Needing Febreeze

     Yesterday grandpa told grandma that he wanted a cinnamon roll and some coffee. I don't think the above picture is what he had in mind.
     Grandma stuck the cinnamon rolls in the microwave, hit start, and continued with what she was doing. Not long later smoke was pouring out of the microwave. And by pouring I really mean pouring. They ended up just a tad over-cooked. Today the house doesn't smell like smoke as much as it did yesterday, but I think I'm going to get Febreeze anyway. I want to make sure the smell doesn't stay in the furniture. Yuck!
     I was feeling a little down yesterday. Grandma seemed to be in a nasty mood in the morning and was taking it out on Grandpa and I. It made me feel nervous about being here and living with them for this unknown period of time. I'm so glad that the Lord knows our every thought and every need because yesterday He supplied those needs that I didn't even know I had. 1) I was able to have lunch with some great friends from home. It was so good to see them. Betsy's family lives in Wisconsin and they were there visiting so we met halfway for lunch. It was a great distraction from the frustrating morning. 2) My mom talked to my grandma in the afternoon and asked how things were going with me being there. Grandma, without any hesitation, said they loved having me here. 3) I'm trying to make it a habit to help my grandma check her blood sugar every night before bed because she gets confused about the meter. Last night after helping her she cupped my face and very sweetly said thank you. Those things were just what I needed. 

My spot

See that blue basket there? This is my space in the kitchen. I know it is small, but I was actually pretty excited that grandma made that space for me. :) it means that I don't have to carry my coffee supplies to my room every day.

Jesus paid it all

All to Him I owe!

Sketching again

Line from a favorite worship song. 

Accidentally crumpled the corner. 

Day One

I had to laugh yesterday. It was my first day living with my grandparents (without the rest of my family here) and I got out of bed, went out of my room and my grandparents weren't home. Ha! It was only 8:30 in the morning. There was no note or anything. Had to trust that they were ok. I hope that if they have to go to the emergency room in the middle of the night they would let me know. Actually I think they will. Grandma came in my room late last night to help her check her blood sugar. I'm glad she feels comfortable doing that. Anyway, they came in a few minutes later. They had been at the grocery store. It is going to take some major convincing to get my grandma to stop driving. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to drive to work everyday, even though I live just a couple blocks away from the school, just so she doesn't have access to the car all the time.

laugh, cry, and harmonize

I definitely cried last night during our last song.
For the past year and a half I've been so blessed to sing with this girl and her brothers. We've laughed, cried, and harmonized with each other. I feel like they are part of my family.
This is where I dislike change. Its not so much the location change, but the people change. I'm going to miss those three so so much. Thankfully I know I will keep in touch with them and see them when I come to visit. I'm so happy that the Lord gave me the joy of leading worship with them. I was encouraged by each of them every week we sang together. They challenged me to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus as we praise His name. I'm excited to see how God continues to grow each of them closer to Him. I know that God is going to do amazing things in them and through them!

Give me Jesus

I drew this last night before I went to bed. I woke up in the morning with the phrase/song stuck in my head. It caused me to pick up my Bible before I did anything else. So thankful for little reminders like that. It was such a sweet time in God's Word and praying. I love that time so much. 

I like these little flowers. 

Be Still

It is easy to get worked up about things and worry. But God tells us to be still and let Him take care of things. As I've said many, many times His way is much better than my own way. Stop worrying and overthinking. Let the Lord take care of it. 

Playing around with chalk pastels. 

Silly Girls

 I love sleepovers with this silly girl! She is so much fun. Here is our froggy picture. Haha! It hardly looks like us! Kinda creepy. 

Our morning has been full of donuts and Wild Kratts. Perfect relaxing morning! 

Noah's Quilt

My most recent quilt. I love the colors. My second attempt at applique. Still need more practice. 

I made this for sweet baby Noah. 

I really like how it turned out! I have extra fabric, I just might make another. 

Philippians 4:6

One of my favorite verses. I'm constantly saying this verse to myself. 

