Well, the inspection team arrived at work this past week and things are different this year than they were last year - last year, there were three people on the team and the inspection lasted 2.5 days; this year, there are two people on the team and the inspection is going to last 4.5 days (two days at the infant - preschool building and two days at my school age building and then the out brief meeting). The inspectors have already spent one day at my building but they will be inspecting things tomorrow as well. So far the duo has been helpful and has trained us on some things while they're here but as of this moment, I don't have a feeling on how things are going overall other than I'm under their microscope.
Last year for our inspection score, we ended up receiving a 82% (national average for this inspection was 83%). I am definitely hoping for a better score this year but I won't even know the preliminary score until Tuesday morning during the out brief. The other building received a score of 94% (or one or two percentage points around that number) so I was hoping to give them a run for their money this year; but I just don't know which direction our score might be headed... I know the score itself is not the most important thing but I do want us to do better than last year. When we were inspected last year, I had only been the director for about 6 months, this time it's been me for the whole year so I'm hoping that makes a difference...
One of the things that does make me feel good about the inspection team is one of the members, through us talking, told me that they love my personality and that I shouldn't change for anyone. That definitely made me feel good since there are times I wonder if I should act differently since I am in management... Knowing that an inspector, who sees lots of different directors in different parts of the country, loves my personality and how I come across helped me know that I'm at least doing that right. Even just hearing those words was enough to give me a spark of muchness and know that I absolutely need to allow me to shine through; I've been trying to shove me into a box again and I have a feeling that's why I've been struggling...
Yesterday the dance troupe that I'm a part of had the opportunity to dance at a restaurant show. This is a very casual gig that we participate at as a group at least once a year (and I've been invited to solo many times). We got there yesterday and the person who was planning on dancing first, her CD wouldn't play. My instructor asked if I would then do my solo. As I was dancing, my instructor and the other dancer were right by the stage talking and listening to clips of new pieces of music to find a piece for her to dance to. I was working with my sword and found it very dangerous/distracting for them to be right next to the stage talking/listening to music. While I can't imagine how the other dancer felt because her music didn't work, I felt it was hurtful and disrespectful for them to try and find a new piece of music while I was trying to perform. Maybe this is something I just need to embrace and learn from it...
One of the things I need to remind myself is that I need to stop trying to let other people define me. Rather than just brushing off what was going on during my solo yesterday, I let it affect my performance and my dance suffered; not only did my solo suffer but so did the duet/trio/group dances that I also participated in. Instead than letting the pressure get to me, I should embrace my muchness and keep moving on; with dance, with work, with my life. Right now, I'm letting other people define my muchness and that needs to change - not at some undefined moment in history, but now. I need to retake to control of me and my muchness.
Well my dear readers, I'm going to bring this to a close for the evening so I can hopefully get some rest tonight before my inspection day tomorrow. I hope when muchness opportunities come your way that you're able to embrace them with both hands and run with it! =)
Sunday, June 28, 2015
Sunday, June 21, 2015
Work, work, work...
Let me begin this week by wishing all of the dads out there a Happy Father's Day! I have personally learned so many different things from my Dad growing up and I still learn from him on a regular basis. Dad, thank you for all that you have taught me and continue to teach me - it means more than I can say... (see, nothing too mushy...) =)
I survived another week of summer camp at work and put in just under 60 hours. We were supposed to have a late night event that I was supposed to be the manager on duty; thankfully the event was cancelled. I would've used the event to get work done but it was probably good for me that I didn't have to put in those additional hours. One of the fun things we had happen at work this past week is we had a kid's fun run on Friday afternoon. Several kids asked me if I was going to participate and I did; I didn't run (I'm not a runner) but I did walk about 1.25-1.5 miles so I felt pretty good about that. We had lots of parents attend the event and the kids seemed to have fun so those things made the work worth it.
