My Vision Board 2016

 

There are many visions I have for my future, some goals are for this upcoming year, while others are life-long goals.

To begin with, one short-term goal I have is to have my room to be a poop free zone. I’ve been training my french bulldog puppy to go potty outside. He has been mostly successful, except for during the night when he ventures out of bed. He does his deed on the pee pads we have, but the ultimate goal is for him to hold his business until we wake up and can take him out. The sad, heart-wrenching thing about this is that our baby is our cuddle buddy during the night, but if he continues to go without permission, we will have to crate train him for a bit. -siiigh- Hopefully he learns before the crate comes in; if not, he’ll have to get use to the crate for a while.

Another thing I’d LOVE is to ride in a hot air balloon. They’ve always captivated me. It would be lovely to see the world from another view. Just something I’ve always wanted. The balloon also represents a tattoo I’d like to get. I would like to get many tattoos, small and delicate, but meaningful. Those will come in time and mostly after my wedding, I hope.

This year I would like to make healthier choices, starting with working out and yoga. I’ve always loved yoga/meditation because it brings me inner peace and comfort. I also enjoy working out and the benefits, although I prefer sports to help get me fit. My goal is to participate in yoga/meditation more often and to workout (hopefully with sports) regularly. I want to create a routine and stick to it!

As I have mentioned previously, this year I will be co-teaching. My dream is that we will not only get along, but grow together, learn together, and teach and inspire children together as well, hence the two figures putting puzzle pieces together. Key word: together.

I will be my school’s PBIS Universal Coach this year along with one of my colleagues. My hope is to succeed in helping my classroom and my school reflect more positivity, mostly via behavior. It is my favorite to go out of my way to point out a student in the hallway and reward them for their good behavior, especially when they least expect it. I teach all my students the meaning of integrity; every student that demonstrates this should be rewarded at some point in their lives. I hope I can help all students lead a better path of positive behavior.

Wow! I’m beginning to notice I have a lot of goals. I guess, in the very least, this vision board has helped me come to this realization. Yet another goal of mine, in hopefull the very near future, is to get a place of our own. Just me, my fiance, my dog, and cats. Ahhhh, the life. What I’d really adore is a 1 bedroom apartment with either lots of windows and/or a balcony. I love the sun and would be thrilled to have a place of our own with sunshine included.

To go along with my last goal, I’d like to spend more time with my fiancé, dog, and cats. I am embarking on a journey with the 40 Hour Teacher Workweek Club in hopes that leaving at 4:30 at the latest will become a reality. A note to my fiancé: Zack, thanks for sticking by me and supporting me these past two crazy beginning years of teaching. I couldn’t have done it without you; you are my foundation. I love you! Let’s look forward to more time together in the future! ❤

My wedding was originally planned for 2017 (not in detail, don’t fret!), but we are moving it back to 2018. Simply put, we just don’t have the funds! Unlike many folks out there, my parents and my fiance’s parents are not capable of supporting us, so, as it has always been for me, we must support ourselves. My dear, dear friends, weddings are expensive! I could cut things here and there, but it still wouldn’t be enough; therefore, I have decided that we will push back the date and save. For the only wedding of my life (since I love Zack more than anything in the world), I’d like to make it rememberable for both of us and give us both the wedding we deserve. At the same time, I am keeping in mind that I must be level-headed and I remind myself that it’s only one day, it is OUR day and I’d like it to be everything we want and more (within price range). So my goal is to save up to 10,000 dollars… CHA CHING! Here goes nothing! 🙂

In the distant future, hopefully it will fall in succession with my marriage, I want to be pregnant and have kids more than anything in the world. I have always dreamed of being a mom; this is my one ultimate goal and dream in life. I live for kids and would do anything to raise some of my own, with my Zachary, of course.

Assertion: this one is overwhelmingly important to me and very near to my heart. Many times I have admitted to being non-confrontational and emotional, but I have also found, very recently in fact, that people abuse this knowledge. These people I have trusted with my weaknesses, displayed them on my sleeve, have used them against me, whether intentionally or unintentionally is another matter. Anyway, I’m tired of the sh*t, pardon my french. I still believe there is value in my non-confrontational ways because unlike others that are quick to act or quick to burn flesh with their tongue, I think through my thoughts, pick my battles, and then fight the good fight; this being said, I am going to be just as fierce and assertive as I tell my students to be. We teach C.A.R.E.S. in my school, which includes cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control. Assertion is my weakness. I tell my students, “Well, if Student A doesn’t know she is hurting your feelings, you should say something!” or “Stand up for yourself and tell them you don’t like it when they laugh at you.” Now it is my turn to learn. The adult world is a much crueler and less forgiving place, but so be it. Slowly, but surely, I have become more assertive and my goal is to continue on this journey without forgetting to think through my thoughts, pick my battles, and fight the good fight.

And now I apologize for that bit of a ramble. 😛

Finally, my last vision on my board is to write more. When I was younger and more naive I use to write more, and now I am still getting back into the writing groove (see previous post on “My Writing Journey” for more details). I want this writing journey to continue and expand exponentially. It’s a beautiful outlet, a wonderful source of information, and a lovely foundation for friendship. I hope this writing life continues until the last of my days in whatever form it may be.

I hope I haven’t shared too much of my vision with you. 🙂

My Writing Journey

My story of writing begins sweetly at a young age, where I was encouraged to develop my ABC’s. But if we’re being honest, it really took off when I was an angry, lonely, hopeful pre-teen. Ah, yes, you remember the term well, those horrid middle-school years. Those are the years that my writing began to flourish, and not in quality, mind you, in quantity. But hey, as most writers claim, the first step advancement is to write and write often; and that, I did. I wrote about my anger. I wrote about my desperation and longing for something more. And then I wrote of love, of a certain fellow that I’m still writing about.

High school years were a little kinder, but the true “POET” in me, as I claimed, continued writing. My anguish and loneliness wavered, but my love for the boy did not. Both allowed me to write without end. Academically, I was often known as an over-achiever, particularly in my English classes. One teacher even told the class, “Don’t write an Amanda Kriegl length essay this time. I only want 3 pages.” See? There’s that quantity again. 😛

In college, my writing was stifled by judgmental poetry club members that determined I did not have a sense or structure to my emotional, poetic scribbles. My writing was further smashed upon realizing my once praised, detailed essays were picked apart and left for the “writing tutors” to help me mend them. Needless to say, my writing came to a screeching halt. All that fervor was extinguished like a flame put out for night. I believed I had no such talent and I left my poetry books in the dust.

Toward the end of college, flickers in the night appeared and began to remind me WHY I wrote in the first place. I wrote to inspire, to share, to express, to remember, to forget. My writing was strengthened by those tutors, and my poetic capacity was increased by experience alone. However, this wasn’t enough to rekindle the flame for writing. Not until I met Jennie and Michelle.

These past two years have been my saving grace, in terms of writing. By example and passion, both Jennie and Michelle have reminded me of the persuasion, the power, the emotion, the inspiration, the knowledge that words bring. In their personal lives and in their professional teaching careers, they have demonstrated the value of writing and the beauty of words. Following in their footsteps, I have become Writing Core Facilitator, lead Family Writing Project, followed and fell in love with Lucy Calkins Writing Units of Study, participated in SOL by myself and as a class, created this blog, and continue to write my own poetry.

Words are the vessel into one another’s mind. They are the white flag on a sinking ship when someone needs guidance. They are the bandage on a wounded heart. Words are the love that a friend carries. Words are my life.

So, whether I am blogging, scribbling on a sticky note, or writing in my journal, I am always writing with the heart of a teenager and the knowledge of an adult.