public school rant

At what point do you intervene at your child’s school? How involved should we be?

I never hesitated to confront my daughter’s teachers throughout grade school whenever an issue came up. By middle school, kids were encouraged to advocate for themselves and I had to stop myself from jumping in every time my daughter received a grade I didn’t agree with or an unreasonable amount of homework. Now that she’s in high school, I am even less involved. I do check in with her on a regular basis regarding homework, and ask lots of questions (hoping to hit on the right ones that make her realize there’s something she needed to do), but I no longer go through her notebook every night to make sure her work is complete. I feel like I’ve laid the groundwork for her success, and now I need to take a few steps back, hold my breath and bite my tongue frequently.

In the high school my daughter attends, grades for various assignments, projects and tests are all posted online, so I periodically check the long lists for each of my daughter’s classes. I dislike their practice of placing an “F” in places where assignments and tests have not yet been graded by the teacher, and a “Z” if the student didn’t turn something in. Finals were last week, so I decided to peek at the online grades. Her English teacher had an “F” for her finals test score. Next to that was 26/100, which told me it had already been graded (not to be confused with placing an “F” meaning it had not yet been graded). All other grades on her assignments, projects and tests were A’s and B’s. The final grade for the semester was now a “C”.

Lucky for my daughter, this little detail alarmed me, so I ask Isabel if she had received her graded English final. She had. “And did you get an F on it?” “No!” she hesitated... “But I did get a C.” At the top of the test was written 76/100. Online it had been recorded as 26/100.

I understand that everyone makes mistakes, but this is not an isolated incident. I won’t bore you with all the other details of incompetence throughout the system we’ve encountered. It does make me reconsider how involved I should be. I sent her English teacher an email immediately after noticing the error that changed my daughter’s grade from a B to a C.

Here’s the email response I received from said English teacher this morning:

I am so very sorry and glad you emailed. Her grade was entered wrong, my error, and it does impact her semester grade. I should have caught it as I know Isabel should have earned at least a B for the semester.  This is easily remedied and I will have the semester grade changed. Isabel's report card will still show the C, because the grades have already been pulled; however, her transcripts and subsequent grade reports will show the grade for English as a B. I am copying this to her counselor.

I really apologize for causing you and Isabel this stress. She is one of the sweetest students I have and I really appreciate her and the work she has been producing.

Am I satisfied with this? Yes, and no. It’s good to get positive feedback about my child, and I’m glad I was diligent and noticed the error. But I’m afraid this sort of problem is only a tiny example of so many bigger problems within our school system. If a teacher doesn’t notice a low grade on a test score from one of their students who normally receives A’s and B’s, they are not paying attention!

So the battle continues, for another few years anyway. I’ve considered other options through the years... home schooling, online schooling, return to private schooling (we did this for the first five years of school). If there’s one positive comment I can make about public school, it’s the fact that my daughter is learning how to deal with all types of people (just like in the real world).

Oh, and she’s getting really good at advocating for herself, which is something she gets to practice on a regular basis these days.

spicy beef with cheese grits

I haven’t posted about food lately have I? Thanks for noticing! Guess I haven’t cooked or baked anything blog worthy in a while... Last weekend, during a serious comfort food craving, I found this recipe on one of my favorite blogs. It’s a dish that was created by The Pioneer Woman (Ree Drummond). 

Being heat tolerant is essential if you decide to use Ree’s recipe verbatim. I chose a milder route. I’m a wimp when it comes to ultra spicy foods.

A note about grits: I was clueless about these. I am from the Northwest. Grits are not a staple around here. So, when I shopped for ingredients, I went straight to the health food section and found Bob’s Red Mill products. (Bob’s is a local company that I respect.) I found this:

Corn Grits (also known as) Polenta? This is something I was not aware of. Are grits really the same thing as Polenta? The choices consisted only of this and one other (gluten free) variety. After doing a little online research, I’m still contemplating all the differences between the two. Basically, they’re both neutral foods, much like rice, pasta, or tofu, and are best when flavored with other ingredients and sauces. Polenta is from Italy and grits are from the southern U.S. If you don’t like grits because they’re gritty, try polenta. This polenta turned out very creamy.

Bobby Flay gives us this observation, “You can’t charge a lot of money for grits, but you can charge a lot for polenta.” Thanks Bobby!

Ree’s recipe makes enough to serve a small army, so I halved it for my small family.

The night I served this, there were two teenaged girls around our table. They devoured it!

Spicy Stewed Beef with Creamy Cheddar Grits (Polenta)

PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

The Beef

1 Tablespoon Canola Oil

1 Tablespoon Butter

2-3 pounds Stew Meat or diced Chuck Roast

1 can (7oz) Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce

2 cups low-sodium Beef Broth

3 cloves Minced Garlic

1 pinch of dried chili pepper flakes

The Grits (Polenta)

1 small sweet Onion

1 small Red Bell Pepper

2 cups Grits or Polenta

3 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth

1-2 cups Water

1 cup Half and Half

1 cup Grated Cheddar Cheese

DIRECTIONS:

To make the meat, heat 1/2 Tablespoon of oil and 1/2 Tablespoon butter in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Throw in the stew meat and brown for about one minute. Add Chipotle peppers, beef broth, garlic and red chili pepper flakes. Stir, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, or until the meat is fall-apart tender and the liquid is thick. Add more broth if necessary.

