What I'm Reading Wednesday

Here I am, again, with slow but steady progress on the books I listed two weeks ago. I have been reading a little more the last few nights as my husband was gone on business and I enjoyed the thoughts of Father Tim in Mitford caring for his church and town flock as I went to sleep. I would turn the tv on and set the sleep timer, but that didn't serve my brain as well as the happy thoughts. If you haven't read the Mitford series, I do recommend it. I also am still reading my devotional. I had missed a few days but have changed my routine up a bit as of late. My sister in law has started a new job and my brother in law takes their oldest two kids to middle school. Then they needed someone to get the younger two around for school and get them onto their bus. It's only about an hour and a half job, nothing major, but when I get there I have about twenty minutes of quiet before they get up. I'm in their house so I can't be distracted by the things at our own house that need tending, so I have been bringing my Bible and devotional book. Such a nice start to each day this week. I felt my soul sigh in enjoyment today. :) What are you reading, Reader?

Social Media Monday

Today's Social Media Monday is a tweet from Wednesday, last week. It was a Bible verse I have always loved and I retweeted it. One I need to repeat right now. Hope all is well with you, Reader.

Back Home

            These days I have a new schedule. I am waiting... The past two years I was a middle school Social Studies teacher. I was teaching "part time" and spent my mornings grading and planning for the job. I loved spending 7:45am (once our girls were at/on their way to school) to 10:50 (when I had to leave to get to school cafeteria duty, get ready to teach, etc) for work time. Then, I taught until 3:15, often left around 4 to head home. Once our girls were working on homework after dinner, I worked on classroom work for another couple hours until family prayer time. I usually put in another hour or two after they headed off to dreamland, as well.
            In early May my husband asked me if I wanted to continue teaching this "forever". I said I wasn't sure and began to pray and think about it in depth over the next few weeks. I loved my job-the kids and staff were wonderful! However, my ultimate goal has always been full time job, and as much as I loved middle school, my heart lies in elementary school. So, I quit my job. I thought about my plan, to apply to everything under the sun, teaching-job-wise, hoping for something, at least an interview, now that I had that elusive "experience"... But, if it didn't happen over the summer, I was going to sub and get back into the teaching pool, hoping for a job for next year. Then, if these don't work out, move into another profession. I love teaching, but the pool of applicants here is so flooded. I recently heard that if you don't get a teaching job in the first three years of looking you won't because you've been "on the market" for so long, like a house-which could just have had viewers who didn't like something about it... but after "so long" people are afraid of it. I got my first subbing jobs in 2005 and have been subbing, an alternative instructor or middle school teacher since... so 8 years... And I am still waiting on the sub agency to finish processing me so I can't get my foot into the subbing door, yet, either.
             I'm back at home wondering where my path will lead... where God's path will take me. I wonder how things will work out. My faith base has always been a strong point in my heart, so after my husband's grandfather's funeral, when he mentioned to me that I would make a good chaplain, I chewed on that. It grew in my heart. I called our church and am meeting with the care ministry on Wednesday. I know putting my time, somehow, into sharing my faith will help.
             I know God has a plan for me, and I love staying at home, accomplishing the many things neglected while I work outside the home, but there is a longing in my heart to throw myself into something more. I hear of people's struggles with faith after major disappointments in their lives and I don't have those... I just have this need to find where God wants me. I'm just not sure where that is. There's a new song I listen to by the Sidewalk Prophets called Help Me Find It and these words really resonated with me recently:
If there’s a road I should walk
Help me find it
If I need to be still
Give me peace for the moment
               I am enjoying catching up on blogging, too, Reader, to reconnect with you.

February 1

They used to say it took two to three weeks to start a new habit, or to replace a bad habit with a good one. I just read this week that they've changed that to 28 days. I found that interesting. No wonder good eating and exercise habits are so difficult to get ingrained. I decided, since February is 28 days long, it would be a good time to start some new, good habits. Some of my goals have fallen but I'm determined to pick them up again. Maybe after February they'll be full-fledged habits? :)

We had gotten some snowy weather here, as well as ice, a couple weeks ago. That was enough to break my daily running habit. The news here, yesterday, was predicting bad weather again today, with ice, so I made myself brave the cold wind (although there was a peek of sunshine yesterday! :)) and I got 3.3 miles in. My legs aren't sore today and I felt great the rest of the afternoon. I'm going to brave the dreadmill... I mean treadmill today. Hoping to stay on it for three miles. It always seems like so much longer to get the distance done, though. We're hoping to rearrange the bedroom (where the treadmill sits) so it faces something other than the wall. Maybe that will help?

