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".