Brittany

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Second Internship

I have been really bad about blogging. Sorry about it! I have been at my second internship since the middle of November. It is Falcon Ridge Elementary in West Jordan, Utah. Can I just say that I LOVE IT?! I love working in an elementary school. I didn't realize how much until I had been away from it for awhile. I get to work with teachers, interact with students and get to know the families in the community. It is a great school and it makes me excited to think that I will get to be the principal of an elementary school someday!

31!! What??!!

I don't know when it happened, but one day I woke up and I was in my 30's. I can't explain it.

I had a great birthday with friends. We went to dinner at a Japanese Steakhouse in near my house and went to see Beauty and the Beast in 3D. Thanks to everyone who made me feel special on my birthday!

Bravo Broadway

Saturday night, some friends and I went to the Utah Symphony. It was a Broadway show with dancing and singing. And it was fantastic!!

Anytime we do an event downtown, we like to ride the Trax. It makes us feel like we live in a big city (or its just more fun than driving and trying to find a place to park.) The group was small, but we had lots of fun! It was Meghan and Brian and me and Erin. Meghan made dinner for us at their house and then we went to the Symphony. Did you know that you can get $10 tickets if you are a student? I'm going to have to take advantage of that for the next couple of months.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Wahoo 5K

I ran my first 5K yesterday. I trained for a couple of months because as you all know, I am not a runner, but I really wanted to be able to run it. That was my only goal...to run the whole thing! And I made it. It was so much fun! I'm already looking for my next race!

I finished in 35 minutes and 21 seconds. My goal for the next race is to beat my own time!

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Internship

Monday was my first day as Intern Assistant Principal at Matheson Jr. High School in Magna, Utah. I was nervous and unsure about how this experience would be. I hadn't been in a Jr. High since I was there myself. It is an age group that you hear so much about. They are awkward, judgmental and mean. In my experience over the last week, I've seen some of those behaviors, but I've also learned that they are sweet, happy and kind. I am looking forward to the next three months of not only working with a different group of students than I am use to, but also learning the responsibilities that come with being part of administration.

The current principal at Matheson Jr. is a very positive woman who has a great rapport with the students, faculty and staff. In the short time that I have worked with her I already know that I will gain a lot of knowledge and understanding of what a good principal is. She has an extensive background in working with students with behavior problems and has really helped to change the climate of the school. I know that by working with her, I will be more able to help students be successful.

I've finished two terms of graduate school. Fall semester starts August 31st. My schedule will be very busy, but I am looking forward to the experiences I will be having. My internship is all day Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. I will be in class every Wednesday from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm. It's going to be tough, but I have a great group that I am doing this with and am looking forward to the challenge!

*Check back with me in a couple of weeks to see if I still feel the same. :)

Trials

What can I say? Life is hard. We are given challenges that, if we let them, help us to grow and become more like the person that God intends for us to be. That said, it doesn't make life easier. It's the little things that help me keep going...good friends, family, and most importantly the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When I seek for His guidance and comfort in my life, I find it.

Elder Paul V. Johnson of the Seventy, said in his April General Conference talk, "The only way to see the views is to make the climb."

It's hard to make that climb and some days it's hard to get started, but by consciously making that effort and putting one foot in front of the other, having faith in Christ, we make it. And at the end of each trial we can like the person we are becoming.

In that same talk, he quoted Orson F. Whitney who said, "No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. ... All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable. ... It is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulations, that we gain the education that we came here to acquire."

I've been going through life without too many trials of my own the last couple of years (and I've been okay with that). It's times like now, though, that I realize as much as trials hurt, they are for my own good. I need to be reminded how much I need my Heavenly Father and through trials I grow closer to Him and feel His love for me. Instead of asking why?, I've been trying to ask what can I learn from this experience? There is always more we can learn and always more we can do.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

My Dad

Dad,

I just wanted to say thanks for everything you are and for all that you do! You are a great man and a wonderful father! I was talking to my students about why we celebrate Father's day and was telling them that we need to show our appreciation for our dads because they love us and take care of us. Even though I'm grown and away from home, I can still feel your love and care every day.

