Sunday, July 18, 2010

Little Bee


We went to Pineville yesterday and, of course, had to stop at Barnes and Noble. I got a book entitled Little Bee by Chris Cleave. To tell you how good it was, I finished it today around 3:00. It was a book you just can't put down. The summary on the back of the book is as follows, "This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face. Two years later, they meet again and the story starts there. Once you read it, you'll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don't tell them what happens. The magic is in how the story unfolds."

Cryptic... right? So, as a "rule follower" I will not tell you what happens, but I will tell you it was an amazing novel. A finely crafted story that broke my heart and kept me turning the pages. I highly reccommend it to all of my adult readers.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Presentation Day!

We're all presenting our projects this morning at UNCC. I'm really proud of what I created and I cannot wait to teach writing this year! My students and I will keep "daybooks," which is a new thing I learned about. I think I'm going to structure writing time quite differently this year. It's amazing how much I change things every single time I teach.

On a different note, we celebrated Emily's birthday last night; it was so much fun. Happy Birthday to a dear friend!

Zameon

You went to Alaska? That's really neat. Mr. Charles has always wanted to go there. You should post some pictures to your blog (I went to your blog this morning, but you haven't posted in several months. I figured you'd see a message here before you saw one on your blog.)

If you go by Old Pointe- ask Ms. Wallace to get your book out of my box. I put it in there in case you needed it this summer. If you don't grab it this summer, you can come visit me next year and get it.

I hope you're having a great summer!

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Summer School Starts Today!

We had a wonderful weekend. We went boating with the Yeartas on Saturday to celebrate Katherine's birthday. We stayed out on the lake all day and had a blast. On Sunday, we went to Spartanburg to hang out with my sister, Megan. We played in the pool and then had a cookout. Everyone is a little crispy today but it was worth it!







I started teaching the course for my Master's level students yesterday. It's been quite interesting so far; I love teaching!

Megan and Brandon are driving up from Spartanburg today to watch Grace while I go to UNCC for class. My class is from 9-3 (8-4 if you include travel time). It's a writing course and I'm really excited to learn something innovative.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Summers are for Swimming!

Grace and her friend, Aly, have been enjoying Friday pool parties. They swim, play, and eat popsicles. Last Friday, Regina fixed Grace's hair in a mini-pony (too cute) and we practiced walking! Hooray for summers and good friends :)





Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Biltmore Estate

Charles surprised me with a visit to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina. We had a lovely visit. Here are a few pictures from our vacation.




Thursday, June 24, 2010

New Book:)

Kassem requested two books (he's in Afghanistan right now) and when I ordered them from Amazon I was about 10 dollars away from free shipping. Of course, the queen of reading decided to order herself a book too. I got A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present and it is incredibly interesting; it's written in a narrative style from the point of view of the oppressed (Native Americans, Slaves, Women, etc.). I most certainly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a summer read!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Grace loves the outdoors!


Yesterday was really fun. Grace and I went swimming at Laura's house. We saw Miss Caroline there! We also saw several teachers from Old Pointe and we all had a great time. Grace is such a little fish; I need to find one of those swimsuits that has the life vest built in because she definitely did not want me holding her! She isn't scared of anything--- she tried to dive right into that water several times! She almost gave me a heart attack!

Grace and I returned some wood for Charles this morning from "Carter Lumber;" they were incredibly nice and it was an easy task. Then, we ran to Walmart and got some mundane groceries (milk, bread, etc). When we got home, Grace took a nap while I cleaned the house.

When Grace woke up, it was swimming time! She played outside and I gave her a popsicle- she made a huge mess, but it was ok since she was in the pool :) When she finished in the pool, we headed inside for lunch. After lunch, we played and then Grace took another nap while I did work for UNCC.

I reorganized the pantry for a few hours this evening- it looks really good! Grace and I played, practiced facial features (we're working on her being able to point to her eyes, nose, ears, etc), I gave her a bath, we read a book, and then it was off to bed for Miss Grace. It was a lovely day.

Marla- I tried to get to your blog today to leave a comment and I couldn't get there! I hope that you are doing well:) I miss you!

Monday, June 21, 2010

Blog Hiatus is Over :)


Ok, admittedly, I have not done a very good job blogging since summer started. Things have been a bit hectic around here. However, I'm back in business:)

Last week, Grace and I went swimming with our friends, Regina and Aly. Grace and Aly were in the pool for over an hour. They had so much fun (we CANNOT WAIT to go back!). After swimming, we went inside and played for a little while. Then, it was back home for naptime and a trip to Poppies' house.

Saturday was Mary Katherine's fourth birthday party; she was definitely a little princess. Aunt Jennifer had a pool set up and we brought Grace's pool too (there were lots of kids and we needed two pools). Everyone had a really good time. Happy Birthday, MK!


Sunday was, of course, Father's Day. I had gone to Spartanburg last Tuesday to celebrate with my dad. (Side note- thanks Dad for everything that you've done for me- I love you to the sky.) Sunday, we woke Charles up with his cards and his gifts; he is such an amazing father. Grace is truly a lucky girl. We had a nice lunch at Ruby Tuesday's and then headed to Marshall's house to celebrate with him. We had a lovely cookout with steaks, potatoes, and Nell's salad.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Grace is One!!


