We love Cake...

I am finding, more and more often as I get older that blessings tend to come in disguise some days, like SHEEP in WOLVES clothing! Recently, my school district decided to forsake our year round schedule and go back to a more traditional schedule. It will mean loosing many great teachers, over-packing classrooms and most likely the end to my fantastic enrichment program. It came as a blow to myself and others in our teaching community. Some others were pretty excited about having a more traditional schedule to go back to. It took me a lot longer to see the benefit to my family. When Alan and I came up with the year long full timing plan, it was understood that I would have to leave my school, the district and take my chances returning in a year. At this point, with the way the economy is going, it seems an unnecesary risk to leave a job I love, loose my spot in the school and the district and loose a year of pay IF WE DON'T HAVE TO. When we started this plan, it was a risk we felt ready to take but with the return to the traditional schedule, it seems now that I can keep my position and we can do our traveling for the two and a half months off every summer. We can have our cake and eat it to. And God knows, we love our cake.
The last few weeks it's been hard to see the forest for the trees, we were so focused on our plan that we couldn't see that the new schedule could mean that we really could have it all. The travel, and the salary, the security and the excitement. We can still give the kids the opportunities we wanted for them, the time we want together and the "on the road" experiances and a paycheck to boot, something that we wouldn't have otherwise had. I won't be worried about picking up odd jobs on the road just to pay for museum entrance fees, we can really enjoy our time with the boys the way we intended. and most of all, as I said before, I will still be able to keep my position with the school, which is vitally important with the way things are starting to turn around our district.
Really, it is the best of both worlds. It allows us to buy a smaller cheaper truck, a smaller trailer, save for retirement, all while showing the boys different parts of the country every summer.
Of course, if for some reason I DO loose my place in the district, there won't be any reason for us not to go full time, but for now, the safe bet seems to be this current plan, part time FULL-TIMING!
Some people may see this as the end of a dream a year in the making but in reality, it's just a smart modification. I'm not a big fan of the saying "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." But I do think however it doesn't hurt to mix those lemons with some sugar and vodka and make a nice lemon-drop martini, so that's what we'll do. Cake and lemon-drop martinis...yummmmm...