02/17/08

Sorry it has been so long..... it has been some crazy days recently!!

This past week at school with Valentine's it was a bit wild. I was thankful when the week ended because I was just plain tired. lol

Valentine's Day was nice. I have posted pictures today of my bulletin board at school. I know I had promised to do that earlier but kept forgetting to take my camera to school! I did so on Thursday so that I could take pictures of Wesley and Mikayla at their Valentine party. Well, I totally forgot to go down there because my class' party was at the same time and I didn't realize all of that until it was over. Just call me "Mom of the Year"... I did manage to take these pictures of 200 languages that say "I love you" or some form of it. Did you know there are over 6,000 languages in the world? Many are still unwritten, too. I don't know how to pronounce all of these but I do know some of them. Of course, I am sure if the people who actually speak those languages heard me pronounce them, they would laugh. I am from the "south" of whatever language I am trying to say at the moment. South of France, South of China, South of the Navajo Nation, etc... lol

The thing that is most important is the fact that without God none of these languages would be here... nor would LOVE even be here. God is the reason that love makes the world go around. HIS love is what holds us and carries us through each day. I am reminded of that every year that I put up this bulletin board. It always puts me in awe of such a great God that we serve who loves us ALL. It doesn't matter where you are from or what you have done, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for ALL people. That is what love is all about.

Steve and I didn't get to spend much of Valentine's Day together. By the time he got home from work I was taking a short snooze on the couch because I was going to a play with my brother that night. I hated that the play was on Valentine's Day but they didn't ask me when making the schedule!! Steve gave me a heart necklace (I will show that on another post... too many pictures of other things today...) and I gave him a new golf shirt. I surprised him that morning by having it out for him before work. Normally we wait till after school. The kids got their traditional balloons, stickers, and some chocolate covered strawberries similar to the ones my friend sent me a couple of weeks ago. They have been enjoying them slowly which is good. :) We went out to eat with my parents for Valentine's Day on Friday night. All in all it was a great time to celebrate with those you love.

On Friday morning I looked out and saw a beautiful sunrise. I knew now was the chance to take to try to get a picture over the lake... should have thought more on that. lol I grabbed my camera and told the kids to brace themselves for cold wind as I was putting down the window. No one was behind me or coming towards me so I slowed down to a stop on the bridge (yes, it was at 6:30 in the morning...) and had my camera in one hand and the steering wheel in the other. Comical is putting it mildly. I tried to get in a decent spot only to realize in my haste that I was right in front of the area where briars and other vegetation, which was now bare of any leaves, was in my way of the picturesque view I was trying to capture. I figured I could work around it... NOT SO. Then, after I had taken a couple of shots, both of which were not so great, Mikayla says that a car is coming so I had to get a move on... while the camera is still taking shots. Let's just say I didn't get anything of value but these pictures do make me laugh. At least you can see how pretty the colors of the sunrise were that morning. I'll try again another day, I hope... Just not in my vehicle and trying to drive at the same time. lol

On Friday afternoon I had to take Wesley to the doctor. He has had a cold for over a week and his cough was getting deeper and not better. I was concerned about bronchitis. He has seemed fine and no fever, but I thought it best to get it checked out. We saw one of our favorite doctors and he agreed something was going on in there but recommended we wait a few more days before filling the prescription for the antibiotic because a lot of these bronchitis' in children are viral. He was being silly with Wesley and rubbed the prescription paper on Wesley's head and said "See, now I healed ya!" Well, Wesley said in a quiet voice "Only Jesus can heal..." The doctor asked him what he had said and so Wesley repeated it. I was so proud of Wesley being that light for Jesus and showing his faith in the Great Physician. Well, the doctor fully agreed with Wesley and said that a lot of doctor's don't think that way. I just backed up Wesley's little powerful statement with the fact that it is GOD Who gives the doctors the wisdom to know how to help us and treat us and for that I am thankful. The doctor agreed wholeheartedly. It was nice to see and be a part of on that Friday afternoon after a long week. God can use children in a mighty way....