I have written sporadically in my journal the last couple weeks. Not daily as I'd hoped, but I haven't quit yet. :) Also, I have had one cup of Starbucks since we talked last. I'm ok with that. :) It was a nice treat with the family on a chilly day last week.

I finished the Girl in the Green Raincoat and have started The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia J Washburn. That was my word/one of my goals: to read more, and I finished two books in January! :) I've been in the mood for mysteries, but the three I've read or started this year have been very different from each other. The last one had more suspense. I'm going to see which of Laura Lippman's books our library has and try to read some more of her mysteries. I've also been reading the Book of Jeremiah from my Bible for our life group. It's a hard book, with all the prophesying but I'm sticking with it. We need to read 17 chapters of it by Sunday. This is one of the verses I liked thus far Jeremiah 9:23-24: 23 This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, 24 but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the LORD.

I also finished making the scrapscription "Let's Party!" album for our 16 year old daughter and am hoping to put the pictures/stories in today.

We have a "snow" day today-it's actually due to ice-so I'm hoping to tackle a lot from my "to do" list today! :) The dryer is going and I'm almost done with my blog post! :) I'm hoping to post each day in February. I've never been able to post daily for a month before, like Molly and her sister. :)

What are some things you'd like to try doing daily for the 28 days of February?

Attention!

Attention! Finally posting again! ;)

First, thankful feathers are sent and some received already! I say already because it still feels like September, not November! :) And, yes, Thanksgiving is here in a week from today. Wow. Time has truly gone even faster than years past, I think! I saw this wonderful gratitude idea that I think may become another holiday tradition at our house! Be sure to check out it's follow up post, also, that updates you on their gratitude progress.

I have not bought any Christmas gifts, yet, except for a small stocking stuffer or two for my daughters. I just haven't. Terrible, I know, when so many people are done already. My husband is of the mind-well we both have been for years, now-that we should exchange names with family instead of everyone buying for everyone. It is a topic for further discussion... I do have all our Christmas cards and address labels printed, so that's something.

Isabelle, speaking of holidays, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving when most stores in the US do some sort of a sale. A big sale, and often open very early (like 5am!) So, people take their ads, their shopping lists, arise at a very early hour to go get the best deals on those Christmas gifts. We have gone for years (picking up the family members around 5:30 or 6) simply for the fun of being together, more than the "deals". :) My mom, aunt, grandma, and more recently, my daughters and I, all go together, and go home around lunchtime. We have, in years past, shopped until dinner time, but most recent years we haven't had any serious deals we really needed that badly. :) It's a fun "girl" day. :) This year, the husband has to work (he works for someone who will be having sales/coupon codes/deals and he's a computer guy, so if there is an issue with said codes/sales, etc. he has to be available to help.)

I have been making a list of things to blog about for the future, so hopefully I can get back into the habit! :) I am thinking this about exercise, too! :)

Our life group has been taking a book from the Bible and reading it over the two weeks between meetings for discussion. This month is Philippians, which has been one of my favorites since I started to read the Bible on my own. Not reading anything other than that, and blog posts, and haven't gotten to read/reply to many of those lately, either!

We are having renovations done on our home, still. Extending our stoop/step to a full porch, siding and windows replaced (here's to lower heating bills! :)) and stone on the lower front of our house. I'm so happy with it. Just a few things to finish up. Except for the melting siding... Well, that's a story for another day!

Here's to a cohesive post next time, with more detail and expanding on one topic instead of random tidbits about everything. ;) Take care, and stay healthy, dear reader, as flu season is creeping in...

Road Map

Sometimes, don't you wonder where God's road map will lead? I mean, I know the ultimate goal and destination: with Him. But, what detours am I taking and why? Why are the roads closed? Why did someone else swerve in my lane and cut me off? Why am I stuck in life's traffic? Wouldn't it be nice if He showed us the map/way... just a peek?

I guess that's Faith... trusting in Him when I can't see my road map...

Proverbs 3:5-7 (NIV)

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;

6 in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.


edited 5/21/2010:
I guess I have to rely on my God-positioning-system, hm? :)

Good Day!

