 foot 4 inch student.

She plays trumpet. He plays clarinet.

My graduate (who played flute in regular band) and senior friend.

I also promised the kids a movie night on Friday. We were to watch 17 Miracles (pass the tissues, please). Analiese recalled that my first year teaching Seminary, which was Doctrine & Covenants, we'd made covered wagons out of marshmallows and graham crackers. So...we had to do it again, before we started the movie.

My wagon example. Do you think lions and buffalo pulled wagons?

Two of my seniors, having fun

Analiese and two others, carefully crafting

Can we eat these without hands?

This is my engineering-minded student. He had to "build a better mousetrap" as it were!

Can I get this all in my mouth?

All of my students came! Ken, just off of work, graciously made all the popcorn so I could spend time with my kids. One of them glommed onto Pom and nearly took her home with him! (I told him, since he's leaving on his mission in June, that I'd keep an eye on her for him!). They all had a great time  - fun and spiritual!

Mothering Others - VIPKid
They are growing on me...especially my regulars. I have one particular student who does not use any other teacher but me, and has me teach her twice on the weekend. We had technical problems on Saturday, so she ended up being nearly ten minutes late and only getting in about ten minutes, because she kept cutting out. I felt bad, I had a special reward video for her, but I'll see her next week. She's already rescheduled.

I had two new boys this weekend. One was quiet and fairly average; before and after was confusing to him as was bossy "e." But we also learned about mammals and birds and I think he enjoyed it. The second boy was way ahead of the game and very funny. He liked to talk! The first slide had two pictures...one to represent winter and one to represent fall. I pointed to winter and asked him what season that was...and I got a lecture! He told me it was his favorite season, what he did then, what he wore, and the holidays they have then in China! Practically covered the lesson! As it was, we got everything done in 18 minutes, giving me six minutes to fill! Well, he did that well enough for me. I had to laugh, he did the same thing a boy last week did when I asked him if he wore a skirt in the Spring. (Disgusted face) I am a boy! I do NOT wear a skirt! I have to say, I love those classes!

And...my heart melted last night when I received a "gift" from another student. It was just a little message, translated into English, but it told me why I do this and why it's all worth it:

I nearly cried.

This mother's heart has room for a lot of God's children. I'm just grateful He allows me to have contact with so many of them!

HAPPY MOTHERS'S DAY...to all the mother hearts!

MISERABLE

What Happened to Last Week?
A good bit of dental pain happened last week. I was busy, in pain, not sleeping. By Sunday, which day I usually work on my blog, I was so incapable of doing much beyond basics. Blog? Not happening.

Why didn't I go to the dentist last week? Just like Ken cannot explain some of the issues he has as an autistic/Aspergers, I cannot always explain my Anxiety. Just read this: 1. dentist, 2. NEW dentist (have to find), 3. finances (my teeth always come out expensive!). But by Sunday night, all of those issues blew away in the wind of agony.

Monday...AY AY AY!
I got up for Seminary, touched my tooth and... In literature, you might read how a scream tore from someone. That happened to me. Literally. My husband woke up from a sound sleep. My daughter, who I had just awakened, was startled. I could have passed out. I kept it together. And then I saw Mr. Mouse run across the kitchen floor and behind the dishwasher. Another shriek, but not pain. Walking out the door, shaking in pain and crazy rodent antics (Dear Mr. Orkin Man who said this is not really mouse season: I beg to differ), I picked up the keys for the van and accidentally threw them out the open door and...almost into the bushes. Thankfully, they caught on the metal railing. It was not my most stellar day.

I think I got through Seminary without breaking down. I told Analiese that no way am I walking. Because as soon as I got home, at 8 a.m., I called a brand new dentist and said...this is an EMERGENCY. And I was not exaggerating.

Two hours in the dentist's office and a whole lot of Novocain later (I felt numb still at bedtime), I had a nerve removed out of my tooth to prevent the extreme the pain. Also, I had an abscess drained. I could actually smell it - ew! - while going through it. I asked the dentist what I could have done to prevent it from happening. Nothing. Dentist said some people, you can tell, have bad dental hygiene, and that causes problems. But I was clean. My tooth was pretty much committing suicide. And it did not go gentle into that good night!

Of course, it was also very expensive. I only had the first part of the process done until I could save up for the root canal - hopefully in two months. Then I have to save up for the crown. You would think I should be ashamed, why didn't I take care of my mouth? But it's not true...I do! I just was "gifted" with the trial of lousy teeth.

