Alabama Loss

South Carolina had two weeks to get ready to play Alabama, and it showed. They beat Alabama in every way possible. I was hopeful when Garcia threw the ball out of the endzone for a safety to start the second half, but that hope didn't last long. Hopefully the Tide can bounce back this Saturday against Ole Miss.

Parathyroidectomy...What is that?

On September 27, I had a parathyroidectomy. I have been feeling really tired for a while, and during a routine blood test, it was discovered that my calcium level was really high. I had it checked again in a week, and it was even higher. It was decided that I should go for a scan in Jackson, so I did. The scan showed that I had an adenoma in my lower left parathyroid and that I should have it removed. The surgery was done on Monday and I had to stay in the hospital overnight. Now after about three weeks, I'm beginning to feel like myself again. This picture makes me have chills. I can't imagine this being my neck...

Daniel's 13th Birthday

It's hard to believe that Daniel is already 13. He wanted an Alabama cake, so I found this one online and the ladies at Miller's Big Star made it. It tasted as good as it looks. I got the candles that keep lighting after you blow them out - don't do it. We had a hard time getting them put out. Happy Birthday, Daniel!!

Evelyn's 75th Birthday

June 19 was Evelyn's 75th birthday. Of course, she didn't want any fuss made over her, so we all met at Country Squire in Iuka to celebrate with her.

Differentiated Instruction Conference in Chicago

In July I was fortunate enough to go to Chicago to the Differentiated Instruction Conference. Ms. Linda and her friend Janie picked me up early Monday morning and we went to Memphis to get on our plane to Chicago. We had a great time. We learned so much that we'll be able to share with our teachers. We also had fun together after the conference - we ate some yummy food, went on a bus tour and a boat tour, and enjoyed Navy Pier. I made so many pictures - there was so much to see where we stayed on the Magnificient Mile. The only thing I didn't get to do on our trip was visit Wrigley Field.

My 43rd Birthday

I'm very lucky to have such a wonderful family and friends. I was surprised with lots of goodies at school on my birthday this year. I love flowers! We had cake, and I got to open lots of sweet gifts.

Fall Wildlife Show 2010

September always means a visit from Bob Tarter, the animal guy. This year he brought five very interesting animals for us to see.

Baxter, the kangaroo
fruit bat

Egyptian chicken
hedgehog
legless lizard

Trip to Atlanta

Monday, October 11, we left for Atlanta at about 10:00. The Boltons, the Browns, Wayne, Daniel, and I were going to see Atlanta play San Francisco in the baseball playoffs. We were hoping for a win, but the Braves lost. At least we got to see Bobby Cox's last game as Braves manager. Daniel went on to Gatlinburg with Kyle and his family. We got back home about 4 AM.

Surprise!

PTO surprised Spring and I with appreciation gifts. They gave us a box of cards the kids had made for us, flowers, a cookie basket, and a crystal statue commemorating our first year as principal and assistant principal.

Daniel and Travel Ball

This summer Daniel is playing Dixie Youth baseball as well as travel ball. We've been watching a lot of baseball so far this summer. Looks like it's going to be a long, hot summer of baseball fun!!

Outside at East Chester

Recess, PE, and Fantastic Fridays....All good reasons to enjoy the beautiful weather outside at East Chester this year.

Kite Day 2010

Kite Day is always fun at East Chester. We had a great day his year.

Easter Centers in Kindergarten

I visited Mrs. Michelle's class while they were enjoying Easter centers. I snapped a few pictures of their fun.

Flood 2010

We knew that the weather forecast for the weekend was calling for a lot of rain, but I don't think anyone expected what actually happened. We got so much rain that school was cancelled for Monday, May 3. There was also a tornado in Selmer that did a lot of damage. It seems like Chester County was extremely lucky compared to others around us.

Javy Lopez

One of our all-time favorite players for the Braves was #8 Javy Lopez. He played catcher a while back. Katy was about 3-4 when he played and when we would watch the Braves every night, she would stand in front of the TV and yell "Go Javy, Go Javy!". She loved Javy so much. When we heard that he would be coming to the Diamond Jaxx game last night, we knew we would have to go and try to see him. He was so nice. He autographed Daniel's glove and made several pictures with us. It was a perfect night for baseball, and we enjoyed it very much with Becky, Carter, and LB along with Mr. Gary and Mrs. Rosemary. But, hands-down, the highlight of the night was getting to meet Javy Lopez and how very nice he was to all of us.

Dixie Carter

I was very sad to hear that Dixie Carter had passed away Saturday, April 10. She was 70 years old. I love to watch "Designing Women" mainly because of Julia, the character she played. Our second graders are going to a play at "The Dixie" in Huntingdon, her hometown. She was a great southern lady.

