Gratitude

I'm thankful for...
Having someone in my life who sees all sides of me and loves me still; someone who challenges me to make the most of my life by their example.


For a family who cheers each other on in every new endeavor.


For God's beauty in creation; not only in the calming sunsets and brilliant floral colors, but also in the people who we cross paths with each day.


For unexpected surprises, like this mustang we were given when the rental car company didn't have the 4-door we requested.


For creativity and uniqueness.

For boldness and brilliance.


For relaxing hobbies.

For lifelong friends. Here are 7 of the lifelong friends who bless my life!


For big shoes to fill as a Christian. There is always something more to learn, and always another area of growth to work on.


God's perfect plan. For the way He sets up friendships and experiences and loves to see us smile.


I am grateful for these things and many more.

My Famous 4th Graders

Recently 2 of our 4 sections of 4th graders were on the local news! Click here to see one of our classes. Click here for the other.

There will be a video on the right side you can watch. These are the lovely faces that fill my classroom twice a week for writing class!

On the Horizon

A quick note to tell you a few things on the horizon...

Tomorrow is our 4th Grade Field Trip! We hope to beat the heat and enjoy some time at a farm outside of the cities learning about the importance of animals in 19th century farming. Maybe I'll bring my camera!

Also, I got word over the weekend that I've been accepted to participate in a HUGE craft show at the state fair grounds during an event called Back to the 50's. Click here to learn more about that event. The next few weeks are sure to be packed; not only am I wrapping up the school year, but I'm preparing for a craft show bigger than I've ever done before!

Tips and advice definitely welcome!

Bathroom update!

Check it out! Our bathroom is coming together nicely!

I Didn't Think Life Could Get Any Better...

...and then Zac gave me an early birthday gift - a hammock stand for our hammock! Here I am doing my (new) favorite thing - sitting in the hammock and reading a great magazine!

Having a Moment

It came on suddenly - unexpected and seemingly impossible.

I have every reason to feel overwhelmed right now. The house is torn apart as we remodel two rooms and the items from those rooms are scattered about the house wherever we could find free space. The rest of the house is dirty from remodeling and general neglect. My inbox has too many unread messages and my Facebook account is even worse. A cold attacked me today and my head weighs 100 pounds, I swear. AND, to top it off, I have a task list long enough to wrap around the entire world - TWICE.

Yes, even with all that screaming at me, peace paid me a visit. It came in the form of a warm email from a friend. One that made me tip my head and smile as I read it. Beautiful. Peaceful. Calming.

Peace. Thank you, Lord.

Under Construction

Besides writing letters this month, I am also helping with two remodeling projects in our house. Here's our future baby's room after we took down all the plasterboard.


Below is it's current look, with the insulation added:


And what the heck, if we're under construction in this room - why not another one? Do you notice anything missing here?

Well, I must post this and get on my way. There is wall paper to take off in that beautiful bathroom!

Progress

I had to stop by the post office to get a few more stamps. I've been writing!



Here are a few letters ready to be sent off.

Letters Are Relaxing

One unexpected nice thing about writing letters in May is that it's relaxing. It's nice to sit down, clear you head of all the clutter from the day, turn your heart to someone you care about, and write. I'm liking this. :)

Introducing May

With the help of friends on this blog and facebook, here are the voting results for May:
1. (aka the WINNER) 7 votes - Writing a letter of gratitude each day
2. 6 votes - Gardening
3. 3 votes - Practicing Guitar
4. 2 votes - Practicing Spanish

Here were the honorable mentions:
Playing Spanish Guitar
Singing in Spanish
Working on Calendar Skills (cuz May already started)
Writing Letters in Spanish

Thanks for all of your feedback! I look forward to sharing with you how my writing is going!