First Day of School

Today is the very first day of school for the 2012-2013 school year for my handsome hubby, Kevin. This is his 5th year teaching at West Ottawa. This year he is teaching in the Dunes Alternative School, an e2020 recovery course, and 2 Algebra 1 classes of Freshmen. This semester he opted out of a planning period, so he will be quite busy this first semester of school. It's hard to believe that he's been teaching for 5 years already! I am so happy for him and everything he has accomplished thus far. As for me, I was unable to find a teaching job again this year. This year is one of the first years that I am going into the school year without any long-term or parapro jobs lined up. I am hoping for a 5th grade long-term in the late fall/early winter. 

As for my health, I am pretty much completely better. The meds I am on are definitely helping and I am thankful that I am finally back to normal. This means I can get back into substitute teaching and not feel sick every single day! I visit with my doctor early next week for a checkup. 

The summer has gone by incredibly fast. I still can't believe it's September and everyone has gone back to school. Kevin and I didn't do too much this summer but we had a relaxing one. I babysat my niece and nephew and Kevin worked for the city of Norton Shores. He took 2 weeks off at the end of the summer so he could relax and enjoy his summer before heading back to school. We traveled to Cadillac in August for a friend's wedding. We were so thrilled to be a part of Jordon and Sarah's big day! We also got to see some old college friends at the wedding. We had a great time. 

We hope you all enjoy the end of the summer and the start of the fall. Hopefully, I will get back into the routine of updating this blog. :)

Laura: Health Update

As per my previous post, I visited the doctor last month to figure out why I have been feeling faint and sick lately. We discovered that it was anxiety and panic attacks so I was put on a medication for that. I am definitely doing better but am still not back to normal. I, for one, hate taking meds. Who really does? But I will do whatever it takes to get better. I do believe the medication is helping me though. I have been able to go out alone and go to stores by myself. A simple task like that may sound simple, and it used to be for me before all this happened, but it really isn't so easy for me anymore. It sucks! However, I decided the other day that I really need to try so I went to Target and had a brief "panic attack." It's the craziest thing. Basically what happens is I get very hot and then I get an acidy/irony taste in my throat/mouth and then I panic, because obviously something is off with in my brain and makes me not feel well. But because of the medication, I am able to get over the attack by taking deep breaths and moving my body. The attack lasted about 10 seconds and passed. 


Before I went to the doctor and was put on meds, I couldn't even get through a shopping trip. If that happened, I had to leave the store. It's a big improvement now from what it was, so for that I am thankful. I am going to the doctor next week for a check-up so she can see if the medication is working. I am hopeful that I will be 100% better soon. I know it's going to take some time and although it's frustrating and very inconvenient, I am glad it's at least doing something for me. Please continue to pray for healing for me and the strength and willpower to continue to do daily activities. I appreciate all the prayers I have been getting and I know that God is working in miraculous ways.


"I can do all things through Christ who strengths me." - Philippians 4:13

Laura's Health

I have been posting on facebook lately about not feeling well and visiting the doctor so I wanted to update you all on what is going on with me. I haven't talked much about this, but now I feel that I can.


In October, I had an ovarian cyst that ruptured and caused me a lot of pain and nausea and basically distress. I had to quit my long-term substitute teaching job to figure out what was wrong with me. I only worked this job for 3 days and I was very upset that I couldn't do it any longer. At this point, I was more concerned about my health and trying to figure out what was wrong with me. At first, I truly thought I was pregnant because I had all the symptoms, but after talking to my family doctor and my OBGYN, we figured out that it was an ovarian cyst that had ruptured. This was caused from a medication I was on. Needless to say, I quit taking that medication! Come Thanksgiving, I was finally starting to feel much better and was excited to get back to teaching, but then on Christmas Eve, I had another cyst rupture which really brought me down. All I wanted was to start feeling better and get back to my daily routine. After the second cyst ruptured is when things started to go down hill. Instead of getting better and healing, I felt like things were getting worse. I waited awhile and thought that my symptoms would improve and I would get better. They weren't! So after talking with Kevin and my family, I finally decided to go back to the doctor and that's what I did yesterday. 


