I turned 30 yesterday, 30 weeks pregnant that is!

Here's a picture of me yesterday at 30 weeks pregnant.  Just ten more weeks to go!

The baby is kicking more than ever and my large belly is evidence that she is growing big and healthy. We are getting closer to picking a name and are finding people's reactions to our name options quite amusing.  I actually think it's fun to tell people and see their response, but I can totally understand why many people opt to keep names a secret until they have actually had the baby (at which point everyone has to accept the name and say they like it, even if they don't ;)).

In addition to showing a belly bump, this picture is telling of life lately on multiple levels...

1) Don't let my clothes deceive you, San Jose is just as warm as ever.  I woke up to overcast weather and started dressing like it was really fall here (aka boots, tights, sweater, scarf), but soon enough we were back to 70's as usual and I was sweating.  Oh and that whole overheating pregnancy thing has definitely kicked in this last week! It is real.

2) Also, don't let this picture deceive you into thinking that I actually get dressed up like this regularly (or really at all).  I actually blow dried my hair this morning (which was big for me) and got dressed in a skirt because I went to submit my substitute teaching application (finally)!  The whole application process was delayed due to an ever elusive TB test.  However, I finally found a place 30 minutes away that actually had the solution needed for the test (my county has been out of the solution for months now) and got the test done this week.  Now just pray that I can be hired on with enough time to actually sub a few days before the baby comes.  I can't wait to see the eyes of those middle schoolers when such a big belly makes its way in to their classroom for the day :)

3) I took this photo on self-timer (as if the world didn't already have enough cheesy selfies) because Aaron doesn't get home til nighttime and I wanted to actually document that I had gotten completely dressed for the day while it was still light out.  And, self-timer=off center picture.

4) My mom and I recently found that desk/console table thingy on the right at a consignment store and I'm in love with it and its brass lion pulls.  We have been all unpacked for some time now but it is such a process to feel like your home is fully put together/decorated.  Part of me wants to go out and buy everything on my wish list now (new curtains, tons of area rugs, art, etc. etc.) but I know there is value in being patient.

So that is what this picture means to me right now, from the size of my belly to my job status to the weather to my husband's work hours to the state of my house.  A good snapshot of life.

Last Day at Nomen Global

This summer I taught at Nomen Global, a school here in Provo that teaches English as a Second Language to students from all over the world.  My students ranged from many countries--from Saudi Arabia to Peru to Spain and more--and were generally between the ages of 18 and 28.  I taught a variety of classes, including Grammar, Extensive Reading, Integrated Skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking combined) and Learning English through Song.

The job was a blessing to get right after finishing my school year at Timpview and I was grateful to be using my ESL minor.  Of course, as with every teaching job, there are challenges (I had never anticipated that disciplining adults was even necessary, let alone harder than discipling high schoolers) but there were definite highlights (seeing progress in their English, watching them share their talents in a talent show, learning from their cultural backgrounds and more).  

Last Thursday was my last day with my students and I was sad to say goodbye to them.  The pictures above are from my Integrated Skills class, the class that I spent the most time with.  That is a good bunch of people right there.  

Now on to California where I will experience teaching in another setting--subbing in California classrooms!  Who would have thought I would use my teaching degree in so many diverse settings already in such a short time period.  

The taste of victory

This is what sweet victory looks like--eating sweet cream ice cream with Reeses bits in a waffle cone cup on a "school night" because you are done with your first year of teaching!

Aaron took me out for ice cream after I finished my last day with my students.  I still had to go to school the next day for a teacher breakfast and to pack up my room (after which Aaron took me out again for a slice of cake at The Chocolate. I think he was just as excited as I was that I was finishing!) but I was feeling free already that night and it felt appropriate to celebrate.

I have since cleared out my whole classroom and office, turned in my keys and drove away from Timpview for the last time.

People have asked me how I feel about my first year of teaching, and I don't have a great answer yet.  What I can say is that I will be grateful for the learning experience and that I am really excited to be enjoying summer break.  Hopefully soon I can do a better re-cap on my feelings.  I am sure time will bring nostalgia.

For now I am free!

I have slept in until 8 am (long past the start-of-school bell that rang at 7:30 am), gone grocery shopping during the day during the week, worked out every morning, cooked regular meals and folded our laundry.  All simple joys that were not so easy to accomplish during the school year.

I'm happy for the break but I am getting antsy.  I need to find another focus, another job.   But more on that later.  For now I am free!

Monday night walk and randomness

We took a walk around our streets last night and the warmth was wonderful.  I'm really going to love living around Center Street come summertime.  So many quaint houses and good restaurants within walking distances. 

I brought my camera on our walk and wanted to practice taking light-streamed pictures.  It's a style I've come to love.  Aaron is pretty good at humoring me with picture taking these days but after a few pictures we just put the camera away and talked about life.  And the possibility of chaperoning Timpview's prom this week....is it weird that I'm excited about this?  I really get a thrill out of seeing high school drama from a distance and this could be the drama highlight of the year!   Plus I want to see all my cute kids glammed up like movie stars. Oh and I am particularly interested in comparing my California prom to a Utah prom.  I have a sneaky suspicion they will be quite different.  I'll find out tomorrow if they need us. 

