It's almost over! :(

My break has been really uneventful so far. We got more snow two nights ago, but fortunately not nearly as much as they had originally forcasted. I finally got to go see my godson. He's getting so big! They just moved into their new house, which is very nice and has less stairs! As for me, I finally got my component questions done for the observation I have when I go back to school. I still need to work on the lesson plan a little bit and tweak the actual lesson, but I can do that fairly easily. I've been sleeping a lot, which will probably catch up to me when I actually have to get up and go to work at 7 AM, but it will be ok. I don't know what's on the agenda for today - maybe going furniture shopping with my mom. Our kitchen looks nice though - it's only been 27 years since it's been redone...

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I think I may finally be on the downside of the craziness. We had Christmas with both sides of my family on Sunday, since we had a blizzard on Saturday. It was nice to get to see my family and hang out with everyone again. On Monday, we drove down to Stillwater, OK to spend Christmas with my sister, since she was working at the dairy. It wasn't as bad as I was expecting. We had chili Monday night and opened presents, and Tuesday we had roast and just watched Christmas movies. It was nice to just kind of hang out and not do anything.

Only about a week before I head back to Iowa. This break is going to feel entirely too short. I hope I get to see some of my friends before I leave, but I understand that everyone is busy.

It's supposed to snow more this week, I just hope it doesn't snow when I'm trying to get back to Des Moines!

Blizzard!

I was originally going to come home today, but the weather was supposed to be bad today, so I came home last night after school. That turned out to be a really good idea. When I woke up this morning and looked outside, I saw a blizzard! The snow was blowing so hard that we couldn't see the houses behind us! I don' t think I've ever been in a blizzard - it was very interesting. It was a good day to stay inside and watch movies and grade myths. I have one more class's myths to grade. I was kind of disappointed that the classic Christmas movies, like It's a Wonderful Life and White Christmas, weren't on. We had to cancel Christmas with my mom's side of the family, but we are having it tomorrow. However, my sister won't be there because she has to go back to Oklahoma to be at the dairy at 3:30 in the morning. We are going there on Christmas Eve and Christmas to be with her. My friend wasn't able to fly in because of the weather. That makes me sad because I was really excited to get to see her. Maybe we'll find some time at some point...

Have a safe and happy Christmas!

Two More Days!

Two more days until Christmas Break! I am definitely ready for it. The kids are starting to be a bit crazy, and I'm really not sure what to do about it... I think they need a break from school too.

I spent 3 1/2 hours grading myths Monday night. I'm really glad that my co-teacher took my co-lab class, because there's no way I would have gotten them all finished in time to hand them back so the students could see them and work on them. The final drafts are due tomorrow. They were pretty good for the most part, so I hope I'll see some improvement on the ones I had to do some major fixing on.

I'm going to be in my dance studio's recital! On Sunday I asked Missy and she said she'd find me a part :) I'm excited. I'm not on pointe anymore, so it won't be anything big, but it will still be something...

Break is going to be kind of crazy. I have Christmas with my family on Saturday and Sunday, Monday and Tuesday we'll be in Oklahoma with my sister, Monday and Wednesday I'm going to try to see some of my friends, and then I'll be driving back on Wednesday, the 2nd. I originally had an appointment at 7:30 on Wednesday, but it got cancelled. I guess I won't be seeing that doctor any time soon then.

I still need to wrap my Christmas presents. That's tonight and tomorrow's activity, along with packing.

Christmas Shopping Done!

I finally have most of my Christmas shopping done! I only have to buy a present for my godson, and he's 2 so he won't really care if I give him something after Christmas. Amazingly, it didn't even really take me that long. I went into the stores knowing exactly what I wanted, I found it, bought it, and was out of there! It probably helped that I went on weeknights pretty much right after school and not on the weekend. Now I just have to wrap them all. That was my plan for tonight, but it didn't happen.

This weekend is kind of full. Tomorrow I have a Christmas party right after school, and then Brenda and I are going to see the Rockettes! I've heard the show is really good, so I'm really excited about it! Saturday evening is another school Christmas/Holiday party. Sunday, I have to go to dance since I'll be stuck grading essays on Monday night so the kids can have them back on Tuesday to revamp and revise. Fortunately, next week is going to be fairly easy, minus the grading 52 myths thing.

I'm getting excited for break. I talked to one of my friends today that I haven't seen in forever, and she's going to be home when I'm home! Since my schedule is really crazy, and she's leaving on the 27th, we can really only see each other on the 26th, but as long as we get to catch up for at least a little bit, that will be great!

I have to go make sure I have all of my food and everything ready for tomorrow. It's going to be an interesting weekend!

Snow Day!!!

I received a call at 5:45 this morning telling me that I did not have to get up and go to school today. I happily turned my alarm clock off and went back to sleep :) I am glad that we did not have to get up and break our cars out of their ice prisons and try to get to school to teach at a decent time. I went out after lunch today to get the ice off of my car, and it took me a good 30 minutes. My car had about 1/4 inch of ice all around it. I couldn't get my driver's side door open - I had to get into the passenger side and force the driver's side open. It was fun. It was very interesting when the ice just came off in sheets...

It only snowed until about 12 today, and then it stopped. When I last looked at the radar, the storm has stayed south of us, so it doesn't look like we'll be getting any more snow tonight. That doesn't bother me a whole lot. I was going to go Christmas shopping today, but I think I'll just stay inside. The roads look like they're pretty clear now, but I just don't want to risk it. That, and I'm perfectly comfortable in my pajama pants and sweatshirt inside my warm apartment. I'll try tomorrow.

Nothing else exciting is going on. I made cookies today and I was going to try to clean my apartment. We'll see how well that goes :)

Christmas is Coming!

It's only two weeks until Christmas Break. It seems like this year has just kind of flown by - I can't tell you where all of the time has gone! One of the kids told me today that she didn't like break because she didn't get to see her friends. While I understand the sentiment, and kind of feel that way about my friends here, I need a break and I need to go home and be with my family and get some sleep! It will be nice to just be able to sleep and stay in a warm house and not have to go outside if I don't want to. Granted, it will be warmer (I hope!) in Kansas than it is in Iowa, but it will still be nice to be able to stay inside the house.

We're supposed to get nasty weather tonight - ice with snow on top of it. That should be interesting. The kids are convinced we'll have a snow day tomorrow, but I don't really think that's going to happen. If we get a snow day, we have to make it up at the end of the school year in May. I think it's ridiculous that we do not have at least one snow day built into the schedule. Even Kansas has snow days built in! I guess we do get more ice than snow, which is generally more dangerous, but still. Iowa gets a lot more snow than we do, and they don't allow for that potential of school having to be cancelled for the weather...

We are starting to write myths in class this week. I really like it because I don't have papers to grade every day and can focus on getting some other things done after school - like Christmas shopping! I haven't gotten any of that done yet and I have to be ready by the 22nd because of all the Christmases I have in a row with my family and friends. I was going to go tomorrow - we'll just have to see how the weather turns out. Next Monday is going to be interesting with the myths because we are collecting them all and having them ready for them again on Tuesday... Talk about a long long day. I only have 52 students, so I hope it won't take me too long. The other English teacher is going to be a little swamped I think. I hope it isn't too bad.

I went to The Nutcracker on Saturday. It was pretty good. I was surprised that they had their guest dancers do "Snow" instead of being the Cavalier and the Sugar Plum Fairy, but whatever works for those producers. I kind of want to get back on pointe and try out for their Spring Show, but that would be a lot and I can just see myself stressing out. That, and I haven't been on pointe for 5 years. It's going to take more than 3 weeks to get back in shape for that... I do miss performing though. Maybe at some other point in my life will I be able to do that...

Tired!

The kids are wearing me out! I am just so tired all of a sudden. I'm seriously thinking about taking a "mental health" day sometime soon. I like the routine, but at some points I just feel like I need a break. I can't quite figure out what it is. The kids are starting to break out of the routines we've established and practiced since the beginning of the year. I don't know if it's because they're more comfortable now or if they're just as ready for Christmas break as I am. I don't mind talking and noise in my classroom, but lately it's just really bugged me when they don't do what I ask them to do or they're talking when they're supposed to be reading. Part of it may be the weather - it's colder and darker every day. I guess the thing I have to remember is why I'm there... that, and I really can't think of a good day to take my mental health day! ;)

Our principal told us today that he is retiring in June. That makes me a little sad. I like him a lot. Next year will be interesting because he is retiring and so is one of our deans, so it will be a lot of administrative turnover. It will all turn out o.k., it will just take some adjusting.