Grace turned one year old on May 15th. I cannot believe how quickly the time flew by! We had a birthday party for her at the house; many of our family members and friends were able to come. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, veggies, chips, and for dessert- cupcakes! Grace got so many presents that we're going to have to build an addition onto the house:)

Do any of you have good birthday memories?

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

My Favorite Author- the One, the Only, Mr. Pat Conroy

When I was in high school, I read The Prince of Tides, an amazing novel in which I immediately fell in love with the Wingo family and their hardships. It was a book of searing tragedy and the ways in which the human spirit can survive. I've read the book so many times that I've lost count. A friend of mine interviewed Pat Conroy and was able to get me an autographed copy of Prince of Tides. On the inside, Conroy wrote, "To Lindsay, for the love of books. Pat Conroy" It is one of my greatest treasures.


Conroy's newest novel, South of Broad, just made it to paperback and I bought it and read the 600 page novel in a few, short days. It was fascinating. The setting is Charleston and he describes the sunsets, the marsh, the beautiful houses "south of Broad" with such great detail that the reader feels completely present. Conroy is one of the greatest story tellers to ever live and this novel deals with the immense and decade-spanning friendship of a group of misfits in Charleston in 1969. I laughed and cried as I went on a journey with Mr. Leo King. Conroy elicits true emotion... as only the best authors can.



Do any of you have favorite authors? If so, share some of their works with us.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Teacher Appreciation Week

We'll use this post as a forum to post your appreciation of a past teacher (you cannot post about me).

I'll start!

Mrs. Pat Burton was my seventh grade language arts and science teacher. She was incredibly intelligent and believed in teaching us all sides of the story in order to give us the background knowledge so that we could make up our own minds. We call this "critical thinking." She wanted us to think for ourselves instead of just believing what we hear. She had snakes in her room as well as a whole family of rats- which was actually kind of fun:) She had an awesome classroom library. Mrs. Burton had such high expectations for me and through her guidance, I cultivated my life long love of learning. Thanks, Mrs. Burton!!

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Waiting on the World to Change


These are the lyrics to John Mayer's song, "Waiting on the World to Change." Read the lyrics and tell me what they mean to you. Remember, songs are poetry!

Me and all my friends
We're all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There's no way we ever could

Now we see everything that's going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it

So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It's hard to beat the system
When we're standing at a distance
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change

Now if we had the power
To bring our neighbors home from war
They would have never missed a Christmas
No more ribbons on their door
And when you trust your television
What you get is what you got
Cause when they own the information, oh
They can bend it all they want

That's why we're waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It's not that we don't care,
We just know that the fight ain't fair
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

And we're still waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting waiting on the world to change
One day our generation
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change


Photo from: http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u177/franknstines/theworld.jpg

Friday, April 23, 2010

Beautiful Weather


I absolutely love it when spring comes and the weather is sunny and warm. I love to sit on my front porch, in the rocking chair, and enjoy the peace and quiet! Grace loves to be outside too; we went to Moonlight Jazz tonight at Winthrop. We had a nice time; Grace was bopping her head to the music:) I hope that each and every one of you has a lovely weekend and I'll see you on Monday!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Thank you, Chrystalyn!


I got a friendly reminder just now that I needed to blog! Things have been so hectic that I just haven't had the chance. So, thank you dear for reminding me:)

Spring break was absolutely lovely. Grace had her cast taken off on Thursday, April 1st and she is now as fast as lightening! She crawls everywhere and has started pulling herself up on furniture (and on me). We went to Spartanburg to visit my family. We had a lovely Easter lunch with Charles' family in Charlotte. Grace and I also did a little shopping! My friend, Emily and her husband, Michael had their daughter on April fifth (the same day my brother Kassem proposed to his girlfriend, Jacquie). Their daughter's name is Emma Kate and she is just beautiful! Grace is happy to have a new friend and I'm happy to have someone else to cuddle!

How was your spring break?

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Open Mic Night Coming Soon!



Don't forget that we've got our open mic night coming up quickly! I cannot wait to hear your poetry (I know that your family and friends are excited too!). Be here this Thursday at 7:00pm! Feel free to post your best poems as a response to this post.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Quote

I'm working on my poem and found a really great quote that I'd like to share with you,

"Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow." ~Mary Tyler Moore

I think that sometimes we are afraid to make mistakes, so we never venture outside of "the box." However, when we think about it... all of the greatest inventions occurred because people took chances and made mistakes.

Book Fair Tonight!



I hope to see you all at the book fair tonight! Did you know that some people in history have burned books? Why do you think they do that? (Think of what books are... information!) What are some of the negatives of book burning? Did you know that many books are banned as well? For example, Alice in Wonderland was banned in China in the 30's.

