Thanksgiving is over...

Thanksgiving is over...
so something big must be coming...

No, it is not Black Friday.
Or Shop Local Saturday.
Definitely not Cyber Monday.

And I am not talking about Christmas.

I am talking about Advent.

My family couldn't even get through our Thanksgivings without being inundated with Rockin-Around-the-Christmas-Tree on the radio, gift ads galore, and enough outdoor lights to land a space shuttle.  I still have my fall wreath on my outside door 'gasp'- but you should remember that it is only November 25th.  I want to celebrate one season at a time, thank you very much, and the next season I plan to celebrate is Advent.  I am honored to have been asked to add to Bonnie's Advent line up at A Knotted Life, which was perfect, because I already have a stash of Advent things to share with you.

First up, a couple of cute printables focusing on waiting for Christ.

We coupled this gift tag and ornament with the book A Stocking for Jesus at an Advent Family Night for our CCD program (ages 5-13 with parents and other siblings in attendance).

We read the book, and then each family made a giant stocking by lacing together two posterboard stocking cutouts.  The tag above was attached, with Jesus in the "to" section and something like The Smith Family in the "from." 

Each family then filled the stocking by writing things they would be giving Jesus- acts of service, love, and time, which were all written on Christmas themed die cuts.  They took home the stocking to hang during Advent to remind them of what we are preparing for. Here are the instructions they were given:

Click on the three printable to be linked to the actual documents.

Stay tuned for more Advent ideas!

Hot this fall

Have you noticed that orange and lime green seem to be the hot colors for the fall?

I am a fan.

Point and case: this still life study.

Forgive the poor lighting and low quality picture, and just soak in the trendy beauty.

Wait, what is this a picture of?

This is my lovely orange lily and lime chrysanthemum flower arrangement...

Next to my cousin's compost bowl.

Her tea bags, egg shells, clementine peels, and onion shoots matched -perfectly-  this (I'm sure expensive) hot house creation.

The lesson?  If looking for beauty, forgo the florist and look to the compost.*



*Unless you are going to send me flowers.  Then go right ahead :)

Don't say you weren't warned

A warning to everyone-
If you give a group of ten-year-olds a writing assignment, and the subject of the writing assignment is you, and you give them free license and creativity, you might have some very interesting ideas and thoughts shared.
Just sayin.

So, this post has been in draft form for, well, a month and a day.  But considering it was 70 some degrees today, I think I can still pull off a post about fall.  I also think something light and funny should be on the docket to start this week off.

I spent a lovely evening with my dad several weeks ago.  The events of the evening included me harvesting the last remnant of the corn crop, which he had saved for me.  We then proceeded to have a very lovely dinner together, just us, as my mom wasn't home that night.  What did we dine on?  Pizza and beer, of course.

Anyways, many of my students are fascinated with my farm background, and all of them are essentially city kids, so before we closed up the shop, I grabbed a couple of ears of corn and my dad filled an old coffee can from the hopper so I could do a little show & tell.

The unlabeled coffee can full of corn evolved into a creative writing assignment in my head by the next morning.  I told my kids that I had an interesting evening the night before, and they had to write me a letter about what I had done.  (We had been working on letter writing.) However, the only hint they got about my night was the coffee can.  At first, they could only gently pick it up. Then, I let them shake it.  Later, one student with closed eyes got to smell inside.  Another got to close his eyes and feel inside and share his observations.  Based on that information, I got some hysterical letters guessing what I had done.  After the letters were composed, I opened up the coffee can, showed them the contents, and then told them that I had combined a corn field the night before.  Some added a P.S. to let me know what they thought about the truth.

Here are a few of my favorite contributions: (For the most part, I left incorrect spellings and awful grammar for you to get the full feel of the writing.  Be assured that I don't condone it :) My comments are in blue.)

There in that bucket thing, I think there are marbles with your Grandpa.  I couldn't with my Grandpa.  Maybe my Grandma, but not my Grandpa he's grumpy.  You got one hour of sleep because you are Miss Bogner and you said you don't get a lot of sleep.  P.S. My grandpa is crazy.  You are not there yet. Oh, good.  Not crazy. Yet. Check.

I think you need to put down the can and act like yourself.  Well excuse me for having a little fun.  Let's get back to our normal boring selves, shall we.

I think you robbered people of their teeth and robbered coin banks and made teeth coin necklaces and dipped them in mud and sold them on ebay. But the mud just makes the pieces.  Don't judge.



I really think you should be a tooth fairy.  That might be fairly fabulous.

I think you ate jelly beans, graded homework, and counted your collection of marbles. Living the life.  That's me.

I think you are Mother Nature and you beat up Jack Frost. I totally could.

P.S. I was way way off!  And it is really cool that you drove a combine.  Thank you.  Anything to elevate my coolness factor.  With ten-year-olds.

