Another week finished.....

I hope I don't spend the next year counting away the days. Yesterday I finished week 4's assignment for my diverse learners class. One more week and I will be finished with the course and 1/4 of the way through my master's program. The next course is school law, and I heard that it's time consuming. Glad school's not in session.

We have a Lamar Facebook group. I was reading on there about some of the people who started before me. Apparently I won't be graduating in August. I will finish my coursework in August of next year, right after school starts. I will have to pass a competency test (over the coursework----I'm not sure I could pass a mental competency test at this stage of the game), finish my portfolio assignments for my internship, and pass all of my courses before I can graduate. August graduation will occur before I finish that last course. I'll have to wait until
December to graduate----I want to "walk", but that'll probably be before school gets out for Christmas, and it's a trip to Beaumont. Shucks. I guess we'll just have to see. I always wanted to wear that cute little collar that master's recipient's get to wear.

I will get a $1500 pay raise when I get my master's (ooohhh---biggy, eh?). Since I won't graduate until December, that means I'll lose about $700. That's sad. My master's will also effect my pay when I make it to 19 years of teaching experience in Texas. There is a big pay increase at 20 years ($10,000 unless they have to change it between then and now) and it occurs at 19 years if you have a master's degree. After that pay raise, I need to work three years before I can retire. That's about 6 years away---I'm really looking forward to retirement. I hope that we can visit kids and grand kids and just have a good time.......we'll see.

I need to go clean the guest bedroom. A couple of weeks ago Hayley, David, and the boys spent a few days with us. David had been up with one of the boys during the night. When David climbed back into bed, there was a thud, and the bed broke. How embarrassing. We bought that bed at Haverty's, expected it to last longer than that. I didn't know where the receipt was (when will I learn to save receipts?), so we needed to repair it ourselves.

Brother Williams dropped by and I asked him to look at it and see if it could be repaired. He took the rails home with him. The metal extension on one rail had split through the railing. It hadn't been reinforced enough. He drove flat head bolts through the rails at the four ends. It's really strong now, even if it isn't especially pretty. I guess I'm probably the only one who notices those silver bolt heads, but I can live with it----no complaints. It wouldn't looked nearly so nice if we had done it---and, since we know nothing about woodwork, it probably would have been as secure.

I need to put Dodge's "portfolio" back under the bed. I spread my paraphernalia out on the top of the bed, so I need to put all of that away. I want to make sure they have enough room in the closet for their clothes. It's a small bedroom, but the bed is queen-sized and it's comfortable. We'll put one twin in the toy room in a port-a-crib and the other one in my sewing room in a port-a-crib, and the big boys will sleep on a bed on the floor with Wyatt and Carrie. Not as much space as at the Manion's, but it's the best we can do. It would be nice to have a bigger house for when the kids comes to visit, but when it's just Mike and I, our house is plenty big enough. It's about as much as I can keep up with.