Flowers and Pei Wei

A random batch of pictures for you - enjoy! :)

March 27: My friend Kari and I had dinner together at Pei Wei. She is such an encouragement and a dear sister in Christ, and I always leave our time together feeling refreshed. I'm grateful for the way the Lord has used her in my life to teach me more about Him!

March 28: Cousin Becca! Our Sunday morning carpool to church. Watch out, preschoolers, here we come.

March 29: Spring is here! These tulips were planted in my mom's neighborhood...

March 30: Daffodils I won at our 3rd grade Teacher Appreciation Luncheon. They're so cheery!

March 31: I realize this is the second Pei Wei picture of the week. :) I'm a fan of the kids honey seared chicken. Mmm.

April 1: An April Fools joke one of my students played on me! I was fooled. By now I've learned to beat them to it...on their desk that morning was a spelling word search with NO spelling words in the actual "search" part of it. The only words they could find were "April" and "Fools". I'm so mean. :)

I Love Texas

This week, Dallas has experienced snowfall, sunshine, and temperatures ranging from the 40s to the 70s. Texas weather makes me smile!

On a different note...I've recently started listening to JR Vassar, who is the pastor at Apostles Church in New York City. He spoke at my church a few weeks ago, and since then I've downloaded the church's podcasts. I've really been encouraged by his sermons; in each message, he is very intentional about clearly sharing the good news of Christ's redeeming work on the cross. Two favorites: "Intentional Singleness" and "The Heart God Wants". I look forward to listening to more!

Enjoy this week's pictures!

March 20: My mom and I had a date Saturday night, shortly after she came back from Colorado. It was great to spend time with her after almost a month! This is one of her dogs, Brownie, who was brought into her life by her husband Jim. Sure, Brownie looks cute in this picture, but don't be deceived. He's one of the most energetic dogs I've ever been around - once he almost dragged me into a pond. I'm starting to like him a bit more, but don't tell him that. I don't want to ruin our rapport.

March 21: It snowed! Heavily! For Texas, anyway. :)

This is also from Sunday, but I had to post it because I know how much Dani and Garrett wanted me to. ;) These are my home group hosts/leaders. They graciously offer their home on Sunday evenings so our small group can fellowship, pray, and talk about the Lord and what He's teaching us. I just love this picture.

March 22: This is what I do each evening before going to bed - iron my clothes for the next day! I'm a nerd, I know. Notice I use a towel as an "ironing board" since I'm too lazy to drag the real thing out from behind my washing machine.

March 23: Oh, the comedy of this day! My third grade class learned about soil on Tuesday, and this has to have been the WORST this lesson has ever gone. I was not prepared, it was rushed, and dirt was EVERYWHERE. Half my kids were stressed out, and the other half thought it was the best day of the year. I didn't help matters by laughing through the whole lesson while trying to maintain order in the classroom. The papers they turned in were disgusting. We sent them home for the parents to see...I hope they think it's as funny as we did.

March 24: Dinner with the Myers family. :) Here is Megan holding sweet Bennett. He is just precious!

March 25: Dinner with Dad (and friends) and Cousin Becca.

March 26: One of many views during my work day. I love my job. :)

Spring Has Sprung

Even though tomorrow brings temperatures in the 40's and a 90% chance of thunderstorms, the first day of spring always brings a smile to my face. I just love the spring. New flowers, green grass, blue skies, the warm sun (sometimes) - an opportunity, yet again, to enjoy the beauty of God's creation. I love it.

My aunt, uncle, and cousin came to visit this week as they were on Spring Break. My cousin Becca is their eldest daughter and lives nearby, so they have good reason to venture up north. It was a treat to spend time with them; that family has always been such an encouragement to me.

Enjoy the pictures!

March 13: Saturday night: cleaning night. Bleh. Since I hosted my aunt and uncle for the week, I decided my apartment needed a little work.

March 14: My first attempt at homemade hummus! I was in charge of snacks for my small group on Sunday night - a great opportunity to try some new (and old) recipes. In addition to the hummus, I made a new queso recipe (thanks, Julie!) and my mom's tried-and-true mint brownies. Mmm.

March 15: My aunt came to school with me on Tuesday, so of course we had to pack our lunches the night before. We're ready!

