Hello everyone! I hope the weather is nice in your corner of the world and that you’ve had a good weekend! Here are some random tidbits from my life:
1) I went to Rochester, NY for the weekend to visit one of my best friends from high school. It was a fun weekend- we went to the St. Patty’s Day Parade, hung out, and I got to meet a bunch of her college friends. She lives really close to downtown and I was impressed with the city. It was actually a bit nicer than I expected.
2) I got my first sunburn of the year while watching the parade! I was smart enough to put sunscreen on my face, but I didn’t think to put it on my neck/chest. Luckily, I was wearing a long-sleeved crew-neck shirt and pants, so only a little bit of skin was showing! I’m very pale-skinned and I burn very easily. I try my best to make sure I cover up or wear sunscreen, but it still happens several times a year. A summer never goes by without getting burnt at least a couple of times, despite my best efforts.
3) The weather has been really nice this past week! Incredibly warm and sunny for upstate New York in March! It’s been great to be able to open the windows and air out my college apartment, as well as soak up the sun while walking to and from my classes. About halfway through last week, though, I realized I’m very short on short-sleeved more casual t-shirts. I went shopping briefly on Wednesday, but didn’t end up getting any shirts- will need to go back soon! I have a couple gift cards, so I guess those will be put to good use.
4) Speaking of clothes shopping, I’ve been working on figuring out what to bring to Moldova with me and what I still need to purchase clothes-wise. It’s a little tricky, because we only get 2 suitcases and have to pack for four distinct seasons. I got a really nice winter coat for Christmas, and I’ve ordered LLBean Bean boots (they should work as both winter boots and rain boots), but I’m still looking for a pair of black dressier (ish) boots that have good rubber soles and a good tread. I found a pair I loved, but they didn’t come in wide-calf and the regular-calf ones didn’t fit. Depending on where my permanent placement is, it might only be acceptable to wear dresses and skirts (and no pants), so I’ve also been trying to build up my dress and skirt wardrobe. I don’t really mind wearing dresses and skirts (although it is a bit harder to keep warm, so I’m still working on figuring out that piece), but don’t have many. I bought two dresses and a skirt at Old Navy last week, and also ordered a skirt and a couple of dresses from ThredUp (but ended up returning the dresses- they didn’t fit. I love the skirt though!). We’re getting there!
5) We were out of eggs all week last week, but we finally got some, so I made some banana bread this afternoon- we had a few very over-ripe bananas that worked perfectly for bread! I already had two slice- yum!
6) The end of my undergraduate college experience is getting closer and closer each day! This semester has been flying by very quickly, and the end is fast approaching. It’s definitely bittersweet. I’m really excited to start my new adventure and a new chapter of my life, but there are many things I will definitely miss about college. It’s been a (mostly) good four years, and I’ll be sad to leave.
7) I’ve been putting off the dreaded edTPA (a portfolio-based assessment to become certified for teaching in New York State) since the fall. I made a little progress over Christmas break and my February break, but really need to tackle it and get it done in the next couple of weeks. I spent about 5 hours this afternoon/evening getting some of the lesson plans done, which apparently requires spreading papers across half of the living room floor (see photo above)- oops! Guess I should clean that up before I head to bed!
The Oke Den 