Celebrating

For the past couple of weeks I have been thinking and praying about a new job opportunity that I was hoping was going to come my way. After a couple of interviews, a lot of praying, and a lot of discussions, I was offered a new job. I have been in the classroom for 10 years and have had so many wonderful students (and some not so wonderful... ;)) and have made many wonderful co-workers who are also my friends.

One of these friends was offered a job as a principal at one the elementary schools in our district which left her position vacant. I am happy to say that I am now Dyer County's Special Education Consulting Teacher for the middle schools and high school.

Basically my job takes me out of my classroom and puts me in a position that allows me to focus on making sure that our students are getting the services they need and that all of the paperwork is getting done. It is a very big job with very big responsibilities and I am sooooo nervous because I know that I will be forced into situations that are definitely out of my comfort zone as I mediate between the schools, students, and parents. But I am looking forward to the challenges of this new job and helping my students in a new way.

To celebrate, we all went out for Mexican (of course!) and had a fun time. It was the first time we had been out as a family in forever and it felt relaxing and good!

Thanks to all who have congratulated me on this new opportunity. Keep me in your prayers over the next few months as I get settled into my job and learn the ropes! :)

10 Years Ago

Today is our 10th Anniversary. I can't believe that 10 years have passed since Bradley and I got married. We have been so blessed to have bought a beautiful home in our little town and sooo super blessed to have Ava and Harrison. I told Bradley that for our 10th anniversary, I wanted to renew our vows in front of an Elvis impersonator, but maybe we will shoot for the 15th now! :)

Happy Anniversary to my husband. Yes, you totally get on my nerves and we can fight like cats and dogs, but I wouldn't trade you for anything. You are my love. I love you! :)

Post from our 4th anniversary. Here

This photo was taken in May. :) We are so awful about taking pictures together!

Scooby, Dooby-Doo, Where Are You?

Over the past couple of weeks, the kids have gotten hooked on Scooby Doo. We have recorded tons of them onto our DVR and they watch them over and over again. I love the way that Ava acts like she is seeing the mystery for the first time and has it figured out. I am just glad that something I loved to watch when I was younger is something that I can share with my kids.

So here is Harrison singing the song to Scooby Doo. He usually does much better, but he is camera shy lately when it comes to video.




As an added bonus, here is Harrison talking about a hyena (aka CHI-NINA). :)

Kindergarten Wrap-Up with Ava

What will you miss about Kindergarten? Being with my teacher.

Who are your friends at school? Not everybody because some people don't want to be my friends sometimes.

Who did you play with? Mikayla, Savanna, April, and Abigail

What is the best part of the school day? Going outside

What is your favorite thing that you learned about? I Don't Know

What food did you like to eat at lunch? Pizza

What is your favorite game to play at recess? Princesses

What do you like about your teacher? When she lets us do free drawing.

What are some fun things you did in class this year? The Christmas singing

What was fun about the first day of school? Staying for a half day.

What was the best about the last day of school? Having the picnic on the floor with the brown paper.

What was your favorite thing to do in the classroom? Watching movies at the end of the day.

What will you remember most about kindergarten? Doing work.

What are you looking forward to this summer? Having play dates.

What are you looking forward to in 1st grade? Going outside.

Father's Day - 2012

Father's Day really snuck up on us this year. With Bradley being so sick, it just came to quickly for us to get a plan in place and he didn't feel like going out anywhere to eat or anything. I did manage to have the kids fill out this interview form with questions about Bradley. It was funny to hear their answers. They both know that he loves to watch ball games and Ava thinks his favorite food is a salad covered with his favorite dressing (Harrison's answers all consisted of tractors, lawn mowers, tillers, and weed eaters). ;) So while Bradley was with Joe, the kids and I ran to the store and Ava chose to have a big salad for supper. While I was working on the fixing, she made a quick sign for Daddy. We also enjoyed some Brave cupcakes which were served to Daddy and Pop while we sang Happy Father's Day to You (to the tune of Happy Birthday). I thought it was a nice Father's Day.

I am so thankful for all the wonderful daddies that have been placed in my life; my dear Bradley, my own Daddy, and Joe.

I just love all of these crazy facial expressions my children are giving.

Summertime!

In the evenings, we have taken to walking on nights when it is not crazy hot (so none for the past week!). Ava loves walking at night and we usually head down towards Pop's house where we are greeted with cool pops and then head to the playground at Ava's school. Harrison and Ava love getting the chance to run around and while they are distracted, I usually use the time to read a little on the Kindle App on my phone. I have loved these summer nights and love knowing that my kids are enjoying being in the outdoors and working up a little sweat. ;)

And my favorite photo of the night. I arrived at the slide to hear screaming and fighting. Ava and Harrison were both coming down the slide. Look at her face. Now look at his. In his hand is a handful of Ava's hair. So glad that I could capture this sibling moment on film. :)

Fourth of July

Today was a pretty low key 4th of July. With the holiday falling in the middle of the week, we didn't have the usually family get-together that we have had the last couple of years. We just relaxed around the house for the first part of the day and then enjoyed supper with Pop. After dinner we went outside and the kids played with sparklers (Thanks, Pinterest, for the idea of wearing a cup over their hands to keep the sparks away!) Then we came inside and watched the fireworks on TV. Ava was disappointed that we didn't go see some in person, but with some ice cream and cookies, we were able to persuade her. ;) All in all, it was a nice, relaxing 4th and I enjoyed spending it with my babes.

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July! Here is a picture of Ava before church on Sunday. Harrison wouldn't let me take his picture! :) this is the 3rd year (and last!) that Ava has gotten to wear this dress. :) so cute!

Homemade Play-Doh

The kids and I made homemade Play-Doh one day this summer. I used an easy recipe that I found on Pinterest and we made two colors. Ava wanted pink (which looked more like lilac) and Harrison wanted blue. They were content for a while and then the fighting started. They argued over cookie cutters and Harrison would sneak up and steal pieces of Ava's play-doh and run.

However, it was fun while it lasted and it did give the kids some entertainment for a few hours. Eventually all the play-doh became mixed together into a sickly gray color and I eventually put it in the trash. Definitely an activity that we will try again.