i'm engaged!

Soo... Daniel proposed last Thursday night!!!  We are so excited!   We're getting married!  We're getting married!  We're getting married!  Yay! I didn't announce it formally to all my students (I think maybe I'll give some sort of big announcement during my classes tomorrow), but I did tell some of them and some of them even knew from their parents (who I am facebook friends with).  Haha!  There were several funny conversations about me being engaged and I'm sure there will be many more... The whole "engaged" concept is very hard for kids to understand!

we were so excited!!!

Let me tell you a story...

Here is how one conversation with a little kindergarten girl went on Friday:

Girl: "Miss Akins, are you really married?"

Me: "No, I am getting married.  Probably next summer."

Girl: "Oh.  Are you marrying Coach Brown?"

Me: "No, he is married to Mrs. Brown.  I am marrying Daniel."

She looks around the gym, very confused.  "But he's a little kid!"

I try to hold in my laughter.  "Not the kindergarten Daniel.  Not the Daniel in our class.  This Daniel is older.  He's a grown-up."

at our "engagement party" after his proposal!

So... in case there is any confusion:  I am NOT marrying a little kid & kindergartener!!  Come on... everyone knows he is a big kid. :)

compliments

Ok. Confession time: I LOVE COMPLIMENTS... I can't help it!  You know one of the best things about teaching elementary school students?  They give you compliments ALL. THE. TIME. :)  Man, if I had a nickel for every time a student of mine told me something nice, I could retire right now!!  I know that things like, "Your hair looks pretty today" and "I like your dress" and "I like your earrings" and "You look pretty" shouldn't mean as much coming from 5, 6, 7, 8 year olds, but it doesn't matter to me! 

Let me tell you a story...

So I was wearing this headband from Charming Charlie today and I must admit it is one of my favorite purchases from that lovely store.  Of course all the little girls LOVED my bow (I finally gave up on trying to convince them "Thank you, but it's actually a headband!") and they told me over... and over... and over:

"Miss Akins, I like your bow."

"I like your bow, too."

"I like your bow, Miss Akins."

I am starting to think they just like listening to themselves talk. 

Anyways...

The best/worst compliment award of the day would have to go to this sweet kindergarten girl who thought she was saying the nicest thing ever to me:

"Miss Akins, you look prettier than yesterday."

Yep. :)  So I replied the only way I knew how:

"Thank you."

it's a new year, after all

Well, the school year has officially begun!  One thing I love about my job as the music teacher is that I get the pleasure of teaching all the kids from grades Kindergarten through 2nd grade.  This makes my job of learning names and personalities and such for sooooo many kids (almost 250-300 total!) a little bit easier since I have a lot of the same students each year.  That is, except for kindergarten.  Those kids are ALL brand new to school and to me, and well... I think we are all adjusting pretty well to each other so far.  :) 

If there is one thing I have learned about children over the last 5 years of teaching (I'm in my FIFTH year, can you believe it?!), it's that every year is new and unpredictable and every child is different and unique. And yet... they seem to do some of the exact same things!!!  :)  Well, the story I'm about to share sounds very similar to the first ever blog entry I made last spring... Except it is a new year & a different set of kids! :)  Okay, here it goes.

Let me tell you a story...

The kids were being awfully loud as they entered the music room today.  Since they are kindergarteners, I try to correct these behaviors right away instead of letting things slide and later on in the year things getting out of control!  So there I was, giving the kindergarten version of a "lecture" about coming in quietly, keeping hands to ourselves, not shouting outside, not talking when the teacher is talking, etc.  The class was very solemn and quiet when a little boy raised his hand and said:

"Your hair looks really pretty today."

I just started laughing.  They all started laughing.

Oh well.  I'll try again with the "lecture" tomorrow. :)

Gotta love 'em!

hugs

I LOVE HUGS!!!  Being a teacher is the best because I never have to go a day without getting at least one hug.  :D

Let me tell you a story...

A little girl gave me a hug today, but this one was different.  This was one of those REALLY good hugs.  She grabbed me all the way around and squeezed me tight, laying her head on my stomach.  She kept her arms around me there and then looked up and said,

"You feel just like my mom."

