Talluluh Turns TEAL

I am coming out of blog retirement to talk to you about something near and dear to my heart:  food allergies.  Am I a mother of a child with food allergies?  No.  Am I the aunt of a child with food allergies?  No.  Does my best friend have a child with food allergies?  No.  Why, then, you ask, would I care so much about this topic?  Well, unless you are a new reader, you know that I am a teacher.  And in the past three years, I have had at least five students in my classroom with severe allergies.  The most common allergy I see at school is a peanut/tree nut allergy.  This year I have really had my eyes opened to the challenges faced by parents of children with food allergies, because I have a student with a dairy/egg/nut allergy.  Which excludes the precious darling from eating LOTS of things.

I came across the Teal Pumpkin Project when it was shared by a whole foods page I follow on Facebook. I immediately fell in love with the idea.  In a nutshell, you paint a pumpkin teal and put it on your porch.  The pumpkin acts as a signal to children and parents of children with allergies that you will have allergy friendly treats on Halloween.  If you choose to do this project, make sure you choose treats that are not only peanut allergy friendly, but cover wheat, dairy, egg, and tree nut allergies as well.  To be extra safe, non-food treats (think crayons, stickers, tattoos, etc.) would be best.

Today, the kiddos and I went to the grocery store and purchased the supplies we would need to paint our pumpkins.  I let the kids pick out their own pumpkin, and I also bought teal acrylic paint, sponge brushes, teal glitter, and some jewels.  It would have been much easier to buy a fake pumpkin and spray paint it so it could be used again each year, or even to buy one that was already teal (I hear Hobby Lobby has some), but I wanted my daughter to be a part of the process so that she could understand WHY we were putting teal pumpkins on our porch.  When we sat down to paint, she asked why we couldn't paint our pumpkin purple (her favorite color).  I explained that Halloween is a holiday that is meant to be fun, and that some kids can't have candy, like chocolate, and that makes it not as fun for those kids.  We talked about how we could give them a non-candy treat instead.  But how would they know our house was allergy "safe?"  The pumpkins would act as a clue!  Then they would know how to find us.  She was delighted, and we had so much fun decorating our pumpkins together.  My son joined in when he finished his nap, and although he is too young to understand our purpose, it made for some good family fun.

When I was reading about the Teal Pumpkin Project, I noticed that there were negative comments from people, criticizing the project for catering to children with allergies because "life isn't fair," etc., etc.   This was really upsetting to me.  Because I see the disappointment in a child's eyes when they don't get to have the same snack as everyone else (which I try to avoid as often as possible, but it can't always be done), I know what it would mean to these kids to see that people have done something special just for them.  To make sure that they are safe.  And safety, my friends, is what is most important.  Because I have never had to stab my child in the leg with an Epi-Pen, or rush them to the emergency room because of a reaction.  I cannot imagine how frightening that must be for the parent, and especially for the innocent child.  I know that parents can sort through candy and take out any of the items including ingredients that would trigger a reaction, but I also know that some allergies are so severe, that if a allergy-friendly food came into contact with a food with peanuts or milk in it, it could still cause a reaction.

So please, consider being part of the Teal Pumpkin Project this Halloween.  Yes, it takes a little more effort, but a tiny effort goes a long way in the eyes of a child.  Make a child with allergies smile!  Warm a mother's heart.  Acts of kindness, acts of love, isn't that what we all try to do every day? If you have kids, do it together.  Show them the importance of caring for others.  Be the good, my friends.  Be the good.

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Talluluh Writes an Open Letter to our Congressmen on Education

Below you will find a letter I recently typed that will be making its way to my district's members of Congress.  I am sharing this letter in the hopes that I will inspire others to take action.  It's a serious topic, and I feel so passionately about it. 

Dear Congressman,

I am a teacher.  While I feel that sometimes the general public views teachers as a “whiney” bunch, I can tell you that my whining has little to do with how difficult my job is.  It has everything to do with the fact that the government is setting unrealistic and inappropriate expectations for my students.  It is saying that all students, regardless of outside factors, should master the same rigorous standards set forth by our state. 

