4H End of Year Party

 It's not really an end of year party since we start again in a few weeks, but fair did finish so our club had a celebration. Because we have a future president of the United States, Anjanli Ruh, in our club, and she has an entire exhibit in the museum dedicated to her (she really is amazing- she's Times first ever Kid of the Year, and she deserves it), we had the celebration at the Colorado History Museum. This happens to be our favorite museum, and we got to see the basement of the museum which we had never seen before. Afterwards we got to go tour the museum. Pro tip: Go to the museum on a Saturday afternoon- it's empty!

The kids discovered that Camille makes a very handsome 1920s boy:

Start of School!

 There has been excitement, anxiety, and resignation regarding the start of school this year. 

Camille was definitely the excited one.

Audra was resigned. She's the only one who knows what she is getting into.

I had to beg Camille to let me walk her to school. She really wanted to ride her bike to school, so I begged. Audra and Claire came with us. They met their classes out on the black top, and she was like, "please leave" and was not appreciative of my wanting to take pictures.

Her first day went well, though she said it was a little boring at times. And, of course, she was upset when kids didn't follow directions.

.

Claire started on Tuesday. Her anxiety was sky high. And it did NOT go well. The list is long, but it includes her backpack breaking. But that's just the start. There were lots of tears.

We said a ton of prayers, and thankfully day #2 went much, much better. She is going to school and then has volleyball and so she doesn't get home until 4:30. Thankfully, she has some teachers who are really funny. Her math teacher said to the entire class, "I put you with your partner of purpose because your partner is smarter than you," and her art teacher said, after asking if she was related to THE Marriotts,  "Do you have a ton of money hidden secretly?" Claire said no, and she said, "Oh, so you have tons of money not hidden. Nice." That made her smile.

It's been a little emotional. It's really hard watching your kid go through something really, really hard even though you know it's best for her and she needs to do it. I'm super proud of her for being brave, and she has been extremely brave. 

I took the girls to get ice-cream sandwiches to celebrate. I finally got a smile out of Claire!

And, today I had my first day of PAID of training- my new job has started! I start at the school next week, but I have lots of training to do. This job is a steep learning curve, and I'm drinking out of a fire hose, but I think it will be OK. I'm excited. It's nice to use my brain and be rewarded for it. Here's hoping I don't get yelled at for buying the wrong color backpack or making disgusting dinner like my current job.

Police Officer Recommendation

 Camille wants to be the Police Officer of her class. As such, I needed to write her a letter of recommendation. I think it's the best letter I have ever written. Ignore the numbers completely, blogger is doing something really weird for the formatting.

August 8, 2022

Dear Sir or Madam,

This is Sergeant Christina M. Marriott writing on behalf of Deputy Camille M. Marriott as she seeks

the position of Police Officer for Mrs. Edgett’s 5th grade class.

It is my opinion that Deputy Marriott would make an excellent Police Officer for the following reasons:

1. She loves rules. Rules are her favorite. When somebody doesn’t dribble the basketball on her

2. basketball team because they are just learning how to play and do not know how, she is very

3. distressed, complains about it for hours on end, and insists that they learn how to dribble.

4. Other Deputies would give 8 and 9 years old a pass on dribbling, but not this rule follower.

1. She has two older sisters- both of whom she happily bosses around and ensures that they

2. are following the rules- and gives them verbal warnings when they do not. 

3. 
   

4. Because she has two older sisters, confrontation is not an issue for her. She seems to thrive

5. on confrontation, in fact. While this may not be evident in Mrs. Edgett’s Classroom, I assure

6. you this is the case at Marriott Headquarters.

1. She knows how to blow a whistle. She can blow loud, she can blow soft, she can blow

2. long-sustained bursts, or short-staccato bursts.

1. She is strong. She can carry grocery bags filled with bananas and milk from the car to the

2. refrigerator without any issue.

3. 
   

4. She pays attention to details and can take clues from crime scenes to solve all kinds of crimes.

5. She has honed these skills by playing Clue and going to Escape Rooms.

1. Her father, Lieutenant Benjamin C. Marriott, is a self-proclaimed Ninja and has taught her the ways of the Ninja so she can move stealthily to combat any and all crime. When dancing, she often incorporates random karate chops and kicks into her routine.

