Check out this song

Okay, if you haven't seen "Madagascar 2" yet, you are missing a great thing. My new theme some is sung by the hippo Moto Moto. Here it is . . .

http://www.amazon.com/Big-And-Chunky/dp/B001NRXWYU/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1236894074&sr=8-3

AAAAHHHHH, SPRING BREAK!!!!!

No news is good news, right? Next week, I promise not to stress!!!!!! I'm going to play with my little man, read a good book, clean house, make comfort food, and . . . rest. (Cue William Tell Overture beginning) Last night, I was so proud of Max! He said my favorite color PURPLE, but it came out more like "pupa". I am seriously grateful that my job pays me to be home for a week right now. It's about the only thing that I love my job for right now . . . maybe I can move to Utah and help Lulu dress manniquins.

A mother's outrage

I wanted to share with you a letter that I wrote late last night and shared with all of my collegues and school today. Everytime I read it, it makes me so mad that I cry, and then I get mad because I'm crying . . .


Dear Carmichael Family,
I wanted to share with you something that affects me personally and also affects you professionally. Yesterday, my husband and I attended a transition meeting to help my two and a half year old son transition to special education preschool. Some of you may know that he was born with microcephaly, a condition where his head and brain are significantly small and he consequently has motor, speech, and other developmental delays. What you might not know is that he has been receiving early intervention services since he was three months old. At the time that he began this process, the doctors did not know how severe his delays would be, or if he would even be able to be in a regular classroom. It soon was very clear that although his personality was sharp, his motor skills were very delayed. With the help of a physical therapist, he was able to roll over at 11 months old, crawl at 12 months, and walk at 16 months old. We then learned that he also has significant speech delays. At this point, after over two years of visits from Physical, Occupational, and Speech therapists, he is doing much better than we had anticipated, but still has far to come. My husband and I discovered yesterday that because of the severe budget cuts coming from the state, my son will no longer be receiving any of these services after next week. If he is able to successfully transition to Special Education Pre-School, he can once again have all of his services reinstated next school year. To my outrage, not only does this affect my son, but all children who are covered by the Blake Foundation with AZIP who do not have "severe" handicaps. Do I need to stress how important early intervention services are to our children? Max’s neurologist has told us time and time again that the most important years of a child’s brain development are before he even starts school. I am willing to take shots at my own personal career with the already devastating budget "solutions" coming from the state, but I REFUSE to allow my son to suffer because the legislators feel that these essential services can be cut! I am willing to stand and fight these problems until my fingers are sore from typing, or my voice is gone from speaking, alone, if I have to. But I am asking you to support me, and all of the children that need this help more than I can express. Please contact our representatives (again) and fight for what is right for our children.

Thanks for being my shoulder to cry on (and my ear to complain to),
Giuliana Fleming

I have recieved comments, all positive, from my fellow teachers, and I plan on sending this letter to my legeslators. I thought about taking out all of the strong language, but I really think that these decision makers in Arizona need to feel the wrath of a mother, because I'm sure that I'm not the only one who is fuming right now.

Here is the link to the Blake Foundation's webpage:

http://www.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=AZTU_homepage

weeeoooo weeeeoooo, here comes the Waaaambulance!

Okay, this is going to be a little bit of a whine fest. As I tell my kids, "Let me call the waaaambulance". Jack is in Mississippi, eating po-boys and steak, and playing with his best friends, while I am sitting here, jealous, and watching Toy Story for the millionth time. My computer has finally given up the ghost, so I can only post here from school. Max is truly the sweetest little pumpkin in the world this week, but he has given me a head cold and I wish that I was home curled up on the couch, doped up on Nyquil. I miss my friends. WAAAAAAA. Education here is Arizona is going to hell in a handbasket. WAAAAAAAA. I have to take care of my mother in law's dogs. WAAAAAAA. The kids at school are driving me crazy. WAAAAAAAA. I need chocolate. WAAAAAAAAAA. Okay, I feel slightly better. snif.

Snow Recorder fight

Here's my snow/recorder experiment: take one class of really crazy 3rd graders, add plastic whistling devices, shove snow into them, and try to see who could melt the snow out of them the fastest with their "Darth Vader" breath. Result--one broken recorder, lots of melted snow in the room, children that swear they have frostbitten fingers, and the highlight of the experience is watching Mrs. Fleming's recorder "poop" snow. I wish that you could have been there. But then again, maybe you're glad.

Begrudgingly going to work in a winter wonterland . . .

Here's a link to our weather story. And the picture above is what the mountains looked like yesterday. I'll give you an update as to what they look like today!!!!!

http://www.svherald.com/articles/2009/02/10/news/doc499118fa97a02371453771.txt

Okay, last night when we went to bed, Max and I prayed for a snow day, because we've had a winter storm warning. When we woke up this morning to let the dogs out, there was a serene blanket of white snow and there were snowflakes swirling around. Bruce took one look and backed up into the house, and Max just went "Woooow". He was trying to go play in the snow in his pyjamas, so we bundled him up and he went outside with Jack to check it out. Jack said he just kept saying over and over, "Oh Man!" and he laughed his head off when daddy threw snowballs at Mama behind the window. The good and really cool news, we had about 5 inches in our yard. The really depressing news, I still had to go to school today. Our superintendant is from Alaska, so chances of a snow day were pretty slim. Snif. Our kids today (the ones that showed up anyway) are just itching to play in it, so I am going to do a science experiment with snow inside of recorders. I'll give you an update later. And post the pictures. I heard that it even snowed in Tucson! CRAZY!!!!! I'm just southern enough to get all giddy when it snows, and right now, I wish that I was having a snowball fight and making snow angels!!!!

Okay, so the only reason that Lulu should forgive me for not posting this is that my computer is the devil. I literally tried to post this one three times and my internet kept kicking me off!!!!! Curses to dial up!!!!! Anyway, here is my poem, and Ode to Lynley--to a tiger lily on her birthday:

Listens to me, even when I'm whiny
Yellowstone park is no feat for her
Never tells me how stupid I'm acting when I'm hormonal
Loves me enough to rush me to the ER in the middle of the night
Every moment with her watching P&P is never boring
Yells like Red from Fraggle Rock, only with angry piggy eyes
Saves me with ice cream therapy
The only person who can get me to throw away my junk
Has seen me looking like butt and still likes me
Elementary teacher librarian in the making
Bread from the Hinton's makes her swoon
Only my bestest bud in the entire world!!!!!!
Mistress of Giuli's wardrobe
Brusque, brazen, red-headed Bombshell.

I hope that you liked that last bit of alliteration!!!! If I was anywhere near you on this birthday, we would be eating Baskin Robbins ice cream cake and watching a glorious girl movie. I finally did catch on to "Mamma Mia" and I wish that I had watched it with you first :) Love you Lulu!