Total Insanity

And the waiting is over...

2011-07-02T15:13:00.000-05:00

As of a few weeks ago I officially have a job (with a signed contract). The last part is what was keeping me from posting any information before now, plus I was super busy with getting reading to attend my first conference for ALA.

First the new job--

I am going to be working for a school district that is extremely close to my home. My drive will be less than 20 minutes 1 way to school. That is so much better than my 45+ minutes of driving for my last job. This school was also the first to call me for an interview (and the only local school to call me). All of my other job interview calls came after they offered me the job and would have required me to move south of the metroplex. I am excited for the job which will keep me in an elementary library working with PK-3rd grade students. Sounds simple right, well that is until they tell me there are about 1,100 students on this one campus!!! Everyone I have told that part to has freaked out. If they are freaking out how do you think I feel? I am excited but still a little apprehensive as well but know that it won't always be that way at this school. They are building a new campus (opens either in 2013 or 2014) and will decrease the student body to about 700 which is still more than I have ever worked with but a little more manageable. Somehow I have a feeling that all of the students will be called "honey", "sweety", or "dear" for most of the year. But I know I will succeed in this job!!

As for ALA, I had a fabulous time but know that my mom and sister had way more fun getting to visit the sites than I did. The one thing I will say about the convention center is that whoever designed it was insane!!!! It was 1/2 mile from one end to the other. That doesn't sound bad until you realize that you are walking back and forth 3-4 times during each day. I will definitely say I got my walking in while I was there and have spent the last few days recuperating from all the "fun" I had while I was there. I had a lot of fun and will post more about authors and books that I got while there at a later time.

There may be hope...

2011-05-09T22:41:00.000-05:00

I had an interview today in my current district for the position that is being created to replace all of the librarians. I'm not sure how well it went but I think I did okay. The committee of 6 teachers and administrators asked questions that I expected but also threw a few curve balls at me. After comparing notes with a colleague that also interviewed we had many of the same questions but a few that they just randomly threw at each of us. The job posting doesn't close until this Friday so I'm sure we won't hear anything for at least another week.

In 2 weeks I have another interview in a district that is closer to where I live. This would be a "regular" school librarian position in an elementary school and would be the job I would pick if given the choice between the two. My only hope is they are looking for someone with fresh ideas for their school.

I have applied for every position in the state that deals with school libraries so hopefully something will good will come from all of this. I have even ventured outside of the state to apply for a few positions if it looked like I might be able to afford to live in the area of the school.

I will keep you updated as to how the job hunting is going just keep checking in!

Looking, looking, looking.....

2011-04-10T17:40:00.000-05:00

I have started job hunting seriously. I really want to remain a librarian (even if it isn't in a school setting). I was directed to a search engine that specifies in job searches and have searched every state in the United States to find a total of about 15 school library positions. This depresses me but I know I will be applying for every one of these positions!! I have made the decision already that if I have to move out of state for a job then by all means let me move. I know it will be hard to be away from family but this could be a good thing as well. Please keep me informed if you come across any school library positions in a district near you!

Now I am off to work on my taxes before heading out of town this week!!

Jobless and Hunting

2011-03-31T21:45:00.002-05:00

Last Tuesday night our school board met, and I felt it important to be there since we (all of the people in the district) knew that the announcement of which programs to cut would be made. I arrived early and chatted with some friends thinking even if they decide to cut librarians I would probably be safe. Well that all went out the window about halfway through the meeting. It was announced that 5 programs would be cut: art at the middle school, high school french, DAEP administration, libraries, and elementary GT. At this point my jaw hit the table I was sitting at and became furious. I was sitting with one of the other librarians and she burst into tears. I held it together long enough to hear they will rewrite the job description and higher 1 person to oversee the entire library program for the district which is 5 schools with 6 libraries (the middle school is kind of 2 campuses with 2 libraries). After hearing this, I got up and left the meeting in order to have a complete breakdown. I continued to cry the entire way home (about 1 hours drive) and most of the night until I fell asleep. Along the way I shared the info with my family and then had to give all the details when I got home. About 10:00 that night I received an email from my principal that he needed to meet with me first thing the next morning.

The next day at school was one of the worst because I was having the book fair in the library and a lot of the teachers kept stopping by to ask how I was doing. I tried to keep up a brave face but broke down several times throughout the day. After getting through the major rush of students during the morning, I went to meet with the principal. He proceeded to read the district prepared statement to me stating that because the program I work in was cut I would not be receiving a renewal contract this year. He then gave me my options which are to resign and possibly get the incentive money for resigning or receive a notice of non-renewal of my contract which could keep me from getting future jobs. He then went on to tell me that the district would be creating the 1 job of a district librarian for next year and he wants me to apply for it. He even suggested I research how to approach the job and be prepared to fit for the job when the interview process began. I told him I would apply and needed to think about the resignation. I went to my office had another good cry and called my mom to let her know. After about 2 hours I decided that resigning and having a chance at the incentive money (1% of my salary for the year) just for losing my job.

After filling out my paperwork at central administration I spoke with the superintendent for a few minutes and went back to campus to work for the rest of the day. This last week and a half has been an emotional roller coaster! After filling out the paperwork I began job hunting. I did it on school time just because I was depressed and quickly found out that there are NO POSITIONS anywhere!! I know the state is in financial trouble but this is getting ridiculous. How are the children in our schools going to get a quality education?

While it may seem that I am more upset about losing my job than anything (which I think anyone would be). I am more concerned with what the future leaders of our country will be like once the education system proceeds to make so many cuts when there is a fund here in Texas (the rainy day fund) that has money to keep this from happening.

But if anyone happens across a teaching or librarian position (anywhere it doesn't have to be in Texas) please pass the word along to me so I can check in to it. The one thing I can say is thank God I didn't purchase the house I was hoping to get or I would definitely be in a pickle!!

Stress!!

2011-02-28T23:24:00.000-06:00

Before I get started, don't get me wrong I love my job! I get to interact with students every single day and watch them get excited about reading. These last few weeks finally getting to teach the 5th graders again have been fun. They even occasionally ask my opinion about books!!

I am very stressed due to the economic issues our district as well as all of the districts in Texas are facing for the next few years. I have already been informed that my job is on the line, but the nice thing is they will have to place me in another position in the district since I am no longer on a probationary contract. I am hopeful that I will still have a job in the library (since this is what I worked hard for for about 2 years) and because I LOVE being in this setting. I know many things will change no matter what in the next year or two but I am praying that God will lead me in the right direction.

On thought I have had is working on my writing skills so that I can eventually try to get published as a children's author. I have several book ideas floating around and will share more if anything ever comes of the writing aspect of my life.

To any of my friends and family that may read this, please know that I love your help and support and HOPE to still be able to find a house of my own in the very near future. I also know that many who read this will understand and possibly be in the same situation as me. To those of you like me: my wish is for you to work your hardest and prove to your school that they can't do without you. Just know that it takes a lot more than just showing up each day to be an excellent teacher and I know you are!!

