01/31/08

I posted this picture from our farm just because of Wesley today. Ibelieve I posted it long ago, but decided to revisit it. It is about all that we have left... Wesley was talking tonight about having all of our neighbors sell their places so we could have our farm back again. It was sweet but a bit sad at the same time. He and Mikayla were both asking questions about the farm tonight. It brought back good memories, but sad ones as well of how it all went away...

I was driving home from Walmart this afternoon and noticing that more and more farm land is being taken away. It truly breaks my heart. Wesley also said tonight that he should live with the Amish. Mikayla told him he couldn't live in the Amish... He replied (with his little hands in the position he gets when he is trying to prove his point... hard to explain on here but it is so stinking cute) "Mikayla I don't want to BE Amish. I don't have a beard (beawd is how it came out) but I did see some normal farmers up there that drove tractors!" He then began to tell me how many tractors he would have on his farm. I just hope there is farmland somewhere for the boy when he grows up. He does love the country.

Let's just say, too, that Wesley was getting on Mikayla tonight about keeping her room clean!!! LOL I was CRACKING UP. He cannot stand the house to be a mess and he told Mikayla several times that she needs to pick up her stuff and put it in the correct place. She told me before I read that Wesley was sure getting on her a lot tonight. I just had to chuckle.... I think he is going to be OCD about cleaning.... lol

I finished all of those strawberries yesterday. OH.. they were SO good.

I walked around almost ALL of Walmart today looking for Valentine cards for the kids to take to their friends at school. Couldn't find them ANYWHERE it showed Valentine stuff. The cashier informed me they were in the back of the store in some strange location. Oh well... I'll get them later!

Since I had to go to Walmart and another place to get some stuff after school I was so late in getting home. I hate days like that. I was ready to have some down time....

Not much today.. right now Steve and I are in the middle of watching LOST. It is FINALLY back on after being off for 7 months or so. I know we'll continue to be as confused as ever (already are) but it is a show that hooks ya. lol

After we watch that we'll be going to dreamland. Enjoy your evening...

01/30/08

In honor of my friends who are loving the previous cardinal picture... I have included two more today. I am especially thinking of Sal's friend Casey and his wife, Heather, as they are at the hospital a lot with their new baby. She was born a little early and is doing well but the doctors want to make sure everything is just right before they send little Gillie home. I know it is hard on them, though, so I am hoping these cardinals will also cheer up Casey when he reads this.

I took these the same day I took the other one. I liked these and was tickled to finally get them. Wildlife is not my specialty. It is definitely something I need to work on photographing.

I ate two more of those strawberries last night before I graded papers. I just ate another one right before I started typing. I don't think they'll last another day. I have saved up any sweets in my day for those so I don't overdo it. Those things are just TOO stinking good.

We are having Open House at school this week. Today I saw a former classmate of mine. It has been many years since I had seen her and it was neat to see her considering sending her children to our school. She said I hadn't changed a bit.. LOL... if only she knew how MUCH I have changed!! lol :)

That does make you feel good, though, when someone tells you that you haven't changed. I had someone tell me yesterday they thought I was younger than my age when I shared with her how old I am. She said I didn't "look" my age... which, it isn't like I am THAT old, but you know what I am talking about. lol That kind of gave a lift to my step. :)

Yesterday the kids got "Flat Stanley" that they have to send to people in different parts of the country if they can. We are sending Wesley's to Sal and Morgan and Mikayla's gets to go to my friend Amy in Nevada. I am excited for them to be seeing different landscapes and all. We have to send those out in the next day or so. I think it is a cute idea and I can't wait till we see where our "Flat Stanley's" get to go!!! Sal, Morgan and Amy were gracious enough to be a part of the fun. Thanks again, ya'll!!!

Last night I was trying to work with Wesley on counting money. It didn't last long because my nerves were not handling it well and my patience had already run out for the day. I told Steve when he got home that was going to have to be his department. I know what Wesley is thinking, though... I used to be the SAME way. I know it will click with him. It is just frustrating until it does. Now I totally understand why my Daddy got SO aggravated with me when I did the same thing. lol

Church is tonight so we'll be getting ready for that here shortly. I finished all of my papers at school (yeehaw) so I am paper free tonight. The kids are outside playing so I think I'll go crash for a few minutes while it is a bit quiet in here. Steve will be home later than his normal time but not too late.

Enjoy your evening. Give someone a compliment today and give them a "pep in their step."

01/29/08

Look at these wonderful treats I received in the mail today!!! My best friend sent these to me as a thank you for helping her out while she has been "out of commission" with having hand surgery. I didn't expect anything in return.. I did everything because I wanted to do it. These were a wonderful surprise, though. I had to photograph them because I know they won't last long!! In fact, the last picture is the one that is already gone.... I may sacrifice and eat another one tonight after the kids go to bed. hee heee It meant a lot to me to get them and I called and thanked her for them. They are so yummy!

I made coffee again last night. It was better, it seemed. I'll have to keep working on it, though.

It was an interesting day at school and I learned a few things:

1. White chocolate morsels do not melt very easily. Apparently, "white chocolate bark" works better.

2. You have to remember cups if you are going to give your students hot chocolate....

3. When pouring water from a dipper out of a hot crock pot, please do not spill any on your hand because it burns and that really hurts.

4. Marshmallows do not stick together with "melted" white chocolate morsels.

5. Dark chocolate hot chocolate is AWESOME...

Can you tell the theme I had for the day at school? We were supposed to make snowmen out of marshmallows and white chocolate. Well, I think you can see from above how that went. lol All that counts is that they had fun doing it. (I think! lol)

This afternoon Wesley cracked me up. I told the kids they could go outside for 30 minutes when we got home before they started homework. The thirty minutes seems to always go by fast. When it was time for them to come in I heard a loud sound and went to investigate. There was Wesley with his golf club.... his ball had hit the deck. Thankfully, not a window!! I told him it was time to come in. He gives me this suprised look and said "Already!??" "Why is it that thirty minutes of playing outside goes by faster than 30 minutes of reading????" I just laughed... such is life. lol That is so my boy!

Steve is having to work late again tonight. I cooked supper again. I know, I know... you all had to sit down again, right? I cooked a concoction with chicken, some rice and some pinto beans/ navy beans mixture. (Sal and Morgan... you should remember that bean mixture...lol) It was actually pretty tasty. It seemed to take me forever to get the meal prepared but it was done!

