Bye Bye Summer...

The panic attack I had in my classroom last week, induced by the amount of work I still have to do, quickly reminded me that summer is over. :( And that makes me sad.

I have had such an amazing summer at home with my boy. We've spent days on the road, in the sun, in the water, and on the couch. He's super excited to be going into the first grade and I'm excited/anxious about starting my first year teaching. I know when school starts we will go back to our strict routines...school, homework, dinner, bath, book, prayers, bed. Chase (and Mommy) will thrive off of this routine and our relaxing days together will be long gone. In an effort to try to remember and say goodbye to this awesome summer, I made a list of 5 things that made this summer amazing....

1. The Water! We went to a local park with a few slides twice, went to White Water and ran around like I was a kid again, and spent countless day in the pool throwing Chase and watching him almost grow gills. He is more tan than I've ever seen him and he's such a great swimmer! With the summers in GA, we may be able to continue this on the weekends until Halloween!!

2. My pink bandanna. See number 1? The water led to several days of no makeup and letting my hair air dry. It was great to be able to wake up, throw the bandanna on and be done!

3. Parties. And lots of them! We had parties at the Worthans for Memorial Day and July 4th. We also had a great birthday party for Chase. (All of these also included #1). (And probably #2)! We played and swam and drank with friends. The pool is starting to be filled more with children than adults and I love it!

4. The Bachelorette. This season was great! Heather and I had a date night once a week and became fascinated by the amount of weirdos and romeos on this show. It was a fun way to have some adult time during our week, and Heather always had a late night snack for us!

5. School Supplies. This includes, but is not limited to, teacher websites, forums, blogs, professional development classes, classroom management books, lesson plans, frantic phone calls to Heather E., online shopping for supplies, TONS of to do lists...etc. I know this is supposed to be my summer vacation, but I couldn't help being drawn to every office/school supply in WalMart or online. I've made countless lists and watched the pile in my office grow until there was no room left (and I banned myself from all things school supplies related). The pile was a constant reminder that this wonderful summer is going to come to a screeching halt very, very soon.

Well. As of yesterday the pile is gone. Everything has been moved to my classroom and the pile was replaced by a computer and a small desk for Chase. I used to stare at that pile and get so anxious waiting for the day that it would be gone and in my classroom. Honestly, it's even more depressing with it gone. Summer is officially over. New Teacher orientation is tomorrow. Preplanning is next week. First day of school the next. This is what I have been waiting for, right? But I still can't help but feel sad to say goodbye to an awesome summer. Hopefully once I FINALLY get into my classroom (janitors...floors...DON'T ask.) I will get my mojo back and it will be an amazing school year.

Until then...I still have today. :) Maybe I'll throw on my pink banadana and play in the water with my boy!!

Twilight

I read this 500 page book in under 24 hours. Once I got 100 pages in I was hooked. It is a very easy read, but there were times during the book when my heart raced and I couldn't turn the page fast enough. It has given me some much needed distraction over the weekend as I wait for this crazy, busy week to start. Only two weeks until the first day of school! Good thing I picked up the next book in the series to dive into when things get crazy this week!

If you haven't read this book, you should sink your teeth into it as soon as possible!! :)

After pictures!

So the past week or so has been a little busy. I have been starting to freak out and prepare for my classroom, that I STILL have not been inside of since the before pictures, but I've been able to get a ton of work done from home! Including...my bookshelves!! Remember these??? Well...ugly, awful bookshelves have been turned into THESE! My very
pregnant Heather
came over to help! I love them!!

A great start to the holiday weekend...

Tonight I met a few of the women I went to school with for so long. When it comes to Mercer, we've been through it ALL together, and I'm honestly not sure I would have stuck it out if I didn't have these girls to lean on! We've come so far together, and still sat at the table tonight shocked, saying "Can you believe it?? We are actually teachers!" :)

I wish we could get together more often, but I'm so thankful to have a dinner out with them every few weeks. Kristen made us the CUTEST wooden blocks personalized with "Mrs. Addison's Class" to hang from our door. She even matched the themes of our classrooms! Adorable!!

As the next few weeks fly by and I get closer and closer to the first day of school, I know I will be making daily phone calls to these girls. I feel like they truly understand my anxiety and excitement and I can't wait until we can get together again! You girls ROCK!!

MORE before pictures!

I realized I have all of these 'before' pictures! I have a lot of work to do to meet all of these 'after' expectations I'm setting! Pre-planning is right around the corner, and I found out that I'm locked out of the school the rest of this week and next week too! I'm trying not to stress and think about all the work I have to do in that classroom (yeah, it still looks the same as though before classroom pictures a few posts back).

So my classroom came equipped with three very old, very thickly painted bookshelves. There is no telling how long these shelves have looked this way, but I really couldn't stand it! So here are the 'before' pictures. The shelves had to be sanded, then primed, then painted. Then hopefully the fabulous and artistic Heatherbean came come over here and add some detailing before she easily and painlessly spits that baby out!! (Using The Secret Heather!!)

My Big Boy...

Chase turned 6 years old one week ago today. I know it's crazy, but I really think he looks different as a 6 year old than he did the week before when he was 5. I told him so too, the morning of his birthday...

Me: "Chase! You look 6 already! How are you getting so big?"

Chase: (bummed) "I dunno...I know I'm 6, but I still feel 5."

Me: "Maybe it'll take a few days..."

A few days later he came up to me and said, "I don't feel like I'm 5 anymore! I can tell I'm 6!" He's getting SO tall and lanky and growing up way too fast. We've had an amazing summer at home together, and I am so thankful that I am going to have summers like this with him for a long time. We had a pool party for his birthday and friends and family came to celebrate. We had great food and a great time! Happy Birthday Big Boy!...(p.s. you'll always be my baby)

And so it begins...

These are officially my 'before' pictures of the room I will spend most of the next year in. There is so much to do! My room also came with three very old, very dirty, very thickly painted bookshelves. I have some before pictures of those I will post soon. It's an old building, but I'm hoping that after I'm finished with it old will = character. :) Wish me luck!!