Hello 2011!

It is hard to believe that 2010 is over as of tonight. Wow! The year went by so fast!
It has been a good year. God has been so good to me. It has been a busy year and I've been able to do some fun things. I've become so thankful for my friends both near by and far away as well as my family near and far.

I'm really looking forward to 2011. I know that God is going to do some great things this year. I don't know what He has planned, but I know that He has planned it. I love having that reassurance. Seriously I don't know how people live without having the hope that Christ give us. Recently I realized that I've been taking it for granted, but 2011 is where that is going to change. I have several things on my New Years Resolutions list, but the one thing I want to do is grow in my relationship with God. And how is that relationship going to grow if I hardly spend any time with Him?! Tomorrow is a brand new year and things are going to change for me. I am feeling very determined. And I hope that I will be able to update you in a month or so and say that I have been following through with that determination.

In addition to this here are the other things I'd like to do for 2011:

1. Read from the Bible everyday.
2. Exercise twice a week. 
3. Mail out birthday cards to my friends. 
4. Save $1000 for my emergency fund. 
5. Pay off my credit card from car repairs. 
6. No tv before bed - read instead. 
7. Have 2 Tastefully Simple parties a month. 
8. Check my budget and spending every week. 
9. Host a tea party every other month.
10. Keep up with my grading so that I'm not cramming it all in at the end of the quarter. :) 

Yikes, I hope I'm not biting off more than I can chew. 

Recap on Vacation

I thought I'd check my list of what I wanted to do over my vacation and see how I'm doing. I know there are a few things that I need to do still. 

1. Sleep in - done pretty well with that one
2. Read a book for fun - I'm reading Inkheart, but still have a ways to go.
3. Take my car in to get fixed - it is there as I'm typing this

4. Clean my apartment. I mean really clean! - Almost done! One room left to tackle!
5. Get through a few books I need to read for work - ok I haven't started this one yet. Yikes!
6. Get a massage - scheduled for Wednesday - Yes, I finally scheduled it!
7. Finish typing out my Grandma's recipes
8. Cook a few of my Grandma's recipes - made my Grandma's meatballs on Christmas Eve
9. Work on my Christmas quilt- almost done cutting out the fabric. Then I can start piecing it together.
10. Organize my Tastefully Simple business
11. Clean out my closet and get rid of a few clothes that I don't wear.
12. Read a book at Starbucks - Planning on going there this afternoon. :o) 

Well, not too bad. Most of them are in progress.  Better get going on some of them. Only 5 days left.

Puddles...a blessing and a curse

I have had quite the experience with puddles lately. And I have to say I truly have mixed feelings about them.
On the negative side, my car does not like puddles. I don't just mean any ordinary puddle. I mean the really big ones. You see when I drive through large puddles, which doesn't happen too often, my car throws a fit.
You know that belt in your car's engine? The one that controls the engine fan, water pump, alternator, power steering, and I'm sure a few other things?
Yup, that's the one. When I go through large puddles that belt come off. Not off in the sense that I lose the belt, but off in that those things in my engine are not functioning. So far this winter it has happened three times. It is really obvious when it happens too. I didn't realize how much I appreciate my power steering! My arms are killing my from when it went out this evening.
Grr! Tonight was one of those oh so lucky nights. And I realized it was the same puddle that had made it come off the time before. Yes, I'm learning. My mechanic says that it is common in the type of car I have and there isn't anything that can be done to stop it.
So, I am avoiding giant puddles.
After all that negative there are ways I am seeing how God is taking care of me.

1. Every time this has happened I have been close to home or work.
2. Someone just has to put it back on, and it doesn't cost too much money.
3. One of the maintenance guys at my work can put it back on for me. Thanks Shannon Guisti!
4. The last two times it came off I was very close to work.

God is so good!

Ok, now here is the reason why I find puddles a blessing.
Danika loves putting on her rain boots and jumping in puddles. The other day we went for a walk specifically looking for puddles to jump it. (she did all the jumping, I forgot my rain boots)
It is so much fun. Every little bit of water we saw she wanted to jump in it.
Finally we made it to a public school near my parent's house and found some good puddles in the parking lot. I think she would have stayed there all day.
So much fun!

Thank you, Lord for your many blessings and for showing me the positive in the negative. You are so good. -- Jamie

Jesus Paid it All by Kristian Stanfill

Top 5 Christmas Movies

Here is my 

Top 5 Christmas Movie List 

1. White Christmas

2. A Muppet Christmas Carol

3. The Santa Clause

4. Elf

5. Mickey's Christmas Carol

I have to admit though that I have hardly watched any Christmas movies this year. 

I feel like Christmas snuck up on me. And it is almost here!!!

What to do...

As of Friday, I am on Christmas Vacation! I'm a little excited to have some time off of work. Vacation time is one of the perks of being a teacher, for sure.

I was thinking the other day of all the things I'd like to do and get done during my two week vacation, so I thought I'd make a list to help motivate me to get them done. Hopefully I can get some things crossed off the list.

1. Sleep in (woke up at 7:30 today, that is a start!)
2. Read a book for fun
3. Take my car in to get fixed
4. Clean my apartment. I mean really clean! (planning on getting a good start on that today)
5. Get through a few books I need to read for work
6. Get a massage
7. Finish typing out my Grandma's recipes
8. Cook a few of my Grandma's recipes
9. Work on my Christmas quilt (maybe I can finish it sometime this year to use it next year)
10. Organize my Tastefully Simple business
11. Clean out my closet and get rid of a few clothes that I don't wear
12. Read a book at Starbucks (I've missed that in the last few months. It is so relaxing)

Ok, I'm sure the list could go on, but it is only 2 weeks people. :o) I'm so looking forward to the time to relax, get some things done and spend time with my family. The last few weeks have been crazy busy and I've only seen them here and there.

Happy Birthday!

Another Year

I’m wishing you another year
Of laughter, joy and fun,
Surprises, love and happiness,
And when your birthday’s done,
I hope you feel deep in your heart,
As your birthdays come and go,
How very much you mean to me,
More than you can know.

By Joanna Fuchs

I love you Julie! I'm so thankful that God gave me you as my little sis! I'm praying that this year is the best one yet!

How to survive the end of the semester...

Well, the procrastinator in me is showing right now. I always get mad at myself for putting things off to the last minute. Grr. It is the end of the semester and here I am trying to frantically get my grades all done in time. (Well I really want to get them done a few days early) So I'm taking a little break and I am writing about it. :)


Here is how I survive the end of the semester...

Christmas gift exchange with the class

It was a little crazy, but fun at the same time.

A nice hot cup of Butterscotch Kisses Cocoa. So amazing.

Gotta have great dessert when you have a bunch of papers to grade. These were made by one of the parents at school. Perfect!

Comfy and cozy slippers. 

And last but not least Hulu. 

I've got some favorite shows to watch while I'm entering my grades and correcting paper.

My Christmas Vacation is just around the corner. Monday is going to be wonderful with no school work to do.

Uncle Bubbles

I'm not always the best with my words and I really have a hard time sharing my feelings, but today (tonight...ok this morning) my heart is very sad. Today very suddenly Wayne Kuhner went to be with the Lord. My heart is very torn because I know that Wayne is safe in the arms of his loving Savior but at the same time I am very sad that he is not here anymore.

I have known Wayne my entire life and for as long as I can remember I have called him "Uncle Bubbles." He blew bubbles for me when I was little. My family used to spend a lot of time with the Kuhner family. Unfortunately, over the last several years we have not spent as much time together because of busy schedules, but they are still great friends.

Wayne was an great man of God. He cared for so many people. I loved peeking into the Church office on Sunday mornings to see if he was in there. He'd always give me a huge hug, say "hey sweetie!" and we would chat for a while. Every time I sang in church he would tell me that he thought it was my mom who was singing and that he loved it. I was always so encouraged by him.

Every time I think about him tonight I cry, hence the lack of sleeping at the moment.
The Kuhner family is in my prayers right now as I'm sure this is a very hard time for them.

Thank you, Lord, for your perfect timing, even when we don't understand. Thank you for the time I was able to have with Wayne. I am so thankful that he is at home with You in paradise. Please bring comfort and peace to those who knew and loved Wayne.

Raindrops

Raindrops are such funny things.

They haven't feet or haven't wings.

Yet they sail through the air,

With the greatest of ease,

And dance on the street,

Wherever they please.

playing on picnik

I've been having fun lately playing around with pictures on Picnik. I love how I can change the colors and just play around on it. I think my favorite thing to do it brighten up the colors. Here are a few fun things I figured out recently. :o) 

Thankful - Day 30

I realize that I'm a little late on this one, but I've been sick. I finally made it to the doctor today and she told me to try a few over the counter things. So at least I don't have to be on antibiotics (yet).

On the 30th I was definitely thankful that I was able to call in sick for the next day. (And today for that matter) I'm very thankful that I work for people who are understanding and who will even tell you to stay home when you are sick. I tend to be the person who just wants to push through. I didn't even think about using one of my sick days on Tuesday until someone told me I should.

I guess it comes down to the fact that I'm thankful for those people who look out for me. :o) God has richly blessed me.

Thankful - Day 26-29

So I have a few days to catch up on and these particular things don't necessarily have to do with a specific day. But I am definitely thankful for them!

Day 26 - My friends from college - God has blessed me so much with my friends from college. They are Godly people who are such great encouragements to me. I'm so bad at keeping in touch with them, but God is good and we are able to pick up where we left off when we are together. 

Day 27 - Traditions - I love that my family has traditions around the holidays. One of them being Julie and I and now Danika decorating our family's Christmas tree. It was so much fun with Dani this year. I'm so thankful that we are able to do these fun things. 

Day 28 - Christmas Lights - My dad is so amazing when it comes to Christmas Lights! This year he wasn't able to put as many up because of a tight budget, which I know was hard for him. But he did such a great job anyway and had such a great attitude about it. I love driving up to their house and seeing the lights down the street. I feel so proud of him. Christmas lights just make me feel so happy. 

Day 29 - Danika's Singing - I'm so, so, so thankful that Danika likes to sing. We were all wondering if she would and now that she has started it is hard stopping her. She has such a sweet voice and sometimes doesn't really know the right words to the songs. Sigh, I love it! 

I threw this one in for fun! I am so happy for my friend Stacy and her husband, Andrew Farris! Congrats!!

Thankful - Day 25

This may sound redundant, but today I'm thankful for Thanksgiving.

Not just being thankful for things, but the actual holiday. It is so nice to have a day set apart to give praise and thanks to God for the many things He has done for us. (yes, I know we do that on Sundays too, but you know what I mean) I love spending time with family and friends, eating good food, playing games, and hearing what other people are thankful for.

In my family we always go around the table and share the things we are thankful for. As we sat down this year my mom informed us that we needed to think of a serious thing and a silly thing that we are thankful for. This year, my entire family was thankful that we have jobs. God has been so good to us in how He has provided for our every need. The "silly" things we were thankful for were pretty focused on Danika, but that is because we all love her so much!

After lunch/dinner we played an exciting game of Hide and Seek. Danika loves playing it with the whole family. She picks people to count and then she takes turns of who she is going to hide with. It is so cute. You can always hear her throughout the house while she is hiding. :o)

The day ended with a visit to a friend's house and a lovely game of Banana Grams.

It was a good day.
Thank You, Lord for this wonderful day!

Thankful - Day 24

A few days off of school - I truly enjoyed my day off yesterday. I was lazy, lazy, lazy. Which is nice to be able to do every once in a while. I'm so thankful that I was able to sleep in and relax for the day.

And then the day ended with a movie night at my parent's house. My dad makes the best popcorn! I think I ask for it every time we watch a movie.

You have to know, my family is very varied (or random) in our movie interests. I grew up watching Star Wars and Star Trek, which I still enjoy watching occasionally, Jerry Lewis movies, John Wayne, musicals, a variety of old movies, chick flicks, action films, and many animated films.

I love watching movies with my family.

Many of the movies we like to watch together don't do well in the rating system, but to us they are just plain fun. One of the movies we watched last night is called "Rocketman." Don't get mixed up with the movie "The Rocketeer." It is completely different. Rocketman is a very goofy movie that Disney made quite a few years ago. The humor is cheesy and the story isn't very realistic, but it gets my family in stitches every time we watch it. It was so fun to have a good laugh last night.

So not only am I thankful for a few days off of school, but I'm also thankful for family movie nights. I think we should have them more often.

Thankful - 18-23 (yikes)

I was gone over the weekend and now I have some catching up to do. :o)

18 - Trumpet Lessons - I give 2 trumpet lessons once a week for 4 elementary boys. I love playing my trumpet, but don't get to do it very often. But not only that it is nice to have a little extra income from these lessons.

19 - Clean water - In my attempt to lose some weight I've been drinking a lot of water. I carry around a big bottle with me and have to drink two of them during the day. There are so many people around the world do don't have the luxury of turning on the faucet and having clean water come out. I know that is something I take for granted. Thank you, Jesus, for clean water!

20 - Friday, I was very thankful that my car has cruise control. On a long drive it is so wonderful.

21 - This may sound funny, but on Saturday I was thankful for Panera Bread. This was the day of my friend's wedding, and I didn't eat much until the evening because I was so busy. Karis and her fiance took me to Panera Bread. I LOVE Panera! I really wish Santa Rosa had one. It was such a treat and I was really hungry.

22 - My mom - I'm not sure I have said much about my mom, but I am so thankful for her. While I was driving home from SoCal on Sunday she called me several times to check on me. I know that she was worried about my driving so far by myself. I love her so much! This isn't the only reason why I'm thankful for her, but I'll write more another time.

23 - As much as I greatly (!) dislike the taste of Robitussin, I am very thankful for it because it works. I'm pretty sure because of the lack of sleep over the weekend and being around a few sick people, I caught something. But thankfully there is medicine I can take for it. :o)
I laughed at the packaging though. It said "New and Improved Taste!" The person who came up with that must have not tasted it.

Well, nothing very profound, but definitely things that I am thankful for. :o)

Thankful - Day 17

Music - 

      I love listening to it, singing it, and playing it. This shouldn't be a surprise. I have been singing since before I can remember. I think the first time I sang in church was when I was 3 or 4. I have been so blessed to come from parents who are amazing musicians. Some of my favorite memories are just singing congregational hymns next to my family. We all sing different parts.  

     Currently I love hearing my adorable niece singing. We were all beginning to wonder if she would ever sing. Now that she has started she won't stop. :o) 

     I love that I can worship my Savior through music. There are so many songs out there with fantastic lyrics that sing of God's wonderful grace and love. 

I'm so thankful for this part of my life.

