Thankful for the breaks

I feel like I start every blog post off with a Whoops and apology for not posting in so long. September dragged by, but boy did October and November fly. And now we're one week into December and gearing up for winter break. I sure did lose track of time. 

Part of why I haven't posted in so long is because things feel a little more stable and normal, and part of it is because things are just busy. This job is never dull and there's always more to do, but in the day-to-day I'm not encountering anything I've thought was funny or interesting enough to write a whole post about. I mean, the students say and do crazy things (like insist I have 50 cats, or tell me about random abnormal pets they'd like to have) but nothing really hilarious so far. 

It's hard to believe this year is nearly half over already. As I think back to this time last year, I know I was marveling at the same thing. I was drowning in grading, struggling to keep my students motivated and engaged in each lesson, all while struggling to keep myself motivated and engaged. With Christmas break drawing nearer and nearer, the motivation level and attention span of even the best students drops rapidly. And yet, we chug along, trying our hardest and putting big X's on our mental calendars as the final bell rings each day. 

It's funny, because we just got off Thanksgiving break, so you'd think we'd be refreshed. But instead that little taste of a break only makes us anticipate Christmas break more. 

I did have a lovely, albeit fast and busy Thanksgiving break. I went to an AP training in IN on Tuesday, and then drove home to MI. Wednesday was full of appointments and errands, as well as an always-anticipated visit with my great-grandmother. Thursday was my only "downtime" day, where I lounged around with my mom, only leaving the house to see Mockingjay (no Black Friday shopping here!). On Friday and Saturday, I was in Grand Rapids for my best friend's wedding. It was a fantastic weekend and a beautiful wedding. I felt honored to stand up in her wedding, and although there was minimal bestie time, like I usually get, it was a perfect and wonderful weekend! (My phone wanted to correct wonderful to WONDERFUL. Apparently it was just THAT good!) Then I drove back to SC on Sunday, which took far too long, and started back to school on Monday. 

And now I'm looking forward, to a week and a half in Florida with my grandparents and my sister (yay!!) for Christmas and then New Year's back here. Less than two weeks to go...less than two weeks to go. 

2015 is just around the corner. I'm not one for New Year's Resolutions or over-anticipating whatever the new year holds, but I am ready to start writing 2015 instead of 2014 on my classroom white board ;)

Ich wünsche euch eine schöne Weihnachtszeit und einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr <3