Introducing Cinder-Pumpkin

This October the 2nd graders at McKenzie Elementary School have been working on a creative writing project.  The goal of the project was to have the kids create stories in the classroom and then decorate pumpkins at home.  The decorated pumpkins could be created out of anything but had to be based off of the main character in the child's story.



Coming soon to the blog, Cinder-Pumpkin!, a new story from the creative mind of Alyssa  In this Halloween tale, Alyssa's main character Cinder-Pumpkin is based upon the classic Disney Princess Cinderella.  In her tale of hope, despair, disappointment, escape and romance Alyssa takes Cinder-Pumpkin on a harrowing ride in search of her one true love.  In the beginning our pumpkin princess is invited to the Prince's ball.  On the night of the ball she is attacked my mice, who violently tear Cinder-pumpkin's new ball gown to shreds.  In despair, Cinder-pumpkin runs to her step-pumpkin for help and discovers that instead of helping Cinder-pumpkin, the wicked step-pumpkin has other plans for her.  Cinder-pumpkin is bitten and takes on the form of a frog.  As a frog, Cinder-pumpkin must travel the world in search of the only person who can break the spell.  Her travels take her across all of the continents until she ends up in Antarctica and in the presence of her one true love.  In order to break the spell Cinder-pumpkin must remake her destroyed dress and get the prince to fall in love with her.  Upon falling in love, the prince must then kiss Cinder-pumpkin and return her to her pumpkin form. 

The picture to the right is our paper mache creation of the main character Cinder-Pumpkin. I really wish that we had pictures of us creating the character but with it being just me here with the kids and our hands being covered in glue there was no way that anyone was touching the camera until we were done.  In order to make the pumpkin we used the following supplies:

1-paper/foam plate
1-latex balloon
strips of orange construction paper
1-bottle Elmer's glue
2-white bead necklaces
1-white foam sheet
1sheet red felt
1 sheet yellow felt
1 sheet blue felt
1-Cinderella headband
1-permanent marker (black)
1- pair of scissors
1-paper clip
1-paint brush

With our materials gathered we were ready to begin.

Step 1: We poured half a bottle of glue onto the paper plate.
Step 2: We blew up the balloon to the desired size for our pumpkin.
Step 3:  We dipped the strips of construction paper into the glue and placed them onto the balloon.  We continued to do this until the entire balloon was covered in orange construction paper. (Be careful to leave the tied portion of the balloon exposed. You will need something to hold on to and a place to insert the paperclip for hanging.)
Step 4: With the balloon covered with strips of construction paper, we then painted a thin coat of glue on top of the construction paper. (Be sure to cover the entire surface)
Step 5: With the blow dryer set to it's cool air setting we then hung the pumpkin and used the blow dryer to dry the glue.  This took us approximately 20 minutes to do so but if you're not in any hurry you could always just hang it up to dry overnight.
Step 6:  We cut little strips of yellow felt, folded them over and glued them to the top of the pumpkin as the hair.
Step 7:  We cut two triangles out of the white foam (pumpkin eyes) and two penny sized circles out of the blue felt (eyeballs).  We then glued the blue felt to the center of the triangles and glued the triangles to the pumpkin.
Step 8: We cut a pair of lips out of the red felt, drew in a line with a black permanent marker to show the separation of the top and bottom lip then glued the lips to the pumpkin.
Step 9: We placed the headband on top of the pumpkin.
Step 10:  We cut some eyelashes from the yellow felt and glued them next to the outsides of the eyes.
Step 11: We glued one beaded necklace to the bottom as a necklace for the pumpkin (you may have to cut the necklace to size) and cut two beads off of the 2nd necklace and glued them onto the pumpkin as earrings.
Step 12: Using the permanent marker we drew eyebrows about the eyes.

I have to say that while this project was not hard to do at all it was extremely messy.  Our hands were covered in glue as were the cardboard protectors that I laid on the table before starting.  If you plan on doing this with a younger child I would suggest using aprons or smocks to protect your clothes and some sort of covering to protect your work space. Of course by using the Elmer's washable glue the mess all cleaned up easily and no damage was done.

It was a fun project and Alyssa was able to not only see but help create a visual of her main character.  She was so excited and can't wait to bring it to school tomorrow to show it off.  I can't wait for her to bring home her story.  I'm thinking that when that happens I'll set her up and video her reading Cinder-Pumpkin for all of us to enjoy.  Now to go find our Halloween decorations!

