A Third Grade Memory

When Aaron was in third grade, his teacher was Mrs. Hoffman. One day she wrote his name on the board for talking and that made him mad because he was not the one who was talking. (For once he was an innocent victim.) His punishment was to have to stay in from recess. Well, he wasn't having anything to do with that, so at lunch time he took his lunch box and headed home to Franklin. Yes, 6 miles away. But - he didn't stick to the main highway. He turned south at the first road to the right after leaving town which eventually took him out on the road that passes Little Mountain. So he REALLY went the long way. (Maybe he was worried that Mrs. Hoffman was going to come after him.) Actually, what she WAS doing was looking all over for him, along with the prinicpal, Jerry Waddoups. She called me to let me know that he hadn't come in after lunch recess and I probably ought to go up to help look for him. At that time Anneke was in the 6th grade, Ammon in the 4th, and Andrea was in Kindergarten. Amy was a baby and I was probably expecting Andy. So anyway, we searched the field of corn by the school and all over town. Hans was delivering mail and I called him and said he better come because we just couldn't find him. By then school was over and some of the teachers who were commuting to Logan looked for him on the way home and called me from Franklin saying that he wasn't there.
But all that time he was hiking along the back roads and even took a lunch break and sat down in the gutter to eat his lunch. We decided we better call the police for some help and I decided to take kids home so that Anneke could watch them and then I'd go back to Preston. Yes, all kinds of horrible thoughts were going through my mind by this time. Hans stayed in Preston to keep looking around and I'm sure that Marilynn Hoffman was getting pretty sick about it all. When the kids and I walked into the house, there Aaron was - sitting on the floor, eating a snack, and watching cartoons! I was so relieved and so angry at the same time I didn't know whether to hit him or hug him. So I just went in my room and cried like a baby. When Hans got home, he hugged him and had a good talk with him. Hans was good that way. It took me a while to get over it all. But I was thankful that my Aaron boy was okay.

School Started!

Wednesday, August 26, the students arrived. So far I think I have a great class. They are so cute, and we've had fun getting to know each other. I gave them a paper to fill out that has 3 questions on it. I wrote down some of my favorite answers:

1. What I like the most about being in the Third Grade:

• My techerer :)
• Recess
• crs of riting (cursive writing - isn't that cute how he sounded that out?)

2. What makes me nervous about being in the Third Grade?

• Evryteng about 3rd grad
• ther might be bullys in the class. (Don't worry, I'll make sure there aren't.)
  
• I don't now anyone. (student is new to Preston area)

3. One thing that I hope to be able to do in Third Grade:

• Paint
• go on fill drips (field trips)
  
• pass
  

I think we'll throw in a few spelling lessons too while we're at it. I have two granddaughters in 3rd grade this year and it has really made me look at the kids this age in a different way. They are still so young and innocent. They are precious and I'm so lucky to be able to spend 5 days a week with them and hope that Anna's and Kylee's teachers feel the same way about them.

Good To Be Me

Not everyone can say that they truly love their job, but I can, because I do. And one of the main reasons is because there are so many wonderful teachers at the school. I love and appreciate them so much. The kids aren't so bad either and I'm looking forward to getting to know a new class next Wednesday. Yay!

Check it out.

You are invited to visit my other blog

cookiesbythedozen.blogspot.com

Another Reunion

Yesterday I drove up to Marysville, (east of Ashton) to my grandpa's farm for the Marvin and Laura Hillam reunion, my grandparents. My heart just gets full of warm and fuzzy feelings when I'm around my mother and her sisters and brother. They are good people. I'm so proud of my heritage. It was great to see so many of my cousins. But I can't figure out

HOW
DID
WE
ALL
GET
SO

OLD???

Still marvelous looking, but old.

A Great Story by Amy

In October 1993, when Amy was 7, she wrote this story for me. It is on paper about 5x7 in size and she put 5 staples down the left side. On the front is, I have to say, (sorry Amy), one of the funniest looking trees I've ever seen. :)

A Leaf and A Boy

One day a boy's mother told him to go rake up leafs. So he did he didn't realy want to but he still did. And he found lots of pretty leafs. And he found a realy pretty leaf and ran inside as fast as he could. And he showed his mom. He kept it and one night when he was going to bed. It started to talk. And the boy said who's there. And the leaf said me. Who's me. The leaf. A leaf is talking to me. I can't believe it. You better boy. And he ran up stairs. to his moms room as fast as he could. Mom you know the leaf I found. Yah. It was talking. Now don't tell lies. I'm not mom.
Now go back to bed now. But mom. Don't but me. Now go to bed now. Ok ma!
In the morning. He said are you still there leaf. My name is Bart. What's yours? Peter. That's a nice name. So is yours. Thanks. Do you want to go for a walk. Sure. That was fun swinging. I'm an airplane flying in the air.

The End

Andy

Yesterday Andy and Sarah came up to visit and to get some things out of the storage shed. It was fun to have them. Andy was looking through his baby box and it brought back some of the most tender moments. He was such a cute little boy and always had such deep thoughts. Like this one when he was 4 years old, on Mar. 25, 1992:

Andy: Mom, if a bull stepped on me, would I be dead?
Mom: It depends on where it stepped on you.
Andy: Yea. If it stepped on my blood vessel, I'd be dead meat, huh?

He used to love to lay on the bed by me and just talk. After his dad died, he seemed to have such an understanding of where his dad was and was so matter-of-fact about it all. He's such a sweetheart. Love ya, Andy.