LONDON BABY!

Greetings from London! Ashley and I were able to find an internet cafe that is fairly cheap for an hour's use, so I thought I would try and post a quick update on our travels.

Our flight went great! We were served dinner and then watched a movie and by the time that was done we were both out. Next thing I knew, Ashley was waking me up for breakfast and we landed about 45 minutes later. We went and dropped our bags off at the hotel which is located in what we have affectionately named Little Iraq. The hotel was wonderful just located in what seems to be the place all Middle Eastern Londoners live. Then we went down to see Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, a ride on the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus and a quick lunch at...get ready for it...McDonald's. Guess home really is never too far. We grabbed dinner at a little Italian place in Piccadilly area then discovered this little internet place where we did some emailing and planning then it was time for bed!

Friday morning we got up and went to the London Tower and did a tour there. That took us until lunch time which was the typical British meal of fish and chips outside the tower. Then we walked around to the Tower Bridge, found a Starbucks (couldn't live without it) and went over to St. Paul's cathedral. We headed from there over to Harrods department store, which is just amazing and hard to describe. There are all these food rooms that are like nothing you've ever seen. We ate dinner at a little Pizzeria in Harrods and then had this delicious ice cream sundae that was equally amazing. Finally it was time for us to head to our first show of the weekend...Billy Elliot. Super cute! After the show got out it was almost 11 so we just headed back and went to bed.

Saturday we went over to this little outdoor market in Notting Hill. Super cute and we were able to stumble across a cupcake place that had been recommended to us by a friend, Hummingbird Bakery. When I have access to my own computer I will be sure to post pictures to document all of this b/c you have to see how cute this place was, and the cupcakes were quite tasty! We walked from there to Kensington Palace and took the tour there. We were able to see some of Diana's dresses and an exhibit on debutantes. Funny how we still have that in the South at home and it's an out of date tradition here. I have some great pictures of us learning how to curtsy and dance though. For lunch we ate at a Pret a Manger (little sandwich place that is all over the place here) then went and had tea and scones (SO British-gotta love it) at La Orangerie on the Kensington Park grounds. We were pretty tired at this point so we went and found a park bench (well first it was some chairs by a lake that we got kicked out of for not paying) and people watched in Kensington Park until it was time to head back to Piccadilly area for the night. First we came back to our little internet cafe then we had dinner at a Chinese place (we joked that we are making this a world experience). The end of the night might be the most amazing part however. We had tickets to see THRILLER!!! It was a amazing as it sounds. 3 hours of The Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson's greatest hits WITH dancing. AND we got to get up and sing and dance too. SO MUCH FUN!!!

Today we got up and went to Hillsong church. If you aren't familiar with it they have created some fairly popular worship songs that our church at home uses a lot so we wanted to check it out. It was a little like going to a rock concert. Different from church at home but fun to go to. We walked around the stores in that area a bit then grabbed some lunch and headed back to the internet cafe...again. Yes, they are starting to recognize us, don't worry. However, gives me time to document my trip. If you are still reading, props to you b/c this is mainly for me to remember what I did. This afternoon we are going to take a boat tour then grab some dinner and such before heading on the overnight bus to Scotland. Yes, I said overnight bus, we apparently thought we were 18 coming on this trip! Try to post about Scotland when I can.

Smiling's the Best!

So I still need to blog about my amazing year with my adorable kiddos, but first I have to stop and say that my summer is off to the best start ever and I still have so many adventures yet to come. I am so freakin' happy...I just can't stop smiling. Is it okay to say that? I feel like I'm bragging, but I really am just so excited about the things happening in my life. Let me share...

Summer started with the best stinkin' concert of my life with one sweet, cute boy who makes me smile every day (I could brag on him for a while but I'll save that for another time). For non facebookers I will try to post pictures of the concert, but let me just say there is no way to not absolutely love FLOOR seats at the new COWBOYS STADIUM for an entire night listening to LeAnne Womack, Blake Shelton, Reba Macentire and GEORGE STRAIT (yes I know I butchered the spellings but whatever). Seriously I think this deserves it's own post...

I've been spending my days having lunches with my dear friends, laying by the pool, going to those ever so popular workout classes (discovered a new favorite where all you do is booty shake and hop around), running (despite not getting into NY), planning for the new apartment, getting excited for the new job, visiting my parents, and so on.

