Tired

I have been so bad about updating this blog but I am exhausted lately. Work has me running ragged, then grad school, Alex and currently Amir are all making me tired. Amir had major surgery on his spine on Monday. As a result I am not only caring for Alex but Amir as well as our 2 dogs. Amir is usually our dog care giver so I am just feeling a bit overwhelmed and stressed which is not a good thing for me.

Alex is doing wonderfully. He is talking, walking and getting into everything. He is such a "boy" he loves to climb and jump and LOVES cars. He also really enjoys music. Amir can not wait for him to be able to get a drum set (we are so not the anti-noise parents).

We are currently potty training. I KNOW there is a great deal of debate around this because he is so young but Alex was ready. He tells me when he needs to go in to the potty. He takes off his diaper and walks around naked when he is wet so it is time. We are not pushing it a big deal I just sit him on the potty when he wakes up and after he eats. If he tells me during the day he needs to go we sit on the potty then. I don't want to push it but I do want to encourage it.

His vocabulary has evolved so much and its so exciting to hear all he has to say. He is so curious and wants to know about everything and I love that!

As far as me things are ok. Grad school jump started with a run I have so much work to do for the two classes I am in now BOTH of the require huge papers by the end of the summer. I know for a fact one of them will be on analyzing single sex classrooms and determining their effectiveness. But I have no clue what I will do for the other. I am taking a research methods class and a organizational leadership class. I am also doing a lot within my new position and it has caused me to really think about my next steps in education. I know I want to become a principal. But I know that with my current hectic life I need to wait for that at least 2 more years. That being said, I am trying to decide if i want to stay in the classroom as a full time teacher or become a reading specialist. I LOVE teaching reading and over the past few years I believe I have become a great reading teacher. In addition to that I have gained certification in some great areas of reading so I am really excited about my growth in the area. That being said my school can really benefit from a reading specialist. Although I teach second grade I am currently working with a student in the fifth grade who reads on a second grade reading level. The reality is there are a TON of students in our school and other schools in DCPS just like him. If I could solely give my time to fixing that I think I would be happy. This is something I am thinking of talking to my principal about at some point this year.

Next week is my one year anniversary of the day I was diagnosed with breast cancer. As this day approaches I am filled with so many feelings. I have a friend whose attitude towards breast cancer has been so amazing and I believe I have had a decent attitude about it thus far as well however I am really just not over how this last year has changed my life. Since that diagnosis my anxiety has gone through the roof. I am pretty sure I have a panic attack once or twice a week these days which does not feel great. I am also such a hypochondriac now. I always think EVERYTHING is a sign that cancer has returned. So I still have so much work to do.

Alexs first Haircut and back to school.

So I am back at work and busier than ever. I got a promotion and I am a Teacher Lead. This essentially means I provide support for my grade level team, which is all teachers grades K-2, and help ensure they are utilizing data to drive their instruction. It also means I am facilitating Professional Developments and helping provide ways to use this data. With all that said I officially went back to work on Monday but have been in and out of meetings all summersurrounding my new position.

I am so excited for the school year. I will be teaching second grade and will ha

ve all of my students from last year. This means I can jump right in and not waste

time "getting to know them."

Additionally I am in grad school. I just finished my first semester and received and A and 2 P's in those classes. The classes I received P's in where pass/fail.

Things are going well. Alex has a lot going on. He is talking up a storm his vocabulary now includes: hi, bye, mama, dad, thank you, yes, no, fine. It is so funny to chat with him and see how he uses so many words in context. He also knows how to talk on the phone. He will pick up any phone and put it to his ear in a second. He loves phones and trains. He is also super curious. He wants to know how everything works and touches everything.

Our big news is.....He got his first haircut!!! He looks super cute. I loved his long curly hair but Amir and I both felt it was time for a cut. We may let it grow back out for awhile before cutting it again. But I LOVE his new look. He looks like such a big boy. Of course here are tons of pics.

Loving Life

Things have been going great lately. I am at a place where I realize I really need to take one day at time and live my life to its fullest extent. I am enjoying every moment I spend with my husband and son and really those are my priorities. I have not been up to much Alex's first birthday party went well. I put a lot of work into it and I think it was a success! All the kids had a blast and thats all that matters.

My nephews birthday was this past weekend so Alex and I headed up to New York to celebrate. Other than that I have been teaching summer school and spending as much time as I can with my boys.

In the health arena everything is ok. I had an ultrasound the other day that revealed cyst on my ovaries but my oncologist believes they are benign and not anything to worry about. So we shall see. I am almost done being expanded on my right side which is the side that I had the expander removed from due to infection. Once I am fully expanded we can schedule my exchange surgery which I am excited about. I am guessing it will be sometime in early October.

I have a Toddler OMG!!

Today is Alex's first birthday and I can not figure out for the life of me where the time has gone. I can not believe it was a year ago I was being transferred to the hospital for an emergency delivery of my baby boy. I can not believe it was a year ago I was holding a tiny little itty bitty baby in my arms.

I love this boy with all my heart and I honestly owe my life to him. I feel had it not been for him and my need to be here for him I would not have been able to maintain myself when I found out I had cancer.

Here is a photo comparison of my baby boy THEN and NOW. I will post more pictures after his party on Saturday:

Catching Up

I am exhausted which has resulted in a lack of my internet life. Things are going well I am still recovering from surgery. This I thought was going to be the simplest of my surgeries but it has honestly been the most difficult to deal with so far. I have been in A LOT of pain and have not been able to bounce back like I am use to.

In Alex land things are great he is walking for the most part but still prefers to crawl when he is in a "rush" to get someplace. I am prepping to get ready for his first birthday we are having a small party. I invited the children from his daycare and my nephew and 2 of my coworkers with children. So there will be between 8-10 kids and we are having it at our pool.

I start graduate school in a few weeks and I am going to sign Alex and myself up for a mommy and me swim class for the summer. Other wise everything is good on my end.

I know I have been MIA

Life has been very hectic over the past few weeks and its only getting more hectic. I am having surgery Wednesday and start grad school on the 14th. There is just way too much going on. I am also in the process of planning a first birthday party and wrapping up my school year.

I will give a better update when I am confined to the bed for a few days.

So much to do!

As the summer grows near we have tons to get done!

Alexs christening is in two weeks! He will be getting christened in the church we were married in on the day he turns 11 months. I am very excited about this as it should have happened months ago but because of all that has been happening we just havent had time to plan. So at almost a year he is finally getting christened.

I am then having surgery about a week and half after that on June 8th and then we have Alex's first birthday the weekend of the 4th.

I am also starting grad school and we are taking a family trip to South Carolina all in the same time spanned so we just have A LOT going on.

I have had an AMAZING year despite all that has happened. I am so happy right now and blessed with all that has come our way. My school year has been awesome and I am so excited to be moving up with my class next year so I will have the same kids for another year. I am also taking steps to start the process to become a principal so maybe in about 2 years I can say I am a principal!!

I should get the results of my genetic testing sometime this week. I am super nervous about that considering the fact that this could mean I will be having my ovaries removed. If it is positive the implication is that I have an extremely high risk of developing ovarian cancer. But all we can do is wait and see...