One-Room Schoolhouse

This past Tuesday the elementary students went on a field trip to a one-room schoolhouse. At the last minute, I decided that I wanted to go as well. Because I wasn't sure if I would need to leave early, I followed the school bus in my car.

This is what I got to see the entire ride there....

A bunch of goofy girls making faces at me! (Just so you know, we were stopped at a light when I took this picture :P)

The place we went was called the Claussville One-Room School...

Our "tour-guide" talked to the children for a bit outside the front of the school. Unlike back in the olden days, when they had horses, carriages and the occasional motor car going up and down the dirt road nearby, this poor woman had to shout over the noise of the loud trucks and cars zooming by on the rather busy main road!

After awhile, she took the children in by grade and got them organized in the classroom, assigning each of them a desk. Once all the children were inside, she gave them all name tags, and they actually became the children who once attended this particular school back in 1927. Some rather unusual and somewhat "old-fashioned" names that were given were - Ernest, Norman, Mary, Lillian, Donald, Roma, Evelyn, Carolyn, Frederick, Carl, William, and a name that many of us found rather humorous...Adolph!!

- The teacher's desk -

Once all the children were assigned their new names, our tour guide officially became Mrs. Masters, the school teacher. She let the children go outside for a few minutes, and then she rang the school bell. All the children scurried in and found their desks. School had officially begun. I was simply fascinated with the next 30 to 45 minutes of our time there. I've always been curious how one teacher taught so many different grade levels in one school room. It was quite amazing, let me tell you! The school day started with saying the pledge to the American flag, singing a patriotic song, and reading a Scripture passage. Then it was time for lessons. Oh my!! A teacher definitely had to be an extremely organized yet flexible woman back then (not that she doesn't have to be now)! Obviously, what we observed was rather fast paced because we weren't there for an entire school day, but still, it was pretty neat to watch! She had one grade level at the chalkboard, while giving another grade level an assignment to do on their slates. Then she had the older grade level read a chapter out of one of their readers and answer questions in their tablet. Then she would have another grade level stand in the aisle and do a spelling bee. It was neat to see how diligently these children worked on "pretend lessons." Although they did discover that Mrs. Masters was pretty strict, and if they made one tiny little error in their lessons, she told them that they were going to have to stay after school and do some extra work. :)

Finally, it was time for recess. Mrs. Masters taught the children a game called "Drop the Handkerchief". It was very similar to "Duck-Duck-Goose" but instead of tapping a child on the head when you wanted them to chase you around the circle, you would drop a handkerchief behind them.

The students standing in front of the school with their "teacher" Mrs. Masters. :)

I THOROUGHLY enjoyed going along on this field trip! I am generally not someone who makes last minute decisions, but I am glad I did! :) I felt like I was back in Little House on the Prairie days. On this field trip I just got a "glimpse" of what it must have been like to teach so many grade levels in one school day. Although it seemed rather intimidating, it definitely "sparked up" the teacher heart inside me again! Now I can't wait to teach Kindergarten again, hopefully this next school year! I am sooooo glad God has given me the opportunity to teach!!

Thanksgiving...Only Once a Year?

Today was Thanksgiving. At our house, we had the traditional turkey, stuffing, pumpkin pie, and a lot of other goodies in between. :) I am sure I could list a whole bunch of things that I am thankful for - things that I usually take for granted, but, by far, the biggest thing I was thankful for today was my family. They are a bit on the crazy and loud side at times, but I love them dearly! :P What made me more conscious of family this year than perhaps other years is the fact that today there was someone missing from our dinner table. My Pop-Pop (mom's dad) has been in the hospital for a week now. Earlier this week, he seemed to be doing really bad, and we weren't sure what was going to be happening in the near future. Thankfully, it seems like it was related to the medication he was on, so he is doing better! However, it sure was different not having him around to tell his famous "corny" jokes, puns, and stories.

We made his eyes light up later on this afternoon when we showed up in his hospital room with a tray of food from our Thanksgiving meal. There is nothing like getting a home cooked meal when you have been living on hospital food for a week!! (Let's just say he is not a huge fan of the hospital food!) He ate as much as he could of his turkey, stuffing and green bean casserole, but he kept eying that pumpkin pie. The vanilla ice cream on top of the pie was quickly turning into mush, so I gave him permission to eat his dessert before he finished his main meal. ;-)

I was glad we could go brighten up his day, because I know he was very discouraged to still be in the hospital. The first words out of his mouth when we visited him when he was first admitted into the hospital was, "I hope I can be at your house for Thanksgiving!" As my grandparents get older, and their health is beginning to decline, I am realizing more and more that each and every day is a gift. I need to treasure each moment I have with them. So, yes, although I have about a bazillion things I could name that I am thankful for, family definitely ranked the highest on my list today!

Our table before the food...

Our table after the food was placed on it, and just before we all dug in!

Later tonight, we played a rousing game of Phase 10. Phase 10 isn't what you would consider a rousing game all on its own, but my family definitely made it rousing tonight! It was my Nannie's first time playing, and she REALLY got into it! Let's just say there was a lot of yelling, frustrated sighs, and laughter throughout the evening. We were wiping away tears from our eyes at times because we were laughing so hard! It was a blast!! :)

We have so much to be thankful for!! It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the "holiday" that we forget what the purpose of Thanksgiving day is all about! We should be thankful every day of the year - not just on the day set aside to give thanks.

One of our "traditions" on Thanksgiving Day has been to watch an episode of a show called "That Girl". The episode is called "Thanksgiving Comes But Once a Year....Hopefully." It's about this girl who wants to impress both her parents and her boyfriend's parents for Thanksgiving by making all their favorite dishes, but everything seems to go wrong. Although it's a funny episode to watch, it just reminds me of how far people are from remembering the true meaning of this day! They get so focused on "tradition" and stressed out about the food instead.

However, it is a funny episode, so if you want to watch it, just follow this link! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-UYyBl8gOM

Bedroom "Remodeling" Part 3

I am happy to report that the big empty space in my room that I was lamenting over the other day is no longer empty!! The delivery guys came this morning, and with Andy's guidance, were able to get my mattress and box spring down to my room. What would I do without my amazing brother??!! :)

I don't have my new comforter yet, but I did buy new sheets and a warm fuzzy blanket for my new bed. Along with my new mattress, I also bought a new foam-like pillow. My old pillow was getting pretty flat!

I am looking forward to sleeping on my brand new mattress tonight! Hopefully the "new odors" that come with buying new things doesn't bother me too much as I slumber. ;-)

What's Wrong with this Picture?

Before I begin this post, allow me to insert an excerpt from yesterday's blog entry:

Tomorrow, Sleepy's is delivering my new mattress!! They should have fun transporting it down our steep basement steps....hahaha! I am sure they have had to maneuver around many different obstacles throughout the years, so it shouldn't be that much of a challenge for them. (hopefully!)

*Sigh*

Now please view the following picture. Do you see anything missing???

You see that big empty spot? Yeah, that's not supposed to be there anymore! There is supposed to be a brand new mattress & box spring filling up that area waiting to be slept on tonight.

I got a call on my cellphone today while at work. It was Mom informing me that the delivery guys could NOT get my box spring mattress down the steps. We were probably going to have to order a whole new mattress, because we needed a split box spring to fit down the steps. Of course, the mattress I had chosen did not have a split box spring option.

*Sigh*

Well, that put a slight damper on my day. You don't know how much I was looking forward to sleeping on that new mattress tonight!

When my Mom called my Dad, he asked if they had tried removing the railing, or at least tried to put the mattress through the opening between the railing and the steps. Nope...they hadn't tried that. Why would they? That would have been thinking "outside the box"!

