Retreat

Thank God for times of Retreat. Times that we can sit and be with Him. A time to sit and know that He Is God.  I love being on retreat because it is a time to recharge. Even though I always come home more exhausted than when I left, I know it is because I gave it my all to my community and to my God. I never grow tired of seeing the teens that I have the privilege of working with, grow closer to our Lord. It is so inspiring to see how God is working in their lives and in turn, God works in my life through them. I continue to be amazed at how blessed my life is. Hearing some of the stories of what teens go through today gives me no doubt that Satan is working overtime on the younger generations in an effort to thwart God's plan for them. Little does Satan know, God wins in the end. How awful it must be to not know that. Our Lord wins in the end, that is the only possible ending. Not only that, but He loves us and wants us to be on his side, in the end. It is funny that life really does come down to the epic story of good vs. evil. We are so infatuated with that story in books, and movies and the media and it is because it is truly OUR story.  

Take some time to be with our Lord today, whether it is two minutes of prayer, a moment spent adoring the blessed sacrament where Jesus is truly present, or getting to mass. I will not let a day go by without trying to make my relationship with him stronger. Our God is mighty to save.  

It's a Ryan Gosling Kinda Night

It's bad. I am obsessed. It is a Ryan Gosling kinda night. Watching Crazy Stupid Love and if time allows the Notebook will follow.

One word . . . Yummy :)

Proverbs 31 Woman

Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Proverbs 31.30 

There is a lot of great wisdom to be found in Proverbs 31. Striving to be a woman of God is not an easy task, especially in this world. Teaching at an all girls school and working with the young women of the parish has really made me think about what it means to be a woman of God and there is only one example that come to mind. Mary. Our Lady and Queen of Heaven. Mary Mother of God. Through her perfect example we gained salvation. Her yes allows for us to have a relationship with her Son.  She is the one woman the devil is the most afraid of and the one woman we should try to emulate. 

Mary Mother of God, Pray for us. :) 

I married a keeper

Yesterday I opened my email to find a message from my loving husband. 

What can I say, the man knows me . . . well. I laughed so hard it completely made my day. 

I am lucky to have such a wonderful man in my life. He keeps me laughing, and loves me unconditionally. Not a day goes by that I don't fall more in love with him than they day before. 

He really is a keeper. 

Christmas Wreath

Pinterest is truly addicting and what's worse is it has brainwashed me into thinking I can be crafty. I can not wait to make this wreath. It is so adorable :) Next weekend I have a few projects in mind and this is one of them. Click on the link below for directions

Make Your Own Wreath

Update

As always I am avoiding doing things I should be doing and going to take up blogging for a little bit. I hate looking back to see I haven't written in forever but that is life I suppose.

Life seems to be moving pretty fast and it is almost time for the holidays . . . My favorite time of the year.

Being at Providence has been such a blessing for me. If anyone in the San Antonio area is looking for a fabulous school for their daughter, I highly suggest Providence.  I thoroughly enjoy my job and feel like this is the perfect place for me. The girls and I have taken on a crazy endeavor and are participating in NaNoWriMo- National Novel Writing month. I continue to be amazed at their level of creativity. This month long project is something I know I would not have the opportunity to do in a public school and it is a shame because the girls are really enjoying themselves.  I should be writing my novel right now but I just can't bring myself to do it.

The season has started for Curt and he is super busy but loving his job. Go Rampage :)

I can't wait to go home for Thanksgiving. I was just home a couple of weeks ago but I can't wait to see my family again. Living far away makes you count your blessings and treasure the time you get to spend with them.

In the midst of Christmas last year I realized somehow Curt and I managed to not get an "Our First Christmas" ornament. I was really sad when I thought about this and lucky for me my mother in-law went on the hunt to find us one! I can't wait to put it on our tree. It matches my red and silver theme and everything :) I also found a jingle bell collar that Redick will soon be sporting. I decided not to torture him with it until after Thanksgiving, I assumed it was only fair.

Changes

This past month has been full of changes. Curt and I moved into a house we are renting on the north side of San Antonio and I have started teaching at an all girls 6-12 Catholic School. I realize there on only two items on that list but they are big items that have taken quite a bit of adjustment; and for the first time since Aug 1 I am beginning to get into the swing of things. I have a million things to do this morning and as usual I chose to blog instead of being productive.

I am in love with my new job. The girls are fabulous. They are eager sponges waiting to absorb everything you give them. They are kind and respectful. The staff I work with is equally as fabulous. Everyone has been so welcoming and loving the minute I walked in the door. It has been such a blessing to share my faith everyday and not have to hide it.

We painted the house this weekend. Curt loves projects. Occasionally he gets an itch for a project. The last major one was Redick :) But I have to admit I am not disappointed. The house is finally feeling like ours.

We are finally settling in here which is fabulous!

We are not Ours

I have been watching more TV than usual since summer has started. It has only been a few days but euthanasia has been everywhere. There is a documentary on HBO called "How to Die in Oregon," and it follows various terminally ill patients and their choice to end their own lives before the disease does (In Oregon it is legal to perform assisted suicide.) Dr. Death himself, Jack Kevorkian, died this week as well.

