It's been one week since you looked at me...

So as I looked at my blog, I realized it's been just over one week since I started this thing. It's actually tougher than I thought it would be to come up with posts. I've found I'm constantly going back and forth from what I actually want to write, and trying to figure out what people would actually want to read. (Whoever those "people" may be...)

I haven't posted since Tuesday because it turned into one of those weeks that was pretty calm at the start and turned into a whirlwind. One of those whirlwinds you don't know if it's going to last a week and subside on the spot, or push you into a hurricane.

So what kind of storm do we have coming in?

As you may know I'm a teacher, and 'tis the season for school budgets.

Long story short, the school department wanted an increase, the city council said no. The school department stayed with their original number, and the city told them to cut a couple million. This new number does not meet the state minimum, which would then penalize the schools by a few more million plus the first couple million.

Cue in the school department with the cuts that would have to happen in order to make this number meet... one of which being at least two positions at my school. (Among 7 billion other things like all sports at the high school and middle school, full day kindergarten to half day, 4 day school weeks, etc) And that's with the school department only coming up with half of the money required. The personal kicker is that I was the very last hire at my school. They filled no new positions this year, and I was a late hire into the year last year.

This all happened on Wednesday. Let the whirlwind begin. Myself, the hubby, and my good friend Katie went to the school board meeting on Wednesday to have a presence and to get the details straight. I'm super happy we went because I think I have a better idea as to what is going on.

So, these were just proposals from the school department. The next step is it goes to the City Council on Monday. The City Council will either say, "Whoah, we didn't realize the state would cut so much, let's figure something else out." Or they'll say, "Yep, totally meant to do that. Let's put it up to a city vote."

I have no way of predicting what's going to happen on Monday or even after that. All I know is when you're low man on the totem pole you've got to pay attention. So that's what I'll be doing on Monday night. Either with my eyes peeled to the  my tv screen or at the town hall itself.

I have been having a lot of conversations. With my husband. With my parents. With other teachers. (New and ripened.)  With friends.

And which conversations helped me keep my head on straight the rest of the week without breaking down in the middle of the day over not having enough handouts?

The kids. Those kids saved me this week.

I may talk in the future about how 12, 13, and 14 year olds are sometimes exhausting. How they take a lot of energy. About how they're still figuring out who they are and sometimes have a hard time using their manners or just sitting down.

But, there's something about a young teenager picking up a paper, looking at the newest news on the budget, and coming over and asking you to explain it because they're concerned. There's something about them asking who's going to be let go if this all happens, and when you say there's no way for anyone to know, they make a face and say, "Well that's not fair because all of the teachers here are good." There's something about the students coming into class, and simply just getting to work. No talking about what's going on, no small talk about "what they've heard" or "what's happened in the past". Just doing what they need to do and smiling while they do it. Because in a way, I think they can sense that at that moment, that is exactly what you need from them.

Because my students could fill that role for me this week, I have been able to put some sort of positive spin on the situation. And while I haven't completely found my happy on this one, I have in a way found a little bit of peace.

If this is the calm before the storm, then once it starts to pour I know I have enough support and love around me to head in a different direction.

But, if those clouds were just a red herring and decide to open up to let some sunshine in so I can continue on with the journey that I'm on with this district uninterrupted, then I'll be happy to smile and walk on.

Either way, those clouds will have to do something.

I have a feeling, I can react just fine to whatever they may bring.




Credit for Photos go to:
Jennifer Ellison at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Dan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Tail Wagging Tuesday

I have decided to participate in Tail Wagging Tuesday from CMae's Blog Live What you Love .





A few reasons why.
1.  I want to update regularly. Since I'm new to this whole blogging thing, I'm still nervous I may not ALWAYS have something to write about. So I think it'll be good to have a post that I can fall back on once a week without worrying about exactly what to write about.
2. I think I'm ready to have some followers up in here. I'm hoping following some other posts will get others looking and interested. So you know if you wanted to click the nice little follow button on the right, or comment on my posts I wouldn't stop you...
3. Bruin is super easy to write about. Because he is ridiculously smart. And I think he's a human trapped in a dog's body.

So here we go with Tail Wagging Tuesday!
This week we are talking about where our dogs chill out/unusual or usual places to sleep. I figured I'll start from the beginning.

When we first got Bruin, it was really important for us to Crate Train him, to give him a safe space, manage behavior, potty train him etc. He stays in there during the day, and will occasionally go to sleep or just chill out.
Now this may be a faux pas, but I couldn't find any pictures of Bruin in the crate. But I did find pictures of my good friend Katie/old roommate's cats hanging out in the crate on the day that we first brought our little man home. So some cats in his space.

Fiyero and Jetta really unsure.

Okay so right after I said that I found one. Puppy Bruin, and the roommate's cat Fiyero. Who as you can see, was the boss.

Bruin's bed, like most other pooches, is where he sleeps and loves to relax. But not always in the most normal position.

I told you he thinks he's human. Loves sleeping on the back. (Sorry for the yellow tinge.)

Now, if we're up doing housework or are moving around a lot in the living room, Bruin will get annoyed and require a more calm space for his lounging pleasure. IF and only IF our bed is NOT made, Bruin will quietly sneak off to the room to make himself comfortable. With no shame.

Oh, did you want to make this? No....not right now...

Fortunately we've been able to keep him off of the bed during the night (he's a blanket hog) bug he does jump up on the bed around 5:30 when he knows that we should be getting up.

Finally, one of Bruin's favorite places is the couch. Er, well, any couch. At our old apartment we tried to keep him off of it, and we did okay. But we weren't perfect at keeping him off.

No lie, this blanket fell on top of him. He didn't hate it.

  While here at our new apartment we tried to continue the no couch policy it became super tough to do so after we found out he had heartworms. During his treatment (2 Months GAH!) we had to keep him SUPER quiet, which is tough with a dog that goes for a walk and a run each day. This usually meant his crate. We caved in and let him cuddle with us to keep him content. One month after the treatment was done, he still finds his way onto the couch once we've all settled in for the night.

Comfortable?

And I have to admit, we haven't been so diligent on breaking habit.
Why?
Well he kind of makes a really good cuddle buddy....

Little Spoon

More little spoon

L.O.V.E.

So that's it for my first Tail Wagging Tuesday! I hope I did it justice, and would really enjoy some comments from any who visit. And like I said, I won't reach out and stop you if you're a fellow blogger and decide to follow this pursuit of all things happy. :)

My First Grown-Up Easter/Holiday.

Today was a milestone.

Today was the first time that Dave and I split up the holiday between families as a married couple.

Now, we've been together for 5 and a half years. I hate change, especially when it comes to family traditions and where I eat my overdone poultry and pig. So while dating, and even for the first half of our engagement Dave and I would kiss goodbye and go our separate ways for the holiday. I love my man and couldn't wait to start making traditions of our own, but with one of my sisters still at home, and myself in denial about adulthood, it's tough to start switching things up.

In my humble opinion, holidays are for family. After you send your text messages to friends and call your beau for 20 minutes, it's time to turn off your phone, change into your comfy clothes and prepare for a 2 hour long game of monopoly where you hope you're the banker and get ready for some crying over park place. Because that's what family is all about.

I digress.

With the wedding quickly approaching in February last Thanksgiving we were nervous that we'd have to make one of those adult "so do we start doing this together?" decisions. Fortunately for us my younger sister who is an RA drew the short stick between her coworkers and was on duty for Turkey day. So my family decided to celebrate the day after.We spent the actual Turkey day with his fam and the next day with mine.

Two Thanksgiving dinners two days in a row? YES PLEASE. But alas, I found that there was a downside. Now that our miniature family (Bruin is surprisingly human like, as I will write about in the future I am sure. So yes we count as a family)  had finally spent a holiday together with both families Christmas glared its big red-green glowing head around the corner. Had we set a precedent? Are we now expected to be together for Christmas?

I don't know about you but Christmas in my family is one of those days where there is an unspoken code of conduct. The exact same, yet different thing everytime. Sister presents by the Charlie Brown Tree, then stockings,  then wake mom and dad up, picture on the stairs, presents, handfuls of bread from the kitchen throughout the process, everyone goes upstairs and fondles their gifts, back downstairs for leftovers, movie, games, change into a different pair of pajamas, more games. Every time.

