I have hereby been called to serve as a teacher in TAIWAN!!

This is what I get to look forward to for my adventures next year-oh yeah.:)

One of my life's biggest dreams will be coming true. I have just been hired to teach English in Taiwan next year!! I am SO excited. I graduate from BYU in April 2011, and then I am off to Taiwan from July-December 2011. I am so thankful to my roommate and friend, Elizabeth Nenque for putting a good word in for me. She taught there in 2004, and still has good relations with the principal, Lin Yuling, which allowed her to get me a job there. She rocks. Many thanks to Liz!!

I will be teaching English to ~60 preschoolers, ages 3-6 at Owl Preschool in Hualien City, on the Northeast side of the island of Taiwan. We also have the option of teaching ESL to adults and older students. I will probably jump at that opportunity when I get there, too. The principal, Yuling is a BYU grad and she makes sure that the school has a positive, happy, clean, and good environment. I am so thrilled to have finally a program that holds high standards and where I can feel confident in knowing I will thrive in that environment.

I am so excited to have this opportunity to help more of Heavenly Father's children way across the world, and to learn more about these unique people, culture, and language. My Chinese vocabulary consists of "Ni Hao", or hello. So, yeah, I'll be learning a lot, and I am ready for this new challenge and adventure.

Life is great. I am so excited for this new adventure and chapter of my life!!

Love, love, love,
姐姐 Janae

P.S. Here are some help websites to learn more about Owl Preschool and Hualien City, if you're interested. I know I am. :)
Info on Hualien City:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hualien_City
Owl Preschool's Blog:
http://owlpreschool.blogspot.com/

It's Autumntime, It's Autumntime...

Courtney and I watching General Conference in the Salt Lake Tabernacle!! :)

Life is oh so good. Here are some highlights from the past couple of weeks:

-General Conference weekend!! It uplifted me so much, and reminded me of Heavenly Father and how much He knows, cares for, and loves each and every one of us. I prepared myself by having some questions ready, and found that all of them were answered. Isn't it amazing how these questions can all be answered by listening to our living prophets? What an outstanding blessing that the Lord has His servants here on the earth that can lead us in the right direction toward Him.

-My good pals Courtney and Lauren coming to visit!! I loved getting to be with some of my best friends. I am beyond blessed with kind, caring, positive, uplifting and hilarious friends. I loved getting to spend time with them.

-Seeing President Uchtdorf at the FLSR!! His grandsons are in my ward, and we got to see him from afar-so cool!! My sweet friend,Jamie even noticed how an apostle of the Lord still opens the door for his wife. What a sweet man. I was so touched by his General Conference address, as well as the kindness and sincerity I can see in the way he treats others. I see a lot of the same mannerisms in his grandsons.

-Hanging out with Liz for her birthday!! Liz is one of my absolute best friends and I loved getting to watch Conference with her and to just be with her. She is like a sister, and I am so grateful for her constant love, laughs (especially at my lame jokes), and support.

-BYU finally winning a football game!! I made sure to point that out to my students today, and they were like, "Sure, whatever Coach Piercy." But deep inside, I was very proud of my Cougars!!

-My boys' soccer game. My team of soccer boys are such good kids, and I love getting to hang out with them three times a week. I am also excited because I talked to the BYU Men's Soccer, Coach Watkins, and he can get us free/reduced tickets for my boys so we can go to a game. I'm excited!! October 23rd here we come!!

-Eleisha is getting closer and closer to being home from her mission. She gets home on November 19th, and a trip to San Diego to see her is in the works. Which brings me to my next important bit of news...

-I found housing for Eleisha and I for winter semester!! I am so excited. It was such a blessing to find. It is the perfect apt., and we'll be sharing a room. I feel bad if our new roommates are quiet, but I know we'll love them, so it'll all be ok, right? :) We are quite the crazy and loud bunch.

-Jeyza, Nicole, and my studly dad all had their birthdays this past weekend. Jeyza is growing up SO fast!! He just turned seven. Before we know it, he'll be getting baptized. Wow-time flies. I still remember holding him the day he was born and thinking that I was going to love him forever. Seven years later, I don't think I could love my adorable and grown up nephew any more.

Well, life is good, the Gospel is true and I am so grateful for everything I have been blessed with. God's been good to me. I love you all!!

-Janae

A Long Overdue Update

Pictures from Amelia and Lee's wedding. :)

WOW. Lots has happened since the last time I posted. Amelia and Lee got married in the Mesa Temple on the 18th, and that was just fantastic. What a blessing and miracle it is to have eternal families. I am so happy for them. It was also fun to hang out with family and have all of us together. None of us can remember the last time that has happened. There was stress and frustration as most weddings and special occasions bring, but we had a great time. The Arizona heat killed us wimpy Washingtonians, but we enjoyed our weekend there.

