A CHALET AND A PROJECT

What a joy to see all of you back all rested ( some not ) and glowing.

I found out most of you had a great holiday, were very spoiled and enjoyed being with your loved ones.

It`s good to know that even though you are teenagers you still enjoy being with your family ( parents included) . There`s hope for my kids. I figured when they hit 14-16 years old the last thing they`ll want is being with mom and dad therefore planning on enjoying the next 8 next Christmases. Wrong, you guys had quite a family holiday and were all smiles when talking about it. That really impressed me. You guys are great.

Our Jean Nicolet School tradition was just fun this year. For those not attending the school, the tradition consists of the whole school ( staff and students ) skipping period 1 to get together in the central corridor for free juice and doughnuts and lots of mingling between the teachers and students.

I had the chance to speak to my kids and to those I had last year now in Sec.5.

One told me she is going to study Language Arts to become an English teacher ( the new generation woohoo ) and told her our profession needs passionate and energetic teachers and she fit that profile.

I then chatted with an other student to fix our dinner date. Karine won the typical German meal I had offered for the school`s Christmas auction and she won. January 18 is the official date and surprises are already in the works.Can`t wait.



By 9:30 I had had 3 cups of java and was pumped. Along with the all the hugs and kisses from my kids I was bouncing off the walls so much I was bubbly. By noon I was ready to go back home and take a nap while thinking : " But I`m only 35, what will it be when I`m 50 ?"

Ahem.

So I quit the coffee and switched to water. I still had the whole afternoon to do and didn`t want to scare my kids by talking 100 miles an hour.

Before I went to heat up my lunch ( I was meeting a certain sec.5 student for a secret project )I meet another sec.5 student waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs.

" Annie " he tells me, " Remember the homemade caramel you gave me the last day before the holidays ? Well I dropped the jar and it broke so I never got to eat it ! "

Etienne has the cutest puppy eyes after my son`s so what do you think happened ?

" Etienne, what a coincidence I have a brand new jar upstairs in my office in the fridge and a little something you might like with it , just follow me "

And to my office we went.

I hand him the jar in question and freshly homemade bread done last Sunday night. Actually my bread machine made it but it`s a real treat.

Of course there was a bunch of teachers in the office and enjoyed telling me I spoil my kids too much and asked what THEY should do to get the same star treatment ?

Etienne and I just ignored them.

Why do I spoil them so much ?

I don`t think I do really.

I just give a little of what they give me.
They feed me and I feed them caramel.

I taught these kids 2 years and unconsciously spoiled me rotten by being interested, interesting, so sweet and authentic, always giving their best, trying new stuff ( risk ) and they`re cute.

How many teachers on God`s green earth can boast about that ? Honestly.

They give me a lot so once in a while, I give back.

My kids in Sec.2 and 4 this year : SAME THING.

Etienne : enjoy darling.



By now you`re wondering about the title of today`s blog and when I`ll get to the point.

Well, for the past ten years ( Nadia correct me if I`m wrong ) my sisters and I reunite at this chalet ( log cabin ) way up in the mountains in the middle of nowhere where we gather together with our husbands ( NO KIDS ) for 3 days and basically do a lot of things : A lot of eating, dancing, playing poker, eating and not a lot of sleep.

We try to stop time for a few days : no phone, no tv and lots lots of talking and laughing.

This year after a few years of absence , our baby brother ( he`s 30 ) joined us with his fiancée.

It was her first time at the chalet and I hope to God we didn`t scare her.

My sisters ( we are three girls and a baby brother ) my brother and I have tons of fun together. We become kids again- pesky even ( you`ll have to check pesky in the dictionary kids ).

Always respectful and in good taste but pesky. We turn 5.

We figure the spouses are the only adults in the chalet and that`s not a reference sometimes.

Unfortunately my brother had brought a karaoke this year.

Bad idea.

We loved the darn thing but we had no talent.

You should have heard Caroline singing Scarborough Fair( Now titled : A Caro Scare ) or Nadia, Caroline and I with Lady Marmelade ( Now titled: 3 filles malades )

Bad, nasty even.

We thought we were great.

