Preparing to Teach

As graduation draws near, I'm beginning to realize how stressed I am about the whole thing. I'm really looking forward to it, and when I say that, I mean it; I will never have to write another paper or take another exam.... at least for the time being.

I've been doing my alternative certification stuff and I've been pretty optimistic about the whole thing. I know finding a job will be the biggest ordeal, but right now, I'm all about taking my TExES test. I'm pretty stressed about this- the money, studying, time... But I know I can pass it. I'm taking the test for 4-8th English, and I'm graduating college with an English degree! It can't be too hard. :) See, optimism mixed with questioning....

Anyways, the test is on November 8th- please pray for me :) If I pass, I will be soooo pumped because I will be an official "highly qualified" teacher and a true candidate for a teaching position.

Well... I guess I should go study!

sleep-drive-learn-drive-sleep!

It has been a loooong day. I didn't think driving to Austin for my alternative teaching certificate for 2 months would take quite the toll on my body. :( I started it last week with an 8-hour introduction to the profession of teaching, and today we had an 8-hour session on Lesson Planning & Development.

It was really good that I went even though I've already taken the education courses here at UMHB and have prior knowledge to the lesson-planning cycle. It was still very informative! I'm preparing my portfolio over the next few months before graduation- I'm going to include my unit plan that I did for high school English last semester (which I got a 98 on, by the way- and yes, I can brag because I'm very happy about that!), a few recommendation letters, and the like.

It's hard for me to believe that in about a month and a half, I will be looking for a job and possibly teaching. Seriously.

After I drove back from Austin, I went to Russell's and we talked for a while about books and his writings that he's working on. I was so pooped that I feel asleep on his couch for about two hours! He worked on homework and I slept. It's so typical of me, having senioritus and all. ;) So now I'm up at one in the am... I need to get to bed though. Long day tomorrow- full of researching, reading, writing...

It all pays off.

So, i'm pretty confident that I made at least a B+ on my test, and I'm even hopeful for an A. We shall see. You really never can tell. But the good news is that I feel good about it! I can't wait to get my grade back. Sheesh.

:)

Why yes, I am going to study....

I just got off of work and am finally home and changed. Now I'm going to grab a bite to eat and then study. I promise, I am!!!

No, I've actually already typed out most of my review and just need to look at some notes. Not bad!!

I know, stop procrastinating.... I'm going. :)

Senioritis...

...is a bad, bad thing.

Why is it that I have absolutley no motivation to focus on the nine hours of class I am taking, but instead would rather focus on studying for my teaching certification (which is after I obtain my degree)?!

I am going to get out of this rut.

Study, study, study. This is your last semester, 9 hours-make A's! In order to do that, STUDY!

Really though. I've been keeping up with all of my readings for American Literature. I have a test tomorrow! I can do it. I think I can, I think I can....!

I'll be fine. I'll make a study guide today and study all night and tomorrow before the test.

And yes, I do know that this post holds no other purpose but to motivate me, but also allow me to procrastinate. Semi-Catch 22? :)

it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...

a beautiful day! :)

So, please forgive me for my long absence! I have been a horrible blog-keeper. :( Thank you, Stephanie, for unknowingly inspiring me to blog again! :) (I saw your blog and the cute background and thought to myself, "Self, you should make your blog all cute and updated!" So I did.)

Well I guess I'm long overdue for an update.... ;)

What's new you may ask? Good question! I shall tell thee.

I graduate in 80 days!!! I will be done with school for(ever?) a long time!! Over the length of my absence, I decided that the wisest financial decision for me right now is not to dig myself into a deep debt hole of student loans and the like, but to get a job with my Bachelor's degree and start paying some loans off! So I'm applying to teach English in January. I'm pretty confident in my ability to do this- except the plan is now not to teach high school (because I look like a high schooler still...), but to teach middle school. 4th-8th grade sounds like a pretty good grade level for me. :)

Since graduation is coming up, I would like to invite my readers to my graduation party! I graduate on December 20th (a Saturday) and will be having my party the day after in San Antonio. I'll send out invitations to both my graduation and my party as the dates draw closer.

Russell and I are still doing great! :) He's graduating in May and applying to grad schools near San Antonio. I'm really excited about this! And not to sound too lovey-dovey... he makes me really happy and I'm really looking forward to the next year as we transition from undergraduate life to adult life (also known as "the real world")! Eeeek! It will be fun. :)

happy 4th of july weekend!

