Answered Prayers..Day 27

A big shout out to those of you who are praying for my sweet little man Landry and his accidents at Pre-School. Today the director called me; yes, very cool,she called me on a Sunday, her day off.  She has a sister in law who recently wrote a book on parenting and education.  She is a retired school teacher and she talked to us about her book at Landry's open house last week.  Apparently she and the director were talking about her book and Landry and his accidents came up.  Long story short, she has offered to come to pre-school 3-4 days/week to specifically work with Landry! How awesome is that?  She mentioned something about children tranisitioning and how when a parent who used to be at home with them and then goes to work can effect them.  So I am not entirely sure what she will do, but she has some ideas! What an answer to prayer! God is so good! I am so thankful for this pre-school, thankful for their willingness to work with Landry, and to go the extra mile.  I am thankful God hears our prayers and answers them in a way He sees best.  I am thankful that when I hand over things to Him, He truly takes them from us and gives us peace.  I am thankful for all of you who are and will continue to fervently pray this works out for Landry!
I am also thankful for a very productive day! I have literally been working in my "office" in my bedroom ALL DAY and it is now after 10pm and still not finished grading papers, but I did accomplish a lot today!  Thankful that I have a teaching job to go to tomorrow!!  God is definitely good!
My picture I have to share is what one of my students wrote at the bottom of her spelling test. It made me smile while grading tonight!

Everything's Better with Someone By Your Side...Day 26 of Thankfulness

I firmly agree that when it comes to anything remotely challenging, stressful, uneasy; having someone who loves and cares for you to walk alongside of you just makes it easier.  I have been studying, preparing for this dang test and keep missing it by 1 or a few points and it's getting down to the wire that I pass it in a few weeks. It's been this huge dark cloud hanging over me for months, getting in the way of being able to spend time with my family, enjoying my hobbies, and teaching. Studying for every possible historic event in the world since 500 B.C. is very daunting and quite frankly I am tired of researching all of this.  Just as I was close to having a meltdown and feeling defeated; my hubby came to my rescue.  I am so incredibly thankful for his relaxed, logical, laid back personality, especially in situations such as this.  I am thankful that he let me vent my frustrations. I am thankful he doesn't judge me or think I am not smart because I can't pass this test. I am thankful he encourages me.  There is one thing he said to me tonight to where at first I was a little annoyed because I thought he felt like I may not pass it again, but that wasn't it at all. (If only I could quit jumping to assumptions. :) ) He said, "If you do not pass this time, it's not the end of the world. We will be okay, you will be okay." What he meant when he said this was a lot of things: he loves me no matter what my test score is, it doesn't change who I am as a person, it doesn't define my ability to be a great teacher, and we'll study more for the next time.  Isn't he amazing? I am thankful that he is staying up with me tonight to go through each and every question on my practice tests, google topics, make me my favorite fall/winter night snack (hot chocolate with marshmallows), and to just be here with me during this daunting task.  I am thankful I have a partner to share this with, this study session just got a lot sweeter! Thankful that God made Josh just for me!  God is surely good all the time!

One other thing I am thankful for are the beautiful sunsets we have here in Athens. I was driving on Rt. 33 towards Athens tonight and the sky was layered with clouds and so many warm colors. I tried to take a picture to capture the stunning sky, but I was driving and it didn't turn out so great, but you can see part of what I am describing.  God is an amazing artist!

Hadley's laugh and smile - so incredibly thankful for her. We had a fun moment using my photo booth app. Here is a freaky but funny picture of us!

Fall is Here...Day 25 of Thankfulness

Yay!!! Love love love this beautiful weather we had today! Fall weather automatically puts me in a good mood, the crisp cool air which allows the jeans, sweaters, and my absolute fav - BOOTS! 

Yes, today, I am thankful for boots. I busted them out tonight on my date night with my hubby!

Since it is Friday and it is 10:30 which means it is an hour past my bedtime and beyond exhausted, I am going to just list the other items I am thankful for:

1. q/t dinner with my hubby tonight

2. BOOTS - yes I said it for the 3rd time :)

3. my dog Jake - it is true what they say, a dog is a (wo)mans best friend, he is usually with me wherever I go, I love that he just knows when I may be having a bad day, seriously, he does, he will just come and snuggle with me, thankful that God provided animals to be companions

4. prayer - prayer is helping me to not completely worry about Landry and his pre-school

5. peace - God is instilling peace in place of a lot of worry

God is good!

Thank you for all of your comments, messages, and your prayers for Landry. It really means a lot.

Yes - I had to take a picture of my first fall boot appearance! :)

Finding the Joy in Stressful Situations...Day 24

Not going to sugar coat things, this week has been long and tiring. Both Josh and  I have been putting in long hours at work, we've had something each evening, our kids are worn out.  However, we still have so much to be thankful for!  Today I am thankful for the following:  

We have 2 fully functioning bathrooms again! Since June we have been remodeling both bathrooms upstairs and had run into some issues, so both of them either didn't have a shower or sink to use. Today, a plumber came and fixed both and now they are both fully useable!! You never know how much we take for granted until you don't have it.

Kids eat free on Thurs nights at our local BBQ joint - I didn't have to cook - food is delicious - our kids eat free - Win-Win-Win!

Watching my sweet son sleep on his daddy's shoulder. The kid who never falls asleep anywhere, fell asleep at 6:45 in the car, slept through Pre-school open house, and went to bed when we got home.  

Friends that I can call on to pray for what may seem silly/small but to me a huge deal.  Alicia and Brittany - thank you for your prayers!!!

