.006. & .007. combined

Yes, I know. I'm a day behind. I actually did post something yesterday, but let's just say, it wasn't my best work. Moving on...

The principal of McCormick Elementary School, Mrs. Eleanor Rice, passed away Saturday morning. She was a wonderful lady and she will be terribly missed. She was my first real principal and she made me feel welcome in her school. I will miss seeing her smiling face and her in the lunchroom on hot dog day. She loved her hot dogs. Which is one reason the faculty and staff will be celebrating her life Tuesday with a hot dog lunch before we say our final goodbyes at her funeral.

 The Faculty and Staff of MES {Mrs. Rice is on the front row in black capris and a blue and white sweater}

(I wasn't in the picture because, technically, I am not faculty or staff. However, I did take this picture.)

On a lighter note, I am starting a new summer job tomorrow. I will be tutoring a fourth grader. What fun! I'm so excited to get started. I get to keep on teaching through the summer! I hope I will be able to make a difference in his life. I will update more tomorrow after our first session. Wish me luck!

Tomorrow, I plan to get back to my daily posts. The weekend just got me all messed up.

Til tomorrow...

This is my summer life.

.005. frazzled

...is how I feel.

Today has been...draining. I have been putting off this paper that I had to write (that's due Sunday) all week. Today was the day that I had to do it or it would ruin my whole weekend. So, at about 11 this morning, I sat down at the computer with the intentions of being finished with this paper by 2 at least. Boy Oh Boy! How wrong I was! It is not 6 o'clock and I just finished. Or what I think is finished. I still have no idea if it's correct.

So, I feel frazzled. I don't normally get frazzled over stuff like this. Typically, it comes easy, I do it, and I move on. Today is a different story. Now that I feel frazzled, I start to think about Mrs. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus. Remember those crazy books? Yes, that is how I feel.

That's me! Frazzled Mrs. Frizzle!

Time for some Friday night pizza and relaxation!

This is my summer{school} life!

.004. new prospects

My focus for the last year and half, well basically two years, has been to get a job teaching at McCormick Elementary School. When I began my student teaching at this school, I immediately fell in love with the students. They are so wonderful! After I finished my student teaching and graduated, I dedicated myself to subbing at this wonderful school. That's what I have been doing for the last year and a half. Subbing. There is one particular class that I have not subbed in because I am not certified through DSS. Well, these kids in this class know my name and insist on giving me the most wonderful hugs when I am walking down the hallway. I looked forward to those moments. These are the kids that I seem to miss the most now that school is out for the summer. I had hope that this is where I would wind up next school year, in my own classroom. Due to cut backs and budget cuts, that prospect is not looking its brightest. However, today, I have heard from two different people about openings in other nearby school districts.This brightened my day and alleviated the sweating, caused by the what if's and what next year holds for me, for the time being. There is hope that I could have my own classroom. My own classroom. Ahhh. What would that feel like?

I have known that I wanted to be a teacher since I was in first grade and never steered away from that dream. I taught my stuffed animals how to read and do arithmetic; they were wonderful, well-behaved students. In a sense, I suppose I have had my own classroom. On those afternoons when I would come home from school and, instead of doing homework, I would banish myself to my bedroom and recount the days lessons with my stuffed animals. They were most eager to learn what I had learned at school that day. I am a little embarrassed to admit this, but I would even take this to a further extent. I made worksheets and got my mom to copy a class set at work. Then, I would teach the lesson, hand out the worksheets to my eager students, explain the directions, take them up so I could complete them (in different handwriting, of course, because not every student had the same handwriting), then I would pass them back out again only to take them back up because the students had finished their work. I would grade the papers with my red pen. Then, for the third time, I would hand the papers back out to go over what the students had done wrong. After I had finished my lesson, I collected the papers because after school had dismissed, I needed my bed to sleep!

I don't think this career is something that I simply decided to go into when I got to college because I was being pressured. No, this career is one that I have been dreaming of, training for, and aspiring to be for virtually my whole life. This is the career that I was born to do.

Today, I feel there is hope for me to have my own classroom. A classroom that has "Miss Pearce Room so and so" on the outside of the door. A classroom filled with students that are just as eager to learn as my stuffed animals once were. A classroom where I can touch the lives of my students in such a way that will change their lives forever.

Teaching my first set of second graders in my first clinical at Lander University

There is hope.

This is my summer life!

.003. national conference

Thirty-One National Conference is July 8th! I am so super excited about this! I know, I know. Thirty-One seems to be the subject of most of my blogs these days, but that's okay! I love Thirty-One! I had a conference call this evening about National Conference and now I am super pumped to get going! I haven't even gone to Conference yet, but I have already set the goal of being a Director by next year's conference. Which means, I need some recruits! Want to own your own business? Let me know! Thirty-One is a wonderful company to work with. I have been more successful with Thirty-One than I ever dreamed I would be. Now is a GREAT time to sign up because you could earn a rebate on your kit (basically getting your kit for FREE) just by qualifying in your first 30 days, which is so super easy! Anywho! Let me know if you want more information about joining my team!

This is my summer life!

.002. my daddy

So, today is one of those days that didn't have much significance until three years ago. June 8, 2007, my life changed forever. I had always been the "normal" kid with both my parents, still married, and my older brother that I got along with, for the most part. But, on that day, in early June, my world was turned upside down. I sat down here to write this blog with the intentions of recounting those early morning hours that will never be forgotten, but I don't seem to be able to do that. On June 8, 2007, my daddy passed away. The events that happened that lead up to this or the events that took place after do not change this fact. The fact that I wish I could change. By no means would I call my relationship with my daddy perfect, but we did have a relationship. My mom says that we argued so much because we're so much alike. We both had a need to be right all the time, we had strong opinions, and we but heads quite a bit. However, I would give anything to have one more argument with my daddy. In fact, the evening before, we were doing our usual, arguing. I wanted to play cards, a typical evening summer activity in our household. But, for some reason, daddy just didn't feel like playing that night. Should we have suspected something from this? I don't know. There are so many things, looking back, that perhaps I should have seen as being suspicious, foretelling what lies ahead.

On June 5th, my parents would have celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary.  I wish I could have surprised them with a romantic meal, like I did three years ago.

We took my daddy's boat out on the lake Memorial Day weekend, I already told y'all about this. I couldn't help but think that daddy was with us. I'm not one of those people that feel the need to visit the cemetery often. I don't feel like my daddy is there. My daddy is with me all the time. Every time I argue with my mom or my brother, I feel myself acting like my daddy would have. My daddy is with me when I need him most. Lately, I have noticed my brother picking up little habits that were characteristic of my daddy. His grilling technique is coming into its own, but while he stands at the grill, he'll wipe his hand on the back of his khaki pants, just like daddy. Or while we're playing cards on the back deck on summer nights, he'll wiggle his toes in concentration. Or when he is relaxing, he'll put his hands behind his neck and his feet up in front of him. Or when we're standing outside, he'll find something to prop his foot on so that he can lean on his knee. All of these things are my daddy. My daddy will be with me forever.


Three years have gone by, but I will never forget my daddy.

This is my summer life.

.001. Sonic Blast

I'm back! Tonight I had a Thirty-One social in Greenwood at Sonic. I love Sonic. Well, it turns out that the only two that made it to the social were me and my director, Ashley. Even though our team bailed on us, we still had a good time chit chatting about this and that. Yes, we did talk some business and then we talked about our frustrations with being in the teaching profession. Maybe one day there will be job openings for us. However, for now, we have Thirty-One and I am very thankful for that. We had some ice cream while we did our chit chatting. Then, we went our separate ways. It was a nice evening. I didn't take any pictures to share. Sorry!

Til tomorrow...

This is my summer life!

Lots to Tell!

Yes, I know. It has been way too long since I have visited. I definitely had good intentions of updating my blog last week; however, last week was the last week of school, so needless to say, it was busy! Now, it's my first official day of Summer! What else do I have to do besides update my blog? Therefore, I am going to update my blog daily (cross your fingers that I keep this up!) throughout the summer. I'm hoping to fit this in to my nightly ritual. Alright...so be looking for my blog tonight. But, before I can start fresh with my summer blogging experience, I must update you on what has been going on the last couple of weeks. Ready? Here I go!

Last weekend, Memorial Day weekend, we spent Saturday out on the boat. Our mission was to go fishing and catch enough for supper. 5:45 AM:Michael is at our house waking us up because we need to be on the lake by sunrise. After getting dressed, stopping for gas and munchies, we were on the lake a little after sunrise. Since I did not get my fishing license, I took a book and read while Mom attempted to catch a fish and Michael caught 3 decent sized Bass. After fishing for a while, we needed to cool off, so we found a sandy bank that we could park the boat on and we all jumped in. It was very refreshing! After spending most of the day on the lake, we went home, showered, and headed to Augusta. I failed to mention that my cell phone went to cell phone heaven that morning. It had been dropped one too many times and well, did not make it through its last drop. So, I needed to go to Verizon ASAP to get me a new phone. When we arrive at Verizon, it was amazing! The lady was actually very helpful! However, she teased me with the LG Ally. She let me play with hers and told me how wonderful it was. Then, went to the back to get me one and...they didn't have any! The LG Ally could only be ordered. I believe I have already mentioned that it was Memorial Day weekend...so there was no way I would get this phone anytime soon. I bit the bullet and told her to order it. I was informed that I should have it by Wednesday. WEDNESDAY! That was 4 days from then! So, I got my old Chocolate activated. Talk about torture!

Can't go anywhere without my Thirty-One products! :)

The whole next week was full of last week of school events, as well as anticipation for my new phone. Wednesday, my phone arrived, just as promised.



This past weekend was spent in Columbus, Georgia. This is where my grandparents live. My mom's mom and dad and my dad's mom and brother. So, needless to say, it was a busy weekend. Saturday, we went to the Infantry Museum at Fort Benning with my Oma and Opa (Mom's parents). It was an awesome museum! I've never been to a museum that didn't bore me to death. I told my brother that it was like the History Channel coming to life! (For those of you that don't know, my brother LOVES the History Channel!) When you enter the museum, you start by walking through this life-like timeline through different eras of the Army. This is where I took one of my favorite pictures (see below). Then, you enter the actually museum areas with the artifacts and such. Downstairs, they have different sections for different time periods. I really wanted to go in the Civil War area, but it was closed. It was an interesting trip and I would highly recommend it if you are ever in that area.

Then, we spent the afternoon with my Dad's mom and brother out at their little farm. We played cards (I won, of course!) then I took a nice nap! It's very rare that I get the chance to take an afternoon nap, but this one was so nice. After spending time with both sides of the family, we headed home Sunday afternoon.

My favorite that I mentioned before.

Magnolia bloom at Mamaw's. Magnolia trees always remind me of my daddy.

Wow! That was a lot to update. Like I said before, stay tuned for my daily summer blogging! I'm sure it's not all going to be exciting because, let's face it, I don't have many summer plans, but I will do my best to keep you entertained.

Til tonight...

This is my summer life!