So this weekend I came home to meet up with my parents and just spend some quality time with them. I haven't really come home for a while (since SPRING BREAK!...) by myself at least. 2 weekends ago Russell came with me and met my parents- this is huge for me. If you have known me at all, you know that I have been very picky and well... single my whole life until Russell! Hence, I have never had to introduce my parents to anyone at all. This. was. huge. (I used the periods for effect.. haha)

It went well. I was so scared of how it would all go because I have never brought anyone home, and I didn't know if they would grill him with a million questions or what. But we had a good time. We went to "Mi Tierra" on the river walk and then watched Evan Almighty back at home. Of course, we all had breakfast together, and sooner than I thought, we were driving back to Belton.

Let's see... since I've been a horrible blogger, I suppose I should update the few that read this on my life lately. I've been working full time at The Peanut Gallery, and wow- I didn't realize how drained I could be from this! But alas, due to bills and gas prices, I have also applied for a very part-time job as a waitress, working maybe 2 nights or so out of the week.

Here are some fun pics of life for me lately:

This is my "Red Group" as we call it. I'm in charge of our youngest schoolers, the 5 -and -6-year-olds. We were at inner space caverns! :)

I know this picture is sideways, but I think it's so cute! I told Natalie, the youngest schooler, to make a crazy face, and we did the same thing!

And this is me at home... studying for the GRE (notice my handy-dandy "The GRE for Dummies" book). I'm trying to take the test in October, and hopefully be in Texas State by January, or accepted at Texas Tech by February for next fall. We shall see!

Okay, okay....

So I got quite the phone call from one of my dearest friends regarding my last post.... no names, no names... *cough* Stephanie! *cough* :)

It was a good call--urging me to give more details!

Okay, so I've gotten to the point where I will. My boyfriend's name is Russell and we celebrated our "one month anniversary" of officially dating this past weekend. We went out and saw Prince Caspian last night, and it was an amazing movie! I'm loving these Chronicles of Narnia movies, which says a lot considering I don't usually like movies that try to bring to life a book. The movie made me realize how much more I want to read everything ever written by C.S. Lewis.

Tangent... I know. I'm quite happy with Russell. :) He came to a wedding that I was a bridesmaid in as my date yesterday- we had a good time! No dancing, but it was still fun.

Ah, but yes. I know those aren't many details, but at least you now know his name! :)

Until next time...

Back by popular demand...

I don't know why I have not had the desire to blog... Okay, Just joking. I do.

I think I have been feeling like I have not wanted to broadcast everything about myself on blogspot. I'm either at one end of the spectrum or the other; I either blog about everything, or nothing at all. So, here's to keeping this brief. :)

-I am finishing up my last Spring semester as an undergraduate student! My last finals are on Thursday- WOO!
-I am staying here for the summer- big WOO because I get to stay in Belton and be on my own. :)
-I'm growing up.
-And, I have a boyfriend. :) That's the good news! I would tell you about him, but alas- I don't want to broadcast my life on here. Just know that he's a really good guy and I really like him. :)

Here's my story... as of late..

Long time no see? Sorry about that. :)

Life has been great. A lot has occurred since my last entry, so I shall update thee:

Academically, things are going well. In fact, there is a lot to be said for this area. I made the huge decision not to teach this semester, and that puts me at a point where I need only 3 classes in the fall to graduate! Yes. :) This semester has been rough though. I've been in 2 classes where I needed field experience, and it has been torture. Okay, that's a strong word. But it hasn't been the best experience. I am thankful for these classes because I realize that I do NOT want to teach. Ever. You may remember a post of mine back in December where I referenced my desire to go into speech pathology. These plans are definite- I even visited a school yesterday. I got to meet with the dean of the department and even got a personal tour. I know I'm a nerd (which I am totally okay with) because I have made it a standard that whichever school I choose has an exceptional library with very good hours. Anyways, I'm going to be working full time this summer in San Antonio (Where? I don't know. Possibly with a newspaper as a journalist- it's something I've always secretly wanted to do.) and taking a prep course at UTSA for the GRE. I HAVE to score high on this exam. My goal is to get anything above a 1300. I'll keep you posted. :) I've been in contact with many grad schools across Texas that have a Speech Pathology program- ACU, Lamar, Texas State, OLLU, Baylor, TWU, and UNT. I am planning on applying to all of them. So, once I graduate in December, it is off to grad school for 3 years. This may sound like a lot to you but I know that this will be worth it. If you want to know more about this, feel free to ask me! :)

My classes that I am taking right now have been going well too. If you ever need me, I'm probably off diagramming sentences for grammar, or writing essays for rhetoric. I'm really enjoying those classes. :) Next fall (my LAST semester as an undergraduate!), I will be taking Poetry, Literary Periods and Genres, and American Literature I. It is absolutely crazy that that is all I need!

