Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Hedgehogs!








One of my students brought his new hedgehogs to school yesterday!!! I tore my hands up trying to get some good pictures for you guys, but it was worth it. They are adorable, but not very cuddly! Ouch! Plus, they make really weird hissing noises that almost sound like a rattlesnake. This was the first time I ever got to see them in real life. They were so strange! I always imagined they would be cuddly, but how can you cuddle with a ball of toothpicks?

There's a First Time For Everything!


I finally snagged a treasury on Etsy! It's called Bloody Knees! It took forever, but it was fun! Now I'm sleepy and going to bed. Hope you enjoy it!

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

I Got A Promotion!

I'm proud to announce that I was promoted to "Mentor Teacher" yesterday. What does this mean? Well...I'll tell you!
Last year I went through the process to become Nationally Certified in teaching art. It was very challenging, but when I got the results this November, I PASSED!!!
So, as a nationally certified teacher, I was approached by a friend of mine who is teaching "across the river" in Donaldsonville. She's got the title of "Master Teacher" over there. This school is a low performing school, with underprivilaged children. It's called the Intermediate School and is designed for students who are struggling academically. My friend said they were looking for Nationally Certified teachers to come be "mentors" to the other teachers over there to help guide them and support them in sort of raising the bar for these kids and making sure they are being taught as effectively as possible. I went through a rigorous interview process last week, and got the call yesterday letting me know that I got the position! I am so proud and excited. I'm very nervous, but I know I have a lot to offer these children and I look forward to doing all I can to make a difference in their lives. I can't wait to start researching and planning! The job is going to be quite a bit more challenging than where I am right now, but I'm looking forward to every minute of it! I've decided that life is about new experiences. If I just sat back and took it easy for the rest of my career, I'd die of boredom.
Oh, and one other thing...I'm getting a raise of about $13,500!!!!!! Can you believe that??? Well, you know that part doesn't hurt! Here's a picture of me when I dressed up as Frida Kahlo for my 3rd graders a few years ago. It's the only teacher picture I have on my computer to illustrate this post!

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Marvelous Moustaches!



My "Sawing Logs" ACEO made it to a treasury this morning and I must say that I couldn't be more pleased with the company it's keeping. Moustaches Abound!

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

This one too!!!!

This one is really fun and makes me want to dance!

Beirut...my love...

I am in love with this video of Beirut. I think it's perfect the way the music is layered by using levels on a stairway to illustrate the progression. It's beautiful and intelligent and it takes my breath away each time I watch it. Enjoy...

Friday, April 18, 2008

Dot Dot Dot...

One day last year I was very bored at work, and so I decided to entertain myself with the paint program on my computer. The following images are the result:



Additionally, whilst bored at work, I have a tendancy to save funny pictures from google images. Here's one to start your weekend off with. It cracks my ass up. Enjoy.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

In Love With Another Pair Of Shoes!

Another Shoe Artist is lighting up my life. This time the artist is Hippy Of Doom. My favorite shoes ever are the Matryoshka Doll ones below. However, the other two I feature here are adorable as well.




Monday, April 14, 2008

Art Show


This weekend my "Bury the Hatchet" painting was juried into an art exhibition which was put on by our local "Art Mob". The show was entitled "Smock, Paper, Scissors". The purpose of the show was to collect art supplies for students at the new Autonomous Schools in Baton Rouge. The show was located in the different shops in Towne Center and was mainly centered around Whole Foods. Each store housed a different artist and outside each store was a large box for art supply donations. It was a lot of fun. I was able to meet other local artists. I took some pictures, but will have to post them this afternoon, because I left my camera at home. Also check out a little more information about one of the Autonomous Schools, CAN!

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Haunted Bathroom

I live in a little apartment. Most of the apartment is nice. But...the downstairs bathroom is not.
It's got horrid wallpaper, which is dingy and stained. It's actually creepy in there. So my boyfriend suggested we decorate it as a haunted bathroom, since there is otherwise, not much hope for it. So here are a few of the pictures we've decked the walls with. Creepy? My boyfriend got this one at an antique store in Austin, Texas.
My grandmother made this one.
This is the grandparents of an old friend of ours. (Handsome Couple, huh?)
This one came from an antique store, as well.

So, at my house, you're welcome to use the restroom...IF YOU DARE!!!