We had planned that evening to go see Avengers:Endgame for FHE that evening. I was on enough painkillers to go. We went with a co-worker of Ken's and his brother (who's in our Branch) to the city to a nice theater. But the lobby smelled so unusual (the concessions?) that I started coughing (not great on a tender mouth) and had to use my jacket to filter the air until I got into the theater room.

And I slept like a rock when I got home.

But the Rest of the Week
Tuesday wasn't too bad. I was still kind of on the meds and was kind of sleepy throughout the day. Not much happened, but I was okay. It was a rainy, tornado watch sort of day, so staying home and being chill was a safe option.

Then Wednesday happened. I had a doctor's & allergist appointment at 8:45 a.m. in Norman. I had to have blood testing for the doctor, so no eating. I had to be retested for allergies after a year of shots, so no medication. Uh-oh. Between the two appointments, I was there for a long time. The allergy testing itself takes almost an hour. I left on very shaky legs. The nearby Carl's Jr. had an egg sandwich that was soft enough for my mouth to handle. I couldn't go on without something. But I sure missed a little something to take the edge off the pain.

I couldn't go home without an important trip to OKC. I had to drive through Norman, past Moore to OKC. I realized that yesterday was a tornado watch day and here I was, the day after, driving through the center of the tornado target of the state of Oklahoma! But I'm grateful, none of us got hit yesterday and today!

I went home, had Jonathan help me put stuff away, took some meds, and went to bed. Trying to sleep away the pain.

Thursday wasn't great, either. More rain, more pain. Seriously. I think all of my plants are going to drown and die. Even the ones with great soil drainage. Some of my seminary students went to the temple open house last night when it was storming. I just kept praying they'd make it there and back okay! (Which, they did).

I have been teaching VIPKid lessons (one or two) every night this week. After the one Thursday night was over, I broke down in tears. My mouth was killing me. Not the tooth per se, since the nerve was gone, but everything around it. Down my jaw and neck, up into my ear, even giving me a headache! I took the strongest stuff I had, and tried to go to bed. Laying down hurt worse!

Jonathan came home from Institute to see me in the recliner, weeping, with an icepack on my face. I think finally, around midnight, something (the Spirit?) told me to go take a warm bath. I did and it relaxed me enough - the meds started working? - so that I could go to sleep. For a few hours. Before getting up at 5:30 for Seminary.

Friday wasn't too bad. I let myself sleep things out right after I came home from seminary. It was another wet, soggy day, and the pain has been minimal so far. I've been eating soft food in tiny doses...my mouth does not want to open! Applesauce, pudding, jello, yogurt, soup. I had tried to eat scalloped potatoes and ham Thursday and I think it made things worse. Friday, I was being super careful.

Saturday was a big improvement. Except for the mongo headache I had in the afternoon. But I attribute that to lousy sleep...and still having to get up early for classes:
Which were great! Well, crazy boy Andy, who is now overly comfortable with me, was so silly I nearly didn't get through the lesson. (Did you know that VIPKid considered "silly" as an offensive word? So in the feedback, I ended up saying that maybe next time we would concentrate better. Oy vey!)

My second was a new 11yo boy named King (Hey, I don't assign the names!). He was very polite and loved conversation! We were talking about clothing for different seasons and I asked him if he wore a skirt in the Spring. His face screwed up in disgust. "I do not! I am a BOY!" I laughed so hard. He was great...and I got a 5 apple review from his parents. I hope I get to teach him again; he was delightful.

Sunday was even better for my mouth, but I'm not up to a lot of chewing. That makes my jaw ache. I am getting heartily tired of applesauce, pudding, jello, and protein shakes. Gee, maybe I'll lose a little weight!

Pictures Old & New
Here are some I managed to take last week and a couple from this. It gives you some idea about my life currently.

Newly Renovated/Rebuilt OKC Temple

Mom & daughter under the stained glass window

So beautiful...so happy to have it back!

Fountain in the park pond

Same fountain, different angle.

Post VIPKid lipstick kiss for Alice. Analiese was NOT pleased! LOL

POLLEN

The Worst Spring on (My) Record
My Allergy app, where I record my shots and get instructions, has a pollen tracker for my area. This week was off the charts! We're talking in the red, where it reads extreme. If nasal passages could scream in terror...

I had some coughing, some congestion. But Analiese was hit the worst. (My theory is my allergy shots actually helped. Not 100%, but then, nothing's perfect). She would cough all day into the night. She wasn't sleeping well and couldn't taste anything when eating. At least she knows Mom sympathizes.

Ken gave her a blessing Monday and, that evening, I had her sleep propped on more pillows. Amazing what a difference that made. Just being able to sleep!

