Relaxing Few Days

The past couple of days have been very relaxing and fun.  My parents spent last week at the beach and on the way home Sunday, they stopped and picked me up.  I went back to Memphis Sunday night for my dentist and doctor's appointments on Monday.  I knocked both of those ordeals out by lunch time and then met my dear Southwind friends, Maggie and Debbie, and a new Southwind friend, Maeve, for lunch.  It was the only time I've had a chance to visit with them since our wedding!!!  That was WAY too long to wait in seeing them!  Maggie and Debbie are such WONDERFUL friends and I miss my classroom being next to them, so it was great to see them!  After lunch I ran some errands and picked up things I needed before heading back to Starkville. 

My mom brought me back to Memphis Monday afternoon so she could spend a couple of days down here.  We got home Monday evening and Chad had already cooked out and was getting dinner ready for us!  We enjoyed a nice dinner together just talking and laughing before we hung out for the night.  The next day, my mom and I went to the pool and did a little shopping!  We had a blast!  Later on in the afternoon we went to Chad's two softball games and then to Stromboli's for pizza.  What a fun night!  My mom and I went back to the pool the next morning and hung out before she left in the early afternoon.  It was such a relaxing couple of days and just what I needed!

So... I typed this over a month ago and never posted it!  oooooooooppppppppppsssssssssss!

I've decided (actually, it was Chad's idea!) that as much as I love to travel, research different cities, and be "on the go", that I would start a Travel Blog.  Now, don't get me wrong, I am not an expert by any means, but I do LOVE to travel!!  I have been to nine different countries, and countless states in the U.S.  I have been on many adventures from riding horses through the Rio Grande, climbing pyramids in Teotihuacan, visiting the Eiffel Tower, walking across the Brooklyn Bridge, to riding horses through a rain forest with monkeys in the trees.  There are so many places on "My List" that I want to go to, but have loved most of the places that I have been to in the past! 

For now, I am going to start with places that Chad and I have traveled to just this summer.  The summer is going to be my starting point just because those places, hotels, restaurants, etc. are fresh on my mind.

If anyone is going somewhere and want to know if I have been there for tips, just ask, and if so, I will write a blog entry about it to help you. 

Check out my NEW travel blog at:  http://travelsbyateacher.blogspot.com/

Hoping for a stressLESS end to the summer this year!

Do you ever think back on something and think how in the world did I do that or make it through that?  As I have worked in my classroom off and on this week and gotten TONS done in just a few short hours here or there I can't help but to think back to this time last year... I knew I was getting married October 2, moving to Starkville (at some point) and thought I was teaching first grade in Memphis (for my fourth year) with the hopes of getting a job in Starkville at some point, even if just subbing at first.  All of that changed within hours of each other and everything in my world, as I knew it, changed.  "They" say the most stressful events in a lifetime are (these are not listed in any kind of order):
* a death
* a new job
* getting married
* moving
* a divorce

Chad and I had the first four of these happen within weeks of each other, so you could say, we were stressed.  Chad and I were at his parents' house for his grandfather's funeral the week before inservice started in Memphis when I received a phone call about a job opening in Starkville.  I got this call the day Chad and I were planning on leaving Missouri and my interview was scheduled for the next day, a Friday.  So, we left Missouri and drove to Memphis, picked up clothes for my interview, and headed to Starkville.  We got to Starkville late that night and I was a little nervous about the interview.  I went for the interview the next day and felt great about it and was told they would get in touch with me the first of the week.  I went back to Memphis, went to inservice that Monday at Southwind, and got a phone call during a meeting and stepped outside to take it.  I was offered the job at Sudduth.  I went back into our meeting and nodded at my principal and mouthed "I got the job."  She smiled at me and made an announcement to the faculty, that I had just accepted a new position that went along with me getting married and was a job that we had been praying about since last spring.  She looked at me and said into the mircophone that I was making the right decision in taking the job and that I was free to pack my room and shortly my friends/colleagues would come help me.  Her encouragment was so appreciated.  After two of my best "teacher" friends in the world and I cried for awhile, I went to my room, looked around one last time, and then just started taking things down, cleaning out cabinets and my desk, after calling my mom and telling her.  She sprang into action and rented a U-Haul and met me at school where we loaded everything up and said my good-byes with more tears.  I drove to Starkville that night with a bag of clothes that would last me the first week of school and would get more things that next weekend when Chad and I went back to Memphis for a wedding shower.  I got to Starkville late that night and started at Sudduth the next morning.  We had inservice that day, and my parents met me at school later that afternoon to work in my room and then Open House was the next day where I tried to work in my room, along with my parents and Chad, in between meeting students' parents.  As luck would have it (sarcasm), school started the very next day and my room still felt half done.  It was ready for my students, but didn't feel like I had it how I would ideally would have.  School started and then that Friday, after school, Chad and I went back to Memphis for our Around the Clock shower that Saturday night.  We drove back to Starkville early Sunday morning, and then I worked on school stuff until way after midnight that night. 

