Mississippi American Star of Teaching!!!!

Not me!!! My husband!

Kris was awarded the 2007 Mississippi American Star of Teaching award today by a representative of the U.S. Department of Education! I am so proud of him. Samuel and I attended the ceremony. I'm glad my parents were there, though, because Samuel decided it would be a good time to start crying... right when the rep started speaking and during Kris' comments! Oh well.

A lot of students were present at the ceremony... all seniors (since Kris has taught most of them) and his current students. They all said "Awwww" when Samuel started crying. :)

The local paper interviewed Kris yesterday and ran the article this morning. Note the reference to Samuel and me!!! :)

WPHS teacher named 2007 Star of Teaching
By Jason Browne

Daily Times Leader

Each year the U.S. Department of Education chooses one teacher from each state as a Star of Teaching. This year the national organization chose one of West Point’s own.

Kris Hollis, biology teacher at West Point High School, was selected by the USDE amongst nominated teachers of all grades from all over Mississippi. He will accept his award personally from Rogers Johnson, director of intergovernmental affairs for the USDE, today at 10:45 a.m. at a ceremony in the WPHS gymnasium.

Hollis is on a roll lately, having been named as last year’s West Point School District Star Teacher and, more importantly, welcoming his newborn son, Samuel, into the world three months ago.

Although Hollis and his wife of eight years, Laura, live in Starkville, Hollis is pure West Point.

A 1993 graduate of WPHS, Hollis says the teachers who taught him, some of whom are still teaching today, laid the foundation for his success in education. And success is becoming quite a habit for Hollis. In addition to the Star of Teaching Award, he has been named Hebron’s star teacher, during one of his three years at the private school before coming to West Point, and has twice been selected as WPHS’s teacher of the year.

“I’ve won several awards over the years, but to be recognized by a national organization is pretty awesome,” said Hollis. “But I work with great teachers who are equally deserving. It kind of humbles you.”

Despite his humility, Hollis knows he does a good job. But he doesn’t work as hard as he does for awards and accolades. And he definitely doesn’t do it for the money.

“I take my job very seriously. We have to prepare these students for post-secondary studies,” he says. “It’s all about raising achievement for students.”

It’s Hollis’ determination to help as many students as possible which earns him attention from his administrators. Already this year Hollis has begun staying at school after the final bell to tutor students.

Hollis says his high school teachers showed him what it means to care about students, and now “it’s payback time.”

“To be able to give back, to contribute to the community, that’s really what it’s all about,” said Hollis. “And school is like the heart of the community. It’s a privilege to train students who will be future doctors, politicians and leaders.

Although Hollis acknowledges that being recognized as the 2007 Star of Teaching for all of Mississippi by the USDE could be a very attractive item on his resume, he says he intends to stay put until God has other plans for his life.

“I don’t think about stuff in those terms. If I wanted to do something for personal gains, I wouldn’t be in education,” he says.

The real reason Kris Hollis teaches can be witnessed after school during his tutoring class. On Aug. 29, five students from Hollis’ biology two class were at school after hours voluntarily to go over chemical equations prior to the first test of the semester.

The students say Hollis goes out of his way to make the material easy to understand.

“Usually, we get it on the first try,” said Erin Branson. “But he’s patient, too.”

According to the USDE, American Stars of Teaching are selected after being submitted for consideration by local principals, superintendents or colleagues. Researchers then consider personal testimonials and a questionnaire filled out by the principal before choosing a handful of nominees to present to a voting committee.

The voting committee, which is comprised of former teachers, discusses each finalist and votes by secret ballot.

Over 4000 nominations were received for 2007 Star of Teaching consideration.

All-Night Sleeper

Oh yea! My baby slept all night last night. And all night means all night.. not just 5 or 6 hours like he's been doing. From 10 to 6! And, I had to wake him this morning at 6! While I realize this may not yet be the start of continually sleeping through the night, it is good to know that he can do it. And, praise the Lord, his diaper didn't leak. An even bigger "praise the Lord" if it is the start of all-night-sleeping. We'll find out tonight!

Samuel is now 11 weeks old and starting to really have a lot of fun during his wake time. He smiles contagiously and has even begun giggling a little. Papa has a way of tickling him that can get him going. And Mommy's face in the belly or on his thigh usually works too. Of course, Daddy's big smile and conversation always makes Samuel smile.