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Music to My Ears


I've been teaching 3rd grade for 8 years now. During my first year of teaching, there was a student in my class that I became very attached to. She had some troubles at home, but was always able to rise above it. She was so sweet and cheerful. She was always kind to others and, of course, she loved art. We went to the Art Museum for our field trip that year, and she was unable to go because she was out sick. So, over the summer, I took her myself. We had so much fun, and it really felt good to give her the opportunity to go there since she'd missed out on the field trip. I watched her grow up for the next few years until she went on to middle school, and we then lost touch.
I found out that her sister teaches in my district so I emailed her to tell my student hi. I was floored when I received an email from my student the next day saying,
"You probably had the biggest impact on my life when I was young, thank you for that."
These are the kinds of words any teacher longs to hear from her students. Especially ones like this little girl, because I tried so hard to make life better for her and give her glimpses into the world of art as a way to enjoy the world around her. Ever since receiving this email, my whole attitude at work has changed. It's easy to get jaded after doing this for 8 years, but feedback like that reminds me of the difference I must be making. I feel recharged and ready to change the world!

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Outside the studio door...

Maria and Hazel were enjoying the view outside my studio door this morning. There was an estate sale across the street, which brought along with it many strange people for the pups to observe.



Hazel wanted to come in and help me cut some art board for my newest ACEOs.
Here they are! Each one will be listed in my Etsy shop ASAP!!
Side Note: For those of you who read my previous post about the crazy moth attack, I have an update. While I was vacuuming yesterday, I found him dead in a corner of the living room. I wanted to show my boyfriend the culprit, so I placed him to the side for when my boyfriend arrived. Later that night as we were watching t.v. HE CAME BACK TO LIFE and started flying around the living room!!! My boyfriend caught him and released the beast back into the wild, where he belongs. May he have a long and happy life OUTDOORS!!!

Friday, April 4, 2008

Powerlines, Water, and Red Balloons

Outside of my studio it's raining, and so, of course my door is wide open. I love to watch it rain from up here on the second floor. The birds are still chirping, because they love this little shower, too.
Inside the studio, water is also flowing. I'm trying my hand at watercolor painting. It certainly goes well with the rain, anyhow.





Thursday, April 3, 2008

Moth-er F*cker!



Last night, I fell asleep on the couch watching t.v. and didn't wake up to move to the bed until around 3:00 am. Needless to say, when I finally did retire to the bedroom I was rather groggy and still in sort of a dream-state. Upon entering my room, I promptly climbed into bed and turned out the light, ready to drift right back off to sleep.

A few minutes passed when I was startled by a strange sound. It sounded like someone digging in a plastic grocery bag. I tried to ignore it at first, since it didn't seem to bother my chihuahua, who is my guard dog. But then I heard it again, and the sound seemed to be moving to different places in the room. By this time, I was getting really scared of who or what was in my chambers!

I carefully turned on my lamp, and saw the biggest moth I've ever seen darting back and forth across the room! I got up to shew him out of the room and he started chasing me! He was literally following me everywhere I went, but he was really fast so I couldn't get a full look at him. Finally, I screamed, "Leave me the f*ck alone!" and ran downstairs. HE FOLLOWED ME DOWNSTAIRS!!!!! He then flew into the kitchen. I made a break for my bedroom and slammed the door as fast as I could, keeping the beast outside. Once I finally made it back to sleep, I could hear him beating his body against my bedroom door!! I covered my head under the blankets and finally fell asleep for the night. When I woke up this morning, there was no sign of him anywhere. But there was powder on the door from his wings where he was flying into the door to get into my room. I get chills thinking about it, still! Ugh. It was so creepy!!!

With reality like that, who needs nightmares?

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

April Fools!


As you know, I'm a third grade teacher. Which means that, naturally, I had to April Fool my kids. Well, I got them good! I passed out a letter that said:


Dear Parents,


Beginning April 2, 2008 students will notlonger be allowed to wear shorts or tennis shoes to school. They will need to wear black, brown, or blue dress shoes. Boys must wear pants and girls may either wear pants or a long skirt. Any person not following this rule will be sent to the office for the day.


Thank you,

Front Office


They were in an UPROAR!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAhahahahahahahah!

I let them freak out for about 30 minutes, then I told them it was a joke. It was hilarious!

These are the perks of being a teacher. Torturing children. It's so fun.