Cat's Litterbox

Spilling the Beans...

Okay... it's been a while since I was able to post anything substantial and there's a good reason! Steve went down to Raleigh, NC about two and a half weeks ago to interview with Burt's Bees (yes... the company that makes the great chap-stick stuff). He and I have been waiting to see if they were going to make him an offer before saying anything to anyone about it.

On Wednesday, Steve was made an offer and we accepted. We're both super excited and can't wait to see what North Carolina has to offer us! I'm a little nervous because I haven't had to interview since 2000 and I feel very comfortable teaching in Lincoln.

I talked to my principal about it while Steve was interviewing. I wanted to give her a "heads-up" and let her know that there was a strong possibility that we'd be moving. She has been very helpful and filled out so many reference forms for me!! I applied to three counties and each one had their own forms... and then I also applied to the state (online) and applied for my NC certification.

I have sent my resume to about 22 schools in four different counties and have had two interviews and several schools email me.

On Tuesday (the 15th) I had my first interview with Oak Grove Elementary. They had wanted to interview me on Friday (the 18th) but we were on our overnight field trip to Howell Nature Center from Thursday to Friday and I was not able to do Friday. They were very willing to change the date and moved it to Tuesday.

I was VERY nervous but not really feeling the school. They're year-round and while I was excited at the idea of teaching in a year-round school, they're multi-track and I wouldn't have a classroom that is mine. I went into the interview with a "I'll give it my all but not care if it doesn't go well" attitude.

The principal was very nice and it felt more like a conversation than an interview. Throughout the entire phone call she gave a lot of positive feed-back and made me feel really good. She said she saw my website and was very impressed. At the end of the interview she said that she was very impressed with my interview and she still had interviews to conduct on Friday, but she'd be getting back in touch with me next week.

We had our overnight field trip to Howell Nature Center Thursday and Friday. I was so tired when I got home Friday. I was laying on the bed and the phone rang. It was the principal at Oak Grove! She was calling to let me know that she had just finished her interviews and she wanted me to know that she was VERY interested in me. She needs my Wake County application varification number (which I don't have yet) and then she can look it over and make an offer. She said that she called Janice and Donna as references and was very impressed with what they said about me. She said that she'd be calling me every two days to get my varification number from me. She also said that she knew I had an interview with Johnston County on Saturday and she asked that I please not accept an offer from anyone else until I talked to her first. A GREAT SIGN!!!

We had dinner with mom and dad (Steak and Ale) to celebrate the move and then we came home. I had to get to bed early because I had another phone interview on Saturday with a principal at West Clayton Elementary (not a year-round school and in a different county).

The principal at West Clayton had sent me an email asking me to contact him about an interview about two weeks ago. I told him that I was in Michigan and was not able to do a face-to-face interview until June at the earliest and asked if he'd be willing to do a phone interview. He called me last Saturday right before I was about to leave with mom to get pedicures. He and I rescheduled to this past Saturday at 9am. He didn't call until 9:20.

West Clayton is not in Wake County and they are more rural than anything else. The principal was very nice but gave me NO feedback during the interview. I had no idea how I was doing while he was asking questions. It definitely felt like an interview... and not easy like a conversation. Anyway-- not sure what the status is of that one. I told the principal that Steve and I were going to be in NC this next weekend and he said to give him a call so he could show me around the school. We'll see about that. He said that he was impressed with my interview, but who knows. He didn't check out my website and really didn't answer any of the questions that I asked him.

Today we went to the Tigers vs. Cardinals game at Comerica Park. I met my 5th graders down there and it was a blast. It was FREEZING... but it was fun.

We put the house on the market and have our for sale sign outside! I think we've got a great house and I'm hopeful that we'll be able to sell it soon!!

We go to NC Thursday through Monday and we're going to be house-hunting. The goal is to find a house and make an offer and be able to move during the week of June 11th. I get out of school on June 8th so that weekend will be spent packing up my classroom and packing our house.

I'll stay in touch and keep everyone posted on our new endeavor! We're excited and can't wait to see what comes our way. Michigan is just not going anywhere and NC is growing and full of promise. We'll be about two hours from the beach and three hours from the mountains!

Until next time...
>^..^<