This is the same little girl who had told me (just prior to the hug),

"Miss Akins, I'm gonna bring you a chocolate chip muffin!"

I assumed she meant tomorrow morning, or next week, or the week after that... No, she ran to her backpack and pulled out this individually wrapped muffin.  It was a sweet gesture.

This is also the same girl who yesterday was singing the Kari Jobe song "We Are".  I was so impressed with how on pitch she was and so I commented, "I know that song! Do you like it?".  She replied,

"Oh yes.  It just takes my breath away every time I hear it."

Yep, it is a good song and I loved hearing a little girl sing it.  And also, this sweet kindergartener really is creeping her little ol' way into my heart!

taylor swift

I love my students. They can make a good day better just by giving me a hug.   
 Let me tell you a story...

THE dress

Today, I woke up late and put my hair in a bun on top of my head.  A little kindergarten girl pointed out,

"Miss Akins, you and I both have our hair in buns today!"

Later in the day, the 2nd grade girls were going wild about my dress, commending me on my wardrobe choice.  They definitely approved and I felt my ego growing. :)  Then, one comment just put me over the edge...

"Miss Akins, that looks like a Taylor Swift dress!"

Best compliment I've ever received, hands down.

fluffy clouds

Every day, I walk a group of students who have older brothers or sisters over to the intermediate school.  We walk from the back of our school to the front of the other school and I help with car duty over there.

Let me tell you a story...

This afternoon, I was walking the kids over to the other school just like any normal day.  A kindergarten girl began to engage me in conversation, just like she does pretty much every afternoon as we're walking (she's very talkative).

the clouds after work today

"Miss Akins, LOOK!  Those clouds are so fluffy!  They look so soft... I just want to lay down on them and take a nap!"

"You're right, they do look soft!"

"You know why laying down on them would be SO good? Because then I would be close to JESUS! I would love being there because Jesus is the most important thing in my life."

No joke, y'all.  Those exact words came out of her mouth!

fluffy clouds

Aw... faith like a child.

scrapbook

Let me tell you a story...

Today, a little kindergarten girl brought me a scrapbook that she had made JUST FOR ME. See?  It even says, "MUSIC TEACHER".  Duh. That's me!



The scrapbook was all of pictures of HER.  From birth to now.  Oh, how I WISH I could show you all the pictures!  They were hilariously cute.  She even left several blank pages at the end (to quote her) "so you can add some of your own pictures". Aww! 

 

The inside of my scrapbook :)

 

The outside of my scrapbook :)



Ok, ok, I can't stand it.  I will show you SOME of the inside.  She just went to so much trouble making it for me!!



here she is at age 3 playing her drums!



cute music scrapbook paper she used



 

some more cute music scrapbook paper

 







I wonder if her mom knows that she made this for me.  Hmm... maybe I should email her just to be sure it was ok.

Either way, it was so sweet and so precious. I can't believe that she even thinks about me outside of school! My heart is full with love for my students today. 

<3 LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. <3



"you're pretty"

Do you ever have times when you let something SO small frustrate you, and then you get mad at yourself for allowing that insignificant thing to hijack your emotions?? Well, this happens to me ALL...THE...TIME!  But, my situation is a little bit different than what you were probably thinking. In fact, that small "thing" that normally frustrates me isn't a thing at all... it's a five year old. You see, I'm a teacher. :) In the world of education, an elementary school teacher has to get used to little "interruptions" by kiddos who ALWAYS have something to say. I have lots of funny quotes that I have heard over the years and one of my goals with this blog is to start sharing some quotes or funny stories to save them as some of my special anecdotes from teaching. :)

So, for my first blog post... Let me tell you a story...

Today, I was attempting to teach kindergarteners about higher and lower sounds in music and was frustrated because I didn't think any of the kids cared about anything I was saying.  Add onto that it was day 1 of my attempt to detox myself from Diet Cokes!!! It's been rough! :) Needless to say, I wasn't exactly looking my best and I felt like death warmed over.

A little kindergarten boy raised his hand and I decided to call on him even though I had no idea what off-topic comment he was going to make.

"Miss Akins, you're pretty."

Aww... sometimes these little "interruptions" are just what we need. :)