I am joining Janna at Mommy's Piggy Tales to record my youth. This is the 7th of 15 series, every Thurs, that I will be recording. These memories are from 5th grade or when I was 10.
The memory that sticks out the most to me during 5th grade was when we were in social studies class. Specifically civil liberties and racism. While talking about it my teacher mentions to the class that a specific student in out class has AIDS. He named him. The entire class turned and looked at him. Unsure of what to do next. Our teacher then starting asking questions about how we should behave and with in a few minutes class was over. I don't remember if another class was after that but I do remember the health class was before recess. And when recess came...so did the insults and complete humiliation that the students put on this poor boy. Everyone was gathered around him, some asking questions, others threatening him and a few that were pushing him around. I was in the midst as an on-looker. I remember feeling horrible for him, but yet at the same time feeling scared that I could get it too.
As recess ended we all headed inside, got to our desks. To all of our surprise, our teacher told us it was all a hoax!! This student did not have AIDS. He was trying to teach the class a lesson on treating people that are different than us, with respect and dignity. The student knew this was going to happen. I certainly changed my outlook on how I am to be treating people, even on just the thought level.
As a side note its funny how teachers could do things like that in the past, but today would that even be allowed? I think it would make the news and the teacher would be fired. The times they are a changing!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Tales of a fourth grade juggler!
I am joining Janna at Mommy's Piggy Tales to record my youth. This is the 6th of 15 series, every Thurs, that I will be recording. These memories are from 4th grade or when I was 9.
Well 4th grade ...hmmm.... 4th grade I had my first male teacher, Mr. Gauer. And it was his first year teaching. He cut his thumb pretty badly on the paper cutter one day and had to leave to go get stitches.
In 4th grade I got in trouble and had a major talk from Mr Gauer about not making fun of people. He took me and another girl into the coat closet and we talked about the importance of treating people with respect. As I and another student, made fun a another girls pants. I still remember what that girl looked like and her name. His talk had a big impact on me as I don't remember doing that again, and hated when I saw others doing it also.
I learned in forth grade that dessert and desert were spelled differently. I once again got to be in a play about Paddington Bear. Fortunately I was prop set up. Yay! No messing up with that. But unfortunately 4th grade was also the year how-to speeches started. I didn't mention anything to my parents until the night before I was to do mine. I had nothing ready, so I believe they gave me a recipe for making chip dip. It was easy and only 3 steps. So when I got up it didn't take long and virtually fool proof. It went okay, well... better than me being a play.
One day when staying at school after class was over, I don't remember why, a couple of other girls in my class and I asked Mr. Gauer to teach us to juggle. He had juggled for our class not long before that. So we sat and learned to juggle:) He was so kind and patient with all of us. I would go home and practice for hours just so when I got the chance I could show him how much better I had gotten. After that year was done I never saw Mr Gauer again until incidentally when I was in 12th grade, I went back to the same school for a class where I had to teach 3/4 graders to read. Mr Gauer recognized me and my name. I thought that was neat that he would remember me.
Well 4th grade ...hmmm.... 4th grade I had my first male teacher, Mr. Gauer. And it was his first year teaching. He cut his thumb pretty badly on the paper cutter one day and had to leave to go get stitches.
In 4th grade I got in trouble and had a major talk from Mr Gauer about not making fun of people. He took me and another girl into the coat closet and we talked about the importance of treating people with respect. As I and another student, made fun a another girls pants. I still remember what that girl looked like and her name. His talk had a big impact on me as I don't remember doing that again, and hated when I saw others doing it also.
I learned in forth grade that dessert and desert were spelled differently. I once again got to be in a play about Paddington Bear. Fortunately I was prop set up. Yay! No messing up with that. But unfortunately 4th grade was also the year how-to speeches started. I didn't mention anything to my parents until the night before I was to do mine. I had nothing ready, so I believe they gave me a recipe for making chip dip. It was easy and only 3 steps. So when I got up it didn't take long and virtually fool proof. It went okay, well... better than me being a play.
