Pre-wedding Reception in Moses Lake

Stephen and I decided to have a reception in Moses Lake the week before we actually got married because it worked better with everyone's schedules or something like that. Since that meant Stephen would see me in the dress before our actual wedding, we had a great excuse to put a blindfold on him and make him participate in a big dress reveal. We went out with Julie Waites and Ashley Mar a couple days before the reception and they took some amazing pictures for us. 

I'm not one to get super into pinterest fads, but whoever thought of taking pictures of the dress reveal is pretty great in my book. As you can tell by the pictures I was just a tad bit giddy to finally get to show off my dress. And for a guy who really hates taking pictures, Stephen could not have been a better sport! 

These are some of my favorite shots that Julie and Ashley took that day. Our apartment is currently a shrine to them/our wedding. Whatever filters they were using I would like them to be on me always. 

Isn't it weird when you look at your wedding pictures and fall in love with your husband all over again? He's SO dreamy! 

We had our reception at my house, which of course my mom went above and beyond to make beautiful for us. We had been working on redoing the kitchen cabinets (we being my parents and their slave labor/ children) for several weeks and we had to work up until the very last minute to get things done in time for the reception. I would skype with Stephen while he was in Utah and I was in Moses Lake and I probably had the same outfit on for a solid two weeks because I spent all day painting and all night staining. We listened to the entire Serial podcast and watched a lot of episodes of Dateline while working on that project. Apparently something about murder just puts me in the mood to paint. Anyways, the cabinets turned out beautifully, but were definitely a lot of work so we were all pretty excited when my mom deemed the job "done for now." 

Well the morning of my reception we were cleaning and setting up and I was in the kitchen baking away (I made every batch of cookies served at my reception thank you very much) and I came up with something I needed to ask my mom about. Well I shout and look around for a while but I can't find her. I finally make the trek to the downstairs and find her cleaning out the exercise room so that one of the boys could take a car load to Goodwill. This is a room that had been filled with random "give away piles" for as long as I can remember, and we've been living there a solid 16 years at this point, and my mom decides that the morning of my reception is a good time to get that job done. Keep in mind that the reception was held upstairs and nobody would be anywhere near the basement. But that's why everything she does turns out to be so amazing- she's a person who cares about the littlest details! :)

That being said, I had barely changed into my dress and finished my make up when the first guests arrived, and I was the most ready out of everyone. We pulled it together in the end, but if it weren't for Kristy's mother in law Druann, and my soon to be mother in law Lucina, keeping things together while everyone got dressed, it would have been a rough start. 

Notice those gorgeous dark cabinets on the left completely hidden by the food table? Yep all that work was totally worth it ;). 

Dean and Owen were able to make it and I have two words for you- Baby. Suspenders. Yeah, you are welcome. 

Kristy and Trevor were able to make it to the Moses Lake reception and then found out the next morning that Declan was on his way! I may have been missing a few siblings, but I was so happy to have the ones that could make it! 

It was a beautiful reception and it turns out it was really fun to pretend to be married for a couple of hours. 

I'm Getting Married!

I know, I didn't see it coming either.

You have no idea how badly I wish I were still teaching last year's class because it would be so awesome to rub this in their faces. Take that Liva, I guess I won't be single forever.

And want to know the truly best part about marrying Stephen? Well, I actually expressed those vindictive thoughts to him out loud in conversation, and he still thinks I'm worth marrying. True love right there.

I was pretty excited to tell my students the good news, but I knew there was no way they were going to care unless there was something in it for them. That's ok, bribery and I are good friends. We started our morning off with playing a game of hangman instead of our regular phonics lesson. The secret message spelled out, "I am getting married!" and they figured it out pretty quickly. When they had filled out all the letters, Haley yelled out, "Teacher is this for real?!"

I answered, "Yep! And since I got a new ring, I figured it was only fair if you all get one, too." and held up a bag of Ring Pops. The crowd went WILD.

As they sucked on their candy jewels they chatted happily and asked me about a bazillion questions.

"What's your new last name?"

"When are you going to get married?"

"What does your dress look like?"

"Who ARE you going to marry?"

