Let it Snow

This past Wednesday, we had a snowstorm!  We got about 8 inches of snow in about 6 hours.  It was really heavy, wet snow that was great for snowballs!  Lots of schools and offices were closed Thursday and I couldn't make it out of our apartment complex for work.  I took a snow day and Ben went in late once the roads were cleared.  Even though it wasn't a lot of snow, the news reports said that the damages/power outages were more than the three blizzards from last year combined!  Some roadways became gridlocked and it took some people over 12 hours to get home!  There were all kinds of stories about people being stuck in their cars or simply just abandoning them and walking home.  My work let us out early Wednesday so I made it home safely and Ben works just a few miles away so he left early too.

Here are some pictures of the snow.

 This tree was leaning quite heavily over our cars.  Thankfully it didn't break as a lot of other branches did.

A picture of one of the fallen branches.

Riley absolutely loves the snow.  

Catching snowballs

She likes to stick her whole head and upper body into the snow and army crawl through it.

Some big news to share!...and no, its not a baby

I have some great news to share and no, we're not having a baby.  That's pretty much everyone's first thought or question when I say I have news.  No baby yet but I have decided to go back to school!  I will be getting my Master's in Elementary Education through the University of Maryland.  My B.S. is in Animal Science but I have been thinking and preparing for this since my senior year of college.  Even though I enjoyed my classes and my major, I have felt God calling me to do something else, and teaching came to me junior year.  I figured since I was close to being done, I should finish my bachelor's degree and then figure out how to transition into teaching. 

Universities and colleges throughout the state of Maryland offer programs for career changers like me.  I applied for the MCERT program through UMD back in November, had an interview at the beginning of January, and found out last week that I had been accepted.  Some of you may be thinking this is the first time you've heard of this and you'd be right.  I didn't tell many people because I figured if I didn't get in, the less people I would have to tell.  But I got in and now can tell the whole world!

The program starts in June and is a 13month, full-time program.  At the end of it I will have my M.Ed in Elementary Education and be eligible for certification in the state of Maryland.  I will take 12 credits this summer and starting with the school year, I will student teach full time for the entire school year while taking 2-3 evening classes.  It's a demanding course but I am very excited and looking forward to it.  God has certainly blessed me with this opportunity and I can't wait to start!