I now have to go finish homework with the kiddos, do flashcards, read and get them into bed so I can eat another strawberry and grade papers.

I surely do miss Steve....

Go eat something sweet tonight and tell someone you love how much they mean to you...

01/28/08

Todays pictures aren't my most favorite but I figured I'd better post them. lol The cardinal was one I saw from the den window a few weeks back and liked how it was perched in the bare tree. I couldn't get very close because I would have scared it away if I had opened our back door, but this isn't too bad using my telephoto lens. It would have REALLY been pretty if there were snow on the branches.

The second picture is from our "snow" we had last week. I was just walking around the house shooting whatever I saw with snow on it. lol It is not my favorite... but I like camellia blooms. The ice coming off of the leaf is kind of neat.

Today was busy. Wesley didn't get to go to school today because he still had a fever last night. He is doing much better today, thankfully. That strep really knocked him out this time, it seemed. Steve stayed home with him for the first part of the day. I left work around 1:30 to come home so he could go to work. I won't see him till tomorrow morning because he had to work late and probably won't get in till around midnight. I really miss him when he isn't around!

I am finding I make my coffee too strong. lol When I was at the play the other night I got a cup of coffee and drank it black. I am trying to learn to like it black... for whatever reason that might be. Well, that was a great cup of coffee! I am still trying to figure out my percolater and realized that I must be filling my basket too full of coffee. I made some last night and backed off a little on how much coffee I added. Steve said it was still a bit strong... I thought it was better, but I know I have to work at it again. I guess I'll try it again tonight with just myself. We'll see... The never ending saga of Kellie and her coffee... Go ahead and laugh... I know you want to. Last night I also dipped some dark chocolate into the coffee. I hadn't had a lot of chocolate lately so I figured it was OK. :) I also cherished small bites of the chocolate in between sips of coffee. Now, THAT was good.

Well, I need to go get some supper on the table for me and the kiddos. We're having a gourmet meal of leftover vegetables, rice and newly baked chicken nuggets. Don't all of you come beating down my door for that meal, OK? Then, I'll be grading papers with gusto before heading off to dreamland.

Have a wonderful evening and make some coffee....

01/26/08

My first picture today I took at school the other day! My students were laughing at me because I actually took this from my window by my desk!! I was at the perfect height to capture this scene. It was a bit foggy all day long and it created a neat look. (I tried it early in the day when I was picking my students up from a special. Let's just say that was comical because I couldn't get up the hill really well with the shoes I was wearing. This was much better... lol )I have seen it before at school but didn't have my camera. Since I had taken in all of my stuff for devotion that morning I figured that was a great time!

We awoke this morning to Wesley having a fever. He came into our room around 3:00 this morning saying his ear hurt. I thought it may have been because of him sleeping on the floor with his little buddy and it being cold. I told him to get in his bed and see if it felt better because he didn't feel hot to me. When we got up, though, Steve took his temperature first thing and it was over 100. He got him into the doctors office and come to find out, the little guy has strep throat. He was acting FINE all last night so it hit him pretty quickly. He is on medicine now but his fever is still over 102. He will be fine in a couple of days, I know, but I hate to see him feel badly. I just hope his little buddy doesn't get it, too! He wanted me to sit with him for a while this morning. I had so much cleaning to do, but I knew this was more important. Our lives are so busy that these are the kinds of moments that slow you down and make you remember what is more important. Believe me... the dust will always come back. lol

I did manage to work most of the day on cleaning the house. I worked in our room trying to get some of the "stuff" that gets collected put away into the right areas or just plain old thrown away. I dusted... that was a major thing. Steve and I could have written long love letters to each other in there!!! As y'all well know, I don't live in a perfect house, but I get aggravated with all of the "stuff" that gets left out everywhere. I learned long ago to stop stressing over it but some days I would like to turn our house on the side and shake it like you do a dustbuster or something. lol

Mikayla had to help me clean today since Wesley was feeling badly. She had to get a review lesson on the proper way to vacuum... You have to actually PICK UP things and vacuum underneath them. lol She's learning and I know she'll get it. They both will. She reminds me of myself when I was little... I was such a pack rat, and in essence, I still am with some things. Under my bed, though, was much worse than hers. I just don't want to see hers get like mine was as a kid. I know my Mom had some serious moments with me. lol That is why I want Mikayla to learn early that it isn't worth it. I don't have to worry about teaching that part to Wesley... he has it!!

Mikayla was my "assistant" today and helped me create these pouring water pictures. I took quite a few and these were my favorite two. I thought of this during lunch yesterday at school. I was pouring water into my cup and watching the beauty of the water flowing out of the bottle and into the cup. I decided that would be something I would work on photographing. I was pleasantly surprised at how well they turned out.

As I was photographing the water, and even now as I type, I think of how important water is to us... especially where we are in such a bad drought around here. It also made me think of this passage in the Bible where Jesus is speaking to the Samaritan woman at the well. He asked her for water and then told her this:
John 14:13,14 - Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

Jesus is our Living Water and with Him we will never thirst for the truth. I understand that a bit better, too, after the last couple of weeks I had. When I went to Psalms to read, as I stated in the earlier post, it was like pouring water on a dry land. He "quenched" my thirst of being worried and a bit scared. Nothing in this world could have given me that.

I appreciate all of the comments about my devotion yesterday. Believe me, I know that I am not at the SLR camera yet most days myself. I still have so much to learn about Who God is and what He wants me to be. The most important thing is that I am learning and growing. I am by far perfect and can do some really stupid things sometimes. I am just thankful for the Lord's convicting spirit to help me to change and His love for me that causes me to grow. I continually am learning that hard times make me more dependent on the Lord. If everything were "easy" we would soon forget the need for our Lord. We would act as if everything was in our control, when it is He that holds us and molds us. I am most thankful for that. He doesn't give us more than we can bear... even though sometimes it feels that way.

Tonight we are going to school for the Senior play. It is a dinner theater and the Seniors have to help wait on tables before the performance begins. It will be a neat evening and I am looking forward to it. Our best friend's daughter is performing in it. I taught her 10 years ago. I can't believe she is so close to graduating and going off to college. We love her very much and it will be weird not having her around school.

Have a wonderful day... Next time you pour some water, I hope you think of Christ as the Living Water that can help you to never thirst again.

01/25/08

It is kind of hard to believe that Christmas has already been a month ago!! January is almost gone..