March 16: In an attempt to see a movie on Tuesday night, my family and I were able to enjoy some breathtaking bradford pear trees in the parking lot of the theater. These trees are all around town right now, and they are gorgeous! The flowers don't last but a few weeks, and unfortunately they smell terrible, but they are really pretty to look at!

March 17: Cousin Catherine. :)

March 18: I confess I'm cheating. I left my camera at school Thursday, so I'm using a picture from last week. These are some of my students swinging during recess. I had been swinging with them a few minutes before, and it was absolutely refreshing! Try it sometime - you're never too old to swing!

March 19: My Friday night project. My first digital scrapbook (of Israel), coffee, and a new candle my aunt gave me. It smells like a bakery. :)

Awkward Moments Day

Thursday, March 18th, is officially "Awkward Moments Day"! A day to celebrate those beautifully awkward situations in which we often find ourselves. (Or maybe it's just me that often finds myself in the midst of those!) Either way, I thought an awkward picture would be appropriate. Behold my cousin Catherine - she is pretty spectacular. :) Happy Awkward Moments Day!

So Sleepy...

Jet lag...it's a funny thing. This week has been interesting as far as sleep is concerned. I've been getting tired earlier than usual but have been going to bed at my normal time (between 10 and 11). Yet...I'm bright-eyed and bushy-tailed before 5:00 each morning. I hope this lasts!

Enjoy this week's pictures!

March 7: Part of my home group at Tappy's Yogurt. These are some fun people, and I look forward to getting to know them even better as we continue to meet each Sunday night.

March 8: The sky as I left school on Monday. It's been handy having my camera with me ALL the time so I can capture moments like this!

March 9: Extra recess! Tuesday mornings we are in the classroom from 8:00 to almost noon, so we usually take a small break somewhere in there. It was a gorgeous day on Tuesday - sunny and in the 70s.

March 10: My dear friend Cary, who I was able to have dinner with on Wednesday evening. She and her husband just bought their first house! It was so exciting to get the grand tour and spend some time catching up with each other.

March 11: Um, so I slacked off Thursday and don't have a picture! I took a "nap" at 9:30 p.m. (mistake #1) and didn't wake up until 12:04 (on Friday, mind you), just in time to miss my picture-taking opportunity. Oh, well.

March 12: A trip to the hospital to visit my friends, Megan and Kc. AND their new baby, Bennett. :) He is a beautiful gift from the Lord - and don't they make a lovely family?

Israel

I'm back from Israel! And I LOVED it. What a blessing to be able to walk where Jesus walked! Already Scripture is coming alive in a new way.

I only took 336 pictures while I was there. Below are 10 :). There are more on my Facebook page if you're interested. Enjoy!

February 24: I know this is a cheap shot, but it was nearing the end of the day and I didn't have many options for pictures. :) Ergo, this oh-so-exciting one.

February 25: This was dinner the first night we were in Tiberias. I kind of took a lot of food pictures because it was all so tasty (and colorful!). Hummus was a staple at every meal, and boy, did I take advantage of that. Hummus is yummus.

February 26: The Sea of Galilee, where Jesus walked on water and calmed the storm. Just gorgeous.

February 27: Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. This place has a really neat story, and this particular cave is where a large number of the scrolls were found.

February 28: The Dead Sea is in the background, and this picture was taken right after we floated in the water. There was a pit of mineral-rich mud for visitors to cover themselves with. We then rinsed off in sulfur-water showers, which smelled like rotten eggs. Ah, the things people do for their skin!

March 1: Camels at Petra. Of all the animals I know about, I think camels are the funniest. Naked mole rats come in a close second.

March 2: The shore of the Red Sea, through which the Lord led the Israelites out of Egypt.

March 3: A view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives.

March 4: This was a sign posted near the Garden Tomb, where some speculate Jesus was buried after His crucifixion. There's no way to know for sure where this actually took place, but Romans 1:4 is true nonetheless. And because of Jesus' perfect life, death, and resurrection, sinners can be reconciled to a holy God. Praise God for the gift of His Son. He is risen indeed!

March 5: Caesarea, mentioned several times in Acts. A city originally built by Herod the Great.

March 6: The day I got back to Texas. Cousin Becca dropped me off at about 2:00, and the next 7 hours were a bit rough. All I wanted to do was sleep, but I knew that would not help the jet-lag situation. Hence the large caffeinated beverage. I made it to about 8:45 before crawling into bed.