0 Miles but Now There's 5

Today I'm thankful for: #1- My friend Brian a.k.a. the school janitor who fixes and helps me with anything I ask. I had a magnetic board hanging up and it fell down over the weekend. (Probably should have and something more stable than push pins holding it up but it's worked for the last 3 years so I wasn't worried about it.) I asked Brian to put some nails in my wall and this morning without a reminder he and his helper fixed it for me. Yep, I'm glad there's people who'll put holes in the wall with good strong nails so I don't have to.

#2 - A group of students who are excited to learn. I we're learning about each other and I'm very excited for the year. I think I'm going to really like this group.

#3- Brand new running shoes. Kerri and I went to Wasatch Running and were fitted for our first pair of actual running shoes. We went ahead and clocked 5 miles with them tonight and I'll say that now there is no going back. Loved the feel of them on my feet - worth every penny. (And they did cost a few - but I'm SO happy with my purchase!) I really enjoyed our run it was at dusk and it wasn't too hot. I love to run as the sun is rising or the sun is setting. It's so beautiful!

#4 - Laughter with friends. Preston, Tricia, Kerri, and I had a great evening watching a show, eating food, and most of all enjoying each other's company. I love that the day can end laughing with friends.

Cereal

Today I'm thankful: #1 - that I survived the day after getting up at 5:15. Saturday was busy and I didn't get my week planned so I went in early today to make sure I had things ready. I like getting up early because I feel like I've had a morning before I go to work but 5:15 is just so early that I can't LOVE it too much.

#2 - For mashed Potatoes to eat at lunch. Our school cafeteria isn't too bad and I'm always tempted to get mashed potatoes when they're on the menu. Today they sounded much better than what I'd brought for lunch so I enjoyed two scoops of potatoes smothered in gravy.

#3 - For a bowl of cereal and laughter with friends. For home evening we brought a box of cereal to share. I enjoyed Reeses and Cookie Crisps. Both kinds of cereal that I'd never buy but I'll eat a small bowl as a little treat.

Dessert

Today I'm thankful for: #1 - Sleeping in. I would love early church but since I don't have early church I love sleeping in. I should be more productive on Sunday mornings but I just can't bring myself to get up when it's the only day to sleep in. I'm a bit lazy.

#2- Enjoyable church meetings. I love going to church and love being nourished by the word of the gospel.

#3- Alisha and going to the 16th ward reunion. Catie a friend from my old ward had a little reunion so Alisha and I decided to go together. We didn't plan to stay long. Just long enough to say hello to a few friends and to see the Cliffords. It was wonderful to catch up for just a few minutes. Then Alisha and I left and visited in my car for a while before I headed home. It was great to catch up with my friend.

#4- Eating a piece of yummy dessert. I made this dessert to take some to Raegan for her July birthday treat. I made a little pan for us to eat as well. It's one of my favorites and very delicious.

#5 - My parents being married for 37 years. Today is my parents have been married for 37 years. So glad they made that decision so many years ago. I'm so thankful to have them as my parents.

Celebrating Kara

Today I'm thankful for: #1- Clean car. This morning the first thing on my list was to wash my car. I don't know why I wash it as soon as it's clean it seems like it gets dirty. What do you do? Wash it again I guess.

#2 - All caught up with Burn Notice so there's no more DVR mishaps. We finally got all caught up with Burn Notice. Now we'll just watch one a week until the season ends. I'm really glad we'll just be watching one a week now we were a little ridiculous watching three episodes in a row.

#3 - That I didn't die on my run - it was so hot. After the show ended it was about 10 and I decided to go for a little run. I didn't realize it was so hot I only ran about 4 and with 1 and a half miles to go I had to stop and cool off for a minute. This wasn't such a good idea because then I couldn't get going again. I was so happy when I got home and drank my chocolate milk.

#4- The temple. Usually I get to the temple before Saturday but this week was just too busy. I was glad I had time this afternoon to go to a session.

#5 Homemade Root beer. I decided I wanted to take homemade root beer to the ward party. This was quite the project because I had to go buy a cooler at Walmart and find a store that sold dry ice. Now that I have the cooler and know that Smith's sells dry ice the next time I decide to make this it won't be such a chore.