Last night at Cats was wonderful. We had "PIT" seats and this time it was awesome!! If you have ever been to Cats, you know the cat characters come out through the crowd before the go up on stage. Well, I was on the end of the row and one came up beside me and scared the living tar out of me! HA!!! It cracked me and my brother up!! At the end, the "feisty" cat, Rumtumtugger, waved and blew a kiss at me when he came out for encore. lol I told Steve he had some competition from a cat. hee hee. I blew a kiss back. My brother seriously cracked up. It was a fun evening.

To top it all off, as I sat there I was thinking about my High School English teacher. I know that sounds crazy, but long ago (now over 20 years ago!) she told our class about seeing Cats and that she loved the play. Well, ever since then when I see Cats I think of her and tonight was no different. Tonight, when the main lights went up after the performance ended, I turned around and SAW my High School English teacher!!!!! I ran right up to her and about knocked over a couple of people in the process! HA!!! It was WONDERFUL to see her again... I know it has been ten years or more since I have seen her. We communicate every year through Christmas cards but that is about it. At first she didn't recognize me but it only took a few seconds and she knew me. We had been quite close. She was one of my all time favorite teachers... and still is. We talked for a few minutes and I wrote down all of my emails, blog, phone numbers for her because I want to see her again soon. Hopefully she is reading this... if so, HELLO, Mrs. Perry!!!! :) God was good to allow me to see her. She has been on my heart a lot lately... especially since I got her card at Christmas.

Today was a good day and busy. I had a parent bring in doughnuts for the class this afternoon. Let's just say that was one stinking good chocolate covered Krispy Kreme doughnut. Was that enough adjectives? Can you tell I enjoyed that thing A LOT???? The kids loved them, too. It was a nice treat. :)

Tonight Wesley has a sleepover with his little friend. I am excited for him and he is majorly excited. His friend should be here any minute.

Mikayla doesn't have anyone coming... that will need to be a separate post because this one is already long. lol I'll just say this... keep praying for Mikayla to get out of her "funk" with going over to friend's houses. Steve and I need the prayer as much as she does to know how to handle her.

My best friend is coming over in a bit for me to help her with some paper work she can't do since she has had surgery. I also need to hush and let you read below:


Finally have my devotion to share. :) I hope it is a blessing.... I created the photograph below and gave it to all of the teachers after I finished devotions. They all liked it a lot. You can click on it to make it larger. The "key verse" is where I had my focus.

"For Now We See Through a Glass Darkly...."

In our daily walk with the Lord, we can look back on the past and see how God has challenged us, broken us, uplifted us and comforted us. Most of the time when we are right in the middle of a "storm" we can't see why things are happening to us. Sometimes God shows Himself very openly to us through whatever it is He is allowing in our lives. Sometimes He wants us to search the scriptures so He can use those to speak His words.

Before school ends each year I go visit one of the special teachers who also has a love of pictures. We usually talk about art and cultures around the world and we always end up looking at pictures. We began to joke around at how people are like cameras in how they view certain things in life. (disposable, point and shoot, simple zoom camera, DSLR with removable lenses..)

I began to "chew" on those thoughts I had with my friend that day. I began to think of how our Christian walk with the Lord is like different cameras. The Lord brought this verse to my mind last fall as I continued to think on this theme.

I Corinthians 13:12 - For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

Cameras have glass in the lenses so I felt I could make this analogy work with the camera and our learning more and more about God.

1. Disposable camera - You have Christ in your heart but when the picture of Who He is comes out it is quite "grainy" like a photograph from a disposable camera. You know Him, but you don't really KNOW Him yet. We are not strong enough in our faith yet to understand why things happen to us in life. We are "babes in Christ" and need to be fed through His Word. Unfortunately, sometimes it takes longer to get out of this "camera" and move on to better equipment. We can "take pictures" but they don't come out like we had hoped.

2. Point and Shoot - We can get a better picture now of Who Christ is, but things still don't always come out as clear. We find that when we try to take a photograph with this type of camera our subject may still come out blurry. Sometimes we are so quick to "open and read" the Bible that we forget to really READ what God's Word is telling us. We open the Bible, read a passage and think "I've done my studying for the day." When, in fact, all we have is an overview. Nothing deep.... nothing personal.

3. Compact Camera with Zoom - We are now able to zoom in on Who Christ is. The picture is still getting better and we are making progress. There are still limitations on how far you can go with this type of camera. This is when we "open and read" but linger longer on what the Lord is trying to show us. We are understanding the concepts from God's Word more but our lives still can get shaky because we are still not grounded in the word and getting a full understanding of WHO HE IS.

4. SLR with interchangeable lenses - this camera has the ability to go very detailed into a photograph. The only problem is, you have to know HOW to use it. We have our Bibles to read but until we put on the correct lens and know our "equipment"... God's Word... we are still not going to have great pictures. Once we start knowing our "equipment"... hiding God's Word in our hearts and APPLYING it to whatever we are facing, God will take that "camera" and make beautiful pictures.

Does that mean all pictures now come out great? No, but you learn from your mistakes and go out and take more pictures. It is the same way with our walk with the Lord. Every day is not going to be wonderful... God never promises that. What He does promise is that He will be there every step of the way. When we make mistakes He helps us see what we have done wrong by using His Word. He causes us to put on our telephoto lens instead of our wide angle lens to see we need to search His Word deeper and continue to learn WHO HE IS.

Here is another point my photographer mentor added (thanks, Doug!) : "one would typically get first a "nice" camera (beginner) to learn on... it would have "ok" glass (lens). Then, one would grow into another level and arrive at a "newer" tool with "better" glass to see/capture images with. As the talent and knowledge comes from using that tool. Yet another "anchor point" comes and one gets a camera/lens combo that is just excellent... basically becoming transparent as one uses it to see things and record scenes.. and as you look through the excellent quality in the new glass/lens you are seeing much clearer, more detail, and with more clarity. Then, you look back and see how much you have grown with the same "tool", but with more advanced and polished piece that comes closer to your actual eyesight than "way back when." It is the quality put into the glass that gives the picture depth and sharpness... the "meaning" of the picture is up to you.

That "tool" above is God's Word. Once we search the scriptures and truly study them, we find that we become more like Christ. We see through a glass darkly at first, but for those of us who know Christ as our Savior, we will see Him FACE TO FACE. Now, we know in part only because we are not able to know everything God does in our lives. One day, in Heaven, we will see Him face to face and all of that He has done in our lives will be revealed.