I have to make cookies tonight for our holiday get together thing tomorrow. I'm going to try to make them after Advent services tonight. I really just feel like I need to wind down, and church has always done that for me. The cookies I'm making are no-bake cookies, so they shouldn't be too hard to make and shouldn't take that long. I have a meeting at 7 tomorrow morning, so I hope they don't take that long!

It's supposed to snow 3-5 inches tomorrow. That will be fun. I just hope it's a nice snow and the roads aren't too messy.

Band Concert!

I just got back from the 7th Grade Band Concert. They sounded really good. I think that the gold team did the best, but they all sounded good. I sometimes wish I'd had the opportunity to play an instrument when I was in grade school - I didn't because we didn't have a band program when I was there - but then again, I have to ask myself when I would have found the time to play an instrument, much less practice one between school, soccer, volleyball, and dance. Oh well. My sister played the flute for a few years, but didn't play much after grade school. My mom tried to teach us to play the piano. I can sight read well enough to get a melody out, but once the songs get to where the bottom and the top aren't the same tempo, my fingers and my brain don't want to cooperate. I guess that's why I dance instead - at least I can make all of those limbs go where they are supposed to when they are supposed to!

This weekend was pretty uneventful. It iced/snowed on Saturday, making it so that I refused to go anywhere if I had to drive. Sunday was better because the roads were clear and I was able to go to dance. Other than that, I got some grading done and caught up on some reading. I really needed to get some Christmas shopping done, but it didn't happen. I hope I can find some time next weekend to go, because otherwise I don't know when it will get done. I can't believe it's only 3 weeks until Christmas break! I'm sure the time will fly by - it's been a fast 4 months of teaching already.

I haven't heard anything about my great-grandma, so I'm assuming she's doing o.k.

I hope the snow stays away, because then maybe I'll be able to get something taught and my classroom won't implode...

Bills!

I hate paying bills. It seems like I am suddenly spending more and more money on stuff, and I'm trying to figure out how to stop it. I guess part of it is that I went home last week, and that was extra gas money I don't usually spend. And, it's Christmas season so I have to buy presents. I'm going to see The Nutcracker next weekend and then the Rockettes the weekend after that, so I guess money goes there too. It's a good thing I got a bonus from the teacher quality money. I was going to try to pay off some more of my loans with that extra money, but I think I'll just save it back and hope that I don't have to use it. I will probably pay a bit more this month on my loans than previous months, but not as much as I was originally planning on paying.

It's now officially cold! My room is always freezing as well - so that makes for fun teaching. At least the kids don't really complain too much.

Today I was very impressed with my last class. They were working on a reading, and I had to leave the room. I asked one of the student teachers to just step in while I was gone. The students didn't even realize that someone else was in the room! They were very engaged in their work. I hope it shows in their assignments!

Next week they are going to be teaching fables to their peers. That will be interesting to see how it all turns out.

I'm glad tomorrow is Friday. This week has been a long one.

Back to School

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving Break. Personally, mine felt way too short. Perhaps that is because I spent two days driving and three with my family. It was nice to see everyone again, even though some of them weren't there. I went to see my great-grandma on Friday. She's really not doing well. She's been in the hospital for 4 weeks with pneumonia, and they just moved her into a nursing home/rehabilitation center. I didn't really care much for the place. She's 100 years old. That's what she wanted to make it to. I think she would even tell you that she's ready to go... God's got a plan, I just wish he wouldn't make her suffer much longer...

The kids were really mellow today for the most part. That was nice because it made my day a little easier and a little less hectic. It really doesn't seem like we were gone that long, except when I get my days mixed up and forget when assignments were given. Oh well. We're still reading mythology. They have a test next week, so it should be interesting to see how they do.

Tonight at dance I hit a perfect double pirouette. For once, I felt on balance and felt like I could stay there forever! I wish I could figure out exactly what I did so I can repeat it and don't have to constantly try to re-teach my body what to do every week. If only I had more time and could dance more than once a week...

I feel like I've been spending a lot of money lately, but there are things that need to get done! I need to go get my oil changed and my tires rotated on my car, go get tickets for The Nutcracker and the Rockette's Christmas Show that's coming to Des Moines. Plus, gas is expensive, so going home was not cheap. Oh well, sometimes you have to do those things.

It's starting to get colder and it's supposed to snow on Wednesday. I missed the snow last week, but I don't think I'll be so lucky this time.

Winter is Here!

When I left Des Moines this morning around 8:30, it was definitely snowing. I can't really say that I'm too excited about that. I drove through icy rain, snow, and misty drizzle pretty much the whole six hours. It wasn't the most fun I've had driving home, but it was fine. I just hope the weather is nicer on Sunday when I drive back.

My house looks different. My mom had a bunch of new lights and fans put in, and the kitchen cabinets have mostly been redone. It's strange to think that they've lived in this house for 27 years, and they are just now redoing a lot of this. I guess maybe they're trying to get it looking nice for when they can sell it and move to the farm.

I have Thanksgiving with my dad's side tomorrow, and with my mom's side on Saturday. I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone! I will probably go see my godson as well at some point this weekend, probably Friday.

Have a happy Thanksgiving!

It's Almost Thanksgiving!

Only one more day of teaching and then I get to head home for Thanksgiving! I'm really glad that we get Wednesday off - it makes my life much easier, especially since I really don't like driving in the dark. I'm really excited to go home and see my family and eat some home made food.

I went and tried on the bridesmaid dress for Sarah's wedding today. It will look fine. It wasn't my first choice, but it's not about me. I'm definitely going to have to pull the halter part up a bit so I don't fall out of the dress, but that's really nothing new. I should have asked Sarah where the dress is coming in - if it's going to be in Texas or Wichita or what. I really don't mind ordering the dress myself if it means that I'll have it before the day of the wedding. That would be nice. I really don't want to have to have it mailed... We'll see, I'm sure it will all be fine.

My kids are upset with me because I'm making them memorize the helping verbs. It's amazing to me sometimes how little effort they want to put into their school work. One of them asked me who invented school. I really don't know - but I think they've been having school, at least classes in which you go and learn from someone smarter than you, for quite a while. Oh, they're so funny some days. Tomorrow's going to be pretty pointless because it's an early out day, and it's the day before a long holiday. It's a good thing they're just taking a quiz and sharing their projects, otherwise it'd probably be a wasted day.

It's supposed to snow later this week. I hope I get out of here before all of that happens!

Countdown...

Only 4 days until I get to go home for Thanksgiving!!!! I'm ready to go home. I need a break and I want to see my family. Talking to them on the phone or through IM or email just really isn't the same.

School has been going well. Today we started researching for their Greek god and goddess trading cards. I'm excited to see what they come up with, though I am kind of disappointed that the majority of them did Zeus and Hera and didn't want to research any of the other gods. I guess it's just easier to take the easy way out instead of being creative... I guess that's what 7th graders do! I still enjoy seeing them every day, so I guess that's good. I also now have things planned pretty much up until Christmas, so that makes my life easier. I really like knowing what I'm going to do before the day of...

I just went to the doctor for my toe. He really tore it up, so I'm interested to see how badly it hurts when the novacane wears off... I really liked him though, so that's nice. I was a little nervous about finding a doctor up here because I have always had the same doctor since I was born, and I really liked him and felt comfortable with him. I had to get a prescription, and I saw my roommate from last year! I feel like I haven't talked to her since August, which is probably an accurate statement. It was nice to see her, and I hope I get to spend a bit more time with her soon!

My friend that is getting married in July called me last night and told me which bridesmaid dress we are going to get. It wasn't my first choice, but it will be fine. I'm really not that picky. We are supposed to just find silver shoes of our choice - so I should be able to do that in the next 6 months. I'm going to try to go try the dress on tomorrow so I can get the size to her by next week so she can get them ordered. It will be fun!

Conferences X2

Today was the last day of conferences. They went well and I didn't really have any problems. I had one set of parents ask me how their student could raise test scores on a MAP test, a standardized test similar to ITBS... I don't really know what the test looks like, so I unfortunately wasn't much help. I didn't think it should be that big of a deal because the student was at average for the scores, but I'm not the parent. It's always good to try to improve, but I don't put much stock in test scores...

Only one week until Thanksgiving break. I'm definitely ready for it. I think I just need a break from 7 to 4:30 days, students, a thousand decisions being made, colleagues undermining what you say because they don't agree with a decision you made, and just generally feeling wiped out. I love my job, I just need a break.

My classes did really well on a quiz we took today. I was kind of worried about it, since we really haven't talked about inferring, but they did a lot better than I expected. I was happily surprised. We're moving along with Mythology, which is really fun for me and I hope it is for the kids as well.

