First Days of School

When I was growing up, going back to school always signalled the end of summer.  And here I find myself, yet again, going back to school.  Although this time from a slightly different perspective.  Today the teachers reported for duty (although this was not the first time I've been in - one of the reasons I haven't been blogging!).  It was a whirlwind and I know it's only going to get worse.  Maybe if I stop neglecting my blog, I'll stay sane.

Tomorrow is freshman orientation and I am so excited to meet all my students.  I'm also secretly excited to wear my new school outfit and use copious amounts of school supplies.  Maybe I'll even have my mom take one of those first day of school pictures.  :-)

So, happy end to the summer everyone!  And welcome to the fall.  One of the best running seasons of the year.

Way To Go, Bro!

Again, I must apologize for my lack of posting.  Things have been very busy, with many changes and new things happening.  I haven't had much time to blog and besides, I didn't want to share any news until things were finalized.  Call me supersticious.  Anyway, I'm going to try to be better, I swear.

This past weekend my little brother graduated high school!  Patrick and I are so very proud of him.  He graduated 6th in his class (of over 450 students) and he wore many cords and medals symbolizing all his accomplishments.  Look at him all decked out:

In the fall he will be attending a state university in NH for atmospheric sciences.  He wants to be a meteorologist.  I told him he needs to get better at lying if that's the profession he really wants to go in to.  His choice of school means he won't be too far from home, which is nice in a way.  I know his leaving for school is harder on my mom than when I left because he hangs out with my parents more than I did.

I know my whole family is really proud of Evan and we are all wishing him the best of luck in school.  Although, none of us really have to worry about him not studying.  I keep reminding him to enjoy these next few years because they are going to fly by.  Hopefully he listens to his old lady of a sister.

Graduation Recap - Commencement

So I forgot to mention in my last post that at the Honors College Celebration I was also given one of the two service awards for service to the college.  It was really a nice surprise.

Anyway, the last thing to recap is the actual commencement.  I must say, much of the reason I even marched was because it was important to my parents.  Personally, I think the ceremony is long and impersonal and I could have done without it.  However, I do think I would have regretted not going later in life, so I decided to do it.  It was interesting because as I was pausing to reflect on the occasion I found that I really didn't feel much of anything.  When I graduated high school I cried because I was so excited to be out of that place.  When I left a summer program I cried because I didn't want to go home.  College graduation: nothing.  I wasn't upset and I wasn't overly excited either.  Something tells me I'm not really going to appreciate this event until later in my life.

The morning started out with one last trip to our department.  We had a small breakfast and chatted before the ceremony.  And took lots of pictures.  This is me with the four other chemistry majors that graduated this year:

We even look normal.  Not nerdy at all.

Then it was time for the ceremony.  Lots of important people spoke, like the president of our university;

And a mere 1.5 hours later it was time to cross the stage and receive our empty diploma holders.  Here I am with my pal Chelsea, a fellow chemistry major:

Another 45 minutes went by and we were released out into the world for copious amounts of pictures.  So here they all are.  First with my family:

My parents:

My awesome aunt and uncle who made the long-ass trip up to see me graduate:

Me with Patrick (I should note that he is wearing essentially the same outfit he wore to my high school graduation):

And then finally, because my dad was jealous of my sweet out fit, he decided to try it out for himself:

And there you have it.  All graduated and now poised to face the real world.  I've kept it quite, but I did have an interview last Monday.  Haven't heard anything yet, but I'm really hoping some other places start calling soon!  Keeping my fingers crossed for the best!

Gradutation Recap - Honors College Celebration

Whew, now that graduation is over, I can finally recap!  It was literally a weekend event, so I'm going to do multiple parts.  The first big event was the Honors College Celebration.  Participating in the Honors College is one of my biggest college accomplishments.  It's probably what I am most proud of from my college career.  Being part of the Honors College requires some additional classes and writing an Honors Thesis, which I successfully defended several weeks ago with highest honors.  You can read about it HERE.

At the end of the semester, the host a brunch to celebrate the students graduating with honors.  I was one of 86 people who graduated with Honors this year.  They give us sweet medals to wear at graduation and steins that are handmade (to help us catch up on the drinking we missed out on while we were busy working on our theses).  Here's my advisor giving me my medal:

And this one's a little easier to see:

And this one is me with the our Dean, Charlie.  Check out the bling in this photo:

We also spent some time walking around campus and taking everything in one last time.  This is Patrick and I in front of the building where I spent the last four years of my life:

Later that evening, we went out on the town to test out my new stein.  Here's one of my parents:

And one of Patrick and I:

Up next, Commencement Recap!