On Saturday we worked on cleaning the house. I got the idea that Steve and I needed a "date" since we didn't get to spend much time together on Valentine's Day. I had wanted to take some pictures of just him and me to "update" us so I had this brilliant (yet again) plan to go to a local park, set up my tripod and get some shots of us. You may think that would be easy... well, it wasn't exactly. lol We got all the way to the park (thankfully, it wasn't far from our house) and I realized I had forgotten the piece that attaches the camera to the tripod! I was not very happy about that. We had to go all of the way back home. Steve was so sweet about it. Then, we get there and I know we are looking a bit "geekish" as I am trying to set up this tripod to take pictures of US and not nature as others were doing. There were hikers, runners, walkers, etc.. there and we were the only ones on the trails having a photo shoot. The first shots were alright but we decided to go deeper into the park area (we went to Hemlock Bluffs for those of you who know our area). We kept getting some interesting looks but by this point we didn't care. It was actually kind of fun traipsing through the forest with my sweet man. He was trying to come up with neat backdrops for our photos. He would help me set everything up as well. We came to a neat bridge that led to a path. Steve came up with the idea of us holding hands and walking away from the camera. I thought that was so sweet of him to come up with that idea. I decided we'd do it. He helped me, once again, with the tripod. We thought everything was secure but THOUGHT is the key word here. I set the shot and leave to go grab Steve's hand when all of a sudden we hear this "Crash, THUD!"... we turned around to see my camera, flash, tripod... ALL of it had fallen off the bridge!!!! Thank the Lord it fell into a bed of leaves, but still... I wanted to CRY. Steve told me later he wanted so badly to laugh but knew I was about to cry so he decided against the laughter part. The only part that was messed up was the base of my flash. It still works but I know it won't handle very well forever like that. It made me quite mad but I am thankful it wasn't my lens or the camera body. I really would have gone to the crying room then. This leaf shot was what the camera still took as it was on the ground. (That was kind of funny...after I had calmed down a bit.) We still got some looks, but we also got a few pictures of us that I have updated in my sidebar section. :)

We were able to laugh about it later as the day went on. Steve felt so badly for me he took me out for a late lunch/early supper. We then headed to the mall and bought a few things before heading back home. It was just nice to spend the day with Steve. We don't get to do that very often anymore with how busy things get as well as things going on with the kids.

This afternoon we watched the Daytona 500. I never knew much about racing before meeting Steve (our first date will be 17 years ago this week!). Now, I enjoy watching a race with him but I never fully can handle ALL of the race. I like the beginning and the end. lol I fell asleep during the middle today and woke up with around 47 laps to go. That was perfect to watch. We are Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fans so we were cheering him on. He did well today but not well enough to win the race his father had finally won 10 years ago. That is hard to believe it has been a decade since that historical win for Dale, Sr. Anyway, I was bummed for our guy, but glad for Ryan Newman... he broke a non-winning streak, too, and won his first 500. Steve doesn't care much for Ryan Newman, but, as with any sports, I don't know enough about most of these guys to have an opinion so I just get happy if someone hasn't won something in a while. lol I do think Dale, Jr. will have a much better year. He already seems happier and quite content. I wish him the best...

Well, I have rambled enough for one night. I have the day off from school tomorrow as it was supposed to be a weather make-up day but you all know we haven't had anything to worry about making up!! I am off to go spend some more time with Steve as he watches re-caps of today's race on the SPEED Channel. lol The kids wanted to spend the night at my Mom and Dad's since they didn't have school tomorrow. I miss them.

Have a good one and I hope you had a few laughs with my mishaps this past weekend. lol :)

02/12/08

This picture today is of some flowers from my Moms house. She had gotten a bouquet of flowers from her friend and I thought they were pretty so I decided to take a few photos. I'll show more of them later... I took a few angles. lol

I tried to get different points of view of the pistil on the lily. That is why I chose this one for today. The others I have show the lily like we normally see it. If you click on it, you should be able to see the liquid on the top of it. This was the only lily of the bouquet that was doing that.