We will always need to learn and grow in Christ. None of us will ever completely master being a Christian... it is a continual process. We may reach "mountain peaks" in our walk with the Lord, but there is always something new we can learn when we search the scriptures.

There are times we mistakenly "grab" for the wrong camera when faced with a situation. Sometimes our faith fails us and our picture of Christ and what He is trying to do comes out blurry or grainy. God isn't the one Who changes... We are the ones that have to remember which camera to hold.

Another point is that there is no good photograph without the right light. Christ is our light for the "photographs" we take with His Word: John 12:46 - I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
John 8:12b - I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

"The scriptures will never be mastered by man. We can never exhaust the treasures of God's Word." - unknown author to me at this time...

Job 23:10 - but he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.


I pray that this brings something to your life or walk with the Lord as I type this out. God's Word will never return void. May it be a wellspring of water to a thirsty soul.

01/24/08

Well, what I was going to post today I can't post. I forgot my hard copy of my devotion at school and my Microsoft Word is not responding... and driving me crazy. I think this computer may be on its way out. It is around 7 years old, I am thinking, and just not performing the greatest.

I was going to post my devotion I did at school this morning. It went really well and I think the Lord used it with my fellow teachers in a great way. When I get my hard copy I will type it in tomorrow and share it with you. I am pretty bummed I couldn't do it tonight. It is almost like Satan doesn't want me to post it, but I am not going to let that happen.

Here is a picture of my sweet guy with no braces. He just loves the fact that he doesn't have them anymore. He got his retainers today. Let's just say they don't look a thing like mine did some 20 years ago! My, how things have changed....

You know, I have been reading up on this Heath Ledger death. It has saddened me to see someone so young to die like he did. While reading about it today I saw where they found lots of sleeping medication and anxiety type medications in his apartment. It sounded like he was a man very troubled with no peace. Believe me.... as I mentioned yesterday all of us who have Christ are going to have hard times. That is just life, but the difference between me and Heath Ledger, from what I have heard and read about him, is that I have Jesus Christ in my heart and at the center of my life. He alone can give true joy. He alone can bring you through hard times. When Mom was sick and I was faced with so many weird emotions... and many of you know about them... I began to have anxiety attacks. I didn't realize what they were at the time. I truly thought I was "dying." Then, when my doctor told me that September day 2005 that I was having ANXIETY I thought "NO! Couldn't be... must be something medically wrong with me..." He was right and I was wrong. I knew then and there I didn't want to take a medication because I knew mine was caused by the worry and stress over Mom. I prayed that night that I would release all of that to the Lord. Do you know I have not had another anxiety attack since that time?? Doesn't mean I don't get stressed... just means I have to continually give it to the Lord.

I didn't mean to ramble on and on about that time in my life, but I have just been "chewing" on that man's death. I didn't know him personally... didn't know about most of his movies, but it saddened me to see what happened to him.

Well, I must close for now. My brother and I are off to see Cats tonight. We have seen it MANY times already but I know it will be great again! I had to take a nap this afternoon to make it through it all. lol This one usually last to right at 11:00.

Cherish your days. Don't look in to your worries but look UP to the Lord. He alone gives peace! I'll share my devotion tomorrow. :)

01/23/08

Sal, you are right... I think this is the "Name That Color Blog Game..." Sad, I know...

Here is a picture I took down at the barns with our "snow." Not my most favorite, but it is a picture for the day. I just couldn't get it the way I wanted it. Snow is quite hard to photograph because it is so reflective. lol

I mentioned this briefly in my blog the other day but I have had some "valleys" in the last couple of weeks. Nothing that needs to be brought up here but they have been quite burdensome at times. The Lord has brought me through them but I continued to realize how much I have to release these times and give them fully to the Lord on faith. Stepping out on faith is easy to talk about but not as easy to put into action. I am continually growing in that area and I know it. Of course, we all are when we are growing in our walk with the Lord.

After having some not so great news yesterday that may not have been detrimental, but still makes your day go sour, I knew I needed to turn to God's Word to find what the Lord wanted me to hear. I thought I'd share those on my blog today because you never know when someone else is going through a "silent valley" and you never knew it. They were like pouring water on a thirsty ground last night as I read them. They quenched my fears and caused me to sleep quite well and feel very rested when I got up this morning. Only the Lord can do that. Here are some of the verses I read:

Psalm 121:1-8
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hilss, from whence cometh my help.
My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
The Lord shall preserve thy going out and they coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.

Psalm 31: 14, 15a
But I trusted in thee, O Lord: I said, Thou art my God. My times are in thy hand:

Psalm 31:24
Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.

You know, that first Psalm I typed in was one I had learned years and years ago. Somehow in the busyness of life we can so easily forget what we have hidden in our hearts from God's Word. When I heard it at school the other day it was like the Lord was saying to me "YOU NEED THIS!" It stuck with me and I knew I needed to turn there last night. God took care of some of the worries I had last night. Today things were made a bit better and, even though there are still some valleys at the moment, I know I can take each day with the Lord because He will never leave me nor forsake me!

On a fun note... Steve got his braces off today! He is so excited and very tickled with himself. I'll have to take a picture of him and post it. He had them on over 2 years. He did an awesome job with them and they look wonderful. :) Just makes my sweet, handsome man even more so in my eyes.

Not much else to say tonight, I guess. We have church a bit later. I already finished grading tests so that is a relief.

Enjoy your day and may the words I typed from God's Word be a comfort and balm for your soul....

01/21/08

Yes, I have changed my color again. Is this the one I started with or is it darker? I am really having issues with this. I am beginning to think I am having a psychedelic blog!

Well, here are a couple of pictures I took yesterday. I almost missed this tree. It is near the barns on the side I usually don't go around. I saw it when I was out taking photographs of Steve doing the wood. These icicles were awesome! I loved how they were shimmering in the sunlight. If you click on the first one you can see a drop of water coming off of one of the icicles. I was SO excited to capture that. You can also see the "spray" of water coming from the smaller ones. I have a couple of others of the whole tree that I'll share later.

