Thankful: Day 7

I got behind!  Yesterday was a busy day. Class from 7:45am to 3:30pm and then church at 7. Wednesdays are going to be really busy this semester, but my 4th grade girls make it all worth it!

I am so thankful for those girls. One of them is my daughter, but that is beside the point, I love each and every one of them!  They work so hard and they are so very funny! I have a particularly rambunctious bunch this year, but they are a joy and they make the night fun! Last night we had a badge ceremony and I got to recognize them for all the work they have accomplished since August. Out of 5 girls, 3 of them have completed every single unit as well as the extra honor steps. Out of those three, two of them have worked ahead.  I am so thankful I was listening when God called me to teach these girls, I think they bless me more than I could ever bless them.

Thankful: Day 6

Everyone thinks their kids are the best, cutest, brightest...but mine really are.

We're pretty strict parents around here. We have fun; they have everything they need and most of what they want. You have to draw the line somewhere and that line is different for every family. For our family, it is with electronics. We have a Wii, PS2, PS3, Original Nintendo, Super NES, N64 and more currently a throwback SEGA genesis and Intellivision. So, we like our video games around here. Matt has an iPhone through his job and I have a Galaxy S4. I also have a Mac laptop for school, but believe me, if not for school...that would never have happened. I say all this to let you know, we aren't all hung up on modern technological gadgets. Our home doesn't hold a single tablet or iPod. If one of my kids wants a tablet, he/she has to save his/her own money and purchase it. Look, our Christmas budget for each kid could buy them a Kindle Fire and they would get nothing else. It's pretty simple because they don't want only one gift. They aren't allowed to have phones until they can drive; my oldest is 10 years old, WHO IS SHE GOING TO CALL?!? I guess I just don't get it, probably because we are a part of the few who still have a land line...but I like it this way. If my kids want to have a conversation with someone, they know how to do it...FACE TO FACE. They know how to respect their teachers, family members, and other children. They aren't perfect, but they're still pretty darn great.

The real story here is Mady. She's a great listener. Well, she is a great selective listener...but apparently she was listening every time her father taught her what we feel is a very important lesson in life.

My conversation with Mady after school today went something like this:
(Names have been changed to protect the innocent...haha)

Me: So, how was school today?
Mady: Well, everyone was bragging about what they got for Christmas.
Me: Ok, so what did everyone get?
Mady: (lists off several kids and what they said they got, then...) Marly said she got a phone, but I know she didn't. (lists reason why she "knows" Marly did not get a phone) Why do kids lie about what they got for Christmas? Who cares?
Me: Well, some kids want you to think they got better stuff for Christmas than they really did so they just make stuff up. But the real reason is; Well, what does your daddy always tell you?
Mady: "Kids are stupid"

Lesson learned!

Ok, so we aren't that harsh.  We say it like a joke because kids always do stupid stuff (most adults do too...so there is that...) Kids are funny, watch them. They make up stories about guys trying to break into their house on Christmas morning and then defending their home by shooting them in the eye with their brand new bow and arrow they just opened for Christmas.  Something tells me that didn't really happen.  Haha!

Today I am thankful for amazing kids who are funny, talented, smart, kind, and good.

Thankful: Day 5

I survived the first day of spring semester today, which means I am 1/4th and one day done with dental hygiene school!

I won't lie, today was rough. We stayed up until midnight watching Downton (season 2, we're trying to catch up!) and then had to get up at least 2 hours earlier than any other day in the past 2 weeks. Also, it's cold out there ya'll. I ate a good breakfast and packed a healthy(ish) lunch. By the time the last class was over, I was falling asleep and really hungry, but I survived!

I'm gonna share two things I am thankful for today...because it's Monday and why not?

1. Besides finishing my first day of spring semester, I am also thankful for coffee. It's possible I couldn't have survived today without it.

2. I haven't had a coke (diet or otherwise) in a week and a day. It's not that I have forbidden them from my diet, because goodness knows, that would cause me to crave them more than ever. I decided that I didn't want to pump my body full of high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners all day long. Surprisingly it hasn't been hard at all. They hardest part was when I had a huge energy slump in the middle of class today and could have really used a caffeine boost.

Thankful: Day 4

I am struggling tonight because I start my spring semester of dental hygiene school tomorrow and I am scared out of my mind.

Ok, that is an exaggeration...but I am really nervous.

This semester brings 11 classes equaling 18 hours plus we start seeing patients in February. It is so exciting and terrifying at the same time. I really hope I can sleep tonight!

Today I am thankful for this long Christmas break from school. As it comes to an end, I look forward to a new routine; however, I will miss the late night Downton marathons and the 10:00 mornings. I will miss the days filled with nothing to do but whatever I want. All of this is nothing compared to the excitement I feel when I think that in 4 short months I will have completed my first year of dental hygiene school and will be halfway to my dream career!

Thankful: Day 3

The hard thing about going back to school when you have kids is that you often don't have the same schedule. This requires babysitters and help from friends and family and it often results in me feeling like a burden to others. Today, my step-mom informed me that her schedule had been rearranged and she was able to watch my kids Monday while I am at school. Not only that, but she invited them to spend the night Sunday night so they don't have to get up early and I don't have to drive across town before school. God always works things out, and for that I am thankful.

Also, the new dishwasher if fabulous!

A new year, a new...

January 2nd, 2015

Today I am thankful for a new dishwasher.  It's not hooked up; in fact it is in the garage and I HAVE to remember to bring it in the house before we go to bed and it freezes up. When we moved out of my Grandma's house 7 1/2 years ago all I wanted in a new house was two toilets and a dishwasher. So, thankful as I was and have been for such a blessed invention and its presence in my home, it is time for a new improved machine!

Write this down because you will probably never hear (or see) me say it again: I can't wait to install the new dishwasher and do my dishes tomorrow!!

Welcome 2015

This is the year all 80's kids have been waiting for since we watched Back to the Future and 2015 seemed to be so very far away. Here we are. I have to admit, I am disappointed. I was really excited about hover boards and flying cars and movie billboards that are so 3D you really think you are being eaten by a great white shark. Oh well.

2014 was good to me. I got into Dental Hygiene school on the first try. I have to admit, I wasn't sure I could do it. I find myself surrounded by these wonderful ladies day after day and it is really special. I rocked my first semester of DH school with 6 A's and 3 B's. It's not perfect, but with my responsibilities as wife, mom, cook, chauffeur, and dance teacher...I'll live with imperfection.

I resolve to be thankful for something, at least one little thing every single day of my life for the entire year. I might miss a day or two, but I will make up for it. No more 10,000 reasons in one year for me. It was amazing for my friends who did it, who were up for the task, however, for me...it was daunting. The more I tried to come up with 27 things to be thankful for in one day the harder it was. I'm not saying that I didn't have overwhelmingly more than 27 things to be thankful for each day, it is just that identifying them and then putting them into delightful little sentences was just too much for me.

But enough excuses.

This year, yes, this year, I will strive to let go of the chaos for 5 minutes each day to type a single sentence (two if you're lucky) to say something I am thankful for. Some blessing the Lord has seen fit to bestow upon me. Big or small. Exciting or boring. And so a year begins.

January 1st 2015: Today I am thankful for a new beginning. A new year, a new chance to be better. I am also thankful that my husband decided he will watch Downton Abbey with me...and even more thankful that he actually likes it.