A NEW Bloggity Blog!

Well everyone...  I've decided to jump ship. 

...
I'm jumping ship on THIS blog, I mean.

This has been somewhat of a chronical (albeit quite inconsistent) of my life as a single woman.  I'm excited to start sharing updates about our new family-life with my husband, & wanted a new place, all our own, for that.

That said, I'm glad to announce a NEW BLOG, where you will find our Darby Family Fun!

http://www.ourdarbydaze.blogspot.com/

I decided to keep it private though, so if you'd like to follow Our Story as it keeps on going, send me your email address in an email, or post a comment, or send a text, or somehow let me know you'd like an invite, & as soon as I can, I'll get you hooked up!  ;o)

I haven't decided yet if I will let this blog fade to oblivion, or if I might still use it somehow, but either way I'm excited for the fresh beginning of our new blog!

Figured out the WHY...

I just looked back, (not very far since I haven't posted much at all since moving to Yuma & not having internet) & I re-read my post about moving to Yuma.  It kinda melted my heart just a little bit.  Here's why!  This is what I typed, WAY back, last summer ;o), & some of the reactions that touched my heart today:

"I don't know WHY I'm going to Yuma, ...  But I am pretty sure that I'm supposed to go to Yuma."

People really did ask me "WHY Yuma???".  All those question marks in their voices & everything.  I really, REALLY didn't know WHY. 

Just because I couldn't understand what was bringing me here, I wasn't coming here blindly.  The only thing I really had was the strong feeling that I was doing the right thing with my life.  I stepped forward into the darkness with faith, & although it sometimes falters & I know I'm so weak, I have found great blessings awaiting me.  God is great, & I love to feel His love.
I've discovered the answer to all those questioning words.  By coming to Yuma, I met the man I'll spend the rest of my life & forever with.  He loves me for me.  He loves me despite ALL my faults & quirks & struggles.  He loves me when I cry, & especially when I laugh.  He has ALWAYS been so patient with me, ALWAYS supported me, & loves to be my adventure buddy!  I want to spend my time with him, & he loves to be with me.  He even reserves the Zelda marathons for when I'm so occupied with other things that I'm not much fun to hang out with anyway.  ;o)  I love him.  I love so much about him, especially his great heart.

When I was moving to Yuma, I never, ever imagined that Yuma would hand me a piece of my Forever... a VERY important piece of Forever!  But it has.

More that I read: 

"To be perfectly honest, changes can still be hard for me. ...  I'm scared, but excited! Yuma may or may not melt my brains out, that is yet to be determined. BUT, I know that Yuma will hold many adventures & hopefully a lot of growing experiences!"


Well, changes are STILL hard for me, & this coming year holds more than I can count right now! (I only teach 2nd grade, we don't have to count THAT high...)  I find myself again scared, but most definitely excited!  Has Yuma succeeded at melting my brains out??  Well, It's easier to say no right now, when our temperatures have actually been dropping below freezing, but NO.  I still have pretty good brain power, despite the early & strong allergies I'm fighting at the moment.  Is it hot? A resounding YES!  Will it kill me?  NO, especially knowing that by the time the rest of the world is remembering what FALL is like, we'll be moving somewhere new.
 
Has Yuma presented me with adventures & growing experiences??  HECK YES!  The adventures I/we have had already, have been fantastic, & I'm sure what's coming right around the corner is going to be even more exciting & adventuresome!  As for growing, I know I've got SO far to go, but if preparing to join your life with someone else's, & planning for Forever, & talking about your very own home & family doesn't stretch you & help you learn more about yourself & that special one you love, then I don't know what will.  AND, if that doesn't do it, then the kids I love to teach, even the most "Special" of them, will most definitely stretch me, & require me to learn, to grow, & to become a better me.
 
So, to sum up these rambled thoughts,  I guess I just have to say, Here's to Yuma!  & Here's to all kinds of new & exciting changes!

A little song for you...

I just made it up.  Yes.  RIGHT now.  As I typed it.  Haha!  It's to the tune of My Favorite Things from The Sound of Music.  I hope you enjoy it.  Or at least it makes you laugh at me.  Maybe even a lot.