I had a work day today and it was quite productive. We started the day off with a meeting and shared some scriptures that help us during times of trouble. It seems a lot of our school family is going through hardships and our Administrator wanted to have a time where we could go to God's Word to find the source of our strength. We then broke up into groups of two to pray. I had the privilege of praying with one of my friends who teaches another grade and I don't get to talk with her often. It is amazing what a time of prayer like that can do for the soul. It is also a comfort to share your burdens with someone knowing they will pray. That did me a world of good today. With the way my last week was between the students being sick and a couple of other reasons, I needed that time. God was so good to give me what I needed before I realized I needed it. I got pretty much all of my list crossed off that I had left on my desk Friday afternoon. There is still lots to be done, as always, but that was a big chunk. Now I can face those little faces in the morning with a little less on my plate.

Steve came to get me because he had to take my van ("the Golden Chariot"... G. C. for short) in for some brake work. She is almost 8 years old and these are the first brakes so we can't complain at all. He picked me up and we went to eat some lunch. Wesley and Mikayla had been with my Mom since he had to go wait for the van. Once we ate lunch we came back home. I had planned on scrapbooking some today. Steve didn't think I'd last because he said my eyes had that "look" of wanting to take a nap. lol I was determined to get some of those pages done and I did. lol I still have many more, but I am taking them little by little and getting the job done.

Steve worked on cutting wood a while this afternoon. Now, my friend Sal seems to think Steve has it terribly rough by working all week and having to cut wood, too. lol Let's just say that the man loves to cut wood when it is cold and he doesn't have it TOO bad. The photo from yesterday showed him using a maul to chop the wood. He does use one sometimes when he can't get the tree out of the area because it is so big, but when he gets the pieces home, he uses his HUGE wood splitter seen in the wood cutting photo of the day. lol Now, I am not saying that he is not working hard when he uses this because he still has to move the big pieces and then stack the little pieces, but it does make his job easier and go faster. lol

I just got off the phone with my next "client"... the one with the three month old. I am really excited about it! I will be doing that shoot the first weekend in February.

Well, it is getting near my bedtime. lol I may make Steve and I some coffee tonight. I am greatly enjoying the cold so we can thoroughly enjoy our wood stove. It has definitely been so cold that it doesn't heat up the house as much as it did the other week. It keeps it a great temperature. It makes me thankful...

Enjoy some coffee or hot chocolate tonight as you enjoy your evening!

01/20/08

Well... no real snow for us. I was quite bummed yesterday. Such is life in the south. It snowed here for 2 hours or so before it even starting sticking to anything. Before that it just melted when it hit. I knew when it started doing that we weren't going to get a lot. A trace is all I would say we got. Wesley about drove me nuts asking me every few minutes when it was going to snow and then when it was going to stick. Overall, I didn't get as much accomplished yesterday as I had hoped and it was just a ho-hum kind of a day. lol

I did manage a FEW pictures but that is all. You can barely see the snow on the front yard area in that first photo. They are calling for more "snow" later in the week. I think at this point I will believe it when I see it and it sticks. lol

We didn't have church this morning. Apparently our church parking lot was a sheet of ice from the melting and re-freezing overnight. Truly, if they cancelled our church services, it had to be bad. Our pastor never cancels church. It was weird not to go and I missed being there.

Steve worked on cutting more wood today. I decided I was going to do a page in our scrapbook on him doing that since he does so much. He works hard for us to have wood for the woodstove.

The kids went around playing in the "snow"... more like mud. They wanted to go "sledding" so Steve let them use their old sandbox lid and they pushed each other down the hill near our driveway. It was comical and didn't last long. Thankfully, I got to see them do it and get a few shots. Here is just one of them. Pitiful.....

I have a teacher's workday tomorrow so I have to go in for a bit. I hope to get much accomplished so I am ready on Tuesday for all of those kiddos.

I saw part of the Patriots/Chargers game tonight. I only watched because Steve wanted me to keep him updated because he was in and out with the wood. I saw that the Patriots won and now Steve is checking out Green Bay/Giants. He's going for Green Bay to win this one. Again, I have no clue but just go for who he goes for.... gotta support my better half. lol

Well, that is about it around here. I will share more of my "trace of snow" pictures later. Have a great evening and stay warm wherever you may be... lol

01/18/08

Yeah, I changed my color again... still not sure, though. I cannot believe I can't make up my mind on this. Geesh...

Well, this little guy has been sitting in our den since I cleaned up decorations from Christmas. I am hoping he won't be the only snowman I see as we are supposed to get 2-4" of snow tomorrow. Now, my friend in Nevada (Amy) will laugh at that again, but, as I told her... those of us in the south get excited at ANY accumulation. LOL

This little snowman was given to me by a kindergartner at school. I taught his brother years ago, and this year this little boy had a hard time getting adjusted to Kindergarten. He has never been a child that just ran right up to me and gave me hugs like some siblings do when I have their sister/brother. I just kept on trying to encourage him, though, when he got to school and tried to help him feel better. I usually say "Hey sugar" to the kids when I see them. Now, it doesn't come out like "sugar" but more like "shuga" with my southern accent right in there with it. lol Well, apparently, he went home and told his parents I now call him "Shuga Bean" (where he got "bean" I have no idea.. lol) Anyway, for Christmas he was adamant about getting me a Christmas present because he said I am who he is going to have in Second grade. lol It was a precious gift and I felt honored that he would think of me that way so this little snowman is special.

I am BEYOND excited over the possibility of the snow tomorrow. I am anxious to get out there and take some photos. I have already told Steve that he will be taking me around to places so I can get some shots of things other than our house. lol He has a 4-wheel drive truck so we can manage. We haven't had a chance for this much snow in over 4 years.

The kids are spending the night with Mom and Dad tonight so Steve and I went out on a date. We went out to eat and then went to shop. I bought some more pants for school and a few tops. I had been saving some money for doing just that. I am so excited about what I can fit into now... a size I didn't think I would ever see again. It has now been a year since I began the journey of losing weight. I never thought I'd be where I am today, though. It was a rough go at first but now it is part of my every day life. :)

I actually had all but one of my students today. I am so glad they are back, but they still looked a bit worn out. It was good they have a long weekend to rest up for next week. I must say, this week was a wild and crazy week that I don't want to go back to. Between helping my friend (which I'd do that again in a heartbeat), the students being sick out of school and having to keep up with who was there and who wasn't, then being so off schedule because of that, I was quite weary this afternoon when I got home. In fact, I plopped down on the couch and had a little nap. I knew I would have fallen asleep in my meal with Steve if I didn't. lol I am ready to get back on my schedule at school and be "normal" again. lol

My friend Sal out in San Diego is missing his wife... she had to go on a business trip to Memphis, TN and won't be back until Sunday. I told him I know exactly how he feels. Steve may have to work all night tomorrow night because of the snow. He is on night shift duty, which is actually better because he used to be day shift if we had snow and never got to play in it with the kids. We'll see what tomorrow brings. Sal also mentioned how he is such a home-body. He definitely has a friend who is one as well... me. lol I am so excited to be snowed in and not have to go anywhere..... except to take pictures! Nothing thrills me more than to hang out at home. I love what God has blessed us with.

