The first official week of school was a complete success. Our class is so wonderful full of brilliant young minds and such creative imaginations! All the children are so unique and bring such character to our class. I am thankful for each and every one of them and cannot wait to grow closer to them over the next year. It makes me sad to think of leaving the school next summer. I'd like to continue working there, not just because of the students, but the teachers are wonderful as well! It has been very encouraging being around more godly women who enjoy children as much as I. I have learned so much from them and their child care experiences. I was invited to join a small group of newlywedded women who meet for coffee every week to discuss marriage etc. since our single friends don't always want to talk about that aspect of our lives (which is pretty much the whole of our lives now!). Two of the girls in this group work at the school with me. I am so excited to hve a few other wives to spend time with and learn from.

My first week of nannying went well also. I wish the first nannying job I applied for had worked out. It just wasn't as consistent as I needed for my schedule. The children and I meshed a lot better than the little boy I am now in charge of. I took him to soccer practice yesterday and that was fun. I enjoyed playing the part of "soccer mom" for the afternoon.

I expected to catch illnesses that the kids brought into the classroom eventually. What I didn't expect was to get a sore throat from reading so many stories! At the beginning of the day I read to the kids while the lead teacher greets each child and parent at the door. I do this for around 15-20 minutes depending on how long it takes all the kids to arrive. During free play I often read to a few children as well. At the end of the day when we wait for parents to pick up their child I also read to them. After a full week of this, my throat is sore and in need of some rest. Good thing it's the weekend. A lot of mouth wash gargling to kill all the germies, drinking lots of orange juice, and drinking lots of hot tea should hopefully cure this. I might not sing too much at church either, which makes me extremely sad. I'll just have to be more careful when I read to the children from now on. Hopefully now that they're settling down into the routine of school I won't have to raise my voice over their commotion as much. Hopefully.

Since I no longer have the Anne of Green Gables DVDs (which is on my want it list once again), I decided to read through the book series for the first time. I have owned these books since around the 5th grade, but never really wanted to read them. I always had something else higher up on the pleasure reading list. But I have missed Gilbert Blythe oh so much. And the books are proving a wonderful cure. I haven't gotten to the one where he dies yet so all is still well. I know he dies though, so I am prepared (sorry if I ruined it for you). I'm glad the DVDs didn't choose to follow the full story in this way. I like the good ole Gil lives on and is a war hero. So I highly recommend the Anne of Green Gables series. A good read for women everywhere of all ages. How I wish my imagination as strong as Anne Shirleys. And my optimism as strong as hers as well. But I have found my Gilbert, and he is so much more wonderful than this story book character. But Gilbert will always be one of my earliest heart throbs.

Friends are such interesting creatures. You never know when they are going to pop in and out of your life. I love it when old friends pop up unexpectedly. It warms my heart so. I love my old friends so much. High school will always have such a special place in my heart that nothing else will be able to fill. It's when I fell in love for the first time, when I planned the most outrageous after social events, when cheerleading was pretty much the highlight of my life, when I made mistakes that were easily forgiven, when I met my husband, and when I had the best times in recorded memory. My wonderful friends from high school will always share a bond with me that no other friends ever will. My college friends ever have a very different bond with me. Sometimes I wish I could be surrounded by all my high school friends in all our old silliness. What fun was to be had. And can be remade again, right? So, next time I'm home there should be a reunion. It's about that time. We've been graduated for three years now. We can have a reunion of sorts! Because I love you all so. And never forget!

With love,
Rebecca Iveson