Busy but Blessed

      This week has been harder than the previous ones. I took over full teaching responsibilities on Monday, and I also began my seminar class on Monday night. Those two things made this week one that wore me out! It was also REALLY beginning to wear on me to spend so much time away from Ryan. I fall asleep on Sunday night and don't see him again until Friday night or Saturday morning. Even though I get to talk to him a little (but not very much at all) during the week, it still sucks not to be able to see him and spend time with him. I hope by the time I start teaching for real, he has a job on a different shift. Second shift is just NOT family friendly!

      I still enjoy teaching. I LOVE my students and I love being responsible for their learning; I just feel torn. I wish there was more time in the day, so I could teach full time and still be with my family a lot of the time, too. Maybe as time passes, I will get used to being so busy. I know teaching won't be as busy as student teaching, but it will still be pretty close. I just miss my baby girl and hubby so much during the week. I go to school in the morning, teach all day, leave and pick Rylee up, get home, start dinner, play with Rylee for a minute, feed her dinner, eat dinner, put Rylee in the bath, pick up the apartment, put Rylee to bed, talk to Ryan on the phone for about 15 minutes, then go to bed myself. Every single day it's the same. I want more time to actually interact with my child. I want more time to talk to and see my husband. But don't get me wrong, I am happy. I enjoy what I do, and while I'm at school with those students, I'm not sad and missing my family the whole time. Most days I don't even have time to think about them while I'm at school. It just wears on me over the week when I feel like I'm not getting enough time with them altogether.

      So now I look forward to my weekends a little bit more! And this weekend was a great one. Yesterday, Ryan, Rylee and I went to Covington. We went to Gamestop and used some gift cards Ryan had gotten for Christmas. You know how grown men are about video games! Haha! Then we went to Walmart and got some grocery shopping done. When we got home, Ryan worked on his schoolwork and I wrote my lesson plans. When we finished we played with Buggy, had dinner, but her to bed, then played Fortune Street. Today we went to church, then came home and had lunch. Rylee napped while Ryan and I watched a movie. Then we went to the park! We all had a blast. It may not sound like much, but spending the entire weekend with my little family makes me happier than you can imagine!

    It amazes me how my life has turned out so far. In just over 3 months, I will be graduating college as a licensed early childhood educator. Around the same time, I will be celebrating my 3rd anniversary with the love of my life. And a month later the best baby in the whole wide world will be turning two. I am so blessed and thankful for all that I have.

Just Going Along

     Week 3 of student teaching was a short week, but a LONG week. It felt like it would never end! I love being in the classroom and I enjoyed my time with my kiddos last week, but the 3 day weekend had me all messed up and I was tired all week long. This week I've taken completely over the classroom. It's easier than I thought it'd be. I love teaching.

     Saturday, Ryan and I went car shopping! We paid off my car with my scholarship check this semester, so it was his turn for a new(er) ride. He picked out this beauty! A 2009 Dodge Avenger SXT with the sports package. I was amazed that we found a 2009 with less than 25,000 miles on it!! It was at the top of our budget so we had to work some magic, but we managed to finance it at a reasonable rate, so we could make it ours! Ryan is ecstatic. He has a new baby! :)

   Rylee has been good. This new antibiotic has been giving her tummy troubles, so she's been dealing with that, but she's still as good and as hyper as ever. She's so playful and sweet. She makes life such a joy. She's saying something new everyday now. And she says the funniest things; I LOVE that kid. I got a little depressed last week about spending time away from her and Ryan. I just love them so much and would prefer to spend ALL my time with them. But I really love teaching and I know I'm on the right track.

Doctor Update

     Today was Rylee's big Dr. appointment. I got up early and made her her favorite breakfast, pancakes. She ate 1 and 1/2 and it gave her lots of energy. She was running around the apartment being silly this morning before we left. Once we got in the car, she got pretty quiet and somber. She has been running fever on and off all week, and I had a feeling her fever was back. Her temperature was right at 100 when we got into the Dr's office. Before Dr. Melton even checked her ears, I knew what he was going to say.

     Rylee's double ear infection did not go away. She had been on an antibiotic for 10 days, and all her ear infection did was get worse, so now she is on a different antibiotic. Therefore, this visit was not as eventful as we were prepared for it to be. Dr. Melton said it would be best to check her levels again when she is not sick, so he is going to do all those tests in 2 weeks, after her infection has cleared up. However, Rylee gained 1.5 lbs, and he seemed very happy about that! He said he's pretty sure that everything is fine, but she was definitely under-eating before.

    We gave Rylee some ibuprofen as we left the Dr.'s office, and she started to be more playful again. We went to Walmart and then to Applebee's, and she was all over the place. She kept climbing up into the windowsill and sitting there. Eventually, I stopped trying to make her get down and just laughed at how silly and strong-willed she is. Goodness, I love that little girl!

Getting into Routine

      This week we have definitely been trying to get into a new routine, but I think we've got it now! I have majorly enjoyed student teaching and even though this week was longer than the one before, I felt much less tired. I think I've gotten myself used to this new routing. Rylee was harder to get adjusted. She got used to staying over Granny's and Nonna's most of the night last semester when I had night class four nights a week. When I get there to pick her up at a little after 4, she is not ready to go. She pitched a fit almost every day when it was time to go, but once we get home, she's just fine. She'll get used to it soon.

