Dressing Room Divas

I needed some new additions to my wardrobe.  Maurices was having a sale.  Whit has a discount.  Best friend weekend!  :)

Originally, we were supposed to go to a concert at PLC on Saturday night with shopping before hand.  With Whit, you usually forget about time and keep on shopping.  Good thing we had both seen the band before.

We started at one store, then hit another, tried to find Maurice's, and then wound up at another mall.  I'm pretty sure we got some laughs of women who overheard our conversations and laughter in the dressing rooms...we get a little crazy sometimes.  And then we went to Maurice's.  Whit loaded up on hangers of clothes for me to try on.  I ended up getting almost everything because of the wonderful deal!  I got a beautiful dress for less than $6!!!  Besides all that, I got some great pieces for teaching!  I also managed to walk through a sales associates fart.  That was rather unpleasant.

Through all our wandering and trying on, Whit and I talked...  a lot!  We got all caught up on all things wedding, Caleb's job, Dustin's job, apartment searching, classes, the future.  And we laughed.  I haven't laughed for that amount of time in quiet a while.  It was so good to reminisce over our friendship and be completely goofy!  I was also making plenty of honeymoon jokes at the future Mrs. Edgerly!  :)

She drug me to Dress Barn and I swear there was like 20 dresses in that fitting room!  I tried on most of them and found a great one for the bachelorette party!   And then I had a mini photo shoot.  I think the sales lady thought we were nuts!  I was doing that awkward 'silent' laughter, but I really needed to snort!

We had sooooo much fun!  And then we got to go back to her house and show off our goods!  That night, it was a slumber party in Whit's bed.  Lynnae was convinced she needed to sleep with us...in the bed.  It was a little crowded.  I had a unicorn pillow pet nose up my butt the whole night.  Whit also rolled over and hit me in the temple/ear.  It was a long night.

The next morning, we both got up and dressed in dresses to go to church.  In a lot of ways we are very different from each other, but in quite a few ways, we are exactly the same.

May 2013

This month I have been living out of a suitcase pretty regularly.  I've moved out and back in with families, and am temporarily staying with another one.  I've had interviews and offers.  I've had tears of homesickness and happiness.  This month has really been a roller coaster of a ride!

Low:

• I got really homesick by the end of student teaching.  It was rough for a couple of weeks.
• I did move out of the Abrahamson's house, but I did move back into my own...well, sort of.
• My mentor teacher had surgery which requires her to be gone for the rest of the year.

High:

• I got to go home!  Ruby missed me a little bit!  :)

• Whit and I went shopping for a bridesmaid's dress again.  This time, I really have it on the way.
• We had a garage sale where we both got rid of a bunch of junk we didn't need.  :)
• I sat at my sewing machine.  I baked cookies and bread.  I got a lot accomplished!

• Because of my teacher being gone for the rest of the year, they wanted to hire a long-term sub.  Who better than the one who just spent the last 8 weeks with them?  Of course I didn't turn this opportunity down!  After commuting the first couple of days, I loaded up a week's worth of stuff to move into my teacher's house.  I've now made a couple of furry friends.  Kitty and Winston are most hospitable!

• I got to see my dear friend, Tums, graduate!  So proud of that girl!

• Dustin and I had a wonderful Strawberry Point date in between commencement and the party.  Such a beautiful afternoon!  :)

• I GOT A JOB!!!  I'm so excited and looking forward to it all!  I've been very welcomed by a couple of people via e-mail and offers to help with the apartment search to make sure I'm in a safe place.  I'm excited to see what opportunities will arise from this classroom and city.

I could tell story after story of all the crazy things that have happened to me over the past month.  God has continued to answer prayers I haven't prayed since January that focused on student teaching.  Just because we stop praying about a certain topic, doesn't mean God stops answering.  He is always faithful.  This month is living proof of that.  Here's to June and all the crazy adventures it's sure to bring!  :)

You Just Have To...