#6- Ward Party. Kerri and I went to the ward party. It was OK. The root beer was a bit of a flop because it was so hot that the dry ice melted way faster than I thought it would and it was really flat. Some people seemed to be enjoying it so I guess it wasn't a complete bust.

#6- Kara's birthday party. Kerri and I only stayed at the ward party for about an hour and then headed to Provo. Kara was having a 30th birthday party and Kerri agreed to come with me so I didn't have to go alone. I was glad she'd come because I hate standing around at parties by myself.

#7- Graham Canyon at the Creamery on Ninth. After we left Kara's party we headed over to the creamery for a little graham canyon ice cream. We bought waffle cones and Kerri bought a half gallon to enjoy later on this week. We got stuck in traffic on the way home and I'm not looking forward to driving home from Provo after all those football games. Traffic is no fun!

Red Mango

Today I'm thankful for: #1- Fridays! I have loved this week but I'm glad it's over. When I got to work this morning Raegan and I were pulling up at exactly the same time. I got out of my car and said, "I'm exhausted! I need a nap and the day hasn't even started!" She replied with she felt the same. I didn't realize how exhausting that picnic was until I felt like I was moving through tar this morning. Later on my way out for bus duty I tried to recruit the janitor to watch my class for a couple of hours while I took a nap in the teacher's lounge. I even told my principal Brian would be covering for me. They all laughed and I told them I was serious. Good thing I perked up as soon as my kids came in and it was time to start the school day. I was still so happy it was Friday and a short day. Even though the afternoon after the kids leave is filled with meetings. I'm looking forward to some rest the next couple of days.

#2 - Yummy dinner. Tricia, Preston, and I went out to dinner at Macaroni Grill. It was a funny experience because we felt like as soon as we were just getting our salad they were ready to take them from us and give us our main dish. It was the fastest dinning experience ever.

#3- Red Mango frozen yogurt. I love this place! Tricia and I got some to bring home and eat later. We decided to crumble some grahams on top and it just might be the best thing I've tasted in a while. So yummy. We then got all caught up with our episodes of Burn Notice.

A Picnic in the Park

Today I'm thankful for: #1 - A good quick day at work. I can't believe the first week is almost over!

#2- After school Raegan and I headed to the store to grab some ice. She went over to the snow shack to buy us each a shaved ice while I bought several bags of ice. It was pretty hot day and I was so happy to have a cool treat. Especially since a shaved ice is my favorite summer treat.

#3 - Start of the year picnic. This was a great experience. I love meeting with the families of the students in my class. I love to visit with parents and put faces to names. I love see my students interact with one another. I love the chance to be somewhere in a less structured environment to get to know the families I'll be working with this year. It is the best thing that I do all year. The parents that come support me the rest of the year and it's worth the little work that it takes to put it all together. It was fun this year to have it with our buddy class and to have Raegan to help me with everything. Definitely the best one yet! When I got home I was exhausted. I sat down to unwind and watched a little T.V. and then headed to bed.

A Bucket of Cookies

Today I'm thankful for: #1 - Kerri who let me borrow her camera so I could take great pictures of my kids. I took really cute pictures of each of my students today in the outdoor classroom. I'll print them out 5x7 to put in the black frames all around my house. I'm pretty excited about them.

 #2 - The beginnings of something good and big. Today we met our buddies and began our Images project. We're going to have a great year filled with a lot of hard work but a lot of fun too.

#3 - Costco with Raegan, Sweet Tooth Fairy, and home to make cookies for our picnic. After school Raegan and I headed to Costco to pick up stuff for our start of the year picnic tomorrow. On our way I stopped at Sweet Tooth Fairy and introduced this lovely store to Raegan. You walk in and the smell is just so delicious. I love it! When I got home from the store I went to work on making a bunch of cookies. We've got several parents bringing dessert and I hope these cookies will be enough. While the cookies were baking I watched part of Invictus with Tricia before it was time to head to bed.

