HOLD it

Just weeks from registration for the Spring semester, UTC decided to put a 'HOLD' on my (and many other students) ability to register. Why? Because I had not proven that I have had the MMR vaccine or chickenpox. I immediately called my mother to ask her for my records. She couldn't find them. I called UK to ask for them, but they said they don't keep them once you graduate. I called my pediatrician's office in my hometown. They told me they would have to look in the basement and get back to me (because I'm so old ha!). They (HALLELUJAH!) had proof of my MMR vaccine, but no chickenpox proof because I had them at 18 months old and my mom never took me to the doctor when I had them (like most moms back then). They told us that I likely 'checked' that I had already had the chickenpox on paperwork at the physician's office were I live now and that from that information, they should be able to write me a note to verify that for UTC. I called my physician (that I hadn't seen in almost two years!) and left 2 messages for her nurse. Being that my registration window opens next Friday, November 18th, I began to panic and decided to drop into their office in person to ask for the information. There, they told me they couldn't write me a note, but that they could draw blood to prove that I've had the chickenpox. My exact words were, "That's what I was afraid of!" I filled out new paperwork, presented my new insurance card and driver's license, and waited for my name to be called. I was so nervous. 1. Because I HATE needles! 2. Because I don't think I have ever had blood drawn before. AND 3. Because other girls who had their blood drawn recently at the UTC Student Health Center complained of the nurse having difficulty finding their veins and even rolling them or sticking them several times! The only thing calming me down was the fact that I was NOT having my blood drawn where they had gone. I expressed my concerns to the nurse and she reassured me that I would be fine, it wouldn't hurt, and that I should never let anyone stick me without feeling for my vein first. Good to know! I closed my eyes while she reminded me to breathe...constantly. Guys, I have to admit...it wasn't bad. I'm just a big baby (and I will likely act the same way next time I have to get a shot or blood drawn). My arm felt weird and almost numb for the rest of the day, but I DID NOT FAINT! GO ME! My problem now is getting the results of my test back in time for registration! OY! Why they couldn't just accept taking a look at the scars I have from the chickenpox, I will never understand. HAHA!
Also, while in class yesterday, my professor mentioned that some parents are opting out of the MMR vaccine for their children because they believe it may lead to autism. To that, parents, I say...GOOD LUCK GETTING YOUR KIDS INTO COLLEGE! HA!

Happiness in a mug

The other night I wanted something a little sweet for a snack. Big surprise there for those of you that know my sweet tooth! A while back I had "pinned" a recipe for a 5 minute single cup of coffee cake on Pinterest and decided that would satisfy my sweet tooth. BONUS was that I already had all of the ingredients in my kitchen! Well, it didn't look like the picture I had pinned (http://www.prudentbaby.com/2011/10/cup-of-coffee-cake-in-under-five.html) BUT...I must say that it was delicious and I was amazed that I could now make individual sized coffee cakes whenever I please...IN THE MICROWAVE! WOW! Friends, this is a must try recipe. It's even better topped with a little whipped cream and I would imagine that a spoonful of ice cream wouldn't hurt either! Bon appetite!

Fall Decor

Here are some pictures of the decorating I've done this fall.

My Old Kentucky Home

Boy have we had a busy October! It has gone by SO fast! I cannot believe that it's nearly Halloween. Last weekend we celebrated Brad & Leah's wedding in Louisville, Kentucky. We are so happy for you two and wish you nothing but the best as you begin your life together! The wedding was beautiful and SO much fun (proof of that can be seen in our group photobooth picture haha)!
We followed the wedding festivities with a fantastic fall day at Keeneland in Lexington. I wish I had taken pictures of the beautiful fall leaves and horses, but I needed my hands to be free for my Nathan's hot dog and bloody mary. YUM!

Baby it's cold outside!

