Fri. 1st--Today was the day we were going to see Ryan Hamilton for our family Christmas gift! The kids stayed home from school so we could leave mid-morning.
Earlier in the week, Ms. Juarez, the high school assistant principal, told me that we should probably meet with Ms. K, Calvin's honors English teacher about this incident. Jared already told me he has NO desire to be in the same room with her. I told Ms. Juarez that I didn't think that was a good idea. We had previously tried communicating with her earlier in the semester and she was pretty defensive. I told her that I didn't feel any good would come from a meeting with admin, teacher, and us. Juarez said that it was protocol and it would also help her figure out if this was happening to other students. Well, of course, I wouldn't want this happening to any other students, so I gave in and said, okay. "We'll do it your way. But let the record show, that we are not in favor of this meeting."
Ms. Juarez called Friday morning, and said that today was the first available day they had to do a meeting with this teacher, but she knew we were also trying to leave town. I had told her that it wouldn't work and we'd need to find a different time to meet. Then I realized that Jared and I were both off of work and I really didn't want to waste any PTO on this teacher or situation so I quickly changed my mind and told Juarez that we would meet before we left town since Jared and I were available anyway.
We said a prayer before we went--me, Jared and Calvin. I hate confrontation. We prayed that we would be calm and sensible and that we would get some answers from this teacher as to why she's allowing certain students (the ones who had a chance to speak to her before or after class about needing extra time, but wouldn't grant that same courtesy to all the students, especially one with a 504 that states he gets extra time anyway.)
The three of us drove over to the high school, checked in and were escorted back to a conference room. Ms. K was already there, hunched over the table, scribbling (literally, doodling) on a pad of paper in front of her. She didn't look up. She didn't greet us. We walked around to the other side of the table and stood there across from her. I smiled and extended my hand to introduce myself and say hello. Jared did the same. We sat down and essentially, Juarez was there to mediate. She started off by saying that we were all adults and were expected to act like that and to treat each other with respect. Then she told me to share my concerns.
I had been rehearsing what to say over and over and started sharing our perspective. I guess I got something wrong and she interjected to say something and I put up my hand and said, "Wait. Will you please let me finish?" I was worried I would lose my train of thought and never remember the points I wanted to make and the questions I had. Ms. K did NOT like that at all. And slumped back in her chair in defiance.
I went on and finished and her snide, sarcastic response was, "May I speak now?" I smiled and said yes. She started off with her version of the timeline and she had corrected something I said. She was right, I did get that part wrong. I spoke up to say, "Yes, you're right, I was mistaken about that." But as I did so, she flew off the handle, because I interrupted her (and I didn't let her interrupt me.) In an emotional response, she slammed her hands on the table, jumped up out of her chair and said, "I can't do this!" and stormed out of the conference room. I think we Houghs just watched with our mouths wide open.
I was shocked speechless. A teacher. A so-called professional, just threw a 2-year-old temper tantrum and stomped out of the meeting to who knows where. I was actually surprised and disappointed that the AP didn't go after her and insist that she continue with the meeting. But she didn't.
And there we were. Sitting in an ill-fated meeting that was a royal waste of our time. Against our better judgment, we carved space out of our days off and the beginning of our weekend getaway as a family to try and get this resolved and the teacher just ruined that. I was so upset because I knew we would never know the reasons why she did what she did. What a joke. But the teacher's inappropriate display of behavior should at least go toward the principal seeing her true character and lack of professionalism. We chatted a little bit with Ms. Juarez and then left. Still in shock about the events that transpired. Wow. I just knew that meeting with this teacher was not a good idea.
After we mulled over the ridiculousness of what had happened, on our way home, we decided not to think about it anymore. And vowed to focus on the joy of being together and commenced our 5 hour drive to Austin with our four kids.
We made it to our hotel with just enough time to grab some food at Chipotle to go before needing to get to the historic Paramount Theater.
The only time I had ever been in downtown Austin was when Jake was transported by ambulance in October of 2016 because he collapsed at his regional cross country meet. The hospital wasn't too far away, but I didn't see much. Just the capitol building.
*A family selfie just a block from the Paramount Theater. You can see the white lights in the top right corner above Calvin's head. :)
A kind theater usher took these pictures for us.
Other shots of the theater.
JJ wanted to to go to the tippy top, of course. We hiked a lot of stairs to get there. But we made it and have picture proof.
The bathroom.
So when we bought the tickets, we could only get 4 at a time. Even though we needed 6. Which seemed so weird that we could only get up to four at a time. But that was all we could do, so we got four of them together....seen here.