Well, I hope you are all doing well.
Until next time!
~Krista

Keeping My Head Above Water

Sunday night, reality set in that I may have way too much on my plate. I've always secretly known that I have made myself a busy girl, but gee... it caught up with me. I was actually very scared of starting this week primarily because I had added my field experience hours, and somehow, trying to fit an extra 5 hours of "to do's" in my week put me at overload. My body is beggining to let me know to calm down and relax- not to fit as much as possible into one day. Not to give too much away but I am going to the doctor because I'm a little concerned. So if you would please pray for me... that would be great!

So, today I decided that I would try to count the blessings in my busy schedule. I have one 2-hour break on Tuesdays and Thursdays which I usually spend in the library. Today I went and did some grammar homework, but suddenly I got the feeling to go browse the books. So I did, and I got a few that I plan on incorporating into my schedule to give myself some "rest time". All too often I use time like that to look at my pile of things to do and stress out some more... or to facebook. That routine has not been working for me- my ability to stress more increases and I inwardly panick. So I got "If" by Amy Carmichael, "Keep A Quiet Heart" by Elisabeth Elliot, "Girl Meets God" by I don't remember..., and "Effective Prayer" by R.C. Sproul. Isn't it nice to have some books that you can just pick up and rest as you read them? Yeah, I think so too :)

Right now I'm at work and I'm going to try to get through "Night". We shall see! :)

Teaching!

I'm taking two education classes this semester: Curriculum Methods and Classroom Management. For each class, I need to do 26 hours of field experience, putting me at 52 hours this semester. I'm not quite sure how this will work considering I have school and 2 jobs... but it will work. I promise! :)

Anyways, that was me going off on a tangent again. Today I met the two teachers I will be working alongside this semester, and I felt so good about it. They were both so encouraging and offered me many resources to help me in my teaching career. One even gave me the book "Night" by Elie Wiesel (which I have wanted to read for a while. We both agreed that the lessons I would teach this semester would be over that book. We discussed the Holocaust, Wiesel's beautiful words and writing, and of course- the life of a teacher. She told me how stressful it can be, yet how rewarding. I was deeply encouraged by everything she told me.

As we sat and talked in her overly crowded (by desks) classroom, I felt like everything I have been preparing for is so right. I'm going to be honest and tell you that I have questioned the career I have chosen. But I know that I sought the Lord in prayer about this very intently, and I know that He has a plan. As I walked through the highschool hallways today, I knew that what I was doing was exactly where I needed to be. While many of the students I saw today were taller than me, I still felt older than them. I know that sounds crazy, but I have feared that I would not be confident walking through the hallways of a highschool as a teacher, but today God brought that peace.

After hearing about some of these student's lives, my heart went out to them. Our world is full of so much that we choose to overlook. There are 15 year old students that see school as their only safe haven. I am excited for what is to come. I know it will be rough, but I am so ready to see what God has planned.

I start in the classrooms next week. Before, my biggest fear was feeling confident, but now- my worry is, "What will I wear?!" (That's right, I STILL have not deveoped my teaching wardrobe...)

27 Dresses

(I thought it was hilarious that my dress from pageant was one of the bridesmaid dresses in the movie that was made fun of- maybe it's a good thing I didn't get the green one! hahaha)

I saw this movie today. It stars Katherine Heigl as an independent woman who ironically loves weddings and everything about them. She had been a bridesmaid in TWENTY-SEVEN WEDDINGS! How crazy is that?

Well, before I spoil the ending for you, I will let you know that this movie is a chick-flick. Now... if that doesn't spoil the ending for you, I don't know what will. As I was walking out of the theater last night, I thought to myself, "Self, why do I pay six dollars for a movie where I know that the main character will fall in love and live 'happily ever after'"? Yes, *gasp*, it's true- she fell in love, got married, walked off into the sunset with her knight in shining armor, and lived happily ever after. Or that's at least what they want you to believe :)

I know I must sound like the most bitter person that has seen this movie, but it's true! Why do we get sucked into this cycle? I'm just wondering. We (and by we I mean women) see a preview for a movie like this, say it looks soooo cute, and then go pay for it! When 98% of the time, we know that it's going to end happily.

I honestly have no idea what my point of this post is. I think it might be that I somehow always feel good after seeing these type of movies for about 10 minutes, but in all honesty, then I feel completely upset that I spent money on it. Yes, it was a great movie- it was "cute". But I don't always like the way these movies make me feel.