I have been embarrassingly behind on blogging lately.  So much has been going on since I last blogged!  I've sat down to write a couple of times over the past month and then I would get distracted by a more pressing need.  So, for this blog, I will attempt to catch up on the past month and all its happenings.

I couldn't be happier with my second student teaching placement.  I started after a mere 4 days of saying goodbye to my 3rd graders.  That first day was practical culture shock.  Instead of there being more students than teachers, it's the other way around.  Instead of my name being said, yelled, uttered multiple times in a half hour span, I could go for half hours without hearing my name.  Instead of a stuck to schedule, there is a roll with the punches atmosphere.  I don't think I can express how happy and free I feel in this room.  I take over next week completely.  I've been getting along so well with each of the students.  And I need to get red pants for Red Pant Wednesday!

And I have a desk.

With a yellow rain boots pot with a plant.

AHHHH!!!!  

:)

My boyfriend and I have been dating for 2 whole months.  The time has simply flown by!  He's come home with my twice and loves hanging out with my family.  We love playing cards and just last night, he beat me for the first time in Rummy.  Dustin is a country boy through and through.  He's convinced I need to get a gun and go hunting with him this year.  He loves fishing...and he enjoys catching more than me...

Bella, his dog, is super jealous.  She's had him all to herself for her whole doggie life.  But that problem is now solved since he took her into his parent's house to stay. 

And then there's Benji.  Ya know, that sweet and innocent Yorkie that guards the Abrahamson house?  The only reason he's so 'sweet' is because he ate 1 1/2 Scratch cupcakes.  Yep.  The cupcakes I got for Dustin and I.  One that he special requested.  Benji got them and took one to hide for later.  We aren't on sweet terms right now.

I was able to see Jani Lippert last week.  Oh man, did I miss that girl!  It was so good to get a hug from her!  It was great to catch up a little bit in the gas station parking lot.  She brought me a portfolio that I was badly in need of because not only do I have to do the whole teaching thing, but I have to do the portfolios and other assignments for seminar.

Did I mention that I'm starting to look for real jobs now?  Holy cow!  I'm trying to find something up this way.  There are a few openings, and there is so much to get done for the application process.  Dustin came over last week to help me look and I was stressing out a little bit.  After a good dose of prayer, I was able to sleep that night.  I know that God will open the door I need to walk through.

Well, you should all know by now that my best friend is getting married in November.  We got her dress, and so with my precious few weekends that I have left, we spent Saturday looking for my dress.  The first one I tried on was the one!  I can't wait to wear it at her wedding!  No pictures because the dress was the wrong color, and it was a size too small, but look for them in November.

Before the kids even left today, my teacher told me to get ready because I was leaving as soon as the kids left.  She was too.  

"It's too nice to sit in here and work.  Sometimes you just have to do that for yourself."

So I sit on the deck getting ready to work on lesson plans and portfolios.  At least I'm outside, right?

This Girl is on Fire

Well, today was the day.  Today was one of the days my best friend has been looking forward to for so long.  We went wedding dress shopping!  :)  Momma Abe, Joy (Caleb's momma), Lynnae, Whit, and I piled into the car to head to Des Moines.  It was such a fun car ride there and the time flew by.  Naturally, we had to make a stop at Scratch!  This was Joy's first time.  It was a big day for me as well!  I hit stamp #50 on my tour card!!!  :)

Our first place was Schaffer's.  I have never been wedding dress shopping before, but it felt so natural to be picking out beautiful dresses.  It was so much fun to watch Whit get all gussied up in the beautiful gowns and twirl around on the pedestal.  Lynnae went right for the shoes and kept walking around in some high heels!!  It was a no go on the dresses there, but before we went to David's Bridal, I treated myself to a cup of Turtle Mocha from Caribou Coffee!  :) 

At David's Bridal, Lynnae was tired.  The place was busy, and there were so many dresses that would be perfect.  This was the place we should have started at.  I was able to do the honors here and zip my best friend into all 3 contenders.  Honestly, she only tried on 3.  The first 2 were big hits, but that third one.  WOW!  That was it.  We all looked at her, she looked at us, and we all just knew.  The tears came down.  The hugs were given all around.  The pictures were taken.  The bell was rung.  Whit had found the dress that she will marry her other best friend in on November 23rd.  It is BEAUTIFUL, and that's all I can say...until I can share pictures in November!  :)

After that, we joined up with the fellas at Hu Hot and had a very late lunch.  We talked and laughed the whole meal through.

The whole way home, we jammed to Taylor Swift.  We danced like crazy women.  We laughed into hysterics.  We belted out the high notes.  We let Lynnae sing her solo...This Girl is on Fire.  :)

Broken and Beautiful

Today's church service hit hard and heavy.  The topic?  Death.  I've been affected by death just as much as the next person.  I've often compared that hurt to a bruise that never goes away.  Sure, it gets better with time, and then suddenly, it gets poked again and it hurts real bad.  As the service went on, I thought about the deaths that I had experienced.  I thought about that pain that comes with the sad realization.  I thought about that punch in the gut feeling when saying goodbye.  And then, I also thought about the wonderful experiences that happened in the time after.  I thought about the lessons God was teaching me through those deaths of my loved ones.

During sophomore year of high school, I was feeling pretty great.  Here I was on the verge of being an upperclassman, had tons of friends, I was active in youth group, involved in many things, and I had a job.  Not bad for 16, right?  January came and Errol passed away.  I've talked about it before, so I won't talk much more on this.  I was a mess.  I was at rock bottom suddenly.  My world had just been turned upside down.  I didn't know how to get myself back to 'normal.'  At this point in my walk with Christ, I had prayed the prayer, went to youth group and church, and I think I was just playing the part pretty good.  I hadn't had that moment where I felt in true need of Christ.  That was until I heard the Gospel again about a month later. That was when I realized just how broken I was.  That was when I realized how much I needed God.

Six months later, Tyler died.  Tyler was my classmate.  While we weren't the closest of friends, he was still a classmate and a friend.  I was so in shock that June afternoon.  I was in shock probably that whole week.  This time, though, I knew what to do.  I wasn't going to hold it in.  I was going to give it to God right away.  The growth I had made in the last 6 months made it easier to grieve.  I learned how to talk about it.  I knew that I wasn't going to go back to that place I was in 6 months before.  Just knowing that God was there to provide comfort and healing gave me all the truth and strength I needed.

Grandpa Goudy died right before my senior year of high school.  I was headed to the Iowa State Fair to be a grandstand usher days after his death.  During those 10 days at the fair, I spent a lot of time by myself.  I spent a lot of time working on embroidery, reading my Bible and praying.  It was during that time that I discovered my life verse.

As the deer pants for streams of water,

    so my soul pants for you, my God.

Psalm 42:1

The most recent death that has proved a punch in the gut was Papu.  Papu was Whit's grandpa who I had only been around a handful of times.  He told me that I was just like another granddaughter to him all the same.  He was funny, caring, could tell great stories, and always lit up a room with his smile.  That phone call when Whit told me of his death was not one I wanted to hear.  I hated being so far away form her as this was going on.  They headed back to Ohio for the funeral, and I was headed to camp for 4State.  On Saturday, I was feeling anxious.  I had told Whit that I would call her, and she didn't answer.  I knew she was probably busy and with family, but I was just looking for some confirmation.  I was feeling antsy and introverted.  I finally walked behind the Lodge to the crick.  I sat on a bench and let it all out.  I cried and prayed.  Prayed and cried.  I was a mess.  I wanted to be with Whit and her family so bad, but that wasn't in the plans.  I was at camp and all I could do was pray.  I sat there until I could sing It Is Well With My Soul and actually sing it with confidence.

Naturally, that is how we would end today's service.  It is hands down, my favorite hymn.  I was nearly in tears as that peace washed over me.

It is well, (it is well),

With my soul, (with my soul)

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Black Snowpants

Week 3 had its ups and downs to be sure.  By the end of the week, I had 2 snow days and two 2-hour delays.  I had 2 boys crying on Thursday.  I had 2 cold feet by the time I made it to school every day.  I had 22 students who love having a Mr. Potato Head in the room, and I had a chance to go home for the weekend.

Monday was scheduled to be a 2-hour delay.  I was on my way to school when I got a text saying school was closed.  Back home I went and spent the day on the couch continuing to recover from a cold and indulging in Disney movies with my best friend.

Tuesday was the only full day of the week.  The kids were wound for sound and we all were anticipating a snow day for Wednesday with the impending storm.  I currently despise indoor recess.  Those kids need to get out and throw some snowballs.  They need to be building forts in the mounds of snow that has been removed from the blacktop.  They need to have fun outside and scream and yell and do kid things instead of being inside playing with Legos and Twister and stuff.  Tuesday I implemented a new behavior management plan with the help of Mr. Potato Head.  So far, it's doing pretty well.

Wednesday was a snow day.  So much snow!!!  Whit and I had the slowest/longest Lord of the Rings marathon.  We had to take plenty of pauses since everyone was home and there was a lot of activity.  We had to help in the snow removal so we got outside for a little while.  Lynnae and I got to throwing some snowballs, and she was pretty close to getting put face first into a snow pile!

Thursday was a 2-hour delay.  They were wound for sound.  Again.  After lunch, one of the boys slipped on some snow pants and hurt his foot.  Those tears started pouring down.  Ms. Strupp to the rescue and I got him to calm down in right around 30 seconds.  All was right and well again.  The day went on.  My supervisor came in to observe how I was doing thus far in my experience.  It was then time to sent them home.  Getting ready to go has to be the most stressful, hectic point of the day.  I've been there 3 weeks, and I still have NO IDEA how the bus system works.  Anyway, as the students were all getting ready, one of the boys came up to me upset because he couldn't find his snow pants.  Naturally, he was looking for black ones.  EVERYONE has black ones.  I will never, ever get my kids black snow pants!  We still couldn't find them AND his bus was getting called.  The tears came and he wasn't ready to go.  Ms. Strupp to the rescue again.  After promising we would get it all sorted out the next day, he would have to go home without them that night.  I told him no tears to the reply of a couple more tears, a sniffle, and an okay.  "I can't find my boots!"  Ah, 3rd grade.  I love them all!  Teachers were given the release as soon as the kids left.  Everyone was heading into white out conditions.  It took me so long to get home!  This was my view.

Friday brought another 2-hour delay.  The roads were better as I drove to school, but I made sure to still take my time.  Friday brought my third math lesson in my gradual take over.  Friday brought more indoor recess, more squirmy children, and more fun.  The kids all love when I read.  You can hear a pin drop as I read because they are all so transfixed.  Right now, I'm reading The Trumpet of the Swan.  I am reading it a little ahead of them.  I never read this as a kid, so it's a good read right now.  I love them all, but I was ready to hit the road after school let out.  I planned with my teacher for a while after school.  I take over reading and writing next week, so I will have the mornings with me in charge.

This week has been crazy and wonderful!  So many great things happened.  These kids all keep me laughing and on my toes all day long!  It's hard to believe that I only have 5 weeks left with my wonderful 3rd graders!

 

This song basically sums up my week!  :)

January 2013

How are there only 11 months left in 2013 already??  This month has flown by, and it's hard to believe that I've been living with the Abrahamson's for nearly a month already.  Next week marks the halfway mark for my first placement of student teaching.  It has been AMAZING month full of snowstorms, school, frozen fingers and toes, friends, and another move.

