{waiting on the world to change...}

So it seems like Tuesdays are the night when I'm able to get the li'l guy asleep at a decent recent hour and sit down to blog a bit. It's been a week since my last doctor's visit as well and still, no baby. Just two more days until my "official" due date - Thursday, January 31st - and I'm growing more anxious by the minute. The doctors last words were, if you haven't delivered by Thursday, then we'll schedule you for an induction. And thus...the waiting began....I waited....and waited....

....and waited. Who knew a week could feel SO long?! I'm honestly amazed I have made it this far with my pregnancy, given that Zachary was born 2 weeks early (induced due to high blood pressure).  Even with my diagnosis of gestational diabetes and Jeremiah being in the breech position for approximately a week or more...I was able to mediate those issues and ideally, avoid a scheduled C-section as well. And now...we wait.

It's actually been quite an ironic situation...normally, I'm not 100% prepared for each teaching day nor am I as meticulously organized as I'd like to be. But with this pregnancy, I managed to compile a decent long-term sub file and stay planned far enough ahead that I've been able to utilize such plans since I'm still going into school to teach (until I deliver).  More so - it seems as the more prepared I've gotten, the more likely Jeremiah is prolonging his birth. I'm sure if it were the other way around, he'd have popped out by now...right?

So...that's me. Just waiting. And trying to kill time in any which way possible...blogging, catching up on some DVR'd cooking shows, looking online for our next home (Spring/Summer 2013!) and whatnot. I just hope everyone else is enjoy a stress/worry-free evening! :)

{a lesson in patience.}

After scrambling to get everything for the 2nd quarter completed (grades, progress reports and report card comments), I was ready to start my maternity leave. We were fortunate to have a four-day weekend including yesterday's Martin Luther King holiday and today's Teacher Work Day which allowed me to tele-work from home (always a bonus, YAY!). In an effort to take full advantage of my time today (and save my leave), I scheduled back-to-back appointments with my OB/Gyn and my Perinatal provider (for my gestational diabetes management).

Lo and behold - both appointments revealed that this li'l guy is doing great and is so comfy, it's all up to him. I am not in any need of being induced as I had to be with my first pregnancy due to high blood pressure...and so, we're now in a "holding pattern" until labor truly kicks in gear.  He has been teasing me on/off since the beginning of the year with intermittent contractions and several practice runs but nothing close to the real thing. Given that I didn't progress this far with my first pregnancy and wasn't put through nearly as much "practice", I'm definitely feeling it and feeling so very READY.

But...is Jeremiah ready? One of the habits that my husband and I have started with this new year is reading Jesus Calling by Sarah Young - a daily devotional for the 365 days of the year. Each day has a devotional and several Bible verses that exemplify the day's message. And what book of the Bible has been more featured this month of January? If you said Jeremiah...you'd be right! I joked today that our devotionals have been speaking on the lesson of patience and looking to Him to guide us as He sees fit. And with our son being named Jeremiah for the verse Jeremiah 1:5, we've soon learned more about the book of Jeremiah in recent days and are learning about following the Lord's schedule and not our own. The focus - patience.

So...the "plan" is to wait and let our li'l guy come on his own when he's ready. To wait and be patient, no matter how hard. How is patience being tested in your lives?

{up all night.}

It's time. Well...it's soon, at least. I've spent the last few nights not either unable to fall asleep until 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning or waking up at the wee hour of 4 o’clock. I do believe my li’l guy is telling me something. And I’m saying, “OKAY! Let’s do this!” all the while picturing myself as the epitome of comedy a la Kirsten Wiig or Cameron Diaz. Evidently, late night screenings of Bridesmaids and Bad Teacher has gone to my head.

All funny business aside, I truly am ready (I think). Work wise, I’m down to my last IEP, submitting of my 2^nd quarter grades and a few other loose ends paperwork-wise. At home, the car seats/bases have been installed, all the baby clothes have been washed/organized, the baby nook in our bedroom is pretty much established and I even finished sewing the li’l guy’s rag quilt. And yes – the hospital bags are packed (and re-packed), minus a few last minute additions.

Worse yet – the multitasking/restless stage has set in. This is also known as “nesting” aka insanity, according to one or two of my co-workers. I cleaned our bathroom/bedrooms from top-to-bottom this past weekend, re-packed the hospital bags, and have been revising To Do lists in anticipation of Jeremiah’s impending arrival. I’ve even managed to finish reading a library book and am halfway through the next. Let’s just say….this momma is ready!

Speaking of readiness – my lunch break is over and it’s time to get back to business – fingers crossed I can get the majority of the bulleted To Do’s on my list done…surviving until Friday is one goal, but tomorrow is good too! J

{rock 'n rolling.}

Maybe it's the fact that we're in the midst of winter and have actually had some snow this year, but I feel like the analogy of how quickly things are progressing and developing as we near my due date is comparable to that of a snowball quickly building as it rolls downhill truly fits my current situation(s).

Or perhaps...the somewhat comical title of a website I have been frequenting as of late is more appropriate - Spinning Babies. At my 36-week check-up, I discovered that my little guy is quite the mover and shaker. So much so, that he has moved back upright and is no longer head down...and instead, in a breech position. Not fun.

