My Top 5

Well, I just completed my first week of teaching. It was a pretty long week, but I absolutely loved it. i learned a lot during my first week, so I decided to write a TOP 5 things I learning in my first week of teaching.

1. Plan not to go to the bathroom all day long.

I had heard this about teachers, but wasn't sure if it was gonna be true. But, it really is. Even though I have a planning and a lunch, something always comes up, and there is always something to do, and I rarely make it to the bathroom. So just go ahead and plan to not go all day. Don't worry, your body will adjust to it. Haha.

2. Be prepared to eat your lunch in 10 minutes, or usually less.

Even though I have a 20 minute scheduled lunch, and I even have a duty free lunch, I still end up stuffing my lunch down my face. Because there are always copies to be made, or teachers to talk to, or something else to be done. And those 20 minutes will disappear faster than you can even imagine. So learn how to eat really fast.

3. Keep Calm and Teach On

Kids are going to get frustrated and maybe even begin screaming in your classroom. But, you just have to remain calm no matter what and remember what you are there for. Take time, solve the problem, and continue to teach on. Everyone gets frustrated at times, kids too. So just bear with them, and continue to do your job.

4. Be Flexible

This is something that I have definitely continued to learn while teaching. Being an Elementary resource teacher, scheduling is very difficult. I pull students into my classroom for small group instruction. And coordinating with the other teachers to make sure I am pulling them at the right time is hard. But, luckily the administration at my school has been working with me and helping me with my schedule and such. So I think we finally have it all worked out, and I am ready to continue with my 2nd week of teaching.

and the last one......

 5. Love

It is so easy to just love these students. But more importantly, its been so awesome how I have immediately been loved by my students. Some of my students were telling me how much they loved coming to my classroom after only 2 days of coming. How awesome is that? They get so excited to see me every day and it is so awesome. So love your students no matter what. No matter how mad they may be on one day, or how well behaved they are the next, love them unconditionally all the time.

I am absolutely loving my job right now. It is difficult at times, sure. But my school is awesome. It is such a family and I couldn't be happier being a part of that family. Everyone is so supportive of what I do and it make me feel like I truly belong. So I can't wait to continue to teach! It is going to be a fantastic school year! Below are a few pics of my classroom:

The Sign outside my door

My Bulletin Board

My Reading Corner

Computer Station

My Classroom!

A Summer for the ages...

As I sit here and write this blog post, tears are coming to my eyes. But they are a mixture of tears. Part of them are tears of pure joy, and others are tears of sadness. This summer has been one of the happiest and best summers of my entire life. When I embarked on the journey of being a BUMS intern for the second summer in a row, I really felt like I knew what I was getting myself into. I mean, I had done it last summer, so surely it couldn't be THAT much different.

BOY WAS I WRONG!!!!!!

Okay, part of it was the same. But part of it was very different. This summer, we didn't have a youth minister. Chad left Bethel back in April to move closer to his family in Florida. So me and Emily took over as the interns, thinking that would only be temporary that we wouldn't have a youth minister. Well, it actually turned out to be the entire summer. Never in a million years did I think that we would tackle the entire summer without a youth minister. But we did, and it actually turned out to be pretty awesome!

Here are a few of the pics from the summer:

Our group of 70 people that we took on our mission trip!

Enjoying a Philadelphia Pretzel!

At one of the Block Parties!

This summer was crazy! It was so busy! It seemed like we were always doing something. But I loved every single minute of it! Seriously, even as frustrated and stressed out as I was at any point this summer, I really would not trade a single minute back for anything else in the entire world! The BUMS are such a special group to me. I grew up being a member of the BUMS. They were my life throughout high school. And now I have had the pleasure of coming back to spend two summers with the group that changed and impacted my life so much. I can't believe its over now. I am so sad to be leaving this group. It has been such a huge part of my life. And as a move to Charleston, SC I just don't know how much I will be able to be active with them. But, the BUMS have taught me a few things. One, love is the most important thing in the entire world. I love this youth group so much, and I am loved right back by them. I mean, they put up with me for 2 summers! This summer also taught me that youth ministry is where I am supposed to be. I will not waste any time once I get to Charleston finding a youth group that I can plug into immediately. I cannot wait to be a part of that.

I also have to give a special shoutout to my co-intern, Emily Ward. She has been absolutely fantastic. I have to be honest, when we took this job together, I thought I would have a leg up on her since I did this job last summer. But that was not the case at all. Words cannot express how awesome of a job she has done this summer! She stepped right up to the plate and has worked so hard this summer. She has become one of my good friends and it has been a pleasure to work with her for the summer and I couldn't have asked for a better partner in crime! Hey Emily, if you are reading this, I just want you to know, you are AWESOME!

Anyways, I could continue to type on about how AMAZING this summer was. But then most of you would probably stop reading, so I'll close with this....

Thank you BUMS. Seriously, I couldn't have asked for a better group to spend my summer with. You guys are truly my second family. I love each and every one of you so much and all of you have a very special place in my heart. I will never forget any of you, and I will be back to visit as much as possible. I am going to miss all of you soooooooooooooooo much when I move to Charleston, but feel free to come visit at any time! My apartment door will always be open for any of you! Thank you for giving me the best two summers of my entire life! You guys are incredible, and you should be very proud of yourselves for the incredible things you have done this summer! Stay in touch, and good luck as the BUMS continue to move forward! I love you guys!