Overcomers

Here is another start to a blog bragging about how much I love my job.  Sorry, but I'm not sorry about it and I never will be.

My kids are simply amazing.  That's all there is to it.  They have learned to do some of the same things gen. ed. kids do, but the process looks different, and it's taken longer to master.  Many of them have outlived life expectencies and keep right on growing and thriving.  Every day is truly a gift for many of my kids.  It is my job to push them to make sure that tomorrow is even a bigger gift and they can do more with it.

Our program has gone through many changes in the last few year.  Many happened before I came.  I was the 4th teacher to come in 3 years.  For you Potter fans, I like to compare it to the Defense Against the Dark Arts position at Hogwarts that was open every year.  BUT  I've made it to year two and I'm staying!  Stacy is the 5th to come into our program.  When Cindy and Ann came, there was a lot of learning for them and a growth in the program that occurred.  There was more growth last year for both staff and students.  Many teachers commented how different the program was looking and how glad they were to see our kids more.  This year has been HUGE!  Stacy and have split up our teaching time so that we are able to get out to gen. ed. when are kids are there to help their paras.  I am blown away everyday by how much they are learning, growing, and interacting with their classmates.

My kids are overcoming many odds and it is unbelievable some days what is happening in our room.  Some of my kids are independently subtracting, three are reading Dolch words and getting them mastered, and all but two are reading either words or whole books.  This is just academics!  That's not even mentioning one of my student's attention span more that doubling, or my student who is blind being able to zip his coat, or one of my girls being able to stay awake for almost the entire day when she used to take multiple naps, or one starting to talk when he only whimpered last year.  These kids are hilarious and their grins get me every time.  Sometimes they even know when you need a snuggle and plop themselves in your lap or lead you to the rocking chair.

Truly, I will never get tired of talking about my kiddos, my little overcomers.

The Newlywed Pressure

6 months before we got married...we weren't even engaged, but I had babies on my brain!  I was convinced I wanted to wait a couple of months and then we would start trying.  The closer we got to the big day, the hotter my baby fever raged.  We had talked and decided we would wait about 6 months before we started trying.  Then some other big exciting things started happening, I got a new co-teacher, and started my second year of teaching.  Pretty early in the school year, I discussed with Dustin that I didn't want to start trying this school year.  My ladies are vocal about us waiting a while so we get to know each other, and this definitely appeased them to know we weren't going to purposely get pregnant this school year.

I just wanted to have a 'normal school year' where I wouldn't be planning a wedding, doing interviews for new co-teachers, or moving.  I just wanted to have a 'normal school year' where I'm teaching and continuing to understand and grow in my role as a wife.

Stacy and I have joked and seriously talked about when we are both 'planning' on getting pregnant.  We both realize God is in total control, but as teachers, and as co-teachers, we do have to think about these things!  :)  Neither one of us want to be pregnant at the same time with due dates being the same!

I've talked to Whit a lot lately about the pressure that is on.  She is feeling it where she works.  I'm glad my work is not bad at all!

But these past few months, I've grown in contentment.  I love our little family of me, him, and Bonnie.  I didn't expect to feel this contentment for this long, I thought my baby fever would continue to rage until I had a baby to hold in my arms.  Now, don't get me wrong, it flares up every now and again.

Having Bonnie in the house has been a new experience.  I have not had any bathroom time interrupted before.  Bonnie walks in and seems to question why I am there instead of the other way around.  She even thinks she needs to hang out in the bathroom during my showers.  When I get ready in the morning, she's on the counter meowing at me.  She begs for food all the time while I'm cooking, and always has to drink out of my water.  Many times, she thinks I'm not giving her enough attention, so she has to try to interrupt whatever I'm working on.

I think that having Bonnie around will suffice my baby fever for a little while yet!  :)

That Overused Word...BUSY

I feel like the term, 'I'm busy,' is the motto for adulthood.  I have been saying  it so much lately, and I have been putting off writing a blog for weeks!  I didn't post at all in October!  It is so crazy just how fast it went, but October was full and fun!

My kiddos at work keep me on my toes and I couldn't love my job any more than I do.  I am a practical zombie when I leave work so tired that I maybe only sing to one song the whole way home.  Stacy and I have been trying a new tactic to teach an equal amount and see all of our kids in their gen. ed. classrooms.  One week, I do all the teaching and she does all the observing and modifying as needed in gen. ed.  Then we switch.  It's been a strange, but good change with many benefits for all.  It's such a change in gears to go from teaching all day, to being on the other side and seeing what can be done for our students to get the most out of their gen. ed. time.

Some days are more draining and frustrating than others with a certain students' behaviors.  The baffling thing to us is how fast he can switch his emotions sometimes.  One day was rough for quite a long time and then at recess he finally came around.  At first he was grumping, we had ran some laps much to his dismay, and then a football came out, and slowly him and another student started running around, tackling one of my ladies and doing touchdown dances.  The laughter ringing around the playground that afternoon is something I will never forget.  My room is famous for bad dance moves, and I'm proud of it!

I've said it to the parents during conferences, to my principal, to my husband, to my friends, and practically everyone I talk to about my job; I can't believe I'm teaching the same kids!  They have truly come so far since May!  I have kids talking that didn't last year, adding when they hardly knew their numbers last year, writing when they didn't even hold a pencil correctly, and staying awake when I only saw them asleep in preschool.  I am the luckiest teacher to be able to have my kids for so many years and to be able to see the progress that I see.

Dustin and I have been busy ourselves with plowing under the garden with prayers for a better year next year, cutting wood for the coming winter, and doing little fixings to the house little bit at a time.  We are looking forward to redoing the bathroom floor and counter top in the coming weeks.  He helped me hang everything in my sewing room after Whitney helped me paint it a beautiful blue.

