Let It Snow, Let It Snow....

I still can't believe that we have had 3 snow/ice days in a row! Snow days as a teacher, are just as exciting as they are as a student! Some teachers complain about them, because it just means that we have to make up the days later in the school year, when the weather is nice and pretty. But, I would much rather take the unexpected day off to enjoy my nice WARM house, rather than have to get out in the freezing cold weather to drive on icy roads to get to school.

Needless to say, I've really enjoyed my 3 days off. Day 1 consisted of watching tv and hanging out with Mal. Day 2 was a chick flick movie marathon with Mal and working on invitations. Day 3 consisted of watching more cheezy movies and spending A LOT of time on invitations. I have now completed 76 invitations.... I haven't stuffed all of the invitations, but the pieces are complete. I can't believe how much I've gotten accomplished over the past two days! I told Mal today that I hope that my wedding guests can tell how much time and love I put into these invitations. I've really enjoyed making them, but they are definitely time consuming.

Unfortunately, it's back to reality tomorrow. Well, semi-reality really. It's a staff development day, so I'll spend the morning at my school, hearing from a guest speaker (which I'm looking forward to) and then the afternoon is math training with other math teachers across the district (which is always nice since our math coordinator is awesome). So, overall, tomorrow should be a good day. Of course, I'll miss being in my pj's with Mal, but I guess I can handle it for one day. ;)

**Side note: Just last week, two of my girls asked why I still had a sign up that said "Let it Snow" in the classroom. I told them that winter wasn't over (even though it was 70 degrees outside) and that it could still snow. I can't wait to see them next week and tell them that this week is exactly why I still had the sign up. lol

I'm in love

Joe and I had a date night on Saturday, and I was reminded of yet another reason why I'm marrying this amazing man. He planned this date night all on his own. We had been looking forward to it all week long. Joe actually managed to keep all of the details of our date night a surprise, which is a major accomplishment for Mr. Joe Joe. He kept all of the details super top secret, which was fun. Well, Saturday finally gets here. I ran around with my mom and sister and did a little shopping, which was fun. I was looking for boots for date night, but just couldn't find any that I liked. So, I came home to figure out what I was going to wear. I started scrambling around and just couldn't find anything. Girls, you know what I'm talking about. It was quickly turning into one of those situations where NOTHING looks the way you want it to look. With the help of mom and Mal, I finally found an outfit that was acceptable, but now, I was running late. If you know me, you know that I love being on time. Actually, I love being early. I am not a late person. I just don't like the way it makes me feel when I get in the car to go somewhere, and I know I'm going to be late. So, I call Joe to let him know. I'm frustrated, and feeling down about the whole situation. Joe reassures me that everything will be fine, and that we're going to have a great night. Then, a few minutes later, Joe calls me back. He tells me that he has called the restaurant to let them know that we may be a few minutes late, and he wanted to make sure that was ok. They of course said it would be just fine.

It might seem like a simple story, but I was totally taken aback by it. The fact that he realized this was truly stressing me out, and he came up with a quick solution was so sweet to me. I love how thoughtful Joe is. I was instantly reminded how lucky I am to have someone so considerate in my life. I truly cannot wait to call him my husband.

Top 10 of 2010

My top 10 favorite memories in 2010, in no particular order.

1. The Cruise - I loved having an opportunity to travel with Joe and we had such a good trip.

2. Getting Engaged!! Obviously one of the greatest blessings this year.

3. Moving back in with my sister (and mom and Bri of course). I'm looking forward to many nights of watching silly shows together and playing the Wii.

4. Christmas Tour 2010 - We had a crazy busy Christmas, but I wouldn't have traded it for anything. Getting to spend time with each of our families was very important to me.

5. Discovering the Couch to 5K program. I know that I didn't complete it, but I'm thinking about starting it back up again. I loved feeling like I was doing something I never thought I could do - running. Maybe this time I can stick with it and actually run a 5K. :)

6. Going to Vegas with Mal and Memaw. We had such a good time, and I'm so glad we got to do that. Thanks Memaw for taking us on this trip!

7. Spending more time getting to know Joe's family. There have been several opportunities for me to be with his family this year, and I've enjoyed each one of those events. I feel very blessed to have Joe's family welcome me in like they do.

8. Wedding dress shopping - That day was so much fun! I'm so glad that Joe's mom got to come and enjoy this special day with me and the girls in my fam. We had such a good time, and it's a memory I will cherish forever.

9. Booking our honeymoon - Thanks to a couple of amazing Christmas/Wedding presents, we're going to Sandals Grande Antigua. It's so much fun looking at the pictures and thinking about relaxing on the beach for a whole week with my best friend. BIG thanks to Memaw and Pepaw and mom and Brian for their help with the honeymoon. We are so very blessed.

10. Camp Erin and GriefWorks - These two things were new for me in 2010. After my mom losing a good friend, Jean, to earthquake in Haiti and watching the Ross/Bizaillion family losing Jenny, I became inspired to do something for kids that are left behind in the wakes of grief. Camp Erin was a weekend camp spent with some sweet, sweet children. I will never forget the stories or memories that were made there. And working with GriefWorks has been such a blessing.

Here's to 2011. I'm looking forward to all that the new year holds. May you be blessed and feel God's love this year.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Sorry I've been MIA from the blogging world lately. The past few weeks have been spent preparing for the big move home. Mal and I both moved home this past weekend. Mal is coming home to attend Texas A&M Commerce in the spring. I'm moving home because my lease was up, and I decided to save a ton of money before Joe and I tie the knot.