I have begun chatting with Sal's friend, Casey. He loves photography as well and I have been enjoying his photographs on his blog, too. HI, CASEY!!! :)

I got another shoot this evening. I still have to officially schedule it, but it is of a 3 month old and her Mom and Dad. I can't wait!

Our comforter came in today! I haven't had time to open the box.. and will probably work on that tomorrow.. but I am anxious to see how it looks. I have become such a "big spender" lately. lol Nah...

I have devotions for the teachers next week during our teacher meeting in the morning. I am doing the devotion around a verse in the New Testament and it will involve photographs. lol Shocking... I know. I will share it once I get my thoughts totally in order. I am also going to work on a photograph of something I would like to give the teachers. We'll see if it works, though.

Well, this is not spending time with my sweet husband by posting this blog. lol I am looking forward to showing some snow pictures tomorrow. :)

01/17/08

I decided I wanted something different for my background. I changed the colors so many times and I couldn't figure out what I wanted. So many of the colors looked "odd" to me and I then thought of black. Now, I usually don't like it this dark but it kind of went nicely with my pictures so I thought I'd keep it... for now. Don't be surprised if it is back green again soon. You know I have to "chew" on things a while before I make a decision and my blog is not any different!! lol

Well, no snow for us today. At least, there was no snow by the time we got up and about. If I had wanted to get up at 3AM I would have seen some... maybe played in it and tried to take a photograph using a non-existent infrared lens. Yeah, that would have worked. lol We had a two hour delay today because they went ahead yesterday and called it since things may have been a bit tricky with driving this morning. Well, it wasn't and we delayed for rain, but they wouldn't have known that. I am thankful they cared about our safety and we still got in a day of school. For my online friend, Amy, who just dealt with a blizzard out in Nevada... I know that last statement cracked her up. BUT... we in the south don't get snow very often and use every precaution and go buy all of the bread, milk and toilet paper known to man if we think there will be some accumulation. LOL

It was VERY cold today, though. I went outside to take a few pictures when I got home because I had hoped I would have been photographing some white stuff today. That is OK, though, because we surely need the rain and I thank the Lord for it. While I was outside I took these pictures of "stuff" with rain droplets on them. I LOVE rain droplets on plants and such. The one of the cabbage was just so pretty to me. That rain drop turned into many rain droplets puddled on that leaf. I thought it was neat so I captured it. The maple tree is one I observe from our bedroom and I see it go through each season. I have photographed this tree in bare winter with rain droplets before a couple of years ago but it was calling my name again today. I know it isn't a "blow you away" photo, but I love how the droplets hang off of the branches. The pansies just love this kind of weather and their little heads were happy as could be it seemed. My favorite color is purple so I am all about that. lol My hands were FREEZING by the time I had been out there a few minutes so I didn't stay out long. I truly would have stayed out longer if not for that.

We heard on the weather tonight that there is a possibility of us having some snow on Saturday! I am trying not to get our hopes up but that surely would be nice!! The kids want some, too. You KNOW one of the reasons I am wanting it. lol Time will tell and we will see... God is in control.

I still have four kids out from school. Two of those children I haven't seen since last Thursday... they have been some sick "puppies." I'll be glad when they all get well again and are able to come back to school. It has been a weird and tiring week.

I didn't have time to post yesterday because of helping my friend who had her surgery and having church last night. So many people are sick and it has been crazy everywhere. Tonight it was so nice just to come home and STAY home. Y'all know I am all about staying home so this was a great night to do it. Cold and rainy days make that fire even more cozy. I am loving it tonight. Maybe later I'll crank up the percolater and have some coffee. lol I have papers to grade first, though.

My comforter should be here tomorrow... I think. I am excited about getting it! Steve liked it so that is good. lol He would have HAD to have liked it eventually...

It seems my papers aren't getting graded by typing on this post. I am really not in the mood to grade them tonight. lol

Enjoy whatever weather God has sent your way today. I am thankful for the rain... and praying for some snow!!!

01/15/08

In my experimenting the other day, I decided to get out the "utensils." I tried so many different views of the things that I don't quite know what worked and what didn't. lol Here are a couple from that escapade into silverware. lol The first one shows the handle of the fork closer and then "fades" away into the knife and spoon. The second one I put my focus on the end of the knife so the "front" of the knife is out of focus. Just playing with depth of field and all... Will probably do more this weekend. lol

The last couple of days have been majorly wild. I had just 12 students at school yesterday!! HALF of my class was sick! Today I still had 8 kids out. There is some weird fever/ headache/ virus type thingy going on. We cleaned the room thoroughly yesterday (since I couldn't really teach new material with half the class gone...) and just are praying everyone gets better soon. Even though I have had less kids, I have been more tired the last couple of days. I realize there are other factors, but I think it is because I am having to remember who isn't there and hasn't gotten work or done tests. It has just been crazy. lol

Yesterday I also took care of my best friend's daughters for her since she had her surgery on her hand. We went to see her last night and she was a bit loopy from her pain meds. She was actually kind of funny. lol Her girls spent the night with us last night so it was a bit crazy around here from our "normal" routine. Today I also went to see her and take the girls "stuff" back to their house so they wouldn't have to deal with it at school. She was up and about a bit, but still loopy. I was glad to help her any way I could.

Tonight we are watching American Idol... at least some of it. Let's just say there are some weird people in this world and I think a majority of them try out for AI. Geesh...

Oh... I ordered my comforter last night!! I was so excited to find it. I had wanted something totally different with more colors from what I had, but it also had to go with the rest of the room decor. This is it... I can't wait to get it. :) I also spent less money, which, as you know, for me is an awesome thing. I love to hold on to a dollar. lol

I had a STACK of papers to grade tonight but none of them were graded. There were other things that I had to take care of and so I'll have to work on those tomorrow morning. Hopefully I can "speed check" them. I got off track last night with having my friend's girls so I am all behind.

I need to go get some towels in the dryer and get myself to bed. Tomorrow will be here before I know it! Have a great evening...

