EducatingMe

In benchmark testing my 6 year old today, I tell her that she is taking a very hard test. One that I cannot give her help on. There will be questions she sees that will be soooo easy and some she will see that will be so so so so hard - I was talking 6 year old ya'll She started the test and as I am looking over her shoulder I am pleased overall with her logic. And then she comes to a fairly simple probability question. There are 3 bins of toys. Each of the containers are filled with varying amounts of cars and dinosaurs. She was to drag and drop a tag of "very likely" OR "very unlikely" to show if she would have a better chance of picking out a car. The correct answer would have been two were very likely and one being very unlikely. She choose very unlikely on all three. She informed me that should could see into the containers AND she liked dinosaurs waaaaayyyy better than cars. So she was very unlikely to pick a car out of any of the bins. Even though...

I Love my family. I love Tatum and Jolene and Travis. I love God. I love finding something new in a book Ive been reading for years. I find that lately He has been particularly hilarious. Im sure he is cracking up too when I "make plans". I love teaching. I love teaching students and I love teaching teachers.  I love reading books...should I read Catcher in the Rye for a 4th time?  I love diving into more. I love getting to know something inside and out and then moving on the the next thing. I am kind of a diver.  I love thinking about big pictures. I love my backyard. I love writing blog posts and then sitting by the analytics and watching the numbers...ehm number go up...to 2. From one to two.  I love pinning things on Pinterest. I love even more getting to move those pins into my completed projects folder. I love talking with other teachers, tweeting with other teachers, Hangouts with other teachers. When you get a group of great teachers together they w...

I am a firm believer that teachers should continue to know and grow all the time. I challenge myself to read a minimum of six books every year. I have a lot of drive time with my job so using the Audible app makes this much easier. I was made to read Mojo, which you saw in my last blog post. The book made me want to vomit as much as I'm sure that post made you, my readers, want to vomit. It was OK, I'm just not into self-help books. The latest "made to read" is Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol. This book had me on a roller coaster of mood swings. I have gone from wanting to cure the social injustices of the education system in East St. Louis to screaming at the book to shut the hell up, as there's no way the writer could know all of the things that go into what he's talking about. (I'm sure he is a brilliant man, I do not mean to discount his work). When Kozol, in his early chapters, talks about East St Louis I held on to every word. I couldn't...

I am the mother of two girls. I am constantly flirting with the line of consistency and tweaking my parenting style to mold them into the best human beings ever. I know, my expectations are high. But they are seriously amazing kids. Recently, they were talking with daddy and my oldest told him that I work too much - that I am always working. This was hard to hear. I work from home and so does my hubs and we self school with Epic. The kids are literally with us all the time. She has noticed that I am on my computer a lot and to her that looks like I am working. Well, I am on my computer a lot. Much is work, but some, even though technically Epic will benefit from, is play. I have come to realize that I feel like I have done it in life. Sure, I have those days and sometimes even those weeks where going back to teaching feels like the best option in the world, I mean I loved it. I have come to realize lately that admin is just a different game. I thought I was playing the same game init...

As promised, and now also feels long overdue (you know, seeing as how the last 16 posts came at you quick and dirty). Here is the first of several posts that take all of the EducatingMe write-ups that happened to on the trail and tie them to education, according to me. I will take it one post at a time and milk the Colorado Trail blogs for all they are worth. ;-) This one seem most fitting as I see everyone heading back to classes this week. Hang on tight and Grammer Nazis turn your heads there are some run on sentences here, but the rant required it. In the post about Granola Ways - I had no clue what I didn't know. We were about to embark on an epic journey with wide eyes and starry visions of what the experience would be like. Days later we would find that reality would punch us in the face. But like I said, when I wrote the post we had no clue. Do you remember when you graduated college with that crisp piece of paper in your hands (which you don't actually get for 3 mo...

End of ol' Trav’s Trail…. I told Erin, if she is going to make a video or documentary out of this whole experience, it really needs to revolve around the perspective of the SAG team. For Joe and I, the story is mostly the same every day of the trip. We wake up, pack up camp, and start riding. We ride until we are nearly devastated all to be redeemed by some spectacular views or thrilling pristine downhill segment, then we find another camp spot and do it again the next day.  One campsite along the way We did come away with a few stories. Joe hiking his bike to the top of Ten Mile Range in his socks has to be one of the best. Everyone has great strengths that surface from time to time, I discovered Joe’s great strength is having the determination of samurai warrior. We both crashed once, Joe came away with some bruises, I came away with a good laugh. We met some interesting people on the trail, but their story was typically very similar to ours. So, overall, we will h...

