I am officially 1 month into 26. Ahh! Technically it was a few days ago, but I haven’t had any internet at home for a few weeks so that makes blogging a bit harder. I did write this on the 12th though to be fair. ANYWAY, I feel like I have been learning a lot this month. I guess we are always learning something (learn something new every day…blah blah…right?) but I want to try and reflect a little more on what it is I am learning this year. Really, I just thought it would be a good way to document what’s going on in my life, and since I am not good about keeping up with the blog, I am hoping that if I go month by month through my 26th year of life, that perhaps I will actually be able to keep up with it. We’ll see…GET ON TO ME IF I DON’T! Could be kinda neat to see what I’ve learned at the end of a year. No? This month has been SO crazy and has had SO much going on that I have been really stretched. Some of these things are things I’ve already known but have really hit home this month. Some are new. Some will only mean something to certain people. Some I’m sure everyone can understand. Some serious, some silly. Anyway, just thought I would put a little of it out there.
*I HATE that I had to turn 26 but I can’t stay 25 no matter how hard I try.
*My birthday is important to me. Not getting gifts, not having a big deal made, but being with the people I care about really matters to me on (or around) my birthday. More so than I thought at least. I very much wish I did not care.
*It’s so freaking cool to see your best friend since the age of 11 have a baby bump!
*I can’t read books too close to when the movie version comes out or I think of all the great parts of the story that were left out.
*Cruises are so much fun but I would rather go to one fun tropical place and stay.
*Swimming with dolphins is an amazing lifetime experience.
*The IPhone is probably one of the greatest inventions ever.
*It’s nice to be appreciated as a teacher by your friends. Especially when it means you get a four-course meal in a private room at a restaurant. ☺
*Moving apartments and moving classrooms at the same time in a matter of two weeks really isn’t a great idea.
*When moving, just expect that everything, and I do mean EVERYTHING (hence the no internet, and that’s just the beginning), can go wrong.
*When you live alone you must watch your toilet paper supply closely since you can’t borrow your roommate’s anymore!
*I can’t get enough of my classes at the gym, especially when I have friends to take them with. Seriously, I smile practically the whole time I’m there.
*Having no Internet, besides on your phone, for 2 weeks is extremely annoying.
*I need to rely less on the internet.
*I have some really amazing friends and people in my life that are my absolute support system – hence the title (I already knew this but just reminded of it once again).
*My girl friends are really good listeners and are so much fun to be around.
*My boy friends are too plus they give added insight and advice.
*Having great guy friends (and parents!) also makes moving much easier!
*My tv is stuck to my tv stand. Literally. I guess one day I will have to figure out how to get it undone.
*I am absolutely, totally and completely not in control.
*This is hard for me, but I'm working on it b/c it's easier to just let it go. (Ex 1 of MANY - There's nothing I can do about the fact that my furniture is backordered and a month later than expected so my mattress and everything in my dresser are on the floor...soooo...just go with it!)
*You can learn a lot about being easy going and laid back once you figure this out.
*Patty Griffin and John Mayer are so talented. (Yes, I listened to both before now but gosh I really have appreciated their music the last few weeks)
*Life REALLY is a set of seasons. Not the weather kind...just sayin'
*I stink at golf but have so much fun going out to the course with my friends.
*A lot can happen and change in the course of a year. Or in the course of a month. Heck even in the course of a week.
*Words can do a lot of damage so speak carefully.
*I now understand what exactly the playground, tookie, fishing, tubing, scuba, snorkeling, bibbity bob, the dollhouse, tea party, dosie doe and so on are. (Think I got all the terms from “the talk” in there)
*Loaded Questions is an amazingly fun game.
*Reliability is an important trait to me in a person.
*I dance like a total white girl but have SO much fun doing it!
*Hurricane Harbor is fun even when you are 26. Maybe even more so.
*Sometimes I need to be told things I don’t like to hear…as long as they are said in love.
*My friends make me laugh. A LOT A LOT A LOT. And I love it. Okay I think I’m reminded of that like every day but I really do think it’s awesome. Life would be so boring otherwise!
There’s what I was able to come up with. I already want time to slow down, but as my first point says I can’t avoid the getting older, so that’s it until month 2!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Mountains, Lochs, and Scotts...oh my...