Good luck to all,
Megan

Crazy!

2011-01-17T23:07:00.000-06:00

Okay things have been crazy for me lately. I have been house hunting and it is HARD to make a decision. I have gone and looked at quit a few houses but there is always something that makes me have second thoughts. I know I need to make a decision because I promised my family I would be out of their house in December-February. It is almost February now and I still haven't made a decision.

On the other hand, the long drive to school has allowed me to get a lot of reading done. I know you're thinking how do you read and drive? Well, I listen to books on CD or audiobooks as they are now known. I have been doing this off and on for the last year but have really been into them for the last 4 months. I think I have listened to about 30 books (almost all children's books) and have enjoyed almost all of them.

I know this post was the first in a LONG time but I will try to keep you appraised of how things are going for me. As soon as I have house news I will post it here!!

Additional Blog

2010-09-12T20:40:00.000-05:00

I have an additional blog linked to this one now all about the books I am reading and reviewing. If you enjoy reading please take a look.
www.thelibrarybooknook.blogspot.com

I also have a blog that was created for school and describes what we are doing at school in the library. Please visit if interested.
www.carsonelementarylibrary.blogspot.com

DONE!!!

2010-08-09T19:58:00.000-05:00

I am done!! The very last assignment is turned in. The only thing to do now is walk across the stage this Friday and receive my diploma (well kind of I'll actually get it in the mail in about 6-8 weeks). It looks like I will get an A and keep my 4.0 through all of grad school. I know it isn't important to anyone but me but it was my goal and I worked hard to accomplish it.

Getting the last 2 assignments done was the hardest part of the class. I knew I had to do well on the research paper since it was 25% of the grade. Luckily I got a 98 so I stressed about it for no reason at all. Even if I make a 50 on the last assignment I should get an A.

I am back at school already so it really does feel like I had no summer at all. Oh well, I have that much more to look forward to next year. Now on to the next big venture, buying my first house!! More to come soon.

Nearing the end

2010-07-30T18:05:00.001-05:00

Summer is coming to a close quickly for me. Today I had a workshop and then I go back to work on Wednesday. That means I have this weekend and Monday and Tuesday to get the last of my summer list of things done. Unfortunately this weekend is a family reunion. I am thinking I may just not go even though it will make my mom unhappy. I also have a dog who needs attention and medicine at certain times of the day. I also don't want to spend my last weekend of summer in a car driving for many hours.

Since summer is ending it also means my time in grad school is also ending. Even though it is almost over, I still have several assignments to get done. One assignment is due on Saturday and is relatively simple. The others are my research paper that is due by Tuesday and another assignment called a Thought Piece which is due next week as well. It seems like I have less of a desire to get these last assignment done than I have for anything else in all of my classes.

And We'll Have Fun Fun Fun...

2010-07-16T21:57:00.004-05:00

It is summer and that means occasionally having a little fun. Tonight my sister and I did just that. We headed to Putt-Putt and had some fun with mini golf and arcade games. We started with the golf even though it was about 100 degrees outside still. At first we just kept tying so that it looked like no one was going to be a winner. After a few more holes I finally pulled ahead by 2 putts and stayed in the lead. I even had some fun with 2 holes in 1 in a row!! After we finished sweating to death outside, we headed inside to eat our dinner. Pizza for 7.50 isn't bad even if it was just a frozen pizza that they cooked. We ate almost all of it then headed over to play games. Most of the games we played were just the kind to get tickets. After we had blown through about $15 in tokens we gathered all of our tickets and headed for the prizes. Since we aren't kids and only had about 500 tickets, most of the prizes were things we wouldn't want. I chose a deal of Rolos and then let Jill spend the rest of the tickets.

We left there but weren't ready to go home so we headed to one of our favorite places Barnes and Noble. I usually don't buy anything there but look for some of the new releases that might interest the kids at school. Tonight they were rearranging a lot of the books and we just looked around a little. We will have to go back in a week or 2 to see where they have moved everything.

So even though it is my summer and I am working on school work I have proven that I do still know how to have some fun. Next week will be a lot more busy so there will be less time to play. Hopefully I'll get to have a little fun though.

Celebration Time!!

2010-07-07T00:26:00.002-05:00

Well as of 3:00 today it is official. I GET TO GRADUATE IN AUGUST!!! I survived the Capstone experience even with dealing with a sick family. I am sooooo happy that it is over. Now I just have to finish the class I am in and hopefully get an A to keep my 4.0.

In some unfun news, the last 2 days have spent cleaning up the house so that the AT&T Uverse can be installed tomorrow. I know this will end up as a good thing because the house will be slightly cleaner and we will have better TV, internet, and phone service than we have now.

Now it is time to get very serious with my house hunting. I have been surfing the internet looking at houses through various realtors and have found a few that I like. Now I just need to get my approval from the bank and head to the realtor to find the final one. I am hoping to have the house before school starts which means I am in a tight crunch.

The month of June

2010-06-30T23:42:00.003-05:00

The month of June has flown by. The beginning was very hectic due to the end of the school year and Capstone. I was very happy to have made it through my first year in the school library. Everything went really well and we increased circulation almost 10,000 books this year!! Unfortunately we had 26 books not turned in by students at the end of the year but I am hopeful that a few shall still turn up at the beginning of next year. After we wound down the year and completed the inventory and moving of the books in the library, my true fun began.

Capstone! This is the exam I had to take in order to determine if I will graduate. It is a 1 week period of writing 3 research papers. They give 10 questions to choose from and each person must pick 3 of them to answer. I choose the 3 and got started right away. I decided to start with the question I thought would be the hardest to answer, then the next hardest, and last the easiest. It turned out that the last one wasn't the easiest to answer because I had trouble finding evidence to back up my arguments. I did finish with over 8 hours to spare before the deadline even with all of the difficulties of the week. First dad came home on Friday and asked about how to go to CareNow. I knew he was sick because he never volunteers to go to the doctor on his own. Then Saturday we had my cousin Michael's graduation party. We spent the day with family enjoying good food and swimming. Then on the way home mom started feeling worse. She ended up going to CareNow on Sunday. Then she had to stay home most of the week with me running any sort of errands to pick up food and medicine. My original goal was to lock myself in my room and not come out unless it was time to eat, clean up, us the restroom, or for short breaks. I didn't get my wish but did have 1 less distraction because my TV decided to bite the dust on Saturday night. I ended up just playing my music from iTunes over and over again to get me through the time. I am one of those people who can't just work in quiet. I must have some sort of noise to distract me somewhat. I am very happy the papers are all turned in now I just have to wait for the results. It is either pass or fail and I really don't want to fail.

The rest of the month flew by with workshops, my sister's birthday, and other class work. I am so glad this month is over and now I just have a few more days to find out if I will get to graduate in August or not. Please!!!!! let me get the results soon so I can quit thinking about it.

Summer???

2010-06-08T20:57:00.002-05:00

Although school is out for the students, it is not out for me. I have a longer contract than teachers in order to get everything wrapped up in the library. Monday was spent cleaning, organizing, and finishing the inventory. Today I decided to attend a workshop that sounded promising. It was suppose to be about collaborating with teachers and sounded very promising. Unfortunately most of what she talked about are things I have learned in my library classes. I also started an online workshop today. It should last about 2 weeks but I think I'll have everything done by this weekend unless the teacher shuts off the other parts of the site.

My last summer class also began on Monday. It promises to be rather boring since I have already been working in a library for a year and know about our automation system. It will help out if I can learn about other systems (in case I ever leave Decatur). Friday will start my Capstone experience. This is a 1 week exam in which I will write 3 research papers and get very little sleep. Originally the plan was to hole up in my room other than food and restroom breaks but that has quickly changed. I now have a graduation party for my cousin's son on Saturday and a workshop on Wednesday. Even though these may interfere I plan to do both even if it means pulling all nighters.

After Capstone finishes, all I'll have is my summer class, a couple of days of work to finish my contract, and a ton of workshops. At least the workshops will pay off later since I will earn an extra $1,000 by completing 40 hours of workshops. I guess I will eventually see a summer again one of these days. Now I am in countdown mode. All I have to do is make it to August 13th when I graduate!!!!!!! My mantra has become "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can."

Another Fun Filled Week

2010-05-16T22:50:00.002-05:00

This will be another fun filled week. Because of the storms last Friday, our school field day has been moved to this Friday. I was not so thrilled because I wasn't even at school on Friday but will be there this week. This means I get to help. Not a fun way to end a week especially when we have our end of the year blow out that night.

I am also having an author visit our school this week (on Tuesday). The kids are very excited and can't wait to meet her. I am hoping for a good response afterward as well.

I did have a little fun this weekend by going to the Scholastic Warehouse sale and getting almost $900 worth of books. About half are going to be added to the school library and the other half to the AR prizes for the older students.

On a happy note, I got my grades and have kept my 4.0!! Only 1 semester left and I am hopeful to continue to keep my GPA at a 4.0 and graduate that way in August.

Mother's Day

2010-05-09T20:42:00.002-05:00

Spent a restful Mother's Day with my mom. We rested around the house until this afternoon then headed to Weatherford and Baker's Rib. We ate some delicious BBQ and fried pies. After eating we drove toward Granbury enjoying the scenery on some back roads. Dad and mom spent a lot of time reminiscing about the old days and the times spent hunting and camping in the area. We finally headed home just in time for me to get everything ready for another week of school.

On a happy note my principal sent an email today saying we can wear jeans all week long in celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week. We are a week later than most since our PTO president was gone last week with 4th grade to Camp Grady Spruce.

On another happy note, I have finished with classes for this semester and am just waiting to get my grades back. Only 1 semester left!!! I also filled out my application for graduation and will mail it tomorrow. So much to do and so little time left!!!!!

Long time no see.....errr write

2010-05-06T17:49:00.002-05:00

Okay so my New Year's resolution was to keep this updated and it is now May and I think this is my 2nd or 3rd post of the year. Wow!! I guess I blew that one. Things have been crazy busy but I am happy to say they are smoothing out. I know that the minute they do it will just kick in with the next part of my life and craziness.

I am almost finished with school for this semester and forever!!! I have 1 course to take this summer and my Capstone experience. This will be a hell week for me in early June so I may go missing again around that time. To all my friends if I disappear from here, facebook, email, and do not return calls it's nothing personal I am just dying!! Just kidding I will just be slammed with all of the assignments for that one week. If all goes well, I will graduate on August 13th!!!!! This is the best news and I am so glad that I took on this challenge. I have had so many wonderful opportunities since I took this challenge on.

Like I said the craziness is dieing down but will soon resume with summer school and house hunting. I am very excited to be looking for my first house to purchase. I have already started looking and have seen a few that interest me. I am hoping to be a home owner by the end of this summer if not sooner. Then it will be me all on my own (well, except for my dog).

The last month has probably been one of the busiest. I went to San Antonio for the TLA annual conference. While there I was able to meet up with my bff and her family. I wish I could have stayed longer but knew that things were still busy in my life and I needed to head back. I also had a great time meeting so many other librarians and getting authors to sign various books to add to the school library. The kids have loved coming in and finding all of the new books and then finding out about the signatures. I can't wait for next April when it's in Austin and I get to have even more fun!

Hopefully my next post won't be so far away that I feel like I have to put so much in. Stay tuned for more Total Insanity!

New Year

2010-01-04T22:36:00.002-06:00

Well, even with my promise to update more often I have let things go for a long time. One of my goals is to make sure to update my blog at least once a month (I think I can come up with something to say that often). First day back at school was tough. The day did go by rather quickly, but when I got home I crashed. I had planned on watching the TCU Bowl game but slept instead. I think I got most of the important plays thanks to mom screaming at the top of her lungs! You would think she was trying to get them to hear her in Arizona. Hopefully my sleep schedule will get back to normal now that we are back to school. I think I shall go back to bed now.

Bluebonnet Book List

2009-07-21T16:12:00.002-05:00

I am working on reading the books on the Bluebonnet list for the next year. I read one, Piper Reed Navy Brat, before school was out. My class last year really enjoyed it. Piper is a very precarious child who is always into something. She is the middle child in the family and is disappointed when her dad is re-stationed to Florida. She does find some good in the move but life is not always easy for a Navy Brat.

Last night I read Where I Live. This very cute story is written in poetry form about a girl and her life. She gives the highs and lows of her life. Like Piper, Diana is faced with an unexpected move. With this book Diana gets to spend most of it saying good-bye to those who she has to leave behind.

I highly recommend both books for anyone looking for a good children's book.

It's Official

2009-07-11T22:41:00.002-05:00

As of Thursday night it is official, I have the librarian job. I called and talked to my principal on Friday morning to let her know. She was happy for me because she knew this is what I was working toward. She explained what I need to do to officially resign from my position and I will take care of that on Monday. Tuesday will be spent packing up everything and getting it moved out of the building. I am trying to purge as much as possible since many of the things will not be helpful as a librarian. One of my friends did volunteer to help me pack up. At least most of the stuff is somewhat ready to go since I just moved my classroom at the end of the school year. I did get a lot of the books packed when I went up there on Thursday. I was optimistic that everything would be fine with the job. Now I just wait for my new principal to call so we can get together and go over everything else and for central services to call so I can fill out all of the other paperwork.

Shhhh! Don't tell yet!

