Prepping for an Adventure

Change is not one of my strong suits. Even the best developments leave me feeling exhausted and particularly weepy. In less than 8 hours, I'll be on a plane to Europe. That combined with the idea of being a real, regular, full time teacher is yielding me plenty freaked out (but also VERY excited).

It's also been a crazy week. My sister and family arrived back in the states last week, and Monday was the final day of school for La Crosse. Between celebrating surviving the "year", getting together to catch up with Sue, and saying "good-bye"s before the trip, my calendar has been rather full. I've have laughed extremely hard, eaten too much yummy food (boy-oh-boy to middle school teachers know how to put together a pot luck!), and been able to spend time enjoying all the social opportunities I've had to decline throughout the school year.

Yesterday, I met with my mentor teacher at Holmen. I got to walk through my classroom and have tons of questions answered. I have a desk. A real one. To use for many years to come. I wont be borrowing another teacher's work space or temporarily filling things away on a table. I have an office with drawers and cupboards, and squirrel crossing signs, and the potential to be filled with all kinds of wonderful things. While there is still an immense amount I need to learn, I feel entirely confident that I'm in the best place to learn it. All the staff members I've encountered have been crazy supportive, and I can't wait to get to know everyone better.

Today, though Sue and I fly to Europe. I'm hoping I'll be able to update some while we're gone, but am not sure how much I'll be able to. We'll be gone until July 17th and will have limited internet access. We have a phone for emergencies and calls within Europe...if the SIM card we ordered decides to arrive on time. For anyone who is curious, here's our tentative schedule

15-18-Berlin
19-21-Prague
22-25-Budapest
25-28-Rome
29-1-Trento
1-2-Venice
3-4-Geneva
4-5- Leysin
6-10-Nancy
11-12-Paris
13-14- Amsterdam
15-Iceland
16-HOME!

Now, it's time to get back to packing and my AMAZING brunch

Fingers crossed it all fits in my pack

My stir-fry always comes out a little onion-sentric...