A Long Time Coming

So, it has been a while since I have written. I'm not sure if a lot has happened or if I have just been keeping busy with nothing. School has been out since the end of May, but I have been working in my class almost every Monday-Friday morning. I had to move classrooms for the 3rd time in 5 years of teaching :) The classroom I got to move into needed a lot of TLC. I had to clean it all out, paint, and move my stuff in. It is finally beginning to feel like "my room" and I am looking forward to a new year.

In June, my mom, sister-in-law, her mom, and I all made a road trip to Portland and Seattle. We had a wonderful time shopping, talking, and shopping some more. I stayed in the Seattle area (Puyallup to be exact) and extra 4 days to spend some time with Stephanie and Ava. It was so great to get to watch Ava while Steph worked. Steph and I also got to spend a day together; that was wonderful. I am looking forward to Tim, Steph, and Ava visiting in a couple weeks.

I also got a puppy in June. Her name is Paisley. She is a goldendoodle (golden retriever/poodle mix). I think she is pretty darn cute. Some disagree. She is doing well as far as training goes, but it has definitely been challenging at times.

This last week I got to spend 5 days with 18 girls from Nampa Christian. We went to NBC (Northwest Basketall Camp) in LaGrande. It was a long week, but it was also fun. The girls were wonderful. I am looking forward to what this next basketball season holds for us.

Now I am back in Nampa and keeping myself busy training for another 1/2 marathon, doing crossfit, working at school, spending time with my puppy, spending time with my boyfriend, friends, and family, tutoring, babysitting, and trying to enjoy some sunshine.

A Spring Break I Will Never Forget

I got the joy, privilege, honor, and opportunity to spend my Spring Break in Puyallup, Washington with my best friend, her husband, and baby girl. Tim and Steph asked me to come and care for their little girl for a whole week. This would be Steph's 2nd week back at school. I said, "yes", without hesitation. I would never pass up an opportunity to see them and spend some time with that precious baby.

From Monday to Friday it was me and the baby from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Here are some highlights of my trip. 1. Each time I would wake her up from her nap, I would recieve the biggest, best smile anyone could ask for. 2. She loved kisses, and by the end of my time there, gave me the best slobbery kiss ever. 3. The way she would giggle and blow raspberries. 4. Our daily walks together. All bundled up with cool sunglasses and hats. 5. Late night and early morning talks with Steph. 6. Each and every minute of my trip.

It was so hard to say goodbye, knowing that it would be another 4 months before I would see them again. I thought I was holding it together until Steph started crying at the airport. I tried to pull it together before I got to the ticket counter, but it was no use. I think the ticket lady thought that something was wrong. I then got a couple strange looks from the people at the security checkpoint. It is so nice to have such wonderful friends that touch your life each time you are with them...near or far. I love them all so much.

Here are some photos of my time in Puyallup. Her auntie Alyssia really loves her :)

Precious Little One

Ready for a walk

Aunt Alyssia sharing kisses

The Things Kids Say

So, at school today the kids had to write a letter to a special relative. As I took their letters home to read, I was so pleased with the work they did. Kids really can say the sweetest things. Here are a few of their letters.

To David - "I got a game of Scarface. I love it. I love the baby girl" - he is talking about his little baby girl cousin that was just born about a month ago. :)

Dear Kyle - "You are my favorite cousin."

Dear Matthew - "When it's summer and we have grass, we can play soccer, football, and baseball." (a letter to his brother)

Dear grandpa and grandma - "I love you grandpa and grandma. I hope you are doing good. I wish you could be with me."

Dear Uncle John and Aunt Tressa - "I love you. You are my good uncle and aunt."

To Nicolas - "I love you. Get well soon. I got a new toy called an Omitrix from Ben 10. I hope you get to go home soon." (a letter to his cousin who is in the hospital)

Dear mom and dad - "In school I have been learning about Indian gods. They worshipped totum poles. On them were pictures of animals and other gods."

These are the times that I remember why I am a teacher. Kids can truly be a blessing.

Basketball Champions!

So, my life has been basketball, basketball, basketball since the beginning of November. It was a challenging year of coaching this year, due to the fact that I only had 5 girls that could play all 4 quarters and I had to borrow 1 girl from the JV team as a sub each quarter. My girls were absolutely amazing and rose to exceed the challenge. We were 3rd place heading into the tournament and ending up being League Champions. I am so glad I had the opportunity to coach such a great group of girls. We had a blast together and I think we all grew in many ways. What a way to end our season...CHAMPIONS!!!

Has It Been That Long?