2009-07-07T23:30:00.002-05:00

Okay to all my friends who also follow my news on facebook you can't say anything over there yet. I have great news!! I got a job as a librarian today!!! Can you tell I'm excited?!!! (overuse of exclamation marks!!!). Okay I'll stop now. Anyway, I'm going to be an elementary school librarian next year. It is nerve wracking because this will be the first time this district has even had librarians. I really want to meet the other 2 that were hired so we can get to know each other. (p.s. The reason I don't want this on Facebook is some of the teachers I teach with are friends with me on there and they can't know yet.) I signed the contract today, but the school board won't approve it until Thursday night. The assistant superintendent says he will call me after the approval so I can officially resign from Springtown. I may have a breakdown before the summer is over. Now the fun begins, I get to pack my classroom (again) and move it all out. I think I'm going to get a storage unit b/c there is no more room at the inn (mom and dad's) and they really don't want more of my junk here. I guess Wal-Mart and Target are going to make a fortune on me b/c I'm planning to buy plastic storage boxes to keep everything in just in case I need it again anytime soon. If nothing is used or needed after 1 year I will have a huge yard/classroom sale and get rid of a bunch of the stuff. Ahhh, the classwork is calling yet again. Trying to get started on my mid-term even if it's not due until the end of the month (don't want to be a procrastinator anymore).

BIG NEWS

2009-07-07T00:06:00.001-05:00

Later today I may have big news to announce. Stay tuned!!!

Video from Concert

2009-07-04T23:58:00.004-05:00

Here is a short bit of the video I promised.
This was Reba's encore performance.

Happy 4th!

2009-07-04T23:53:00.003-05:00

Hope everyone had a good 4th of July. I spent the day celebrating my cousin's daughters 5th birthday. We had a good lunch at Chili's and then got to spend some time visiting with everyone. It was so strange to hear comments about my hair. Most of the family hadn't seen me since I got it cut at the end of May so they were all surprised at how short it was.

Still no word on the job. Hopefully they will give me a call on Monday or Tuesday to let me know if I need to come back for another round of interviews or if I maybe (hopefully) have the job. I'm a little scared that I will get it but really would love to get my foot in the door before I finish my degree.

I love my dogs?

2009-07-01T03:17:00.003-05:00

Yes of course I love my dogs, but I think they are trying to drive me crazy. Goldie has been going outside to "take care of business" just about every hour. This includes in the middle of the night. Monday night she got me up at 1, 2, and 3 a.m. This was the first night I had gone to sleep early and thought I might get a full nights sleep. Of course I was wrong. I had a hard time staying awake all day and now I can't sleep tonight. Hence the post at about 3:30 in the morning!! Tonight has been better but she still needs to go out about every 2-3 hours. I think maybe her age is starting to catch up with her. She turned 13 just a couple of weeks ago so we know she isn't as young as she use to be (even though she thinks she is still a puppy at times).

I should be using this time to do something productive (classwork that's due on Sunday) but of course I've spent the evening catching up on reading everyone's Facebook pages and finding websites that I like. I did update my computer because Internet Explorer was keeping me from logging in to my classes so I downloaded Firefox. So far it has worked really well, but I'm sure time will be the true test as always. I guess I'll get off of here and type up my observation paper from the 2 hours I spent observing at the local public library this afternoon.

Interview Success?

2009-06-26T22:31:00.005-05:00

I went on a job interview this morning for a librarian position. I was extremely nervous because this was my first interview for this kind of job. It was very much like a teacher interview. I found it interesting that the district I went to has NO librarians!!! This is hard to believe because they aren't that small of a district. They are planning on hiring 3 librarians. There will be one at each elementary and the intermediate school. The assistant principal from the intermediate was who interview me and he was unsure of what all would become the responsibilities of the librarians but did emphasis that it would be a combined librarian/media specialist position. One of the things they want is someone who can train others on the latest technology. They are also trying to find ways to get reluctant readers more interested in reading. I gave the standard answers with my own experiences to back them up for many of the questions he had. He told me he is very interested in placing me in one of the positions but isn't sure if not having my degree yet will make any difference to the school board. He did say that there are more interviews to conduct next week. After they finish interviews all the principals will sit down and look over the candidates to decide on call backs (possibly phone interviews). All decisions will happen in the next few weeks. As he said whoever is hired will be responsible for developing a lot of the policies that the district will have in place for years to come. All of this is a little nerve wracking but exciting at the same time. I really thought I was just going on this interview as practice but who knows now that the interview has happened. Only time will tell. I will keep everyone updated on what happens next.

I caved to peer pressure!

2009-06-22T00:03:00.004-05:00

I joined Facebook. I was already on Myspace so I always thought why bother with the other. I figured one was just like the other until I found out that many of my friends that aren't on Myspace are on Facebook. So of course I caved in and opened an account. I figure with all the reading I've been doing on social networking and their relationship to libraries it's only fitting that I join in. I have even uploaded some of my George Strait pictures there. I know I said I would upload them here but I want to tweek a few things first and then they will be up. I'll try to pick one of the videos and upload it tomorrow.

I also remember my promise not to procrastinate and yet have let that go once again. I had a 1500 word paper due tonight and waited to finish it until about 2 hours before the actual due time. I guess if I had started a little earlier I wouldn't have been in such a rush. I've had 3 weeks to work on this and waited until Friday to even start on it. Now I'll have 2 of the same type of paper due next Sunday (once again I haven't started). I have decided for at least the next week that I am going to dedicate 4 hours each day to concentrating on school work. That means I'll really have to watch my online time and make sure I'm really working and not just surfing the net. I tend to get sidetracked very easily lately. I guess I figure it's summer and I'm free from work. I'll just have to set a timer and make myself work. Maybe once I get in the habit it won't be so bad. The one good thing I can say is that I'm home by myself (well except for the dogs) most of the day. This week will be the true test of how I do.

Day 2 of class

2009-06-08T11:36:00.002-05:00

Day 2 is going okay. The professor gets wayyyyyyyy off track about some things so I wound up here making another post. I couldn't believe it last night that it took me forever to get to sleep. Even though I only had 3 hours the night before it was 11:30 last night before I fell asleep. The alarm went off at 5:30 and the wake up call came at 5:45 but I still didn't get up until about 6:20 to hit the shower. I quickly got dressed and ready so I could make it to the parking office on campus. They offer parking passes online and I thought that would be a great idea to purchase one (same price as a temporary tag for the 3 days). The only problem was when I went to purchase the tag on Saturday (when the parking office is closed) I made it through the whole process to receive a very long error message at the very end. I then checked my email to find I had been charged for the parking permit but had nothing to show for it. So this morning I had to head to the parking office to avoid getting a ticket that would cost more than the parking permit. Now I know why I am doing the online thing!! I forgot about all the little pains of being on campus with the rules you have to follow.

Woo Hoo! Lunch time!

Awesome Concert!!!!!!

