Blank stares at blank pages, no easy way to say this...

Get your iPod and hit "Songs" and "SHUFFLE" - DO NOT CHEAT.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Tag at least 10 friends (make me #11 so I can see your results).
5. Everyone tagged has to do the same thing.
5a.. -- this wasn't in the instructions I got, but appears to be part of the game -- put the answer to the last question in the title of your note.
6. Have Fun!


HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF?
We'll Never Know- Lifehouse

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Break Anotha- Blake Lewis

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
1234- Feist

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
Great Are You- Downhere

WHAT'S YOUR MOTTO?
Losing Heart- Brandi Carlile

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
Say (All I Need)- OneRepublic

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
No Fire- Jon Peter Lewis

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
One I Love- Coldplay

WHAT IS 2+2?
Miracle- Paramore

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
Break Myself- Something Corporate

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
No Such Thing- John Mayer

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
Jumpin Jumpin- Destiny's Child

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Elephant- Damien Rice

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
These Photographs- Joshua Radin

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Untouched- The Veronicas

hahaha oh god, let's hope this isn't the case!!!

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
When You Come Back Down- Nickel Creek

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
Too Soon- Eastmountainsouth

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
Gimmie more- Britney Spears

WHAT DO YOU WANT RIGHT NOW?
Masquearade- Phantom of the Opera

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Mean Streak- Little Big Town

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Pictures of You- The Last Goodnight

I think I'm finally back in the swing of things. Last week was the first week with kids... and overall it went really well!! Already, the year is off to a much better start than last year. It was crazy last year with a brand new principal, assistant principal, building... not mention I was brand new! Being a verteran teacher is such a nice feeling! I can already tell that this year is going to be easier just because I have everything I need! No more making powerpoints until all hours of the night!! (woo!!) My goal this year is to not do any lesson planning at home... and so far, so good!

This year I have 4 World Geography classes (3 accelerated, 1 gifted), 1 Physical Science class, and 3 plannings (HOLLER!!!). The schedule just worked out with me having an extra planning. I'm praying that nobody does anything about it.  It certainly helps having the extra planning with all the extra stuff I have to do as team leader.  Anyways, I LOVELOVELOVE my geography classes, but my science class is the class from hell. It's AWFUL! They seriously took all the bad kids in the 8th grade and put them in one class. And to make it worse, it's 4th block... end of the day. I'm trying my best to be extra tough and mean to them! haha I'm sure they hate me, but oh well!

So I recently got the go ahead from my administration to let me plan an international trip for this summer!!! I was inspired by stessamie's trip with her school through EF tours, and spent some time researching this summer.  I was pretty shocked that my admin. was so excited about the trip... but I'm so glad they're so supportive! Today I decided on which tour we're taking after getting the price quote from my EF tour guide. We're going to London, Paris, Florence, and Rome for 10 days!!! I'm PUMPED!! EF tours has a group leader seminar in Richmond this weekend for FREE that I'm going to... so hopefully that'll help me kinda get the ball rolling with everything! I've mentioned it to some of my kids, and just the look on their faces is priceless! They all seem really excited and really interested in going! We're opening it up to 6-8th grade... but I hope a lot of my kids come! =P


Enough about school....

My 23rd birthday was REALLY great!! I thought it was going to be totally lame having to teach on my birthday, which was on a Tuesday... but it was fun being at school! On the first days I play a game call "Meet Your Teacher", and my students have to answer questions about me. One was "When is my birthday, and how old will I be". They were cute when they found out my birthday was that day! And my mommy surprised me and brought me a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. I got several cards and presents from my awesome friends throughout the week... and was able to celebrate with some on Friday! It was good times! =) 23 is treating me pretty well, so far.

In a month I'll be in my apartment!!! (well, sorta!) I'm taking a personal day to help my dad paint on Oct. 1st, then really moving in on the 3rd. I CANNOT WAIT!!!! It's driving me nuts that I can't start decorating right now! I have almost everything that I need... still need to buy a vacuum cleaner, pots & pans, and baking sheets. I made a trip to IKEA before school started a bought... a tv stand , side table, ottoman, desk/kitchen table, and desk chair. This weekend I bought a TV (Samsung 32 inche) and lots of kitchen stuff from Linens N' Things! Interior decorating is slowly becoming my new obsession... and I haven't even started decorating yet!

No new boys to dish about, unfortunately! ;) I'm trying not to get into my "it'sbeenacouplemonthssinceihadaboyfriend" funk that usually happens. I love being single-going out, having fun, and flirting... but it would be nice to find the right guy. ::sigh:: Waiting on God's timing is not my forte.

well that was a longish update... you should feel lucky ;)

Summer vacation has flown by WAY too fast!! It was a great summer though! The best part was traveling to France and Switzerland with stessamie. I had such an amazing time with my BFF seeing all the beautiful sights of Paris and Lausanne!  Family vacation this year was also fun... except for the 11 hour drive up to Old Forge, NY. And even though it rained all week, we all had a good time seeing our extended family! Another highlight was a visit from my bestest, Jess. She moved up to PA at the end of the year, and was back in Richmond for a wedding. It was so good catching up with her and chatting about all her wedding plans!! =)

The rest of my summer was spent being a lazy bum... which I enjoyed but it got old real fast. I went shopping. a lot. And I watched a lot of TV-- I love the fact that What Not to Wear is on everyday!

