30 by 30 Revisited & Revised

My 30x30 list has been on my mind lately. I have a 1 & 1/2 years to go and I'm thinking I need to make a few changes. I haven't crossed off nearly as many things from my list as I thought I would have by now. There are several things that I'll be able to get done, but I'm going to take out the ones that I don't think are realistic for me to do. 
(Bold items are ones I am working on right now)

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 1 book a month from my bookshelf. (That is only 19 books - totally realistic!)
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 
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  (Yum!) 
13. Cook through an entire cookbook
14. Visit another country (other than the ones I've been to)
15. Sew something I can wear  (I made an apron!)
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 (I plan to do this on my 30th Birthday) 
19. Visit the Grand Canyon
20. Get into the habit of calling my Grandma twice a 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 (I still want to do this...but I'm going to change it to -- Follow my box of cleaning cards for 1 month) 
25. Go to the middle of nowhere and look at the stars
26. Get a massage (Amazing!) 
27. Learn to play the piano so I can sing a song while I play
28. Make a pie from scratch
29. Take a flower arranging class
30. Host a tea party at my apartment. 

Harvest Fair

We had a lovely time at the Harvest Fair this year. Mom entered some cookies and a cornstalk, and Dad entered a decorated pumpkin. We had a great time watching the grape-stomping, and of course Dani loved going on the rides. 

#12

#12 - Eat at The Melting Pot
Yay! I've completed another thing on my 30x30 list!








Can I tell you that I absolutely LOVE The Melting Pot! Yum, yum, yum! I was totally stuffed afterwards. We had a wonderful girl's night out!

Why?

Why is it that when I have a bunch of stuff to do all I want to do is clean my apartment? But when I don't have stuff to work on I don't want to clean!
Something is wrong with me!

October

It is hard to believe that October 1st is today! September flew by. I love that the weather is starting to get a little cooler. Bring on the fall weather! I am ready!
As I was thinking about October this last week I've decided that I'm going to challenge myself for the month. (Don't worry, not another 30 day blog challenge that lasts for 5 months) In order to help my budget and my weight I'm going to not buy fast food or Starbucks for the month of October. And I have to tell you that at the moment I really want to go buy some coffee. This is going to be hard. But I'm feeling very determined. Christmas is coming and I have to be able to afford Christmas presents for people. :)
So there you have it. My October challenge!

Cute Video

Someone showed this to me and I had to share it. I think it is cute. :) 

Sweet Sunday Afternoons

I love Sundays.
Church to start with is great! I love the worship, teaching and fellowship.
Following church I head to my parent's house. They usually don't get home for a while after I'm done at church so I either fall asleep on the red chair or watch tv. (Just ask my family, I'm always falling asleep on the red chair.) When they get home we have lunch and hang out for the afternoon, take naps (most of us), watch sports, etc.
This afternoon was no exception. While we ate lunch we all sat and watched the 49ers game. - Although, now that I think about it I think I left before the game ended. Oops - Somewhere during the game we got into this huge tickle-fest. It was crazy. Danika thought it was the funniest thing ever. And somehow she was leading the entire thing. She'd tell everyone to tickle someone and they would! (We are all wrapped around her finger. Can you tell?)  The funny thing was that she would tell us to tickle her too. It was hilarious.

Good times.

Day 30!!

Day 30!
I finally did it!
I'm not sure if I'm really cut out for a 30 day blog challenge. Lol! It took me a long time to finish "30 days."

Ok here it goes...
Day 30 - A future.

This challenge has been filled with "somedays", "favorites", and "I'd like to"'s. And it is finishing out that way too.  Sometimes those things are good to write about, and other times not so much. Maybe it is a good thing I've spread this whole thing out. :) I want to write about two futures. One that I know for sure will happen and one that I'd like to happen.

My for sure future...
Because I have put my faith in Jesus Christ, Heaven is in my future. Not sure when in my future, but I will be there! Personally I don't like thinking about dying, but I've had my mind on heaven lately. The first several Bible lessons I've taught at school this year have been about heaven. I love the looks on the kids faces when we talk about the wonderful things about heaven. They have so many questions and I definitely don't have all the answers. Most of my answers have "I'm not sure"'s or "I don't think so"'s in them. I don't think that I think about it enough. Heaven is going to be so wonderful! I really shouldn't have a problem when thinking about dying because the place I'm going to is so much better than this world!

My maybe someday future...
If I had a choice my future would be filled with teaching, marriage, my own children, a published children's book and a bunch of traveling. That all sounds good to me. The Lord only knows.
I'm happy to be teaching right now, so I guess I'm on the right track. Now I need to work on the book. I have lots of ideas, just have to get going with it.

And there you have it! The end of my 30 day blog challenge!! Woo Hoo!

Day 29

A place that gives you wanderlust.

I love traveling. I wish that I could do it more. I love flying, as long as I'm not rushing through the airport. I'm one of those people who gets on an airplane and almost immediately falls asleep (much to the frustration of my sister). In a sense I'm thankful that I have friends and family who live outside of California because that means I can go visit them.