First Day of School

Today I'm thankful for: #1- 30 students whom I'm SO excited to get to know. This year I'll be teaching the biggest group of students that I ever have. Before this year my biggest group was 27 so it'll be an experience this year. I think I've got a really great group of kids and I'm sure we're going to have a really great year. Today on the first day of school I took a picture with my best school friend. We have a pretty great time teaching at Riverton together.
#2 Taco Tuesday - College food definitely a weird mix of food it was fun but very different. Kerri and I decided to go to Taco Tuesday tonight. Preston came with us and we had a good time visiting at Josh's house. Kerri took bagels and cream cheese and I took pigs in a blanket. There was also mac and cheese, cheese quesadillas, and several different frozen pizzas. Good to know we all ate so healthy when we were away at school.
#3- Quick visit from my parents and a mom who'll finish my sewing projects I start. My parents were in town just for the evening and they stopped by to say hi. By this point in my day I was exhausted. The first day of school probably makes me more tired than any other day of the year. So mom and dad didn't stay long. I sent mom home with a couple of sewing projects that I've started and I'm pretty sure I won't get finished anytime soon. So I decided to let her finish them for me. Such a sweet lady. I love her so much!

Volunteering

Today I'm thankful for: #1- Service. This morning our household was up at 4 a.m. to go and serve others. Our ward was given two water stations to man at the Deseret News Marathon. We had stations at mile 5 and 7 which means we had to be at our station before the race starts at 5 so we're ready for the first runners. We had a great time. It sounds odd but it's a great way to spend an early holiday morning. 

#2 - Finally finished. Or at least finished enough. I went into work for a couple of hours and now everything is ready enough for students tomorrow. I should probably say it's as good as it needs to be. It's such a job to get ready for a new group of kids. 

#3- New school clothes and feeling pretty. On my way home I stopped at a couple of stores and miraculously found some things that I actually wanted to buy. Now I have some cute new clothes to wear the first few days of school. Then I headed to the mall to have a pedicure and manicure. I decided that this would be the perfect way to start a new school year. I love having my nails done. What is it about having your nails painted that makes you feel a little prettier and more like a girl. 

#4- A priesthood blessing. I asked Josh my home teacher to come over and give me a priesthood blessing for the start of the school year. I love priesthood blessings. I love the peace and comfort that enters my soul when hands are laid on my head. I love the power that fills my life with extra strength in areas that I'll need help in in the upcoming months. I'm so thankful for the priesthood power that blesses my life. 

#5- Finding. For home evening we went out to people in our ward and invited them to come to the ward picnic on Saturday. Only one person on Tricia and I's list was home but it was fun to be out finding where people live. 

#6- After home evening I should have come home and gone to bed but I hadn't seen professional fireworks the whole month of July so Tricia and I went downtown and watched several firework shows from the roof of Preston's building with him. It was fun because you could see the whole valley and see the ones being set off from the Bee's game, from Liberty Park, and a bunch of other private ones.

Family Histories

Today to I'm thankful for: #1- Church centered around the legacy of the pioneers. I love the 24th of July in Utah. I love to hear the stories of the early saints. It helps me to remember that I'm so blessed because of the sacrifices of others. I'm so thankful for them. 

#2- A lovely dinner. Sundays are favorite days on so many levels and I'm starting to feel like Tricia's family are becoming my family too. It's nice to be with family on a Sunday even if they're an adopted family. 

#3- Family histories. Each July 24th I try to read some of my own family histories. Sometime I read about my pioneer ancestors and sometimes I read about ancestors that I knew in my lifetime. Today I pulled out my grandma Clark's parents and their descendants family history book. This is something I don't do often because reading my grandma's words makes me cry and I miss her. I'm thankful she wrote  about her life, her testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and her love for her family. I couldn't be who am I without having known her, felt her love, and her faith. I'm so thankful for who she was during this life and who she still helps me to become. 

Crafts

Today I am thankful for: #1- The nice run that Kerri and I enjoyed this morning. This race is getting closer. We've got a little less than a month to train and then it'll be here. This means each Saturday we need to do longer runs. I'm not sure how excited I am for those.
#2- Working on these letters. Kerri helped me with this little crafting project. She cute out most of the scrapbook paper that I put on them. Some of them are just painted and some have glitter. Raegan has some of these that say School. I decided that they'd be a perfect addition to my classroom. I decided I wanted three words and Raegan helped me decide on Explore, Discover, Create. I worked on most of them this morning and then left them to dry until later today.
#3- Getting more things finished at work. I went into work for a few hours. I brought home a bunch of lamination to cut out and now my whole first week is planned.
#4- A little barbecue with friends. We grill chicken tonight and a bunch of friends came over for dinner. After they left I finished all my letters and am so excited to put them up in my classroom.