Grading their papers, & colors of flowers.

working & sleep that lasts just a few hours.

Planning & prepping & wanting to change.....

These are a few of the things on my brain!

Dresses with beading, & satin with lace.

Scheduling parties- the time & the place.

How to announce it & who just might come...

All of these things might make me come undone!

When the kids yell, when my voice runs,

when I think "Just elope!",

I simply remember the WHY's of it all,

& that's when I knooooooow

I.... won't... choke! 

hahahaha!

Happy Friday All! :)

I'm Engaged!

It's been ages & ages since I've had internet, so I haven't blogged in that long & longer, though I do have a draft or two that got started sometime during bouts of internet connectivity, but I do have a connection now, & I have some news!......

I'm getting married!

Here's some of our story...

Jonathan is in the Marine Corps, & has been stationed in Yuma for a couple years.  

Earlier this year, I knew I was moving to Yuma, not really having an answer to the question I heard over & over "WHY Yuma??"

Jonathan & I met at a YSA activity, where we quickly became acquainted, thanks to Quelf, the game that is King of Random.  I don't have a picture of us, but it went pretty much like this.....

 Everyone had to take turns sitting on Jonathan's lap & telling "Santa" what they wanted for Christmas.

"I want a super deluxe tool kit."  hahaha!

Good to meet you!

Jonathan asked me out, but we actually kind of had our first date a night or two before that day came.  One night he brought over a couple pints of ice cream & we sat up all night eating ice cream & talking & watching TV.  When our date night came, we went out to a movie & then sat and talked over more ice cream at my house afterward.

Fast forward.   Jonathan & I are dating, though one of us is a little slow, & so we're not calling it that.  Jonathan had to go to Corporal's Course in Miramar for a few weeks, & I went for part of the weekend to visit.  We had a fun time playing at the beach.

Also on a weekend while he was at Corporal's Course we went to Mesa to go to the Temple & visit my sister & her family.  That weekend brought changes for us, & the next few weeks were a lot different.  We weren't dating anymore, but we were talking everyday, & getting to know each other more & more.  (FUNNY how that worked out....)

Just before Labor Day, Jonathan started talking about taking a trip to the Snowflake Temple.

I love northern Arizona, & I love visiting Temples, so when Jonathan invited me to go,  I decided it was a great excuse to visit with my family & with my dear friends, & so I went with him.  The brother of the friends that we stayed with thought that we were dating, & I just laughed.  But being in a car with someone for 12+ hours...  can get you talking, can open you up even more to each other, & for us it did.  Again our weekend getaway brought changes to our relationship, & within a day of getting home from that trip we were dating again.

We went to the Marine Corps Ball together, & by now Jonathan knew he wanted to marry me!

3 days later we went to the Mesa Temple, where we spent a little time with his parents & some friends, & where I was able to give him the answer he'd been hoping for .....

YES!

We're getting married!  We're getting maried! 

March 29th is the special day!

St. George, Utah is the special place!

We'll have a reception in Washington (where Jonatha is from), on April 2.

The next weekend will be our Northern Arizona reception, in the Prescott Area, on April 9th... (right, the 9th, or is it the 8th?) ;o)

We'll also have an open house in Yuma later in April, or maybe even in May, but we want to let our friends & ward families here celebrate with us! :)

That's the big news for now!

101 Things I Can Count On...

I've been working on this post for a long while, & it's been fun to think of new things to add!

