Apologies and such

Sorry I haven't been posting, but I got sick with THE MOST HORRIBLE stomach virus over the weekend. Hubs started with it Thursday, then oh-s0-lovingly passed it on to me.

Poor Hannah-I think I have now passed it on to her. Oh well, that's family life.

I will now post my thankfuls for the Thanksgiving Break/weekend/today.

1. I am getting over the stomach virus!!!
2. I was able to eat something besides saltines.
3. Thanksgiving was wonderful-food, family, fun. Hannah had a blast, saw lots of family, ate lots of new food. She was so precious and grown up in her little heart dress. I love her. :)
4. Hannah was worried about Mommy being sick...I heard numerous reports that all day long she kept saying "Mama, mama, mama". So sweet.
5. Hubs went to the store at 11 o'clock Saturday night to buy me Sprite and saltines. He's the best!
6. I am working today.
7. Mimi, Grandpa, Daddy, Hannah, and I went shopping for some of Hannah's Christmas gifts on Friday. I enjoyed that togetherness with the family and getting things for our baby. Great fun!
8. Nana and I also went shopping on Friday and got Hannah's first Christmas ornament and stocking.
9. We put up the Christmas tree on Friday, and Hannah's little eyes lit up as she saw all of the pretty colors and lights. I am really enjoying seeing this holiday through her eyes.
10. I spent the whole day in the bed yesterday sleeping, reading, and watching TV. The only downside was that I was sick as a dog and stayed up all night the night before throwing up and sweating/shivering. Oh well, count your blessings where you can find 'em. Merry Christmas, everyone!

Oops....forgot these!
11. My sweet Nena is now an aunt! Christian was born on Friday.
12. Hannah is now ten months old! Yesterday was her "birthday". Wow, where did the time go?

Why I Love Thanksgiving

Instead of making a thankfuls list, like I have been doing...I decided to post reasons why I love Thanksgiving. Probably won't be online very much tomorrow, since I will be enjoying all of these things. Happy Thanksgiving!

The weather finally turns colder.
The holiday feeling begins at this time and stays in the air until New Year's. I LOVE IT!
We cook something yummy for breakfast and watch the Macy's Parade.
Snuggle time with Hubs...we are both off work on Thanksgiving, and can enjoy being together.
This year is going to be the greatest Thanksgiving yet, since Hannah is here! She can join all of our annual traditions, and they will become her traditions. :)
We have lunch at Daniel's parents' house.
Cooking, baking-the smells and all of the eating....lol. Wonderful food, great desserts.
The sound of my family laughing.
All of my family being together in one house at one time.
Getting to see my fabulous grandmother.
The sound of a football game is in the background pretty much all day-a sound I grew up with. All of the great Christmas movies start coming on TV, and you hear Christmas music in all the stores.
A day set aside to remember how blessed we truly are, and give thanks for it. A day to rest and relax, and enjoy your family and friends.

Tuesday

Thankful...

1. Hannah got up before I went to work...again! I love it! :)
2. Hannah got a very nice "early Christmas gift" from a neighbor. It's a little "baby trike" that she can ride, and it makes noises and plays music....so cute! Their grandchild outgrew it, and they gave it to us.
3. Nie was on the Today Show today, I have recorded it....can't wait to get home and watch it.
4. Having a much better experience today with a school I worked at previously and didn't quite enjoy...lol.
5. Thanksgiving Break starts in about 5 hours!
6. I was able to bless someone yesterday with some much needed groceries, etc....I enjoy being able to do that so much!
7. I am really looking forward to the holidays this year.....it's so exciting with a little one. Even though I have always enjoyed the holidays.
8. Scott made it through his surgery yesterday.
9. My hubby crawled up in the bed and watched the final Jon and Kate Plus 8 with me last night. I know he didn't want to, he doesn't like the show. But, it was so sweet. He's the best.
10. My mom and brother are going to be at the house for dinner tonight. :)

How Great Is Our God

As for what I do for a job, I am searching. Life has handed me a hard pill to swallow, and Daniel and I are praying about where I go next. I was a teacher, and will always be one in my heart, butI am not sure where God wants to use me now, and I want to follow His path for my life.

