I Heart Harry (& other updates)

Here are a few updates on our life:

When I wrote my last blog, we had just moved into our apartment in Wake Forest. We have now been here for 3 weeks. I have also been working at my new job for about 3 weeks-although the students have only been there 2 weeks. It’s difficult having to adjust to a new school again this year. This school is also very different from where I was last year. It is so much bigger. It’s hard at times and discouraging. I have to keep reminding myself that it will get better once I am more used to it and in the routine. It’s just frustrating because we have experienced so many changes in the last year.

Speaking of the last year…last Sunday marked mine and Lee’s one year anniversary. We didn’t really do anything special that weekend because our Disney World trip was our anniversary trip. I also was exhausted from work. We did go out to eat a few times and we went to a movie.

Speaking of a movie…Lee and I went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. However, the whole week leading up to our anniversary weekend, we had watched one or two Harry Potter movies a night. Lee had never seen them, so he wanted to know what was going on when he took me to see the final one on Saturday. It was sad to know that there will be no more movies, but I think I was sadder when the last book came out. I always prefer books to movies.

Speaking of Harry Potter….my love for this series started Easter 2000. I only know this because my mom wrote the date in the first book when she gave it to me. I immediately loved the books. I believe the first three books were already out when I started reading them. Since then, I anxiously awaited the release of the subsequent 4 books. Every time a new book came out, I read the previous books to refresh my memory. Then, I quickly devoured the new one. They always left you wanting more. I was in Panama City when the last book came out. I woke up early that morning and drove to Walmart. I had no trouble finding and buying the book. Then, I spent the rest of my time at the beach reading it. I believe JK Rowling is a brilliant author. She created a whole new world. She created characters and a story that millions of people love. Since the release of the last book, I have reread the entire series one or two times and I am in the process of reading them again. It never gets old. No matter how many times I read it, it still sucks me in and I can’t put it down. That to me is the sign of a good book-one that you can read over and over again and never grow tired of the story. Now, onto the movies-I will admit that I liked the first two movies (they followed the book pretty well), but after the 3^rd one my interest kind of died a little. It picked back up when I began to go to the midnight showings with friends. I had to just tell myself to enjoy the movie and not try to compare it to the book. I know that a movie will never compare to the book. It was kind of sad this year that I did not get to go see the final movie with friends who loved them as much as me. However, I am thankful that Lee was a good sport and showed interest in them. Thank you for taking me Lee!

Well…our live are kind of boring right now. Lee is out of school for the summer. I am working (and counting down to September when I get my first break). We’re just trying to get ourselves into a new routine in our new environment.

I Like to MOVE IT MOVE IT

For the first 18 years of my life, I had only lived in 2 places. When I was born, my parents were living in a trailer and in the process of building a house. When I was still just a baby, they moved into this new home. Therefore, I don’t even remember living in the trailer. So, I grew up in one house. Then, when I went off to college, I moved into the dorms. Although, you may not technically count that as moving. I lived in 3 different dorms during my college career. After each year, I had to load up my car (a couple of times) and take my stuff home. The majority of my stuff got stored at my Meemaw’s house because that stuff was bought for my dorm room.

Lee and I have almost been married a year and we’ve already moved twice and we’ve lived in 4 different places. When we first got married and returned from our honeymoon, we lived a few days in Lee’s apartment in Graceville. Then, we moved out of that apartment (well…Lee moved out…I was living out of a suitcase) and moved in with my parents. We “lived” with my parents for a few days while we worked hard to load the UHaul trailer. Then, we took a caravan of 4 vehicles up to Roxboro, NC. We moved into a home we were renting in Roxboro. It took us several months to be completely unpacked and to have everything set up how we wanted it.

This past weekend, we moved to Wake Forest. As I explained in my previous blog, Lee and I moved to Wake Forest because I got a job in Raleigh and he is going to school at the seminary. We moved into one of the apartments that the seminary owns.

This moving process began Wednesday afternoon. One of TBC’s youth, Jacob, came by and helped Lee load some of our furniture in our UHaul trailer. We also loaded as many boxes as we could in the trailer, Lee’s truck, and my car. Then, we woke up bright and early on Thursday morning. Jacob again came to help us. The three of us left for Wake Forest. When we arrived, Lee’s friend Jesse was there to help us. The three guys unloaded the furniture and the heavy boxes while I unloaded the lighter stuff.

That was only round 1. Next, all 4 of us headed back to Roxboro to load more furniture and boxes in the trailer, truck, and car. After a lunch break, we were back to unloading in Wake Forest. After round 2, Jesse headed back to his new home while Lee, Jacob, and I headed back to Roxboro.

When we arrived in Roxboro, my mom was there. She had traveled up here to help us with the move. Our original plan was to attend Lee’s church softball game. However, Lee was on a roll and wanted to finish with the move. So, mom, Lee, and I began round 3. We began loading the trailer, truck, and car AGAIN. By this point, all of the furniture and boxes that I neatly packed have been moved. What we have left are miscellaneous things. These things are basically getting thrown in a box. After dark, we finish loading up for the 3^rd time and we head back to Wake Forest. By the time we arrive, it is late so we leave the unloading for the next day.

Friday morning we wake up and unload what we had packed up the night before. As things are being brought into the apartment, mom and I are working hard to unpack the boxes. On this day, the DISH man also comes to set up our satellite. We had DISH from our old home and we had to agree to a 2 year contract. It can be expensive if you have to cancel your contract. The problem is that you can’t drill any holes in the apartment or in the railing, walls, etc. on the balcony. So, our lovely satellite dish is on a pole cemented in a bucket sitting on our balcony. It’s quite an eye sore and I’m sure the seminary is glad they stuck us on the back where our balcony faces the woods. Friday night we had dinner with Lee’s friends, Eli & Shanna and Jesse & Kristy.

Saturday morning, mom and I woke up early and headed back to Roxboro. We finished packing the few odds and ends that were left in the house. We also gave the house a final cleaning. With the truck loaded, we headed back to Wake Forest for round 4. We unloaded the truck and continued unpacking boxes and finding places for things.

Sunday morning, Lee went to church and mom and I slept in. Then, mom and I went to Raleigh and I showed her some of the malls and shopping centers. We spent the evening relaxing and unpacking. Monday was very similar to Sunday. We all slept in then we all relaxed and I continued to work on unpacking. Lee and I went to a cookout with some people he went to college with.

This morning mom left to head back to Headland and I headed to my first day at my new job. While I was gone, Lee did some more things around the apartment. As I write this blog, after a long and busy weekend, our apartment is completely unpacked. The only things we have left to do is set up some décor on a bookcase and hang pictures on the wall. I am so glad that we were able to get so much done. It takes a load off of me because I did not want to have to worry about setting up a new home and starting a new job at the same time.

So, for 2 summers in a row, Lee and I have moved and I’ve started a new job. I’m really hoping that we don’t repeat this next summer. I hope to stay in the same home and at the same job. I don’t know if I can go through all of this a third time!

Thank you to my mom, Jesse, and Jacob for their help this weekend. You made our move a lot easier!

Here We Go Again...

The past few months have been crazy. Lee and I have spent a lot of time in prayer and a lot of time in discussions. We found ourselves back in a very familiar situation.

For the second half of the school year, we went back and forth between being sure of my job and not being sure. One day, my job was secure and the next day it wasn’t secure. The first week of May, I got a letter saying that my contract would not be renewed due to funding. Lee and I (mostly Lee) got busy updating my resume and sending it out to schools.

We discussed the possibility of moving to Wake Forest because there are more job opportunities there. We discussed this with some people in the church, along with our family and some close friends. Just last summer, I didn’t have a job and we weren’t sure where to live. Now, we were back in the same situation again. Then, more people in the county were laid off. This would make it even harder for me to get a job in Person County.

However, through all the uncertainty, I stayed very calm. I remembered last summer and how God took care of us by providing me a job. He provided me with a great job. I truly enjoyed working at Woodland. He blessed us and took care of us. It wasn’t in our time, but it was in His perfect time. I knew that He would continue to take care of us, so I was going to put my faith in Him and not worry.

I pursued many teaching jobs and also some nannying jobs. I had an interview first at a private school in Durham. I was unsure of the job at first, but felt better about it after my first interview. Then, they wanted me to come teach a lesson. So, I took half a day off to go teach a lesson at this school. After teaching the lesson, I knew that this school was not right for me. It was encouraging to have a school interested in me, yet it was discouraging because I knew that I could not work there.

Next, I met with a lady who owns a nanny agency. She told me that I had a lot of experience and would have no problem finding a job. The next step would be setting up interviews with families. This kind of job would be a pay cut and I wouldn’t get as much vacation time as I do being a teacher, but I knew I would enjoy it. I ended up meeting with two families and I liked them both. I knew I could have easily worked in either situation.

I also had a job interview at a school in the northern part of Raleigh. This was a 4^th grade position at a year round school. It is only 10 miles from the seminary in Wake Forest. Again, I was unsure of it at first, but after some thoughtful consideration, I really wanted this job. I felt like the interview went well. My favorite part of it was how laid back it was.

Then, just last week, I get an email from the human resource department of Person County saying that there is a position available at Woodland. So, I also submitted my resume back to the school I have been working in. Keep in mind, I’m not the only person who lost my job at Woodland or the only person in the county.

So, through all of this Lee and I spent a lot of time praying. We prayed for God to provide me with a job. With Lee in school and only working part time, I have to have a job. We also prayed for God’s direction and guidance in whether or not we should move to Wake Forest. Our biggest prayer was for God to provide me with a job before we went on our vacation.

Well, the day after I interviewed with the year round school in northern Raleigh, they called me and offered me a job!!! I was SO excited. It was a huge burden lifted off my shoulders. I really liked the school. I was also excited about the fact that it’s so close to the seminary and it’s a year round school. So, Lee and I will be moving to Wake Forest the first weekend of July. After a lot of prayer and discussion, we feel like this is the best decision for us at this point.

I am excited and a little nervous about this new school. It will take some getting used to. The school is on a year round schedule and it has different tracks. There are 4 tracks but only 3 tracks are in school at one time. So, when my track is out of school, we have to pack up our room so that the other track can come in and use it. Then, we move to the vacant room when we come back to school. It sounds complicated, but everyone I’ve talked to loves it. I think I’m going to enjoy it too. I will have breaks throughout the year, which gives me more opportunities to see family and friends.

God has once again provided for our needs. He has been so good to us. I only have Him to thank for providing me with a job in education during these tough economic times.