It's crazy that June is nearly over. Halfway through my full time year.
I feel like a 'real' teacher this year. I love so many things about being the only teacher on my class. I love the feeling of being immersed in my work and seeing the kids grow and develop on a daily basis.
Trying to find work/life balance though? Nearly impossible.
So I'll enjoy the second half of my full time year and look forward to my wonderful teaching partner coming back to join me again next year (as long as everything goes to plan!)
What's been happening besides work? Not much that I can think of sadly. That's why I need to write on this blog more often. To help me remember.
Our big gum tree that was right outside our front door (almost) has been chopped down. It was such an awful, mess making tree that I'm glad it's gone and now I feel inspired to give a little more attention to the garden. Perhaps in the holidays.
My awesome friend Kym moved back to Australia from the States and has stayed with us for a little while - so nice! Very cool that she's going to be in Canberra for a while now too :) and I just laugh because she said she'd NEVER move here...
All the kids are doing well with their piano lessons. Malakai had his first little concert recently and did a great job. Very proud. He's also enjoying continuing with soccer this year. Josh and Ella are currently not doing a sport and it's such a relief.
I am super grateful that the school holidays are coming up soon. I think we're all in need of a rest and a break from routine.
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Wednesday, 24 June 2015
Friday, 10 April 2015
February (take two)
I had a post written for February but decided to wait to publish. I'm glad I did.
I started back working full time this year. It's been a harder start than I ever could have imagined, but God is good and brought me through it.
Also in Feb:
The kids went back to school also - Josh in yr 5, Kai yr 2 and Ella yr 1.
Aaron took Josh on his first ever men's fishing trip. Josh caught several fish and had the best time.
Kai and Ella started learning the piano.
Aaron spoiled me on Valentine's Day. Heaps. He's awesome.
I got to see Third Day in concert here in Canberra. Really special night. Loved it so much.
Josh became part of our Kidsmatter Action Team at school. It's like Student Representative Council. SO PROUD of him!!
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I started back working full time this year. It's been a harder start than I ever could have imagined, but God is good and brought me through it.
Also in Feb:
The kids went back to school also - Josh in yr 5, Kai yr 2 and Ella yr 1.
Aaron took Josh on his first ever men's fishing trip. Josh caught several fish and had the best time.
Kai and Ella started learning the piano.
Aaron spoiled me on Valentine's Day. Heaps. He's awesome.
I got to see Third Day in concert here in Canberra. Really special night. Loved it so much.
Josh became part of our Kidsmatter Action Team at school. It's like Student Representative Council. SO PROUD of him!!
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Saturday, 31 January 2015
Updates
I did Project Life monthly in 2013. Loved it. Look back on it and so appreciate the record of our story. Last year was a blur. No Project Life. Barely any photos. I haven't even made our annual photo calendar for 2015 yet as I didn't have enough decent photos to do so. It breaks this memory keeper's heart.
So...since this blog originated from the desire to keep far away friends and family updated (and help me with scrapbooking!) I am HOPING to do a monthly update here. Which could possibly translate to a monthly Project Life...possibly...
January 2015
We ended 2014 with dinner at the Hyatt and managed to glimpse the very last of the fireworks as we walked toward Albert Hall.
The first week of the new year was spent in Sydney at our church's annual conference. LOVE catching up with friends we only see once a year as well as some time with those we see every week but don't always get to spend a lot of time with. Our kids all participated in the Bible quizzing competition, with Malakai's team winning their division. So proud of the efforts of all 3 of them! I managed to *mostly* keep my mouth shut (unlike last year!) but still got quite excited...
It feels to me that once we got back from Sydney I spent the majority of my time at work. But I don't think that's totally true...
~ Ella and I had a special girly day including seeing Disney Live as the final part of her birthday present. (Plus Ricardo's and Max Brenner and a new cat toy to replace 'Catty Cat' who somehow got lost/left behind in Sydney)
~ I sorted out those pesky things like going to the dentist and finalising music lessons and booking a cleaner for this year and getting 'back to school' stationery/shoes/uniforms/haircuts etc!
~ And just before work actually restarted I had my personal retreat. It was a HUGE blessing and I never take it lightly. I am so grateful for it and yeah...I guess it possibly deserves a post of it's own but let's face it, that's probably unlikely.
~ Josh and Kai had a couple of days each of cricket.
~ Ella lost her first tooth!!
~ This first week of work has been mind blowingly exhausting. I can't even think of any other words to describe it.
