proof that I do know how to do my job

Testing Day #1

So yesterday, day 1, was math. I have to walk around the room and watch them take the test to make sure they are doing all the "things" right. Like bubbling in the right places, not marking on the answer sheet where they are not allowed to, not opening another part of the test we are not on, not going back to a part we are already finished with, etc. etc....the list goes on and on. So anyways....I'm walking around and I can see that for the most part my kids did pretty well on the math section. Well at least I think/hope so. None of them got stressed out. They all took their time and I could tell they were doing the work. So we will see when the scores come in....

Testing Day #2

Another successful day. Today was our writing and informational text part. So the writing topic was to write a letter to a friend that you went to school with last year and tell them all the fun things they missed out on this year by not coming back to your school. I about cried tears of EXTREME JOY when I saw this topic!! I can't tell you how many times we have worked on writing letters! I had my kids write a letter at the first of they year and they did so bad on it that we would write letters often just to get into the practice of what a letter is supposed to look like and sound like. I know they had to of done well on that part today! Again I'll have to wait for the true results when the scores come in.....but I am confident! Plus my kids have been extremely confident in themselves these past two days which really really helps!

So.....so far so good!!

YAY!!

I sure did have a lot to say today.....:)

When you are finally content in your own situation...

....is when He does what you have been wanting all along!

So I wrote that blog about my revelation, and it really was. I have gone back and forth from wanting to be here, to not wanting to be here in Louisiana. Last September when David was offered a job at home I thought it was horrbile timing because I was so very happy here. I loved everything that was going on in our lives here in Louisiana. I was so upset about the whole thing, and then it fell through. I was sad it didn't happen, but I was happy to get to stay in Louisiana for more time. Then life got hard, and I got to the point of not wanting to be here anymore. It was really my job that ruined everything. I was so upset and stressed out everyday. I hated going to work. So I sat down to type that blog and it turned into me realizing that where I am right now is okay. I can be happy in this place, because it's where He wants me to be. I have to take the bad and find the good. And I did just that. I was content with being here in Louisiana, and I decided that I would be happy here for however long that has to be......

Well that only has to be for 2 more months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE MOVING HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited about the whole thing I could scream from the roof of our apartment!! David was offered a mall in Allen, and it couldn't have been better timing!! On Tuesday David's boss came out here and they posted a help wanted ad online, and got 3 hits by the end of the day. Last night David and his boss interview a guy, and they have decided to hire him to take David's job. They are going to tell him on Monday, and then David will have to train him for 2 weeks ones he starts. So by the first of May David will be home in Dallas at his new job in Allen! I will have to wait it out here until the end of the school year. Then I'll be coming home. The timeing couldn't be more perfect. While I'm home for Spring Break Richardson ISD is holding their job fair. So I'm going to go to that. Garland is also holding their job fair too, so I am going to do by damn best to make it to that one too. They are on the same day at the same time. But I'm going to try and do them both. I'll just be tired when they are over and have to haul ass to make it to Jennifer's baby shower in time!

But anyways...so right now our plan is to live with David's parents until our lease is up here. We will still have to be paying rent for June, July and August. Then we wanted to stay through December so we could save some money. We'll see how long we can handle it. 6 months can be a long time! I hope it all works out though. I'm sure it will.....again I just need to trust in Him because he clearly is watching out for us!!

So anyways....that is the exciting news! WE ARE MOVING HOME!!!!!! I'm so happy about it!!

But I haven't told my boss yet. Acutally today I sent him an email telling him that I can't wait to come back for next year. Just in case....you never know....expecially after what happened in September. I don't want everything to fall apart and we not go and then to top it off I gave up my job here. So that is the only string left to deal with once it's all said and done! I'm so excited!!! :)

a time warp

****20 YEARS AGO (1989)*****
1) How old were you? 7
2) Who were you dating? I was 7! Though I did have a "boyfriend" in first grade...don't remember who
3) Where did you work? Corey Elementary 1st grade baby!
4) Where did you live? Arlington
5) Where did you hang out? I'm gonna go with home and school haha...sometimes the playground
6) Did you wear contacts or glasses? not yet
7) Who were your best friends? Kristin
8) How many tattoos did you have? just the temporary ones
9) How many piercings did you have? ears
10) What kind of car did you drive? my bike
11) Had you been to a real party? I think my 6th birthday was probably the craziest thing anyone has been to!
12) Had your heart broken? nah
13) Were you single/taken/married/divorced?
14) Any kids? I was a kid!

