The funniest thing I've ever done

On a certain Friday I was substitute teaching at a certain school. This particular lesson plan required an odd amount of travel. To the Library, back to the classroom. To the library again. Too the office. I was tromping my little teacher self all over that school and everywhere I went I ended up with this pen in my hand.  I didn't mean to carry it all over, but everywhere I ended up I'd realize "oh! I still have this pen in my hand!" At the library: "Oh! I still have this pen in my hand!" In the classroom: "Oh! I still have this Pen in my hand!" Then I wen to the bathroom and "Oh my goodness! I still have this blasted pen in my hand." I had a seat on the toilet and looked up to find a paper taped to the stall door.  The paper read "Please Flush" At the bottom a couple of what I can only assume where high school girls made some comments.  "Really?!" one girl wrote, "high schoolers have to be told to flush?" A second comment read "apparently flushing is to much to expect for high school students".  The bathroom. The sign. And there I sat... with this pen in my hand:).

Do you use your spouses toothbrush?

Some time ago last year, it became apparent that I needed a new toothbrush. I wanted something think and solid. Something with those little massage bristles on the side. My research brought me to this little number.

Turns out Matty was also in need of a new Toothbrush. Apparently Matty likes a little massage bristle himself.

Adorable right? We both decide to buy toothbrushes. We buy the same one! hah and! there's the sweet little bit about inverted color pattern. Soul mates:) However, this did bring some concerns to mind. 1. What if I use his toothbrush on accident?! Groooos!, but I'll be careful. 2. What if Matty uses mine on accident?!? hmmmmm :/ It became clear this would be tricky and require some trust. I'd need to pay close attention. It was not long before... I used Matty's toothbrush:/ Oh gross! I used Matty's TOOTHBRUSH!!! I didn't even notice until I'd done a full brush and replaced the little fraud back in his cup. So Gross!!!!! Never would I let this happen again!!!! I became so paranoid it became difficult to remember who's was who's. Was I turquoise with white? or was he turquoise with white... It all came to a stand as I stood brushing my teeth in the bathroom before bed. Matty was well aware of my paranoia. He came into the bathroom. Matty: "Hey babe, when you're done using my toothbrush, can I have it?" Oh the panic. I froze and looked at the toothbrush. Am I turquoise with white or white with turquoise?!? Turns out I was right all along. No shocker that I married a man who loves to tease. :) Some time after this I went to the dentist where I was given a goodie bag and a brand new toothbrush. White. with orange trim:) It's been a real security. Matt too as moved on. White. with red trim. adorable. Soul mates.

Merry Christmas Burninghams!!!

and a sweet little Feliz Navidad to our sweet little Christmas present...........

I got a puppy for Christmas. I got a Puppy for Christmas! I GOT A PUPPY FOR CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!! This year for Christmas it was my wonderful privileged to have my name drawn by, Kale. Kale is among the elite when it comes to giving gifts. It is a business which he takes most seriously and gives creative thought to. The result is, you are never expecting what he gives you and are always pleasantly surprised and wondering why you had never thought of this incredible gift yourself. (It's a small circle that Gift Giving Elitist group) He threw out the idea of getting me a dog to my super hero husband who jumped on the sneaky boat and hoisted the sails without me suspecting a thing. They picked out a little guy from Moses Lake. He is a chihuahua mix with the coloring of a German Shepard and the temperament of an old sleepy grandma who likes to take long naps cuddled up to you just as snug as he can get:). Although, he is more hairy than an old woman he is significantly less wrinkled and much more adorable. We have given him the name Pato Pato means Duck in Spanish. In naming him Pato we are honoring his Hispanic background while highlighting one of his cute and weird traits. Our dog prefers quacking to barking. He only speaks a few times a day, but when he does he quacks, like a duck. We love you Pato. Now, Reasons why you should stop shaking your head at that fact that we have a Chihuahua 1. Weighing in at 4 lbs and standing at a height of 9 inches my dog will forever look like a puppy. He unobtrusively can cuddle in my lap and when he walks by the Christmas tree he doesn't knock all the ornaments off. 2. Chihuahuas hardly shed 3. Chihuahuas do not drool 4. Chihuahuas, this one is my favorite, DON'T HAVE ANY DOGGIE ODOR!!!! Matty and are are super excited:) What an Awesome First Christmas we had:) (slash are still having- super excited to go to Idaho tomorrow for round 2!) Thank you Kale:) and Thank you Matty :) I hope everyone has this Merry of a Christmas!

and... in the Christmas Eve padgeant we did of the nativity, Matty was a Sheaprd and Pato, his little sheep.