This past week God has shown me (as He seems to do a lot) that I am perfectly content- that I am fine. By this I mean, He is my rock, He is my refuge. These are the words I cling to from Psalm 73:
23 Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
24 You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength [2] of my heart and my portion forever.

He is my strength, He is my portion.

I don't want a simple movie to make me feel otherwise.

Any thoughts?

Twisted logic??

So you may think this sounds odd... but it makes sense to me! I have decided that not being a morning person may actually be a good thing! Hear me out.... Because I am most definitely not a morning person, I feel tired whether I slept for 8 hours or for 3! I decided that this morning when I woke up at 7 after finally falling to sleep around 3:30 or 4. I will never take for granted a sore-free throat again!! :)

Anyways, I have 3 classes today. I've already been to two: General Psychology (I've been putting that one off for a while. The teacher is very spunky! Especially for 8 am!)and Advanced Rhetoric, which seems like it will be an interesting class. The teacher is very laid back, so that's nice! I have Advanced Grammar at 1, which I am very scared of!! Anyways, I'm trying very hard to stay on top of my classes early! My friends Edgar and Analy and I are going to Starbucks tonight to all read for our classes. So hopefully we get a lot done!!

Hope you are all doing good! Good luck to all the students this semester! :)

I Can't Sleep....

*Sigh*

This is the 4th night in a row that I haven't gone to sleep before 2 AM. I know, I know...! This is bad. But especially bad right now... because I have an 8 o'clock class this morning! I think I can't sleep because I either have insomnia, I have way too much on my mind, my cough is keeping me awake, or it's a mixture of all 3. I really hope I'm not an insomniac- that would stink. So does having a cough!

I think that since I get sick rarely throughout the year, the best time to get sick is at the very beginning! You know? Start off 2008 with a never ending cough... or one that one end for a few days, rather. Then I won't be sick for the rest of the year :) Hopefully.

Anyways, since I had nothing better to do- seeing as how I can't sleep, why not blog about it? So here I am, in my house, drinking Pineapple Apple Orange juice, blogging at 2:21 in the morning. It's actually quite nice :)

Now lets try to fall asleep...

Louisiana, Grad School, and Friends :)

So I'm back! Actually, I've been back for a few days... I've just been lazy with my blogging lately. :) Due to uploading time... I think I will only upload a couple pictures of my trip. But, if you want to see more, just go to: http://umhb.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2017895&l=af10b&id=183000054 :)

We went to an alligator ranch!! We touched alligators, and even fed them MARSHAMLLOWS!! It was pretty neat! The kids seemed to enjoy it, too :)

We also did other fun things, like bowling :) I love these kids! Now, aren't they just the cutest? :)
I had a great time in Louisiana. I learned that states are different in very funny ways- Lousisiana has a lot of TREES and WATER. I saw my first Pine Tree (I know, I know) and about a million others!! It was neat :)

During my trip, I talked to my friend Rachel (the mom in the family) about my future plans. We talked about how time flies (I'm graduating in a year!), about guys, and about careers. I told her that I had become interested in Speech Pathology for the past semester, and wouldn't you know- her best friend is a Speech Pathologist. Isn't that wild? I got to meet her (Amy) and she was so encouraging. So, now that I'm home, I've been doing my research, and I am seriously thinking of moving on towards gradaute school. As of right now, I'm looking at Texas State, Abilene Christian University, and Our Lady of the Lake University. They all require a few prerequisites that I don't have.. but I'm not going to let small obstacles stand in my way. I've already had 2 of those schools call and e-mail me to help me out! So I guess I'll keep you posted on that ;) The reason I'm even interested in Speech Pathology is because I really have a heart for children that have a hard time speaking for various reasons. My two younger cousins have difficulties with this- and I would love to be able to help in some sort of way. Anyways, in all, I would be in school for 3 more years, but that's just one year longer than most students who go to grad school. So if you can, just keep me in your prayers as I seek the Lord's will for this.

Anyhoo... I feel like my time in SA has been short, probably because it has. I haven't had much time to do anything because the few days that I've been here, I've been working! But I did have time to hang out with my friend from school, Analy. We did the typical San Antonio things: browsed the mall, walked the river walk, and ate Taco Cabana! :) Now that's a fun day :)

I head back to Belton on Sunday, and I'm sure that there will be many fun times (and picture posts!) :)

Vacation!

I think that time is so weird sometimes... Somehow it makes sense when I think about it, but when I say it... "This break feels like it's going by so fast, but it's taking forever!!" I mean, come on, how weird is that?? How can a period of time be slow and fast??