****15 YEARS AGO (1994)****
1) How old were you? 12
2) Who were you dating? no one
3) Where did you work? Boles Jr. High
4) Where did you live?? Arlington
5) Where did you hang out? Home, Neeley's house
6) Did you wear contacts and/or glasses? glasses
7) Who were your closest friends? Neeley, Dorothy, Kim, Kelsey, Virginia, and Jessica
8) How many tattoos did you have? whatever I would write on myself
9) How many piercings did you have? just the ears
10) What kind of car did you drive? still the bike
12) Had you had your heart broken? a 12 y/o heartbreak...nothing to write home about :)
13) Were you Single/Taken/Married/Divorced? single
14) Any Kids? nope

******10 YEARS AGO (1999)***
1) How old were you? 17
2) Who were you dating? no one
3) Where did you work? So Tan, Toys R Us, Winn Dixie
4) Where did you live? Arlington and Fort Worth
5) Where did you hang out? Home, work, Candi's house
6) Did you wear contacts and/or glasses? contacts
7) Who were your closest friends? Candi, Kim, Jessica
8) How many tattoos did you have? none
9) How many piercings did you have? ears
10) What kind of car did you drive? 1990 Chevy Silverado....miss that truck!
11) Had your heart broken? many times, and by people I never imagined
12) Were you Single/Taken/Married/Divorced? single
13 Any Kids? 0

****TODAY (2009)****
1) Age? 27
2) Where do you work? Abramson Science and Technology.....hell.....
3) Where do you live? Kenner, LA
5) Who are your closest friends? David, Amy, Jessica, Candi, Deb, and Kim
6) Do you talk to your old friends? not really
7) How many piercings do you have? ears
8) How many tattoos? just one....trying to convince David for us to get one
9) What kind of car do you have? 2008 Saturn Vue...orange of course
10) Had your heart broken? never again!
11) How many kids? 0
12) Are you Single/Taken/Married/Divorced? happily married!
13) Contact or Glasses? contacts still....one day I hope no more!

S A T U R D A Y night!

Well the day started off with me going to the zoo...that was interesting. It was all for work and I wasn't there but for like 2 hours. I didn't see any animals at all. There were like 2 million people there....that's a whole other story in itself....While I was there I saw a booth that was selling fresh strawberries, and I was going to buy some before I left. But I forgot :( So I am walking to my car and there this guy is selling fresh strawberries out of his truck! So I bought half a flat of strawberries for $9! It's a TON of strawberries!! They are soooo good too!

But on to this evening.....David really wanted us to do something "together" so we looked and looked on the Internet to try and find a script because he wanted us to do a duet and record it on our new camcorder. Well we couldn't find anything that we both agreed on and it was really hard to find anything in the first place. So I suggested that we paint! So we did! It was so much fun too! This all started because earlier this week I made us watch this man paint on tv. We watched him paint for a good 20 minutes. It gave me a big itch, and tonight David and I scratched it. And now all I want to do is paint more!!

Here are some pictures of us painting.....

this turned into my revelation...

So I am officially certified to teach in Louisiana. I honestly don't know what to think about this. I think that part of me put it off for two years because....I don't know...so many reasons.
*I thought in the back of my mind if I didn't do it, then it would be easier to go home.
*I thought in the back of my mind if I didn't do it, then it would be easier to take getting fired.
*I thought I don't need to do it, we'll be gone soon, and no one will know the difference.
*haha for a while I thought that I couldn't have Texas and Louisiana, so that was another reason I didn't do it, because I didn't want to lose my Texas one...found out that wasn't true......haha

But it's just looking like we are not going home any time soon. This makes me so sad and happy at the same time. I miss all that is home. There is nothing about home that makes me think "Man I sure don't miss that!" I miss my family so much. I miss seeing them often. I am sad that they are doing things together all the time and I am missing so much of it. I feel like they are so far from me. Though I know this isn't true.

I miss my friends so so so so so so very much! They are out doing things all the time, and I wish each time that I could be there. My heart is sad each time I miss a meeting. :(

But then I am happy. I am happy to be someplace different with my amazing husband. I love that we are experiencing this together, and it will be a part of our lives forever. I love that when we try something new here, we are doing it together, and that it's new for both of us. I love that this is a place where people come to visit us. I love that. I love having people to show my "place" to! I do love my job. We all know the things I hate about my job. But I do love my children and the other teachers I work with. These woman have become a huge part of my life. Especially Amy. I just love her. She is a really great friend, and she does a great job of showing me her "place" that is called New Orleans!

