The Thankful Family

 I posted this last year, and love it so much, I'm doing it again.  I'll treasure this forever.

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When Vicki was in first grade, she had the greatest teacher ever--Ann Overton.  She asked the kids to do a project involving being thankful, and involving the family.  Vicki, David, and I all took this on, and the end result was a video that I replay occasionally, and totally love. (This was all done with VHS--no digital yet.)  I'll never forget helping her with this!  It was the best school homework project ever!  By the way, the kids pictured in this are now all adults---they do grow up fast.   Yeah!!!!!!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Peace Corps update--English club and another wedding

From time to time, I post my family life news here.  This is one of those times.  I want to give a brief update on my daughter, Andorra, who is volunteering in the Peace Corps in Indonesia.  Time seems to be flying by!  She is to serve for 27 months, and already 6 months have passed.  Here are a few tidbits:

• She's teaching English at a high school in East Java (Mandiun is the town)
• She's made some friends, and the little kids around where she lives also recognize her and call her by name.  
• She is now allowed to travel away from her town, so she is visiting with former Peace Corps members this weekend in a town named Solo.  I have no idea about anything related to Indonesian geography or town names or languages, by the way.
• She has updated her blog---check it out here! 
• She's enjoying the food there, but misses things like Italian cooking.  I mailed her some Italian spices--shipping to her town is very expensive, ($9.00 for a few ounces, and it seems to take 6 weeks if she gets it at all)!
• I communicate with her frequently through Google chat, or Facebook chat.   This is a vast improvement from the 60s and 70s when loved ones had to rely on actual letters.

I miss her terribly, but she is being wonderful doing what she is doing.  I plan on traveling there in August---and I can't wait!!!!

Andorra is leading an English Club---I'm in awe

Find Andorra at this traditional Indonesian wedding pose!

Biking in the Quiet Atmosphere of the Night--Peace Corps news

Newspaper article featuring Andorra

My daughter, Andorra, has been in the Peace Corps for over three months.  I am posting her latest blog entry here in which she translates a newspaper article written about her in the town she's in .  If you would like to read all of her  blog entries, go HERE.
We miss her very much, but her occasional blogs, along with video chats and Facebook messages, keep us connected.  I can see that she is doing fine!





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Andorra's entry:

Biking in the Quiet Atmosphere of the Night
 
This is my article in the newspaper, translated for your convenience. Translating from English to Indonesian and back to English causes it to be a little bit inaccurate in parts, sorry!  Enjoy this awesome article. My counterpart and I had a good laugh about it.

Enjoying Caruban's Quiet Night Atmosphere

A soul is called to becoming a volunteer. That is Andorra Katherine Morgan, who was willing to leave behind her family in the United States. She now must wrestle with the routine of teaching English at her school in the Madiun regency. And at the same time, learn the culture of Indonesia.
"The weather here is actually as hot as in America during the summer," said Andorra Katherine Morgan during an interview.
But in the matter of atmosphere, the woman from North Carolina felt much differently. The proof is in the bicycle that she bought with Rp. 1,5 million that she uses daily. Including, enjoying the beautiful village atmosphere such as in the rice fields.
Andorra is a volunteer from the agency Peace Corps, the U.S. Government's program of cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Culture. She admitted that she was often hot, especially with her house being quite far from the school - about 3.5 kilometers. [This is not true. I live ~ 500 meters from school.] "It is often hot here. Temperatures such as these affect me in activities," she said in English.
Even so, she said it was not a problem. In the agency, Peace Corps, she is prohibited from riding a motorcycle or driving a car. The reason is for safety assurance. "So I can only ride a bicycle or public transportation," she added. But for the matter of the hospitality of the people of Indonesia, Andorra gave a thumbs-up. Although often limited in communication because of the language difference, she stated there are still people who are willing to help. Including, teaching her Indonesian. That, she said, fit with her desire to learn the attitudes and culture of the people of Indonesia. "People here are so friendly. They like to accept people from any background and that makes me adapt quickly," said the woman who likes to collect batik clothing.
In addition to teaching English, Andorra is also trying to spend some time actively providing a private class. It is done outside of the school hours. Moreover, she claimed the students liked her teaching style, the face-to-face system. Andorra is willing to not get paid. "I do not charge anything," she said. [I do not remember saying anything in this paragraph. This may be referring to the English Club at my school.]    

Her job at this school will last for two years. When she misses her family, she will communicate through video calling. Before setting foot in Caruban, she trained for two weeks in Malang. [Two months.] In Caruban, Andorra claimed to like the night atmosphere because it is quiet and not too crowded. And so, her bicycle becomes her loyal friend to enjoy the evening in Caruban.