And another two...seen here. :)
The walls and ceiling are so pretty.
Cutie pie.
Famous people who have performed at the Paramount.
Chandelier.
Sat. 2nd--Yes...truth!! But in my case, it's bananas!
*Two days before we left Snyder and drove to Austin, I learned there is a new LIGHT THE WORLD giving machine that was just added in San Antonio and I have ALWAYS wanted to use one. After we moved away from Oregon, a Red Machine was installed in Portland. We left College Station and one showed up in Houston. I was starting to take it personally--I move and a Giving Machine shows up. And of course, there's not one anywhere near the less populated areas of west Texas. But we would be in a big city that weekend and basically "in the area" by Texas standards--it was only about 45 minutes out of our way. I don't always get my way, but when I do, we go to the Giving Machine in San Antonio. Haha!
The guy who opened the show for Ryan was really funny, too. But we loved watching and listening to Ryan. Just the way he talks...his delivery is classic--spot on. He talked a lot about all the differences between generations in the beginning. Like Gen X, Gen Y, Gen Z, Millennials, etc. Hilarious! He talked about the ridiculous housing market. And related his experience of getting hit by a bus!! We died. We were laughing so hard, we were crying. After an hour or so, he said his contracted time was up, but was having so much fun, he kept going and he entertained questions and requests for sketches from the audience. It was great. Well worth the money! I was actually surprised that there were not very many families there. We were one of the only ones. In fact, the ushers were surprised, too. We said our whole family can enjoy Ryan's comedy. But most of the patrons were young adults or middle-aged couples. Technically, that latter group includes me and Jared. But hopefully our kids keep us on the young side. :)
A family picture by the beautiful tree in the lobby. After the show, as is customary, we grabbed some ice cream and headed back to the hotel.
I'm not sure what I was more excited about. Ryan or the giving machine. Let's just say, it was an epic weekend! the Light the World giving machine was placed in the Pearl District. According to a former stake member friend of ours, it almost didn't happen.
It was a beautiful day. Not too hot, and not too cold. And we found the giving machine no problem. It was thrilling to be able to purchase things, specific things, from the vending machine to share and care for the needs of others in the San Antonio area and around the world.
Each of the kids picked something they wanted to give to others.
For $50 we were able to purchase:
*a HYGIENE KIT to give an immigrant a fresh, clean start to the day through the Interfaith Welcome Coalition that works with refugees.
*BOOKS to help an African girls discover the joy of education by reading through the African Girls Hope Foundation.
*4 CHICKENS to provide a family with income and nourishment through the Church World Service.
*70 MEALS to neighbors around southwest Texas through the San Antonio Food Bank.
Oh what joy fills my heart! I can't think of a better way to start the focused season of our Savior who loved all and gave all than by helping to lift another. Anne Frank nailed it when she said, "No one ever became poor by giving."
Sun. 3rd--This was Fast Sunday. And as I fasted and pondered on the things I was praying for, my thoughts took an unexpected turn. We had selected two families to be the recipients of our 12 Days of Christmas gifts that focus on Christ. One here in town and one out of state. The strong prompting I received was that we should forego the family out of state and give their gifts to Calvin's teacher. She was extremely rude and unkind and treated us with contempt. But the Spirit had spoken. Maybe she needed to feel the Lord's love more than the other family. Based on her reactions and how she handled this situation, I would have to agree. Clearly, there's something making her miserable. I floated the idea to the kids later that night. Calvin didn't look pleased. I told him that it would be anonymous. I wouldn't do it any other way. She can't know it's from us. Our very own Christmas Project. But we would know we were doing something that had the potential to brighten her day and to feel noticed by the Savior. What better gift could we give than that? Ultimately, it's not about changing her anyway. It's about changing our feelings about her. So after a discussion about really digging deep and the importance of forgiveness and the true Spirit of Christmas, it was settled. We agreed she would be our other focus for the 12 Days of Christmas. Regardless of Calvin's initial feelings, these gifts would not be wasted. We, of course, would never know of her reaction or thoughts or feelings. But it didn't matter. We knew we were doing the Christ-like thing. And that was enough.
This was what my Mac screen looked like when I opened it. Nooooo!!!!! (Please don't fire me!)
Turns out, they didn't fire me and issued me a new computer. Apparently, that's why they have warranties on the devices. I vowed never to put my water bottle into my bag ever again. It was a very secure lid, too. But somehow, the release button got depressed just right and water just flowed!
