You Win Some, You Lose Some

This past week was a full one.  It started off with meeting my new small group on Monday.  The group of girls are great and I am so excited to start this new journey with them.  I'm so happy to have a new circle of people that I can connect with and lean on for positivity and strength during this crazy time in my life.  This group could not have come at a better time for me.  In attempt to keep myself organized and more productive, I began using this planning sheet that I stumbled upon on pinterest (of course!) I love that it helps me prioritize and categorize my to-do list.  I also love that it has a place for 'joys today' which helps me focus on the good in each day.  So far, it has really helped me stay on track, especially with my school work.  The rest of my week was filled with volunteering in the classroom and working at the reading center.  Work has been challenging, but I'm really enjoying it and learning a lot that I will be able to apply to my teaching.  Speaking of teaching, I was finally able to sign up for my exhibition.  It is officially on the 25th, which gives me...22 days until the presentation (14 until my portfolio is due) YIKES! Let the pressure sink in.  Luckily this past week was semi-productive, so I am hoping to finish up the writing this week, so I can have all next week to put the books together (we need to turn in multiple copies for each faculty member in our presentation.)  I also have to create a presentation but that is not on my radar at the moment.  One step at a time.  In other news, I took a break from all the work this week and went with my family to Harrah's casino in NC to celebrate my brother's 21st birthday....I know, I can't believe he's 21!  Pretty soon we will all be in our careers and moving through life so quickly in all different directions.  I'm thankful for the times like this weekend that we get to spend together, because they are becoming less frequent.  Seems like holidays are the only time we can get all six of us together...and we all live within an hour from each other. Anyways, back to the casino.  I unfortunately lost $25, but I'm happy to say I lost the least; except for my dad who was the only winner, coming out ahead by $30.  Despite the loss (and the ac in the truck going on on the way up) we had a great trip.  It was a much needed break as this is going to be a crazy month for me.  Every weekend is already packed with things to do (both work and play) and it's a critical time in my master's program.  It's going to be a stressful month, but my plan is to stay on top of everything and take it one day at a time.  The good thing is I won't be going through it alone. I will try to keep you all updated, but if you don't hear from me in awhile you know why.