Conferences

Wednesday and Thursday were conferences, and we have another set on Tuesday. For the most part, mine went pretty well. I didn't have any parents upset at me, at the parents of children that I've been having some issues with in class were really understanding and supportive of what I was doing, and said they would work on the issues. I have a few more "problem" children on Tuesday, but I'm confident that everything will be fine. It's really nice that I only have half the students at conferences, so I can spend a bit more time with them if I need to. Some of my students told me on Friday that their parents told them they thought I was the best teacher they talked to all night - that made me feel really good!

Last night we went to the Drake International Student Association's dance performance because Rohini was dancing. It was neat to see all the different types of dancing. Afterwards, they had international food. Some of it was really good, and some of it was not. I'm not a picky eater, but I'm not an adventurous eater either, so it was a bit out of my comfort zone.

Tonight we're going to eat at the middle school for a fundraiser for the Washington D.C. trip the 7th graders are going on. It's spaghetti, so it should be good.

I spent around $150 today just running errands - contacts, prescriptions, food, gas... it's amazing how it all adds up. I'm not excited about the high gas prices - that makes it a lot more expensive to go home for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I need to get some new shoes, but those may have to wait.

We started Mythology this week. So far, the students seem to be really interested in it. I hope they are, because we're going to be working on it until January!

It's about a week and a half until Thanksgiving!!!

Choir Concert

I just got back from the 7th grade choir concert. It was honestly the shortest choir concert I've ever been to. It was maybe 45 minutes long. The kids sounded good, and it was kind of fun to see them after the concert. A few came running up to me, others seemed to avoid me... I went because I felt like I needed to support their extra curricular activities. I went to games and the play, I should go to the concert. I went with two other teachers, so that was nice too.

It's gotten really cold! My heater is definitely on, the flannel sheets on my bed, and today I pulled out the winter coat. It's supposed to maybe warm up for a bit this weekend, but I don't believe it. Weather.com says it's supposed to rain. Blah. I'm not ready for the cold weather, but then again, I never am.

This is my 100th post!!! And, it's only 2.5 weeks until Thanksgiving! Conferences Wednesday, Thursday, and next Tuesday.

Laundromats

Last night was the first and last time I will ever go to a laundromat to do my laundry (I hope). I went there because I had multiple loads - my usual two week load and a bunch of towels and sheets, and the dryer doesn't work well in my apartment. When I got there around 4:30, there wasn't really anyone there. To my annoyance, the washers at the laundromat are just as small as the washer in my apartment building, and they are more expensive! So, I threw my laundry in the washers and went off to find a spot to sit and read. When I went back after about 30 minutes, one washer was done, and one was sitting there with a red light beside "unbalanced load." Of course, it was the washer with the towels and the sheets. I shifted things around, and put the rest of my clothes in a dryer. As soon as I turned around, the load became "unbalanced" again. I literally spent the better part of 45 minutes baby-sitting the washer and "balancing" it every ten seconds. I finally took the sheets out and wrung them out and let the towels finish the whole cycle. Then, of course, I had to wait another 45 minutes for all of that to dry, and spend more money. I was not a happy camper when I got out of there at 6:30. I will hang dry all of my stuff from now on rather than go through all of that again for some clothes.

School's been going well. We are starting mythology next week. I'm really excited about that! Next week is conferences. Those should be interesting. I think I'm going to go to dance tomorrow morning so I can go to the choir concert on Monday. And then, I'm probably going shopping with one of my friends! Not that I really have the money to spend, but oh well!

Relaxing Weekend!

I had a really great weekend. I went to Lincoln, NE after school on Friday to visit my cousins. I really just needed to get away and not have to worry about anything or deal with any drama. I had enough of that last week. Friday night we didn't really do a whole lot - just watched T.V. and chatted. On Saturday, we went to Omaha for MaKayla's soccer game. It was a horribly refereed game, but they still ended up tieing the undefeated team in their league. They played really well. Then we went to Dave and Buster's. It was actually a pretty fun place. We pooled all of our tickets together and got some mini prizes... Sunday we went to church and Sunday school, and then we ate lunch. I played Mario Kart with Karstin, and lost horribly, and then I headed back. I went shopping and then just kind of hung out. It was really nice to just get away.

Today was the start of the second quarter. I'm just glad that I don't have new kids or have to switch around schedules. We're still on short stories, but next week we will be starting mythology, which I'm really excited about! I had some cheating instances on the final Adam of the Road tests last week, so that wasn't fun to deal with. I want to have a "no tolerance" policy, but then I feel bad. Also, everyone tells me to tell parents. Well, if they admit it, do I really have to? For the one instance, yes, for the other... I don't know. Oh well, I guess all of that "learning" on my part comes with time.

It's gorgeous here! I love these Indian Summers. I may even wear a skirt tomorrow, since it's so nice outside. I think this is the last of it though. It's supposed to get into the 40's next week, which I am not excited about at all.

3 1/2 weeks until Thanksgiving.

Pictures of Projects

Here are some pictures of the projects my students made for Adam of the Road. They turned out really well. Most of them made castles or posters explaining the history of Nursery Rhymes. It was actually quite interesting.
Yesterday was their final essay of the quarter and today was the final test over Adam of the Road. I am happy to say that I did finish grading everything last night and today, so tomorrow I can work on planning with my co-teacher and getting some other information I need to get on the students.
I am going to Nebraska this weekend. I really feel like I just need a break, since I didn't get Fall Break and get to go home. I also really miss just being around my family. It will also give me something to do this weekend other than sit around at watch T.V.
It's getting cold. I haven't turned my heater on yet, per my science and math teachers' requests, but it's getting close. They told me I had to wait until November. 7 days and counting...
I can't believe first quarter is already over! It seems like it's flown by. I guess that's a good thing. I'm not dreading going to work everyday. I actually had a parent email me and tell me her son said he didn't want to miss my class anymore - that made me feel really good!
Enjoy the pictures. The castles and posters are going to "live" in my room for a few weeks. Students always spend so much time on these projects - the least I can do is hang them up for everyone to enjoy for a little bit :)

Projects!

I love projects. I love having students do them. I really like them because the students are doing the teaching, I can grade them on the spot for the most part, and it makes students interested and excited about something. For once I don't have to hear, "Miss Blasi, why are we doing this? This is boring," and so on and so forth. I have some really awesome castles coming in. I will have to remember to take my camera to school so I can get some pictures.

Grades are due on Monday. It's amazing that the first quarter will be finished on Thursday. I am hoping I will be able to finish grading the majority of the essays Wednesday and Thursday night, and perhaps get the tests graded Thursday, or Friday at the very latest. I am a little apprehensive about the essays since I won't be there on Thursday for half of my classes because I have professional development, but I think they will be ok. We are playing a Jeopardy review game tomorrow, so that should be fun.

I'm thinking about going to see my cousins in Nebraska this weekend. I will probably decide by Thursday night. On one hand, I don't really have time to drive 6 hours total just to get out of Iowa, but on the other hand, I haven't seen any of my family in about two months, and that's getting a little excessive. That, and I really just kind of need to get out of Waukee/Des Moines. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do next year when all of my friends are on rotations - I'll be really bored... I'll figure it out I'm sure, right now I just feel like I need to get away for a weekend.

It's cold now, and I'm really not excited about it. I haven't put my flannel sheets on my bed yet, or turned the heater on, but it's definitely coming - sooner than later.

So Tired of the Rain!

I am so tired of the rain. It's been raining for pretty much a week straight, and I am really starting to get cranky. It's maybe supposed to stop this weekend, but then it looks like it's just supposed to start all over again next week... blah.

I was kind of cranky with my kids today, and that's really not how it should be. Part of it is the rain, and part of it is that I feel like I'm down to the wire trying to finish stuff with this novel, and I don't feel like I have time to get it all done! Tomorrow is the day we finish reading the novel!!! Yay!!!! I hope I can get everything in that I need to get in - I'm definitely going to have to shorten AR time so I can get everything in. Monday is the last quiz and projects, and then we have review, an essay on Wednesday, and the final test on Thursday. Grades are due the next Monday, so I'm going to have a really fun time next weekend trying to get everything graded, especially the essays. Oh well. I did it to myself - planning everything down to the wire this way. It will all get done.

We had a new teacher meeting today. It was actually interesting - got to talk to the principals about conferences, and then our superintendent talked about what not to do as a teacher. The other plus was that we got out early!

