30 May 2012

Setting up for Summer

After tomorrow, I'll officially be on "Summer Break" .... whoop whoop! But it's a little weird.  As I drove away from school this afternoon, I felt this funny feeling.  I just kept thinking, Tomorrow when I drive away, I won't be back for 2 months.  It felt funny.  A little sad ... even though I know I'm going to love having the break!  I think it's a good sign that I might have a little sadness to leave my new teacher-friends I've made and the little faces that just smile up at me everyday.  And I think part of me is scared to do nothing!  I've been packing my schedule FULL between getting married, working full time (plus some), remodeling, visiting family and traveling.  I'm not complaining because (most of it) was by choice, but it's just a rare occasion that I have days spread out in front of me to do ... NOTHING!
I already have a few things planned ... and a few things in the works, but I decided in true Mamie fashion to just go ahead and do what I always do and overcommit for the summer ... by making some summer goals!  What, oh what, would I like to get accomplished this summer?

1.  Daily Bible Reading - I talked about how I love the quiet time I get to myself when I have breaks in an earlier post.  Well, I would really like to spend some of this time re-introducing myself to some verses that will teach me, comfort me, encourage me, challenge me and help me grow as a person.

2.  Reorganize my Therapy Space - Thomas and I currently share the office area, which is completely fine.  And before I redecorated it, I went through and cleaned it out and reorganized a lot of it.  However, I didn't plan very well for all the STUFF that would pile up from week to week.  I have lots of papers that I haven't done a great job keeping in order and lots of toys, games and manipulatives that were originally in a cardboard box, but have recently formed a messy, overflowing pile in the corner.

3. Re-Reorganize the kitchen storage - I could probably do this every week!! Because we have limited space and lots of wonderful kitchen gadgets and utensils that we got as wedding gifts, things just get out of place so quickly.  I HAVE to find a solution!

4.  Do one "Spanish" thing a day - Listen to a radio station, read an article or passage in a book, listen to a podcast ... SOMETHING!  I am missing using those skills and get so frustrated when I can't remember a word that used to be part of my working vocabulary.  I was talking with a friend recently who shares my passion for Spanish and she really encouraged me to listen to more radio and podcasts!  What a fantastic, free and easy idea!  I am looking forward to immersing myself durante el verano!

5.  Do some local outreach - Y'all are going to think I am a complete nut ... buuuuut, I was watching The Blind Side yesterday (for the 3rd or 4th time ... I really love that movie).  As I was watching, I was thinking, I hope that one day I can do something like that for someone.  And really the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I could really do that now ... ok, so I'm not rolling in the big bucks, but I think I can still make an impact.  As a matter of fact, I think that at school the smiles and kind words and love I give to my students is already making an impact because so many of them come from such heartbreaking homes and family lives.  Anyway, after being inspired by The Blind Side, I remembered another friend from high school and fellow blogger, Lindsay, who does Big Brothers, Big Sisters.  So I'm looking into that ... it seems like a brilliant plan to put a little bit of my love and life into a child who really needs it.

So those are my summer goals!  I am really looking forward to having some time to do some things that I put on the back-burner when I am working like crazy! And even though I didn't put it on the list ... laying by the pool as much as possible is another goal.  I don't think I'm going to have much trouble accomplishing that one!

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