God had to laugh!

Last Saturday when the two young ladies from the American Sign Language club at North Central stopped by to pick up the "I Love You" cookies Micah had made for them, Sam and I had just gotten out of bed.  We looked quite lovely in our ratty pajamas (Sam) and workout clothes (me), complete with bed head while wearing our glasses.  I apologized for our appearance and said we both still needed to shower!

When Sam and I walked in to the Emmanuel Christian Center this morning for Micah's commencement, who should be standing right there in front of us to check us in?  One of the girls from last Saturday's cookie order pick up and she commented on how lovely we looked today😄.

I'm glad she saw an improvement! 

How Bad Was Last Night's Storm?

The rain fell so hard at our house that I was able to use the toilet and get a shower at the same time as water cascaded out of the vent!

At the reception following with . . .

Matt, me, Micah and Sam

Matt and Micah

Matt, Micah and Josie

Allison, Logan and the kids were there with us at the beginning, but left after we all cheered for Micah when her name was called.  It was a lovely day.  Well done, my favourite daughter!

 

At the reception following with . . .

Her Dean, Dr. William Tibbetts

Her Advisor, Dr. Brian Stewart

 

Welcome to North Central's 2022 Commencement!

 

Micah's name on the big screen as she graduated today!

As a Business Major, she was the last student of the second group called.

Shaking hands with one of her favorite profs!

Smilin' with the Prez . . .

Teaching "Ignite!"

My position is such that I rarely see the Ignite! students at OHE.  I'm generally with the students that need additional assistance.  What is an Ignite! student you ask?  Pulled right off the web page:  "Ignite! is a unique full-time gifted program that combines a challenging core curriculum with flexible choice offerings to provide highly gifted children the opportunity to ignite their passion for learning."  And today, I got to teach fifth grade Ignite!

Their teacher was absent, there were no subs left in the building/district, my supervisor had an IEP meeting that she couldn't miss and that left me!  I spent an hour in their room, overseeing them working on their special end-of-the-year projects and then doing their "read aloud" story.  I had a blast!  I knew that M.Ed. would come in handy one day! 

Thankful Thursday!

 While I will be forever thankful that it was NOT my dad that the nurse gave me the update on Tuesday night, yesterday I was also quite thankful for the possibility that we are now done with MCA (Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments) testing for the YEAR!  There are a few students who still need to finish testing next week, but hopefully, I WON'T be the staff called upon to proctor their tests!  

While proctoring isn't my favorite activity, I am thankful for the paid reading time while I proctored, finishing Postcards from Babylon and Honey and getting a good start on I'll Start Again on Monday. 

Obviously the Wrong Patient

I had thought that Dad was scheduled for 8:00 a.m. surgery yesterday to remove a polyp on his colon, which was the cause of his blood loss last month.  When I got home from work, I called the hospital to talk to Dad.  They sent me to a nurse on his floor who said he was just coming out of surgery.  His surgery had been moved to 11:00 a.m.  Naturally, I asked how he was doing and fortunately, she was willing to tell me.  

The surgeon had been able to remove the polyp laproscopically.  In addition, he had had a segmental colectomy where they removed part of his colon and then he had a illiocolostomy where they put in a permanent colon bag.  In addition, they also performed a liver biopsy due to lesions on his liver.  

WHAT?!?  He was only supposed to have a polyp removed!  And now he had a permanent colon bag?  I was going to be sick to my stomach.  And I was . . . until . . .

I called Dad during my fifteen minute work break this morning.  My brother wasn't returning calls and my sister didn't know any more than I did ("When I called Dad he said he hadn't seen the surgeon yet today" but did she ask any questions?).  Dad sounded tired (no surprise there), but when I asked him about his colon bag, he said, "I don't have one of those."  "Yes, you do Dad.  The nurse told me about that yesterday along with your liver biopsy."  "No, they just removed the polyp laprosocpically.  My liver is just fine."  "Dad, that's not what the nurse told me . . . "

I called Dad back after work.  He assured me the procedure went as planned and it was the procedure HE told me about, not the one the nurse was telling me about.  In fact, he had been scheduled for surgery at 11:00 a.m., but he actually didn't get into surgery until closer to 3:00 p.m.