So after the internet café in London, we had very limited access to internet, and thus I was unable to really keep the blog up to date. We have officially made it home safely now, but I still want to document each trip so as time permits I’m going to write a little bit on each one. Here goes…
Last we left off, we were heading out to the boat tour of London. We hadn’t originally planned to do this but my boyfriend’s brother said it was one of the best things he had done there, so we decided to try it out. The last day in London was our best day weather wise, so it was a perfect day for doing this little trip down the Thames (Lesson 1 for Carrie – not at all pronounced like it looks). The boat we took was one you could hop on and off of if you wanted to go see the different sights, but having already seen pretty much everything we just decided to stay on and listen to what the tour guide had to say about each place. We were able to see the Shakespeare’s Globe Theater, London Tower, Tower Bridge, London Bridge (not anything to write home about even though a whole song has been written about it), Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and the London Eye. The beautiful day allowed us to get some really great pictures, including a nice montage of us trying to take pictures of ourselves and me struggling to keep my eyes open looking into the sun (we were laughing so hard that tears definitely were a part of this photo session…Lesson 2 – Carrie is very sensitive to the sun and can’t take pictures facing it without sunglasses on). After the boat tour we walked up and down the river until we found a little place on the water for dinner. Then it was about time for us to head back to pick up our bags and catch our overnight bus to Scotland. This is where things got a little hectic…
The entire time we were in London we had zero problems navigating the underground subway system, but just in case we allowed ourselves well over an hour to get to our bus stop from the hotel. Well, as typical in Ashley and Carrie land, we encountered our first underground problem within this time. We got on a train which we thought would be taking us to the bus station, but apparently they had some closures that day. They were making announcements but they were so fast, and with the accent we couldn’t understand what was going on. Fortunately, we weren’t the only ones so we didn’t feel quite as stupid. Everyone was just staring at each other trying to figure out if they should get on the train or not. Eventually a nice girl helped us get on the right train but we ended up having to run for our bus and barely made it. We literally ran up as they started loading. After jumping on and scoring the back row with the spare seat in between us we were pumped to get to Scotland. Unfortunately we were entirely wrong about how old we are now. Apparently you reach a certain age when you can’t get a good night’s sleep on a bus and we were probably only able to get about 2 hours sleep. Luckily, this 2 hours sleep came at the very end of the trip…with perfect timing for us to not notice what time we were arriving. Had we been awake, we would have been in a panic, considering our bus was almost 2 hours late arriving to Scotland. We pulled up at 8:22 and were supposed to check in at 8:30 for the tour. Ahh! We sprinted across Edinburgh with me frantically calling the tour company pleading with them to wait for us. We made it there at 8:40 and pulled out 2 minutes later. Whew!
Good thing we made it because Scotland is probably one of God’s greatest creations on all of earth. Seriously. I wouldn’t believe that beauty like that existed if I hadn’t gotten to see it myself. We must have brought good weather with us from TX because we had the most gorgeous three days and our tour guide continued to tell us how lucky we all were to be seeing weather like that.
Let me back up a second and describe what exactly the tour was. We signed up for a 3-day tour of Scotland through a company called Haggis Tours. We had 23 people on a bus from all over the world, although we were dubbed the Aussie bus b/c so many of the people were from Australia. Most of the people were in their late 20’s early 30’s and it was a great little group. Our tour guide, Russell, was a born and raised local Scotlander who knows pretty much everything there is to know about the country. Funny as heck and perfect for a 3-day adventure.
The first day we toured different parts of the countryside including Loch Ness, just beautiful, but no sighting of the monster, then we arrived in our stop for the night in a little town called Fort Augustus. We stayed in a hostel that was actually fairly nice. Everyone was pretty tired, so we just pretty much went to bed that night (and got our first shower in like 50 something hours).
The next day was spent entirely touring the Isle of Skye. Translated that means the “prettiest place on the face of the earth”…seriously. Just wait for the pictures b/c that is the best way to describe it. We ate a picnic lunch on a cliff overlooking the ocean and I probably could have stayed right there for a week and been perfectly content. We saw beautiful waterfalls and mountains and hills and rivers and sheep an arms length away. I was just in constant amazement the whole day. My heart literally hurt b/c it was just so pretty to see.