But I limited her contact with the outside. If I was smarter, I probably should have had her wear a mask when outside. Instead, we didn't walk this week...what, all those trees with pollen? And when Ken offered to open windows on a lovely day I emphatically said, "No!" Let's not encourage more pollen to come in! And, yes, the wind has been busy blowing, too. All very (NOT) helpful.

But, the good news is I'm done with shots. For now. I go back to the doctor the first of May to assess how well I've done and whether to continue or not. The downside is I have to go off all of my allergy meds (and some others) until then because my system needs to be clear for them to test. Please settle down, pollen!

Pest Control
It is embarrassing to admit, but the mouse wars continue on. I don't know why; in the spring they should have abandoned ship! And those suckers are so smart, they've left alone every single sticky trap I set!

Then, with spring comes the insects. Some ants have come into the house; I keep finding one or two in the shower. Don't forget the swarm that was all over my potting soil in the shed! There are wasps and muddaubers (a more benign type of wasp) that seem to congregate around the front door. Some would say spiders are also an issue, but I haven't seen that many and I consider them allies in my fight against bad bugs!

However, the situation with the rodents (BTW...rabbits are NOT part of the rodentia family. One of the first things we learned in 4H.) was becoming untenable. We went over our budget and decided that it was in the cards...hire an exterminator.

There's only one local exterminator in town, and I've not heard good things about them. So, I called the closest one outside of Chickasha and found that they serviced our town. Friday, the guy came over, set bait, sprayed around the house and outside (Yes, it's safe for pets. The guy himself has had rabbits and knew it would hurt as long as they didn't get into the bait, which was put in tiny, sheltered corners they - namely Alice - could not get at). He's supposed to come back every other month to check and spray and whatever as needed.

Full Steam Ahead
It's the middle of April and everything just seems to be speeding up. Take Seminary, next month is graduation (for High School, too) and I have to have my lessons done and the assessment taken before the 19th, which is the stake graduation. My seniors graduate from high school that Saturday, but the actual last day of school is the Friday after. I had planned my lessons for that because the rule is, for every day of high school, you have a day of Seminary.  Not in this case, mainly because the next weekend is Memorial Day weekend and - Poof! - people are gone.

Okay, okay. But I was behind already because of two "snow" days (there was NO snow) that the school district called and we didn't have seminary. So this weekend, I had to review everything and double up a couple of classes. I hate being pressured and I like to give ample time to discuss everything. Not gonna be the case for a couple of days. SIGH.

Analiese's school work with EPIC is speeding up, too. I met with her teacher this week if only to get things squared away. I want to use her remaining educational funds with EPIC for this school year to pay for her Driver's Ed. That's because next year's funds need to go to cover USAO classes this fall. In OK, the state will pay for high school seniors to take college classes, but junior year, they don't. Why? Who knows? She will be taking English and Algebra 2 in the fall. Gosh, this makes her feel so grown up!

And...on top of all that is VIPKid. I didn't have Seminary Friday morning because of the Easter weekend, so I opened up Friday morning. Cuz who wants to sleep in? I ended up with three classes that morning and two in the evening. Saturday, I had two in the morning, but then...oh my! I had FIVE in a row that evening! I've never done more than two back-to-back before. What had I gotten myself into?

It was CRAZY. The first two classes were with the same child, one right after the other. The nice thing was, the lessons were on similar topics and used similar props. At least I didn't have to prep as much.The last three were regulars. I have to tell you about one of them. This was my fourth lesson with her and, in the beginning, she frustrated me a lot. She was distracted by something else to the side of her computer and seemed listless. Of course, my Saturday night meant her Sunday morning and I'm sure she was tired. My third class went a little better; I got her to smile and look at me more. So, I hatched an idea for this one: this lesson was talking about speed, fast, slow, move, etc. I had Analiese sit beside me with the rabbits and when the student did a good job, she could see a rabbit (I swapped Pom and Alice from time to time) and ask a question about it. She LOVED it! She is a very pretty girl and her smiles just thrilled me. I think we are getting to know each other and be comfortable. And I'm pretty sure I just won her over!

Pom shares the hoodie with Analiese!

Pom is a climber, she likes to be up high where she can see!

Analiese is a sucker for Pom's antics!

But after it all, I still had to give feedback for all five classes, turn down two requests for early morning classes in the week, and put everything away before I could go to bed. It made for a very late night and a toothache didn't help either. This girl didn't make it to church...I still feel wobbly!

Oh, I got a sweet note from parent feedback this week. Apparently one of my new students "loved" his teacher and just had to rebook. This is the icing on the cake!

