Thursday and Friday: The Chicken or the Egg

One frustrating thing for me as a teacher is that I have Auditory Processing Disorder.  APD can cause problems because if there is any background noise, I essentially can't hear it.  I mean, I hear it, but it's like being in a loud restaurant where you can't hear over the crowd, or, really more accurately, being at a rock concert.  Only this can happen to me if I'm in a classroom with talking children.  It means if there is any sort of conversation going on amongst my students, even if they are not being excessively loud, I cannot hear a question asked by a student even if that student is directly in front of me.  I'm pretty good at lip reading anymore, but I'm still very often unable to figure out what the student is saying.

My students probably think I'm mean and "old school" because I don't like a lot of talking in my classroom.  Really, it's due to this darn problem of mine.  I've always questioned whether or not to tell my students about it, but I worry they will somehow use it against me.  I don't really know how they would or that they really would do it in an evil way, but students, like all children (or people in general) will find loopholes in anything.

This is something that has made me think about my own personality.  I always thought I was an introvert, but knowing now about my APD, I have been wondering if I am really an extrovert who thinks I'm an introvert because being around people means straining to process what I'm hearing, which is in turn very exhausting, which is why I need time alone to recharge (a trait most consider the hallmark of being an introvert).  So it's really which came first (like the chicken or the egg): Am I naturally an introvert, or am I an extrovert forced to connect myself with introversion because it is so exhausting having to process conversations in groups?

This, people, is what I ponder.

Thursday

Dress (turned skirt): JcPenney
Sweater: F21
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Wedges: Anne Klein

 Friday

Peplum Top: Ann Taylor
Striped Top: Old Navy
Jeans: Kohl's
Necklace: Dustee's
Belt: Target
Matching Wedges: Payless
Sperrys: Dillard's

I call Friday's pictures "Expectations Vs. Reality"  The pic on the left is what I really wanted to wear to school.  The height of the wedges though, just would not have been good for my tired teacher feet at the end of the week.  Sperry's won out instead, even though I didn't like them with my outfit as well.  I can say my feet enjoyed them very much, though!

Tuesday and Wednesday: Patience, Grasshopper

This group of students is a delight, but also a lesson to me in patience.  They are teaching me the meaning of knowing your students.  They don't get things as fast as other groups I've had.  I have the immediate urge to get frustrated, but that does no one any good.  I just need to remember that this group of students is not the same as the last and that they may need extra time to understand things.  That's what being a teacher is all about: knowing your students.  They are the ultimate teacher for me right now.

Tuesday

Dress (as skirt): JcPenney
Sweater: Ann Taylor
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Wedges: Anne Klein

 Wednesday

Top: H&M
Cardigan: Sears
Pants: Cato Fashions
Necklace: F21
Flats: Vince Camuto (Dillard's)

It's Friday, I'm in Love

We got Friday off for a four-day Easter weekend break.  It is awesome.  Why didn't I decide to become independently wealthy so I could stay home more often?  Honestly, being home is probably so good because of the warm(ish) weather and sunshine.

We took a long walk with the dogs today, so no pics for Saturday.  Sweatpants and a tee do not an outfit make…or at least not an outfit anyone wants to see.

Thursday

Top: H&M
Pants: Cato Fashion
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Shoes: Anne Klein

 Friday (a rainy morning)

Top: Gap
Cardigan: Gap
Pants: Kohl's
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Boots: Hunter

Week of Parent/Teacher Conferences

I have fallen behind on this blog.  Life has taken precedent at the moment!  Two weeks ago, the school had a short week because of parent/teacher conferences.  On top of that, I was planning a trip to Phoenix to interview for some teaching positions and also to look for a house.  More updates about that in a later post!

Here are the outfits I remembered to capture on my phone (featured in backwards order):

Thursday 3/19 (P/T Conference Day 2)

Dress: Calvin Klein (JcPenney)
Blazer: Target
Wedges: Anne Klein

 Wednesday 3/18

Sweater: Cato Fashions
Dark Skinnies: Kohl's
Flats: Target
Necklace: Premier Jewelry

 Tuesday 3/17 (P/T Conferences Day 1 AND St. Patty's Day)

Top: Express
Pants: Cato Fashion
Blazer: Target
Wedges: Anne Klein

 Monday 3/16

Top: Dillard's
Cardigan: Gap
Skirt: Walmart
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Flats: Hush Puppies

That Bag of Grading

The past two weeks have been a blur of painting, packing, and staging the house.  The realtor came on Friday to take pictures for the website and I signed the papers, so it's now official that we are going to be moving.  GAH!

