I reckon I need to practice my surfing!

Well, my first surfing lesson was a blast! I really enjoyed working out the muscles that I didn't even know I had. I was paddle-ing my life away and kept hearing "Paddle harder!" It was so hard trying to paddle fast and hard enough to catch the wave, yet I was hardly moving! Today was such a great experience though and Andrea and I had a great time! It was a bit rocky in the beginning of the class, but towards the middle and end I was starting to get the hang of it. Lots of more practice though!

See.... Finally standing up! I love Andrea's hand coming out of the wave! She has great picture of her standing and my head popping out of the water! We had such a great time... I reckon I don't have to run for a few days. Surfing today was probably the equivalent of working out for about a week! I'm already so sore and so tired. It was fun once I finally got the hang of standing up on the board, a lot harder than you think surfing is though. I thought that I would be able to pick it up pretty fast going into this experience, but that wasn't the case! Definitely a lot harder than it looks! Took a few face plants and jumps into the water after a few waves that I caught, it was rough trying to maintain balance the entire time! It sure was fun though!

After our class today, we set up our picnic lunch and watched the seagulls and little children play all along the beach! It was sort of a weird weather day here in Geelong... Spring has finally sprung, I guess because when we left Geelong at about 9:15am this morning it was beautiful and sunny! We arrived in Torquay (the beach where we surfed) about 30 minutes later and it looked like it was going to pour down rain! Of course, the ocean was freezing but we were given those amazing wetsuits (ha) to keep us nice and cozy.... and add a bit more material in case a shark came around (just kidding). We were planning on staying around the beach for a few hours after class and lunch but the sun just didn't want to come out. So, instead we left the beach and stopped off at a few of the outlets in Torquay. Of course, when we did make it back to Geelong it was beautiful outside!

So once I made it back "home", I sat outside and started reading this new book that Shane had given me to read and relaxed in the sun! Oh and I did some laundry. Which was a sight (Yes Nana, you would be proud!) I did my sheets, towels, and clothes and even had to hang them out on the line. Which I am definitely not a pro at and don't think I ever will be. I definitely prefer to have the dryer next to the washer (makes life so much easier!) However, I did have fun doing this and have gained another experience! I don't know, maybe I could be that house-wife that has a clothes line! Ha.... (Nope, sorry Matt... no fresh outdoor scent for you!)

So, overall it was a fantastic day! I definitely think the next opportunity I have to surf, I will do an OK job at it.. At least now I have the basics and I can keep practicing! Hopefully, I will get it down one day! Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day too... We are picking the little girls up from their Halloween sleep-over at their Gymnastics place heading to a place where there is Tree-Top walking! I'm pretty pumped about this because I hear it is just beautiful every where you look! I am looking forward to these pictures!!!!

Hope everyone has a Happy Halloween (and save me some candy!) and can you believe it has almost been a month since I left! (That's right... November 9th- two days after my birthday.... still in the birthday week though!) I can't believe that it has already gone by the fast... Geesh- before you know it I will be back home! Can't wait to see everyone in December! Much Love from Down Under!!

Bellaire Primary School

My first days at Bellaire were very interesting.. I observed the PREPS classroom, which is Kindergarten in the states (ages 5-6). It was interesting to observe because I was able to relate to what I know about kindergarten in the states and compare that to what I was seeing. The Preps' classroom consists of 38 (5-6 year olds) combined in two open classrooms. The two teachers, Blanche and Nigel team teach during the day.

