Not Me Monday!

I have been following MckMama for only a few weeks now, but I admit it-- I'm hooked. She is so honest and real and that, my friends, is refreshing. I think I found her blog through Bring the Rain and now I check it pretty regularly. Not only is she hilarious, but her kids are so darn cute. I can only hope that my kids come out and grow to be that precious!

Anyway, she does this thing called "Not Me Monday" which is essentially free therapy blog-style. It's a time to be completely honest about things that I most definitely did NOT do this past week... or maybe I did. Let's leave it up to you to figure that out. :)

I did not force myself to put away my favorite pair of work pants for an entire week for fear that my colleagues might think that I don't own any other trousers. I did not keep them crumpled in the bottom of the hamper just so I could resist the temptation of wearing them. I also am not wearing them today, the first day off my "pants fast".

I did not stay up until 1:30 am on Thursday night in order to make all sorts of treats for my jewelry party the next day and I did not seriously contemplate washing the floor at 1:15 am. I most certainly did not want my guests to think I had it all together. Not this girl.

In turn, I did not pop in the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving movie 6 days early the next day at school so that I could get some grading done and not hear my name fifty thousand times in 4.3 minutes.

I did not buy cute and colorful key covers at The Container Store on Saturday just to try and put them on my keys last night and be too frustrated to continue. I also did not just throw them in my desk drawer this morning because I was done trying to put them on my keys. That would be wasteful and I would never do that.

I did not get giddy yesterday when my hubby asked to hold Malia voluntarily. I did not immediately start thinking, "Maybe he is ready! Maybe this is a SIGN!" I did not get so-excited-I-almost-peed-my-pants at the prospect of the fact that maybe, just maybe he was ready for a small one. Then, darling hubs did not turn to me and say, "Don't read into this." My husband does not know his wife.

I also did not seriously consider ripping the sleepy Malia from her daddy's arms during the service just so I could soak up that "sleepy baby" drug. I would never do such a thing.

And lastly, I was not bored last night watching the 24 movie and I did not download the "Are You Smarter Then a Fifth Grader?" game on my phone just to be sorely disappointed by it's poor graphics and the fact that I am truly not smarter then any fifth grader. Not me.

I hope you enjoyed my first "Not Me Monday". Hopefully I'll hear good feedback and be back for round 2 next Monday!

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Sam's memorial service yesterday was incredible. His life touched so many and was so far reaching. What a privilege it was to know someone "who looked just like Jesus" as was said many a time yesterday. We were blessed to have Sam for as long as we did. Please continue to pray for his family as they bury his body today.

Proverbs 3:27-- Talk is Cheap.

A Great Man

On Saturday evening around 9:00ish, I received an "all call" from school asking for prayer for one of our teachers, Sam Dillard. We were asked to pray for him as he had collapsed from a brain aneurysm and was in the hospital. About an hour later, we received another call asking for prayer for Sam's life. I know that our entire CCS family prayed for healing through the night.

God answered those prayers in the way He saw fit and healed Sam completely at about 2:00 am on November 16, 2008 and took him to be in Heaven. Sam leaves behind his wife, Lianne, and two young daughters.

Sam was a great man of integrity who loved the Lord with his entire life. I had the pleasure of working with Sam on a few occasions and eating lunch with him once, where it was so evident that his entire life was about serving Christ and doing all work for the glory of God. His life just radiated Jesus' love. What an incredible example. I wonder if I will ever be half the Christ-follower Sam was; I can only hope and pray and follow the example that he left behind.

He was a teacher, a mentor, a coach, a friend, a husband, a daddy, and most of all, a follower of Jesus. He will be so dearly and tremendously missed. Our school is already a different place without him. He has left a legacy.

"Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead...

And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise... I will rise"

Sam, friend, we miss you already. Thanks for all you did for us and the legacy you left behind. You are loved. This is a picture of Sam that truly captures what he was all about. I can just picture him like this at the feet of Jesus. I am sure he was welcomed into Heaven hearing, "Well done, my good and faithful servant!"

Picture Updates!

I wanted to wait for my next post until I could put up some pictures. I love reading blogs, but I also love looking at pictures. We've had a busy past few months, and the next few will only be busier! We got to relax this weekend, but this will be the last one for about a month. As much as I love relaxing, I also have lots to look forward to. Here's a quick glimpse of the last month or so...

Malia came over for dinner with her Mommy and Daddy. We love them and love spending time with them. Malia was born in July and she is growing up and gets more precious every time I see her! Dana (Mommy) is my best Cincinnati friend and I love spending time with her. I was telling Ty the other day that Dana has been one of the best examples of friendship to me that I have ever had-- I am sooooo blessed by her and by our relationship! Malia has the best mommy and our plan is that their second child and my first will either be the best of friends or get married someday. We'll have to wait and see, but I wouldn't mind having Dana and Corey as my in-laws someday. Okay, I'm getting waaaaay ahead of myself... :)

In early October, we went to the wedding of our precious friends, Zack and Libby. Zack was in our wedding and Libby has quickly become a close friend. I hate that we live two hours away and we are hoping that someday we will live in the same city. They are a great "couple"friend and their wedding was amazing. It was in the most beautiful chapel and Libby was a stunning bride. I'm sure her husband agreed. :) They are really special to us and we are always trying to find ways to see one another on the weekends. It looks like we may have to wait for a few weeks at least, but we keep up with each other. It's so great to have such wonderful, wonderful girlfriends. And for Tyler (and me!), guy friends like Zack! For the record, I realize I look like a total goof in the picture of the two of us, but aren't I married to such a handsome guy???