Moral of the story: Don't mess with my Christmas.

Dave is also in the same position with his family. Younger brothers, and tradition as deep as canyons.
We both love both families a lot and were avoiding a decision as long as possible. So when his family said that they were going up to Canada for Christmas to visit the grandparents, Dave checked his work schedule at the time and found that he was working many of the nights so couldn't travel that far. Another person's misfortune again worked out for my best. We did Christmas with his family before, and then the actual day with mine. Easy.

So then there was Easter. No relatives needing a visit, no schedule snafus to be had, no moving around of days. And, the clincher: Dave and I are married now. I want to spend the holidays with my husband, which trades off to mean that I have to start making decisions.

Well, we need to start making decisions. You get it.

Regrettably, both of our families are understanding and easy going. We didn't have any demanding in-laws or begrudged sisters demanding us to spend the whole time. Both of our families said that we could do whatever we'd like and they'd understand. DAMN.

When presented with one of our grown-up decisions we did what any other responsible adults would do: avoid making a decision.

Friday before Easter we still had no clue what we were doing. I knew we had to make a decision. In the end, it was easy enough to split the occasion up by baskets and church, and then travel elsewhere for dinner and dessert. I polled the parents, still no-one cared which part of us they got. Just as long as they got to see us. And of course Dave is understanding and easygoing so he would, "Blah BlahDo whatever I'd like to do and is important to me. Blah Blah."  UGH. I love that guy. But someone throw me a bone here.

Confused and avoid all decision making possible I did what any adult would do: I called up my baby 16 year old sister and forced her to pick.

 She wanted to have dinner. Decision made. Thank god. I got the feeling though that I was the only person who was really stressed about this decision.

Today, everyone was wonderful. Happy to see us there, understanding when we had to go. We had a blast with both of our families. Watching the Bruin's own the Canadiens with his, and playing that super cool dance game with the xbox kinect that you get all sweaty playing with mine.

Though the word is often overused, I have to admit, it is a little bittersweet. I miss being able to just sit back and let the holiday happen as it does. I miss being around for every moment with my family. And fulfilling the tried and true traditions that we've created. On the other hand, I like being a part of his family's traditions, spending the day with my husband, and making new traditions.

So for now, we'll split up the day, and probably leave the decision to the last minute and possibly up to a minor. Which is okay.

Don't get me wrong though, I'm kind of glad that the next huge holiday isn't for another few months.

Until then I'll get used to the idea of traveling.

Bruin, I have a feeling, certainly won't mind.

First Official Post

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know I already posted today.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that this is technically my second blog post.
But my first one was so I could actually have an about me page with pictures. So I don't actually consider that one a post, more of a fancy page on the side.
So ignore it.
Well don't ignore it, actually. Feel free and click on my, "All About Me" link on the right to learn way too much about my life. But don't try and read it like a blog post, because it's crazy and long and self indulgent. Read it as an "about me" page that is way better than the default one they give you here.
I promise I won't make too many of my actual blog posts that long.

SO WELCOME!
I'm starting this blog for a few reasons.  First of all, when I was planning my wedding one of my good friends pointed me towards the world of blogging in the means of designing what I wanted for the event. I came across many bridal blogs where girls gave accounts of the trials and tribulations on the ways to their "I DOs". It was a great way to keep track of what was going on, and I liked reading them, but in no way could imagine writing one because I had no time. In fact I had ZERO time. I had negative time. Anyway, I thought about it, but didn't start one.

Then, while "stumbling" on firefox, (if you don't know what this is then congratulations you have a life) and came upon this hilarious blog. Some of you may be familiar with it. Brittany is a mother of 3, a writer, and the funniest person on earth. The deeper and deeper I got into the archives of her blog I realized that she is a 6 years older, wiser, funnier version of me. I thought to myself, you know what? I think I may be able to do this. I think I could keep track of my life, share it with others, and do it in a way that is interesting. But, what would be the sense of that? Only important people keep blogs.