Just a Quick Update

I'm a currently in Maine packing our apartment and awaiting my college commencement in the morning.  I've been MIA as I took a week to work on my job search and reflect on my last four years.  It's been quite the ride filled with lots of hard work.  There have been some sweet rewards at the end of it all though, making it totally worth all the hours.  I will have lots of pictures and lots to recap after this weekend is over.  Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Happy Maine Day!

We have a tradition around here that is actually quite nice.  It's called Maine Day.  Maine Day is held every year on the Wednesday during the last week of classes.  It's a day that's supposed to be about service.  Notice how I used the word service.  I'm not sure the actual number of people who do service, but it's likely a small percentage of people.  Because the real appeal of Maine Day is that we don't have any classes (unless your class only meets once a week on Wednesdays and your professor is a big meanie and makes you go to class).  My professor was nice so I don't have my four hour lab class today.  Score!

There are also traditions such as the Maine Day Parade (the marching band all gets up early and plays really loudly around campus to wake everyone up) and Oozeball (volleyball in the mud).  And I'm sure the is copious amounts of alcohol consumption occurring as well.

I have never participated in the service projects on campus because my department always holds their awards ceremony on Maine Day.  I do, however, help our administrative assistant to setup for the awards ceremony.  This year I received an award for outstanding graduating senior in our department from the Maine section of the American Chemical Society.  It even came with a little money.

And later, my friend and I celebrated our last few days of college with a trip to Marshall's to find dresses for graduation.  Then we celebrated our success a Marshall's with a trip to Gifford's Ice Cream (Maine made baby!).  It's really all starting to sink in that it's coming to an end.  I'm trying to just soak up every second of it!  Happy Maine Day everyone!

WAHOOOO!!!

Can you tell I'm excited?  Well, I am!  This past Friday I finally defended my thesis (hence my lack of posting - I had to prepare).  It was sort of surreal.  I mean, I've spent about a year thinking, working, and breathing all things thesis.  For it all to culminate was inevitable, but it came too fast and not fast enough all at the same time.  It's been the weirdest roller coaster of emotions.

Since Patrick has moved back to NH, I was really bummed that he wouldn't be around to see my presentation.  But earlier in the week my mom let the cat out of the bag that they were going to come.  Yay!  They drove up Friday morning in time for my 11:30am defense. 

Considering this defense was for my undergrad work, I had quite the audience.  I made my defense open because I had lots of people who helped and wanted to see the final product.  Including my 5 person committee, there were 15 people there.  The presentation went really smoothly and the audience asked some great questions.  Then the audience was dismissed and I was left to answer my committee's questions.  I was pleasantly surprised that it was more of a conversation than my being drilled with questions.  After that, I was asked to leave the room while they deliberated.

You see, I'm also a member of the Honors College.  And if you do an Honors thesis the committee has to determine if you graduate with no Honors, Honors, High Honors, or Highest Honors.  Being the Type A control freak that I am, I of course wanted Highest Honors.  But the situation with my advisor had the potential to put my work at a lower level than I would have liked.

After deliberating for what felt like forever, I was called back into the room and everyone started hugging me and shaking my hand.  I was trying to see the paper where they wrote down their choice when the head of my department finally told me that I got Highest Honors!  So exciting!  I will now be accepting celebratory gifts!  :-)

My mom, Patrick, and I spent Friday night celebrating but they had to leave on Saturday morning.  I've been spending the rest of the weekend relaxing and catching up on things that I've been missing out on.  I still have some edits to do, but the bulk of the work is over.  Graduation is in three weeks!

Three Things Thursday

1.  Probably the most exciting news is that I literally just sent copies of my thesis to my committee.  Hence why I have been absent from blog land.  I defend a week from tomorrow.  Puke.  I can't believe that this phase of my life is coming to a close so fast.  It's exciting and terrifying all at the same time.

