Thursday, December 21, 2006

I...

found this meme on a fellow blogger's page. i thought it was neat to consider different aspects of my personality, my beliefs and my preferences. hope it makes you think about all the different 'things' you are. :)

I am...a twenty-something woman who says"Golly gee" (though this 'slang' would otherwise indicate I should be a senior citizen).
I believe...that there is a purpose for my life - and I try to fulfill it everyday.
I consider...myself blessed.
I desire...to be able to speak up for myself when I feel a little walked upon. :/
I enjoy...the crisp air and rich colors of fall. (Too bad it is almost over.)
I forget...that the little things are just that...little.
I giggle...at animals dressed in clothing.
I hope...that I am making a difference in the lives of my twenty little kiddos.
I identify...with those who feel a 'tug' to serve
I jump...at an opportunity to visit with those I hold near and dear.
I know...how to make a yummy Jell-O pudding bundt cake.
I love...knowing that what I am doing matters to some special kids - especially on the days when I want to run away from it all.
I make...my husband laugh - and he does the same for me.
I never...want to hurt those I love.
I only...want to be a source of joy and love in the lives of those I interact with.
I plan...to travel - anywhere, everywhere - we're just waiting on the finances to support our journeys. :)
I question...if I am always fulfilling the plan God has for me.
I rely...on others for validation - and am realizing that the 'approval' of others isn't as important as what I might think is best.
I smile...when I look at pictures, whether they were taken yesterday or twenty years ago.
I think...wearing beanies, scarves, mittens, sweaters, etc. is absolutely wonderful - and wish I could do it more often.
I understand...my parents more and more as I get older - and become more and more thankful for them.
I vow...to love my husband through it all until the day I die.
I wish...I wasn't so prone to the 'waterworks' - happy, sad, frustrated, angry - it doesn't matter, they'll come anyways.
I (e)xamine...how I can be a more effective teacher to my struggling students.
I yearn...to have a deeper relationship with my sister.
I zip...around town in my lovely champagne Camry. (lame - i know :))

Monday, December 18, 2006

new goodies :)

after some lenghty planning and budgeting, matt and i braved the malls this past weekend to get christmas gifts for everyone in our families. all has been purchased (or ordered), so we just need to buckle down and wrap everything up nicely.
while this is a season of giving, i was a wee bit selfish and gave to myself a little bit by redeeming a macy's gift card i was given for my birthday a few months ago. with all of these wonderful holiday sales, it made sense to maximize the gifted money. :)

i was tickled by some of the great things i found and decided to share them. matt tried his best to be enthusiastic, but cute clothes and shoes don't really get him going. so, below are the (all on sale!) items i found during our weekend excursion to the oakridge mall:

*aerosoles mary-janes ~ these are the most comfy brand of shoes and i adore them.



*cheesy red christmas socks with a clumsy penguin. bright, colorful, patterned and/or cute socks are my favorite - and now i have a new pair to celebrate this season. :)

*i'm probably to old to be wearing this and it should be in the closet of a 15-year-old girl - but i thought it was funny. and, i've been told, an accurate advertisement of my skills as a hugger.


*last, but not least, i found some cute flat keds. i wear boring black flats/loafers to work almost every day and figured i could jazz up an outfit or two with some fun shoes.
i hope that you are all having a wonderful monday and enjoying the last few days before christmas. it's getting colder (or as cold as it can get in the bay area) which makes it feel a little more christmasy and wintery. i might actually get to utilize the scarves/beanies/gloves i've had in storage since london. :)
p.s. to those who read this blog: expect more mundane and silly posts over the next few weeks. i am on winter break until january 3rd (yay!) which means that i will have lots of bored afternoons while my husband works hard.

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

swell

this is my husband.
have i mentioned how swell he is? :)
currently, i am in the midst of a doozy of a week where there seem to be too any things to accomplish and just not enough time to do it all.
while i could wallow in my stress and feel incredibly overwhelmed, i have been blessed to have this man by my side to help and take some of the load off.
he has made us dinner. yum.
he snagged me some delicious (and free) candy from work. double yum.
he saved me a parking spot right next to our apartment so i wouldn't have to trek it to the faraway spaces tomorrow morning.
he made little paper books for my students to read.
he gives wonderful end-of-the-day hugs.
he will be helping me wrangle my students into costumes for our holiday program tomorrow night.
he will help me with anything i need - whether i ask him to or not.
i just feel so lucky and blessed by him and wanted to share it with the bloggie universe.
i heart him. sappy, i know...but whatever. :)
hope you are all feeling blessed by those in your life that make things a little easier and fills your life with love and happiness.

Saturday, December 02, 2006

summary and a meme

the last week or so has been full. thankfully, it made the trip from monday to friday seem to fly by. but with the fullness of the week came some big things.
in summary:
to begin, thanksgiving was wonderful. i got some one-on-one time with my sister. i got to see my family. we ate lots of yummy food. hooray for the holidays.
matt's grandpa and step-grandma came out from texas for thanksgiving. the day after thanksgiving, he passed out in their hotel room and lost a lot of blood. the doctors weren't sure what the problem was but realized that a blood vessel in his stomach had burst. he spent the last week in the hospital and was released yesterday. he still isn't 100%....so there's some waiting to see how things will pan out.
matt's brother james has suffered from seizures since infancy. they used to be managed fairly well by a cocktail of medications. lately, the meds are not working as they should and he is experiencing clusters of seizures every four to five days. he's knocked out with valium every time (which takes him a few days - like 4 or 5 - to recover from). matt and his family is worried about what this will mean for james' future - so everyone is waiting to see what the epilepsy specialist can suggest.
so, after all that, things are on the upswing in the roberts' family health department. it hasn't been a huge toll on us - but it's been something on our minds. hopefully, things can be resolved soon for everyone.
as for our life...being back at work has been kinda crazy. i have realized that the kids seem to have forgotten all of our classroom rules and expectations over the holiday break, so the last few days have been dedicated to re-training them and trying to keep my sanity. :) matt and i are doing well. he is off building a wall in the garage of our friend's new condo. i was invited to partake in the festivities but declined. lame as it may be, i wanted to veg at home and i also have no clue how to put up a wall and figured i would be of little help.
since I am too lazy/wiped out to post anything else of substance right now, here is a fun little survey thingy for your amusement...or mine...or whatever.

One word. No explanation.
1. Yourself: unsure....(sorry to break the rule...but i don't know how to describe myself in one word - lame, i know.)
2. Your partner: swell :)
3. Your hair: dyed
4. Your mother: thoughtful
5. Your father: generous
6. Your favorite item: photos
7. Your dream last night: non-existent
8. Your favorite drink: water
9. Your dream car: automatic
10. The room you are in: living room
11. Your ex: high school
12. Your fear: failure
13. What you want to be in 10 years: mother
14. Who you hung out with last night: matt
15. What you're not: bold
16. Muffins: yummy
17: One of your wish list items:
18: Time: fleeting
19. The last thing you did: sipped
20. What you are wearing: layers
21. Your favorite weather: crisp
22. Your favorite book: romans
23. The last thing you ate: cookie
24. Your life: blessed
25. Your mood: content
26. Your best friend: honest
27. What you're thinking about right now: snack
28. Your car: champagne
29. What you are doing at the moment: blogging
30. Your summer: honeymoon-ish
31. Your relationship status: married
32. What is on your TV: nothing
33. What is the weather like: sunny
34. When was the last time you laughed: morning