*Important side story: The Friday before, my class had earned enough points for a class party, which is a pretty big deal. I was wracking my brain for a worthy prize because they had worked hard to earn those points and they deserved something pretty big. I wanted to throw a pizza party, but delivery pizza was too expensive (teacher- remember?) and I didn't have time to run out and pick some up during lunch. That's where my amazing then-boyfriend-now-fiance Stephen came in and saved the day. He not only picked up pizza for the entire class, but he brought chips as well (just in case) and stayed and helped me out with the party. True love.
When my kids came in for the party, they noticed Stephen sitting at the table.
"Teacher, who's that?"
"That's Stephen. He's the one who brought you guys all this pizza!"
"But why did he come?"
"Because he wanted to bring you guys pizza."
They looked skeptical, but once they had a slice to keep their mouths quiet the party was great. Well, it was mostly great until one of my boys looked up from his piece of pizza, chips, and juice box and said, "So teacher, when are we getting our prize?"

Kids these days. Amiright?*

Anyways...

They ask me, "Teacher, who are you marrying?" and Luke yells out,

"I know! It's the pizza guy isn't it?!"

I replied, "Yep! He delivered that pizza so well I just had to marry him!" But then I laughed because teacher jokes. 

Our conversation went on and they were all very excited until I told them that I wouldn't be back at school next year. I explained that Stephen had a job in Arizona after graduation and so I was going to move there with him and teach kids there. My class freaked out. They were so disappointed which was hilarious because 1) they already know I wouldn't be their teacher again next year anyways and 2) they're really not that nice to me. 

That day we were starting our opinion writing unit. I hadn't thought of a prompt in advance (I was a little distracted over the weekend ok?) so I had to come up with something on the spot. This is the prompt we ended up writing to: 

Do you think Miss Earl should get married? Why or why not? 

"Miss Earl should Not! Get married. First she should not get married because, never thought I would day this but I'm actually crying for you to stay. I'm actually crying. I will do anything. Next, at least move around here. Last you are the best I like you so much."

"I am going to tell you whether Miss Earl should get married. First, she wants to get married. Next, he is nice. Then, he seems strong. Last, she won't be poor. That's why she would get married." 

"I do not think Miss Earl should get married. First, he is too nice. Next, he probably eats too much snacks. Then, I do not think he is handsome. Last, I think he likes pizza too much. Now you know what I think."

"I do not think she should get married. First, I don't want to watch. Next, she will get poor. Then, he is a pizza boy. Last, he was raised by cows. That's why she should not get married." 

"I think Miss Earl should get married. First, she wants to get married. Secondly, the man is handsome. Third, he will love Miss Earl. Finally, he will be a nice husband. Now you know why Miss Earl should get married."


Through their writing it was clear to see that my students were very concerned with my choice to marry a pizza man. One of my girls suggested that I get some pizza, keep the ring, and run.
When we were done with our writing assignment I had to make it clear that I had already decided to marry Stephen, so it was a done deal. Damon yelled out, "Then what did we even do this for?!"

The Friday of the same week we did some math practice on the white boards. They were doing a great job so I gave them the last five minutes to doodle. These are the pieces that were brought to my desk for my inspection.

"I love you"          "Me too"

The same student came back a minute later with this gem.

"I hate you!"        "Dang it" 

"Pizza's here!"

This student prefaced his drawing by saying, "This is why you shouldn't move to Arizona."

This is Stephen "I hate Ms. Earl" 

Will you married me?     Yes.

This student brought me this and said, "I know what you really want..."

1,000 cats. He gets me. 

Regardless of what my students may think about it, spending eternity with this hunk is gonna be dope.

Kids Write the Darndest Things

Luke kept it real. 

We read a story about a seal pup that is rescued by people because her mother went out hunting one day and never came back. The kids were supposed to write about what they read in the beginning of the story and when I went around to check them Luke kept blocking his paper. I told him I wanted to see what he had written and he said, "I'm worried you'll be mad. But it's just the truth! Stuff like that happens in the wild." 

"maybe she got hert a shark came and ate the seal i'm not trying to be mean." 

Sal really wanted to get his point across. 