In about March or so, I started to feel a lot of anxiety and stress stemming from not being able to find a teaching job (I've been subbing for 4 years!) and not being able to get pregnant (we've been trying for 2 years). I have never felt so much stress in my life and didn't really come to terms with the fact that this is probably what I was feeling, until recently. I began thinking, "I am going to be 30 this year and I feel like I have not been successful yet with a job and kids." Maybe, it was a mini mid-life crisis. Kevin likes to think so. But I have finally realized that things will fall into place the way they are suppose to.  I have an amazing God who has the perfect plan for me. I have to remind myself of this daily. I am a great teacher who will land a job and I will make a great mother one day. And just so you know, the doctors have told us that it is not impossible for us to get pregnant. I think we have just both been to stressed and focused on that that it hasn't happened yet. 


Because of all the anxiety and stress, I started to have panic attacks. I have never in my life experienced anything like this and it's pretty scary when it happens. It has only happened a handful of times and only a couple of times that were serious enough that I had to leave the store I was in for fear of passing out or getting sick. After so many times of this happening is when I made the decision to see the doctor to actually pinpoint what was going on exactly. Yesterday, we discussed what has been happening and the doctor agreed that I was having panic attacks. I am now on medication and hope to heal quickly so I can get back to my normal daily life.


Those of you who see me on a regular basis may not have known that any of this was happening. Simply because I hadn't told anyone and you can't see it on the outside. I may have seemed a little down though. Now that I have seen a doctor and have finally figured out FOR SURE what is happening, I feel much better. I am trying to think positively and am confident that I will get better soon. 


I believe this all began with the ovarian cyst rupture, because for so long I didn't know what was happening and I was constantly not feeling well. I was scared! All I wanted was to feel better and never thought that would happen. I think subconsciously, my brain worried about my health. Even when I told myself I was okay, I would feel sick and get a panic attack.


Panic attacks are scary and come out of the blue. Most of the time, I had no idea it was coming until it suddenly came on. I couldn't prepare for it or breathe my way through it. Panic attack symptoms are as follows:

• 
  
• racing or pounding heartbeat (palpitations);
• chest pains;
• stomach upset;
dizziness, lightheadedness, nausea;

difficulty breathing, a sense of being smothered

hot flashes or chills;

trembling and shaking;

dreamlike sensations or perceptual distortions;

terror, a sense that something unimaginably horrible is about to occur and one is powerless to prevent it;

a need to escape;

nervousness about the possibility of losing control and doing something embarrassing;
• 
  
• fear of dying.

"Although the duration of a panic attack can vary greatly, it typically lasts for more than 10 minutes, is one of the most distressing conditions that a person can experience, and its symptoms can closely mimic those of a heart attack."

As you can see, what I've been through has been pretty scary but I am going to get through this. I have not experienced everything on the above list (thank goodness) and my panic attacks have not developed into a panic disorder (thank goodness). I believe I can heal. But I do know now more than ever that the brain is a very powerful thing!

Kevin has been nothing but supportive and caring through this whole thing. He is a great husband and I love him very much!


I am thinking positive thoughts and trying not to stress too much! 

Shed Project

Kevin has been hard at work building a shed for all our yard equipment. He is doing a great job! Yesterday, he finished up the shingles and hopefully this weekend, he will be putting the doors on. After that, we need to wait a little bit before we go ahead and paint it. It will be great to get some things out of the garage and into the shed. I am ready to not hit my car door on the lawn mower every time I get out of the car. I am ready for more room in our garage! Now let's hope that doesn't mean our shed will be jam packed. :)

Happy Spring!

So is it really still March? It's hard to believe with this 80 degree weather we're having on the first day of Spring. I'm not complaining by any means. I LOVE it! I just hope this doesn't mean we have an unbearable summer. I also hope that it stays nice and that we don't get snow in the next couple weeks. Buddy is liking the weather, too. He is, however, a bit hot (he is sitting in front of the fan as I type this)! I think a haircut is in store for his very near future. We weren't expecting to get his hair cut quite this soon but he's going to need it.


Well, my weekend was fun and again the weather was just wonderful. Kevin also had a good weekend. He has some funny stories from his trip to Washington D.C. Let's just say, we're glad he even made it to D.C.!


GIRL'S DAY!
Saturday, I had a girl's day and we did some crafting. I worked on two things and where do you think I got my ideas? Pinterest, of course! I made these shoes (well, I just colored them with permanent marker) and I made a tie-dye t-shirt with fabric spray paint. It turned out really good. Sorry, I don't have a picture of it. 

the awesome shoes i made!

KEVIN'S CRAZY D.C. TRIP!