It`s only the next day when we viewed the video ( because we like to film our stupidities )

did we blush. We finally understood why our two dogs were howling so much.And our spouses too as a matter of fact !

Have you ever laughed so much you cried. Well that`s life up on the mountain in the chalet- for three days.

Now do you understand why I miss it so ?

But seriously next year, Karaoke : no way !

Unless my brother accidently packs it........



Ok Annie, enough -what about the project ? I need your help.

Actually there are two ;



Number One :

January 27 is the international literacy day ( the quality or state of being literate, esp. the ability to read and write. )
Lots of elementary schools within our school board need books.
Kids like books in general but if they are good and not too outdated. And what better way to encourage elementary kids to read than with " new " books. Not new , right out of the store new, but in the sense never been seen book. Understand ?
I am sure you have old books at home somewhere you haven`t touched for a while and do not know where to store them anymore .
Why not give it to teachers who have books so old that they are actually as old or older than me. Imagine.
So you have till January 18 to hand in your books that I will redistribute across the school board in your name.

Number Two :
For my own personal research I need your input.
Answer the following question on a loose leaf ( it shouldn`t be long ) and hand it in for January 18 also. Bonus points for anyone participating.
The question :
In all your years as a full-time student, aside from the subject they taught, what have teachers taught you over the years?
For example, take your grade 6 teacher, aside from math, French etc.what did you learn from him or her ?
I do not want any names, keep it anonymous but do write yours on the loose leaf so I can give you your bonus points.

On that,
Tata,
Annie

HAPPY NEW YEAR !

What do you do when 2007 was so great you don`t want it to end an a new year is just around the corner ?
You deal with it while savoring each little moments of 2007 to the last drop.
Every year I like to remember the year,month by month and look back on the special highlights.
I`m still grateful I can remember because sometimes ( more often ) I do not even remember what I had for breakfast.
I will spare you all the details but let me say : rarely can you say you had the opportunity to fulfill a lifetime dream and I had the privilege to realize 3-THREE of my dreams in just one year.
Here goes:
#1- Bought my " new " 1973 Mustang.
Named it after my two kids : Filou and Rose ( Filou`s Rose Royce ) . Do ya get it ?

#2- Went to Fenway Park in Boston again but this time saw a game ( they won too ).

#3- Had a role in a short and professional movie. What an experience !!

So after a grrreat year, what more could a girl want you say ?
New dreams of course.
I don`t have any for now except going back to Fenway Park but this time with my husband and kids. Can`t wait.
As for the others, they should float around in my head soon. They usually come when I`m brushing my teeth. I don`t know why. It usually starts with " Wouldn`t it be just grrreat if...."
Then I take action. I believe taking action attaining the objective is just as fun and rewarding as the dream itself. The ultimate goal is great too, don`t get me wrong. You should have seen me at Fenway Park last May.....And when I got my Mustang....Nuts, I simply went nuts .

So today was the first day back at work after almost 3 weeks off.
Waking up with the alarm clock was so brutal, a shock to the system.
Now usually the free coffee at work helps to get in the swing of things but it didn`t.
I basically woke up at around 11:00 a.m, the problem was that I came in at 8:30.
Where was my brain all that time? Still on vacation. I felt like Homer Simpson : " Ummm donuts ..." Except for me it was more : " Ummm,pyjamas, my kids, reading, falling asleep on the couch..." Yep, the lights were on but nobody was home .
When the buckets of coffee finally kicked in though - I was very productive.
Selected the winning logo for the contest with Karyna and Dany . There was no name behind the logo so Karyna and I have no idea who won . It`s great.
Prepared lots of stuff and made a list of all the things I have to do and panicked.
I should have rested more during the holidays. I should have gone to bed earlier, I should have relaxed more shoulda shoulda shoulda.
Well it`s too late for now honey. Your vacation is over and the proof is right in that list . Stop whining and get organized girl.
Why did I have to be a teacher ?
Why not work at Wal-Mart and greet clients at the door ? " Hello, happy shopping . "
Why not work in an office where if you make mistakes it doesn`t really matter ?
Why can`t I be a stay-at-home mom? ( Because I would be so miserable and bored I would kill my kids that`s why ! ).
Because it`s never boring.
Because I need the action.
Because there are never 2 days the same.
Because I`m hyper-active.
Because I love the people I work with ( my kids and co-workers ).
Maybe one day when I grow up I could do a boring job, but for now although I find it difficult to get back in the hamster wheel, I`ve decided to take it one step at a time.
That`s my resolution for 2008.
In my opinion,resolutions are made to be broken but this time I intend to stick to it.

Tomorrow it`s officially the start of the rest of the year and honestly, I can`t wait to see my students. Thank God you guys are great because it would make it even harder to leave my kids and pyjamas behind .
On that, happy new year : love,health and fun. The rest is extra.
Work hard but most of all,play hard.

TaTa,
Annie xx

PS : if you have something really important to tell me tomorrow, I recommend you wait till after 11:00a.m. Just in case....

LOCKED UP !

It started out just like any ordinary, normal day.
I get to school not totally awake but with my cup in hand, it`s a question of minutes....

As I mention in the heading, teaching is never boring and that's the main reason I enjoy it so much.
Today was not boring.
Unforgetable is a better adjective.

I have my ex-student in Sec.5 who charmingly asks me to judge the fashion show auditions ( 75 candidates ) and of course, I can' t say no when it's asked so darn nicely.

Just before:periods 2 and 3 we do our t-shirts and take a group picture downstairs.
So far so good.

I judge the fashion show with 2 of my co-workers and before I go , I accept to do tomorrow's judging for the boys' this time. And off I go to a Sec.2 meeting which I am obviously late to.
I had warned everyone of my tardiness so they weren't too surprised to see me show up.

I have 2 more periods to go so I grab a soup to go ( very practical ) and head back to my classroom.
Period 1 afternoon.
So far so good.
Period 2 afternoon at this point I' m running out of both fuel and breath but there are but minutes left, I should make it in one piece.
That's when it happened.

My Sec.2 kids were working on their Christmas skit : 'Twas The Night Before Christmas and there were just 15 minutes left in the period.
I had 2 students working very well and for a reason which would be too long to explain, they end upin my classroom closet and lock themselves in.
At first I think they are pulling my leg.
They tell me it's Edgar Allen Poe's fault because as some of you know, his spirit lives and he often likes to open the closet door with a creaking sound just to say hello.

So two minutes before the bell rings I feverishly but unsuccessfully try to pry the door open while the rest of the group surrounds me for motivation.
Some of my strong students attempt, in vain.

What do you do when everything else fails ?
You get Line.
She tries.
The girls are doing fine, not panicking at all but I certainly starting to.
Line giggles which helpslower my adrenaline-adrenaLINE- get it ?
A few minutes later, a whole group of curious come in the classroom.
Teachers.
Who do we finally fetch and eventually gets the door open ?
Joseph the maintenance man.
Bless you Joseph.
While Joe was working on the door, I remembered I had the camera in my office.
Got a lot of it on it.
At least the best part: Joseph and Georges CAron unhinging the door, pulling the door open and the girls finally getting out in one piece , blushing but smiling.

Nice going girls, you were as cool as cucumbers.
GIRL POWER !

I am so going to milk this one with these girls-they`ll have to beg me to stop teasing them about this !!!


On this I say buy lottery tickets, with your luck you may not have to go to university after all.

Tata
Annie

PS : From now on NOBODY goes in my closet-unless I put you there!!

What am I listening to lately?
New band I discovered :http://www.myspace.com/smallsins
Great when driving .

Tata,
Annie

KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK !

Hi Guys.
I'll be brief tonight.
Two things I want to talk about.
Make that three.
Ok so I might not be that brief after all.

1- Tomorrow December 11th is D Day.
Philipe is coming and we will finally get the chance to write on our t-shirts.
I'm bringing the camera and taking a group picture.
Should be pretty good.

2- Before we head off on holiday, I want to remind you that you can borrow any English books in the bookshelf in the back to bring home .
You'll miss English so much while you' re home you' ll want to read English stuff for sure.
Do not hesitate.

