What's Up November

    Happy Wednesday, Y'all

I missed last month's link-up. In fact, I haven't posted anything since the end of September. But have no fear... Here I am, back again, with all the random info you know you are just dying to hear :)

Today, I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. 

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives.

So let's get started...

What am I eating?

Last week, I did get to enjoy a plate full of deliciousness when our AG people all got together for Thanksgiving. We had a mixture of traditional and non-traditional Thanksgiving themed foods and it was all delicious! And thankfully, one sweet friend (and fellow southerner so you know she knows how to make it right) sent me home with some dressing/giblet gravy. So I had leftovers the next day. So so good!

I did make some fried shrimp the other night that turned out pretty tasty. It might not have been the most beautiful item I've ever cooked. But it sure did taste good.  I'm so not a fan of peeling/deveining shrimp. The grossness of those tasks is so intense to me that it makes me typically just not buy shrimp here. But thankfully, a couple weeks ago, I found some peeled/deveined shrimp in the freezer section at one of the grocery stores, so I bought a bag. I first coated it in yellow mustard and then battered it with a mixture of a bag of Louisiana Fish Fry mix combined with garlic powder and dill. And y'all... It was so so good.

What am I reminiscing about?

Memories made with the kiddos I've taught/worked with over the years. In a position like mine, you have most of the same students year after year. So naturally, you get end up getting closer to your students than most teachers do. And when you think of those students leaving, it can be hard. So yeah... Lately I've been reminiscing and feeling grateful for the time I've had (and still have) with the incredible kids God has allowed me to teach over the years. One of my students is preparing to leave soon and my teacher heart is absolutely breaking at the thought of saying goodbye next month... So yeah - Definitely reminiscing and thanking God for the time we've had to teach this student, to love this student, and to share the love and truth of Christ with this student. And now, I'm reminded... What a gift memories are!

 What am I loving?

I'm loving the cool breezes we've had lately. It's been nice to finally not pour sweat the instant you step outside. Let's be honest... I'm a big fan of Hot Season, and its ridiculously high temperatures and humidity finally leaving Dakar. 

What have I been up to?

Putting the finishing touches on my missions newsletter... I'm so far behind on it. But I promise. It is coming. If you'd like to be included on my mail out (either via email or good ol' "snail mail"), please let me know. I'll add you to my list.

What am I dreading? 

Honestly... I'm dreading not being able to spend Christmas with my family. Yes, this is a normal part of life in this line of work. Yes, some missionaries stay on the field far longer in between visits to family. Yes, I'm grateful that I get to follow the call God has placed on my life. But, yes, it's still hard to not be able to see my family at Christmas.

What am I working on?

 What am I excited about?

Christmas decor that will soon be set up in my classroom. I've been too busy the last few weekends to get it done, but it's coming. And y'all, I'm so ready! I know my students will love it and so will I! And when school gets out for Christmas Break, you can bet I will be taking the tree and lights home to my apartment so I can enjoy it there too :)

What am I watching?

Honestly, I just want silence when I get home from work most nights. So I opt for no TV. However, once we got out on Christmas Break, I'm planning to watch all the fun Christmas movies :)

What am I reading?

I've been reading through The Bronze Bow with one of my classes. I have loved how engaged this book has kept them. It was fun to find a book they were actually interested in reading! Yay for learning and fun joining together! :)

What am I listening to?

Christmas music, of course :)

What am I wearing?

Nothing terribly exciting or blog worthy...

 What am I doing this weekend?

There's an Elementary Christmas concert on Friday, our staff Christmas party on Saturday, and then, church and another staff dinner for our visiting accreditation team on Sunday. So I'll be at all of those. And at some point, I'll probably need to do a bit of prep / copies / etc. for the upcoming week...

What am I looking forward to next month?