One day, I was feeling rather crafty, so I went to Michael's and picked up a few things and made some candle holders and stenciled some craft pumpkins. Even though I am an elementary teacher, craftiness is really not my thing. I can do things that are laid out for me in a book or from another teacher, but coming up with things on my own is really not my style. I truly wish it was, though. I bought some candy corn and candy pumpkins, filled up a Mason jar with them, tied a ribbon around the mouth, and placed a tea light inside. I painted two craft pumpkins and then stenciled deisgns on them. I took some pictures to show all of you who are interested. For the record, I stenciled a second pumpkin, but it wasn't dry, so I didn't photograph it. Maybe someday soon... :) I do love fall and fall decorations, so this was really fun for me. Enjoy!

My sweet little car, Cotton, hit 100,00 miles as well! (Can you tell that I am a child of my father due to the fact that this was a big deal to me?! Tyler didn't understand.) Anyway, I was pretty pumped and took pictures of the grand event. Here are two that documented the glorious morning. She is a great little car and has driven me to see so many people I love. It's good to have a sturdy and safe vehicle! And yes, that is a dog biscuit on my dashboard. My mom gave it to me to remind me of Georgie. Which reminds me of a hilarious story that no one else would laugh at except for Sara and Stephy, so if you are one of those two, I hope you are laughing. :)

And finally, we went to see High School Musical 3 with Dana and Corey, which I already wrote about. However, the movie/soundtrack was much better than I ever could have hoped. It was so much fun and I love that kids have these movies to watch. They're hilarious. We were in the same movie theater as one of my sweet students, and we sat right behind her. We even had the same favorite part. It was great. Dana and I even got the chance to take pictures with the cast!

Again, gross picture of me, but I mean, how lucky was I to get a picture with Zac Efron?? ;)

Make it a great day!

Fun Fours.

4 Jobs You've Had in Your Life:
Limited, Too (At that time, I was sixteen or so and could still fit into the clothing. Not so true anymore.)
Nanny (Three different families for six years. Best darn job of my life. Miss 'em like crazy.)
Kindergarten Teacher (Loved this job. Met the most precious kids.)
Sixth Grade Teacher (Loved the kids, but NEVER again.)

4 Movies You Could Watch Over and Over:
High School Musical 1 (Refer to my previous post.)
High School Musical 2 (Again, my afore mentioned post.)
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Trust me, I've watched this probably around 20 times.)
Angels in the Outfield (Always hilarious.)

4 Things you Want to Do:
Go to Europe with my hubs.
Get my pilot's license.
Have a few kids.
Go on a tropical vacay with the Toolbox (aka three best girlfriends).

4 Costumes You've Worn on Halloween:
Yellow M&M (The only costume my mom ever made. It was awesome.)
A die (I lied before. My mom made this one too. Aunt M made Meredith's and we went as a pair-of-dice. We won the church costume competition. Booyah.)
A hippie (What kid didn't?)
A mouse (It covered up the layers upon layers my mom made me wear that night. It was COLD.)

4 Songs You Could Listen to Again and Again:
Glory by Selah and Nicole Nordemann
Gotta Go My Own Way by Troy and Gabriella (High School Musical... again.)
Gold Digger by Kanye West (I know, I know.)
Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman (Quite a variety there, huh?)

4 Websites You Visit Daily:
gmail.com (Email is key.)
blogger.com (I like keeping up with friends who are far away.)
facebook.com (Helps me try to stay connected to friends, again.)
people.com (Yes, I am that shallow.)

Your turn!

I've Been Waiting.

It's here. The event I have been waiting for for months. Years, maybe. Honestly... ever since the first movie came out two years ago. I have grown to know these characters and I love them. I love what they do and what they sing. They are awesome, and I will admit that sometimes, I wish I was one of them.
Let's be honest. Far more people love these movies then they care to admit. And now that one is about to hit the big screen... well, America is thrilled. I am thrilled. Dana is thrilled. We are dragging our husbands to see this movie tomorrow night and yes, we have already purchased tickets online. We talked about it for a long time today and are about as excited as the sixth grade girls at school... maybe more. I also downloaded the soundtrack tonight and am so excited to listen to it on my way to school tomorrow. It's definitely going to make me pop out of bed and get ready quickly. I am pumped. I love High School Musical and I will be devastated tomorrow at the end of the movie when the fun finally comes to an end. Oh, man, I can't even stand it.

On a side note, report cards are done. Phewf. The end of the quarter is always a long haul for me. I'm going to go and read myself to sleep. I've gotten hooked on the Yada Yada Prayer Group books. I'm loving them. I love to read in general, but I love when I find a series that just makes me happy.

Night night.

Third Grade Prayer

My favorite prayer request today?

"I want to pray for the people in Texas. There is a bad swarm of flies down there somewhere."

:)