A place that I've been to that makes me want to travel more is Hawaii. I've only been there once but it left a good impression on me. I love the beautiful beaches there. It is so relaxing. This picture makes me want to grab my swimsuit,  a towel and a good book... and sunscreen of course. :)

Day 28

A Quote

I'm sure I know some good quotes, but I decided to look at the quotes on goodreads.com for a good one. There were several that I like, but here is the one I chose.

"A woman is like a tea bag; you never know how strong it is until it's in hot water." 
— Eleanor Roosevelt

This can be very true for me. I'm not the strongest person, but when in a situation where I need to be strong I am right there. (At least I think I am) That strength does not come from me. It comes from the Lord who knows what I need and when I need it. Isn't that great!

Dance and Fashion

My sister shared this video with me. I thought it was pretty creative. My how things have changed. 

Day 27

A thing that makes you mad.

Mad is such a strong word. I don't I get mad very often.
The times I've really gotten mad have been when someone has done something to someone in my family. I love my family a lot and I'm pretty protective of them. You mess with my family and you'll have to answer to me! (yes - I realize that this threat is not very intimidating - lol!)

Day 26

A thing you want to do before you die.

Oh goodness.
There are so many things I would like to do before I die.
Just to keep it interesting I'm not going to say get married. Even though that is my first thought. :)
So other than that one I'd really like to visit Europe. No particular part. Just some place in Europe. Preferably a beautiful place. I don't care if I see a big city or in the country. I just really want to go to Europe.
Someday.

And someday I'll finish this blog challenge. :) Hopefully before I ever get to go to Europe. Ha!

Back 2 School - And Loving It!

I've been waiting to post about school starting because my dad has some pictures on his camera that I wanted to post. Obviously it is taking me a while to get them (my fault, not his). So here is my back to school post minus the pictures from the first day of school.

_________________________

A few shots around my classroom. 

It is official!
I LOVE teaching!!
       I've been teaching for just over 2 weeks and I love, love, love it! It is challenging, but it is my class. Oh yes!
       I started the day with several of my students greeting me with "Hello, New Teacher!" There was a little bit of chaos as we got into the room and about 5 minutes later I shooed the parents out of the room. Phew! I really didn't want to start with them in there. The parents make me nervous.
       About half way through the first day I realized that I didn't plan enough for us to do. This resulted in a few games and an extra recess. The kids thought this was great! It made me nervous. One boy who was sick on the first day was sad because he had missed the best day "they didn't do any work and they had 3 recesses!" is what he told his dad. I laughed and said, "Yep, it won't be like that for long."
       I was on cloud nine the entire first week (and really, I still am). My voice started going on the second day. By the end of the week I sounded terrible. I think my voice is almost back to normal. By the end of the day it is a little scratchy.
       I feel so blessed to be teaching third grade this year. I have great students. There are a few challenging ones, but I'm working at helping them and trying to not get frustrated with them. (sometimes that is easier said than done) One thing I like about this group of kids is their sense of humor. They know how to laugh. Sometime they laugh at the wrong times, but we are working on that. Not only does this class have a great sense of humor they also love to learn. They are just soaking up everything I give them! It is great!
       One of my favorite things to do in class is read aloud after lunch. I've always loved doing this. I give the kids the option of coloring while I read. Half of them just sit there and listen, which makes me love them even more!

I just feel so blessed!

       I can tell you right now that I am going to have some fun stories throughout the school year. I'm being good and writing them down in a book so I don't forget them. Maybe you'll see a book of my teaching memoirs in a bookstore someday. If so, it will all make you laugh. They say hilarious things!

Feeling Blessed

Just in the last week I've felt so blessed.
God is so good and has blessed me wonderful friends and family.

A few weeks ago a co-worker of mine heard me say something about my car window not rolling up or down. Not long after he asked me if I wanted him to fix it for me. He ordered the part and installed it last weekend. It only cost me 50 bucks! I can't even imagine how much it would have cost me if I had taken it in to my mechanic.

And then...today my school computer got fixed!  I honestly wonder what my problem is with the computers at work. I always break them. Actually I really think they just die on me.
Well I've been having issues with this one since I moved my stuff from my art room. Unfortunately our computer guy is busy and hasn't had time to fix it. Well I was talking with a few co-workers this afternoon and they felt bad that my computer still wasn't working. As I was sitting in my room working after school one of my co-workers sent her husband down to take a look at my computer. Then while he was figuring it out another co-worker's husband showed up. Between the two of them they discovered that when the computer was moved to my classroom the high school guys plugged one of the cords into the wrong place.

Those are just two examples of how God has blessed me in the last week. I've also had several people praying for me this week because they knew school was starting. And my family and close friends have been such great encouragements to me. God is so good.

Fabulous Friday

I spent today getting ready for school. It is crazy to believe that it starts on Monday. 
Am I ready? 
Mostly yes. 
As I said at Back 2 School Night...I'm excited. 
(Really... I couldn't stop saying that I was excited. It was comical.) 


