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| Shawrene and Greg |
I was introduced to Shawrene through our friend, Becca, (whom I shared a blog about on Sunday). I'm so glad Becca invited Shawrene to join our group of girlfriends because in no time at all it felt like we had known Shawrene for years and years. She has that way about her...making you feel welcome and loved and accepted and cared for. Shawrene and I quickly found we had much in common! For example: We're crazy about our nieces and nephews, we were brought up on Disney musicals, we took ballet in high school, Christy Nockels is one of our favorite Christian singers, we've both led children's choirs at church, we are called to work with kids, and we both had our honeymoons in Banff, Canada with husbands whom we adore! Most importantly, we both love the Lord! At the end of the blog you can read Shawrene's words about how she has been growing closer to God. She shares some meaningful Bible verses too. Enjoy!
Shawrene is an early childhood educator and an amazing one at that! Early childhood education is so very important. Shawrene gets to work side by side with her own mom. I think that would be wonderful! I've asked Shawrene to share with us what she enjoys about working with young children and working with her mom. Enjoy!
1. What do you like about working with young
children?
I have always wanted to be a teacher. Even as a little girl I would line up
my dolls (occasionally adding my little brother) and play school. I especially love the age I am working
with (four and five year olds) because the world is just opening up to
them. I love that at this
age everything is new and exciting. The sky is the limit and they are invincible. I love that they are open and honest;
they say what they are thinking.
They love to give hugs and high fives. I love listening to their stories
(which are often elaborate), and sharing with them the treasures they bring in
to show me each day. They are so
full of energy; I love having spontaneous dance parties, playing tag on the
playground, and teaching creative movement classes with them. I love seeing
their faces when they learn something new, or accomplish a task they had been
struggling with previously. I love
that they are excited about learning new things, which makes me always look for
ways to make learning fun and engaging.
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| Out for tea together |
2. What do you like
about working with your mom?
My momma and I are the third generation of mothers and
daughters to work together in my family.
My grandmother worked with my great-grandmother baking and selling bread
in a small bakery, my mother worked with her mother in a hospital, and now I
have the privilege of working with my mother teaching pre-kindergarten. Not many people can say they worked
with their mentor, greatest teacher and best friend and it happens to be their
mother. She has been in the early childcare field for 44 years and about half
of that has been with me. We even
went to school and graduated together.
We complete each other as teachers; we each have our specialties in the
classroom, and depend on the other’s teaching skills. A few years ago I won a national teaching award and
have often felt she should have won it with me. I am the teacher I am, because
she mentored me and was an excellent model of an effective teacher.
3. How is teaching
rewarding?
Being a teacher is not just a job it is a passion and a
responsibility. It is rewarding to see a student that was struggling with a new
skill like cutting succeed in a cutting project, or learning to write,
recognizing letters and the sounds they make, and then all of a sudden they are
beginning to read basic books and write simple words. It is rewarding to see a
child scribbling pictures or building simple creations with blocks and lego
creations at the beginning of the year, and as the year progresses they become
proficient creating drawings and creations with legos and three-dimensional
blocks as the school year progresses.
It is not just about learning 123’s and abc’s; it is also
leaning to care for and help each other, learning how to work together and share
ideas. It is rewarding
to watch the children discover ways to work through a conflict with minimal or
no help from me. It is delightful
to hear them excitedly share how they worked through the conflict all by
themselves. The huge smiles on
their faces and the light shining in their eyes because they did it! They accomplished something they were
having a difficult time mastering, whether it is a cognitive or
social-emotional skill!
It is so rewarding to have parents come back over the years
and share with me the things their children say they remember about being in my
classroom and the things they are accomplishing in school.
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| The girls in 2014 |
4. What are some
favorite verses or words to live by?
There are several verses over the years I have loved but
none not that I could point to specifically and say these are making a
difference in my life. I feel inadequate as a Christian and sometimes feel like
I am tossed like a wave, which is not what the Lord desires of His Children. For the past year and a half we have
been in job and home transition.
This journey has been incredibly difficult to bear at times. Feelings of despair, loneliness are at
times overwhelming. But yet,
He has never left me, or my family.
He is holding tight. I see
this in friends at New Life Church who continually reach out to us, songs that
come on the radio at “just the right time”, words spoken from the pulpit when
we need it most, and family and friends who hug us and let us cry on their
shoulders. And just as a realized
today in answering this question, words spoken by my gracious Heavenly Father
in his Holy Word, when put together are a healing balm to my spirit and lift me
up on eagle’s wings. How could I
ever doubt now!
I am just sharing the parts of the verses that speak to me;
however, it is important to read the verses before and after to get the whole
message when studying God’s Word.
So here we go…..
Romans 5: 1-6, specifically 3-5, (Not only so, but we also
rejoice in our suffering because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out
his love into our heart by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. ) God is doing something in me through
our difficulties and I need to trust that.
Ephesians 1:17-23, specifically 17-20 (I keep asking that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit
of wisdom and revelation so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart
may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called
you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparable
great power for us who believe.
That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted
in Christ when he raised him for the dead and seated him at his right had in
the heavenly realms.) Through this I pray I will truly know Him, and discover
what it is He has for me, and my family, according to these verses.
Philippians 4:4-7 (Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again Rejoice! Let your
gentleness be evident t all. The
Lord is near. Do not be anxious
about anything but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
present your requests to God. And
the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus. ) It is so easy for me to become anxious; this is a
reminder to be thankful and rejoice and to know His peace.
Philippians 4:11-13, specifically 12-13 (I know what it is
to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every
situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in
want. I can do everything through
him who gives me strength.) I
confess I am not at this place but I desire to learn contentment not in my
circumstances but in Christ.
Colossians 3: 23-24 (Whatever you do, work at it with all
your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will
receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.) While we are in this
waiting room I pray that I will work for the Lord because He is the one I am serving.
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 (Make it your ambition to lead a
quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we
told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that
you will not be dependent on anybody.) I pray I live a life that is quiet and
focused during this time and to work to be independent.
1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18 (Be joyful always, pray
continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you
in Christ Jesus.) This verse speaks to me the most right now and puts it all
together for me.
In a nutshell, this is what my focus should be now and
always!
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| Shawrene with her nieces and nephews |
To find out more about the "31 Days of Friends and Family Who Inspire Me" project, click here:
http://journalingjennifer.blogspot.com/2014/12/intro-to-31-days-of-friends-and-family.html
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