Plenty of things to be thankful for...

I was sitting at home with family thinking about all of the things that I'm thankful for because you know it was Thanksgiving. It has been awhile since I posted on here, and I felt that it was a great opportunity to talk about the past few weeks. The main thing I want to get across is that I have so much to be thankful for. From my family to my job, my life has been truly blessed. This post isn't necessarily going to be just about school, but rather about what's on my mind. 

First, I want to talk about my family. I feel like my family is that annoying All-American family. We all like each other and get along. My brother is a college athlete. My sister is on the drill team and involved with her church and various honor societies. My parents have been married for over 25 years now, and then there's me. I have been fortunate enough to play sports my whole life and got the opportunity to play in college. I've graduated college, and have this amazing job. There honestly really hasn't been a huge flaw. I can't tell you how amazing that is and how thankful I am for that. I don't want to sound like I'm bragging because I'm not. It is just amazing to look back over the years and see the many blessings God has given us. I know that not every family situation is a lucky as we are, and again I'm so thankful. Each family dynamic is unique, and I love the family that I have.

Next I'll actually talk about teaching. I have officially made it to Thanksgiving break with all of my kiddos still alive, haha. I can't even believe that it has already been a little over 3 months. The past three months have been incredible. I may just be the naive first year teacher, but I love my job and I wouldn't want to do anything else. Of course, not every day is perfect, and I don't leave thinking wow today was awesome. There are going to be those days that you come out exhausted, but it is how I handle those days. After having a day like that, I try to come back the next day determined to make it better than the day before. It's a simple mindset, but it works for me. My students are pretty awesome in their own right, and I'm so lucky that the majority of them love coming to my class and actually want to participate. I know there are some teachers out there that don't have that luxury. That just tells me that I have to make the most of the eagerness of my students and really strive to have them grow. Though some days they drive me crazy, I can't wait to see their little faces when I get back on Monday.

Finally, I don't know if I would survive without the people that I work with. I've said this before and it won't be the last time, but the group ladies that I work with are truly incredible. I still feel like I don't belong with them, and I'm just trying to keep up. The team that you work with is so vital in whether you not you enjoy your job. I am blessed to get along with all of them, and love coming to work everyday knowing they're by my side. Not only do I have the greatest team, but I have the greatest principal. I'm willing to argue with you about that if you think otherwise. The environment that she creates at school is, in her terms, "fabulous". There is so much fun going on, but there is no shying away from learning. Yeah it can be crazy at times, but we go right back to learning. She puts an emphasis on you gotta work hard to play hard, and I couldn't agree more. I also had my first PDAS evaluation by her, and I was extremely nervous. It's intimidating to have someone come into your class and watch you do your thing. Long story short, she made not such a stressful thing, and her evaluation was pretty good. It's always nice to have reassurance that what your doing is working, and that they like having you work at their school. I'm thankful that it's over though!

This week off came at a great time. It was just the perfect timing to get rejuvenated to go back for the next three weeks and knock them out before Christmas break. There are many things that I have to be thankful for, and I thank God everyday for all the blessings that he has given me. I'm very fortunate to have a great job and family, and I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Talk About A Crazy Week...

This week was packed full of things that I had to get accomplished.

First off, it was Red Ribbon Week. This means that there was a different dress up day each day of the week. If you know me at all, of course I dressed up as everyday! It was always exciting and cool to see how the kids showed up to school. The best day was Friday when it was Circus themed costume day. I dressed up in a Minion pajama suit. It had to be circus themed, so I bought a rainbow wig, rainbow suspenders, and rainbow bow tie. I looked good, just saying. It was so funny walking around the school seeing the kids reactions. We even had a costume parade where each grade displayed their costumes. It definitely made for a crazy day.

Second, it was conference week. I had the pleasure to get to meet with my students parents. I was really nervous about this because I had never had one before. I think as the week went on I finally settled in a knew what to do. There were definitely some interesting meetings to say the least. I also had a couple of parents that didn't show up to their scheduled time. I think the conferences went better than I had imagined they would. I think I will be more comfortable next go around. Hey... I didn't have any parents yell at me or really have any complaints. Overall, successful.

Lastly, it was Marquette Family Dance week. I got to dance with my sister last year, and I was lucky enough to get to dance with her again this year. We had rehearsal after school on Monday, and I didn't practice again until rehearsal the day of the game. I wasn't very prepared to say the least. Dancing is not my thing, and I was a little worried about performing in front of thousands of people. Halftime came and went and I only messed up twice on the dance. My performance could have been better, but I'll live. The thing that really got me the most was when the dance ended. I went to hug my sister, and that's when she buried her head into me and started to cry. This killed me. She's leaving in 9 months, and it is going to be incredibly sad. What I thought was going to be a simple hug turned into a release of emotion for the departure that lies ahead. I'm going to miss her like crazy, and I'm pretty sure she is going to miss me.

I would say by the end of the week, I had nothing left in the tank. Turns out I had to find something because I had the Marquette 5K Saturday morning. I'll keep this part short. I don't recommend running a 5K willy nilly that you haven't even prepared for. My legs are hating me for sure!