And with that, there is my January update.
Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
So...since this blog originated from the desire to keep far away friends and family updated (and help me with scrapbooking!) I am HOPING to do a monthly update here. Which could possibly translate to a monthly Project Life...possibly...
January 2015
We ended 2014 with dinner at the Hyatt and managed to glimpse the very last of the fireworks as we walked toward Albert Hall.
The first week of the new year was spent in Sydney at our church's annual conference. LOVE catching up with friends we only see once a year as well as some time with those we see every week but don't always get to spend a lot of time with. Our kids all participated in the Bible quizzing competition, with Malakai's team winning their division. So proud of the efforts of all 3 of them! I managed to *mostly* keep my mouth shut (unlike last year!) but still got quite excited...
It feels to me that once we got back from Sydney I spent the majority of my time at work. But I don't think that's totally true...
~ Ella and I had a special girly day including seeing Disney Live as the final part of her birthday present. (Plus Ricardo's and Max Brenner and a new cat toy to replace 'Catty Cat' who somehow got lost/left behind in Sydney)
~ I sorted out those pesky things like going to the dentist and finalising music lessons and booking a cleaner for this year and getting 'back to school' stationery/shoes/uniforms/haircuts etc!
~ And just before work actually restarted I had my personal retreat. It was a HUGE blessing and I never take it lightly. I am so grateful for it and yeah...I guess it possibly deserves a post of it's own but let's face it, that's probably unlikely.
~ Josh and Kai had a couple of days each of cricket.
~ Ella lost her first tooth!!
~ This first week of work has been mind blowingly exhausting. I can't even think of any other words to describe it.
And with that, there is my January update.
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Sunday, 13 July 2014
musings and ramblings
It's 1am and yet I find I'm not ready for sleep. It's been like that on and off for 3 weeks now, although getting better thankfully.
Aaron's spinal surgery went well, and we are praying for a quick and full recovery.
I am grateful. SO incredibly grateful.
But no way has it been easy. It's been a time of intense learning for me. About myself (not always nice revelations...) and about human nature. I have felt alone and yet also blessed by some amazing people I am grateful to have in my life.
Because I need to I'm going to take a little time to focus on what I can be thankful for:
~ the surgery went well
~ Aaron got out of hospital a day earlier than anticipated. I can't express how wonderful it is to have him home
~ he is a fantastic patient and is keen to do what he knows he needs to do to aid recovery (I however, could never be accused of being a great nurse)
~ we have been shown some awesome love and support - you don't realise how essential that is til you experience it for yourself
~ both our workplaces have been so incredibly supportive
~ our kids are super awesomely fantastic! - so grateful for them
~ and many other things but I'm starting to feel tired now so I'll finish up there...!
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Aaron's spinal surgery went well, and we are praying for a quick and full recovery.
I am grateful. SO incredibly grateful.
But no way has it been easy. It's been a time of intense learning for me. About myself (not always nice revelations...) and about human nature. I have felt alone and yet also blessed by some amazing people I am grateful to have in my life.
Because I need to I'm going to take a little time to focus on what I can be thankful for:
~ the surgery went well
~ Aaron got out of hospital a day earlier than anticipated. I can't express how wonderful it is to have him home
~ he is a fantastic patient and is keen to do what he knows he needs to do to aid recovery (I however, could never be accused of being a great nurse)
~ we have been shown some awesome love and support - you don't realise how essential that is til you experience it for yourself
~ both our workplaces have been so incredibly supportive
~ our kids are super awesomely fantastic! - so grateful for them
~ and many other things but I'm starting to feel tired now so I'll finish up there...!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, 15 April 2014
School holidays
Wow - term 1 is over!! Aside from possibly my first year of teaching straight out of uni, I don't think I've ever had such an intense term. I've loved it on so many levels though! But...I am glad it's over.
Having all my kids in full time school took me a while to get used to. I don't actually like it lol! But I've coped - being so busy and overwhelmed with work has probably helped me not focus on it so much too.
The holidays started off with our lovely friends getting married. It was a beautiful wedding with such a lovely atmosphere. We were truly honoured to be there.
I spent a LONG time at work yesterday with my teaching partner with the intention of getting ourselves organised for term 2. We were so blessed and got so much done. Now there's the challenge of leaving work AT WORK for the next 2 weeks!
So... time to relax and unwind and enjoy some precious time with my treasures.
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Having all my kids in full time school took me a while to get used to. I don't actually like it lol! But I've coped - being so busy and overwhelmed with work has probably helped me not focus on it so much too.