Tonight I have to find stuff for the scavenger hunt, so hopefully my advisory will have some sort of points. They didn't do very well with the trivia questions, so I hope they start participating a bit more. I'm going to take a bunch of stuff in, but I hope some remember to bring things. I also hope they remember to wear purple or gold so that we get those points. We'll see. Sometimes I feel like 7th graders just don't care all that much...

Tonight is pretty much just laundry and curling up on my couch and watching T.V. It's definitely a good way to spend a rainy evening.

Another Engagement!!!

My friend Sarah just called and she is engaged!!!! The wedding will be next July 5th. That's really exciting, and was news that completely made my day. It's really exciting. It's much better news than I've had lately...

It's been raining all weekend - definitely starting to feel a bit depressed because I hate this weather. Oh well...

Another wedding to look forward to!

Thank Goodness It's the Weekend!

It's been a long week on the education end of my life. We've had SINA discussions and non-discussions, if you will. There's a tiny part of me that is very frustrated with the non-support from my immediate team, but I know that the administration, my English team, and much of the school is behind me. I cannot help students become better readers by myself! I know it will figure itself out, that doesn't make it any easier.

My mentor asked me to try to remember WHY I became a teacher. It's because I want to make a difference in my students' lives. I want them to learn something they can take away and use over and over again. I want them to feel confident that they can do something to change the world. I want them to become better writers and readers. I became a teacher because I truly believe that all students can learn and succeed if given the tools and the support that they need. If I remember all of that, then I can get through all the beauracracy that comes with teaching...

It's going to be kind of a lazy weekend. Most people have gone home for Fall Break. Perhaps that is a good thing, I might have a better feeling about it on Tuesday when people get back. Last night I went to dinner and a movie with some of my teacher friends. It was kind of nice to just get away and have some fun with my colleagues! It's cloudy and cold, which definitely makes me just want to stay inside and watch movies or read, not really do anything productive. Perhaps I will go to church tomorrow, since I haven't been there since the middle of August.

I'm hoping that my friend, Adria, will stop by on her way back from Seward tomorrow. It would be nice to see her, though I don't know what her plans are since she hasn't called me back. I also have a Silpada party with some of the teachers tomorrow afternoon, so that should be fun.

We're almost done with Adam of the Road, which makes me really excited! The projects are coming up, which should be neat, and then we move on to some scary stories just in time for Halloween :)

I should go get some errands run. Just what I need, to spend more money!

Being an Adult

I decided I really don't like it that all of my friends that I spend a lot of time with are still in school. I mainly feel this way because I get really bored on the weekends. Sometimes I have papers to grade or a book to plan or something like that, but I no longer have the homework to do or the tests to study for like everyone else does. I want to go out and do something, while everyone else needs to stay in and get stuff done. On one hand, it's kind of nice - a whole weekend to do nothing! On the other hand, if I at least had stuff to do, I wouldn't feel so bored. I can only watch so much T.V. and read so many books and sleep so late before I start going a little stir crazy. I guess I shouldn't complain - next year really won't be any fun when no one's here and they're all on rotations...

This coming weekend is Fall Break for those that are still at Drake. I'm going to miss having those two extra days off. Alas, I now have a real job and have to go to work. It's not really that big of a deal, it's just that I won't be going home until Thanksgiving, and that's still a long way off, at least in my brain. I realize it's only about 6 weeks away, but...

I just found out that my friend in Green Bay will be going back to Nebraska this weekend, which means she might stop by and see me on Sunday on their way back! Yay!!!! This gives me something to look forward to, since everyone else is leaving for Fall Break.

School has been great lately. I got my evaluation back, and I received "Proficient" or "Distinguised" on everything! This makes me really happy. I do have some things to work on, but it will all be fine. I was happy with it, and my principal sounded happy with everything as well.

I should go do something productive... maybe.

First Time Sub!

Today I had my first ever sub in my classroom. I had a SINA meeting this afternoon, so I had to have a sub. I'm not sure how it went. I guess I'll find out tomorrow!

The meeting was interesting. We really really need to focus on good Reading strategies for all of our students, but especially the ones that were targeted. This means that we walk away from direct grammar instruction and hide it in other stuff. That should be interesting. I have mixed feelings about that. I feel that grammar is important and they should know it, but I also understand that we need to get away from that and focus on Reading. I also believe there are other ways to teach grammar other than from the horribly laid out grammar book we currently have. We'll see how all of that goes. It may be a bit more work in the beginning, but I definitely think it will help in the long run. Plus, on the ITBS tests, "grammar" really consists of proofreading - we can teach that!

I'm taking tickets for the Waukee vs. Valley football game tomorrow night. That should be interesting, if not a little crazy!

Essays

I really hate grading essays. As much as I think they are important, and definitely think that students need to write them and be able to write them well, I really don't like grading them. I guess what makes me really not want to read them is when they are horrible because the student(s) either didn't listen to directions and/or have written about something completely unrelated to the topic, haven't changed their writing since the first essay which means they haven't read a single comment you've written and/or didn't listen to directions, or look like they did them in Advisory that morning and didn't spend any time over the weekend working on it. I understand they are busy and have things to do, but school is their job. If I did things the way they do, I'd lose my job. Oh well. I'm hoping I can help them become better writers, sometimes I just feel like I don't have the time.

We're into Adam of the Road now at least. I like doing novels because once I have them planned, I just have to adjust by class period and day, I don't really have to figure out what I'm doing the next day. That will definitely help for Thursday when I have a sub in the afternoon.

At least they still make me smile and laugh. If I ever get to the point where I don't want to go to school and be with the kids, regardless of what else is going on, then I don't need to be teaching anymore...

"Reward Day"

I'm beginning to understand a little more about why my high school teachers were always so upset when there were assemblies and things like that. It definitely takes away from teaching time, and makes it very frustrating because you can't get anything done. We had two early out schedules this week, which meant I lost 80 minutes of instruction time in each class this week. Wednesday was a scheduled early out for professional development stuff, but Friday was an early out schedule so that the kids could have a reward day for PBS. Now, if it was something constructive, or they actually received rewards of some sort, I might have been a little more ok with it, but yesterday was just watching the boys play football and playing in the gym. Just a bunch of free time. The kids that didn't have all of their work in had to sit in study hall for 2 hours... I don't know, I know the kids have to be rewarded for doing what they are supposed to do, but at the same time, it is the loss of my class time. On top of that, we are a SINA school in Reading, so every time we don't have class, is time lost trying to get those scores up. I kind of feel like it's a no-win situation. Oh well. I'm also a little upset about the fire drill that's going to take place next week, during my co-lab class. Yay. Heaven forbid we do it during advisory, when we really aren't learning anything per sey. No, we have to do it during class time and lose a whole class. Blah!

I'm being really negative again. I really do love my job and think that it's wonderful. There are just some things sometimes that don't make a whole lot of sense to me. I guess that's the world of a real job - the people higher up make the decisions, and we have to follow them, regardless of how we feel about it.

But, it's the weekend, time to relax and not stress about school. It will all work out in the end, I'm sure of it :)

Student Loans

I just got my official student loan repayment schedule today. Let me tell you, it is not exciting. They have me paying loans for 20 years! I'm sorry, but I just really don't see that working for me. I'm definitely going to try to pay over the minimum due each month so that I can get it paid off faster. Also, the first payment is due by October 15. That's a whole month before I thought I'd have to pay! That 6 month grace period suddenly turned to 5. How nice of them. The good thing is that I consolidated in June before rates went up, so my loan is locked in at a fairly low rate. That will help in the long run. I'm just really not that excited about starting to pay this back...

I miss dancing...

Wow, for someone who hasn't seriously danced in almost 5 years, it's amazing what a little show like "Dancing with the Stars" will do. I miss dancing. I miss performing. I still take ballet classes, but what I miss the most is feeling like I'm actually good at dancing, like I actually do have some technique. Even though I only take one class a week, I can tell that I have improved, and gotten better at certain techniques, though I certainly have lost my ability to turn for some reason. I'd love to take more class, but I can't because of their schedule and mine. It's frustrating when I see girls so much younger than me do so much better than me because they can take multiple times a week, and they've had awesome teachers since they were 5. C'est la vie. Such are the choices we make in life. I never wanted to be a dancer, never thought that life was for me - I wasn't "good" enough when I graduated high school, I wanted to be a teacher. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely happy with my life and the way things turned out. I love my job and where life has taken me. But, that doesn't stop me from wondering how things would have been different if I'd chosen to dance, or at least go to a school that offered dance as a major part of their curriculum. It's all fine. For some reason tonight I just got sentimental about it all. That, and yesterday Emery talked to me like I wasn't at class to work - I always go to dance class and work, I do want to be as good as those girls I see every week. It was just a bit frustrating. Dance is still fun, I just really miss the bigger parts of it.

