So on Saturday May 28th I turned 29 years old. I can not believe I only have one more year in my 20's! It is crazy how time flies!
I had a great Birthday....
It started on Friday with these...
And then on Saturday afternoon this was delivered....
...notice the cute little frog (Fernando is his name) in the corner....he is pretty precious....I finished off Saturday night with a great dinner and conversation with a friend. I did not realize how much I missed real adult conversation and I look forward to more.
Sunday I had brunch with my mom, sister and brother-in-law at Red Rocks in Birkdale Village, one of my favorite restaurants. Then I got to shop till I dropped at my favorite store, Ann Taylor Loft, thanks to some money from my mom....and then to finish off the day I had dinner and drinks on the lake with Abbie and after dinner we enjoyed some vino on my front porch and enjoyed the new furniture....
And then to finish off the birthday celebration, tonight I had a great dinner at my parents house and this was dessert...a red velvet cupcake....
Honestly, I had a great birthday! I am so blessed and as I have said now for a while, these last six months have been great. I have a wonderful feeling about the next year. I truly believe twenty-nine is going to be my year. As I look back at my list I put in one of my very first posts about what I wanted to accomplish this year, I can happily say I have accomplished almost every single item on my list. Only a couple more to go, and I am working on those as we speak! I thank God everyday before I go to sleep for my many blessings and the strength he has given me. I look forward to the next year and the many things to come!
I am moving onward and upward my friends and I am in the best place I have been in a long time!
When I left my last job and joined a new high school, I was terrified, anxious, and excited all at the same time. But to this day, I remember something my dear friend Iva told me, everything happens for a reason. There is a reason I got this job,and it was more than just being an AP. When I walked into WIHS, I knew I belonged...as I have been introduced to some very special people, I knew they were meant to be in my life, even if it meant leaving some others behind. In my last post you got to see some of my lovely co-workers and friends who have made my transition into a new job pretty easy. I wish there were a few more people who would have made the pictures, as I hate they were left out. Today I feel so blessed to be able to share my other good news, because after many years of dreaming, today I became a homeowner. I have not shared any pictures or many details with most of my friends because I wanted to make sure the house was mine first. So today, I closed on the house and I can officially declare I am a HOMEOWNER!
I will not share too many pictures yet, because I am a perfectionist and no one will see it until it is complete. Some may say that will be a while, but those who have seen me unpack a house or apt before know I do not stop until I am done! Below you will see a picture of the exterior and my first accessory purchase. When I walked into the house one of the first things I loved was the green kitchen, so when I went to a friends scentsy party and saw this particular scentsy jar with the Celtic Love Knot I knew it was mine! When I sat it down on the counter today, it was perfect. I look forward to decorating and making this home my own. I promise I will share more pictures as rooms gets finished, and I look foward to having visitors too!
Just wanted to share some pictures from prom and some of my new friends and coworkers at WIHS. They truly have been a blessing in this transition in my life!
In the last 24 years of my life in the world of education whether as a student, teacher, or administrator, I have been blessed to meet and work with many wonderfully talented and dedicated educators. I first want to take a moment to give a shout out to a few of them who have influenced me and helped me recognize the type of educator I wanted to be:
My kindergarten and 2nd grade teacher Mrs. Hopkins
My 4th grade teacher Mrs. Templeton (although she will always be Miss Willingham to me)
My 6th grade English teacher Mrs. McDaniel
My former boss'/principals Mr. Bumgarner and Ms. Moree
My cooperating teachers Mr. Price and Mr. Elder
Former co-workers Josh Hartis, Bill Vinson, Angie Hickerson
These people have so many of the qualities that make them what I consider to be real educators: Confidence, Patience, Understanding, Dedication, Open-Mindedness, Passionate, Inspiring, Creative, and Flexible- just to name a few.
I want to thank each of these people for making a difference in my life as well as so many students throughout the years! We need more people just like you!
Now....I want to share a story from just yesterday...it was truly the perfect ending to the week....
After school yesterday, yes on a Friday afternoon when everyone is ready to go home, I spent an extra 3 hours at school having a conversation with a teacher in my building. It was such a great conversation. It made me leave the building proud to work with someone of his caliber. I truly believe he may be the most dedicated teacher I have ever met and I am proud to know him and proud that he works in my building! This teacher is so dedicated to his students and their success. He understands the importance of building relationships with students and how this directly connects to their success in school and life. This teacher puts in more hours than anyone I know. It is clear he knows his job is not one that is the standard , but it is a 24hrs a day 7 days a week kind of job. I do not know that there are many times during the day he is not thinking about what he can do to be better at his job and help the students more. When his students are in need of something, he finds a way to get it for them. When his students are having personal issues whether at school or at home, he finds them help and he never forgets them. Sometimes he can worry so much, I think he forgets about himself. No one is perfect, but he is what I consider an ideal teacher. I can only imagine if there were more like him.
I have found there are three types of teachers. Teachers like I have mentioned about above that are in it for the students, teachers who care but for their own agenda, and then those who just teach to have a job.
I find it unfortunate that the latter two exist, especially because there is no real money in education. I find the pay is more in gratification when we see success in the life of a student. If people are teaching for themselves or just for a job, I just don’t believe they are getting the gratification of student success. It is my experience these teachers do not have successful students and are not really happy.
It has become my goal as I grow as an administrator to help teachers to develop into ones like above as well as recruit more teachers like those who have influenced me.
Happy Educator Appreciation Week to my many friends and thank you for your dedication!
Onward and upward my friends and only 25 more days of school!
I know it has been a while, but it has been a super busy couple of months. Everytime I thought to get on and start writing I would decide sleep was more important, because I feel like I am not getting much good sleep these days.
So anyways, I guess I will share my big news....one of the things that has kept me pretty busy....
I am buying my very first house! It has been frustrating, scary and very exciting all at the same time. I have looked at many, many houses and I just could not find anything that I could see myself in or afford....and then it happened. I really was not sure I wanted to go the townhouse route, but I decided to look at some anyways. I looked at two on the same day, and when I walked into the second one...I knew it was the one. It is totally me and I will have to do very little to make it my own. We just agreed today on the contract, so there is much to do before it is really mine, but I can not help but share the news and my excitement.
As things progress I will keep you updated and even share some pictures!
For now, onward and upward....and for my educator friends out there...two things, Happy Teacher Appreciation Week and 28 days till summer!!!! :)