So moral of the story: walks are sweet.  summer is coming.  chaperoning prom is a possibility. and life is good. 

Oh and p.s. school ends in exactly one month from today--crazy?! yes. 

Current Events {thoughts on teaching}

I made a commitment at the beginning of the school year to do a daily current event with my students. Everyday we start class with a "journal entry" where they answer some thought provoking question. I then introduce our current event for the day. We typically watch a short video clip of something happening in the news right then.

When I committed to devote 5-7 minutes of class every day to a current event, I didn't realize what would unfold (although I definitely hoped).  We have had meaningful conversations about the 2012 presidential elections, the election of the new Catholic Pope, President Obama's visit to Israel and the West Bank, Malala's attack from the Taliban, the Sandy Hook School shooting, North Korea's threats, the Boston Marathon shooting, and so on.  The students have shared their opinions, their concerns about the world, their hopes that things will turn out.

I try to tie each current event in to a theme we are already discussing during that unit.  While I worried at first that this would be difficult, it has actually occurred organically. My classes of world history and geography are about people--the living, breathing interactions of people--and the events that make history profound and complex are still going on around us. These current events are history--living history.

And these students that I teach are a part of the history.  The world around them is happening and pretty soon they are going to realize that the decisions they make, their country makes, the world makes, are what will fill the pages of their children's textbooks.  They don't necessarily see that now, but they will.

And until then, they are finding more meaning in discovering what is happening just out of their bubble.  They surprise me with their insights, and even though they sometimes say they don't care about others in the world, they do.  I see it in their faces when they come to class and ask me "So whatever happened to that one girl we saw in the news...?" Or better yet when they say, "Did you hear what ended up happening in that story we watched!  I looked it up when I got home and..."

So things are clicking for my students and those 5-7 minutes of class have been some of the most powerful moments we have had.  My hope is that they remember and continue, that they become life long learners, contributers, seekers of knowledge, and engaged citizens.

Have faith in these kiddos--they see and care about things outside of them.  They have power within them. We just have to direct them and give them tools think and they will do great things.


**The photos in this post aren't directly tied to current events, but rather just a glimpse into my classroom and teaching life. The first and third photos are of my students hard at work on a research project.  The second photo is of my students participating in the BYU MUN Conference back in November.  The last photo is of my students with their letters to the United Nations, requesting aid for a major issue in an African country. 

My "Key" Epiphany

I have a key that will open the outside doors to my school.  I used this key tirelessly my first semester of teaching because I was always at the school after hours--late night planning, soccer practices, MUN night club meetings, late night copy sessions, extra early morning copy sessions.

It dawned on me that I haven't used that key in a good three months.  Do you know what this means?!  It means I have been working normal, acceptable hours.  Oh, hallelujah.  With one month left of school--I've finally gotten things under control :)

Family in town and the YW Women's General Meeting

Mark, Susan and Annie came to town for Annie's Spring Break and luckily it was my break as well!

Amidst all of the wonderful hanging out time, I was lucky enough to tag along with Susan and her friend (who are both in their Stake YW Presidency back in RS) to the meeting for the YW leaders, put on by the General YW Presidency and the general YW board.  (This is a lot of LDS jargon so if this is sounding like a foreign language to you then that is okay.  The Young Women is a worldwide organization in our church of girls 12-18 years old).  

Wow, was it wonderful.  The entire presidency and board each trained and most of their focus was on the YW's new curriculum and internet resources.   Even though I am not a YW leader currently, I do work with youth every day (ranging from 14-18 years old).  I was inspired by the fact that I can be more than just "the teacher."  I can really lead the youth within my sphere of influence to be better and more moral people, to give back to their communities, to respect themselves and their peers and to see their potential.  I had a lot of other thoughts throughout the conference and took lots of notes.

After the conference, Susan and I got lunch at Nordstroms cafe.  The food was great and it was a lot of fun to have the chance to talk with just each other.

We laughed that there was a picture of the Mormon Tabernacle and Salt Lake Temple hanging in a Nordstroms.   Oh Utah, I love you.

It was a great day.  Thanks Susan!

teacher successes

While walking into Day's Market today, the local grocery store by Timpview, I hear "Mrs. McKell!" yelled across the parking lot.  I turn to see my typically "too cool" student with his head out the window, smiling and waving at me.  

And I felt like a successful teacher who means something to a student.

It's the little things, you know?

**I took the above picture in my classroom back in October to document how exhausted I felt and looked that day.  I didn't feel very valued that day but teaching has its ups and downs and other days come and you feel like the exhaustion is worth it. 

Can every day be Sunday?