101. Life is BeAutiful. (Even if it may not always seem that way-It is a Beautiful Disaster!)

100. The love of family.
99. I can do & be better. 98. I've been blessed with wonderful friends.

97. My puppy wanting to give (me) kisses.

96. You can't live life afraid.

95. Change is CONSTANT.

94. Reading old journals can bring back all the same emotions.

93. My friends being simply AMAZING!

92. People come for food.

91. Wanting to learn MORE.

90. Taking kids to a park is fun!

89. Falling in love is always a little bit scary.

88. Wanting to be a Mama.

87. Studying God's word brings answers & peace.

86. Kids saying the most wonderful things!

85. Learning more about myself.

84. When I pray, He hears me.

83. Always already Knowing at least part of the why when life feels CRazY.

82. Sunsets make me happy.

81. Seth & Croix make me SMILE.

80. Being "bold" can be uber scary.

79. Finding a new song that I LOVE.

78. Listening to old favorite songs brings those memories back.

77. Being an Auntie is one of life's great treasures.

76. Tomorrow will come.

75. I am awkward.

74. A good book reels me in.

73. Having "Besties" who I can talk to about anything.

72. The Gospel of Jesus Christ.

71. The Temple bringing joy.

70. Wanting to eat that piece of Chocolate.

69. Loving some hot chocolate in a mug.

68. Enjoying cuddling.

67. Things will be funnier when I'm tired.

66. There will be more laundry to wash, fold, & put away.

65. Music speaks to my soul.

64. Loving to sing.

63. My hammock making me happy.

62. Catching a gorgeous sunrise is worth getting up that much earlier.

61. Occasionally finding that competitive streak in me.

60. Cheese is yummy.

59. Hours can be wasted online, if I'm not careful.

58. Addictinggames.com can actually be addicting, given the opportunity.

57. Reading other people's blogs helps me keep up with their lives.

56. If something's scary, it might not be if I try again.

55. Sometimes what I want & what I need are not the same thing.

54. Lindt Milk Chocolate with White Cream is the best chocolate I've ever had.

53. Prescott holds amazing Christmas traditions.

52. Christmas will feel more like Christmas if I go to the Courthouse Lighting & the Walk Through Bethlehem.

51. Family brings happiness.

50. Family relationships can be tricky.

49. Tastes change.

48. A picture can be worth a thousand words.

47. Painted toe nails make me feel girly.

46. A hug can make it all better, at least for a moment.

45. Sometimes I just need to cry.

44. Some things, & some people, may never change.

43. Feeling inadequate.

42. Needing to change for the better.

41. "I can do hard things." (Even if I don't always believe it in the moment...)

40. The urge to "straighten" that desert.

39. Being stronger than I thought I was.

38. Finding joy in the journey.

37. The continual realization that I am a "work in progress".

36. RandomNesS can be so fun & exciting! & it makes me happy!

35. It can be surprising who your best friends are.

34. The people who pass through my life touch me & leave an impression, whether they're there for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.

33. God's hand is in my life.

32. Moving is a lot of work.

31. After night comes day, always a new day full of promise.

30. Flowers can brighten up a room, or a difficult day/week.

29. Someone LOVES me.

28. Life will be full of the unexpected.

27. People are beautiful, no matter their "body type" or the color of their skin.

26. Beauty lies in who a person is, & not in what they look like.

25. "I need more chocolate in my life."

24. Time is one of life's very best gifts.

23. Wanting to hike/run/etc, even though I'll probably end up wodering (again) WHY I love it!

22. Time goes so quickly.... When it's running out.

21. Sometimes when a day feels like a week, weeks race by like days.

20. Finding friends in random/unexpected places.

19. Wondering where that bruise came from.

18. Trenton helping me out without complaining.

17. Finding miracles every single time I look for them.

16. Wanting to buy new shoes, but having a heck of a time finding shoes I like.

15. My phone will eventually give up on me.

14. Laughter is the best medicine. I love to laugh!

13. Fighting the shy in myself when I'm in new situations.

12. Being able to get by just fine without TV.

11. Drinking ice water in restaurants with ceiling fans = goosbumps.

10. Recognizing all the beauty in the world if I stop to look around.

9. Going to church each Sunday helps me face the coming week.

8. Distractions. (They don't have to be evil to be effective.)

7. Never getting enough sleep.

6. Wanting to capture the moment, to keep it forever.

5.Learning, growing, slipping, repeat.

4. Being me, & knowing that I am good enough because I'm doing the best I can.

3. I am a daughter of God, & have within me all the potential which that implies.

2. Jesus Christ is my Savior, He loves me, & will always welcome me with open arms.

1. God is my Father, & Loves Me more infinitely than I can understand.

My newest "New & Exciting"!

There's been SO much fun & excitement happening since my last random post! But for now, I'm just gonna put this little update out there!

I'm moving!