Good morning, Reader! :) Hope you are smiling on this day, and that it is sunny where you are. Here, it is cloudy, raining and threatening snow flurries. Sadly, I didn't get a long run this past weekend and haven't run in about a week and a half! Have to be careful that I don't wait too long to get back to it! :) When we get a busy family schedule, though, that's what suffers, for now. :) I do keep up my weekly yoga, though. I enjoy it so very much! I have also cut back on my lattes! I was up to one per day! It's painful on the waistline and the wallet! But, I cut back to either no coffee or making regular coffee at home. Then neither the husband nor I slept well last night (actually, the husband didn't sleep well, thus his tossing and turning caused me not to sleep well, but it's neither here nor there. ;)) This caused me to want coffee to keep my eyes open! :)
I have gotten my time in with the Word this morning and liked today's Peace reference (Remember my word of the year? I chose peace. Then I looked in the concordance of my Bible and have been trying to read and write down a peace reference daily. Once I run out of them, as there aren't 365, I will go back and try memorizing them. :) Anyway... These two have become two of my new favorites.
Colossians 3:15 "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful."
2 Thessalonians 3:16 "Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you."

I also found a couple quotes that inspired me to live my day, today:

“Face your deficiencies and acknowledge them; but do not let them master you. Let them teach you patience, sweetness, insight... When we do the best we can, we never know what miracle is wrought in our life, or in the life of another. ” —Helen Keller (1880-1968), author, lecturer, activist

"The brook would lose its song if we removed the rocks." —Wallace Stegner

“Confidence, like art, never comes from having all the answers; it comes from being open to all the questions.” —Earl Gray Stevens

I hope you, Reader, have a wonderful day and week ahead! :)

Fallen off

Seems as if I've fallen off my blog posts. I was doing so well for a while, posting frequently. Not much to say, as of late, I guess.
I am happy to report that it seems our countertop will arrive sooner than expected and is coming this Thursday! Just a few things left to complete the whole transformation: light fixtures and one other wall detail for now, I think.
The laundry room came out as nicely as I'd hoped, although I still have one photo/canvas detail to finish up and hang up. I was thinking this week that I feel blessed to be able to afford these things right now, in a bad economy.
Speaking of economy, looking forward to the inauguration this week. Hopefully wonderful changes ahead.
My family came down for the weekend and it was very nice, as always.
I haven't taught much lately, but I feel like I've gotten a lot done here at home. I rearranged my "office" and cleaned everything out. After painting the kitchen, my husband and I went through all the cupboards and got rid of a lot that we don't use. I also cleaned out the cupboards in the laundry room. We had a charity come on the 12th and pick up things, so we put out about 8 laundry baskets/trash bags full: clothes, kitchen items and more! It was such a nice feeling. Another charity is scheduled for rounds in our neighborhood on the 28th, I think, so I'm hoping to do basement purging and prepare another load! :) Just feeling like we have too much STUFF.
I've also updated my resume, with a few questions remaining, and am taking it to some new schools this week. Scary and exciting all at the same time. :)
I have been working on my one little word, "peace", this month. I looked up "peace" in the concordance of my Bible and have been reading a verse per day, along with the daily devotional and daily Bible reading. I'm still working on the book of Romans, right now, but am 2/3 the way done. I also ordered a peace ring from LizEaton, and a peace charm from Beautiful Soul. I ordered a "faith" charm last year from the same shop. I wore it everyday and really liked it.
I also saw this "butterfly chandelier"
in a pottery barn kids store this weekend, while shopping with my parents. I loved it, but thought 79 dollars was a lot. I thought I could do it myself, but it didn't turn out like I'd hoped. I couldn't find the metal hoops, so I bent metal hangers, which didn't come out large enough to get the full effect. I couldn't find a butterfly punch, so I used flowers, and on one daughter's I lined them up, and on one I didn't, so they look more like a round flower.

Our oldest daughter turns 14 this week! I look at her and she looks so much older these days.
The running had taken a toll on my knees, I think it's the extra weight I have on right now, or the getting older, I'm not sure. :) Anyway, I started walking, fast pace, at an incline, on the treadmill indoors, instead of out on the ice and below 0 temps, and I have felt pretty good. I'm looking forward to getting back outside and running more. I just don't like running on the treadmill.
I am about to start reading the Thirteenth Tale for the online book club I had mentioned previously. We start discussions the second week in February, if anyone is interested in joining.
That's about all the update from here. I hope you are well, and enjoying winter... :))

Dec 20: Ouch!

