Is December Over yet?

We kicked off the month of December with a craft show with Jason's mom. She's very crafty and sells her things at the local craft shows. At the end of last year and this year she thought it would be fun if she taught me her fudge recipe and then had me sell it with her at the craft shows. Not much fun when you're working full time, student teaching full time, getting ready for the holidays, getting ready to graduate and trying to get the house ready for out-of-town family. Anyway, somehow we did it.

Here's what 20 pounds of fudge looks like packaged and ready to go. And, in every flavor: Peanut Butter, Chocolate, Chocolate with Pecans, Chocolate with Walnuts, Mint Chocolate, Candy Cane and Pumpkin Pie.

And here is my table at the craft show:

So then, after the mania of getting ready for a craft show, Jason's dad and stepmom made it here for my graduation. It was a very exciting, and tiring week.

Here they are with the grandkids (Jason's brother's kids), Kara and Hunter:

Then, of course, there was the graduation. Who could forget that? But before I go on, I just think it's important to reflect on where I came from, where I've been and where I'm going. (Reflections...that's the teacher in me!!!)

First of all, where I've been is not easy. I grew up as an only child in a house filled with love. My mom stayed home for most of my life and my dad was the bread winner. When my mom got cancer, the first time, it hit our family like a ton of bricks. I was 5. Can you believe I still remember? Who could forget something like that. However, my parents made it as normal for me as possible. It wasn't even after the second diagnosis of cancer that turned our lives upsode down. It was after the second surgery to the second diagnosis, about 7 years later. After a horrible medical mistake my life changed forever. It was hard to have a normal family after that, but we managed.

It was during that hard time that my mom urged me to go to college to be the best I could. It wasn't that I would never go, I just never talked about it because my mom was so sick and taking care of her was financially draining, I didn't dare talk about spending money on myself. Then, we got that magic phone call. It was from my great aunt and uncle. They asked my mom about my future plans and said they'd like to help out. From that point on my college tuition was paid for at the junior college I was going to. I would charge the bill on dad's credit card and send them the receipt for a full reimbursement. What a godsend they were. Without them, I may not have been this far. Thank you Uncle Donald and Aunt Sharon for opportunity you gave me!

I do have to say though, the free ride did wear out. It was when I started attending Texas Woman's University that I paid my own way. Sometimes I would get student loans and sometimes we would just write a check. Regardless of how I got through school, I made it and it feels great.

Where I've been is a place I never thought I'd see. Furthuring my education really wasn't a priority for me initially. I'm not even sure why. I guess I just thought it was an unattainable goal. However, I proved that hard work, dedication and an undying will to suffer through it paid off. One more thing, I didn't get through it alone. I had my family, friends and of course Jason. He was so calm with me, even though it seems like many times I would just never finish. I literally spent 10 years of full time school and work to get where I am. And just to clear things up, the reason it took me so long is because I decided that I wanted to go to pharmacy school first. It was a good choice at first, but the program is 4 years, on top of a bachelor's degree. AND, there aren't any in this area. The closest one is 3 hours away. Not really something I was willing to commit to. Then, when I got my transcripts after my Associate's Degree I knew I could do better and so I took 2 years cleaning up my grades. It was after that I decided that I might like teaching. Funny, if you knew me in school. I wasn't exactly "good student" material. However, that was the decision I made and I enrolled at TWU. For the last 3 years I have put my heart and soul in to getting this degree, and on December 13, I made it happen!

Before I get to the where I'm going, here is a picture of me on the big day. These are all I have right now, but my dad has some others I will post as soon as I get them:

(flattering get-up isn't it?)

The Graduate:

So, where am I going? Easy! I'm not going anywhere alone. I've got Jason, my wonderful family and I've really surrounded myself with some awesome friends.

The Wednesday after graduation I got a call from Gene Pike Middle School (the one I student taught at) to come tutor their students that aren't passing the state exam. So, I accepted and I start on day a week at the end of January and I work there through May. Not exactly a teaching job, but it's an opportunity to be seen at the school and since that's my first choice school, I will hopefully get a position in the fall. I must have already made and impression on them since they called me back to work for them!

Once I get my first teaching job, I will complete that school year and look in to getting my Master's degree. Can you believe it??? It's only 18 months, and I can finish it all on-line. As far as going any further with my education goes, I'll probably stop there, although the PhD robing ceremony at graduation looked pretty neat.

After graduation Jason had a dinner planned at the Prairie House. I had a great time.