The next few weeks flew by in a blur as I was still trying to get my room how I wanted it, teaching a new grade, a new school, trying to meet people, missing my Memphis friends and my "teacher friends" that I was used to working with and being close to, get adjusted to moving in a rush to Starkville, and still finishing any wedding details that was fast approaching and going to Memphis or St. Louis every weekend for showers.  So, our life was insane at the time.  Don't get me wrong, I was and am very thankful for my job, but at the time, my life seemed upside down and the wedding was at the top of my list, rightfully so.  We couldn't wait until October came and we were married, our Mexican honeymoon was here and we could just relax, and the thought of life's pace slowing down seemed like an unimaginary thought at the time, but we dreamt about it. 

So, just sitting here tonight, I already feel "ahead of the game" being able to get into my classroom before my students.  We are not planning a wedding, getting settled into a new apartment in a new town, both of us starting brand new jobs, leaving our families and best friends, and not moving with a minute's notice without it sinking in what was happening.  I was prepared to move in October, but once school had started, the idea of actually getting a job seemed so small.  This time of year got me thinking about all of those things and how out the five most stressful events in a person's life, we accomplished four of them within WEEKS and some MINUTES of each other. I feel that Chad and I are prepared for the upcoming school year and are ready to take it on!  We are hoping for a stressLESS end of the summer and fall this year!

Did I blink and miss summer?

I know, I know, as I have said a lot lately, I am a t-e-r-r-i-b-l-e blogger!!  I have not had a chance to blog this summer.  We have been out of town SO much that when I am home, I am washing clothes, cleaning, or just relaxing or reading or at the pool.  Our summer started off busy with Bible School almost right off the bat.  I wasn't able to help all week, but I did go when I could.  The Thursday after VBS, we left for Florida for David and Tiffani's wedding and were gone until the next Wednesday.  Then, we left the Monday after that for Youth Camp in Mobile.  We got back on Saturday and the Tuesday after that I left for Memphis and Chad came on Thursday.  While I was in Memphis, I got to go with my oldest and best friend, Hillary, to help pick out her beautiful wedding dress!  We had a blast!  We then picked out bridesmaids dresses.  That Satuday, Chad and I left for New York and were gone until the next Saturday.  That was an awesome vacation!  We went to one of my "teacher friend's" wedding in Memphis Saturday night and drove back to Starkville after that.  Then, that Tuesday, Chad left Children's Camp.  He was gone until Thursday afternoon.  I just physically could not go... I was drained from everything this summer and stayed here to rest and work in my classroom.  I would much rather work in my classroom off and on two or three weeks before school starts instead of the last week.  The last week, I want to be savoring everything there is about summer: staying up late, sleeping in, going to the pool, going to the gym when I want to, reading late into the night, whatever I want to do!  I know come August, much of that will have to stop, so I believe the last week of summer should really be SUMMER.  That brings us up to this weekend.  Can you believe that??  It is so hard to believe that it is the middle of July!  Why does summer always go by so quickly?!?!  I can't fathom it. 