I'm moving next week.

Next week I am moving to Satan's Basement*.

*Satan's Basement is also known as Yuma, Arizona. Since Yuma is Hotter than Hades, I decided that to get hotter than Hades, you must be in Satan's basement. Hahaha!

I don't know WHY I'm going to Yuma, other than a Super Excited Principal who offered me an amazing job! But I am pretty sure that I'm supposed to go to Yuma. Here's why.

One Wednesday I sent out my resume, cover letter & letters of recommendation to about 12

school districts with Rodel qualifying schools. That afternoon/evening I got calls from 3 schools in the Crane District in (You guessed it) Yuma. I missed 2 of the calls because my phone only vibrated for calls, instead of ringing. The last call that night, I answered. I talked with a Principal who wanted to interview me for a 2nd grade ELD position, with 12 students in the class! That sounded amazing! She (like the other 2 principals who'd left me voice mails) wanted to do a phone interview on Thursday or Friday. I was leaving EARLY Thursday morning to drive through a lot of unknown cell phone reception, to hike all day of Friday, so.... Yeah. Instead of trying to set something up for the following week, she called me back about 10 minutes later & did the interview. .... & she unofficially offered me the job!! The next morning she called my references & texted me- excited to tell me my references were fantastic & officially offer me the job! H.L. Suverkrup.... I knew that if I went to Yuma, it would be for this job.

Thursday morning/afternoon 2 or 3 more principals

called me, again hoping to set up phone interviews. ... ALL of them were also from Yuma. The only other responses I got from those 11 or so other districts were a couple e-mails telling me the positions that had been open had been filled, & a couple districts telling me to fill out an application before they would even consider me. (Not that there's anything wrong with that! I just felt Yuma calling me... LoL... LITERALLY!)

This was about when I started asking myself... Yuma? Yuma...?? YUMA????

My phone died on that trip, & so bought me most of a week of more time to decide. I kept in touch with the Principal through e-mail, but by the time my new phone came on the Following Wednesday (A WEEK after our phone interview & job offer), she thought I was calling to turn down the position. (NOT because of anything I'd said, or lack of contact, she said, but because I'm "SUCH a good teacher, why would I want to go

to Yuma??" lol) She had asked "on a scale of 1-10", where was I? ... 1 being I'm unable to relocate, 10 being I'm absolutely coming. She was SO excited when I said that I wanted to say 10, except that I hadn't yet found a place to live. I went to Yuma the next day, got my contract & keys to my classroom, & started networking! Before I left Yuma on Friday afternoon, I'd found a place to live, with roommates, a different place for my sweet Bear to live for a year (*SAD thought, but....), & I'd already found some friends!

To be perfectly honest, changes can still be hard for me. I'm SAD to leave some amazing friends & roommates in a place that I love & that has really become home again. I'm scared, but excited! Yuma may or may not melt my brains out, that is yet to be determined. BUT, I know that Yuma will hold many adventures & hopefully a lot of growing experiences!

Another Chapter of My Life Comes to an End.

This post could probably be very long, & has certainly become long overdue, but I think I'll keep it short, if possible.

For those of you who knew I was planning on marrying Mac Dutton, the long story-short is that now, I am not.

Because I haven't been good at journaling, & because I probably need to allow myself feel the emotions, I'll try to write a little bit of the story ... the beautiful disaster my life has been in the past 2-3 months. (Although at times it becomes harder to see the "beautiful" & easier to see the "disaster".)

Mac came home from the California Oakland mission on August 1st. I was BEYOND excited to see him & be with him again, & happy to begin the rest of our life together. After seeing him for just a couple of days, I cried to think of going home & only having weekends together. ... If I had only known how much I would cry in the weeks to come, I'd have WISHED for that to be the only hurt in my heart.

It didn't take long for life to turn into a roller coaster, driven mostly by that man who had my heart. Many days I wasn't sure if I was rising or falling, but knew I wasn't at the highest or lowest point of that roller coaster.

The "Play Book" of Plans might tell the story better than I can on my own.