Other highlights:
1. Mom and Dad coming and visiting me in Provo on their way back to Washington. They took KC and I to Tucano's. Let's just say that that gave me the sanity and strength I needed to get through an incredibly busy and stressful week after being gone for Amelia's wedding.
2. Getting sick and having my voice sound like a boy going through puberty. This has allowed me to stay home today and get to watch the BYU Devotional of one of my favorite professors, Dr. Alton Thygerson, and get to catch up on cleaning up my apartment.
3. Going to visit Amelia and Lee. I got to eat a yummy dinner that Amelia made, tour their house, see pictures from their honeymoon in Durango and chat. It was great to get to see them.
4. KC getting me my favorite grapefruit cups at Costco to grace my school lunches and grace me with his presence while I was working on Wednesday and doing cleaning checks.
5. Making my soccer boys' jerseys and them rocking their game. They won 5-1!! I love those boys, and I am so grateful to have such outstanding assistant coaches such as Jenni and Emily.
6. Going to the BYU Hockey game on Saturday with Matto. I have always wanted to go to one of their games, but I never have, and am grateful I got to, and it was also fun to catch up with Matto since he got home from his mission.
7. Teaching. I love the kids I get to teach at MMHS. They make me laugh and smile all the time.
8. Getting to teach Relief Society on Sunday. We have such outstanding sisters in our ward!!
9. Getting to watch the RS Broadcast. President Monson's talk especially reached out to me, and I am excited for Conference weekend, and all of the knowledge and strength I can gain from our wonderful church leaders.
10. Life is good!!
-Love, Janae

To Teach is to Learn

Me on my first day of student teaching!!

It's finally that time...not to do spring cleaning, get married, lose weight, buy a car, or anything else normal, but to do something rad and...STUDENT TEACH!!

Last week was my first week student teaching Health and PE at Maple Mountain High School. It is a brand new school built last year in Spanish Fork with about 1,000 sophomores, juniors and seniors. My mentor teacher is Ms. Hall, who is awesome. At first, I was pretty intimidated, but I am grateful to get the chance to learn from such a knowledgeable, outstanding and cool teacher. I have really enjoyed getting to meet the students and learn how to apply all of methods I've learned in the teaching classes I have taken in combination with the Health and PE content classes I've taken. However, I have felt very ill-prepared for PE. One of my minors is PE/Coaching, and let's just say that the emphasis was on coaching in the classes I took. Nonetheless, Coach Hall is a PE queen and is helping me learn a lot.

I got to teach my first class last week on Friday!! Oftentimes, mentor teachers will either not let a student teacher teach for a long while, or just peace out and leave the student teacher in charge of their class so they don't have to teach. I am grateful that Ms. Hall hasn't fit either one of those stereotypes. She is willing to let me try out new things and lets me take control of the class, but is always there if I have a question.

Every new experience is fun and exciting, but always has its challenges. I am learning a lot and am loving it, but have had my fair share of struggles. I am grateful for outstanding family, friends, and a God that loves and supports me in all I do. I love life!!
-Janae

And the Summer of 2010 ends with a Bang

Me, KC, Nate, Liz, Gina, David and Matt after conquering Provo River.

This summer has been great. It has been full of ups and downs, crazy turns, moments of sunshine and the frigid cold, but it has been a wonderful ride, just like the Provo River. What a coincidence that we inner tubed down Provo River on Saturday to end the summer. :)

The water was frigid, but we survived!! It was also fun to be with such great friends. It was the first time that I had hung out with David since he got back from his mission in Jamaica two months ago. So, it was fun to chat with him down the river. He is from my home ward and we've known each other since we were in elementary school, and it's amazing to see how much he's grown on his mission. I also loved getting to laugh at Matt the Bat being crazy, getting to know Gina, catching up with Nate and talking with my close friends (practically siblings), KC and Liz. This summer has ended with a bang, and I am excited for the next chapter in my life...
STUDENT TEACHING!!
Life is wonderful and I am excited for all the adventures it has in store. I love you all!!
-Janae

Make New Friends, But Keep the Old...

Courtney and I our freshman year. :)

Wow, over the past day I have had to say goodbye to four of my dear friends, and truth be told, I don't like it one bit. But, I'm going to tell myself that I will get to see them again in the future, and focus on what each one has taught me. So, here goes...