2009-06-07T10:01:00.003-05:00

The George Strait concert was awesome!!!!! We got to the stadium at about 3:30 and walked around outside took a few pictures and visited with our favorite radio station 96.3 KSCS. We went inside the building right at 4 and decided to stand in line for tee-shirts. The line barely moved in the 40 minutes we stood there. So we decided to bail, get a drink, and find our seats. After being told by 3 different workers wrong directions to our seat we finally found them (we even got to cut through one of the bars that is for suits only). We sat in our seats for about 15 minutes and LeeAnn Womak came out and performed for about 30 minutes. They then broke down her set and got Blake Shelton's ready. He came out with his typical beer (same as when I saw him at Billy Bob's). He was great and performed for about 45 minutes. Next was Reba!!!!!! She performed for about an hour (maybe longer) and then did her encore with Fancy. She did an awesome quick change into her red dress. There was about a 20 minute break and George came on stage. He was great (trying to use the word awesome less). He performed for about 1 1/2 hours and even got the roof opened. I will try to post some pictures (maybe even a slide show) later. After only 3 hours of sleep I got up this morning finished packing and drove to campus for my 4 days of class. I am staying in a hotel tonight and plan to crash early. Okay the professor actually wants to lecture now so I best get to work.

Summer break is here!

2009-05-31T16:32:00.002-05:00

As of yesterday at 5 p.m. my summer break started. Kind of. I still have to go back up to the school on Monday to finish moving the last of my belongings to my new classroom. They are cleaning our building first so we have to be out of the building on Tuesday afternoon and stay out until next week. Of course next week I will be in class so I won't be able to go back for 2 weeks. I want to wait a little while before I unpack all of my belongings in case I get a job as a librarian. I have put out several applications and am hoping to hear something soon.

Mom was supper excited about her birthday present and can't wait to go to the George Strait concert next Saturday. I just hope I'm not so tired the next day that I fall asleep in my class.

Good-bye 4th Grade, Hello 2nd

2009-05-28T22:48:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I found out I will not remain a 4th grade teacher next year. My principal has decided to switch 12 of the teachers around for next year and I was reassigned to 2nd grade. In a way I am very excited because I will be able to leave the actual TAKS test behind!! But I know I will have plenty of responsibilities. I have been putting my applications in like crazy trying to get a school to emergency certify me for next school year since I will be more than half way through the program. I don't know if it will happen but I can try and hope for the best. I know that no matter what God will guide me to make the right decision. I just hope that if I do go to 2nd grade that the teachers she has placed with me will pull their own weight. Only time will tell.

End of school

2009-05-26T18:40:00.002-05:00

The end is near!!! Hallelujah we will make it to the end. Today was our field trip/baseball day. We spent the day at the park playing baseball. My class was the bad news bears when we started but they started to pick up the game and improved. I think it is more fun to just let the kids play but Mary (one of the other teachers) insisted on keeping score when our classes were playing. I think we did well considering her class is full of kids who play on baseball and softball teams. The final score was 9-8. Her class won by just one run. I still think that it was pretty good since I was teaching most of my class how to even hold the bat, not run away from the ball, and where to stand when batting. Only 2 1/2 more days of school. I think I can. I think I can. This will be my mantra as I wake up each morning.

Tomorrow should be interesting. Our principal has called a meeting to announce grade assingnments for next year. She has talked about shaking things up and mixing up the grade levels. Only time will tell as to what she has up her sleeve.

Hair today gone tomorrow!

2009-05-20T22:13:00.002-05:00

That's how I felt on Friday. Saturday morning I went in and had my hair cut off. We cut off about 10 inches of hair again. I am sending it in to Locks of Love just like last time (2001). I guess this will become my tradition to cut off my hair about every 10 years to make a donation. I mostly did it because I was so frustrated with my straight, flat, boring hair. After cutting it off I am actually able to style it. This does require that I actually get up in the morning to have time to do my hair but this is a sacrifice I will take to not look like I have a mop attached to my head. I will post a picture this weekend or next week when I have my camera back and things are less hectic.

Coming up for air!

2009-05-13T21:35:00.002-05:00

It is sooo nice to actually be able to sit back and relax in the evenings again!!! My class officially ended last Wednesday when I submitted my last draft of the paper. I logged in today and found my grade was a 95! Thank God for the Swine flu day off of school. That is the only reason I was able to do so well on the last draft. If I figured my average correctly, I should have an A for my final grade. I was sure that this would be the class that killed my 4.0 but somehow I pulled it off. Maybe I will be able to get a few things done in the few weeks before my next classes start.

The end of the school year is in sight. Only 11 more days of school left for this year!!!!!!!! I know we are all ready for the summer vacation but not ready for the changes next year. One of the teachers in 4th grade is definitely leaving at the end of the year and we are going to add a 5th section of 4th grade. So no matter what we will have 2 new teachers to bring into the group. We have all been so close for the last few years it will be hard to change. The next few weeks are so busy for us. We have 4th graders testing for advanced math and science classes next week. Our 4th grade play "Tall Tales and Heroes" is on next Thursday night for Rocket Celebration night. The book fair is next week and I promised Linda (the librarian) I would help with it to get some experience at what it takes. We visit the Intermediate school for a tour next week. Then the next week we have our field trip "Baseball day" which is always a blast to celebrate the fact that we have made it to the end of the year. The only negative of the next few weeks is the TAKS results should be in soon and I know my students may not have all done well (especially in math).

Hopefully I will be able to update this more often during the summer and keep up with my friends more than I have for the last couple of months!

School Closed

2009-05-05T14:43:00.002-05:00

Our school has followed so many of the others around us and closed due to N1H1 (Swine flu). We have one suspected case so CDC suggested we close until Monday. This is actually a little helpful to me since I have my last draft of the paper due tomorrow (Wednesday) and am still working on corrections from the last draft. Then I will go back and add more to this draft of the paper and finish with section 7 of the paper (our feelings on how the class went).

I had been feeling a little stressed and guilty. Friday several of the teachers took off and went to Canton for First Monday. We got to relax after TAKS and enjoy ourselves. My sub on Friday was awesome and we got a lot done on Monday but who knows how we are going to get everything done in order to finish our projects in class by the end of the year. We are currently working on Science Fair and a play with the 4th grade. The only problem is the performance is the 21st and we haven't even picked roles yet. Hopefully the kids can learn it fast so we can do it.

Okay, back to work on the paper. More to come later.

Race for the Cure

2009-04-12T12:31:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was Race for the Cure. Mom and I both walked the 3.2 miles (5K) in right at 1 hour. This is good time for me considering this is the first major workout I've had since the pneumonia. I plan to really get back on track of working out at least 3 times a week so I don't feel like death warmed over the next day.

Everything went well yesterday. I raised $110 so far. I think there are several more people that wanted to make donations but forgot to before we left school on Thursday. I'll try to post the pics of mom at the race later this week. I wouldn't let her take pictures of me after the race because I looked horrible!!

Return to normal

2009-03-23T21:22:00.003-05:00

Spring break has ended. :( I got about half of the things done that needed to be done (but of course several things were added to the list as I went through the week). Today was the first day back with the kiddos. As normal, the morning went pretty well (only a few issues to deal with) but the afternoon they are just NUTS!! They just want to talk, play, and avoid doing any work. It's a good thing that I have moved my math time to the A.M. and language arts to afternoon. The only other thing I can think of doing is to eliminate group work except maybe once a week. I know the kids will gripe but maybe it will prove a point and the behavior will improve. I think it's also time to rearrange a few of the desks so that friends are further away from each other. Maybe this will take care of a few more of the problems that have started up in the class. Well, I've put off my classwork long enough. Time to get crackin' and get this thing done.