Participating in the fun run was a really good opportunity for me to get away from the office. This past week, things have been a little crazy in the office as we got word that we're getting inspected this upcoming week. Now I'm not one who believes in necessarily changing things just because we're getting inspected but not everyone I work with feels that way. I see these inspections as learning opportunities and that it's the job of the inspector(s) to find things. I'm not sure when this week they're coming but I will do my best and I ask that my coworkers do the same. I'll let you know next week how well that works out...
Granted, I am a perfectionist and I want to do the best that I can but I don't feel you can do your best if you're trying to throw things together last minute just because you find out inspectors are coming. Looking at where we are this year in comparison to last year, I think the building is in a better place and I'm thinking we're going to better this year than we did last year. I know that some of it will boil down to the interpretation of the criteria from the inspectors but they do give us the opportunity to explain how we are meeting the inspection criteria in the program. One of the things that does make me a little nervous is my boss has said she's leaving me on my own this year so we'll see how that goes.
Something that will help is one of my staff who has been out due to an injury is supposed to be back to work this next week and because many of our families are on vacation, we don't have as many kids enrolled this week in the program. Having lower numbers makes my boss nervous that the inspectors will think that's the norm but everything is in the computer and for whatever reason, this time of year, we've had lower numbers statistically the last couple of years so I'm not overly concerned.
I know I've written it before but I'm going to write it again - I am hoping to find some time this week to do something for me. I know it's going to be crazy busy at work (especially if the inspectors arrive) but I think it's only going to make things worse if I don't find/take opportunities for myself. This past week, I could actually feel my stress levels rising and I had to excuse myself from a conversation before I said something that would've gotten me in trouble at work. I've thought about carrying around a small stress ball for those types of situations but I don't know if that would be my best option because then it just gives me something to throw. =)
Well, I think this might have just taken a turn for the weird so I think I'm going to bring this to a close for this evening. I hope you have a wonderful week my dear readers and I will let you know how the inspection goes next week. Thanks for joining me! =)
I survived another week of summer camp at work and put in just under 60 hours. We were supposed to have a late night event that I was supposed to be the manager on duty; thankfully the event was cancelled. I would've used the event to get work done but it was probably good for me that I didn't have to put in those additional hours. One of the fun things we had happen at work this past week is we had a kid's fun run on Friday afternoon. Several kids asked me if I was going to participate and I did; I didn't run (I'm not a runner) but I did walk about 1.25-1.5 miles so I felt pretty good about that. We had lots of parents attend the event and the kids seemed to have fun so those things made the work worth it.
Participating in the fun run was a really good opportunity for me to get away from the office. This past week, things have been a little crazy in the office as we got word that we're getting inspected this upcoming week. Now I'm not one who believes in necessarily changing things just because we're getting inspected but not everyone I work with feels that way. I see these inspections as learning opportunities and that it's the job of the inspector(s) to find things. I'm not sure when this week they're coming but I will do my best and I ask that my coworkers do the same. I'll let you know next week how well that works out...
Granted, I am a perfectionist and I want to do the best that I can but I don't feel you can do your best if you're trying to throw things together last minute just because you find out inspectors are coming. Looking at where we are this year in comparison to last year, I think the building is in a better place and I'm thinking we're going to better this year than we did last year. I know that some of it will boil down to the interpretation of the criteria from the inspectors but they do give us the opportunity to explain how we are meeting the inspection criteria in the program. One of the things that does make me a little nervous is my boss has said she's leaving me on my own this year so we'll see how that goes.
Something that will help is one of my staff who has been out due to an injury is supposed to be back to work this next week and because many of our families are on vacation, we don't have as many kids enrolled this week in the program. Having lower numbers makes my boss nervous that the inspectors will think that's the norm but everything is in the computer and for whatever reason, this time of year, we've had lower numbers statistically the last couple of years so I'm not overly concerned.