He was tired.  He was a bit hungry and bummed - he's on a liquid diet until his stitches have a chance to heal, but he is doing well.  He met with the home health nurse about assistance when he gets home . . . 

I feel bad for the other guy, but am so glad/relieved/happy that Dad's surgery went as planned.  And tonight?  I plan on sleeping!  

Banana Bread

At Monday's lunch, one of the third grade girls asked me if I liked banana bread.  She was going to make some with her mom after school and if I liked it, she would bring me a loaf.  Of course, I like banana bread!  So I told her if you have enough, I would love a loaf!

Yesterday at lunch, she pulled out of her pocket a very cute, small loaf of banana bread (think the size of two muffins) for which I thanked her profusely because, due to MCA testing, I didn't get to have lunch at my normal 11:00 a.m. time, but I had to wait until 1:10 p.m. to eat.

As I walked outside for recess, into the mass of fifth graders who still had to wait ten minutes to eat, I took my first bite of banana bread.  It had chocolate chips in it!  The cry of fifth grade became, "Mrs. Zupke, will you share your banana bread?"  "No."  "But we're hungry."  "No."

It was delicious and I felt no guilt!  

"Postcards From Babylon"

Those of us who are proctoring MCA (Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment) Tests this week are allowed to read "real" books while we proctor.  I just finished Postcards From Babylon by Brian Zahnd.  Wow . . . uff dah . . . utterly amazing and thought provoking . . . definitely worth reading again . . . definitely will read again because wow . . . uff dah . . . utterly amazing and thought provoking!  

Taken right from the back cover "Brian Zahnd challenges the reader to see and embrace a daring Jesus centered Christianity that can again turn the world upside down".  Yup.  Definitely.

Class of One

 I am excited to share that I had a class of one today at the Burnsville Y.  It turns out that the new Maplewood/White Bear Lake Assistant Aquatics Director needed to challenge out of CPR for the Professional Rescuer and since he lives down here, the Aquatics Director up there asked me to do it.  You'll be glad to know that Matt passed and we had fun!

He started up at Maplewood last Monday and so far says it's been a positive change even if he had to call the police yesterday!  

"I Love You"

 Micah had the privilege of making cookies for a city-wide collegiate ASL (American Sign Language) club yesterday.  After three years is ASL in high school, she knew how to make those cookies rock!  When those who ordered them stopped by to pick them up early yesterday morning, they were thrilled:

I was kind of happy, too!  Micah was running a bit behind schedule so I got to help package cookies!  Because I spent an hour assisting her, she bought me one of my favorite lunches - Canes!

Thankful Thursday!

I don't know what to be more thankful for today, so you choose:

1. It was a glorious, sunny beautiful day at recess - one we most desperately needed after being rained on (not out - we didn't bother going in when the rain started!) yesterday and potentially looking forward to more rain tomorrow.
2. I am not the one who lost/misplaced Lucy's MCA testing ticket - the one that should have been under lock and key.  Heads may roll for this breach, but it won't be my head because I spent yesterday with fifth grade only!
   

The Never-Ending Saga of the Dying Dishwasher . . .

Eleven months after the dishwasher originally broke, four months after it was replaced and installed . . . it is once again on the disabled list.  Fortunately, Sears is now out-sourcing their technicians and instead of a minimum two week wait to have it looked at, we could have had someone come out the next day - except we weren't going to be home during their window of time.  But less than forty-eight hours after I called, a repairman was here.  Yes, one of the doo-hickeys on the top rack had broken, they would order the part and when it came in, in stall it.  As long as we're careful pulling out the top rack, it will temporarily work . . . But you'd think it shouldn't break at the ripe old age of four months, right?  

Easter With Family . . .

 We had a delightful Easter dinner with Sam's cousin, David, and his wife, Jeanette, and our families - Loren, Bree, her husband Ryan, Matt, Micah and Aunt Lenore.  I asked Loren to take this picture so it looked like I an "angelic halo"!  May your day be as wonderful as ours! 

Happy Easter!

 

Highlights of a Birthday Celebration!

To say that Dad's 90th birthday party went so extremely well would be the truth.  Here's some fun facts to support that statement:

• My brother-in-law, Ray, took Friday off and basically made Saturday's lunch for the rest of us!  It was excellent!  Thank you, Ray!
  