No "doughnuts" last night, thank the Lord. Steve worked on that alarm for quite a while last night. He even had his stuff by the door in case he heard it. Many of the comments I got were that we should put up those things that make a tire go flat... or nails in a board. Believe me, we thought about that. When Steve asked the sherriff they said we would be liable for the person's tires as well as any medical bills if that person got hurt while destroying our property. Is that dumb or what? Wish we could... Steve even asked the sherriff last night if he could go put his truck at the end of the driveway to cause the person not to be able to get out if he tried it again. They said that would not be a good choice. SO, we will just sit idly by and see what happens next. Steve is researching a BIG light to put in the front yard. We'll see what happens with that.

We were working with the kids on money tonight. Now I know how my dad felt when I was their age and had NO clue as to how to count money. I hope this doesn't mean they have my math brain. lol They will get it when it clicks... I know that... but it is frustrating when you are trying to teach it. Plus, we as a society do not use money like we used to because it is all through debit/credit cards or transfers and such. Kids don't see money being used like even I did. I find more and more kids have trouble with that concept.

I must go read to the kids before they go to bed. I have already graded all papers... did that as soon as I got home. I am planning on crashing in a few... I am LOVING our new couch and the left side recliner area (if you are looking at it) has become my new favorite spot. Steve and I both passed out on each side of the couch last night and had to wake ourselves up to actually go to bed. The kids love getting cozy with me while I read on it, too. I was missing the memories I made with my kiddos on the other couch, but I am enjoying the new one and enjoying the new memories being made. I am so sentimental it is pathetic, huh? lol

Have a great evening....

02/11/08

Isn't this nice? It seems our "doughnut bandit" that drives around in circles around our yard is back. He hasn't been in a year or so and we thought the problem had been solved. We guess not now... I took these pictures this afternoon. Steve noticed it when he left this morning because of the nice burned tire mark on our driveway. I, of course, didn't notice a thing because it was dark and I was focused on getting to school. Apparently, the culprit began at the lower end of our driveway near the road and came up, did some loops around trees and then tore a good one around one of the trees (just look at all of the pics..) and then decided to burn rubber as he departed. Steve said he believes this is a different vehicle than last time, though, because the tires are bigger. Isn't that nice? I am sure Steve will not sleep very much tonight. I shot different angles to show where all he went. The last picture isn't as clear for the tracks because the sun was in my eyes, but at least you can see how big our front yard is to know why he would think it was a great place to be... yeah, right.

For those of you just beginning to read my blog, you may not know that we had this problem almost 2 years ago. The guy came to our house two times in a few weeks and did this mess. The second time we had gotten our driveway alarm and Steve heard him. Actually, he SAW the lights of the car coming toward our dining room window. That is how close he was! Well, Steve jumps out of bed, grabs his keys and gets into the van to chase the guy. Chase is exactly what he did.. the guy was going over 100 Steve guessed when he pulled out of the driveway! Steve chased him up the road but lost him. We had the sheriff come out and everything but they couldn't really do anything. The problem is, we can't really do anything to protect our property either, because we would be liable if the person got hurt. How ridiculous is that? It is alright for him to come in and destroy our yard but we can't do anything to stop it. Geesh. Please pray this guy comes to his senses and stops this mess. Mikayla's room is at the front of the house and if he lost control while doing his destruction, he could very easily come through the house. Especially since he has been really close to the house before.

Steve has called the power company to come out and give us an estimate on an overhead light from the light pole. Our area is REALLY dark at night so I am sure that causes our "friend" to think he won't get caught.

I had all of my students back in class today which was good. I felt like I was able to accomplish much today.