1) Christmas events with my students - I love being a teacher at Christmas time. Sure, I have to give exams. Sure, I have to teach important content-rich lessons. But thankfully, I can also weave in some fun AND weave in lessons on the true meaning of Christmas. Not to mention, having a Christmas party with my people too. I love it all!

2) Christmas Break - Can I just say a big ol' amen for the fact that I'll get to have multiple days in a row when I do NOT have to set an alarm clock! Y'all have no idea just how excited I am about this fact!

3) Video Chats with my nieces at normal times of day and not super late at night like we normally have to do thanks to us all being in school AND being 6 hours apart thanks to the current time difference between us.

4) Oh, and also, the AGWM Africa Conference that's happening in South Africa after Christmas! Yay for travel (that's not an out of pocket expense)!

Favorite Recent Amazon Find?

I've been "window shopping" for gifts for my family. I'll be buying those next week and having them sent to them. I'm so thankful for Amazon's Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales and how they gave me the ability to still participate in family Christmas even if I'm not there in person :)

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month?

What's Up November

 Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Shay, and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. 

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives. 

The questions are...

 

What am I eating?

Tonight some friends and I are getting together for a pre-Thanksgiving get-together, having all sorts of yummy appetizer/finger food type foods. Then, tomorrow I'll join my fellow AGWM-ers for our Thanksgiving get-together. So I have all of that deliciousness to look forward to.

What am I reminiscing about?

I've been thinking a lot about the sweet lady who gave me this travel mug. I'll tell anyone, that I feel like I learned more about teaching Special Education from working with this lady than I did in all of college and my previous years of teaching combined. She was an amazing teacher. When I started my class, she was such a valuable resource. Since she taught a class very similar to mine, she gave me so many ideas and tips and strategies. She gave encouragement. And she prayed for me too. She'd even write and check in on me before she got so sick, and even for a bit after that, being such an incredible encouragement. She passed away a few years ago, but any time I use this cup, I think of her.

 What am I loving?

I'm loving how well my students get along with one another. I love that it's like a big family in our room. My job is difficult. I go home utterly exhausted every single day. And I know I have no choice but to spend time after hours/on the weekend lesson planning. It's a lot. And it's hard. BUT still, I do love my job. And one of the things I absolutely, positively, 100% love the most about my job is seeing how my people are so great together. I love that they have each other, they have this friendship... I love that they look out for one another. I love that they want to help one another. I love that they sometimes argue like brothers and sisters, but in the end, they 100% have each other's backs. They are such an incredible group of kids. And I love it!

What have I been up to?

This past weekend, I spent some time with my fellow AGWM-ers here in Senegal, while we all worked on goal setting for the upcoming year (and beyond) in ministry. In preparation for setting/writing up my new goals, I reviewed the ones I've set the last few years. The "eye-opening" one was from 5 years ago, when I was writing goals in regards to starting my class. This adventure God called me on has been such a great one. And I have been consistently amazed at how He's worked  in the lives of my students (and me). I've been so grateful for the opportunities He's already blessed me with. And I'm looking forward to seeing what else He has in store for the future...

What am I dreading? 

We had a few nice/cool days. Then, bam! The high heat/humidity came back with a vengeance. So yes... I do kind of dread going outside at the moment. It's just so very hot, humid, and uncomfortable. And let's be honest here... I'm honestly, just so grateful to have a job where I work inside. 

What am I working on?

Lesson planning for 487 classes a week. ...or maybe just 16 :)

 What am I excited about?

I know Thanksgiving hasn't arrived yet. But still... At this point, I'm most excited about Christmas. I love being a teacher at Christmas time. I love finding ways to incorporate Christmas fun into as many of my lessons, as possible. Even if it's lame Christmas-themed math problems... And it's even more fun when working at a Christian school, where we're able to talk about the real/true meaning of Christmas - the birth of Jesus. Plus, if we're talking about Christmas, I can't not mention my excitement at the thought of Christmas Break coming up, which not only finally gives me a break from work, but along with that comes lots of days with no alarm clocks and also time with my family in Alabama. So yes... I'm definitely, super excited about Christmas!