Funny story though…every time we would go look at something Russell would say “normally we don’t take the 3 day tour here but you guys just have to see it”, so after hearing that line about 24 times Ashley and I began to wonder what exactly the 3 day tour normally does…sit in the parking lot?
That night we ate dinner by the river in Fort Augustus from a little fish and chips stand then went on a boat trip on Loch Ness that searches for Nessie. No such luck for us but it as a fun little adventure anyway. Then I went on a run along the river, which was pretty much the prettiest run of my entire life looking out along Loch Ness and the mountains. This was at almost 10:00 at night and it was still bright out. Crazy. Also, I have decided I might have to make my new dream a marathon in Scotland. Anyway, after my run I headed back to meet the rest of the group at the pub in our hostel. We sat around a chatted with the others on the tour and then karaoke hour started. Quite funny and entertaining!
The last morning of our tour started with a little presentation on Scottish culture and clothing by a local Scott, then we headed back on the road to look at more beautiful countryside. Our tour ended and we had to race off once again to catch a bus to the airport. After our little scare with the overnight bus we decided to not chance the bus back this time b/c we had a morning flight to Paris that we didn’t want to risk missing. So, we got a flight out of Edinburgh to London and got a hotel right by the airport. One of the Aussie’s from our tour was on our flight so we were able to eat dinner and chat with him and then head back to London for sleep and our flight to Paris.
Whew, sorry for the long windedness. Remember I could write 5 pages on a pencil so I guess 3 on a 3 day trip to Scotland isn’t too bad! Next to come, my adventures in Paris!
Last we left off, we were heading out to the boat tour of London. We hadn’t originally planned to do this but my boyfriend’s brother said it was one of the best things he had done there, so we decided to try it out. The last day in London was our best day weather wise, so it was a perfect day for doing this little trip down the Thames (Lesson 1 for Carrie – not at all pronounced like it looks). The boat we took was one you could hop on and off of if you wanted to go see the different sights, but having already seen pretty much everything we just decided to stay on and listen to what the tour guide had to say about each place. We were able to see the Shakespeare’s Globe Theater, London Tower, Tower Bridge, London Bridge (not anything to write home about even though a whole song has been written about it), Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and the London Eye. The beautiful day allowed us to get some really great pictures, including a nice montage of us trying to take pictures of ourselves and me struggling to keep my eyes open looking into the sun (we were laughing so hard that tears definitely were a part of this photo session…Lesson 2 – Carrie is very sensitive to the sun and can’t take pictures facing it without sunglasses on). After the boat tour we walked up and down the river until we found a little place on the water for dinner. Then it was about time for us to head back to pick up our bags and catch our overnight bus to Scotland. This is where things got a little hectic…
The entire time we were in London we had zero problems navigating the underground subway system, but just in case we allowed ourselves well over an hour to get to our bus stop from the hotel. Well, as typical in Ashley and Carrie land, we encountered our first underground problem within this time. We got on a train which we thought would be taking us to the bus station, but apparently they had some closures that day. They were making announcements but they were so fast, and with the accent we couldn’t understand what was going on. Fortunately, we weren’t the only ones so we didn’t feel quite as stupid. Everyone was just staring at each other trying to figure out if they should get on the train or not. Eventually a nice girl helped us get on the right train but we ended up having to run for our bus and barely made it. We literally ran up as they started loading. After jumping on and scoring the back row with the spare seat in between us we were pumped to get to Scotland. Unfortunately we were entirely wrong about how old we are now. Apparently you reach a certain age when you can’t get a good night’s sleep on a bus and we were probably only able to get about 2 hours sleep. Luckily, this 2 hours sleep came at the very end of the trip…with perfect timing for us to not notice what time we were arriving. Had we been awake, we would have been in a panic, considering our bus was almost 2 hours late arriving to Scotland. We pulled up at 8:22 and were supposed to check in at 8:30 for the tour. Ahh! We sprinted across Edinburgh with me frantically calling the tour company pleading with them to wait for us. We made it there at 8:40 and pulled out 2 minutes later. Whew!
