I am often asked by parents or by my students to share more about myself. So here is a bit of my history...  I am one of the 'original teachers to open Mullenix Ridge Elementary in the fall of 1990.  I taught at Olalla Elementary for several years before coming to Mullenix. I graduated from Central Washington University with a special education and elementary teaching degree.  I LOVE teaching. It is one of my true passions and I feel so lucky to be able to work in our neighborhood school.

My family consists of my husband, Craig, (or Mr. Silvernail, to the many of you who are one his former science students) and four wonderful sons. Craig retired last year and has kept very busy with many projects that have just been waiting for him to get to oneday. Steven and Angie have my two very talented granddaughters, Madeline and Isabelle and our first grandson, Tate. They live in Raymond, Washington where both teach at the high school there. Eric is a graphic designer and lives in Maple Valley and is married to Danielle who is an Occupational Therapist.They have a little girl, Addison, who wil turn one in December . Michael is a Business Education and is in charge of technology for the Raymond School district. Our youngest son, Brian, is going to Central Washington University in the fall...He is majoring in Elementary Education and Mathematics.  Both my husband and I graduated from CWU, it is where we met... and now all four of our children have as well! Both my daughters-in-laws are CWU grads too! Go Wildcats!  

As a child, I grew up in Onalaska, Washington which is a very small farming, logging town in Lewis County.  I am the oldest of 9 children. We lived on a large dairy farm with the Newaukum River running through it. Dad and Mom began the dairy part of the farm when I was in second grade. Before the dairy, they had sold eggs from the thousands of chickens they raised, and for a while they raised and sold pigs.  I have many memories of a carefree and yet busy youth. We spent many hours working each day... but just as many playing in the back yard, riding bikes with the neighbor kids on the 'Coughlin Road', swimming in the river, sledding on the back hill in the winter and of course 'digging holes to China' in the back pasture.  We climbed trees, caught pollywogs, built forts, made mud pies, and when not working on painting the 'miles of' board fencing, we were practicing our balance beam routines across the top rail. I also loved to read, and had many a sunburn... from lying out in the sun and losing track of time...while I lost myself in a good book.  Though I truly had many fun times... we also had lots of chores.  Farming is an occupation that takes all hands on deck to get everything done. I learned to muck stalls, run tractors, plow fields, wash and scrub the walls of the parlor, milk cows, feed calves, and each and every part of putting away feed for the winter...hay, silage and so on. We also had a large garden, so that meant weeding and then harvesting and preserving the food. I learned that I was expected to work hard at school and that it had to be a top priority in my life. My mom, was there to help us if we needed it, but we were expected to do our best in school, turn in our work on time and to be prepared for each day. I learned so much from my parents about life and what it means to be well grounded. My parents are my heros. I keep saying that, 'When I grow up, I want to be just like them!' They were amazing role models for each of us to emulate. What a legacy. Today, my family loves to spend time at the farm with my mom, my brothers and sisters and all their families. My mother has over 40 grand and great grandchildren... just imagine!

I have many interests and hobbies.  My greatest passions are my family and teaching...and I will be happy to talk about them anytime! I also love to sew quilts and have made many for different charities and fundraisers. For true downtime, I love to read a good novel and/or many of the children's novels in my classroom. I also love to work outside in my yard and gardens.  When I really need to relax... I cook or bake!  My family loves to travel, spend time camping or at the lake on Anderson Island, and working on our own farm in Adna... we now make and sell hay each summer!

As you can see, I have plenty to keep me busy. As I said earlier, my job as a teacher is one of my passions. I love it. I love being able to work with children on a daily basis. I am passionate about teaching my students to read, write, and become mathematicians. I want them to be ready to take on whatever the future sends their way with eagerness and confidence. I want them to love learning, to love reading, to love writing, and to love math. I also want them to see the world as theirs to take care of and to treasure...that we all must take a part in keeping it clean, healthy and vibrant. So that means that they must learn about their environment and their community. They must learn about rules, citizenship, government, health, science and art. They must be seekers of knowledge and questioners of ideas. They must be doers, and helpers. My job as a teacher is to make sure that they have the tools they need to be those things... or to be the best that they can be at whatever they decide they want to be or do.  I am so fortunate to be doing a job that I know is so important. I am honored to be your child's teacher.