What’s Up August

Happy Saturday Y'all!

Today, I'm joining Shay, and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. Only this week has been a bit crazy with work. So I’m finally getting around to posting today...

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?

I went out with a couple friends to a Thai restaurant a few nights ago. I hadn’t been in a while. But it was just as delicious as I remember. I love that we have so many tasty, inexpensive options for restaurants in Dakar! 

   

What am I reminiscing about?

This summer... It started off with me feeling utterly frustrated, due to a weird/freak injury on my last work day before Break - which also left me confined to my apartment for an entire month. That was most definitely NOT the way I saw myself spending my summer. And I had to work hard to fight off the pity party that wanted to take up residence in my mind/heart. BUT it worked out, as a blessing in disguise, so to speak. It gave me some "forced rest" time, which I desperately needed after a challenging school year, which included teaching online thanks to COVID restrictions in our country. Then, by July, I became more mobile. And even though I wasn't completely healed, I was able to get out more and have some fun with friends. I took another class, which ended last week. I read more than ever before. And now, here we are at the end of Summer Break. And I can honestly say that it's been a good Break. It truly has.

 What am I loving?

I'm loving the set-up of our classroom this year. It took a lot of time and hard work to get it done. Oh my word, did we have a lot of stuff. We already had a lot of stuff, due to needing it to teach kids from K-12. But then, since I'm the only Special Ed Teacher this year, we had to merge two classroom's worth of materials into one, as well. So yeah... A lot of stuff. But y'all... It looks so great! I'm so happy with my little home away from home.

What have I been up to?

Teachers started back to work this week. So I've been sitting in meetings the last two days, prepping for the new school year. I also had to lead a session on working with students with special needs. Thankfully, we set up our classroom before all these meetings started. So all that was left to do during classroom work time this week and next week will be lesson prep. And that's good, considering just how much lesson prep I'll need to do :)

What am I dreading? 

I‘m still semi-dreading all the unknowns in dealing with COVID-19...

What am I working on?

Planning for the new year, which includes stocking up on hand sanitizer and masks and all sorts of other things I never thought I’d have to buy. Not to mention, planning IEP meetings and planning all the lessons I’ll be teaching the first two days of school...

 What am I excited about?

Seeing my students walk through this door again :)

What am I watching?

Nothing... I need suggestions for something new to watch. Anyone have a recommendation for me?

What am I reading?

At the moment, I’m reading Kristin Harmel’s “The Book of Lost Names.” I’m only a little bit in, but I’m definitely liking it so far.

What am I listening to?

This one has been on repeat lately. Then we sang it in staff devotions the other day today. 

What am I wearing?

I'm still wearing an ankle brace and comfy shoes, as the cute shoes still cause my ankle to hurt too badly. I didn't think I'd miss wearing my dress shoes as much as I do. But alas, I do. Oh and flip flops, too... Major sad face on my inability to wear those :(

 What am I doing this weekend?

Spending time with friends, grad school assignments, IEP preps, and maybe even some relaxation as well :)

What am I looking forward to next month?

Students start back to school!

What else is new?

My latest class started this week. It’s all about Transition and preparing students with special needs for life after school. ...which makes me a bit sad, knowing one of my guys is graduating this year. Boo to kids leaving :(

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

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month?

Tuesday Talk

Happy Tuesday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Ashley and Erika for their monthly Tuesday Talk link-up, where bloggers come together and talk about whatever is on our mind at the moment. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Want to know what's on my mind today?

Teaching

Yep, teaching.

Somehow time has sped by because I am about to start my 12th year of teaching. I love being a teacher. It's my passion. I joke that it's in my blood. But sometimes, I think that might just be true. I absolutely positively love teaching children. It fills my heart with joy. And I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that it is what God has called me to do.

But even with all of that, I need to let you in on a little secret.

Teaching is not easy.

Teaching Special Education is not easy.

Teaching Special Education overseas is not easy.

It's hard, y'all.

And then, throw in a global pandemic and "not easy" becomes quite the understatement. 

Our school will be starting in-person, with certain COVID-precautions in place. 

I’m looking forward to starting a new year, to seeing my students again, and even to getting back into a routine again. But I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t at least a small bit of nervousness. There are so many unknowns associated with teaching in the midst of a pandemic.

If I let my brain wander too much, I start worrying about the unknowns...