Kevin left for Washington D.C. early Friday and 7 1/2 hours after they were scheduled to get there, they finally made it. He chaperoned 8th graders from his district's middle school. This is the 4th time he has gone on this trip and it was the biggest group he has gone with. Because the group was so large, they were on 2 separate flights. Kevin and his mentor teacher from his first year of teaching were together on one flight, while the rest of the group was on another flight that flew directly from Grand Rapids to Baltimore and this group made it to D.C. on time. Kevin and Nancy, however, did not. They had a lay over in Cleveland, but because of the heavy fog we had on Friday morning, they were unable to leave Grand Rapids in time and ended up missing their connecting flight in Cleveland. When they finally arrived in Cleveland, they had to wait several more hours and finally got a flight to Philadelphia. Once there, they booked a bus (which happened to be a limo party bus) to take the rest of the way to Baltimore. The students that were in his and Nancy's group didn't complain once ... impressive! They were very optimistic and were excited to ride in a limo for 2 1/2 hours! Kevin's group finally made it to D.C. just in time for dinner. Even after all the hassles he had, he did have a great time on his trip and he had great weather! He is excited to go again next year! He took some great pictures. Enjoy. 

 the MLK monument is new. it was under construction when kevin was in D.C. last year.

 kevin in front of the Iwo Jima monument. kevin shared with me some very cool facts about this. there are 6 men holding up the flag, but there are only 11 legs and there are 13 hands. one hand is said to signify the hand of God.

 Arlington National Cemetery

 Changing of the Guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

 a painting that represents September 11

 parts of the National Cathedral that fell during the earthquake in 2011

 Capitol Building

 The White House

 Iwo Jima at night

kevin with some of the chaperons. he wasn't the only male chaperon.  

Get outside and enjoy this beautiful weather we're having! Oh and HAPPY SPRING! :)

How Teaching Has Impacted Me

As I was looking for a disc with my subbing files on it, I came across some pictures from my first long-term subbing job at Oakridge. (I have many photos but for obvious reasons, I will not be posting these on this blog). These were some of the best students I have taught. I was their 5th grade long-term substitute and now they are in high school...yep HIGH SCHOOL! Can you believe it? I just hope I made a big enough impact on them for the short time I was there that they will always remember me. I had 3 groups of 5th graders. Two groups I taught Science to and the other group was my main class.

I also had a great group of 1st graders for my Student Teaching semester, also at Oakridge, and now these kids are in 5th grade. It's been awesome watching them grow as I have subbed at their school for the past 3 1/2 years. My Teacher Assisting kids I haven't seen since that ended, because they are in Wyoming Public Schools, but those were 3rd graders and now they are in middle school. I can't believe how fast the time has gone by and how quickly it seems they have all grown up. 

In the fall of 2010, I also did a long-term sub job in 4th grade at Oakridge (my home away from home). These kids are only in 5th grade now, but I know they will be in high school before I know it. 

Along with those teaching gigs, I have also spent time as a parapro at Lincoln Park and Ross Park, both a part of Mona Shores, and I have enjoyed that job just as much as teaching. These jobs gave me the opportunity to work one-on-one with struggling students. I really loved the time I got to spend with individual students and watch them grow as they learned! 

All of the teachers and administrators I have worked with have all been welcoming and encouraging. Muskegon County has great teachers and great students. And even though I haven't had a classroom of my own YET (one day I will), I have learned a lot from all the students and teachers I have been privileged to work with. It has made me into a better educator, has instilled patience in me, and has given me the opportunity to encounter all walks of life and all different backgrounds. 

As I look back and think about the opportunities I've had to be a teacher and paraprofessional, I have felt honored and blessed to have taught such great kids and I hope they never forget me. I've had some great experiences as a substitute teacher and parapro. I can't wait until the day I get a classroom of my own!

I am proud to say that I am a teacher no matter what becomes of the education system. The kids of today are our future and we should all remember that.  I don't want to get into the politics of education but we really need to remember that one day, these kids will be "running the show."

Enjoy your weekend!

Manhood

Today Buddy has his procedure to be neutered. I dropped him off at the vet's office this morning and we won't get to see him until this afternoon. It's so weird without him here. We can't wait to see him later! We're sure everything will go smoothly and hopefully he won't be too  out of it when we pick him up. I hope he isn't mad at me for dropping him off to get the surgery. He was excited to be there. He loves all the workers there ... well, he loves everyone! I felt bad for leaving him there but I know he is in good hands. Say a little prayer for my little Buddy. :)