Plan A. Happily Ever After
Mac & I begin dating between my mission & his, & fall in love. I go with my heart & wait as he served the Lord for 2 years. I live by this quote: "Contrary to what the cynics say, distance is not for the fearful, it is for the bold. It's for those who are willing to spend a lot of time alone in exchange for a little time with the one they love. It's for those knowing a good thing when they see it, even if they don't see it nearly enough." We fall more in love as the distance makes us stronger. Letters deepen our love as he tells me of dreams he has of our children, & hopes for our future, & we talk of when we'll begin our "forever" together. I come to feel at home in the Dutton family, build family relationships as I share in many special moments & love them all. Friendships are made that will last a lifetime. We get married & live "happily ever after".

(I guess after that, I should interject that these became the plans that came into our "playbook", but only one could become our reality.)

Plan B. for Break-up
Mac decides he's confused beyond what he can handle with life home from the mission, & I am the only confusing thing he can get rid of. He calls me on the day that marks 32 months since our relationship began (yeah, that's 2 years 8 months- more than 1/10 of my lifetime, which means MORE of his) & he breaks my heart, yet again. (We had 2 break-ups pre-Mac's-mission, but I thought that those choices on his behalf could only make me love & respect him more.) Not what I was expecting, having not been aware of anything more than Plan A, & some distance I was beginning to feel in our relationship as I tried to give him space to work out his confusion.

Plan C. Dating-ish
(Came about because I could not find peace about breaking up, & went to Flagstaff to talk to Mac about it. When he couldn't tell me that breaking up with me had given him the peace he was trying to find, we settled on "Plan C.")
This plan is, in theory, us still dating each other, but dating other people too, see how things go, & figure it out. I should have known that this plan would be extremely difficult for me, & would hurt, because my heart was fully invested in this man I'd so long given all of my heart to.
It seemed to me that Plan C became Mac calling me his girlfriend whenever he wanted to, but the rest of the time he was single & free, & I was essentially ignored. I couldn't do this plan. It felt like we were simply cheating on each other. I came to feel a strong need to tell Mac not to bother kissing me or telling me that he loved me until he chose me, that if he was dating other girls & me, neither they nor I deserved to be treated with that disrespect. I was going to tell him that if he loved me, he should have eyes only for me, & if he was confused he needed to figure it out so we could either work togther or so I could get on with my life & find a man who will love only me, & will choose only me... I don't deserve to cry anymore because the man I had loved & only been faithful to could not decide on the answer he had told me he had repeatedly received. I did take the opportunity to tell him these things, as part of our final conversation.

Less than a month after we had decided on Plan C, Mac finally told me, over chat, that he thought "we should go back to Plan B." This after he had ignored me for much of the "Plan C" time, & completely ignored me for my birthday & most of the week surrounding it. We hadn't been on any dates together during "Plan C" (we only had one after his mission, while we were still going with Plan A.), but had both found dates separately. Without any kind of explanation, we reached the end of our chapter. As much as it hurt (& still does at times), I found that overall, it hurt(s) less to just lose someone, than to love them & be ignored in return.


A couple of things that express so many of my feelings, that I'd like to share...

The pain comes in waves...
An explanation about experiencing loss that was perfect to me, from Donna Lawyer.

"Like waves those moments come. At first with the power to knock you off your feet, and you fear drowning in the sorrow. Little by little the waves have less strength and are fewer and further between. Then sometimes they seem to knock you down unexpectedly. Then go back to the pattern of less and less. Till you are ready to move to a different place..."

I am beyond grateful to certain friends & loved ones who have been my strength when I have felt nothing but broken.

Thanks especially to Donna for sharing your profound thoughts with me & allowing me to share your words, as they put my feelings into coherent thoughts.


This also came from Donna Lawyer, & her grandaughter, Sarah Peterson. It too expressed the feelings of my heart perfectly.