What am I watching?

I'm considering starting to watch Grey's Anatomy. I've seen clips here or there online. So I know the general premise of the show. But I've never watched a full episode. Anyone a fan? Is it worth it to start from the beginning?

What am I reading?

I've been diving into the world of the "Elephant & Piggie" books by Mo Willems, thanks to one of my people loving them so much. We end up reading at least one a day together. They're super cute little books. And I must admit... Hearing that sweet little voice reading/laughing through the books always bring a smile to my face. I love seeing kids enjoying reading! So fun!

What am I listening to?

I've started listening to Christmas music. It's just such a fun, smile-producing addition to my day when I'm lesson planning or studying or working around the house. I love it!

What am I wearing?

Nothing terribly exciting. But I have started wearing my hair down a bit more. Does that count in this section? :)

 What am I doing this weekend?

My weekend starts tomorrow. We have a long weekend since it's Thanksgiving. School is dismissed at lunchtime today. Then we're out of school the next two days. Yay for a school in a non-American country that still celebrates American holidays :) Anywho... My plan, as of now, is to take it easy most of the weekend. I'll have the Thanksgiving get-togethers I mentioned  earlier. Then, a friend and I are planning to go get pedicures this weekend. And another friend and I are trying to plan out a time to catch up on a show we both like. Past that, I'll do a bit of grad school, a bit of housework, and I'll also have to do my lesson planning for the week after Thanksgiving. And yes, I'm planning to have a bit of relaxing time thrown in the mix as well. 

What am I looking forward to next month?

All things Christmas, of course.

Past that - I'm looking forward to being finished with grad school next week. After 25+ years of schooling from kindergarten to now a 2nd Master's degree, I am so so ready to be done!

What else is new?

Schedule changes and all the puzzle solving fun that entails ;)

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month? 

Currently

Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today I'm joining Anne from In Residence for her monthly link-up, where we share what's currently going on in our lives. And each month, Anne gives us a list of prompts to use to guide our posts. 

October's prompts are...

  * borrowing * buying * planning * prepping * reading *

I'm currently borrowing ideas from the internet for activities to go along with some of the various lessons I teach. Ideas like the one below, for a fun (and tasty) way to visualize the different phases of the moon... 

I'm currently buying nothing terribly exciting. I did order a few things for my mom to mail in a package to me. It helps that my mom has access to my bank account. Because of that, I can order what I need/want, send it to my mom, and then pay the postage for it to be mailed to me here. But she can just be the messenger and take it to the post office for me. At any rate... I ordered a fun shirt and book for me, a small Christmas gift for my students, and a few other random things I needed, as well. And in a month or so, I'll be like Charlie Brown in the image below. And in case anyone's wondering... Amazon won't ship the majority of items directly to Senegal and the few things they will ship include an outrageous shipping fee attached to it, so it's cheaper to do it the way I'm doing it...

I'm currently planning to enjoy this upcoming weekend. Have I mentioned lately that we get a 4-day weekend? Because, while I do love my students, I am most definitely excited about the prospect of a long weekend and actually not having to set my alarm clock :)

I'm currently prepping lesson plans for the upcoming week. Or, at least, I will be  during today's mandatory work day. My goal is to do enough today and after our day of PD tomorrow so I won't have to do any work over the long weekend. We'll see if I can do that. Not having a planning period during the day means I have no choice but to work after hours (which is fine). But I'd really, really, really like to be able to take full advantage of the upcoming break and have some down time.

I'm currently reading through the book of Romans with one of my guys as part of his Bible class. I am loving hearing his take on some of these passages. And I love how well he's doing at going more in-depth, studying The Word and seeing how he can apply it to his life today.

And that's about it for me at the moment.

So what about you?

What are you currently up to?

What's Up August

  Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Shay, and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. 

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives. 

The questions are...

