Looking back at all my blog posts from this semester was beneficial and bittersweet. It was amazing being able to see my growth throughout the semester as well as my confidence go up. I was nervous at first when I first started blogging because I wasn't sure whether or not peers would enjoy my writing, especially since I focused on wedding planning. However, I was completely wrong! My peers have been so supportive and encouraging it has been amazing to read all their comments on my posts. My goal for this semester was to focus on wedding planning and handling stress while planning. I feel like I was definitely put to the test when COVID-19 hit us because my stress levels skyrocketed and I had no clue what to do with my wedding planning. I didn't know whether I needed to stop wedding planning or continue with it. With the support of my family, friends, and classmates I was determined to push through. I deserve to have my special day like many other brides! Even though I might not have my big day when I had hoped to, I'm just so happy that I get to spend the rest of my life with the person I love most. I'm also blessed that all my friends and family are healthy during this time. With that being said, my fiancé and I think it's best to postpone our wedding to July 10, 2021. We would still have an intimate ceremony on our original date with close family. It wasn't to long ago when I was new to blogging. I feel like blogging has become special part of my life because I have been able to share something very important to me with my peers. Being able to share such an important part of my life was relaxing in a way because I was struggling trying to hold it all in. To be honest, I never thought I would enjoy blogging as much as I do! It's become something I enjoy doing and would love to continue beyond this course! I can't believe this is my final post for this course. I feel like it went crazy fast! I have enjoyed getting to learn about all my peers and what they're interested in. I want to say thank you to my peers who read my posts and left such sweet and encouraging words. I also want to thank Professor Cox for being flexible and allowing us to alter our blogs due to the pandemic! This was hands down one of my favorite courses throughout college. I hope you all have a wonderful summer and continue to stay healthy!
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When I read "DISCONNECT" for the week 15 module I was so relieved and excited! I even had to check the assignment tab button a few times because I felt like I was missing something. Thankfully it wasn't a dream! My life has been crazy busy as I'm sure a lot of you can relate. Lately I have been busier than usual with homework, wedding planning, and completing tasks for my new teaching job! During my free time I would usually spend it looking through social media. However, I did do a good job with not getting on social media apps for just the fun of it! I feel like I did a decent job with disconnecting overall, but it was a little difficult to fully disconnect. If it wasn't for wedding planning and completing tasks for my new teaching job I think it would've been easier for me to disconnect. Tasks that kept me from fully disconnecting:
After reading articles and watching videos about mindfulness, I couldn't help but feel a little upset with myself. For so many years I have spent a significant time on the internet for various reasons. There was one point in my life where I felt like I had to check my social media apps on a daily basis to catch up on everything. When it started to become overwhelming I asked myself "What in the world am I doing?" and "Why am I taking so much time to learn about everyone else's life and not my own?". That's when I realized what I was doing was absolutely ridiculous and I needed to take control of my internet usage. In the past couple years, I think have I have done a decent job of being mindful of my internet usage. However, there was recently a period of time where I failed myself. In one of my ILP blog posts I mentioned that I joined a Facebook group called "Four Wedding and a Virus". Everyday brides post their thoughts and ideas. Since I'm planning my own wedding I was constantly checking the Facebook group to see what brides were saying regarding their wedding plans. I would literally spend hours reading through the posts. Then I would feel so sick to my stomach and stressed that I didn't want to do anything but sleep my days away. After being so tired of feeling sick to my stomach I decided to stop spending so much time viewing posts in the Facebook group. When I do read posts I always try to make sure they are positive ones! It's been extremely difficult, but I feel so much happier! When I use the internet I always try to make sure that I'm not wasting my time and that it's beneficial to me. The only reasons I have been using the internet lately is for wedding planning, keeping in touch with family and friends, homework, and preparing for my teaching job. Knowing that I'm spending my time on things that are beneficial to me makes me feel good about myself! There are a few times where I get on social media apps. Even the small amount of time I spend on social media makes me feel bad unless it's for my homework. To help myself be more mindful of my internet usage, I plan on using some of the tips listed in the article called "Simplify the Internet".
Leading up to April 18th I was pretty bummed out because all I wanted was to celebrate with my family and friends in person. There were numerous times I even thought about canceling my bridal shower all together because I was so upset. After receiving many positives messages from my friends and family I decided to have my virtual bridal shower. Having a virtual bridal shower was the best decision I ever made! The morning of my bridal I got all ready as if I was having my bridal shower in person. While getting ready I couldn't help but think about how my virtual bridal shower was going to turn out. I was already freaking out a little bit because I had forgotten my cute outfit back in Omaha. Thankfully, Ryley's aunt made us "Mr." and "Future Mrs." shirts last minute! Once I was I finished getting ready I walked up the stairs to the whole living decorated! I couldn't help but shed a few tears. It was also the first of many tears that day! When it was time for the bridal shower to start I got onto zoom where my family and friends started to show up! Seeing all of their faces made my heart so happy! I even received a bouquet of flowers to my front door from my bridesmaids. My maid of honor did such an amazing time organizing the whole shower. She had the guests go around and say how they know the bride and groom. We also played numerous games with everyone by using the chat on zoom and by having them use this hands to indicate answers. My fiancé and I also got to share our engagement story with our family and friends. If you would like to see a small clip of the virtual bridal shower I included a small clip below!