* the health of my students

* the health of my co-workers and myself

* the necessary precautions making teaching a bit tricky

* wearing a mask all day long during the school day

* "policing" students, knowing they'll need to be wearing their masks most of the day

* the number of COVID cases/deaths steadily rising in Senegal

* travel restrictions from the mission

* the possibility (although unlikely) of returning to online learning at some point

* all the unknowns associated with COVID-19

And those are just the COVID-related concerns I deal with as a teacher here. That doesn't count the concerns I have for my family and friends back home. That doesn't count all the normal teaching stressors/worries that I usually have. 

BUT HERE'S THE DEAL...

And yes, imagine I actually did yell that because I'm trying to be emphatic ;)

I cannot let my brain go to those wonderings. 

I simply can't.

So when I find myself veering that way, I stop.

I focus on the good. 

I focus on how I've seen God working in the midst of the insanity lately. 

I focus on God's Word and the promises/Truth inside.

I focus on God, Himself.

I have learned to rely on Him to help me through the times of worry.

I have learned to trust Him in the midst of the unknowns.

And you know... At the end of the day, the unknowns are still going to be there. The scary times are still going to come. Changes to life and ministry and teaching and travel and everything else are still going to happen. And difficult situations will still arise.

And while they may, indeed, be difficult, there's nothing I can do about them.

But what I can do is control myself. 

I can control how I think.

I can control how I act.

I can control how I respond.

And that is actually a powerful thing.

 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 In case you missed the past few months' of Tuesday Talk posts, and you're curious, you can click on the link below to check it out.

January - Confidence

February - When God Gives A Girl A Brother

March - I Spy

April - Technology and Gratitude

 May - The 2019-2020 School Year

June - Forced Rest is Still Rest

July - * no post * 

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday, Y'all

It’s been a while since I shared a Friday Favorites post. So I thought I’d do that again.

Also - Can we just note how I’ve blogged very little this summer? However, this is my third post in this week, alone. I guess I’m back.

Anywho, time to get on with the favorites from this week :)

~ one ~

God, speaking to my heart will always be a favorite. I love how He uses His Word, old sermon notes, yearly Bible reading plans, sweet messages from friends, songs, and more, to reach me. I love how He knows exactly what I need to hear exactly when I need to hear it. 

~ two ~ 

Video chats with my nieces are always a favorite. I had a nice long chat with them and my mom yesterday. And that definitely filled my cup :)

~ three ~ 

My birthday has always been a favorite even if turning 35 wasn’t necessarily high on my list of favorites. I had a nice day with friends, m laughing and talking, eating good food, and just having an all around nice time. 

~ four ~

Reading is one of my most favorite past times. And I’ve enjoyed getting my fill of it this summer. I just started Book #25 of the year. I’ve read all sorts of books, mostly serious ones that required a lot of deep thinking. So I decided to give my brain a bit of a break :)

~ five ~

A friend shared this on Facebook this morning and I loved it. This is one of my most favorite aspects of God and of being a believer in Him. I love that I have the hope (confidence) that He will keep His promises to us. 

~ six ~ 

I can’t say I love wearing masks, in general. But these “hospital masks” have quickly become my favorite mask option. They’re more lightweight and I feel like I can breathe a little easier. Plus they don’t muffle voices as badly as the cloth ones. So I think they’ll be easier to deal with in the classroom.

~ seven ~

Sitting around, waiting for meetings is not my most favorite part of my job. But alas, meeting, are indeed a necessity. But meetings planning for the scheduling for my people is a favorite because the planner in me is super excited to finally be able to start prepping for the new year!

~ eight ~

I love that God has gifted me with friendships, over the years, people who take the time to invest in your life, help you celebrate the good times, and people who commiserate with you in the bad times. I’m thankful for people in the same stage of life as me, who understand the feelings I have. I’m thankful for those who speak life into me, who share funny videos, and book recommendations, and journal articles. I’m thankful for friends who have cooked meals and ran errands for me this summer when I was hurt and couldn’t do much for myself. I’m thankful for meals out and random excursions to various parts of Senegal. I’m thankful for those with whom I’ve had long talks about current “hot topics” in our world or theological matters or plans and daydreams about the future and all sorts of topics in between. I’m thankful for all of the people who have made me smile this summer. And while I don’t have a picture with them all, I am thankful for each of them. And yes, they do each make the list of favorites :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 

 Today, I'm joining Erika and Andrea, for their weekly Friday Favorites linkup and sharing about....