2.  It was nice enough today that I broke out my trusty steed and went for a ride.  It was so refreshing not to be couped up in the gym biking to nowhere.  It was sunny and gorgeous and just what I needed.  It was the perfect break from the thesis work.  I think this is the earliest I've ever been out in the season because my bike usually stays in NH.  This year it's here in ME with me because I have a place to put it.  This weekend is supposed to be even warmer and I'm looking forward to getting in a run and a bike.  Glorious!

3.  As of Monday, Patrick and I are apart for a month while he works and I stay in ME to finish school.  It's been a real bummer, but I'm trying to make the best of the situation.  I'm using the 5 weeks to focus on exercising and eating healthy.  So far, so good!  I've done a great job staying on track with my eating despite the stress.  I'm kind of looking forward to my weigh-in on Saturday.  It really helps that the only food I eat is what I bring home from the grocery store.  There's nothing in the apartment to tempt me.

How's everyone else doing?

Thanks, Recs, & Changes

1.  I am finally over 100 followers!  Amazing!  It's exciting and I'm amazed that so many people have decided to read and share my journey (or joined in for the free stuff).  When I first started this, I was often writing for myself.  It's nice to know others are reading and that I'm not the only one facing the situations I've faced.  Thanks to all of you who read and an extra thank you to those who comment.  This blog community has really helped motivate me to try new things and reach new goals I never thought possible.  Maybe it's time for another giveaway?

2.  Thanks for all the Chicago suggestions.  If you missed it, we are headed to Chicago for our summer vacation this June.  We're looking for recommendations on fun things to do!

3.  I'm feeling like my life is changing so fast right now.  There are only about 40 more days until graduation.  We're working on moving back to NH and finding grown up jobs.  We'll be moving back in with my parents and trying to get into our own place.  Plus I need to finish my thesis project.  It's all so much at once.  This makes me glad we got married last summer.  A wedding this summer would have just pushed things over the edge.

I'm desperately trying to avoid stress eating.  It hasn't been easy.  Getting in my workouts has also been difficult as my schedule begins to get busier.  In the near future, I will be having some extra flexibility in my schedule and I'm hoping that will help keep me on track.

Three Things Thursday

1.  My new Jillian videos came in yesterday!  Yay!  I'm planning on running today, so I'll probably get to try them out tomorrow or Saturday.  I also got myself this as an early birthday gift:

 I think I'm going to make some of these for Patrick for Valentine's Day (ssshhhh, don't tell!).  Although, my birthday is only a few days before Valentine's Day, I figure that it will be a nice way to celebrate my birthday too.  I'm not sure that this was the best thing to order while doing Weight Watchers, but it should help me portion control my cake, right?

2.  I had a thesis meeting this morning!  Which really is a miracle.  It went really well and my thesis project is coming along.  This thing is going to be done by May!  And I will graduate on time!  One of my advisers actually said that my project would have made a great Master's project.  I told him I have no problem if he wants to give me a Master's along with my Bachelor's.  That could really save me some time in my academic career.  Hahaha...

3.  I weigh in tonight and obviously, I'm hoping for a loss.  Although I'm not really confident.  I'm feeling like I'm not exercising enough.  I think I'm doing ok with portion control and making healthy choices when it comes to food, but the weather has been making it tough to even just get out and go to the gym.  It's kind of hard to drive in a foot of snow!  I don't know about you, but spring can't come fast enough!  (Or at least warm enough temps to melt some of this snow!

Happy almost weekend!

Sticking Up For Myself

Warning: slight vent ahead.  I understand if you choose to skip this.  :-)

The last couple weeks have been very draining.  Not only were there midterms and papers to write, but I'm trying to finalize my thesis committee and figure out what classes I want to take this spring.  The latter two issues have been stressing out more than they probably should and that's mostly a result of my thesis adviser being difficult.

I need to have five people on my committee.  I have four.  I know who I want to be my final committee member.  She's a professor in my department who has experience in the area I am writing my thesis.  Never mind that I really like her and I feel comfortable going to see her if I need anything.  My thesis adviser would prefer that another professor from a different department be on my committee.  This professor is someone whom I've never met and therefore have no relationship with and would only be on my committee for political reasons that my thesis adviser is not making me privy to.  I really hate that sort of BS.

I also need to decide on my last class.  I have an amazing opportunity to spend a day a week at an area high school to get exposure teaching at that level.  I don't have time to student teach and I think it's really important for me to figure out if teaching is something I'm serious about.  Out of respect, I approached my thesis adviser to let him know I wanted to do this (big mistake!).  I felt he should know what I'm up to next semester, but I'm quickly realizing it's really none of his business and he's just making my life more difficult.