So on I went, planning my wedding, staying busy at school, and trolling the internet reading blogs wishing I was important enough to start one. After some time, facebook stalking, and paying close attention to people and their "websites" I noticed something interesting. There were plenty of people in my life that had blogs.
Design Blogs 
Professional Blogs
Personal Blogs, and more personal blogs!

It got me thinking...so maybe you don't have to be famous or super duper important to start a blog. If my friends can do it, then I can too!
Since I'm on my April Break, now was the best time to start it up.

What I hope to do with this blog is to share my life experiences and pursuit of all things positive and fabulous. I hope that I can connect with whoever decides to read it and maybe even bring some happiness to them as well.

I'd love feedback, especially as I get things going. Comment on my writing, comment about what you'd like me to change about my layout, comment on my life, or comment to just tell me you were here reading. Either way I would love to have comments.

See you around the blog!

All About me

 All About Tricia

So I'm a 23 year old girl (woman?) from Maine. When describing myself I have a hard time putting myself into one box and defining myself with just one part of my life so I think I'll do it in a list.

The Basics

I was born in Maine, raised in Maine, live in Maine, and hope to continue to do so for quite some time. Yes we have running water, yes we have the internet, and no I didn't marry my cousin.
I'm 23, but do not feel like it. (If someone could let me in on when you start feeling like an adult that would be great.)
Because I'm a young 20 something and have a career, a husband,  and am not living with my parents people from the outside may think I have my act together. While partially true, (the only drug addiction I suffer from is caffeine and I am capable of speaking in coherent sentences in most social situations) I'm still coming to terms with the fact that I'm shaping up to be a remotely model citizen and adult.  I still feel like I'm like a 17 year old girl who refuses to do the dishes,  would rather go shopping than make my car payment, and procrastinates on homework. (Except this time I'm the one grading it.)
I try to be an optimist, stay open to new opportunities, and make changes, whether it's myself or things around me. I know my best look is a smile so I try to keep it real and positive at the same time.

I'm a Wife

Being sassy in my wedding dress because I could.

Dave and I at our Rehearsal Dinner

Now I know what you're thinking, "Gahh another young woman who got married way too young! What could she be thinking? She needs to go out and make mistakes, discover herself, get her career off the ground, travel and explore alone!"
If these words just went through your mind, there are some things I'd like to share with you.
1. I did make mistakes, it was called FRESHMAN YEAR OF COLLEGE, oh and the three years after that. Yes I dated Dave for most of that time, but he let me go make my mistakes and would brush me off and help me up the next day.
2. No I haven't completely discovered and figured out who I am. But last time I checked neither has the last 30 year old I ran into. I would like to think of myself as a work in progress ALWAYS. If I am changing and discovering for the better, then I am happy to not be done. What better way to discover yourself than with someone else who has promised to be there the rest of your life as a sounding board and support system.
3. I have a career. You will hear about it soon. It is off of the ground. In fact I'm super happy with it. Like discovering myself, I will never be "done" launching it. I will have to work hard to be the best I can be as long as I am in the game. And I can tell you that I would not be as successful as I am now, if I did not have Dave supporting and cleaning up after me. He is always asking me about my day, seeing if there is anything he can do, and ready with a foot massage when I need it.
Did I mention that when I have too much grading (90% of the time) he cooks, cleans, does dishes, and smiles the whole time while listening to gangster rap? Yeah, jackpot.
4. Telling someone to travel alone is the least safe advice I've ever heard.
More about Dave:
We met my Freshman year of college at UMaine. He supported me in whatever I did from day one from changing my major, going to every single Rugby game, and helping me whenever he could. He is a year older than I and went to school to hopefully work somewhere in conservation or environmental management of some sort. As he waits out the lack of environmentally geared jobs in Maine, (suprise right?) he is an Educational Technician in a behavior classroom. (PATIENCE is a virtue this man has mastered. When not with the dog and I, he can be found on hiking to the top of a mountain, rock climbing, or watching a video of one of the aforementioned activities.
While he does sound perfect, unfortunately he is a man so biologically he is bound to have some faults. And though we are newlyweds and are still figuring things out, I'm glad I'm doing it with him. :)

I Have a Dog

Bruin

Bruin is 35 pounds if pure love and loyalty. When Dave finished school and moved in with me we knew we had to get a dog. We rescued him from the south Via Lucky Pup Rescue. We had no idea how big he would get, we were hoping for a big dog, but we got a medium sized bundle of love.(Which ended up being best since we live in an apartment that is medium dog sized.
If you want to go hiking, Bruin is sprinting in front of you. If you want to sit around and be a couch potato, this guy cuddles in in the best spot and watches with you. We've considered selling him off to the circus because his agility is incredible, and he is sometimes is so human like it is freaky. I promise you I will post often because this dog is ridiculous.

I am a Teacher

Earlier I mentioned my career, I teach middle school. This is a huge part of who I am because it just simply takes up so much of my time. The work is NEVER done, especially when you teach language arts. With that said, I would not change what I do for anything. I can't imagine being in any other field of work, this one just feels right. It is exhausting, rewarding, hilarious, stressful, fun, sometimes hard, sometimes easy, and always worth it. Though I have to be careful what I share because I have to protect my students' privacy and rights, I'm sure little anecdotal tales will seep in here and there because it is such a part of what makes me who I am, my life, and how I pursue my happiness.

I Love My Family

Understand why yet?

I come from a family of six. 2 Parents, 4 girls, 3 bedrooms total in the house we grew up in=lots of craziness. I am number 2 of four.  There is one year between my older sister and I, 3 between myself and my kid sister, and 8 years between myself and the baby sister. It's the perfect dynamic.

For those of you thinking, "Your poor father!" I agree. Raising 4 girls within 9 years probably wasn't that easy. But I think they did a GREAT job.  I love them all dearly, and despite the fact that we all totally went at it when we were teenagers, I still would like to say I am very close to them. 

My parents are super supportive of any decisions that we make and are one of a kind. I'm sure they will pop up from time to time in this blog. (Or my 40 Aunts and Uncles or 50 plus cousins....more about that later.)

I am also happy to report that I love my husbands family. He coincidentally came from a family of all boys. 3 boys, 2 parents=I couldn't have found a better family. His brothers are easy to get along with and are like my own, and his parents have always made me feel like a part of the family. 

I Am an Athlete

My favorite sport.

Or at least I try to be. Growing up I did sports. Lots and lots of sports. (My father had to take charge somehow, what better way to do it than having us all join teams? I did track and Basketball in highschool. Don't get me wrong, I was never the best. But I tried hard. It always seemed much easier for my sisters who have always been much thinner  and things came more naturally, so sports haven't always been only joy for me. I was horrible at running. I found out I had one leg longer than the other. (Cool right? Well it wasn't at first...but it kind of is now.) I struggled with my weight and eating habits, and still do. So it was a breath of fresh air when I went to college joined the Rugby team, and was actually good. Of course not all the way at first, it took my freshman year for me to learn and get the basic skills. But starting my sophomore year, I never missed a minute of any of our games. It was wonderful to be able to use my body in a way that I could be proud of.

So now that I'm out of college, I've been finding ways to continue to stay an athlete. A little known fact that in your first two years of teaching, weight gain is almost a norm. Stress eating? Check. Treats being pushed at you by other teachers? Double check. 

I needed to make sure I kept myself in shape before that shape was a ginormous globe.

  I mentioned before that my husband enjoys hiking. Enjoy isn't quite a strong enough word. Obsessed maybe? It's something that I enjoy as well, while not at the same intensity I try to keep up. (Last summer I did Mt. Washington!) 

Sometimes I may write about running. It is something that I struggle to be good at, but am really trying. I've trained by running from the start.  I'm hoping that in my journey to run a 10k in August I'll drop a few pounds and in general survive.

SO THAT'S ME IN A FEW DIFFERENT CAPACITIES!

There are so many different parts of who I am that I didn't list. My friends (many of whom I consider my family), my hobbies, and of course my general pursuit of happiness. But I hope that those, plus every other way that I have explained myself will pop up by themselves in my blog. 

Thank you for following and I hope to hear from all of you in the comments and future posts!