Low:

• I had to leave Ruby's sad little face...
• Early bedtimes are back on my schedule.  This means that I have to watch Nashville on Thursday afternoons instead of Wednesday nights.
• The cold.  My toes and fingers barely have time to thaw before I brave the elements each time...
• My 3rd graders have nasty habits.  They don't blow their noses, and they have this obsession with sanitizer.  Needlessly to say, after doing everything in my own willpower to avoid getting sick, they got me down after week 2.
• I drank expired milk for a week without realizing it...
• I made it to Week 3 before my first name was revealed to my students.  Well, at least they don't know I'm a Katelyn and not just a Katie!  :)

High:

• I was able to spend the first couple days of the new year with 2 of my best friends in Chicago!

• Spinelli is learning her lessons!  :)

• I moved in with my second family!  :)
• Week 1 of student teaching was simply amazing!  I love what I'm doing!  It's a lot of work in front of the kids, and behind the scenes, but I'm so happy to be in 3rd grade!  :)
• Momma got GREAT news at her doctor's appointment and doesn't have to go back for a whole year!
• The week that I do have a cold, we've gotten an ice day and a snow day, so I only spent two days at school this week!  More time to recuperate!

February better be good since it's starting on a Friday and everything.

Mustache Monday

Today was cold.  That's old news.  Sunday nights I plan my wardrobe, and I had to take into consideration the size of my dress pants and if I would be able to wear long underwear underneath them.  I only wish I was joking.  One thing that I especially love about my baby is that she came with remote start.  This is perfect for mornings such as these where I can stand in my slippers and hold that button so she can warm up before I'm really ready to head out the door.

I finished getting ready, headed out the door, and opened my car door and set out on my way.  Well, that's at least what I was planning to do.  Instead, when I went to open my door, it stayed exactly where it was.  That was the same with the other doors too.  I went inside and told Mary who all but cracked up at my situation.  Then she slipped on some shoes, grabbed a broom and came out to help.  With a little jiggle and some pounds, the door was opened, and Mary gave my car a good brushing before I was on my way.  Naturally, this little episode set me back about 10 minutes.

School started off as usual.  Announcements, pledge, math, specials, writing, typical.  This Monday was slightly different because the magazine sales guy came.  He wowed the kids with all the lame toys.  He gave his sales pitch with so much excitement.  He gave some of the teachers (all women) fake mustaches.  Bet you didn't see that coming!  Yep, a couple of the teachers received fake mustaches.  I got a duck key chain with what I would consider troll hair, and a pair of shades.  My teacher got a mustache.  When we came back in from this, a couple of the students were fixated on the mustache.

"Will you wear it?"

"Wear it please!"

"If we have a good day, will you wear it?"

I got sick of hearing about the mustache, but was so relieved that nobody remembered at the end of the day!  My teacher did not have to wear one, and I didn't either since it was a 2 pack!  :)

Every Monday there is a PBIS assembly.  The teacher that leads this received the first mustache of the day.  Naturally, she would come out wearing it.  It was this ridiculously long handlebar thing.  No one could taker her seriously!  It's amazing what a fake mustache will do to a whole pod of 3rd graders!

The day went on.  Last week there were a few kids who either stayed home because they were sick, or got sent home because they were sick.  So far, I'm going strong, but I feel like I might get hit with a cold soon.  My ears are acting up, and my nose is not being so nice.  I'm hoping that I'll make it a lot further than week 2 before I get taken down by sickness!  

After school, my teacher and I stayed until after 5.  It was a long day!  We did talk about and establish a long range plan for my time in her room.  We have it all mapped out, and I get to teach on pueblos in a couple of weeks!  She used to live in that region, so she has TONS of information and got me all loaded up! It's crazy to think that in 2 short weeks, I will be in complete charge for a couple of weeks!  Life is about to get a whole lot busier!  :)

Saturday Night Slumber Parties

Friday night was filled with unpacking, Pizza Ranch, and Hairspray.  I love being able to live in this house!  My second family is and always has been wonderful!  After 5ish years of friendship between Whit and I, they treat me like one of their own.