More Crazy...this week I certified to be a teacher for the Voice of VIPKid. I know, I just barely got my level 1 certification, but this was open and the other teachers in my FB groups (currently five), say it's a lot of fun. It's basically teaching them to sing and perform a song. When they get it down, they can record it, have it uploaded into a video with effects that their parents can post on social media. It's a big hit, apparently, plus it helps a lot with diction and pronunciation. It's for the level 1 and 2 students, primarily and often those kids can go on and book you for other classes. I'm just opening myself up for more opportunities to teach!

I may go on and get my Phonics certification, too, for the lower levels. Those are special classes to help struggling students booster their phonics skills. Carpe Diem!

Easter
You know my Easter Sunday was pretty much a bust because of my sleep/tooth problems. (Sad Face) But we had our "Easter" dinner Thursday with the sister missionaries. We had the traditional ham (but not sweet, the kids don't like that) with the funeral potatoes, green beans, and a jello salad that turned out very pretty as well as tasty!

Analiese insisted we make the bunny butt cupcakes again this year. I think she'd like it to be a tradition.

The funny thing was, that evening, with the sisters there, another ex-sister texted me from her home with a photo of a tray full of...bunny butt cupcakes! She had been here last year and remembered them and loved them! I had to laugh as I sent her a photo of mine this year.

Great minds think alike!

I took some to Seminary, too. Unfortunately, half of my class doesn't like coconut! Bummer. They were so cute, too!

MORE UPS THAN DOWNS

VK Report
Worst Class: It had to be my first attempt at teaching Level 1! It was a five yo boy who may have been fine on his own...but he wasn't. Fine. Or on his own. A friend/brother/cousin was with him and they were more interested in goofing off with each other. I expected wiggles and giggles and some distraction, but this was the worst! I made myself nearly hoarse trying to tempt him back to the lesson. My feedback included a very soft admonition that he should do his lessons alone, or with a parent, which is OK for VIPKid. But a two-for-one is not!

Best Class: I have to choose? Was it Billy, who played along with me and repeated my actions? Was it a regular, who giggled at my attempts to play "Angry Birds" with paper cut-outs and my pig puppet? Was it the new girl, so sweet, who loved my Google Slides My Little Pony reward and read like a champ? So hard! The best part is, I will see all of these students again. They have all booked me again!

This was a parent review from last week. This was the kid laughing so hard he fell off of his chair!

Soggy Bottoms
Okay, I'm sort of an Anglophile. At least, when it comes to watching programs on Netflix. Of course, I was a big Sherlock (Benedict & Martin) fan, but my family just had to endure me enjoying Father Brown Mysteries (based on GK Chesterton's novels). And now, they are suffering as I watch The Great British Bakeoff. Another season.

I sit there and wonder at terms, technique and flavors. I usually have a running commentary about what I could do...and what I could not. I definitely could not compete because, besides not being British, I am not that skilled and even with their courteous competition, I could not handle the stress of it!

But the most fun is some of the verbiage tossed around there. My favorite is "Soggy Bottoms" (think this in a British accent), which they refer to often, especially in regards to pies and tarts. I nearly giggle every time I hear it. If I was a drinking person (which I'm not), it would make a great drinking game. I maarveled at one episode, where they didn't say it once! Really, your American audience needs to hear it at least once every time!

Speaking of American, they had an "American" pie challenge to rework our overly-sweet pies. Apparently, they don't like all that sugar! (I know most of the world thinks we over sweeten things here.) Some of their comments were hilarious! And, of course, one of the hosts drummed up a cowboy twang for the occasion. Yes, I live in OK with lots of cowboys and country folk, but I know that's not the standard here. I guess they have stereotypes in Europe, too.

Speaking of Soggy...
The weather this week has been Bipolar, to say the least.We had temps in the 80s mid-week, after which the wind picked up - a lot - dropping temps down again to near freezing and then a storm blew in Saturday. Just rain, rain, rain all day long! Not sprinkles, either, we're talking serious water here!

Flooding? Of course. There are no storm drains to speak of here. The soil, too, is clay heavy, which means things don't drain. My yard was a swamp and my poor little sweet potato vine, the only baby plant I put in the actual ground, looked like it was drowning! Needless to say, everything got well watered!

Driving around was a hassle. I had to go back-and-forth several time to take kiddos to work. The trick was finding which streets to go down to avoid the majority of the flooding. Chickasha is a bit hilly in places, and those low valleys become ponds in a lot of rain. When possible, I tried to drive in the middle of the road (yes, both lanes!) to avoid the accumulation of water on the sides. Avoiding the wet was impossible.

Seminary
This Friday we had visitors to our class. The Dennis's are CES missionaries (almost at an end of their 2-year mission...sad!) that were assigned by Bro. Sturges, my CES director here to come observe my class and meet my two graduating seniors.