The Vow

My current situation: half way through watching The Vow. Nika and mother get a craving for brownies. the movie goes on pause. the craving is enlarged to encompass brownies with frosting. Two layers of frosting. a green mint and milk chocolate. I very VERY strangely am not craving brownies. Unstrangely is my lack of interest in the whole baking, frosting making affair. Also unstrangely are the loving thoughts of Matty dancing and skipping about in my head. So while the movie is paused, and while the frosting is stirred and spread, I will share a step or two of thought. One time we were all eating Sunday dinner and I put a bowl in the micowave that isn't actually suppose to go there. "Lets get rid of her!" papa exclaims in what I am most sure was a joking manner. the sweet boy named Matthew that I can't wait to marry says quietly and sincere, "I'll take her" :) On a different day, Matty and I were at a BBQ at a friends house. A darling little boy was running around. He was cute, but it wasn't until I saw his also darling little double running about and realized he was a twin that I wanted him to come plop in my lap. I did manage to catch him and sit him in my lap only to have him scoot right off. Plop. I'd stick him back, and scoot. He'd leave. Plop. I'd stick him back again, and scoot. He would only leave. After my 7th plop and the little tot's 7th leave he ran and there would be no more plopping. That would have been true, except for the fact that I have an adorably odd fiance who saw my lonely lap and plopped himself down into it. :) theres infinty to the infinate power tender little moments, but... I kinda like them being a secret :) and the frosting is finished.

frequent Flier

One year for father's day my loving mother gave my hardworking daddy an airsoft gun. Papa was delighted by the gift and began spending his summer evenings camped out on the porch shooting all the thieving and unwanted birds out of the cherry tree. For days the birds came to peck away at our delisious fruits, and for days papa welcomed their arrival as a chance to play with his toy. Perhaps the birds got sick of eating cherries, or perhaps the birds had found a new cherry tree that didn't have a crazy Hawaiian man standing guard. For whatever the reason there soon came a disappointing and birdless day for papa. Poor Papa, sitting lonely on the porch surrounded by cherries and void of targets. But Papa Stew is a resourceful man. A clever, resourceful man who has 6 children. These six children love to sit in the living room and watch T.V, a lot. He was bored. and we were easy targets. I'm sure you can guess what happened. Now fast forward to this year. While out at the hardware store Papa stew found a trinket. (My dad loves trinkets) This little gadget was a sort of fly swatter. Admittedly, It was pretty cool. Upon, contact with bug, the gadget zaps the insects taking their life in a swift and deadly electric shock. Imagine our dining room table. Dad is sitting in his usual spot at the head and I am off in a side chair. Now imagine my defensive worry, my slight cringe, and my slow head turn in papa's direction. I can hear the frown in his voice as I hear him sadly mumble..... ....... ......... ........... :( I can't find any flies :( Also on my mind.... i am engaged:) how can a blog post possibly capture a fraction of the supreme joy of planning an eternity with Matty. July 24th Can't come soon enough for me!

Sharing is Caring

One golden morning I woke up to Matty in my kitchen cooking biscuits and gravy.

Delicious:)


and Delicious;)



This boy is better than me at a lot of things. Sewing, running, the list truly goes on, but peaking the mountainous inventory... is cooking. Whereas my thought process for when my tummy rumbles includes thinking up foods that will take the least amount of time and effort to create, Matty's includes other factors. For him the time and effort thing is less of a concern and it's taste that becomes important. The taste of these biscuits and gravy was nothing short of divine. :)

We eat and we play.
A few hours go by and Matt gets hungry again. Into the kitchen he goes to warm up another plate of biscuits and gravy. Am I hungry? No I am not. Do I want some? No, I'm fine. BUT... when my senses of sight and smell begin to take in the delicious provisions in front of me I think maybe just one bite of that would be awesome to have in my mouth. I grab my fork and sneak it onto the property of Matty's plate to steal the food that I have already made very clear I did not want. yea that's super annoying. Like grounds for getting stabbed with a fork annoying, but Matty didn't stab me. In fact he used his fork to pile more gravy onto my bite of biscuit. :) He is sweet.
That one bite multiplied into another and another until I'd eaten an entire biscuit and there was only one bite left on the plate. (Did I mention these biscuits were amazing?) "I'm sorry" I say to Matty "Does it bother you that I say I don't want any food and then eat all of yours?" He just smiles at me and says "Here, the last bite is yours". :)Insert heart of love right here:)



AAAANNNNDD...Today we will be eating our TURKEY!!!!!!


and...
To Mother Peterson- nothing about my feelings towards your B&G have changed;) They are incredible and I would do anything for them!!!!