It's hard to believe that it's time for another school year, but I'm looking forward to it! I've slowly been getting back into school mode. I'm going in the rest of the week-- flex days on tuesday and thursday, and mentor training on wednesday and friday. My goal is to have my entire room set up by Thursday, cause we have a total of 2 hours of classroom time during teacher workweek, which is next week. We're gonna be doing a lot of team-building stuff... including a day playing laser-tag and driving go-karts!! FUN!!

This year will be interesting cause we lost a lot of teachers last year, especially from the 8th grade. I'm very anxious to meet the new teachers this week! I hope that the dynamics of the team are good, especially since I'm 8th grade team leader this year! My ex-boyfriend is moving up to teach 8th grade, so that'll be interesting! haha

So in other news... I found an apartment!!!! After much prayer and countless hours spent on the computer researching, I decided to move out and live on my own instead of waiting for a roommate. I have a 715 sq. foot one bedroom apartment on hold that will be mine on October 1st! I can't wait!!

I've already gone a little crazy with decorating... I have piles of new stuff all over the house! I have a new comforter set that I love for my bedroom-- I'm going with a black and white theme with splashes of lime green, aqua, and pink. Yesterday, I bought barstools, candle-thing for my fireplace, and a big ass clock for over my fireplace. I still have a lot to get... including a tv, tv stand, coffee table, end table, and lots of kitchen stuff! My problem is that I'm going to want to have it all decorated as soon as I move in... which is highly unlikely. I am going to paint before I move in though!

Well I think that's all my big news for now... onto the....

Boredom...

Well that was fun... maybe I'll post a real blog sometime soon!

Music survey thing- shuffle the songs on your iPod... lyrics optional

So today was another typical Valentine's Day... or should I say Singles Awareness Day. It really wasn't worse than usual... school, dinner out with the family, then babysitting ($30 for 2 hours of sitting and watching tv... saweet!) It was cute seeing the kids running around school with their carnations and other gifts. Oh the middle school drama... I LOVE it!!  =P  And it really helped that my ex looked like a gay guy today... I mean, c'mon... baby blue pants?!? ugh... sometimes I wonder what the heck I was thinking for those 2 months.  So for this Valentine's Day, I'm actually glad I'm single... but let's hope this is my last valentine's day as one.

American Idol totally isn't the same without all the ARC Angels! It's soooo boring watching by myself and not being to praise good performances and make fun of the horrible singers!! I think it'll be a good season... I have several favorites..
Girls
Brooke-- love her!! especially when she auditioned playing the piano!
Kristy- my country fav of the season
Joanne- she's the gorgeous plus side model who can really sing
Carly-- The Irish girl-- she's my favorite girl of the season!
Guys
Michael- the HAWT AUSTRALIAN!!! ohhhh i <3 him!!
David A- the ADORABLE 16 year old
David H- one of my favs since hollywood week
Danny- the hilarious gay guy haha i think he's be fun to have on the show every week
Luke- ok... so he's HOT... but I honestly don't remember hearing him sing... let's hope he's good!!

As far as past idol contestants go, I'm obsessed with Blake Lewis' cd Audio Day Dream! soooo good!

ok... well I think that'll be all the blogging for tonight... I'm thinking I'll actually have to go into school on time tomorrow =(  2 hour delays are awfully nice! =)

After seeing everyone's fun pictures, I couldn't resist doing my own... plus I had some work to procrastinate from ;)



Well that was fun!! Kinda makes me wanna update this thing...

but alas, it's almost bed-time... maybe tomorrow.

holy crap.I just bought a car.


but shhhh... don't tell anyone!! I'm trying to surprise everyone when I come to Farmville this weekend!! :D

My brother and I just had a dance party, listening to his new Daft Punk CD.

It's moments like this that make me glad that I'm still at home =)

Here's a picture of the high school... the middle school is on the opposite side, and looks the same from the front!

So since it's been a while since I've posted an actual update...

At the moment life is ok... nothing bad, but nothing extraordinary.

I'm really excited about my job though, so that's keeping things going. I finally got my contract in the mail on Friday, and now I just need to take care of all the paperwork. The only thing I'm worried about is when I'm going to be able to get my curriculum stuff. The middle school is in the process of moving to the brand new high school/middle school complex, so my principal, Mr. Mayo (yeah, he has the coolest name ever lol) wasn't sure when he'd be able to track down some stuff for me. With only 5 weeks to go until New Teacher Academy, I'm getting very anxious about planning lesson plans and studying up on the material.

