Eighteen Months: Active, Chatty, and Pushing the Limits
After I put Olivia down last night, I sat and listened to her babble to herself and her dolly in her crib. She was talking and giggling and talking and giggling…and talking and giggling for almost an hour. I snuck back into her room, scooped her up, and sat in her rocking chair to savor some extra snuggles. As I held her, tears began to stream down my face. In the morning, my little baby would be a year and a half old. How have EIGHTEEN months already passed since she was born? What happened to my tiny six pound baby who used to lay so nicely on my chest?…
Four Steps to Successfully Meal Plan & Prep
Sometimes the workweek feels like a marathon. That you have to sprint. While juggling. With your eyes closed. Ok. Maybe it’s not always that bad, but the Monday through Friday grind can definitely feel like a whirlwind. While I have not been to work outside of the home since December, I remember the feeling like it was yesterday. And, now that our family has grown, so have our responsibilities, so I can only imagine what it will feel like when I go back to school. I am working on trying to get back into some of the routines that we use throughout the school year. We have certain ways we run…
Friday SLAM #1
With my revamp, I am trying to get into the habit of posting on a regular basis, and one of my hopes for those posts is to include a weekly reflection every Friday of what I did this week for (S)elf Care, a new (L)earning or (L)ove, an (A)ction I took, and my favorite (M)om Moment of the week. Hence Friday SLAM. Here’s a look back at this past week. Self Care This past week I took some major steps in self-care. My mother in law was in town for a few days (I love when she comes to visit!), so I took advantage of the opportunity to get out of…
S I X M O N T H S
S I X M O N T H S. months have gone by since our sweet Olivia Marie arrived into this world. To say that this time has gone by quickly is an understatement. The transition to parenthood has been an abrupt (and happily welcomed) interruption to the life Brandon and I have built together over our five years of dating and subsequent five and a half years of marriage. This small human is everything we have waited for and has completed our family in a way that I didn’t even know we needed. She has brought us joy. She has challenged us. She has helped us grow. While I…
When Life Doesn’t Go As Planned
The end of this year has been…rough to say the least. Right after my last post, in OCTOBER, I got sick. Really sick. Legs turning mottled and pain all over my body sick. I have been to many doctors and gone through many tests to finally know that I do not have cancer, I do not have an autoimmune disorder, and that no one is still quite sure what is wrong with me, but that I will supposedly begin to feel better soon. Anyone who knows me knows that I like to be in control. If there is a problem, I make a plan, and I fix it. Uncertainty is…
Why “Workxiety” is Real and What I’m Doing to Combat it This Year
Soooo it’s been a while since I’ve last written. There are so many reasons why. Mainly, I’ve been enjoying summer! We’ve been to California and back on a wonderful trip with my sister and brother-in-law. I’ve also been cooking up a few classroom projects that I will share soon. But for today, I want to focus on my current struggle—pre-school stress! I’ve got a nifty new phrase for it from my gal pal and teacher friend Patty—workxiety. Why is workxiety a thing for teachers even before school starts? I am not 100% sure about your school districts, but over here, things seem to be constantly in flux. We report for…
Work Space–REVAMPED!
Organization and decoration—two of my favorite things! This summer, I really wanted to give my office a makeover, hoping that would inspire me to utilize the space much more. Something I am consistently trying to improve is my work/life balance and this space is something I hope will help me do that. Some of you might be asking: What does space have to do with work/life balance? Isn’t that about time? Leaving work and work? Well, as my fellow educators know (and MANY of my friends and family in other career fields—shout out to my lawyer sister!) leaving work at work is not always possible. However, it is possible to…
A Summer of Reflection & Motivation
It is not often that we get the opportunity to slow down and reflect. On the last day of school this year, which was already a month ago (!!!), we had a “half-cap” ceremony for our sophomore students. During the half-cap ceremony many sophomore students were recognized for their accomplishments and successes from this year. While I did not teach all of the students, it was such a positive and uplifting end to the school year. On the last day of school, I also had to say good-bye to one of the teachers at school who truly helped me to become the teacher that I am today. While we will…