The past few weeks have caused me to lag behind on my blog posts. Last week SLAMMED me with school work! I went from having a few chapters to read here and there to having 5 papers, 4 midterm exams, 3 online quizzes, 2 projects and a partridge in a pear tree due in one week! Well, no partridge, but you get the idea. By Wednesday night of last week I was already exhausted! This coming week is quite a bit less demanding, but I still have much to do. However, tonight (now that I've finished yet another 4 page paper) I am taking a break to do what I love to do...decorate for fall! After church today we went to run a few errands. We went to Target so that Brent could get the body wash he likes and I could buy a baby book for a friend of ours who is expecting. Believe it or not...Brent was able to avert my eyes from wandering over to the clothing section! HOLY MOLY I don't know how he did it! Trust me, Target WILL be the first stop I make on the way home once I get a part-time job! Oh Target, I miss you so. I digress...
We made our way to Lowes so that Brent could buy some flipper thingy for our toilets to keep them from running. Apparently our water bill was a bit too high last month which made him realize that both of our toilets were running unnecessarily. Well, I found something at Lowes by the plumbing section that I had seen on Pinterest as an alternative to buying an expensive wreath form. It looks like this picture here once you form it with some tape. I was beyond excited because now that the weather has dropped significantly, our summery wreath is no longer appropriate and I've been dying to make a new one for Fall (may favorite season). I picked up the looooooooong tube and carried it over to my husband saying, "Can I get this? It's only $.97!" I wish I had put my camera in my purse because the look he gave me when he saw what I had in my hands was priceless! "For what?!" He said. Well, once I explained my plan, he smiled and said, "Okay. Is that something you saw on Pinterest?" Oh how did he know?! I will be sure to take a picture of my creation to share with you later, but for now, it's time to get those creative juices flowing while I craft in the lovely cool Fall breeze.

Ready to Read

My Oral Literacy professor mentioned in class that it is a good rule of thumb to have about 5 books per student in your classroom. I told Brent (my husband) that night that I would likely start my children's book collection soon so that I will have what I need when I begin teaching. Well, and I like reading children's books too! They're so much fun! This picture of my sweet nephew, Wilson, just solidifies my plan to begin my own children's book library early. Apparently he is VERY interested in books already (at only 6 months) and I cannot WAIT to read him a few he has not seen before...from his Aunt Katie's own collection! :) I can tell already, we are really going to learn a lot from each other!

Katie & Brent 5-7-2011

I've completed a slide show of pictures from our wedding. Some pictures are those that friends and family took, but most are courtesy of Blair Schwarz Photography. Thank you Blair for coming all the way from Colorado to Chattanooga to help us capture some amazing moments in time that we will NEVER forget! You are truly an amazing lady and great friend.

Customize a photo slideshow

A Child's Excitement is Inspirational

While doing a bit of research for an upcoming school project about inclusion of hearing impaired children, I came across this video. This, is one of the MANY reasons I want to be an early childhood educator. Look how excited she gets to be able to read/spell! LOVE!!!

The Highlight of my week...

...Was getting 2 diet cokes for the price of one out of the vending machine. I cannot begin to explain how excited I was when another Diet Coke fell into the slot after I had already retrieved one. It was like winning the lottery...well...almost. Oh, and I have now received all of my scores for the three Praxis exams that I took over the summer. I passed ALL of them (Mathematics, Reading, & Writing)! I would have considered that an accomplishment even if I had been in a classroom in the past 3 years! Celebration dinner at PF Changs followed, where I stuffed my face with brown rice and crispy honey shrimp. YUM! Next week is the beginning of my diet...ha!

