Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for

a job I love

Chris Fulton

forgiveness and reconciliation

girlfriends

a God who loves me unconditionally

a fantastic mama and daddy

quiet time

every little kick and wiggle this baby makes

32 weeks!

Here we are at 32 weeks! I can't believe how much my body is changing to accommodate this baby! Here's this week's update:

How Far Along: 32 weeks

Size of baby: About 4 lbs!

Maternity Clothes: Ya think!?!

Gender: Boy!

Movement: Lots of movement at night when I lay down and some in the mornings when I'm teaching. It's always so comforting to feel him kick!

What I miss: My shoes and being able to move around comfortably! I feel like I'm moving a half-ton truck around!

Sleep: Sleep is wonderful. I'm going next week for another pregnancy massage so hopefully that will help my shoulders and back!

Symptoms: Swollen feet and restless leg syndrome!

Cravings: Any and everything! :)

Best moment this week: Gosh, I can't think of anything in particular! I guess just being thankful that I feel good and have some energy to still get things done at work and at home! There's a lot to be said for that!

What I am looking forward to: Finishing the nursery and my first shower in early October!

Busy weekend!

Here's a glimpse into our busy but fun weekend!

A trip to Wilson:

32 weeks!

Chris and Adam

On Saturday, we headed to Wilson, NC for our friend Adam's wedding. We had a wonderful time celebrating Adam and Beth's marriage and seeing old friends. Their wedding was absolutely gorgeous- very tastefully done. I loved that the groomsmen all wore bowties!

Chickens:

We also have welcomed four new members to the Fulton family: meet Pearl, Gerdy, Burnice, and Prudence, our beautiful feathered friends who will soon be laying fresh brown eggs! Chris is over the moon with excitement about his new buddies- he ventures out to the field every morning and evening to check on them. We've had them two days and I'm already thinking twice about eating chicken . . .

Birthday time:

My beautiful sister who is taking the GMAT in a few weeks to get into grad school for her MBA. I'm so proud of her!

Jeff and his precious mom, Kendra.

Gosh, are we brother and sister?!?!?

Sunday night, we went to Winston to Village Tavern to celebrate Jeff's birthday! I just love Jeff so much and was thrilled to finally meet his mom! Nancy really surprised him tonight by getting us all together. I had a delicious margarita pizza and a salad- topped off with dessert from Midtown Desserty- pound cake with cream cheese icing!

Now, that's the wrap up on this crazy busy weekend. The next few weekends aren't so crazy which is perfect. With the baby showers fast approaching and the nursery coming together, I need some down time to really get ready for this baby!

Top Two Tuesday- Things you want to accomplish . . .

I found this cute post on another blog I came across and thought I'd share what two things I'd like to accomplish in this life.

1. Learn to play the violin- There is a local church here in town that offers an Arts Camp for those interested in playing instruments or taking art classes. Right before I got pregnant, I called to inquire about violin lessons but the classes were full. I asked them to call me over the summer if they had a spot but it never worked out. I know as a mother-to-be that I'll be very busy at first but hopefully in a few years, there will be time for me to take this up as a hobby.

 

2. Complete a triathlon- Man, I would love to be in shape enough to complete the run, swim, bike of a tri. I've got a bike, can swim pretty decently, and well, the running is where I struggle. This would be something Chris and I could do together. Let's just say I've got a long way to go after this bay-bay arrives!

What I miss most . . .

Okay, okay, I'm going to confess. I've held this in, thinking the urge would cease but because it's engrained in the soul of my being, it will not fade. This urge, addiction, obsession is all my mother's fault, just look in her closets and you will see . . . SHOES! And since my sixth month of pregnancy, I've only been able to wear two pairs of sandals- leaving all the shoes up in my closet to collect dust. So as I sit here propped up each night, I have lots of time to shoe shop online for those days when I can once again go shoe shopping. Here is my current love:

Tomorrow will hit the 31 week mark! I can feel little man moving all around constantly and have at several times felt what feels like a foot or hand jabbing at me. There aren't even words to describe it . . . We are currently booking an appointment for some maternity pictures to be taken here at our house. I'm excited about how they'll turn out! The baby bedding is here so the nursery is looking more and more precious by the day. I'll have pictures up soon!

