Trying to hold on...

As you can see, there have been few blog posts recently.

Life has been fairly hectic. From school to home work, from play rehearsals after school to traveling with the Competitive Speech Team to our first tournament. From morning rehearsals to grading papers and drama tests. I am finding that the school year schedule has kicked in at last.

We open our fall play next week, 2 1/2 weeks earlier this year than last in hopes that as we get farther into the semester, we can have some breathing room. Right now there is more gasping than breathing. We had Homecoming only two and a half weeks ago and had a complete Homecoming set on that stage...to see it now is AMAZING. We have transformed the stage into a fully functional Victorian home complete with grand staircase, antique furniture (donated from all over), and draperies. Fabric covered walls, stained glass windows, and costumes that will blow your mind. I keep thinking...this is truly amazing...for a high school program to have THIS many artistic opportunities for students to express themselves, to be provided this amazing opportunity in a high school setting blows my mind. HUGE. Just plain HUGE.

One of the neat things about this year though is that there is most definitely a feel that this year is "different" than the last 2 years. I can definitely feel less agitation when I come to work. I am finding that I have found my groove when it comes to teaching. Sure there are times when I feel less prepared than others, but I also can feel that the pressure is off...from taking tests, from attending Saturday classes, from dealing with in-class observations, from the pressures of having to create EVERYTHING from scratch to fit my knowledge and syllabus. I now have files, and flash drives, and can turn to them in the drop of a hat.

We have a new faculty member in our department who has the task of going down the same road I did these last two years. I can see it in her eyes and am trying to be there for her. I completely understand how overwhelming those first two years can be...that feeling of just barely breaking the surface, sometimes feeling like you are about to sink. Thankfully, I had folks who were there to pick me up, reattach my water wings and give me the slight push I needed. Thank GOD for WATER WINGS! :)

I do however find great solace in finally having my own home. I feel great peace when I walk in the door, greeted by my partner, and can just sit down and relax. My home may not be in the best situation yet, but we truly have only been in here for about three weeks. We are still unpacking, painting, fixing, and getting things to the "way we like it". But there is a light at the end of the tunnel here as well and you can all expect pictures posted soon of the results. We are excited to share the fun things we have found and come up with in our home.

We have a few days off in the next few weeks. I count those days down...I shouldn't but I do. I think that those days are greatly earned...