Wesley got himself a "JOY" ticket at school today. He was SO tickled with himself and I was quite proud of him. Mikayla has gotten a lot more of those than he has simply because of his focus issues. He is working so hard and his little "FROG" thing I worked with him on last week. I made this up (actually, I know the Lord gave it to me because I would have never thought of it!) Anyway, F is for FOCUS, R is for Re-check, O is for Organize, and G is for GO turn in your work! I made him a "frog" folder and put those letters and explanation on his desk at school to help him. He is just so visual that he needs those types of cues. He seems to have done somewhat better and we keep asking him, "Did you 'frog' it today?" He loves frogs because they are "John Deere green" so that was a plus. I thank the Lord for giving me insight into what I needed to do to help him when I didn't think I could figure out another thing.

Well, I need to get off of here. Steve is working on the driveway alarm and I need to finish up homework with the kids before I read to them and they go to bed. And, of course, I have the joy of grading those papers, too. :)

Have a good evening and if you want a doughnut, don't come to my yard to get it!! lol

02/10/08

Goodness! Sorry it has taken me four days. I didn't realize I hadn't posted in that long.

We got our couch this past Friday! I am amazed at how the room looks totally different. The first picture is the only one I could find of the whole old couch on this computer. lol This was taken on Wesley and Mikayla's first day of school this past August. I wanted to take some before and after shots but Steve got rid of the old and put in the new before I got home from school. Silly man... doesn't he know by now I have to document everything by a photograph? lol Anyway, the new couch is a lot bigger!!! It is the same length but let's just say there is a lot more support in this couch... lol I now know why our old couch didn't look so great. The second picture shows the new couch after I got home Friday.

When we put the new couch in I began to look around the room and realize nothing had changed, really, in eleven years since we built this house. The new couch brought out the fact that one of the lamps was one I had in highschool... does that tell you how often I DO NOT change things? Well, I became inspired and decided it was time to shove out some old and bring in some new. Now, don't get me wrong, you all know I am quite content with what the Lord has blessed me so I didn't want to be discontent, but if you saw the whole picture after we got the new couch... worn out rugs, holes in the rug by the fireplace where some cinders escaped before we had the wood stove, cracks in shades of our lamps where the kids accidentally hit them or Steve was trying to attack a moth... those kinds of things. (Yes, Steve was trying to kill a moth with a dish cloth and kept hitting my lamp shade not realizing he was creating a whole new pattern in the underside of the shade... lol) I was going to get new shades soon, but I began to think about the whole picture and realized it needed a bit updating. lol

My Mom and I went shopping yesterday. I had the BEST time and I was actually spending money, which is NOT easy for me to do. I was thankful I had set some money aside for needs that may arise and this was one such time. It was something I haven't done in years... go out and buy new things for the house. I am always so cautious about it that I always put stuff back. I went in with a purpose this time, though, and got some great deals in the process. When we got home, Steve helped me put the floor lamp together and get the table lamps set up while I worked on the throw pillows and new accent rugs. I COULD NOT believe how differently our room felt and how much more inviting and cozy it was. I was so excited. Our best friends came over last night and they loved the reclining couch. It was awesome to have people feel comfortable and at "home." That is our desire when anyone comes. Again, I wish I had taken before and after shots but it just didn't happen. Just envision what I wrote above. lol At least you get the "after" shot with Ashes enjoying the rays of sunshine creeping in from the window.

On a funny note, the house was disastrous when all of this began on Friday. I had not had a chance to clean in two weeks and it was on my last nerve. I knew I was going to attack it on Saturday. Steve brings the couch in while I was at school Friday. Normally, guys don't necessarily worry about what a house looks like (unless they are like Wesley!!) but this guy did. He told Steve he knew I was not going to be happy that he saw our house look like this. lol I was "mortified" to find out he saw it look so terrible. If he could just see it now!! Yesterday, I worked all morning to clean this house. It was a mountain to climb but I put on my hiking boots and got to it. It felt good to throw away some stuff and get other things in their rightful place. During the week it is so crazy I don't always have the energy. Wesley was SO happy when the house was put back in order... especially with the "new look" in the den. He kept walking around yesterday and this morning commenting on how great and NEAT everything looked. lol He is such an OCD cleaner. (For which I am thankful because Mikayla hasn't quite reached that yet.... lol)

Mom's birthday was this past Thursday. We took her out to eat Friday night to a place called "JK's." Let's just say that for what you have to pay for the food there, the service was not great... It was the oddest experience we have ever had in a restaurant. I believe it is safe to say we won't be going there again... I hated that for Mom for her birthday but there was no way of knowing how it would be. Daddy was really disappointed because he picked it.