I didn't have a lot of opportunities to practice taking pictures this weekend, so Sunday night Aaron and I sat on our couch and took pictures of ourselves (well, really, Aaron humored me as I set up the picture taking).  Most of them were posed but this was just us playing around afterwards.

Sunday evenings are so bitter and so sweet.  We get to feel so relaxed after a good weekend and we get a full night of just soaking up time together.  But when the realization hits that Monday comes after Sunday and that Monday will begin another week, I get bummed.  As great as teaching can be, I really do dread going back to work on Mondays (sorry my dear students who hopefully never read this blog).  Mondays mean diving back to the craziness and it means frantically making up all of the things that I said I was going to but didn't even touch.

Most of all though, I dread Mondays because it means that Aaron and I don't get to be together all the time.  This semester has been better because school is not as stressful, and Aaron has a much more flexible schedule.  However, the quality time just seems more quality on the weekend where it can just be us, totally focused on each other and not thinking about what we still need to get done that night.

I hold on to this time a lot because I know that with each passing day, this time will be more and more difficult to have.  Before we know it Aaron will be working full time, we will have children and we will be true "adults."  Don't get me wrong, I am super excited to be a mom one day (really excited) and Aaron working full time will mean lots of wonderful things for him and us.  These things will help us grow, and stretch and be better.  We will learn a lot by giving of ourselves to these new adventures.  But it will also bring more craziness into the mix.

So for now, Sundays are my heaven and I wish I could freeze time and just soak them it up.

December Activities

I had a lot of chances to go out with family and friends this past month and I loved it.  Here are a couple of my favorite outings.

Girls Night out to The Chocolate complete with a delicious "cazookie" and great conversation. 

Date Night in Salt Lake with Nate and Lauren to This is the Place.  

We got hot chocolate, listened to Christmas carolers, learned the waltz and the polka and saw a live nativity scene of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.

Missionary clothes shopping and Jdawgs with Ginny  

And other scenes for Christmas: chocolates from a student, a yellow poinsettia from my administration and our Christmas tree. 

Fall is here--part 2 of picture update

And here are more pictures from the past month.

Jamba Juice and casual clothes for my first day of Fall Break. I felt so free.

Aaron's tv "set-up" while doing grading and my Color Me Mine trip with Erin

Happily shopping during Fall break and Aaron driving us to our Park City get away

Brownies Aaron had waiting at home at 11 pm for when I got back from work and Aaron on our quest to visit all the Provo restaurants we've been meaning to hit up

A sweet plate of cookies wrapped in foil (still can't figure out who dropped them off but THANK YOU!) and Aaron and Adam when Adam came for a short recruiting trip

Sunday morning cinnamon rolls (our new staple food) and Indian butter chicken dinner

A surprisingly sweet note written on my board from my naughtiest 9th grader (there is hope for me and him after all!) and a very humorous paragraph written by a student

Aaron celebrating the return of his foxy grandpa hat and sneaking tussies and cannolis when we were supposed to be being healthy (everyone gets a free night, right??)

More cannoli loving.  It was a much needed night.  Neither one of us has much self-control. 

A beautiful cultural event depicting Christ visiting the Americas (it was all in Spanish!) and getting sucked into Once Upon A Time (we never watch tv but we love this show now.  Darn it!) 

Pumpkins for halloween and leaves for fall. 

An update through pictures

I haven't been very good at updating our life on this blog.

I blame it partly on lack of time and partly on lack of new things to talk about.  I feel like our typical update is: Caroline is teaching or planning something for teaching at all times while Aaron is attending classes, grading in all his spare moments and playing basketball whenever he can.

As a result of my teaching job and Aaron's 3 T.A. jobs, you will often find us sitting side by side on our bed with our own respective piles of papers grading away.  We try to spend time together on the weekends and enjoy going out to dinner or dessert.

I am getting better at balancing my life which has resulted in more regular dinners, earlier night sleeps and more quality time with Aaron.  This balance is both a result of soccer ending and me figuring out a better planning schedule.

Sometimes the best way to really update is through pictures.  Here is the hodge podge of pictures I've taken with my phone over the last month (ish).

Aaron getting his free iPad and the Japanese mural next to my classroom. 

Piles of paper before parent teacher conferences and my first bit of Timpview soccer swag

Sunday reading of my Grandpa Stewart's autobiography and a shot of our kitchen "shelving"

Attending a BYU football game with my sister-in-law Annie and cute soccer feet on the way to an away game

Homemade salted caramel cupcakes and getting pizza with Remy-kins (aka "Owner of Aunt Caroline's Heart") 

Cuddling while watching General Conference and working on framing artwork with Mimi

Celebrating the missionary age requirement change (yay for more sisters serving and my sister Ginny for getting to go NOW!!) and Aaron and Papa before attending the Priesthood Session

Going to Bombay House with friends and students shoes on my class floor (I make them give me a shoe in return for borrowing my pens)

Listening to Grandpa McKell's stories at Sunday dinner and pictures of my family to help me remember what's most important

I have more pictures to come.  Hopefully I will get better of keeping track of life again!