Spring is in the air!!

Let me begin by saying that I like winter, I really do. Winter to me means holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas), time with family, no school, possibility of snow, etc. However, after January, I am ready to winter to leave and for spring to arrive. I love spring, it is one of my favorite times of the year, mostly because you can still breathe outside in Georgia, but also because you can spend more time outside, and summer is right around the corner. To kick off the first day of spring, Max and I headed outside to conquer our flower beds.

Typically, we have flowers in our flower beds year round. After our zinnia died with the first frost in October (like the label said they would), we would have planted pansies. But, being that it was the middle of football season, and I was working long hours at work, we ran out of time, so our flower beds have been bare since October.

We went to church this morning, and then headed to Pike's nursery to see what looked good. Max's job when it comes to our flower beds is to research what flowers we will plant. Together, we clean out the flower beds, and he tills in the soil and manure. This year, he decided he wanted to plant snap dragons until we could plant zinnias in April, early May.

While Max was scoping out the snap dragons, I was looking at flowers to fill my antique wash bin I bought last year and patio furniture. I have been wanting patio furniture forever, but we don't have a large enough patio (if you can even call it that, it is more like a concrete slab) for a full dining set. But I am determined to buy some kind of furniture for our patio this summer even if it is only 2 chairs and a side table. Max loaded up on snap dragons, and I found flowers for my wash bin.

We headed home, unloaded the car, and Max went to Lowe's to buy soil, manure, and mulch, while I went to Publix for our weekly grocery shopping trip. When we got back, we put on our dirty clothes and headed outside. While Max was cleaning out the flower bed up against our house, I cleaned out the wash bin and planted my flowers.

I planted 2 snap dragons, 2 grass things, 2 yellow flowers, and 3 spillers (I forgot the official names of the grass, yellow, and green flowers). It looks kind of thin now, but I'm hoping it will fill out.

After Max cleaned out the bed against our house, I planted the snap dragons. We bought 4 of each color: red, yellow, white, light pink, and dark purple/pink.

And then we moved to the flower bed with the mailbox.

I'm not too thrilled with this flower bed. It looks very thin. When we finished the bed by the house, we only had 4 plants left. Max went back to Pike's for 6 more plants, but bought 8, and we still don't have enough. Max just tells me that we are experimenting with the snap dragons. I still don't love it, but it is much better than it was, which was totally empty.

Now our house looks a little happier.

This is the back of our house. We live on the golf course, so we have no neighbors behind us which I love.

Isn't our patio super small : (

We also have azaleas planted along the back of our house as well as a 2 clematis plants that grow up the trellis.

This trellis was also an antique find. I actually went out looking for a trellis, and came back with the trellis, wash bin, topiary (in the front yard) and an old ceiling tile from a building in New York City that hangs in our 1/2 bath downstairs.

I LOVE my wash bin.

And my topiary in the front.

We had a pretty good weekend. I didn't do much on Saturday because I wasn't feeling well (one negative thing about spring is that my allergies start to act up). But I made up for my lazy Saturday with a productive Sunday. Hope everyone had a great first day of Spring!!

Oh, and another great thing about spring is that it is time for spring break...only 2 more weeks. Next weekend, my friend Biz will be getting married on Saturday. On Sunday, we will be heading down to Max's parents house to borrow their truck to get our jet ski out of the storage unit!!! Can't wait for weekends at the lake house.

Hope everyone has a happy Monday.

Special Olympics

Today, was the much anticipated local Special Olympics in Fayette County at Starr's Mill High School. The kids LOVE and look forward to this day, while the teachers look forward to this day for much different reasons, when it will be over. Typically it is freezing, rainy, chaotic, long, etc, so it is often a day we dread. However, this year proved us wrong, at least me anyways. The weather was AWESOME, high of 80, and sunny.

Michelle and I had been planning on week on what we needed to bring. So this morning, we loaded 2 coolers full on gatorades and water, 2 rolling carts of blankets, towels, sunscreen, snacks, and about 7 folding chairs onto the bus.

When we got to Starr's Mill, they had a tunnel for the all of the athletes with their PALS, cheerleaders, and band. Because we had so much stuff, we sent every athlete with a chair to carry while Michelle, her son Josh, my para Pamela and I drove to the other side of the stadium to get out with the rest of our stuff and 2 of my students who use a wheelchair. We got unloaded and were met by my student's buddies. We got situated in our section and lined up for the opening ceremonies. Every school has a banner they carry (similar to the flags countries use for the opening ceremonies in the Olympics), but ours was missing. We tore up both of our classrooms this week looking for it, but it was nowhere to be found (I'm sure I will find it Monday morning). We lined up, sang the national anthem, recited the Special Olympics oath (which always brings a tear to my eyes), and then we were off. I sent Pamela with my 2 students who were not able to participate in the events to the field day area where they at cotton candy, snow cones, had their faces painted, balloon animals, and other fun things. I went with my other 2 students through their events. My students participated in the 50 meter dash and the softball throw. Needless to say, my student's kicked butt (we've been practicing FOREVER)!!

The events began probably around 10:15, and we didn't get finished until almost 1:45. We then ate Chick-fil-A for lunch, loaded all of our stuff back up on the bus, and got back to school around 2:30, just in time to pack up and go home. I wish I could post pictures of the fun day, but I don't have parental permission to do so.

After school, I signed my contract for next year, and then went to an "Around the Clock" shower for a teacher friend of mine, Elizabeth aka "Biz." Biz's mom works for the special education department and I met Biz this summer while she and I were working summer school together. Biz's wedding in on March 26, so we were running out of time to do something for her. Kristen, another school friend, planned an "Around the Clock" shower and I was given midnight!! YAY!!! Who wouldn't have fun planning a gift for someone to use at midnight. I won't bore you with all of the details, but I will say that I did go into my first adult store!! So awkward...... We all met at a pizza place and gave gifts and visited. There are not many self-contained special education teachers in our county and because there are only a few of us at each school, when we all get together, we have a blast. Congratulations Biz and Stephen. I hope you enjoy my gift.

Recently

So, I haven't been blogging too long, but I already feel like a slacker. For some reason I feel that we haven't had much going on and therefore, I don't have much to blog about, but we have been super busy recently. So I guess I'll just blog about what we have been up to in all areas.

My work: I am currently in the process of transferring to another school within my county. When I started applying for jobs, I knew I wanted to work in Fayette County. The school system is known for their great schools, especially the special education department, and I wanted to be associated with a great district. Also, because we do not live in Fayette County, when we have children, they would be able to go to Fayette County schools since I work there. When I had one semester left of my master's program, I applied and interviewed in Fayette County, and I was hired after one interview. Being a new teacher, you take whatever you are offered, especially the way things are with the economy and school. I was offered a severe/profound self-contained classroom with 3 students, all girls. While I was at Auburn, I knew I wanted to teach self-contained, so I was very happy to be getting my "dream" job.

Fast forward a year and a half, I am ready for a change. I have 4 students, 3 girls and 1 boy, and I love my kids. Last year, the other self-contained teacher at my school left so I requested to be placed in her room. Unfortunately, due to various reasons, I was unable to get the room, but looking back, it all worked out perfectly. I absolutely LOVE the teacher that took that room, my parter in crime, Michelle. She used to teach Kindergarten, and then went to special education, and then to middle school special education, and she is AWESOME!! She is one reason why requesting a transfer has been difficult. However, trying to get into a new school and program is something that means a lot to me. When I originally interviewed, I was asked what my "dream" job would be, and at that time it was an elementary autism classroom. Now, I just want to be in an elementary classroom.

I signed my contract on Friday for next year (so I have a job), and I'm hoping to hear something in the next few weeks about where I will be placed. I have heard of a few openings, so maybe I will have the opportunity to transfer.

Max's work: Everything is pretty much the same, which is good and bad. He is still working at Newnan Hospital as a pharmacist.

Extra curricular: Max has joined our church's basketball team. They play every Thursday night. When he was in high school, he used to play on a church team in Phenix City with a good friend of his, Christopher. When I saw in our bulletin they were looking for men who were interested in playing basketball, I knew this was right up his alley. It has been so much fun going to his basketball games on Thursday nights for the past 2 1/2 months. Thursday is their last game, so I will have to try and get a picture.

I have actually started coaching the track team at my school (crazy, I know). I know NOTHING about track, but have come to really enjoy it. I wasn't exposed to track until my sophomore year of high school, since none of my previous schools had track teams. At that point, it was too late to get involved in a brand new sport, so now I can live vicariously through the student athletes I coach. I coach track with Michelle, another special education teacher, Kristin, and an 8th grade social studies teacher, David. We have track practice Monday-Thursdays, and usually have 1 meet a week. Our first meet was scheduled for last Tuesday, but it was rained out. We have a meet this Wednesday, and I'll admit, I'm a little nervous, but it is so much fun.

Other than all of that, there isn't much going on.