I have no idea. :)

Since finals, I have worked at my new job in Temple at a place called "Paperdoodles". This place is exciting- I get to sell paper (and other knick-knacks, too)! I get to look at pretty invitations and help brides pick out the best ones... (By the way, did you know how expensive invitations are? It's absolutely crazy!) After a couple weeks at Paperdoodles, and enjoyable, peaceful days in Belton, I drove back to San Antonio. The very next day, my family and I drove to Fredericksburg to seem my mom's side to celebrate Christmas. We had a wonderful time, and it's always fun to see family and catch up. Since Christmas I've been working at the retirement home serving food too all of the residents. It's fun to see them again- their smiles make me happy :) Tomorrow I fly out to Louisiana! I'm visiting the family I used to babysit for. I can't wait to see Nathan and Anna!! They are the cutest kids ever... I have some proof:

I wish I had a recent picture of her big brother, but I will after I get back from my trip! I'll be there until New Years day, when I fly back. I'm very excited! I'll be taking a ton of pictures because I got a camera for Christmas, which is very exciting!! So, I guess all I can tell you is, "Stay tuned!!" :)

Home! :) and a little randomness!

So I'm home now. I can smell the lovely scent of my mom's Apple Cake. How will I survive until tomorrow without biting into it?! :)

It's nice to be home. I'm just sitting in "my" room and relaxing. I'm acknowledging this because I do not want to take for granted the time I have now to rest... next semester won't be too bad... I don't think. I'm taking Advanced Grammar, which is supposedly the hardest class for English majors. I am still excited about it because I know there is so much about grammar that I don't know, but I've always wanted to. I'm also taking Advanced Rhetoric, Curriculum Methods, Classroom Management, and an easy one- General Psychology. I also find out where I will be student teaching. I'm not sure if I want Salado or Belton yet... so I will probably be observing in both districts to get a better idea. I think next semester's going to be fun, also! :)

Guatemala notes: I start fundraising next semester!! My Guatemala trip will be set for sometime June or July this summer... I get to choose the dates. It will be a prayer/relational ministry and I am very excited!! More updates to come... I will probably make a Guatemala blog, too. My adopted mom, Shanon, will be teaching Spanish classes at church for the Mexico mission trip, and I'm going to go to learn more for Guatemala :) It's very exciting!

Well, I guess I'll leave you with a quote that I read a couple days back:
"May your presence fill the nonanswers, empty glances, and lonely times of my life. Amen." - Robert Wood

Finals Week

So I'm almost done! I only have 2 more finals left! It's crazy for me to think that these are the last finals I will take in the fall-- this time next year I will be graduating. Wow, does time fly!

The week really hasn't been bad at all. I even got to go Salsa dancing on Saturday night- on of my hobbies! I've been attending a Salsa dancing class on campus this semester and we had most of our class go to a place called "Copas" in Austin together to dance. It was a really fun experience and definitely worth it. I never knew I would like dancing so much, but I do- I think it really has a lot of benefits, too. Not only is it a great work out, but you make a lot of friends when you all have an interest in the same thing :) And how cool is it to know how to dance? :) I'm pretty happy!

So yeah, that's all right now. Other than finals, I'm just enjoying good ole Belton and my last days of the semester. It's quite nice! :)

*whew!!*

So, I haven't posted in a while, right? Wow, sorry about that!

I'd be surprised if anyone still checks this! ;)

Well, let me update you on a few things:

After about 2 months of long practices throughout the week, pageant finally came and went! Our theme was "De'Masque," which means "Unmasked". It was an awesome experience! Here it is through some pics (there's a lot!):

This is at our banquet the night before pageant. We ate yummy food and each of our sponsoring organizations had a beautiful place setting waiting for us at our seat!

The first night was talent night and I performed a pantomime skit about true beauty. It turned out to be a huge hit! ;)

Julie and me before we went on stage to perform our dance on the second night!

Beautiful girls!

This was during evening gown walk- I wasn't nervous at all!

Stroll!

I made top 10!!

Then I made top 5, which is crazy! I answered my questions without an ounce of anxiety in me! God answered my prayer!

My proud, proud parents with me at the reception afterwards. It was so much fun and I wouldn't trade the experience for anything else. By the way, I made 4th runner up!! :)

Life after pageant has been pretty busy, surprisingly. I thought I would be bored without having practices to go to, but I got a new job (my third one!) and I'm still keeping up with classes- mainly writing and reading a LOT. More than the average student, I'm sure! haha :) I hope you enjoyed this post! It was due!