"Better When We're Together"

The day that I have both been anxiously awaiting as well as dreading, has finally come. April 30th is here and it is the last day that I'll be spending with my 2nd graders at Kyffin Elementary. I knew I would be sad, but I never imagined I'd feel the way I do now. . . my heart hurts way more than I expected it to. I've been a little down all week and for the first time in awhile, I wish time would slow down so that my last day would never come.

Tomorrow is April 30th and I'm wondering how tomorrow is going to be for the kids and I on our last day together. . .it's definitley going to be a day full of love with lots of hugs and tears. I'm so lucky to have worked with such an incredible group of 7 and 8 year olds. I've grown to love them more than I ever imagined and although I'll miss them more than words could ever describe, I feel in my heart that I've made a difference in their lives. I'm not exactly sure in what ways, but I know that in some way or another, I made a difference, and they certainly made a difference in my life. I feel content leaving and knowing that I did my best as a teacher and most importantly, gave them all of my love every single day. I just got finished creating a slide show that I am going to show them tomorrow- it's full of pictures that I've taken of them throughout our 4 months together and the song I chose to go along with the slideshow is "Better Together" by Jack Johnson. At first I had no idea which song I should choose, but when I listened to the words of this song, I knew it was the ONE. I think it's supposed to be refering to a man and a woman (as usual), but a lot of the lyrics fit my feelings perfectly.

Anyway, I know I'll be just fine and I know my "wee ones" will be just fine too! I'm just going to miss them oh so much. I've never felt so much love in my heart and I'm thankful to be going into a profession that allows me to have these feelings. Plus, kids are just awesome. . .even the bad ones aren't so bad. On a brighter note, graduation is just 8 days away and I couldn't be happier about that! I'm looking forward to celebrating with great friends and of course, my incredible family!

Over the past year, I've worked with lots of different kids in different schools and as you know, kids can say the funniest things! I've kept a journal and written down some of the best lines I've ever heard my kids say and I'd like to list off some of my favorites:


"Miss. Taylor! No wonder your boss is coming today, you look like a nice beautiful man!"
This was earlier this semester when I wore a suit- my UNC advisor was coming in to observe me teach and apparently I reminded this little girl of her father when he dressed up in a suit for work.

"Miss. Taylor, when you went skiing and fell, did you crash your head into a tree? Because you have a really really flat forehead!"
This was after telling a group of first graders about a crash I had while skiing, although I didn't crash my head into a tree (Thank GOD!).

"Why is that state called "Misery"??
This little boy was refering to the state of Missouri and was awfully confused about why someone would name a state misery- it was very cute!

"Miss. Taylor, you smell soooo good! You smell like a sharpened pencil!"
A sharpened pencil was the last thing I expected to hear her say!

Well, listing those off certainly put a smile on my face (-: I feel better. There are so many more, but I'd be typing all night if I listed them all! Anyway, just thought I'd share with you and wish me luck on my last day tomorrow. . .*hugs*!

Coffee and Such. . .

Hey Everyone!

So I've decided. . .I am going to quit drinking coffee after today! At least for a few months anyway. I've had way too much in the past month and that much is just not good. So yeah, just thought I'd share this little fact for some reason.

Wow, this week is going to be my last week with the kids and I think I'm ready to take it on but I feel the tears coming. And believe me, come Friday there will be tears! I'll be fine though because a week after that is graduation! It's finally here, I can't believe it. Thank you, God!

I've finally had some down time this week which has been amazing! I've gone to yoga, hung out with friends and family, pampered myself a little, and did I mention that I'm sleeping like a normal human being again? It's fantastic! Well, I still wake up pretty early on my own, but the sleep has been oh so good!

The weather on the other hand, has not been anything to take advantage of just yet. It was blizzarding outside on Friday! This is a photo I took on Friday late morning just outside of my elementary school. It had maybe been snowing about 30 minutes and this was how much snow was covering the ground and our cars! Then today. . .I woke up and it looked cold out so I put on jeans and long sleeve shirt. About an hour later, it got warm and so I put on a tank top. . .but then I ended up changing back into the long sleeve shirt because it got cold again by the afternoon. Colorado weather is so confusing. Maybe spring will get here by June!

Anyway, I just wanted to drop by and say "Hello!"

Thrilled!

Here I am. I haven't blogged in a week or so because I've been far too busy! But that is all over now. . .I just turned in the last thing that I have to do for the semester! I spent way too much time and energy on that project and now thank God, it's over! I'm walking on cloud 10 1/2 right now and couldn't be happier. I also couldn't be more exhausted! I'm not sure if its a cumulation of all I've had to do for school and student teaching or if it was just because I spent my entire weekend (24.5 hours to be exact!) on my final project. Either way, I'm pretty drained. . .but it has all be well worth it!

Today my advisor from UNC came to observe me one more time and was asking me all these questions about my plans after student teaching and what are some things that I'm going to do in my free time. I told her that this point, sleeping for a few days straight sounds pretty good to me, and then I'll figure out the rest after I catch up on some sleep! Haha.