A Very Personal Issue

I have been mulling over a few things since first, I became pregnant, and secondly, since school has started back and I've been in a real funk over it- especially over the last few weeks. While I absolutely love my job as a reading specialist, and will fully abide by and uphold what I'm told to do with children, deep down in my heart, I feel like we are robbing children of their childhood experiences by pushing way too hard. By pushing too hard, I believe we are setting our children up for failure- and failure is what I work with all day long. These children are deemed 'at-risk' because they have failed to meet a benchmark but has it ever occurred to anyone that not all children learn and progress at the same rate? Has no one thought that maybe, just maybe, we're asking too much of kindergarten students when we ask them to spout out Very Important Points from a book they've read? In the book Literate Kindergarten, author Susan Kempton describes kindergarten as a 'watered-down first grade where academic pressures squelch creativity and play.' After having taught kindergarten, I wholly agree with her. We are asking students to read, read, read while neglecting basic skills such as letter sound recognition  (let alone social skills, the arts, and dramatic play which I'll get to shortly). Then these children move to first grade where they may be reading some, but have no idea what sounds the letters make. Where are we going wrong? I ask myself this question every single day when faced with the weary eyes of 6 year olds who have had information shoved down their throats just to pass them along- and here they sit with me as failures because we haven't taken the TIME to let them be CHILDREN. By the time our students are 8 and 9 years old, they are expected to pass an incredibly difficult standardized test that measures, in my opinion, absolutely nothing other than whether or not they test well. After having worked in the testing grades, it is a nauseating sight to watch some of these children fail a test after working hard all year. Let's waste our time doing test prep for hours on end instead of truly engaging children in an atmosphere of discovery where they learn to problem solve and use their reasoning skills. I don't think preparing children for an EOG teaches these lifelong skills. And then there are the teachers- the classroom teachers who are in the trenches day in and day out teaching their hearts away. To them, I am deeply appreciative. After having stepped away from the classroom, I see more clearly now how mentally exhausting and frustrating it is to teach. Today I sat in the presence of 5 outstanding young teachers who are already worn down from the constant expectations placed on themselves and their students. They work long hours, plan for weeks in advance, and have the heart and soul to help those children learn but are stifled by the endless requirements. My heart breaks for these gals . . .
And here's where I REALLY get fired up. I am sick, SICK of seeing classrooms devoid of creative art pieces, drawings the children have created, classrooms where children sit quietly for hours doing workbook pages or reading quietly at their seats. Gone are the days of children singing songs, rhyming and clapping, and exploring their world. Children are rushed in and out of art and music classes without time to relish in the excitement of learning a new song or creating a fine art piece. And foreign language- where is that? If we're so hot-to-trot to prepare these children for the 21st century, why are we not providing them with foreign language experiences at a young age when they're most apt to learn it quickly?? While teaching kindergarten, I came to tears one afternoon while talking to a colleague. I had just been told that I was not permitted to show my students a movie at Christmas time- The Polar Express. Not only is it my favorite movie, it is completely appropriate for five year olds- complete with pajamas and hot chocolate. My colleague couldn't understand why I was upset- showing that movie interrupted valuable teaching time and wasn't of real benefit to my students. I was floored. I ended up being able to show the movie with two stipulations. 1) they could only watch 20 minute segments each day and 2) they had to complete a strategy after each viewing to assess their comprehension of the movie. Guess what folks, I did neither. We watched half one day, and the rest the next day. THEY ARE FIVE YEARS OLD.