Turkeys are white??

Sometime last week I was blessed with this delightful text from Matty B. "I have the funniest date ever for you on saturday". My enchanting response, "what is it?"

Matty B: I can get us a free turkey, but there's a catch... we have to kill it
Matty B: you down?

um... HECK TO THE YES!

So Satudray I put on my work pants and we carivan it down to the Turkey farm.

say hello to the little gobblers... and the big gobbler in front;)



Matty entered the cage and came back with a suprisinlgy still bundle of feathers. (I like to think if i'd just been snatched from my home I'd put up at least a little fight) We each grabed a scaley foot and carried the FATTY bird up the hill. Bringing the creature to its death was sort of odd. Mostly I just tried to keep my thigh from being in the direct path of its beak and pretended my shoulder muscle wasn't absolutley killing me.

We made it to the slaughter tree and hung the poor little guy from his feet to a branch.

Matty's Job = Shoving the knife up the birds beak and scrambling its brain
My Job = Holding the wings

Things to note while watching the clip below:
Somehow Paul inherited this cute girlish scream and I got the man yell
also...
don't miss Matt getting Turkey slapped a billion times... sorry Matty



The rest of the Turkey adventure went well. Towards the end I even got to pull out the heart! Total Indiana Jones moment:)

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!! I'm thankful for a kind cheerful boyfriend who takes me on such enjoyable adventures.




Special shout out to all SERE Specialists. God bless the Airforce.

V is very very extra Ordinary

Matt and I always have lots and lots of fun together, but at the end of the day he always has to go home:/. This happened again yesterday, and so there we are outside my house and in front of his truck sweetly hugging goodbye. He wasn't talking and so I asked him what he was thinking. His response surprised and intrigued me. "I don't think you want to know" he replies. What the heck does that mean?!? He says it again, "I really don't think you want to know" and then with a brave voice he adds "but if you ask me again i'll tell you". i'm quiet for another minute thinking and wondering. But I have to know. "What are you thinking about?" I ask again. He kinda sighs and sets me down at the foot of his truck. Having me sit down was a smart move on his part. He looks at me and I'm wondering what it is that could be so hard for him to say to me. "You're not gonna like this" says the boy now standing in front of me.
At this point I am feeling straight up alarm. This boy I adore is about to tell me how things arn't working between us and all I feel is sad worry:( This is starting to feel an awful lot like that terrible night he told me that sometimes he thinks we'd make better friends then dating people. Apparently he was thinking this too and he says "AW! this is turning into that bad night (hey thats what I was thinking! weird.) I think I love you" Just like that he said it all in one breath.

My brain felt like it had been driving at 120 miles per hour and then realized it missed the turn. So it slammed on the breaks and rolled a few times. "WHAT???" is all I could manage to get out "WHA... Wha... WHAT?!??" Matty: "take out the think". Then in he looks right at me and as were staring into eachothers eyes I can't help but notice how soft his look and how full of emotion they were. "Haliaka, I love you" he says. I kissed him and then as quiet as I could I whispered. "i love you too". A couple hours later I received this text from Matty B: "Haha, gotten over the shock yet, or are you still grinning too?" I was still grinning. and having a very hard time focusing. like extremely hard. as in my class played scripture mastery basketball in seminary this morning lol.

Looks like it happened.haha, I fell in love

elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder elder

These are the general schedules of my family...

Mom, Dad, Kale: work all day.
Maka, Kekela, Nika: go to school all day.
Paul: Stay home.
Haliaka: I am a substitute teacher. So for the ten days I got called in the last two months, I worked very hard. The rest I stayed home.

If you'll notice, Paul and I's schedules mostly lined up to us being home together all day. Did we take full advantage of this???

yes. yes we did.

