Work, kids books, and other notes

This week was just a big ball of stress. Aside from the normal work stress there were several additional issues going on that kinda sent me over the edge. Just having to go up there today was enough to make me feel panicky & sad. SO, ever since I got home from all the festivities today, I've just been hanging out on the couch being L-A-Z-Y. I know next week will be better, so I'm not gonna talk about work anymore. Instead, I'm gonna talk about all the cool kids books I've been reading this year. Some I've read with my kiddos, & others are ones they've recommended to me. City of Ember I've already talked about this one on the blog. I read it last year & decided I had to read it with my kids before the movie came out this month. Love it! Riding Freedom I've got to thank Nikki for 'making' me read this book a couple years ago when we taught reading together. I had no interest in reading it, but I'm SO glad I did. I just finished reading it with my kids this year & they really enjoyed it too. It's based on a true story about a female stagecoach driver with some amazing perseverance. Her story is all about overcoming obstacles & never giving up on your dreams - what better message for my kids to hear? Firegirl I stole this one off a kid's desk & started reading it (yes, she gave me permission b/c she was reading another book at the time). Even though It's kinda a sad book, It sucked me in b/c it shows a great transformation of a kid's life. No Talking I love Andrew Clements' books! Frindle was my favorite (thanks to Megan recommending it), but No Talking is AWESOME for reading with 5th graders. It's so funny & the kids love the competition between the boys & the girls in the book. The Lightning Thief It seems like ALL my boys are reading this book/series right now. One day at recess a kid asked me to hold his copy. I read the first couple pages & decided I'd check it out. I finished it last night/this morning at 1 something. It's a great 'boy' book w/ lots of action. I bought the 2nd and 3rd books of the series today & I'm half way through the 2nd one now. One of my favorite things about teaching reading is talking with my kids about the books they are reading. I can't wait to tell the boys I finished this one & talk about all the plot twists and turns! Other notes: - Today was Family Fun day at The Patch. It was awesome - completely saturated with God's presence. I was SO sad when I had to leave! -Friday night I went with the college/young adult group to see HSM3. I was worried people wouldn't enjoy themselves, BUT we all ended up having a blast & laughing at the cheese-fest. Plus, I feel like the group is starting to bond & get more comfortable together, so YAY! -I still feel guilty for not accepting Sarah's $5, but later accepting Laura's. What Sarah didn't know is that when she offered, I was contemplating leaving. When Laura asked, I had just decided I had to 'pay my dues' and therefore couldn't sneak out. I hope Sarah knows I love her just as much as Laura. xoxoxo

Sing it, Baby!

We had tons of fun Saturday night celebrating John's b-day. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

First, here are the pictures of the front door I promised (Thanks for the decor, Neecy Mama!):

A funny addition showed up on Saturday morning (have you guys had the politicians stopping by the last couple weeks?):

I hope he enjoyed the decorations as much as we did. Anyway, here is what we did Saturday night:

That's right, we were rockin' out to Singstar - The 80's!! It was totally radical!

Questions...

1. Do you like blue cheese? nope 2. Have you ever smoked? nope 3. Do you own a gun? nope 4. What flavor Kool Aid was your favorite? Red 5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? sometimes 6. What do you think of hot dogs? I prefer not to think about hotdogs - they taste better that way. 7. What is your favorite Christmas Movie? Grinch - the old one! 8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? water 9. Can you do push ups? a few before they start to look embarrassing 10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? My engagement ring 11. Favorite hobby? right now blogging & facebook are taking over...weird. 12. Do you have A.D.D.? nope 13. What's one trait you dislike about yourself? pride 14. Middle name? Field 15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment... John's party, Lucy is whining in the bedroom & she's gonna wake John up, time to let her out to go potty 16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? coke, water...that's about it 17. Current worry? We're gonna be late for Lauren's recital 18. Current hate right now? negativity/whining 19. Favorite place to be? home 20. How did you bring in the New Year? can't remember back that far... 21. Where would you like to go? Hawaii - again. 22. Name three people who will complete these questions? No clue 23. Do you own slippers? Somewhere in the bottom of my closet, they may still exist 24. What color shirt are you wearing right now? grey - 5th grade camp shirt - yeah baby! 25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? yeah, except your pillow always slides off the side of the bed! 26. Can you whistle? yes 27. Favorite color? a nice calm blue, or pink 28. Would you be a pirate? um...no - random. 29. DO YOU SING in the shower? yeah 30. Favorite Girl's Name? Madeline 31. Favorite boy's name? Christian 32. What's in your pocket right now? PJ pants don't have pockets 33. Last thing that made you laugh? My student getting chosen to go up front in an assembly & the guy making him dance like a ballerina. 34. Best bed sheets as a child? can't remember 35. Worst injury you've ever had? split my chin open by falling in (the shallow part of) a river in 8th grade 36. Do you love where you live? yes 37. How many TVs do you have in your house? 2 38. Who is your loudest friend? Dori or Jana - hmmm...it's a toss up. 39. How many dogs do you have? 1 - our little Lucy! 40. Does someone have a crush on you? Only children - but that's what happens when you teach. 41. What is your favorite book? Right answer: The Bible, Current books obsession: Twilight series 42. What is your favorite candy? snickers 43. Favorite Sports Team? TCU - go frogs! 44. What song do you want played at your funeral? I Can Only Imagine, less specific - any songs of celebration - 'cause I'm gonna be dancing with Jesus!