I know I've written it before but I'm going to write it again - I am hoping to find some time this week to do something for me. I know it's going to be crazy busy at work (especially if the inspectors arrive) but I think it's only going to make things worse if I don't find/take opportunities for myself. This past week, I could actually feel my stress levels rising and I had to excuse myself from a conversation before I said something that would've gotten me in trouble at work. I've thought about carrying around a small stress ball for those types of situations but I don't know if that would be my best option because then it just gives me something to throw. =)
Well, I think this might have just taken a turn for the weird so I think I'm going to bring this to a close for this evening. I hope you have a wonderful week my dear readers and I will let you know how the inspection goes next week. Thanks for joining me! =)
Sunday, June 14, 2015
Surprises - some good/some not so good...
It was a long and crazy/hectic week but I survived the first week of summer programming at work; ended up clocking about 60 hours but survived (even with one staff out for the entire week and another called out sick on Friday but I made it work). This upcoming week will present a new set of challenges; the one staff member is still out (with an injury - luckily one that she did not sustain at work or that would be an even bigger issue) and a class of pre-Kindergartners are joining the program as they are in transition. I'm sure that this class of kids coming into the building will just add to the chaos but I'm truly hoping that everything goes smoothly.
I should have known it was going to be an interesting week when I left work on Monday and found that my windshield had been broken while I was in the building. It looked as if the crack had been caused by a rock (we have rocks surrounding the building and I'm wondering if there was a kid out there throwing them); there was an impact mark right under the wiper blades that went to the bottom of the windshield and then vertically just over 1/3 of height of my windshield. I called the insurance company when I got home and they told me that my glass deductible was $500 and that's what it would cost to replace the windshield. The insurance company put me in touch with the company to replace the windshield and they said they could come to my work on Wednesday to replace it. Wednesday morning I had an email from the glass company asking me to call them immediately - they had received the new glass but it had arrived damaged and they wouldn't be able to get a new one until Friday. Luckily Friday rolled around and the tech was able to come out and replace the glass and (knock on wood) it's been fine since.
There was one day in particular that I was feeling particularly overwhelmed/stressed this past week so I turned to FaceBook for some suggestions. I stated that I dislike yoga and that I don't do massages and asked for other suggestions for stress relief. I was surprised by the number of people who suggested drinking wine and I had other suggest yoga/massages and didn't understand why I had already crossed those options off of my list - I find yoga particularly boring (I know some people swear by it but I am not one of those) and the only two massages I have ever gotten were bad because the masseuse kept yelling at me to RELAX. There were a few people that suggested walks in nature of some sort and I actually found myself on auto-pilot driving to the beach yesterday morning. I walked on the sand and found a nice rock to sit on while I watched the waves.
Before I left the beach (about 2 hours later), I built a cairn on the spot where I had been sitting. For those of you who don't know what a cairn is, it's a rock stack used to mark trails or for meditation purposes. While they may be frustrating to create, they are symbolic to leaving your frustrations behind. I did struggle some while building (I built one for me and one for my Mom - she and I built them together the last time my Mom and Dad visited) but I actually did feel some better once I was finished. I am hoping that the feeling continues heading into this next week.
I did have a wonderful surprise/out of the blue phone call from an old friend this past week. She said she wasn't sure why but she felt the need to call me this past week. Boy, am I ever glad she did! She was one of my coworkers when she lived out here (she worked in an infant room and I worked in a preschool room) and we hit it off during my divorce. She and her husband (along with their two boys) ended up moving about five years ago and I've heard some from her since but not much. Come to find out, she and I are both doing the same job in our respective locations and we have the opportunity to meet up with one another at a conference at the end of August! I am SO excited!! Even though it's still a long time away, I'm definitely glad to have something to look forward to after summer programming is over, school has started and we have completed the site visit for our building accreditation - all big things that are adding to my stress levels.
I think one of the things I'm going to try and remember going into this next week is a quote from the movie All About Steve - "Less work. More of everything else. Be normal." While I don't necessarily want to be normal (I want my freak flag to fly and to embrace my muchness) but I do agree with the less work; more of everything else. I am still desperately trying to figure out that balance of less work/more everything else (must be the Libra in me) but I know that I will get there one of these days... either by my choice or the nice individuals in their crisp white coats who give me a coat of my own that gives me a hug...
