Psalm 3:3-4

Dear Anna

In the spirit of winding down the semester, I thought I'd do a little thinking about my future. I borrowed this little idea from Kelsie over at The Overflow. 

Dear 35-year-old Anna,

     If you have moved in the past thirteen years, I've hoped you've landed somewhere warm, somewhere surrounded by friends and close to people you love, preferably with a Target nearby. If you are still teaching, I hope you love it of course, but I really hope you're good at it. If you ever get bored with it, remember starting grad school where you took as many classes as you could before entering the classroom and vowed to be a lifetime learner for the sake of your students. Remember your granddaddy and all the fun stories he told you about teaching- keep trying to be like that.

     I am sure your house is a model of organization. You plan your weekly meals on Sundays, everything has a designated home, you make time to exercise and even blog. Okay maybe not. But hopefully (and maybe with the help of Pinterest if it's still around) you've at least found some bargains on great pieces of furniture and know how to correctly arrange your pantry. 

     I truly hope that you are loving being married to Travis. I hope you are giving him the attention he deserves because I have a feeling he still loves giving it to you. Dote on him, laugh with him, feed him, and give him everything you have in you. I hope you are looking at 22 and laughing about how nervous you were about the honeymoon, but still just as excited about spending tomorrow and everyday after that with your best friend. If you two have children, I hope you are doing your best to embarrass them. Make them laugh, make them feel completely and utterly loved, and make everyday a blessing. Teach them biblical truths and the reason why we're all here. And make sure they have a dog.

Most of all, if nothing else, I hope you are buried in the love of Christ. I hope you seek his guidance with every decision you face and every trial you encounter. I hope you spend time everyday with your Creator to anchor your faith before facing such an uncertain world.


And don't forget all the little things you've learned so far:

In third grade you talked too much on the first day and weren't able to sit by your friends all year. Make a good first impression.

In middle school (and high school and college) you always waited until the last minute to do things and I promise you do not work better under pressure no matter how many times you tell yourself that. Don't procrastinate.

In 7th grade you wrote a very beautiful essay about the cafeteria. You've won awards and have been published. You can still do that, you know. Don't forget the things you're good at.

On several occasions you've let opportunities for success, fun, and friendship pass you by because you were too afraid to say something. Don't be afraid. Take initiative.

In 2008 you didn't show your true feelings for the boy you'd spent your life waiting for because you didn't want to be vulnerable. You almost lost him. Let yourself be vulnerable.

In 2010 you wrote a letter to your grandfather telling him how much he meant to you. Two months later, he died, and you were so glad he got to read that. Tell people how much you love them while you still can. 

You know, a lot of people have gotten away with a lot more. But God doesn't let you get that far before straightening you out. He's not picking on you. He's preparing you. He has something in store for you and is keeping you in line. Trust him.

one fun summer

     Last night I went to a graduate class for the last time. So weird! ( OK, so I actually have three more to take, but I will be teaching and they will be online.) 

     The only thing standing between me and my future is a little online exam due by Monday. After that it's the beach, wedding showers, the beach again, moving, Travis's job, more showers, friends' weddings, reuniting with other friends, my birthday, my wedding, my honeymoon, a couple of weeks down time, one last summer wedding, and beginning my first year of teaching. There may never be another time in my life where I have this much stuff going on- and it's all so wonderful!

And to top it off we are upon my favorite time of year. It's so warm. You know, the kind of warm that instantly lifts your mood as you walk out the door in the morning, when the sun seems to kiss you and wish you 'good day'. And in the afternoons you can see this outside my bedroom window:

      Of course if I didn't already have spring fever, this would seal the deal
. 

I am so excited to begin what may be the most exciting summer of my life. Not only to be surrounded by the people I love, but to share it with you as well. I am so fortunate to be able to share my joy with all of you, even though for the most part, I have no idea who actually reads this.

Get comfortable and stay for a while. This is going to be one fun summer.

pb&...

If you know me, especially in college, you know that I've had my share of peanut  butter and jelly sandwiches. And if you know me better, you know that jelly on one slice and peanut butter on the other doesn't cut it. The trick to an even better pb&j is mixing.

Heaping serving spoon of peanut butter, full soup spoon of strawberry jelly or jam.
Use a fork to mix, spread across bread.

Takes maybe 2 minutes longer this way, but trust me, you'll never go back. I feel sorry for those who still top each slice and smush them together. Just as I pitty those who try to make toast with jelly or cinnamon in a toaster instead of a oven/toaster oven. But that's a whole lesson for a whole other day.

If you want to spice things up, peanut butter and banana (yes, all mixed up before applied to bread) is a yummy way to do it. However, I'd like to introduce you to a little friend you may not have tried: Peanut butter and strawberries. Not strawberry jelly or strawberry jam...  real sliced strawberries. Here is where my philosophy is different. You don't have to mix these up. Just slice and put on your bread! I know it might seem a little weird, but it really is wonderful.The comments box is always open for thank you's after you try this out.

You're welcome.

the call

     I got the call yesterday at 3:21pm. It only lasted about 3 minutes but my how gratifying it was. 

     I was offered a job! A job I really want- one I think I will just love. All that's left is signing the paperwork. 

     I won't get into specifics yet because I'm not sure of everything myself. Right now I'm just reveling in how relieved I am. First interview. Bam. I know that even if it had taken months and tons of interviews at tons of schools, it would have been part of God's plan. But I sure do love it when his plan unfolds so quickly. 

