Will May 14th EVER get here?

My graduation is Thursday, May 14, at 7pm.  And I cannot wait!  I'm so ready to be FREE!

Yesterday was my last day of student teaching.  I was sad to leave all those precious faces that I've grown so attached to.  I could have gotten really sad when I heard one of the little voices saying, "bye, Missa Lissa".  But.. overall, I'm happy to be finished.  It was hard to go in some days knowing that I was doing so much work and getting no pay.  And knowing that I had to leave there and go to night classes.  And being so darn tired all the time.  So, YAY! for another semester of school behind me.  (almost.)

I still have an exit interview tomorrow with an Advisory Council.  I'm not sure what that's all about, but I'm nervous none-the-less.  Other than that, I just have to finish up my portfolio and take two finals!  I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

And until then... I'm trying to relax as much as possible and enjoy the merry month of May.

This evening, Justin and I are planning on going to see Monsters vs. Aliens in 3-D. Has anyone seen it?  I honestly didn't care to watch it just from seeing the previews, but a friend of ours told us that he saw it and it was pretty good.  So... we figured why not?  I'll let you all know what we think!

 

In other news.. at the end of May, we are headed to the Big D.. also known as Dallas, TX.  We are going with our friends Dustin and Jenna.  I cannot wait to get away.  We love little road trips like that.

 

Hmmm.. I guess that is all for now.  I've got a portfolio to finish!

Happy Thursday!  :)

One year ago

One year ago today, this is what my day looked like...

Justin completely surprised me and proposed while we were in Pensacola, FL for a friend's wedding.  I thought it was the most romantic thing ever.  What a wonderful day it was! 

I've been shredded...

I know I just posted, but I think this warrants a post as well.

This chick just kicked my butt.  For real.

Remember when I said I ordered a new work out DVD?  Yeah, I just tried it out.

That was probably the most intense work out I've ever done.  And I don't know that I've ever sweated so much inside an air conditioned building in such a short time.

And get this... I was only doing Level 1 out of 3 levels.  I didn't use hand weights like I was supposed to.  And I took a million breaks throughout my measly 20 minute workout!

I thought surely I could do an itty bitty 20 minutes.  I mean, I've done wayyy more than that on a treadmill or elliptical machine at the gym.  But heck no.. I thought I was dying!

All I know is that if I can get to where I can do Level 3 without taking breaks, I will be a work out machine!  And I better have nice abs!!!

If you want to feel like you have accomplished something in a short 20 minutes, I definitely recommend this.

 

Time to go shower!

And probably start feeling sore already..  haha!

 

Wow, I'm out of shape!

Happy Birthday to my little sister

Candice made me a sister when I was 4 1/2 years old.  Since that day we have always had a special bond.  I can't imagine what my life would have been like if I didn't have her as my sister.  We have always loved each other, but during my senior year of high school she and our mom moved about 5 hours away.  That's when I remember us getting really close.  We became more of best friends. 

I still consider my baby sister one of my very best friends.  I know I can count on her to be there through even the worst of times.  I'm so glad she lives right down the road and that we can share so much of our lives together.

She is beautiful and loving and caring and giving.  She is encouraging and trustworthy and real.  She is a great sister and a great friend.  A great mommy, daughter, and wife.

Happy 20th Birthday, Candice!

            

I love you!

Shopping with my Sis

Tomorrow is my baby sister's birthday.  I can't believe she will be 20 years old!  Gosh, it doesn't seem like she should be 20.  or married.  or have a one year old.  The time sure has flown by.

Anyway, back to the point...  Since tomorrow is her birthday, we went shopping today.  I let her pick out her own bday gift since I didn't know what to get her.  She picked out some cute new heels from Shoe Department.  I'm actually jealous because I like these!

Of course I had to snap a few of Miss Ava.

And then one of mommy and baby when we took a much needed sweet tea break..

Besides the shoes, I didn't have much luck.  I was shopping for flip flops for Justin, sunglasses for me, and a lingerie shower gift for a friend.  I found 0 of 3.  Stink!

So... guess I'll be shopping again tomorrow!

:) 

(I'm not too upset about that!)

His Timing

I really love blogging.  Why?  Several reasons...  1) I get to express myself, my thoughts, etc and capture memories that I will one day look back on and want to remember.  2) I get so much joy out of reading other people's blogs.  They make me laugh and cry and believe and hope.  3)  I really believe that God teaches me and speaks to me through the blogs of other people.  It has happened several times, and today is another one of those times.

After reading what I posted last, you will understand how this little excerpt from Without Wax was exactly what I needed to hear.

In John 11 we discovered TRUE HOPE DEVELOPS WHEN YOU ACCEPT GOD’S POWER AND TIMING. Most of the time we want his power, we want his strength, but we don’t want his calendar.

I love what Mark Batterson said about this in  Wild Goose Chase…

“I tend to live the way I drive. I want to get from point A to point B in the shortest amount of time and by the easiest route possible. But I’ve come to realize that getting where God wants me to go isn’t nearly as important as becoming who God wants me to be in the process. And God seems to be far less concerned with where I’m going than with who I’m becoming.

The friction for many of us comes in that we’re a lot more concerned with where we are going and what we’re accomplishing than who we’re becoming. We’ve got it opposite and it drives a barrier into the work God is trying to do in us.

 

Thank you, Jesus, for showing me this at just the right time.  And thank you, Pete, for sharing your wise words.

thinking out loud.. sorta

i know what i want and where i want to be. i just have no clue how to get there or when the time would be right or anything else. it's so frustrating. i wish i had a map or a set of directions to lead me through this journey we call life.
everything i think i want for myself seems so far away at this moment. it seems almost out of reach. almost. so that means that i can get there. i know i can. now i just have to figure out how. and when. and where.