 I ADORE my new space, and so does Bonnie Blue.  Dustin and I are pretty sure it's her favorite room in the house, and if we can't find her, that's the place we've been looking lately.  I'm still slowly adding my things to the house.  My snowglobes finally revealed themselves when I decorated my sewing room.  Things got a little hairy when I tried to put them in a hutch with some of his decorative plates, but we worked through it!  :)

Between work and home, I have been terrible about correspondence with even my closest friends and family members.  I swore that wouldn't happen to me, but that was before working late, and figuring out our work schedule, and being a wife and a responsible adult.  I haven't even talked to our neighbors in weeks!  I am ready for Christmas break so I can get some correspondence done and catch up on things around the house.  But for now, I'll keep sewing little by little at night and talk when I feel up to it on my way home from work.  I think the pattern of my snoring says, 'busy, busy, busy...'

Jesus.Quilts.SpecialEd.

During the summer when I visited friends at camp, I picked up a brochure for the Crafting and Quilting Retreat.  I tried to get a few others to go with me, but I took a chance and went by myself.  That's right, I stepped out of my introvert zone, packed up my sewing machine, and headed to camp!  It was WONDERFUL!  I needed that weekend away, to be able to work on my own stuff, and just be back at camp again!

Friday night I talked to Camie and Sue over my pizza and watched in amazement at what the other ladies were already hard at work doing!  These ladies are serious!  They came with more than one project to work on and got most if not all of them done over the course of the weekend.  By the end, I got 11 postage stamp blocks finished to add to the ones I had at home.  There was so much talent in the room and it was so much fun to wander around and chat with the other ladies and check out their projects.  I called it a night about 10:30 and many of the ladies were still hard at work!

The next morning I had one block done before breakfast and shortly after chapel I headed to Lansing so I could stop at Horsefalls for oblong embroidery hoops...and so I could stop at The Skinny Dip for cheeseballs.  It was so different without the presence of Lu, Alison, Tums, and many others.  I headed back and after lunch I went for a trip on the zipline.  And then I got my own private trail ride...on a new to me horse, Rusty!  Loved catching up with Kenzie and getting the scoop on all the wedding planning!  It was so wonderful to be out in the sunshine for both these activities, but as far as the zipline goes, I'll be doing it in the dark from now on!  I got back to work at my machine.

It amazes me everywhere I go that I can connect so easily to people through my job.  I had so many conversations about my top 3 passions.  Jesus, quilting, and special education.  Some had children or grandkids that would be in my room if they were in my district.  Some were just so excited about my passion for these kids.  They offered prayer, and I kept listing specific requests.  It was such a freeing weekend.  With our small group, we were able to have deeper and longer discussions with each other.  One of our themes was thankfulness.  Of course one thing I listed was my kiddos, my ladies, and our own kind of normal!  God knew just what He was doing when he brought me to my job and the kiddos and ladies there. 

This weekend was so perfect combining all of my passions.  Forget the Love Languages.  Speak Jesus, quilts and special education to me and I'll be talking your ear off for possibly an entire weekend!

Toothpaste Talk

WOW!  I hadn't realized how long it's been since I've blogged until I struggled to come up with a title for this one.  It has been so busy with everything that time for blogging has been used for other things like keeping house, quilting, and staying late after work to get more things ready for my kiddos.

Marriage.  I keep asking how it's going and if I still like Dustin at this point.  We've been married almost 4 months, and in a good way, it feels like longer.  We've done so much in these past few months!  We went in for a reception where we had ours and that night, it seemed like yesterday they were announcing our names as the newly married couple!  We had a much more carefree night just keeping to ourselves and dancing the night away! 

Our garden has done so well this year with so many more crops!  I see next year being even better and us getting better at preserving our harvest to feed us, and to share with our friends and neighbors.  We've been rolling in zucchini and my work family got a good share of the bread that I was sick of eating and had already given plenty to our neighbors.

We do a fair amount of talking, but the funny thing is that we seem to do our most, and sometimes our most important talking when we're brushing our teeth.

"ghhTogayday, I ghhdiddhgh..."

"ghwha?"

You get the idea...  It's our own kind of normal.  And sometimes, Bonnie jumps right up on the counter and is in on our conversations too.  Just a little family time in the bathroom.  :)

And my kiddos do it too.  I walk over to throw something away, and one will be grunting at me and wanting me to watch him.  Another will be brushing as he looks outside and trying to point something out to me.

My kiddos are doing so well!  I can't believe how far my students have come from last year!  I keep telling Stacy that sometimes I can't believe they are the same kiddos I taught last year!  We are having so much fun with each and every one.  They are integrating into their grade level for parts of the day that are the most fit for each of them.  They are going to do spectacular this year!

Yesterday, I brought Taco John's back for lunch.  As soon as one of my little girls saw my oles, she got straight up and sat down at the table across from me and creeped on my lunch.  Kelsey, the speech teacher for my kids, grabbed her communication device and brought it over.  She said she wanted some, so giving her one, I helped her get it to her mouth and you should have seen those little dimples come out as she chomped on that ole!

I love what I do as we create our own kind of normal in our room.  I keep forgetting everything, but Stacy is there to remind me and find stuff when I forget where it got to.  Our ladies are just as wonderful as they were last year.  They are tough as nails with hearts of gold.

Life is good, God is great!  Harvest season is just around the corner with promised rides with Gramps in the combine, cool evenings with Dustin cutting wood, and a nephew on the way around my birthday.   

What it's Worth

I've been making a few trips to Hobby Lobby in the last few months to visit the framing department.  I've embroidered blocks, had them framed and then given them as gifts.  As they're filling out the paperwork, the most awkward question comes up.  "What is the price of your work?"  They need to fill this out for insurance, just in case.  I felt so put on the spot the first time they asked me.  I haven't sold anything before, what do I tell them?  I was really just using scrap floss that I already had lying around...  The block is no longer part of a set...  The first time I went Dustin went to and told me to really drive the price up.  He's pretty proud of my work.  My wedding gift was a quilt I had made and donated to an event for auction.  He bought it back. 