I'm not too worried about physical science, since I'm more familiar with the material. But World Geography is a different story. I only had one class on that at Longwood, and only paid enough attention to scrape by with an A. I'm excited to teach it though!! I got the coolest bulletin board set, with postcards from around the world! And since the Eiffel Tower and other sites of Paris are part of the 242 page Enhanced scope and sequence that I'm working through, I can justify having posters of Paris all over my room!! haha

I never realized just how expensive buying supplies for a brand new classroom can be. I went through a $100 gift card like that, and I still need to get stuff for my desk and other organizational things. My dad's building me some shelves and stuff, so that'll save some money. I'm still waiting to see what the teacher before me (who taught the same two classes) has left for me.

I should be enjoying the summer vacation, but it's hard to. I've been so bored, that I'm very much looking forward to setting up a normal schedule and having something to do every day. I know this will most likely be the last summer where I feel this way, so I'm trying to enjoy relaxing and having nothing to do. Oh well... just 5 more weeks.

So that's the job update, now for the living-situation update. I've come to the realization that there's noooo way that I can afford an apartment by myself. While my salary is high for a starting teacher, it's still not enough... half of my salary would be going to rent and utilities, then there's insurance and car payments. So until I find a roommate, I'll be living at home. I keep telling myself that it's not going to be that bad. I'll most likely be moving into my sister's room once she leaves for Longwood, which is double the size of my room now. So that'll make things better. And I'll be saving a lot of money, which is definitely a good thing. But I was really looking forward to getting out there and living in my own apartment. :(

I'll be getting a new car, or a new used car, when I start getting some paychecks!! I'm way excited! I reallllly want to get a Jetta! :)

The young adult group at our church is slowly growing, and I'm so glad that it got started this summer! We usually either go out to brunch or dinner on Sundays, and then have some events thrown in the mix-- like putt-putt and going to see Harry Potter on IMAX next Friday. It sounds silly, but I was worried about finding friends here in Richmond. I didn't really keep in touch with any high school friends, and only a few friends from Longwood live here. So I'm really happy that the group is going well! :)

I've come to the conclusion that being an adult can be fun, but it can really suck.

In anticipation of the two amazing Harry Potter events that are soon approaching, I present...


101 Ways to Annoy, Harass, Confuse or Generally Scare Lord Voldemort

Sure-fire ways to get yourself killed, or at least Crucio'd round the block and back again

from www.mugglenet.com... my favorites are in bold ;)

If you're feeling frightened about what comes next, don't be.

Embrace the uncertainty.

Allow it to lead you places. Be brave as it challenges you to exercise both your heart and your mind as you create your own path towards happiness, don't waste time with regret.

Spin wildly into your next action.

Enjoy the present, each moment, as it comes; because you'll never get another one quite like it.

And if you should ever look up and find yourself lost, simply take a breath and start over.

Retrace your steps and go back to the purest place in your heart... where your hope lives.


You'll find your way again.

- Gilmore girls

Stole this from Jessica cause it's fun!!

And let the countdown...


BEGIN!!

I've decided that I don't want to be an adult... the real world sucks.

It's slowly starting to hit me that this is it. This is the last semester of my undergrad years. There are only 3 months and 27 days until graduation.

This is it.

I can't decide whether I'm more scared or excited about this.

I'm excited about student teaching. I know it's going to be an amazing experience. And just the fact that I don't have to do another blasted TWS is reason enough.

I'm excited to be back in Farmville with my friends, the loves of my life. I know it's a bit cliché, but honestly, they've become my family. I'm so excited to have these last few months with them... I couldn't imagine it any other way.

But at the same time, I am in fear of the unknown.

I'm scared of the quickly approaching job fairs and education recruitment day and interviews and all the things that go along with job hunting. And I'm scared of not being able to find a roommate this summer. I'm scared of the change graduation will bring. I'm scared of leaving my Longwood family and the adaptations our relationships will have to undergo.

But I have faith.

I know that God has His hand in my future and that He knows exactly what's going to happen. I just have to constantly trust in His plan, which is hard for me. I've fallen away from Him, and I just pray that throughout the changes that I can find my way to Him again.

So this semester, I'm going to try my best to focus on the present... to live in the moment... to laugh too much... to take a million too many pictures... to not get caught up in silly drama... to enjoy it all.

Because, this is it

I'm in my apartment and I absolutely love it!!! :) It's going to be a great year!

I'm sooooo ready for it to be Thursday!! I can't wait to get out of the house... my family is driving me absolutely insane!!

ugh

just 4 more days

just 4 more days

just 4 more days

AIM seriously hates me. First, it kept kicking me off every 2 minutes... now it wont even let me sign on... saying i'm attempting to sign on too soon... or some crap like that. I even downloaded and installed it again, and it still doesnt work.
jashfjahdflhsdlfhlsdieaimdiedhglausifoaur;kjqlkmc;ajc;ausprue

in other news... tomorrow is going to be a great day:
-My Last day of work
- I get to see my 2 best friends from high school that i havent seen since... Winter break of freshman year, i think.
- One day closer to EMERALD ISLE!!! :D

Only 2 more weeks till the apartment, and I cannot frikin wait!!! =D I miss everyone like CRAZY!!

Oh! And the most shocking news of the night...
I got an A in Chemistry
I don't know how that happened....

ok, off to bed... just had to post the rant and some good news