 

What am I eating?

In an effort to have a healthy breakfast AND to not have to actually turn on my stove (because it turns my already warm apartment into a sauna), I've decided to have a smoothie... Usually, I can drink it at home while getting ready. But sometimes, I take it with me to drink on my way to work... 

What am I reminiscing about?

Time with family. I love being able to do what God's called me to do. But I do still miss my family and wish there weren't so many miles (or an ocean) between us...

 What am I loving?

I'm loving being back in school with my students. I love the hectic routine of my job. I love working out all of their schedules, making all the little "pieces of the puzzle" fall into place. I love sitting with them and talking with them and teaching them all that's required in our classes. I love reading with them and watching their knowledge base grow and grow. I love seeing those "lightbulb" moments, when they finally get some topic they've been struggling with. I love learning about their lives. I love discovering how they best learn and being able to meet their needs. My job is challenging and at certain times of the year (like now), it's even a bit overwhelming. But I truly do love it.

What have I been up to?

Lesson planning. So much lesson planning... 

What am I dreading? 

The rain

 You know, I love that the rain cools things down a bit around here. And granted, it's only around for a few months. But the rain is not my friend anymore. My ankles are so not happy when it's raining. Pain, swelling... It's just so not enjoyable. The arthritis in both ankles makes me feel like a little old lady when rain comes...

What am I working on?

Helping my people master opening a combination lock... And I may or may not be having flashbacks to my 9th grade year when I was stuck with an awful locker that was on the very far end of the hall and had a lock that would stick and refuse to open more times than not, making me late to my next class. I hated it! But hey, it's allowing me to have sympathy for my people. So I suppose it wasn't all bad. Was it? :)

 What am I excited about?

Nothing terribly exciting is happening in my life at the moment... It's not that things are bad. They're just not over the top exciting ;)

What am I watching?

I've just started working my way through The Office. I've seen clips here or there online and watched an episode or two on TV over the years. But I decided to finally start at the beginning and slowly work my way through. I wasn't sure at first... But it's grown on me :)

What am I reading?

I'm currently reading my 30th book of the year, The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern. It's not really the type of book I would typically choose to read. But a friend recommended it and I'm actually enjoying it. 

What am I listening to?

Last night, I heard the Kristene DiMarco's song Fear Not for the first time. 

I love the lyrics of this song. My favorite part is at the beginning, when she says,

When life piles up and you're feeling overcome

Stand still and believe, I won't let you drown

When a cry's in your throat, watching all the waves below

Lift your eyes to the sky and trust that I won't pass you by

God definitely knew I needed to hear this song (and those specific lyrics) when I did. I'm so thankful for this reminder. ...that even when I feel the stress and feeling of being almost overwhelmed, with that cry "in my throat," I know He'll hold my head above the water. He won't just pass me by. What a great reminder!

 What am I doing this weekend?

There's a dodgeball tournament at school this weekend. So at this point, I'm planning to go watch some of my students and co-workers play in that. Then I'll be doing my usual weekend routine... Lesson planning, grad school work, church, spending some time with friends, and resting/relaxing as I prep for the week ahead.

What am I looking forward to next month?

Nothing out of the norm...

Although, I am hoping to have my new A/C installed by then. But we'll see... I'm still waiting to hear back on a final price before I completely agree to it. So I suppose I am looking forward to that hopefully happening next month :)

What else is new?

Grad school... I finished one class yesterday and a new one starts this weekend. This one is on Educational Psychology, from a Christian perspective. And I'm  looking forward to it. And let's be honest... I'm also looking forward to this being my next to last class. If all goes well with this class and the next one that starts in October, I'll finish by December. I love taking classes. I love learning new things. But doing so at the same time I'm teaching has been difficult. So very difficult. And considering this will be my second Master's degree, completed online, while teaching (teaching overseas, at that), I think I'm done with being a student after I get this degree. My brain is tired. :)

 

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month?