Planning a Novel

Who knew that planning a novel would be so time consuming? I spent the better part of yesterday, probably close to 7 hours, planning Adam of the Road. I wrote questions, found vocabulary, and tried to think of exciting activities to do with the chapters. Part of it I think is that I spent a lot of time trying to come up with higher order questions so that I can pass the discussion part of my observation on Tuesday. The other reason I think it took so long is that I have a binder full of stuff for this novel that I have to sift through and find the things that are important and ignore the stuff that isn't, which isn't always easy. I think as soon as I'm done planning, I'm going to throw everything away that I'm not using. It's not helpful to me, and it does no good to just sit in the binder and look pretty. I only have three chapters left, I hope I can finish it today.

It was a pretty uneventful weekend. I went to lunch with Kelly yesterday and then I went to the Drake football game against UNI with Kelly and Liz. It was pretty fun, despite the fact that they lost pretty badly. Today I went to dance. Somedays dance is really frustrating for me because I only take one class a week, and I'm not always consistent in my technique. That's frustrating because at one point in my life, I was actually a decent dancer... Oh well, I can't be everything I suppose.

I should go grocery shopping so I have some food in my apartment. I might actually get to go to the 7th grade boys' football game tomorrow night since I don't have dance and I don't have any meetings!

Finally Friday!

I'm so glad it's Friday! Plus, it's midterm, so I don't have any essays or papers to grade over the weekend! I do have to sit down and plan Adam of the Road, but I'm really not too worried about it. What I am worried about now is the fact that the class I'm having observed is now my worst class at listening, paying attention, and working in groups. I'm going to have to move them yet again and hope that it works and that I don't have the problems I'm having now. The problem is that I have so many that need to be in front and that I need to have access to, and it's hard to get them all there. I already have all of them only a person away from me because of my small classes, and I walk up and down the room all the time, but apparently that's not enough. Perhaps we need to go to a circle. I don't know. All I know is that they are very frustrating and I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them to get them to understand that what we're doing is important, and they need to not talk to their friends every second of the day. I may have to just stop doing group work in that class, which hurts those that do well at group work and actually gain something from it. We'll see.

I don't think I'm planning on anything exciting this weekend. The Waukee Homecoming game is tonight, but I'm not going. I don't know anyone playing, and I don't really care to go sit in crowded stands. Maybe I'll get some friends together and we'll go see a movie or something. I'll just have to play it by ear...

My godson's birthday is next Tuesday. I can't believe he's already 2!!!!

Paperwork!

I will admit, I have been feeling a little overwhelmed lately. I've been busy trying to keep my head above water trying to learn the curriculum and be able to teach it to 7th graders and teach it well so they understand what I'm trying to teach them as well as grading essays and other assignments. On top of that, I have paperwork to do for my observation that's next week. Writing the lesson plan for a lesson that I barely really know what I'm going to do is bad, but I also have five component questions that I have to answer, for which I write what looks like a book. The component questions are things that I feel can be answered by observation, and I also feel like I repeat myself multiple times. I understand that all of the paperwork and stuff is needed for me to get my actual teaching license in Iowa, but sometimes I just feel like it's a big waste of time. I have multiple essays sitting on my desk that need grading that I've had to put off so that I can get my own "assignments" done. I feel like my time could be put to better use, so that I can get assignments back to students in a timely manner, which I'm not doing a very good job of. I could spend my nights grading papers, but who really wants to do that? It will get done, I'm just struggling a bit with getting everything into perspective.

I feel like I've been complaining a lot about teaching. It's actually still very fun and the kids make me laugh everyday. It's all the paperwork and bureaucracy that I don't like and that I get really tired of. Midterm is next week, which is kind of scary! It's interesting to think that 1/8 of the school year is almost over. Tomorrow is "Wacky Wednesday" for Spirit Week since Homecoming is Friday. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to dress up for it, especially since I have a meeting with my principal tomorrow!

The Other Side of Teaching

This week has definitely been a lesson in the "other side" of teaching. I have definitely had to talk to classes about being responsible and bringing their books, listen to whining because I'm finally giving them homework, and then yesterday I literally yelled at a girl in the hallway because she wasn't participating in class and was talking back to me. I really felt like it was a breaking point for me because I was yelling at her while she sat there and rolled her eyes at me and acted like she could care less what I was saying to her. No one ever told me how awful I would feel after yelling at a student for their misbehavior. I wanted to cry when it was all said and done. I never wanted to be that teacher. I don't think I am, but she just hit a nerve with me. And the thing is, today she came in and told me, "Miss Blasi, today's going to be a good day," and it was. She did her work, participated in class, and did what she was supposed to do. Amazing how they can do a complete 180 on you.

I will admit, I'm beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed with everything right now. I have an observation in a week, and I need to know what I'm teaching. I don't yet. We finally had a productive English meeting yesterday. I have 36 more essays to grade. Tonight. If at all possible because I want to hand them back to them before they write their other essay that's due on Monday. I will admit. I'm tired of grading essays. They take too long for me to do. Plus, now I have grammar exercises and journals to grade. It's going to be a fun Friday.

I'm tired and I'm ready for it to be the weekend to just chill out, though I'm not really sure that's going to happen.

Monday + Rain = Bad

As much as I love my job, I hate Mondays. Not only because I'm tired from the weekend when I got to sleep in and veg out, but also because the kids don't want to be back at school either. It was cloudy, cold, and rainy all day today, which really didn't help anything. The kids were even more lethargic than usual, and my last class, which is usually my most upbeat class that makes the best of everything and laughs the whole time, was whiny and cranky. I really hope we're all in better moods tomorrow. I know the rain doesn't help anything, believe me, I hate it when it rains, but today really just kind of caught me off guard. I didn't know how to respond to the whining.

They asked why they needed to know how to write essays. How do you explain to a 7th grader that they need to know how to write and communicate to other people, no matter what their job, from a janitor to a CEO? To them, it's boring and useless. Even when you tell them that Science majors write just as much as English majors, they don't care, they'd rather not do anything. Sometimes I pity the students I teach. They don't realize what they have because of where they live. If they lived for a day in the shoes of my students I taught during student teaching, I would hope they wouldn't complain half as much as they do about essays and homework that I'm finally giving them. They would be happy to be at school with their friends where they feel safe and have all the materials and clothes and whatever else they need to be happy.

Wow. I don't know what's gotten into me today. Perhaps it's the weather, just the same as the kids. Today was just a frustrating day for me, kid wise. On the other hand, I did finally get a binder organized so that I can find what I'm looking for in the order I need it, as opposed to having to go through everything to find one piece of paper. That was a bit of a relief.

Tomorrow is another day, and I'm looking forward to getting more stuff planned so I have some idea of what I'm supposed to be doing!

Birthday Weekend!

Thursday was my birthday! My kids sang to me after lunch and in my 7/8 class and the teachers made me a card/sign and sang to me after school. As it was a Thursday, we didn't really do a whole lot because many of my friends from Drake still have classes. We had a "party," if that's what you want to call it, last night. It was just a bunch of friends hanging out and playing Guitar Hero. I really thought that I would be really bad at that game, but after a bit of practice, I'm actually not. Tonight I went out to dinner with some friends to celebrate my birthday and another girl's birthday, since hers was today.

On the school front, we are finally done with essays, at least for the moment. Their final drafts are due on Tuesday. I will admit, I was a little frustrated with some of them because they acted like they had no idea what they were supposed to do, after we'd spent the better part of two weeks going over how to read for understanding, highlight important points, write an essay map, and then turn it into an essay. I guess we'll see how well their essays turn out. I attempted to explain "Special Person" to them on Friday as well. The main reason I'm special is because I hadn't given them homework until that day. Guess I've made some sort of impression... We are starting Short Stories and Grammar this week. We'll see how it goes.

Part of me is a little nervous because I haven't had any of this since my own days as a middle school student. I have to reteach myself before I can teach the students. On the other hand, I know that I know it, I just have to find a way to make it relevant and exciting for all. It's hard being a new teacher because I don't really know from day to day what I'm going to do or what I'm supposed to be teaching. I have to rely on the other teachers in the English department to tell me what they're doing, and go from there. I feel like it's even harder for me because the other English teacher on my team does things her own way and doesn't try to stay where the other 7th English teachers are, which makes it hard for me to plan during common planning time or really to know if my kids are at a similar place. I know it will be fine, I just need to get into the swing of things and be confident in myself.

It's starting to cool down quite a bit now. I don't think I'll ever get used to how fast it gets chilly up here.