Found It!

Today I'm thankful for: #1- Getting a lot finished. My room is coming together and I've got everything copied for Tuesday. We met together as a team today and got quite a few things planned out as well. I just need to hang up all my photo frames and a few posters and I'll be ready to go. On my way home I stopped by Walmart and picked up a few things as well as a scrapbook paper store to get paper for these wood letters that I am making. Then I headed to Preston's to meet him for dinner. 

#2- Dinner and a movie with Preston. We decided to get take out from P.F. Changs. I loved what I ordered and we had a great dinner eating on top of the roof at Preston's. It is a pretty spectacular view of the whole valley. Then we decided to go and see Soul Surfer at the dollar theater. Preston had seen it a couple of times and really enjoyed it. We'd been talking about seeing it but hadn't found a good time to go. It was a good show and really quite inspiring. 

#3- When the movie was through Preston realized that he didn't have his pen in his pocket. I thought I'm not sure what the big deal is. He went back into the theater to look for it but it wasn't there. He was getting pretty sad that he couldn't find it. On the way back to the car he explained to me that it had been a gift for on of his graduations and that it was a space pen. One that could really write in space if he ever made that journey. He also told me he's afraid of loosing it so he rarely takes it out of his apartment. Imagine my relief when we got into the car and he found it between the seat and the console. It'd fallen out of his pocket before we went into the theater. He was so excited about it this photo had to be my picture of the day. 

Work... Work... and More Work...

Today I'm thankful: #1- that I decided to sleep in a couple of hours. I was exhausted.
#2- For the start of a brand new year. I love the idea of a brand new year of school. I love meeting new parents, new students, and preparing my room for the year we'll have. I like the feeling of it becoming a whole new world for my new students to enjoy. I'm excited to get to know them. I've also been working hard to update some things around my room. Tonight's focus was getting posters and my tote tray labels updated.
#3- For good friends who make life better just by being them. I'm blessed with wonderful friends. I can't say it enough times and I'm so happy to have them in my life.

Snow Cone

Today I'm thankful: #1- that I work at Riverton Elementary and have the blessing and opportunity to work with amazing people. I love my team, teachers from other grades that I get to work on committees with, the office staff, and a great principal who appreciates all the teachers that work at our school.
#2 - For a chance to be in my classroom and get the first days of school all figured out. I'm excited to meet my kids and get started on another wonderful year.
#3-For the yummy snow cone I treated myself to after running errands on my way home. I got home around 8. I had just enough energy to finish a couple of projects so they're ready to go tomorrow - I spray painted 18 frames and put together some letters to go in a frame that I'm going to hang in my classroom. I should have gotten to bed earlier because I was up at 5:15 and ran 4 miles before my day ever really started and tomorrow I need to be up and work out again. As usual though it's way too late. I've got to work on the whole early to bed early to rise thing.

Blog Updates

Today I'm thankful for: #1- Not having to go into work but going in anyway. There is always so much to do before school starts even though I don't get paid for working extra I'm to glad to have extra time to get some things finished. 

#2- A few new things for my classroom. I've decided to work on adding a few new decorations to my room. I'm excited about adding just a few things that will make it feel less bare. I'm so not a "cutesy" teacher but I do need to work on having not so bare walls. I don't want a tone but I need to have a little bit more. 

#3- Blogs. When I checked blogs today both Liz and Annie had updated and I was excited to see pictures of the girls and hear about the cute things they are up to. 

Shopping

Today I'm thankful for: #1- A fun day out with a friend. Raegan and I went out to lunch and then shopping. We were on a mission to find new clothes to wear the first week of school. A benefit of being a school teacher is you still get to go school shopping. Even though I sort of despise shopping it's always so much more enjoyable with a friend. We had a wonderful time visiting about everything in life. I'd hate to think what life would be like without friends. Unfortunately, we really didn't find anything. I bought a couple of things but they are not "first day" appropriate. So I'll have to go to the mall again and keep looking.
 #2- Home evening. Everyone made homemade ice cream in their own ziplock bag. Tricia and I passed but we enjoyed watching everyone else mush their bags and visiting while their liquid turned solid.
#3- Women's World Cup Final. I spent most of my evening watching the USA play Japan in the World Cup. It was a good game but Japan ended up winning in an overtime shootout. Sad way to end a very well played game by the USA.