We went back to their house and Mom 'opened' her presents. All of them were paper! LOL I gave her a picture of the shoes I have been trying to buy her for 3 months. Those things are selling like "hot cakes." Eventually, I'll get to order them! Then, my brother gave Mom a paper describing our "Family Birthday trip" for the year!! We are so excited to be going "west" this year... to the mountains of NC and Tennessee. We will go to Pigeon Forge and Dollywood, get to ride horses and pan for "gems", go white water rafting (I will go, I guess, even though that thought scares me... Mom will be watching from the bank as she does NO water at all. lol), see Unto These Hills and Horn in the West (outdoor dramas), and go to the Biltmore!!!! I am beyond excited at the photography possibilities!! We'll go in the middle of June. It will be wonderful.

As I have stated before in earlier posts this month, I have been dealing with some "valleys" in life this past month. We all know we go through them and when we do it seems to consume us at times. This past month was a time when the "valley" consumed me and I hit my breaking point last Wednesday. It is amazing how the Lord puts people or written words in your path to teach you and help you through those hard times. One of my fellow teachers at school gave me some words she heard from a pastor the other morning. She has no idea what I have been facing, most people don't because it is no need to air your worries to the whole world, but the Lord knew and He knew I needed what she said. In essence, she said to keep on thanking God when something looks very hard and you see no hope in it. God is working in you to be thankful so you can be used in a might way. When she said that I felt like it was just for ME. Sometimes we get so bogged down by the trials we can't see things for which we should be thankful. I began to work on that as the day progressed and things seemed much better. God is so good to know what I am going through... a little person in this vast universe He has created... and to know exactly what I needed to get me through the "valley."

I have still had a lot of sickness in my class. I had 4-7 out most days this past week... again. Friday was the day I had 7 out. I had a parent come in and deep clean my room and I was greatly appreciative of her doing that. I am praying this stuff goes away soon. It has been very challenging trying to teach with so many out. The weather probably hasn't helped much.. instead of cold to get rid of some of the germs, we have days that are 70 degrees one day and 40 degrees the next. Crazy stuff here in NC!

Today it has been terribly windy. I just finished reading The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the kiddos and this wind today reminded me of that book. I can't remember the wind howls of Hurricane Fran from 1996 anymore, but today comes close to jogging my memory! I tried to take a bit of a nap this afternoon and it wasn't a restful one as the wind was shaking the doors! It did make me think of how Laura and her family must have felt that long winter and to deal with blizzards on top of it. It also made me thankful for the fact that I have such a nice home and I am protected from the storm. Kind of like how God is our refuge in a time of storm...

It will be time to start another week tomorrow. Speaking of that, I just got in contact with a highschool friend recently and she has also started blogging. Her first blog talked about how God's mercies are new every morning and how we can start over each day. It was something I needed to read and made me thankful God loves me enough each day to "start over" and get me moving upward while keeping my eyes on Him. He is so faithful.

Well, enough said today! Had to catch you up on the latest and greatest in our lives. lol I need to go read to the kiddos and get them to bed. May you go lie on your couch and have restful slumber. :)

02/06/08

Yes, this is a coffee mug. lol I should have filled it with coffee when I was taking the picture to make it look differently. I may try that another day. This is my "china" we got for our wedding. Hard to believe it is almost 15 years old. As I photographed this mug, I saw the recesses in the body of the mug that I have NEVER noticed were there!! I always concentrated on the decorative "ring" around the top. It is amazing what you continue to learn about stuff you have had for years.

