Mrs. Schalburg has been teaching since 2007. She likes to spend time with her family. In her free time,  she likes to read. She graduated from West Vigo High School. She has two kids. Their names are Jordan and Devin. Jordan is 11 years old and Devin is 10 years old. Mrs. Schalburg likes to go out to dinner with her family at Umi Grill. She feels like West Vigo High School is home. Her favorite football team is the Chicago Bears. She was on the dance team while in high school and has performed on cruise ships twice. One thing she likes about being a dean is helping students through hard times. She has worked at a daycare, 100.7 Mix-FM, and taught at a Head Start program in Ohio prior to working at WVHS.  Thank you for being a part of West Vigo High School.

Mrs. Schalburg

     “Have yourself a Merry little Christmas. Let your heart be light. From now on your troubles will be out of sight”, Frank Sinatra. Everyone loves music, but Christmas music may be the best way to get you in the spirit of the winter season.  We took a poll of West Vigo High School students’ favorite Christmas songs.  

      It seemed that the school agreed on their favorite Christmas song and a couple of different songs were tied. In first place four songs all got 10 votes each, these songs are: It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas by Micheal Buble, Santa Tell Me by Ariana Grande, Mistletoe by Justin Bieber and You’re a Mean one Mr. Grinch by Thurl Ravenscroft. In a close second with eight votes was Jingle Bell Rock by Bobby Helms. In third place, All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey with seven votes. In fourth place with four votes was Rocking Around the Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee. In fifth place with three votes was White Christmas by Bing Crosby. 

       A couple of other options that people put in the “other” section were Blue Christmas by Elvis Presley, Cry Christmas by Mother Mother, Last Christmas by George Michael, Last Christmas by Wham! and so many more. My favorite response had to be all of them! Remember that the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!

                Like many people, going to the dentist has always caused me stress. When I learned that my wisdom teeth were coming in and that I needed to have them removed, I panicked. I was worried that I was going to die during the procedure. I thought that they would give me too much anesthetic and that I would never wake up. I know it sounds crazy, but I was genuinely scared. Anyways, I am here to tell you that getting my wisdom teeth out wasn’t that bad. 

              I was asleep the entire procedure, so I obviously don’t remember that part, but I do remember afterward. My pain right after the surgery was a zero out of ten, but my face was also numb. When I got home, I fell asleep for a couple of hours. When I woke up, my mouth started hurting a little, so I took some pain medicine. Since I was also hungry, I ate mashed potatoes because when you get your wisdom teeth out, you can’t eat any solid foods for about three to four days. My diet for about five days was mashed potatoes, ice cream, and Jell-O. After every time I ate, I also had to use a mouthwash the oral surgeon gave me. My pain was the worst on day three. I would say that the pain was a five out of ten. 

               On day four, my pain wasn’t as bad, and it started going down from there. Overall, the experience wasn’t that bad, and I was scared for no reason, so if you have to get your wisdom teeth out in the future, don’t stress over it.  

This Holiday season these recipes are perfect to try out with family and friends.

 Turtles

 You will need one bag of pretzels, one big bag or two small bags of Rolos, a bag of pecans, and a baking sheet and pan. If you don’t like pecans, you can also use M&Ms. You’ll want to put the pretzels on the baking sheet and then put the Rolos on top of the pretzels. Space the pretzels about a half-inch apart. Bake them for  3-4 minutes at 115 degrees. Then, you’re going to put the pecans or M&Ms on top of each Rolo. Let’s cool and enjoy!

Christmas Trash

 You will need 24 ounces of white almond vanilla bark, 2 cups pretzels, 3 cups Cheerios cereal, 3 cups Chex,  and M&Ms.You’ll want to heat up the white almond bark in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave for 1 minute or until melted. Then mix up the pretzels, Cheerios and M&Ms on a baking sheet that is covered with parchment or wax paper. Then, pour the melted almond bark over the mix. Stir and let cool.

Puppy Chow

 You will need ½ cup of creamy peanut butter,1 cup of chocolate chips,½ cup of butter,1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, and Chex cereal. Put the peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butter in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave it for 1 minute. Stir it until it’s melted. Place the Chex cereal in a large bowl. You will use 6 cups of Chex cereal. You’re going to pour the melted chocolate and peanut butter mixture over the cereal on parchment or wax paper make sure the cereal is evenly coated with the peanut butter and chocolate then coat it with powdered sugar.