This year's Makin' Music is over. Chi Beta won this year with their show "Ear"replaceable. I thought all the shows were good this year. There really was no clear winner, and that's the way I like for it to be. I am amazed each year at the talent that we have here at Freed-Hardeman University. It was a pleasure to work with the students as they prepared their club shows. I worked a lot with the groups managers Marcia Jo and Whitney. The coordinators this year were great as well: Dustin and Erin. We had a great time together...

Lads to Leaders

This year Lads to Leaders was held during Retreat Weekend, so I didn't get to go. Wayne and the kids traveled to Nashville without me. I'm very proud of Katy and Daniel for participating in several events including speech, Good Samaritan, song-leading, puppets, scrapbook, and oral Bible reading. Katy has also been teaching this year, so she received a special award for that. I'm also very proud of them for encouraging others while they do their events. They're pretty good kids!!!

Jana's Last Tournament

We were fortunate enough to be able to attend the NAIA Banquet of Champions thanks to Mrs. Katrina again this year. Jana Cross has been a wonderful role model and example to our kids. We're very proud of all her accomplishments on the basketball court for the four years she has played for Freed-Hardeman. I know she's going to be a wonderful teacher!!

Laura Beth's Cookie Party

In December we were very excited to attend Laura Beth's cookie party for moms and daughters. We had a great time!

Earthquake in Haiti

A 7.0 earthquake has devastated the poor country of Haiti. The Estes congregation has supported an orphanage in Haiti for several years, and it had just been decided that the Henderson congregation is going to join them in this work rather than return to Guyana. It is very difficult to see the people suffering in Haiti in particular the children. One of the children at the orphanage that Estes supports was killed when the earthquake caused a wall to collapse on him. One of the children at East Chester is trying to collect 1,000,000 pennies to help the children in Haiti.

Week 1

1. One of Tennessee's longest serving politicians died following a brief illness. Somerville native John Shelton Wilder, Sr., died Friday, January 1, at a hospital in Memphis at 88 years of age. I remember Lt. Gov. Wilder attending many, many Freed-Hardeman events over the years.2. Alabama wins the National Championship!!!! Roll Tide Roll!!

Principal Reflections

We only went to school three days this week because of weather, but that's ok. I wanted to take some time to think and reflect on the first half of this school year I've spent as principal of East Chester Elementary School. Somehow the word principal doesn't describe me. First of all I feel extremely lucky to work with the faculty and staff at East Chester. Since I student taught at East in 1989 I've wanted to teach here and be a part of this special family. The teachers at East Chester genuinely care for each child that comes through our doors. A lot of behind the scenes work goes into seeing that these little children's needs are taken care of. I can honestly say that everyone employed at East Chester works very hard to provide the very best educational experience possible for each of our children. My job is now very different from the job I've loved for 20 years. The day still flies by, because I am still extremely busy with a variety of jobs. Spring and I try very hard to be in as many classrooms as possible each day. I love being with the children, but whenever I visit a classroom, I miss my classroom very much. I gave so much of myself for 20 years that I almost feel lost when it comes to the chores that come with keeping a classroom running efficiently. I know that I've made many mistakes in the first half of this school year, but I hope that the children feel the love and genuine care and concern we all have for them. Each day I end announcments with, "Let's all work hard today and remember to do the right thing." If the children can learn those two important ideas at East Chester, hopefully they will do well at the middle school and later in their lives. I'm very lucky to be at East Chester.

National Champions!!!!

Well, its been a long season. I remember the night we played Virginia Tech to start the season. I felt pretty good about most of the games until the Tennessee game. Boy, it took some luck AKA Mount Cody to win that game. Then we survived the Auburn game. I wasn't sure how we would do against Florida, but we dominated that game. I was really nervous before the national championship game because the "experts" were picking Alabama and that usually means that we don't play well. We were out of school Thursday and Friday because of weather, so it was very nice to get to relax (haha) and enjoy the game. Becky, Carter, and Laura Beth came over to watch the game along with Lee, Margaret, and Terry who have watched every game with us this season. We were not thrilled with the way Alabama started the game to say the least (winning the toss and not deferring the kick, fake punt, etc.) and then we were really concerned when Colt McCoy had to leave the game. We all like him, and certainly didn't want him to be hurt. We also didn't want to hear all the people say that Alabama would have lost if Colt McCoy had've played the whole game. Anyway, the end of the night when the National Championship Trophy was presented to Coach Saban was SWEET! Roll Tide Roll! I can't wait until next football season starts!!!!