Surprise, Pony Pal!

Last week my daughter Jessica sent me pictures of her children visiting a herd of horses that lived close to her neighborhood.

Cambria was ecstatic to be close to horses, and Jessica captured a sweet video of Cambria expressing the joy in her heart to be around them, "Oh, I LOVE horses!" (Go here to see the video.)

I texted Jessica later that night and told her that she might want to keep an eye on the horses as there just might be a surprise on the way.

Surprise, Pony Pal Cambria! Your Grammy was right!

Liking a Unicorn? Me??

I never thought I'd ever say this, but I like this unicorn. (I know, hard to believe, isn't it?)

This is my friend's unicorn, all ready for a four year old's dream birthday party.

I had no idea that unicorns could be so lovely.

I am not ready to love all unicorns, but I do love this one!

I Thought I'd Retired

After twenty years of teaching, I retired last May. Aside from subbing in my daughter's class, I have been enjoying the slower pace of retired life as well as lots of time with my horse, Abby, and my collection.

Until I got a call Wednesday from a principal who had an emergency vacancy. There is a program called SOAR whose purpose is to provide an educational alternative for expelled middle school students with the purpose of continuing their education and increasing the likelihood that they will be able to reintegrate into the public and community. The current SOAR teacher has developed a serious health issue and cannot finish the school year.

Wow. Teach expelled kids? Me? It sounded like a tough assignment (and it will be.) But I told the principal that I would come visit the class Thursday morning and take a look at the program.

The SOAR class is housed in a building away from other schools and there are four middle schools which send their expelled students to it.  There is also a high school credit recovery program in the building, too, with another teacher and classroom. The rest of the building is offices for the heads of transportation, foods/cafeterias, grounds, and maintenance.

Currently enrolled in SOAR are six students who study Science, Math, Social Studies, and English for three hours in the morning and then go home. After an hour's break for the teacher, seven more students arrive for three hours of class in the afternoon.

If the expelled student remains in SOAR for the rest of the school year with no more issues, then he or she can return to their regular school the following year and have the expulsion removed from their record. I like that aspect a lot. Second chances for kids, in my opinion, is a good idea. Especially at this age when they are young and make foolish mistakes.

But, if they break the SOAR rules and get three write-ups for behavior, then they have to leave the program and the expulsion remains on their record. Apparently some make it while others don't.

I enjoyed my visit. It allayed some of my concerns and answered a lot of my questions. For example, I did not want to work with kids who might hit me. I was punched three times by a student very early in my career, and while it wasn't very painful, just the fact that a student was hitting me was an emotional shock. These kids are here for excessive truancy, disrespectful language and behavior, smoking, etc., not because they have been violent against a teacher.

I went home after my observation and discussed taking the emergency vacancy with Craig at length, deciding in the end to take the position. There are only five weeks left of school, and I figure that I can handle twenty-five school days, even if it is rough. (Besides, the unexpected money can be used for BreyerFest!)

 And, I will also get an aide. A former student of mine who is finishing her junior year in Elementary Education at Purdue has agreed to come do that (afternoons only.) I had her for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades and she has remained in touch since she left my classroom, so when they asked me if I knew anyone I'd like to hire for the aide position, I thought of Madeline and called her right away. She will do an excellent job, and this will look good on her resume after she graduates with her teaching degree in a year.

I'll admit that I am nervous, and I expect that the students will test me quite thoroughly tomorrow and in the coming weeks. No doubt I will come home in tears more than once. Time will tell.

In the meantime, I am hoping that this will provide me with a unique opportunity to make a difference in a child's life. Even if just one makes it to the end of the year, I will call that success.

A Horse Laugh

Really? You want me to stay out of the mud spa?

Hahahaha! You're so funny, Mom!

After all, that soft mud just adds to my natural beauty.

Better get used to it because as long as there's mud, I'll be using it as part of my beauty routine.

Life is Happening!

Recently, a friend said to me, "Lynn, you have such a full life." She is right; I do have a very full life, with lots of good things happening. (To the extent that sometimes I wonder how I ever had time to work full time.)

A couple of things have popped up in the last few days that have added to the fullness (i.e. busy-ness) of my life. My daughter-in-love, Vanessa,  had surgery Thursday to repair a torn ACL, and when they got in there, the surgeon discovered that she'd torn her meniscus, too, and that it needed repairing. Now, instead of being in a walking cast as expected, she has to be non weight bearing and on crutches for two weeks. Did I mention that she has three kids, including a one year old? Needless to say, Craig and I are stepping up and helping out.

I am also working with Allison Pareis on an all-collectibility show scheduled for September 14.

We've dubbed it The FAMulous Collectibility Show and have been hard at work planning classes, booking a show hall, setting up a Facebook page and a website, and the myriad other things that must be done when you decide to host a show. (Allison made our logo; she loves the Family Arab Mare!)

I am still working on Lukie's quiet book, awaiting new shelves from IKEA to be delivered so that I can redo my horse room, caring for Abby daily, and several other things.

Life is, indeed, very full and it's about to become more so. I am going back to teaching. More on that tomorrow. 

Maureen Love's First Horse

Recently a friend and I were discussing the collectibility factor of Hagen Renakers. As we chatted, she mentioned that she had a very special piece in her personal collection. (Photos shared with permission.)

Maureen Love's first horse.

Isn't it beautiful?

Maureen had signed the base herself and written that it was her first horse.

When asked what breed the horse was, she'd responded, "I was just happy it looked like a horse!"

Maureen Love's subsequent pieces became more and more beautiful and refined, but her very first piece has a sweetness and beauty all its own.

It's in a class all its own.

A Highly Unusual Gift

Yesterday my dear friend and colleague, Kathy Nimmer, sent me a gift. Out of the blue, no special reason, but "just because I treasure your friendship," as the note tucked in with it said.

Inside was a carved stone necklace with a horse in the middle. It was carved by Sidney Bolam, a former student of Kathy's who now makes her living as a stone cutter and artist.

Kathy and I have been friends and colleagues for years, and she used to come and team teach or guest lecture in my classroom several times a year.

Kathy is blind, but you soon forget that because you begin to see new insights and ideas as she shares her thoughts and knowledge.

She doesn't even shy away from using the board to illustrate the point she is making!

Nacho, Kathy's guide dog, helps her get to where she needs to go, and often we drive together to her speaking engagements across the state. (Nacho likes to reach over the seat and lick my cheek whenever he gets into my car.  Such a sweet boy!)

Good friends ARE a treasure, as Kathy said in her note with the pendant. 

I absolutely love my new stone pendant. But I also like it for a more unusual reason - it is tactile. Having Kathy as a friend has made me aware that there are experiences that she and I cannot totally share. I can describe the beautiful sunset or tell her that my horse is a varnish roan Appaloosa, but Kathy has to fill in the dots with her imagination.

This necklace is three dimensional and she could feel the outline of the horse and its subtle defining marks before she gifted me with it. She KNOWS what this pendant looks like. That enables the two of us to fully share and enjoy the gift of the pendant together.

That, for me, is the cherry on top of the gift.