I'm getting more used to the question and am coming a little more prepared with an answer.  I've even thought about making things to sell like on Etsy or as people want things.  I've also had a dream since I started quilting at the age of 17 to quilt for people.  They would bring me quilt tops they have done themselves or found and I would quilt and bind it.  I've had that dream come true this summer when one of my ladies brought me a quilt someone on her husband's side had made, but never finished.  I love old hand-stitched scrap quilts.  It's where I got my start.  This quilt is absolutely stunning and it's still a little weird to put a price on it to charge her for my work.  Before I set a price, I researched a little and found that some Amish women charge $1.50 per yard of quilting thread.  It's just something nobody really does anymore and I based my price off of this finding.


It's still just weird even thinking about pricing some of my things to sell.  Quilts to me are of so much more worth than their monetary value. 

One of my most prized possessions is the 9 patch I finished for my Grandpa Goudy.  I remember the day he died.  All I wanted was to wrap that quilt around me.  The only problem was that it was at the Iowa State Fair.  And then when I was up there as an usher, I went into the 4-H building practically everyday just to look at it.  It has been out on my bed and now our guest bed ever since I brought it home.  I had this put together to hang in my sewing room as soon as it's painted.  Just a little reminder as to how I got my start as a quilter.


Then I have the jean quilt Grammy made me for a graduation gift.  Grandpa joked that it was so heavy I would have to call them from UNI saying I was trapped under it!  It kept me warm all those winter nights on the windy campus and kept me warm in my freezing little apartment.  I also hauled it to camp and Lu, Alison, and I laid on it many times in the middle of the Lodge lawn spending precious moments reading our Bibles and journaling.

I could keep going telling stories about all the quilts I've made or helped work on, but I'll save that for another blog!  :)  As long as I keep having friends to give my quilts to, a husband to brag about my work and cats to cuddle on them, I'll keep making quilts as long as the Lord will let me!  :)

Canned

Thankfully, this post has absolutely NOTHING to do with my employment, because let's be real.  I LOVE MY JOB!

This week has been the start of canning season!  Our garden is in full swing and full of zucchini, snap peas and green beans!  The tomatoes are coming on but still on the small side and we picked our first cucumber the other day. 

Last year was my first time helping with canning since I was a little girl at Donna and Errol's.  Talk about ambitious!  Errol had a huge garden and I remember the racks full of tomatoes and I also remember the shelves overflowing with jars of vegetables and meat in the basement.  I also remember the HEAT!  Donna didn't often run the air due to Errol's health and him going outside a lot.  She also didn't run it during canning season.  Peyton and I started helping but then it started to get too hot and we skedaddled to the living room to lay on the huge blue pillow.  We only helped with peeling the tomatoes after they had been given a steam bath.

With dreams of growing a bigger garden and plenty of jars from the wedding, I canned green beans yesterday for the first time.  There is something super peaceful about picking the beans while your husband puts cages on tomatoes a few rows away as the cats wander between.  Then the next relaxing stage is sitting on the deck snapping the beans while the cats are laying at your feet.  Next the steamy canning process begins when I have Bonnie Blue peeking over the bar top at what I'm doing and trying to distract me by being where she shouldn't be.  The process was actually a lot quicker than I thought it would be and before I knew it, I had seven quarts filled and I heard the pops of the lids giving me encouragement one at a time.

Today I beat the heat and headed out with the dog to do some more peaceful picking and got 4 more quarts canned and ready to join the others in the basement.  I love the feeling of being self-sufficient.  It's something Dustin and I talked about as a dream both of us shared when we first started dating.  Right now we're putting this up for us to use.  How long before we need to plant a larger garden and we're canning for our larger family?  I hope that someday our kids will have as much joy and satisfaction about putting their own food away that we have right now.

One Quick Trip

Another summer without working at Village Creek Bible Camp is coming to a close.  I knew I was going to visit this summer and Momma wanted to go to Horsefalls too.  We finally had a time to go and visit Alison and Autumn, and then it turned out Lu was going to be there too!  I don't think we could have accidentally planned that any better!

Momma and I started out Thursday morning and made it right about noon.  I walked to the dining hall and thought they had finished serving, but I got the school schedule and camp schedule mixed up!  That allowed for some time to visit and get practically tackled in the craft room by Lu!  It was so wonderful to see so many familiar faces and lots of new ones too!  I even saw many of my past campers!  I talked to many more people over lunch and Camie came and saw us all together and just said, "Everyone's together!  Such a happy time!" 

A part of the afternoon was spent hanging out in the craft room per usual when Lu and I worked there.  It was just like old times except I didn't have to do anything and that was weird!  I didn't have to help campers or other staff!  I was just there to visit.  I hardly knew what to do with myself!

 Momma and I then went to Lansing to go wander aimlessly around Horsefall's spending too much money, but having a great time!  I went with intentions of stocking up on embroidery blocks and floss and I sure didn't leave empty handed!  I'm excited to start on new sets and make more quilts!  We also visited the hardware store where we saw Laurie and Dani!  I missed that little girl!  We then headed for the usual day off pit stop at The Skinny Dip.  Dave brought Sam by too and then Laurie and Dani came back and then Alison, Lu, Tums, and Val joined up too!  It was such a cheerful trip filled with cheeseballs, chicken strips and ice cream!

Momma and I stayed in Decorah that night and after a couple games of Rummy it was time to call it a night!  The next morning we headed back to camp for more visiting and even a golf cart ride with Camie and a quick catch up conversation.  I have missed that place and those people!  After a quick lunch, it was time to head for home.  As I said goodbye to Tums and Alison the waterworks got turned on!  You would have thought I was saying goodbye after a whole summer instead of just an overnight trip!  They mean that much to me and I miss them that much because they don't live closer!  The good news is that I'm going back to camp in September as a camper!  I'm going for the Crafting and Quilting retreat!  :)  It's going to be perfect!  :)

Fireworks with the Flower Girl

Dustin and I went back to the basics this weekend when we joined the crew at Holiday Lake.  His parents and 3 other couples have a lot set up with their campers.  Dustin and I took a tent and set up across the trickling crick from them and blew up our air mattress.   Three nights on that thing and I will tell you loud and clear that I have not missed that at all since I moved out of my apartment.