Thankful - Day 16

      All teachers know how important recess is during the day. Rainy days are especially hard because the kids don't get a chance to run around outside...and the teachers don't get much of a break from the kids. Lol.
      Especially working with younger children I can tell when the kids need to go outside and get their wiggles out. For the past few years I've had several responsibilities on the playground at school. This year I'm out on the playground less than I was the past two years so that is nice. Anyway, as the person who goes out to the playground first it is my job to get out all of the balls and jump ropes the kids use on the blacktop. I usually check the balls to see if they need to be inflated more and throw them away when they don't hold anymore air. (Yes, I know this is exciting information.)
      Today I was excited because we just got in a shipment of kick-balls and a new tetherball for on the playground. It was something I was very thankful for this morning. The kids were excited when they saw the new equipment out there. And it was fun for me to see them enjoy the new things.
      So today I'm thankful for playground equipment. :o) Random, I know, but it is true.

Thankful - Day 15

Ok this may sound lame, but I'm thankful for coffee. Yeah I know I'm sad, but I'm thankful that it helps me stay awake when I need to (like this morning). And I love sipping on a cup of coffee on a cool day. My favorite is a White Chocolate Mocha. :o) I've been saving money by not going to Starbucks lately, so when I do get my White Mocha it is such a huge treat! Tonight was one of those times. Thanks to my work I was able to get my favorite drink from Starbucks. I'm happy. :o)

Thankful - Catch up

I've had crazy weekend so I got a little behind on the things I am thankful for.

Day 12 - God's Plan - Today (Friday) my car decided to be naughty. I was driving to my parent's house and my power steering went out. Ugh....ok now for the thankful part. :) Because of this I just stayed at my parent's house, because I didn't think I could drive it with my wimpy muscles. It turns out that my serpentine belt came off. Not sure yet how that happened. But if I would have driven it very much I could have majorly ruined my car. So Saturday I had it towed to my mechanic and they are fixing it.
That leads to ...

Day 13 - AAA - Saturday morning I decided to have my car towed so I called Progressive to use my road-side service that I've been paying for. Well, the company that was going to tow my car took about an hour and a half when they said they would be there in 30 min. So I called them and told them not to come and used my sister's AAA card. They were there in 30 min. :o) I am totally switching back to AAA for my road-side service. They have saved the day for me many times.

Day 14 - Sunday afternoon naps - I love Sunday afternoon naps! And after this weekend I really needed one. It was nice to curl up on the couch and sleep for a while.

Now I'm caught up. :o)

Sift!

Today I was able to go to Sift for the first time. I've had a few of their cupcakes before, but I've never been there before. Julie was so sweet today and took me there. Oh yum!! The cupcake I had was called "Knock your socks off." Wow was it good! A vanilla cupcake, filled with bavarian cream and topped with chocolate ganache. I am ashamed to say that I devoured it. 

Thankful - Day 11

Beauty in God's Creation -
I'm not a big fan of spiders, in fact I kill them or have someone else kill them whenever I see them, but the other day I noticed this spider web. It was a great reminder of how amazing God is. We are so blessed to have a Savior who created such beautiful things! I'm thankful that God helps me to notice the beautiful pictures He paints for me everyday.

A Big Thank You!

Monday morning as I was walking to my classroom before school, the fire alarm went off. So I went out to the playground with a few other teachers. It seemed like the alarm went off forever. And actually it was going for about 15 minutes. Talk about a major headache. In the end it was a false alarm, thankfully. But we had to wait for the fire department to come. So I am sending out a BIG Thank You to the Fire men and women who came to check on us at school. :o) 

Thankful - Day 10

My apartment -
I had a very good day today. Work was good and after a few trumpet lessons I headed over to my parent's house for dinner and some time spent with my family. I loved spending time with them. But now it is nice to be at my apartment. I call it an apartment, but it's not really an apartment. At first I called it a granny unit, but I don't really think it is that either. So I just call it an apartment.

I love having my own place! I've lived here for just over a year and I still love it. It is just the right size for me. I love decorating it and cooking in my kitchen. I'm really looking forward to decorating for Christmas in a couple of weeks.

I am so blessed to be able to live here. My landlords are wonderful gifts from God. I've known them for several years and I feel safe because I live right next to their house. I am able to go to them if I need anything. What a huge blessing!

The only downside is that I'm not here a lot because I tend to be pretty busy. But actually I think that makes me appreciate it more sometimes. :o) It is nice to go home to a place that is mine.

These pictures are from last Christmas.

Thanks Lord!

Thankful - Day 9

My 3rd Grade Class - I am so thankful for my 3rd grade students. They are such a sweet group of kids. They are easy to teach and love to laugh. As a teacher I love to have fun with my students, I can be strict for sure, but I love to laugh with my students and do fun activites. This group of 8 kids is so much fun. We laugh a lot together, sometimes they can get a little carried away, but for the most part we stay on track. I'm just so thankful that I get to teach them and be around them all the time. This is my first experience having my own class, and in reality I'm not their only teacher because it is a spit class, but God is so good to have given me this group of kids. Because it is a small class we can do more and have a blast at the same time.
Thank You, Lord for this wonderful blessing!

