Coming up for air.

As a lot of you have remembered, I started my new job this week. My days (and nights) have been pretty busy--I feel incredibly overwhelmed, actually--but I wanted to take a moment to give you all an update.

As I mentioned, I'm working at a childcare center here in town. I'm working as the teacher for the "school-age" kids, although here, school-age means "any kid 4 or older--and maybe 3, if they're driving us crazy and we want to send them down to Jen." ;) From 11-3:30, I work primarily with the kindergartners; at 3:30 or so, we're joined by the afterschool kids (1st - 6th grade) who come to us from the local elementary schools.

A big part of my morning is spent on a) lunchtime and b) naptime. Both, as you can imagine, are time-consuming processes. I usually have about 10 4-5 year olds; and we actually serve them lunch--they don't bring it from home, because that would be too easy. None of that "sandwhich and juice box" stuff for US. No, we serve these frickin' 9-course meals including the main "entree" (today, it was tacos), veggies, fruit and milk. Oh, and since we encourage independence, the kids "serve themselves." So you can imagine the free-for-all that is lunch.

Then comes naptime. Yeah. Getting those same kids to lie (lay?) down is pretty easy. Getting them to actually STAY that way, without talking, is the challenge. Most of that hour and a half is spent repeating "lay down." "No talking." "Lay down." "No, you can't get a book." "Please get back on your cot." "We need to be quiet." "Take that out of your nose."

And the afterschool crowd is challenging, too, because you have so many different ages in one room and you have to try to keep them all busy and occupied. And the room they gave me hasn't been occupied in a while, so there's not a whole of games, materials, etc for the older kids. And it's been so cold lately that it's been hard for us to go outside.

Don't get me wrong....I'm glad to be working with kids again, but this definitely is not my dream teaching job. Still, it's good experience while I look for a "real" teaching job at an actual school (preferably middle school). Unfortunately, that probably won't happen until the next school year, which means I'll be here at least through the summer. It's just hard to start a new job like this, try to establish control with so many kids testing you, get them settled into their new routine with their new teacher, etc.

So that's been the last few days, me working pretty long days, trying to get my room set up, etc. I'm just pretty tired, cuz it's been a while since I've worked with kids this little. They definitely take it out of you, I'll tell you what. Otherwise, things are going pretty well. Nothing too exciting to report on my V-Day, although I did get a really sweet e-card and phone call from Tyson.

Oh, on Monday night, I took Paige to a roller rink for a skating party her school was having. Now, being a child of the 80s, I was all about the rinks in my day (Holla, Renee!)--and although it's been, oh, 18 years or so, I can still keep myself on my feet pretty well (except for the VERY LAST SONG, which was a Bon Jovi song...I got flashbacks of "back in the day," got a little too conident and totally wiped out)....anyway, although I can keep myself on my feet, I also had to keep PAIGE upright. Mind you, she had only been skating one other time in her life, and--although I love her to death--she's not the most coordinated kid on FEET, let alone on wheels. So keeping us BOTH from breaking our necks was pretty challenging. Still, I had a really good time.

So that's about all I have to report. What's new with all of you?