One day when staying at school after class was over, I don't remember why, a couple of other girls in my class and I asked Mr. Gauer to teach us to juggle. He had juggled for our class not long before that. So we sat and learned to juggle:) He was so kind and patient with all of us. I would go home and practice for hours just so when I got the chance I could show him how much better I had gotten. After that year was done I never saw Mr Gauer again until incidentally when I was in 12th grade, I went back to the same school for a class where I had to teach 3/4 graders to read. Mr Gauer recognized me and my name. I thought that was neat that he would remember me.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Spelling Test Redemption
I am joining Janna at Mommy's Piggy Tales to record my youth. This is the 5th of 15 series, every Thurs, that I will be recording. These memories are from 3rd grade or when I was 8.
In third grade my teacher was Mrs. Wetzel...which is good that I remember that because I don't remember my 1st or 2nd grade teachers name. I could guess, but I don't know if I am just remembering a teachers name in the school or mine. I liked Mrs. Wetzel. I don't think a lot of the students did but I did.
I think my cheating days of 1st grade were behind me. A bunch of answers got left up on the chalk board for a spelling test. Mrs. Wetzel passed out our papers and started saying the words for us to write. I kind of looked around and seeing if people noticed if the answers were up there. Everyone could see them. So of course being the girl that knew she never wanted to cheat again I calmly raised my hand and told the teacher the answers were on the board. Yep, I don't remember having many friends that week. Hmmm... maybe they didn't know about the changed person I was;-)
The summer before 3rd grade we got the chance to go to Disney World. We drove the whole way there. My mom, my brother Derek, my mom's friend Sandy and myself. On the way we stopped at Graceland. My brother and I being only slightly thrilled because we knew that Elvis was some one famous who was a singer and actor. I thought the best part was his horses, and the animal room. I did want to be a veterinarian when I was little...well until the 11th grade. But we kept going after that and ended up at Wet and Wild. I loved it! We had so much fun there and probably even remember more of it compared to Disney. The only thing I remember from Disney is one ride that was a train. See... I don't even remember the name of the ride, or if I saw any characters....actually I think we might have saw Mickey at our hotel??? Who knows! I was and still am more of a thrill seeker and like doing active things which is why I probably remember Wet and Wild more than Disney. I kept my mug from W &W for a very long time. It was pink:)
The only other real memory I have from the 3rd grade is yet another play I was in. It was a play for health class. It was a big deal because many parents were going to be there to watch. I was the cracker. I had all my lines memorized, the first day of practice. I had it down during all the practices. Well...until show time. Remember I don't like to be in front of people. I just stood there. You could see all the sympathy faces. Boo Hoo. But, as my years progress it is funny that I still will volunteer to be up in front of people, yet I will still not do well in front of others. Hmmm...
In third grade my teacher was Mrs. Wetzel...which is good that I remember that because I don't remember my 1st or 2nd grade teachers name. I could guess, but I don't know if I am just remembering a teachers name in the school or mine. I liked Mrs. Wetzel. I don't think a lot of the students did but I did.
I think my cheating days of 1st grade were behind me. A bunch of answers got left up on the chalk board for a spelling test. Mrs. Wetzel passed out our papers and started saying the words for us to write. I kind of looked around and seeing if people noticed if the answers were up there. Everyone could see them. So of course being the girl that knew she never wanted to cheat again I calmly raised my hand and told the teacher the answers were on the board. Yep, I don't remember having many friends that week. Hmmm... maybe they didn't know about the changed person I was;-)
The summer before 3rd grade we got the chance to go to Disney World. We drove the whole way there. My mom, my brother Derek, my mom's friend Sandy and myself. On the way we stopped at Graceland. My brother and I being only slightly thrilled because we knew that Elvis was some one famous who was a singer and actor. I thought the best part was his horses, and the animal room. I did want to be a veterinarian when I was little...well until the 11th grade. But we kept going after that and ended up at Wet and Wild. I loved it! We had so much fun there and probably even remember more of it compared to Disney. The only thing I remember from Disney is one ride that was a train. See... I don't even remember the name of the ride, or if I saw any characters....actually I think we might have saw Mickey at our hotel??? Who knows! I was and still am more of a thrill seeker and like doing active things which is why I probably remember Wet and Wild more than Disney. I kept my mug from W &W for a very long time. It was pink:)
The only other real memory I have from the 3rd grade is yet another play I was in. It was a play for health class. It was a big deal because many parents were going to be there to watch. I was the cracker. I had all my lines memorized, the first day of practice. I had it down during all the practices. Well...until show time. Remember I don't like to be in front of people. I just stood there. You could see all the sympathy faces. Boo Hoo. But, as my years progress it is funny that I still will volunteer to be up in front of people, yet I will still not do well in front of others. Hmmm...