We would go for runs and bike rides and get addicted to different T.V shows. I even cooked our meals. I don't usually like cooking, but I liked cooking for Paul. We would think about what really sounded good to us to eat. He would always say thankyou in such a genuine way and tell me that it tasted good. Then he'd put the dishes in the sink. We made a good team Paul and I and it was nice to have a good friend to mesh my schedule with. We'd plan our day so that we could both get done the things we needed too, but so that they were ususally done together:)Relationships were discuessed, songs were usually sung. It was really nice. BUT...big sigh... the time came for Pauli to move on. He got called to the Philedelphia, Pennsylvani mission and reported to the MTC.

This morning, I got home from Seminary and Paul was gone. He wasn't on the couch working on his scrap book. He wasn't in his room reading a book. He wasn't in the Kitchen cleaning up. He wasn't in the living room doing p90x. He was just gone.

I sat in the rocking chair and cried.


Things I'm very grateful for:
-i'm lucky enough to have a brother that I miss when he's not here
-all the ways this mission will help Paul to grow
-all the sweet memories I was able to make with my little brother
-that my family can be together forever

I call the hump!

This last weekend Matty's little borther Kevin came up to the evergreen state for a visit:) With two burningham boys on the loose you can bet the fun levles were high. One thing that happened was that I sat in the middle seat. Matt has a truck and usually he drives and I sit in the passenger seat, but With three people sitting in the truck the most sense making option was Matt driving, me in the middle and Kevin in the passenger seat. A couple days later Matt and I picked up his friend from the airport. On the way back to base Matty drove, I sat in the middle and the nice friend sat in the passenger seat. It turns out that when I sit in the middle, Matt and I are closer. I will most likely be always sitting in the middle from now on.

Pixels de digital can't we PLEASE be friends???

On occasion I have a very difficult time looking past the present. This most often happens when taking pictures. Yes a few are fun, and its a blast to go back and look at them later, but while most girls seems to get a thirll at capturing every moment multiple times I kinda combine my "no clutter policy" with my "I hate holding things" syndrome and also my "I'm irresponsible and never charge my electronics" illness. The result is my crackypants just flying on after about picture 3.

One particular incident stants out in my mind. The lcoation: Calgary, Alberta, Oh Canada. Sarah and Tiffy and I went to the Calgary Stampede. We had spent the day watching chuckwagans race and eating poutine, and now the night concert. Oh the wonders of the night concert! Fireworks, dancing people dangling above my head. Motorscycles launching over and across the stage, stretchy tights, elaborate costumes, angelic singers, bright lights, NOISE, just the works! I mean I love anything on a stage and this show was like the circus meets american idol meets Hairspray meets the mad hatter. Just fantastic. So eyes sprakling and glued to the stage I am very much enjoying my Calgary stampede experience. My dearest friend Sarah I'm sure was also enjoying the show and thought to digitally capture the magical moment. Ok, fine, I will look away for a few seconds for the picture, but one picture turnd into about 5 and that went over my limit. In the 6th picture I did look at the camera, but you can bet I did NOT smile. I frowned. I frowned with hate in my eyes ;( And then I rudley said "There's a million things my eyes would rahter look at right now then your camera lense". The next few pictures were taken without me in them... um grumpy??? mean??? yikes!! Poor Sarah was only capturing a wonderful trip, and you better beleive that I absolutley loved going through every picture 2 weeks later and I felt really bad about what I said.

That was a year ago and I'm proud to say i've spent the last 12 months trying to be more patient about picture taking. My tolerance for the whole ordeal has greatly increased as have my enjoyment levels:) (I would even call the bridal party pictures we took at the temple after Tiffs wedding ... FUN!!!- it also helped that tiffys mom brought cheese buns for us:) yum.)

My next step has been to now become the picture taker. I go up and down with this, but on the whole I spend a lot more time promising to take pictures and a lot less time actually doing anything with my camera.

Time for a confession: It was my best friends wedding this last weekend. (Thats a real life statement I wasn't referencing the movie). I brought my camera... :) I did not take one single picture. Ok I took one picture... two pictures. When I was stopped at the border I tried to be artistic and I took one of my rearview mirror and one of my feet. They were both hidiouse and have since been deleted. I feel bad that I didn't take any pictures. I'm slacking hardcore in my picture taking goals and there's no reward in goal slacking. Honestly, the thought of taking pictures seems dreary, but i'm going to do it. It's so fun to look at them later.. why does it feel like such a hassel??? I really do LOVE looking at pictures and having pictures, I DO!! now if I could just remember that during the picture taking moment... I might be more successful. Ok life, let the good times roll cause i'ma capture me 10 fun moments this week with digital pixels!!!

