Family for the Holidays

Christmas Eve is tomorrow. Bryan and I drove up this Monday to begin the holidays with my family. This is the first Christmas that we all have realized that life is changing. Since mom and dad moved to the Ft. Worth area we will not being doing our usual Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my granny in Saltillo,TX. We are only able to go Christmas day, since we live farther and time lines are not working out. Cara may only spend part of the holiday with us because she has a new squeeze who she is working on sharing Christmas time with. His name is Tanner and he is a rodeo cowboy. Who ever thought Cara would end up with a guy who does steer wrestling and calf roping almost every weekend. She was the one who always hated getting dirty and messy when we helped out on the farm as kids. Jordan will be with mom and dad only until 2 days after Christmas, because he is driving down to Galveston to meet up with his girlfriend to meet the family at the New Year's party.

Having all these changes is making mom and dad realize that from here on out Christmas will not be the same. They will soon be the grandparents that we go to instead of us all going to our granny's. I know that mom is having a tough time with it. Mom's family is so close. I am the first to really venture out. Jordan has followed suit as well, but luckly Cara is still near all of our family.

The older I get, the more I appreciate the time I get to spend with my family. My siblings and I all have our own lives which makes it very hard to see each other and spend time together. I am in San Antonio with Bryan working on school and trying to start our own family. Cara is in Paris dating Tanner and starting her own path in life away from mom and dad. Jordan is in College Station and is very active in the student life their through his buisness fraternity and his leadership organzation he is a member and mentor in. Not to even mention Bryan's brother who lives in Atlanta. We get to see him when he has to work at a sporting event near us, but other than that we rarely get to spend time with him or his fiancee Lauren.

Christmas is one of the few times in a year that you get to see those that you love and spend time with one another. I love that part the most of all. I am going to end this blog now, so I can go spend some time with my family some more before Christmas is over.

Inspiration from Unexpected Source

A few weeks ago I found out that a student from last year in one of my most fun math classes to teach was diagnosed with cancer. I remember the day I heard it. One student that I had last year came in my room crying her eyes out and couldn't even breathe. When she finally calmed down, she uttered the words "Liz has cancer". Liz was one of the handful of students I had kept up with since last school year. I knew that she was going to the doctor because her knee had been hurting for a while. The doctor said that her pain was caused by a tumor in her leg. When I first heard this I thought surely this is a rumor that has gone terribly wrong. Later that night after talking to a close friend from work who also taught Liz, I found out that the story was true. I think I spent a good 45 minutes just curled up crying. I even told my husband I had to get out of the house and find something to take my mind off of what had just been confirmed.

I kept thinking about how does Liz feel right now. What is going through her mind? Liz, is one of those all around students: Cheerleader, on the volleyball team, on the basketball team, very smart young girl. I tried to imagine what would I do if I were in her shoes and tried to think how would I want people to act. Well after all of my wondering, I got my glimpse today of how she feels and what her thoughts are.

One of Liz's closest friends came by my room today like she does regularly and asked if I wanted to purchase a Liz Strong bracelet. I obviously did. The bracelet is hot pink and had a blogspot webpage listed on it. Liz had started a blog about her thoughts and updates on what was going on in her life with her chemo, doctor visits and daily life. I read the blogs that she had posted and realized how amazingly strong she was. She spoke of prayer, God, and how she wanted us to think of others that were in need of support. Liz has become a great inspiration for me. She seems to have her eyes set upon God. It reminds me of the verse in 2 Timothy that I used to always say when relating sports to your religious walk through life with God. "Let us run the race that is set before us looking onto Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith."

To me this sums up our entire aspect of life. We always feel we are in control, but God has already laid out a path for us. Our job is to focus on him and his will. If we would just listen to him, we will recieve more blessings than we could ever know. I mean he knows what is best for us and what will truely make us whole. Liz could have gotten angery at the world, or focused on the pain and fear of what would happen. Instead, she is looking at this as a journey that God is leading her through. Who knows what the purpose of the journey is and where it will lead, but she knows that God is in control. Last year, Liz touched my heart as one the students I blessed to get to teach and get to know. This year, Liz is my inspiration to keep my eyes focused on the one who has already laid my life's path for me. If she can look something like cancer in the face with strong faith. There is no excuse why I shouldn't be doing it too.

Diet Frustrations

So I started running seriously again last week. I am trying to get back to be able to run a 5k with Mom the next time she goes to run one. I figure it will help me get back in shape too before Bryan and I start trying for a little one. Well, after a week of running 3 to 4 days and playing in a 2 hour teacher vs student basketball tournament you would think I would drop maybe a pound this week....NOPE....as a matter of fact I gained 3 pounds....I am so confused. The same thing happened last summer. I ran a mile a morning and walked 2 every weekday last summer and ended up gaining 10 pounds over the summer. I am so confused. I see the doctor next month to see if she can help me determine if I have PCOS or not. I am pretty sure I do. I have all the symptoms and have not had a visitor in 5 months. I am just tired of getting discouraged everytime I begin working out and dieting again. It is hard to stay motivated when you see no progress, much less a weight gain.

There is a little humor in all this. One of my students from last year who helps out with organizing my room and that I still tutor after school says that they will start running with me to make sure I don't stop running. That makes me laugh. My students make me laugh. The students I have on the football team even wanted to make sure that I was at the track jogging after school regularly. Who knew that my 7th graders would hold me accountable. Another thing that does keep me focused is my co-teacher. Two of my math classes consist of me and another teacher working together with the students. Lauren, the co-teacher, is one of the major 7th grade girls coaches. She and I often talk about sports, which inspires me to get out there and get back in the groove.

A New School Year.....

So my parents are finally settled into their new home and just in time. Mom got a job as a 10th/12th grade English teacher in Cleburne,Tx. She and I have had many phone conversations about how our new school years are starting out. This year I am teaching 2 pre-ap classes, 2 regular math classes, and 2 co-teach math classes (a class that another teacher comes in and we work together with the students). I am really enjoying the new school building that I have moved into and my room couldn't be in a better location. I have the restroom across the hall, I have a corner room with 4 windows, and I am the closeset classroom to the teacher parking lot in the front of the school.

Bryan turned 27 this week on 9/9/09. What is so creepy about that is that if you add 9+9+9=27 (his age). We figured this out and found out that this little math equation has worked since 2000 and will work forever for him. After we analyzed it he asked if mine can do the same. 3+14+09= 26 (my last birthday and age). It also works for me. I find it creepy that I am a math teacher and my birthday has this coincidence and that it is also the day of pi (3.14). Makes me wonder if I was ever destined for anything else. Even stranger that I married a man whose birthday works with the same calculation.

Saying goodbye to Paris,TX

These last few weeks have been hard for my parents, siblings, and me.  In April, my dad's job talked of down sizing and let people know that if not enough employees volunteered to leave that they would start requesting them to do so  My dad immediately put his application on Monster.com and within 3 days had interviews with companies all over.  One company that was interested in him was still in Texas (what he preferred).   After interviewing with this company for 3 weeks they offered him a position as a reliability engineer.  He took the job and they put the house up for sale hoping it would sale within the next few months or within less than a year.  Little did my parents know, God had plans for their move to be quick.  The house sold within being on the market in 3 weeks.  I was shocked and so were they.  Today my parents are officially signing the house over to the new owners.  In the last week my parents, siblings, and I have been upset with the thought of saying goodbye to the house.  I am also sad about saying goodbye to those friends I hung out with every time I went to visit Paris for holidays.  

   I am going to miss Chancey and her children.  Chancey and I have been friends since 4th grade and still keep in touch on a regular basis.  I was there the day after her daughter  was born and have been in their lives for years.  Her daughter would even ask at the age of 3 "When is Cannis coming to pend the night wif me."  Along with Chancey will be my cousin Amber.  who I have so much fun with when I get a chance to see her.  At least I can see her whenever we have family reunions which makes me feel a little better.  I will miss getting to go down the road to visit Merita Head and see how Leslie and Kellie are doing.  

   It is hard to say goodbye, but at the same time I know that God has a hand in all of this because everything is transitioning so quickly for my parents to move from Paris to Burleson,TX.  

Finally a summer break!

Last Thursday was my last day at work for the school year.  I worked summer school in order to get extra money for a future baby fund.  I am not pregnant,but Bryan is a man who likes to plan things in advance.  Now our next step is getting back in shape.  I hope I don't get sick again like I did last time I tried to make a lifestyle change.  Bryan and I made those lovely news years resolutions and we followed them closely until I got bronchitis.  I was in the bed for 3 days and couldn't talk and had no appetite.  As soon as I started feeling better I wanted nothing but fatty food and there the lifestyle change went.  Now that I have time back in my life to relax, I am going to use it to jump start my lifestyle change again.  I do OK when I get to working out regularly and Bryan does well with the eating portion.  I am hoping that we can help each other out with the areas we are weak in.  

Along with the summer break comes a bitter sweet event.  My dad got a new job inn Burleson,TX and he started today.  My parents put their house up for sale and it was sold in 3 weeks.  The close on July 15th.  I am happy that they will be closer, but sad that I will never see my childhood home again.  I keep telling myself that its not the home I will miss,but all the memories that happened in that home.  The memories will always stay with me.  I have teared up a few times but I have not actually cried just yet.  The worst part is that I will not get to see family and friends that are still in Paris much anymore.  I can tell that my parents are having a hard time with that as well.  I just hope and pray that all goes well.  I know God has had a major hand in this transition because everything has lined up for them very smoothly in their transition.

My break will be spent working out, playing with the dogs, working around the house, and visiting family as much as possible.  Bryan and I head for a cruise to costa rico in a few weeks and can't wait to get to relax with him.  I know he needs a break too.

Laura and James got Married!!

Bryan and I went to a wedding this past weekend for two of our mutual friends from college. The started dating my first year at Tech together (2002). And they just got married this weekend. Laura made such a beautiful bride. I knew she would be because she made such a beautiful bridesmaid at my wedding.

It was fun getting to celebrate such a fun time with our friends and it was great to see other mutual friends from college. We got to hangout with Tom and his girlfriend Erin on both Friday and Saturday night as well as our friend Steve who has been working in Iraq since he graduated from Tech in 2005.

I really enjoyed getting away from the norm this past weekend, but we had to start back to the old grind today. Now I am starting a daily countdown for Hawaii in March. We leave in 40 days. I CAN'T WAIT!!! I know that I will need a break by then.