• Micah, of course, baked all the goodies and loved serving them to everyone who showed up.
• Everyone Dad invited came - forty-five people!  He was exhausted, but content when the party ended.
  
• My favorite aunt was there and it was a delight to catch up with her.
• My favorite cousins showed up ("Reimersville" - inside joke) and we laughed so hard!  I think Danny said it best when he said, "It's so nice to get together for a good reason!" (i.e. not a funeral).
  
• Dad's next door neighbors "snuck" in the back door because it was closer to their house!  And they brought cookies!
  
• Mathew (One T - my niece's husband) and Matthew (Two-T - my son) worked hard, although I'm not sure they appreciated their new nick names!
• My niece, Kayla, showed up with her entire family in tow - including her eight day old daughter, Addyson Rae - along with her brother, Michael, and his family.  We were so glad they came.
• Dad had one blood relative show up - the principal from Fulda, MN.  Mike's grandfather and Dad's grandfather were brothers, but Mike is my age.  His grandfather was obviously the younger brother.  Mike and Sam hit it off as they talked about education with retired teacher, Lesleigh.
• Ray's ice house heater warmed the garage to a comfortable temp and Sam and Nancy figured out how to use the borrowed coffee pot.  All went well . . .   
  

Family Shots with the Birthday Boy!

Ray, Nancy, Dad, Mat and Ashle

Sam, me, Dad, Micah and Matt

 

The Baker and the Grandfather

 Here's a snap of Dad and Micah and the goodies:

Dad's 90th Birthday Treats

Here's a quick look at everything Micah made for Dad's 90th birthday celebration yesterday:

This white cake was requested by my niece Lexie who shares Dad's birth date

This is Micah's twist on a German chocolate cake

My three-year old nephew liked these best!

 

Thankful Thursday!

With wind gusts up to forty-eight miles per hour, a wind chill of fifteen degrees and blowing, pelting snow, there wasn't a staff or student who was NOT thankful when we got to come in from recess today!  It was truly a unanimous "Thankful Thursday!" 

Mike and Dave

I'd been thinking about Dad's birthday party and I realized that no one from his family had been invited, not that anyone lives closer than an hour away, but still . . . so yesterday I set out to change that.

First on my hit list was Cousin Mike, simply because I had his cell phone number from when his mom was dying.  So I sent Mike a text that included this line "I wouldn't expect you to come down with this late notice, but maybe you'd like to send a card."  Mike's response?  "I am planning to attend."  When I told Dad this last night, he reminded me that Mike's grandfather and Dad's grandfather were brothers, but Mike's mom was the same age as Dad so we've grown up as "cousins".  I haven't seen Mike since his sister's wedding twenty-some years ago.  This is going to be fun! 

Next I remembered Cousin Dave lived here in the Cities.  I wasn't expecting him to come down at all, but I thought maybe he'd like to send a card.  The phone number in the white pages for Dave is actually for his ex-wife Gail who was kind enough to call me back and give me Dave's number in UTAH!  It turns out that seventy-year old Dave is a ski instuctor in Utah and he won't be coming back here until the week after Dad's birthday.  But his brother, Lon, who lives fifteen minutes from Dad, had called Dave to tell him about Dad's birthday so I told to invite Lon over for cake.  Who knows?  Seriously, I haven't seen these guys in like forever!  We were laughing yesterday because I had mentioned my sister (who is only three years younger than me!) and Dave said, "You have a sister?"  To which I retorted, "You guys were always outside playing football and we were in Wilma's toy room playing with the dolls."  I'll be it's been over fifty years here, folks!

But Dad was so excited that HIS family had been remembered along with Mom's, his church family, his neighbors and his children and grandchildren! 

 

Thin Man Whiskey?!?

 The DAPE phy ed teacher and I were outside chatting at recess today in our sun glasses because for once it was sunny out!  The student she was working with turned to us and said, "Your sunglasses are the same color as 'Thin Man Whiskey'!"

She was right - they were!

More from "Uniquely Me" bakery . . .

Those lucky students in the Sigma Beta Delta Honor Society for COBAT at North Central University enjoyed these cupcakes on Wednesday!

DIdn't Micah do an awesome job?

Next, she'll be working on cakes for Dad's ninetieth birthday on Saturday, Easter dessert to bring to the Durey's, and "love hand sign" cookies for the ASL Student Alliance at North Central on the 23rd!