Sooooo Mom and I went back to the mattress store. I was not a very happy camper, I must say, because I just KNEW that these delivery guys had been slackers, and could care less if the bed got down the steps or not. The guy at the mattress store was really nice and showed us two beds that had a split boxspring mattress. I sat on both of them, but just didn't "connect" with them (mostly because they were over $100 more than what we had spent on the other mattress!). It turned out that the split box spring mattress would be over $100 more as well, plus take another 2 weeks to get shipped in because it was a special order. I DON'T THINK SO! The guy was very understanding when Mom and I told him that we were determined to get that other mattress down the steps. He jokingly suggested a bulldozer to remove some of our walls. ;-) Where there is a will, there is a way!!

After dinner tonight, Dad and Andy were determined to see if a full-sized box spring could get down the steps or not. They took the box spring from my parents' bed, which is the same size as the one I am getting. It took them just a few minutes to slightly turn the mattress, and pull it through the opening between the railing and the steps.

Arrrggggh!!!

My Dad was like, "They couldn't do this???!!!" I mean, really. How hard would it have been to just turn the mattress slightly to fit it through the opening? Nope, they had to get it to turn the corner at the bottom of the steps, and if that didn't work...oh well!! Like I said, they weren't thinking "outside the box".

See that opening between the railing and the steps? That full-sized box spring mattress fit just perfectly through there.

Such is life! I guess the Lord just wants to teach me patience yet again. :) What's a few more nights sleeping in my old bed? After all, I have done it for years! :P

The next mattress delivery date is for this Wednesday. The guys had taken both the mattresses back again in case we would need to cancel the order. All I can say is that they better not charge us extra shipping!

Nothing is every simple, is it?!

Bedroom "Remodeling" Part 2

Because I didn't want to keep you in "suspense" any longer (ha!), here is my newly transformed "daybed". I got a body pillow at Kohl's last night to put along the back so I would be able to stack up some of my pillows, and I think it looks really good!

I am still getting used to the fact that it is much higher then my couch was, but I guess it is understandable seeing how it was created to be just a regular bed, not a day bed! I thought about taking off the frame, but I am afraid with how my room sometimes gets leakage, it would ruin the boxspring mattress if it was directly on the floor.

Right now I feel totally "disoriented" in my room! Last night I slept in my new "daybed" and it felt really strange laying against the wall like that on the other side of my room. I mean, I was still my room, still in my bed, but it just didn't feel the same! Oh well!

Tomorrow, Sleepy's is delivering my new mattress!! They should have fun transporting it down our steep basement steps....hahaha! I am sure they have had to maneuver around many different obstacles throughout the years, so it shouldn't be that much of a challenge for them. (hopefully!) I am not sure when to expect my new furniture to arrive, so I'll probably be sleeping on my new mattress on the floor for a couple of nights. That should be fun. :)

Bedroom "Remodeling" Part 1

I am in the midst of purchasing a new bedroom set! Because I am getting a new bed, my old bed needed to be put somewhere. It wasn't bad enough to just be thrown out, so I thought - hey, I could use it as a day bed! Place it along the wall, put a bunch of pillows on it and - ta-da!

However, I needed to get rid of the couch I already had so I would have room for my new "day bed." The couch that I had in my room has been in our house ever since my parents moved into the house over 25 years ago! The previous owners just left it for them when they bought the house.

I tried making it look nice by adding a throw, a blanket, some pillows etc., but it still didn't change the fact that it had a rather musty smell, and was old and sagging underneath!

So the couch officially exited my room today and was placed out front of our house with a "FREE" sign on it.

Don't you just love the "old gold" look?! :)

Last I checked it was still there. (shocking, I know!) We'll see if anyone is desperate enough to come pick it up. I really didn't have any "sentimental attachment" to this piece of furniture, so its definitely a relief that its now out of my room!

When my new "day bed" is all set up, I'll show you all a picture. I am sure you will be waiting with baited breath....oh well, it's exciting to me at least. :)

Courageous

I just discovered that the makers of Fireproof are coming out with a new movie called Courageous. They have made 3 great movies so far, so I am sure this one will be just as good if not even better!! The only thing that really "bugs" me is that they have broken their alliteration pattern. Their first 3 movies were Flywheel, Facing the Giants, and Fireproof - all starting with "F's". I guess that was just coincidence, but I notice things like that! :)

If you click on the picture below, it will take you to a short video where the producers/writers are telling about this movie they are in the middle of working on.

God's Faithfulness

For the past couple of months, I have been going through the Bible study on Becoming a Woman of Faith. It has been such a HUGE blessing to me as I read, study and answer questions about faith found throughout the Bible. In the first chapter, the author quotes from another book. Its been such a good reminder to me that I just wanted to share it with you!

~-~-~-~-~-~-~

He has called us into fellowship with Himself; He has owned us as His possession and has assumed the responsibility for our control and He will not lay it aside. What He has begun in us He will continue. His work in us does not depend upon our love for Him but on His love for us; not faith in our faith but faith in His faithfulness is what He wants from us.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~

The part I highlighted in bold is what really stood out to me in this quote. I think that so often in the Christian life we get focused on ourselves - wondering if we have enough faith; wondering if we are doing all that God wants us to do. We say that we are trusting in God and having faith in Him, but in reality we are having faith in OUR faith in God. We can't trust in our weak faith to see us through life's challenges - we need to put our trust in God's faithfulness!! God is not dependent on us - we are forever dependent on Him. And the good news is that He will NEVER fail us!!

A "Free Sample"?

Last night my Aunt Cheryl and I went out to dinner and then to the mall to shop. Now, you must understand this about me. I wouldn't necessarily put shopping on my "Top 10 Favorite-Things-To-Do" list. Sometimes I am in the mood...sometimes I am not. Last night I was in the mood because, first of all, I was having a fun time with my aunt, and secondly, I had gift cards which ALWAYS help! :) We were walking through the mall, and I had a particular store in mind where I wanted to just quickly browse through to see if they had any good deals. As we were heading to the store, a girl came alongside me with a basket of hand lotion samples. She asked me, "Would you like a free sample?" Well, of course, hearing the word FREE always makes my ears perk up, so like the gullible person I am, I innocently reached for one. As soon as I reached out my hand to get a sample, I knew that I had walked right into a trap. The girl gasped, "Oh my! Are those your real nails?!!!" I was like...ummm....yeah... She then said, "You have such nice nails! Could you hold out your hand so I could see them again?"

*Sigh*

15 minutes later...

Why am I so gullible??? I guess these sales people catch my eye, and being the polite individual that I am (smile), I don't have the guts to ignore them and walk away.

Would you believe this is the THIRD time these people have caught me?!

The first time, the guy literally grabbed my hand as I was walking by, and by the time I had recovered from my initial shock, it was too late.

Last year, I must admit, when the girl caught my eye and lured me into her "sales pitch trap", I didn't give much resistance, because - to be truthful - it really is a cool product, and it does amazing things to your nails. So yes, I was guilty of giving in to the sales pitch.

However, last night, I was seriously perturbed at myself and was determined NOT to give in no matter what she said. I told the girl that I already had the product, but she even had an answer for that - Oh, this is new and improved since last year!

*Sigh*

She kept lowering the price, and telling me to "zip it" - to not tell a single soul about the amazing deal she was giving me. I just gritted my teeth, and tried to be my sweet self, all the while getting more and more red in the face. You see, I had a destination in mind, and she was keeping me from it!!!

Thankfully, I finally said (for the umpteenth time), "No, I'm sorry, I can't buy it." (or something like that, in more mumbled tones) and walked away, ignoring her sad puppy dog eyes.

I realize she was just doing her job, and she had to find sneaky ways to lure people over to her booth, or she would never make a sale! I just hated to be her "victim" last night!

*Insert Spiritual Application*

Isn't that exactly how the devil works though in our lives? He lures us over with empty promises and vain things, hoping to get us caught in his trap. All the while, as he is whispering sweet nothings in our ear, we are being kept from our destination - serving the Lord and bringing Him glory with our lives! So here's a piece of advice...

Don't give in to the devil's sale's pitch the next time you hear him enticingly say, "Would you like a free sample?!" or whatever else he may say that he knows will lure you into his trap!

(Please realize I do not mean to compare that sales girl to the devil!! She was a really sweet girl, but I was just not in the mood to be dealing with her sales pitch last night. I thought of the spiritual application this morning and thought I'd blog about it!)

Science Fair

Last night there was a Science fair at EBA.

Alayna's project was on which stain remover removes tough stains the best. In case you are wondering...Shout did the best. :) Oh, and it was concluded that you should NEVER get mustard stains on your clothing!! That stuff is basically impossible to remove!! (unless any of you have any secret solution remedy????)

Yesterday morning at opening, Mr. Anger showed the students the following clip from Brian Regan. They all found it rather hysterical!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4XSgLMEFoc

Thankfully, every one got their project done on time, and there weren't any projects consisting of just a cup of dirt! :)

Going to the Science fair last night brought back memories of my senior year of high school when I was involved in a Science fair. It was a lot of work, but lots of fun!! Both Andy and I got to be a part of that Science fair that year. Could that really have been almost 6 years ago?!

Yankee Fans

So in case you haven't heard, the Yankees won the World Series last night. :) Needless to say, there was some excitement in our household!! My Dad and brother have been Yankee fans since, well, FOREVER!

And in case there is any doubt...

Even as a lil' baby, my brother was proud to be a Yankees fan!! Look at that toothless grin! Its very similar to the smile I saw this morning when I congratulated Andy on his team's win (just less toothless!). ;-)

(in case you are wondering - yes - I got Andy's permission to post that picture!!)

It's great to know my brother has been so consistent over the years!!

So I'd like to offer my congrats to all you Yankees fans!!! It was definitely exciting to watch them win last night. :)

The Ultimate Gift

The other week a friend mentioned that she had just watched the movie "The Ultimate Gift." I had seen previews for it when it first came out a couple of years ago, but had never watched it. Tonight I discovered it on good ole' You Tube, and decided to watch it. It was a really great movie!! There are so many lessons interwoven throughout the movie to remind you about what things really matter in life. After the movie was over, I soon found myself on Amazon.com. :) I had gotten a gift card for my birthday from my lil' bro and sis, and thought this would be a great way to spend some of it!! I also got the book that the movie was based on, so I am excited to read that in the near future - although I am sure the book will be different than the movie. It always is!!

As always, our family runs a "free library" (what a concept!), so if you ever want to borrow it (after it arrives, of course, and the rest of my family has a chance to watch it), feel free to ask!!

Jason thought his inheritance was going to be the gift of money and lots of it. Was he ever in for a big surprise. Based on the best-selling book "The Ultimate Gift" by Jim Stovall, the story sends trust fund baby Jason Stevens on an improbable journey of discovery, having to answer the ultimate question: "What is the relationship between wealth and happiness?" Jason had a very simple relationship with his impossibly wealthy Grandfather, Howard "Red" Stevens. He hated him. No heart-to-heart talks, no warm fuzzies, just cold hard cash. So of course he figured that when Red died, the whole "reading of the will" thing would be another simple cash transaction, that his Grandfather's money would allow him to continue living in the lifestyle to which he had become accustomed. But what Red left him was anything but simple. Red instead devised a plan for Jason to experience a crash course on life. Twelve tasks, which Red calls "gifts," each challenging Jason in an improbable way, the accumulation of which would change him forever.