 I have been teaching for six years.  When I began my career, full of hope and inspiration, I taught second grade.  While I loved my students, I did not have a passion for the content I was teaching.  I had always dreamed of being a Kindergarten teacher, and when a position opened in my district, I made the change.  This is my fourth year of Kindergarten.  When I look at the Oklahoma Academic Standards, I see objectives that I formerly was teaching second graders.  Six years is not a long time.  Why has this push been so sudden, and so harsh?  I know that many of the children in my room can master many of these standards. But does that mean we should expect all others to do the same?  My fear is that we are creating a generation of students who will function like robots.  They may be “career and college ready” by the standards’ definition, but what about the social definition?  What about peer interaction?  What about inspired learning?  In early childhood, this comes in the form of play-based learning.  This is a truly research-based theory that has been eliminated in our classrooms and replaced by drill and test methods.  I fear for my students as they grow.  Now they are innocent.  They are not fazed, because I do my best to make sure they receive a balance of play and academics.  But I fear for what happens in three years.  I do not like the direction we are headed.  I foresee an even greater increase in children with anxiety and depression issues.  I foresee an increase in teenagers who dread coming to school, an increase in dropouts.  In a society that tells children and teenagers alike that they are not good enough, shouldn’t education be doing the opposite?

Our State Superintendent had the audacity to say this about teachers who gave her a failing grade, according to NewsOK.com:

 “It's just a union tactic. These are individuals that are opposed to accountability. These are individuals that are focused on maintaining their power base in the state of Oklahoma,” Barresi said. “They are not focused on students; they are focused on adults. I am about improving education for the children of Oklahoma. We have lost too many kids.”

Not focused on students? I have loved and cherished every child that has entered my classroom.  I have held students as they sob.  I have coached them through failures.  I have celebrated their successes.  I have paid lunch money for students who’ve had none.  Washed clothes that came to school dirty. Bought extra snacks for those who come to school hungry.  I have dedicated as much time to the children in my classroom as I have to my own children.  I have given my students confidence and a feeling of self-worth.  I have taught them to value their effort, and to strive for more.

 The only portion of my whining that pertains to me, is the fact that the government does not trust me to do my job.  Sometimes, I feel that even my own administrators lack trust in me.  Teachers are not opposed to accountability.  We hold ourselves accountable, and we want others to hold us accountable as well.  Come in.  Visit our world.  See what we do, day in and day out.  Then tell us whether or not we are putting enough effort into what we do.  Whether or not we are teaching the content.  Teaching is not a quantitative skill.  It is not something you can measure by a number on a page.  I have a college degree that I am still paying for.  And yet, somehow, I am not qualified.  Legislators know better.  Parents know better.  John Doe, off of the street, knows better.  There is no other profession that is attacked, belittled, and questioned as much as the profession of an educator.  In my district, I am no longer allowed to enter my students’ test scores into our online system.  The administrators have repeatedly told me that this has nothing to do with trust.  It does.  This trust issue starts at a federal level and has trickled all the way down. 

My plea to you today is that you listen to teachers.  The deletion of Developmentally Appropriate Practice from our elementary schools and our curriculum will have dire effects on our future society.   Common Core and the Oklahoma Academic Standards are a smoke and mirrors tactic that will not solve our country’s educational issues, especially not for Early Childhood Education.  Each and every day, I am a warrior for my students.  I go in to my classroom, into my principal’s office, into meetings with our administration, and I FIGHT for those young children.  I have not been quiet about the fact that what is happening in Early Childhood Education in our state, and our nation, is an absolute travesty. Teachers across the state are giving up the fight.  They are retiring, finding other jobs to do.  GREAT teachers are leaving our profession left and right.  These teachers are tired of fighting a losing battle.  I am not that easy to get rid of.  I will continue to be a warrior.   I am asking you to do the same.  Be a warrior for the teachers, but more importantly, be a warrior for our children.  Fight for us in Oklahoma.  Fight for us in Washington.  FIGHT.

