2007-2008


This year will be an exciting year for all of us.  I will be teaching  sixth grade Reading and Writing (Language Arts).  Since my favorite thing to do is curl up with a good book, it's a perfect fit.  Although I've been teaching for awhile, I have many new ideas to use along with the ones I already enjoy.

  My family is made up of myself, my husband, my son, Andrew, his wife, Jaimie, and their daughter Albany. As our only grandchild, Albany is not spoiled at all. My daughter, Laura and her husband, Steven, round out our family picture.  I guess I should include the three cats and two dogs that live in various homes. My husband and I both graduated with Bachelors from S.M.U. in Dallas a long time ago!  My family and I recently moved back to Texas seven years ago.   We spent the eleven years before that in the Shreveport, Louisiana, area having moved there from Salt Lake City, Utah.  With my husband and both children being born in Texas, I have to be at least partially a native also.  I have taught first, third, and fifth grade in Texas as well as fifth grade in Louisiana.  My son recently graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a Masters degree in Meteorology.  He and his wife live in Norman where he works for a company that forecasts the weather for private businesses.  In January, he was asked to work with the University of Oklahoma on researching tornado paths, and the University is paying for his doctoral degree.  What a great deal!  My daughter-in-law is the youth minister at their church.  My daughter and her husband live in Phoenix, Arizona.  Laura is beginning her second year as a band teacher.  Her husband, Steven, works at Honeywell.

Eleven years ago, when my daughter was in second grade, she saw the local jump rope team perform and told me that is what she wanted to do.  After working hard, she was invited to join the Louisiana Jazzy Jumpers.  After being involved with workshops, performances, camps, and competitions as a parent, the team asked me to take over the coaching job when their coach retired.  I wasn't at all sure I was what they needed but with a great partner and a promise from the older members of the team for their assistance, we undertook a new challenge.  One of the many advantages to the sport of jump rope is the opportunity of travel. With that in mind, we held practices, raised money, planned performances, hosted tournaments, and carried on the many duties involved in any organization.  The other coach and I both felt we got a great return on our investment of time.  While we were coaching, we watched our local team win four National Competitions.  These were held at DisneyWorld and aired on ESPN.  Our team traveled around the United States, hosted a team from Germany and another team from Canada.  Selected members of our team also traveled to Kaiserslatern, Germany, and Lima, Peru.  I was fortunate to be along on the Peru journey.   The summer we moved our final competition took place at the National Beta Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio, where our students placed second.  Our final performance was at Providence House the family homeless shelter in Shreveport.  Two years ago my daughter's Tucson team was asked to perform at the Phoenix Suns half time show.  For our family Christmas present, we all flew out for the performance; although my husband and son say they went to watch the Suns and the Spurs play.   One of the jumpers I started in the sport is now on the International Traveling exhibition team. My daughter and her jump rope partner are beginning a team in Phoenix this year.

I hope this will give my students and parents a little information on my life and let them know that my number one goal every year I teach is to find what is best for each student and help them achieve the greatest success they can.  I enjoy being in contact with current and former students through e-mail.  I can rejoice in their successes and support them when they have a concern.  I have found the same sense of community in Princeton, Texas, that I found in Princeton/Haughton, Louisiana.

Until I can take the picture instead of my son-in-law, this is almost our whole family.