Speaking of sleep, that sounds absolutley incredible right about now! I may be finished with everything that needs to be turned in for the semester, but I am still the teacher of 22 kiddos for 8 more days. . .and I need to rest so that I can have enough energy to match theirs!

Time

The concept of time is very unique. For all of college, I've been waiting for May 8, 2010 to come and for the most part, its always felt so far away. Now here I am less than a month away from my graduation date, and although its close, it still feels SO FAR AWAY. Sometimes further away than ever. What's up with that? And people say that when you're busy, which I am, that the time goes by faster. I am busier than I've ever been in my life, but the time sure seems to be going by S-L-O-W-L-Y! April is just taking its sweet time and it feels like May is never going to get here. Of course, I know its going to get here. . .I just had to complain that it can't get here soon enough! When I look back to when I started student teaching on January 4th, I can see that the time really has gone by fast.

Anyway, life has been pretty good. Last week was interesting since it was our first week back to school after spring break. The kids were tired and definitley not in school mode. By Friday they were better and I think this week is going to be good. This week and next week are my last two weeks of teaching all day long, and then that last week in April, we are going to transition back to their teaching taking over again. I can't believe how fast my student teaching experience has gone by. I couldn't have been more blessed with such a fantastic school, a great teacher to work with, and of course, the best group of second graders ever! I'm not just saying that because I'm crazy about them. I remember the first time I came to the school in November and talked to the teacher I would be working with, and asking her, "So how is this group of kids?" and she said "they are such a good and incredible group of kids and there are hardly any behavior issues." I remember how curious I was when she told me that. I had my doubts, but I learned quickly that she was absolutely right. This is by far the best class I've ever worked with. I've never met kids so eager to learn. They all have a good sense of humor and I can't believe how sweet and respectful they are to me and to each other. . .most of the time anyway! I had never worked with 2nd grade before this and so far, I think it has been my favorite grade to work with.

Okay, okay I need to stop talking about my kids now otherwise I'm going to get all choked up. The other day while I was on the phone with Mom, she asked me when my last day was and I realized that I had only two and a half weeks left at that point and I broke down in tears! I couldn't believe it. I think I've mentioned this before, but sometimes people who aren't teachers say to me "is that a good thing that you are that attached to your students?" Absolutely! Some people just don't understand that after spending 4 months every week, for 5 hours a day with kids, you get attached. As I've said before, I believe that only the best teachers would develop these feelings and this LOVE, for their students. I know that as a teacher, classes will come and go each year and I'll love them all.

Anyway, its been a great semester and I've learned a lot. But still, I can't wait for May to get here. For a number of reasons I can't wait for it to get here! I can't wait to be done with this craziness so that I can stop and smell the roses again!

I Thank God

I just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I am so thankful for what God has blessed me with. I mean it, I am one lucky girl! I have the best friends and family that anyone could ever ask for. You guys have always given me all the love and support that you possibly could, as well as being honest and telling me like it is- even if it's not always the answer or advice I was hoping for (Mother!) I'm thankful for my health, my strength, my faith, and all the love in my heart. I'm thankful for the person that I have become and I owe it all to God.

Today was my first day back to student teaching after spring break, and it definitley wasn't one of the best days I've ever had. Often times when I've had a down day like this (which isn't very often, fortunatley), I just think about my life in comparison to those people who really have it hard. . .starving kids in Africa, the people of Haiti, those battling a terminal illness or drug addiction, the used and abused, the handicapped and disabled, people who don't have freedoms in their own countries. . .My life is a dream compared theirs! As a matter of fact, life is good. This all might sound kind of corny and cheesy, but it's true. I know we all have our bad days, which we're entitled too because we're all human, but seriously we should think twice before judging our "bad" day and ask ourselves, "Was it really that bad?" Probably not. I'm not preaching, but that was just something I wanted to share since it's what comes to my mind when I've had a tough day. . .just something to think about.

Restless

*THE EYE CLAMP. . .YIKES! ------------->

I can't sleep. . .what else is new? I think I've just got so much going on, along with the mixture of excitement that graduation is just 5 weeks away! I've maybe been functioning on 5, 6-7 hours of sleep these days and even though I've been tired, I've actually been feeling alright during the day. I'm sure once graduation gets here, the excitement will calm down a little and my normal sleep pattern will come back. Thats usually the case when I'm excited.

Well, tomorrow is Easter and my last day in Durango! Then its back to the Front Range on Monday morning and the kids start school again on Tuesday. I think I miss them. . . this morning while I was making pancakes for Mom and I, I was singing and humming to the songs they sang for their music performance back in February. And let me tell ya, with how many rehearsals I got to see, I was tired of hearing those songs and they would be stuck in my head ALL DAY LONG! Yes, I miss them indefinitely and looking forward to Tuesday. I'm curious how everyones spring break went (-:

For me, break went by way too fast- as it tends to do. I can't believe I've been home a week tomorrow, I feel like I just got here. It's been a great visit! I got to see a great bunch of people, including people I haven't seen since graduation. I ate some really good food, I drank lots of Durango Joe's Coffee, napped every day, laughed my heart out, got lots of work done on two big projects, oh and did I mention that even got married?? Yep! April 1st. I walked into Durango Joe's that morning for some glorious coffee and to get some homework done, and there was Oscar. . .it was love at first sight! We got married in Hawaii, came back and honeymooned in Durango for about an hour and then we decided to get a divorce. I told him it was April fools and that I had made a mistake and liked someone else. Luckily, he understood because it all happened so suddenly. Haha. I love April fools, its one day where I'm really allowed to let my imagination go wild. . .with the intention to fool people of course- which I did!