01/12/08

Today I was not worth much of anything, it seemed. I got up later than I intended, but when you "party" till after midnight and you had been up since 5 am you realize you aren't as able to get up when you wanted. lol We did manage to clean the house. The kids were so sweet and were up before I was. Wesley came in to give me an update that they had been cleaning the house. Apparently, he had been helping Mikayla clean her room because he said that was "a job!"

I fiddled around with photographing objects today. That is where these first photos come from today. I was actually inspired to do money from my online friend, Amy. She also loves photography and showed a picture on her blog yesterday of stacks of quarters ready to be rolled. It was an awesome photo. Now, I didn't want to re-create what she did so I just started with a few coins and worked myself into my own "creation." I played around with different focus points on the coins as well as my lighting.

I also took a few more photographs of Mikayla and Wesley today getting myself "ready" for the shoot I had this afternoon. I couldn't believe how much Mikayla is changing. I made all of these black and white. These are a couple of my favorite pictures from today.

My shoot went really well. We had a good time and I had a blast with the challenge of finding areas for guys. It made me think quick on my feet on what would look better. I found that under the bridge at this particular area was my most favorite spot. Here is one of my favorite pictures from that shoot today. All three of these guys love to fish and they were looking out over the pond at the fish going to the top of the water. These guys are my brother-in-law and nephews.

Steve worked all day long. I haven't seen him at all today and talked to him a couple of times. We all have missed him being with us.

On to work on reading my book. The kids were quite tired tonight and it didn't take them long to fall asleep. I don't think I'll have that problem, either. Have a great evening.

01/11/08

These pictures today are of our African violet in our kitchen. I love the first picture the most because of the leaf coming at me. I also love the "hairs" on the edges. The others are good, too, with the purple showing and the lines on the bottom of the leaf. I had to adjust how I photographed this because my purple was not coming out as deep a purple as it was in real life. Too much light made them look "odd" so I had to "tweek" it a bit in manual mode. It is amazing what the simple pleasure of taking a photograph can do for me.

I went out with my best friend tonight. She's having minor surgery on Monday and I wanted her to have a last "hoorah" before she had to be very careful with herself for a few weeks. It is on her wrist so she won't be able to pick up anything heavy for a while. We had the best time as always. We went out to eat and then saw the movie "Bucket List" and it was good. We then went to Starbucks and then came back and sat in our driveway for almost 2 hours talking. It feels so good to be able to talk about anything and everything with someone. We laughed and we cried. We talked silly and serious. It was a great evening... and I didn't get in till late. My eyes are telling me it is time to get to bed, though. :)

Today's cross-stitching with the class went well overall. I was really pleased with the progress. I really hope the kids get a great learning experience out of this. I want them to learn to appreciate things that are so easily taken for granted.

Tomorrow we have to clean and I am going to go around the house doing some picture taking. I have decided to try and work on my "out of the box" self. lol Don't know if I'll accomplish as much as I'd like, but I can try. I also have a photo shoot tomorrow afternoon. I am looking forward to that. I am praying I do well with it.

It has "been a day" for various reasons so I'll close for this post. Look at the details of something in your life and thank the Lord for how He takes care of you even though you are such a small part of this vast universe He has created.

01/10/08

I'm just going to tell you that writing '08 is so hard for me for some reason! Especially right now that we are in the 8,9,10, 11 of the month... geesh. I'll get the hang of it eventually, I guess.

Yesterday was busy with school, meetings, grading papers and church. I didn't have time to post.

Today was quite busy, too, but I was able to get much accomplished. I didn't have to bring any papers home to grade so that was a blessing.

As I mentioned on Tuesday, I am teaching my students how to sew two pieces of material together to give them an idea of how long it took people to make a quilt by hand (or anything for that matter!). I am almost done with them, but it has been a bit challenging. The Lord has given me a lot of patience. I am most thankful for that. They are really doing great considering they have never done it before, but I am finding how hard it is to teach someone how to sew something! I have never experienced that before.

I brought in my great grandmother's old quilt that she made with her own two hands, as well as her old irons that used to have to be heated by the fire to "work." I got them from Mom. I never met my great grandmother as she passed away when I was around 5 months old. I have heard lots of stories about her. I remember my great grandfather. He didn't pass away until the early '80's. My great grandmother used scraps of old material from clothing that had worn out, as well as feed sacks, to make this quilt. The students had a new appreciation for how that quilt was made and, even though this quilt does not have a lot of beautiful fabrics in it like we see today, they realize because it was hand-maid with what they had, it made it beautiful. That is something I could never have taught them without them experiencing it. It made my heart glad today.

Since I had them, and I had talked about them with the kids today, I was inspired to photograph them. I have always loved old things, as you all know, but never thought to photograph these. Knowing how much these mean to my family I will cherish them. I spread the quilt out on our old farm table... that came from our farm... and went to snapping photos. I wanted to create a moment in time. Not sure if I accomplished that, but I was happy with some of these. I took a lot of different angles but these are the ones I liked the most. (I'll post the other bird pictures later...) Sorry for there being so many. I truly enjoyed myself with that mini photo shoot this afternoon. You can click on each one to make them larger. I decided to upload them the small size to get them all in the post.

I love to photograph with a lower aperature (which causes the background and certain parts to be more blurry) because I want certain parts to stand out. I am not as big on higher aperatures. I realize some photos need it and I need to work on finding ones that do. However, nothing makes me more happy than to see a part of something "fade" and another part "stand out." You can see that if you click on the pictures.

Tomorrow I begin cross-stitch with my students. That should be interesting. I am ready for it, though, because I know what it involved last year. With this being my second year doing it I have learned some things to hopefully help the kiddos. With 24 students I'll have 24 different cross-stitch moments. I know it will be a blast.

I have to help the kids with their homework and figure out what we're having for supper. OH.. and I must go put those clothes in the wash I meant to do an hour ago!!

Enjoy your evening. Find something that is "old" from your family's history and think about who had it and what it means to your family. Our families leave us a heritage and I pray it is a Godly one. We are leaving a heritage for our children... are WE leaving a Godly heritage to them? That humbles me even now as I type those words...

01/08/08

A lot of eights in that date... I just made a rhyme. lol

Busy day but not a bad one. I am about to go grade papers at this "early" hour so I won't have to do them after the kids go to bed. I would like to do some reading or journaling in my scrapbook pages tonight.

