Parenting Moments

There are so many things to consider with a bright two-year-old. It seems like every moment is a teaching moment of some sort: not only colors, letters, and shapes, but also politeness, hygiene, motor skills, behavior in church, table manners, listening to directions, potty training, and so much more. She learns so quickly that we can hardly keep up with her.

We were trying to wean her off the pacifier that she uses at bedtime, but our first attempt didn't work. A couple mom's recommended cutting off the end of the pacifier so we could let her have it, she just wouldn't want it. The first couple nights were heartbreaking as she cried "have a broke mimi," and "get a better mimi." I felt as mean as if I'd torn the head off her favorite stuffed animal. Then she adapted and now she comments once that it's broken, then uses it anyway.

We're just letting it go for now as we embark on the much more important and time consuming adventure of potty training. For week's she's been sitting on the potty regularly, but nothing has happened. Today's diapers are just too absorbent for kids to learn what it feels like to go potty. After a couple days in cloth training panties, I think she's starting to get it. Not only did she figure out how to pee in the potty, but today she actually told her daddy before she went instead of as she was wetting her panties. I'm sure there's still a lot of changes of clothes ahead, but we just might have this well in hand by the time her baby brother arrives.

Literacy is a Prerequisite

Do my students not read the syllabus or do they just assume it doesn't apply to them? I had four students miss the exam I gave to today. Two of them have emailed to make arrangements to make up the exam. The syllabus clearly states (and I clearly stated on the first day of class) that the lowest exam score is dropped so there are NO makeup exams. I am actually a very sympathetic person so I do not enjoy these moments of holding the hard line.

If mine was a meaningful blog, I would go on to discuss this phenomenon in the larger world with examples of people acting above the rules. I can't say I've never done it myself and I'm a pretty compulsive rule follower in most situations. Thankfully, this isn't that kind of blog, so I'll leave the topic and return to the minutia of my daily life.

Otherwise the day went well. My students finished their exams early so I got some extra time in the pool. My endurance and my form are improving but the best part is the marvelous relaxation of weightlessness that will only get better as I get bigger. It makes it worthwhile to spend twice as long in the locker room as I do in the water (the disadvantage to having to swim between classes instead of at the end of the day).

A Fall Weekend

Yesterday was a busy day. We took Bridget to an apple orchard for some outdoor fun. It was a little more commerical and a little less orchard than I would have preferred, but it was still a fun outing and Bridget really enjoyed it. Her favorite part was the hayride from one picking area to the next. A close second was the animal barn with sheep, goats, pigs, and a calf.

After lunch and a nap, we joined some friends for dinner. That was also a big hit since they had a baby, a dog, a cat, and a big TV! Bridget was her usual happy and outgoing self, which was good since we kept her up long past her bedtime.

Today was pretty low key. This morning we went to Mass (Bridget was a bit more active than usual so I don't recall much of it) and had our usual breakfast at the diner with friends of Bill's family. It took some work to get Bridget down for a nap, but once she was finally quiet, I was out too. This evening we had a nice dinner with fresh apple crisp for dessert. Now I'm blogging instead of making preparations for my classes tomorrow. I hope my students are more focused than I am since they're taking an exam tomorrow.

A Retro Day

Today was rather like stepping back a year or so. Bill got up, put on a suit, and went to work this morning. I stayed home, did a little housework, played with Bridget, and took her to the park. It was pretty nice, although I wish it was my own house and a more stable sort of arrangement. Bill was hired temporarily to help another lawyer with recently acquired project. I might wish it was a permanent full-time job, but it involves both a paycheck (details still sketchy, but anything would help immensely right now) and some very important experience (including actual appearances in court). I think my step back is a great step forward.

Trying Again

So I wasn't that good at keeping up with a blog. It started out that I was just too busy. Not only did I not write my own posts, I didn't read any of the blogs that lead me to my own in the first place. Gradually the work stress let up and I got back to real, as well as digital, life. But by then I was so far behind that I couldn't even get started. I still can't decide if I should try to recap the summer or just get on with it from here.

Here's the 30 second version:
My brother is married. Bill's sister is married. Both weddings were very nice and Bridget was an adorable flower girl. I survived both Biochem and Micro Lab. The two week break that followed was lovely. We took a little camping trip with Bridget. Our campsite was right by the playground and the beach so we had lot of fun, despite the freak thunderstorm that nearly blew the tent down on top of us. A trip to the zoo, blueberry picking, and a visit to the county fair were also fun summer activities. Bridget turned two, she still tops the charts for height, and she talks like crazy.

Now I'm teaching my fall classes and Bill is still looking for the elusive full time job. I've got a couple applications out for part-time teaching next semester since I'm not scheduled to teach at Lansing. Our little Baby Bean is due the first week of class and long term subs for adjunct instructors are logistically difficult. The woman in charge of scheduling thought it would be no problem to get me a sub for the first week of class and if I could come back for the second week. I don't think she has any personal experience with childbirth. Personally, I thrilled at the idea of taking the whole semester off to be with Bridget and the baby, but financially I'm more than a little worried about it. I'm sure it will work out one way or the other.

For weekend fun we've been going to high school football games. Bridget gets a kick out of it, though she only lasts about 30 minutes before declaring "all done at a football game." Last week's game was particularly good since she got to dance during the half-time show and "a nice lady give you a cookie at a football game!"

Discouraged

I made it through another double-duty day on very little sleep. I did a lot of praying to get through it safely, intelligently, calmly, and compassionately. I think I managed all that pretty well, but it was still a pretty discourging day.

