In the middle of last night, I was pretty sure I would be facing the wild exhuberance of my class voiceless and with a fever. Thanks to Tylenol Sinus (or the cheap generic equivalent) I was able to breath and talk for most of the day. And the chills that had me shivering most of the night were gone by morning. Hooray for that wonderful concoction of drugs they call Tylenol Sinus. (Yes, that is a shameless plug, but DANG that stuff has always worked like a charm for my worst sinus headaches.) : )

We partied the day away. It was pouring rain all last night and into the morning. Enough that there was water starting to come in through the classroom roof! We got our 2 little tests out of the way and from 10:30 on we did nothing but fun things. The kids got an extra long recess, then we did our book exchange, then they had lunch, then we had our class party and then they got to do their Friday Club activities. Fun, fun, fun. I think the best part was during the party when a bunch of the parents were there. Those kids just LOVED showing off the classroom and their friends and their teacher to their families. I got to talk to several parents I hadn't met yet AND with the plethora of adults in the room...everyone was on their best behavior. On behalf of all teachers I hereby officially thank any and all parents who take the time to come in and participate in classroom activities. Everyone benefits from it - parents, teachers and, most of all, kids. Thank you for caring and being there for your child. THAT is what it's all about. THAT is the thing that makes the difference. THAT is what is going to help your child succeed in this crazy, mixed-up world. Thank you.

Right around the end of the party my voice finally gave out and I spent Club time whispering. After cleaning up the room and participating in traffic loop duty, I headed home - tired but energized. As if that wasn't a nice enough way to end the day, I was given a special treat. Turning the corner from the school I was met face to face with a very energetic rainbow. Not a shy, quiet rainbow that you had to look for. A bold, cheerful, joyous rainbow that started in a dark rain cloud in the sky and lept its way to earth. It was beautiful. The perfect way to start my vacation.

Now that Firefly is over, I am going to tuck myself into bed and hope that this throat thing goes away quickly. I really don't want to be having sinus and ear problems when I fly to San Antonio on Sunday. We'll see.

Peace to you all. Goodnight.