I lost my portable battery charger that I took with me to Scotland in the water bottle fiasco. Fortunately, it was only $30. I was worried about our laptop. Fortunately, it was as if water had never touched it!! What an incredible blessing! The one thing that did get damaged I could certainly replace much easier than a new laptop. And the MacBook damage was covered. I seriously dodged a bullet thanks to the grace and mercy of Heavenly Father.
*We had also recently learned that the hospital was increasing the cost of insurance to the tune of about $3,000 a year. For physicians, it's no biggie. One extra shift or weekend in the ER and that deficit is covered. Not the case with PA's. That's about $250 a month and no small thing when you've already earmarked every dollar in your budget. I figured it would probably be best if I tried to find more steady work than just subbing. It's not like you can find a sub job every day, believe it or not. Seems like all the jobs pop up for the same day. Like Thursdays or Fridays with coaches needing to leave for games, etc.
*We had also recently learned that the hospital was increasing the cost of insurance to the tune of about $3,000 a year. For physicians, it's no biggie. One extra shift or weekend in the ER and that deficit is covered. Not the case with PA's. That's about $250 a month and no small thing when you've already earmarked every dollar in your budget. I figured it would probably be best if I tried to find more steady work than just subbing. It's not like you can find a sub job every day, believe it or not. Seems like all the jobs pop up for the same day. Like Thursdays or Fridays with coaches needing to leave for games, etc.
I was hired by the Intermediate principal, Katy Cade, the year before in December. That's usually when you find out when people aren't coming back, etc. So I found a quiet moment with her after a teacher meeting and just let her know, I was in the market for more full-time work. I know that the semester time is when things tend to pop up and asked her to keep me in mind if something came available. She said she would. Well, on this day, even after ruining a MacBook, Katy reached out to me and said she had a position that would likely be open. There was a teacher who wasn't working on her certification and so they were going to have to let her go. Turns out...it was teaching Science and Social Studies with my teacher bestie, Elizabeth Hermosillo and my math mentor from the year before, Melissa Sorrells. What fortune!!! I was excited to teach science and social studies. They aren't tested subjects so the pay is quite a bit less than it was when I taught math. But...so is the stress level and things you have to do. You don't have to give them tests. Fun projects and discussions. I was excited!!
Tues. 5th--Today marks the one year of Melodee's passing. My sweet friend. I can hardly believe it. 12 months. 365 days. I've thought about her. A lot. And her family. I miss her. I feel like I lost a cheerleader in my life. Someone who understood me. The world is definitely a lonelier place without her in it. But it is definitely a better place because she came. Til we meet again, Mel.
*A much needed pick-me-up picture of Thomas and Trina.
Wed. 6th--Thank goodness families are forever!
*Indeed!
*Jared and I drove up to Lubbock to do sealings at the House of the Lord. It was a wonderful evening together.
The nativity they had set up outside.
Picture proof.
As we came home, we noticed a deer in Dixie's front yard across the street. It's not unusual to have deer in our more rural area. But it was still special.
Thurs. 7th--This will soon be my schedule as I take over for Mrs. Bradshaw. I'm not thrilled about having my conference period at 9:20 in the morning, but having 90 minutes for prep is definitely nice! But lunch at 10:50am? Ooof. It's like a second breakfast. Haha!
*Later that night, JJ and I went to his TKD Christmas party. JJ wanted us to take spaghetti. So we did. Then there was a gender neutral gift exchange. We didn't know what to get, so we purchased a gumball machine. JJ got a small blanket with Tae Kwon Do on it. Such a great gift idea.
The grand master is also the man who owns Trees, Etc. and removed our big juniper tree, two small mesquites, and ground out several tree stumps after we moved in!
*Calvin's acne on his back.
*The Christmas card JJ wrote for his science teacher, Mrs. Thomas, my friend, and his former homeroom teacher last year. I actually gave all of his teachers a wool scarf or gloves straight from Scotland. Mrs. Thomas was one of the only ones who actually thanked me for them. I was so excited and it was a bit of a let down that they weren't as excited as I was. Oh well.
Fri. 8th--We didn't have school today. Woo hoo! So we worked on gifts and cleaning up around the house. Kevin had his Christmas office party, so we went to that for a little bit.
*Sweet Thomas.
Sat. 9th--We had bowling leagues and then ran some errands at Sams before heading home. Calvin and JJ were particularly taken with the robot cleaner at Sams.
*Jake and Trina sent pictures of their tree cutting experience.