Needless to say, I've had to stick up for myself an awful lot lately.  In the end this is a good experience for me to learn how to diplomatically handle these situations, but it doesn't make it any less frustrating.  My thesis adviser is someone who likes to be in control, which is a trait I also share.  Hence the clashing as of late.  I think he's coming around and he's promised some answers on Monday.  I guess I'm just looking for a little moral support.  All of this has been really draining and I'm just hoping for the best!  Thanks for listening!  End vent.

It's Amazing What You Can Do

Sometimes I amaze myself and find that I'm smarter than I think I am.  Case-in-point: I got a 90 on the physical chemistry exam (yes, it's as bad as it sounds) that I was stressing about.  To study I read over my notes, looked at the problem sets, and read the book.  We had a 5 hour break between class and the exam and everyone was cramming.  Except for me.  I went home, exercised, and then made dinner.  I figured if I didn't know it by then, I wasn't going to learn it in five hours.

I think this idea translates well to running (or triathlons, or whatever is challenging for you).  Sometimes we just don't know what we can do until we try.  And if you do try, you'll be surprised at what you can do.  Another case-in-point: I ran on Sunday so I decided to go for a walk on Monday.  As I headed out the door, I thought, why not run as much of it as you can and then you can walk?  And you know what?  I ran 2.2 miles of the 2.5 mile loop.  Sweet.

I think we hang ourselves up on the fact that we can't do something, when in reality, we are smarter, faster, stronger than we think we are.  All you've got to do is give it an honest shot.  What are you doing to challenge yourself?  Have you ever proved yourself wrong?

Three Things Thursday

Have you entered my Sof Sole giveaway yet?  Check it out HERE.

1.  I had my first two exams of the semester yesterday and today I just feel so relieved.  There was so much stress building up that I'm just glad they're over.  The second exam was in my physical chemistry class (it is just as disgusting as it sounds).  It went a lot better than I expected, but I already can't wait for this class to be over!  Have you ever had a similar experience?  How did you get through it?

2.  Fall is here!  I always feel like it sneaks up on me.  The leaves are turning and the scenery gets more and more beautiful by the day.  And in honor of tomorrow being the first day of October, I busted out these dish towels I got at Target last week:

Again, I don't know why this is sideways!  Anyone have any solutions???

Super cute!  Halloween will be here soon!

3.  And the best news of the day is that I went for a 3 mile run this evening.  It was tough because I've been out of the game for a bit, but it felt awesome.  I walked about a half mile total throughout the run, which I thought was alright considering I've only been running once a week.  The weather was warm and overcast, but there was a really nice breeze to keep me cool.  And when I got home, my pizza dough was ready to be stretched, dressed, and put in the oven.  Yum!  And I enjoyed this view while I ate:

Patrick brought them home for me last Sunday.  I'm blessed with such a wonderful husband!

Happy Thursday!  The weekend will soon be upon us!

Need Some Teaching Advice

So I know a couple of my readers are teachers and I am in need of some teaching advice.  Although even if you're not a teacher, please don't hesitate to comment!  I'm always open to suggestions.  So here's what's been going on:

I'm a TA for a section of general chemistry lab.  I enjoy doing this generally.  The extra cash is nice and most of the students are pretty fun.  I feel that lab can be a little more laid back than lecture and that as long as they're serious when they need to be, I'm cool with it.  I did this last year as well and there were really no issues.  This semester I have a "problem child," if you will, emerging.

The ironic part is that this student is a chemistry major and has the potential to do really well.  He mentioned during the first week of class that he hates doing things just to make a point (i.e. our entire lab curriculum, of which I have no control).  I get his point and I feel bad that I can't really do anything to help him out in this respect.  When I got his first lab report is really wasn't adequate.  They get to do a re-write, so I gave him some comments and the grade he earned (which was not good).

After I handed back the reports we went over common errors, things that lots of people missed.  This student began correcting my grammar as I spoke.  Now don't get me wrong, I make mistakes and I'm all for being corrected to make sure everyone in the class is getting the right information.  But this kid was correcting my grammar as I am speaking!  I don't speak perfectly 100% of the time, but I'm pretty sure everyone can understand me.  I tried to just let this go.