In the last hour of cooking time, make the polenta. Heat remaining 1/2 Tablespoon of both oil and butter. Add diced onion, bell pepper and cook for five minutes or so. Pour in dry polenta and add chicken broth and water. Stir, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, then cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 30 minutes, add half and half. Cook for another 20-30 minutes or until polenta is tender. Remove from heat and stir in cheddar cheese.

Dish up a scoop of polenta and pour stewed meat over the top.

paper, glitter and tinsel creations

I’m in love with these Victorian folk art decorations. They make me smile. 

After receiving this Winter Wishes angel as a gift from my husband’s aunt Annie several years ago, I’ve sought out this style.

This hanging decoration is by Nicol Sayre

I picked up these Peace stars at a small gift shop in the neighborhood on sale after the holidays a few years ago. I’m taking a guess that these are by Nicol Sayre as well. The tag says Midwest, and according to online sources, she licensed her creations through Midwest from 2002-2008. 

They remind me of Christmas from my childhood at my Grandparents house, where a silver aluminum tree was always on display.

This friendly witch is from a shop in Nye Beach, Oregon

Also by Nicol Syre

This wintery angel spoke to me from a small garden shop in Multnomah Village last December. A Dee Foust creation.

Dee creates a line of licensed collectibles for Bethany Lowe Designs. This angel is one of those creations. 

Notice how her eyes follow you? Bwaaahaaahaa

phone photo fun

This photo was taken on a recent rainy morning using the basic iPhone camera. I opened the image in Photoshop Express to create the blurred effect. I opened the image again in Instagram and shared it there and on Facebook.

Note: Our darling little hen, Nelly, would like you to know that the housekeeper cleaned her messy house since this photo was taken, so please don’t judge.

The iPhone came into my life five years ago, and it’s totally rocked my world ever since. It changed the way I work. It changed the way I think. It changed the way I live. Seriously!

There are several iPhone apps that also add joy to my life. Hipstamatic, Instagram, PSExpress, TurboCollage, and CameraBag are just a few I use regularly.

Do you Instagram? It’s one of my new favorite ways to share snapshots with friends. If you don’t know Instagram, let me introduce you. Instagram is a photo program with a social network all to itself. It has a few fun filters you can use on photos shot in Instagram, but you can also shoot photos with Hipstamatic, CameraBag, or with the straight iPhone camera and then tweak them in another photo program and share them through Instagram.

Since I already carry my iPhone wherever I go, now with all the cool photo programs, it’s become a perfect way to quickly feed my creative habit.

I can’t remember exactly which apps I combined to get these images, but I like the colors in each.
The best thing to do is just experiment to see what effects you can achieve.

Recently I searched the App Store for a way to keep organized, and found Wunderlist.

If, like me, you have 5,000 details in your life on any given day, and often forget what it is you need to accomplish, Wunderlist is for you. Wunderlist is a great task manager without being an annoying task master. It’s waaay better than a bunch of sticky notes, yellow pads, or my memory. And it’s free. I can create little to-do lists and set it to gently remind me via email each morning of the things on the list. It also tells me what I failed to get done the day before.

Yikes! I had no idea my phone was so dirty until I shot these!
I’d better add that task to my list.

Now that the week is winding down, many things have come off the list. As you can see, I’ve completed most tasks for today, and have no overdue items. Yeah!

dance photo shoot

Thought I’d share a few of my favorite images from the dance performance I photographed a couple weeks ago.

I’ve photographed this dance group for several years now, and it’s so much fun to see so many kids blossoming into great dancers... including my own daughter. All the hours of classes, practice, practice, practice are beginning to really show, and it’s so great to see her shine!...

...and sparkle.

She’s still dancing after everyone else has gone home.

Such devotion!

mmmmmm... honey...

One of the best things about my job... samples. This week I’m designing a honey label. Yum!

As some of you know, in my day job I’m a graphic designer.

“What exactly do I do?”

I’m a print designer. I design logos, catalogs, annual reports, brochures, corporate newsletters and such. But that doesn’t mean I don’t design for the web on occasion too, although I’m not a web designer. Confused yet?

I have a degree in art and science. I think they go together, don’t you? I learned how to design before computers existed, on paper. Specifically, art boards with tech pens that needed professional cleaning once a week. Creating artwork with tech pens, t-squares, circle templates, and flexible rulers gives you a great understanding and sense of the craftsmanship of design. I prided myself on inking perfect corners. Graphic designing in the 80's required a steady hand, lots of patience, and nerves of steel.

Before computers rocked my world, I designed entire publications on mechanical boards creating overlays for each color. The layers were attached to the boards and sheets of film using hot wax. On hot summer days, I would drive mechanicals to the printer and hear objects pop off the page when the wax melted in the heat.

Jeez, I’m sounding so old!      ... and I had to walk five miles to school in the snow, uphill!

Today the tools I use are built into my Mac with programs that help streamline the process of getting my work into printed form. Even though the production process of design has drastically changed, the design process itself, not so much.

This week, I am designing a label for a small honey business. One of the perks is the fact that the client sent me several jars of their delicious homemade honey.

This is where I currently am with the label design. I’m not quite at the showing the client stage yet.

Feel free to provide feedback.

buh bye 2011

A few memorable moments ~

Traveled to the south (Georgia) to visit friends

Took a family vacation to Camp Sherman on the Metolius River

Isabel’s room redo

The jacket project

Cuddled newborn baby lambs

Sold my Dad’s 1936 Packard (heartbreaking)

Enjoyed Isabel’s winter dance performance

Finished knitting a long awaited hat

Baked. Baked. Cooked. Cooked. Cooked.