When asked to write a paragraph about a member of his family, Sal wrote: 

I love mom and dad

I am telling about mom and dad. 

First I love mom and dad. 

Next I love to much mom and dad. 

Then I love mom and dad muchr. 

Last I love mom and dad. 

Jon wrote about his brother, and merely stated the facts. 

My big brother

I am going to tell you about my brother Alejandro. First he is mean and he eat poop paper. Next he does not like to play with his little brothers. Then he plays video games that are violent. Last he is smart. 

Hey Alejandro, 1 out of 4 ain't bad!

I got a lovely little note from one of my students last year.

to: Miss Earl

from: Elisia

hey Miss Earl when are you gonna get married. I miss you so much. No, I miss you too much. Some time can I come to your classroom and tell you class who I am if my teacher lets me. Guess what I know how to do my name in cursive see it is at the top. 

Armando worked on his "phonemic" spelling. 

The kids were supposed to make a poster about the internet safety tips we learned in an assembly with the school. I was walking around checking out what they had done, when one of the girls in my class called me over to her table.

"Armando just wrote 'poop' all over his." she said pointing at his poster. 

Armando tried to hide his smile and look shocked as he looked down at his poster. "That says 'poop'?!? Teacher, I was trying to write 'Use Kind Words'. Spelling is really hard." 

Sure you did, Armando.

Interactive journal entries are a new fad. 

Luke had a lot of ideas for my Halloween costume. 

"Last my grandpa came to town and I stepped on a nail and I went to Trafalga and did laser tag with him and we did miniature golf and do you think I should stop this sentence? Check right here."

Self-evaluations brought out the best and worst in my kids. 

Self-confidence was not lacking for most of my students when it came time for them to tell their parents how they think they are doing in school. Sal is far below grade level standards at this point, but that didn't get him down. Here's what he wrote (according to Sal).

"I am really good at... I am really great at everything

I need help with... No, I not need any help never." 

And Heidi may be really great at reading, but man, that meth is really getting her down. And no, I did not correct her spelling or even bother to change it before parent teacher conferences. 

Happy Halloween

As my class was lined up at the door ready to leave one Friday afternoon I said to them, "Ok, have a great weekend. Be safe, I love you..."

These are the various reactions I got from my students: 

"You love us?!"

(It seemed like a justifiable reason to scream for a few.) 

"Ew, that means she even loves the girls." 

Yeah, my class is full of keepers. I explained to my second graders that I didn't love them like a romantic love, the way you would love your boyfriend or girlfriend (something I really never thought I would have to explain to them). I told them I loved them how their parents or relatives love them. Sure, for some of them it's more like a crazy-third-cousin-twice-removed kind of love. Ya know, where the word love really becomes synonymous for tolerate. But it's love nonetheless. 

Last Friday, we did a cool Halloween art project involving paint. 

I was in a meeting all morning, and had to do the prep for it on the spot. As I was explaining what we would be doing to the class, I was also opening paint bottles, setting up sponges, and making sure that newspaper covered every surface in my classroom. The paint bottles required a little extra work because the seals on the top wouldn't come off very easily. I had to stab them with my scissors and ended getting paint all over my hands. The last paint bottle I opened was the red one and I had made quite a mess. I continued giving instructions and ignored the mess when a student interrupted me. 

Student 1: Look! Teacher's hand is bleeding!

Me: (Looking down at my paint covered hand feigning surprise) AGH! I'm bleeding! Ha, no it's just the red paint. I'll clean it up in a sec.  

Student 2: It's everywhere! Her hand is really bloody. 

Me: Come on you guys, you saw me open the bottle, it is just red paint. I'll clean it up in a second. 

Student 3: Teacher, there's blood all over your hands!

Me: (losing patience) Ok you guys, the joke has been made. The red paint on my hands looks like blood. Very funny. 

Student 2: No teacher, it really looks like blood. Like a lot. 

Me: (waving my red paint covered hand wildly) It is not blood! It is paint! Now will you all please just stop so we can get to work on this!?!

Student 1: Teacher, look at your other hand.

Don't be silly kids, that's just paint! Also, this is not my hand, I found this on Google. I felt it illustrated the story nicely since I didn't actually stop to take a picture of the real deal. 