     Now that I finally know (more specifically) what I'll be doing, it makes me think back to the beginning of it all and why I decided to become a teacher in the first place. It wasn't that long ago, but I've come so far. Read about it here.

This calls for brownies.

Is it really Tuesday? Has it really been 5 days since I blogged? I'm afraid so. 

My interview on Friday went wonderfully! I'm extremely excited to hear something soon, but I'm afraid it may be a while. Travis and I enjoyed the weekend celebrating his brother's birthday: the big 22! And now I'm back to work (and school- can't forget about that), and I'm extremely anxious to be finished. I only have 4 more classes total- woo hoo!!! (but about a month of work, boo boo)

OK, back to Etsy, I've got some more ordering to do!

banana rama

Ahh what a Thursday it has turned out to be. 

Thanks everyone who responded to my cry for help yesterday, and if anyone else is interested, go ahead an hop on.

In other news, I just returned to my room to clean my face after an impromptu banana peel fight with Travis. I had just eaten a banana, he had a little something on his lip, so it seemed natural for me to wipe it off with my hand... only there was a banana in my hand... so I wiped it off with the banana. Of course this just got banana all over him, so he decided it was an even better idea to throw it at me. Gross banana tickling ensued, and I finally escaped to the kitchen. Typical. 

Also, I have a second interview tomorrow! Woo hoo!

help a girl out

Alright, blog family. I need your help!

My boss is looking for someone to replace me when I leave my assistantship in May, and right now I am filtering through resumes and applications. I know that I will be training whoever we hire, and I REALLY want someone good. So if you know anyone (good worker) who is in grad school here, or may be starting this summer, please send them my way. They can facebook me or email me or call me; please just find me.(Comments work, too.)

Job details you may want to pass on: work 4 hrs/day, pays 71% of tuition plus monthly stipend. Any major can apply, and we'd like you to stay a full year. And as you can tell from the way I usually talk about work, it isn't demanding and usually allows time for me to complete all my schoolwork. 

I look forward to hearing from all you wonderful grad students out there!

right direction

On the way home this weekend I captured this neat little image.

Heading for a huge gray mass with blue skies behind me, I thought maybe I was going the wrong way. But I was definitely headed in the right direction, and I enjoyed spending the Easter weekend with my family. My mom and I even got some wedding tasks accomplished... yay! 

But let me tell you, each day that passes is longer than the last. I don't know how I'm supposed to make it almost 14 weeks. Please, someone, wake me up when the waiting is over!

But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. .

Romans 8:25

100 days

So after dropping several buzz words and chit-chatting educational jargon, I think I did really well in my interview on Tuesday. The interviewer told me in no uncertain terms that I should be looking forward to another interview soon! I feel so much better about this "future" thing looming over my head. It might just turn out right.

Today marks 100 days until our wedding!!We're just over halfway there!

Travis and I have been working diligently on our to-do list. We finalized all of our travel arrangements for the honeymoon, yay!! I get so caught up in all the planning aspects of things I keep forgetting that we will soon be lounging for a week in the Caribbean- check out our resort! I guarantee you I won't want to come back... but our passport only allows us to stay 6 months...(sure, that's why we have to come back)..

Until then there are still severalllll things on my big list, but Etsy is helping me accomplish several of them, and it isn't quite time to work on others. Pinterest, on the other hand, may be working against me. Sure, I found some wonderful pictures to show my florist, but I also found a neat little embossing tool (that is now sitting in a usps box in my room) that I absolutely do not need. Hopefully I will be able to restrain myself in future pinteresting endeavors. Right. 

Going home this weekend for some long-awaited-for Easter food and family time. 

Happy Three Day Weekend!

today is a big day

     Today I have an interview with the only real place I want to work. 

I slipped some jeans on with my blouse, and my skirt and heels are waiting on me in the car. (I'll report back on how awkward I look changing in there.)     

     I've got fresh copies of my resume printed out and tucked neatly into a folder. I've consulted friends and professors then overstuffed my brain with answers to every possible line of questioning. I'm telling you, I know my strengths and weaknesses, my philosophy about teaching, how my own experience is  beneficial, how I plan to meet expectations, and of course, why I want to teach.

     Surprisingly enough, I'm not that nervous. I have prayed about it (and will continue to do so until I walk in the interview room), and I know the outcome will be just what it should be. I also know that what I think I want isn't always what I need, and I have to trust that God is taking care of everything for me.

monday rumblings

    Today has begun as one of those days when it took me just a little bit longer to realize I was, in fact, awake when my alarm went off at 6:30am. But I came to, dressed warmly (my coworkers must be having hot flashes), and even made it to work early. I sat down at my desk to pull up the outline for my paper that is due tonight that didn't get a second thought this weekend (oops). Then I felt that familiar little grumbling in my stomach, opened my bottom desk drawer and- nothing. 

My box of pop-tarts is empty! 

    I swear I don't remember polishing off the box on Friday. I eat one every day and always replace the box when I empty one. Not this time. At this very moment I honestly don't know what I'm going to do. The last thing I ate was an 80 calorie yogurt 12 hours ago and it will be 4 more until I can get lunch.(first world pain, I know) So I suppose I'm headed to the kitchen for some ice water to tide me over. 

Merry Monday, everyone. Here's to it keeping you on your toes.