Thankful - Day 8

I have to admit to you. I'm sitting here trying to decide what to write about and all I want to do is have a pity party. I feel like I could give you this long list of ways I'm feeling sorry for myself. But instead I'm working at taking the attention off of me and putting it back on Christ.
After sitting here for a few minutes I'm drawn to one of my favorite passages in scripture, Psalm 139. And right now I think it clearly says what I am thankful for  today.

Psalm 139:1-18
O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it. 
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night," even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You. 
For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully make; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand.   

and then the chapter ends with verses 23 & 24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.

I know that this is a somewhat long passage. But it is so encouraging to me. I love these verses. It is hard for me to choose just one or two verses out of this chapter. I am so thankful that God is always with me. There is nowhere I can go without Him! And He is always thinking of me!

Thank You, Lord for helping me put my focus in the right place tonight!

Thankful - Day 7

I'm thankful that I grew up in a Christian home. God is so good. I've already talked about how thankful I am for my family. But I praise the Lord for putting me into that family. I'm thankful that I was raised going to church, reading the Bible, praying, memorizing scripture and singing praises to God. Because of that I have a great love for my Savior. I love going to church, and not just because I like to be social. Growing up I practically lived at church. I love singing to my Jesus. I love hearing how God is working in other's lives. I love being encouraged when I open God's Word. My parents have always been great examples in that area. 

Thank you, Jesus for your many blessings!

Thankful - Day 6

My Savior - If I were to put these things in order I would probably have this one on the top of my list. I don't even want to imagine what my life would be like without my Savior. I don't deserve His love at all. He is always thinking about me and often I don't include Him in my plans. That is something I am always working on.
One of the hard things about being single is the feeling of loneliness I have every so often. But one thing I have to remind myself of is that God is always with me. I don't have to feel lonely. I can recite scripture and be reminded of how much my Savior loves me.

100 things about me as a reader

I love to read, and yet I'm in a season of my life when I don't have a lot of time to read. Vacations are wonderful because I can be content with curling up with a good book. I saw this on a blog somewhere out there and thought it was a cute idea. I might even suggest that we make a list at school. (hint hint Jen) :o) 


I'm pretty sure I can't finish this list today, but I'll add to it occasionally. 


100 things about me as a reader:
1. I love reading children's literature.
2.  I didn't like to read when I was in elementary school.
3.  Realistic Fiction and fantasy are my favorite genres.
4.  I started to like reading in Jr. High when I read my first Lori Wick book.
5. I have to love the character in a book to enjoy the book.
6.  I'd rather own a book than get it from the library. I usually have a large fee at the library. :o/
7.  I've met Jan Brett. She is my favorite children's author and illustrator.
8. I totally judge a book by its cover.
9. I have a couple shelves of books that I haven't yet read.
10.  I often skip parts in books when scenery or nature is described. But usually only when I'm reading a book for the second time.
11. I am love listening to audio books. Especially when I'm on a long road trip by myself.
12. I almost never like the movie better than the book.
13. I'd rather read the book before I see the movie. But I'll watch the movie first on occasion.
14. I'm not good at getting rid of books.
15. My 2nd grade teacher read Little House in the Big Woods in our class and to this day I love it!
16. I get excited about having authors autograph my books.
17.  I like to share my books with others, as long as I get them back.
18. I like to alternate between fiction and Christian living books.
19. I love used book stores.
20. I usually can't read in the car--I get carsick.
21.  I like to look at blog reviews and other reviews to find new children's books.
22.  I have many favorite authors.
23.  I haven't read too many graphic novels.
24.  I have a bad habit of starting a book and not picking it up for a long time. That has to do with the amount of time I have.
25. My aunt is an author and I'm planning on reading her new book when it comes out in December.
26. I love reading books that my students suggest.
27.  My favorite class in college was Children's Lit.
28. I have very little patience for reading how-to/directions.
29. I love love love to hang out in any bookstore.
30. I buy too many books!
31. I save gift cards to bookstores for a long time. It is just too hard to choose!
32. I could walk around a bookstore for hours. 
33. I like reading magazines. 
34. I really struggle with reading books that I'm required to read. I have 4 waiting on my bookshelf right now. And I need to get busy!
35. I don't read very much nonfiction. 
36. I'm really good at imagining I'm in the story. 
37. A Tale of Two Cities was my favorite book that I was required to read in High School. 
38. I'm known to giggle while I'm reading. Just ask my family. 
39. I'm a sucker for Christian romance novels. But I don't read them very often anymore. Once again...no time. 
40. I get really into the story when I read aloud to my class. So much that I might lose my voice if I read aloud for too long in one sitting. 
41. I love libraries even though I don't check books out too often. 
42. My favorite thing to do on a rainy day is curl up on my couch with a cup of tea and a good book. 
43. I use whatever I can find to use as a bookmark. But I can't keep track of actual bookmarks. 
44. I want to read all of the Nancy Drew books. 
45. There are only a handful of books that I will read more than once. 




Well, that is a pretty good start. More to come later on. :o) 
Don't forget to change your clock!