Dave and Mary (Jason's dad and stepmom)

Jason and Jaci (our friend)

And my stepgrandparents (my stepmom's parents), JoAnn and Earl, or grandma and grandpa!

Dad and Sherry

Some of my favorite people in the whole world, Michelle (my pharmacist) and her husband Erik

Aunt Darlene and Uncle Doug (Jason's mom's sister and her husband)

Cousin, Josh. Doug and Darlene's crazy kid. KIDDING JOSH!!!!

Carrie and Chuck, Jason's coworkers from Denton County

Maribeth (MB) and her sister Abby, my coworkers

Brian and Hunter, Jason's brother and his son (he wasn't feeling well)

Amy and Kara, Jason's brother's wife and their daughter

Johnny and Michelle, Jason's coworkers from Denton County

Jason's mom and stepdad, Lorna and Bobby, with Hunter

Grandma, Jason's mom's mom

Tracy, the manager of the jewelry store that Jason does security for (Bachendorf"s), and her husband Jeff

Uncle Rick, being normal

And MeMe, or Dr. Collins as I like to call her, another one of my pharmacists from Walgreens, and one of my biggest supporters!

To be continued............

My Mom saw me Through My State Exam!

OK, so, I know I've gone on and on about my school, but I can't help it, this must be my year. I PASSED MY STATE EXAM!!! YEAH!!! I am officially a certified educator for the state of Texas. I can't believe it. I'm completely done with school and got fingerprinted yesterday for the state board of educators.
I guess I'm surprised I passed the test because I took it on what would have been my mom's 50th birthday. Then, I look back on where my life was going and I look again at where I actually am going and I amaze myself. I shouldn't be this far along. With a lifetime of set backs, I have really pulled through and conquered some huge mountains to get where I am. None of it came easy, but I did it.
This December marks the 10th year that my mom left me. It's a hard way to end the year, but what pulls me through is that I am ending it with a graduation, something she would have loved to have seen in person. I know she's looking down on me and is proud, and for that I am grateful, but no one loves you like your momma. Luckily I have a great family, and I can't forget my dad. I don't know what I would without him. He's turned into one of my biggest supporters. He, for the first time, called me a teacher a few months ago. He checks in regularly to see how things are wrapping up before graduation. And Jason, what a sport. We've had a tough road too, and I've been trying to get finished with school for so long that it almost doesn't seem real. He has told everyone that we know, and even a few people we don't know, that I am graduating.
Every year I learn more and more about what family means to me, and every year my family holds me up and allows me to follow my dreams. My dreams finally came true. I can't thank my family enough, and my friends.

It's Been Too Long

What a horrible blogger I am. I have been so busy, you can't even imagine. Anyway, here are some things I've wanted to share and now that my life has slowed down a bit, here they are.

First, elementary school only lasted a week. Thank God for that, I couldn't handle another day! As it turns out, middle school is my calling. The elementary school thing is a long story, so, long story short, there was an illness with my cooperating teacher and I talked my way back to the middle school. I was placed in 6th grade science. What an experience! I now know everything there is to know about force and motion.....again.


On a sad, but good note, today was my last day of student teaching. I'm gonna miss those kids. You never know what kind of impact you have on students until your out of the classroom and in the halls. You literally have to shake some of them off your legs! I don't mind though. I'm so happy I chose this path. I think I am right where I need to be but the journey wasn't easy. I have everyone to thank for supporting me fulfill this tiny dream of being an educator. The dream was really just to finish college, but this degree is truly what I needed.

Next step? GRADUATION BABY!!! YEAH!!! December 13, 2008.

Moving on. Most people know it's autumn when the leaves start changing colors and falling (unless you live in texas where everything skips the color changing part and just dies and falls off). But at my house, this is how I know autumn is here:



And this:




which leads to this:



And then this:



For those interested, this is Jason's "Trophy Buck", and his first experience with "Buck Fever". He's been hunting a long time, but this one finally got his heart pumping. It's a 20pt buck that weighed in at 195 field dressed. Guess where this is going? I don't know either. All I know is that it's getting the mother of all mounts.

On to some Halloween fun. This year we decided at the last minute (October 30 at 9pm) to carve pumpkins. We try to do it every year, but this year was just so busy. Anyway, here is how we made out:

Elementary School

Well, I've left the Panthers and turned into a Cougar, A W.R. Hatfield Cougar that is. I've started the second part of my student teaching which is 5th grade. What a difference, going from 8th grade to 5th grade. It's literally like two different worlds. I have to say, although I was originally intimidated by middle schoolers, that's where I've found my teaching calling.