Good thing we made it because Scotland is probably one of God’s greatest creations on all of earth. Seriously. I wouldn’t believe that beauty like that existed if I hadn’t gotten to see it myself. We must have brought good weather with us from TX because we had the most gorgeous three days and our tour guide continued to tell us how lucky we all were to be seeing weather like that.
Let me back up a second and describe what exactly the tour was. We signed up for a 3-day tour of Scotland through a company called Haggis Tours. We had 23 people on a bus from all over the world, although we were dubbed the Aussie bus b/c so many of the people were from Australia. Most of the people were in their late 20’s early 30’s and it was a great little group. Our tour guide, Russell, was a born and raised local Scotlander who knows pretty much everything there is to know about the country. Funny as heck and perfect for a 3-day adventure.
The first day we toured different parts of the countryside including Loch Ness, just beautiful, but no sighting of the monster, then we arrived in our stop for the night in a little town called Fort Augustus. We stayed in a hostel that was actually fairly nice. Everyone was pretty tired, so we just pretty much went to bed that night (and got our first shower in like 50 something hours).
The next day was spent entirely touring the Isle of Skye. Translated that means the “prettiest place on the face of the earth”…seriously. Just wait for the pictures b/c that is the best way to describe it. We ate a picnic lunch on a cliff overlooking the ocean and I probably could have stayed right there for a week and been perfectly content. We saw beautiful waterfalls and mountains and hills and rivers and sheep an arms length away. I was just in constant amazement the whole day. My heart literally hurt b/c it was just so pretty to see.
Funny story though…every time we would go look at something Russell would say “normally we don’t take the 3 day tour here but you guys just have to see it”, so after hearing that line about 24 times Ashley and I began to wonder what exactly the 3 day tour normally does…sit in the parking lot?
That night we ate dinner by the river in Fort Augustus from a little fish and chips stand then went on a boat trip on Loch Ness that searches for Nessie. No such luck for us but it as a fun little adventure anyway. Then I went on a run along the river, which was pretty much the prettiest run of my entire life looking out along Loch Ness and the mountains. This was at almost 10:00 at night and it was still bright out. Crazy. Also, I have decided I might have to make my new dream a marathon in Scotland. Anyway, after my run I headed back to meet the rest of the group at the pub in our hostel. We sat around a chatted with the others on the tour and then karaoke hour started. Quite funny and entertaining!
The last morning of our tour started with a little presentation on Scottish culture and clothing by a local Scott, then we headed back on the road to look at more beautiful countryside. Our tour ended and we had to race off once again to catch a bus to the airport. After our little scare with the overnight bus we decided to not chance the bus back this time b/c we had a morning flight to Paris that we didn’t want to risk missing. So, we got a flight out of Edinburgh to London and got a hotel right by the airport. One of the Aussie’s from our tour was on our flight so we were able to eat dinner and chat with him and then head back to London for sleep and our flight to Paris.
Whew, sorry for the long windedness. Remember I could write 5 pages on a pencil so I guess 3 on a 3 day trip to Scotland isn’t too bad! Next to come, my adventures in Paris!
Sunday, June 21, 2009
LONDON BABY!
Greetings from London! Ashley and I were able to find an internet cafe that is fairly cheap for an hour's use, so I thought I would try and post a quick update on our travels.
Our flight went great! We were served dinner and then watched a movie and by the time that was done we were both out. Next thing I knew, Ashley was waking me up for breakfast and we landed about 45 minutes later. We went and dropped our bags off at the hotel which is located in what we have affectionately named Little Iraq. The hotel was wonderful just located in what seems to be the place all Middle Eastern Londoners live. Then we went down to see Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, a ride on the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus and a quick lunch at...get ready for it...McDonald's. Guess home really is never too far. We grabbed dinner at a little Italian place in Piccadilly area then discovered this little internet place where we did some emailing and planning then it was time for bed!
Friday morning we got up and went to the London Tower and did a tour there. That took us until lunch time which was the typical British meal of fish and chips outside the tower. Then we walked around to the Tower Bridge, found a Starbucks (couldn't live without it) and went over to St. Paul's cathedral. We headed from there over to Harrods department store, which is just amazing and hard to describe. There are all these food rooms that are like nothing you've ever seen. We ate dinner at a little Pizzeria in Harrods and then had this delicious ice cream sundae that was equally amazing. Finally it was time for us to head to our first show of the weekend...Billy Elliot. Super cute! After the show got out it was almost 11 so we just headed back and went to bed.
