Casey's blog
Class of 2009, Elementary Education Minor: Early Childhood Education Major, from Wales, WI

The semester is going so fast and with the cold weather here it means the semester is almost over! Last week we had just finished our last advisement day for the semester. Advisement day is where students meet with their assigned advisers in order to figure out their schedule for the next semester. Then later in the week there is an assigned day for everyone based on your credits giving you your specific time to register. I am ready and registered for student teaching in the spring of 2009. I can’t believe it will be my last semester of college. Where does the time go?
I am pretty much done with my tests for the semester until finals week. Now all I have left to do is my projects. For me I love to be creative and make things rather than take tests. I have been procrastinating a bit more than I should this semester, so for the next two weeks I will be getting down to business in order to finish in time.
I am all ready to go to Ireland in January for my first placement. I have two meetings left with my supervisor. I am slowly gathering everything for my trip. I don’t know how I am going to get everything to fit in my suitcase for 10 weeks but I will find a way somehow. I am so excited to go and it is becoming more and more of a reality each day.
I will write again closer to finals week to let everyone know how my classes are going and what I have to do for finals. I know I will get everything done in time and the semester will be done. I can’t believe it! Until then try to stay warm in this cold weather!

The Weekend is HERE!!
I am so excited for the weekend. This week has been one of my most stressful weeks so far this semester but I got through it just fine. I had three tests this week two were supposed to be on the same day but thankfully one got changed. With all of that stress out of the way I am ready to relax and enjoy the next few days. I have some great news regarding my teaching abroad plans; I bought my plane ticket!! I am all set and ready to go. It is all coming together and feels so real. I will be leaving January 17th and returning to the states April 4th. While I am in Ireland, I will be teaching 8 to 10 year olds which works out to be my upper level placement. When I get back and into a Green Bay school I will be placed in a kindergarten or first grade class. I am so excited and ready to begin packing! I still have some things I want to figure out first and I have yet to talk with my host family, although with my plane ticket worries out of the way I can now say that I am ecstatic to be going to Ireland! The weather has been not so great this week--cold, damp, and rainy. So I can’t wait to sit back, relax, warm up, and enjoy my weekend. I hope you are doing the same! Until next time….

Fall Break is here!

Today was our last day of classes because tomorrow and Friday we have off due to Fall Break. It has come at the perfect time because I have just finished some hard exams and have some new projects ahead of me for next week. The time off will allow me to catch up and relax for a bit. My family and I are headed to Minnesota today and we will be staying with my Aunt. She is a professor at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. I am very excited to get a break from school and visit with my family.
I have also done some research on the area I will hopefully be traveling to in the spring for my student teaching placement in Ireland. I am getting super excited about it and the pictures from the Internet are beautiful. I have already learned some interesting information about the language spoken where I will be staying as well as some of their customs and traditions. I have not purchased my plane ticket quite yet, but once that time comes everything will be set. This semester is going by so quickly and I can’t believe its October 1st! I am having a blast and I will write again soon about more of my time at SNC! Bye for now…

This is my very first blog as a SNC blogger, so I wanted to start out talking a little bit about my family and myself. There are four of us in my family. I have one older sister Erin, who is an RN at Waukesha Memorial Hospital. She is a year older than me and just graduated this past May from Carroll College. Erin ran all four years in cross-country and track. She has made a name for herself at Carroll making it to nationals all four years in cross-country and track. Erin is an amazing athlete. I am also athletic and have played for the past 3 years on SNC Women’s soccer. I think my decision to play soccer was a great choice because I have made some of the best friends that I will continue to stay in touch with after college. This year is the first year I have not played and it was a very hard decision. As an elementary education major student teaching next semester I have decided I would like to teach abroad in Ireland. With this decision made I decided not to play in the hopes of working and saving money for my trip. I know the girls will have a great season and I plan on going to every game I can to cheer them on. My parents have always been very active with my sister and I, so it is somewhat of a relief to them that I am not playing because they finally after 4 years have a break from traveling to all of our games and meets. My mother works for Carroll College and my father owns his own insurance agency. They both have been very supportive over the years both in our sports and academic accomplishments.
As far as classes go this semester I am currently taking Geology, Enlightenment, Social Inequalities, and the Writing Process. The Writing Process is my very last education course at St. Norbert College since I will be student teaching the spring semester. The other courses are all general studies that I need to have in order to graduate. I have not been too stressed out yet this semester with my classes, but I also have not had any exams or tests. When I am not doing homework or studying I like to spend time with my friends, work out, and be active outside. With the weather still nice I would like to enjoy all the time I can before the winter comes! I have now let you see what I have been up to the first couple weeks of school and I will blog again in a few weeks with more experiences and stories! Talk to you soon!