Exciting news

A while back a mentioned that we were going to make a transition in our family.  I have been applying like crazy to every teaching position in the area, hoping to at least get an interview or two.  Well, a week ago I interviewed with Head Start, a child care center for low-income families.  My interview went great.  I was so concerned that after three years out of the workforce that I would just be jumbled up with "uhs" and "ums."  But something about talking about education and children put me at ease, and I was able to show my honesty and compassion for children.  It was really nice to just be myself in the interview, and I think it translated to the people interviewing me.  It must have.  They offered me a job this week, and I accepted it yesterday!

The position is with Early Head Start and I will be teaching infants.  A received one naive comment that you can't teach infants.  As an educator I was hurt by that comment.  It's that kind of attitude that limits children instead of enriching their growth.  Child development and brain development begin the minute a child is born.  Everything that is learned is a basis for what will be learned in the future.  Many of these children will have a disadvantage based on their home environment so offering a safe and nurturing place to learn is extremely important.  I am excited to share my creativity and have so many great ideas for teaching.  What's really nice is that I have saved all our daughter's infant toys (for just in case I needed them) and I can use those for creating some fun lessons.

As for the adjustment our family will go through, I think it strangely will keep me more focused.  Being a stay-at-home mom has had some challenges.  I miss the social interactions.  I miss having a greater "purpose" in this world.  I miss helping parents and children.  I sometimes feel I spend my day waiting to be interrupted.

I asked our daughter if she thinks Mom can teach babies.  Wide-eyed she nodded her head and said yes.  She is excited for preschool, and I believe our daughter is more than ready for preschool.  She's a little bored right now.  I've slowed down in "teaching" her because she's already so far ahead.  Might have been something to do with all the work I put in while she was an infant.  We think the structure will be good for her.  The preschool is set up so that the children rotate rooms throughout the day and aren't in just one room all day.  That will be great for our active little girl who is constantly needing something new to stimulate her little brain.  She very outgoing, but at times slow-to-warm to new activities.  This will help her practice trying new things all the time.

As far as getting the housework done, we figure we'll just put a schedule together and shoot for getting things done as we can.  Fortunately I've taught myself a lot of cooking techniques during the last three years that will help us with dinners.  Mostly I plan to continue to meal plan a month out and freeze extras of meals as we go.  We'll probably prep most of the week's meals on Sunday, so it will be minimal work after school.  Luckily, the hours are only until late afternoon with no real commute.

With all that said I'm excited to be getting back to work and look forward to a positive change in our lives.