Life Update & Bursts of Yellow

Skirt: Forever 21 | Shirt: Thrifted (H&M) | Shoes: Forever 21 | Purse: Everly Oak | Earrings: XXI

Photography by Jana Kay Photography 

First....can we talk about how amazing the color YELLOW is! I seriously can't get enough of yellow this spring, and this skirt and pair of heels from Forever 21 are to die for:) This look has such colorful spring vibes and I love the setting that I got to shoot this look in.

Okay, but you are probably really wondering....."what is your big life update?" Well.....I GOT A JOB!!! Like a real job....like an adult job....the biggest job I have ever had in my life.....IT'S CRAZY AND ALSO SO EXCITING!

I have shared a LOT about my teaching journey on the blog, but up until now it has just been building, without any knowledge of what the future might hold for me. Honestly this past spring has been the most challenging time of my life since college! Like, student teaching was challenging, but at that time all I was thinking about was teaching lessons every day, I wasn't even thinking about the future. Then came spring when OH MY GOSH I have to pass 2 tests to get certified and attend job fairs and do interviews......talk about MAJOR anxiety and stress.....I felt like I was living in a haze for 3 months (it didn't help that I failed one of my tests two times). However, with every storm comes a rainbow at the end, and that glimmer is the budding green valley I am standing in right now....which honestly still seems like a dream.

I think this crazy journey over these past few months is what I needed to refocus my life and refocus my "focus" on God and his plan for my life. Honestly, I knew that even if I didn't get a teaching job I had lots of other options, but teaching was something I wanted to try and pursue. However, with that comes looking for openings, making connections, attending job fairs, talking to schools, going through interviews, and then hitting submit and crossing your fingers that something works out.

Truthfully, the whole job search/job fair/interview process was crazy and hard at times, but I also learned so much through it and grew so much in my confidence (I can totally sell myself as a teacher). All in all, I was blessed to make some amazing contacts while student teaching and come to know some "high power" people in the school district that I not only student taught in, but also wanted to teach in one day.....which brings us to now.

After attending a big job fair, I scored an interview with my TOP school (like a brand new High School I have been wanting to teach at since last fall) and the interview process was so amazing, not to mention that I had a good feeling about it. However, in the midst of that I was still trying to pass my last certification test, so no school could technically consider me for the position until I passed my test....talk about PRESSURE! THANKFULLY I passed my test this last time I went to take it (3rd times the charm) and things could finally start to fall into place. During this whole time however, I also was contacted by the high school I student taught at (and LOVED) and was told that my mentor teacher got a new job and her position would be opening up (a position in which I had already taught all the classes and was familiar with). You can imagine how torn I was in this month long process of having two amazing job opportunities, but also having the unknown of still needing to pass my test.

Nevertheless, I think the trying times refine who we are and teach us a LOT! After passing my test I notified the two schools that had positions I was interested in (and that I had interviewed for) letting them know I was "official". Within a week I received a phone call from my TOP school (the new High School) and was offered a Family and Consumer Science position. Talk about excitement! While I loved the idea of getting my mentor teachers job at the High School I had come to love, I also felt strongly that I was meant to go to this new High School (it has only been open a year) and be a part of building up the Family and Consumer Science program, entering onto a new adventure in which I get to pave my own way instead of walk in the footprints of someone else who has gone before me....so with that I accepted and now have a job (starting in August)!!!

So what does that job entail exactly? Well if you are not familiar with Family and Consumer Science (not sure I have talked about it much on the blog), it is basically your "home economics" classes so basically all my hobbies as classes! It is also super broad, so technically there are over 10 classes I am certified to teach. With that, FACS teachers typically have 2-5 preps when it comes to the classes they teach, so for my job starting in August I will have 4ish classes I will be teaching which are:

Principals of Education
Interpersonal Studies
Principals of Human Services (PHS)
&
Interior Design I / Interior Design II

So my schedule for the fall is going to be packed, and this summer is going to be filled with lesson planning and working out all the details for my classes.....its both daunting and exciting! I am honestly super lucky to get to teach the classes above, because three of them are classes I taught during student teaching (and fell in love with) so I am beyond excited to share my passion for those subject with my students. I get to teach them about education, what it means to be a teacher, relationships, personalities, communication, nutrition, life skills, family relationships, principals of design, floor plans, housing styles, and the list goes on and on!

I hope to share more with you all about what I learned during my Interview processes, what my school year will look like, more about the classes I teach, and when Fall hits, snippets into my life as a REAL LIFE TEACHER!!! IT STILL DOESN'T SEEM REAL!!! I have legit started having dreams about teaching.....so apparently my mind knows it's real:)

It's crazy to think the past 3.5 years of college, student teaching, and subbing have lead up to this point and that all of the details fell into place so seamlessly, but then again it isn't crazy because once again it just goes to show God's divine plan in my life and his faithfulness through the highs and lows!

-Madison