Well, I have rather enjoyed making a pretty daily post and cluing you guys into what is happening here in Colorado. I typically add pics so you can have a little eye candy with your content. But as some of you now know through Facebook, my phone was stolen from the rec center last night. I did not have my belongings locked up, so shame on me, but I had a pretty good record going of luck in this department. I have NEVER taken a lock into the gym. Guess it was 'bout time. Anyhow, no pics from the pool last night. I also lost the pics and videos of the boys from that morning and the night before. This is frustrating on many levels. But because of the blog, I have been pulling the pics regularly and really only lost two days worth of pics. NOT THE END OF THE WORLD. I am trying hard to have a good attitude about this, because there is really nothing anyone can do...except to raise your kids to know how horrible stealing makes the victim feel. We should all steal something very near an...

I few lessons I would like to say I have learned.... Kids - I just bragged on them the other day to all of you. Yesterday, I could not keep them from bickering. For a while, I let the snake have it's head and chalked it up to the fact they are probably getting tired of the hustle and bustle. No matter how much I try to keep them busy, the girls are ready to be home. This trip was too long for them. And I, with little space on board, would not let them bring too many of home's amenities. They are missing their beds, their toys, their friends and their relatives. Tiny Houses - There are all sorts of shows and books and articles about living in tiny spaces. I wanted on that bandwagon. I loved the minimalist idea. I do not need a bunch of space, I lived in a 300 sq foot apt in college and LOVED it. The tiny house movement boasts less then 300ft and I always thought that I could do it. Well, I have done it for two weeks. Needless to say it was within 50 sq ft, but I can now ...

It was a great day today, even if I didn't see my husband. I am not a huge birthday person. I always forget until the week or two before that my kids have birthdays coming up. And I certinly do not go hog wild on my own birthday. Kristin, however, lives in a world with birth-months, lol. She was ready to do any and everything I wanted today to spoil the mess out of me. I however could care less. But, when in Rome... We did wake up this morning with one thing on the mind...the hot springs in Ouray Colorado. They opened at 10AM and we were in the pool by 10:15. Two years ago when our family was in Ouray, we came to the springs and within 30 mins it started raining with lightning. They gave us three passes (Jolene was free back then) to come back and said they would always be good. I kept those passes hidden away in my room for two years. We pulled them out this morning and the four of us got in for the price of 1 child. The springs here have different temperatures in th...

As this trip is nearing an end, I am starting to make many connections to the World of Ed. That culminating blog post to come soon. But first an accounting of the minutes of my day. 6 AM - Wake up. Start a pot of coffee (yes I know I am roughing it, but a girl has needs). Brush my teeth. Start answering emails and solving the world's problems. 7:30AM - Rest of the van wakes up. DO not forget I am sleeping in my super duper decked out van. Ask the girls to make their own breakfast...they grab a couple of barkers and some chocolate milk. Breakfast when camping (glamping) is always that of champions. Start loading schedules. 9:30AM - the gents start their trip. We can see this through the link shared here. http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=04XdbcgeXBm5AP6B4QWuASXg6g9KIpepB Only, we realized way to late in the morning that it would not take them long to get to the LZ, so we started packing up camp. About the time we roll out of the campsite, we get the...

Yeah, I’m sagging SAG = Support And Gear [vehicle] Three little letters – three small words.  Supporting cyclists on a 400+ mile journey just didn’t seem that hard.  From the beginning of this discussion, I wasn’t sure of my plan.  When Joe first started talking about the Colorado Trail, he showed me how the book had USPS addresses where hikers/bikers/support crew could send care packages to pick up along the way.  This is how many portions of the Colorado Trail or other trails (like the Pacific Crest Trail) are accomplished with solo or unsupported riders/hikers.  The participants will mail themselves packages full of supplies, food and fuel to help them along the next stage of the trail. No. Just no. I’m a logistics person. I plan events and communication plans for a living.  Nothing is left to chance, if at all possible.  I want to be in control, and I want to hold everything in my hot little hands.  Relying on the U...