I have a little more to get done before Monday. I'm almost there!

I have to say though that the highlight of my day/week was watching the office ladies race their rolling office chairs around the office this afternoon! It was hilarious!!! They were trying out the new flooring. They were so quick that I couldn't get my camera out fast enough! You'll have to take my word for it, but you didn't hear it from me! 
I wonder if I can get them to do it again when I have my camera out. Hmmm... something to try later. :) 


Have a great weekend!

Sonoma County Fair 2011

       I love going to the fair with my family. This year my mom, sister and I actually entered things at the fair. It is totally worth the free ticket in! I think next year I'll enter a few more things. It was fun looking for the things we made and what our friends made as well. I'm hoping to do a few projects with my class this year to enter into the harvest fair. Then we can take a field trip! Fun! 

       I have to say my favorite thing at the fair this year (other than the photo booth pic with Julie and Dani - pics to be posted as soon as Julie emails them to me - hint hint) was the turkey stampede. It sounds ridiculous, but I thought it was really funny. They lady who ran it had a funny personality and she had my family laughing the entire time. The turkeys were crazy chasing after a remote control truck trying to get to the food in the bed of the truck. It was hilarious!

The green one is the one mom made. Woo Hoo 3rd place! 

My photo of Dani jumping in a puddle. Didn't win anything, but I still love it!

Julie's 3rd place painting! Way to go!

Dad didn't enter anything, but he enjoyed the food. :) 

I enjoyed the food too! Gotta love Pasta King!

Eek! I don't have any pics of Dani! That is shocking! That is what happens when we bring more than one camera to places. Oops!

On another note...

School starts on Monday! Tomorrow night I have Back 2 School night! I know it will be fine, but I'm starting to get nervous. 

1 week to go

I have to say that I'm ready to get into the routine of school again.
I've always been like that. I love summer, but when it comes to an end I look forward to the routine of school.
There is only 1 week left before the 1st day of school. I'm so excited! I still have a lot to do, but I know it will all come together. I also have to remind myself that whatever doesn't get done in the area of decorating will just have to wait a little while. I'm not too worried (at the moment). :)
I also want school to start so that the major prep will be done. I really want to work on some sort of craft/art project. I have 1 baby quilt I need to finish and 1 I need to start on. I was just looking through my google reader and found a ton of projects that look like a lot of fun. Will I ever have the free time? Hopefully in a few weeks. :)

Here are a few of the fun ideas I just found. 

10 years already?!?

Is it weird that during my entire drive home tonight I was thinking about how to blog about my evening? I'm becoming a blog-a-holic! I'm sure all 4 of my readers are just dying to hear about my evening! Ha!

There are many words to describe what my evening was like. Good, weird, sad, awkward, painful, loud, repetitive, and fun. Talk about a very well rounded evening.

Tonight I went to my 10 year high school reunion. 
Has it seriously been 10 years?!

I had the blessing of attending a small Christian school while I was growing (yes - the same one I currently work at). There were 46 people in my graduating class. Many of those people had been attending the school since elementary school (myself included). I liked going to school there. But I have to be honest. I was dreading going to this reunion tonight. I'm not the most outgoing person, but in high school I was worse than I am now. I wasn't sure how I would be around my former classmates. I only went because I knew I would regret not going.
It actually went pretty well.

• It was good to see some old friends. My best friend from high school and I have grown apart some, so it was nice to catch up with her. It was fun to hear what people are up to, and there were several baby bumps in the room. 
• It was really weird to think that it has been 10 years since we all graduated from high school. Time flies! Everyone looked pretty much the same, but different at the same time. Most of the people there tonight are married and many of them have children. 
• It was sad to hear about those from our class who aren't doing well. In high school many people appeared strong in their faith. But I'm not sure how many of the people from my class are living for the Lord now.
• There were a few times when I noticed that I was drifting in the background, kinda how I was in high school. But I tried to get out of my comfort zone and talk to more people. There were some awkward moments though. I don't really know these people that well anymore. With a few people we get through the standard questions and then not know what else to talk about. There would be an awkward pause and then "Well, it was great seeing you." Awkward!
• How was the evening painful you might ask? I wore heels from 2-10 pm today. My feet were killing me!
• Our class president planned the reunion at a nice restaurant in town. The food was amazing. The only problem was that the patio we were on was loud. There were a lot of people in there and we could hardly hear each other. I already have a hard enough time hearing people. By the end of the evening I was feeling hoarse from having to talk so loud. 
• I answered and asked the same questions all evening. "How are you?" "What have you been up to?" "Where are you working?" It was a very repetitive time. 
• Even though I was not looking forward to this reunion I did have a fun time. It was good to see many of those people. We probably had about half of our classmates there. Not a bad turnout. 

Day 25

Day 25 - A song

How can I just choose 1 song?!? 

I really like this one. 

Listen to the words they are wonderful!

I'm so thankful for what Christ has done for me!

Maybe when I'm done with the 30 day challenge I'll do a 30 day song challenge. That might be fun!