I was the substitute for the class I did the longterm in, yesterday. Their winter party, a holiday movie, a book exchange, a spelling test, and wrapping their gifts for their parents meant a busy day. The kids were great, and I loved being back with them!
Then, on my way home I called my oldest, who arrives a few minutes earlier than I do, when I sub. She had been running on the treadmill, and was trying to pause the treadmill, hop off and answer the phone all at the same time. This resulted in an ouch! She fell and hit several places, with the belt still moving before the emergency key came out and stopped it. She has a raw spot on her knee, covering the kneecap, her whole shoulder, and her hand including knuckles. She also hit her head and face. The fall broke her glasses, and I thought she would have a black eye today. It's still red/bruised but in little spots. She has small bruises/red marks from just above her eyebrow to down mid cheek. She said her teeth were bleeding, so I was worried about that, but they don't seem to be discolored today (thank goodness!) Her lip is huge, however, the right side of her top lip is about 4-5 times bigger than the left side. She has the treadmill belt bump marks everywhere, too. She's sore today, but not as sore as I thought she'd be. She's lucky she didn't break anything! She will heal well, kids do, but I worried about her all evening! And we super glued her glasses back together. She's watching a Paula Dean cooking show right now.
We had a nice evening last night with my husband's family last night, pizza, singing, and games.
The night went quickly.
We don't have a lot going on this weekend, just wrapping, baking, cleaning, and healing! :)
I finished the book of Philippians yesterday and am starting on Romans, for my daily readings, now.
I hope your weekend has started off well!

Dec 18

It's difficult to post when you're feeling stuck in the rut of the daily grind. Sometimes when the hubby calls to check in/say hello, he asks what I've been up to. Well, the dishwasher, laundry, tidying up, girls' schedules, paperwork... You know, the usual. Those things don't make for an interesting post, either. :)
Tonight we're heading to a party given by one of my husband's coworkers. Should be interesting and hopefully fun.
Yesterday evening, while the husband was working late, I went through the scrapbook magazine issues I was behind on reading. I had three sitting here and hadn't cracked one of them. I read through them all, well, I read through the first one and a half, then skimmed through the next one and a half. I ripped out the ideas I liked and articles I wanted to read more of, then recycled the rest. I felt inspired to scrapbook. I have time during the day,while the laundry's spinning, etc, but I feel guilty. Just sitting down and doing something fun, a hobby, when there's always work that can be done around here.
I've already done my devotional, which wasn't as moving as yesterday's, but my daily reading was from one of my favorite chapters, that I've learned so far: Philippians 4. Awesome. It has always been a chapter that speaks to my heart. v6 starts with Do Not Worry... I'm a worrier.
It is almost time to take my youngest off to school. I hope you have a thoroughly good Thursday and it is filled with smiles.... One week until Christmas! :)

Dec 17

The girls headed off late to school today. They had a two hour delay due to two fronts of ice that came through last night. The temp was above freezing, then, and salt trucks came through, so it was fine when they headed out.
I finally finished updating my address book. I had been working on rewriting some of the pages, getting rid of phone numbers/addresses that I didn't need, adding new family that I sent cards to this year, since they moved or were married. I had been writing all the changes on notepaper, and I had quite a stack now that Christmas cards were done.
I've done my devotional and Bible reading for the day. Some days it really speaks to me, and other times, it's a thought/reading to mull over. Today's spoke to a goal of mine, something I hope to live by, and pray about. The reading was Romans 1:11, which speaks to our lives having an affect on others, either positive or negative, whenever we come in contact with someone. The verse was about your spiritual blessing you impart to others, or is imparted to you. The devotional was a reminder to have a positive influence on all you encounter, because that is what will spread. Also, it said to work at giving blessings/being a blessing rather than expecting to receive blessings from others. I really liked the words, and the thoughts are still sticking with me, obviously. :)
Yesterday I also sorted through my many contacts/email addresses. I have several that I don't know, they were attached to things people sent me or a "reply all" was sent and then they were new contacts. I also had several that were three emails for the same person, but I sorted through all those as well.
I haven't subbed at all this week. I haven't ran at all this week, although I have eaten plenty. :) I finally tried the new rib recipe yesterday, and it turned out yummy. We ate that and baked sweet potatoes. I baked them just like regular potatoes and I put a bit of butter and a bit of brown sugar on it before I ate it. We had fruit salad, as well. I'm still not sure what we're having tonight, though. :)
I hope your week has gone well, thus far! Have a wonderful Wednesday!