Thirty-five

Once upon a time, on a hot Tuesday afternoon, in the small town of Greensboro, Alabama, a baby girl with a full head of curly black hair and super chubby cheeks was born to a pastor and his wife.

That chubby cheeked baby grew into a shy little girl who would hide behind her mom anytime she was in a group, scared to death that she'd have to speak to someone.

That shy girl grew into a (still shy) teenager who had sweet friendships and big goals in life - mainly to graduate high school, go to college, become a teacher, and have a husband, a house full of kids, and a house with a white picket fence. 

After high school, that shy teenager went on a couple missions trips, where she realized that God wanted her to do more with her life than just teach in the comfort of her sweet home Alabama. She fully accepted that calling, but, at the time, she couldn't fathom just how far God would truly take her.

Eventually, she graduated from college...

And she started teaching in her sweet home Alabama, falling in love with teaching, in general, but especially with teaching Special Education. She realized her love for advocating for those who needed her, combined with teaching children was her thing. 

A week before her 24th birthday, she moved a few thousand miles and an ocean away, to accept a teaching position at a small K-12, international Christian school in West Africa. 

She came, thinking she'd be there for a year, perhaps two years, max. But God had different plans. So she kept extending her assignment. Again and again...

Fast forward to today.

That formerly shy little girl is now a semi-shy (but only 'til she gets to know you) 35 year old woman, who has spent most of this past week, struggling to believe how it's possible that she's 35 ;)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

And you know...

My life may not have 100% turned out like I planned. But that's okay. 

Some of my dreams and goals have changed over the years. Of course, I've kept those plans/goals fairly hidden, except to a few select individuals. But as I sat down the other day and wrote out my list of future goals/plans/hopes/dreams/whatever you want to call them, I realized something...

My life is good. 

And I'm so excited to see what God has in store for me in this new year of life. 

And honestly... 

I have a feeling, deep in my gut, that this new year of life is going to be a great one. 

So, bring it on 35. 

I’m ready for you.

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. 

August's prompts are...

  * choosing *  consuming * enjoying * ordering * remembering *

I'm currently choosing to work a little each day, slowly weaning my way back into a semi-routine. I'm definitely not doing a lot. But I figured if I do a little bit each day, it won't be too bad when the real "work days" start. And at the moment, I’m doing just computer work. Planning my SPED presentation for professional development days, starting IEP prep, figuring out scheduling (which tends to be an interesting "puzzle" every year), and more. Then I’m planning to start on classroom unpacking and rearranging next week.

I'm currently consuming far more water than I used to. I got in the habit of it at the beginning of the summer and I've actually noticed an improvement already. Here's hoping I can keep it up when school starts back and the cravings for more caffeine kick in... :)

I'm currently enjoying peaceful evenings, sitting outside on my balcony, every now and then.  And since the only time that it is actually semi-cool during this time of year is in the late evenings, that is when I typically choose to enjoy it. 

I'm currently ordering nothing else. Although, I did just order these masks to use while working with a few of my kiddos next year, who need to be able to read my lips while I speak. It was a last minute decision. But I'm glad I did. Here's hoping they arrive before students do :)

I'm currently remembering all sorts of fun things from the past decade or so. This past week, I celebrated the anniversary of my arrival in Senegal for the first time, 11 years ago. How is it possible that it's been that long? Some times it feels like it was just yesterday...

 And since it's my blog and I can, I thought I'd share a couple more :)

I'm currently planning to go out with a few friends for my birthday tomorrow. Good people, good food, good times... All good in my book ;)

I'm currently looking forward to getting back into a routine. I love Summer Break. I may still wake up ridiculously early. But I 100% love not having to hear an alarm go off every single morning. Plus, I love that I still have all this free time and time to work at my own pace/schedule. But y'all... I'm really looking forward to seeing my students again. I really am looking forward to school getting back in session (with COVID related precautions in place, of course). 

I'm currently listening to this song by Cory Asbury ("Sparrows"). A friend shared it with us at our AG get-together the other day and I loved the lyrics. It's such a good song. Well, really, the entire album is good. I love it!

I’m currently trusting in God, thankful that He is the Master Author of my life. I’m thankful for the hope I can (and do) have in Him. 

  So what about you?

What are your currently up to?