The Little Prince: One Year

Ephraim Daniel you have been such a sweet presence in our family during this first year of your little life. There is a calmness that comes with that oh so serious piece of your personality. It has been such a gift and pure grace in a year of so many changes. In twelve months you've lived in four homes and traveled more miles than many go in a lifetime. You have been easy going and steady through it all. 

I am amazed by your persistence and determination and wonder how what is now a full focus army crawl toward a gadget, wire, cabinet, vent, bowl of water, etc. will look as God grows you in days to come. You haven't quite caught on to the word "no" and have to be removed physically over and over from the places you go that are off limits. This same spirit allows for some intense ring stacking and block building. Once you put your mind to something, you are a force to be reckoned with...

So many gifts to hold on to from this year...swimming on your tummy in the tub, your little newborn cry that sounded more like a goose than a man cub, your Dracula phase when all you had were the top two vampire teeth, how you relish the sister and daddy chorus of "nigh-night HONEY" each night before bed, your first word was Ma-Ma and block (blah) was a close second, your awkward bald ring around the back of your head stage, pulling up all of the vents over and over, your raspy early voice that eventually led to a big Bubba Roar!, army crawling like a boss and learning to crawl super fast on knees and hands at 11 months, rocking to music and standing at the piano whenever daddy plays, that sniffing crinkly nose smile that actually shows your top teeth, standing at the window to see the wide world outside or play peek-a-boo with the curtains, eating so much all day everyday, imitating my humming sound affects at one year old, making your sisters crack up laughing on a road trip at 8 months old, your giggle when I realize it's a fake cry and do my best imitation of you, and that stank face when you are upset...so many other things I wish I would have written down, but I'm grateful to have treasured them up in my heart. God has filled it so full with serious love for you our serious boy.

Once Upon a Time...

January 4, 2017

2 weeks old

1 month and still a bit shell shocked...

2 months

3 months and SO serious...

4 months

5 months and it's hard to keep a straight face with dino toes...

6 months strong...

7 months with so much to ponder...

8 months...finally caught a smile!

9 months

10 months

11 months

12 months

A whole lot of love...

...ONE handsome, sweet Little Prince...

Day Off

Time is passing so quickly that I just know I'm going to wake up one day, and the days of life with little ones will be gone. It's all so very cliche, but I have a strong sense in my heart that these days are sweet, though they are full of what I perceive as chaos and much dying to self. They are worthy of pausing to write down little things like the time we took our day off to head to the zoo on a perfectly sunny, North African day in February.

Dan assured me that it's not the look on his face that's important but the feelings he has on the inside ;) ...

Our little blondie insisted on being held or strolled most of the time, but she couldn't  resist the opportunity to get as close to Aslan as possible. I guess it's a good thing she dressed up for the occasion by stealing her sister's new bows from Auntie Nita and Uncle Adrian...

Other highlights for Felicity were seeing the evil Shere Khan behind bars and feeding the reindeer parsley she got from a friendly zoo-going family. 

Moriah was a perfectly content little kangaroo and loved jibber jabbering with the piglets. My favorite was seeing the pretty pink flamingos up close with their incredibly long necks. 

We marveled at what in the world this creature could be and waited for quite some time for the kids who were running around in it's enclosure to get out of the way so we could take a picture. I'm pretty sure Dan will make fun of me for saying enclosure instead of cage just as he couldn't accept my bleeding heart for the lack of space for some of the animals to run around...it's the American in me, what can I say?

We had to have some serious conversations with Felicity about how jumping fences at a zoo and throwing baguette at every animal is really not a good idea even though it seems everyone is doing it. And it was no surprise that we were asked if Moriah could be in pictures with strangers as they kissed her a million times and declared God's protection over her. 

Felicity was happy to have her sister take the attention away from her so she could eat her 25 cent cotton candy in peace. She surprised us all by choosing blue instead of pink. 

On most days, we are still very much working out our lives as an expat family living in North Africa, but every once in awhile, we have a day that feels kind of "normal". Our Sunday afternoon at the zoo was quite lovely and just what we needed in this wonderful season of crazy. 

Our Little Wonder: One Month

One month ago our little wonder, Moriah, was born with a head full of brown hair, blue eyes, and blue little hands. Her hair is still here but has lightened a little, it even reveals shades of auburn at times. Her eyes are still blue and her hands are still little but blue no more. We love her little natural mohawk, her wide-eyed stare that sometimes goes cross-eyed, and the way she breathes on our cheeks while grunting with her little open mouth. 

Early on her daddy started calling her Mo-Mo. I said there's no way we're calling our little girl Mo-Mo. Here we are at the end of the month, and I admit, I call her Mo-Mo and sort of love it. 

Her very first night she slept six hours straight, God's grace to her parents. Ever since we've had stretches of 1 to 2 hours with a very rare 3 hours of nighttime sleep. She eats well and has since the very first time in the hospital. Sometimes I do wonder if she drinks as much milk as she spits up! She spends the night hours with mommy starting at 10 p.m., and then occasionally has quality time with daddy as early as 5 a.m. 

