a grateful {teacher's} heart + weekend snapshots

what a productive weekend. as i have mentioned several times, the packing has gone well so far… we’ve enjoyed spending time together and were able to get lots done.  sorry- you are all probably getting sick of me talking about the move- it’s just a pretty big deal going on at the moment. speaking of- TODAY IS THE DAY- CLOSING DAY!!!! yay! we are both so proud and so excited to move into our dream home. we love the house, neighborhood, being a mile from the city- everything about it. i will let you all know how it goes, but hopefully by my next post- we will be homeowners for the first time ever. we have big plans for today, which i am excited to hopefully share with you this week. it should be a very memorable and special day. let’s just say let the christmas season officially begin for the monacos!

a grateful heart: 
… many of you know that i teach 8th grade language arts…
i know what you are thinking – i get this reaction all.the.time:
‘oh my gosh- you are so brave – aren’t they horrible?
… i was so bad in 8th grade- how do you do it?!’
with one exception last year {it was my roughest year in eight years}
i have loved teaching 8th grade
did i ever think i would love this age group- no way.
am i grateful for the experience- beyond words.
i was devastated when i was moved up from 7th grade in 2009,
but ended up loving it so much more.
and this year has been wonderful so far!
i love all of my students and despite what most of society thinks… they are awesome.
they really are.
they definitely get a bad rep, but {most} are much better than people give them credit for–
i can talk to them like young adults and they inspire me daily; they give me hope in the next generation’s ability to emphasize.
no day is the same and each afternoon, i leave feeling so grateful for my interactions with them.
a few weeks ago i decided to incorporate my gratitude project into my classroom
{i encourage you all to join me on the 29th of every month}
i wrote, “i am grateful for…” on the board and told them to come up and write whatever they are grateful for- simple or deep- on the board throughout the block.
i was blown away.

they even created a hashtag for insta- #monacosgratitudeproject 😉 
the first boy came up and wrote, ‘for being able to wake up each morning.’
…

some of the other students wrote:

so grateful to be me 

grateful for my friend- my soul sister

love and respect for myself

my dad surviving cancer

food

volunteer workers

wifi

my cat 

my mom

my brother surviving his anxiety 

having a roof over my head

for wonderful teachers {awe}

peace

compassion

my health

*and so many more meaningful responses*

i told you they are awesome.

what are you most grateful for today?