Thankful - Day 5

My Family -
I am so thankful for my family. I love being around them. We laugh a lot and sometimes cry together but mostly laugh. My parents are wonderful Godly examples to me. They have always been very supportive. My mom is a fantastic listener, and it is funny how much alike we are in so many ways.  My dad can always make me laugh.
Julie and I have grown so much closer in the last several years. I love spending time with my sister. I was just talking with someone the other day about how sisters often grow closer when they are living farther apart. Julie and I were friends before I went away to college, but we definitely grew closer while I was gone. :o) She is such an amazing woman! I love to see how God is growing her.
And of course there is Danika. It is so wonderful to walk in the door and have an adorable 3 year old come running up saying "Auntie! Auntie!" I love it. She loves to call me and sing songs over the phone.

Thankful - Day 4

Going for walks -

I love going for walks. Over the summer my mom and I went walking almost every morning. It was so great spending some one on one time with my mom and talking while we walk. Yesterday I went for a great walk with Danika, my niece. Actually I walked and pushed her in a stroller. She chatted with me the entire way and cheered me up. And then there are the walks I go on with Stephanie. She and I try to go walking a couple times a week, depending on the weather. We go for great fast paced walks, you know, the kind where your legs are tingly when you are done. We have a great time talking and we also work at memorizing scripture together.

Thankful

It is the month of November and I've decided that everyday I'm going to post something that I am thankful for. I'm a little late getting started, but that is ok.

Nov 1. - My job - So many people are out of work right now, and I have been richly blessed with my job. I love the kids I work with and I've grown very close to some of the people I work with too.

Nov. 2 - Catalyst Group - I truly love being a part of my Bible study. It is so nice to meet during the week. We eat great food every week, have a great time of prayer and best of all study God's Word.

Nov. 3 - A good mechanic - I had to take my car in to be fixed yesterday and I very much appreciate the guys who work at the 76 station where I take my car. They do a great job and I know I can trust them.

There's my start. More to come!

Flowers

I love taking pictures of flowers. A few years ago I discovered the macro button on my camera and now I am always playing around with it. Sorry if you get sick of me posting pictures of flowers (all two of you who look at this blog). :o) But I still like taking pictures of flowers. 

We have such an amazing creator! 

Candles

 I love burning candles in my apartment. I love the smell of them and I love the look of them in various places in my small living space. Sometimes I'll just turn on my candle warmer, but more often I'll light a variety of candles while I'm at home. One time last year I had to drive home during my lunch break to make sure I hadn't left a candle burning. I don't light candles in the morning anymore. :o)

I've had a few candles from Bath and Body Works that I like, but they haven't burned that well. There was never enough wick for all of the wax. Just recently I've discovered my two favorite candles. I bought the Pumpkin Harvest Febreze candle at Target not too long ago and I've loved it! I burned it everyday since I bought it. It had a great fragrance and it burned totally down to the bottom. Now I can reuse the glass jar it was in. (I like to recycle those kinds of things.) The only problem with that candle is that it is seasonal. It isn't even November and the candle is off the shelves. Now they have the Christmas candles out. And I'm not ready for Christmas yet.

Now that I've used up that candle I looked in my cabinet for something else to burn while I'm at home. I pulled out this Yankee Candle that a family gave to me at the end of last school year. It isn't Field of Dreams like the picture, it is Over the Moon. I LOVE IT! It has a nice fresh smell, and because my place is so small the whole apartment smells great. I'm hoping it will last a while and that it burns down nicely.

California

You know you live in California when...
There is a little bit of frost on the playground slide and a kid yells "Look! Its snow!!"

Grandma's Cooking

First of all I'm pretty sure Julie must have been wearing shoes in this picture and I wasn't, because she is NOT taller than me. I'm pretty sure this picture was from 2002 or 2003. Not sure. I think that was the last time my Grandparents came out for a visit. 

Ok, now that I've gotten that straight. Over the summer my family took a trip to Wisconsin to visit my Grandparents (my mom's parents). As much as I love going to visit my friends I wish I could visit my Grandparents the most often. I love going to see them. On this last trip I decided that I wanted to copy down my Grandma's recipes. Grandma is a great cook. She is known for her cinnamon rolls, which she makes from scratch. So for a good portion of the week that we were there I sat with my dad's laptop and the recipe book which my Grandma has been adding to for years. It took a long time to type all of the recipes out, and I still have more to type. I ended up taking pictures of the pages so I could continue typing out the recipes. My goal is to have all of them typed and then make a cookbook. I've been looking around for ideas of how to make a cookbook that looks nice, but doesn't cost a ton of money. I thought about going the Shutterfly route, but I didn't really like the layouts that much and I knew that I was going to put a lot of recipes in it so it didn't really go along the amount of money I wanted to spend. I thought about just printing it at Kinkos and having them bind it. And I was probably going to do that until my friend Stephanie told me about Lulu. Lulu is an online publishing company, which Steph's husband Jeremy used for some Bible curriculum he wrote. I looked at the website and loved the idea instantly.
So the plan is to...