Thursday, July 1, 2010
No shirt. No shoes. No Service?
So while we were away visiting my dad for Father's day, we decided on Friday night to go out to eat. I knew it was going to be hit or miss with Kenzie wanting to eat around 5 pm and it was just about 5:30 when we left. So we got to the restaurant and were seated fairly quickly. But of course kids were hungry and a little cranky. I asked my husband if he could walk around with Kenzie to distract her, since I knew she wasn't going to last. Well, all of a sudden I see him talking with the hostess. Now when I was packing up to go visit my dad I didn't even think about taking shoes with for her. She doesn't wear any. She just started getting better at walking and shoes just make her walk worse at this time. So we didn't think anything of it until the hostess talked to my husband. It went something like this:
Hostess: You know we have a no shirt, no shoe, no service policy?
Hubby: Pardon me? He thought she was kidding.
Hostess: Do you have any shoes for (your daughter)?
Hubby: No.
Okay I understand about possible injury to her feet, but come on... she's one. And we weren't even letting her walk around. We were holding her just about the entire time, or she was sitting in her chair. They were seriously threatening to not give us service?? Because my one year old had no shoes on? Well a few minutes went by and we waited to see if the hostess was going to say something to the manager. My dad knew the manager. Go right ahead. They did not, but the manager walked over on his own to say hi to my dad. He saw Mackenzie, said how cute he thought she was, even picked her up and held her! No mention of the shoes! I think the hostess must of not had anything better to do. Or, maybe it was her first day and she was trying to stick to the rules.?
Should this have been a big deal?
Hostess: You know we have a no shirt, no shoe, no service policy?
Hubby: Pardon me? He thought she was kidding.
Hostess: Do you have any shoes for (your daughter)?
Hubby: No.
Okay I understand about possible injury to her feet, but come on... she's one. And we weren't even letting her walk around. We were holding her just about the entire time, or she was sitting in her chair. They were seriously threatening to not give us service?? Because my one year old had no shoes on? Well a few minutes went by and we waited to see if the hostess was going to say something to the manager. My dad knew the manager. Go right ahead. They did not, but the manager walked over on his own to say hi to my dad. He saw Mackenzie, said how cute he thought she was, even picked her up and held her! No mention of the shoes! I think the hostess must of not had anything better to do. Or, maybe it was her first day and she was trying to stick to the rules.?
Should this have been a big deal?
Super Satuarday Slip and Slide!!!
The kids were asking to go for a bike ride. But we thought going on the slip and slide would be a much better idea.
It was a great idea. This was so much fun. We got to be active and stay cool and not have to pack up mounds of things just to go to the beach.
The kids were having so much fun they asked dad to come and do it with them.
Dad holding Caden as they slid sown together...I know my knees would kill after this.
I sat and took pictures while they laughed and had fun. They were having a blast.Kenz loved the pool area, I guess as well as walking up and down in between the sliders:)
I couldn't take it any longer...I had to get in on the fun too:)
We all felt a lot cooler! And, the kids loved that mom and dad did it too:)
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Fathers Day Post
New Post: For Fathers Day scroll down a bit. For you family members that do not subscribe to a RSS feed.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Vulcan Salute
I am joining Janna at Mommy's Piggy Tales to record my youth. This is the 4th of 15 series, every Thurs, that I will be recording. The fourth memory is from 2nd grade or when I was 7.