Last night I saw you in your house through the security cameras I have in your house. (Long story- I have placed them in the houses of everyone I know)  WHAT!  Someone needs to tell this kid that this is not funny...oh, wait, maybe that someone is me.

Or you are a cat burglar.  That's right, you stole a bunch of dirty cat toys. Oh goodness.  But Mr. Whiskers needed them!

Or maybe you are going to make beans as a midnight snack but you droped them on the way from your car, they roald down the road and hit your neibor in the head, causin amnishia.  Then you sued the bean company for 5 million bucks but they gave it to you in pennys and you put it in the coffy can. Yes.  How did you know!  That's me.  Causin amnishia.

P.S. I did not see that coming. It was a real nail biter.

(After guessing that I was a candy thief)- P.S. I was way off.  But you will leave me candy, right? Yes, it is my calling in life.  Sugar you up, and send you home.

P.S. You are weird.  Really.  Wow, you drove a combine? Yes.  It was a required class in my teacher education program.  I took it the same semester that I had Repairing Random School Machinery 212 and my Growing Eyes in the Back of Your Head lab course.

P.S. I know where you live. What!
P.S.S. I think driving a combine would be fun.  What do you wear to do that? Because, after all, it is all about the clothes.

Here is to the start of a new work week that makes you laugh and think outside of the box...er...can!
  

10 Stories about the Zimmermans

Well, it's official.  I have a brother.  The wedding went off with few (very small) hitches, and after flying through several days of crazy planning and celebrating, I can't wait to see more beautiful pictures like the one above. (I was so busy, I have a total of two pictures of the entire weekend on my camera. darn.)

For those of you who have been tolerating my stories of the engagement, showers, and plans, I thought I'd share some stories from the weekend.  It was wonderful, and everything that you would hope a big country wedding would be.  As tired as we are all were, I know most of us didn't want it to end, because you just can't beat all of that time together with family and your closest friends.  I loved it all.  So here are several funny/interesting/memorable moments from the nuptials of Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman.

1.  My sisters and mom are beautiful, inside and out.  Check out the picture for proof.

2.  Steph was the easiest and calmest bride I have ever seen.  The thing she said most frequently all day? "Whatever you want."  On her wedding day.  The photographers were friends from our early college days (check out their business here, and see a few of the shots of the day here).  Mary the photographer said, "I love Steph.  I mean, I loved her before, but seriously, she is the easiest bride ever.  I love her."
3.  Steph and Steve have phenomenal guy friends.  It was a busy day, but as we ran around, it was nice to be around such gentlemen.  Opening doors, giving us their coats, dancing partners, carrying things all of the time...it was nice to be taken care of.

4.  If you were to ever have a medical emergency, I would hope it would happen around the new Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman and their friends.  The make the story brief, my aunt started having chest pains at the reception.  Emily and I happened to have just snuck out to another part of the building to have a quick chat about our toast when my aunt and her two daughters came in, and my aunt was not in good shape. Fast forward a minute, and we had a very sick lady, an ambulance on the way, and me running down the hall and then walking sedately across the dance floor to the head table. (Think the missing FOB scene in the Wedding Planner)  My new brother-in-law is a volunteer firefighter and EMT, and there were many many medical professionals/first responders in attendance.  To Steven, I said, "Everything is ok, but tell me who is an EMT who is not in the wedding party."  He immediately jumped up, and I said, "Not you. Tell me who else." He got up to get a friend who was sitting in the balcony who has lots of years of experience.  Fast forward a few more minutes, and despite me trying to keep the wedding party in the reception (because not even the parents knew what was going on yet), the groom was on the floor in front of my aunt with his EMT bag from his truck, another groomsman was taking her vitals, and a bridesmaid was talking to her and trying to keep her conscious.  The bride was hugging my crying cousin, and the best man and I were outside flagging down an ambulance.  Fortunately, the DJ just kept people going by starting the slideshow, playing some tunes, etc.  No one even knew what was happening until we had to have the DJ announce the situation because we could hear sirens.  The ambulance crew loaded her up, and (after blowing a tire) took her to the closest hospital.  Even more fortunately, she returned a couple of hours later with the rest of the family after being released by the doctors there.  I am so glad that she is ok, and even more glad that we had so many people to help in such a scary situation.  And it made me admire and love Steven and Steph even more, as I watched them be the first ones to react and help even at their own wedding.
5. Speaking of ambulances, I fell down the stairs at the church about 15 minutes before the ceremony.   I tried to hold in my scream so that no one would hear and come running, but didn't quite succeed.  I remember immediately thinking that I would rather die than draw attention to myself by getting hurt at their wedding.  Fortunately, I just had several new bruises and some gorgeous rug burns, which looked lovely on my dayglow white legs in my knee length dress. However, no one was looking at me because Stephanie was so beautiful.  I am so grateful that I fell down the stairs then, not during the ceremony, or during the entrance at the reception.  I am also grateful that I did not break my ankle, neck, or shoe.  Especially the shoe.  I really liked my shoes.
6. There were a few little flubs that happened throughout the day, as is to be expected.  I don't think hardly any of them were noticeable, but one of them was really annoying to me.  The bridal party had a really long entrance, because the guests were seated on two levels.  We walked in through the balcony and then down a huge flight of stairs.  The DJ (who was great overall) announced us really slow, and he played this terrible jazz elevator muzak, which seemed to make us walk even slower.  Blek.  However, it was a fun contrast to the sirens and fireman call he played as Steph and Steve were introduced, Steven in his fire helmet and the wedding party dancing to Party Rock Anthem.  It is all about them, anyways.