My biochem class had an exam that I had inteneded to be straightforward, though not necessarily easy. It didn't turn out that way. Several questions turned out to be rather ambiguous. Why do they seem so clear until the students touch them? The emails keep coming. I may drop a couple questions, which would be a huge hassle since I would need their answer sheets to adjust the grades and I wasn't planning on being back in Detroit again until Monday and I know they don't want to wait that long.

To add to my anxiety about giving exams to lecture halls full of students, a student emailed me today to tell me that several people were cheating on the exam and have done so on previous exams. Just great. I had no idea it was happening and I have no idea how to prevent it. I'll admit that I didn't try as hard on this exam, but on the last exam there were three version with the questions in different orders and the answers to the questions in different orders, and about a quarter of the questions were different. I also had two proctors helping watch the students very carefully. What else can I do? I don't know, but I feel obligated to do something.

A Month Already?

That was an unscheduled leave of absence. I'm still online regularly, but it's all about work and I haven't checked my usually blogs for quite a while. Now I'm afraid to do so since the task of catching up seems so daunting!

I've been bogged down with work but it's about to let up. for the past two weeks I've been teaching Biochem at Wayne State on Monday and Wednesday mornings, then driving to Lansing to teach Microbiology Lab Monday-Thursday afternoons. It's a lot of driving but I only do it for one more week. A week from today is my last day of Biochem. Overall I think the class has gone pretty well. In a few weeks I'll know what my students think; they filled out their evaluations of my teaching today. I expect them to be relatively good, but not great. I wonder if Wayne State will offer me a position in the fall. I wonder if I'll take it. Teaching lectures at Wayne is more work and less fun, but pays a lot better than LCC.

I might stick with LCC just to keep my stress level down. I'm interested in taking good care of myself since I found out that Bill and I are expecting a baby in January. We're both very excited about the impending arrival, but for me the last few weeks have been a haze of work, nausea, and exhaustion. I've just started feelinng a little better in the last couple days. I hope the improvement continues so that I can enjoy the two big weddings coming up.

I hope to get better about postinng soon. There are a lot of things I'd like to write about, but I only seem to have time for a quick update on recent doings. Here's looking forward to the month of July!

Another Week Survived

Whew, I made it through another week of Biochem and it seemed to go pretty well. The main difficulty is finding enough hours in a day. It takes a lot of work to prepare 3 hour lectures in a class that's not my specialty. This week I was able to concentrate on Biochem since I'm on break at Lansing until June. I give the first exam on Monday so this weekend's challenge is to write a good multiple choice exam. Wish me luck.

In non-work activities, I had fittings for both of my bridesmaid dresses. My sister and I went to a family friend on Monday to see about having the dresses altered for my brother's wedding. I'm afriad it will be a lot of work for her, but I'm sure the dresses will turn out fine. On Wednesday I went to the bridal shop to be fitted by an actual seamstress for Bill's sister's wedding. That one's going to cost me $55 to take in the top and hem the skirt. I can't help but think I could do it cheaper myself, but I don't want to risk upsetting anyone with a less than perfect result. You know the real bummer about this dress stuff? It should be my mom doing the alterations for me. She would have done a great job without the need to ask for favors or pay big bucks.

But just when I might start feeling sorry for myself, I end up feeling sorry for someone else instead. A friend of mine from Iowa miscarried during the second trimester after trying for years to get pregnant. I feel terrible for her.

But just when I'm feeling bad, I'm reminded for some of life's best gifts. Bill and I reached the milestone of eight years of marriage on Tuesday. We celebrated today with our first dinner-and-a-movie date in a very long time. Spiderman 3 was well worth watching, though not as good as the first two, and the Japanese steakhouse was wonderful. We brought home a Wenday's frosty to share with Bridget ad it was a good way to finish up a fun day.

Still Breathing

I made it through the week, but I'm not sure I'm much further ahead than I was then. I survived my second biochem lecture on Wednesday. I was underprepared and I knew it, but I managed to stretch what I had to fill the time so I don't think my students noticed. My interactions with them after the lecture were positive. Too bad there's no hope of my learning all their names. I know two students by name and I just found out that one of them will be dropped for failure to complete the prerequisites. Bummer.

Yesterday was my last class at LCC for the semester. I spent today grading and entering most of my final grades. I have to wait until Sunday for one student doing a rewrite on a paper that pushed the border of plagarism too much for my comfort. I also got to have a conversation with a student who had pushed past that border. I'm pretty sure that she actually thought it was OK. I think I've convinced her otherwise.

Now that LCC is pretty much wrapped up, I'll get to work on Biochem this evening. There are some other definate events this weekend (a barbecue with friends from LCC and a nice mother's day dinner) and a couple that I don't think I'll get to (making arrangements for alterations on a pair of bridesmaid dresses for example).

I should either get to work on biochem or engage with my much neglected family. I think I'll go for the latter.

Slow Deep Breaths

Thank goodness for office hours. I have to be here but I have no student so I can finally breathe. It's been crazy. I think I could handle two classes on the same schedule, but trying to start up one while wrapping up the other is likely to be the death of me. Prepping two 3 hours lectures a week is very time consuming and giving them is exhausting. I'm not sure I did a very good job, but maybe I can do better on Wednesday. If only there was more time to prepare. I spend all day tomorrow at LCC giving them the lecture that would have been given today if I wasn't in Detroit. Add to that the fact that I'm still not officially in wayne state's system (no email, no access to course website, no class list, building access, etc) and two brides-to-be who are, as perhaps brides should be, more concerned about thier planning than my sanity. Yes, I'm very tired.

Office hours are over and I don't have time to waste. I'll check in again later. Hopefully I'll get over to the sanctum too. I haven't check any blogs for days!