In addition to all the fun work in trying to turn Jeremiah around, I've been working non-stop (as much as possible) to complete my subsitute lesson plans and other related paperwork before I go out on leave. Having worked previously as a long-term substitute in my current position (I was eventually hired on full-time. #blessing), I believe that no matter what I prepare, it will be more than what was left for me -which was....NOTHING.

But...I digress. In the last few days, I've completed more work (I think?) towards my long-term sub plans and hopefully, this Friday will be meeting with my long-term sub in person and reviewing everything I've outlined thus far and hoping very little still needs to be done. *fingers crossed* Now - off to get this li'l guy spinning!

{winter break.}

Once again, it's that time of year...a week and a half long reprieve from the non-stop chaos of lesson planning, paperwork and general craziness that comes with being a teacher. Everything stops and for several "school days", there is no bell schedule, no cramming lunch into thirty minutes, no uninterrupted moments during "planning time". Instead - it is several days worth of spending time with my loves - the Mister, the li'l guy and soon to come second addition to our li'l clan.

Let me tell you what I did NOT do over winter break:

• worked on lesson plans or anything school related (with the exception of 3 hours the night before we came back...)
• wake up at my usual 5:30-6:00 time
• wear anything outside of pajamas or comfy clothes with the exception of 3 or 4 days we actually left the house....
• stress about school/work or life in general

What I DID do instead was:

• get sucked into marathons of American Horror Story and The Walking Dead (thank you, Netflix and my hubby's Christmas gifts)
• finish the little projects I wanted to do for our 2nd addition: Jeremiah's name blocks, canvas art of the scripture Jeremiah 1:5, and his very own minky rag quilt {everything in shades of orange, brown and green and of course, featuring camouflage}
• enjoy a few days lounging in an "empty" house with the Mister and li'l Man
• snuck in a few cookies and managed to up the exercise so that my blood glucose levels were under the limit - take that gestational diabetes!!
• RELAX!

And now...it's Wednesday, our first day back at school....with only two weeks left in the quarter, however many weeks until I go out on maternity leave and approximately 135 school days remaining until we end in June... (this, I only know because of a fellow teacher friend who is counting down - not that I mind). Hopefully everyone has had a fabulous first day back and if not, it's only two more days until the weekend arrives!

{taking a moment.}

As a teacher and mother of a li'l one and soon to be second...the events that occured this past Friday in Connecticut shocked, angered and quite honestly, frightened me. This morning's drive to work was one of apprehension and sadness - not sure how many students at my elementary school would be aware of the events and much less, able to fully comprehend/process it.

I only found out via text message from my grandmother (a fellow teacher) as I was driving home from school on Friday afternoon.  I am thankful I had not checked the news during the school day as I'm sure it would have affected my focus and my ability to focus/teach the rest of the school day.  As someone who remembers the Columbine shootings during my freshman year of high school and the subsequent school shootings to date, it is still heartbreaking when such events occur.  There are never any words that can fully describe the horror of a school shooting nor are there any answers that can be given at this time.

I would like to take a moment for all the victims (young and old), their families, friends and members of the Newtown school community and lift them up in prayer.  To all my fellow teachers and their families - I am thinking of all of us today and praying we never experience what occured firsthand, but that we are also prepared in the event that it too, could happen to any of us.

To anyone reading this - I hope you and your families are safe today and that you take a moment - to listen a little longer, smile even bigger, hug a little harder and longer and cherish every moment you have with one another. And while time will pass and we will move along in our lives, we never forget.

{let me entertain you!}

I realize that anyone who is reading this is only provided a brief synopsis of who I am and what I do...so allow me to more formally introduce myself.

"What I Do"
I'm a teacher of students who are deaf/hard of hearing. I am also licensed to teach art. I'm currently in my fifth year of teaching and third teaching position. I was an itinerant teacher (in MinneSNOWta), followed by an art teacher in a deaf residential program and am currently teaching any/all subjects in a mainstreamed deaf program within a public elementary school. Each job has brought its own challenges and accomplishments and I can't quite say which role I prefer the most just yet. I'm eager to go back to school and work towards a PhD in either behavioral psychology, some combination of art/deaf education or general curriculum/administration.

"My Other Job Life"
I am also a full-time working mom, which is an oxymoron in of itself, since all mothers work full-time, regardless if they are receiving a paycheck for it or not. At present, I'm the blessed mother of a little boy, Zachary, who will be turning two in January. Additionally, our second child, another son to be named Jeremiah is due at the end of January {but I wouldn't be surprised if he decided to make his grand debut much sooner!}. The other in my "OUR" is my wonderful husband, the Mister...Dennis. While no one person is perfect, HE is perfect for me. Truly my other half and the man I could not imagine my crazy, hectic life without.

"Me, Myself and I"
Beyond my job and my role as a wife and mother, I am what my grandfather calls "artsy-fartsy" - a term he once believed offensive and now I have grown to love. When I'm not working and the kids are otherwise occupied aka asleep, I enjoy reading, drawing/crafting, watching any/all variety of cooking competitions and as my blog title hints - squirrels. They are my absolute favorite animal - tiny, ninjas of the forest and completely giggle-inducing. And more than just an animal - they are the perfect adjective for much of the craziness in life...just plain squirrely goodness.