A Double-Whammy! Celebrate and SOL15 Day 7. A Haiku About My Family.

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I'm linking with Ruth Ayres, and her weekly link up.  Read More about that here.  And then join in.

My Family.  Plays.

Steady.  Strong.  Forever Mine. 

My Family.  Love.  

Joy!

Kendra

SOL Day 6: Currently.

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Here is the link for my inspiration for today.

It was a late night conferencing last night.
Is there enough coffee for today?

Currently.  

(A Peek into Today.)

Listening:  I'm currently listening to second graders return to class and first graders coming in from recess.  The chatter they produce when they are socializing is hilarious.  (One is simply singing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" at the top of her lungs.)  On my playlist, I have Rend Collective on heavy rotation.  

Eating:  Lots of dark green lettuces.  I'm trying to raise my iron level.  I'm also on a soup kick.  What's your favorite kind?  Today I'm having chicken tortilla.  

Drinking:  Sparkling Mineral Water and herbal tea.  Remember #nerdlution15?  After watching everyone give up pop, I became inspired.  I haven't completely stopped drinking soda.  However, I'm choosing the mineral water and herbal teas more and more.  It's a process people.  

Wearing:  A UNI Panther T-Shirt.  My Alma-Matter is expected to do big things in the NCAA tournament.  Also, it's going to be 50 here today, which is practically summer here.  

Reading:  Little Bee.  A great read if you haven't read this.  

Feeling:  Overwhelmed and tired.  In a good way.  But teaching, graduate school, an extra house guest, and some unknowns for the next year are starting to weigh on me a bit.  I'm hanging in there.  I'm ready for a break to reset a bit.  

Wanting:  A guilt free nap.  (See above).  Also some Girl Scout Cookies and a Coke.

Needing:  to do laundry. 

Thinking:  about lots of things.  

Enjoying:  My class today.  They are buzzing, working, engaged in what they are doing.  They are being kind to each other, and they are relaxed.  (So is their teacher.)  I'm writing this slice along side a few of them.  

Joy!

Kendra

SOL15 Day 5: A House Guest.

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Trying out a quick write and some poetry today.  



My husband approaches tentatively.  

He knows what he's asking.  

At first, I say no.  

But then there is this tapping.

Oh that tapping on your heart.  

You want to ignore it.

I had been reading on hospitality.  

I never thought I'd be called on in this way.

So--he moves in.  

The kids are overjoyed!  (A new playmate!)

It's like a dance at first.  Are you a grown up?  Are you a kid?

What do we do with you?

After 30 minutes, I want to move out.

But I breathe.  

Try to remember what it's like to be 23. 

Emerging into the world for the first time.   

We can teach.  Encourage.  

Feed.  

My husband says it best.  

"This is what it's like to have 3 kids!"

(Totally squelches any desire to have more kids.)

So I embrace the humor.  

I' m living in an episode of "My Three Sons!" 

Joy!
Kendra

SOL15 Day 4. How's it going so far?

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Last year, I sliced with a few friends on this blog in March.  Not everyday, but enough to make an impact in my writing.

I watched and lurked as people shared their experiences with classroom slicing.  
This fall, we started a class blog.  To protect the privacy of some of my students, it stays closed.  
But the benefits of writing and connecting are with us.  

This year, while moving through our requirements in writing, the focus has been on really telling our stories.  

So Naturally, now that March is here, we are slicing!  

The Guidelines:
*It's optional in 1C.  31 days is a lot.  It's an extra piece of writing everyday.
*We did prizes this year.  Prizes for friends who slice 5 extra times.  A special lunch for friends who write all 31 days.
*We are utilizing our blog and kids are allowed to write in notebooks and in writing folders too.
*On Tuesdays, we are meeting for lunch to touch base and slice together.  Our first lunch on Tuesday was great!  We happened to have 2 parents join us as well and they were able to see first hand how exciting this was.

This is a picture of a calendar we are using with topics if needed for each day.  The kids are enjoying marking off each day.  The topics aren't required, they are allowed to choose their own if they wish.  

Here's a calendar I'm using for myself.  

If I'm stuck on a topic I use this to help me too.  It's been a great conversation to have with the kids.  

 What tools and tricks are you using to make your slices successful?  How is it going?  

Joy!

Kendra

SOL15-Day 3. My Grandma was an Artist.

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She had ideas.  I didn't know how many until we started cleaning out her bedroom.  It was confirming really.  I'm not just this weird lady with notebooks and lists and blogs of ideas.  It's a family trait.  I wish I would have known that a year ago.  I would have asked questions, shown her my notebooks, asked her about hers.  

Even 6 months later, she is still there.  Her quilts, Her pictures, Her books.   

We had to take a trip to the farm 2 weeks ago.  It was time for quiet.  Time for unplugging.  

It's so cold, we even say no to the boys when they want to play outside.  Big A grabs his book and settles in to read.  Li'l T grabs some crayons and declares he wants to draw.  

My Mama hops up, excited to share some of the paper and notebooks that we think are blank.  I open it up to set it up for Li'l T.  Then I stop.  

"Nope.  You can't use this sketch book."

These are sketches that my Grandmother made.  Then the stories come.  It was probably while she was sitting at her old, metal desk at the tired farm house over the hill.  It left me wondering, did she sit there often?  

And then all of a sudden, the sketches stop.  And it leaves me wondering, do I let my budding artists add a sketch a day to Great-Grandma's notebook?  (I want to say no to preserve it, but yet, how cool would that be?)  

Frame some for siblings?  Let the boys add a sketch a day as we talk about Grandma?  

What would you do?

Joy!
Kendra

SOL15: Day 2. Sunday Mornings.

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At first, it felt like we were cheating.  It still does sometimes. 
9 AM.  Time for Sunday School.  Boys are safe and sound.

My husband and I walk out the backdoor.  When we are in the car, it feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.  

It's a safe haven for me really.  I don't know how to write about the hurt that people in a church can bring you.  What I can tell you is I'm so thankful we didn't leave completely.  That wouldn't have been the right thing to do for us.    

I'm being lead on my own path in this Faith Journey.  (I was just sharing with a friend, I'm like the Tacky Penguin of church ladies...)  I'm just not good at what you are "supposed" to do.  But I'm being lead in a way that is also healing me.  And I know that I'm Loved.  

So we sit down, my husband and I.
There is coffee, pastry, jazz.  We've been there so much, some faces are starting to look familiar.

We read.  Study.  Exchange ideas and ask questions.
Some of my favorite conversations with my Mr. take place here on Sunday Mornings.

You are 'supposed' to sit in a large room.  Receive teaching.  Even in that large room, it feels lonely.

But here in our corner, Mr. reads his favorite passages to me.
I pose questions.  He does too.
Sometimes we find answers.
Sometime we don't.

It's our Sunday Morning.

Joy!
Kendra

SOL 15 Day One! Create.

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How do I create?  Change?  Find Comfort?

Reading and writing that comes early in the morning.

Reflection.

When it's quiet.

It's only me.

When I don't think the creation is coming? 

The creativity is coming, but not fast enough?

Change scenery.

Run.  Long.  Slow.

Close my eyes.  Nap.  Rest.

Routine.  Making dinner.  Cooking food.

creating comfort.

creating time.

time to think.  time with family.

Creating allows me to feel connected, to feel comfort, to celebrate.  

As I've been reflecting on creating, I've been listening to this song a lot.  Real and Beautiful.  That's what creating can bring.  

I'm so excited to be creating through writing this month!  

Joy!
Kendra