My Last Professional Milestone Before Motherhood Sets In!

Get your Oprah voices ready and let's all shout together: It's OOOOOOOVEEEERRRR!! That's right, today I officially mailed off my National Board Certification Portfolio! See that unassuming blue box? It's filled with exactly 127.5 hours worth of work. I kept track. Seriously. I logged every minute I spent on this project and I'm glad that I did. There are four portfolio entries in there, which include tons of writing, documentation, reflections, verifications, blah blah blah blah...oh, and two videos of me teaching (I feel sorry for the poor sap that has to watch those)! Not only is my portfolio finished, but in February I also took the three hour test that goes with it. This project has been my "other baby" since the due dates were so close, and I'm so incredibly glad that it's all over and done with! Now I can truly focus on the more important baby about to arrive. Ahhhhh, it feels so good.


Don't get too proud of me yet, though. I don't find out if I actually certify until November! Can you believe that? I have to wait eight more months to discover if I have to do this whole process all over again! Sheesh. That's almost a whole other baby! Actually, I wouldn't have to do the whole thing over again, just the parts that didn't score very well, but still - that would stink.

I couldn't have done this without the support of everyone at school and the amazing help of my mentor girls: Kate, Danielle, Janel, and Nora! We've been meeting every couple of weeks to read each other's entries and talk about the whole certification process. We had our packing party today, then went to FedEx together to send off the blue boxes and let me tell you, it was hard to say goodbye to the boxes AND the support group! I'm sure we'll keep in touch until November; I might need that support group if I don't receive good news about the certification. In the meantime, I'll just have to say my prayers and hope for the best. By this time next year, I might be able to call myself a National Board Certified Teacher! Woohoo!