"It's not having them walk away without reason; it's not the hurt you felt when they began to ignore you; it's not the betrayal you feel when you realize what they told you was a lie; it's not the lonliness that replaces the passion whne they denounce their claim on you; it's knowing that somehow, in some way, you weren't good enough. But after night, comes day." -Sarah Peterson

"Perhaps what they said was not a lie, but was only for the moment; only temporary, like a butterfly sits upon one's shoulder then flits away to another bright flower...Not "good enough" in their eyes. What do they know of flowers? Only boquets to be set upon a table, to look upon as one passes by... to adorn their lives but never to keep." -Donna Lawyer

"For every tear shed, hope is kindled; for every heart broken, the dawn comes; the world still turns, the flowers still bloom, the rain still falls, the wind still whispers, the stars still wink and laugh at you, and life goes on." - Sarah Peterson

"Yes, and for every thought that pierces your heart, comes healing. And for every loss that floods your mind with its pain, there is still that hope, that knowing, that a new path will open on the horizon of tomorrow; flower strewn." - Donna Lawyer


As my life became a roller coaster, even before "Plan B" or "Plan C" came into existance, I found a new favorite song, that still gives me strength. It's called "Strengthen My Faith" written by Tyler Castleton & sung by Dave Kimball

" In my weakness
I come to you with a prayer in my heart
Humbly yearning
Seeking for guidance to know where to start
You know my soul & my honest desire
Build from this flame an unquenchable fire

Bless me & strengthen my faith
Guide me & light up my way
You touched the blind man & gave him his sight
And You blessed the widow who offered her mite
Please bless my faith
Bless my faith
as I seek to know You & follow Your ways
Bless me & strengthen my faith

When I listen
You can remind me what I've always known
That as I follow
I learn to trust in the love You have shown
Striving to follow the simplist truths
I'm doing my best & then trusting in You

Bless me & strengthen my faith
Prove me in every way
You called to Lazarus "rise from the dead"
When You saw the faith and the tears that were shed
Please bless my faith
Oh, bless my faith
As I seek to know You and walk in Your ways
Bless me and strengthen my faith

As I seek to know You and follow Your ways
Bless me and strengthen my faith
As I seek to know You and follow Your ways
Bless me and strength my faith"

And He does. I know He has felt each pain, & all my suffering. And because He has, He understands perfectly what I feel, & He strengthens me in my weakness.

The Joy of New Life!

My Newest Nephew! :D

Croix James Maldonado was born yesterday, August 24, 2009 at 5:26 pm. He is perfect at 6 lb. 9 ounces & 20 inches long!

Terina, Brent, & Croix are such a happy beautiful family! Click here to see more of their pictures & Croix's story.

The Waiting Game... Has Come to an END!

I've been a major slacker at blogging lately, BUT I have something BIG to post about!

After literally MONTHS of waiting, I have finally heard decisive news from the district. I went to Monday's board meeting, & ...

I HAVE A JOB!!

I'll be teaching First Grade instead of Kinder, but at least it's not 3rd of 4th like I was afraid I might get! Switching grades is like having another "first year" of teaching, not easy, but this is probably the easiest way for me to have to do it. I get to just move up with my kids, & I already know almost all of our upcoming First Graders, so that will be nice too! I'll have to learn to work with a whole new set of standards & lessons, (only kind of new to me, actually, I've worked with first graders before!) but it will be nice to move on with my kids, instead of having to try to remember how to teach kids how to be students. It will also be nice, because I KNOW the great things these kids were doing even as Kindergartners, & so I can help the whole first grade team shorten up the review, & keep moving from there!

Needless to say, I'm pretty darn excited to stay at my school, stay with my kids, & most of all, just to know! I was NOT a fan of the waiting & wondering game, & so I'm super excited that it's over! It's also a wonderful thing to know, since school starts in about 4 1/2 weeks, & I go back to work the week before that! & I have to set up an entire classroom again, since my classroom got moved! I'm going to keep busy! :o)

1999

10 Years Ago...

• It was 1999, a different century!


• I was a sophmore/junior at Prescott High School.


• Daily life consisted of PHS & Seminary, & getting closer to some of the biggest changes of my life.


• I was seeing a strength in my Mom that I hadn't seen before, a strength that has been an inspiration to me ever since.


• With the exception of one small memory, all of my "home" memories were of the same house I grew up in, until we moved... 3 times THIS year...


• My family became "Homeless" (McKinney-Vento Act style, but not living-on-the-streets style).


• For most of the year I wasn't old enough to date yet, but I was already falling in like with the first boy who liked with me back.


