Utah in November

"Up the Canyon"

So here in Utah, you don't "take a trip to the canyon," you "go up the canyon." Here are some photos of the afternoon my Grandmother and I spent there this fall.

















































































Can you find the guy who jumped out of a tree and surprised me?













According to one of my science teacher colleagues, the thick, orange stripe on this little guy's back means that we are going to have a very cold, very long winter!

The Pictures Tell the Story

Disclaimer: My brother-in-law told my sister that I wouldn't like the idea of a balloon launch because it was bad for the environment. I affirmed that opinion and convinced the kids to agree to each only launch one balloon. However, the joy on their faces was difficult to dismiss and is something I will never forget (so I let them each do 2 more).

From Michigan to Mountains

So I finally made it to Utah. Unfortunately, my unfinished dissertation came with me. ;-) ABD was good enough for my sister, however, who threw a big family party for me.
























This is the building where I work.



















It was designed with a big courtyard in the center so that every office would have a large window.



















My office is located on the front side of the building. This is the view. Pretty amazing, huh?!




















This is my office. You'll notice that my 90 boxes of teaching materials (yes, literally) have not yet arrived. Ohhhh how I miss them! Thank goodness for technology (and the wiki to which I uploaded so many of my files).




















However, when things do finally arrive, I'll have my very own ladder with which to reach them all! :-)
























The learning curve has been steep, and I've had my fill of "change" and "new" for awhile. Nonetheless, the environment here is amazing. I've felt very welcome, very supported, and have access to tremendous resources. I teach in tech-loaded classrooms.



















The classroom where I teach also has an observation booth (should I ever desire to have someone observe)!




















I can take my students to spaces like this . . .



















Or we can cook in spaces like this!



















So far, it has been a very happy place to work! My students are great and there are plenty of interesting things to keep me occupied. Unfortunately, that also makes it hard to invest time and energy in the dissertation. I've made great progress over these last few days, however. I hope I'm closer to being done that it feels!