Saturday we went over to this little outdoor market in Notting Hill. Super cute and we were able to stumble across a cupcake place that had been recommended to us by a friend, Hummingbird Bakery. When I have access to my own computer I will be sure to post pictures to document all of this b/c you have to see how cute this place was, and the cupcakes were quite tasty! We walked from there to Kensington Palace and took the tour there. We were able to see some of Diana's dresses and an exhibit on debutantes. Funny how we still have that in the South at home and it's an out of date tradition here. I have some great pictures of us learning how to curtsy and dance though. For lunch we ate at a Pret a Manger (little sandwich place that is all over the place here) then went and had tea and scones (SO British-gotta love it) at La Orangerie on the Kensington Park grounds. We were pretty tired at this point so we went and found a park bench (well first it was some chairs by a lake that we got kicked out of for not paying) and people watched in Kensington Park until it was time to head back to Piccadilly area for the night. First we came back to our little internet cafe then we had dinner at a Chinese place (we joked that we are making this a world experience). The end of the night might be the most amazing part however. We had tickets to see THRILLER!!! It was a amazing as it sounds. 3 hours of The Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson's greatest hits WITH dancing. AND we got to get up and sing and dance too. SO MUCH FUN!!!
Today we got up and went to Hillsong church. If you aren't familiar with it they have created some fairly popular worship songs that our church at home uses a lot so we wanted to check it out. It was a little like going to a rock concert. Different from church at home but fun to go to. We walked around the stores in that area a bit then grabbed some lunch and headed back to the internet cafe...again. Yes, they are starting to recognize us, don't worry. However, gives me time to document my trip. If you are still reading, props to you b/c this is mainly for me to remember what I did. This afternoon we are going to take a boat tour then grab some dinner and such before heading on the overnight bus to Scotland. Yes, I said overnight bus, we apparently thought we were 18 coming on this trip! Try to post about Scotland when I can.
Our flight went great! We were served dinner and then watched a movie and by the time that was done we were both out. Next thing I knew, Ashley was waking me up for breakfast and we landed about 45 minutes later. We went and dropped our bags off at the hotel which is located in what we have affectionately named Little Iraq. The hotel was wonderful just located in what seems to be the place all Middle Eastern Londoners live. Then we went down to see Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, a ride on the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus and a quick lunch at...get ready for it...McDonald's. Guess home really is never too far. We grabbed dinner at a little Italian place in Piccadilly area then discovered this little internet place where we did some emailing and planning then it was time for bed!
Friday morning we got up and went to the London Tower and did a tour there. That took us until lunch time which was the typical British meal of fish and chips outside the tower. Then we walked around to the Tower Bridge, found a Starbucks (couldn't live without it) and went over to St. Paul's cathedral. We headed from there over to Harrods department store, which is just amazing and hard to describe. There are all these food rooms that are like nothing you've ever seen. We ate dinner at a little Pizzeria in Harrods and then had this delicious ice cream sundae that was equally amazing. Finally it was time for us to head to our first show of the weekend...Billy Elliot. Super cute! After the show got out it was almost 11 so we just headed back and went to bed.
Saturday we went over to this little outdoor market in Notting Hill. Super cute and we were able to stumble across a cupcake place that had been recommended to us by a friend, Hummingbird Bakery. When I have access to my own computer I will be sure to post pictures to document all of this b/c you have to see how cute this place was, and the cupcakes were quite tasty! We walked from there to Kensington Palace and took the tour there. We were able to see some of Diana's dresses and an exhibit on debutantes. Funny how we still have that in the South at home and it's an out of date tradition here. I have some great pictures of us learning how to curtsy and dance though. For lunch we ate at a Pret a Manger (little sandwich place that is all over the place here) then went and had tea and scones (SO British-gotta love it) at La Orangerie on the Kensington Park grounds. We were pretty tired at this point so we went and found a park bench (well first it was some chairs by a lake that we got kicked out of for not paying) and people watched in Kensington Park until it was time to head back to Piccadilly area for the night. First we came back to our little internet cafe then we had dinner at a Chinese place (we joked that we are making this a world experience). The end of the night might be the most amazing part however. We had tickets to see THRILLER!!! It was a amazing as it sounds. 3 hours of The Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson's greatest hits WITH dancing. AND we got to get up and sing and dance too. SO MUCH FUN!!!