I Heart Mr. Goodbar

At work there is this glass bowl that is always filled with mini candybars. I am not shy about enjoying this bowl. Often. and Generously. and yet, it NEVER gets empty!!! I havn't figured out who yet, but somebody in the office is very prompt and diligent when it comes to mini candybar consumption. I imagine they have a small garden in their office where they plant mini candybar seeds and water and nurture them to grow. Thankyou Mr. Candybar farmer.

an amusing memory

Last week Matts dad said he would buy him a gun. Both felt it nessasary to try shooting guns before deciding on one to buy. So last Wednesday Matt went to a shooting range and ...since his roommate elder didn't want to go... I got to come along:) (how much do I love being 2nd choice to a dude? haha actually i much prefer it to being 2nd to a girl- mothers and sisters exempt of course) anyways, Matty brings this gun back to try and its called...... HK!!!!! you can imagine the sqeal of delight and childlike beam that came to my face. HK is so much more than my initials. Everyone on my rugby team and my very close friends in high school call me HK. It is a name I answer to promtply and lovingly. Oh Matt!, I exclaim. You must choose this one!! He begins loading the gun, but is having a bit of trouble. "Looks like the HK is a little too smart for you" I comment "No" he says, "just complicated" Then he kisses me on top the head.

After we went to Applebees. I got a cheeseburger and Matty got some sort of pasta and chicken dish. The waitress who brought us our food gave us the wrong ones lol no no the man burger was definately ordered by me thanks. but it was ok because we both ate half of each. Eating half of each is one of my favorite things. You get to try twice as much food! yes i'm going to use these two words. Kindred and spirit


also... it should be mentioned that Matt left yesterday. When hes gone I tend to talk about him to others a bit much... it may also sneak into my blogg. If our curiouse he went to hike 75 miles up a mountain with an 87 lb pack. Poor boy:(

I love you mom and dad!

Every morning a delightful thing happens. I skip down the stairs and open the fridge to find wonderful contianers of food meant especially to be tucked into my backpack, carried off to work and enjoyed at lunch. Sometimes mom makes me a special salad, sometimes dad creates a special stir fry for me, on other occasions I snag the left overs from dinner. It is perhaps my most favorite part of my morning routine and I leave with a heartfelt appreciation for my parentals. They are kind people. and very good cooks. But Alas, today (for the first time all summer) there was no friendly tupperware awaiting my companionship. So... I decided I would take on a challege. I decided to try to go a whole day without eating. It sounds like i'm on a diet or trying to lose wieght. I asure you i'm not. It just sounded so inviting to have something hard to do, but all the magic in that idea wore off around twelve. Lucky for me the office just stocked up on snacks:)

like or like like

I've been debating whether I should actually blog about this or not. Which almost always means ya probably shouldn't, but... I kinda just want to:) hehe SO... at the extreme risk of being psycho, i'm going to blog about .... a boy.

Blogging friends... meet Matthew T. Burningham





He's a cheerful adventurous boy with a wide range of interests including knives, cooking, all things nature, salsa dancing and taylor swift. He's in the airforce training to be a sere specialist. Being a sere specialist is a lot like being Jason Borne. One could pretty accuartely say that Matty is training to be Mr. Borne. One would also be correct in describing his life as demanding. Like highly demanding, but that it also makes him desciplined, tough, hardworking and honest. He teases like crazy and sure makes me laugh a lot. :) He is righteouse and fun and As it turns out, (big breath)...we are dating. (I can already feel myself regretting this post)

ps. Dear Family (mostly Uncle Terry and Uncle keola;)) He is a returned missionary with a solid testimony and a righteouse glow:) ...he went to Spain

To see Matty eat a bug go here!! http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/video/video.php?v=771314093389&comments&set=t.1132050099&type=1

Que to the Tal!!

