Having a Ball!

Well, I have slacked a bit. I didn't get to post last week. And I had been doing so well! Last week was absolutely crazy. I began the week with a super breakdown- crying and everything. We have so much going on! But the week got much better and by the end of the week I was laughing at myself for being so stressed out. I have so much to tell you! Where do we begin?

School is going well (aside from my breakdown last Monday night). I finally got a working computer in my classroom on Thursday. This was a huge source of stress to me. No computer + lots of grades to input= major stress! I feel like I am settling in and getting the hang of everything. I am actually enjoying teaching this age group and the course materials. I am also super excited because next week is Spring Break!!!

We had a great weekend. My mom called on Thursday and said that her and my dad wanted to come and help us pack up our house. (more on the house later, but we will be closing ahead of schedule). I was all for them coming, but totally in denial of the fact that we needed help. Boy am I glad they came! Not only did we get a lot packed, but we were able to sneak in a little fun too. My dad hadn't been to our house here yet and so it was fun to have him here with my mom. They are awesome! My dad mowed our lawn for us while we packed inside. I really am blessed with a great mom and dad. Here is a picture I took of our silly kitty during our packing.

We also had our first Active Duty Military Ball on Friday night. This is the first dining out I have been to since Joe was in ROTC at Mizzou. I ended up finding an awesome dress- on Thursday night(the ball was Friday). This was also a source of all my stress earlier in the week. It was fun to get my hair done and get all dressed up. We enjoyed dinner and had a few laughs at all the "arminess" going on. It was a pretty good evening all in all. I am sure we will get quite used to these types of functions! Here is a picture of Joe and I enjoying the evening.

Our house is fast approaching a finished state! We are super excited. Have I told you how ready I am to move in? Another good thing about my parents coming, especially my dad, is that they got to come with us to our weekly viewing of our house. For some of you that don't know, my dad is a St. Louis Union Carpenter and a very particular one at that. We had to take him along so he could give us an inspection. Pretty much everything passed, and like I said he is picky (in a good way). He gave us some tips and pointers, and noted a few things we may want to have the builder fix. We are glad he could have a look at it.

It is looking like we will be able to close a little sooner than we were originally contracted. It looks like we should be able to get a close date of April 17th. We also locked in our interest rate last week!! So exciting- 4.875%!!! We are very happy with that. Other things that were finished this week... cabinets are installed, sod is down in front and back, garage door and opener, painted walls, and our deck has been built. The electrician should be coming this week as well as the plumber. The only thing we have left to choose is our closet designs. We are to meet with the "closet man" soon to nail down how we would like our closet to be organized. I am sure we will be paying extra to add some more useful shelving. I can't believe how fast things are moving. I am so thankful we have a head start on packing and we should get a lot more finished this week. My plan was to pack tonight, and so far I have gone to the grocery store, went for a run, made some cards and sat on the couch. There is always tomorrow right? Here are some of the latest pictures.

Progress

We have a ton of pictures to show you!! We went to see the house on Saturday and boy am I starting to get really excited! Things are really coming together, and now you can finally begin to see what it will all look like. We now have a driveway, porch,sidewalks, and our column was installed on the front porch. They began all the trim work, the staircase railings are all installed, and our mantle is all but painted. It all seems to be coming along pretty fast so we are hoping they will finish a little ahead of schedule. We'll see. Here are the latest pictures... it is a mess in there! It actually stresses me out to see it so dirty and messy (I know.. I have issues!).

I also had a big surprise this morning when I got to school. I was walking in and found out I would be taking over today because Katie (the teacher I am taking over for) went to the hospital in the middle of the night to have the baby! I panicked for about 5 minutes and then somehow pulled myself together. We got a lot squared away last week, but a few loose ends are still there and I kind of had to wing it. Luckily I am good a winging it and thrive well under pressure. It turned out to be a fine day.

I do feel a little lost at this school though. The classrooms are kind of separated with outdoor entrances to most- so it is a like a little campus. My classroom is very isolated so I feel very far away from everyone and all the major happenings. I am sure I will get to know everyone and get used to it all though. I have two 7 th grade Life Science classes, two eighth grade Earth Science classes, a 6th grade Health Rotation class, and a random high school Fitness class. It should be an interesting couple of months and I am looking forward to growing as an educator and professional. I am sure I am about to learn things about myself I never knew before! I hope ya'll have a great week!

Busi-ness

Wow! This has been one busy week. I started my new job at Clarksville Academy this week. I have not totally taken over, but I am working very closely with the teacher that I will be filling in for. She really thinks she will be able to make it until the 20th or so, but we will see. In the mean time I am observing and soaking in all I can from her. We actually have a ton in common and I am enjoying "hanging" out with her. I am pretty relieved for us to have clicked so well. I am extremely nervous about teaching 7th & 8th grade Life and Earth science. I hope I can do it! It is so different to only have the kids for an hour at a time, and I am finding it has taken me the entire week to get to know the kids names. I am also adjusting to being in a private school setting. Things are going well and although I am freaking out a little, I know things will be fine in the end. I know it all is going to fly by, but I am so tired! I haven't been sleeping too well this week on top of working full days. I'll be sure to keep you all posted on how things are going.

Other news this week...we got to pick our cabinets, flooring and hardware for the house. It was really hard to choose it all! I almost would have preferred to have it selected for me. Too many decisions! I am getting more and more anxious to move in! All of the drywall was finished last weekend and we are pumped to see what they have gotten done this week. Here are a couple of pics from our visit last weekend.

This is the Kitchen...

They finished the siding!

A look at the loft area and kitchen from the living room.

That is all for now, but we will post more after our visit this weekend. I can't wait to see what they have accomplished. I think we should have a driveway and sidewalks! Exciting!