One thing I am really noticing is that there just doesn't seem to be any time to exercise or do things for myself. I rarely read any more, and when I do I fall asleep within minutes. This is wearing me down quickly. Going from being a stay-at-home mom to a full time teacher and student has been a rough transition.
I have been getting out to run an average of 2-3 times per week. This is probably pretty good for what my schedule is like, but it doesn't seem like enough to me. I am afraid of gaining weight because I'm just not getting the exercise in that I was before. This society we live in is just not set up for people to get everything done that we should be doing for our health and well-being.
I have approximately 6-8 hours worth of work to get done. I need to do grading, enter the grades into the grade-book program, then worry about lesson planning for next week. I do know that I do more planning than others, but I just don't feel prepared with less than what I do. My mentor teacher continues to say that I go above and beyond what is required, but to me this is what teaching is all about. Bringing in additional material to make the subjects come alive is my way of making learning relevant to the students' lives. I will continue to look for ways to make education fun for the children so they want to come to school every day.
I have not been eating well in the last couple of weeks, either. It is hard to keep up a strict diet when one is always on the run. Daniel has been fantastic, keeping up with the household chores, cooking, and helping the girls with their homework. Dinner is not an issue. Breakfast, on the other hand, is a completely different story. I have always hated eating breakfast, so I have learned to force that meal. When I was staying home it wasn't too bad. I could eat breakfast when I felt like it, and I could split it up into two very small meals. Now that I leave the house at 7 AM, that is not an option. I can't eat again until after 11, so I must eat when I have the opportunity. Granola bars, loaded with sugar, have become the breakfast choice I grab the most. I hate starting the day with a huge dose of sugar, but the thought of eating anything else that early in the day just turns my stomach. It doesn't matter how early I get up, either. It's the same story- eating in the morning is simply unappealing to me.
Lunch is also a struggle. I usually have so much on my mind by the time lunch comes that sitting and eating is the last thing I want to do. I have been known to walk around my classroom with a sandwich in one hand, writing notes on the board with the other hand. Mr. Hodges is constantly encouraging me to slow down and eat, but my brain is moving too fast. Just about the time I get caught up on one thing, I realize there are 50 things I need to do for next week. It wouldn't be so bad in the second year of teaching because I would have read all the text books, but for now I have to read ever word before I teach it.
I'm not complaining- I'm really not. I just feel stressed out and overwhelmed at the moment. Add the discipline problems I've been having in class and I feel like I'm drowning. There's only a few more weeks of student teaching, though, and it will go by quickly. I'll take a couple of weeks off to stay home and enjoy our quiet house, then I'll jump in and start putting in applications for a job. I know I'll sub at the same school I'm student teaching in, and I'll put in sub applications in some of the nearby charter schools. That should keep me busy until I get offered a full-time position.
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