7. Changing into cowboy boots for the reception was the best. idea. ever.  My feet were so happy, especially after the earlier stairs incident. One of the top reasons that I love being a bridesmaid is that after all of the stress of the day, it is time to party.  The wedding party is required to keep the floor moving, and we had a great time.  And a bridesmaid's dress is a free ticket to dance and not care if you are a bad dancer.  Or maybe that is just what I kept telling myself...
8.  Emily and I did our toast together, and it was improvised kind of at the last minute (our prep was interrupted by #4).  It included a purple plastic knife as a prop, jump ropes, the Oregon Trail, and a reenactment of the Exodus.  I guess you just had to be there.
9. As the MOH, I tried to make like a boy scout and be overprepared and packed a ton of stuff that we might need.  Surprisingly, we used a lot more than I thought.  Here are a few of the things borrowed from me by other people- needle and thread, chapstick, lipstick, deodorant, disposable toothbrushes, medical tape, hair pins, writing pens, sharpies, paper, lint rollers, mascara, bandaids, first aid cream, curling irons, hairspray, copies of the schedule, qtips, nail polish, and cotton balls...just in case you needed to pack an emergency wedding kit sometime soon.
10. My amazing mom and Steph made all of the wedding cakes, including an awesome firetruck groom's cake.  All night as I mingled and visited with people, we talked about the cake.  How good the cake was.  How beautiful the cake was.  How it was amazing that my mom made the cake.  How it was fun to have so many choices of cake flavors.  How people tried more than one kind of cake.  Fast forward a few hours, and the best man and I collapsed onto a couple of stray chairs while we were cleaning up after kicking out the newlyweds.  We were both so happy and tired and excited for how the day had gone.  He brought up something about the cake, and I mentioned how many people enjoyed it.  He said that it was cool that there were so many choices and then in a sleepy way said, "You know, all that talk of cake...and I don't think I even got to eat a piece."  I had to stop and think, and I said, "Neither did I!" :)

Some Lovely Pictures

Hello Friends.

Yes, I am still alive.

Yes, I am still planning on writing on this blog.

No, everything will not be about religious ed or my classroom.

Pinky promise.

So onto a new topic: Wedding Planning.

Bogner Girl Wedding #1 is making a fast approach in less than a month.  Bogner Girl Wedding #2 planning is also in full swing, as evidenced by the engagements pics I got in my email today.  I thought that some of you might like to see the loveliness of my sisters.

Here are Steph and Steve, pictures taken by Judd, their Best Man.

 

 

And here are Em and Luke's pictures, just taken by Steph, coincidentally their Matron of Honor.  (Apparently it is good to pick talented people for your wedding party so they can do stuff for you for free share their God-given gifts to make your wedding extra special and personal.)

My Soul Does Magnify

My life seems to run in themes.  Do you ever notice that in your own past as you look back?  I don't really plan it ahead of time, but I can very specifically identify a common theme running through pieces of my life, tying experiences and people and events together.

For example, there was a year that I could entitle "The Year in Which Katie Had NO Idea What She was Doing."
There was another year that I would call "Stretching Roots I Already Thought Were Deep."
And there was the year most definitely named "Hitting My Knees."
Another one seemed to center around "Finding New Friends in the Saints, Past and Present."

Considering that I see themes in my life, it should come as no surprise I tend to have cutsy themes in my classroom, parties I host, etc.  Setting up for a new CCD year is no exception.

This is my fifth year as the DRE at my church. Crickey- 5th?  When did that happen?  I have had a theme each year, and the decorations, newsletters, celebrations, etc. all center around a particular verse or topic.  They have gotten better as time has gone on, if I do say so myself.

