So... yeah... Earl...

Labor Day Weekend...

...plans are little up in the air at the moment...

Overhead at our house...

On the TV:

"...from ADT, the most trusted name in security."

Only I thought they said:

"...from ADD, the most trusted name in security."

One letter changes everything.

How ironic.

Someday we're gonna sail on a big, big boat...

Overheard at our house...

"Mom, Mom!"
"What?"
"What if there were dinosaurs on Mars?"
"You mean there aren't?!"
*silence*

End of the week...

It's Friday night, and here's the summary:

I love teaching this year. Wish I could teach four classes every year and still get full-time benefits. That would be cool. But short of that, teaching three writing classes and one English class is ah-may-zing!

My students are funny. Today two of the football players got me going about tonight's game. I was asking if they were ready for it, and they said there was no game. We went back and forth before one said, "We've canceled the game, and we're having a banquet. We're going to eat them alive." Ew... but I get it. Love the passion they have for excellence. They won, 35-14. Proud of them.

Zane's playing JV. Their first game is next week.

Volleyball is underway for Kelsey. She's a serving specialist. It's fun to watch her play. She's had three games so far. Tomorrow, she heads to an all-day tournament. Jimmy's on call, so he can't go out of town. I'm staying here too. We had a little drama earlier over how she'll get home, but a sweet mom-friend offered to either bring her back or have her girls ride the bus, if Kelsey is the only one not riding home with parents.

Zack loves school. His teacher is big on rewarding the kids with prizes... I think prizes and trophies are Zacky's love language (shout out to SD).

Jimmy is enjoying a season of the best of both worlds, working all day and coaching all evening.

Last year I had a tough year because I had a divided heart. I was torn apart by the schedule vs. my idea of what life should look like. It was hard. Very, very hard. Each day this week I have seen God's merciful hand in making my job half-time. I have cooked dinner every night (except tonight, which was a planned treat for the kids). I have done laundry. I have had quiet times. I have straightened up clutter, read books, slept more than three hours a night, and had energy and focus for heart-to-heart talks with the kids in the evening. God's plan is best.

Day 2...

Today rocked. I love my classes. I hope I still love them in a few weeks.

My weakness in teaching is that I love teaching, so I tend to have fun. There's something to be said for the whole "Don't smile until Christmas" philosophy. But frowning and scowling aren't really me. In that I have to rely on the Lord to help me strike a balance between who I am and who I need to be. Still... I wonder if Chuck Norris would be willing to make an appearance sometime around October.

Here's the amazing part about today: I walked out of the building, prepared for tomorrow with nothing to finish up at home tonight. That was a good thing because Kelsey had a volleyball game tonight. She has a volleyball game on Thursday and a volleyball tournament on Saturday. Things are busy.

My happy surprise for the day was when Jason S. stopped by for a visit. I like surprises. He's headed to ASU in a couple of days to start his freshman year. He is going to do great.

So... the 11:00 news is on and I am about to hit "Publish Post" and head for bed. That is very, very good.

Happy New Year ...

... of school!

Overheard at our house...

"The Suite Life with Zack and Cody" and "Big Time Rush" are kinda jumping the shark with those episodes, I think.

~Zack, 8

Finishing up the summer projects...

Some -- like APUSH reading (Mayflower), movie (John Adams - HBO mini-series), and flash cards, as well as APEng (Sophie's World essay) -- are complete. So are The Scarlet Pimpernel essays and a bridging-second-and-third-grade math workbook.



Other projects... are still about halfway there. (See song here.)

Half-time...

So, yeah... I'm starting to feel it.

Half-time. Like part-time, but different. At our school, you have to teach at least 20 hours to be half-time and get benefits (which include a sweet little tuition discount and sick leave and stuff). Part-time has no benefits. It's fewer than 20 hours. I was part-time the first year. Full-time the second year. This year is half-time.

So I'm working on the whole being-thankful-in-all-things thing, after just having rendered a large check to pay the discounted tuition, and here's where my heart is now.