I hope if you try out any of these recipes you enjoy them. 

I also hope you all have a great holiday season!

      I bet everyone has heard of Christmas, but there are many more holidays. December is known as one of the most festive months of the year! You may have heard of these holidays, but not know much about them.

        Hanukkah is a Jewish festival that is celebrated for seven days, celebrated from December 19th to December 26th. The most important thing of all during Hanukkah is the menorah. A menorah is candle(s) on a temple lampstand with eight branches plus a shamash (servant) candle that’s used to light all of the other candles. While Hanukkah is usually celebrated in Jerusalem, Israel, Kwanzaa is mostly celebrated in the United States and other countries with African descendants. 

           Kwanzaa is a celebration of African American culture that lasts from December 26th to January 1st. Unlike Hanukkah, Kwanzaa is a non-religious celebration, but instead a cultural one. Kwanzaa has candles like Hanukkah, but they have their own unique spin! The seven candles mean different things. The seven candles represent unity, self-determination, collective responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. The candleholder used is called a kinara. On the sixth day of Kwanzaa, there is a feast called the Karamu. 

          Holidays all have different ways of celebration and they should all be celebrated and known. I hope whichever holiday you celebrate will be a festive and fun time!

Links to information and sources 

Kwanzaa | History, Traditions, Dates, Symbols, & Facts

Hanukkah | Definition, History, Customs, Story, Food, & Facts

West Vigo’s display at Deming Park. Photo courtesy of Mrs. Laughlin

A Christmas Carol 

How the Grinch Stole Christmas  

The Polar Express 

Home Alone 

The Nightmare Before Christmas 

The Little Drummer Boy 

Frosty the Snowman 

Arthur’s Christmas 

Rudolph the Red -Nosed Reindeer 

Elf 

Christmas with the Kranks 

Crown for Christmas 

A Nutcracker Christmas 

Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas

Santa Buddies: The Legend of the Paws

A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish 

Prancer 

48 Christmas Wishes 

White Christmas 

Frozen 

E.T 

The Christmas Chronicles( part one or two )

•  The naughty and nice list came from 16th-century Holland.  Coal was used for naughty kids because it was simple to grab coal from the fireplace. 
•  Before stockings, parents would put their children’s shoes near the fireplace.
• Christmas started in Rome on December 25, AD 336. It also recognized as the day Jesus was born.
• When cartoonist Thomas Nast drew an elf-like figure to support the Union, Santa Claus was created. 
• The main symbol of Christmas is the star on top of the tree which symbolizes the day Jesus was born and the holiday on its own. 
• Have you ever wondered why there’s always a Christmas tree? Well, the Christmas tree started in Germany as a way to remember adam and eve. People used to decorate their Christmas trees with candles and apples.as trees. This was started around 1611 by the Silesian Duchess. 

https://www.britannica.com/

https://www.history.com/

Works Cited

Attack on Pearl Harbor 1941. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6cz9gtMTeI .

Czajkowski, Sebastian, director. Underwater loop background. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AE3_AJ9o2A .

goldstandard$, director. ROBERT PRESTON: “THE NIGHT OF JANUARUY 16TH” (1941). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us1YenDlWs0 .

Holocaust Encyclopedia. “Pearl Harbor.” Holocaust Encyclopedia, https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/pearl-harbor .

King, Lucas, director. 1 Hour of Dark Piano. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziQ9GURNrUg .

Pearl Harbor- Surprise Attack. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lIm06JOBtw 

Viator Travel, director. Pearl Harbor and USS Arizona Memorial Oahu, Hawaii. https://www.google.com/search?q=pearl+harbor+and+USS+arizona+memorial%5C&rlz=1CAGWKK_enUS918US918&source=lnms&tbm=vid&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwin_qaaqur7AhXGlYkEHdkiCbwQ_AUoBHoECAEQBg&biw=1366&bih=665&dpr=1&surl=1&safe=active&ssui=on#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:82f47ba0,vi .