The weekend was so much fun!  As I brought two armloads of blankets I hear my father-in-law ask, "You think you'll need all those?"  I used all but one on that first night.  It was a little chilly!  On the 4th, Dustin and I fixed breakfast on the grill and changed into our suits and headed to the beach.  Dustin sprayed me with 100SPF, but after a long day in the sun, you can easily tell where he missed.  My hip is still burning like crazy, but most every place else is still as pale as can be!  I came to check on Bonnie Blue and then I was headed back to the lake.  It is always such a fun time laughing, sitting around the fire, and driving the Rangers around.  We all loaded up the golf carts and Rangers and drove Lakeshore.  We make our own fun!  We stopped at a dock for a while to get out and the kids in tow threw rocks in the lake before we loaded back up and drove some more.  It is always such a hoot!

Saturday, Dustin and I woke up to rain falling.  Inside the tent it sounded like a continuous stream of Black Cats going off.  We headed for home pretty quick to clean up, eat breakfast and play with Bonnie before the rain quit and we headed back.  Clint and Kathy came down with Edy.  Edy was the flower girl in our wedding.  We always have a great time when all of us get together!  Edy played with the other kids for a while before we headed to the beach to stake out our spot for fireworks.  I think I could've eaten my weight in Kathy's cheesy salsa dip while we waited!  There was a boat parade and then we waited for it to get dark.  We could not believe how many people were still swimming in that cold water that we hardly got in the day before!  It finally got dark enough for the fireworks show to start.  Edy was cold so she sat wrapped in a blanket beside me.  It was an AWESOME show!  Edy and I discussed our favorite type and color of fireworks while sitting mesmerized by the display!  After the show we had more fun eating BBQ chicken and garlic bread, laughing and talking, and sitting by the fire.  Edy was going to stay in the tent with Dustin and I, but didn't make it and ended up falling asleep in the camper with Bella.  Truly, I didn't even know what time Dustin came to bed until this morning.  Him and Clint went driving around the lake with Steve and Shawn.  This morning it was told they quit at 3am!  Too late for this girl!

Before breakfast, Dustin, Edy and I went for a drive around the lake.  Dustin and I like to pick out our houses for 'someday'.  I told Edy about this and she started picking out houses for us!  We also acted like the Ranger was a roller coaster and were screaming by 9am!  After breakfast and goodbyes, it was time to pack up and come home.  It was a wonderfully long, happy weekend.  The only disappointing this is never getting out new tent back in the bag it came in...

Honeymoon Hideaway

It's been a few days since we've been back from our wonderful honeymoon.  The mountains were beautiful, but the fields of corn were a welcome sight!  We left earlier than planned on a Thursday morning and headed to Paducah, Kentucky.  I took plenty of water with me to sip on the way.  A couple hours before we arrived, Dustin looks at me and says, "You better slow down on your drinking, I'm not stopping until we get to Pinocchio!"  "You mean Paducah?"  I wanted to stop at the National Quilt Museum while I was close.  Dustin even enjoyed it too!  There were some really great wildlife quilts.  I asked how quilts get into the museum and I know I'm not up to that level yet, but maybe someday...  I also talked to the curator of the museum about a quilt I'm going to finish for one of my ladies.  Nobody knew the pattern so I figured I could ask the experts.  She brought out this encyclopedia of patterns, that included their publishing date, the magazine or paper it was published in, and the various names it was published under.  It was very fascinating and I really enjoyed my time there!

The next day we headed to Nashville.  We had a hotel close to the Opry.  We did so much while we were there!  There were so many people when we went downtown for the Country Music Hall of Fame, the American Picker store, the bars/live music and even when we went to the Opry Mills Mall right next to the Opry.  It was very fun not to have any really strict agenda and we could just pick things to do and go do them.  We also only ate at 2 chain restaurants the entire trip! 

Saturday night we went to a Grand Ole Opry show and I finally saw Little Jimmy Dickens!  We did a backstage tour the next day, but we were not able to go on stage and stand in the famous circle which was a little disappointing.

On Sunday night we headed to the Wild Horse Saloon and did one of my favorite things...  LINE DANCING!!!  This place is famous for it and had a huge dance floor and live music broken up by lessons. 

Monday we headed to our cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains!!!  It was FABULOUS!  My aunt had mentioned this place that she had stayed and was able to get us a pretty great deal.  We slowly drove the main drag through Pigeon Forge before getting off the main road and headed for our cabin.  We loved it and the man I started the honeymoon with was not the one I ended up heading back for Iowa with.  Dustin was not excited to travel and take off of work.  He didn't like all the people in Nashville, but 5 minutes after reaching the cabin, he started planning next year's trip!

We stayed one whole day at the cabin without traveling and without seeing anyone!  Between hot tub trips and playing cards, the day was done and we were eating steaks for supper.  We also explored Pigeon Forge for a day and then Gatlinburg for another day.  In Pigeon Forge, we went to the Hatfield and McCoy's Dinner Show.  So much good food was eaten and we watched a very funny show!

While we visited Gatlinburg, we both tried moonshine, I tried the much weaker and flavored stuff, and we did a ski lift to a scenic overlook at the top of the mountain.  It was high and that lift went basically straight up in the air!  Dustin was a little fearful, especially when it stopped while we were in the middle...  I just laughed at him!

It was a spectacular view!  We really had a wonderful time, and according to Dustin, we're going back next year!  He hardly left the hot tub, so basically, we'll be getting one of those soon too!

Bonnie Blue

Ask any of my closest friend and they will all tell you that I am an introvert.  But... Alison and Lu will probably charge me with treason after this comment...  I think I'm becoming an extrovert.  I could really tell while living in my apartment for the last 9 months.  It was hard to be by myself and go places by myself and I loved being at work with my kiddos and ladies.

After Dustin and I got engaged I started mentally setting up my sewing room and thinking about projects I would work on over the summer.  I was originally very excited for not only sewing projects, but setting up the house and going on our honeymoon.  Then I started thinking about how lonely this summer could be out at the house all day by myself with my husband and neighbors at work.  I thought about this a few times, but never really consciously prayed about it.

