BulgingButtons

Not bad for a fat girl


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Two Down, One Hundred Seventy-Eight to Go!

School_Clip_Art_1163School days, that is. Not that I’m counting.

Two busy, fun, kid-filled, hot, humid days. Two days of teaching rules and routines, expectations and procedures. Two days of learning new names and figuring out new personalities. Two days of writing in new notebooks and opening new text books. Two days of school supplies and notes home and practicing quiet lines.

These past two days have been exhausting, but they have also been exhilarating. I LOVE this new class. They are smart and funny and kind and they are ready for all the challenges that fourth grade will provide.

Each year I forget just how much mental energy (not to mention physical stamina) it takes to teach. I’m tired, but I’m happy. These kids are mine, and already I know we’re going to have a fantastic year. What a lucky teacher I am.


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Welcome to the 2015-2016 School Year

School starts tomorrow and once again I have that nervous, anxious, excited, crazy vibe buzzing through my veins.

Yes, my classroom is ready.welcome_back

Yes, my curriculum is ready.

Yes, I have met most of the students and many of the parents at “meet the teacher” night, and they’re amazing.

I should be fine, right?

I’ve done this a lot. It should be a breeze. A walk in the park. Just another day.

But it ISN’T just another day. It’s a really big day. The first day of school is a new beginning.

It’s a fresh start for me and for all of the students in my care. We don’t know each other, and it will take a bit of time for us to figure each other out. I will make it as simple as possible for them to understand who I am and what I expect, but they don’t usually make it quite as easy for me. Still, I’m a seasoned veteran, so I’ve got this.

I KNOW this is going to be a fantastic school year. I can feel it in my bones. Still, the jitters persist. I know it’s only because I care so much about each and every little detail. As soon as the kids show up, though, I’ll take a deep breath, welcome them to fourth grade, and do what I do best.

I can’t wait!


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If Only I Would Listen to Myself

One of the beautiful things about having a blog is that you have a record of where you’ve been what you’ve been thinking about. I know where I am now, and honesty, I’m not exactly thrilled about this place. I’m not entirely certain how I got here or why I’m here, but regardless, here I am.

I’m at a place where I know I need to get my butt in gear (again) and overcome inertia. It’s a familiar place, and in some ways it’s comfortable, but it’s unproductive, and I know it. So what to do?

Well, for one thing I just managed to give myself a quick little motivational pep talk (is that redundant? I don’t care.) by simply reading some old posts. mn016WordPress does this brilliant thing where they take the content of a post and guess at some other posts that might be related. Today, as I was making an edit to yesterday’s post about my physical, I not only noticed the linked articles, but I clicked on one. I’m glad I did.

It took me to a post I wrote when I was in a similar situation to the one I’m in now. I was dealing with all time highs on my medical chart and a feeling of being overwhelmed. Some old, same old, right? Except that I had some good advice for myself. I came to the conclusion that I should treat myself at least as well as I treat my friends. I don’t beat them up for their mistakes. I don’t love them less if they’ve gained a few pounds or missed a couple of doses of medication. I love them anyway, and I support them. I can do that for myself too. I need to. And so do you. We need to be our own best cheerleaders, focusing on the positives and bolstering ourselves up when the going gets tough. Cheerleaders don’t quit when their teams are down, they redouble their efforts to encourage them. Let’s do that for ourselves and each other. Are you ready? Go Team!