Even though my bridal shower didn't happen as planned, I couldn't have asked for a better day! I'm so thankful for my family and friends who took the time to celebrate with my fiancé and I virtually! There was so much laughter, tears, and fun that I will never forget! I now have a three hour long video of my entire bridal shower to cherish for the rest of my life!
This week I got to expand my knowledge on digital citizenship by reading several articles. Digital citizenship means being responsible when using any type of technology. One article I read called "Essential Digital Citizenship Lessons for the Coronavirus Pandemic". I thought the article was very interesting and much needed, especially with how things have changed for students, teachers, and parents. Due to the virus schools have transitioned to online learning. Having to transition to online learning can be difficult for all students because it's not normal for them to do all their learning using technology. Two of my brothers who are in high school are having to do the online learning and they are struggling. Since I'm more familiar with online learning I have been able to help them out quite a bit! With students using technology as their main source of learning it's important that they know all about digital citizenship. The same article stated, "Now more than ever, students need digital citizenship skills, including news and media literacy, the ability to recognize and respond to cyberbullying, and an understanding of how their habits affect them" (Wilkey, 2020). I couldn't agree more with this sentence! To help teachers out with teaching their students about digital citizenship, the article provides free lessons plans for k-12 regarding digital citizenship. Link to the article: Essential Digital Citizenship Lessons for the Coronavirus Pandemic Link to free lesson plans: Digital Citizenship Lesson Plans K-12 Due to still being ill, I have decided to keep this blog post sweet and simple. When my family and I first started getting sick we believed it was the stomach flu. Now I'm starting to wonder if we had a mild case of the corona virus because I'm still sick. I have now been sick for a little over a week. Some of my symptoms are extreme fatigue, constant chest pain, dry mouth, and a headache. Even though I haven't been feeling well I'm just glad it's not worse! I have been spending most of my days sleeping and watching movies. I recently started creating a list of things I could in my house that would help get me out of bed!
In my previous blogs posts, I have talked about possibly postponing my wedding. After talking to my fiancé we have decided to wait until the end of May to figure out whether or not we would be postponing the wedding. To make sure we are prepared for a possible new date, my mom and I called all our vendors and venue to pick an alternative date the would work with everyone! Choosing a date that would work for all my vendors and venue was a little difficult, but we have decided on September 19 as an alternative date. I personally don't care what date I get married on I just want to marry my best friend. I'm just worried that having a wedding during my first year of teaching is going to be a little hard. Thankfully though I have a lot of wedding planning finished! Besides choosing my alternative date, I spent several hours contacting my guests for my bridal shower to let them know I would be having a virtual Facebook bridal shower. After I called all my guests, my maid of honor and I created a Facebook group for my virtual bridal shower and added everyone to her group. We also talked about fun games we could play on Facebook to get all my guests involved. I also spent a lot of time working on my three registries with my fiancé! Working on our registries really helped take my mind of all this craziness! Even though this isn't how I expected my wedding planning to go, I'm beyond blessed to have so much support from my friends and family. Most importantly, I'm so thankful all my friends and family are safe and healthy. Also, my heart goes out to my maid of honor and one of my bridesmaids as they made the decision to postpone their weddings. Being a part of the "Four Viruses and a Wedding" Facebook group has definitely helped me and my best friends through all of this. We are supporting each other every day!
Podcasting and Vlogging are two terms that I have known about for quite a while now. To expand my learning on the two terms, I read several articles about the difference between the two. For those of you who don't know the difference between the two, podcasts are voice only and vlogs are videos with audio. One article I read called Vlogging vs. Blogging: Can You Do Both, described the difference as ~ "Thus the key difference between a vlog and blog goes back to who you are and what kind of personality you have.". I couldn't agree more with this sentence because people who love being in front of the camera are going to enjoy vlogs where people who are camera shy will enjoy podcasts.
With family being extremely important to me, I spent the majority of my time watching family vlogs. Another vlog family I watched is called "The Fisher Family". Their vlogs seemed pretty similar to the LaBrants. The Fisher family has twin girls that are seriously the cutest! Another family vlog I took the time to watch is called "The ACE Family". From the short time I watched the ACE family vlogs, I could tell the husband was hilarious in about every vlog. I might have to add ACE family vlogs to my list now! I can't wait to keep on exploring other vlogs!