Of course as I was talking and getting to know the kids, I get corrected about fifty times a day and always get asked silly questions like; "Why do you talk so funny?" The kids were very interested in knowing how long it took me to get to Australia from where I lived and they enjoyed the slide-show of pictures I put together of family, friends, puppies, vacations, Kentucky, etc... They especially loved the picture of Zadeh on my back and loved hearing about her piggy back rides! :)

The daily words that they use has been a bit hard for me to catch onto right away. I try to listen to words they use after they say things that I don't understand just to see if I can figure out what a word means. I do this at "home" too with the Wilkens', I like to try and figure out what it means before I jump right to asking them. It makes it a bit more fun! Shane tells me that Americans cannot spell or speak.... for example- the way they spell color (colour), or organization (organisation)... I look at these and think- "You all don't know how to spell!" It is getting a bit easier though, I'm starting to pick up on everyday words and trying to use these words such as zooms, textas, and rubbers during the school day. I really don't like using the last one, just doesn't sound right with PREPS! If you need help figuring these out:

Zooms= crayons

Textas= markers

Rubbers= erasers

Rubbish= trash

Z (as in the letter)= zed

H= hay-ch (sound it out? Yup, try remembering to say it like that everyday!)

Funny story about the letter Z : Actually, I was working one on one with two students the other day on their handwriting. Both of them had a hard time making the letter Z... so I traced it out for them in their writing books and said "Ok, trace out the capital letter Z and the lower case letter Z and then write them a few times for me on your own." They both gave me this stare, like (the letter z????) and then repeated "Z" like hmm.... I didn't catch on to that at first and after school we rushed to the bank to make it there before they closed to exchange some money and the bank is called ANZ (Carol said "I will run in and meet you inside, the bank is right over there... see the sign? It's A.. N.. Zed" So, as I was walking with the little girls into the bank I asked "What Zed was?" and Shani told me "It's just Zed." So, I finally put 2 &2 together and said "So, when you say your alphabet you say, W..X.. Y.. and Zed??" She said YES! No wonder why those poor little PREPS had no idea what Z was!

It is interesting seeing how the schools across the USA are run. They certainly do save a lot of money here at Bellaire because students pack their lunches everyday, except they can order from the Canteen on Monday's and Friday's (which the student pays for up front)... so you have no students that never go without eating or having to worry about borrowing money for lunch and racking up a lunch charge! They have specialists teachers (such as music, art, and religion teachers) and the students in the PREPS at least see them once a week and the classroom teacher works as the librarian and computer teacher as well. We went to the library the other day and I was waiting to meet the librarian, but no one ever came in. Blanche worked the book scanner as the children were checking out their books and got them all settled to go! It was amazing to me to see what all goes into their day of planning because not only are they planning their classroom activities but also library time, computer time, sport time (which isn't taught in the Preps) but they basically do it all.

Another thing that caught my eye, was that the students eat snack and lunch in their classrooms. No cafeteria here! There are picnic tables set up outside, if the bell rings before they are finished but generally they like the students to be done before they go outside (at least in my room, that is).

My schedule goes by pretty fast, there is a lot that goes into a day but it sure does fly....

8:55am : Morning Music/Bell

9:00am: Students check their name on Smartboard for attendance (which I love seeing this age group use the SmartBoard)!

9:00-10:00: Morning Circle/Reading/Centers & Reading groups

10:00-11:00: Writing

11:00-11:30: Fresh Fruit/Vegetable time/Show & Share/ Outside play (which the students do all themselves.... of course there are yard duty teachers outside... Our day is Monday! And the fresh fruit thing.. My favorite... I think this should be in every school system! 11:30-12:30: Maths 12:30-1:30: Specialists class (computers/religion/art/music/science, etc...) 1:30-2:3o: Students eat lunch in classroom 2:30-3:30: Any follow up work/Assembly (every Friday)/ GO HOME! Pretty fairly easy day but a lot that goes into it! I am really enjoying my time here at Bellaire and I'm so glad that I took on this experience! It truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I really am learning a lot!

Scenic Sunday

My first weekend in Geelong was great! Saturday night: Shane, Carol, & I went out with their friends Liz & Dave (which Liz is a travel agent, who sent me a nice list of things to do and where to go in Sydney with prices/flights/etc.) to dinner at a Thai restaurant. *Yes, my first experience with Thai food- luckily my host parents are not seafood eaters as well (SCORE!!!!) so we stuck with chicken! All five of us shared a Banquet (which consisted of appetizers, soup, entree(s), and fruit!) It was amazing- why hasn't anyone ever taken me out for Thai food before!? The three girls also cracked a bottle of champagne, which was very nice with dinner! Saturday night also was my latest night so far that I have been awake... I actually went to bed around midnight that night- my usual hours during the week is about 930 or 10 (dorky little school teacher!)

