Eager Anticipation

...for Spring Break. Just two weeks away! Lately class and personal responsibilities have seemed so unforgiving. So much that I took a personal day last week just to get some of my own needs taken care of. Taxes are now done and submitted (can't wait for that check to come in the mail!), bills paid, odds and ends tied up and a massage squeezed in to release some of that tension I carry in my shoulders and back.

As for the school stresses that have been piling up, well that will take a while to get out of the way. I have a stack of essays to grade. It measures 8" tall. No joke. I cry when I think about the hours it will take. Why do I procrastinate? I don't! I have to make sure my daily plans are set first and those take up enough time already. Oh when will this dreadful first year stress be over with??

On the other hand, some things I've taken enjoyment of some things lately...

1. Puppy sitting for my mom and dad so I get to keep company with this lovely lady every day.

2. I've been helping with the school musical, Beauty & the Beast, and I have been using my skills learned from CYT in character makeup. Last night was a blast because I finally perfected the Beast, Gaston and Le Fou (who looks hilarious). Still have work to do on Cogsworth, Lumiere and Maurice looking older. Come dress rehearsals next week I'll share finished photos!

3. Finally broke down and bought the Adele 21 CD. It is as amazing as I thought it would be.

(Some students also said that I look like Adele. Hmmm... I'm flattered, though I don't think I look like her at all. But I do love her style. Maybe I should copy her some? Especially the eyes!)

She definitely is a plus size icon, thought she has slimmed down quite a bit in this last year.

Fall Break

It's been a loooooonnnnng 2 months with no break, so this 3 day weekend has been a god-send. The kids on the other hand, got an indulgent 5 day weekend while we teachers had parent teacher conferences.

Conferences. Now that was an interesting experience. Fortunately a few scheduled meetings with parents of struggling students in the weeks leading up to conferences trained me nicely. It was a long haul though. Let's just say that I teach over 137 students. The average teacher in our high school only handles around 60 to 80. So compared to many, I was inundated with meetings all day; no breaks. No traumatizing encounters with parents thank heavens. They're pretty level headed for the most part. Makes sense, judging that they chose an academically rigorous school for their child to begin with. What was most interesting was seeing how the student took after the parents both physically and characteristically. That was my favorite part!

I also got a couple of direct compliments that were especially encouraging. When I introduced myself to a student's mom as the history teacher, she immediately said "Emily adores you!!!!" Those uplifting compliments I received now and again during conferences were so incredibly helpful. They've given me that extra boost of confidence to KBO (keep buggering on) till Thanksgiving break.

19 days till I'm home in Michigan for Thanksgiving!!!! Yippee! Plus, I'm home for a whole week! CAN. NOT. WAIT. for the following:

1. Phoebe & Mallory!

2. chilly Michigan fall days with vibrant colors (things are still relatively warm here in CO Springs, aside from a random snow storm early last week)

3. riding in the Navigator with Mom doing errands & catching up

4. Intellectual time with Daddy

5. Spiced Chais from Checker Records

6. Day after Thanksgiving turkey sandwiches

7. Movies with the fam on Dad's mega-home theater system

8. Breakfast and Lunch Pad Thai at the Coffee Cup

9. Going back to Holy Trinity and seeing the parish family again

10. Time with Nadia (including Breaking Dawn!)

11. Time to work ahead in class work. I will most likely be checking a bag of books on the plane. Sadly. Or should I ship them ahead?? Dilemmas...

Now its time to turn my attention to the tasks before Thanksgiving Break and trick-or-treaters tonight. Cheers!

Thistle the Hedgehog

What does a unattached college graduate get when you can't afford a dog or cat and want to color outside the lines a little bit? A Hedgehog, naturally! Ok, I admit I get a decent number of raised eyebrows in bewilderment when I tell my friends I now have a Hedgehog as a pet.

Hedgehogs actually make great pets for anyone in this phase of life. They sleep for practically 20 hours a day, require minimal space or hands-on care, eat in small quantities and are naturally very clean critters. Essentially, I have the best of both worlds; I don't feel guilty leaving her to her sleeping bag while I'm at work, but it's nice to have a small little someone to come home to at the end of the day. Plus who couldn't love this sweet little face! Her quills take a little getting used to, but it's only as prickly as it would be handling a cactus. I guess it helps that I have a strong ability to endure pain. It also takes a bit of patience and determination because Hedgehogs are rather shy, but they become more comfortable after they are more familiar with you and your surroundings.

Enough about the specifics of Hedgehog care, I want to introduce you to my little one. This is Thistle. As you can see in the picture above, she absolutely LOVES her sleeping bag. She's a little over a month old, so she's still skittish and shy around sudden noises. Phoebe, our English Springer Spaniel definitely doesn't help. She's taken a keen interest in Thistle because she just can't seem to figure her out. Every time Phoebe comes near, Thistle balls up and does her little "huffing & puffing" routine, so all Phoebe gets to see is a ball full of spikes. I'm enjoying this particularly because Phoebe will occasionally insist on sleeping in my room with me so she can keep an eye on this little mystery. Phoebe's intense curiosity over Thistle would make a great children's book, actually.

As I start to think more about my interaction with Thistle, my descriptions sound pretty boring. It's not much more than pulling her out of her cage, watching her sniff around and then most likely she'll falling asleep in the folds of my clothes. If you're looking for action and adventure, Hedgehogs are not your cup of tea. At this point in my relatively new hedgehog ownership, it's more the simple enjoyment of watching and learning her little behaviors or quirks. Thistle has a rather calming affect on me actually. In order to enjoy my time with her, I have to slow down my life and the million thoughts whirling in my mind and focus my attention primarily on her. After that, all my current obligations start to seem inconsequential. My stresses? They're just self-imposed. Life all of a sudden seems so simple.

I'm hoping as I take these little breaks from life with Thistle, I can start to gleam more from my Hedgehog ownership. There are these videos on Youtube of pet Hedgehogs swimming and lazily floating when they get a bath and it's hilarious! I'll let you know if I ever get to that point with Thistle. But for now, I'm perfectly happy with our cold Autumn nights, wrapped in a warm blanket with a movie and a sleeping hedgehog in my sweater pocket.