                                                                                Sincerely,

                                                                                Lauren Stahlman

                                                                                Kindergarten Teacher

                                                                                Woodward Public Schools

Why Talluluh Teaches Kindergarten

Most of the time when people ask me what my profession is, they respond to my "Kindergarten Teacher" answer the same way:  "God bless you!" "How do you do it?"  And I can't blame them, because I respond the same way when others tell me they teach Middle School.  Teachers are a special breed, and we are definitely called to our area of expertise by a higher power.

I love my job.  LOVE my job.  There are days when I come home frustrated and angry and threaten to find something else to do.  But that feeling is gone in about an hour.  And my frustrations are NEVER because of a student.  Every part of my being feels an enormous sense of responsibility, pride in, and love for every one of my students.  I'm also very seldom angry at a parent.  Most of my qualms, most of what makes me feel disheartened, is what education is becoming.  How educators are neither trusted nor valued by our government.  But in spite of all that, I come back every day with a smile on my face.  I will continue to come back because I was born to spend the day saying "sit on your bottom" a hundred thousand times.  I was called to sing silly songs and play with my students.  I have learned that you can be firm in your discipline and still pour your heart into those precious beings.  

I teach K because I may be the only person who hugs a particular child that day.  I teach K because it's pretty awesome having a throng of little people tell you that you are beautiful and nice and the best teacher they've ever had and you color so pretty (all in one breath).  I teach K because I care about the foundation of education.  I care about social skills and manners and cutting and gluing and coloring and skipping.  I teach K because I want to foster independence in those kids whose parents do everything for them and for those whose parents have told them "you can't."  THEY CAN!  I teach K because there is nothing more fulfilling than hearing a child say "I love school!" or "I did it!!!" I teach K because I believe in our future and I believe that our students CAN have a quality education, in spite of what legislators are doing to ensure otherwise. 

My students know that it's okay to be angry, but it's not okay to hit.  They know that it's okay to be frustrated, but it's not okay to quit.  They know that they are safe when I am near.  They know that they are in charge of their own bodies, lives, and choices.  They know that there is more to life than a number on a page or a statistic in a study.  They know what good readers do, what good writers do, what good mathematicians do.  They know that play is important.  They know that school is fun.  

I'm not perfect, and neither are they.  We laugh together, we talk together, we grow together.  We make mistakes and we learn how to correct them.  And every year, when May rolls around, it is so bittersweet.  I love seeing how much they have grown, how far they have come.  I love that I will get a month or two to relax a little and spend time with my kids. But I'm always sad, too.  I'm sad that they won't be in my care everyday.  I'm sad that they will love another teacher, maybe even more than me.  Because my students are my children for a year. It's so hard to let go.  At the same time, I know they will go on to greater things than simplistic Kindergarten.  And many years from now they may not even remember my name.  But they will all have a very special place in my heart. 

That, my friends, is why I teach. 

Talluluh Pitches a Tent - DIY Hallway Tent

I am typing this post from inside my daughter's new hallway tent.

She won't let me out, and that's a great thing! The idea for this tent came from Pinterest.  I found a link to a blog with vague instructions, and modified them to suit my needs.  There is no pattern here, nor on the blog on which I first found the hallway tent (see original idea here.).  However, I will show you what I did and maybe it will be helpful.  I am not a master seamstress, but I do have experience sewing.  I mostly quilt (rag quilts are my favorite!).  I would deem this intermediate difficulty, but if you are more of a beginner, you can do the basic sewing and embellish with a hot glue gun! It took me about 9 hours (with interruptions) to complete.  I also used all scrap fabric and leftovers from other projects. So this cost me nothing!

Here are my basic supplies:

A canvas drop cloth from a hardware store (mine was leftover from a tree skirt project I did around Christmas time, so I'm not sure of the original size).  You could also use a sheet! But the drop cloth is heavier and thus more sturdy.

