Retiring from Teaching

May 23, 2012 was my last full day at Galesburg High School!  Now when people ask me what I do, I guess I'll say I'm a RETIRED teacher:)  I'll still be a teacher forever... grandchildren, cub scouts, Primary....
My last official duty was to hand out report cards for a half hour on May 24th.  Then I turned in my school keys and that felt very weird.  GHS has been my "second home" for 19 years! I will not miss the work load, but I will miss the people!

 This is me sitting in the "rocking chair" as two of my SPED dept. co-workers came up to talk about my history of teaching positions and the things I accomplished at GHS.  Rob came for the luncheon and took these pics.

This is me afterwards, saying thanks to the many fine people I have worked with over the years.  That's what I will miss about GHS - the people!





These are my co-workers in the SPED dept. at GHS.  This was the last half day when we were all cleaning and looking casual.  I can honestly say I liked every one of them!  They are dedicated to their jobs and to helping students.  Plus they are fun to be around:)

This is my good friend and next door neighbor at school, Jackie.  We've shared our ups and downs through the years and I will miss seeing her every day!

Jackie is the advisor for the future teachers club, so she did bulletin boards each month and one of the retiring teachers was the teacher of the month throughout the year.  I forgot to take a picture of mine in February, but this is from May when all 8 retiring teachers were honored.

We were also honored at the May school board meeting where we received a "golden apple" for our service.  The blanket is from GHS.  My co-workers in the SPED dept. gave me new books to take to my grandchildren, gardening tools, and a beautiful diamond necklace!

My friend, Andrea, gave me this Willow Tree of "Happiness."  It truly fits the occasion:)

So this ends another phase of my life, but there is so much more to look forward to!
I've begun working occasionally at Rob's optometry office and am looking forward to visiting Michael, Lea and girls and seeing their new home in Colorado, then visiting with Brian, Megan, and children and attending Education Week at BYU.

Life is good:)

Ruby Princess Cruise

Ready for adventure - waiting at the cruiseport in Fort Lauderdale before embarking the Ruby Princess.


The view from an upper lounge on the ship as we were leaving Ft. Lauderdale.


One beautiful sunset:)


Mother on the beach on St. Maarten. This is the famous beach at the airport where the jets and planes fly directly overhead - it feels like you could almost touch them they are so close!


This is a huge billboard for all to see!



I'm looking directly over my head on the beach! Rob wanted Dad to experience this since he is a former WWII pilot.


That is me (in the middle shading my eyes) waiting for a jet to take off. You really get blown by the engines!


You can see a few people turning back when the engines start blowing sand - it is quite a blast. I just covered my eyes.


Dad's lobster dinner on formal night.


This is a juggler who put on several shows the last half of the week. He chose Rob as his helper for his show on Rob's birthday. I put the youtube link at the end of this blog.


Not just one dessert, but a sampler!


A birthday cake and "Happy Birthday to You" by the waiters. They are usually off key like crazy, but this group actually sounded good:)


Yep, Rob turned 60 on the cruise! We also celebrated my retirement:)

This is the link to the juggler video with Rob.
http://youtu.be/RvXVRNQMZuQ

This is a link to a jet landing at the airport.
http://youtu.be/qvHzAmt9lqg

More pictures later - Dad took more than me!

My Name in Lights !

Yep, I was famous for a day - although I had to retire to get my name up there:)


This was the best perk of the award - a parking spot in front of the building for the month of February! It was very handy since my room is on the second floor in the front of the building.

So, let's see - 14 weeks until I "graduate" with the Seniors:)
Yippee!

New Years in Orem :)

New Year's Day after church. Happy 2012!


Claire in her Sunday dress with static electricity hair!


Jack and his playmate, Parley. Parley's a good sport even when he is upside down:)


Meet Mr. Bo-Jangles. He's hard to catch, but doesn't seem to mind sitting on Claire's lap in the high chair:)

Jack loves the train set. We spent a lot of time coupling cars and sending them around the track and through the tunnel!


Parley is so patient with being picked up and hauled around - not a finicky cat at all!



Jack is usually in a good mood, even in his car seat. Claire helps to entertain him.



See that look? "Who me?" We just finished a game of hop down the stairs.



Claire dressed up like Snow White. She has quite a few costumes and has fun dressing up. She is learning to count higher numbers as you can see on the wall. Megan does pre-school with her and she is reading little words and having fun.

It was a fun vacation week for me. I stopped thinking about all my duties back in Galesburg and just enjoyed Megan & Brian's company and playing with Claire and Jack.

OK, so back to work tomorrow:(
Hey, I'm half finished with the year:)

Michael is an orthodontist !

We enjoyed a wonderful graduation dinner with Michael and Lea at St. Louis University. After 4 years of BYU, 4 years of dental school, and 2 and a half years of orthodontic training, he is ready to practice his profession!

A Happy Thanksgiving

A fall picture of Mike, Lea, Mazy, and Evey. They hosted our Thanksgiving meal this year in St. Louis. They will be moving to Colorado the middle of December as Michael will graduate from Orthodontic School and begin practicing in Grand Junction and Glenwood Springs, CO.


Evey is 8 months old now and crawls just about everywhere - even up the steps if she gets the chance:) She is already pulling herself up to the furniture and getting her balance! She is a happy baby, always returning your smile.

Mazy is trying out Grandma's ipad - given to all SPED teachers in the school district this year. Mazy knows all about using touch screens!! Her ankle is bandaged up after spraining it over the weekend.




Evey talking and reaching for the ipad, which Mazy then protects:)

Hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving.