tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6885205389304067382024-02-06T17:39:19.571-09:00...the field barn...Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.comBlogger957125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-27501697993570026632022-01-29T23:10:00.008-09:002022-01-29T23:14:35.583-09:00insta-gone<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEitnVMj5U52YID1l9b_iV69IPjfzOeRq8poHCfr7KjerH51ne6NU-JBCArveUdJOQnHBUukGygbK03RQkFvROvDcCQRCJaBWbnX25stYYyBzCILrzgBlxkPvLm_Rs7CuqXFH6rMuga9znWN0YUrYVby3AGvDpx7k6XwMZ9OiOOYOCqMLJq-AbVkI_4l=s1280" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="854" data-original-width="1280" height="429" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEitnVMj5U52YID1l9b_iV69IPjfzOeRq8poHCfr7KjerH51ne6NU-JBCArveUdJOQnHBUukGygbK03RQkFvROvDcCQRCJaBWbnX25stYYyBzCILrzgBlxkPvLm_Rs7CuqXFH6rMuga9znWN0YUrYVby3AGvDpx7k6XwMZ9OiOOYOCqMLJq-AbVkI_4l=w640-h429" width="640" /></a></i></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><i><span style="color: #999999; font-family: courier;">[This may seem like a repeat, but I wanted to tell this moment anyway.]</span></i></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;"><span style="font-size: 12px;">Today I ended my ten year relationship with Instagram. </span><span style="font-size: 12px;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">The trial separation really was what I needed.</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">In 2012, I started my account when living in New York City. It was a new and simple way to celebrate beautiful moments. It documented my life as I moved to back to Indiana, to Portland and eventually found my home in Alaska. I earned a Master’s degree, met my spouse, and became a mother in that decade of life.</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">It started out as one or two small moments of my day, but then it slowly started creeping into more and more. The platform changed. I put it on timers, and tightened my followings. This year it became like a deafening noise. </span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">I didn’t like the panic it put me in. It created a frenzy of scrolling. It has been a challenging year professionally. And the stress of it led me to want more and more of the dopamine that social media is so good at producing. Suddenly I realized that I was adding strangers voices to my already chaotic, exhausted mind.</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">The tipping point was certainly the organization’s policies and practices coming to light in October. Knowing that people in power knew the harm it was bringing young, highly-influenceable minds gave me the strength to say no in my own life.</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">It has been over three months since my last log-in. It was hard at first. I felt like I was missing out. Then I realize a full spectrum of behaviors that this app was influencing my life. They slowly began to shift toward what I wanted and needed. I started living moments and not documenting them for sharing later. I take photos with a camera. I leave my phone at home. I send personal messages and focus on nurturing relationships. I am selective and only send photos and stories about my child to people that care deeply about him. My conversations have stopped starting with, “I saw this post…” </span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">Today I went on to pick up the box of stuff left behind, a download of all of my data. (Yes, you can do that.)</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">Upon log-in, I saw all the posts. All the little blue circles at the top full of new information. But I wasn’t interested. I didn’t even want to start clicking or scrolling. I didn’t need it. My decision was set.</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">After securing and checking my data download, I deleted.</span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">It felt like such a weight lifted. </span></p>
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<p style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">I have silence and space to move on.</span></p><div><br /></div>Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-16889168255017338102021-11-07T21:15:00.003-09:002021-11-07T21:20:22.523-09:00Here I am.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcC0k_KerSxNGD31Vc2ib-mehw5XD4IbJoDOcUclNOcPkq-AHl51TqT8CqKYMSRBaKAyzioT7z-6hO-4UepmYD6LcoNd_QE0i7V70RyQiBBK9XcLfPjHCtFIhaKsqkxNkf9UeSf_qvY5c/s2048/D9C0269A-DF1E-40CC-BA0A-78ABADED5D52.jpeg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcC0k_KerSxNGD31Vc2ib-mehw5XD4IbJoDOcUclNOcPkq-AHl51TqT8CqKYMSRBaKAyzioT7z-6hO-4UepmYD6LcoNd_QE0i7V70RyQiBBK9XcLfPjHCtFIhaKsqkxNkf9UeSf_qvY5c/w640-h426/D9C0269A-DF1E-40CC-BA0A-78ABADED5D52.jpeg" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family: courier;">Last month I stepped away from Instagram. <br /></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">I really enjoy sharing photos and moments of life but have found it too overwhelming. A constant stream of so many people’s thoughts was too much for me. I was very good about keeping my follow list tight. But it was so easy to slip into mindless scroll and suddenly I’m carrying a stranger’s thoughts and feelings with me. This is after a day of processing the needs and expressions of the 150 children that come through my classroom. I had no room left. There was no space for my mind to rest. There was no space for me to be present with my mind constantly wandering.</span></p><span style="font-family: courier;">So I have found my way back to this space.<br /><br />I want to take time with my words.<br /><br />I am working on less screentime. <br /><br />I am trying to be more intentional and thoughtful about the photos I take using a camera.<br /><br />I do miss seeing the work of artists and creatives.<br /><br />I do miss cute kid photos. <br /><br />I am working on making un-influenced creative choices.<br /><br />I am deeply concerned about the impacts of social media use on the mental health of our children.<br /><br />I want to be mentally present for my own child.<br /><br />I don't want to contribute to anyone else's feeling of being overwhelmed. <br /><br />So I might just be here for a while.</span><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-lSmUT79m3Yj_fkMXsesWo1F3F2DlknaWB6DZHS25VI2yZxQFZ9sgwAoFQAVNeVjEq_AXbFCC6kGNR0If-YPDT5jQV063QyyyZ7gZnoK_ywf-M-ZvKdLmzaDQF8i0XBex6GEUTnGKb8E/s2048/44BC7CBB-443C-4770-A112-0DBB1B41FBB8.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-lSmUT79m3Yj_fkMXsesWo1F3F2DlknaWB6DZHS25VI2yZxQFZ9sgwAoFQAVNeVjEq_AXbFCC6kGNR0If-YPDT5jQV063QyyyZ7gZnoK_ywf-M-ZvKdLmzaDQF8i0XBex6GEUTnGKb8E/w640-h426/44BC7CBB-443C-4770-A112-0DBB1B41FBB8.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleLGw7Y9jLdLADnMrZBz1WjsgsWFdUfCliIwB0lgVhCQAUICvcXTa8Oi4uazDJzLSlhPFx8h_a51C_A4-bnAjqPfA77unmh1SeaQ671p717wGyLn2ZnaZtJx14i-GFRZ9ZqFBvJq5yWU/s2048/FC53BB21-DF7B-4878-8F5F-56C869C796A3.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleLGw7Y9jLdLADnMrZBz1WjsgsWFdUfCliIwB0lgVhCQAUICvcXTa8Oi4uazDJzLSlhPFx8h_a51C_A4-bnAjqPfA77unmh1SeaQ671p717wGyLn2ZnaZtJx14i-GFRZ9ZqFBvJq5yWU/w640-h426/FC53BB21-DF7B-4878-8F5F-56C869C796A3.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwHcEYxUMdqp4HD-9qKvHRCPaTU6yfgHBYubyFAPADWJXNKt5L3kj3l9xNVt8RnwbAz9TGzFz94A05X4sytj2EIbRDe3nvqn2lkjFc2ZCLE0-Hm58oNuvyFaBXeHbtxoTiAWHX99Jl11E/s2048/F001E507-DEA4-427C-BFDB-22C0980A4AA9.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwHcEYxUMdqp4HD-9qKvHRCPaTU6yfgHBYubyFAPADWJXNKt5L3kj3l9xNVt8RnwbAz9TGzFz94A05X4sytj2EIbRDe3nvqn2lkjFc2ZCLE0-Hm58oNuvyFaBXeHbtxoTiAWHX99Jl11E/w640-h426/F001E507-DEA4-427C-BFDB-22C0980A4AA9.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjny2Y1QvbY7S7LIhDZkIEsLS29MymPvhPCyVKVMt-bfss9BSbxPkFJZ5XoClmGKIP02aDD2ZoaFsyrHS_kJgF6HH9f8BRrxMWbHg_Gy7BxplkOcHci-xrvfcr6yZ3DlYe_oNf3JOyJm-8/s2048/D860F29F-F651-4696-B9BA-CD0828F22B2A_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjny2Y1QvbY7S7LIhDZkIEsLS29MymPvhPCyVKVMt-bfss9BSbxPkFJZ5XoClmGKIP02aDD2ZoaFsyrHS_kJgF6HH9f8BRrxMWbHg_Gy7BxplkOcHci-xrvfcr6yZ3DlYe_oNf3JOyJm-8/w640-h426/D860F29F-F651-4696-B9BA-CD0828F22B2A_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-38211903567348058632019-04-22T17:00:00.000-08:002019-04-22T17:00:04.047-08:00footstool, recovered<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">When my parents came to meet their first grandchild they brought with them a footstool that was my late Grandma Lillian's. I actually do remember a number of interactions with it as a tiny kid. It was just the right size for play.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb7hI3hHrxr2Ie2snQ_NB1mBzaPlkzDaWd_ZKWooXX3UM5svE6IFV8pecKXyTkZq218jRsarLNv43OvVESbZVyIunAbSnlSu2MIddzCQ12TG87bX54n84vs-rqPkJr6BOdFoPEFEwtzyY/s1600/stool+-+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Toddler sitting in up-ended footstool, holding the legs." border="0" data-original-height="684" data-original-width="1000" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb7hI3hHrxr2Ie2snQ_NB1mBzaPlkzDaWd_ZKWooXX3UM5svE6IFV8pecKXyTkZq218jRsarLNv43OvVESbZVyIunAbSnlSu2MIddzCQ12TG87bX54n84vs-rqPkJr6BOdFoPEFEwtzyY/s640/stool+-+1.jpg" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">It came to me disassembled and in a grocery sack. The original cover was hooked or needle punched but has not fared well over the last thirty years. Initially I thought I would try making something similar to recover it, but seven months later I just wanted to have the thing covered at all.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRARNOMBawS_5Yvv2byn9rCHuPCyajFcx7Iqw69EeZr7PbP1Ng2mu-jylwfrEIDDoAzJ8idMK8hjFHWGLwBaMvnb8GKXBrIeu8erhyphenhyphendnObCZXkTa9SdGXGPxwPk1WvEyqo6YL1Dn1eEds/s1600/stool+-+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Two circles of fabric on a wooden table top." border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRARNOMBawS_5Yvv2byn9rCHuPCyajFcx7Iqw69EeZr7PbP1Ng2mu-jylwfrEIDDoAzJ8idMK8hjFHWGLwBaMvnb8GKXBrIeu8erhyphenhyphendnObCZXkTa9SdGXGPxwPk1WvEyqo6YL1Dn1eEds/s640/stool+-+2.jpg" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; text-align: justify;">I decided to sew a quilted cover from a vintage piece of linen. For the backing I used some quilting cotton.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHNOb_quD4K-yn7SetgHh5xK8maMNZQmI-aDkBtLIDz_FOdcw8CqcT2j8s1jZe5c52rL9mivmee4XGfDvWwChyphenhyphenLEAllKJ_ud1g9adev3_JCtFExoZthHd3mXFqIdP6lkjovl8j7OqPeJ4/s1600/stool+-+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="A hand holds back two layers of fabric as scissors are cutting away extra batting." border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHNOb_quD4K-yn7SetgHh5xK8maMNZQmI-aDkBtLIDz_FOdcw8CqcT2j8s1jZe5c52rL9mivmee4XGfDvWwChyphenhyphenLEAllKJ_ud1g9adev3_JCtFExoZthHd3mXFqIdP6lkjovl8j7OqPeJ4/s640/stool+-+3.jpg" title="" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">There are two layers of batting in the middle.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDge7agKHXVOFD8En0SXTYRaw28N3A6NyOCIfb6J2Frw6ClKBznZJ69Uj9ED0Zd1aVV9VMo1ik623HrNDG0WZXZWe59qZ9-DY2kuXbFkGvJEUu3kDzm9SjhwEeSiW83BIU1n62HBF60U/s1600/stool+-+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Three layers lay on a wood table top. Batting is .cut slightly smaller than the fabric" border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDge7agKHXVOFD8En0SXTYRaw28N3A6NyOCIfb6J2Frw6ClKBznZJ69Uj9ED0Zd1aVV9VMo1ik623HrNDG0WZXZWe59qZ9-DY2kuXbFkGvJEUu3kDzm9SjhwEeSiW83BIU1n62HBF60U/s640/stool+-+4.jpg" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I used a blind hem stitch to hold the slightly smaller batting in place to flip the piece right-side out.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlhgb7VYG4z1oI0AqeSe_G7YOkzWrH4GNKG4_M5yvn3eEiRb-II7apyvb0p_Z8NP3K_wDfuqw3U_5o69pw0KsLZ6PXf6Rykod4p0tkKsVSKwCk2tTSZsA9x890bfrjJWlPKYGx6ZiT-0/s1600/stool+-+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Up-ended four-legged stool sits on top of fabric on a table." border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlhgb7VYG4z1oI0AqeSe_G7YOkzWrH4GNKG4_M5yvn3eEiRb-II7apyvb0p_Z8NP3K_wDfuqw3U_5o69pw0KsLZ6PXf6Rykod4p0tkKsVSKwCk2tTSZsA9x890bfrjJWlPKYGx6ZiT-0/s640/stool+-+5.jpg" title="" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Once I made the cover panel, I realized it could use a little more cushion. So I made a little round cushion with kapok inside.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbygXBi9AJyMzoodWfYGuHOs03d95D3fwemQ8SmbR2qN4Z_dqXFXgj3GbFBuZFtj6TSRnlM_J72KOkb8OFUUd8I7dH7YVxjpS-drgRR7OuzsQfF9hlSEHIvf1TxQZV_oTyAXWGI-xaxSQ/s1600/stool+-+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Two layers of white fabric with small green lines are sewed together and the layers are being cutout with a seam allowance." border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbygXBi9AJyMzoodWfYGuHOs03d95D3fwemQ8SmbR2qN4Z_dqXFXgj3GbFBuZFtj6TSRnlM_J72KOkb8OFUUd8I7dH7YVxjpS-drgRR7OuzsQfF9hlSEHIvf1TxQZV_oTyAXWGI-xaxSQ/s640/stool+-+6.jpg" title="" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">This is about the time I remembered my giant sewing breakthrough: if something has an irregular shape, sew it together before cutting out the two layers. It will save the headache of trying to match the pieces up and make for a nicer finish, over all.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBXL6JX-amAN2wwYsELlZlP1UuHG0rbf8LZ0sb5tYogGRoRNC8ahJMg0OvnO3LYughZt022wPpHp5Vr-iuUAhEvakDieN82WxWTAN4dGeuOMPPLqTizJ_YQI-o4s4bJCIznnrMY47ISWE/s1600/stool+-+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="A gnarled wooden spool of white thread and small golden stork scissors sit on natural linen fabric. A needle is nearby." border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBXL6JX-amAN2wwYsELlZlP1UuHG0rbf8LZ0sb5tYogGRoRNC8ahJMg0OvnO3LYughZt022wPpHp5Vr-iuUAhEvakDieN82WxWTAN4dGeuOMPPLqTizJ_YQI-o4s4bJCIznnrMY47ISWE/s640/stool+-+7.jpg" title="" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Sewing the edge closed with my favorite thread. I love using this <a href="https://ylicorp.com/products/hand-quilting-thread-400yd?variant=35460110798" target="_blank">hand quilting thread</a> for pretty much anything I am sewing by hand. I sewed my whole wedding dress with this spool. [Ada found it as a puppy and couldn't resist a gnaw on the wood.]</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-rCuL019sDof8e90fC18AJjaLt5Fd2hVYxJSFXp3v5_Nv-J9YZVlYRv6D3-heD-rLD8bWX-4YBParDWL7KuqO7TnY7q2Y2Wvf-AMKEpvYQERXpnnoKYZ3lzh-YuAGmOvHSLWKkFSTMu8/s1600/stool+-+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Knots of green yarn are being sewn into the back of a small quilt. The fabric is white with small green lines." border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-rCuL019sDof8e90fC18AJjaLt5Fd2hVYxJSFXp3v5_Nv-J9YZVlYRv6D3-heD-rLD8bWX-4YBParDWL7KuqO7TnY7q2Y2Wvf-AMKEpvYQERXpnnoKYZ3lzh-YuAGmOvHSLWKkFSTMu8/s640/stool+-+8.jpg" title="" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">To quilt the cover I decided to use some wool yarn and knotting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I inserted a cord around the outside and stitched the circumference to keep it in place. As I was putting it on the stool it was clear that another inch in the diameter would have made life a bit easier, but I got it all together in the end.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-APKavbC46pbdfzoE_sW1V9nAqfpzfgbG4I0SdjWyOUYFhFnYXcAzFtAUXiM7qfRt4eBMv1UHSu0LF1gLZsW_W0z3r87FXIPKzOTRkWIjjLhh6v-IWsEq1I-_G5omTfUv6_bsNOURz3w/s1600/stool+-+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="An infant child stands balancing on a four-legged footstool. He smiles at the camera and his dad is sitting off to the side." border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-APKavbC46pbdfzoE_sW1V9nAqfpzfgbG4I0SdjWyOUYFhFnYXcAzFtAUXiM7qfRt4eBMv1UHSu0LF1gLZsW_W0z3r87FXIPKzOTRkWIjjLhh6v-IWsEq1I-_G5omTfUv6_bsNOURz3w/s640/stool+-+9.jpg" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">It was finished just in time. Glenn has begun to pull himself up and is happy to be able to stand independently. It feels pretty special to have Glenn playing on this newly-declared heirloom.</span></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-9685320866919154422019-04-21T20:06:00.000-08:002019-04-22T08:58:26.574-08:00easter walk [low tide]<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Growing up a landlocked Hoosier, tide pools were something out of books. I remember being fascinated by them as a child. The vary existence of the creatures they contain was magical. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Last month, Isaac, Glenn, Ada and I went exploring the low tide at Outer Point on Douglas Island. That was the first time I saw a sea star out of captivity. Thursday, Isaac mentioned that the low tide was this weekend. We decided to try to make it our Easter activity. ["Try" because was have an infant who could alter plans at any moment.] Fortunately, he was wide awake at 6:30a. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">After Isaac made us a lovely breakfast scramble we headed out to Point Lena. We didn't really know where to go so we just took the trail until water.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Stretches of the trail were board.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> There were drops, climbs, and steps.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> These blooms remind me of the cranberries on the tundra. I wonder if they will be a berry.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> We walked to the edge of the point, which was cliff.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBYXsBVx9kYao4VEkbgy8UVtE28Y3COiuMK3G29cT1_Mpbg2vcVOIgu9-zBNWLZueV-EzA544ujSyAz7OpR5-xIXEJQc9XOA0a1yEUKPg4VMAO2zUYiWndoOHnCGkS4QWs3CKtFh_KDjA/s1600/easterWALK+-+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBYXsBVx9kYao4VEkbgy8UVtE28Y3COiuMK3G29cT1_Mpbg2vcVOIgu9-zBNWLZueV-EzA544ujSyAz7OpR5-xIXEJQc9XOA0a1yEUKPg4VMAO2zUYiWndoOHnCGkS4QWs3CKtFh_KDjA/s640/easterWALK+-+9.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Naturally, Ada was running wild. She generally circles and laps us many times whenever we hike.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Our sleepy, but happy faces. I carried Glenn on the front on the way out and on back for the return leg. He dozed off during each.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> We back-tracked to the waters edge we saw on our way to the edge of the point.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Barnacles and muscles covered the rocks </span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">closer </span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">to the forest.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcwsMmK5AvdcXrvPC2jHxfLjR9hHJ76EedHAjeVaVPXPc1K2JPhA8_5SxsJtVzzmRM6ce5_cZgyTa5DNOyhZMHPVt0nwSF-JmZRUpUEWE2JyNSO0p7EzWoih3myk60nkW38Yz4CNUMKh8/s1600/easterWALK+-+13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcwsMmK5AvdcXrvPC2jHxfLjR9hHJ76EedHAjeVaVPXPc1K2JPhA8_5SxsJtVzzmRM6ce5_cZgyTa5DNOyhZMHPVt0nwSF-JmZRUpUEWE2JyNSO0p7EzWoih3myk60nkW38Yz4CNUMKh8/s640/easterWALK+-+13.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I saw this sea star tucked up under the rock. This area was more rocky than Outer Point, so many things were between rocks and less obvious. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Isaac spotted a sunflower sea star, which had many more than five limbs. The one we saw was about ten inches in span; they can be up to 3 feet in diameter!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX01iaNZxvLUlyVzFTtS81saZ-FaGMcJZHBO52zRP-xPow60XkzAYaUDwax47QwEWm712hJ5tQ46J6tYKNifKirGSgZTwWWBYr7IE3TNkcusvEm7BfQ8zz4e4ib9H6K0XAr4I4nQv4y-I/s1600/easterWALK+-+14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX01iaNZxvLUlyVzFTtS81saZ-FaGMcJZHBO52zRP-xPow60XkzAYaUDwax47QwEWm712hJ5tQ46J6tYKNifKirGSgZTwWWBYr7IE3TNkcusvEm7BfQ8zz4e4ib9H6K0XAr4I4nQv4y-I/s640/easterWALK+-+14.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><strike>We don't know what this creature is...yet.</strike> This is a mollusk called a chiton. (My friend Amie identified it.) Isaac has an app called iNaturalist that identifies unknown nature. He submits a photo and its identification is then crowdsourced by other users.</span></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-67596124442390414602019-04-09T20:49:00.000-08:002019-04-10T14:28:25.815-08:00new shoes for the boy<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Making clothes for Glenn has been so much fun. Generally I've been using items of clothings that fit him well as a pattern for a new piece. This is great because I can personalize things and modify them specifically for him.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">He has just about outgrown the pair of shoes I made for him in November. </span><span style="font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace; text-align: center;">I fashioned those from a pair of worn out Smartwool socks and linen. It was my first time attaching snaps. I just used a hammer and the little metal tool that came with the snaps. It was pretty simple and I am now a fan.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">For his spring/summer pair I wanted something lighter but still warm. I decided to make a quilted pair from linen fabric. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">[The black fabric can be difficult to see in the photos. My apologies.]</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I took the pattern from a friend's pair of shoes. I modified the design to fit Glenn's foot more specifically. He has small ankles.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugQ91suVCuYYrw1psiK6C_IXEnFsG2mQJNSSXuiGjrV4qBsCgENJk-_s6tk0T5OYKqxEEWcuIJ0Wa-0NM02STobYbieRRHUNFEf02a5lW7HB-CxWKe2lzUkHAgyAFxhhzjEcmucW3Cr0/s1600/newshoes+-+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugQ91suVCuYYrw1psiK6C_IXEnFsG2mQJNSSXuiGjrV4qBsCgENJk-_s6tk0T5OYKqxEEWcuIJ0Wa-0NM02STobYbieRRHUNFEf02a5lW7HB-CxWKe2lzUkHAgyAFxhhzjEcmucW3Cr0/s640/newshoes+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> The bottom of the sole is a slub linen, for a bit more grip. Glenn isn't to the point where I'm concerned about the shoes actually being used for walking. He mostly wears them for errands, walk, and travel. Whenever we get where we are going he is usually ready to remove the shoes.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbF1WUa03P_zKlt2dRGupNrhZFmKgs6OgbHzYzIYIjkcWek8gf-FrwaZZ6L-RpVWQOfipE_3_nU3QXYsNue1yqih78kkjjEbujCXV1u80vCq5eQm7lYl0fGWQ-iklJ-9IeWz8Yla3IeA4/s1600/newshoes+-+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbF1WUa03P_zKlt2dRGupNrhZFmKgs6OgbHzYzIYIjkcWek8gf-FrwaZZ6L-RpVWQOfipE_3_nU3QXYsNue1yqih78kkjjEbujCXV1u80vCq5eQm7lYl0fGWQ-iklJ-9IeWz8Yla3IeA4/s640/newshoes+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Experience has taught me to wait to cut out one of the pieces of fabric until after quilting. Keeping the small pieces lined up throughout is an unnecessary challenge.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj06s9kcMYl4-XsTC35nnMsdXKyGGlD1CP12DcNxDSZbZJGKA2Q5BFVfE1DHiXHu-jBTbH_p3QVVQmTFt-Die2aQikJcacipB-mBrBO_XAxEhpC2luCR0L5v7Ti9WzEdHXx-r3wWXwo1nE/s1600/newshoes+-+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj06s9kcMYl4-XsTC35nnMsdXKyGGlD1CP12DcNxDSZbZJGKA2Q5BFVfE1DHiXHu-jBTbH_p3QVVQmTFt-Die2aQikJcacipB-mBrBO_XAxEhpC2luCR0L5v7Ti9WzEdHXx-r3wWXwo1nE/s640/newshoes+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> The heel has a piece of elastic running its length. I'm still learning about elastic, but concluded that a large zig-zag would be my best way to attach it. The elastic is enclosed inside the fabric layers. I chose to attach it to only the outside of the fabric to make the inside more comfortable for Glenn's heel.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31m3pvZhieLaE8ObrOh9NK646B_d1ViCS99i5_iSRsDk7CF_4U1s6WD9MNy-iHVHzGFhWD-5kDyNJB-S2yngp1sUMr1fdKPNWvwiQ-U7RdydYs_gALduYOy1b5989EoWoC6k_H1ji_fY/s1600/newshoes+-+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31m3pvZhieLaE8ObrOh9NK646B_d1ViCS99i5_iSRsDk7CF_4U1s6WD9MNy-iHVHzGFhWD-5kDyNJB-S2yngp1sUMr1fdKPNWvwiQ-U7RdydYs_gALduYOy1b5989EoWoC6k_H1ji_fY/s640/newshoes+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> I did a straight stitch on each end of the elastic and then stretched it while I was sewing to evenly distribute the elastic.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKFhToYKyW3ID9slSRSqEtoz6uFiO9uMK2pAfsN1_UkMqN98V__gvutKMmjRMXKwSL8Jq4oI34a3O2MGaVUmreUKG1sLFdjmMsso6s-voKOaIBnkD3Lv12Aq4x-B7oRJK7T0aDPhzEHpY/s1600/newshoes+-+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKFhToYKyW3ID9slSRSqEtoz6uFiO9uMK2pAfsN1_UkMqN98V__gvutKMmjRMXKwSL8Jq4oI34a3O2MGaVUmreUKG1sLFdjmMsso6s-voKOaIBnkD3Lv12Aq4x-B7oRJK7T0aDPhzEHpY/s640/newshoes+-+7.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Next, I sewed together the three layers along the edge, once again leaving extra fabric until it was stitched.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6AU_-3apCx_HtUA493d02k9AucdjM31bCcNXNfP-CjZZHKR-2jjwpYW9tVITt_LvIlJ02jKRTumelVsVMMztEtpn7F_PWMjElvjKZP-OLmZbArVHxPuIJAFnadiwJPfbg6PubRgd4s00/s1600/newshoes+-+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6AU_-3apCx_HtUA493d02k9AucdjM31bCcNXNfP-CjZZHKR-2jjwpYW9tVITt_LvIlJ02jKRTumelVsVMMztEtpn7F_PWMjElvjKZP-OLmZbArVHxPuIJAFnadiwJPfbg6PubRgd4s00/s640/newshoes+-+8.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> After it was all stitched, I trimmed the second layer and batting to match the first.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFv1ZijEg-uYdJpkJjTeD9nvofi-y-j4pbtyCM2hCYzgUaLA7wVvGzbuKgJ-0yCPJuB6RbBUuv0rksG3syGN38ZXYnjY2h_R-05E9WNYcvqMiQ8Yd3R4R6YO7gmC-_16fMsMOekNkkh0/s1600/newshoes+-+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFv1ZijEg-uYdJpkJjTeD9nvofi-y-j4pbtyCM2hCYzgUaLA7wVvGzbuKgJ-0yCPJuB6RbBUuv0rksG3syGN38ZXYnjY2h_R-05E9WNYcvqMiQ8Yd3R4R6YO7gmC-_16fMsMOekNkkh0/s640/newshoes+-+9.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> The top/tongue is pieced. Sewing those small little triangles was fun. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW2029LAXB4x3m4ochhlKYFcrgoM0JETxWQlsECH3U1to27upBEiJASca4jstYLSjzMWMWdciDfvhjzZ_1vGghtdvki2DTGtDHDY8StXiOglb0fWuhMS8GHV_RRDXaNqqk727LPhvyoeE/s1600/newshoes+-+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW2029LAXB4x3m4ochhlKYFcrgoM0JETxWQlsECH3U1to27upBEiJASca4jstYLSjzMWMWdciDfvhjzZ_1vGghtdvki2DTGtDHDY8StXiOglb0fWuhMS8GHV_RRDXaNqqk727LPhvyoeE/s640/newshoes+-+11.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> </span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I initially sewed the layers in the wrong order and ended up having to take them apart and restitch. This is the only problem with late night being my only kid-less creative time.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil8_RgqtGbugnLpr0cAbUJVhwvoI3Hq6y_LuuyICdw3xNK8Zwi0yjvwuPSS3CbM2QGZWM3nKKEFhyphenhyphenq-wtfomJqRsEkjXO3ixLHBxg6-ciqK9W8PfmegrWzK9iB46Pec4LdlhOsevLv5JQ/s1600/newshoes+-+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil8_RgqtGbugnLpr0cAbUJVhwvoI3Hq6y_LuuyICdw3xNK8Zwi0yjvwuPSS3CbM2QGZWM3nKKEFhyphenhyphenq-wtfomJqRsEkjXO3ixLHBxg6-ciqK9W8PfmegrWzK9iB46Pec4LdlhOsevLv5JQ/s640/newshoes+-+12.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> The parts ready to quilt.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6hmDbCruxbhOYbKzV3-mkdZ4-_BbK60tWUXqrsy0m68mPhZgeQde76RHB9W-yBxJsbAng7jAvTe0VgltQZLab_oFxkP-g1K0b0gqnMAZHendiMTb2oXcFdh_DRdYYpEkBT09vzGNyXhE/s1600/newshoes+-+13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6hmDbCruxbhOYbKzV3-mkdZ4-_BbK60tWUXqrsy0m68mPhZgeQde76RHB9W-yBxJsbAng7jAvTe0VgltQZLab_oFxkP-g1K0b0gqnMAZHendiMTb2oXcFdh_DRdYYpEkBT09vzGNyXhE/s640/newshoes+-+13.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> After I finished quilting I decided to go ahead and sew it together by hand. My first pair I surged together, but that was mostly because I used a knit fabric.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuuHi26ovCOE2NZNquzkAqhewdaHwbmAPpH0JQpwxaZqMxwopzao13HxKH84sa6No_06F4qr9wVgjW8SWemjfQjxOQn2vnjTkZiJHsJ7x3H3Ym6SFAB4ONU4CGN9knpQXQ_2vj4QldTrA/s1600/newshoes+-+15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuuHi26ovCOE2NZNquzkAqhewdaHwbmAPpH0JQpwxaZqMxwopzao13HxKH84sa6No_06F4qr9wVgjW8SWemjfQjxOQn2vnjTkZiJHsJ7x3H3Ym6SFAB4ONU4CGN9knpQXQ_2vj4QldTrA/s640/newshoes+-+15.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Order of operation is key here. The heel gets attached to the sole first and then the tongue over those.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIm-50U4ye-lBGC-IVxvbl9czeC7N5tWnCRNncP65acv2Y7KbPLitXXtoSpajfr41CDVMDAm8XFxlwTPy5KYjRmA4Y-w5s76rk_aFTfrC6GC9ByfmHZsttGQRqtoJKNpiIzlWCp87uYhk/s1600/newshoes+-+16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIm-50U4ye-lBGC-IVxvbl9czeC7N5tWnCRNncP65acv2Y7KbPLitXXtoSpajfr41CDVMDAm8XFxlwTPy5KYjRmA4Y-w5s76rk_aFTfrC6GC9ByfmHZsttGQRqtoJKNpiIzlWCp87uYhk/s640/newshoes+-+16.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Instead of leaving the inside raw edges or surging it, I decided to sew in a strip of fabric to smooth and cover the seam.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDm1M6nE-HAFotL2EXYUrjPZw4InZ3UpOGs_YJu9tR6pAh7_Cxxm3qtV6z0y3g8E9nfdIBehxvoWd8JuRZ8wJOYFtf7LPwyz1vOTWmTlACbZoFyVbJoQLBRvqCfND2WCFegeb8bu09unU/s1600/newshoes+-+19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDm1M6nE-HAFotL2EXYUrjPZw4InZ3UpOGs_YJu9tR6pAh7_Cxxm3qtV6z0y3g8E9nfdIBehxvoWd8JuRZ8wJOYFtf7LPwyz1vOTWmTlACbZoFyVbJoQLBRvqCfND2WCFegeb8bu09unU/s640/newshoes+-+19.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The final step was to add the snaps. The last pair I had two snaps to adjust them, I never ended up needing that larger size. For this pair I just went with one. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw1iNjJGfNp3tBtStdzRyJjgi1gdkKhsfJmQQCSO_IJIP1mKTLon8QrtEGsnh8IUMF0wGrJeaHKYMvs27YWXs_Y9_KhFcWyfUcV6u2kZ0Gd62unjf5wlFKxdDX-T3wucMKT_sVEdtye8c/s1600/newshoes+-+17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw1iNjJGfNp3tBtStdzRyJjgi1gdkKhsfJmQQCSO_IJIP1mKTLon8QrtEGsnh8IUMF0wGrJeaHKYMvs27YWXs_Y9_KhFcWyfUcV6u2kZ0Gd62unjf5wlFKxdDX-T3wucMKT_sVEdtye8c/s640/newshoes+-+17.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghncvxkC7G1obosEFkD815Ra-I-PqVaW9cbdbR7UHjGzlW5FWya_b1wq-Ob42jJ0PF4phgmntx2APOXMJv6odVLOPSHcD_8cl73yeg8hPiEKUcXZ0MU2bcJgswQn1f_HFjJ9cbrDeprRI/s1600/newshoes+-+18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghncvxkC7G1obosEFkD815Ra-I-PqVaW9cbdbR7UHjGzlW5FWya_b1wq-Ob42jJ0PF4phgmntx2APOXMJv6odVLOPSHcD_8cl73yeg8hPiEKUcXZ0MU2bcJgswQn1f_HFjJ9cbrDeprRI/s640/newshoes+-+18.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-53956226911814308482019-04-08T21:41:00.000-08:002019-04-08T21:43:46.065-08:00"the mother of invention" painting<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Every week I attend a Baby-Parent Group at the local hospital. It has been a really great choice to attend, helping me to gain insight on infant development. This group is also solely responsible for my social life in Juneau. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">One week the group leader announced the Breastfeed Coalition of Alaska (and Juneau) was accepting entries for their annual art show. The piece could be any medium but needed to follow their criteria as a representation of what breastfeeding is to the artist. That was such a heavy thought. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><i>What does breastfeeding mean to me?</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">While I am grateful to be able to feed my child, getting to this point was not easy. Breastfeeding a premie was complicated. It meant specialists, devices, so much pumping, and so much patience. For all the difficult parts, it was the only thing I could do for Glenn as we were both patients on separate floors of the same hospital. Me recovering from cesarean surgery and him being preterm. It was a rough start.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">This I mulled over as I thought about how I could express it in art. Eventually, I thought of creating a wallpaper background that showed all these things, all these things needed to simply feed my child. They were there, they were necessary, but now they are simply background.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I chose acrylic for the medium because it was accessible and worked with my time constraints. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ3bw6JM_7MQJNm9G_IzcLL69s8N_gsAo5LukwSRd8pCbhNKE4tqp4YEW37Rf9fU3Ss35vGMrL0v_owYQSdJ1rLjvElwc5CmZ0KeNzXd2nFOJkcBgIfUStw3ij-evUWQwCFG1VlP1I8n8/s1600/motherofapainting+-+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ3bw6JM_7MQJNm9G_IzcLL69s8N_gsAo5LukwSRd8pCbhNKE4tqp4YEW37Rf9fU3Ss35vGMrL0v_owYQSdJ1rLjvElwc5CmZ0KeNzXd2nFOJkcBgIfUStw3ij-evUWQwCFG1VlP1I8n8/s640/motherofapainting+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Once I knew the items I wanted, I sketched each.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMkmoBMvlIsFTBN2w75V10vc5vIAEGQimkTeUSTl6gAP4gVtxZlj9ykhyTVGStWRxbHzQ6uPb9XDNS9cKBCoowRMICf3d5qsvwbMWC0-DJp5gwUGj0L5uLFg-YAMzJDfWcghsO_IAFZQ4/s1600/motherofapainting+-+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMkmoBMvlIsFTBN2w75V10vc5vIAEGQimkTeUSTl6gAP4gVtxZlj9ykhyTVGStWRxbHzQ6uPb9XDNS9cKBCoowRMICf3d5qsvwbMWC0-DJp5gwUGj0L5uLFg-YAMzJDfWcghsO_IAFZQ4/s640/motherofapainting+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> It took a few thumbnails to find the composition.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhccgrxC7CeUefY_62vF2nugtUfkL9RVQSLWHqYt43Ip1QkS4vecEQ_6wDXTWx3wJPs1hWAt1IQe7p0vvM13Cid3vBmXBdHAto0BxxIEXIcTxg2cj3nNw-6L2gqiJO6mxE-tncRfjWg72o/s1600/motherofapainting+-+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhccgrxC7CeUefY_62vF2nugtUfkL9RVQSLWHqYt43Ip1QkS4vecEQ_6wDXTWx3wJPs1hWAt1IQe7p0vvM13Cid3vBmXBdHAto0BxxIEXIcTxg2cj3nNw-6L2gqiJO6mxE-tncRfjWg72o/s640/motherofapainting+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> For the figure I took a few self portraits. I ended up taking a bit from each image.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBbB1-GKLNBv-rPvZaaqJMVmju1gXuho87xsvGz8A8gSqQGz2ibweN6SwX3wGE9m5wnHl_6pIMdX-Cdz44bYmVCgKRP7FxYhnxYPGnHc3pXSDHrHylpc9ajJEX9VUxHP55Gnql1fNuxfA/s1600/motherofapainting+-+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBbB1-GKLNBv-rPvZaaqJMVmju1gXuho87xsvGz8A8gSqQGz2ibweN6SwX3wGE9m5wnHl_6pIMdX-Cdz44bYmVCgKRP7FxYhnxYPGnHc3pXSDHrHylpc9ajJEX9VUxHP55Gnql1fNuxfA/s640/motherofapainting+-+4.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> In the end, this tiny cooking spatula was my preferred paint palette.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikM-hR1VD3ZPq3LfXt9ggiZGRkcBxahYSBpPV3NTvbVqkXV6Rxl6OOiocP-qfZn9BRzV2JGdaZHikt_luUCp9BCnqeDYlCgDbWRlfAXU51sL1i8qL-qddLmRKhI44fOfA3ypYy_RZIr2g/s1600/motherofapainting+-+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikM-hR1VD3ZPq3LfXt9ggiZGRkcBxahYSBpPV3NTvbVqkXV6Rxl6OOiocP-qfZn9BRzV2JGdaZHikt_luUCp9BCnqeDYlCgDbWRlfAXU51sL1i8qL-qddLmRKhI44fOfA3ypYy_RZIr2g/s640/motherofapainting+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> To create the pattern I drew a grid and used a graphite transfer to draw out the repeat.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiTzPFgLzo3fknWtFDlfLyNzEHYGgM6lGh5mB0kSdFiXAIjcxvyOb7r2GOtegO4F4Adk3Jf7MzkGtwUujtdJiQr5uNHebOq3ordqXI0yys1SdRU_8iOabUDSmQlg5dde6mm91dIybh-o4/s1600/motherofapainting+-+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiTzPFgLzo3fknWtFDlfLyNzEHYGgM6lGh5mB0kSdFiXAIjcxvyOb7r2GOtegO4F4Adk3Jf7MzkGtwUujtdJiQr5uNHebOq3ordqXI0yys1SdRU_8iOabUDSmQlg5dde6mm91dIybh-o4/s640/motherofapainting+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> I also used graphite transfer to place the figures. I did this because I wanted to maintain my crisp lines and not damage my repeat.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicxt8oBC1-JdOOkGOMytipRK5bT5Y7zsUH-rj0KJWJmcrZJQiDCRUYJiKS6Ohld8Z4Z4GOAQVD_XtA7TEqSa0uaGCH-pZpHMgOKjZs4eENQgl_JCs4GuJPDfN68SJD2W9jio8G9ePAFII/s1600/motherofapainting+-+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicxt8oBC1-JdOOkGOMytipRK5bT5Y7zsUH-rj0KJWJmcrZJQiDCRUYJiKS6Ohld8Z4Z4GOAQVD_XtA7TEqSa0uaGCH-pZpHMgOKjZs4eENQgl_JCs4GuJPDfN68SJD2W9jio8G9ePAFII/s640/motherofapainting+-+7.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> <i>The Mother of Invention</i>. 16"x16", Acrylic on gesso board.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcSFE2MWcyeDpZXAJIB0DuErcbBK0sv4HaW-sWhK9eoW5WTVffy1rXtQocDwu75koKjXveWQes9D3g9C7hYsH1JpRWiVWdVec5l31LhQvpqM9ZOBe4YmwPamFn4fHY7BUzrNn4Q0atQjY/s1600/motherofapainting+-+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcSFE2MWcyeDpZXAJIB0DuErcbBK0sv4HaW-sWhK9eoW5WTVffy1rXtQocDwu75koKjXveWQes9D3g9C7hYsH1JpRWiVWdVec5l31LhQvpqM9ZOBe4YmwPamFn4fHY7BUzrNn4Q0atQjY/s640/motherofapainting+-+8.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgulQyyHiM-Sh0BXLoQmuG0b51I503-3zz8K-U0dODA4_S85n7arb4Zmr2BjHPXg2m6_dX5dytBo6L9R-Eab0hqfAJ0WxDTQBDKphPevJYE_XGjrRGvcwHmFhfxugt4leW8YLgAlZ-wKD0/s1600/motherofapainting+-+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgulQyyHiM-Sh0BXLoQmuG0b51I503-3zz8K-U0dODA4_S85n7arb4Zmr2BjHPXg2m6_dX5dytBo6L9R-Eab0hqfAJ0WxDTQBDKphPevJYE_XGjrRGvcwHmFhfxugt4leW8YLgAlZ-wKD0/s640/motherofapainting+-+9.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Isaac, Glenn and I went to see the show for April's First Friday. I was surprised to find I had been awarded second place. It was easy to see that all the participants put so much into their very personal work. I felt quite honored to have my work selected for an award. </span></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-57148708649447114262019-04-07T20:23:00.002-08:002019-04-07T20:23:44.308-08:00carrier redo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: x-small;">[This post is intended to show the process of making for my own personal use. I did so knowing full well any safety risks that may be involved.]</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">When this well-used Ergo carrier came into my possession I intended to pass it along to a friend. It turned out that the friend had one already and so I now had a third carrier that wasn't quite what I needed/wanted. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">A few weeks back I had borrowed a friend's onbuhimbo style carrier. I was looking for a different way to wear Glenn on my back. Normally I front-carry with either a Beco (for walks) or a Baby K'tan (for casual wearing). Glenn did not like being back carried in the Beco so I was looking for ideas. The onbuhimbo let him be much higher on my back, with our shoulders parallel, so he could see more of what was going on. One of my favorite aspects of the onbuhimbo was that there was no uncomfortable waist strap. It was more like wearing a backpack.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">One day I glanced at the spare carrier in my closet and an idea struck. It had some features that I really wanted...mainly that lovely zipper pocket. Why couldn't I redo this into something I would use?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"> [BEFORE]</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"> Glenn really loved exploring the zipper.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"> [AFTER]</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidCG-6L0sEuB1r19nkbgH8E2i7TFqcBkpfZMru1ngIxLijKLWAbyNTt90OLpsUsaLh6iy5jwnnInnhyvFx14TAa0v0tgCxEcVa26NpHXo_5OCkHyguq3SNtx2CjJzjXsXs9LX8sDvqco4/s1600/carrierRedo+-+15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidCG-6L0sEuB1r19nkbgH8E2i7TFqcBkpfZMru1ngIxLijKLWAbyNTt90OLpsUsaLh6iy5jwnnInnhyvFx14TAa0v0tgCxEcVa26NpHXo_5OCkHyguq3SNtx2CjJzjXsXs9LX8sDvqco4/s640/carrierRedo+-+15.jpg" width="478" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"> Glenn really likes to be in this carrier. He is a curious kid so the higher vantage point keeps him happy.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg58gIR7j4bcpDHo4eUUCuBblQ1mg8yX7zQNlUaN7H3rcL-_afXtAjFgm7sjfJ8h-D8r8FgNvXxQt4OWZE8Hh6s6wmAEdiowxgAFLrWL-hwTFI_8KbPcUTfagy8fOtVo6vePOwcL1M_PU/s1600/carrierRedo+-+16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1001" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg58gIR7j4bcpDHo4eUUCuBblQ1mg8yX7zQNlUaN7H3rcL-_afXtAjFgm7sjfJ8h-D8r8FgNvXxQt4OWZE8Hh6s6wmAEdiowxgAFLrWL-hwTFI_8KbPcUTfagy8fOtVo6vePOwcL1M_PU/s640/carrierRedo+-+16.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Today I tried it with a front carry. We did a three mile walk in neighborhood trails and it was great. It took a little repositioning but I eventually got it where I wanted it.</span></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-90416712073181475612019-04-05T12:34:00.000-08:002019-04-05T12:34:26.424-08:00fast foreward<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">It's almost two years later.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Life took a swift turn this summer. We moved from Mountain Village to Juneau. The lower 48 equivalent of moving from Colorado to Georgia, except without roads connecting most of the distance. Everything was packed up and mailed to storage before there was anything confirmed about Isaac's job. Things quickly came into alignment and we were just beginning to get settled in our new city when Glenn arrived five weeks (and a day) early. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8YooSm2YhcK-IDtdPwKWptx99Pl8Z-q0ztFhNswIr8v0wOEqJdgTaXmBny6AwC9JyXJmWyuevOtnzTt0wJBGqQaPYOh7X-9OYDRdnPptrOspfKC0talpV9N7PBY5-yc4UpLBTXiblFrI/s1600/fastforward+-+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8YooSm2YhcK-IDtdPwKWptx99Pl8Z-q0ztFhNswIr8v0wOEqJdgTaXmBny6AwC9JyXJmWyuevOtnzTt0wJBGqQaPYOh7X-9OYDRdnPptrOspfKC0talpV9N7PBY5-yc4UpLBTXiblFrI/s640/fastforward+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> Glenn spent the first month of his life in the NICU in Anchorage getting bigger and stronger before he could come home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Life this year looks quite different than it did last year. I have been home with Glenn instead of in the classroom. We've enjoyed getting to know our new location in all the seasons. The climate is more more Pacific Northwest and less Arctic. It was a bit shocking to me when all the snow melted away in March. I had become used to it sticking around until May. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">As Glenn gets older and we find our routines, I have been able to start creating and making again in a way that I really haven't in the years since I began teaching. Most of my creative power went into my lessons and teaching practice. I'm looking forward to once again sharing projects and adventures using this space.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> </span></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-90067882365752543532017-07-11T16:06:00.000-08:002017-07-11T16:06:02.458-08:00driving in alaska<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
With errands dotting our to-do list, Anchorage was the first stop on the summer travels. </div>
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The city is full of trails and we were fortunate enough to be staying within walking distance of an entrance. </div>
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Between errands we managed to get out to Girdwood. Girdwood is home to Alyeska Ski Resort and in the summer they have great trails for short hikes.</div>
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We stopped at Beluga Point on the way.</div>
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There are ski runs in the distance on the drive into Girdwood. Having grown up on flat land, mountains just blow my mind.</div>
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The trails were pretty busy that day. It was cool yet sunny.</div>
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The color of these falls was just incredible. </div>
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Towards the end of the week Isaac's parents, and then sister, joined us in Anchorage. We took them to some of our favorite places. Just in the last year we have had quite of few trips to and through the city. A few favorite and regular spots have certainly developed. Isaac already had a few from the summer he spent doing his teacher training.</div>
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Checking out Sleeping Lady with Don and Mary.</div>
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Monica came into town the next day and we all went for a climb up Flat Top Mountain. </div>
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Even part-way up had a spectacular view of downtown Anchorage and Sleeping Lady. </div>
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The next day we packed up, stocked up and headed out down Highway 1. Our first stop was Sterling. The drive there is along the Kenai River and through the Chugach Mountains. The drive was pretty spectacular. Salmon season hadn't opened so traffic was easy. In the weeks to follow the road would become full of folks in search of this year's catch.</div>
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Don and Mary rented a Minnie Winnie for the adventure and it was fun to watch them roll through the scenery. </div>
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We took a day to drive to Seward. I had never been there. We had lunch by the old depot and saw some whales spouting in the bay. <span style="text-align: center;">Seward is were the original delivery of medicine to Nome began. There were markers to commemorate that fact. Today their is a ceremonial start in Anchorage and race actually begins from Willow.</span></div>
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Stopped at a scenic overlook on our way to Seward.</div>
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A pack of Paulsons walking by the water.</div>
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Our sled dog will have quite a bit of training before she is ready for the Iditarod. Two seconds later she had pulled loose and taken off. </div>
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Driving back we stopped to look at Exit Glacier. Along the road there were markings to show how big the glacier had been year by year. As we got even closer the shrinking was shockingly visible.</div>
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Where Isaac is standing in the picture is where the glacier had been ten years ago. </div>
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As the glacier continues to melt the valley shifts, establishing plant growth. The melt has become much more rapid in the last few years.</div>
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The following day we went for a hike around Skilak Lake. </div>
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Ada charged ahead to warn any animals of our presence and then checked back to make sure we were all still walking. She was a great hike leader.</div>
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The view from the top was amazing. The color of the water comes from the silt left by glacier run-off. </div>
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The next stretch of our journey took us farther down the Kenai Peninsula, to Homer. We stayed at the Homer Spit Campgrounds out on the spit.</div>
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The pup finally got her car legs. It took about a week for her to learn to relax and nap during our road journeys. </div>
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Isaac pitched our tent right on the beach.</div>
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Don and Mary had the campsite right behind ours. We experimented in dutch oven cooking and enjoyed halibut fish tacos. </div>
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Ada experienced waves and salt water for the first time. She's a big fan of seaweeds.</div>
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When on the Spit in Homer, stopping by the Salty Dog is a must. The inside is covered in autographed dollar bills and miscellaneous items left by patrons over the years.</div>
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Using a photograph for reference we were able locate our dollar bill from last year's visit.</div>
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We added a bill that had been riding around in my purse since Mexico. </div>
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It was a fun atmosphere and so nice to share with family.</div>
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From the hills of Homer we met friendly groundskeepers and viewed glaciers across the bay.</div>
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The rocky coast is my favorite kind of beach.</div>
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Don, Monica and Mary down on the beach. </div>
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Seaweed is such a new thing to me. Having grown up land-locked all the variety of vegetation found in the ocean is just fascinating to me.</div>
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While a study-abroad student in the south of France I met Eliza. As we stitched through our experiences she talked about growing up in Alaska. Her stories of Halibut Cove were so intriguing. Getting to see the Cove was high on my list of expectations for this trip to Homer. It was so exciting to get to go and share that with the whole Paulson clan.</div>
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It was a smooth ride over on the Danny J. The wooden-decked ship was once a troop transport.</div>
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The highlight of our trip was a delicious dinner at the Saltry. Their local oysters, harvested nearby, were the best I have ever eaten.</div>
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The Cove is home to artists, galleries, and the only floating USPS post office in the country.</div>
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The return ferry trip highlights included a deck-wide happy birthday song to a fellow passenger and...</div>
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an orca pod sighting! It's the tiny black protrusion in right side of the water.</div>
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Monica, Mary and I went to explore tide pools and barnacles. Tides, another one of those magical ocean features.</div>
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The view of the Spit and the Bay from the hills behind Homer.</div>
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It sure was fun to explore a bit of Alaska with this crew! <i>Ready for Denali next year?</i></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-76779323774953483472017-06-29T13:40:00.001-08:002017-06-29T13:40:28.036-08:00and then there is summer<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ritual. </div>
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Life is ritual and routine. </div>
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Coffee, breakfast, dog, work, lunch, classes, dinner, dishes, walk, relax, sleep, repeat. Repeat. </div>
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A second year in Alaska has taught me as much as the first. I learned how to teach adolescents and all the busy-ness that comes with that. Each day was broken apart by class periods, passing periods, attendance, and tardy slips. Instead of coaxing the solutions to story problems, I broke down artistic process into manageable steps. As hastily as the school year began, it ended.</div>
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Now comes this other part of life. The part were Isaac and I break routine. We leave to visit with our families. Slipping in and out of their routines. We bounce from coast to coast, house to house. The summer ritual is keeping luggage tidy, finding coffee, checking in and out of flights. And the dog. </div>
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Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-52205422149333004672017-03-19T16:18:00.000-08:002017-03-19T16:18:14.799-08:00return of the sun<div style="text-align: justify;">
Sunshine has returned to Alaska, with ferocity.</div>
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The winter sun mumbles across the horizon for about a quarter of the day. December is our darkest month. I'm often asked if the darkness is difficult. It becomes very routine. I would say the sudden jolt of sun is more unsettling. </div>
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It's almost alarming how rapidly the amount of daylight hours increases.</div>
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As the time sprang forward the use of blackout curtains at bedtime became necessary once again. It certainly feels more strange to go to bed during daylight than it does to spend five pm in darkness.</div>
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But the shift of weather has been wonderful. It's still cold, but the sunshine and good gear help to enjoy the magic of winter.</div>
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The sun helps with house-training (adjusting to dog-life once again).</div>
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Having a high-energy puppy is such a shift from my lazy Stella. Walks are now a daily occurrence. After school it's become habit to meet up with my friend, the language arts teacher, Victoria, and her pup Maggie. Ada is finally learning how to play with other dogs. </div>
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After collecting water at the village's freshwater spring, we walked back via the river. Justin, Victoria's boyfriend, is getting ready for summer fire-fighting. He carried their bottles of water, eight gallons, on his back.</div>
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The walk on the ice inspired our Saturday adventure. Isaac, myself, and Ada met up with Justin, Victoria, and Maggie to walk across the river. There is at least six feet of ice on the river right now. It's the main route of travel between the villages. I've also heard of another village driving trucks between their village and the neighboring hub airport.</div>
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Mountain Village from the other side of the Yukon.</div>
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There are well-traveled snow machine tracks through the willows.</div>
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We couldn't help but venture down this tight trail. I was amazed at how straight the willows grow. </div>
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The moose have been rutting on the trees.</div>
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It was when I traveled to Nunavut that I first shifted to the uniqueness of winter. In winter we were able to walk around on land that would be nearly impassable on foot. We were able to just walk across the river. It was really incredible. </div>
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Isaac and Justin had a little fun shooting on the river bank. </div>
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Don't let the snow fool you, Spring is certainly here. I've noticed the return of a few birds and a some willows beginning to bud. There is still plenty of snow and ice to enjoy. I'm looking forward to getting out on Isaac's snow machine and taking more walks over the frozen tundra and river. All this winter wonder is only buoyed by the fact that there are only eight weeks left of school for the year.</div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-51906443092276511852017-02-24T20:04:00.001-09:002017-02-24T20:04:25.940-09:00and then there was AdaWe'd been talking about it. On the way back from Mexico we almost went looking for one. But then it came to us. <br />
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One day word of mouth reached me and so I asked Isaac, <i>Do you want a puppy?</i> To which he replied <i>yes</i>. Not much later a puppy arrived at our house, well, two. We chose which one we wanted and that was that. </div>
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But we soon realized the puppy was far too little to be away from it's mom. After one night of feeding her every two hours via syringe, she was returned to her mother. We wanted her, we named her and so we requested that when she was ready to be away from her mother she be returned to us.</div>
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And a few weeks later she was.</div>
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Ada, dubbed so by Isaac in honor of the first coder <a href="http://www.biography.com/people/ada-lovelace-20825323">Lady Ada Lovelace</a>, came back into our lives. It was a Thursday night, and I had just finished up quarter two parent-teacher conferences. As I neared my porch a four-wheeler drove towards me. The driver pulled up and Ada was produced. She had just had a bath and she was ours now.</div>
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Isaac and I were just as unprepared for her as the first time, but at least now she could eat and drink on her own. Food was prepared from frozen moose, and I retrieved Stella's old kennel from the storage closet. We learned that unused shelving made good barriers and that Boston Fern leaves are not poisonous. </div>
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We were glad that Ada's arrival was a Thursday night, so we had the pending weekend to adjust to life together. Our life that no longer involved sleeping in or wearing socks around the house. But did involve snuggles and licks and having our arrival at home be celebrated as the best thing to ever happen all day ever.</div>
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Those first few days we found out that she would go do sleep if we swaddled her.</div>
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Mostly she just always wanted to be near someone.</div>
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The outdoors were not her favorite. Hopefully this will change as she gets older because Isaac has high hopes for a skijoring companion.<br />
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She was a little unsure of other dogs. Ada and Maggie, a fellow teacher's dog.</div>
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And when walking she mostly just tried to step on our boots in an attempt to be carried.</div>
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On the trail to the old airport after a good snow.</div>
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One day we saw Ada's mom when returning from a walk. I had only met her once, when we returned Ada, but I immediately knew her by her eyes.</div>
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Puppies are so much work. This I knew from when Stella was a puppy. With her I remember regretting the decision for a solid two months after I brought her home. It was no different with Ada. Constant attention, pee, food, pee, poop, pee, play, pee, poop, pee, pee, and repeat. She has her own little behaviors that made me think <i>what was I thinking?</i> But after a few weeks she was growing and we started to get to know each other more.</div>
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And then one day I actually thought<i> I kind of like having a dog again</i>. </div>
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She brings some spunk into our lives and its nice.</div>
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With Ada, I've been getting outside more. Taking a walk in -7 degree weather is just another Tuesday.</div>
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And she's growing.</div>
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She's learning to sit and to stay.</div>
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She was a good choice.</div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-6120923124412605992017-02-12T12:55:00.001-09:002017-02-12T12:55:56.805-09:00todos santos<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Monday after our wedding, Isaac was back to work almost as soon as the plane touched down in Anchorage. We decided then that my winter break would be for our honeymoon trip. There was talk of Europe, talk of Spain. But in the end we just wanted to get away somewhere warm and somewhere Isaac could practice his Spanish. I wanted good food and he wanted to surf. That is when we discovered Baja Sur. It's the peninsula off the bottom of the California and the flights were less than twelve hours from Anchorage. So it was decided on spending nine days in the town of Todos Santos.</div>
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We boarded our flight in Saint Mary's.</div>
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Took a snooze in LAX.</div>
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We flew into Los Cabos airport and drove an hour to Todos Santos on the newly completed highway. It was really easy drive and we were careful to watch out for stray cattle and goats on the roadway.</div>
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One of my criteria for our stay was booking a place with a kitchen. Lessons learned from experiences in travel this past summer taught me that having the ability to prep meals independently is very valuable when dealing with food intolerances. We found a newly listed airbnb location. The whole first floor was ours and it was perfect.</div>
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Down a dusty dirt trail, the directions on our maps.me app took us right there. </div>
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Due to weather delays we never had time to get an international sim card but with that app, and a local tourist map, we were able to navigate successfully. It didn't take long to get oriented.</div>
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Sunshine! We left the village during its darkest time of the year so it was really refreshing to have sunlight.</div>
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The view from the front porch. Over that far hill is the ocean. It took me a day to realize the sounds I heard as we were falling asleep was the surf breaking in the distance.</div>
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The garden was beautifully landscaped and I enjoyed these flowers off the front porch.</div>
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We took a nice walk along the shore our first day. There were not many other people as this is not a swimming beach.</div>
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These flowers made up the hedge in front of the house. </div>
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One evening the owner was away for the night and gave us permission to enjoy the view from the rooftop patio.</div>
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I believe this is an aloe in bloom. It was so interesting that I had to include it.</div>
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Our morning coffee was enjoyed while watching the whales in the bay.</div>
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With responsibility thousands of miles away it did not take long to feel creative once again.</div>
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One of the decorated streets in the historic street in town. </div>
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Most of the city is just a small town, full of dust, dirt and life. I enjoyed seeing the architecture shift away from what I'm used to seeing. Many of the building we saw included interior outdoor areas. They would be walled into the property and seating was outdoors. I believe there is a rainy season, but the same protection against the elements that exists farther north is not as necessary in this more temperate area.</div>
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This desert garden was inside one of the restaurants where we ate dinner.</div>
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Acclimating to ordering and getting my feet on how to order without dairy and gluten took a little while. The first few meals in town were a bust but it didn't take long to find places that accommodate for annoying gringos like me. Though not as infiltrated as Los Cabos, Todos has a pretty large ex-pat community and a steady stream of day-time tourists. The last time I traveled outside the US I didn't have the same restrictions. Ordering in the English in the States can often be unsuccessful or difficult so I had to be patient with the outcome. Once we found delicious destinations we kept going back.</div>
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<a href="http://www.laesquinats.com/">La Esquina</a> was a great restaurant. Their fresh juice and giant mugs of coffee were the delicious.</div>
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Getting inspired by the thatched roof.</div>
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And sketching the surrounding trees.</div>
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Isaac's activity of choice.</div>
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Said mugs of coffee and one beautiful wall. The tables and chairs were covered in leather. It was interesting.</div>
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Isaac surfing.</div>
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We made two trips to Los Cerritos beach. Isaac took to the water while I found some shade. It was nice just to sit there and enjoy the ocean. (I get it now Mom and Dad.) I did take a few books (which I never read) and some stitching to work at on along the way.</div>
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Realizing it was going to be Christmas, our first Christmas together, I felt the sudden need to make stockings. We asked the local english bookstore owner where to find fabric and she recommended a shop. What I ended up buying was dishtowels. But I like them.</div>
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After the trip I used my sketches to show my classes how different things can inspire us. I also gave them some time for sketching what inspired them.</div>
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Isaac saw this flyer at La Esquina. We had to check it out.</div>
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El Refugio might be one of my top experiences from our trip. The food was so delicious and the chef came out to explain everything. They offered two plates of the day - one carne and one vegan. Perfect. </div>
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Seating was outside, in front of the restaurant. And then there was the Mezcal.</div>
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Mezcal is made from agave. It is a traditional drink. <span style="text-align: justify;">El Refugio offered flights to taste the many flavors. I ended up enjoying the smoky varieties the most.</span></div>
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The lure of mezcal a bloody Mary brought us back for a Christmas day brunch. It was a Feliz Navidad!</div>
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And then there is this. While watching the Packers game we ran into Romeo, again. I was very amused by this lounging St. Bernard shaved like a lion. He's a regular around town.</div>
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We also enjoyed La Bodega de Todos Santos. </div>
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They hosted tastings with live music and good company. Of course we made an Alaska connection and have another stop added to our plans in Homer this summer. It was great to have an easy place to pop into to grab a bottle for a nice evening back on the porch enjoying the stars and the sound of the surf.</div>
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With the arrival of our last day in town we wanted to take a little adventure elsewhere. The tiny town of El Triunfo proved to be just the place. It was once home to 10,000 miners when silver and gold were discovered. Now there are just a little over 300 inhabitants.</div>
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The church.</div>
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We found this relic on the street. Unfortunately, it didn't work. It's a shame because Isaac could have used it after I lost his cellphone at the beach.</div>
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We snapped this shot with El Triunfo's claim to fame in the background. The smoke stack was designed by Gustav Eiffel, the same guy responsible for the town in Paris. </div>
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I thought the Cafe El Triunfo was a pretty interesting structure. It was a tiny store front with seating out back that rambled on and on. It was pretty cool. We also learned that Mexico is a great place for a romantic get away with your dog. There were many people dining with their pups wherever we went. </div>
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The next morning we navigated our way back the airport and back to the States.</div>
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By evening we were back in Alaska.</div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-62114718022234420832016-09-17T13:49:00.001-08:002016-09-17T13:49:22.255-08:00a swift shift<div style="text-align: justify;">
A month ago, the school year was about to begin. I was setting up my 6th grade classroom and in the swing of in-service days before the students arrived. </div>
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Then, the Saturday before school began, I had an interesting email which led to a phone call. The call left me with a decision, stay in sixth grade or shift to high school and teach art. Not all art, but mostly art. Knowing the rarity of the situation of course I chose art.</div>
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The empty high school classroom before everything was moved over to the elementary.</div>
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The following Monday I packed up what I had unpacked into my sixth grade classroom and rolled it across the school to an empty high school classroom. All the desks were already claimed so I hunted down tables. And then chairs. And then whatever I could find in the way of art supplies.</div>
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The next day I had students.<br />
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The first few days we painted.</div>
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As schedules progressed my classes have begun to find their routine. I begin the day with two middle school classes and two high school classes. The high school classes are elective Art. Most of my students have never had an Art class. There is no curriculum, but a few state standards. We are beginning with the elements of art, then we will shift into the principles.</div>
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Two weeks ago we began color. We spend one day mixing the color wheel before we moved on to a little color theory and taking a look at Kandinsky's <i>Concentric Circles</i>.</div>
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Each element has a project to explore that thought. We used Kandinsky's work as our master study for this project. The high school classes divided their paper into twelve parts. Each square had a different color theme focus: primary, secondary, tertiary, analogous, complementary, and monochromatic.</div>
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A goal that I had for this project was to have work to display for our Welcome Back to School Potluck and then in the main entrance. To display the work I knew they needed to be protected by lamination. One major teacher lesson I learned is that laminators will melt oil pastel. That was a painful lesson to learn.</div>
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The seventh and eighth grade classes are spending a few days a week working in expository reading. Their project was modified to fit this time constraint. They had only six boxes to work.</div>
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Seeing the results all up together is so interesting. Forty-four students were given the same parameters, the same instructions, and the same materials but each and every single one is different. There are some similarities but no two are alike.</div>
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I'm really excited to see what the year will bring. We have already had some very interesting conversation and dialogue about art. The "what is art?" question has already come up.</div>
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I think the statement in KQED's Art School video was a pretty incredible answer. I made my students write it in their sketchbooks. "Art is about communication. About trying to either understand the world or understand yourself." -<a href="https://youtu.be/By0d5G4yRzM?list=PLTKEsbX4XBiO9Az7uve66JcsHFznGuV0Q">Nigel Poor</a></div>
Sharon Paulsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13587824921602471731noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-4422409226118683062016-08-21T11:59:00.001-08:002016-08-21T11:59:57.101-08:00the Marshall classroom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
In preparing my classroom for the coming school year, it starts Tuesday, reflecting on last year's classroom has helped bring focus. My classroom in Marshall began blank. It developed and built as the school year progressed. I really wanted it to be a reflection of student learning. That was what I kept in mind as it shifted from state to state.</div>
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The south side of the classroom.</div>
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This side was really devoted to our reading routine. Each morning I wrote our agenda for the session underneath the date. The green writing is the word wall that developed around Thanksgiving. I made a habit of moving the week's Essential Question to the top part of the wall. Above the agenda were two important reminders: "Be Nice" and "We are here to learn." My desk was situated so that I could see the whole room from the rare moments I sat at it. It was also there so that I could run my smart board from my laptop as well as use my document camera.</div>
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The north side of the room.</div>
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The three posters at the top were my CHAMPS. Champs state the expectations for specific activities. The tan strips are my Accelerated Reader point clubs. Each student's picture moved as they read more and earned more points. This bulletin board was for science and social studies. The practice developed later in the year. I would write the essential questions for each lesson and hang the vocabulary cards as we discussed the words. I would also post copies of our science notebook notes for any student who may have been absent. The middle chart is the line order and jobs chart, rotating weekly. It's next to the line up procedures. There are also little pieces of painters tape on the floor tiles so each number would know where they were supposed to stand in line. At the right is my US map. As we learned about each state we colored it in. Beginning the morning with a state was one of my favorite activities of the year. Students could name every state by the end of the year.</div>
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At the back of the room was the learning center.</div>
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Not having any book shelves in the room this became our bookshelf. Making the investment in class books was really important. Having material that was at each student's level and of interest to them was huge. Illustrated novels helped my students to find reading success and be proud that they could finish a whole chapter book.</div>
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Sketchbooks were also high my list of school year accomplishments.</div>
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My brother Sam was able to help supply my class with hardcover sketchbooks and individual sets of colored pencils. We had a class set of pencils but ownership of their own was way more significant. I build a specialness to the sketchbooks. They had a special spot at my desk. I would make them return them at the end of each session. </div>
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We used a gold marker to put their names on them. Obviously all of my students are name Stephen Curry.</div>
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Sketching was especially transformative for one student. I saw his overall behavior improve and engagement levels go up. Maybe it was that he got to know me better, maybe my teaching practices improved, but I like to think that he found something to focus on.</div>
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Pokemon. They all liked to copy Pokemon into their sketchbooks.</div>
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I tried to give art significance in my classroom. We learned all the elements of art. We painted, sketched, glued, and pasted. We learned about a few well-known artists. More than once I found them googling Keith Herring after our study of line. Mark Rothko also had a fair share of hits. The hall bulletin board always featured their creative work. It was collaborative.</div>
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All year long they begged to paint masks, so we finally did.</div>
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As the new school year approaches I keep thinking back to my first class. I hope the best for them and am grateful for our time learning together and my year as Miss T.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-75225738253377766242016-07-30T18:00:00.000-08:002016-10-02T18:04:08.051-08:00the small day<div style="text-align: justify;">
Our relationship began quietly. We made a habit of bumping into one
another walking our dogs. That led to a few scheduled walks. There was
really no way around it. A magnetism grew. Being teachers in a small,
remote village every move we made was always noticed. Even as we began
regularly seeing one another we kept it as quiet and close as possible.
Observant students made comments that were quickly fielded. We managed
to make it three months into our relationship before it became common
knowledge.<br />
<br />
Traveling together after the school year ended put aside some of the
nagging questions. What if this only works in the village? Can we
actually handle relating to one another in the context of the culture in
which we were raised? Quickly we realized life was so much better
together no matter where we were. The decision to marry was made of
mutual thought and discussion. That discussion also involved my
request: to have our ceremony be quiet and small.<br />
<br />
Having been a part of eight of my dear friends' weddings I have
witnessed so many beautiful unions. There were elaborate decorations,
gorgeous details, months of planning and they were beautiful. But I
also saw the intense preparation, elevated stress levels and same
outcome. Two people making the choice to join their lives. My request
to Isaac was that we have a very small intimate wedding, just a notch
more involved than elopement. The nature of our jobs were very
stressful. We constantly make decisions all day long. I had no desire to
begin our marriage with anything complicated. Fortunately, neither did
Isaac.<br />
<br />
Our date was chosen because it was when our parents and siblings were
free. My wonderful friend, Maggy, and her amazing family agreed to play
host. The location was out of the way for everyone, which seemed oddly
fitting in that Isaac and I live our lives traveling to and from our out-of-the-way home. Dinner was a reservation at the local restaurant.
Dessert was pie from the local orchard. Drinks were from local brewers.
Isaac ordered a suit and I stitched a dress. Our simple gold band rings
were ordered from the small town jeweler my mom uses. Flowers were
whatever was growing on the farm. Save the dates were verbal and
invitations scratched on a Central Lake postcard. Everything was taken
care of with a few phone calls, texts and emails.<br />
<br />
The weekend was perfect. Friday the family arrived. It was the first
time our families had met. Andrew, Maggy's husband, grilled dinner then
we walked across the road to rehearse. Chatting around the fire finished
out the day.<br />
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Saturday morning, after a classy breakfast, a cohort was convened at Maggy's to snip flowers and arrange them into our day's needs. To spend the morning together and create together was so nice.<br />
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It was wonderful to have the help of such sweet people. </div>
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Please note, many wonderful nearly empty coffee drinks. Thank you Smiths!</div>
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Fern helping to fill her flower basket.</div>
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Back in May, when she found out we were getting married, my mom put a whole bunch of my favorite peonies in the refrigerator to "sleep" them until the end of July. It worked and there were peonies everywhere.</div>
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All the other flowers were gathered from the farm.</div>
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The flower girls had the most beautiful baskets of blooms.</div>
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Once the list was all crossed off it was time for a break.</div>
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After the flowers were finished we went for a dip in Torch Lake.</div>
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Back at the Inn there was a wonderful surprise waiting for me. Whitney had made the last minute trip to come and "crash". Her company was very welcome. She and Rachel helped me get ready.</div>
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Back at Maggy's Rachel made me a flower crown and we got into our dresses. </div>
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From there all my sweet friends and family took over. Signs were hung, the drinks and pie table set out, the ceremony site prepped, flowers dispersed. </div>
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While this was happening Rachel sent Isaac to meet me up the road a ways. We got to say hello and see each other alone. It was one of both of our favorite parts of the day.</div>
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Together we walked over to the farm and greeted our group, including a few close friends who had made the lengthy journey. </div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">After a few family photos it was time to begin.</span><br />
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Liam played his acoustic guitar as Isaac walked in with his parents. Jason seated my mom. Eurydice and Fern threw their petals, followed by Rachel and Ross.<br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Dad walked me down the isle and then took his place as officiant. </span></div>
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<i> Dad was a wonderful officiant, thank you again.</i></div>
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Following his remarks, he read a favorite poem we had chosen. Monica, Isaac's sister, added a beautiful reading from the book of Ruth. We both made our promises. Then we walked in the path through the woods to dinner.<br />
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Dinner was more like a large family meal. Old friends chatted and everyone found something good to eat.<br />
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From dinner we returned to the farm for pie. There was cherry, blueberry and apple. I made a special one for Isaac and I to cut.<br />
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Isaac and I shared our first dance which was finished off with a bang of fireworks. When we were first discussing our wedding Isaac had said he wanted fireworks. I didn't know if that would be possible on the wooded farm in July. But Andrew agreed to take on the task and made a fantastic show, which was really cool.<br />
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Dad and I danced.<br />
Isaac and Mary, his mom, danced.<br />
Then we put on the playlist and enjoyed the evening. Mostly all the old friends just took the opportunity to catch up. With so much adulthood happening these days it was just nice to have a moment to relax.<br />
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Next came toasts. Rachel, Ross and Isaac's father, Don, gave wonderful speeches with great emphasis on our mutual appreciation for adventure. We are so lucky to have such wonderful people in our lives.<br />
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We took care of the legal stuff.</div>
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Somehow it happened that Isaac and I were the last two attendees left at the end of the night. And Andrew, putting one last magical touch on the day drove us back to the Inn using a motorcycle and sidecar. It was perfect.<br />
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So many wonderful faces made our small day possible. Thank you many times over. </div>
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I am grateful to have such a sweet memory to officially mark the beginning of marriage to Isaac.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3Central Lake, MI 49622, USA45.0700047 -85.26451050000002945.0475762 -85.304851000000028 45.092433199999995 -85.224170000000029tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-21786982523350222012016-07-23T10:48:00.000-08:002016-07-23T10:53:50.831-08:00teacher tech talk [final project post]<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-92a483dd-18fc-c78a-4408-ff8364ba8a22" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Even though the course I took at the Kodiak Island Virtual Learning Conference was on paper circuitry, my learning has certainly reached beyond that specific skill.<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> O</span>verall I am taking away for the course the idea of new methods of communication and building community.</span></span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-92a483dd-18fc-c78a-4408-ff8364ba8a22" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The district I teach in is physically the size of many lower 48 states, populated with ten small schools. There are no roads between the schools. Boat, airplane, and snow machine (when there is snow) are the only means of transportation between each village. Last year, my elementary class had multiple opportunities to travel to other schools and villages for athletic competitions. They very much looked forward to this and it was a time that they could get to know other students in their extended community. With all the budget cuts faced in the coming year, I doubt this travel will be possible. Building that connection across the district is something I feel may have a hugely positive long-term impact. For this reason it is my goal for the coming year is to connect with other 6th grade classrooms within our district. My hope is that opening a channel of communication will allow for and ultimately lead to knowledge sharing. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">During the course of new teacher orientation and district in-service I would like to begin by connecting with other 6th grade teachers. My aim is to find at least one other teacher willing to connect on a regular basis. Last year ClassDojo added Class Story to their platform. I had the chance to explore it a bit and think it may be a good communication method. It is secure but easily facilitates allowing other users access. Parents and family can also easily be added to see what is happening in our classroom.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We will start small and simple. Each day together, we will choose a photo (or video) and summary sentence for our learning. The goal being that the other class would do the same and the next morning we can see what happened in their class the day before. This would serve equal parts review and incentive for the new day’s learning. Once the communication becomes more fluid, I would say by the end of September, I would like eventually like to have the class summarizing for each subject of the day. The goal being to have other classes in the district doing the same so that we can passively see what is happening in other classrooms. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The next layer of this communication will begin in the second week of school. I would like to open a video chat between classrooms to have the students introduce themselves. The next week I would like for them to have a few ideas about their community prepared to share with the other class. This meshes well with beginning of the year learning about one another as well as social studies goals. I am very interested to see what might come of building rapport between the students. I would like for this to turn into a weekly video chat that has a theme and meets with the learning goals of both classrooms. This would be a great place to share their makerspace creations and ideas. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Thinking in the long term, I know that this process will shift and I must allow for the outcome to be organic with our classroom. It would be my hope that by the spring the idea of participating in a shared classroom lesson or learning experience would be possible. The technological groundwork positive social media skills would be in place.</span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-87867585609610786782016-07-15T08:20:00.000-08:002016-07-23T10:52:25.505-08:00techer tech talk [part 3]<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Science.<br /><br />Science and <i>writing</i>.<br /><br />When I think about making in my general education classroom my mind immediately shifts to the subject of teaching science. As I began last year, my first year of teaching, I quickly learned that science would be nearly impossible to teach straight from a textbook. It took about three minutes for my students to grow impatient with paragraph after paragraph of words. This may seem obvious, but it was part of my learning process to put the text books away and create a plan B. This included one-session long whole group projects. Additionally, we began to explore science using science notebooks. I used the textbook as my guide and began to pull information, and synthesize it into concepts my students could concentrate on. My overall focus with this endeavor was to keep the idea of scientific inquiry in mind. Alaska State Science Standards (2013) state, "A student should understand and be able to apply the process and applications of scientific inquiry." So we began to ask questions and make observations. We wrote down our observations. We talked about our observations. We found out what hoarfrost was, learned about platypuses, <a href="http://thefieldbarn.blogspot.com/2015/09/cells-cells.html" target="_blank">d</a><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><a href="http://thefieldbarn.blogspot.com/2015/09/cells-cells.html" target="_blank">issected jello</a><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><a href="http://thefieldbarn.blogspot.com/2015/09/cells-cells.html" target="_blank"> cells</a>, </span></span>measured seed sprouts, and observed erosion in our community. <br /><br />As I reflect on that year of science, I want to grow this process. Last year’s learning methods were scratching the surface. In the coming year I would like to emphasize the importance of inquiry and be more deliberate about building understanding of the scientific method. As the description of the Alaska Science Standard (2013) goes deeper it states students should, “develop an understanding of the processes of science used to investigate problems, design and conduct repeatable scientific investigations, and defend scientific arguments.” I feel that I have established the first part as the base and this year I want to bring in the second and third aspects. I see “repeatable scientific experiments” as a playground for making. I would like to take these concepts in science and pull them into the culture of my classroom. Our investigations and questions should come from their natural inquisitiveness. Making allows students to realize the questions and ideas they have are the most important questions and ideas. I hope to spread these ideas, concepts, and methods to be more than subject specific.<br /><br />To grow how they think and reflect on the questions, I would also like to use their constructions to open a platform for nonfiction written reflection and writing. <i>What if the written reflection was also a platform for making...graphic panels?!</i> Having that individual buy-in seems a solid space for building writing skills.<br /><br />Sources:<br />Alaska Department of Education and Early Development. (2013). In <i>Alaska Standards: Science</i>. Retrieved from https://education.alaska.gov/akstandards/standards/Science.pdf</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-26060751693111591832016-06-29T09:49:00.002-08:002016-07-23T10:52:08.356-08:00techer tech talk [part 2]<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I jumped into the concept of making in my classroom last year. With my art background, I remember the impact of being able to incorporate creativity had on my own learning process. I was able to witness this in both classrooms where I student taught. There is a powerful learning dynamic that happens when exploration is allowed, encouraged, and facilitated. I knew I certainly wanted this for my classroom, but finding how to do that during my first year experience was a challenge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">When the year began and we were still in the process of learning each other, step-by-step group projects were necessary. These mostly involved paper and glue using only the tools I inherited with the classroom. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">As the year progressed, I found positive results with student-driven, skill-differentiated making. These required more project-specific supplies to be purchased. Acquiring supplies in the village can be a challenge in both planning and logistics. Fortunately, I had a nice team with my mom and brother Sam sending requested supplies. This required a few weeks of advanced planning and backup planning when mail was late. Shifting to student-driven making also required for me to be patient and accept that what a student deems appropriate material usage might be slightly different from my own thoughts. But this was also where discovery, creativity, and calm focus could be found.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">As I prepare for bringing making into my classroom next year, I look forward to exploring the ideas of Vanderwerff (2015), as I try “integrating making in the curriculum” and work to develop a more “making-focused curriculum.” In considering how to facilitate making more heavily throughout my classroom, a few ideas for materials come to mind.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">First, I think there is something very important about procuring and using materials that students would have access to in their daily lives. Using simple materials, found natural objects, and/or reused items lets students play with the idea of constraints that Vanderwerff (2015) sets forth: “all creativity needs restraints.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Second, I also think that it is important to present materials that are more project specific and special for the making experience in our classroom. To do that I am interested in trying Donor’s Choice or looking for supply grants. Exposing students to new materials is also highly valuable for exploration and greater understanding. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Sources:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Vanderwerff, A. (2014, May 14). Makers in the Classroom: A How-To Guide. Retrieved June 29, 2016, from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2014-05-14-makers-in-the-classroom-a-how-to-guide</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-16887044474185270692016-06-23T20:39:00.002-08:002016-07-23T10:52:43.329-08:00teacher tech talk [part 1]<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Twitter. </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Gah. </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I posted my very first tweet at the conference. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">So far I have been resistant to this form of social media. I’m lackluster at facebook, try blogging, prowl pinterest, and am avid on instagram. My experience in twitter so far was it was something my students used to stalk Stephen Curry during choice time, and whenever my back was turned. But then I was forced, more like peer-pressured, into twitter and I saw it. There are a lot of people with really good ideas tweeting them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Social media, has shifted in my life from knowing everyone’s life details, to bringing images and ideas that inspire good thoughts and ideas. Living in a very small, secluded community finding like-minded individuals is difficult. But here, on social media, I can bring in fresh perspectives and ideas. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">After a long, cold winter spent in the same square mile outside ideas are vital. Knowing this personal value, I have begun to wonder if my students might find value in it as well. If I’m finding inspiration in the work of artists and creatives all over the world, maybe my students could use this same tool to find inspiration in the things they are passionate about. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I realize this may be the golden boy himself, but did you know he is a strong family man that shares positive thoughts on how much he loves his kids? This is a good influence. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I would like to see other good influences given voice in my classroom. My students have good ideas and so do their peers. I would like to follow the advice of Davis (2015) and let “students reflect about learning and classroom happenings,” as well as have the ability to, “connect to other classrooms through social media.” This might take shape through a class twitter feed or even on our class dojo site. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">And for providing that insight I am now following Vicki Davis, as well as: Dr. Lee Graham, Lee Cockett, Kali Root, edutopia, and yes, even Steph Curry. I’ll be on the hunt for more voices to bring into my teaching frame of view. I would love to connect with more teachers on the Yukon especially others teaching 6th grade in the district. I feel that connecting our classroom to other classrooms is a positive step in encouraging community-wide collaboration and inquiry. Seeing what other students are learning and making has huge potential. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Source:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Davis, V. (2015, February 19). A Guidebook for Social Media in the Classroom. Retrieved June 23, 2016, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/guidebook-social-media-in-classroom-vicki-davis</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-74109374877859622682016-06-23T20:38:00.000-08:002016-07-23T10:53:03.843-08:00teacher tech talk [preface/reflection]<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"></span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">[Preface: Originally this post began as its own preface to my first in a series of three blog posts. I have decided to expand on the subject a little and create a full post reflection. I am, however, keeping it in the same chronological order.]</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Earlier this month I was able to attend a teaching conference in Kodiak, Alaska. I really did not know what to expect from the Kodiak Island Virtual Learning Conference but I did know it specialized in hands-on approaches to teaching science and math. Both of which I am always looking to improve in my teaching practice. I ended up taking a class on paper circuitry. (Truth: I had very little prior knowledge in this area. I just knew I would put lights onto paper.) Electronic workings is kind of where my brain gets staticy. After three days of playing with copper tape, conductive thread, and even playdough, I felt slightly more confident in electricity and knew I could take it my students. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Over the course of the conference I made some interesting discoveries. It was quite the challenge to be the learner. I had to try things that I was nervous to do or just really didn’t want to. In the beginning it was difficult just sitting to listen and follow directions. Focusing for long enough to learn was a challenge. I’m really grateful to have experienced this. It makes me remember that I need to consider my own students’ attention span and lack of interest in certain subjects. I also had a very insightful moment when I was completely repulsed by touching and having playdough on my hands. This has never happened to me and was another moment of realization. Sometimes students just might not like something for no reason other than their personal preference.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">We also began to delve into the idea of how to be a virtual teacher. Over the past school year I began to integrate technology into my classroom as I saw need and use for it. I began to learn to use my Smartboard to make lessons more engaging (an ongoing process). My ipad was used as a dictionary and class clock. I learned how to use ClassDojo to encourage motivation and would like to explore this as an avenue to encourage home communication. One of the greatest discoveries I made, however, was bringing in the voices of other educators to deliver more concise learning. Youtube and video clips had a profound impact on my teaching. I learned to use the resource of others who had nailed the lesson. This platform, and the Kodiak conference, has sparked an interest in creating more connection between my classroom and other classrooms in the district. I am eager to facilitate shared learning and communication with other educators. I had not realized there was groundwork already being laid throughout Alaska.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">It is for this reason I am excited for the opportunity to connect with other Alaskan educators looking to bring more making into the classroom. For the next month I am following up the conference experience with course that involves looking more deeply into how I can make what I am learning sustainable in my classroom. I’ll be doing a few blog posts that deals with these ideas. This will help me to learn how to bring making into my classroom in a meaningful and appropriate way. Like any technology, it should add value and improve learning overall. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "courier new"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-52796690539464916022016-06-22T07:30:00.000-08:002016-06-22T21:11:05.753-08:00the view<div style="text-align: justify;">
A favorite walk of mine in Marshall was down the airport road. At a specific spot in the walk it seemed an appropriate place to sit a while. Here the stream under the bridge met the slough and the distant hills. </div>
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Arriving in August, we picked berries out here.</div>
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September and fall came along.</div>
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October and frost set in.</div>
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Winter, darkness and snow made walks less frequent.</div>
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The last good snow let us cross-country ski.</div>
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Springtime as the thaw began.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-44225395426214517712016-06-21T15:47:00.000-08:002016-06-21T15:47:50.428-08:00home in marshall<div style="text-align: justify;">
When preparing to move to Alaska last year I relied so much on the blog posts of others to give me insight into the everyday parts of life on the Yukon. I found a few people's blogs and read them entirely. In the spirit of adding to the collective voice, I thought it would be good to share about my home in Marshall. </div>
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Marshall teaching housing is two quadplex buildings, with four units in
each building. The two outside units have two bedrooms and the two
inside units have three. </div>
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It worked out that Liz and I were assigned a three bedroom unit for the two of us. The third bedroom is downstairs and we just shut the door and treated it like a closet for spare furniture. Being that our housing comes fully furnished we had end tables, lamps, and beds to spare. The family that lived there before us had a full household, it took a bit to move the furniture to our liking. All the units have two bathrooms, so we each had our own.</div>
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Before moving, we had both shipped boxes of our things to the school. They were there waiting for us, thank you Nick and Debbie, the day we got there. You'll notice three methods of shipping: rubbermaid totes, amazon prime, and priority USPS. These are the best ways to ensure intact and/or timely delivery.</div>
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All units have an arctic entry, or extra large mudroom. Liz and I put two chairs in ours to sit in the gearing up process or quickly unload gear. Shoes and boots always came off here. This room helped to keep the dust and dirt levels down in the house. </div>
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We kept our living room well lit. Housing comes furnished and Marshall's is about five years old, making everything in pretty good shape. The arctic entry is dark, to the right. </div>
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This was my favorite window in the house. It looked out onto the tundra and hills in the distance.<br />
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The stairs from the living room to the second level. Two story homes are kind of rare thing in the north. Teacher housing is the tallest residential structure in the village. </div>
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In the living room, the door to the left lead to the spare bedroom and the right was my bathroom. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgurP9L1cAhh0wG92xhIfT2jDgtSQxxU3Fmqa3IOdwAAkOBGV_RnE8yi4uqB3zvJTAaRrq00fSPkZEcGUn8L90nqUG-KPbn99sn9hCtGeMrHwp5nYbxux219OIj8V5Nn_m4ky2Pf-CNnOhV/s1600/home+-+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgurP9L1cAhh0wG92xhIfT2jDgtSQxxU3Fmqa3IOdwAAkOBGV_RnE8yi4uqB3zvJTAaRrq00fSPkZEcGUn8L90nqUG-KPbn99sn9hCtGeMrHwp5nYbxux219OIj8V5Nn_m4ky2Pf-CNnOhV/s640/home+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The kitchen is very spacious. Our unit was ADA compliant, which explains the opening under the sink.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi052a1pslloH6hfjWb4KAZLRRvNqYCn8vADY1XpRZZ4IwS-dCzkLXv7Rdy4OFPuf2dejkxWU6x_YsqYYnL3wM8mh5HGrBLEiqskFfVIXaGa8XcIzKBXe09VhepWnm4wDqpSeM_UFNQxbxW/s1600/home+-+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi052a1pslloH6hfjWb4KAZLRRvNqYCn8vADY1XpRZZ4IwS-dCzkLXv7Rdy4OFPuf2dejkxWU6x_YsqYYnL3wM8mh5HGrBLEiqskFfVIXaGa8XcIzKBXe09VhepWnm4wDqpSeM_UFNQxbxW/s640/home+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Every unit also has the laundry/freezer room. We were pretty lucky to have new front-loading large capacity laundry units. This room is good for storing that stock-pile of totes you now own.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLCISEEyKPVuzjxozN3TlPjNEJOt8sQMq67GMO3m3olEyxh05sahDOutXZbUcl3JJP49B0eQcWIDpiGAWEMwLBUgS9Wh1ZL6tIB5aYT3iYGYUj-SK_DPd4rV5RkYI3HTqQxrdeeLwWEnfK/s1600/home+-+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLCISEEyKPVuzjxozN3TlPjNEJOt8sQMq67GMO3m3olEyxh05sahDOutXZbUcl3JJP49B0eQcWIDpiGAWEMwLBUgS9Wh1ZL6tIB5aYT3iYGYUj-SK_DPd4rV5RkYI3HTqQxrdeeLwWEnfK/s640/home+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The kitchen pantry was under the stairs. Storage was never an issue in this house.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7MEreWEjeJuZ5hzzSHqjfA1947_Eb7MrKYJLateBQXvhtuRlU-iA6uAhebtzU2aZdGbKi4jAf-PFT772HDRvujF2tL7dDlKMehn-LLwB_gvianqNjI7lBxJf9sCEo71E_Lj6szOCWxhD/s1600/home+-+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7MEreWEjeJuZ5hzzSHqjfA1947_Eb7MrKYJLateBQXvhtuRlU-iA6uAhebtzU2aZdGbKi4jAf-PFT772HDRvujF2tL7dDlKMehn-LLwB_gvianqNjI7lBxJf9sCEo71E_Lj6szOCWxhD/s640/home+-+6.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Those stairs.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Each unit has two bedrooms on the second level, one at the top of the
stairs and one down the hall. The second bathroom is also on the second
floor, as well as a large hall closet.</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
My room was the smaller of the two, I chose the one closer to the stairs because of <a href="http://thefieldbarn.blogspot.com/search/label/Miss%20Stella">Stella</a>. It had a nice window that just looked onto the other units.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqqRfu7d4hQQ8MnqG3s3LcTNEocn6apC_mQQA_BNSobx03z6gBZAVH72jJhRu_7lVHqYm3w7qrNTmxMOHhCLkYtABWYvK-dOLI-iNCTyYYKAVcMbfredLCVWwxnkrOhOdzPC9zGUxfUvjZ/s1600/home+-+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqqRfu7d4hQQ8MnqG3s3LcTNEocn6apC_mQQA_BNSobx03z6gBZAVH72jJhRu_7lVHqYm3w7qrNTmxMOHhCLkYtABWYvK-dOLI-iNCTyYYKAVcMbfredLCVWwxnkrOhOdzPC9zGUxfUvjZ/s640/home+-+8.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
My room also had a nice walk-in closet. I never even used the dresser.</div>
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Liz's room was the master, it was slightly larger with an extra-large window. The closet was also a good size. </div>
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Our house felt like a lot of space for two people with very little stuff. At Halloween and Christmas Liz decorated to make if feel festive. But mostly it was a nice space to be. When it's been a long, tough day the calm of our home was always a welcome relief. </div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-51468210911048492542016-04-25T07:30:00.000-08:002016-04-25T07:30:08.699-08:00the pause before moving downriver<div style="text-align: justify;">
With less than three weeks left to the school year, this chapter of life in Marshall is coming to a close. Before the moving boxes/totes begin to fill it is a good time to pause and reflect. My gratitude to this adventure is full. </div>
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What a school year. <i>Holy smokes.</i> </div>
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I cannot say that it has been my most challenging and difficult time. My twenties have been riddled with them. So, much like many challenges in life I will now give it gratitude for bringing me to the present. Because the present, and future, is good.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWBfxA70bv6rZteYkeTq0BWLRwKIoNRMxL6ITde93YIeWgv2Zshj39rWxL9WK23eeUT3djWg8-RDCzF1T-nJfp8JlmCqcjhKbJTaiKTLu9GCJGwC3mKVx4mUbWwnUUDd8Ph9O2eMdVCkbo/s1600/moving01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWBfxA70bv6rZteYkeTq0BWLRwKIoNRMxL6ITde93YIeWgv2Zshj39rWxL9WK23eeUT3djWg8-RDCzF1T-nJfp8JlmCqcjhKbJTaiKTLu9GCJGwC3mKVx4mUbWwnUUDd8Ph9O2eMdVCkbo/s640/moving01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvrA9FM3KnTHtbU0HM5RxYOnXwpqG5An8ROTDb8RsnB7QXqIVefs1e9HfSLY9cXFIgFB0XlzRF7_NI24Hq6G4c8GWbD45PJh6G8hB11f8jUm9ISYs7urF-0OcZppd2SGm75i3zWlpfn2XP/s1600/moving02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvrA9FM3KnTHtbU0HM5RxYOnXwpqG5An8ROTDb8RsnB7QXqIVefs1e9HfSLY9cXFIgFB0XlzRF7_NI24Hq6G4c8GWbD45PJh6G8hB11f8jUm9ISYs7urF-0OcZppd2SGm75i3zWlpfn2XP/s640/moving02.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Marshall School. </div>
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The facility is beautiful. Built just a few years ago, it is well care-for and aesthetically welcoming. Every classroom is full of light, stunning views, and well-equipped. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikpSNt6LOf8ly_6kv_F7ZJbaN-epyR10U9zKPzZQxxIOpWjylnY3wPvr2IhFcS148MqGkPsTGZm_pxadBdQxiwKpLdKNQvMmNhm1-8NdrKqg4iN6k1Acj95Svk3QPKVue4CBjCWmzAcck1/s1600/moving03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikpSNt6LOf8ly_6kv_F7ZJbaN-epyR10U9zKPzZQxxIOpWjylnY3wPvr2IhFcS148MqGkPsTGZm_pxadBdQxiwKpLdKNQvMmNhm1-8NdrKqg4iN6k1Acj95Svk3QPKVue4CBjCWmzAcck1/s640/moving03.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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But it is the excellent educators that make it great. The elementary
staff has been a huge asset. I was lucky enough to spend my first year in the village next door to, Josh, a teacher in his fifth and with one down the hall, Krista, on her tenth. And then there's Liz, a beyond awesome collaborative and cooperative teacher. These three were always willing to listen to ideas and
issues, offering encouragement, humor and a sympathetic ear. Among that
staff I am grateful to have been able to work under such an incredible
administrator, Joe. He is a constant reminder of the importance of listening
and connection with students. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS8gyuvAUM6HqCvbqe8p-XQ0Qi9-MRoxrOSJZ_hso7tENdqKPTFQyB2KGtjwF216QwCI2R1uurWrnOIJbnIKu8UqkE3NrSb9zi-BqH5NL4awsc6NI-FpYI1YMSj0ln5xjFBOpBDKLEw9J3/s1600/moving04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS8gyuvAUM6HqCvbqe8p-XQ0Qi9-MRoxrOSJZ_hso7tENdqKPTFQyB2KGtjwF216QwCI2R1uurWrnOIJbnIKu8UqkE3NrSb9zi-BqH5NL4awsc6NI-FpYI1YMSj0ln5xjFBOpBDKLEw9J3/s640/moving04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The [two minute] commute.</div>
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Some days that commute, with -50 wind chills coming at you at 30mph, felt like an eternity. Walking on ice is no small or confident feat in the pitch dark of blowing snow.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW4QU4pmAg4Ph2pt_xZwjZJwQ9gAiHWbwVY1bK7ytoA3j7FzNdBiZcuQrxIHDj9X0Rb4CsaTy7BUd7OQ1ftUcDPYp1y5j7msN7g4LR0A8UJTQzHcDMLC8OSV06wnbh9p5vRghU0bBtvWfY/s1600/moving06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW4QU4pmAg4Ph2pt_xZwjZJwQ9gAiHWbwVY1bK7ytoA3j7FzNdBiZcuQrxIHDj9X0Rb4CsaTy7BUd7OQ1ftUcDPYp1y5j7msN7g4LR0A8UJTQzHcDMLC8OSV06wnbh9p5vRghU0bBtvWfY/s640/moving06.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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But then there are moments when you look up and see the night sky's fading aurora or the reflection of the full moon on the frozen slough. In that two minute walk I have learned much about extremes and the importance of focus. I have also learned that most of time putting on the snow pants [or ice cleats] is never a bad decision.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhC1_EIWYnaiHMf22ndildCSigIB8Tcgz1JWO81Y_BVsNthyATFWiXwfPPNI_WXrHVVw1LZBA2RFFx7d9eEVlsTLdXgbJVNUM-RkjGO13EKxDcj0JK8Vai7dz4cC0QNnKwqmlQrbYR6T1M/s1600/moving07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhC1_EIWYnaiHMf22ndildCSigIB8Tcgz1JWO81Y_BVsNthyATFWiXwfPPNI_WXrHVVw1LZBA2RFFx7d9eEVlsTLdXgbJVNUM-RkjGO13EKxDcj0JK8Vai7dz4cC0QNnKwqmlQrbYR6T1M/s640/moving07.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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Teacher housing.</div>
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Teacher housing in Marshall is newer than the school. Yes, there are shifting floors and this and that. But, home is warm, well-lit, and very comfortable. But then I have had the luxury of a fantastic housemate.</div>
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Liz. Living with Liz has certainly been a huge component to surviving this first year. Even though I see the practicality of it, having a luck of the draw co-inhabitant in such an isolated environment is kind of nutty. I am so beyond grateful I landed such a kindred spirit and ally. We have been through so much together. After spending a majority of nine months within 100 feet of one other it seems crazy that in less than three weeks she won't be just a holler away, in the room down the hall. </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
The tundra.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Just off of my front porch is the tundra. All the windows on the front of the house overlook this openness. Walking home, it is the view from my last few steps. To see the hills in the distance adds smallness to days that are a bit too large to handle.</div>
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It is a stunning morning reminder.</div>
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Mount Piltcher.</div>
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This peak adds a focus to the vastness. There is a bit of magic to watching the weather form around its top. It is the backdrop to life in the village.</div>
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The road to the airport.</div>
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It is high and vast. The whole world is visible from this road. At one point to you can see in every direction for miles. More miles than I though possible. </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
The road to the old airport.</div>
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For as open and vast as the walk to the new airport is, this walk is insulated and winding. The dirt road reminds me of Indiana and Grandma Lillian's house. </div>
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It is a slow beauty.</div>
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Once again I will be stepping into the unknown next year as I move to Mountain Village. I do know that I will be teaching sixth grade. This time I'll have a school year's worth of growth and learning about my students and life on the Yukon to begin the school year in August. I also know that I will have an incredible partner for the journey. For his presence in all of this I have the utmost gratitude.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-688520538930406738.post-74179996898297222712016-04-24T11:20:00.001-08:002016-04-24T11:20:49.419-08:00choas and calm<div style="text-align: justify;">
There is this term in education that slips out every once and while. It is feeling-tone. Throughout this year I have learned to recognize how very sensitive my students are to the attitude in our classroom and the impact this plays in the overall positive/negative feeling. For us, maintaining a calm and positive feeling-tone is pretty essential. Interestingly enough, I find that can still be kept with boisterous and loud classroom. There is a fine line between excited learning and madness. </div>
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Occasionally extra time reading will help buffer and remedy an overly chaotic afternoon.</div>
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Some
days I also realize that there are far too many outside factors
weighing in for me to pull the group back to focus. I will often pull
out paints or other art supplies to allow for focused creativity.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpEIS5Qfn1ef_8s9Y1bXrEmoWGmV4y-fJNLVOv8Zbn7bmml4uZnpPCQqYmKPb3L6ySCsMDXNKEOxNj66ZLBi7_hTV_7xuNPUjSghdmEM7su1nbNY8Z3ervlKCjbnXOLi4ae9YW1ab7PyE/s1600/calmCHAOS1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpEIS5Qfn1ef_8s9Y1bXrEmoWGmV4y-fJNLVOv8Zbn7bmml4uZnpPCQqYmKPb3L6ySCsMDXNKEOxNj66ZLBi7_hTV_7xuNPUjSghdmEM7su1nbNY8Z3ervlKCjbnXOLi4ae9YW1ab7PyE/s640/calmCHAOS1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
It was a day like that when I realized that we needed to
learn to knit. I have been wanting to bring knitting into my classroom
since the year began. In yu'pik class many of class had learned to
crochet but did not have the tools to knit. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWP6ZDpcymfuhvBq2Y46mqh5cd_bSes0sb5hxE6MyzdJyxysyRylnu1tiRJGUxtg4KpLxLjFVObxj1DhMQztGzE8Dynq-dapvivqsKJnr19MaYtdeTUawMzKB62uc2N4adMofUkqzevH-0/s1600/calmCHAOS2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWP6ZDpcymfuhvBq2Y46mqh5cd_bSes0sb5hxE6MyzdJyxysyRylnu1tiRJGUxtg4KpLxLjFVObxj1DhMQztGzE8Dynq-dapvivqsKJnr19MaYtdeTUawMzKB62uc2N4adMofUkqzevH-0/s640/calmCHAOS2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the past I have made my own needles from dowel rods and had hoped to
bring this idea to my students. Over break I had picked up enough rods
for each student to make a set of needles. There was one day where it
suddenly occurred to me we had the perfect climate to give this a go.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3b6MI1NqDqbXtdwzL7A9V049I0gdLZvrxTy45UvULaALKSSv_9OVGs2GuKBXFThxiBR8oQ_2DreqBCY5ARZoWYOYl8KjS1ID8HnMJ4LuonMLmo5Tv1WAluMySLQ5nMH1cygHIOF-ez5C9/s1600/calmCHAOS4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3b6MI1NqDqbXtdwzL7A9V049I0gdLZvrxTy45UvULaALKSSv_9OVGs2GuKBXFThxiBR8oQ_2DreqBCY5ARZoWYOYl8KjS1ID8HnMJ4LuonMLmo5Tv1WAluMySLQ5nMH1cygHIOF-ez5C9/s640/calmCHAOS4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
My usual classroom aid was out for the day and her substitute was an
avid at crochet. She instructed those who wanted to learn crochet while
I whittle needles with the others. A few were not having either and
she was able to successfully get them finger-knitting. That afternoon I
knew that while math was important, what they needed in that moment was
an afternoon sitting on the floor learning to craft with their hands.
They need focused creation and concentration. </div>
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Since that day knitting
and crochet have joined reading and sketching as a to be a part of my
classroom culture. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrRoW8rkxzHZmOFcU-g76hLqX-K_UsM36T1Dl-zigAkD55zit0889JYQEdoQXd_PwM1tiDZGPRQ1rMZbduboAY5NxJaUefU91pgGBVWJ-ZuDKcsOh7BbUVw7ELcnOIx5PmopgTEzKj3_Ta/s1600/calmCHAOS6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrRoW8rkxzHZmOFcU-g76hLqX-K_UsM36T1Dl-zigAkD55zit0889JYQEdoQXd_PwM1tiDZGPRQ1rMZbduboAY5NxJaUefU91pgGBVWJ-ZuDKcsOh7BbUVw7ELcnOIx5PmopgTEzKj3_Ta/s640/calmCHAOS6.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
However chaotic that culture may be.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2