it's my birffday!

today is my birthday, and I have to say.... I am one blessed girl. The older I get (eek.. i'm 25 now! halfway to 50!) the more and more thankful I am just to spend my birthday with my sweet husband and family. I can honestly say that I asked and want NOTHING for my birthday this year except to spend time with those that I love! My family got together last night for labor day/my birfday and it was just perfect. I love my parents and brothers and sisters more than any other people in this world.

tonight, my hubby is grilling out and cooking for me! yum yum! tomorrow, he is taking me out to a nice dinner and a movie ( I know what you're thinking. A movie on a school night? We live life on the edge.) And then Saturday he is giving me a shopping spree. This man knows the way to my heart. :)

I'm having lunch with my sweet in-laws on Sunday, and that will be the perfect end to my birthday week!

The Lord has blessed abundantly and I'm so grateful for all that He's given me! This has been such a happy day!

p.s. I've been dying to post pictures from our vacation around the southwest!! will do soon. Teaching owns me.

second week of teaching:: God is good.

very slowly... but surely... I am getting the hang of this teaching thing. I'm still not ahead of myself as much as I would like to be and hope to be in the near future; however, I'm making progress. My problem:: I want to plan these awesome, super fun, engaging, thought-provoking, inspiring lessons every single day. My heart's desire is to be a teacher who challenges and inspires my students. I want them to know that I love them and care for them and want the best for them. I'm still feeling a bit overwhelmed with my work load, but I know that with time, I'll figure out my schedule and become better at managing my time.

Ryan has been such a supporting, loving husband through these stressful weeks. I've been so emotional and even discouraged at times, but he has been such a sweet encouragement to me. He wakes up every morning at 5:30 (even thought he doesn't have to leave for work until 7) just to fix me a yummy breakfast so I'll have energy for the day. He's fixes dinner every night so I can work on my lesson plans. He's been super husband. He's put things in perspective for me and reminded me that even though I may feel weak and weary, the Lord is my Sustainer and my Strength. I'm so thankful and blessed to have such a sweet husband.

When I am weak and exhausted and overwhelmed.. God is good. When I am well-rested, energized, and ready for my day.. God is good. When I feel discouraged and defeated... God is good. When I feel inspired and confident... God is good.

I am so thankful that my circumstances do not ever change the fact that God is and will always be good.

about my first week of teaching.

my first week of school was absolutely FANTASTIC. I love all my little freshman babies and I love the subjects I'm teaching this nine weeks (world geography and english 1). My principal is so laid back and so hilarious, and I really like all the teachers that I'll be working with this year. Overall, this job is such a huge answer to prayer. I am so content with where the Lord has me right now!

While the week was so great and so fun, it was also absolutely exhausting. I've put in like 12 hour days every day this week, and when I get home I do lesson plans until I go to bed. I'm not complaining, because I seriously couldn't be happier, but it is a whole lot of work. I know that once I get through this first year, it will get easier though. For now I just have to pray for the Lord's strength and patience as I take it day by day.

Here are a few pictures of my classroom! It is not finished, by any means. I'll be adding things to it all throughout the school year, but this is what I have for now! I love it! It's my home away from home.

my sister picked this table up for me two years ago at a garage sale, and I finally redid it and put it in my classroom: Before.

After:: (not the best picture, but you get the point!) All it took was a little TLC, black spray paint, and Anthropologie hardware.

filing cabinet before::

filing cabinet after:: (again, bad picture) I forgot to take a picture of just the cabinet! I put fabric on the front of my desk and hung those cute little paper balls with ribbon! I love my lime green filing cabinet. It's the little things. :) Those planks of black wood by the cabinet is a bookshelf that I haven't put together yet.

view of my computer. This was ryan's old computer desk from college.

front view of my desk: LOVE.

view from my front door:

my cabinet and bookshelf:: (bookshelf was 10 bucks from dirt cheap!)

my bulletin board:

where I will hang my student's best work: (those are file folders that I got from Target. 4 for $1. I just cut and laminated them!)

so there's my room! I love spending time in there! I can't wait to finish it!

i need more daylight.

so much to update about and NOT ENOUGH TIME!!!! :( I need a few extra hours in my day, please. Life is busy, but it is so good.

a longer post will happen soon. probably not, actually. but my intentions are good.

for now, a picture from our amazing vacation:

to be continued.......

our FAVORITE summer activity.

we spent our fourth of july on the Little Red River, which is one of our favorite places on earth. Usually when we go, we camp out in a tent on the side of the river. However, this time, we stayed in the coolest river house of all time. Seriously. It was luxurious. Ryan's dad works with a man who let us use the house for the weekend. It was our dream place. I could tell you all about it, but I'll let the pictures do the talking:

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we took about 200 pictures total, so I gave you the quick recap! we had an awesome fourth of july and we spend it the best way possible: with family and on the river.

my dream home.. Part uno.

so you've probably noticed a trend in my recent posts.... i've been dreaming a lot. I have to be careful when I dream, because I always want to be content with where the Lord has me at this exact moment in my life. I want to meet him where He is working and I never want to miss an opportunity to praise Him in the present time because I am dreaming about the future. However, I do not think dreaming or knowing what you want is a bad thing. :)

Anyway... Ryan and I have begun house hunting. It is going very slow-- and that is the way we want it. This is not a decision that I want to make quickly, because it's such a massive decision and involves such a large amount of money. While this decision can be scary and stressful, I do trust that the Lord will direct our steps and lead us to the house that he wants us to purchase, to begin a new phase of our life in, and to raise our children in. :) It's such an exciting decision, too!

So here are a few things I want my house to look like. I know I will not find all of these things in 1 house... and that's why they call it dreaming!

*3 or 4 bedrooms

*2 1/2 or 3 bathrooms

*OPEN floor plan

*big kitchen

*nice sized back yard for ruby puppy

*hardwood/stained concrete floors would be wonderful!

Here are a few pictures of my dream home:

aren't those beautiful? i love windows in kitchens, pendant lighting, granite countertops, and stainless steel appliances and hoods.

Dream living room:

these are gorgeous too! I would love a lot of big windows in our living room, and I'd love the living room and kitchen to be one big open space. A big stone fireplace would be a great bonus in the room too!

alright, my blogging time has run short. I'm meeting a girlfriend for an afternoon day date! I'll post some more pictures of my dream home in the near future! Have a lovely day friends!

my exciting news!!!

....... and no, I am not pregnant. But i got your attention, didn't I? :)

i feel like i begin each post by apologizing for my lack of devotion to this blog. ( like any of you care that I don't post regularly anyway). Truth is, life is busy and this blog is my last priority. When I have down time, I don't really want to blog. I just want to snuggle up on the couch with my honey and my puppy and a blanket and turn on our recorded shows. But, ryan is golfing today and ruby puppy is sleepin, so I figured this was a good time. :)

God is so faithful. I don't understand his love and grace towards me, and in no way, big or small, do I deserve it. My heart is so dirty and so sinful and often times I neglect Him, however the Lord remains faithful and continues to bless me and show me merit. Thank you Lord.

The Lord has answered one of my long time prayers and has given me my dream job next year. :) I am now a 10th grade English teacher at one of the best high schools in the state and an assistant girl's basketball coach. I am so excited about the opportunity to get to know and invest in the girls on my basketball team and am looking at this position as a ministry opportunity. I have wanted to teach high school for as long as I can remember and I am so excited to jump in there and get busy. The Lord has blessed me so much by giving me this job, and I am so excited to use it as an act of worship and for His glory.

I have so many pictures to upload from so many different activities and events that have happened lately, but this post is I have time for now! Hope everyone has had a great week and relaxing weekend!