Floored

Shayla had a lovely weekend with the Cooks, we all did!
Humor: The teacher in me just had to borrow the "Learn to Speak Chinese" audio books from the library before Shayne's trip to China knowing he couldn't possibly learn to speak Chinese during his flights. With many smiles, I loaded them on the little shuffle. I was shocked to get an email from Shayne saying he actually listened to it and learned how to say, "Thank you very much." (Well, better than nothing, hee hee! I also borrowed a book he'd been wanting to read and loaded it for him too.)
Feeding the animals with sweet "Webby".
Shayla's favorite, the giraffe!

While we were "out of here" we had our new floor put in. The new vinyl is wonderful; I can't believe the difference! The old flooring was 18 years old and should have been replaced ten years ago!! Actually, in August of 2006 I couldn't stand it any more and we had the gentlemen come out and measure and give us an estimate. Due to "sticker shock" and Christi's rapid decline, we didn't do anything at that time.
When Christi was asked what color her cat was she would always say, "The same color as the kitchen floor," and then laugh because how would the nurse know what color our floor was. (She'd laugh and I'd think if they only knew the condition of that floor, they'd be grossed out.) I will say I was only attached to the floor because of all of the great memories I have of the girls sitting on it and playing, drawing, etc. etc. Other than that, I'm so glad it is OUT OF HERE! (No, the kitchen is not completely finished, but when it is I'll share "before" and "after" pictures! We did start the project in 2005, smile.....)
Strangely enough, an "orb" appeared in this photo. I tell myself it's Christi saying, "I like the floor you picked, mom!" as this is the spot where we kept her school bookbag!

(Christi drawing on the kitchen floor with Buttercup, fall 2003)
(PIC: 2001. Shayla 2 playing with shaving cream I used to put on cookie sheets so the girls could develop their fine motor skills, while having lots of good, giggly fun! Without a doubt, we got our money out of that ugly, old floor!)

Now I am back to the seriousness of my third exam question. It is going very well and while I was on that "mini vacation" I read two fabulous books! "The Upstairs Room" by Johanna Reiss. This is the author's moving account of her own experiences as a young Jewish girl in hiding during WWII. It's an international children's book and one I selected to use with my students this year. I hope they'll like it and learn a lot from it too! The other book I read was "A Merry Heart" by Wanda E. Brunstetter. This fictional book features an Amish school teacher. I read it in preparation for my next "escape". Can't wait!!!! Meanwhile, back to my writing.