Snow day...snow day...(like from that commercial @ Christmas time)

Nathan and I on our snow day, playing with the Reeds in the snow.

St. Mary's playground, the view from my window at work.

What a lovely snow day we had yesterday. Since I'm a new teacher, even though I had been told how the alert system works for calling off school, I didn't sleep well because I was worried about it. So I woke up to my alarm at 6 AM yesterday morning, cursing the day because I hadn't gotten a call cancelling school. Well I normally don't check facebook first thing in the morning...but I was having a hard time waking up and I thought it might help with getting my juices flowing. Well the first thing I see when I get on facebook is the status of one of my co-workers saying, "SNOW DAY! SNOW DAY! SNOW DAY!" Long story short...I very nearly made my 40 minute commute on a snow day because our school's alert system didn't call me. On days like this I think facebook is very useful.

Alas, we DID have school today - which I am totally ok with. Fridays at St. Mary's are my "easy" days. I do Mass (at the beginning of the week I choose all the Mass music and choose cantors to lead the congregation, then stand up there with them and sing at Friday morning mass) and teach kindergarten in the morning. Then I get the afternoon to plan for the next week - no classes. Its pretty nice, I have to admit it makes looking forward to Fridays even better for me than most. Tonight is the St. Mary's Faculty Appreciation party. Its where all the teachers get to bring their husbands/wives, and in true Catholic form, participate in cocktail hour (with real cocktails) and dinner with an open bar. Gee-miny Christmas. Such a foreign concept to me! But hey, I'll take it. After dinner there is supposed to be dancing and carousing of many kinds. This is my first time to go, but I have heard that last year one of the priests broke his thumb doing the worm, and a teacher threw out her back getting down with her bad self. So I fully expect that this will be a night to remember. Nathan and I are pretty jazzed about it.

Tomorrow night my old highschool friends that I haven't hung out with in ages are getting together for a "reunion" and reenactment of our high school years. We'll probably watch "Win a Date With Tad Hamilton" 2 or 3 times, play board games, eat junk food, and talk about our actual weddings as opposed to dreaming about them like we used to. So much has changed. Out of the 6 of us, 3 of us are married, one divorced, one engaged, and 2 have children. Its been 3 years since we've been able to get everyone together. I've been looking forward to it for 2 weeks. It will be interesting and fun to see how everyone is the same, yet different. And if we'll all be as kindred of spirits as we once thought we were.

If there's one thing I've learned as I've "grown up," its that most things come full circle. The things that are important to you when you're small, become important again when you grow up. The people who were there with you from the start will be there with you when you take your dying breath. And all of the things in between prove to you why those people, and those things mean so much.

The List: Spring 2011

Two years ago, in January of 2009, I decided to make a list. The things on the list were things that I had always wanted to do - some that I would have to learn how to do, some that would take lots of work and dedication, and some that were easy, but fun, and some that were selfless acts. I gave myself until May to complete it. Making and completing the items on that list changed my life forever. So much so that I made another list for that summer and completed that one too. I haven't made another one since that year. Today I was reading my journaling of those experiences and rememebering what a profound impact those lists had on my life. So I'm doing it again. Here is my new list:

The List: Spring 2011

1. Run a half marathon

2. Learn how to play the guitar for real

3. Build up piano repetoire with the time I usually spend of facebook

4. Become a friend to someone I don't like

5. See a shooting star

6. Go to an art show

7. Visit a museum

8. Explore Tulsa - go to all the places I've always heard about and have wanted to go, but never have. Or places I have gone, but love, and would like to go again....and EXPERIENCE THEM!

List of those places (with room to add more): Ida Red, Purple glaze, the famous mansions, etc.

9. Make a photo collage of my life

10. Read books of all kinds: Biographies, Documentaries, Guides, Non-fiction, Classics, Novels, etc.

11. Meditate in silence for one hour at serene location of my choice

12. Purchase something "vintage"

13. Go running in the Utica neighborhoods

14. Make a promise that's hard to keep, and keep it.

15. Be unneccesarily kind to people, if there's even such a thing...

16. Try a food that I don't think I like, but have never tried.

17. Memorize a passage of scripture

18. Go camping!

19. Cook a gormet meal from scratch

20. Spend an entire day with my sisters

There you have it. The following blogs will journal my experiences completing the items on the list and any other nonsense I decide to include along the way. Here's hoping it all gets done!

Grace

My new life

Well, hello friends! Its been awhile, its been awhile. Since I last posted:

1. Nathan and I are now married people! It was such a wonderful day, and I am so blessed to be married to such an amazing man. The last 4 1/2 months have been incredible. Setting up our lives together is even more awesome that I had anticipated. I have always heard people say that they love their spouse more now than when they got married, and on my wedding day I honestly didn't see how I could love him more - but its true, I do! So so blessed by our marriage, and the thought of our future!

2. I am an official graduate of The University of Tulsa - with a degree in Vocal Music Education, with Piano emphasis! I have learned so much and made life-long friendships at TU. I met my husband there, learned how to be a teacher there, and I gained a wealth of knowledge about myself. I know that I am a completely different person as a TU graduate than I was before I started there. I am proud to call TU my Alma Mater!

