Book discussion

Last summer the girls got together at a Lincoln coffee house and talked about a book we'd deliberately decided to read. We read Lorna Landvik's Welcome to the Great Mysterious. At our family gathering this year, we got a coffee and a table at the Koffie Hoek in Orange City and sat down together to talk about Kathryn Stockett's best selling book, The Help. The book was such a fabulous story it wasn't too hard to have a whole discussion about racism, prejudices, the south in the 60's and today, even though two of us didn't have time to read it. Of course, just being able to get away from the house together was a big part of the fun. Now we need to come up with another book for the next time we get together, which probably won't be til next summer. phooey. Anyone else have some suggestions for us?

grandchildren

This is our youngest grandson. Simeon Eugene. I have to tell you what an amazing little boy he is. Already he loves his grandpa (as you can see) Grandpa will be even cooler as the other grandsons have discovered as he's the one with the tools, the pick-up, and endless patience with little boys. After all, what could be more fun for a boy than pulling the string of the clay pigeon thrower, or hauling wood in a lawn mower!
This boy is already showing signs that he will not be a follower-he has no early teeth like Isaiah, he will suck his thumb unlike his brothers. And his name is powerful. It means "The Lord has heard" and Luke tells us that Simeon was "righteous and devout and looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him..." Wow! I love watching them grow.

An Amazing Race

This was year two of a treasure hunt through Orange City. It was closer to an "Amazing Race" than the year before, but there was no snow on the ground either. Last year the girls whipped the boys big time, but, I will report here that the boys won this year! They had a slight advantage, Ivan(our international student from NWC) was with them and he has been living in OC for the last 4 years so some of the more obscure places he was able to pick up on. And a slight problem was that I had taken a picture of the OC Dutch wooden shoe that was in windmill park a couple of weeks ago to use for this game, and when I put the clues out the shoe was gone. Ooops. So When they played I got phone calls from both of them because they couldn't find the shoe. Go figure. The boys were bummed because I didn't have real prizes for them either. Sorry, no million dollar winning. But it was funny. I had to finally call them and say, "come back. come back. Thanksgiving dinner is ready." And the boys came back first and they actually had the winning end.

Blitz, Offensive, Assault...Onslaught

Ok, so tonight we get the beginning of the Thanksgiving, well, I don't want to call it an onslaught because I'm really looking forward to this, but for lack of a better word.....onslaught it is. Fortunately I had enough time to get supper into the crock pot before I left and when I get home I expect to see 3 grandsons and their parents. And Melissa. And Buster. Hopefully Ron. The plan is this: supper. Meeting at the OC library. Get the family Amazing Race game set up. Make a Pumpkin Cheesecake. I should be able to get all that in right???!

Library Roots

My route to the library world was one of those totally unexpected things for me. I was actually quite happy being a teacher, and education was where I always planned to stay. But of course, plans have a way of changing. We made a move across the state and I was suddenly without a job. Being an elementary teacher with a master's degree and no coaching background was a huge liability.

I found a small ad in the local advertiser for a librarian in the neighboring town. 25 hours a week. I was as surprised as anyone to actually get hired. Surely not on the strength of the fact that "I loved to read." But my library career was born there. In the little river town of McGregor. What an education I got!

The thing was, I discovered with the library I got to do everything and more than I had ever done as a teacher. One day I was in a 5th grade classroom and as I stood talking to the teacher, a boy, whose desk was right next to the teacher's desk, stood, put his desk chair on his head and demanded to have his "dart gun" back. He sidled right up to me and stayed in my space during my short discussion with the classroom teacher. When I left the room I found myself with a sudden realization "You see, Sue you can leave this kind of problem far behind. You are walking out of the classroom...she has to stay and deal with him...."

I did everything I never would have been able to do as just a teacher. Designed programs, ordered books, planned the Summer Reading for kids, wrote grants, planned budgets(I even got to read)...oh my, I was in love.

I know that I have complained that I have been in "obsession" but this accidental discovery was the absolute best thing that happened to me. Couldn't find another teaching position? It no longer mattered. I have often said that the library job in McGregor was the best job of my life. The people of McGregor have been my favorite. Since then I have been in 3 different libraries and have gotten to know hundreds of people all through their love and support of the library. I know that though I spent 11 years in teaching and truly enjoyed that, these past 16 years as a librarian have been the best of my life. I think I've found my niche!

Being Productive

We have a homeless man "living" at the library these days. He occupies a chair in the reading room for the most part of the day. He doesn't read either. He just sits there. Someone offered him some money when they gleefully discovered he was homeless. The guy didn't take it. He comes in at opening bell and stays til we close. He carries sleeping gear around with him and one meal. I wonder how long he'll stay.
There was someone on my listserv complaining about 2 kids who had dropped out of school staying ALL DAY at the library. They just sat in chairs taking up space that someone else could use more productively. How to get rid of them? Isn't there some rule about taking up space unproductively?

Family In-

I made a trip to Omaha last night to pick up sweet sweet Melissa! It will be such fun to have her at our house. She will help balance us all out, and increase the ratio of girls to boys. (7:10) Melissa serves with Agape Europe (Campus Crusade) and so we are really looking forward to hearing her stories. She gets to move to Rome in January. Imagine! Living and working in Rome. (Imagine! Living and working in Le Mars. Sometimes I think I have "the-grass-is-greener" syndrome)
I have an awful lot of baking to get done, so unfortunately I have to give up a trip to Minneapolis to see the Pioneer Woman. Seriously, What am I thinking?
Amy arrives at the beginning of next week. The grandsons(and their parents) will be at our house by Tuesday. I have to work Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.Invited guests are here by Thursday...I have a menu to plan...
Fruit.Cereal.Oatmeal.Pancakes.Baked Oatmeal.Yogurts.
Chili. Pizza.Turkey.Pork Loin.Sloppy Joes.
Leftovers.Chinese Carry out.Tacos.Tortellini Soup.
Take home movies.
Put up clues for family game. Have other non competitive games ready.
Get discussion questions and a 'next book' list put together for the girls discussion group
plan ahead for family pictures.(do it on the first day not the last)

Wow. I'm exhausted already.