Becoming the Woman in Proverbs 31:25

Wow, it's been awhile hasn't it!? It's only been a month and a half in calendar days, but it seems like years since I posted last. I went back and read my last post, and the things I worried about then seem silly now; isn't that how God works though? What a month and a half it has been! 

I am happy to report that I officially survived not only my first day, but my first month, of teaching! I lost a few nights rest, gained some gray hair, and seem to have misplaced my social life, but, I am surviving! Just a week and a half after my first post, my world turned upside down (at least that's how it felt at the time) when I was told that I would be the only one of the fourth grade teachers to be self-contained (teach all 5 subjects). I had been under the impression since I was hired that I would only be teaching Language Arts and History. My dramatic reaction may seem misplaced, but let me remind you that I had absolutely zero experience teaching anything besides Texas History and Language Arts. Now I was being told I would teach Math, Science, and North Carolina History as well. AHHHHHH! But, once again, God is good, and I am surviving. I haven't messed up my 20 little minions too bad so far. My kid's drive me bonkers, but they are sweet and genuinely want to learn and be a helpful and important part of our classroom community. They are teaching me patience, compassion, and how to laugh at myself. As a group they are working on learning when it's appropriate to talk and when it's not (I have a VERY chatty bunch), but it's coming along I think. They are really needy right now, but it is my goal this year to help mature them into responsible problem solvers. There are so many things about my kids, my school, my colleagues, and my classroom that I would love to share, but I just don't have the time or energy so I'll just share my top 10 things from month number 1:

1. In just the first 20 days I've had 2 lost teeth, one wasp sting, and 3 kids throw up in my classroom. 
2. My kids know absolutely nothing about Texas, but they are fascinated by it. Here's a prime example: One day a student had a Gatorade bottle that he couldn't open, so it got passed around and ended up in my hands. I easily opened it and I heard one of my boys say "it's cause she's from Texas" the rest of the class nodded in agreement.
3. My fourth graders LOVE Michael. He came to eat lunch with us one day, and they haven't stopped talking about him since. They were hilariously confused that he wasn't tall though I got asked multiple times "Why isn't he tall?" Haha, poor guy, he even gets it from 4th graders.
4. My kids love creatures. I have a group of kids who catch grasshoppers and crickets during recess and bring each one to me proudly. I have another group that is obsessed with the Ninja Turtles and I thought they were going to pee their pants one day when they found a real turtle on the playground! 
5. My kids love to help! I literally had students fighting over who got to wash the lunch tables, sweep, pass out the papers etc. It was so bad I had to create a schedule...
6. I have officially convinced the kids that the best number is 13 (Whoop 13) and the best animal is the giraffe. I am brainwashing them slowly but surely :) 
7. My co-workers are fabulous. They are so fun to work with, so supportive, and very encouraging. I couldn't be more blessed to have them. 
8. I have convinced my kids that cleaning is fun. Seriously, I have! I learned this little nugget from my mentor teacher. Teacher friends- here's how I do it: At the end of each day I pick a piece of trash from the floor and deem it as the magic piece of trash. I don't tell the kids which piece it is, but I tell them to start cleaning the classroom and picking up as much trash as they can. When the room is cleaned I tell them to stop. I then announce what the magic trash was, where it was located, and who in the class picked it up. That student then gets a sticker. That's it a sticker in return for a clean classroom, it's the best! And the kids beg me to play it every day. 
9. I've been called Mom and even Grandma way more than I care to admit.
10. My kids have taught me that I still have a lot to learn and that it is o.k. to make mistakes and try new things.

It's definitely not all rainbows and giggles though. My days are long and hard, frustrating and discouraging, disheartening and exhausting. I am beat down time and time again. It's been a hard month personally learning to adjust to the demands of the job, of being a working wife, and of living in a place without family or friends. In life making friends has never been hard for me, but it is in this chapter in my life. I've been struggling with feeling lonely and discouraged, and as great as Micheal is, he can't be everything to me. For a month I've been in kind of a funk. It wasn't until a handsome young pastor I know preached a sermon on Saul and David last week that I was reminded how blessed I am and how important it is to keep my focus on God and His will for my life and not on my own ambition and pride. I'm working so hard on being strong, dignified, and unafraid of the future like the woman in Proverbs 31, but I have to admit, it's harder than it sounds. But, God has brought me this far, why would he leave me now? Your prayers during this time in my life would be greatly appreciated. 

Michael is as good as ever. He is busy with traveling to and from school 4 times a week, working at the church and visiting parishioners when he gets, and trying to take care of an exhausted wife. I am so proud of all he is doing for our little church. He is pouring his heart into them. And boy do they love him back. It gives me such pride to see the way they interact with him. I am a very proud wife. Seminary is going well, I'm a little jealous of all the friends he's already made, but I am so happy for him. He really seems to be thriving here in North Carolina. This week he's been a little beat down, literally. He went hunting with a parishioner and ended up with a huge gash on his forehead from the kickback of the gun. Then he went to visit a shut-in from the church. He left feeling a joy in his heart and an itch in his pants. Turns out the dog that lived there has fleas and Michael got attacked. His legs are COVERED in bites. But lucky for us his Nana and PopPop came to visit this weekend, and he is being taken care of. Just another day in ministry in rural North Carolina. 

I almost forgot... Happy Fall everyone! Michael and I are so excited to get to actually experience a true fall this year. In honor of the season I went and cut all my hair off. Well, not quite all, just 7 inches....

And that's what happens when a teacher marries a preacher.