Thanksgiving Lunch

Yesterday was our Thanksgiving lunch at school. Honestly, I totally dreaded it because I knew it was going to be very chaotic, and my kids would be HYPER all day! Our parents were supposed to sign up before the lunch, so we would have a head count, but more parents showed up than expected. Our whole class (including parents, grandparents, siblings, etc.) took up a whole table that stretched from one end of the cafeteria to the next end. After we got all the food served, I took a few minutes and watched all the kids eating with their families. I almost got teary watching all these awesome, loving parents that took time out of their days to come brave the "yummy" Thanksgiving lunch with their kids, who were just beaming because their parents were there with them. I cannot wait to be able to do that with my kids! I know that most days are crazy at school, but at the end of the day, I am so thankful for all my kids and their families that have already taught me so much this year. Here is a picture of our "school family" eating together!

United

We talked about food and nutrition last week in our class, and we took a field trip to United to take a tour of the grocery store. My kids absolutely loved this! Here are some fun pictures from our trip...

Learning about fruits and veggies!

My girls were in awe of the princess cake!

They loved chatting with Mr. Patterson, the United pharmacist.

Youth Worship

Our interim youth minister at FBC thought it would be cool to have a few people lead worship in our youth on Sunday mornings. This past Sunday was the first time it happened, and it was great! Ben is playing the drums, and Sarah Carpenter and Jordan Payne are both singing and Jordan is also playing his guitar. We went up to the FLC on Saturday night for them to set up and practice together before Sunday morning. We had such a great time together just hanging out. I LOVE listening to Sarah sing, and I LOVE to watch Ben play. This was the first time I have heard Jordan, so it was fun to listen to a new voice! They all did a great job on Sunday, and I think the youth enjoyed it. Such a great experience being able to worship together with all ages!

Corn Maize

Last Thursday, we took a field trip to the Corn Maize in Shallowater, Texas. I was NOT looking forward to this field trip at all just because it is at least a two hour bus trip, and my kids have not been on a bus that long in their lives. That is a LONG way for 18 four and five year olds!

Of course, we were running late to start the journey, but the ride was pretty good overall. We had such a good time when we got there! The kids absolutely loved the corn maize, and we got to go on a hayride and pick pumpkins at their pumpkin patch. I had a lot of great parents go with us, so that was very helpful too! The kids were worn out when we were done, and most of them slept all the way home. Here are some pictures of our adventure...

Meet Ben

Meet my new man! :) This is Ben. He is dark headed, blue-eyed, 26 year old dude that moved to Snyder about 5 months ago, and is just absolutely precious. His parents have lived here for almost 2 years. His Dad is the spiritual formations pastor at our church, and I teach with his sweet Mom! He is divorced, and has a super great baby boy, Joseph, that I can't WAIT to get my hands on. He just started a new job in Snyder, but his passion is music. He is an incredibly talented drummer--complete with some hott tattoos!

Ben is such an amazing person, and has already taught me so much. We have already been through a lot together, and I really think that if we could make it through the past few months, we can make it through ANYTHING together. This is an incredibly big deal for me because I haven't been in a real relationship in three years! The last relationship I had was a complete disaster, and I had to get over a lot before I could move on. I also became extremely picky when it came to guys, so for Ben to even have a chance was a big deal! This is one of my favorite pictures of him, but I'm sure there will be more to come!

Precious Lady

I am writing this today with a peaceful heart. This week has been one of the longest, hardest weeks of my life. When I was writing my previous post on Monday afternoon, my mom came flying into my house to tell me that my grandmother (my Dad's Mom) had passed away unexpectedly.

Her and my Poppa had been in Abilene on Monday because Gram had to have cataract surgery Monday morning. Her surgery went fine, and then they released her. As always, she had a long list of things for them to do while they were in Abilene, so they started off to run errands. One thing they needed to get done was to get the oil changed in their car. Right before Poppa turned into the Toyota dealership, Gram started to complain of feeling ill. He pulled into the dealership, and some guys in the shop helped get her out of the car. In a matter or minutes, she got worse. She was very nauseous, but could not ever vomit. She finally wanted them to call 911, and when she voluntarily goes for medical attention, you know something serious is wrong. The emergency crews got there and took her to Hendrick Medical Center. They worked on her for about an hour there, but they couldn't get her heart to start back up. Ultimately, they're thinking she had a massive heart attack. Such a sudden thing that was SO shocking to all of us.

Gram was 76 years old, but had the energy of a 26 year old. She was ALWAYS on the go. Her and Poppa were married 51 years, they successfully raised 5 children, and she always worked hard to help others out. She worked as a special education teacher in Haskell for 11 years, and then went to work at the Region 14 office as a special education consultant. To read her full obituary, click here.

She was such an extraordinary Christian lady. Her funeral service was absolutely beautiful. The main point that was talked about was how Gram always made it a point to make connections with everyone. Whether it was a Haskell connection, Texas A&M connection, teaching connection, friend/family connection, TCU connection, or whatever, she always made a point to make everyone feel special or connected to her. Everyone who came to her service had a thing in common--we were all linked to Gram somehow. There were so many people at her service, we had to set up chairs in the Fellowship Hall for overflow. The sanctuary was FULL of beautiful flowers that were sent by people from everywhere that Gram had an impact on. It was such an eye-opener to see how many people my Gram had an impact on. I got to listen to so many stories about Gram that were so inspiring. She was an absolutely incredible woman.

At her service, my Aunt Emily and Uncle John spoke for the family, and they did an amazing job. It was a true celebration of her life, and that is definitely what she would have wanted. We love her dearly, and she was such an amazing role model, but we know that she is in a better place. We also know that she is now up in Heaven making new connections with a whole new crowd, and she's LOVING it! :)

"An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life. She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands. She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar. She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens. She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong. She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night. She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle. She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet. She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant. Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:"Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all." Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates."

Proverbs 31:10-31

Vent

So, I have been thinking about this post for a long time. I have just felt the urge to sit down and vent. I have been so stressed out with school stuff, and I have just been very overwhelmed with everything. I'm not used to my students, to the teachers I work with, or just the fact that I'm a new teacher without any experience. I thought about doing this everyday last week, but for some reason, I just couldn't make myself sit down to write. Then, Sunday morning in Sunday School, I had a revelation as to why I couldn't do it.

Our lesson was out of James 5:7-12--be patient in suffering. This passage ate me alive. This, my friends, is the exact reason why I couldn't sit down last week and vent. It all came together as David and Tara were speaking on these verses. I know I'm not the only one that has felt this way; I felt like there was a huge mirror in front of me, and I was just staring at myself because this was exactly what I needed to hear.

It seems like I have just moaned and groaned about everything that has been going on with my job. It has been hard getting used to sharing a room with two other teachers, getting used to new procedures, and getting caught up since I was hired late. I have felt like everything I have done has been with a negative attitude and a negative heart. I have a great opportunity in front of me to really minister to young children, to their parents, and to the teachers I work with. I just have not realized it. God has placed me in this position for a reason. I cannot moan and groan about it anymore because I KNOW this is what I am supposed to be doing.

My goal from now on is to do everything with a loving heart and for God's glory--not mine, but His.

"Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door."--James 5:9