The holidays started off with our lovely friends getting married. It was a beautiful wedding with such a lovely atmosphere. We were truly honoured to be there.
I spent a LONG time at work yesterday with my teaching partner with the intention of getting ourselves organised for term 2. We were so blessed and got so much done. Now there's the challenge of leaving work AT WORK for the next 2 weeks!
So... time to relax and unwind and enjoy some precious time with my treasures.
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Thursday, 13 March 2014
How's my word going...?
So far this year has been pretty much defined by my word - abundant.
Abundant BLESSING - I am blessed far beyond what I could even imagine
Abundant WORK (pretty sure there hasn't been a weekend since before school started that I haven't been in to work!) but I am feeling so inspired and passionate about my work! It's awesome
Abundant GROWTH - getting back into some more structured and consistent devotion time is the best thing ever...as well as a few other things, including decisions that have been super difficult but unbelievably helpful
Abundant RELATIONSHIPS - feeling so blessed by more regular contact with friends 💗
Despite the fact that it's not my first year having a 'word', it is definitely the first year that it's been in my thoughts almost daily. Even though I'm technically behind with my 'One Little Word' pages for my scrapbook, I'm still more conscious of my word and how it's playing out in my life and that's ultimately what I wanted :)
(I figure I'll eventually catch up on my pages as well 😉)
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Abundant BLESSING - I am blessed far beyond what I could even imagine
Abundant WORK (pretty sure there hasn't been a weekend since before school started that I haven't been in to work!) but I am feeling so inspired and passionate about my work! It's awesome
Abundant GROWTH - getting back into some more structured and consistent devotion time is the best thing ever...as well as a few other things, including decisions that have been super difficult but unbelievably helpful
Abundant RELATIONSHIPS - feeling so blessed by more regular contact with friends 💗
Despite the fact that it's not my first year having a 'word', it is definitely the first year that it's been in my thoughts almost daily. Even though I'm technically behind with my 'One Little Word' pages for my scrapbook, I'm still more conscious of my word and how it's playing out in my life and that's ultimately what I wanted :)
(I figure I'll eventually catch up on my pages as well 😉)
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Thursday, 20 February 2014
Random thoughts
Did you know hair pins are really handy for removing tiny Lego pieces that a brother may 'accidentally' insert into his sister's ear? Never a dull moment around here ;)
Yummo Turkish pide from Yarralumla followed by dessert degustation and raspberry iced chocolate at Koko Black for our date night this month. So good!!!
Flowers and the cutest card ever from my awesome valentine ❤ ️
Click and Collect from Woolworths. Best.thing.EVER
During our year 5 devotions I shared Colossians 3:23 and challenged the kids that in order to truly be 'winners' we need to be competing against ourselves. Being the best we can be, not comparing or competing with others.
Working at what we do with all our hearts because it is God we are ultimately working for.
It was a good reminder for me as well ;)
___________________________
Today I went to a Professional Learning course on helping struggling readers in upper primary. It was very inspiring!
One thing I did during one of the activities was write a poem. We didn't HAVE to write a poem but we had to write about a significant event in our lives and one of the other teachers at my table said she was going to write a poem so I felt challenged to do the same. It was good, because generally I always say I hate poetry.
But I ENJOYED writing this poem. Then I found out I had to share it with a partner in the course and I was so embarrassed! However she was so encouraging when I read it to her. It was a great experience :)
Yummo Turkish pide from Yarralumla followed by dessert degustation and raspberry iced chocolate at Koko Black for our date night this month. So good!!!
Flowers and the cutest card ever from my awesome valentine ❤ ️
Click and Collect from Woolworths. Best.thing.EVER
During our year 5 devotions I shared Colossians 3:23 and challenged the kids that in order to truly be 'winners' we need to be competing against ourselves. Being the best we can be, not comparing or competing with others.
Working at what we do with all our hearts because it is God we are ultimately working for.
It was a good reminder for me as well ;)
___________________________
Today I went to a Professional Learning course on helping struggling readers in upper primary. It was very inspiring!
One thing I did during one of the activities was write a poem. We didn't HAVE to write a poem but we had to write about a significant event in our lives and one of the other teachers at my table said she was going to write a poem so I felt challenged to do the same. It was good, because generally I always say I hate poetry.
But I ENJOYED writing this poem. Then I found out I had to share it with a partner in the course and I was so embarrassed! However she was so encouraging when I read it to her. It was a great experience :)