For those of you who do read my blog, sorry it has been so long. Life has been extremely busy for me. Between teaching 1st grade, coaching freshman/sophomore girls' basketball, and trying to spend time with the boyfriend, friends, and family, it seems I have very little time left.

School is going well for the most part. I have dealt with a couple of challenges, but I hope that things continue to get better. I am very fortunate to have a principal that supports me and some great friends that let me work through my thoughts. I do love my class, and we have some great fun together. You may be able to tell by the pics.

If you are wondering about the alligator, she is Alli, our class pet. (I enjoy not having to clean up after her)

As for coaching, I have enjoyed it, but I am ready to have a less hectic schedule for a while. Would you believe that I had 16 high school girls at my house for an all-nighter about a week and a half ago? Well, I did and I got a whopping 2 1/2 hours of sleep. My bed even got stolen by 2 of the girls. Very tiring, but memories I will not forget. My girls have had a successful season so far and it looks like we will make it into the end of the season tournament. I have 5 girls that play full time for me and 4 girls that play a quarter or two each game. They have all been wonderful to work with and I am blessed that they work so hard for me. We will see how our season ends, as tournament is this weekend.

As for my personal life, things are great. Ryan is absolutely wonderful and I can't believe it has almost been 8 months. I am so blessed! My family is doing well and I enjoy all the time that we can spend together.

My class did a writing project last week. The task was for the students to write about what they wanted for Christmas. We had a little discussion before they began writing. We talked about what they might want for themselves and also what they might want for others. Our discussion was short and I was interested to see what the students would write about. They wrote for 30 minutes (which for 1st graders is a long time :)). When I began getting their papers back, I was amazed at what I read. Some of them touched me so much that I thought I would share them with you. I will write them as they wrote them on their paper.

Tommy
All I want for Christmas is peace on earth and for people to know God and love him and to have a Marry Christmas.
P.S. And no prezenz for me. Onlea the love of God.
P.S. I mite be a little bit sad, but I do not care.

Tanner
All I want for Christmas is peace on earth and good will to men. A jenrel greevus and for other people to have food. I want my dad to get the Empyer Stryx Back movie and that soldiers woud get to come home safle. That my dad woud be blest for going to school so earlee. I am thankful for my bed and for my family.

Dean
All I want for Christmas is an Imperial landing krat Lego, peace on earth, new friends, love on earth, for people who do not believe in Jesus to believe in Jesus, and no dying. I want a Republic attack gunship, republic cruser, food for others, shelter for others, clothes for others, cookies for Santa and carrots for his reindeer and milk.

Keziah
All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth. I am going to sing the song and you will like it. All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth, my two front teeth. I want to give people eggs, they are fresh from my chickens. (She is really missing her two front teeth).

Ella
I would like a doll and a puppy. I would like uther pepl to have a blanket and food. I wood like a rabit. I wood like peac on Earth.

Brody
I want a four wheeler and a Star Wars toy and the soldiers to come back and peace on the earth.

It is in this season that we need to truly remember the reason for Christmas. God sent His Son to come and serve others and save them from their sins. It is our job to serve others and teach about God's saving grace. I am so proud of my students for knowing the true meaning of Christmas and realizing at such a young age that we are soooo fortunate.

I hope that you all have a joyous Christmas and remember the Reason for the Season. God Bless!

It's Been A While

So, the only excuse I have for not posting anything for a while is that life has been so busy. Here are a few highlights that I have had these last few months.

* A Visit to Puyallup, WA to see Tim, Steph, and little Ava Knapp.

This was such a wonderful experience for me. I got to spend 6 days with my best friend, her husband, and new baby girl. We spent time talking, laughing, crying, changing diapers, baking, reading, and got very little sleep. These are days I will cherish forever and I can't wait til I get to see them all again.

* Basketball

I am coaching the Freshman/Sophomore Girls basketball team at Nampa Christian again. Once again we are met with the challenge of sharing players with the JV team. I have a wonderful group of girls to work with and thank goodness for that because I get to spend about 20 hours a week with them :). So far we have won all 4 of our games.

* Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was different for me this year. This was the first year that my grandpa and grandma Gray were not with us. They spent 12 days traveling to and from Branson, MO. Also, my brother was not with us this year. He was asked to take his police dog, Ceasar, to the Dominican Republic to do a dog presentation. It was wonderful to have his wife, Brianne, with us for a short while. We ended up still having about 28 people at my parents' house and it was wonderful. I truy have so much to be thankful for.

I hope that everyone enjoys this holiday season.