Oh and I had my consultation appointment for LASIK surgery that I'm most likely getting next month. Actually, since I have such bad Astigmatism, the procedure that was recommended for me is called a PRK. It's a similar procedure but its supposed to have more successful results for patients with Astigmatism. The recovery period is a little more extensive than LASIK, but I think it will definitley be worth it. The part I'm not looking forward to is having my eyes clamped open to keep me from blinking during procedure. Nothing about having my eyes "clamped open" sounds comforting. . .I'll survive though, no doubt.

Today was probably the laziest day I've had in awhile and I must say, I loved every moment of it! I made mom and I some banana nut pancakes this morning, went back to sleep for about 3 hours, watched both "Father of the Bride" movies, had a delicious prime rib dinner. . .now I'm watching "Ghost." This has got to be one the few movies that makes me cry every time I watch it. Whoopi Goldberg is hilarious. Definitley a good one though!

April Fools, Music, A Little of This and That. . .

Goodmorning! It is April 1st, can you believe it? I can't!

I really want to fool someone today, but I have no idea who or how. This is the first year that I've got nothing clever up my sleeve. Anyway, I'm just thrilled that it's April! This is my final month and definitley another busy one- the big project is due April 21st, I take the ESL PLACE test on April 24th (yes, I registered for the RIGHT test this time!), and my last day of student teaching is April 30th. . . and that's it! Then I'll be a free woman. I'm in the home stretch starting today!

It's 9:30am and surprisingly, I'm feeling very awake and well-rested considering the fact I only got 6 hours of sleep last night. I'm back at Joe's Coffee for session two of spending hours working on the BIG project. Oh and for the fabulous coffee too, of course! You know what's funny? I've liked coffee for a few years now, but I didn't really start drinking it a lot until January, when I started student teaching. Before student teaching, I maybe drank it once a week or less, but now it's almost every day. On days I'm really lacking energy in the classroom, its sometimes twice a day! Thank goodness that doesn't happen very often. I've made a deal with myself that once summer gets here, I'm cutting back to drinking it twice a week. . . maybe three times. . . maybe four times if there's a special occasion or something. This is going to be a battle, can't you tell? haha.

On the subject of coffee, I would love to own my own coffee shop someday. I would want to name it after a yoga pose like "Namaste Coffee" or something like that. I think it would be cool to have a jukebox that plays instrumental music like New Age and Classical music, with no vocals. . .it would make the atmosphere much more peaceful. I always bring my laptop and iPod to coffee shops because sometimes the music they play is too much for me when I'm trying to study and I'd rather to listen to something more peaceful and relaxing that I can work to. And what's up with the coffee shops that close at like 7:30pm? I know that I am a person who works better out of the house and I get so much more done when I'm in a social setting like a coffee shop, but I'm usually working away long after 7:30pm! My coffee shop is going to be open from 5:30am until midnight so that people like me can go somewhere that's open late, other than home, to get their work done. I think I'll also have some kind of punch card system for college students where if they buy 9 cups of coffee, then they get a free coffee and pastry the tenth time. . .or something similar to that.

My mind is on music right now after talking about the jukebox I'm going to have in my coffee shop. Lately, I've been listening to a lot of older stuff like Elvis Presley, Elton John, and Fleetwood Mac. It's been good homework music these days. I've also fallen completely in love with Xavier Rudd! He's a little more on the hippie side, but I think he rocks. Itunes categorizes his music in the genre of "pop," but it doesn't sound much like pop music to me. Either way, its good stuff. The other day, someone asked me what my top ten favorite songs are and I had the hardest time answering that question! It kind of just depends on the month, or the week and sometimes even the day. As of right now, at this very moment, here is my list (not in any special order):

1.) "Choices" by Xavier Rudd

2.) "Learning to Fly" by Tom Petty (this song has been on my top favorites list for 5 years now)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5BJXwNeKsQ

3.) "Del Fuego" by Fat Freddy's Drop

4.) "Let's Call it Off" by Peter Bjorn and John

5.) "Twist"by Xavier Rudd

6.) "Volcano" by Jimmy Buffet

7.) "Fidelity" by Regina Spektor

8.) "Send a Message" by The Black Seeds

9.) "Music" by The Beautiful Girls

10.) "Stuck on You" by Elvis Presley

That is quite a random list if I do say so myself! Music is bliss.

I'm looking out the window right now and I guess God is the first to play an April's fools joke on me. . .it's snowing again!