• I went on my first date.


• My aunt took me to Williams, & I got my driver's license, after I passed the parallel parking on my fourth try.


• This was probably when I was really learning how your family can be your best friends.


• Change was not my favorite thing. It still isn't, but a lot of changes during this time of my life helped me learn to appreciate CHANGE!
  
  
• I would've liked the idea of staying in P-town forever. I'm glad I didn't stick with that plan!
• This year held the first anniversary of losing my Aunt Misty. Ten more years have passed, & I still miss her.
  
  
• We were still kids, & all of us kids were still together. The years have taken us apart to distant places, but I will always love the good memories from those times that brought us together stronger than before.

Thanks to Jodi for this idea! :)

The long awaited announcement!!

As a missionary in the Pennsylvania Philadelphia Mission, my prayers each & every day included a petition to the Lord that that area would be blessed with a Temple. Today, after hundreds of missionaries & members alike have sought for this blessing from the Lord, today President Monson announced 5 new Temples, including one in Philadelphia!

Here's a couple of links to the articles:
Five new Temples announced: http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/church-continues-temple-building-throughout-the-world
Specific to Philly: http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/first-temple-announced-in-philadelphia-pennsylvania
Yay! I was so grateful to hear that announcement, & to be sitting with Amber Lopez when we heard it. The Lord is good, & has heard our prayers. This is a Joyful day!

Update!

Wow! This is an update I should have made on here a long-ish while ago!

I am NOT teaching 4th grade at Territorial when school starts next week!
I will be however, teaching Kindergarten ELD! Yay!

Now I'm going to stop blogging so that I can get ready for "Meet the Teacher" tomorrow!
Wish me luck!

A New Roommate!

So since I got the job, I'm moving to Prescott. And since I quit my illegal immigrant job, I'm ALREADY moving. It's change, & this one makes me sad & excited, but I still think it's good! With these changes... This is one of my new roommates in Prescott. I love him lots!

I've got a job!!

Early this morning I was up in Chino Valley for a job interview, and I was told to expect to hear back on Thursday. I've already been offered 2 other positions that I didn't feel good about taking, but I've felt really good about accepting this one if it is offered to me.
Well... TONIGHT the Principal called me & offered me the position! and ... I accepted!

I'M GOING TO TEACH 4TH GRADE AT TERRITORIAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL!

I'm pretty excited, & wanted to let everyone know!

Third Offer's the Charm!

I did it!

Yay!! It's been over a month ago now, but I'm just now getting around to blogging about my GRADUATION!! On May 9, 2008, I graduated from NAU with a B.S. in Elementary Education and a minor in Spanish!

Maybe there isn't a whole lot to blog about, but... I've got some FUN pictures! So... I'll show & tell a little bit.

This first, strange looking picture, is the view I had for all of graduation. The girl in front of me had bright, pink, feathers all around the top of her cap, and around her sleeves too. It was a little obnoxious if you ask me, but it made it easy to answer the text: "Where are you?" "Right behind the girl with the pink." ha ha... and we could see where we were on the giant TV screens, because of the pink.

And the on going text conversation with Mom during the ceremony. "Where Are You? Get up and Dance." "I'm right behind the girl with the pink feathers." "Good, maybe she'll want to dance with you." "ha ha" "No really, do it now or you'll miss your chance." ... Something like that anyway. It made me smile even more.

There was a big group of us from the Christensen Partnership. This is Barry, Devin, Ashley, Emily, me, & Andrea. There were a few more of us, but I haven't gotten a copy of the bigger pictures we took yet.

This is me with one of my Partnership Professors, Jeanne Dustman. She was a great support to me through the two semesters of death that preceded my Student Teaching.

Mom & I. We started celebrating all together when we got outside. Terina & Brent didn't get to stick around for the other celebrations, so this was the best we had with all of us.

This was a favorite, because Trenton was hiding, and Terina quickly ducked, & I snapped... & between our combined efforts I caught a really cute grin on Trenton, & a fun, cheesy grin on Terina. :o)

I really don't think I'm photogenic, but that it's better when I'm in pictures with other people, so... That makes this naturally a favorite, because ... it just is.

