Busy days!

Whoa! This past week has truly flown by. I can't believe it's almost been two weeks since I last posted! Better late than never, I always say. Well, here goes!

Friday, January 6th

This was our first day of observing in the classroom and it made me even more excited to start teaching. It was a bit intimidating for the first few moments because of the unknown and the fact that I had been switched from a 2nd grade classroom to the 3rd grade last minute. I am very pleased with the switch though and I have enjoyed it so far. There are 18 students in the class. 12 girls and 6 boys. I am already growing to love them and I haven't even started teaching yet. This day we were only observing until about 2 pm, and after this we headed home for our weekend. Friday night we got invited by a couple guys that live in our building to come over and watch "Midnight in Paris" it was an interesting movie (a one-time viewing film). :) But we had a great discussion about the film once it was over and we are grateful to be making friends with others in the area.

Saturday, January 7th

Today I woke up leisurely and headed over to the Pentagon with Stephanie. This has been my favorite sightseeing venture thus far and I think it is because I actually experienced September 11th. I was in 7th grade during the attacks on the World Trade Centers and the Pentagon so seeing the memorial for fellow Americans that I could have possibly met touched me even more than I had planned. I listened to the audio tour and was touched by the symbolism of each aspect of the memorial. I am so proud to be an American and to live in this amazing country. After leaving the Pentagon, we then headed over to Arlington Cemetery and we were both again touched by the many men and women who have sacrificed so much for this country. I am so blessed to have been born in a country where I have so many freedoms and opportunities. We watched the Changing of the Guards while in the cemetery and this solemn scene shows how each person is honored no matter race, religion, or background and it was touching to think of the many people who have died and were not found or recognized officially. Each person is essential to the success and direction of this country. After the cemetery, we realized that this had been a very solemn day of sightseeing so we decided to go home for the day. We stopped by Costco on the way and that night we took it easy.

Picture 1 (The Pentagon Memorial entry) Picture 2 (Arlington Cemetery) Picture 3 (Stephanie and I waiting for the metro to come pick us up from Arlington Cemetery)Sunday, January 8th

This Sunday I went to church at 8. :( I'm not a fan of church that early, but I'm getting used to it. Church was uplifting and the testimonies were wonderful! After church we came home and took naps, relaxed, then had some dinner at a friend's house. They had a potluck dinner and we met a few more people. We then went to the CES fireside broadcast and I caught a little bit of the talk on the Holy Ghost. I then went to bed early in preparation for another busy week.

Monday through Friday and Tuesday, January 9th-January 13th and January 17th

This entire week consisted of me getting a massive cold (I'm almost completely healed), getting accustomed to the classroom environment (I've almost learned all the rules), and getting more nervous about teaching (hopefully I will get over this). I feel as if I am growing and becoming a better teacher every day, but along the way there have been a few bumps. Tuesday for example was the day when one of my students turned to me and said, "I'm not afraid of you". Yikes! There were also a few other small management problems, but then today I had a student say, "Miss Herring, how is your hair so silky?" hahaha my hair silky? Wow! I also had the same student that scared me the first time say, "Miss Herring I'm afraid now because you can give me detention." (I promise I'm not trying to scare these children, I've never even mentioned detention.) hahaha It did make me feel better though. I had one student tell me that I look like Bella from Twilight. Ha! Kids say the darndest things :). I love that each day is new and I never know what to expect. I am going to start teaching this coming Friday and I can hardly wait. I learn so much from the students each day about staying consistent and upbeat.

Picture 1 (My classroom), Picture 2 (My first bulletin board), Picture 3 (Autum and Zori making ice cream), Picture 4 (Arkale and Gregory discussing their battle wounds from the ice cream, Gregory totally looks like Buckwheat from "Little Rascals" to me)Saturday, January 14th

We had the opportunity to go to Mount Vernon on Saturday and even though it was freezing, it was worth it. George Washington was truly inspired of God and prepared for what he was going to face. I don't want to picture what our country would be like without him. His plantation is fascinating and very organized. It reflects the type of man that he was in every aspect. We spent practically the entire day there and oddly enough ran into a member of the first quorum of the seventy while there. Elder Nash and one of the men over the Church History Museum in Salt Lake came up to me (I was wearing a BYU sweater) and they began talking to me about all the good I was doing. It was such a neat experience and exactly the boost I needed after my first experience in the schools. I love the glow that members of the church possess and the comfort this gave me while being away from anything in the norm.

Picture 1 (Sorry Martha, I stole George for a minute), Picture 2 (Isn't the home lovely?) Picture 3 (The group from BYU in front of the Home, Left to Right Becky Vanatter, Me, Kiera, Kate, Karen, Abbey, Kelli, Stephanie, Sarah, Marie, and Jeff) Picture 4 (Me in front of the home, it was windy!) Picture 5 (Kiera snuck in my pic and I was so happy, the Potomac river is behind us), Picture 6 (the original painting of George Washington praying in Valley Forge)
Sunday, January 15th and Monday, January 16th

This Sunday we had a wonderful sacrament service and I felt bad sniffing through the entire thing, but I'm glad I got to go. I also got to renew my temple recommend where I was also presented with a calling in the ward. Wow! I didn't even know they had my records, but I'm excited to serve in the ward. I love being involved. (I can't tell what my calling is yet). After church I came home and took a good nap and later that evening, we went to a documentary night with a few members of the ward. Brett invited us and we watched a documentary on surfing (made in the 60s). It was hilarious and again it was fun to make a few more friends in the ward. Monday we didn't have school due to the National holiday of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. I woke up without an alarm, cleaned the apt, went to the gym, then did some homework before heading to bed. I love days like this!

Well, those are all the major parts of the past couple (well a few) days. I will post more in the future. I'm getting a bit sleepy, which might be because I woke up at 4:30 and ran! Fun times! :)