Back-to-School Teacher Tired

 Yesterday was busy, exhausting and amazing. I was so happy to be reunited with the students that I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. Per my plan, I traversed the county to provide a touch-point connection for as many of my students as possible. Today I will finish the list, and next Monday we will start the schedule proper.

I came home yesterday utterly exhausted. By the time I pulled into the driveway, my watch recorded over 17,000 steps and a whopping 26 flights of stairs. I could walk all day, but stairs tucker me out. Because I have to match the speed of my students, I was either running up the stairs or crawling like a snail, depending upon their comfort. Neither speed option is advantageous for me and I was struggling by the end of the day.  

 By the time I came home I was looking forward to going out to eat with the boys, taking a long bath and relaxing for the night. I was met with a broken A/C system which turned my husband into an unflattering version of Oscar the Grouch. Dinner was summarily cancelled (it is no fun going out to eat with somebody so miserable) and I found myself whipping together dinner while I felt ready to collapse myself.

I'm not too proud to admit that exhaustion overwhelmed me and I found myself crying over the grill as I was turning the chicken. All I wanted to do was sit down and relax. Too hot and tired for a relaxing bath, it wasn't until 9 that I was finally able to take off my leg and crawl into bed. 

Today while I am at work Robby is supposed to be gathering his items and packing for college. He returns to the dorm tomorrow, and has a sum total of nothing packed and ready. I am dreading him leaving and the prospect of moving his things back into the dorm feels utterly overwhelming, but I also know that he will be happy to be back on campus.  He is ready to return to the collegiate life, and I know he will have a great year. 

We just have to get him there and settled.   

First Day!

 It's the first day with students!!  

The past few days have been interminable. While I appreciate that planning and coordination are required to effectively open a new school year, the days long meetings are not advantageous. I struggled to catch up with classroom teachers because they were forced into meetings and away from their classrooms. Regardless of their location, it seems that every teacher I know, sans the presenters, are frustrated with back-to-school professional development.

Today the meetings are finally over and I am reunited with my students. I know I'm going to be dog tired tonight, so wish me luck!  

Failing

 Yesterday was spent in meetings and trainings and I came home exhausted. I'm looking forward to my students returning on Thursday, when I can spend my time walking and exploring. I hate sitting in meetings all day! I came home tired and, apparently, grumpy. 

I'm frustrated with back-to-school issues and I'm trying to keep the anxiety out of my home life. I really want to be able to create a stronger disconnect between my work and home life. I care so much about my students that it is difficult for me to not worry and think about them after hours, but I need to forge a stronger balance for my own career longevity. 

Any suggestions or tips for how that goal may be achieved?  Because thus far, I'm failing miserably. 

 

 

Prepping

 Three more days until my students return! From now until Wednesday I am busy with meetings and back-to-school prep. I know that life will still be chaotic when classes resume, but I would rather be busy with students than with a notebook. I'm excited to start working with all of them again.

I spent the weekend focusing on making our home as 'work ready' as possible by I prepping meals and ingredients in the hope of easing the frustrations of making dinner after a long day. The weekend wasn't exactly relaxing and I went to bed last night exhausted. However, my freezers are full so hopefully my busy weekend will be time well spent. 

This is Robby's last week at home before returning to school. It is hard to believe that his summer break is coming to a close. I absolutely adored having him home. While I know he will be happy to be back to his college lifestyle, I will miss him. I'm not the only one who is going to miss him. Timmy has thoroughly enjoyed having Robby home during the day and playing video games at night.  

The next few days are going to be busy. Wish me luck! 

Meetings

Traditionally, the professional development and the back-to-school festivities that confront teachers when returning to the new school term are necessary but mind-numbingly boring. I was pleasantly surprised that yesterday's convocation was both brief and informative. I can appreciate a quick two-hour informative meeting, especially when I know that an 8-hour version exists.

After the meetings I went to connect with some schools and sent emails to my students and families. Reaching out to my families was, without a doubt, the best part of my day. Each replied enthusiastically with promises of sharing adventures from the summer. At this point, I wish I could fast forward the clock and have the students return today. Sadly, I will need to wait until next Thursday.

Today will be spent connecting with schools and trying to locate my student's teachers. After work Scott has an appointment with his cardiologist. While medical appointments always cause him a lot of anxiety, I am looking forward to it. I suspect a change in cholesterol medication will be prescribed, which will hopefully help lower his numbers even more.

 

Have a great weekend! 

Work?

 Yesterday was the first official day back at work for school personnel, myself included. Before heading to my base school I sent an email, asking for a status of my contract. I did not hear anything, so I went to work. I either have a job, or I'm working for free and nobody is noticing. (Hopefully the situation has been settled and informing me is of little consequence and was forgotten.)

My first day back was uneventful. Because I cannot really build my schedule until the kids are settled, I spent my time helping a new teacher understand the students on her caseload.  As I was helping her understand the files as was as her new role with the students, I was left with one overwhelming feeling. I am so very glad I am no longer a teacher. 

While I still work within the schools, the responsibilities of teachers are vastly different than mine. I attend meetings, I do not have to organize and run the event. In my humble opinion, I have the best job in the county. I get the perks of working with amazing students while avoiding a majority of the pitfalls associated with education.

Unfortunately I cannot miss all the icky parts. Today my schedule is packed with 'back to school' meetings. Wish me luck! 

Sunny Sunroom

 Summer vacation, at least for Scott and me, has come to an end. Tomorrow we both report to work and the pre-year chaos will begin. Robby and Timmy have another few weeks of vacation time, so both are gloating rather than emitting any great empathy for us. Of course, I have yet to hear anything official about my position, so I am planning on showing up and seeing what happens.

With our vacation days dwindling away, I managed to achieve one of my summertime goals just under the wire. Yesterday the boys allowed me to play Designing Women by completely rearranging my sunroom. It was a lot of work (more for them than for me) but I am delighted with the flow and the look. As a bonus, all of my little plants have direct access to a lot of sunlight and will surely thrive.

I'm not sure what is on tap for today, but I suspect it will be cut short because of the storms. Yesterday some wild ones blew through our area in the afternoon. Thankfully we didn't lose any trees this time, but I always worry when that wind starts to blow.

Have a great day!