3- I also want to congratulate you on your behaviour in class.
When we get this close to the holidays, students usually slack off a bit and become a little bit rowdy.
So far so good with you guys.
I hope I do not jinx it by talking about it.
Just keep up the great work and everything will be just fine.
As you saw today, this week and next are pretty full so we can`t quit now.
We also got lots of fun stuff on the program so keep it up guys.

Wow I can be brief .

Tata,
Annie

YOU CRY, I CRY, WE CRY

Imagine a certain ped.day: Friday afternoon to be exact and I`m off because of overtime I did at school.
Pierre is in Québec city with Paul Lachance and Frank Brisson ( my favorite dudes at school ) visiting museums for school.
So I`m all alone with the kids.
As I mentionned earlier, they had great report cards and Félix-Antoine was sucking up to his mom for no reason- everything`s fine.
Ok he talks too much in class.
Félix talks too much period.
Try driving to Ottawa with him - wishing you could drop him off on the highway.
He talks A LOT !
I told his teacher to do what she had to do and that she has our full cooperation.

Anyway, back to my afternoon off.
We eat lunch and then it starts snowing.
A Christmas snow.
Alright kids-get dressed, we`re going out.
And we did.
We walked to the dépanneur to rent a movie and for a walk.
On the way I meet my twins I taught last year : Olivier and Carl.
What a treat.
God I miss them.
We talked for about 15 minutes while my kids were making snow angels in the snow banks.

When we finally get home, we watch Chalotte`s Web : Le Monde de Charlotte.
I read the book when I was in elementary school and saw the animated version when I was my son`s age.
I was at my grandma`s house. I will always remember it.
So we cuddle and watch it.
It is very sad at the end and my son cried.
As he is crying I see myself at his age at my grandma`s house and remember how much I had cried back then.
So I cry with him.
And Rosie`s crying because we are crying.
Filou is a very sensitive boy. He has no shame crying at his age and I wish he`d stay like that forever but I do know there will come a time when crying because of a movie will be unacceptable so in the meantime, I`m enjoying it ( really ).
Rosie and I will have the rest of our lives to cry over sad movies.
It`s a girl thing.

How did it go in Rosie`s class ?
Wonderful!
I even got a group hug.
These 6 year olds lifted me off of my feet, literally. Twice.
Thank you Mrs.Louise for inviting me.
Invite me again.
My little ballerina had her last class tonight before X-mas vacation and we ( the parents ) were invited.
Wow.
She has progressed a lot since last year.
She enjoys it. She is focussed and she is good.
Mommy`s proud.

Tuesday December 11 is coming around.
What`s so special ?
Philippe Taillon is coming back to help us with your t-shirts.
You guys did a great job selecting a social issue and your slogans.
Example : Drinking and driving : Drink-Drive-Die.
Simple,clear message, very effective.
Congratulations everyone.
I can`t wait to see you wear the actual t-shirts!
Next time, we`ll write funny messages on them.
After March break.


I gotta go,
I have to deck the halls early tomorrow morning.
TaTa
Annie

WITNESS

I know I last wrote not too long ago but I need to write this.
My sister Caroline met a wonderful guy last year: He laughs at ALL my jokes too therefore I love him.
They are so happy together.
I have just hung up with Caro and we spoke for about an hour and 75 per cent ( darn I can`t find the percentage sign on my keyboard )-% there -found it.
Anyway, She loves this guy.
I also like him because he makes her happy.
She has all the signs of someone in love :
1-A skip in her step
2- A constant smile : like she has a coat hanger stuck in her mouth.
3- She talks about him so much EVEN I want to marry him : I`m saying this in a positive way.
4- THE GLOW.

Although I am so totally 100% happy, thrilled for her, I kinda ( I feel guilty about it but what the heck ) felt jealous. There said it!

But then I started thinking and thought to myself : " Hey you beautiful but stupid girl-look who you`ve been married to for the last 15 years ( YES I married VERY YOUNG ) ."

Today it really hit me why I really love this man.
The little things.
I`ve been secretly keeping tabs of a list of things I love about this man.
It`s been going on for two weeks now.
Do you want the whole list or the top 10 ?
Here goes : Do you have an hour and a bag because brace yourselves- it WILL get really cheesy.

