Friday, January 30, 2009

Are you looking to get married?

Then, I have a deal for you!

(Just in case you get lost, they put in a major landmark. The Super Wal-Mart.)

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Winter

I know this will seem humorous to you guys in the northern climates, but winter has arrived here in Georgia. We are expecting overnight lows of around 12 - 15 degrees. This is the coldest it's been in 6 years. With the poorly insulated houses around here, it means our house is going to be COLD! (Of course, part of that could be the fact that I keep our thermostat somewhere near 60 at night. I hate paying for heat.) I got out the boys' hats and gloves, and I even had to go to the store to buy a legitimate winter coat. I had a fleece one that I was wearing, but I accidentally left it out on the playground last Friday, and it vanished. Somebody probably needed it more than I did, but that left me with nothing. If the weather had stayed normal, I probably wouldn't have gotten one, since I only wear it on the playground, but 12 degrees is cold. Even to run from the car to the school tomorrow. I had to laugh at our principal, though. She made an announcement tonight after the kids had left telling us to not worry about spirit wear tomorrow (we can wear jeans and school spirit wear on Fridays) and dress warm. I was wondering if the county had forgotten to pay the heat since she seemed to think our school was going to be so cold!

Jeremy's interview went well, but keep praying. We'll know something in a few weeks.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Honor Roll and Basketball

Yesterday was report card day, and Matthew made the Honor Roll (YAY!) while Nathan was given the Patriot Award for his outstanding behavior and citizenship. So, to celebrate, I went to Ingles and bought the fixings for ice cream sundaes.


Then, today was the start of basketball! Both Matthew and Nathan are playing Impact basketball through one of the churches here. They're in an instructional league that focuses on teaching skills. Today, they divided the kids up into groups of 8 or so, and each group played a 4 on 4 game. I don't think they even kept score.
Matthew and Nathan were in two different groups, so I had to keep going back and forth between their baskets.


They play with eight foot rims, but I think poor Nathan needed rims that were about half that height. He had a hard time getting the ball up high enough. He also did NOT like it when the buzzer went off for the end of the quarter. (They played four ten minute games.)


Matthew was having trouble at first, because he didn't think anyone was going to pass him the ball. Of course, when he did finally get it, he took off away from the basket. I think he wanted to make sure no one could steal it from him! After a little bit, he did start to get the idea and was passing it to his teammates.


All in all, they had a good time. The group really focuses on teamwork and positive character traits. They even have a program called "Fan Mail". When you sign in before the game, you fill out a card for your child. Then, the cards are passed out, and you are looking for the positive things the person on your card is doing. (Thankfully, the cards have their jersey number on them!) At the end of the morning, they bring all the kids together in the center circle, and read and pass out the cards. That way, each child hears something positive that they did while playing. It's a really good program. This will run through February, then it's baseball time!

Monday, January 5, 2009

Back to School Today

Today was our first day back after winter break. Actually, I had to go back on Friday for a teacher day, but we'll just pretend that didn't happen. I have thoughts about having to work on that day, but they're better left unsaid. :-) While I wasn't sure that I would be ready for the kids, when they arrived I actually was. Having the two weeks off was something I definitely needed. December was hard. This group is hard, the work was hard, and dealing with Jeremy losing his job was hard. I needed the time to refresh. There were times as December dragged on that I asked myself if I was really going to be able to finish the year out. In my heart, I knew I would, but every day was a challenge. I read somewhere once a quote that said "If you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life." As a teacher, I have to disagree with that. I love what I do, I really do, but I work hard every single day. I drive home exhausted, and I wouldn't have it any other way. If I wasn't working hard, I wouldn't be doing my best for my kids. But the breaks are nice. We have one coming up on Martin Luther King Day and then nothing until Spring Break. I'm sure I'll need the rest and relaxation by then. Last year during Spring Break we were in the hospital with Andrew's surgery. This year, hopefully, I'll be able to rest and hang out at home!

By the way, Jeremy has an interview next week for a job with the Georgia Department of Labor. Whenever you think about it, please pray that it all goes well. I'm hoping that if I can get enough people banging on God's door, he'll get tired of hearing about it and go "All right! I'll make sure he gets the job!" Hey, it's wacky theology, but it's my theology. :-)

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Things You've Always Wanted to Know About Me!

Or not, as the case may be. :-) This is from Anissa at http://www.hope4peyton.org whose blog I love. I highly recommend it. (It's in the sidebar!)

1. What TV show would you like to live in? and why?
This one was the hardest because my favorite TV shows are crime shows, and let's be honest. Would you want to hang out with the characters from Criminal Minds? That shows about crazy serial killers! I watch it only after I've made sure every door in the house is locked. But after serious thought (seriously!), I decided I want to live on Jon and Kate Plus 8. That way, those kids could actually have someone around who would really care about them rather' than thinking about how they are the next meal ticket. I would play with them, and not worry about them getting dirty. I'd actually sit down and have a conversation with the two older girls instead of just waving off their behavior as "That's just Mady." There are lots of things I would do if I lived with the Gosselin family. I could actually rant about that show for hours, but I won't bore you. ;-)

2. What's the worst date you've ever been on?
This one was a lot easier. I was asked out on a date by someone in my church youth group when I was a junior in high school. He wanted to take me to see the spring musical at his high school and then go to dinner. The only problem? He was in the orchestra for the musical, so I got to sit in the audience with his best friend (who I actually got along with really well). Then the three of us went out for Mexican. I don't think the two of us talked at all during dinner. His best friend and I spent the whole time talking! As you can imagine, there wasn't a second date. I don't even remember his name.

3. What appliance would you absolutely lose it if it disappeared?
My blowdryer. My hair has such a funny wave to it that if I let it dry naturally, it looks completely weird. I have to wash my hair or at least wet it down every morning or else I look like a complete freak. I'd probably also lose it if my curling iron disappeared since I need that to get rid of that funny wave after I blow dry it. I've had mornings where there was no power at my house. That's not pretty.

4. Is there a piece of clothing that you've never forgotten from your childhood?
My grandma would always sew me my Easter dresses when I was little. The one I remember the most was my "Western" outfit. It had a full skirt that would fly up when you spun around and quilted vest. Plus, it was made out of navy blue flowered fabric. (Hey! It was 1982!) I wore it with a white blouse with a frilly collar. I felt like a cowgirl in that outfit! My school pictures from that year were the best.

5. What food do you crave that you'd NEVER serve at a dinner party?
OK, first I'd actually have to have a dinner party. :-) If I did, however, I wish I could serve Jeno's Pizza Rolls. I don't know if there's a more unhealthy food in the world, but they are the absolute best!

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