Living Life...

And so the blog has been a little neglected over the past couple of weeks...but the good news is - just four more weeks, and I'll be a free woman again! lol This has truly been a great school year, but this last quarter has made me long for summer vacation more than ever. It has been long, busy, and seemingly never-ending. I think part of it has to do with taking classes at the same time I'm teaching.

Speaking of doing both - I would just like to say I admire all the husbands/dads, wives/moms, and other working people out there who go back to school. I feel so fortunate that 1- My schooling is online and I can do it at my convenience as long as I finish work by certain weekly deadlines, which also means I don't have to go anywhere for classes, 2 - I have a job providing me with the financial ability to go back to school. I still have college loans, but I'm thankful they can be deferred for now I can pay for grad school as I go, and finally 3 - I am only responsible for myself right now while I'm in school. I can't imagine working, being in school, AND caring for anyone else right now. It's wearing me out just working and being in school. I also can't yet imagine working (without grad school in the picture) and taking care of someone else/a family. But I know people do it every day. And I know God will give me the strength and ability to do it when the time comes! I am thankful, though, God has given me this time in life where I am only balancing two of the three things for now!

Last week was truly full of fun and examples of how much we care about our kids at my school. Sometimes, though they take away from "academic" time, fun activities are just what is needed to raise the morale of a school. Taking time to honor others and raise awareness for special causes help to show that our minds aren't just focused on ourselves all the time. And our kids need that example. So - last week we had our volunteer banquet Tuesday evening to recognize the many parents/soldiers/community members who help in our building throughout the year, then on Wednesday we had a staff vs. 5th/6th grade basketball game in the morning as a fundraiser for Autism Speaks, and a 1 mile all-school walk in the afternoon to raise community awareness for Autism. Our school is so fortunate to have an Autism-specific classroom, and I am so honored to teach every student at our school, including these very special and bright kiddos! Together we raised $1500 plus some more for the cause of Autism research! :) Thursday we had a state evaluation for our PLC system, and Friday was our end of the month "Fun Friday" with PTO activities for the kids. Whew! It makes me tired just thinking about it all. But I honestly look back and say - this was one of the best weeks of the whole school year. I got to be a painter (decorations for the banquet), a poetry reader (at the banquet), a basketball player (oh yeah - we won too! We beat the kids 50-34! lol), a music teacher, and a P.E. sub (when Coach had to leave early Friday and there wasn't a sub available). I was just full of unexpected surprises all week - you never know what to expect from this music teacher! haha If you had asked me about work last year I would have been down and negative. It was so hard. But this year I can honestly say, I love my school. I enjoy the people I work with. There are tons of kids, and though it's hard to get through some days, I want to go back the next day. I'm so thankful to God for this change of heart and the purpose I have there each day! Here are a bunch of pictures from our Autism Awareness celebration/fundraiser day! :)

These are only some of the decorations in the gym - the adults were the "Tiger" team and the kids were the "Cubs" :) It was a fun game!

Real live refs came to help out with our game!

Teachers and staff at Wood Elementary rock! This pic is of the basketball team, some of the cheerleaders, and a few other great staff members decked out in our blue for Autism! 

(And I love that you can see my fun classroom and its bright colors in the background!)

It's a little blurry, but here I am running out with the team - ready to dominate! :)

Pre-game picture - missing a couple of team members

Half-time pep talk...actually our principal came over to tell us we should probably let the kids score a few points too! haha 

Some of the great banners made by others in our school

Cool Super Man puzzle piece

Check out that score! Post-game pic!

We're so tough!

Getting ready for the walk in the afternoon - lots of blue balloons and puzzle pieces!

Great turnout for the walk - so proud of the kids and our community!

We were a pretty long group - they had to stop traffic for a little while! :)

So - while last week was busy at school, this week is going to be really busy in life. I have so many things in mind to blog about, but I just haven't had the time, and probably won't for a few more weeks. And I can't wait until I do! I still have two music programs, a baseball game performance, our district choir, and some assessments to get through at school. This week is when my big paper and lesson plan are due for my grad classes with another presentation and a written final due next week. It's going to be long and hard. I will probably be up late a lot of nights, and drink way too much coffee. But I'm going to cover the week in prayer! And if you don't mind, please pray for me too. I'm going to need extra strength, encouragement, and motivation each day!

Thanks for staying with me - I'll be back soon!