At the end of the class the students have to sign out with me and when he came to sign out I noticed that he didn't complete his analogy worksheet.  I asked if he did it and he told me that he did it in his head.  This is one of the few ways I know that the students are participating because sometimes I have to stay in the lab while some of the students are working on the analogy activity.  He got upset when I told him that not completing assignments will result in a poor participation grade.  I get the sense that he feels like taking this class is beneath him.

Anyway, I am meeting with him tomorrow to go over his lab report (something he signed up for) and I am trying to prepare what I want to say to him.  I feel like his negative attitude is bringing some of the other students down, which is not okay.  I want to reach out, not make it worse.  I feel like this is a fine line I'm walking.  Any advice or tips?

Three Things Thursday

1.  Shocker of all shockers: I just got back from a run!  It feels really nice to be back to running.  Although as a result of taking so much time off, I have to work on building up a base again.  It's really tempting to think that I can just go run three miles, but that's probably not the best option right now.  Baby steps!  I am really proud of myself for getting my workouts done in the AM to beat the heat.  I also prefer morning workouts because I feel pretty burnt out when I get home and the last thing I want to do is exercise.

2.  Patrick and I are officially moved in to our very own apartment.  While we lived together last year, this is the first time we are living by ourselves.  It's nice for a change.  I promise some pictures with in the next week or so.  It's really tiny, so don't get your hopes up too much!  :-)

3.  My semester has officially started as well.  I'm not really sure how I feel about it.  I think I'm just kind of over it.  I do need to write a thesis and that's making me nervous.  Mostly because right now I'm just not interested in doing it.  That may stem from the fact that I have no idea what my thesis is going to be about.  I know it will get done, I just need to find some direction and motivation.

Threee Things Thursday

Have you seen my totally awesome giveaway yet?  No?  Check it out!

1.  As of today, there is one month left until my wedding!  Oh my gosh I don't even know where the time went.  I am very excited (obviously), but the perpetual to-do list that keeps running through my had is very distracting.  It does help that most of the stuff I have left to do is the stuff I don't really want to do.  It'll all be worth it in the end, I know, but I'm really starting to look forward to the honeymoon more than anything.  Can't wait for that beach!  I am excited about all the family and friends that will be travelling in because we don't get to see them often.  I'm a little bummed we won't be able to spend more time with them.

2.  Last night was the awards night for juniors and seniors at my high school.  My little brother is a junior and super smart.  I thought I was super smart in high school, but this kid out-does me all the time.  Like the semester he came home with straight A+.  Yeah, you can't compete with that!  Last night he made us proud and got a book award from RIT and a social studies department award.  Way to go little bro!

3.  I think I am cursed in terms of the weather.  It has rained on all four of my last workouts.  First it was the Hollis Fast 5K, then it was my miserable Saturday bike ride, and then the trail race on Monday, and then yesterday I went out for another ride and it started to rain!  What the heck!  Not only that, but they were doing some paving so when I got to that part of the road, the road was hot and little pieces of hot pavement were being thrown up by my bike an hitting me in the legs.  No thanks!  Since I was at about the half way point, I just turned around and booked it home in an attempt to beat the heavy rain.  I'm pretty sure the weather for my triathlon on Sunday is supposed to be sunny, hot, and humid but you never know when I'm around!

Happy Thursday everyone!

That Time Already?

Wow, I cannot believe this week is finals week.  Honestly, it doesn't even feel like the end of the semester.  Besides, I really just have a bunch of projects and just one exam, which is tomorrow (yikes!).  Then at the end of the week we have to pack up the entire apartment and we're leaving for NH for the summer after Patrick's graduation on Saturday.  It doesn't even feel like the end of the year at all.  It has just flown by.

So yeah, that's why I've been missing from blog-land for awhile.  In the meantime, I've gotten a 4 mile run in, a 5 mile walk, and a bit of a sunburn that is NOT going to work with my dress.  I put sunblock on, but apparently I missed a couple of spots on my back.  Um, hopefully that goes away before July.  Also on the wedding front, invites went out today.  Now we're actually going to have guests!  The time has just been flying by.

I have my first dress fitting in a week and my first triathlon of the season in two weeks.  It's time to get cracking.  Ever feel like you don't know where the time has gone?  I have a couple of interesting posts planned for the week, so stay tuned!

