Playing Catch-Up (Days 12-15)

(12) Look--more books! These books were way more exciting than the textbooks I received the day before, though. These books are what textbooks SHOULD be. They guide students' learning through discovery, questioning, and activities. What better way is there to learn? I'm really looking forward to using these as resources this semester.

(13) See this bag? It was full of amazingness that was too much for us to handle in one sitting which was therefore going to be saved for enjoyment at a later time. Unfortunately, all that goodness was left behind. Don't you hate when you leave your leftovers at the restaurant? Yeah. It stinks.

It was so very good while it lasted, though. Daddy, Momma, Joey and I each had the four course special Red Lobster was offering. I had my fill of potato soup, salad, garlic herb chicken & shrimp, brownie a la mode, and the ever popular Cheddar Bay Biscuits. My mouth is watering just thinking about it all. I'm really glad I waited to go with the majority of my family; it was well worth it.

(14) As much as I needed to stay home yesterday and work on lesson planning, Daddy needed company for grocery shopping yesterday. He was so very kind and rewarded me with chocolate Animal Crackers! They're such a treat because I can't find them anywhere around here; the only place I've seen them is back home.

I then ended up going recliner/dishwasher shopping with my parents, too. Badcock ended up being a one-stop-shop for us. We went in looking for a recliner and ended up getting a dishwasher AND a couch. It's hard to pass up a great deal when you find one!

Regarding my planning, I had plenty of time during the Broncos' beatdown last night :\

(15) This is what all your "extra" space turns into when you're trying to plan lessons/a semester. My bed is completely covered with papers, planners, textbooks, resources, and anything school related. It's still pretty fun...tedious, but fun. I hope I can stay excited :)

Temporary Delay...

My, has a lot been happening! 

I've got pictures to share. I've got words to share--too many words, in fact. I have observed, learned, and soaked up so much in the past few days I have no idea how my brain can handle it all. 

While I'm still taking a picture a day, I don't have anywhere near the amount of time necessary to upload and write about each one every day. Maybe at some point this weekend I can get caught up... 

Day 11 - The Other Side of the Desk

After finally catching the attention of someone to let me in the locked building this morning, I was greeted with a lovely gift from my mentor teacher--teachers' textbooks!

Today went great. I'm learning everything I can about the school and the many faces that make it the community that it is. Everyone is so nice, too. The kind gentleman who let me in the building this morning greeted my with a huge smile and a warm, "Welcome to Mid-Carolina High School!"

Time management is going to be a skill I am going to have to hone in on this semester. Trying to get every required thing taken care of in a timely manner will be very difficult--but it can be done!

I'm just so thankful of where I've been placed; I don't think it could have worked out any better.

Day 10 - Crazy Good Cookies

See this little more-than-half-eaten morsel of sweet goodness right here? It's a coffee chocolate cookie and it changed my life.

Well, not exactly, but it sure was good.

My awesome roommate came back to campus with a bunch of baked goodies...mini apple pie thing-a-ma-bobs, rainbow swirly sugar cookies, and my favorite, coffee chocolate cookies. I had never tried any of these before but once I did, if that's what love is like, I'm in it.

Remember that stinkin' paper I've been mentioning for a while? I finished it this evening! But that just means I can jump right on my next one. On the bright side, it's done. And I'm happy.

If you travel a little farther on the bright side, you find out I begin student teaching tomorrow! I have been working for this day for a very long time. Even with the attempted switch to meteorology, I feel like I've been on track for this ever since I first had the desire to teach all the way back in fourth grade. My initial inspiration came from the always amazing and never dull Mrs. Kathy Mixon when I was only 9 years old.

I'll be in a geometry classroom, too--funny how things change; I hated geometry in high school and now it's not so bad.

Day 9 - Training

I'm really hoping it is the dreary, overcast atmosphere making me feel as tired as I'm feeling right now. If it was the days events which drained me so, I don't know how I'm going to handle this semester.

After a training session for yet another certificate to add to my portfolio and a luncheon with the mentor teachers & supervisors, I was then able to begin to tackle my to-do list for the day. I've still got some loose ends to tie up.

I will say, I feel more at ease about this student teaching thing. Even with being thrown a curve ball today, I'm feeling better about it all. Come to find out, we secondary level interns will be responsible for completely taking over our classrooms for a full eight weeks. Considering I was only expecting to have two weeks on my own, that news came as a little hard to digest at first. Fortunately, I've been with my mentor teacher before, so I know what to expect with her and she knows what kind of work I do--we work well together--I'm not too worried.

I'm still overwhelmed at how far I've made it and tremendously grateful for God guiding my track up to this point.

There's no telling what's coming next--

exciting! 

Day 8 - The Beginning of the End

I'm baaaaaack! Still in the process of getting all settled in, but I and all my belongings are here on campus to stay for a while. 

Believe it or not, this was actually the first time in all three and a half years of college so far that I really wasn't completely ready to get back to school. I don't know why. Maybe it was because I know this is the last time I'm "going back to school" after Christmas/Winter break. 

Gauging the number of tears my Daddy shed the past two days, graduation is going to be unbearable. 

Not only was it hard to come back because I didn't want to, it was also a challenge considering how much stuff I had accumulated in the past four weeks. I was able to fit all my clothes I took home in my duffel bag and coming back to campus I had to put them in my big suitcase--where they barely fit! Then there were other boxes and miscellaneous items...by the time it was all finished, I had all my stuff upstairs in three trips. 

Talk about a work out. 

This picture is actually after some unpacking...I couldn't even fit everything into the shot. I'm still not done. 

But unpacking can wait. 

Making sure the Steelers have my full attention until the end of this death match of a game has priority at the moment. 

Day 7 - Sweet, Sweet Saturday

Oh Saturdays, how I adore the ease with which you come and go; the glory that is not having to do anything; how you encourage and allow me to relax and breathe...

Except for today, that is.

This has been a bittersweet Saturday for me. While I didn't appreciate the 70 degree weather, considering it's the freaking first week of January, it ended up growing on me. I spent the majority of my morning packing for the upcoming semester, my last, at school. This has been my last full day at home on Christmas/Winter break. Between packing, working on that blasted paper, and trying to spend some final quality time with my family, it's been a rather smooth day. I even ended up in a lovely IM conversation with my best friend, Liz. Oh how that child always brings a smile to my face and shines a radiant beacon of light into my day! I absolutely adore that girl.

Then to top it all off, I raided our pantry and ended up scrounging up just enough stuff to whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookies*. A sweet topping to a lovely day.

*They aren't completely 'chocolate chip' cookies...I had to mix together whatever was left of a bag of regular chocolate chips with whatever was left of a bag of peanut butter chocolate chips. They were also Bisquick cookies...which were more cake-like that I normally prefer my cookies to be. But hey, these cookies weren't bad for a spur-of-the-moment cookie fix!