1- He`s an artist.Opposites attract.
2- He`s a great cook.Opposites attract!
3- He makes the best wings in the world.
4-He has integrity.
5-He also laughs at all my jokes even when they are not funny. He`s my best audience.
6- He`s a grreat listener-trust me even when I think he`s not listening, he`s listening.
7- He makes beautiful kids.Great DNA.
8-He`s SIMPLE-not complicated-easy-going.
9-He`s always calm even when I panic- I do that a lot.
10- He brings me my morning coffee at 7:30 in the upstairs bathroom while I work on my face and that EVERY morning for the last 15 years.
11- He tucks me in at night when I ask him.
12-He supports me in my projects no matter what they are.
13- He`s honest-no bluffing, no lies.
14- He`s tall : I love tall men.
15- He opens doors for me .
16- He has a great soul.
17- He makes me laugh.
18- He`s a great nurse when I`m sick.
19-He`s a drummer .
20- He makes a mean cup of coffee.
21- He doesn`t boss me and he never lets me boss him around.
22-I`m a rollercoaster.He can handle the ride !

I have known Pierre since high school ( sec.2 ) and when I think I know everything about him, he surprises me.

This morning, while I was teaching, he came to see me to tell me with a smile from ear to ear : " I just received your Chritmas gift and you`re just gonna go nuts !! "
all this while my 6 foot 3 man is jumping up and down.
And he adds : " I would really look forward to Christmas if I were you ."
And he takes off leaving me in the corridor with my mouth open.
Do you see what I mean ?
I honestly wish my daughter gets a man like her dad.
Poor future son-in-law, you have big shoes to fill.

My friend Guy at work once told me : You and Pierre are really happy huh ?
And I answered : He makes feel like a princess even 25 years later.
The best thing about this is that I look, observe my 8 year old son Félix and I see his dad in him- he`ll be just like him.
He makes me feel like a princess too.

So there, now you know why I don`t feel jealous of Caroline anymore but instead I see the love they share and I can`t keep from smiling because I feel Caroline is getting her share of love and happiness .
She deserves it.
To Nick I say : welcome to the Fröhlich clan.
You are officially a member of ( since last weekend ) The Bisons Des Prairies or AKA The Fröhlich brothers-in law secret club.
Seriously, you`re a super duper great guy.
You and Pierre are very similar.
Enjoy the ride with Caro, she`s a rollercoaster too!
I can confirm that your life will never be boring.
Take good care of her.
Treat her right or I will have to kill you- not me but very good Italian friends of mine.
Just kidding.

What do I think Pierre got me for Christmas : I haven`t found it yet but :
1- A new Red Sox t-shirt( I ruined my new favorite one while handling chemical products- I was house cleaning.
or
2- A Red Sox hand-made purse. EBAY
or
3- A Red Sox jersey.
or
4- A Red Sox tote bag.
or
5- A pink Red Sox school bag.
or
6- A t-shirt with : I`d Rather Be At Fenway on it.

Do you want to know how blonde I can be at times ?
I got a puppy last Christmas after months of hinting or should I say begging.
When Pierre walked in the door on December 24th with our new chocolate Labrador puppy with a Christmas ribbon around her neck I said : " Who`s dog are we babysitting during the holidays ?"
I was sure she was someone else`s.
Her name is Bailey`s ( one of favorite alcoholic beverages) but to this day my kids think it`s chocolate fudge because we use use Bailey`s in our family recipe.
So when strangers say aaaah Bailey`s like the drink, my kids are always quick to correct them and answer: No like mom`s chocolate fudge !!
Call childcare services now.


On that I`m off.
I`m visiting Rosie`s grade 1 class tomorrow morning : show and tell.
That should be very interesting.
And I`m bringing surprises-are they gonna love me or what ?
I`ll tell you all about it later.

And tomorrow night is parent-teacher night for both my kids.
My kids have great report cards but Félix-Antoine has been suprisingly obedient and doing some serious sucking-up with his mom.
So my question is : What will his teacher have to tell me aside that he`s very cute and intelligent ?
I am afraid.
I`ll keep you posted.

TaTA
Annie

ROLLERCOASTER- BEAUTIFULLY UNDONE

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