Oh Happy Day!

Today was the first day of being a real genuine teacher! I love my second graders! I was asked all day today if I was ready. My response: "I've been preparing for this day for 6 1/2 years, I am more than ready!"

We spent our day

1. Rules and expectations
2. Library/AR
3. Spelling
4. VOCABULARY!
5. Reading
6. Cleaning desks
7. Math
8. Science

Ahhhh - productive day!

I had 2 pictures drawn for me today, if I would have been on top of it, I would have taken pictures of them and put them on here. One of them was drawn for me over the weekend and came with a sucker. Did I mention I love my 2nd graders? :)

Today was the most fantastic day!

From the Beginning

I have to back up my story to over a year ago. Some how, this is all linked and in the end you'll see why I believe in God and the power of prayer, not just coincidence.

1st year

part 1

In May of 2009 I graduated from NNU. It was a wonderful day and I was so excited to embark on my next adventure. I knew there would be a 5th grade position open at the school I did my student teaching and I was sure I would be able to get it.

Anthony had been interviewing for for a job at Lone Star and we were looking at how much we were allowed to spend on a house. I was finishing up some loose ends to be able to apply for the district, but I didn't think these bumps would be a problem. June 15th (yes the day before my birthday) I was told that someone else had been given the job at Greenhurst. I was hurt that it wasn't mine, but I knew there were still many options for me.

By July I was getting very discouraged. I interviewed for a job at Pioneer (where I started Kinder the first year it opened) and at Eagle Middle, and at Marsing for a Kinder position thankfully I didn't get that one... I had no idea what I was going to do....so I started subbing in Nampa.

1st Year

Part 2

I had been subbing around the district for a few months (this is the part of the story I will skip because there was a lot of stress and house issues involved that kept me from subbing the whole time) when I got a phone call for an interview in Meridian for a middle school position right in the middle of the first semester. Hours after I set up this interview I had another call...this one was for a long-term substitute position at Owyhee in 2nd grade. I took the interview and at 9:00 that night I was hired and started 1st thing on Monday morning....STRESS!!!! I happily got over that with the help of Brittany and Morgan, they were my godsend! I spent those 4 months LOVING every, ok not every, minute of my time in that room. From there I was asked to work in the Title 1 program at Owyhee. I was more than happy to stay in the school I had so quickly fell in love with. Working at Owyhee and the cleaners and keeping my house in order was a crazy 3 months. This concludes my first year out of NNU.

Year 2

I had no calls for interviews over the summer, I had no idea what I was going to do, I had no clue if I had a chance at anything. Then the principal from Owyhee called. He had a 1/2 time 1st grade position open. I interviewed, and....didn't get it....

This part is also very complicated...but through lots of shuffling and district stuff, there 1st grade position was cut. These teachers then became 1/2 music and 1/2 something else. Let me tell you, as disappointed I was about not having the 1st grade job, I was VERY happy to not be the music teacher! So, instead I was working at an EA (educational assistant) in short, a very low paying job with reading intervention and as a Speech EA. In the process of making very little money, I decided to start tutoring at my school a couple of hours a week.

I had a great system worked out...I was working out twice a week, tutoring twice a week and having time to be at home and get stuff done on the weekends thanks to only having one job again.

(More complications...)

The tutoring company I worked for started havnig some serious problems and I decided to stop tutoring (that was the short story).

I wasn't too worried about not tutoring. It had been nice, but wasn't something I was really drawn to. The next week there were rumors about some job shifting going on in our school.

In October, there was a principal in the district that took a job in California. This meant the district needed to fill his job. All hiring was done in-district, so there was shifting going on. One of the teachers at my school was interviewing for another job at a middle school due to this shifting.

For a week there was a lot of unknowns about what as going on, but in the end, I was called down to my Principal's office and was asked if I wanted to fill the position as the new 2nd grade teacher in Owhee Elementary. Of course I said yes!

So, through all the crazy things that were happening in life. Everything fell into place with time (the tutoring going away) and financially, and the opportunity to FINALLY have my own class. It's crazy to think that I'm stepping in exactly a year later from where I left off after my long-term sub job. I spent the last few days in my room just trying to orient myself with all I get to do in the next few weeks. I'm trying to get organized and move piles to where I think they should be :)

That is my long long story. I'm going to miss my Title Team and all the adult interaction I was able to have. But I won't miss being under employed and I still get to be around all those people who have helped me and supported me the last year of my crazy, crazy life! Thank you to my Owyhee family for being so helpful! I couldn't have done it without you!

Yup - this is my room -

I'm hoping to add some more to this, but not yet.

Why I Love....

SPRING!!!

I've got crazy Spring Fever right now. The weather is so wonderful, I'm sad to think it's going to be cold and rainy again before it gets nicer.

My list of why I love spring:

1. Pizza and Beer (that was dinner tonight, but it's even better outside on the patio)
2. Gardening - I really do love being out in my flower beds, but I can only stand pulling weeds for an hour.
3. Fresh air!
4. Skirts - I am for sure wearing one to work tomorrow, it's been a long winter without my skirts.
5. Along with skirts - short sleeves.
6. Longer days
7. Mowing the lawn - yea, I'm a weirdo.
8. Warmer weather (that's a given).
9. Just the ability to be outside. I'm tired of sitting in my house being cold.
   

That's my short and condensed list. I'm so very excited for the weather to be nice and be outside for a change. I'm anxious to get my garden planted and start my beautiful flower beds. This spring/summer will be full of days outside in my yard, getting it just right.

My success from last year :) I'm not sure which ones will come back and what is gone. I guess I'll just have to watch and see what pops up. Ahhhh spring! How I miss you! Please arrive soon!

Checking things off "the list"

ok ok - so for lack of motivation, there are no pictures with this post.

Anthony has never been to Yellowstone - yet I have been there since we've been married (because I'm a great wife and left him home 2 weeks after we'd been married, poor choice on my part.) So, reservations have been made and we're going to Yellowstone the end of June. My parents so lovingly decided they were coming with us, and my aunt and uncle (who had to leave early last time) decided they wanted to spend it with us as well. Which is probably a good thing, because I'm great about talking about what I want to do, but at times have little motivation (like posting pictures) to actually get it done.

Thanks to my dad, we have reservations :)

Our other "had to be planned trip" was to go see Peggy one of these years! We have been trying to figure out the logistics to plan a road trip and try to see everyone possible between here and Chicago. But let me tell you, time and money became scarce when looking at 3 weeks and a few thousand miles of road to be driven. It wasn't looking like it was going to happen this year. It would have been a 2-3 week trip with 9 of those days spent in a car.

So, once again thanks to dad, we looked up plane tickets again. I had looked them up once, and there was no cost benefit. As a fluke, dad looked them up, prices had dropped $300, and we booked our flight! Chicago here we come! July 26th we fly out and we'll be gone for 9 days! That beats 9 days in a car, that's for sure.

All in all, we have a very busy summer planned out for us already. I'm not really sure when I'll have time to actually get things done I want to around here. I guess it'll have to wait until another summer :) I'd rather spend it with friends and family anyway.

And - one bit of random information...what person spends all winter looking foward to mowing again? It's supposed to be in the 50's the next few days, and I've got major spring fever. All I want to do is have green grass to mow. Yes, I'm aware of how bizarre I am.