Well my dear readers, I think I have come to that time yet again to bring this to a close for this evening. I have another long week ahead and I still have some laundry I need to at least think about putting away before bed. I hope that you have a week filled with muchness and you find opportunities/experiences that bring you joy. =)
I should have known it was going to be an interesting week when I left work on Monday and found that my windshield had been broken while I was in the building. It looked as if the crack had been caused by a rock (we have rocks surrounding the building and I'm wondering if there was a kid out there throwing them); there was an impact mark right under the wiper blades that went to the bottom of the windshield and then vertically just over 1/3 of height of my windshield. I called the insurance company when I got home and they told me that my glass deductible was $500 and that's what it would cost to replace the windshield. The insurance company put me in touch with the company to replace the windshield and they said they could come to my work on Wednesday to replace it. Wednesday morning I had an email from the glass company asking me to call them immediately - they had received the new glass but it had arrived damaged and they wouldn't be able to get a new one until Friday. Luckily Friday rolled around and the tech was able to come out and replace the glass and (knock on wood) it's been fine since.
There was one day in particular that I was feeling particularly overwhelmed/stressed this past week so I turned to FaceBook for some suggestions. I stated that I dislike yoga and that I don't do massages and asked for other suggestions for stress relief. I was surprised by the number of people who suggested drinking wine and I had other suggest yoga/massages and didn't understand why I had already crossed those options off of my list - I find yoga particularly boring (I know some people swear by it but I am not one of those) and the only two massages I have ever gotten were bad because the masseuse kept yelling at me to RELAX. There were a few people that suggested walks in nature of some sort and I actually found myself on auto-pilot driving to the beach yesterday morning. I walked on the sand and found a nice rock to sit on while I watched the waves.
Before I left the beach (about 2 hours later), I built a cairn on the spot where I had been sitting. For those of you who don't know what a cairn is, it's a rock stack used to mark trails or for meditation purposes. While they may be frustrating to create, they are symbolic to leaving your frustrations behind. I did struggle some while building (I built one for me and one for my Mom - she and I built them together the last time my Mom and Dad visited) but I actually did feel some better once I was finished. I am hoping that the feeling continues heading into this next week.
I did have a wonderful surprise/out of the blue phone call from an old friend this past week. She said she wasn't sure why but she felt the need to call me this past week. Boy, am I ever glad she did! She was one of my coworkers when she lived out here (she worked in an infant room and I worked in a preschool room) and we hit it off during my divorce. She and her husband (along with their two boys) ended up moving about five years ago and I've heard some from her since but not much. Come to find out, she and I are both doing the same job in our respective locations and we have the opportunity to meet up with one another at a conference at the end of August! I am SO excited!! Even though it's still a long time away, I'm definitely glad to have something to look forward to after summer programming is over, school has started and we have completed the site visit for our building accreditation - all big things that are adding to my stress levels.
I think one of the things I'm going to try and remember going into this next week is a quote from the movie All About Steve - "Less work. More of everything else. Be normal." While I don't necessarily want to be normal (I want my freak flag to fly and to embrace my muchness) but I do agree with the less work; more of everything else. I am still desperately trying to figure out that balance of less work/more everything else (must be the Libra in me) but I know that I will get there one of these days... either by my choice or the nice individuals in their crisp white coats who give me a coat of my own that gives me a hug...
Well my dear readers, I think I have come to that time yet again to bring this to a close for this evening. I have another long week ahead and I still have some laundry I need to at least think about putting away before bed. I hope that you have a week filled with muchness and you find opportunities/experiences that bring you joy. =)
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Fuel you soul
I heard something mentioned on TV that caught me, someone was talking about what "fueled her soul" and that got me thinking - if asked, what would I say fueled my soul?