About a week before our wedding, Dustin caught one of our tomcats with a kitten in his mouth.  With a call to the vet, we realized becoming kitten parents would be too much work right then.  He put it back across the neighbor's fence in hopes the mother would find it. 

Last Sunday, while I was doing dishes at 9 right before we were getting ready for bed, Dustin came in the house bearing a tiny little kitten that had been in a skiff with our tomcat.  Dustin had found this little one in the middle of the driveway.  I heated up some milk and ever so slowly got her to eating something.  She was so shaken and fragile that I had to hold her up so she was able to eat.  We snuggled for a little while before we put her in a box for the night.  I got the okay to take her to school and take care of her there.  By the end of Monday, we were getting her hooked on wet cat food and she was starting to explore.  Now, she's bouncing around and getting in to everything!

The ladies were all exclaiming over her blue eyes and so I pulled her name from Scarlett's daughter in Gone with the Wind which is one of my favorite books.  Bonnie Blue now has a vet appointment and will become our house cat.

Every morning, Dustin gets up and if Bonnie hasn't already made it into our bed, he puts her with me to snuggle for a while.  I just have a feeling I won't be sleeping in too much this summer, but that's alright with me. 

It has been a huge blessing to have Bonnie here with me and I know that I won't be quite as lonely as I thought I would be this summer.  God is so cool in how he answers prayers that we didn't even consciously pray.

'Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  -Psalm 37:4'

Wedding Weekend

WOW!  I can finally say that I am a married woman!  It has been an exhausting exhilarating weekend and start to our marriage.  I had a wonderful weekend and it could not have been better!

On Friday during rehearsal, we realized that Blake drove the peddle tractor better when he could run over the flowers, so for Saturday, we rearranged the order of him and Edy.  It went over so well!  Rehearsal went very quickly and well!  We all then went to my parents for a good grilling and hanging out.  It was so chill and wonderful for both of our families to hang out like this just before the wedding.  To end the night, Abbey did a trial run of my make-up...don't ask.  And we also played Just Dance Broadway!  It could not have been a better night as a single lady!

The next morning went so smoothly!  My last morning as a single lady I crawled into bed with Momma and told her my throat hurt.  I had been steadily getting a cold and Saturday was the worst.  Momma and I went to get our hair all pretty and I went wearing the shirt Dustin wore on our first date.  My hair looked and felt wonderful!  Thank you to Lori Yates!  We rushed back home to get my make-up done and my dress and boots on.  As I was sitting getting my make-up done, the ladies had put on 'Beauty and the Beast' which is so fitting since Belle is my favorite princess!  It was then time for some pictures with the ladies and my parents!  I did forget to get one with Ruby...

We then went to the church where I hid in the basement for the next hour and a half.  Eryn and Gwen helped out so much by getting they guys and others gathered for pictures and handing out all the flowers to everyone.  Eryn was also excited about bouncer duty because I only allowed certain people to be able to see me before the ceremony started.

And then it was time.

I walked up following all my ladies in their beautiful dresses meeting up with their men dressed so dapper.  And I linked arms with Daddy.  He was wearing my Grandpa Goudy's tie that matched perfectly.  I was wearing my Grandpa Goudy's baby ring that he gave me when I was born.  It was my little way to have both him and Grandma with me on my wedding day.  Each pair walked down, then Edy and then Blake drove down.  And then it was my turn.  Everyone stood up and then I was having a dream fulfilled by walking down the aisle and having my wedding in my beloved Lancaster Christian Church.  I started to tear up as Daddy handed me away, but I held up very well.  Matt prayed and I remember Blake sitting off to the side and he said 'Amen' rather loud.  The ceremony was quick and perfect.  I want to give a big shout out to Matt Pfad for performing such a wonderful first marriage ceremony!  You did a great job and I couldn't have asked for anything more!

We walked down the aisle to 'Lovebug' by George Strait and I said thank you to everyone in the receiving line and then, my voice was gone.  That cold took me out and I still had the bus ride and reception to get through on a crackling fading voice...

After taking some more pictures-a big shout out to Andy Ott for taking our photos- we hopped on the bus and headed to the Copper Lantern for some pool and shuffleboard after a picture at the fountain.  We also had to make a stop for kettle corn on the way out of town.

The moments of the reception I will never forget are the wonderful speeches that were given by Rach, Whit, and Chase, all the dancing and all the people.  It turns out that somehow our caketopper fell off and the man's head snapped off...  It's all fixed now!  You bet we both smeared that frosting all over each others' faces!

I danced with Daddy to 'Happy Trails' by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans.  This song goes back to my childhood driving around with him in the old brown pickup singing this song.  It was such a sweet happy dance!  We also had the Kearney 'Family Tradition' dance where they all circle the bride and groom and dance in and out and take turns dancing with each.  During the dollar dance, I danced with so many men that attended and some of my ladies too!  Steve, my father-in-law, joined too and hogged me for a while trying to teach me some new steps.  He might have to reteach me in the future!  I also had to steal a baby and dance with little Mason Mattingly!  He's the little boy of one of Dustin's groomsmen.  Micheal Jones also danced with me for 2 dances and twirled me twice so he could be better than his older brother, Matthew.  Also, the bartender that night was the sister to one of my students.  I almost cried telling her how proud I am of her sister!  What an emotional night!

When we left, I cried these pitiful wimpy sad sobs the whole way home because my throat hurt.  The sobbing didn't help one bit.  It was a wonderful night and ride home in the '94 pickup.  A perfect ending to a perfect day!

The next day we joined my family for breakfast and then cleaned the hall a little more before heading home to open all of our wonderful gifts.  We are so incredibly blessed by all of our friends and families.  Our day could not have been possible without each person that made a contribution.

Thank you from Mr. and Mrs. Dustin Schuett

Swimming Bag Essentials

This week has been such a blast! I don't think I've said, 'I love my job,' enough!  I do and I'm not going anywhere for a good long while!

