Big Boy

Oh, how quickly the time seems to be passing lately! Every time I turn around Chandler is doing or saying something new. At 18 months, this little guy has stolen my heart yet again. Here's a sneak into the recent photo shoot with Brooke.

Women of Faith

This past Friday and Saturday, I had the opportunity to go to the Women of Faith conference in Atlanta with two of my coworkers who also happen to be two of my good friends. We all went to a similar conference about 2.5 years ago in Greenville, and I attended WOF with some ladies from church two years ago. Both of the conferences were wonderful and gave me some much needed encouragement, so when I had the opportunity to go again, especially since it was the weekend before school and I wouldn't have to take off work to go, I jumped for it.

The three of us had a blast together! We laughed, cried, and laughed some more. It's good to get out with girlfriends from time to time. As women, we wear so many hats and often don't take enough time just for ourselves.

This weekend was fun and encouraging to me, and I can't wait for other opportunities like this in the future.

Top 10 Things I'll Miss About Summer Break

1. Spending my days with sweet, sweet Chandler

2. Lunch dates with my two favorite guys

3. Staying up as late as I want to finish reading a book on my new Kindle

4. Sleeping until 8:30 or 9:00 a.m. if I want

5. Mid-afternoon naps

6. Impromptu trips to Wal-Mart (or any other place for that matter) in the middle of the day

7. Playing at the park in the early morning

8. Wearing t-shirts and shorts as daily attire

9. Going without makeup

10. Actually having time to keep my house super clean without having to do all the work late at night

Thankful Thursday

There are so many things to be thankful for...

1) A wonderful summer at home with my sweet little boy:

Going back to work next week will certainly be bittersweet. I have absolutely enjoyed all the extra time I got to spend with him, and I got to witness so many new things he is learning. I also got a peek into the life of a stay-at-home mom, and whoever thinks it's easy needs to try it out!

2) An opportunity to go to Women of Faith this weekend with two of my co-workers/friends:

I was disappointed not to be able to go to the Women of Faith conference in Charlotte in September because it's so hard to take off work, but when the opportunity arose to go to the Atlanta conference, I felt like it was the perfect way to jump start a new school year, and I don't have to take off work to go!

3) My new Kindle:

I debated whether or not to make the purchase, but I am so glad I did! I am finally catching up on some good reading. If you haven't read this book, you really need to. It has helped me look at my marriage in a different way than I ever have before.

18

So, the big day is here. My firstborn son is 18 months old today, and I can hardly believe it. It's bittersweet for sure in many ways. Just this morning, I noticed that his feet almost touch the foot rest on the highchair. When did that happen? He's supposed to be cuddled up on my shoulder!

I am so thankful for my precious little boy, who will always be my baby no matter how big he gets. God truly blessed me when he made me a mother.

Happy Half Birthday, Chandler!

Theme

It's that time of year when the wheels in my head are spinning non-stop...Yes, it's almost time for school, which is so hard to believe!

I worked part of two days this week in my classroom and even brought a few things home to work on while Chandler naps (Boy, how this has changed. Before Chandler was born, I used to bring everything home regularly!). I am proud of what I have accomplished, and I am hoping that I am far enough ahead with things that pre-planning won't be a rush and I can actually enjoy it.

As I've been redesigning the setup of my room, I have been perusing the Internet for ideas. There are lots of good ones out there, and as a first grade teacher, I am very tempted to go for one of the cutesy themes (dinosaurs, camping, frogs, solar system, etc...), but the more I think about it, the more I realize that what theme I use (or don't use) is not what matters.

What matters is that I put forth my best efforts EVERY DAY in teaching all my students, no matter how difficult it may be to do that sometimes. That is exactly what God instructs all of us to do. He wants us to always do our best in our own jobs, and in this, someone else just might get a glimpse of HIM that they would never have seen otherwise.

So, what theme did I decide on? I didn't choose one. I've decided instead to make prayer a central part of my classroom in a way that I never have before.