Conflicting Interests

How am I supposed to plan a wedding when all this darn work gets in the way?!

On the other hand, how am I supposed to get all this work done with the wedding planning temptations constantly surrounding me?!

I know that this is not nearly as big a dilemma as a working mom goes through, but it is the first year I've been working where I've wanted to prioritize my personal life over my work. For many jobs, this may be manageable, but as a teacher of AP and honors kids, I find that I am constantly torn between needing to keep my promises to my students while trying to give myself the time I need for things that matter most to me. Not that work does not matter, work matters a heck of a lot, I love my job and I love being the responsible, dependable teacher that keeps the students interested in school. To really get buy-in, I feel like kids need to see my constant enthusiasm and my unending dedication as an example. But I have my limits, and I feel like my wedding planning is being put on a back burner, which may in turn lead to me losing out on something or someone I'd prefer as a vendor at the wedding.

So something has got to give. I am working on a compromise where I am productive in both areas, but it may mean that I sacrifice complete control in both my classroom and my wedding. I have a lot of supporters and helpers out there to help me get through the roughest patches, and I know that in the end, the kids will understand if I give them their essays back a day or two later.

The dilemma comes to a head as I look over at the 400 ungraded essays I have sitting next to me that I put off to blog about my wedding.

Oh well.