Jake getting the tree back to his car.
Jake trimming his tree to get it on top of his car.
The decorated tree and Thomas supervising.
It's a Charlie Brown tree. I love it!
Tues. 12th--Our chain activity for the day....cotton ball scoop. Whoever got the most in 1 minute, won. Karcyn did pretty well.
JJ not so much.
Alright. Stand back and let the pro show you how it's done.
So I didn't do as well as I had hoped. And actually, Calvin knocked it out of the park. Lame.
*The prizes for the winners of the game that Jared (aka the EQ) was in charge of at our Branch Christmas Party that night. Jared was going to be late because he had to work. They served brisket and I mistakingly thought there'd be some leftover when he and Cooper arrived. I was very wrong. :(
Calvin did a smidge better.
*What's NOT lame is that I've been teaching these fourth graders the EXACT same module in math that taught at the beginning of the year when I filled in as a 4th grade math/science teacher in January. It's module 5...FRACTIONS. I thought this was ironic since that unit was the bulk of what I taught the first time around. It's a long unit. My 4th graders in January didn't do so hot on their test assessments either. But it was the first time our school had used that curriculum and the first time we had tested with it. I followed and did everything the scripted curriculum said to do. Even still, made me feel like a terrible teacher.
So for my entire sub job this fall, I taught the same module. I was at least familiar with the content. But besides being more familiar with the conceptual vocabulary, I didn't do anything different. Imagine my surprise when I had about 10 students (out of 35) get 100s on the test on top of several other students who scored an A. Admittedly, I believe the test was a little easier because the teachers took out the ridiculously difficult questions. I was so proud of these kiddos and Mrs. Neff was thrilled! I pondered on why the students did better on the test this go around than the first time I taught it. And I realized it's because of the student demographic. These kids, in the dual language program, are driven, self-motivated and come from families that expect great things out of them. There are still a few who struggle, but overall, they're the cream of the crop. In contrast, at the beginning of the year, I had 4th graders whose parents were accusing me of grabbing their kids at the back of their necks and shoving them. Or were berating me for not spending all of my instructional time with their one child. So yeah, family support, coupled with home life and parent attitudes trickle down to their students to determine success in school or the lack thereof. It's definitely a lot easier (and cushy) being a teacher of students who want to do well and succeed whose parents are holding them to high standards.
Thurs. 14th--C'mon! That's funny!
*Rolo did a good job burrowing himself into our pillows.
Sat. 16th--Over the past year or so, Jared has had a nagging feeling that Cooper's sleeping issues aren't related to narcolepsy. Quite the opposite. Sometimes, he can stay up for 32 hours straight and can't go to sleep. So we finally ordered him another sleep study. Which confirmed, he does NOT have narcolepsy. But now we knew what meds to get him off of and which ones to get him on and hopefully get his healthy sleep habits back on track.
The fun part about living in a small town, is that you see people you know.
*For one of our chain activities, we decided to be bell ringers for the Salvation Army. JJ was still feeling puny so it was just me, Karcyn, and Calvin. We could not have asked for a more beautiful December day.
We'd never done this before, so we just winged it. But Karcyn was a natural. She rang her bell the entire two hours and genuinely reached out to every person who passed and brought in a crowd of strangers. That's when I realized she'd be an awesome missionary on Temple Square or at a Church History site. She knows no stranger.
Like Grandma.
Sun 17th--JJ still wasn't feeling well so he stayed home from church.
*Elder Rasband said, "I have called many couples to serve (missions) and watched as the Light of Christ has filled their countenances. At their return, they have described growing closer to the Lord and closer to one another, feeling the Spirit of the Lord pour down upon them, and knowing they are making a difference. Who would not want that? A mission might be the greatest chapter in a couple's life."
I don't know what the average collection amount is for two hours on a Saturday afternoon. But when I reached out to the supervisor a few days later to find out how much we collected, he responded with, "$141.92!" He seemed happy and I feel like that was a pretty good "service haul" for a couple hours. We of course owe all our success to Karcyn who rang her bell for 2 hours, nonstop.
Introducing the *future* Elder and Sister Hough. I cannot WAIT to serve a couple's mission with this guy. (Only about eighteen-ish years to go!)
Mon. 18th--Dress up day at school...be sparkly!
*Later that night, JJ was trying to excavate some gemstones from a kit he bought. Calvin was supporting his efforts.
There were like 14 hidden gems.
Tues. 19th--Dress like an Elf day!