One of the things that I know fuels my soul is going whale watching. Yesterday I had an amazing trip out whale watching and I am so glad that Mom pushed me to go. As I was leaving the house, I remembered the binoculars that my parents bought me for Christmas a couple of years ago that I hadn't used yet so I grabbed those as I walked out the door. As we were waiting for the boat to pull away from the dock, a sea otter popped up, opened his sea food on his belly, inhaled it, and then disappeared under the water again. Once we began our voyage, we saw a pair of minke whale (looked like an adult and calf) which was amazing in and of itself because they usually avoid boats.
As we got out further into the ocean, we began to see blows (the bursts of water from the whale blowhole). I usually see them before anyone else and Mom pointed out when I was talking to her today that I might see them since I work with kids and I am constantly looking for things out of the ordinary with a sharp eye. We ended up spotting a group of humpback whales and a few of them just kept getting closer and closer to the boat. It was AMAZING! There were two or three humpbacks that were very curious and they kept going under the boat and coming up on either side. I ended up getting some pretty neat videos/photos and I finally ended up putting my phone away to just enjoy the experience. Right after I put my phone away, a whale's head popped up right by the boat and I might have missed it because I had been taking photos of the whales further out. This is one of the photos I captured:
One of the things that I know fuels my soul is going whale watching. Yesterday I had an amazing trip out whale watching and I am so glad that Mom pushed me to go. As I was leaving the house, I remembered the binoculars that my parents bought me for Christmas a couple of years ago that I hadn't used yet so I grabbed those as I walked out the door. As we were waiting for the boat to pull away from the dock, a sea otter popped up, opened his sea food on his belly, inhaled it, and then disappeared under the water again. Once we began our voyage, we saw a pair of minke whale (looked like an adult and calf) which was amazing in and of itself because they usually avoid boats.
As we got out further into the ocean, we began to see blows (the bursts of water from the whale blowhole). I usually see them before anyone else and Mom pointed out when I was talking to her today that I might see them since I work with kids and I am constantly looking for things out of the ordinary with a sharp eye. We ended up spotting a group of humpback whales and a few of them just kept getting closer and closer to the boat. It was AMAZING! There were two or three humpbacks that were very curious and they kept going under the boat and coming up on either side. I ended up getting some pretty neat videos/photos and I finally ended up putting my phone away to just enjoy the experience. Right after I put my phone away, a whale's head popped up right by the boat and I might have missed it because I had been taking photos of the whales further out. This is one of the photos I captured:
After having the amazing opportunity I did yesterday whale watching, I took myself to one of my favorite hole in the wall restaurants and ate a homemade caramel crepe with homemade whipped cream. It was pure wonderful decadent deliciousness. I know it was WAY too many calories for one meal but I really didn't care. Yesterday was all about recharging the batteries before what tomorrow begins...
Tomorrow starts eight weeks of summer programming at work. The schedule has been created, programming is in place, and field trips are ready to go (still waiting on some parents to turn in signed permission slips but if I don't get them, their kids can't and won't go). On the other hand, I'm short staffed, we're preparing for major inspections and I'm not sure how I'm going to bring it all together so I'm more than a little stressed. I know that what is going to happen is going to happen regardless of planning or my stress levels but that doesn't necessarily help calm me down any...
One of the words I'm trying to embrace is delegate. Rather than just trying to pick up their slack or take on their responsibilities to help take things off of their plates, I need to learn to stop adding to my own workload just to make their work lives easier. I know that I have a tendency to rush in and help when I should sit back and let my staff take care of their responsibilities. While it might be difficult and it may be a struggle, I do need to let the staff take care of what they need to take care of so I can accomplish my own job. We'll see how well that goes over...
On that note, my dear readers, I am going to bring this for a close for the night. I should probably get a decent night sleep since it looks like I'm probably going to be pulling a 12 hour work day tomorrow. Maybe I'll look through my whale watching photos/videos before going to bed to help fuel my soul and make sure the batteries are filled before the alarm goes off very early tomorrow morning. I wish you the best along your own personal journey to fuel your own souls; thanks for joining me for another week! =)
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