I gotta feeling...

I love Open House at my school. I've loved it since I was a student myself...we'd ride our bikes to the school every day to check if the class lists had been posted yet. Meeting my teacher and seeing my new classroom was so exciting to me. I've always loved school, especially the beginning of the year.

As a teacher I'm even more excited! And nervous. Making sure the room is perfect, meeting new parents and making kids feel comfortable all while loving on the old kiddos that stop by to see you. The two hours just fly by!

Luckily Audrey's Open House started at 5:00. Chris was helping our friends move and there was just no way he would be able to rush back and make it in time. So he dropped her off with me at school around 11:30. We left to run a couple of errands and then she played in my room while I finished getting everything ready. She even got to meet her teacher a little early! We were walking in the hall and Mrs. Laura ran out with her camera and introduced herself to Audrey. She took Audrey's picture and then our picture together. Audrey even spelled her name for Mrs. Laura :)

At 5:00 she was itching to get into her classroom. We got to meet several families, even one that Chris is building a house for! All the kids were adorable. I have a great feeling- this is going to be a wonderful experience for our girl.



Uncle Scott came and picked her up so that I could greet my new 2nd graders at 6:00. I have a very small group this year (praise baby Jesus!!) so thankfully it wasn't a mad house. Open House always goes one of two ways for me; I have a great night meeting the parents but then I get a feeling- and it sets the tone for the rest of the year. There have been times (only a couple) where I've left feeling ominous...yes, Open House went well, but I just didn't get a super wonderful vibe. Then, the other times, I've left feeling a natural high...just a feeling of pure joy and excitement. Don't get me wrong- I always end up loving my class, just some more than others! It's basically the difference between crying or jumping for joy the last day of school, lol.

I have a GREAT feeling about this class. For one, it's a small group...one of the best ways to be an effective teacher is having a small class size (it's beyond our control though, so that's very frustrating!) My new kids are SO DARN CUTE! I have to remember how young they are compared to the babies I had just a few months ago. The families were warm and friendly and I got to meet everyone except one little guy whose family is still on vacation. I left Open House feeling absolutely drained, in a good way. I really hope I'm not jinxing myself by posting this, lol. I just have a fantastic feeling about this group.

Tomorrow is the first day of school! I feel double anxious with Audrey starting school. I think she'll be amazing. I think we both will :)