Nights are equally busy getting to just play with my friends. I do this during the school year, but it's just so much better when you don't have to worry about getting up in the morning!

That's just the first two weeks friends.

In TWO days I leave for EUROPE! AND, I just booked a cruise with one of my very best friends and our wonderful moms, continuing a tradition of what we hope to be yearly trips together. When I get back from Europe I am going to spend my time celebrating America (the fourth) by going to Austin for the very first time (yes, gasp, I'm a Texan who's never been to Austin). After I get back, I get to start a new adventure of having my own place for the first time. Following that, I get to start another new adventure with my new teaching position. Then there's the August river trip with some of those same awesome friends I keep bragging on (and the cute boy!). Finally, I get to jet off one last time before school starts (the weekend before to be exact) and take part in the wedding of another best friend in San Antonio. So much to look forward to I can hardly stand it. The excited butterflies are constant and I just love it. It's keeping my heart happy and me smiling! It's kinda the best!

Movin' On Up

So, a big life change is happening for me. This past week I accepted a position at my school teaching third grade! Eeek! Here's a little on how this came about.

Last year, for those of you who don't know, I was moved in the middle of the school year (away from my kinder babies) to a different school to teach first grade. While I was upset about the whole ordeal, it ended up showing me that I really enjoy teaching older students. I mentioned to my principal that I would like to be considered for a higher grade level next year if possible. Last week, she called me in and offered me a position in third grade. Totally unexpected!

For the non-teachers, third grade is where state mandated testing begins (TAKS). Third grade is also a promotion grade for this test (don't pass, don't go to fourth). This can be a lot of pressure and it is something that has intimidated me away from those grade levels (third & fourth) a little. Honestly, I never envisioned myself teaching a grade higher than second. However, after LOTS of thinking and talking to friends who teach in "TAKS" grades, I decided to go ahead and take the job! It is something I am confidant is the right decision for me at this time. I am SUPER excited about trying something new. I am looking forward to seeing if it is the right fit for me. I am pumped about getting to work with a really great team. And, I think it should be a great learning experience that will help me to become a better teacher.

Obviously there are things I am going to miss about Kindergarten. I have enjoyed my last three years SO much. I have had the pleasure of working with some great teachers and the joy of teaching some amazing kids. I simply felt like it was time for me to see if Kindergarten is where I belong, or if it's somewhere else. Won't know until I try it!

So there's the big update. If you have any tips for teaching older kiddos please pass them along, I'm sure I will be needing the help! :)

PS - Next blog I am hoping to post about the things I have loved about my class this year (probably boring to everyone else but a good way to remember for me).

Sweet Summertime

Seeing as summer is 7 days away, I thought it would be fitting to discuss all the things I am looking forward to this summer. If you don't have a summer vacation, please bare with me and share in my excitement, if you taught 10 months of the year, you would need one too. :) If I survive the next few days (it is questionable), then I get to spend the next 10 weeks doing the following things:

*sleeping (if I'm getting more than 4-5 hours a night it will be an increase)
*morning workout classes with all the nonworking people of the world
*iced coffee in the middle of the day
*lunches at Lili's
*sno cones (the little stand on University is a personal fav.)
*EUROPE!!!
*a possible cruise for second annual mother/daughter trip
*trip to the beach with all the girls in my family (annual tradition)
*laying out by the pool with nobody around
*going to the parents pool
*getting to spend more time with the parents
*more time with friends
*Fridays w/ those who don't have to work
*Hurricane Harbor trip with the girls and aqua socks
*Concerts in the Garden
*Fourth of July
*baseball
*time to read books and magazines
*lunches that aren't 30 minutes long
*lunches that aren't a turkey sandwich and a bag of carrots (seriously what I eat almost every day)
*So You Think You Can Dance!
*not having to worry about a week of work on Sundays
*getting all the "stuff" done that I can't get done during the year
*being better about planning social events
*not working (I mean let's just be honest, I LOVE my job, but it's fun having a break)
*sundresses, shorts, and flip flops
*not having to get ready for the day if I don't want to
*morning talk shows and silly soap operas
*more blogging time??

I'm sure that there is more to summer that is wonderful and that I am forgetting about, but I will try my best to keep my blog up to date with all my summer adventures. Hope my fellow teachers and those who work in schools have an amazing and restful summer as well. Almost there!