Moriah loves her little hands and won't stand them to be swaddled. She loves to suck on her fist and has been known to be calmed by a little pacifier time. Bath time is her favorite and ours. She seems to relax immediately as Daddy holds her with one hand in our kitchen sink. 

By week three, glimmers of a smile were in her eyes, and she even gave a few legitimate ones to show off her dimple on her right cheek. She also started lifting her head off of our shoulder and rolling to her side from her back. Of course, we think she's advanced. ;) 

On her three week birthday big sister and mommy took her on her first outing with our friends to a traveling Italian circus. It was loud, there were lions, and she was a dream sleeping and eating most of the time. 

Over the course of the month, she's had quite a few visitors. It all began at the hospital with various nurses and receptionists coming to see the American baby. Since then, we've been blessed with friends and neighbors coming for sweets, juice and snuggles. Moriah tends to sleep through it all and does a great job of letting others hold her when she's not hungry. 

The poor little thing has already seen God's protection as she had her first little "surgery" performed by Auntie Cheryl for a terribly infected hang nail. She also came out unscathed after a very tired mommy slipped on the stairs while holding the sweet girl. We are grateful that He sees her and is taking care of her every need even when we are lacking. He always provides. 

My 28

Worlds MoSt BeSt teacher...They make me smile...even if their grammar is a little interesting:)

Back to Normal...

Whew...The ISATs (our state assessments) are FiNaLly over! This is what I came back to after lunch on Friday:

These are the little things my 28 DaRliNgS do that just bring a smile to my face and warm my heart. Can you tell they were happy to be DoNe? They did a terrific job, and I'm so very proud of them no matter what the outcome :)

Go here to see us celebrating with a ViCtoRy DaNcE...just promise not to judge me for not keeping up with my classroom blog...it's a work in progress.

At any rate, I'm so glad to be back to NoRmAl...well, as normal as you can get in a fifth grade classroom for the MoNdaY following Daylight Savings Time and leading up to Spring Break...Four more days to go!!

Kids say the funniest things...

FrIdaY afternoon, our amazing ThiRd GrAdE BuDdiEs were making their weekly visit. The BuDdiEs were hard at work finishing up their How To books...you know, How to Make a PBJ, How to Make a Paper Airplane, etc. My FiFtH GrAdErS were supposed to be leading their third grade buddies in the effort.

As I walked around the room to ensure that everyone was on task, I stopped at a table of four boys working together on their book...well, one boy was working on the book while the others were being SuPpOrTivE observers :).

In an attempt to EnCouRaGe a TeAm effort, I simply said, "The whole group is supposed to be working on the book. Why are ThReE of you just watching G do all the work?"

Their response: "We're taking turns coloring the book 'cuz we already stapled the pages together."

My response: A PuZzLeD look followed by...."That's why you're supposed to StApLe it once it's FiNiSheD so that each of you can work on a page instead of just one person working on OnE page while everyone else sits and does NoThiNg".

Their response: Completely PuZzleD...

My response: A look of DiSbEliEf because no one in the group has thought to solve this problem by taking out the staples and passing out the pages so that everyone can be On-TaSk and the project can be completed in an efficient manner.

I calmly take the book from G and begin pulling out the staples by HaNd because I'm HaPhaZarD like that.

Their response: Utter AmAzeMenT. Seriously...You would have thought I'd just made something VaNisH into thin air...

One of the students who appeared to be the most puzzled KriNklEd his face as if seriously PoNdeRinG the matter and said in a high pitched tone of utter PeRplExiTy...

How'd you do that Mrs. Bailey?....
Did you have trainin' to do that or somethin'?

My Response: Of course I ErUpTeD into laughter at the thought of me and every other teacher in the WoRLd receiving training on how to pull staples out of paper by hand...as if this is some high-level SkIlL that all teachers must show competence in before being crowned with the HoNoR of teaching these little ones.

Through the LaUgHteR I replied, "Actually, no, I didn't get training in this. Believe it or not I just figured it out on my own."

CoNfuSioN still on his face, the student replied, "oh" and began working on his part of the book.

In these sMalL MoMeNts I'm ReMiNdeD of the great JoY found in what I do. I'm EnCouRaGed that even though my job can sometimes seem ChAoTiC, out of control, and OvErwHeLmInG to me, my clientele still think I'm a HiGhLy QuAliFieD GeNiUs, and I'll take that any day....even if it is just for tearing staples out of a book by hand.

