Last day of 6th grade...

Today was my last day in 6th grade. I will truly miss ALL of those kids! I feel like I made a connection with every single one of them in some way. I love them! It was so nice that they brought me gifts, wrote me notes, and said such sweet things. They are adorable and I love them all. We made "fuzzy chick" cookies today because ... well they are cute. :-) A funny moment of the day was when I opened the book that we always read aloud and I'm ready to read when I see "Thanks, Mrs. Schooff, You're the greatest! Love, Ryan" scribbled across the page. I thought to myself, "uhhh did Ryan think this was MY book? Great, he wrote in Mrs. Anderson's book thinking it was mine..." and "what the heck was he thinking writing in a BOOK." I sat there staring for a minute, not sure what to say or do, if anything. I turned a few more pages and saw more scribbles - and finally it clicked. I turned to the front page and saw "Dear Miss Schooff, you have done a marvelous job and I am positive you will continue! Mrs. Anderson and class - March 2009." All the kids had bought me my very own copy of the book we had been reading (they are all IN LOVE with the book) and they all signed a little message and their name on one of the pages. I think that is the sweetest gift! I love it! That is something I will definiently keep forever and ever, along with my book of "How You Made a Difference In My Life..." from 2nd grade last semester. These really were my "first" classes - my first students in a small way. I told all my 6th graders that I expect to see them at least twice next year - that they better stop by MY classroom so I can learn how junior high is going and all that fun stuff. They were all excited because they want to "job shadow" me haha....we shall see about that one... haha.

In the pictures below, I am wearing the brightest yellow I have ever seen because the kids, EVERY DAY no exaggeration, remind me that I always wear black. It's true, I do seeem to wear black a lot...so today I wore super bright yellow just to see if they noticed. And of course, as soon as I walked in..."Miss Schooff!! You are wearing YELLOW!! wow!"Anyway, I am SAD that it is over! SO sad. Back to BYU - up the hill every morning to BYU...and in the next few weeks, papers, projects, final reflection papers and FINALS! THEN....I'm DONE! And it feels GREAT to know I have a job awaiting me in the fall!

SPEAKING OF WHICH....They told me today that they are 98% positive it will be ..... drum roll please....2nd grade!!!!!!!!!! I am thrilled! I met one of the other 2nd grade teachers today and she was saying how they all love to work together and they are excited to have me on the team - acutally the 2nd grade teacher has a daughter who was in my 6th grade class, Sierra. :-) Anyway, I am BEYOND excited!!!

Here are a few more pictures of my Last Day in 6th Grade.

ORCHARD HILLS!!!

When the phone rang, there were two options. Either I would hear my CFA's voice (a woman) and I would know it was bad news, or I would hear a man's voice (a principal) and I would know it was good news!

Let me explain. So, at the interview, they said that if we DID get the job, the principals themselves would call us after 5pm and let us know. Which means, man's voice = good.

They also said, "But....if you don't get the job, we will call you and let you know." BY we they meant the CFA, who is the sweetest woman in the world, Karen. Karen has worked closely with us (at BYU and in the elementary schools) since September. She knows us all very well and we all love her! BUT, as much as I love Karen, I told her as I was leaving the interview, "Please, don't call me tonight..." because I wanted a call from a principal :-) SO, woman's voice = bad.

Get it?

Well, when the phone rang, I heard a MAN'S voice. And then I hear, "Is this Ashley Schooff?" Of course, as soon as I heard the deep voice I got a little giddy and answered, "Yesss..." And he continued, "Ashley, this is Mr. Barlow at Orchard Hills Elementary - we would just LOVE to offer you a job as an intern here." I started softly shouting into the phone, "YAYAAAAAY!" Orchard Hills is where I am teaching 6th grade right now - so I KNOW Mr. Barlow and I know many of the staff members there - I know the school, I know the routines, I know the drill! :-) It is a brand new school, only in its 3 year being open! I am SO excited!!! He went on to say some very nice things and all I could say was "Thank you thank you thank you thank you!!" I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited!!!

So imagine...me, my own (big - they are big at orchard hills!!) classroom, and my little students. I don't know what grade I will be teaching yet, I will know tomorrow when I talk to the faciltator at the school! Jump Jump Jump, Jump around!!