The other day I was driving and all I could think about was how great this place is that I'm living in. There are millions of people that take their vacation here, and I LIVE here! It is a fun place to be. There is always so much to do. I love going out and doing anything here.

So for how ever long God's plan is for me to be here. I am ready to face it. I know that some of it will be hard. Since I have seen how some of it has already been hard. I lived through that, and I know I can live through the rest of it. I will be home when He wants me to be home. I also know that the second he says "it's time to go home" I won't hesitate to get my butt on that road home!! But I am enjoying what I have at this moment. Though there are just some days....like Tuesdays ;).....when I really just want to be home.

ZYX's

The Letter A
Are you available? most of the time I am...I don't really have much planned
What is your age? 27
What annoys you? work emails...grrr
The Letter B
Do you live in a big house? no it's a small apartment
When is your birthday? August 12th
Who is your best friend? David
The Letter C
What's your favorite candy? anything with chocolate and peanut butter
Who's your crush? I don't know...don't really have one
When was the last time you cried? saturday
The Letter D
Do you daydream? often
What's your favorite kind of dog? yorkie
What day of the week is it? Wednesday
The Letter E
How do you like your eggs? scrambled
Have you ever been in the emergency room? I have
What's the easiest thing ever to do? think
The Letter F
Have you ever flown in a plane? I have
Do you use fly swatters? nope
Have you ever used a foghorn? not that I can remember
The Letter G
Do you chew gum? sure
Are you a giver or a taker? I give too much sometimes
Do you like gummy candies? love them!
The Letter H
How are you? happy to be home, and a little less stressed so far this week....
What color is your hair? brown
The Letter I
What's your favorite ice cream? sweet cream
Have you ever ice skated? it has been a while
Do you play an instrument? I used to play the violin
The Letter J
What's your favorite jelly bean brand? there are these organic ones that are amazing!
Do you wear jewelry? I do
The Letter K
Who do you want to kill? a few people...but I will never put their names in print!!
Do you want kids? yes
Where did you go for kindergarten? Corey
The Letter L
Are you laid back? I have my moments
Do you lie? it's a waist of time
The Letter M
Whats your favorite movie? I could never pick just one
Do you still watch Disney movies? sure do!
Do you like mangos? don't know that I've ever had a mango..though I do like mango flavored things
The Letter N
Do you have a nickname? nat and noni
What is your real name? Natalie Christine
Whats your favorite number? 12
Do you prefer night over day? I do
The Letter O
What's your one wish? to have millions so I don't have to work
Are you an only child? nope
The Letter P
What one fear are you most paranoid about? losing my parents
What are your pet peeves? adults that tattle without finding out the facts
What's a personality trait you look for in people? kindness and careing
The Letter Q
What's your favorite quote? "Most of us end up with no more than five or six people who remember us. Teachers have thousands of people who remember them for the rest of their lives." - Andres A. Rooney
Are you quick to judge people? I think that I take too long to judge people....I think that is part of my problem
The Letter R
Do you think you're always right? oh yeah
Are you one to cry? Oh yeah
The Letter S
Do you prefer sun or rain? sun
Do you like snow? sure
What's your favorite season? Fall
The Letter T
What time is it? 6:38 p.m.
What time did you wake up? 6 am....I woke up late today
When was the last time you slept in a tent? It has been a while
The Letter U
Are you wearing underwear? yes
Underwear or boxers? boxers
The Letter V
What's the worst veggie? calaflower....haha I know that's not how you spell it...but you get the point
Where do you want to go on vacation? anywhere tropical
The Letter W
What's your worst habit? I have no idea...
Where do you live? Kenner
What's your worst fear? a bridge falling on me when I'm under it or it falling when I'm on it or me driving over the side of it
The Letter X
Have you ever had an x-ray? oh yeah
Have you seen the x-games? nope
Do you own a xylophone? hells yeah I do! I even have a group that meets every monday night to play
The Letter Y
Do you like the color yellow? it's alright
What's one thing you yearn for? a better job
The Letter Z
Whats your zodiac sign? leo
Do you believe in the zodiac? no
Favorite zoo animal? giraffe

Mine and David's new blog

http://andthisiswhattheywrote.blogspot.com/

This is the link to our blog...go check it out, and become our followers. I hope sometimes it makes you laugh :)