I'm thankful....

I have realized through this season of my life, I haven't been too thankful. I struggle with complaining and being negative sometimes--in a lot of areas, not just my infertility. Reading all your posts about thankfulness has really helped open my eyes. I am so blessed and want that to be my focus! My sis-in-law, Jennifer, has a sign in her house that says, "Want What You Have". I love that. It is so true.

So here is my thankful list (a day late--sorry, I was too busy stuffing my mouth yesterday!):

1. My Lord and Savior who loves me day in and day out--no matter my mood!
2. My sweet husband who loves me unconditionally and who makes me laugh.
3. Our baby for the time being---Oliver the Boston Terrier. He is the best snuggler!
4. Our family--we are all such good friends and I love spending time with them.
5. Our sweet nieces and nephews who have an abundance of hugs and kisses for us.
6. Our jobs---Jeremiah and I both enjoy going to our jobs every day and that is so important! I have 7 performances coming up in the next two weeks between my school and the community Christmas play! I'm feeling a little overwhelmed, but I choose to be thankful!
7. Our new room addition--it's almost done!
8. Our future child.
9. My teacher friends at school, Kristy, Kim, and Holli-you make the day fun! (It's almost Bunco time again ladies!)
10. My very close friend Krysta--you are such a blessing to me!
11. A 5 day weekend! Yay for sleeping in!
12. A new season in 2010!

My hubby and I went to see "New Moon"....great movie! All the girls squealing everytime they saw Edward or Jacob was funny at first, then started to get on my nerves!!!!!!! This one lady in front of us kept squealing and making very loud comments at really quiet parts of the movie. Oh brother! My husband liked the movie so much he went and bought the soundtrack!

Time to go to my mother-in-laws and eat some leftovers! Yum!

Birthday Recap

Wednesday was my 31st birthday and an overall great day! I awoke to a super sweet card hidden in my purse from my hubby. I had my big Veteran's Program that day at school. It went well and my choir led the audience in singing "Happy Birthday" to me--it was a surprise and I turned very red! A couple of my elementary students mom's had gifts for me at school, which was very special! And tonight I got some of the best coffee in the world, Gloria Jean's Caramel Nut, in the mail from Krysta! Whoo hoo!


I got my hair done after school on Wednesday--I was going for dark brown, my natural color, but it looks almost black to me. It's ok though--hopefully it will lighten up. I like it. My superintendent asked me today if I was going goth! ha ha!




Wednesday evening we ate out for my birthday with Jer's family and had a great time--it's always a little wild with 6 kiddos!


Tonight my friend Jennifer is having a birthday dinner for me and Mika. Looking forward to some yum food!


Our house remodel begins Monday AND I'm out of school for deer season! That's a national holiday in these parts!


Big garage sale with my sis in law Jennifer tomorrow!


Enjoy your weekend!

Birthday weekend

This weekend Jeremiah and I celebrated my 31st birthday! (Holy cow--I can't believe I'm that old--where did my 20's go?) My birthday is not until this Wednesday, Veteran's Day, but we celebrated early!

We spent yesterday shopping in Hot Springs, then watching tons of college football in the hotel room. Go Hogs! We bought Oliver a Razorback collar in honor of their win yesterday! He can't have it until Christmas though!

Last night we ate at The Butcher Shop in Little Rock, then went to the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra to hear Beethoven's 5th. It was wonderful! We both enjoyed it thoroughly! We hadn't been to the symphony since I was in college and Jer came to hear me sing in Beethoven's 9th.

I got to pick out my presents while shopping yesterday--I got a new Houndstooth Razorback shirt (thanks for getting me hooked on those Kara), a sweater from American Eagle (my favorite store), and this:

We have needed a new comforter for a while--Oliver accidentally tore a hole in our old one with his nails. And speakin of him--there's his hind end in the picture--just now noticed that! Ha ha! Anyways, I found this comforter at JcPenney online, but you can never tell about colors online, so I went to the store and although I had picked out 3 more, I ended up going with my first choice. I was worried about it looking a little "granny-ish". What do you think? Honestly. The problem is I needed a comforter that would go with my olive green walls cuz I DON'T want to paint again. I didn't like it when I first put it on today, but once I got new pillows and curtains, I think it is growing on me! My favorite color is red, so I think it will work!

I have a big Veteran's Day program on Wednesday at school---pretty much all my groups perform--high school band, choir, and then every elementary grade does a song. It will be an exhausting day! As long as I don't think of my age, I should make it without passing out!

Gotta go--Christmas musical choir practice! I'm in charge and it's at our house, so I best be getting ready!

Have a wonderful week!

Happy Halloween!

Oliver dressed up like a cow for Halloween---we had friends kids trick-or-treat last night. I ordered Oliver a medium costume and it is so tight on him that he couldn't move and Daddy made me take it off. :( I can't believe I got the wrong size. Oh well. As you can tell by the look on his face, he is not liking Mommy playing dress-up!



So happy I don't have a choir competition this Saturday. I had one last Saturday and I had 5 junior high students make All-Region. Now I get a few Saturdays to myself! I was so excited to get to sleep in and wouldn't you know it, we were up at 7:45 today! Dang! I've already got my car lubed at Wal-Mart and in a little while we are taking our nieces, Sophie and Gracie, to a new hot dog restaurant in town that has a big play area and kid games. Fun! We haven't got to spend time with them in too long! Sophie told her daddy the other day that she was missing Aunt Suzy and Muncle Baby (what she calls Jer). Such a sweetheart!