I've got more pictures of the parties... one in Flagstaff that day, and one in Chino Valley about a month after, but I'm REALLY tired for now, & I've got to get this posted & get some sleep. Tomorrow it's back to work!

I Did It!!!!

Graduated, that is.
Yay!

Done!

I Just Finished My LAST Undergraduate FINAL!!! Woo-Hoo! So I wanted to share the joy! Now it's on to Travis & Stef's Wedding, & then Graduation Here I Come!

After that, I guess it's time to find my place in the "real world".
Wish me luck!

Busy, busy BUSY!

I am ALMOST done! I'm almost done teaching already anyway, but I still wouldn't have imagined that these last few weeks could be SO busy. I'm finishing up my big senior capstone paper for resubmition tomorrow, I'm down to 3 more spanish classes & my final, Student Teaching is going to be over sooner than I know (and maybe sooner than I'd like with only about 7 days left!), I will finally be done suffering through my spanish 314 class at ASU, and maybe I'll have a minute to sit down and BREATHE! That is, AFTER Travis & Stef's wedding, the trip involved with that (and the fun yet to be had), and my actual Graduation. :o)

For now I'm still running around like crazy, and working on all I have yet to finish.

Everything...

not being good enough

Student teaching

All-day when I can't get one or two subjects right

long days

planning

prep. time

spanish class

homework

reading

busy work

presentations and papers

does she teach us anything or just facilitate busy activities?

institute

is he really teaching? or just trying to show us how much he knows

chuch

not doing all that I need to and want to do

knowing hardly anyone

not being known by one person

am I doing everything for the right reasons or just going through the motions?

finances

body stuff

needing to see the doctor

words that are hard to say

feeling all alone in the world

worries that shouldn't be mine until years from now

hoping to learn through the experiences of those I love

always tired

exhaustion

running

needing to run

finding a job

graduating

trying to be "promising" enough for Rodel

feeling broken

Yesterday was the strangest day. All day it felt like Friday, and I wasn't the only person to feel that way or say so. Really though, it was Monday, and really, I'm glad that it was Monday instead of Friday. If it were Friday, I probably would have been leaving instead of spending my whole evening with the Duttons again. I know that I need to finish my final. I know that I need to pack. I know that I am moving away and I need to get settled into my new place quickly before everything starts up. I know that I need to stop being sad about it. And I need to accept that life is moving on, and this time, again, I will be moving with it. Litterally.

When I get discouraged about the changes life is bringing, I should look at the big picture. I am changing too. I am moving towards goals that I've worked for a long time to accomplish. I'm making something of myself and my life. But it's so easy for me to see instead, everything that I want to become, and feel that I should already be, that I'm not. That probably just has a lot to do with how I see myself... might be something good to work on.

Yesterday felt really wierd too, because I was entirely unproductive for most of the day. I went to sleep very late Sunday night because my roommate and her boyfriend were in the living room, and I just couldn't fall asleep until he left... at least partly because I was afraid that he wouldn't leave. Monday morning I worked at the butt-crack of dawn (okay, it was BEFORE dawn because it's winter and it takes the sun a long time to come up right now). But I was really tired, so when I came home from work at 9am, I laid back down and watched more Heroes. I'd kept myself awake Sunday night watching several episodes, and then spent my entire morning yesterday watching more. It's another one of those shows that's addictive to me, but at the same time, another one that kind of leaves me feeling dark. Ugh. Why is it always that kind of show that reels me in? I have a goal to not watch Heroes at all today. I've got way to much that I still need to do.
1. I should hurry up already and finish my final. The semester's over, but I'm not going to get a grade in my technology class until I submit my final. And if I did, I'd just have to chant the mantra: "C's get degrees." over and over. Because I would still get a C. 2. I need to move this week. This means that I need to pack. This means that I need to get everything cleaned. And it means that I can't keep procrastinating, because I've got to rely on others to help me out. 3. There are books that I want to read. There is my journal that's been highly neglected for months. There are people I want to visit with before I'm gone, or they are. I need to priortize so that my life can be productive and joyful. So, for this morning I'm done.