Statistics, Ugh.

The good news for the day is that I am doing great in my statistics class!  The masters programs I have looked at say that they want me to take a refresher course in statistics before I start the program, since the course I took in college was twenty years ago.  (That, plus the fact that I remember nothing about it!)

I started taking an online class from the University of Idaho about a month ago and it has kicked my butt!!!  It is so hard!  I have had to try so hard!  The first quiz I did alright in but the second quiz I got a 72%.  I freaked out because I'm used to doing well in school.  I started trying really really hard and now I'm three quarters done with the class and I'm getting a 93%!!!!

I remember when Reese was living with us and taking an online class, I think it was history.  And he was saying that he had calculated his grade and figured that he had done so well in the class so far that he only had to get a 75% on the final in order to get an A in the class.  And at the time I told him that that was a bad way of thinking, that he should try to do his best always and not blow things off.

Now I find myself thinking the exact same way.  I'm trying to do really well in this class so that I can relax towards the end and not try so hard.  The exams have to be proctored so I take them at the public library here in Preston.  Today after teaching I go take my third exam.  Only one left!!

In other news, Craig had someone weld an extension on the tractor fork so that he could lift three bales of hay and not have one fall off onto the hood of his tractor.  😃

The Curse

Okay I don't know what is going on with this here farm, but something sure is.  Something bad.

This morning Craig came in from doing chores and said that he had been moving hay bales with the big blue tractor and one hay bale had rolled off the stack and landed on the top of the tractor cab.  And smashed it.  With Craig inside.  He's okay but the top of the cab is broken.

Then this afternoon, our employee Shawn was moving hay with the backhoe and the exact same thing happened.  Except it dented the hood of the engine.

I just don't know what is going to happen next.  I don't think I want to know.  

Yesterday

So this is what happened yesterday.

I was outside with the little boys and Hayes was hauling large hay bales with the big blue tractor.  As he was pulling out of the field onto the road, he didn't see our neighbor, Goldie Bosen, approaching in her car.  At the last minute, he saw her and quickly pulled back but the hay bales fell off the tractor fork and smashed into her car.  They broke out her back window and tore the window frame off the car.

She was super nice about it and didn't even get mad.  She said that she's raised three boys of her own and she knows how it is.  Hayes was really shook up and talked about how if he had been just a few seconds faster he could have killed her.

Then, in the afternoon, Craig called me and said that he was up on the caboose field and that the combine was on fire and he needed me to direct the fire department to the field because he didn't think they knew the road to take.  Brigham and I ran to the van and drove up there, meeting the fire trucks at the road turn off.  We could see the smoke billowing from the field.  The fire engine couldn't negotiate the skinny canal road so we waited for the brush trucks to get there.  By the time Brigham and I made it up to the combine, most of the blaze had been put out.  The combine looked like a charred wreck.

Craig said that our employee Shawn had been cutting hay and the combine engine had started on fire and he was unable to put it out and pretty soon the whole combine was ablaze.  It's a pretty old combine.  We bought it ten years ago and it was already maybe thirty years old when we bought it.

Luckily, the grain field didn't catch on fire.  That's something good.  But the combine was a total loss - and it wasn't insured, due to being so old.  So we don't even get any money out of it.

We got home and were sitting exhausted on the grass, when our employee came running out of the barn, yelling that a cow had fallen down on the rotary and couldn't get up.  Craig went in and had to pull the cow out with the tractor.

Sigh.  Some days are bad.  And some days are REALLY, REALLY, REALLY bad.

First day of school

First day of school!!!  The LAST first day of school for Brigham.  They are all excited.  Brigham decided he wanted to go out with a bang, so to speak.  He rented a tux for his first day of school.  Don't look at me, I had nothing to do with it.  The ideas that kid gets into his head......

I started my classes two days ago.  Last year I had 9 kids total, 3 in one class and 6 in the other.  This year I've got 19 kids, more than double last year.  I've got 10 kids in my first class and 9 kids in my other.  Things are going well so far.  They seem like a good group of kids.  They're all girls this year.  And Harley Carlisle from next door is in my class.  I hope it's another good year.  I'm a little nervous about keeping control of such a large group.

Jim Michauds visit

This weekend we've had the Jim Michaud family visiting.  They wanted to see the solar eclipse in Idaho Falls and everything was booked so they asked to stay with us.  They arrived Saturday night and stayed for two nights.  It was so nice to have them and good to get to know Tori's husband Tyler.  They came to church with us on Sunday and then we had dinner together.  Sunday evening, Heather and her family came over and had dinner and we all visited.

It was a good weekend.  I am so grateful for good family.

Rappelling

Craig and Hayes have in their heads a crazy wild idea to take the whole family rappelling in southern Utah before school starts.  Rappeling is when you are wearing a harness and you attach the harness to a rope and lower yourself down.

They have a trip planned next week.  Here are pictures of all of us learning to rappel off the haystack.  Mac and Josh weren't sure of it the first couple times, but then they really got the hang of it.

Then Hayes said it was time to start doing it for real, off a cliff up Logan Canyon.  Here are the pictures.

This is Josh rappelling by himself.  

