When I was in school...

Field trips were educational and for a purpose, not just to get out of the school building for a day of fun.
Moms (and dads) drove students to field trips...schools did not pay hundreds of dollars for a bus and driver.
Field day was at school...not some other random location.
Reading was taught through book and novel studies, not by isolating skills.
When we finished the novel, we watched the movie...just to watch it.
We took TAAS, not TAKS, and it's influence on teaching and learning was minimal.
The teacher was always right.
The office was a place that no one wanted to end up.
Phone calls home resulted in a change of behavior.
Disrespect towards teachers resulted in major consequences.
Too many tardies counted as an unexcused absence.
Too many unexcused absences resulted in retention.
If you didn't do an assignment the first time, you got a zero.
If you failed a grade, you repeated the grade.
Students bought school supplies, and kept up with them.
If you forgot your pencil, you were expected to PAY for one at the school store before class began.

...and you know what?

We turned out ok and didn't end up in a budget crisis.

Happy Birthday To ME!

So this year my birthday celebration lasted for five days!  Here's a little re-cap of each one:

Day 1:  With the TAKS test finally finished (I didn't have to administer it on my birthday this year...woohoo!), it was time to celebrate with the Adam clan.  We went to Zed's, which was fabulous!  In attendance was the hubby, the kids, Scott's parents, Scott's grandma, my mom, and my grandpa.  It was such a gorgeous evening on the patio and I got some amazingly thoughtful gifts from the kids (thanks, honey!).

Me and my Mommy

 

Love my Husband



Kennedy and Grandpa "Long" Horn


Day 2: I went down the street for a lia sophia jewelry party.  We had treats and wine, and even got to model the jewlery!  I ended up buying myself a couple of birthday presents, too!  I can't wait until they come in!!!

Day 3:  I took the afternoon off on Friday so that we could avoid traffic on the drive to Dallas.  Unfortunately, there was a HORRIBLE accident involvoing two eighteen-wheelers, which made us sit in traffic for awhile, but we still made it in time for dinner.  We ate at Little Greek.  I LOVE Greek food, so I was super excited...my husband isn't the biggest fan, but he was SUCH a trooper!

Day 4:  My actual day of birth.  The morning was spent in the kitchen prepping for Kathryn's shower.  The Clark family is really important to my family, and it was really fun to do bridal showers for both Laura and Kathryn.  (Laura and I have been good friends since 3rd grade, Kathryn was the reason I went to Rhodes, my sorority sister, and my roommate)  The shower was a success, everything looked beautiful, and my hubby made a great bartender.  Unfortunately, I burned Kathryn a CD of pictures, but forgot to burn myself one!  (I will try to add pictures when I go back to Dallas in a few weeks.)  After a quick nap (literally about 10 minutes) it was time for cocktails and dinner at Fearing's Restaurant at the Ritz Carlton with Scott, my parents, and our good friends Mark, Paul, and Tiffany.  What an AMAZING dinner!  We were at the chef's table, so we got to watch the guys at work in the kitchen while we enjoyed fabulous food and spectacular wine... and the company wasn't half bad either! ;-)  

Puttin' on the Ritz

The best parents EVER!

A toast to birthdays and good friends!

Day 5: Not really a day of "birthday" celebration, but to me, every Sunday in Dallas is a reason to celebrate.  I LOVE Northway, my parent's church, and their after church tradition of lunch at El Fenix is pretty awesome too!  After lunch we drove home, and apparantly brought the cold weather with us!  BRRR!

I am thankful to the number of people who took the time to post me a note on Facebook.  I was shocked and amazed at the birthday wishes from people who I hardly ever talk to anymore.  I realize Facebook reminds you of birthdays, but I couldn't believe some of the people who thought I was worth the time to write a message to!  It took me a long time to thank everyone!  But...as grateful as I am for my Facebook messages (and the couple of text messages I got) I really miss the days when people called you and wished you happy birthday (sometimes in song) and you could actually hold a conversation with them.  I almost cried when Emily took the time out of her day (which was super busy with a baby shower) to call and tell me happy birthday.  That meant more to me than she will ever know.  And of course, my family called me, which also made me smile! :-)

So, thank you to everyone for making my birthday fantastic!  (Especially since it will be the last one I will ever celebrate! haha)  I love you all! <3