Teaching Moment

Okay so I know I've become a horrible blogger. One of the reasons I was hesitant to start in the first place (see first blog), but I am going to try and be better. For now, I just have to share a little teaching moment I had this morning.

We have been learning subtraction in Kindergarten the last two weeks. If you aren't a teacher let me explain that the end of the year is the time when all teachers feel that their kiddos have gone crazy and question if they are still learning anything. However, not all students have a rock star teacher like me. Ha. I kidd. Anyway, one of my students came up to me this morning and told me "I had math in my real life!". Of course I inquired to see what this meant. Answer: "I was helping my mom go through my clothes and I had five and took away two so there were only three left!". I told her that I was proud of her for using her subtraction at home and she has proceeded to tell me the rest of the morning just how subtraction can be used in real life. Walked into that one I guess. I do love these little momements though where I get to see that I'm actually teaching my kids something. Even when it's almost May!

Spring Break '09 (considering making it a tattoo)

This past week has been my spring break, and as it winds down I want to reflect on the highlights of my wonderful week. Ashley and I are going to Europe this summer so we decided to stay in Fort Worth for the week to save money. Not sure how much of THAT I accomplished, but I had a lot of fun! Here's what the week looked like...

The first night of the break was just a preview of the good things to come. My friend Ryan had a "White Trash" party to celebrate his birthday. It took place IN PUBLIC at a bar in the Stockyards. Ashley and I came up with an amazing idea just minutes before. Pretty hilarious, ask to see the pictures sometime.

Another highlight has been the discovery of WII fit. Ash got it for Valentine's day and we have been putting it to good use. We have been making all of our friends come over and create their MI. We now have quite the lineup in the Wii Fit Plaza and we have been provided with many entertaining moments throughout the week, particularly the hula hooping game. Action shot of Danny skiing (sadly hulahooping was discovered later)...




Saturday morning Ashley and I ran in a St. Patty's day 5k race. It as a little chilly but went well for both of us. We both got a PR and fun times were had.

The highlight of Sunday was softball practice. For those readers who do not know, my friends and I have created a coed softball team called Afternoon Delight. We practice on Sunday afternoons and this particular Sunday we traveled out to the batting cages to hit some balls. The first game is next Friday so we shall see if our practice has worked at all. Here's a pic of those on the team who could make it this week..





As for the rest of week, I was able to go to Lili's (my favorite little lunch bistro on Magnolia) twice with wonderful friends. Got my haircut. Got to go to two morning workout classes (a favorite summer activity) before injuring my hamstring even further (originally hurting from running, another story in and of itself) and having to stop. Had Sprinkles cupcakes TWICE. Got to try new flavors at Sprinkles (Baileys Irish Cream for St. Patricks, Lemon Coconut, Flourless Chocolate, and Lemon). Did LOTS of shopping, including a day at Adult Disneyland (Northpark Mall). Spent time at Starbucks downtown people watching. Discovered Yummy's donuts (it is exactly what the name says) and Orange Cup (exactly like my favorite yogurt place, Pinkberry, in NYC but a lot closer since it's in Dallas). Attended a Stars game and a TCU baseball game. Ate some dinner with Ashley's sassy grandma Honey, always fun! Enjoyed some GORGEOUS weather. And maybe the most exciting....GOT MY TICKET TO EUROPE for this summer!!!

I still have two more days before I have to go back to my 23 crazy kiddos and I intend to enjoy every minute before starting the downhill to summer, which I want to be here even more now. Only 49 days, but who's counting...

Lessons in Creation (by Kindergartners)

I have a student this year that is a once in a lifetime type student. She is definitely the highlight of most days and when she is absent my day just isn't as enjoyable. The child does not stop talking. EVER. So anyway, she walks in my room and starts talking (this is how we begin every day) about how she missed school last week and was with her aunt. Apparently her aunt gave her a lesson in creation during this time...here's how it goes in case you weren't aware.

Hey Miss Jakus, you know the people who were first on the earth? I heard a story about those people. We are all made from them. God made them. It’s not easy to make people. You have to make them from blood. You have to make the bones and the skin. He closes the skin and then puts a vacuum in the people’s mouth and puts the blood in until their bodies are full.

Good to know.

Try to not be too jealous that your day cannot start this way as well.