On the book topic, what are your favorite books of all time? Share titles, authors, and a quick summary so that your classmates and I can read them if we want to. One of my favorites is Hatchet by Paulsen; we're currently reading that one. Another one of my favorite's is Bridge to Terabithia by Paterson, it's a wonderful book about two fifth graders, Jess and Leslie who become best of friends. There is a tragic accident that causes Jess to deal with some really tough issues.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Charleston Weekend


Happy Monday Everyone!

We had a lovely weekend in Charleston. On Friday, we went to Becca and Mike's wedding. It was on Shem Creek and it was absolutely beautiful. It was supposed to be outside, but due to the rain, they moved it inside. Grace was gorgeous in her pink smocked dress (I'm a little biased though). There were crab cakes, veggies, crackers, and cheese (and, of course, wedding cake!) Charles and I took turns dancing with Miss Grace.

On Saturday, Charles, Neal (Charles' best friend), Grace, and I went to the aquarium and had a blast. Grace loved looking at all the fish. There was a two story tank that had ocean fish swimming in it. I'll post a picture of Charles and Grace in front of it. They look so tiny because the tank is so large. After the aquarium, we had lunch on the water. I had grilled scallops and french fries; I love seafood (well, as you all know, I love any kind of food). We stopped by our friend Ginny's house to visit and then we headed back to Rock Hill. When we got home, we gave Grace a bath and put her to bed.

Sunday was great as well. I took Grace to the Winthrop baseball game. She didn't seem to like the baseball game as much as she enjoys the basketball games. Speaking of basketball.... The Eagles play on Tuesday!! Wear your WU gear tomorrow!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

The Sheronicks


I have been thinking about my family alot lately, so I thought that I would blog about them. I am the oldest of four children. My sister, Megan, is 24 and is married to Brandon. Megan teaches at Chapman High School in Spartanburg, SC. My brother, Kassem, is 22 on the 16th of March. He's a Marine and is stationed in Camp Pendleton. He leaves for Afghanistan in about a month. Aaron, my youngest brother, is almost 19 and he's a freshman at USC-Upstate. He works full time at Sonny's Brick Oven Pizza and still has a 3.8 GPA. My mom, Nancy, is an amazing mother. She's smart and an awesome baker/cook. I love going home and eating her delicious food. My dad, Ali, is a really hard worker. He and my mom do all they can to help their children succeed. I'm so proud of my siblings and my parents; I love them all very much.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Lyrics to "Manic Monday" by the Bangles

This one is for Chrystalyn and Allana... :) Love you girls!

Six o'clock already
I was just in the middle of a dream
I was kissin' Valentino
By a crystal blue Italian stream
But I can't be late
'Cause then I guess I just won't get paid
These are the days
When you wish your bed was already made

It's just another manic Monday
I wish it was Sunday
'Cause that's my "fun" day
My "I don't have to run" day
It's just another manic Monday

Have to catch an early train
Got to be to work by nine
And if I had an air-o-plane
I still couldn't make it on time
'Cause it takes me so long
Just to figure out what I'm gonna wear
Blame it on the train
But the boss is already there

Manic Monday

As we listen to PNN, we are still slowly trickling in from PNN and Safety Patrol. We've got MAP testing tomorrow and on Wednesday our schedule should return to normal. We are beginning our poetry this week and I hope to see some poems posted on your blogs. We will have our Open Mic Night in April for you to share your poetry with one another and with your families. Have a wonderful week, my dears!

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Super Saturday!!!


We had such a great Saturday! First, Grace and I met Rebekah and her mom, Evette, for lunch at McAlisters. It was so nice to catch up. Grace just loves Rebekah (and so do I). Briggs came too; Grace and Briggs talked during lunch (and Briggs shared his books with Grace).

Then, we went to Miss Aly's first birthday party! It was so much fun! The house looked beautiful. There were streamers coming from the ceiling and an adorable "Happy Birthday, Aly" sign behind the kitchen table. There was delicious food and the cutest cake! Aly looked like a little princess in her bright pink outfit. We got a precious picture of Grace and Aly in Aly's brand new chair. They were quite infatuated with one another. We both had a blast! We love the Giles family!!!

I'm sitting in front of the TV now, watching the Eagles vs Coastal Carolina game (I TiVo-ed it because we were at the birthday party). I already know that they won... thank you very much Mr. Stancil... but I'm still watching this great game. E-A-G---L-E-S..... GO EAGLES GO!!

Monday, January 4, 2010

Back to School!

Well, we've had a good first day back to school. We are using a bit of free time to blog about whatever is important to us at the moment. Some of us are writing about our breaks, some of us are writing about a poem/rap that we've written, and some are writing about important issues. I just want you to know that I enjoy reading your blogs. Your insight is profound.

I had a wonderful holiday break. I spent some time with my family. My brother, Kassem, is a Marine and he was actually able to spend Christmas with us. This is the first Christmas in two years that he has been home. Grace had her first Christmas and she was so cute! She loved playing with the wrapping paper and ribbons.

Did any of you make some resolutions? I did! I have decided that I am going to:
1) Watch less TV
2) Read more
3) Walk at least 5 times a week

What are your resolutions?