I love you!

Brit

50. I finally saw Wicked and I LOVED it!
49. Heights terrify me.
48. Strawberries and whipped cream do not belong on a waffle.
47. I do not like to be alone a lot. I like people to be around.
46. I always chew gum.
45. I do not like to hike; I'm more of a nature walk kind of girl.
44. I like to go camping.
43. I have great friends.
42. I am really lucky that I have two great brothers-in-law and a wonderful sister-in-law. I can't imagine life without them now.
41. As much as I love having time off, I am much more happy when I go to work.
40. I love getting pediures!
39. Fall is my favorite season!
38. I love to bake! Sadly, I don't do it as often as I used to.
37. I love lemonade!
36. I am very picky about the texture of my foods.
35. I get sick on airplanes, but I'd rather fly than drive.
34. I would like to learn how to play the cello.
33. All four of my grandparents are still living. I'm very fortunate to know each of them.
32. I need to be better at writing in a journal.
31. I love being an aunt!
30. I love Christmas time.
29. I love chick flicks.
28. I love spending time with my family.
27. I am not good at telling stories. I get nervous and miss major points. It's sad really.
26. Tulips are my favorite flower.
25. I like going to the dentist.
24. I sometimes get grouchy when I am hungry.
23. Utah does not have any good Mexican Restaurants.
22. I lived in Ecuador for four months and I would love to go back and visit.
21. I don't like animals--cats, dogs, etc.
20. Someday I would like to learn how to be a hip-hop dancer (I just really want to learn the booty-shake they do).
19. I use fake tanning lotion all summer long!
18. Chips and salsa are the best snack ever.
17. I like sappy love songs.
16. I love my siblings and am grateful that we all are so close. I couldn't ask for anything more.
15. When I get attached, I am very loyal.
14. Someday, I'm going to make a great wife and mom!
13. I am afraid to let people in. Something I am working on.
12. I have always wanted to take voice lessons, but never have.
11. I try not to eat cafeteria food at work.
10. I love to go shopping with my lil' sis. She is my personal shopper and I can't do it without her.
9. I don't know if this is a positive attribute or a flaw--but I sometimes try too hard to make other people happy.
8. I have the cutest nephews and niece in the world (and this is not a bias)!
7. I talk to my mom every day.
6. I love wearing black or purple.
5. My favorite colors are green and purple.
4. I love cheese pizza.
3. I am the 2nd of four kids and I definitely have a middle child complex.
2. I am getting my Master's Degree in Educational Leadership.
1. I love to sing! I used to sing a lot, now I mostly sing in my car with the radio turned up really loud.

Inspiring Quotes

"We cannot help others feel God's love when we are: irritated, critical, discouraged, annoyed, self-absorbed, angry, indignant, or filled with self-pity, hostility, or bitterness."
"Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting." Mother Teresa
"When we risk sharing our real feelings, we develop relationships of understanding and trust. For we cannot really care or be cared for love or be loved, understand or be understood, unless we are willing to open our treasures of time, substances, and self." Lloyd Newell
"We need to meditate more. We're so busy doing little things. We need to meditate more." President McKay
"The life which is unexamined is not worth living." Plato
"In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the gospel of Jesus Christ challenges us to become something. . . . The gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan by which we can become what children of God are supposed to become. . . . Charity is something one becomes." Elder Oaks
"If I could have one thing happen for every woman . . . it would be that they would feel the love of the Lord in their lives daily." Bonnie Parkin
"'Be not faithless, but believing.' Believe in yourselves. Believe in your capacity to do some good in this world. God sent us here for a purpose, and that was to improve the world in which we live. The wonderful thing is that we can do it." President Hinckley
"Thanks be to God that He guages the offerings and sacrifices of His children by the standard of their physical ability and honest intent rather than by the gradation of His exalted station. . . . Our need to serve God is incalculably greater than His need for our service."
"True doctrine understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior." President Packer