It was a great day hanging out with the boys on their zero day. Kristin came back into town last night. Her presence is always welcome. I have missed her over the last few days. The gents took a zero day in preparation for the long days of no contact with the SAG vehicle. This part of the trip reminds me of the movie Apollo 13: everyone makes it out fine, but the zero contact was stressful (to say the least.) The guys know that Segments 15-18, according to the Colorado Trail guide, are going to be some of the toughest. They are the least accessible for the SAG vehicle, the least traveled of any of the segments, and have the highest points. Tomorrow in particular, they will have a climb that goes up 668 ft in four city blocks. Today, Travis and Joe embark on their longest trek in the back country; remote areas with no support, no extra food, no contact.  We took them out for a large breakfast and talked about the game plan. I am trying not to be ominous about this part, but I s...

For today's post, Erin gave me complete freedom to write about anything I wanted as long as it covers our experiences on the CT. She typically uses this blog to post things she has learned, so I will do the same. Here are some things I have learned on the trail, we'll call it Trav's Trail Contemplations. They are not necessarily new ideas, usually it is just a reinforcement, or better understanding of things we have always known but rarely put into practice. 1.  Test wet gear before you travel. Joe and I both learned yesterday that our rain jackets failed to keep out rain. He also had a "dry bag" that filled with water overnight. We were a day away from SAG interaction so we got really lucky on this one, otherwise we would have been soaked for days. So we learned an all-weather shell just means wind, and "dry bag" means maybe dry, maybe wet. Drying Things Out 2. Do not trust all friendly faces on the trail. At the top of a ridge after a really ...

Today was a day I did not see the boys. They are expected to come in tomorrow mid morning and Travis has already assured me he will make another post to update the world as to the things he and Joey are seeing. But for my "day off", I took the girls back into town and back to the park we played at last night. There was some sort of outdoor festival/ craft show going on and we toured the park and each and every booth. We picked up a couple of hand puppets for the girls. and the cutest little boutique shirt for me. By the way, Snap and Sanchez, the next time you look after our place, we may have a donkey. The girls fell in love and spent 30 mins playing with these donkeys. The girls spent another 1.5 hours playing while I sat in the park working and keeping up with where the boys were through the Spot. http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=04XdbcgeXBm5AP6B4QWuASXg6g9KIpepB The girls and I searched for a place to eat, (4 restaurants clos...

I dropped the boys off at the trailhead of Mount Massive this morning. They were really looking forward to this day. The guys had what they thought was going to be a quick 21 miles because it was mostly down hill from the start. The plan was to meet me for a late lunch at the end of the trail on Segment 11 around 2PM. I would drive them into Buena Vista for a bite to eat, and then back to the trail where I would meet them in Salida in two days. Before starting off to Buena Vista, the girls requested we drop by Turquoise Lake to see if it were really turquoise. It was not, but it WAS beautiful. We read a little out of the book of Job, threw some rocks, and then hopped in the van to meet the boys. Well, for anyone following the Spot, you can see that the boys went off track for about 3 miles. That means that they then needed to back track for 3 miles to find the trail again.   I feel insanely helpless when I see this happening. I have no way to get ahold of them out here. ...

I dropped the boys back at Copper Mtn again this morning. And took my time driving back to Leadville where the boys will meet me tonight. The very first thing before hitting the trail, we noticed that Joe's tire had a gash on the side. We (they) put in some Stan's, which is a liquid sealant for tubeless tires which closed the hole. But before leaving they asked me to find them another tire. They did not want to finish out the journey with that tire.  I went into Frisco to a bike shop where they had a similar tire to Joe's but would only be able to order the exact tire. SO I bought the Maxxis Ardent 2.4. I bought it with hopes that when I meet up with the guys tonight they will be pleased. (He was.)  I drove back into Leadville, where I stopped at a park to make the girls lunch. I worked as they played for a bit. We decided after about an hour to go check out our camp spot for the night. The girls love the fact that they have to put quarters into the showers for th...

I woke up early this morning to make sausage and eggs for the boys before they took off for their trip. We were trying to cramp as many calories down them as possible as Joe has lost 4 lbs and Travis has lost 5 lbs on this ride so far.  We saw the boys off at the Gold Hill Trailhead for the beginning of their Segment 7, but not before taking some artsy fartsy shots with my camera. There was less groaning this time. As I think they were more focused on the climb ahead of them today. Of the 13 mile ride ahead of them in this portion, 8 of the miles were a 3674 foot climb. With a final reward at the end, losing all of that height in just 4 downhill miles into Copper Mountain. The girls and I were then off to Walmart and to the gas station before heading to Copper Mountain. For us it was only a 12 min drive, but we knew it would take them the better half of 5-6 hours. We settled in at Copper Mountain. I found a great little place to park with free electric, so I plugged ...