Success!
I have been so busy lately that I have not had time to write. I got the journalism job! I am so happy with this news. I found out about two weeks or so. The principal called me in the afternoon, and told me the good news. This is been something that I’ve wanted for a very long time.
The journalism teacher that is leaving reached out to me via email. She invited me to her school to talk about the program. I arrived in the room was really neat and I was just making mental notes about what I could do with it. Most of the things were taken off of the wall for the year, but it definitely has awesome potential.
What I really wish she would’ve done, is create me a Google doc or something so where she outlines what to expect with journalism, photojournalism, newspaper and yearbook. However she did not do that. We basically sat together for four hours and talked about all the things that were around her. She really was nice as she could be. But a little more planning would’ve been awesome. At least that’s what I’m doing for my person is taking over for me.
I asked her about a few specific lesson plans that were successful with the students, and she told me that she has not put lesson plans in for the entire year! I could not believe it. She told me the first few years that she did, however this last one she did not.
I know that an advisor is somebody who his hands off, however she seems to be a little bit too hands off for my liking with the students. She produces amazing yearbooks at that school, so somehow she successfully traines students to know what they are doing and they also get all their good content at your book camps. So thank God for that! I have three yearbook camps set up for the summer. I’m really excited about these! As nerdy as it sounds!One thing I was kind of surprised to notice, was that the design on some of these books or maybe was just the books and I was seeing, was a little outdated. Not that I’m any design connoisseur, however I hope to help these kids and kind of bring them up to speed. 🙂
There is a lot of content that I need to brush up on. Such as photography sites, use of YouTube so I know what I’m doing with these particular types of cameras, and just the day-to-day existence in the classroom. But overall I do feel very happy that I have taken on this role. If you had asked me that question after I met with her for four hours, the answer would probably be that I was a little scared and overwhelmed!
When we were talking in her office, she had the door open and she had these editors and they’re just hanging around. And I kid you not these editors were eavesdropping on our entire conversation. For four hours! If that had been me, I would’ve been letting them hang for 10 minutes, and then I would’ve asked them to leave. Because they were cutting up, and acting goofy sometimes, and I just didn’t feel it was appropriate. Maybe I am just a Nazi when it comes to this new job or new experience, but I was just raised a little bit in the way you treat people you meet or the experience you are about to give them. Again, only a slight snag, but nonetheless very excited.
I packed up my classroom in art, and it was very bittersweet. Some of the stuff, well most of the stuff I threw away willingly. Some stuff I couldn’t throw away and I had to keep for my journalism room. At the end of the day I was absolutely exhausted! I did that all on my own and thank goodness the last hour of my day a friend helped me pack up more.
I didn’t really think that I would hear any goodbye from the PE teachers at school, and I was certainly correct on that. They are pretty much the laziest PE teachers I think I’ve ever seen in my life. They’re both grossly overweight and they just sat in their office and let their para teacher do all of the work for them.The para teacher is very sweet but he is clueless when people are taking advantage of him. It’s no sweat off my back that I’ll never see either one of them again.
It was really bittersweet to leave my lunch bunch crew. We come from all walks of life, and we have a good history with each other, and it was hard to leave them. I know that I’m gonna be starting over. I feel like in my life I start over so many times. It takes a while to get to know me, because I wouldn’t call myself an introvert, I just know that I like to listen more than talk. And I love to just watch people. That’s just me!
I received some really nice parent emails once people start of finding out that I was leaving. The community is a strange community, however they seem to be very supportive of the arts. They do seem a little absent for their children, but maybe that’s just me.
Eliza, my oldest, got an amazing grades on her report card yet again. For her reward for doing so well on her report card, she wanted some perfume! So we went to a kid store that caters to her age and she got a unicorn spray that is pink and glittery that she loves. Ah to be seven again!
Page, my four-year-old, still a ray of sunshine and brightens everybody’s day with her incredible energy. We spent the weekend attending a graduation party for a little friend of hers that’s about to go to kindergarten that was at her daycare. It was really really hot, but the kids enjoyed it and they played outside at a park near our house that we had yet to discover! It was such a cool park.
We are currently in Austin Texas at the moment. We leave for England tomorrow afternoon. As a family this is a huge trip for us because neither one of my kids of ever been on airplane. This flight is going to be nine hours long! And it will be 10 on the way back. We try not to give our kids too much tablet time, however this is an absolute free-for-all! 🙂 We have a rental car they were going to pick up, and then from there it’ll be a 3 Hour Dr. self down to Matt’s hometown. We are all very excited about this and Charlotte my sister-in-law’s going to be pulling out her Kids for a few days while our kids are there in town. After about a week or so, we will drive north to see my brother, who is there for work in London. We will spend three nights in London, and then we will head back to Houston. It’s a long journey with kids, however they have done so much growing up since last time that we’ve traveled that I really hope it continues.
Right now Matt is at work, at a site here in Austin. The girls and I have gone to an aquarium this morning, had a nice lunch, been to the bookstore, and now he found a local park near our hotel that’s really cool. They both got their face painted today by a mermaid at the aquarium and they loved it!
Well I’m going to wrap up this time at the park with them in a little while, then will head to the hotel and either get settled in or pick up my husband. Then it’s off to dinner for us. And hopefully a good nights sleep!