Sleepy head

I heard a quote recently that said, "you know you're an adult when you can't remember the last time you weren't tired." This is unbelievably true. I feel as though I am never going to catch up. Teaching has been enjoyable, but it is a crazy amount of work. Unlike a lot of other jobs, teaching isn't just a 9-5 job. All day is spent teaching, then at nights you have to grade and plan for the next day. Don't get me wrong, I love this job! But it is definitely challenging in ways that I was not expecting. I keep reminding myself that God will never give me more than I can handle and I know this is true.

In the midst of all the busyness of school, Julia and I had a great break over the weekend with some wonderful visitors! Julia's parents, sister and brother-in-law, and boyfriend visited. We had a blast! It was awesome to have lots of people in our house, not to mention having food magically appearing in our fridge! Mainly pumpkin bars. If you know Mrs. Bolkema, have her make you some. They are so so good! Anyways, we went downtown, including going to the strip district, which is a bunch of shops downtown selling a whole variety of stuff.

It was an awesome weekend and has made me anxious to go home for Thanksgiving to see my family and friends! This time is coming soon and it is scary! There is a lot to do at school before then including Grandparents day, report cards, parent teacher conferences, and book character day. I'm tired just thinking about it! But school has been flying on by, and everyday I become more and more familiar with my "new" home and I can feel myself becoming a better teacher, hopefully!

God is good, all the time. I have learned so much in these past 2 1/2 months, and that is the biggest lesson I have learned. This was quite the reflective post, but its where my head is at. Hope you could bear with me! Also, funny tidbit--I got called dad the other day by a student. Yep. I have no idea how it happened, but all I could do was laugh! I also forgot to talk about our field trip to the zoo! So. Fun. Going to a zoo with a bunch of first and second graders is the best, because 1. they get excited about everything! 2. they drag you around shouting "Miss Ongna, Miss Ongna, look at THIS!" It is impossible not to have fun.

The zoo has been one of the highlights of a great year so far! This post contains a whole lot of stuff. So much going on recently! I'll leave you with a bunch of pictures of the zoo and our weekend with visitors. If you're still reading this, you are a good friend! Hope you are enjoying the beautiful fall and the glorious creation God has given us! God is good, all the time!

We got to pet sting rays! Too cool. I was way excited!

An interactive exhibit where the kids could "crawl" with the prarie dogs. Clearly they loved it!

Sea Otters. So cute!

Downtown Pittsburgh at night

The whole group of us! From left to right its Craig, Elise, Julia, Peter, Mrs and Mr. Bolkema.

One of the many shops on the strip district.

Julia, Peter, and I hanging out down in Southside.