Update

Hello everyone, I know it has been way to long since my last post. Things have been kinda of crazy lately. I will give you a brief run down. I spent most of August applying to every Science teaching position I could find in the area. Unfortunately, I still haven't found a full time position. I did have one interview a few weeks ago with Arlington ISD. They had 2 Science Teaching positions open. I felt like the interview went really well and the Vice Principal even told me, that I had very insightful answers for someone who had never taught before. I was bummed when i found out that I didn't get the position, but I also new it was a long shot because they had 16 applicant for the 2 positions and I'm sure at least 2 of them had some experience. I decided not to focus on the fact that I didn't get the job and I just let it motivate me more in my job search. I applied to substitute in several school districts and I actually just had my first day as a sub this past Wednesday. I subbed for a 2nd grade teacher in a brand new school in Everman. I was nervous because I was actually supposed to attend a substitute training before I started substituting, but a lady form HR called me on Tuesday and asked if I was available to sub on Wednesday. I told her that I haven't done my training yet and she informed me that they were kind of desperate, and since I was in the alternative certification program that they were just going to let me skip the training. I agreed to sub on Wednesday, but I was definitely nervous. It went well, the kids were good, just very talkative. I think I spent most of the day trying to keep them quiet. After subbing one day in a 2nd grade class, I am sure that I want to teach high school. I will continue to sub in elementary schools, but I am going to try and get as much high school teaching experience as possible. I just wanted to give a quick update. I will post new pictures soon, I have a lot but I still need to upload them to my computer.

And the verdict is....

So last night I decided to check the website and see if my test scores had been posted. I didn’t think that they would be because they told me that it takes 7 days. Which is kind of ridiculous when you think about it because I took the test on the computer, which means that it was graded instantly. So I was kind of surprised when I logged in to my account and next to the Test name it said “View Scores”. I looked at the screen for a minute and then I Nervously clicked on the “view scores” button. It took a few moments for the pdf file to load, but when it popped up all I saw was the word PASSED. This was the only part that mattered. I didn’t have to have the highest score, I just wanted to pass, and I DID. I was so excited that I jumped out of the chair and screamed, which then had the rest of the house asking me what was wrong. I then exclaimed “I PASSED MY TEST”. It was a little late to be screaming and Ainsley was asleep not to far away, but I was so excited that I had actually passed. Thanks to everyone for all the prayers. Now I will start applying for jobs. Please pray that I will be able to find one before the school year starts. Love to all. Goodnight

The moment of Truth...

Well...I just realized that I haven't blogged about anything that's going on with the job search, so I thought I would fill everyone in on whats going on. I have decided to get my teaching certificate so that I can teach High school Science. Ideally, I would like to teach Biology or Anatomy and Physiology, but most first year teachers don't get those jobs. I will probably have to start off teaching the Science Composite, which is basically a combo of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Earth Science and Astronomy. So before we went to Florida I started looking into alternative certification programs. I applied for one and got the process started before we left for vacation. Basically all I have to do to start applying for teaching jobs is pass a content test. Once I pass the test I can then apply for jobs and hopefully start teaching this August. When we got back in town, I signed up to take the content test. Science is a "high-need" area for most school districts so they are usually pretty desperate for teachers. Also, in most districts you get a $1000-$2000 stipend just for teaching in Math or Science. I decided to take the content test for the Science composite because that is the subject with the most job openings. I signed up for the test and decided that I needed to get a study guide because its been a really long time since I have done high school science. I thought that I would just be able to go to the bookstore and pick one up. Unfortunately it wasn't that easy. I went to 4 different bookstores and one library and I couldn't find one. I was starting to get pretty worried because I only had a few days to study. I decided to go to half price books and pick up some old high school textbooks. I studied all weekend and I took the test yesterday. Through all of it I remembered how much I liked Chemistry when I was in High School, it wasn't until I got to college that I really started hating it. I also remembered that I NEVER liked physics, NEVER, not even a little bit. I was pretty nervous about the test, because it was over a lot of information and I only had 3 days to study for it. I can honestly say that with the amount of time that I had to study, I did the best that I could. There was so much information to cover that I couldn't spend very long on any one topic, which made it kind of frustrating when I didn't understand something. I basically had to move on to the next topic whether or not I completely understood. I was very rushed. I spent 3 days studying for a test that most people spend months studying for and that's after they have just taken classes covering all the material. Its been a long time since I have covered most of the material so I know that I did the best I could regardless of what score I receive. I REALLY hope that I passed because I can't start applying for jobs if I didn't. I also will not be able to take the test again for 60 days, if I didn't pass. So please say lots of prayers that I passed it. I would also like to ask everyone to pray that I can find a job (assuming that I passed the test, of course). I have seen several openings in some school districts in the area, but I'm just hoping that the positions don't get snatched up by someone else while I am waiting for these scores. I am trying to be as optimistic as possible because I have decided that that is the only attitude I can have and still get through each day. Its hard when you go from having your own house and all the privacy you could ever want to no privacy at all. We love and appreciate everything that my parent and Patrick's parents are doing for us, its just hard as I'm sure you can all understand. I'm actually very excited about teaching, but I don't want to get my hopes up that I am going to get a job because I don't want to get let down. I keep seeing things at the store that would be great for my desk in my classroom, but then I remember not to get ahead of myself since I don't have a job or a classroom just yet. We will keep praying for patience while God works things out in his own time. Patience had definitely never been my strong suite, but I am learning more and more each day as I wait for the blessings that God has in store for us. That's all for now. I'll post again when I find out the results of the test. Also, please pray for baby Stellan. Check out his story by clicking on the button that says "Praying for Stellan".