1. Finish typing all of Grandma's recipes (I think I am getting close to finishing). 
2. Try out a good chunk of the recipes and take pictures of them. 
3. Create a format for the pages of the cookbook.
4. Collect pictures from my relatives of them and Grandma.
5. Upload the entire project & publish it. 

Lulu is the kind of thing where I wouldn't have to try to sell huge quantities of the book, but they would make them as they are purchased. And honestly I'm not looking to sell that many, other than to my family members. I know that a lot of the recipes will taste amazing, but really for me it is special because it is the recipes that my Grandma cooks. 

I love my Grandma, and I am sad that I have lived so far away from her and my Grandpa for my entire life. Every visit is a wonderful time. 

Reading list

So after I made my list of things to do by the time I turn 30 I looked through the books on my shelves to see how many I had to read... And then I almost passed out. It is a very long list! Yikes! I am ashamed to say that I have a lot of books that I have started and never finished. I'm going to  work really hard at marking the books off my list in the next couple of years. I can do this!

I was going to share the list, but I'm embarrassed with how many books I have to read. So I'm skipping out on showing the list until I have a few more checked off. :o/ Yes, I'm a chicken.

30 by 30

I've been feeling inspired by seeing my friend's lists of thing they want to do by a certain time. In 2 1/2 years I will be 30 so I'd say that is a good amount of time to get through a list of things I want to get done.

Italicized items are ones I am working on right now.

So here is my list in no particular order.

1. Read through the entire Bible
2. Donate my hair to Locks of Love (I'm growing it out at the moment)
3. Publish a cookbook of my Grandma's recipes
4. Read through the books on my bookshelf that I have not read
5. Draw one sketch each day for 30 days in a row
6. Make a quilt for my bed
7. Walk in a half-marathon
8. Take a cooking class
9. Loose 20 pounds and keep if off for 6 months
10. Make a Christmas quilt (I started cutting out the pieces a while ago and haven't picked it up in a while) 
11. Visit Yosemite
12. Eat at the Melting Pot
13. Cook through an entire cookbook
14. Visit another country (other than the ones I've been to)
15. Sew something I can wear
16. Publish a children's book
17. Stick to my budget for two months in a row (I hope after 2 months it will be easy to stick with it for a long time)
18. Go on a hot air balloon ride
19. Visit the Grand Canyon
20. Write my Grandma 2 letters per month
21. Clean out my Gmail inbox to zero
22. Have a picture taken of me that I really like
23. Visit a winery in Sonoma County
24. Sing with someone famous (not sure if that is realistic or not)
25. Go to the middle of nowhere at look at the stars
26. Get a massage (I have the gift card, just need to make the appointment) 
27. Learn to play the piano so I can sing while I play
28. Make a pie from scratch
29. Take a flower arranging class
30. Host a tea party at my apartment. 

I'll be posting things as I cross them off of my list. 

Some aren't extremely realistic, but they are fun anyway. 

So far this fall!

1st day of school!

Dani's 1st day of school!

Happy Birthday Allie!

Silly!

Driven to walk by faith - Teachers racing!

Soccer Under the Lights! Ethan all bundled up!

Sonoma County Fair

Top 5 Reasons why I love going to the fair with my family:

5. The Flower Show - I don't know how other fairs are in different areas, but the Sonoma County Fair has an amazing flower show. There is an entire pavilion dedicated to it. Landscaping groups take up sections of it and fill the entire area with plants of all colors and sizes. Every year there is a theme. This year the theme was wine. Which makes sense for Sonoma County. Walking into this area was like walking into

Fountain made of wine bottles! Very cool idea!

4. Free Clover Ice Cream - Every day during the fair there is a booth that passes out free ice cream cones. The ice cream tastes great and best part of all...it is free. :o) It is nice to not have to spend a ton of money at the fair.

3. Kids Rides - Normally I don't go on rides at the fair, but my niece Danika is at the age where she loves going on rides. We tried to do other things, but all she talked about was the Carousel. It was fun going on rides with her. Most of the time she had a very serious face, but we all knew she had a great time.

She looks terrified, but this ride was all she talked about for the first 20 minutes at the fair. 

2. The Food - Raise your hand if you like fair food! (mine hand is high in the sky!) Food at the fair is so much fun. I love trying new things. Now I'm not talking about a greasy hot dog. My usual at the fair is pesto pasta from The Pasta King. I know exactly where to find them at the fair. This year I had pork sliders from Johnny Garlic's. Wow they were amazing! Another favorite is the kettle corn.

1. Photo-booth Pictures - This is my favorite thing to do at the fair! It is the main reason I go. People laugh at me and tell me to just go to the mall, but it isn't the same. I LOVE the tradition Julie and I made the first time we took Dani to the fair. It is fun to see how she has grown in one year. She still doesn't quite get the idea, but we are getting there. I played around a little on Picnik with the picture.

And there you have it!