I am hardly ever on Myspace anymore, but I just happened to pull up my profile on there and actually READ it. This was posted under my "About Me" section, where you usually tell about yourself, including what you do for a living. Well, after the job situation happened, I had changed my About Me to include that paragraph above. As I read it today, I was AMAZED at my clarity of mind in such a difficult time. I am still struggling through this, but I encouraged myself today, reading those words that I wrote all those months ago when the wound was still SO fresh. I was trusting God, no matter what came. Now, in the midst of some bad experiences of being treated as "second rate" because I am just a sub, bills that aren't paid, fears that have to be spoken to daily, and questions I don't know how to answer-I need to find that woman again. The one who KNEW God was going to show up in her situation. She knew that God had a plan and a purpose for her life, and she was willing to accept only that. The battle rages on, and sometimes it's hard to stand strong. But, today...I am reminded of an unwavering faith and trust in God. And of how great He is, and that at the blink of an eye-everything can change. It will happen-in His time, by His strength, for His glory. And I will be what He created me to be.

Monday

Thankful....

1. Worked at Sterling today.
2. Got off at 11:30.
3. Have had time to do some housework.
4. Having dinner at Mimi and Grandpa's house tonight...no cooking! :)
5. One more day til Thanksgiving Break.
6. Hannah and Mommy time in a few minutes.
7. Scott is healed.
8. Putting Christmas decorations up this week.
9. My family
10. My friends

Sunday Thankfuls

I don't usually post on Sundays, but I have been slacking some lately on blogging....and we didn't have church tonight.

Thankful....

1. Heritage Day was wonderful.
2. We have had a great weekend with friends and family.
3. We had family night tonight since there was no evening service at church.
4. Working at Sterling tomorrow.
5. 2 day work week
6. Thanksgiving on Thursday
7. Cuddling with Hannah as she fell asleep tonight.
8. Praising God at church today for all of our blessings.
9. All of the great books I am currently reading simultaneously. :)
10. For my wonderful, beautiful life.

Thursday

Thankful....

1. I am feeling better.....emotionally and physically....I can feel that you prayed for me. Thank you.
2. Hannah woke up before I left this morning....LOVE morning time with her, since I don't usually get it.
3. I got to work on time even after having time with Hannah. YAY!
4. Satilla, Satilla, Satilla....man, I love this place!
5. Nothing to do tonight.
6. Tomorrow is Friday.
7. I slept on the couch last night....but I SLEPT! And I slept well.
8. Again, thankful for my husband. He cooked dinner last night.
9. God's presence during praise and worship last night. WOW, how I needed that!
10. Yard sale this weekend, we are hoping to make some extra cash since we so desperately need it!

Wednesday

I am really going through it right now, guys. SO MUCH going on in my life, heart, mind, family. I feel heavy and tired and frustrated. Complacency and lack of motivation threaten to taken over. That is why I am not blogging much....that and because I haven't felt very well in the last couple of days. Here are some of the things I am thankful for, some of the things that are helping me to "get through".

1. Jesus
2. My husband.....I am the most blessed woman in the world to be married to him....can't even begin to tell ya. He's the best.
3. Hannah....she brings such joy to our home.
4. Friends who really care and really "get it".
5. Music
6. Books that strengthen my faith...including the Bible, definetely.
7. My mom....all I can say is....thank God for Mom. :)
8. Thanksgiving next week....which includes three days off from work to spend with my sweet little family....and my extended family.
9. I will be back at my home away from home-Satilla Marsh-for the rest of the week.
10. I am going to make it....I just know it....I am going to look back on these days and wonder what all the fuss was about....lol.

Monday Monday

Monday thankfuls....

1. I am at Sterling.
2. I am teaching second grade....familiar territory.
3. We had an AWESOME weekend.
4. I sang "Healed" at church last night for Scott, and I felt every word of it. God's presence was beautiful.
5. Nena surprised me at church last night, just came by to say hey. AWESOME!
6. My mom bought Hannah the Christmas dress that I have been wanting to get for her. And shoes and tights and a bow to match.
7. Mom is coming over tonight to play with Hannah while I start packing Hannah's things for her spend the night party at Nana's on Friday night.
8. God is good!
9. Pastor and Mrs. Linda *Mema and Poppy, as they are commonly known in our house* came to dinner last night. I love em!
10. I have a job for each day this week, and for the two days that we have school next week. YAY GOD!