With no school on Monday, Tuesday decided to feel like Monday.  The day FLEW by!  I spent most of the morning at a different school observing a student that I will have next year.  It will be a great year next year, I'm already calling it!  :)  By the time I got back, it was already lunchtime!  The afternoon flew just as fast and for center time, we let the kids drive tractors through brown paint to make muddy tracks around our big, red barn!  It was a total blast and I'm not telling how many kids left with paint on their clothes...

I took a bunch of things like hay, straw, grain, an ear tag, twine, pictures and a bottle for the kids to explore and learn about.  I was told every student tried to but the bottle in their mouths!  At least they're generalizing a concept!  We explored these items by smelling and feeling them.  Not too many of them appreciated the good, wholesome, dirty scent these items carry.

Yesterday, the kids were sooooooo hyper!  All of them were just plain wound for sound!  It was so much fun when one of my paras took a couple of kids out to jump in the puddles and dance in the rain.  One of my students even threw rubber ducks out the open window so they could enjoy the puddles of fun!  It was hysterical when we discovered what had happened!

Today was a little bit of a tougher day as we look ahead to next year.  I had one of my students visit his new school.  He is going to be a 5th grader next year and I don't think any of us are quite ready for it.  Right after lunch, we got the kids ready for swimming.  We had one tiny little issue.  Two students were a little loose and the swimmers don't fit.  Something new to add to a swim bag besides the suit and towel?  A swimmer and duct tape for extra measure!  We had a blast!  I kept getting pulled and pushed of an inter tube on purpose and it is so much fun to just spend time with these kids and make them laugh!  We always have such a great time when we are in the water!

I could not think of a more perfect job for me than the one I have.  Something new happens every single day and it is a joy to go in to work every morning!  It is a little sad to think there are only about 6 weeks left of my first year, but at the same time, I sure am looking forward to summer vacation!

The Cowboy Rides Away

A dream of mine came true 2 years ago when I saw George Strait for the first time with my family.  IT WAS AWESOME!  Last year when he announced it would be his last year to tour, I was saddened, but it was a good choice for him to make.  I screamed listening to the radio when it was announced he was coming back to Des Moines.  I knew I had to get tickets!  I did, and last night, Dustin finally got to enjoy his Christmas present!

Knowing from last time, I knew to get there early!  We got to our parking spot about 4:30 and headed to Legend's to grab a bite to eat.  We got there just in time!  When we got to our table, there were floods of people crossing the street to come in.  A couple of BBQ Bacon Cheeseburgers later, we were headed up the street to Wells Fargo.  There were so many people, so many boots, so many hats, big belt buckles, and plaid.  I was just this side of heaven!  We found our seats right away at 6 and had an hour and a half before the show started.  We people watched and it took me about 20 minutes at the merchandise table to get a shirt.  About 2 minutes after I got back to my seat, the lights dimmed and out stepped Ronnie Dunn!

He was very good!  He sang some good ol' Brooks & Dunn songs as well as some of his new solo songs.  He talked about another favorite of mine, Reba.  It was just such a classic kind of night!  Forget those shows with the young crowd of beer drinking 20 somethings!  Give me the good mix of everybody having fun and talking between generations during intermission!  While we 'patiently' waited for George, we talked to the couple in front of us.  It was very fun!

And then it was time.

The lights dimmed.  The crowd started to cheer.  My mouth hurt from smiling.  My thumb was poised perfectly to capture him walking out of that tunnel.  My throat was cleared and my lips were licked and ready to scream.

And then he came out in all his classy brilliance!  He is such a gentleman and just a class act!  He flashed his striking smile around the arena and took up his guitar and pick and stepped up the microphone.  The cheers were deafening and I was on cloud 9!

George is just so real.  His songs still sound country and I just can't get enough of his voice mixed with the steel guitar.  Most people would never guess that the steel guitar is my favorite instrument.  It's just such a cool sound!  I could have sat there all night and just listened to him.  One of my favorite songs is Amarillo By Morning.  Ronnie Dunn came back out to sing with him for that.  You could tell they really enjoyed singing with each other.

Again, George had 3 pages of songs to sing and it could have lasted longer.  He left, but after a couple of suspenseful minutes he returned for an encore.  The saddest moment of the whole night was the last song.  I knew as soon as The Cowboy Rides Away started, he would be done for the night.  I was trying not to cry.  This man is such a legend and he's the King of Country Music for crying out loud!  I saw some ladies who couldn't hold back. 

It was an incredible night and I am so lucky to have a dream come true for the second time!  This was also Dustin and I's first concert together!  It was just an incredible experience to watch the Cowboy ride away!

Spitting off the Tower

Last Friday, I took a day off!  It was wonderful!  Two years ago at least, I promised Lu Bird that I would come up to Sioux Falls, SD for her senior art show.  She was basing it around childhood memories and titling her paintings after a song or quote from a Disney movie.  The best part?  She did a painting of her and I. 

I headed up to Ackley to ride with her dad and grandma.  It was a long drive, but it was exciting to see everything and just get a good roadtrip in!  We got there after many updates to Lu about how many miles until I could see her!  When I got there, I gave her a HUGE hug and almost cried I was so happy to see her!  We then finished getting ready for the show and then it was time for her big moment!

I was so proud that I was in tears practically the whole time she was talking!  She has worked so hard for this event and it is so easy to see how talented and how much passion she has.  And if that isn't enough, she's been working on the practice rooms too!  They all have a different theme and are all simply wonderful and astounding!

I mean, I had been bragging about this adventure for around 2 weeks, and it was all better than I ever expected it to be!

It was so good just to have girl time and to forget work, wedding planning, and even Dustin for a short time...just don't tell him that!  :)

Saturday morning was another wonderful adventure!
I haven't been to Sioux Falls since I was around 13.  It was just as captivating at 23!  We had loads of fun and just laughed our heads off as we tried to be adventurous and climb rocks and stuff!