Happy Birthday, John!

I just had to give my awesome hubby a shout out on his big 3-0! Neecy already accosted the front door of our house with streamers & a sign that says, "Welcome to the old folks home". I'll have to add a picture of her masterpiece on here later - I can't possibly describe her artistry without one. Happy Birthday, John! I love you!

What we've been up to

This weekend was nice. We pretty much got to hang out, run errands, and visit friends. I love my friends. Last night we went to M&L's house & ate pizzadillas & played singstar. It was awesomeness. The hightlight had to be John & Logan singing a duet of "More than Words". It was truly inspirational. It's true, we don't have kids yet, but we sure do love hanging out with everybody else's kids! We got to see a soccer game played by a bunch of Kinder kids - which was incredibly entertaining. I got to hold/rock a precious little 8 week old & watch him sleep in my arms (thanks for the baby fix, Dori!) John got to play tag with R all around the backyard (maybe that was more fun for me to watch than for John...although he seemed to be having fun). It was just a fun & relaxing weekend all around!

Peaceful Easy Feeling

I love my kids. They are adorable (they would gag if they heard me say that, btw). Today at recess I was sitting out in the sun, enjoying the cool breeze, & watching my kids play. Here's what I saw: ~2 pairs of kids sitting together in the shade reading books - adorable. ~6 boys playing tag football in an almost choreographed way. They even had their post touchdown celebrations worked out - adorable. ~4 kids racing hotwheels - adorable. ~And my favorite: 8 kids playing 'City of Ember'. Yes, the book we read at the beginning of the year. They started by voting on who should play each of the main characters, then chose their setting. There is a conveniently located drainage ditch closed off by a metal grate that goes underground at the edge of our playground. They decided that was the entrance to Ember(if you know about the book, you know why they chose that as the 'entrance'). After all the important stuff was decided, they proceeded to play. Just play. Running & jumping, & skipping around using their imaginations - I half expected to them to break into song - it was very 'Sound of Music'-esque the way they were running around & laughing together - adorable. It may sound weird, but this was a serious 'God is in this place' moment for me. I felt like I was basking in His presence surrounded by His peace & joy. It reminded me to thank God for the precious gifts He has entrusted to me this year. It also reminded me I am called to love & serve them/Him with my whole heart. "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' -Matthew 25:40

Will you be my friend?

Little kids make friends so easily. We went to dinner with Mike & Betsey & their kiddos at the end of the summer & ate outside on a patio of a local BBQ place. By the time dinner was over Luke & Lauren had made a new friend (a little girl who was there with another family). We all laughed as we watched them playing together. The highlight of the the night had to be when we were leaving & the little girl gave Luke some sad puppy-dog eyes. Luke turned and said in a solemn voice, "Don't worry, we'll see each other again." It was very Last of the Mohicans (I will find you, just stay alive!) I share this story 1. Cause kids are awesome, and 2. because I made new friends! I know there's been a lot of blogging around my workplace about the awesomeness of our staff, but I've gotta talk about it more. I can't believe I've worked with the likes of Laura & Jana (for what, like 4 years now?) & am just now getting to know them! If you've been reading my blog, you'll probably remember me whining about starting a new school year & worrying about losing my best friend at school (I still miss you at school MD - there's NO cure for that!) but I'm realizing God is working (as always) through my weakness & insecurities. He has really blessed me this year & I am happy where He has me. Apparently my 'happy' look is coming off as more of a glow lately b/c people keep asking if I'm pregnant (No, people, I'm not - and I'm not lying either, so stop giving me the smug 'sure you're not' look!!) Anyway, I'm just thankful for the gifts God has put in my life lately, so I had to share! BTW, speaking of blessings - I got into BSF! They ended up starting a new group which never happens. So, I'm really thankful, & excited about learning more about my boy Moses & his peeps over the next year.

Crazies on Display

Everybody's crazy. However, in normal life we hide/control/restrain our crazies. Only the truly privileged (i.e. spouses, parents, closest friends) get to experience the crazies. This system works out well for everyone involved. Here's the problem: sometimes the crazies escape - then they're out there for everyone to see. Tonight some of my crazies escaped in the form of irrational frustration/tears. Yuck. I'm sitting here trying to figure out what led up to this breach in security, & I'm thinking it's just being tired. This whole getting up at 5 to leave by 6:15, then not getting home until 9 or 10 at night does not work for me. The good news is I'm done with that schedule for a while. The bad news is there were witnesses to the breakout, & if you were one of the innocent bystanders, I'm sorry. Now it's time for me to go pour out my crazies to God. Thank you, Lord that Your grace is enough for me...and my crazies.