Well, I'm here. I have been in Dothan for a month and a half. I can honestly say, I never thought my family would ever leave Alabaster. We were establishing a life there. I was making friends. I had my two best friends as close as I could get them to me. I had a great neighbor that I could count on for a walk around the neighborhood, eggs, milk or cake decorating advice. I had a school to teach at and for my daughter to attend that I (still) completely believe in. I was establishing incredible relationships with teachers that were/and still are becoming great friends.
I guess the Lord had different plans. And I am willing to follow Him wherever he leads. Even if I don't understand why. I remind myself that faith is believing in what is not seen! I pray that I will always have that faith.
Well, we are as unpacked as I think we are going to get. I think we all feel "at home." After all, as long as Bret and I are with the kids, that is home, right? Those five months that I was away from Bret were extremely hard and I pray that the Lord will not ask us to do that again anytime soon. (If you missed this part, check out my facebook or myspace blogs. www.myspace.com/bretsgirl)
I have my classroom decorated and am in the process of getting it as organized as I can. Lesson plans are underway. I really do have a good group of students. Most want to obey and still please the teacher. I have a few that are just wild at heart. Maybe this is the year they will get reigned in. Let's hope!
It is different teaching at Providence than at Evangel in many ways. Things are not bad at one place and good at the other, it is just different. At E I was in an all inclusive classroom. We didn't team teach. I taught all subjects, but Latin. We didn't have enrichment classes and we got out of school at 12:40. The schedule was tight, but I usually got everything taught and was (in a good way) exhuasted at the end of the day. I had the rest of the afternoon to be with my children, work on school or house work. At P, we team teach. I get the privilege of teaching History and Literature twice in one day. I am not being sarcastic. It really is a privilege. I get to teach about how God has shaped history and we can see His hand in it. It is awesome. Literature is just exciting. I get to take my students into another "world." I love adventures! I also teach the rest of the core subjects to my homeroom class. I don't get to teach my other two favorite subjects (math and science). We get out at 2:40, but that doesn't mean more time to teach. We have several enrichment classes that make our schedules even tighter than if our day ended at 12:40. Leaving the school after 4:00 doesn't leave a lot of time for anything else except cooking dinner and getting the kids ready for bed. I know I will get the hang of it...it is just going to take time. The more organized I get, the easier it will be.
I am not one for change and EVERYTHING has changed. I now have a new house, new job, new everything. I know the Lord is teaching me to get out of my comfort zone and that eventually things have to change. I am a slow learner, but eventually I do get it. Lord, just be patient. I promise I will learn. I am grateful. I have my husband again (every day of the week-not just two). I have a house (we are renting) that isn't in need of any repair. I get to have my two dogs again (inside the house-not out). They are just too funny to watch chasing each other around the sofa.
Hannah has made some friends in her classroom and has three little girls that live in our neighborhood. Ian on the other hand has been left out. We haven't found any boys his age here yet. Maybe soon.
We are on the hunt for a good, God-centered, church. If you know of any in Dothan, please let me know.