People who know me a little bit know that when I am quiet there is change abrewing. And this stretch of quiet is no different.
Abridged version: I’ve put my house up for sale and have made an offer on a much smaller one closer to our family and friends.
Are you interested in a lovely home in the country? Click on the image to check it out :)
The house I put an offer on yesterday is closer yet still in the country. A tiny home. Really tiny. Right now we live on a touch over 2 acres of land in a 3 bedroom home. This new one is on …wait for it… 1400 sq ft. No. I am not missing any zeros. And there is really only 1 bedroom, albeit a large one :) the whole top floor was turned into an open space. Loftesque. It is in a village so it appeals to my love of the country but is not as isolated as out here and has everything I need and more within walking distance – including waterfront trails and countryside. And you know what? The tinyness is really appealing to me right now. I can get my head around upkeep there where I am rather overwhelmed as a new mom here with all of this house and land to take care of. Not only that but I’ve been spending more and more time in my truck, driving to friends and family than ever before. This new home will be a 20 minute drive from Jack’s grandparents, from work (more on that in the next paragraph), from my friends… and I won’t have to drive AT ALL for essentials like groceries, visits to medical centres, milk, the need for human contact ;)
Work front
Yes, I’ve finally settled in to a position at a small (very small. We’re talking 12 students in the whole school small) middle and high school in the West Island of Montreal. After many, many job applications and interviews I finally decided that this one is really the right fit for me right now. I am able to work 3 days per week. 3 permanent days – no rolling schedule to have to remember. The days I am there are pretty packed but I can take the breaks I need to express milk for Jack as long as I leave the students with work to do. Oh, and virtually no issues with classroom management as my largest group is of 6 students in a 7/8 class. That’s not really true, once a week I teach Arts Plastique to all 12 of them at the same time. Other than Arts Plastique I teach English Language Arts to Grades 5, 7/8, and 10/11 (aka Elementary cycle 3: year 1, Secondary Cycle 1: years 1 and 2, and Secondary Cycle 2: years 2 and 3.) The school is flexible in that it answers to my needs as a new mother getting back into the work force – they are very understanding and compassionate people to work with/for! The other teachers – believe it or not there are 5 teachers working at this school – have been very welcoming as well.
Biggest bonus –> This position allows me to use my parents as Jack’s daycare. I knew that I had to go back to work but the thought of putting Jack into daycare flummoxed me. He will be 8 months old next Wednesday – if anything were to go wrong at daycare he could not tell me. I just couldn’t deal with that. Besides, look at how happy he is with his Zaidie!
So, between deciding on where to work, preparing my house for sale, looking for a house to buy, writing up a promise to purchase, planning my lessons, taking care of Jack, myself, and my two dogs (I shaved Jacob (dog) the other day because pugs shed an incredible amount of hair. Too funny.), and spending time with friends and family I have been keeping myself busy. In a really, really good way.