      Otherwise, our routine is pretty set. I get up and go to school. Ryan and Rylee have their morning together. Rylee goes to nap while Ryan does school work and gets ready to go to work. Ryan drops Rylee off at Granny's. I come to pick her up about an hour later. I take her home and she watches cartoons while I make dinner. We eat. We play. I give her a bath, read to her, then put her to bed. I get a shower and go to bed. Repeat. It goes so smoothly. I'm really liking the rhythm of things. I hate that I don't see Ryan during the week, but everything is so busy, that the weekend comes faster than I thought it would. I have no complaints. :)

      Tomorrow is the big Dr. appointment. I'm a little nervous, but I do feel that everything is going to be just fine. The picture on the left was taken on New Year's Eve, the picture on the right was taken yesterday. Is it just me, or have her cheeks filled out more in the last few weeks? I think it's a good sign that she's gained some weight. Now, if only her levels have gone back to normal. That would mean we're completely in the clear! :) Just keep praying, and I'll update tomorrow when we know something for sure...

It's a Whole New World

      This week was my first week of student teaching. It started on Tuesday with orientation, and then Wednesday was my first day in the classroom. I am in a Kindergarten class at Munford Elementary, and I love it! The kids are so funny, and my cooperating teacher is very helpful. I was worried that I would get a CT that wouldn't teach me very much or work with me at all, but Ms. Tiffany is not that way at all. She has already taught me a lot, and she has been very helpful. I will start taking over little by little on Wednesday. I am excited. Ms. Tiffany has already planned for me to have my own table during centers, so I have been teaching some, just not officially because I'm doing things by her plans instead of writing my own right now.

      I really need to get used to getting up early and being on my feet all day, though, because this week wore me out! I was exhausted by Friday, but I had a lot of fun. I also didn't have as hard a time being away from Rylee as I usually do. I guess that means I really enjoy what I'm doing! Plus, she has had A LOT of fun playing with her daddy every morning while I'm gone. I come and pick her up not too long after he heads to work, so she gets to spend most of her time at home. That really works for her. The only down side is that I don't get to see Ryan all week long. He's in bed when I leave, and I'm in bed when he gets home at night. That has been hard to adjust to because I miss him a lot, but I don't have a whole lot of time to miss him during the week, so that makes it a bit easier. Spending my evenings with Rylee makes me really happy. She's her goofiest at nighttime, and I hated missing that last semester. I painted her nails for the first time this week, and she just held her hands up in the air for the rest of the night, shouting "Pretty! Pretty!" :) Goodness, I love that child!

     At Rylee's last Dr. visit, she had not gained any weight in 3 months. The Dr. was very concerned about this, he did some tests, and told us to do our best to get her to gain some weight. After getting the tests results, he said most of her numbers were fine, but there were a few that were a little off. He said that she may have to see a specialist if things don't improve by her next visit. She has to go back on January 16th. I'm a little nervous, but she has been so good about eating well and even drinking better, that I'm really hoping that it will be enough. The first few days, she fought it and we had to force feed her a little, but now she's eating about 6 times a day and drinking 2 full sippys (20 oz) each day. That may not seem like a lot, but for her it is. She's always been a picky eater and drinker, but she's always gained weight before, so we're hoping this new effort will cause an improvement. Keep her in your prayers that all of her levels will regulate, and she will gain at least some weight before January 16th!

Ready.Set.Go!

      Tomorrow, I have student teacher orientation. Wednesday I meet my first cooperating teacher and her students. For the next 8 weeks, they will be my students, too. That excites and frightens me at the same time. I know I am capable and competent. I just fear the unknown. What if the student don't take to me? What if for some unknown reason they refuse to listen to me? What if I can't teach them anything? I know that this probably won't happen, but sometimes irrational fears are just as scary as perfectly reasonable ones.

      I must say I have thoroughly enjoyed my break with this sweet girl. I love every minute of being her mommy. I often wish it could be my one and only job, but I know she won't be small forever, and what would I do when she started school? One of the many things I love about my future career as an educator is that every few months, I get a break, some time off to be a stay-at-home-mom.

      Of course, there are lots of other things I love about teaching, too. It makes me feel important, like I'm making a difference in the lives of children. That means a lot to me. I also like how it's different everyday. Routine and schedules may be the same, but one school day will never be identical to the one before it or the one after it. The children make sure of it, and I love it. I also like the planning behind it all. When you're a child in school, you don't realize that your teacher is coming up with her lessons herself. You think there is some kind of script or something making her do everything she does. I like the creativity behind it all. Thinking of the best and most efficient way to teach a given concept. Sometimes it's trial and error, but if you effectively learn from each mistake, your students will learn, and you all will grow.

     I'm going to be pretty busy these next few months, but I don't fear for it's effect on Rylee like I have during past semesters. I feel like we have bonded a lot in these past few weeks, and that she knows without a doubt that I love her. It also helps ease my mind that she will be spending most of her time at home this semester. Because Ryan works second shift and I will be teaching during the day, she will get to be home with him all morning, and I will pick her up less than an hour after she is dropped off at Granny's on most days. Mondays will be hard, when I won't be back to pick her up until after 9 PM. But 6 days out of the week, I will be the one feeding her supper and giving her her bath, and that is the most precious gift to me.