Sunday was an amazing day! We got up early, ate breakfast, and headed out down the Great Ocean Road. This experience was truly amazing! You could look out one side of the car window and see nothing but fields of cows, horses, sheep, and grassy plains but the other side was a beautiful shot of the coastline.... The Southern Ocean was GORGEOUS!!!! Definitely crossed this off of my bucket list! The Great Ocean Road is a bit like the Road to Hana in Hawaii, where you just drive and stop off at different scenic areas... We stopped off at the Bay of Islands, Loch Ard Gorge, London Bridge and of course the 12 Apostles (which was a site!) We had plenty of other little stops along the way but those were the main area of focus that they wanted to show me! I learned a lot from this experience and also couldn't believe my eyes when I would look at this coastline. The waves were enormous, I literally have never seen waves crash in that big and hard before... Some of them were so rough they would crash up over top of the cliffs (which were also an amazing thing to look at). By the way, London Bridge was a cliff that resembled the bridge at one point in time and fell in 1990, I believe... The sign was neat because it said "London Bridge has fallen down..."

The cliffs were so neat and unique because the way they have eroded or fallen through the years has made the coastline very neat to look at. The 12 Apostles were so pretty, except there weren’t exactly 12 of them: I think 9 are left standing, but still was truly amazing to see!

We didn't get to finish the Great Ocean Road, but that is getting planned in for another weekend here soon. We are going to try to start where we left off and head to Lorne (where Marcelle's holiday home is- Marcelle is the family friend who is also hosting the other student teacher, Andrea from UK). We are actually going to get together with them here soon for a BBQ! Andrea and I got together at lunch today to plan a weekend to Tasmania. I'm excited about this trip and getting to see another part of the world! We booked our flights and are heading for Hobart for my birthday weekend!!! Turning 23 in Taz-E!! Should be fun: we are still working out the details but got a good deal on flights that weekend and decided to book it. It worked out actually, because the Wilkens' wanted to have a family dinner for my birthday but Carol (the mum) is going out of town the day after so we are just going to celebrate it when I get back from Tasmania! School is great; I enjoy my class and teachers very much. Everyone at Bellaire is very nice and hospitable as well as the Wilkens' they make me feel right at home- especially the dogs! Every time I go outside, I get a big hug from OddBall (the golden retriever) Maggie, the Australian Sheppard always wags her tail when she sees me but still gets to excited when I come up to her (meaning she usually pees right where she is standing, and most of the time at my feet)! The kids at Bellaire are great and I have enjoyed learning the route of PREPS (or kindergarten) here in Australia... Also, you all will be happy to know that I broadened my horizons and tried.... VEGEMITE! Yes, I will be finagling a container home to put everyone else in the misery of trying Vegemite (especially you Edward!) It wasn't as bad as I expected it to be, a bit of a spice and a not so good after-taste! But hey, at least I tried it!

Hope everyone is doing good. Miss and Love you all!

Finally... On the Right Side of the World!

I am finally out of the states and on the right side of the world! I left LAX after spending a nice week with Janet and Bill (thanks again, by the way) and boarded my flight to Nadi, Fiji. I was extremely excited to see Fiji and from the looks of it so far, I'm extremely excited to go back and check out the other islands! I was able to leave the airport for a few hours because I had about a ten hour layover in Fiji, which was great because I was able to check out some of Nadi and the main island of Fiji. The taxi took me to a local resort (First Landing Resort) where I spent time on the beach, or more time on the rocks around the ocean. The rocks were amazing (Marie, you would have loved them!) there were all kinds of shapes and sizes of them! I spent a few hours out on the town in Fiji, mainly by the ocean. I watched salmon jump upstream, butterfly fish, some other kinds of fish, and the waves crash in on the rocks! Got a bit sunburned during my stay, which was OK- considering I didn't really do much sunbathing in LAX while I was there!