Spring Break!!!!!!

2009-03-15T15:40:00.003-05:00

Waaaa Hooo! It has finally arrived the break we all need as teachers!! Now to start the to do list that just keeps growing. Saturday was spent relaxing and going out to eat with the family. I am spending my Sunday doing the normal- grading papers. I feel like if I get this done today I can worry about the other things on my list this week and relax next weekend.

I guess I'll have to call the vet on Monday and try to get Aja in. She has been really shaking her head and rubbing her right ear. I cleaned it as much as she would let me and put her drops in but she still seems upset about it. She needs her shots anyway so I'll try to get an appointment this week.

This weeks my plans include cleaning and organizing my room, cleaning out all of the junk that is still in the Buick so it can be sold, inventorying my Mary Kay, cleaning the bathroom, getting all laundry done, getting my taxes done, FAFSA completed, donating items to Goodwill or Salvation Army, and working on my class work. We'll see how much of the list I can get done. Hopefully it will ALL be done when I go back next week so nothing is hanging over my head to still get done.

Spring Break is near!!

2009-03-09T22:18:00.004-05:00

Only 4 more school days and Spring Break will be here!!!! Yahooooooooooo! I can hardly wait this year. I know all I'm planning to do is work on school work, clean, and get some of my to do list accomplished, but I am so ready for this break from the kids. It seems like they have been ready for the break for weeks.

Last week we reached a milestone. We completed the TAKS writing test for this year. Yea!! I can cut back on the amount of writing we do each week in class and not feel like I am beating a dead horse with some of the students. Now only 2 tests remain- reading and math. At least this means I will only be tutoring before and after school one day a week for math. It is killing me to be there from before 7 a.m. until after 4:30 more than once a week so I decided to cut back and only tutor math once a week. Hopefully my kids will do well. If not I'm sure I'll hear about it at the end of the year.

In my school news, my professor says we are over half finished with the class by turning in draft 2 of our paper. I don't know how he can feel that way unless I truely screwed the paper up when I turned it in. I should get my feedback and grade Wednesday or Thursday. I shall just have to wait and see the results. Next draft is due at the end of the month so I guess it's time to start planning and get my rear in gear.

Our campus biggest loser contest ends tomorrow. I don't think I have a chance at the $230 but who can tell. Maybe everyone will gain 5 pounds this week. :) No, I doubt it will happen but I know I could have done better. I have to stop stress eating. Gee I can't imagine what stress I have had this year!!

In other news I got George Strait tickets to give to my mom for her birthday but I can't tell her yet (birthday is at the end of May and concert is June 6th). She really wanted this for her birthday and I wouldn't mind seeing this concert for myself. I hope it is worth the almost $250 it cost for the two tickets (that doesn't include parking). Ticketmaster said they were out of parking passes that cost $38 a piece so we will either have someone drop us off and pick us up or park way out in the boonies and hike in to the concert. I tried winning Kenny Chesney tickets today and was sooo close. I think I was caller 11 or 12 and they wanted caller 10. Oh well, I'll just have to keep trying.

Sorry if I seem to be rambling a little (or a lot) but it has been a while since I updated my blog so there was a lot of information to fill in.

Sucky Sunday

2009-02-15T18:54:00.003-06:00

This has not been a good couple of weeks for me. I have been sick and had to miss another day of school. I also woke up this morning to find out that someone had egged my car. I have been parking it in a neighbors driveway since they moved out and want it to look like the house is still lived in. So far everything had gone smoothly until some pucks last night thought it would be funny to go out egging and toilet papering. I have never understood the thrill of throwing toilet paper in a tree especially when it is a complete strangers home. The egging just goes into plain destruction of property. Luckily we found it soon enough and I was able to get it all washed off. Earlier this week I had taken my car and washed it to get all of the road grime off after the ice storms. That cost me $7 along with the two washes I did today which were $31.99. So just this week I have spent almost $40 washing my car. Now don't get me wrong I want my car to look nice and stay looking new for awhile, but $40 is just a little too steep for me. I am starting to finally feel better but I just want to quit feeling bad every time the weather changes.

Jury Duty

2009-01-29T20:47:00.006-06:00

I did my civic duty and went downtown for jury duty today. The day started off bad!! As I was leaving the house I noticed that one of my neighbors had a window knocked out of their vehicle. I went to let them know and found out the nurse that helps the child at their house had left her purse in the car when she got there this morning and it was gone. I felt bad for her but you should know not to leave valuables in plain sight. After talking to her for a few minutes and thawing out my car, I hit the road to head downtown. One quick stop at Starbucks for my favorite Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate and I was officially on my way. The minute I got on the highway the traffic stopped. People were still freaked out that their were tiny patches of ice (mostly on the shoulder or under bridges) and were crawling all the way!!! I left at 7:30 from Starbucks and needed to be in the courthouse at 8:30. That means one hour!!!! At 8:20 I was finally at the exit and still needed to park. So much for the free parking and shuttle. I found a parking garage and ended up paying $10 just for parking. I went in sat down and started grading papers until the Bailiff came in to swear us in and explain our duties for the day. Then they called the first group to go up to a courtroom and of course I was called in the group. We get upstairs and spend one hour waiting in the hall outside of the courtroom only to be told we are being moved down the hall to another room. They then bring us in and have us go through voire dair. This takes another hour then they send us out in the hall to make the jury selection. Once again more standing around and waiting. They call us in and dismiss all but 6. I am not one that was picked and am relieved since I haven't been at school in a week due to class, the ice storm, and jury duty. I go down pick up my check of $6!! Woo Hoo I can party it up with that money!! and head for the house. At least it gave me time this afternoon to get my first assignment done for class and turned in more than 24 hours ahead of schedule. Tomorrow I return to school and all of the fun that entails.

No School

2009-01-27T20:34:00.002-06:00

Wooo Hoooo! We had no school today due to the weather. It sucks that it was ice and not snow, but I was able to catch up on some much needed rest. This last weekend really wiped me out. After finding out we would not have school, I went to breakfast with my sister. We headed to IHOP (so not on the diet) and enjoyed getting out. Then we ran by her work to see if she needed to come to her meeting. She didn't need to show up so we headed home after a quick trip to Sonic for a Diet DP with vanilla (another addiction of mine). After we got home I thought I would read for just a few minutes then get to work on grading papers and working on my classwork. Oh was I wrong, the minute I laid down I was out. I slept for another 4 hours!!! I could not believe it when I woke up and it was after 2 in the afternoon. I had waisted yet another day. I did get a little done after waking up but I just wish I hadn't waisted the day. It looks like we will have a delay of start tomorrow (not official yet) but with the bad weather still hitting our area it should happen. So maybe tomorrow I will get more done.