My beautiful daughter getting a 100% on her math test. She is like me in that she's not a fan of math and works a little harder then the other subjects that come naturally to her. She was so full of joy when she got home! That's definitely hanging on our fridge! Proud of her!  She truly earned it!

Thankful tomorrow is Friday!! Looking forward to being at home!

Thankful that despite a stressful situation still with Landry and his accidents at pre-school, I am able to ask for prayer, go to God in prayer, and breathe, knowing deep down God has this, and He'll put Landry where he needs to be.  

If you are a pray-er, would you join me in praying that sweet Landry boy would cease his accidents at school and he can stay? We can already see a huge difference in his speech, communication, and we as his parents and teachers there want this to work out!  He's a mystery, does great at home, but at school....struggling. Thanks for your prayers!

God is good even in the midst of stress!

Music and Joy Go Hand in Hand..Day 23

I am incredibly thankful for music. I love all types from rap, country, jazz, 80's, 90's, pop, rock, christian, worship, really all of it except for techno, that I can do without. It depends on my mood or what I am doing when I decide which type of music to listen to.  I am especially thankful for worship music tonight.  There is just something about it.  One of the positive aspects of having a 35 min. commute one way to work everyday is that I get to listen to my music rather than kid music or listening to one of the kid's cartoons/movies on my iPad.  Since my drive is out in non-cell and radio station land, I only pick up about 2 or 3 stations, but with only 1 that I can get the whole way.  That station happens to me a christian station that plays a good bit of worship music, songs that I have sang a lot in the praise band at church and songs I have on my playlist.  I have always enjoyed singing since I was very little, in fact my first time singing in front of people was at church, no music, just me when I was maybe 6 or 7 yrs. old.  Since that day I have loved and have kept singing at church.  Music can really add so much joy into a persons life, it does for me.  I know for me personally when I've had some hard times and needed healing, God has used many different worship songs to do just that. I am so thankful that God has given such great things like music to really speak to my soul and provide songs with words from scripture that apply to what is going on in my life.  I am thankful that God has given me the joy and love of singing, I absolutely love to sing whether it's in the car, as I am cleaning, or leading others in worshipping God through singing. When I sing, there is a joy that fills my heart and soul and I am so thankful for that.  On my drive home today, I was reminded of that joy that comes from singing when one of my new favorite songs came on, "One Thing Remains", it was raining but the sun was still shining and the sky was incredibly beautiful.  Seeing the sky reminded me of God's creation, and as I was singing the chorus "Your love never fails, never gives up, never runs out on me..." I was reminded of how much God loves me ALWAYS, no matter what I do, say, etc.   For this reminder I am thankful for music and singing and the joy that it brings. God is good.

Peppermint Mocha Creamer....It's Beginning to Smell A lot like Christmas...Day 22

I absolutely love this time of year. Fall. Football.Pumpkins.Leaves changing colors and falling from the trees.Crisp air (even though it has been in the 90's this week lol).  After Fall then shortly becomes time for Thanksgiving and Christmas which means I would get all excited when I would walk into the creamer section of Krogers and find Peppermint Mocha Creamer!! I would get so excited that I would take a picture and post on Facebook/twitter and send it to my friend Julie who has the same love for it as I do.  This year is even more exciting because not only do I get to enjoy this fabulous creamer NOW but my awesome friend Brittany made a homemade version just for me tonight during Bible Study - yep- HOMEMADE! I think I have mentioned how awesome Brittany is in the kitchen and because a lot of her influence our family has decided to choose better eating habits such as eating more natural, organic foods and really reading food labels.  It really didn't come as much of a surprise tonight when I mentioned how much I love my peppermint creamer after tasting her homemade pumpkin spice creamer and wishing the one I buy didn't have a lot of artificial ingredients; that her reply was; "It would be really simple to make your own." And in about 20 minutes she had made a mason jar of yummy awesome goodness peppermint mocha creamer with just a few staple pantry ingredients.

Tonight I am yes, you guessed it, thankful for my favorite creamer. Thankful that it is homemade and not full of artificial junk.  Thankful that Brittany loves me so much as to whip that up for me.  I am thankful that God creates people like Brittany who absolutely loves to cook and that it brings so much joy to people like her and uses that gift to bless others.  Thankful that I have a house to come home too even though it is a mess right now.  Thankful I have my husband to give me a hug and tell me he missed me while I was at work today.  Thankful my sweet Landry boy had no accidents today and is starting to communicate with his words better since attending pre-school.   Thankful for my Hadley girl who really wants to do her absolute best in all that she does and that it bothers her when something isn't right.  Thankful. God is good!

Yummy Peppermint Mocha Creamer - I cant wait to add some half and half and this to my morning coffee tomorrow!! 

Yes It is Time for Sleep! Day 21 of Thankfulness

It has been a long day! I left my house by 6am, pulled in at school a little past 6:30, taught around sixty children today, only sitting to eat my 20 min. lunch, stayed nearly 3 hrs. after the students left, ran home after 6pm, grabbed my daughter and off to puppy training class for Myrtle! Can we say bed time yet? Nope! Pull in around 8pm, unload the groceries that my hubby and son bought this evening, put groceries away, help get kids bathed, ready for bed, then realized I forgot to tell my hubby we were out of half and half and needed Diet Coke (priorities people-to get through the day), so back to the store with 5 min. before closing! I pull back in the garage, pack three lunches, and FINALLY -FINALLY get my pj's on and get in bed! So incredibly thankful for my bed tonight. I am very thankful that my awesome hubby was able to pick the kids up from school today and that he went grocery shopping tonight! I am blessed and thankful that my family is adapting to our new hectic schedule. God is good!  Thankful for this life and for this opportunity to be a teacher!