< 3

Ok so what do you think of my chip?! I pulled out out of the bag and almost ate it. :o) I saved it to show to my 3rd grade students.
They liked it.
School has been going well. I have one student who is being a little trouble maker and I'm having to get him in trouble and then I feel bad. I am pretty good about following through with my discipline at school, but there are times when I second guess myself.
I really love my students. :o)

Funny thing happened today.
I'm teaching the jr. high computer class...not really teaching it. Just keeping the kids in line as they work on a typing program. It just so happens that I am pretty good at recognizing their voices and I totally tell them to be quiet, by name, when I'm not even looking at them. God is good. One boy just slammed his hands on the keyboard today and I told him to be quiet. He was shocked that I knew it was him. It made me feel like a great teacher! Haha.

2010-2011 School Year

Well, the first week of the 2010-2011 school year is almost over. The week has flown by. My schedule has changed yet again. At the rate I'm going I don't think I'll have two school years that look the same. Ever. But I really do like what I do. This year is different in that I have the opportunity to teach more at the elementary level. Due to financial difficulties the Christian school I am teaching at had to combine the 2nd and 3rd grade classes. The administration had to let go of the 3rd grade teacher and the placed me as the combined class' aid. I am working with Jen Bauer, who is an amazing teacher. This week has been a lot of fun. Jen and I are a lot alike and we love to laugh when we are working together.

The bigger challenge I have for the year is the work I am doing in the jr. high. Oh boy. I am continuing teaching jr high art the same as last year. It is nice to have the class again because I can learn from my mistakes. :o) I am also teaching jr. high computers and spanish. Si, hablo espanol. Un poquito. Praise the Lord! Both of those classes are computer programs, so that I just have to make sure the students are actually working. We'll see how that goes. :o)

I'm really excited to see what God has planned for this school year. I know that He is going to stretch me this year and teach me a lot.

Say Cheese!

I've created a monster! 

Julie is still a little upset with me for teaching Danika how to use her camera. It is so cute though! Although some of the pictures she has taken of me are not too flattering. :o/ 

Look at how she has her tongue!! So adorable. I love this little girl!

Avid Reader... not too sure

In my life I've kind of had a love/hate relationship with reading. I did not enjoy reading in elementary school until I started reading Christian romance novels. It all started with Lori Wick, an author whom I know personally and still love reading her books. I would devour her books when I started reading them, but if a book was required for school I had the hardest time getting through them. There have been a handful of required reading books that I have enjoyed (A Tale of Two Cities and The Silver Chalice to name a couple). That was in high school and the same thing happened in college until I took a Children's Literature class at TMC. Oh My! I loved that class! That class made me love reading even more than before. Children's literature is so much fun (and easy) to read. I think if I weren't a teacher I would open my own children's book store just like on You've Got Mail.
The problem I have with reading is that I start a book and then don't have time to read and never finish it! Ahh!! It drives me nuts. I have a huge stack of books that I need to finish. At at the rate I am going I won't have time to finish those books until I retire (who knows when that will be). I think I need to challenge myself in reading books. I've gotten into the habit of watching something on my computer before I go to bed. I love doing that because it helps me to relax before I sleep. My new plan is to only do that every other night. On the off nights I want to do more reading. That way my stack of books will start to decrease. Such a good goal. I hope I can keep it up.
So the current book I am reading is Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper. I read it once in college, but it was a required read so you know what that means... I don't remember one bit of it. My Bible study is reading through it right now. So far we are on chapter 6 and I think I've read half of each chapter. Yikes! I am terrible! This week I'm going to do better!

My Crazy Life

I am so tempted to change the title of this blog to "My Crazy Life." It truly is a crazy life! I could call it "My Crazy Life In Christ Alone." It really is through Christ alone that I am able to survive my crazy life. In my 3rd grade art class we painted today (always an interesting experience). One of the moms had to drop something off for me and I said to her "Welcome to my crazy life!" She laughed at me and agreed that I was pretty brave in the art project we were doing. So at the moment I am in a classroom, which smells like tempera paint (not the most pleasant smell) and tables that are covered with artwork, dreading the idea of cleaning up. I'll be honest though...I never want to clean my classroom. Wouldn't it be great to wiggle your nose have have everything done for you! But then I wouldn't be able to rely on the Lord, so I guess I'm in good shape. 

I feel like I am rambling. :o) Hope you (whoever reads this anymore) are having a wonderful week!

Person in process

"I am a person in process. God is chipping away at the peeling paint in my life, driving nails in where the boards are breaking away, and working hard to make my house what it should be. He is painting deep brushstrokes in my life, but He has a long way to go. "

Carole Mayhall, author of Words That Hurt Words That Heal

I'm reading through this book with some college girls from my church and I have felt convicted after reading each and every chapter. I get a little frustrated though when I forget what I have learned in a couple of days. Yesterday I read the next chapter and came across this quote at the end. It made me feel a little relieved. Don't get me wrong, I still need to work on remembering the things I have learned and applying them to my life, but there are times when God uses those things without me even knowing. I'm so glad that He is at work! And I don't have to grow by my own strength.

It kinda reminds me of a song...

He's still working on me to make me what I ought to be.
It took Him just a week to make the moon and stars,
The sun and the earth and Jupiter and Mars.
How loving and patient He must be, He's still working on me.