Long Weekend

2009-01-26T08:19:00.003-06:00

This weekend was long in a bad way. Sitting in class for 4 days and listening to lectures is not my idea of a lot of fun. There were moments that were enjoyable and I did meet new people that are in the class. Today is the last day and we have agreed to work through lunch so that we can leave today at 2 instead of 3. Tomorrow I return to school and my lovely students. Then I need to get everything ready since I have jury duty on Thursday. I plan to get everything ready just in case I have to return on Friday for another day of jury duty.

Last night was fun. I went to my cousins house and spent time with her and her family. The dogs were what made the night the most interesting. First Spike wanted to jump all over me. Then the outside dogs broke a hole in the fence and escaped. After we rounded up Stitch and Sugar and locked them in the garage we let my cousins son drive us to pick up the pizzas for dinner. That was a scary experience. Letting a kid in drivers ed drive at night is definitely not my idea of fun. We had a few scary moments like when he almost hit my new car pulling out from in front of the house. But overall, he did an okay job of getting us there and back. After eating I went back to the hotel and crashed yet again. Falling asleep with the TV and lights on seems to be the new thing for me. Hopefully my sleep schedule will return to normal since I am returning to my own bed tonight.

Webinstitute

2009-01-24T11:03:00.005-06:00

Well, we are half way through day 2 of the 4 days of class. My professor has moments that he is very funny and interesting and then there are moments when he is sooooo boring. Like now (he is lecturing while I type this).

I did get good news from my substitute that my class was good yesterday and all went home with smiles in their folders (YEA!!!). Hopefully Monday will go as well.

I have definitely enjoyed staying at the hotel (other than smelling cigarette smoke last night and this morning in a 100% smoke free hotel). Thursday night I got in and crashed! I didn't realize how tired I was. Last night, I got in read my homework, went to dinner, watched some TV, and then fell asleep reading a book (yes it was a nice change to read something of my choosing). Either tonight or tomorrow night the family is getting together to celebrate my cousins birthday. It has become a tradition over the last few years for our families to get together for almost everyone's birthdays. I am so glad to get this little bit of peace and quiet while trying to get so much work done each night. I just wish it could stay this way.

Family Frustration

2009-01-11T21:31:00.006-06:00

Before I start let me say I do love my family. With that said they are driving me insane!!! I really do want to move out and be on my own, but with paying tuition for grad school my only choice is to stay at home for a little more than one more year. Hopefully I will make it without loosing my mind. This weekend has really proven the point with me. It seems that we are all biting each others heads off at every turn. I also have heard more comments about living at home at my age than I ever care to hear in my whole life. Yes, I know most 29 year old people don't live at home (or even want to), but in order to purchase a home like I want I need to be here to save up the money while paying off debts. I have done a pretty good job I think. In the last 2 1/2 years I have paid off over half of my credit card debt (it was over $15,000). It has taken a lot of diligence and sacrificing some of the things I use to love to do (shopping for clothes/shoes, dining out, just being able to purchase things when I want them).

The one good thing that is happening for me is I am keeping up with grading papers. If only I can get everything else done that needs to be done I will have it made. My classes start again on the 20th so I will be working hard this next week to get everything I need done.

Enjoying the break!

2008-12-26T22:19:00.002-06:00

One week down and one to go on the holiday break. I have done more than I thought I would but know that I will still not be ready to go back when school resumes. Things have been very busy since my last post. I am finally feeling a lot better, had a birthday, celebrated 3 different Christmases with family, and have spent a lot of the time cleaning around our house.

The return to school is partially stressful because of problems with my principal. She came in to talk to me on the Monday before school got out and informed me that I just don't seem to be teaching the same as I have in the past. This year our district has gone to a new curriculum that we are to follow almost to the letter (even though we were told we could vary it some in the beginning). As I have mentioned before, I have had a revolving door class this year. At last count I have taught a total of 28 different kids this year. My class is currently at 19 students but only after removing a major problem child from my classroom. I am hoping that things will be better after she gets a break as well. I know my students need more help than I can give on my own. Maybe now that she sees the way things are, I will get more of the help that I need.

I am excited for my class to start on the 20th. I will spend 4 days on campus for the class and know that will keep me busy. Maybe I will get to meet some new people who live nearby and make a few new friends. More to come soon about this.

Settling down

2008-12-04T23:51:00.003-06:00

As of Monday my class has begun to settle down and act normal again. The principal finally removed one of the boys in the class who was causing a lot of the sexual innuendo going on in the room. Things were great all day Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday things got a little shaky at the end of the day when students started reporting to me that there were 3 students calling me the "B" word. I started some questioning and found out that at least 2 of them were really using the word. My principal doesn't want to do anything other than suggest I discuss with my class our Social Contract again. We did after students wanted to tattle today to let me know another student was calling me stupid. Hopefully the seriously bad language will end and the tattling will end. I am trying to put it back on the kids and remind them that we want kindness, honesty, and respect in the classroom for everyone and from everyone. We decided that students should try talking to each other and reminding them that we need to use positive words and that they don't like it when those other words are used. We will just have to see if tomorrow is any better.

On another note, the late and missing work from the kids just may kill me. I seem to constantly be asking for the work and being told they will have it tomorrow. I guess with all of the failing grades last six weeks and the same ones headed that direction this six weeks the parents will be in for a rude awakening. It is very hard to pass for the school year if they have 2 six weeks of failing grades. Once again we will just have to see what happens.

New Addiction

2008-11-26T18:09:00.002-06:00

Starbucks will be the death of my checking account. I went by on Saturday night to get a hot chocolate since the weather was cold. I figured I'll just go through the drive thru and make it a quick trip. After I ordered the "kid" (I really don't know how old he was) at the window asked why I was dissing the Special Hot Chocolate. I told him I didn't know anything about it and he filled me in. He then said I can always ask for a sampling of anything on the drink menu to find out if I like it. He insisted I try the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate which is his favorite. He quickly made one up for me to try. By the way the sample size looks like the size a child might have. He gave me the sample and I tried it. I have now been back twice for more!! I hate when I get addicted to something especially when it costs almost $4 a pop. Oh well, hopefully I won't have too many of them or else I really will go broke.

End of semester nears!!

2008-11-24T19:25:00.002-06:00

As the end of the semester nears I realize that I almost bit off more than I could chew this semester. At least I have nearly finished with all of my assignments. I have 2 papers to write for one class, 1 reading and post over a discussion in another class, and the class discussion over our journals for my other class. I think if I hadn't had pneumonia I wouldn't have felt so overwhelmed at the very end of the classes. If I make at least a B in all the classes I will be fine. I expect to get at least one A just because the class is easy and 1 credit hour. The other 2 are the ones that I am hovering between A or B so all I can do is hope for the best with my last few assignments.

SICK!!!