At the end of the day

Today I'm thankful for: #1 - the chance to sleep in. I should just get to sleep earlier and then I wouldn't feel like I wanted to sleep the entire morning away.
#2 - My membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I'm so thankful for my faith. For my love of my Savior and for the blessings he has given to me in my life today our Sacrament meeting focused on the temple and I was so thankful for the opportunity that I have to attend the temple on a regular basis. I'm thankful for the covenants I have made there and they way those covenants help me to do good in my life.
#3- Dinner at Preston's parents house. Preston's mom made us yummy lasagna for dinner and I thought about what a blessing it is to have wonderful people invite you into their home and share a meal with them.
#4- the end of the day and the beginning of a brand new week tomorrow. It'll be busy but a good one I'm sure.

Helping a Friend

Today I'm thankful for: #1- Kerri moving in. I'm so excited to have Kerri as our new roommate. I'll miss Haley but she's moving onto bigger and better things so I'm happy to have a another great friend living across the hall. Tricia and I headed over to Kerri's old place and helped move a bunch of stuff. By late morning we were back at our place surrounded by boxes and eating pizza. 

#2- The afternoon to go through papers. Today I decided to go through my file box and shred a bunch of papers that I no longer need. It felt great to do a little more deep cleaning than I usually do. I'm also very excited about the couple of big bags I have in my car to take to D.I. 

#3- Helping a friend. Late afternoon Preston called me to see if I could come and pick him up to go buy a cane. He hurt his ankle today during a soccer game. I had a pretty great time. Not only was I helping a friend but it was really making my laugh to watch him driving a little cart around the store doing his shopping. We met Tricia and went to eat at Costa Vida for dinner. Then I washed and waxed my car while Preston went with Tricia to her soccer game. When they got back we went to watch Burn Notice but somehow the show was named wrong and the wrong episode was recorded so we won't be watching it for a while. We were a little bit frustrated to say the least. 

Haley and Brandon

Today I'm thankful for: #1 - The beauty of the temple and a temple wedding. My sweet roommate married her best friend today. Tricia, Kerri, and I decided to go to a session before attending the wedding. They were married in the Bountiful temple and it was a beautiful ceremony and a beautiful day. Every time I attend a temple wedding I think, "I need nothing more than this." I love the simplicity of the temple yet it couldn't be more perfect or more beautiful. The temple sealer gave them wonderful counsel and I thought to myself this really is what life is all about. Marriage is such a wonderful blessing. I'm so excited for Haley and Brandon and the start of their new life together. #2 - Pictures. After a few quick pictures at the temple we headed home to finish putting together the couples wedding video. We weren't home long before it was time to go to the wedding lunch we went to a Brazillian Barbecue place. Brandon served his mission in Brazil so it was a perfect choice. Tricia and I had never experienced this feast of meat so Kerri gave us advice on what was really good. #3- Kerri and I went to the reception together and it was very cute. There were tons of pin wheels and wheat grass which made the whole room feel like an backyard reception. I loved it. When I got home I moved the rest of my room from my old room into the new one. Preston and I watched a show in the middle of it and I finished really late. I'll be glad when I get it all organized and Kerri is all moved in as well.

The Last Harry Potter

Today I'm thankful for: #1- My last day at these classes. I'm so happy they're over. I'm pretty sure I could have learned everything in two days instead of the four I spent. #2 - Dinner at Chile's with Raegan. We've been looking forward to this day for months. We bought movie tickets to see an advanced showing of Harry Potter and were decided to meet to eat dinner. We had a great time catching up and visiting over dinner. #3 - Harry Potter. After dinner we drove over to the movie theater and met Kerri, Tricia, and Preston for the movie. I got the tickets from my friend Tori who helps organize this big early showing. We were pretty excited to get to watch it. I think we all really enjoyed the movie. It's kinda sad to know that there won't be any more coming out but really there are other great books to enjoy. I loved the books more than the movies. Although, I do enjoy the movies. I took Raegan back to her car and we ended up visiting way to late. I'm so happy to have her as a friend!