Drum roll please......

INTRODUCING MY NEW GOAL......


So I went to a professional development a few weeks ago about building relationships with my students so I am going to use one of the activities I learned at the professional development to introduce my new self goal.. here it is:
    If you knew me you would know.... I like to swim
    If you really knew me you would know.... I am very out of shape
    If you really really knew me you would know... Participating in a Triathlon has been on my bucket list since I was in high school.


YES THATS IT! I have officially signed up to participate in a Triathlon in the Fall. Here are the details and how I got involved.
    A few weeks ago I saw a whole bunch of my facebook friends donating money to a girl's fundraising page called "Team in Training". This particular girl is someone I knew in my childhood (We did swim team together) but I was never really friends with her. Her story about her cancer treatment and how she was going to do the Iron Girl Sprint Triathlon in the fall inspired me to look into Team in Training.
    Team in Training is a wonderful organization that works to raise money for  Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. "A health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research and providing education and patient services". Team in Training is a charity group that motivates, trains and supports athletes (or in my case incredibly out of shape but optimistic people) to complete events such as marathons, hikes or triathlons. After watching a few videos on their website and reading more information I signed up!
   I just came from an information meeting. I got to meet coaches, mentors and participants who all encouraged me and inspired me to sign up.
    Now going into this meeting I was sure I was going to do the Iron Girl Sprint Triathlon. Why? Because although I love to swim (and consider myself to be a good swimmer), I HATE running. Last week my little brother, dub, and I went out for a mile run. NO LIE...I practically passed out after one mile. A sprint triathlon consists of a .6 mile swim, 18 mile bike and 3 mile run..tough but reachable. After talking to all of the coaches about my abilities I was convinced to do the full olympic-distance triathlon. Now If you really know me you knowwwww that this is a HUGE challenge for anyone but this will be a especially HUGE challenge for me. The coaches insured me that 16 weeks is plenty of time to get in shape for the .9 mile swim, 25 mile bike and 6 (YES I SAID 6!!) mile run. The good news is that if after a few weeks of training if I don't think it's going to work out I can still drop down to the sprint distance. So I have officially signed up for the Nation's Triathlon in Washington DC on September 11th.!! WOO HOO! (can you feel my excitement and enthusiasm?)
     The whole reason for doing this (besides my selfish reason of checking it off my bucket list), is to raise money for a really good cause. So many people have benefited from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and knowing that by doing this I am helping even just one person get through their cancer treatment will push me and inspire me to run that extra mile. I will be doing a lot of fundraising for this event. Hopefully I can gain the support of all my family and friends (and their friends) so that we together can help change lives and even one day cure cancer!!!


More posts to come about my progress on training, fundraising..etc..

-Until Next Time www

A 23 year old's Reflection on 45 days without Alcohol

I decided to give up alcohol for Lent to cleanse my mind, body and soul.. In other words my goal was to save some money, lose some weight and become closer with God by praying more and drinking less. My intention was to update the blog a few times during Lent so I could share my struggles about giving up alcohol. That obviously did not happen!

   So here it is: A 23 year old's Reflection on 45 days without Alcohol. 

Week 1: Got through the whole week like a breeze. Friday night I got hit by a deer who broke it's back legs and was laying alive in the middle of a road near my house. The police came and shot it so that it wouldn't cause another accident. I took this as a test from God. As much as I wanted to drink.. I did not!

Week 2: This week went by really fast. It was overall a good week at work. Spring is in the air! The students are getting antsy about spring breaking coming. I officially lost 15 pounds! I am down to the weight I was sophomore year in college and feeling/looking good! Now I just need to maintain and not gain it all back. 

Week 3: One year to go until Jman and I get married!! Went out with some friends and felt really boring. Starting to understand why being a recovering alcoholic would be very difficult.
Week 4: Broke my computer screen and had to live a week without a computer. That sucked. Apple does have great customer service though! They were quick, very friendly and cheap!
Week 5: Counting down the last days until spring break! The kids were crazy at school. We had a group protest our gay students and a ton of people from our school came out to counter protest. It was quite an amazing sight! I spent way too much money buying clothes to help me get through the last week of lent.
Week 6: SPRING BREAK!! It was all down hill from there... I sat around and did nothing all break...which was great! I wish the weather was better so I could have laid out by the pool. About mid week I realized that I needed a summer job because there was no way I was going to lay around and be lazy all summer. I applied to some jobs and actually landed an interview today! (I think it went well!)
On Good Friday, (which is when I consider the end of lent) my friend col, Jman and I went to Baltimore to celebrate making it all the way through! We celebrated a little bit too much to make up for lost time. Saturday my family celebrated Easter with an easter egg hunt for my nieces, dying eggs, and eating wayyyy too much! Sunday we went to Church (I even convinced Jman to come with us!) and worked out in the garden.


Overall, I enjoyed the experience. It was very challenging but I got through it with the help of prayer. I didn't lose any more weight after week 2 and the money that I was hoping to save by not buying alcohol went to buying clothes.


I have decided to set a new challenge for myself. I can't wait to reveal it to my family and friends.. (It's not official yet so everyone will have to wait another week or so). I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS THOUGH! It is something that has been on my bucket list. It is going to be very challenging for myself but it will also be very rewarding! Hehe ;)

-Until Next Time www

Who is THAT person for you?

So I have learned a few things since my last post. First of all, I neglected to say how THANKFUL I am to even have a job in this horrible economy. Some days it's easy to take for granted having a job and getting paid when there are so many people in this country who don't have jobs, don't get paid, don't have health care, don't have a car, can't afford rent or gas or a hot shower. I am soo soo thankful everyday that I have these things and I am truly blessed.

