Almost over!

Finals are over! I am still waiting on grades, expect a post on that (if they are good at least).
Last night I gave the last final for the Micro class I taught. It was a challenging class, but such a rewarding experience. I had some students who had never touched a computer before, and some that hadn't been to school in over 20 years. It was a dynamic group. I couldn't let 1 student slip by though. I know the lifelong repercussions that come when you let one slip by. I slipped by in my 8th grade math class. I learned nothing. I had an easy teacher that didn't make us learn. To this day, I struggle bad in math. I missed a year of building blocks. I didn't want to let these students do that. They will use computers in one way or another in every class they take. After spending lots of time out of the class teaching and tutoring them one on one, they got it! Last night I realized that the light bulb had come on. I had one student say how they wished we could go back to the beginning and start over because they understand it now. I had one present a powerpoint last night that included pictures and animation on their own and knew what to do without my help who had never touched a computer before class started 16 weeks ago. They told me last night that they were sad that class was over because it had been so fun! (Who know learning Word, Excel, and Powerpoint could be fun?) That made all of the stressful times disappear, it was worth it. I love teaching online because it 'fits my schedule,' but nothing compares to teaching in class. I feel I made a difference and that makes this hard semester worth while! It reminded me why I went into the teaching profession in the first place. No other job can be as rewarding as teaching.
So 3 days left until Christmas break. I can't believe this semester is already almost over! It has been the hardest semester of my life, being in a new job, taking 9 hours of grad work and teaching my adjunct class, I have been just praying I would make it to this point. And I have. It is basically done. In 3 days we get half a month off (that just sounds longer than 2 weeks). Yes I will be teaching intersession classes during that time, but that is it. I'm excited about getting to see my husband for more than an hour every day. I am excited about using my extra time to do things I want to do (such as reading a book(that is not a textbook), or organizing our house, or spending time with my nephews) instead of studying. I missed Rece's Christmas play last night because I gave that final and I was very disappointed. So tonight Rece and I are going to pop some popcorn and get the tape my brother recorded of it and watch it together. He is excited about seeing himself perform!
I am listening to Christmas music today. I love Christmas music, but I have been to stressed to be able to stop and enjoy it and this time of year. That changes today. Today is a good day. Today I feel a weight has lifted.
:)