This weekend has been exactly what Chad and I both needed though.  Yesterday, Chad was nice enough to go to school with me and we painted a shelf in my room, hung things on the walls that were too high for me to reach, hooked up my computer, and random things like that.  We got a lot accomplished.  Then, after getting ready for our date night, we went to Umi for dinner, the movie, and LoCu for dessert.  We call it LoCu because we always call it YoLo after the yogurt store in Memphis that is similar.  Local Culture is just too long of a name in our opinion, so we go with LoCu.  Much simpler.  Today, we went to the pool until it got dark and started to rain so we came in and ate lunch until the sun came back out and then went back to the pool until 7:30.  It was a very relaxing day!  As I speak, our pizza is being delivered!  We rarely eat pizza and it's even more unlikely that we order pizza, so we decided tonight would be a Dominos Delivery night!  Better go while the pizza is hot!

T-5 Days Till Florida



Yes, that's right... in 5, FIVE, cinco days Chad and I will finally be on our way to Florida!!  It seems like we have been counting down for this forever!!  We are heading out early Thursday morning for our exciting 13 hour drive to Port St. Lucie for Chad's cousin's wedding Saturday.  We are going to stay in Jensen Beach and enjoy a little time on the beach with Chad's side of the family before the wedding weekend festivities begin.  We have not seen Chad's parents since January and haven't seen his sister and her family since Christmas so we are pretty excited to see everyone!  Saturday we will head to Disney World and spend the next few days there.  If you know me well, you know how much I LOOOVE Disney World!! Main Street USA is one of my favorite streets in the world, along with 5th Ave and Michigan Ave. :)

I am so ready to start packing.  At first I thought it was a little early to start packing and then I thought, why not start??  I don't have to actually put my clothes in a suitcase yet, just put everything I want to take in the spare bedroom.  So, that's exactly what I started doing!  I haven't finished because I love packing and deciding what to wear when, but I plan on finishing later tonight.  Then, I get to help Chad with his packing!  I've already started a list for him.  This just helps take a load off for the first of the week when I'm getting everything else ready to go and cleaning the car, right?  I've printed our hotel and dinner reservations for the week and have those ready too, which I made in January...  

I know this week I will be like the children in that old Disney World commercial when the kids can't sleep and the little boy whispers to his sister that he "is too excited" to sleep and then the dad whispers to the mom that he "is too excited to sleep".  That'll be Chad and me the next few days. 

The picture for this post was taken right after Chad and I got engaged at... Cinderella's Castle at The Magic Kingdom!  Can't wait until we are there again and this time we are MARRIED!  YaY!

Life is Good Today

I know, I know, many of you are wondering if I did indeed make it through the end of the school year because I have not yet blogged about it being... SUMMERTIME!  The truth is, I've been enjoying summer SO much that I just haven't had time to blog!  My days are spent working out, lying by the pool, relaxing with Chad, grilling out, going to the ballpark for Chad's softball games, and working some throughout the week at Vacation Bible School.  I've even managed to squeeze a day of fun shopping with my parents in there too!  My first OFFICIAL, full week off from school has been FANTASTIC!  This is one way I know how bad I am at blogging:  Today at the pool, I asked Chad what we did last weekend because I couldn't remember.  He told me he couldn't remember either and if I was a better blogger, we could just got back and read about our weekend!  That's sad for us at 26.  A little while later we remembered that last Friday we went to the Veranda for dinner and Saturday, was spent at the pool of course and then we grilled out and went to see Pirates of the Caribbean.  The thing about summer is, my days all run together!

I'm so ready for Florida this coming week, but after that I am hoping time will just stand still or atleast slow down some so that summer can somehow manage to last longer than two months.  Wouldn't that be nice?!  Summer goes by way too quickly, and this summer, Chad and I will be out of town almost every other week between vacations and camps so I know the time will fly by even faster!  For now though, I am just loving the fact that when I wake up (most mornings) I have nothing that I HAVE to get done right away!  That is one of my most favorite feelings, after the feeling of an upcoming vacation.  I hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far too and this incredibly HOT weather!

Happy Summer!