Still in Shock

It's Saturday morning, I wake up, and Dan is already over at church starting his day. I pull myself together just in time to deposit checks at the bank before heading to watch one of my FifTh GrAdeRs bowl.
This weekend happens to be rather full so I'm wondering how I'm going to fit everything in as well as relax, clean the house, grocery shop, make meals, etc.
As I watch fifth graders get BoWliNg scores I will never in my life achieve, the smell of bowling alley food tempts me. Somehow I resist the GrEaSe BoMbaStiC food even though the only thing I can imagine throwing together at home is a microwaved/baked potato with cheese, broccoli and deli ham...TeMpTiNg, I know.
After being a cheerleader for three rounds of bowling, I say goodbye and take my growling stomach to the car and begin not looking forward to my sink full of dirty dishes and my throw whatever we've got on a potato because we haven't been to the store in awhile lunch.
As you can imagine I was thrown into a total state of shock as I walked into our house and smelled something DeLiCioUs...then I remembered we live below Mark and Kora so it was probably their something delicious I was smelling...
Dan was standing at the sink WaShInG the DisHeS that I was dreading only moments ago so I decided to expect the best and ask what he made that smelled SO good. You must understand that Dan's specialties usually include deli sandwiches, BLTs, and breakfast so when he proudly said, "I made a YuMmY ThAi DiSh" my jaw just about dropped to the floor. I couldn't imagine anything I would rather have for lunch at that moment, but I had to see it to believe it...
It turns out he DiD indeed make a yummy Thai dish! Not only did he make lunch, he actually went online and found a recipe for pad Thai and tweaked it a bit because of our lack of groceries...Even as I sit here with a FuLl BeLly I still can't believe it...what a PleAsAnT surprise...even if Dan says it was really more for him than me...I'll still take it.

Perfect Timing

It's that time of year...

warm weather + one more month of school + a full year of learning/creating curriculum for a new grade level + 27 kids who know summer is near = Though I AdOrE my little darlings, I'm ready for a change of pace...Bring on the gardening, sleeping-in, and good books!

It's that time of year...

The PeRfEcT time of year to find this in my school mailbox on MoNdaY morning:


It's the time of year when SwEeT fifth grade darlings, OvErCoMe by warm weather and the prospect of summer, seem at times to be more interested in AnYtHiNg but their teacher and her CrEaTiVe lessons. It's the PeRfEcT time to know they were thinking of their teacher on the way to school...at least long enough to stop and pick these...

It's the PeRfEcT TiMe to have SwEeT DaIsIes beside the stacks of homework waiting to be graded...

I LoVe my JoB. The InCrEdIBle KiDs I teach are more than enough to give me JoY in what I do, but it never hurts to have lovely FloWeRs on your desk...KuDoS to the SpRiNg TrAiL PTO, my students and their wonderful parents...PeRfEcT timing.

Attempting to Manage the Mayhem

What do you get when you combine loads of sugar and 27 ten/eleven year olds on a Friday afternoon Valentine's Day Party?!....PuRe mayhem. After nearly three years of experience, I've stolen/borrowed/begged ideas from others and come up with a few strategies of my own to make this recipe for ChAOs a bit less cRaZY!

To my fellow TeAchErs and ANYONE who has the privilege of serving/working with children in any capacity, I hope you will find these ideas helpful and use them if you would like...I'd also LOVE to beg and borrow your ideas. Please do tell!

My First Line of Defense:

I find the week leading up to the party is quite a challenge for many students. It's difficult to FoCuS on fractions and five paragraph essays when you're anticipating loads of candy, valentines, and games. I like to HELP my students out by offering them an incentive to work hard so we can party hard at the end of the week.

Exhibit A: Raffle Prizes

Above you see approximately $15 dollars of Valentine's Day loot from Walmart. AKA- a fantastic way to get your students to have a super productive week despite the excitement that can potentially cause them to act like kids that couldn't possibly be in YOUR class!

Throughout the week I pass out cut out hearts for students making good choices (trees for Christmas, pumpkins for Halloween, whatever fits your fancy). Students place their "ticket" in a basket. I pass out tickets all the way through the party. It's AMAZING how quickly the room is cleaned at the end of the bash when the raffle starts as soon as the room is spotless!!

Believe me this is a well spent $15! It keeps your room clean, your kids learning, your SaNiTy, and it's a great GIFT for your kids. They will LOVE it and so will YOU!

Exhibit B:

Here's an idea I got from a teammate. Use a banana as your Valentine to the kids, and it serves multiple purposes:

1. It eliminates wasting PReciOuS TIME in the Walmart aisle trying to decide between the endless cartoon characters, Hannah Montanna, Jonas Brothers, etc.

2. Your food contribution to the party...DoNe.

3. A great way to show LoVe for our world by making a GrEEn choice.

4. OBVIOUSLY fruit tastes better when your teacher writes on the peel!...a great way to RAGE against the major sugar injections taking place at such events!

5. This one could also be used by all of you moms and wives out there trying to encourage fruit consumption! As you pack those lunches, show a little LOVE by writing a message on the peel!

6. A FaNTaSTic Photo Op. The KIDS had a BLAST posing with the bananas as a smile, phone, or like this...

I'm SORRY I can't put their SuPEr FuN pics up on my personal site. This will have to do!


Exhibit C:



A creative mom brought in this SIMPLE yet CrEaTivE spin on cheese and crackers. It was a success! The kids actually had more of these puppies on their plates than the HOT CHEETOS! This is another one that could easily be modified for any holiday and used to add a little PEP to those sack lunches!

Well...that's all I've got for now! If you have any IdEAs, I'd greatly appreciate them...ALWAYS attempting to MANAGE the MAYHEM...and have a little FuN at the same time!