Steve got to go play golf with his boss this afternoon so we'll be meeting him, possibly, later on for supper. I truly have no idea at this point.

Thought I'd show a couple of my bird pictures today. This is a house finch on our feeder. I thought they turned out pretty nicely. Not bad for birds that fly away quickly. lol I like the second one, too, because I caught it with a seed in its mouth. I also love the way my telephoto lens blurs out the background completely. I don't get that as much with my wide angle lens, which is fine, but this allows the bird to really stand out in the photo. :)

Searched for a comforter set online last night. Either they are way expensive, look similar to what I have now, or just plain ugly. I'll keep what I have before I go "ugly." lol I don't make quick decisions when it comes to spending money so we'll see...

Yesterday I tried to find my cross-stitch needles I have kept at school for when I teach my students how to cross-stitch. (This goes along with my Colonial study.) Well, I couldn't find them at all yesterday, searched everywhere I knew they should be and even had my friend look for them, too, thinking a new set of eyes could see them. She didn't find them either. Well, I went yesterday and bought new needles and a new holder. I knew as soon as I bought them I would find the others... Today while I was getting the kids cross-stitch material started on their design they are making, with my NEW needles, and my friend looks up and finds my OLD needles in the area we both had looked yesterday!!! I KNEW that would happen. We laughed and I figure now that if I a child loses a needle, I'll have extra... lol

I also did a "quilt" with the kids at school where they took extra material from something we did last fall and glued the pieces onto cardboard. We then put all of those together on heavy paper to make a "quilt" to go outside of the classroom. Then, I took a small group of kids and began teaching them how to sew two pieces of material together so they could see how long it would have taken someone to actually make clothes or a quilt long ago. (even now!) I only got four children done, which I knew it would take a few days when you have 24 kids, but the ones that did it couldn't believe how long that took. lol It is a great hands on experience for them. I have never done this one before so it is new to me, too. Last year I began the cross-stitch and the kids making their own buttons out of clay and sewing them on to material. They'll work on that next week. I am so thankful the Lord gives me new ideas so I can be a better teacher to my students. It really was fun with the kids today. The other kids couldn't wait to start theirs.

Well, those papers aren't getting graded with me online. Have a great evening and I hope you are able to find something today you may have lost. lol

01/07/08

Meet our little squirrel friend. I did manage to get out my camera on Saturday and photograph a few things. I took some of the birds at our feeder and then this little guy came up. If you recall, I posted about one a year or so ago. That pumpkin had fallen in at the top, though, and the squirrel was digging himself out. This year, with my telephoto lens, I was able to get up a little closer while still being far away inside. Again, I realize squirrels can be such a pest but they are the cutest things to me. (They aren't cute when they eat through the tub that holds the bird seed, but even I can forgive that....) Anyway, I sat and watched this little guy go at Mikayla's pumpkin. He was so skiddish and didn't stay extremely long but I was able to capture a few fun ones. This first one cracks me up because he looks at me like he has gotten "caught." I have no idea whether he saw me or not. I enjoyed this a lot. I love watching God's creatures do their own thing. It is always amazing to me to see how everything all works together. I'll show more of my bird pictures (the few I liked out of a "zillion") in the next few posts. I also took some things around the house. Iam trying to think outside of my box again... and y'all know I am duct taped in that thing most of the time. lol

Saturday was also good because I was able to get a lot done. We finished cleaning the house and then I had time to photograph some things as well as do a bit of scrapping. I was really proud of myself and kept my "mess" under control and cleaned it back up so I could have a dining room table. I am really going to work towards the goal of getting my pages done without all the crazy mess I have made in the past. It makes my heart glad to have my house more in order. I finally made it through till September on my pages so I am making some progress. I plan on journaling in those pages this week so I can do a few more this weekend. I have to get ready for the kids birthday party in April! If I don't start now I'll never get them done.

I am not far from finishing that book I am on. That is amazing how quickly I have been able to read these last two because I just haven't accomplished that as much since the kids were born.

Yesterday was a nice and relaxing day. We had church and then up to Mom and Dad's for lunch... it was wonderful as always. (I often wonder how things will be when our kids want to come home for Sunday lunch. It may be a joke, actually... "Yeah, we always ate at Mimi's growing up 'cuz Mom doesn't like or really know how to cook much." Geesh... I can hear it now. I truly want to make them desire what I cook.... I just need to cook more often, huh? Of course, they will never want for a photograph but that doesn't feed the hungry stomach. ha!!)

Today was the same old crazy mess again. Reading, learning verses for AWANA, school, homework, flashcards, etc... Makes my head spin. I really did enjoy my time off. Again, I LOVE what I do but some days just get to be so overwhelming. I hate that I can't be "fresh" for my kids for homework and such. By the time we have to do it, and I have done it all day long, I know I don't give them what they need from me. It is good that Steve can step in and take over some of that sometimes. I just wish my kids could get the teacher I am at school. I have actually thought of teaching them next year for that reason alone, but I am not sure if that would be the best for different reasons. I truly am still praying about it. I know the Lord will lead me to do what is best.

I got to talk to my friend Sal today out in San Diego. Our temperatures were *about* the same today... although, I think he was actually a bit COOLER than we were today! We have had crazy weather here. It has been frigid last week and today was in the 70's. I have missed my fire tonight but no need in wearing your bathing suit while sitting by the fire is it? Sal was sitting by the pool watching his daughter at swim practice while we talked. He is gearing up for tax season and is having to divide his time between CA time and east coast time. I am confident everything will work out great for him, though. We still miss them, and I know we always will. :)

I am looking to get a new comforter set for our bed. Big spender that I am, I am looking for one of those "Bed-in-a-Bag" thingies. I just can't spend a lot of money!!!!!! I am thinking of getting something a bit different than we have had. Y'all know I am quite content with what I have in my home... I am just finding our comforter is starting to look well loved. lol Since I am tight, though, you know I will wait patiently till I find what I want and the deal I want. I may have to pay a little more than I am WANTING to, but I will figure that out when I get to it. :) If I find one online I'll try to find the picture of it or something. Of course, if I actually do get one, I can always take a photograph of it! I THINK I know how to do that... hee hee

I have a photo shoot this Saturday. It is actually of my brother-in-law and my nephews. I am excited about it and want to do a great job. I have some ideas floating in my head of how I want to do them.

I already graded my papers for the night so I am going to go read that book. Hopefully, I can stay awake. :) Have a wonderful evening and go watch some of God's wildlife. :)