So thankful for the sunshine! All that rain was so depressing!

Christmas is on the brain! I've started buying things and stocking up! I am trying to cut back a little this year---not sure if my husband will cooperate with that though! I ordered Oliver 3 gifts for Christmas the other day and told my husband they were for Christmas. Well, they came in and Jer gave two of them to him--he couldn't stand waiting! He said we'd buy him more! So much for cutting back! Ha!

The addition on our house begins in 2 weeks! I'm so looking forward to it! We are turning our garage into a recording studio. Yay--all Jer's gear can get out of my house! He has guitar/recording gear in EVERY room in the house except my bathroom! Seriously--even kitchen and bathroom cabinets! It's crazy! Now we'll have our spare bedroom back and hopefully put a baby in there in the future! That's the plan at least!

Jer and I are going to the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra next weekend for my birthday! I can't wait!

Happy Halloween!

Night out!

Last night we went to Hot Springs with some of our closest friends to celebrate Jeremy and Mika's 10th Anniversary. We ate at Belle Arti Italian Restaurant and then went dancing at the Arlington Hotel. It was lots of fun.

Here is the anniversary couple:

Jerod and Jennifer:

Nevada and Jewelie:

Jer and I (don't know why his face was so red):

When we left we saw the biggest pumpkin ever and the girls and Jeremy had to pose with it:

Yesterday Jeremy and Mika left for Hot Springs early, so I got to take their son, Gaven to his soccer game. He did so good! I love all our friend's kids so much. Jeremy and Mika have 2 little girls also. Gaven was adopted when he was almost 3 and fits in with their family perfectly!

Proud!

I left on a bus at 5:00 a.m. with 10 senior high students yesterday. We went to All-Region Choir Auditions. I am so excited to report that 9 out of my 10 students made the choir! Around 600 students auditioned from schools of all sizes. My school is one of the smallest that compete and my students hung in there and did just as well as the big schools! I am so proud! In the 9 years I've been teaching, I've never had that many make it (last year I had 7 plus an alternate who moved up). My one student that didn't make it is an alternate, so hopefully she'll get to be in the choir anyway, which would make it 10 out of 10! We got home at 9:00 p.m. last night! Long day, but definitely worth it!

Icky, achy, yucky

So when I was typing my last post I didn't feel good, but thought it was just allergies. Nope--Wednesday evening I just started feeling worse and worse and aching in spots I didn't know could ache. Went to the walk-in med clinic Thursday morning barely holding my head up. I didn't even mind them sticking that flu stick up my nose. I had every sign of the flu (even fever which I NEVER run), but my test was negative. The dr came in with a face mask on and didn't get near me and Germ-X'd her hands twice in about 3 minutes. She said she was almost positive I had the flu and thinks I caught it so early it didn't register on the flu test. Got Tami-flu at the pharmacy and went to bed. Tamiflu did not agree with me and made me dry heave for about 3 hours, but once I finally got to sleep, it kicked in and I slowly started feeling better. I still feel worn out and yucky, but it is functionable. My husband is taking Tamiflu now because he doesn't want to get sick--he had the flu last year and I slept on the couch 7 nights! Not fun! He tried to sleep on the couch Wednesday night, but gave in and came to bed! :)

Funny story from the clinic Thursday morn---my (step)father-in-law came in to the clinic with chest congestion while I was sitting there. He is such a cheerful, talkative man and he comes in smiling and talking and all of us sicky people are just staring at him. Mom had told him I was there with the flu. (When I got there that morning, a student I teach was there with her mom. I walked in the door and the mother says to her daughter, "Don't let her breathe on you". uh...thanks...wasn't planning on it. I probably GOT this sickness at SCHOOL anyway!) So I sat down in a single chair away from everyone else knowing that I might be contagious. After Papa checks in, he says real loud, "I'm just gonna pull a chair up and sit next to my daughter!!!" He sits right up next to me and I can't help but giggle a little. He is just like a big teddy bear and wanted to take care of me! By the time he was done talking to me, everyone in the waiting room knew what I had, what he had, that I was his daughter-in-law, and that he loved me! So sweet.

Hoping I'll be able to sing/play tomorrow night with our band. I'm skipping practice tonight.

My dog and my husband's car have contributed to the icky/yucky this week too. Oliver got neutered and had his hernia sewn up over a week ago. Some of the hernia started tearing open this week and he was bleeding, etc. He had to get a shot at the vet and is on antibiotics once again! I swear it is never-ending with that dog! Then my husband's Camry is undriveable--not sure what is wrong--his dad is working on it. It was the first car we bought and has been in our family 10 years! It has 270,000 miles on it. I feel like it is on its last leg, but I don't want a car payment! There are other things a lot more important to pay/save for! We are wanting to add on to our house very soon and a car payment would prevent that i think! Yikes!

Cool thing happened at school Wednesday--Wal-Mart managers/associates visited with a big cake and prizes to do a "Teacher Appreciation" assembly. They drew 10 teachers names and I was one of them---I won a $100 Wal-Mart gift card! Whoo hoo!

Hope you all have a sick-free weekend!

AND......Go Hogs! Beat Texas A & M!