Hayes, our fearless leader

Ellie

Hayes and Mac.

I'm not completely sure about this.  Seeing my babies up there, surrounded by nothing but air, gives me a sick feeling.  Babies belong on the ground.  Even knowing that they are tethered to something doesn't make me feel much better.  

I Hate Statistics and Other Adventures

I'm taking a break from Statistics to write this blog post.  I'm about a third of the way through my Statistics course and it's kicking my behind.  Although I'm currently getting an A- in it, so that's good.

It's been an interesting couple days.  Next week I was all set to begin my masters degree in nursing education at Idaho State University.  On Monday, two days ago, I happened to read the policy at West Side (the school district I teach at) about compensating teachers for getting a masters degree.  My superintendent had told me that they would pay for the whole degree, but the policy read that they would only pay up to $6000.  This was concerning, considering my degree was going to cost $25,000.  I called Spencer Barzee, my superintendent, and the conversation went like this:

Me: I just read West Side's policy on paying for masters degrees and I'm a little concerned, it reads that there is a cap at $6000.  Is that true?

Spencer: No, I'm sorry, we really need to update that policy.  No, we will pay for the whole degree.

Me:  Spencer, its $25,000.

Spencer:  WHAT??!!!  $25,000?? Are you sure?

Me:  Yeah.  

Spencer:  Oh, there's no way we can do that.  I think the most we've ever paid for a degree is $16,000.  I'm so sorry, I had no idea it would be that much.

So the end result was that the district could pay $16,000 and then I would have to pay the remaining $9000. Which I'm not really interested in doing.  The whole idea of getting this degree was having the district pay for it.  

So yesterday I emailed the graduate school and nursing school at ISU and withdrew from the program.  I was feeling pretty low about it.  

At Spencer's urging, I contacted Western Governor's University.  They offer a masters of science in nursing education degree that is much cheaper than ISU's.  I had previously applied for WGU but was rejected because their policy is that you have to be working as a clinical RN and in their eyes, my CNA instructor position didn't count.  On Monday, I emailed WGU and said I know that you rejected me because you think I'm not working as a clinical RN but maybe if you understand what I actually do better, you might reconsider.

I got a call this afternoon from the enrollment counselor at WGU and she said that my email has caused them to re review my resume and have come to the conclusion that I fit their policy and can enroll at WGU!!

SO the end result is that I'm going to get this degree at WGU instead of ISU.  And it is going to cost around $12,000 instead of $25,000.  And I can get it done in a year instead of two years.  And the district will pay for it.  

How's that for an adventurous couple of days????

Family Update

Craig - Craig' back has been much better.  He still has some pain, especially when he is on the tractor.  He hasn't had very much time to exercise, it being summer, so that causes back pain also.  He got a new calling teaching and doing scouts for the 11 year old boys.  He and Hayes are putting together a family vacation to southern Utah for next weekend to do some hiking and rappelling.  They are teaching all the kids to rappel off the hay stack.

Suzie - I just got back on Friday from a five day teaching conference in Boise.  The school put me up in a hotel and I was by myself for the first three days, then Mom brought Ellie and Hannah for a girls trip for the last two days.  It was good.  I had to do this conference to become a certified teacher.  School starts back up in a couple weeks.  I just found out that I have 18 students this semester - that is double the amount I had last year!  I also start my degree program in two weeks ago and I am nervous about that.  The nursing school wanted me to take a refresher statistics class so I started that a week ago and am pounding out the assignments and tests.  I forgot how much I hate statistics.

Hayes - Hayes decided to do another semester at BYU so he's been working on getting registered.  Craig and I told him that he needs to pay for this next semester himself.  We said that if he could start doing better, we would consider starting to help financially.  In preparation for that, he's been working two jobs, here on the farm and as a CNA at a nursing home.  He found himself  an apartment in Provo and got registered for classes.  He says he is thinking about changing his major to psychology.  He has been meeting with a counselor that he really likes the past few months and I think that's what has been making him think about psychology.

Brigham - Brigham has been working on the farm this summer.  He was a big help to Craig with setting up the computer monitors in the new barn.  We get him registered for senior year this week and he's still not sure what he wants to take.  He said he doesn't want to take my class.  Too bad.

Ellie is such a good girl.  She had a goal to fast today for 24 hours and by the time dinner was served, she was a half hour short.  She sat there and watched all of us eat, even though I told her she was close enough.  At 5:30 on the dot, she went to her room to say a prayer and then came to sit down and eat.  She's been doing cross country this summer, trying to run several days each week to get in shape for fall.

Mac - Mac is excited to start second grade.  He is going to be in a spectrum class, which  means that there will be third, second, and first graders in the same classroom.  I've heard good things about spectrum classes so we are excited.

Josh - Josh is also excited to start school again.  He is going to repeat kindergarten this year.  They do lots of crafts and activities in kindergarten, so he will love it.  He's always begging me to do crafts with him.  I hate crafts.

So I think that's the update on our family.  Summer is a challenge.  The farm is so busy every year.  This year I've had five trips but there's only one left.  It will be good to get back to a regular daily routine.