This past weekend a dear friend of mine, K, and her wonderful husband hosted an engagement party for Jman and me. It was awesome! It was just my very close friends getting together for a few (or more than a few) drinks. We decided to do a potluck style party so everyone brought food and we did a taco bar. The night was spent sitting around the kitchen table talking and playing games and ended on the couch singing karaoke. 

During the party, I got to talk to K's hubby about my current debacle and he had some great words of wisdom. First of all, I learned that if life was easy all the time I would get pretty damn bored quickly. I like having a challenge but it frustrates me when I am not automatically good at something. I should use this frustration to push me to become a better teacher. Second thing I realized is that many people go through these little ruts. I shouldn't give up teaching after a few months of being tired after work. After all.. I did just spend 4 years in college and $100,000 of student loans to have this job.


The biggest thing I learned from our conversation is that I have 180 students however all of my energy goes into not being able to reach the 10 "bad" kids. I want so badly to help these kids for a number of reasons. I feel sorry for these kids because they do not have the opportunities and support that I did when I was in high school. I imagine what it would be like to be "THAT" person who made a difference in their life and changed them from becoming high school drop outs to being successful/productive citizens.  I should spend my energy with the 170 other kids who want to learn and generally like being in my class. Why do I let these "bad" kids affect me so much? Why can't I separate them from my life? Why do I go home every day and thing about them? Is this normal!? I might not ever know the answers to these questions..


I thought long and hard before making a decision on what I was going to give up for Lent this year. I love Lent because it gives me a challenge and makes me feel like I have more control over my life. I decided to take the ULTIMATE challenge. Alcohol. Now I am not a huge drinker.. I like to go out on the weekends sometimes but since Jman and I have pledged to save money towards a house I haven't had too many nights out on the town. What will be challenging is the more than occasional glass of wine (or two) after work. Taking a break from Alcohol will help me lose weight and will help me cleanse my mind, body and soul.

-Until Next Time www

How many more weeks until summer?

I want a new job.


I am soo tired of teaching. Every day I come home exhausted. Not motivated to do anything. I don't feel like I am making a difference or an impact on any of these kids. I feel so overwhelmed and unorganized and I don't have any time to do anything about it. I am trying to figure out what happened to my attitude/out look on life since I have been here and since august. I used to come home every day so happy, loving my job and the kids and the school. Now I just feel tired. What has happened to me?!


I would love to go back to grad school and study educational technology but I have NO money for that. I can barely afford the $1,000 every month from undergrad (and no that number is not an exaggeration)! I want to stay in education because I truly think that is where I belong but I am tired of alll the things that I (and other teachers) have to do/put up with everyday. If it was just planning, grading and teaching everyday my life would be so much easier..but add the constant meetings, forms, professional development, conferences, discipline problems and it just wears me down.

-Until Next Time www

Anyone who says teaching is easy needs to come spend one day with me.


On a brighter note, J and I booked the place where we are going to have our wedding! I am so glad I have fun things to look forward to every day when I come home.

Is a stress free wedding possible?

Woah! Life got busy! Here's a quick update..


So Jman and I are ENGAGED!! I have dreamed about that day since I was 5 years old and it finally happened. I have always wondered if I would be disappointed if it didn't happen the way I wanted it to be. I was definitely not expecting it but IT was 20x better than I could have ever imagined. Jman took me out to eat at our FAVORITE restaurant (the melting pot). We sat in a small, very private, and cozy booth. We drank a bottle of 7 Deadly Zins red wine (I highly recommend) and ate the Mojo fondue. Right after we started eating desert, Jman popped the question! I will never forget how happy I was at that moment. It was truly amazing!


All I want to do now is wedding plan! Everyone always says that wedding planning is stressful. I haven't felt that at all. The biggest thing for us is to stay on budget! This will be very challanging. After talking with my lovely Jman, we decided that owning a house was much more important to us than having a very expensive wedding. So far it has been difficult finding vendors and venues in our budget. So it looks like I will be doing most of it myself! We finally picked a date and a venue last week! If it wasn't 15 months away then I would have my photography, cake, flowers and dress picked out too! I am trying to pace myself so that I have something to do this summer.


In other news, we started a new semester at school! I was glad to get a new batch of kids. The students were starting to get lazy and apathetic. I am excited to re-do forensics now that I know a little bit more and already have lots of labs and activities planned out.

-Until Next Time www

Heres to 5 Years!

Jman and I are celebrating our 5th year Anniversary this weekend. It seems like it was yesterday that I was coming back to NC State from Winterbreak and Jman asked me to date him. We had talked all break long on instant messaging and I couldn't wait to get back to hang out with him. At first I was a little unsure. I told him I would think about it. Of course that night I had to go back and consult with my roommate, Aly. A few days later he asked me again and I said Yes! I don't think any of our mutual friends thought that we would actually stay together for very long. I was very involved with the sorority and having fun with my girl friends and J was more of a reserved kinda guy (although, he knows how to get down and party too!).


It's funny how much has changed since then. We went from living in the dorms, to being long distance over the summer months, to me living in the sorority house and J living in an apartment, to living in separate apartments, to living together in NC, to living together in MD. During each phase of our lives we faced different difficulties but some how we always have been able to pull through.


I am so thankful for every minute I have shared with my Jman. So heres to my best friend and the most amazing 5 years of my life!

Merry Christmas!

This holiday season came way too fast! I am so thankful for all of the blessings I have in my life right now including having a nice place to live, a supportive boyfriend, a fantastic family and great group of friends. 


Justin and I decided not to send out Christmas cards this year in an effort to save some money. We have set a big goal for ourselves for the new year. By living frugally, we hope to have enough money saved up to buy a house by December 2011! Sometimes when we are surrounded by nice things it can be hard to lose track of the important things in life. So my 2011 resolution is to not be so wasteful with my money. 


Merry Christmas Bloggers! 


Until next time..