Friday night Whit, Lynnae, and I ended up all on my bed watching Hairspray.  All 3 of us love this movie!  We know most of the songs and many of the lines.  By the end of the movie, Lynnae had planted herself between Whit and I.

Saturday brought another moving day, but thankfully it wasn't for me.  Caleb, Whit's fiance, had to get all moved into his new apartment in Grinnell.  After using close to 2 whole bottles of Frebreze on the carpets, the place at least smelled a little better!  Whit and I were able to do random oddities of moving like filling the Brita pitcher and ice cube trays, and hanging the shower curtain before it was time to come back to the house to host a Thirty-One party before leaving for the night's activity.

Whit helped Caleb to continue to settle into his new place on Saturday night.  I went out on a blind date.  It was a lot of fun and I had a great time, but I'm going to keep the details to myself!  :)  We both got back to the house at about the same time.  We decided to camp out in my room for the night.  These plans tend to include Lynnae now too, but that's alright!  :)

Lynnae camped out on the floor.  She is just like her sister and thinks she has to sleep under a huge mound of blankets!  Whit joined me in my bed and promised to try to resist punching me in the face in her sleep.  Sometimes, even in our 20's, our friendship takes a high school turn.  I got to giggle and divulge all the details of my date, and she teased me and giggled at some of the awkward moments that blind dates always have.

I've decided that I want every Saturday night that I stay here to be like that.  Us girls all snuggled up warm watching a movie.  I'm working on Benji still.  He is liking me a little bit better.  He joined me on Saturday morning for a while.  Maybe he'll join us some nights too!

Living Situations

I had a pretty good childhood.  I was healthy, happy, ran free, had a dog, had a calf or two (remember, I'm a farm girl), went on great adventures, have parents who let me dream and encouraged me, and I somehow made it through all my school years without a best friend moving away.  Yes, I'm sure I'm one of the few that didn't have to go through that traumatic experience, and I am grateful!

My best friend in the whole wide world is Whitney.  We've been through so much in our 5 years of friendship.

She came into my life when her dad became the superintendent at our school.  We didn't start our as friends right away.  I mean she was the sporty, popular, superintendent's daughter.  Me, I was the FFA, friends with everyone kind of girl.  We became friends through youth group and deepened our friendship at camp.  

I also have somewhat been adopted into her family.  I love each and every one of them dearly.

Now, Whitney and I are both in college and I don't get home all that often.  Last summer, Todd took a job in Grinnell.  This meant a move.  I wasn't terribly heart-broken because Whit and I are all but out of our parents' nests.  I knew I would miss their presence in Sigourney, but I also knew they had been praying over this decision for a very long time.

In January, I applied for student teaching.  This was a process!  I filled out more forms, and thought over so many things.  Where would I choose for my placement?  If I don't get my first choice, where will I live?  What am I supposed to do?!  I prayed as I dwelled on decisions.  I waited and waited, just hoping that I would get word that I would be placed somewhere back home.  Sadly, I did not.  As I read over the MARSHALLTOWN/RURAL area placement I was a little bit of a mess.  "God, you know how badly I want to go home.  God, what's going on?  Marshalltown was one of my least favorite, off-handed choices."  When I had filled out the form, I off-handedly chose a couple of places that might work, if I didn't get my first choice.  Clearly, I was banking on getting my way.

I continued to pray and give it to God trusting that He knew what is best.  I finally called Mary to work something out.  She was really excited when I asked and said she would talk to Todd.  JC would be moving out to college, so there would be an open room anyway.  I continued to pray.

I got the okay!!  I love the Abrahamson's!  I get a room to myself, I get to spend time with a wonderful family, and I will experience who knows what in Grinnell.

I'm still praying over my school placements that I will not know of until November.  I'm excited to see what doors God will open to me as I continue my journey as a pre-service teacher.