First Day

Today was my first day back at school.

Well actually, it was an in-service day, but technically I was back to work. The kids come back tomorrow.

Transitioning from summer break to the school year is not easy. I’ve heard a lot of people talk about how spoiled teachers are with their months of vacation. Well, I know for a fact that I work a year’s worth in those nine & a half months, & I think most teachers would say the same.

During the summer, while I definitely didn’t sleep in & lounge around in my pjs all day (or at least not every day), I could still do whatever I wanted once I woke up. It was easy to get up & go to the gym at 5:20AM, because I knew I could nap later in the day. Nap time is a rare thing September through June!

So… what do my days look like now? Here’s a quick run down of how today went:

• 5:00AM – Alarm goes off
• 5:15 AM – Roll out of bed & get read for work
• 7:20AM – Leave for work (6:40AM on a “normal” day.)
• 8:00AM-3:30PM – Work (7:30-3:00/3:30ish on a “normal” day.)
• 3:30PM-4:00PM – Errands
• 4:00PM-4:45PM – Walk Stewie & do some stuff around the apartment
• 5:00PM – 5:45PM – Gym
• 6:00PM – 7:00PM – Cook & eat dinner
• 7:00PM – 7:30ishPM – Blog
• 7:30PM – Bedtime (usually around 10:00PM) – Shower/relax/prepare for tomorrow

I am a scheduler. I like to know what my days consist of.

I’ve realized that the only way I’ll be able to keep up a healthy lifestyle (& the blog) is by having a schedule & sticking to it. Of course there will be some days that I’m busier than others. Some days I will need to stay late at school, or have to go back in the evening for parent/teacher conferences. Some days, I’ll want to curl up on the couch with Chris & Stewie & not worry about blogging. There might even be an extra “rest day” from the gym appearing on my Workout Log.

However, when all is said & done, it’s important to me to keep up the healthy lifestyle I’ve grown accustomed to this summer. Going to the gym is something that must happen frequently for me. I love writing this blog, so that’s a non-negotiable as well.  It’s a necessity that I keep trying new things & cooking in the kitchen – not allowing myself to fall back into the “frozen dinner trap” again!

It will definitely be a challenge to keep everything balanced, but I hope you’ll stick around to see how it all ends up! 🙂

I’ll leave you with a few pictures I snapped of my classroom today. After all, I’ll be spending a lot of time here through June!

 

What are your best time management tips? I write a to do list every night for the following day!

The Waiting Game

I’ve become very good at waiting this week!

First, there was the furniture fiasco, which, by the way, has all been squared away! That required two days of me pretty much hanging out in the new apartment, waiting for time to pass.

Today, I had to wait for the cable & internet guy to come get us all set up. Thinking back, it would have been wise to get the cable & internet set up first to make the other waiting a little more bearable! Live & learn! 😉

Before heading to the apartment this morning, I made a quick pit stop at Target. I love Target & have convinced myself that there is some sort of hidden vortex at the store entrance that sucks you in & doesn’t allow you to leave without spending at least $20!

After purchasing my goods (yes, over $20 worth, so I was free to go!) I picked up an iced coffee at Starbucks.

Because neither Chris or I are really living in our apartment yet, we have no food & I need to pack my breakfast & lunch from home!

I enjoyed the iced coffee with a Thomas’ Cinnamon-Raisin English Muffin & a banana. It hit the spot!

I had a little more unpacking/dishwashing/laundry to do today, but we are pretty settled in. Now, onto the “cosmetic” stuff – curtains, wall decor, etc. And we need a new desk, too!

I spent a good portion of the afternoon organizing all of my school documents on my computer! I’m usually a pretty organized person, but things get out of control during the school year & I created quite a mess for myself!

I took a break for lunch & enjoyed pizza leftovers! My mom went out to dinner at a restaurant called Austin’s last night, & brought me back a personal flatbread pizza. I chose the Roasted Tomato & Basil – Thin crisp pizza brushed with garlic, topped with mozzarella cheese, tomatoes & basil.

Because I had quite a few samplings of yesterday’s “cookies,” I didn’t have much of an appetite for the pizza in the evening, which ended up being a good thing because the leftovers were pretty delish.

Eventually the cable/internet guy came, got us up & running, & I was free to go home to my little pug!

Not quite sure what’s on the agenda for tonight, but relaxing sounds pretty good to me! Enjoy the start of your weekend! 🙂

Two Questions…

Leftovers – love ‘em or leave ‘em? I love leftovers! Easy, convenient, & sometimes even tastier the second time around!

Are you a patient person? I definitely am not!

The Who & The What

I mentioned on my About Me page that I’m a high school English teacher. I figured some one you might be wondering a little more about my occupation, & if you’re not, well… tough cookies! 😉

My first year of teaching I taught American literature to 11th grade students. I worked at a small, Catholic high school, so I literally taught the entire 11th grade. I loved this job, but moved onto to a different high school after I completed my first year of teaching.

For the past two years I’ve been teaching 10th & 11th grade students. The 10th grade students study a survey of literature, & the 11th grade students focus on American literature. In addition to literature, we study grammar, vocabulary, & writing. For this upcoming school year, I plan to have the same schedule (as far as I know!) & I’ll also be picking up the yearbook class, which should definitely be an “adventure.”

I became an English teacher because that was always my favorite class when I was in school. Actually, I didn’t realize people didn’t enjoy English until I started student teaching! What?! Everyone doesn’t love to read & write?! Preposterous!  I’ve always enjoyed writing & would feel more comfortable writing an essay than completing a test.

I figured I’d share with you all a just a few of my favorite novels, some of which I’m lucky enough to teach!

(source)                                       (source)                                 (source)

• The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Of Mice & Men, by John Steinbeck
• They Cage the Animals at Night, by Jennings Michael Burch
• The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath
• The Help, by Kathryn Stockett
• Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
• If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, by Laura Numeroff 😉

                                                             (source) 

Three questions for tonight!

1) What was your favorite subject in school?

2) If you had to pick one favorite book, what would it be?

3) Are you currently reading anything? If so, what?

Here are my answers:

1) English… duh!

2) The Great Gatsby

3) Water for Elephants