I'm back!

Koh Tao was the most beautiful place I have ever been! We had an amazing time! The scenery was beautiful and nothing can compare to being able to take a 4-day weekend trip to an island! I feel a little spoiled and I almost cannot believe that this is my life! God is so good and I have been so blessed! We hiked up the steepest road ever imaginable to get to this lookout that was absolutely incredible! Then we looked around the island, went swimming in the pool, ate a late lunch and pretty much zonked out at our hotel room. The next day we got up early and went on an all-day snorkeling trip around the island. The fish were so beautiful! I have never seen anything like it before. We were suppose to go to a bay that was known for having sharks but there were none when we got there! :( It was the best vacation and a great way to relax! Have to go back to teaching tomorrow! I'll post a few pictures from the island on here so you can see the beauty of it...

vacation here I come!!!!!

WOO HOO!!!!!
   No school on Friday and no school on Monday means a 4-day weekend and a trip to the beautiful island of Koh Tao for me! :) We leave tomorrow (Thursday night) and take a night bus to Chompun and then a ferry to Koh Tao. It is suppose to be one of the most beautiful islands in Thailand- if you have time Google it! I will also be sure to upload pictures so you can be jealous of me! ha! :)
   I am exhausted and I am definitely in need of a break and some relaxation time! I just hope that with traveling so far we would still be able to enjoy ourselves! I am so excited!
   I am connecting with my students well. This week we had open house which was a great time to meet the parents and share a little bit about what I really want to stress and emphasize with the students and what we need to work on as a whole class!
  Life in Thailand is great! I am blessed and God is good! :)

a long day!

Just to give everyone an update, this week I had been having some not so normal health symptoms! I thought maybe it was stress or any number of different things. I kind of blew it off until today. Today when I was in church, the pain in my abdomen was so intense that I had to leave and go home. I woke my brother up on Skype to get my parents so I could talk to them about what I was experiencing with my body. They told me that they really thought I needed to go to the hospital. When my roommate came home we talked about it and decided that I should go so we went I am glad that I did!

When we first got to the hospital, they said listening to my symptoms they thought I had kidney stones. If that was the case it would mean I would have a very expensive ultrasound. We waited for about half an hour and when the tests came back, I did not have kidney stones, so I did not need to get an ultrasound done or more testing. HOWEVER the levels in my kidney were really high. They are suppose to be at a cell level of 5 and mine were at a level of 50. The doctor told me that I had a very severe kidney infection. Right now I am on antibiotics and (thank goodness!) painkillers. I have another appointment on Thursday after school to check out my levels again. All my medication and doctor visit came to half of what an ultrasound would have cost.

Since taking my medication, my pain is almost gone and I feel normal for the first time in days. I think I can handle teaching this week which is a blessing! Hopefully the antibiotics kick it out so on Thursday I can get a clean bill of health! :)

Besides having to miss church and scare my parents a little by waking them up at 2 in the morning I am no worse for the ware! :)

Nothing New....

My mom told me that I needed to blog again and update everyone but there really is nothing new on the home front! I am working hard on my lessons and getting into the swing of things with teaching. I get paid in 2 days which is a HUGE blessing (we get paid monthly so this is my first paycheck) and I start Thai lessons tomorrow. Two hours every week I will be learning Thai from a Thai woman who is certified to teach Thai to foreigners. I have never too gifted at picking up languages so I hope that I am able to pick it up quickly and make the most of it! We will see how I do! :) 
   I also joined a gym today. It is nice and offers a lot of fun classes. I joined with two other teachers so it will be fun going there with them and getting to know them better there! Also it is another great way to make relationships and maybe learn a little more Thai! :)
   Thank you all! 

my birthday and wai kru

                                            a cake from a student-how cute is that???

So Thursday was my birthday and Wai Kru! Wai Kru is a day where the students show their appreciation for their teachers by giving them flowers. Eventhough it is only after a week of school, it is still a fun day to spend with all the students. It was also my birthday which was fun because it only added to the day! My roommates made it really special for me too! They made me birthday muffins (a Green tradition) and carrot cake (my absolute favorite!)! It was a special day! Thank you all for your birthday wishes as well! I felt loved! :)

Meet Grade 3!

I would like to introduce you to my grade 3 class! As you can see, we have a lot of boys! AND my students have not mastered the art of equal lines but that is okay because it is still the beginning of the year! :)

My Classroom is Lived in!

My students have come and gone and my first day as a teacher in Thailand is complete! :) They were so excited to come in the classroom this morning! They were lined up at 8:00 to come in and school doesn't start until 8:30! They truly love to learn! They are a talkative little bunch which is not common in this type of school environment so even though it can be a challenge it is also a blessing! I have 3 great new students in the class this year, Nenna, Fuji and Mos. Mos does not speak much English but Fuji certainly does and Nenna falls somewhere in the middle! Thank you for all your prayers today! :)