Revelations and Inspiration

Everyone gets inspired somewhere, sometime, and by some thing in life.  It's the where, the when and the what that changes for each individual.  For some we are inspired to follow a passion and we can spend a lifetime working with that passion.  For others, inspiration comes and goes in a variety of shapes and we may spend our lives devoted to several projects rather than just one.  Whatever it is that inspires you, no matter how many times the subject matter may change, the important thing is that you were inspired and within the process of following that inspiration you discovered a revelation about yourself.  This is where I am now. 

Due to economic pressures, I have been inspired to go back to school in order to obtain a degree so that I may return to the workforce in the near future.  I would like to make it absolutely clear that for the past eight years I have been content with being a stay-at-home mother.  My legacy is my children and it lies in their failures and success.  There is nothing in life that I could do greater than raising, caring for, providing for, teaching and loving my children.  The only problem is that in a society where our economy seems to be failing while the cost of living is rising it is becoming increasingly difficult to continue to provide for a family of five on a single salary of less than $45,000 per year.  So with Cayden getting close to being school age, Michael having been in college since 2009 and the increasing need for more income (not to mention setting an example for our children), I enrolled in our local community college and began classes this past August; my degree program being An Associates of Arts degree with an emphasis in instrumental ensemble and a teacher certification.

My initial inspiration for picking an Arts degree with a teacher certification seemed pretty standard.  I spent all of my primary and secondary educational years learning and playing music.  When I entered into college in the fall of 1997 I was a music major. I loved music and still have a great appreciation for it. With this sort of background in music it seemed only natural that I should continue to pursue a degree that would emphasize on music.  My next inspiration came from the increasing contact that I was experiencing with the children who attend school with Alyssa.  As I have spent more and more time at her elementary school volunteering and having more contact with the teachers and students I began to develop a desire to teach. The attentiveness, excitement, trust and willingness that each child displays on a daily basis is amazing. In a society today where everything and everyone always seems busy and rushed all these kids are looking for is for someone to take an interest in them; someone to show that they care about them; and someone who is willing to give them a few moments of their time.  This is where the teachers come into play. I have witnessed first hand how a teacher can make a huge difference in a child's life just by showing them a little individualized attention; by finding solutions to their behavioral problems rather than discarding them; and by supporting their students both within the classroom and in outside activities.  At the end of the day, after the students have gone the teacher's job is still not complete. In our school the teachers have been known to make an appearance at a student's birthday party or sporting event.  They have been known to give out their personal cell phone numbers to the student's parents and will take phone calls sometimes after 9pm with a willingness to answer and questions the parent may have.  They have also been known to organize special activities and make transportation arrangements so that students whose parents work would be able to attend an educational events after school hours. It is because of this that I have decided that I too would like to be a teacher.

My next source of inspiration comes from my nephew, Justin.  For those of you who know me or who read my blog you will recall that just three short months ago Justin took his own life.  There still are no answers as to why he did so and there probably never will be.  The morning that it happened everything for him was going as usual and there we no indicators of what that afternoon would bring.  Something, somewhere, within a moments notice, went horribly wrong for him and in an instantaneous decision that was made by him, whatever it was ended.  As a result of this loss the lives of many people have been dramatically changed; however, none more than that of his mother and father.  In the first 24 hours of receiving the news I, just like many others, spent a great deal of time crying, grieving and asking why.  I wanted someone to blame and wanted to know just what happened.  Being almost 600 miles away from where everyone else was left me with virtually nothing.  I am a realist who needs to know the details and truth no matter how harsh or gruesome they may be, but how do you ask such things in a situation like this?  The answer is....you don't.  You wait and let the details reveal themselves. Finally though, I have received many of the details about that day and the weeks preceding it and I would like to apologize to my sister for her having to relive some of those events.  While the details still provide no incite or information as to why we have ended up where we are it has inspired something within me to do something.  At first I wasn't quite sure what it is that I should be doing ,and in some aspects I am still not sure, but I am confident that the tracks have been laid for me and the rest will begin to fall into place.  Because of Justin I have been inspired first off to spend more time with my family and looking upon life differently.  The constant stress, worry, and anxiety is not what life is supposed to be about and I am working towards letting each of those go.  I have also begun to re-evaluate the pressures that as parents Michael and I may place on our children.  Of course we would like to see them exceed and excel but does that mean that there's no room for failure?  Of course it doesn't. What it means is that we want them to do things and experience things that they like. We want them to pass but if failure comes after they have tried their best well that's okay.  It is failure at the hands of not even trying that is unacceptable.

