Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Words of the Week: maelstrom & ebullient

maelstrom /n. / a large, powerful, or violent whirlpool. a restless, disordered, tumultuous state of affairs. a violent or turbulent situation. bedlam. turmoil or chaos. pandemonium. fuss. flap.

ebullient
/adj. / overflowing with enthusiasm and high spirits. bubbling. boiling with emotion. full of joyful, unrestrained high spirits. energetic. lively. very positive or happy.

maelstrom /n./ 1. Last week it seemed that everything was a maelstrom from my own personal emotional ups and downs. Call it pregnancy I guess.

ebullient /adj./ 1. This week is more ebullient for me. Call it pregnancy hormones. So these two words have fit well for my emotional state of being the last two weeks. I am now in better spirits and ready to (shocker) blog, get going on my baby room, do something for my visiting teachees, and even work on finishing my FHE lesson for our group. Wow! I even thoroughly cleaned my house all day Monday and am doing quite well with the daily cleaning so that it still looks good! AND I did ALL the laundry AND put it ALL away Monday AND got all Nate's work shirts ironed. That's a huge accomplishment since it usually sits in the basket for a few days and then it seems laundry takes all week long and then Nate will end up without an ironed work shirt and I have to do it when I'm in the middle of other things. I hate that.

maelstrom /n./ 2. Today I went to a parent orientation at the Benjamin Franklin Charter School near our house and left in maelstrom. I am almost depressed at the thought that Savy most likely will not get in for kindergarten next year and will have to go to the public school in our neighborhood. There are only two kindergarten classes (1 morning and 1 afternoon) and they are full already and there's a waiting list. I won't even know what number I am on the waiting list until the end of April/beginning of May, depending on what parents don't attend their orientation day. I'll just pray that some kids move and some parents forget their orientation date, but I don't know if the Lord works that way. I just feel that she needs the extra push that Franklin's school curriculum will give her. They cover k and 1st grade in kindergarten and then 1st graders do 2nd grade work and every year thereafter they're a year ahead. Plus the teachers do all the teaching rather than a lot of group work. I'm totally for the teacher being up there rather than students working together in groups -- maybe it's because I always hated working in groups in both school and college -- I'd rather do my own work and be responsible for it. I don't trust other people and that's probably due to my perfectionism that occasionally drives my hubby crazy (and myself to some extent).

ebullient /adj./ 2. I am SOOOO ebullient for Easter and it's not because of the candy. A couple weeks ago I found this awesome week-before-Easter layout on sugardoodle.net and then Amy got me some large eggs at the dollar store the other day and I'm ebullient to make Easter more Christ-centered this year for my family. I am printing and laminating the pictures for going inside the egg and am thrilled. I have eggs for each of the people I visit teach as well as my partner too so maybe I won't feel bad next month when I possibly skip out of visiting teaching with a new baby and all.
The large eggs are a little freaky by themselves, but put together with the pictures I think they're awesome. Last year Amy and I both got a book called "A Christ-Centered Easter" by Janet and Joe Hales that gives some great ideas for doing activities the week before Easter to teach your kids about the last days of the Savior's life before His death and Resurrection. Our family will also be doing some things from that book the week before Easter. If you want me to email either the outline and/or the pictures, just let me know and I'd be ebullient to help you have a more spiritual Easter too.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sorry about the school stress! I can relate. I have similar stress right now. I'm trying to get Brynlee into a school down there that I really feel would be a great fit for her. Just a gift, really. She's applying for a pretty much non-existent spot, and it kills me. I hope Savannah gets a spot!

And, I hope the rest of your week is ebullient!

April said...

Loved your ebullience and your maelstroms and all the ups and downs of motherhood. Sounds like you are getting a ton done over there as of late...nesting, by chance?

Your Easter plans sound fantastic...maybe I'll get it together around here and try and do something along those same lines.

michelle said...

It sounds like your getting so much done over there! I wish it was the same here at my house! :) Good luck with the school situation. I know it can be frusturating at times.

Sara"Fantabulous" Smith said...

Wow - someone is definitely nesting! I'm not even pregnant and you got more done in a day that I have this week! I have no advice about the school situation. I was on the phone w/ one of my friends for about an hour today discussing the pros and cons of preschool for Tori and her son next year. And that Easter idea looks really cool - please email the info when you have the time!