Mal and I also got the brilliant idea to have a garage sale this week. We have set the garage sale for tomorrow morning, so we have been SUPER busy the last few days sorting through all of our items. We have some great stuff, so I really hope the turn out is good tomorrow. We're calling this Round 1, and we'll have a Round 2 if need be. And then, Round 3 will be donating everything that's left. We don't really care how much money we make at this point. We just want to get rid of it and free up space in our closets. It has definitely been a bonding experience so far, so I'm sure Mal and I will have a lot of fun tomorrow.

Other than that, I'm enjoying my time off from work, and really looking forward to the holidays. My only complaint lately is that I can't believe the weather has been so hot the past few days... People are telling me that Christmas will be cooler, but I'll believe it when I see it. Maybe this year, I should ask Santa for a cold front! It is nice to be home during the holidays though, because mom has so many great decorations!

**Ok, the cutest thing just happened, and I absolutely must add it to this blog. Two little kids just came to our door selling mistletoe. It was bagged up in cute bags and they were carrying it in baskets. I asked them what they were going to do with the money. The little girl said "Spend it!" and the little boy said "We're gonna spend it on kids that don't have much for Christmas". How could you resist that?!?! I love it when parents show their kids how to share during the holidays and think about others above yourself. LOVE little Christmas blessings like that!

Toaster, Blender, and Dishes. OH MY!

Joe and I decided to use our free Saturday with no plans to register for wedding gifts. We had a blast! We started at Bed, Bath & Beyond and ended up finding most of the things we wanted there. We went ahead and registered for a few more things at Target so that our families and friends will have options. And, how could I not take an opportunity to go to Target. Everyone that knows me, knows that Target is my favorite place in the world!

I'm sure that some people feel really stressed out when they're registering, but Joe and I had such a good time. The lady that was helping us at BB&B kept making comments about how we were making things WAY to easy. We definitely took that as a compliment. We just enjoy spending time together, even if we're registering, which can be quite a laborious process. And, Joe was such a trooper! I also love that he was very straight forward with me about what he liked and what he didn't. I don't want someone who just says, "Whatever you want honey... It doesn't matter." I'm glad he had his own opinions and we were able to find things that we both loved. Here are some pics of my favorite items:

It was fun coming home after registering and looking through everything online and imagining it in our home. I can't wait for that day! Just 7 more months... Until then, we're enjoying the engagement period and all that comes with it.

I'm alive - promise

Ok, I've been away from blog world for far too long. Here's an update of how things are going. Joe and I just got back from Utah. We went to Salt Lake City for the weekend to celebrate Mark (Joe's cousin) and Brittany's wedding. We had a great time! The wedding was so intimate and sweet. And then we got to spend a lot of time just hanging out with Joe's extended family. We played games and ate lots of yummy food and laughed a lot. It was a blast! Here are some pics from the trip.

Joe and I with the newly married Clifton's

I was in heaven spending time with sweet Miss Avery!

Isn't she absolutely adorable!!

The result of the beautiful snow that fell Saturday night.

So, we had a good trip with Joe's family, and I'm really glad I got to be a part of it. Lots of other things have happened in the last month, but this is what's on my mind right now. I'm so grateful that Joe and I both have such supportive and encouraging families. We are extremely blessed!

Attitude of Gratitude

In an attempt to rid myself of my "negative Nelly" attitude, I'm dedicating this post to things that I'm thankful for. Here's to gratitude:

1. A fiance that loves and adores me, even when I'm having a tough week (or a tough several weeks).

2. A night spent with family, celebrating my granddaddy's 74th birthday. Happy Birthday old man. :)

3. Surprise phone calls throughout the week from my sister, whom I love dearly. She's been such a great support to me in the last few weeks.

4. A yearbook survey that my kids filled out that ended up reminding me how much they like me. One of the questions was "Who's your favorite teacher?", and at least 90% of them had my name on there. It definitely was a reminder of the fact that I'm doing a good job, even when I don't feel like it.

5. Some kind/concerned words from 4 of my sixth grade girls that showed me I've got to snap out of this bad mood I've been in lately. If sixth graders are noticing, there's definitely something that needs to be fixed.

6. Tuesday night's dinner with our mentor couple from our Sunday morning class at church. We have such a good time whenever we're around Tom and Suzy, and Joe and I are so grateful for their words of wisdom and encouragement. Not to mention, Suzy makes a mean coconut pie!

7. My friend, Betsy, who's always there to offer a listening ear and never thinks twice about spending time with me. I always enjoy spending time with her, and she offers some great advice! Love that girl!

8. That I wasn't involved in the car accident that slowed down my commute home this evening.

9. That I grew up in a home where I never doubted that I was loved and going to be cared for daily. Not all of my students have that comfort, and it definitely shows in the classroom.

10. I get to spend time with some of Joe's family this weekend and see the newest addition to the Clifton clan. Joe's cousin, Megan, had a sweet baby girl about a month or so ago, and we get to meet her on Saturday. I can't wait to hold her!!! She's absolutely precious!!!

11. The phrase "I'm not going to let Satan win" that I got from one of the other mentor's in our class this past Sunday. She was referring to times when her and her husband have arguments. She said that she will stop in the middle of a fight and say "I'm not going to let Satan win". She was referring to the way that Satan uses petty arguments to tear apart marriages. I think I'm going to coin it as one of my "life quotes". They are such good words to remember. Satan's trying to win in many areas of our lives all the time, and I refuse to let it happen.

12. That being said, I'm most grateful that I have a God that I can turn to and plead for extra doses of patience. I know He's with me every minute. And I know that He is going to work in me if I will just let Him. "Let go, and let God".