I know there are many people who support this practice, but as a practicing catholic my beliefs have steered me to be against it.

The bottom line is we are not ours to keep. God is in control and will always be in control. It is silly for any of us to think otherwise. It breaks my heart that we live in a world were we fight tooth and nail to control things that aren't ours to control.  Whatever path God has chosen for our lives is for Him to know and Him alone  to decide when we leave this earth. God has plans for us and those we love. We need to trust in Him instead of trying to control everything on our own.

This is our temporary home. This is our temporary body, and life. We are here for a purpose. Even in our suffering we are to be an example of Christ. In helping others through their suffering we are supposed to serve as Christ served.  It must be terrible to know you are going to die due to an illness, but I can only imagine how terrible it would be to know that 3 days from know you have made an appointment to die. I pray for those going through such a terrible situation, and those helping those go through those things.

I don't get angry about those who support this, I am just disappointed and saddened that this is the world we live in and can only imagine how the Father feels.

We live in a culture of death and it doesn't seem to be getting any better.  The sooner we realize we are not ours our eyes are opened to a whole new perspective on life, and death.

Best of Both Worlds

I wish I could have the best of both worlds. I want to be with my family and in San Antonio at the same time.  I hate not seeing my family for months on end. It has been harder than I anticipated but also easier. Curt has been an easy place to call home.  I really am missing out on a lot of things in Oklahoma but I really miss San Antonio while I am here. Why can’t it all work out? Hopefully it won’t be like this forever.  Kate and I had a great time yesterday shopping. I wish that could happen more often.

To borrow from a friends blog:

Enjoy were you are at today

Good to Be Home

It is so wonderful to be home. This is the most free time I have had since January. I am really enjoying not scrambling around trying to get something prepared for tomorrow. I am sleeping in tomorrow, thank God. There is a positive feeling about this week. There are possibilities of getting organized and getting ahead of the game. That would be fabulous. Perhaps it will happen. J

Our Newest Member

Meet Redick! Our Puppy. This is a long time coming but I finally got him on our blog. Blogging has become a little bit of a guilty pleasure for me. So I tend to do it when I have entirely too many things to do and lately I have had so so much to do that I can't even find time to blog :)    He is such a sweet heart and a perfect addition to out family. He is a rescue puppy that was left on the side of the road and nursed back to health by "A Doggie For You"  fostering group. For the most part he is pretty good, we have only had a few "accidents" and he is a very quite dog. He also thinks he is a lap dog and makes himself at home on our couch; often times in the middle of my stack of papers.  I love coming home to him every day. It has been gorgeous outside when I get home from school, so we have been going for "walks." I say "walks" because its a lot of me dragging him, and then stopping and petting him so he'll continue to walk a  little bit further back to the house. He is severely ADD so walking on the sidewalk that runs near the road has not worked out so well, but I think he's working on it.  I am mostly in love with this amazing puppy :)  

Time Flies

So many things have happened in the last 6 years. It is crazy to see how things have changed and how we have changed. So grateful to have found the love of my life. 2 years ago Monday he proposed and made me the happiest woman in the world :) I can't believe I am so lucky. 

I am crazy in love with this man! So grateful to be married to my best friend. Pardon the mushyness but it is Valentine's Day . . . . . . .  well almost.

Procrastination

Why is it that when I have a million things to do I find every excuse in the book to not do it. At this point I know that I am going to be up entirely to late  Sunday night in an effort to get everything done I need to get done. In an hour or so I will be tired and make up an excuse that I have plenty of time tomorrow to write a weeks worth of lessons for 3 classes that I need to do quite a bit of studying to figure out exactly what to teach them. Overwhelmed. I hear this feeling goes away after the first semester or gets better at least. I am waiting patiently for this feeling to go away and until then, smile and nod so that I don't give away the fact that I don't know what's going on half the time andhope that my kids actually learn something . . . eventually. So much to do, so little time and I am getting pretty good at wasting the time I do have. I will figure this out I know I will. i just need to FOCUS!

"Do not choose to love the world, nor the things that are of the world, the charity of the Father is not in him." 1 John 2:15

Super Bowl Sunday!

This is a day I have been very excited about for a little while now. There are a few things that have been very constant in my life from day one, we go to church every Sunday and we root for the Pack! God and football. I think there are a few people in the world that can empathize with me on this one although the team may be different. There is something about football that brings people together. I am proud to be a Cheesehead. I am very grateful to my parents for raising me with great values, being a Packer is one of them :) God and football, the two constant things in my life since before I can remember ( other than people obviously) So excited for my boys today! We are in it to win it!  GO PACK GO! I'm praying for ya!

All by Myself

I have about a million things to do. So many things I could be doing to be a better teacher, books to read, papers to grade, lessons to plan. But I am blogging. I had lunch today with a wonderful friend, went to church tonight and I really should not be left alone. I am so not productive with out Curt here. Even we he isn't doing anything, I am so much more productive with him around.

