WAHOO…we are half way there. Not time to celebrate yet, but as of today, we are doing very well on our 30-day SACS challenge this month. If you did not read our blog a few weeks ago, we challenged ourselves to 30 days of low to no Sugar, Alcohol, Caffeine, and Salt (SACS.) We did not find this challenge in a book anywhere; we just made it up and dared ourselves.

Wendy has been more on the low end of this challenge. Of course when you are trying so hard NOT to indulge in birthday cupcakes, birthday cheese cake, wedding wine, and family gathering potato chips, all of these goodies show up to taunt you. Wendy has done well, though…she has only had a little bit of the wine, chips, and one small bite of banana pumpkin bread—she has stayed faithful to continue on the low end path of this challenge. As for caffeine…so far so good. That culprit has been the easiest for her to ignore. She still drinks her coffee in the morning; however, it’s decaf. The salt is the most difficult for Wendy. Salt is in everything. We need some salt to stay healthy so reading labels has become a must during this challenge. Wendy chooses the lowest salt-content foods possible. Her favorite new product after reading these labels…1/3 Less Sodium & Sugar Skippy Peanut Butter ®. As of today, Wendy has lost 4 pounds.

Sonya has been aiming for the no of this challenge… at first because she just didn’t realize the low was an option. (This really has something to do with following directions and selective hearing.) So far, so good… minus the small pumpkin bar slip up because her mama makes the best there is! Back in college this bar recipe almost caused a meltdown of world war status with college roomies because someone (to this day unknown) decided to consume more than the allotted roommate amount. Anyway – you get the idea of how simply divine these yummy bars are… Sonya caved. There is still no in the alcohol and caffeine categories respectively. It is now just a mission to make it happen, and it is amazing how socially tied these two are and how often. It takes 30 days to truly appreciate this challenge. The toughest part by far is staying away from salt simply because it is in almost everything. We do need it so low is the route to go. As of today, Sonya has lost a little over 6 pounds but most importantly, feels good with energy to spare despite the no cup of Joe.

(If you feel like this has a “weight watchers anonymous” feel to it and are concerned, read on to move on….)

Has this challenge been easy…not one iota. We have found that we are determined, focused, and have our colleagues and spouses cheering us on. These three traits could help our SMSU teacher candidates go from ‘good’ teaching to ‘great’ teaching. These three traits could help all of us to be more successful, really.

Determined: As you enter the field of teaching, future teachers, be determined to be the best you can be, and then continue to work at it every day! Those great teachers have worked hard to become great. If you want to be like them, you have to work as hard as they did to get there. Believe you can get there and strive for it each day.

Focused: A cute scene from the movie Up, Dug the dog is easily distracted by squirrels. 🙂 We just love movies, don’t you? Oh wait… what were we saying? Oh yeah – Try to stay as focused as you can, future teachers. Focus on what is really important…the students and their learning. Stay away from those focus stealers like negativity, high stakes testing, and stinky feet.

Support: Having our colleagues cheer us on has meant so much to us. We appreciate their support. Find at least one person in your building who will support you in your teaching, future teachers. It may be your grade level or content co-worker. It may be the music teacher. It may be your paraprofessional who is your right-hand woman or man. Also rely on your spouse or significant other or even your mom or dad to support you and cheer you on. Even though the challenge is for only 30 days…it seems a lot longer than that when you are right smack dab in the middle of it. Find those people who bless you, not stress you. [Click 2 Tweet]

Good luck to you if you have joined us in this challenge. Wahoo—only 15 more days to go. We CAN do this!

Stay Calm & Lead On!
Profs Dr. C. & Dr. V.