Just remember, you, too, can order at "uniquelymebakery.com" . . .

Micah's Pop-Up Shop

Here are a couple of snaps of Micah setting up her "Pop-Up Shop" at North Central on March 30.

 

A Polymyalgial Rhuematica Update

Some time back, I went off of Prednisone for my PMR and began to take methotrexate once a week with folic acid every day - until this past Wednesday.  My rheumatologist was not happy with my decreasing white blood count and asked me to stop taking all medication until after I met with a hematologist.  That appointment is scheduled for June 1.  Our hope is that I won't experience any side effects from going off of methotrexate or a return of my PMR symptoms between now and then.  If I do, it's back to the drawing board and that board may include hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malarial touted by Trump.  Unfortunately, with five summers in Africa, there are some anti-malarials that I can not take . . .    

The Time Lines

 I have two groups of fifth graders who are just finishing up a non-fiction unit.  After reading a book that went from 1900-2000, with a sub-title for every ten years, we decided to "finish the book" by making our own time lines that went from 2000-2010, 2011-2020, and 2020-2022.  With total access to Google, you had to love this group's creativity!

• What was the most important event in 2011?  "I was born."  "Me, too."  "Me, too".  I made them add their actual dates of birth!
  
• "Can we add more to 2022? Like the last day of school?"  Of course! 
  
• "I'm going to this really cool moto-cross event in July?  Can I put that down?"   Definitely!

Coming up next - FICTION!

Thankful Thursday!

It didn't matter that we were restricted to "Blacktop Only".  The fact that we finally had outdoor recess this week made it a very thankful Thursday!

"X" Marks the Spot or Parallel Lines

Cherie and I met at the Presbyterian Camp at Okoboji in 1970 when we were bunk mates, back in the days when people were actually pen pals.  We have kept our friendship going for well over fifty years.  We both ran track in high school, allowing us to visit at meets.  Our first born's are both named Matthew.  We both have bionic knees, except . . . for her birthday on Monday, Cherie got a knee replacement on the knee replacement.  Leaving me to ask her that all important question, "Are your scars now parallel lines or does an 'X' mark the spot?"  

Sadly, we won't know for a few more days when the bandages come off . .  

"Calling Number 16 . . ."

 I began working at the Y in September 2007.  That means in just five months, I will have been there fifteen years.  In that time, we've gone through FIFTEEN Aquatics Director, with Lori being there almost five years.  Aquatics Director Number Fifteen started a week ago Thursday and resigned on Wednesday morning, after almost six days on the job, setting a new short term record.  The previous record was held by he who we fondly called "Two-Week Phil".  Now looking for Number Sixteen . . .  

Face Friends

 I stopped by Susie's room this morning to see how her spring break had went.  She said she had a wonderful time in Mexico with her husband - "our first actual vacation since our honeymoon sixteen years ago!"  Then she added, "You know, after all that time away WITHOUT social media, I came back and asked myself, 'Why do I do it?'"  Then she smiled at me and said, "Let's not be Facebook friends, let's be FACE friends!"

That's Fine, Dad!

My Dad will be celebrating his 90th birthday on April 16th!

 

Way back at Christmas, we asked Dad if he wanted to do anything special to celebrate and he said, "No, I'd just like to see my family."

 

When we were home in March, we asked Dad again if he'd like to do anything special to celebrate and we got the same answer, "No, I'd just like to see my family".

 

We saw Dad this weekend and, boy, has our family grown!

 

"You know, do you think we could invite your aunts and uncles to join us for cake on my birthday?"

 

"That's fine, Dad."

 

"I was thinking I might like to invite a couple of the neighbors over for cake, too." 

"That's fine, Dad."

"And maybe a couple of people from church, too."

My sister freaked out when I called her yesterday.  I just added chocolate chip cookies to the food we're bringing down . . .

 

Hit Me!

 I'm pretty sure someone attached that sign to my back before I got in to the pool this morning because it seemed like everyone I swam with (except my good buddy Sue) HIT ME!  Arm, leg, hand . . . it didn't matter!

Seriously, I swam with and/or next to a record number of people today and walked out of the pool with a record number of bruises! 

It was almost scary!