They were a lovely addition to the class! Not only did they share and testify to what we were learning often, they shared some of their personal experiences. Well, I asked them to. They are from Wyoming, and Bro. Dennis was part of the Stake High Council there when the handcart companies historical sites were constructed there in the 90's. Let's just say, there are still miracles happening because of the handcart companies...today! I'd heard some of his accounts before, but the two he shared Friday were new to me. What a Spirit it brought to our classroom!

It's hard to believe, but we're a little more than a month out from the end of school and Seminary. It's always so bittersweet. I enjoy summer break (though with VK I'll not be sleeping in much this summer!), but I miss the kids, teaching, and the amazing Spirit there. I find myself longing for it come the new school year.

SIMPLY BECAUSE IT'S SPRING

Spring Sneezes
By the end of this month, I will have completed by allergy shot regimen. I am supposed to return to the doctor and confer with him and the allergist to determine how well it has worked and if I should continue or not. I am of the opinion that the shots HAVE made a difference. My best example is this spring. I am not sneezing or coughing nearly as badly as my children. Usually, I have them beat and I'm full-blown sick for a week or so. I've had little bouts of sinus and chest congestion, but they aren't long-lived. I wasn't sure about a month ago that the shots had done much of anything. After the last few weeks of wind and spring pollen, I am pretty confident that they have!

It's a good thing, too, because I just LOVE Spring. The flowers, the cool sunshine, the leafing trees, the increase of animal activity. I just go gaga for any new flowering thing I see, which disturbs my children...if I'm driving. There are redbud and dogwood and Japanese magnolias and forsythia. Even Jonathan has commented on the riot of color - which for a colorblind person, is saying something!

Saturday morning, a local nursery had their annual garden sale. Ken & I got there as soon as we could (after my morning lessons) and found the place packed! We lucked out and got a parking spot fairly close, but the lines to look and check out were enormous! I stood in line to check out for forty-five minutes! (Analiese, who had to be at work by 11 a.m., was in a small panic) Just as we were leaving, it started to rain and got pretty hard pretty fast. I wonder what happened at the sale?

What did I get? Some herbs, some peppers, some tomatoes, and a few flowers. Oh, plus a mosquito deterrent we used last year in our yard effectively. I left my new baby plants on the back steps to enjoy the spring rain!

I won't get to planting them until next week.

Going into the garden sale, I encountered this bunch! Crowded much?

Growing with VIPKid
I'm sure this is getting tedious now: my constant talking about my experiences with this company. But there have been so many changes and new things to discover and fun kids to meet (and some not-so-fun). I'm trying to paint a developing picture here.

Monday evening I was a "substitute" teacher. I signed up and they assigned me a time at 8:00 p.m. Now, they didn't need me after all, but I did get paid! I would have got $2 more if I had taught. It would be spur-of-the-moment, but I have some plans in place.

I had planned to start trying to certify for level 4 this week, but then they invited me to certify for level 1 instead, throwing in an incentive if I did it by the end of April. This company is all about the incentives...there are constant new "carrots" to try and hook us into booking or doing more.  It's not bad...it always means more money! Level one is from age 3 y/10 m to 5 y/10 mo. This is the only level they do by age. Everyone else is doing by assessment. This level is more about making them comfortable with interacting and learning online with this foreign teacher. Less is expected of them: no full sentences and maybe not even much speaking. At their ages, they learn a lot more by observation and listening. My job is to get them moving and happy and prep them to go farther and do better than kids that come in later. The advantage is that their brains are still so malleable that the Chinese doesn't interfere with the English. Also, there is a lot of parent involvement at this stage. The whole first unit is supposed to be done with the parent at the child's side. Also, there is a prep video and activity for the parents to do with their child before class and the first slide of each lesson is in Chinese with instructions for the parents. Then comes...me! I passed this level off on Saturday evening. I am being "fast-passed" through it, which means I do not have to do a mock demo with a live person. I told Ken that they've seen my antics online (they record all of the classes) and figured I was a clown kids could enjoy.

Didn't want that bright red lipstick go to waste after my lessons!

The hardest thing for me so far is the priority bookings, where parents try to get in ahead of time with a favorite teacher. Mostly, I have to turn them down because they want it in the morning during Seminary time. But Saturday, I had three weekend requests for April. I was so happy to finally be able to say yes!

