Now that my applications and resumes have generated some interested and landed me a few interviews, I am starting to feel pretty good about the job search.
I interviewed with a really cool elementary school on Monday. There are students from 25 countries and 15 languages spoken in the school. They currently do not have a guidance counselor, so I would have the opportunity to build a program from the ground up. PROS: Amazingly interesting population, get to start my own program, really nice principal CONS: 45 miles away, probably 1:15 driving.
Today, I interviewed for a high school girls swim coach position. It sounds like it might be a really good fit (on my end at least), but they don't have a counselor position open in the district so I'm a little worried about that piece. They are hiring a social worker (which I applied for just in case...), but I'm not sure they are open to a counselor given the licensing differences. I also talked to a gentlemen in their community ed department who is hoping to hire the swim coach to manage swimming lessons and take over the swim club. Even all three of those positions wouldn't add up to full time, so I'm a little uncertain about it. Of course I WANT to do it. I love swimming and I know I would have a blast. However, I just worry about the full time employment part. I guess we will just have to see what happens... PROS: FUN FUN FUN. Love swimming, love team building, only 15-20 minutes from home CONS: lots of nights and weekends, not really "steady" employment, not full time
HOWEVER, I am still really hopeful I will be able to find a school counseling position. Not only is it fairly early in the hiring season, I have a few good options. There is one high school position I am especially interested in (due to location and the high academic standards of the curriculum) and another district that currently has EIGHT open counseling positions. I called HR and they really do have eight positions - 7 retirements and one long term sub position. All of the schools in that district are about an hour away, but you better believe I will still apply. While we aren't ready to move any time REAL soon, I could survive commuting for at least a year. I did the Minneapolis thing, right?!
That's all for tonight! Just wanted to give a quick update!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Nick is "CUT OUT" to be a great husband...
Pun intended. You'll see.
Our big goal for the past month has been to work on our invitations. We are making them ourselves, but until yesterday, I was feeling alone in the task and communicating this semi-regularly with Nick. I'm sure he would use the word "nagging" to refer to my comments regarding invitation making. Anyway, he assured me repeatedly that he would help, and last night he followed through in a big way.
Not only did he design stellar maps, but he printed out ALL 166 sheets of paper necessary for our invitations. Then, he went above and beyond by cutting out every piece. You may not realize what a HUGE job it was so let me break it down for you...
Invitation (55 sheets of paper, 3 cuts/sheet) = 165 cuts
RSVP (28 sheets of paper, 3 cuts/sheet) = 84 cuts
Map/Directions (37 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 148 cuts
Reception info: (37 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 148 cuts
Other (9 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 36 cuts
Nick made a grand total of 581 cuts on that paper cutter last night. WHAT. A. GUY. So when you get your invitation in the mail, take time to appreciate him because I seriously don't think I can express my gratitude enough. And Nick, this is my public apology for "nagging." I love you!
Oh, did I tell you he also bought me Qdoba for dinner? Mmmmmm-yum.
Our big goal for the past month has been to work on our invitations. We are making them ourselves, but until yesterday, I was feeling alone in the task and communicating this semi-regularly with Nick. I'm sure he would use the word "nagging" to refer to my comments regarding invitation making. Anyway, he assured me repeatedly that he would help, and last night he followed through in a big way.
Not only did he design stellar maps, but he printed out ALL 166 sheets of paper necessary for our invitations. Then, he went above and beyond by cutting out every piece. You may not realize what a HUGE job it was so let me break it down for you...
Invitation (55 sheets of paper, 3 cuts/sheet) = 165 cuts
RSVP (28 sheets of paper, 3 cuts/sheet) = 84 cuts
Map/Directions (37 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 148 cuts
Reception info: (37 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 148 cuts
Other (9 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 36 cuts
Nick made a grand total of 581 cuts on that paper cutter last night. WHAT. A. GUY. So when you get your invitation in the mail, take time to appreciate him because I seriously don't think I can express my gratitude enough. And Nick, this is my public apology for "nagging." I love you!
Oh, did I tell you he also bought me Qdoba for dinner? Mmmmmm-yum.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Rainy Day update...
I am currently sitting outside in the garage at our garage sale, and it's POURING outside. Needless to say, I haven't sold anything. Fortunately, Nick had better luck earlier today and we still got rid of a lot of stuff.
Things have been pretty busy around our house lately. I found out officially that my position is not being renewed for next year, so I have been really busy job searching. I have one school counseling preliminary interview next week, and I also have some leads on some swimming-related jobs which would be pretty fun as well. Keep your fingers crossed for me as I continue to apply and interview! Fortunately, my principals have been extremely helpful and encouraging in the process, so I can't complain too much.
We have also attempted to get some yard work done. I am going to plant a vegetable garden this year if there's ever a weekend with sun instead of rain, and Nick has been moving around hostas and bushes and making some nice improvements. I am SO glad that winter is over!
Things have been pretty busy around our house lately. I found out officially that my position is not being renewed for next year, so I have been really busy job searching. I have one school counseling preliminary interview next week, and I also have some leads on some swimming-related jobs which would be pretty fun as well. Keep your fingers crossed for me as I continue to apply and interview! Fortunately, my principals have been extremely helpful and encouraging in the process, so I can't complain too much.
We have also attempted to get some yard work done. I am going to plant a vegetable garden this year if there's ever a weekend with sun instead of rain, and Nick has been moving around hostas and bushes and making some nice improvements. I am SO glad that winter is over!
Last weekend, Nick's aunt Mary and cousins Brittany and Karissa threw a shower for me. It was so much fun, and everyone was so generous. I was lucky enough to have my mom, sister and BFF Sheila come to the shower, and several of Nick's family members came. My dad actually came down too and helped the Sykora men on a backyard project. So, it was a fun family weekend. :) Here are a few pictures that Nick's mom, Sherry, took.
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| Lewis ladies. My sister will be my maid of honor. |
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| Sheila, me and LeeAnn. Sheila will be my matron of honor. SO GLAD she made the drive down. :) |
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| Nick's niece and goddaughter, Hailey, was very helpful with gifts. Isn't she cute?! Love her. |
Wedding planning is going well. We are working on invitations big time this weekend. It'll be a big project, but I'm sort of looking forward to working on it. I think that's about all for now. I'm being called to help with dinner before our softball game tonight...although I'm thinking it might be cancelled given this weather-YUCK!
Monday, May 2, 2011
Slowing down is good...job searching is nerve-wracking...
I can't believe I am sitting down to update again after less than a week! Obviously, life is slowing down a little bit.
Last week, I finished up both of my sessions of swimming lessons. For a few weeks there, I was teaching swimming lessons Tuesday and Thursday nights AND Saturday mornings. I was also doing a few private lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays before coaching Monday and Wednesday nights. Now, thank goodness, I have a swimming lessons break until June! My poor chlorine-hair needs to recover! :)
Coaching is still going really well, and that will go until mid-June, then all my coachees will be in the middle of their triathlon season and off doing their own thing. They are so much fun to work with, and I'm looking forward to finishing the next month off strong!
Now that work-life is slowing down, other aspects of life will be picking up to fill in my free time. Wedding planning will be kicking in HIGH GEAR since we are making our own invitations and are still in the beginning stages. Last weekend, we checked "pre-marital counseling" off our list. We practiced conflict management, evaluated our budget and finances, and had some really productive conversations. We have already been using our conflict management strategies.
For example, "Jana, it really bothers me when you leave the milk out on the table while we are eating breakfast because I feel like it gets bad faster. Instead, will you please put the milk away as soon as you have poured it on your cereal? In return, I will try to be more helpful in the morning so you aren't in such a hurry.
I never knew it bothered him that I left the milk out for a few minutes here or there. Now I know. And I think our marriage will be stronger because you can take out the blue words and insert any other complaint, solution, compromise. :) I say that somewhat lightly, but I really do think that the day was helpful, and it was a really good bonding experience.
In addition to wedding planning and communicating in much longer, more detailed sentences, I will also be starting a new job search. My one-year temporary position at Wayzata did not turn into anything more, so I am looking for school counseling positions near Mayer. I really enjoy the middle level and I think I do pretty well with those kiddos, but I also know I would love high school with all my college transition experience. I think I could bring a lot to high school students and families. Similarly, I've had really good feedback on my swimming lessons lately. Many parents have had very high compliments about my ability to work with preschool and elementary age kids. SO, I have decided to apply for all levels. If anyone knows of any openings, please let me know. I will (of course) be doing tons of research myself, but connections definitely help.
And last but not least, it's summer sports season! Softball started last week. I have to say that although I didn't catch a single one of the 23 balls (give or take a few) hit right to me in the outfield, I did make some good bat to ball contact. Nick pitched and did really well until the ump lost his eyesight near the end of the second game. He also had some amazing hits but unfortunately the other team had better outfielders than myself and several were caught. Oh well. There's always next week. Sunday, I also ran my first 5K of the year. I was happy with my time of 34 minutes and some seconds. It was 32 degrees and VERY windy and the trail was very hilly. I'm looking forward to doing a few more this summer and improving my time.
That's all for now! Maybe I'll post some pictures next time, but my camera is still being dumb...please continue to pray for Aunt Lori as her recovery continues!
Last week, I finished up both of my sessions of swimming lessons. For a few weeks there, I was teaching swimming lessons Tuesday and Thursday nights AND Saturday mornings. I was also doing a few private lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays before coaching Monday and Wednesday nights. Now, thank goodness, I have a swimming lessons break until June! My poor chlorine-hair needs to recover! :)
Coaching is still going really well, and that will go until mid-June, then all my coachees will be in the middle of their triathlon season and off doing their own thing. They are so much fun to work with, and I'm looking forward to finishing the next month off strong!
Now that work-life is slowing down, other aspects of life will be picking up to fill in my free time. Wedding planning will be kicking in HIGH GEAR since we are making our own invitations and are still in the beginning stages. Last weekend, we checked "pre-marital counseling" off our list. We practiced conflict management, evaluated our budget and finances, and had some really productive conversations. We have already been using our conflict management strategies.
For example, "Jana, it really bothers me when you leave the milk out on the table while we are eating breakfast because I feel like it gets bad faster. Instead, will you please put the milk away as soon as you have poured it on your cereal? In return, I will try to be more helpful in the morning so you aren't in such a hurry.
I never knew it bothered him that I left the milk out for a few minutes here or there. Now I know. And I think our marriage will be stronger because you can take out the blue words and insert any other complaint, solution, compromise. :) I say that somewhat lightly, but I really do think that the day was helpful, and it was a really good bonding experience.
In addition to wedding planning and communicating in much longer, more detailed sentences, I will also be starting a new job search. My one-year temporary position at Wayzata did not turn into anything more, so I am looking for school counseling positions near Mayer. I really enjoy the middle level and I think I do pretty well with those kiddos, but I also know I would love high school with all my college transition experience. I think I could bring a lot to high school students and families. Similarly, I've had really good feedback on my swimming lessons lately. Many parents have had very high compliments about my ability to work with preschool and elementary age kids. SO, I have decided to apply for all levels. If anyone knows of any openings, please let me know. I will (of course) be doing tons of research myself, but connections definitely help.
And last but not least, it's summer sports season! Softball started last week. I have to say that although I didn't catch a single one of the 23 balls (give or take a few) hit right to me in the outfield, I did make some good bat to ball contact. Nick pitched and did really well until the ump lost his eyesight near the end of the second game. He also had some amazing hits but unfortunately the other team had better outfielders than myself and several were caught. Oh well. There's always next week. Sunday, I also ran my first 5K of the year. I was happy with my time of 34 minutes and some seconds. It was 32 degrees and VERY windy and the trail was very hilly. I'm looking forward to doing a few more this summer and improving my time.
That's all for now! Maybe I'll post some pictures next time, but my camera is still being dumb...please continue to pray for Aunt Lori as her recovery continues!
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