Post in Numbers

220: Number of guests invited to the wedding

125: Original guest list number (before we realized just how big Westley's extended family is ... and how many people we love too much to exclude)

$99: Amount I paid for a too-cute cart/countertop from Target for my new apartment

91: Number of barns (functional and/or dilapidated) I pass on my way to work

53: Number of barns in my original count last week while driving myself
(Westley and I drove in that direction last weekend and I counted many more when I could safely pay better attention!)

52: Number of confirmed wedding guests (including my principal, one AP, and their respective spouses)

39: Days until the wedding!

23: Days until my school's concert

14: Days ago that invitations were sent out (and also the day I signed my lease for my new apartment!)

12.5: Number of hours I'll have to be at school next Monday ... for parent-teacher conferences

11: Work Days that my good friend (one of my bridesmaids!) is home on bed rest while letting her body heal after a complication in her pregnancy (and thankfully, both she and baby are doing well)

10: Horse stables I pass on my way to work ... I love seeing the horses out in the fields when I drive to/from work

6: Days until my first official gown fitting

5: Days that I had the music for a regional chorus event before I played at the concert 2 weekends ago

4: Number of sizes bigger than me that my gown is
(I got it on the sales rack .... and knew it would have to be adjusted)

3: Number of school days left this week!

2: Exciting performances I get to see within the next week (Rockettes & ?Mannheim Steamroller?), both gifts from others

1: Meeting left with the pastor for ceremony planning and pre-marital counseling

-13: Number of minutes ago I should have begun to get ready instead of writing this! :)

Happy Returns

Two of my former students returned last week for extra practice with their music. For an upcoming audition, they're singing the same music as my current students. One of my current students asked them why they had come to work with us instead of working with their current teacher.

"Well, Mrs. [former student's current teacher] is cool and all. Her class is fun. But well, Mrs. [their current teacher] just tells you that it's right or wrong but Ms. Estrella breaks things down so you can get it."

That former student had hated me at the beginning of last year because I had the gall to place her in the alto section, and she knew she was a soprano! How could I not know?! (I've since labeled that condition as "Heartbroken Soprano Syndrome.") Because I knew how much she loved singing (even if she didn't like me), I encouraged her to try out for an elite group, and I spent hours after school for a few weeks preparing her. She made it ... and decided in the process that maybe I wasn't so terrible after all. :)

So ... I was also pleased when she said, "You know, it's a good thing you made me sing alto last year 'cause it made me a better singer. I can sing both low and high now."

Quick Update

Wow ... nearly 6 weeks ... yikes!

Updates

• I survived the swine flu (at least, I think that's what it was- high fever, sinus/chest congestion, lingering cough- all characteristics described by our school nurse)
• I had figured it was only a matter of time until I got it anyway because my students have been out left and right this year
• I'm being observed today
• School is going mostly well ... I'm feeling much more ownership this year
• Overall, my students are pleasant and less attitude-prone this year
• We're doing SSAB (4 parts) in 8th Grade Chorus!!!
• We're doing SATB (4 parts, guy split) for our group song (which all chorus students sing)!!!
• I've learned and taught French and Russian this year
• It's only 66 days until my wedding!
• My reception site is closing, and my wedding will be the last event there :(
• I will be signing my new lease within the next week
• My friend was originally going to address envelopes by doing a mail-merge on her computer
• Then my mom decided we should hand-address all the envelopes instead
• We haven't started addressing them, and they should be going out next week (when it reaches the 8 weeks pre-wedding mark)
• I have been shamefully slow in catching up on reading blogs ... and I keep forgetting to write (as you've probably noticed)
• Mmmm .... I've taken to drinking coffee nearly every day (and I had always wanted to avoid that habit!)
• My commute will shrink by 80% when I move into my new apartment (10 minutes instead of 50 ... woohoo!)
• If I don't start getting ready now (5:53am), I won't be able to leave on time(6:30am) and I'll be late to the sectional for one of my before-school ensembles
• But what should I wear today for my special observation? I also have an after-school meeting with other teachers, and I don't want to be over-dressed for that ... Must think about that as I get ready

I'll try not to wait so long between posts next time!

