heaven.

so it's 1:30 in the afternoon.
today, i've gone to school, the post office, the drycleaner, walked the dog a few times... eaten breakfast and lunch, sipped coffee and snuck in an oatmeal cookie i made a few days ago.


but i've done something else today. that was INCREDIBLE.
i decided to sit outside while reading my Bible and drinking my coffee (in my bathing suit, of course. i wouldn't want to miss some sunlight!).


so i spent a good portion of my day on the balcony with the bailster.
and then i started a book that the parent of one of my students let me borrow.

holy crap.
i'm not suggesting that all of it is true... because while it claims to be a true story, we all know that people are not without flaws.
that being said... i didn't move for a moment during my reading of this entire book (with the exception of calling my brother to tell him it was blowing my mind... he told me he sat down and read the entire book in Barnes & Noble one day.).


i mean, it's incredible. the details. the experiences. the information and insight about heaven, Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit and our relationships with them.


so read it. and then tell me what you think! (or maybe you already have? then tell me what you think!)

other things.

since i haven't been around lately, i have much to share.


first, a book.
susan told me about it.
and it changed my world. (she told me it would. smart girl.)

you should read it.
it has completely changed my perspective on things, and i've started making a list of things i'm thankful for--blessing the Lord has given me in my life.


a select few of my list (working my way to 1000):

16. Toothless smiles.

44. Watching my students attack Matt.

56. Bowls of crunchy cereal.

72. Getting into a warm car when I’m cold.

74. Cheap furniture that looks more expensive than it really is.

80. How cute Bailey is curled on a pillow.

i mean, seriously. she's crazy cute.

in honor of 74, matt and i went shopping to do some upgrades in our apartment... (plus one big splurge).

you guessed it.

we splurged on the lamp.

just kidding. it cost $12.

but we did splurge and got a new TV. we've been talking about it for ages and we just went for it.

so, that's that. big changes up in here.

oh, and in case you wondered...

school just ended.

and yes, i bawled like a baby.

and i don't even care.

i love those children.

no seat belts and open windows.

well, it's about time to play catch up.
i went to another country for 10 days.

guatemala.

absolutely beautiful.

so, when we got there, we drove up a mountain to a small village called Pinalito.
for the drive up, we were told,
"keep your seatbelts off and windows open, in case we roll down the cliff and you need to jump out."
excellent.
just what i wanted, a death drive.


but we didn't die, and spent the bulk of our time in Pinalito.  i spent a lot of time in the school (i remembered my spanish, hallelujah!).

then, we spent the last day or so in Antigua. it used to be the capital of all of Central America... it's gorgeous.

so, there you have it! i have a trillion stories... but it'd be difficult to put into words on here. all in all, it was a great trip!


i wasn't able to sneak a baby back in my luggage though. sad. but i did get a machete back... :)

world traveler

i just caught myself having a serious "i would rather be getting an uncomfortable exam at the doctor than this" moment.
making sub lesson plans for a whole week of missing school. NOT fun. every supply, every single little thing I want the sub to say to my students... about 6 pages per day.
thus, i'd rather be getting teeth pulled.
not really.
but sort of.


to combat this, i started thinking about going to guatemala in 18 days. CRAZY. thus spurred the idea of creating a picture list of places i want to visit SO BADLY:


enjoy.

guatemala.

(yeah buddy. about to check this one off. the only way to make it better is to bring a baby back with me.)

tuscany.

southern france. mostly for the vineyards.

the louvre.

kenya. mostly so i can see this girl.

let the dreaming continue...

choosing joy. finally.

i had posted a while ago about looking for joy in the midst of being busy.


and i sucked at that. all week. i mean, i was a literal terror to matt. my stress made me awful. i actually requested to SKIP VALENTINE'S DAY. which is saying something. because i'm a giant cheeseball.


but.
then this happened. 
i love all my students equally, but this little note somehow meant more to me than the average little note. made me cry a little. and remember why i do what i do.

life is good. no matter how busy we are, we've got to choose joy.

the joy in life.

joy is my favorite word.
all of my first graders know it... they bring it up in as many conversations as possible, just so i'll squeal with excitement.


but, in all the busy things that have been happening, it's hard for me to slow down and see joy.


in our young married's small group, we each took a challenge from james 1.
i took verse 12:


"Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him."


so, my challenge to myself was to find joy in the trials of life.
i'm supposed to be journaling each day about it. our whole group is. i haven't been. because i've been busy (ironic, right?). so, i thought i'd put it on here as a challenge to myself and anyone else... to find the joy in the difficult trials. or just ridiculously busy times.


what's the point of just living to get through to the next thing? i'm going to be intentional about finding the joy.








my joy of the day: watching the 23 loves of mine literally glow as i told each of them the fruit of the Spirit i saw in their lives each day, shining out at me. you would have thought i gave them a million dollars. it's incredible how far a little encouragement goes!

i am not good at being sick.

i'm sick. i finally admit it. i was being monica about it yesterday, but i've accepted it.
(watch Sick Monica to understand what i'm talking about).


i can't stop sneezing and coughing.
my nose is stuffed.
i can't sleep because i can't breathe.
i have a fever.


though i'm sick, i can't stop doing things. i'm just not good at sitting still and relaxing. here are the things i've done:


SUPER homemade pizza.
on accident. i decided on pizza for dinner, then realized i didn't have a pre-made crust, so i made one from scratch. i realized i had no pizza sauce, so i made my own. then, added green peppers from eastern market and pepperonis. an accidental homemade pizza!

then, i had extra pizza sauce... i looked it up online, and they said to freeze the sauce in ice cube trays. NARSTYYY. but apparently more simple... you just pop out a cube or two to make another pizza. so, if you come over, you may want to check that i put ice cubes in your drink rather than pizza sauce cubes.

next, i made 6 dozen chocolate chip cookies. i forgot to take pics, but it was a LOT of cookies. for many different things in the next week, i need cookies. took it all out in one blow.


i decided to start sewing again, and here's what i created:

i made a french apron!! i LOVE it.

i am so proud of myself!

i also read this AMAZING book... i highly recommend it. it's all about the power of the Holy Spirit and how we forget/ignore that part of the Deity.

then, i cleaned the whole apartment, made matt many meals, and countless other small things to take up time.

i am not good at being sick. i can't get enough of projects.

i hope i get better soon, or matt's going to get mad at me for not sitting. yikes-a-roni.