Today we got up and went to Hillsong church. If you aren't familiar with it they have created some fairly popular worship songs that our church at home uses a lot so we wanted to check it out. It was a little like going to a rock concert. Different from church at home but fun to go to. We walked around the stores in that area a bit then grabbed some lunch and headed back to the internet cafe...again. Yes, they are starting to recognize us, don't worry. However, gives me time to document my trip. If you are still reading, props to you b/c this is mainly for me to remember what I did. This afternoon we are going to take a boat tour then grab some dinner and such before heading on the overnight bus to Scotland. Yes, I said overnight bus, we apparently thought we were 18 coming on this trip! Try to post about Scotland when I can.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Smiling's the Best!
So I still need to blog about my amazing year with my adorable kiddos, but first I have to stop and say that my summer is off to the best start ever and I still have so many adventures yet to come. I am so freakin' happy...I just can't stop smiling. Is it okay to say that? I feel like I'm bragging, but I really am just so excited about the things happening in my life. Let me share...
Summer started with the best stinkin' concert of my life with one sweet, cute boy who makes me smile every day (I could brag on him for a while but I'll save that for another time). For non facebookers I will try to post pictures of the concert, but let me just say there is no way to not absolutely love FLOOR seats at the new COWBOYS STADIUM for an entire night listening to LeAnne Womack, Blake Shelton, Reba Macentire and GEORGE STRAIT (yes I know I butchered the spellings but whatever). Seriously I think this deserves it's own post...
I've been spending my days having lunches with my dear friends, laying by the pool, going to those ever so popular workout classes (discovered a new favorite where all you do is booty shake and hop around), running (despite not getting into NY), planning for the new apartment, getting excited for the new job, visiting my parents, and so on.
Nights are equally busy getting to just play with my friends. I do this during the school year, but it's just so much better when you don't have to worry about getting up in the morning!
That's just the first two weeks friends.
In TWO days I leave for EUROPE! AND, I just booked a cruise with one of my very best friends and our wonderful moms, continuing a tradition of what we hope to be yearly trips together. When I get back from Europe I am going to spend my time celebrating America (the fourth) by going to Austin for the very first time (yes, gasp, I'm a Texan who's never been to Austin). After I get back, I get to start a new adventure of having my own place for the first time. Following that, I get to start another new adventure with my new teaching position. Then there's the August river trip with some of those same awesome friends I keep bragging on (and the cute boy!). Finally, I get to jet off one last time before school starts (the weekend before to be exact) and take part in the wedding of another best friend in San Antonio. So much to look forward to I can hardly stand it. The excited butterflies are constant and I just love it. It's keeping my heart happy and me smiling! It's kinda the best!
Summer started with the best stinkin' concert of my life with one sweet, cute boy who makes me smile every day (I could brag on him for a while but I'll save that for another time). For non facebookers I will try to post pictures of the concert, but let me just say there is no way to not absolutely love FLOOR seats at the new COWBOYS STADIUM for an entire night listening to LeAnne Womack, Blake Shelton, Reba Macentire and GEORGE STRAIT (yes I know I butchered the spellings but whatever). Seriously I think this deserves it's own post...
I've been spending my days having lunches with my dear friends, laying by the pool, going to those ever so popular workout classes (discovered a new favorite where all you do is booty shake and hop around), running (despite not getting into NY), planning for the new apartment, getting excited for the new job, visiting my parents, and so on.
Nights are equally busy getting to just play with my friends. I do this during the school year, but it's just so much better when you don't have to worry about getting up in the morning!
That's just the first two weeks friends.