Aloha mi amigos de blogging! So there came this period of 7 months where I had absolutly no motivation nor interest to blog. like zero. BUT... I would like two things to be known. 1. To my credit I have been writting in my journal. Sometimes it's hard to do both and the Journal needed to know I like him the same as my blog. We just needed some time together. 2. I have not been completely gone... in fact (as creepy as this kinda is) I've been logging in to the ole blog at least once a week and reading everyones posts. That haveing been said there are a few things that need to be blogged.

1. Solve the mystery! (Jessica I dedicate this to you;) )
Thanksgiving... where do I go you ask????? It was New York City baby :) My uncle printed up these amazing itineraries. (he does this for nearly all of his planned events. It is both incredibly useful and just really cute) The whole trip was such a blast! One of the DC highlights for sure!

2. The shout outs
Theres a lot of theses. Shout out to the capital of America! This is a place where I learned that I can do hard things and even make a little bit of a difference:) Shout out to the Sakais! Some of my fondest DC memories were spent at their house. It was my save haven from stress. like I can't even explain. The spirit in their home is so strong and I adore my Auntie Kim and Uncle Keola. Auntie Kim is hilariouse, Uncle Keola is so quarky... which in turn also makes him hilariouse and the banter and obviouse friendship between the two of them is special and adorable. I miss them! Shout out to the cutest girl in the world! Lillie!! Lillie is a firework and I loved every second of every cousin party I had with her. She is so many special things:) Shout out to Wilson High School! I fell head over heels in love with every student there.

3. Where I am now
I graduated in December and moved back home. Like in with my parents. As in I share a room with my 11 year old sister, actually I share a bed with this child. I finished out the school year substitute teaching, and have not applied for jobs or even really done much in the way of making my resume cool. It sounds pretty bad I know, but here's the funny thing. These last 7 months have been so fulfilling and progressing making, and i've been so happy. My original plan was come home sub out the year then go begin life and contribute positively to society. There were many options: teach internationally, mission, HAWAII!!!, DC. It was exciting to think of all the places and advuentures I could go do, but as I pondered and prayed I just felt so much like I needed to stay home. (why is Hawaii never the answer??) Of all the options staying home is probalby not the most exciting, but its the one that stands out. And the Lord has this funny way of reassuring me i'm in the right place. Heavenly father, I asked, should I go on a mission?? he gives me some cool promptings and then boom. i'm called as a seminary teacher. ok Heavenly father so I know i'm suppose to stay home, but I think i'm going to go on a little summer adventure,boom he puts me in releif society. There's this scary pattern of everytime I think of leaving I get strapped with some big church resopnsibilities that keep me tied to the cheney institute building. SO, hint taken I'm in cheney. but really it's been this special time where Kale is home and I've gotten to spend time with my family all together, i've become really involved in my little singles ward and made some amazing friends there. I know i'm where I'm suppose to be and thats a peaceful thing.

Solve the Mystery!!

It's almost Thanksgiving! NO SCHOOL Thursday or Friday:) the positives of this = 2 days of lessons I don't have to plan!!! and more time for lesson planning!!! ... or so I thought.

I will be spending Thanksgiving with the SAKAIS in the east this year:) In Maryland... I think.

Last weekend Auntie Kim sent me an email telling me to get all my planning for the week after Thanksgiving because I would be too busy having fun to do any!!! Special holiday "festivities" are in the works, but I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THEY ARE!!!! I received a couple hints. see if you can figure out this mystery!!!



Hint #1
I got this one last night.
at 5:48pm I received this text from auntie Kim

"You got all your planning done for next week? Hope so cuz I just got word about the festivities and you're SOOO not going to have time to plan. ;) i'll give you a call tuesday to tell you what you need to bring for the long weekend."

My response:
"I'm soOoooOooo excited!! Give me a hint!!

Auntie Kim:
Oh...ok! Here is your hint! Because of our festivities, Uncle Keola INSISTED on putting up all our Christmas decorations. It's a time issue.

Me:
I don't get it. Can I please have another one?

Auntie Kim:
there may be more hints to follow in the coming days, so keep your phone close.

I have been keeping my phone very close, and very charged, but the next hint did not come via cell phone. I just checked my email and found this clever little poem:)

Hint #2
For this Thanksgiving break,
You'll want to pack light.
No textbooks, computer,
Or plan book in sight.

Pack comfy warm clothes,
And GOOD walking shoes,
A dress, and an umbrella (if you have one),
Those are things we'll definitely use.