Worst lesson of the week: I had some toughies...I don't really like doing assessments and I had two this week with kids who really need holding back. Parents push, but it doesn't help if a kid just isn't getting it. One student had parent instructions: Be patient. I was, but this kid needs to go back a few lessons to restudy. But the absolute worst was on Friday night with a little girl who was just parroting back everything I said. She was more interested in picking her nose and stringing out boogers than listening to me. And I put in a lot of energy to try and draw her out!

Best lesson of the week: There are two: I can't really choose between them. They were both Saturday morning and repeat students. The first one came in with a playful attitude. I'm afraid we goofed a bit. He was laughing so hard, he fell off of his chair! It was pure joy to teach him. He does very well (he was the polite "thank you" student) and I look forward to another chance to teach him. The second was a girl I knew was having a birthday; she's turning 12. So, my reward included birthday things (revealing cake, presents, candles, balloons behind squares) and I sang Happy Birthday to her. She was so pleased! It was a struggle of a lesson for her, poor thing, because she was studying Britain and had to say "Elizabeth," "double-decker," and "Buckingham." Other than that, she was great. And, she's already rebooked!

Pom explores my "classroom." The Lit book is to prop up my laptop so I am not too low to see!

Droverstock
USAO, home of the Drovers (look it up), holds an annual event the first Thursday of April called Droverstock. You might remember the chalk art I posted last year. Apparently, that's only PART of the festival. There's also music, food trucks, vendors, and a scholastic competition.

Analiese and her friend from church decided they wanted to participate in the chalk art competition this year. They had to meet at the college at 8 a.m. to register, so no time for our walk. There was people everywhere! School buses swarmed from all over the state (yes, Altus was there, too!) and the line to register was LONG. Her friend's father is a professor on campus, so he was there to help keep an eye on them (I couldn't stay, too much to do!) as well as his wife, who is a high school teacher and was there with her students for the scholastic event. Two of my Seminary students participated in that.

The biggest concern was the huge thunderstorm the night before that dumped a bunch of rain. Analiese was stressed about that until she found out that the rain helped smooth the chalk over the bumpy asphalt. She and her friend bought ($5) "squares" next to each other and were moral support.

Analiese in action

Busy friend.

They didn't win, but I think they were there more for the experience. She learned a lot just by observing the other artists and had a great time exploring the options at the food trucks.

Favorite #1

Favorite #2

I liked getting photos of artists in action!

High school art class entry - cute!

Inspired, the next day at Seminary, I did my own chalk art!

GENERAL CONFERENCE!
Saturday was SO busy. I had two classes in the morning, then went to the garden sale. After that I had to prep the crockpot for dinner, get a shot, take a shower and get ready for the first session of Conference!

It started out beautifully. Sister Craven's talk really set the tone for me and I found myself pondering if I was being "casual" or "careful" with the other subjects in both sessions! (Especially Elder Holland's talk on the sacrament!)

The music was awesome, too! Every song was so appropriate and the Spirit was so strong! The afternoon choir's arrangement of "I Stand All Amazed" was particularly moving. I really appreciated the reverence all the music set.

Sunday was gray, but glorious. I know the speakers' talks aren't assigned, and I'm pretty sure they don't coordinate with Mack Wilbur and the Choir. But the Spirit does! It seemed like many speakers' talks were directly connected to the message in the hymn before it!

Our prophet, Russell M. Nelson, is just so amazing! His desires for our welfare is apparent in his pleas for our continued obedience and improvement. He sees what's on the horizon and is trying to shepherd us to a safe (read: covenant) path forward. Also, I have noticed an increasing emphasis on our return to reverencing sacred things. We are closer to God when we respect and reverence His goodness. As a joyful, jolly, happy people, we can get a little carried away. We need to remember what we need to keep in sacred bounds.

Yep, conference was worth every single minute!

MARCHING OUT

Springy
I love Spring. Don't I? Actually, I really do, though it doesn't always love me.

Back to Seminary after Spring Break, we're also back to walking around the park. The trees are all in glorious bloom. The Bradford pears (non-fruiting) are most abundant, full of white blossoms. When the wind blows (and when doesn't it?), they scatter petals like confetti everywhere! The redbuds are opening up, too, covered in clouds of dusty pink. They even impress Jonathan, who doesn't usually comment on trees. Happy trees!

Misty morning

Mirrored beauty

Blossoms!

One of two herons at the park. Mating pair?

The birds are all out and crazy. Even in the pre-dawn hours of Seminary, I can hear their chirps and calls. They also seem to be pairing up. I hope this means we'll see babies in the next month or so!

The squirrels and skunks are emboldened this time of year, too. You can imagine the smells that waft around town and I cringe with every dog barking..."Is that a skunk you're annoying?" Too, is the increase of roadkill. I don't know how anyone can hit so small a target, but those squirrels are easy marks. And, from experience, dead skunks are no less stinky!