For all of these reasons, I hope you will consider Deputy Camille M. Marriott for the position of Classroom Police Officer.

Sincerely,

Sergeant Christina M. Marriott

4H Results

 We went down to fair to see the girls 4H projects.

They all did awesome- I'm so proud of all of them! They all chose complicated projects. Camille was bummed because she got 3rd place (a result of choosing a hard pattern/project rather than keeping it simple with something like a pillowcase). Both Audra and Claire won 1st place and will go to state, and Claire won Reserve Grand Champion, which I think means she got 2nd for all sewing projects, which is a great accomplishment.

And just for fun:

Job Situation

 It's official! I got the GT Facilitator position!

I know several people who work at TBE. It was extremely validating when I told them I got the job, and they said things like, "I told Katie they needed to hire you- you are exactly what TBE needs, someone who will speak up and fight for these kids and who loves the community." It's been 15 years since I have felt valued in any kind of professional situation, and most of my feedback involves whining and complaining, so to have positive feedback is quite, well, nice.

Anyway, the job is tricky since I know absolutely nothing about GT Education, and I don't have my teaching license. I will be hired as a long-term sub (I did get my substitute license). That will get me through until about Spring Break. During that time, I will work part-time and also get what's called a "Metro Certificate" which is a GT certificate I can get by taking 5 classes and doing a mentorship program. I am hopeful those credits (which are free because the district offers on-line classes) will double as credits for re-licensing. If it does, then getting re-licensed won't be a problem at all. If it doesn't, we have a problem. The principal fully understands everything- I have been very open about all of it, and we both decided, "let's jump in and see what happens." So, that is what we are doing.

This is not my dream job. My dream job would be working for a non-profit. However, this is a job that I can do and still be a mom first. I'll have all the same off time as the girls, it's part-time and I get to set the hours, though after they are set they need to be consistent. But that's great because I really want Fridays off since Ben has Fridays off. I figure I'm consecrating my job right now- sacrificing what I really want for the benefit of my family, which is my most important thing.

I did have to tell Camille that I would not bother her at school, and that TBE is HER school, not mine. She wants complete autonomy, and I fully plan to respect that. Thankfully, because I'll have my own office and I won't be in the classrooms, it shouldn't be difficult.

Here's to the two new Moose at TBE!

Rocky Mountain National Park

 We went with our favorite friends. the Leubners, for one last "HURRAH" of summer. I took the girls camping up at Rocky Mountain National Park. We did the Emerald Lake hike, which I would love to do again. It was stunning, but we had to rush it because of some lightning heading our way.

We didn't get much sleep, and came home exhausted, but it was a lot of fun. 

These girls are the best troopers. I tell them all the time that the reason I can take them places and do fun things with them is because they are so well behaved and they do such a great job of helping and having positive attitudes.

But I have to admit...one night a year is enough for me! Especially when we also had girls camp this year.

Job Interview

 For the first time in 20 years, I had a job interview!

I applied for a job at Camille's future school- Trailblazer. I applied to be the Gifted/Talented Facilitator. I am not qualified. BUT, I am willing to learn and think the position is fascinating. It's part-time, which I want, and I think I get to pick my hours a little bit. And, I get paid for my Master's Degree, which is awesome. Unlike the sub job where the only requirement is that I have a pulse (and, I did get the substitute position and I am officially a sub for DCSD, but I never had to interview- it was literally a "you got the job" as soon as I got my fingerprints done), this job would actually utilize my degree which I appreciate.

The interview went really well. There were 5 people on the panel, and all of the questions were about gifted teaching- which I know nothing about. But, I had good answers and I think made a good impression. In fact, I'm fairly certain they want to hire me. Except, I don't actually have a teaching license. When I mentioned that to the principal, her face fell. But, she said she would call HR to see how to work through that situation. I figure if she is willing to call HR, she must want to hire me. Otherwise, why call HR?

So now, I wait. I think I'll hear back from her tomorrow.

Camille isn't thrilled about me teaching at her school. I have had to reassure her that it is HER school and she will have complete autonomy and I won't bug her at all.

We will see what happens!

Going with friends to a crepe restaurant to celebrate my interview: