I am in sunny Florida with my family! It’s beautiful here and the weather is wonderful. I just realized I forgot a swimsuit….so that’ll be fun. ; ) The sun is shining and it’s 70°. My grandparents (Dad’s parents) have lived here for quite awhile, so I can’t wait to see them later. My parents, sister, brother-in-law, and niece, and me and Jake are all sharing an Airbnb.
Before I left yesterday, I ran, had breakfast, spent part of the day in a training, and had lunch.
After lunch, I took the girls to the kennel. This will be Rhea’s first time being boarded. They have a private room together, which I think they will love.
I flew out about 6PM, so I had this as a quick dinner at home. It is delicious! I got them with my Thrive Market order and we have been eating them for breakfast. If you like pancakes, you’d definitely like these. They have a bunch of different flavors, too. This one was Buttermilk & Maple. YUM.
My flight was full, so I upgraded to first class. It was wonderful. I had kind of a special moment on the plane. The girl I was sitting next to was pretty upset about something and started crying. I touched her shoulder and said I didn’t want to intrude, but wanted to make sure she was okay. She turned and said that she was a first year kindergarten teacher and was having a really hard time with it. Isn’t that such a God thing? Plus, the training I’ve been going to is all about mediating conversations and building rapport with people.
We talked about teaching for a little bit and I told her that I am an instructional coach and coach teachers at my school. That made her smile and I told her that we could chat about her year if she wanted. She opened up and explained how challenging her year had been, how the students are defiant, and how she just thought she might be better suited for an older grade. I reassured her that the first year of teaching is SO hard. I shared that I used to teach 45 minutes from home for my first job and would often cry the entire drive home. We chatted a little bit more, she seemed to calm down a little, so I decided to use a little bit of my training from the past two days. I asked her if she could pick one of the hardest things about the year, what would it be? She said she didn’t feel like she was doing a good job and she wanted to be the best teacher for her kids. I smiled and told her that the fact that she was even thinking about that and worrying about it told me she was a wonderful teacher. She started crying again, we hugged, and headed to our next flights. I made a note in my calendar to email her next week to check-in (she told me which school she works in). That first year of teaching can be so hard. EVERYTHING is new, you feel like you’re starting each day without knowing what the heck is going on, and it’s a whirlwind. I hope she’s able to get some down time and relax over this little break!
Oh, and I enjoyed some sparkling wine on the plane. First class is the best.
I got in super late – about midnight – so my Dad picked me up from the airport. Our house is beautiful and this is our view off of the back deck. I love it.
I think we are going to spend some time at the pool today, enjoying the sunshine. I’d like to get a run in at some point, too. Jake gets here late tonight, so I am excited to see him. I miss him already.
I hope everyone has a wonderful day. If you’re traveling, I hope your day is safe and goes smoothly.
Happy Wednesday, friends!