Oh, and I need to direct you all to Jason in the local county paper where he works. He was recently on the front page of the Wise County Messenger, for arresting some guy with warrants. "Another bad guy off the streets!"
http://www.wcmessenger.com/update/index.php

Little by Little

OK, as you can see (hear) I finally got a music player going. I'm so excited, and I figured it out all by myself. There's one song on there that I would like to address to my dad, and since he's commented to me about our blog I know he'll read this. Neon Moon by Brooks and Dunn was the song that my dad and I danced to every night when we were out. It would be the last song of the night and it didn't matter where we were, we would find each other and head out on to the dance floor. It's my favorite because I will always think of my dad when I hear it. Dad, I hope you remember this. It's just one of the small things that has always stuck with me. I LOVE YOU DAD!

Pike Panthers

It's official. For the next 6½ weeks I'll be a Pike Panther, teaching at Gene Pike Middle school in the Northwest ISD. It's a beautiful campus. I go there and I can't help but remember my midde school. It was literally a square, and not even a big square. The cafeteria was located in the middle and the halls all around were where the classrooms were. That's it. Pike is unbelievable. It's seems like a 10 minute walk from one end to the other. Anyway, I'm in an 8th grade Language Arts class, and I made it through the first week. I finish there the first week of October and then I move to W.R.Hatfield Elementary in a 5th grade classroom.
Driving to school every morning is so much fun. I have to drive around the high school to get the the middle school and I see the band practicing and the color guards swinging their flags. That really gets my heart pumping. I really miss Friday Night Football in Texas, dancing in the Drill Team and cheering on the Varsity squad. Who knows, every squad needs a coach, right?

Student Teaching!

I did it!!!! I passed everything and now I start student teaching (not that I've ever failed a class, but still, never can get too comfortable). I just got my placement today. I'll be doing 7 weeks in an 8th grade Language Arts class, and if I don't get eaten alive by middle schoolers I will do my last 7 weeks in a 5th grade class, my preference.
I can't believe it. All of that hard work finally paid off. Jason and Crystal were great. They got me a cookie cake that said "Congrats for Passing". I will post a picture of it as soon as I contact Becky and get her help with blogging. She's so good at it and her blog makes mine look like a mess!

Time's Going By So Fast

I can't believe I haven't been here in over a month. Most of all, I can't believe that I'm almost done with school. I was starting to think I'd never see this day. However, I have to get past this Earth Science class. Easy and interesting topic...hard tests. If I pass this class I will have a graduation date of December 13, 2008. Sounds good until I remember my high school graduation date!
I do have one complaint! My car! It's like once one thing goes wrong a hundred more things happen. Maybe not a hundred, but 4 or 5 can feel like a hundred, especially when you're by yourself when they happen. So, aside from my car not starting because the key wouldn't turn (two different occasions), guess what happened today! My car wouldn't start. This time, the battery. That was a pretty penny considering only 1 size battery fits my car, and it's the most expensive one. Then of course the oil change and inspection and registration, and let's not forget I had to fill it up with gas today too. So, my point is, if you see me walking on the side of the road, please stop and pick me up!!!!!

Jason's Green Thumb

So for the first time this year all of our gardens looked exactly the way we wanted them to. It only took us 3 years to do it. Jason really works hard on our yard to make it beautiful for us. We love when we're outside and our neighbors come gawk at it and tell us how great it looks. But trust me, it didn't come easy. Our choice for flowering plants in Texas is limited, but during the spring we were able to get our hands on some really pretty things.
Back to Jason...you wouldn't believe what he goes through to get our yard green and our plants flowering. He works 4 ten hour days and gets home at midnight on those days. He waters the gardens before coming in at night and on his three days off, if he's not out working a part-time security job he's out in the yard with the water hose. One day we'll get that sprinkler system we always wanted! Haha!!!
Also, while I'm here I just wanted to say Happy Birthday this month to Jaci!!! She's 20 today but doesn't act a day over 5!! Happy Birthday Jaci! We love you!

Here comes the....GRADUATE!!

So, there was a test I had to take before I could graduate and.......I PASSED!!! That means that I will definately graduate in December. So many doors will open, some of which already have. Although I have a dream to teach, I will explore all of my options first and make sure that any decision I make will benefit me and my family. The funniest part of my test results was that the part scored so poorly on the first time ended up being my highest grade - Social Studies. Unbelievable. This just goes to show that you really can do what you put your mind to. YAY ME!!!!