CHECK OUT MY SCHOOL!!! Orchard Hills!

Anxiously Awaking a Phone Call...

This morning I had my internship interview - it went well, but you never know if everyone else's went better! Supposedly they are supposed to call us TONIGHT and tell us yes or no - and I can't even believe that in a few hours I will know if I will be teaching as an intern in the fall!!! If its a yes, I will even know what school, what grade, what classroom!! ahhh!! I am so excited, but super nervous too!! One of the questions I was asked was "what is something unique about you that we can remember you by?" I said something random as a joke and the said, "seriously though, I want you all to know that I love doing this so much...." and as I continued to talk about how much I love teaching, I got choked up and STARTED TO CRY!!!! ohhhh mmyyyy gosh! Embarassing and not professional, I know - but what's done is done. At least they know I have true feelings about the profession haha. SO we will see - either way, I know it will all work out....I just want to KNOW! but then again, I don't....haha.

Just A Little While Longer

Lately, I have been missing my mom more than usual. Maybe it's the fact that I am teaching and I remember how much she loved teaching, maybe it's because of my quicky-arriving marriage to a man who will never get to meet her, maybe because my sister is half way across the world from me and I never even hardly talk to her at all these days :-), maybe it's a combination of a lot of things. Whatever it is, sometimes I truly feel like I need to hear her voice more than anything. When people you love pass away, you remember and hold close strange things - things you didn't even think to pay attention to or take note of when they were sitting right beside you, living each day with you. Things I remember in detail are trivial, but they are things that are intangable, invaluable and are deep in my memory. I remember vividly the way her voice sounded as she sang at church on Sunday, how she tried so hard to sing alto and would announce to everyone proudly that although she could not, her girls could sing the alto line of any hymn in the hymnbook. I remember the way she smelled when she got all dressed up to go out with my dad and then how, when she got home again that night and came to whisper me goodnight, that same smell was accompanied by the lingering hint of whatever they had eaten that night. I remember, long long ago, the way it felt to be rocked to sleep in our old brown rocking chair - back and forth, back and forth as she softly stroked my arm and hummed sweetly. Although the days of and after her passing are a blur, I do remember the vivid details of the day before, as I laid in her bed with her before going to my own for the night. Had I known what was to come in the following twenty-four hours, I know I would have wished for those moments to last just a little while longer. I often think to myself how much I wish my own future children could know in this life, if even for a moment, the woman who I still love so dearly, the woman who I called my mom. As I was thinking, remembering, the other night, I sat at my computer and started typing out the scene, the story of my last moments with my dear mother. It isn't finished, or even close, but it is a start.

Just a Little While Longer
I breathed in deeply; my chest, hidden under layers of soft, familiar blankets, rising, then falling again. I snuggled in deeper, buried my face in her arm – she was so warm. One more day, I whispered into the darkness tenderly, knowing she would not respond. I followed her example and closed my eyes as I silently repeated to myself, one more day until three weeks free of snooze buttons or waking up before the sun had shown its face; one more day until Christmas vacation. The weeks prior had been never-ending it had seemed, packed to the brim, every moment carefully planned and thought out – there had been countless chores to get done, projects and finals to complete, and activities to plan before the whole family was to arrive for Christmas. Nothing but jovial chats and catching-ups over mugs of steaming hot chocolate and bowls full of fluffy white kettle corn awaited me on the other side of tomorrow. Knowing this was just enough to erase for the moment my fears of the two looming finals still awaiting me at school early the next morning. “Mom?” I sighed and without waiting for her reply continued, “Are you asleep?”

Who I AM

I am a daughter, a big sister, a granddaugher, a niece, a cousin, a friend. I am a worker, a student, a young girl, a grown woman and somewhere in between. I am confident and insecure, sarcastic and sincere. I ask way too many questions, but I can never seem to run out. I am bold and reserved. I can be boring, but thrilling all at the same time. I am up for anthing, but down with nothing depending on the moment. I am loving and caring, thoughtful and hopeful. I am deep and I am open. I am shy and outgoing, careful and careless. I know what I want and where I am going in life. I am hard working and determined, but a little scared on the inside. I am awaiting the next adventure, I am enjoying the present. I am full of risk, I am full of prudence. I pray for strength and then wait for answers. I cry my tears and can laugh at myself . Sometimes I feel ready to take on the world, other times I want to hide from it. I believe in the good in people easily, but I am slow to fully trust. I walk on eggshells and I walk on fire. I believe we control our destinies but that we have a loving Father in Heaven who can guide us in the right direction. I am in awe of the many different beauties that fill this world. I belive in passion and in a one true love. I am everything and nothing all at once. That's who I am.

Also, I'm constantly amazed by the skies in colorado, the sunsets in Hawaii always get me, and I love driving with the sunroof open and the seat heaters going at the same time.

6th Grade!

The last few weeks, I have been in a 6th grade classroom in Santequin - Orchard Hills. I have to admit that I was nervous and had no idea what to expect - but after this experience I can confidently say that I LOVE teaching, regardless of the age (2nd, 6th .... bring it ALL on, I love it!!). I love these kids, and I LOVE all that they can do! They are so smart and funny!

There is a kid named Ryan who looks just like Jayson - so cute. With the boys, I pretend that I am a super sports fan and I have them compeltely eating out of my hands haha. Really though, just a few simple things like telling them I am a Nuggets fan, or playing Knock-Out with them at recess - they think I am so cool - somehow haha. I have them fooled for sure.

Anyway, Tuesday will be my last day in the classroom, and then its back to BYU for a few weeks and then I'm DONE forever. Monday morning, I have my internship interview and I should know YES or NO by Tuesday if I will be teaching next year - and if its a YES, I will know the grade I'll be teaching and the school!!!! I am so excited!!!

We have been doing mosaics in 6th grade and I was amazed at how some of them are turning out - these kids are artistic!! I showed them pictures from when I went to Europe - all the buildings in Italy that were completely decorated in mosaics. They were amazed and got so excited to make their own. I bought each kid a little paper machee box and they drew their design and are filling it in with little mosaic squares. I thought they would hate it - because it take forever - but they are constantly saying, "Miss Schooff, can we work on our mosaics?" They love them and they love to show off their awesome work even more - they say, "Miss Schooff, will you show mine to the class?" And of course I do and say things like, "Look at MaKenzie's amazing fish - awesome!!" I'm just so glad they are so proud of their work!

Anyway, I'm going to take a nap - I am completely exhausted :-).

Don't you wish your boyfriend was strong like mine?

Bryson "benched" me tonight - 250 pounds! Ha, okay so I don't weight THAT much, but somewhere around there. :-)

Our Favorite Engagement Pictures...

Click on them and they will get bigger - and they look awesome bigger! :-)

What do you think?

A few of our engagements...

We took our engagement pictures the other day and the next night, they were online ready to be proofed . . . speedy! :-) I couldn't save most of the ones I liked the best, but these are a few of them. I like some of the other ones A LOT better..but you get the idea. I LOVE the first one...but the next two aren't as good as many others. I'll post more when I can.

AND I started 6th grade today. I was SO OOOO nervous - and prettu much had my mind made up that I would NOT like teaching 6th grade. AND although I am still not fully convinced that I want to teach 6th grade on my own, I will admit that I acutally love it. OKAY, I really really liked it a lot - I LOVED IT. At least I loved today. They are not as big, as mean, as crazy as I thought they would be - they are still kids, but they understand humor and joke around. I loved playing Four square at recess with them, listening to their hilarious little comments, going to the "maturation assembly" - which is like "sex ed" in Utah but ONLY talks about personal hygeine and nothing more. One kid was raising his hand over and over, but aparently got frustrated when the teacher constantly called on other kids. He finally said, annoyed and as he held back tears, "Mrs A?! Excuse me, Mrs. A. Can I please move to a more visible spot in the classroom, because it is taking on average approximately 5 minutes for you to call on me every time I raise my hand." His voice was shaking, I could tell it had really upset him that he was not given the chance to say what he had wanted to say. Mrs. Anderson's face was priceless as she replied, "Well...okay, I will make an effort to call on you more often." So funny.

Also, CONGRATULATIONS to Bradley, Bryson's younger brother. He was called to the Saint Louis, Missouri Spanish-Speaking Mission and will report June 10th!!!!!!!!!!! And now I am off to eat a cupcake... :-)