3. I am now a certified and EMPLOYED music teacher at School of Saint Mary's in Tulsa! Of all of the blessings God has lavished on me, this might be the one I am most thankful for and aware of daily. Let me tell you, I work with some of the most caring, kind, and compassionate people I have ever met. My students are wonderful, loving and bright. I am able to speak the name of Christ freely in my work place. Blessed beyond measure, thats what I am.

4. Still running - still pressing on. Its been a year and 10 months since I very first started running. Since then, I've run 11 races. I can honestly say that running has provided me with so many rewarding and fulfilling experiences. Along with running, I have added biking and rollerblading to my exercising routine - as well as eliptocal and weight training. Its nice to change it up every couple of days - and I LOVE being outside all the time!

5. Nathan and I are to blessed to be a part of the new satellite campus of our church (First Christian Church of Owasso) - FCC Stone Canyon. Nathan is one of the amazing worship leaders there, and I work with the children and the "first touch" ministries. We both still sing at the North Garnett campus of our church as well. It keeps up pretty busy, but it is so special to be a part of a church who has a heart for seeing people come to Christ, loving them through their sin and struggles, and seeing them find redemption.

Thats it for now. Have a wonderful and blessed day!

Grace

Countdowns

I think I'll start blogging again. Its been a busy couple of months. Nathan and I have almost everything planned for our wedding and we get more excited as each day passes. We're starting marriage counseling soon. Should be fun and probably suffieciently awkward - its all good!

There are a lot of countdowns in my life right now. For the month of March - Spring Break in NYC (Carnegie Hall!). So excited about this. You have no idea. For April - Spring Fever Triathalon! I have mixed feelings of anxiety, anticipation, excitement and terror about this one. We'll see how that goes. The feeling of perpetual soreness has returned and, I have to say, it feels amazing. For May - MY COLLEGE GRADUATION! 5 yrs. is such a long long time to be in school. I'm definitely ready to move on to the next part of my life. And for June - I just happen to be marrying my very best friend in the whole world. I can't even believe it some days. I am so very blessed.

All of these things cause me equal amounts of excitement and nervousness. This is a really big time for me. I'm so busy most days I don't even stop to think about it. I'm stopping and thinking about it now, and I like it a lot.

What a wonderful year. I love my life.

Christmas is the time to say I love you

Very exciting! We'll be sending these out around the first of the year. (Props to Bethany Hearn, this was her idea, and a good one). I love Christmas so much this year. Such a fun time with my family and my soon to be family! Finished my Christmas shopping today - finally. I never want to shop again. I had such a hard time finding meaningful gifts. This year I decided that since I commited to getting so many people gifts, I wouldn't purchase gifts I didn't know they would love/use a lot. That is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Got it done finally. I'm going to start my Christmas shopping for next year like 6 months in advance because this was kind of ridiculous.

We joined First Christian Church of Owasso last Sunday. It was Christmas Sunday so both of our families were there to see us sing, and then join the church. We all went to lunch afterwards. I love our families together, its a lot of fun. Then the Hearn kids and me went to their house and did some Christmas baking. Really fun day.

Today Nathan, Jason, and I went to Branson. I had 3 more gifts to purchase. We went to Bass Pro in Springfield. That place is amazing. Really fun day. I love those guys.

We're getting married in 172 days!

Merry Christmas!

Random, r-r-random.

Thanksgiving break was pretty cool. I was a Black Friday shopper. 3:30 AM is disgusting.

I'm taking my last undergrad final on December 17, 2009.

I literally can not wait for Christmas. 25 days to go...

Kind of, I hate money, but I happen to need a lot of it. Especially these days.

Facebook causes a lot of problems in my life. Mainly, I can't get anything done.

I have two huge lesson plans to write, one of them partly done. One of them not started.

Can't decide if I should eat lunch at 3:27 (right now) or just wait until dinner time. I'm HUNGRY!

Need to go to the grocery store, and make $11 go a super long way. I'm sick of cup o' noodles.

I want to have a Christmas party at my apartment.

Tomorrow morning I get to try out my new goggles! Triathalon here I come.

I need to find some 5ks to run soon. Maybe 2 different ones over Christmas break.

And.....go.

THANKSGIVING BREAK!

SO glad its Thanksgiving break. One more day of work tomorrow and then I'm free until next Saturday! Holidays are a wonderful and somewhat complicated time when you have two sets of families to think about. Also, I have a very full life. It just gets a little overwhelming. I am determined to make the break as amazing as possible. Very glad its finally here. We haven't had a break since Labor Day weekend. Thats a long time. I will probably even get to sleep in...maybe even 2 days in a row! Ahhh!

I'm trying not to think about everything that is due once I get back to school. I have to write a ton of lesson plans, and teach them right after the break. Taking a lot of deap breaths lately.

Thanksgiving and Christmas are going to be so much fun. I literally can hardly wait. Yay for holidays!