Another thing that I have been inspired to do as a result of Justin's death is to become involved in something, perhaps a non-profit organization.  Already I have created my own design of t-shirt geared towards suicide education and prevention.  I have even considered setting up my own website promoting the education and prevention of suicide but I just haven't decided exactly where to begin.  I have signed up to attend the "Dallas Survivors of Suicide Day Conference" in November and I have dedicated my web page project for my anthropology class to the study of suicide (a work still in progress).  I believe that suicide is a crime that leaves behind many victims and people of all ages need to be educated on what it is and how it can be prevented. I also believe that research needs to continue in understanding what suicide really is and what triggers it.  What causes a person to not only think about taking their own life, but to have the courage to actually do it?

My final inspiration as of late has come at the hands of my anthropology class.  This is a class that, when I registered for it, my advisor heavily discouraged me taking.  She argued that it was irrelevant to my degree program and would virtually be a waste of my time.  I argued that I could use it as a humanities credit and wanted to keep it.  In the end she convinced me to drop the Spanish class that I was enrolled in (because it too was irrelevant according to her) and I was able to keep the anthropology class; a decision that I am happy I made.  As it turns out, the further we move along into this semester the more interested I am becoming in anthropology.  I find that I actually enjoy learning about culture, ethics, and evolution.  I am finding that the anthropologist way of thinking and seeing the world is quite similar to my own; thus I am considering a change in degree programs and majors.  I love to question where we came from, how we got here, why people do what they do, what makes us tick, how we evolved and our place in the universe.  Never have I been one to take something at face value without questioning it's reasoning and origination.  Now I am in no way trying to insight a discussion on religion or anti-religion but when it comes to some things I just need more of an answer than "that's how God created it" or "you just have to have faith".  Religious leaders have always stood by their belief that God created the earth (Genesis 1:1) while scientists rely upon their belief of The Big Bang Theory.  When it comes to the religious aspects of it all I've always wondered how God created the earth.  Where was he standing?  Did space even exist?  What then would Earth have been modeled after and were then did God's realm and the God's come from? Who created them?  (Again, not inciting any discussions just explaining how I think). Unfortunately it is this way of thinking that has isolated me from many people in life because my thought process was considered sacrilegious, agnostic and wrong.  As a teen many labeled me an atheist or devil worshipper (something that I know now was a attributed only to their ignorance and lack of understanding).

So to get back on subject, basically I have developed an interest in anthropology and am considering a change of study.  I still have the desire to teach and can still acquire a teaching certification with any degree that I choose so no problem there. The problem lies with the music.  I still very much appreciate music and have some real ideas on ways that I could help change or mold the way that it is taught in our elementary schools.  I have a great understanding of how music works and can surely understand how to read it and interpret it's theories. However, I no longer consider myself to be a true musician.  I am just an amateur.  I have always played music by sight only and totally suck when it comes to recognizing things by ear.  I have not played music (outside of my home) in the past 13 years and I know that I am quite rusty at it.  I know that if given the opportunity I could begin to play again and reach the levels at which I once played but it would only be for self gratification. I have found that I have made excuses for not taking the ensemble and recital classes that are required every semester for a music major and can say that I have done so because I can recall the pressures of those classes when I attended Nicholls State University and how those pressures ruined my passion for music (something I do not wish to repeat).  So for now I think that I will continue to "experiment" with the anthropology classes whilst I continue my core education requirements and hope that my true path will become clear soon.  I want to stay close to music but am trying to find some way that I can incorporate it into the field of anthropology.  This of course will take some time and research in order to determine if the two can be combined and if it would be valuable.  So while I continue to ponder my future and the changes that I wish to make I'll leave you with some of the music that I have found both inspirational and helpful in getting me to think:







If Today Was Your Last Day~Nickelback





Savin Me~Nickelback

President Obama Visits Mesquite

President Obama was scheduled to speak today just half a block away from my home.  When I heard the news I couldn't believe that out of every college campus that Dallas, TX has to offer he chose to speak at Eastfield Community College; the college that I attend.  By the time the news of the President's impending arrival reached my ears it was unfortunately too late for me to procure tickets to the event from the school or to make arrangements to have the kids home in order to witness this once in a lifetime event.  Seriously how often can a person say that the President it going to not only be near their city but will be just down the street? Throughout the evening yesterday and this morning I continued to mull over the situation of having him so close to home and the chances that we would miss our moment to say we saw the President.

