Inauguration Day on the Mall!

4am at the Shirlington bus stop!

Our view of the Capitol from our spot on the mall




What an adventure! Yesterday, Ms. McCarty and I headed to the National Mall for the Inauguration of our new President! At 4am, no less! It was freezing (literally and figuratively), but we got to the mall by about 5:15 am and staked out a spot that was very, very close to the Capitol. It was such an unbelievable experience to be a tiny speck in all of the pictures and to be a part of such a historic event. While it took three times longer to get home than it did to get there, and my fiance and I were still thawing out at 10 pm, it was worth every second. How did you spend Inauguration Day?

6th and 7th grade winter concert

What a wonderful evening filled with such beautiful music! Connie and Larry did a tremendous job tonight with the sixth and seventh grade bands. Their hard work was evident. Many thanks to the Encore team, as well, as they managed nervous 6th and 7th graders waiting to perform, videotaped the performances, and were there for moral support. The students were incredible and they made it look easy. We even managed to place a few coats and sweatshirts back in their homes.

MEHMS is truly a special place.

Welcome Back!

I had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday of doing a whole lot of nothing but reading and watching TV! With my tendonitis still flaring up, I walked this year's 5 mile Turkey Trot in Del Ray with one of my dogs and had about 90 minutes of reflecting time. I am so thankful to be a part of such an amazing school!
Our Huskies were rarin' to go this morning!! With only 3 weeks until winter break, everyone is working really hard. We're making the last 3 weeks of 2008 at MEHMS memorable! Keep on keepin' on, Huskies!

New Beginnings

After this historic election, it is a fresh start for our country. Today marks the beginning of the second quarter for our students. Teachers and students were all excited this morning as they streamed into the building. Excited about last night's election and excited about the fresh, new quarter. Change can be hard, but change is necessary sometimes.

The Beginning of the Fifth Week of School!

Wow...time has really flown! This morning is the start of our fifth week of school. October is only two days away and as I was driving to MEHMS this morning, I noticed that some of the leaves are starting to change colors.
I am in the middle of my marathon training and just ran 16 miles on Saturday morning. Those hours on the trails gave me a lot of time to reflect on the past four weeks. We've had some great moments so far here at MEH.
I recently read the book, "Relentless Pursuit" about first year teachers with Teach for America. It made me really remember the ups and downs of my first year of teaching. It feels like many, many moons ago. I have been in all of our first year teachers' rooms and have been blown away by the learning that is taking place there. Keep up the great work!

Today in Ms. Blanchard's 6th Grade stretch and challenge class the focus was on locker organization.

To say that I was impressed with the organization of this particular sixth grader is an understatement.

Fantastic work, 6th grade! I enjoyed my time in your classrooms today.

A Wonderful and Exciting First Day!

It was so wonderful to see all the Huskies bound into MEH at 7:30am yesterday morning! Their excitement was contagious and there was quite a buzz in the air. Every day every person in MEHMS is learning something new, including Ms. McCarty and I. Yesterday I learned:

*bus routes are very complicated things
*7th graders are pros at everything MEHMS
*6th graders are so excited about learning (and happy to not have to learn how to open lockers!)
*5th graders are like sponges right now and are just happy to be back in school
*recess is a beautiful thing
*Lunch PIN numbers are VERY hard to remember after a whole summer!

I can't wait for what is ahead for this year. Welcome back, Huskies!!!!