Laughter

Have you ever noticed how God provides the things in life that we really need. For example I need a lot of laughter to keep me sane. God has provided so many friends who can make me laugh hysterically. He also seems to know when I need it. This weekend and today He has taken care of me. He has surrounded me with so much laughter that all I can do is smile. I had a wonderful weekend in Whitefish with constant laughter and love. Coming home He kept me safe through the worst of the roads and gave me laughter tonight when I needed it after a rough start this morning. Praise God for loving me so much that He takes the time to provide my every need and giving me such great friends!!!

Ten on Tuesday

Ten Reasons I Will Miss Great Falls

1. I will miss my wonderful friend/co-worker, Karin Wallen, who is always here to pray for me and with me. She has been a life savor in a job where you are limited to how vocal you can be about your beliefs. May God bless her abundantly for being a great woman of faith

2. I will miss Great Falls Christian Center. So much of my life revolves around ministries at church I won't know what to do with time not spent there. I suppose there will be new ministries at the new church

3. Wonderful, Godly friends! I don't have many friends that I have stayed in touch with back in Oregon. It wasn't until I moved to Great Falls that I really found true friends who are there for me anytime, who are willing to tell me what's what, and push me to get my mind and life back on track with God. The good news is I'm going to a place where I know they will come visit

4. My kids. Yes, I know, many of you are saying she doesn't have kids, but I do, over 500 of them. Granted there are a few that I will probably be a little joyful to see move on but for the most part it will be hard to not see them next school year. It's not often, as a teacher, you get to have kids for 3 years in a row. I will miss their smiling faces, their hugs, and the way they can tell that "today is one of those days we just need to be a little quieter and not so rowdy."

5. Watching the kids of all of my friends grow up. It's hard to be away from my nephews but it has been a little bit easier, in some ways, since there are so many kids out there that I can go spend time with. Thank you Mike & Katie for letting me hang out with you and watch Sarah & Cory grow. Thank you Cortney for letting me be a part of your family's life, especially when I stayed with you. Thank you Jackie (even though you are no longer in GF) for letting me spend time with you and the girls, I miss you guys lots, and look forward to seeing you more often. Thank you Duke and Cheryl for letting me hold Benjamin and including me in things you do like football & hockey

6. My house. I know, I know, most of you would think I would be happy to get out of it and I am, but there are a lot of good memories that were formed in that house. Meeting new friends through the 40 Days of Purpose k-group. Easter lunches. Daniel and his string cheese. Jason letting us know he was baptised in the Holy Spirit. The girls completely annihilating the boys in Cranium. Genna staying during the summer. Hearing my uncle's voice on the answering machine after he got back from Iraq. The list goes on

7. Having Wal-mart, Target, ShopKo, and Kmart 3 miles away when I need to quickly run get something. (This is if I move to Whitefish or Columbia Falls. If I end up in Kalispell then it won't be too bad.)

8. Hastings! I love just being able to go in for hours on end and read a book without having to purchase it first. It has saved me a lot of money

9. The gorgeous sun rises I see on my way to work on Tuesday thourgh Thursday mornings. They are a beautiful pink with trees reaching up into the clouds. During the spring and summer the trees are full of leaves. During the winter their bare limbs stretch like they are trying to grab the clouds as they go by

10. The wind...yeah right, I will be loving that I will actually be able to do my bangs and have it look the same when I get to my car, 10 feet away.

Thursday Thoughts

So I'm sitting at my desk at work thinking about the month to come...

1. Jump Rope For Heart is going to take up a majority of it. Can we reach our goal of $2500 at one school, and will the kids actually turn in money at the other school? How will the Family Jump Nights go and will I get the help I need for it to run smoothly?

2. Lots of traveling. Missoula the 5th-6th for a conference on how to teach responsibility to disruptive students. Whitefish for President's Day weekend.

3. What can I pack now that I won't need for the next 5 months and what goes on the get rid of list.

4. What do I need to do to get my portfolio and placement files updated so when I apply for a job I have everything in line.

5. What's for dinner...this is on my mind all of the time so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

6. Finding someone to take my place as Presentation Team Leader at church and getting him/her trained.

7. What kind of bruise will I end up with after biffing it today right in front of my students?

Oh, my brain hurts just thinking about it, good thing it shuts off at about 4 pm.

Whitefish Prayer

The prayer request for moving to the Whitefish area or not has been answered. I will be moving sometime in June but will be out of my house here by the end of May!

I'm getting very excited and even started packing things that I really don't need for a while. Okay, I know, I'm way ahead of myself but I have a feeling when the time comes I'm going to be so busy trying to remember to turn off the phone, paint the trim, and everything else that goes with a big move that I will be glad I did a little bit of it each time I'm home.

The new prayer request is for the details. The details being a job and housing. I will be putting my things in storage until I get back from Oregon in June and right now there are no openings in the districts in that area. The good news is that usually openings start around March. Also, I love my job at the elementary level so if God's plans are for me to change to middle school or high school, there will need to be major work done in my heart. The great news is that I trust God to provide all of the above! Prayers never hurt though so I thank you so much for all the prayers you have, and will, send up!

Can You Say "Dork"?

Okay, so I don't claim to be dork free! I'm often very dorky at school around my kids, especially when it comes to dancing. But when it comes to being out with adults enjoying the snow...yep even then I can pull off dorky...here's proof.

Can I squint any harder? And what is up with the mouth?

No idea, but I had a blast so who really cares right? This is the day I learned how to drive a snowmobile, the one in this picture, it even had heated handles.