Using our inside voices

Last weekend, I traveled to my old Kentucky home to visit with family while Brent attended a bachelor party in Memphis. I must say that playing with this little guy (my nephew, Wilson) made me completely forget about what the guys in Memphis may be doing! He is a bundle of love and giggles that I could just stare at all day long...and I did! He is a reminder that going back to school to become an early childhood educator had to be one of the best ideas I've had in a while.
This week marks the beginning of college football. Tonight we are cheering on UK in their game vs. WKU. I am continuing to encourage my husband to use his inside voice when he cheers, but it's not working. His claps and words of "encouragement" to the team are loud enough to cause hearing loss. Which, I happen to be using as my "disability of choice" for an upcoming school presentation on inclusion. Should I continue to sit too close to him on the couch, I may have a personal resource for my presentation...my OWN hearing loss! It makes me wonder if he'll learn to use his inside voice when we have our own little guy one day (in the far far future!)...probably not. God bless him, he's a sports nut to the core.
I'll leave you with a song I've learned while doing research on transition time strategies for class. Maybe I can try it with Brent...ha!

"Henry Hush"
(Tune: "London Bridge")

Henry Hush says, "Please be quiet.
Please be quiet. Please be quiet."
Henry Hush says, "Please be quiet.
Sh! Sh! Sh!"

I can do anything good

Just a little pep talk to get me ready for Day 2...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR3rK0kZFkg

First Day of School...Again.

Today was the first day of classes for UTC's fall semester. I took this picture for my mom. Just about a week ago, she posted a picture of me and my sister on our first day of school YEARS ago...oh goodness.

My first day went well, although it seemed as though it wasn't starting out that way. I left the house a little after 8am this morning. My first class was at 9am. I had purchased a General Parking pass, so I headed to find a General lot on campus that had an available spot. Of course I checked the lots closest to my classes first(all of my classes, thank the Lord, are in the same building this semester). In the second lot I tried, I thought I had found a guy who looked as if he was headed to his car to leave. Well, he was headed to his car, but only to put something in it...not to leave. :( So, with class time quickly approaching (it was 8:52am-I know because I called my husband to complain about my parking drama) I headed on to the outskirts of campus where I assumed there would surely be more spots. SUCCESS! HOORAY! I quickly took a spot, hopped out of my car and began power walking to class. Well folks, it is about 93 degrees here today and by the time I made it to my building, my shirt was nowhere near dry. YUCK! I tugged at my shirt to at least keep it from sticking to my body, ran my fingers through my hair and walked into the building. Ahhhh A.C.! It was 8:07am and I was certain that I would be entering the class to find that it had already begun. Great, late on the first day. What an impression I'm making. However, when I walked in, there was no teacher to be found. I took my seat and took a deep breath. About 3 minutes later, the teacher walked in saying that the copier was fussy this morning. Thanks copier ;)
[On a side note: She's pregnant, due in November...with TWINS! She headed class off my stating that, although she looks as if she could go into labor at any moment (which she does look that way), that she was not due until November.]

With a bad start to a morning turning good, I learned a few things:
I thought I would be the oldest person there, but I wasn't. There were about 4 other women who were also in the post-baccalaureate program.
Jeans & a tank top are not the best for a hot walk to class, but are not enough to keep you warm in a COOOOLLLDD classroom.
I have scoped out a campus route from the far away lots that will allow me to take many shortcuts through air conditioned buildings for the rest of the semester.
Don't waste your time following people who look like they're headed to their car to leave a parking lot.
There are a LOT of kids who have no idea where they're going...you're not the only one!

Only one more sleep til College

The night before classes began, I packed my lunch. I wrapped my sandwich the way my mom always would wrap my PB&J when I was little and secretly hoped that my husband would stick a note in my lunchbox in the morning. That, of course, didn't happen. BUT, my lunch was yummy.

Today was my last day working as a legal assistant for the Juvenile Child Support Court here in Chattanooga. I worked for Hamilton County Child Support Services for just under 3 years. In 2008 I graduated from UK with an Art Studio degree and never dreamed I would ever work in a courtroom. I really enjoyed my job, but I decided that what I really want to do is teach Kindergarten. So, I have quit my job sitting in the back of the courtroom to pursue a job standing at the front of a classroom. I begin classes on Monday at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to work towards my licensure in Early Childhood Education.
While leaving my coworkers behind today, I kept the quote you see on the left in mind. I found it on my new favorite site, Pinterest(We'll discuss that obsession later).