Fashion: Grading on a Curve

Hello everyone,

So this last week of school before Christmas I decided I should dress in Christmas colors. Unfortunately, I forgot to get a picture of my Friday’s outfit. I think I did ok with the greens and reds. My 6th grade ladies really approved of my outfits and asked if I would be adding them here, so here they are.

This has been a strange year and I was glad to get it done and to get a longer break to relax now. I have learned a lot about myself this past few months. It has been a great journey and I am very blessed for these opportunities.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Thank you for reading,

Hello everyone,

Not too many news to tell everyone but next week I will have a video and pictures of my latest craft creation…. Stay tuned…

Thanks,

Hello everyone,

This was the week to wear Thanksgiving colors. I only had three days at work so here are my outfits. The kids seemed to find them nice. This was a short week of dressing up. The holiday weekend has been very nice and quiet. I am home in my sweats and pajamas taking care of Pepper who got spayed this week.

I have been working on my crafts and soon I will be sharing some of my latest projects. Some are Christmas presents and others are just for fun. I have also wrapped Christmas gifts.

I have been watching a lot of TV. Funny enough I am watching a Brazilian soap opera. It is interesting because it is about human trafficking. Brazilian soap operas serve more than an entertainment purpose. They usually have a topic that teaches the general population. This one is exposing human trafficking of babies and women in special. It is hard to imagine that in this day and age slavery is still happening. The human race has a lot to learn.

On another note, this last week in my Spiritual Exercises I have been reading a lot about sin and forgiveness. It is amazing the power of forgiveness that God has. I am working on becoming more forgiving and letting things go. I think it is a noble goal to have but who knows how long it will take.

Thanks for reading,

Hello everyone,

I have finally remembered to take some pictures after school. I have gone back to wearing my bangs for a while. I have also been enjoying the new looks that I am now able to wear because I have lost weight. I am still struggling to accept that I am much smaller, and just recently bought some pants that I had to go exchange because they were 2 sizes too big. It felt good, needless to say.

Middle school continues to have its ups and downs, some days are great and some days are a bit more difficult. But it is still fun because some days those kids can really make me laugh…

The last outfit was a huge success and I haven’t gotten that many compliments for one single clothing item in a long time. At first I wondered if I would be brave enough but then I decided that if anyone could pull it off, it would be me, and I did!!!

I am currently going through a journey of self discovery through the Ignatian Spiritual exercises and it has been very interesting. I think I am discovering a new side of myself and things are changing for me and the way I approach things. I will continue to give updates here.

Thank you for reading,

Hello everyone,

I have been absent for a couple of weeks now. Well, I have been so busy with school, college classes I teach at night and the pups’s training classes and I sometimes forget to get my picture taken.

Well, last week I had the amazing opportunity of participating in a Jesuit Schools Network Mission and Ministry Gathering in Rochester, NY. It was a peaceful and great gathering. I felt so welcomed and so calm throughout the whole experience. Lots of prayer time, reflection time and learning more about Jesuits and the mission of the schools. One interesting thing was the fact that for the first time in my life I went to an education conference where most attendees were males. Usually there are so many more women at the conferences I normally attend since I attend language related workshops. This time though, there were a lot more men and few women. Not bad, just not what I expected I guess…

On another note, we only had one free evening and I found a wonderful store from Ghana. Mansa Wear is a store owned by a Ghanean who buys the fabric at Woodin and has the clothes made there with their styles in mind. I loved talking to her and got a couple of pieces. She was so nice that she gave me a ride back to the hotel.

Overall it was a great week and amazing experience! God definitely has a plan for me and even though I don’t always know what the plan is I know there is a reason for everything. After all, who would have ever imagined I would be a religion teacher and campus minister? Sometimes things are not very clear but I just need to trust there is a plan.

Thank you for reading,

www.reallygreatsite.com by julianasmith0810

Hello everyone,

Here I am again, another week at work and fall weather is officially our new weather. I am loving the new colors this fall. My students’s favorite was the zebra print outfit, which was a surprise.

This week is somewhat of a blur… a couple of the days were a bit off for me so the week passed really fast. Not sure why I was a bit off but oh well, here we are at the end of the week and all is well.

Teaching middle school is quite the crazy ride, some days are hilarious, some are frustrating and some are very rewarding. I used to say that it takes a special person to teach this age group and I stick to it. I hope I am up for the challenge and that I am doing a good job. It sure is fun to get to know the different personalities and what they are interested in at this age. One thing is for sure, they love questions that start with “What if…?”

Well, I think that is all for this week… until next time,

Hello everyone,

This was my birthday week. So I took advantage of it and wore some of the new outfits I got since a lot of my clothes don ‘t fit anymore. It is fun to be able to shop a little bit for fall colors again.

I am one who loves my birthday, I tell everyone about it and I am happy to share how old I am. I think the best part is that even though I am over 40 years old I still do not dye my hair and I have no gray hair. That is pretty good! Good genes from my dad’s dad…. Thank you Vô Alvin!

This was a great birthday, got a few notes at school, my wonderful husband sent me flowers at work, and we went out with friends in the evening. I had a lot of fun, it had been so long since last time we went out with friends. Another good year, pandemic and all, but new house, new car, new puppy… lots of great things….

Thank you for reading,

Hello everyone,

This week I wore a lot of pink apparently…. It was not on purpose, I assure you. It was a week that was not really cold but you could definitely tell that fall has arrived. Mornings are a bit chilly and in the afternoon it gets a bit warmer.

A couple of the outfits were a big hit with students and co-workers. All of them made me feel confident and happy, which at the end of the day is what is important. People should feel good and happy regardless of what others think or or don’t think about their outfits.

So, if nothing else, find a few pieces that make you feel beautiful and confident and wear those. Then find more of the same kind so you can feel that way everyday.

Thank you for reading,

Work week by julianasmith0810

Hello everyone,

Here I am as promised, I actually remembered to get the pictures of all my outfits this week. I have a couple of favorites…. The one with the recycled sari made into pants is one of my favorites. I loved wearing it… SUPER COMFORTABLE!!!

My other favorite is the one with the light blued skirt, light green sweater and the animal print boots. Those boots are my new favorite. The other outfits got some compliments too and I just enjoyed one of our last warm weeks it seems like. Next week, the weather is changing and it looks like the rain is coming.

On another note, this last week was another normal week, I have started some Spiritual Exercises, which means I will be spending more time meditating and praying. I am looking forward to taking some time to myself, and to prayer. I am just starting so nothing real to report yet but I will keep you all posted here.

As always, thank you so much for reading and stay tuned,

Hello everyone,

I am so sorry I keep promising more pictures of outfits but I have been getting home so tired that I forget to take a picture before I change. So I decided that instead of not posting, that I would share a little about our puppies.

Many of you know that we have been training Lulu since we got her and she has actually passed her CGC (Canine Good Citizen) test a while back and now we are waiting to start her official Therapy training classes.

Now that we have Pepper who is only 16 weeks old, she has also started training. We hope to take her as far as Lulu too but we will have to wait and see how she does. So far she is doing really well.

They are both great dogs and Thomas has really been taking his responsibility with Pepper very seriously and doing well. Having the wagging tails when I get home is amazing and some days I wish I could spend all day with them at home. Lulu really calms me down and is always by my side keeping me company.

I really believe that there is a reason for the word dog to spell God backwards. They offer their unconditional love and ask for very little in return.

We are back in a somewhat regular routine now and some days are easier than others. This week I found out I was exposed to a person who tested positive for COVID so we will have to stay away from my parents for a couple of weeks since my dad is still recovering from major surgery and his immune system is compromised. I feel fine and I am fully vaccinated so it should be fine but we would rather be safe than sorry.

Some days I wonder if we will ever have a normal life where COVID is not such a big part of it anymore. Maybe this is our new normal and we just need to get used to it. I can just say that for those of us who already suffered of anxiety before the pandemic, this is just very difficult and anxiety is reaching a max!

Thank you so much for reading,