2 Spring Tension rods (again, had these on hand, not sure of size, but you would need to measure the width of your hallway)

Various scrap fabrics and felt

Cutting mat, quilter's ruler, and rotary cutter

Sewing machine and thread

Scissors

Measuring tape


The first thing I did was measure how wide I wanted my tent to be by measuring the width of the hallway. Then I measured to see how tall I wanted it to be.  I ended up making mine 39 inches wide.  It is 9 feet total length.

Then I layed out my drop cloth and cut it to the appropriate size and hemmed the edges to keep it from fraying with a 1/4 in seam. On the bottom and top ends, I hemmed a 2 inch opening wide enough for tension rods to slide through.  I put a 2 inch strip of canvas at the 4 ft. mark and stitched it in to hold a third tension rod.  I ended up only using two tension rods and leaving the bottom moving freely.

The next part I stitched was the shingles.  There are five rows of 7.  I used a pattern piece I already had on hand (from making Marleigh's baby rag quilt.  You can find the pattern piece here.).  

I traced the pattern piece until I had the number I needed.  Then I cut them out with scissors.  I then stitched them together in rows of 7 with a 1/4 in. seam. After I stitched the row, I would press the seams and then stitch on the outer edge of the scallops before sewing the whole strip onto the tent at about the 4 foot mark.  I repeated this step for the rest of the rows, overlapping each row when I sewed it to the tent.  

Next, I cut the space for the door.  I just cut two slits 20 in long and 1 foot apart in the tent from the bottom.  I left it attached at the top so that I would have a flap.  Then I sewed a piece of scrap fabric that I had cut to be the same size as the flap onto it.  When that was complete, I finished the raw edges around the door with felt binding.  I cut strips of felt into 1 inch strips, sewed the strips together and then pinned and sewed them around the door and door frame.  Last, I cut a circle of felt and hot glued it to make the doorknob.

For the window, I measured and traced a rectangle on the canvas with a pencil.  I cut it out and then bound the raw edges around the window with 1 inch strips of scrap fabric.  I made the curtain by cutting a piece of fabric twice the size of the window, folding it and stitching it across the top, and pulling on the thread to gather it.  I then sewed it to the inside of the window.

The mailbox was the trickiest part.  I used a pattern piece like the one for the shingles, but a little bigger, and traced it onto the canvas.  I cut around the curve, but left the bottom attached so it would be a flap.  I then cut a piece of scrap fabric the same size, again using the pattern piece. I stitched the fabric to the flap and bound the edges with felt.  The binding wasn't as neat on this part, because I don't have much experience binding curved surfaces.  But it will do the trick in keeping the edges from fraying. I hot glued a piece of velcro to the mailbox and the opening so that it would close.

The flower pot below the window was the final touch.  I just cut a flower pot shape from felt and hot glued it to the tent. The flowers were from a shirt I bought at J. Crew that had holes in it, so I just ripped them off and glued them on! You could use silk flowers from a craft store, though and it would probably be even cuter!

The end result was a tent that can hang in the hallway and you can adjust its length, depending on how high you put the second tension bar.  It's super easy to hang up, and easy to store. The best part is, in our house the kids rooms are both at the end of the hallway, so inside the tent leads right into their bedrooms! Fun! They both love it!  

I know that these directions aren't super specific, but it really is a custom project that you have to "fit" to your needs.  You also need to know how to use a sewing machine. The binding is the hardest part, but you could probably glue on binding, or use Fray Check or some other type of fray deterrent and get a similar result. You can also search "how to sew binding" into a search engine and get some tips! Here's a YouTube video I found: How to Sew Binding.   If you have any questions, please feel free to comment! 

Talluluh Talks Parenthood - Toddler Version

When the time comes that you are blessed with a child, people will tell you LOTS of things.  Things like, "You will never sleep again!"  "You'll never have time for (insert anything here)." and "Say goodbye to your skinny jeans." They pretty much tell you that you will be miserable and they don't understand why on earth you didn't wait five more years, or have less children, or why you don't do such and such the way they did it.  They will give you tons of unsolicited advice and comment on how big your daughter's hairbow is or how your son's cough sounds really bad.  And I'm not just talking relatives.  I am talking complete strangers, too.