Jesus, help me. guide me. direct me. and please, give me peace.

here, there, everywhere

This post is gonna be a little all over the place.

1st- I just received an e-mail confirming my order for this...

 

I have read a lot about this dvd all over the web.  The reviews make it sound pretty awesome.  The thing that grabbed my attention is that it doesn't take long at all... which means I maybe can fit it into my daily schedule.  Maybe.  Justin thinks it's just going to collect dust.  I think I need to prove him wrong!!!

 

2nd-  My baby Ava is not feeling too well.  Her mommy took her to the doctor this morning, and the baby girl has pink eye in BOTH eyes.  :(

I went and visited earlier and drove them to wal-greens to get Ava's prescription eye drops.  She looked so sad and didn't want to play with Aunt Lissa which made me sad.

 

3rd- I went to a bridal shower tonight in the pouring rain.  Justin's cousin Corey is getting married this summer to a wonderful girl, Kendra.  (They are the friends that had us over for dinner and a movie the other night.)

Kendra was the gift-opener.

Corey was the videographer.

Nicole (my sis-in-law) and myself being cheese balls!

Twilight

The other night Justin and I were invited over for dinner and a movie by our friend/Justin's cousin Corey and his fiancee Kendra.

Corey grilled up some burgers that were wonderfully delicious.  But that wasn't the highlight of the night for me. (surprising, I know!)

We went to Blockbuster to find a movie.  They wanted Blu-Ray or whatever it's called (I'm not up on my technology terms).  Our choices were very limited considering we don't watch rated R movies or anything we know will have bad language/sex scenes/etc.

We finally chose Twilight.  I thought it would be pretty good since I heard people talking about it when it first came out.  I also thought the guys would surely hate a love story about vampires. Ha!

It turned out to be a really good movie.  We loved it, and now I can't wait for the next one to come out!  I'm even tempted to get the books and read them.  Problem is, I don't have time to read!!!

 

Do you have any good movie suggestions?  Or what did you think of Twilight?

Adventures in Babysitting

This past Saturday night, my sister called and said that she needed someone to keep Ava.  Of course, I jumped at the chance!  We had already made plans to eat crawfish with the in-laws, so we took her with us over there.  She was so good and sweet and cute all night long.  Afterwards Justin said that being around Ava makes him want one.. and that's saying something.  haha :)

Here are some a ton of pictures from the night--

 

Wow, I know that's a lot of pictures.. but you have to admit, she's a cutie pie!

Cardboard Testimonies

I don't have time to do an entire Easter post.  I will surely try to later.   I have some pics I want to post after I get them uploaded to my computer.

But for now, I just wanted to share a video.  The church we go to, Christ Church, did cardboard testimonies during the Easter services.  It's awesome to see how God has moved in so many lives.  If you have time, you should watch.. be blessed.. and know that He can move in your situation too.

PS-- my hubby is on here at about 7 mins 13 seconds (alcohol and drugs, I've done them all....)

Good Friday

Easter Sunday is always a day of food and family and celebration.  We (my family and I) celebrate Jesus Christ and the fact that He rose again after conquering death, hell, and His grave.  We celebrate that He is ALIVE...The one true and living God!

But the Friday before, Good Friday, is a little different.  I'm usually alone or just going about my day with no big celebration.  It's more of a solemn and quiet day.  Today marks the day in history where my Lord and Savior laid down his life willingly so that I might live.  He went through torture and pain that we cannot imagine.  He became the ultimate sacrifice.  That's huge to me.

I was reading through some blogs today, and found these word's on Stephanie's blog that said it so well. 

She said, "today represents the spotless lamb, nailed to a cross on our behalf, on my behalf.  I'm praising the Lord in my heart for His sacrifice and trying to keep my mind centered on the love He literally laid down on that cross, some 2000+  years ago, through his death.  Thank You Jesus for a Friday that was agonizing for you and ultimately good for me."

And here are scriptures that perfectly depict what today is all about--   

"The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" Romans 6:23
"that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation." Romans 10:9-10

Jesus died so that our sins, ALL of our sins, could be washed away and so that we could live eternally in Heaven with Him.

Just think about that sacrifice!  It's amazing.

student teaching

I'm tired.  I've been tired every day this week.  Those two year olds are wearing me out!  Thankfully next week is spring break for me.  I think a break is much needed.  And after break, I only have 2 weeks left!  :)

Don't get me wrong, I love those babies.  And I have been having fun.  I'm just ready for a break.

This week we were learning about Easter.  I put together a few little activities I thought I would share.  They are VERY simple.  Remember, my babies are only two!

First, for our science center I made a "touch and feel bunny".  I just did my best (which was still pretty bad!) at drawing a bunny.  I covered it with cotton balls and added eyes and a nose from construction paper.  The kids got to feel the bunny and understand more about the concept of "soft" vs. hard.

Then I bought some large plastic eggs from the dollar store in different colors. The children take turns playing with this activity.They simply match up the colors.  It helps with color recognition and really makes them feel like they have accomplished something. 

This next activity is one of my favorites for them.  What do you get when you put together plastic eggs, black eyed peas, and hot glue??  Egg Shakers!!!

You can do this with any filler.  I just used the peas because I had them in my pantry!

The kids love anything that makes noise, so they really enjoy these.  We use them to have parades around the room and to enhance our dancing.

Lastly, I'll leave you with our new fingerplay from this week....

All of these things are so simple, but the kiddos love them.  And that makes me happy!  :)

Happy Hump Day, everyone!!!