I look down and I am surprised to find that in my effort to quickly open the paint bottles I have sliced my finger open with my scissors and blood is dripping down my hand.

Me: Whoops. Thanks for looking out guys. 

I went to the sink to clean up my red hands and my cursed scissors and to disinfect everything.

Later that afternoon we were having a perfect homework party (I do teach curriculum sometimes, too). We were decorating Halloween cookies. I came around with Twizzlers Pull 'N' Peels for them to decorate with but I didn't have enough for the class, so I was cutting them in half with scissors.

Kaitee: Are those the same scissors you cut your hand open with?
Damon: (With an eye roll) Great, first she loves us and now she wants us to eat her blood.

I'm telling you, I really do worry sometimes what these kids must be saying to their parents when they get home.

Today was every teacher's dream: Halloween on a Friday. We get to end the day with a party and then ship the little monsters off with their parents WITHOUT having to deal with their sugar crash the next day. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! 

But of course the day couldn't go off without a hitch. We had made it through the first half of the day pretty smoothly and my kids knew that after lunch we would get to have our classroom party with all sorts of treats. AND after the party, all their parents were coming to watch them march in a parade through the school so they could show off their costumes. They were stoked. I had just sent them out to lunch recess when one of the third grade teachers came running down the stairs. Clearly alarmed, but in a soft voice she said to me (because there were still students around), "Grab your kids and get outside, the upstairs is filled with smoke. There's a fire." 

I grabbed my emergency supplies and rushed out to the playground to find my students, who luckily remembered our meeting spot. The good news: we had just had a fire drill yesterday, so they knew exactly what they were supposed to do. The bad news: we had just had a fire drill yesterday, and they are smart enough to know we don't do two drills in a row. 

I instantly had kids panicking and crying and causing all sorts of chaos. I sat them down and told them the firemen were on their way and we were all going to be fine. I felt so bad for the stress the situation was causing my kids, until I overheard their conversations. Like always, these are direct quotes. 

Raj: All of my candy is going to burn up in the fire! WHY ME?!?

Luke: Dude, forget about the candy. What about the MATH!?!

Heidi: Ugh, I'm so hungry. I don't care if I burn, I just want to eat my lunch. 

One of my little girls was sobbing uncontrollably, and I thought she was worried about her sisters that also attend the school. She finally calmed down enough to tell me: 

Sam: What if... (sob) they cancel.... (sob) the parade? (sob).... and no one.... (sob)..... can see me (sob).... in my costume?

Don't worry, our school didn't burn down. Turns out one of the third grade teachers brought a smoke machine for her class party (so yes, she is obviously a way cooler teacher than me) and forgot to actually tell anyone about it. The parade went on as scheduled, and I must say, Cookie Monster killed it. Kids loved it, and I got to sit around in pajamas and eat cookies all day. Miss Earl for the win!

Happy Halloween!

True Story

For all the parents that read my blog there is something you probably already knew that I did not learn until I became a teacher, and it is this:

No matter how normal or great your family is your student will say something at school at some point that is going to make you sound crazy and/or horrible. 

Now depending on your actual level of sanity, your student may have more or less ammunition to work with. But despite your best efforts or your great parenting, kids just have a warped sense of reality (they're still developing cognitively- not their fault) and they love to talk.

So when my students tell me things about their family members, I usually just take it with a grain of salt or try to sift through to the truth. That being said, I have one little boy who has told me A LOT of stories, and let's just say... I can't wait to meet his family!

*** In his family's defense, Nick has an excellent memory. Mind like a steal trap. Well, except when it comes to learning second grade concepts.... Let me explain.
One day, about the third week of school, I was sitting in my teacher wheelie chair (easily the greatest part of my job) and I was wearing a very long and flowy maxi skirt. I needed to scoot my chair forward to click something on my computer, but I didn't want the wheels to run over my skirt and cause it to be pulled down in front of my class because professionalism. So I try to grab my skirt and scoot the material from under the wheels while also trying to scoot the chair itself forward. Yes, it was as unnecessarily complicated as it sounds and basically I fell right off the chair and landed on my butt on the floor. And yea, my chair was on the tallest setting. #teacherfail.

