Literacy Learning Zone

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ I open my laptop. And I sigh. It's the last day of March and I think about what to write. There are no stories worthy of the "last slice," but today I share some thoughts at the end of this journey ... This year the challenge was different. It was easier for me to write my slices of life -- about my every day, ordinary, small moments of life.  I wrote mostly about my girls. I wrote to capture memories that I knew I would soon forget. I wrote to share those stories with them. In the past, I thought I never wrote for the comments. I thought I wrote for myself and the comments just came. I thought this was

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ My birthday is over, but I am so thankful for all the birthday wishes and reflecting back on all that I believe in . I also love to reflect back on my year of writing. However, I rarely take the time to click through my own blog. I have something even better . You see, my parents give me the best gift of all: My slices and blog posts from each year published in my very own book. This week I received volume 13. Over 100 pages -- from January's first post {Sigh.} to my last post of 2017 in mid-November, my interview with my friend/educator/momma/writer Ruth Ayres . I guess I took a break from writing in December!

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ Today is my birthday. Over the last (almost) eight years, I have celebrated with a list of some sort on this day. Today is no different. Today I write about 42 things I BELIEVE in -- my one little word for 2018. (In no particular order, just what came to mind ...) I believe in ... 1. my God 2. my husband and his patience and love 3. my parents and family and all their love and support 4. my daughters and for who they are becoming 5. a few really good friends that I trust and adore 6. choosing kind, always 7. prayers 8. new adventures 9. experiencing life through my daughters' eyes 10. snuggles and kis

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ My almost eight year old girls are swimming in the seas of graphic novels. They started with the popular "classics" of Smile and Sisters . I read these books years ago, but cannot recall the details of the content. I wonder if it's appropriate for second graders, but I understand that some things will just go over their heads. I decided I better reread these books, but also thought about introducing them to another graphic novel series I thought they would enjoy: Babymouse. I brought home the first five books in the series and Peyton devoured three of them in two days. I agreed to bring home the rest of the

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ Right now I am: ::sitting in the family room watching over the puppy who is resting from her surgery yesterday ::hearing the laundry flip and turn in the dryer dreading the final buzzer ::planning a return trip down to the Science and Industry Museum tomorrow ::celebrating how easy the stories have come to me over the last 26 days ::wondering why now -- on day 27 -- I don't know what to write ::borrowing this slicing format from my friend Terje ::accepting her gift of words because it's just what I needed to get me through another day of writing! Right now

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ "Mommy ... what if ..." Madison whispered to me yesterday morning as we were picking out clothes for church. "What, honey?" I asked, wondering where her concern was coming from. "Well, what if Harley has her surgery and she dies?" And this came with a flood of tears. "Oh, come here," I whispered in her ear and hugged her close , "Harley is going to be just fine." Our six month old puppy is going to the vet today to be spayed. We've talked about this appointment for weeks and tried to explain the surgery to the girls. I talked through the surgery again rea

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ Last December, my friend Jen invited me to check out a new Orange Theory Fitness that was opening in the area. I told her I'd think about it. The next day, I received a flyer in the mail about this new Orange Theory studio. Now I really started to think about it. This is my year. My one little word: BELIEVE. I need to believe in myself that I can lose weight and grow stronger. But in order to do this, I need to do something different. Orange Theory it is. I signed up, but had to wait a month before it opened. Which then turned into two months and then three months. A little frustrating, but timing worked out. W

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ The weekend arrived One would think I would have time to write and read and relax. But instead ... I slept in (an extra half an hour) Made breakfast for my family Walked the dog Cleaned and organized Made a light lunch Organized and cleaned Stopped at the library Ran to the sports store Walked the dog again Fixed dinner Finally showered Had date night at the movies with the entire family The house is now quiet Everyone is in bed I finally have a moment to write this weekend.

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ Every morning ... "Good morning! Rise and shine! " I softly say as I flip on the light switch, turn off the globe that is used as a nightlight, and push the off button to quiet the sound of rain. I touch her leg to start the wake up process. Then I repeat all of this in another bedroom with my other daughter. I sit on her bed, usually chatting about the day ahead or about the weather, so she knows how to dress for the day. I may hear some groans. There is major stretching. One eye opens slowly. Then the other. Squinting at me in the bright light. Then I repeat all of this in the other bedroom with my othe