In TWO days I leave for EUROPE! AND, I just booked a cruise with one of my very best friends and our wonderful moms, continuing a tradition of what we hope to be yearly trips together. When I get back from Europe I am going to spend my time celebrating America (the fourth) by going to Austin for the very first time (yes, gasp, I'm a Texan who's never been to Austin). After I get back, I get to start a new adventure of having my own place for the first time. Following that, I get to start another new adventure with my new teaching position. Then there's the August river trip with some of those same awesome friends I keep bragging on (and the cute boy!). Finally, I get to jet off one last time before school starts (the weekend before to be exact) and take part in the wedding of another best friend in San Antonio. So much to look forward to I can hardly stand it. The excited butterflies are constant and I just love it. It's keeping my heart happy and me smiling! It's kinda the best!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Movin' On Up
So, a big life change is happening for me. This past week I accepted a position at my school teaching third grade! Eeek! Here's a little on how this came about.
Last year, for those of you who don't know, I was moved in the middle of the school year (away from my kinder babies) to a different school to teach first grade. While I was upset about the whole ordeal, it ended up showing me that I really enjoy teaching older students. I mentioned to my principal that I would like to be considered for a higher grade level next year if possible. Last week, she called me in and offered me a position in third grade. Totally unexpected!
For the non-teachers, third grade is where state mandated testing begins (TAKS). Third grade is also a promotion grade for this test (don't pass, don't go to fourth). This can be a lot of pressure and it is something that has intimidated me away from those grade levels (third & fourth) a little. Honestly, I never envisioned myself teaching a grade higher than second. However, after LOTS of thinking and talking to friends who teach in "TAKS" grades, I decided to go ahead and take the job! It is something I am confidant is the right decision for me at this time. I am SUPER excited about trying something new. I am looking forward to seeing if it is the right fit for me. I am pumped about getting to work with a really great team. And, I think it should be a great learning experience that will help me to become a better teacher.
Obviously there are things I am going to miss about Kindergarten. I have enjoyed my last three years SO much. I have had the pleasure of working with some great teachers and the joy of teaching some amazing kids. I simply felt like it was time for me to see if Kindergarten is where I belong, or if it's somewhere else. Won't know until I try it!
So there's the big update. If you have any tips for teaching older kiddos please pass them along, I'm sure I will be needing the help! :)
PS - Next blog I am hoping to post about the things I have loved about my class this year (probably boring to everyone else but a good way to remember for me).
Last year, for those of you who don't know, I was moved in the middle of the school year (away from my kinder babies) to a different school to teach first grade. While I was upset about the whole ordeal, it ended up showing me that I really enjoy teaching older students. I mentioned to my principal that I would like to be considered for a higher grade level next year if possible. Last week, she called me in and offered me a position in third grade. Totally unexpected!
For the non-teachers, third grade is where state mandated testing begins (TAKS). Third grade is also a promotion grade for this test (don't pass, don't go to fourth). This can be a lot of pressure and it is something that has intimidated me away from those grade levels (third & fourth) a little. Honestly, I never envisioned myself teaching a grade higher than second. However, after LOTS of thinking and talking to friends who teach in "TAKS" grades, I decided to go ahead and take the job! It is something I am confidant is the right decision for me at this time. I am SUPER excited about trying something new. I am looking forward to seeing if it is the right fit for me. I am pumped about getting to work with a really great team. And, I think it should be a great learning experience that will help me to become a better teacher.
Obviously there are things I am going to miss about Kindergarten. I have enjoyed my last three years SO much. I have had the pleasure of working with some great teachers and the joy of teaching some amazing kids. I simply felt like it was time for me to see if Kindergarten is where I belong, or if it's somewhere else. Won't know until I try it!
So there's the big update. If you have any tips for teaching older kiddos please pass them along, I'm sure I will be needing the help! :)
PS - Next blog I am hoping to post about the things I have loved about my class this year (probably boring to everyone else but a good way to remember for me).
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Sweet Summertime
Seeing as summer is 7 days away, I thought it would be fitting to discuss all the things I am looking forward to this summer. If you don't have a summer vacation, please bare with me and share in my excitement, if you taught 10 months of the year, you would need one too. :) If I survive the next few days (it is questionable), then I get to spend the next 10 weeks doing the following things:
*sleeping (if I'm getting more than 4-5 hours a night it will be an increase)
*morning workout classes with all the nonworking people of the world
*iced coffee in the middle of the day
*lunches at Lili's
*sno cones (the little stand on University is a personal fav.)