Wed. 20th--This was JJ's last school Christmas program and it was fortunate that I was able to take a half day to go see it. It was a bit ironic though. It felt a lot like Mike Wazowski from Monsters, Inc. who was always covered up for his public appearances.
*So Calvin, who had been hanging out in the library under the AP's counsel during his honors English class, finally returned to the classroom for the last week or so of the semester so that he could get the credit for being in honors that semester at least. The school was like "It'll effect his GPA if he's not in honors." We're like, "We don't care if it's not going to effect his graduation requirement. He needs to be in a classroom where he has a chance to be valued and successful." But we told him he could suck it up for the last few days which were really only two and then finals. It was almost over.
*We were delivering Christmas boxes to families in the branch--and one of our stops was Yvonne and Johnny Jimenez's home. They have a herd of chihuahuas and a few mutts. :) The boys were in dog-heaven and loved playing with them.
JJ is in the top row, just to the left of center. Green shirt, Santa hat. He's short already, but to add insult to injury, the girl right below him, also at least a grade younger than him, was wearing an antlers headband and they kept blocking his face!
And here.
And here.
Argh. Curse those antlers!
Finally an opening!
The absurdity became comical.
*This was PJ day at school. I wore my Bulldogs Christmas shirt because I went to Ira to watch JJ's Christmas program.
*These earrings you see are actually ornaments! I rigged them to be the ultimate dangly earrings!
Thurs. 21st--Today was the dual-language Christmas breakfast. Kaylee Neff (the teacher I was subbing for) came for the event. It's hard to believe that my seven weeks as a long term sub were coming to an end. It was delicious and a success. Can't beat a breakfast potluck with a bunch of hispanic families. :)
He made a valiant effort to move his head to the side, as seen below.
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. Farewell to the Christmas program!
Sat. 23rd--I don't know why we didn't get a picture at any point in the evening, but as soon as Jared got home from work, we adults, plus Karole drove up to Lubbock for Karcyn's 7:30pm appointment to get her Patriarchal blessing. The Patriarch interviewed Karcyn and after that, he sat and spoke with us for over an hour. Actually, we got a history lesson about some things from the Book of Mormon and other connections we hadn't considered before. It was interesting, but not what we expected. Karcyn's actual blessing was very sweet and special. I hope she always remembers it.
We read from Luke 2, Calvin sang a solo "If you love her," JJ did magic tricks, Karcyn did a Studio C recitation, and Karole shared some of her favorite Christmas memories. Then we ate yummy food. JJ especially loved his milk and marshmallows.
A battery operated hand-warmer for tennis.
JJ opening the family gift from Aunt Kelly and Uncle Steve. $100!
*JJ continuing to work on his TKD skills.
Wed. 27th--Even though Jake isn't at home for me to keep Christmas and his birthday separate, I can't have the Christmas decorations up past the 27th. It's tradition now. This little reindeer was given to me as a gift from one of my students, Harper Hayes. So I named the reindeer Harper to remind me.
*Calvin feeding Rolo a pup cup with whipped cream in it.
*Our true identity.
Fri. 29th--Calvin and I went to run a few errands and while we were out and he found "his" hat!
Sat. 30th--I took the youth up to Lubbock for the New Year's stake activity and dance. JJ stayed with Korbin because Jared and Cooper were headed to Dallas to see a Cowboy's game.
Thurs. 28th--Such a sweet promise.
Karcyn and Calvin jumped right in with the activities.
*A beautiful winter sunset.
*Jared was finally able to take Cooper to his Dallas Cowboys game four years after they had planned it. Covid and a move and other circumstances had gotten in the way. But this was the year! And miraculously, the Cowboys won, beating the Detroit Lions.
*Karcyn decorated this cookie for me at the stake activity.
*Updates from the boys who were watching The 'Boys.
Sun. 31st--HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Saturday was a super late night for ALL of us, so we celebrated a Scottish New Year at 6pm with the Elders complete with shrimp cocktail, sushi, and guacamole and salsa. ;) Some years are definitely harsher and more heartbreaking than others. But, as our living prophet, Russell M. Nelson, has said, "If you have responded to your trials with a stronger discipleship, this past year will not have been in vain." May we all move onward and upward with gratitude in our hearts and faith in every footstep.
*Taco, Cat, Goat, Cheese, Pizza.
*Jared getting the New Year's brisket ready to smoke.
*Hahaha.
*Calvin made it to the finals round with the hula hoops and cones, beating out his buddy, Joseph McCombs.
But in the end, when it was the final two, he was beat by a girl. ;)