I am not used to being alone either, which makes me not want to do anything. This should be the perfect time for me to get things done but I really don't feel like it. I am very excited about watching my beloved Packers in the Super Bowl but very jealous that Curt is actually there and I am here. I don't have time to go, and it really wouldn't have worked out but I really wish he was here. We don't get to spend a whole lot of time together usually and he'll be gone two weekends in a row. I don't like being alone. I have always had a sister, a best friend, a roommate or Curt ( Curt sometimes being the roommate :) ) and I just don't do well by myself. I like it when another warm body is in the room.

I am also famous for being a procrastinator, hence the blog. I would not be blogging if I didn't have a million things to do; it is just how I work. One day I hope to be crazy organized and a neat freak and someone who is always on top of things, apparently that day is not today.  I need wisdom and love from above and I know it will come. Motivation . . . please . . . . . Motivation.

"But if anyone among you is in need of wisdom, let him petition God, who gives abundantly to all without reproach, and it shall be given to him. " James 1:5 

Snow Day!

Snow day in San Antonio was an experience. The news was hilarious and highly entertaining. It made me realize I am so happy to call Oklahoma home. Texas still isn't quite home for me. Home is where the heart is and I am half and half at this point. Love living with Curt and love this life we are building together, but missing my family very much. Especially on days like today. Days when I love being stuck with them because we have so much fun together. We always played cards and games and as long as there was enough beer or liquor to last us as long as we were snowed in . . . life was fabulous :) 

This is all it took to shut the city down . . . in San Antonio's defense we do have a lot of elevated highways that are conducive to ice!  So glad this city is not equipped in the slightest for any time of snow/ice! 

This was a much needed day though. I am so grateful for a day to get life together. Curt stayed at home today also which made it even better. The house is now officially clean which is amazing. I am finding less and less time to do that now that I work all the time.  Being organized is something that I thought I was really good at and turns out I am pretty terrible. I am a work in progress, as most of us are. I am going to try extra hard this week to keep things neat and tidy and most of all keep all of my school stuff organized. I feel like I am always one step behind. Most days I feel like I am drowning and the only thing thats saving me is a lifejacket, but we are still headed for a waterfall so the drop is inevitable.  I know everything will work out though. This snow day proves it. Not that I have my snow day I am ready for 60 degree weather. Definitely ready for the perks that come with living in South Texas. 

Perspective

I haven't blogged in a while, which was a con in me getting a blog. I am terrible at keeping up with anything/everything. Which has become even more true now that I am a teacher. I am having a terrible time keeping organized which is difficult when you come into a classroom that has never been organized and I'm not sure that it will be. I need some serious help going through all of the crap in there. School is crazy and it is making me crazy. Hopefully it gets a little better :) At lease monday is over! I just need a little perspective. My fabulous husband is coming home soon and I have a job (even if I get frustrated and feel lost 89% of the time).I know God will never put us through something he won't see us through.

Our Pictures!

We finally got our pictures in the mail today :) I am very excited. Looking through all the pictures makes me miss home. Mom, Kate, and Max were here this past weekend and it made me miss them even more. I can't wait to go home for Thanksgiving. I can't wait for the Holidays, they are going to be wonderful and I am even more excited because it is our first holiday season together, officially together. I am loving my life right now even if it is way to far away from the people I love the most. 

Its time to Decorate

The best thing about the holidays is getting to decorate! I think that decorations in your house make it feel comfy and cozy and well a little more like home. I am very excited to decorate our apartment for Halloween mostly because of what happens after Halloween . . Thanksgiving and Christmas :) This has been a great week and I have been very blessed with opportunities to sub and a few opportunities to relax. 


I am really looking forward to October even though we are going to be so very busy. Curt's opening weekend for Rampage is next weekend, which begins his season of 40 home games between now and April. He's about to be a very busy boy and I am thinking about picking up another job, perhaps Bath and Body Works or maybe another retail store to get us a little extra  between now and Christmas.  


So glad that we now officially have family in San Antonio :) Josh and Jess Wagner are here with their little boy Jeremiah. I am very excited to have a little one to play with that I can gladly return when we leave haha. It is wonderful to have family around again.  Now to clean and decorate! 

Rachel's Challenge- Make a Chain Reaction

Today I was a substitute at Kirby Middle School where there was an assembly with a presentation of Rachel's Challenge. Rachel Joy Scott was the first person murdered in the Columbine shootings. Her goal in life was to impact the world and now her family is making sure that her death was not in vain and her dreams can still come true. Rachel was a special kind of person whose main goal was kindness to others. Today a very gifted speaker presented Rachel's story and her challenges to the Middle School. I think that her goals are wonderful and should be implemented in every classroom across America. Rachel's challenges to everyone everywhere will surely make this world a better place. Here is the short list, for more information on this wonderful person whose life had touch many while she was alive and millions now that she's gone, go to the website.

Eliminate prejudice in your life. 

Set goals for yourself 

Surround yourself with positive influences

Use kind words and do small acts of kindness 

Tell Those that you love you love them- Start a reaction.


The world can use such a positive influence and role model :)
www.rachelschallenge.org