Three Things Thursday

1.  So far I have been really good about staying focused on school, even with the wedding looming.  But now we have less than 3 months until the wedding and the invitations are probably going to go out in about a week and a half.  I'm just so much more excited for the wedding that I really could care less about schoolwork.  However, if I bust my butt, I have the potential to get a 4.0 this semester.  I've been really close a couple of times, but I'd actually like to do it this time.  I'm committing myself to this goal and I hope you all keep me accountable!

2.  All this school work does have me a little stressed out.  I'm trying hard to fit everything in and to stay sane.  Working out is one of my favorite ways to de-stress.  However, my alarm didn't go off yesterday and I ended up not getting a workout in and that let to crankiness all day.  Today, I'm planning on a longer run while the sun is still shining, before any thunderstorms roll in.  How do you de-stress?

3.  So in my Health High 5K recap yesterday, I mentioned the lady with a stroller a lot.  Well, turns out one of my readers knows this woman and sent me the link to her blog.  I guess it's a small world.  I sent her the link to my post.  I hope she gets a kick out of it.  I know I would!

Happy Thursday!

Kids & Careers

Happy Monday everyone!  I hope you all had a nice weekend.  I got lots of homework done, which was a much needed evil.  Hence why I didn't blog this weekend.  I didn't think that you'd want to hear about all the special education reading I did or the biological chemistry assignment I finished.  Then this morning, I registered for classes for next semester.  I can't believe I only have one more year left of school.  It really goes by so fast. 

But it got me thinking about what I might want to do next.  I've always wanted to complete some level of grad school and I still want to.  For awhile I thought I'd just get my undergrad degree in Chemistry and then get a masters in Education and then teach.  But then I got involved doing chemical education research, which I enjoy.  That got me to thinking about skipping my masters and going into a 5 year PhD program in Chemical Education.  Then I could be a college professor.  I thought that would be a pretty sweet gig. 

However, as I approach my final year of my undergrad, I'm starting to think that I might like a little break before starting grad school.  I'm starting to get burnt out and sick of sitting through boring lectures.  Then again, grad school could be new and exciting enough to hold my interest.  Then, the more I learn about all the hoops you have to jump through to become a college professor, the less I want to do it.  And although Patrick and I don't plan on starting a family anytime soon (read: at least 5 years before babies), one thing I know for sure is that I want to be a mom at some point.  Becoming a college professor does not really coincide with having a family, unless I'm willing to wait until I'm about 37 to start a family, which I'm not.  I do want to be able to enjoy my kids.

Honestly, I don't know why I even worry about this stuff because I know it will all work and I should just go with the flow.  But I was curious to hear from some of my readers who are moms.  I personally believe that there is never a "perfect" moment to have kids.  Sure, there are better times than others, but there's never a perfect moment.  Would you agree?    And if your a working mom, how do you balance being a mom and your career?  I would also be curious to hear if you had a plan for your career and having children and how reality really panned out.  I'm always just kind of curious so I appreciate you sharing!

Second Chances

My classes have been going pretty well this semester.  It's nice to be in smaller classes where everyone knows each other and the professor knows you.  I'm currently taking:

• Biological Chemistry
• Organometallic Chemistry
• The Teaching Process
• Adapting Instruction for Students with Disabilities
• Database Management

So that scary sounding class, the Organometallic Chemistry class, is being taught by the head of my department and there are only eight students in the class.  The one problem with my taking this class is that I have not yet taken one of the prerequisites for this class which is Inorganic Chemistry.  The instructor gave me approval to go ahead and take this class anyway and there is another student in the same boat as mean.  It just means that I have to work a little harder  to get by.

Well, last week on our weekly quiz, I totally bombed it.  Big time.  I got a whopping 5 out of 20.  We graded each others papers so I knew I did poorly right away.  And since there are only 8 people in the class, everyone knew I did crappy.  I felt pretty crappy about it too.  In fact, I was down right embarrassed.  I figured I'd just have to suck it up and deal with it, but I was amazed to find that when I got my paper back yesterday, my professor wrote in the top corner that I could retake it. 

I was amazed and so glad that my professor believes in second chances.  She recognized that I had my answers completely backwards and that I could do better.  She even wrote a whole new quiz for me.  I retook it this morning and I got them all right!  Yay!  I'm think it's important that teachers recognize the potential students have and give second chances when necessary.

Have you ever been given a second chance?