*EUROPE!!!
*a possible cruise for second annual mother/daughter trip
*trip to the beach with all the girls in my family (annual tradition)
*laying out by the pool with nobody around
*going to the parents pool
*getting to spend more time with the parents
*more time with friends
*Fridays w/ those who don't have to work
*Hurricane Harbor trip with the girls and aqua socks
*Concerts in the Garden
*Fourth of July
*baseball
*time to read books and magazines
*lunches that aren't 30 minutes long
*lunches that aren't a turkey sandwich and a bag of carrots (seriously what I eat almost every day)
*So You Think You Can Dance!
*not having to worry about a week of work on Sundays
*getting all the "stuff" done that I can't get done during the year
*being better about planning social events
*not working (I mean let's just be honest, I LOVE my job, but it's fun having a break)
*sundresses, shorts, and flip flops
*not having to get ready for the day if I don't want to
*morning talk shows and silly soap operas
*more blogging time??
I'm sure that there is more to summer that is wonderful and that I am forgetting about, but I will try my best to keep my blog up to date with all my summer adventures. Hope my fellow teachers and those who work in schools have an amazing and restful summer as well. Almost there!
*sleeping (if I'm getting more than 4-5 hours a night it will be an increase)
*morning workout classes with all the nonworking people of the world
*iced coffee in the middle of the day
*lunches at Lili's
*sno cones (the little stand on University is a personal fav.)
*EUROPE!!!
*a possible cruise for second annual mother/daughter trip
*trip to the beach with all the girls in my family (annual tradition)
*laying out by the pool with nobody around
*going to the parents pool
*getting to spend more time with the parents
*more time with friends
*Fridays w/ those who don't have to work
*Hurricane Harbor trip with the girls and aqua socks
*Concerts in the Garden
*Fourth of July
*baseball
*time to read books and magazines
*lunches that aren't 30 minutes long
*lunches that aren't a turkey sandwich and a bag of carrots (seriously what I eat almost every day)
*So You Think You Can Dance!
*not having to worry about a week of work on Sundays
*getting all the "stuff" done that I can't get done during the year
*being better about planning social events
*not working (I mean let's just be honest, I LOVE my job, but it's fun having a break)
*sundresses, shorts, and flip flops
*not having to get ready for the day if I don't want to
*morning talk shows and silly soap operas
*more blogging time??
I'm sure that there is more to summer that is wonderful and that I am forgetting about, but I will try my best to keep my blog up to date with all my summer adventures. Hope my fellow teachers and those who work in schools have an amazing and restful summer as well. Almost there!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Teaching Moment
Okay so I know I've become a horrible blogger. One of the reasons I was hesitant to start in the first place (see first blog), but I am going to try and be better. For now, I just have to share a little teaching moment I had this morning.
We have been learning subtraction in Kindergarten the last two weeks. If you aren't a teacher let me explain that the end of the year is the time when all teachers feel that their kiddos have gone crazy and question if they are still learning anything. However, not all students have a rock star teacher like me. Ha. I kidd. Anyway, one of my students came up to me this morning and told me "I had math in my real life!". Of course I inquired to see what this meant. Answer: "I was helping my mom go through my clothes and I had five and took away two so there were only three left!". I told her that I was proud of her for using her subtraction at home and she has proceeded to tell me the rest of the morning just how subtraction can be used in real life. Walked into that one I guess. I do love these little momements though where I get to see that I'm actually teaching my kids something. Even when it's almost May!
We have been learning subtraction in Kindergarten the last two weeks. If you aren't a teacher let me explain that the end of the year is the time when all teachers feel that their kiddos have gone crazy and question if they are still learning anything. However, not all students have a rock star teacher like me. Ha. I kidd. Anyway, one of my students came up to me this morning and told me "I had math in my real life!". Of course I inquired to see what this meant. Answer: "I was helping my mom go through my clothes and I had five and took away two so there were only three left!". I told her that I was proud of her for using her subtraction at home and she has proceeded to tell me the rest of the morning just how subtraction can be used in real life. Walked into that one I guess. I do love these little momements though where I get to see that I'm actually teaching my kids something. Even when it's almost May!
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