As I brought Alyssa to school this morning at 7:15am it was already quite apparent that something big was happening at the College Campus today.  News Crews were already camped out in the student parking lots, security was already in place at the entrance drives, school buses lined the back parking lot and barricades were being placed on the medians for future use. Obviously this was not going to be a normal weekday or class schedule for Eastfield Community College nor for the residents of the surrounding neighborhood. So I dropped Alyssa off at school and after a quick reminder from her that I was supposed to volunteer for their Glow in the Dark party today at 1pm I returned home still feeling the sense of excitement from all of the events that were scheduled to take place today. I also returned home wondering if once I left at 1pm would I be able to get back to my house before President Obama left the college.

At 1pm I left home and headed to Alyssa's school. By this time Motley Dr. was swarming with local law enforcement as well as people. The onlookers were lining the sidewalks, waiting to catch a glimpse of our 44th President and his motorcade.  As I continued to drive down Motley we could see that the police patrols were to include our local police department as well as Dallas police and campus police.  They were all out in force in their units, on bicycles, on motorcycles and on horseback.  Obviously they weren't taking any chances.

As I arrived at the school I wondered still if we would be done in time to see the President either arriving or leaving and if I'd be able to get back into my neighborhood without any issue.  Not only were the blocking off the streets but onlookers were parking everywhere. Fortunately the Glow in the Dark party moved along very smoothly from beginning to end and by the time the last kid had left the cafeteria and returned to class it was only 2pm. Obama wasn't scheduled to speak until 2:50pm.  So, I seized the opportunity to ask if I could take Alyssa from school early in order to get home and possibly allow her to see the President or at least his motorcade for herself.  Naturally the Principal saw no problem with her leaving a little early and after a brief conversation we were out the door and on a mission to see President Obama.

As we left the elementary school and turned back onto Motley Dr. it quickly became apparent that the streets were already blocked off and the President was on his way.  After a small detour back through the neighborhood where her school is located we were able to cross the interstate and were headed home. While on the service road we could see the President's motorcade already taking their exit off of the interstate and new that we only had moments before they would be passing our street.  When we finally made it home I quickly pulled into the drive way and got the kids out of the van.  We then ran the half of a block from our house to Motley Dr. in hopes of making it there before the President's car passed.  When we were just three houses away, the motorcade passed us and by the time we made it to the corner they had already turned onto the college drive and were headed to the college day care facilities.

Here we decided to wait. Surely after touring the day care facilities the would have to transport him back across the campus to the gymnasium, which is where he was scheduled to give his speech.  Afterwards he would have to depart the campus and we should have another chance at seeing him or his car.  As we stood and waited we began to notice the scene that was before us.  It was like being in a movie.  There were police officers and secret service everywhere.  There were snipers on top of the buildings and a helicopter flying overhead.  The school was completely locked down. No one was permitted on or off of the campus while the President was present.  They wouldn't even let us cross the street to the side where the school rests.  Down the street from us near the other entrance to the campus stood a group of tea partiers and protesters.  A man walked down the street carrying a sign that read "Obama get  your black communism out of Libya". All that was missing was the film crew and some explosions.  As we stood there and I pointed out the different things to the kids Alyssa took note of something else.  There were apparently Decepticons invading the campus across the street from us.  She was quick to point out the black secret service vehicle as well as the black and white police car.  So there it was...in her mind....a Transformers movie in the making.

As we continued to wait of course the kids started to become restless and as a means of passing the time Alyssa decided that it would be a good time to talk to the police officer working our street.  First she approached him and wanted to know what it is that he does exactly.  His response was that for today he was to do nothing but stand right there in the street and watch for cars that might try to get through. Then she wanted to know his name and she talked to him about school and science and even quizzed him on his math skills.  During their conversation she even looked at him and said "Hey! You know that there's Decepticons all over the place over there right?  I hope you guys brought the Autobots." Then after a few more sentences about which vehicles were the ever elusive Decepticons she said "I wonder where Optimus Prime is."  I have to hand it to him though, Officer Chad did a wonderful job in talking to her and entertaining her.  I'm sure he had lots to tell his family when he made it home tonight.