Jason's Truck

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Finally got all the lights installed on the truck. It took several days but its finished. I will try to take some pictures with the lights on and post them. I put a set of LED lights in the front grill. We installed a set of strobe lights in the four corners of the truck. I designed a light bar for the back of the truck which has four separate lights attached. The light bar is removable so I don't have to drive around with it attached all the time. We ran all the wiring under the truck and drilled a hole in the floor of the truck under the drivers seat. We then installed a fuse block which supplies power to all the lights. I purchased a control box from speedtechlights.com which I installed under the seat. The reason the lights were installed is for an off duty job that I work. I make sure construction workers are protected at night time. I am contracted out by a company called TCOPS. Its alot of fun and you meet some interesting characters. I guess thats about all the excitement I have to say today.

Holiday Weekend

Some Holiday! I had to work. Jason was off, but he still worked...on his truck (he's putting lights all over his truck for off-duty jobs). We did have an opportunity to have some holiday fun last night. We went to Wolfdance. 10 band for 10 bucks. What a deal. They started at 2 and ended around 10:30, but we only wanted to see the last 3 bands. So, we got there around 5:30, just in time to get a spot to see the Eli Young Band, Kevin Fowler, and Miranda Lambert (that makes our third time to see her). I would have posted pictures but the tickets said no pictures. Had I know that was only a suggestion I would have brought my camera. Needless to say I saw more cameras than shirts on that day. Oh well. It was HOT! Welcome to TEXAS!

4 DAYS LEFTS!!!!

4 days left of maymester...YAY!!!!! I can't wait. But then I start Summer I session. No worries though, it's an online course. Then a summer II session, and then FINISHED!!! I can't believe I did it. I've come so far and I can't believe I'm acutally finishing school, or that I will be a teacher. It's very weird. Anyway, big week this week. My faves all won! Kristi Yamaguchi won Dancing with the Stars and David Cook won American Idol. Bad news...season finales of Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy. Oh well, I didn't need the distractions anyway. That's my news. Jason's news: he's been working alot. That's it. We're pretty boring.

The Dogs

Alot of you know that we have sort of an SPCA in our house. First it started with Nacho. She is the biggest pain in the butt. She is completly DAWNS dog. She loves to wipe her eye buggers in your hand or on whatever you are wearing. Her favorite past time includes rolling in anything stinky, barking, and digging holes under our fence.

Then there is Mia "I am the Princess dog". She was a rescue from some horrible people where we lived in Justin. She loves to prance around the house and let you know she is the boss. If your knock on the door or ring the door bell she is the one you will hear. She has the worst breath of any dog you will ever know. She started out as Dawns dog but I have to admit she is Daddy's little girl. Where ever I go she follows. When I get home she runs up to me and starts to bark and wants to play. When I sit she is there. Her favorite past times are burping in your face, or sleeping.

Then Coco Chanel came along. Coco was a Christmas gift to ME. I believe it was Christmas of 2006. I had been bugging Dawn forever to get me a CHOCOLATE LAB. Dawn went out and got me a BLACK LAB. She is the best dog in the world. She has never chewed on anything and only dug a few holes. She does do some hunting but it takes her a few times to remember what to do. Her favorite past times are Sleeping, Farting, Snoring, and chasing the DOT laser pen and playing in her pool. She is still my dog no matter what Dawn might say. She only listens to me.

Last but not least Remington "Dir Dir Dir" Steele. Remington found me. He ran up to me and it was love at first site. Or sucker if you really want to know the truth. He is a little over a year old. Completely male or RETARDED if you ask Dawn. He is full of energy and gets stuck in RUN mode all the time. He is my dog all the way. He is very stubborn when it comes to Dawn. He does not listen to anything she says. I just have to look at him and he knows what to do. He loves to chase anything and body slam into people. He has been hunting a couple of times that was a complete chore. He wanted to be with Coco. His favorite past times are basically whatever Coco is doing or whatever I am doing. He has a special relationship with Coco shes his love muffin. Doesnt do any good nothing works on either one of them but he still tries.

OOOOOOP's

We had to start over so if you don't see something you saw before it's all DAWN'S fault!!!!! She totally FREAKED OUT when she added some dead deer pics and didn't know how to remove them. I added some, somewhat tasteful pictures of my most recent kills. I will add a picture of my 8 pt buck that was featured in the December 2007 issue of BUCKMASTERS Magazine pg 72. I don't know where the pictures are located on the computer so I might have to scan a picture and add it. So if you want to see anything let us know. We will add stuff to this as often as possible.