Trial & Error

I made bagels.

They were...  OK. 

Not great, but not awful either.

 We ate them toasted, with cream cheese and homemade blueberry jam. I used the recipe from my favorite bread book, but they were quite heavy. In a way it has been nice to have the time to try things like this - I probably wouldn't have taken the time to make these in "normal" times. Next time I try them, I think I'm going to try a traditional bagel recipe - maybe they'll be a bit lighter.

Missing

I miss my students.

We're trying to meet once a week, just for a little bit of fun. Last week - Scattergories, this week - Boggle or Head Bandz; I haven't decided yet. Let me tell you, if you've never Zoomed with six goofy sixth graders*, you're missing out. I  often hear things like, "How can you stand teaching middle school?" and "How do you deal middle schoolers all day long?" My answer is always the same - sixth graders are wonderful. Sure, they have their moments, but 99% of the time they are an absolute delight to be around. They put a smile on my face every single day. It's on these days that I can't see them, that I appreciate the joy they add to my life even more.

*student images used with parental permission

Today's Agenda

On the agenda for today: vacuuming screens. Once the windows were grime-free, I could clearly see that the windows were only part of the problem.

Making Me Smile

The other day the kids who live down the street left postcards for me on the front porch.

J, the elder, is looking forward to being in my classroom next year, and J, the younger, hopes I am staying inside and staying safe. (Which I definitely am.)

Thank you for writing to me.  There's nothing like a handwritten note to brighten someone's afternoon.

I Love Michigan: Reason #9,452

The Library of Michigan and the Historical Society of Michigan have  put out a call for Michigan residents to document and share their Covid-19 stories. (All the official information can be found here.) They are looking for handwritten, typed and video submissions, created by average people, experiencing this time in history. 

I'm going to encourage each of my sixth grade students to send in a submission. The kids will be thrilled - right in the request they make it clear not to worry about handwriting, spelling or punctuation. (Things they always have to think about with me!)

Today

Today in Things to do to Keep Liz from Losing Her Mind: 

Washing Window: Inside & Out

A retrospective of her complete lack of window cleaning for, at least, the past two years. She'll take time to deal with all the finger prints, spider poop and  dead-bug filled webs that desperately need  to be removed. 

It's sure to be at hit. That is, if anyone in her family notices...

Wonderful

I did my first zoom meeting with my sixth graders today. I haven't seen them for three weeks and it was wonderful to see their faces and hear all about what they've been up to. I promised myself I wouldn't cry.

It didn't work...

Homemade

Like many people, I'm trying to maintain a positive attitude about being home. And, I'm trying to keep busy. So, today was a perfect day to try my hand at sewing something new - undies. (Not something I'd normally be willing to spend precious time on.) They were so surprisingly easy to make. And, they use so little fabric that they are the prefect project for using up scraps. (That fabric was left over from shorts I made my daughter about four or five years ago.) I'll have to dig through my scrap pile because these Primrose Panties are really comfortable. Now that I know how they fit, I can adjust the pattern to get exactly the rise and leg opening height I want. I definitely see more of these in my future.