Officially licensed to teach! :)

I thought the day would never come, but today it has! I have a pretty little piece of paper (that cost me a "pretty penny".....a.k.a. $60!) that certifies my educator license for the state of Utah. FINALLY! I am not sure why there was so much mix up & confusion with the whole deal, but when I never got my college diploma mailed to me last month (as promised) I began to worry. And then I got some informative emails....about the many steps I still had to take to get my teacher's license. One of the "fun" activities was filling out a form about the demographics of my classroom this year. Another "fun" one was taking an Ethics Exam online today. Some of the questions were so confusing to me, in that I've never abused drugs or alcohol, (on or off school campus) but the exam wanted to know what kind of discipline I would succumb to in that situation. Apparently it's ok to drink two glasses of wine in front of a student invited to a friend's party, as long as you didn't know they were going to be there & you drink responsibly. Really?! Or, if you have 2 gay students & you go on an overnight field trip, allow them to share a room & supervise them. (I pray I'm never put in that situation!) Here's a full sample of what the entire 30 question exam was like:

"An educator may use force against a student provided the use of force is reasonable under the circumstances & is necessary to protect the student, other people, or school property from harm. Which of the following uses of force is reasonable under the circumstances & in compliance with the Utah Educator Standards?
a. an educator pushes a student to the ground to prevent the student from throwing an eraser out the window.
b. an educator puts a student in a headlock to keep the student from kicking a locked metal door (....this is quite possibly my favorite!)
c. an educator pins a student against a locker after the student shouted a profanity in the hallway
d. an educator grabs a student with both arms to prevent the student from hitting another in a cafeteria fight.

Let's just say that while the headlock scenario seems favorable to use on some students, & also important to note, I've never had a student try throw an eraser out the window, that I knew instinctively that D. was the correct answer here. Lol.

Oh yeah....remember that time I graduated from college?!!?

I can't believe I forgot to post about that all-time important event, which I was unsure of when I began school at BYU in Utah! I walked at BYU graduation in April & officially graduated last month (June) after a few difficulties with the graduation & licensure office at BYU. No good thing has ever come easy for me, but I'm glad I finally can say I'm an alumni of BYU! 
My friend Amber says "it's about time." 
Mom & Dad came out for my graduation, & my two sisters Sar & Shan were already in Provo & able to come (as well as my brother-in-law Kurt.) It was a very happy occasion. 
Here's my best friend Rachie & I at Commencement on Thursday afternoon; we are so excited to finally be graduating!

Here I am with my good buddy Kyle & his wife Em; it was so fun to graduate with a lot of my freshman year buddies!

Here is me with some education buddies early Friday morning; we made it gals! What a great many things we have learned & experienced together!!! ;)

And here's my lovely fam; I'm so grateful for their love & support all these years! What a happy day! :)