And now that I can check that off my list...

I feel fabulous!

I did laundry! I made dinner! I thought about sewing some more curtains!

Phew.

I finished my 40 page analysis of student learning and my teaching. Let's be honest, it was the longest thing I've ever written. Besides the fact that it took forever and stole my life, it was somewhat enjoyable. It also made me feel like I could do this teacher thing.

Middle school is a constant, fickled on and off switch between 'love it' and 'help me please.' The seventh graders are awesome, but the 8th and 9th graders tend to get a kick out of exploiting weaknesses even I didn't know I had... though they love to learn and that does count for a lot :) They're just rascals because they have a hard time with the idea of me coming in the middle of the year to take over their classes. And they all want to be my best friend. I think I could be happy as a middle school teacher.

I still have a hard time stepping down to a whole different level of cognitive and emotional development. I still miss teaching at BYU. But, it's getting better.

[RACHEL]