Fun Weekend!

This weekend was really fun. I went home since it was Labor Day and I haven't seen my family since the end of July. I was able to leave right after school on Friday, so I got home around 10. My sister and her friend were there so we chatted for awhile. It was midnight by the time I was able to go to bed, so I was really tired, since I'd been up for 18 hours! Saturday was Zenda Days. It was the 120th celebration of the town's existence. There were actually quite a few people there and a lot of stuff going on. My dad's air force buddies came up from Lousiana and Oklahoma for it. Then we just went to the farm and camped out and celebrated my cousin Catie's birthday and mine. Sunday we just shot at targets and at clay pigeons and played in the water. It was actually a really nice weekend for camping, with a nice breeze. I still managed to get sunburned - fortunately it didn't hurt too much. I got back last night around 7. It still amazes me that I don't find the drive too boring. Sure, there are some moments when it's bad, but there are plenty of places to stop and get out and stretch. I'm kind of sad I won't be going home until Thanksgiving.

I am such a homebody. Part of me is very surprised that I chose to take a job so far away from my family and all that's familiar, but at the same time I guess I am familiar with the Des Moines area. This is kind of my second home, and I guess now it really is my second home. It's weird, but I'm glad I ended up in the school district I did, and am still able to be close to my friends.

School's going well. I tried three different methods today to get kids to grasp a concept I wanted them to grasp. I still don't know what works. We're going to try to finish the essay tomorrow. We'll see how that goes. I think I'm getting sick. This part is not fun.

How Lucky I Am

I was reading a fellow Drake blogger's post just a few minutes ago. I believe he is currently doing Teach America or something similar to that. I know that I am very fortunate to have a job at Waukee, which is worlds away from my student teaching experience in Des Moines, where I have students who care and parents who care about what their students are learning. I am even more fortunate that my kids come to school everyday with the supplies they need, and are for the most part compliant with directions and things asked of them. So far, the worst thing I've had to deal with is the fact that students consistently "forget" things in their lockers or choose not to listen to instructions in class, and therefore ask me repeatedly what they are supposed to do. I have all the resources I need, and if I don't have something I think I need, I can talk to the office and they will get it for me. What a wonderful way for a teacher to start out!

School has been great! I'm slowly getting into a routine, and figuring out where I need to be during my planning times so I can actually get things done since other teachers and classes are in my room at all hours of the day. I "graded" my first batch of papers today. They aren't even for a real grade, they are "baseline" writing samples so we can see where the students start and where they are at the end of the year. I must say, for the most part I'm pretty happy with them. Perhaps it is because I'm grading based on the 6+1 traits of writing, and those are pretty broad categories. But, that's good because it helps me grade based on what that student can do, differentiation, rather than what I think the paper should look like, and I'm not focusing so much on spelling and grammar, which is what I tend to do a lot.

I do have some very needy students in some of my classes, so I'm going to have to figure out how to scaffold and build their knowledge from the ground up, so that all can succeed. It will be a bit challenging, but I believe that it will all work out, and I have some awesome teachers around me to support me in figuring out what to teach and how to teach it.

Staff meeting tomorrow and school pictures on Thursday. I'm not going to lie, I'm excited about the "long" weekend.

First Week of School!

Ok, so technically it was only 3 days of school, but it still felt like a week. Not that it was a bad week, just kind of exhausting. I had a lot of fun and I get the feeling that the majority of the students really like me. We'll see how they feel about me when I start giving them homework ;). Overall, though, it was really fun and I had a good time. However, I can see myself being there every night till at least 4 or so. We'll just have to see how everything works out.

I'm really excited that people are starting to come back. Drake starts Monday, so all of my Pharmacy friends have to be back!

My little sister has already had a full week of college. She's already thinking about changing the focus of her major because she's not sure she can get into Veterinary school. I told her to just wait and talk to a lot of other people before she makes that decision. I guess she's having a good time though!

The sun finally came back out today, which is really exciting!

First Days of School

Yesterday was the first day of school! It actually went pretty well. I didn't really have any glitches with schedules or anything like that. Some students are still having trouble with their lockers, so that's making some of them late, but that's really ok. I have really good kids in my classes and so far it's been a lot of fun. Each class definitely has a different personality though. My morning class is very very quiet, while my last class of the day is very talkative. My lunch class is in between. I think some of them are still getting used to me. It's been a lot of fun so far!

I still feel like I need another week or so to just sit down and go through all of the files that the last teacher left me. I have so much stuff and it's in an order that doesn't really make sense to me, and I can't really find anything, so it's been kind of a mess. I hope I can use my planning time in the next few weeks to sift through all of that, otherwise I'm going to be spending even more time after school than I already am! I'll get it figured out.

I am amazed at how nice and helpful all of the staff at Waukee are. Anytime I need anything, I just have to ask the person that's right beside me and I will get help! It's wonderful! I'm slowly learning the ins and outs of things.

I'm really looking forward to this school year! I think we're going to have a lot of fun and hopefully I'll be able to teach them something :)

First Week!

Well, I made it through my first official week of work. It actually wasn't too bad. Fortunately, my part of the building is air-conditioned, so it wasn't so bad to move desks around and get things put how I want them. I was very fortunate to be able to move 8 desks out of my room, so I have more space to put children! We have open house on Monday, so that should be interesting. I'm very interested in getting the plans for the first few weeks of school so that I know what I'm doing. I feel a little lost at the moment. I know it will all work out, it's just a little overwhelming at the moment.

I'm ready for the kids to get to school. I'll have a little more to do this week since I have class lists and my computer and am going to go get more posters today for my walls.

Nothing else real exciting. Drake people are supposed to be coming back this week too, so that'll be fun. One of my friends is leaving today for her job in Colorado Springs. That's exciting for her, but it's kind of far away. It'll be good. Then we can visit her!

I guess I should go attempt to get stuff done around my apartment. I just really have no motivation to do so.

Moved In!

I think I am officially moved into my classroom. I have my desks set up and some posters up and everything! Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, I don't have that much stuff, so it doesn't take that long to get things done. I did finally get my class list today, and my biggest class is only 19!!!! That's way exciting! Tomorrow is "Data Day," whatever that is. I think I'm going to go buy some more posters this weekend from The Learning Post, then I'll have a few more things on my walls.

Nothing else real exciting. I went to see Becoming Jane last night. It was actually a pretty good movie. I didn't know a whole lot about Jane Austen's life, I just knew I don't really like her book, Emma, though I've never read any of her other books. I may have to. It was a nice break from school stuff.

One more day and then the weekend. I'm not sure what the weekend is going to bring, but at least I won't be moving desks around and cleaning!

Officially an Iowan

I am officially an Iowa resident! I went and got my driver's license changed, and I got my new tags and title. It was actually a very easy process, and I didn't even know all of the paperwork that I thought I would! Transferring the car to my name was surprisingly easy. It was probably the fastest I've ever gotten anything done at the DMV, and everyone was really helpful and nice. I even got my new tags today and was able to put them on my car! It's kind of a weird feeling.

Tomorrow is the first day of inservice stuff for new teachers. I think we're going to try to get into the building to at least see my room, and apparently my end's air-conditioning is working, so that's a big plus! It sounds like we have a lot of cleaning to do before school starts, but I know everything will work out in the end. I got to meet a lot of people tonight at the school picnic, so that was nice. Not that I'll remember everyone's name, but it's a good start.

I'm excited to finally have something to fill my days. And I'm excited that people are going to start coming back so I have something to do and people to hang out with!

Apartment Pictures!

Here are some pictures of my apartment!

This is my porch.


This is my living room.
This is my kitchen.

My bedroom.
My closet.

My bedroom again.

My bathroom.
My office.

One of these days I will figure out how to put captions by my pictures without causing a huge headache for myself. Until then, please use your powers of deduction to figure out which caption goes with which picture!

I went to the Iowa State Fair last night. I will say, it was much different than my previous trips to the fair. At home, it was always a day long event, in which we went in the morning and had to go through every building before we could even think about riding the rides at night. And we got to play one game - the duck game, in which we were guaranteed to win at least a little stuffed animal prize... I really want to go during the day sometime, but I don't see that happening because I have to go try to get my Iowa driver's license and my tags on Monday, and if I can't do it then, I'm going to have to take a personal day to get it all taken care of because I am a teacher and work 8 to 4, which is conveniently the hours of the DMV...

Finally!

I finally have my internet up and running. It's taken 2 extra days and many hours on the phone with the tech support people, but today, magically, my computer recognizes the modem and the internet works, not just the DSL connection!!!! Needless to say, I've been attempting to get a lot of other things taken care of on the internet (emails to people, letting people know of new address and phone number, paying bills, etc.) that I haven't been able to do for over a week!