1. Hillary Michael-she is honestly one of the sweetest people I have ever met in my life. She just glows with her happiness and kindness for all. I have learned to slow down and focus on making others feel loved and comfortable from her. She is going to be a fabulous missionary in the Lisbon mission!!
2. Marie Richardson-she was one of my favorite roommates. We only lived together for two months, but I loved every moment we got to be with each other. She has taught me to enjoy the moment and to not take life too seriously.
3. Cliff Latham-Cliff was the BEST home teacher ever. He taught me to be sincere, to work hard, play hard, and to be yourself.
4. Courtney Roberts-my dear friend of four years!! We met at NSO (New Student Orientation) and have been great buds ever since. Courtney has taught me SO much. She has taught me to be all you can be but not pressure yourself too much, to be happy, to live the Gospel, to serve others, to love and to enjoy life.

I am so grateful for the time I have had to be friends with such wonderful people. I will always remember them and keep in touch with them. Most importantly, I will do my best to live my life in such a way that reflects all they have taught me. I live a charmed life and am so blessed by God. Never forget that He loves us and that He will protect and guide His children. Love, Janae

My life never ceases to entertain me

Courtnacalifornia and I enjoying life-one funny face at a time. :)

I was just going through my Facebook notes and I found one that cracked me up. Here are 25 reasons why my life never ever ceases to entertain me. I honestly try to make it normal, but it's impossible.

1. I name everything I own, and most of the names end up being foreign men's names. For example, my bike is Sven, my hairbrush is Arafat and my car is Fabio.
2. I am a tight wad. I still own clothes from eighth grade-and my sister-in-law will never let me forget about that :).
3. I will think twice about buying a product from a company if they spell something wrong in their advertisement. Bad grammar and spelling drives me insane. If you put the wrong "their", "they're" or "there", I will take a deep breath and try to forget about it.
4. Some of my goals are to get a Master's in Public Health,speak five languages before I die,adopt kids and run a marathon.
5. I am obsessed with dark chocolate, polka dots, chocolate-dipped cinnamon bears, country music, the state of Washington, farm boys, biking, BYU Sports (especially Men's Volleyball), mountains, stars, Taylor Swift's songs, peaches and chocolate mint.
6. One of my favorite things to do is to fly somewhere, and end up sitting next to a total stranger and becoming great friends in such a short time.
7. I am a social person, but people find it hard to believe that I love my alone time.
8. I think giving blood is fun. My favorite part is watching the nurse put the needle into my arm.
9. The scripture Ether 12:27 epitomizes my life since I was kid. When I was little, I was quite feisty, disorganized, had bad handwriting, didn't sing very well, was messy and had a hard time controlling my anger. Now, I like to think of these as strengths.
10. I have a knack for remembering everyone I have ever met. For example, I remember just about every single person I have taken a class with, and I can remember which one within ten questions. I have to hold myself back sometimes, because I remember everyone I have met once, and people are a little freaked out when I remember them, where they're from and their major.
11. My name is spelled wrong on my birth certificate. It was "Jenae". People have spelled my name in more ways than I thought were possible. For example, "Janea", "Gina", "Jenea", "JaNae", "Janay", and "Janai". My grandma spells it differently every year on my Christmas card.
12. Some of my weird quirks are that I abhor drinking out of glass cups, I eat the smallest banana on the back of the bunch, I won't eat something if it smells gross, and I don't really like donuts that much, unless they're cake donuts.
13. I love it when people play with my hair-especially Courtnacalifornia :).
14. I love chaos and being busy.
15. I am a narcoleptic when I drive or watch movies. I have to do something with my hands to keep me awake. For example, when I drove from Washington to Utah I got out of the car and a ran a mile for every 100 miles I drove to stay awake. Good idea, huh?
16. My nicknames include: Janaedio, Janae Mom, Hippy Sis, Boston Head, Brown Cow, Utility Forward (Rugby), Bulldozer (Soccer), Janae-nae and Coach Janae.
17. I love reading and learning about other cultures.
18. My family is awesome and incredibly hilarious. Just ask them about a game of Guesstures and they bust up laughing just thinking about it. Does "bikini", "tango" or "hurdle" ring a bell? :)
19. The only requirements I have for my own wedding are a chocolate fountain and a dance. My YW leader told me that it sounded like a party, and I said, "Exactly!!" :)
20. If I marry someone with the last name that starts with "K" or "Q", my initials will be JRK, JRQ-Jerk.
21. I love things that most people don't. For example, I love volunteering at an old folks' home and in a high school ESL classroom-and I actually like middle schoolers and would like to teach them someday.
22. I have been told that I have a drawl and been asked if I was Argentine, Portuguese, Brazilian, Mexican, Eastern European or Norwegian.
23. I miss high school Spirit Week. I got to wear cool stuff, such as flippers and inner tubes, capes, 80's clothes, a mullet wig....I could go on and on. Good times.
24. Fave BYU dating stories: I got my hand shut in the door on a date freshman year and a guy gave plasma so he could afford a date with me.
25. I love ya!!

Have a great day!!
-Janae