A Batu wedding, volcano views, and other snippets of the Peace Corps

If you've been following my blog for any length of time, you also know snippets of my life.  One of my life events recently has been sending my daughter off to the Peace Corps in Indonesia.  Right now, she is learning the language, getting multiple immunization shots, visiting schools, and living with a host family. 

She attended a wedding there recently.  You see from left to right--her host mother, her host brother, the groom, the bride, Andorra, and and unknown girl. I thought this wedding photo was awesome!  I've put a few of her other pictures below.  Andorra's host family doesn't have internet, so things move a little more slowly with digital pictures and these few will have to suffice for now.  She'll move to a new place/family after her training ends and with a school job, will have access to more internet.

topiary

This is all for the quick update.  Andorra does have her own blog going on.
Go HERE if you'd like to see it.  She'll post more when she has better internet access.

Batu has several volcanoes nearby.

farming

Never heard of Batu?  Here's where it is.

In Awe

Tomorrow is the big day!  Andorra (my daughter) is leaving for the Peace Corps in Indonesia.  I've been anticipating this with a whole spectrum emotions depending on the day--joy, excitement, dread, grief,  then back to happiness, then anxiety.

Today we said our good-byes, and curiously, I didn't break down into an emotional mess.  I was happy and at peace with her leaving, and tonight as I'm typing this, the main feeling I have is awe-- of her spirit, her bravery, her energy, and her willingness to try new things and make the world a little better.  I'm in awe of the fact that she's willing to be away for 27 months--away from her boy friend, missing the birth of her niece, away from the comforts of her home.  I'm in awe that she gave away most of her possessions to do this--clothes, car, electronics, books. I'm in awe of her taking on a job of teaching English to a group of kids who don't share her language. 

Tomorrow, she'll fly to San Francisco and meet up with a group of Peace Corps volunteers.  They'll fly the next day as a group to Surabaya, Indonesia.  It'll actually take two days since they cross the date line.

Her stops--Dallas, San Francisco, Tokyo, Singapore, Surabaya

When I get pictures from Andorra, I'll post them here.  I'm looking forward to her adventures!
Life is good.


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Eggs, Bunnies, and Chicks---Prepositions Bingo to download

This is short and sweet.  My kids didn't really master describing the little pictures for the St. Patrick's Prepositions Bingo, so rather than giving them a completely different activity, I revised this same one to fit the Easter theme.  (And now I'm sharing it with all of my speech and blogging friends!)

Hint: print extra game boards and send home as homework!  This comes with three Bingo boards--good for you, but these would be ok printed in black and white for the moms and dads.

Click here to download this game in Boardmaker.

Click here to download this game in pdf.




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Peace Corps update

Here is an update on my daughter and her Peace Corps adventure!     She is 'shipping out' April 7th from San Francisco!  Her destination is Indonesia, where she'll have several months of training before living with a host family and working (teaching English) for two years.  I'm not sure she knows really what she'll be doing or what town/village she'll be living.

Fun Facts About Indonesia:

• There are about 17,508 islands
• It's the world's 4th most populous country
•  Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world
• Badminton and soccer are the two must popular sports
• Average temperatures vary little through the year (26-30 degrees Celsius)
• Indonesia is home to the Komodo dragon, the largest lizard in the world

Andorra will be flying to the city of Surabaya in Indonesia arriving there on April 9th.  I've actually never heard of this city, but it's the second largest in the country.  I learn something new every day!    The pictures are stunning---I just did a quick search on Google.

More about all of this to come!!!!!  My husband and I are very proud parents.

Eggs Everywhere! ---new free printable

If you notice, all of my stuff is free.  Perhaps if I needed the income to supplement my school salary, I'd be selling, too.  For now, though, I'm grateful for my job and the kids I work with, I'm grateful for my husband who supported me for years as I worked, and I want other SLPs and teachers who may be struggling with a lack of instructional funding to use my materials with children.  I hope these downloads help someone.

Here's the latest---based on my earlier books.  I'm a believer in repetition, so if you read 'Bunnies Everywhere' and 'Shamrocks Everywhere', you'll see this is similar.  It's named (not too creatively) 'Eggs Everywhere'. 

This book is 15 pages, including the icons page.  Objectives can include:

• simple prepositions (in, on, under)
• commenting
• describing a picture with a simple patterned sentence
• labeling familiar pictures
• getting ready for your own Easter egg activities!  

Click here for the book in Boardmaker


Click here for the book in pdf

Use the blue area as a sentence strip. Cut up the rest.

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