My throat is burning...

So last Friday there were lots of people over here for dinner. Me, Patrick, Ainsley, Mom, Dad, Jenn, Boston, Zach, Peggy and baby Lily. We were all eating dinner and watching the kids play when Boston started coughing. Then Ainsley started coughing and we all thought that she was just mimicking Boston. But then my mom started coughing and about that time I felt a little tickle in my throat. If was becoming kind of a joke because everyone was coughing. I got up and left the room and I started coughing, then Zach, Jenn, Peggy and Baby Lily were all coughing too. We couldn't figure out why we were all coughing until I realized that My throat was burning. About that time Zach said that his nose was burning. A few moment later, Patrick walks in the house from the garage and finds everyone inside coughing. Zach and I were still complaining of the burning when the culprit was revealed. Patrick started asking Peggy what was on her key chain. She casually replied " oh... that's mase". Apparently before Patrick walked out into the garage, he picked up a bottle of water off of the table and he accidentally knocked Peggy's car keys onto the floor. This allowed the mase canister to release some spray. Patrick said that he heard it make a little noise but he didn't know what it was so he just threw the keys back on the table. So while he was outside in the garage, we were all inside unknowingly breathing in mase. After we figured out what it was, we all decided to go outside and get some fresh air while the house aired out. Luckily, the mase didn't seem to cause any major problems for anyone and even the babies were okay. A slight burning sensation in my throat and some coughing was all I experienced, which isn't too bad considering we all got MASED.

Florida 2009

Look at that Snapper

Patrick, Brayden and the Barracuda

Patrick working on reelin' in a shark

Brayden on the fishing boat

Daddy and Ainsley on the cruise boat

The Fam

Brayden and Ainsley before we went on a sight seeing cruise

The view from our living room window

Ainsley and Brayden enjoying the view

Daddy and Ainsley at the airport


We had so much fun in Florida. Well...except for the part when I got sick. Saturday morning I wasn't feeling very well. I felt like I couldn't breathe and of course I didn't have an inhaler with me. My mom called the Dr. and had and inhaler called in for me so that I could breathe. I stayed at the hotel most of Saturday, the inhaler made it easier for me to breathe but I finally realized that the reason I felt so bad was because I had a fever of 101.9. I took some Motrin and after that I finally started to feel better and we all decided to go down to the pool. I started feeling lousy again later that evening. By Sunday morning I felt just awful and I couldn't get rid of my fever. I didn't leave the room on Sunday, but at least I had a nice view to look at. My dad called the Dr. again and had him call me in some antibiotics, which is what finally got me feeling better. Tuesday, my dad, Brayden, Patrick and me all went out fishing. We had a great time. My dad hooked a fish which quickly turned into a shark, when a shark came up and ate the fish that was on his line. The boat captain, the deckhand and Patrick all took turns trying to reel in the shark. But, after about 45 minutes and 1 mile later, the line broke and we were all a little disappointed because we just wanted to get a picture of it at least. We also had a interesting run in with a barracuda that kept eating the fish we were catching, but a gaff, took care of him. We caught quite a few snapper and my dad caught a bunch of weird fish, but all in all we had a good time. Brayden spent most of the fishing trip sleeping, but he did catch a couple fish and he got to see the barracuda. The rest of the time there was pretty low key, but it was nice just to relax and take in the beautiful scenery. Ainsley wasn't a huge fan of the sand but she still had fun at the beach. Overall we had a great time in Florida we can't wait to go back next year. If you want to see the rest of our Florida pictures, leave me a comment and I will email you a link so you can check them out. Oh, and btw, the above pictures upload in the reverse order from what the actually happened. The last picture is of Patrick and Ainsley on the way to Florida. One day I will figure out how to get them in the right order, but today is not that day.

We Made It!!

We are in Florida. Traveling with a 1 year old was definitely a new experience but it was actually really good. Patrick walked Ainsley around the airport terminal for about an hour before we got on the plane to make sure that she was good and tired. When we got on the plane (quite possibly the smallest plane ever) she had a bottle and little snack and then it was nap time in daddy's lap. This was the smallest plane that I have ever been on and I will definitely say that I much prefer the huge jumbo jets to the little puddle jumpers. It only had 3 seat in each row, one on one side of the aisle and 2 on the other. I just glad that Ainsley slept most of the way because they took her diaper bag from me and put it somewhere several rows behind us in the over head bin. So I didn't exactly have easy access to it. We decided not to wait at the airport for mom and dad, instead we just took a shuttle bus to our hotel. When we got here all 3 of us were exhausted so we put Ainsley down for a nap and me and Patrick relaxed for a little. we have an amazing view from our room. We are right on the corner of the beach and the intercoastal water way. I will post some pics as soon as I take some. I can't wait to see all the things there is to do. Check back soon for pics.

Ainsley Loves her New Blanket!

So of course Ainsley loved all of her birthday presents, but there seems to be one in particular that has been a big hit. Her new blanket that Mimaw made for her. She absolutely loves it. I set it down on the floor for her to see and she immediately laid her head down on it and put her thumb in her mouth. So Cute! She has never done that with any other blanket so it was very cute. She knew that this was a special blanket made with love just for her. Here are a few pictures of her with her new blanket. Thanks Mimaw for the beautiful blanket.

Just testing it out

Oh, it's just perfect!


Let me get a closer look...

Nap time anyone?

BTW...my mom did the embroidery on the blanket. Her new business is called Simply Stitched and her website will be coming soon.