So we continued to stand and wait and the longer we did so the more you could really feel just how intense and grand this whole event was.  Everyone was being watched closely and no one was being allowed to move on that campus without permission from security.  As we stood there waiting an older gentleman in a red sedan pulled up and questioned Officer Chad on how he could possibly get onto the campus.  When he was denied access he became slightly irate and insisted that he was a professor at the college; he had a class that was scheduled to begin and one way or another he was going to gain access and not let his students down.  Needless to say that as soon as he put his car into reverse and began backing down the street, Officer Chad keyed up on his radio and made everyone else aware of the gentleman's intentions.  Within moments two secret service vehicles could be seen leaving the campus and heading in the direction that the professor had gone.  I suppose that not only was this professor going to be late for class but that he was also about to have a really bad day.

Finally after waiting for a short while, movement between the security details, secret service, and the helicopter overhead indicated that the President was going to be making his exit shortly.  So with the kids in tow I walked down Motley Dr. two more blocks, a little closer to the first drive entrance in order to get a closer and better view of President Obama's motorcade as it left Eastfield Community College.  As we walked closer we watched as all of the motorcycle officers got back onto their bikes and into formation on the road.  Within moments the President was back in his car and was leaving.  With a few seconds left to the battery life on my camera I was able to take a quick 10 second video of the President's motorcade as it drove off of the campus before it finally died.  The kids watched with excitement and waved and once he was gone we began to walk home. 

Here you can see snipers on top of the day care facility

(look on the left corner of the building just over the buses)



This is a picture of the group of people stuck on campus.

They kept them grouped together in front of the main building.

A Secret Service Agent is standing beneath the tree.



A sniper is on the roof of the C building

(look between the trees)

Alyssa & Cayden waiting to see the President

Here comes the motorcade leaving the day care facility.

The President is in the second car.

President Obama's car

Another shot of the car.

A shot of the helicopter landing behind the day care facility.

Waiting again.

The secret service vehicle that Alyssa says is a Decepticon

The Decepticon Police Car

A s hot from the corner of our street.  See all of the police and secret service?

Waiting......

The helicopter is taking off again

Alyssa talking to Officer Chad

Police and secret service with the motorcade lined up waiting for the President

The Motorcycle Cops lining up

Video of the President's Motorcade leaving

Playing Tourist in Dallas

This past weekend we decided to take the kids on a little tour of Dallas.  After living here in North Texas for the past six years and not ever taking the kids downtown for anything we decided that it was time.  With it also being the Day before Cayden's birthday I was hoping to do something that would be fun for the family and would allow for some great photo opportunities as well.  So on our first stop of the day we decided to take a trip down to the area known as Deep Ellum in order to see some artwork known as The Traveling Man that was erected at the Deep Ellum Dart Station.

The Traveling Man is a three-part stainless steel sculpture series that was created by Brandon Oldenburg and Brad Oldham.  The first part of the series (which we did not take pictures of) is located on the corner of Good Latimer and Elm St.  This sculpture, dubbed Awakening by its creators, appears to be and 8 ft. wide version of The Traveling Man's  head emerging from the ground.  It is surrounded by sculptural birds that have been polished to a mirror finish and whose bodies may be used as seats.

The second part of the series, known as Waiting on the Train, is located on the corner of Good Latimer and Gaston ave.  In this version of The Traveling Man, the 38 ft. structure appears to be sitting and playing his guitar while he waits for the next train.  As he plays his guitar he is resting his back upon what appears to be the back of a concrete seat, which we later learned was a concrete portion of the original Deep Ellum Tunnel.  Here the kids were able to climb all over this amazing sculpture and of course we took the opportunity to snap a few photos.

The third part of The Traveling Man series, also known as Walking Tall, is located on the corner of Good Latimer and Swiss Ave.  Here the sculpture stands 38 ft. tall and is a welcoming site to all visitors arriving at the Deep Ellum station.  Of course we took the opportunity to snap a few photos.

Now while you're in Deep Ellum, if you look around, you will notice artwork almost everywhere.  There are murals painted on many of the brick walls of the buildings and we could have probably spent all day just walking around and taking in all of the sites and art.  But being that we had one other stop that we wanted to make for the day we decided to take some quick photos against one of the wall murals before leaving.

Our next stop for the day was at Pioneer Park in Downtown Dallas.  Pioneer Park/Plaza is a 4 acre park that is located near the corner of Griffin St. and Young St. near the convention center.  One one end of the park there is Pioneer Cemetery and on the other end of the park there is a huge collection of bronze statues depicting a traditional cattle drive which were created by Robert Summers.  Here the kids had fun running the the statues, roping the cattle, climbing the rock ledges and jumping across the rocks in the stream.  Of course we also took advantage of some great photo ops as well.

After we finished up at Pioneer Park we headed home for some cake and ice cream in celebration of Cayden's birthday.