Which brings me to my last point here as I now see most everything through the new lense of a parent-to-be. I ask myself daily "Would I want my child receiving this same education?" The answer has clearly become no. It isn't that there aren't excellent teachers in our schools- in fact there are a myriad of wonderful teachers who work themselves to death to make learning fun but I personally believe there is a better way. Chris and I have been discussing other options for Webb and are looking into visiting a few places to see what they have to offer. I now see why my parents made other choices for my sister and me and I'm forever grateful to them for giving us an outstanding education where we both thrived, were challenged, and were taught how to think. While this may appear to some as an elitist way of thinking, I see it as doing what is best for my child after having spent 6 years watching a system fail children. I am very passionate about my feelings and can't be swayed into thinking any differently. I've tried- I've tried to believe in our system but year after year, I become more disappointed.

30 weeks!

Here we are with just 10 weeks left! I can't believe how fast this time has gone by! I am thankful for a rather uneventful pregnancy and even more thankful that Webb is growing and developing as he should be! We went for my doctor's appointment yesterday and she snuck us back to have an ultrasound. It was utterly amazing to see him just hanging out in there! I just know he's going to be so beautiful! Here are some recent updates for those who are wondering:

How Far Along: 30 weeks

Size of baby: About 2.5 pounds- the size of a round squash.

Maternity Clothes: Definitely! I'm making a trip to Winston this week for a few things. We have a wedding to attend later this month and I want a long dress to wear. I hope I can find something cute!

Gender: Boy!

Movement: Yes! This Sunday, he was bouncing around during the choir's anthem. I'm so glad he already loves pretty music!

What I miss: I really miss sleeping on my belly.

Sleep: Since I'm sleeping on my sides so much, my upper back is sore some mornings. Other than that, I'm sleeping pretty well through the night! 

Symptoms: Still fighting the swollen feet!

Cravings: yogurt

Best Moment this week: Seeing him on the ultrasound!

What I am looking forward to: The seamstress is almost done with his bedding and curtains! And I'm getting very excited about two showers- one hosted by Chris' aunt, the other hosted by my best friends. I feel so blessed!

Here are some recent pictures from last weekend for your viewing pleasure:

Chris' cousin Marlin- she too is hosting a shower!

Chris' grandmother- celebrating her 99th birthday!

Chris and me with his little sister, Molly!

Just a little nervous . . .

Chris informed me the other day that he was thinking of taking up an old hobby. I thought it sounded like great idea! I was thinking he was going to break out the golf clubs, his carving set, or start making duck decoys again. But, no . . . he's chosen this:

Why, oh why, must we choose such a dangerous and scary hobby!?! He has tried to educate me on the techniques they use to make climbing safe- which I know it is very safe- but it still scares me to know that my other half could be hanging off the side of a mountain- FOR FUN! He wants to teach Webb to climb one day. I'm going to start praying pronto!

28 weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 28 Weeks

Size of baby: He is the size of an eggplant!

Maternity Clothes: Definitely! I think once the weather gets cooler, I'll need to add some more pants into the mix.

Gender: Boy!

Movement: Yes! It's so fun to watch him move around. He's more active during the day now. I guess since I'm sitting so much at work, I notice him more. Such a wonderful feeling!

What I miss: Being able to shave my legs, do my toe nails, tie my shoes, and lately- FIT into my shoes. I just bought several new pairs of shoes and some days they fit, others they don't.

Sleep: I sleep like a rock. Lately there hasn't been too much tossing and turning. Sleep is my best friend these days. I hope I haven't jinxed myself into having a terrible night tonight!

Symptoms: Fat + ankles = fankles! BOO!

Cravings: raisin bran, M&Ms

Best Moment this week: Over the last few weeks, we've gotten a cool jogger, a swing, some precious clothes, and the changing table pad and covers!

What I am looking forward to: Getting his bedding done (the seamstress is in the middle of a huge project and it's going to be a few more weeks) and organizing the nursery!

I must say I'm also looking forward to a weekend here:

My favorite place on Earth, Oak Island. I'm taking my girls with me for a long weekend. Let's hope the weather cooperates!