I moved in to my new apartment last weekend. It actually didn't turn out to be too much of a hassle. My parents and my sister came up and moved me in. We actually ended up moving a lot of in over the porch so we didn't have to carry so much up the stairs. It worked pretty well. I decided when I move out I'm just going to knock the back of the porch off and make a ramp, and take things out that way!! ;)

I pretty much got everything unpacked and put where I want it. I need to buy curtains so my rooms don't get so hot in the afternoon, and bookcases for my books, but other than that...

Monday I had orientation for new teachers. It was ok. We had a lot of paperwork to fill out. One thing, when you graduate, make sure your parents go over all of the tax paperwork and whatnot you'll have to fill out when you get a real job so you know what to put in the little boxes. I thought I knew, but then all of that stuff got in front of me and it was just a little overwhelming!

Monday afternoon I spent my time calling and changing my address and phone number for loan people and electricity and getting new car insurance and all sorts of other fun stuff. It's really not that exciting being an adult and having to take care of all of that.

I had a workshop on co-teaching yesterday and today. It was pretty useful, I hope it helps me when I finally meet my co-teacher and am able to get into my classroom!!!! My building's under construction right now, so it's been a little crazy.

All of this moving and changing stuff has been a little nuts, but it's all a learning experience!!!

I'll have pictures of my apartment in the next few days!!!

Back in Iowa!

I had quite a time driving back to Iowa, due to construction and the fact that I hate driving at night, but I did make it to everywhere I needed to be. The ISEA Summer Conference was really fun. We had Governor Culver, Senator Hillary Clinton, and Senator Obama's wife as speakers. We went to the water park in Storm Lake today because my roommate got free tickets. It was pretty fun. I finally made it to Des Moines and got my apartment keys. I get to move in tomorrow!!!!! That's about all that's exciting. School stuff starts next week!

Last Day in Kansas

This weekend was pretty fun. I went to the farm on Friday and camped out with my dad and his friends. Saturday, we had a pig roast and a bunch of people came. Not as many as we were expecting, but it was a pretty good crowd. Today we got everything put away and then we went fishing. It was a slow day for fishing. I only caught 2 fish, and my dad only caught one, which means it was a really bad fishing day!!! There was practically no wind this weekend, which is very very weird for Kansas.

I think I am all packed. I need to do some laundry tomorrow, but I will most likely do my dorm/apartment trick of just throwing everything into one load and washing it in order to save myself some time. I still need to figure out how to get all of those clothes into a bag or suitcase to take with me to Waukee.

I'm leaving tomorrow around 4 I think. I'm going to go visit my friend and his baby, then to my cousins' in Lincoln. Tuesday, I'll head to Storm Lake for my ISEA conference, and then on Thursday I will head back to the Des Moines area. I get to move into my apartment on Friday! I still have to call and get my electricity turned on and then I'll have to get my P.O. Box # and a new phone # all on Friday as well. It should be interesting. Then, full steam ahead for the next few weeks. It's hard to believe I'll be teaching in less than a month.

I hope for safe travels!!!!

Last few days in Wichita

It's been a pretty uneventful week. I've just been working and packing and seeing friends off. It's really hard to believe that I will be leaving next Monday for "good." That is, I'm going to become an official citizen of another state and move the majority of my belongings there. It's all just kind of weird.

My best friend and her husband left for Green Bay on Tuesday morning. I did pretty well until Monday night, and then I was in tears. All day Tuesday was pretty bad too. I don't know why. It's not like we can't keep in touch and keep each other informed about what's going on. Maybe it's that I probably won't see her on as many breaks, since she has to be there the majority of her time. This is no longer college where we can come home when we feel like it.

We're having a pig roast this weekend at our farm. It should be pretty fun. On Sunday, my dad and I are going fishing, and we may take my friend that moved here from Chicago. That would be interesting!!!! The farm is the once place I'm not looking forward to leaving. I'm not really looking forward to leaving my house and family either, but I will really miss the farm and my extended family. Now I'll probably only see them on holidays, or when I come back in the summer... This is going to take some getting used to.

I think I'm pretty much packed. All I need to finish packing is my clothes. I still have a few odds and ends and trinkets to pack up, but hopefully that won't take too long. I got a TV from my friends that moved to Green Bay, and I'm getting a table and chairs "on loan" for awhile. So, I have pretty much all the major furniture I need, it will just be purchasing the little furniture, kitchen things, and food that will be a major feat when I get back to the Des Moines area.

Lots to do in just a few days...

Summer Safari and Harry Potter!

So Summer Safari went really well. The tye-dye bandanas went over really well and turned out really pretty. I had tons of extra dye so I made bed sheets for my bed, and they turned out really awesome!!! The kids weren't too bad, just the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders were kind of crazy at times, but that's to be expected. Overall, I think it went really well.

I finished the Harry Potter book on Saturday. I was very happy with the book. But, I'm not going to tell the ending because that would be making a lot of people angry!!!

Today is my last day of snowcones. You have no idea how happy I am about that, it's been exhausting this year for some reason. Maybe it's because I get upset about the state of the stand every time I step into a new one because of how sticky it is. Oh well.

We're having our pig roast/camp out this weekend. It should be really fun, and I really hope to get some fishing in before I leave on Monday.

I will try to post more this week before I leave next week.

Harry Potter!

I finally went to see the movie the other night with my sister and my cousin. We went to the drive-in. Since the pickup's back window doesn't open, we had to use the speakers available, so we missed some of it, but it was still pretty good. I felt like the director just rushed through the book though, and hit the highlights. I guess that's what you're supposed to do, but it was a little disappointing that he changed some things just to get through the plot. Also, for some reason this director likes to make Neville a hero, when in fact, much of what he does in the movies is actually done by Dobby the house-elf. This is what I get for just finishing re-reading all of the books.

I finally pre-ordered my copy of the 7th book that comes out on Friday. Unfortunately, I will be teaching VBS that day, so I will not have a chance to read it until probably after 5, and then Adria is coming back in town, so I may not get to it until later. That, or I'll stay up all night reading it...

VBS this week. While I think some of the crafts are going to be kind of boring, I guess it will be fine. I feel much more relaxed about the whole thing this year. Mainly because they are all middle school age and don't want to listen anyway. They can do what they want, I'm not going to try as hard to control them this year. (Ask me at the end of the week how that went.)

Only 2 weeks till I move back to Iowa! I suppose I need to try to do some more packing!

3 Weeks!!!

In three weeks I will be returning to Iowa. While part of me is a little sad to be leaving "for good," the other part of me is really excited to see what life brings! The other day a friend of a friend asked me what I do, and I replied, "I'm a teacher." Let me tell you, that was weird. Usually I say, "I'm studying to be a teacher" or something like that. But this time, I actually have a profession! I am an adult. Kind of a scary thought.

I have decided that I'm not going to try to buy a new car right now. There's really nothing wrong with the one I have now. Plus, I don't want to over commit myself to payments when I'm not sure about everything I will need to pay for on my own, especially on a teacher's salary. I could get by, I just don't know that I want to cut things that close. As long as my current car works and gets me where I need to be, I will trust it for a little longer.

The snowcone stand hasn't been too bad. I'm definitely working tomorrow, Wednesday, and Sunday, and the rest of the week I'm kind of "on call." Next week I will be teaching Arts and Crafts at Summer Safari, a VBS for students in grades 5-8, so I won't be working, which really doesn't bother me all that much.

I didn't get to go out and harvest this weekend because I got stuck at work :( It's ok though, because they got stuck because it was still a little wet. Although, my parents did go fishing without me, and that made me very sad...

Harvest!!

It has finally stopped raining long enough for my family to finish harvesting. This is a good thing, but I honestly don't know if they're going to get any good crops. We'll just have to wait, pray, and see what comes out of this. I think I'm going to try to go out there tonight after I get off work, but I don't know yet. Gas is high again (thanks to the flooding and destroying of an oil refinery close to here), and I have to be back by 4 tomorrow to work. I'll just have to see what I feel like later today.

I'm back working at the snowcone stand. I had to train a new girl yesterday and re-train one of the other employees because the stand I'm at was in ridiculous shape when I got there on Thursday. Although it wasn't her fault entirely that it was like that, she did need some re-training. I felt like I was stepping on toes all day though - it's hard to tell someone they're doing something wrong when they've been doing it that way all summer... I at least have a semi-schedule until next Friday, which is a plus.

