Blown Away

Wow, I am almost speechless when it comes to talking about my new school and this week. I have never felt so much support and love from my coworkers and parents of students. This new school is amazing and I am so thankful that God has brought me to this wonderful place. I know this is the honeymoon stage and some things will come to light this year that won't be so great but I just have a great feeling about this school and this new year.

I overheard my boss talking to one of the teachers this afternoon about me and my new class. Apparently I have a few students who have behavior issues. Anyways, Ron was talking to the teacher about how much faith he had in me to take on this class and that he knew I would do a great job. That totally made my day.

I am totally exhausted and at times feel overwhelmed thinking about all I have to do before the first day of school on Tuesday. But above all else, I am blown away at God's goodness and this new place I am working at. God is good all the time!

Changes

Wow, it has been awhile since I have posted on here. This summer has been great but flew by way too fast! I start work bright and early tomorrow morning.

My life has been full of changes these last few months as well and I am feeling the stress of that right now. I am transitioning to a new job that I am very excited about (teaching 2nd grade in Bellevue), I have moved and am living with a great girl that I am getting to know as much as I can. The hardest change for me is that I just drove my best friend across the country to MN as she is moving there. This year has been one of the best in my life as I had so much fun with Kirsti both as a roommate and friend. We had great times and have made many wonderful memories. I know our friendship will last a lifetime but it is hard when she is thousands of miles away.

I am exhausted as I am still in central time zone even though I am back in Seattle. So, that is all for now. I promise to update my blog more frequently.

Disneyland

I just got back from a week down in southern Cali. I was visiting my relatives and spending some time at Disneyland. I love that place, I don't think you can ever be too old to enjoy Disneyland. We also ate breakfast at Knott's Berry Farm which was always a tradition for my family when I was younger, so it was fun to be able to revisit that memory!

Now I am back in WA and enjoying the summer time. I am looking forward to some down time to relax and reflect. I also am looking forward to spending time with Heather and Micah (and Steve when he isn't working!) this summer!

Fun pictures of the students I have grown to love

You know it is the last day of school when...

1. Cell phones ring off the hook in the classroom and students find joy in getting them confiscated.
2. A student starts of the pledge of allegiance with "I pledge allegience to the American Flag..."
3. A student asks where he can find "what are those things called that you use to wipe down the tables?" wipes would be the correct answer! :)
4. Teachers need more than one coffee drink before noon.
5. The hallway smells of many different odors after the lockers are cleaned up. The joy of having a classroom right next to the hallway of lockers! :)

It is summer now! Hooray!!!

The last week of school

This week is just weird, there are so many mixed emotions. It is sad to think that I will most likely never see these kids ever again. There are so many students who have touched my life in such a powerful way and those are the ones that will be missed the most. So many students have been telling me this week how thankful theyh are for me and how much of a difference I have made in their lives. Some of these students statements are a surprise as some of them don't make their appreciation for me very evident sometimes. Then there are other students who love to make it known that I am not their favorite teacher.

I think what I have learned the most as a middle school teacher is the meaning of tough love. There are students who are stinkers and it is very evident that they could care less about me as a teacher and they are plain rude. But I still have to love them and that has been a challenge, I am not going to lie! I have learned a lot about grace and unconditional love these last two years. Middle schoolers need tough love and sometimes that has been so hard to give. Their is one student in particular that makes it known every day how much he hates me and it is so tempting to go off on him but I can't let my pride get in the way. He is entitled to his own opinion and my job is to respond in love, no matter how hard that might be.

God is good and I am thankful for these last two years at this school, no matter how hard and rough they have been. Through it all, I have learned a lot and I am thankful to have grown so much in so many ways.

3 more days to go until summer (not that I am counting or anything! :) )

Some people should not be parents

So, we have new neighbors downstairs and they have two very small children. Most of the time, a lot of screaming and running around can be heard and it gets pretty annoying. So, I am laying in bed tonight at 10:30, trying to fall asleep and these kids (I think they are like 2 and 4) are screaming, running around and banging a lot of stuff around. Whose idea was it to have these kids awake at this time in the evening? I am not sure these parents are the brightest bulbs on the tree.

So, my roommate Kirsti decides to yell "shut up" loud enough that they can hear and it is silent for a few minutes. Then it starts back up to which we respond with pounding on the floor, trying to get our point across. So, with that said they are finally quiet but now I am wide awake.

Oh to be able to afford a house....