Happy Halloween

I've had a rather entertaining weekend. I walked nearly five miles. I dusted off the camera and managed to take some fall foliage pictures.

Let's not forget I read an entire book; Yay Drizzit! (I even managed to forget to set my clock back last night, and woke up bright and early this morning wondering exactly what in the world was going on.)

I also took the picture to your left. That's me. All dressed up with no place to go. I put on my gown and watched the kiddies tromp by my front door step tonight. The neighbors played the themes from Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings. No Halloween is complete without at least one rousing chorus of The Monster Mash, either. Be safe ghosts and ghouls.

Anyone have ideas about what sort of project to do with 5lbs of birdseed? Sure, we could make bird feeders, but that's not out of the ordinary. I can not wait to dye corn kernels all different colors and make pictures out of them with my class. From one holiday on to the next.

Today, I tortured the children in my class. Many are still tactile defensive in their young age, and HATE having slimy material on their hands. I can't say that I blame them, but there are just some things in life you need to experience.

We carved a very simple jack-o-lantern this afternoon. All week I have been asking the kids what they thought was inside of the pumpkin. Some said "seeds". They do remember science lessons once in a while! Yay! Other answers, not so bright. "A horse!".. uh.. no kid. Horse poop is bigger than this pumpkin. At least they're participating, right?

The best part of the entire ordeal was making the children reach inside the pumpkin and pull out a hand full of seeds. The look on each face was priceless. Some rather enjoyed squishing the goo between their fingers. One little boy crouched down behind the table and refused to come anywhere near me as long as I had that pumpkin in my hands. Poor kid. I decided to let him get away with his attempt at invisibility. Everyone needs to be a super hero on occasion.

All in all my munchkins had good, messy, fun. (That's the best kind.) Our pumpkin ended up having heart-shaped eyes, a square nose, and a smiling mouth with teeth, as per their request. I might not be able to give them mud between their toes, but I can give them pumpkin snot between their fingers.

Today I joined BlogExplosion and added it to the list of traffic generators that exist on the bottom of the column to your right. None of them seem to do any good anyway, so I figured one more couldn't hurt. Hopefully this one will actually be worth the effort of signing up.

If you've arrived here from BlogExplosion, welcome! If you belong to the small group of people who wander in here from time to time, keep your feet off my coffee table!

That's right. I broke down and purchased tickets for the Aerosmith show that Regal Cinemas is putting on the big screen. It seems for one night, and one night only, Steven, Joe, and the gang will be performing on select movie screens across the nation. The date is November 23rd. Fandango is selling the tickets if you're so inclined.

I figured this may be the only chance I have to see them larger than life. They'll probably stop touring before I make it to an actual concert, so this is as close as I may get.

Tonight I begin reading the latest book in R.A. Salvatore's "Lone Drow" series. The new book is called "The Two Swords" and if it's anything like the last two books, it will be near impossible to put down. Long live Drizzit.

In other news, rumor has it that Steven Tyler will be adding his voice to the new Tom Hanks moving Polar Express due out in theaters November 10th. I've been watching previews of this for the last year, and will be in the theater to see it as soon as it opens.

Go Red Sox!

That concludes this entertainment briefing. Tune in tomorrow for more exciting, yet unrelated news.

Can you tell these children are used to having their pictures taken? As soon as I took out the camera and pulled out the floor mat, they piled in for a group shot. I didn't give them any directions about how to lay, or to smile. Instant pose this crew.

The group above makes up about half of my class so far this year. My class consists mostly of girls, but I do have a few little boys thrown into the mix. I have 18 very active, busy, inquisitive munchkins on roll currently. Most are three years old, with a few fours for flavor. Cute group, and sweet (when they're asleep).

Inner city kids grow up a bit too fast for my liking. I watch them interact with each other everyday, and I often forget they're still babies. It's difficult to realize the only difference between these kids and any others across the world is that they are forced to grow up faster in order to survive.

Many are left at home alone, or at the day care from dawn until dusk. 95% of them have never seen a mud puddle, or climbed a tree. It's a rather disturbing way to spend childhood, I think.

When they're with me, they're not allowed to grow up, though. So maybe I can prevent some of that innocence they lose all too fast from slipping away.

Sunflowers? Sunflowers? Anyone for sunflowers?
More changes, more fidgeting, more time passing.
Sixty days seem like as many years but a few hours.
Where will I go? Here? There? Anywhere?
Down the block? Way down south? No one knows. Not even myself.
Help me please? Where shall I be?

Perhaps you'll find me under a tree, or sleeping on a peddler's knees.
Disorganized craziness will ensue. Who's holding my hand? Will you?


Thanks goes to Zann for the sunflower idea and help making the image work. Girl knows her stuff, regardless of the Bailey's.

Creations creations... I've been busily changing the layout of the site.. if anyone sees anything funky, leave a comment. It looks good on my screen but you know how fickle page layouts can be.

Well I hate to admit it, but it seems that the fall season has finally arrived in NYC. Tonight the temperatures are to drop into the low forties, and there is a slight chance of frost.

This type of weather brings forth fond memories from my childhood. Living most of my life in Florida, we rarely saw temperatures drop below 50 all winter long. But there were a few occasions each year that we (my siblings and I) would wake up to find the shingles of the neighborhood houses bathed in glistening frost. The stale smell of heaters being turned on for the first time all year filled the air. After spending the day shuffling around at school, we would return home to find that Mom had every window in the house open in an attempt to entrap each breeze that blew past. I never understood why, but now I believe that she was trying to relive memories from her own childhood in Ohio.

My father and brother would come home from weekend hunting trips to Christmas lights twinkling in the trees out front. Dad's red fleece jacket always smelled of wood smoke; they would often build a fire in the woods to keep warm. I find myself there... my brother, sister, and I sitting on the floor with our legs under the coffee table; eating soup that had been cooking all day while looking out the screen door to our backyard; finishing the soup and running outside with no shoes on in the cold grass to climb trees until our hands were numb.

Interesting how a blast of cold air and a few holiday decorations can take you back so far and make you yearn for the future all at the same time. I'll be home for Christmas.