Thanks to a very wise Seasoned Sister who took time to read through some of my previous whining...uh... posts, I am thankful that this year won't be as brutal timewise. At half-time (and because my schedule is what it is) I have time in my school day to plan and grade. I can leave school each day by 1:15, if I need to. I am done on Fridays at about 11am because my little middle school treasures will be in PE. So I can spend time taking care of my babies and hubby with things like cooking and cleaning and laundry, the stuff I couldn't get done last year because I was working nearly 24/7.

And thanks to my momma, who said, "God USUALLY doesn't make mistakes, you know! He knows how much you can handle MUCH better than you!" I am seeing half-time as a blessing and not an obstacle. I see God's loving hand directing my days so that I don't totally melt down. Yes, He is good.

So, I planned menus today and did the "shopping." Even though we are on a little different budget, I'm still doing the Harris Teeter ExpressLane because it's $4.95 in exchange for an hour of my time, and THEY stick to my shopping list where I don't. (Actually, this summer it's only $1.95 to have someone else stick to my list and do all my grocery shopping for me. Sometimes I wonder if they have a secret personal-shopper section of the store. The produce they pick for me is always better than the produce I find when I go there.)

So thank you, friends and family, for your prayers! And thank you, Father, for directing my path.

And then today...

... was another day. No situation changed from yesterday, but it was a different day. I knew it would be different because I woke up praying instead of thinking. Ever done that? It's pretty cool.

Thank you to everyone who prayed yesterday for all the situations and for my heart to find rest in Jesus. It did. I am grateful for your words of encouragement and wisdom too.

What a beautiful thing it is to be part of the body of Christ.

Bad day...

Some days are just... bad. Today was one of those. It started out bad and got worse.

At the end of our opening devotional/talk from the superintendent, he announced that the daughter of two teachers at our school (married to each other) died unexpectedly last night. Everyone was devastated. Anyone who has ever talked to her mom or dad for more than a couple of minutes knows that they absolutely adore their children.

She was 26 and the mother of two little girls, ages 1 and 3. No one knows for sure what happened. There was lots of speculation, but nothing was certain as late as 4:30pm.

Then in a casual conversation I found out that some of our dearest friends are leaving our school to go to public school. Not that I have any objection to public school. (FTR... I believe that God calls different families to different forms of schooling at different times. I have no doubt that they will be where they should be.) I'm going to miss them like crazy. Our school is like family. It's not going to be the same without them.

Then I found out in a Facebook message that my sweet, sweet friend who struggles with a chronic health condition got less-than-comforting/happy news about said condition. I wish so much I could make it go away.

And then I learned that instead of being full-time, I am back to being half-time at school. I was supposed to cover for the school nurse during her lunch and teaching time to help get me to full-time hours, but after an encounter with an upset parent at Open House last night, I realized that I am not in any way equipped to serve as a substitute school nurse. I'd hoped that something else might pop up in its place to make me full-time, but it didn't. So, without the big tuition break, we have to write a BIG check tomorrow. Sigh...

I'm calling it a day.

I needed that...

Monday I walk back through the doors of school. That sounds like I haven't been there all summer. Actually, I've been there routinely transporting Zane home from football workouts, but I carefully avoided the inside of the building for most of the break. I needed this summer desperately. Last year was... BRoooo-Tal.

I did pop in a couple of times last week to put borders and shells (as in sea) on the bulletin boards and hang some spiffy new posters. Will post pics... eventually.

And I've been drafting curriculum for two new creative writing classes all summer.

And I've come us with some new stuff for journalism that should either be really fun or send kids to drop/add in droves.

But other than the superificals like bulletin boards and writing exercises, I've pretty successfully avoiding thinking about teaching. You know... the inspirational kind of thinking you really ought to do to be a good teacher.

And then my sweet Jenn, who is one of the best thinkers (and in general one of the most beautiful human beings) I know, posted a link on Facebook.

Why don't you take a minute to check it out here.

Good stuff, huh? I think I'm ready now.

Thanks, Jenn!

Three kids and a box...

Confession...

I am actually getting a little twitchy because I can't find a store in town that sells blue bubblegum ice cream.

I think I may have a blue bubblegum ice cream problem.

Thanks, Squigley's.