I don't consider myself an expert at parenting, because I am pretty new to the scene.  But I do know a few things. And all those people?  They are sort of right.  Your life will never be the same.  But they are wrong too.  Here's a list of what people don't tell you:

1.  The first time you hear your child cry, the first time you hold them.  You will never forget that moment and how emotionally charged it was.
2.  You will cheer and jump up and down like an idiot when your child uses the potty.
3.  Being a parent is probably the messiest, most disgusting job in the world.  But getting puked on and peed on is totally worth it.
4. There is no better therapy than rocking or cuddling a baby.
5.  You won't be able to read or watch the news without your heart breaking.  Everybody is somebody's baby.
6.  You will yearn for a weekend away, but when you get it, you will miss your babies and worry about your babies and yearn to return home.  Except when vacationing from potty training.
7.  You will learn to hear the distinct sound of that cough that precedes throw-up.
8.  You will love your significant other more than you ever knew possible when you watch him playing My Little Ponies or trains with your children.
9.  It is totally possible that you will walk into your child's room to wake them up from a nap and they will be covered in poop.
10. Your children will be the funniest, sweetest, most beautiful children in the whole universe.
11.  There is no such thing as a clean house.
12.  There is no such thing as clean laundry.
13.  Hearing a small person say, "I love you Mommy" will undoubtedly make you feel like a superhero.
14.  You will wipe boogers and snot on your shirttail.
15.  You will never be more proud of anything than you are of your children.  And that your heart will swell to a thousand times its size with pride at the completion of the most minute task (e.g. eating, walking, talking).
16.  You will have a constant internal struggle between "Let's have another one!" and "Whose idea was it to have children?"
16 and 1/2.  You will understand why your mother was crazy.  You will forgive her for everything you said you would never do when you had children (and then you will do them all).
17.  When you go to the restroom, your children will follow you and bang on the door.  They will stick their fingers under the door while yelling, "I want to watch you go potty!"
18.  The years between their day of birth and their third birthday will pass at warp speed.  Cherish every. single. moment.
19.  You will be able to distinguish between the types of crying you hear from the other room.  There is the frustrated cry, the hurt cry, the sad cry, and the fit-throwing cry.
20.  The opinion of everyone else will not matter.  All that will matter is that the little people in your life think you are the best cookie/bacon maker that ever existed and that they beg you to play dinosaurs and to read them a story.  You will wonder what you did before you had children.  You will wonder how your heart can feel so full of love when your child is happy and ache so much when they are sad.  You will understand your purpose in life.

Tallulluh's Southwest Salad

I posted this yummy lunch or dinner recipe earlier in the week, but I've made some major improvements and added photos!  Also, a new southwest ranch dressing recipe is included!

Talluluh's Southwest Salad

3 c. mixed greens

1 cooked chicken breast, sliced (I cook mine with 1 tsp. minced garlic, 1 T. olive oil, 1 T. El Pato tomato sauce Mexican hot style, and a dash of seasoned salt)

1/2 c. black bean salsa (see my recipe below)

Handful of fresh chopped cilantro

1 lime wedge
1-2 T. Southwest Ranch Dressing

Rinse and toss your salad greens.  Cover with black bean salsa and top with chicken and cilantro.  Squeeze lime juice over the top and lightly drizzle with southwest ranch dressing.

Black Bean Salsa

1 can black beans (no salt added), drained

1 can corn (no salt added), drained

1 can diced tomatoes (no salt added), OR 1 can Rotel, if you like a more bold flavor, drained

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Mix all ingredients well.  

Skinny Southwest Ranch Dressing

I adapted this from a recipe I found on Pinterest over at High Heels and Grills.

3/4 c. nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1 T. skim milk
2 T. Rotel
1/2 T. white Vinegar1/8 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. El Pato Tomato Sauce, Mexican Hot Style
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. paprika1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1 T. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix

Handful fresh chopped cilantro

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend on a medium setting until thoroughly mixed.