Mighty to Save

I like this song. 

Deitueronomy 31:8

Nothing is a surprise to Him! 

"Calm My Anxious Heart" by Linda Dillow

One of my lovely coworkers loaned me this book when I was going through some struggles this year. The table of contents caught my eye right off the bat. Chapter 10: Trusting God with the What Ifs. Chapter 11: Trusting God with the If Onlys. Chapter 12: Trusting God with the Whys. I struggle with those things all the time.
Unfortunately I didn't get to read the book and I need to return it to her soon. But I was able to catch some of the things she highlighted when she read the book. I now have this book on my amazon wish list. It is one I will probably get sometime soon.

Here are some of the highlighted statements that caught my eye.

"We can only trust God when our focus is on Him and not on our circumstances." 

"If we are to find contentment in the midst of trial and uncertainty, we must accept our situation as being purposely allowed into our lives by a personal and loving God."

Psalm 92.1

Are you giving thanks to the Lord on a regular basis? Lately I feel like I've been grumbling more than thanking the Lord. Since I've noticed that I'm trying to be more purposeful in how much I thank the Lord for all He has done for me. And let me tell you, He has done a lot for me. 

I really should take pictures with my better camera. Oh well next time. 

Oh Wow!

I wish I could have kept it this clean while I was teaching in there! 

It was a very strange feeling to look at my cleaned out classroom as I left to turn in my keys. I've been teaching in this classroom for the past 4 years. There have been some fantastic memories in this classroom. I'm so thankful for the time God gave me to teach at RVC. I always knew I wanted to teach there. In my senior yearbook (from RVC) I had to tell where I'd be in the next 10 years and I said, "go to a Christian college, get married, and teach at RVC." Two out of three! :) RVC is like home to me. The teachers, especially the elementary teachers, are like family. Over the last 6 years I knew that I could go to any one of them and talk about anything. We shared a lot of laughter and tears over the last few years. I know that God put each of them in my life for a reason. Not only were they look friends and peers, but they were all amazing godly examples. Whenever I came to them with a struggle they pointed me right to Christ. God is so good! 

It is hard to say goodbye, but at the same time I'm excited to see what God has in store for me down the road. 

Who can be against us?

Such a great reminder. 

No matter what is going on in our lives, God is still for us. Nothing can hurt us. That's not to say things won't be hard. We still need to lean on Him. Safe in His arms. 

Micah 6.8

The markers didn't turn out the way I was hoping. I think I'll use watercolors next time. Hopefully that will make it less streaky. 

Trust

Lots of changes going on right now. I need this reminder to trust God. He has everything in His hands and I know that He won't let me fall. 

The packing has begun

Well, school is out. My grades and end of the year paperwork is all turned in. Now for the huge job of packing. Starting with my classroom and then will start on my house next week after a quick trip to Seattle to visit Lindsay and her family.
I didn't realize I had SO much stuff in my classroom! Obviously there are a lot of things that aren't mine in my classroom, but I bought a lot out of my own pocket. Books, books, books. I have at least 5 boxes of books that are mine. Not huge boxes, but still it is a lot of books. And I totally have more books at home. What can I say, I love books! There are a lot of things I'm not shipping to Wisconsin right now since I know I won't need them for teaching 1st and 2nd grade. I figure I can keep them in storage for a while. I'm honestly not sure how long I'll be in Wisconsin. A year for sure, but beyond that I have no idea. Just want to follow what God has planned.

I was able to get in contact with one of my new coworkers and she sent me a few pictures of the classroom I'm going to be using. I needed a little idea of how much space I have. It turns out that I have two rooms. Both are on the small size, but I'll take what I can get! It is fun to start thinking about how I'm going to set it up. The bright green walls in the extra room are a little shocking. I'll have to figure out how to tone that down a little. :)
If you think of me, please pray. Pray that I'll be able to get everything done that I need to do and that I won't get overwhelmed by all of it. I'm excited for this new adventure. (just trying not to think about the sad part of leaving yet)