All day yesterday, my throat felt a little sore and then BAM! last night I felt the full-blown cold coming on.  I took medicine and tried to sleep in as best I could--colds tend to keep me up and feeling miserable.  Because of this, I've been eyeing my bag of grading that I brought home.  It needs to get done, but taking a nap sounds so much better!

Here are the outfits from earlier in the week:

Wednesday

Dress: JcPenney
Cardigan: J.Crew
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Navy Wedges: Anne Klein

 Thursday

Seersucker Dress: JcPenney
Cardigan: Gap
Necklace: Dustee's
Flats: Hushpuppies

 Friday

Sweater: Ann Taylor
Skirt (actually a dress): Target
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Flats: Hushpuppies

On another note, I have mentioned going to a capsule wardrobe.  I have been really good about not buying any clothing since going to this, but my spring wardrobe has just been…lacking.  I've been frustrated because some of my pieces just don't seem to "go" and others weren't fitting well and I just felt blechh about it.  The point of a capsule wardrobe isn't to make you feel this way at all.  I decided the problem was that I was trying to hold on to some items that I just really didn't like.  I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on new clothes and I am not sure what I will really feel good about wearing once I am in Arizona, so I stopped by Cato Fashions this afternoon to see if I could replace a few items.  Here's what I found and what I replaced:

I replaced the cream sweater on the left with this super-soft (and on clearance!) animal print sweater.
It's neutral enough that it should go with everything in my spring closet.  AND when it warms up
I plan to just roll the sleeves.

I replaced the super-cute pink skirt on the left with a more neutral navy midi skirt on the right.
While I really liked the pink skirt, 1) it was a little short for work and 2) it didn't really pair with
anything I owned except for the cream sweater above that I replaced.

I replaced the denim capris on the left with these navy patterned ankle pants on the right.
There wasn't really anything wrong with the capris but 1) They were too casual for work and
2) they didn't work well with chilly weather

Last, I replaced the black capris on the left with the black and white patterned ankle pants
on the right.  I had similar reasons for replacing the black capris: 1) they were a little
tight and thus I wasn't wanting to wear them and 2) being short, they only
work when the weather is pretty warm.

Well, there you have it.  My replacements for my 40 hanger spring closet.  I spent less than $65 on all four pieces and I feel super excited to wear everything in my closet now!   I almost didn't buy the black and white pants because they look so similar to the navy and white ones, but they are just different enough to make it worth it to me.  I feel I have so many more options for mixing and matching now that I have more neutral and versatile pieces...It just goes to show that you can't just put together a capsule wardrobe with random items you like, but you really have to think about things like versatility, color compatibility, and fit.

On Being an Emotional Wreck

Guys.  I go from being freaktastically excited about moving somewhere warm and beautiful (mountains, desert, sunshine) to being so incredibly sad to be leaving a place I love (friends, in-laws, my work family).  I go from that butterflies-in-the-stomach excited to tears-streaming-down-the-face/about-to-need-a-paper-bag-to-breathe-into upset.  Sometimes I feel both emotions simultaneously!

I hope that my school finds a replacement who loves those kiddos as much as I do.  My students deserve that.

I am enjoying my Spring Capsule Wardrobe so far.  I've only needed to replace one shirt (didn't like the way it fit on me).  I worry I may have planned poorly and I don't think I have enough bottoms, though.

Pink Sweater: Forever21
Dress (worn as skirt): JcPenney
Navy Tights: Walmart
Navy Shoes: Anne Klein
Necklace: Dustee's

Sorry about the bad lighting in the second picture.  I was in a hurry to get out the door.  I just could not get myself to wake up and get moving this morning.

Big News

Sorry for the week+ hiatus.  My husband and I got some pretty big news and it sent me into a flurry of late nights and extra work:  we will be moving to Arizona by May.  Moving is always a big deal, and when that move is compressed into less than two months, it is a little frightening!

Thankfully I went to a modified 40 Hanger Closet.  There is much, much less to take with us.  I've taken the idea of simplifying to the rest of the house and we have now brought bags and bags of stuff to Goodwill.  My future plans of having a garage sale have been thwarted once again.

Needless to say, last week I didn't take many pictures.  I was, honestly, an emotional mess.

Here's the photos from the past few days, though:

Monday, February 23 (The pic on the right makes me look like I have a unibrow)

 Tuesday, February 24

From here on out I will be wearing my SPRING WARDROBE!  Also, spring should hurry up because of this.  Just saying.  

Monday, March 2 (I had to give a presentation to the staff)

Tuesday, March 3

I broke my rule about not buying anything.  This sweater is new.  In my defense, I had to get rid of a shirt that was too tight and needed a replacement.  This one was on clearance at Ann Taylor and was just so cute.