So the class gasps and I'm laughing hysterically as I try to pull myself together and stand up without stepping on my now frustratingly long maxi skirt (which would just cause another disaster) and I say to the class, "Hey, let's not tell anyone about this, ok?" They all laughed (because, hello-teacher jokes) and we moved on with the lesson.
This story will be relevant later.***

Back to Nick over-sharing about his family!

*In the middle of the vocabulary lesson*
Me: The word is 'broken'. Can anyone think of a time when they have broken something; like a bone, a dish, or maybe a toy you had?
Nick: My cousin got really, really mad this one time, like he was so mad he was yelling a lot and his face got all red and then he just stood up and he punched a hole right through the wall of my aunt's kitchen! True story.
Me: (Frantically searching my brain for an appropriate response to that comment...)
Nick: Oh yeah! So the wall was broken! (He then looked proudly at his classmates as if to say 'nailed it'.)
Several hands shot up as students realized that Nick's story reminded them of their own similar story, but wouldn't ya know it, we ran out of time and had to move on to the next word. Funny how that happens.



*I'm sitting at my desk working as the students file in and start their morning bell work*
Nick: Morning, Miss Earl. My aunt wears diapers because she pees every time she runs or laughs. Every time. True Story. She can't help it! She just pees!
Then he threw his hands up, shook his head in disbelief and just walked back to his desk.



*Working with a small group. We were reading a book that contained a map of Mexico.*
Me: Have I told you guys yet that my brother is living in Mexico right now?
Student #1: No way! He lives there?!
Me: Yep.
Student #2: Does he speak Spanish?!
Me: He's trying to...
Nick: Does he just go out and buy fireworks every single day?! Because that's what my grandma does!
Me: No... I don't think he's buying any fireworks...
Nick: (he looked astonished- straight up baffled) Why not?? Seriously, that's all my grandma does. Buy fireworks for me. Every single day. True story.

Yeah, should be an interesting meeting. 

***Making the first anecdote relevant: Last week I walk back into my class after running down to the copy room for the teacher across the hall. She had sat in and watched my class so I could help her out. When I got back to the room, she stood up and made her way across the hall, waving to the class as she left. I stood up in front of the class to tell them what we would be doing next. Completely oblivious to me, Nick gets up from his desk and starts following after the teacher that was leaving.
Me: Nick, where are you going?
Nick: I just... I just need to tell her something.
Me: What do you need to tell her?
Nick: I... I just....  I want to tell her about the time you fell out of your chair, ok?

So don't worry parents, it's not just you your children are excited to throw under the bus. 

Off to a Bumpy Start

We were a couple days into the school year, and I was still trying to get a feel for the kids in my class. It's hard replacing last year's kids that I learned to love so much, and I was just trying to keep an open mind. I went to pick my kids up from the cafeteria one day and I was greeted by one of my little girls, Haley. 

Now Haley and I had been having a little bit of a rough time in the classroom. She kept rolling her eyes at me when I would correct her. She would groan after every direction I gave. She would talk to her neighbors incessantly. Needless to say, we weren't super best friends at this point. 

So, as I said, I walked into the cafeteria to pick up my class and Haley greets me. It is also important that you know for the sake of the story that Haley is a homely little girl who has never met a chicken nugget she didn't like*. 

* I have since learned to love her, and we're chill now, so I'm allowed to say things like that. 

Haley circles me vulture-style for a while staring at my stomach, then finally says, "Is there a baby in there?!"

I smoothly replied, "No, Haley." while trying to herd the rest of my cats together. 

She continued to stare at me. "No teacher, it REALLY looks like there's a baby in there." 

"Well there's not, so get in line." 

Yeah, in case I didn't already dislike you enough, PLEASE keep telling me about how pregnant I look. 

Oh, but this didn't end there. 

The next day, one of my other little girls approaches me at my desk and says, "Teacher, are you really having a baby? Because Haley said you're having a baby." 

The next week, Haley greeted me on two separate mornings with, "Seriously teacher, I can't believe how pregnant you look today. " 

A few days after that I was in the hall taking care of a student who was throwing a tantrum. I opened the door to my classroom and it was like cockroaches running from the light- all my students quickly dashed back to their seats and tried to look nonchalant. 