We also acted like 12 year old boys and spit off the tower overlooking the falls.  I know, my mother would be proud!  :)  I also raced Lu down to the bottom by taking the stairs as she took the elevator.  We are never boring!  We also went to the Butterfly House and Aquarium!  I was wimpy about touching a sting-ray and shark, and I also have never flinched so much in my life!

 
We also just had a wonderful girl night going to a play called Pilgrim's Progress and they did very well!  Then it was time for popcorn and a movie with Lu's roommates. 

Sunday came all too soon with an early church service and then the trip back.  It was such a windy and rainy trip back, but it was worth it!  I have not had such a relaxing weekend in a long time and it was wonderful to do it with such a wonderful woman who can say the same thing!

Independence

With my kiddos, we always try to get them to be as independent as possible.  The fewer prompts to do something the better.  They are still rather dependent on all of us adults in the room, but at their age, it's perfectly alright.  I've seen them grow up and become more independent in the last few months and it's scary to think that my first year of teaching is almost over.

I've been thinking about independence in my own life.  I've been thinking a lot about how much I have changed, grown up, and become an adult in the last year.  A lot of my friends are still living the college dream and forget that I go to bed at a rather early time....  *cough, cough Lu-Bird!*

Last year, I had just taken Dustin home to meet the parents.  This year, I'm having bridal showers for our upcoming wedding.

Last year, I was rounding out my last month of student teaching.  This year, I'm rounding out my last couple of months of teaching my first year.  And that in itself has been an astounding adventure!

Last year, there were school bills.  This year, it is rent and a car payment.

Last year, I was worried about what to buy for my classroom.  This year, I still am, but I'm also buying things like a wedding ring, and things for a home.

Last year, I had been dating Dustin for only a few months.  This year, I'll be marrying him real soon!

Last year, I moved 3 times.  This year, I will ONLY MOVE 1 TIME!!!!  This is one that excites me the most!  I'm so done with moving and can't wait to unpack that last box in a permanent place!

Last year, I was still in denial that I would ever begin to lose touch with my closest friends.  This year, I'm realizing how time consuming a job, planning a wedding, and having a small amount of free time to myself eats up any extra time I have.  And sleep is very important!

Last year, I was the one being interviewed.  This year, I was part of an interview on the other side of the table.

I feel myself advocating for myself in such a bigger way than last year.  I'm taking care of things I've never had to take care of before, and I know I can do it!  Given all of the things I've discovered I am able to do and take care of now, I know that I will only learn how to do more as a wife and home maker.  Yeah for independence!  :)

Small town, hole in the wall weekend

This weekend I went home!!!  It was a much needed getaway to get things done for the wedding, celebrate Daddy's birthday and to just simply relax with the family!

Our first hole in the wall was the Mexican restaurant in Oskaloosa.  We celebrated Daddy's birthday with margaritas, chips and salsa, great food and good conversation.  And a birthday song in Spanish!  :)

Saturday, Mom and I headed into town to finalize flowers for the wedding.  It had been a little while since I have talked to Mom about so much and we talked the whole day!  The flowers are all set to go and it is becoming more and more real that I am getting married!!!  :)  We then headed to Ottumwa to do a little shopping after stopping at our favorite hole in the wall for a Canteen!  My belly was soooooo happy!  :)  After a little shopping, we stopped at our other favorite hole in the wall for some ice cream at Grahm's!  Oh, my belly was pretty close to heaven at that point!  Mom and I continued to talk and laugh until we got home.  Basically the minute we walked in the door, we turned on the country music and got to cooking in the kitchen for Dad's birthday supper with everyone coming over.  Those are the best afternoons it feels like.  Soon, Dad finally had time to take me out to see my new baby calf!  Cinnamon had a baby girl on Thursday afternoon.  I named her Clarabelle after the Mickey Mouse character.  She's a little sweetheart with a pretty protective mother.  Ruby was tied up during this and she barked the WHOLE time she was so jealous!

Everyone came over for supper and I got to talk to Blake about being my ring bearer and wearing boots and a flower like the big boys.  He is going to be the cutest!  There was so much laughter ringing through the house as we ate good fish...even my grandmother ate Dustin's fish again!  Once the crowd thinned, the cards came out.  there was even more laughter and rib poking as we played some cut throat Oh, Heck!  We then went with Karen and Michael to another hole in the wall place that was a bar where they did some karaoke!  Dustin even sang with me!  We sang 'Jackson' by Johnny and June.  It was so much fun!

Today was so good!  It is always so refreshing to go 'home' to Lancaster for church.  I have so many people that genuinely ask about me that have really missed me being home.  We sang 'Sanctuary' that brought tears to my eyes thinking about my homesickness for camp.  We also sang 'How Great Thou Art!' which is one of my favorite hymns of all time.  It also brought tears flooding out of my eyes.  God is just so good!  After service, Dustin and I went to the front of the church to talk about things for the wedding.  It's crazy how real it is all becoming!  After a quick lunch with Mom and Peyton, we headed in to the bowling alley with the church.  It was a blast!  I stunk it up, but it was fun and filled with laughter anyway!  All too soon, it was time to head back north.  But no worries, just a couple of weeks, and I will be back and ready to see my baby Clarabelle again!  :)

7 Month Sidekick

Yesterday was rough.  I had to say a temporary goodbye to my wonderful, amazing, passionate, caring, continue to fill in with positive adjectives, co-teacher, Cindy.  I just finished a reference letter for her as well.  Monday will be completely different, but it will be a new beginning because I will have a new co-teacher, Ann.

Anyway, Cindy is truly an amazing woman.  We have been sidekicks this year and there weren't too many times that one of us was walking down the halls without the other.  Cindy loses practically everything, and I was always finding whatever she lost.  We would always have these mini celebrations when she was the finder of something though.  In our room, we laugh a lot.  We laugh at a funny thing a student says, we laugh in our many conversations, and we laugh at ourselves.  All of this laughter keeps us sane, as crazy as that sounds.