Cranky Friday

Amazing how such a short week could end up being sooooo long.


Auditions before school every day = -4 hours of planning time
= several broken hearts because I can't take
everyone (even though I wish I could) :(

Back-to-School Night yesterday = Regular school day + 5.5 hours (13.5 hours
at school)

Annoying (but not for too much longer) commute = 1.5 hours daily * 4 days
= 6 hours spent being stressed in yucky
weather/traffic/inconsiderate drivers

Starbucks gave me the wrong size beverage = -$.65 (not counting tax) that I lost :(
(I know I should have said something, but I was so exhausted and unhappy that I did not even want to bother.) :(


On the plus side, class sizes are smaller than last year (with one exception), Westley will be arriving soon for a visit (yay!), we have a cake-tasting appointment tomorrow, and I don't have to wake up before 6am tomorrow. *sigh*

Productive Weekend

After driving several hours (including a bonus extra hour) in the direction of holiday traffic, I visited with Westley (who traveled a few hours as well) and his family. This weekend, we:

*Booked our honeymoon (3 nights in a rural cabin, in a state whose motto welcomes newlyweds)

*Bought wedding invitations from Michael's ($65!) ... hope that it's easy to figure out how to print them on my printer ...

*Bought a bed (although we're gonna read Consumer Reports before buying the mattress, etc.)

*Celebrated Westley's birthday with his family

*Contacted the photographer (contract should arrive today)

*Contacted potential DJ & cake people too

Then Westley and I drove back to our respective homes... Again, he had no traffic issues (yay!), while my drive took a great deal of extra time thanks to all the considerate, intelligent (*cough*) drivers who were traveling in the same direction as me. (Oh, and the heavy rainstorm was nice too ... and when Westley and I read Psalm 68 aloud last night on the phone, I started cracking up when we reached verse 9: You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance.)

Back to School

What a joy it has been to have the kids return! Seeing former students in my classes again makes me so happy ... and I loved the hugs and smiles I received! Seeing former students who aren't taking my class this year is slightly disappointing, but the returners more than make up for those. Having more new students ... yay!

My sixth graders are tiny and sweet and slightly scared while my seventh and eighth graders seem to feel like they rule the roost (ha!) because they've already had me for one year ... There's been a lot of laughter in my classroom already... I'm definitely not the teacher who frowns until Christmas ... I don't think I could pull that off when I really enjoy my students so much.

I'm also teaching one class outside my subject area. I'm nervous about it because I'm being challenged outside of my comfort zone. However, I think that this is a good challenge ... and that I'll end up being a better teacher after having this experience ... but I'm wondering what the learning curve will end up being.

***

An unrelated question- What do you say in this situation:

A child raises his hand and says, "Miss LastName, Johnny just picked his nose and wiped it on my shoe!" while Johnny is denying this and saying, "No, I didn't!"

My automatic (and lame) response? "I'm sorry to hear that," before moving on with my next question to the class about our subject. I honestly don't know what would have been the best way to handle this. *sigh*

Back to School

Random Bullets of my Life

On my 24th birthday last month, someone guessed that I was turning 16. Hmmm.

I went to an awesome workshop last month and sang my heart out. I hadn't realized just how much I'd missed being part of a choir. I do love working with my students though ... and sometimes helping them "get it" is even more rewarding.

Wedding plans are pretty much in place. I still need to pick invitations, call the DJ, and update a few addresses in my happy little Excel file of the guest list. Oh, and I need to find a new host for the wedding website because our "free trial" on the free website (host?) I used is now over, and I have to pay to re-activate many of the pages I created. Yuck.

I am no longer a first-year teacher, but with all the changes in my district this year, I feel as though I'm beginning my first year all over again.

I love the "Drop Dead Diva" show on Lifetime and "Royal Pains" on whatever channel it's on.

I'm totally watching a teenybopper movie on the Disney Channel right now about a teen princess who is in a special protection program.

126 days until Westley & I are married! :)