"What's up guys?" I asked, my teacher senses tingling. 

"Nothing." Haley replied. 

"We have a secret!" Josh blurts out. 

"Oh, do you? Well, fill me in. What's the secret?" I asked. 

They all looked around the room at each other, nobody brave enough to be the one to spill the beans. I kept quiet and stared them down. Second graders aren't too tough to break. 

"The secret is you're having a baby!!!" Josh finally blurts. 

And this has been a common theme in my classroom all year. 

I am not having a baby. I am, however, renewing my gym membership. 

Thanks a lot second graders. 

No Filter

So, no, I didn't quit my job in the middle of the year. And no, my kids didn't magically stop being funny. They just stopped being funny to me. Ok, that's not true either. What can I say? My students are hi-larious, there just weren't enough hours in a day. Luckily, they give teachers the summer off to blog about all the mean things their students said to them throughout the year. Enjoy!

We had a bright young BYU practicum student on our Second Grade team for part of the semester. She came to work in my class one day and so I let her introduce herself at the beginning of class. When she was finished my kids all wanted to ask her questions, so we called on a few students. Inevitably, one of my students was finally brave enough to ask the class' favorite question: "Are you married?"
The BYU girl launches into this whole, "No, I'm not married, but I am dating someone so I do have a boyfriend. I mean we're not engaged or anything, but it's pretty serious, blah, blah, blah..." I wanted to roll my eyes and yell, "Hey lady, they're seven. A simple no will suffice."
But instead one of my girls interrupted her mid-rant and said, "Miss Earl, you have got to get out more! (turns to the BYU girl and points at me) Do you know SHE doesn't even have a BOYFRIEND?! She just hangs out with second graders."


A student runs up to my desk one morning and says, "I found your picture on the school website! You look not very good. I showed my older sister and she said you looked really not cute. I don't know why I felt like telling you that.."


On Fridays we have class meetings. We pass around the Magic Marker and everybody gets to say The Good News (one thing that's going well in our class), and The Bad News (one thing we need to work on).
On a typical Friday, The Good News is something like, "We have the best teacher." or "Nobody is being bullied." And The Bad News would be, "We have two yellow cards today." or "People are talking so Miss Earl gets mad."
On this Friday, one of my girls gets the marker in her hands and says, "The Bad News is that sometimes Miss Earl accidentally makes me feel completely useless." And then she looks at me with a smile. The whole class went quite and my boy sitting next to me went, "Oooo, burn...." I tried to look calm and composed when I asked, "What do I do that makes you feel useless?" To which she replied, "I said accidentally. It's just who you are."
Double burn.
*** Side note: When it came to getting her work done on time and being on task- she was pretty dang useless. But she was an excellent reader. ***


I was sitting on the bench at recess when one of my girls starts playing with my hair.
Girl: Be honest, did you shower today? Or yesterday?


This same girl stood about two feet away from the teacher's bench and said, "Miss Earl, I am pretty sure I can smell your deodorant from here."


One girl talking to another at recess:
Girl 1: Do you think I am skinny or fat?
Girl 2: You're skinny.
Girl 1: Yes I am. But my dad is fat, my mom is fat, my sister's really fat, and... (noticing me listening in) Miss Earl? Well, if I say what she is I don't think she will give me any more chocolate. (She gave me a devilish grin and ran away. I made her flip her card after recess, two can play at that game...)


I got new glasses and the first day I wore them to school they were quite the shock to my students. One boy walked in and said, "Miss Earl looks like a NERD!" From my desk, I said, "Cristian, did you just call me a nerd?" I looked back at him and his face just fell. He panicked. "No, no, no, no, no... I said you look like a dork!" he said with a proud, confident smile. Nice save.


I wore my hair with it's natural texture one day, and I hadn't for a long time. I walked in the room and one of my girls said to me, "You look like the wife of Frankenstein." To which another girl replied, "Yeah except for that doesn't make any sense because nobody will marry her."


I feel like I should make it clear that I love all my students, and they love me, too. Most days.