Finishing My School Year & Prom Planning

This week, I  have been busy getting everything ready for my departure from work. I teach on average 155 students. My classes range from Advanced Placement World History to co-taught World History.

I teach from 1500 AD to Present Day World History

The past 4 years, my classes had a really high success rate on our state test, the Standards Of Learning, in World History. The first 3 years, my students had a 100% pass rate and our school ranked number 1 in the state for their test scores. Last year, they gave a new test and my classes had a 98% pass rate making it still the highest in the county and one of the highest in the state. Overall, I take my current job very serious, since this test shows how well I teach my students.

Last year, I was given the task of taking over the Advance Placement course in World History. I attended a week long course in Williamsburg, Va on how to teach AP. I really enjoyed this new challenge.  However, that all changed when we realized that we were having a little one. Currently, I am in the process of finalizing all my plans for each of my classes through the end of the school year.( FYI: I have been given permission to take the rest of the school year off and enjoy my time with Harper). I want to make sure that my long term substitute is able to come into my classes, keep the same pace, and use the same plans I use everyday. I do not want my students to suffer this year with me leaving in the next 3 weeks. However, being over prepared for any circumstance, I have everything planned out from today until June 9, the last day of school. I have even created daily calendars so my substitute knows what exactly to teach on any given day.

I thought this was a cute cartoon :)

The other task, I have been busy working on this week is planning our high school's Prom. Yes, I am in charge of Prom even though I will not be present at the event. This is something that I have enjoyed doing the last few years. My good friend and work colleague, Elizabeth and I were co-chairs the last 3 years. However, she had baby Sam last July and decided to not take on the task of Prom this year. Since, we were having some difficulty having a little one I decided to go ahead and find a new co-chair and head up Prom again. Little did I know, 3 weeks after I signed my commitment form to chair Prom, I would find out we were pregnant. However, I love this event and have enjoyed planning it again this year. Our Prom is like no other. We have it a 4 star hotel called The Hotel Roanoke. Prom is pretty much like a mini wedding minus the bride and groom, of course. We have it at the main ballroom complete with a sit down dinner and table decorations  Every year, we decide on a Prom theme and try to incorporate it into the ballroom in a classy non Prom like way.

Hotel Roanoke

 Below are some of our previous Proms. ( These photos are courtesy of my friends blog E,Myself, and I who I co-chaired Prom with the last three years)

Prom 2010: A Knight in the Big Apple 

( Our school's mascot is the knight so, we have to use the word knight in the theme)

A Knight in the Big Apple

City Background

Buffet Table with Apple Centerpieces

Floral Centerpieces

Elizabeth and I .. Going to miss Prom this upcoming year

Prom 2011: Theme: Shanghai Knights

A Knight in Shanghai

Pagoda ..Entrance to Prom

Pagoda Centerpieces

Floral Centerpieces

Overview of ballroom

Students Dancing the Night Away..

Prom 2012: A Knight In Hollywood

This year, the Junior Class decided on the theme: A Knight in Hollywood. I have already bought all the decorations, confirmed the DJ, photographer, and decided the menu for dinner.

Below is what this years Prom is going to look like. Since, I will not be there I am going to show you what I have envisioned for this event.

A Knight In Hollywood

Invitation to Prom 2012

Entrance to the ballroom

Hollywood Clipboard Centerpieces

Feather Centerpieces

Red Lanterns Over Dance Floor

I think that Prom is going to be a hit again this year with the Juniors and Seniors. I just hope that someone shows me photos of how the event turns out. 

Harper's Nursery

Well the time has come to unveil little Miss Harper's Nursery. This nursery has been a work in progress and I am finally ready for everyone to see our finished project. As I stated in my Novemeber post , Harper's Nursery, our inspiration came from Pottery Barn Kids. The main colors of her nursery are pink and green and we tried to incorporate it throughout.
HERE IT IS...

Harper's Nursery

Entrance to the nursery

Owl and Bird Themed Bedding & Wall Decal

Owl and Bird Wall Decal

Closeup of  Valance and Curtain

Hand Painted Harper Sign

Rocking Chair and Hand Painted Art Work

Hand Painted Art Work from Etsy

Dresser, Changing Table, and Hand Painted Art Work

Closet Dividers

Harper's Closet Full of Clothes- Thanks to All our Friends and Family

Details:

Bedding Collection- Pottery Barn Kids (Hailey Collection)
Gingham Panel Blackout Curtains- Pottery Barn Kids
Hailey Collection Valance- Pottery Barn Kids 
White Blinds- JCPenney
Wall Color- Benjamin Moore- Country Green
Crib- Rooms to Go- Monique White Crib
Dresser & Nightstand-  Rooms to Go- Disney Princess Collection
Hand Painted Harper Sign- Farmhousefive on Etsy.com
Tree Decal-Nursery Wall Decals on Etsy.com
Bird and Owl Nightlight- Target.com
Pink Flower Mobile- Target.com
Rocking Chair-Cracker Barrel- (gift from my parents)
Rocking Chair Nursery Cushion- Amazon.com
Hand Painted Owl and Bird Prints- Farmhousefive on Etsy.com
Lamb Stuffed Animal- gift from my parents
Changing Pad/ Cover- Toysrus.com
Owl and Birds Closet Dividers-Farmhousefive on Etsy.com
Princess Door Sign- gift from my aunt


As you can see, we wanted to create the perfect nursery for our little girl. I think that this will be a great room for Harper to grow up in. 

Midweek Confessions

Well, this week I have a few confessions..I feel like I really need to vent since, I have been stressed out with work and the possibility of Harper making her arrival any day now. Since, I can no longer run off my stress here it goes :)....

~ I am in love with the website Etsy.com. I have purchased many items from this site for Harper's nursery. Love that it is all homemade and unique.

~ I go on Bermuda Sun all the time to check to see what is going in my favorite spot, Bermuda. I love that there is still a place in the world where the biggest crime of the day is when someone is mugged on a moped. Bermuda has a low crime rate and is very different than the US where we have numerous heinous crimes occur a day.

Picture from our trip last April. Pampano Beach Club, Bermuda

~ I am obssessed with my IPAD and being able to facetime with my family. I love that you can see people in another state or country by having this cool program.

~ I have already started looking for swimsuits for the summer. I have decided that I am going to purchase one that I love and make it my goal to fit into it by May. ( In May, we are going to the Atlantis in the Bahamas with Will's company. His district won district of the year and we get to enjoy a FREE trip. The only part that will be hard is leaving Harper with my mom and dad for 5 days)

You didn't think I was going to show you the swimsuit did you. :)

Catching Everyone Up..

I do apologize for not updating my blog sooner but my mind has been elsewhere since, Friday afternoon. On Friday, I had my weekly appointment with my OBGYN. She did the regular checkup where she checked my blood pressure (which was perfect), my weight (which I have not gained any since, the new year) and measured my stomach with a standard measuring tape. As of this week, I have been going by the book on weight, blood pressure and my stomach measurements. However, this week I was two weeks behind on my measurements which worried my doctor. She checked to see if I was already dilated and to my surprise I am already 1 cm dilated. When she finished all these tests she told me that she wanted me to have an emergency ultrasound to check on the growth of the baby.  She also told me that she wanted me to have my bags packed on Monday in case the baby was not growing since, she was going to have me induced for labor. Well, all of this news shook my world. I did not know what to think. I chose to go to this appointment by myself since everything seemed to be going so great up to this point and I was still 4 weeks from my due date. However, I quickly wish I had let Will go with me like he wanted to. The minute I left her office I was in panic mode. I spent all weekend googling and searching for why I may not be gaining weight and what could possibly be wrong with baby Harper. Well, that was the worst thing I could have done. All this did was create more anxiety for me and make me think the worst. So, all weekend we tried to keep ourselves busy by getting everything finalized for Harper's arrival.


After what seemed like a month, Monday morning finally came. We had our ultrasound appointment at 8 in the morning which was nice since, we would not have to wait any longer. When we started the ultrasound our technician laughed and said " well I hope you have not been worrying all weekend because your baby is wonderful and already 6 pounds." This was the BEST news we could have ever received. After our ultrasound, we met with our doctor and she apologized for having me worry all weekend but that she just wanted to make sure Harper was fine since, I was already dilated and was not measuring right. She did state that Harper's weight, movement, and heart rate were perfect and there was nothing to worry about. She said that she was ready to come and it could be any day now. So, to be sure to have everything ready for her arrival and our bags in the car. Our day ended up being a good one and all our prayers were answered. Now, we are currently just waiting for her arrival and blessed that she is growing a perfect pace and doing well. 


We now feel like we have a very special angel looking down on us and Harper, Will's mom , Freda. Four years ago, we had one of the worst years of our marriage and life. Will and I had only been married for 5 months when we were on vacation in Myrtle Beach for New Year's Eve and Freda came down with stomach pain. She was rushed to the hospital on New Year's Eve of 2008 and had her gull bladder removed. To our surprise, she did not recover very well and was kept in the hospital for over a week. After many tests, her doctors learned that she had an Adenocarcinoma which is a form of stomach and liver cancer. She went to Duke University for a second opinion and they told her the same thing. Within 29 days, we learned she had cancer and lost her to this terrible disease. She passed away on February 5, 2008 surrounded by all her loved ones in Winston Salem, NC. This was the worst thing I have ever had to go through in my life as well as my husband and his family. My mother-in-law was one of the sweetest, caring, genuine, and god loving people I have ever met. She is the reason why Will is such a wonderful husband and going to be a great father. So, we find it really interesting that Harper is expected to arrive any day now. We feel like Freda is helping out our family with bringing one of the best things to our life, Harper, when we lost one of our most treasured, Freda, 4 years ago in early February.

Below is the picture we had taken during the ultrasound. You can see her eyes are closed( she is sleeping and does not like mornings like her mama :), her nose and cute lips. My husband thinks she looks like him but I think she looks like me. I guess we will have to agree to disagree on this issue. However, one thing we do agree on is how cute she is :)...

Midweek Confessions

This week I have a few confessions..

~ I am counting down the days until I am done teaching. I love my job, but am really ready for a change. Right now, I only have 15 days then I am off the rest of the school year and summer. YAY!

~ I sometimes tune out my students so that I do not lose my "cool" with them. Teaching 15 year old's all day long requires a lot of patience.


~ I got pulled over yesterday in front of my high school for not turning on my signal. Really! The officer actually asked me when I was due and if this is my first child. Then, he told me he was giving me a break and to have a good day. I felt that it was a little too much to pull me over for no signal and on top of that I had to hear all day long from my students about being pulled over in front of the school.


~ I am really scared of going through the labor process. I really wish I could just fall asleep and wake up with Harper in my arms.


~ I am addicted to Pawn Stars. I keep wanting to go to Vegas just to visit this pawn shop.


~ I get so entranced by Paula Deen. I think she is one of the funniest and entertaining people on television. I just cannot turn off her show when she is on.


~ I really miss playing golf, but know that it will not be long until I can play again, hopefully.


~ I am starting to realize that many of our friends who are not married or have children seem to be distancing themselves from us since we do not have much in common anymore. How sad :(..


~ I have a hair appointment three days before I am due so I can have no roots for the first 6 weeks of Harper's arrival. I know so vain..


~ I really like the small city I live in, but really want to move to a small town one day. So, I can have that small town, safe feeling I had growing up and where everyone knows your name :)..


Now , link up and tell us your confessions..

Couple's Baby Shower

This past weekend, we had a couples baby shower given by our wonderful friends, Mark and Janet. Below is the shower invite sent to all our family and friends.  Pink and green are the colors of Harper's nursery and they became theme of the shower.

Our shower invitation

Our friends and hosts Mark and Janet

It was such a memorable  weekend. The shower was held at an historic hotel in our town called The Patrick Henry Hotel.  This hotel was redone two years ago and made into a ballroom and high end apartments. Needless to say, it is a beautiful place to have any event. 

The Patrick Henry Hotel where our shower was held

To start the day off right, Will made my mom and I appointments to get our makeup done. This was so special since, I was able to spend some quality time with my mom before the shower and weekend events.

My mom getting her makeup done

Once we were done, we headed home and got dressed for the shower. My brother-in-law , Thomas came in from Atlanta for the weekend. Below is the photo of us before heading downtown to the shower.

Thomas , Will, and I before heading to the shower

Once we arrived at The Patrick Henry Hotel we took alot of photos to remember the special event. * Warning: Photo Overload*

Mom , Bryan , and I before the shower

Mom and I before the shower

Entrance to the ballroom

Ballroom view

Yes, we had a bar at a baby shower..haha

Food table before the shower

Love the pink and green theme

The cake table with cheesecake lollipops

Desert table with sparkled and edible truffles..so good

Love this Harper cake

NY Strip Sandwich..So delicious..

I was so amazed on how many came to the shower.  We had 82 of our closet friends and family there to celebrate Harper. My brother, Brandon and my sister-in-law, Anne even drove in from Atlanta which meant so much to us. This day was so magical and made us feel so loved. Below are some of friends and family who were in attendance.

My family

Our good friends from Will's hometown

All my lady friends

My brother-in-law Thomas, father-in-law Tom , and Will

Will's cousins and his brother Thomas

After everyone socialized, ate the wonderful food, and had some drinks we decided it was time to start unwrapping all the thoughtful gifts our friends and family gave us. As you can see we were beyond spoiled and blessed.

This is the beautiful monogrammed dress my brother and sister-in-law gave us..Love it!

Cannot wait to wheel Harper in this wagon

Will and I 

My mom gave me the exact dress I was brought home in. We are going to bring Harper home in the same dress.

Harper will be wearing this Redskin Cheerleader dress next football season (No matter how they play :)

After the shower, all our family and close friends came back to our home to relax for a bit. Then, we headed to one of our favorite restaurants Carlos for dinner.  We wanted to treat our hosts to a nice dinner since they threw us a wonderful shower. 

Janet and I

Janet and Will

My family: Brandon, Anne, Mom, Dad, Aunt Sharon, Uncle Lewis and Bryan.

Will and I with my parents

Overall, it was a weekend that I will cherish forever. I felt so much love from all our friends and family who made the event so memorable. Harper is going to be a very lucky young lady with so many wonderful people in her life.