It is when I got my hair cut like a boy. I remember I was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt. Very excited about my new hairstyle. I wanted to show my friend down the road. I walked over and rang the doorbell. Her mom answered. "Can LesLiegh come play." To which her mom replied. "Sorry Derek, LesLiegh isn't home right now." "Umm...I'm Nikki." "Oh, you and your brother could be twins." To which this conversation brought on a fascination with whether we really were twins or not? Were my parents hiding something? I mean someone just said we could be!!! (Come on, I was 7.)
It is when I got the lead role for a play in class. I remember sitting in rows and the teacher said she was going to write down a number and anyone who wanted to be the lead could guess the number. Whoever was right, would get to be the lead. So I concentrated real hard on her hand and if she would write one number or two. Did her hand write curl marks or straight. I actually guessed the correct number!! Now if you know me, I have no idea why I would be going for a lead role in a play. Granted it was a 2nd grade play. But, I have no desire to be in front of people. Zilch. Zip. Zero. None, what-so-ever. I don't know, maybe I did in 2nd grade. Well, I did it!!! Although I remember not doing it well.
It is when I learned to separate my fingers (The Vulcan Salute) while watching a space video during science class. The salutes like they did on Star Trek. It was dark, the movie was boring and I could not think of anything else to do at the time. You know, besides actually watching the movie. And yes, I can still do it.
It is when my parents separated for the first time. Now I can remember lots of events surrounding this. I remember exactly how my dads apartment looked. The confusion of why my dad had to live somewhere else. I remember being mad at my dad for not living with us. I remember my parents buying us lots of stuff. Although, I'm not sure if it was so they could show their love, if it was out of guilt or because they wanted to out do each other. Being 7 I thought it was to out do each other. I ended up hating when they wanted to buy us something. Sure, every now and then I liked what I got, but I made sure the other parent never saw it. I did not want the other to go and get us something too. Most of the time I just said I didn't need anything. I remember wondering when my friends parents were going to separate, and started getting confused over why they would have family time.
Okay, sorry to depress you there at the end. Actually I could have wrote a lot more. But I'll spare you.
It is when I got my hair cut like a boy. I remember I was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt. Very excited about my new hairstyle. I wanted to show my friend down the road. I walked over and rang the doorbell. Her mom answered. "Can LesLiegh come play." To which her mom replied. "Sorry Derek, LesLiegh isn't home right now." "Umm...I'm Nikki." "Oh, you and your brother could be twins." To which this conversation brought on a fascination with whether we really were twins or not? Were my parents hiding something? I mean someone just said we could be!!! (Come on, I was 7.)
It is when I got the lead role for a play in class. I remember sitting in rows and the teacher said she was going to write down a number and anyone who wanted to be the lead could guess the number. Whoever was right, would get to be the lead. So I concentrated real hard on her hand and if she would write one number or two. Did her hand write curl marks or straight. I actually guessed the correct number!! Now if you know me, I have no idea why I would be going for a lead role in a play. Granted it was a 2nd grade play. But, I have no desire to be in front of people. Zilch. Zip. Zero. None, what-so-ever. I don't know, maybe I did in 2nd grade. Well, I did it!!! Although I remember not doing it well.
It is when I learned to separate my fingers (The Vulcan Salute) while watching a space video during science class. The salutes like they did on Star Trek. It was dark, the movie was boring and I could not think of anything else to do at the time. You know, besides actually watching the movie. And yes, I can still do it.
It is when my parents separated for the first time. Now I can remember lots of events surrounding this. I remember exactly how my dads apartment looked. The confusion of why my dad had to live somewhere else. I remember being mad at my dad for not living with us. I remember my parents buying us lots of stuff. Although, I'm not sure if it was so they could show their love, if it was out of guilt or because they wanted to out do each other. Being 7 I thought it was to out do each other. I ended up hating when they wanted to buy us something. Sure, every now and then I liked what I got, but I made sure the other parent never saw it. I did not want the other to go and get us something too. Most of the time I just said I didn't need anything. I remember wondering when my friends parents were going to separate, and started getting confused over why they would have family time.
Okay, sorry to depress you there at the end. Actually I could have wrote a lot more. But I'll spare you.
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