And...allergies. Poor Analiese is really suffering, either sniffling and sneezing or coughing. I've not been too bad. Sometimes my chest tightens a little, but my inhaler takes care of that quickly. Maybe those shots HAVE been helping!

Missionary Endeavors

I am still new enough around town to not really have a lot of non-member contacts to talk to about the Gospel. But, with Ken as Branch Mission Leader, I have lots of contacts with the sister missionaries and do what I can to help.

First, obviously, is the weekly dinner. We do it Thursdays so that Ken can meet with them in his calling capacity right afterward. That way they don't have to go down to the Church and meet...and worry about another person (probably me) to be there to make sure it's all Kosher.  I feel rather motherly to these girls and prejudiced towards them, having been a sister missionary myself. I try to give them the love and encouragement their mothers would want them to have. And I feed them well. Of course.

I also went this week with them to visit a new member over at USAO. I've gotten to know her better lately since she's been called to be an assistant chorister in the Branch. She's a music major, so she probably knows more about that stuff than me. I told her to correct me when needed. I'm a self-taught sort-of organist/pianist. We had a lovely talk about the Restoration of the Church. Teaching Doctrine & Covenants this year has given me lots of insight on that!

Then, Sunday, I picked up two other gals at USAO for Church. They are currently studying with the sisters. They were both really nice and open. Jonathan, who couldn't go to the YSA Ward because Ken had the car, had come with us and they all seemed to get along nicely. That's good, in case they ever want to go to the ward in Norman, they'll know someone!

VIP Slowdown

I expected it. Break is over and my early mornings are back at Seminary. I have lots of requests and interests in my morning hours for teaching. Ken says it should make me feel good. Yes, and somewhat wistful. But Seminary is a priority. And summer break will be here in a month and a half. I can wait. However, I have no idea when I will ever sleep in again!

It wasn't complete desolation. I had four lessons to teach on Saturday, which before Spring Break I would have thought as a great bounty. I can teach all age - I'm pretty flexible - but those little ones are often cute and funny. No translation necessary!

Did you know that I taught 19 classes in March? And 15 of those were during Spring Break? Also, parents can give feedback. They can award up to five "apples" and have comments they can choose from (previously translated) to let you know how you are doing. Not all parents give feedback, but currently have seven parents give feedback...and they are all five apples!

Here's some clips from the company of me teaching last week. They apparently appreciate my sense of humor, because some were goofy. Especially one when I had to wait for IT issues to be resolved. Yes, I'm wearing (very) red lipstick so kids can see my lips better when trying to figure out how to sound things. And yes, you can hear some of the kids in the background!

Conference & Temple

Oklahoma is all abuzz with excitement. First, General Conference is this weekend and I'm sure President Nelson will not disappoint us. There will be things to thrill and inspire! Our talks in church today were about personal revelation and we were challenged to delve deep into Conference. As if I wouldn't! I would not miss a session if possible. Though, I may be a little late next Saturday, because Analiese will probably have work at 11 a.m....

We're also so excited to have our OKC Temple back again. It won't open for work until the end of May, but at the end of April-first part of May we are having an Open House. We've reserved tours, made plans and this Sunday, were invited to participate by serving: cleaning, ushering, putting on shoe covers, whatever! They estimate 20,000 people come to visit during the week of the Open House!

Other Things
I've been busy, but that's pretty normal. To be honest, things have done that. Gone back to normal. School, work, Church. That's life.

Here's some life pics:

Analiese drew on the chalkboard for me in Seminary. Lots of roots!

PomPom, the intrepid

Cuddle Bun Time!

Chinese Whirlwind

VIP Frenzy
So, even though it was Spring Break, I only got to sleep in on Monday. I have VIPKid classes to teach all the other mornings. Ah, well.

Tuesday, I had my first two back-to-back classes. The first was a sweet and talkative girl. Teacher notes said she likes Hello Kitty, so I had reward slides that revealed Hello Kitty. She loved it! She even showed me a picture of Hello Kitty that she had colored. We had a great lesson, she was really trying to have a conversation! The second class was a boy who didn't seem too excited to be there...at first. But he liked my "feed the monster" reward and even laughed at my "full belly" impression. He also got a kick out of my impression of a Dad - muscle flexing and saying "Dad" in a deep voice. Plus, every time I gave him a star, he was so cute. "Thank you, teacher!" So polite!

Wednesday I had two back-to-back classes again, but the first one ended up being canceled twenty-two minutes in because of IT issues. I sat there the whole time trying to get the video or sound to work, but the problem was on the China end, according to their "firemen" (their term for IT people). So I don't get docked for it since it wasn't on my side!