Year 1- I am the Vine, You are the Branches (John 15:5)- Clearly a classic, but I didn't do much by way of creativity
Year 2- Love All, Worship One (Matthew 28:19-20)- Lots of fun world decorations- flags, maps, verses relating to God loving the whole world and the Great Commission.  This was the year that we started adopting an international orphan as a CCD program.
Year 3- Beautiful are the Feet that Bring the Good News (Romans 10:15)- Lots of shoes hanging from the ceiling, a shoe drive for Soles 4 Souls- the kids remember this one and still talk about it.
Year 4- All the Saints Greet You! (2 Corinthians 13:13)- We painted murals of favorite Saints on the Walls, had all kinds of Saints activities, highlighted Saints at our parish celebration, etc.
This year- My Soul Magnifies the Lord! (Luke 1:46)

"My soul magnifies the Lord" is the first line from Mary's song of praise called the Magnificat.  It is a beautiful prayer thanking God and adoring Him for who He is and what He has done.  I chose this as the theme this year because I thought it would be not only a good time to talk about Mary's role in the plan of Salvation, but how she can be a model for us in God's plan for our lives.

She did not "expand" God, or "make" God, or "plan" God.  She could do nothing to add or subtract from God's greatness.  But her yes to the angel Gabriel allowed God to become Flesh.  The God of our ancestors become One among us, one that we could see, touch, and hear.  Through her yes, Christ became more apparent to the world around her, not through any of her own power, but through her humility.  The word magnify is so fitting, because just like a magnifying glass, she did not change Christ, she just made it easier to see him.  We plan to use this idea this year to help teach the kids about how they can become like a magnifying glass of God's love to the world around them.

Our classes are in the downstairs, so I always like to do something fun in the wide hallway that make a memorable first impression.  Here is this year's view:

I like how it is almost as if the kids are being wrapped in Mary's mantle as they enter the downstairs hallway :)

 Here's one of our main bulletin boards:

 A poster colored by the preschool class:

 Giant rosary, made of pool noodles, idea from Catholic Icing:

 Giant Miraculous Medals hanging from the ceiling, idea also from Catholic Icing:

This was the take home on the first day of CCD.  We talked about the theme, and I gave them a kid friendly version of the paragraph above.  Hopefully it serves as a reminder of the theme...

 They sure seemed to like them, big kids and little kids alike.

Oh, and the JJ Heller song above?  The Youth Band has been working on it all summer, and it is going to be the meditation song at all of our Children's Masses.  I can't wait for the first one!

I am excited to see what this year will bring, and I thank God for the order of His Creation and how themes hold us all together :)

Home Sweet Classroom- Part Two

If you haven't read my post from a few days ago, you should know that I LOVE, L-O-V-E, my new job.  So,  I'd like to take you on a tour of my classroom.

If you go back here, you will get a bit of a before shot.

Here are some current pictures with a bit of commentary:

I'm running with an owl theme.  They are so cute, and the kids love them.  I can use corny sayings like "Whoooo's Ready for some KnOWLedge?" and they laugh.  Plus, I am using "Fear of the Lord is the Beginning of Wisdom" as our theme verse for the year, it all flows together nicely.

They loved making these, and I have gotten lots of compliments so far.  It sure brightened up the hallway quickly!

 

It looks a whole lot crazier and smaller when there are 29 little people in those desks, so don't let the empty floor and pushed in chairs fool you.

 Gotta love Mother T.

I need to take a better picture, but behind my desk is our "jobs" bulletin board.  I told the kids that they might be too old for cutsy school jobs, but the fact of the matter is, I need them- there have to be more hands passing things out, cleaning up, etc.  So I have old jean pockets with their names on them and job assignments and group work gets labeled in one place.

Love how these are working out so far- Group "offices".  Each bin has commonly needed supplies that can't fit all in their desk.  Everything is color coded and labeled, so it all ends up in the same place.  So now if we are doing a quick activity that involves use of scissors, I don't have to send them all to their lockers.  I set the office in the middle of a group of desks, and they have post it notes, highlighters, a stapler, etc.  all at their fingertips.  There is not enough space in the room for a lot of traffic flow, so items within arms' reach are wonderful.

 I am not sure we have enough books...

 Oh, good, there are some more.

I didn't inherit any mailboxes, and they are expensive, so two of these hanging file folder things are going on a test drive.  I saw something similar on pinterest, but it needed some adaptation. Once I perfect it, I'll post more details, because I think that something like it could be really useful and inexpensive for a kid's room or home office.

Another whole room shot- but I didn't realize how the curtains didn't show, so I will have to take another picture.  The new curtains changed the whole room, which isn't saying much if you remember the old ones.  And the kids love them, which is always a plus.

 Loving the technology.  Ahhhh.

Little faith corner.  Note the awesome newly painted file cabinet.  Also a favorite item with the students.

Well, I am out of pictures, but the classroom will probably look different tomorrow anyways.  So I will leave you with a 5th grade quote for the week.

(Note that I was wearing my hair in a braid.  My hair is already a popular topic among the girls.)

In a wistful tone, one of my students said, "Miss Bogner, you look just like a blond Katniss."

If you are not on the Hunger Games train, know that this is very high praise in 5th grade world. :)