Stress Free?

They say to have a healthy pregnancy you should be stress free, or limit your stress.  I think this is a hard thing to do for most anyone.  And needless to say my life while pregnant has been far from stress free.  Although, I've done a good job handling it most of the time. I rarely let it take a toll on me. However, stress likes to rear its ugly head up occasionally.

In my four year career as a teacher I have now been displaced from two schools.  What is displacement?  Well, it's when the county comes to a principal and says you have too many teachers for your school, you need to get rid of "x" amount of teachers.  And typically the pecking order begins with younger teachers. Well after speaking with three different principals I can finally say I have a school to work at next year.  I have expected a job at a Middle School.  Not ideally as close to home as I would like, but not any longer than I am driving now.  I am glad  to finally say I know where I'm going to be next year, but the process has not been easy on me.  

I am strangely optimistic about working at the middle school level.  I use to think I always wanted to avoid this age group of students.  However, I am always up to new challenges, and love that I now will have the experiences in elementary, middle,and high.  With these experiences under my belt I feel like I can handle anywhere my teaching future takes me.  Plus, a big part of me feels like this is only preparing me better to raise my precious little Zoe. 

I believe that becoming a parent will benefit me as a teacher, and being a teacher will only benefit me more as a parent. I look forward to the challenges my future with Zoe, and any siblings will bring me. And plan to face them head on!

 In addition to job hunting, interviewing, and having to make decisions (which I've never been good at) I've had other news recently thrown at me as well. 

Come to find out one of my students was recently diagnosed with fifths disease. Turns out fifths disease is a strain of chicken pox.  However, just because someone has had chicken pox before it does not mean they are immune to fifths disease. Basically, fifths disease acts like a severe cold.  The only difference is children displace a rash through rosy red cheeks.  If I were to contract the disease it could be transferred  to my child, and cause many serious complications.

http://www.babycenter.com/0_fifth-disease-parvovirus-b19-during-pregnancy_1463060.bc

 Needless to say I made an immediate visit to my ob/gyn to make sure that I had not contracted the disease.  The results of the blood test re-leaved my fears only slightly.  I do not currently have fifths disease, however I am still susceptible. Which means I'm nervous that the disease could be traveling around school.  I've asked my kindergarten and first grade teacher to be on the look out, and keep back any children they believe to be sick.  Hopefully this will keep me healthy until summer arrives in a week.

On another note, I believe I'm starting to feel little Zoe's first few flutters. : )

My baby is the size of a mango right now.