This past month has been a whirlwind of chaos, survival, tears, loneliness, and anticipation.
We put our house up on the market on Friday, October 9th and got an offer on our house on the 12th. Yes, it took us only one weekend to sell our house. There's no doubting God's plan here. I still have to pinch myself to see if we actually sold our house that fast. Especially in this market. We aren't making any money on our house, but God has definitely made it easy for us to walk away from our house with no extra expenses.
For the past few weeks Jason has been in Colorado Springs with the girls and I have been home alone. It has been quite the adjustment for us all, but we have managed to get by with weekend visits. I hate being the weekend parent. I know Jason hasn't exactly enjoyed being the single parent either. The girls have had their moments of acting out, but that can be expected due to not having mom and dad together and not living in your own house. Living with Jason's aunt and uncle has helped out a lot with the transition. They are such wonderful people and I am grateful to call them family.
Due to getting a contract on our house so quickly, I felt it was necessary for me to make preparations towards quitting my job. Telling my students I was leaving ended up being one of the hardest things I have had to do. There were quite a few students who were pretty upset about my leaving. I guess that can be a good thing. I wouldn't want anyone to be pleased with my departure. Part of me was glad and relieved to be leaving because this year has been so stressful for me. The other part of me was being dragged out kicking and screaming because I felt so bad for leaving my dear friends I had made at my work, and ultimately I was leaving my class. What a great group of kids I was blessed with over the years.
I put in my two week notice on the 20th, and yes, I am now unemployed. Yesterday ended up being my last day due to two snow days last week. I did not have to put in an extra day, but I did. I needed to say goodbye to my kids and my co-workers. I needed that closure, and I'm sure everyone else needed it too. Being there yesterday probably helped the kids with the transition between me and their new teacher, too.
Yesterday was a hard day for me. Although I have had moments where I have been so frustrated and upset with situations and specific people, overall my school had been good to me. There are amazing kids with amazing families in a community that truly did care about what I did as a teacher. This was my first teaching job. I guess every teacher holds a special place in their heart for their first class as well as the first school they taught at. If you haven't guessed it already, I am a very sentimental person.
My dear friend, Erin, had purchased a beautiful scrapbook and put together pictures of each of my students along with wonderful notes from every kid. I nearly cried right then, but I knew that if I were to begin reading the messages, I would most definitely cry. I did eventually cry when I read all the wonderful messages from my students. It amazed me (I don't know why) to see how many students wrote about how I had impacted them and their attitude towards school. I know I am in a position to influence my students in a positive manner, but I never really think about it. Being a teacher is often a thankless job which can be hard for someone like me who needs words of affirmation every once in a while.
Now that this chapter of my life is officially over, I am ready to move on to this new phase in my life. The moving truck arrives on Friday and we are packing up this weekend. That should be interesting. Leaving our first house. I had just found out I was pregnant with Meghan when we bought this house. This is the only home my girls know. Again, I am a very sentimental person and there are TONS of happy memories in this house. This house has suited us very well, but we always knew that it wouldn't last too long. There will most definitely be tears of sadness, but they will also be accompanied with tears of joy and anticipation for when we eventually buy our next new home. Whenever that will be. Hopefully our new house will be better suited to fit us long-term. I don't want to move around often.
Now all I need is a job.