I never in a million years would've thought that I would be sitting on my couch blogging about a virus that has impacted our world. With everything going on, my goal has been to take one step at a time. I've been praying extra hard for everyone to stay safe, happy, and healthy during this difficult time. The COVID-19 has had a big impact on my life. Before the virus got out of control, I was a full-time substitute teacher in Omaha. Now I'm unemployed and struggling to find a job. With living in Douglas County where there are lots of positives cases, it is very difficult to find a job. Thankfully my fiancé has been able to keep his job as of right now. My parents on the other hand have lost both of their jobs. Trying to make it through this difficult time is going to be really tough, but I'm just glad we are all still here. The past few days has been really scary for my family and I because we have all been getting sick. Some of the symptoms we have are symptoms of the virus. However, my parents believe that the stomach flu is going around my house. Prayers that's all it is! Since I am quarantining at my parents house I have been keeping myself busy with wedding planning, putting together puzzles, exercising, and baking. One decision I had to make this past weekend was to cancel my in-person bridal shower. While I really wanted to postpone it to another date, I couldn't figure out a date that I knew would work and be safe for everyone. Instead, I have decided to have a virtual bridal shower on Facebook. Even though I'm upset I don't get to see all my friends and family, I know it's the best thing to do with a situation like this. I have also never done a virtual party before so I will have to let you all know how it goes! Other than my bridal shower, I'm still deciding whether I'm postponing my wedding. Just in case I do postpone, my mom and I called all of our vendors to get a backup date. To take a break from wedding planning, I completed a glow in the dark puzzle. Putting together the puzzle honestly made me feel relaxed and calm. I also made some delicious cupcakes with my dad and niece. Prayers that we will see the end of COVID-19 soon!
From reading several articles and watching videos, I have learned so much about digital storytelling. In the article called "What is Digital Storytelling", it does a wonderful job on describing digital storytelling in a simple, clear way. According to the article, digital storytelling is a 3-5 minute personal narrative created through a multimedia process. The process consists of using still and moving images as well as sound to help draw in the audience. I personally like how digital stories are 3-5 minutes long because they are short and to the point! When stories are much longer than 3-5 minutes there is a chance people won't watch all of it, especially if it's boring. With being a future teacher, I decided to take some time to research digital storytelling in the classroom. After learning about digital storytelling in the classroom I'm excited to use it in my own classroom someday. With digital storytelling students are able use to their creative and critical thinking skills. In an article called "Six Reasons You Should Be Doing Digital Storytelling with Your Students", it mentioned how leadership and digital storytelling go hand in hand. With digital storytelling students are able to take charge of their learning by learning who they are as a person and what they are interested about. The article also mentioned how digital storytelling mirrors the writing process (brainstorm, plan, create, revise, edit, publish, reflect). I love how teachers could tie in technology with writing! If you're teacher or on your way to being a teacher, I would most definitely recommend this article! www.gettingsmart.com/2016/01/6-reasons-you-should-be-doing-digital-storytelling-with-your-students/ When creating digital stories there are different features that are used such as: still and moving images, voice over, sounds, animation, and more. A lot of the digital stories I watched were were from "CNN's Top 10 Digital Stories of 2019". I also watched a few digital stories from "The Patient Voices Digital Stories". All the digital stories I watched were very appealing to me. While I would have loved to create my own digital story for this blog post, I'm not quite ready with being nervous! I'm sure after I watch more digital stories I will start to feel more confident. I also know that my first digital story might not be the best since I've never created one before. With practice I know I will be able to improve! I can't wait to share a digital story with you all in the future!
Recently I have been going back home to help my mom with wedding planning and decorations. One of things we worked on were the wedding programs. Together, my mom and I completed over 100 wedding programs that are going to be used as fans since it's a July wedding. My mom also created the sign pictured above that will be propped up against an old wine barrel. While we worked on wedding things it was hard not to feel stressed and overwhelmed. Due to COVID-19, myself and many other brides are having to consider postponing our wedding. With COVID-19 spreading across the world quite fast, it's hard to tell what the future will look like. My bridal shower that is scheduled for April 18 will most likely be postponed because I don't think things will be better by then. However, I have been communicating with other brides-to-be and have learned about a "drive by shower" and a "card shower". I haven't decided if I will use one of those options or if I will just postpone my bridal shower. If I do postpone my bridal shower, it's hard to pick a new date because none of us know when the craziness will end! When I think about having to postpone my wedding I get really stressed out. My family and I have spent so much time and money for this upcoming wedding that I don't want to worry about losing money and/or having to redo decorations with a different date. I know that my wedding is still a few months out, but it's scary not knowing when everything will calm down. One thing that has really helped with my stress is joining a Facebook group called "Four Weddings and a Virus". In the group, brides-to-be encourage each other through wedding planning. The brides-to-be also have some fun by sharing what their wedding rings look like as well as their wedding dresses! Even though I'm not sure whether or not I will have to postpone my wedding, my goal is to stay positive, happy, and healthy during this time. I have two close friends who are getting married this summer as well so I plan to encourage them as much as I can to stay positive! To have a little fun myself, I have decided to share with you all a picture of my wedding ring and a picture of my wedding dress! I have customized my wedding dress by adding off the shoulder straps. Hopefully my fiancé doesn't know this blog exists!
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