Cindy always called us her angels, and I'm sure it will be told all over Ohio as well!  She says we were all hand-picked for this room and for each of those kids.  I prayed over applications.  I didn't even apply for this job.  I'm the poster child for being hand-picked for this room.  It's just astounding how God works.  Cindy told me stories about her ebbing fear of not getting anyone for the position.  She shared with me all the times of prayer she's spent over the kids and about this move.

I cried on Friday, we all cried on Friday.  It's so hard to let Ohio have her, but at the same time, I know she will do great things, because working with her every day, I know she's not done teaching, and the field of education should not be ready for her to retire!

Teacher Clothing Slump

If I've said it once, I've said it one hundred times.

"I did not become a teacher for the dress code."

My legs look and feel better in my favorite worn out pair of blue jeans.  I move more comfortably in my favorite old t-shirt...probably a George Strait concert tee.  My feet are more comfortable bare, or in my broken in old boots.  I long for spring to wear these things more and to be outside.  I can hardly wait to get married and move back to the country and out of this apartment.

Lately I've been wearing the basic 5 outfits practically every week.  I've gone boring in my wardrobe.  It's true.  

Doing laundry at Dustin's house means that I'm prone to forget things there.  A couple of weeks ago I had to turn around after supper at his parent's to go get my clothes.  This week, I didn't think of them until I was almost home.  Opps.  

Doing that forced me to put together a different outfit for today.  I didn't have my North Face or my black fleece to throw on either.  I had to settle for a cardigan only.  I did get comments on my cute top underneath my cardigan though! 

I want to wear my dresses.  I want to wear skirts.  I want to go shopping.

Lately, life has been about as random as this blog happens to be...

96 days

Lately, I have been a very inconsistent blogger.  Adulthood has come on a little stronger than I expected, but I feel like I'm keeping up on the need to things.

Work has been crazy, but amazing at the same time!  Two more weeks and Cindy will be gone to join her husband in Ohio.  She will be sorely missed by everyone.  She is an incredible person and an incredible mentor.  I have laughed and learned so much in the months we've worked together.  Not even a year since my interview process, I was helping to interview for someone to take Cindy's spot.  It was a very strange feeling that I could really be that old and capable to be sitting there, interviewing someone and be prepared to offer or deny a job.  The kids are getting just as antsy as us adults without being able to go outside.  They are so wonderful and they've come so far since I met them all in August.  We've had 2 of 3 IEP meetings that involve transitions.  It's so sad to think about having kids leave my classroom already to go to 5th grade, but it's happening and I really am happy for them!

Wedding planning is going just swimmingly!  I already have my dress in my closet!  Invitations are here, I ordered my boots the other night, hair appointment is set, the girls are getting their dresses in, and I am keeping my something blue a secret because it is AWESOME!  Since Lu Bird will not be able to be with me that day, I put her in charge of my something blue and she hit it right on the head!  I'm so excited for it!  :)  There is 96 days until the big, busy day of my wedding!  I am getting very excited for it and so far I have only had a couple of super stressful situations involving booking the reception hall, but we're all good now!  :)  I'm just so looking forward to living out a dream I've had since I was little of getting married to the man of my dreams in my home church at Lancaster.

I've been busy trying to get Dustin to help me clean his house now rather than trying to clean while we have a bunch of new things and my things in the way.  It's quite the process and has caused a few arguments, but also some quality bonding time and laughter.  It will be an adjustment to both of us.  He has been living by himself for 5 years.  I haven't lived in one place for more than a few months in about 4 years.  We'll be having a garage sale this summer!  We took some time and put adulthood aside and played in the snow yesterday.  We threw snowballs, tackled each other and tried to see who could run farthest through snow drifts before falling over.  It was so much fun and I think we fell in love all over!  :)

I went home over the weekend for the first time in about a month.  It was so refreshing to be home!  I got to play with my Ruby, get new mud boots, hay cows with Dad, play cards with everyone, meet Peyton's new girl, and worship with my church family.  It's like I get my own homecoming ceremony every time!  It's so wonderful to be asked about and fussed over, hugged, and laughed with.  We also sang some of my favorite hymns in church on Sunday.  I managed to get my new car stuck in Gramps' driveway.  He blew right around my car with his 4 wheel drive truck, but he later helped me dig it out and changed my plates for me.  He's a good man!  I also very excitedly found out that I will be an aunt for the third time this October!  :)  Congratulations to Abbey and Tim, and please hold out until the 28th?  ;)

Even with all the whirlwind of activities that are going on in this season of my life, I am reminded that no matter what goes on, we don't have to worry.  God is always watching over us.

I sing because I’m happy,

I sing because I’m free,

For His eye is on the sparrow,

And I know He watches me

2nd Rate Placement

A year ago today I started student teaching.  I was nervous.  I was in a student teaching center that I didn't want to be in in the first place and then this placement was given to me after the first one failed.  Clearly it didn't seem like God was listening to my prayers that I had been praying to Him asking Him to take me back home to Sigourney.

I was warmly welcomed and overwhelmed by the newness of it all.  I met so many new people that it took me a couple of weeks to remember them all.  I also met Dustin that day.  Honestly, I thought his name was Justin until a few days before he asked me out.

As my time wore on in 3rd grade some days were better than others.  That happens no matter what your situation is.  Dustin and I were flirting in the halls and talking after school.  Finally after 3 weeks of talking to Whit about the cute janitor at school, he got up the nerve to ask me out.  We were both nervous.  We joke about it now.  He was tired of getting shot down, I had never been asked out in this straightforward of a manner.

As I got closer to the kids, Dustin and I got closer too.  Early on I decided that my 2nd rate placement wasn't as bad as I feared it would be, and I cried when it was done.

I can't even begin to count up how many prayers really were answered by me being in that placement.  I had been praying over my placements for months.  God saved me from a lot when the first placement fell through.  He gave me soooooo many learning experiences with my 3rd graders, and I also met my soon to be husband, who I had been praying for for a very, very long time.

I've told Dustin many times how I wasn't even supposed to be at that school.  I should have never of met him.  He just keeps telling me, "Thank God you came."  And I do, very often thank God for that turn of events that I didn't understand a year ago.