There is an answer on the way

I posted those two songs to encourage myself (and possibly some of you). I have had a tough week. Oh, the pain...the pain. And most of it has been in an area where I have been attacked nonstop for months....hurt....confused.....humbled.....betrayed. I was in a really bad place yesterday. I kept asking God "Why?". And I haven't been doing that, I have been trusting Him. But when the hits keep coming, I gotta ask Him.
Where are you?! When will you help me? Why is this happening?
But this morning, I woke up singing songs about His provision, His love, His mercy. And the questions I have in my mind now are-God, what are You about to do? What is it that You have for me that is so good that You had me go through this HUGE trial? How are you going to show up in my life, and allow blessings to unfold that can only have come fromYou? How is Your glory going to be shown in my life this time?
I woke up feeling that He is about to do something so enormous for me that I am going to have trouble understanding it, just as I have trouble understanding what He is doing right now. He is going to do something that people will have to give Him glory for, because He is the ONLY one who could have done it. Thank you, Lord for giving me my faith back. I let it slip for a moment, but we're back now! :) I know You better than to think that You are just going to bring me out here and let me die. Thanks to those who listened to me and prayed with/for me yesterday. You're amazing and I love you. Here's a list of thankfuls since I have not been in a mindset to blog in the last few days. Have a great weekend!

1. It's Friday!
2. I got my joy back...thanks to my Jesus.
3. I am working for my friend Anne today. I love her so much. She was my mentor teacher while I was student teaching....she's the best. And she has so much faith in me.
4. Dinner and shopping with Mom....and my babies....tonight.
5. Family time with Daddy and Hannah this weekend.
6. The answer that is on it's way to me.
7. God's love and encouragement.
8. Saturday with no plans. The weekend in general.
9. Being at Satilla Marsh today. I LOVE IT HERE!
10. The victory that is coming to me and my family.
11. It's cold enough outside that I have been wearing my new clothes. :)
12. Hannah has FINALLY cut a tooth....actually, there are two coming in.

Every Prayer

I heard 'em say.
"He brought me from a mighty long way."
Now today I can testify that I believe it.
And on my way. I realize He's the one who kept me.
When the storms of life arise. Sleepless nights and desperate cries.
He has captured every tear. Assuring me. He hears.
EVERY PRAYER. WAITING ON THE ANSWER.
ONLY TO DISCOVER HE IS NEAR AND HE HEARS.
EVERY PRAYER. FOR HE HAS DONE GREAT THINGS AND.
I BELIEVE HE'S A GOD THAT ALWAYS ANSWERS PRAYER.
I heard 'em say. "The prayers of the righteous availeth much."
And now today I can testify that I believe it.
And on my way I want to let you know that He will keep you.
When the storms of life arise. Sleepless nights and desperate cries.
He will capture every tear.
Assuring you that He hears. Don't despise the tears you've cried.
Or the prayers that you have prayed. Heaven heard your every word.
And the answer's on the way. I heard 'em say. "There is an answer on the way."
My God has done so many great things. Great things.
Hold on and you will see oh. He has done great things.
And I believe He's a God who always answers prayer.

How He Loves

He is jealous for me,
Loves like a hurricane,
I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realise just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.
And oh, how He loves us so,Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all He loves us,Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves.
Yeah, He loves us,Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,Oh how He loves.
We are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…
He loves us,Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,Oh how He loves. Yeah, He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,Oh how He loves us,Oh how He loves.

Tuesday

Today I am thankful because...

1. There is no school tomorrow. Hannah, Daddy, and I will have some family time together.
2. I got a job for today, but also got to sleep in a little.
3. I am at one of my favorite schools....SES.
4. These first graders are precious.
5. It hasn't rained, so we should have recess today!
6. I got to see my baby girl before work today.
7. It's Tuesday, so my mom will be coming over.
8. I got some new clothes this weekend....only trouble is-they are all long sleeved shirts and it's hot again!!
9. I had a terrific burst of energy last night, so I got alot done around the house before I crashed.
10. I got to have some quiet time to myself last night.