The second class was a unit assessment, not my favorite to do. The girl seemed to be in a terrible rush to "get this over." She read too quickly and made mistakes I'm pretty sure she didn't need to do.

Thursday...more back to backs. The first girl - another assessment - seemed distracted and bored. She wanted to bounce on her bed more than do class. She did fine, though.  The second was a jewel - four or five years old, she was bouncy and full of fun! Her mother sat beside her to keep her on track...can you say squirrel? She was adorable and giggly.

Friday morning I was only supposed to have one lesson at seven, but awoke to find I had a short notice booking at seven-thirty. She was great, too! She was twelve and only beginning, but boy, did she want to talk! We did manage to get through the lesson, but had a lot of extension (which the parents love, by the way). She told me all about school, what she likes to study, her favorite sports to play, how much she loves eating and what she loves to eat! I was so touched when, at the end and we were saying goodbye, she said, "I love you teacher." I'm a mush-mellow!

I had two classes in the evening as well. I had another giggly girl who wanted to connect with her teacher. We were talking about the concepts of "light" and "heavy," and she caught on quickly. She brought out toys to show me she understood. Also, we talked about rain as a noun and a verb. When I opened my umbrella up behind me, she busted out laughing. She thought I was hilarious. At the lesson's end, she spelled my name out on the screen. I would love to teach this kid every time!

Saturday, I had a morning class - a repeat student - and an evening class. Except my evening class canceled at the last moment. I was up on the computer, props and rewards ready, orange shirt and red lipstick on (they have to be able to see my mouth to help them pronounce hard words) and sitting ready to go when I got the message. Oh well. I don't lose out, though. Cancellations under 24 hours don't penalize me.

So, I started with only five bookings on Monday, and ended up teaching (sort of) twelve classes. I was amazed how it kept growing and growing. I was really tired, but satisfied that, finally, I had done some serious teaching.

My ice cream reward was very popular!

The downside is priority booking requests. I've had seven students come back and ask to have me again...in the morning. I can't; Spring Break is over and Seminary starts up again Monday. It breaks my heart because I really enjoy it and I'm a softy for these kids. I drafted a little note explaining my situation that I sent to the parents when I turned down their request. I let them know when I was available and encouraged them to book then, if they could. So far, I have one for a week from next Saturday. Ah, well, my commitment to Seminary comes first and there are great blessings for that. I'm sure things will all eventually work out as more students who can do the times I'm available find me.

Did I Do Anything on Spring Break Besides Teach?
Sure. I spent one day vacuuming and shampoo-cleaning our sofa. Rabbits and people sit on it and do whatever. It needed it. It was a bubbly, messy proposition, but it came out looking and smelling nicely.

I made an apple pie with apples that needed using one day. We served that to the sister missionaries at dinner on Thursday. I also made homemade cheddar biscuits to go with oven "fried" chicken we had for dinner Saturday. That was messy - both the biscuits and the chicken! There was flour and buttermilk (soaked the chicken in it) all over. Poor Analiese was up for KP!

On Wednesday evening, Analiese and I accompanied Ken over to the Church. There were no youth activities scheduled for Spring Break, but one of my Seminary students had received his mission call and they were having a party for him to open the email!

They had us all guess first where his call would be.

There were guesses far and wide! I guessed Seoul, Korea, because I know how nervous he was about going foreign and having to learn a new language. When he opened the email he found out...

Raleigh, North Carolina! English-speaking...which pleased him greatly. I joked that I hadn't prayed hard enough for him to have a foreign language to learn!

Thursday Analiese had a little soirée for some of her friends from Church and from the musical. Only three came, but it was a fun group. Analiese, a good little hostess, provided pizza and drinks and baked cookies for her guests. They played games, gabbed a good bit and...played with Legos. Yes, 14-16 year-old girls were playing Legos. Mind, it was more of a drama involving Lego people with Analiese videotaping. These girls were funny. One girl from the musical who I hadn't met before, was particularly amusing. I think Analiese's first get-together group was a success.

Did I get a lot of rest? Well...I took naps when I could, but I was super tired. Plus, my eyes got itchy and strained. I would sit down and cover my eyes to rest them from time to time. Or, I'd use an idea I picked up in a workshop: I had two spoons in the freezer and would place them on my eyes to reduce bagginess in the morning and to help calm down the strain.

To be honest, the week got busier than I expected, so it was not all what I had planned. I got some extra cleaning done, like the sofa, but not as much as I had wanted. But I cannot complain, I got all those extra bookings and lots of experience!