The people in Fiji were very friendly and I learned a lot of new words; such as "Bula (boo-la) means hello, which was said to me about a million times that day. I met a sailor from Melbourne who was on my flight from LAX to Nadi, who was extremely informative about his country. We actually had plenty of hours when I got back to the airport to talk about Australia and things that I should know! I even ventured and tried Fijian beer (their very own brew) Fiji bitter... rather tasty!!

The flight from Nadi to Melbourne was uneventful... even though the Wilkens' told me to try and stay awake on that flight, it was really tough! I guess the Fiji bitter was starting to settle in! It was about a 5 hour flight from Fiji to Melbourne and I had already just had the longest day of my life. I landed in Melbourne, Australia at around 1030pm and was able to meet the Wilkens' outside of the customs area at about 1230am on Tuesday the 20th! It was weird when I looked at my phone (which still had KY time) seeing Monday the 19th... We have about a 15 hour time difference between us, so I'm sure it is going to be tough trying to catch people, but I'm sure we will figure something out!

My first day in Geelong was great! I woke up (pretty early for going to bed at about 2:30am). I spent the morning getting to know four out of the five Wilkens' that I am living with and also spent time playing games with the two youngest girls. Jaimee, the oldest daughter was still in school today but the other two were off because of the Geelong Cup! We took a drive to Bellaire Primary School, where I will be teaching (starting tomorrow) and they showed me around the outside of the school. The school is laid out on a large area of land and there are different buildings that the students walk outside to get to. I'm am excited to finally get to see the inside of the school and how it runs during the day! We also went to a lookout that showed all of Geelong as well as looking out to the line of the sea. We ate lunch at the bay and walked along the beach that looked out around the harbour. It is so pretty here, and I am so excited to see more of Geelong and Australia!

Jet lag so far hasn't seemed to bother me. However, when Shane (the dad) fixed up my computer and I logged on for the first time (since Sunday evening) my clock was still on USA time and I noticed it was about midnight, (way past my bedtime). So, Carol (the mom/mum) and I went for a run down a path with lots of scenery to look at. A river runs through the middle of the path, where lots of rowing competitions are held at the beginning of the school year, which is February. There were already rowers??? out practicing for next years games, which was cool to see! Luckily, the run woke me up and I was able to make it through the rest of the day. Which consisted of going to the grocery, Charli's (the youngest daughter) swimming lesson, and having dinner... It is now around 930pm and I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO tired! So, enough for now and more to come soon. Keep in touch, everyone! <3

Update on Departure!

Ok, well I'm still here in LA (sorry Kevin... not making a name for myself) : ) I am trying the Delta flight again tomorrow night (10/15/09) and possibly Friday if I don't get on tomorrow.... If those don't work, it's finally onto Plan B.... Buy a ticket! If that happens, LaLa gets to check out Fiji (which I have always wanted to see, so I guess it's worth the wait)!!!! I will keep everyone updated and let you know when I finally make it to Geelong! Thanks!

Still in the States!

So, I left for the airport yesterday afternoon (shedded some tears) and made it to my gate for the Cincinnati to Los Angeles flight. Little drama in between that time, when I realized I left my carry-on bag at security! Wish I would have stuck with cross country in high school, but those practices I did go to helped out because I still made it to my gate to board the plane. It was an uneventful flight to LA, and as I waited for a few hours for the LA to Sydney flight.. I came across my new little "Aussie" elderly friends who told me that they had been trying to get out of Los Angeles for what was their 4th night! Oh Joy! I'm guessing my first week of Australia will be over before I even make it there! Right now, I am staying with mom and dad's friends in LA (luckily) and I am going to try the flight again tonight... DOESN'T LOOK ANY BETTER, unforunately! So, I will keep everyone updated and let you know when I finally make it to OZ!