2008-11-12T18:17:00.002-06:00

I hate being sick. I spent all of yesterday asleep and then at the doctors office. They called this morning and told me I have the beginnings of pneumonia. I am not allowed to return to school until Monday. Luckily the other teachers have been wonderful and are covering everything for me. I guess I am lucky that none of my school work is due this week. I am suppose to go to the middle school and give a book talk which means I will have to take another half day off. In all my years of teaching, I have never missed so many days of school. The sad thing is I don't even miss the kids. They had me so frustrated on Monday and I just wanted to get out of there. Maybe it was the beginnings of getting sick but who knows.

Long Weekend Bummer

2008-11-02T22:39:00.003-06:00

I decided to make this a long weekend and take off Friday and Monday from school. I thought I would be very productive and get a lot of course work done plus do a few things around the house. It is now Sunday night and I have done nothing around the house.

On Friday, I went with my mom and voted. After that I spent the day getting my 9 journal articles completed since they were due at 11:59 p.m. I managed to finish at 11:09 p.m. I love this teacher because she has already graded it and I got a 94!

On Saturday, I started feeling bad and spent most of the day sleeping. I guess that is what I get for putting things off. Everything seems to hit me at once. I think it is my allergies/sinuses that are bothering me again but who knows it may be a cold again.

Today, Sunday, I worked on my paper that I thought I had another week to complete but just figured out is due on Tuesday. I also wrote my lesson plan for my storytime activity with the prek class. I am doing that tomorrow morning and am very nervous. I have never taught a group of 4 and 5 year olds before. The closest I have ever been were the 2 days I substituted for kindergarten and that was about 7 years ago!! I know the kids will be great though because the teacher is really good and she has helped me a lot with the lesson.

Tomorrow ends my days off and I don't think I will have one minute of downtime. After the lesson, I have to take my vehicle to the dealership because I have a screw in my right rear tire! I have only had the vehicle for 3 months and already I am having issues. At least it is covered under my warranty. After that will be the many errands that must be done and then my dentist appointment. Not to mention all the laundry, grading, and other classwork I need to get done. Oh well, at least I am a little closer to the end of the semester.

Hopefully, it won't be so long before I post again.

Budgeting my time

2008-09-21T22:26:00.002-05:00

I am really learning how to budget my time. It is taking me awhile to get into the groove with 3 courses and a full time teaching job, but I think I am slowly getting the hang of it. I think I may have to give up TV in order to get more done but hopefully I won't have to. This weekend I spent over 8 hours grading papers. I have decided that waiting until the weekend to grade won't work anymore. I am going to have to grade a little every night. I am making a schedule of the work I need to do and when the due dates are. Hopefully in the future I won't have to work right up to the last minute to get assignments in on time.

Stress, Stress, Stress

2008-09-18T17:35:00.002-05:00

The stress of everything is really starting to hit me. I took today off of school so I can work on course work. I finally finished the textbook just as the professor extended the quiz deadline. At least I know I have one thing done for the course. My other course has our first paper due tomorrow before midnight. I might have it done in time if I can find where I put the budget for our school library. Every time I think I have all of my papers in one place, one of the papers turns up missing. I know this paper has already been extended, but I do love to procrastinate. Well, I guess I've goofed off enough for now back to the grindstone.

Climbing and climbing in numbers

2008-09-08T21:20:00.002-05:00

My class count is finally climbing so that I am close in number to the rest of 4th grade. I had two new students added within 2 hours today!! This is a little insane, but it does save on repeating the same information over and over again to the new students. My class is turning into a bunch of chatter boxes. I keep hoping that it will improve, but even with taking away privileges, they just keep talking.

At least my grad work is starting to not seem so overwhelming. It is still a lot of work, and I may not take 2 classes at the same time again while school is in session (this will mean that it takes longer to graduate). If I survive this I may just take a chance again!!

Back to the grind of grading papers!

New Vehicle

2008-09-02T21:13:00.002-05:00

YEA!!!!! I have purchased my very first brand new vehicle. I finally gave up on the Buick when it started breaking down on the way home from school on Thursday. I went shopping over the weekend and purchased my Equinox on Monday. It is a 2008 and has soooooo many features I could never dream of on my old piece of junk. I love the fact that it has remote start! All I have to do is push the button and the car starts without me in it. This is sooooooooooooooo wonderful when the heat of Texas just about kills you. The air turns on and once I put the key in the ignition the radio and everything else comes on as normal. The only disappointing thing is I have to take it in overnight later this week so they can fix 2 problems with the paint. Oh well, at least I now know I won't have to worry if my car will start from on day to the next. I will post a picture of it later this week.

PANIC

2008-08-25T22:10:00.002-05:00

Well, I just may end up in a straight jacket before the end of the semester. I have spent the evening posting my opening messages for classes and reading other posts. I then went to the syllabus of each class. This is when the panic attack started. I will have to read about 100 different children's books in just a few short months. I know I have read some of them but the majority of them are ones I've never heard of (and it takes a lot for a good book to get by me). Then I noticed my other class will require 5 15 page papers!!!! What are they thinking. There are over 100 of us in this class. Do they really think they can read all of them. Even if there is more than one instructor, it will take awhile to get through them. I hope this doesn't turn into the same situation as my summer class where I didn't know my grade for the different assignments until right before the final (2 of the grades were posted after I finished and submitted my final). I really hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew.

Nerves

2008-08-24T18:52:00.003-05:00

My nerves are starting to kick in. School starts tomorrow and I'm always nervous before really getting to know the kids. My classes will also start tomorrow. I already know what has to be done for my introduction class, but I am still waiting to find out about the others. Hopefully 7 hours of classes won't be too much.

For the first day of school our principal wants us to start with curriculum right away. We tried reminding her that rules and procedures must be taught and gone over before you can begin teaching but she has her mind set on us starting right away. I put in my lesson plans that I was starting tomorrow but in reality it will probably be late that day or the next before I truly begin. Let's hope that all goes well with the new group of kids.

Tough Day

2008-08-22T22:33:00.004-05:00

Well, today was the last day of inservice before school starts. We started out together in the cafeteria to discuss a few things. We were all anxious to get to work in our rooms when our principal once again said, "We must be RECOGNIZED" this year." Well, needless to say this set everyone off. Mary (another teacher in 4th grade) sent an email to our principal about the comment. She came down and lectured us yet again. I now know this HAS TO BE my last year teaching 4th grade and the year hasn't even started yet. There is just too much stress with the TAKS test hanging over my head all the time. I was so much more excited before today happened. Hopefully next week will go well.

Well...I put this off long enough

2008-08-16T23:44:00.000-05:00

I finally started a blog (other than Myspace). I have read others blogs for awhile while putting this off.

I am soooo not ready to start back to school next week and have the kids back the next week. Things are about to get super busy with teaching and going to school at the same time. I hope that everything is going to go the way I plan (A's in as many 0f my classes as possible). Classes officially start on the 25th but I will have to go to Denton all day on the 23rd for my first class. This is supposed to be a group project class. Please let me get a good group of people who all plan to put forth effort!

The olympics are keeping me up later and later each night. I am really going to have to start turning the TV off and just going to bed. It's so hard when my favorite sports (swimming, diving, gymnastics) have been on so late at night.