Only 3 weeks till I leave! I guess I need to work on packing the rest of my stuff up. I'm also debating if I really need a new car at this point in time. I haven't heard back from Erin yet, so I don't know if I'm sharing an apartment with her or not, and that is kind of what will be the determinant, at least in my opinion. I will have enough money to buy a new car, but I don't know if I want to cut my budget that close. I need to do some more thinking on that one.

The sun is out!!!!! Maybe only for a few days since it's supposed to rain again this coming week, but for now, it's out and wonderful!

I am a pack rat

I have got to be one of the biggest pack rats I know. I partially blame this on my mother, who never throws anything away. The other day, I threw out bank statements, credit card statements, direct deposit slips, and canceled paychecks that I have had for probably 4 years. I asked my mom if I needed them, and she said, "I guess not, but it's hard for me to tell you you don't since I still have everything." Geeze. The only thing I need receipts and all of that stuff for are big things that have a warranty and may break. And those things are definitely not things I generally buy with my credit card.

I just spent the better part of 2 hours going through all of the cards and letters I have saved, and that was part 2 of the process. While it did inspire me to catch up with an old friend on Facebook, the majority of it all went into the recycle bin. I did keep some things - letters from really good friends, notes from my great-grandmother who never spells my name right two times in a a row, a few love letters from way back when, and postcards. I know one of these days I'll have another 3 shoeboxes full of things like this, and I'll have to go through all of them again, but....

The one thing I did realize as I was going through all of my letters and stuff was that I was an awesome pen pal. I really kind of miss writing letters back and forth to people, and waiting for them in the mail. I think email kind of killed it all. With letters, you have time to think about what you want to tell people and there's a bit of anticipation. With email, it's instant. Of course, you can always take the time to think about your answer back, but it also loses some of its personality and being authentic to the author. (I can't think of the right word for it... it'll come to me eventually).

Anyways, the sun has finally decided to show in the past few days. I hope it dries out enough that my uncles can finish wheat harvest. They were able to get our fields cut, but then it started raining. Most of it is on the ground anyway, so I don't know how good of a crop they are going to get. I would hate to be a farmer and put my whole livlihood in the fate of the weather....

I officially have an apartment in Waukee! The lady called me yesterday, and she's mailing me the paperwork to sign and send her money. I've also been looking at new cars. I was thinking about the New Beetle, but I realized I wanted 4 doors. Now I'm looking at the VW Rabbit or a Saturn Ion-2. There's quite a price difference, and I guess I'll know more what I can get when I find out if my friend wants to room with me or not. Maybe Mom and Dad will help out a bit too. We'll just have to see.

I'm still working on packing my room up. It's not a very fun process...

Somewhere Over the Rainbow...

Ok, ok, so it's a little cheesy... However, there's got to be sun somewhere. It's been raining since Monday, and I'm about to go a little crazy. I also haven't worked since Wednesday, so I'm a little stir-crazy. I've been trying to get things out of my room and at least box them up, but I haven't been able to properly motivate myself to do such a thing. I have too much stuff and am not sure I'm going to have the shelf space for all of it when I move in August.

I was really excited to have a whole apartment to myself, a bedroom and an office-space of some sort, but one of my friends suggested yesterday that maybe we could room together. I honestly hadn't thought about having a roommate this year, partially because all of my friends got jobs on different sides of town, so none of us were close to each other. This friend, however, has a job in West Des Moines, which is like 5 minutes from Waukee. There are ups and downs to having a roommate. I was excited about not having to work around anyone else's schedule and habits. However, I did get kind of lonely last year when I was the only one home because my roommate was always gone. It would be nice to have someone else at home to talk to after a bad (or awesome) day at work with 7th graders. This friend is also a teacher, so we'd definitely have something to talk about. Also, the biggest plus side is only having to pay half the rent and half the utilities, which would definitely save us money, and I'd be able to pay off my loans a little faster. I have to do some more thinking about it, and talk to the landlord people when they call this week with whether or not I actually have an apartment. Although I'm pretty sure I do.

I just want to see some sunshine. Sometimes I feel like a plant. I get kind of droopy when I haven't seen the sun. Maybe more like a flower, because our cucumber plants are thriving in this rainy weather...

CATS

My mom and I went to see Music Theatre for Young People's production of CATS last night. I must say, I was much more impressed with their version than with the actual "Broadway" version that came through a couple of years ago. We could actually hear what the actors were saying, and the dancing was much much much better than what the "professionals" that I saw did. So I say, BRAVO to those "amateurs" who did such a wonderful job last night. At least I wasn't disappointed in them. Maybe it was because I kind of knew what to expect (i.e. no plot line), but I also think they actually cared about what they were doing, unlike the others. I kind of agree with my mom though. Part of me doesn't really understand why that show is such a big deal. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that it's people dressed as animals acting like people, if that makes any sense. The one thing I will say was "better" with the Broadway production was that the actors actually looked like cats - real slinky and sneaky and all of that, but that's their lives, the people that performed last night had only been doing it for two weeks. I can definitely forgive that.

I worked at the snowcone stand Tuesday and Wednesday, and I finished three books. Tells you how busy I was... Oh well. It's a job, it's money, and it's something to do other than sitting around my house and staring at the wall. I could be packing more stuff up, but I'm not really sure where to start, or what I even want to take with me. I suppose I should figure that out sooner or later.

One of my really good friends from high school had a baby last weekend. I need to go up and see him, I just need to figure out when. :)

On another, not so exciting but yes note, I consolidated my loans the other day, so I got the absolutely lowest rate I could get! I'm still going to end up paying thousands in interest, but this way it's a little less, and I'm going to try to pay it off earlier than they have planned for me. My mom and I worked out my "budget." I hate bills. I need a new car, but don't really want to get one because that's one more thing I will have to pay for. Oh well. That's part of being an adult I guess...

Wedding Pictures

Here are some pictures from Adria's wedding!
The flowers
Sarah caught the bouquet!
Adria and I before the wedding.
Sarah and Adria
Adria and Jonathan in the limo on the way to the reception
Sarah and I in the limo!

The colors didn't actually look too bad! :)

I guess I'm supposed to start working at the snowcone stand again today. That should be interesting!

Wedding

Adria's wedding yesterday went wonderful! After, of course, the photographer didn't show up and no one knew where he was, so we had to have a replacement and didn't get to take pictures until after the wedding instead of before. It all ended up working out well though. The ceremony went fine. My godson, Joey, made it down the aisle with a smile on his face instead of the tears and screaming that had been going on earlier due to the tuxedo.... During the congregational hymn, we didn't realize there were five verses, so we started handing the copies in, and then proceeded to drop them, therefore making us and Adria laugh. Good times. Other than that, it was beautiful, and Adria made it through her vows without crying.

We took a limo ride around Wichita after the wedding and before the reception. I was excited because I'd never ridden in a limo before! It was pretty neat, and we managed to fit everyone in it that was supposed to fit in!

The reception and dance was a blast! The DJs were really good. The other maid of honor, Sarah, caught the bouquet, so I guess she'll be next! Although, we pretty much already knew that. :) We had a lot of fun dancing the night away.

So, I survived my coral dress and everything, and I didn't even trip down the aisle or on the steps when I was straightening out Adria's dress. I am definitely exhausted though. I think everything is catching up with me. I can't believe I only have about five more weeks before I move back to Iowa!

Wedding Weekend!

Tonight is rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner for Adria's wedding tomorrow! I really hope the weather clears up, because right now it's 75 and cloudy, definitely not the weather anyone would want for their wedding. Tomorrow there's a chance of isolated thunderstorms, which I hope means that it will be gorgeous and sunny for the wedding and all festivities! I think we're going to try to go bowling tonight after the dinner, but I'm not sure how that's all going to work or who is all going to be there. Tomorrow is the hair appointment, pictures, WEDDING, cake and punch reception, and then the actual reception. I have a feeling it's going to be a loooooong but exciting day! I only hope everything goes well and there are no major glitches or anything. They're opening presents on Sunday morning, so I'm going to try to get over there as well and see at least some of what they got! More to come later, I'm sure!

Pictures

Ok, so I am finally able to use my computer, which actually lets me upload pictures!!! Here are some pictures from Vegas and Graduation. Wedding pictures are sure to come after this weekend!

This is when I got 5 in a row!!

Sarah and Adria at Hoover Dam.













Adria in front of Excalibur.






















Adria, Sarah, and I on Freemont Street, at the show we went to, and on top of the Stratosphere (it was a little windy!)

Naomi and I at graduation.












My entire family that came up to see me.










The cake for my sister and I.

























My Grandma Blasi and my Grandma Westerman.


My parents.