Almost There

5 and 1/2 more weeks of student teaching. Not that I'm counting or anything! I can't wait to get back to my regular school. It's so much more fun there. This school I'm at is so business-like. No one every laughs. The kids can't catch a break...literally...they have to work right through their snack break and just have a short recess and lunch. They have no social time at all. They're not even given any time to go to the bathroom, poor things. I feel so mean but I have to uphold the rules of the teacher I'm working under. She even made them do work during their Halloween party! They had to get a plate of food and go back to their desks and keep working. And for all of it, I don't think their test scores are any better than the scores at my regular school. All that said, I have learned a lot, especially about teaching reading & writing, but I'm ready for it to end.
I just got an order of Shimmer yarn from Knitpicks and am going to cast on today for a Clapotis shawl for a Christmas gift. I hope I can finish in time! It's supposed to be a very easy pattern and most people seem to complete it in a month, but when it comes to knitting I am not 'most people.' Why do I frustrate myself like this? Every year it seems I wait for the last minute and then decide to start some big project with a looming deadline. I drive myself crazy!
On the family front, ds seems to be doing great living out on his own. We used to see him a lot, but now we hardly ever do : (  I'm happy for him, but I miss him a lot. Looked at a college with dd this weekend. She liked it well enough but still mentions joining the service sometimes. I'm praying she'll change her mind herself so that dh & I don't have to lay down the law and tell her we're not signing permission for that. We have to get going on that college application soon so she can get a dorm. We took a bunch of pics the other day hoping to get a good one to use for her sr photo. Here are a couple of possibilities. They haven't been cropped yet, or photoshopped, so just a preview...