Monday

Thankful List for Today

1. I have a job for today.
2. I may have some future jobs coming out of this one.
3. I have another possible long term position.
4. I saw one of my old instructors from AASU, and she bragged about what a great educator I am. :)
5.I got a good night's sleep.
6. Church was wonderful yesterday.
7. I get to have quality time with my little one tonight.
8. I bought some great new books yesterday with my BAM gift card, can't wait to dive into them.
9. God is still working on me.
10. Scott is healed.

Birthday Thankfuls

I needed to do a totally seperate list of thankfuls for my birthday. Here goes....

14 million text messages...Daniel texted everyone he knows and told them to text me
Facebook shout outs
Phone calls...one in particular from my dad....it meant the world to hear his voice on my special day
Birthday cards...hubs' card made me cry....Hannah "signed" her card :)
A particularly special lady "blogging" about me and my birthday
The dinner that hubs and the grandmas cooked for me
The surprise chocolate cake Daniel ordered and brought home for me
BAM gift card from Hannah :)
Feeling God's presence
Lunch with hubs
Cuddle time with Hannah...her laugh, her smile, her sweet smell, and her warm little body cuddling as close as she could to mine
Knowing that the birthday fun isn't over.....we are headed to Jax with a couple friends tomorrow for dinner and....whatever!

It's Finally Friday!

Thankfuls for Friday....

1. My absoutely RIDICULOUS birthday yesterday. I say ridiculous because of how great it was.
2. Today is FRIDAY and hubs and I have no plans tonight other than to hang out together and cuddle with our precious baby girl.
3. We are going to Olive Garden tomorrow.
4. I get to go book shopping at BAM, since I got a gift card for my bday.
5. We have leftover food from last night's dinner, so I don't have to cook tonight!
6. God is amazing.
7. I feel deep in my soul today that I am meant to be a teacher. And someday soon, I will have my chance again.
8. We are going to Jax tomorrow, and because of my wonderful friends and family-I have money to spend at the mall. :)
9. I have the most amazing husband on this Earth. It would take a lot of typing to tell you everything that he did to make my day special yesterday, but it was perfect. Thank you, baby.
10. I am soaking up life and getting every bit of good I can get out of it. God is teaching me how. Did I mention He is amazing?

Thursday..wow, I am slackin' lately

Thankful....

1. That today is my birthday and I am working at one of my favorite schools...SES.
2. For the warm biscuit I had for breakfast...yummy.
3. Mom's birthday call this morning, hubby waking up to tell me "Happy Birthday"-then falling quickly back to sleep...lol.
4. The Lord greeting me with His presence this morning, His way of celebrating my day. :)
5. Tonight's dinner with family.
6. Getting to see Josh yesterday, he is home for awhile.
7. The great night's sleep I got last night.
8. LOTS of birthday wishes on Facebook.
9. Getting to be off yesterday and spend lots of good cuddle time with my precious girl. I miss her SO MUCH more today because of it, though. Also gave me a chance to reflect on what a great year this has been in sooooo many ways.
10. Tomorrow is FRIDAY!

Thankful

Since I have not posted in awhile, I will do more than just my regular ten "thankfuls". Sorry that I haven't posted lately, but I have been WAY too busy and WAY too tired.

1. Not having to work tomorrow.
2. Daddy Cooks Monday becoming a weekly tradition.
3. Birthday week...lol. Being off tomorrow, Thursday night dinner with family, Saturday trip with friends.
4. My "night-night conversations" with Hannah.
5. My sweet birthday card from my grandmother.
6. The GREAT night's sleep I got last night.
7. Getting to "sleep in" tomorrow....as long as my baby girl wants to sleep, that is.
8. The peace and quiet of our house right now....no phone, dishwasher, washing machine, dryer, TV. No....our power is not out....I am just enjoying the quiet. :)
9. My mom coming over and helping with Hannah Bug even though choir practice was cancelled.
10. Hubby helping me wash the dishes tonight.
11. The wonderful weekend we just had....Hannah's first Halloween was wonderful, and we enjoyed time with friends.
12. I am feeling better.....Sunday I was feeling very sick and was afraid I was coming down with something.
13. Having time tonight to rest, reflect, recharge.
14. God's provision for us....He is more than enough.
15. Wonderful, wonderful gifts from God.....our precious family and sweet, thoughtful friends.
16. How working with children can give you insights about yourself. How your own child can do the same.
17. God's presence.
18. God's love...and His faithfulness...and the joy that knowing Him brings.