If your camera phone
Is the only camera you've got,
Then don't forget your charger
Because pictures...you'll take a LOT!

Hint #3May come later today
By phone or by e-mail
So check both, don't delay!!

Auntie Kim : )

hmmmmmmm... still don't know what it could be...

Last Week

Dear Woodrow Wilson High School

My name is Haliaka Kauwe. I am 22 years old. I am not a student. Thanks

Just Last week...

1. A student asked how old I was. I gave her my typical "i'm older than you and younger than your parents" response. She followed that with "well, I just thought you had to be in college to do your student teaching"

2. I went to observe a teacher during my free period to get some tips and learn the ropes a little better. I sat down at a desk in the back and the kid next to me says "Hi i'm chris. are you a new student to the class?" No, chris darling I"M A TEACHER!!!! ;(

3. A security guard stepped in front of me as I was leaving school. apparently students are allowed to exit that particular way...

4. I was subbing for a teacher who had to leave. The kids were working on an assignment and I sat down at a desk to do some grading. Mr. Giddens came in the room, looked around, and then said to the class "Do you guys not have a teacher?" YO GIDDENS I"M PRESENT AND NOT A STUDENT!!

5. Devin walked into class and says "hmm, Ms. Kauwe's gone today" "Hi Devin" I say loudly because I am of course, not gone. "Oh dang. Hi Ms. Kauwe. I though you were a student hahahahaha"

yea yea yea Devin, you're not the only one lol

D.C. is D.efinately C.ool

Things that make me happy

*Cousin Parties!!!!
*the new habit Ant P is getting into of telling me I "look nice today" everyday:)
*the marriage of Chase and Cameron (This is a House reference)
*harry potter references in House
*how the apple truly never does fall far from the tree (I had parent teacher conferences yesterday)
*That Mr. Greiner (my mentor teacher) brought me hot cocoa so I could also make use of the coffee machine in the room... and also that he brought me a mug after I kept forgetting my own every day for weeks
*Waking up to little Lillie bounding in my room:)
*Chillen with my homegirl chris-to-the-tin-to-the-a
*When my students cheer for each other
*the musky/smoking smell of the hall way that leads to my apartment
*running down the hall way that leads to my apartment as fast as I can
*getting the fist seat on the metro
*seeing the sun shine on the Potomac in the morning
*starting a new book
*seeing my kids engaged in a lesson
*watching small children chase the gigantic goose that lives in the fountain in the middle of my apartment complex... so random
*Dinner with the Sakais
*listening to my kids rap the presidents- they are skilled. like for real.
*when I hear a kid drop the f bomb I tell them with a hurt expression that I don't like that word... every kid always apologizes and never says it again
*How today I asked Devin who general Weyler was during group study 4 times in a row and then when we played who wants to be a millionaire thats the question he got.
*getting mail
*hearing Hi Ms. K in a southern accent

Things that don't make me so happy
*they allow dogs in my apartment complex...meh:/
*that cameron left Chase- dosn't being MARRIED mean anything anymore??? lets work though our issues people

Here a little there a little

I'd like to make a quick plug for improvement. Today I taught a lesson 2nd period. The kids were fine, but I felt skattered and off. There lacked "flow". This made me quite nervouse then to teach my 4th period. 2nd period can handle a day when i'm off, but 4th period. hah oh 4th period. nother story. A story that needs flawless flow and a display of masterful teaching that I fear greatly exceeds me. They are a rough class and a treasure all the same. So after a volcanoe of stress and overwhelmingness erupted out of my stomach and trough my eyes I ate a sandwhich. It's incredible what eating lunch will do to calm a person down. Then I went back to the lesson plan. I tweaked and added according to my mentors input and put on my "bring it" face. and 4th went great!!! Ok so they talked while I was sometimes, little joe had to go out in the hall, angel refused to give up her phone and thus got written up, but... I think they learned something. I think they learned more than second period. I think my lesson and myslef as a teacher...improved. Am I a master teacher? Heck to the no. Am I even a decent teacher. idk. It's probably an arguable point, but am I a better teacher now than when I woke up this morning. I venture to say that I am. I'm learning to find satifaction in improvement. Sometimes that has to be enough.

p.s. Student teaching is hard. Like way hard, but the kids are GOLD. pure gold :)