I haven't been able to photograph "stuff" in a few days and I have missed that. I did those few things at Mom's the other day, which I have yet to upload, but things have been so hectic around here. I had a thought of another one today that I'll try out tomorrow or something.

I am just plain tired today. It was like by the end of the day my body "stopped" and I realized how exhausted I was. I was pretty fine throughout the day so it kind of hit me like a wall. I have so much I NEED to do but don't have the energy to do it. lol I will get it all done, I know, but I may need a quick power nap. I won't be any good at church tonight if I don't.

Our couch should be here by the end of the week!! I am excited about that... I truly just hope it doesn't blend in with our walls. lol We'll see, huh?

It has been hot today... and windy. A cold front is coming in tonight and we may get some bad storms. We'll see how it goes. I know it was to be 78 today and on Sunday be no higher than 42. lol Such is life in the winter in NC.

I taught about the heart and lungs today at school. I read today that our heart pumps 90 gallons of blood a day.... WOW is all I could muster. I truly am loving teaching all of these things because then I learn something, too. lol Even though I teach a lot of the same things every year, I still learn something new. Did you know you get a wrinkle in your brain everytime you learn something new? :) I know I have lots more wrinkles to "earn." (I tell my students that in order to "learn it" you have to "earn it"... think for themselves.... not everything is handed to them on a silver platter. lol) Just because we are adults does not mean we know it all. In fact, I find I feel more "dumb" than I did right out of college. (Of course, we know EVERYTHING when we leave college... LOL!)

I think I am going to go crash before I have to grade papers, fix something for supper really quickly, put clothes in the dryer, wash more clothes and get ready for church. The couch is calling me... typing that just wore me out. ha!!!

Have a great evening. Go get a mug and actually put coffee or hot chocolate or something in it. lol

02/05/08

Yet another bird picture. This is the last one, actually, from the other week. I managed to photograph a few birds and such at Mom's on Sunday. I hadn't had time to upload them yet, though. I like this one simply because of the depth of field in front and behind the bird. It is a house finch. :)

Had another busy day today.

On Saturday, my brother helped me put up almost 200 languages that say "I love you" or some form of it. I always love that bulletin board and am amazed each year at how quickly it comes around. I don't claim to know all of the languages, but I sortof know a few. The students really enjoy it. I challenge them to find ones that are similar and try to write those in different scripts and lettering. I'll have to take a picture of it to show. I put the words "God's love makes the world go around" as the title. That is such a true statement. Without God, we would have no love and without Him we wouldn't be here. He is such a loving Father and I can't comprehend how much He loves me that He would send His Son to die for me. His patience and mercy are new every day. I am so thankful He loves me that much.

We are getting our taxes done tonight. I'll be glad to have that taken care of and done for the year. I always worry I am forgetting something. lol

The other day I saw a BEAUTIFUL sortof sunrise over a lake near my house. It wasn't fully sunny but it was just coming up. The water was so still it looked like glass. Too bad I was on my way to school. I really would love to do that some day but people might run over me standing on the side of that bridge at 6:30 in the morning. lol

We mailed off our "Flat Stanley's" yesterday. I am looking forward to finding out their adventures. lol

Well... better go meet Steve to do those taxes. Have a wonderful evening and tell someone you know you love them and remember how much God loves YOU.

02/04/08

I am quite irritated right now as I typed out a lengthy post and my computer went on the fritz. I lost ALL that I had written earlier and do not have time to go back and type it all out again. Just know things have been crazy around here and I am frustrated with my computer and the fact that I now have to buy another one! The apple pics are ones I took a couple of weeks ago. I would go into more detail on them, but that was in my DELETED post. The picture of the baby is from my shoot on Saturday. It went pretty well. She was a cutie.

Hopefully, this computer will be thrown out of the window soon and I will be able to work without dealing with "not responding" messages or other mess. Sorry for the frustration coming out in my post....

Maybe I'll go make coffee. I need to go grade all my papers I brought home so I'll close. Hope everyone else's computers are doing what they should!!!!!!!!!!!