He has begun pulling himself up to a more erect sitting position if he is reclined (in the bathtub or his car seat). His neck is strong enough to hold his head up very well for several minutes. He loves his mobile and will talk the animals as they go by. We think the zebra is his favorite. He doesn't grasp toys well yet, but he does like to grab his blanket or burp cloth.

I'm pleased to report that he does not protest against the breast after a day of bottle sucking. I was a little concerned about that, but I am so glad that he switches between the two without an apparent problem.

I've begun bathing him every night. Even though he doesn't really need it, he does enjoy baths and I'm trying to establish a bedtime routine. I especially like massaging him with lotion after the bath. It's my favorite time to talk and sing to him and to really love on him like Mommy's love to do.

Hilarity

I was forwarded the most hilarious auction item on ebay. It's hilarious because of the description.. not the item. Check it out here.

There's a link to this lady's blog at the right under Favorite Links.

I also found this hilarious video I wanted to share:

July Pictures uploaded

I finally uploaded my pictures from July. Check out the Photo Gallery (link at right) to see the album. There are some really cute ones! And let me explain the blurry ones of Samuel when he's wearing the red suit. I was trying to capture him smiling, and just got all his motions. I think they're kind of cute when you watch them as a slide show... you can almost see him moving around.

Cute Picture!!!

I just had to upload this cute picture I took last night. It is sooooo sweet! That is my dad's hand Samuel is holding onto.

Catching Up

Sorry to any faithful readers.. it's been a month since my last post. I've been kind of busy, but I should've made this a priority. At least I'll be glad to catch up for posterity.

Samuel is now 10 weeks old and thriving. His cooing takes on much more facial expression which is hilarious. I just wish we could catch his cute faces with the camera. He "talks" much more loudly now too. Sometimes we have to take a second look at him to see if he's just exercising or screaming because something's wrong. He holds his head up pretty well. We have to catch him at just the right time to put him on his tummy because he gets frustrated with not being able to see much. He's starting to grab his blanket or burp cloth but doesn't do so well with toys yet. He loves to be talked to and sung to. He also likes us to make funny noises and faces. It seems to me that he notices our mouths more than anything. He will even start sticking out his tongue if he sees us do it! He likes to hold his right arm up when he lies on his back and look at his fist. He tries to suck on his fists and sometimes finds his thumb. He sleeps 5-6 hours usually at night. When he wakes up, I change him and feed him and put him right back down to sleep. He is really a good baby. I don't think I could ask for a better one!

Uncle Chris came down from New York Thursday, August 2. He stayed until the next Monday. He oohed and aahed over Samuel as if he was his own baby. It did my heart good to see him so enthusiastic about his nephew. And Samuel took to him too. They made silly faces at each other. Chris was even christened with spit up, and I feel the experience was good for him.

Monday, August 6, I took Samuel for his 2-month appointment. That meant vaccinations. His checkup was very good. He weighed 12 lbs 3 oz and was 23 1/2 inches long. Dr. Shirley talks well of Samuel and that always makes a mommy feel good. I asked her about a little lump at the base of his skull on the left side. She said this was a lymph node and nothing to be alarmed about. Samuel's eye was a little watery that morning, and the doctor said it looked to her like a plugged tear duct. We are still massaging his eye every day and wiping it with a warm cloth. It gets a little crusty sometimes (as he sleeps), but it doesn't seem to bother him. Then there were the shots. The nurse came to administer them so the doctor was not associated with pain. (I think that's a great idea.) Samuel handled it as well as could be expected I suppose. He calmed down relatively quickly after I picked him up. He slept the majority of the day. He had a bit of fever that night but Tylenol helped.

And now... the biggie. I am back at work. I started back Wednesday, August 15. I really prayed that the Lord would help me and make the transition easy. And He has! I do miss my baby, but being at work is not as bad as I thought it would be. For now, I am able to stay busy and that is the biggest help. I have routine breaks to express milk for the next day. That also gives me a chance to rest a little.

Where is Samuel you ask? With his Granna (my mother) in West Point. Papa is there too while he looks for another job. So, both grandparents are loving their grandson all day long! I love that Samuel is with them rather than a day care. It made my going back to work much easier. Kris gets up in the mornings and gets ready for work. I get up, feed Samuel, and get his bags packed. Then my men go to West Point and I get ready for work. We're still working out the schedule, but it's going pretty well so far. I am looking forward to the weekend, though, so that I can be home all day with my baby!

Here's a picture from July 31. Samuel was 8 weeks old that day.