Highlights of 2006

I'm going to combine two prompts into one here.

The first asked what am I doing now that I could not have imagined doing a year ago. Well, that is easy - I'm teaching full time! Although I realised almost three years ago that I wanted to be a teacher, I was afraid of taking the plunge and doing anything about it. I got my CV ready, I talked about it all the time. But I was comfortable (in a strange way) in my dull, repetitive and extremely easy job.

All of a sudden I was galvanised into action in May of 2006 - I stopped talking and sent my CV to the Council. They set me up with a meeting at the school and by June I was offered a position to do the GTP, working as an unqualified teacher. I left my job at the beginning of July and spent the last two weeks of term in school.

As we speak I am one day away from the end of my Christmas holidays. I still get scared and have doubts in myself and my abilities - am I teaching things right? Are the kids learning all they need to? But when it comes down to it I am really enjoying myself - every day is different and challenging, I am NEVER bored, and I am finally using my brain and my talents for a good purpose. I can't believe I am one third of the way through this first year already, and I couldn't have imagined, this time last year, that 2006 would finally be the year I would take the plunge!

The other highlights of my year absolutely have to include becoming an Auntie for the first time, and my trip to Walt DisneyWorld in Florida with Carl. Special moments of that trip were celebrating our anniversary at Discovery Cove, where we swam with dolphins, and then eating at the California Grill, where we had a window table to watch the Wishes fireworks and the staff went out of the way to make it the most special evening of our lives. We also got to meet up with my scrapping friend Diana, and her husband Brad, and we spent a wonderful afternoon at Downtown Disney - lunch at the Earl of Sandwich and margaritas at the House of Blues - absolutely wonderful :D

I can honestly say that 2006 has been a fantastic year for us - it has had its ups and downs but overwhelmingly the ups have been the greatest. Our first full year in our own home has been everything we hoped it would be and more! The photographs represent just a few of these special moments.